Arryn: Mystic Protectors Series (5 page)

Never in his life had he wore anything that wasn’t dressy. Some of the newer protectors, some as young as three or four hundred years old, had often teased him about his dress, but it was what he wore, what he was used to. But these pants—jeans, he thought them called—felt good on him. Tighter than what he normally wore, they were something that he could get used to. The shirt, a plain tee shirt much like the one he’d taken off Reyna, was made of the softest cotton, and he loved the texture of it as well.

Not bothering with shoes, he made his way to the kitchen again. He’d put the breakfast he’d been preparing on hold when he heard the distress in her voice. Arryn knew that it was her mother…Penny…but there was little he could have done to prevent the woman from calling her child. But when Reyna moved in the chair, her hair exposing her long neck, all he could think of was licking it. And once he’d done that, tasting it was next. He had had whole meals that would not have satisfied him as much as the tiny taste of her had. The way her skin felt in his hands and how her noises, the way she hummed and moaned, had sounded like the greatest music he’d ever heard. Then he thought of why he’d gone to her.

The call had upset her, very much so. As Arryn started to cook the potatoes that he’d found in the bottom of the cooking table, he wondered at the other woman’s demands. Money. He knew that it was necessary to humans to live, but Penny Sharp was an immortal. What did she think she was going to do after her daughter was gone? There would be no one for her to take from. And that was another thing that had bothered him about the call. She had said that Reyna had stolen from her. What could the woman have that Reyna would take?

As soon as he heard the shower starting he moved into the bedroom. The bed was made, he noticed, and she’d picked up the few things that he’d left in the room when he’d gotten up. Nothing was out of place, but he felt there was something off about the room. When he couldn’t see it he moved into the bathroom to see Reyna.

She was crying, and hard. As he moved to take her into his arms, she turned to him and told him to stop. He stopped, but it didn’t lessen his concern for her. When she turned off the water and reached for a towel, he leaned against the counter.

“We shouldn’t have done that.” He asked her why not. “Because we’re not going to have a relationship. I’m not going to be here long enough for anything like that. I’m sure that you remember what I told you. That I’m going to go to hell soon. That I’m going to be the sexual partner of a demon.”

“We already have a relationship, and I’ll take what I can get from you. But I will not give up so easily, and I can’t believe that you have.” She huffed at him and told him to get out so she could finish up. “I’ve seen every inch of you. I’d like nothing more than to taste you as well, but for now, I think we must talk. Why do you think that we cannot have a relationship?”

“I’m not going to be here very much longer. Why do I have to keep telling you that? Don’t you listen? I’m not going to be around.” He nodded and she huffed again. Arryn smiled at the sound and she glared at him. “This is not funny, damn it. I’m going to be taken to hell, and I don’t want to have you hanging around here when he comes for me.”

Standing up, he jerked her naked body to his. His cock thickened immediately and he put his arm around her waist and brought her up so that he could kiss her. She tasted of mint and something else. When he sat her back down on her feet, he held her steady until she was no longer swaying. Backing from her, he stared at her before speaking again.

“As I said, I will take what I can have with you. And if that means being here until you no longer need me, then I will. But I will not give you up to anyone without a fight. You belong to me.” He handed her the small stack of clothing that was laying on the counter next to him. “I have breakfast nearly finished for when you are dressed; though now that I think on it, having you naked so that I might touch you and taste you when I please does sound very nice.” She stared at him before he reached over and closed her mouth.

Arryn felt both bad for what he’d done to her and very good. Perhaps she needed to be brought out of the thoughts of her going to hell and to see what was all around her. He was going to work on that as soon as he could get her out of the apartment. If he could get her out. She seemed to enjoy working at the computer a great deal.

Arryn nearly laughed out loud when she came out of the bedroom. Instead of the pants and shirt she’d had to put on, she was now dressed in a thick sweat shirt and heavy pants that were sizes too big for her. He didn’t comment on her apparel, but he did wonder about it. Handing her a filled plate and pushing her in the direction of the kitchen table, he took his own meal with him, as well as a gallon of juice and two glasses.

“I was thinking that I could take you to the exhibit that is in town. Lily and Kala have been working on this project to bring more culture into this part of the state for weeks now. And now that the babies have made an appearance, there will be more promise for celebration.” Reyna nodded but he could tell she wasn’t really paying attention. “She nor Riss has told us the names of the children as yet, but we have an idea that Boss knows. He is aware of everything.”

