Master of the Night (15 page)

A trail of sparks hung in the air in her wake, glittering seductively. Erin gritted her teeth and followed.

 

Reece could feel
the need for the Daysleep pressing harder on his body as he struggled to explain the situation to the Sidhe king.

He was relieved when Llyr's expression grew grim. “This spell of Geirolf's would destroy the Magekind?”

“Down to the last vampire and Maja,” Reece told him. “So you can see why the High Court needs to be informed immediately. If you could get a message…”

Llyr's opalescent gaze narrowed with calculation. “Not just yet.”

“Your Majesty…”

“Geirolf can't work his spell without a sacrifice, which means he's blocked for the time being. The High Council can continue as they are for a few hours more.”

Reece put a tight grip on his temper. “Unless he decides to kidnap another vampire and Latent.”

“Which would take a great deal more time and effort to arrange than simply recapturing you and Erin. He'll try for that first. Again, the situation can wait until you awake. You can report to your High Council yourself.”

“But the sooner they learn of this, the more time they have to find a spell to defeat him.”

Llyr shrugged. “I'm sure such capable people are more than up to the task of handling Geirolf.”

He was too damn tired for diplomacy. “The High Council has always considered you an ally. Were we wrong?”

“Any alliance works both ways, Lord Reece,” the king said coolly. “My people, too, face threats, yet yours have been less than willing to assist me in vanquishing them.”

Damn, Reece had known the Majae's Council's arrogance would come back to bite them one day. But he'd had no idea his own anatomy would be the target for the teeth. “Your assistance now could change that,” Reece pointed out carefully.

Llyr made a dismissive gesture, his eyes drifting to Erin's elegant profile. “Be that as it may, your High Council will simply have to wait.”

Reece's heart sank at the interest in the king's gaze. He needed to find a bed, but watching Llyr watch Erin, he'd never dreaded sleep more. It didn't take a tactician to realize the Sidhe was mentally spinning plans around her.

Was Llyr considering romancing her? Reece could see why he might be tempted, even aside from Erin's considerable attractions. The Majae's Court had refused him over and over again, but Erin had no ties to the court. Hell, they might even execute her. From the Sidhe king's point of view, she was ripe for the plucking.

On the other hand, since she had no Court connections, wedding Erin would not gain Llyr the close alliance with Avalon he needed. So what exactly were his intentions?

Either way, she seemed unaware of Llyr's interest. Reece would have found that encouraging, if she hadn't been paying such wild-eyed attention to things that weren't there.

“She is still adjusting to her powers,” Llyr said softly, watching Erin as the four of them walked down the hall. Her wary gaze was fixed on something that seemed to be pacing her, about six inches from her eyes.

“It's a profound adjustment, Your Majesty,” Reece said, forgetting his unease at the other man's intentions in his concern for Erin. “She's done well with her new abilities, all things considered, but it's going to take her a little while longer to get used to them.”

The king's lids veiled his opalescent gaze. “Assuming the Majae's Council doesn't kill you both first. They've been looking for you, you know. A locator spell.”

Reece felt his muscles tense. A group of Majae could arrive at any time to check on him. And they wouldn't be pleased to discover he'd turned Erin without permission.

“Don't worry—I blocked it as soon as I discovered you,” the Sidhe told him bluntly. “They're casting about on the wrong side of the planet now, following a false trail.”

Reece blinked, not sure whether to be relieved or outraged. “Why?”

The king's full attention was focused on Erin, who had stopped dead in the hallway, staring intently at some invisible something. “I don't want them killing her.”

“Contrary to your evident belief, they're not totally inflexible. When I explain the threat Geirolf poses and the risk Erin took to free us—”

“—they may spare you,” Llyr finished. He shrugged. “Or not. Were I you, I would be disinclined to take the chance.” His gaze returned to Erin. “She deserves better.”

“Of course she does,” Reece snapped back.

The king shot him a cool, calculating look. “Then perhaps when you return to Avalon, you should leave her here until you have convinced your Majae's Court you were right to Change her.”

