The Lightning Bearer Read online

  “Ah, so I need to brush off my non-existent storytelling skills?” She enjoyed the camaraderie that they all shared. “I don’t think that jackalopes are real. If they are, then I want a photo of one.” She was running her fingers lightly over Thomas’s knee and shifted slightly when Lincoln moved to her other foot. “Do you all do this to one-up each other? You don’t do this out in the field, do you?”

  “Aw, she’s so adorable,” Wyatt said with a grin her way. “It’s so wrong of me, but I totally want to burst her bubble.”

  Gareth threw a cheese puff his direction, which the other man caught and promptly ate.

  They all carried on in cheerful banter just about anything and everything. Even secret meetings always wound up with the main topic of food and who was cooking.

  “Mikhail is the best cook out there,” Camilla said as she looked up at her man. “And yes, we typically always start to talk about food. We can’t help it.”

  “I love food,” Pepper put in. “I don’t know if you have noticed it or not, but I love food and can eat like nobody’s business.” She stroked her fingers on Thomas’s leg again. “I look forward to those meetings with you guys. Especially since we will end the meeting with food.”

  “They all tease each other all the time,” Kasper told Pepper. “They have a bond stronger than brotherhood. They are bound by blood, and it shows in all that they do. They tease and play all the time, but they also have a fighting side. You saw that yesterday.”

  “Actually, I tried not to see it. I tried to keep my eyes closed,” Pepper told her cousin. “I really didn’t want to see what they did to the things that attacked us.”

  “She’s sticking to the ‘things’ bit so she doesn’t have to acknowledge fully what happened,” Lincoln explained. He rubbed a hand up and down her leg gently. “Ares kept her company while we took care of business. Which is a good thing, as he managed to keep her from unleashing a full storm on us.”

  “Yes, that is true. Between Ares and me always telling myself no storms I was able to keep it at bay. That’s another thing, Ares. A god. Seriously I don’t think that I can handle that there are gods that come around from time to time.”

  “Well, that’s too bad because we do drop in from time to time,” Ares said from the shadows, stepping into the light then. “I’m glad to see that you are calm and relaxed.”

  She had tensed when she heard Ares’s voice and sighed. Crap-balls. “I was.”

  Thomas chuckled and gave her a squeeze. “You’ll get used to them popping in. We’re at the point we barely even twitch anymore. For the first little bit there we were nervous wrecks never knowing when one would show up. Now it’s kind of passé.”

  “Right, and none of you ever shot at them?” Pepper asked with a smirk. “Because I have to tell you, if I could use a gun I might have just used it because I swear you took a year off my life,” she told Ares directly. “I’ve never gotten anything good when someone just pops up in front of me.”

  “The only one that could potentially hit one of them is Mik. The asshole has god radar or something. He always seems to know when they are coming or close by. Never even flinches,” Gareth said. “Although that first time Ares popped us somewhere Dieter did throw up on him. That pretty much made that nauseating trip worth it. And the look on Ares’s face? Priceless.”

  “Right, then I’m glad that he wasn’t able to pop me anywhere because that would be me.”

  The ladies all laughed, and a couple of men did as well. “Ares wouldn’t like it if you were to puke on his lovely self, but he wouldn’t mind too much if it was one of the women and not one of the men,” Hailey said with a smile. “He’s seriously a flirt.”

  “It also completely irritates him when we talk about him like he isn’t even here,” Thomas murmured in her ear. “Didn’t someone else puke on Ares?”

  “No. Owen did throw up, but Ares managed to get out of the path. Of course, Owen was claiming that Ares tried to lose him on the trip,” Nolan said.

  “He did. He let go, which is so terrible. It makes the whole jump, flash, whatever the fuck it is, horrific. Like a rollercoaster ride with no brakes, and all downhill at angles no human body can withstand,” Owen told the group.

  “I only let go for a moment.” Ares sat down just as a throne-like chair appeared under him. “So, kidlings, you are all getting along well. I like to see that. Has anyone tried to touch Pepper skin to skin since she’s been here? Except for Lincoln and Thomas that is.”

