The Collector (16 page)

Chapter Thirty-three

Lips

“Let’s get you back to the hotel.” I do a quick rub of my eyes the way guys do. She can’t see me like this, can’t know she has an effect on me. It’s something I wish I could un-know myself.

Charlie nods against my chest, so I take her hand and lead the way. We head toward the dance floor, and I realize I’m holding her against my back tighter than I need to. I glance over my shoulder a few times to make sure she’s doing okay, and she smiles.

My heart pounds.

After a couple of minutes, we stumble across Annabelle dancing with someone twice her age. I drag her away, and she’s none too happy about it. Nor is the guy, but I don’t have the energy to deal with his ass.

“Where’s Blue?” I ask Annabelle.

She shrugs and sticks out her bottom lip like I’m her freaking dad and I just grounded her. I look closely at her eyes. They’re red and rolling around without connecting on any one thing.

I groan and take her hand in my empty one. “I swear, I take you girls to have a little fun—” Read: get into trouble. “—and all you do is drink your body weight in liquor and hang out with jerks.”

Annabelle covers her mouth and giggles like a lunatic.

“Yeah, it’s hilarious,” I say.

We push through the bodies until I see Blue. There are even more people where he’s dancing, enough to make it difficult for the three of us to get to him. I turn to face the girls. “Don’t. Move.”

Annabelle wraps her arms around a swaying Charlie. She nods with a serious face, then bursts out laughing.

I roll my eyes and head after Blue. When I get closer, I have to bite my knuckles to keep from screaming. Blue is grinding against a girl so hard, I half-expect to see clothing lying at their feet. This, however, is not what pisses me off.

People complain as I shove them out of the way and pull Valery off Blue. “Go mess with someone else, Red.”

“Dude,” Blue drawls.

I turn and face him and his drunken stumbling. “Seriously, Blue? You were sober, like, fifteen minutes ago.”

“It kinda hit me,” he says, laughing. Then he tries to move past me to get to Valery, who’s busy readjusting her top.

“Red, get lost,” I say. “Blue, come with me.”

Blue’s half-closed eyes open wide. “I thought that’s what you said.” He points at Valery. “You’re Red…and I’m Blue. We’re both on the color wheel.” He roars with laughter.

“Okay, that’s great.” I grab his shoulders and manage to push him toward Annabelle and Charlie despite him dragging his feet and screaming for his beloved Red.

Outside the club, I hail a cab and manage to get the three drunks inside. They sit shoulder to shoulder in the backseat, and I take shotgun. As we’re riding back to V Hotel, they talk over one another and fall silent in cycles.

“Charlie, Charlie,” Blue slurs. “I’m sorry I pushed that guy. You know it’s only because I care. It’s because—”

Annabelle leans forward in her seat. “What about me? Would you do that for me? You don’t care about me. You don’t even care.”

“I care about you,” Charlie says, her eyes completely closed.

“I care about you, Annabelle,” Blue shouts. “I do. You don’t even know. It would blow your mind.” He mimics something exploding out of his head, and Annabelle falls over his lap laughing.

“Dante,” Blue says, like he has a brilliant idea, “let’s get some French fries. Do they have French fries here?”

“French fries!” Charlie punches her arm in the air and hits the roof of the cab.

The cabbie glances at me with utter defeat, like he’s seen this a million times and has finally accepted his fate.

“Everyone. Quiet,” I say.

Annabelle covers her mouth to keep from laughing, then lays her head on Blue’s shoulder. He in turn lays his head against the window, and Charlie lays her head on Annabelle’s shoulder. They look like fallen dominoes. Or fallen soldiers. Or maybe just drunk asses. In tandem, they close their eyes and pass out.

We ride in silence for six merciful minutes before Charlie wakes up. “Where are we?”

I turn around in my seat and put a finger to my lips, but it’s too late. Annabelle lifts her head. “Oh, my God. The lights are so pretty.”

“I think they’re ugly,” Blue says without even opening his eyes.

Annabelle’s face scrunches up like she’s going to cry, and Charlie pulls her into a hug.

I take a deep breath and glance at the cabbie. “I’ll pay you double if you can get us there in two minutes.”

He nods and steps on the gas. I’m sure he wants us out of his cab every bit as much as I do. Two minutes later on the dot, we pull up to V Hotel. Blue and Annabelle sing at the tops of their lungs during the entire elevator ride and all the way down the hall to their rooms. Other hotel guests stick their heads into the hallway and wave their fists, though I have no idea why. This is Las Vegas, for crying out loud. So I do the gracious thing—I give them two stiff middle fingers. My humble gift on this glorious night.

After I’ve told Annabelle and Blue for the hundredth time that we are not, in fact, going to after-party in the casino and get them safely inside their rooms, I turn my attention to Charlie. She leans against the wall and tilts her head against a black-framed mirror.

“I’m tired,” she says. “I don’t want to after-party.”

I bite my bottom lip to keep from laughing and walk toward her. “I know you don’t, hon. Let’s get you to bed.”

She nods so that her neck seems to be made of jelly instead of skin and bones. I wrap an arm around her waist and hold her up as I unlock her door. As soon as it slides open, she races inside and jumps face-first onto the bed. Her head hits a pile of pillows with a
fwump.

