| |
“CHRIST, BUT YOU’RE beautiful,” I grated out, both hands on her hips as she moved up and down on me. Her flaming waves poured over her shoulders, the ends of the locks teasing the tips of her puckered nipples. Her areolae were dark and wide and perfect against her full breasts, both of them swinging back and forth with her up and down thrusts. I groaned in pleasure, the friction of her tight body sheathing my cock so exquisite ... I was desperate for release at the same time I longed for the coupling to last forever.
“Feel good?” she asked as she palmed her own chest, tweaking her nipples as she used the muscles of her thighs ride me. “Bet it feels real good.” She reached down and placed her hand against my chest. “Have you thought ... that maybe I’m just fucking with you?” Her fingers began to sink through my skin towards my rapidly beating heart. With a gritty chuckle, she ripped the organ from my body ...
I lurched up in bed, panting and sweating, my mind fuzzy with confusion after the vivid dream. The palpitations against my ribcage felt strong enough that the sound of it should have echoed off the walls of my bedroom.
My eyes dropped down, and I wondered how on earth I could still have a hard-on after what should surely have been a nightmare. I was so twisted up inside that I still wanted Red in my bed, even knowing she was a murderer. She was like the ultimate mind-fuck.
And I still wanted her. I roared in frustration as I swept my hands across the nightstand, tossing my books, clock and other things across the room.
After taking some time to catch my breath and calm my anger, I pulled off my lounge pants and grabbed a quick shower. A cold one. After I’d dressed in a dark suit and tie, I engaged my magic and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke, reappearing seconds later in an alcove of the underground prison. My heels made a clipped sound as I made my way down the tunnels towards her room. When I arrived, I stopped and stared at the door a minute before leaning in to gaze through the peephole.
Red was there on her bed, the blankets pulled up to her chin. She looked peaceful when I first peeked in at her, then her face scrunched up tight and her body twitched. After a few seconds, her muscles relaxed again. Beside her bed was a small table with an assortment of meds strewn across the top. There was a floor heater in one corner, by order of Rhiannon.
It had been some time since the werevamp had first started treating Red. I’d been hopeful she could stop the advancement of the curse, but it seemed beyond even her capable hands.
This wasn’t what I’d been expecting when I’d helped to bring Red in and then to convict her. She was wrong, of course, about the trial. I had been there. I had testified before she had, but accused weren’t allowed to hear the report of Enforcers under most circumstances. I could have left the Conclave as soon as I’d passed on my evidence, but I’d stayed.
I’d watched her at first remain indignant, insisting the Conclave had no authority over a servant of the gods. Then she’d pled innocence, stating she’d never meant to kill Alexis but had just tried to stop her from stealing the relic. And that was when the Conclave turned most demanding. They weren’t nearly as concerned with the details of the crime of murder as they had been about discovering the nature of the relic and the location of it now.
Red had remained tight-lipped, never breathing a word of detail.
Now I watched her, wondering at what the nature of her mission really was. Could there be some decent explanation for her work? As I gazed through the window, I listened. Her breathing sounded odd, and as I leaned in closer, her body was wracked with coughs. When she wiped her hand across her mouth, a trail of bright red blood was left behind.
My stomach tightened, and I closed my eyes, wondering why I’d even come to see her tonight. Then a thumping sound caught my attention, and I saw her crawling out of the bed and reaching for the trash can. She heaved loudly, vomiting a disgusting black mess into the receptacle.
I rushed in, horror in my eyes. I hadn’t noticed it earlier with the shadow of darkness in the room, but her body was covered in dark pustules, some of them leaking a nasty brownish fluid.
Red’s eyes turned to me. She stared at me a moment, then she raised her hand, reaching for me. I backed away, shaking my head. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was afraid of, but I knew I couldn’t touch her. If I touched her, I might be tempted to pick her up and take her out of this place.
“Vicente ...”
When I heard her say my name, I turned and fled the cell, locking it behind me. I had my phone in hand and immediately dialed Rhiannon’s number. She answered in a breathless gasp.
“I need you now. She’s bad, and we have to do something. Get ready because I’m coming to get you.”
