“Balance of power,” Jule said.
“Jonny’s the key,” Xander said. “If he pushes back, the Original Other won’t have the luxury of options for taking the gem.”
“The kid isn’t going to push anyone,” said Dusty, Damian’s operations director for the Western Hemisphere. Dusty’s wife was the sister of Jonny, making him the brother with the most personal connection to the Black God.
“Unless he has a reason to,” Xander pointed out. “Ashley didn’t just happen to know where to go.”
“She’s caught in the crossfire,” Damian said. “Or no?”
“Jonny hasn’t killed her type since he crossed over. He’s got an interest in her.”
“The kid’s half-hormones, half-vamp,” Jenn seconded. “Definitely likes brunettes.”
“We’re working together on this issue, right?” Damian asked.
No one said anything. Xander considered.
The soft click of the door closing announced Jessi and Brandon. Brandon was all but clinging to his cousin, whose gray eyes were taking in the group uneasily.
“Why wouldn’t we?” Jessi’s tone carried a puzzled note. “We’re going to get Ashley back.”
“You? No,” Jule told her. “We’ll handle it.”
“You, no,” she echoed, fire flashing in her gaze. She rested a hand on her hip. “If I’m not mistaken, I’ve got the magical power of stealth mode.” She said the last two words with open skepticism. “It counts for something, doesn’t it?”
“We don’t send defenseless Naturals to face the Black God,” Dusty replied.
“I really don’t care. He’s expecting to meet me.”
“You wanna talk your girl off this crazy idea?” Damian asked Xander.
“You wanna remind your friend I have a means of contacting Jonny and he’s expecting to hear from me?” Jessi crossed her arms.
Jenn hid a sudden laugh behind a cough while Sofi smiled.
It didn’t take Xander long to realize he had a much larger issue than Ashley. Jessi wasn’t going to stand on the sideline when it came to her cousin. He didn’t want her anywhere near the Original Other or Jonny but was almost certain she’d figure out how to get herself in the middle somehow.
“Jessi helps,” he said at last.
Damian frowned.
“Thank you,” she said.
I need a distraction, he told Jenn through her mind.
The Guardian eyed him.
“Phone, Jessi. I know you talk to him via texts,” Xander said, holding out his hand to the woman beside him.
She looked up at him, hesitating as she searched his gaze. Relenting, she dug the phone from her pocket and placed it in his hand.
Darian shifted and glanced at Jenn then Jessi. Xander sensed the silent communication.
“We need to break for a few minutes,” Darian said. “Meet up in ten to come up with a plan?”
“Sure,” Damian said, eyes on his brother. “We’ll set up a meeting with Jonny in the meantime.”
Xander tossed him the cell, and Darian strode out of the barn. Jessi turned to Xander expectantly, concern on her face.
“Jessi, want me to show you around?” Jenn asked.
“One sec, Jenn. Do you have a plan?” Jessi asked Xander.
His gaze went to the red gem between her breasts.
“Too late to back out now,” she hissed.
“You make that choice yet?”
Jessi gazed at him. He saw the doubt and was stung by it. Xander didn’t say what he wanted, that he took a chance on Jessi, but she hadn’t yet decided to take one on him.
“Boundary,” she whispered.
“Wrong fucking answer.”
“I’m sorry, Xander.” She turned to face the door. “Yes, Jenn, I’m ready.”
Xander watched her go, fury and frustration within him. He didn’t know if he could save Ashley, but he was the best choice Jessi had. She knew more about him than anyone else ever had – and still rejected him.
His only solace: she was worried about Ashley. He got it, even if he didn’t like it. Even if she was fucking wrong.
The three of them left.
“What the fuck just happened?” Dusty demanded when the door closed.
Xander glanced down at the smart phone in his hands. He slid his thumb across the screen to unlock it. With a sinking feeling, he realized he’d guessed right. Jessi didn’t trust anyone – even him – to help her. Anger trickled into him.
“I think I know.” Damian’s eyes were on him.
