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Chapter Quote:
"Had I been at Troy when they left the horse behind, there would have been roasted Greek on the beach that day."
~Valerius

Chapter 14

I woke up to the sound of my piano playing softly from downstairs. The sun still hadn't set so I couldn't go see who it was although my guess was Kiara since I knew Rosa didn't play and Nick had never shown any interest in the piano unless Artermis dropped some of my income in or on it.

The song was quite beautiful, relaxing. I felt my eyes starting to close again but I didn't let them. Forcing myself to get up, I got dressed for the night. There hadn't been any reports of Daimon activity so for now I had the night off. As I walked out of my room, the music stopped. There was a lot of chatter going on downstairs. Wanting to know who it was, I entered my living room. Kiara, Nick, and Rosa were all down there. I was surprised to see my housekeeper still here. She usually was gone before dark.

"Beautiful, m'ija! Where did you learn to play like that?" Rosa inquired.

"Thank you! I took lessons for a very long time. I have a piano back home so whenever I can't sleep, I play," Kiara confessed, almost bashfully I noticed.

"I wish I could stay and listen to it some more but I must head home and- oh Mr. Hunter! I didn't hear you come in," Rosa exclaimed.

Kiara turned around. "Did I wake you?"

"Hello, Rosa. Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. And no Kiara, you didn't, but I did hear the music. It was lovely," I complimented.

"Oh good… I was worried. I forgot there were other people in the house when I started playing. Rosa, I'd be happy to play for you next time I see you."

"I would love that! Mr. Hunter, there's some spaghetti on the stove and cookies that just came out of the oven." With that said, my housekeeper gave Kiara, Nick, and I a hug before she exited. Nick wasn't far behind her, although rather than giving me a hug, he clapped me on the back.

"So exactly how long have you been playing?" I asked, coming to sit next to her on the piano bench.

"About three hundred years," she answered, playing with a few keys.

"Play me your favorite song," I told her. Kiara's hands hovered over the keyboard for a few seconds before she finally started playing. For some reason, I was instantly reminded of lost memories quickly followed by the hope that these memories would one day be regained. I couldn't explain it. I had all my memories that I knew of. Would I know if I was missing memories? Probably not.

I watched her fingers glide effortlessly over the keys. I was amazed she needed no music sheet for this but then I reminded myself she'd been playing for hundreds of years. She probably had no trouble playing this piece from memory, especially if it was her favorite.

"I learned that a few years ago. I played it until I had it memorized completely," Kiara explained, turning to face me. I hadn't realized she'd stopped playing.

"You're excellent at it," I told her sincerely. Both of us fell silent, simply staring at each other. I wanted nothing more than to kiss her right here, right now. I wanted to pull her close against my chest. Then that nagging voice in my head told me she was off limits. Immortal or human, it didn't matter. We weren't allowed to take steady lovers. Instead, I said, "Are you hungry?"

"Starving," Kiara responded. The two of us got up, going into the kitchen. I made the both of us a bowl of spaghetti. We sat down at the dining room table, gobbling up our meal. No one could cook like Rosa.

"Okay, I know you're a Dark Hunter and all but how did you come to be one?" Kiara questioned, sprinkling more cheese onto her spaghetti even though she'd done so three times already.

I stiffened at her question. My past was something I wanted to forget. "Why do you want to know?"

"Easy, General. I'm just curious. Sorry if I offended." Kiara stood up, taking my empty bowl with her to the sink, washing it out.

"What are these two cases you're working on?" I asked.

"The first one is a major demon. I need to find it, see if it's a threat. The second case is… personal. One I don't want to go into."

"Why?"

"Because people think I'm crazy. Hell, I'm starting to think I am…" She muttered. She strategically changed the subject. "Speaking of demons, do you know if Ash needs us on the streets tonight?"

"You're not going out to fight unless those wounds have healed," I said firmly. "Not only could it get you killed, Ash would have my head if I let you go out there injured."

"Acheron is not my boss, and while I adore the man, I'm not one to be coddled. I was taken care of my whole life before I became what I am. Everything was done for me. I like to be taken care of but I also like my independence."

"How long have you known Acheron?"

"Pretty much since I became an Arean. When I was new to my job, I wasn't all that great. Ares was still teaching me moves but that didn't help when I didn't know what I was fighting. Acheron saved me one day. He knew I wasn't a Dark Hunter but helped me anyways. He taught me all the demons he knows about. I owe him a lot. Of course, just because I owe him doesn't mean I want to listen to him when he orders me to stay in a place because I'm injured."

