Sin Eater (24 page)

“There will have to be another vessel in the room. A human, weak-minded. You will have no choice but to hop right in, since you’re … well, whatever you are. You can’t pass on to either side. You’ll stick to the first thing available and live its mortal life.”

He was alarmingly business-like the more Raphael spoke. “What about Iola? Does she become a Sin Eater in my place?”

Raphael tilted his head. “Hard to say, s
ince technically Essum stays a Sin Eater in a Sin Eater’s immortal flesh. But she … she
could
stay a Sin Eater as long as your former body lives. Which, if it’s Essum, could be
another
six hundred years. But it won’t matter. He’ll likely have to kill her, just in case she’s still capable of taking him out. You know how pragmatic Essum is.”

The pain in Voro’s chest was back. He dimly became aware that the water in the bathroom had shut off.

Raphael leaned forward, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at the wall behind him. “Lesbian, hey? Nice.”

“Fuck off.”

“Hey, I haven’t been in a body
ever
, my friend. She’s beautiful, man.”

Voro studied Raphael for a moment. “Are you in a flesh-and-blood body right now?” It wasn’t as stupid as it sounded. Like Essum, Raphael could just be an apparition, the result of an existential being concentrating hard enough to be seen.

“Sure am! Michael finally stepped off for a bit. So here I am, and I was asked to warn you. You gotta get your strength up to deal with Essum
and
your
decipio
, man. And the only way you’re getting strong is to get back to fucking work.”

“Is it making your skin crawl telling me to head off your boss’s right and privilege before he gets a crack at these people?”

Raphael shrugged, hopping off the dresser and crossing the carpeted floor without the slightest sound. He leaned over to Voro, his long blonde hair falling forward and touching Voro’s face.
Fresh bread. They always smelled like fresh-baked bread
.

“Truth is, Voro, we don’t want to have to figure out how to fix this after the fact. We’ve got a few tricks, don’t get me wrong. I mean, there’s always a back-up
laqueus
plan. In case the first one falls through. And there’s a new prototype in play, but I’m not even sure what it is … just be careful.”

“Can you at least tell me who the damn
decipio
is? That would be a great help.”

Raphael rocked forward on his feet, and Voro had the insane thought the guy was going to kiss him. But he stood up instead, laughing. “I can’t do that. What if Essum fucks up and the chance is there to bench a
Sin Eater that’s been on rotation for over six hundred years?”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t be fair, would it?”

“Sorry, man. This is as much as I can tell you.”

“Are you leaving anything out?” Voro narrowed his eyes at the beach-blonde model standing in the middle of Claudia’s bedroom. He was raw male sexual attraction, in looks only because an angel’s pureness of heart usually quelled any hot-and-sweaty passion that any human might get out of one. Still, Raphael was as mellow as could be. Voro knew angels couldn’t out and out
lie
to him, but they sure as hell could leave out important information. Just to fuck with him.

“Nah, man. It’s all I know. And I told you what I’m leaving out, and why I’m leaving it out. So no ball-busting, okay?”

“I’m going to fight for this life, okay? I’m not going to just roll over and let you stop Essum from doing what he wants, then take my place at the back of the line. I’m going to stop him. It will be messy and it might get grim.”

“I know that. You don’t think we get our hands dirty from time to time?” Raphael made a
tsk
sound in the back of his throat.

“I know you get your hands dirty, too.”

Raphael sat on the edge of the bed, and Voro sat up straighter, eyes on the guy’s back as he pushed his hair back out of his face. “You know why we exist, right? You’re aware of how ridiculous this whole thing is?”

Voro nodded, but of course Raphael didn’t have eyes in the back of his head. “Yeah, I know.”

“We work for two kids on a school ground fighting over fucking marbles.”

“It’s a dick-measuring contest.”

“The guy with the most cash wins.”

“And these cattle are actually picking sides.” Voro knew Claudia was almost done drying off, and he moved to poke Raphael in the back with his foot. “She’s coming out soon, get going. I appreciate it, really. But I don’t have a reason to explain why you’re here.”

“Just plant something in her head. Maybe I want to stay.”

Voro kicked him, not as nicely. “Get!”

