She was freaked out.
Honestly, he couldn’t blame her.
So, he got up when they were with death and came to the only place he fit in.
Work.
Sitting there, he tried to get some work done. As he flipped through the case file, he tried to find something that would help him lock down the killer.
His gut was saying one thing.
Only, it was hard to concentrate.
Closing his eyes, he sent out a silent plea.
‘Jolie, forgive me.’
Then, he went back to work.
* * * H a r c o u r t e * * *
Jolie needed to think.
When she told Chloe to wake her early, she expected Flynn to be in bed with her.
Only, he wasn’t.
He was gone.
“Where is he?” she asked.
Chloe glanced at the clock on the wall. “He left for work about four hours ago. He didn’t look well, Mistress. I think something had him stirred up.”
“That can’t be good.”
Chloe didn’t say anything.
“I need Vanth.”
When Chloe blinked, the swirling black vortexes told the tale.
She was there.
“Can you take me to Flynn? I don’t want to leave alone, and Jacques needs to rest.”
“I can, Mistress.”
“Can I ask you something?”
Vanth paused. “Yes, of course.”
“Will you tell me the truth, even if it’s bad?”
“Yes, if that’s what you wish.”
She tried to find a way to ask this.
“Just say it.”
“Flynn told me that feeding our children has converted them into something else. Is that true?”
Vanth placed her hand over Jolie’s baby bump.
“Yes. It is.”
Tears filled her eyes.
“Why are you sad?”
“Because our kids are going to have to serve Death, and now even Flynn’s baby is…changed.”
Vanth sat. “So, you don’t like what Flynn has become?”
Jolie glanced over at the demoness. “No, I don’t mind it. I mean, I love him, so I accept it.”
“But you hate your kids now.”
Jolie stammered. “Wait, no! I didn’t…”
“Yes, you just did. Flynn is a vampyre with some demon thrown in. You’re having two vampyre babies with a little demon added in. You’re not having mutations of anything evil. You’re having Flynn and Jacques’s babies. How you choose to raise them will be how they live their lives.”
She thought about it.
“He wants to name his daughter Azriel.”
Vanth grinned. “That’s an appropriate name. You might not believe it, but Azriel is a beautiful legacy.”
“What does it mean?” Flynn had told her, but she wanted to see if he’d been serious.
“Angel of destruction.”
It appeared he had been.
Jolie thought about it.
“Flynn gave them a safety net, Mistress. He wanted to share what he now carries. He can’t die. They can’t kill him. While he’s spending his future watching over you and Jacques, the children will be stronger and better equipped. What you see as a curse, he sees as a gift.”
Jolie listened.
“If you make him feel horrible about this, he’s going to think you see him the same way. To Flynn, he’s making lemonade with the lemons you’ve found. He’s trying to keep his family safe the best way he can. He sacrificed for you two, and now he’s trying to ensure your babies have that same safety.”
She knew Vanth was right.
“I’ll fix this.”
Vanth believed she would.
“Get dressed. I’ll take you there.”
Jolie headed into her closet. She couldn’t let Flynn hurt.
It wasn’t fair.
She would make it right.
Their family would be strong.
Demon or not.
* * * H a r c o u r t e * * *
He knew when she arrived.
He could feel her.
Plus, the precinct was reacting to her being there. Then again, it always did when Jolie was around. Being pregnant, she gave off enough pheromones to take down an army of men. Any second, they’d swarm, and Flynn would have to kill them all.
Glancing up, he didn’t move.
He couldn’t help but replay her words last night as they thought he slept.
She was scared.
Hurt.
Angry.
Flynn hoped this wouldn’t be a scene. He prayed that Jolie wouldn’t cry, or be upset in there because he wouldn’t be able to control himself. He’d go into protection mode, and then the other cops would ride his ass.
“Can we talk?” she asked.
He still said nothing.
Jolie noticed he was scared. She could see it in his eyes. The normally serene blue was troubled. It killed her that she’d put it there.
“Flynn.”
He stood, his chair sliding back. “Not here. I like to keep my personal life that.”
He didn’t wait for her.
Instead, he began crossing the room to the hallway that led to the crash rooms. In there, they’d have some privacy.
Flynn held the door open for her. When Jolie stepped in, he wasn’t far behind. With his thumb, he flicked the lock shut on the door.
“What do you want to say?”
Jolie heard it in his voice.
He was hurt.
“Flynn.” When she went to move toward him, Flynn took a step back. That hurt, but she likely deserved it.
Jolie couldn’t blame him.
“I heard what you said last night. I heard you tell Jacques that you’re not happy that I kept this from you. Had you known, would you really have stopped drinking from me?”
He needed to know.
Flynn couldn’t face the unknown without this.
“No. I can’t stop drinking from you, Flynn, and I had time to let it soak in.”
He stared at her. “When do I get time to let it soak in, Jolie? When do I get to mourn what I’ve possibly lost? I love you, but it’s not all about you. Sometimes, it has to be about me too.”