“I have to finish this work. It’s part of my sentencing.” Arryn had forgotten about that and asked her how it was coming. “I’m not sure. There is something missing and I can’t connect the dots to it yet.”

Arryn didn’t know what that meant but nodded to her. “Perhaps if you told me what you were doing, I could be a new set of eyes for you.”

“There is money missing each month. Not a set amount that I can see, but a lot of it. Do you…I was going to ask Judith if she had other accounts too. Maybe the bank is moving the money in and out of the other accounts to give her a cushion.” Arryn nodded. She smiled at him and he smiled back. “You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you?”

“Missing money I understand. Accounts, yes, I get that as well. But not the sofa part.” She frowned, then laughed. “There is no sofa, is there?”

“No. Cushion, as in something to fall back on in an emergency. Like….” She looked around the room. “Like how someone filled these pantries. They had no idea what I would eat or not eat, so they filled it with lots of things. A cushion for me to use until I could go and buy what I want. Money is the same. They might be moving it around in the account to make sure that she never runs out. A fall back.”

He understood it now and asked her again to tell him what she was doing. “So you think that the bank has taken it upon themselves to make her a cushion? But doesn’t she have a great deal of money in her accounts? It was my understanding that all of us have more than enough to have the entire sofa I was asking you about.”

“I don’t know. She does have a lot of money, in all the accounts. So do the other three firms I’m looking into. But if this was common practice for the bank, I think Judith would have told me. But we’re talking a lot of money. And while there is a lot in these accounts, I can’t imagine that the bank would fuck with it. Not to mention, Judith doesn’t strike me as a lax person when it comes to her money. Or her business’s. I guess that’s why she called me in.” He said nothing, not really sure what he could say. “I’m thinking that the person or persons doing this think that with the amount of money she has in the accounts, she’d not notice that some of it was missing. I don’t think, like I said, that Judith is the type of person to let something like this slide by.”

Arryn finished his breakfast while she told him what she’d found. He tried to get Reyna to eat more than just the few bites that she did, but she was drifting, even if it was mentally to her work. So he told her to go to it while he cleaned up.

He had things to do as well. And one of them was to talk to Boss and then find them a home. Arryn liked the little place she was living in, but it was very small for someone of his size. Besides, he wanted her to have something of her own too. And he refused to think about how little time there was for them. For now he was going to make things as comfortable as he could, especially for her.

Chapter 5

Jonas looked in the mirror in his room. Right now he was trying to decide if he liked his woman persona or preferred the male, as he was now. Both were very lovely to him, sexy even, but it was the woman that had the others staring at him. He shifted to her body just as the door behind him opened.

“You’ve been above ground.” Not bothering to turn to look at the man behind him, Jonas asked him what he was talking about. “First of all, I can smell the putrid smell of it on you, and secondly, someone saw you coming back. You should take better care when you sneak away.”

“I had business to attend to. I have mentioned to you that there is a soul that is mine for the taking, haven’t I?” He turned then and showed his breasts to Peter. “Are these too large, do you think, for my body?”

Peter came toward him and lifted them up. Jonas was surprised at the feeling he got from it, but when he let them go with a hard bounce, it was sort of painful. Peter told him that he liked them just fine. Jonas shifted to a man again, thinking he’d go back to his woman figure later.

“This soul you have, does he have a name?” Jonas said it was a girl child and he had no idea if it had been titled or not. “Named. Not titled, but named. And it’s female, not girl child. For as much time as you spend up there, you’d think you’d have a better understanding of things. I’ll look into things for you. See what I can find out. I might even try a few things while I’m there just to see if I’m as powerful as I think.”

“I go there to recruit, not to socialize. And if you go, be very careful. I think she has help, or at least someone there lending her some confidence. She was most rude to me last night when I spoke to her.” He sat down near the fireplace and stoked it up more. “You should see how they are. Some of them have no idea what is in store for them. I should like to bring them all down here and see how they manage. And this girl child…female, is no different other than she is mine.”

“Is this the female that her mother sold you?” Jonas nodded. “It must be coming close to the end. Have you talked to the girl yet? Have you tried to bargain with her?”

“She’ll come around. I know that she will. No one would willingly come here if they had a chance to get out of it. For as much as I love it here, there are just as many who don’t care for it.” Peter nodded and said he was amazed himself. “I have spoken to her about what I want, but she refuses me. But the closer she gets to her time, I’m sure she’ll come around. And if nothing else, I will threaten her with her mother. I don’t care for her in the least, but you know the bonds between mother and child. I don’t understand humans, but they do serve their purpose.”

