evil."
Danger cocked her head. He sounded just like Father Anthony, her priest when she was a young woman in Paris. "So if I were to ask you if you are on the good side?"
"I am. But I won't hesitate to do whatever is necessary to protect the humans and Acheron. I'm here to save those of you who can be saved."
"And the rest?"
He looked away from her.
"You will kill us." It was a statement of fact.
His gaze met hers and this time his eyes were glowing a deep, vibrant green. They were unearthly, chilling, and in no way appeared human. "No. You damn yourselves by your own stupidity. I admit that I could not care less who lives or dies—that really isn't my concern. I'm here to do what must be done to protect the order of things."
"The order of what things?"
"Our existence. Our universe. Call it whatever you want, but in the end, those who turn on Acheron and who prey on humanity will die and yes, it will be by my hand."
This was unbelievable. He was admitting that he was, indeed, the one who would kill them all. "So you are our judge?"
His face was grim, sincere. "Judge, jury, and executioner."
Those words set fire to her temper as she moved to stand toe to toe with him. "What makes you so wise that you can blithely decide who lives and who dies? How do you know what's right?"
He scoffed. "All of you know what's right. You don't need me for that. On the night you became Dark-Hunters you pledged your eternal oath to serve Artemis and to combat the Daimons for her. Every one of you was given wealth, privilege, and servants. All you have to do in return for it is to protect the humans and stay alive. So long as you keep your mandate, you're left alone to find whatever happiness you can. You all know the rules. I'm just here to enforce them whenever one of your kind thinks that he or she is immune to them."
That did it. She didn't want anyone or anything this callous in her home. He truly didn't care who he killed. The Dark-Hunters were nothing to him. But her brethren were everything to her.
He would kill or die to protect Acheron and she would kill or die to protect her Dark-Hunter family.
It was that simple and that complicated.
"Then you can get out of my house."
He shook his head. "That's not how this works. When Acheron sends me in, he places me with a Dark-Hunter he would like to see saved. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work out that way, but in theory, if you cooperate, you should survive this latest uprising. I use you as a friendly, trustworthy face to introduce me to the traitors so that I can decide who among them is worth saving."
"And if I refuse?"
"You die." There was no more emotion in his tone than there was in his face. He really didn't care if he killed her or not.
Danger glared at him as her heart pounded in rage. "Then I hope you come with an army because it's going to take more than you to kill me."
She lunged at him only to run into what appeared to be an invisible wall that surrounded him. She struck out at it, but it didn't budge.
"I can't die, Danger," he said ominously as he watched her from behind his force field. "But you can, and believe me when I say that dying as a Dark-Hunter seriously sucks."
She slammed her hand against the invisible wall, curling her lip at him. "You're asking me to betray my brethren for personal salvation? Forget it. Fuck you and Acheron."
"No," he said in a sincere tone as he shook his head. "I'm asking you to save them. If we can convince them to trust you and believe me, and accept that Kyros is lying, then they can go home and all of this will be nothing more than a bad dream."
"And if we don't?"
"They're history."
Disgusted with him, she pulled back. "You know, you could show a little more compassion when you say that. Don't we mean anything to you? To Acheron?"
She felt a slight shift in the air, as if the wall were gone now. Alexion stared at her with those eerie green eyes.
"Acheron most definitely cares. If he didn't, I wouldn't be here
Danger cocked her head. He sounded just like Father Anthony, her priest when she was a young woman in Paris. "So if I were to ask you if you are on the good side?"
"I am. But I won't hesitate to do whatever is necessary to protect the humans and Acheron. I'm here to save those of you who can be saved."
"And the rest?"
He looked away from her.
"You will kill us." It was a statement of fact.
His gaze met hers and this time his eyes were glowing a deep, vibrant green. They were unearthly, chilling, and in no way appeared human. "No. You damn yourselves by your own stupidity. I admit that I could not care less who lives or dies—that really isn't my concern. I'm here to do what must be done to protect the order of things."
"The order of what things?"
"Our existence. Our universe. Call it whatever you want, but in the end, those who turn on Acheron and who prey on humanity will die and yes, it will be by my hand."
This was unbelievable. He was admitting that he was, indeed, the one who would kill them all. "So you are our judge?"
His face was grim, sincere. "Judge, jury, and executioner."
Those words set fire to her temper as she moved to stand toe to toe with him. "What makes you so wise that you can blithely decide who lives and who dies? How do you know what's right?"
He scoffed. "All of you know what's right. You don't need me for that. On the night you became Dark-Hunters you pledged your eternal oath to serve Artemis and to combat the Daimons for her. Every one of you was given wealth, privilege, and servants. All you have to do in return for it is to protect the humans and stay alive. So long as you keep your mandate, you're left alone to find whatever happiness you can. You all know the rules. I'm just here to enforce them whenever one of your kind thinks that he or she is immune to them."
That did it. She didn't want anyone or anything this callous in her home. He truly didn't care who he killed. The Dark-Hunters were nothing to him. But her brethren were everything to her.
He would kill or die to protect Acheron and she would kill or die to protect her Dark-Hunter family.
It was that simple and that complicated.
"Then you can get out of my house."
He shook his head. "That's not how this works. When Acheron sends me in, he places me with a Dark-Hunter he would like to see saved. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work out that way, but in theory, if you cooperate, you should survive this latest uprising. I use you as a friendly, trustworthy face to introduce me to the traitors so that I can decide who among them is worth saving."
"And if I refuse?"
"You die." There was no more emotion in his tone than there was in his face. He really didn't care if he killed her or not.
Danger glared at him as her heart pounded in rage. "Then I hope you come with an army because it's going to take more than you to kill me."
She lunged at him only to run into what appeared to be an invisible wall that surrounded him. She struck out at it, but it didn't budge.
"I can't die, Danger," he said ominously as he watched her from behind his force field. "But you can, and believe me when I say that dying as a Dark-Hunter seriously sucks."
She slammed her hand against the invisible wall, curling her lip at him. "You're asking me to betray my brethren for personal salvation? Forget it. Fuck you and Acheron."
"No," he said in a sincere tone as he shook his head. "I'm asking you to save them. If we can convince them to trust you and believe me, and accept that Kyros is lying, then they can go home and all of this will be nothing more than a bad dream."
"And if we don't?"
"They're history."
Disgusted with him, she pulled back. "You know, you could show a little more compassion when you say that. Don't we mean anything to you? To Acheron?"
She felt a slight shift in the air, as if the wall were gone now. Alexion stared at her with those eerie green eyes.
"Acheron most definitely cares. If he didn't, I wouldn't be here
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