Steal the Night (10 page)

“I don’t think Daniel is going to be happy with this plan, sweetheart.” Dev turned into the parking garage about an hour before the sun went down. He seemed to think Daniel would object to working with Stewart, the demon. It might have had something to do with the fact that the last demon I’d had a working relationship with had killed both me and Dev, and done his damnedest to take out Danny, too.

“Then he can come up with a better one.” I wasn’t sitting on my ass any longer. If Stewart was our best hope for finding Merlin’s prison, then I was willing to take the chance. “I want that thing off his heart. We need Daniel able to fight Marini because he’s closing in. Marini wants the two of us in Paris next month.”

Dev guided the Audi into his reserved spot. “Why? What are we supposed to do there?”

“There’s some sort of meeting. We’re supposed to entertain the Council. Marini wants to witness a fertility ritual. He was impressed with what he heard about our wedding ceremony. He’d like an encore, Dev.”

“That is a sacred ceremony,” Dev said, obviously outraged at the thought. “It is not an entertainment. Why would I perform fertility rites for a group that can never hope to have children?”

“Because they can feed off that magic. Marini wants to feed like Daniel.” I tried not to shudder as I remembered how he’d last fed.

“I feed Daniel because he’s my partner,” Dev said. “I feed Daniel because I care deeply for him. I would never willingly allow another vampire to feed off of what is essentially the passion and love between the two of us. Daniel is a part of that. Marini is insane if he thinks I’ll allow a sacred ritual to be perverted for his curiosity.”

“It isn’t curiosity.” I opened the door to the car and got out. I started toward the elevator. At least the club would be quiet at this time in the evening. The only person who might be there was Zack, who went over the security tapes every day. “It’s jealousy. He wants whatever Daniel has.”

Dev stalked behind me. He was pulling at his tie. “How did Marini even know about our marriage?”

“Chad.” I was worried about our spy. He’d seemed…wrong somehow.

The elevator closed and began the descent to Ether. “Why would Chad have said anything about that?”

“I don’t know, baby. Have you talked to him since we got back?”

“Daniel’s spoken to him,” Dev replied. “He didn’t seem concerned. Marini is quite taken with his talent. Chad was asked to stay on after his training was done. He thought it was better to not arouse suspicions by denying the request.”

“He could have given Neil a call,” I muttered.

“I can’t tell you why he neglected that. We agreed that he could ask about Neil since they could have met in Colorado, but he had to treat him as an acquaintance would. He didn’t ask about him last night?”

I grimaced as I remembered the previous night and how Chad had mentioned Neil. “You guys need to clue me in on this stuff. He did ask about Neil and now I can see where he was coming from. At the time, I just thought he was being a typical vampire asshole.”

Dev laughed lightly as he shook his head and gave me a look that told me I was hopeless. “Should he have gently asked about his true love in front of Marini? He needs to protect Neil and the only way he can do that is to treat him as though he doesn’t really matter. Neil can be a quick hook-up, but anything more is dangerous. Hey, they didn’t actually hook up last night, did they? Shit, I forgot to warn Zack.”

“Warn Zack?”

His eyebrows rose suggestively. “Zack runs through the security tapes every afternoon. Sometimes he catches a show like the one we put on in the office last night. I’ve started trying to warn him so he can skip that part.”

That wasn’t the only show he was going to see, and there was no way I could intimidate him into keeping my meeting with Marini to himself. If Zack saw that tape, he would take it straight to Daniel.

“Oh, my god,” I breathed and I was sure I went pale.

“Sweetheart, it’s not a big deal. Zack knows we have sex.”

The elevator doors opened and I ran for the security office.

“Zoey!” Dev yelled, running after me.

We both stopped as a table flew past our heads. It knocked into the wall opposite us and smashed to pieces.

Dev pulled me back and I had a moment to survey the damage. If I hadn’t known better, I would have said a bomb had gone off. There was smashed furniture everywhere. My eyes followed the track of where the table had come from. Daniel was in a full-on rage. He looked like he’d gotten straight out of bed for his berserker episode. He was still in the T-shirt and sweat pants he’d worn the night before, and his normally shaggy hair hadn’t seen a shower yet. The rest of him…didn’t even look vaguely human. His eyes had bled to a deep sapphire blue. His fangs were enormous and his claws were out.

