Chapter 73: I Will Free You

Naomi POV

Naomi Tenebruso Sinsworth had seen her mate at his weakest, which was, in a strange way, him at his strongest. Unafraid to show who he was, and to struggle openly.

As he pulled himself up to a sitting position on the floor of the council chamber in Evenhide, next to a chair that his energy bolt split in two, he breathed deeply, his eyes glazed over. He had entered a trance state, but it seemed controlled and focused, rather than the wild trembling and spells flying that worried her minutes earlier.

She rubbed his back while Tulaska and Roslynn squatted close by, anchoring him. Azandra knelt beside him, too. 

"Cyran, talk to me," she whispered.

Cyran's golden eyes stared up into hers, and she caressed his face. A face she loved. Especially now, when he fought the man who turned his life into a living nightmare, including killing his parents.

"I can't let the Dark Goddess get Hades," he growled. "She can't continue to–"

Naomi jerked back, feeling a pain in her heart, "He doesn't deserve mercy," she snarled.

Roslynn put a hand on her shoulder. "Revenge is like eating wolfsbane and wishing your enemy to die," she said in her blunt way. "You both have had your revenge … success. Cyran's right. Time to take the demon's toy away from her."

Conflicted, Naomi held Cyran's hand. "Are you sure?"

Cyran's steady gaze met hers. "No," he confessed in his refreshingly honest way. "I'm not, not at all."

She beamed. "Then I know this is right."

He gave a short bark of laughter. "You have a strange way of reasoning, my love."

"I'd tie you with silver chains myself if you said that you were completely sure."

With a snort of laughter, Cyran said, "Remind me never to cross you."

A whisper of something dark caught Naomi's attention.

Nothing appeared in the council chamber as her head went on a swivel. Kyon, alert and aware, crouched down. A mountain of a man and wolf, he comforted with his sheer presence and gentle manner. No one would get past him. Right now, in Dane's absence, he was the Evenhide Alpha.

"Intruder?" he asked in a low voice.

Her eyes probing the shadows, Naomi answered, "I'm not sure."

Kyon turned to Tulaska, who offered her own frank opinion. "It's the bond. Naomi is sensing Hades' presence through the bond."

Naomi shivered. "It's not as if he hasn't been stalking through my head even before this."

Tulaska snorted. "Stalking a hunter. That fool. He never stood a chance against the demon."

Naomi leaned forward in surprise. Tulaska almost sounded compassionate towards Hades. Not quite, but almost. Maybe she didn't feel sorry for Hades himself, but for anyone consumed by darkness.

Tulaska continued. "Cyran, he likely won't do what you did, following Jiro's strict list of rules, including family dinners and regular sparring–"

"Still a rule years later," Cyran said with affection.

Naomi grinned, thinking about the years of brotherly bonding that had formed over those sparring sessions. "You love it."

"Humph." But Cyran's eyes sparkled, and the mood in the room lightened. "Hades is decent at sparring … but he's too sneaky."

Fear crept back into his voice, and Naomi reassured him with a touch on his strong shoulder. "He's probably scared because he knows Jiro has approached the humans."

Cyran's eyes went wide. "Humans! Garnet said she and Jiro were successful. The human king is accompanying them on the rescue mission to save Jude, Ravyn, and the others."

The howls of triumph from the joint council rang in Naomi's ears, and she threw back her head, howling in sheer amazement and pride. Valentina cheered, and Sinapu howled. 

Darkness, fierce and hungry, attacked Naomi through the bond. Her body shuddered in recognition. Hades was angry and upset.

* * * * *

Cyran POV

Hades' rage and fear gripped Cyran like claws. "HUMANS," Hades howled in his mind. 

"They're not our enemies. The Dark Goddess is, and I for one intend to free you. You don't deserve it, but the stakes are bigger than your life."

"What life? If you hadn't failed at killing me–"

Deep breath. Cyran had a flicker of doubt, lying on the cold floor of the council chamber, staring up at the golden ceiling.

Hades pressed on, sensing weakness. "Your new mother and her mate wouldn't have had to suffer if you hadn't tricked the Dark Goddess. If you'd just embodied the Deathwolf."

Gnashing his teeth, Cyran snarled in his mind, "FOOL! The Nightwolf would have turned the world into a bloodbath, and your Dark Goddess would have reigned over a lifeless place! You captured Daxius and took him away from his family, just as you did with me. You dragged Ravyn and Jude into your dark schemes. Despite all that, I WILL FREE YOU. I will save you. Because you may be the key to stopping the Dark Goddess once and for all, which means you can finally rest."

He paused to let that sink in.

Hades laughed mockingly. A chilling sound, but a weak one, nonetheless.

"You always were brilliant, Cyran. But your new life has weakened you. You can't see the obvious. The Dark Lady is too powerful."

"That's what she wants you to think!"

"It's the truth. I have to do her bidding. I have to do whatever she says, or I'll never be free."

Cyran reached out in his mind and tried to overpower Hades. To persuade him to go with Jude, Ravyn, and the others. The odds felt daunting, but Cyran wouldn't give up!