Chapter Ten

THE FLAMES ROARED SKYWARD, FORMING A thick, columnar mass more than six feet tall. Fingers of fire shot out from its center, forming trunk-like arms and legs. There was no head, just a seething mass of flame. In the center was a gaping maw, from which came a low growl that crawled ominously across the silence, stirring fear deep inside me.

It tore itself free from the main mass of the fire and stepped onto the damp ground, dripping molten globules. The ground sizzled but didn’t burn, and the wariness in the air increased, the energy of it crawling across my skin.

It was as if this place did not welcome the fire demon. And if that were the case, would it do anything to protect the woman who had raised it?

I guessed I’d have my answer soon enough. I backed away from the fire and drew the ash stake. It seemed woefully inadequate as a weapon.

“Selwin, call off your creature.” But even as I spoke, it moved. Its steps were ponderous, as if its flaming trunk-like legs were a weight it could barely lift. I watched it warily and continued to back away. It might not have eyes, but it seemed to have an uncanny sense of my location, shifting direction every time I did. “It’s not too late to take the sensible course.”

She snorted softly. “There is no sensible course when it comes to revenge.”

“If this was just about revenge, you would not have been able to call the Maniae.”

The creature raised a massive paw and swiped at me. I jumped away and the blow missed, but the heat of it rolled over me, furnace-like in its intensity. Sweat beaded across my brow and began to roll down my spine—although I couldn’t honestly say it was all due to the heat. Some of it—most of it—was fear.

“This is about justice, not revenge. Closely related, but different enough. They stole my future, so it is only fair that I steal theirs.” Her gaze rested on me—a contemplative weight. “You actually sympathize with my plight, so why go through this charade? Why not save yourself?”

“Because it’s either bring you in, or die myself.”

The creature swiped again. Fire sprayed across the darkness, splashing the ground around me, sizzling where it landed. I let the blow skim past my chest, the heat of it singeing my clothes and scorching the fine hairs on my arms, then raised the stake and slashed it across the creature’s body. The sharp point hit the creature’s fiery essence, slicing through it as easily as a hot knife through butter, cutting its trunk in half. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, like a great tree that had been sawed in two, it split asunder and fell, each half hissing and screaming in pain.

But instead of being extinguished, the two halves began to dance, to grow, until what stood before me was not one fiery being with limbs and no face, but two.

The stake didn’t kill them. It just created more of them.

Fuck.

I shoved the stake back into my belt, ducked under a blow from the nearer creature, and reached for one of the bottles of holy water. Another fiery limb whistled toward me, its flames trailing behind it like a whip. I ducked, trying to undo the bottle’s top as I did so. But this time, the blow didn’t whistle past. With a sharp cracking sound, the trailing tendril snapped forward, roping itself around my body, wrapping me in a ring of fire that set my clothes alight. I screamed, but somehow managed to get the top off, splashing water over my skin as I poured it over the fiery leash that held me.

The water extinguished the flaming cord around my waist, and a good part of the creature’s limb. It roared—a sound of anger and pain combined—and staggered backward, leaving my clothes smoldering and skin burning. I dropped and rolled on the damp ground, extinguishing the flames but not the pain. Then I noticed that where the droplets of holy water had splashed, my skin was already beginning to heal.

I grabbed another bottle and poured it over the bigger areas of raw, exposed flesh. My skin hissed and the pain sharpened abruptly, bringing tears to my eyes and sending a rush of agony through every nerve ending. Yet even as I clamped down on another scream, the fiery sensation turned to ice, and the twisted mass of burned flesh began to disappear.

But I had no time for relief, and no time to wonder at the healing properties of the holy water. I scrambled to my feet, barely avoiding one club-like foot as it thumped down where my head had been only moments before. The force of it shook the ground and almost knocked me back off my feet—and the sheer closeness of all that fire threatened to set me alight again. So I turned and ran. Not for safety, because I doubted there was any place in this forest safe from these creatures.

Instead, I ran for Selwin.

It was obvious I wasn’t going to beat the fire demons with the tools I had. The ash stake only created more of them, and while the holy water did work, I needed buckets of it, not the remaining bottle I had. So Selwin herself was my only hope. Short of running for the gates and hoping that Azriel could defeat these things, anyway.

