Serpent's Game (The Soul Eater Book 5) Page 13

  “Ah, there you are…” The Eye of Ra gleamed, revealed once more, its blade now a sweeping, vicious arc. Finally, my place in this time was beginning to solidify. I had been trapped too long on an unmarked throne, nameless and forgotten. This body would take some getting used to. Human flesh really wasn’t the best means of motion, but it had proven excellent camouflage. Once the memories settled and my power rooted into my soul, all would be right— The blow robbed my thoughts.

  My knees hit the ground. Two thuds. And then I was getting personal with the floor all over again. By Sekhmet, by all the gods, what was happening to me?

  Cat’s boot found its mark deep in my gut. “I believed you!” she yelled.

  Pain radiated through me, threatening to bring up the contents of my stomach.

  “I believed it all!” Her clawed fingers sank into my hair and then her face, twisted in fury and wet with tears, was all I could see. “What kind of monster are you?”

  “Cat…” I wanted to thank her and tell her she’d stopped me—it—Apophis and that I was still here. I was still me. But I couldn’t be sure for how long, and I needed her to understand, to know, to see. Gods, I needed her to know she’d been right not to trust me. She’d always been right.

  She shook her head and whispered, “You killed her…” Disgust and betrayal dragged her lips down.

  “Will you… trust me?”

  She laughed. Yeah, I knew how it sounded. But I meant it. This wasn’t over. Not yet.

  “Trust you?” Her lips rippled around a snarl. “I should kill you.” She let go and moved backward, bringing Chuck and Nile into sight behind her.

  “Come with us,” Nile said.

  Cat glanced over her shoulder. “You, girl, you’re Bastet’s daughter?”

  Chuck nodded. “And, I think, his daughter too. But I… I didn’t know, until now…”

  “Tell me everything,” Cat said, guiding them away from me and out of the building.

  Unconsciousness had its oily fingers in my vision, pulling the sight of Cat and the others away. It wasn’t over, but it was damn close to it.

  I wasn’t done. But I let them go. I had to.

  I had the remains of Ace Dante to cling to, and while I had that, not all was lost.

  Chapter 15

  I stared at Alysdair laid out on the motel bed. The curve in the blade and backward hook made it vicious and alien, but it hummed with the same hungry resonance I’d always had by my side. The same green etchings continued to throb along its blood groove like a heartbeat. Alysdair was the name I’d given it. The truth was far more unsettling.

  The Eye of Ra.

  Ra’s sword.

  I’d been gleefully wielding Ra’s weapon—a sword that could change its shape into exactly what its wielder needed—for the last five hundred years, oblivious to the fact that I held one of the most powerful weapons to have ever existed. And, if I recalled my Egyptian history correctly, the Eye of Ra was the only weapon that could subdue Apophis. I must have stolen it from Ra. Thief. That took some serious brass balls. It also meant the sword was about the only thing in both worlds that could stop me. Good to know.

  I snapped a picture on my cell and sent it to Shukra with the message, Biggest badass in the Egyptian underworld.

  She sent back, It’s not the size, it’s how you use it.

  I could always trust Shu to bring me down to earth.

  She wouldn’t be so lackadaisical if I told her that back in the depot I’d slipped a little into what it meant to be a true Egyptian badass—the kind that didn’t give a shit about anything and would use anything to get what he wanted. I wasn’t kidding myself. Those few minutes before Cat clocked me one, those were all me. Terrifyingly all me. And I’d liked it.

  More than darkness…

  But I couldn’t let the real me win. I wasn’t finished.

  Godkiller.

  I scratched at my cheek and eyed the sword side-on. Nile, the truthseer, had laid it bare. I’d stabbed Bastet with Alysdair and killed her. Osiris shouldn’t have been able to compel me, but he had, because somewhere deep inside, I’d wanted it. But that wasn’t the end. If Alysdair had absorbed her soul, I could resurrect her like I had the witches. But only with Osiris’s help. He had the power over life. I didn’t. But Osiris and me… I’d kill him sooner than bargain with him.