The beast was loose.

“He’s been at it for fifteen minutes.” Zack stood beside me watching the scene calmly. His arms were crossed over his chest.

“What the hell is going on?” Dev asked, his face a mask of confusion as he watched Daniel put his fist through a wall.

“He saw the tape.” Zack turned to me and I expected him to be pissed, but his brown eyes were sympathetic. “I couldn’t keep it from him, Zoey. I know what you were trying to do and I admire you for it, but you’re wrong. I’m sorry. He had to know.”

“Know what?” Dev asked. “I thought he knew I fucked our wife. Most of the time, he’s there when I’m doing it. Why exactly has this very common occurrence suddenly turned Daniel into a bull in my china shop? Damn it, Dan! Not the bar!”

Dev stepped out into the middle of the room like he wasn’t staring down an enraged vampire who he thought was pissed at him. “Stop it this instant, Daniel! If you have a problem with me then fight it out. Do you have any idea how much this is costing us? Contractors are expensive and those freaking shapeshifters are cons, I swear it. They charge exorbitant rates and half the time I find them standing around.”

Daniel stopped and stared at Dev. He pointed a long claw at him. “You knew and you let it happen.”

“He didn’t, Danny.” I used my softest voice. I needed to work some serious companion magic to get Daniel to come down from his angry high.

“Well, of course I knew, Zoey,” Dev said, still under mistaken impressions. “I was there. I didn’t realize I had to ask Daniel for permission to screw our wife.”

Daniel was shaking as he spoke. “Was that before or after Marini raped her?”

A dazed air hit Dev as he turned. I started to say something, but he quickly held a hand up to stop me. The strong line of his jaw firmed stubbornly, and I knew he wasn’t going to listen to anything I had to say. His eyes found Zack. “Where is this tape?”

The werewolf quietly led his boss into the small security office. The doors opened behind us and the rest of the crew entered, laughing and joking, until they saw the damage.

“What on earth?” Neil’s mouth hung open as he set his Starbucks on a miraculously intact table.

“Shit.” Lee cursed because he was the only one who knew what had to have happened.

“You!” Daniel yelled, his rage turning to Lee. “Where the hell were you when he was draining her? You’re her bodyguard.”

“And you’re her husband,” Lee growled back, shoving Neil and Nim behind him. “You want to know where I was? I was up in my apartment enjoying my night off because I was assured my charge’s husbands would take care of her. No one told me they would act like imbeciles, get drunk, pass out and leave her on her own. Marini must have thought he’d died and gone to heaven, Your Highness. She was all alone and vulnerable because the men who say they love her were unconscious.”

“Lee, you’re not helping.” The last thing I needed was for Lee to fan the flames.

“She told you.” Daniel managed to make it an accusation.

“Of course she told me. She needed someone to help her after she was brutally assaulted. Maybe she was trying to avoid this little scene,” Lee replied.

“Danny, you need to calm down,” I said in my most patient voice. “Please, calm down and we can talk about this.”

“No, companion,” he said, backing away from me. “You will not calm me this time.” His blue gaze went back to Lee, who seemed to be the one he wanted to take this out on since his true target was inconveniently absent. “You should have told me, wolf. You owe me the truth. I’m her master.”

Lee’s hands sprouted long, nasty claws as he confronted Daniel. “I owe you nothing, vampire. I’m Zoey’s guard. My oath is to her. I put up with you because she loves you.”

“And just what is your relationship with my companion that when she’s hurt, she would run to you?” The question was asked with ugly suspicion.

“What are you accusing me of, Daniel?” I crossed my arms over my chest and stared my husband down. “How many lovers did I have last night? Do you honestly believe I went from Marini to Lee to Dev? Damn, Danny, I’m quite the busy bee. I should start charging.” I was on a tear now because the last thing I needed was Daniel pulling his vampire jealousy crap on me. “Why do you assume it was rape? I sent Neil up to the penthouse. Maybe I wanted to be alone with Marini. Maybe I’m curious if all vampires are the same or if his bite might be even better than yours.”

“Zoey,” Lee warned and I could tell he was getting ready to pounce if Daniel took a step toward me.

“He’s not going to hurt me, Lee,” I said with bitterness. If I couldn’t bring him down with patience, I would do it with guilt and shame. I needed my Daniel back. I needed to get rid of the beast before he hurt Lee. “Don’t you know? I’m his property. He won’t intentionally damage his own property. It might drive my price down.”