She was shocked.
Flynn never said anything like this out loud.
“If you’re unhappy…”
“Shut up, Jolie. Just stop, okay? This is the LAST thing I need right now. I’m not unhappy. I’m confused, I’m battling something so huge, and I feel alone. The two people I love are afraid of me. That hurts.”
She was sure it did.
She’d been in that position.
“I’m not afraid of you, Flynn. I trust you. I know you won’t hurt me, or the babies, or us. It’s just hard to deal with all this. My children…” She placed her hand lovingly over them. “Azriel and baby two, they matter. I never felt like this before. Motherhood has made me realize that it’s not about me. It’s about them. So, what you heard last night,” she offered, seeing him flinch, “was me worried for them and what they’ll face.”
He rolled his neck to alleviate some of the tension.
“Are you tired?” she asked.
“No. I don’t need to sleep. That’s a bitch because I enjoyed it.”
“Have you tried calling death?” she asked. “You’re half vampyre, so you’ll have to let it take you when you need to rest.”
He shrugged.
“Want me to teach you?”
Jolie was offering an olive branch.
“No, that’s fine.”
“I see.”
Only, she didn’t.
Flynn got angry. He shoved the chair into the wall. “No, you don’t see. I’m a monster. You’re right. Everything you said was right. I selfishly fed our children my tainted blood, and I made them into monsters too. Death is running this show, and I can’t stop it.”
Jolie moved toward him.
Even as he tried to evade her, she purs
ued. Jolie knew that this was a defining moment. She moved into his body as he was pressed to the wall.
“I love you. God, Flynn Xavier Brogan, I love you more than anything in this world. Don’t push me away. I need you. It’s not the same anymore. The rules have changed, and I don’t know how to do this without you.”
He let her press against him.
The scent of her hair helped him relax.
The touch of her body eased the pain.
“Jolie.”
“Please, Flynn. Forgive me for hurting you. I know you deserve better. I know I damned you the day I met you, but I can’t live without us. Jacques can’t either. Forgive me for being a bitch about this. I’m trying. I swear I am.”
He believed her.
“You feel tired,” he said.
“Your children are wearing me down,” she admitted. “At my age, two babies are very hard. I thought I was strong, but I’m seeing that this is why eight hundred year old vamps don’t have children. We look young, but we feel old.”
He wrapped his arms around her body to hold her. “Did you feed this morning?”
“Some energy.”
“You know you can’t live on energy alone, baby.”
Jolie was relieved. They were back to terms of endearment. That was a good sign.
“I know, handsome. My issue was my sexy donor bailed on me. Jacques is still with death, so I was on my own.”
Flynn lifted her chin. “I’ll feed you.”
“I can’t.”
He paused. “Why?”
“I need to hear that you still love me. You didn’t say it back. That scares me.”
“Afraid a demon-y vamp can’t love?” he asked.
It was his fear.
Flynn was so worried that he’d morph into that monster that he wouldn’t hold onto the things that mattered.
Her.
Them.
“I’m afraid you’ll stop loving me. You’re no longer bonded. We don’t have your soul. It’s gone. There’s nothing to tie you to me. If you leave, I’ll die of a broken heart.”
He kissed her on the tip of the nose. “Jolie, there’s so much that keeps me here. I’m tied to you by our child. Even without her, I’m tied to you by my heart. I do love you. I died for you. I can’t give more. My life was all I had left.”
“You have more.”
“Do I?”
“I want to get married.”
Flynn stared at her. “Now you decide this?” he said, laughing.
“I’m just throwing it out there. You’re less human, but I still think it would be amazing.”
“We can…”
She touched her fingertips to his lips.
“No. I don’t want to plan it. I want it to be spontaneous. When it happens, it happens. I know it’s a human thing, but I’ve always wondered what it would be like.”
“Who are you marrying? Me or Jacques.”
She grinned.
“Like I said, it’ll be spontaneous. We’ll cross that bridge after we stop the Tueur.”
He unbuttoned his collar and opened his tie. “Still hungry?” he asked.
“Ravenous. Want to have sex?” she asked hopefully.
He laughed. “No. We’re not getting naked in the police station in a room where other cops take naps.”
She shrugged. “Bock bock.”
He wasn’t falling for it.
Flynn lifted her so she could reach his throat. What he wasn’t expecting was for Jolie to attack. She didn’t hesitate. Her fangs found the soft part of his neck.
And she drank.
And drank.
As she gulped from him, all the sexy images she was thinking about played through his mind. Flynn knew she wasn’t trying to turn him on, but she was.
“So not fair,” he muttered as she tugged on his hair to keep his neck available.
Jolie couldn’t think.
The taste of her mate was intoxicating.
As she continued to drink, Flynn moaned. He was hard and wanted nothing more than to take Jolie. As she kept feeding, her body ground against his.
It was stealing his breath.
As his hands wandered up her thighs, he pictured himself sliding into her body.
