Black Of Mood (Quentin Black: Shadow Wars #2): Quentin Black World

by JC Andrijeski

  When I looked at Black that time, a question stood prominently in his eyes.

  I sighed, touching his face. “Hey. I’m sorry, all right? I should have left a note.”

  He quirked an eyebrow. “Too late for that, doc.” He paused, studying my eyes. “What did you want to do to me this morning? Why did you sneak out, instead of waking me up?”

  “Black.”

  “What if you did it to me now, instead?”

  “Black.” I smiled, shaking my head. “Aren’t we going somewhere?”

  “We can just do oral again, if you’d prefer.”

  “Hey,” I said, softer, caressing his jaw. “You don’t have to worry about me divorcing you because we’re not having as much sex as I want.”

  His jaw hardened under my fingers, but he didn’t speak.

  Frowning, I tugged at his hair. “Black. I mean it.”

  “I know you do.”

  “Well, then... relax, okay? We can talk––”

  “I don’t want to relax.” He met my gaze. “I don’t want to talk, either.” His mouth firmed as he studied my eyes. “Forget what I said yesterday. Just tell me what you want, Miri.”

  I looked down at him, frowning.

  When I didn’t look away, he pressed up against me, directly into the V between my legs. My breath caught when I felt how hard he was, even as my mind blanked. Clutching at his shoulders, I averted my gaze as his arm wrapped around my waist. I let out another low gasp when he clinched me tighter, sliding a hand between my legs and under the dress. His fingers were inside me before I could take a breath, even as his other hand gripped my ass, holding me flush against him as he rocked up into me a third time, with a sensuality that blanked out my mind.

  He let out a low sound when he rocked into me a fourth time.

  When I wrapped my arms around his neck, he removed his fingers long enough to unfasten the front of his pants. His eyes never left mine.

  “I want to fuck you with my cock this time,” he said. His voice was deep enough that I flinched, that maddeningly deep tone I loved, but it was soft, too, cajoling. “I want it to hurt, Miri. I want you to beg me, like I begged you last night.”

  I felt my breath stop, even as my hands tightened on him.

  “Can I do that, Miri?” he said, softer.

  He looked at me for a long moment, the question clear in his eyes.

  Then, seeing something in mine, he caught hold of my hair, bringing my mouth down to his.

  A few seconds after that, I forgot why I’d wanted to talk, too.

  18

  IT’S GONNA HURT

  “IS THAT...?” ANGEL trailed, lowering the binoculars to blink and refocus her eyes. She raised them up again a second later. Staring through the lenses, she adjusted the zoom with her fingers, frowning. “What is he doing here? Is that a coincidence?”

  When she glanced over her shoulder, Nick grunted, shrugging his broad shoulders. “Seems unlikely, doesn’t it?”

  “I thought Black only wanted humans on this.”

  “Yeah,” he acknowledged. “I thought so, too. Who knows, though? It’s Black. That guy tends to run multiple scenarios for everything.”

  His voice was grim, but Angel heard a faint note of admiration there, too.

  Nick stood by the door to the building’s roof, out from under the blue tarp that she and Cowboy crouched under. The tarp tinted everything around her blue, including Cowboy himself, who sat on the gravel next to her. All three of them were careful to remain out of view of the ground by not hanging too far over the edge, and out of view of anyone in one of the nearby buildings by remaining either under the tarp or under the shadow of the door’s alcove.

  She and Cowboy remained visible to the row of windows directly across from them, in theory at least, whenever they poked their heads above the wall’s edge. At the moment, that didn’t matter much. The Empire State Building, which stood directly across the street, was partly closed for some kind of major renovation on that side.

  The lower eight floors directly across from them were part of that closure, as well as the lobby on West 33rd, which was where they were. Since 33rd was one of the resident entrances, it didn’t affect tourists, but it meant all the office workers and other tenants had to walk around to the 34th Street entrance on the north side of the building.

  It also meant twice as many people going through the same security checkpoint.

