Guardian's Joy #3 (40 page)

“No!” the woman screamed.

JJ tore her hand from the frame, blue flame
crackling. She wondered if it was powerful enough to kill.

“Don’t!” Hope screamed behind her.

JJ was pushed aside. A lamp skittered along
the wall and then flew across the room to shatter against the wall
behind the bed. The bedclothes flew up and over the woman in the
bed. She shrieked in frustration and the whirlwind carried the
covers upward, away from her face and arms. JJ lunged. The bed
collapsed. JJ drew back her arm and slammed her fist into the
woman’s jaw. The woman’s head snapped back and her eyes rolled
upward. JJ whirled on Hope.

“What the hell was that about?” she shouted.
She climbed off the bed, her fists clenched at her sides.

“You wanted to kill her, JJ.” Hope turned her
head to the sound of footsteps on the stairs and Grace yelling
their names. “We’re fine. We’ll be right down,” she called to them
and looked back at JJ. “You wanted to kill her. I couldn’t let you
do that.”

“She would have gladly killed me.”

“But you are better the she,” Manon said from
the door. “And together, we are so much stronger. Are we not?” She
looked around the room and headed for the dresser, opening drawers
and pulling out scarves and pantyhose. “I think it would be wise to
tie her up and bring her downstairs. She may have much to tell us,
non?”

It didn’t take long to bind the unconscious
woman and carry her down to the small living room.

“I wonder who she is and where she came
from,” Grace mused aloud as she positioned the woman on the
sofa.

JJ curled her lip at the woman. “Her name is
Marion and she’s from the Compound of the Nonveniae. She’s the
leader of the First Coven there or at least she was. She taught me
most of what I know, but when I knew her, she didn’t have anywhere
near the power she has now. Everyone thought she was a wonder
because she could work up enough wind to move an open door, but she
couldn’t close and latch it.”

Manon collapsed into the chair opposite. She
blew out a tired breath. “She has learned to take power from
others.”

“Can you do that?” Grace asked. She perched
on the arm of the sofa farthest away from their captive.

Manon smiled tiredly. “You took it from me
when you healed Col. Take enough and you can drain a Daughter
completely.”

“Oh goddess, Manon, did I hurt you?”

“What you took, I willingly gave. Non, ma
petite, you did not hurt me permanently. I’m old, but my power is
strong. It would take a great deal to drain what I have. What
amazed me then and amazes me now, is that for one so young, you
were able to do it without help from others. I think the three of
you are all stronger than I could ever hope to be.

“If what you say is true,” she went on,
nodding at Marion, “This one would not be strong enough to take
anything without help and then only from someone much weaker than
she.”

“Would it be possible to steal power from
more than one person? I mean, would the power add up?” JJ thought
of the other young women at the compound. Somehow she didn’t think
Marion would stop at taking a little. She’d have drained them dry
and justified it by saying it was for the greater good.

“C’est possible. I have only seen it done as
Grace did to me and she did not keep the power to herself.”

The older woman closed her eyes for a moment
and for the first time JJ saw the signs of age in what she thought
of as an ageless face. Grace must have seen it, too.

“We should get you home. You need your
sleep.”

Manon didn’t deny it. “As do you, ma petite.
We also have the problem of moving the mirror. It will not fit in
your piece of shit.”

The younger women sputtered laughter.

“What? You think because I am old I could not
know what POS stands for? I propose that we return to the House and
when darkness falls, the men can return for the woman and the
mirror.”

JJ’s “No!” was emphatic. “We don’t know what
she’s capable of and I don’t want her and the mirror inside the
House at the same time. It spooks me enough just taking the mirror.
You guys head home. I’ll stay with Marion and the mirror. When she
comes to, I’ve got some questions I’d like to ask.”

Hope refused to leave JJ alone and it was
decided that the two would stay while Manon and Grace returned
home. There should be no danger until darkness fell. It would only
be a few hours.

“Manon’s getting old,” Hope said sadly as
they watched their sisters drive away.

