No Rest for the Wicked (23 page)

“Bride, I never thought I’d ever say this to you, but you must focus.”

The way she was staring at him, little fang pressing against her plump bottom lip, eyes

flashing silver, was making him crazed.

“O-of course.” She faced forward. “I’ve got this one down.” One last glance over at him,

and she muttered a curse. “Lookit, the instant the rocks go, these three will attack. Fast.

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) You’ve got to trace immediately.”

“They look slow.”

Without turning, she said, “They want to look slow. You trace, and I’ll dive out, okay?”

“Will they chase you outside?”

“They won’t be able to see in the sun very well.”

“The rocks are about to go,” he grated. “Get back—”

Sunlight shot in like a beam. Luckily, it was late in the day. He lunged back, leaving her

room to leap for the hole. She shimmied out. But the basilisks charged with phenomenal

speed, all three reaching the chamber and leaping with claws bared.

The largest crashed through all the rocks after her. Dust and rubble exploded into the air.

Sebastian couldn’t see her, only heard snapping jaws, then spied her as she ducked. Jaws

slammed shut just over her head.

Sebastian dove for her into the sun, swallowing a bellow of pain, snatching her ankle. Just

as he was tracing them, she kicked him in the face and scrambled away.

Before he could stop, he disappeared without her, then sent himself right back into the

fray. Even half-tracing, he could barely see in the light. His skin burned as though splashed

with acid.

The basilisk had disappeared? Kaderin was on her tiptoes at the very edge of the cliff,

arching her back to keep from falling. Before he could get to her, she’d righted herself,

skipping along the edge. She’d tricked it into falling?

The smallest one and the other were venturing out, blinking and hissing at the light. He

dodged swiping claws to trace back into the dark at the other end of the cavern, then

yelled for them.

When they sprang back inside the tunnel, he dropped onto his back beneath the larger one

and thrust his sword up at its belly. A death blow, planted between scales as big as plates.

Gutted. He yanked the blade back, rolling out of the way.

With a wet roar, it pitched backward onto the small one, trapping it. Sebastian shot to his

feet, tracing to the last basilisk. As it scrambled to get free, claws frantically digging into

the ground in front of it, Sebastian raised his sword over its neck.

It froze, then slowly turned its head to blink slitted eyes up at him. There was fear there.

Kaderin probably would have killed it already—and would likely see him as weak if he

didn’t.

“Oh, bloody hell,” he muttered, leaving it behind and tracing for her.

Damn it, he would not return later and free it.

Then, into the sun once more, swinging his head back and forth to find her as his skin

threatened to catch fire. The pain was grueling. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a

cave above the ravine. He traced in, doing his best to half-appear.

Even though he watched from the edge of the cave, the sun still reflected off the sand and

rock, killing Sebastian’s already damaged eyes, but he could tolerate it for a minute,

maybe two, in this form.

He spied the largest basilisk twitching at the bottom of the ravine, with its head exploded

against a rock. Kaderin was still on that ledge. Just as Sebastian was about to bellow at

her in fury for kicking him, her gaze locked onto something in the ravine. Her face grew

cold. A predator. That’s all his mind could come up with to describe her.

Kaderin began pumping her arms for speed, sprinting until she became a blur. Blinking

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) against the light, he didn’t quite believe his eyes when she dove into the same ravine as the

dragon.

He traced down, scouting another overhang, just in time. In front of him, twenty feet

away, the siren gave a cry of surprise—just before Kaderin landed on her back, audibly

knocking her breath free of her lungs. Kaderin had her knees dug into Lucindeya’s

shoulder blades, an arm tightening around her neck.

Just when he’d decided to brave the sun and trace Kaderin from there, Lucindeya jabbed

up with an elbow. Somehow, Kaderin ducked around and missed it. She eluded any

defensive move the siren had. She needed no help.

All around Kaderin, heat boiled up from the rocks. As he watched her through the haze,

he realized he was awed by her, by the power in her graceful body.

And even by her sheer viciousness.

Kaderin yanked the siren up by the hair, swinging her around by it, gaining momentum

until no part of the woman touched the ground. Kaderin finally released her grip as though

with a bola, her fingers splayed.

The cliff face crumbled under the blow of Lucindeya’s crashing body, rocks plummeting

onto her back. Kaderin didn’t wait to watch her being completely buried, but jerked her

head up to the next mountain. She ran, leaping at the rock face, digging her claws in for a

good start, scrabbling up to a high cave.

That cave at the top—that darkened cave—must hold the prize. And Sebastian could beat

her to it. He pressed his sleeve against his cut lip, tasting his blood from where she’d

kicked him.

Kaderin would be meeting him after all.

And the terms of the deal had just changed.

23

K aderin staggered into the cave, panting with exertion from the climb. When her vision

adjusted, she found the vampire casually tossing the prize up from his palm.

The eggshell had pale striations of color twining around the width and was so fragile it

was transparent.

“Now we’re going to do things my way, Kaderin.”

Her eyes followed it as he tossed it up and down. “Just give me the damn thing.”

“You never intended to meet with me.” He looked infuriated with her. The sun had

blistered his forearms and one side of his face. “And you kicked me.” A trail of blood had

eased down from the corner of his bottom lip.

“I kicked you in reflex.” That was true. The basilisk had just burst through the rocks as if

they were packing-peanut fillers and was on her heels. “For future reference, don’t grab

my ankle from behind when I’m being chased by things with long, prehensile tongues.”

No matter what had happened between her and Sebastian, she wouldn’t have tried to

knock him out. Not to be a dragon’s dinner or to burn in the sun any longer, although...

“In any event, you deserved to be booted. You changed the terms of our deal when I was

under duress! Not very gentlemanly.”

