“Really?” Rose looked at Seth, her eyes wary. “That’s all you needed? If that’s true then why have no others done that? Trust me, there’s a few who would just love to come calling but they never have.”
Basilius’ eyes pierced hers, holding her in place. “I’m no ordinary Demon, Rose.”
Rose forced her gaze to leave his, stepping back and away from him before she flung over her shoulder. “You don’t look so special to me.”
Laughter erupted from deep within the man, Demon, lounging in her chair. The noise seeming weird coming from him. She kept her look indifferent as she cocked her head to the side. “What are you doing here? And, oh yeah, what can I do to make sure you never return. This is my home and it is off-limits. Do you understand?”
“Flower.” Seth’s voice held a warning, one which she had no intention of heeding.
“I mean it.” Rose glowered at Basilius, taking in his handsome good looks, the obviously expensive suit that hung to a body she knew would be just fine.
“What the hell,” she whispered as she shook her head, Seth giving her a worried look. She felt drawn to this man, Demon, and fought to keep her mind clear. She threw up a guard around her mind, shielding it from him, and shielding herself, her true species from him too.
It’d been the first thing Seth had taught her so many years ago. Shield herself and never, ever, let anyone know she was part Witch.
Basilius smiled up at her with a knowing look in his eyes. “I like you, Rose. You are definitely not what I was expecting to find here today. However, even my powers are not letting me know what you are. So, Black Rose, tell me, what the hell are you?”
“Irrelevant,” she snapped coldly.
Seth stepped closer, his eyes hard as steel, as he looked at the Demon. “What do you want?”
The Demon didn’t even acknowledge Seth, only focusing on Rose. “I’m here in my capacity as Head of the Council. I have a job for you. Though, you are intriguing me with every second that passes. Hmm, I would really like if you told me what you are.”
Again she felt that pull and she strengthened her defenses again. No way in hell was she letting him in. “Stop. If you’re here about a job then just get on with it. I’m a busy woman.”
He paused, looking her up and down. “I’m not sure if you’re up to it. Seeing you before me makes me wonder if even the inimitable Black Rose can pull it off.”
Rose bristled, in a weird way, her reputation was something she was proud of. “Just tell me what it is and I’ll be the judge of whether it’ll be a success or not.”
The Demon’s eyes twinkled as he nodded curtly. “Very well. There’s a Vampire that the Council believes is going to be a threat to the peace that we’re trying to establish. It’s not something we want to continue so we would like him eliminated. You can deal with Vampires, can you not?”
Rose sneered. “Of course.”
“Really?” Basilius queried, cocking his head to the side and staring at her intently. “Even an ancient Vampire? One of the oldest in existence? He’s powerful, little Rose, very powerful. I’m not sure you have it in you to deal with him.”
“Don’t you worry ‘bout me.” She sneered again, throwing him a dirty look. “However, I need some more information before agreeing to this. What exactly are his crimes?”
Basilius’ gaze seemed to pin her in place, a small tug at the sides of his lips making it appear he was trying not to smile. Again she felt a tug towards him and fought it, standing firm as she raised an eyebrow. “Well?”
The Demon nodded. “This is strictly confidential. He speaks publicly about peace; however, we’ve uncovered his true intention. He is working to gain power and once he has it, his plan is for Vampires to take over. Completely, utterly and to enslave any species he can. You don’t need me to tell you that the most vulnerable will be humans.”
Rose shot a glance at Seth who looked angry and ill at ease. “I’ll do it. What’s the payment?”
“For something like this you can name it. What do you want?”
Rose looked at Seth who stepped forward. “A semi loaded with food and water and a truck full of gas. Half now and the rest when the job’s done.”
“A semi and gas?” Basilius seemed to ponder Seth’s words before smiling at Rose. “That’s a lot of food for two people.”
“It’s the payment, take it or leave it.” Rose pulled her eyes away from the Demon’s, finding it difficult to do. Again she wondered what the hell he was doing to her.
