by Deanna Chase
He glanced around and then shook his head. “Not here. I promise I’ll explain everything when we get to the safe house.”
I blew out a breath, my patience having run out. “Fine. But this had better be one hell of an excuse.”
Chapter 7
We trekked a good four to five miles through the trees and high into the foothills before we stopped at a modest deserted cabin. Debris covered the wood piled up on the side of the house and the heavy layer of dirt on the porch was undisturbed. No one had been there in weeks.
My feet ached, and I shifted from foot to foot, dying to sit down. I eyed the large three-car garage, hoping there was something that would get us to the airport. Harrison was waiting.
Talisen led us around the back. Reaching up, he ran his hand along the sloped eaves until he found what he was looking for. A second later, he unlocked the back door and replaced the key where he’d found it.
Link entered first, his nose to the ground. He circled the small room once, then curled up on a bearskin in front of the stone fireplace. That was enough for me. I strode in, pulled a sheet off a loveseat, and sat on the lumpy surface. I was so tired from the day’s events I curled in on myself and closed my eyes.
But as soon as I heard Talisen shut the door, I straightened and stared up into his guarded expression. I hated that look. Hated that he was hiding himself from me. Sighing, I stood and glanced around, hoping there were keys to whatever vehicle was hidden in the garage hanging in an obvious place. “As much as I want to sit here and rest, we really need to get on the road.”
“We just got here.” He sat on the thick wood coffee table and started unlacing his boots.
I glanced out the window at the garage. “The longer we stay here, the worse off Harrison and the others will be.”
He jerked his head up and pierced me with a stare. “What are you talking about? What’s wrong with Harrison?”
Oh, right. So much had happened, I’d never gotten the opportunity to tell him why I’d come in the first place. “Allcot’s security team was poisoned by a fae recently. The ones who are on your superhuman drug. Harrison was one of them. None of the local healers have been able to help them. Allcot thinks you can. I’m here to take you back to New Orleans before it’s too late.”
I moved to the open-concept kitchen at the back of the cabin and started searching the drawers for any sign of a key.
Talisen followed me and stood in front of the porcelain sink. He leaned against the counter, bracing himself on his hands. He was silent as he watched me.
“Did you hear what I said?” I slammed one drawer closed and yanked another one open. “Whatever’s happening here, whatever you’ve gotten yourself into, it’s going to have to wait. People need you. Now help me find the keys to the garage and whatever possible vehicle might be stored in there.”
He pushed off the counter and walked over to me. Gently he closed his hands over mine, stilling my search. “You’re not going to find any keys. The garage is full of outdoor equipment. In the summer this place is a recreation retreat for outdoor enthusiasts. It’s what makes it a great safe house in the off-season.”
I blinked. “What?”
“I’m trying to tell you that unless we walk back to the highway, we’re stuck here for the night. Hunter will make sure someone picks us up in the morning.”
Glancing out at the pitch-black night, I groaned. Hunter’s team would be looking for me and it was getting bitterly cold. The chances of making it back to my Jeep without freezing or getting caught were too slim. It was better if we stayed were we were. They’d be hard pressed to find our trail. Tal had taken to the trees and I’d flown with Link in my arms. No way were they going to track us easily.
“Damn,” I said softly and pulled away from Tal. Rubbing my temple, I moved back to the lumpy loveseat and folded myself into the corner. I knew we were far enough in the woods that cell service was unlikely, but I pulled my phone out anyway. No bars. No Internet. Just the soft glow of light. Shoving my phone back into my pocket, I glanced over at Tal. “I don’t suppose there’s a phone here?”
He shook his head.
Allcot hadn’t said I had to get Talisen on the plane that very day, but I knew if I didn’t get in touch soon, he’d send David to find out what was going on. My shoulders tensed. I couldn’t let that happen.
Talisen rummaged through the cupboards until he found some energy bars and bottled water. With his hands full, he sat on the sofa to my left, twisting to face me.
