by Trina M. Lee
A woman straddled Gabriel, oblivious to his fangs in her throat as she rubbed against him. Briggs made a bloody mess of a lady who didn’t seem to know if she should fight him or fuck him. He needed guidance.
Arys’s lips on my wrist created a direct line to my groin. I glanced down at the enthralled man who reached for me as soon as our eyes met.
And I lost it.
Together the four of us made a feast of the VIP lounge. Blood filled my mouth. Moans filled my ears. Bringing victims to the edge, Arys and I commanded more power than I’d ever experienced during a solo kill. I wanted him to take me right there, but later I would be grateful that he’d resisted due to our companions.
A vampire party of four made for an interesting experience. After watching Briggs struggle to master the ebb and flow of his new power, Gabriel stepped in, showing him the careful manipulation of the victim. A light caress, a calm suggestion, and they were putty in our hands.
Despite Briggs’s undying hatred for all things vampire, he was a quick study, eager to know how it all worked. The power-driven Fed inside him had not died. It didn’t take long for him to subdue his prey with ease.
As I feasted on the lusty energy of yet another unfortunate human, Arys feasted on me. He drew on me, savoring my essence before pushing it back to me, flavored with his own heady vibes. We were caught up in a tornado of power with us in the eye of the storm.
Was this what I’d been missing out on? Hunting with Arys had always seemed so daunting. Intimidating. Dangerous. However, it proved to be far more thrilling than I’d let myself believe. Together we were incredible.
“I told you we’d be amazing,” Arys murmured in my ear, his mouth warm on my skin. “This is how we’re meant to be. Together.”
Spilling blood with my dark vampire brought me to a place of wholeness. Completeness. I wasn’t escaping anything nor chasing some kind of false freedom. Together we became one entity, a single powerful force with a fate written in the stars.
A fate that would include the best and worst parts of light and dark, victory and failure, love and hate.
The sting of Arys’s fangs drew a gasp from me. His sigh was soft in my ear as my blood hit his tongue. He sucked at the wounds in my neck while holding tight to my waist.
Briggs reacted by abandoning his prey and dodging tables to get to us. Eyes wild with bloodlust, no semblance of humanity remained. In a brazen move, he grabbed my wrist and jerked it close.
I could have thrown him on his ass. Probably should have laid the smack down on him for ever daring to be so bold. Instead I seized his moment of weakness.
Grabbing his face with my free hand, I forced Briggs to meet my gaze. Arys grew still beside me, watching this exchange. Without a word, I released Briggs and nodded to my wrist, inviting his bite. Never would he taste my blood without my permission.
I saw how much he loathed himself in the seconds before he bit into my wrist. Swallowing my satisfaction, I watched with poorly disguised enjoyment as Agent Thomas Briggs gave in to what he craved most. Nope, not as strong as Jenner. Not even close.
Feeling eyes upon me, I glanced up to find Gabriel looking conflicted. The poor kid had fought the call of my blood before. Once upon a time, I’d wanted to bind him to me, as I had Jenner, Kale, and now Briggs. Seeing the fear battling with longing in his dark eyes, I felt pangs of guilt.
It wasn’t my fault my blood was addictive. But using it for my own gain, that was all on me. I didn’t feel regret over Jenner or Briggs. Looking at Gabriel, I had to ask myself, should I?
He was dangerous.
No. I couldn’t.
Forming that conclusion, I shoved Briggs away. No need to encourage this with him.
“You need to know where you stand,” I said, unmoved by the hatred blazing in his eyes. “I made you and I can break you. Never forget that.”
Having his bloodlust sated, Briggs started to come back to himself. Gaping at the bodies littering tables around us, he seethed. “You made me a killer.”
“You were already a killer, Briggs,” I replied, flippant and without care. “I just gave you a way to justify it to yourself.”
“You won’t get away with this, Alexa. It changes nothing. I will resume my place at the FPA, and your name will be at the top of my hit list.” Pent up with violent emotion, Briggs shook.
