Gods & Thieves

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Gods & Thieves - book excerpt

Prologue

EVA MCRAYNE

January 16th,

Today is my twenty-sixth birthday. I didn’t think I was going to make it this far. Five years ago, I was falling deeper into the despair that would find me taking a blade to my wrists. Elliott Lancaster was the one who saved my life then.

He’s dead now. Physically dead, since there is no such thing as death forever. The spirit changes. It shifts and transforms as we all do, I suppose.

I have changed, too. I have spent the past five years searching for myself. Am I Evangelina, the girl who wanted nothing more than her grave? Or Eva, the badass who has no problem running her mouth?

I’m still trying to figure it out. There are days – moments – when Evangelina slips through, but those times are becoming less and less since Cyrus is no longer around. I shouldn’t be surprised by that. Time and distance have shown me just how negative my Keeper’s influence has been. He’s still tied to me through the Olympian bond, but I hope that Apollo can see that I don’t need a Keeper. I don’t need a babysitter.

Maybe I can ask my father to take back the gold necklace he sent me this morning and ask for freedom instead. Not freedom from my Olympian duties, but from a Keeper who can track me whenever he damn well pleases. Then again, Cyrus never cared for me. Perhaps my worry is misplaced.

Either way, I am getting older though I don’t look like it. The eternal twenty-two-year-old who rejected Joey’s attempts to get me to go out on the town tonight despite the fact we’ve been on the road for months. How much fun could we have possibly had if he’s exhausted?

Joey doesn’t know I have other plans. Plans that involve hanging out with Jonah Rowe on the ancient streets of London.

What could I possibly write about Jonah that would do him justice? That he is kind? He is handsome? He makes my heart flip every time he smiles? Or that he is a hero in every sense of the word? He is all of these things and more.

I haven’t been able to see him since we returned from Romania. Not really. The virtual research meetings I crashed at Theia don’t count, but David is pleased with his work. I’m pleased, too. Jonah’s research packets are filled with all sorts of tidbits and maps. Legends and news articles. Joey says Jonah produces high-quality work so he doesn’t have to come in to save my ass. I say it’s because that’s just Jonah.

I’ve rambled on for too long. Jonah could be here any minute. I am nervous. Excited. You’d think he was taking me on a date instead of simply hanging out with me. Maybe someday. Maybe not.

Only time will tell.

***

I shouldn’t have been this excited. I was fidgety enough to rearrange the salt and pepper shakers. I straightened the napkins. Hell, I kept glancing out the window just in case I saw him. I knew I had to sit still, so I forced myself not to move. That lasted for all of two minutes before I checked the clock on my phone for the tenth time since I sat down at the back booth of London’s Hound and Bone pub.

Maybe it was because my European filming spree had gone off without a hitch after Romania. We’d hit a castle in Scotland. A haunted monastery in France. More historically haunted sites than I could have imagined. And just last night, we’d wrapped up a London investigation on an old brownstone.

Or maybe, it was because Jonah Rowe had agreed to meet me this morning. I hadn’t seen him since the Hoia-Baciu episode. But we texted constantly. Facetimed whenever we could. It was crazy how easy it was to talk to him. Or how happy I was that he agreed to meet with me a whole world away from Rome, North Carolina.

“Anyone ever tell you that you look just like Eva McRayne?”

I tossed my phone down and grinned up at Jonah as he stopped next to the table.

“Every damn day. But enough about me. Anyone tell you that you look just like a badass Blue Aura?”

Jonah laughed when I stood up then threw my arms around him. I had to stomp down the butterflies in my stomach as I took in his scent. See, I’d been captivated by this man since the moment I met him. Neither time nor distance seemed to lessen that.

I released him with more than a little reluctance to sit back down. Jonah lowered himself down into the booth across from me.

“You look good, Superstar.” He waved the waiter over then ordered coffee. When we were alone again, he continued. “I can’t believe it’s been so long since that Hoia-Baciu episode.”

“Me neither.” I sat back as the waiter returned seconds later with a refill for me and a steaming mug for Jonah. “Last night was our final European episode.”

