Tay, Eidolon, Shade, and Wraith had come over the wall at the rear of the zoo, the plan being to locate Gem’s parents and any other imprisoned demons before Gem entered through the front. With any luck, they could free the demons and Gem would never have to set foot inside the zoo, but if she did, Luc was with her. Tay had never seen anyone as eager to fight as the huge paramedic, and even though he couldn’t take beast form without the full moon, Wraith had assured Tayla that he could hold his own. Wraith had been the one to tell her, because Eidolon wouldn’t so much as look at her. She didn’t blame him.
When she’d first seen him at the back wall, she’d wanted to throw herself at him, to apologize for her role in Roag’s death, but he’d kept his gaze averted, his fists balled at his sides. He definitely hadn’t invited conversation, and with his brothers standing there, talk would have been awkward, anyway.
As they cleared the back half of the zoo where they’d come in from over the wall, Wraith moved off on his own toward the big-cat habitats, moving silently, all coiled danger on the prowl. A moment later, Shade peeled away, slipping into the darkness and disappearing right in front of her. Eidolon hadn’t been kidding when he’d said Shade could turn to shadow in the presence of shadow.
“I’m heading to the bear pens,” Eidolon said, his voice low, scratchy, as if he’d been up all night the night before. “Be careful.”
“You, too.” As per plan, she’d sweep the bird-of-prey habitat and then head to the place where Gem was supposed to meet her handlers. Tay would hide and wait to see what—or who—showed up. “Hellboy?” She grabbed his forearm, feeling his muscles tense beneath her fingers. “Look, I know I have no right to ask this of you, but will you please not kill any humans?”
“After what they tried to do to you, you still defend them?”
“I want them to face Aegis justice for what they’ve done.”
“What they’ve done is what The Aegis has taught them to do, Tayla. Do you really think they’ll be punished?”
“If they’ve been operating against the Regents’ orders, then yes, they will.”
Eidolon stared over her shoulder, his gaze turned inward where she couldn’t follow. Finally, he nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”
And then he was gone, and she was alone.
For the first time in her life, she didn’t like the feeling.
The bird-of-prey cages were a bust. No demons fitting Gem’s description were being held there. Some sort of winged demon occupied a cage, but having no idea if the thing was dangerous or not, Tay left it imprisoned.
Disappointed, she used abandoned buildings and trees as cover as she worked her way to the old koala habitat. Quick and sure, she slipped through underbrush and overgrown hedges, easing up to the viewing area, a pavilion built against a glass-enclosed habitat. The rustle of movement and soft crunch of footsteps on pine needles alerted her to the presence of others even before she elbowed aside some prickly branches.
What she saw nearly paralyzed her.
In the center of the pavilion, Gem knelt, head down, while Lori tied her hands behind her back. Where was Luc?
“When can I see my parents?” Gem asked.
“I didn’t say you could speak.” Jagger slapped her hard enough to make her nose bleed, and it took every ounce of self-restraint Tayla possessed to keep from bursting out of the bushes and tearing him apart.
Hatred and defiance blazed in Gem’s eyes, but when she slid a covert glance directly into the brush where Tayla crouched, one corner of her mouth turned up in satisfaction. Emotion nearly sapped Tay’s strength at the realization that struck her. Gem wasn’t afraid, wasn’t even worried. No, she knew that as grim as her situation appeared to be, nothing bad would happen to her. She had backup. She had Tay and Eidolon and his brothers. She had family.
Yeah, they were all one big, happy demon family. And Tayla needed to put a crush on the sap factor, because the mission hadn’t ended yet. It was time to put on the game face and worry about touchy-feely moments later.
Lori finished securing Gem’s wrists. Jagger checked the knot, and then, in a move that shocked Tayla to the core, he grabbed Lori by the hair and brought her face to his. “I wish we could kill her.”
“We have orders.”
“Yes,” he murmured, and ran one finger over her lips. “But someday, I want to make love to you in the blood of our kill.”