Both men shivered. Love. That word alone could make him sick to his belly. And he’d run from the room should even one of the others talk about it. It wasn’t something he liked to think about.

“She knows you then.” Jonas shook his head then looked away. The mother knew him, his name as well as what he looked like in his truest form. He’d been arrogant when he’d gone to her when she called and he’d thought to show off. But now that the girl-child—daughter, he supposed—was coming to him, it would matter little to anyone the grave mistake he’d made. He was going to take the mother too, but no one knew that just yet. He decided to share with Peter now. Not that he fully trusted the other demon, but he might need him for something later on. A scapegoat or something similar sometime.

“The contract has my name on it but little else. My blood of course; as you know, that is how a contract is signed. But she told me that she’d keep it in a safe place, and she wants immortality too much to let that go.” He smiled at Peter. “When I told her she may have her life forever, I never told her where she’d have it. I am going to enjoy bringing her to my bed and showing her what I have in store for her. Perhaps you would like a part of her when she arrives. But the girl child…female I have plans for. She will be mine.”

“And Damon has approved this?” He hadn’t, but then he didn’t know about it, so it mattered not a whit to him what Damon approved. “You do know that when he finds out what you’ve done, he will be angry. I don’t think I want to be around you when he finds out. You know what he does daily to that minion, Markum? Lord Damon is not a very tolerant demon when he is pissed.”

“I’m not concerned with him finding out.” He was, but he wasn’t going to let the female out of his room ever, so it wasn’t even worth worrying about. “You should see her, Peter. The female has a body that begs to be fucked and a mouth that could suck a cock dry by just looking at it. I am going to enjoy taking her every moment of the day.”

They talked more of the woman and the child. Jonas was a man who got things done and never got caught. When he was, he just bought his way out of things or lied. He was the greatest liar he knew. And he had no problems blaming someone else for his crimes, either. Not even good friends. That was what his treasures were for, to use as currency. And it was the only reason he collected so many different kinds. Everyone had a price and Jonas prided himself on knowing it and having it. There was always a price for anything he did, and it was a rare time that he didn’t have what the other person wanted. If he didn’t, then he simply killed them. It was as simple as that.

The burn on his hand had him looking for something to hide it with. It was happening again. The last time he’d nearly cut his arm off, the pain had been so bad. It wasn’t at all like the flames in his pit or the one that he used to heat his home, but a cold kind of burning that made his skin crawl with the need to end it.

“What is that?” He looked at Peter when he stood above him. The pain was so intense that he nearly screamed with it. “You’re touched. An angel has touched you. You know those things and their purity can make you catch fire before even a real fire can. Even with just a touch. You said you didn’t see anyone when you went there but the girl. What have you done? You’ll bring them all here now. See that you don’t.”

“Shut the fuck up and sit down. There has been no angels in my life. Never that.” He held out his hand and watched as the burning moved up his arm. “It cannot be an angel. They cannot come here without permission, and even if I did invite one here, Damon would have felt it too and would be here demanding answers, as he always does. I cannot stand the man. He thinks himself so above everyone else.”

“He is above us. Only second to the king. I should tread carefully when speaking of him. It’s said that he can hear a pin drop a thousand miles away.”

Jonas had heard that as well. He didn’t believe it, but he’d heard it.

As the burning stopped, he watched as flakes of his skin, large portions of it, fell off. He held his hand near the fire, something he’d learned the last time it happened, and was surprised that this time it didn’t work. The skin still continued to peel away.

“You should tell someone about that. That is nasty.” Jonas nodded then shook his head. “Don’t ever touch me with that…that thing. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t want it either.”

As soon as he left, which was within seconds after Peter saw his arm, Jonas went to the fire again. This time the skin healed as it had before, but there were still places on it that were white. And that was what concerned him the most. He had heard long ago that when a demon touched an angel things would happen, but he’d never believed it.

He knew that either the woman that had signed the contract was doing this or there was someone there, in the underworld, who was doing this to him. The only way that someone could harm him this way was with his blood. And only a few people, three that he could remember, would have had any of his blood. He had no illusions about the Sharp woman being smart enough to do something like this; Lord Damon, again a person he had no faith in being intelligent enough to think of harming him; and the king himself was too busy getting fat and laying by the fire to do much more than come out once a month for inspections.

Damon might have made the effort if he’d had any idea what Jonas had been doing these last centuries. Markum had some of his blood as well, now that he thought on it. But he knew that the minion would be in too much pain daily to make the effort to torture him. Not that there was a reason for him to think he should try, at least as far as Markum knew about. There just had to be another reason why he was burning like this. There was no way that it could have been just from going above to the other realm. Markum had been able to do it almost daily without this sort of consequences. Then there was the other king…Boss, they called him.

