Release Me When the Sun Goes Down (37 page)

“
My arm will heal, his wounds won’t.”

Jakob’s eyes widened in wonder, a spark of interest igniting.  “
You have Maeja’s blood?  Give it to me, petal, I grow weak.”

The vial swung back and forth as I considered my options.  I could cure him, sure, or I could do nothing.  Even if I never killed him the way we planned to get rid of Lodinn
, I could let him bleed out until he completely desiccated and then he’d be out of the way, all my problems solved. 

He must have seen my inner debate because his head shook slowly back and forth.  “No, y
ou wouldn’t…”

“
Wouldn’t I?”  I caught up the vial, clutching it in my fist.  “You took my life, Jakob.  You turned it utterly upside down just like Lodinn said.  You did every single thing he accused you of.  Who’s the real monster in this room?”

“
But… I saved you in Vetis.”

“
Only because Lodinn came after me to flush you out.  Every bad thing that’s happened to me is because of you.”

Horror dawned on him that I very well might make good on my threat and his Adam’s apple bobbed while he searched for the right thing to say.  “
Please,
älskling
, I beg of you…”

“
But… you’ve also made me more than I ever could’ve been when I was alive and that counts for something,” I said with a sigh.  “I will spare your life on two conditions.

“Name them.”

“Let me go.  I want you to not only renounce any claim to me but leave the West alone.  You can go be a God among vamps somewhere else as long as it’s out of my territory.”

“
You can’t mean that,” he gaped.  “You wish me to leave?”

“
I do.  There isn’t any danger here, and as you can see, I can take care of myself just fine.”  I took a breath, the vial pressing deep into my fingers.  “And there’s no point in you sticking around because I’m in love with Rob.  I’m sick and tired of pretending I don’t feel that way because I’m too afraid of what you’ll do if you find out.  We deserve a chance to be together so I don’t want any reprisals on him or his family either.  If you have a problem with it you keep it to yourself, away from here.”  I was aware of Rob’s sharp intake of breath behind me but I couldn’t look at him, not until I saw how Jakob took it.

I braced myself for anger or even fury but only shock registered on Jakob’s face.  “
You wish for Rob as your second demand?”

“Yes
.”

“Rob,” he repeated it as if he couldn’t be sure I meant who he thought.

“Yes.”

“
You
love
him,” he said slowly, as if the words were foreign.

“
Yes, I do,” I said patiently.

Jakob’s gaze shifted over my shoulder to Rob.  “
And do you love her in return?”

“
I do.”

The house
was utterly quiet but for the snuffling cries of my sister against Lee’s chest.  We waited for Jakob to say something, anything, and finally he gave a short laugh, shaking his head.  “Very well.”

“That’s it?  Very well?” I blinked, his underwhelming response throwing me off balance.

“What would you have me say?” he said with a tired sigh.  “I wouldn’t think to come between the bond between Sire and progeny.  I accept your terms.” 

That didn’t jibe with what Bishop had told
me about his relationship with Carys at all.  But as I glanced over to Bishop I found him lost in thought and I don’t even think he heard a word we said.

“
Thank you,” I said carefully, still not daring to turn my back on him to look to Rob.  “Oh, here, take this.”  I handed over the vial of Maeja’s blood and he snapped it open, downing the contents in one swallow.  His eyes closed for a long moment until he let out a deep sigh of relief, drawing in a full breath.  That stuff sure worked fast.  Cool beans. 

Jakob pushed himself to his knees, healed, but I could tell he’d need to feed pretty soon in his weakened state.  “Only one thing remains before I take my leave.  There can be no chance of Lodinn’s return.”  In a swift stroke
, Jakob reached into Lodinn’s chest and tore out what was left of his black heart.  His body didn’t decompose like a vampire’s, it just sat there, shriveled and gross in the congealing blood.

Hanna gave a last cry and then went utterly still, her eyes freakishly wide as her mind cleared.  I’m such an idiot.  I had these visions of her being released from Lodinn’s spell, like that would magically make it all better, but of course it only meant her nightmare had just begun.  It was almost worse as her body wracked with fresh sobs as the enormity of what had happened to her sunk in.  I hated to see her in so much pain, but at the same time I couldn’t bring myself to erase any of it without her permission.  The only thing I could do was try to be there for her and hope she didn’t blame me too much for being the cause of it all. 

“Rob?” I said softly, and he was already dialing his phone.

“I’m on it.”  He gave the briefest of rundowns to Mason, asking him to get there pronto. 

Jakob hauled himself to his feet, brushing the mess on his hands absently on his jeans.  “And now I must take my leave of you as promised.  Go with my blessing, enjoy your time together.”  He laid a soft kiss to my brow in benediction.  “Be well, Anja.  I will not trouble you further unless it is at your request.  But know that you have only to call.”