And that might yet be an option.

But before I could get anywhere near the witch, a third creature appeared, stepping out of the fire to stand between us, its massive body flaring outward and upward, creating a huge barrier of fire that appeared all but impenetrable. It also meant I was trapped among the three of them.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

I had no choice. I had to keep going. Selwin was the key to getting out of here alive, and if I had to go through one of these creatures to achieve that, then that’s exactly what I would do. So I grabbed the last bottle of holy water and uncapped it as I ran. The creature raised itself up even farther, towering above me—a huge sheet of flame that looked ready to topple down around me and burn me to cinders.

Oh God, this was going to hurt …

But I just kept running. The heat grew more intense the closer I got, until my whole body felt ready to burst into flame. Then I threw the water.

It arced through the air—a thin silver ribbon that seemed to get lost in the fiery maelstrom that was all but enveloping me. Then it hit the creature’s stomach and the flames there retreated, the creature screaming as a hole gaped open in the middle of its body.

A hole that I dove through.

Fire and heat and energy assaulted my skin, and for the briefest of moments it really did feel as if I were aflame. Then I was through, hitting the ground on the other side and rolling to my feet.

Selwin’s eyes widened as she saw me. She raised her hands, and energy began to crawl from them. She was attempting to raise more creatures.

I called to the Aedh within me, hoping like hell that Azriel was right, and that as a half-human I would be able to become Aedh when the magic of this place barred full-bloods.

I shouldn’t have doubted him.

The magic within me erupted, flowing through my body, snatching away pain and sensation as it began to change me from flesh to energy. I dove forward and wrapped my arms around Selwin’s waist, dragging us both to the ground. Her scream of anger became one of fear as the Aedh change swept from me to her, but it was abruptly cut off when her body and mine swept from flesh to energy.

I could feel her in me—feel the seething mass of anger and fear and shock twisting and turning like a malignant canker deep inside. The weight of her forced me low to the ground but I swept as quickly as I was able through the trees. The light of the fire creatures soon faded and the darkness closed in again, but the air remained alive with that odd awareness. So far, the forest had not reacted to anything that had happened. I could only hope it would remain so once I neared the exit, because I had a feeling this place could bring to life a far deeper and darker magic than what Selwin had called forth.

The gates came into view. For an instant blue fire flared across the wrought iron—a shimmer that was reflected in the old wire fence to either side. The energy of it slapped across the air, hitting like a ton of bricks and halting my progress in an instant. I hung suspended, unable to move, as that unseen force swept through me.

Then it was gone, and I could move again. I fled through the gates, saw Azriel, and called to the Aedh. The energy swept through me again, picking apart particles, separating me from Selwin, re-forming our beings into two separate people.

We fell to the ground in a tangle of arms and legs. I rolled away with a groan, my head on fire and my heart pounding so hard it felt ready to tear out of my chest. In fact, everything hurt. For several seconds, it was a battle just to breathe.

Then a warm, strong hand clasped mine, and energy began to flow through me, batting away the pain and hurt and forcing strength back into my limbs.

Someone was moaning, and despite that influx of energy, it took me several minutes to realize it wasn’t me but Selwin. Which meant I’d put her back together okay, and that was a huge relief. I wasn’t exactly experienced at shifting into Aedh form with someone else in my arms. Nor did I really want to be—not when it took such a toll on my body.

I forced my eyes open. Azriel was kneeling beside me, his expression fierce. When his gaze met mine, the fierceness faded, as did the flow of strength from his fingers. But he kept hold of my hand and I was glad. There was something oddly comforting about the way his fingers clasped mine.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

I nodded. The movement, although slight, made my head pound, but it was nowhere near as fierce as it usually was after a shift.

“What about Selwin?” My voice sounded croaky, harsh. I swallowed heavily then added, “Did she reform okay?”

His gaze flicked briefly past me. “Almost.”

Almost? Oh, fuck! “What have I done to her?”

I tried to get up, but his grip on my fingers tightened, pushing me back down and keeping me still.

“There is no major damage. She is merely missing a few minor appendages. It could have been much worse, believe me.”

I closed my eyes. Minor appendages? Like what? God, he was right, it could have been much worse, but that didn’t make it any better. Didn’t make me feel any better.

