To Kill An Angel

by M. Leighton

  Volcanic flames seared my throat and threatened to burn away all reason and willpower.

  “Mr. Hearst. Mr. Hearst,” I whispered aloud, closing my eyes and bringing the odious little man to mind.

  “There’s no reason for you to resist me, Ridley. You need me and Bo needs you. You’re helping us all when you drink from me.”

  I began to hum to myself, trying desperately to drown out his voice, his perfectly legitimate reasoning and the excruciating thirst that rode me like a cowboy rides a prize bull.

  “Go away,” I pushed out through my tightly gritted teeth.

  “Why? Ridley, you won’t hurt me and you need to feed. There’s nothing wrong with giving in to me.”

  “Go away!” I shouted more forcefully.

  The image of Mr. Hearst began to fade, eclipsed by a fiery red haze that was my need, my most basic urge to nourish my body. The smell of Cade’s blood permeated the air, as if it was oozing through the door, through the walls, to envelope me in a painful cloud of want.

  My breathing picked up, my heart raced, my mind flitted between rational thought and the desire to sink my teeth into Cade’s tender flesh, and all the while I struggled to regain some sense of control.

  Desperately, I reached out and grabbed the last thought, the last memory that might give me the strength that I needed to resist, the resolve that I needed to fight. It was the remembered feel of being pressed to Bo’s side, his arm wrapped around my waist, his lips at my ear, and his words.

  I don’t want anyone satisfying your hunger but me.

  Over and over, I let the images, the feelings, the words replay through my mind like a record skipping back to the same spot again and again. My love and devotion to Bo flooded in like high tide, filling my heart and my mind, soothing the agony that I felt in my throat. My thirst and the pain that went with it wasn’t completely eradicated, but for the first time since awakening to a world dominated by bloodlust, I felt like I had a modicum of control.

  Slowly, back still pressed into the corner, I pushed myself to my feet and stood, bravely facing the door and the delicious feast that lay just beyond it.

  “Cade, go back to bed. I’ll see you in the morning,” I said with a surprising amount of authority and indifference.

  “But you—”

  “Cade, go! I’ll see you in the morning,” I repeated insistently.

  I heard him sigh and then take two steps before stopping again. I imagined that he turned back toward the door in indecision.

  “Go,” I called, hoping to help him make the right choice.

  Another sigh was followed by his receding footsteps. The further he got from the door, the easier I breathed. When I heard the squeak of springs in a room above my head, I relaxed and moved to sit on the edge of the bed.

  It was in that position—sitting on the end of the bed, marveling at my control and at the anchor that Bo represented in my struggles, in my life—that Bo found me. I was so distracted that I didn’t smell his tangy scent until he was already standing in the doorway watching me.

  Slowly, he stepped inside and closed the door quietly behind him. I stood to my feet, but made no move to approach him.

  He was fully visible again, as was the dark of his eyes, eyes that were filled with a desire that instantly set my blood on fire. It stirred a passion in me that rivaled his, mirrored it even. It threatened to consume me, but before it could, Bo crossed the room and took me in his arms.

  Bo fed me, satisfying my hunger like he’d promised that he would. Secretly, I kept hoping that we would get another glimpse of our life together, a life I couldn’t be sure we’d ever have. I found myself holding onto the images of Bo making love to me someday, out there in an inconceivable future. I squeezed it tight between my fingers and held it close to my chest, desperately afraid I’d never see that day.

  As we lay recovering in each other’s arms, I realized that the tiny peek I’d already been given might be the only one I’d ever get, real or imagined. But a smile tugged at my lips despite the little seed of hopelessness that was still buried deep inside me. If I never got to have Bo in that way, never got to experience what loving him without all these other circumstances would be like, I’d always have that one moment in time. It was as real to me as if it had actually happened and no one could take that from me. No one.

  “How do you feel?” Bo said, pressing his lips to my temple.

  “Perfect.”

  “You are perfect,” he whispered against my hair.

