by Nina Bangs
Eric nodded as he swung to include everyone in his next statement. “I’m going in. Just me.” He raised a hand to forestall an argument. “If I need backup, I’ll call for it. But Taurin wants me, not Conall. Once Conall is safe, Taurin and I will settle things permanently. If all of you rush in with me, Taurin might panic and hurt Conall.” He wouldn’t need backup.
Holgarth scowled. “I believe your plan is militarily unsound, but Taurin is your enemy, so the decision is yours. For the moment. I’ll deploy the rest of our forces around the perimeter of the property so that Taurin can’t escape. If at any time I feel that you or Conall is in imminent danger, I’ll take offensive action.”
Eric nodded. “Whatever.” Holgarth was a bossy pain-in-the-butt, but he wanted to help. That touched Eric. He’d never tell the old wizard, though, because Holgarth would just add it to his arsenal of weapons.
Before leaving, Eric turned to Donna. For the first time tonight he saw fear flood her eyes, but not for herself, for him. She really cared what happened to him. The emotional hit rocked his world. “Everyone here will keep you safe. Trust them.” Trust me.
She reached up and smoothed her fingers over his tense jaw. “Come back in one piece, vampire, and bring Conall with you.”
He forced a smile to his lips. “Will do, talk-show lady.” Eric wanted to pull her into his embrace and kiss her hard, but instead he turned away and strode toward the back door.
Such a small, white, ordinary-looking house to hold so much evil inside it. Eric could feel Taurin’s hatred and fury beating at him. He sensed nothing from Conall. That worried him. He tried the back door, and as he’d expected, it opened. Stepping into the kitchen, he paused to let the darkness settle around him. The total blackness didn’t bother him. As he clothed himself in vampire form, objects in the room became clear.
“In here, Eric.” Taurin’s voice came from what Eric assumed was the living room.
Eric moved silently across the kitchen, but he didn’t really expect Taurin to strike as soon as he entered the room. This was all about revenge for Taurin, so he’d want to talk about his brother, taunt Eric with threats to Conall, and brag about his power that he thought equaled Eric’s. It didn’t. Never would. And once Eric made sure Conall was out of Taurin’s reach, he’d end Taurin’s vengeful existence.
Eric paused before moving into the living room. Taurin wasn’t taking any chances with Conall’s incredible strength. Chains secured the warrior to an upright steel pole that Taurin had driven into the floor and ceiling. Conall would have to bring down the ceiling to release himself. Not beyond Conall’s ability in a conscious state. But Conall hung inert from his chains.
“What did you do to him?” If Conall was dead, Taurin wouldn’t live beyond the next minute.
Taurin ignored Eric’s question. He leaned against the front door, his posture relaxed, but his eyes wary. He smiled at Eric, a smile that was open and boyish, a smile that could lure the unwary to their deaths. To show his contempt for Eric, he hadn’t changed to vampire form yet. He did so as Eric stepped nearer. “I put a shield around the house earlier. I opened it enough for you to get inside, but I’ve closed it again.”
Eric wasn’t surprised that Taurin had the power to produce a shield, but it made things harder. Even though Taurin’s shield was probably weak, Eric would still need a few minutes to dissolve it. And he might not have a few minutes. He’d take his chances if he just had to worry about himself. But if Taurin didn’t release Conall, he’d have his friend’s safety to think about.
“Conall is a sucker for a hard-luck story, particularly if it involves a cat.” Taurin pushed away from the wall and moved closer to Conall. The threat was implicit. If Eric tried to take him out, he’d kill Conall. “I paid someone to tell Conall there was an injured cat under a car that was parked outside the restaurant’s service entrance. I cloaked my presence, and as soon as he stepped outside I hit him with a spray guaranteed to seriously mess with his eyes. While he was trying to see, I shot him with a tranquilizer. He’s been out since then.”
Eric watched Taurin with unblinking intensity as he tried to probe the other vampire’s thoughts. No luck. Taurin’s mind was in lockdown mode. “Since we’re playing out that other time, let me call someone in to take Conall out of here. Conall represents you, and you escaped.”
