by Nia Shay
"I do," he protested. "But...."
"Then go." I put every bit of authority I could muster into the word. "Sara needs your help."
She sniffled. "But what about you, Jade?"
I forced a smile for her concern despite of my mounting frustration. "I'll be fine, sweetie. Listen, you get at least ten miles away, then find a phone and call your sister. She'll tell you where she is--meet her there. Do not go home."
Sara gave a feeble nod and burst into tears again. That finally motivated Zeph to lead her out of the room, though he looked daggers over his shoulder the entire way. I waited until their footsteps faded on the stairs before I faced Brax down.
"Alone at last." He flashed a wicked smile. "Are you sure you want to pass the time talking?"
"Knock it the hell off." Damn it! The words were out of my mouth before I could call them back. Scolding him hadn't been part of my game plan. I looked away before his goading grin could touch off my temper in earnest. "Thank you, by the way. For letting her go."
"You're most welcome," he replied easily. "Such a lovely girl. It would've been a shame to see her hurt."
"If you didn't want to hurt her, did you really have to involve her in that?" I gestured vaguely toward Kevin's corpse. "She's going to be scarred for life."
"Oh, she didn't even watch. Though admittedly it was a little noisy." He snickered. "And anyway, I thought she'd be pleased. I don't usually eat heart--too chewy for my liking--but she was very specific."
"Oh God," I muttered, looking away.
"The lungs, however, are delectable. Subtle, yet rich in flavor, and fun to eat too. Like sponge cake." He captured me again with those beautiful blue eyes. Somehow he'd inched closer than I remembered him being a moment ago. "Would you like to split one?" he offered. "I'm sure they're still good."
"What? No!" Appalled, I shoved him away from me, putting all my weight into it. As he scrabbled to keep from falling off the bed, I shot to my feet and retreated to the doorway.
His smile returned as he rose to match me, seeming unperturbed by my outburst, though a keen, searching look had come into in his eyes. "Hmm," he mused at length. "You're just full of surprises, dear heart."
"Did you actually expect me to say yes?" I cried. "I don't eat people! I'm not a demon!"
He crooked an eyebrow at me. "Can you say that for certain?"
"Yes I can," I retorted, despite the nagging doubt he'd raised in my mind. Damn, what a sly bastard. With just one comment he'd managed to shake me, and to remind me of my purpose in staying behind.
But he could get rattled, too--I'd seen it firsthand. I just had to throw him off balance somehow and gain control of the situation. I'd start with the unexpected, then. Though I'd pretty much blown my chance at believable flirting, I lowered my gaze in a way I hoped looked demure.
"So. Why were you so hot to hold hands with me?"
"Because I happen to enjoy touching you," he replied, that devious note coloring his tone. "You're right, you know. This is the first time we've ever met quite this directly. Not that I don't thoroughly enjoy sweetening your dreams as well, but this has been a singular evening for us, dear heart. In many ways."
I looked back up, surprised to find him just within arm's reach again. The man moved like a ghost. "Have you really been protecting me since I left Zeph?" I asked. I didn't believe the "protecting" bit for a minute, but I'd stroke his ego anyway.
"I'd rather you stroke me elsewhere."
Ah, hell! I'd let myself forget, again, that he could read my mind like a billboard. He winked at me, but grew serious again. "And you still won't trust me. That complicates things."
I scowled at him. "Give me one good reason why I should trust you."
"If you assume I'm lying to you, I'm not sure how I can. But think about it, sweetness. If your fall from the nephilim's graces really broke your mind as badly as you think, why haven't you been plagued with nightmares all this time?"
"Just lucky, I guess."
"If you mean lucky to have someone looking out for you, you're right. That was my assignment, at first--to protect your mind, and to keep that pesky psychic link as clouded and useless as possible, so he couldn't control you."
He'd flinched almost imperceptibly as he said that last bit, and I smiled, sensing a sore spot. "Didn't do so hot at that, did you?"
"Oh, plans have gone a bit off track." He waved a dismissive hand. "I was getting bored, so I decided to shake things up a little. Some of the results have been...unexpected."
"Yeah? Like getting me killed?"
