Crimson Wind (7 page)

I have found it at last….. . It will not remain where it is for long.

He picked up the phone, turning it in his fingers as he considered.

Valery was a Caramaras smoke witch and a thief. She had broken into a Beltane witch gathering near Big Bear, California. Valery had managed to get inside safely enough but had tripped the wards on the way out. She had been wounded, and Alexander had been the one to find her hiding in a bathroom.

There had been instant recognition. That they were both of Caramaras blood was written on both their faces. They had the same dark hair and skin, the same sculpted jaws and cheekbones. Valery could have been his sister. That, more than anything else, made Alexander take her to his room and later sneak her out to freedom.

They had become friends. She was determined to repay her debt to him, and the Caramaras people were not so many that she was willing to lose touch. By her accounting, they were blood kin. He did not remember telling her about the Amengohr amulet, but it had become her mission to find it for him.

He would have the ability to walk in the daylight. A thought struck him. With the amulet, he could pass for an ordinary human. He would not need a covenstead. He would have freedom. Freedom to court Max—after all, he would no longer be of her covenstead. She could not refuse him on that basis.

The thought brought little comfort. He did not want to leave, and even if he did, he could not watch her back if he was not here. He wanted her and Horngate both. He would be damned if anyone kept him from getting what he wanted.

He retreated to the bathroom, turned the faucet on to mask his voice, and punched the speed dial for Valery. She answered on the third ring.

“I’ve been waiting for you, sweetness. Where have you been? I called days ago.” Her voice was husky and quiet, as if she had been asleep.

“Long story. I am no longer with Selange.”

His terse announcement was met with silence. Then, “Sounds like an interesting story. I’d like to hear it.”

“Not now. Can you still get the amulet?”

“I am leaving with it right now, sweetness, so we’d better keep this short.”

Alexander choked back a laugh. Only Valery would answer her phone in the middle of a job. “Where are you?”

“Near Seattle. But I’ll be moving along fast. Holt’s not far behind.” A grim tone sharpened the edge of her voice.

“He has not given up?”

“He never will. Not until he gets what he wants. Too bad it isn’t me.” Bitterness filled the words. “But I don’t want to catch you up in this. He’ll kill you.”

Alexander’s lip curled. Holt was a mage, which made him very powerful, but he was not invulnerable. Valery had been running from the bastard for more than three years now, and the chase was wearing on her. She needed a chance to rest. “Head for Portland. I should be there tomorrow. I will call and tell you where.”

“I’ll be there.” She hesitated. “Is everything all right with you? You sound tense.”

“Things are ….. complicated. But I am working on it. See you in Portland.”

He hung up, not wanting to distract her any further from making her escape. She was a free spirit—wild and reckless, with a joy about her that reminded him of eagles playing on the wind. She took risks that curdled his blood, for no better reason than to experience the thrills that came with them. She played her cards all in, never holding anything back. But she was a witch, and her powers were substantial. He did not worry about her as he did Max.

Max never held back, either, but she only had Shadowblade magic to protect her. She was also more inclined to go running into battle with powerful creatures than Valery was.

He turned off the faucet just as a knock sounded at the outer door. It was Thor.

He leaned in the doorway, wearing the same flannel shirt and threadbare Levi’s as earlier, but he’d put on a pair of scuffed cowboy boots, and his .454 Super Red-hawk hung on his hip, tied down like he’d stepped off the streets of the Old West. On the other hip was a combat knife.

“What the hell happened to you?” Thor demanded, straightening as he took in Alexander’s injuries. His eyes went flat and cold, and the air around him seemed to drop twenty degrees.

Alexander smiled thinly. “I had words with Niko and Tyler.”

“Who won?”

“You have to ask?”

Thor’s shoulder rose in a half-shrug, his temper mellowing. “Not really. But they are not easy opponents. So what did they want to talk about?”

“They wanted me to swear an oath that I would protect Max.”

“You didn’t, did you?”

