City of Dragons: Of Flesh and Blood (27 page)

After all, he’d get there soon enough all on his own.

Darco said, “I acquired it.”

As in stole it, bought it, hell maybe he even killed for it, but he didn’t apply for it legally, that was for sure. It took permission from Medan and two Human sponsors to vouch for a Kin’s stability. No Human on the planet could be that stupid.

Farley thought of the vamps. Okay, Humans of legal age. Humans with half a brain. And Medan? She knew his Brother’s reputation. No, Darco was nothing but a liability she could not afford.

“You don’t believe me?” Darco’s hand traced a line down Farley’s side.

“No, I don’t. You’d never get past the psych evaluation.”

“Well, well, well, Little Brother. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you don’t want me on the outside.” The grip on Farley’s hip went tight.

Naw, really? I wonder why?
“No. Not particularly.”

Darco made a sound which might have been intended as a laugh but grew into a heated growl. “You and I are going to play a game, Little Brother.”

Farley’s eyes clenched shut. He did not need this. Not now. Fuck, not ever. Darco’s other hand slid across his ribs, moved to the flat of his stomach and lingered, petting, touching.

“The rules are simple. Don’t scream. If you do, and she wakes up, I’m going to eat her.”

“Darco, let’s not--”

“And you will help me.”

“I won’t--”

“You will, unless of course you can stop me.”

If only he could.
Weak
.
I’m too weak to fight him
. Farley looked away. “Please…”

Darco put a finger to his lips. “Shh—she stirs.” The movement of sheets was followed by the rise of Claire’s heart beat. After a few tense seconds she settled. Darco whispered, “Are you ready?”

Ready for him to get the hell out of here maybe. Farley jerked as the ache of Darco’s fingers digging into his side became the searing pain of chelae sinking into his flesh. Dark streams of ichor ran down his leg. He glared at his Brother.

“Having fun yet, Little Brother?”

Farley growled. “Why are you here? Did the emo kids dump you?”

“Vampires bore me.” Darco’s free hand glided over Farley’s sternum, then to his throat, where it tightened. One hard yanked and he was flush against his Brother’s body. Which of course shot Farley’s flight-and-fight instinct into a full-fledged war. “Ah, but you, Little Brother…you are always
so
entertaining.”

A hot wet line made its way across Farley’s shoulder. The burn of sharp teeth followed.

Fine, he could
feed
Darco. Not like he hadn’t done it a thousand times before. The Male’s erection pushed against his ass. And yeah, Farley could deal with that end of business too.

Darco inhaled deep. “You always smell so nice,
Little Brother
.” His mouth made its way up Farley’s neck to his jaw. “Let me have a taste.” His grip loosened. “Share with me.”

And that was
so
not a request.

Darco’s grip became light, almost sensual. Farley opened his mouth and breathed his scent across his Brother’s lips. The other Male made a pleased sound as he rolled the flavor around the inside of his mouth.

“Very nice,
Little Brother
. But I need more.”

Soft warmth met Farley’s lips and he drew Darco’s tongue into his mouth. His Brother made a sound which clearly said what he liked what he had to share. Their teeth clashed for a second, then his Brother’s tongue scraped his palate. Farley gave back, pushing deep. Maybe with any luck the fucker would choke.

The grip on Farley’s throat tightened until it cut off any chance he had to breathe. He jerked, but Darco was stronger. Farley’s back hit the ragged-out nap carpet, and what air he had left in his lungs went out in a rush through his nose.

Darco picked his head up. “Fuckn’ A, Little Brother, what have you been eating?” His purr kicked up and his hips rolled forward. Farley winced as his Brother’s cock bit into his groin. “First, I
feed.
Then we fuck.”

Farley jerked when Darco dropped his mouth to the scar on his shoulder. He didn’t want him biting him there.

“Do you think I will be able to taste her through the mark?” He nipped the skin. “I’m betting I will. Maybe…maybe I’ll draw a little bit of her right down those lines?” As stupid as it was, Farley grabbed Darco’s arm and squeezed hard enough to crack bone. His Brother hissed and his eyes widened. The grin on his face had way too many teeth for a Human mouth. “Go ahead, fight me. It will only be that much more enjoyable.” He exhaled a growl next to Farley’s ear. “Remember the rules.”

