by C. C. Wood
“Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?” I asked.
He looked up from the shirt he was tucking into the duffel. “Of course.” When he took in the expression on my face, he asked, “Is this about something Lex said?”
I hadn’t thought. If I could hear Asher when he was on the phone in his room, then he could definitely hear me.
“Yes,” I answered honestly. “He said that I would have to be emotionally blank and to show no reaction, even if you asked me to do something I didn’t want to.”
Asher nodded. “That’s true, but I thought you understood that already.”
“I did, but he reminded me of something that I used to do on assignments. It will be easier to maintain the facade if you could tell me what to expect before it happens.”
“I can’t predict what Cornelius will do, Shannon,” he began.
I shook my head. “I know, I know. What I mean is that I usually wore an earpiece so other operatives could talk to me during an assignment. We could do something similar, only you could speak to me telepathically, right?” I asked.
He seemed to be thinking about it. “Yes, I could. Since I’ve bitten you, it should be easy to establish the connection.” Asher hesitated. “But do you understand that you’ll have to drop your mental shields for me? I’ll be able to hear your every thought, but you might not know mine. It will require you to trust me completely. Can you do that?”
I realized that I already did. Somehow, I knew he would never hurt me. “I can. I mean, I think I already do.”
He looked surprised. “You do?”
I nodded. When he didn’t speak, I asked, “So, how will this work?” I’d spent so many years learning to keep vampires and witches out of my head, that I wasn’t sure how to go about letting one in.
“Can you focus on me as you lower your mental guard?”
“I can try.”
Taking a deep breath, I centered my attention on Asher. Then I hesitated as second thoughts filled my mind. “I’m not sure if I can do this after all, Asher,” I mumbled, doubts seizing the conviction I’d felt just moments ago.
This would shift the balance of power between us radically. He would know things about me that no one else did, yet I knew nothing about him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Tell me something about yourself that no one else knows,” I blurted out.
“What?”
“You’re going to know things about me that I’ve never shared with anyone, and the thought is freaking me out a little. I need you to reciprocate here.”
I hadn’t been truly vulnerable with a man in years and this was a hell of a way to end the drought.
Asher stared at me blankly for a moment. “Like what?”
I hesitated, but an idea quickly came to me. “When was the last time you cried?” I asked.
Asher was silent. Just when I thought he wasn’t going to answer, he said, “When my sister died. It was at the turn of the 20th century. She decided…” he paused and cleared his throat. “She decided to meet the dawn.”
Though it had been over a hundred years, I could feel the freshness of his pain. It hurt him to talk about it, even now.
“Were you older than her?” I asked.
He nodded. “By about one hundred and fifty years.”
My eyebrows went up in surprise, but I didn’t say anything.
He noticed my expression. “It’s not an uncommon age difference among vampire families. And usually they’re half siblings.” His smile was sad. “That wasn’t the case with Agnès. My parents didn’t intend to have another child and she was a…surprise. My parents were absent, but I made sure to come around and spend time with her. But,” he looked down at his hands, “it wasn’t enough. She was only thirty when she died.”
God, what kind of fucking selfish assholes were his parents?
“I’m sorry, Asher.”
He shrugged and rubbed his hands together. “It broke my heart to lose her.” When he looked up at me, his blue eyes were dry. “I haven’t cried since.”
I nodded, unsure of what else I could say. I hadn’t exactly chosen a good topic.
“Does that ease your fears?” he asked.
“Yes,” I whispered. “It does.” I blinked rapidly as tears formed in the corners of my eyes. I no longer wondered why Asher closed himself off. After what he’d been through, I couldn’t blame him.
His expression softened when our eyes met. “Don’t cry for me, Shannon. Life is full of loss, especially when you’ve lived as long as I have.”
That may be true, but it sounded to me that Asher took responsibility for those losses, even when he shouldn’t.
“Do you want to ask me anything else?” he asked.
I shook my head. He’d shared more of himself than I expected and the apprehension that plagued me moments ago was already sinking beneath the weight of my premonitions. I could trust him. The fear was due to my own vulnerability, not from my talents as a sensitive. “No, I’m ready,” I answered.
He nodded, his expression patient and kind.
For the first time in years, I consciously dropped the wall I’d erected around my mind. One moment, my mind was mine alone and the next, he was there.
Asher was both right and wrong when he said I wouldn’t know his thoughts. While I couldn’t differentiate his individual thoughts, I could feel his emotions. Anger and sorrow swirled around me, but beneath that—yearning. Asher wanted many things, but he also wanted me. Then there was the regret. So much in his life that he wished had been different. Centuries of disappointments and loss. The emotions swamped me, wave after wave taking me under until I was overwhelmed.
I could imagine how he felt, but experiencing it was so much more.
I swayed on my feet and Asher was suddenly in front of me, his hands on my arms.
“Are you okay?”
His worry shoved everything else back.
I shook my head, not in a negative response but in an effort to clear my head. “Give me a second,” I whispered.
