Sweet Temptation (34 page)

I force my eyes wide and shake my head. “But . . . why would an angelic weapon allow her to use it? I've watched her lead souls astray, and I nailed her myself. She's hardly angel material.”

Those words feel especially acidic on my lips.

“I . . .” He shakes his head, looking almost frightened. “We don't know.”

We have stumped the Dukes, for what it's worth. Now to attempt to lead them astray.

“Is it possible someone is trying to deceive all of you? Point you in the wrong direction? I mean, how do you know about the sword, and the spirits she supposedly killed?”

He ponders this, still appearing baffled. “One of them escaped.”

“I hope that spirit isn't misleading you,” I say. The trio of whisperers advance on me with claws and teeth bared. I wave a hand to ward them off.

“They're too stupid to come up with something like that.” The whisperers reel back and glare at Father as if deciding whether or not to be offended. He gives a flick of his wrist and points to the door. They swoosh out and Father goes on. “Unless they're being led by someone. But I haven't seen a spirit that terrified since the Fall. We sent it down to Lord Lucifer for further questioning. He'll get the truth out of it.”

I can't respond because my muscles are tensed against the shudder that Satan's name elicits.

“We've got Legionnaires on the hunt for both her and her father. Belial's been eluding us for a while now, so he's definitely up to something.”

I nod. “I see you're keeping several whisperers with you to keep an eye out. That's good.”

He puffs his chest out and
hmphs
. “I'm not going to let that girl get in a sneak attack. The other Dukes and I are staying armed and ready. We'll find her and hold an emergency
summit to learn the truth and get rid of her once and for all. Angels be damned.”

And that is when the truth will be made known. Please, let this work.

“What can I do to help?” I ask.

“Search for her. If you find her, she becomes your prisoner, and you'll notify me immediately. Do whatever is necessary to keep her with you and get her to the location we choose for the summit. And most important, disarm her. Under no circumstances should she be allowed access to the Sword of Righteousness.”

“Of course. I'll begin immediately. I have a few ideas where she might be.”

“Good.” He steps closer and looks me dead in the eye. “It's in your best interest not to fail me in this endeavor. Do you understand?”

Another death threat. How original. Thing is, I'm no longer scared for myself. My only concern is Anna. For her sake, I won't punch old Pharzuph in his new face. Yet.

“I understand,” I answer.

His eyes are bright; he's probably feeling the glorious weight of his power trip. “I'm going to Marissa's tonight, and I leave in the morning. My new duty station will be in New York City, so it's time for me to get settled there. Don't waste any time getting to work on your task.”

“Yes, sir,” I say absently, still stuck on one tiny detail. “But you're going to Marissa's, you say?” Doesn't she think he's dead?

He chuckles and flashes that obnoxiously wide grin again. “Marissa is a special human. She knows about our kind. She's
expecting me, and can't wait to get her claws into my new skin.”

His grin is still huge and I force a nod. Yeah, she's special all right. An especially evil bitch. “She must be an exceptional woman if you've been able to trust her in such a way.”

Father pulls out his mobile and glances at it, then pockets it again. “Exceptional, yes. And I still expect you to be at her service if she calls on you, regardless of whether or not we live here.”

Like hell I will. “Of course, Father. Enjoy your evening. I'll begin my search for the Neph straightaway.”

“If you need to involve the son of Melchom to help you, then do that. He has a lot of resources at his disposal on the West Coast.”

“Brilliant idea,” I say.

He turns from me, pulling out his mobile again as he walks out. I stand there alone and listen to him ascending the stairs to the upper floor.

Another heartwarming conversation with Father has ended.

“If love's a fight, then I shall die,

With my heart on a trigger.”

—“Angel with a Shotgun” by The Cab

T
he full weight of our situation doesn't hit me until I'm with Anna again that night. I stare at her brown eyes in the backseat of her car at Lookout Point, where we went after my meeting with Father. Trepidation is heavy on me.

Anna is strong, yes, but she is flesh and bone. She has a tender, sensitive heart. And our grand plan is to set her in front of all the Dukes and Legionnaires in order to play out this prophecy?

Can anyone else see what a bad idea this is? I have a hard time believing this is how it must go down. There has to be another way. She is
one
being with
one
sword. There are 666 of them. Granted, we have a handful of Neph allies, but the
odds are stacked against us.

Perhaps Anna and her father and the others are okay with handing her over to the Dukes to be slaughtered, but I'm bloody well not. I have to make her see straight.

“We don't have to do this. You can stay hidden, like Zania.” I could take Anna to the very same convent.

“I can't hide forever. And what would that mean for you? Your father will expect you to be working. Marissa will be calling you.”

No. None of that matters. “I'll go into hiding with you.”

“That's no way to live.”