  My fingers twitched, and Alysdair’s hum kicked up a tone, sensing my desire to kill. In my mind’s eye, ash beat against the motel windows like the wings of countless moths and rained down over the unmade bed.

  And then there was the kid, Nile. Powerful and definitely up to something. Also my grandson. The grandson of Apophis with the resurrected soul of Thoth, who also happened to be Osiris’s son. No wonder Nile was in demand.

  Snaking my arms crossed, my shirt sleeve pulled back, revealing the slave cuff. Cat had been right. The cuff was little more than a trinket. One man’s hope that the beast inside the darkness wouldn’t escape. It was too late for me. I’d accepted my fate. I was Apophis. My Ace Dante charade was almost over. But I wasn’t going down without a fight.

  Stop fighting.

  Oh no, I had enough of the lie left in me to fight until the very end.

  The End of All Things. That was me, wasn’t it? It would be me.

  How ironic.

  “Well, I can’t take you out looking like that,” I told the sword. It hummed in reply.

  I dialed Osiris on my cell. He answered on the first ring. “Meet me in Allentown. Bring a seer.”

  “Why?” the god demanded, probably wondering if he was walking into a trap.

  “Do it or don’t. It’s your prophecy.” I hung up. He’d come. He couldn’t afford not to. Now all I had to do was resist the urge to drive Alysdair in through his ribs and into his heart as far as it would go. Given that the sword was the Eye of Ra, his death would probably stick—until he came back from the underworld and smacked me down all over again.

  “You’re too much of a temptation.” Alysdair would stay here while I met with Osiris. I scooped up the Ducati’s keys and headed for the door.

  The people who spilled into Starbucks seeking shelter from the rain dripped puddles where they stood in line. I watched them come and go, admiring how they talked and smiled and laughed and did all those human things that made them so alike but also so completely different from one another. Considering the great reservoir of darkness inside me, was it any wonder I’d never felt as though I belonged? Most people were inherently good. All these souls waiting in line for their skinny lattes were light, bar a few gray ones who had some making up to do.

  When Osiris pushed through the door, the souls I’d had my eye on simultaneously contracted as though they knew, deep in their eternal existence, that a god walked in their midst. The people couldn’t recognize the truth, but their instincts warned them. Those who’d been about to return to the counter and order another coffee laid their eyes on Osiris and stayed seated, thinking twice. Those already in line shifted, suddenly and inexplicably uncomfortable. Without saying a single word, he held the crowd enraptured.

  He scanned the crowd, his gaze coming to rest on me. His expression didn’t change, but neither did mine. He didn’t even bother with his usual soft, public smile. Were those lines around his dark eyes? Naturally, the downpour outside hadn’t touched him. His expertly tailored gray suit and long coat were bone-dry.

  A hunched man trailed behind him, squirrelly eyes and face pinched into sharp points and sharper glances. Some folks naturally looked like prey, and Osiris’s plus-one had that same lamb in the lions’ den look. I couldn’t blame him. Seers knew too much, and when he spotted who Osiris was leading him toward, his beady eyes widened. I could smell the man’s fear. It was so thick.

  I resisted the urge to say “boo” as he followed Osiris’s lead and sat across the little table from me.

  Osiris unbuttoned his coat and relaxed into the chair. We’re all friends here. I wore a wooden smile, grateful I hadn’t brought Alysdair
along. It really would have been too much of a temptation. But this impending war was about more than Osiris, and as much as I despised him, I needed the bastard.

  “Where’s the boy?” Osiris asked.

  “Tell me about the prophecy.”

  His eyes narrowed as he searched for my angle. Why had I asked him here? What was I planning? When would I strike? “You already know. Surely it’s common knowledge these days.”

  “I’ve heard various interpretations, but I want it from you. What does it say? Exactly.”

  He considered telling me, and then his smile shifted, turning slippery. “I am not here to discuss redundant prophecies over coffee. Where is the boy?”

  Redundant? Right. That’s why Osiris had sent me rather than come himself. The god-child frightened him. “Close, but he’s far more powerful than I was expecting, and he’s also not a child. Not anymore. I can’t trap him alone.” I gestured at Osiris. “That’s where you come in.”

