by Susan Hayes
“You take better care of me than any man I have ever known.” She argued back.
He crouched down and lifted her into his arms. “Hold onto me. I am getting us down a safer way.”
She did as he instructed, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck and burying her face in the curve of his shoulder as he stepped to the edge of the roof.
“You’re not going to—.”
He jumped, landing easily in the grassy yard. “There, safe and sound.”
“Are you crazy?” She demanded as she stared up at the roof they’d just left. “That wasn’t safe!”
He grinned, amused at her outburst and enjoying the way she felt in his arms. He stopped her protests with a kiss before lowering her to the ground to stand on her own. “Of course it was. Being with you has made me more powerful than I have ever been. Our powers develop over time, as we age they grow stronger. I’ve been locked away without the energy I needed to use them until you found me. I’ve been getting stronger from the first time we met in your dreams. That small leap was nothing for me, Beauty. Don’t worry; I wouldn’t risk you getting hurt.”
*****
Keri didn’t want to hear about getting hurt, not when their time was coming to an end. Pain and heartbreak were on tomorrow’s agenda and she wasn’t ready to face them just yet. They still had tonight, and she intended to make the most of it.
“Ice cream, I need ice cream.” She declared and headed into the house, knowing he’d need to go more slowly, edging around the wall of the house because of the limits of his prison.
She was hunting for the ice cream scoop when she’d heard her phone buzzing. She’d nearly forgotten it existed, having never checked it since Alistair had appeared in her life. Grinning at herself for forgetting, she recalled Samantha’s words about whirlwind courtships and things getting out of whack as she dug the cell out of her purse and checked her voicemail.
The first call was time stamped from yesterday afternoon. “Hi Ms. Anderson, this is Josh, from the antique store. I am very embarrassed by all this, but it seems that my clerk gave your name to a woman who was also interested in the bed. I wasn’t aware she’d called inquiring about it a few days before you came in. Now the sale was final and there’s no problem at all, but she somehow managed to charm my staff into giving her your name and information. I just wanted to apologize for this; it’s against company policy to give out a customer’s information. I’m not sure how it happened, and if there’s anything I can do to make it up to you, please just let me know.”
Keri shrugged. Maybe she’d sell the bed to this other woman. Once Alistair was gone she couldn’t bear the thought of sleeping in it again. Not after everything that had happened. She hit a button and called up the second message, time stamped only a few hours ago. A woman’s voice, smooth and charming filled her ear. “Hello there. I hope you’re having a lovely holiday Ms Anderson. My name is Cora, and I believe you’ve purchased something I am interested in buying; an heirloom bed that once belonged to my family. I have been tracking it down for quite some time and I was hoping you’d consider selling it to me. It’s got great sentimental value. I’ll be out to the island tomorrow to talk to you about it in person, I’ve reserved a spot on the first ferry, I hope you don’t mind. I’ll see you then.”
Keri stood in the kitchen, the ice cream forgotten as she stared at her phone. “Oh shit!” She swore and tried to fight back the sick twist of panic that filled her gut. She turned and ran back to the bedroom, frantically calling Alistair’s name.
“What’s wrong? What is it?” He met her at the doorway, worry clearly etched on his handsome face.
“You need to hear this.” She punched up the message and handed the phone to him with shaking hands, showing him how to hold it to his ear. She hugged her arms to herself and tried to calm down. Tried to tell herself it couldn’t possibly be that Cora, it was impossible. One look at Alistair’s face as he heard the voice recording was enough to tell her otherwise.
Impossible or not, it was her. As Keri watched in misery all the color drained out of Alistair’s face and his eyes blazed with a golden light that had no warmth to it. When the message was done he hurled the phone across the room, shattering it. Then he threw back his head and roared.
Keri took several steps back, suddenly afraid of him. For the first time her heart recognized what he truly was; not a man but a daemon, dangerous and powerful beyond her understanding.
