Ravenous (22 page)

Power swam under her feet, viscous and sweet as syrup, a vein waiting to be tapped. She reached for it, but wavered.
How bad is this going to hurt
?

The gun clicked empty. "Holly!" Alessandro shouted. "Quickly!"

Agony. Learn to love it
. She grabbed at the graveyard's ambient power and threw a blast at three ghouls charging from her right. She thrust blindly at the danger, relying on pure reflex. Sheet lightning flickered and the ghouls flew backward, end over end, their clothes aflame. Holly reeled, staggered by the recoil, nauseated by the pain and vertigo swirling in her head. Her aim was sloppy, but she'd gotten the job done.

Alessandro faced the last two changelings. Pulling a knife from somewhere, he growled, fangs bared, pure menace in the sound. Holly backed away a few steps, her blood zinging with terror.

With a roar he grabbed one changeling and threw it hard on the ground while the other jumped him from behind. The knife fell to the grass. The force of the attack knocked them all sideways, but Alessandro threw the second creature off, never letting go of his first opponent. The changeling on the ground beneath him snapped and writhed as Alessandro crushed its throat with bare hands.

The second changeling rolled, snatching the knife as he got to his feet. Holly grabbed the empty gun from where Alessandro had dropped it and charged in, too wild with adrenaline to think clearly. The second changeling thrust at Alessandro, ripping the leather in strips from his jacket. She swung the gun like a club, catching the creature behind one pointed ear. It howled, a shattering, feral racket, but it dropped the knife.

Wheeling, it lunged at Holly. Claws whipped out, swiping at her face. Holly blocked the blow with her forearms. Heat lanced down her right wrist as one claw caught her skin.

She ducked away, cradling her arm, and saw the full horror of its face, what features it had now mashed and distorted beyond even B-movie imagination.
That was once human
? Worst were the eyes, shriveled and yellow, but they blanked as Alessandro crushed its neck.

Knees wobbling, Holly stumbled to the ground. The other changeling, the one Alessandro had thrown down and choked, was already dead.

"We were ambushed! How come I was blind to them?" She gasped, trying to catch her breath. "I felt around earlier, but they weren't there!"

Alessandro picked up the empty gun and holstered it. Then he retrieved the knife. His hands were steady, but he was grim. "My money is on a demon shield. The demon is helping the changelings fight us."

Her jaw dropped. "A shield?"

Alessandro grabbed her hand, pulling her up. "Demons can sometimes hide behind a psychic screen, rather like supernatural stealth technology. It's rare that they can screen more than themselves, but I've heard of it."

"Sweet Hecate! If it's a shielding spell, it's huge! And so subtle you don't even know it's there." This was not good news. That meant the demon had enormous power.

He tugged her toward the path. "Let me take you home. I don't want to find out if there're more ghouls where those came from."

Holly didn't argue. They ran toward the car, the moon a fitful searchlight sweeping the fog. As soon as the T-Bird was in view, he stopped, sniffing the air. "Are you all right?"

"I think so. You?"

"I'm unhurt." He ripped a dangling piece of leather from his ruined jacket. His eyes still glowed in the darkness, the aftermath of his fighting rage.

They slowed to a walk, then stopped beside the car. Holly leaned against the familiar planes of its hood, panting hard. Alessandro stood before her, crackling with tension. He was close enough that his toes brushed hers, the fringe from his pants brushing against the soft denim of her worn jeans. He held out his hands, offering to pull her upright.

She wavered. A moment ago those hands had been wrapped around a changeling's throat. The memory spooked her, but also made her feel safe. He had saved her life. Her vampire, the one on her side, had been the most deadly. The comfort of that was primal, gut-level, and as fierce as the power that had sung through her moments ago.

Holly took his hands, letting him pull her to her feet. She leaned on him as he held her arm, his fingers resting on the sensitive point just above her elbow. The night hummed around them, the electric darkness alive with expectation. Holly drank it in, letting it intoxicate her.

They had battled an immediate, flesh-and-bone enemy. They had won.

He protected me. I protected him back.

