JAVIER (19 page)

“Are those all the papers? Too much to hope you found
the dagger I suppose…” asked LaSalle.

“No dagger I’m afraid but we have taken all the papers
and artefacts relating to the original slayers. The bikers will be getting a
visit from the drug squad tomorrow after an anonymous tip-off from yours truly.
God, Javier must have laid into the ones who grabbed the boy the other day, three
of them were sporting casts on their arms and the other two looked as if they
had run into a wall. Serves them bloody well right. I just spoke to Javier,
he’s staying over at my place in London nursing his injuries. He…”

Cassia didn’t hear anything else as she raced down the
stairs.

Javier ended the last of his phone calls; wherever
Dion was he was keeping his head down. Still, he would have to surface soon and
when he did he would be spotted. He had really wanted to wrap this whole thing
up and confront that wretched Empath; it was frustrating. Suppressing a grunt
of pain he pulled off his blood soaked shirt then kicked off his boots. He’d
have a well- earned drink then a soak in a deep hot bath. That might help ease
the pain in his ribs.

He was just savouring the first smoky mouthful of
Laphroaig when the buzzer sounded on the intercom. Cursing soundly Javier
strode across to the panel, hit the button then groaned; Cassia’s blue eyes
seemed to be looking straight at him.

“Javier, it’s me. Let me in.” Typical. No friendly
greeting, no smile.

“I can see it’s you. What do you want?” He could be
just as blunt, he decided;

“An audience with the Queen…what do you think I want?
Rafe said you were injured, I want to see that you’re okay. Press the button
and let me in.”

“Well I’m fine, just bruised. You can go.” Javier was
suddenly afraid; his need for her had just ratcheted up from desperate to
grindingly painful. He swallowed the rest of his whisky and played his last
card;

“You swore an oath not to leave the Island alone,
you’ve just broken that.”

Cassia glared at the camera;

“How dare you…I asked LaSalle’s permission to come and
he gave it. I’m not leaving without seeing you so you can just stop being a
complete arse and buzz me up. I’ll wait right here.  It’ll be dawn soon and
when the sun fries me it’ll be all your fault Javier of Seville.”

Javier swore, disarmed the security systems and
pressed the button. Then he strode quickly across to the vast expanse of
windows picking up the whisky bottle on the way. It was a huge apartment; best
to have as much space as possible between them. He really didn’t trust himself.

Cassia stepped out of the elevator and heard the doors
swish closed behind her. Javier stood by the windows with his back to her,
silhouetted against the London skyline. There was no greeting so she moved
closer and took a deep breath. He had his shirt off and she couldn’t help
admiring the muscles defined across his shoulders and bare arms; the shape of
his back as it narrowed to his hips. There was bruising on one side of that
golden skin though; Rafe had told her he’d been hit by an energy blast.

“Are you in pain?” she asked tentatively.

Javier poured himself another large whisky and turned
to face her. Cassia gasped; there was an angry red cut along one of his
cheekbones and the bruising stood out all down one side of his torso. She
couldn’t read his expression; it was guarded and almost hostile. What could she
have done?

“You’ve seen me Cass and I’m fine. It all looks worse
than it is, no need to stare.” Javier said abruptly.

Cassia felt her temper flare; she had been so worried,
so frightened;

“If you don’t want me to look you shouldn’t be
flashing your pecs and six pack Javier of Seville. I was worried about you.
What on earth is the matter with you? And put that bottle down…”

She stopped. Suddenly she knew. He was pale and there
was a fine film of sweat across his forehead.  Javier stalked past her and
slammed the bottle down on the table.  He was so tense she could almost feel it
in the air between them. He kept his back to her;

“You shouldn’t have come.” he said softly.

“That whisky is not what you need. Why don’t you want
me here Javier? Please talk to me, please don’t shut me down.” Cassia reached
out and gently touched his shoulder. Javier shifted across the room away from
her, walking obviously wasn’t fast enough. He materialized near the elevator
door.

“You should leave.” he said, reaching for the control
panel.

Cassia shook her head;

“No, I won’t. You need blood Javier, you can have
mine.”

