Authors: Stacie Simpson
“Obviously I mean you no harm,” he gestured towards the
door, “or I wouldn’t have been able to enter this fine establishment.” He
glanced around the room. “It is an interesting place, this Forbidden Fantasies.
Perfect for anyone with voyeuristic tendencies. I will have to consider
installing screens like these in some of our clubs. The shadows are much more
erotic than seeing the full picture.”
The tension at the table increased and Serafina moved to the
chair beside Dragon at the same time that I pulled my arm from behind Angela.
Doyle was circling around to get behind Danarius.
Danarius appeared unconcerned as he kept tabs on all of our
movements. After a few moments Danarius met Dragon’s eyes and told him, “I have
always thought Travali was a greedy fool. Just look at how he botched
everything with you. If not for his greed, he could have been done with you and
all of your kind centuries ago. Instead, he gave you the power to defeat him
and now that his spell is broken more and more supernatural groups are joining
your United Clans.”
“Then why do you follow him?” Dragon asked. “Surely you have
the power to break his leash.”
Danarius shook his head. “I am the puppet he wished
you
to become.” When Dragon only stared at him in disbelief he added, “My sire has
been forgoing fresh blood for too long. Only if I did the same would I be able
to break his hold over me, and that is a choice I will not make.”
The fact that Danarius was powerful enough to be second in
command without forgoing fresh blood spoke volumes. It also indicated that he
must have had some psychic abilities before he was changed into a vampire. Most
vampires had to forgo fresh blood on a regular basis to gain the psychic powers
necessary to move up in their ranks.
Dragon leaned back and tilted his head to the side studying
the vampire in front of him. “Say I believe you. Why are you here?”
“Travali has finally gone too far and he must be stopped. He
has forbidden me to speak of his location or his plans but I believe I have
found a way to lead you to him.”
“How do we know we can trust you?” I asked him.
Danarius turned to me and his eyes flashed black before
returning to brown. “You don’t, and you can’t. The kitten will still suffer and
I have already contacted some of your brethren regarding the discovery of a
conduit.” Angela tensed beside me and his eyes flicked to hers then back to
mine.
After a strained moment when I wanted to slaughter him and
every vampire under his command, he refocused on Dragon and said, “We are not
friends and I am not naive enough to think we could even be allies. For now
though, we must work together to put an end to Travali’s madness. Perhaps once
he is out of the picture we can behave like businessmen and another truce might
be possible. I’m sure you’d like to see an end to the bodies being dumped
behind your resort.”
“There will be no truce until Travali is dead by my hand and
Ivanna has been made to suffer for her part in my mate’s abduction,” Dragon
told Danarius, then added, “You should also know that I consider Angela and
Rachel to be part of my family as my Guardian’s mate and her child.”
“I will see what I can do to help with Travali and Ivanna
but your Guardian challenged me in a very public setting. We both know I cannot
let that slide.” With that Danarius rose from his chair and straightened his
suit jacket. “When the time comes you will understand my concerns about Travali
and where my hands are tied, yours will not be. Be prepared to act, for all our
futures will depend on your ability to triumph.”
Danarius left after that cryptic warning and everyone seemed
to take a deep breath.
“I should have just killed him when I had the chance at
Kaleb’s. It would have been so easy while he was frozen in place.”
“You wouldn’t have been able to live with yourself if you
had murdered him in cold blood,” Dragon tried to sooth my anger. “Not to
mention, your Elders would frown upon using your powers to end a life for any
reason other than self-defense.”
“I know all that, but if I had taken care of him then,
Angela and Rachel wouldn’t be in danger now.”
Sometimes I wished I could be as ruthless as our enemies
would be in my place.
“Hey,” Angela said quietly as she reached out and touched my
arm. “I trust you to keep me and Rachel safe, and if you were able to murder a
defenseless man while you held him frozen in time, then you wouldn’t be the
kind of man I want to be with.”
I looked into her eyes, so beautiful, like ice blue
diamonds, and knew she was right. But knowing that did nothing to ease the ache
I felt in my chest. I pulled her onto my lap and held her close to my heart
while I smoothed my hand over her hair. What would I do if I lost her now?
“I’m not going anywhere Rook,” she murmured.