His mouth brushed hers once, twice, and then took possession with ferocious appetite. The moment was as primitive as the deadly fight, the kiss merciless. Holly savored him, tasting and tugging, making demands of her own. At last she had the fringe within her grasp.

Adrenaline thundered in her blood, driving it hard in her ears. Her fingers scraped against the ruins of his leather jacket, her nails finding patches of his mesh shirt and skin beneath. She worked her fingertips through the tears, caressing the hard planes of his chest beneath. Breathing harder, more raggedly, he pulled her hips against his.

This was not all vampire magnetism. It was there, but only like an interesting garnish on world-class cuisine. Holly tore her mouth away, her gaze seeking his. His eyes were dark amber fire, a delicious alchemy of danger and need.

I'm not supposed to be doing this. I'm supposed to be the strong one.

The moment broke, or perhaps it only spun into something new.

"You're hurt," he said, the words breathed more than spoken. He pulled her left hand from where it had burrowed beneath his jacket. He stretched out her arm, turning it palm up. Blood stained the torn sleeve of her coat.

"I didn't even remember that," she said. "The changeling scratched me."

But now that the wound had her attention, it hurt like hell. Alessandro tore back her sleeve, exposing a long shallow gash that wept blood in a slow ooze. He bent to the wound and inhaled, a faint rush of air that was oddly erotic.

"The injury is clean." He gave her a sidelong look, carefully veiled. "But I can stop it from bleeding, if you'll let me."

"Uh, no, I—"

He bent his head, his long golden hair falling like buoyant silk across the inside of her elbow. Then his tongue slowly slid along the bottom of the cut, rounding it with delicate precision.

Oh
! Holly shuddered, transfixed and strangely aroused. Surprised, more than anything else. It felt… seductive.

He raised his head, eyes wide and wild. "Is that all right?"

Holly gave a mute nod. The moment stretched out, swollen with significance.

Hot and wet, his tongue traveled up the length of her forearm, gentle and firm. Holly felt gooseflesh covering her from nape to toe, bringing her breasts to hard, aching peaks. There was the touch of teeth, nothing more than the glance of a hard edge in passing—but whenever she felt it, a jolt like honeyed fire speared her through.

He took the blood with the humility of a supplicant, but with a sensuality distilled from centuries of unslaked lust. So much invested in a single act. She shivered, her body hot and cold, restless and yet hypnotized into a heavy stillness.

When he reached the sensitive, ticklish crook of her elbow, ready to start down the other side, Holly made a tiny sound. Alessandro pressed his lips to her flesh where he worked, leaving a kiss. She put her other hand on the back of his head, losing her fingers in the thick, springy hair, cradling him against her.

"I am yours," he whispered, his cheek brushing her skin.

The truth of it trembled in her like the voice of a bell.

The slow ritual of his tongue was rhythmic, patient, and tender. As Alessandro promised, the bleeding stopped, her life sealed safely back inside. When he was finished, he bound her arm in his large white handkerchief. Holly had always wondered why a vampire would carry one. Now she could guess.

There were no words to speak. Holly leaned into his chest and he held her, the night whispering to itself all around them. How long they stood, she could not say. She felt cherished, at home.

He is mine.

Now what do I do?

Unexpectedly, Alessandro caught his breath. "Macmillan."

Holly stepped out of his arms. "Oh, Goddess, we were supposed to meet him!" And if the ghouls had found him first… Holly could not even bear to complete the thought.

Alessandro already had a cell phone out, but Holly didn't recognize it.

"Whose is that?"

"It belonged to one of the changelings."

"Why are you using it?"

"To see who is expecting a call from this phone."

Holly heard the ring at the other end, but she was distracted by the gathering frown on Alessandro's face. She heard the click of the phone being answered.

"Giuseppi?"

It was Mac's voice. Holly sagged against the car.

Alessandro shut the phone. "We were set up."

Macmillan is going to pay for this stunt.

Alessandro signaled to turn. He was going to see Holly safely home, report to Omara, and then tear Macmillan's head off. He might reverse the last two items. Options were important.

