She stepped from the tub and allowed him to wrap the towel around her. “What am I?”
He smiled. “I have no earthly idea.”
“I thought I was a vampire.”
He took another towel and squeezed her long hair to dry it. “Not like any I’ve encountered.”
“My eyes are red.”
He shifted the towel to another spot and squeezed. “Yes, but part of your original eye color is there as well.”
She moved to the mirror and looked closely. Sure enough, there were blue flecks in them. She opened her mouth and ran her forefinger across her top teeth. “The fangs are gone.”
He pulled a brush from a top drawer. “You must not need them anymore. Or perhaps they retract? Teleport to the living room for me, please.”
She closed her eyes and pictured the sofa of his living room, wishing to be there, and before she could take a breath, she was there.
After a few moments, he strolled in with the hairbrush and a bathrobe. “See? You have powers and are definitely of the Underveil, but you are not a vampire. And you ate food. Vampires lose all appetite for it the minute they taste blood.”
The pasta had been delicious. “No blood for this girl, thank you.” She grinned and Stefan grinned back.
“He didn’t break your spirit at least.”
Nikolai hadn’t broken anything really, except her heart. She took a deep breath and accepted Stefan’s help into a silk bathrobe. How odd it was to have a man cater to her. Nikolai would never have pampered her like this.
“Is there a reason you have a woman’s robe at hand?”
He stilled for a moment and then tied the sash. “For years, I have prepared for my mate to join me. I have a full wardrobe for her at all my residences.”
His sadness was palpable. She wanted to ask him about it, but held off.
He traced his fingers across the markings just under her collarbone. “The Uniter. Right here in my living room.”
“What does that mean?”
He turned her facing away and ran the brush through the ends of her hair, working up through her wet tangles. “I’m not exactly sure, but I know the prophecy, if you want to hear it.”
“She doesn’t.” Nikolai’s voice rumbled through her like an earthquake. It was as if his blood had made her a tuning fork that vibrated with his words. She should have expected this. Of course he would look for her here. She spun to face him.
Clean-shaven and wearing fresh clothes, he was delicious. He looked so civilized compared to the man she had been chained to. She wanted to run to him, and that repulsed her. Why would her body be such a traitor? Sexual attraction did not a healthy relationship make. This guy was bad news.
Stefan handed her the brush and turned to face Nikolai. “I will give you to the count of three to leave my home, or I will shock you into unconsciousness, Itzov. You are not welcomed here.”
“She’s mine.”
Bitchin’ bad word choice, asshole. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared.
Stefan looked from Nikolai to Elena, then back again. “She appears to be a free agent. One with tremendous power potential, so you’d best mind your manners. I leave it to her whether you stay or go.”
Nikolai’s gold eyes locked on hers. “Elena, please. We need to talk.”
There was no way this man would change. He was too entrenched in his way of thinking. In his possession and domination. A relationship of any kind with him was impossible, no matter how much she wanted it. What was left of her heart shriveled to nothing. “I’m sorry, Nikolai. I’ve nothing to say to you. I want you to leave.”
Stefan took several steps toward Nikolai, who took one step back. The Time Folder must have packed a real punch to back Nik down. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave, Slayer. You’ve done your part. You raised her from the ashes. You empowered her with your blood. Now it’s up to her to do the rest.”
The desperate tone in Nikolai’s voice made her heart ache. “Please. Please just talk to me.”
She held up her hand before he could say any more and weaken her resolve. “Just go.”
The look of betrayal on Nikolai’s face brought tears to her eyes.
Stefan touched her shoulder. “Could you give us a moment, Elena?”
Something about leaving these two men alone worried her. Stefan patted her shoulder and Nikolai nodded. Okay, maybe they wouldn’t destroy each other, but there she went again allowing herself to be out of the loop and helpless. Dammit. She hated men. All of them.
Nikolai held his breath even after Elena shut the bedroom door behind her.
“I should kill you, Itzov.” The Time Folder casually lowered himself to the couch. “Imagine my surprise when a hypothermic, dehydrated, starving, newly-turned immortal showed up in my bathroom naked with the exception of some worn out footwear of questionable origin.”
“I—”
He raised his hand. “You were supposed to take care of her. Your stink was all over her, so you obviously took care of yourself.”
Nikolai drew a deep breath and reminded himself that the Time Folder was a necessary ally. He needed this man and was grateful he had taken care of Elena, even if he was a know-it-all, elitist, self-righteous asshole with the nose of a fucking bloodhound. “You’ve got this all wrong.”
Darvaak crossed his legs. “I hope so. For her sake, I really do.”
The two men stared at each other for several moments. Nikolai always wondered about the extent of these creatures’ powers. Sometimes they seemed to have seer talents, but it could just be the analytical abilities of their bizarre alien brains. Freaky bastard.
“Here’s what I’m going to do for you, Slayer.” He stood and moved to the bar. He poured two glasses of Scotch and offered one to Nikolai, who joined him and downed the drink in one gulp. He needed about ten more of those.
