I felt like I should make a list of pros and cons or something, but I had no pen or paper. At times like this, I really wished I carried a purse. Or even, Goddess forbid, a BlackBerry.
The atmosphere of the cop shop was hardly conducive to heavy thinking. A woman I hadn’t noticed before, sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room, started swearing into her cell phone. It was cringe-worthy stuff about the “fucking cops.” When she saw me, she gave me the classic line, “What you looking at, bitch?”
Lilith grumbled, as She always did, at that word. I don’t know if my eyes flashed lava red, but it was obvious the woman sensed Lilith’s presence because she was the one to break eye contact first.
I smiled. One for Lilith under “pro.”
Okay, it wasn’t nice of me, but I did enjoy the way Lilith could make people back down like that.
Of course, as soon as Lilith asserted Herself inside me, Athena went on the attack. The universe undulated like an ocean wave. My knuckles whitened as I clutched the armrests with the effort not to lurch face first onto the floor.
The woman on the cell phone gave me the you’re- a-crazy-lady eye bulge and turned her back to me. Into her phone she loudly complained about the kind of people she had to put up with.
Once my stomach had settled, I wondered if Athena would have the same kind of sass? Somehow, I doubted it. She seemed so upstanding; not the sort to stick out the magical tongue at anyone. But I didn’t really know, did I? I mean, Athena had never lived inside me.
That was a strike against, in my opinion.
Lilith and I had been together a long time. My meditation at the hospital seemed to imply that Lilith changed because we’d bonded, thus Her features blurred until we could almost pass as sisters. She knew me. We’d had years to come to various agreements about things.
Sebastian, for instance.
I was never a straight-A classics major, but weren’t Athena’s priestesses virgins? A lot of those Greek Goddesses seemed to demand celibacy—or whoring, but that was another story. My memory of my first contact with Athena really led me to believe She wasn’t all that into men.
Lilith liked sex.
Score two for the evil seductress.
What about the whole “evil” thing? Okay, so Lilith was an evil I was used to, but did that make it right?
It was a tangled mess. I’d pray for guidance, but I hardly even knew who to talk to these days.
What about some positives for Athena? To be fair, I needed to consider what She had to offer.
I glanced around the dingy waiting area, and thought, Maybe a few less visits to places like this?
But what kind of major personality transplant would that take? I mean, what had the reversal spell taught me? My normal was fairly messed up. That certainly had its downside, witness this crappy place. But it was in this screwed-up reality that I met Sebastian and ended up at Mercury Crossing in Madison with William and Izzy and . . . yes, even Mátyás.
In a lot of ways, I’d have to become someone completely brand new if I really wanted to have less of the hospitals and cops and monkeys.
That was the other thing—the visions. Were they Hers? And, if they came along with having Athena as a patron, did I really need to know that my waitress was the Norse Goddess Freya or that the teller at the bank had the spark of Shiva in him?
I sighed heavily. I kind of missed Bast, in Her form as my Hero. I wondered where that puss was. I hoped he was okay.
I felt someone take the seat next to me. I was ready to unleash my lava eyes and a nasty “Can’t you find somewhere else to sit, jerk?” when I recognized Special Agent Dominguez. My expression instantly shifted from anger to relief, and, without warning, I embraced him in a heartfelt bear hug.
Awkwardly, he returned my affection with a man-pat on the shoulders, so I let him go.
“I’m sorry,” I said, “I’m just so grateful to see you.”
Dominguez gave a little return wave to a female police officer coming out of the locked double doors, and then said to me, “How are you holding up?”
It wasn’t a question I was expecting. Suddenly, everything came tumbling out. I told Dominguez about the Illuminati, Larkin and the “Eat the Rich” kidnapping, and how I figure I must have been fooled by “Green Garter” James since he stabbed Sebastian. I expounded on my visions of monkeys and trolls, my theories about what they really were, and how my Goddesses seemed to be quarreling because all I was getting lately from them was a barf-inducing dial tone.
I even told him about Hero.