I concentrated on breathing and letting his feelings coexist with my own rather than letting them take over. It took a few minutes, but I regained control.
“I’m okay now,” I stated, my voice stronger than before.
“What happened?”
I laughed, but it ended in a sigh. “Well, you were right about me not being able to hear your thoughts, but I can definitely feel your emotions,” I answered.
Immediately, the sensation of drowning in his feelings lessened as if he’d closed a shutter. I could still sense them, but it was much easier to breathe.
“Better?” he asked.
“Much.” Now that I wasn’t distracted, I could feel his presence in my mind, like a shadow.
Can you hear me?
I almost answered aloud before I realized that I was hearing his question in my head rather than through my ears. Though I often used my gifts to my advantage, I’d never been able to communicate telepathically before.
Yes.
Asher nodded. Good. I’d like to try something, but I want your permission first.
What?
The expression on his face did nothing to put me at ease.
I’m going to try to control your movements and your speech. Will you allow me?
My eyes widened. I loathed the idea of giving up my free will, which was exactly what he was asking me to do. “Asher, I—”
He slowly stepped back, withdrawing from me both physically and mentally. “I understand. I’m only curious about how your mind works and if your gifts make it impossible for a vampire to control you.”
When he put it that way, my own curiosity was piqued. “All right. Dammit, now I’m wondering the same thing.”
It was an epiphany, the realization that I trusted him enough to give him complete control over me.
As quickly as he’d slipped out of my mind, he re-entered. It felt natural, as though he belonged there.
Ready?
I nodded.
It was an odd sensation as he took over, as if he was a hand and I was the glove.
I felt my own mouth open and heard my own voice come out, but I had no control over it. I was also speaking with a horrible accent of some sort. “Come with me if you want to live. Hasta la vista, baby.”
Internally, I smiled, but my mouth didn’t respond. While it freaked me out, I appreciated Asher’s efforts to make this seem less intrusive and more humorous.
Suddenly, I executed a deep, graceful curtsy. “May I call you master?” I asked breathlessly.
I laughed, surprised when the noise burst from my throat. Asher looked shocked as well. Though he was still in my mind, he no longer had control.
“What happened?” I asked.
Asher studied me, admiration gleaming in his eyes. “Apparently, you can break my hold whenever you want. I didn’t release you, but you laughed on your own anyway.”
“That is so cool!” I exclaimed. “And surprising.”
His eyebrows lifted. “It is surprising. Second to Finn, my skill at controlling humans and other vampires is the strongest among our population in Dallas.”
That was even more amazing to me. “Really?”
“Yes. I’m very interested to find out what else you’re capable of, but now isn’t the time. We need to get moving.”
At his words, the sense of foreboding I’d felt off and on for weeks returned, stronger than before. As I left his room, I wondered if this was just a warning of some sort or a sign that the final battle was imminent.
Chapter Eleven
The drive to New Orleans didn’t go as I expected. Then again, I wasn’t sure what I thought would happen.
The first hour, we made small talk until it became painful. Just when I was about to feign fatigue and close my eyes Asher said, “Tell me a memory from your childhood.”
We spent the next three hours talking about our lives. His interest in my past surprised me. Considering he’d been alive about five hundred years longer than I had, I figured my life would seem miniscule in comparison.
When I commented that we were only three hours from New Orleans, the conversation dried up. Asher turned on the radio, but there was an undercurrent of tension between us. With each mile we drove, it grew.
There was a zip of excitement in my blood and my nerves were stretched taut. We were heading toward danger, where we would have to weigh every word and every action.
As the minutes counted down on the GPS until we reached our destination, the more amped up I became.
“Are you scared?” I asked him.
Asher glanced at me. “Yes.”
“Me, too.”
He pulled over to the side of the road and turned to face me. “Do you want to turn back?” he asked.
I gaped at him. “What?”
“We can go back. Right now. The Council will find another way.”
“Why are you saying all this?” I queried, surprised at his offer.
I blinked at him as he cupped my cheek. It was a tender gesture and completely unexpected.
“Because I want you to feel safe, to be protected. I can’t stand the thought of anything happening to you.”
His words shocked me. Since our initial conversation, Asher had treated me as wholly capable and essentially equal. It never occurred to me that he might feel this way.
“I don’t think we can turn back,” I replied. Before he could pull away, I put my hand over his. “But I don’t want anything to happen to you either.”
He stared at me, but his mental barriers were up and I couldn’t read his emotions. Then Asher leaned forward and pressed his lips gently to mine. It was a simple brush of our mouths, but it sent shockwaves through my soul.
Somehow, we’d made a pact and sealed it with a kiss, yet I had no idea what it meant.
He released me and I watched in silence as he put the car in gear and steered us back onto the road.
“I feel like something big just happened,” I murmured.
“It did.”
“Mind telling me what it was?”
“In the simplest of terms, we just promised to take care of each other,” he answered.
“For how long?” I asked.
“As long as you want.”
* * *
“Where are we?”