Darvaak leaned down behind the bar and straightened up with a phone and a charger in his hand. He punched in some numbers and then handed the device to Nikolai. “I’ve programmed my number in there. It is a disposable, untraceable phone, so your dear uncle Fydor will not be able to locate you. I will call you if she wants to see you. You will call me if you decide you are no longer an arrogant, selfish bastard.” Darvaak put the charger in his hand and then wiggled his fingers. “Taa taa, Itzov.”
Fucking Time Folder. He had no choice. Elena wouldn’t talk to him.
Well, at least she was safe with this guy. He thought of the close call with the vampires and wood elves and even Fydor’s Team. Hell, she was safer with the Time Folder than she was with him, for sure. “Okay.” He shot a longing look at the bedroom door.
Darvaak placed his hand on Nikolai’s shoulder, and a slight jolt of current ran down his arm. “Give her time.” He gave Nikolai’s shoulder a squeeze and retreated to the bedroom, leaving him alone.
“Give her time,” he repeated. Time he had. Patience, not so much. This sucked. He stepped behind the bar and poured himself another glass of Scotch. Well, no better place to wait it out than right here, he supposed. He strolled to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Jackpot. If nothing else, the Time Folder lived well. So would he until Elena came to her senses.
“He’s still out there,” Elena grumbled for the zillionth time. “What does he want?” She stopped pacing long enough to set the hairbrush down on a dresser by Stefan’s bed.
He smiled and put his arms behind his head on the pillow. “He wants my Scotch.”
She took in the long, relaxed body of the man lying on the bed who acted like there wasn’t a barbaric, sword-wielding caveman in his living room.
“And he wants you.”
She shook her head. “He doesn’t want me. He wants to control me.”
“All relationships are power plays. You just need to get the rules straight, which he’s not ready to do yet. He not only has to overcome his Slayer’s genetic drive to dominate, he has to deny his control-driven society’s upbringing. You, on the other hand, need
to realize these things are part of his composition, and allow him a little control. The two of you come from very different worlds. Give him time.”
“Time!” She threw her arms up. “He had plenty of time while he was dragging me all over hell’s half acre in the snow like I was some dog on a leash he could command. Sit! Stay! Roll over.”
Stefan lifted an eyebrow and smiled.
She sat on the edge of the bed. “Yeah, well, the roll over part was pretty good, but the rest…”
He sat up. “Since he’s not leaving, why don’t we?”
“We’d have to walk by him on our way out, and I’m really not up to dealing with him.”
Sliding out of bed, he smoothed his shirt. “You are thinking like a human.”
“I am a… Well, guess I’m not a human. I’m a…whatever-I-am.”
Stefan disappeared into a closet and returned with woman’s jeans, a shirt, and some sandals. “Whatever you are, you can teleport, and I suspect you can take me with you.” He placed the clothes on the corner of the bed. “These will be a little long for you, but they should fit otherwise. Have you ever been to Hobby Airport?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Because most Underveilers who have the gift can only teleport to places they’ve been before. I do not have this gift, so if you could please teleport us to Hobby after you get dressed, there’s a plane waiting to take us away. I arranged everything while you bathed.”
“So you already bought our tickets?”
“No. I bought a plane.”
“That’s a bit excessive, don’t you think?”
His grin was beautiful. “Not at all. I wanted a new plane, and this was a great excuse to add one I’d had my eye on.”
“Like a new pair of shoes.” She hoped her sarcasm came through loud and clear.
“Precisely. Go put some on.”
After grabbing up the stack of clothes, she headed to the bathroom, shaking her head. Good thing she was immortal because getting used to this kind of thing was going to take a long, long time.
Chapter Seventeen
Elena took another sip of her daiquiri and stared over the turquoise ocean. Stefan’s private island off the coast of the Dominican Republic was paradise. So beautiful, in fact, it didn’t seem real—but then, neither did anything that had happened to her since she’d been shot in that convenience store. Especially the moments she’d spent in Nikolai’s arms, which she was trying really hard not to think about.
Taking a deep breath, she reclined her lounge chair and closed her eyes, focusing on the soft sounds of the ocean lapping the shore and the sea birds overhead. No matter how hard she tried to empty her mind, she always saw the same thing: Nik, with his strong, hard body and brilliant smile. And his voice, and his words, and the way he…
Shit. No. Just, no. She wouldn’t allow herself to go there. He was an ass who had yanked her around like a dog on a leash. She could not be owned.
“Screw him!” she grumbled. Yeah, if only…
She’d slept for twenty hours after Stefan had introduced her to his staff, and then had done nothing for an entire week but lie around on the beach, but still she was tired and at the same time, restless. She constantly felt like she had lost something, but was too exhausted to look for it. Maybe it was the conversion into being a…whatever-she-was that had worn her out. Or maybe it was the fact Nikolai had starved and dehydrated her.
Or had he?
Maybe he just hadn’t known her needs. Her species was different than his. Maybe she should have been more vocal. He’d always tried to make her comfortable when he knew things weren’t right.
Stop it. Stop making excuses. She was done with him. Period. She’d hang out here until things settled down, and then she’d go back home and try to simply live a normal life—well, as normal as possible considering she was some kind of blood-powered freak of nature now. Obviously, after a couple of weeks of no-show, she’d lost her research job in the hematology department. Ha. She’d probably want to snack on the samples anyway. Her goofy grin at her own silliness faded. No. It would only appeal if it were Nik’s blood, wouldn’t it?