  I smiled again. He always knew just what to say.

  “How about you?”

  “As long as you’re in my arms, I’ve got no complaints.”

  Unbidden, an image of Annika flitted through my mind. It aggravated me that she was able to ruin such an intimate moment even when she wasn’t in the room.

  Reluctantly, I pushed myself up onto one elbow, staring down into Bo’s handsome face.

  “I guess now I can drink from Cade without having to worry about killing him,” I teased, only partially in jest. That would always be a very real concern for me.

  I was loathe to see a cloud of displeasure push the peaceful tranquility from Bo’s face.

  “Is there something else about me drinking from Cade that you don’t like? Something you’re not telling me?”

  For a fraction of a second, I thought I saw evidence that I’d struck a nerve, but it was gone so quickly it made me doubt that I’d seen it at all.

  “I just don’t like it. That’s all.”

  I nodded, studying his face. It gave away nothing.

  “Well, if we have any hope of stopping Sebastian, it has to be done.”

  “I’m still not convinced that it’s the only way.”

  “Well, as soon as you think of another option, just let me know,” I said sitting up. “Until then, this is the best source of information we’ve got.”

  I knew Bo couldn’t argue. We’d found Devon hidden in an abandoned mine because of what I’d seen with Cade’s blood. There was no doubt in my mind that Cade was right about this being the way to stop Sebastian. If Bo still had reservations, I had a feeling they were rooted in something else, maybe something he just wasn’t willing to tell me.

  I slid off the side of the bed. “Come on,” I said, holding my hand out to him. “Let’s change clothes and get this over with.”

  With a put-upon sigh, Bo took wrapped his fingers around mine and we set about changing into less burned and tattered attire. Once that was taken care of, we went out to the living room together.

  Only it was empty.

  “Did Annika come back with you?”

  Bo’s smooth brow puckered the tiniest bit.

  “Yeah. I guess she went to get some rest,” he said a little too nonchalantly.

  “Did something happen?”

  Bo shrugged his wide shoulders and shook his head, again leading me to believe there was something he wasn’t telling me.

  I debated the wisdom of continuing to pry, but that little green monster poked his ugly head up and the words were out before I could stop them.

  “She wants you back, doesn’t she? You two had a thing before and she wants you back.”

  “Ridley, don’t—”

  “Bo, I’m not saying that you feel the same way, but at least be honest with me about it.”

  Bo tipped his head to the side, his lips thinning. He obviously didn’t want to talk about it, but I wasn’t letting him off the hook.

  When I raised my eyebrows in question, Bo ran a hand through his hair like I’d seen him do a hundred times.

  “Yes, I think we were involved in some sort of…relationship, but it’s over and there’s nothing for you to worry about.”

  “But you’ll agree that it seems that she wants you back, right?”

  Bo rolled his eyes, hating that I was forcing him to admit something he’d rather just ignore.

  “She knows that we’re together,” he hedged.

  “But she wants you back reg
ardless.”

  Bo sighed.

  “Ridley—”

  “Just admit it, Bo. She’s trying her best to get you back. Excluding me, talking about the good old days, it’s a classic female maneuver.”

  Bo smiled at that, reaching out and winding his arm around my waist.

  “It is?”

  “Yes,” I snapped.

  “Have you done things like that before?” he taunted.

  “No,” I said imperiously. “I’ve never had to.”

  “Is that right?”

  “Yes.”

  Bo threw back his head and laughed at that, a sound that flooded my body with a warmth that seemed to radiate from my heart.

  “I love you. Did you know that?”

  And just like that, my pique was gone, washed away by the reminder of the love we shared. It was moments like those that made me realize I had nothing to fear from Annika, despite her conniving ways. Nothing could touch our love. Nothing could hurt it, kill it, change it. All that was happening around us seemed only to make it stronger and I felt silly for thinking otherwise.

  “No more than I love you,” I countered.

