“You changed the plan,” Remi said.
Neven faced him. “This way, we will be spared having to kill anyone.”
“It might not work,” Remi said. “Usenko might decide he can’t afford to let anyone else dictate terms.”
“We’ll worry about it then. Now we have time to deal with the prisoners before he gets here and takes over.”
London moved over to him and put her arms around him. He was trembling. “I’m glad you did it this way, even if it does backfire.”
Neven put his arms around her. “It could still work. She’s packing, anyway.”
Remi moved closer to them. “Might. Possible. It’s too uncertain.”
“Sometimes life is like that, Remi,” Neven told him.
Remi shook his head. “My way was certain.”
“Your way involves cold blooded murder. I won’t have you do that.”
London held Neven tighter.
Remi growled. “Do you not understand? I want this life, this world, this stench, dead and forgotten. I want to bury it, so you will never have to deal with it again. The only way to do that is to kill Usenko. If I don’t, he will haunt your life forever and I don’t want that for you.”
London lifted her head to look at Remi in amazement.
Neven’s heart leapt and beat hard. She could feel it against her chest.
“You would do that for me?” Neven asked, sounding bemused.
Remi licked his lips. Caution flooded his face, as if he had just become aware of what he had said and how much it revealed. He shoved a hand through his hair. “I’m your bloody enforcer. It’s my job to do shit like that, remember?”
Neven pulled him closer. “Shut up,” he whispered and kissed him.
London eased out of the way, her heart thudding heavily. She watched the two men, her body not rousing at the sight.
Remi loved Neven. Neven, not Kristijan. Why else would he be so determined to dismantle Kristijan’s organization, rid Neven of Usenko and detach him from Kristijan’s black world?
She should turn and go. Back to her room, back to England. She had freedom now to do what she wanted. Freedom was what she had yearned for. It had been her only desire for so long.
London turned to look at the door. She merely needed to open it and step out. She couldn’t do it, though. Her heart and mind and soul were now focused upon something else.
She turned back to the two of them. She couldn’t leave them. Not now. She was in too deep.
But…was there room for her?
Neven broke off his kiss and reached out to her. “No, you don’t. Come back here,” he said firmly and drew her back into his arms.
“That’s what was missing,” Remi said with warm approval and pressed up behind her. He pulled her hair aside and kissed her neck. “She’s shaking, Neven. Fix it.”
Neven looked down at her, his brows pushing together. “You’re cold?” he asked. “This damn house is like an iceberg.”
“Kiss her, you fool,” Remi said impatiently.
Neven kissed her, while Remi undressed her and the two of them carried her over to the big bed and convinced her that staying was a good idea.
* * * * *
Afterward, despite London desperately wanting to stay awake and appreciate the simple joy of lying between the two men, sleep crept up on her anyway. It didn’t help that she was warm and felt safer than she had for decades.
When she woke again, the light outside was growing dim. It was sunset. Thanks to time jumping, this day had lasted far longer than usual.
Remi was tugging on her arm. That was what had woken her. He laid his finger against her lips, warning her to stay silent.
She let him draw her out of the bed and shivered at the cool air brushing her body.
Remi held out a dressing gown that she thought might have been Kristijan’s. When she slipped it on, though, all she could smell was Remi’s faint scent rising up from the wool.
He picked up her hand and drew her over to the closet and opened the door for her.
He didn’t switch on the light until the door was closed. “I would like Neven to sleep. He doesn’t sleep well.”
“Neither did Kristijan,” London pointed out.
“For different reasons,” Remi said. He patted a pile of folded clothes sitting on the shelf next to his arm, then pushed the pile towards her. It was her clothes. “I would ask a favor of you.”
“Of me?” London hugged the gown about her neck. What on earth could she do to help someone as capable as Remi? She was just a tourist here.
Remi nodded and drew closer. “Is it true that you can jump somewhere with someone else…steering?”