He allowed himself a smile, one that mocked Taurin. “Does it bother you that your brother helped you escape, but you were too weak to help him? Do you ever think about how things would’ve ended if you hadn’t been stupid enough to walk into a trap? Am I the only one you’re mad at?” Eric watched the fury build in Taurin’s eyes. Good. If he lost all that smooth control he was holding on to by a thread, he’d make a mistake.
Eric didn’t find out what Taurin would do next, because suddenly Asima materialized beside Conall.
“What the . . . ?” Taurin widened his eyes.
Eric narrowed his. Couldn’t anyone follow directions?
“How’d that cat get through my shield?” Taurin took a threatening step toward Asima.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Eric might not know much about Asima, but he knew enough to suspect she was a little more than a mere opera lover. And even though she could probably reduce Taurin to a pile of smoking ashes, something from his Viking past demanded that he be the one to take Taurin down.
Asima crouched, her ears flat against her head and her tail whipping angrily. She lifted her lips from her teeth and growled at Taurin.
Eric figured it was the demonic glow in her eyes that made Taurin pause. Smart move. She had the same expression in her eyes that Brynn had a few minutes ago. He wouldn’t want to mess with this kitty.
Taurin turned a frustrated gaze on Eric. “What is it?”
Eric shrugged and then watched as a brilliant white glow formed around Asima and Conall. With no one touching him, Conall’s chains fell away. Then the light disappeared and with it, Asima and Conall.
Wow. Impressive. Very impressive. Asima had meddled where she shouldn’t, but Eric was thankful she’d solved his biggest worry. Conall was safe. Now he could concentrate on Taurin.
“Looks like Asima solved our problem. Now you can get on with your revenge thing.” Eric moved a little closer to Taurin. The vampire couldn’t use Conall as a threat any longer. “You know, I’ve been thinking about Dacian and that night. First off, none of the Mackenzies started that fire. We don’t destroy that way. Dacian would’ve been given a chance to defend himself.”
“You were his friend once.” Taurin’s fury was bubbling just below the surface.
Was Taurin even listening to him? “We. Didn’t. Kill. Him.” Eric forced himself to relax. He couldn’t let his own anger make him careless. “I’m not even sure Dacian died in that fire. He was the most powerful night feeder I’ve ever met, and I can’t believe he couldn’t escape. And afterward, nothing of him was ever found. No metal from buckles or weapons. Not a trace. Don’t you think that’s a little strange?”
Taurin’s face paled, his eyes black and stricken. “If Dacian escaped, he wouldn’t have let me think he was dead. He was my brother. I would’ve died for him. He wouldn’t walk away from me.” He lifted his lips from his fangs in a feral snarl. “You’re lying.”
Eric recognized the moment before Taurin’s anger exploded. He projected enough power toward the other vampire to knock him on his ass. Too late. Taurin had a lighter hidden in his palm. Even as Eric’s wave of power knocked him backward, he flicked it on and dropped it to the floor. Flames leaped between them and then ran across the floor and circled the room. Taurin must’ve used some kind of accelerant. They were trapped.
Taurin grinned at him across the flames. “You thought you had more time, didn’t you, Eric? You didn’t think I’d be willing to keep you company on your trip to hell. But I know your friends are outside. No way could I escape. And from the instant I knew Dacian was dead, I’ve planned for this moment. There’s nothing much left for me to do in thi
s existence.”
The heat of the flames beat at Eric, the smell of burning wood and choking smoke reminding him of that other time. But he didn’t let the memory distract him. His Viking and Highlander warrior past served him well. He felt no fear, only an icy determination to survive while Taurin died.
Whatever Eric was going to do, he’d better do it fast. But first he needed to keep Taurin busy talking so he wouldn’t realize what Eric had in mind until it was too late. “Why’d you center your revenge on me? I wasn’t the only one there that night.”
“You were the only one there who’d been his friend.” Taurin’s anger sounded like it was almost strangling him. “You betrayed him.”
