It had been the night theyd gotten her away from that symphath.
Hed killed the bastard. Shot her captor right through the head, dropping him like a stone. Then he and Darius had packed her into a carriage and headed back for her familys house. The plan had been to return her to them. Take her to her blood. Give her to those who by all rights should have helped her heal.
Except when theyd gotten close to that stately mansion, shed bolted out of the carriage even though the horses had been going at a clip. And hed never forget the sight of her in that white nightgown, streaking across a field, running like she was being chased even though the capture part was over.
Shed known she was pregnant. That was why shed taken off.
Shed had the limp then, too.
That had been her only attempt to escape. Well, until the one after the birth, the one that had worked.
God hed been nervous around her during the months theyd stayed together at Dariuss. Hed had zero experience with females of any worth: Yeah, sure, hed grown up around them while hed been with his mother, but that had been as a child, as a pretrans. The instant hed gone through his transition, hed been ripped out of his home and thrown into the sink-or-swim pit of the Bloodletters training campwhere he had been too busy trying to stay alive to worry about the whores.
He hadnt even met Wellsie in person at that point. His promise to her had been an obligation his mother had assumed for him when hed been twenty-five, before shed even been born
With a jerk, he hissed, and Manello looked up from his needle and thread. Sorry. You want more lidocaine?
Im fine.
NoOnes hood shifted position sharply as she glanced over. After a moment, she resumed her broom work.
Maybe it was the alcohol kicking in, but he suddenly didnt give a shit about pretenses. He let himself openly stare at the female as the good doctor finished up on the palm.
You know, Im going to have to get you a crutch, Manello muttered.
If you tell me what you need, NoOne said softly, I shall bring it here for you.
Perfect. Go to the equipment room at the far end of the gym. In the PT suite, youll find the
As the guy gave her instructions, NoOne nodded, that hood of hers moving up and down. For some reason, Tohr tried to picture her face, but it was hazy. He hadnt seen her properly in centuriesthat brief flash just now didnt count, because it had been from a distance. And when shed done the reveal to Xhex and him before the mating ceremony, hed been too rocked to pay full attention.
But she was blond; he knew that. And shed always liked the shadowsor at least, she had in Dariuss cabin. She hadnt wanted to be looked at then, either.
Okay, doing good, Manello said as he inspected his repair job. Lets wrap this and move on to the next.
NoOne returned just as the surgeon was taping the tail end of the gauze in place.
You can watch if you like.
Tohr frowned until he realized that Manello was addressing NoOne. The female was hanging back, and sure as if that hood of hers was a face with expressions, he could tell she was worried.
Just a warning, though. Manello moved downward. This is worse than the handbut the palm is more important, because thats what he fights with.
As NoOne hesitated, Tohr shrugged. You can see anything you like, assuming your stomachs up for it.
She went around and stood behind the doctor, crossing her arms into the sleeves of her robe so that she looked like some kind of religious statue. Except she was very much alive: When he winced as the needle went in with the anesthetic, she seemed to burrow into herself.
Like his being in pain affected her.
Tohr shifted his eyes away for the duration.
All right, youre done, Manello said sometime later. And before you ask, Ill give you a yeah, probably. Given how fast you guys heal, you should be good to go tomorrow night. For fucks sake, youre like carstake a beating, go into the body shop, next thing you know, back out on the road. Humans take so damn long to get over things.
Uh-huh, right. Tohr wasnt quite ready to put himself in Dodge Ram territory. The exhaustion he was lugging around with him meant he needed to feedand that these relatively minor injuries could take a while to repair themselves.
Aside from that one session from Selena, he hadnt taken a vein since
Nope. Not going there. No need to open that door.
No walking on this foot, the surgeon ordered on as he snapped off his gloves. At least until dawn. And no swimming.
No problem. Especially on the latter. After what hed just seen floating in the middle of the goddamn thing, he might never go in the pool again. Any pool, for that matter.
