Jake (Immortals of New Orleans #8)(78)

"The sunsets," Quintus mused.

"Oh yeah." He sighed. "I even took surfing lessons."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me." Quintus smiled.

"It was sick. Loved it."

"So why come back?"

"New Orleans. This is home. Or was. Maybe I'll be making a new home. With Kai."

"You can always visit, my friend. But you have to chase destiny." Quintus stretched his neck and took a quick sip of the amber liquid. "Don't take this the wrong way because neither of us truly knows what's happened to the other Alpha, but maybe the pack identified you as their true leader. Even though you put him in that role, the wolves didn't want him. And so things fell apart when you left."

"Well, fuck. Thank you, Quint." Jake coughed, giving a roll of his eyes. He'd been racked with guilt since leaving San Diego, but had justified his actions, telling himself he'd taken care of the pack.

"You're very welcome." Quintus nodded, raising his eyebrows.

"It's not that the thought hadn't crossed my mind, but you need to understand that when I left, all was good. I never got the feeling it would all go to shit. But I guess there was part of me that knew better. The pack was fragile. But then there was a bigger part that wanted to get the hell home, and it's that part that won out."

"You'll fix things."

"I will. It's why we need to get in and out of San Fran. Then I've got to get my ass to San Diego."

"Ah … but Kai."

"Listen Quint … " Jake paused, struggling to articulate his thoughts. "It's just that … what happened … " 

"You saved my life."

"I wouldn't go that far. You were still alive. We helped you along," Jake said. The explanation almost sounded believable.

"No, the poison would have killed me eventually. I know you didn't have time to get me a donor. I wouldn't have lasted more than a few hours," he argued.

"You're good now."

"Thank you … for everything." Quintus' eyes locked on Jake's in silent understanding of what they'd done. "Your blood. The rest … I know she's your mate."

"I can sense everything about her." Her desires. Her fantasies. "She hasn't been with any other supernaturals. I'm her first. And you … "

"We are an unlikely trio." Quintus gave a small smile.

"Yeah, I guess we are. I will push her as far as I can, but Quint … you need to know she's mine."

"I understand more than you know. I'm honored to have you as an ally. A friend." Quintus closed his eyes in thought then opened them, his gaze settling on the dark sky. "Kasdeya is formidable."

"We'll kill her. Kill it," Jake stated, his voice laden with anger. Things had come to a head. Not only had she stolen Kai's sister, the demon bitch had killed children.

"This will not be easy. She has lived many years. This recent development … "

"A triad Goddess … a demon. I know. But Quint, I'm gonna tell you right now. If I learned anything being a SEAL it's that when things get dark, like really fucking dark, you've got to calm your shit. You stand up to the enemy even when you're pretty damn sure it could kill you. You learn that shit pretty early on when you're swimming in the Pacific at night. Sharks don't care if you're immortal."

"I've lived a long time and I haven't attempted to kill her yet. It's not that I thought I couldn't but it would be assumed I'd take over her territory. No offense to the west coast, but I'm a New Yorker now. It suits me. All that being said, she's no longer a pure vampire … not one who simply dabbles in the occult. She'll be hard to kill."

"There's a difference between playing with dark magick and being a demon. Even if we manage to break apart the triad, she's going to be hell bent on killing us all. She was already strong before this shit went down. And Quint? Holy hell. She killed those kids. I've seen a lot of shit in my lifetime. War-torn areas where these kids are tortured. The girls are raped and sold as slaves. The boys are forced to be child soldiers. People can claim assholes like that are human, but they're every bit the monster Kasdeya is. She may be some sort of special demon but evil is everywhere. And I'm tellin' you right now, it can be destroyed."

"We need to find out more about this Kris. What it does."

"It was supposed to protect Kai, but I don't think in the way we thought it would." Jake recalled the bizarre interaction with Ilsbeth. "I thought it was to hide Kai's abilities, to mimic the original spell, but I don't think that's the case now. I can tell you this. If that bitch Ilsbeth suggested we get the Kris, it probably was for a good reason, but I'm guessing she has an alternative motive. I can't say what exactly but I'm telling you, she always has an angle."