Xander dropped the phone and crushed it with his foot.
“Yeah, I know. X’s woman just pulled the wool over his eyes.”
“When this is over …” he growled.
“Sounds like the plan just got easy,” Jule said grimly. “Follow Jessi. You still have her tagged, Xander?”
“You GPS-tagged your mate?” Dusty almost cracked a smile. “Are you stalking her?”
“The opposite. Making sure she’s not sneaking up behind me to kill me,” Xander said and removed his cell from his jeans.
“You can’t sense her either. Interesting,” Damian said. “Definitely a skill I look forward to honing in Brandon.”
“If Jesse agrees. Otherwise, you risk fucking with me.” Xander opened the program that allowed him to track the GPS markers he planted in Jessi’s belongings. Several were in Southern California while two blue dots – the one in her cell phone and the other in a shoe – appeared on the map in Texas.
When he glanced up, the three brothers were staring at him in various stages of amusement. Jule smiled. Damian was cautiously entertained while the corner of Dusty’s lips curved up. Xander was surprised to find he didn’t give a shit how funny they found it that he was openly claiming Jessi. Eden grinned.
He had left his corner. He wasn’t going back to it, where she was concerned. Whether or not she knew it, she was his, the second woman in his life he was allowing into his world.
“She really got to you,” Jule said, shaking his head.
“It’s one thing, when you can put someone yelling at you to sleep. Quite another, when you have to deal with it,” Xander replied.
“Thank god I don’t deal with that shit,” Dusty said.
“Your wife has the ultimate trump card, Dusty,” Jule pointed out. “She’ll run to her dear brother, the Black God, who will crush you.”
“No worse than a mate who turns all the food in the house into dog treats when she gets pissed at you,” Dusty shot back.
“I deserved that one,” Jule admitted.
“I didn’t.”
“Yeah, well, I got all of you beat,” Damian said. “Oracle.”
No one spoke, and Xander growled. The blue dots in Texas disappeared, drawing his attention to the phone in his hand.
“She’s on the move,” he said, anger settling in his blood as he realized his newest challenge was going to be much more than he bargained for.
“Tell me where she lands,” Dusty directed and whipped out his phone. “I’ll rally the stations in the area. Headed to the ops center.”
“Jule, you’re with Xander and Darian. Find that Original Other,” Damian said. “I’ll be heading to see Jonny shortly. Dusty, is Bianca available to put us back together again?”
“Yep.”
“Yully’s on standby, too,” Jule said. “She’ll give us boosts as needed.”
Xander listened, uneasy at the thought of the Guardians and Gods he despised helping him with his issue. Logically, he understood they were needed, but it didn’t make things feel better. Bianca, Dusty’s mate, was a Healer of extraordinary power, who had turned her brother from a vamp into a human again at one point. Jule’s mate, Yully, was known as the Magician and the first to kill an Other. Able to draw off the magic of those around her, she could amplify and redirect it. She was also able to turn objects into something else, a rare talent.
“Alright,” Xander said grudgingly. “We do this, and you get the fuck out of my hair.”
“Deal,” Damian replied.
Jessi opened her eyes, still weirded out by the idea of moving between places without moving at all. Jenn released her hand, and she looked around at her apartment.
“I might be a few minutes,” Jessi said. “I’ve gotta get stuff for Brandon and Ash, too. You’re welcome to make yourself at home.”
Jenn’s eyes were roving the apartment, as if she expected vampires to leap from the shadows. She gave a brisk nod to indicate she heard.
Jessi went to Ashley’s bedroom. She closed the door as quietly as she could and locked it. Heart pounding hard, she sat on the bed and pulled out her cell phone.
It wasn’t going to take Xander long to figure out she’d tricked him. He’d realize she was about to betray him, then come to kill her.
After making love to her with such tenderness and passion. Her heart and stomach both fluttered. The man who tore people in two had been beyond gentle with her, savoring every inch of her body, as if he was trying to memorize everything about her. She was more than a one-night stand or a rerun. The choice he made had been to keep her, despite knowing what she was capable of doing to him.