  “Ah, I wouldn’t be too sure about that,” he said, brushing his lips over my cheekbone and the tip of my nose before kissing me lightly.

  Just as he drew me into his arms for a deeper kiss, a low drawl interrupted the moment.

  “Are you ready now?”

  It was Cade. He stood at the edge of the living room, looking sleepy and tousled. He also looked very much like a model in his sleep pants and nothing else. He had to know that coming to me bare-chested in front of Bo was not a good idea.

  “You couldn’t get dressed before you came downstairs?” Bo snapped.

  “I tried to get her to feed earlier, but she refused. She told me to go to bed so I did. She woke me up. Not my fault she’s stubborn.”

  Yawning, Cade ambled into the living room, stopping in front of the sofa to stretch. I couldn’t help but admire the way the muscles moved beneath all his tanned skin, but still, he wasn’t Bo.

  To my right, Bo made a growling sound.

  “What do you mean she woke you up?”

  Cade shrugged, casual as ever.

  “She needs my blood. I don’t know how I know. I just do. I can feel it.”

  Glancing at Bo, I could see that he liked that answer even less.

  Cade moved to come around the couch and sit down, but Bo stopped him.

  “There’s no reason for you to get too comfortable. This won’t take long. She only needs information, not feeding,” Bo smirked. “She can get that from you standing right where you’re at.”

  I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, although I couldn’t deny that it thrilled me just a little for Bo to act so blatantly jealous. Instead, I schooled my features to be carefully blank and unaffected as I approached Cade.

  He gave me a lop-sided grin and held out his arms. I knew he did it just to needle Bo and it worked. I heard another growl sound from behind me, low and threatening.

  I stopped just out of reach of Cade’s arms and I breathed in. I did it before I even realized what I was doing, but that one small lapse was all that it took.

  My eyes found the tick at the side of his neck and I felt the rise of my thirst in response. My throat began to burn in that painfully familiar way, prickling like it was squeezing tight around a ball of thumb tacks. I felt the tingling in my gums and knew that my fangs were making their way out for chow time. I also knew that if I looked at myself in the mirror, I’d see pale skin and light, milky green eyes, eyes that spoke of a thirst that would never be completely quenched.

  All I heard above the heavy, rapid thud of Cade’s heartbeat was his sharp inhalation when I stepped into his arms and stretched up onto my tiptoes to reach his neck. The last thing I felt before my teeth broke his skin was his arms fold around me and pull me in close. And then there was nothing but the taste of him and the soothing feel of his warm, sweet blood coating my throat.

  After I took several gulps and the initial thrall wore off, I reduced my suckling and, slowly, I became more aware of my surroundings. I could feel Cade’s fingers rhythmically tensing against my back. I could feel his warm chest brushing against mine as he panted. I could also feel something rigid pressing against my belly.

  I knew all too well the pleasure of a vampire bite. I knew, too, that Cade was attracted to me. I could smell it in his blood, feel it in the way he held me. I could only imagine how hard it was for Bo to watch, but I was determined to feed until I got more information. Cade and I were probably the best chance we had of beating Sebastian. Bo was the ultimate weapon, but he needed ammunition that only I could provide, and that through Cade.

  Finally, the visions in Cade’s blood swept me away, much as they had the time before, and I let them. At first I had trouble making sense of them, but there was nothing I could do to control where they went. I had to hope that what I was seeing would be somehow end up being translated to something written on my skin, something that Bo could understand and use.

  But then, familiar faces began to slowly drift through my mind. I nearly lost my bite-hold on Cade when I gasped against his throat. One beautiful face frozen in terror burned onto the backs of my eyes. It was Savannah.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  I focused all my attention on Savannah’s horrified face, but nothing else came. No clues as to what she was so afraid of, where she might be, or when it was to take place, only that she was afraid.

