Tainted Kiss

by Sharon Kay

  He pulled the door closed and surveyed his little group. He’d been the bearer of bad news so often he could usually disengage his emotions. But this was one man, captured and held as leverage because of his cursed lineage.

  Four sets of eyes looked at him expectantly. “Nevo has been captured by Splinter.”

  Raniero’s face darkened. Ria gasped.

  “What the fuck?” Mathias snarled.

  “What’s Splinter?” Gin asked.

  “You can get the detailed history later. Right now all you need to know is they’re Ghazsuls and they’re worse than the rest of the Ghazsuls.” Arawn raked a hand through his hair.

  “Worse? Oh my god.” Gin’s eyes were wide.

  “How do you know?” Raniero asked.

  “I received word right after the meeting ended,” Arawn said. “They say they’ll kill him in twenty-four hours.”

  “What do they want?” Mathias asked.

  Arawn paused. “For us to stop looking for the sword.” No need to share the personal part of the message.

  Silence loomed in the room. Gin sat on the edge of the king size bed. “So they think it exists…no, they don’t just think. They’re convinced. Otherwise why kidnap a Watcher?”

  “Splinter hides in the Bloodspire Mountains which aren’t close to here,” Mathias said. “I bet that’s where he ended up last night, thanks to the spell fucking up his amulet.”

  “Oh my gods, this is my fault,” Ria whispered. “If I had been able to make a clean getaway, Thane wouldn’t have used the spell charges.”

  “This is not your fault.” Arawn turned to her. “That place was crawling with guards and hounds.”

  “He was part of my back up team,” she said. “I have to help get him back. He’s somewhere in those mountains.”

  Shit. He didn’t want her going. The four of them would be enough, and he wouldn’t risk any of his people unnecessarily. Especially her. “We don’t need you on this recovery.”

  She turned astonished eyes on him. “I’m part of the reason he’s in enemy hands.” Indignation edged her voice.

  “And I’m the other part of the reason, since I ordered the goddamn op.” The calming effect she had on him disappeared, replaced with a zealous need to protect that surprised him. A need he hadn’t felt in—

  Holy shit. That need barreled into him like a towering Neshi demon. The need to protect what was his.

  No. He wouldn’t put another female in danger. Wouldn’t take the risk of her being kidnapped or killed because of him.

  Ria’s not Lottie. Lottie was gentle. Ria was a tough-ass Watcher. The facts loomed in his mind, but he couldn’t deny his instinct. Fuck.

  “I want in.” The quiet determination in Ria’s voice slayed him.

  “We need a small team.” Arawn shook his head. “Mathias, we need your nose.”

  “Why do you need Gin?” Mathias asked.

  Arawn looked from his tracker to the Solsti. “I’d like to use her skills. This rescue calls for precision kills like the ones you and she coordinated in the battle last month.”

  Gin’s eyes widened. “I’ve never gone on a mission…”

  “You helped eliminate Elegia’s lieutenant on Earth,” Arawn pointed out. “And you’ve worked with your talent more in the last several weeks.”

  “True.” Gin bit her lip and looked to her mate. “If it will help get Nevo out, I’ll do it.”

  Ria was still staring at him like she couldn’t decide whether to give him a tongue lashing or put him in a choke hold. “If you want a small team, send the four of us.” She gestured to herself, Gin, Mathias, and Raniero. “Why do you need to go? Aren’t you needed here?”

  “I’m going because he’s my responsibility. He was following my orders.”

  “We all follow your orders every day and you don’t come running after us when things go FUBAR,” Ria challenged.

  Arawn gritted his teeth. If they’d been in his room, he’d order everyone else out and then spank Ria until her cute little ass was red. Fact was, he didn’t need her on this extraction, but having a fifth team member wouldn’t be that bad. Especially with her spin. She could hold her own.

  Shit. She left him with two options. Order her to stay behind, which she would probably hate him for, given the new dynamic in their relationship. Or cave in to her request.

  He never caved. It would look odd if he did…then again, Mathias knew something was up between he and Ria. Gin had to know, as well. And Raniero? His mercenary was a vault, saving any extra words for his mate and kin. It wasn’t as if he’d start gossip.

