by J. A. Saare
“Graham Tavish.”
His green eyes narrowed. “Have we met?”
“Not exactly.” I started to approach him, reaching for the gun at my side.
“That’s too bad,” he said and gave a dismissive wave of his hand.
I pulled my Ruger free, took a balanced stance, and took each and every one of his necromancers down with a solid shot between the eyes. They didn’t even make it five feet from their master, dropping like flies.
“Kill her!” he roared at the vampires around him.
“They can’t, Graham. See, right now, I’m holding all the cards. They have to do what I tell them to do. How’s about a demonstration?”
Looking at the vampires clustered around him, I ordered, “Place your master on the floor.”
The shock that registered on Graham’s face was fleeting, since I was only able to see it for a moment. His entire coven moved to do my bidding, wrestling him to the ground as he struggled and fought. It didn’t take long, only a few seconds, before he was trapped with vampires at his arms, legs and throat. He couldn’t move, little more than food for the fishes.
I crossed over to Graham and straddled him. I rested my weight on his stomach as I brought the knife within his view. His fear was apparent, right there for me to witness. I was certain this was the first time he’d been introduced to the emotion. Too bad it would also be his last.
“Graham, you did one of the most stupid things you ever could have by coming here. I know you thought you were smart. You came to Joseph, offered a bargain, and when you learned how weakened Gabriel was, you knew you could force Joseph to go against one of his own. It was clever, considering you’d never want Marius to become involved. After all, half-demons don’t go after their own kind.” Before he could say anything, I leaned forward and continued, “Thing is, I know all about you and Victoria. I’m aware of your plan to establish a demon-like Hell on earth. Too bad it’s never going to happen. I have more of the same waiting for your sister when I find her.”
“Victoria will spit you up and chew you out,” Graham snarled. “When she learns what you’ve done, she’ll come here, and she’ll end you.”
I shrugged, smiling. “That’s the hope. Been there, done that. I want her to come here. It will make my job so much easier. I have other shit to work out, so the sooner she comes to find me, the better.” Looking at the vampires at his neck, I said, “Reveal his throat.”
“Don’t do this,” Graham choked out, struggling. “We can work out a deal. It doesn’t have to be like this.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. This is exactly how it has to be. It’s time to meet your maker.”
When I saw his artery, I took the blade and felt the amulet grow hot. I buried the sharp weapon fully into his throat. This time, I severed the head with one quick punch of the knife. The crack of bone came just before I felt the concrete the blade couldn’t cut through. His struggling ceased almost immediately, but his lips and mouth continued working just fine. I grasped the head by the top of his hair as I stood and walked over to Joseph. He couldn’t move, but thankfully, I could easily perceive the terror in his eyes.
“This could be you. Fuck with my family again, and it will be you. This is Gabriel Trevillian’s city. It belongs to him. You try to do anything to upset that balance again, and I will kill you. Do you understand me? Tell me that you understand, Joseph.”
His lips moved, although his body remained motionless. “I understand.”
“Good boy.” I tossed the head behind me, uncaring of where it landed, and moved over to Sonja.
“You and I are going to develop a rough, if not equally opportunistic, friendship. You might not like it, but with the information I’m willing to share, I’m sure you’ll be able to look right past it. You might be the weaker of the one you serve, but only physically. It’s what you carry up here”—I tapped my temple with my index finger—“that makes you a force to be reckoned with.”
She swallowed, the sound loud in the quiet room. “Joseph—”
“Will allow it. He’s going to get the request from the ruler of the city, which means he doesn’t have the authority to say no. Expect my call in the next few days. We have a lot of work to do.”
Pivoting as I returned the blade to my back, I saw that Disco had made it to his feet. He was a bit wobbly, but the purple tint that marred his skin was gone. He opened his arms, and I felt my eyes burn as I finally caved in to the emotions I’d kept so long at bay.
I loved him, more than anything else in the world. However, I also knew that despite my declaration, things were going to change between us. I had done something most lovers would never forgive. When he found out, our relationship might never be the same.
Forcing such thoughts aside, I rushed into the paradise that was his embrace, relishing the scents of cloves and cinnamon. So damned thankful to be back in the arms of the man I had taken for granted for too fucking long.
“Christ, I’ve missed you,” he murmured into my hair. “Where have you been? What the hell have you been doing?”
“It’s a really, really long story,” I murmured into his chest. “I’ll tell you about it when we get home.”
“Home?” He pulled away, looking me in the eye. “Are you trying to tell me something?”
Before I’d left Disco for that last time, I’d told him I couldn’t promise to live with him at his home, needing my own personal space. Having lost him, I quickly learned I didn’t want to miss a single moment with the man. It was ironic, in retrospect, as when he learned about what Paine and I had done, the invitation might be revoked. Until it was, however, I was willing to put my heart on the line.
“I’m ready to pack my bags and move in, if that’s what you want.” As a smile spread across his face, I felt that sharp slice of betrayal in my own heart. “But there’s a lot we have to talk about. There’s a lot you need to know.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He pulled me into his chest again. “We’re together now.”
