“Why?” I ask, the singular word the only one I’m able to form.
Rainey straightens, her spine stiffening, jaw jutting out in a stubborn move I’ve missed so fucking much. “I have to do this alone.”
“Why?” I repeat.
“Because I can’t lose you too,” she cries, the blade clattering to the ground at her feet. I reach for her, gripping her waist and crushing her against me as I wrap both arms around her body and bury my face in her hair.
Shoulders shaking, she digs her fingers into my back, and I hold on, praying, thanking God for delivering her back to me when everything felt like it was lost.
Breathing her in, I feel my heart rate start to slow, the adrenaline I’m still getting used to waning. “Fuck, Rainey, you have no idea how badly I missed you.”
“I missed you too.” Her shoulders shake as she leans into me, and together we sink to the floor.
Pulling back, I cup her face, wiping the tears away with the pads of my thumbs. “You won’t lose me, Rainey.”
“I can’t. It will kill me.”
“Going up against Heather alone will take care of that. You can’t cut me out like that. You have no fucking clue how much I need you.”
She nods. “I do because I need you too. I just—I thought if I could get rid of her, we could go back to the way things were. Before she—”
“You are not responsible for anything she did, baby. Not a damned thing. It was all Heather.”
“Ramirez,” she chokes out, shutting her eyes tightly as more tears slip out.
“Ramirez and Kamie died because Heather knew it was the only way she could beat out your light, Rainey. She is shadows, and you, my love, you are sunshine.”
“She nearly killed you, and Jane. Oh my God, Jane,” Rainey’s face falls, and her shoulders shake. It takes me just a moment to understand that she doesn’t realize her best friend lives. “Heather told me how she killed her. That she watched her die.”
“Rainey, Jane is alive. She lived.”
“What?” She looks up at me, and for the first time since I got here, I see a glimmer of the woman I love beneath the grief. “But Heather—”
“Your grandmother saved her.”
Dark brows drawn together, Rainey stares up at me. “My grandmother—”
“She’s here too, Rainey.” I don’t bring up Delaney and her parents being crows, mainly because I don’t want to give her false hope by telling her they’re alive when—while technically they are—they’re birds.
The same trio of birds, in fact, that Rainey thought were trying to kill her.
“But how—”
“She faked her death to take Doloris’s attention off of your family.”
Rainey shuts her eyes tightly and shakes her head. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to face everyone. Josiah must hate me. Heather killed—”
“Exactly, Heather killed those pack members. Not you. And he knows that—they all do.”
“So many people, Elijah. She’s killed so many, and it’s all my fault. I opened the box, I let her out. Unleashed her on the world, and it’s my job to shove her back into the damned thing.”
“In case you forgot, Rainey. I was there too.” I tuck a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “I was right beside you when you opened it. It was something your sister left for you to find. How the hell were you supposed to know it was a prison cell?”
“I’ve been wracking my brain for why she would have left it for me and I just—I don’t know.”
“Maybe that’s something you can ask her yourself.”
“Excuse me?”
Might as well do it anyway. I get to my feet and grip her hands, pulling her up with me. “Delaney’s soul may or may not be inside a bird.”
She stares at me for just a moment before barking out a laugh. The first sign of anything but pain from her. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“You’ve missed a lot.”
“Jane is alive?” she confirms, and I nod.
“This is not a war you have to fight on your own,” I tell her softly. “We are all in this. Together. You have to see that by now. I can’t survive without you, Rainey, so even if after this you still insist on doing it without me, you might as well drive a dagger into my chest and be done with it.”
“Elijah—”
“No. You need me just like I need you. And fuck, Rainey, I need you.” I lean my forehead against hers, silently urging her to accept all I’ve told her and come home with me. And if she still won’t see reason, I’ll throw her over my shoulder and drag her ass home, kicking and screaming, if need be. “It’s not a weakness—what’s between us.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t come for you right away,” Rainey whispers as she leans against me. “I know it wasn’t the most logical decision, but I was terrified.”
Pulling back, I nod knowingly. “Honestly, I probably would have done the same thing.”
17
Rainey
Elijah breathes life into me.
His very presence soothes the pain—at least temporarily. Because with him beside me, I feel like I have something to fight for.
That all is not lost.
And knowing that Jane survived, that somehow my grandmother is alive—even as crazy as that is—gives me new purpose.
“I see we’ve kissed and made up. Splendid.”
I turn toward where Fearghus is seated in a church pew. “You brought him here?”
The fae scoffs. “How the hell else do you think he got here? Wishful thinking?”
“You’re a mouthy bastard, aren’t you?” Elijah asks, and Fearghas grins.
“I am honest. Now.” He stands and claps both hands. “Shall I take you back to the other hunter?”
“Other hunter?” I ask, and Elijah nods.
“Jack.”
“Jack is with you?”
“He is.”
“And you two haven’t killed each other?”
Elijah reaches up and brushes some of the hair behind my ear. “We had a mutual goal.”
I shiver beneath his touch, the simple action soothing more of the fissures within my soul.
“Where shall I take you?”
