Page 37 of The Demigod Complex
Castor held on, still clinging to the deeply rooted tree, until the water receded. He spat out a wad of leaves and pine needles. “Did you get him?”
Leia shut her eyes and seemed to listen, her brows drawn low, mouth tight with concentration.
She gasped, her eyes springing open. “No. He’s going after the Hyleoroi, forcing them out of hiding.”
She crumpled in on herself as though she could feel her brethren’s pain. Hyleoroi, the nymphs who were watchers of the wood, started screaming.
“Castor!” Leia screeched.
Fury took a back seat to physical pain, like razors over his skin at the sight of his nymph in such distress, electricity building inside him to toxic levels.
He had to fix this. Now.
And there was only one way he knew how. With determination, Castor settled, closed his eyes, blocking out Leia’s moans, and waited. He’d learned to detect the feel of power being used around him, like a tickle at the back of his neck, just as Zeus had taught him after claiming him. Searching for power in use was a trick he’d never fully mastered, but he’d try anything now to help Leia. If a warlock was involved, he’d leave a signature.
There. In his mind’s eye, he could see a bubble at the center of the woods. A murky gray color, it pulsed with each spell the mage cast.
“Stay here.”
In a flash Castor sprinted to the location. The speed with which he could move made him almost invisible to the naked eye. To him, the forest flew past in a blur of greens and browns with patches of white snow still at the base of some trees. Before the wizard knew he was there, Castor slammed into him. With the might of his strength, he threw the man into the side of the mountain, knocking him out cold.
The screams hushed and silence settled over the area like a thick blanket had been placed over them, muffling any noise. Not a creature dared move or even breathe in the wake of the madness.
Then a bird’s cry pierced the air and life returned to the forest, almost as if every living thing around him sighed with relief.
Tempted to toast the guy with a bolt of lightning, Castor slung the warlock over his shoulder, sack-of-potatoes style, and ran back to where he’d left Leia and Calli. Their eyes still glowed bright blue, the way Leia’s had the night before at the mating ceremony when she’d used her powers—the sight both eerie and sexy as sin.
“Is that the mage?” Calli asked as she washed away any remaining blood in the river, which now flowed peacefully. Only pieces of limbs floating by gave any indication of the horrors wrought only moments ago.
The trees still dripped with water from the earlier dousing, sounding like a sprinkle of rain, and the ground squelched beneath his boots. He was glad he’d brought clothes other than his nice suits, although he hadn’t anticipated needing them for this reason.
“Yes,” he answered the nymph.
“Where’s Kaios?” Leia asked.
“No sign of him.”
“Damn.” She turned to her sister, taking Calli’s hands in hers. “I’ll make him pay, if it’s the last thing I do.”
Calli’s lips flattened. “Weallwill. No one’s attacked us like that before. He’s more dangerous than we realized.”
A grim sort of anger thundered through him. “I see. So you’ll let him ruin one sister’s life, but not all of you?” Castor couldn’t hold in the bitter question. The unfairness of how they’d treated Leia, shunning her, had his blood pounding in his ears with impotent wrath.
Leia, for her part, shook her head at him. He dumped the mage on the ground, uncaring of how he fell, and crossed his arms—unrepentant.
“You’re right.”
He raised his eyebrows at Calli’s words. “Of course I am.”
Leia rolled her eyes. “That’s enough out of you, Superman. Let’s not worry about the past.” She faced Calli. “Can you get the word out to everyone? I’m worried he’ll try something else.”
“I’ll talk to them.”
“As a werewolf, our ancestor and here because of our mating, he’s our responsibility.” Marrok and Tala appeared in the clearing. Tala sported a baseball-size bruise on the side of her face.
“What happened?” Castor asked.
“We ran into Kaios in the parking lot.” Tala touched the welt and winced. “There’s a reason he’s stayed alive this long. We couldn’t stop him.”
