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  Nick snorted as he saw where this was heading. "So I'm the sitting duck ... now there's a big surprise. Y'all might as well cover me with Mark's duck urine while you're at it, too."

  Xev made an annoyed "heh" sound.

  Ignoring them both, Caleb continued. "And we have to pull a Div out of a Charonte." He crossed himself.

  "Dude, you're not Catholic."

  "No, but much like Clovis, to win this round, I'm willing to convert." Caleb took a deep breath. "All right, crew. Let's go find Simi and try not to die."

  "Let's do it." Nick clapped his hands together to encourage them. "Should I ask for our odds of survival?"

  "No!" they all shouted at Nick in unison.

  "Okay," he said slowly as his ulcer came back with friends. "To certain death, dismemberment, and undignified screams, let us march!"

  CHAPTER 17

  Nick hesitated on the street, not too far from Menyara's store. "Are you sure this'll work?"

  Caleb nodded as he took Nick's sword. "You didn't have your powers earlier. It's why the Div didn't try to possess you, then. Now, it'll sense them and leap. When it does..." He held the sword up pointedly.

  Then collapsing it, he handed the hilt to Nick who slid the sword into his pocket.

  As he did so, Nick froze. A peculiarly surreal sensation engulfed him. No, not engulfed.

  Slapped. Like an enemy with an iron gauntlet that had just laid open his cheek to challenge him for a duel.

  It felt like an out-of-body experience. As if something had jerked his soul from his body to hover over himself, and he was looking down at a stranger in one really tacky shirt. For the first time, he really saw himself as others did.

  Taller than most, he was still a gangly kid whose body fit the same as a child trying to walk in their parents' shoes. Yeah, he faked it. Nick would never let anyone know just how insecure he truly was about every aspect of his personality and looks.

  At the end of the day, he couldn't deny the feelings of inadequacy that forever stalked him like a hungry Daimon out to shred his soul. The never-ending terror that Nick wouldn't live up to being the man he wanted to be.

  Worse, that he really was the monster demon he'd been bred to become. That the Malachai would emerge and tear down everything his mother had tried to teach him. Shred all the humanity inside him until he no longer cared who he hurt.

  Nick's mind went back to Kyrian talking to him about The Iliad for class. "Life is always about choices, Nick. Sometimes we make them for selfish reasons. Sometimes we make them for others. Sometimes we run from them and sometimes they're forced on us against our will. Paris could have left Helen alone, regardless of what the goddesses had promised him. Hector could have given up his brother and saved his kingdom. Achilles didn't have to withdraw from battle out of spite. Patroclus didn't have to put on Achilles' armor to inspire their forces. Nor did Achilles have to kill Hector knowing that when he did so, it would mean his own death. Was it Helen's choice to go with Paris to Troy? She could have stayed in Sparta, and when Troy fell, she could have killed herself rather than return with the husband she'd originally fled.... Where is that line of free will and what is preordained by the gods? Do we choose our lives or are we merely pawns to some higher game we know nothing of?"

  In that moment, the fog began to clear and Nick started understanding the significance of pith points and free will.

  I am the master of my own destiny and it is one screwed-up mess that I've made of it ...

  And as he looked around at Caleb and Xev, a new respect for them rose up inside him. Like Kyrian, they'd been handed a raw deal by life. Both of them had made sacrifices for others and paid a bitter price.

  Would it have been worse had they acted selfishly? That was what Kyrian had done. He'd taken the selfish route and his life had turned out no better.

  If anything, his was worse. While Caleb and Xev had lost their hearts, it'd been through the actions of others who had taken what they loved. To the end, their wives had been loyal to them.

  Kyrian's tragedy had been through the betrayal of the woman he'd given up everything for. She had carved his heart out and handed it to him.

  Pith points.

  Yet his friends had stood up through the rubble of their annihilated lives, dusted themselves off, and carried on with a resolute strength Nick couldn't fathom. Undaunted. Indefatigable.

  Just like his mother.

  And for them, he would fight the Malachai darkness inside him. Just like they had. Just like they continued to do every day of their lives.

  Every great legend begins with that one person who raises an angry fist to the sky and flips off the gods in defiance.