Isn't it? We'd be together. Her shoulders are set as she examines my face. I know she can't understand my selfishness, but damn it, I can't understand her self
less
ness either.

“Are you truly not afraid?” I ask. “At all?”

“Of course I am . . . but the chain of events has started, and we can't stop the prophecy now.”

“We can try.” We can slow it down. We don't have to rush straight into the burning fire. Why is she in such a rush to do this? I know the Dukes are evil and the whisperers are a bloody nuisance, but this prophecy could kill her. Could kill all of us. I can't be left on this earth without her. And I can't stand the thought of Anna suffering.

She shakes her head, and her eyes droop as if she feels sorry for me.

“I finally have you, Anna.” I sound so pathetic.

She touches my hand. “And every second we've had together is a blessing I never thought we'd get.”

She takes my shoulder, but I'm so tense I can hardly feel
her hands on me. Anna's hands move up my body and curve around the back of my neck. She holds me hard and kisses me.

This, I feel.

I kiss her back like her mouth offers sustenance. I pull her close and revel in the feel of her hands scratching through my hair. “God, Anna,” I say against her mouth. I hold her so hard, hard enough to keep her here forever. Hard enough that nobody can take her from me.

I tear my mouth from hers and pant for air. “I can't lose you.”

Her hands pull at me, and her voice is ragged with emotion. “Stop thinking that way. I can't fight them if you're not on board, Kai.”

I look at her, and I fucking hate myself. Anna wants to save the world. Not for her own glory, but because she cares about the people who are terrorized by the demons. She cares about the Neph and our way of life. She cares about all the things that I don't. I can't give her what she needs from me right now—my support—and I hate myself for it.

I try to pull away, disgusted with myself, but she takes my face in her firm grasp and puts us nose to nose. “You haven't lost me, Kai. I'm right here with you. Hold me.”

I pull her to my lap and bury my face in her neck. She's right here. In my arms. She knows I'm a selfish prick, but she's still here. I breathe and swallow and hold on tight.

I hold her as the stars light the night sky and the crickets send up their cacophony of mating calls. I hold her as the hours pass and our bodies wind down and weariness catches up with us.

All the while I keep an eye out for whisperers, and I scan with my hearing. It's eerily quiet.

Anna turns against my chest and reaches up to stroke my face. I close my eyes and feel her kind touch. I soak in her love.

“Kaidan, if anything happens to me—”

I jerk, and my eyes snap open, catching hers. “Don't! Don't you dare finish that sentence. Nothing is going to happen to you.”

The pit of dread opens up inside of me. I don't want to talk about this, but she is persistent and unnervingly gentle.

“If we both, you know, end up down there . . . in hell. We can make it through together. We'll keep each other strong until it's time for our judgment.”

I've never heard anyone talk about hell in this way. As if it's something that can be faced and endured. I swallow hard at Anna's vision. To think that even in complete darkness and despair, our souls can cling to each other and still feel this love. I want this dream of hers to be true. I want to cling to this one.

“I'll never leave your side,” I tell her. “I swear it.”

I hold her tight until she falls asleep. And at some point, I let myself drift away, as well.

“No more sex.”

I blink several times at Anna as we stand outside the car the next morning. Have we been married long enough for her to say that?

“Just until after the summit,” she rushes on.

The summit. The summit where we might die. And then we'll never have sex again anyway. What rubbish.

I am not ready for this conversation. I want to go back to last night.

“Kaidan . . .” She takes my hands in hers and tries to explain, but I am numb. “You have to pretend not to like me. It sucks, but it's the smartest plan. If we're both going to survive this, which I really think we can, and
will
, this is our best bet. You're better at hiding your feelings than I am, but at this point it doesn't matter if they think I have feelings for you. You can even say you made me fall for you to lure me in. Your father trusts you to find me and get me to the summit on your own. That's huge. He has to think you're in his pocket until the very last minute. We'll have freedom to communicate with each other and warn the others. Do you really want to jeopardize one of the only things we have going for us?”

I close my eyes.

Why must she be such a reasonable, positive little pixie?

I squeeze her hands.

“No, I don't,” I say. “I'm sorry. I'll do whatever I have to do. Or
not
do.”

I'm about to ask for one last shag when Anna says firmly, “From here on out, no kissing, no holding hands or touching until this is all over. No doing anything that could look suspicious.”

Her eyebrows go up and I reluctantly nod, then let her hands slide from mine. I am secretly
not
in agreement, though I understand her caution. When did Anna become the cautious one when it comes to being caught?

This blows.

I take care of Father's death rubbish later in the morning—funeral home, Realtor, and lawyer. It's not hard to feign mourning, being as I've been sworn off sex. I sign loads of papers and nod, frowning, as people pat my back and shake my hand, and say they're sorry for my loss.

If only that arsehole were truly dead.