I just held on tighter. She didn’t understand the danger she
was in. Most time demons fell on the side of good, but many of them were truly
evil at heart. Only the Elders kept them in line. If they thought Angela could
help them defeat the Elders then they would stop at nothing to have her.
Looking over Angela’s head I told Dragon, “I think my
vacation is over. We need to step up security and everyone needs to be on
standby for whatever Danarius has planned.”
“It can wait until morning Rook,” he replied and when I
started to argue he added, “That’s an order. Go home tonight and clear your
head. I need my calm, calculating security chief, not a hothead too worried
about his mate to think logically.” His lips twisted with a rueful grin. “Take
it from someone who knows, fear for your mate can be your enemy’s most powerful
weapon.”
We all said our goodbyes after that, then Angela and I
headed back through the portal. We stopped by The Catacombs to check on Rachel
and found her in the mosh pit having the time of her life with Solomon watching
her back. After Claire’s predictions regarding his future I’d been worried
about him, but for now he seemed to be enjoying himself. Thinking about Claire reminded
me of her intervention in my relationship with Angela and made me wonder if she
knew anything that might help me keep her safe. I mentioned my hopes to Angela
and we decided to make Claire’s studio our next stop.
* * * * *
“We know she’s here, her car is parked out front, so just go
and find her and bring her here now,” Tony was telling Harrison, one of Rook’s
security staff members when we stepped into the lobby on our way to Claire’s
studio. Harrison was slender, average height and always came off as a pompous
ass when I had to deal with him. From the looks of things, Tony was getting the
same impression.
When Rook and I came into view Tony’s lips formed a thin
line then he squared his shoulders and strode towards us with purpose. A
uniformed cop was following behind him and I knew this couldn’t be good.
“Angela Ruby, you are under arrest for the murder of James
Valentine....”
Tony continued reading me my rights while the uniform cuffed
my hands behind my back. I was completely numb. Jimmy was dead and somehow I
was being blamed for his death. This could not be happening.
Rook was unnaturally still as he watched and listened with
fury swirling in his silver eyes. The energy I felt flowing through me burned
with his need for violence and I hoped he would be able to hold it together.
“Angela.” Rook’s voice was rough but calm.
With a glance around the area I realized everyone was frozen
but us.
“This has Danarius written all over it. We need to take care
of this problem at its source so we can erase any evidence from the official
records. Go with them now but keep your eyes and ears open. I’ll get Dragon and
we’ll be right behind you. Whatever it takes, you’ll be back here with me and
Rachel tonight.”
He sounded so confident that it was impossible to doubt
anything he said.
I took a deep breath and nodded. “I’ll be waiting for you.”
Rook came forward and slipped his hand under my hair to
cradle the back of my head while he kissed me gently. He was trying to hide it,
but I felt his worry and his fear along with his love for me.
When he stepped back into place everyone else started moving
again as if there had never been a break in activity. Rook handled the
transition smoothly but my reaction must have been off because Tony eyed me
curiously like something wasn’t quite right. After a second he shook his head
then he led me outside and placed me in the back seat of his car.
Rook stayed close by but the second we pulled away from the
curb I saw him take off into the resort. Glancing out the window at the
midnight sky I prayed there would be enough time for them to spring me from
jail before sunrise. Under normal circumstances I had a few objections to the
use of vampire mind tricks, but in this situation I wasn’t going to complain
one bit.
I needed my name cleared and we needed to know what purpose
my arrest was supposed to serve. What did Danarius hope to gain from this? Was
it simply a way to get me out from behind Solomon’s wards, or was there more to
it? As we headed into town I couldn’t stop the sense of dread that crept over
me or the feeling that no matter how quickly we took care of this problem it
wasn’t going to be fast enough.
“What made you finally go over to the dark side Angela?” My
old partner Quen asked me from where he sat on the other side of the table in
the interrogation room.
My hands were still cuffed but now they were resting on the
table in front of me. “I heard they have really good cookies and I wanted to
see for myself,” I replied with a smirk.
He sat back and shook his head. “I never would have thought
you could be capable of cold-blooded murder.”
“What has you so convinced I am now?”
“We found Jimmy’s body in front of your house. The gun you
used to murder him has your prints all over it and we have eyewitnesses.”
“And that doesn’t strike you as odd Quen, that I would leave
all that evidence behind then go to Myths and Legends and act as though nothing
out of the ordinary happened?” Now I was shaking my head.