  Bummer for the people working and living here, but it made things easier for her, Nick and Cowboy right now, in terms of being able to observe the building unseen.

  At their eye level, windows were covered in scaffolding or missing altogether. It was likely the very reason Black suggested they look from here, instead of from one of the apartment buildings below. Angel had seen workers moving around, here and there, but so far, none near any of the windows directly across from them.

  Nick glanced at Cowboy, then back at Angel.

  “Black was pretty clear about wanting only humans on this,” he added. “No idea why. I’d think we’d be more of a risk to him, not less. He keeps saying they have a seer working for them.”

  Cowboy spoke up from where he sat by Angel on the gravel. “You get chipped?” he said, looking up at Nick.

  Eyebrows scrunched, Nick nodded. “Sure. Why?”

  “The newest one?” Cowboy pressed. “The one Kiko sent yesterday?”

  Nick nodded again. “So?”

  “You’re good then.”

  “Good? Good for what?”

  Still gazing through the binoculars, Angel cut them both off. “What the hell is he doing, standing out in the open like that? And who’s that blond guy with him?”

  “The one with the skateboard?” Nick shrugged. “No idea. We’re just looking, remember? Take photos of everything, like Black said. We’ll send the images to Kiko, let her and Black sort it out.” He looked back at Cowboy. “What’s up with that last chip?”

  Cowboy squinted up at him. “Some new thing the lab boys and girls are playing with. Supposed to create some kind of interference. Not sure how it works exactly, but it’s supposed to make it harder for a seer to read our thoughts.”

  “What?” Nick blinked at him, adjusting his weight against where he leaned on the door. “Black actually chipped us so he couldn’t read us?” He let out a surprised laugh. “Jesus. That’s a new one.”

  Cowboy nodded. “Ayuh. Specific thoughts, anyway. He said he can still read emotions. Like he can get a mood off us, or a reaction to something or someone, but not much more.”

  Remembering her fight with Black by the boxing ring, Angel bit her lip, lowering the binoculars to glance at Cowboy. When he returned her gaze, his mouth pursed in a question, she looked away just as fast, raising the binoculars back to her eyes.

  “What?” he said.

  She shook her head, pursing her lips. “What does Black think is happening here anyway? Is this one of the blueprints he found in that safe?”

  Nick shook his head. “Not blueprints, but it came out of that safe. Apparently Black’s name was on the renovations for the building... and he has no clue why.”

  “What?” Angel swiveled her head, staring at him. “Black’s name? He’s footing the bill to renovate the Empire State Building? And he didn’t know?”

  Nick shrugged.

  “Was it faked? Or can it actually be traced back to his money?” Angel said, still staring through the binoculars.

  “Indirectly, yes. Through holdings he has overseas. He’s looking into the people handling his finances at the affected company... but he has no idea how he wasn’t notified. It’s not like work like this would come cheap.”

  “Yeah,” Angel grunted. “I don’t even want to know how much this would cost.” She focused her attention back on what she could see through the binoculars. “A lot of activity going on down there by the entrance, given that most of this side of the building is closed.”

  “Construction workers?” Nick said.

  “Yeah. L
ooks like it. But these guys are wearing uniforms... jumpsuits, anyway. It’s not the same team we saw going out for lunch a little while ago.”

  “Maybe they called in a new crew?” Nick suggested. “Something Black missed?”

  “Maybe.” She let her tone convey how unlikely she thought that was.

  She trained the binoculars back on the seer standing just outside the building’s entrance.

  It was definitely Efraim.

  His angular face and jewel-colored eyes remained as unmovable as always, as if made of stone. Frowning, Angel swiveled the binoculars to focus on the blond man with the hauntingly beautiful face standing next to him.

  “I think blondie might be a vampire,” she said after another beat.

  Cowboy reached over, requesting the binoculars with his open hand. She handed them to him, glancing back at Nick.

  “We should call Black. Verify he’s supposed to be down there.”