He reached out to her, his jaw tight but his eyes full of regret as she moved away from him. “Keri, no, please. Don’t fear me.”
“I’m trying not to, but it’s hard.” Her pulse pounded in her ears and she reminded herself that he had sworn to never hurt her. “It’s her, isn’t it?” She asked softly as one hand lifted and took his outstretched hand. “She’s found you and she’s coming to take you back.”
Strong fingers wrapped around her hand and tugged her into his arms, crushing her to him in a hold that left her barely able to breath. “Aye, it’s her. I won’t let anything happen to you Keri, I swear it. I’ll die before I let her touch you. I’ll find a way to end it, there will be nothing left for her to find, just you and an empty piece of furniture. She won’t hurt you if you don’t tell her what happened; she’ll think I died long before you found the bed.”
“No.” Keri nearly choked on the word, tears already burning her eyes. “No!” She said it again, louder. “You’re not going to die Alistair. You don’t have to. She’s never going to be able to use you again.”
“There’s no time.” He buried his face in her hair, every word he spoke heavy with rage and grief. “If we’d had more time, maybe we’d of found a way.”
She pulled out of his hug and literally climbed his body until she was within reach of his mouth, kissing him with every ounce of her being, her entire body wrapped around him. He kissed her back, his lips branding hers as he lifted her higher and held her as though he’d never let her go.
Time lost all meaning and they lost themselves in each other, clinging to the last bit of comfort they could take from the other.
It was Alistair who finally lifted his head, staring down at her with grim resolution in his eyes. “I have to go now, my beautiful Keri. What I need to do, it will take time.”
“No, it won’t.” She cupped his cheek tenderly and drew a shaky breath. “Take me to the bed.”
“There’s no time—” He argued but she laid a trembling finger over his lips.
“Trust me, please.” She felt his muscles bunch as he lifted her higher into his arms and carried her to the bed. “Boost me to your shoulders, I need to be higher.”
He did so in silence, not yet understanding what she was doing. She managed to get herself perched on his shoulders and pointed to one of the columns.
“That one, I need to get closer.” He walked over to it and put a hand against the post to steady them both while she reached up and tried to dig the medallion out with her nails. She struggled for purchase against the polished metal, the edge nearly flush with the wood.
“What are you doing Keri?” Alistair’s voice was low and cooler than she’d ever heard it. He stared up at her, doubt and distrust showing clearly as the first inklings of understanding dawned.
“Saving you from her.” She answered with a whimper of pain as she felt a fingernail tear. “Damn it, why won’t this thing release?” A flare of blue-green light surrounded her hand and they both heard a distinctive snick come from the top of the column. Keri held her breath and tried again to lift it out, and this time the medallion lifted easily into her hand.
“Put me down.” She directed him, her eyes fixed on the piece of metal in her hand, a trace of her blood smeared over the disturbing image etched into the face. As he lowered her to the ground she heard him growl in disbelief as he saw what she was holding.
“You lied to me.” The accusation was as raw as his voice.
“I’m sorry.” She stammered and offered
the medallion up to him with shaking hands. “I just—I wanted—please Alistair... I didn’t mean to—”
“You LIED!” He bellowed at her, his expression one of pure pain as he stared at her, then at the medallion. He took it from her with shaking hands and stepped backwards, putting distance between them. “I was willing to do anything for you Keri, I would have died to protect you, and you lied to me!”
She opened her mouth to protest, to try and explain it was only for this one day. Before she could utter a word he was gone, vanishing so quickly it made her head spin. The last thing she saw was his beautiful eyes, full of hurt and rage as he disappeared out of her life as suddenly as he had come into it.
“Alistair!” She sobbed his name and reached out to where he’d been standing only a second before. The world tilted at an odd angle and Keri found herself on the floor, her arms curled around herself as she cried. She stayed there a long time, until her muscles stiffened and the cold seeped into her joints.
