by Cynthia Eden
We’re harder to kill than you thought.
“Help me!” Cody shouted to someone. Bastion? But then Riley’s form appeared as the vamp crouched down next to Marna. He reached for her.
“Touch her,” Tanner managed, voice barely human, “and die.”
“A soul must be taken,” Bastion said quietly.
Riley jerked and his gaze flew up. Had he heard Bastion? With Marna’s blood in him, he just might have—
Cody’s hands grabbed Tanner. “You’re killing yourself! Let her go!”
Never.
She just needed a little more energy.
“You’re shaking, dammit! Blood is coming out of your eyes!”
Was that what the moisture was? He’d thought it was tears.
“You’re dying!”
Yeah, well, without her, he might as well be dead. What was he supposed to do? Go back to the life he’d had before her? Not when she’d shown him what he could be.
What he would be.
Cody tried to pull him away. Tanner didn’t budge. He wouldn’t move. Not until her eyes opened again. Not until he saw that she was going to be okay.
“You’re all I’ve got, man! The only family who ever meant shit to me!” Cody was still jerking on his arms.
“And she’s . . .” Tanner swallowed. Why was talking so hard? “She’s . . . what matters to me.”
Marna’s eyes opened. Her eyes weren’t filled with pain. They were so bright and blue that it almost hurt to look into them. Her gaze found his. Widened. Her lips curled in a smile. “Tanner.”
The light vanished from beneath his fingertips. His heart raced in his chest. Far, far too fast, that drumming beat seemed to shake his whole body.
But then fear flashed over her delicate features. No, she should never be afraid of him. He’d never hurt her. He’d protect her, take care of her and—
“Tanner?” She sat up.
He slipped back and fell onto the floor.
Then her hands were on him, touching him lightly, but he couldn’t seem to feel her touch. Why couldn’t he feel her? Her skin was silken and soft, and he wanted to feel it one more time.
But he couldn’t seem to feel anything.
Bastion looked down on him. “You traded yourself for her.” He sounded . . . surprised?
Tanner couldn’t speak, but, hell yes, he’d made the trade. He’d known the risks. Gladly accepted them. His death, her life?
Fucking fair.
Then Marna slapped him. “You aren’t doing this to me!” Good thing he couldn’t feel anything, or that hit might have hurt.
She caught his face between her hands. “You aren’t dying for me.”
“Yes.” Cody’s voice. Sad. Hopeless. “He is.”
Bastion reached down for him.
Marna stiffened. “Bastion, you’d better yank that hand back, or you will lose it.”
“So someone else does see him,” Riley whispered and eased back a few feet. “Thought I was goin’ crazy.”
“Vampire . . .” Marna’s voice held a lethal edge. “Don’t even think of leaving.”
Why was the vampire there? Tanner tried to push up but found his arms wouldn’t move. No, he couldn’t move.
Marna leaned over him again. “You save me, I save you.” She bent and pressed a kiss to his lips. He tasted salt. Tears? “That’s how it works,” she whispered.
She pulled back. He didn’t want her to pull back. Didn’t want her to leave.
But Marna lifted her arm and bared her wrist. “Bite me, vamp.”
A growl broke from Tanner’s lips. Riley had better not—
“It’s okay.” Marna’s eyes were on his. Bastion stood at her back. The angel was always too close to her. “He’s not drinking from me.”
“Uh, I’m not?” Riley asked. Then Tanner saw him, coming up on Marna’s side. Taking her offered wrist. “Then what am I doing?”
“Opening a vein.” Her eyes didn’t leave Tanner. “And saving my shifter.”
Her blood. He’d told her not to give him her blood again. It was too addictive. The blood connected him to her even deeper, so deep that if she ever left him, what would remain?
Nothing.
“I’m not leaving you.” Did she know what he was thinking? A flash of pain crossed her face. “And you’re not leaving me.” She put her wrist to his mouth. Blood trickled past his lips. “There’s no time for a fancy transfusion, but it worked when you drank my blood before.”
Because the beast inside lived on blood and death.
