Four Dukes and a Devil (14 page)

E
lise waited for Blake’s reaction. Only Mencheres knew this part of her life, but as a vampire and her sire, he was obviously biased when it came to his opinion of what she’d done. What would Blake think, knowing she’d killed her human fiancé on their wedding day?

“I can’t believe he’d do that to you,” Blake said. His hands never paused in their soothing path along her back. “I understand why Edmond ran. Being afraid of what you don’t know—yeah, I get that. But I will never understand why he tried to kill you when he came back. How could Edmond do that to you, no matter how shocked he was?”

Something inside Elise burst. It must have been her last line of emotional defense, because the feelings running through her left her dizzy with their intensity. Who would have thought this virtual stranger’s acceptance would be the grail of forgiveness she’d sought all these long, lonely decades? And why was it that she’d only found him now, just to have to lose him so cruelly in the next two days?

“I lost someone I loved, too,” Blake said. “I married Gail right out of the army. We were both young, didn’t have a clue how to make a marriage work. I got a job in commodities and worked my way up to being a pretty successful broker on Wall Street. Gail finished college and began teaching. She wanted to start a family; I wanted to wait so I could keep advancing in my career. I was so busy climbing the corporate ladder, I ignored what mattered to Gail. I don’t blame her for divorcing me. Sometimes you have to lose everything to know what you had.”

Elise was familiar with that. She’d lost everything when she was human during the Great Depression, then again with Edmond, and now she had the feeling that when Blake died, she’d lose everything once more.
Why couldn’t there be another way to defeat the demon inside him, aside from killing him?

“Elise.” Blake drew away enough for her to look at him. “Will you drink from me?”

“What?” She couldn’t have been more startled if the demon had suddenly appeared.

He sighed. “I don’t have much time, and that’s all right. But I’d like to think something of me will last. If my blood is inside you, then it’ll live on for as long as you do…”

Fresh tears came to her eyes. How could she feel so much pain when just a few days ago, she’d been empty inside?

“…but only if you want to,” Blake continued. “I don’t know if the demon in me makes it too disgusting to–”

Elise sealed her mouth over his throat, the suddenness of her movement cutting his sentence off. Blake’s heart began to beat with an excited, increased pace that heightened her hunger. She let her tongue probe his neck, tasting his skin. Caressing his pulse. Deciding just where she’d penetrate with her fangs.

Blake’s breathing accelerated, his chest rubbing hers with its rapid movement. His hands clenched on her back in the same rhythm that she flicked his neck with her tongue.

“Is this, ahh, going to hurt?” he asked, his voice catching when she pressed her fangs against his throat.

Elise smiled. “You’ll see.”

She let her fangs pierce him slowly, savoring the exquisite splitting of his skin and the hot, luscious blood that followed. Blake shuddered, a groan escaping him that she heard and felt against her mouth. She waited, letting the euphoric venom from her fangs spread farther into his bloodstream, before drawing in a long, deep suction.

Blake’s back arched and he gasped. Elise moaned at the slide of his blood down her throat, warming her. Igniting every preternatural sense in her. She took in another swallow, getting as much pleasure from the way Blake’s hands gripped her as she did by the sweet taste of his blood. His breath came in gasps, the thundering of his pulse against her mouth mirrored by his heartbeat next to her breasts. The rich, spicy scent of him increased, wrapping around her. Intoxicating her. Urging her to take more.

“God, yes,” Blake moaned, his voice rising. Elise grabbed his head, arching his neck farther back, and bit into him again.

A hoarse cry came from him, like a lover might make. Even as Elise gave a last, longing swallow, savoring his blood, she drew her thumb across a fang and held the cut to the holes she’d made. They closed before the final sounds faded from Blake.

She leaned back to see his face. His eyes were closed, dark strands of hair tumbling over his forehead, and he had a sensual, lethargic—and surprised expression on his face.

His eyes opened in the next moment, coriander blue and beautiful. “That didn’t hurt at all,” he said, a grin tugging at his mouth.

Elise laughed, bright and filled with the unexpected happiness inside her.

The smell of sulfur woke her. Blake had fallen asleep in her arms, both of them reclining on the narrow pullout that masqueraded as a bed. Elise wasn’t drowsy. She didn’t want to miss a second of her remaining time with Blake.

When that awful, burning stench enveloped Blake, her arms hardened and rage filled her. She was prepared to keep the demon from harming Blake—or escaping—so she was taken aback when all the demon did was open his eyes.

“You and I need to talk,” Xaphan said in a low, gravelly voice.

Elise watched with loathing as Blake’s skin turned that waxy, sallow color, and red replaced the lovely blue in his eyes.

“I don’t think so,” Elise growled.

His lips curled back in a condescending sneer. “Stupid little vampire, don’t you see? I’m your only hope of saving this mortal.”

Even though she knew better, hope sparked in her. “How? You’ll willingly leave him?” That would mean the demon would get away, but then Blake would be free. God forgive her, she would be okay with that.

“If I could do that, do you think I’d still be here, kept by two bloodsucking vermin? I’m too deeply buried inside this body to leave while he still has life, vampire. But I’ll make a bargain with you.”

