by Trina M. Lee
How much could I get out of an evil mass of energy with no true personality or bodily form?
Since I ignored the voice, it tried harder to get a rise out of me. Already it picked away at my mental shields, seeking a way deeper inside my head. It wanted me to bleed Shaz. To kill him right here for its enjoyment. A twisted sacrifice. An offering.
We took a few more steps away from the road, closer to the twin rows of trees, where the physical location of the doorway had been. There the spiritual realm had joined to the human world.
There Arys had killed me the first time.
“I am so over dying in this place,” I muttered, earning a chuckle from Shaz.
Still his hand tightened slightly on mine. “I’m so over watching it,” he replied, his attention caught by the weeping ghost that drifted in front of us.
We had been here too recently. Shaz had watched while Arys killed me for the second time, and then he’d gathered the pieces of the two people he loved and somehow held them together. I didn’t have a single good memory of this place.
A brief but poignant vision of Falon and me locked together in the basement flashed through my mind. Ok, so maybe one slightly good memory.
‘You know you can’t escape the inevitable,’ the voice whispered in my ear. ‘And I am inevitable.’
“What do you want from me?” I hissed aloud, causing Shaz to stiffen. “What is it that I can give you?”
The weeping ghost pointed a finger at something in the distance. Both Shaz and I turned to find nothing there. A shiver ran through me. I hated this fucking place.
‘Purpose,’ came the entity’s voice. It offered me nothing more, and I didn’t ask for details. I’d gotten the answer I needed. Lilah had not and possibly could not reclaim her throne, but I feared what the entity might do if it knew Lilah was free.
“Let’s get out of here.” I tugged Shaz along with me to the property line where Arys and Falon waited in uneasy silence. With each step it got harder to leave, like treading through a sea of molasses.
Stepping back onto the sidewalk freed me from the entity’s constant pull and its dark demand to do terrible things to the wolf at my side. Demands that a cold, dark little part of me wanted to satisfy. It didn’t take much for this place to get inside anyone’s head.
“Lilah hasn’t claimed her throne. Maybe she can’t or maybe she’s biding her time. There’s one other place we should check out.” A niggling little part of me had a sick hunch that Juliet was right. Lilah needed Shya for something. Something to do with taking back what was hers.
I couldn’t let her do that. Handing Shya over to Lilah was not an option. I just hoped that Ebyn didn’t pay the price when I refused.
CHAPTER TWO
It was pushing three in the morning when we returned to The Wicked Kiss. Since sunrise came earlier during the spring, we didn’t have much time left to find Ebyn. I didn’t want to accept that it wouldn’t happen tonight, but it didn’t look good.
Jez and the others were already there. They had found nothing.
“Nothing, Lex. I even went to his ex-wife’s place. Did you know they got a divorce? Sounds like she went for blood in the settlement. Anyway, she hasn’t seen him in weeks. She blames you.” Jez chattered on between sips of her crimson cocktail. She sat sideways on the red chair near the couch, her legs slung over its arm. Smudge stood next to her, staring intently at her phone.
“What a surprise,” I muttered, not at all shocked that Ebyn’s ex-wife would blame me. “Wait, went for blood? He claimed their marriage was a business arrangement.”
“It was,” Jez confirmed with a nod. “But he bailed out early. Another victim of the succubus thrall.”
Her joke was met with derision from Falon who scowled in my direction. I couldn’t help but flash him an impish grin. For good measure, I stroked a finger over the silver feather marking my neck. His brows knit together, and I could just feel him mentally cussing me out.
According to Willow, nothing out of the ordinary had occurred at The Kiss in my absence. This time anyway. Across the room Juliet and Briggs stood together, having what appeared to be a heated discussion. A lot of that was going around.
“What’s our next move, Hound?” Falon asked, impatience in his tone. Hands stuffed in the pockets of trendy pants that had been on the floor of my office a few hours ago, he did a good job pretending he couldn’t care less.
