Beg Me to Slay

by Lisa Kessler

  Gabe retraced his steps, gulping in air once he was back outside. Sweat trickled down his brow and into his eyes. He hardly noticed. Jogging next door, he went to the planter and lifted the rock that concealed Tina’s extra house key. It’d been years since he’d used it, but the key was still there.

  He opened her door, every muscle tense and ready. No wards met him this time. He took a step inside. “Tina?”

  Nothing.

  He drew his dagger and stepped into the dark house. The instant he flipped the light switch, photos of Mara surrounded him. Tina had them all over the table, the kitchen counters, the bookshelves. The girl’s violet eyes were everywhere.

  He left the makeshift shrine behind, climbing the steps to the second story. Stale air carrying the faint scent of incense met him at the landing. He turned down the hallway and opened Tina’s bedroom door.

  The bed was made, the digital alarm clock glowed, and nothing looked out of place. He turned on the light and flinched. On the wall above the bed in shaky red letters were the words “Blood for blood.”

  “Shit.” Gabe ran down the stairs and out the front door. He wasn’t sure what was going on yet, but Tina was obviously unstable, eager for revenge, and judging by the stray bullets he saw in her shop, armed.

  He gunned the engine, the Mustang’s tires squealing out of the parking lot. He had to find Tegan before Tina did. But being a psychic, Tina had a jump on him. There was a good chance she actually knew where to find Tegan.

  He’d have to follow his gut and hope for the best.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Tegan sipped her drink, waiting for the liquid courage to work its magic. She used to love to dance until her birthday four years ago. Then Gabe brought her to the Belly Up and introduced her to the blues.

  Dancing with him had reminded her how much she enjoyed music and moving to it. Her body ached to follow the rhythm inspired by the beat. But dancing alone was out of her comfort zone. Way out.

  She contemplated going back home.

  “Could I buy you another drink?” She turned to find a tall guy with dusty-blond hair and hazel eyes. Flashing his I-could-be-a-cover-model smile, he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his dark jeans. “That sounded pretty cheesy, didn’t it?”

  Tegan shrugged. “Maybe a little.”

  “I saw you watching the dance floor. I should’ve asked you to dance, but I’m a better drinker than dancer.”

  She laughed, and a glimmer of hope ignited inside of her. Maybe she’d be able move on with her life after all. “Are you asking me to dance?”

  He tilted his head toward the band. “Only if you’re going to say yes.”

  “Then let’s dance.” Tegan placed her empty glass on the bar and followed him.

  They found an open spot on the floor, and she shouted over the music. “What’s your name?”

  “Brian. And you?”

  He held out his hand, and she took it without hesitation. For the first time since the attack, she didn’t feel wary or threatened. She was empowered.

  Smiling, she answered, “I’m Tegan.”

  He released her hand. “Great to meet you, Megan.”

  Before she could correct him, someone stepped up behind her. “No, it’s Tegan…” She spun around at the sound of Gabe’s voice. He met her eyes as he finished. “Like Megan with a T.”

  Tegan pried her gaze from Gabe’s. Her new friend Brian frowned. “You know each other?”

  She nodded. “Yes, we, ah…used to…”

  “I need to talk to Tegan. Now.”

  His fingers brushed the bare skin of her back, and her entire body warmed, completely forgetting how he broke her heart. Luckily, her brain wasn’t swayed.

  Tegan turned, standing beside Brian. “Well, I need to dance.”

  Brian stood a little taller, his hand coming around to rest on her hip as if they were closer friends than she’d realized. “I don’t want any trouble, buddy, but you heard the lady.”

  Gabe’s brow arched up. “I’m not your buddy.” His green eyes locked on hers, and his deep voice reached her ears through the loud music pumping out the speakers. “I’ll be at the bar.”

  Everything in her wanted to go to him, but her will stayed strong. He was the one who asked her to let him go. He had no right to waltz back into her life when she had finally made the decision to move on.

  Gabe walked away, the crowd of dancers parting for him. His jeans still fit him in all the right places. She scolded herself for even noticing and spun toward Brian. Swaying with the beat of the music, her dance partner smiled and found his groove.

