I chewed on my upper lip, trying to decide how much I should confirm or deny. Aiden and I may have dated, but I couldn’t remember him or if he was trustworthy. The less people that knew about what Dorian had done, the better.
“You really think he’d do that?” I asked, feigning shock.
“Yes, I do,” Aiden replied, his voice soft. “Because I would have done the same thing. This is also why the NAWC is interested in you, yes?”
This time I didn’t need to pretend shock. “How do you know that?”
“You are very important to me, my Gwen. Just because I left Flora does not mean I have not been looking out for you.”
“You’ve been watching me?” I asked, looking over my shoulder as though I’d see someone with binoculars through the window.
“Not personally,” Aiden replied with a laugh, “but I have had my children looking out for you.” From what I could remember about vampires, I didn’t think he meant biological children. He had vampires watching me.
“Please keep Lauren up to date on everything that’s happening,” Aiden continued. “She’s one of the best bodyguards around and will keep you safe.”
I peeked up at Lauren. She stood with her hands on her hips and was talking to Dorian. “She looks like the vampire version of Barbie,” I told Aiden.
His laughter filled the phone. “Perhaps you haven’t lost all of yourself; that’s what you called her before.”
I smiled. “Really?”
“Don’t let her looks fool you; she can decapitate a man in less than three minutes.”
My amusement faded. “I don’t think it’ll come to that.” At least I hoped it wouldn’t. Things were already out of whack because of me. I didn’t want people to die unnecessarily. I feared the NAWC showing up, but I also understood that they were doing their jobs. What Dorian had done was wrong and unnatural and needed to be fixed. Unfortunately, the NAWC’s idea of fixing the problem was ending my life.
“Stay safe,” Aiden said. “I will see you soon.”
Before I could ask him what he meant by that, the call ended. Spinning around, a chill raced along my skin and caused my shoulders to shake. The scent of rotten fruit invaded my nostrils, causing me to scrunch up my face.
“Do you guys smell that?” I had just got the question out when I spotted a translucent figure by the fireplace. Its form was made up of gray mist, but I could make out the legs, arms, and head. My eyes dropped to its feet to see that it wasn’t so much standing in the room as it was floating.
“Dorian,” I whispered, pointing to the figure. “Is that a…a ghost?”
He made his way over to stand beside me, but I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the figure. Slowly, the mist began to shift and gain color. I could now make how that it was a man wearing jeans and a T-shirt that read Volvo across the front.
“That’s Eddie,” Dorian said nonchalantly. “Where the hell have you been?” he asked the ghost. “It’s been days since I sent you on assignment.”
I finally looked away from Eddie to stare up at Dorian. “What kind of an assignment can a ghost do?”
“They’re great spies,” he replied with a grin.
“I’ve been keeping an eye on the woman,” Eddie said, his voice slow and smooth. As he floated closer, the remainder of foggy gray gained color and definition. He wore bell-bottom jeans, had shaggy brown hair tied back in a low ponytail and a bit of scruff along his jaw.
“I watched her to see if she contacted anyone and vice versa,” Eddie continued.
“And?” Dorian questioned.
Eddie shook his head slowly. “Other than mumbling in her sleep, she didn’t have any visitors other than the police officers. They’re handing her over to the NAWC the day after tomorrow.”
My head snapped up in Dorian’s direction. “They’ll be here in a day?
Ignoring me, Dorian asked Eddie, “Do you know what the NAWC plans to do with her?”
Eddie’s shoulders bobbed in a slow shrug. “They didn’t say.”
“What woman?” Lauren asked as she walked up to the three of us. Aura curled her body around my legs, rubbing her head against my shin. It may have been silly, but I even felt horrible for not remembering her. She seemed to have missed me. Bending down, I scooped her into my arms and petted her absentmindedly.
“The woman that took Gwen’s memories,” Dorian answered.
“Why don’t we pay her a little visit and torture her until she restores them?” Lauren asked. I was just about to say something about how normal people don’t talk about torturing people that calmly, when Dorian spoke up.