Especially when the groaning became hysterical screaming.

“We need to get her back to the Brindle,” I said, my voice almost lost in the wash of noise.

He nodded. “I’ll take her. You follow on your motorcycle when you are well enough.”

I pulled my hand from his, pushing backward and upright. The sudden movement made my head swim, and my stomach rose abruptly. I swallowed bile and forced a smile. “I’ll be right behind you in Aedh form.”

“Risa, you are in no condition—”

“I need to see this sorted out,” I cut in, a little surprised by the anger in my voice, and not entirely sure if its cause was guilt over my actions or his obvious concern about me. I took a deep breath and released it slowly. “The sooner we do this, the sooner we can get back to the business of finding the damn keys.”

His expression lost its warmth. He studied me for a moment, then said, “And the sooner we do that, the sooner you will have me out of your life?”

I eyed him warily. “It’s what we both want.”

“Yes.”

It was said in that same flat tone, and yet there was an odd hostility coming from him that made no sense. But then, nothing about this reaper really made any sense. Not him, not his actions, and not his reactions.

And certainly not mine.

He rose and offered me a hand up. I hesitated briefly, then accepted it, letting him pull me easily to my feet. Pain stabbed into my brain, and I had to close my eyes and breathe deeply for several seconds before the sensation eased.

“Yes,” Azriel said, pulling his fingers from mine. “It is obvious that you are totally okay.”

“Sarcasm does not become you, reaper.”

“And stupidity does become you.”

He moved past me. I took another deep breath, then opened my eyes and carefully turned around. Selwin was still on the ground. Her clothes—like mine—were shredded, hanging in fibrous bits from her body, but she obviously didn’t know or care. She was staring at her fingerless hands, her wailing getting louder and louder.

I’d done that. I’d maimed her.

And the knowledge that she’d intended to do far worse to me didn’t ease the guilt.

Azriel squatted down beside her. Valdis’s blade flickered with blue fire, as if in expectation. Azriel raised an arm and lightly touched two fingers to Selwin’s forehead. Valdis’s fire swirled down his arm and jumped from his fingers to her skin. She stilled instantly, her screams dying on her lips and her expression curiously blank.

“Can you re-form her fingers?” I asked softly as the blue fire spread from Selwin’s forehead, down her face, to her body.

He didn’t even glance at me, but I could feel the annoyance rolling off him as clearly as I could feel the watchful energy still haunting the air. “I do not know. I will meet you at the Brindle.”

And with that, he and Selwin disappeared.

For several moments I simply stood there, staring at the spot where they’d been, irritated not only by the fact he’d disappeared but by his refusal to even look at me. And I honestly had no idea why he was so annoyed. I mean, Azriel wasn’t a friend and he wasn’t even here by choice, so why would he care if I pushed myself to my limits or not? Unless, of course, he merely wanted me in a fit state to find the damn keys.

I shook my head and walked across to my bike. Even that short distance had exhaustion trembling through my limbs. There was no way on earth I was going to have the strength to become Aedh and journey all the way back to Melbourne. It would kill me. Which left me with little other choice than to do as he suggested. And that was even more annoying. I retrieved my phone and said, “Madeline Hunter.”

The voice-recognition software swung into action, and the screen put on its psychedelic show as the number was located and dialed.

“Risa,” she said, as her cool features appeared on the vid-screen. “It appears your reaper was right. Catherine Alston staked herself this afternoon. Good news from you will be the icing on this day’s cake.”

Although her voice was light, there was something in her expression that suggested I wouldn’t have wanted to be the bearer of bad tidings. “I found Selwin.”

“Where?”

“The where doesn’t matter. I offered her a deal.”

Darkness flared deep in her green eyes. Darkness and anger. “You had no right—”

“If the Melbourne council wants to be free of the Maniae curse,” I cut in, “then they will agree to the deal. Selwin is the only one who can stop the creature, and she has to do it willingly.”

Hunter’s expression remained stony, and yet I still saw death in her eyes. “What did you offer her?”

“This all began because Whitfield was killed and his fledglings sentenced to death. Selwin underwent the blood ceremony with him, but has not yet turned.”

“Ah,” Hunter said softly. “Now it all makes sense.”

