by Jenna Black
Once upon a time, I’d have sat next to him on the couch and had a good snuggle—which would have led to a passionate bout of lovemaking. Now, I felt like I was with a stranger, maybe even a hostile one, so I sat on the love seat instead, my hands folded in my lap.
“Do you know how to fire that?” I asked him, and his eyes widened in surprise. I guess he hadn’t been expecting the question. “If you don’t, then I’d be more comfortable if you gave it to me. Just in case my new friend manages to get in the building and breaks down the door.”
His mouth tightened into a grim line, but he put the Taser on the coffee table and slid it across to me. I was glad to have something to hold on to, even if my palm was clammy and my taped fingers made the grip awkward.
“So, what’s the story?” he asked, and his voice was now carefully neutral. It was his lawyer-voice, and I’d always hated it.
A part of me wanted to spill my guts, tell him everything, lean on him so I wouldn’t feel so alone anymore. And despite Andy, and Adam, and Lugh, I really was alone. I distrusted all three of them, to differing degrees and for different reasons. Brian had always been someone I trusted.
But I had done everything I could so far to keep the chaos of my life from dragging him down with me, and I wasn’t going to let my selfish desire for comfort ruin everything.
“There’s not a whole lot to tell,” I lied. “I ran afoul of a rogue demon, and he’s made it clear he’s planning to come after me. I found out tonight that the host I met him in had been abandoned in an alley, and I realized his best chance of getting close to me was through someone I know. Do you have any vacation time coming to you? Is there any chance you could get out of town for a week or two?”
Brian laughed, but it was a bitter sound. “You don’t learn, do you? I’m not the type to run and hide.”
Heat flushed my face, and I had to pull back the reins on my temper. “I understand that. I really do. But this guy’s a demon. And we have no idea what body he’s in. There’s no way you can protect yourself from that.”
“Why is this demon after you?”
It was the question I’d been dreading, the question I had no good answer for. I did the best I could, though I’m a lousy liar. “I tried to exorcize him. I failed, and he got away. Now it’s payback time.”
Brian rolled his eyes. “That’s bullshit. If a rogue demon had escaped confinement, it would be all over the news. I haven’t heard a peep.”
I did my best to improvise, but I knew my answer came too slowly, showing that I had to think a minute. “The police are trying to keep it quiet to prevent a panic.”
He stood up, shaking his head. “Either tell me the truth, or I walk. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a grown, capable man. I don’t need you to protect me.”
I knew it was a stupid thing to do, but I couldn’t help the snort of laughter. I tried to turn it into a cough, but failed. Brian glared at me, and I made a calming gesture with my hand.
“Sorry, but I’m an exorcist, and the bad guy’s a demon. There’s no one more qualified to protect you in this case than I am.”
“Bye, Morgan,” he said, spinning on his heel and striding for the door.
I surged to my feet, the Taser clutched in my hand. “Brian, please! We need to talk about this, come up with a plan, even if you’re not willing to get out of town.”
He held up his hand in a wave, not turning to look at me. Moving almost on autopilot, I armed the Taser and pointed it at his back.
“Brian, stop!” I said in my most commanding voice. When he ignored me and reached for the doorknob, I yelled even louder. “Stop, or I’ll shoot!”
That gave him pause, and he glanced over his shoulder. When he saw the Taser, the blood drained from his face.
I felt a tear drip from the corner of my eye and crawl down my cheek. Words couldn’t express how much I hated this. But how could I let him just walk away? He had absolutely no way to defend himself against a rogue demon. I doubted he could fire a Taser, even if he had one. I sniffled, but didn’t relent.
“I’m sorry if I’m offending your macho, he-man sensibilities,” I said with far more steel in my voice than I actually felt, “but if I have to save you in spite of yourself, I’ll do it.”
He blinked, hand still on the doorknob. “You dumped me, Morgan. I’m no longer your responsibility. Not that I ever was. If you’re going to shoot, go ahead and do it.”
