The Order Boxed Set (99 page)

He was naked except for a white cotton sheet. He tucked it around himself as she came back, a plate in one hand, a glass of water in the other. She put them both down on the table by the bed.

“You can stay here as long as you like,” she said.

“Shera, sit with me a minute.” He patted the edge of the bed, and she eyed him warily. “Please,” he coaxed. “There are things you need to know.”

Something flashed in her eyes, maybe curiosity, but she stepped closer and perched on the edge of the mattress. Carl reached out and took her hand in his, just in case she decided to bolt—and because he wanted to hold her hand. It was a beautiful hand, with long graceful fingers and short nails. He glanced at her face and found her staring at the point of contact as though no one had ever held her hand before.

“First—thank you. You saved my life.”

“I almost didn’t. I was so close to running.”

“So why didn’t you? You would have been away and free.”

“My freedom isn’t worth anyone’s life but mine.”

That confirmed she wasn’t aware of the trail of spontaneously combusted corpses she’d left in her wake. How would she take the news?

“Let me go,” she said. “I won’t do anything bad. I just want to live a little before…”

“You stole some gold.”

Guilt flashed in her face. “Is that what this is about? Does my lord Asmodai want his gold back? I still have most of it, but I only took a little.”

“It’s demon gold, Shera.”

Her brows drew together. “Demon gold? What does that mean?”

“It’s not meant to be used outside the Abyss. If it’s used by humans they…” There was no easy way to say this. “They spontaneously combust.”

“I think I would have noticed.”

“It doesn’t happen until they try to use the gold.”

“I don’t believe you.” She tugged her hand free. “It’s some trick to make me feel bad.”

“Do you have my phone?”

She gave an abrupt nod, then opened the drawer in the bedside table and gave him his phone. He switched it on, flicked through the news releases, and handed her the phone, displaying the report of the latest “arson.”

She stared at it for long moments, horror sliding over her face. She touched the screen with her fingertip, then looked up at him, her eyes tragic. “All of them?”

“Eight that I know of.”

“Oh God.”

Before he could stop her, she dropped the phone, jumped to her feet, and ran from the room. Carl raked a hand through his hair. He didn’t think she’d go far, but as the front door slammed he pushed himself out of bed and crossed to the window overlooking the beach. Shera ran to the edge of the water and sank down, hugging her knees to her chest and staring out to sea.

He picked up the phone and stood where he could keep an eye on her while he called Ash.

“Why aren’t you back here?” Ash demanded. “Two goddamned days. Where the fuck have you been?”

“How about I don’t bring her back?”

“Not. An. Option.”

“Why not? Just let her go.”

“I can’t. She bears my household sigil.”

“And that means…?”

“Look, I’ve decided not to do it from now on, but right now, all the household slaves bear the sigil. It ties them to me.”

“Not telling me anything useful here. Get to the point.”

“If they stay away more than thirty days they…die.”

Carl shook his head. “Well, I think you’ve fucked up your chances of caring-employer award. Can’t you do some mojo stuff and get rid of it?”

“No. They’re born with it and they die with it. Only way out of that is if someone voluntarily takes the sigil from her.”

“And I bet there are people queuing up to enslave themselves to you,” Carl said, not trying to hide his sarcasm.

Ash ignored the comment. “So if she doesn’t come back, she dies. And that is really not an option.”

“How sweet, but why do I get the idea there’s something you’re not telling me.”

“Let’s just say that her father would not be happy if she dies.”

“Her father?”

Ash took a deep breath. “Her father is…”

“Will you get to the fucking point?”

“Lucifer.”

The blood drained from Carl’s head. “Holy shit. Tell me you are kidding.”

“Nope.”

Carl sank into the seat behind him. This was bad news. Even if she didn’t know about it, latent powers could emerge at any time, often triggered by stress or change of circumstances or…

“Shera was born during the last demon wars,” Ash said. “Her mother had an off-on relationship with Luc for a number of years whenever he stayed at my place. She loved him, but once he left, he forgot about her.”

“Nice guy.”

“He’s fickle—that doesn’t make him evil.”

“Are we talking about Lucifer, here?” Carl could hear the disbelief in his voice. “The devil?”

