by Lexi Blake
“Yes, you can,” I spat back at him. My head spun. “You just need blood. You can take it from that bastard, Stewart, when he finally crawls up here.”
Daniel shook his head. I was horrified to see a tiny trickle of blood drip from his mouth. “Won’t work. The body is dead. Dead blood is as bad as silver. There’s no way out. He’ll be here any minute.” Daniel struggled, but managed to stand, and he pulled me close, his lips on my forehead. “I love you, Zoey. I have since the day I met you. You run and let me handle this. I can handle anything as long as you’re all right.”
And just like that a terrible idea occurred to me.
People sometimes get adrenaline rushes that allow them to do amazing things they normally wouldn’t be able to do. Like the child who manages to lift a car off his father who got pinned underneath. We do amazing things when the one we love is in danger. Daniel was going to die if I didn’t stop it. I didn’t have the strength to handle a demon, even one in a damaged body. I didn’t have the time to out think him. I was out of time and out of options, with only one way to go if I wanted off this roof.
“Daniel,” I said quietly, “Dev says you can fly.”
“Dev’s an asshole with a big mouth.” Daniel pushed me out so he could look in my eyes. He gave me a light shake. “No arguments, Zoey. I died a long time ago, and it’s time to let me go. He’s almost here. I can smell him. Get ready to run down the stairs when I pull him out here. Barricade yourself in the suite and call Neil and call the cops. Hell, call everyone. Promise me.”
I stepped back and hated the fact that he faltered before gaining his balance. I looked at him and memorized everything about him, from his thick, sandy hair that was too short, to his too big feet. I loved every inch of that body. Our life together played through my mind. Every moment had been precious. Even the crappy ones had been worthwhile because they were ours. I wished things had been different. I wished Daniel hadn’t died and we’d had that life we wanted. I wished we hadn’t ended up on this shithole roof where we were probably going to die. I wished a million different endings, but I knew I’d settled on one because I wasn’t going to leave him alone to die.
There was movement in the doorway as Stewart finally managed to make his way to us. He’d changed bodies, but there was no mistaking the glint in those eyes. He had a gun in his hands. “Nowhere to run, kiddos.”
He was wrong.
I threw Daniel one last look. “I’m so sorry.”
His face registered shock as he realized what I was going to do. “Don’t you dare, Zoey!”
But I was already running, and he was slower than normal. I leapt across the wall that separated the roof from the ground eighteen floors below, and then I was free.
Chapter Seventeen
I would like to say that I fell soundlessly through the air. I was a graceful swan floating on the wind, letting fate take me wherever it wanted to go. I was free and flying with no thought but the joy of defying those who would kill me. I would love to be able say all those things.
The reality was more of a high-pitched, girlie scream that seemed to go on forever because falling is really scary.
The speed took my breath away, threatening to stop my heart in my chest. The wind hit my eyes, forcing them to close, but not before I got a real hard look at just how fast the earth below was rushing up to greet me. My arms and legs flailed almost of their own accord as though trying to find purchase and solidness in a world that had none.
It had been a spectacularly bad idea. I’d just jumped off a perfectly good building in the hopes that the guy I was with could, maybe, if I’m really lucky, fly.
I closed my eyes for good, and prayed Daniel could forgive me.
Then I was jerked upward and my heart was in my throat as I flew even faster but in the opposite direction. I flew up, passing one and then two windows before I started to fall again.
I landed with a thud in Daniel’s arms. He tried to nestle me in his arms like a groom carrying his bride over the threshold, but that was so not enough security for me. I threw my arms around his neck and wound my legs as tightly as I could around his waist. Daniel was warmth and security and everything damn good in the world in that moment.
His arms tightened around me and a warm chuckle brushed my ear. “What’s wrong, Z? You were never afraid of heights before.”
“I never jumped off a building before.” My voice shook as I nestled my head between his neck and shoulders.
We floated there somewhere between the eleventh and twelfth floors. I held on for dear life, and Daniel, well, Daniel cupped my ass.