“I’ll take it.” Basilius smiled. “His name is Cassius Allarde.”
Seth shook his head furiously. “No! Are you insane?”
Rose looked at him, frowning. “What? Who is he, Seth?”
“He’s the most powerful Vampire there is and to top that he lives in Manhattan. That’s a no-go area, Flower, you’re not going in there.” Seth turned back to the Demon. “You can leave now.”
Basilius looked from Seth to Rose, raising an eyebrow. “So the legendary Black Rose isn’t capable of taking this assignment? What a pity. I was looking forward to working with you.”
She paced back and forth. Their food supplies were running low. They had plenty of gold, jewels and trinkets, but food was definitely something they needed. “I’ll do it.”
Seth grabbed her arm, spinning her to look up at him. “No, Rose, it’s too dangerous, even for you. He lives in the penthouse of the Plaza and has dozens of guards in place. That’s even if you get there in one piece. We both know what Manhattan is like. It’s full of gangs and bloodthirsty Vamps just looking for blood. We don’t need food that bad, baby.”
“Yes, we do.” Rose reached up, her fingers trailing the side of his face. “I can do this, Seth. Don’t worry.”
“Please, let this one go,” he whispered as she turned back to face the Demon.
“I’ll do it.”
“Good. I’ll have half your payment delivered within the week.” He grinned up at her. “Apparently, he was elected as the Vampire’s leader last night. However, he doesn’t take full control until he is sworn in and that will be a month from now. You have to eliminate him before that happens. Understand?”
“Yes,” she snapped out. “I’ll get the job done, don’t worry. Just make sure you get half of the payment here as soon as possible because I won’t start until you do.”
“That’s cutting things fine is it not?” Basilius queried. “You still have to travel there and that will take some time.”
“I know exactly how long it will take me to get there,” she spat out, staring him down. “I’ve made the journey before. I’ll be there within a week.”
“Whatever.” Basilius stood, staring her in the eyes and drawing her in. She took a step towards him and only stopped when Seth’s hand gripped her arm.
Rose tore her eyes away, frowning and cursing softly. The Demon’s laughter dragging her eyes back to his. “You feel the draw. Don’t you?”
“Leave,” was all she answered.
“Very well.” Basilius looked her over again, his stare making her feel like he was leering at her naked. “Will you stop at the Council Headquarters on your trip to New York?”
“No,” Rose answered far too quickly.
Again the Demon laughed. “I’ll drop in once your part-payment has been delivered to ensure everything is as it should be.”
“No need,” Seth spoke, his tone as unfriendly as she’d ever heard it.
“Goodbye, Rose. I look forward to seeing you again.” Basilius smiled, his eyes twinkling for a mere moment before he disappeared.
“What the hell?” Rose sputtered. “He was trying to get into my head.”
Seth cursed, obviously unhappy. “Fuck, Flower, that’s not all he was trying to get into.”
“Weird.” She shook her head to clear it, visions of the dark Demon invading her thoughts. His muscular frame hidden beneath the hand-made suit, dark eyes that bored deep inside her, and a smile that caused her stomach to churn. A brief glimps
e of what he would look like naked popping into her head. Seth’s angry voice interrupted her musings and she dragged her thoughts back to the present.
“Just what the hell are you thinking? This job is too dangerous, Rose. I really would prefer if you didn’t do it.”
Rose grinned, punching him in the arm. “Hey, I’m The Black Rose. I can handle this.”
“I fucking hope so.” Seth scowled at her. “I don’t want to have to come rescue your beautiful ass, baby. Or, better still, I should come with you. Yeah, that sounds much better. We’re tag-teaming this time, Flower.”
“You don’t need to and I don’t want you coming when I’m infiltrating this Plaza place. If you must then you can come as far as the outside of Manhattan but you are not coming in with me.”
Seth glared at her. “Fine. I’ve heard there’s still power and cell signals there so we can keep in touch via phone. If you don’t then I’m coming in.”