I take Father's urn and all the paperwork, and leave the lawyer's office, grumpy as ever.

The plan is to call Father and tell him I've captured Anna, but every time I think about it I want to be sick.

Anna is ready. Her father is ready. The other Neph are at the ready. I'm the only one who's not bloody ready. But I tell myself I'll keep playing along until it gets to be too real. Then I'll call it off and take us into hiding. I'll force her. I'm bigger than her.

It's after one in the afternoon when we get to my old house. Whisperers are still out searching for Anna, and I figure they won't bother looking there. I walk her down to my old room and she glares at the bed like it's a murder scene, probably imagining how it's been worked. I should have taken her upstairs to use the shower, but the other bathrooms have been emptied. I clear my throat and give her a towel.

She goes in the bathroom and I turn on the stereo. I sit on the edge of the bed and lean my forehead against my hands as the music fills my ears. I hope it will drown out all my thoughts of what's to come. Anna doesn't take very long in the bathroom. When the water shuts off I switch off my stereo and look at my dresser. A dark thrill snakes across my skin as I eye the second drawer.

I have to make this “capture” of Anna look believable, don't I?

I slide open the drawer and see the flash of silver in the corner—my high-grade handcuffs. I take them out and shut the door. I can hear Anna humming and I glance around for whisperers. How she can feel content enough to hum is beyond my understanding. Must be the angel blood. I sit back on the bed and turn the handcuffs over and over in my hands while Anna gets ready.

She opens the door and I slowly lift my eyes to her. She's fresh and natural with her summery clothes and wet hair. She stares at the handcuffs with apprehension as I turn them over. That's good. I want her to be scared.

“It's not too late to run,” I say.

She stares a minute more, then whispers, “Yes, it is.”

She stays exactly where she is when I stand and move toward her. I watch her chest rise and fall a bit faster as I stand before her and slide the bag from her arm. I watch her face and she says nothing as I click the cuffs first around one wrist, and then the other. Her breathing is quicker now, and she's right to be frightened. She's mine and I will do what I want with her. That includes throwing her arse into a car and disappearing into the boonies of West Virginia. I hear it's quite nice there.

I look down at her body and the severity of the metal holding her wrists together. The contrast is something beautiful.

“Damn.”

“What?” she whispers.

“You look amazing in handcuffs. And you're officially my prisoner.”

I'm blasted with the warm scent of pears and freesia and I know that if I wanted to, I could make Anna take back that “no sex” rule.

“We can't,” she says, reading my mind. But her words are breathy and unconvincing.

We most definitely
can
. And the low pain in my abdomen begs me to.

She fumbles for words, trying not to look in my eyes. “Remember, you told your father you don't like me. You're not supposed to want me. The whisperers could find us any second. We can't lose our advantage.”

Mm-hm.

“It's time to call him, Kai. Tell him you've found me. And then we'll call the others to let them know it's starting.”

Wait. Call him? Now? I shake my head. “Not yet—”

“Yes.
Now
. Let's get it over with before we lose control and ruin everything.” She sounds steely and passionate. And scared. But it kills me that it's not the Dukes she seems afraid of—her fear seems to be that we,
I
, am going to ruin our opportunity to take them by surprise.

Why did this have to happen so fast? We haven't had enough time.

My thoughts are punctured by the feel of Anna's hand on me.
Down there.

Jackpot.

I look down, and she's pulling my mobile from my pocket, holding it out to me.

Damn. Major false alarm.

“That was brave,” I tell her, but she doesn't smile. She
remains completely serious, and I don't like it one bit.

“It's time,” she whispers.

No . . .

She is still holding out the phone and I feel dizzy as I take it. She goes up on her toes and kisses my cheek, staying there, so close. “I love you, Kai. Let's bring them down. You and me and the others, together. We'll use the element of surprise while we have it.
It's our time
.”

Her words ping through me, and her desperation, her optimism, seep into the cracks of my heart just enough to make me momentarily feel what she feels: hope. This is our chance. Our only chance. Eventually the Dukes will learn about each of us disloyal Neph, and we can spend our lives running in fear, but they will find us and pick us off one by one.

This, right now, is the best chance we possibly have to get rid of them and live a life here on earth without them. Anna's eyes plead with me to support her, and I want to. I do.

I nod and stare down at my phone, then pull up Father's new number. I think about nothing except that sliver of hope. My throat nearly collapses when I hear his new voice answer.

“Father . . .” Oh, God. What have I done? I look at Anna and she nods. I open my mouth and can hardly believe when the next words tumble out. “I've got her.”

The second I say it, all of the hope abandons me.

“You're kidding me!” He whoops loudly and laughs like a damn hyena.

Oh, God. Oh, God.

“She's cuffed,” I say stupidly, feeling like I have to say something.

“Did you find the sword?”