“Oh, my God!” she cried into the receiver, “No, don’t. It’s a really bad time. Give me...”
But I was on a mission and nothing she said could have stopped me. As soon as I arrived in the spot where I could use my magic, I orbed from the prison straight into Rhiannon’s kitchen ... and found her completely nude. Her boyfriend, a sandman, quickly stepped in front of my line of sight, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what they’ve been doing.
I did an immediate 180 and gave them my back, embarrassment washing over me. “I apologize. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Yeah,” Rhia muttered. “You clearly weren’t. You know most people knock, but then I guess angels think they have liberties and all.”
“I didn’t see anything.” That was an absolute lie. I’d seen far too much.
I could hear the boyfriend snort in disbelief, and I wouldn’t have blamed him if he’d socked me just for the hell of it. I didn’t really care because at the moment all that mattered was that Red was suffering and something had to be done to help her.
“Are you dressed?”
“Um, not yet, but you can talk while you wait. What’s her condition?”
I raked my fingers through my hair and was appalled to see that they were shaking. Bracing my legs apart, I clasped my hands together behind my back to keep them still. “The meds you left her aren’t making a dent in the pain. She’s raging with fever and ...”
“Okay, you can turn around.”
I made an about face and looked at her, my tongue thick in my mouth and my throat dry.
“And what?”
“The hemorrhaging has started. I’ve only seen anything like it once in my life. And once was enough.”
Rhiannon nodded, swallowing hard. “Okay, give me a minute to gather some extra supplies. Then we can go.”
She hurried off to another room and the sandman followed her. I could see by the tension in his back that he was not happy with the current situation. I waited, gritting my teeth and praying she would hurry.
Praying? Not a true prayer. No, my radio silence with the Almighty was still in full force. But the compulsion to talk to Him was almost overwhelming right now.
My impatience was also overwhelming. “Are you coming?” I called out to Rhiannon.
“Yep. Coming.”
Within a few minutes, we were back in the catacombs of the prison, standing in the alcove. “Why don’t we just pop right into her cell?”
Now that I was back here and Red was so close, all I could think of was getting to her. I shrugged to the werevamp as I started walking in wide strides. “Part of the protections. This is the only place the magic for transporting can work.”
“So, when exactly?”
I paused in my steps, but didn’t look at her. “When what?”
“You said you’d seen something like this once.”
“Yes, in España. Many years ago.”
She paused. “The black plague.”
The moment I opened the cell door, the putrid smell of sickness nearly knocked me over. Red was writhing in the bed, sheets and blankets knotted up around her limbs. Gasping, she struggled for breath, and a loud rattle in her chest was a sure sign that her lungs were filled with fluid.
“Red.” I breathed her name, the first time I’d used it like an endearment since discovering what she’d done to Alexia. I rushed the bed, my arms reaching out, longing to embrace her. But I stopped, holding back and fisting my hands at my sides in restraint. “Red, Rhiannon’s here.”
“Hurts,” Red murmured to the doctor, moaning in pain.
“I know. Let’s try this.”
I watched Rhiannon measure a dose of something into a syringe, then stick it quickly into Red’s arm. She tried to place a thermometer into Red’s mouth, but the phoenix lurched forward, grabbing for the trash can again.
“Sorry,” she murmured after she’d stopped heaving.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get another. A little better?”
“A little.”
“Good. Try to rest while you can.”
Red’s eyes fluttered shut, and Rhiannon immediately stood and faced me. “Did you get those things I ordered? The saline, the IV administration kit?”
I nodded though my eyes were focused on the Red who was resting, but still panting and wheezing for air. “Yes, they were delivered yesterday. What can you do to help her?”
“I need all of those supplies. And hot water, enough to give her a sponge bath. And take this with you.” She handed him the trash can. “Don’t bother cleaning it. Just get her another one. Or maybe two. Can you do all that?”
I stared at her, eyes narrowed as if confused. I knew what she was doing. She wanted to get rid of me. As soon as I was gone she would some way attempt to break Red out of prison. And I wasn’t at all surprised by it. Had I all along hoped that the werevamp would be the one brave enough to save Red?
“Prieto,” she hissed. “Get a move on.”
