Blood Of Fire (The Blood Burden Series) (10 page)

Slade leaned forward placing his glass
down on the table then steepled his fingers in front of him, “You know that I
want what is best for our people, Nicole.  We were once a very powerful and
respected Kingdom that held the warriors in their proper place for centuries. 
But foolish people let foolish ideas of a perfect union between the two races,
making them equal, get in the way and caused the fall of our people.” He
sighed, folding his hands in front of him on the table, “We can do that once again,
don’t you see?  The fae people shouldn’t live in fear of the warriors that once
served as our slaves.”

Nicole could feel the anger building
inside of her.  Didn’t he realize that she was the result of that union of
races?  Was he completely unaware that she was so powerful because her blood
was a mixture of both fae and warrior, created not to be used as a weapon of
war but out of love?  She looked down at the bright white cloth that covered
the table as she gathered her thoughts, “Do you think Loch will just walk away
if I don’t show up tonight?  He’s been waiting for this day for a very long
time so I’m sure he will come for me if you hold me here.”

“But my love, you will go to him
tonight,” he smirked with self-confidence gleaming in his eyes.  "You will
be accepted into the warrior’s domain with open arms along with me as your
humble escort.  He will make you an offer and you will accept, then when the
time is right, we will destroy Loch’s kingdom from the inside out.  He won’t
know what has hit him until it’s too late,” he slammed his fist into his palm
as he smiled, showing the dimples she once admired.

“We,” Nicole laughed.  “And what exactly
will you be doing to help out, Slade?  I mean, isn’t your greatest power being
a leech,” she smiled as she leaned forward, lowering her voice to a whisper,
“Of course, I say that in the most flattering way possible.”

Slade glared at her smirking face, not
finding any humor in her words, “I can make those warrior’s powers useless then
you can destroy them all.”

“But you see, this is where you and I
don’t see eye to eye, my friend.  I have no desire to kill anyone but Loch.  I
take him out then this whole war is over.”

“That’s not good enough!” Slade slammed
his fist down on the table causing his wine glass to fall over and shatter.  A
trail of red seeped across the table then began to pool on the floor.  “There
will be another warrior waiting to take his place so this war will continue
until one race is gone.  I will not sit by and let it be the Fae.”

Nicole’s muscles tensed in response to
Slade’s display.  She could feel all the eyes in the room turn on them as she
fought to keep seated.  Crossing her arms over her chest, she leaned back into
the plush cushions of the booth seat. 
What's the point in fighting this, he
isn’t going to budge so now is the time to play it smart.  He's willing to help
me get to Loch and that’s my goal.  Why not use that to my advantage?
  Her
mind spun around the idea with surprising ease.  She wasn’t raised to use
people and knew if her dad was here she would get a serious lecture but Slade
could be a useful tool to end this war and she would be stupid not to take
advantage of it.

Nicole stood up and was quickly followed
by Slade jumping to his feet, “Where do you think you’re going?”

A smile played across her lips as she
watched the goon she had affectionately nicknamed Rover push off the wall he
was leaning against.  He watched her every move as if she was about to attack. 
She gave him a quick wink then turned her attention back to Slade, “If I’m
going to war, I’m sure as hell not going looking like this.”

Slade studied her face, his brows
pinched together in thought, until whatever he was looking for was satisfied. 
He nodded to the warrior, “Escort Ms. Keenan back to her room so she can
change.  I will meet you at the car.”

Nicole spun on her heels and started
making her way out of the room but was stopped by the arm, “Don’t try to screw
me Nicole, you will regret it,” Slade whispered in her ear.

“Now Slade, I thought you wanted me to
give you a good screwing.  You’re such a confusing man,” she purred with a
sarcastic undertone she was sure would leave Slade wondering.  She left him
standing there to watch her walk away on the arm of a warrior.

Nicole hurried into her room with the
warrior following close behind, “Sit boy,” she pointed to the couch in the
living area of the suite.  “I’ve got to change and I won’t need your
supervision.”

The man studied her for a moment then
slowly nodded his head, “You’ve got five minutes then I’m coming in after you.”
He leaned against the wall crossing his arms over his broad chest.

“You’re such a sweetheart,” Nicole
rolled her eyes at the warrior then quickly went into her room, shutting the
door behind her.  Her mind was running in a hundred different directions all at
the same time.  “One step at a time girl,” she spoke to herself as she started
to slide out of the atrocious dress.  “First I figure out how to take out Loch,
then I move onto getting rid of Slade all while not getting myself killed.
Simple,” she said sarcastically.

Her chest began tightening with every
breath and her throat was shutting off as her nerves went into over drive.  She
tried to swallow down the building emotions and just concentrate on changing
into some comfortable clothes.  She managed to slide an Alabama football
T-shirt over her head, but the world around her began to spin as she fought for
control.  Her knees wobbled slightly so she quickly dropped to the floor,
taking deep breaths to fight off the blackness overtaking her vision.  This
wasn't her nerves.  No she could tell this was an outside force trying to press
its way into her head.  But it wasn't strong enough to drill past Slade's
shield.

The door to her room crashed open and
Claude and Slade came pouring in with the guard taking position in the
doorway.  Slade glanced down to where Nicole sat in the floor then turned his
attention out her patio door, “Send the others to capture them then you come
back here with us.”

Claude nodded then he and the guard were
gone from the room in a blink of an eye.  Slade walked over to Nicole, “Get
dressed.  We need to go now,” he snipped reaching down and pulling her to her
feet by one arm.