She begged into his mind.
He was just about to do it when there was a knock on the door.
“Flynn, we got a call. We have another victim, and they think it’s related to our case, but the killing has changed,” Tommy Gress said.
“Coming,” he said.
And he nearly was.
Jolie took that as her sign. As she released him, she was licking her lips.
“I could never give that up.”
“Yeah, demon tastes good.”
“No, Flynn tastes good. You don’t taste any differently, only that I can drink more. That’s a good part, but you’re still my mate.”
“I have to go to the scene.”
“I’ll head home,” she offered.
“Who brought you here?”
“Vanth. I’ll be fine by myself.”
Flynn opened his mouth and then closed it. “You’re trying to get me to take you with me, aren’t you?”
She laughed. “Can’t fool you, big guy.”
Flynn grinned. “Can I have a kiss first? It only seems fair,” he said.
Jolie rewarded him with one hell of a lip lock.
As soon as she broke free, he was breathing heavily. “That was really nice.”
“I’m glad you thought so,” she admitted, fixing his shirt and tie. When his hair was straightened, they were ready.
“Thank you for taking me with you.”
He knew the alternatives.
“Stick close,” he ordered, opening the door.
When they headed out, everyone in the squad room began clapping.
He glared at them.
“See? Perverts. I work with a bunch of horny freaks.”
Jolie took his hand in hers and simply laughed. What Flynn didn’t realize was that he was a little like them too.
And that’s how she liked him.
* * * H a r c o u r t e * * *
Crime Scene
When Flynn, Jolie and Tommy pulled up, there were cops everywhere. That helped Flynn stay calm. He doubted that the Tueur was going to come at them in daylight and with people all over the place.
That wasn’t their style.
Now Flynn could focus on the victim.
They hadn’t gotten much in from the crime scene. Instead, they were only told there was trauma.
Maybe their killer was losing it.
As they approached, Flynn saw his captain there.
That didn’t bode well.
When the man turned, he pointed right at him and Jolie. “Here!”
They approached, Flynn wearing his badge around his neck, and Jolie closely to his side between the two males.
“I’m glad the doctor is here. We have a mess.”
Tommy pulled out his notepad. “I’ll start the canvasing,” he offered, heading away.
“You need to lock this one down, Flynn. We’re dealing with a sicko. We don’t need the news getting pictures of this one.”
Flynn got it.
Time was running out, and his boss wasn’t going to be playing nice much longer.
“We’ll check it out and Jolie will see if she can help me tie this together,” he offered.
“Make sure. I want a report on my desk ASAP on this one. Doctor, get this handled.”
They watched as he stormed away, heading for the media to do damage control.
“We’re in a parking lot,” Jolie stated. “They weren’t hiding the body. They wanted it found.”
Yeah, Flynn was thinking the same damn thing.
As they headed there, the victim had been covered with a sheet. Leaning down, he pulled it from the body.
Jolie gasped.
Flynn growled.
Yeah, they definitely wanted this body found.
Why?
>
It was Doctor Tomes, and Flynn had been the one who killed him.
This was going to be a problem.
∞ Chapter Thirty-Two ∞
When they returned to the house, Jacques was just pulling from death. As he stretched and rolled over, he found his mates sitting there.
They were silently watching him.
“Oh no, what happened. You two look upset.”
They were.
Flynn told him all about what they had encountered at the crime scene. He didn’t leave a single detail out.
“That’s not good. They wanted you to find him. Someone is screwing with us.”
He was well aware.
Flynn’s eyes bled black. “I don’t want her anywhere without one of us. She isn’t to risk herself or our children. I didn’t give up everything not to have Azriel born.”
Jacques lifted a brow.
As did Jolie.
“Uh, I’m not property. I’m the…”
“If you say Primus, I’m going to spank you as hard as I can.”
She stared at him.
“Primus.”
He lunged for her.
Jolie laughed, lightening the mood. “Are you going to be okay?” she said, when he was cradling her in his arms.
“I think so. I’m trying to control it as best I can.”
They knew Flynn wasn’t talking about his temper. He was definitely discussing what lived in him.
“We’re visiting our favorite priestess, aren’t we?” Jacques asked.
“We are,” Jolie confirmed. Then, she looked at Flynn. “Can you contact Death?” she asked.
“I can.”
“I need her.”
Flynn closed his eyes. When they opened, they were the darkest shade of black either vampyre had ever seen. When the energy in the room shifted, they knew their mistress was on her way.
As Death appeared, she was leaning against Flynn.
“Hello, sexy. You wanted me?” she purred, licking his neck with her forked tongue.
It pissed Jolie off, but she didn’t say anything.
“I can hear you, Harbinger. Don’t worry. Your Flynn isn’t even remotely interested in me. He’s thinking about fucking you. Aren’t you, pet?”
Flynn growled in response.
Dangerous Influence (The Harcourte Vampyre Society Book 5) Page 39