“Lovely sunset,” Stefan said, sliding into the lounge chair next to her. He wore linen slacks and a light cotton shirt rolled up at the sleeves, buttons open half way down his chest. The tangerine and magenta sunset tinted his skin, making him look like a bronze statue. So beautiful, yet, he did nothing for her. Only one man made her feel like her body was on fire, and no matter how hard she tried to douse it, the flames smoldered under the surface, waiting to be fanned. It was like she had to be near Nik in order to feel right, which was just…wrong. Surely the hunger would pass in a few more days. She just needed to wait it out.
“How are you feeling?” He tapped his bare feet on the side of his lounge chair to knock the sugary sand off.
“Much better,” she lied.
“Bridgette tells me you skipped breakfast and lunch today.”
She adjusted the back of the lounge chair so that she sat upright. She had been a little freaked out by his housekeeper’s intensity over the need for food. “Yeah, I really wasn’t hungry.”
He tilted his head and lifted an eyebrow. “Are you hungry now?”
She shook her head and watched a gull scoop something up from the water and took another sip of her drink.
He crossed his legs at the ankle. “I’ve been trying to sort out what exactly is going on, but am not able to get a clear picture. My sources have provided all the pieces of the puzzle with the exception of few crucial ones.”
Another gull snatched the prize away from the first and flew away screeching.
“Well, you’re way better off than I am, because I know squat,” she said.
“Here is what I know: Both yours and Nikolai Itzov’s fathers died in an incident rumored to be combat resulting in the death of both, yet no one witnessed it. Your father’s death destabilized the vampire nation, leaving it in chaos, causing a large number of them to go rogue and feed on humans. That sparked the execution of thousands of vampires at the hands of the Slayers, which resulted in a rebellion that divided the vampires into two factions.”
The whole thing sounded like a plot for a scary book. Elena folded her legs up and shifted in her chair to face him. This craziness is real, she reminded herself. I’m not going to wake up from this. But she wished she could—she wished she could forget the whole thing…well, maybe with the exception of a few hot encounters with a Slayer. Those she never wanted to forget. Heat shot through her at the mere thought. Dammit. Stop.
Stefan stared over the water as he spoke. “Fydor, the newly instated Slayer king, replaced Nikolai’s father and immediately married his mother.”
“How did that go over?”
“Fydor marrying Tatiana Itzov was a good move politically. She was loved by their people and gave him validity. According to my sources, the marriage was not well-received by Nikolai, who moved out of his family’s compound the day the engagement was announced.”
Poor Nik. They had talked for hours in the cabin, and he’d never mentioned any of this. He’d kept it light and funny, probably to make her comfortable. Just like he’d done with his body. He’d eased her fear and discomfort. Maybe she’d misjudged him more than she thought. And as much as she tried not to, she worried about him.
“Fydor vowed to cease all executions if the vampires swore allegiance to him as their king, as long as the feeding on humans was discreet and had a low mortality rate,” Stefan continued.
Low mortality rate? Humans shouldn’t die at all if there were other options. Elena could hardly believe it.
“The ones who did not swear allegiance to Fydor appointed a new vampire king and are considered rebels. They stay true to your father’s dictates, feeding only on willing immortals.”
“Like Margarita.”
“Yes. In fact, her brother is the Arconian leader.”
“Arconian…”
“As it sounds, they took your father’s
name.”
Well, no wonder Margarita was all up in her business that day. She smiled as another piece of the puzzle slipped into place.
He leaned down and brushed some sand off his recliner. “Nikolai, unaware of the agreement between his uncle and the vampires that allowed them to predate humans, continued to kill the violators of the laws of the Underveil while searching for you.”
“For me?”
“For the Uniter, who appears to be you.” He gave a half laugh. “I would love to have seen his face when he figured that out.”
No kidding. Finding out the person he sought was enemy number one, and a woman at that, must have been a shock to his big, bad, misogynistic Slayer system. “It wasn’t pretty, I’m sure.” She took another sip of her drink. “So, not knowing Uncle Dearest had given the vamps the green light to drain humans, Nik slayed them.”
“Well put.” How could a guy that good-looking do nothing at all for her? His blue eyes were a shade paler than the water, giving him an unearthly appearance, which suited, she supposed. According to Nik, he was an alien of some kind. “Yes,” he continued. “His execution of those who took human lives made him an enemy of most vampires and in violation of the treaty, which is why his uncle could put a kill order on him.”
“But Nik didn’t know about the agreement.”
Stefan smiled. “Yes, he’s been kept in the dark about a lot of things.”
She fiddled with the tie on the white cotton shorts his housekeeper, Bridgette, had laid out for her this morning. She swore she wasn’t going to ask. That she didn’t care. Still, she couldn’t help herself. “Is he still at your place?”
He pulled his cell from his pocket. “According to security, he teleports in and out.”
A teeny kernel of panic bloomed in her belly. Surely, he’d stay out of danger. “So what is my role in all of this?”
Love Me to Death (Underveil) Page 15