“Stand down!”
It was eerie, watching as the vampires and werewolves stood in front of each other, fangs and incisors bared, but did nothing more.
Carter narrowed his eyes, fangs prominent. “You have one minute to plead your case. I suggest you start now.”
“The Queen is dead. The power in the vampire infrastructure has shifted. Form an alliance with the vampires who don’t approve of what’s transpired. Make a change for the better before another is sent to take her place. Together you can take anyone who enters the state. There are enough of you to make that happen.”
“How can I trust your word? We’ve entered such agreements before, and it’s the very reason so many of us were captured.”
I walked to Paine, releasing him from the thrall of the amulet. “Come with me.”
Paine was furious with me, and it showed. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”
“Later,” I whispered and smoothed back his hair, taking him by the hand.
Carter’s fury at greeting the vampire who had stopped him when they last met was written all over his features. “You expect me to trust him?”
“I do.” I almost sighed in relief when he released Jennifer and stood.
“How can I do that, knowing what he is?”
“Because none of this was my doing, or the doing of any of those who existed here prior to Victoria’s appearance,” Paine answered smoothly, once again the intimidating vampire I recognized. “It was her power that crippled the vampiric houses, bending them to her will.”
“Like you couldn’t take her down.” Carter began to shift into his human form, unashamed of his nudity. “If she”—Carter motioned at me—“a mere mortal, could do it, you can’t possibly think I’d believe you were incapable of doing the same.”
“Victoria was a half-demon,” I responded before Paine could. “The only thing that could kill her was a weapon she didn’t expect and the element of surprise.”
Carter’s gaze drifted to Marigold Vesta, and his eyes flared once again. “I see you’re bartering with demons again.”
“I’m bartering to return home, to change everything that has happened here. If I go back, I can stop everything before it occurs.” I took a deep breath. “I’m not sure what will happen if I make it back. I could fail and you’d be in the same situation. I want to try to make things better before I go.”
“Rhiannon.” The fingers Paine wrapped around my wrist were cruel and harsh, squeezing so tightly I couldn’t bite back a wince. “I’ve told you what happens when you change the course of history. You cannot intervene. You can’t do this.”
“What other choice do I have?” I softened toward him, knowing a combination of his fear for me, as well as his adoration, demanded that he force me to stay by his side. “Look around you. Is this the world you want? Could anything possibly be worse?”
“The pain you will bring upon yourself will destroy you.”
“Maybe,” I acknowledged, nodding, “but it’s a chance I’m willing to take. I can’t allow this to happen. Not if I know there is some way I can stop it. This isn’t your choice to make, it’s mine. You’re going to have to let me go.” Sighing, I wound my fingers around his, loosening his death grip. “There’s something I have to tell you, something you need to know.”
“Nothing you can say will change how I feel.”
Taking a deep breath, I whispered, “Which is why I’m going to make things right between us when I go back. I don’t know how, and I’m not sure what will happen, but now that I know what to do, I won’t allow things to pull us apart. I’ll find a way to make things work.”
“Gabriel will never allow that to happen. You know that.”
An invisible vise around my chest made it difficult to breathe. “Once he learns of what occurred between us here, it’s probably not going to matter.”
“You’re going to tell him?” His thumb caressed the back of my knuckles.
“I am.”
He pondered the thought for a moment. “He won’t take it well.”
“No.” I felt as if the weight of the world had suddenly landed on my too weak shoulders. “But he won’t have any choice but to listen.” Lifting my free hand, I cupped his jaw. “I didn’t know how deeply your feelings went, or how I would feel when I learned about them. It’s changed things. I’m not sure what will happen, but I do know this. I won’t let you go when I go back. I won’t let you leave because of this obstacle between us. We’ll find a way to work things out.” Determined, I added, “I’ll find a way.”
He lowered his head until our foreheads touched. “Did I ever tell you that familiars beholden to a family are sometimes shared by those they establish a mark with? It’s not common, as vampires are possessive by nature, but it does occur. The link between those who share a mark is too strong to be denied. Gabriel didn’t want you to know that, which is why he kept you so close at his side. He feared you would feel it, and he wasn’t ready to consider what it could mean for the three of us, of what it would mean for you after all you’ve been through in your life. He didn’t want to frighten or scare you.”
“Because of the mark you established when you saved my life?”
He nodded, his cool skin brushing against mine. “It was necessary, but it was also something I wanted. Gabriel knew that.”
Surprisingly, the information didn’t scare me. “Then I’ll find a way. We all will.”
“I’m waiting, Rhiannon Murphy.” Marigold sounded mildly amused.
I peered up at Paine, smiled, and broke away. “If things don’t work out as I hope, you have a chance to make things right now. That’s the way it should be. Make a difference. If I can’t stop events in the past, don’t let the world to continue as it is.” I turned to Carter. “I’m giving you both a chance here. Use it. Don’t let foolish pride or hate stand in your way. No one will win if you do.”
Walking the short distance, I stopped in front of the fallen angel who appeared exactly as she was.
“I agree to your terms.”
“Then consider our bargain sealed.”