“She only wants to live. If you offer her another master, she might call off the curse.”

“I cannot imagine the councilors will want to spend the rest of their lives looking over their shoulders, so I cannot see that they have any other option.” She paused, and once again something dark and vicious flared deep in her eyes. Ice curled through my veins. Though I’d never had any doubt that Hunter wasn’t someone you’d want to be on the wrong side of, that brief but stark glimpse of her true self was a more-than-ample reminder. Especially when she added—in a low, chillingly cold tone—“Though really, all they’d want to do is drain the bitch of blood and watch her die in brutal ecstasy.”

There wasn’t a whole lot I could say to that, so I simply said, “I’ll let the Brindle know that the council will agree to the deal.”

A cold smile touched her lips. “And the Brindle is the one place she is safe from us. Does that mean you do not trust the council, little Risa? Or just me?”

No one possessing a brain would trust the council or Hunter herself. “The Brindle can contain her magic. I couldn’t.”

“You really do need to master the art of lying, my dear.” Her smile grew more ferocious. “But I’m sure the high council will be pleased that you’ve solved this case so quickly.”

And with that, she hung up. I sighed in relief, though I’m not entirely sure why. I may have solved the case—and found Selwin before Hunter—but that didn’t mean the high council would now view me as useful rather than a liability.

Trepidation crawled through me, but I ignored it and did a search for the Brindle’s number, then called them.

“This is the Brindle depository,” a pleasant voice said. “How may we help you?”

“I’d like to speak to Kiandra, please.”

“I’m sorry, but that is not—”

“This is Risa Jones,” I cut in, “and it’s a matter of some urgency.”

“I’ll put you straight through,” she said almost before I’d finished talking. Meaning Kiandra had been expecting this call.

There was a click, a brief, soft hum of music, then Kiandra’s cool features came onto the screen. “If you’re calling to tell me your reaper is about to deliver a somewhat traumatized Deborah Selwin, you are too late.”

She didn’t mention the fact that Selwin was missing some extremities, and I hoped like hell that meant Azriel had been able to undo my mistakes. “I thought you might want to know that Selwin raised several fire demons in the ritual site. You’ll need to do something about them, because the fire that created them doesn’t seem to be burning itself out and the magic in that place is not happy about their presence.”

Her eyebrows rose. “You felt that?”

“Yes.”

“Interesting.”

I frowned. “Why?”

She shrugged. “It implies you are a sensitive, and that is unusual in one who is not a magic user.”

I might not be a magic user, but I’d been around one a good part of my life. That would surely make me more sensitive than most. “This all started because Hunter and the council killed her vampire master and condemned all his fledglings to death. Hunter’s going to revoke the death sentence if Selwin calls off the Maniae.”

“Then we shall attempt to talk sense into her. But it must be her decision, made of free will, for the curse to be successfully revoked.”

“I know. But I suspect she might agree.”

“Yes,” Kiandra said, her expression somewhat amused. “Karma can be a bitch when it hits, and I suspect that no matter how much dear Deborah might want revenge, she will not want to chance more retribution for her actions. I think she’s finally realized life is precious, no matter what might await at the end of it.”

Meaning, obviously, that Azriel hadn’t pieced her back together. I closed my eyes for a moment and tried to ignore the image of fingerless hands that rose like a ghost to taunt me. “Hunter knows you have her at the Brindle.”

“Then she knows she is safe here. I’ll be in contact to let you know, one way or the other, what Deborah’s decision is.”

“Thank you.”

She nodded, then hung up. I retrieved my wallet from the under-seat storage, then shoved it and the phone into my pocket and climbed onto my bike. My clothes were in tatters, but I hadn’t thought to bring a change, so it was going to be a long cold ride home. But at least it was dark and my near nakedness would be less noticeable.

I started up the Ducati and turned her around. The journey back across the mountainside was hell, every bump jarring my still-aching head and body. When I finally reached the freeway, I would have cheered, except I simply didn’t have the energy. It was all I could do to keep upright and pointed in the right direction.

I parked under the hotel, then shifted form and flowed up the elevator shaft until I reached my floor. Even that short trip just about did me in.

Twenty minutes later, after a quick shower to wash away the worst of the fabric threads, I crawled into bed and fell into a long, exhausted sleep.