“Oh.” She pushed her hands into the big pockets. “I’ve never done it before,” she said.
“You know how?”
“Yes, in theory.”
“The prisoners,” Remi said quickly. “I’ve been thinking about it. I don’t like leaving them out there. Dragović is free to do what he likes and he’s already demonstrated whose side he is on. I can’t reach him on his cellphone.”
“Has Sofiya gone?”
“Her room is empty. The car she was using is gone.” Remi shrugged. “I don’t care about her.”
“Can’t you just go to wherever they are yourself?” London asked.
Remi grasped her arms. “I don’t want to take the time. Jumping the way you do gives me options. I don’t know what we’ll find when we get there. If my gut is right and something is happening there, we can jump away just as fast.”
It made sense, put that way. “Are you sure you want me to see the…the people?” she asked.
Remi let her arms go. She could see the wariness in his eyes. “We’re beyond such considerations,” he said, his voice low. “Sofiya did not like being told what to do. I am afraid she might take it into her mind to shut down Kristijan’s operations for him.”
“Which is why you don’t want Neven there,” London finished. “She might deal with him at the same time.”
“Can you do it?” he asked.
“I think so,” she said, remembering how Neven had steered the jump. “You just have to hold the place you want to jump to firmly in your mind. The more detail you can see, the better.”
He patted her clothes. “Get dressed.” He reached over her shoulder and unhooked a garment and put it on the shelf next to her clothes. “A coat. It’s cold out there.”
Remi left, shutting the door behind him softly and London dressed quickly. It took her less time than usual because Remi had destroyed her undergarments. She appreciated the additional top layer, but when she picked it up, she realized she had seen Kristijan wear the jacket before.
She hesitated. She didn’t want to wear any of Kristijan’s clothes. She didn’t want anything of his in her life.
Remi stepped back into the little room, shrugging into his own pea coat. He turned the collar up and looked at the jacket in her hands. “Kristijan hated that coat,” he said. “I never did figure out if that was because he didn’t like the color or because I bought it for him.”
“Or both,” London said, sliding it on. The coat was made of the softest microfiber, made to look like suede. It came down past her hips. She buttoned it up, yet the neck was still too big.
“It will do,” Remi assured her.
London cleared her throat. “Well…” She held out her arm. Her heart hurried along. Was she being incredibly foolish, trying to do this with no clear instructions or training? Yet jumping was instinctive, as Neven had said. After one jump, the facts of jumping had settled into her bones.
She was sure she could do this.
“Whenever you’re ready,” Remi told her, his arm sliding around her waist.
London flexed her knees and jumped.
* * * * *
The building was brightly lit, with sodium arc lights and portable floodlights. It was ringing with voices and movement and sounds.
London threw up her arms, to shield against the brig
ht light.
“To me!” someone cried. It was a deep voice, from close by.
“Holy hell,” Remi breathed. He pushed her away from him, sending her staggering. London struggled to stay on her feet. She heard Remi grunt, in either pain or effort.
London steadied herself and spun around to look.
Remi was fighting someone. A tall, big blond man, who looked as though he wanted to kill him.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
London threw herself at the struggling pair, with no thought. Her heart and gut and pure fear prodded her into launching herself at them. “Stop! Stop! Remi!”
She had no idea what she could do to stop them. Before she could reach them, though, an arm thumped into her belly, taking her off her feet. It was like slamming into a railing planted in concrete. The arm did not give at all. Winded, London hung over the arm. “No,” she croaked. “Let him go!”
Hands pulled her upright. A woman with long black hair and big gray eyes stepped in front of her. Her eyes narrowed. “You’re…London, yes?”
The arm around her waist shifted. Another tall man, this one with black eyes and hair and pale skin, turned her so he could see her, too. His eyes narrowed. “Who is that Veris is holding down, then?” he said to her.
London looked over her shoulder. “That’s Remi. Who are you?” she demanded. “Why are you fighting Remi?”
