Tess fanned herself with one hand and rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “Oy. You should only know like I know.”
“That’s not the point.”
Both women turned their heads to stare at her, their expressions mirror images of polite curiosity. Neither said a word. The silence stretched on for minutes.
“What?” Abby finally demanded.
“Then what is the point?” Samantha asked.
“We assumed you had one,” Tess nodded.
Members of the media had been right. There was a massive Other conspiracy, only it had nothing to do with taking over the world and enslaving humanity. It had to do with driving Abigail Miriam Baker totally and completely out of her mind.
“I—I can’t . . . I can’t just seduce someone to distract him from being mad at me,” she sputtered. “That’s . . . just not right.”
Samantha blinked. “It’s not?”
“Is it a personal problem? STD?”
Abby grabbed a pillow and covered her face with it. How long would it take, she wondered, to smother herself this way? “I do not have a sexually transmitted disease.”
“What did she say?”
“I think she said ‘no.’ It’s hard to hear through all that goose down.”
Lowering the pillow just enough to glare at the women over its edge, Abby decided the time investment might be worth it.
“Because it wouldn’t be anything to be ashamed of if you did,” Tess continued. “One in five humans in the country has one. Besides, it’s not like you could give it to Rule. Others are immune to human diseases.”
Twenty-three seconds and counting.
Samantha tilted her head and eyed Abby consideringly. “I don’t think that’s it. Female sexual dysfunction? Up to forty percent of human women suffer at some point in their lives.”
Abby slammed the pillow down onto the bed. “Do you people work for the National Center for Health Statistics or something?”
“We’re well informed.” Tess studied Abby for a moment, her eyes traveling over what was probably the rat’s nest of her hair and the face that probably looked as if it had been dragged backward through a gravel pit and coming to rest on a spot just beneath her collarbone. “Is it a religious thing? You’re not a nun, are you? I mean, don’t they still wear habits and everything?”
“Just because I don’t sleep around doesn’t make me a nun.”
“Are you a virgin?”
“What is the sudden fascination with my sex life?” Abby crossed her arms over her chest and scowled.
“I’m not asking for details; I just want to know if you have one,” Tess said. “It’s a purely academic question. If you’re a virgin, the seduction thing gets a little . . . trickier.”
“I’m not a virgin,” Abby snapped. “There are days I wish I was, because trust me, that wasn’t my finest moment, but I’m not. Not that it matters. There isn’t going to be a seduction.”
Samantha and Tess gave each other another one of those looks.
The Lupine cleared her throat. “Um, what exactly do you mean, ‘finest moment’?”
“I thought you guys didn’t want details.”
“You can answer in general terms.”
“It was just a bad idea.” One Abby preferred not to dwell on. It only made her feel inept. “I was young, stupid, and drunk, and I thought I was in love; he was young, horny, and male, and he thought I was easy.”
Tess raised her eyebrows. “Had he ever spoken to you?”
“Har-har.”
“Okay, this might require some strategizing.” Samantha drummed her fingertips on the bedspread. “The Luna must have a negligee you can borrow. . . .”
Abby squeaked. The idea of appearing before Rule in anything short of full body armor sent chills up her spine.
She told herself they were bad chills.
But not even she bought that one.
“I’m not borrowing anything, and I’m not seducing a demon.”
“You’re not going to go to hell, you know.” Tess smiled.
“How would you know? Are you the Pope? Are you even Catholic?”
“I don’t need to be. Think about it for a second. God is supposed to be loving and forgiving, right? So why would he send a good person to perpetual torment for doing something as natural as having sex? I mean, if it wasn’t for God, it wouldn’t feel so good, right?”
Abby grumbled. “What makes you think it feels so good?”
Tess laughed. Loudly. “My husband. But I’m afraid he’s not going to be able to prove it to you. You’ll have to go to Rule for that.”
“I am not going to sleep with Rule!”