“I know. David already has my ass working on Japan.”

I grinned, then sipped from my mug. Jonah had accepted a position as a researcher with Theia Productions, but since we were friends, his assignments centered around my show. And he was all for the international locations. Researching haunted locations in Japan must be fascinating to him.

“Where’s Joey? Cyrus?” Jonah sipped on his black coffee. “I was surprised to see you sitting here alone, to be honest.”

“Joey’s sacked out back at the hotel.” I doctored my coffee with sugar and creamer. “As for Cyrus? No clue. Haven’t seen him since he showed up at Hoia-Baciu.”

“That’s a good thing. The less you have to see him, the better.”

“It seems to be working out. Things are a lot more peaceful for me. The truth is I just don’t know where to go from here.”

“What do you mean by that, exactly?”

I stared at my coffee for a minute before I looked up at him. “Jonah, do you think it's possible for someone not to have a soulmate?”

“I think that depends on if you believe in soulmates. And if you do, maybe you just haven't met them yet."

I stirred my drink as we sat in silence. Finally. I spoke.

“That's just it. I thought that I had. I thought that Cyrus was bound to me for a reason other than the whole keeper thing. You know? Like fate or something? But if Cyrus had been my soulmate, I wouldn't feel the way I do now.”

Jonah reached over and caught my hand. He smiled as he pulled the spoon I was holding out of my hand.

“You keep going like that, you’re gonna break that mug, Evie.” He kept his hand over mine, and I tried like hell to calm the beating of my heart. It was just like when he held me in the gazebo. “Being soulmates isn’t bullshit. But the person you might be with could be bullshit. The way you feel now confirms that you aren’t soulmates. The way he treated you confirmed it for me. Your soulmate lay elsewhere.”

I sighed then flipped my hand, more than a little surprised when he took the opportunity to lock our fingers together.

“Jonah, I thought it would get better. That if I was just good enough, then he wouldn’t be so hard on me,” I confessed. “You know how he talked to me. I would make excuses. I built up a wall and believed everything he told me about myself. I just didn’t care. And that’s not normal. How can that be normal?”

“It's normal if that's all you've known for four years,” Jonah said. “O.k., look. I’m far from the expert, but Nana used to say that when you love someone, they make your heart flip. Make your flesh warm up without heat. Your life doesn’t make sense when they aren’t there. Your dreams get all crazy and dizzy. She said that all the time. Did Cyrus do that to you?”

I released a slow breath at his words because the answer was so simple. Cyrus never made me feel that way. But Jonah had from the moment I first laid eyes on him. Like now, when I felt giddy that he was holding my hand.

“No,” I managed over my nerves. “If anything, I feel relieved that he’s gone all the time now.”

Jonah squeezed my fingers before he released my hand. I grabbed at my mug again as he poured himself another cup of coffee from the pot the waiter left behind.

“Then you need to move on, Superstar. Tell Daddy Gold it ain’t clicking, and you require a new Keeper. He’s useless.”

I knew he was right. But I was not looking forward to that conversation with either Apollo or Cyrus. Jonah cut his eyes over at me before he spoke.

“Do you think he believes you two are still in a relationship?"

“It doesn't matter if he does or not. Any relationship we had outside of the Sibyl-Keeper agreement is over,” I said with a sigh. “You said it yourself. We weren't even in a real relationship. It's more like we were just together."

“You weren’t even together.” Jonah gave a snort that had no mirth. “He was playing Daddy. It’s time you dropped dime on him to Apollo. I’m glad you’re immortal because Cyrus could very well be exposing you to STDs.”

“No, he wouldn’t have.” I shook my head as another confession came out of me. “I haven’t gotten past first base with anyone, much less Cyrus. Remember that story? I tried once. But he told me that he didn't want me.”

“He is a fucking fool not to want you.” Jonah took my hand up again then squeezed my fingers. “You’re one of the most desirable women I know, Superstar. Believe that.”

It took a minute for me to remember how to breathe. How to form words. Jonah thought I was desirable? I felt a thrill before I realized something I should have known the moment he said those words. He was just trying to make me feel better. That was all.

