Shadow Rising (14 page)

Startled but sated, Ariane licked the bite wound to seal it and then pulled away from this evening’s blood donor. She could feel Damien hovering inches away from her, knew that if she leaned back, she’d be pressed against him. The thought was tempting, but she had other things to attend to first—and no matter how much she wanted him, she sensed that to actively pursue him would only end in unhappiness. Damien struck her as a man who tired of his toys easily.

“I have to go. Run along back to your friends now,” she told the man—Matt, she remembered—staring into his eyes again. He blinked, looking confused, and nodded.

“Okay… wish you didn’t have to… later…” He wandered away, bumping into a bar stool a few feet away before continuing on. He didn’t look back, and Ariane knew that by the time he returned to his friends, he would have forgotten almost everything about her, save for the fact that she’d slipped away.

And damn it, he did bear a resemblance to Damien. She hadn’t done it purposely, but there was no question she’d had the Shade on her mind.

Ariane turned to look at her company. The smug expression on Damien’s face told her that he’d gotten over whatever had rattled him so much about their encounter last night. His usual snarky, disaffected façade was firmly back in place.

“I would have let you bite
me
, if I’d realized you were so keen on it,” Damien said. “No need for a poor imitation like that.”

“And what then? When this is all over, you’d run off and I’d be left with a mark that looks like a flying cat, probably,” she said. Taking enough blood from another vampire would permanently alter one’s dynasty mark. For a highblood, sullying that mark generally resulted in expulsion from the dynasty, so the change most often signified either a great love or a terrible punishment.

This would be neither, and Ariane didn’t think she wanted to carry a reminder of her first great lust on her body forevermore.

“There’s nothing wrong with a flying cat,” Damien replied with a shrug. “It would be unique.” He didn’t deny that he would vanish after this. She needed to remember that.

His eyes darkened as he leaned close. “Not to mention, I think both of us would enjoy it.”

She could smell his cologne, something earthy and woodsy, and beneath that the musk that was his alone. It wound around her in the semidark, threatening to break her resolve.

“Oh?” she asked, arching a brow and trying to seem
as casual as he always did. “Maybe you’d rather bite
me
, then, so
you
could have the flying cat.”

She knew she’d called his bluff when his eyes dropped from hers. Which was, unfortunately, an opportunity to notice his incredibly long, thick lashes. She’d bet he was the picture of innocence when he was asleep.

“I’ve got two marks already, though,” he said. “Three seems a bit like overkill.” When he looked at her again, his expression was more guarded than teasing. “Well, if you’re going to be anti-fun this evening, then I suppose we should get going. I’ve already wasted time having to come look for you. Didn’t I tell you to wait at the apartment for me?” His eyes raised just a bit, and he reached out to finger a lock of hair that had escaped from the loose bun she’d fashioned.

“This does not look like a wig or a hat. Are you trying to advertise your bloodline to every vampire in the area?”

“I haven’t had time to find anything yet. It’s less noticeable up, I think,” she said. Ariane knew she sounded testy, but at least half of it was from the way he was toying with the single loose strand of hair. Damien had graceful, strong, elegant hands. And they felt even better when he—

“It will be even less noticeable once I find you a baseball cap,” Damien said, tucking the strand behind her ear and then removing his hand.

Ariane gave him a dirty look and started for the door. The crowd had grown thicker, and she could feel the barest touch at the small of her back as Damien squired her through the room. It was another unexpected touch of chivalry, and it made her wonder if Elena was right about his past.

Once they were out of the crush of people and noise, the hand vanished, but Ariane could still feel the warmth where it had been. Funny how such a light touch could make her feel so much more than the embrace of the man she’d drunk from.

She turned her head to look at Damien, impeccably put together as always in a crisp pair of khakis and a fitted black T-shirt. His hair was spiked up in the front. It looked meticulously done. He was beautifully, annoyingly perfect.

“I did wait for you,” she said, now that it was quiet enough to adequately defend herself. “You took forever, and I was hungry. Elena said she would tell you where I was. Wasn’t she up there?”

