September Moon (13 page)

I frowned and pursed my lips in thought. I wasn’t sure I agreed with that. Kale was right though; it wasn’t my problem. Not right now anyway. I had enough to deal with.

“We have to keep Jez away from there,” I said. “I felt something inside her during the healing. The dark part of her that is demon. It’s in there, and it’s waiting for something. Taunting death with guys like that can’t be good for her.”

Kale’s interest piqued. His eyes widened, and he nodded. “If he goes near Jez again, I’ll kill him myself. I don’t give a shit who his daddy is.”

“Good.” I was satisfied with that, though I couldn’t help but hope it didn’t come to that.

“I’ll call my cleaning lady and have her bring some groceries over. Jez will be safe here.” Determination shone in his eyes. Again it was a tiny but reassuring glimpse of Kale’s sane side.

“I know.”

“I hate that she fears me.”

A question burned on the tip of my tongue, one that I could not bite back. “And what about me? What about when I fear you?” I think I was hoping for more reassurance, seeking the Kale I longed for.

His expression changed in an instant. Gone was the friendly concern for Jez. Replacing it was a mask of malevolence. “I love it,” he said with a deadly, stone cold seriousness.

“You said you want to back me,” I challenged, trying to understand the many faces of Kale. “How can you do that when you’re on this nutjob mission to destroy yourself? Does being my second affect your promise?”

Kale’s promise to force me to end him hung over my head, a constant shadow that hovered in the back of my mind. I kept expecting it to blow over. It never did. Always we somehow came back to it.

“No. It stands.” There was a dramatic pause as we stared at one another. “I’m yours, Alexa. And I’m here for you. But once it’s all over, you have to set me free.”

That was my cue to leave. I wasn’t ready to have this argument. Besides, I didn’t trust myself around Kale. The urge to smack him was as strong as the urge to kiss him. Would just a little taste of that honey-sweet energy be so bad?

The answer was a resounding yes. So I lurched into motion, careful to avoid Kale’s personal space as I headed for the door.

“Take care of Jez. I’ll call you later.” I was relieved when he didn’t follow me.

Once outside I called a taxi and paced the length of Kale’s block, waiting.

Chapter Nine

It was almost dawn when I got home. No sooner had I stepped foot onto my property than I knew with absolute certainty that there were two vampires and a werewolf inside my house.

With a groan, I shoved the door open. I kicked off my shoes, closed and locked the door, then made my way down the long front hall to the kitchen and living room at the back of the house. There I found Arys, Jenner, and Shaz gathered around the island in an intense discussion. They looked up at my approach, each falling silent in turn.

“Did you find Jez?” Shaz asked with a slight sniff in my direction. “You smell like her. Is she ok?”

“You stink like Sinclair too,” Arys added, his expression grim. The forced calm and the glint in his eyes conveyed his irritation loud and clear. He was spoiling for a fight, and I’d just arrived. He must have been stewing a while.

“We found her. And she’ll be fine. Thank you for asking, Arys.” I said his name with annoyance. “She was partying at The Spirit Room with a bunch of humans and a nephilim. We found her snorting coke. She’s at Kale’s now sleeping it off.”

Shaz swore softly. “Damn. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“That one is a loose cannon,” Jenner said. “I saw it the moment I met her.”

“I hardly think you’re in a position to make that kind of judgment call. Jez is suffering from the loss of a lover. It’s normal for her to act out. She needs help, and she’ll get it.” I glared at Jenner. “Why are you here anyway?”

Arys jumped in before I could really lay into Jenner. “I thought it best for us all to stay together. You shouldn’t be alone right now. It’s not safe.”

There were many ways I could respond to that. Right off the bat I wanted to beat him over the head with my shoulder bag. Instead, I dropped the bag on the island and shrugged out of my jacket before going to the fridge.

“That’s hilarious, Arys. Really. You’re cracking me up.” My sarcasm dripped as I grabbed a bottle of water and turned back to face him. “Seriously though, what the hell is Jenner doing in my house?”

“Hey,” Jenner protested with hands up in mock outrage. “I welcomed you into my nightclub. It’s practically a home to me.”