Asher put the car in park. “The middle of nowhere. We’re about five miles from the address.”
My blood hummed beneath my skin. “And Conner says this is Alistair’s house, right?”
He turned to me. “Yes. Alistair assured the Council he was an ally but that’s clearly not the case. Remember, do not speak unless spoken to. Keep your face blank and as empty as possible.” He pulled out a small medallion. “This is the amulet Kerry made. It works like a glamour.”
He handed it to me. “You could wear it like a necklace, but it might be safer to keep it unseen. I don’t know much about Frederick but he might become suspicious if you wear it around your neck.”
I nodded. After thinking for a moment, I fastened the medallion around the strap of my bra and tucked it inside. Earlier, Asher suggested I keep my shirt unbuttoned at the neckline, so I double checked that the necklace wasn’t visible. I felt the metal of the pendant heat as it touched my skin.
“It’s getting hot.”
“That means it’s active,” he answered.
I watched as he pulled a ring out of his pocket as well. The silver setting was simple and held a round pale blue stone, polished to almost a mirror shine.
“If there’s trouble, crush this beneath your heel and hold your breath. As long as you don’t breathe it in, you’ll be fine.”
“Uh, what happens if I breathe it in?” I questioned, my brows lifting.
“Well, it will render a vampire or warlock unconscious for about fifteen minutes. I’m not sure what it would do to a human.”
“Holy shit, that’s some serious tear gas.”
He frowned at me. “I’m not sure that this is the best time to make jokes,” he commented.
I shrugged. “That’s what I do before a mission. It lets off a little of the energy from the adrenaline.”
“Fine, but all jokes stop as soon as we’re back on our way.”
He was all business now and I realized that this was his game face. He was treating me as an equal and a professional.
I did the same, putting aside my anxiety and fear. “Understood.”
Asher nodded and slid the ring on the middle finger of my left hand. He released me and put the car into gear. “Let’s go.”
The closer we got to the house, the stronger my sense of foreboding became. I wanted to tell him that I changed my mind, that I wanted to turn around, but an unexplainable instinct held me back. This confliction was tearing me in two; one part was telling me to run, frightened by the darkness I felt gathering over us while the other part was telling me to see it through, that the outcome would be worth it.
Asher turned into a driveway and my eyes widened as I took in the massive stone walls and wrought iron gate. It looked like something out of a Gothic horror novel.
As the car continued down the tree-lined drive, I almost expected to see ghostly women and men walking through the twilight. A flash of red caught my eye in the dying light. I turned my head, but the wide expanse of grass on the other side of the trees was empty.
Then the drive opened up and I could see the house clearly for the first time. Actually, it wasn’t a house. It was a mansion. Set amongst the trees, the structure resembled a hulking, stone box. Menace radiated from it and the stones seemed to whisper warnings that I couldn’t quite hear or understand.
“Oh my God,” I mumbled. “Do you feel that?” I asked Asher.
“Feel what?”
“This place is evil. It’s in every stone, every window.”
He looked at me oddly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Suddenly, I really didn’t want to go into that house, premonition be
damned, but it was too late. The front door swung open and a slender blond man dressed in grey stepped outside.
He walked around the car and opened Asher’s door for him before doing the same for me. I fought to keep my face blank as he studied me closely.
“I can’t believe it,” he murmured. “You’ve broken her.”
The man stepped closer, invading my personal space. I sensed it was coming and had time to steel myself so I didn’t recoil. I allowed my eyes to focus on him briefly before looking through him. His skin was pale and his eyes were dark grey, the same color as his shirt.
Tendrils of darkness reached out from his body, an echo of the evil emanating from inside the house. Then I felt the weight of his thoughts and a taste of his power. He was a warlock, the blackest of black. This must be Frederick.
He lifted a hand, his fingers skimming the ends of my hair. I was grateful for the long sleeves I wore because goose bumps broke out on my flesh.
“She’s beautiful. The Master will be very happy to see her.”
God, I wanted to roll my eyes, but I refrained. The Master? How trite could you get?
“Thank you,” Asher replied, bowing slightly.
“I apologize for my lack of manners,” the warlock said, stepping away from me. “I’ve been researching the Five for quite some time and I never expected I would get the opportunity to inspect one so closely.”
I struggled not to look at them as they talked. The only other object to stare at was the house and I didn’t want to study it for too long. Instinct told me that evil that strong would steal bits of my soul if I gave it the opportunity.
“I’m Frederick.”
“Asher Leroux.”
They didn’t shake hands, instead doing that weird head bowing thing Asher had done before. I didn’t understand a lot about warlocks, but I wouldn’t want to shake his hand either.
“Please come inside. Someone will gather your bags momentarily.”
I didn’t trust his friendly demeanor, especially since I could feel the thread of smugness beneath it.
Asher took my arm in his hand. “Come along, Shannon.”
Obediently, I allowed him to lead me up the steps and into the house. As soon as I stepped over the threshold, I sensed it.