Breaking down wasn’t part of the plan, but I almost did. Eager to get my shit together, I turned to the vampires. I stopped draining their power and returned my attention to Disco.
“I need to tell you what’s happened, but not here.”
“Let’s go home?” He waited, undoubtedly wanting to hear it again.
“Yeah.” I glanced over my shoulder at the carnage I had caused, and said, “Let’s go home.”
Chapter Eighteen
The drive home was odd, to say the least. Goose and Disco wanted to ask questions, I could feel it, but they didn’t. I was grateful for the time I had as I tried to figure out what in the hell I was going to say. If Disco was willing to forgive me, how would we move forward in our relationship? As we entered his home, the first person to greet us wasn’t Nala, but Paine. I had to keep my emotions in check. I knew how he felt, but for him, nothing had changed. His alarm and displeasure at our presence was apparent, and he shocked all of the members of the household, who had assembled as they waited, when he yanked me from Disco’s arms and demanded an audience.
“We need to talk.”
“Later,” Disco said as he attempted to pull me back.
“No, Gabriel. Rhiannon and I have to talk—now.”
“It’s okay.” I placated Disco with a soft brush of my fingers across his face. “Go upstairs and wait for me.”
Disco’s face hardened into an impenetrable mask. “After everything that’s happened, I don’t want you out of my sight.”
I moved closer to him, nuzzling his ear. God, he smelled so good, so comfortingly familiar. “I won’t be for long. Give us a minute.”
“Tell me again,” he whispered. “Tell me.”
“I love you, Neanderthal. Now go upstairs and wait for me.”
I felt Disco lift his head. “You have five minutes,” he warned.
&n
bsp; The family parted as Paine snagged my wrist and began dragging me toward the room used for meetings. There was no fire roaring in the fireplace this time, as I was certain none of them expected human company. Paine shoved me into the room, closed the doors, and locked them behind us.
“How could you?” he questioned harshly. Before I could respond, he kept going. “Did you know that he was supposed to die tonight? Did you purposely prevent his death from taking place?”
There wasn’t a reason to deny it. “I did.”
“What have you done?” he snarled, voice heated. “Haven’t I warned you about changing the future? Of the consequences? You have just fucked with fate, little girl, and the result will be more than you can bear.”
He was so very much like the Paine I’d left in the future, yet different. The looks were the same—dark, mysterious, sexy—but the attitude was definitely unlike what I’d been close to in the last few days. This Paine had yet to learn what it was like to live in a hellish future, with demons in control of the world. Instead, he held steadfast to his beliefs, bolstered by the tragic occurrences of his own past.
Trying to remember that, I faced him. “You’re not going to believe me when I say this, but the future you think you’re saving is a future that should never be. You might be right. I might pay a hefty price for interfering with it, but it’s one I’m willing to face.”
Paine turned away from me, facing the fireplace, and I knew he wanted to roar in outrage. It was then that he unwittingly allowed the mark he shared with me to open, if only a little.
A promise I made came creeping back, and I reacted without questioning it.
Crossing the room, I wrapped my arms around his midsection—the first time I’d ever touched him on my own in this reality. His ragged intake of air and the trembling that consumed his body was signal enough that I’d gotten a message across. He tried to slam down the connection between us, but I stopped him.
“Don’t. I already know the mark exists. There’s no sense in hiding it now.”
He went tense, no longer basking in my touch. “Gabriel told you?”
No time like the present to get things out in the open, even if they did sound completely unbelievable. “No. I found out when I made a bargain with Zagan to end Gabriel’s debt and wound up one hundred and one years in the future.”
“You did what?” He ripped himself from my arms and faced me.
I sighed, surprised at how exhausted I suddenly felt. “I know it’s hard to believe. Hell, I wouldn’t believe it either. But it’s true. Zagan told me all I had to do was deliver a message to Gabriel, telling him the debt was paid, and he would consider all things paid in full.”
He frowned. “And he sent you one hundred and one years into the future?”
“Ignorance on my part. I forgot the bastards like to weave deals and fuck with bargains.”
“If that’s true, how did you return? Time travel isn’t possible.”
If only that was true.
“I made another deal, which is a long-ass story that five minutes won’t cover.”
Rough hands grasped my shoulders. “Tell me you did not make a deal with a demon.”
Technically, I didn’t, but I wasn’t up to telling him that. “Okay, I won’t tell you.”
“Damn you, Rhiannon.” He released me and started to pace. “What you’ve done will cause a chain reaction. I’ve told you what happens when you alter what is meant to be.” Rounding on me, he snapped, “Gabriel was supposed to die tonight. He wasn’t supposed to make it home. What you’ve done… You have no idea, you have no concept. But you will. Very soon, you will.”
“I’ve seen the future, remember?” I reminded him softly. “What I’ve seen is nothing is the worst possible outcome imaginable. Nothing that happens to me could be worse.”
“You might think that now, but when the reckoning comes, you’ll wish you had listened to me.”