Through it all Dominguez nodded thoughtfully and listened intently. When I finally wound down he said, “Wow. What does Sebastian think of it all?”
I sat back and blinked rapidly. “Uh, I haven’t told him. Not all of it, anyway.”
“Well,” he said simply, “maybe you should.”
Standing up, he stretched his arms. I sat in my seat feeling like a world-class idiot. Why had I kept everything from Sebastian? I shouldn’t have held back anything out of some perverse sense of “saving him worry.” After all, he was meant to be my partner, help carry the burdens. To Dominguez, I said, “I just blew the whole marriage thing, didn’t I?”
He laughed. “Luckily, it’s not over yet.” Glancing at the guy behind the glass who’d been watching us intently, Dominguez said, “I’m going to try to persuade the locals into letting me talk to Sebastian.”
I stood up and caught the sleeve of his coat before he could head over. “You’ve got to let me see him.”
“I doubt they’ll go for it. Why are you so desperate?” Dominguez asked.
I gestured for him to let me whisper in his ear. When he lowered his head, I quietly said, “He’s really, really hungry. I’d better go, unless you want to feed him yourself, if you know what I mean.”
Dominguez pulled away with a nervous, but knowing look. “Got you,” he said. “Stay here,” he indicated the seats. “I’ll see what I can arrange.”
While Dominguez negotiated with two uniforms the officer called down, my phone rang. “Hello?” I answered and quickly pushed through the glass doors to step outside. All the signs inside said No Cell Phones, and, anyway, I needed to get better reception.
“Where are you?” It was William. “We stopped by the hotel, but they said you left.”
“ ‘Stopped by’?” I repeated stupidly. “Are you saying you’re in Saint Paul? And who’s ‘we’?”
“Mátyás and me,” William responded.
“Why are you here?”
“The dream,” he reminded me. “Mátyás and I hopped in the car instantly. The last thing you said to him was that you were kidnapped. We were, you know, coming to rescue you.”
“That is so sweet.”
“Oh, yeah,” William continued, “and we thought we might need backup, so Parrish will probably come up tonight. You know, after sunset.”
As if I’d forgotten that Parrish was a traditional vampire who couldn’t stand daylight. That reminded me that Dominguez warned me that Parrish was supposed to stay dead. “He can’t do that!” I said, turning to hide my face from Dominguez, as though I thought he might overhear me. The guy was psychic, after all. In a low whisper, I added, “The FBI is looking for him.”
“Again?” William took that in stride. “Well, I can probably talk him out of it if you’re okay. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m at the police station.”
“Wait, I thought you said you were fine,” William said. “How can you be fine at a police station?”
He had an excellent point. However, it was all kind of the “new normal.” I squinted up at the sun. “I’m fine. Really.”
And I almost believed myself.
Lilith and I had gotten out of much worse places than this, I reminded myself.
“Hey! If you’re here, who’s minding my store?” I wanted to know.
“Slow Bob. But don’t worry about that, I’ve got it all covered,” William said impatiently. “Where
can we meet you? Should we come to the station?”
I looked at Dominguez through the glass; he and the officers seemed to be waiting for me. “I’ve got to go right now, but I’ll call you as soon as I can,” I promised. “With any luck Sebastian and I can meet you guys somewhere for lunch.”
“Promise?”
It was such a little- kid thing to ask, and I loved William for it. “I promise,” I said. “Oh, and William, would you do me a favor?”
“Anything,” he said quickly.
“Can you see if you can find a good spell or ritual or something that could banish a Goddess?” Although which I hadn’t quite decided.
What I loved about William was that he never even asked why. “Of course,” he said.
With a good-bye, I snapped off the phone and hurried inside to where Dominguez waited.
In a word, Sebastian looked like crap.
Or like a seriously strung-out junkie, which in his own weird way, I guess he was. Even so, I hardly recognized my usually debonair, handsome lover.