“No.” Alexander grimaced, feeling hollow inside. “I would do it, do you know that? If I was bound to Horngate, I would swear it and never think twice. But if I have to walk away from this place, I cannot carry that burden with me.”

“You’d walk away?” Thor’s brows rose. “Old man, I thought you were in this for the long haul.”

“I am not sure I have a choice. If Giselle will not bind me, what can I do? Sooner or later, they will chase me off or kill me.”

He thrust to his feet and paced, violence filling him. Thor eyed him warily from beneath his brows, his head lowered in a stance of submission.

“Max wants to see you,” Thor said.

“Good for her,” Alexander said, although his blood pounded. “She knows where to find me.”

“You want me to tell her that?”

Alexander hesitated only an instant. “Yeah. Tell her exactly that.”

“You know that’s just going to piss her off?”

“I am counting on it.” Because she would want to tear him a new one in person, and at least he would get the chance to talk to her face-to-face.

“Going to make for a fun trip to California.”

“Just like wresting porcupines.”

Thor grinned and shook his head, then started to turn away and stopped. He looked at Alexander. “Her family is still living. How long has she been a Blade?”

“Thirty years.”

Thor’s mouth fell open. “I’m older than she is. How can she be so …..
Prime
….. after just thirty years? That’s—” He shook his head. “I figured her to be as old as you, at least.” He whistled. “I’m surprised Giselle is letting her go. Family ties? Selange wouldn’t have tolerated anything or anybody that might have divided our loyalties.”

Alexander knew that very well. It was why he had obtained and hidden a secret phone. “Giselle is not exactly an ordinary witch, any more than Max is an ordinary Prime. Besides, I am not certain Max would stomach that sort of coercion.”

“Most of us don’t have a choice.”

“Most of us would not die to make a point. Giselle wants her alive more than she wants to win this particular argument.”
Giselle had seen Max die.
No. He would prevent it.

“And yet you’re blowing off Max when she’s asking to see you. Seems like maybe she isn’t the only one willing to be suicidal to make a point.”

Alexander shrugged. “It is a point worth making.”

“Your funeral. I’ll go tell her. Do me favor, though, save me a front-row seat for when she breaks your legs and yanks your lungs out your ass.”

“I have no intention of being her punching bag. I am done with that.”

Thor frowned, giving Alexander a long look. “You aren’t planning anything stupid, are you?”

“Depends on how you define
stupid.
”

The other man shook his head. “I can’t have your back. I gave myself to Horngate.”

“I can take care of myself.”

Thor shook his head. “Not if Max turns us loose on you. We’ll kill you for sure.”

“Then it was good knowing you.”

“You don’t think she’ll do it?”

Alexander’s mouth quirked. “I think ….. I think I will find out very soon.”

Chapter 6

MAX WAS STUFFED. SHE’D EATEN EVERYTHING magpie had put in front of her. Tutresiel perched on the back of a chair opposite her. She had no idea where Niko and Tyler had made off to, and Giselle had refused to say anything about what she and Alexander had been discussing.

“I made a circle of silence for a reason. I don’t actually want you to know what we talked about,” the witch-bitch had explained slowly, as if Max were a three-year-old child. Then she had gone off with Xaphan.

Max scowled down at her plate.

“Eventful morning,” Tutresiel observed, watching her.

She made a face. “Too damned many secrets around here.”

“Too much truth can be unsettling.”

Her brows arched. “Is that so? Personally, I’d rather have more than less.”

“You didn’t tell anyone but me that you were going to see Scooter. Or that he has been attacking you in the night. Why not begin with sharing your own truths?”

“What are you, a lawyer? Jiminy Cricket? Or maybe one of those good angels who sit on your shoulder and talk you into behaving properly?”

He smiled.
Damn.
It made him go from austerely beautiful to downright touchably gorgeous. Were those dimples? Max swallowed.

“I would never talk anyone into proper behavior. And I’m just pointing out the obvious: you like secrets just fine—as long as you are in on them.”

