Bittersweet Darkness

by Nina Croft

  “Have any been seen?” Piers asked.

  “Not so far,” Asmodai said. “But there’s a rumor that Raphael is on the move.”

  “Shit,” Piers said.

  “Maybe you should take Roz and go away,” the Walker suggested.

  “Hide?” Piers sounded as though he didn’t know the meaning of the word. But he paused, obviously thinking about the option. As far as Asmodai was aware, the vampire had never had someone he cared for before. It was a whole different mind-set and while he was sure Piers wouldn’t hide for his own safety, he was obviously considering it for Roz. “Not yet. We’ve sent messages asking to talk. We’ll wait until we hear back. That should at least mean they won’t zap us without warning.”

  “Good luck with that,” Asmodai said.

  Maybe now was the time to hand over his present. He pushed himself away from the wall and took a step toward Tara. She’d been talking in a low voice to Christian, but she glanced his way with a vaguely hostile expression in her clear green eyes. Okay, maybe the “vaguely” was wishful thinking on his part—definitely hostile.

  As he came to a halt in front of her, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the talisman. “I have a present for you,” he said.

  Tara eyed the jewel as though it might reach across and bite her.

  “What is it?” Christian asked.

  “A talisman. It will protect my daughter against the white fire of the angels.”

  “Give it to Roz,” Tara said. “She needs it more than me.”

  Asmodai shook his head. “The white fire won’t harm Roz—her angel blood will protect her. They’ll have to find another way to kill her. But you’re half demon—the fire would burn you.”

  “Take it,” Christian urged.

  She peered at it dubiously. “Why don’t you keep it?”

  Christ, she was suspicious. “I can take care of myself. The fire won’t kill me.”

  Piers took a step closer. “But I’m betting it will hurt. And that would protect you?” He nodded at the talisman. “It must be potent stuff. I thought only the blood of Lucifer could protect from angelfire.”

  Asmodai shrugged. “I did a deal.”

  “Really?” Piers studied him for a moment. “Take your coat off.”

  “You want me to strip? Kinky.”

  “Just do it.”

  Asmodai sighed. He knew where Piers was heading with this and while he didn’t want to go along, it might be for the best. He couldn’t speak of the sigil, that was part of the binding spell, but he could show it, and they would no doubt understand.

  He shrugged out of his coat and tossed it on a nearby chair.

  Piers studied him for a moment. “And the shirt.”

  Asmodai unbuckled the shoulder holster and dropped it on top of the coat, then pulled his T-shirt over his head. Piers stepped closer and examined the sigil, which twined around his upper arm like an intricate tattoo.

  “Hey, it’s like that thing Roz had,” Ryan said.

  “A demon’s sigil. And not any demon—Lucifer’s.” Piers studied him out of narrowed eyes. “Shit, you indebted yourself to fucking Lucifer. Are you a total fucking asshole?”

  “Hey, he’s a mate,” Asmodai said. “He’s not going to ask anything I don’t want to do.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  “Don’t believe all the bad press. Nobody’s all evil, just as nobody is all good.” He held out the talisman again and this time Tara took it, though her fingers shook slightly. As she lifted it over her head, he released his breath in a sigh.

  “One more thing. If all else fails, break it. And he’ll come to your aid—but one time only.”

  “Aw, what a sweet gesture,” Piers murmured. “The perfect gift: a visit from Lucifer. What more could a girl want from her daddy?”

  The light twinkled on the black jewel, revealing glints of crimson in the dark depths, and Asmodai had a moment of foreboding. He hoped he was telling the truth and his old mate Lucifer wouldn’t ask for anything he didn’t want to give, because things could get downright nasty.

  His new partner was staring at the sigil an expression of horror on his face as though it came from the devil himself—which of course it had.

  The meeting was obviously over. He pulled on his shirt and buckled on the holster, while the others wandered from the room leaving him with Ryan. He threw himself down on the black leather sofa and rested his arms along the back. “Actually, now that we’re alone, I have a message for you.”

  “You do?” Ryan sounded wary.