As Marigold’s hand touched me, I was swept into a pendulum of time, growing sick as images shifted behind my eyes, flash frames as I was swept into the past, forcing me to my knees. The ground shifted beneath my feet, smells I couldn’t place causing me to gag as colors bled together. As I started to retch, I opened my eyes, and the world was still once more.
Lifting my head, I gazed around the welcome and familiar confines of my bedroom, in the exact location I had been when Zagan had sent me forward in time. The only difference being my clothing was different than what I’d departed in, and the possessions I’d had on me when I left the future remained.
I wobbled as I stood, unsteady and off balance. Using the hallway to remain standing, I rushed for my telephone with one person on my mind. The cherry side table next to the door crashed to the ground as I fell into it and scrambled for the phone. My fingers were shaking as I dialed, punching the numbers. The phone rang once, twice, and then Nala answered.
“Hello?”
“Disco,” I gasped into the phone. “Put him on the phone.”
“Rhiannon! Where have you been? Everyone’s been looking for you. You have no idea of what it’s been like here.”
“Disco,” I repeated.
“He’s gone, he…” I heard her gasp and the phone shuffled.
“Rhiannon?” Paine’s lyrical timbre came through the line. “Where are you?”
“I need to talk to Disco.” My voice was steadier now. “Put him on the phone.”
His hesitation sent a spike of fear through me. “He’s not here.”
“Tell me where he is.” I screamed into the phone, demanding, “Where the hell is he?”
“I’m sorry, Rhiannon.” The sorrow in his voice told me all I needed to know. “I c
an’t tell you that.”
Nausea surfaced, threatening to send the empty contents of my stomach hurling nonetheless. “What day is it, Paine? How long have I been gone?”
Anger surfaced in his tone. “Shouldn’t I be the one asking the questions?”
“Don’t fuck with me,” I snapped. “Not right now.”
“It’s been nearly two weeks.” He sounded skeptical and confused. “How could you not know that?”
I hung up on him. Paine wouldn’t tell me shit, and I needed to know exactly where Disco was. He was killed a couple of weeks after I vanished, and a sinking feeling told me tonight was the night. Frantically, I dialed Goose’s number, praying I would get there in time, knowing there was a very real possibility I might not.
He answered on the first ring. “Rhiannon? Where the hell are you? Where have you been? Everyone has been worried sick.”
“I’ll answer all your questions later. Where are you?”
“I’m waiting outside a warehouse at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.”
Double shit. “Where’s Disco? Put him on the phone.”
“I can’t. He’s inside speaking with Joseph.” I felt sucker punched as he said it. The meeting was already starting. There was no time left.
“Get inside. Disco’s in danger.”
I hung up the phone without saying goodbye and rushed to my closet to retrieve my gun. The Ruger was where I left it, as was the extra set of clips. I slipped on the shoulder holster I recently acquired and slid a hoodie over it. I didn’t bother locking the door as I snagged the cash I kept stashed in the table. I fled the apartment and rushed down the stairs.
One spot of luck was on my side when I ran outside. There was no way I could make it on foot in time, but a vehicle certainly could, and a yellow submarine was traveling down my road. I stepped in front of the cab, stopped its progression, and quickly ran to the back to hop inside.
“Are you crazy, lady?” The man inside thundered. “I could have killed you!”
The fifty-dollar bill I plopped into the front seat abruptly changed his attitude. He grasped the money and started the meter. “Where to?”
My heart was racing, my body trembling uncontrollably. “The Brooklyn Navy Yard.” As he put the car in gear, I told him, “I’ll throw in another fifty if you can get me there within the next five minutes,” and was rewarded by the purr of the motor as he punched the gas, and I was pressed back in my seat.
Chapter Seventeen
By the time I arrived to the warehouse, I had a feeling I’d made it to the party too late. There was this horrible wrenching in my chest, as if my heart was being ripped apart. I didn’t bother thanking the driver as I tossed the promised fifty dollar bill into the front seat and hauled ass out of the vehicle.
I couldn’t find an open door to the building, so I climbed atop a box below a window, broke it with my elbow, and cleared aside the glass until I could get inside. As I entered, I heard voices and realized events were taking place on a floor below.
I flew down the first set of stairs, until I came to another set leading to another floor, followed by another. The voices became louder, as if I were entering an underground fighting ring. Then, I saw them. Disco was on the ground with a metal stake driven through his chest, his hands covering the silver, causing them to blister. Blood pooled beneath him, and from the reflection of his blood, I saw a familiar rippling as Zagan started to appear. Goose had already moved forward, but he stopped when he saw the demon with a satiated smile across its face.
As it stepped from the puddle of blood, outrage—unlike any I’d ever known—overcame me. I listened, furious, as Zagan offered to give Disco a second chance at life.
“I offer you a severance of our debt, Gabriel Trevillian. I can save your life, remove the spike, and all will be well. However, you must forget about and never know what happened to your familiar and lover, Rhiannon Murphy. Or, if you’re inclined, you can die and learn where she is and exactly where she has been sent.”
Before he could form the words that would take him from me, I yelled, “Gabriel Trevillian, your debt to Zagan has been paid.”