Darco bit hard and violent, tearing flesh, cracking bone. At the same moment his grip slackened and Farley sucked in air so fast he expected his lungs to ignite from the friction. Now that he could breathe, it became an even greater battle not to scream.

Farley bowed under his Brother and a hand to his middle slammed his back against the floor. Hard, aching, and lit up from the
feed
, Farley opened his mouth so he could pant.

The hands pinning him loosened and Darco’s touch became tender as he petted Farley up and down, but the potential for pain and violence remained palpable in how those fingertips kneaded his shoulders and stroked his ribs.

This needed to be quick, but Darco always took his time. So when the Male’s mouth popped loose way too soon, Farley froze. His gaze slid over to his Brother. Teeth out, his mouth coated in ichor, dripping in rivulets down his chin, he appeared every bit of the monster he was.

Darco sighed and it was warm against Farley’s shoulder. “Do you know what I see?”

See? What the hell?
Farley shook his head.

“Through the static, Little Brother, do you know what I see?”

Static? “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Which was nothing new. Darco was always spouting off random collections of words which made no sense.

Darco’s gaze rolled down. “I see you. I see you in that place. I see him taking you away from me.”

“Darco…”

“Shhhh—you have nothing to worry about. I will come for you. I will not let you die in there. After all you owe me. You owe me for everything. And I need you alive in order to collect.”

Without any warning, Darco stood up and walked out.

For way too long Farley stared at the front door, afraid to move, afraid to breathe. Darco never left un-sated. This had to be some sort of trick or maybe just his idea of a joke. The longer Farley lay there the more he became convinced something had happened, but he had no idea what it was.

Convinced the bastard was going to come back any second, Farley got to his feet and ran to the back. He found a pair of black cargo pants in the bottom of his closet and yanked them on. From the bed Claire moaned and her eyes fluttered open. Farley grabbed her clothes off the floor and shoved them in her arms.

“Get dressed, now!”

Claire made a face. “What’s wrong?”

“Christ on a cross, just get dressed!”

Any minute now, any second that SOB would be back and things would go from bad to disastrous. Farley lit a frustrated punch into the doorjamb. Fuck, Darco was up to something. He never just walked away, never.

Farley watched the front door while Claire dressed. A few moments later she came up behind him with her parka in her hands.

“What happened to your shoulder? You’re bleeding.”

He ignored her and went to the milk crate at the end of his bed and dug out a dark green sweat shirt with a hood and pulled it on.

“Farley?”

“Not now, Claire.” He pulled a dry pair of boots from under his bed and slammed his feet into them. It was time to get Claire out of here and as far away as possible. She could never come here again. Now that Darco knew where Farley lived, this place was off limits to anyone who meant anything to him. Was that what all the city touring was about? Had Darco followed him here? And while those questions rattled through Farley’s head, the real one should have been
What took him so long?
Darco always found him. Like a moth to a flame his Brother always knew where he was.

Farley glanced at Claire and she stared at him with wide eyes. He said, “Where are your keys?”

“My pocket.”

He grabbed her by the arm and marched her to the door. “I need you to stay behind me.” When she opened her mouth to protest Farley growled. “This is not the time to argue with me, Claire. Just do what I say.” She blinked twice and nodded. Farley opened the door and scented the air. He smelled the dampness of the night, the sharp bite of winter on the wind, garbage from a nearby dumpster and the other residents who lived in the building.

The taste of his Brother was faint. Nothing fresh to confirm he was hiding somewhere close.

Farley led Claire by the wrist and headed down the steps, taking in every sound, smell, and movement of trash caught in the wind. The sensory overload made his skin crawl like he was full of ants.

At the bottom of the steps, Farley held out his hand and Claire gave him the keys. He pushed the unlock button on the keyless entry and the Prius next to the curb made a beep-beep sound which might as well have been a dinner bell.

Another pause. When there was still no sign of his Brother, Farley pulled Claire across the street, opened the passenger door, and shoved her inside.