  “There’s a Detective Faith Connelly in reception.”

  “There is? Shit.”

  “Well, she was there as I came in, and she didn’t look like she was about to leave without seeing you.”

  Ryan ran a hand through his hair, tugging at the ends. Releasing a sigh, he picked up the phone on the desk. “Graham? Is Detective Connelly still there? Let me talk to her.” He tapped his fingers on the desk as he waited. “Faith, how are you?”

  He listened while she spoke.

  “She’s here with you now? That’s unfortunate because Roz isn’t around. I’m not sure who told you I was working with her, but—”

  Obviously, she cut him off. Ryan gave a reluctant smile at whatever she said.

  “I’ll see if I can get hold of her, but I’m not promising anything. Give me a few minutes.”

  He put the phone down and stood up, paced the room a couple of times. Asmodai waited for him to speak. In the end, he went back and punched a number in the phone. “Graham, can you see if Roz is still in the building?”

  He paced some more.

  “So who is Faith?” Asmodai said. “Nice name by the way.”

  “My ex-partner from the force.”

  When no more was forthcoming, Asmodai rose to his feet. “And what does she want? Come on, we’re partners now, tell me what’s going on. Is this woman going to be a problem?” He curled his lips into a smile. “You want me to sort her out?”

  Asmodai had no intention of “sorting out” Ryan’s ex-partner. Well, maybe he did—just not as Ryan no doubt imagined. But he was interested in what she meant to Ryan and, from the alarm that flashed across Ryan’s face, he and this Faith must be close.

  “No, I don’t want you to sort her out. I don’t want you anywhere near her.”

  “So what does she want?”

  Ryan sighed. “She’s still working on the murder case—the girl Jack killed.”

  Jack had been a renegade vampire in league with Andarta, a mad bitch of a demoness intent on taking over the world. Piers had killed him but not before Jack had left a few dead bodies littered about the place for the human cops to find.

  “And…?” he prompted when Ryan remained silent.

  “There was a second girl. Roz helped me find her before she was killed. Now she’s asking to talk to the woman who found her. Faith is hoping she might remember something else. Anyway, she’s downstairs in reception with Faith.”

  “Why did she bring her here?”

  “That’s what I don’t understand. Apparently, someone told her I was now working with Roz, but she wouldn’t tell me any more until we meet.”

  The phone rang. He picked it up and listened, before placing it down again. “Roz is still here. She’s meeting us in reception.”

  Asmodai shrugged. “So let’s go find out what your ex-partner knows and get rid of her.”

  “What do you mean ‘get rid of’?” Ryan asked.

  “You have such a suspicious mind, Detective. I mean, tell her something that will satisfy her, and send her on her way.”

  “You don’t know Faith,” Ryan muttered. “Only the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, will satisfy her.”

  “You sound as though you admire her?”

  “She’s a good detective. She’s tenacious, like a dog with a bone—she’ll keep worrying. And for some reason this murder meant something to her.”

  “Maybe we should get Christian to deal wit
h her.”

  “Deal with her how?” Ryan sounded suspicious again.

  “He can see what she knows, then wipe out anything that might be a problem”

  “I’m not having Christian do any of that vampire shit on Faith. Besides, there’s something else. The girl—Jessica—Roz saved her life, but more than that, she saved her sanity. And if Jess is hurting now, maybe Roz can help her again.”

  Asmodai didn’t think that was the number-one priority here—humans had always been expendable—but didn’t want to disillusion his new partner so soon. “Okay, we do this your way, but if your friend knows too much, we call Christian in. It doesn’t hurt and does no permanent damage.”

  Ryan glared. “No ‘mind-fucking’ unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

  At least he was considering that it might be necessary. There was one other option. “What about we offer her a job? I know they’d like more humans on the team and if you’ve worked with this woman, trust her…”

  “I know, Piers talked to me, and I have thought about it,” Ryan said. “But I don’t think Faith would leave the force. It’s her whole life. Besides, she hates all that ‘supernatural bollocks.’ She thinks it’s a load of shit.”