Elijah glances over at the fae and opens his mouth to speak, but something creaks.
“Did you go anywhere else?” I ask Fearghas. Is it possible he was followed?
Both he and Elijah turn toward the door of the church, their eyes focused intently on the new heartbeats we sense just outside.
Hearts that do not belong to humans. “Succubus,” Elijah says quietly.
Before I can ask him what the hell a succubus is doing in Billings, fingernails scrape against the outside of the wooden door.
“Rainey! I know you’re inside,” a voice coos. “We need to have us a little chat.”
“Who is that?” Fearghas demands.
“I have no clue,” I reply honestly. Most everyone I know personally is either dead or in hiding. And I’d certainly remember if I’d ever crossed paths with a man-eating creature. It’s not like succubae are exactly known for their easygoing nature.
“If you don’t come out, I’ll have to come in,” she calls again.
I retrieve my blade from the ground slowly and take a step toward it. Fearghas and Elijah are at my sides in the blink of an eye, both men flanking me.
“What do you want?” I call out.
“Girl talk, obviously.”
“We can’t let her in here,” Fearghas says. “They have the ability to make men bend to their will.” He sounds genuinely terrified. “We could kill you, Rainey. She cannot come in here with us.”
“Then take me outside. You two can remain in here until we figure out what she wants.”
“There’s no way in hell any of us are leaving unless it’s together,” Elijah argues.
“I’m interested in hearing what she has to say, aren’t you?” I ask, tipping my head up to meet his gaze.
“And if she tries to kill you?”
<
br /> “Then I take her head off.”
“Rainey—”
“I’ll be fine. She’s hardly the most dangerous thing I’ve faced in the last few days. You two can swoop in and save the day if need be.”
“We have things to discuss, Hunter! This is your last chance!”
A muscle in Elijah’s jaw twitches, but finally, he nods. “Call out if you need us; we will be there.”
“I will.”
Fearghas takes my hand but hesitates just a moment before dematerializing. When I open my eyes again, I’m standing alone a few yards away from the entrance to the church. Two women stand on the steps of the church, their blood-red eyes glowing with the force of power as they both look me up and down.
The one closest to me has her jet-black hair braided down her back, falling nearly to the ground behind her. The dark clothing she wears clings to her body as she saunters down the steps toward me, her red-painted lips turned down into a pout.
The woman behind has her hair cropped short and is wearing nearly the same attire as the one coming uncomfortably close. I hold my ground, unwilling to be intimidated, but ready to swing my blade if necessary.
“The boys didn’t wish to join us?” she asks. “How disappointing.”
“Who the fuck are you, and what do you want?”
“I heard you had a potty mouth,” the one with short hair grins. “I like it.” A forked tongue darts out of her mouth and moistens her lips.
“I’m growing impatient. What do you want?”
The woman in front of me grins back at the other and then faces me once more. “You are quite the hot topic in our world at the moment. Supernaturals want you dead at all costs.”
Adrenaline surges through my body, The Hunt making itself known, and after spending so much time without full access to my abilities because Heather was blocking them, it’s a welcome feeling. A familiar blanket wrapping around my shoulders, ready to snuff the life out of my enemy at a moment’s notice.
“So you’re here to try to kill me? I have to warn you I’m in the mood for a fight.”
She throws her head back and chuckles. “I do not wish to kill you. Yet.”
“Then why are you here?”
“To warn you.”
“And why would you want to do that? My kind has hunted yours into near extinction.”
Her eyes flash. “While that may be true, you are not the only ones who have killed us. Witches have long used our hearts in their rituals, and they are doing so again. I want it stopped.”
“What witches?”
She narrows her gaze on me. “I think you know.”
Heather. “What do they use your hearts for?”
“Our power lies in our ability to enhance the way someone feels, we can sway even the most powerful of men to our sides and make them do whatever we wish with little effort. The same goes for women though, admittedly, they take more effort. By enhancing their magic with ours, they gain that same ability.”
Fear ices my veins. If Heather gains the power to control others, none of us will be safe because no one can be trusted. “So your power could be used on me?”
“Yes, Hunter. I could make you kneel at my feet should I so choose.”
I’ve never heard of succubus magic working on a female before, but that’s not to say it’s not fact. There’s quite a lot I don’t know about the world I’m willing to die to protect. “I’ll have to take your word for it,” I reply.
All earlier flirtation stops. “I want the slaughter of my sisters to stop.”
“Can you not go into hiding?”
“We have. But with one of us, she can find us all with little effort. Stop her, and we will forever be grateful to you.”
“Why come to me?”
“You are Rainey Astor, are you not?”
“I am.”
“Then, that’s reason enough. Good luck, Hunter. Be sure to steer clear of others. I fear the councils are calling for your gorgeous head.” She turns away and leaves, disappearing into the shadows of the church, the short-haired woman following right behind, before I can reply.
Elijah and Fearghas appear beside me, and I jump. “Announce yourself or something next time,” I snap at the fae.
“Sorry.”
“Is that true? About succubus magic?” I ask Elijah. “That it works on females too?”
