Easy for Titus to say. He isn’t the one who’s been forgotten.
* * * *
The next morning, Lash awakened early as he usually did, and got dressed to do his rounds, giving me a kiss to say he would be back later to shower with me. But in his eyes was an unspoken question. I nodded my answer. He nodded once, then left without a word.
After he left, I waited a good ten minutes, then disentangled myself from a still sleeping Devlin. Dressing quickly with purpose, I went downstairs and made myself some cereal and a bagel. My new routine was familiar and comforting, something I’d found a respite the last few months. Any other morning that would have been a good thing, but not today.
I slipped in a tape on my ancient Walkman as I sat down, glad it was one of the things I’d brought to Dev’s home earlier on, when I’d first began doing work for him. I’d never listened to music at Danial’s, but there was no phone here I had to answer. So far I’d resisted Devlin’s offer of an iPod, though I admitted when my old machine went, I would likely take him up on his offer. Working in Devlin’s study had its drawbacks, being so close to the dungeon. I didn’t want to hear anyone screaming. Or any other noises coming from in there, for that matter.
I ate breakfast listening to some Concrete Blonde’s Jesus, Please Forgive Me, trying to put myself in the mindset for murder. I’d never killed in cold blood before, never killed anything except in self-defense. But this morning, I was going to.
Chapter Thirteen
Gathering my courage, I put my dishes in the sink, and went downstairs to the basement, and then on to the dungeon.
Ulysses was there, sleeping. He sensed me as I entered, opening his eyes and baring his sunken face in a rictus smile. “So Danial doesn’t remember you,” he said with malice. “Poor, pathetic girl. It must hurt to have lost the love of a great man like him.”
“Save your insults,” I replied scathingly. “I’m here to give you some blood, if you have the strength to get to me and take it. I want your help, if you’re strong enough.”
His face went blank in an instant. “Why would you help me?”
“Because I was a victim of Devlin just as you were. Just like Diana was. If he’d left me with Danial, or with Theo, I wouldn’t have all the pain I have now. I wouldn’t be hunted, I wouldn’t have been in hell the past year. I want it to end.”
“What do you want from me?” he asked, suspicious.
“Take enough of my blood, and go to his room. It’s at the top of the stairs, to the left. No one is about, and he has no guards. Stake him as he sleeps. He’s a heavy sleeper; he won’t even hear the door open—”
Ulysses looked eager now, but also crafty. “What do you want for your help in freeing me, Sarelle? You know I’d kill him given any chance, so you must want something besides that.”
“Two things,” I said quickly. “I’ll need your blood the rest of my life. I want your word you’ll give it to me, for as long as you live. I can’t live without regular doses, or I’ll die, from what Danial and Devlin did to me. And Danial will have nothing to do with me now. I don’t want to die.”
“I swear it,” Ulysses said, nodding. “And the other?”
I looked at Ulysses. “Give me your word you won’t hurt anyone else in the house if I free you, including me. I love my daughter, she is innocent, and I don’t want anyone here harmed, or any continuation of this vendetta of yours. My son T is not to be harmed, or Elle, or anyone else besides Devlin. I’m sick of blood and death and loss. I’m sick of this whole Vampire world, of always being in the darkness, of always being fed on! I want out of it, to just live somewhere quietly until I die. You can come to me, and give me the blood on a regular basis, but otherwise I want no more of any of it. Venus will come with me, and she and I can disappear. I have some money hidden away.” The sincere bitterness and hate in my words were almost thick enough to choke me, but I got the words out with effort.
Ulysses narrowed his eyes. “I wouldn’t have thought you’d have it in you, to kill your lover. You Oathed to him again willingly, or so I heard.”
“He took it by force.” I paused, then pushed the last of my speech out. “I’m in love with his best friend, and he’s in love with me. Devlin forbade me being with him, unless I gave him the Oath. We want to be free of Devlin, so we can just be together, the two of us. But he can’t bring himself to do it. They have too much history together. I’m not strong enough, not to mention Dev could probably stop me with just his mind.” You’re rambling, wrap it up. “Once it’s done, Lash will protect me, and Venus. It might not be a great life, but it will be a good enough one. I want this fucking choker off my neck. I’m tired of being owned.”