Not her blood. It was the beast’s denial, and the man’s.
“If you want to stay with me, if you want to be sure all the vampires and the demons out there don’t get my blood or me, then you’ll drink.”
No one would get her. No one would hurt her.
“Drink,” Marna said again, and he did.
Her blood slid down his throat. The panther had taken blood from prey plenty of times, but the man hadn’t. He choked, hating what he was doing to her. Hard hands held him down. His gaze flew to the left. To the right. Riley and Cody were pinning him down, making sure he couldn’t move.
“Drink for me,” Marna whispered, “because I don’t want to lose you.”
He closed his eyes and drank. At first, the blood didn’t seem to do anything to him. Maybe he was already too far gone. He’d wanted to stay with her, wanted to be at her side forever, but maybe fate had other plans.
Fate had always screwed with him.
Marna pulled her hand away. Tanner licked his lips. He still tasted her, and now, he could almost feel her, inside his mind. A warmth spread within him and filled him with energy and strength.
Deep within him, the panther seemed to stretch and roar.
Alive.
Tanner opened his eyes. “I’m . . . not leaving you.”
Her smile was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. “No, you’re damn well not.” Then she bent toward him and her lips feathered over his cheek.
Cody and Riley eased their grips and pulled away from him. Over Marna’s shoulder, Tanner saw Bastion. Waiting. Watching. His dark wings curled toward his body. His eyes flickered with emotion.
Was he going to have to fight the angel now? He’d killed one jerk-off already. What else was he gonna have to do?
Tanner rose, but kept a strong grip on Marna. He was naked because of his shift, but that was the least of his worries right then. They’d cheated death, for the moment, and that was what mattered.
“Nice trick, shifter,” Bastion said.
Riley flinched. “I need to get the hell out of here.”
“I didn’t realize beasts were so adept at healing.” Bastion’s wings unfurled. “Guess there is more to you than killing.”
“And there’s more to you than death,” Marna said, her voice strong and certain. “There always has been more, Bastion. You aren’t like the others.”
The angel’s hands were clenched into fists. “I was supposed to . . .” He swallowed and said, “You should have died today.”
And what would happen, Tanner wondered, once the angel went back upstairs without his charge?
But Bastion lifted his chin and smiled. “I’ve heard the fall is one wild bitch of a ride.”
Wait . . . had the guy just said—?
“I didn’t want you to fall for me,” Marna told him. Yeah, well, Tanner sure as shit didn’t want that either. Blondie, earthbound? Dogging their steps? Spilling over with emotion?
“Not for you.” Bastion shook his head and straightened his shoulders. “For me. Because maybe I want to know just what it is that humans feel.”
Lust. Fury. Need. Love.
“Find me when I fall,” Bastion said. His gaze darted between Marna and Tanner. “Help me, and any debt you owe me is paid.”
A debt for not taking a soul? Yeah, they’d find the guy all right.
And then Tanner would make sure the Fallen kept his hands off Marna.
A strong wind ripped through the room, sending
them all stumbling back. All but Bastion. He rose up, tossed by the wind. The air around him grew dark.
“See you soon,” Bastion whispered as the wind grew even stronger and howled with its own fury.
Then he vanished.
“Holy fuck,” Riley whispered. “Is he really gonna fall?”
Marna’s face tightened with sadness. “Yes.”
Because he hadn’t taken Marna’s soul? Or because he didn’t take mine?
Either way, Blondie would be earthbound soon.
Cody strode toward them. He glared at Tanner an instant, then hauled him close in a back-breaking hug. “Bastard. You weren’t supposed to use that fancy-ass light trick anymore.” Then he eased back and gazed steadily at Tanner. “But for her, you’d do any damn thing, wouldn’t you?”
Fight. Lie. Kill.
Die.
Tanner nodded.
Cody released him and grabbed Marna. He hugged her just as tightly. “Welcome to the fucked-up family,” he whispered against her ear, though Tanner’s shifter hearing easily picked up his words. “I promise, from now on, things will be different. Better.”
Could they be any worse?
Then Cody released her. “We’re not just our father’s sons.”