The angel got up, left the room and walked past the bathroom door just as Claudia was leaving the bathroom. Voro blocked her mind from seeing him, but since she was naked, Raphael’s head swiveled like a barn owl to track her movement, stopping in his tracks so he could watch her walk back to the bed. Voro wanted to shoot him a “get the fuck out of here” look, but he was already blocking her from sensing him and he didn’t have the energy to just put her right out so he could kick Raphael’s ass.

Raphael stayed where he was anyway, and as she climbed on to the bed next to him Voro noted with satisfaction that the angel was displaying a nasty trait that he wasn’t supposed to exhibit: envy.

Claudia smiled down at him, stretching out over his upper body with hers, unabashedly naked and pink from her shower. The ends of her hair were damp and curling on her shoulders. She smelled and looked delicious.

Of course, he got hard immediately.

“You would not believe the dream I just had,” she mumbled happily, her lips on his and her chest pressing into him so that he had to rearrange himself to prevent injury.  She played with the pendant on his necklace, flicking it through her fingers, totally disinterested in it.

“What kind of dream?” He asked, even though he knew damn well what she was talking about. He must have done one hell of a number on her mind.

She dropped the pendant, pulled the sheets back and took him in her hand, stroking very gently. “I can’t even tell you. But it was … amazing. It’s making me feel like … I owe you something.”

“Dear Claudia,” he said, smiling broadly, “you owe me nothing.”

She lowered her head to his lap, and his eyes rolled up in his head. He looked to the hallway where Raphael still stood, his eyes huge. For theatrics Raphael curled his hand into a fist and bit it as though he couldn’t take the sight of her naked body and the act she was currently performing.

Voro smiled at him, then extended his middle finger before a moan brought him back to Claudia and he closed his eyes to let her repay him.

Yeah, he was back.

Damn, damn, damn
, Iola thought, stealing a glance over at Vinnie as he drove her through the streets to work. This truly sucked. She couldn’t stand the fact that she was going to work. She really wanted to stay with him.

They had a nice lunch, went for a walk by the river, then had ice cream. Now he was taking her to work and … that would be it for her Vinnie fix today.

A time would come eventually where she’d have him all to herself for a good twelve hours, she was sure of it. But she might go insane waiting for it to come around.

“Take this alley; I always go in the back door. It’s closest to the subway,” she instructed, and he turned where she told him to. When he stopped by the metal door with the key-swipe lock he put the car in park and turned to her, smiling.

“I’m going to miss you,” he said.

That thought warmed her. “I’m going to miss you. I hate that I have to be at work for the next eight hours instead of with you.”

Vinnie leaned across the shifter to kiss her, likely meaning for it to be a nice but still sexy peck on the lips, but Iola flicked her tongue into his mouth, and he didn’t even hesitate to meet it with his, and soon enough they were in a full-on lip lock, and Iola remembered the good-night kisses in high school after a date, trying not to look like they’re making out when they were, of course, making out in the car.

The kiss did nothing to make her happier about going
into work, but he was still the one to end the kiss, putting a hand to her lips and giving an awfully sexy smile. “Iola, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

She smiled back. “You should always do that. As much as possible.”

“Have fun at work. Call me tomorrow.”

“I will.” She was out the passenger door immediately, shutting it and waving at him through the glass. Then she ran for the door and let herself in before she gave crawling
into bed with Doctor Aubericus another thought.

Once she got
into her control room she started going through her playlists, getting ready to go on air in half an hour. The door opened behind her very quietly, and she looked up, then felt the itchy sensation of awkwardness walk into the room as her guest did.

“Okay, so I had this dream the other night,” Jasper opened with, holding his hands out in a questioning manner. “I had this dream that I called the radio station when I was technically too drunk to be trusted to brush my own damn teeth, and I said some incredibly stupid things to this really nice woman I work with. Tell me this was some kind of nightmare.”

Iola laughed.  “Jasper, I’ve never judged people by what they did while intoxicated.”

“Oh, thank God. But seriously,” he sat on a stool across the console from her, pushing a guest microphone out of the way. “I am so incredibly sorry. For that. It was out of line.”

Iola shrugged. “Really, don’t sweat it. Like I said, alcohol makes people do some stupid shit.”

Jasper got to his feet and circled the console to stand closer to her, and she swiveled to face him. Then she frowned.