Farley climbed in behind the wheel and engaged the locks. Not like they would have done any good considering his Brother could rip the damn car in half, but for some reason it made him feel better. He cranked up the car and yanked it out into the desolate road. They were a good mile outside the Zone before Farley could peel his foot off the gas. The car slowed down to forty MPH. Its wind-up engine going from high pitched weed eater to a refrigerator hum.

Claire said, “Where are we going?”

Farley kept his eyes on the road. “Away.”

“Away where?”

“Outside the Zone. You should be safe back in the city.” Of course
should
and
would
were two different things. Farley tried not to think about that, tried not to think about just how close Claire had come to getting killed.

Aching, burning, Farley shifted in his seat. His wounds had stopped healing, which meant his resources were getting dangerously low. As if to drive home the fact, the muscles in his legs twitched.

He said, “Do you have any money?”

“A little.”

“I need to eat again. I’ll pay you back tomorrow. I forgot my wallet.” Claire stared and Farley tried to ignore her. Of course it didn’t work. “What?”

Claire said, “That was him, wasn’t it?”

“Who?”

“Your Brother.”

Farley sighed.

“What happened?” Her voice was small.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“But…”

Farley pulled up to a Wendy’s and stopped next to the curb. He hated the way Claire looked at him, because it just reconfirmed what he already knew. He was weak.

He said, “Yeah, it was Darco.”

“Did he…hurt you?” Which must have been Claire’s nice way of asking if he’d taken a roll in the high grass.

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

Farley growled. “Yes.”

“I’m scared for you, Farley.”

Scared for him? God of Man, she had no idea. “It’s not me you need to be worried about. He saw you, he knows your scent now.”
Not to mention your taste.

“So?”

“Use your fucking brain, Claire!” Her fear spiked and the sweet spicy scent lit Farley up all over again. The steering wheel creaked in his fists. Farley exhaled, he inhaled, and fought his instinct for control.

Claire moved, maybe to touch him on the cheek or just pet him down the arm.

He said, “Don’t.”

“What? Why?”

“Don’t touch me right now.” She pulled away. He looked at her and her cheeks were wet. “Goddamn it Claire, don’t you understand? Can’t you see?” Farley ran his hands over his chest and opened his legs, flashing the pup tent in the front of his pants. “I’m lit. He came in there to
feed,
took about half, and left. I’m crawling. All I want to do is take you somewhere dark and fuck you and bite you so I can finish this off.” He hated saying it, but she needed to hear it. Ugly as it was, she had to know.

Claire said, “What are you going to do?”

“Take you home.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll go back to my apartment.”

“Alone? You can’t go back there alone. Let me go with you.”

“No. You can’t ever go there. Ever. He knows you. He would hunt you just to hurt you.”
To hurt me
.

“We should go to the police.”

Farley tossed Claire a look. “And tell them what?”

“You need help, Farley. Someone needs to make Darco stop. Haley should make him stop.”

“Stop what?”

“What he’s doing to you!” Claire gave him a look which suggested she wasn’t the only thickheaded dimwit sitting in the car.

Farley shook his head. “Look, I can deal with Darco. He shows up, gets what he wants, then it’s over until he sniffs me out again. Trust me, him coming back is not the problem.” No, she was the problem. Claire was something that Darco would enjoy killing. This was why having any kind of relationship with Humans was a bad idea and bringing them into his world, worse.

Claire sniffled. “I thought you hated him.”

“I do hate him.”

“Then why don’t you want him to stop?”

“I do want him to stop, but that’s not how it works.”

“It should.”

“Well it’s not. It’s just
feeding
and fucking…” Beside him Claire burst into tears. “Claire….Claire, look at me.” It took her a minute but eventually her cornflower blue eyes came up. “I hate Darco because he’s cruel, not because of the rest. It’s that way with all the Males in the Dens. That’s what it means to be Food.” She slapped a hand over her mouth and turned away. Farley said, “Haley understands.” The fact she didn’t agree with it was beside the point, but her Human
impressions
handicapped her on a lot of things. “And I know you want to understand.” But even if Claire did, then what? What would happen if Darco showed up again and wanted to taste her for himself? Claire would never survive.