  His smile twitched, almost falling into a laugh. “Are you suggesting we work together?”

  I leaned forward. “You and I get the boy, and you leave Cujo and his family alone forever. You never use them as leverage again. Agreed?”

  He considered it, probably weighing whether Cujo and Chantal were weapons he could use against Apophis when the time came. But he knew better than me that Apophis didn’t care about anything. Cujo and his family were Ace’s weaknesses, and Ace was living on borrowed time.

  “Agreed,” Osiris said.

  The barista called out, “One skinny latte for Osiris, God of… Life… er Rebirth…” His voice trailed off uncertainly. “Resurrection…”

  Osiris’s smile turned rigid.

  “I ordered you a coffee.” I grinned. “You’d better go grab it. They’ll keep calling your name until you do.”

  Half the patrons had stopped chattering and were looking our way, those human instincts of theirs dead on when it came to picking Osiris out of a crowd.

  He wasn’t about to let me see how my antics bothered him, and so he got to his feet and headed through the line, leaving the seer alone with me.

  I snatched the man’s hand before he could pull away, yanked him close, and locked my stare on his. “Osiris will kill you when this is over. You know exactly what happens to seers who displease him. Work for me, and I’ll keep you safe.”

  “But you… Y-you’re…”

  “Let’s put it this way. You’ve seen who I am: First-generation god, born of Neith, older than time, older than Ra. Osiris is third generation. Who do you think is more likely to walk away from this war?”

  His watery eyes widened. “I’ve seen what is to come, and it’s… it’s torment and pain. Blood in the streets, in the Hudson. Ash falls from the sky—”

  I winced, recognizing those scenes all too well. “Tell Osiris you can find the boy now that you’re in Allentown.”

  “But… I can’t. That’s not how—”

  “I’m the child’s grandfather.” I tightened my hand on the seer’s. “My blood is his. He isn’t far. You can use my connection to find him. But this stays between us. Osiris cannot know.”

  He shook his head fast. “No-no-no-no, I can’t lie to him. He’ll know. He’ll know!”

  “It’s not lying, just neglecting to mention some things. He’ll kill you anyway. You’ve seen it.”

  “Yes, yes, I’ve seen my death. It’s raining when I die, and the grass is wet.” He glanced outside, likely seeing his own death stalking him.

  “So let me help you survive. You want to live, don’t you?”

  “Why, when there’s nothing left of the world to live in?” Those little eyes darted across my face.

  “A seer’s visions don’t always come to pass.”

  He sighed, and his thin shoulders drooped. “Okay. Okay. I will do this. Yes.” He bowed his head. “Dark One, Lord of the Dark, Eater of Souls.”

  “Yeah, okay.” I patted his hand and settled back in time to see Osiris stalking through the crowd, coffee in hand. The final play was in motion. There was no going back, but I’d always known the End would come eventually. My only regret was Cat. But in war, there were always sacrifices.

  “Amused, are you?” Osiris asked. “You do realize all your antics have accomplished is alerting these people to my presence. One word from me and they will all drop to their knees.”

  I smirked. “It’s the little things that make immortality easier.”

  His lips twisted, probably from annoyance to find that he agreed. “The boy?”

  “Close. Your seer should be able to locate him…”

  The man jumped as Osiris and I settled our gazes on him. “Er… Yes, yes… I think so. Maybe. I guess. Now that I’m closer.”

  The God of Life took a sip of his coffee, eyebrows raised. The man’s words were a surprise, but there didn’t appear to be any suspicion in Osiris’s glare. I wasn’t under any illusions here. Osiris wasn’t a fool. One wrong move and he’d know he’d been played.

  And by then, it would be too late.

  The grass of Trexler Memorial Park sponged underfoot as we stepped off the main path. The rain had eased off, leaving behind the smell of wet earth and turned over leaves. Osiris’s seer, who I’d learned was called Luke, hung back, wringing his hands and eyeing the damp joggers like he might bolt at any second. If he had any sense, he would run and soon.