He looked … different today. He seemed taller. His jaw appeared more … square. Handsome, even. And his dark hair was … quite glossy now. Or maybe she’d never really
looked
at him like this before. Which raised the question of
why
she was looking at him that way now.

She stood, because he was making her uncomfortable. Or … why was she standing? She frowned, putting a hand to her temple. Usually when she was tired her thoughts were slow … but right now they were downright foggy. Like her brain was firing but the
electricity had to go through oatmeal to register.

When she closed her eyes, her breath stopped. It just caught in her throat.

Iola became aware that she was naked, which was wrong since she was at work. She should definitely be wearing her clothes here. She looked down at herself. Nope, naked as the day she was born.

Maybe this was a dream, like going to school in your underwear.

Someone had her in his arms, and she looked up into Jasper’s midnight blue eyes. His eyes were locked on her lips, and she became aware of a heat in between their bodies … which were right against each other. Her bare breasts pressed into his bare chest, his hands hot on her back, holding her in place.

She closed her eyes as he shifted his hips against hers, and she gasped as she felt his arousal. His mouth sucked at her neck, hot and demanding, and her hands shot
into that dark hair, grabbing it in clumps. His hand stroked her breast, and as she moaned he pulled softly on her nipple.

Iola’s head fell back, and Jasper kept her upright, lowering his lips on to hers. She responded like a wanton harlot, sealing her lips against his and forcing her tongue
into his mouth. He backed her up against the counter in front of the computer, then cupped her bare ass and hefted her up on to the work space by it. Her legs wound around his waist, and Iola became aware then that she wanted him desperately, she needed him inside her. Her body was hot and wet with necessity.

“Oh, Iola,” he muttered against the skin of her lips.

She couldn’t answer. His hand was sliding down her stomach, stopping just above the part of her that wanted his touch the most.

“Iola?”

She opened her eyes, her breath coming with difficulty, and she blinked rapidly. She was standing against the computer counter, and Jasper was across the room, eyeing her with concern. “Iola,” he repeated. “Are you okay?”

She put a hand to her lips, then nodded. “Sorry, yeah. I was … I was lost in my thoughts I guess.”

“Well, I just wanted to apologize. But I better go. There was another escape from the jail, I gotta get to the press conference.”

She nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you.” Or maybe she said something like that. Who the hell knew? It was like coming out of a coma of something.

What. The. Fuck?

“Can you ... can you repeat that?” Claudia knew her voice might be running the risk of sounding hysterical, but too bad. She thought she must be losing her mind, that’s the only thing that could explain what Constable Vance was telling her.

“Charles Goodwin is not in his cell.” Vance sounded like he’d rather be singing show tunes than uttering these words. She knew it wasn’t his fault. But still …
dammit
.

“You gotta be kidding.”

“We’re going through security tapes but there’s one point last night where everything just … fuzzes out like an electrical storm or something. I’ve got patrol going by your building at least twice every hour but … you might want to check into a hotel or something. Just to be safe. You’re on days off anyway, right?”

Vance already knew the answer to that. “Yeah,” Claudia confirmed it anyway. “I’m off the next three days.”

“Stay with someone else or check into a safe hotel, okay? The guy’s gotten in that place once already. I’d … I’d feel better if you were somewhere else.”

Me too
, she thought, then cleared her throat. “Yeah, I’ll do that. I’ll have my cell in case you hear anything, but I’ll … I’ll head somewhere safe.”

“Good. But don’t tell me or anyone else where you go. I hate to get suspicious of our pals here, but … this guy’s gotten free twice now.”

Claudia’s mind would have taken twice as long as Vance’s to get to that conclusion, but he shocked it to her early. One of her own co-workers?

“So get out of there and call my cell when you’re hidden. Please … just get going.”

“Okay. And thanks, Vance.”

“Don’t mention it, Sergeant. Just be safe.”

She hung up the cordless phone with a slow-moving and numb hand which of course Damien noticed.

“Trouble at work?” He guessed with that calm, easy voice of his.

“Charles Goodwin is free again. He escaped from jail … for the second time.” Yeah, Claudia was thinking she must be losing her mind. Because this was so inexplicably ridiculous …

“So … where are you going?”

Damien’s voice brought her back to earth this time. She stood, then shrugged. “I gotta find a hotel. Check in for a while. They’re sending patrols by, but … the guy that just called thinks I should head somewhere and not tell anyone where I am.”