“Thank you, Blueberry,” I said in a level voice. “That means more than you could imagine. In any case, I won’t be able to talk to Apollo until after we get back to L.A. We’re supposed to leave out tonight.”

I took a sip of coffee to moisten the back of my throat. I needed to change this conversation before I said something out of line. Like how much I wanted him to be telling me he really did desire me.

“What about you and Vera?” I ventured. “Have you talked to her since the Facetime disaster?”

Jonah rolled his eyes, and I frowned at the sudden pain in his expression. He smoothed it out before he answered me. “She came to the estate to visit, then went back to Seattle. I didn’t tell you that?”

“No.” I leaned forward as I watched him. He was tense all of a sudden. I could feel it. “Did something happen between you two?”

That dark expression passed Jonah’s face again. “No.” He ran his hand through his hair. “She ignored me the entire week she was there. I guess all that talk about ‘seeing where we stood‘ was just bullshit.”

I felt myself grow cold at his words. Not with jealousy, but anger. Everyone knew how Jonah had fallen for Vera Haliday, but one Facetime session where I sat on Jonah’s lap pissed Vera off to the point that she became insistent that she and Jonah could work something out when she was done ‘finding herself.’ Jonah had told her that he was worth more than the backburner, and she punished him for it?

I narrowed my eyes when I responded.  “Excuse me? She ignored you the entire week?"

“Apparently, she was trying to punish me for that Facetime call before Romania,” Jonah spoke my very thoughts out loud. “Haven't seen her since.”

“Wait.” I took a deep breath, then another to calm down. It wasn’t working. I wanted to go to Seattle, find that bitch, and snatch her up by the neck. “She punished you for not wanting to be put on the back burner while she screwed anyone she could find? Surely to the gods, she realizes what she has thrown away. Any woman would be lucky to have you, Jonah.”

Jonah seemed to blush at my words. I tilted my head at him before he cleared his throat.

“Yeah, well, Vera, like Priscilla before her, wants me to realize that dropping the ball was my fault. I know the fact that Inimicus was her sister, but I could have gotten past that.”

“Inimicus?”

“Yeah. The pseudonym for the bitch who murdered a friend of mine. Jessica Hale. She’s Vera’s sister.”

I couldn’t contain my anger any longer. I knew my eyes were practically on fire when I responded.

“Good. I’m glad you didn’t fold when you saw her again.” I squeezed his hand. “You deserve so much more than someone who wants you to wait on them, Jonah. I mean, by the very gods. You must know how special you are. If she didn’t see that, it’s her loss. Not yours.”

Jonah looked genuinely touched by my words. With a warm smile, he shrugged.

“Look, let’s not talk about depressing shit.” He shifted against his seat. “Let’s get away. Use ethereal travel, and just get away. We can find a spot and just explore. Interested?”

Gods, that sounded amazing. Time away from my life? Time with Jonah? I’d give anything for that. It took me two seconds to make my decision. I grinned at him over the table so big, it hurt my face.

“You have no idea how interested I am, Blueberry.” I clutched the edge of my seat. “Where are we going?”

“I’ve always wanted to visit Santa Fe. Pretend to be a different person even. You down?”

A different person, huh? I could understand that completely. There were times where I felt the same way. I willed a twenty in my hand to cover the coffee, then placed it on the table.

“Oh, I’m down,” I told him, suddenly feeling devilish. “Tell me who you want to be, and I’ll pair up with you.”

Jonah thought for a second before he pulled out his phone. A few minutes later, he glanced up at me. “Santa Fe Suites? We can meet up like college friends or something.”

“You get us to Santa Fe, and I may just be able to do you one better.” I slipped out of the seat then reached for his hand. “Wanna go play, Blueberry?”

Jonah grinned when he realized I was serious. He pocketed his phone, then stood. “All you had to do was ask, Superstar.”

I shivered when he wrapped his hand around mine to lead us out of the pub. I kept my head down as we melted into the crowds until we found an alley to duck into.

Jonah initiated the Astralimes, and within moments, the chilled London streets became warm. I looked around the park we appeared in as I was hit with a stroke of genius.