Now his mouth turned down. "I'm still hoping to avoid that. Which would be easier if you'd come away with me right now, but I don't suppose you will."
Like hell. "Tell me why you went after Zeph in the first place."
"Boss's orders, I'm afraid." He shrugged, a nonchalant gesture, though his tone suggested something far more personal. "It could have been one of my more boring assignments, but I found ways to make it fun."
I blinked. "You weren't getting all hot and heavy in his dreams too, were you?"
I'd expected him to take offense at the question, but inexplicably, he laughed. "I prefer female flesh, but one partakes of what one must."
That had to be the world's first quintuple entendre. I ignored it, planting my hands on my hips. "That's right. Torment, kidnapping, murder...it doesn't mean anything to you, does it? This is all just an 'assignment.'"
"Oh, no. Not at all." He glided another step closer, grinning widely enough to expose his teeth again. "It's a game, dear heart, one I fully intend to win. And once I've claimed my prize--" the heat in his gaze left no doubt as to which "prize" he referred, "--I look forward to savoring it thoroughly."
I fell back as he advanced. "You're gonna eat me too, huh?"
"My darling, I will devour you for hours. Night after night after night."
In the blink of an eye he stood toe-to-toe with me. One arm slid around the small of my back. "Don't!" I cried, bracing my hands against his chest. But he moved too quickly. I never had a chance to push him away before he'd lifted me off my feet, drawing me in tight against his body. With my arms pinned in between us, I could only thrash and kick. "Put me down, damn you!"
"Stop that, now. You're being childish." He swung me around to one side.
"No! Let go of m...!"
I shrieked again as he set me back on my feet just as abruptly as he'd grabbed me. I landed off balance thanks to my squirming. I staggered, clinging reflexively to his shoulders. His hands lingered on my back to keep me upright.
"I'd suggest you learn to look where you're going," he reproved, with a meaningful glance at the spot where I'd stood a moment before. I'd backed right out of the bedroom and onto the landing, about three steps away from the balustrade. At the rate I'd been moving I might have toppled right over it.
That was the last straw. Helpless tears stung my eyes, and I fought to keep them from spilling. I'd been running in emotional overdrive for the last twenty-four hours straight, and now this latest burst of adrenaline had nowhere to go--no danger to escape, no battle to be fought. The bad guy had just saved my ass. And was still holding me, tenderly, as if I were a china doll. Nothing made sense anymore.
"Let go of me," I said again, my voice trembling as hard as the rest of me.
"Step away," he countered. "I won't stop you."
I should have, even if it meant falling down in a heap when my knees inevitably buckled. But my legs wouldn't obey the command. Survival instinct ruled, and that primitive part of me wouldn't be moved from away his solidity, the sense of safety he offered. God, he was right. My body did recognize him. And it was responding.
"Yes," he whispered, triumph gleaming in the depths of those baby blues. "I told you. I'm not the bad guy."
"Then who are you?"
His free hand brushed my cheek, framing it. "I'm yours." Another echo, from another dream. His gaze fixed on my lips, going soft and unfocused. "Let me kiss you, sweetness."
&nbs
p; My breath hitched in my throat as hot tingles erupted all over my body. No, no, no, this wasn't right. "This is hardly the time or place," I protested weakly.
One corner of his mouth curved upward as he bent his head toward mine. "I'm not hearing 'no.'"
"I didn't say yes...."
The words had barely passed my lips before he covered them with his own. His fingers slid along my cheek, circling around to cradle the nape of my neck. Those hands that had ended a life, that mouth that had torn a body apart touched me so softly it stole the strength from my limbs. I sagged in his arms, near to swooning. Damn it all. I was as powerless against him here in the real world as I had been in our dreams.
He broke the kiss with a short laugh. "Powerless?" he repeated, incredulous. "Don't you see yet? You hold all the power over me."
"What are you talking about?"
"Really, sweetness." His brows drew together in a frown. "Do you think I wanted to fall in love with you, knowing this day would come eventually?"
My mouth fell open. "You are not in love with me. Stop saying things like that!"
He sighed and hung his head, leaning his forehead against mine as if talking to me was wearisome. "Have I lied to you yet, Jandra?"
