Hell's Belle (39 page)

The better question, vampire, is why do you care?
I slammed my shields back down. Serena’s laugh echoed in my head but she didn’t try to get in. For now we all had better things to do than play peek-a-boo in each other’s minds.

I focused on the stone, opening my mind and magic fully to our connection. It was similar to rising in the mind’s eye, but whereas that plane was full of life and beauty and endless shades of every color, this place was bleak. We were on the cusp of the void between worlds. Here there was only the cold, black emptiness of oblivion.

Except, my fire brought life. It was a thousand shades of shimmering red that collided with Nicodemus’s inky blackness. Nearly as dark as the void, his corruption flowed like an endless ocean in the boundlessness of space, threatening to consume my fire, a lone candle set adrift in the midst of his darkness.

My direct connection to the gate provided me a small advantage. And there was the fact that Nicodemus was fighting on both the physical and magical planes. But let’s not bullshit around. No amount of training could have prepared me or any other guardian for going up against this much power, especially not alone, with all my erstwhile backup occupied trying to keep the general population from being overrun by a horde of hungry raptors. So I was on my own. If I’d just been witch or guardian, we’d be lost. But I was, apparently, something more.

I reached down, releasing the locks I’d used to bind my other, darker half—the half that had grown much stronger in the past few weeks. For a moment, I thought I might understand the vampires’ unquenchable thirst for blood. My dark side was hungry for it, but not to drink. No, it wanted to spill the precious life-giving fluid. It thrilled for the hunt. The conquest. But there was something it longed for even more. And I understood this need. It drove my own actions, reminding me that, even dark and blood-thirsty, this demon-half was still me. More than anything else, it wanted its freedom, and I shamelessly offered that possibility like a carrot on a stick.

You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours. And we’ll both try not to sink our claws too deep.
I nearly laughed aloud—I was talking to myself. But the laughter stuck midway when I felt an answering stir from deep within.

Agreed.

Power surged, like gasoline poured on the flames of my fire. I channeled the magic, pushing it into the gate, never letting a drop spread past my body or the black stone, lest someone knowledgeable, like Fera’s operatives, see. The power turned my candle into a small bonfire, then a larger one, until it spread like forest fire, bringing blazing rivers of light to the darkness.
Now we’re cooking with gas.
That thought made me snort. My only excuse: the strain on my body was immense. The delirium was obviously setting in.

I focused on the portion of the gate that Nicodemus had sunk his twisted teeth into, carefully avoiding the semi-sentient tendrils reaching out of the void to Brittan. I didn’t dare get too close. But while that magic, too, was dark like Nicodemus’s, its blackness was natural, rippling like water reflecting the night sky. It was tempting to lean close in hopes of catching a glimpse of some strange and wonderful world that might reside just below the surface, but I resisted. A part of me knew that like the grim mermaids of old that led sailors to their deaths, there would be no return for any who ventured into those waters.

Perhaps it was a moment. Perhaps hours. Our magic fought, forming black and red eddies of pure power. Like giant waterspouts, they pounded each other. For the longest time, it was an even match. Sweat beaded on my head. My limbs weakened, but I stood my ground, never losing my connection with the gate. Dimly, I could hear the clang, hiss and pop as Nicodemus’s and Jacq’s blades smashed against each other. Then I heard Nicodemus cackle and felt a flash of pain.

My connection slipped, and I scrambled to regain it. He’d winged her!
Oh, he was going to pay for that.
I needed Jacq healthy and whole. The woman had asked me out on a damn date, and there was no way in hell that she was getting out of it. She’d seen me with a snotty nose and red puffy eyes and
still
wanted to date me. She was a keeper.

My sense of urgency tripled. I pushed more fire into the gate, digging for everything I had left, but it wasn’t enough. The more I sent against him, the more Nicodemus’s darkness spread. My spirits started to flag. Then I remembered—I wasn’t alone. I closed my eyes tighter. The others would already be by my side if they could, sharing what magic they had left to give. Still, I sent the call.

More.

Even as it winged away, I realized my mistake. I was too connected to the gate, my mind too deep into the battle. Like a ship on the edge of a black hole, my mental cry floundered, skimming around the void’s edge before succumbing to the inevitable and falling in.