“Meet me back here in one hour.” I released his hand. “And don’t worry about changing anything. You look perfect for what I have in mind.”

“Which is…?”

“Nope. It’s a surprise.” I leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. “See you soon, Blueberry.”

***

I was gone for exactly one hour. Just long enough to make myself almost unrecognizable. I’d let my curls go wild. Changed into a tank top and short shorts. Doc Martens completed the look. If Jonah wanted us to pretend to be other people, then I was going to be the exact opposite of what he expected.

I found him on a bench by a small fountain. Watching the people who passed by with kids and dogs. I strolled up behind him then leaned in to whisper in his ear. I even altered my voice. Thousands of dollars’ worth of voice lessons made it easy as hell to do.

“You look like you’re a man who can show a girl a hell of a good time. Interested?”

Jonah jerked then turned around. He blinked as he took me in. “And who might you be?”

“Just call me Sibyl.” I trailed my fingers over his shoulders as I came around to face him. “Or lost. Cause I don’t know my way around this damn place. You a local?”

“No, but I know my way around quite well. I try to get out here a few times a year.” He tilted his head back as he looked up at me. “You’re lost? You a drifter, or something?”

“I go where the world takes me.” I pulled him up to his feet then leaned in. Close enough that I could have kissed him if I wanted. “And the world has brought me right here. To you. What’s your name, stranger?”

Jonah studied me as his eyes gleamed. He seemed to be having as good a time as I was with our little game. “James. You got a last name, Sybil?”

“No,” I replied. “Don’t need one. I ain’t applying for a damn job, James. I’m too busy livin’.” I had no idea how I could be so bold. Maybe because it was Jonah. Maybe it was because of the feelings he brought out in me. Feelings I didn’t even realize I had. I ran my finger down the buttons on his shirt before I continued. “So, what do you got to show me?”

“Not so fast, oh, wild one.” Jonah reached out to run his thumb down from the top of my shirt down to the zipper of my shorts. I shivered when he did that, then tried to hide that fact when he spoke. “I’m a gentleman. Ladies first. What do you have to show me?”

I had to slow this down because the way he was looking at me made me want to say forget the Keeper. Forget his stupid actress. Find a place where we could get lost for a while. “A hell of a lot more than a park if you keep that up.”

“You are a most refreshingly direct woman, Sibyl.” Jonah gave me a crooked smile as he tucked his hands in his pockets. “What could be better than this park? Do tell.”

“Oh, no, you don’t. You ain’t getting those words from me. Not yet.” I turned on my heel to see the Georgia O’Keefe museum across the way. “Let’s go cool off in there.”

“If you lead the way,” Jonah invited, his voice far more direct than I’d ever heard it. “I have a feeling I’ll enjoy watching the way you walk. Is that for me?”

Was Jonah flirting with me? I felt the blood rush to my cheeks before I realized this was all part of his character. Obviously, he’d gone for the charmer route. I threw a coy smile at him over my shoulder. “You’ll never know, Jamie-boy. But since you’re the one watchin’, that means it must be for you.”

I started across the lawn, but after a minute, I realized I was alone in my trek. I turned back around to see him still standing in place. His expression was completely unreadable. So I beckoned to him with a crooked finger.

“You gonna come like a good boy? Or are you gonna make me work for it?”

Jonah’s face was priceless at my words. He looked shocked. For a second, I wondered if I went too far. But his expression was too funny. I cracked up when he grumbled something under his breath then crossed the lawn to get to my side. I wrapped my hand around his arm then hugged him.

“Good boy,” I teased. “I knew you were the type. Now come on. This sun is blazing, and I ain’t trying to get burned.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Jonah took the lead as we walked. “Yes, ma’am.”

***

We spent the rest of the day pounding around Santa Fe, alternating between ourselves and the characters we were playing for each other. By the time night fell, we rented a truck and headed into the desert.

It had been an amazing day. Neither of us mentioned the reasons that made us flee London in the first place. Though I did call Joey to tell him I was with Jonah and to take the flight without me. He complained for a good thirty minutes before he agreed to get my luggage and bring it home too.