He stiffened. “I don't think that would be wise.”

“I am more than capable of protecting her.”

“They'll need to examine her to determine she's sane.”

“They can send an emissary here.”

“What's your interest in Erin?” The Sidhe king stiffened, his face taking on a mask of arrogant offense at the question. Reece shrugged. “With all due respect, you just met her.”

“That is no business of yours.”

“Actually,” Erin said suddenly, “it's a good question.” Her eyes met the king's in challenge as she moved to join them. “I wouldn't mind knowing the answer to it myself.”

Llyr's expression softened. “When I saved you, I touched your mind.” He reached up and brushed a lock of hair from her face. Reece felt raw jealousy stab him at the tenderness of the gesture. “I liked what I found.”

Erin's lips parted. Before she could speak, the king turned to gesture at a nearby doorway. “These will be your quarters for the Daysleep. When you awake, I will transport you to Avalon.”

Reece opened his mouth to ask to be sent to the High Court immediately. But he could feel the sun pressing against the horizon, and knew it was doubtful he could remain conscious long enough to explain the complex situation. And what would the Majae do to Erin before he awoke? She'd be safer here until he was awake to defend her.

Dammit, he should have thought of this earlier. Probably would have, if he hadn't been so distracted by his uncharacteristic jealousy. Still, he had to make sure the court was warned about the demon's plans. “Please, Your Highness—send a message to the Court. Warn them Geirolf has escaped.”

The king hesitated. “I will consider it.”

He knew he didn't have time to argue further. Reece turned on leaden feet and pushed the door aside as he felt the sun shove its leading edge into the sky. He staggered.

Suddenly Erin was beside him, one slim hand gripping his biceps as the other arm circled his waist. “Can the sunlight reach him in here?” she demanded over her shoulder.

“No, I've polarized the glass.”

She threw him a questioning look. “Will that be enough to protect you?”

“Yeah,” he managed as he forced his legs to carry him toward a shape he recognized as a bed. “I wouldn't…really turn to dust, you know.”

“I know.” She shrugged. “But I just wanted to make sure.”

“Watch out for the king,” Reece gritted. “He wants something from you.”

“Yeah, I figured that out,” Erin said. “Sleep now.”

“Persuade him to warn Avalon,” he managed as they struggled the last couple of feet. He tumbled onto something soft the instant before the Daysleep fell on him like a velvet hammer.

 

Erin watched Reece's
handsome face go lax as sleep claimed his big body. She found herself feeling a little abandoned.

Vampire or not, he'd become her refuge in a world gone thoroughly alien. In that moment she wanted nothing more than to crawl into the bed next to him and wrap herself around his warm strength.

“Come,” Llyr said from the doorway. “I would like to show you the rest of my palace.”

Erin looked down at Reece's still profile. His dark eyelashes lay on his high cheekbones like feathers. “I'm not sure I'm up for a tour, Your Highness. It's been a rough night.”

“Ungrateful creature,” Janieda said.

Erin stiffened and turned. The fairy eyed her maliciously from behind the Sidhe king's shoulder. Llyr watched her coolly, as if wondering whether Janieda was right.

It occurred to Erin that if she wasn't careful, the fairy would poison the Sidhe king against them before they woke. And God knew what situation they'd face then.

Besides, Reece was right. Avalon needed to be warned about Geirolf, and Llyr was the logical one to do it. She shoved away her exhaustion. “I am deeply grateful for my rescue. And I would love to see your palace.”

No expression stirred behind Llyr's watchful eyes. He nodded and extended a hand. “Then come, and I will show it to you.”

Putting aside her longing, Erin walked away from Reece's big, powerful body and took the Sidhe king's hand.

 

The palace was
indeed impressive, as much artwork as architecture, filled with dazzling colors and fabrics.