MY BOOTS MADE SHARP clicking sounds on the rock floor as I walked back and forth. One of my hands gripped my other wrist behind my back so tight as to nearly cut off the circulation to that limb. But I didn’t release it. Somehow, the aching comforted me.
When the poltergeists started wailing, my head shot up, and I stopped midstride, listening. I licked my lips, swallowed and stood stone still. Just a few moments later a pair of ferocious growls reverberated off the halls of the cave and then loud, stomping footsteps. I still didn’t move.
Normally I would have bolted from the office the moment the poltergeists shouted the alarm. Instead I raked a hand through my midnight hair, then walked to the far corner and braced my hand against the wall to wait. The jagged rock was cold and hard. Suddenly I jerked my hand back and smacked it with my fist, clenching my eyes closed when the skin on my knuckles split open and began to bleed.
I glanced down and watched thick droplets of red splatter onto the floor. The pain shooting up my arm would last longer than the open wound. Even as the thought passed through my consciousness, the skin began to close itself. I shook out my hand and then pushed away from the wall.
The sound of the hellhounds had almost disappeared, which meant they’d gotten too far away from me. Inhaling a deep breath, I walked out of the empty cell and in the direction of the opening where my magic could fully employ. Impatience took over, and I began to jog as I got closer.
The hellhounds, massive dogs with teeth that could rip off a person’s limbs, were pacing and sniffing at the spot where the escapees must just have been. Their thick hackles were raised, and when they breathed, little puffs of black came out of their nostrils. I raised my hand to them and motioned them back. They both whined but stepped away with their heads down in defeat. A flick of my hand was all it took to use my angel’s magic to transport me, leaving behind a cloud of purple smoke.
I knew I would find Rhiannon, Lynlee and my prisoner in Lynlee’s grotto. What I hadn’t counted on was seeing Rhiannon naked ... again.
“Geez, Louise! Not again!” she screamed, covering herself as best was able.
As quickly as I could, I turned around, hand to my eyes to block her from view. “I didn’t see anything this time, either.”
“You’re lying!”
Lynlee whispered, “Angels don’t lie.”
Hell, yes I was lying. I was a fallen angel which meant I wasn’t exactly bound by the same rules I had been before. Lying was sometimes a necessary evil. After all, this was in fact the second time I’d managed to pop in on the werevamp sans a stitch of clothing. It was a stupid mistake that only an incompetent angel would make. I wasn’t willing to admit that to my present company.
Although the werevamp was a very competent doctor, there was only so much medicine could do in the case of a very serious curse. And I knew that in the absence of medicine, Rhiannon would call on her best friend, Lynlee Lincoln. Lynlee was a witch who was so much like Essie that it had nearly been my undoing the year before. When I went to recruit her, my angel powers had taken over and almost nudged the two of us into making a terrible mistake. After that, I’d stayed far away from her.
“You’re not taking her back, Prieto.”
I knew Rhiannon’s words meant she must be decent, so I turned around to face her. But instead of focusing on her and the witch Lynlee, my eyes naturally fell to Red. My mouth went immediately dry, and a stinging pain struck me just behind both my eyes. My teeth ground together as I strained to recover my composure.
Her hair was oily and slick with sweat, plastered in golden red chunks against a face that was twisted with pain. She moaned, and her body twitched as agony seized her. I sucked in a breath, nostrils flaring, frozen with shock.
Rhiannon turned and knelt beside her, wiping the wet from Red’s brow with her hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t bring my bag and my meds with me. I thought... well, I thought when I got here you’d go ahead and pass on and there would be no more pain.”
Red swallowed, tongue darting out to try to relieve her parched lips so she could speak. “It’s okay. Thank you. There aren’t many people who would have done that.” She stopped to cough, though her strength was in such short supply that she could barely even complete that action. Panting for breath, she reached out a hand and grasped Rhia’s arm. “I’ll repay you one day. I promise.”
“Red?” My voice sounded foreign even to me. I cleared my throat, trying to dislodge the lump that was slowly strangling me.
Clasping her blanket around her body, Rhiannon stood and stepped away from the patient. As soon as she did, I dropped to my knees beside her. I put my hands out, hesitant to touch her. My fingers tightened and released a few times, then I gave in and slipped one arm beneath her to hug her to my chest.