Eric doubted Taurin was thinking beyond his hate, and that lack of thought would doom him. While Taurin answered, Eric projected his power outward, beyond the room, beyond his waiting friends, and called the elements to him. Or at least the two he had power over. Too bad fire wasn’t one of them.
Thunder crashed and lightning flickered around the cracks of the boarded-up windows. Wind shook the small house and then the rain came. It beat against the house, pounding on the roof with a fury that drowned out even the crackling flames.
“That rain won’t do much to put out the fire in here.” Taurin sounded triumphant.
Eric allowed him his small joy. It wouldn’t last long. Death by fire for a vampire was a particularly painful way to go. For a moment Eric considered strengthening the wind to hurricane force so it would tear the house apart, but abandoned the idea. That kind of wind would harm people and destroy property. Besides, the wind was only a distraction.
As Eric prepared to abandon Taurin to the fire he’d created, he paused as his mind was suddenly filled with a rush of voices.
“I detect the presence of fire within the house. Identify your location so we can mount a rescue. And do forget about that warrior nonsense and accept our help. Even Napoleon needed me to get him out of a tight spot occasionally.” Holgarth.
“I give you one minute to get your ass out of there, Eric, before I come in. By the time I’m finished with Taurin, there won’t be enough pieces for even the devil to claim.” Brynn.
But it was the third voice that took his breath away, that flooded him with emotion, and filled him with a joy he had no right to feel in the middle of the inferno the living room had become.
“Eric! Get out of there. Now.” The hint of tears lurked within the voice. “Dammit. I’ve been saving those chocolate-covered cherries, and you’re not going to cheat me out of the chance to use them.”
Donna. For the first time she’d reached out to him with her mind. Tonight was a good time to live.
13
Eric stared across the roaring flames at Taurin. “Too bad you couldn’t recognize the truth when you heard it. Dacian would’ve.” Eric focused his power and then placed a shield around himself. Now for the tougher part.
The flames wouldn’t give him enough time to dissolve Taurin’s shield around the house. Closing his eyes, he once again drew his immense power to him. Calling the elements had weakened him a little, but he still had enough power to finish the job.
Eric heard Taurin scream as the flames reached him. Pushing everything from his mind he focused on the living room wall. In his mind he visualized a giant fist punching a hole through it. He opened his eyes to the explosive sound of splintering wood and a collapsing wall. Without hesitating, he flung himself through the opening and into the violent storm beyond.
He was vaguely aware of Taurin staggering through the hole behind him just as the roof collapsed onto the spreading fire. The driving rain was putting out the flames even as Eric raced toward where his friends waited for him. Willing himself back to human form, Eric glanced behind him to where Taurin had fallen a short distance from the house. He must’ve managed to create a weak shield to protect himself in some small part from the flames. From the look of him, it hadn’t done much protecting.
But Eric forgot about Taurin, the storm, and everything else in the world as Donna flung herself at him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly as the wind howled and the rain soaked them. He kissed the top of her head, and she looked up at him, her eyes glistening. He wasn’t sure whether the trails of water flowing down her face came from tears or the rain. He selfishly hoped they were tears.
“It’s over now.” He ran his hands up and down her back, sharing his heat through her rain-soaked dress. Finally he looked around. “Where’s Conall?”
She blinked. “Didn’t he come out with you?” Donna glanced around. “Come to think of it, where’s Asima? She was here watching the house with the rest of us.”
Holgarth joined them. “What happened in there, Eric?”
Eric raked his fingers through his hair as he tried to put everything together. “Asima appeared, surrounded Conall in a white light, and then they both disappeared. I assumed she just took him out here.” He narrowed his gaze. “Conall had better be at the castle when we get back, or Asima is going to be missing a few of her nine lives.”
Taking Donna’s arm, he started to guide her toward the van. “I need to get back to the castle fast to make sure Conall’s there. And you have a show to do.”
“Oh, no.” She glanced at her watch. “Ken will be going ballistic.”