“
Thank you, Jakob.”  I drew in another breath but he was gone.  The man who’d changed my life in so many ways, for better and for worse, left without an argument, his steps a blur on the walk in his hurry to get away.  It was so easily done, I couldn’t help but wonder if that was truly the last I’d see of him. 

I felt Rob’s hesitant touch at my elbow and I turned to wrap one arm around him, my injured arm tucked close to my body. 
“It’s okay to hug me, you belong to me now.”

“
I can’t believe you did that,” he said into my hair, holding me close.

“
Are you sorry I did it?”

“
No…”

I heard the hesitation there and I pulled back to look at him.  “
Do you think he won’t keep his word?”

“
No, that’s not it.”

“
What then?  I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you about it first, but I saw the opportunity and I took it.”

“
That’s understandable, I reckon.”

“
And I’m sorry that I left you behind when this all went down.  I just couldn’t put you in the middle of it.  I had to take the risk and I couldn’t be sure you’d let me if I clued you into the plan.”

“You’re not wrong there,” he muttered.

“I know it must feel like I’m doing that a lot, but…”

“
Anja…”

“
I swear it won’t always be like this.  At least I hope not.  If another
Ellri
pops out of the woodwork I don’t know what I’m going to…”

“
Anja…” he tried again, silencing me with a kiss when I kept right on talking. 

“
Yes?” I breathed when he released my mouth.

“
I love you and I don’t care much who knows it no more.”  The quiet torture behind his eyes that I’d come to expect was gone, replaced with something I’d glimpsed only a handful of times since I’d known him.  Happiness.  All of a sudden the pain in my arm didn’t seem to matter, nothing mattered because we’d won.  We were finally free.  Not without scars, but all of us had a chance to heal and be happy now with both
Ellri
effectively gone. 

“I could get used to hearing you say that,” I beamed, leaning close to steal another kiss.  No… not steal, because there were no more furtive moments between us any longer.  These kisses were freely taken and given, without the threat of torture or death and it felt glorious! 

But despite the newfound freedom, I started to think this wasn’t the best place in the world to get too kissy, what with Hanna sobbing in the corner and Bishop sitting there on the couch like a lump.  And that’s when it dawned on me, he’d been sitting there for an awfully long time. 

“B
ishop, are you alright?”  He made no move to acknowledge me and I let go of Rob to approach him, worry gathering in the pit of my stomach.  “Bishop, is there something wrong?”

He looked up at me, his green eyes haunted.  “I know what Lodinn said, his final taunt to Jakob.”

The worry did a flip-flop and turned into a hard ball of fear.  “What is it?  What’s so awful?”

“She’s still alive.  Carys is still out there alive somewhere.”

Need
.

Not wants or desires, but
need
drove Asherik to seek the company of shadows.  The sunlight didn't pain him in a physical sense, but he preferred the darkness.  All manner of interesting things grew bolder under the cover of night, all driven by need.  Street toughs openly flashed makeshift weapons, demanding tribute of those stupid enough to look prosperous on the seamy streets of San Francisco.  Junkies smashed car windows, searching for anything portable worth a few dollars, desperate to slide oblivion into their veins.  Women sold their bodies, some to chase that same oblivion, some to feed a deeper need.  Scuttling vermin and insects; night was the perfect time to feed, and Ash felt a hunger that couldn’t be satisfied by tender bits of veal sautéed in an excellent Marsala. 

Though he enjoyed the comforts of excess (the elegant meal, black satin sheets, and panoramic views of the bay that stretched from every window of the modern house he’d appropriated), Ash preferred the seedy squalor of the Tenderloin district when it came time to satisfy his true hunger.  There, among the dregs of human society, he felt a kinship.  His sins were no worse than the sins of man.  There were plenty who fed from terror, pain and lust.  Tonight he was after something far more elusive
– innocence.

He could pluck a victim from the streets at any time for the taste of fear; it was corruption Ash sought.  Corruption of innocence above all else, a feat made all that much more elusive for the hunting ground he chose.  It would be nothing to lay in wait outside of a church or a library and find all manner of easy prey, but he wanted more.  Nothing so simple as virginity, though that was a keen pleasure to be had, but an innocence of spirit was all the more satisfying to consume.  Far tastier than the gobbets of quivering flesh he fed upon when the mood struck.

Though he enjoyed the occasional grapple with men, Ash preferred the softness of women.  There were women to be had on the streets, but their dead eyes offered him no joy.  He wanted to hunt.  He wanted the thrill of discovery. 

And so he’d dressed himself in an elegant suit of virgin wool, soft against the skin and pleasing to the eye.  Black on black, open at the throat, with a shock of scarlet peeping out of the breast coat pocket.  Perhaps a bit warm, given the muggy night, but Ash didn’t mind the heat.  He enjoyed a good sweat.