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“THANK YOU.” I EAGERLY began steeping peppermint tea into a cup of hot water the waitress had set in front of me. As usual, the staff knew what I needed before even coming to my table. I removed the tea leaves and slowly sipped as I waited. After just a few moments, Atreus entered the restaurant, head tipped back as he scanned the room for me. When he found me, he nodded and headed in my direction.
He was a very tall man and thin. The bones of his cheeks protruded in a way that made him appear gaunt. It was true that he was thousands of years old, but he’d looked just as sickly before he became an ushabty, a servant to the dead. He was dressed in brown, from head to foot. I never understood why. He was born a slave and remained a slave, but in this world, there was no need to look it.
“Couldn’t you find me? I’m always in the same place, Atreus.” My tone was acerbic, but then I usually got this way when the sickness was beginning to affect me. I drank some more while he sat, adjusting his shirt and then picking some lint from his sleeve.
“Acheri has made a reservation for three days at the Imperial in Vienna. He has a paramour in Salzburg who is scheduled to arrive this evening,” he murmured in a soft voice as he nervously checked the room again.
“Acheri.” I was disappointed and it sounded in my voice. “I was hoping for Nassor.”
He brought his eyes back to mine and fixed me with a chastened frown. “I am sorry, mistress. Nassor has always been the strongest and the wiliest.”
I considered that a few minutes, tapping my finger on the rim of my tea cup. “You’re very nervous. Has someone been following you?”
He tipped his head to the side to look over his shoulder. “I thought perhaps, but no. It is just my imagination.”
Nodding, I pushed my chair back and prepared to stand. “We are almost there, Atreus. Before long, you will be with your family again.”
I could have sworn I saw him frown, as if that wasn’t the goal toward which he’d been working these centuries. His eyes dropped to his lap, and he smiled. “That is my most fervent wish. When you return, I hope to have news of Nassor.”
We stood, walking across the lobby in tandem. “You’d better. I’m about ready to be done with this assignment myself.”
Then I skirted off towards the exit nearest the staircase, intending to go directly to work. Instead I paused midstride, a tickle of intuition alerting me that someone was watching me. My hackles were prepared to come up, but when I looked I found only Vicente, seated at a table, eyes focused on me.
With a cocky tilt of my head, I approached his table. “Are you following me, Vicente?”
“And why would I do that?”
His almost-finished plate of pancakes looked delish, so I reached over and grabbed up a piece. When I saw how his eyes followed my hand as I brought the morsel to my mouth, I made a production of sucking the syrup from my fingers. “Oh, I can think of a few reasons, but, unfortunately, I’ve got a date. A date which requires me to make a quick change up first.”
“I’d like to watch.”
A wave of red-hot desire coursed from my stomach straight to my lower region. I tightened the muscles there and mentally calculated how much time I might be able to spare. Not enough for the kind of distraction he represents. I rocked back and forth on my feet, my body screaming for his touch. “I suspected you were a voyeur, you naughty angel, you.”
“Well?”
My mouth split into a Cheshire grin. “How could I deny you? Let’s get crackin’ before I get sick again and have the urge to hurl that yummy bit of pancake.”
On the walk to my room, the single bite of pancake began to churn in my belly, and my head started to spin a little. My feet felt like they were weighted, and I almost lost my balance. Falling on my ass certainly wouldn’t give him the sexy image I was hoping to leave him with while I was gone.
He came into my suite after me, and I intentionally left the door open about six inches. My phoenix would need an escape route once the change was complete.
I turned to face him. “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Could be a day or even a few.” I sounded a little worried, even to my own ears, although I tried to hide it from Vicente.
“I’m on vacation. I have nothing but time.”
“You should check out the pool. I highly recommend it.”
I regretted that suggestion the moment it left my lips. I’d seen Vicente’s chest, and I wasn’t exaggerating when I compared his form to that of a god. He was built to perfection, and I certainly didn’t want him taking laps across the Hotel pool so that any MAUC could prey on what I wanted for my eyes only.
The urge to touch him overcame me, and I practically leaped into his arms. The moment our lips met, a flood of burning desire pooled between my legs. His kiss was searing. It was brutal and intense. When we parted, I felt marked, as if he were staking the same claim to me as I wanted to make on him.
Before I could change my mind, I pulled away and dropped into a crouch on the floor. Death was a painful thing. The heat of my skin imploding in on itself was agony, but I gave myself over to it. After a moment, everything exploded into white-hot oblivion.
The transition from death to rebirth always took place just outside of my awareness, so the next thing I knew, I was a firebird again, my wings stretching wide just before I bounded up to take flight. I didn’t even glance at Vicente as I sailed away. No, my phoenix was in total control, running on instinct as she maneuvered out of the hotel and into the cold night air. My beaked mouth opened, and I screeched into the darkness as I set my sights for Austria.
I landed my claws into the soft earth in Resselpark, then shifted back into human form. It was dark enough that there was little chance anyone would see me. Stretching my arms back and over my head, I enjoyed the sensation of being alive, strong and well again. I knew it wouldn’t last long. But with any luck, I could finish this stage with enough wellness in me to enjoy a few more days with Vicente before Atreus returned with news of my next quarry.
I pulled out my phone and searched online for the Hotel Imperial. The premier accommodations were the Royal Suites. Acheri would accept nothing but the best. Now I just had to find a way to worm the details of his room number from the staff.
I started walking that way, staying on my toes until I reached the pavement so that my boot heels wouldn’t sink into the dirt. When I reached the lobby, my eyes scanned the crowd, honing in on all of those clearly in the employ of the hotel. When they landed on just the right person, I grinned and started towards him, rocking my hips back and forth in just the right way.