All eyes were on me then, but it was Disco’s gaze I sought. He lifted his head, his honey-blond hair stained in the back with red. There was so much pain there, but despite that, there was also a love, relief and acceptance so dear I had to hold back the strong urge to cry.
“Rhiannon Murphy!” Zagan seethed.
I continued down the stairs to face the demon, prepared to send it to where it belonged. “The price of the bargain between you and Gabriel Trevillian has been paid. Go back from where you came. You are no longer welcome or wanted here.”
“You cannot command me, bitch!” Yet even as Zagan screeched the words, it began to dissolve back into the mirror. The moment it realized it was beaten, Zagan snarled, “This isn’t over. I’ll come back. When I do, I will own you.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered loudly enough that it could hear. “I’ve heard that one before.”
Joseph stepped forward again, as if he intended to end what he started, and I reached for the amulet over my heart, whispered the incantation to bring it to life, and literally soared down the last few feet.
“Don’t move, any of you!” I shouted, fortified by the amulet. “Stay exactly where you are.”
Everyone froze, with the exception of Goose and Sonja, who peered around, stunned and amazed. I quickly started assessing the room, looking for and finding the only person who shuffled his feet—the half-demon Graham Tavish—Victoria’s damned half-brother and the creator of this entire mess. He looked a lot like his sister, with striking black hair and green eyes.
Once I had my target in sight, I went to Disco. He was fading fast, turning an odd hue of purple that made me want to scream at the fates and damn them for harming someone who didn’t deserve it. Goose offered him his wrist, but Gabriel refused to take it.
“He has to feed and take from us,” Goose said in a rush, obviously panicked. “He’ll die if he doesn’t.”
“Don’t worry.” I met his frantic gaze. “I’ve got this.”
I avoided using Disco’s nickname, knowing he’d take me seriously, as I dropped to my knees at his side, grasped the silver and yanked it free, and put my wrist to his lips. “Gabriel, drink from me. Take from me.”
“Too…late.” The words were hard to understand, muffled by gurgles of blood at his mouth.
“It’s not too late. Listen to me.”
“Where…have…you…been?”
Leave it to Disco to ask questions at the wrong fucking time.
“Look at me, you selfless asshole.” I placed one hand on either side of his face, smearing blood across his cheeks. “I love you and I’m not going to lose you. You’ve always told me to trust you. Now I need you to trust me. Please, drink from me.” I placed my wrist once against at his mouth and ordered, “Take from me.”
“Say…again…” There was a smile on his face, and I wanted to strangle him when I realized he thought this was it, his final time to hear those words he had so long waited for. I reminded myself that if he’d only do as I asked, there was plenty of time to tell him in the future.
“I’ll keep saying it if you do as I ask. I love you, do you hear me? I always have. You’ve always known it. I was just too much of a fucking coward to say so.”
“Still…good to hear it.” His teeth scored me cleanly, although it still hurt, yet I didn’t feel him draining any of the energy he needed to heal himself.
Furious, I looked into his face. “Take what you need from me, right now, goddamn it! I won’t let you die. Do you hear me? I won’t.”
Then, I felt it, a sapping of my strength. Releasing his face, I wrapped my hand around the amulet, focused on the vampires in the room, and repeated the incantation that would bring it all to an end. The alarm in their eyes made this all the
more worthwhile.
Fuck with the bull, assholes, and get the horns.
“You’re all about to wish you’d fucked with someone else,” I said when I’d finished reciting the necessary Latin. “Your undead asses belong to me now. On. Your. Knees.”
I wasn’t sure if it was the command that forced them to do as I asked, or if it was the fact that my weakness faded in the very instant I took their lifeforce into myself. Either way, each of their knees bashed the concrete as I drained them of the power that gave them life. Their strength slammed into me, cocooning me in an unbelievable amount of energy.
“Oh God, Rhiannon. How are you doing this?” Goose was mystified, but I could also feel his horror.
“We’ll talk later. Right now, it’s time to take care of a few loose ends.”
After several, agonizing seconds, the wound in Disco’s chest started to mend, closing slowly as the flesh came together. His heartbeat sounded in my ears, growing louder as he reclaimed his strength. When the wound was almost sealed, I drew a deep breath, finding comfort in his lips against my skin. I didn’t want to stop him, but I knew I’d need strength of my own for what was yet to come.
“Goose will take over from here.” I nodded at Goose who offered his wrist as I pulled away. “Keep trusting me, please. There is something I have to do. When we’re safely away from here, I’ll answer all of your questions.”
Even if they are things you don’t want to know, I reminded myself bleakly.
He was still too weak to do little more than sit upright, but he grasped my hand. “Once more, tell me.”
“I love you.” I planted a hard kiss on him and pulled away. “I love you so much, you arrogant bastard. Happy now?”
“More than you know,” he replied before he fell back again and accepted Goose’s wrist.
Standing, I turned toward the one person in the room that had to go. He was studying me closely, as if carefully gauging the threat I represented, and during my time with Disco had planted three human familiars in front of him like a barrier.