Sins of the Night (33 page)

Danger swallowed as her eyes filled with tears. She wrapped herself around Alexion and held him tight. “I can't believe this.”

“I'm sorry for what you lost, Danger,” Acheron said quietly. “This existence is far from perfect.”

Alexion saw a panicked look darken her eyes. “Do I have to drink blood to live?”

Acheron shook his head. “Only Einstein over there has to do that. But like him, you won't be able to taste food anymore.”

Danger laughed. “That's all right. Who needs taste buds anyway? I'll just eat a lot of popcorn.”

Acheron's gaze softened. “If you want to release your demon, Alexion, I'll go introduce her to Simi and give you two some time alone.”

Alexion frowned. “How is it that you're not stunned she has a sister?”

“I've known for a long time that she wasn't the only demon out there. It wasn't too big a leap of faith to figure she probably had some family too.”

Still, Alexion was shocked that Acheron had kept such a secret from them. “Then why didn't you tell us?”

“Simi likes the idea of being the only one. I was going to tell her the truth once she got a little older. But I guess now's the time.”

Alexion agreed. “Xirena, I summon you to human form.”

The demon popped off his body and stood back, reserved. “Am I in trouble?”

“No,” Alexion assured her. “You're going to meet Simi.”

Her eyes sparked with happiness.

“Come, Xirena,” Acheron said. “I'll take you to her.”

She hesitated. “You're not trying to trick Xirena, are you?”

“No.”

“It'll be all right,” Alexion said. “You can trust him.”

Xirena went to Ash hesitantly before the two of them left the room.

Danger waited until they were alone before she turned back to Alexion and pulled him into her arms. “Is this really real?”

“Yeah,” he breathed as he held her close. “I still can't believe you're here.”

“You can't? I thought I had lost you forever.”

“At least I didn't die on you.”

“No, but that's not a problem for either one of us again, is it?”

Alexion smiled as he savored the sight of her bright brown eyes shining up at him. “Not unless we piss off a Charonte.”

“Then I will make sure I never do.”

He hugged her tight and picked her up in his arms, grateful that he had her back. This time, he was going to make damn sure that nothing happened to her again. “I love you, Danger.”

Danger kissed him as her heart swelled with joy. “I love you too,” she breathed.

And though this life with him wasn't going to be perfect, it would be really, really close. So long as they were together, nothing else mattered.

Epilogue

Standing in the throne room, Simi stared at the other demon suspiciously as she moved her head back and forth much like a snake eyeing something it wanted to strike at. “What do you mean, she's my sister?” she asked Ash.

“Xiamara, do you not—”

“I am the Simi,” she said, stomping her foot. “Xiamara is my mother.”

Xirena was so confused that Ash actually felt sorry for her.

Simi came up to her slowly and poked at her. “You look real.”

“I am real.”

“Then why did you not come see me?”

Xirena was aghast at the question. “I couldn't. The bitch-goddess wouldn't let me.”

“Artemis?” Simi squealed. “I hate her.”

“No,” Xirena corrected her, “the other bitch-goddess, Apollymi.”

“Hey!” Ash snapped simultaneously with Simi.

Xirena looked even more confused.

“She a goddess, that Apollymi,” Simi said reverently. “She always good to the Simi. She makes me horney-warmers to keep my horneys warm and she gives me lots of cookies when I come see her.”

Xirena's jaw dropped. “She does what?”

Simi put her hands on her hips. “You heard me, deaf demon. She a good lady, that Apollymi, and the Simi will hurt anyone who says otherwise.”

Xirena stepped forward and whispered loudly. “Will your
akri
let me talk to you alone?”

Simi blew a raspberry and waved her hand at Ash. “Like I care if he says no. He don't control me.”

Xirena appeared horrified by her words. “He's your
akri.
”

Simi blew her another raspberry. “He's my daddy.”

“He's your
akri,
” she said from between clenched fangs.