Finally she got to her feet and wandered to the bathroom in a daze, splashing water on her tear swollen face. “He’s free.” She told her reflection in a voice rough and raw from crying. “He may hate you, but at least he’s free.”
Keri felt like she was thinking through a thick wrapping of cotton, every thought seemed dull and fuzzy. She made her way to the kitchen and spied the ice cream melting on the counter.
She put it back in the freezer and then kept tidying; dishes, counters, she even scrubbed the floor, anything to keep busy and distract her from the pain.
It was well past midnight when she was done, the entire kitchen spotless and gleaming. She headed back to her bedroom and started stripping the bed, everything going into a pile on the floor. His scent lingered on the fabric and she fought back another wave of tears as she gathered it all up and headed to the washing machine. He may be gone, but by the time Cora arrived she needed to get rid of every trace of evidence that Alistair had ever been there at all.
It had taken most of the night, but she’d done it. Even the browsing history of her laptop had been deleted by the time she let herself fall into an exhausted doze on the couch just as dawn came. Not that she got any real rest. Her dreams were fragmented, full of darkness and grief and when she woke only a few short hours later she felt as if she hadn’t slept at all. Knowing that her guest would be arriving soon, she turned on the coffee maker and went to shower. She had a role to play, and it was going to take a full tank of hot water, a big pot of coffee and a whole heap of luck to ensure Cora believed that Alistair had escaped long ago and the bed was only a bed.
*****
Alistair was ablaze with rage, letting it wash over and consume him. Hot fury was so much easier to accept than the empty place in his heart Keri’s betrayal had caused. Keri, who had ensorcelled him and then betrayed his trust and his heart. He crossed through the veil and let himself be guided home, trying to forget the haunted look in Keri’s tear filled eyes as he vanished. He stepped through the gateway and bent his thoughts to ones of home, knowing that both portal and residence would still be there, unchanged. Both were keyed to his life force, they would stand so long as he lived.
Home, he was home! He looked around him, relishing the sight of his own plane, his own place. How could he have thought to give this up for a mere mortal? This was where he belonged, no where else. He’d been foolish to think he would ever be happy anywhere else, being anything but what he was. Alistair, son of Anoch and Molla, was home.
He opened his fist, stared down at the medallion that had bound him for so long. It still had terrible power over him, but now he was home he would take it to his father, a daemon strong enough to destroy it forever. He snarled as he looked closely at the grotesque engraving for the first time. Keri had known it was there, and she’d lied to him, kept him bound to that bed and to her. Alistair threw back his head and roared in pain and rage, the walls trembling at the sound.
It didn’t take long for his family to sense his return. His mother had always had a powerful bond to her children, and the moment he crossed the threshold of his home he knew she would be able to feel his return. She arrived after only a few minutes, her pale hair in disarray and her bare feet making almost no sound as she ran across the room and threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly. “My son, you have come back to us.”
“Yes Mother, I am home.” He had to laugh as his mother’s emotions spilled over into a physical display of shimmering light that surrounded them both. “I missed you.” He admitted through the lump in his throat. “I have missed you all.”
“By Styx woman, dampen the glow!” A booming voice filled the room they were in. “Or are you trying to blind him his first day back with us?” A massive hand clapped down on Alistair’s back, knocking him forward a step. “I was starting to think you had forgotten the way home son.”
Alistair released his mother and turned to face his sire, bracing himself just in time to absorb most of the impact of the bear hug he was wrapped in.
“I came home as soon as I could.” He slapped his father on the back several times in greeting. “I have a great deal to tell you, and not much time.”
Anoch released his son and nodded. “What happened to you boy? Where have you been?”
Alistair opened his hand and revealed the medallion to his parents. “I’ve been a prisoner.”
Molla hissed in distaste at the medallion while her mate growled in fury.
“Sorcery.” They both spoke at once.
“What did I tell you about sorcerers?” Anoch looked from the medallion to his son and back, a deep scowl in his face.
