Rise of the Fallen (12 page)

Tormin and Janus looked at each other.

"What part of 'do not touch her' did you two fuckheads
not understand? I specifically remember telling you not to touch her."

"Micah showed up, so we had to alter the plans."

"Micah? What did he want?"

Janus shifted uneasily as if standing was a chore. Probably
was by the looks of him. Micah hadn't been picky about where to hit the guy.
"I think he wanted the girl, too."

"Oh?"

"Yes, and if I'm not mistaken, she's his mate."

"His mate?" Now, this was interesting. "What
makes you think so?"

"Just the way he reacted. He reacted like a mated
vampire when we went after her."

Apostle rubbed his chin, thinking. "Intriguing. He
certainly didn't act like a mated vampire when he asked me to kill him."

The three exchanged glances, then Apostle said, "Give
me her information."

"Apostle," Tormin said, "You can't go after a
vampire's mate. That's war, and you know it."

"He started the war, not me." Apostle didn't like
being teased, and being told he was going to kill a vampire only to have his
intentions thwarted was a tease. Micah had wanted to die the other night. Well,
Apostle was going to give him what he wanted, one way or another. If it took
killing his mate to kill him, then that was what he would do. He would keep his
end of the deal.

"Apostle—" Tormin said.

Apostle backhanded him so hard he stumbled to the side
before righting himself, holding his already-bruised face. "I will have
her, Tormin. Now, give me that bitch's information."

With a reluctant nod, Tormin pulled a slip of paper from his
pocket with two addresses written on it. One for her home and one for work.

"Good, now go home. I'll get someone to cover your
shifts for a few days until your faces heal."

Tormin and Janus turned and exited the alley. Apostle
reviewed the information on the piece of paper then folded it and tucked it
into his uniform pocket before getting back into his car and slipping out of
the alley on the other side. Looked like he had a new beat to patrol.

Radioing in a fake call to dispatch about a suspect he was
tailing, he put Sam's home address into his GPS. If he was lucky he would catch
the bitch at her home if that fuckhead Micah hadn't already rushed her off to
safety.

* * *

Severin finished his shift and decided to stop by Four Alarm
for a beer before going home. With the Micah crisis averted, at least for the
moment, everyone could relax. Or maybe not, given how Micah had been behaving
since returning to AKM, going off like a loose cannon and shirking his orders.
Sev had only been with AKM a month, but it was clear Micah was an asshole who
got under everyone's skin. The guy couldn't be controlled.

His thoughts shot to walking in on Micah roughing up Arion
earlier. Even now, Sev felt the urge to break the guy's face for touching Ari
that way. No one touched Ari like that, not even a fucked-up-just-lost-his-mate
Micah.

Cool off, Sev. Ari's not your boyfriend. He doesn't need
your protection.

But that wasn't the problem, was it? The problem was that
Sev was thinking more about Ari than he should, and in ways he shouldn't.

"Hey, this seat taken?"

Sev looked up, and speak of the Devil. Ari stood next to
him, motioning to the barstool. Topaz, almond-shaped eyes glanced from the
stool to Sev.

"Uh, no. Have a seat." Sev cleared his throat and
sat up a little higher. "What are you up to?"

Ari sat down and waved at the bartender. "Io and I came
in to grab a drink before heading home. We come here a lot."

"Oh?" Sev took a drink of his beer, looking
around. "Where is Io, anyway?"

Ari rolled his eyes. "One of his many fans caught him
as we came in. He's probably in the bathroom fucking her."

The bartender set a brew in front of Ari without him having
to order.

"You do come here often," Sev said.
"Bartender doesn't even have to ask what you want."

Ari laughed. "Yeah, well, we're regulars." He
picked up his beer and gave a mock salute, lifting it as if toasting the air.
"Io likes the women here." Something in the way Ari said it made Sev
frown. It almost sounded like he was frustrated or annoyed. What was that all
about?

They turned around and faced the dance floor and kicked back
against the bar, brews in hand. He glanced at Ari sideways. "What about
you? Why aren't you back there with him, Ari? You like the women, too, don't
you?"