“You also forced me to get on stage in that same nightclub for your enjoyment.” I flipped him my middle finger before taking a large drink of water. I was dehydrated and suddenly starving. Healing took a lot out of me. I would need to replenish the energy I’d expended metaphysically as well.

“Yes, and we know how that turned out, don’t we? I’m pretty sure you got the better deal that night.” The calm but intense hatred that spread across Jenner’s face was deadly.

“It’s not a joke, Alexa,” Arys broke in. He shot a warning glare Jenner’s way before refocusing on me. “Things are in motion. Shya’s going to drastic lengths to get that scroll, and we can’t be sure how far he’ll take it. We can’t afford to underestimate anyone right now.”

I moved about the kitchen, pulling a pan from beneath the stove and fetching eggs from the fridge. If I didn’t feed the mortal hunger, it would worsen the metaphysical hunger, something I didn’t want to deal with in a house filled with supernatural males.

“So you think that the three of you can offer me some kind of protection against Shya himself?” I asked, slicing up a tomato. I briefly entertained the idea of flinging the knife at Jenner but decided against it. “Come on, Arys. You know better than that.”

I could feel his heavy gaze upon me as I prepared my sandwich. Like usual, there was something Arys wasn’t saying. I knew him so well.

“I know that we can’t afford to be careless. We’re not taking any chances with your safety.” Arys spoke as if his word was law. The usual. He had to know I was going to rip him a new one later when we didn’t have an audience.

“What are you going to do, Arys? Follow me everywhere in case Shya pops in? And then what? You can’t fight off that demon.” It wasn’t my intent to insult his manhood or his good intentions. Still, he wasn’t being realistic.

He sat there scowling at me with a storm raging in his midnight eyes. I was dreadfully aware of the other two men watching our exchange. That’s when it hit me.

“Arys,” I began, speaking softly, like I would to a skittish animal. “Is it really Shya you’re trying to protect me from by having them here? Or is it you?”

“Alexa,” he spoke my name like a warning. He offered me nothing else. No denial or confirmation, and that was confirmation enough for me.

Jenner sat there smirking, enjoying the awkward moment of pending conflict. I wanted to hit him.

Shaz was quiet, watching us without missing a thing. He knew how quickly the conflict between Arys and I could boil over, although he’d never seen the worst of it.

“Look, Lex,” Shaz jumped in. “It’s just temporary. Until we know more about the scroll’s whereabouts. Maybe we can’t keep you safe from Shya. But we can damn sure try.”

It was obvious to me that Shaz was trying to get me to back off Arys. I’d hit a nerve that Shaz seemed to be aware of.

“Fine, I get it.” I relented, letting it go until I got Arys alone. “You want to keep me safe, and I can appreciate that. But you guys can’t hover over me all the time. I need my space, or I’ll go crazy.”

“You can’t go off alone,” Arys insisted. His brow was set in a hard frown. The darkness filled his eyes, a warning of the wrath to come.

Time was running out. My death was fast approaching. I couldn’t waste precious minutes arguing with him. “I know you want to find a way to stop Shya, but no matter what happens with him, I am still facing death. Gabriel saw it. Again, tonight. So instead of finding a way to avoid it, you need to find a way to accept it. I have.”

My proclamation hung in the kitchen, an open challenge issued to my other half. Arys’s struggle was understandable. For over a hundred years, he’d known I would die at his hand. Though he tried to downplay it, I knew he craved my death as much as he feared it. If the tables were turned, I’d be losing my mind.

I dropped the knife on the counter and went to him. He was tense when I pressed in close, slipping my arms around his neck. “Please, don’t fight what’s meant to happen.”

“Is it though?” he questioned. “How can your death be something I simply accept as what is meant to be? I just can’t wrap my mind around it being a good thing.”

“You don’t have to. I don’t get it either. But I’m starting to figure out that the more I question things, the more questions it creates. The answers reveal themselves in time.” I kissed him, a soft press of my lips to his. The power humming within him teased my senses.

Jenner snorted. “Well, isn’t that downright disgustingly poetic?”

I pulled away from Arys, anger driving me. I grabbed Jenner’s hand and forced my fingers between his. My power might have been weakened, but it wasn’t dead inside me. It took very little effort to connect with his energy.