"I wouldn't know. You've said a lot of things that can't be proven one way or the other."
"Ah, but this one's easy to prove." He traced my lower lip with a fingertip, the feather-light touch making me quiver. His mouth had just found mine again when the front door burst open with a crash.
"Jandra!" Zeph's shout rang from the rafters. I jumped back, mortified.
"Will you be careful?" Brax hissed, keeping hold of me as I nearly lost my footing again.
"We must leave, and now!" Zeph called out. "Something's happening!"
From his tone, I assumed he hadn't seen us yet and thought I was still in the bedroom. "Zeph!" I cried out, straining in Brax's grip. "Help me!"
A sigh grated in my ear. "Was that really necessary?" Brax let go of me abruptly and I stumbled, falling back against the wall. I let myself slide down it. By the time Zeph crested the stairs I sat on the floor at Brax's feet, one trembling hand pressed to my lips.
"What did you do to her?" he snapped.
Brax smiled his most insufferable smile. "Nothing she wasn't enjoying until you showed up."
Zeph bared his teeth in a snarl and leapt at him. They crashed to the floor beside me in a tangle of flying fists.
Twenty-Five
"Oh my God, you guys! Stop it!" I scrambled up onto my knees, watching for a chance to reach in and intervene. They struck and tumbled so fast my eyes could hardly make sense of it. Finally Zeph came out on top, pinning Brax by the shoulders.
Despite the blood trickling from one corner of his mouth, Brax's fierce grin never wavered. "Don't try my patience, nephilim. Besides, you haven't got time for this."
"Off!" I commanded, tugging at Zeph's shoulders.
"Keep out of this, Jandra," he replied through clenched teeth. "It doesn't concern you."
"Well, she did start it." Brax glanced at me and winked.
Zeph shook him, snapping his head against the floor. "Don't even look at her!"
"You stop now." I seized his arm and leaned backward, but for all my effort I barely budged him. He finally sat back of his own accord, turning uncomprehending eyes at me. Hell, I didn't know why I was defending the asshole, either.
"You have ten minutes at the most to get her out of here before the shit hits the fan," Brax informed us pleasantly as we stared at each other.
Zeph bared his teeth again. "I can kill you in five."
"Better than you have tried, nephilim. Anyway, don't let it be said I didn't warn you."
"Come on, Zeph," I pleaded. "We did what we came to do, didn't we? Sara's safe, and nobody had to get hurt in the process." Well, except for Wiener Boy, but since he was beyond help....
"No use crying over spilt blood," Brax appended to my unspoken thought.
"Will you please shut up?" Sighing, I curved my fingers around Zeph's cheek, drawing his blazing eyes away from Brax and back onto me. "Just get up, and ignore him. You said something's happening? What did you mean?"
"I don't know." He finally shifted his weight, allowing Brax to slither out from underneath him. "I have an odd pain in my stomach," he continued, frowning. "It grows worse by the second."
"Hmm." Brax looked up from a critical examination of his knuckles. "Perhaps you have even less time than I thought."
"All right, it doesn't matter. We're out of here." I stood, offering Zeph my hand even though he came practically to my shoulder even on his knees. He took it and kept it after he rose, kneading my fingers in his.
"Out the bedroom window would be your best bet." Brax had begun straightening his clothes, not looking at either of us. "It's a bit of a drop, but you shouldn't bruise too easily."
"And what about you?" I asked.
"What about me, dear heart?"
"Well, aren't you going to be in trouble when your boss gets here and finds out you let everyone escape?"
"Jandra, what bearing could that possibly have...?"
"Hush." I spared a glance for Zeph, then went back to studying Brax. Something in his demeanor had changed in the last few minutes. I captured his wandering gaze and held it. "I get it, okay? I can see that in your own weird way, you're trying to help us...."
"You," he cut in pointedly, scowling. "I am trying to help you."
"Whatever. My point being, since I'm on the Society's shit list now, I don't think anything you've done tonight is going to make you too popular around the water cooler. Am I right?" When he didn't answer, I offered him my other hand. "Come on."