I accepted the makeshift dinner with a nod and tore into the granola snack. The cardboard taste stuck in the back of my throat. Gross. After downing half the water, I got up and poured the rest into a bowl for Link. He was fast asleep, but I wanted to be sure it was there when he woke.
“Willow?” Talisen called.
“Yeah?” Weariness claimed my body, and I fought to keep from swaying with exhaustion.
He patted the couch cushion to his right. “Would you mind sitting with me while we talk?”
I couldn’t deny the longing claiming my heart. I wanted to sit next to him. To feel his arm casually draped over my shoulders as we talked about anything and everything. But it was too much. Too personal, considering everything still lying between us. Instead, I moved back to the loveseat and sat on the end farthest from him.
He pressed his lips together in a firm line but didn’t comment.
“I think it’s time you started explaining just exactly what’s going on.” I held his gaze, unwilling to look away.
Nodding slowly, he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “Before I start, I want you to know it was never my intention to cut you out of my life.”
I raised my eyebrows as if to say really?
He ran a hand through his short hair. “I admit that at first, I needed some time. What happened between us, it… well, I didn’t deal with it well.”
I couldn’t argue with him there.
“And knowing that Laveaux will always have a piece of your heart was too much for me to deal with. I’m not proud of that. You’re a person made up of many parts, like the rest of us. I guess I just always thought of you as mine. As messed up as that sounds, it’s the truth. I wasn’t prepared to share you.”
“Share me? What the hell, Tal? You make me sound like a sandwich or something. And news flash, love doesn’t mean you own a person.” His words only intensified my anger and frustration at the way he’d handled things. For the love of the goddess. He’d thought of me as his? As if he’d owned me? I pressed back into the corner of the loveseat, trying to put even more distance between us.
He shook his head. “I know. That’s not what I meant. Look…” He glanced away for a moment, took in a deep breath, and met my gaze again. “I’ve known for a long time that you had feelings for me. Beau told me one night at the beach. He also told me that if I ever hurt you, he’d rip my heart out. And he wasn’t kidding either.”
“He told you!” I gasped, outraged my brother would do such a thing. Especially since I’d never told him my feelings for Tal. Though he had known me better than anyone else, even better than I knew myself most of the time.
Tal shrugged. “He was looking out for you. The thing is, ever since then, I had this image of the two of us ending up together. But then Beau died and the pain we were both going through meant you were the only person who got me. I was too scared I’d mess up any romantic relationship, and I kept it friendly so I wouldn’t lose you. I meant it when I said no matter what happened between us, I’d always be here for you. Always.” His voice was full of such conviction that it felt like he was making an oath right then. “And that’s still true. I just needed time to work through what I was feeling after I came home.”
“Three freakin’ months?” I said, digging my fingers into the cushions to curb the sudden desire to strike him.
He shook his head. “No. More like a week. But by then I was already knee-deep into my contract with the Void.”
Sile
nce hung between us as I digested what he’d said. I stood on my tired feet and stared down at him. “The Void?”
That muscle in his jaw pulsed again. “Yeah.”
“Why?” My chest tightened. After everything the Void had put me through, I didn’t want Tal to have anything to do with them. Why had he signed their contract?
“I didn’t have a choice, Wil.” He rose, standing a head taller than me. “It was either that or serve time for supplying the drug to Allcot.”
My breath came out in a whoosh, leaving my insides hollow. I was suddenly freezing in the small cabin, and I wrapped my arms around myself. It’s my fault. The words played over and over in my head. Tal had come to New Orleans for me. To help me. And he’d been forced to give his superhuman drug to Allcot in order to keep me safe. He’d done it all for me, and now he was trapped working for the shadow agency of the Arcane. I’d learned some of the directors were as corrupt as Allcot himself. But the newest one I still didn’t know. No one ever knew. When dealing with the Void, the best one could hope for was that good was winning over evil. “How long?”
Our eyes met again. He knew exactly what I meant. How long until his contract was up? “Five years.”