We’d had a moment back there, Falon and I. Our trip to Las Vegas had changed our relationship. I just didn’t know what it had changed into. Just hours ago he’d asked me what he was to me. I had said kindred, and it was the absolute truth. A truth Falon couldn’t handle right now because he resented that I saw so deeply into him. So he’d lashed out at me and said some nasty shit. Totally expected.
What I hadn’t expected was for him to feel bad about it. Yeah, we had changed.
“I wish I knew. I can’t think of anywhere else Lilah would have Ebyn.” I glanced in my sister’s direction. The Feds didn’t know shit about demons, but they had a lot of useful tech. It was a shot in the dark, but maybe there was something they could do.
Willow shifted in his seat on the end of the couch. “As much as I hate to say it, waiting for another message from Lilah might be for the best anyway. If she thinks you’re holding out, she might let more info slip to get a reaction from you.”
“That won’t go well for Ebyn.” I hated the thought of him at her mercy. It killed me that I couldn’t go after him because I couldn’t damn well find him.
“I don’t think we have another choice, my love,” Arys said, rubbing between my shoulders. “It won’t be long before we have to head home. There’s not much else we can do tonight.”
Squeezing my eyes shut, I rubbed a hand over my forehead. Lilah had me right where she wanted me. Completely screwed.
I nodded and put a hand over Arys’s, finding comfort in the small spark that tingled across my fingertips. When I looked up my sister was angrily burning up the flooring with her hasty strides. Her long legs carried her toward me at an alarming rate.
“Can we talk to you for a minute?” Juliet asked, inclining her head to indicate Briggs too. “Alone.”
My gaze strayed past her to where Briggs waited several yards away. He held both hands up as if to say he had nothing to do with this.
“Sure.” Leaving the rest of the group discussing demon queen battle plans, I led Juliet to the back where we could speak privately without shouting over the music.
Briggs followed along, ambling as if taking his sweet time would prevent whatever was coming. Juliet strode ahead, a woman on a mission. She stopped at the door to the room Briggs used to conduct his personal vampire business and shoved it open.
“Why do I feel like I’m walking into a pit of vipers?” I asked, voice low.
“I’ve been listening to it for days.” It wasn’t much of an explanation, but it was all Briggs offered.
I stepped into the room to find Juliet standing between the bed and the small bistro table. Arms crossed, hip cocked, she waited for us both to enter and close the door. Her face was tight and hard, like she clung so tightly to whatever she had to say that she was about to burst from the pressure.
“Have the two of you slept together?” she blurted, the top finally blowing off her poorly contained emotion.
“What?” Despite the unnerving circumstances of the evening, laughter poured forth. I couldn’t have held it back if I’d tried, but I didn’t try. “Of course not.”
It wasn’t funny. Not really. Juliet was forcing this conversation to happen much sooner than I’d hoped.
Neither she nor Briggs shared my wry humor. Standing near the door, stiff as a friggin’ corpse, Briggs exuded discomfort. “I told you, Juliet. Why couldn’t you have believed me?”
“Who says I believe Alexa?” she countered, eyes flashing wolf.
“Why wouldn’t you believe me?” Eyes narrowed, I dared her to call me a liar. “What makes you think we’ve
been sleeping together?”
Juliet tapped a foot in irritation. “Well, for starters, I have eyes and I’m not an idiot. Every vampire in this place wants you. Half of them are your lovers. Why wouldn’t Briggs be one of them? You made him, Lexi. Not a night goes by when it’s not thrown in my face.”
I bristled, defensive and offended by her claim. “There’s got to be at least two dozen vampires out there, Juliet. I am most certainly not screwing a dozen of them. Not that it’s any of your business. You want to take a shot at me and my personal life? Go for it. But at least be accurate and don’t make shit up.”
Juliet’s wolf peered out at us with total distrust, as if she smelled a lie but couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Briggs stared right back at her, refusing to admit something he didn’t do. He wanted her to think she was jumping to conclusions without cause, but we all knew she had a damn good reason to ask us this question.
“Fine. I apologize. I don’t actually know how many of them you’re bedding, nor do I want to. This is about the two of you.” A tremor shook her voice. She’d been thinking long and hard about this.
