Tempt (Ava Delaney #3) (17 page)

“
Everyone has something.” He leaned over and wrapped his arms
around me. “You’ll get through it. I promise.”

Our eyes
locked, and my heartbeat sped up, but he got up and moved
away.

“
About the succubus,” he said abruptly. “If we took Carl, what
would happen?”

“
He’d probably do his best to get back to her. It’s like an
addiction, I think. He could die,” I said.

“
Or it might wear off. Going cold turkey, that sort of thing.
It might be worth a try.”

“
It’s something to consider. But she would probably come and
get him. Or force him to hurt himself getting back to her. I
thought you wanted me to give up on him,” I added.

“
It’s not that. It’s just… you always act like you have to do
things. You don’t. You can walk away any time.” Something in his
eyes made me think he wasn’t talking about Carl at all.

“
Carl’s one of the few people I haven’t freaked out. It’s not
that I have to save him. I want to. I’m trying to set up an
appointment with Daimhín to ask her for help. I know, I know, don’t
look at me like that. I’m having some trouble, so I thought you
might be able to put a word in with Yvonne for me.
Please?”

He
backed away at her name. “I’ll try. Whatever good that does. Do you
really think Daimhín will give a crap?”

“
Probably not. But she might despise succubi and want to get
one over on them.” I smiled. “It’s worth a try. You know what?
Maybe I should go back home. Give the demon something to chew on so
she doesn’t overdose on Carl.”

“
Sometimes I think you’re crazy,” he said, but the corners of
his mouth lifted.

“
Ever wonder where we’d be if life was normal?”

“
Probably as bored as Carl was. I’m not so sure I want normal
anymore.”

“
And I’m the crazy one. I should go. Thanks for…
everything.”

“
I take it you’ve heard the news,” Daimhín said, taking in my
appearance with the slightest look of disdain. Compared to her, I
was permanently unkempt.

“
What news?”

“
Nobody told you? I thought that’s why you wanted to see me.
It hasn’t made the human news yet, but a ferry went missing. It was
found drifting, completely empty. They’re referring to it as the
Irish Mary Celeste.”

I
frowned, wondering at the significance.

She made
a little frustrated noise. “The beast. It had to be
her.”

“
No bodies?”

“
Maybe dumped overboard,” she said. “She hasn’t been back, so
there’s a good chance she’s crossed the water for good.”

“
She’ll be back,” I said. “If she survived, then we haven’t
heard the last of her. And if she fed on an entire ferry full of
people, she’s more than healthy.”

“
No matter. It’s not our problem anymore. I’m glad you’re
here. I wanted to talk to you about your employment with
me.”

“
Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something, too,” I
said, leaning back in my seat, grateful that only a handful of her
coven had joined us. I caught the eye of Eloise and got distracted
until Daimhín cleared her throat.

“
Sorry,” I said. “I have a problem.”

“
What kind of problem?”

I rubbed
my cheek, suddenly embarrassed. I felt as if I’d been caught out
somehow. “A succubus. Turns out there’s one in my building. She
marked my friend, and she’s been draining me for years. There’s a
good chance she’s effectively been using my friend to spy on me.
I’ve been told there’s not much I can do about it. But you took
responsibility for me before. Can you help me?”

Her
laugh was like a cackle. “I hate those things. Trust you to live in
the same building as one. I hope you’re not particularly fond of
this friend. Succubi don’t let go easily.”

“
Carl. The one I… the one who started everything really. There
has to be something I can do. They can’t just feed on anyone they
like, can they?”

“
They usually only feed on humans, which doesn’t explain how
she’s been draining you. It’s strange that she’s chosen
your
human—”

“
He’s not actually mine.”

“—
because they tend to travel wider than that. Unless you
offended her, which… you did, of course. I forget you have the
manners of a chimp. I’ll send someone to ask politely. Other than
that, I have no recourse. I will, however, make a point of
mentioning it to the Council. I don’t like the idea that she’s
taking something of mine, especially considering the situation with
the beast. No wonder you didn’t catch her. As a society, we all
needed the beast to be dealt with as soon as possible. If this
demon interfered with that, the Council won’t be happy.” I kept
quiet, perfectly happy for her to go with that train of
thought.

She
stared off into the distance, drumming her fingers on her knee.
“Yes, that’s what I’ll do. She’s taking some of your power. I need
that. Selfish of her really. You do understand that your human will
die, even if she lets him go?”

“
No, he can’t. He’ll be fine. There has to be a way for him to
be fine.”

“
She won’t let him go willingly,” a voice said from the
corner. We both turned to look at Eloise.

“
Did you
see
that?” Daimhín asked harshly.

Eloise
shrugged. “Perhaps it was a dream, perhaps a memory. The succubi
don’t give up what’s theirs. Unless it doesn’t belong to them.” She
gazed at me as if waiting for me to understand. I
didn’t.

“
Perhaps you’ll get lucky,” Daimhín said. “Now, Ms. Delaney,
I’ve decided to keep you on permanently, publicly. Brogan is
surprisingly quick to hand over what’s mine when you’re the one
collecting. I don’t know why I bother making deals with him. He’s
never understood the concept of repaying debts.” I could have sworn
a crooked smile twisted her lips. “And the angel might be fairer
when one of his own is around. Your trial was a disaster for my
reputation, but if you’re seen to be loyal to me, then it could
speed up the recovery.”

I
laughed. I couldn’t help it. Actually being able to laugh in front
of her was a shock. “That was pretty much all your
fault.”

“
Now, now. It was that traitor, Gideon. I was too trusting of
him. It won’t happen again. But you. You came out of it shining.
It’s a critical time. Some are wary, others are interested. Either
way, I could use you. With your face associated with my coven, some
will be more easily persuaded. Of course, if I’m seen to treat you
fairly, the Council might favour me. Yes. There are lots of ways
you can help me.”