  Acheron was right.

  And that was what Nick had been doing since the moment he came into this world as a sick baby. Defying the odds. Defying expectation. Defying authority.

  Defying his destiny.

  And he had no plans to change his ways now. He knew no other way to be. "All right. Point me to the hell-monkeys. It's time to make them my bitches."

  "Excuse me?" Kody gaped at him. "Your mother would be horrified."

  "Probably. Most of what comes out of my mouth horrifies her." He gave her an adorable grin. "I have to admit, it surprises and embarrasses me, too, most days."

  Laughing, she gave him a quick kiss. "And that's why the good Lord made you so adorably cute. Otherwise the impulse to drown you would override all others."

  "Ah, cher, what have I told you about baiting the gator? You say such things and it just makes the devil in me want to say something even worse."

  But as they reached Menyara's store, Nick sobered at what greeted them there.

  Ah, crap ...

  Tabitha Devereaux stood on the sidewalk outside the chained doors with her zoo crew. That was bad. Worse was the fact that her zoo crew included Madaug's older brother, Eric. Although Madaug was right. Sometimes it was hard to say if Eric was his brother or his sister.

  Tonight was definitely one of those nights. With his hair dyed as black as Tabitha's, he had it braided up on one side and wore more makeup than Tabby. In fact, the sharp angles of his thick eyeliner looked like he must have gone to the same store Vawn had for instruction on how to wear it, and the black eyeshadow and matching lipstick.

  "Why is Eric in a dress?"

  Aeron rolled his eyes at Nick's question. "It's a kilt, man. Learn the difference."

  Well, that explained the combat boots. But ... "If it's a kilt, why's he wearing a ... Kode, help me out here? Blouse? That's what that frilly thing's called, right?"

  "Yes, Boo. It's a black silk blouse with lace French cuffs and a ruffled cravat. And as much as I can't believe I'm going to say this, it is Tabitha's shirt. I've seen her wear it before."

  Cravat. Nick mouthed the word and made a face at Caleb, who laughed at him.

  "Don't mock the boy, Nick. Least his clothes don't glow in the dark."

  "Sorry, Cay. Without Madaug here to do it, I felt the inexplicable need for it. Besides, unlike M-dog, I'd never say it to Eric's face and hurt his feelings. I'm merely getting it out of my system before we approach and it slips out against my will."

  Nick winked at them. "And, I have to say that I admire the man for the self-esteem that allows him to leave home looking like that. And I envy him the mirror he owns that told him it looked good, 'cause my mirror cackles at me every time I glance in its general direction."

  As they approached Tabitha and her group, Nick glanced about for a sign of Simi, but didn't see anything.

  "Hey, Tabby. What's up?"

  She gestured at the closed store and the broken glass on the sidewalk. Luckily, the storm shutters were still in place so that she and her friends couldn't see into the store. "I was coming to get some new protection crystals for the group and..." She toed the glass. "I've never known the store to be closed like this. Any idea what happened?"

  "Gas leak," Nick said, remembering Menyara's list of ready excuses.

  "Oh..." Tabitha gasped. "That's awful. I hope no one was hurt."

  "Nah, everyone got out."

  Except for the dead demons.

  Nick cleared his throat at Caleb's mental insertion.

  Tabitha sighed heavily. "Well, crap ... Guess we'll get our protection elsewhere. Everybody, head to my aunt's."

  As they started away, Tabitha stepped over to Nick to whisper in his ear. "Future reference? You wrinkle your nose when you lie, Gautier. Might want to work on that. And I know this was a demon attack--they left their stink all over it. But I don't want any of my friends hurt, so I'm getting them out of here. A bientot!" She glanced over to Kaziel. "Nice Cwn Annwn, by the way."

  Gaping, Nick watched her skip to catch up to her friends. "How does she do that? Or, more to the point, know that?"

  Caleb and Xev shrugged.

  Kody leaned against him. "She's an empath and a psychic. She knows all kinds of things."

  He shook his head. How had he always ended up collecting the strange ones ...

  You're the Malachai, moron. They're drawn to you.

  Oh, yeah. That was why they always found him. How could he forget?