“There is no us,” Briggs said between clenched teeth. “I keep trying to tell you that.”
Juliet took a few steps toward the table as if she might sit. Unable to calm down enough to do so, she occupied both hands by pulling her hair into a ponytail. Sucking in a deep breath, she released the gathered hair on a heavy sigh. “Has anything ever happened between you? Other than what I know about already.” She wouldn’t look at either of us, expecting the worst.
I didn’t know about Briggs but, personally, I was offended as hell. My sister seemed to believe I was capable of doing her man on the sly. It hurt, which mostly just pissed me off.
My own wolf stared right back at her. “Other than the blood I give Briggs when he needs it, no, nothing has ever happened. Oh, and you’re welcome, by the way. Without my blood he’d have lost it and bled you dry long ago.”
“Yeah, thanks for turning my boyfriend into a vampire and then having to give him blood so he doesn’t lose control and kill me. Thank you so fucking much, Alexa.” A growl edged Juliet’s voice. Turning on Briggs, she hissed, “Let’s just cut the crap, ok? You want her right now. I can smell it on you.”
She wasn’t imagining that. I could feel Briggs’s desire, his hunger for my blood and body. He couldn’t help that it would only get worse.
“She’s a succubus,” Briggs shouted, his voice booming through the small room. “I can’t help but want her. Trust me, this is a special kind of hell.”
There would be no better time to tell them. So I did. “Sorry to break it to you both, but it’s only going to get worse. The craving will grow until Briggs loses control unless…” I faltered. I couldn’t bring myself to say it.
Juliet’s eyes widened in horror and revulsion as it sank in. Briggs, he wasn’t surprised in the least. Which meant he’d already known.
“He sleeps with you,” Juliet finished, looking sick.
“To ease the craving. He hasn’t yet though, Juliet. Believe us or not but I have no reason to lie.” Despite how much my sister ticked me off, I didn’t want to hurt her this way. She didn’t deserve to be caught up in this mess. Unfortunately, she loved someone who did.
Her gaze darted about, seeking a solution in the gray carpet and finding none. Desperation gripped her. “I need to be there then. Every time he takes blood from you. It doesn’t happen without me anymore.”
“You’re assuming that we want to sleep together,” Briggs snarled, downright insulted. “I’d rather die than go to bed with Alexa of all people.”
“You just might get your wish there, Briggs.” I dropped that little bomb with cool precision. When I had their full attention, I continued. “See you’re both assuming that I want to sleep with Briggs. I can assure you that nothing appeals to me less. Being a succubus doesn’t mean I can’t have standards. What you’re failing to consider is the alternative, what happens if he loses his mind.”
A heavy pause settled over us. The two of them exchanged a glance.
Briggs filled in the blanks. “You kill me.”
“Either that or someone else does.” Spreading my hands wide, I let them draw their own conclusions. The FPA would put Briggs down should he give them adequate reason. And The Circle of the Veil would be hot on their heels.
Juliet shook her head, brunette curls falling to hide her face. Reaching out to find a chair, she all but fell onto it. “His tie to you runs that deep? He has to have you the way the others do, or he dies?”
Nothing about this felt good to me either. Sadly, I nodded. “It appears to be that way. If I had known, I’d never have turned him. But I didn’t and it’s too late for that now.” Part of me felt like I should apologize. However, Briggs had brought this fate on himself.
His face went cold. He couldn’t seem to bring himself to look at either one of us. Just being closed in this room with me was torment to him. The tension rolled off him in thick waves.
“Are you sure?” Clawed fingertips scratched the table’s surface. Juliet dragged her gaze to mine. “There’s no other way? Giving him blood isn’t enough?”
She wanted me to put her fears at ease. But I couldn’t. Briggs was now tied more tightly to me than he was to Juliet, and it killed her. I hated that. Truly I did. Briggs had brought us all to this place when he targeted me with his mad obsession to create a hybrid army.
Because I was through being the target of other people’s fear and anger, I simply said, “That’s a question only he can answer.”