“
Why would I want to?”

“
Money. Security. Support. Information, maybe.”

My ears
pricked up at that.

“
I’ve lived a long time. I’ve learned a lot of things. I know
exactly why my day assistant works for me. I’m careful around her.
She hears what I want her to hear. Remember that when she tells
tales. But I’m willing to exchange some things with you for your
allegiance. I don’t desire her blood, so she can’t give me anything
unique. You, on the other hand—”

“
Why not?” I blurted.

“
Excuse me?”

“
Why don’t you desire her blood? What is it about some people
that makes them…” I shrugged, unable to think of an appropriate
word that didn’t make me sound like a hungry lion.

Her eyes
bulged a little. “You might be the most ignorant creature to pass
my threshold.” She sighed. “It boils down to a number of things.
Personal preference, health, diet, genetics. Something in her
bloodline is different, inedible. Some humans are bred to be
victims. Just like in the old days.”

She gave
a sudden smile, lost in thought. I cleared my throat to grab her
attention again.

“
Yes. You. You have my coven’s support, even if they hate you,
and I can easily pass on tidbits of information if you please me. I
know you have a ridiculous soft spot for those humans. Trust me, my
information is worth it. You’ll receive a wage, and you’ll work
regularly for me. Not on a daily basis, don’t worry. But enough for
you to keep your schedule open for me.”

Although
her tone was mocking, the lure of information was great. Maybe too
good to be true.

“
I still don’t see why you haven’t given any of this
information to Yvonne already. If you have any, that
is.”

She
smiled. “You’re learning. She’s human. She’s not a pet of mine.
She’s efficient, and she keeps me aware of Brannigan enough that I
don’t have to worry about him. But now I have you.”

“
Peter? Why would he worry you?”

“
He’s protected. If the Council ever wanted to get rid of us,
I know they would use him. He’s connected to you now. He wouldn’t
risk you to get to us.”

“
You don’t know him very well, then. Peter won’t let anything
get in his way.”

“
You sound bitter,” she said with a knowing smile.

“
Fine.” I stood to leave. “You help me, and I’ll help you. I
can live with that. For now.”

“
Good. I’ll arrange a visit to the succubus.”

“
Does this mean you don’t want me dead?” I asked.

Her
eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Oh, I definitely want you dead. I
just don’t want to be the one to risk it.”

***

Daimhín’s parting words replayed in my head. Risk what?
Whenever I used my dagger on a vampire, they burned until all that
remained was dust on the wind. What if something happened when I
died? Something that might injure my killer perhaps. I had a good
idea that Eloise would know. If only I could get some time alone
with her.

That led
me to her enigmatic message. I felt as though I might be missing
something regarding Carl and the succubus. Could I have prior claim
to him because I had once controlled his mind? But no, the bond was
broken, and that meant it couldn’t have any more influence on him.
There had to be something. All I could do for sure was rely on
Daimhín and hope her messenger could persuade the succubus to be
sensible and let Carl go.

I was so
tempted to burst into her flat and just take Carl away, but common
sense prevailed. Or at least a supernatural version of common
sense. As I walked home, I watched the world with my other
abilities, half-hoping to see Becca so I could take my bad mood out
on her.

Everything was normal, at least for my world. Red pulsing
energies signalled humans all around me. Empty pockets were the
stamps left by vampires. Various other energies appeared in a vague
sort of way, but it was as though my senses were more attuned to
the things that made up my DNA.

I cut
through a park to get home, squeezing through bent bars to make my
way past a child’s playground. The wind picked up, although the
night wasn’t as cold as usual, and it took me a few minutes to
realise it wasn’t the wind at all.

“
Hello, stranger,” I said before heeding the warning of the
presence with me. In my other sight, I saw something strange
running toward me and whirled around to face it. It looked like a
human. It had a heartbeat. But its energy was screwed up, and I
slowly realised why. Shadows. Clinging to the man’s soul. Or what
was once a man.

He raced
at me, fists closed. He was big, burly, and outweighed me by at
least a hundred pounds. Not to mention he was more than a foot
taller.

I blew
out a sigh, realising my latest non-fighting streak was about to
come to an end. A couple of days felt like some kind of record. I
planted my feet firmly on the ground and hoped I would remember all
of Peter’s advice. I didn’t want to hurt a human, but I needed a
couple of minutes to burn those shadows away, and they were
embedded so deeply in the man’s soul that I wasn’t even sure it
would help.

The man
rushed at me but stumbled when I jumped to the side and pushed him,
his weight helping me. His face was distorted, almost
unrecognisable as a person. His eyes swam with a misty substance
that made me feel sick to my stomach. Not even close to the
reaction Coyle gave me, but the man was infected with darkness,
more than Peter or the fox-shifter had been. He festered with
it.

He ran
at me again, swinging his heavy fists. One connected with the side
of my head as I tried to block him and grab his face. All I needed
was a few minutes of contact with his skin, and I could burn the
shadows from his body. I was confident that was all it would take,
but the dizziness from the blow he landed convinced me I would have
to knock him unconscious to even have a chance at cleansing
him.

We
grappled, and I cursed the stupid succubus for draining me of any
precious energy. I didn’t want to hurt the man, feeling sure he was
innocent. He had probably been sent by Coyle to distract me at
best, and kill me if he could.

Grunting
heavily when another punch landed, I decided to use my speed
against the man. I dodged around him, hoping he would use up some
energy following me, but the shadow seemed to push his body further
than humanly possible. I was outmatched… by a human.