  Pepper frowned and looked around the circle and realized that no one had. “Huh, no. When Kasper hugged me, it was around my shirt.” Should they try?

  “We can’t find Hera right now, and Zeus is beyond pissed at the moment. The second that you were revealed as a key, it was shown what happened to you and the role that Hera played. To say that he’s pissed off is not even close to the truth.”

  “Well, he did bring it on himself for marrying the crazy bitch,” Dieter said. “You’d think the guy that runs the show would have thought it through a little better.”

  “Try shaking the guys’ hands, and then move onto the women,” Lincoln suggested. “I’ve already got a good idea of who will be able to touch you skin to skin.”

  “Okay.” Well, this was odd, Pepper thought to herself. She got up and started to go from person to person to shake their hands. “What is your idea, Lincoln?” She tried to shake Owen’s hand and wasn’t able to. Next, she tried Nolan, then Brooklyn, and Rachael, all without being able to touch them skin to skin.

  “Try Victor,” he said to her softly. Everyone in the group turned to face the man in question.

  “Holy shit, talk about being dumped into the spotlight,” Victor muttered. “No pressure or nothing.” He shrugged and held out a hand to Pepper. When she reached for him, there was no barrier, and she was able to shake his hand like she could Lincoln or Thomas, skin to skin.

  “Whoa,” Pepper said and looked up at Victor. “So?” Pepper’s question hung in the air.

  “He’s a descendant of Hera’s. Shit, I should have realized it,” Ares said and leaned forward. “Son of a bitch, that whore has ensured that her descendants can touch you. I wonder how many more she has out there that aren’t the keys. I wonder how many more men are out there that she could send to hurt you. That fucking bitch.”

  Pepper flushed at Ares’s tirade, but it did get her thinking. “If Victor could touch me and no one else, could it be bad? It would mean that there was a chance that one of Hera’s male descendants could get to me.”

  “A little sexist there, aren’t you?” Stefan asked. “She’s likely got some female descendants she can tap as well. There was at least one with the group you guys stopped according to what Thomas said. Maybe not as many, but there are likely to be a few. And really, she wouldn’t need the whole team to be her descendants, only one or maybe two.”

  “True.” Ares leaned back and shook his head. “All that I know is that this bitch has a way to get to Pepper. So be on point, watch out for anyone new, and take care.”

  Pepper looked over at Thomas and could see the resolve on his and Lincoln’s faces. “I will do everything that I can to keep to myself and the house. I don’t want to lose my guys any sooner than I have to.”

  Every male head turned toward the two men in question, but they were looking at one another.

  “You know, if she weren't so cute I’d be insulted,” Thomas commented.

  Lincoln shrugged. “She does have that going for her, although I’m still feeling distinctly insulted that she has so little faith in our abilities.”

  “True, true.” Thomas nodded. “And it’s not like we didn’t keep ourselves alive before meeting her. Even before meeting the gods and getting souped up on top of it all.”

  “Right, exactly. Okay, definitely insulted by her lack of faith.”

  Both men turned to glare at her then.

  “Oh please.” Pepper settled back onto Lincoln’s lap this time and hugged him. “You both
know what I mean. I have full faith in you guys. Both of you. I know that you will keep me safe, but I don’t want you hurt, too.” She leaned in and kissed the side of Lincoln’s neck and hugged him tightly. “It just sucks that now we know that there could be people out there that we wouldn’t ever think of that could just walk up and do whatever they wanted to. Does that make sense?”

  “Of course it makes sense,” he told her. Wrapping his arms around her, he gave a squeeze before kissing her neck in return. “Doesn’t make the fact you thought we can’t handle ourselves any easier to swallow. We will be discussing this in private once we’ve figured out what your punishment for this might be. We’ll have to make sure the security system is armed at all times from now on,” he said over her head.

  “We’ll keep the field active even when we’re home. Owen can keep watch, and turn it off as necessary. No trips into town, though, not until we either get a bead on Hera, or an idea of what her grand plan is,” Mikhail said.