The tag on his lapel read “Errol,” and when I got to the desk, I placed my palms onto the counter and leaned in almost to the point of spilling my boobs right out in front of him. He watched with wide eyes, and I had a feeling he was anticipating that very thing.
“Errol,” I said, rolling the “r” a little. “Do you think you could help me?”
The young man cleared his throat and straightened his back a little. “Yes, ma’am, what can I do for you?”
“Well.” I licked my lips and put my thumb in my mouth as I leaned over the counter. “You see, my brother’s here with his, ummm... yeah, his paramour. But his wife is onto him, and I’ve got to warn him. She has a private investigator posted right outside the hotel, and as soon as he walks out those doors with his lover ... bam!” I slapped my hands together. “His family jewels are on the chopping block. Know what I mean?”
Errol glanced left and then right, clearly looking to see if anyone might be watching him. I grinned my sexiest grin and batted my lashes at him. “I just need a room number. He’s in one of the royal suites, I think.”
And just like that, any progress I might have made ended with deafening silence and a flushed face. Errol shook his head and backed away from the counter. “Miss, it isn’t the policy of the Imperial to give guest room information. I’ll happily call your brother’s room for you.”
“But that won’t work. The girlfriend might answer, and she doesn’t know about his wife.”
“I’m sorry, miss. Hotel policy.”
I grumbled under my breath and pushed away from the counter without giving young Errol another look. My gaze moved over the lobby of the hotel, and I eventually found a quiet spot to sit and wait.
Within just a few hours, my luck changed. I looked up to see Acheri entering the doors with his lovely paramour on his arm. She threw back her head to laugh at something he’d said, her long, lovely neck adorned with jewels. I didn’t need to follow closely. Now that I was near enough to hone in on the relic, I could find him with ease.
They got onto the elevator, Acheri leaning in to nibble at her shoulder. I watched the doors close, then rushed forward to get into the next one. A few moments later I was on the top floor. Hand outstretched, I moved through the hallway and closed my eyes. About halfway down, my heart did a flip-flop in my chest. My eyes snapped open, and I gazed at the ornate door to my left, then placed my palm against the wood.
Acheri was inside.
I pushed my hand against the door, using my magic to walk right through it and into the room. My prey apparently wasn’t much for foreplay, because I found him already on top of his lover, grunting and groaning as he pounded into her.
“Tsk, tsk.” I shook my head and leaned against the wall, arms crossed in front of my chest. “You haven’t even taken off your shirt.”
“Fuck!” he cried, leaping away from the woman who was clawing around for something to cover herself with. “Bennu, it’s you.”
Pushing from the wall, I dropped my arms and meandered to him slowly to draw out his fear. And he was afraid. He scrambled to grab his pants, shoving his legs into the holes and stumbling over backwards in the process.
And that was when I got cold-cocked by the paramour.
Her fist packed quite a punch for an ordinary woman. Which was why I shouldn’t have been surprised she wasn’t one. No, by the time I recovered my senses enough to get off my ass, I could see that she’d transformed into a huge leopard with long, slick teeth. She hissed and growled as she positioned herself between me and Acheri.
“A were-cat? You’re moving up in the world, Acheri.”
He laughed and stood, a new dose of fortitude clear in his expression. I propelled myself across the room, spring-boarding on the bed to get there. The catwoman followed me, pouncing onto my chest and knocking me back onto my rear again. I managed to grab her throat in time to keep her from chewing my head off, but her long claws sliced caverns into the skin of my shoulder and arm.
I used my magic to sink my fingers into her neck so that I could cut off her airway. She mewled a little, then gasped for more air. Finally, her body went slack, and I pushed her aside. I could have finished her off, but there was no need. I wasn’t gratuitous about killing.
And I had bigger things to worry about. Acheri had a long spear with a glowing silver tip in his hand. He waved it at me gently, teasing at first, then jabbed it in my direction. I dodged to the right, then took a few steps closer. In turn, he backed up, pulling his arm behind him so that he could stab at me again.
The sharp blade missed my chest but grazed my arm. The cut into my flesh was deep and painful, the rent skin feeling like an explosion had gone off in my muscle.
“Like that?” he grinned, admiring the wound he’d inflicted. “I purchased this spell from a dark witch in the Amazon.”
“The same witch who cursed me, I’m sure.”
There was a spark of confusion in his eyes, which was surprising. I’d always assumed Nassor had put the curse on me, but their group was thick as thieves, so it was impossible for me to believe Acheri wasn’t also in the know. I ignored the pain in my arm and advanced on him again.
This time when he aimed for me, I grabbed the spear in one hand and jerked to take it away from him. But Acheri refused to let go, and that was his ultimate downfall. The harder I pulled the spear, the nearer he got to me.
When he was close enough, I reached out with my injured arm and sank my fingers into his chest. His eyes bugged, and he shook his head to deny what was happening. I heard the spear clatter to the floor.
“No, you can’t.” His hands reached for and clasped onto my forearm, pulling me back. His teeth clenched, and he still managed to fight me with more strength than I would have expected.
Our tug of war continued for the span of a few seconds before I lurched my hand forward and grabbed his heart with clawed fingers. A choking gurgle escaped Acheri’s lips, then his eyes rolled back in his head as I ripped the relic from his chest. His body collapsed at my feet.
I glanced over my shoulder to check on his lover. Her body had transformed back into that of a leggy blond, glorious in her nakedness but still breathing. I sighed and closed my eyes, focusing my magic to the wounds on my shoulders and arm. I knew they would close soon, but the expending of power to heal myself would take time away from me. The curse would make me sick even faster now.
As always, time was the one enemy I couldn’t seem to beat.