He turned his back to me once more, turning the doorknob. My finger tightened on the trigger, and I braced my shaking hand as best I could with my other hand. The door swung open, and I willed myself to pull the trigger. Brian stepped over the threshold, and still I stood frozen in place, statue-still except for the tremors that ripped through me.
The door started to close behind him. It was my last chance. Don’t be such a baby, I urged myself. It’s for his own good, and it doesn’t matter if he hates you for it. Hell, that might even be a good thing.
After what felt like about three years, I finally found the will to pull the trigger. Just in time for the Taser probes to thunk harmlessly into the closed door.
Chapter 13
I could have gone after him. I could have ejected the spent cartridge from the Taser and probably gotten to him while he was waiting for the elevator. The Taser could also act as a stun gun at close range, and Brian was too much on the straight and narrow to be much of a fighter. Of course, it would be a tad inconvenient if any of my neighbors saw.
Yet despite my conviction that it was the right thing to do, I didn’t follow him. Yeah, I’m a bit of a hard-ass, but let’s face it, there was no way I could stand to hurt Brian.
Remembering that Brian wasn’t the only person I needed the Taser for, I ejected the cartridge and reloaded. I tucked the Taser into the waistband of my jeans, even though that was very uncomfortable, then got out the vacuum cleaner to get rid of the cloud of confetti-like tags the cartridge ejects when it’s fired. Andy emerged from his room, and I could feel his curious gaze on me, but he didn’t say anything, even before the roar of the vacuum cleaner filled the air.
I was winding up the cord when I heard a knock on my door. My heart leapt into my throat, and I dropped the cord, reaching for the Taser. My nerves were completely shot, so when I yanked the Taser from my waistband, I fumbled and it dropped to the floor. I practically threw myself after it as the knock sounded again.
“Relax, kids,” Adam’s voice said from the hallway. “It’s just me.”
I grabbed the Taser anyway, my heartbeat still hammering wildly. I stayed on my knees for a moment, waiting for the adrenaline rush to calm. Meanwhile, Andy opened the door.
I looked up, expecting to see Adam, but instead Brian came flying through the doorway to land on his hands and knees. I blinked in confusion, finding the strength to stand up. Adam strode through the door behind Brian, his eyes narrowed.
“Look who I found trying to leave the building, completely unprotected and unarmed,” Adam said.
Andy had started to close the door, but Dominic pushed it open again, entering the apartment less dramatically than Brian or Adam had. The whole tableau left me completely unbalanced, but I did my best not to show it.
“If I’d known we were having a party, I’d have baked a cake,” I said.
Andy and Dom laughed, but neither Adam nor Brian seemed to think that was particularly funny. Adam glared at me.
“I thought you loved this guy,” he growled. “And you were just going to let him walk out of here for Der Jäger to chew up and spit out?”
My throat tightened as Brian struggled to his feet. I could see the rug burn that reddened the heels of both his hands, and indignation surged through my veins, even as I realized Adam had probably done a good thing by preventing Brian from leaving.
“You didn’t have to manhandle him like that, asshole!” I said, then hurried to put myself between Adam and Brian. I had more to say, but Dom interrupted.
“Time out, both of you. I know how muc
h you love to fight, but we’ve got more important things to do right now.” His voice was firm and authoritative, sure of himself. I kept thinking about him as a mildly submissive beta male—mainly because Adam was so dominant—but Dom had a steely backbone hidden beneath the nice-guy surface. And he didn’t seem to be intimidated by Adam’s death glare.
I stayed out of it as the two of them stared at each other as if they were having a silent conversation. And if I hadn’t seen it happen before between the two of them, I’d have been shocked to see Adam actually back down. He held up both hands in a gesture of surrender. Meanwhile, Brian looked back and forth between Adam and Dominic and me. His gaze finally settled on me.
“You know these guys?” he asked.
I realized with a little shock that Brian had never met Adam and Dom. Not while conscious, at least. I cleared my throat.
“Uh, yeah. These are the guys who rescued you when you were kidnapped. Adam White,” I said, pointing, “and Dominic Castello.”