Dear God. They were lovers. Twisted, evil lovers. Though Tayla had to admit that Lori didn’t appear to be thrilled at the idea of rolling around naked in demon blood. In fact, when he kissed her, practically crawling down her throat, she struggled against his hold.
“What. The. Fuck.”
Oh, shit. Kynan stood at the far side of the koala viewing area, his expression a mixture of shock, devastation, and rage. Lori gasped and jumped away from Jagger as if her husband hadn’t already seen her kissing another man.
“Kynan—” she said, but he wasn’t looking at her. His gaze was fixed on Jagger, and there was murder in his eyes. The men stood deadly still, and then, like two rival lions, they met in a furious explosion of blood and limbs.
“Dammit.” Tay burst from the foliage and darted toward Gem. Sobbing, Lori backed away from the battle, her hand over her mouth as if she wanted to scream. But she didn’t. She turned on her heel and bolted.
Tayla grabbed Gem and dragged her out of the way of the two men, who didn’t care what got in the way. Ky and Jagger, both expert fighters, were normally graceful, purposeful, beautiful to watch in combat. But not tonight. Tonight was about pain—who could dish out the most and draw the most blood. There was nothing graceful or beautiful about it. This was raw, brutal, a fight to the death.
“Sister?”
Tayla tore her rubbernecking gaze away from the battle. “Sister?” It was the first time she’d been addressed that way. Sister. It felt strange. But good.
“Yes, sister,” Gem said. “But yo, I’m the tied-up twin.”
“Right.” Tay whipped out her stang and sliced through the ropes binding her sister’s wrists. “Where’s Luc?”
“I made him stay at the front when my parents hadn’t made it through the gate by the time I was supposed to meet my contacts here.”
“Find them,” Tayla said. “I’m going after Lori.”
“But Ky—”
“He can handle himself. Go!”
After casting Kynan a worried glance, Gem took off, and Tayla sprinted in the direction Lori had gone.
Aside from being extremely annoyed, Gem’s parents were no worse for wear when Eidolon released them from the polar-bear enclosure. He sent them on the run with instructions to find Luc out front, and then he released a corpse-eating demon and dispatched a mamu, a demon that ate humans and that didn’t need to be on the loose in New York City.
As he slipped away from the bear exhibit, he heard a sound. Thumps. Spinning, he came face to face with three Aegi who had leaped from a rock wall to the ground. He recognized one from Tayla’s apartment . . . the one he hadn’t killed, and dammit, he should have, because the slayer recognized him, too.
“He’s a demon,” Bleak said, and the three immediately spread out, circling. “He killed Cole.”
The dark-haired one with glasses looked Eidolon up and down, measuring him, and then, in a coordinated move, launched a morning star as Bleak swung a machete.
Eidolon blocked the machete, but the star caught him in the chest. Something blunt mashed a kidney. Hot streaks of agony rose up from his wounds. He grunted, managed to wrestle the machete away from Bleak. The next few moments were a blur of fists, steel, and feet.
When they came apart, Eidolon was still trapped, his left leg wasn’t working right, and blood ran freely into one eye. The slayers were panting, bleeding, but he’d held back, Tayla’s plea to spare them ringing in his head. On the other hand, they outnumbered and outweaponed him. If he didn’t kill them, they were going to turn him into mulch.
The right side of his face pu
lsed. An injury . . .
He froze. Not an injury, not with the way his face burned as though it had been branded. Not with the way his vision had gone sharp and red, as if he could see the aggression around him as well as smell it.
The Change.
Time was up. Game over.
The urge to shift into something huge and scary made him moan with anticipation. He wanted to tear the slayers apart, feel their bones break between his jaws. And then he’d hunt down their females and—
No. Gods, no. Cold sweat broke out all over his body. He would not turn out like Roag. He would not force his brothers to kill him, or worse, force Tayla to do the deed.
Tayla.
Pain ripped through his chest, pain that had nothing to do with what the slayers had done to him. He hadn’t had nearly enough time with her, hadn’t opened his heart soon enough. And now he’d never know the feel of her tender touch again. The next time she saw him, he’d be the beast she had believed him to be from the beginning.