He shrugs, an action that makes me uncomfortable. There’s little Elijah doesn’t know. “It’s not something I’ve heard of, but to be honest, I avoid them. For obvious reasons.”
“Fearghas?” I ask the fae, and he mimics Elijah’s response by shrugging. “Perfect. So now there’s a succubus here in Billings—more than one apparently—and it seems Heather is harvesting their hearts so she can obtain the ability of persuasion. Which, in her hands, would basically be a death sentence for all of us.”
“It’s possible she’s sent the councils after you,” Fearghas offers. “If she wants you, the best way to find you is to have multiple eyes watching.”
“We need to get out of sight. If they found us, chances are good that someone else might as well.” Fearghas takes my hand and clasps a hand on Elijah’s shoulder before we vanish from the steps of the church, reappearing in Delaney’s gym.
Jack jumps up from the floor, blade in hand, eyes wide. He looks so similar to the man I threatened weeks ago, so like the handsome bartender who saved my life in an alley behind a club.
It’s insane to me that it was only a month ago.
“Rainey?” he whispers and rushes toward me. Fearghas releases my hand, and Jack wraps both muscled arms around me, spinning me in a circle before setting me back on my feet. “If you ever do that again, I’ll kick your ass.”
“I’m the one that makes the threats,” I remind him with the ghost of a smile. “It’s good to see you, Jack.”
“You too.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Can we get a fucking drink now?”
“So, Heather is now in control of a fae?” Tarnley questions as we sit in what is apparently his study.
The vampire made his arrival about an hour ago and now sits in a leather chair behind his desk. Fearghas is leaned against the wall in the corner of the room, legs crossed at the ankles as he plays with the silver letter opener he pilfered when we first arrived.
Elijah’s hand tightens on my own, and I lean against him, afraid that if I let go for even a moment, all of this will fall away and I’ll have been dreaming.
What a sweet dream it would be—but I’d rather not wake up as Heather’s prisoner again.
“Yes.”
“But we can free her, right?”
“Rainey was born during the Lunar Divide,” Fearghas interjects. “Because of that, she had a void, and her body was able to host two souls. Aoife does not. Which means—”
“Her soul was destroyed when Heather took over,” I add sadly. “She sacrificed herself, and I refuse to let her die in vain.”
Elijah’s jaw tightens, and I squeeze his hand. He loved Aoife once, and while I know he grieved her death before, this pain will be fresh.
“But you’re saying that Heather’s a fae. How the hell are we supposed to fight that?”
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I really don’t have a plan.”
“And yet you were willing to face off with her alone,” Fearghas adds. “Tsk, tsk, little hunter.”
“Call me little hunter again, and I’ll remove your favorite appendage.”
Gravel crunches in the driveway, and I jump to my feet, ready to fight. The rest of the room stays calm though Elijah does stand beside me.
The front door opens and closes, and a heartbeat later, I’m confronted with the sight of my grandmother standing beside the woman who has been my best friend for my entire life. My heart stammers within my chest, my stomach churning as I meet her mismatched gaze.
“Jane,” I whisper. “You’re alive.”
“Is it you?” Jane asks, her eyes filling, and I nod. “Is it really her?” She asks
Elijah for confirmation I can’t really blame her for needing. After all, Heather used my body to slit her throat the last time we were face-to-face.
And the reminder of that has me choking on a sob. Seeing the blood drip from her throat as she fell back, eyes wide, face pale. It was a memory Heather replayed over and over again to torment me when I was trapped within the void.
It’s something I know will haunt me forever.
“It is. Heather found a new host.”
Jane rushes forward, and I leave Elijah’s side to meet her in the middle. “I’m so sorry I lied to you,” she whispers against my cheek.
“I’m so sorry I was angry. That I didn’t understand why. I get it now.” I grip her, this woman who’s spent her life at my side. It took nearly dying to realize that it doesn’t matter the reasoning behind how she got there.
All that matters is that she was there. Every day of my life since we were twelve. Jane is my best friend. Hell, she was my only friend, and she’s here.
“I’m so sorry,” I choke out, and Jane shakes her head as she pulls back.
“I’m sorry. I should have been honest from the beginning.” Reaching into her leather purse, she pulls out a massive red bag, and I grin at her through tears. “I thought you could use some.”
I laugh through my sobs. “I thought you hated me eating Skittles.”
“You’ve more than earned them.”
I reach for her again, wrapping my arms around her for another moment before releasing her, taking the offered bag, and facing off with my grandmother.
“Grandmother,” I greet tightly. Don’t get me wrong; knowing I’m not the last remaining member of my family is a relief even if she did everything in her power to make me feel unwelcome.
“Rainey.”
Three black crows swoop into the room, and I can’t help but take a step back as one perches on Agatha’s shoulder, its beady eyes staring me down.
I swallow hard. Even knowing what Elijah’s told me about these birds, seeing them is more than a little unnerving. “I have to say I’m more than a little surprised to see you breathing. Hell didn’t want you?”
Blood Cure: A Paranormal Vampire Romance (Vampire Huntress Chronicles Book 3) Page 11