“I can’t believe the skies are so clear out here.”

I turned my attention back to Jonah, who offered me his hand from his position in the truck bed. I let him lift me onto the pile of blankets and pillows we had laid out. When Jonah got situated beside me, I passed him bottled water then tapped mine against his.

“Here’s to roughing it.”

“Superstar,” Jonah chuckled. “This is not roughing it. This is a damn luxury hotel compared to actual camping.”

“Sure, it is,” I teased. “There’s no shower, nowhere to plug in a hairdryer.” I leaned back against the pillow behind me. “I think you’re just not used to being spoiled.”

“That’s very true.” Jonah bumped his shoulder against mine as he opened the pizza box he’d sat between us. “I’d never get away with eating this much crap back at the estate.”

“It’s not going to hurt you one bit tonight.” I snagged a piece and took a bite. Once I swallowed, I continued. “We walked a lot today. That counts as a workout.”

“You, my dear, have a very loose definition of working out.”

“So, do you do this often?” I asked him. “Camping, I mean?”

“Often enough,” Jonah answered. “I have a tent set up in the Glade where I go to clear my head. Spent four hundred bucks on that thing, but I love it.”

“Tell me about what it’s like to live with so many people.” I passed my half-eaten slice to him. “And finish this. I don’t want it to go to waste.”

“You only took like two bites.”

“I’m good. Never been a big eater.” I took another sip of water when Jonah took the food from me. “Now, on with it, mister. I want stories. Gossip. The good stuff.”

“Are you always so chatty after dark?” Jonah smirked at me. “Because I distinctly remember trying to sleep on the floor at the end of your bed and you chitter-chattering my ear off.”

“Uh-huh.” I nodded in agreement. “It’s the night owl in me. Can’t help myself.”

Jonah ate as he told me about the other Eleventh Percenters who had been away when I was there. He had me cracking up over their lives. How they were a family forged through their trials. We spent the following hours swapping stories about our lives. Much more than what a simple phone call could do.

By the time we cleaned up dinner then stretched out to look at the stars, I was exhausted. I snuggled up against his side beneath the blanket to rest my head on his shoulder. Jonah didn’t seem to hesitate when he wrapped his arm around mine.

“You’re wiped out, Evie.” He glanced down at me when I yawned. “God, I completely forgot you spent last night filming.”

“Totally worth it, Blueberry,” I muttered as my eyes grew heavy. “I can't remember the last time I’ve been this happy. Thank you for such a wonderful birthday.”

"Birthday? What the hell, Superstar? Why didn't you tell me?"

"It's just another day. But you made this one special. Thank you."

Jonah didn’t respond, but he started playing with my hair. Running the strands between his fingers before he brushed his nose against the top of my head.

“Sweet dreams, Superstar.” He whispered against my head. "Happy birthday.”

***

“Honey, I’m home!”

I called out to Joey as I entered the condo. I dropped my keys on the table by the door and all but skipped into the kitchen. There were only two places Joey would be if he was home: the kitchen or his bedroom.

The kitchen was empty, so I turned to walk back out when I crashed headlong into the chest of my Keeper. One Cyrus Alexius. A man I hadn’t seen in months.

“Cyrus? What the hell are you doing here? I thought Apollo—”

“Where were you, Eva?”

“Excuse me?” I glared at him. “What do you mean, where was I? Don’t you always know where—”

I didn’t get to finish my sentence when Cyrus struck out. He smacked me so hard across the face, I tasted blood. I caught myself against the stove and stared at the red drops of blood that fell onto the flat surface.

I blinked away the pain. I had to talk to him. I had to explain myself. I turned and ducked when Cyrus took a swing at my head.

What the fuck was happening?

“Cyrus, stop it!”

I saw him pull a dagger from his boot. Now, I was terrified.

“Tell me the goddamn truth, Eva,” he seethed. “Where were you?”

I didn’t bother to respond as I took off towards the front door. I needed to get away from him. I was fast, but he was faster. Cyrus caught my arm as I reached the door. He jerked me around, and I gritted my teeth against my scream when I heard my wrist snap.