“People start hanging out with a bad crowd and they start
doing things they never would have thought about doing before. Ask your
daughter Angela, she’s a perfect example.” The way his eyes rolled back and his
body shivered made me see red.
I leaned forward on my arms and asked through clenched
teeth, “Have you ever touched my daughter Quen?”
“Rachel is a consenting adult now Angela and whatever may or
may not have happened between us is none of your business.”
I could see the truth in his face. Whether it was before or
after she turned eighteen I couldn’t say for sure, just like I had no idea if
it had been for business or pleasure on her part, but I knew without a doubt
that Rachel had slept with him at some point. Going by looks alone I couldn’t
blame her really. He was good looking, blonde hair and blue eyes, athletic
body, and a sinful grin that would be hard for any woman to resist, let alone a
young girl like Rachel. But beneath his good looks Quentin Andrews was the
worst kind of slime and my gut told me he was also as crooked as any cop could
be.
Quen smirked and told me, “You shouldn’t have asked for a
new partner Angela.”
“You will be sorry that you ever set eyes on my daughter
Quen,” I promised in a low voice.
He laughed and lifted his arms out to the sides indicating I
should take a look around. “What can you do to me Angela? You’re going to jail
for murder. No one will listen to a word you have to say.”
The next instant there was a knock at the door and Quen’s
brows drew together as he rose from his chair and crossed the room to answer
it. He had a whispered conversation with someone on the other side then he
turned and grinned at me.
“Lieutenant Taggert wants to see you in her office.”
It was obvious he thought I was in for the ass-chewing of a
lifetime, but I was pretty sure there was something else going on. A few
minutes later, when we walked into the lieutenant’s office I was proven right.
“What the hell is going on here?” Quen all but sputtered as
he looked around the room.
Lieutenant Taggert was seated behind her desk while Dragon
lounged in one of the chairs across from her. Rook had been pacing by the
window but rushed over to me as soon as I stepped into the room.
He glared at Quen with his swirling silver eyes then
snapped, “Get those handcuffs off of her now.”
“Who the fuck...” Quen started to argue but then he just
clamped his mouth shut and did what he was told.
God I loved nightshifters.
As soon as the cuffs were off I was in Rook’s arms and he
was holding my head against his chest while his other hand rubbed up and down
my back. I felt so warm and safe with his arms surrounding me and the power
from the River flowing between us.
“We have a problem Angela,” Dragon said from across the
room.
Reluctantly, I withdrew from Rook’s embrace and went over to
sit in the chair near Dragon. Rook remained standing but leaned against the
front of the lieutenant’s desk.
“What’s wrong?” I asked once I was seated.
“We found out why your lieutenant has become so fanatical
about us lately,” Rook said.
“What do you mean?”
Dragon explained, “It can be dangerous to tamper with human
minds. That’s why we don’t just come down here and erase any suspicions the
police have every time they get a new complaint about us. Unfortunately, while
I was trying to protect your lieutenant’s sanity by leaving her alone, someone
else was coming to see her on a regular basis - and let’s just say her mind can’t
take much more. I can fix some of the damage, enough that she could live a
normal life, but she needs to be removed from her position and kept away from
anyone who might want to tamper with her mind.”
“What was the point? What were they trying to accomplish by
playing with her mind?”
“They’ve been using her to keep an eye on us and to distract
us when needed. They’ve also just been having some fun with her. Her mind has
been filled with nightmares that can be triggered by words or events. Several
of the nightmares have already been triggered and as a result she’s been having
difficulty discerning reality from the images in her head. Eventually, without
my help, everything would have started bleeding together until she was unable
to form rational, coherent thoughts ever again.”
“What do you mean by nightmares? What kinds of things has
she been seeing?” I asked, confused.
Dragon grimaced. “You know how sometimes you see things out
of the corner of your eye, but when you turn your head nothing is there?” I
nodded and he continued, “It started with things like that. She’d catch a
glimpse of someone’s face and swear she saw fangs in his mouth, but when she
blinked his teeth would be normal. The next time she saw fangs in someone’s
mouth they were dripping with blood.