Not to mention the Sidhe themselves. They were the most uniformly beautiful people Erin had ever seen in her life. There was none of the imperfection one would see among any group of humans she knew: no overweight bodies, bad teeth, big noses, receding hairlines. The men were lean and tall and broad-chested, with long, angular faces and gently pointed ears. The women were small, slim, lovely enough to make Erin's teeth ache. Yet she would have mistaken them for human, had it not been for the whimsical color of hair, eyes, and skin: blues, screaming reds, iridescent purples, and metallic golds.

She found herself just enjoying the view.

For their part, they all seemed fanatically devoted to Llyr. Everywhere they went, beautiful, elegant people paid homage to the Sidhe king. And they weren't just currying favor with a powerful man; Erin sensed they genuinely admired the king and viewed him as a hero.

The longer she spoke with him, the easier it was to see why. He might be a ruthless opportunist with ulterior motives, but he was also intelligent, witty, and genuinely concerned about his people.

Add that to astonishing good looks, extreme wealth, and a kingdom full of adoring fairies, and you had a devastating package all the way around.

Yet even as she watched Llyr charm both her and his court, she found her thoughts drifting to Reece. When would he wake—and what would he do then? He'd have to return to Avalon to warn the High Court about Geirolf's plans. It was his duty; he had no choice, and she knew it.

But what kind of reception would he get? For that matter, what kind of reception would
she
get when they discovered Reece had changed her? True, he'd had excellent reasons, but the High Court sounded like a ruthless bunch. What if they viewed her as a threat?

Damn, she wished they didn't have to go to Avalon. It would be so much better if they could sidestep the whole problem.

“You've grown quiet,” Llyr observed, his glowing gaze searching her face as they walked together in the palace's sprawling gardens.

“I'm concerned about Reece,” Erin admitted, watching a fairy in winged form standing on the petals of an exotic flower, busily doing something to it. “I'm worried about how the High Court will react when they learn he's Gifted me.”

“You have reason to be concerned,” Llyr said. “The Magekind can be extraordinarily ruthless where their Great Mission is concerned.”

Erin lifted a brow. “Great Mission?”

He shrugged his shoulders and took her by the hand, leading her farther into the garden. “To save humankind from itself. They have no objection to spilling blood when it comes to accomplishing that goal. And I would hate to see yours among the blood they spill.”

“So would I,” Erin said dryly. She hesitated, then took a chance. “Could I prevail upon you to send a message to the Magekind explaining the situation? It would make things much safer for us if we didn't have to go to Avalon.”

“Unfortunately, Reece doesn't have the luxury of staying away,” Llyr pointed out. “He has to go back, or he'll be suspected of treason.” Reading the expression on her face, he shrugged. “I know I wouldn't take it well if one of my soldiers defected to a foreign court rather than face my justice.”

“But there was nothing Reece could do except Change me! If we hadn't escaped from that cell, all of Magekind would have been destroyed.”

“They have seers of their own, Erin,” Llyr pointed out. “It's entirely possible they would have foreseen Geirolf's intentions.”

“Or perhaps they wouldn't have. We had to warn them. We still do.”

“Champion does, perhaps,” the king said. “But you don't.”

Erin shook her head. “Your Highness, I can't just stand by and let Geirolf destroy Magekind. And I can't leave Reece to face the High Court alone.”

“Both Champion and the Magekind are more than capable of taking care of themselves,” Llyr said. “You're not.”

Something zipped by, shedding sparks. She automatically pivoted to watch it go, then returned her attention to the king. “That may be, but I can't hide from the High Court forever. They'd find me.”

Suddenly long, warm fingers closed over her hand. “Not if you stayed here in my palace,” Llyr said. “With me.”

Erin turned to look up at him, shocked. And saw his head lower. Before she could step back, he was kissing her, his mouth moving in hot demand over hers.

Llyr was a
tall man, with the rangy, sculpted build of a long-distance runner and a talented mouth. Yet though it was pleasant being kissed by him, held by him, Erin's body didn't leap in response as it had when he'd brought her back to life. Instead, as he thrust his tongue deep between her startled lips, she felt only anger.