She couldn’t disagree there. “All right. So there are too many secrets being kept from me. Satisfied?”

“Truth stings, doesn’t it?”

“Bite me.”

His gaze ran over her. “You don’t look quite so much like a corpse anymore. I might be talked into it.”

A shiver ran through Max, and she stretched like a cat. “Kitten, don’t tempt me. I haven’t been laid in months.”

“Months?” He shook his head. “Pitiful. Maybe I should fuck you for first aid.”

Heat swept through Max. The offer was tempting. If she screwed him, would that make her forget Alexander? Somehow, she doubted it. She sighed. “Sorry, kitten. I’ve got business to take care of. Maybe next time.”

“Your loss.”

“Cocky bastard, aren’t you?”

“You wanted truth. I’m telling it straight.”

She snorted.

He sobered. “One more thing. I will not let anything happen here while you are away. I promise.” As he said the last two words, a coruscating ring of silver light pulsed outward, rolling through her. The walls glowed for a second, and then the magic swept away through the mountain.

Max stared. For any magical creature to make a promise was a momentous thing. It carried the weight of magic, and it made the person vulnerable. Promises were the strongest chains, because they were self-imposed. Tutresiel hated being enslaved to Giselle or anyone else. For him to bind himself willingly was a gift beyond measure and wholly unexpected.

“Are you sure?” Stupid question. The deed was done and he knew very well what it meant. “Why?”

He lifted his shoulder in a shrug, his face shuttering. “I told you. I like you more than I thought. You should have a place to bring your family back to.”

“They might be dead.” She forced the words out. He was right. The truth sucked sometimes.

He stepped down from his perch. “They might be alive. Do come back. I would not like to be stuck with that promise forever.”

“Sounds like buyer’s remorse. Maybe you should have thought it through harder.”

“Call it self-interest. I do not want to go back to Mithra. If Giselle dies, I’ll have to. So I’ll protect the place.”

“You didn’t have to promise.”

“It’s motivational. So I don’t forget myself and let everyone die out of spite. Plus, despite current appearances—” His gaze ran over her disparagingly. “You’ve been a decent bet so far.”

“Let’s hope your luck doesn’t run out, then.”

He smiled thinly. “Nor yours.”

 uc1 uc1 uc1   uc1 uc1 uc1   uc1 uc1 uc1   uc1 uc1 uc1 

TUTRESIEL WAS GONE, AND MAX HAD JUST FINISHED BUS-ing the last of her dishes when Niko and Tyler returned. They limped in, both looking like they’d had a fight with a tank. Max examined them, her arms crossed.

“Did you win?” she asked, certain that they had gone after Alexander. They had disappeared when he left Giselle. It was too much of a coincidence not to draw the obvious conclusion.

Niko grimaced. He had black eyes, and his nose was swollen and crooked. His mouth was pulpy, and his exposed skin was black and blue with hints of healing yellow and green. Tyler looked much the same. They had washed away the blood, and both had damp hair. Tyler held Niko up, the other man’s leg dragging.

“Nope,” Niko said with surprising good humor. “Got our asses kicked.”

“A hell of a lot more than our asses.” Tyler groaned as he started them both toward the food tables. “I don’t think I’ve ever been hurt this bad.”

“Then apparently I have to work you harder,” she said sardonically. “What about Alexander?”

“Got some hits in on him. Shit, but he’s quick,” Niko said, stuffing a bread roll into his mouth. “And he has a lot of moves I’ve never seen. He’s been holding out on us.”

“He’s also not stupid,” Max said, torn between laughter and annoyance. “What brought this on?”

“We wanted to make sure he was going to have your six going to California,” Tyler explained, piling a plate up with one hand while trying to steady Niko. “Wanted to make him promise.”

Max boggled, fury spinning hot in her gut. “You were going to
force
him into a promise? For me?”

“For us. We want you back,” Niko said unrepentantly. “Seemed like a good idea. Next time, I’ll take more Blades to the party.”