  Brian leaned in closer. He smelled like Polo cologne. “Everything okay with him?”

  “Yeah.” Tegan nodded, spotting Gabe watching her from the bar. “I’ll find out what he wants later.”

  …

  Gabe denied himself whiskey. If Tina showed up, he didn’t want his reflexes to be impaired. He nursed his Dr Pepper, bitterness simmering inside him as he watched Tegan on the dance floor.

  Lago had mentioned she looked pretty. Pretty didn’t begin to describe her. Unlike the Tegan who had walked into his office a few weeks ago, the woman on the dance floor tonight wasn’t ashamed of her scars. She wore them proudly. Her body moved with a sensual, languid grace, comfortable in her skin.

  Brian danced close to her, his hips gyrating near Tegan’s, moving to the music with her. Gabe fought the urge to race onto the dance floor, rip the guy’s arms off, and beat him senseless with them. Instead, he choked down another swallow of soda and set the glass on the bar. Hard.

  “Enough of this bullshit.”

  Gabe straightened up and walked toward his woman. His.

  A couple of inebriated chicks rubbed against him on the dance floor, and other dancers scattered to get out of his way, but he hardly noticed. All of his attention was on Tegan.

  Her eyes met his over her dance partner’s shoulder.

  “Mind if I cut in?” He didn’t really give a shit if pelvic-thrust boy minded or not.

  Tegan’s dance partner froze and stepped back. “Ah.”

  Gabe stood a good four inches taller, forcing the guy to look up at him. Gabe kept his gaze on Tegan and offered her his hand.

  She pressed her lips together and heaved a sigh. “It was great meeting you, Brian, but I’m pretty sure Gabe’s got the next dance.”

  Brian leaned in to kiss her cheek, and Gabe clenched his fist.

  “Thanks for the dance, Tegan. I’ll be around for a while.” He glanced at Gabe. “All right, I better go.”

  Brian dodged his way through bodies on the dance floor, and Gabe stared down into Tegan’s dark eyes. “Sorry to interrupt, but if he touched you again, I was going to have to beat the crap out of him.”

  “No.” Tegan shook her head. “You don’t get to be jealous. You walked out on me, remember?”

  He nodded, feeling like a schmuck. “About that…” He cleared his throat, wishing he had her someplace private instead of a nightclub with a hundred other sweaty bodies on the dance floor. “I still think you’d be better off without me, but”—his gaze searched hers—“there isn’t a moment that I don’t wish you were with me.”

  “Stop it.” Tegan’s eyes welled with tears. “I can’t do this.”

  She let go of his hand, hustled through the crowd and off the dance floor. Gabe’s equilibrium tilted. What just happened?

  He hadn’t planned on the sudden outburst of honesty. Seeing her dancing did something to him. His heart took over. But this wasn’t why he’d come looking for her.

  He needed to warn her.

  Tina.

  Shit. “Tegan, wait!”

  Gabe rushed after her, bumping into dancing couples and muscling his way past the crowd. Where did she go? He scanned the bar area for her when movement caught his eye. The door opened, and Tegan slipped out.

  Gabe followed her outside. She was almost to her car. “Tegan, I have to talk to you.”

  “You’ve said enough.�
�� She didn’t even turn around. Her determined footsteps kept moving toward her car.

  “This isn’t about us.”

  Tegan stopped abruptly and turned around. “Fine. What is it?”

  Seeing the fiery spirit in her eyes made his blood run hot. He needed to shift inside his jeans. Bad timing.

  “Tina’s missing. I stopped by her place, and it’s safe to say she’s been working black magic and might be armed.”

  “How did you know I was here?”

  He tipped his head toward the roof. “Lago tailed you here.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Stop having me followed. I told you I’d be careful.” She crossed her arms. “Is that it?”

  Was it? He opened his mouth, but something hit the back of his shoulder and sent him crashing to the ground.

  …

  A muffled pop cut through the silence and Gabe went down.

  Tegan ran to his side. “Gabe?” She reached to roll him over, and her fingers came back covered in blood. “Oh God, you’ve been shot.”

  Her head jerked up. Scanning the parking lot, she hooked her arms under Gabe’s and tugged him closer to her car. Did he just tell her Tina was armed? Whoever fired, they had a silencer and they could be anywhere.