I stood between two paths. If I pulled back close enough to the physical plane to call for help, Nicodemus would surge forward. The gate was seconds from opening. Could I hold him those few precious moments if my magic and will weren’t completely in the fight? I thought not. But if I stayed here, we would remain locked in this endless stalemate until one of us tired or was killed.

Nicky-boy was drawing magic from others, fueling his fight on both fronts. Jacq and I didn’t have the same resources. Her increasing exhaustion paralleled my own. Even my demon-half was quiet now. The beast, asleep in its cage, had shared all it could, or would, for the time being.

Like a general surveying the troops, my mind stood behind the forces of fire. Perhaps it was my imagination, but I almost saw little flaming men racing against those of darkness, heralded on by dragons, mouths spraying red plumes of magic. Whether they were real or only another sign of my flagging energy really wasn’t relevant. Any way you cut it, this was a war. And in war, there were casualties. There was only one source of power left. Although I knew no witch that had done this, I now understood why a witch might sacrifice a piece of her soul—and ultimately her entire life—for something. Would I…could I…do the same?

I thought of everyone I loved. My Nana. Aunt Helena. Mynx.
Jacq.
Too great a liability, they would be the first to die under the demons’ hands. Without making a conscious decision, I’d found my answer. I reached inside, this time, for a different lock, the one that kept my soul bound inside its earthly cordon.

Something jolted me from behind, causing my magical fingers to slip. Another force flowed into me, into my fire. The most unlikely of allies, the void’s shimmering black power flowed around me, pushing with me. I didn’t understand why this being, whatever it might be that resided between worlds, was helping. But that was exactly what it was doing. The black ripples of power sank into my fire, but instead of extinguishing it, they turned to molten rivers of lava. Like melted stone, they flowed, racing past my own power, circling Nicodemus’s darkness.

Reminiscent of the sphere I’d used to banish Sarkoph, it spiraled inward, ever tightening Nicodemus’s noose. Energized by a sudden well of hope, my magic surged forward. Together, we pushed Nicodemus out.

And the gate was mine.

I opened my eyes in time to see Nicodemus spin to stare at me. His gasped “Hell-spawn!” was lost in the chaos, but I read it clearly on his lips. Jacq’s glowing sword arced toward his distracted head, and I formed a picture in my mind.
Red skies. Blue grass. Hordes of roaming raptors.
Then I opened the gate, setting the destination.

It was time for all good little demon children to go home.

A loud whistle pierced the night just as Jacq’s sword removed Nicodemus’s head from his shoulders. Getting distracted at the wrong moment would do that to a man. With no beating heart to pump, there was no gruesome blood spray—which, if you asked me, was a bit anticlimactic. The body fell a few feet away, the severed head rolling until it fell off the stage.

All eyes turned to me, and I lowered my fingers from my lips. No longer under their masters’ control, the raptors ran amok, hungry but too weak and scared to attack. Like a passel of extras from an over-budget B movie, I could practically see them spinning in circles, muttering, “What’s my motivation? What’s my motivation?” Well, since you asked…

“One-way ticket to the Illtrath plane, right here.” I jerked my thumb toward the rippling black surface. Like a mirror, it only reflected the chaos around us. But I knew that another world waited on the other side. I’d seen its wild primitive beauty for a millisecond while connecting both gates. At my words, Serena sent the mental command I’d given her, and a multitude of raptors spun as one, heading straight for me.

I scrambled out of the way, only realizing after I’d hustled aside that now the raptors’ path separated me from Jacq. The hug I so desperately wanted would have to wait until all our beastie guests had cleared out.

Or not.

With a flash of silver and a lightning quick jump between two raptors, Jacq stood before me. I panicked. What if this thing between us had only been some adrenaline-induced coma that we’d awaken from now that everything was over?

Then Jacq’s warm body was against mine, pressing me into the brick, shielding me from the raptors that passed us by, oblivious to anything but their doorway home. Her hand went around my neck, cushioning my head. Familiar magic
zinged
, easing the aching throb and bubbling nausea which were surfacing now that the endorphins were gone.

I opened my mouth, but Jacq placed her forehead against my own. Her words, whispered inches from my lips, silenced me. “I’m not going to tell you the things you want to hear.”