Daniel roared and picked up the nearest table, hurling it into the wall like it was a discus. The force caused it to lodge into the wall and stick there like a suspended piece of art. Daniel then sat in the middle of the floor and let his head find his hands.

I sank down beside him, my anger expended, too. “I’m sorry, Danny. There wasn’t anything you could do.”

“You didn’t even give me the chance, Z,” he said quietly as his claws sank back into his hands. “I’m your husband. You didn’t allow me to defend you.”

I shook my head, sick to death of this argument. “I didn’t let you die and leave me alone. He can kill you. He can do it very quickly, and there’s no way for you to survive it.”

“You went to Lee,” he said hollowly.

“Would you prefer I told no one? What would you have done if I’d gotten you up and told you last night?”

His face was fierce as he thought about it. “I would have tracked him and killed him. I would have made him suffer first.”

“Before or after he pressed a button and your chest exploded?”

Daniel growled his frustration.

I just sighed and moved close to him. “If our roles were reversed, what would you have done? Would you have risked my life?”

“It’s not the same.”

“I love you,” I said quietly. “If my suffering will keep us together in the end, then it’s worth it. I can handle it, Danny. You have to let me be your partner in this. Are you seriously going to put everything we’ve worked for at risk because you don’t want me to feel a minute’s discomfort?”

“Zoey, please.” I could hear the heartache in his voice. “You can’t ask me to sacrifice you.”

“You can’t ask me to sacrifice us,” I replied simply. “Are you telling me you wouldn’t want me anymore if Marini had me?”

He pulled me close and let his head fall against my chest. His ear rested against my breast, and I knew he was listening to my heartbeat. He found the sound soothing. “I don’t give a damn what he has. I love you. You’re my world. He could have you a thousand times and I would know you’re still mine.”

I stroked his hair, happy our little crisis had been averted. “Well, I’m glad you feel that way since you now know about my long-time affair with Lee. I’m glad you know. He’s such a kind, gentle lover.”

I felt Daniel’s chuckle.

Lee rolled his eyes at me as he disappeared behind the bar. “Thank god, he didn’t break the damn fridge. I need a beer.”

“Is the violence over?” Nim asked curiously.

“I think so.” Neil retrieved his Frappuccino and took a long swig.

“We’re fine now, Nim,” I assured her. “Dev will be infinitely more reasonable than Daniel. We’ll sit down and talk it out after Dev is done seeing the tape.”

Daniel snorted. “He has you so fooled.”

I was about to ask Daniel what he meant when my infinitely more reasonable husband stalked back into the room. He was shoving a semiautomatic pistol into the holster he’d wrapped around his shoulders, but I wondered why he needed it since it looked like he’d already emptied out the armory. He was carrying a P-90 and something I didn’t recognize. Zack trailed behind him, carrying a bag that was filled with what I was pretty sure were cakes of C-4.

Daniel sat up and observed his partner with an approving nod. “Nice. You’ve been wanting to use those flamethrowers ever since we bought them.”

Dev acknowledged Danny with a nod, but ignored me. He pointed at Lee. “You will fetch my wife’s clothes from last night. I know she left them in your apartment when she sought to hide the crimes against her. You will bring them to me and Zack will use them to track Marini. Daniel, you will stay out of range of that device of his.”

“Yes, Devinshea,” Daniel said sarcastically. “That will keep me out of the range of the blood splatter that will come when Marini slits your throat.”

“Well, I wasn’t intending to get close, Daniel. I’m going to blow up whatever building happens to be housing the fucker at the time. If by some chance he escapes the blast, I will get him with the flamethrower. I have to admit, I’m rather hoping for the second scenario. I want to watch him burn.”

Dev had forgotten several important truths. “Dev, he travels with an entourage. You’re going to kill everyone just to get to Marini?”

He gave me one allowance. “Neil, you may call Chad and warn him he has ten minutes before I blow his ass away.”

Neil took a long suck off his straw. “Thanks, Dev. He’ll appreciate the heads up.”

“How about the humans?” I asked, horrified at the suggestion. There were always humans traveling with vampires. Companions were very rare, so human lovers and slaves would certainly be present.