Jonas had been newly turned to minion at that time. Boss had seen him. Jonas had been wandering around the other world trying his hand at recruiting. It had been so long ago that he doubted that He would remember him at all. And back then, Jonas had been nothing more than a speck in His world. But trick him He had, a trick that Jonas now used himself.

“I should like a small sample of your fiber.” Jonas had asked Him what that was. “Oh, nothing that you would miss. A spot of your blood. A sliver of your skin. Nothing much. I’m thinking of keeping a log of all the creatures in both worlds. You would be the first that I collect, should you want.”

“And what will this give me?” Even then Jonas had been greedy, something he was still cultivating and working on now. “Will I have my name there, as the first of your collection?”

“Yes. I shall put your name at the top of my list.” Jonas had put out his hand then jerked it back. “You wish to say no? Oh well, it’s fine if you’re afraid for me to do this. I will find another that will—”

“I never said I was afraid.” The man nodded and smiled, as if He knew that Jonas was actually terrified of what He wanted. “I only want to make sure that you spell my name correctly. I may change it someday, but you will have my real name. The only one that will besides Lord Damon.”

Jonas sat down again and though of the blood he’d given the man. And his name. His real name, a name that he could be summoned with. He looked around his suite and thought of it now, and hoped that the man who had it would never remember that He knew something that even Lord Damon never got. It would be his downfall should anyone find out.

~~~

Boss watched the young woman work. She was trying her best to get this figured out for Judith, and He was very proud of the way she was going about it. Having Arryn so close to her all the time had her irritated with him, but she never let her temper go while she was with the others. He looked over at Michael when he stood beside Him.

“You could just tell her.” Boss asked him what the fun in that would be. “They could find more time for each other then. You have said that they have had relations. Why have you not hounded him into marrying her?”

“I do not hound anyone. And I will talk to them when it is time. For now they are happy. Or he is. She is coming around to my way of thinking as well.” Michael huffed, a habit He thought he’d gotten from Dusty. “Should you like to have a go with her? Talk to her about wedding our Arryn?”

“Nay, I would not. I think I would rather You boiled me in my own salad than me being near her when she is most upset.” Boss thought about correcting him on the soup, not salad, part of his comparison, but He loved watching Kala do it. She was nice about it but did tease him well afterwards. “I have heard the words that she said to Arryn and what she did to him when she was upset. Is it true that she can bring down a building with her wrath?”

“It is. However, the part where she brought it down on several people is an untruth. There were only two, and one of them was already dead. Not by her hand.” Michael nodded but Boss knew he’d keep his distance from Renie. “Did you hear what Galin has done? He was in a department store with our Kipling buying a gift…well, a replacement gift for Dusty, when he brought down an entire shelf of dishes. There were several hundred of them, I’m told, and he only just put one of them back on the shelf when it happened. Poor man.”

“Kipling told me just last night. He said that Dusty told Galin he is to never enter a store without his hands in his pockets. She threatened him with making him sit in the car when she has to shop from now on, too. Did you hear about the eggs?” Boss had and they both laughed. “He is very clumsy. For one so light on his feet when he is working, he is most clumsy with breakable things.”

They both turned to the table when Judith laughed. They had missed what was going on, but whatever it was, Renie was not happy with Arryn. She had him lifted up by magic and he now hovered above the table they were all at, saying how sorry he was. Boss decided to make His presence known to them all. Arryn only waved at Him from his height and welcomed Him to the restaurant.

“This would go much quicker if I did not have to look up to speak to Arryn. My dear, do you think it possible that you let him down, for now? I’ve things to say to you both.” Renie looked at Him then at Arryn. Boss laughed, but covered himself quite nicely with a cough when she glared at him. “Please?”

“He said he bought a house.” Boss knew this; it was one of the things he’d wanted to talk to them about. “For me. I don’t want a house. I want him to leave me alone.”

“You do not. And I think you know this as well as I do.” Arryn was let down with the warning that he move away from her. “Thank you. But I do need to speak to you both. It is about your contract.”

He knew as soon as she looked at Him that she had it. Boss had only been guessing that she’d found the contract between her mother and the man who would take her, but now He knew. And after the conversation He’d had with Arryn about her dream, He had thought maybe she knew more than He did. Now He was sure of it. And He was sure of something else…she knew who the demon was, as well.