The only thing that saved his having walked in on her from being a complete mess was the fact that there had been nothing sexual on his side. Yeah, hed been shocked, but that didnt mean he wanted to you know, bang her or some shit.
One question, the doctor said as he rose up and held out his hand.
Tohr accepted the palm and was a little surprised to find himself pulled solidly to his feet.
What.
How did it happen?
Tohr glanced over at NoOnewho looked away so quickly, she turned her whole body in the opposite direction.
Bottle slipped out of my hand, Tohr muttered.
Ah, wellaccidents happen. The yeah-sure tone suggested the guy didnt believe the fudge for a second. Call me if you need me. Im down in the clinic for the rest of the night.
Thanks, man.
Yup.
And then he and NoOne were alone together.
ELEVEN
As NoOne watched the healer go, she found herself wanting to take a step back from Tohrment. It seemed as if, in the absence of any other parties, he had suddenly gotten closer. And much, much larger.
In the silence that transpired, she had the sense that they should be speaking, but her mind was clouded. Mortified did not begin to cover it, and she had some instinct that if she could just explain herself, mayhap she could make that feeling go away.
In the meantime, too much of his physical form registered for comfort. He was so tallinches and inches, a whole foot taller than she was. And his body was not reedy as hers was: Although he was thinner than she remembered from before, and a great deal lighter than his Brothers, he was still broader and more muscled than any male member of the glymera ever had been.
Where was her tongue? she thought.
And yet even as she wondered that, all she could do was measure the brutal width of his shoulders, and the massive contours of his heavy chest, and those long, viciously muscled arms. It was not because she considered him comely, however. She was abruptly frightened of all that physical power
Tohrment was the one who took a step back, his face registering disgust. Dont look at me like that.
Shaking herself, she recalled that this was the male who had gotten her free. Not someone who had ever hurt her. Or would. I am sorry
Listen up, and I want to make this clear. Im not interested in anything from you. I dont know what kind of game youre playing
Game?
His powerful arm shot out as he pointed to the pool. Lying in wait for me to come down here
NoOne recoiled. What? I was not waiting for you or anyone else
Bullshit
I checked first to make sure I was alone
You were naked, floating there like some kind of whore
Whore?
Their raised voices ricocheted around like bullets, crossing paths as they interrupted each other.
Tohrment jutted himself forward on his hips. Why did you come here?
I work as a laundress
Not the training centerthis goddamn compound.
I wanted to see my daughter
Then why havent you spent any time with her?
She is newly mated! I have tried to make myself available
Yeah, I know. Just not to her.
The disrespect in that deep voice made her want to shrink away, but his unfairness gave her a backbone. I had no way of knowing that you were going to enter herein. I thought all were gone for the night
Tohrment closed the distance between them. Im going to say this only once. Theres nothing here for you. The mated males in this house are bound to their shellans, Qhuinns not interested, and neither am I. If youve come looking for a hellren or a lover, youre out of luck
I want no male! Her shouting shut him up, but that wasnt nearly enough. I shall say this only onceI would kill myself afore I ever accept another male into my body. I know why you hate me, and I respect your reasons, but I do not want you or any other of your persuasion. Ever.
Then how about you start by keeping your goddamn clothes on.
She would have slapped him if she could have reached that high. Her palm even started to tingle.
But she did not jump up to wipe the terrible expression off his face with force. Lifting her chin, she said with as much dignity as she could, In the event you have forgotten what the last male did to me, I can assure you I have not. Whether you choose to believe me or prefer a delusion, that is not my doingor my concern.
As she limped past him, she wished for once that her leg was what it had been before: Pride was far better served by an even gait.
Just as she got to the anteroom, she looked back at him. He had not turned about, so she addressed his shoulders and the name of his shellan, which was carved in his very skin. I shall never go near that water again. Clothed or unclothed.