When I finally woke, it was to the realization that I was no longer alone. The scent of lemongrass, suede, and musky, powerful male filled each breath and I smiled, recognizing not only the scent, but the muscular body that was pressed so warmly against mine.

“That’s odd,” I murmured, snuggling back against the hard press of his erection. “I don’t remember issuing an invite.”

“Ah,” he murmured, his lips nuzzling the back of my neck, “but I’m the man who intends to ravish you senseless.”

And I couldn’t imagine a better way to greet a new day—even if that new day was already half over. “And just how did my would-be ravisher get into the room? I don’t believe the hotel staff would have let you in.”

“Oh, they didn’t, but after living on this world for as long as I have, you tend to learn a thing or two about picking locks. Even electronic ones.”

His hand slid upward from my waist, and my breath caught in expectation. His palm lightly brushed my nipples and I shuddered, arching a little into his touch, wanting—needing—more. He chuckled softly and kissed my earlobe.

“You seem overly eager this afternoon, my dear.”

“You have no idea,” I said, and twisted around to face him.

In the shadow-wrapped confines of the hotel room, his beautiful jade-green eyes glowed with a ferocity that was both otherworldly and yet very human. It spoke of ruthlessness, power, and, in the deeper depths, an almost chilling lack of emotion. But it was also a gaze filled with lust, and it was the combination of all four that had desire surging. Female wolves tended to gravitate toward the strongest male, and there was enough wolf in me to be bowled over by not only the sexuality of this man, but the sheer unyielding force of him, too.

Only he wasn’t actually a man, but a being of energy just like Azriel. Whom I totally didn’t want to think of at a time like this.

I ran a hand up the muscular length of Lucian’s thighs and hips, feeling the tremor that ran through him and rejoicing in the way his cock leapt, as if eager for my touch. I let my fingers slide teasingly around his belly, almost, but not quite, touching the sensitive tip. He groaned, thrusting against me even as his mouth claimed mine and he kissed me fiercely. As ever, his kiss quickly transcended heat and passion and desire, sweeping me beyond such human emotions and into a world that was all fierce and electric ecstasy.

But as good as that kiss felt, I wanted more. I wanted a connection that was flesh if not emotion, and I was never going to get that with his kiss. I broke away and pressed my hand against his shoulder, forcing him down onto his back. I quickly straddled him, then lowered myself onto his cock, watching his eyes, watching the anticipation burn ever brighter and feeling its echo deep within me. I was so slick and ready for him that he slid in easily—yet still I took it slow, descending inch by torturous inch. He groaned again and reached for my breasts, teasing and pinching my engorged nipples, sending pleasure rippling across my body. I thrust down hard, until the thick length of him was buried deep inside of me. For a moment neither of us moved, and I simply enjoyed the pleasure of being so intimately and intensely connected.

Then he caught one nipple in his mouth and began to suck on it fiercely. I groaned in sheer delight and began to move, rocking back and forth, my movements becoming faster as pleasure intensified, until I couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, and it felt like everything was about to break.

Then everything did break, and I was shuddering, shaking, and moaning. He came a heartbeat later, groaning fiercely as his body stiffened against mine and his juices flooded deep inside.

I collapsed against him and rested my forehead against his. For several minutes, neither of us moved. Then he kissed my nose and gripped either shoulder, pushing me back a little.

“As foreplay goes,” he said, his grin wicked, “that wasn’t half bad.”

I laughed softly and sat fully upright. He was still deep inside me and already half erect again. Werewolves had nothing on this man when it came to stamina. “You haven’t exactly explained just what you’re doing here at this hour of the morning.”

He began to move his hips again. “I thought it was rather obvious.”

“Besides that, I mean.”

“Ah, well.” His expression became slightly distracted as he ran a finger up the inside of my thigh. “You may not be too pleased about the answer to that particular question.”

His finger met the junction of our bodies. I shifted slightly and his touch slipped between us, finding my clit then brushing it teasingly. A moan escaped me and I closed my eyes, enjoying the sensation even as I tried to concentrate on the conversation.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning,” he murmured, rubbing his finger back and forth through my slickness, “that I sensed through our connection that you were about to attempt to find the keys, and I wished to be a part of it.”