“Hey!” I said, surprised.
“You scare the crap out of me, I get to cop a feel.” he said, proceeding to do just that. “It’s a vampire rule.”
“Fine.” I couldn’t keep the happiness out of my voice. “If it’s a rule then I have to follow it.” I rubbed my cheek against his, so relieved to feel him against my skin. I was alive. He was alive. We had the box. And holy crap, we were floating. “God, Danny, you can fly.”
“Yeah,” he said. “Just call me Peter Pan.”
I was thinking more along the lines of Superman, and I thought about asking why it bothered him. He could freaking fly! I didn’t see how that could be a bad thing. I was about to open my mouth to argue when I realized he was shaking. He had to concentrate to keep us afloat, and I decided to save all questions for after the tour.
Daniel breathed, quelling his shakes, his body steadying again. He anchored me with one hand and the other sank into my hair as he began our descent.
I let myself look around from the safety of Daniel’s arms. I was floating through the spring air with strong arms around me and the lights of downtown twinkling like enormous stars.
“Why isn’t anyone looking at us?” I could see people walking on the street below, some even glancing up, but there was no pointing or shouting.
“I’m shielding us from sight, Z.” His face rubbed against mine. “They can’t see us. I do it every time I have to fly.”
So many secrets. But for the first time in a long time, I started to hope that maybe this little episode would bring us close again.
We descended lightly to the ground, Daniel’s feet hitting without a sound. He readjusted me in his arms, swinging my legs up and carrying me properly.
The people on the street continued to ignore us. They walked by, though many altered their paths as though they could sense us there. Daniel moved toward the parking garage. He stumbled as he reached his destination just inside the concrete walls.
“Sorry,” he said, rolling off me. He got to his knees, his arms struggling to remove the pack from his back. His clothes were a ruined mess. Bullet holes riddled his jacket and there was a huge tear in the front where Stewart had gotten off his lucky shot. “I can’t keep it up. They’ll see us now. You have to run, Zoey. I’m done. I can’t even walk.”
He laid his head down on the concrete. He’d used all of his strength to fly and shield us from pedestrians. He was no longer capable of fighting or even getting away. The bleeding stopped as his body managed to heal the wound, but he was so weak there was no way he could get somewhere to feed. If Stewart found us, Daniel would be a sitting duck, ripe for the plucking.
“The Benz is on the third level, and the keys are in my pocket.” Daniel’s voice was beyond weary. He shoved the package into my hands. “Take it and go. No arguing.”
I kissed his forehead and got up. He was right. Arguing was useless, and I would just do what I wanted to anyway. I took the keys and found the stairs. My legs burned as I climbed, lungs straining, but I didn’t stop. Couldn’t stop. I needed to get back to Daniel before someone called the cops. The last thing I needed was a Good Samaritan calling an ambulance. I had no idea what a defibrillator would do to a vampire, but I figured it wouldn’t be a good thing.
When I reached the third floor, I went to the middle of the level and punched the alarm button on the keys. There was a shrill beep, and I ran for Da
niel’s car.
“Miss!” I heard a voice call. Before I thought about it, I stopped and turned.
A tiny elderly lady stood in the middle lane. She was dressed in a pale blue skirt and white shirt, a hat perched on her gray head as though she was ready for a Sunday sermon and fellowship gathering. She looked perfectly harmless. The enormous orange and black tiger twitching its tail as it paced back and forth behind her did not look harmless.
“Do you like this meat? It’s the fourth one I’ve gone through tonight. They just don’t last anymore. Don’t feel too bad for her, girlie,” Stewart said through the old lady’s mouth. “She poisoned two of her husbands, and she is really mean to her grandchildren. She was going to Hell soon anyway.”
The car was behind me, and I pushed the button to unlock the doors. I had to take the chance that I could make it into the car before that freaking tiger ate me.
“Oh, does my little friend here bother you?” Stewart petted the cat lightly with the old lady’s little white gloves. “I did mention I was a cat person.”