As she wobbled to the door, she was shaking from head to foot, and it wasnt until she felt the cold slap of the air out in the corridor that she realized she had left the rolling trash bin, the sweeper, and her sheath behind.
She was not going back for them, that was for certain.
In the laundry room, she closed herself in and leaned against the wall by the doors.
Abruptly, she felt like she was suffocating, and ripped the hood from her head. Indeed, her body was hot, and not because of the heavy layer she wore. An internal burn had taken root and used her gut for kindling, the heated smoke from that fire filling her lungs, crowding out the oxygen.
It was impossible to reconcile the male she had known in the Old Country with the one she saw now. The former had been awkward, but never, ever disrespectful, a kind, gentle soul who somehow excelled at his brutal endeavors in the warwhilst retaining his compassion.
This current iteration was but a bitter shell.
And to think shed assumed preparing that dress would be of any benefit?
Shed have better luck moving the mansion with her mind.
In the wake of NoOnes pissed-off departure, Tohr decided that short of the fact John Matthew hadnt managed to cut himself on the hand and foot thus far tonight, it looked like Tohr and the kid had a lot in common: Courtesy of their tempers, both were now dressed in the Captain Asshole costumewhich included, for no extra charge, the cape of disgrace, the booties of shame, and keys to the Fuck Up mobile.
Christ, what had come out of his mouth?
In the event you have forgotten what the last male did to me, I can assure you I have not.
With a groan, he pinched the bridge of his nose. Why in the world would he think, for even a second, that female would have any sexual interest in a male?
Because you assumed she was attracted to you and it freaked you out.
Tohr closed his eyes. Not now, Lassiter.
Naturally, the fallen angel paid no attention to the verbal POLICE LINEDO NOT CROSS tape. The blond-and-black idiot walked over and sat down on one of the benches, putting his elbows on the knees of his leathers, his odd white eyes steady and grave.
Its time you and I had a little talk.
About my social skills? Tohr shook his head. No offense, but Id rather take advice from Rhageand thats saying something.
Have you ever heard of the In Between.
Tohr awkwardly pivoted around on his good foot. Im not interested in a class on fractions. Thanks.
Its a very real place.
So is Cleveland. Detroit. Beautiful downtown Burbank. Hed been a Laugh-In fan in the sixties. So sue him. But I dont need to know about them, either.
Its where Wellsie is.
Tohrs heart stopped in his chest. What the hell are you talking about?
She is not in the Fade.
Okay. Right. He probably should follow that one up with, What the fuck are you talking about? Instead, all he could do was stare at the guy.
Shes not where you think she is, the angel murmured.
Through a dry mouth, he managed, Youre saying shes in hell? Because thats the only other option.
No, it isnt.
Tohr took a deep breath. My shellan was a female of worth, and shes in the Fadetheres no reason to think shed be in Dhund. As for myself, Im through with jumping down peoples throats tonight. So Im going to walk out that door over therehe pointed in the direction of the anteroom just to be helpfuland youre going to let me go. Because Im not in the mood for this.
Turning away, he started hobbling, using that single crutch NoOne had brought in.
Youre pretty goddamn sure of something you dont know shit about.
Tohr stopped. Closed his eyes again. Sent up a prayer for an emotion, any emotion, other than the urge to kill.
No luck.
He glanced over his shoulder. Youre an angel, right. So youre supposed to be compassionate. I just accused a female who was raped until impregnated of being a whore. Do you honestly think I can handle being circle jerked about my shellan right now?
There are three places in the afterlife. The Fade, where loved ones are reunited. Dhund, where the unjust go. And the In Between
Did you hear what I just said?
which is where souls get stuck. Its not like the other two
Do you care?
because the In Between is different for everybody. Right now, your shellan and your young are stuck because of you. Thats why Ive comeIm here to help you, help them get where they belong.
Man, this was a fine time to have a fucked-up foot, Tohr thought, because he suddenly had no sense of balance whatsoever. Either that or the training center was spinning on the axis of the house.