  “Well, it would be easy to prove her wrong.”

  “Maybe, but I also suspect in Faith’s mind, you’d definitely be one of the bad guys. In her books you’re either bad or you’re good. There’s nothing in between.”

  “She sounds a little…intolerant.”

  “Yeah, she’s that, but she’s also a bloody good cop. Right, I’ll go down and see what she really wants.”

  Asmodai picked up his long leather trench coat and slipped it on to cover the weapons. “And I’ll come with you.”

  “You don’t need to.”

  He bit back a grin at the alarm in Ryan’s voice. “Hey, we’re partners remember?”

  Ryan gave a nod of resignation. “Okay, but what do we call you? Because I’m not introducing you as ‘Asmodai.’ I’m thinking it won’t give the right impression.”

  “Depends what sort of impression you want to give.” He shrugged. “Call me Ash. Ash Delacourt—it’s the name I usually go by when I’m…visiting.” Ryan shot him a filthy glance, and this time he did grin. “Don’t look so worried. I promise to be on my best behavior.”

  “Why doesn’t that make me feel any better?”

  Chapter Three

  Faith examined the reception area of CR International from her strategically situated chair. Ryan had done all right for himself.

  Perhaps she should have phoned ahead, but she suspected Ryan would ignore her call and if that happened, she wasn’t sure of her next move. And she’d wanted to see this place for herself. Maybe even catch a glimpse of the enigmatic Christian Roth.

  She’d looked Roth up on the police files after her meeting with the colonel and his sidekick, Father O’Brien, that morning. There had been nothing of any interest. If the colonel had anything on him, they were keeping the information to themselves. She hated that.

  Beside her, Jess fidgeted.

  Jess had recently turned sixteen. Faith had seen the photos of her before she’d been abducted. She’d been a pretty, if slightly plump teenager. Nothing out of the ordinary. Now she was almost ethereal, her body slender, her face slimmed down so the bone structure showed clear beneath her skin. But her eyes held the biggest change. At times, they appeared haunted and much older than her years.

  “Will she really be here?” Jess asked.

  Faith knew she was referring to the woman who had found her. “I hope so.” She turned to study the girl. “Why does she mean so much to you? What’s so special about her?”

  Jess considered the question. “I was in a dark place, and she brought me out of there. She saved me.”

  It didn’t make sense to Faith. And she hated things that didn’t have a rational explanation. There must be one; there always was. She just had to find it. Dig and dig and keep digging, and it would be there.

  “But how? What did she do exactly?”

  She’d asked these questions before, and it was always at this point that Jess became vague.

  Now she saw the girl’s eyes lose focus as though she was searching inside herself. For the first time, she sensed she might get some sort of meaningful answer and she leaned in closer. But at that moment, the man on the reception desk waved to Faith and the connection was broken.

  He held out the telephone, and Faith hurried across. She took the receiver; it was Ryan. She spoke with him before handing the phone back. “He’s on his way.”

  Faith was pacing the floor when the elevator doors opened. Ryan hadn’t changed at all—she suspected he might even be wearing the same outfit he’d had on that last night they’d worked together. Either that or he bought his clothes in bulk. But he seemed well.

  And he wasn’t alone. The man from earlier was at his side. Faith tightened her grip on her bag and stepped forward to meet them. Jess came up beside her.

  Ryan nodded to the girl. “Hello, Jess. How have you been?”

  “Okay.”

  Ryan turned his attention to Faith. “Faith, you look like shit.”

  Faith grinned. “Aw, thank you, Ryan, sweet and diplomatic as always.”

  “So how have you been? Are you all right now?” He sounded uncomfortable, but he’s always hated talking about illness so she let him off, but not too lightly. “Thanks for the concern and all the flowers and the visits and…”

  He shifted from foot to foot. As well he should. “Sorry. I’ve been busy. New job…”

  “So we meet again,” a man’s low voice said as Ryan trailed off. For a second, he appeared relieved at the interruption then he frowned. Now why was that?