  Putting that out of his mind, he led the others into Menyara's shop to look for Simi. But she wasn't there.

  An awful feeling went through Nick. What had they unknowingly turned loose on the city?

  Yeah, that ulcer was spawning clones. "Who all thinks Simi is eating tourists?"

  Caleb and Xev raised their hands.

  Nick passed a curious stare to Kody. "You're not in on this?"

  "Sorry. I'm trying to think like Simi. Where would she go from here?"

  "If we had her scent, we could track her."

  Nick liked Zavid's thought. But unfortunately, they didn't have anything that held her scent on it.

  Suddenly, they heard something rustling in the back room. Assuming it was another demon that had stumbled into the store to do damage, they armed themselves and headed for the noise.

  Nick licked his lips and braced himself to fight whatever would be on the other side of the break room door. He passed a quick glance to the others to make sure they were ready before he snatched open the door and made ready to cut the head off the intruder.

  Simi stared at him with a cocked head and pursed her lips. "Why all you peoples look so strange? Even for you? Is this one of them irritable bowel syndrome thingies?"

  Nick was truly confused now.

  Simi appeared normal, although normal for Simi on any day was a bit of a stretch. "What are you doing here?"

  "Well, less see. You done told me that the Simi could eats the demon. What you forgots to tell the Simi is that he a Div. Ever tried to eat a Div?" She gave each of them a condemning stare. "Didn't think so. Theys all gamey and..." She shuddered. "Not enough barbecue sauces in the world to make that taste pleasant. So the Simi done had to pop him in the head again. They all screamy like a bunch of them little half-sized people who smell funny and run around yards. And then, when the Simi popped him in the head, he made a big old gross mess and I was afraid that if akri-Mennie saw it, she might not share her sparklies with the Simi. So I wents and cleansed it and made it all smell nice again." She grinned.

  Kody hugged her. "We were so worried about you, Simi. We didn't know he was a Div, either."

  "Ah, then you all forgiven for almost getting the Simi eaten. See the Simi likes to do the eating. She don't like to be the eaten. Akri be all unhappy about that, too, 'cause then he be alone and that would just be all tragic. He needs his Simi to keep his heart working."

  Simi paused. "Oh, but the Div said something before I exploded him. He said that they's coming and that this time, the Malachai can't stop them."

  Nick went cold at those words. He met Kody's frown and then Caleb's gape. Did that mean that Ambrose had originally stopped whoever was doing this? Or that Ambrose had stopped them in one of his other attempts?

  Sick to his stomach and needing air that didn't reek of dead demon guts, he headed for the door to the back alley.

  "Nick?"

  He barely registered Kody's presence. His mind was too busy processing all the possible outcomes that invariably ended with him and everyone else dead in a bombed-out New Orleans.

  No longer did he see the old French and Creole buildings around him. He saw the devastation they'd witnessed in the future. The fires. The bodies.

  Simi's son and daughter.

  His daughter.

  The one he'd been forced to abandon while wounded.

  No! It couldn't end like that.

  "Nick?" Kody stepped in front of him and cupped his face in her hands. "Look at me and focus. I know where you are, but you can't stay there. Breathe."

  His gaze blurry, he looked down at her. "Kyrian's daughter is named Marissa and she's blond."

  "I know."

  True panic set in as the full magnitude of everything hit him at once. "Oh God, Nyria ... what have I done?"

  "You've done nothing."

  "But I'm Ambrose.... Or will be." He choked on a sob. "I am responsible for what happens to all of you." Tears filled his eyes as he looked at Caleb and Xev. Zavid. Aeron and Vawn and Kaziel.

  Unable to stand it, he pulled Kody into his arms and held her as he shook from the weight of his guilt and anguish for things he had yet to do. And for his fear of what he might have already done that would have set it all into motion.

  The future was looming and he hated the weight of that guillotine over his head. Forget the sword of Damocles. This was so much worse.

  "Maybe the Arelim were right," he whispered against her hair. "Maybe the only answer is to kill me before I rise."

  "We've talked about this. You've already risen, Nick," Caleb reminded him.

  "But something drained my powers. We could drain them again and then you could kill me. You said it yourself. It would stop it."