“Where were you?” He pressed the tip of the knife against the base of my throat. “Bitch, I will slice your goddamn head off—”

“Santa Fe,” I managed as I fought against the fire racing up my arm. “We left London to get away from our lives for a little while. It was safe, Cyrus!”

“I warned you." He pressed the knife deeper. “I warned you not to get close to them. And what do you do? You run off with the man who insisted on insulting my honor! I swear upon the grave of my father, I will see Rowe dead, do you hear me?”

“No!” I didn’t dare move. I knew the power he held in that blade. One slip and my immortality would be stolen from me. One slip and nothing could save me. “Cyrus, stop. Listen to me! Nothing happened between us!”

“You are not to see the Elevenths again. Understand me?" He snarled as he removed the blade. “Move.”

Cyrus jerked me up and shoved me forward. I found myself in the bathroom. Staring at myself in shock. The girl in my reflection was so different than the one I was used to seeing. This one was hurt. Her eyes were wide with a fear I understood all too well.

Within seconds, my reflection shifted. No longer did I see the woman I had become, but the child I used to be. Fourteen years old. I recognized this horrific memory. The sadness in her green eyes was the only emotion on her emancipated face.

“This is your own doing, Eva.” Cyrus shoved me harder against the sink. Closer to the mirror. “Look at what you have caused. If you had only followed orders, this wouldn’t have happened.”

I didn't dare break down. The girl in the mirror didn't either as Janet jerked her hair back with a brush. The strands were too thick. It had hurt like a bitch when she detangled it.

"This is your own doing," Janet's voice echoed through the pain in my heart at the memories and over what Cyrus was doing to me now. "Look at the trouble you cause!  If you'd listen to me, I wouldn't have to hurt you!"

"Yes, m'am."

“You are not worthy to be the Sibyl,”Cyrus jerked my head back by my hair. “The sooner you relinquish the mirror and kill yourself, the better for everyone.”

"You do not speak!" Janet jerked the girl's head back by the hair. "The sooner I am rid of you, the better!"

The girl in my reflection grabbed at the counter to keep herself upright. The result was a clatter of bottles and makeup that were knocked to the floor. My mother jumped back. Her face twisted as she picked up the hand mirror closest to her hand. Janet slammed it against the girl's head as she tried to stammer out her apologies. Blood ran down the side of the girl's face as she collapsed with Janet still striking her.

I choked back a sob as a lash of pain rushed through my heart. Violence and hatefulness had been all I had ever known. It was the only thing I would ever know. The happiness I had felt when I was with Jonah in Sante Fe wasn't meant for me. I had stolen those moments when I agreed to go with him in the first place.

"You are not to speak to Rowe again." Cyrus whispered. "Ever. Or his death will be on your consciousness."

Cyrus released me with a shove so hard, I cracked my hip against the bathroom counter. I folded over as he vanished back into the shadows.

He was right. He was always right. The sooner I left this world, the sooner I could be free from the pain of it. I was shaking as I grabbed a razor from the drawer. I could barely see through my unshed tears when I broke free the blade. I snagged it between my fingers then dropped down so that my back against the cabinets.

The sooner I am rid of you, the better.

I knew what to do. I followed the pale white scars that remained from my first attempt. I felt my emotion catch in my throat as I began to bleed.

"Eva? You in here?" Joey froze at the door, but I ignored him as his tone switched to one of horror. "What are you doing-Jesus! Stop!"

He grabbed at my hand and the blade clattered to the floor as I struggled against him.

"Let me go, Joey," I sobbed. "Let me go! I can't do this! Not anymore, please. Let me go!"

"You don't have to do this, Evie," He tightened me up in a bear hug so that I couldn't move. "You can't do this."

Maybe it was the kindness in his voice. Maybe it was his emotion, but I broke down against him. I sobbed into his chest until he was forced to sit next to me in the blood puddled on the white floor.

"It's ok, Evie," He whispered. "It's going to be ok."

I knew it wasn't. Nothing was ever ok for me. It never had been, and it never would be.