“I already tried,” he said. “She’s not talking.”
“You what?” I asked, the pitch in my voice scaring my cat. She wiggled out of my arms and scurried down the hall.
Dorian looked down at me, his face impassive and unapologetic. “This woman stole your memories, Gwen. I’m not the bad guy here.”
I supposed he was right, but that didn’t make it any less creepy that these two could talk about tormenting someone with such nonchalance. Then I remembered that Dorian had told me that Ms. Willow gave him the name Hecate, yet he didn’t tell Lauren that. Something on my face must have clued him in to my internal question because he shook his head at me, just a slight movement of his chin that told me not to say anything.
“I bet I could make her talk.” A slow smile crawled onto Lauren’s face.
“If the NAWC is coming for her, you should steer clear,” Dorian advised. “I doubt they even know about you, Lauren. We’ll use that to our advantage should they show up on Aiden’s doorstep.”
Yawning, I leaned against the doorjamb and tried to keep my eyes open. It was almost four in the morning, and I’d only gotten an hour and half of sleep before Lauren showed up.
“Why don’t you get some sleep,” Dorian said. He stepped toward me and rubbed his hands up and down my arms. I itched to remove his sunglasses and stare into his raincloud eyes, see the storm brewing behind his sockets.
“What are you and Lauren going to do?” I asked, sliding a sidelong glance toward the vampire. After seeing how she pawed at Dorian at my apartment I didn’t feel comfortable leaving the two of them alone. Then again, if I couldn’t trust Dorian to be alone with a pretty woman without touching her, then there was no point in us even being together.
“I’ll be up in a little bit,” Dorian said. “I’m going to acquaint myself with the security system and layout of the house.” He leaned forward, resting an arm against the trim above my head, and pressed his mouth to mine. “Lauren’s a vampire; they don’t sleep at night. She’ll probably hang around here until the sun comes up.” A slow smile spread across his mouth.
“What’s so funny?”
“You were jealous,” he said. “When you saw her touching me earlier.”
My eyes dropped to his chest. “I didn’t like it,” I admitted.
Dorian tipped my chin up so I’d meet his eyes. “You have nothing to worry about, cupcake. My head is so full of you that there’s no room for anyone else.”
“Just make sure she knows that,” I said, nodding toward Lauren, who I was sure was listening to every word we said.
“I like this side of you.” Dorian stepped closer so that I had to look up and our fronts pressed together. He skimmed his fingers through the layers of my hair. “I love knowing you want me all for yourself. Give me about twenty minutes to check things out, and you can have me.”
I grinned, already anticipating being with Dorian again. “Don’t keep me waiting.” Slipping out from under his arm, I made my way to the staircase leading upstairs. Looking over my shoulder, I smiled when I found Dorian watching me. Those carnivorous butterflies stirred with a vengeance.
“WHEN ARE YOU going to tell her the truth?” Lauren asked as I walked around making sure all the doors and windows were locked, not that locks would stop any magical beings, but it made me feel better.
“What are you talking about?”
�
��You and I both know there is no fixing this,” Lauren said, her voice as sharp as the blade sheathed at her hip. “You know better than anyone that when it’s someone’s time, nothing can interfere with that. Fate is absolute.”
I stopped what I was doing and turned to face her. “Do you really think you know more about death than I do?”
“Then tell me I’m wrong,” Lauren replied, crossing her arms. “Tell me you’ve met another person who’s wormed their way out of their expiration date and is still living today.”
I thought for a moment. There had been supernaturals that cheated death, but Fate swung back around and plucked them off. None were still living today. This reminded me that I needed to talk to Amara. As a Fate, she would know what to do. I’d been counting on Fiona and Ethan’s spell that I’d forgotten about talking to the Fate.
“You can’t, can you?” Lauren asked. “Aiden and I have an idea.”
I shook my head, anger growing at just the mention of Gwen’s ex. “We don’t need your help.” Continuing my survey of the home, I headed down a wide hall. Sconces resembling flickering candlesticks hung against the wall every four feet, and there were three doors on the left and four on the right. Despite my feelings toward Aiden, his home was nicer than I expected. It irked me how Gwen’s eye lit up when she saw it. I’d buy her ten mansions just to see her light up like that.
