Shadow of Doubt: Part 2 (7 page)

“You won’t believe –” He began closing
the door and turned to face Janus, who was now leaning against the
back of the couch, his eyebrows drawn close together, and his lips
in a thin line. Erebus paused, unsure by Janus’ serious posture and
worried expression. He didn’t even realize at first that something
was stopping the door from fully closing. Dazed, he double checked
if Janus’ familiar briefcase blocked the door.

His blood ran cold and froze in his
veins.

Instead of the briefcase, a black
leather stiletto boot blocked the door. It irked him that he hadn’t
realized someone stood behind Janus sooner. He’d been so worried
about getting caught; he hadn’t listened to his inner senses. He
couldn’t believe he’d missed her presence.

“Hello, sweetie.” Nanny slithered
through the door, patting his cheek as she brushed by him. Her
breasts brushed purposely against his arm. She wore a tight,
emerald dress with a short fur coat and knee-high boots. Her thick,
green eye shadow and dark liner gave her a hooker appeal. She acted
like one in her gait, the way she brushed by him, and then moved to
cuddle too close to Janus.

“Why did you bring her?” Erebus glared
at Janus. “What are you doing here?” He stood rigid, clenching and
unclenching his fists.

“Cozy little place you got.” Nanny let
a hand slide down Janus’ arm as she slipped away from him and
walked around the living room. She pointed to the British phone.
“Nice touch.”

“Sorry I had to bring her.” Janus
stayed put without making any effort to remove his coat, but his
eyes followed Nanny as she moved about the room, peeking into the
bedroom and kitchen. Her hands touched and slid along
everything.

“Oh, I smell coffee. You
must’ve known we were coming.” Nanny disappeared into the kitchen.
“Or, are you expecting someone else? A
friend
perhaps?” Her voice held a
clear mocking note to it.

Erebus walked stiffly, his jaw clamped
tightly, as he followed her into the kitchen. Cupboards banged shut
as she searched for mugs. She pulled two more out when she found
them and put them beside the coffeepot. She began pouring the
piping black liquid. Erebus leaned against the door frame as he
watched her, too upset to speak.

“You’ve made this little
apartment into quite the
home
. Ahhhh…. Are you nesting? Trying
to become something you’re not?” She handed him a mug before
pushing against him to take coffee to Janus. “Why else the need for
an apartment?”

“Leave him alone. There’s nothing
wrong with Erebus wanting to be here.” Janus’ voice carried the
authority that would warn any Shadow to watch themselves. “I hear
from Coty, this is quite the lady’s pad.” He raised his mug towards
Erebus. “Well done.”

Erebus smiled at Janus but kept a wary
eye trained on Nanny.

“Lady’s pad?” Nanny laughed. “I highly
doubt that. I think ‘Bus is trying to pull something over on you.
Like I told you before, he’s hiding something and causing trouble
for the Night Council.” She settled down on the couch, leaning
back, jutting her chest out and letting her dress ride higher than
what anyone would consider decent.

Erebus watched Janus give her a once
over. He began to wonder if any denial he made would be
futile.

Janus surprised him. “You’re a very
good temptress, Nanny, but I’ve been around four human lifetimes
longer than you and know every trick in the book. You’re still just
a bitch in heat. I don’t know your past with Erebus, but the Shadow
standing here,” Janus pointed at Erebus, “wouldn’t lie to
me.”

Nanny opened her mouth to speak but
Janus cut her off.

“You were adamant you had proof I
needed to take to the Night Council. What is it?” Janus sounded
seriously peeved off. “I do have other things to do, and I don’t
have the time, or interest, to play your silly jealous games.” He
crossed his arms tightly across his chest. “I follow our laws. You
made a claim, now explain it.” He stepped away from the couch and
stopped in front of the door.

Erebus stayed rooted where he was. He
held his breath as he waited for Nanny to tell Janus about Aurora,
and in the same breath destroy his unstable world.

“He’s dating a blonde, Aimee, or
something stupid like that.” Nanny sat up on the couch and yanked
her dress hem down closer to her knees.