“Look, I’m not here to talk you into it,” Tess said, standing. “Frankly, it’s no skin off my nose either way. But judging by what I saw in the library yesterday, it’s going to happen sooner or later. Anything that produces that much steam produces an equal amount of pressure. I just thought that if it were me, I’d want to be the one deciding when and where to let it off.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The tension in the library made Rule doubly thankful Graham’s security had disarmed Abby’s brother before allowing him into the club. Hostility exuded from his every pore.
In fact, he bore a striking resemblance to his sister.
It wasn’t just attitude that the siblings shared. Her brother might be nearly twice Abby’s size, but there was no mistaking their relationship. His features were decidedly more masculine, but Rule recognized the stubborn set of the jaw, the same wide, thickly lashed eyes. Unlike his sister’s, the man’s eyes were both the same color, a dark, mossy hazel, but their stubborn, suspicious expression was nearly identical to Abby’s. His hair was a little darker, a little curlier, and his skin had the look of being habitually tanned, but the two humans obviously shared more than a couple of genes.
The man had remained silent and relatively cooperative while Tess stitched up his leg, even if he did watch her every move as if he expected her to trade the suture needle for a bayonet at any moment. Of course, he wasn’t the only one with suspicions. Rule made sure two of the club’s Lupine security staff stayed in the room with them and on alert while he allowed Tess to fuss over the graze the man’s bullet had left in his side. Fortunately, his own accelerated healing had meant he didn’t need any stitches. By morning, all that would be left of his wound would be a red mark. In a week, even that would be gone.
The human didn’t look so lucky. He didn’t complain, though, just grunted when Tess warned him to keep the bandage dry and try not to scratch, as if he’d heard it all before. Rule wouldn’t have been surprised if he had.
The only time he’d given them trouble had been when Tess tried to leave to go check on Abby.
“I want to see my sister.”
“You saw us settle her into bed upstairs,” the witch had said. “Trust me when I tell you she hasn’t moved, Mr. Worrywart. If I had to guess, I’d say she’s probably still unconscious.”
“My name is Noah. I want to see her now.” His hard expression discouraged argument. Rule bet it probably worked on the soldiers under Noah’s command, but Tess wasn’t a soldier. She was a witch, and she was mated to a Felix. Intimidating her practically required an act of God. “And then I want to know what you’ve done to her.”
Tess narrowed her eyes and planted her hands on her hips. “The only thing any of us has done to your sister is make sure she stayed alive despite every attempt she’s made in the last twenty-four hours to change that situation.”
Noah’s eyes glittered. “My sister is not suicidal.”
“No, but I have at times wondered how smart she can be. She’s certainly not one for looking before she leaps; otherwise she never would have landed in this mess.”
“And what mess is that?” he asked, his voice managing to be smooth and menacing at the same time.
Tess looked suitably unimpressed. “Sorry, Rule will have to explain. I have a severe testosterone allergy. The atmosphere in this
room is getting toxic. I’ll have someone come down and let you know when Abby’s awake.”
Tess shut the door behind her with a speaking click, and silence descended over the remaining occupants of the room. Abby’s brother eyed Rule up and down with the assessing gaze of a warrior. It was a look the demon recognized and respected.
“Is this the part where you kill me and dispose of my body where no one will ever find it?” The man sounded more curious than worried. “I should warn you that Abby’s not just resourceful; she’s vengeful.”
Rule snorted. “Somehow, the news fails to surprise me. But I have no intention of harming you, any more than I have of harming your sister.”
Noah’s expression remained flat and distant, but his hands flexed open and closed with a restless anger. “You have a funny way of not harming her, because what I saw in the park definitely didn’t look pleasant to me.”
“That was Seth’s doing, not mine. In case it skipped your attention, I was among those trying to rescue Abby.”
“So you could keep her prisoner? I’ll remind her to thank you.”
Rule sighed. “Apparently she had time to give you her side of the story.”
“Is there a side that doesn’t involve a felony?”
“This was never meant to be a kidnapping. Your sister was never meant to be a prisoner. We are merely trying to protect her.”