Who the hell did he think he was? He wasn't Reece.

She turned her head away from his kiss and tried to step back, but once again, he wouldn't release her. “Let me go!” she growled as he raked his teeth over the tensed cords of her throat.

He jerked his head up. For just an instant, as he studied her, angry frustration blazed in his eyes. Then his face went blank, as if he'd smothered his anger like a man pinching out a candle. “So, you do love him.”

Erin blinked, startled out of her outrage. “What? No—” She broke off, realizing the idea felt far more right than it had any business being. Straightening her shoulders, she rejected it firmly. “I've only known him a couple of days. Nobody falls in love that fast.”

“It certainly isn't rational,” the king agreed.

“But no more so than asking a perfect stranger to live with you,” Erin pointed out. “I don't believe in love at first sight, Your Majesty.”

“Actually, my proposal is entirely rational,” Llyr said, moving to drop into a carved marble bench. “And as much as it pains me to say so, this has nothing to do with love.” He paused. “At least, not yet.”

She studied him warily. He was, after all, a king; it wouldn't do to anger him. Yet his bald-faced proposition was insulting. “So, Your Highness, what entirely rational reason do you have for wanting me to move in with you?”

“Ah.” Understanding flooded his eyes. “You think I want you to be my consort. I'd wondered why you were insulted. No, that's not what I have in mind at all.” He settled back into an elegant sprawl, extending both arms along the back of the bench. Only a blind woman would have failed to see his staggering beauty. “I want you to be my queen.”

“Oh.” Erin blinked and rocked back on her heels. Something glittering shot past her, but this time she was too stunned to notice. “Why?”

He shrugged, a lift of a brawny shoulder in his doublet. “You'd be good at it.”

He had to be playing her, but she was damned if she could see why he'd bother. “What leads you to that conclusion?”

“I touched your mind, Erin. I've never met a female with more steel, more strength. When you decide on a purpose, you are utterly focused on it.” He smiled slightly. “I have some familiarity with that trait. It's a good one in a ruler.”

Erin lifted a brow. “I'm flattered, Your Majesty, but you've got an entire kingdom full of fairies here. Surely one or two of them is as stubborn as I am.” And every last one of them was certainly more beautiful.

He shrugged. “But they're Sidhe. And there's a problem with the Sidhe; we're not a very fertile lot. Normally, that's more blessing than curse, since we're also immortal. If we were as prolific as humans, we'd quickly overrun the planet.”

Erin studied him cautiously. Her first instinct was to give him a flat refusal, but she had a feeling that would be a very bad idea. Besides, there was something going on here, something she'd do well to understand. “So why do you need a royal broodmare? I assume that's what we're talking about.”

He looked up at her, warning heat stirring in his eyes. No, this was not a man she wanted to piss off. “I'm not sure whether I find your bluntness refreshing or irritating. People are usually more diplomatic when dealing with me.”

“I'm an American cop, Your Majesty.” She spread her hands. “We don't even have royalty, and diplomacy has never been my strong suit anyway.”

“Indeed?” he drawled, “I would not have guessed.”

She smiled slightly, acknowledging the sarcasm. “All of which makes me an unlikely candidate for queen. Which begs the question: Why do you need children badly enough to offer
me
a crown?”

Llyr sighed. For a moment he looked almost vulnerable. “The Sidhe are not really immortal. We may not age, but we can die in battle—or from an assassin's knife.”

“And like leaders everywhere, Sidhe kings make particularly attractive targets,” Erin guessed. “Who's gunning for you, Your Highness?”

Llyr pulled a hand through his waist-length hair. “My brother, I'm afraid. Sixteen hundred years ago, shortly before he died in battle helping Merlin defeat the Dark Gods, my father divided his kingdom between the two of us. For centuries, Ansgar has dreamed of reuniting it.”

“By killing you.”

He nodded. “Yes. By killing me.”