“I feel less and less like a gentleman with you.” The very delicate egg was flipping end

over end in his palm.

“You could break that.” She could scarcely breathe. “It’s the last one.” She was easing

closer, tilting her head, studying for a way to seize it.

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) Something dangerous flashed in his expression. “Do you think to take it from me?” He

dared her to.

She froze, having no wish to tangle with a vampire while keeping the egg whole. “But you

have to hurry,” she said desperately. “When Cindey gets here, she’ll sing, and then you’ll

give it to her.”

“I don’t believe she’ll be moving for some time after what you did to her.”

“She’s immortal. She’ll shake it off. And she’s hurt me far worse in the past. But she

could reach us very soon. One pure note out of her pipes, and you’ll be her slave forever.”

At that thought, Kaderin inexplicably craved kicking her again. Or a really well-placed

bitch-slap. At her larynx.

“If you believe that, then you won’t mind striking yet another bargain to get this prize.”

“I’ve told you I will never sleep with you.” A bead of sweat trickled down her neck, then

between her breasts. His gray eyes followed it greedily, then flickered with black. Storm

over water. She shivered in the heat.

Even though his face was burned on one side and his hands as well, she was attracted to

him and still aroused from earlier. Coldhearted? Once. Hot-blooded? He made her so. He

alone could. And not just with sexual passion.

She’d enjoyed kicking Cindey’s ass, and for some reason, she’d enjoyed that he’d seen her

doing it.

“I want to spend a night with you, touching you,” he said, his voice low. “That is all.

However and wherever I choose.”

She raised her brows. “So it’ll be all about me? You say that now, but I know you think to

seduce me to do more.”

“No, I won’t expect you to touch me whatsoever. I won’t expect sex.”

“The altruistic vampire. And you’re just going to be doing these things to me and not

reacting?”

He ran his free hand over his mouth. “No, I believe I will be reacting quite a bit. Let me

worry about my reactions. You have my word. No more. No less.”

She tilted her head. “And then I get the prize?”

“When I’m done with what I plan.”

She didn’t like how his words shot a spike of desire through her. “You might break the

egg. Give it to me first.”

“Not likely. I’ll keep it safe, and you know you’ll get it after. Unlike you, I keep my

word.”

“You won’t go dental on me?” At his nonplussed look, she said, “No biting. Or I swear to

the gods, I will bite you back, and you won’t like it.”

This seemed to amuse him for some reason. “No biting. I vow it, though I’ve always

suspected you capable of checking me like that.”

How could she do this? How could she not? For the prize, she could.

For her curiosity, she... must.

What would it be like to be a slave to his touch for one whole night? When she

acknowledged her answer to herself, she glanced away and muttered, “I’m flying across

the Atlantic tonight.” She flushed, already imagining him in that lavish stateroom bed on

the jet with her. “You could accompany me.”

He was doing that hesitant-stepping-forward thing again. “You want me to go on your

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) plane with you?”

“If you want to take your payment in the next twenty-four hours.”

He crossed to her until they were toe-to-toe. “Why not let me trace you back across the

Atlantic ?”

“You can only go to places you’ve been before, and I’m betting you’ve never been where

I’m going,” she answered, gazing up at him. “Besides, I take flying time to rest.”

She swallowed nervously when he rasped, “I wouldn’t count on resting this evening.”

Hours later Kaderin paced in the main cabin of the jet, furious over more things than she

could process.

The first: Because of the Lykae’s stunt, she was being forced into this situation with

Sebastian. And she’d left the diamonds. Silly Valkyrie.

The second: Two of her half-sisters, her coven mates, had been wed, and she’d heard of it

after the fact. They are so not getting gifts from me. Were her sisters that averse to her

presence at weddings? Am I that dismal?

The third: As if she weren’t already nervous about Sebastian coming over, now she kept

thinking about his past. As in all wars, the Valkyrie had had a correspondent in the field

covering the Northern War, and they’d learned that the Wroth brothers were brutal

warlords known for their skill and ferocity. The brothers had bought their people a decade

of freedom against a force much greater in number.

No wonder Sebastian had known how to fight so well.

The eldest—Myst’s husband—was the most well known, but Kaderin had definitely heard

of Sebastian as well. He’d been a master strategist, a harsh commanding officer, and a

ruthless warrior.

She’d seen that authoritative officer side of him today, had heard it in the tone of his

voice. And the way he’d eyed that trickling bead of sweat, his eyes so intent, let her know

he was going to be ruthless with her tonight.

He’d be arriving within hours, but that fact hadn’t sunk in until she’d told the pilots to

delay their takeoff from San Luis until twenty minutes past sunset—and not to disturb her

for any reason during this trip...

All of this was Bowen’s fault. What in the hell was he even doing competing and why was

he so determined to win? He was as unwavering as she was. A sinking suspicion came,

and she rang Emma’s sat phone, hoping to catch her in Scotland .

“Kaderin! It’s so good to hear from you!” Emma said, sounding delighted. “Regin told me

you were feeling again. Congratulations, Kiddy-Kad! That must be so cool, I’ve got so

much I want to ask you about that, and, oh, oh, did they tell you—get this—I got

married!”

“I heard, sweet. Congratulations. Emma, I’d love to talk to you about all that, but first,

tell me, do you know of a Lykae named Bowen?”

“Sure,” Emma said, then asked, “Why do you want to know?”

“You’re not following the Hie online?” Yes, they were honeymooners, but still...

Show Kaderin some love.

Kaderin had her answer when she heard the sounds of teeth snapping and fabric being

ripped. Emma cried, “Lachlain! Oh! I’m running out of clothes!”

“Buy—more,” came a muffled growl.