“Interesting. And Delilah was merely trying to give Samson a makeover.”
“I see you two must be very close. You have a lot in common,” Rule muttered.
“It’s the dimples.”
“What did your sister tell you?”
“So you can prepare a tidy counter-story?”
“I was hoping to get an idea of how much she understands, but I suppose the point is moot. Whatever Abby understands, whatever she believes, is beside the point. She is in danger.”
“I figured that when she asked me to come rescue her.”
Rule struggled to keep his patience. The ability to make him lose it was a talent shared by these humans. “I am not the danger, and neither is anyone in this building. Your sister is possessed.”
Noah blinked. “She’s what?”
“Possessed,” Rule repeated. “That is why she did not respond to you in the park when you called her to your side. She could not hear you. The spirit inside her was in control, not Abby.”
“You’re serious?”
“Did she act like herself?”
Noah frowned. “Not after that guy showed up. Or maybe before that. I got distracted when the werewolf tried to rip my throat out.”
“If Samantha had tried to rip your throat out, you would not be talking to me right now. But the reason why the spirit inside your sister took over at that point is because it recognized Seth and knew that fiend meant your sister harm. Its panic caused it to seize control of your sister’s body and mind.”
“But where did this ‘spirit’ come from? Was that a particularly haunted city park?”
“Louamides came to your sister yesterday. She did not tell you?” Noah just raised an eyebrow and Rule sighed. As concisely as possible he outlined the events of yesterday. Then while he was at it, he explained the reason he was in Manhattan to begin with.
Unlike Abby, her brother did not give in to hysteria. In fact, his expression barely flickered.
Noah was silent for a long moment before blowing out a deep breath. “Well, shit,” he said, his tone mild. “I wish she’d told me ahead of time. If I’d known I was dealing with a fiend, I’d have brought iron and silver ammo, instead of silver and copper.”
It was Rule’s turn to blink, nonplussed. “If you had known it was a fiend? You know about fiends?”
“Sure.”
“You know the difference between fiends and demons?”
Noah shrugged. “One’s evil; one’s not.”
Rule shook his head. “I think you are the first human I have ever met who I didn’t have to explain it all to. You may be the first being in all of the Above I did not have to explain it all to.” He frowned. “How is it that your sister knew nothing about my kind?”
“She never joined the army.” Noah’s mouth quirked. “Abby and I are tight, but there are certain things I don’t tell her. I can’t tell her about my job. She and our parents know I’m in the army, but I haven’t been able to tell them anything about my assignments since I made Special Forces. I’m in the Spook Squad.”
Rule shook his head. “I am not familiar with—”
“Not many people are. We’re a division of the Special Forces set up about five years ago, when command first began to get suspicious that not everything that showed up in an episode of The X-Files could be fiction. The alien thing’s been pretty thoroughly debunked, but they hit pay dirt with the supernatural stuff. Since not all you folks are law-abiding citizens, my team has been around to keep you in line.” He made a face. “At least, that’s how it was. Since the Unveiling, we’ve been scrambling to retrain and redeploy. Now we’re taking on Other team members and focusing on expanding our mission to handle all national security matters with supernatural or paranormal aspects.”
“I had no idea the humans could be so . . . sensible.”
“Yeah, well, we’ll surprise you from time to time.” Noah shifted his weight against the edge of the desk he’d been leaning on and frowned again. “But you still haven’t explained why my sister is possessed by a fiend. Other than the obvious reason why fiends usually possess people. They like to use us as disguises. But why hasn’t anyone done an exorcism?”
Rule told him about Uzkiel and the solus spell.
Noah swore. “Well, that sucks some serious monkey nuts. What the hell are you going to do now? Because I sincerely hope it doesn’t involve leaving my sister as the target of a fiendish hit squad.”
“I have no intention of allowing Abby to come to any harm. This is why she is staying here where the Silverback Clan can see to her protection twenty-four hours a day.”
“No wonder she’s so pissed.”