“Remi De Sauveterre?” the man said. He rolled his eyes.
“Holy cow!” someone breathed. “I wouldn’t have called that one.”
London didn’t dare look around. She watched the man who was gripping her shoulders. He lifted his hand to his mouth and sent out a piercing whistle that made everyone cringe, or wince, or clap their hands to their ears.
Instantly, the noise in the building lessened to almost silence.
The man turned her again, moving her around like a doll. “Veris, they’re friendlies.”
The big blond giant had Remi’s head in the crook of his arm. He looked down at Remi. “Friendly, huh?”
Remi was gripping the man’s arm. “Veris? Veris Gerhardsson? The Northman?”
Veris let him go. “You’d be De Sauveterre, then. I can’t think who else would know who I am on the name alone, out here.” He tilted his head. “Neven couldn’t figure out which side you were on.” His hands, hanging freely, flexed a little, as if he was braced to act if he didn’t like the answer.
These were Neven’s friends, then. The ones he had referred to obliquely. London stepped forward. “Remi asked me to bring him here, so he could help them.” She nodded towards the hundreds of people gathered in the big room, squeezed between the back wall and crowded up against hundreds of cages that had been overturned, tossed against each other and piled up in the corners. They were watching what was happening with close attention, even though most of them looked Serbian and everyone was speaking English.
Remi rubbed his throat. “I’m on no one’s side,” he said shortly.
“Not a good answer,” the man next to London growled.
London stepped up next to Remi and looked up at the man called Veris. He had blue eyes and they were stormy with anger and suspicion. “He was here to help. That puts him on the same side as you whether he wants to be or not.”
“You’re London, then,” Veris said.
His gaze seemed to see right through her. She shivered. “I am.”
Veris’ gaze narrowed. “Where’s Neven? I thought if anyone would jump here, it would be him.”
“He was sleeping when I left,” Remi said shortly. “I don’t want his sleep disturbed. He needs it.”
Veris considered Remi for a long moment. Then he smiled. “Very well, then,” he said and held out his hand. “It’s good to meet you, Denis Remi De Sauveterre.”
Remi considered his hand for a moment and London willed him to take it.
He gripped Veris’ hand and shook. “I’d say likewise, Northman, except I have no idea what you are doing here.”
Veris laughed. “Same as you, Frenchman. I’m making amends for a wicked life.” He waved around the big room. “I don’t know about you, but I think this might just make up for a decade or two, don’t you?”
“Neven!” a woman cried, from behind them.
Everyone whirled.
London drew in a sharp breath. Neven stood among a group of the dirty prisoners, as they backed up away from him, leaving the floor about him clear.
A young man with soft dark hair and eyes just like the man next to London, pushed his way through the people around Neven and enveloped Neven in a hard hug. Neven hugged him back and clapped his shoulder. “You did well, Aran,” he said. “I’m proud of you.”
“Well, that makes one person at least.”
“Your dads will get around to forgiving you,” Neven assured him. “Give it time.”
Dads.
London looked at the man next to her. “He is your son?” she asked diffidently.
“And Veris’ and Taylor’s son, too,” he said, nodding at the giant and the dark haired woman who had recognized her name. He held out his hand. “I’m Brody.”
London shook it diffidently and felt cool flesh. He was a vampire—which explained his great strength.
Neven was weaving his way through the clumps of people. She thought he was heading for Veris, then she realize Neven was staring at her and Remi. He came up to them and hugged them. “Five hours, I’ve been jumping around time looking for you. I should have gone to the least likely place first and saved myself the agony.”
London closed her eyes as Remi’s arm came around her, too.
“We have hot coffee, when you’re ready,” a woman said nearby.
London groaned and pulled out of Neven’s and Remi’s arms. “You can have my entire bank account for just one cup,” she said to the woman. She was blonde and tall and stunningly beautiful, with a regal air that made London wonder if she was someone famous, or important.