Further conversation with Stewart gained me nothing. I pivoted and jumped for the car, my hands shaking as I tossed the pack inside and threw my body into the driver’s seat. I slammed the door just as the tiger hit the roof. The car buckled and swayed, but the roof held. My hands shook as I shoved the key into the ignition, and the car came to life.
I slammed it into reverse just as the weretiger shoved his paws through the roof. Razor sharp claws skimmed my cheek. He pulled a decent-sized chunk of the roof off as I floored it in reverse and slammed on the brakes, dislodging him. I watched in the rearview mirror as his huge body tumbled on the concrete.
I shifted the car into drive.
The only problem was that little old lady standing right where I needed to go. Stewart smiled a sweet grandma smile with black-as-night eyes. If I went forward, I killed an old woman. If I went back…well, the tiger was already on his feet.
A familiar howl shook the air of the garage. I looked through the rearview mirror and saw a white wolf riding the tiger’s back, his teeth firmly planted in the tiger’s neck. Neil held on as the tiger tried to shake him off.
I turned back, ready to play a little game of chicken with a possessed old lady. Neil could handle one tiger all on his own. Hell, he’d probably get upset if I interrupted his fun. Stewart snarled my way. His eyes were firmly on me. He didn’t even notice that Dev moved behind him. I gave the now spectacularly angry demon the bird in order to keep those rheumy eyes focused my way. Dev held a nice tire iron in his hand. Stewart started walking my way just as Dev brought it down on his head. Stewart’s fourth body of the day crumpled and went limp. Dev hauled the now unconscious old lady out of harm’s way.
Dev jogged up the lane and slapped his hand against the hood of the car. He had a reckless grin on that gorgeous face.
“Get in!” I yelled through the open window.
“Can’t. I have to kill a tiger. Did I mention I love this job? Go!” He pulled his gun and ran back to help Neil.
And I went because I was no longer arguing with the men in my life.
I drove like a bat out of hell to get to Daniel, barely avoiding a Ford. The owner shook a fist at me as he drove by. He was headed to the third floor, so I was the least of his problems. I brought the car to a screeching halt at the entryway just in front of the unmanned security station.
He was so still, but I didn’t hesitate. I threw open the back door. He couldn’t be dead. He just couldn’t.
I got to my knees and put a hand to his face.
“Zoey, I told you to go.” He was weak, but I could still see the fire in his eyes. As long as he was pissed with me, there was still hope.
“Yes, you did.” He was so freaking heavy. I pulled at his jacket, trying to force him into a position where I could gain some traction.
“Damn it, Zoey, I can’t move.”
He could certainly move his mouth. I put my arms under his shoulders and tried to push. I managed to get him to sitting, but he was all muscle, and muscle is heavy. “You have to get into the car.”
“I can’t.” His jaw was a stubborn line, and his eyes drifted closed.
“Yes, you can.” The whole flying thing worked out, so I decided to play the damsel in distress again. “You either get into the car or a tiger is going to eat me.”
His eyes flew open. “What? What tiger?”
There was a sudden roar, and Daniel’s mouth dropped open. I took the opportunity to push harder against his broad back. “Yep, that’s a weretiger. Stewart brought kitties to the party, so if you don’t want to watch me become tiger food, you’ll get your ass in that car.”
“I hate you sometimes, Zoey,” Daniel said sullenly as he struggled to his feet. “I’m tired. I want to die. I can see the light, but does Zoey Wharton let me walk into the light? Hell, no. She has to go and find a tiger to piss off.”
“It’s florescent, Danny.” I draped his arm around my shoulder. It hung there limply as he started to shuffle. “I seriously doubt the light of the universe is florescent.”
He didn’t walk so much as fall into the car. I pushed his feet in and slammed the door. I got into the front seat and punched the gas.
“Hey,” I heard from the backseat. “When the hell did I get a sunroof?”
I turned on to the street and was about to whip out some witty comeback when suddenly there was a body in the seat beside me. It was a big, hulking body dressed in an expensive suit, and I couldn’t help the short scream that escaped my lips.