Nicole’s vision was still blurred but
she managed to remain on her feet.  The weakness seemed to be dissipating
rapidly with each passing second, “What’s going on?”

“Seems my dear sister and that warrior
of yours are trying to get to you.  I almost forgot how strong Sage’s powers
were too.” He shook his head as he let his eyes drift back out the door and
across the darkening garden.  “No matter now.  All she managed to do was give
you a headache and alert the warriors to her location.  I’ll have them soon
enough.”

“Leave them alone, Slade!  I swear if
you hurt them I will make you regret ever hearing my name,” Nicole hissed.

Slade grabbed her jeans from across the
bed and shoved them in her hands, “Put them on or walk to the car in only your
shirt and panties, decide now.”  He turned his attention back to the door, her
threat having no effect on his demeanor.  He glared out into the darkness
following an unseen chase as he shifted uneasily.

Nicole put on her jeans but before she
could get her shoes tied Claude appeared at the end of her bed with a wisp of
wind following behind him, “The rest of the guards are trailing them,” he
reported.

“Let’s go then,” Slade pulled Nicole off
the bed by her arm as she struggled to not trip over her untied laces.

“Just us?  Wouldn’t it be wise to bring
more guards, sir?”

“There’s no time.  It’s best to move
while they are running for their lives.”

Claude nodded in agreement and followed
Slade and Nicole out of the room.  They started down the hallway of the hotel. 
Slade and Claude were on constant alert, swiveling their heads from side to
side and cautiously approaching every corner before moving forward again.

Nicole cleared her throat and tried hard
not to let the irritation of being pulled along like a small child show in her
voice, “You know, if you’d let me use my powers we could all be in the car in
the next few seconds instead of you all having to go at human speed with me.” 
Nicole hoped her voice of reason would overpower Slade’s suspicion but the look
on his face told her she was getting nowhere with him.

“Nice try, love,” Slade pulled her forward
toward a side exit of the hotel that opened to a private parking area.  The
black limo sat waiting in the center of the lot.  Claude rushed forward in a
blur of speed towards the car.  He started the limo and was waiting with the
door held open before they closed half of the distance.

“Don’t you understand that I miss my
powers?  It’s really not fair of you to continue to hold them from me
especially since you expect us to work together in defeating Loch,” she climbed
into the car and sat drumming her fingers on the armrest as she waited for
Slade to join her.  She knew she was running out of time to help Luke and
Sage.  The only way she stood a chance of helping was to attempt convincing
Slade into giving her power back.  “The way I see it, you owe me for lying all
of this time.”

Slade stood gripping the top of the open
door for a moment then bent so he could see Nicole inside the car, “I’m keeping
the power at bay to protect you.”

“Protect me?  How is keeping me from
being able to defend myself protection?”

Slade snorted with an arrogant grin as
cold as his hardened eyes, “I’m protecting you from the stupid decision you
would make to save your friends.  Even now, you’re trying to figure out a way
to help them.  You would sacrifice accomplishing your goal to make sure they
are safe,” he shook his head with a look of disdain on his face. “I won’t let
you do something that you will regret.”  Slade climbed into the car, his
stature filling the space and giving Nichole a sense of claustrophobia.

“How can you say that?  Sage is your
sister.  Aren’t you the slightest bit worried about her?” Panic filled Nicole’s
voice as the car started to move away from the hotel.  Her window of
opportunity was shrinking by the second. “You’re not that cold, are you?”
Nicole’s voice quavered with her last words.  She could see the look of
complete detachment in his eyes at the mention of his sister’s name.

“Blood is the only thing Sage and I
share.” He waved his hand dismissively then leaned forward until his face was
inches from Nicole’s.  “You just worry about being a good girl when we meet
Loch.  He must believe that you are willing to join him.  Don’t mess this up
Nicole or
you
will be the one regretting the day you heard
my
name,” he reached up in the blink of an eye, grabbing Nicole by the back of her
head.  He pulled her head back roughly by a fist full of her hair causing her
to gasp.  “Do you understand me, my love?”

Tears glazed over Nicole’s vision as she
tried not to scream in pain.  She could feel hairs, one by one, turning loose
from her scalp as Slade tightened his grip, pulling her head farther back.  “I
understand,” she spat.

Staring down into her eyes he smiled
softly, liking what he saw, and then let loose of his hold on her head. “Good,”
he sat down next to her instead of taking his seat across from her in the limo.

Rubbing at the tingling area on the back
of her head Nicole shifted in her seat, trying to put some space between
herself and Slade.  She could feel the pressure of him invading her personal
space as he sat next to her, letting his leg brush against hers like they were
longtime friends.  She had to bite back the urge to go for the door as the limo
crawled slowly down the winding drive that led away from the hotel.  She knew
she wouldn’t get far but a few moments out of Slade’s reach seemed worth the
risk.

“You know you’re forcing me to be this
kind of person, Nicole,” Slade reached over and took her hand away from the
spot on her head and kissed it gently.

Nicole jerked her hand back as if the
touch of his lips against her skin had been the deepest pain she had ever felt,
“Don’t touch me again.”

“It doesn’t have to be like this.  I can
make you happy and give you a wonderful life.  We could be so much more than,”
he paused searching for the right word then smiled.  “Business partners I guess
would be the best label for us.  We are both working together to reach a single
goal for individual gain, but we could have so much more together.”