I dont understand, he whispered.
Youve got to move on, my man. Stop holding on to her so she can go
There is no purgatory, if thats what youre suggesting
Where the fuck do you think I came from?
Tohr cocked a brow. You really want me to answer that.
Not funny. And Im serious.
No, youre lying
You ever wonder how I found you in those woods? Why Ive stuck around? Have you asked yourself for a moment why Im wasting time on you? Your shellan and your son are trapped and I was sent here to get them free.
Son? Tohr breathed.
Yeah, she was carrying a little boy.
Tohrs legs went out from underneath him at that pointfortunately, the angel jumped forward and caught him before he broke something.
Come here. Lassiter maneuvered him over toward the bench. Park it and put your head between your kneesyour colors gone to hell.
For once, Tohr didnt put up a fight; he let his ass go down and allowed himself to get pretzeled by the angel. As he opened his mouth and tried to breathe, he noticed for no good reason that the tiles on the floor werent a solid aqua blue, but had multicolored specks in them of white and gray and navy.
As a big hand started making circles on his back, he was strangely comforted.
A son Tohr lifted his head a little and swept his palm down his face. I wanted a son.
So did she.
He looked over sharply. She never told me that.
She kept quiet because she didnt want you to get all fat-chested about having two males in the house.
Tohr laughed. Or maybe it was a sob. She would so do that.
Yeah.
So youve seen her.
Yeah. Shes not doing well, Tohr.
Abruptly, he felt like Im going to be sick. Which was better than crying. Purgatory?
The In Between. And theres a reason that no one knows about it. If you get out, youre in the Fadeor Dhund, and your experience of where you were is forgotten, a bad memory that fades. And if your window closes, youre stuck there forever, so its not like youre filing any reports on the landscape.
I dont understandshe lived a good life. She was a female of worth who was taken early. Why wouldnt she go into the Fade?
Did you hear what I said? Because of you.
Me? He threw his hands up. What the fuck did I do wrong? Im living and breathingI didnt off myself and Im not going to
You havent let her go. Dont deny it. Come on, look what you just did to NoOne. You walked in on her naked, through no fault of her own, and you tore her head off because you thought she was hitting you with a case of the hot-and-bothereds.
And its somehow wrong that I dont want to be ogled? Tohr frowned. Besides, how the hell do you know what just happened.
You dont honestly think youre ever alone anymore, do you? And the problem isnt NoOne. Its youyou dont want to be attracted to her.
I wasnt attracted to her. Im not.
But its okay if you are. Thats the point
Tohr reached over, grabbed the front of the angels shirt, and yanked their heads together. I got two things to say to you. I dont believe a thing youre telling me, and if you know whats good for you, youll shut the fuck up about my mate.
As Tohr shoved free and got to his feet, Lassiter cursed. You dont have forever with this, buddy.
Stay the hell out of my room.
Are you willing to bet her eternity on your anger? Are you really that arrogant?
Tohr glared over his shoulder except the son of a bitch was gone: There was nothing but air on the bench where the angel had been. And it was hard to argue with that.
Whatever. Fucking whack-job.
TWELVE
When Xhex walked into the Iron Mask, she felt like she was stepping back in time. For years, she had worked in clubs like this, weeding through desperate people like this, keeping her eyes peeled for trouble like this little knot of tension that had formed up ahead.
Directly in front of her, two guys were squaring off, a pair of Goth bulls all but pawing at the ground with their New Rocks. Just to the side, a chick with black-and-white hair, glittery cleavage, and a dumb-ass getup involving buckled straps of black leather was looking pretty damn satisfied with herself.
Xhex wanted to slap her upside the head and send her packing just for that attitude alone.
The real problem, however, was not this bonehead with the breasticles, but the two pieces of meat who were about to go Dana White on each other. The concern was not so much what they did to each others noses or jawlines; it was the other two hundred people who were basically behaving. Male bodies flying backward in twelve different directions could knock a lot of bystanders on their asses, and who needed that?