  No one from inside would be jogging out to help—they wouldn’t have heard the gunshot. Unless someone heard her fighting with Gabe over the loud music inside, she was on her own.

  “My right pocket.” She glanced down at the sound of Gabe’s whisper.

  Tegan laid him on the ground behind her car, hoping that would be enough shelter for now. She slipped her hand into his coat pocket and pulled out…salt.

  “Salt’s not going to stop a bullet.”

  Gabe rocked his head from side to side. “If she wanted to shoot you, she would’ve. The bullets are for me. She’s well aware of how long it takes me to heal.” He swallowed hard and met her eyes. “I was in her shop earlier tonight. She’s been working black magic. Pictures of her sister everywhere. Blood for blood.”

  Tegan peered over the hood of her car. “You’re speaking in riddles.”

  “If she’s using black magic, then anything is possible. Salt will keep the magic”—Gabe panted for a second—“away. You need…”

  “Weapons. I’m on it.” She knelt back down, her pulse pounding. Blood soaked through Gabe’s shirt, spreading across his chest. So much blood. She bit her lower lip, praying he’d still be breathing when she got back. If she made it back. “I’m going to need you. You better heal up—fast.”

  Tegan dug the Mustang keys out of his other pocket and peeked around the lot. His car was parked in the next row. She’d have to run across the open space to get to the weapons stash in the trunk. Damn.

  Pocketing the keys, she clutched the salt and circled Gabe with a thin line. Better safe than sorry. She made her way to the back bumper of her car. A golden glow in the shadows caught her eye.

  “That salt won’t keep a bullet out of your skull.” Tina stepped out of the shadows, her elongated gun barrel and silencer aimed at Tegan.

  Tina’s nose still had some discoloration and a slight bump from their last meeting. Her face looked thin, and dark circles ringed her now-gold glowing eyes.

  Tegan gripped the salt tighter. “Gabe needs to go to a hospital.”

  “He’ll heal.”

  The rear tire closest to Tegan popped and hissed as the air escaped. Tegan gasped, dodging toward the car parked beside hers.

  “I can’t say the same for you.”

  “What do you want, Tina?”

  “I want Mara back, you bitch.” Tina shot the other tire. “Time to pay up.” She grit her teeth, eyes narrowing. “You murdered my beautiful baby sister…” A vein bulged in her neck, throbbing. “You killed Mara.”

  Tegan’s pulse pounded in her ears. She needed to do something, but for now buying time was the best she could do while she tried to formulate a plan. “Mara was a demon. If she had brought the white dragon back, we’d all be dead.”

  “Now I’m a demon, too.” Tina lowered the gun. “All this strength and all I had to do was promise Gabe’s head on a stick.”

  “You let a demon possess you? On purpose?” Maybe crazy ran in her family.

  “This demon inside of me will bring Mara’s soul across. We just need your body to put her in. You’ll be her vessel. You took everything I had in this world, but now you’ll help me get it back.” Tina let the barrel of the gun droop as she spoke, and Tegan saw her opportunity.

  She ran at Tina, tackling her to the ground. The impact knocked the wind from Tegan’s lungs, but thankfully it also bumped the gun from Tina’s hand. The demon-possessed blonde hit her head on the pavement, but it barely slowed her. She yanked Tegan’s hair, pulling her head back.

  Tegan answered with a strike to Tina’s throat with the edge of her open hand. Tina released her, gasping for air. Tegan popped open the salt, but before she could distribute it, Tina grasped her wrist, slamming it to the ground repeatedly until Tegan lost her grip on the canister.

  Tina rolled her over, pinning her to the ground. Tegan arched her back, instinctively kicking her legs until she freed her arms. She landed a punch to Tina’s temple. The blow barely fazed her this time.

  A guttural chant erupted from her lips, and Tegan’s skin tingled. “Mara, come to me. I have your vessel. Come, sister. Cross to this plane.”

  “I’m not your damned vessel.” Tegan wrestled Tina until she gained the advantage, sitting up on her opponent. Landing a combination of punches to Tina’s abdomen, Tegan spied the salt canister.