Hugging his knees against his chest, Sebastian huddled in the shadows of a corner of the cell. Without blood, his body began consuming itself to survive. The shirt that had fit him perfectly only a few hours ago, now hung from taut, rib-thin flesh. His face was drawn, gaunt. Hungry eyes darted anxiously under a curtain of straggly hair. Dried blood spotted his chin. His fangs had protruded so far that he could barely keep his mouth closed.
The moment we entered the cell, his gaze locked on us like a predator spotting fresh meat. The police officers that had escorted Dominguez and me stayed on the opposite side of the bars and then retreated as quickly as they could without losing face with a fellow officer.
I started toward him, but Dominguez put a hand on my chest stopping me. “Are you sure about this?”
I’d seen Sebastian like this once before, when a Vatican witch hunter transfixed him to my living room wall with an arrow. He was so starved that he would have killed William’s then girlfriend if Lilith hadn’t used Her strength to stop him.
And I couldn’t count on Lilith this time.
“One of us has to feed him,” I said. “You might have a chance of pulling him off me,” I lied. Dominguez was no match for a starving vampire. That whole strength- of-ten-men thing was one aspect of vampirism that Hollywood had gotten right.
Dominguez could tell I hadn’t told the truth, I knew. But the other option was volunteering for the job and it was easier for him just to pretend he believed me. He let his hand drop with a sigh that sounded defeated and a bit embarrassed. “All right,” he said, with a barely detectable blush. “Shout if you need me.”
“It’ll be okay.” I patted him on the shoulder. I didn’t think him less manly, after all—merely sane.
Slowly, like I was approaching a wild wolf, I inched closer to Sebastian. I put my hands out in front of me, as though to ward off any sudden moves from him. “It’s okay, Sebastian,” I said, with the clear implication dinner was imminent. “I’m here now.”
When less than a foot separated us, he growled deep in his throat. Only the black pupils of otherwise hooded eyes dully reflected the light. Sebastian’s lips curled into a grin more sinister than anyone’s had a right to be. No doubt that quick flash of a smile was meant to defuse the growing tension between us, but in the semidarkness the shadows distorted his innocent intent.
I stopped and deliberately began lowering myself down onto my knees.
“This is a bad idea,” Dominguez said suddenly, stepping forward. “I’m getting you out of here, Garnet.”
Sebastian’s eyes jealously trailed Dominguez’s movement. “Mine,” he whispered just before he pounced.
Luckily, I was ready for the impact and had braced my arms. Sebastian too, despite the desperation of his hunger, seemed almost tender as he cradled my head to cushion the impact when we hit the floor.
Momentarily, I had hope that a man still lurked behind the guise of an animal.
Then he bit into my neck. Hard.
8.
The Moon
ASTROLOGICAL CORRESPONDENCE:
Pisces
All those movies where vampires bite people in the neck neglect one very important fact. If you even nick someone’s jugular, they bleed out so fast and with such pressure it’s a waste of tasty bodily fluids. A nice meaty shoulder does the trick much better if you want to enjoy your meal. Also? This idea that all you get from the ordeal is two tiny dots where the fangs delicately punctured the skin is 100 percent bull. Even when Sebastian was careful, he left a full set of dental prints on my body.
I held back my scream. I had a lot of practice riding the agony until it became almost like pleasure. This was just a titch more than I was used to, but I breathed through it as best I could.
Restraining my Goddesses?
That was another matter entirely.
Already in response to the searing ache, I could hear the snarling hiss of the snakes on the head attached to Athena’s shield. An icy coldness seeped into my muscles then, and they began to grow heavy, almost like stone. To protect me, I suspected Athena had turned the power of Her aegis against me. Like those that gazed upon Medusa, I was gradually solidifying into rock.
Sebastian, unaware, continued to lap at my blood like some wild beast.
Somewhere beyond the haze, I could hear protests from the guarding police officers. Dominguez’s voice rose in sharp argument. Words like security cam and breach of trust rose out of the confusion.
I couldn’t muster any alarm about the situation. Everything distanced itself from me as heaviness descended on me. My slowing blood flow seemed to enrage Sebastian even more. Athena was not helping matters at all, actually.
