Annoyed because no one seemed to understand the danger Khent was in, not to mention Morpheus, Val opened her mouth to say, well, something to get them going, when Mormo drew a line in the wall that blazed. She watched as he traced the doorway she’d used.
And speaking of blazing… She studied Rolf. “How are you awake? Isn’t the sun still out?”
“Some of us ancient and powerful vampires can tolerate waking early. I’m that cool.”
Mormo snorted but didn’t respond.
“Really? Is that why your hair is blond? You have an affinity for daylight?” And that would not be goodat all.Vampires were bad enough during the nighttime. The only true defense anyone had against all of them was that vampires couldn’t tolerate sunlight.
“Just be honest, Val.”
“Honest?”
He leaned in and wiggled his brows. “You dig me. You want me.Bad.Don’t be afraid to admit it. They all do.”
“They who? Your many imaginary fans?”
Mormo chuckled but continued to draw the door, pausing as power ebbed and flowed from his being to create their passage.
“Dream on, honey bunches. If Khent gives you a thumbs up, maybe I’ll let you ride the Rolf train.”
“Oh my god. Shut up. Please.” She wanted to stake him, if only to get him to be quiet so she could concentrate on saving Khent.
“Why is Nergal fixated on you?” Mormo asked and placed his hands in the middle of the door he’d drawn.
“I don’t know that he is.”
Mormo looked away from the door and stared at her. “He is.”
She shrugged. “He keeps asking for his stone. But I’m telling you. I don’t have it.”
She’d tried to find the stone Vladimir had long ago been after. She’d never found it, not in any of her parent’s things, including the large storage unit Val had inherited after their deaths.
“I have an old storage unit that my parents left me. You can look through it. There are a ton of books on magic and the history of necromancy. No jewelry, though. No gems or powerstones. I had everything evaluated by a guy I know. I could get maybe twenty grand for everything if I wanted.”
Rolf tapped his chin. “How sure are you the guy wasn’t ripping you off? Maybe he had no idea about the value of your items.”
“He’s a goblin with a decent reputation and eye for value.”
“A goblin? Well, then he probably knew what the locker was worth.”
“Before you ask, we traded favors. I know he told me the truth because we had a contract.” And contracts with goblins were magically binding.
“Okay, okay. Testy.” Rolf sighed. “Humans are so persnickety.”
Mormo ordered, “Quiet, you two. I’ll grab Morpheus and be right back.” The wall turned murky, and he pushed through the door.
It stayed that way until he returned with Morpheus over his shoulder. He tossed the god at Rolf. “Sit on him. He doesn’t move until I get answers. Val, with me.”
She didn’t want to go back, but Khent might need her help. What could she do in Nergal’s realm? Not a lot. But he’d be focused on her to get that stone. Then maybe Khent and Mormo could work together for them all to escape.
Swallowing around the knot of nerves in her throat, she placed the salamander on the floor, not wanting him to come to harm, and followed Mormo back into the underworld.
Irkalla.
As she’d told Khent earlier, death shouldn’t feel like this. She’d been there, in that grand state between life and death. She’d brushed against the afterworld, knew it intimately. Irkalla was not where departed souls should go.
A bastardized version of death, the Mesopotamian underworld was nothing but a shadow of color and experience.She felt pity for Nergal and all those who had to exist in a world filled with echoes and loneliness. But Nergal was a god, wasn’t he? Couldn’t he do more than torture and hurt those who had an eternity before them?