A bolt of hell no shot through him like summer lightning. Roag should have been put down at the time of his transition. Eidolon would be.
He tore the morning star from where it had lodged in his right pec, and smiled. “Well, Aegi, seems like it’s your lucky day.”
Gem raced out the zoo’s front entrance, nearly knocking over Shade, who was rushing inside.
“Your parents are fine. I found them wandering around, looking for Luc.” He cocked a thumb over his shoulder. “They’re over there. Worried as hell about you.”
“Thank you.” She grasped his forearm before he could take off. “Make sure Tayla is okay. Please?”
“It’s what Eidolon wants,” was all he said. Like a phantom, he stepped into a shadow and disappeared.
“Gem!” Her father’s voice, as full of emotion as she’d ever heard it, called out to her. Within seconds, both parents had engulfed her in a hug, something as rare as the Amazonian orchids her mother collected.
She hugged them back. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“What’s going on in there?” her mom asked, as they broke apart. “Can we go home now?”
Gem dragged in a breath. “I want you to go home. I have to stay. I have to make sure Tayla is okay.”
“Tayla?” her parents said in unison.
“I’ll explain later. But you have to trust me.” She glanced at Luc. “Can you make sure they get home safely?”
“Do I look like a taxi driver?” He growled low in his throat, obviously disappointed that he couldn’t kick some ass inside the zoo. “Yeah. Whatever.”
“Gem, no. You’re a doctor. And part human. You shouldn’t—”
“Mom.” She reached out, cupped her mom’s cheek in a loving gesture she’d never made before. “I’m also a Soulshredder. I know you’ve tried to pretend I’m a Sensor, but it’s time to face reality. I was built to take care of myself. And I need to do this.”
The demons who had raised her, had taken her in when they should have destroyed her, looked exhausted, worried . . . and proud.
Twenty-five
Tayla lost Lori, but she found Eidolon.
Sig, Warren, and Bleak were circling him, sharp blades drawn. Bleak was limping, and a steady stream of blood ran from Warren’s nose, but Eidolon had taken a good beating, as well. Deep cuts scored his back and arms, and his bared teeth were tinged red.
Those sons of bitches.
He said something she couldn’t hear. The machete and a morning star fell from his hands, clattering to the asphalt. What was he up to?
The guys backed off, suspicion darkening their expressions, but when Eidolon did nothing, they closed in, smiling, mocking him. Their taunts cut her like any blade, the things they said to him, the vulgar names she’d once used. She launched herself across the span of space. At the same time, Warren struck Eidolon from behind, a scissor kick to the spine. Eidolon crashed to his knees.
“No!” she screamed, and four heads whipped around. “Take them, Eidolon! Forget what I said!”
But he stayed where he was, a willing sacrifice. “Go! Get out of here.”
Good God, was he insane?
“This is my choice.” His voice throbbed with something sinister and foreign even as the swirling glyphs on his face began to glow and set in his skin. “Better them than you.”
A chill went through her, jerking her to a halt. The Guardians all paused, their curiosity temporarily overriding their training.
“I won’t force you to have to kill me, lirsha.”
“How fucking sweet,” Warren said. “Now kill them both.”
Oh, Jesus. That was the wrong thing to say. Eidolon’s face contorted with possessive rage. The air around him practically shimmered with menace.
“Touch her and die.” Eidolon exploded into action, came to his feet in a flash. His red-eyed glower lit the darkness, and then Bleak was flying backward, crashing into a fence before crumpling to the ground, momentarily motionless.
She joined the fray, striking Sig in the jaw before nailing him with a hard kick to the gut. The bite of a blade in her shoulder made her yelp and miss a step. As she careened off a tree trunk, an inhuman roar shattered her eardrums.
Eidolon had morphed into some sort of horned demon she’d never seen before. Shredded clothes hung from a frame that was taller by half, twice as wide, and his sharp-toothed jaws held Warren between them, dangling off the ground.
