"The camp was empty?" Faith asked when he paused. She started on the other leg.
"Not quite. One dead by demon. One pack and five blankets arranged around the fire as if they were getting ready to bed down for the night. The boys searched the area, found tire tracks about three quarters of a mile away. They followed them until they were sure where the tracks led and then Lalo came to report while Adam watched. They did a good job," he said and then he wrapped his arm around her under her breasts and pulled her back against him. He kissed her neck. "I even clapped Lalo on the shoulder in a very comradely gesture when I told them so."
"Did he smile?" she asked.
"He grinned like a boy at his first peep show just like you're doing now."
Faith tilted her head back to look up at him and show him her toothy grin. "I don't think they have peep shows anymore. Is that how you got your start?"
"No. I had to wait until I was sixteen and my father took me to visit a woman at the enclave who specialized in such things. She had a fondness for younger men and was a remarkable teacher."
"Your father took you to a prostitute? What did your mother say?"
Lucien laughed at her shock. "She was not a prostitute. She was a widow who preferred to entertain a variety of men rather than tie herself to one. Did my father compensate her for her time? I do not know, but she did live rather well. Did my mother know? Again, I don't know. Times were different then and such things weren't spoken of between mother and son."
"What happened then?"
"Why, I learned everything I know to keep my hummingbird happy." He laughed and began to fondle her breast.
"Not with your Sex Ed instructor! With Lalo and Adam," she giggled, but she didn't push his hand away.
"Ah," he nodded, "That led to the enclave, too."
"What?" she tried to turn around, but Lucien held her in place.
"The tracks led to the enclave. One of the tires had a defect which made it easy to follow. The tracks faded at the pavement, but they never picked up again where the pavement ended on the other two roads. I spoke with the guards at the gate with the excuse of introducing Adam and Lalo. During our conversation, I asked if he'd had a busy night and he laughed and said there were two delivery trucks and the usual transportation vans for the hired help and one more van that looked remarkably like mine, right down to the license plate."
Faith sank down into the water as far as Lucien's arms would let her. "Do you know what it's like to always be watched wherever you go and whatever you do? It's like another form of prison. At Canaan's House if I stayed in the bathroom five minutes longer than they thought I should, someone would be knocking on the door asking if I was all right."
"Canaan's House has much to answer for," Lucien growled.
"Why do you dislike them so? From the moment you walked in that house, you looked like you'd eaten something sour."
Faith could feel him gritting his teeth, trying not to say what was on his tongue. She squirmed in his hold until he let her turn over and sit facing him with his knees as her backrest. When she was comfortably seated, she poked him in the belly with her finger.
"Spill," she ordered.
Lucien didn't smile, but he did tell her his thoughts. "I'd just spent two hours listening to those overgrown chimps argue and annoy each other in the car. That's enough to drive anyone to murder and then I was escorted into the kitchen. The kitchen! Lord Canaan stood there while that young fool poked fun at his mate, the mother of his child, and he did nothing. He should have taken the boy's heart."
Lucien became angrier and angrier as he spoke, listing all his grievances against Canaan's House of Guardians. When Faith looked like she was about to interrupt, he glared at her until she settled back with her eyes closed and mouth clamped shut.
"What kind of Liege Lord allows the men of his House to attire themselves in rags," he fumed," or allows the women of his household to traipse through the halls wearing what amounts to underwear? He allows her to spar with the men! He knows how dangerous the training room can be! Accidents happen. She could have been hurt! She could have been killed."
He took a breath and closed his eyes. "And there you were, crouching in the corner looking like a little mouse about to be struck with a broom. And then later, what did he do to frighten you so badly and why didn't anyone come to your defense? Where was that Broadbent you speak so highly of? What did he do to protect you? Only your sister showed you any kindness. The others laughed and joked at your expense! They aren't worthy of the name Guardian and Canaan should be stripped of his authority and his House shut down. They starved and abused you and you were wise and brave to run away."
Lucien's face had hardened in the beginnings of Rage and the tips of his fangs were showing. Faith felt his body grow as his muscles swelled beneath her. She gently ran her fingers over the sculpted planes of his angry face and then pressed her fingers to his lips.
"May I speak now, my Lord?"
Lucien clamped his jaws shut and continued to stew in his own angry juices.
"I'll take that as a yes," she laughed and settled herself more comfortably in place noting that his erection had blossomed along with his Rage.
"I'll grant you, the twins are enough to drive anyone crazy, but they're loyal and brave. They'd die for each other and for Grace. They love her like a sister and their teasing is the way they show it. Didn't you ever tease Marisol when you were a boy? If they truly offended her, Canaan would have their heads." Faith paused to snicker. "If Grace didn't take them first." She gave him a playful poke in the chest.
"As for the kitchen, look to your own House, Liege Lord. When Evrard showed up, I had nowhere else to take him."
Lucien's lips opened beneath her fingers and she gave them a playful tap.
"Ah, ah, my turn to speak. Your turn to listen. The people of Canaan's House are all different; in the way they dress, in the way they speak and even in the way they act. JJ is as brave a warrior as any Guardian you'll ever meet, but she's no fool. She knows her weaknesses as well as her strengths and so do the men she patrols with, just like she knows theirs. She was the first to see me as something other than a victim. She's my best friend. You don't know how many times a day I ask myself what would JJ say or do or think. I miss her."