She gazed around Ashley’s room, her fear and sorrow so deep, they hurt. Posters of teen pop stars populated her cousin’s wall. A white desk crammed in a corner was covered with teen magazines, and a box of beads had spilled and scattered a rainbow across the carpet. Normally, Jessi would groan at the mess in the teen’s room. Today, she’d give anything just to have Ashley back, no matter how long it took her to fix the vacuum cleaner after it choked on the beads.
Toying with the necklace, Jessi tried hard to quell her panic. She wasn’t entirely certain what to do, how to keep the gem and Ashley safe. She hesitated a moment longer then texted Jonny.
Got the necklace. Come get me. Ashley’s room.
She swallowed hard and set down the phone. Her eyes lingered on Ashley’s precious beads. Too nervous, Jessi instinctively knelt on the floor beside the overturned box and began collecting the small treasures. She fingered a bracelet Ashley started. The pang of worry that hit her was so sharp, she gasped.
Tears made the rainbow double. Jessi carefully placed Ashley’s project in a corner of the box, praying her cousin was alive to finish it one day. She grabbed a handful of beads and dumped them into the bin, stopping when the flash of red caught her attention.
Jessi dug out the round, flat red crystal. She pulled Xanders’s from around her neck and compared them. Side-by-side, they didn’t look much alike: his was a deep, rich ruby hue with a faint glow. Ashley’s bead was lighter red in color, its surface glazed to give it a subtle reflecting quality. Their sizes were similar, though.
Jessi’s eyes went to the box again. Struck by an idea, she piled all the beads into the box before unfastening the clasp on Xander’s necklace. She pushed his crystal into the bottom of the container then strung Ashley’s crystal onto the cord. Replacing it around her neck, she tucked it into her shirt.
No one who knew the crystal would fall for it, but maybe it would buy her time to figure out a better plan.
She purposely didn’t think about what Xander was going to do when he realized the phone she gave him wasn’t the correct one. Or that she’d taken off the gem. Or that she was asking Jonny to come get her.
Xander made love to her like she was the only one in his world of disposable girls. Knowing what he was, why did the thought of betraying him hurt her?
Jessi tucked the box under the bed and sat nervously, waiting for Jonny. At last, he texted.
On my way.
She almost sighed. With a nervous glance at the locked door, she began to realize this was probably not a day she’d live to see the end of. If she was able to save Ashley, though …
If.
Jonny materialized a few seconds later. Almost instantly, the door bucked, as if Jenn was trying to get in. He held out his hand to Jessi, and she took it. Snapping her eyes closed, she held her breath, until the Black God released her.
She stood in the center of what looked like a ski lodge with one massive wall of windows overlooking the mountains. A large, iron chandelier hung from the rafters of an A-frame roof high above. The foyer extended from the front door to the windows, with multiple hallways and a stairway running deeper into the place.
The unmistakable red eyes of vampires made her gasp. There were five in the foyer, men whose eyes glowed red like Xander’s. Jonny left her in front of the windows and strode towards one hallway.
“Where’s Ashley?” she called after him.
“Safe. Come on.”
The vampires nearest her were growling. Jessi hurried after the Black God, following him into a narrow hallway and what looked like an operations center of some sort. Rows of computers and monitors lined the room. He pointed for her to stay where she was in the doorway then motioned someone over.
A vamp approached with the type of wand security personnel at airports used.
“Checking to see if Xander GPS-tagged you,” Jonny said, standing aside.
The vamp waved it over her, and the tool lit up over her pocket. He reached into it roughly and yanked out her phone, tossing it to Jonny. The device lit up once more at her feet.
“Shoes off,” Jonny ordered.
Jessi obeyed. Her fear was growing.
“Take these somewhere far from here,” Jonny told the vamp, handing over the shoes and cell.