“Forgive the observation, Your Highness, but your brother sounds like a bastard.”

“He is,” Llyr said bluntly. “And I don't want him ruling my people. He'd abuse them the way he abuses his own.”

“What happened to your other children? Surely you've had some in sixteen hundred years. Not to mention a queen or two.”

“Oh, yes.” His eyes turned inward and brooding. “Unfortunately, those around me don't seem to have as much luck dodging assassins as I. I lost my fifth queen a century ago. My last son died two years past. He was little more than a boy—only one hundred and ten—when one of Ansgar's magical assassins struck him down as he hunted a Dark Beast.”

Erin shook her head. “All right, I see why you need a palace full of heirs, though none of this fills me with enthusiasm for giving them to you. But why me? Realspace Earth has a population of six billion, half of them women, a good chunk of those highly fertile and unmarried. Any of them would leap into your arms with hosannas of thanksgiving.”

“I don't need a human wife. I need an immortal with powers of her own, yet all the fertility of a mortal.”

“So you proposed to the first Maja who came along?” Something shifted behind his opalescent eyes, and she knew. “Oh. There've been others.”

He shrugged. “A Maja's first loyalty is to the Great Mission.”

She rocked back on her heels and studied his otherworldly beauty. “It must be, if they turned
you
down.”

“Actually, the Majae's Council wouldn't even let me approach any of them.” His wide mouth twisted in frustration. “The Council has a tight grip on its witches, and no intention at all of relaxing it.”

“And then I came along.” Erin folded her arms. “An outlaw Maja facing the possibility of execution, with no commitment to this mission of theirs and in desperate need of protection.”

Llyr looked up at her sharply. “I meant what I said. I want you for my queen because of your strength and courage as much as any practical consideration. And you have the strongest natural talent for magic I've ever seen in someone not a member of my direct family. All you need is instruction in its use, and it would be extremely difficult for anyone to touch you, even my brother's assassins.” His eyes sharpened. “Or the Knights of the Round Table.”

All right, how the hell was she supposed to get out of this without pissing him off? She could think of only one argument this hardheaded, strong-willed man would have to accept. “That's fine, Your Highness, but what about my children? What kind of mother would knowingly bring a child into a world where he's a target the minute he's born?”

“Ansgar's assassins never managed to touch my offspring in childhood. I surrounded them with bodyguards and wards to keep them safe. It was only as they became adults and chafed under my protection that they became vulnerable.” He caught her hand in his. “And by then, they were seventy or eighty years old. How long would your children live, Erin?”

“Still—”

His long fingers tightened on hers, warm and strong. “Give me a chance, Erin. My people need you. I need you.”

Looking into those beautiful, demanding eyes, it was hard to tell him no. “Your Highness—” She sighed. “If we were in love, it might be different.”

Llyr's opalescent gaze hardened, though his tone was light. “Well, milady, if it's love you want…” Sudden heat flashed from his fingers into hers. Erin actually felt it roll up her arm in a shimmering wave that made her gasp even as her nipples drew to tight buds behind the thin fabric of her T-shirt. Low in her belly, lust roared to sudden life. She stared at Llyr helplessly, her eyes tracking from his sensual, perfect mouth to the broad expanse of his shoulders, and down to the bulge growing swiftly behind his codpiece. Deep, intimate muscles clenched as she felt herself run like hot butter with the need to feel him within her, driving hard and deep.

Even as her body leaped in helpless response, hot temper stirred. “Stop,” she gritted, trying to jerk her hand free. For a moment she seriously considered slugging him, king or no. “Dammit, cut that out!”

His brows lifted as he read the anger boiling beneath her need. A second spell rolled from his fingers, this one cooling and soothing the vicious ache he'd created. He released her, and she stumbled back, fists clenched as she fought the need to hit him. “I meant only to make a point,” he told her, his voice low and strained. “I could have lied to you to get what I wanted. I could have bewitched you into feeling something that's not real. But I wanted there to be honesty between us, even if that honesty did not serve my cause.”