“Did I surprise you?” Lucas Halfer asked.
“Damn you,” I said under my breath as I got it together and turned left. I needed to get to Daniel’s club. They would be able to help him. I would take him home, but I couldn’t be sure that Michael and Jack the Ripper would be both in residence and willing to help. The club was required to help.
“You’re several millennia too late for that, dear,” Halfer said smugly. “I see you have the Light of Alhorra. I congratulate you on a job well done.”
“No thanks to you. You could have warned me I was getting into a freaking demon turf war.”
“Them’s the breaks, kid. When you steal for a living, you should count on coming in contact with all sorts of unsavory characters.” Halfer gave me a smirk as he motioned to the back seat. “Your vampire is worse for the wear.”
Daniel had gone utterly silent. His body didn’t move.
“I don’t have time to play these games with you. I have to take care of Daniel. Take the bag and go.” I tried to shove the backpack at him as I took the ramp to the freeway. I say tried to, as the pack hit the passenger side door and fell uselessly to the floor. It went right through the demon’s body, which flickered slightly as the object passed through.
“No can do.” Halfer shrugged. “I’m afraid this is a call, not an in-person meeting. I have a few things I need to take care of at home before I can collect my package. Nem…well…let’s just say the little prick you met earlier tonight, has been wreaking havoc down under as well. I can’t leave just yet, so I placed this intimate little call. Protect the box. I’ll take possession at one a.m. tomorrow. Don’t worry about the location. I can find you wherever you are.”
A horrible thought struck me. “Can Stewart find me?”
There would be no place to hide.
Halfer chuckled a little. “Not unless the two of you have a contract.”
“All right.” I glanced down at the clock. It was just after midnight, so all I had to do was play keep-away for twenty-four hours and some change. I took the exit I needed. I was close to the club. I just hoped I could get them to come to the car because Daniel probably wasn’t walking far.
“He’s near death, and not the temporary kind.” The demon looked into the back seat and shook his head. He looked almost concerned. “You don’t have long at all. He needs blood.”
“No shit. I’m trying to get him someplace where I can get just that. I didn’t think to
keep a spare bag of blood hanging around, though now that I hear myself saying it, I probably should have.”
The demon ignored my panic-tinged rantings. “If you’re thinking of taking him to the vampire club, you should know it’s the first place the other one would have thought of, too. I know it’s the first place I would look for you.”
“You mean Stewart has men there?” The question came out of my mouth as a desperate plea. Please don’t let the club be compromised. I pleaded silently with whoever would listen. I needed to get Daniel someplace filled with people who knew what the hell they were doing.
Halfer struck me down with a laugh. “If by Stewart you mean my demonic version of Single White Female, then, yes, Stewart has men there. You’ll have to try again, and don’t say your father’s house because that would be location number two on his list. You’ll find Daniel’s place difficult as well. Stewart may be a prick, but he usually has all of his bases covered. He managed to hide his involvement in this enterprise from me until tonight. I tortured some really close friends because of the false trail he laid out.”
Dad’s place had been my next brilliant idea, but what the demon said made sense. Stewart struck me as a guy who would have a plan. Cutting me off from resources was a logical step if he couldn’t take me out at the hotel. Panic welled like bile in my belly. I had nowhere to go and no one I could trust to know what to do. Daniel was dying in the back seat. I was going to fail him. I was going to be driving around and around I-35 when Daniel expired because I couldn’t come up with a way to save him. I was out of options.
“No, you’re not, dear,” Halfer said softly, his voice cajoling, the only bit of calm in my head. “You still have the best option of all. It’s time to step up to the plate, companion. It’s time to do what you were born to do.”
“How did you know?” I was a little unnerved that he had read my mind.
His voice was silky smooth with just a hint of sympathy. “I feed on doubt and indecision. I can read your doubts. They call to me. If you want me to go away, Zoey Wharton, then get off your ass and make a decision.”