“So? He’s got a thing for blondes.”
Janus pointed at Nanny’s hair.

She waved her hand in front
of her face, like swatting at a fly. “No. He’s dating a
human
.”

“Erebus has never been quick in
tasting the fruits of the mortal world. It seems he’s been screwed
before, and he’s now overcautious. There’s no law against
interacting with humans.” Janus checked his watch. “Is there
anything else, Nanny? Something concrete?”

Nanny stomped a heeled boot
which echoed against the hardwood floor. “You’re not listening!
He’s pretending to be
human
. Can’t you see?” She stood,
arms spread, as she made a three hundred and sixty degree circle.
“Maybe you’re becoming blind, old man.”

“Watch yourself, Nanny.” Erebus almost
jumped with excitement. Nanny had nothing on him, only a hunch. She
had no idea what Aurora knew. Shoot, she couldn’t even remember
Aurora’s name. “Don’t disrespect the elders. You’ll be the one in
front of the Night Council again. I highly doubt they’ll be as easy
on you as they were last time.”

“Shut up,” Nanny hissed.

“Enough, Nanny,” Janus warned. “It
seems you have nothing and I’m already late for a meeting. I’ll let
myself out.” Janus tilted his head to look directly at Erebus.
“I’ll see you tomorrow night at the usual spot.” He opened the door
and walked away before Erebus could reply.

Nanny moved across the couch, closer
to Erebus. “Why’s he in such a hurry?” She blinked several
times.

“Give it up.” Erebus rolled his eyes
before walking into the kitchen. He rinsed his mug in the sink and
set it aside. He wanted Nanny out of his place, preferably out of
his life, forever. Spinning around, he took two quick steps and
skidded to a halt, trying to avoid crashing into her. He reached
around her to grasp the frame to stop his forward
momentum.

Nanny didn’t miss a beat. She slipped
her arms around his waist and pulled herself tight to him. With her
neck-breaking high heeled boots, she stood almost the same height.
Rubbing her hips against his, she reached to send hot breath
against his ear.

“Stop.” Erebus grasped the trim and
grimaced when he felt it rip off against the doorframe in his right
hand. He couldn’t move forward as he’d be pushing tight against
her, and he couldn’t step back as he’d be dragging her with him.
“Get off!”

“That’s not what your body’s telling
me.” She began leaving wet marks on his neck.

He wanted to peel her off and throw
her against a wall. Except, Nanny would think it was some sort of
foreplay. When she let her hands brush against his chest and make
their way towards his head, he grabbed her wrists.

“Ahhh…You’re in the mood for bondage
tonight?” She purred. “You’ve changed since we’ve been apart.” She
stepped back and pulled him into the living room. “Do you have a
room of choice? The couch or floor, or are you still old-fashioned
and want the bed?”

He couldn’t stay calm anymore. “Get
out. You’re disgusting. How can you think I’d be interested in any
part of you?”

“Liar.” She shouted but took a step
away from him.

“Self-absorbed bitch! Open your eyes
and realize the truth.” He reached for her hand and clenched it in
a vice-like grip and then he pulled her towards the door. As they
passed the couch, he grabbed her fur coat strewn on the back of it
and tossed it at her. “Just get out of here. You aren’t
welcome.”

She ripped her hand out of his.
“You’re playing with fire. You know that, don’t you? That human
slut isn’t going to satisfy you. You think pretending to be human
is going to make you one of them? That the Night Council will
forget about you and let you go your merry little way?”

“Can’t you get it in your tiny, pea
brain I don’t want you? Not now, not ever again. You disgust me!”
She could threaten to get him or Aurora all she wanted. At this
moment he didn’t care. The revulsion inside of him for Nanny
trumped any clear thought of safety.

“Whatever. Try and pretend this is
about me. I know you, and you’re way more screwed up than I ever
was. Your judgment is going to make mine look like a slap on the
wrist. It’s going to be worse than any nightmare you’ve ever
had.”

Erebus strode over to the door and
swung it open. “Get out.”