“Don’t believe everything you hear. But when he didn’t come back, Shera’s mother took it badly. Slit her wrists and threw herself off the tower.”

“So,” Carl said, “there’s a lot of latent power in there somewhere.”

“Maybe, but honestly, she’s never shown any signs… I’m sure it will be all right.”

Carl wasn’t. “I take it he knows?”

“Yes, I told him recently. He offered her a home, and he’s going to be seriously pissed if he finds out we’ve lost her.”

“And we wouldn’t want to piss off Lucifer.”

“Exactly. Luckily, he’s not around right now, so we have a chance to sort out this clusterfuck before he gets back.”

Carl stared out the window at the woman on the beach. As he watched, she swiped a hand over her eyes. Was she crying? Lucifer’s daughter. Un-fucking-believable.

“So, you’ll bring her back.” Ash said.

He sighed and scrubbed a hand through his hair. “We’re on our way.” Somehow he’d persuade her.

He stalked naked into the living room. His clothes were piled on a chair, washed but looking a little worse for the wear. He pulled on his ripped jeans but didn’t bother with anything else, just padded out of the house and down the path to where a small gate led onto the beach.

The sand was dotted with people, but he easily zoned in on her in her bright dress. She sat close to the water’s edge, legs drawn up, her arms looped around them, her chin resting on her knee as she gazed out to sea.

He walked up to her slowly, as if she might bolt, but she didn’t even look his way when he sank down onto the sand beside her. For a minute he sat and stared. It was beautiful here, the sky a deep blue, the sea turquoise, and the sun was hot on his bare back. A sailboat bobbed in the entrance to the cove, and he had a sudden urge to take his cat girl and head out into the open sea, just the two of them. He’d show her that there were things worth living for. He’d take care of her, keep her safe, stroke her until she purred for him.

There had to be some way around the sigil. And as for Lucifer…

The thought shocked him. He’d never wanted to be responsible for anyone before. Now here was this woman who he hardly knew, but who had saved his life and consequently belonged to him in some way. And she was hurting.

“I didn’t know,” she said. “I swear I didn’t know.”

“I believe you.”

“I only did one at a time. I didn’t want it to look like I had more. I told them the coin was a present…”

“When was the last?” He hoped to hell she hadn’t changed any more while he was unconscious.

“Four days ago. In town. To pay for the villa. He was such a nice man…is he…?”

He nodded. That was the last reported burning, the one that led him to her.

She swallowed, blinked back a tear. “Did they all think that I knew? Faith and Tara? That I would do that on purpose?”

He shrugged, suddenly uncomfortable. He’d talked to the women before he’d left, and they’d both said they didn’t know whether Shera was aware of the gold’s side effects or not. “They weren’t sure.”

Her lower lip trembled. “They all think I’m a bitch. I get that, and I know it’s my fault, but I freeze up and…And now I’m a thief and a murderer.”

“You didn’t know.”

She blinked and a tear slid down her cheek. “All I wanted was to be free. Just for a little while.”

“Being free is overrated.”

“I wouldn’t know.” She turned her head to look into his face. “Are you my executioner? Did they send you to kill me? I know that’s what the Order do to anyone who brings attention to our kind.”

“No. I came to take you home.”

“Home? I don’t have a home. I’ve never had a home, only a place where I work, and even that’s being taken from me.”

He needed time to decide what to tell her, how to convince her to go back. But right now there was something he needed more. He shifted closer so that he sat facing her, the sea at his back. Cupping her face between his palms, he gave in to the urge that had been needling him since he’d caught sight of her across the bar two nights ago. He lowered his head to hers, swiped his tongue across her plump lower lip, and kissed her.

She went still, but didn’t try to pull away, and he slanted his mouth over hers, deepening the kiss. Her hands slipped around his neck, sliding into his hair, holding him closer, pressing him up against her warm, slender body, and heat washed through him, settling low down in his belly. Her lips parted beneath his, her tongue pushed inside, and his cock went instantly hard. She tasted of sunlight, and oranges, and suddenly the kiss turned fierce. His hands shifted to her shoulders, and he turned her so she lay back on the sand and he could follow her down without ever breaking the kiss.