  The next picture almost completely eclipsed my fear for Savannah’s safety. The image was of Bo and Sebastian. They were standing across the room from one another, although I couldn’t tell exactly where they were. They were both shirtless and Bo’s mouth was open as if he was screaming. They each held long, sharply-pointed, odd-looking stakes. Bo’s was white, Sebastian’s black. It was easy to see by the looks on their faces that they were both out for total annihilation.

  I watched the scene unfold, as real as if it were happening all around me at that very moment. My heart, my mouth, the entire world went completely still as I watched Bo and Sebastian run toward one another, their bodies colliding with a loud crack as each placed his weapon through the other’s heart with perfect aim. They stood locked in a deadly embrace for what seemed like an eternity before one fell, before one began to disintegrate right before my eyes. But it was the wrong one.

  It was Bo.

  My throat ceased to work. I was physically unable to swallow even the tiniest drop from Cade’s artery. Nothing could get past the lump of terror and heartbreak that was lodged in my throat.

  I watched in horror until Bo was nothing more than a smoky film in the air. I held on tight to Cade’s neck, waiting for more from the vision, waiting for Bo to rise and take the day. But he didn’t.

  It was just before my legs gave out that I saw the scene begin to replay from the point where the two men faced off against one another. This time, however, there was one difference.

  As if I was seeing it in slow motion, I watched the men move toward each other. But then my vantage point changed. I was suddenly moving, moving across the room to slide my body in between the two men as they struck out at each other.

  Though I felt the stakes ram through my chest, one on either side, I felt no pain. I felt only relief that I was facing Bo and that he wasn’t dissolving into thin air as he had previously.

  He backed away from me, a look of complete shock on his face. I could see a bloody spot on his chest where Sebastian’s stake had barely pierced him as it made its way through my body. I wanted to step toward him, but something held me.

  From behind, I felt hands at my shoulders. They pushed me away and then I was falling into Bo’s arms. He caught me and cradled me against his chest, lowering me gently to the ground. Though he said nothing, his eyes never stopped screaming at me. They were begging me to tell him this was some kind of mistake, begging me to tell him he was only dreaming. But they were also telling me of his undy
ing love, his wild desperation, his indestructible devotion.

  Movement to my left caught my eye and I glanced over in time to see the bloody hole in Sebastian’s chest. Bo’s stake had gone through me as well, penetrating Sebastian as his had penetrated Bo. But there was a difference in this scenario. This time, it was Sebastian who was dying. I could see his golden skin turning black with decay and drying up like crumpled paper. And then, just as Bo had, Sebastian began to disintegrate, to simply dissolve into the air around him in a hazy cloud of dark smoke.

  As I turned my attention back to Bo and saw the panic and heartbreak in his eyes, I realized what had made the difference in this version. The difference was me. The whole point of this vision suddenly became clear to me.

  In order for Bo to live, I had to die.

  As I was digesting this new revelation, something suddenly and without warning jerked me out of the vision. It was like being sucked out of a moving car. I was instantly gone from the vision and back in Sebastian’s living room, tucked securely in Cade’s arms. My cheeks were wet with tears and my forehead rested against his chin.

  When I leaned back and raised my eyes to Cade’s, I didn’t have to ask if he saw it, too. I knew he did.

  “Ridley, does that mean what I think it means?”

  “That Savannah’s next?” I offered quickly, giving Cade a stern and meaningful look. He frowned in disapproval, but said nothing to give me away. “I can only assume so.”

  “What did you see?” Bo asked, appearing at my side to extricate me from Cade’s grasp.

  I shot Cade one more warning look before I schooled my features and turned to Bo.

  “I saw Savannah and she was terrified. I don’t know exactly what happens, but somehow I know she’s next,” I said. “It’s not as clear as it was with Devon, but maybe we should act as though it was. Maybe this is a warning that we need to get to Savannah. Now.”

  “Well, Devon should be with her right now,” Bo observed, always rational.

  “Yeah, but what about later?”

  “So you have no idea when this happens? Or where?”

  I shook my head.

  Bo watched me thoughtfully for several tense seconds.