“Manon is old, but you’re right. It’s
starting to show.”

“Grace thinks it’s the blood bond with Otto.
After he turned, he began to age like a human. I can see the
difference in the short time I’ve known him. Grace thinks Manon is
aging with him. She thinks when he goes, Manon won’t be far behind.
I hope that’s true for Manon’s sake… and my own.”

“You wouldn’t want to live without Nico?” JJ
asked her gently. This was something the others hadn’t talked about
and she had the feeling Hope was sharing something personal and
important.

Hope nodded her answer and smiled sadly. “I
wouldn’t do anything foolish, you know, to make it happen, but yes,
I wouldn’t want to live without him. I don’t know if I
could
live without him. The blood bond does something to you that’s hard
to explain. It’s like his heartbeat is your heartbeat, his breath,
your breath. It’s more than loving him, feeling close to him. It’s
like you are him and he is you.” She shook her head in frustration
at her inability to find the words.

“Manon said that when Otto died, she knew it.
She felt it literally as a stab to the heart. Of course, she had no
way of knowing he’d survived being turned. Not until he showed up
on her doorstep, but she says she should have known because she
still took an interest in things even though she was lonely and
heartbroken. She knows now that if he’d suffered true death, she
would only have existed, waiting for the time when she could join
him.”

“Did you know all this before the bond?”

“No, but I would have said yes anyway.” This
time when Hope smiled it was like her whole being brightened with
light. “All I have to do is think of Nico, of being with him, and
I’m filled with such a feeling of love and happiness and rightness
that any price I might have to pay would be worth it. I want to say
it’s more than love, but it isn’t. It’s love in its purest form.
It’s what they write songs about. It’s what the poets try to say,
but never quite manage to.” She shook herself and laughed, this
time embarrassed. “Well, don’t I make it sound corny.”

“No,” JJ whispered, half lost in her own
thoughts, “You make it sound beautiful.”

Chapter 40

Canaan had roared his displeasure, picked his
mate up and carted her off to bed. Grace had looked properly
contrite and apologetic until she was safely ensconced over the
Liege Lord’s shoulder where she gave Nico and Nardo a finger wave
and grinned mischievously.

Nico had given a noncommittal shrug and said
he would spend the time until dark reading in the parlor at the
front of the house. He almost pulled off the calm, cool and
collected act, except his twitching fingers and the pulsating vein
in his neck ruined his air of nonchalance. He didn’t like his woman
out there and unprotected any more than Nardo did.

Canaan and Nico’s reactions were
understandable. The blood bonds they shared with their women
intensified their need to shelter and protect their mates. Joy
wasn’t his mate, probably never would be after her nightmare
experience with that bastard at the compound. So why did his heart
feel like it had been chewed up and relocated in his gut?

Joy was perfectly competent out in the field.
She could not only wield the electric power in her fingertips with
precision, she could handle herself physically as well. She had
Hope for backup and Nardo was more than familiar with how strong
and determined his business partner could be.

He shouldn’t worry. Hadn’t both Manon and
Grace assured them the situation was under control? And didn’t they
promise to call if there was a problem?

Nardo sat at the counter and waited for the
sun to set.

*****

Maximillian never saw the downside of the
utility tunnels beneath Moonlight Sanctuary. They allowed easy
access to all Sanctuary’s buildings even during the light of day.
He never understood why his predecessors complained so mightily
about them. Until now.

It wasn’t until today that he realized the
tunnels also afforded easy access to him. There were a thousand
things that needed to be done and there was only one more night to
accomplish them all; only one more night until the papers stating
his intent to mate the daughter of one of the most influential
families of the Race were accepted and signed.

It was only a formality, he knew. Callista an
Addison, Advisor to the Ruling Council, had already agreed to his
proposal and he had acceded to her demands. It was a union that
would suit them both and Maximillian suspected Councilor Addison,
her father, would be relieved to turn over the responsibility of
his daughter to someone else. Callista had quite a reputation among
the upper echelons of the Paenitentia. She was strong willed and
spoiled and many objected to her position as the only female
Advisor to the Council.