“I have little choice.”
Noah said, “I think we need to be a little proactive here. Have you seriously considered exorcising Abby and hiding Louamides in another host? Someone a little more able to defend themselves than my baby sister?”
“The fiend appears to be stuck,” Rule explained about Tess’s failed exorcism. “Besides, no human would stand a chance against Uzkiel and his minions. As I explained to your sister, it’s not just a matter of keeping her in custody to keep her safe. As high a priority as they may be for us, it’s equally important that we keep Louamides safe as well. An Other would unlikely be to volunteer, for they have little more liking for those from Below than the humans. I cannot imagine they would line up for the privilege of being possessed.”
“Then what about me?”
“You?” Rule did a double take. He had not doubted the strength of Noah Baker’s affection for his sister but had not expected the suggestion.
“Why not? This Louamides obviously didn’t bring a body of his own, so he’ll need one, and there’s a heck of a lot more of me to hide in,” Noah said with a crooked grin. “Also like Abby, if I get myself into a sticky situation, I have the training and the equipment to handle it. No matter how many tricks I’ve taught my sister, she’s still about a hundred and twenty pounds of soft.”
Rule didn’t need anyone pointing that out. Especially not Abby’s older brother. Her extremely protective older brother. Rule shook his head slowly. “It is not that I do not trust your ability to handle yourself, or to handle Louamides,” he began.
“You just don’t trust me in general?”
“It is Uzkiel I do not trust. I do not trust him not to go after Abby anyway. He knows Louamides was in her today. Even if we performed an exorcism, it would not surprise me if Uzkiel tried to capture Abby and make her reveal Louamides’ new location. Or use her as bait to force me to do so.”
That sent Noah’s eyebrows winging toward his ha
irline. “Why should Uzkiel think Abby would serve as a lever over you? You’ve only known her for a day. It’s not like she’s special to you.”
“Of course not.” Rule ignored the niggling voice inside of him that suggested he shouldn’t speak so hastily. “But Uzkiel knows I am on the Watch. It knows my duty is to protect others from its kind. Your sister would be no exception.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to put the fiend into me? That way, even if they found Abby—and trust me, I’m not about to let that happen—they wouldn’t have anything to gain from her.”
“That would not stop Uzkiel from torturing her just for the pleasure of hearing her scream.”
The look that passed over Noah’s face had Rule’s complete sympathy. “So she’s damned either way.”
“In a manner of speaking.” Rule sighed. “I did not want to alarm your sister or to give her a false sense of confidence, but right now the fact that Louamides is within her is at least a small advantage over not having it. The strength it provides might become critical if the unforeseen were to occur.”
Noah studied Rule’s face for a long moment, though the demon wasn’t certain what he was looking for.
After a moment, the human shrugged. “In that case, as far as I can tell, we only have one choice,” he said.
“Which is?”
“If Uzkiel needs to be returned Below, then we’re going to have to find him and bring him there.”
Rule’s eyes narrowed. “What exactly do you mean by ‘we’?”
“Just what it sounds like, kemosabe.” Noah smiled, but the firming of his jaw belied the sunny expression. “There’s no way in hell or on earth I’m leaving my sister in the middle of this mess. From here on out, I’m on the team.”
Just what he needed, Rule thought, another human to worry about. “This is not a military exercise,” he warned. “Uzkiel is no rogue vampire to be staked and be done with.”
“I never said it was.”
“It is a more dangerous monster than any you have ever encountered. I cannot allow you to put yourself in harm’s way and I do not have time to protect you as well as your sister.”
Noah’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t recall asking for protection. I may be human, but I’m no lightweight. I have eighteen years of military training and experience, five of which have been on the Spook Squad dealing with all sorts of bad eggs who could have physically pounded me into the dust if they’d wanted. We’re not trained to go hand-to-hand with an Other; we’re trained to outthink him, and from everything I’ve heard about fiends, they may be clever, but they’re not real smart, if you know what I mean.”
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