Didn’t She understand I wanted this? In fact, if it wouldn’t kill me, I’d happily give Sebastian every last bit of blood in my body.
Though I didn’t hear the words as such, the response I sensed from Athena was that a woman should never sacrifice so much for a man.
My arms grew sluggish. While part of me agreed with Athena’s sentiment, I didn’t have time to argue the nuances of my personal feminism with a Goddess who would clearly have me dead rather than help Sebastian live.
Fighting against the spell Athena cast on me, I desperately grasped for Lilith. I’d caught a wisp of Her power, but then was forced to let go as my world went all wobbly again. Worse, my limbs began to stiffen, and I could feel my heartbeat slow with each breath.
I shouted, “Stop! Stop, damn it!” but it wasn’t Sebastian I chastised. It was Athena I spoke to when I said, “I don’t want you here!”
I wanted Lilith more than anything. She was the Goddess I trusted, I understood, who had, I realized, always been a part of me in a way that no other had. She would help Sebastian; She had always come when I needed Her most.
She was my inner Goddess.
Dark or light, it didn’t matter. The Goddess was one whole, and Lilith was my reflection. Her face and mine were the same. Even the ugly bits.
At that moment of realization, something shattered. It sounded like an avalanche of stone. The hissing vanished, and a familiar warmth quickly spread through my veins. The strength I knew so well returned to me. I gave Sebastian a quick push just as Dominguez grabbed him by the collar and heaved him off me.
“Get the hell off her, you animal,” Dominguez was shouting, his gun drawn and pointed at Sebastian’s head. Two officers flanked him, their weapons ready.
Kneeling at Dominguez’s feet, Sebastian seemed to come to. His face had gained back some of its substance, and even his hair regained its former luster. He blinked, looking at me holding my hand to the gaping wound on the back of my neck. Sebastian’s expression faltered, and he reached out to me. “Oh my God, Garnet. Are you all right?”
Lilith’s power sizzled through me. Somehow I knew Her magic staunched the flow of blood and had immediately begun knitting muscle and patching skin. I nodded and gave my stomach a happy pat at Her return. “Honestly, I’ve
never felt better.”
Tension broke, and Dominguez’s finger left the trigger. He pointed the barrel at the ground. “Santa Maria,” he swore.
He told the others to holster their guns and ushered them out. When he returned, Dominguez watched us carefully. Sebastian and I embraced tentatively. Sebastian kept saying how sorry he was, and I kept reminding him that I’d volunteered. “Hey,” I said, when I noticed our conversation had been on a loop for some time. “There’s still some blood to clean up.”
Pulling back to look me in the eye, Sebastian seemed confused as to my meaning.
I pointed to my neck and wagged my eyebrows suggestively. “You could use your tongue.”
“Oh, I am so out of here,” Dominguez said. “I’m never going to understand the appeal of vampires. All this blood and licking and sucking. It’s disgusting.”
“I think the boy doth protest too much,” Sebastian whispered huskily in my ear before bending down to lap at my wound.
“Aw, Jesus!” I heard Dominguez say through the haze of ecstasy that came over me the second Sebastian’s tongue began exploring the edges of my torn flesh. This was another thing Hollywood had totally nailed; there was definitely a lot of pleasure with the pain of the vampire bite.
A lot.
So much, in fact, I couldn’t help but make yummy noises and get all aroused. My nipples peaked and a delicious rush inflamed my private parts. I was ready to have sex right there.
“Could you guys cut it out? I’m completely weirded out over here,” Dominguez was beginning to sound desperate, so I took pity on him.
With a little tug on Sebastian’s hair, I was able to disengage him, albeit somewhat reluctantly. “Oh, sorry, this is our kiss-and-make-up time.”
“Yeah, well, after that little show, I don’t know if you need more notoriety. You’ve already been recorded for posterity.” He pointed to the cameras overhead.
So much for not being blog-worthy. I gave Sebastian an anxious look.
Honeymoon of the Dead Page 17