He moved so fast she cried out in shock.  One moment
he had been standing at the far wall and the next he was right in front of her,
one hand gripping the back of her neck while the other held her wrist up.

“Are you offering me your wrist? Seriously?  Is that
what you’re doing? You really know nothing about males of your own kind do you?
We are nothing like the human men you’re used to Cassia. I don’t want to take
your vein here…” he let go of her wrist then bent and grazed the side of her
neck with sharp teeth. Cassia gasped as he bit her gently then blew cool air
across the bite. Javier continued, gripping her head so she had to look at him;
the golden brown of his eyes almost black, his lids lowered;

“I want to take your vein there. I want to bite down
hard and take your blood into me and I want to be in you while I do it. Do you
understand now Cass? Do you know what that means? I want you so much my whole
body aches with it; it burns.”

“I know enough to know that you’re experiencing the
bonding impulse.” Cassia whispered as her body started trembling. Surely he
could hear her heart, it was beating so loudly.

“Yes, from the start Cass. I just couldn’t deal with
it. I couldn’t be honest with myself or with you. I’m so sorry; it is probably
too much too soon. You probably don’t want any of this.” Javier stopped and
kissed her forehead gently, his hands caressing her hair.

“You’re wrong.” she whispered, meeting his gaze
steadily.

“What?” Javier jerked back;

“Make me yours. That’s what I want Javier.” Cassia
reached up and kissed him once, then again; now it was Javier’s body that
trembled against hers;

“There’s no going back from it Cass.”

“I don’t want to go back…” she murmured then her words
were cut off as he kissed her slow and deep. His mouth was warm and he tasted
of whisky and she felt as if her insides were melting.

“Last chance.” he whispered against her mouth; her
answer was to wind her arms round his neck and kiss him hard, pressing her body
against his.

Javier picked her up in his arms and shifted them into
one of the bedrooms, materializing on the bed in a tangle of tightly clasped
arms and legs. He made short work of her T-shirt then a quick snick and her bra
followed the T-shirt to the floor. No fumbling around, lots of practise there
Cassia thought as she smiled against his mouth and struggled with the buttons
on his jeans. Oh why couldn’t he just have a zip? Then her brain shorted out
completely as he moved down her body, caressing her with his mouth and his
hands. Seconds later her boots were tugged off then her skinny jeans followed
with a swift yank taking her pants with them.

Then Javier’s strong hands were easing up the insides
of her legs, his palms slightly rough against her skin. He surged up between
her thighs and Cassia arched up to meet him when he suddenly stopped; resting
on his hands, looking down at her;

“Cass.” he whispered;

Cassia’s eyes flickered open; he looked anxious;

“Are you sure? This is crazy, I want to take it slow
but I just can’t…”

Cassia reached up and grabbed the back of his neck,
pulling him down and raising her mouth for a kiss;

“Too much thinking. Don’t you dare stop Javier, I
can’t bear it.”

She could feel him smile against her mouth and then
they both cried out as he pushed inside her, strong and powerful. They froze
for a few seconds, locked together; their breath coming in gasps then Javier
groaned and the rhythm went completely wild.

Cassia gave herself up completely to the sensations in
her body. The scent of his skin, the feel of his body surging above her, the
muscles tensing and un-tensing in his back as she ran her hands down then dug
her nails into him, pulling him even deeper into her. There was no finesse, it
was rush and hurry and an unbearable gathering of tension.

She seized up first, her hips spearing against his as
her breath exploded out of her in a wordless cry. He lasted another couple of
seconds before he orgasmed, his whole body seeming to contract endlessly. Then
he was still for a few moments before Cassia felt a tremor run through him as
he arched above her again; she opened her eyes and a mixture of excitement and
fear shot through her.

Javier’s canines were fully descended and his
beautiful eyes shone wild and hungry. This was the moment, this was the thing
that bonded couples kept between them as their precious intimate secret.
Javier’s instincts had taken over completely yet she could sense him trying to
hold back; trying to stay in control. Tipping her head to one side to expose
her throat she stroked a hand through his hair and spoke the only words she
could think of.