  Gossip? What the fuck was wrong with him? The Lash demons’ leader did not worry about gossip. What was this? A school playground? He shook his head. “Fine. Ria goes. We meet back here in thirty minutes. Load up with weapons and mountain gear. Raniero, fill in your mate in case we bring back Nevo in bad shape. Let’s hope not, but those bastards are brutal.” He snagged Ria’s hand and turned to the door. “We’re not done.”

  He ignored the voices behind him, and ignored Raniero’s heavy-booted steps as he edged past them in the hall and headed into the stairwell. He blocked out every damn thing except the softness of Ria’s skin under his fingers as they walked to the rotunda, and when the elevator doors opened, he pulled her in. The doors closed, he hit the emergency stop button, and he slammed her back into the wall, pinning her hands above her head.

  She glared at him, but he heard the hitch of her breath. He tracked the pulse point in her neck and the rise and fall of her breasts. “Can’t have you sassing me in front of my fighters.”

  Her eyebrows shot up. “Sassing you? Are you kidding me? You weren’t making a good decision.”

  He growled. “I make decisions to keep my fighters safe.”

  “You need to keep yourself out of unnecessary harm!” Her voice rose. “Let your warriors do what you train us for. You’re needed here. We can’t lose you.”

  “I will take responsibility for my people and my decisions. And my word is final.”

  Her blue eyes flashed with anger. “Are you ordering me to obey you?” Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “Are you pulling rank? On me?”

  He pressed into her soft curves. “I’m in charge. So, yeah.”

  “You’re unbelievable.”

  “Don’t care. I run things my way.”

  Her tiny teeth peeked out to bite her lower lip. “You need to understand that everyone needs someone to watch out for them, no matter how high up the food chain they are.”

  “And you need to remember, I have zero tolerance for hearing how I’m supposed to do my job. Been running this ship since before you got here, baby.”

  She stared up at him, eyes wide with equal parts awareness and annoyance. “Unbelievable.”

  Buzz!

  The speaker in the elevator car crackled and Wolfe’s voice echoed loudly. “Everything okay in there? I can see the car is stopped.”

  “Everything is fine. Kill the goddamn speaker and camera, Wolfe. That’s an order.” Arawn barked.

  Silence reigned except for Ria’s rapid breathing. He shifted her hands into one of his and traced her jaw with one finger. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “I won’t. I’m fine.” A note of exasperation crept into her voice. “I’m one of your Watchers. You can’t worry overtime about me, just because we’re…we’re whatever this is.”

  “I sure as hell can, Princess. And I will.” After her near-death scare, he would always worry about her. But he needed to find a middle ground, or he’d lose the gift of her openness and easy smiles. “But just because I worry doesn’t mean I won’t let you do your job.”

  She smiled and leaned her cheek into his hand. “Thank you. I know you’re not used to…adjusting your point of view.”

  He quirked an eyebrow. Damn, this woman surprised him at every turn with how well she knew him. “No, I’m not. “ He dropped his hand to her hip. “But being a leader involves learning on the job. And there are a few thin
gs I don’t know about you.”

  “There you go again, admitting you don’t know everything.” Her voice was a whispered tease.

  “Don’t tell anyone.” He leaned down and covered her mouth with his.

  She sighed and arched her back, pushing her breasts against his chest. Her tongue slid against his and her scent filled the small space. She wiggled to get her hands free, and the action rubbed her hips across the erection straining at his jeans.

  He groaned and pulled back, hating to put any space between them. “We’ll have to save this for later, baby.”

  She nodded, a flash of guilt in her endless eyes. “When this is over. Nevo needs us now.”

  A flare of anger spiked in his gut. This would never be over. Not for him. Not when darkness coalesced around every cell in his body.

  C

  HAPTER 18

  RIA LAY ON HER BELLY on a rocky ledge next to Gin. Though the sun shone brightly, the wind whipped harshly here, and the temperature was a good thirty degrees colder than at HQ. She and Gin wore matching brown tactical jackets and beanies. Ria knew her blond hair would stand out like a beacon among the brown and gray crags of the Bloodspire Mountains, so she’d wrangled it into two tight French braids and pulled the hat down low.