Arys merely gave his head a shake, a laugh rumbling in his throat. “Man, you have a lot to learn.”
Briggs didn’t bother with a reply. He fled the lounge, vacating the building as little more than a blur.
“Should we go after him?” Gabriel asked, though his gaze focused on my throat.
There wasn’t much Briggs could do. If he went to the FPA, they would toss his ass in the lab. The potential for a killing spree existed, but with my blood in his veins, his resistance would be stronger. All he could really do was finally go home.
“No,” I said, finding some relief in Briggs’s departure. “Let him go.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Several shelves had been emptied onto the floor. I surveyed Brogan’s magic store, unable to believe Willow had done this. Little more than an hour ago, I’d been licking blood from my lips. Now I stood in Toil and Trouble, wondering what the hell Willow was up to.
“He didn’t hurt you?” I repeated for the third time, worried. “He just ransacked the store and left?”
Brogan wiped at the tears gathered in her eyes and huddled deeper in the oversized hoodie she wore. “I was in the back going over the accounting ledger. I heard a noise out front and found him out here, tossing things off shelves, like he was searching for something. In a hurry. He broke the wards I put in place after Falon was last here like they were nothing.”
“What did he come for?” Arys asked, carefully stepping around the trinkets littering the floor.
Gabriel busied himself cleaning up the mess. He treated every book, stone, and sage bundle with great care. With an elemental amulet in hand, he paused to study it, and I wondered if he saw something left behind by someone else. I wasn’t entirely sure if his precog worked with objects as it did with people.
“He took the Talisman of the Dark.” Brogan rubbed her forehead and bowed her head. “It shouldn’t have even been in the store. In the wrong hands it can be dangerous.”
“Talisman of the Dark?” I repeated. It felt wrong in my mouth. A chill crept up my spine.
Gabriel began to scoop up an exploded pack of tarot cards. “Not even I would touch that talisman. It’s got a reputation for being hard to work with. Hard to control. Someone like Willow can probably handle it, but I can’t imagine he has good intentions with that thing. Nobody ever does.”
“What is it used for?” My jaw clenched as I anticipated the answer.
Brogan remained silent.
“Ritual magic,” Gabriel supplied. “Black stuff. The talisman originated in ancient Egypt. Its history is pretty broad. But basically it symbolizes the struggle that comes with being dark and the eventual repercussions of the choices we make. I can tell you right now, nobody using that talisman has good plans for it.”
Arys glanced up, his expression grim. “What kind of rituals?”
“Well, it could be just about anything. But usually it’s big stuff. The kind of shit that requires special circumstances. Blue moons. Lunar eclipses. That kind of thing.” Shoving his long hair out of his face, Gabriel regarded us with concern. If the black magic vampire were worried, this had to be bad.
“And do we have such an event coming up?” I really needed to pay more attention to this shit.
Gabriel’s nod pained me. “We do. A rare planetary alignment just after the New Year. I can look into it more for you.”
Running both hands through my hair, I turned in a small circle, afraid of crushing the merchandise. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
“I’m sorry, Alexa. That thing shouldn’t have ever been in the store. I haven’t taken proper inventory since Mom passed away.” There was such remorse in B
rogan. But this wasn’t her fault.
I pulled her into a hug that was meant to be comforting but failed due to my own unease. “This isn’t on you. No matter where that thing was, Willow would have found it if he wanted it that bad.”
Arys turned to me with concern, aware of how much Willow’s fall made my heart ache. “So, what now?”
I sighed. Oh, Willow, why? “We help Brogan tidy up, and then I find Willow.”
When the store had been put back together, I stepped outside to call Willow’s phone. While it rang I projected my thoughts, calling for Willow, having no idea how it worked but thinking, if Falon could hear my call, maybe Willow could too.
To my utter surprise, he answered the phone. “Hey, Alexa, how’s it going?” Willow’s casual, cool tone seemed so friendly, so normal, it gutted me. Because it was so fake.