With the aid of the doctor’s expertise,
Maximillian was sure her wild ways would be tamed. A baby in her
belly would settle her down and once the child was born, the duties
that took her away from it would become unbearable. Maximillian saw
himself in her place as Advisor and only a step away from Councilor
when her father stepped down.

Yes, everything tomorrow night must be
perfect. The announcement would not only be made in front of the
best of Moonlight Sanctuary, but the best of Councilor Addison’s
colleagues and friends as well. They had already started to arrive
last night and it was Maximillian’s duty to see that everything
went according to plan.

The Captain and the doctor refused to
understand the significance of the coming event. It was four-thirty
in the afternoon, for heaven’s sake. They should be home in their
beds instead of bothering him. But no, they had to choose this
moment to meet with him.

The sharp knock at his door had him scowling.
In the track suit he wore to the gym, he wasn’t even dressed to
receive visitors. He plastered his best political smile on his face
and opened the door. Neither of his early visitors would know how
much he resented their presence.

“Gentlemen. Up and about early, I see.”
Maximillian held out his hand as he welcomed them in. Doctor ad
Fenton shook it cordially, but the Captain rudely pushed past and
into the room. Once again, the Director wondered how he’d ever
thought this boorish man a friend. “Unfortunately, my staff won’t
arrive for another few hours.” He paused to let the hint sink in,
“I’m afraid I have nothing to offer to break your fast.”

“No need to worry, Director. I’m too excited
to eat or sleep. We’ve come to invite you to the unveiling
tonight.” The doctor took a seat by the tightly shuttered window
and blew out an exhausted breath. “I’ve gone over everything from
start to finish. I’ve checked and double checked the meds, the
socialization program and the subjects’ procreative viability. They
are ready to be introduced.”

“Introduced? Gregory, what are you talking
about?” Maximillian looked over at Salvador who was helping himself
to a drink from one of the crystal decanters on the sideboard.
“What’s this about? And what the hell is their procreative
viability?”

The Captain didn’t try to cover his sneer as
he took a sip of his drink. “He means they can still fuck and
they’re ready to knock up one of your perfect Moonlight
princesses.”

Gregory pursed his lips, offended. “No need
to be crude, Captain. That was part of the original proposal. What
I’ve learned will help our members immensely and an increase in our
numbers can only serve to further our cause.”

“That doesn’t answer my question. Introduced
to whom?”

“To society, of course. They will escort
Salvador and myself to tomorrow night’s festivities.”

“No! No, no, no, and no again.” Maximillian
was horrified at the thought. “I forbid it.”

Ad Primus raised his eyebrows. “Forbid? I
don’t think you have the authority to forbid anything.”

“What if something goes wrong? It’s too soon.
A smaller setting perhaps, one the Father could attend. Surely he
would want to witness such a momentous occasion.” The Director
couldn’t believe they would choose, of all days, the one that
should be his.

“You worry too much, Director.” Dr. Ad Fenton
waved off the man’s discomfort, though secretly enjoying it. “We’ll
introduce them as members of the Captain’s security force. This
will be their final exam, so to speak.”

The Captain offered a shark like smile. The
Father wouldn’t be attending anything soon. “Their orders will be
simple and easy to follow. They won’t interfere with your
announcement.”

Maximillian knew he had no choice but to go
along with whatever ad Primus chose to do, but he couldn’t let go.
“I want to see them, see for myself before they step foot in
Moonlight Sanctuary.”

Dr. ad Fenton smiled broadly. “That’s why
we’re here, Director.”

*****

“Wake up, Marion. We need to talk.” JJ
slapped the seemingly unconscious woman’s cheek none too gently and
hoped her kinder partner hadn’t heard it in the kitchen. Hope hated
violence.

The woman moaned and flexed her bruised jaw
before she opened her eyes. “It is you,” she whispered, her brow
wrinkling. “They said you might be alive. I thought they were lying
to the High Lord to give him something to live for.”