“You’re lucky he didn’t kill you,” Max gritted. “I might still do it. When I get back from California, we’re going to have a serious talk about rules.”

“If you make it back.” His voice had turned to stone. He shook off Tyler’s help and limped to the table. “Were you going to tell us about it or just sneak off without a word? And are you going to tell us about that wave of magic a minute ago? You promised something. What? To whom?” He glared at her furiously, the humor of a few moments ago gone. His Blade had risen, and his lip curled in a snarl.

Tyler set his plate down with a sharp click and glared at her, his thumbs hooked in his waistband. “So are you going to tell us? Or are we mushrooms—kept in the dark and piled with shit?”

Max hesitated. Too many damned secrets. She blew out an annoyed breath. “All right. I didn’t promise anybody anything.”

Niko frowned. “Then who?”

“If you must know, Tutresiel promised to guard this place until I get back.”

Both their jaws dropped. Neither thought much of the angel.

“He did?” Tyler asked.

“He did.”

“Why?”

“Ask him.”

She glanced at the door. Thor stood outside, looking like he’d eaten a rotten egg. He caught her look and came in reluctantly. She looked past him.

“Where’s Alexander?”

He winced. “He’s in his apartment. Says you know where to find him if you want to see him.”

Max’s eyes narrowed dangerously, her Prime rising. Her fingers curled into claws. “He said what?”

“That you know where to find him if you want him.”

“I see.”

She glanced at Niko and Tyler. “Have Magpie put a cooler together for the trip, and prep a vehicle for me. Make sure it’s got a full weapons kit and emergency supplies.”

With that, she stalked away, her fury growing with every step. Before she’d gone ten feet, her Prime had gone into a complete rage.

MAX SLAMMED OPEN ALEXANDER’S DOOR WITHOUT BOTH-ering to knock. His wards flared and gave beneath her lock spells.

He was waiting inside, dressed in black and leaning back against the opposite wall, his arms and legs crossed. His eyes gleamed. His Prime was as roused as hers.

“Took you long enough,” he said, straightening.

She shut the door hard. “What the fuck makes you think you don’t have to answer to me?” she demanded.

“What makes you think I do?”

“Because Giselle claimed you, and that makes you one of my Blades. Unless you want to challenge me for Prime? Is that what you want, Slick?” Her voice dropped to a low singsong. She was ready to explode, though whether she wanted to hit or kiss him more, she didn’t know.

“I am not bound here. I am nothing here.” He spat the words with equal fury. “Neither one of you will give me the time of day. So I might as well act the part you have given me. So no, I do not think I have to answer to you. I am tired of this limbo.”

That caught her up. She’d told him once to leave, that he could have his freedom—he was unbound. There was nothing keeping him here. But he’d been determined to stay, and she’d begun to get used to that. Now, the thought of him going made her heart ache. And that pissed her off.

“So you have decided to leave?” she said, her throat tight.

“No, dammit.” He lunged forward and grabbed her arms in a bone-crushing grip. “I want to belong here. What is it going to take? Do I need to promise never to take Prime? I will, if that will put things to rest. But I am done with this half-life. Choose whether you want me here or not.”

He stared at her, waiting. Her tongue clung to the roof of her mouth, and her heart pounded painfully against her ribs.

“Not my choice. It’s Giselle’s. Take it up with her.”

“The hell with that.” He shook her hard, then slid his hands down to hold her hips. He pulled her against him, his lips inches from hers. “I want to know what
you
choose. That is all that matters.”

Crap crap crap.
Being this close to him made her stupid. Heat pooled in her stomach, and want tingled through every single one of her cells. Tutresiel was pretty, but Alexander made her want to rub herself all over him.

“I told you. I don’t fool around with the men in my covenstead,” she said hoarsely.

“I am not of your covenstead,” he said, his mouth inching closer. “You have made that all too clear. So that must mean there is nothing to hold us back. Unless you do not want me. For the record, I want you, and I want to do a lot more with you than just fool around.”