Javier gazed down at her, his Cass. She was so
beautiful with her black hair spread out in a cloud on the pillow. No going
back, hunger raged through his body; the need to have her in him short
circuiting every coherent thought and millennia of civilization. He should have
been gentler, what if…his breath caught as she smiled and stroked his hair then
arched her throat back and whispered;

“I love you Javier.”

Those four words completely unravelled any last
remaining threads of hesitation. Javier surrendered himself completely to his
most primal instinct; she was his, she would always be his. Lowering his mouth
to her throat he bit down hard into her vein, holding her against him as she
cried out, waiting till he felt her body react in the way he knew it would. As
she suddenly contracted with pleasure against him he started to take her blood
in long desperate drags as though he’d been starved for decades. Then his own
body caught fire as he moved urgently inside her; pleasure taking over
completely as the taste of her filled his mouth and her blood coursed inside
him like high octane fuel. Nothing else in the world existed.

CHAPTER 17

Javier wasn’t sure how long they had been in this
quiet space; their breath slowing and the sweat drying on their skin as they
lay facing each other in the tumbled sheets. He brushed the hair away from her
face, stroking her cheek;

“Did I hurt you? I wish it had been slow and gentle.”

Cassia smiled and opened her eyes;

“It was perfect Javier. I never knew, I never even
dreamed it would be like that. How does that happen?”

“Well, I could go into a long explanation about the
bio-chemistry of bonding but it may spoil the moment somewhat Cass. You told me
you loved me.”

“Because I do. Truly, madly, deeply, head over
heels…do you want me to go on?” Cassia murmured, her lashes fanning onto her
cheeks as her eyes fluttered shut again.

Javier gazed at her. As they had collapsed on the bed
panting for breath he had waited for the guilt to hit him. Guilt at the
intensity, the hunger, the need and desperation of this bonding, so different
from the other. All he had felt was his heart welling at the rightness of it and
he realized just how much had been resolved in that long conversation in the
underground room. Cassia was his, his love, his future.

“How are the ribs?” she whispered.

“They…actually the pain has gone; it’s the effect of
your blood in me.”

Cassia nestled right up to him, planting feather light
kisses on his mouth;

“Well, if my blood’s so strong perhaps when you
recover you can make love to me long and slow like you wanted to.”

Javier laughed and pulled her tightly against him;

“As I said before, Vampires are not like Human males
Cassia Mathrafal. I don’t need to recover, I can keep going for hours. Now, I
think I’ll start right here with your mouth and move downwards from there, what
do you think?”

“Hmm,” Cassia murmured dreamily, “Sounds like a very
good strategy commander.”

It was.

Sunset was imminent; the tranquillity of the bedroom
cocooning them from the sounds of early evening London. Cassia sat on the bed
loosely wrapped in the sheet watching Javier sleep. Her limbs ached and try as
she might she couldn’t stop smiling.

He slept like a child, arms flung out with complete
abandon. God he was beautiful, she thought.  She wasn’t sure she believed in
the spirits any more but whoever had fashioned him had been an artist to rival
the greats. Her eyes swept down his body admiring the muscles perfectly carved
under his skin. Michelangelo or Da Vinci could not have done a better job.

They had made love for hours. She touched her neck
feeling the slight marks that remained on both sides. He had bite marks on his
neck too, the taste of him a heady cocktail; the effect she had on him as she
took his blood even headier. She’d have to learn Spanish she decided; when he
was completely in the throes of passion he reverted to his own language and
she’d love to know what he was saying though she got the drift.

“Not sure I’m used to you smiling at me, you usually
glare.” Javier murmured sleepily.

“Do you look like your father or your mother?” Cassia
asked as he pulled her on top of him;

“Just like my father but I have my mother’s eyes,
why?”

“Good genes. I don’t think I’m ever going to get tired
of looking at you Javier of Seville.”

He laughed then was suddenly serious;

“You don’t just get me Cassia, Bee and I, we come as a
package. Is that alright with you?”

Cassia sat up. They had a million things to talk
about; their bonding was just the beginning.