Damien nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.”

“Yeah, I guess.” She pulled a suitcase out of her front closet, then walked down the hall to the bedroom with it and flung it open on her bed.

“Let me stay here,” Damien suggested. “The lights will be on, someone’s moving around. Maybe … maybe he’ll try getting at what he
thinks
is you.”

Claudia frowned at him in her doorway, frozen in front of her dresser. “What? No, no. I can’t let you do that. You don’t need to get involved in this.”

Damien cracked his knuckles, jaw set. “I’d love to get that shit in my hands again.”

Claudia studied this stranger she’d had in her bed for about 24 hours
in total now, wearing only his dress pants at the moment, his bare skin giving way to flexing muscle as he worked his knuckles against each palm. As much as her lesbian identity might have been renewed she was still fascinated by him. And this man threatening violence against someone else shouldn’t have been attractive … it really shouldn’t have been. Not at all.

She wanted to jump him again.

She blinked and carried a handful of T-shirts from the dresser to the suitcase.

“And you’d be doing me a favour. I need somewhere to stay, too, and as much as I’d love to come along with you and sequester the both of us in some hotel suite somewhere …”

Claudia straightened as he stepped up against her backside, hands on her hips as he pulled her against him. She had to laugh deep in her throat, heat flaring up again at his touch.

“… I still think you might be more comfortable on your own in this situation. And if I’m here … I can rip the guy limb from limb. For you.”

His hands crossed her stomach and his lips kissed her neck and shoulder. “If this is how you talk people into things, I am always going to disagree with you,” she laughed, stepping away. Then she shook her head. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but yeah … feel free to stay here. Just … promise not to rob me blind?”

“Rob a cop? Do I look stupid?” He flopped on to her bed behind her suitcase, smiling up at her with a twinkle in his eye.

She put a few pairs of jeans in the suitcase, mulling over what she wanted to ask him next. And true to his amazing intuition he asked, “What is it? You have a question, I can tell.”

She put the jeans away, then put her hand to her heart. “If you’re here, please watch out for Iola. I can tell you know how to handle yourself, I saw that the other day. But just … watch over her, if you could?”

He nodded. “I swear to you, she will not be harmed.”

Claudia blinked, then sat on the edge of the bed pushing the case away. “And please don’t sleep with her.”

Damien blinked and sat up. “What?” He asked around a laugh.

“Look, she’s beautiful. And when you two are around each other … there’s a connection. I can see it. I can feel it. Hell, I can
smell
it. It’s okay, I’m not jealous. But … this guy she’s seeing now? She has a chance for real happiness with him. I don’t want sex – granted, amazing, toe-curling brain-numbing sex – but still, it’s just
sex
, and it shouldn’t wreck that potential.”

Damien blinked a few times, his jaw tight. Claudia was worried she’d upset him.

“I won’t touch her, I swear it.”

She expelled her breath. “Don’t think I’m a jealous wing-nut, please - ”

He took her hands while he laughed. The sound was deep and came from somewhere very low in his thick chest. “I know you’re not jealous. You’re protecting your friend. She’s lucky to have you.”

Claudia pulled her hands back and got up to get underwear from her dresser. “I don’t know about
lucky
.”

“I think she is,” he said, leaning back to watch her.

Claudia just shook her head. “If you knew some of the thoughts I had about her … you wouldn’t say that.”

Jasper left the station out the back door, unable to hide the smug smile on his face.

Holy shit, he’d gotten
into Iola’s brain. And she hadn’t the foggiest idea what he’d done to her.

He climbed behind the wheel of the station’s news cruiser, and he had to pause and take a deep breath. He closed his eyes, remembering the moment he’d jumped in her brain, telling her she was naked, then getting an eyeful of what
that
had looked like.

It was even better than what he’d been imagining all this time he’d been panting after her.
So much
better.
Thank you God,
he thought as he started up the vehicle and pulled the shifter into reverse.

He arrived at the police station about fifteen minutes later, his euphoria fading pretty quickly. After all, he’d just walked out the door of this place with a homicidal maniac less than twenty-four hours ago. He felt like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, but the only cops that greeted him were the ones that already knew him from past news stories he’d done. His panic started to fade with each minute that passed.