“I’ll leave, but you don’t have eyes
in the back of your head. You can’t watch your little whore and
keep yourself safe. Then, there’s your friend, Coty, and…” She
brought her hand to her mouth in mock horror. “There’s also your
handler. Seems you have a special little bond with him as well.
Whatever will you do, Erebus? You can’t protect them all and
prevent the Night Council from questioning you.

“
And they will. I confided
with the girls before I came looking for you. Let them know you
were my partner in all my actions.” She scowled. “You were never
witness to my standing before them, my arguments or the penalty I
had to pay for my crimes. Five bloody years I had to live in the
world’s most lousy places. Summers in the Artic, as the nights are
few and far between, and then I had to live on some lousy little
island in the Pacific, where winter was opposite to here. I haven’t
had a proper anything, let alone a full night in half a decade.”
She whipped her coat on and stomped towards him.

“Get out of here and then leave town.
Make a new life for yourself on another continent.” Erebus moved to
open the door wider.

“Oh, I’m not going anywhere, my dear.
I plan on returning the favor you gave to me. Five years of
misery.” She rested a cold hand on his chest and smiled like the
Cheshire cat. “That is, unless you want to beg for my forgiveness
and show how much you’ve missed me. You know destiny wants us to be
together. We’re two of a kind.”

“We’re not the same; not even close.
Destiny’s having a laugh.” He could barely look at her. He just
wanted her far away from him.

“Think long and hard about this,
Erebus.” She didn’t move. “This is one mistake you don’t want to
make.” She stepped away from him and turned to go. “Oops, I forgot
my purse.” She twirled around and bent over the back of the couch,
her rump wiggling in the air.

Erebus blew a long, exasperated breath
out. Only Nanny would think that was seductive and would have to
take two minutes to grab a purse that should take five seconds. He
watched as she pulled herself upright and slipped her phone into
her purse before zipping it shut.

“You have a wonderful evening. I’m
sure I’ll be seeing you tomorrow or Saturday.” She reached up to
kiss him, but Erebus leaned his head back to avoid the vampire
lips. She patted his cheek with her hand as she headed out the
door. Talk about schizophrenic personality.

He slammed the door shut and locked
it. Too angry to think clearly, he took two long strides and
dropped himself onto the couch. He stretched out, plopping his feet
on one arm and letting his head fall on the other. About to cross
his arms over his chest and let out a tirade of words to describe
Nanny, he only managed the thought before having to sit up. He
reached behind his back and, irritated, pulled his phone out from
under him. He gave it a dirty look as he tossed it onto the coffee
table, where it slid across and came to a halt against a mug with a
bright red lipstick line.

The lipstick just made him angrier. He
jumped up and snatched the mug, bringing it to the kitchen. He
drilled it into the garbage can. He’d rather buy an entire new set
of dishes than have to wash any of her crap away.

The shattering noise inside the chrome
bin seemed to give him some release. It calmed him down enough that
he decided to try sitting inside his K6 and come up with some sort
of plan. Inside he gazed at his reflection against the glass. His
blue-grey eyes stared back at him, their color turning to a steel
grey. Nanny wasn’t going to give up until she hurt him and got her
revenge. Or until she owned him and he submitted to her. This could
go on forever if she had her way.

What was the most important thing at
this moment? The answer couldn’t be clearer: protect Aurora. His
only comfort was knowing Aurora would leave Saturday morning, and
she’d be safe. They just had to get through tomorrow.

Chapter 6

Missing

Friday evening dawned grey and dismal.
When Erebus stepped out of the phone booth, it took him a moment to
realize the murky darkness wasn’t lingering remnants of his waking.
It felt like snow or rain would fall at any moment. Erebus could
tell it had managed to hold off throughout the day. The ground had
wet patches from snow melting, but dryer areas showed through. The
weather seemed to match his mood perfectly.

He reached inside his coat and
grumbled when he didn’t feel his phone. Stopping to check his side
pockets, he groaned when he came up empty-handed. He’d had a cell
since they first became available, and the one time he actually
needed it, he’d left it in his apartment.