Don’t listen. You can’t bargain with evil. It will always win if you do.

“What’s your offer?” Elise asked softly.

Those malevolent eyes glared into hers. “I’ll give you the rest of this mortal’s natural life span if you get us away from the other vampire. When the mortal eventually dies, then I’ll be free to find a better home.”

“Liar,” Elise bit off. “You’d try to kill Blake as soon as we got off this train.”

Xaphan sighed. The sulfur smell from his breath would have gagged Elise if she’d still been human.

“The years this mortal has left are no more than a tick of the clock to me, but they mean something to you, don’t they? This is a fair offer. If you refuse, try to force me onto the salt flats, all of you will die. You can’t hope to beat me; I am one of the first Fallen. I was around before Cain was even turned into a vampire.”

Icy fear slid up Elise’s spine as she stared into the demon’s eyes. There was nothing left of Blake in them. They were ageless, evil, and swirling with red embers. It was as if she’d been afforded a glimpse into hell. How could she and Mencheres think to kill something as old, as powerful, as Xaphan? What if all of them
did
die on the salt flats, their bodies left to rot under the harsh sun, because she didn’t take the only chance they had at surviving? Could she truly kill Blake anyway, after what he’d come to mean to her?

Elise thought of having Blake with her for forty, fifty, maybe even sixty years. That would be more happiness than she’d ever allowed herself to believe she’d find in all her undead lifetime. Xaphan might win anyway, if she persisted in taking Blake to the salt flats. Maybe if she took his deal now, in the future, they’d find another way to vanquish Xaphan without killing Blake
or
letting the demon possess someone else.

Really, wasn’t this the only possible solution, even if it meant bargaining with a devil?

“If you care at all for his life—or yours—you’ll see this is the only choice…” Xaphan drew out.

Blake’s face flashed in her mind, looking completely different than it did now with the demon piloting him.
I can’t live like this,
he’d said when they first met
.
Blake had proved countless times that he’d rather die than let the demon get away. In the end, this wasn’t her decision. It was Blake’s—and he’d already made it.

“No deal,” Elise said, hardening her resolve. “If we all die sending you back to hell, then so be it.”

The demon howled, becoming a mass of livid movement and flinging both of them up to the ceiling of the cabin in a blur. Elise didn’t let go, wrapping herself around him and letting their hate-filled gazes meet.

“I’ll kill you,” Xaphan hissed.

Elise didn’t blink. “You will try.”

All at once, the demon froze. Elise relaxed even though the new flood of oppressive power squeezed her. Mencheres came into the cabin.

“You did the right thing, my child,” he said to Elise.

She wasn’t surprised that her sire had overheard the entire exchange. “I had no choice.”

Mencheres came closer, forcing the demon back into the corner of the small room. “Yes, you did. And you made the right one.”

Elise wondered if she’d still think that later.

B
lake looked at the clock. Eight-thirty in the evening. He had less than twenty-four hours left to live.

Elise sat across from him, her tenseness palpable. Mencheres had forced her to leave this morning to get some sleep, but Elise had come back looking like she had spent the three hours in the other cabin wide-awake. Blake wanted to assure her once more that she’d done everything she could, but maybe talking about it would only make things worse.

Her blond hair was loose, falling just past her shoulders, and she wore another tank top with yoga-style pants. Blake had been studying her while she looked out the window, trying to memorize her features. Small, straight nose. The mouth that looked more sensual than pouty. Those high cheekbones and smooth forehead. Her beautiful, mesmerizing, blue-green eyes.

Yes, if there was an afterlife, Blake wanted to bring the memory of Elise with him.

“Chess?” he asked, gesturing to the board.

She glanced away from the window. “I don’t know how to play.”

“Hmm. You don’t know how to drive or to play chess.

What have you been doing with all your time?”

His tone was teasing, but her face clouded. “I listen to music,” she said slowly. “Read a lot of books. When I get restless, I walk through the city. It’s been sufficient.”

It didn’t sound sufficient. It sounded lonely. Elise had said she’d been living like that since the fifties, but what had she been like before then? Blake knew she was much older than he, even though she looked to be in her early twenties.
How much older?
he wondered.

“How old are you?”

She appeared to think about it for a second. “Altogether, including the years before I became a vampire?”

Blake nodded.

“Ninety-nine in September,” Elise said.

That number was so at odds with her lovely, youthful appearance, Blake had to smile. “You don’t look a day over ninety-two,” he said with wry humor.

Elise shrugged. “Some days, I feel even older.”

Today was one of those days, if the stress on her face was any indicator. Blake sought to lighten her mood. There was no need for either of them to bemoan what was coming.

“How about I teach you to play chess? It’s not hard. By the time the train arrives in Salt Lake tomorrow morning, you’ll be a pro.”

“I don’t want to learn to play chess,” Elise snapped, then she grabbed the edge of the built-in metal board and ripped it out of the cabin wall.

Blake stared at her. “Don’t do this.”

Suddenly she was in front of him, kneeling in the empty space where the pull-down table had been.