Now he flashed me a quick, savage grin. "You can't be serious."
Was I? I reached again for anger, for hatred, and once again they slipped away before I could grasp them. He was a demon and a killer, but God help me, I couldn't bring myself to despise him. "Don't take this the wrong way," I muttered. "I still have a lot I need to ask you. Come now, and we'll work out the particulars later, all right?"
He looked from my face to my outstretched hand and back. Then, holding my gaze as he had before, he brought my knuckles to his lips. "I'm touched that you care, dear heart." He kissed them and let me go.
"Jandra...."
"Shut up, Zeph."
"Get out of here," Brax concluded, getting to his feet smoothly and without my aid. "Now."
"But...!"
"I'll slow them down for you." He met my gaze significantly. "Otherwise you won't make it half a block. Go on."
Damn it, I'd just had this same conversation with Zeph, only in reverse. I shook off a wave of deja vu and forced a grudging smile. "Thank you."
He echoed it with a ghostly one of his own. "It's what I do."
I still couldn't quite believe that, but he hadn't given me any reason to distrust him. At least not where my personal safety was concerned. With a sigh, I turned back toward the bedroom doorway. I started forward, but Zeph seemed rooted to the spot all of a sudden. I frowned over my shoulder at him. "Come on, let's get...."
My words trailed off as I noticed the frantic rise and fall of his chest. And our psychic link had gone blank again. Shit! I'd been so preoccupied with Brax, I hadn't noticed anything awry. "Zeph? Zeph, can you hear me?" I tugged on his hand again. But to no avail, as I'd feared. All the signs were there, right down to the trembling limbs and dilated pupils. Zeph was experiencing his second-ever panic attack.
"Son of a bitch!" I groaned, wrapping my arms around his waist. "Come on, baby. I need you to hear me. Please!" I aimed warmth and calming thoughts at him, but it all seemed to be swallowed up in a fog.
"What the hell are you doing?" Brax hissed, pulling at my shoulders. "Leave him behind! Just go!"
"No! I'm going to leave without him."
"Damn it, Jandra, it's you they want. Run! Get out of here!"
"What are you talking about?" I shook off his grip and looked back at him. "They're af
ter Zeph, not me."
Brax's eyes were huge in his pale face. "That's what I thought, too, but I was wrong."
"You are wrong. They want him, he foresaw it."
"Well, yes, they'll take him too, but him they'll just kill. If they get hold of you...you don't even want to know. Just run. Please, run!"
His fear stabbed at me, raw and sincere, a stunning contrast to the nothingness I felt from Zeph. Understanding came in a flash. "Quit blocking my link with him!" I spat.
"No. He'll only slow you down!"
"Well I'm not leaving him, so right now you're the only one slowing me down." With that, I turned my back on him again and grabbed both of Zeph's clammy hands in mine. "Come on, Zephyrus-Stratocaster, whatever the hell your name is!"
"Zephylostravakanastraeanemius." A new voice echoed from the open front doorway. "The last of impure blood."
Brax hissed softly. I glanced back at him to see his bleak expression smooth away, melting into a pleasant mask. "There you are, Markus," he called, making his way to the stairs and starting down. "What took you so long? I was starting to worry."
Markus? Why did that name sound familiar?
"I'm afraid Ms. Wheeler had to leave the ball a bit early," Brax prattled on cheerfully. "Seems she was afraid she'd turn into a pumpkin. I've no idea why, it's well past midnight already."
"Do you mean to say...?"
"Wait. You're Father Markus?" I interrupted, squinting at the shadowy figure in the doorway. His head tilted upward, following the sound of my voice.
Zeph finally stirred, clutching weakly at me. "Jandra, don't...."
"Oh, hell no! He's just the man I've been wanting to see." I stomped down the stairs, dimly aware of Zeph trailing behind me. "I've been meaning to speak to you about your employee disfigurement policy."
"Run NOW!" Brax's voice echoed eerily in my mind. He'd never reached out to me telepathically before--yet another tidbit from his demonic bag of tricks that I didn't want to know about. He flinched when I shoved past him, as if he'd have liked to grab me but had forced himself to refrain.