She didn’t tell him how worried she’d been that he simply wouldn’t show. Or what Elena had said she would do to him if he bailed on them.

Damien slid a disgruntled look at her as they walked, passing the waterfall sculpture. She wasn’t sure where they were going, but her assumption was the parking lot, so she allowed herself to be led in that general direction.

“Yes, she was there. May I ask why?”

“She wanted to see me off.”
And make sure I had a few new blades and a functioning cell phone
, Ariane nearly added, but decided that Damien didn’t need to know everything she would be bringing with her. She still wasn’t sure quite how far she could trust him, and having a spring-loaded knife strapped to her forearm would be excellent insurance if things went bad. The thin straps of tonight’s sundress wouldn’t have hidden that particular toy, but she was anxious to try it out.

“She’s got an overabundance of unhealthy curiosity,
that one,” Damien grumbled. “Lucky we’re heading out now. She was probably still trying to figure out a way to profit from you.”

The casual insult put Ariane’s back up. “Don’t say that. She’s responsible, and she cares about me. That’s more than I can say for most vampires I’ve met, so you can keep your opinions about Elena to yourself.”

Damien looked mildly surprised. “Sensitive, are we? How sad, kitten. You’re going to make me think you’ve never had any friends.”

“I haven’t. Just Sam. And now Elena. That’s… that’s it.” She felt herself blushing and looked straight ahead, not wanting to see the mockery on Damien’s face. She really needed to learn to watch her words more carefully. At home, honesty was valued, expected. Here, nothing was what it seemed.

She waited for the cutting reply, but Damien’s words, spoken softly, surprised her.

“Well. If it makes you feel any better, I haven’t had many either. It isn’t everything, you know. The friend thing.”

She turned her head to look at him, waiting for the punch line… but none came. Instead Damien looked at the ground, seeming deep in thought before straightening up and changing the subject completely.

“I think we should direct our attention to the Empusae next, mainly because I can’t think of any better place to start over. Their numbers aren’t what they were, but this is, at least technically, the seat of what remains of their power. I’m working on getting a meeting with one of the Empusa’s higher-ups, but it could take until tomorrow. None of the Shades in the area have seen or heard of a rogue Grigori, so he’s either kept himself very well
hidden or he hasn’t been on his own long enough to garner any notice. But the Empusae keep very close track of their territory, even though they’re quiet about it, so”—he shrugged—“we ask there.
The
Empusa—it can get confusing when you’re in a bunch of Empusae, since they take their dynasty’s name from their ruler—owes me a favor, though she won’t like me collecting on it.”

“I know why they’re called Empusae,” Ariane shot back. “Just like I know that Empusa herself is sometimes called Mormo to differentiate.”

Damien snorted. “I wouldn’t try calling her that, if you enjoy having your head attached to your body. The lot of them are awfully prickly about treating her as anything less than a revered oracle. Mormo is a name reserved for those closest to her.” He smirked. “Or those she needs too much to destroy.”

“Hmm.” Ariane filed the information away, glad she hadn’t had to find it out the hard way. “Anyway, I’m glad we’re going to the seat of the Empusae,” Ariane said. “It was one of their dynasty who told me about Thomas Manon. Diana. She was very kind, and I’m sure she’d tell me if this Grigori has been seen around.”

“Ariane,” Damien said, reproach in his voice, “I’m not sure that announcing your presence to every highblood in the area is going to help you in the end. You know your people are looking for you.”

“I didn’t
then
,” she replied, thoroughly exasperated. “And besides, Diana approached
me
. She wondered if I’d heard anything about Sam. I guess they were friendly enough that he kept in touch, to an extent. She mentioned that Sam had had a lot of contact with Manon. Sam apparently handled most of the dynasty’s business with him.”

They paused at the edge of the complex, beneath a stylized arch that served as an entrance to the parking lot.

Damien was frowning. “You know, your knowledge of your friend’s activities outside of… well, wherever you came here from… seem to involve an awful lot of guesswork. I thought this was your closest friend?”