“I think Bee and I have done a little bonding of our
own Javier. I hope she’ll accept me, I want that more than anything. We already
share at least two loves, art and you; not necessarily in that order.”

Javier squeezed her hand, looking pensive. He hadn’t
told her he loved her, thought Cassia. He had shown her with his body and she
knew that the bonding impulse was inextricably linked with falling in love but
that little germ of insecurity inside her, that little voice that whispered
second best, only second best, longed for him to say the words.

“Where have you gone my Cass?” Javier murmured,
winding her long hair round his wrist and gently pulling her back down to him.

It was more than an hour later that they both dressed
after a very satisfactory shared shower. Javier poured Cassia an espresso as
she towelled her hair dry.

“I’ll just contact the Island before we return,” he
said, “Though if Dion had been spotted in London someone would have called me
by now.”

Cassia was combing her long hair out and Javier
watched her for a moment, distracted by the graceful movement of her arms as
she bent slightly from the waist. He hoped she’d never get the urge to have a
short modern haircut. He was sure it would suit her but he loved her hair,
loved the silky feel of it in his hands and the way it trailed over his body as
they made love.

He blinked and pressed speed dial; any more thoughts
like that and he would be taking her straight back to bed. There was no good
news from Gabriel though one of Chronus’s agents had seen Dion’s black Mercedes
at his Surrey house; it had left after a short stopover. No doubt he was going
to ground like last time Javier thought and no wonder he had disappeared so
completely before, Erebus Senior must have helped him. Two years after his last
violent confrontation with Dion, Charlotte had been killed and that damned
Empath had been wiped clean from his mind. It was beyond frustrating.

He ended the call then cursed as the chirrup of a
phone immediately filled the air; Cassia jumped up and rushed over to the black
combat jacket she had dropped on an armchair when she arrived;

“That’s mine! Oh no, it must be Flavia wondering where
I’ve gone. It’s my private mobile…only Flavia and my mother have the number,
and Harry of course. I use burn phones for work…”

Finally scooping her phone from one of the many
pockets she squinted at it, carrying on the little monologue;

“Oh! Well…I wonder what…it’s a message from Harry…it’s…”

Javier was across the room in a heartbeat as she
stared fixedly at the screen, turning the phone this way and that. Her face had
turned deathly pale and she was whispering to herself;

“No, no, no. It can’t be, don’t let it be...Harry…”

“Cass what is it? Cass!”

Cassia’s eyes remained fixed on the screen as she
gripped the phone with both hands.

“Cassia, let me see, give me the phone mi amor.”
Javier prised the phone from her shaking fingers and checked it.

Harry Marshal looked out grimly from the small
screen.  Underneath the image was a short text message displayed in capital
letters;

I CAN DO TO HIM WHAT I SAW DONE TO YOUR FATHER. STILL
AWAITING YOUR DELIVERY. YOU HAVE 1 HOUR. INSTRUCTIONS TO FOLLOW.

“You weren’t a random choice Cassia, he found you and
he used you deliberately. This isn’t just about me, it’s somehow connected all
the way back to your father. I’ll just get armed then we’ll go. Cass!”

Javier gripped Cassia’s shoulders as she stared at him
with wide frightened eyes;

“It’s going to happen. My dream…it’s going to happen.
I can’t do it Javier, whatever’s coming for me, I can’t face it, I can’t…I
can’t!”

Javier pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly
as she shook; stroking her back as though soothing a child;

“You’re not alone, whatever’s coming we’ll face it
together. First, we find him.”

Cassia pulled back, shaking her head wildly;

“No! No you can’t come. You have to stay here safely.
What if it’s you? What if…”

Her voice was breathy with panic and Javier hugged her
to him tightly. When he spoke he deliberately kept his voice calm and level;

“This is what is going to happen. The club will be our
starting point, someone will have seen something. I bet that is what Harry
would do, wouldn’t he? If this was you, he’d find you just as we are going to
find him. I’m going to get my gun then we’ll go together.”

Something about his tone must have got through to her
because he felt the trembling ease and heard her frantic heartbeat slow down.
She touched his face and nodded;

“I’m sorry. You’re right, that’s what he’d do. I…I
just panicked, it won’t happen again.”