  Mathias had directed their group to this ledge, encountering no Ghazsul demons until the ones that stood upwind of them now.

  There were two, and they were filthy. Then again they lived in caves. Their red skin was darkened with dirt, unlike the fresh scrubbed crimson glow of Thane’s skin. These demons also emanated a darkly evil aura. Not pompous like Thane, but vicious. Blood thirsty.

  Ria and Gin stayed motionless as Mathias and Raniero did a silent countdown, then hurled simultaneous balls of demonfire at the Splinter members. Perfectly timed, the fire found their targets and both demons collapsed instantly.

  Their plan was to eliminate as many Ghazsuls as they could this way, in stealth, and creep closer. But this relied heavily on Mathias’s senses to alert them in case they were surrounded. The exact number of Splinter members was unknown.

  They waited. The two downed demons seemed to go unnoticed, for now. Mathias pointed them up a rocky path and they filed in a single line.

  Arawn brought up the rear, armed with a crossbow and leaving the bladework to Raniero. The higher they climbed, the better their vantage point, and picking off bad guys from long range would be easy. His arrows were dipped in Viper venom for added damage.

  Stones scattered as Gin climbed. She was the noisiest one in the group, though Ria knew she was trying her best. Clumps of scrubby dull green grass grew in random patches, and the occasional spindly tree spiked defiantly from the harsh ground, but otherwise it was rocks and dirt. And ravines. And wind. The air felt much colder than forty degrees as a sharp gust blasted into them from the front.

  Mathias stopped abruptly and held up a hand. He turned around with a grim look. “We’re about to walk into a group of twenty. And I can smell Nevo.”

  “He’s alive?” Arawn walked up next to Ria.

  Mathias nodded. “He’s—”

  The wind shifted. Mathias yanked Gin to the ground as he yelled, “Down!”

  As Ria dropped, she heard the hiss of an arrow sailing through the air. Arawn crouched low beside her, cursing, as the arrow sank deeply in the ground between where Gin and Mathias had been walking.

  He turned and fired off a shot with practiced ease, though Ria knew he didn’t do this every day. A muffled yelp carried from a scraggly bush fifty yards away.

  “Bastard,” Arawn muttered. “Hunter. Any more out here?”

  Mathias frowned. “The scents are mixing. They’re all around us. We’re in the middle of their territory and the wind just decided to play games.”

  “All right. The bigger group might already know we’re here. We stay tight and move forward to get eyes on Nevo,” Arawn said.

  They all got to their feet and resumed heading up the path. Mathias led them off to one side, where a cluster of bushes formed a line about six feet long. He gestured for them all to take cover. “He’s on the other side,” Mathias said.

  Ria crept low and went forward on her belly, sandwiched between Raniero and Arawn. She leaned up on her elbows, peering through small brown leaves and branches, trying to get a glimpse of Nevo.

  Arawn and Mathias each gave a low growl at the same time. A second later, she saw why.

  Nevo stood bound with blue enchanted rope and tied to a thick leafless tree. He was shirtless, and his chest was covered with blood. No! Ria inhaled, trying to determine if his wounds were fresh or old. Damn it, she couldn’t tell.

  As if reading her mind, Arawn growled into the quiet. “Hunter, tell me that blood is dry.”

  “Yup.”

  Her brother’s confirmation was small consolation. The Lash demons’ ability to heal quickly meant that Nevo had been attacked. Tortured. Left to heal and then they started the cycle all over again. She swallowed hard and cursed under her breath.

  Nevo’s head was dropped to his chest, and if he knew they were there, he gave no indication. If Ria had to guess, she’d say that he was conserving his energy to focus on healing. He had to know they’d search for him.

  “Next time the wind changes, they’ll know we’re here,” Mathias murmured. “And I’m picking up more in the caves back there.”

  They was the group of twenty he had mentioned earlier. Two stood watching the slopes around them. The rest were sitting on fat fallen logs, eating a meal, ignoring their prisoner. Like they did this every damn day. Ria scowled. Behind them, the ground rose sharply. Rough outcroppings pushed out, sharp and unforgiving. Pockmarked along the hillside were a dozen holes.