Briggs had been too quiet. Standing against the door like he feared treading too far from the only escape, he regarded her with a solemn calm. It was a lie. Beneath the surface of that composed exterior lurked a starving vampire who wanted only to satisfy his hunger for his queen. However that affected the two of them was between the two of them. I wanted no part of it.
“Thomas?” Juliet prompted when he took too long to reply.
“No, it’s not enough,” Briggs blurted in a near shout. He turned away to avoid her gaze and pounded a fist on the wall next to the door frame. “Every time I satisfy the craving, it comes back stronger. Harder. I’m sorry, Juliet. I know that’s not what you want to hear.”
I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, wary of getting too close to either of them. If I hadn’t already decided to never turn another vampire, I’d have decided it then. If Briggs hadn’t been blocking the door, I might have made a dash for it myself. The atmosphere writhed with anguish and bloodlust.
Juliet held herself rigid, but the trembling of her hands could not be willed away by government training. Not when it came to such complete heartbreak.
“So it’s over then,” she said so softly I wasn’t sure I heard her correctly. “I can’t be with a man who desires my sister. Not if it’s always going to be that way.”
The next punch Briggs threw buried his fist in the wall. Drywall crumpled easily under his anger. That wasn’t enough for him. So he threw another fist at the stud hidden within the wall, and I winced when he turned around with knuckles dripping blood. The scent of power and tangy copper filled the room.
Briggs flung his bleeding hand in my direction. “I might desire her—against my will, I might add—but I love you, Juliet. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. If I could kill this link to Alexa, don’t you think I would?”
Tears shone in her brown wolf eyes. “I know you would, but since you can’t, that doesn’t really matter, does it?”
A lump formed in my throat. The need to protect my sister was ingrained. I had ties to her too, and she still mattered to me. Being the cause of her heartbreak, despite the role Briggs himself played in it, made me feel like a piece of shit.
“Don’t make any rash decisions, ok? Take some time. Sleep on it.” I just wanted to make her feel better.
Since my name was at the top of her shitlist, my efforts were futile. The glare Juliet hit me with stole my voice.
Hers however functioned just fine. “Rash decisions? Like the one you made when you turned him?”
My temper flared. Her feelings were just as valid as mine or anyone else’s, but that didn’t make her the authority on everything that went down between Briggs and me. “He deserved to know what it was like to be one of those he loathed the most. If you want to be pissed at anyone, be pissed at the maniac with the mad science lab who couldn’t stop obsessing over your sister.” With each word my voice rose until I shouted.
She flinched like I’d struck her. Perhaps I had. The truth felt like a weapon sometimes.
As much as I felt for my sister, I simply couldn’t do this right now. None of this would matter if Lilah killed us all. Ebyn was in danger, and until we found him, he had to be my priority.
I strode for the door. They needed time alone, and I needed to very much not be there anymore.
Briggs didn’t step out of my way. Rather, he loomed in my path, blocking my exit. Voice gruff, his dark eyes blazed with a hunger that bordered on irrational. This entire situation had pushed him closer to the edge. “I can’t let you leave yet.”
That tone made me wary. It was the tone of every vampire when they slipped into the danger zone. I couldn’t leave him alone with Juliet like this.
“Go ahead then,” I said with a sharp nod. “Get it over with. I have other things to do.”
Painfully aware of Juliet’s watchful gaze upon us, I maintained steady eye contact with the vampire I had made. So I saw it coming when Briggs made the choice not to play by my rules this time.
He grabbed me roughly by both arms and slammed me against the closed door. I gave a small cry of surprise, and Juliet shot to her feet. Briggs didn’t want a brief nip of my wrist. He wanted everything I’d been denying him all this time. Being forced to admit it in front of both Juliet and me had given him free rein to stop holding himself so tightly restrained.
I could’ve blown his ass across the room with a snap of my fingers. So I wasn’t afraid when he went for my throat. Knowing I could bring it to a stop made it easier to allow it to happen. Because if it wasn’t my jugular that Briggs tore into, it would be Juliet’s.