Simi frowned at Ash. “There's something seriously wrong with my sister. Why she keep saying you my lord and master when you're just my daddy,
akri?
”

Ash shrugged. “I have no idea, Sim. You need to set her straight.”

“Hmmm.” Simi wrapped her arm around her sister's shoulders and led her over to the corner where she had her own television monitors. “See, in this world, Xirena, the Simi does what she wants and
akri,
he say, ‘Okay, Simi, whatever you want, Simi.' Unless it involves eating people; then he usually says no, but that's the only time. Other than that, he do what the Simi says. See how that works?”

Xirena appeared completely baffled by her sister.

Simi popped her head up to look at Ash. “Where she staying anyway?”

“You could share a room with—”

“No,” she said immediately. “The Simi don't share her room,
akri.
Ever. I don't care that she is my sister. My room has all my special mementos in there. I think you should make her one of her own.”

Ash knew better than to argue with his demon. Not to mention the fact that it didn't bother him to humor her. He actually enjoyed spoiling her. “Okay. Where do you want it?”

“Kind of next to mine, but not so close that she blocks the view to my Travis Fimmel billboard that the Simi has on the great wall.”

“Your what?” Xirena asked. “What's a Travis Fimmel?”

Simi's jaw dropped as she looked stunned. “You don't know about Travis Fimmel? Oh, sister, you are deprived. He the finest man alive.”

Xirena shuddered. “You lust for men?”

“Well, I certainly don't lust for women.”

“No,” Xirena corrected, “I mean, you lust for humans?” The way she said that you could tell it was the most disgusting thing the demon could imagine.

“Well, don't you?” Simi asked.

“Ew!” Xirena looked at Ash. “What have you done to her? You have corrupted a good demon!” She looked back at Simi. “You need to see Drakus.”

“Who that?”

“He the finest demon to ever live. He can breathe fire out his nose and mouth at the same time.”

Simi's face beamed. “Ooo!”

Ash cringed as he saw where this was going. “Simi's too young for that.”

“No she's not,” they said in unison.

“I think you're outnumbered, boss.”

Ash turned to see Alexion behind him. Danger was entering the room just behind him. Her eyes widened as she took in the opulence of the Atlantean throne room.

He sighed as Alexion stopped beside him. “Forget Armageddon, this is the scariest thing I've ever seen.” Ash watched in horror as the two demons sat down and started comparing notes on “hot” men and male demons.

Alexion turned to Danger and smiled. “I think it's a good thing we have a woman in the house now. Maybe she can talk some sense into them.”

Danger snorted. “The demons are your domain, not mine. I'm not even going there.”

Ash actually whimpered as Xirena began telling Simi the correct mating habits of the Charontes. “This is going to get ugly. Thanks, Lex.”

Alexion smiled as he pulled Danger in his arms and held her close. “No, boss, thank you.”

Ash glanced at the two of them and saw the love that they had for each other.

It went a long way in soothing the part of him that hated to have strangers in his home.

And as he looked into Danger's future, he saw absolutely nothing. For the first time in his long life, he found it comforting.

It meant only one thing.

Danger would definitely be an integral part of their future lives.

 

R
EAD ON FOR AN EXCERPT FROM
S
HERRILYN
K
ENYON'S NEXT BOOK

UNLEASH the
Night

A
VAILABLE FROM
S
T.
M
ARTIN'S
P
APERBACKS

 

 

Marguerite slowed as she again felt the sensation of someone watching her from the shadows. She was heading down Chartres, toward Jackson Square, so that she could grab a taxi and get home before it got any later.

Looking around, she half-expected to find Wren there.

She didn't. What she found was four scruffy-looking men who were eyeing her with an unfounded interest. They were keeping to the shadows as if they didn't want her to identify them. Fear assaulted her. Their attention was just a bit too focused. A bit too intense and threatening as they made their way straight for her.

She glanced about, looking for other people, but this time of night, there weren't any around.

Not even a tour group.…

It's okay. Stay in the light and keep heading forward. They won't hurt you if you stay in plain sight.