Ulysses gazed at me, considering. “I saw the way Lash looked at you, how he touched you. It’s fact that you’ll never get that choker off any other way except by Devlin dying. But why should I trust you, Sarelle McGarran?”
I took a deep breath, my feeling of betrayal as I spoke the words making me nauseous. “Because I understand you wanting revenge for your sister, for what he did to her, and later Diana. Dev’s hurt a lot of people thoughtlessly. You risked your life, even became vampire, to try to even the score. You sacrificed yourself for her, in a way. I respect that, even if I’m horrified by the means you used, and the lengths you went to.” In a softer tone I added, “Your sister is alive, and unturned. Once you kill Devlin, she will awaken, and be free of him. He told me this himself, so it must be true. She’s in a room by herself, under a spell, as she has been for over a month.”
When I mentioned that Diana was alive, his eyes went wild with hope. Then fear smashed down. “Why did he not kill her?”
“He planned to. V stopped him. It’s only because of my daughter that your sister lives.”
Ulysses nodded. His words when he spoke were emotional. “I give you my word, Sarelle, the same word I gave Diana, that I would avenge Heather,” he said, his green eyes locked on mine. “I will only harm Devlin.” He paused. “Lash, Venus, and you should leave Hayden today and disappear, at least for a few years. The Rulers will know you and he played a part in Dalcon’s death. I’ll give you my protection, but I know enough not to trust Samuel.” He paused again. “There is a werebear living here by the name of Jerry. He’s been feeding me information this whole time. When you feel that you need more of the blood, call Hayden and ask for him, only him. Say that you are Heather and that you need a visit soon from me. He’ll contact me immediately. Just call, whenever you need the blood. Within a day I can come to you, or you can teleport to me here, or some neutral ground, whatever works best.”
I nodded. “Agreed.”
“Set me free,” he whispered seductively through the bars. “And I will set you free.”
“Come to me,” I said nervously, swallowing hard. “And please be gentle when you feed from me. I’ve been bitten so often for so long that now it always brings me pain, not pleasure. Devlin also took a lot from me last night, so please don’t take too much, or I’ll lose consciousness.”
Ulysses got up with ease, walking across the cell towards me. Danial didn’t come close to draining him, though he’s clearly much weaker. Did Devlin give him some human blood, to keep him healthy? Afraid but determined, I opened the door with the key Lash had left for me this morning, and set Ulysses free. He stepped outside the cell, then stood before me, staring at me.
I trembled under his steady gaze, but didn’t run.
“I’ll feed from you after I kill him,” he said finally. “And then only if I need to. I’ll need your help with Devlin, and if you’re too weak, you won’t be able to give me assistance. He is far stronger than I am now.”
This wasn’t part of my plan. “What do you want me to do?”
“Distract him,” Ulysses instructed. “Go into the bedroom first, ahead of me. If he’s awake, pretend you want him, whatever it takes so you have his full attention. Otherwise, he may sense me. Yell ‘now’ at the opportune moment. I’ll come in, and kill him.”
He took the stake, then to my surprise, he kissed my hand. “I’m sorry, for what I did to you. Understand that this was never about you. I had to get revenge for my sister.”
“I understand,” I said coolly. “Please follow me.”
I went ahead of him, creeping up the stairs. Ulysses waited outside the door I indicated, motioning for me to act.
I entered the room, walking quickly to the bed. I caressed the shoulder of the sleeping form. “Devlin, are you sleeping? I need you—”
Ulysses burst through the door with an evil smile, stake in hand.
The door slammed shut behind him. Ulysses whirled to throw the stake, as Lash hit him with enough force to knock him across the room into the sliding glass doors. The stunned vampire grabbed the curtains as he fell. As planned, they came down with the sound of tearing cloth, letting sunlight flood into the room. Devlin, hidden under two heavy blankets on Lash’s bed, was protected. Ulysses was not.