“You don’t have to die.” Her voice was ragged. “I can take you with me and keep you safe. Keep the demon from hurting anyone else…”

Blake took her beautiful face in his hands. “You can’t watch over me every second of every day, and I won’t let that thing get away to ruin more people’s lives. Aside from you, the only thing that’s made me happy these past few days is knowing that I’ve finally scared it for a change. That demon is going to regret what it did to me, because I’m the man who’s going to bring it down. Don’t try to take that away from me, Elise.”

Her eyes were bright, pink tingeing the corners. Blake couldn’t stop himself from what he did next. He kissed her, needing her taste like he was the vampire, and she was fresh blood. To his relief, her mouth opened at once, her tongue raking his while fangs sprang out of her upper teeth.

Blake didn’t care about her fangs, even when those sharp tips scored his tongue. Elise sucked at the blood while kissing him, her raw need matching his and driving his passion to a fiery level. He pulled her up on his lap, groaning when she wrapped her legs around his waist.

His hands went under her tank top, tugging it up in impatience. Then he blinked when it was wadded on the floor with her bra in the next moment. Blake didn’t bother to contemplate how fast Elise had taken it off, however. He cupped her breasts, tearing his mouth from hers to kiss them. Her flesh was soft and sleek, her nipples so hard by comparison. When he sucked and bit them gently, Elise moaned, ripping at his pants.

They split open, torn to the knee. Blake pulled them off, kicking the remains free. Her pants were gone in another blur, as was his shirt, until there was nothing separating her skin from his.

He grabbed her hips and arched forward, his mind exploding at the squeeze of her flesh as he thrust into her. Oh God, oh yes! He kissed her again, bracing his legs against the chair across from him, moving deep and fast within her. Elise rocked with him, gripping him so tightly it almost hurt—but he never wanted to end.

He held her, moving faster, knowing this would be the closest he ever came to heaven.

The whistle at the station sounded like a death knell to Elise. She gripped Blake’s hand. If it were possible for vampires to throw up, she would have gotten sick as the train ground to a halt.

“Salt Lake City,” the attendant cheerfully called out.

Blake squeezed her hand. “It’s okay,” he said, and squared his shoulders.

I won’t cry,
Elise promised herself.
If he can be this brave, so can I.

She didn’t feel brave, though. She felt like silver was spearing her through the heart. How she’d ever get through the day, she had no idea.

Last night, she’d cast about for any other option than Blake’s death. Turning Blake into a vampire wouldn’t work, Mencheres reminded her when she brought that up. Changing Blake into a vampire required that he be drained of blood until he was
almost
dead. Then, still clinging to life, Blake would drink Elise’s blood, which would trigger his undeath. Since natural death didn’t happen, becoming a vampire wouldn’t force the demon out. No, it would mean Xaphan would have a back door into possessing a vampire instead. With Blake as a possessed vampire, who knew what new horrors Xaphan could wreak? They’d be handing the demon more power than he’d ever dreamed.

I won’t let the demon free,
he’d stated flatly. Mencheres had agreed that only human death, without any vampire blood in Blake, could force Xaphan out into the merciless trap of the salt flats.

But without any vampire blood in Blake, his death was irreversible.

They exited the train. Elise kept hold of Blake’s hand because she couldn’t stand not to touch him, but Mencheres’s hand on Blake’s shoulder was for a different reason—to restrain him in case the demon tried to make a run for it again. Xaphan had taken over Blake last night, going ballistic and trashing the interior of the cabin before Mencheres stilled him. Elise had to green-eye the train workers so they didn’t call the police at the disturbance.
You’ll all die tomorrow,
Xaphan had spat before crawling back into whatever hole he’d burrowed inside Blake. No, they hadn’t heard the last from Xaphan.

Elise didn’t know what the demon had in store for them, but she knew he wouldn’t go gently into that good night. Still, Xaphan wasn’t scaring her with his threats. He was just solidifying her resolve to do anything to make sure Blake had his victory over the demon. If Blake was willing to die for that, so was she.

Mencheres had two vehicles waiting for them in the parking garage. One was a regular four-door sedan, but the other was a large van. Elise’s heart clenched at the thought of loading Blake’s body into the van afterward. At least he wouldn’t be stuffed into a trunk. That indignity she couldn’t stand.

“Wait a few days until you mail my letters,” Blake said to her quietly. He’d written to his family, apologizing for what they thought he’d done and telling them he loved them.

“All right.”

She didn’t tell Blake that she had no intention of mailing those letters. She’d deliver them in person and make sure, with all her inhuman power, that they didn’t think less of the amazing man walking next to her.

Mencheres stopped by the van. “I’ll drive this one,” he stated. “You and Blake follow me in the car.”

Elise didn’t move.
No, no,
was running through her mind in a roar. Blake leaned down and, very gently, kissed her cheek. “Don’t come apart on me now,” he breathed.

She nodded and forced her legs to move, one step after the other. Somehow, she made it into the car, Blake in the driver’s seat next to her. Mencheres started up the van, and Blake followed him out of the parking lot into the bright morning sunshine.