Inside, his wolf awoke and stretched lazily, then sniffed the air and became fully alert. Carl went still. His wolf wanted out. More than that, he wanted Shera. But for what?

Mine.

The word echoed in his head, and a prickle ran down his spine.

He took a deep breath and pushed himself back so he was above her, looking down into her dazed green eyes.

She blinked a couple of times and stared up into his face. “I can see your wolf.”

A low growl rumbled in his throat, and her eyes widened but no fear showed in her expression. It would take a lot to make her afraid, he reckoned. Being brought up in the Abyss, in the household of one of the seven Princes of Hell, would no doubt toughen anybody up. Or kill them off.

His dick was still hard, and here and now was neither the place nor the time to loosen his control. He pushed himself away and sat back down on the sand.

She did the same, putting a few inches between them, then her gaze slid down over him to his groin where he had no doubt his hard-on was blatantly obvious. She licked her lips, and his dick throbbed. He ignored it and stared out to sea waiting for the sting of desire to subside.

“If that was to try and make me feel better, it didn’t work.”

He turned to look at her. Her lips were slightly swollen from his kiss, her hair escaping to curl around her face, her cheeks flushed. “I kissed you because I wanted to, kitten. No other reason.”

“I get it. You feel sorry for me.”

He studied her for a minute, his head cocked. She was one of the most beautiful women he had ever come across, more so now she’d lost the black leather and the attitude. There was a softness, a vulnerability to her. Though she wasn’t soft; she was fighting for what she wanted. Fighting against a life of slavery. Even if her… father offered her a home, she’d still be tied to the Abyss by Ash’s sigil, never truly free.

“Maybe I do feel sorry for you. But that’s not why I kissed you.”

She pushed herself to her feet. “I need to be alone for a while.” He raised his eyebrows, and she continued. “I just learned that I’m responsible for the death of at least eight people. I need…” She trailed off and stood looking down at him. “I won’t run. Not without telling you.”

“Actually, I have a favor to ask.”

“You do?”

He nodded. This would give him a little more time—tomorrow would be soon enough to head back. “It’s full moon. I’m going to change whether I like it or not. And this is a strange place. I need someone to watch my back. And if you know anywhere relatively safe…?”

She smiled. Everyone liked to feel useful, and it would stop her bolting. Whatever she said, he didn’t quite trust her not to run. And it would give him time to decide how much to tell her, what his best tack would be for getting her home safely. The demon stuff was out, but maybe he could hint that there were secrets she could only learn back in the Abyss.

“About an hour inland from here, in the mountains. You’ll be safe.”

“Good.” There was one thing he did need to say though. “Shera—no alcohol.”

She frowned but nodded. “I’m going to shift.”

He watched as she wandered back to the gate and disappeared into the garden. A few seconds later a black cat leaped nimbly over the low wall and disappeared into the buildings at the back of the beach.

Chapter Five

Shera did her best thinking in cat form. Things always seemed simpler. So she found a shady spot halfway up a tree where she could survey the surrounding land—she still couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched.

Or the feeling that she was somehow changing. Inside.

She’d killed eight people. And ignorance was no excuse. They were dead because of her. Horrible deaths. What would it feel like to burn?

A shiver ran through her.

They were dead, and there was nothing she could do to take that back. But the weird thing was that while she
wanted
to feel guilty, and
expected
to feel guilty, she didn’t, not really. She wished they hadn’t died but… She shook her head then rested her chin on her paws.

Of course, she couldn’t use the rest of the gold. Which was a pain because she was running out of money. Hard to have fun when you were broke. Maybe she needed a rich boyfriend. Her mind flashed back to Carl. Was he rich? Somehow she found it impossible to think of him in terms of a boyfriend. He was hardly a boy. She had no clue how old he was. Werewolves weren’t one of the immortal races like shifters, but they were long-lived and usually maintained the appearance they’d had when they were bitten. Carl looked to be in his late twenties, but that meant nothing.

He’d kissed her. And it had felt so good. Maybe he’d take some more pity on her and shag her before he left, if she asked him nicely.