He shrieked, his skin already smoking, trying to get out of the light. Lash picked up the vampire’s smoking form with his gloved hands as I opened the glass doors. He tossed Ulysses out through opening onto the large deck into the snow, pulling off the thick black curtains Ulysses was desperately trying to cover himself with in the process. Ulysses screamed louder, over and over, as his skin began quickly to flake off, then to burn and crisp. The burning vampire tried to get past us to safety, but Lash with a snap of his wrist curled his whip around him, then dragged him back into the sun, holding him beneath its light as more and more smoke poured off him, his skin blazing alight as if he’d been dipped in gasoline.
“Scream for me!” Lash hissed loudly, with brutal satisfaction, holding Ulysses with his whip. “You’re so fond of burning people, have a taste of it yourself!”
“Why?” Ulysses shrieked, his lips peeling, melting. “Why, Sarelle?”
“Because you hurt my daughter, and the people I love,” I shouted at him. “I don’t need a reason better than that.”
“Dalcon deserved it, he deserved—”
“Elle was innocent!” I screamed at him. “I would have killed you just for that, you bastard! Just for even trying to hurt her like that, for thinking it! You sealed your fate when you hurt her!”
“No! It can’t end like this! I can’t fail my sister, I can’t! Argh! Argh!”
Ulysses screamed for a long time, his vengeful cries becoming desperate shrieks, his skin blackening and burning, melted fat sizzling and bubbling on the deck. Finally, he collapsed, first to his knees, and then completely to the deck floor. He kept burning, kept smoking, the stench sickening. An hour later, all that remained of him was a large black scorched mark on the deck floor, and a diminishing pile of ashes, blowing away in the gentle wind.
Lash coiled up his whip, looking sadly at the burned parts of it. The braided leather had charred from the heat and broken in places. “I’ll have to get a new one,” he said with a sigh, looking sorrowful. “This one’s had it. Vampires burn too hot, even for the heavy duty protective spells Titus put on this.”
I hugged him, and kissed him. “I’ll buy you one, Lash,” I murmured gratefully, holding him. “Thank you for helping me kill him.”
“I told you if you ever needed my help, it was yours,” he hissed tenderly, kissing my cheek. “Though I wish you had just let me kill him in the cellar, and not risked yourself. A full clip or two of the explosive bullets would have done it, weak as he was.”
“I wanted to see him burn. He had it coming, Lash. I remember Devlin’s screams. I hear them sometimes again, in my nightmares. And I remember how we found Elle...”
Lash looked down at me, his expression searching. “I was worried for a minute, Sar,” he hissed. “You sounded like you were really going to do it, let him kill Dev, and run off with me. I heard some truth in your words.”
“I had to sound believable,” I said, averting my gaze. “I needed him to come willingly. We’d never have gotten him up here where we could get him into the sun unless he thought I was going to help him.” I paused. “And there was some truth to my words. Some of the bitterness I feel in my situation is real. I did admire Ulysses a little, for going after his sister’s killer, despite him being human and Devlin being a Ruler, and so powerful. But I could never have been anything but an enemy of someone who’d done what he did to Elle. There was no other way for this to end. A bullet was way, way too quick and painless for him.”
Lash hugged me, his tenseness leaving his shoulders. “I’m glad he didn’t feed on you,” he whispered. “I was never comfortable with that part of the plan. Even being under that cloaking spell, and being close enough to hear everything, I was worried. If he had wanted to hurt you—”
“I’m fine,” I assured. “And Devlin’s also fine. He’ll be asleep for hours. Titus said that injection I gave him would ensure he stayed out.”
“You know he’s going to be pissed,” Lash interrupted, grinning slightly. “He wanted to hold Ulysses for a while, to torture him.
“I wasn’t risking it,” I said with a shrug. “You kill your enemies, not keep them captive.”
“I agree,” Lash said, pulling me tight against him. “I feel much better knowing he’s ashes.”
“You aren’t even a little regretful?” I said, caressing his cheek. “You know part of the reason Devlin was keeping him alive was going to be to provide blood for you, if you needed it.”