Brian took a moment to absorb that, turning his attention back to Adam and Dom. “Thanks, I guess.” He looked more closely at Adam. “I’ve seen you on TV. You’re the Director of Special Forces, aren’t you?”
Adam nodded.
Brian held up his rug-burned hands. “So what’s this all about?”
Adam ignored him and looked at me. “Didn’t you tell him anything?”
Dom put a hand on his arm. “Take it down a notch.”
Adam turned to him. “When did you get so goddamn pushy?” he complained. But I noticed he didn’t make any attempt to shake off his lover’s hand.
Dominic’s eyes twinkled with mischief, and he grinned. “You can put me in my place later.”
My cheeks went hot as I sorted out the nuances in Dominic’s words. I wondered if everyone in the room heard them, or whether it was just because I had up-close-and-personal experience with them.
“I told him I had a rogue demon after me,” I said a little too loudly, trying to cover my discomfort. “He made it clear he wasn’t interested in my help, and I couldn’t talk him into staying. What did you expect me to do?”
Adam flashed me a look that told me exactly what he’d expected me to do, but with Dominic’s hand still on his arm, he managed to control his desire to tell me out loud.
Dominic smiled pleasantly at Brian. “Maybe it’s better if I do the talking so we don’t have to see any more of the snake-and-mongoose act.” Adam and I snorted in unison. Dom ignored us. “Why don’t we all sit down?”
Brian thought about that a minute, then went to sit on the couch without another word. Adam and Dom took the love seat, and Andy took the other end of the couch, leaving the middle seat for me. He refused to meet my narrowed eyes, but I couldn’t help thinking he was doing a little matchmaking. Then again, maybe he just didn’t like the idea of sitting right next to another guy on the sofa. My brain was conjuring up ulterior motives for everything.
I sat down and opened my mouth to say something—I’m not entirely sure what—but Dominic cut me off.
“Please let me do the talking. I find you and Adam entertaining, but I doubt Brian and Andrew are equally amused.”
I made a zipping-my-lips gesture, and Dominic turned his attention to Brian.
“The demon that’s after Morgan is known as Der Jäger. From what I understand, he’s the demon equivalent of a sociopath, and we all believe the easiest way for him to get to Morgan is through someone she knows and trusts. Which means you and I and Andrew are all prime targets. He’s already abandoned two hosts that we know of, which goes to show how little respect he has for human life. If he took one of us, he would destroy us and kill Morgan. I know you and Morgan aren’t together anymore, but Der Jäger might not know that—and might not care even if he does.”
Brian frowned at him. “And where do the two of you come into the picture?”
“Adam and I are Morgan’s friends,” Dominic answered, which made Adam snort with derision and Brian’s eyes narrow in speculation. I supposed he hadn’t caught the earlier innuendo that had made me so uncomfortable.
I gave Brian a little prod with my elbow. “Not that kind of friends,” I said.
Adam chuckled and slung his arm around Dom’s shoulders. “Definitely not.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t you two start.”
Adam blinked at me innocently. “Start what?”
“Anyway,” Dom said loudly before Adam and I could escalate, “with Der Jäger on the hunt, we really do need to take precautions. Andrew is staying here with Morgan, and I’m staying with Adam.” He looked at Brian. “That leaves only you. It isn’t safe for you to just go back to your apartment and act as if nothing’s wrong.”
Brian stared at Adam. “You’re the Director of Special Forces. If you think I’m in danger from this demon, you can assign me some protection.”
But Adam shook his head. “I’m not here in any official capacity. There are some facts about this case that I can’t divulge.”
“Like why this demon is after Morgan?”
Afraid I was about to be caught in a lie, I tried to keep Adam from commenting. “I told him—”
Brian spoke over me. “Don’t tell him what you told me! I want to hear from Mr. White himself why he believes this demon is after you.”
“Whatever Morgan told you is a lie,” Adam said, and it was all I could do not to leap out of my chair and smack him. “She can’t tell you the truth about this any more than I can. There are things you are better off not knowing. This is one of them.”