Ari shot him a glance then quickly looked at the floor
before looking at him again with a tight smile on his puss. "Yeah, sure.
Why not?"

Sev didn't think he sounded convincing or convinced.

An uncomfortable silence hung between them for a couple of
minutes, then Ari looked at him. "So, what was all that about earlier? At
Jackson's apartment, I mean. You tore into him pretty good."

"Was I out of line?"

"No. I'm glad you let him have it. I mean, Micah and I
may not be the best of friends, but that doesn't mean I think it's okay for
someone to pull shit like Jackson did. Micah had mated him for God's
sake."

Sev dove into his beer again, taking a healthy sip. He
didn't want to remember his own past.

"So," Ari said, "what gives, huh? You want to
talk about it?"

Sev took another drink. He didn't want to talk about it.
Well, not to anyone else, anyway. Something about Ari made Sev want to open up.
"I lost someone of my own about a year ago."

Ari sucked in his breath and Sev felt his eyes on him.
"I'm sorry." Ari's hand settled on his shoulder and Sev closed his
eyes at the seemingly innocent gesture, but it felt good on his body. Warm,
soothing, and right in every way.

All too soon, Ari took his hand away, leaving a cold
emptiness where it had been.

"Was she your mate?" Ari said.

Sev opened his eyes and turned his head to meet Ari's eyes.
"No, he wasn't, but I loved him."

* * *

Ari's brow furrowed. Had Sev just told him he was gay?
"He?"

Sev nodded. "Yes. His name was Gabriel."

Okay, Ari didn't know what to think about this. He hadn't
known Sev was gay, so the announcement came as a bit of a shock, but unlike Io,
he didn't have anything against homosexuals. In fact, he often felt jealous of
gay men. They were free to live the lives they wanted. They didn't have to lie
about who they were. Ari felt like every day was a lie for him. A lie he
couldn't escape.

"Are you gay?" Ari said, leaning in and keeping
his voice low. Why did the idea that Sev was gay excite him so much?

Sev's mouth quirked. "Yes, Ari. I. Am. Gay. That's
usually what it means when a male dates other males. Why? Is that a problem for
you?"

Ari quickly shook his head. "No, no. I'm sorry. I'm
just…" What? What was he? Fascinated? Curious? Interested? "I just
think it's great that you can talk so openly about it, that's all. So many
people feel like they have to hide, you know?" He looked at his own
reflection in the mirror behind the bar. Was that what he was doing? Hiding?
Was he actually learning something about himself tonight?

Sev obviously felt Ari's vibe because he said, "What
are you hiding from, Ari?" Sev leaned forward, pushing in close enough for
Ari to smell the light fragrance of his aftershave.

Ari turned and looked at him. Sev was so close that it would
only take Ari leaning forward half a foot and they would be kissing. His eyes
dropped to Sev's full lips as if in anticipation then he glanced back up into
Sev's piercing blue eyes. What was happening to him? Why did he suddenly feel
this way? "Everything," he said. "I'm hiding from
everything."

He hadn't even realized he had spoken until Sev said,
"Why?"

"I don't know."

Suddenly, Io burst from the crowd and sprang up between
them, still buttoning his shirt. "One down, twenty more to go!"

Ari jerked back, as did Sev, but their eyes met in the
mirror. Why did Ari suddenly want to take Sev back to where Io had just come
from? And what had just happened here between them? He was heterosexual, wasn't
he? Wasn't he? Suddenly, he wasn't so sure.

Micah waited in Sam's kitchen while she changed in the
bathroom. As he leaned his ass against the edge of the counter, he glanced
around the room. Sam didn't have much, and that was odd for someone who made
the kind of money she did. Why the hell did she live in a dump like this making
the kind of money she made? She had to pull in major cash at the Black Garter.
He knew what a couple of those girls earned, and Sam was the star, for God's
sake. She surely made more than they did.

Growling at the thought, he sneered at the floor. They would
discuss her profession later. Right now, he didn't even want to think about
those men watching her while she took off her clothes.

His head snapped up as the bathroom door opened.

"I don't like this," she said for the hundredth
time. She looked more like herself with the wig off and her face washed.