Lauren’s heels clicked on the tile floor behind me. “I thought you’d do anything to save her. You care for her, don’t you?”
I stopped walking and spun around to face the nosey vampire. “My feelings for her are the reason why I’m not going to take his advice. If you haven’t forgotten, he betrayed her. Ian Despereaux tormented Gwen, and Aiden was on his side the entire time. He doesn’t love her. She’s just another one of his playthings, looked at as a piece of property. As far as I’m concerned, if Aiden comes anywhere near her and I’ll shred his soul.”
Lauren’s lips thinned, her jaw setting into a hard line. “Even if he can save her?”
“How would he do that?” I snorted “Vampire blood won’t heal this.”
One of Lauren’s thin eyebrows arched. She moved toward me slowly. “Actually, it will.”
Gwen was asleep when I found her moments after my conversation with Lauren. She lay on her side, her arms holding onto the thick comforter. Her lips were parted as she breathed in and out evenly. Long dark strands of hair fell against her face and shoulders. Kneeling beside the bed, I bowed my head and squeezed my eyes shut. For the first time in my existence, I had no answers, no clue what to do. I’d always separated myself from the humans, but when it came down to it, I fell at the hands of a very human vice—greed. And, like all vices, mine had caused nothing but trouble. I had a feeling that Fate was gearing up to claim her anyway, making what I’d done pointless. If Ethan and Fiona’s spell didn’t work, it wouldn’t be long before the NAWC took care of the problem.
Lifting my head, I stared up at the ceiling before dropping my gaze to Gwen. What if I couldn’t save her? What if the only way I would ever be able to see her would be to visit her spirit in the realm of the dead? I supposed it was better than nothing, but I couldn’t hang out in the realm of the dead every day.
“You and Aiden think she can turn hybrid?” My earlier conversation with Lauren played through my head. Just like everything else in the world, there were rules restricting any supernatural from turning vampire. It was unnatural for someone to have that much power, but there were myths that spirit walkers could accept the virus. Because vampires derived from the Devil himself and spirit walkers are able to connect with demons, people believed that link allowed them to change.
Ian Despereaux planned to try just that with Gwen. He wanted to infect her with the vampire virus and use her as a weapon to take out his maker, Pernis La’Rue. Aaron La’Rue also believed in the hybrid theory and had taken an interest in Gwen. If he had a hybrid, especially a spirit walker hybrid, Aaron would be the sole controller of that power. He’d use Gwen as a tool—a weapon, just like Ian planned to. And since Aaron was Aiden’s sire, I didn’t trust Lauren’s idea that by turning Gwen’s body vampire, it would save her. Through the weird, controlling ties that bind vampires, Aaron would be able to control Gwen through Aiden’s link to him. I couldn’t let that happen.
“She would still be dead,” Lauren had explained. “If she accepts the vampire virus, it would preserve her body. As I understand it, spirits can step in and out of bodies, right?”
I nodded while my gut twisted in knots. This was the reason why Lauren was here, why Aiden still pretended like he cared about Gwen. Turning Gwen hybrid was their plan all along.
“And if her body doesn’t?” I asked.
“It will,” Lauren stated, and I could tell she really believed it. “She has that something extra, I can tell.”
“I’m not even going to ask what that means,” I told her, growing tired of this conversation. “Both of you are so ready to test the hybrid theory that you’re not thinking about what it will mean if it doesn’t work.”
“It’s a risk worth taking,” Lauren said, crossing her arms.
“It’s a risk she’ll be taking. If the shoe was on the other foot, I doubt either of you would do the same.” I raised my voice and tried to ignore the icy tendrils of power coursing through my veins. I wanted to reach into Lauren’s chest and rip away her soul, make her feel the fear that consumed me.