  Entrances to bolt holes, tunnels, caves…Splinter’s base of operations was said to be like a rabbit warren of interconnecting passages.

  A blast of cold air howled down the slope. “Behind us!” Mathias yelled, and covered Gin’s body with his.

  In a flash of dark strength, Arawn whirled and fired an arrow into the heart of a huge Ghazsul. The creature dropped.

  Before she could take a full breath, four more Ghazsuls charged up the hill toward them. In unison, Ria and Raniero each flung two balls of fire, hitting all four. It didn’t matter that the two of them hadn’t often fought side by side; it was times like this that Arawn’s stringent training exercises kicked in.

  Yelps echoed from behind, and Ria turned to see Gin and Mathias working their lethal magic. Mathias summoned ball after ball of demonfire. Gin picked each one up with the power of her mind, reshaped the balls into fiery tendrils, and sent them into the Ghazsuls. Some fire wrapped around their necks and tightened, while some shot into their open mouths. It was almost beautiful, in a weird, macabre way. Highly effective, but only if the opponent’s numbers weren’t too large—

  “Incoming!” Ria yelled, even as she flung a ball of flames at one of the Splinter soldiers.

  More Splinter members poured out of the openings in the rocks. One dozen. Two dozen. “Shit!” Ria kept summoning and firing, but this mismatch wasn’t good.

  “Hunter and Gin, stay here and cover us,” Arawn barked. His voice was clear, his eyes calculating. Every inch a warrior in his element. “The three of us will get Nevo and go back to HQ. Then you two follow.”

  “Understood,” Mathias said.

  Arawn charged down the small hill. Ria followed and Raniero was close behind her. Around them, Ghazsuls fell in mid step, mid swing, as Gin’s fire did its work. The pungent smell of charred flesh filled the air.

  Ria pushed on, ignoring it. Burning bodies were part and parcel of predatory demon fights.

  Ahead, Nevo straightened and spotted their group. Gray eyes wide, he watched and struggled in vain with the blue rope.

  The scrape of metal drawing free of a scabbard and a flash of silver drew her attention.

  A Splinter fighter held the long, heavy blade against Nevo’s throat.

  “No!” Ria screamed, furious.
<
br />   The Ghazsul turned leering eyes on Arawn. “You were told not to come, Lash.” His voice was low and gravelly.

  “Put the sword down or you die,” Arawn growled as he stopped. They were fifteen feet away. So close, but not close enough to undo the rope.

  Around the three of them, Ghazsuls crept closer. Tall, bony, with a greedy sick look in their eyes.

  “The requests made to you were very specific,” the sword holder said, his lips drawing back to reveal sharp pointed teeth. “It seems you have a problem remembering directions. And as it turns out, so do I.” With a sharp twist he sunk his blade deep into Nevo’s neck and dragged it across his throat.

  Ria bit back a scream. Blood poured down Nevo’s already reddened chest and his head hung down at an odd angle…but remained attached.

  There was still a chance for him.

  Arawn roared and fired an arrow at the leader, then followed with demonfire.

  Angry cries echoed around them and the ground shook as chaos erupted.

  Arawn slung the crossbow over his back and pushed forward, summoning fire and releasing it, one hand and then another, in a perfect, deadly cadence. Ria did the same as they advanced toward Nevo.

  A Splinter member leaned in and grabbed her hand, twisting hard.

  Ria shrieked. The fucker was trying to break her wrist. “Watch out!” she yelled to her teammates, as she launched into a spin.

  The Ghazsul looked dumbfounded and yelped as she wrenched free of his hand. The satisfying snap of bone went nicely with it.

  She didn’t feel like taking time to filet him with her dagger. Instead she used his pause of surprise to snap his neck.

  All around her, arrows of fire arched gracefully through the air and brought down one demon after another. Ria couldn’t even count the number on the ground. Maybe two dozen? Had they killed that many already?

  She passed Raniero, who was slicing one Ghazsul open and launching a ball of fire at another. She vaulted over a writhing Ghazsul and caught up with Arawn. His lips moved quickly as he recited a release spell, hands on the blue rope that bound Nevo.