Fire with Fire (Demonblood Series #2) (19 page)

He cocks an eyebrow and gives a sexy wink. “No, actually, I’m telling you we might in fact survive. That is, if we even still go…”

“I can’t believe Kieron’s been someone’s prisoner this whole time,” I mumble, dazed as the words sink in. “Why? And do you really think you can save him?” Suddenly everything is different…everything has changed. Kieron didn’t
abandon
me…he was prevented from coming back. It wasn’t by his own choosing.

“Thought you didn’t want to hear anything,” Bones smirks.

I groan with exasperation and roll my eyes. Truth is, I really
don’t
want to know the sordid details. “Just tell me he’s coming back to me soon,” I finally whisper.

An odd look flashes through Bones’ eyes, and he shifts his gaze away. “Only time will tell what will happen,” he mumbles. He stands and takes a few steps away, then turns back to me. “So, you needed to talk about something. If it wasn’t about Kieron, what was it?”

I chew my lip, trying to think. “I was wondering if you would have any idea why I’d see a scar on someone that no one else can see.”

Bones furrows his brow. “Come again?”

“There’s this guy…and this girl. I’ve known them for some time, and ever since the first day I saw them I noticed they were both covered in scars. But I just found out that not everyone can see them. I don’t know if it’s just me or what—”

“Liora, I don’t like the sound of this. If you’re able to see through the glamour of a supernatural being, and the creature wearing the disguise is trying to go unnoticed, well, that can put you in great danger. You may inadvertently ‘out’ yourself as paranormal and become a target.”

Supernatural being? A disguise?
—I hadn’t even considered the possibility that Tristan was anything but a regular human. I’d thought it must be something about
me.
I lower my head.

“Well…” I begin sheepishly.

“What
?” Bones looks at me through narrowed eyes.

“He kind of already knows. About me. That I’m special. Not all the dirty details, but enough.” Bones scowls down at me. “I thought he was human!” I add, defensive at his obvious disapproval.

“You told someone who you
thought
was a human your secret?” Bones asks in utter disbelief.

Blood rushes to my cheeks. Now that I’ve said it out loud, I can’t believe how stupid I was.

“Liora, I think you need to tell me everything.
Now
.”

I relay everything I can about Tristan’s and Casandra’s arrival. About how I felt, what Corrine had said, and how I found out about the scars.

“And Tatiana…she said you’d been somewhere with him, and you have no memory of it?” he asks, deep in thoughtful concentration.

“Yes,” I whisper. I feel so foolish…and even more horrified. Was Tatiana right? Had we really been in the mines after all and I just didn’t remember it? And why in a million years would we go
there?

“Liora…there’s something that’s been bothering me about Lucky for quite some time, but I couldn’t really put my finger on it. But she seemed to be, well, for lack of a better word,
less
of herself lately. At first I chalked it up to Kieron being gone, but it’s more than that…it’s as if her strength…her essence, is slowly disappearing—”

Disappearing
…that’s the same word Corrine had used.

“That’s how I felt, too.”

“I wonder…Tristan, you say…if he’s a demon, it’s possible he’s an Energy feeder. Do you…have you…?” He breaks off and looks away.

“Have I what?” I prompt.

“Have you and Tristan…have you been…intimate?”

I shake my head. “No. Of course not. We just kiss a lot.” The words fill me with guilt and shame. I was off kissing Tristan when the one I really love was being held prisoner.

“Liora, kissing
is
intimate,” Bones chides. “You know how many different types of demons drain the souls of Sapies that way?”

“So you think Tristan is a demon and has been draining my soul? Why?” I ask. Now when I think of Tristan I feel sick. And angry at myself for being such a weak idiot.

Bones shakes his head. “I have no idea. But I don’t like the sound of this one bit. I always knew this could be a problem, that one day someone could really come after you in your human form. At least when Kieron was around, he could protect you when I couldn’t…”

“What should I do?”

“For now, avoid him at all costs—”

“But if he was trying to hurt me, couldn’t he have just done it already?”

Bones shakes his head. “Who knows what the agenda is? Some drag it out for one reason or another…
Aw, shit!
” He shakes his head again and clenches his fists, muttering profanities to himself as he walks around.

“What is it?” I ask, alarmed.

He grabs his hair with both hands. “I’m just realizing how important it might be that we
actually rescue
Kieron tonight. Before, I wasn’t really that eager to, but now that I know you’re in danger…I need him here to keep an eye on you. I can’t very well do it, and obviously someone is after you…
damn!
”

“Whatever Tristan is trying to do, I don’t think he wants to hurt me,” I offer after a moment. Bones sure is sexy when he’s mad, with his hard set jaw and his eyes practically glowing with dark intensity.

“I’m not sure why I feel that way, but I do,” I add.

Bones gives a derisive laugh. “Liora, if you have a demon messing with your head, then there is no way you can trust anything you
think
you feel.” He looks down at my body. “But you say you’re feeling better today, physically? Even though you spent the day with him and kissed him again?”

I nod. “Yeah…It’s almost like I woke up from a fog. I know there are things I don’t remember yet or don’t quite understand, but they’re getting clearer now…like whatever hold he had on me is fading. I don’t feel the attraction to him I felt before.”

Bones raises a dark eyebrow thoughtfully and the corners of his lips twitch. “Did you feel any certain way when you woke up today? Happier, maybe?”

I shrug my shoulders. “I don’t remember. I don’t
think
so…I think I just felt…
better.”