“You’ll be there in time. Do you have a guest tonight?” He tried to focus on Donna’s show, shutting out thoughts of his enemy who still lay near the house’s burned-out shell. As a warrior, he’d learned to put the battlefield behind him once the fight was over, to not dwell on those he’d been forced to kill. Death and destruction had been part of his early life, and he’d remained sane because he’d found ways to cope with what he did. He made no excuses.
“Uh-huh. Amanda Maguire did the interior design for the castle, and Conleth Maguire painted it. They fell in love on the job, and since they live in Galveston, they agreed to stop by to give some juicy info about their experiences. Should be great.”
Glancing back, Donna noted that the fire was out and the rain had lightened. “What’re you going to do with . . .” She shifted her gaze to where Taurin had been lying. Gone. Donna looked at Brynn. “Where’s Taurin?”
Brynn nodded toward the overgrown field next door. “I dragged him over there. The weeds will hide him in case anyone saw the fire and called it in. But I don’t think we have to worry. The fire was only visible for a few minutes, and it would’ve been tough to see with all the rain.” Without a backward glance, he and Holgarth headed for Brynn’s car.
“Wait.” Donna resisted Eric’s attempt to pull her toward the van. “Is he still alive?”
Brynn flashed her a cold smile. His eyes were hard, and she didn’t recognize the sensual seducer in this man. “Alive is a relative term when you’re talking about night feeders. But yes, he’s still alive.”
She frowned. Everything she understood about the way people behaved came from her life experiences. In this situation someone would call the police and an ambulance. The police would arrest Taurin for attempted murder, and then the ambulance would take him to the hospital. She got the feeling, though, that she wasn’t in Kansas anymore.
“What’re you going to do with him?” She was good at asking questions when the answer was right in front of her.
“Nothing.” Brynn’s voice was flat and emotionless. “If he regains consciousness and can get himself inside before morning, his body will heal itself. If not”—he shrugged—“the sun will destroy him.” Walking past Donna, he climbed into the car with Holgarth.
Donna watched until darkness swallowed their car, and then she turned to Eric. “Taurin tried to kill you, and I can’t forgive him for that. But . . .” She waved her hand in the air to emphasize her but.
Eric’s expression was as hard as Brynn’s as he continued to propel her toward the van. Once there, she reluctantly climbed in. This wasn’t right, but she didn’t know what to do. No police. It’d be too hard to explain the vampire, wizard, demon, immort
al warrior, and shape-shifting cat thing. No ambulance. The hospital personnel would have a tough time finding a heartbeat, and she’d guess they wouldn’t find Taurin’s blood type in their blood bank.
Eric’s anger was evident in every stiff line of his body as he sped back to the castle. He parked the van with twenty minutes to spare before midnight. She’d just have time to change into something dry. And she’d deal with Eric when she knew what she wanted to say.
He put his hand on her arm as she opened the van’s door. “Brynn, Holgarth, and I were all born in a time when justice was harsh and final. Taurin understood what his fate would be if he tried to kill me or hurt anyone . . . important to me.”
Important to me. From the way he looked at her and his tone of voice, she knew he was including her on his list of those he was willing to kill for. When she wasn’t so befuddled, she’d have to think about the implications of that. “Okay, so I know a big bad Viking-slash-Highlander would think I was a soppy sentimentalist, but leaving someone injured in a field knowing the sun will fry them seems pretty cold. That’s just me, of course.” She sighed her frustration. That hadn’t come out exactly the way she’d wanted it. “Look, I know he should be punished, but isn’t there something a little less . . .”
“Barbaric?” Eric dropped his hand from her arm. “No.” Without a backward glance, he walked into the castle.
Donna sighed. He was steamed, but too bad. When she had an opinion, she voiced it. She wasn’t a gotta-feed-my-man’s-ego kind of woman. My man? Whoa. That wasn’t a place she wanted to visit right now. She followed Eric.
Before going up to her room for a quick change and blow-dry for her hair, she walked over to where Conall sat at the great hall’s banquet table with everyone crowded around him.