"As for Broadbent, he asked me to be his mate. That's what he did to protect me and care for me. He was willing to sacrifice his own happiness for me, so don't you ever say a word against that kind and gentle man or you'll be the one paying the price."
"Did you love him?" Lucien asked behind her fingers. His face had relaxed while she spoke, but was beginning to harden again.
Faith laughed aloud. It sounded a bit like a creaky door, but it was a real, out loud laugh.
"You're jealous!"
"I'm happy you find so much amusement in it," he said sourly, "Are you going to answer? Did you love him?"
"I did," she said and then kissed Lucien's nose. "I still do," she told him and laughed aloud again at his look of surprise. "I love all of them. They saved me. They cared for me. What you saw when I came here was an improvement over what I was. I didn't run away because of them. I ran away because of you. This is where I'm supposed to be. Here. In this House. With you."
Faith could still feel his swollen erection beneath her. She lifted up onto her knees and slid her hand between them, found what she was looking for and held him in place while she slid onto him. She laughed aloud again as they sighed together in satisfaction.
Holding onto the high sides of the tub, she rode him, slowly raising and lowering her hips, enjoying the feel of him inside her.
"They rescued me. They healed my body. You, Lucien ad Toussaint, brought me back to life," she whispered to his mind and even though her eyes were closed, she saw him smile.
She angled her body differently with each thrust until she found the position that pleased him most. He groaned his pleasure as she continued to rise and fall, increasing the speed and depth of his penetration. She'd ne
ver taken the lead in their intercourse before, never knew how empowering it could feel.
"My breasts," she ordered and heard him laugh, but he did as she commanded and took her breast in his mouth, pulling strongly at it with his teeth and tongue, kneading the other with his strong, firm hand.
His chuckling stopped when she tightened her body around him on her upward pull.
"My God, woman, slow down," he whispered, "You're killing me here. I don't know how much longer I can hold on." But he made no move to stop her.
Faith ignored him and continued her ride, knowing that despite his complaint, he was enjoying this, too. His tugs at her breasts became more aggressive as he neared his release and the feeling both thrilled her and empowered her further with the knowledge that she could bring him to such heights.
Still maintaining her balance with one hand on the tub, she brought her other hand down and into the water. She felt the place where he entered her and felt above to the tiny swollen nub that was her clit. This, too, was something she had never done before, not alone or with Lucien.
She opened her eyes to see what her lover thought of this bold move. He was watching her face through heavy lidded eyes, but he knew what she had planned.
"Next time you'll do it where I can watch," he whispered mind-to-mind.
It was all the incentive she needed. She found the spot that excited her most and moved her finger against it. At first her body resisted, old taboos preventing her from enjoying this forbidden indulgence, but Lucien's body tightened beneath her and with it her own body gave way to the pleasure she was bringing to him and to herself. She wanted this moment to be shared between them.
Lucien clutched her hips and drove himself upward as he reached his peak and they exploded together in the fulfillment of ecstasy.
The water in the tub had gone cold, but neither of them cared. They clung to each other as they descended from their shared rapture and relaxed together in shared comfort and bliss.
"I love you, Guardian," Faith said aloud and this time her voice was soft, but clear.
"I think my hummingbird has finally found her voice," Lucien said as he sat up with her and pulled the plug from the drain.
Faith knew that he meant more than the sound that came from her throat. She was, after all this time, finally finding herself.
"I love you, Guardian," she said again, a little louder than before.
"I love you, too," he said, lifting her up and over the rim of the tub. He wrapped a towel around her. "But why do you call me Guardian?"
"Because Angel is already taken," she laughed as she opened the towel and pulled him in. "You're my Guardian Angel and I thank God for you every day."
*****
Goddamn him to hell," El Brujo roared at the mirror he held in his hand.
"I've no doubt he will," the grinning face in the mirror answered back.
"Save your cleverness, demon. Neither of us gains anything if my father moves too soon. We have an agreement."
"We may have an agreement, but your father has my full name. He's the one who called me. If he releases me, there's nothing I can do about it." The demon, masquerading as a man, shrugged and spread his hands.
"If he lets you out early, you can still keep your end of the bargain. Kill the bastard and hold off on releasing your…"
"Now, now," the demon laughed, "Is that any way to talk about your Daddy Dearest?"
"My Daddy Dearest, as you call him, was the cause of my death, I see no reason why I shouldn't be the cause of his," the Brujo snarled.
His name had once been Apollinaire ad Gautier, Second to the Liege Lord of a House of Guardians. His father thought he was doing his son a favor years ago when the old fool released his little hoard of pet demons on the village in an effort to kill the Liege Lord. He thought because he fed them, he could control them. He couldn't. They tore through the enclave like wildfire before moving on to the village.
