Steal the Light (Thieves) (38 page)

Details. Details. “And, what, according to my contract, is the Light of Alhorra?”

I heard Daniel’s surprised gasp as he figured out what I was doing.

“It is a medium-sized ornate box of faery origin,” the satan recited.

“I was hoping you would say that.” I walked straight back to the table where our kind faeries had left me a little souvenir. I picked up the box and carried it back to Halfer.

“I believe you’ll find I have fulfilled my end of the contract,” I said politely to the satan. I turned to Halfer. “Got your box right here, buddy.”

At first Halfer didn’t even look mad. He seemed to not understand what was going on. It took a moment for him to realize what I’d done. The satan examined the box. He took it from me and turned it over in his small hands. When he was satisfied, he handed it to Halfer, who took it without thinking.

“I pronounce this contract fulfilled, Miss Wharton.”

“No,” Halfer roared, finally coming to his senses. “This is not what we contracted for.”

“Yes,” the satan said, completely nonplussed by the demonic temper tantrum. “This is exactly what you contracted for. It was a sloppy contract, Halfer. I expected better of you. Perhaps you’ll have a better contract with the vampire.”

“That will be unnecessary,” Marcus interjected, his smooth authority returning. “There will be no further negotiations today.”

“Then my business here is finished.” The satan gave us a polite bow. “Miss Wharton, my office will send you details on your funds in the morning. Will an offshore account be suitable?”

I had to think about that for a moment. It had been so long since I’d given the money a second thought. “Uh, yeah.”

Neil was staring at the small demon, dumbstruck. “We get the money, too?”

“Yes, of course,” he replied. “It was in your contract.”

“In your face, you demon asshole,” Neil yelled at the pissed off demon.

I nudged him. “Don’t make him any angrier.”

“I thank you for your time and your wisdom,” Marcus said formally to the small demon. I realized this was not the first time he’d dealt with this class of demons. “I suggest you take Mr. Halfer with you. I believe you will find he has irritated the Council. Mr. Halfer, you should understand that Mrs. Donovan is now firmly under the protection of the Council. There will be no further dealings with her.”

Halfer’s horns flowed out of his human head as he assumed demon form once more. Gone was the business-like veneer, and what was left was pure evil.

“Come then, Halfer,” the satan instructed.

“Not without my consolation prize,” he sneered. “You won’t find anything wrong with this contract.”

He held out his hand, and Sarah flew across the room. She didn’t even have time to scream before she was in the demon’s grasp. I saw her start to bleed just before a crack and brimstone assailed the room and the demonic party left.

“He took Sarah,” I said more to myself than anyone else. I stared at the place where she’d disappeared. That had almost been me. It was Sarah now and she was alone.

“There was nothing you could do,” Daniel said, pulling me into his arms. He held me firmly, and I was so shocked by the look on my friend’s face that I forgot how angry I was with him and let him comfort me. I felt numb, hollowed out.

There was movement all around me. The vampires talked among themselves, but I didn’t listen to them.

“You were so amazing, Zoey,” Daniel said as he stroked my hair. “If I live forever, and I just might, I will never forget what you just did. I love you.”

“Is that why you sold me?” I let a little bit of my anger through.

Daniel pulled away so he could look into my eyes. “Baby, I did that to protect you. If I had been declared an outlaw by the Council, you would have been considered fair game. Every vampire without a companion would have come running. They don’t care whether you want them or not.”

“Yeah, I get that.” I tried to be reasonable. It wasn’t easy. “Maybe if you had taken the time to explain any of this to me, I could have helped you. You haven’t told me the truth about anything.”

“I was trying to protect you,” he insisted.

“Maybe I don’t want to be protected.” I finally got the strength to push away from him. I looked back at the vampires who were staring at me from a polite distance. Even though they weren’t coming after me, I could feel their hunger. Every one of them. “They all want me.”

“Yes, they do, and I have to protect you from them,” Daniel said with the first hint of desperation in his voice.

“They want me the way you want me.” It was what Dev had tried to tell me all along.

“No.” Daniel pulled me toward him. “It isn’t the same, Zoey. It’s fundamentally different. I love you.”

“I bet they would tell me they loved me, too.” I looked at the strange, beautiful men who stared at me the way a cobra does before striking.

Marcus walked forward. “As interesting as this is, I am afraid we will have to move this discussion to Paris. Daniel, I am taking you into custody under the authority of the Council.”

“Shit, Marcus, not now,” Daniel swore. “Don’t do this to me now, not in front of her.”

Marcus shook his head. “I have indulged you far too much as it is. You have to answer for this incident, Daniel. You almost signed a demon contract without the approval of the Council. There must be a hearing, and I don’t know what they will do. Please don’t make this ugly.”

“Do we have to go for the full Hannibal Lecter treatment?” Daniel asked.

“You know we have protocols in place when it comes to dealing with you,” Marcus replied. “It is your own fault. You killed three vampires before we finally managed to get you to the Council chambers the first time. Now, please inform your animal and your companion to comply with procedure. They will fly on the jet, but they cannot share your quarters until we reach the catacombs. I will take care of her, Daniel.”

Finally, I would get some answers. It was a long way to Paris, and I had a whole lot to learn from Marcus Vorenus.

Daniel stared at his mentor. “Neil can come, but Zoey stays here.”

“What?” I practically yelled the question. He couldn’t leave me behind after everything he’d just put me through. “I am so going.”

“No.” Daniel’s face once again turned into that stony, emotionless mask I was getting sick of seeing. “I forbid it.”

My heart turned over in my chest. He couldn’t do this to me again. He couldn’t leave me here. “I’m going. I have a whole lot of things I want to say to that freaking Council.”