She was about to step in when she reminded herself that this wasnt her job anymore. She was no longer responsible for these asshats and their libidos and their jealousies, their drug dealing and doing, their sexual exploits
Annnnnnd here was Trez Latimer, taking care of it anyway.
The humans in the crowd saw the Moor as simply one of them, just bigger and more aggressive. She knew the truth, however. That Shadow was far more dangerous than any of the Homo sapiens could have guessed. If hed wanted to, he could have ripped their throats out in the blink of an eye then thrown the carcasses on a spit over a fire, basted them for a couple of hours, and had them for dinner with an ear of corn and a bag of chips.
Shadows had a unique way of disposing of their enemies.
Tums, anyone?
As Trezs bulk made an impression, the dynamic onstage changed instantly: Dipshit chippie took one look at him and appeared to forget the names of the two guys shed whipped up into a tizzy. Meanwhile, the pair of boozing bozos cooled off a little, stepping back and reevaluating their situation.
Good planthey were one second away from having it forcibly reevaluated for them.
Trezs eyes met Xhexs for a heartbeat, and then he focused on his three patrons. As the female tried to sidle up to him, flashing her eyes and her breast tissue, she made all the impression of a strip steak to a vegetarian: Trez was vaguely disgusted.
Over the din of the music, Xhex only caught a few words here and there, but she could have guessed the script well enough: Dont be an ass. Take it outside. First and only warning before youre persona non grata.
At the end of it, Trez practically had to peel the harpy off him with a crowbarsomehow, shed grafted herself onto his arm.
Shaking her off with a, You cant be serious, he stepped up. Hey.
That slow, sexy smile of his was the problem, of course. And the deep voice didnt help. Or that body.
Hey. She had to smile back. Female problems again?
Always. He glanced around. Wheres ya man?
Not here.
Ahhhhh. Pause. How you?
I dont know, Trez. I dont know why Im here. I just
Reaching out, he put a heavy arm around her shoulders and drew her up against him. God, he smelled the same, a combination of Gucci Pour Homme and something that was altogether him.
Come on, girlie, he murmured. Back to my office.
Dont call me girlie.
Okay. How bout buttercup.
She snaked an arm around his waist and leaned her head on his pec as they started walking together. You like your balls where they are?
Yeah. I dont like the way youre lookin, though. I prefer you feisty and pissed off.
Me, too, Trez. Me too
So were good on the buttercup? Or do I have to get even tougher with you? Ill pull out pookie if I have to.
In the way back of the club, next to the locker room where the dancers changed in and out of their street clothes, Trezs office had a door on it like a meat locker. Inside, there was a black leather couch, a big metal desk, and a lead-lined blanket chest that was bolted to the floor. That was it. Well, aside from the purchase orders, receipts, phone messages, laptops.
It felt like a million years since shed been around all this.
Guess iAm hasnt been here yet, she said, nodding to the mess on the desk. Trezs twin would never have stood for it.
Hes over at Sals cooking until midnight.
Same schedule, then.
If it aint broke
As they settled in, he in his thronelike chair, she on the couch, her chest hurt.
Talk to me, he said, his dark face serious.
Propping her head on her hand and crossing her leg ankle to knee, she fiddled with the laces on her shitkicker. What if I told you I wanted my old job back?
In her peripheral vision, she watched him recoil a little. I thought you were fighting with the Brothers.
So did I.
Wrath not exactly comfortable with a female in the field?
John isnt. As Trez cursed, she exhaled hard. And as Im his shellan, what he says goes.
He actually looked you in the eye and
Oh, he did more than that. When a threatening growl percolated through the air, she waved her hand. No, nothing violent. The argumentarguments werent a party, though.