Tears burned my eyes. He had never wanted anything to do with the government agency. All he’d ever wanted was to work in his lab doing research on his healing solutions and elixirs. Now he’d be exploited for his superhuman drug and would have no say in how they used it. The possibilities for abuse were endless. “All because of me.”
“No, Willow. Not because of you. I’m the one who made the elixir. I’m the one who gave it to Allcot. I knew I was crossing lines. Knew there’d be consequences. I did it anyway.”
“Because of me,” I said again.
He reached up and pushed the hair from my eyes. “Would you have done it for me? Given Allcot your creations if it meant keeping me safe?”
There was no debate. He already knew the answer. “You know I would’ve.”
“What makes you think I’d do anything different?” His piercing green eyes seemed to see straight into my soul.
I closed my eyes, trying to cut off the connection we were rebuilding. It had always been there and always would be. But it was making me entirely too uncomfortable because even though we were finally talking, there was still a barrier between us. “That doesn’t explain why you cut off contact with me, Tal. The Void doesn’t dictate who you can talk to.”
“They do in this case.” He took a swig of water and sat once again on the couch. “Sit with me?” he asked again.
This time I didn’t resist. My skin was still tingling from where he’d brushed my hair back. That small gesture had broken down at least one barrier. Still, when I lowered myself to the couch, I bent my knees, pulled my legs up, and wrapped my arms around them to use as some sort of shield.
Tal smiled at me and shook his head as he ran a light hand down my calf. He stopped at my ankle, and ever so gently, he proceeded to strip my shoes off my tired feet. “Just relax, Wil.”
Combined with his soothing voice and the spark of his healing hands, I didn’t have any trouble doing as he asked. My eyelids became heavy and the tension seemed to drain from my shoulders as he worked his magic. Literally. He was a healer and just his touch was enough to soothe my aches and pains.
I watched him for a moment and when I couldn’t stand not knowing any longer, I asked, “Why wouldn’t the Void let you call me, Tal?”
He frowned and all the tension that had drained from me seemed to pour right into him. The set of his jaw, his rigid posture, the rhythm of his elevated breathing. “I’m working undercover.”
“Okay.” That was normal. Phoebe did that all the time.
“With Hunter.”
The words hung in the air as he let me work out exactly what that meant. I filtered through everything I’d learned that night. I’d followed Tal to my mother’s old lavender fields, the place where Beau had died. We’d run into Hunter, a fae shifter who’d transformed himself into a vampire. He was working undercover as well. Had infiltrated a group of vampires. Ones that wanted to kill me. I let out a small gasp and peered at Tal. “No,” I said on a whisper.
Regret filled his beautiful green eyes as he gave me a small nod.
My head swam. It couldn’t be possible.
Then Tal took my hand once more and pressed his lips to my palm. “I’d do anything for you. You know that, right?”
“But not this. You can’t,” I said quietly, unwilling to accept what he was trying to tell me.
He covered my hand with both of his. “I already have. You see the reason I couldn’t call you, couldn’t tell you, is because my end had to be real. They have to believe I want nothing to do with you. That I’m so angry that you chose Laveaux over me that I’ll do anything to get revenge.”
“I didn’t—” I started, needing to deny his claim that I’d chosen David. I most certainly hadn’t.
Tal cut me off. “I know, Willow. But I need them to think that’s what happened. It’s my reason for turning on you. I needed to be the scorned fae who’d been roped into working with Allcot.”
I sat stunned, staring at my hands. Please, no. Don’t let any of this be true. It was too awful.
“Wil?” Talisen used two fingers to lift my chin. “You know I didn’t have a choice, right?”
I nodded, still mute.
“Then you also need to know that now that I’m on the inside, I’m going to take the organization down.” His eyes narrowed with intensity. “And I won’t stop until Asher is dead.”
Chapter 8
A chill ran deep in my bones. Talisen had infiltrated Asher’s inner circle. Asher: the daywalking vampire who thought vampires held too much power over humans and that his kind was evil. He’d killed Beau and come after me in an effort to make sure no other vampires were turned into daywalkers. Now Talisen was determined to take him down.