“Consider that lesson well learned Father. Very well learned.”
“Now isn’t the time Anoch.” Molla reached out and passed her hand over the disc. “It’s still active!” She snatched her hand away as if it burned her. “Destroy it, now!”
Alistair looked to his father and offered him the medallion. “I haven’t the power.”
The older daemon took it, his fingers curling around the disc as a shimmer of flame engulfed his fist to the wrist. The flames went red, then white, then a brilliant blue and finally faded away. Ash fell from Anoch’s hand as he opened his now empty fist.
“It is done.” His eyes met Alistair’s. “Who did this to you, and where are they now? This isn’t finished.”
“No, it isn’t.” Alistair agreed. “I do not know where she is now, but I know where she will be in a few hours.” He began to outline his plan.
***
CHAPTER 10
She was brewing her second pot of coffee when she heard the rumble of a truck engine outside. Keri went to the window and peeked out, spotting a small cube van with the logo of a national rental agency splashed across its side. Pulling up behind it was a black sports car, and though it was too far away to make out the exact make, it was clearly expensive.
“I hope a seagull uses it for target practice.” She muttered to herself as she took a deep breath and went to greet her guests.
The two men that stepped out of the truck were huge. They lumbered up the walk like a pair of steroid pumped bookends, right down to their matching crew cuts. They stopped three feet from the doorway and stepped to each side of the path, giving Keri her first glimpse of Cora. So that’s what a sex kitten looks like. The thought struck Keri and she nearly giggled. From the tip of her red polished nails to the toes of her Jimmy Choo sandals, every part of this woman seemed to ooze sex appeal. She was wearing rings that winked and sparkled on almost every finger, and a torque of gold gleamed at her throat, the two ends only an inch or so apart and set with matching red stones Keri had no doubt were rubies.
“Hello there, you must be Keri Anderson. I hope you don’t mind my coming by so early.” Her dark eyes took Keri’s measure with a brief glance. “As I mentioned on the phone, my name is Cora D’Marco.”
“It’s nice to meet you Ms D’Marco, and there’s no problem with you coming by so early. I
was up late with the festivities but that’s nothing a little coffee won’t cure.” She gestured for the woman to come in. “May I offer you a cup?”
“Thank you but no, I’m fine.” She entered and the two bookends followed her right behind her, filling the entire hallway with their presence. “I hope you don’t mind if I get right to business? I’d like to see the bed and confirm it is the one I’ve been looking for.”
“Oh, of course.” Keri managed to plaster a smile on her face as she led them down the short hallway to her bedroom. “It’s in here. I’d only just gotten it cleaned up over the weekend.”
Cora took one look at the bed and her painted lips curved into a predatory smile. “That’s it.” She stepped past Keri as if she weren’t even there and walked around the bed, running her hands over the carvings with an almost seductive caress. “Oh yes.” She purred. “This is what I’ve been looking for.”
“Well if it belongs to your family, then I couldn’t possibly keep it from you.” Keri gestured to the bed. “It’s beautiful, but it wouldn’t be right for me to have it.”
Cora paused and glanced over her shoulder as if only just remembering Keri was there. “Oh, that’s very considerate. I’d like to offer you double what you paid, to make up for the restoration and the inconvenience.”
Keri blinked. “Double? Well that would be very generous. Uh, thank you.”
The sorceress merely made a dismissive gesture with one manicured hand and turned back to the bed. “Archer, Hunter come.”
Both men stepped forward and joined their mistress by the bed. “Dismantle this, carefully. I don’t want a single scratch.”
“Yes ma’am,” they replied in unison.
Now that’s a little creepy.
As the two started taking the bed apart Cora flashed a smile that sent a chill running down Keri’s spine. “Let’s leave the boys to their work shall we?” The woman walked right past Keri and out into the hall, clearly expecting her to follow. She made her way to the living room and turned around, her expression now far from friendly. “So, where is it?”