A slow smile spreads across his mouth. “Well, it’s a start.”

~~~

“Thanks for the lift, but you don’t have to hang around. I’ll be fine, and Lucky’s coming in a few hours. If anything bad happens, I have Tatiana.” I smile at Bones and give him a hug, pulling him close. He always smells and feels so perfect. As if he were the living form of everything I’ve ever desired, or ever will.

“All the same, I think I’ll hang out around here until Lucky shows up. Don’t worry, I’ll stay outside. But just in case…”

“Okay, okay. Do what you gotta do. Bye, Bones.” I rise on my tiptoes and plant a kiss on his cheek. “It was really good seeing you again. Thanks for talking with me.”

“Anytime, Liora. I’m always available for you…you know that.”

I give him another long hug before heading inside the cabin. I’d wanted to be home when Lucky showed up, and had made Bones promise not to say anything to her about my visit to see him. She hates me interfering in her life as much as I hate her butting into mine.

The door is cracked, and I peer in cautiously. “Tat?”

No answer. I head into Tatiana’s room and am relieved to see her sitting next to her cauldron. Her eyes are closed and her face is pinched. For a moment, I just stand there looking at her. She seems so tiny and frail right now.

Her eyes flutter open. “Hello, sweetheart.”

I smile. “Hi, Tattie. I went to see Bones today.”

“Yes, I know.”

“You might’ve been right about me going to the mines that day.” I take a seat on her bed. “I’m beginning to believe my
friend
Tristan isn’t really my friend after all…” I want to ask her why she hadn’t seen it, why she didn’t know that Tristan was a demon in disguise. But I hold my tongue. Now doesn’t seem the right time to drill her for info.

She closes her eyes and wobbles ever so slightly on her chair. “Tat, you okay?”

Her eyes open again, and she cracks a wan smile. “I’m fine, dear. Just sleepy. There is some beef and potato stew on the stove. You better eat before it gets dark.” She pauses and fixes her opaque eyes on my body, her face brightening almost imperceptibly. “You must keep up your strength.”

“Yeah…Guess Lucky has quite the night in store for us. Did you know about Kieron?” My voice is free of accusation.

Tatiana nods. She stands up, and together we make our way into the kitchen. “I’ve only known for a few days. I didn’t want to tell you when you couldn’t do anything about it. I didn’t want to cause you any further upset.” Her kind eyes crinkle.

I scoop some of the simmering stew into a shallow bowl and carry it to the table. For so long, every evening as I fell asleep, I’d been terrified it would be my last night on Earth. Especially when Lucky was hunting the Amazèa. She was basically on a suicide mission every night. And as Tatiana had said, there was nothing I could do about it.

But every morning I awoke as usual. True, some mornings I felt worse than others. But I was always alive and in one piece. Mostly.

So I try not to panic too much at the thought of Lucky waging some sort of war against a whole demon tribe in order to save Kieron. She has Bones, and he thinks they have a pretty good chance. So I’m just not going to think about it. Instead, I’m going to think about the fact that when I wake up, maybe Kieron will be in my arms again…

“Everything will be okay,” Tatiana says softly as she watches me eat.

I glance up at my beloved guardian just as the first waves of fire shoot across my skin. Our eyes meet, and I have an overwhelming urge to give her a hug. But she’s across the room and there is no time. “Tattie, thank you for everything. I love you more than you’ll ever…”

I open my eyes to see Tatiana looking at me with a sappy smile. “What?” I mutter, pushing my chair away from the table. My blood is humming and hopping tonight, and for once I don’t feel the need to hit up Tatiana’s secret stash the moment I awaken. I feel
good.

She shrugs. “Liora was just telling me something very sweet when she fell asleep. It made me happy.”

I roll my eyes and head into my bedroom. Liora’s probably just trying to make nice for upsetting her the other day.

My body is shaking with unbridled energy, and I violently rifle through my closet. “Tonight’s the night,” I call out to her. “We’re definitely going this time.”

“I know,” she replies from the doorway. “I want you to be very careful. Take good care of yourself.”

I pop my head out of the closet. “Of course. But you know there’ll probably be
some
fighting involved,” I tease, holding my thumb and forefinger together. “Just a little.”

“Yes, I understand. And I know there’s nothing I can do about that. Just don’t be reckless or take unnecessary risks. You’re too important to me.”

Her voice catches on the last words, and I let out a deep sigh.
Not this again.
I can’t deal with one of her guilt trips right now.

“I know, I know,” I mumble as she leaves the room. Mostly just to stop myself from hurling clothes everywhere, I stop mid-throw and put on a purple velvet bustier with panther-bone inlay. I grab some snug, low-waisted black leather pants off the bed, and finally slide on my favorite steel-tipped, ass-kicking boots.

My blood churns hotter and faster, and I feel like I’m about to explode. Sweat seeps from my forehead, and my hands shake uncontrollably. Suddenly, unable to hold it in any longer, I open my palms wide and release a thundering storm of fire and lightning. It blasts out the wall of my bedroom, exposing the forest beyond. Several rows of trees are left charred and smoldering, and bright orange and red embers sizzle in the still night.

Oops.

I stand there, frozen by the shock of what I’ve just done. I’m even more surprised to see Bones’ bemused face peering around the corner. What in the world is
he
doing here?

“Haudexuro.
” Tatiana’s command is as cold as ice. It has the same effect, too. Instantly, the small fires that have erupted around the area where the bedroom wall once stood are extinguished, and the trees stop burning.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath, then slowly turn to face the woman behind me. I’ve seen Tatiana truly mad only one time before, and it was a sight I never wanted to see again. “I’m so sorry, Tat…it just exploded out of me…I couldn’t help it.”