"What?"

"Going to your place. I don't like it."

Micah pushed away from the counter and followed her to the
bed, where he helped her fold clothes into a small overnight bag.

"Would you rather stay here and die?"

She threw down a pair of folded jeans. "What makes you
think they were going to kill me, anyway? You still haven't even told me who
those men were. And what was all this talk about mates and vampires and that
shit between you and…Trace, is it? That was his name, right?"

Micah nodded.

"Well, what was all that shit? How the hell did he do
that to Ted and Jose, freeze them in midair like that? And how do you know how
to hotwire a car? You some kind of car thief? Who are you?"

It seemed Sam had recovered and found her voice again, her
adrenaline-induced aggression finally finding an outlet in Micah.

"Okay, just slow down," he said, reaching for her
hands.

She pulled away. "No. I want answers, damn it."

Micah wasn't used to being bossed around, but this was Sam.
She could do anything she wanted to him. He was hers to command. "I'll
give you the answers you want, but let's get out of here first. Once we're at
my place and you're safe, we'll talk. How's that? Will that work?"

The two sized each other up. Micah could see Sam's mind
working over the logic and reasoning, but he held his ground, letting her know
they would do things his way or his way. Yeah, not a lot of choice there.

"Fine, but when we get to your place, you're going to
start singing, you got that?" She jabbed a finger at him.

Micah grinned, handing her a folded red sweater. "Yes,
ma'am." He liked her feistiness.

Sam swiped the sweater from him and stuffed it in the bag.
"Don't patronize me."

"Wouldn't think of it."

She threw him a sideways glance then looked away, but Micah
caught the quirk of the corner of her mouth. Sam liked him despite her
misgivings, didn't she?

"Okay, let's go. I've got everything." She zipped
the bag and flung it over her shoulder.

Micah shook his head and took the bag from her. "I'll
get this for you." No female of his was going to carry her own bags.

He led her to the door and made sure the coast was clear
before allowing her outside. Using his body as a shield, he got her to the car
and into the passenger seat before tossing her bag in the back and getting
behind the wheel.

"Once we get to my place, I'll send Trace back to the
club to get your things," he said as he pulled away from the curb.

"That'd be great, because then you can stop hotwiring
my car and freaking me out."

"I freak you out?"

"A little," she said then hesitated and glanced at
him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, okay, not really, as crazy as
that sounds, but the fact that you can hotwire a car does. What, are you some
kind of criminal? Is that what those guys were doing to you the other night?
Beating you up because you stole their car?"

"No, it was nothing like that." Micah made a left,
falling silent.

"Well, what is it that you do? I can see you're dressed
like full military badass. Nice steel, by the way."

"Huh?"

"Your knives. I mean, all I can see are the sheaths,
but I know my weapons and I can tell that's a hell of a Bowie knife you've got
there. And that other one, what's that?"

"Ka-Bar Big Brother."

"Hmm, nice." She nodded appreciatively.

"How'd you know that?" Micah glanced over at her
before putting his eyes back on the road, impressed all to hell and back that
she even knew what a Bowie knife was.

"I haven't always been a dancer."

"I guess not." Micah had to shift to alleviate the
ache in his groin. Hearing her talk about knives had gotten him semi-hard.
"So, tell me where you learned about knives."

"Huh-uh. You want answers from me then I expect to get
some from you first."

For the first time since Micah could remember, he was at a
loss for words. Usually, he simply ignored people or kept to himself, not
wanting to talk. With Sam, he wanted to, but she had shut him down so
effectively, he couldn't think of anything to say.

"Well, all right," was all that came out.

Neither of them spoke again until he reached his apartment
building and turned into the parking garage.

"The Sentinel? Nice," she said. "Whatever you
do, at least you live well."

"I get by." He pulled his pass card out of his
wallet and waved it over the scanner then drove down and parked in the open
lot.

After snagging her bag from the back seat, he ushered her
toward a set of elevators that took them up to his apartment.

Trace was leaning back against the wall by his door, head
down and eyes closed. "Hey," he said, looking up as the two got off
the elevator.