  She glanced over at Cowboy, who half-crouched next to her by the wall, one knee on the white gravel. Using his forearms for balance, he lifted his eyes and part of his head over the edge so he could look through the binoculars. She watched him adjust the focus band as he peered down at the same scaffolding-enclosed doorway she’d just been looking at.

  Sliding down so that her head and body were all the way behind the wall, she sat on the gravel with her butt and looked up at Nick.

  “Naoko? What do you think? Do we call Black?”

  He shook his head, frowning. “He said only to call him if it was an emergency. He’s worried the phones are all being monitored. If Efraim is running some kind of infiltration thing, I don’t want to tip them off... it could get him killed.”

  “Well, Efraim’s not a vampire,” Cowboy remarked, still staring through the binoculars.

  Angel snorted, looking up at him. “Ever heard of contact lenses? How could you tell?”

  “He’s standing in direct sunlight.” Cowboy frowned, still staring down at the road. “I don’t see any smoke rising, so––”

  Nick shook his head. “No. Black says that isn’t as big of a thing as he thought. They don’t like it, but he thinks they can operate in it when they have to.”

  Cowboy shrugged. “Still probably wouldn’t stand in it on purpose.”

  “True––” Nick began.

  But Angel cut him off, frowning. “What do you mean it’s not as big of a deal? Doesn’t it burn them or something? Or at least cause them pain?”

  Nick shook his head. “Black thinks they’ve got technology to combat the worst effects of it. Some kind of uber-sunscreen to protect their skin. They also have contact lenses that protect their eyes, in addition to hiding their eye color. According to Charles, they’ve spent the last few centuries perfecting technology to hide them from human detection.”

  Motioning with a hand, he added, “Just a few days ago, his people raided some kind of lab outside of Beijing. It was filled with high-tech vampire gear. They got the location off that vampire captive of theirs... the one who’s connected to the female seer. They haven’t had time to figure out what most of it does yet.”

  “Great,” Angel muttered. She looked at Nick. “Did they figure out how vampires are blocking seer sight?”

  Nick shook his head. “No. They think now it might be something vampires can do naturally.” He frowned. “Black said that didn’t make a lot of sense, though. I didn’t really get what he was talking about. His seer crap goes over my head a lot of the time, to be honest.” He refolded his arms, rolling his eyes. “He drew me a diagram and everything. I was going to ask Miri, but Black told me to keep Miri out of this stuff.”

  “What?” Angel looked away from Cowboy, staring up at Nick. “Why?”

  Nick shrugged, shaking his head. “I don’t know. But I got the sense it has something to do with her sight. He’s worried whoever’s infiltrating us might be able to read her.”

  “So this chip thing doesn’t work on seers?” Angel said.

  That time, Nick didn’t answer her. Cowboy did.

  “Nope,” he said, still staring through the binoculars.

  She watched him squint down at the warehouse. “This doesn’t feel right,” she said after another pause. “Efraim being here. If we can’t call Black, we should go to where he is. Ask him about it.”

  Nick nodded, but she saw him frown, looking at his watch. “Yeah, okay.”

  “‘Yeah, okay’?” She frowned up at him. “Why don’t you want to tell Black?”

  Nick snorted. “You really need to ask me that? You’ve seen how he is lately. If Efraim really is off the reservation, we’ll be lucky if that crazy bastard doesn’t call in a drone strike.” Sighing, he combed his fingers through his straight black hair, adding, “I just wondered if we might want to call Kiko first, is all. Ask her what she thinks. She seems to be pretty good at reigning in some of Black’s excesses. At the very least, she might have some advice.”

  Angel smiled at him knowingly, shaking her head.

  Nick frowned. “What?”

  “Nothing. Your Kiko-crush is showing, is all.”

  Nick scowled.

  Seconds later, the thoughtful look returned to his face. He stared out over the roof, his almond-shaped eyes gazing at nothing.

  “Shit,” he said next, exhaling again. “He specifically told me to report only to him.” Pausing, he added, “We have to tell him, don’t we? As in now.”

  “Yes,” Cowboy said, without looking away from the binoculars.