Marcus looked seriously at Daniel. “Perhaps you are right. She should stay here.” He flashed a look at the others, and they all pulled handguns. One of the vampires opened the coffin and pulled out what looked to be a mile of chains. There were gloves on his hands and he held the chains away from his body.

“Shit, I hate this,” Daniel said under his breath.

“Don’t you leave me like this.” I watched as Daniel fell to his knees and placed his threaded fingers behind his head. “Let me go with you. Please don’t do this to me again. I don’t understand anything. You said we were married. That’s for better or worse. Well, this is the ‘worse’ part.”

“I love you, Zoey.” He looked up at me, his eyes vacant. “They will not let you come.”

As they started to wrap the chain around him, his flesh began to smoke where he wasn’t covered by clothing. His mouth tightened, but that was the only indication that he felt the pain. I tried to pull it back off of him, but Marcus dragged me away and held me.

“That’s silver, you bastard.” I tried to kick him where it would hurt the most.

He held me too close for me to do any damage. “If it wasn’t silver, it wouldn’t work. Your master has spoken, companion. Do not make this worse for him.”

When his body was wrapped in silver, they picked him up and placed him not too gently in the coffin. I was allowed to see him before they placed the lid on.

“Don’t do this to me, Daniel,” I begged. Even after everything we’d just gone through, I still wanted to go with him. “Let me come with you. Explain this to me. Don’t shut me out. I still don’t understand anything.”

“I love you, Zoey,” was all he said.

Marcus gave the order, and the lid was closed. Neil said something like good-bye, but I just stood there. I just watched him being carried away, knowing he didn’t want me with him. No matter how much he claimed to love me, he would always shut me out. He would always keep his secrets.

I was left in that magnificent hotel room alone, mourning my friend and my lover.

Chapter Twenty-Six

A long, insistent knocking pulled me from my sleep. I shook myself awake, and it took me a moment to realize just where I was. Light streamed into the room, and for just a second, I thought it had all been a terrible dream. Then the knocking continued, and I was still alone.

I finally fell asleep on the couch sometime just before dawn, but I wouldn’t call it a restful sleep. Dark dreams plagued me all night.

I stumbled off the couch and toward the door. The clock read just before ten, and I wondered if the maid service was being especially polite or if the concierge had come to kick me out. I opened the door because an angry member of the hotel staff was the least of my concerns. It was worse. Marcus Vorenus stood in the doorway.

“Mrs. Donovan, I would like to talk to you.”

“Don’t call me that,” I said, every bit the grouch. I left the door open and walked back to the couch. He didn’t need an invitation. He hadn’t needed to knock.

Marcus came in the room and held out a mug of what smelled like coffee. “I brought it up from the dining room. I thought you could probably use it.”

I stared at it suspiciously.

Those dark eyes softened and the barest hint of a smile curved his lips up. He looked like he was roughly thirty years old and had stepped off the cover of a male fashion magazine. “I am not your enemy, Mrs.…shall I call you Zoey?”

“That’s my name.” I gave in and took a swallow of the coffee. If he wanted to kill me, he could have just ripped my throat out. And I wanted the coffee.

He stepped up to the big windows, looking out over the park, the sunlight on his face.

“Hey, shouldn’t you be all crispy by now?” He was a vampire standing in direct sunlight. Not a sight I saw every day. He was dressed slightly more casually than he’d been last night, but everything was still designer. He was a hard-looking man, and I found myself wondering which era he’d been born into.

Marcus chuckled and turned back to me. I noticed things I hadn’t the night before. Most vampires possessed almost alabaster skin, but Marcus had a nice tan. “I enjoy listening to you speak. It is refreshing. Too many people in my life are scared of me. To answer your question, I am a daywalker. It is the special gift of my class of vampires. All members of my class are born with the ability. There are other talents I have that took many centuries to acquire. You understand that after many years of living, a vampire often develops certain talents?”

“I know Daniel didn’t need many years.”

“Yes, well, our Daniel is a bit of a savant.” Marcus sat down across from me. “He, however, cannot walk during the day. I have often wondered if he had a regular supply of rich blood, could he possibly do this as well? When he came back here, I thought no, but now I realize he has been lying about you.”

He had my attention. I set the coffee down, ready for some explanations. If Daniel wouldn’t give them to me, I would take them from Marcus. “So I have this rich blood, and that’s why I’m attractive to vampires?”

“Attractive is a little word to describe what a vampire feels about you. I sincerely apologize for my charge. These are things that should have been explained to you. You should have been brought to Paris and presented with full honors to our society. You would have other companions to talk to. You would understand what you are.”

“And what am I?” I asked casually, as though the question wasn’t at the heart of my misery.

He sat down on the couch beside me, his voice becoming almost reverent. “You are strength and life to a vampire. A vampire with a companion is stronger, smarter, faster. There is no way to describe the feeling. Most vampires would do anything to possess one such as you. Our scientists have tried for hundreds of years to duplicate whatever is in your blood that calls to us, but it cannot be done. You should be glad it is the vampire’s nature to follow our own laws or you would be passed around like a child’s toy to whoever was the strongest to take you or the smartest to steal you.”

“So my blood is different?” It didn’t make a lot of sense. I wasn’t a supernatural creature. I didn’t have powers.

“Your blood is different. It’s not the only thing. Has Daniel mentioned your glow?”

A whole bunch of people had said some things I didn’t get. And Daniel just left me ignorant. “What does it mean?”

He smiled, but this was a sexy thing. “You glow. It’s how we find a companion. To a vampire’s eye, your body practically pulses with life. Just being close to you is soothing to me. I enjoy being in your light,
cara
.”

Everything Dev said was true. I was a fucking drug, an addiction. “What am I?”