Devil May Cry (Dark-Hunter 11)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Sin leaned against the bar, studying the map in silence while Kat and Damien made notes on a pad across from him. There had to be some way to settle this without everyone dying.

But damned if he could think of it.

No matter how he looked at the situation, it was going to be a bloodbath. He could feel it. Every scenario, every plan he devised ended up with them being eaten.

There had to be something he was missing...

Sin cocked his head as a new thought entered his mind. Scowling at the map, he moved closer to it as he realized what he'd over looked.

"Where's the lock?"

Kat glanced up from her pad. "What lock?"

"The one I have to reset to keep the Dimme in their cage. Zakar was the one who reset it last time. It should be somewhere near them on a chain, but I don't see it."

She got up to study the diagram with him. "What would it look like?"

"Sumerian."

She gave him an unamused stare. "I don't see it."

"That is a really bad thing," he said. "If there's no lock, there's no stopping them."

Her eyes widened.

The hair on the back of Sin's neck stood up as he felt a new presence behind him. He spun around, ready to battle, only to find the Dream-Hunter Xypher there, looking a lot worse for wear. "What happened to you?"

Xypher snorted. "Was mistaken for a punching bag again." He wiped the blood from his lips as he joined them by the diagram. "Your brother just resigned himself to death to get me out of danger."

Sin's stomach sank. "What?"

He nodded. "We have to get him out of there immediately. Kessar is planning on using him as a sacrifice to the Dimme-if Kessar doesn't kill him over the fact he freed me."

As bad as Sin felt about that, a tiny part of himself was relieved to know that his brother wasn't completely converted. He was still trying to do the right thing.

"Zakar also wanted me to tell you that the Rod is in the house. I really hope that makes sense to you because I have no idea what he means by it."

Sin frowned as he shook his head. He had no idea either.

At least not at first. "Wait a sec... The Rod." He spun around and headed for his bedroom. He could feel Kat behind him, but he ignored her as he went into his closet and opened the safe.

He pulled several old scrolls out of their clay containers, then headed to his bed to spread them out.

Kat grimaced. "What are you doing?"

"Can you read Sumerian?"

"It's been awhile, but I used to."

He handed her a scroll. "We're looking for anything to do with the Rod of Time."

She snorted. "Rod of Time, Forsaken Moon, Tablet of Destiny... you Sumerians really liked your hokey terms, huh?"

He gave her a droll stare. "They didn't exactly ask my opinion before they named them."

"Good, cause my estimation of your intellect would be seriously scarred if they had." She leaned playfully into him and nudged him sideways.

Hiding his amusement, he jerked his chin toward his desk. "Get your butt over there and start reading before I beat you with my Rod of Time."

She tossed him a playful look. "I can think of much better things to do with your rod than beat me, baby."

Sin made a painful noise. "Aww, gawd, we've degenerated into really bad punage. I yield. Save me before my IQ points are damaged."

"Fine, you fun-vampire. I'll take my scroll over here and play by myself."

"Fun-vampire? What is that?"

"That would be you sucking all the fun out of life."

Sin shook his head. "You have the most interesting terms for things."

"Yes, but notice mine are creative unlike the so stellarly named Rod of Time."

Ignoring her, he spread the first scroll out and started reading.

Xypher came in and joined the search. Time seemed to drag as they read line after line with no clues. Sin had forgotten just how long-winded and boring his people could be.

Damn, imagine what a good editor could have done with the story of Gilgamesh...

He was about ready to give up when Xypher stepped back from his side of the bed. "Found it." He held up the scroll to show them an image of the Rod. It looked like a dagger with a crooked blade.

Sin took the scroll and studied it. He only vaguely remembered seeing this centuries before. "Now the question is, what house did he put it in?"

Xypher shrugged. "He said you would know."

And in that instant he did. It was genius really and it was the only place Zakar could have meant. "Ishtar's tomb."

Kat's face paled. "What?"

Sin set the scroll aside, feeling ill at the thought of having to go there again. "It's the only safe place. No gallu would think to go there and it's hidden-not even the nosiest of archeologists would be able to find it. Zakar must have stashed the Rod there after he locked the Dimme down last time. It's the only place that makes sense." He took a step back, intending to leave.

"Wait," Kat said, taking his hand. "I'm going with you."

He shook his head. "Kat..."

The stern, determined look she gave him both touched and warmed him. "You don't need to be alone there."

He would have argued had she not been completely right. It was the last place he wanted to be without her and he knew it. "Thank you." He laced his fingers with hers.

She inclined her head to him before he flashed them out into the remotest area of the Sahara, into a hidden cave that was concealed by ever-changing sands and guarded by a spell that would never allow mortal eyes to see what it contained.

It was here that Sin had laid his daughter to rest and here Ishtar slept in a peaceful repose he had never been able to find for himself. At least not until Kat had come crashing into his life.

Kat hesitated as they appeared in a deep, dark cavern. She could hear the sounds of rodents and insects scurrying out of their way. Cringing in dread, she hoped they didn't come any closer to her.

Sin held his hand above his head and a torch appeared to light their way. Kat was instantly relieved as she looked about and didn't see any icky things running toward them or even away from them-she hated bugs and rodents.

But as she looked around, she was struck by the beauty of this place. The walls surrounding them were covered with inlaid art of children playing in fountains and of deer running through a forest. An eternal fountain made of solid gold splashed in one corner. It had a bird and raven perched on one side and a small girl on the other who was looking into the pool to catch her own reflection.

"How beautiful."

Sin swallowed and she could feel the awful wave of grief inside him. "Ishtar used to love to play in fountains and with animals when she was a child." He paused by one scene of a little girl who had a butterfly sitting on her shoulder while she fed a fawn out of one hand and a jackal out of the other. He splayed his hand over the image and she saw the tears in his eyes. "I found her like that one day when she was four. She looked up at me with her deep blue eyes and said, 'Don't worry, Daddy. I won't hurt them.' "

Kat wrapped her arms around him and held him close as his grief reached out and brought tears to her own eyes. "She wasn't really your daughter?"

"It didn't matter to me. She was always my daughter in my heart."

"I know."

He cleared his throat as he laid one arm over hers. "I was never sure who her real father was. Ningal wouldn't say and she had lovers by the handful. It could have been anyone."

But he'd never held that against Ishtar. He'd loved her regardless and that made Kat love him all the more.