“Shh, don’t talk about that,” Lash hissed, hugging me close. “It wasn’t worth it. As you said, you kill your enemies. Because of what you and I did, we know who the weak link was that cost Robin her life.” His tone turned low and scary. “Jerry will be getting a visit from me this afternoon. Keith, Seth, and the other bears have already grabbed him, on my orders, and should be on their way to the cells with him about now. And when I’m done, Titus will have his monthly meal ready for him when he gets to work tonight.”
Eww. Don’t think about it, Sar. Don’t grimace too much, either, or you’ll make Lash feel bad, for what he’d had to do in the past. “Come on,” I said, breaking away from him. “We’d better get Dev back in his own bed. I’m worried about him here in your room, so vulnerable, and so close to the sun.”
Lash nodded. He picked Devlin up wrapped in the blankets, and carried him back into his own bed, where I lay him beneath the sheets, and gave him a gentle kiss. We walked out, locking the door after us, and back into Lash’s room, where I helped him rehang the curtains over the sliding glass door, plunging the room again into darkness.
Lash came to me, wrapping his arms around me. “Can I interest you in some celebratory sex?”
I giggled, then turned to him. “You didn’t find me just by scent, did you? You can see in the dark, can’t you?”
“Of course, though it’s not the same as regular sight,” Lash said, his tone both amused, and also surprised. “Most weres can. But I can scent you too, Sar. My sense of smell is better than my eyes, in the dark.” He paused. “Sar?”
“Mmmhmm?”
“I want to know something, about you...and Theo.”
“Ask.”
“Well, two things, actually.”
Must be important, to swing his thoughts off sex. “Ask already, then.”
“If I’d died back in September, and you were still with Theo...would you have taken Ulysses’ deal, to be free of Devlin?”
“No. He hurt my daughter. Even if he hadn’t, Devlin I know well enough to manage. In spite of his actions sometimes, I do believe he loves me. Ulysses would have just been another master who would have used my dependence on him against me. I don’t want another man having control over me. I don’t want another man in my life who wants control over me.”
“You know I don’t want that, right? I mean, I want you to let me know where you are, and sometimes to promise not to go places or do some things, but that’s so I can pro
tect you.”
“I get it,” I kissed him tenderly. “So what’s the other question?”
“Come to bed, and I’ll ask it.”
We took off our clothes, and got in his bed, lying together, our bodies entwined. “Spill it,” I said finally, when he hadn’t made any move to speak.
“What did you talk about, with him?” Lash’s voice in the darkness was very hesitant, yet also driven.
“What did I talk about with who?”
“Theo.”
“When?”
“When you were together.”
I gave him a look to let him know I thought his question was very odd, then turned on the light near the bed before turning to face him. “Why do you want to know this?”
“You seem to not know a lot about weres and yet you were married to one for over a year. Hell, you dated, well, lived with one for longer than that. You did things with me as friends that you didn’t do with Theo, like discussing books, getting sushi, or lying in the sun. He was your mate, and you acted as though you loved him. So in all that time you were together, what did you talk about, that you don’t know so many things about weres? Did he not talk to you?”
“We didn’t talk a lot, like you and I do,” I said, blushing. “We watched a lot of movies, and we bantered a lot, made a lot of jokes, and we had a lot of sex. I had work to do, and so did he. We had children to raise. A good part of the marriage we were working on our problems, like the women he’d been with before and after me, my attraction for Danial, my health, the people trying to kill us. Later, it was Devlin and Danial, all that sharing me that no one really liked. That was what killed it, I think. We stopped talking sometime during the marriage, and he started dictating things to me. And...” I trailed off.
“Go on, Sar.”
“I had Titus break the bond between Theo and me, after I got back from the Everglades.”
“Why?” Lash was incredulous. “It’s rare what you shared with him.”
“Because I loved him enough to let him go, because he wasn’t going to be happy sharing me,” I forced out. “I think now a lot of what kept us together was the bond. Yes, the sex was good, even great. But although I liked him, cared for him, what did we have in common? Almost nothing. Once we hit problems, we fell apart. Without that bond to keep us together, Theo would probably have left me when I began to want Danial. And that’s even if he ever admitted he liked me in the first place. Without that spell that night, he wouldn’t have kissed me the first time, or dreamed with me. There would have been nothing to start, so there would have been nothing to end.”
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