I shut my mouth. My aunt would’ve chided that the way my eyebrows were drawn together would give me wrinkles, but that was the least of my concerns. I wasn’t sure if I should object and say I didn’t need words…or ask, why not? So I said nothing. “I’m not going to say the words,” Jacq continued, “because, eventually, you would doubt them, and I can’t bear the thought of that.”

My closed eyes misted, but I opened them to gaze into the stormy depths of eyes that looked into me with such determination. Despite the moisture left to freely flow down my cheeks, I couldn’t look away. I would have nodded to acknowledge the truth of what Jacq said, but she still held my head, sending healing power into my system. Her grip was gentle, but I couldn’t bring myself to pull away…to lose that connection.

“I’ve said before that I don’t understand this,” I rasped, “and that scares me. But I meant what I said, I’m not running. It’s just…” I closed my eyes, desperate to express what I felt. It seemed too soon to speak of love. And perhaps it was a sign of irrational jealousy, but Jacq was hundreds of years older than me. I couldn’t help thinking that in all those centuries at least one other woman had whispered in her ear, “I love you.” I wanted what was growing between us unclouded by memories of past loves lost, and maybe a tiny part of me wanted to keep something of myself safe. I couldn’t help thinking that someday she’d walk away…whether she wanted to or not.

I tried again. “I never really thought I’d find someone who looks at me like you do. At least, not in this lifetime.” I opened my eyes. Jacq’s glow had dimmed, but the look in those two orbs had not. “Part of me fears that I’ll get used to that.” I sucked in a lungful of air before taking the plunge. “And part of me hopes for it with every breath.” I flooded our mental connection with the truest essence of what I felt for her.

Jacq gasped, her body thrumming with heat as my emotions hit her. Sure, there was lust and the unrelenting attraction we had for each other. But more, there was my amazement at how gentle she was, my joy at seeing the little considerate things she had done, my respect for the times (even before we’d met) that she’d consistently acted to protect others, going so far as leaving a powerful post with the Council to work with human law enforcement. And above it all was my love, shining bright. Which was how she made me feel: radiant, as if someone saw me, even the secrets I’d yet to share. I felt both cherished and desired simply for being me, for being Cate.

That was the most exhilarating, most frightening thing I’d ever felt.

“Cate.” This time it was Jacq’s turn to close her eyes.

“Yes, Detective Slone?” I put my arms around her, doing a fair imitation of her single eyebrow arch. Her eyes opened, lips twitching into that familiar, heart-stopping half-grin. I couldn’t help but echo her smile.

But Jacq’s voice was all seriousness as she said, “I may have misled you.”

My heart dropped, my arms sliding away. Her hands stopped my retreat.

“I want much more than the one date you promised me.”

Jacq yelped as I elbowed her in the ribs, but I was smiling as I limped down the stairs. She followed close behind. I might’ve bruised a hip when Nicodemus had sacked me, but my heart was whole and overflowing. Still, as I stepped into the stage’s shadows, that didn’t stop me from ribbing her one last time. “We’ll have to see about that.”

As we moved off the stage, I glimpsed, between the moving raptors, a vampire, silhouetted in the moon’s glow, lay a tarp over the third boy. My good humor quickly faded. Jacq gave me an inquiring look. I shook my head. There was blood on my hands. Maybe not literally, though if I dared to look closely enough, there was probably plenty of that, too. It’s not as if I hadn’t killed before, but never had the blood been so innocent, the brief life so undeserving of an end.

I had killed a boy…a man really. Some might argue that he was dead either way, but I didn’t see it like that. I’d made the decision to sacrifice one, possibly three, to save millions. I’d crossed a line and would have to live with the consequences. Most of me wanted to be with Jacq. To burrow into her heat and forget what I’d done. But there was a small part that wanted to be alone, to digest this. The raptors pouring through the parking lot’s middle made the decision easy.

My limp slowed me. Jacq offered to carry me through the raptors to our friends, but I waved her away. Jacq wanted me by her side to speed my healing with magic she didn’t have to spare. I pointed out that the others needed her, and I could stay on this side and do what I did best: Issue orders.