“I have,” Lauren said, stepping closer to me. “I know the risks because I feared them when a vampire sunk his fangs into my throat and drained me dry.” She moved even closer so that she had to tip her head up to look at me. I could feel her breath fan across my face when she spoke next. “And I felt the fear of losing my life when he slit his wrist and made me drink his infected blood, all because he believed I could accept the virus.”
My lips parted with my shock. “You’re a hybrid”
She nodded and trailed a long red fingernail down my chest, still peering up at my face. Gripping her hand, I lowered her arm and took a step back.
“I know you’ve felt my influence,” she said closing the space I’d put between us. “I’ve felt the desire rolling off you because of it.” Her tongue rolled across her lips. “If I chose to, I could make you do whatever I wanted.” As if to prove her point, she reached up and curled her hand around the base of my neck. Warmth unlike anything I’d ever felt seeped into me and awakened an unrelenting desire. I wanted her, wanted to rip her clothes off and fuck her against the wall until the hunger was satisfied.
Whispering, Lauren said, “If I wanted, I could have you on your knees begging me.” Her eyes dropped to my lips. “I could make you fuck me right now, even though I know you really don’t want to.” Her gaze snapped back up to my eyes. “And while your body would love it, inside you would be hating yourself for betraying Gwen. You would know it was wrong, that you shouldn’t be between my legs, but that wouldn’t stop you from wanting to be there.”
Lauren took a couple steps back, releasing me. “Believe me now?”
I sucked in a ragged breath, fury racing to extinguish the heat she’d produced. “Don’t ever fucking do that again.”
“I had to prove to you that I am what I say I am,” Lauren explained. “You know vampires cannot influence other supernatural beings. What you were feeling was my succubus side.” She smiled wryly. “No one is immune to that sort of glamour, not even you, Death.”
My eyes fell past Lauren to the opening of the hallway, sure I would find Gwen staring at me with hurt in her eyes. If Lauren wanted to, she could have had me screw her. I’d wanted to, badly. My dick was still hard from the want she’d bestowed in me. Luckily, Gwen did not witness that little show of power.
“Who made you?” I asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” Lauren replied, her eyes glinting in the low light. “He’s dead now.”
As I tried to calm my body, I sorted through all the thoughts running through my head. Succubae and Incubi were dem
ons that appeared in dreams and fed off sexual energy. Was Lauren able to accept the vampire virus because of the demonic genes in her body?
“So you think that because you could turn hybrid, Gwen can too?”
“She has a better chance than anyone else, and it’s worth trying.”
“For whose benefit?”
A wrinkle formed between Lauren’s eyes. “Gwen’s. Who else’s?”
I took a step forward and pointed my finger at her. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Aiden is still under Aaron’s rule, and we both know Aaron wants a hybrid of his own. So, I’ll ask again; who will benefit from Gwen turning hybrid?”
“No one,” Lauren answered. “Aiden and I are only trying to help save Gwen. Regardless of what you think, he really does love her. Aaron will not have control over her.”
I tried to gauge whether she was telling the truth or not. She wasn’t showing any signs of lying, but with vampires it’s difficult to tell. I could torture her in hopes she’d reveal her secrets, but I didn’t want to wake or worry Gwen with her screaming.
“Aaron is Aiden’s sire; he controls him. If Aiden were to sire Gwen, Aaron would then control Gwen.”
Lauren shook her head. “Aiden plans to ask for his release.”
“It’s been over six-hundred years,” I said, “why now?”
Lauren gave me an exasperated look. “So Aaron won’t have control over Gwen should she decide to become hybrid.” She didn’t need to say ‘duh’, her tone implied it.
“Or, so Aiden won’t have to share Gwen with the vampire council.”
“Look, Aiden is risking his life by asking for release from Aaron,” Lauren bit out. “Should Aaron deny him, he’s prepared to fight for his freedom. All for Gwen’s safety. At least put your hatred for Aiden aside and think about it. It may just be her only chance at surviving.”
Without another word, she headed back down the hallway and disappeared around the corner. I leaned against the wall and cursed. As much as I hated it, Lauren may be right.
Hexed (The Gwen Sparks Series Book 4) Page 16