I swallowed hard and stifled another sigh. “Nice to see you making use of modern technology. I think you know how it’s going.”
“You sound angry. I expected your recreational activity tonight to have the opposite effect.” His voice warm and friendly, Willow sounded so deceptively like his old self. How did he do that with such ease?
I didn’t like that he knew where I’d been and what I’d been doing. It was unsettling. How often did he creep a peek at me? I didn’t even want to know how often Falon did it.
“Willow, please, don’t toy with me. I just want to talk. Can I see you?” Convincing a demon to play nice was not in my skill set. Even over the phone, fear gripped me. For all I knew he could be standing unseen right behind me.
“I suppose I could use a drink or seven. You can find me in my usual seat enjoying my usual drink.”
He hung up before I could respond. This time I did sigh. I seemed to have an endless fount of them all of a sudden.
Gabriel remained with Brogan to reinforce her wards, though nothing he did would keep Willow out.
The drive to The Wicked Kiss was intense as I spent every moment in a state of anxiety, my least preferred state. “We shouldn’t have done that,” I said, hands tight on the steering wheel. “In the VIP lounge. Willow knows. He saw. How am I supposed to keep him from going dark if I can’t stop myself?”
Arys’s heavy gaze pinned me.
I kept my eyes on the road.
“Oh, so we’re doing this already? The guilt trip.” His irritation filled the car. “Alexa, you don’t have to punish yourself every time you act like a vampire. In case you haven’t noticed, you are one. There is no bringing Willow back from where he’s gone. It’s not your place to save him.”
“Thanks for the pep talk,” I muttered. Maybe it was pointless to expect Arys to understand. Our internal battles were not the same. Or perhaps they were exactly the same. We were the ones who were different.
“You know I just don’t want you to punish yourself for Willow’s choice. Or for letting loose once in a while. It’s not realistic for us to play it straight with willing victims all the time. You’d go mad.” The touch of his hand on my thigh was as gentle as his tone.
“But there has to be a better way, Arys. Rachel said she managed her darkness by working as an assassin. There’s got to be a way I can manage mine too. I can’t help but feel like I’m dishonoring Willow’s sacrifice every time I give in.”
Arys considered this with a slight nod. “I get it. I do. You’re the Hound and the vampire taints that. You need a way to justify it to yourself.”
Initially I was offended, but I couldn’t argue his point. I guess he got me after all. “Yeah, I do. Otherwise…”
“Otherwise you’re just like the rest of us,” Arys stated flatly. “The monster Briggs says you are.”
“What? No. Arys, it’s not like that.” This conversation had taken a wrong turn fast.
He chuckled, low and smooth. It tickled me on the inside. “No worries, my wolf. I’m content with being the big bad. And though I’ll support you in whatever you need to do to be ok with it, you’ll have to accept that it’s in you too.”
“Is that so? I guess that means you’ll have to accept that perhaps you are the hero the light wants you to be.” A smirk twisted my lips. It wasn’t often that I got to turn things back on Arys.
“Touché.”
Willow sat right where he said he’d be. At the end of the bar with a row of tequila shots lined up in front of him, he seemed just so…Willow. But he wasn’t.
“Give me some time alone with him,” I told Arys. “Stay out of trouble.”
With a sexy smirk, he gave me an affectionate pat on the ass and slipped away into the thin but adequate crowd. Bad, bad vampire.
I slid onto the stool next to Willow, hoping I appeared as calm as I pretended to be.
He threw back another shot and gnawed on a slice of lime as he dragged his gaze to mine. “How’ve you been?” he asked. “Shit got pretty wild that night at the church. I was worried about you.”
Small talk. Ok, not a bad way to start out.
“I’ve definitely had better nights. I spent the night trapped in the stone with Shya while he hurt me in just about every way possible.” Just talking about Shya brought a tired note to my tone. The demon exhausted me, even locked away.
Willow sat up straighter, his gaze narrowed. “That slimy motherfucker.”
“Yep, and I will be spending each full moon that way until I can figure out how to break the curse.” I shrugged. “Lucky me.”