Trez sat back. Drummed his fingers on the clutter in front of him. Stared at her. Of course you can come backyou know me. Im not bound by any vampiric notion of proprietyand ours is a matriarchal society, so Ive never understood the misogyny of the Old Ways. Am worried about you and John, however.
Well work it out. How? She hadnt a clue. But she wasnt giving her fear that they wouldnt be able to any more credibility by putting it into words. I just cant sit in that house doing nothing, and I dont want to even lay eyes on the bunch of them. Shit, Trez, I should have known this mating thing was a bad idea. Im not cut out for it.
Sounds like youre not the one creating the problem. Although I do get where hes coming from. If anything happened to iAm, Id go fucking mentalso its not a good idea for he and I to fight side by side.
You do anyway.
Yeah, but were stupid. And its not like we go out looking for hand-to-hand every nightwe got office jobs that keep us busy, and its only if something finds us that we take care of it. He opened a desk drawer and threw her a set of keys. Theres one last empty office down the hall. If that detective from CPD homicide comes around again about Chrissy and that dead boyfriend of hers, well deal with it if we have to. Meanwhile, Ill put you back on the payroll. Timings goodI could use some help organizing the bouncers. Butand I mean thistheres no long-term obligation. You can leave whenever you want.
Thanks, Trez.
The two of them stared across his desk.
Its going to be okay, the Shadow said.
You sure about that.
Positive.
About a block and a half away from the Iron Mask, Xcor stood in the lee of a tattoo parlor, the red, yellow, and blue glow from its neon sign getting in his eyes and on his nerves.
Throe and Zypher had gone into the establishment about ten minutes ago.
But not for ink.
By all that was holy, Xcor would have preferred for his soldiers to be anywhere else on a mission for anything else. Unfortunately, one couldnt negotiate with the need for bloodand they had yet to find a reliable source for it. Human females would do in the pinch they were in, but the strength didnt last nearly as long, and that meant the hunt for victims was nearly as frequent as that for food.
Indeed, they had been here only a week, and he could feel the lagging effect on his flesh alreadyback in the Old Country, they had had proper vampire females that they had paid to be of service. Here, they currently didnt have that luxury, and he feared it would be a while before they did.
Although if he became king, the problem would be solved.
As he waited, he shifted his weight back and forth on his boots, his leather coat making a subtle creaking noise. On his back, concealed in her holster but ready for use, his scythe was as impatient as he was.
Sometimes he could swear the thing talked to him: For instance, from time to time, a human would pass by the opening of the alley he was in; maybe it was a loner striding quickly, or a woman lollygagging as she tried to light a cigarette in the wind, or a small group of revelers. Whatever the variant, his eyes tracked them as prey, noting the way their bodies moved and where they might be hiding any weapons and how many bounding leaps it would take to put himself in their paths.
And all the while his scythe whispered to him, urging him to take action.
Back in the Bloodletters time, humans had been fewer and less robust, good for both target practice and as a source of sustenancewhich was how that race of tailless rats had ended up with so many vampire myths. Now, however, the rodents had taken over the palace of the earth, becoming a threat.
Such a shame he couldnt go to work on Caldwell properly. Take it over not just from the great Blind King and the Brotherhood, but the Homo sapiens, too.
His scythe was ready; that was for certain. She all but tingled on his back, begging to be used in that voice that was sexier than anything his ears had actually heard from a female.
Throe emerged from the shop and came into the alley. Immediately, Xcors fangs elongated, his cock getting hard not because he was interested in sex, but because that was just what his body did.
Zyphers finishing up with them right now, his lieutenant said.
Good.
As a metal door opened down the way, both of them ducked their hands into their leather dusters and gripped guns. But it was just Zypher with a triumvirate of ladies, all of whom were about as attractive as garbage next to a dinner plate.
Beggars, choosers and all that, however. Besides, each had the foremost requirement: a neck.
On the approach, Zypher was grinning, but being careful not to flash his fangs. In his accent, he drawled, This is Carla, Beth, and Linda