Alarm stirred. I stilled my movements and opened my eyes. His expression was still distracted, and he didn’t seem to notice my sudden lack of participation. “Why?”

“Because the priests will not ignore such an attempt, and I wish to offer my help. I am, after all, Aedh, even if a maimed one, and I know more than a little about fighting them.”

“But if we do as you suggested and create a void, they will not even know we’ve accessed the book, let alone retrieved the key.”

His gaze rose to mine, studying me for several heartbeats. Then he gripped my arms and expertly reversed our positions, pinning me underneath him with the full length of his body.

“The Raziq will feel it the minute you touch the keys, because they are part of the process that created them—even if it was the blood of your father that provided the building blocks.” Despite his words, there was little in the way of concern in his expression, only a fierce determination. He wanted this fight badly, but it wasn’t for the reasons he was stating. “They will go to any length to retrieve those keys, and one lone reaper will not be enough to keep you safe.”

“Azriel can call on others—”

Lucian snorted softly, and it was a disparaging sound. “If that were possible, don’t you think he would have done it earlier? How many times have the Raziq attacked you now?”

“There was no need before now—” I started, but again he cut in.

“Was it a question of need, or is the real truth the fact that there were no resources?” He shifted his weight onto one elbow and lightly ran one finger down my cheek before circling my lips. Though the caress was light, it felt heavy, as if the weight of the conversation were bearing down on it. “The Mijai are few, and they are kept busy hunting the demons who slipped into this world during the brief time that the three keys were tested.”

And how did he know all this? Just how deep a connection had he formed? I wriggled, trying to get out from underneath him, but he pressed me back down. “Damn it, Lucian, let me go!”

“Not until I get an answer. I want this, Risa. I need this.”

My heart hammered at the edge in his voice, and again I saw that fierceness. And suddenly, I realized why. “This is about revenge for what they did to you, isn’t it?”

His smile was a savage and wholly human thing. And it was yet more proof that Lucian was very different from other full-blooded Aedh.

“Totally. And if feeding my need helps your cause, why is that a bad thing?”

“So basically, your presence here isn’t about sex, but about gaining access to information on the Aedh that you might not otherwise get.” Even as I said the words, bitterness swirled through me. It seemed everyone new in my life wanted something from me. Lucian, Azriel, the Raziq, even my father. They were here for a purpose rather than any real caring.

Lucian studied me. “In truth, are we not using each other? I have a need for revenge, and you have a need for information about the Aedh. While we each pursue our goals, we take our ease in each other’s bodies. I cannot see how that is not a worthwhile exchange.”

Put that way, I guessed it was. Except that I thought he was a safe harbor, the one place I could go and not be on guard.

“You’re using the connection created through sex to steal information. That’s not right, Lucian.”

“I did not know who you were or what you were involved in when I intervened in the fight between you and the Razan,” he retorted. “It was only after we’d become intimate that I realized the truth and seized the opportunity to combine my desires. And do not doubt that I desire you, regardless of what else I might seek from you.”

I couldn’t doubt his desire when the fierceness of it was pressed between us. It was a fierceness I fought to ignore, even though half of me wanted nothing more than to lose myself in the ecstasy of sex rather than a lingering sense of loss.

Although really, what had I actually lost? The truth was, we didn’t have anything in common other than an almost insatiable need for each other and great sexual chemistry. It was never going to be more than that, and I’d known that going in. He was Aedh, and they didn’t do emotions as we knew them. So why the hell was I angry?

I didn’t know. And there seemed to be a whole lot of that in my life of late, too. Between Lucian, Azriel, and my goddamn absent father, it was a wonder I wasn’t more of a mess than I was.

“How can I be really sure that you’re telling the truth?” I said, an edge in my voice.

“You can’t. But how can you be sure any of us is telling you the truth? Everyone has their own agenda, Risa, even the reaper who supposedly guards you.”

He pressed his knee between my legs and moved them apart, then thrust himself deep inside. Despite my apprehension and anger, it felt so good that I wanted to moan. But I didn’t—though only because I was fiercely holding on to the need to question him. If I gave into pleasure, I’d be giving in to a whole lot more. Even if I wasn’t entirely sure what that more was.