  Giving Cowboy a faintly annoyed look, Angel sighed, nodding up at Nick.

  “Yeah. I’m thinking we do.” Folding her arms, she adjusted her back against the uneven wall, thinking. “You’d better call him, Nick. Tell him to meet us somewhere... I think he and Miri are having lunch close to here anyway.” She looked up at Nick. “He’d be furious if we didn’t call him. And he’d be right, wouldn’t he?”

  “Yes,” Cowboy said again.

  Nick gave him an annoyed look that time. “Assuming this isn’t a trap,” he said, returning his gaze to Angel. “And assuming Efraim is the mole... I’m not sure we’d be doing Black any favors, letting him rush into this, guns blazing.”

  “It’s not Black you gotta worry about,” Cowboy commented, lowering the binoculars and squinting in the reflected sunlight from the windows. He glanced down at Angel, then up at Nick. “It’s the other one.”

  Both Nick and Angel turned that time.

  “What other one?” Nick said.

  “The uncle.”

  There was a silence. Then Nick nodded in grudging agreement, exchanging looks with Angel before he gave Cowboy a more appraising look.

  “Yeah,” he exhaled. “Right.”

  Cowboy raised the binoculars back to his eyes with a frown. “The uncle’d want to move without Black’s say-so,” he commented. “He still thinks he’s in charge. I suspect he is, for a lot of those psychics. All of ‘em, maybe. And Efraim’s one of his. He might have called Efraim down there himself. Or maybe he’s got some deal going with the vampires on the side. Something Black doesn’t know about.”

  Again, Nick and Angel exchanged looks.

  “The blond one is definitely a vampire,” Cowboy added, lowering the binoculars.

  Angel folded her arms, quirking an eyebrow. He glanced down at where she leaned against the wall below him, and smiled.

  “I’ve seen pictures.”

  “Weren’t you kidnapped by one?” she retorted.

  Cowboy gave her a wry smile. “Six of ‘em, I believe.” His gaze grew thoughtful as he pursed his lips. “Then again, I might’ve miscounted. Damned light-footed, vampires.”

  Angel rolled her eyes. Even so, she found herself thinking, not for the first time, that Cowboy was definitely smarter than he liked to pretend.

  She looked at Nick, who already had his phone to his ear. He frowned as she watched, lowering it to stare at the screen. He hit the call button again. After he put it to his ear a second time, his frown turned to a ha
rder scowl.

  “Signal’s dead,” he said.

  “What? We’re in the middle of Manhattan.” Feeling her pulse rise, Angel yanked her own phone out of her back jeans’ pocket. She hit Black’s name under her contact list, but only got a beep before the signal died. She tried the same with Miri’s name, and got the same.

  “What the hell?” she said.

  Cowboy slid behind the wall next to Angel, the binoculars in his hand. Resting them in his lap, he pulled his phone out of his breast pocket. He hit a few buttons like they had, held it to his ear, then went through settings, looking at his wireless signal. After trying a few different options, he shoved it back into the pocket of his jeans jacket.

  “Cell phone blocker,” he commented. “Strong one, too. Someone must have one in the building below.”

  “Bet he’s popular with the neighbors,” Nick muttered.

  A gunshot ripped through the quiet.

  Nick slammed into the wall. Then he fell to the gravel rooftop, holding his side. Angel started to move towards him, but Nick waved both of them off, shouting.

  “Stay the fuck down! Shot came from the Empire State Building! Get over here! Behind the door!”

  Seeing where he was waving them, she started crawling along the wall toward the metal door to the stairs, conscious of Cowboy right at her heels. They were just about to where Nick was, when a shot came from her other side, making her gasp. Dust and gravel was thrown up by her hands and face.

  Then something hit her, hard, in the leg.

  “Fuck!” It felt like someone took a railroad spike and hammered it into her calf.

  Before she knew what was happening, someone had ahold of both of her arms and was dragging her, fast, across the gravel. She writhed free enough to catch hold of the roof’s door when Nick forced it open. Then all three of them were through it and on the other side, panting.