As Javier disappeared into the bedroom to collect his
gun Cassia checked quickly through the pockets of her jacket and redistributed
the items around slightly. Then she examined the picture on her phone again. 
No, it wouldn’t be Javier she thought, she wouldn’t let it be him, she’d rather
it was her. Whatever was destined to happen would happen with or without a
little intervention so she might as well give it her best shot.

With that thought she dashed across to the security
panel; she was certain Javier hadn’t armed the net. No, he had been too
distracted. Pulling out one of her high precision tools she worked quickly.  He
would be furious but at least he would be safe. Lastly she doubled locked the
front door and pocketed the key. This would keep him out of danger. The net
would arm in three, two…Cassia shifted out of the apartment in a black flurry.
She knew exactly where she was going.

Javier laced up his boots then pushed his knife into
place. With quick practised efficiency he checked his gun then replaced the
clip with a fresh one. Ensuring he had spare ammunition he headed out of the
bedroom and stopped dead. He knew without a shadow of doubt that the apartment
was empty. Still, he took a tentative step forward and called her name;

“Cass? Cassia?”

The answering silence was deafening.

Javier forced himself to remain calm and strode across
to the security panel. The net was armed. Black foreboding swamped him as he
keyed in the code. There was no response, she had changed the sequence. He
couldn’t shift out of the penthouse. Alright, that was not a problem. His heart
thudded as he punched in the code that operated the private elevator. Then he
hit the doors with his fist as they stayed firmly shut. She had changed those
numbers as well.

“No you don’t Cassia Mathrafal.” he was muttering to
himself as he moved to the front door then squeezed his eyes shut in dismay.
She had double locked the door and taken the key. Screwing on his gun’s
silencer with grim determination he aimed it at the lock and fired twice; in a
building like this the sound of gun shots would conjure up armed police in
minutes.

The damned door did not budge. Javier gave a roar of
frustration and cursed Rafe for the money he had spent on making the security
in this place water tight. He was trapped; Cassia had ensured he couldn’t leave
the apartment and had gone off alone.

Javier backed up against an armchair and sat down heavily
as panic completely overwhelmed him. If he had thought his protective instincts
over Cassia were heightened before their bonding it was nothing to what he was
feeling now. She was out there alone and in danger and he couldn’t do a damned
thing about it. He’d have to stay calm or he would go completely mad with fear.

Grabbing his mobile he realized with a shock that he
didn’t even have her number.  In desperation he rang Gabriel. As he updated him
he decided on his course of action.

“I’ll call into the nightclub first Gabriel, I’m sure
that’s what she’ll do then I’ll take it from there.”

Javier paused as he listened to Gabriel’s question.
Ever sharp, his fellow commander had worked out what he was going to do and was
attempting to dissuade him.

“I have to Gabriel and I’ve trained often enough.  I
cannot let her face this alone. We…we are bonded…” he tailed off knowing there
was nothing else he needed to explain. There was a short silence on the line
then a few final words. As Javier ended the call he knew that Gabriel was about
to mobilize every resource he had.

Heading into the master bedroom suite Javier crossed
to the wall of floor to ceiling windows. The view was breath taking. It was the
one closest to the far wall that was split to allow the top half to slide back.
Looking out he studied the sheer drop down the side of the towering building;
good thing he didn’t suffer from vertigo. Ensuring his weapon was securely and
firmly anchored he climbed up and stood on the dividing pane of the window.
There were very few of his kind who could pull off the kind of manoeuvre he was
about to make. It took years of training and practise; the kind of training
only a warrior undertook. Clearing his mind he stilled his body completely and
focused with exacting precision, there was no room for error. A minute lapse in
concentration would end in his death. Taking a deep breath Javier launched
himself straight into the darkness beyond the electronic net that protected the
apartment.

The wind whistled past him as he dived; hurtling
downwards to the ground. His mind remained completely calm. He had split
seconds.  There was a shift in the air around him and he knew he’d done it as
he entered the blessed whirling black vortex between dimensions that was going
to take him up onto the roof of Harry’s nightclub.