by E. S. Moore
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”
Something in his voice made my breath catch in my throat. The room seemed suddenly hotter, which I knew was something he could do at will. My legs felt weak and my head started swimming again, as if I was having a relapse of my attack in the shower.
I staggered to the side and had to brace myself on the wall, lest I fall. My mark felt scalding hot. I wondered why it wasn’t gone yet. Usually, his marks vanished as soon as we started talking.
“There are things we should discuss,” Beligral said. “I’ve put it off because there hasn’t been a reason for me to bring it up in anything more than passing. I am starting to wonder if now might be the time.”
I turned back to him. The demon was standing right at the edge of the circle, so close, his foot was nearly touching the silver. Ethan was standing by his workbench, looking nervous as hell. I don’t think he was positive Beligral couldn’t escape.
“I’ve let our friend here continue on with this farce for long enough,” the demon said. “I could let him keep trying, but I know he will never find the answer. He doesn’t have the knowledge for it, the resources.”
“What are you talking about?” I cleared my throat, hating how my voice had come out sounding weak. I was shaking all over. Whatever he was doing to me, I was at the demon’s mercy. It was either hear him out or pass out and I sure as hell wasn’t going to do the latter. There’s no telling what he’d do with me while I was unconscious.
“In time, in time.” Beligral grinned and stretched. He actually yawned before walking slowly around the circle, eyes on the room as if he was investigating it for the very first time.
“It is interesting what you have done with the place,” he said after a few moments. “A cage is something meant to hold things inside, yet I have never seen anyone or anything contained within.” He took a deep breath, and let it out with a sigh. “But I can smell the wolf. He comes for a few nights and then leaves again. Who is this wolf?”
I glanced at Ethan. He shook his head with the slightest of motions. He hadn’t told the demon about Jeremy.
“A friend,” I said. “Is that what you want to talk to me about? Because if it is, I’m done.”
“No, but it interests me.”
The stairs were right there. All I had to do was turn around and walk away. The mark still might be there, but I had a feeling that once things ended here, it would go away. He normally just asks that I come back to see him, which is exactly what I’d done. I didn’t have to hang around any longer than I had to.
But I knew I’d always wonder. I couldn’t walk away if there was a chance he could tell me something that would help me.
“This wolf,” the demon said. “He is more than a friend, is he not? He is someone important to you?”
I shrugged. “As much as a werewolf can be, I guess.”
He glanced at me as he continued his circuit around the inside of the circle. “But he isn’t the one, is he? He is just the beginning.”
I frowned. I had no idea what he meant. “If you don’t get to the point soon, I’m leaving.”
Beligral chuckled. “I feel that the day is coming when my services will no longer be required. You are gaining power of your own, power that you hardly know what to do with.”
“That doesn’t sound like a bad thing,” I said.
He laughed again, this time a full-throated laugh that shook the walls, before turning his burning gaze on me. “But with that power, you will lose something you so desperately want.”
“Yeah,” I said, swallowing hard. It was a struggle not to meet his eye. “What’s that?”
“Your humanity.”
I couldn’t help it. My eyes rose to meet his own. Our gazes locked and he had me. I couldn’t look away. I could feel him rooting around inside my head and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I felt paralyzed, weaker than I’d ever felt before.
“Stop,” Ethan said. I could feel him next to me, but couldn’t look away from the demon long enough to reassure myself he wasn’t going to do something stupid. “Stop now or I’ll send you back.”
Beligral held my gaze a moment longer before turning away.
My entire body sagged as if his stare had been the only thing holding me up. I leaned against the wall, breath coming fast and hard. I felt like I’d just gone twenty rounds with a dozen very pissed-off werewolves. My chest burned and my head thumped so hard, it felt like my skull might explode.
“Are you okay?” Ethan whispered, resting a hand on my wrist.
I nodded and forced myself to stand erect. “I’m leaving,” I said. “We’re done. Don’t ever bother me again.” I turned away, this time fully intent on leaving for good. I could no longer feel the mark behind my ear. Apparently, it had vanished sometime during our little staring contest. I was free.
My foot hit the first step just as the demon spoke.
“I can make you human again.”
I froze.
I could feel his eyes on my back, could almost feel the knowing smile he was directing my way.
He had me and he knew it.
I turned slowly around. My hands were balled into fists. I felt like I might shake apart from the inside.
“What?” I managed. My lips didn’t want to move.
He laughed. “I see I finally have your attention.”
“What did you say?” I took a step toward him, legs wobbly.
“No, Kat,” Ethan grabbed at my arm, but I shook him off. “Don’t listen to him.”
“I can purify your blood so that the taint, as you call it, will no longer be present,” Beligral said. “You won’t need to feed ever again. This isn’t a temporary cure. You will be a pureblooded human.”
I swallowed. Was he serious?
“But this is something I will not give freely,” he added.
I stopped about a foot away from the circle and stared at him. I was looking at his face, yet he didn’t try to capture me within his gaze this time. He just stood there, smiling as if he knew exactly what I was going to do.