I was both proud and terrified at the same time. “It’s too dangerous,” I said, leaning in to place my hand on his cheek.
“Everything is dangerous for me now. You know what that’s like better than anyone.”
I did. My life had turned into something greater than myself. I’d been contracted by the Void, used by Allcot, and ruled by my heart when it came to protecting Beau Jr. I’d willingly teamed up with Allcot because I’d known he would keep my nephew safe. I was only useful in that I could turn vamps into daywalkers and that I could make Orange Influence, the chocolate treat that could control someone’s actions. That was a lot of power to wield. And even though I’d so far resisted being forced to make Orange Influence for Allcot, I had turned some of his vamps.
Stale revulsion ate away at my stomach. I’d done it as part of the Void testing and those memories always made me want to vomit. The only reason I’d endured was because David had been there taking care of me. All while Talisen had been infiltrating Asher’s inner circle. “Tell me everything,” I said with conviction. “How did you get hooked up with them and what exactly are you expected to do?”
Tal leaned back into the couch, his legs stretched out in front of him. It wasn’t lost on me that since telling me his secret, he was much more settled. As if everything would be better now that I knew.
I wasn’t so sure about that, but if he’d been keeping all this to himself the past three months, he was probably more than ready to talk it out.
“Hunter. He’s been a Void agent since right after Beau died four years ago. He’s been working on the inside of this particular group for over three years. Three years he’s spent in vampire form.” Talisen visibly shuddered. “Can you imagine?”
I shook my head and wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stop the shiver from his words.
“But he’s finally gained their trust,” Tal continued. “So when he suggested bringing me in as someone who knows you well, they went for it on his word. It’s obvious most of them don’t trust me, but then I’d be shocked if they did.”
&nb
sp; Unease was circling in my gut. “How did Hunter prove himself?” I asked, too afraid to ask the same question of Talisen.
He shook his head. “You don’t want to know, Wil. You really don’t.”
“Talisen. Tell me,” I demanded. “If you expect me to trust him, I need to know how far he’s willing to go.”
“Shit.” He glanced at the ceiling but then met my stare head on. “He brings them, uh, Void resources and feeds them information about Allcot’s corporation.”
“Void resources? What does that mean exactly?” Normally I wouldn’t give a second thought about Allcot, but now I was worried. He had Beau Jr. in his care. Did they know that, too?
“Some of the drugs they use on other vampires to control them. A spell here and there. He walks a fine line between feeding them things and info they can use versus anything too sensitive.”
I knew the drill. Phoebe was my partner and roommate, for God’s sake. I’d seen her give up information when she was going after a bigger threat numerous times. But none of the stuff she’d given out had been about me. I was too close to this and was having trouble separating my personal and professional feelings. Maybe Hunter didn’t even know about Beau Jr. But Tal did.
“And what about you?” I asked hesitantly. I wasn’t at all sure I wanted the answer, but I had to ask anyway. “What do you give them?”
He grimaced. “Mostly stuff that’s readily available to anyone who cares to look hard enough. Info on your shop, what you make, your contract with the Void. That sort of thing.”
I got up and paced. He was holding something back. I could tell by the way he kept averting his gaze. “Doesn’t seem like they’d bring you into their inner circle just for that.”
He shrugged. “I don’t tell them anything they couldn’t find on their own.” Then he narrowed his eyes. “Or are you thinking I told them about your nephew?”
I bit my lip.
“God, Willow. You can’t be serious.”
I threw my hands in the air. “Of course I didn’t think you did. But I won’t lie and say it didn’t cross my mind. I can’t help it. Three months ago, I wouldn’t have even considered it. But three months ago you didn’t work for the Void and were never more than a phone call away. Now… Everything’s different. I’m still trying to catch up.” I sat back, exhausted, and blinked away tears. The day had taken too much out of me. Learning about Harrison, coming to Eureka, being kidnapped, and hearing all this stuff I never would’ve thought Tal would be involved with—it all overwhelmed me. And all I wanted to do was bury my head under a pillow until we could leave in the morning.