The images grew progressively more disturbing and more
frequent until the bombing at The Gateway when they stopped going away after
she blinked. Nowadays she has to close her eyes and take a few deep breaths
before everything returns to normal. And the images now include scenes of
graphic violence that she believes actually occurred. To make matters worse,
her mind is superimposing the faces of my staff members onto the villains in
these nightmares.”
Looking at Lieutenant Taggert now I couldn’t help but feel
sorry for her. No wonder she’d been so dead set on bringing Dragon and everyone
else at Myths and Legends down.
“Do you have any idea who did this to her?”
Dragon leaned forward and rested his forearms on his legs. “If
I had to guess, I would say it was Malachi before I killed him. There’s just
something about the things I saw in her mind that make me think of him. At any
rate, it had to be someone at least as powerful as him and that doesn’t leave a
lot of suspects.”
I leaned back in the chair, suddenly very tired. “So what do
we do now?”
“We’re going to take her with us so Dragon can help her and
so we can protect her,” Rook told me. “We’re just waiting on Lucien. He’s
making sure the official records show that Jimmy was the victim of a burglary
gone bad in his hotel room. When we found out how and where he died I sent
someone out to your neighborhood to erase the entire incident from your
neighbors’ minds. There won’t be any evidence linking you to this crime when we’re
finished.”
“What do you think Danarius is trying to gain from this? I
mean he has to know you’d never let me go to jail. So what will this get him?”
“It’s most likely a distraction,” Rook said.
That made sense, but who or what would be vulnerable with
all of us distracted? I sat up straight as my heart started pounding. “Rachel...”
“Don’t worry,” Rook soothed. “She’s already in her room fast
asleep and there are security personnel stationed inside and outside your
suite.”
I relaxed a little but thinking about Rachel reminded me
about Quen. After a glance at Dragon I decided I may as well ask, “Do you think
you could do me a favor? Could you go into Quen’s head and make sure he never
goes near my daughter again?”
“Why do you feel like you need to keep him away from Rachel?”
Rook asked.
Looking up at him I said, “Because a little while ago when
we were in the interrogation room Quen told me that he has slept with my
daughter at least once.” I didn’t even try to hide the fury I felt when I
thought about Quen putting his hands on Rachel.
Rook growled and glared at Quen like he was imagining all
the ways he could kill him.
Dragon shrugged and when Quen came to stand beside him he
reached out his hand to touch Quen’s arm while he closed his eyes and sat very
still for several minutes.
“Why does he need to touch Quen to read his mind?” I
whispered the question to Rook.
He shook his head. “He doesn’t, but physical contact makes
it easier and faster for him to invade someone’s mind.”
“Has he ever tried touching me to see if that would help him
get into my head?”
Rook’s eyebrows rose then he looked thoughtful. “I don’t
think he has, but that’s an interesting question.”
When Dragon opened his eyes I thought I caught a flash of
red, but then it was gone so fast I thought I imagined it. “Detective Andrews
will never touch your daughter again Angela.”
Chills went up my spine with the ice cold fury I heard in
Dragon’s voice but he didn’t elaborate and I certainly wasn’t going to push him
for an explanation. When I glanced at Rook he shook his head indicating he didn’t
know what was going on either.
Dragon took a deep breath then asked me, “Would you mind if
we conduct a little experiment while we wait for Lucien?”
“What kind of experiment?” I asked shifting uncomfortably in
my seat. I really didn’t want Dragon’s focus on me until I was sure he had his
anger under control.
“I heard what you asked Rook and it made me curious. In
general, supernatural minds are impenetrable by vampires and nightshifters.
There are exceptions of course depending on the power levels of the parties
involved, and if supernaturals choose to let their guard down then we can get
into their heads.
Take for example what happens when vampires and
nightshifters feed. We feel the overwhelming lust and project it into the mind
of whoever we’re feeding from. With supernaturals that wouldn’t be possible if
they didn’t let us in, contact with bare skin or not. I want to know if you are
vulnerable to us at all. Would vampires be able to take over your mind if they
were to touch you before they tried?”
I looked at Rook who shrugged and said, “It might be
important to know someday.”
“Okay,” I said holding out my hand to Dragon. “Let’s see
what you’ve got.”
He grinned and took my hand in his. After a moment I saw
myself reaching over with my free hand to pull my gun out of its holster and
hand it to Dragon.
“See if you can fight it Angela,” Rook said and it sounded
like he was very far away.