She opened her mouth, hoping some kind of reasonable answer would come out. When nothing happened, she closed it again. Why did she always end up embarrassed when he asked questions about her life? It was true—what she’d regarded as friendship back at the compound had turned out to be just a pale shadow of what it seemed to mean here. But there was no question that her kind was far from normal, even among vampires.

Damien picked up on her consternation almost immediately. “You know, you blush more than any vampire I’ve ever known. Believe it or not, kitten, that was an honest question.”

She blew out a breath and looked up at the sky. “
Why
do you keep calling me that? I’m not your kitten. I’m not a pet or a small, fuzzy animal!”

When she looked at him again, he had tilted his head slightly, regarding her with plenty of interest, but without, thankfully, any malice.

“It seems to fit,” he said. “Beautiful. Touchable. Very sharp claws. I’d promise to stop calling you that, but I’d be lying.”

She laughed. She couldn’t help it. And the burst of affection she felt for him in that moment set off warning bells immediately.
No
, she told herself.
No no no. Lust is one thing. Liking him is quite another.
But gods, it was hard when he was grinning at her like a naughty little boy.

“You’re awfully blunt for someone who claims to be an expert in subterfuge,” Ariane said. “Are you so honest with everyone?”

“No,” he replied, and she laughed again. His eyes glowed faintly with pleasure as he watched her, and for a moment, Ariane completely forgot they weren’t the only two people in the area. He had a way of doing that, she’d noticed. Wicked or not, he was certainly a compelling presence.

“I’m glad you find me so entertaining. Even though it’s only going to puff up my already inflated ego,” he said. “Come on, then. It’s possible we’ll run into Diana at the Empusae compound. If nothing else, she’s an avenue to explore if Mormo—and I
can
call her that—decides to be difficult.”

They turned down one of the aisles of cars. Ariane looked at the light reflecting dully off the metal and wondered what sort of car Damien drove. Something fast, she guessed. Sleek but not overly flashy. She was curious to see whether she was right.

They passed car after car in silence. Damien didn’t give any of them more than a passing glance. Finally, however, he headed for a new red BMW convertible at the very edge of the lot sitting all by itself. Ariane smiled as he pulled the key fob out of his pocket and unlocked it. She’d been right.

“Why do you think she’ll help us if she’s inclined to be difficult?” she asked. “And don’t tell me it’s your good looks and charm.”

He looked disgruntled, but far from ashamed. “I’m a Shade, Ariane. This may offend your delicate sensibilities, but what exactly do you
think
my kind does to curry favor with people? Bake them cakes?”

“You’ve killed for her,” Ariane said slowly. The reminder that she was going to be traveling with—and was actively considering sleeping with—a cold-blooded killer was like a hard slap across the face. Maybe she needed the reminder. It was far too easy to forget.

“Her enemies are clever,” Damien said with an unmistakable note of pride. “Not only does Mormo pay well, she always provides a challenge. Or she did. A shame that—” He caught himself from finishing the sentence and simply shook his head. “Never mind. Let’s be off.”

Ariane hesitated when he opened the car door for her.

“So you’ve… killed a lot of people, then?” Ariane asked, suddenly unsure of what, exactly, she was doing getting into a car with a man like him. It was one thing to know he was a Shade. It was quite another to hear him talk about the specifics… and leave the impression he really enjoyed the work.

Damien sighed loudly and looked at his watch. “Yes, Ariane. Look, it’s past ten already, and the estate is outside of the city. Could you just get in?”

He seemed to realize then that something was wrong and looked at her closely. Ariane had to struggle to stay still beneath the sudden intensity of his gaze. She’d folded her hands in front of her and realized he’d probably noted that one hand had the other in a death grip.

“You look afraid of me all of a sudden, kitten,” Damien said, stepping closer, his eyes turning feline in the dark. His voice was soft, but there was an undercurrent that made Ariane want to run. It took everything she had to stand her ground, but she refused to back away. It would only encourage him.

“Not afraid,” Ariane said, though it wasn’t quite the
truth. “I just… Does life mean so little to you? All the people you’ve killed, all the things you’ve destroyed… you never regret living this way?”

He arched a brow. “That’s quite a question, coming from a pampered highblood who’s never had to lift a finger for anything in her life.”