She sped up as she heard the sound of running feet. Just as she was sure they would run past her, one of the men grabbed her and slung her into a partially opened courtyard.

Marguerite tried to push him away to run.

He slapped her hard. “Give me your purse, bitch.”

She was so scared, she couldn't even think to pull it off her arm.

The other men ran into the courtyard and slammed the gate shut. One of them grabbed her bag and tore her shirt in the process of ripping it off her shoulder.

“Hey,” he said to the other three. “Y'all want to have some fun with her?”

Before they could answer, the one speaking went sprawling to the ground. Someone came out of the darkness and handed the purse back to her.

Marguerite looked up at the newcomer and wanted to cry as she saw Wren there. No longer slumped, he stood at his full height … and it was commanding. Intense. There was a feral gleam in his eyes that wasn't quite sane as he put himself between her and the others. He looked as if he could easily kill everyone there and not even wince.

The men attacked.

She staggered back and watched in awe as Wren fought them off with an incredible skill. One mugger came at him with a knife. He caught the man's wrist and twisted it until it snapped and the knife fell from his hand. Then Wren backhanded the man so hard, the attacker rebounded off the wall.

Another came at Wren's back only to be flung over his head to the ground while another rushed him from behind. He hit Wren full force, but Wren didn't so much as stagger or flinch. He turned on the man and knocked him back.

Marguerite was relieved until one of the muggers pulled out a gun and aimed it at them.

Her breath caught as Wren froze.

A heartbeat later, the man fired the gun. Wren rushed him and knocked it out of his hands. The other three ran off as Wren slugged the one who'd held the gun. The man fell to the ground, then scurried away.

“Are you okay?” Marguerite asked as she ran over to Wren. “Did he shoot you?”

“I'm fine,” he said, picking up the gun from the ground. He opened it up and removed the bullets before he smashed it to pieces against the old stone wall. He dropped it, then turned to look at her as he tossed the bullets into the darkness. “Did they hurt you?”

“No. Thanks to you, I'm fine.” Relieved beyond belief, she was shaking so badly that she wasn't even sure how her legs could continue to hold her upright. She ached to reach out to touch him in gratitude, but there was something about him that said he didn't want to be touched.

Anger darkened his eyes as he glanced to her torn shirt. She could sense that he wanted to chase the muggers down on her behalf, and it warmed her greatly.

“I don't normally do things this stupid,” she said quietly. “I tried to call a taxi on my cell phone, but they said it would be a thirty-to-forty-minute wait. I thought I could make it to the Square to hail one down there or to at least wait at the Café du Monde, where it would be safer. And then the next thing I knew they were after me.… Thank God you came when you did.”

Her gratitude seemed to make him uncomfortable.

“C'mon,” he said, tilting his head toward the street. “I'll walk you home.”

She hesitated at his offer. “I live down by the zoo. It's too far to walk.”

He looked as if he might argue. “I'll get you home. Don't worry.”

Marguerite put her purse on her shoulder as he tucked his hands into his pockets and led her out of the courtyard, back to the street. His white shirt was gone and instead he wore a black T-shirt that hugged a fit and tight body. Even though he wasn't overdeveloped, like a bodybuilder, she could see every muscle clearly defined on him.

He was incredibly hot and sexy. And at that moment, he was her hero. She'd never been more grateful to anyone. Little did he know that he could do anything he wanted to with her right then and she wouldn't mind in the least. In fact, she wanted him to hold her to help calm her ragged nerves, but he didn't appear interested at all.

She felt the familiar pang of being nothing but a friend to guys. Just once in her life, she wished that a man would look at her with passion in his eyes. That a man would find her sexy and attractive. But they never did, not unless they were courting her father and were using her to get to him.

She might as well be invisible. She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed as the familiar grief settled deep in her heart.

As they walked, Wren didn't speak. In fact, he kept his head bent low and his gaze on the ground. Even so, she could tell that he was very much aware of everything around them.