  Osiris peered through the reaching trees toward the pond. He felt it too—Nile’s unique, resonating magic. The god-child was here, but so were a few hundred Allentown residents out for a walk, bike ride, or jog after the rains. Things could get public real fast. Osiris would want to avoid publicity. He always had. Keep the people ignorant, and they wouldn’t know how to fight when the time came.

  Osiris started across the grass. I waited a few beats and followed. Luke hung back but eventually shifted from his petrified spot and shuffled along behind us.

  “What do you plan to do with the kid?” I asked.

  Osiris hesitated, as he always did now, assessing what I needed to know and what could be used against him. “The boy is of no concern of yours.”

  “His mother?”

  “His mother was nothing more than a birthing vessel. She is a needless complication.”

  He would kill Chuck. That strange protective desire rose in me, but I shook it off. Sacrifices had to be made.

  He glanced back, his smile altogether too confident. “Let me ask you, did you truly believe I did not know about my wife’s plotting?”

  “Which plot?”

  “All of them. This girl and her son, did you assume, like my wife did, that I recklessly copulated with high-class escorts for the fun of it? Did you really think that I, a god of several millennia, would be so stupid as to sow my seeds without considering the outcome?”

  I walked on beside him, remembering more with each step. Bastet’s blessed women were being slaughtered. The Goddess of Protection, who happened to be my ex-wife, had come to me for help. The path had led back to Osiris, although Isis had been the one killing the girls. She’d killed all but one. One she’d deliberately allowed me to believe I’d saved. Chuck. But Osiris’s words implied he’d known exactly what was happening and that he’d watched it play out to his advantage. Isis had told me on numerous occasions how her husband never did anything without a reason, so the girls he impregnated had been an intentional move on his part.

  “Isis seeks this god-child, your son, as a weapon against you.”

  Osiris’s laugh rang out across the park, softened only by the trees. “It is true that many, if not all prophecies, are self-fulfilling.”

  “You deliberately created Nile, knowing full well he’d destroy you?” But that didn’t make any sense. Why would Osiris want such a thing?

  “No.” He smiled. “You have some way to go, Mokarakk Oma, before you understand the serpent’s game.”

  The serpent’s game. The long con. What was Osiris telling me? “The prophecy… it’s not about you?”


  A single eyebrow lurched upward. “In all the thousands of years you’ve existed, you never were one for godly games.”

  Nile was a weapon, but the target wasn’t Osiris. Osiris had created the god-child, fulfilling the prophecy, but if that was the case, who would the boy sunder? I’d heard mention of a king and a god that would bring about the End of All Things. I’d assumed, as had Isis and Thoth, that the words described Osiris. But the bastard was striding alongside me with a spring in his step. What if I’d been looking at this all wrong? What if my hatred for Osiris had blinded me, just like his love for his wife had blinded him to Isis? But Osiris hadn’t been blinded. He’d known everything and watched it all fall into place. Isis’s scheming to secure the child, the prophecy, all of it.

  Isis wasn’t the architect fulfilling the prophecy.

  Osiris was.

  I stopped. Osiris strode on a few steps and slowed when he realized I wasn’t following, but he didn’t turn. Up ahead, silhouetted against the pond, stood three figures. I could never mistake Cat’s outline for anyone but the ruthless shifter, her fingers ending in sharp claw-like points. Chuck was there, as was her son, standing at the same height as her and just as rigid in his stance, but Nile’s body shimmered with an almost visible aura of pure godly power.

  And here I was, the liar, the thief, standing beside the god everyone loved to hate.

  It was time to live up to my names.

  Cat’s glare scorched the thirty meters of parkland between us. I’d killed her queen. She was honor-bound to avenge Bastet’s death. There was nothing I could do to convince her otherwise because she was right. I was the liar, the thief, the Godkiller.

  Chuck seethed too. I’d let her down. The kid had been through enough, and I’d made her life ten times worse. Now I happened to be standing beside the god who’d raped and used her as a means to an end—and that end was Nile.