"I don't know. I woke up a few minutes ago and found this yummy food he left for me."
"Zarek?" Astrid called.
He didn't answer.
Of course, for him, that was typical.
"Simi, is he in the cabin?"
"I don't know."
"Would you please go see?"
"Zarek!" Simi shouted.
"Simi, I could have done that."
The demon gave a heavy, irritated sigh. "Okay, but don't let my beans thaw out." She paused, then added, "Akrisaid to protect you, Astrid, not to fetch for you. Zarek a big Dark-Hunter and he can walk about on his own."
Astrid felt the demon vanish.
After a few minutes she came back. "Nope, he not there, neither."
Astrid's heart pounded.
Maybe he had just gone for more food.
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"Did he leave a note, Simi?
"
"Nope.
"
Zarek kicked open the door to the first Apollite house he reached. The small community of Apollites had been here for several decades now on the outskirts ofFairbanks , but he'd left them alone.
Dark-Hunter Code forbade any Hunter from harming an Apollite until they turned into Daimons who fed off humans. So long as they kept to themselves and didn't harm humans and lived out their lives until they died at twenty-seven, they were afforded the same protection as any human being.
It was why, at least according to Simi, Zarek had been banished. To Artemis and the gods, killing an Apollite was as serious a crime as killing a human.
But at the moment, Zarek would gladly break that law and any other to keep Astrid safe.
As soon as the door crashed open, the female occupants of the house screamed and ran for cover while the men rushed him.
Zarek used his telekinesis to pin them to the walls.
"Don't even try it," he snarled at them. "I'm in no mood to deal with you. I'm here for Thanatos.
"
"He's not here," one of the men said.
"I figured as much. But then, I also figure you can get word to him. Can you?
"
"No.
"
"He's going to kill us," a child's voice cried out from the rear of the house.
The fear in the child's tone calmed him, but only a bit.
Zarek released the Apollites he had pinned. "Tell Thanatos that if he wants me, I'll be waiting for him outside of town in Bear's Hollow. If he's not there in an hour, I'm coming back here and cleaning out the Daimons I can feel.
"
He turned and walked out the door.
Zarek paused a short distance away from them.
They bolted the door behind him and whispered among themselves until they had decided who should go fetch Thanatos.
Satisfied they would deliver his message, Zarek smirked and headed toward his snowmachine.
Getting on, he drove to the rendezvous and sat back to wait.
He pulled out Spawn's cell phone and called Jess.
The Cowboy answered on the third ring. "Hey, Eskimo, is that you?
"
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"Yeah, it's me. Listen, I left Astrid at my cabin.
"
"You did what? Are you—
"
"Yes, I am insane, but they're safe where they are. I want you to wait for about three hours and then go get her. That should give me enough time.
"
"Enough time for what?
"
"Don't worry about it. Enter my cabin and tell Astrid who you are. She'll be coming out of hiding with another woman. Be kind to the little one, she belongs to Ash.
"
"What little one?
"
"You'll see.
"
"In three hours?" Jess repeated.
"Yeah.
"
Jess paused for a few seconds. "What about you, Eskimo?
"
"What about me?
"
"You're not doing something stupid, are you?
"
"No. I'm doing something smart." Zarek hung up.
He tossed the phone into his backpack and pulled out his cigarettes and lighter. He lit up a cigarette while he waited and sat in the frigid cold missing his coat.
But as he thought of the coat, his thoughts turned to Astrid and he warmed up considerably.
How he wished he could have made love to her one more time.
Felt her skin on his. Her breath on his face. Her hands running over his flesh.
He'd never known anything or anyone like her, but then, she was a nymph after all. Wholly unlike anyone else in all the universe.
He still couldn't believe the way he felt about her.
How was she able to soothe the pain in him that he had thought would never cease.
Strange how she took his thoughts away from the past. Away from everything.
No wonder Talon had been willing to die for Sunshine.
It made total sense to him now.
But Zarek didn't want to die for Astrid. He wanted to live for her. He wanted to spend the rest of his
Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) immortality by her side.
He couldn't.
Looking up at the mountains around him, he thought ofOlympus . Astrid's home.
Mortals couldn't live there and gods didn't live on earth.