Red was so small, so weak, so light. Part of me was afraid I might break her, but what did it matter at this point? Her body felt so different than Essie’s, and yet the moment was so similar that a dizzying impression of deja vu flooded over me.
“I’m sorry.” I’d said those words then too, so long ago. The meaning now was so much different.
Her smile was fleeting, turning quickly to a grimace. “You’re not. You’d do it again.”
Would I? Probably. What did it matter?
“You should go. Why don’t you just go?” Yet I was still cradling her close, caressing her temple with one hand as if to keep her with me. Always?
When she coughed, her entire body tightened, and I knew the pain must be nearly unbearable. I could see crimson on her teeth and her tongue, then a bloody teardrop trailed its way down her cheek and onto my arm.
“Don’t come for me, Vicente. Stay out of it.”
“I haven’t a choice, Red. I must come after you.”
She moved her head, and I thought she might have intended to shake it side to side, but she didn’t have the strength. “Your sense of duty is infuriating. But then, so is mine.”
Duty? Yes, that was the reason I must go after her. She was my prisoner. I’d captured her and put her in a cell, and now that she had escaped it would be my job to bring her back.
“Until we meet again, Vicente.” She lifted her hand just an inch or so, her fingers trembling. I took it in mine and pressed her palm to my cheek.
And then she bowed her back and drew a gasping breath. The edges of her skin began to glow orange, a vapor of black coiling up from her mouth and eyes and nose. She was hot, so hot that to try to hold her was impossible so I released her, falling back onto my backside as she levitated. Her arms thrust down so that her chest rose higher than the rest of her form and from her opened mouth a wild screeching sound filled the cave. It was a sound akin to that of a wild hawk.
And then her entire body collapsed in on itself until it drifted to the floor, nothing more than snow white ash.
Lynlee rushed forward, standing over the pile with a quizzical look on her face.
“Is that it?”
I didn’t want to look at the witch. Too much about the last several weeks reminded me of Essie, and I was afraid looking her doppelganger in the eye would twist me up so tight I’d never get undone.
“No.” I stood, my tone gritty. “That’s not it.” Then I put out one arm and swept her back just in time. The dust that had only a few seconds ago been Red burst up to the ceiling then from the fine powder formed a magnificent flaming bird of red and gold.
And so it was that Red was reborn. She unfurled her ten-foot wings of glittering plumage, then exited the cave, leaving only a blur of fire trailing after her.
“Are you going to go after her?” Rhia asked.
My chest rose and fell with a long sigh that didn’t seem to help with the strangling emotion smothering me. “I must. This is my responsibility.”
Lynlee frowned. “We’re the ones who broke her out of prison.”
I crooked a long black eyebrow at her. “Yes, you are.”
“Crap.” Rhiannon stomped her foot as she moved to stand beside her friend. “You let us do it. You set me up, and then you let me make Lynlee an accessory.”
I shrugged. “I didn’t set you up. I hoped you could find a way to treat her and at least stop the suffering of the curse. But when you weren’t able to, I knew the only way was to allow you to help her out so that she could find her own release. But it doesn’t change what she is. It doesn’t change the wrongs she’s committed. She must pay for her crimes.”
Lynlee was still staring at me a funny expression on her face. “I’m not really feeling that pull I used to feel around you.”
My lips stretched into a line, but I didn’t respond. She was right, of course. She still reminded me so much of Essie that it was like crossing a dimension into my own past. But the uncontrollable urge I’d felt to take her in my arms had waned. Absence, perhaps. Or maybe it was just that my arms longed for someone else these days.
And that really pissed me off. The years, no, the centuries I’d spent mourning Essie were surely real. I knew my love for her had been true. After all, I’d forfeited Heaven just to be with her. It was absurd to me that a waif of a woman could boil my blood and turn my insides out. How could Red possibly fill the void left behind my Essie? She was nothing like her. Essie was good and kind and sweet and loving.
Red was nothing but a cold-blooded assassin. She had been from the very first day I met her, even if I’d been too blind to know it then.