She watched the creature take her only hope of being found by Xander away. Jonny gripped her arm, and she barely closed her eyes before his familiar fire flew through her. This time, when he released her, she didn’t know where she was.
The warehouse was empty. Concrete floors were cool beneath her bare feet, and the perimeter was lit by dim lighting.
“How did you know he tagged me?” she asked uneasily.
“I learned a few things from him,” Jonny replied. “Ashley’s here.”
Jessi’s pulse surged, and she trotted after him. He led her out of the open bay into an office area. A television played somewhere, and light outlined the frame of one door. Jonny opened it to reveal a comfortable looking room with a plush couch set, rugs to cover the concrete floors, and television lighting the room. A door in one wall was open to reveal the white porcelain sink of a bathroom, and the wall opposite the TV held a kitchenette.
Jessi went to the couch, expecting to see her cousin lying there watching TV, as she did at home.
Ashley wasn’t in the room, though Jessi recognized some of her cousin’s things: a pink cell phone charger, a backpack that yawned open to reveal clothes, the stack of colorful beaded bracelets on the arm of the couch.
Jonny closed the door behind her and locked it.
“What’s going on?” Jessi asked uneasily. “Where’s Ashley?”
“She’s nearby,” he answered vaguely. “You have the stone?”
“I’m wearing it.”
“Okay. Hand it over.”
“Um, I don’t think you want me to do that.”
He looked at her hard.
“I’m not being difficult,” she rushed on. “Xander said only he and I can touch it. I guess it has some sort of spell on it that will um, kinda kill anyone else.”
Jonny studied her for a long minute. “Can you activate it?”
“I have no idea how to do that.”
He frowned, thoughtful. “I take it Xander does.”
“I assume so.” She studied him apprehensively, reminded of her cousins, when they were caught up in some sort of drama. She had long since learned that trying to talk them down didn’t really work. “So … do you have a plan or are you just winging this whole thing? Because I pissed him off, and I know he’s coming to get his necklace back.”
Jonny’s eyes dropped from her to the crystal at her chest.
“I don’t think removing my GPS tracking will dissuade him for long.”
“Fuck.” The Black God began pacing. “I need that gem!”
“Can I see As
hley while you figure this out?”
He hesitated.
“I promise not to run or anything,” she added. “I mean, I can’t really go anywhere anyway.”
His eyes were on the crystal.
Absolute power, Xander had said. She understood why Jonny might want it but not why he seemed so uncertain. At least he wasn’t calling her bluff.
Yet.
“I’ll bring her here,” he replied.
Without another word, he disappeared.
Jessi looked around for a phone or window. The room held neither. She went to the door quickly, terrified he would return and think she meant to escape. The door was locked from the outside, bolted shut. She didn’t know where she was, not even what state.
Retreating to the center of the room, she tried to think instead of outright panicking. First things first: her feet were freezing. She rifled through Ashley’s backpack, aware the teen never went anywhere overnight without three pairs of shoes. A pair of ballet flats caught her attention, and Jessi pulled them on.
Her attention shifted to the room again. There was no way out and no way to contact anyone. Of course, she no longer had anyone to contact, now that Xander was out to make her number seven.
Her pacing ceased, her throat tightening at the thought of spurning him.
She didn’t want to fail his test. She wanted a chance with him.
Jessi rubbed her face. A relationship with a vampire? It wasn’t something that could ever be. He didn’t tolerate betrayal, and she’d walked out on him.
You made the hardest choice. The rest we’ll handle together.
The memory of the words and how sweet he was last night made her ache, as much because she turned her back on him as it was because she wanted to feel his naked body against hers.
“You are nearly impossible to find.”
She turned at the voice. The man with translucent skin and purple eyes – the one Jonny hadn’t exactly greeted with open arms – stood a few feet away.
“Jonny’s coming back,” she heard herself saying, uncertain how the teen god with a penchant for breaking arms was less of a threat than this man.
Others, she recalled. Creatures no one she’d met yet spoke well of.
“Then we better leave now.”
Lizzy Ford Page 28