"But
why
would he do something like that?" Holly smacked the dashboard.

Alessandro flinched, protective of the car. Who knew what an angry witch could do to vintage leather? "I don't know. Somehow our enemies got to Macmillan."

Holly looked perplexed. "Last night he seemed fine."

"What did you talk about after I left?"

She sighed. "I don't remember. I kind of blanked out. I was doing a lot of magic, warding the house against more demon invasions. Grandma thinks I might have popped a psychic gasket. Like I was telling you before, I seem prone to memory loss."

Alessandro frowned.
This isn't good
. "You lost all memory of last night? I thought you said you had dinner and conversation."

"Yeah, well…" Holly twisted her ponytail, as if pulling at her hair might stimulate brain cells. "I remember dinner. Good food, but pretty much everything else after you left is just… gone."

"Are you sure it was simply stress?"

"What else would it be? That's what Grandma thinks, anyway."

Holly's grandmother was seldom wrong. He relaxed a little. "It wouldn't be the monotony of the detective's company? Perhaps there was nothing worth remembering?"

"Yeah, right." Once more Holly thumped the dash with her fist. "What happened to him? He seemed like a nice, normal guy."

He hated seeing her so upset.
How can I fix this
? "Leave Macmillan to me. I'll find out what's wrong. If he can be helped, I will see that it is done."

Holly turned to face him, her features fading from light to dark as they passed under streetlights. "Thanks. I'd hate to think he ended up collateral damage."

"You like him."

"He's a decent guy. I'm sure he was pleasant company, even if I don't remember."

"A night with me would be unforgettable." Alessandro let all the unspoken heat between them leak into his tone, let it wash away the fear and uncertainty he could hear in her voice. "You would not forget
me
."

Holly's eyes glittered in the darkness. The look was pure feminine fire. Whatever else was happening that night, there was still unfinished business between them.
Is it business we can risk finishing
?

Alessandro pulled into her driveway. Streetlights shone through the lacy branches of the hawthorn trees. He turned off the motor, a stampede of sensations raging through him. The taste of her was still in his mouth, everything she was, the salt and the sweet.

The blood he'd tasted had been the merest tease, but it was all he'd dared take without causing harm. It had been her perfect trust that had saved her. If she had struggled just once, the instinct to hunt might have won.

She trusted me
. He loved her for that. All of him, the vampire and the man. He would go to his final death, walk into hell itself, if that meant she would live her life in safety.

The solemnity of his thoughts brought on a moment of panic. Not even Omara had that kind of power over his soul.
I think I am in trouble. How can I lose a heart that barely beats
?

Holly shifted, leaning over the seat to get her backpack. The air stirred with her scent, reeling him closer still. "Are you coming in?" she asked, getting out of the T-Bird.

Alessandro sat for a moment, his hands clutching the wheel, before he could move. He was frozen, caught in a brief wave of terror and need. He was a monster. She was vulnerable.

I love her. I will make sure everything is safe inside her house; then I will leave
. "Of course. I know you warded the house, but I still want to check it over. Just in case."

"Yeah, I'd hate to have to send you out for more mousetraps." Holly ran up the steps to unlock the door. There was a flirting invitation in her tone that was impossible to miss. He followed, using vampire speed to catch up.

He allowed himself to dream for the split second it took to reach her.
What if I could be the man, and not the monster, for the smallest slice of time? Surely that is not asking the moon and the stars
?

He shouldn't. There was too much to do. He had responsibilities. There were risks.

She switched on the entry light. "Come on in."

"Thank you," Alessandro said, wavering for the merest second before stepping inside her doorway.

Holly watched as he stood for a moment, every line of his body uneasy. Then, after a quick look down at himself, he peeled off the shredded remnants of his jacket, dropping the ruin on a chair. She would miss that fringed leather, or at least the fantasies it inspired.

"Make yourself at home," she said, leading the way into the living room. She grabbed for a note of normalcy. "Can I get you some tea?"

"Yes, thank you." There was a shred of uncertainty in his voice. Things had changed between them, but neither yet knew what that meant.