“Oh for goodness sake. Alright, Seth, this once you can come with me.”
“Don’t make it sound as if you’re allowing me to come, Rose.” Seth growled. “I’m coming, plain and simple.”
Shrugging she started to tug off her clothes. “I need a shower.”
Seth followed her, the flat of his blade hitting her ass. “Good idea.” He smirked as she giggled, jogging away from him.
“I know that look,” she threw over her shoulder, her skin already tingling in expectation of his touch.
“Yes, Flower, you do.” Seth grinned as he stalked after her.
Chapter Five
Basilius stood at the large window in his office, looking out over the lush green lawn that was in front of the building the Council now operated from. The White House no longer white and the President no longer in charge. The human still lived here with his family, now head of the humans but he wielded little to no power. No. That power was now held within Basilius’ grasp. His orders alone being the ones they followed.
Although the other species had a presence upon the Council, his was the last word in any decisions taken. The order to take out Cassius Allarde wasn’t one he’d put before the other members. They would never have agreed. Not when Allarde appeared to be cleaning house within the Vampires and spoke only of peace.
Peace wasn’t something Basilius wanted. Not now. Not before he’d gained complete control over this new world. He had plans and they didn’t include Allarde messing things up by advocating an end to inter-species conflict. The sooner the Vampire was eliminated the better.
His lips tugged up into a small smile as he thought on Rose. An enigma he hoped to understand real soon. What was she? He wasn’t sure but he vowed to find out. Her eyes like deep pools as he’d stared into them. His cock hardening with each second he looked. At one point his mind had completely wandered to what she’d look like lying beneath him, panting and crying out in ecstasy.
That had never happened before. His mind was always, always on the job at hand. What was it about this young woman that drew him to her? He knew she’d felt it too, saw her struggle with the pull towards him, and he looked forward to seeing her again. He’d make sure it was sooner rather than later.
His curiosity piqued and he always slaked his curiosity. Whether that was seeing how long a Vampire could survive, chained with silver, drained of his own blood and denied any new nourishment (quite a while actually). Or testing a human far beyond their endurance of pain and injury before they finally lost their fight to live. He found out about anything that he found interesting and Rose was no different.
Basilius vowed to uncover whatever it was she was hiding from him and possibly have some fun at the same time. He could picture her in his bed as he sank deep within her warmth and shuddered at the thought. “I think I’ll have you in my bed, little Rose,” he whispered, straightening his pants in the front to relieve the pressure of his stiff manhood. “Oh yes. I think that’ll happen before too long.”
The only part that he was sure of was he’d make sure she came willingly. Not usually a prerequisite for his bedroom antics, but with her, he was going to make an exception.
A soft knock on the door interrupted his musings, annoying him, so he barked, “What?”
Orthon opened the door slightly, sticking his head around it nervously. “Just wanted to let you know that Cassius has asked for a meeting with you. He’d like a face to face and said he’ll come here if you want him to.”
Basilius frowned, thinking for a moment before replying. “Tell him I’ll go there. Tomorrow afternoon but don’t give him a time. I want him to lose sleep while he waits for me.”
“Okay.” Orthon grinned. “He won’t like that.”
“Exactly.” Basilius smirked. “Now go. I’ve a lot of things to think about and I don’t need you interrupting me.”
“Master.” Orthon didn’t disappear, which surprised Basilius. Usually his little assistant left his presence as quickly as possible.
“What is it?” Basilius snapped.
“Do you want me to leave the female in your room?”
Basilius tapped his chin with a finger for a moment. “I’m surprised she’s still alive,” he admitted. “Leave her. I’ll finish her off later and then you can dispose of the body.”
“As you wish,” Orthon said, closing the door quickly as he vanished.
“She’s stronger than I thought,” Basilius spoke aloud as he remembered the punishment he’d inflicted on her weak human body. “They’re so fragile but fight so fucking hard to live. Even when it’s hopeless.”