No. Not even close. Tanner couldn’t even feel the echo of that old bastard anymore. He really was gone now. Rotting in the ground. Burning in hell. Either way, he was gone.
“We’re more,” Tanner said, nodding, but his gaze was on Marna. He’d prove to her that he could be more than a killer.
But first . . . first he was getting her out of that place. Away from the dead body on the floor. Away from the blood and the memories and the fear.
Someone must have heard all the gunshots and howling. The cops would be coming. And since he wasn’t exactly on good terms with his brothers and sisters in blue . . .
Time to leave.
Tanner lifted his hand to Marna. Without any hesitation, she wound her fingers through his. Marna’s gaze didn’t drop to Jonathan’s dead body as they left the trashed room. Tanner’s did. In death, Jonathan didn’t look so violent or twisted. But then, most of the time, he hadn’t looked that way in life, either. Not until the end.
The end . . .
It could have been me dead on the floor.
“But it fucking wasn’t,” Tanner growled, and his hold tightened on Marna. They walked out together and left death exactly where he belonged—behind them.
Tanner wasn’t sure what he’d find waiting back at his place. Half a dozen cop cars, maybe a SWAT team? All gunning for him. Because he was the hunted now, right? The cop who’d gone bad and taken out his captain.
But . . . the street was empty.
He parked the patrol car and turned to stare at Marna. “We’re gonna need to leave town.” Because the cops would come for him, sooner or later.
She just smiled and looked so beautiful she made his heart hurt. “I’d like to see the rest of the world. When you’re out ferrying souls, there’s not much time for sightseeing.”
No. He, ah, bet there wasn’t.
The door squeaked as she opened it and hurried toward the porch. Tanner pushed open his door, and when the wind blew toward him, he immediately caught the scent of the intruder. They weren’t alone after all.
Not so empty.
“Marna!” She was on the steps now.
His warning had come too late. Sammael strolled out. He quirked a brow and put his hands on his hips. “Took you long enough to come home, shifter.”
Tanner bounded up the steps. “What the hell are you doing in my house?”
“Waiting.” Said so casually. “You didn’t really expect me to sit outside, did you?”
What? Did the Fallen think he was some kind of damn celebrity? “Why. Are. You. Here?”
Sam lifted his brows. “So you can say thank you?”
Tanner lunged for the guy. Marna grabbed his arms and held him back. “Easy.” Her breath whispered against him as she turned to face Sammael. “We found the killer on our own. So if that’s what you were coming to tell us—”
“And where is Jonathan Pardue now?”
Tanner’s whole body tightened. How long had the Fallen known Jonathan was the guy gunning for them? That hard stare of Sam’s gave nothing away. Probably the whole time. “He’s dead.”
“Yes, well, I always say, a death job is always done best when it’s done by your own hands.” He offered a faint smile. A smug one. “Right, shifter? Don’t you feel better knowing that you sent the guy to hell?”
Like he needed to be taught some kind of life lesson by Sam. “Marna could have been the one to die.”
“I was on Bastion’s list,” she said, anger humming in her voice.
But Sam just shrugged. “He’s always been half in love with you. He never would have taken your soul.”
Tanner rushed away from Marna. He grabbed Sam around the neck and shoved him against the wall of the house. “Listen, you cold bastard—”
Sam shook his head. “This isn’t the way to thank me.”
“Thank you?” Marna repeated, coming closer. “You haven’t done anything!”
Sam shoved back against Tanner. Because he was trying—trying—to hold on to his control, Tanner eased back a few feet. He caught Marna’s hand. Rubbed his fingers over her knuckles and took a steadying breath.
Don’t kick angel ass. Not yet.
“I’ve done plenty.” Now Sam sounded, what? Insulted? Definitely. He glared at Marna and said, “I’m the one who made sure your pet wasn’t locked in a cage. Shifters do hate those cages, don’t they?” His knowing gaze drifted back to Tanner. “Something about the beasts they carry . . .”
Tanner growled at him.