  In Gabe’s hand.

  He still looked like crap but vertical was a huge improvement. Tegan smiled. “About time you got here.”

  Tina turned to look at him, her demon eyes vanishing. “Gabe, help me. Tegan’s gone crazy. She thinks I shot you.”

  Gabe walked over, opening the salt. “Give Mara my regards in hell.” He poured a stream of salt onto Tina’s forehead. She screeched as her skin started smoking.

  “What’s happening to her?” Tegan got up, stumbling backward. “I thought salt just blocks magic and wounds some demons.”

  “She bound her soul to a demon using black magic. It magically bonds the souls together. The salt purifies, breaking the spell and banishing the demon, but her soul went with it. She bound herself to the demon’s soul so she won’t get her body back.”

  Tina stopped screaming, her body still, limp on the pavement. The center of her forehead was black and charred.

  “We’ve got to get her out of here before someone comes out to check on the noise.”

  Gabe bent down and grimaced. “Take her feet. I can’t lift her by myself yet.”

  Tegan did as Gabe instructed while he carried Tina’s shoulders to the Mustang. They dropped her in the backseat.

  “Now what?” Tegan looked up at him, adrenaline pumping.

  “You have the keys. Let’s get out of here.”

  Tegan jumped in the driver’s seat. The V-8 roared to life. “Where to?”

  “The beach.”

  …

  Tegan drove in silence without ever glancing his way, leaving him wondering what the hell to say.

  The bullet had gone right through his shoulder. His body ached, healing the hole at a rapid pace. But physical wounds were the least of his concerns. Seeing Tegan dance tonight, seeing her smiles offered to another man. Seeing someone else touch her. It hurt much more than the bullet wound in his shoulder. She was his life now—he couldn’t lose her.

  Tegan killed the engine at the lookout point. “What’s next?”

  He glanced over at her. “We wrap Tina in a blanket and leave her in the sand, then we call the police.”

  Tegan frowned. “She won’t wake up and talk to the police?”

  “No. She’s gone.”

  She glanced into the backseat. “She’s just a vegetable?”

  “Basically, yeah.” He turned to her. “Are you hurt?”

  Tegan shrugged,
unfastening her seat belt and reaching for the door handle. “I’ll live.”

  He touched her hand, and she froze. “I wish this had all been different.”

  “Please don’t.” Tegan looked at him and sighed. “Don’t make this any tougher for me.”

  “You don’t think it’s tough for me, too?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “You amaze me. You tell me that being with me makes you feel guilty and walk out of my life, then the second I start to think I can move forward, you’re telling me you miss me.” She got out of the car and bent down to look at him through the open door. “Missing me isn’t going to be enough to make this work, Gabe. You told me you loved me, and you walked away so I wouldn’t get hurt. Well, guess what? You hurt me more than any of those demons ever did.”

  She slammed the door and walked toward the waves.

  Gabe watched her go. Her words stung. Probably because most of them were true.

  He got out and opened the trunk. Bending his arm, he circled his shoulder a couple of times, loosening the newly healed muscles. After wrapping Tina’s body in a blanket, he carried her down to the sand, and then walked over to Tegan.

  He stood beside her, and she didn’t sock him. He took that as a good sign. “I’m sorry I hurt you.”

  “Me too.” The ocean wind blew her hair back, but her gaze never left the waves.

  “Do you think you could ever let me make it up to you?”

  He held his breath, and she looked up and met his eyes. “Do you think you can let go of the past?”

  Her gaze pinned him, forcing him to face the truth of his life. Could he let his guilt go? He ground his teeth together, picturing his life without Tegan, a life that included her smiling at someone else. Maddock had been right about one thing: if Gabe stayed on this path, it wouldn’t matter how many demons he sent back to hell. They would have already won.

  “I want a future, Tegan.” He brought his hand up to caress her cheek. “I want a future with you.”

  Her eyes searched his, still wary. “What about the demons?”

  “I’ve got your back if you’ve got mine.” He waited, hoping for a smile, for any sign of what was going on in her head.

  She reached up, covering his hand on her cheek, and finally rewarded him with a smile that stole his breath away. “I was hoping you’d say that.”