I was so tempted to take it further, to tell him exactly what had transpired between us in the future as a result of my actions. Fortunately, something told me to hold back, to keep it to myself. The first person who deserved to know was waiting for me upstairs. It was his reaction I feared the most. I had to learn exactly where it put Disco and I before I placed Paine in the line of fire.
“You’re right, maybe I will. But then again, you could be wrong. Ever think about that?”
Sidestepping him, I headed for the doors, when his ominous warning stopped me. “Have you considered the future that awaits Gabriel now? What will happen to you as a result? Have you even considered how much worse it will be now that you’ve challenged fate?”
Had I thought about it? Yes, I had.
Perhaps it made me a selfish and prideful bitch, but I couldn’t help but think that with me at his side, nothing would have the power to harm him again. Not only was I a necromancer who had yet to learn her full potential, but with Marigold’s amulet, I could head off anything that came his way.
I kept my back to him as I answered. “If anyone or anything comes after him, they’ll have to deal with me. Considering how much things have changed, only a fool would try it. If you don’t believe me, ask Goose.”
Goose’s guilty face greeted me as I exited the room. I had felt his presence the moment Paine had closed the doors behind us. One call from him to Gabriel, and it would have caused a permanent rift in the house. Thankfully, it wasn’t necessary.
“Tell him what you saw at the warehouse,” I told Goose as I stepped into the hallway. “I’ll fill you in on everything later. I have to get upstairs.”
“It’s that thing.” He motioned distastefully at the amulet. “Isn’t it?”
I wrapped my fingers around the stone, barring it from view. “There was something about this that made you uncomfortable. You haven’t liked the amulet from the start. There’s a good reason for it.”
“You shouldn’t dabble in dark magic. It’ll get you killed.”
I smiled, shaking my head. “Seems like everything I get involved with these days might kill me.”
His jaw ticked. “You’re not funny.”
“I suppose some things never change.”
“You and I are going to talk in the morning. I’m staying in one of the guest rooms. Meet me in the kitchen as soon as you wake up. You have a lot of explaining to do.”
“Done deal, just do me a favor.” At his questioning look I said, “Be sure to bypass breakfast. I’d hate to upset that weak stomach of yours.”
Before he could say anything else, I was walking past the rest of the family, ignoring their curious and angry stares. I’d been gone for a couple of weeks, without any explanation, and I understood their inquisitiveness and outrage. I would be angry too. Vampiric households survived on the strength and solidarity of their bond. As one of their own, I could have betrayed them in the time I’d been gone.
I heard quiet footsteps behind me as I climbed the stairs, and I waited until I was nearing the hall with the bedrooms to stop and turn around. It was Nala, beautiful as always, with an expression I couldn’t read.
“Everyone has a right to know where you’ve been. They’re going to want answers.”
Again, another truth. I did owe them all an explanation. Unfortunately for them, there was one person who had to hear what I had to say first. He ran the house, his word was law, and it would be his decision that kept me here or sent me packing.
“I have to speak with Disco. He’s the boss, so he should be the first to know.”
“I get that, but it’s not going to smooth things over. Things have been awful since you left. You have no idea of the turmoil everyone has suffered.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond. “I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention.”
I’d never seen Nala angry, and it was something I didn’t want to witness again. The way her eyes slanted slightly and her
lips narrowed made her appear lethal and dangerous.
“Then I suggest you get ready to kiss a lot of ass. Everyone will want a meeting called tomorrow. You’d better use your time with Gabriel to come up with an adequate apology and explanation. You’re going to owe all of us exactly the same.”
A full-on punch to the gut wouldn’t have carried as much weight. I felt the impact of her words, knew that she was right, and struggled against the bile rising to my throat as I made my way to Disco’s bedroom.
Was he going to hate me when he learned what I’d done? Could he possibly forgive me? Logically, I knew the subject of my fidelity wasn’t cut and dry. There were too many factors—thinking I’d never make it home, wanting to comfort Paine, living each moment as though it were my last—but I couldn’t help but feel I’d done something inexcusable. The Paine of the future said it wasn’t common, but those beholden to families were sometimes marked by more than one vampire and were sometimes shared. Would that make his sense of betrayal any less? Would it soften the fall he was sure to experience?
I rubbed my temples as I stopped in front of his door, trying to see into the future and answers that waited right in front of me. Disco had never been anything but understanding in situations regarding me, taking the higher road, becoming the person I knew I could always rely on. Now, I wasn’t so certain he would come to my defense, become my knight in shining armor to keep the wolves at bay. I couldn’t say I didn’t deserve it, even given the circumstances. As much as I loved him, I had made love to another man—his best friend—and there was no taking that back.
Minutes must have passed as I stood there, like the coward I was, trying to find the words, attempting to sort things out. Images blurred together—of the past before I made the debt with Zagan, of the hours I spent in Disco’s arms, of the decision I made to give Paine the only thing I had left to give, only to discover that as a consequence I had betrayed the only man I had ever truly loved. Topping it off with a cherry was the way I felt about Paine, something that was a deep-seated emotion yet held no official title.