  “Good. Sounds as if you all have a good hold on what needs to happen.” Ares leaned back in his throne-like chair once more. “You might want to keep that for all of you, at least for a short time. You never know when that woman will show her cards.”

  Pepper shivered and moved slightly so that she was able to wrap her arms around Lincoln and hold onto him. She hated to feel the way she was feeling right now. “And I have full faith in the two of you, silly men.”

  “We know, sweetheart,” he whispered in her ear. Lincoln gently rocked her and stroked her back slowly. “We’ll figure this out. Finding Hera would be nice. Which one would think wouldn’t be all that hard for a bunch of gods who have had to put up with her shit for more years than are on the calendar.”

  “When she wants to go into hiding she can literally disappear. That bitch has been hiding out from Zeus from time to time since they were married. Usually, she hides out after she’s done something to piss off the big guy.” Ares told them. “So, you have to know that she’s an expert at hiding out. We are all looking for her, though.”

  “Have you tried looking at it a different way?” Mikhail asked. “Normally she hides out from Zeus, but now she has to hide from all of you. Can she really take into account all of the gods, goddesses, and demis? I mean there are a shit ton of you guys, no offense. And that’s only in the Greek line. Take into account all the others on top of that, she’s going to forget to protect against one of them. Hit up some of the other gods, and see if any of them have a bead on her.”

  “I will hit up the demis. We hadn’t gotten to them yet.”

  Pepper snorted. She had a feeling that they hadn’t gotten to them yet because the gods thought of them as lesser beings. “Whatever you can do to find her will be good. I don’t like the feeling that there is someone out there looking to kill me.”

  “No matter how many times someone wants to kill us you really don’t get used to the sensation,” Antonio piped up. “It’s still as disconcerting the fiftieth time as it was the first. Though after a while it really doesn’t faze you much to hear someone wants you dead. I know, little comfort, but it’s the truth.”

  “Go back to sleep,” Stefan muttered. “You are not helping the situation any.”

  “I agree.” Pepper felt a chill running through her veins. “I hate the idea that until Lincoln, Thomas, and I do something very intimate together someone will be after me. I don’t like the idea that people would know when we did it.” She hated that everyone would know that they bonded.

  “We’ll all know, too,” Antonio said with a grin.

  “I don’t think she needed to know that part,” Wyatt said. “But he is right. Each time one completes the bond we all get this weird notification. So do the gods, but no pressure there.”

  “Great, yeah that really gives me all kinds of good feelings.” Pepper sighed and snuggled in closer to Lincoln. She felt a bit of a chill right now, even though the fire was still burning brightly.

  Lincoln chuckled, the sound deep with the press of her ear to his chest. A moment later she had one of the throws being draped over her. “Thanks, Mik,” Lincoln said tucking the warm wrap around her.

  Pepper relaxed against Lincoln and closed her eyes. She knew that these women had all gone through what she was facing as well. Perhaps she would corner them and talk to them later. Right now, it was nice being close to Thomas and Lincoln as well as the people that they called family. It was surreal. She would have given everything she had to have a family like this one growing up.

  Lincoln squeezed her close and brushed a kiss to her temple like he knew what she was thinking. Tucking her head under his chin, he held her while the group teased one another some more before falling into a companionable silence. The only sound was the crackling fire, and the occasional bug or rustle from a wild animal in the distance.

  Pepper yawned and hugged Lincoln. “I think that I’m ready for bed. You guys don’t have to come up with me, but I’m ready for sleep.” It had been nice, spending time with everyone, but right now she was ready for a good night’s sleep.

  “We’ll come up with you, sweetheart,” he said softly. Sitting up, he unwrapped the blanket from her body and set it aside. Once she was on her feet, he joined her, and they headed for the door. Thomas was right behind them with the last of their dishes from the night, which he gave a rinse before slipping them into the dishwasher.

  “Good night, all,” Pepper said to the family that was left behind. She loved that she had a family now. She started up the stairs and felt Lincoln and Thomas close behind her. She got to their floor and turned to ask, “Where are we sleeping? Same place?”