“I don't care if you are a king,
Your Majesty,
” she growled, “I won't be forced!”

Llyr sighed. “Perhaps it wasn't such a wise thing to do at that.” He hesitated. “You should know that anyone with my level of power could have done the same thing. However, there are ways to shield yourself. Techniques that will also allow you to control your powers more effectively so you don't find the energies of the Mageverse so distracting.” He met her gaze levelly. “I can show you, if you're willing to permit it. I swear I won't violate your trust again.”

Erin hesitated, studying his breathtaking face. Despite his little demonstration, she'd learned when he'd healed her that he had a deep core of ruthless honor. If he gave his word, he wouldn't violate it. Slowly she nodded. “If you can teach me how to shield myself, I'd like to learn.”

 

Erin pushed open
the chamber door and walked inside, a vicious headache pounding behind her eyes. A shaft of light fell across Reece's handsome face as he lay, sprawled in handsome exhaustion. She closed the door and crossed the room to him, feeling helplessly drawn to the shelter that big body offered.

She had worked with Llyr for the past three hours learning how to shield her mind from magical probes. By the time they finished, her face had run with sweat, but the last time he'd tried to reach into her mind, she'd been able to block him out.

Not that it was easy. Llyr was so damn powerful, keeping him out of her thoughts was like trying to arm wrestle Arnold Schwarzenegger. But she'd done it.

Now her hands shook with exhaustion as she peeled the T-shirt over her head and sat down on the edge of the bed to pull off her running shoes. She watched the first one thunk to the floor, remembering her conversation with the king just before he'd left her.

“It's a big palace, Erin,” Llyr had said, as they stopped outside the door. “I could assign you another bedroom.”

“I know,” she replied softly. “But I'd rather be with him.” Never mind that she couldn't say exactly why. “I'll sleep better.” It was as good a reason as any.

The king's restless gaze turned toward the door as if he could see through the massive oak. “He's a good man,” he said abruptly, then shrugged. “Or a good vampire, or magus, or whatever he chooses to call himself. He is honorable, certainly. Perhaps too honorable.” He looked at her, and she was struck again by the raw beauty of those eyes. “Don't let that honor fool you into believing you're safe with him. He won't betray the Great Mission for love of you. Even if it meant spending the rest of his immortal life mourning your memory.”

Erin had winced at the sting of his words—a sting all the more intense, she knew, because they were so true. “I know. But you know, Your Highness,” she added gently, “you're an honorable man, too.”

He looked at her for a long moment, then gave her a small, dark smile. “And you wonder why I'd offer you a crown.” Giving her a small half-bow, he turned on his heel. But before he strode off, he looked back at her. “Join us for the evening meal when you wake.” His gaze hardened. “I'll anticipate your answer to my proposal then.”

She'd nodded tightly. “I'll…consider it.”

The thing was, if not for Reece, she'd be seriously tempted to tell him yes. High-handed and arrogant and dangerous as he was, there was something about him that appealed to her. And it wasn't just his astounding male beauty, though that definitely had its appeal. She respected him—his intelligence, his power, his determination to protect his people. He'd do damn near anything to see them safe.

Which made him a very bad man to push. In that sense, he and Reece were a great deal alike.

Now she looked down at her lover as he lay in his deep vampire sleep. “It took me nearly thirty years to find a man I could love, and Geirolf promptly killed him,” Erin said aloud. “And now I've met two more of you in the space of a week. Does that suck or what?” With a sigh she stood up to shuck out of her jeans, then, dressed only in her panties, climbed in the bed next to him.

His big body radiated warmth, and Erin spooned herself against him, letting herself luxuriate in his heat. Confident she couldn't wake him even if she tried, she twined one arm around his waist and let herself fully relax for the first time in hours.

She lay for a long time simply listening to him breathe, feeling his broad chest rise and fall in the curve of her arm. A sense of peace stole over her. It was as though she was finally exactly where she was supposed to be.