“I remember feeling that way about coffee myself, especially when I was tired.” The woman held out a mug and lifted the thermos in her other hand. “I still love the smell. I think that’s one of the few things I miss.” She filled the mug and London sniffed the aroma with deep appreciation.
“You’re…vampire?” London asked.
“I’m of the Blood, yes. I’m Sydney.”
“What are you all doing here?” Neven asked, sliding his arm around London’s waist. Remi stepped to her other side.
“We’re taking everyone back to where they belong,” Sydney said. “Human authorities would take weeks to sort everyone out. Look…” She pointed behind them. They turned to look. The two tall men, Brody and Veris, were talking to people. The boy Aran was with them. “I had Taylor and Aran jump back to Serbia before the war, to soak up the language the way jumpers can,” Sydney explained. “As Aran is technically grounded until hell freezes over for this latest caper, he is interpreting for everyone now. Everyone who can’t jump, which is Veris and Brody, Alex and Rafe—”
“The vampires,” Neven said, smiling. “They must love that.”
“They all need to be reminded they are not the kings of the world,” Sydney said, her voice mellow. “Administration is just the thing to do that. They’re finding out where everyone comes from, then sorting them into groups of similar locations. The jumpers are taking them back home. That’s Taylor, Marit and Alannah and me. We can do here in a few hours what would take weeks for human authorities, with their border security and red tape, interviews and debriefings. Veris and Alex are providing medical treatment for anyone who needs it, although the best treatment for most of them will be to go home and hug their loved ones.”
“Won’t having missing people suddenly turn up raise a lot of questions?” Remi asked.
“Ah, well.” Sydney grimaced. “We’re applying a teeny amount of positive extortion. They must agree to pretend they have amnesia that has wiped all knowledge of their abduction and where they have been all this time. In return, they get
an instant trip to wherever they want to go. I don’t think we’ve had a single refusal so far. The alternative is an offer to really wipe their memories. No one seems to want that.”
“You would trust so many people to hold their tongues?” Remi asked, sounding amazed. “I would not have,” he added, quietly.
Sydney looked at him. “Is that so?” she said softly. “What did you tell those you stole out of here and released, every night for the last four weeks?”
London gasped and turned to look at him. “Remi!”
Neven’s lips had parted in surprise. “You are the reason for the missing stock,” he breathed. “You!”
Remi pushed his hand through his hair, looking acutely uncomfortable. “So I helped a couple of people. So what?”
The blue-eyed giant, Veris, came up to them. “Neven, when did you leave the house?”
“Subjectively, five hours ago,” Neven said. “Objectively, about fifteen minutes ago, on this timeline. Why?”
“We had tabs on Sofiya Sorokin. She found the tracker. It died, five minutes ago.”
London was surprised by how much these people, these friends of Neven’s, seemed to know about the events on the estate.
Neven stirred. “We need to get back there. You’ll be okay?”
Veris looked around the shed. “I know everyone’s strengths. We could hold off a small army for a short while. You go back to the house and stall. If Sofiya heads back there, get rid of her. Tie her up, ship her home. Jump her home and dump her if you have to. I’d suggest taking her back to somewhere in the past that is really nasty, like the Plague years, only that wouldn’t be fair to the people in that time. Better to leave her with the ones that know her.”
“And reveal myself?” Neven asked doubtfully.
“A few people get to see you appear out of thin air, compared to these hundreds of people dying of Sarin or something worse? I think we can take one on the chin for that,” Veris said.
Remi gripped Neven’s arm. “He’s right. We should go back. They’ve got this.”
“We do,” Veris confirmed.
Neven nodded and held out his arms. London and Remi stepped into them without hesitation.
Veris’ gaze ranged across the three of them. “It’s interesting how time can change your life between one heart beat and the next, isn’t it?” he said, his voice a soft rumble.
Kiss Across Worlds (Kiss Across Time Book 7) Page 31