  “Of course the same place. It’s our room, darling,” Thomas said. He turned her around, hands on her hips, and gently pushed her forward. “We told you that last night. I’ll forgive you this once since we were all more than a little punch-drunk with exhaustion. Get in the bathroom and do your routine so we can all get some sleep.”

  “Thank you.” She did, however, turn and give Thomas a quick hug before she raced into the bathroom so that she could get cleaned up.

  Fifteen minutes later Pepper came out of the bathroom with her teeth freshly brushed and body clean. “I’m done. It’s all you guys now.”

  Lincoln was closer, so he disappeared into the bathroom first. Thomas looked comfortable where he was sprawled on the end of the bed but managed to lift his head slightly. “It’s like he timed that,” he said with a crooked grin. “So, what did you think? You survived your first big dinner with the family, and appear to have come through without a scratch.”

  “It’s a good family. I’m happy.” Pepper moved so that she was lying on the bed with her head on Thomas’s stomach. “It’s the first time I’ve been truly happy,” she confessed. “I feel as if we’ve been doing family dinners for years together, sitting around the fire and joking. It was nice. It eased a lot of the tension I had built up inside of my own mind.”

  He began to brush his fingers lightly through her hair. “I’m glad. I hate the idea that you’ve been so isolated for so long. It’s not okay for you being you’re such an outgoing personality. At least that’s my humble opinion. You deserve to have a family that truly appreciates you, and loves you in your everyday life.”

  “I have that now.” She turned so she could look at him and reached out to brush the backs of her fingers over his cheek lightly. “I have you and Lincoln in my life and everyone else as well. I’m taking things minute by minute, but I’m happy. I’m good. I survived eighteen years of hell to come out the other side whole and ready for you two. I think I needed that time away from you both so that I could find myself.” It was lonely, she had been so alone, but she had gotten to know herself pretty well.

  “You are so damn strong,” he told her. “I can’t believe we had to wait for you. I get it, sort of, but I definitely don’t like it. Especially given the whack job who was supposed to be looking out for you, and protecting you. That I think makes me the angriest. I hate the fact s
he was given the job of watching you, and yet all she did was make your life worse. Yes, you are stronger because of it, and I have a feeling you may need that strength in the days to come, but I still hate it. And if I ever come face to face with that bitch—” He cut himself off and shrugged.

  “Believe me, I know what you mean.” She hated that the woman had made her life hell as well. Her so-called protection had turned out to be little short of a death sentence. She hoped that one day she, too, would be able to come face to face with Hera again so that she could personally slap the bitch upside her head. She needed it. “And if I’m strong it’s because I have you in my corner. Both of you.”

  “Well, we might help a little,” he said with a grin. The bathroom door opened, and he let out a groan. “Sorry, darling, but you’re going to have to move. I really need some dental floss. I have a piece of something stuck in my back molars driving me crazy.”

  “No problem. I’m sure that I will be able to get Lincoln to curl up with me for a while. Maybe even get up and under the blankets, too.” She moved so that she slid into the bed in the center. “Come on, Lincoln, I want to cuddle for a bit while Thomas goes and gets cleaned up.”

  “Two seconds,” he told her before he rifled through a dresser. He then stripped down and slipped on a pair of loose shorts that he tied up while coming toward the bed. Lincoln paused when she continued to stare. “What?” he asked with a grin.

  “You.” He had dropped the clothes from his body, and for the first time she saw him naked.

  Chapter Eight

  “You have piercings in your cock.” She had never seen anything like that before. Lincoln had tattoos on his body, the largest one being a dragon on his chest that had her wanting to trace it with her fingers. “Did they hurt? Do they hurt?”

  Chuckling, he nodded while he climbed onto the bed next to her. He drew the blankets up over them both, before wrapping his arm around her to hug her close. “They hurt like a son of a bitch when I got them. Then they kept on hurting for a long while after. One day it stopped,” he told her with a shrug. “Now there’s no pain as long as I don’t get one of the fucking things caught in my zipper. Trust me, I’m damn careful about that.”