"On that note, how are your injuries?" Kiara lifted her shirt, peeling away the bandages. The gashes had scabbed over, even shrunk, but I still didn't feel like she was ready to go back out and fight. At least not demons. Maybe Daimons…

"Have you picked up any Daimon activity?" Kiara inquired, putting her shirt back down and throwing away the bandages. "I'm itching to get back out there."

"Not so far, but the night is still young."

"Guess I'll go research then. Let me know if Acheron wants you out there because then I'm going out too. You watch my back here, I watch your back out there. Besides, Daimons will be less likely to attack if they think we're a couple." Kiara winked at me before sashaying out of the kitchen. The distrust I had in her yesterday was gone. I respected her, not to mention I liked her style, clothing and personality wise. It'd been a long time since I'd had a conversation with a woman, let alone been in the same house with one. I mean there was Rosa but I'm talking about a woman I was sincerely attracted to. I desperately wanted to ask about what she was researching. I was about to follow her up there but my phone rang. Biting back my a groan to refrain from sounding like my complaining Squire, I answered it.

"Hey boss!" Nick greeted. Speak of the devil…

"What's up? You okay?" I questioned suspiciously. My Squire sounded off.

"Um, yeah. Okay, theoretically, if your arch-enemy Valerius was here in New Orleans, what would you do?"

"I'd beat the shit out of the bastard. I don't care if I reap more injuries than he does," I said bitterly.

"Who do you want to beat up and how can I help?" Kiara laughed. "Sorry, I meant to bring water up with me. Hi Nick!"

"Hi Kiara!" he shouted. I pulled the phone away from my ear, annoyed by the loud sound, before explaining to Kiara the situation. At the name of Valerius, her expression went deadly. I saw her nostrils flare and her eyes darkened from green to brown.

"That bastard in town?" she demanded.

"Don't tell me Kiara has a grudge against him too," Nick said.

"I think she does. If Acheron doesn't want me beating him up, make sure you tell him to keep Valerius on the other side of the damn state," I snapped. Nick hung up. I probably scared the kid. I decided I should call him back and tell him not to worry, that I wasn't going to kill him. I dialed his number. When his phone stopped ringing, it wasn't Nick but Acheron who answered.

"What the hell are you thinking bringing Valerius into New Orleans? You do realize half the Dark Hunters want to kill him, including me!" I barked.

"We need him down here Kyrian. I'll make sure you two don't cross paths. Put you on different schedules."

"Send him back to wherever he came from if you don't want him hurt," I growled.

"You'll behave because I said so. I need you out on the Quarter right now. Tell Kiara to stay out of trouble," Ash warned. "She's sneaky. Trust me, two thousand years of knowing her, you figure that out real soon."

I angrily hung up. Kiara stood in front of me. "So?"

"Ash wants you to stay out of trouble," I said. "And he said to watch you, that you're sneaky."

"Well he's not wrong," she laughed, grabbing her bag off a chair and slinging it over her head. "I'm going into town to get some coffee and read. Unfortunately, what I'm reading is nothing cheerful but it's necessary. Want a lift?"

"How about I give you one? That way you can't go anywhere far without me or Ash being able to find you," I countered. She grimaced but agreed. I drove us into the French Quarter, parking in the shadows. Kiara and I got out.

"When you're done, I'll be at Café du Monde. If not, I found Valerius and I'm kicking his ass all the way back to Rome," She told me.

I gave a genuine laugh, something I hadn't done in a very long time. "I'll see you soon Kiara."

She walked off. I watched men stop and turn around to watch her walk past. Anger surged through me. I knew Kiara could handle herself but I hated the way the men were looking at her.

"What's your problem boss?" Nick asked, coming up beside him.

I stared at him. "What are you doing here?"

"T-Rex wanted me to be here in case, by some accident, we ran into Valerius. He thinks I can hold you back."

"The only person who could hold me back is myself or Acheron. No offense Nick. Come on, let's go. Watch your back." The two of us started walking up and down the main streets. So far, I saw no Daimons. I almost started wondering why Acheron had called me out when I finally saw them. The horde of about twenty Daimons. I'd never taken on so many at one time, but at least I had Nick by my side. The Daimons trailed a group of what had to be college girls. The girls were naively urging the men to follow them. Oh if they only knew what would happen once the men got a hold of them…

"Hey!" I shouted. The Daimons turned around. One hissed angrily at me. "Have you ever seen a pissed off Greek General?"

When they didn't respond, Nick added, "It's damn scary!"