His thoughts wandered back to the assassin, his heart picking up speed as he pictured her eyes, so beautiful. As was the rest of her, using his imagination to undress her and see the splendor he knew was there. Maybe, just maybe, she’d come to him willingly.
*****
“I wish you hadn’t agreed to take this job on.” Seth’s hand trailed down her side, his fingers gentle as he caressed her skin.
“It’ll be fine.” Rose turned to face him, to look into his eyes as she spoke. “Seth, if this Cassius guy is planning for the Vamps to take over then we need to stop him. I need to stop him. We agreed when I started this that we’d only take on work where the target was deserving of the sentence. This Vampire certainly seems to be that. It's not as if we can just lock wrongdoers up like in the old days.”
“I know that, Flower, you don’t need to remind me how bad it is out there.” Seth turned onto his back, sighing as his arm moved under his head as he looked up at the ceiling. “This guy is powerful. I think he’s the strongest you’ve ever gone up against, Rose Marie, and I’m scared. For you, for me, hell just scared through and through.”
Rose leaned up on her elbow, knowing he was really upset if he used her full name. He usually only did that when he was really angry with her. “I promise I’ll be careful and I won’t take any unnecessary risks.”
His eyes sought hers, a look of disbelief on his face. “Really? You’re gonna try and get that past me? You thrive on risks, Flower, you know it, I know it. So don’t try and give me any bull.”
“You’re my teacher. If I get that high from taking risks then I musta learned it somewhere.”
“Not from me.” Seth shook his head. “I’ve taught you how to do things, how to get out of things, but I’ve not taught you that unnecessary risks are okay, because they’re not. They put the mission in jeopardy, not to mention putting your very life at risk. I’d go crazy if anything happened to you, Rose.”
“Okay, okay, it’s my own, shit I’ve no idea what, but it’s something inside me that urges me to take risks. I’m sorry and I promise I’ll try and not do it this time.”
“Please, for me, be extra careful.” Seth’s free hand reached over to stroke her face gently. “I’m still hoping I can talk you out of this. Hell, I may even call your old man to come and knock some sense into you.”
“Don’t you dare!” Rose glared down at Seth, anger flaring inside her. “I’ve not seen him in, fuck, how long? It’s
so long I’ve forgotten. If he can’t be bothered to come see me then he sure as hell has no right to interfere in any decisions I make.”
Rose flounced out of the bed, her anger causing her to pace furiously. Seth sat up, his back against the wall. “Rose Marie O’Connell! Don’t you talk about Brendan like that. He stays away for a reason, you know that.”
“So you and he say.” Rose pouted and she could feel the heat flushing up onto her face. “So they, whoever that may be, can’t find me. So what if they do? I’ll take them out, simple, problem solved.”
“If it were that simple don’t you think Brendan and I would’ve already done that?” Seth shook his head at her. “You’re too cocky, Flower, and that can get you killed. If it was easy to kill the Witch Hunters then don’t you think your mother would’ve done that? She would’ve done anything in her power to get back to you, baby, anything. So don’t act like a spoiled brat and cuss out your father because it kills him not to see you.”
Rose glared at Seth for a moment before her anger deflated, her shoulders drooping as she looked over at him, sadness on her face. “Why? Seth, I still don’t understand all this? The species warring is one thing, but for all the other species to hunt Witches to damn near extinction is just . . . fuck, I don’t know what it is but it’s weird. Why would they do that?”
“That’s what your father and I have been trying to find out for the past twenty years, since the killings started.” Seth patted the bed next to him. “Come back to bed, Flower.”
“You never talk to me about it, or what you and Dad found out. Why?”
Seth shrugged as she climbed back onto the bed, kneeling before him. “Because we haven’t found out much. We keep hitting dead ends and the few times when we’ve managed to capture one of the hunters, well, we don’t get a hell of a lot from them. Again and again they talk about some legend about a Witch bringing death and destruction to all. Utter rubbish but it’s all we’ve managed to get.”
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