  Faith turned her attention back to the other man and almost wished she hadn’t. His eyes were heavy-lidded, almost sleepy, behind a thick fringe of lashes. They scrutinized her from head to toe—lingering at various points along the way. For the first time in her life, she wished she wasn’t quite so scrawny and maybe that she’d had a haircut in the last two years or put on some makeup. The thought shocked her rigid.

  His full lips curved in a slight smile as though he could read her thoughts, and he took a step closer.

  Faith fought the urge to step back. Instead, she made herself give him an equally close scrutiny. It was supposed to have been offhand—as though two could play at that game—to prove she wasn’t affected. Which was stupid. Because she was; her pulse racing, her mouth parched. But once she’d started staring, she couldn’t tear her gaze away.

  While she was tall, she still had to tilt her head back to stare into his face. She left that quickly, not wanting to make eye contact again, and moved down the strong column of his throat, broad shoulders, encased in leather, lean hips—encased in more leather. He looked like some sort of gang leader, drug-dealer type. So what was he doing with Ryan? A client?

  Ryan sighed. “Faith, this is my new partner, Ash Delacourt.”

  Her gaze shot to Ryan’s face, but she could read nothing from his expression. He had a new partner? The idea hurt, but that was stupid. “We’ve already met,” she said. “Though he failed to mention he was your partner.”

  “It’s sort of a new thing.”

  Beside her Jess took a step forward and held out her hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Delacourt.”

  She had better manners than Faith, but then Jess wasn’t reeling from the shock that Mr. Leather-Clad, Bad-Guy look-alike was Ryan’s new partner.

  He took Jessica’s hand. “And to meet you, Jessica.” His voice was a rough purr that sent shivers down Faith’s spine.

  She forced her gaze around to stare at Ryan. “A new thing?”

  “Yeah, we’re working together on a special project?”

  “What sort of special project?”

  “That’s confidential I’m afraid, Detective Connolly,” Ash replied. He’d dropped Jess’s hand and was holding his own out toward her. She didn’t want to take it, but
she could hardly ignore him. Taking the final step to close the space between them, she slipped her hand into the outstretched one.

  A tingle of electricity ran through her arm. His eyes widened slightly, and she knew he’d felt it as well. Then his lips curved into a slow, satisfied smile. “How nice to meet you, Detective. May I call you Faith? I feel we’re already friends I’ve heard so much about you.”

  “Back off, Ash,” Ryan growled, before she could answer.

  Ash grinned but dropped her hand. Barely resisting the urge to wipe it down her pants leg to get rid of the sensation, Faith cleared her throat. “So,” she said. “Your friend, Rosamund Fairfax—will she talk to Jess?”

  Ryan stared past her over her shoulder. “She’s here now. You can ask her yourself.”

  Faith swung around. Two women had entered the reception area through a door in the back wall. Both were short, one slender with blond hair and green eyes. Faith had never seen her before, but she sensed Ash stiffen beside her and gave him a quick sideways glance. He was staring at the blonde, a strange, almost sad, expression on his face.

  The second woman had short, spiky, dark hair and a sweet smile. Faith recognized her from the night they’d found Jess. And she realized now she had a chance to study her, that she’d actually seen her before, on other occasions, at the station talking with Ryan. Why had he never introduced them?

  She headed directly to Jess and hugged her hard. Then she straightened and smiled. “So what’s going on?”

  “Perhaps some more introductions are in order,” Faith said. She wanted to get these people organized in her head and she wanted confirmation this was Rosamund Fairfax. And who the blonde was who studiously ignored Ash, but smiled at Ryan.

  Ryan sighed and stepped forward. “Faith, this is Rosamund Fairfax and Tara Roth.”

  Tara Roth? Christian Roth’s wife perhaps?

  “Faith is a detective with the metropolitan police force, and my ex-partner.”

  Faith shook hands with them both. “Ms. Fairfax—”

  “Call me Roz,” the dark-haired woman interrupted. “I hear you wanted to see me?”

  “Actually, Jess wanted to talk to you.”