Sig launched himself at Eidolon. Bleak leaped to his feet and came at her, his fists crunching into her ribs. Screams tore into the night, accompanied by wet ripping sounds, and then Bleak was lifted violently into the air. Eidolon held him in his jaws as he’d done Warren . . . who was now in pieces on the ground, something she could have gone her entire life without seeing. Sig lay crumpled in an unnatural position at the base of a nearby oak tree.
“Hellboy,” she said gently. He swung around to her, hell on two thickly muscled legs. “Drop the human. He’s not a threat anymore.”
He raised his head and sniffed the air, his red eyes going to the cut on her arm. A low growl erupted in his chest, and his jaws tightened until Bleak cried out.
“I’m okay.” She moved toward him, her arm outstretched. Gently, she laid her palm on one leathery biceps. “Please. Put him down.”
Abruptly, he opened his mouth, and Bleak plopped on the ground. Eidolon’s arms came around her, and his hot breath fanned over her neck. Behind him, Bleak stirred, but didn’t make any stupid moves.
“Thank God, Eidolon. I’m so glad you’re okay.” She stroked his massive back as he hunched over her, long, slow passes to calm him. That she was petting a beast, the very type of demon she used to slaughter with relish, struck her so hard it reverberated to her soul. She loved this beast. It didn’t matter what he was, what she was, or what either of them had done in the past.
Eidolon’s weakness is you. But you could also be his strength. Gem’s words from earlier in the day rang through her head. He loves you.
And yes, he’d been ready to die rather than hurt her, proof, perhaps, that he really did want her. Tears stung her eyes, and she began to shake.
“Please, Hellboy,” she whispered. “Come back to me.”
The next time I shapeshift, I might not come back as myself.
Beneath her fingertips, she felt his skin soften, his body grow more supple. “Tayla . . .”
She gasped as he palmed her ass and hauled her hard against his arousal. He was back, but his eyes still glowed red, and the swirling tattoo on his face remained. One hand tore at her shirt, but she didn’t resist, lesson learned during the Soulshredder disaster. This would be her last chance to save him, and herself.
“Eidolon, it’s not safe here. We need privacy.”
Growling low in his throat, he swept her up and carried her to a nearby building, a veterinary clinic, if she had to guess. The door was locked. In one powerful move, he kicked the door open. It crashed into the wall behind it, and before the building had stopped vib
rating from the impact, Eidolon had placed her on a desk. When he stepped between her thighs, her legs came up to lock around his of their own accord.
“I want you,” he said, his tone a rough command, and her body heated, went wet at her core as though it had become trained.
“Yeah, that’s pretty clear.” She grasped fistfuls of his torn, bloodied T-shirt and pulled him close, needing full body contact as her skin came alive.
“That’s it, Tayla.” He tore her pants in his haste to remove them. “Show me what you want.”
She wanted him. Whatever it took.
Her voice shook as she blurted, “Bond with me.”
He reared back, breaking her leglock. “Bond? No.” Red eyes glowed in the darkness. She thought she saw a flicker of gold break through, but then it was gone, and his guttural rasp drifted down to her. “Fuck? Yes.”
Shit. He’d warned her that if they waited too long it would be too late. Desperation clawed at her as the reality set in. She couldn’t lose him now. Remembering what she’d read about his breed and their mating rituals, she tore off her shirt, fumbled with the fasteners on her ankle holster, and withdrew her stang. Before he could blink, she sliced through the front of her bra and drew the blade across the top of one breast. Pain surged through her, followed by a double burn of lust and love.
“Taste me.”
His chest heaved as he lowered his gaze to her breasts. Reaching up, she threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled him toward her, but just as the heady sensation of his hot breath fanning her skin hit her, he jerked away, eyes wild. He palmed the cut, and the familiar vibration shot through her as it sealed up. Every one of her injuries knitted together before she could pull away.
“Please, Eidolon,” she whispered. “This is what you’ve wanted your entire life. You want a mate. Children. You want to be a doctor. Take me. Claim me.”
He groaned, and this time, when he looked at her, his eyes were gold, molten brilliance. “Be . . . sure,” he panted. “Can’t hold on . . . much longer . . .”