One of them lunged at me. I ducked, spun around, and stabbed him in the back with a dagger. He turned to dust. The rest of the Daimons surged forward at me and nick. I pulled out my Greek sword. Not only did it give me a wider berth to kill them, I could kill more in one swipe which I did to four of them. Nick was handling himself pretty well out there considering he hadn't fought as much as some other Squires. I was proud to have him at my side. It almost was like Julian was at my side again. At the thought of my long gone friend, I saddened. A Daimon chose that moment to attack me. His knife buried itself into my arm. With a fierce growl, I ripped the knife out and stabbed my attacker.

"Kyrian, there's too many!" Nick yelled, kicking one away from him. His weapon had disappeared. Furious, I leapt to my feet. My Squire and I were back to back with fourteen more Daimons encircling us.

"Kill the Dark Hunter, drink from the Squire," one said.

"You keep your filthy vampire teeth away from me. I know I work for a vamp but he doesn't suck the life out of people. Just the breath out of a certain someone," Nick joked.

"If we make it out of this alive, I'm going to-"

"Adopt me? I know."

Just as the Daimons were about to attack again, an arrow sprouted through one's neck before he disintegrated. We stared in shock but one by one, more Daimons were taken down by arrows. When six were left, they were in a panic. Nick and I quickly began our crusade. A person in all black dropped down from the roof, joining in the fight. They used their bow as a weapon. Their motions were fluid and graceful as they dodged punches and slashes and gave their own attacks. I killed two more Daimons, Nick killed one, our mystery guest killed three.

Nick whistled. "Who's our savior?"

The person pushed back their hood. "Sorry I'm late. Had to change into better hunting equipment and got some coffee. Everyone okay?"

"Now I know what Acheron said to watch you," I said, staring at a beaming Kiara. "Where did you even get those clothes?"

"I had them stuffed in my bag. My bow and arrows I just bought from Bubba who is surprisingly still open. Who knew?"

"How much coffee have you had?"

"Just one cup, but for some reason the chicory coffee makes me super hyper. Mr. Hunter, you're bleeding," Kiara remarked, walking up to me and taking my arm, inspecting it. "You'll live but I imagine it hurts like hell. Need anything for it?"

"No. Let's head back to my car. Those Daimons were what Ash wanted us to take care of." The three of us started walking with Nick and me flanking Kiara protectively. We had just rounded a corner when my eyes narrowed in on the one person I'd vowed to beat the shit out of if I saw him here. I slammed my fist into Valerius's jaw. I felt the reverberation in my jaw, just ten times worse than what my enemy felt. I didn't care though. This pain was definitely worth hurting Valerius. I went in for another round but Nick had grabbed me.

"Come on Kyrian, it ain't worth it. Besides, you hurt him too much, you might get yourself killed," Nick reasoned.

"Kyrian might not be able to touch him, but I sure as hell can," Kiara declared, kicking Valerius in the stomach and sending him staggering back. She kicked up into his chin causing the Roman to fall back. He rolled out of the way of her next attack and grabbed her from behind, more trying to restrain than hurt her I noticed, but Kiara would have none of it. Lifting her legs up, she thrust them back out, using the momentum to help her flip Valerius over her shoulder and onto his back. Whatever she was about to do next was interrupted when Acheron flashed onto the scene grabbing Kiara by the wrist.

"Enough!" He ordered. Fury raged in Kiara's eyes. I could tell she had no intention of listening. In a softer tone, he said, "I know you're upset, but please don't make me knock you out."

Snatching her hand away from him, Kiara stalked away. I told Nick to go after her. Considering the beating Kiara had just given Valerius, I didn't need to do anything. It'd been satisfying watching him get his ass kicked.

The Roman glowered at me as he stood up. His eyes settled on Acheron as he said, "I didn't know they were here. I ran into them and this one recognized me before I could bolt."

"Go home, get some rest, and heal. You're no good to me in the shape Kiara put you in."

"What does she have against me? I don't even remember her," Valerius grumped. Wiping blood off his mouth, my enemy walked off. When we was out of earshot, I asked, "What does Kiara have against him?"

Acheron sighed. "I don't know. Her mind has been… tampered with. She knows certain names and feels emotions, strong ones, but she can't remember half her life. Whatever Valerius did, it caused her enough pain and anger that she wanted to kill him. Go after her. See what you can find out. Report it back to me."

"How do you know she'll tell me anything?"

"I've never actually been able to get her to stay with another Dark Hunter when she's injured. There's something special about you. Use that to find out. Go home Kyrian, and next time, don't try and kill Valerius. Whether you like it or not, he's on your side now."

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