“But not everyone has direct access to my mind,” I said, my words a little breathless as he began to move, only—damn him—this was no slow seduction of the senses, but rather a ravishment filled with forceful and furious intent. And it felt so good that I had to battle to ignore the sensations threatening to engulf me.

“The reaper has, and his link is far deeper than anything I have achieved. If you want to fear anything, fear that.”

Before I could reply, before I could even digest the import of his words, he claimed my lips with a kiss that was as harsh as his lovemaking. From that moment on there was no more talking, only an intense and brutal sort of pleasure that swept me swiftly into rapture and then far beyond it.

For sometime afterward, I could only lie there, replete, exhausted, and still furious. But eventually, I pulled free from him, climbed out of bed, and strode to the shower.

“You’re angry,” he said, sounding oddly surprised. Like he hadn’t just seduced the hell out of me in an effort to get what he desired—information, if not consent.

I flicked on the shower and waited for the water to heat up. After a second or two, he seemed to realize I had no intention of answering him, and sheets rustled as he climbed out of the bed.

“Don’t touch me,” I said, long before he could. Not because of the anger, but because I knew that, once he did, I’d be putty in his hands again. I couldn’t resist him; or maybe I simply didn’t want to resist him. Either way, I simply wasn’t in the mood. I wanted to hang on to my anger just that little bit longer, even if it was stupid and unreasonable.

He stopped in the doorway and crossed his arms, leaning a powerful shoulder against the door frame. “I don’t understand why you feel this way.”

He didn’t understand, and Azriel didn’t understand. Two sides of the same coin, and both of them incapable of giving me what I truly wanted.

And you knew this from the beginning, so what the hell is your problem? And what the hell do you want from the reaper?

Honesty, I thought. That’s what I want. That’s what I’ve always wanted.

I stepped under the water and raised my face to the needle-sharp spray, enjoying its sting against my skin. But I was also aware of the weight of Lucian’s gaze on me.

After a while, I reached for the small bottle of shampoo and finally met his gaze. “I’m sick of people not telling me truth, Lucian. Everyone is playing their own game, and everyone is using me to do it, and yet no one is bothering to fill me in on all the details. And it’s pissing me off.”

“I only have one endgame, that I can promise you.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Revenge?”

“Yes.” His expression hadn’t changed, but suddenly there was something very dark about him—something deep and dangerous and alien. This was the man I knew, and yet it wasn’t, because this version was consumed by a hatred so deep it was breathtaking. He will do anything, absolutely anything, to get his revenge. And that knowledge chilled me even more than the alien darkness. “And I cannot see why you would not put that need to good use. If they attack en masse, you will need my help. And if they don’t, then you have lost nothing.”

It made sense, yet still I hesitated to agree and I wasn’t sure why. My gaze searched his, looking for lies and finding nothing but honesty. But that didn’t mean a whole lot given he’d been bound to earth for many centuries. I was betting he could lie so well that even someone with the most sensitive of bullshit detectors wouldn’t know it.

But what if he wasn’t lying? What if he was actually telling the truth? We probably would need help retrieving the keys, and the only other person I could really call on who would be of any use against the Raziq was Uncle Quinn. And I wouldn’t do that to Riley—even if she’d be madder than hell if she ever found out that I hadn’t asked him.

I sighed, more than a little frustrated by the twisting of my thoughts, and said, “Even you and Azriel might not be enough if they attack en masse.”

“The reaper has his sword. I have weapons of my own. Trust me when I say we will hold them off long enough to get you and the keys to a safe place.”

I finished washing my hair, then met his gaze again and said, “And how are you going to do that when all you want to do is kill the bastards?”

He grinned, and it was a ugly thing to behold. “Because merely killing them outright is not good enough. I want them to suffer as I have suffered. Finding these keys and having all their plans turn to dust is but one means of ensuring that.”

I believed him. It was impossible not to. “Okay,” I said slowly. “When we go look for the keys, you’re in. But not before.”

He frowned. “Will you not need help when you go read the book?”

“No.”

He studied me for a moment, then shrugged. “I don’t think that’s wise, but this is your game, not mine.”

His words had a trepidation stirring, and I couldn’t help wondering if I’d made my situation better, or much, much worse.