“I have more than enough assholes in my life right now, Jenner,” I hissed, jerking hard on his aura. “If I have an opening in the future for another, you’ll be the first to know. Until then, keep your snarky comments to yourself, or I’ll be forced to do bad things to you. Got it?”

He gave a vigorous nod and tried to pull away. I held tight, willing to break his fingers if I had to. Finding his heady energy to be just what I needed, I drew it into me, sighing as it filled the depleted source inside me.

A strangled groan escaped Jenner. He stopped resisting and actually leaned into me. A cool breeze picked up, cloaking us in a blanket of power.

Jenner tugged on my hand in an attempt to bring my wrist to his mouth. With fangs bared, he went for the throbbing pulse. I hit him with a slap of power before he could pierce my flesh. It knocked him off the island stool, and both he and the stool hit the floor with a clatter.

I wasn’t done with him yet though. Running on instinct, I stood over him, preventing him from getting up. “Now,” I said, crouching down to meet his pale-blue gaze. “Why are you really here?”

Jenner blinked at me in confusion, then he spoke as if in a trance. “To help Arys. He’s my brother, and I do love him, despite our differences over the years.”

“You do realize he’s the one who insisted I enthrall you, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Then stop acting like you have some vendetta to settle with me. You got off easy compared to some people.”

Staring into Jenner’s wide eyes, I felt empowered. Glamouring him hadn’t been my intent, but it was a nice side effect. As long as he was talking, I needed to make the most of it.

“Has Sloane come back yet?” I continued, pushing for whatever I could get from Jenner. “Do you know where she is?”

“No,” he said almost robotically. “She’s kept on the move because Arys has been around.”

“If she comes back, I want you to kill her.”

“Alexa, that’s enough.” Arys moved so fast his stool bounced from leg to leg but didn’t fall. He caught my arm and dragged me away from Jenner. “You can manipulate him because he’s yours. You have no right to abuse that.”

With both hands I gave Arys a shove. Rage exploded forth without the warning of a slow boil. “Don’t you dare talk to me about abusing power,” I shouted, my voice echoing in the otherwise quiet house. “You’re the most manipulative vampire I’ve ever known. You don’t get to make the rules and break them. It’s one or the other.”

Arys threw both hands up and backed away. “Calm down, Alexa. It’s late. You’re tired. We need to be united right now, not divided in conflict.”

“Why not? It’s the story of our entire destiny, isn’t it? The light and the dark, unable to exist without the other and yet doomed to eternal conflict and destruction. It’s got to make it easier for you to finally kill me.”

Arys clenched his jaw and swore. He continued to back away into the living room, as if afraid he would lose control.

I was as stressed out as he was. It was going to devour us. The best thing for me to do was leave. We both needed to calm down before things escalated. I removed the belt holding the dagger around my waist and tossed the Dragon Claw onto the couch. Then I headed for the sliding glass patio door before Arys could stop me.

“Don’t go,” he said, watching me with a pained expression. “Please.”

The wolf surged forward, beating back the essence of vampire clouding my thoughts and emotions. The beast demanded to be freed, and I longed to answer.

The sun had risen high enough to trap the vampires in the house. Only Shaz could come after me.

“Don’t follow me,” I pleaded, begging Shaz to heed my request. “I need to run. Alone.”

Abandoning the food on the counter, I stepped out onto the patio, drinking in the sunlight even though it burned my eyes. Blood tears welled up, but I blinked them away.

“Fuck that,” I muttered to myself, feeling betrayed by my emotions. I was trying so hard to downplay the severity of what lay ahead for me. It wasn’t working. Standing there in the sun, terror shook me. I couldn’t bear the thought of never again feeling its warmth.

As I walked through the backyard, I tugged off my clothing and let it fall to the ground. Then I unleashed the wolf, finding freedom when my four paws touched the yellowing grass.

Leaving Arys trapped inside the house was just another way of testing his limits. It would make him crazy.

This was what I needed right now. Vampires and demons couldn’t touch me in the forest while the sun reigned in the sky. Nature called my name, and I answered.

My destination was the small but active pond, teeming with tiny creatures living in and around it. It was my happy place. The only place I could go to find solace that didn’t involve making someone bleed. I ran at full speed to the forest behind my house. Weaving through trees, bounding over fallen logs, and listening to the constant chatter of birds overhead, I was home.