“Fuck.” Two more shots down the hatch. The scent of tequila cloaked Willow like a cloud. “I wish I’d turned that piece of shit inside out while I had the chance. Salem might just do it though, now that he has the stone.”
Willow shot me a pointed look. Salem had wasted no time retrieving that stone.
“I had to tell him who had it,” I said, hating how weak I sounded. “He didn’t give me much of a choice.”
“I’m sure he didn’t.” Another shot of liquor. “I’ll do whatever I can to help with Shya’s curse. It’s not going to be easy though, I’m sure.”
It had to be a good sign that Willow still cared enough to help. I hoped. But did I want his help now that he’d gone dark? How could one demon possibly help me escape another?
“Thanks, Willow. I’ll be ok.”
I lost count of how many shots he put down. Josh kept them coming, no questions asked.
Willow slid me a sidelong glance, tilting his head of dirty-blond hair. “So let’s talk about why you really called this little meeting, since I know it wasn’t to share a drink with me.”
A slight slur to his words made me wonder how much he’d consumed before I arrived. It took a shitload to get a demon good and drunk, but if any demon could do it, it was Willow.
Speaking with drunk people rarely went as planned. Oh boy. “Willow, what you did at Brogan’s tonight really sucked. That place is her livelihood. You tore it apart and left her to deal with the mess. Not to mention the talisman you swiped.”
“Yeah, I probably shouldn’t have been in such a rush. Once I knew she had it, I had to have it. I’ll be sure to apologize.” A shrug and a half smile. Nonchalant, Willow spun an empty shot glass with a finger.
“What do you need it for?” Stupid question maybe, seeing as I knew the damn talisman served no good purpose.
Willow looked perplexed, like he didn’t know how to reply. He used another three shots to delay answering. “It’s best if you don’t know. I just have some things to take care of. Nothing for you to concern yourself with.” His sharp, focused gaze left little doubt that no amount of tequila could throw him off his game.
“Willow,” I tried for a calm approach. “I’m going to be concerned no matter what you say or do. I care about you. Just be honest with me. Please.” Asking for honesty from a demon was an exercise in futility. Still, I had to try.
He peered around the building, finding Arys in the crowd. I followed his gaze to see my vampire deep in discussion with another. A determined set to his jaw made me wonder what they discussed.
&nbs
p; “I know it’s hard for you being linked to both the light and the dark,” Willow said. “You seek to do right even though you still do wrong. I understand the burden. I shared it when I was in between. However, I’m beyond that now. I no longer feel the conflict, and I can’t begin to tell you how wonderful it is to be free of it. What you do is fight the good fight, as you were destined to. And I too must fulfill my destiny.”
The shot glass Willow spun slipped from the bar and fell. We both reached to catch it. Our hands touched. The noxious scent of sulfur filled my nostrils. A vision of blood and fire exploded behind my eyes. My skin burned where he touched it, a scorching heat that had me jerking back in horror.
The shot glass hit the floor and rolled away.
“What the hell was that?” I gasped, cradling my hand. Despite being unmarked, it hurt like a bitch.
Willow’s face fell. He tried to turn away, but I’d already seen. “That is my destiny. As there are things you must do, there are things I must do. Please, Alexa, stay out of it. I don’t want any conflict with you.”
I suspected the booze was to blame for his lapse in control. It didn’t seem like something Willow would do. Every encounter we shared lately left me feeling crushed.
My head heavy, I dropped it into my palms with both elbows propped on the bar. Only when he met my eyes again did I say, “I think it’s too late for that. Don’t you?”
Tension. Damn how I wished I could toss back one of those tequila shots.
“I don’t want it to be. But you’re a Hound. Your duty is to battle evil. And I am evil. So I suppose it’s inevitable.” Willow exuded a great sadness. And yet, he seemed to accept that these were the roles we both must play.
Willow himself had told me not so long ago that I existed to fight evil, as a Hound, a protector of mankind. Never had I imagined that evil would be him.