Sam smiled. “Let’s just say that I made all the trouble with the law vanish for you. You’re now cleared of the attack on that boy wonder cop. Cleared of all the shit with the captain. Hell, when you go back to work, they might even give you a medal.” He lifted his hands with an honest-to-God voila-type gesture. “What can I say? I am that good.”
“You’re full of shit,” Tanner said. “I’m not—”
“The chief of police is a demon, and a guy who owes me more than just his soul.” Sam dropped his hands. “All I had to do was explain a few facts to him. A little while ago, he took care of making all the evidence fit with the new version of the story.”
The chief of—well, he’d suspected that after meeting the guy a few times. Tanner rubbed his chin. “And the new version is . . . ?”
“Your captain was killed in the line of duty. She was tracking the real killer, one who’d been killing all over the city. You tried to save her, the same way you tried to save that kid cop—Hodges—but sometimes, well, death can’t be stopped.”
Sometimes, he could be.
“You took out the killer today, one rogue cop who’d crossed the line by attacking others on the force and manipulating evidence.” Sammael made a little tsk, tsk sound. “Sometimes, even the boys in blue can go bat-shit crazy like Jonathan.”
“And the video?” The one showing someone with his face attacking the injured cop?
“What video?” Sam asked, voice mild, then firmer. “There is no video.”
Right, he got the picture. Not anymore, there wasn’t any video.
Sam brushed past them and headed down the steps. “You still haven’t said thanks.”
He was back on the force. Not wanted. Not hunted. He could stay in New Orleans with Marna. After he took her on those sightseeing trips she wanted. Things wouldn’t always be perfect, and he was sure he’d have to smooth over more shit at the precinct to make sure all suspicion was gone, but . . . “Thank you.”
“That’s a start.” Sam didn’t look back. “It’ll take more before we’re even.”
With that guy, there was always a price.
Sam headed down the sidewalk. Then he paused, and glanced back at Marna. “You still can’t kill, can you?”
She stared back a
t him, then shook her head. “Not with the Touch.”
His brow furrowed.
“It’s not like the Touch would have worked on another angel anyway,” Marna said, her shoulders lifting and falling in a small roll, “but believe me, I wanted to kill.”
Sam’s gaze had become hooded. That gaze swept over Marna once, twice, and seemed to measure her.
Then his eyes widened. He glanced back at Tanner, and for an instant, Tanner thought the guy had pity in his stare. Now why the hell would Sam pity him? All was supposed to be freakin’ sunshine now.
“Some aren’t meant for death,” Sam murmured. “Some are meant for something much different.” His head cocked as he studied Marna again. “You never should have been a death angel. We all knew you hated carrying the souls. Everybody knew, but you did your duty for so long.”
“Not anymore,” Marna told him, and her fingers tightened around Tanner’s. “Now I’m free.”
Did Sam shake his head a little? Tanner’s gut clenched. That Fallen knew something he wasn’t saying. Something that already had Tanner’s whole body locking up as if he was about to take a blow.
But Sam pointed at Tanner and said, “Stay close to her.” His gaze drifted back to Marna. “Guard what you want the most.” Then he turned away. “Oh . . . and, by the way, I made sure every damn supernatural in this city knows that angel blood is off the menu. Permanently.” The words floated to them on a breeze. “And I only had to kill a few paranormals to get the point across.”
Just a few?
“Don’t worry, cop, they all had it coming.” Sam was at the edge of the sidewalk. There one moment, gone the next. Vanished, as if he’d never been there.
Guard what you want the most.
Tanner pulled Marna close to him. She actually wanted him, loved him—scars, claws, beast, and all. She’d been willing to risk her life for him.
He’d guard her for as long as he had breath.
Tanner bent his head toward her and brushed his lips against hers. He didn’t care about the rest of the world then. Right then, she was the only thing that mattered.
Not his job. Not the fears from the past.
Nothing but her.
Her tongue slid against his.
Only her.
By the time they made it inside, he was so hard for her that he ached. Tanner slammed the door closed behind them and lifted Marna into his arms. He rushed up the stairs with her, kissing her, loving her taste.