Brian ignored me like I wasn’t even there. “This doesn’t have anything to do with why Andrew—that is, Andrew’s demon—kidnapped me, does it?”
Adam grinned. “Would you believe me if I said no?”
We all knew the answer to that.
“If my life’s in danger,” Brian said, “I have a right to know why.”
“I’m not at liberty to reveal that. And as I said, you’re better off not knowing.”
“That line of reasoning doesn’t work for me. I don’t buy into the whole ignorance is bliss thing.”
Adam shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. I’ve told you everything I can at the moment.”
Brian stood up. “Then I guess I’m going home.”
Adam arched an eyebrow. “And how, exactly, are you planning to get past me?”
“Are you threatening me?”
“In a manner of speaking. I’m not letting you leave this apartment on your own.”
Brian rubbed his jaw. “And what would your superiors have to say if I reported that you threatened me?”
Okay, this was starting to get ugly. I reached for Brian’s arm. “Don’t mess with Adam. He’s got the conscience of a tapeworm.” Dominic swallowed a laugh as Adam’s face reddened. “I don’t agree with his methods, but he’s right.”
Brian stared down at me. “Considering you threatened to Taser me, I don’t think you have any room to throw stones at his methods. And let me get this straight—am I being kidnapped again?”
Luckily for everyone involved, levelheaded Dominic intervened. “All we’re trying to do is keep everyone safe. You can’t have official police protection, but you need to take some kind of precautions. You don’t want a hostile demon rampaging around in your head.”
“I can tell you from personal experience that he’s right,” Andy said. He’d been so quiet, I’d almost forgotten he was in the room. His eyes were haunted and miserable as he stared into some inner distance.
Brian’s jaw worked as he thought that over. Both Adam and I managed to keep our mouths shut, which was no doubt a very good thing. Finally, Brian let out a deep, frustrated breath and returned to the couch.
“What exactly do you suggest I do? Morgan suggested I take some vacation time, but I can’t just take vacation on the spur of the moment.”
Dominic shrugged. “Can you call in sick? The easiest way for Der Jäger to get to you is just to brush by you on the street. We have no idea who h
e’s taken as a host, and as you know he can transfer to you in less than a second. You need to severely limit your contact with other people.”
Brian is a goody-two-shoes through and through. I could tell from the look on his face that the idea of lying about being sick didn’t sit well with him. A lawyer who’s uncomfortable lying. You gotta love it. But though he was angry about the whole situation, he wasn’t a dummy. With that first shot of indignation out of his system, he had to know how limited his choices were.
“Okay, so I call in sick. Then what? I lock myself in my apartment and hide there until someone tells me it’s safe to come out?” He looked almost sullen, which was completely unlike him.
“Actually,” Dominic said, “I don’t think that would be a great idea, either. I doubt Der Jäger would have much trouble breaking into your apartment, and if you’re there all by yourself, you’ll be far too vulnerable.”
Suddenly, I knew where he was going with this, and my emotions rioted. I would have blurted out some kind of incoherent protest, if only my brain were functioning well enough to muster one. Instead, I sat there at a loss for words, not even knowing how to label what I was feeling.
“I’m confident that I’m safe with Adam,” Dominic said, “seeing as he’s a demon. But I’m not so confident that Morgan and Andrew are safe together, being only human. If you would stay here, too, the three of you could guard the door in shifts.”
Yup, that’s what I thought he was going to say. It was a great way to try to salvage Brian’s male ego, but I didn’t know if I could bear it. It had taken more willpower than I’d thought I had to push Brian away in the first place. If he was right here in the apartment with me, would I be able to resist the temptation? If I gave him even the faintest hint that I still loved him, I’d never be able to shake him. Of course, Adam might have let the cat out of the bag when he shoved Brian through that doorway.
And in the deep recesses of my selfish heart, I wanted him back so desperately, I could taste it.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a quick smile flash across Brian’s lips, gone in the blink of an eye. “Now that’s an imprisonment I think I could bear,” he said, and I saw a calculating gleam in his eye.