Because he was too miserly to pay spies, his father didn't know the Liege Lord was already riding to meet another, more organized band of marauders. His father's misguided mission had forced the Liege Lord to split his own small forces with the result that both the Liege Lord and his Second were killed. Being that dead Second, the Brujo was furious about the whole affair and a hundred and sixty years later, he was still mad as hell. He wanted his revenge.
"Wanting him dead is understandable, but it's still not nice to call him names." The demon smiled his most winning smile.
"Enough of your nonsense! Will you keep your bargain or not?" the Brujo shouted.
"Of course I will, dear boy. A bargain in blood can't be broken, but I'll pinky swear if you insist. How about you? Can I trust you to keep yours?"
"As you said, a blood oath can't be broken. The enclave and everything in it are yours for the taking… after my father is dead." The Brujo shook the mirror to break the connection and laid it face down on the table.
He couldn't wait to be done with this fool of a demon. He would keep the blood bargain for as long as it took him to rip the heart from its chest. No demon, no bargain. It was simple arithmetic.
El Brujo turned to the little demon that was grinning at him from inside its salt circle. It then looked to the man in the corner and started to drool.
"Do you think that I'm going to feed you now?" el Brujo asked slowly. "After listening to that braying jackass you call master? I don't think so!"
He stepped inside the circle, making sure the salt remained intact, and kicked the monster with the toe of his boot. There was a crack as the jaw split and the demon screamed. El Brujo stepped out of the circle, feeling somewhat better with this release of his frustration.
"With that nasty broken jaw, you couldn't eat anyway. Poor little demon. Didn't your mama ever tell you it's not smart to play with a vampire? We tend to bite back."
He turned to the two girls huddled together and crying anew.
"All this talk of food has made me hungry." He touched his finger to the outside of his hood, drawing the fabric in to his chin. "Now which one of you shall I use for lunch?"
Abyar Adoriedes Mendeliadum waited for the mirror to go dark before he clapped his hands and shouted with glee.
"Andi! Andi dearest darling mine, come quickly! I have news to tell."
Andi, the human witch who'd thrown her lot in with his, shuffled into the room that Abyar insisted she call the parlor. The room was cold and damp, but so were the other two rooms in this hovel. She inched her way over to the small fire that burned in the grate. The heat on her legs made her smile and Abyar thought the smile was for him.
He brushed the stringy hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. It was hell for humans here in the Otherworld and Andi was looking a little the worse for wear. With her dull gray dress and sagging body, she wasn't the woman he'd bonded to in a blood ceremony, but she was his, body, heart and soul.
"We're going home, my love. I've made the bargain and we're going home."
Her head lifted and her smile became a little brighter. There were people she wanted to see back home.
Chapter 32
She'd been dreaming of Lucien, a pleasantly erotic dream involving horseback riding and an outdoor interlude under the shade of a broad and imposing tree that stood alone in a barren landscape. Faith knew it was a dream because it was broad daylight and Lucien rode his white stallion bare chested, his muscles gleaming with sweat from the noontime sun.
Faith watched him from her spot beneath the tree. She was naked and felt no shame in it. She was Eve to his Adam in a time when there was no shame and no sin. She started to smile with the joy of her circumstance when the landscape started to change.
She was still naked, but now she was huddled in the corner of Tyn's filthy bedroom.
"Did you think you could escape me so easily?" Tyn laughed. "Look at them. Look at them!" he ordered as the women marched by him one by one.
Joan, Bobbi, Meg, Tiffany, Gwen, Anna… They all marched through the room and
faded away. Thirteen young women, all gone, but Tyn wasn't finished with his torment for now there were two others waiting in line. The first she didn't know, but the second was Laura and then she understood the first was Rosie.
Faith put her hands up over her head and curled into a ball of misery, ready to retreat into the cold dark place in her mind, but then she felt the warm hand sliding over her stomach; Lucien pulling her close to him as he slept. That warmth and closeness helped her to remember who she was and what she was.
She was no longer the frightened girl Tyn had captured or the empty husk of a woman her sister had rescued. She was Faith Parsons, a healer, a Daughter of Man, Lucien ad Toussaint's lover and a woman to be reckoned with. She stood tall and proud in her nakedness, unashamed of her scars or her past. She pointed her finger at the demon who'd been her nightmare, real and imagined, for way too long.
"I'm not who you think I am, you bastard," she shouted at Tyn, her voice loud and clear in the dream. "You can't beat me down anymore. I won't let you."
Laura looked at her and smiled. Behind the two girls was the misty light Faith had seen in the hills.
And suddenly Faith was back under the tree with Lucien, her Guardian Angel beside her, warm and close and comforting. She snuggled down beside him and fell into a deep and restful sleep.
A soft knock on the bedroom door had Lucien sitting upright, but Faith shushed him back to sleep with a whispered, "Cleaning crew," before slipping from beneath the covers and quickly dressing to meet the women Briza had brought with her. It was late afternoon, but not yet time for Lucien and his men to rise.
She wasn't sure how she was going to explain this meeting of brujas to Agdta, but as it turned out, she didn't have to. The housekeeper, dressed in her best dress, this time adorned with multiple necklaces of stone beads, had already organized their visitors into a circle surrounding a small fire she'd built in the center of the courtyard.
Guardian's Faith Page 28