“What do you need?” I asked, hating myself for even thinking of going through with this. I knew he was just trying to trap me again, that it was some sort of trick, but I couldn’t help myself. To be human again . . .
Beligral sighed. “For now? Nothing. There are a few . . . problems standing in our way. Until they are taken care of, I can do nothing for you. But I assure you, this thing can be done.”
“How?”
He walked over to the chair and sat down, seemingly bored. “There is no need to discuss this further now. I’ve made my point. You know I can do this, though you might not like the methods when I tell them to you. As it stands now, you are not ready. There is too much you have to do and far too much to lose.” He smiled.
Right then, I hated him beyond anything I thought possible. He tempted me with my humanity, with the purification of my blood, and then he was going to shut down and not tell me how it could be done. It was almost too cruel, even for a demon.
“I’ll show myself out,” he said, standing.
Rage blurred my vision and I very nearly leapt forward, into the circle, intent on strangling him.
Somehow, I held back.
“Tell me,” I said through clenched teeth. “You can’t walk away now.”
Beligral watched me with glee in his eyes. I think he wanted me to attack him. If I broke the circle, he’d be free to do as he pleased.
After a few moments, he sighed. “Pity,” he said, waving a hand. The tear between worlds ripped open, spilling heat out over me. “I’ll be waiting for the moment when you are ready.” He turned and stepped through the portal.
“No!” I shouted, lunging forward, but it was already too late.
The heat vanished and I sagged to the floor, half in, half out of the circle. Tears were on my face, but I couldn’t bring myself to wipe them away.
“Don’t listen to him,” Ethan said, kneeling beside me. “I’ll find
a blood substitute. You don’t ever have to deal with him again.”
I looked at him numbly. “No more blood,” I whimpered. I sounded like a scolded child. “I could be free of it.”
Ethan took me by both arms and stared hard into my eyes. “No,” he said. “You don’t want this.” He gave me a gentle shake when my eyes drifted back to the circle. “He lies. Please, Kat—I know him. He won’t cure you. He’ll do something that will destroy you.”
He’s never lied to me before.
I looked down at my hands and took a few deep breaths. “I’m okay,” I said. “I just let him get to me.”
“You’re free,” Ethan said. “You don’t have to come back here ever again. You’re not marked.” He sounded both relieved and jealous at the same time.
I nodded and let Ethan help me to my feet.
“Don’t let him trick you,” he said.
I nodded again, unable to speak. I walked slowly toward the stairs, leaving Ethan alone in his lab.
Ethan was wrong. Beligral hadn’t marked me physically. He didn’t need to.
No, this time the mark wasn’t physical.
It was mental.
And it was going to be far harder to rid myself of it.
9
By the next night, I was officially a mess. I couldn’t get what Beligral said out of my head. Could I really be human again? Did I even want to be? It had been so long since I’d seen the sun, it seemed like it had happened to someone else. To see it again would be a blessing, but at what cost?
And that was the rub. I couldn’t quite see myself stepping away from my current life, no matter how much I might want to. There was too much at stake, too many people who could get hurt if I wasn’t around. Just because I might no longer be a vampire, doesn’t mean my enemies would just walk away. In fact, they’d be more likely to come after me and those I cared about.
Still, I had to admit it was appealing. It was a struggle not to demand Ethan to summon his demon again so I could force him to tell me everything he knew about the process. He said I wouldn’t like how it was done, which meant there was no way I was going to walk into it blindly.
But as much as I wanted to hold Beligral down and beat the information out of him, I couldn’t do that; there was too much to do. Life wouldn’t wait while I sorted things out.
The Left Hand wouldn’t wait.
I didn’t relish the thought of searching for them, but it didn’t stop me from getting dressed, grabbing my weapons, and heading out with a quick good-bye to both Jeremy and Ethan. I could tell Jeremy wanted to come. After one look at me, he decided to step back and let me do what I had to do.
My first thought was to head to the Den to get the mess with Nathan and Keira sorted out. If either one of them were responsible for the Left Hand knowing where the Den was located, I could use them for information. The problem would be, of course, getting that information out of them. Werewolves aren’t exactly the easiest of beings to intimidate. Violence wasn’t always motivation for them to talk, either.
I decided it might be better, especially in my current mental state, to ride around for a bit. I headed for High Street, thinking that it would be a good place to start in my search for the Left Hand. I’d been attacked in one of the alleyways here. I figured other Left Hand members might find the sleazy street ideal for hunting as well.
The lights were bright, as always, as I coasted down the packed road. Screaming neon and strobing lights came from nearly every building. Windows in the motels that had taken over a large stretch of the road were curtainless. I could see more than my fair share of young girls pressed against the glass while things were done to them, not all of them bloodless.
It seemed busier than usual and I wondered if it had anything to do with the recent murders. Coming to a place like High Street was always dangerous, unlike the Bloody Stake. Here, death could be around the corner, though it rarely happened out in the open. There was a sense of nearly averted disaster with every visit.