With that, he closed the distance between them. His lips pressed hard against hers. His tongue slipped into her mouth and tasted her with strong, determined sweeps. She gripped his shoulders, her fingers digging hard into him, and kissed him back. She tipped her head and pressed herself closer. He groaned, and his hands came up to grip her head as he deepened the kiss.

Heat and pleasure rocketed through Max. Her body ached for his touch, and she ground her hips against his with hungry eagerness.

Suddenly she pulled back, pressing the back of her hand against her throbbing lips. She was breathing hard, and so was he. His fingers were tense against the back of her neck. He looked down at her, a hard, cold look.

“Are you saying no? Should I be leaving here?”

Her eyes narrowed. “If I say I don’t want to screw you, then you’ll walk out? Is that the deal, Slick?”

She shoved against his chest, and he fell back a step, his arms dropping to his sides. Her stomach knotted, and the euphoria she’d been feeling turned sickening. She’d stopped the kiss to catch her balance. His touch drove her out of control, like she was being tossed around in a tornado. She wasn’t sure how she liked it. But now, anger warred with contempt and disappointment.

“Good luck with that. Giselle will send you out of here with a toe tag. She doesn’t want you spilling our secrets.”

He gave a harsh laugh. “I am not worried. I will leave when I want, and she will not send anybody to hunt me. She cannot spare anyone from guarding Horngate.”

He stepped closer until he was barely an inch away. Max bristled, standing firm.

His breath brushed her face, his eyes hot with a churn of emotion. “I want you. More than I can say. But I am done waiting for you and Giselle to figure out what to do with me. I will go with you and help you get your family. I will watch your back. But if you have not chosen me before we return, then I will disappear, and you will not see me again.”

“I don’t like ultimatums, Slick.”

He spun around and picked up his duffel, sliding the strap over his shoulder. “And I do not like swinging in the wind. It is almost dark. Are you ready to go?”

It was a dismissal. Max clenched her teeth. He was right. He did deserve better from Giselle. He’d proven himself loyal to Horngate. But this—

It was more than she was ready for.

“See you topside,” she said, and walked out without looking back.

Inside the door to her own apartment, she sagged back against the closed door, her eyes shutting. Her body still felt the rush of Alexander’s touch, and it was good. So damned good.

She pushed herself upright and went to her bedroom. She stripped off her clothes and headed to her bathroom. It was half the size of her bedroom. In the center was a ten-foot-wide tub cut into the stone floor. Hot spring water bubbled up from the bottom and spilled over a set of inch-wide notches around the top. Beside it was a teak basket of shampoo and soap. Beyond was a glassed-in shower with dual heads. Opposite was a towel cupboard and a granite sink with a broad mirror above it.

Steam rose to the ceiling and vanished into the spell set there to collect it. Max stepped down into the tub, grabbed the soap and scrubby, and began washing away the stink of the fire and her sweat from dealing with Scooter. She rubbed her arm where the magical sleeve felt cold against her skin. LoJacked. She’d been Lo-Jacked like a fucking car. He’d know where to find her no matter where she went. She clenched her fist. Her grip was strong enough. A prickle like an electric pulse ran from her elbow to her wrist. She grimaced. It was a small price to pay for the freedom to retrieve her family. She snorted. She wasn’t free. Scooter had put her on a leash. If she didn’t come home soon, he’d be dragging her back.

Her mind ran back over the images in the vision Scooter had showed her. Was her family still alive? Or had they become food for those creatures?

Fear screwed through her. It went deep, piercing through all of her armor to prod at her where she had no defenses. She curled her knees up to her chest, pressing her head against them, her mouth open in a silent cry. While her family was safe, she’d always felt like she could survive. But now she felt helpless, and the fear of what might be happening to them—what might have happened already—was more than she could bear. What if she lost them? She was supposed to be strong enough to protect them.