  Xev shook his head. "Doesn't work that way. Another Malachai would rise. Most likely, your brother."

  "Would that be so bad?"

  Caleb choked. "Um, yeah. Lotta bit, as you would say."

  "Why?"

  Kody reached up to wipe at the tears on Nick's cheek. "Because right now, Boo, Madoc's emotions have been locked away for thousands of years. They're only just starting to return to him and he can't cope with it any better than you can. In fact, he's doing a lot worse."

  "He's angry and bitter." Caleb sighed.

  Kody nodded. "You will meet him before much longer ... or at least you did. But until he is taught compassion--in the future, he has none whatsoever. For anyone or anything. The worst thing you could do would be to give him the power of a Malachai in his current state. To combine that with the blood of a god..."

  "World would end a whole lot sooner," Xev finished for her. "And much more violently."

  Kody rubbed at his arm. "It's why I haven't encouraged you to meet him. There's no need right now. You've met D'Alerian, the Dream-Hunter who tends Kyrian when he's injured?"

  "Yeah."

  "That's exactly what Madoc is like. They're brothers."

  Nick winced at the memory of the Dream-Hunter who was impossible for humans to see. The only reason he had knowledge of him was because of his Malachai abilities. Whenever a normal human looked at one of their species, their gaze glanced away and registered nothing.

  You could walk right into one and not know it.

  Yet they were ethereally beautiful. Angelic. And as cold as the Arctic Circle because of a curse Zeus had placed on them aeons ago. All emotions, other than pain, which was a physical response, were banned from them. The only time they could experience any emotion whatsoever was inside human dreams. Because of that, some of them would become addicted to that experience like major drug addicts.

  And as bad as that was for the Dream-Hunter, it was far worse on the human or preter they stalked. As with a drug, the Dream-Hunter would crave a deeper high and need to stimulate the dreamer to have more vivid, more horrific, and longer-lasting dreams to the point they'd d rive their victims mad and ultimately kill them. Those addicts were deemed Skoti and their brethren who hadn't been turned into dream-demons were charged with policing them, or else they could all be rounded up again and punished by the gods.

  Just as they'd been centuries ago.

  "Why didn't you tell me my brother was a Dream-Hunter?"

  "Because he's not just a Dream-Hunter, Nick. He's a Kallitechnis."

  He scowled at her. "A what?"

  "Madoc can move through anyone's dreams. He can even time travel through them. He is the leader of their council and has full access and control of their Hall of Mirrors. Now do you fully understand the dangers of allowing him to possess your powers? So long as you live, he can't do that. But if anything happens to you, he will be given them because the balance must be maintained. If a Sephiroth lives, so must a Malachai. Their life forces are joined together."

  Caleb nodded. "His emotionless curse is what kept him from becoming a Malachai originally. Because he couldn't feel hatred or jealousy, he couldn't take Adarian's powers. But as Kody said, that curse is finally weakening. If you were to die, the powers-that-be would shatter his and he'd emerge full-blown, pissed-off, and ready to rain down his vengeance on us all."

  Xev hung his arm around Nick's shoulders. "For the record, son, we don't want that to happen." He ruffled Nick's hair. "C'mon, let's take you home. It's been a long, hard day for us all. But yours has really sucked.... Get a good night's sleep and things will look better in the morning."

  "All right."

  Caleb let out an elongated breath. "Thinking I should have bought a bigger house."

  Nick scoffed at his whining. "You've got eight bedrooms. What the heck, man?"

  He swept his gaze around the others. "Thinking I need a bigger house."

  Nick rolled his eyes.

  Caleb paused next to Xev. "Where are you staying?"

  As Xev hesitated, Nick didn't miss the shock and longing in his hazel gaze. "Is that an invitation?"

  Caleb stiffened. "I'm not apologizing about my past behavior toward you. But I'm starting to understand and see things a little differently. So it's an invitation for dialogue."

  Xev softened his features. "I appreciate it. Deeply. But for now, Mr. Fuzzy Boots will remain with He Who Can't Stay Out of Trouble. I don't want to leave either Nick or Cherise unguarded."

  "Probably the best call."

  Zavid moved to stand next to Xev. "Do you think your mom would object to a stray dog in her home?"