I’d like to think most people would be smarter than to head into a private room or down a dark alley with someone they didn’t know, but I knew better. The Left Hand could find dozens, if not hundreds of victims here and a good portion of them wouldn’t be missed. Why would one death in a dark alley matter when the bloodstains of a hundred others marked the pavement?
I pulled into the gloom of the parking garage and began winding my way around, looking for a place to park. I had no idea how many of these cars were abandoned, left by owners who hadn’t come back to retrieve them after a fatal visit with some vamp or wolf.
It wasn’t a pleasant thought, but it was reality. Why would I want to become a frail human again?
I found a spot near the top of the garage. I parked and headed back to High Street on foot. While driving around would allow me to cover ground faster, I wouldn’t be close enough to the action to get a good look at what was going on.
I squinted into the neon as I stepped out onto the street, amid both men and women wearing tight leather, and began my search.
It didn’t take long for my mind to start wandering from my goal. As much I wanted to forget about it, I kept coming back to what Beligral had said. And then there was the whole thing with Nathan. It was bad enough that Monday was approaching and I knew—knew—Baset would have a name for me. I was afraid everyone was going to start pulling me in a dozen different directions.
And, of course, there was Adrian. I could feel him ahead of me somewhere. He wasn’t home, that was for sure. I vaguely wondered what he was doing and if it would end up getting someone killed.
I was so distracted by my thoughts, I didn’t see the sudden movement beside me until it was too late.
I didn’t have time to think, let alone react. A huge arm clamped around my arms, trapping them, and another hand covered my mouth so I couldn’t scream. I was yanked off my feet and dragged into the shadows of the alley where the noise and light was dimmed to almost nothing.
My fangs instantly dropped, spraying blood into my mouth and onto the hand that held me. I tried to pull away so I could open my mouth enough to bite down, but was held so tightly I could barely move my head. Whoever had me sure as hell wasn’t a Pureblood.
I growled deep in my throat and tensed. Tonight was not a night to fuck with me.
“Quiet,” Adrian’s breath was hot on my ear. “Don’t scream. I’m going to let you go. I want to show you something.”
Anger flared through me, but I nodded anyway. Screaming wouldn’t help. No one would bother checking on me here. I was on my own and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do because of the Oath.
Adrian waited a moment longer before releasing me. I immediately spun, hands going for my weapons, but I didn’t draw. It would do no good.
“Look,” Adrian said, pointing past me. “Watch.”
I glanced over my shoulder, but saw nothing. People were walking the streets in groups, and cars coasted down the street, but otherwise, I had no idea what I was supposed to be looking at. I was too pissed to even care—pissed at Adrian for jumping me and pissed at myself for not realizing how close he’d been when I’d felt him through the Oath.
I turned back to him, anger bubbling over. I’d promised myself I’d stop verbally abusing my friends, but Adrian sure as hell wasn’t a friend.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I didn’t quite scream the words, but it was close.
He glanced at me, face blank as ever, and then looked past me again. I honestly think he didn’t understand why I was so pissed.
“You must watch if you want to see what I have to show you.”
“You were following me, weren’t you?”
He didn’t respond. He simply continued to stare.
I cursed under my breath and turned the way he was facing. We were deep enough into the alley that no one would notice us. Our view was likewise limited so that all I could see was a short stretch of road, a sidewalk, and the building across the street. I tried to catch f
aces as they passed, thinking there was someone in particular whom he wanted me to see, but if there was, I didn’t. Everyone looked the same to me.
I was about to turn on him again when the door to the building across the street opened. A woman stepped out, looking harried. She wiped at her mouth and I noticed her lips were a little redder than they should be. She checked to make sure no one was watching and then headed for the street where she waited for traffic to ease enough for her to cross.
“Who is that?”
“Wait,” Adrian said. Anticipation was heavy in his voice.
A moment later, the door opened again and someone else walked out. The man was wearing a long, brown trench coat and carrying a brown briefcase. He looked quickly around until his eyes fell on the woman. He started toward her, but just then, there was a break in the traffic and she started crossing. He hurried after her.
My breath caught in my throat. Had Adrian actually led me to a member of the Left Hand? If so, how had he known I was looking for them?
I didn’t have time to ask. The woman reached our side of the street with the man hot behind her. They both passed our alley without a second glance.
“Let’s go.”
Adrian moved forward before I could protest. I was left with little choice but to follow. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass.
It wasn’t hard to follow the two. Adrian kept a good couple of yards between us, which he really didn’t need to do. He could have come up right behind the man and no one would have noticed. The streets were so crowded, it was impossible to tell if someone was following you or just heading in the same direction.
I stuck close behind Adrian, not wanting to walk next to him. He might take it as an invitation to talk and I was still pissed at him. Besides, I could watch him better this way. He must have known I was looking for members of the Left Hand. He also had known I would end up here on High Street. I wasn’t sure if it was the Oath that was helping him or if someone was tipping him off.
The woman suddenly turned down an alley. The man followed and Adrian was quick on his heels. I dropped my hand to my waist, ready to draw my sword the moment the fighting started. I turned the corner.