“Feels. So. Good,” she says into the pillows, her voice muffled.

I cross the room and pull off her high heels. Then I walk to the side of the bed and remove her earrings, careful not to hurt her. This is the first time I’ve undressed a girl without expecting Nasty Time in return.

“Charlie,” I say, “you need to roll over.”

“Why?” Her face is still smashed into the pillows, and I can hardly understand her.

“Because you’re going to pass out and suffocate.” I push my hands beneath her and cradle her with my arms. For just a moment, I hold her there against me, her head resting against my chest. Charlie moans, and I lay her down on her back. She curls into a ball on her side. I grab the fluffy white blanket from the foot of the bed and pull it over her. Then I grab a glass of water from the bathroom and place it on the nightstand where she can reach it.

And then I stare at her.

Like a total creeper, I just stand there and stare at her.

Her breathing has already slowed, and every few seconds her mouth works like she’s talking in her dreams. Knowing Charlie, she probably is. And there’s no way the person she’s talking to is getting a word in edgewise.

A lock of Charlie’s hair falls over her face, and I move to push it back. When my hand brushes her newly smooth cheek, her eyes snap open. She wraps her fingers around my wrist, and her big blues stay locked on my face.

“Dante?” She says my name so quietly, I almost don’t recognize it.

I sit on the edge of the bed and wait for her to finish.

Her mouth parts, but her eyes squeeze shut. “You can kiss me if you want.”

Every muscle in my body tightens. I’m stunned into silence. I can’t believe what she just said, but maybe I should. It’s not like she’s pushed me away these last few days, and she told me in the club that she thinks I have a
good heart
. But somehow it still feels surreal. I should have seen the signs. I should have known this was coming. Charlie’s eyes stay shut, and I’m not sure whether she’s fallen asleep or waiting for me to answer.

Or waiting for me to kiss her.

I study her mouth, her best feature. It’s full and pink, and I wonder for the briefest of moments what it would feel like to press my lips to hers. But I can’t do it. I
won’t
do it. She’s drunk, and she’s my assignment…and she’ll forget all about this in the morning. Still, I wonder. What if I didn’t work for the Underworld? What if I was just a guy, and she was just a girl I met in Peachville, Alabama?

I push a breath out through my nose and press my lips to her forehead. Below me, Charlie makes a small sound, but I can’t tell if it stems from sleep or something else.

“Good night, sweet girl.”

I rise from the bed and move toward the door. Near the entryway, I stop and stare at her. She looks peaceful wrapped in that white blanket, her breath coming smooth and slow. I push my tongue into my cheek, then switch off the light and move through the door.

And right away, across the hall, I see her waiting outside my room.

Valery.

Chapter Thirty-four

Trelvator

“What do you want, Red?” I ask impatiently.

“What were you doing in there?” Valery’s face is tight, like she’s imagining the worst.

“If you were so worried about it, why didn’t you knock?” I shoot back.

She puts a hand on her round hip. “Are we going to ask each other questions all night?”

“I don’t know, are we?” I slide my plastic key into the slot, and my door clicks open. “By all means, please come in and make the remainder of my night unbearable. It’s not like I need sleep or anything.”

Valery sashays by me and into the room. “Such a smartass.” Once inside, she lights a cigarette and blows the smoke out in small rings above her head.

I slide the balcony door open, and Valery sits down on the red leather loveseat.

“Those cigarettes look magically delicious. Care to share?”

She digs around in her purse for the pack and tosses them in my direction. I pull one out and motion for the lighter. She tosses that, too.

“So let’s get this rollin’. What’s your dealio, Fire Crotch?” I light my cigarette and drop down on the bed, crossing my red sneakers at the ankle. “You’ve obviously got something on your chest besides cheap silicone.”

Valery subconsciously covers her boobs. “My girls are not fake.”

“Yeah, you’d never do that. Then guys would fawn all over you.”

She straightens. “I don’t
need
male attention.”

“Please. The worst thing that happened when you died was leaving your three boyfriends behind.”

Fire burns so bright behind her eyes, my blood suddenly runs cold. Every muscle in her body is rigid, and her jaw is clenched so tight, I’m afraid she might bite off her own tongue.

“Dante Walker, there is one thing we will never talk about again, and it’s this—my relationship when I was alive. But I will tell you this now: I loved my fiancé with a ferocity I dare you to challenge.”

“Whatever you say.” I try to play it off, but make a mental note not to discuss the fiancé again, lest she strangle me while I sleep. I take a drag of my cigarette and stare down the length of my body at her. She’s glaring at me, so I shoot her my best eat-shit grin.

“You’re a pig.” Valery scrunches up her nose and makes grunting pig noises. Everything about her is perfect and polished, and I can’t help laughing at how I’ve already gotten under her skin. Good. After causing my collection numbers to slip, she deserves it. Still, it’s late, and I’m ready to hit the sack. And I’ll admit I’m beyond curious as to why she’s here, on earth, watching Charlie.

“Enough,” I say. “This grows tiresome. Start talking.”

Valery hunts for a place to flick her cigarette ash, then opts for the floor. Nice.

“I’ve come to watch Charlie,” she says. “You know that. What you don’t know is why.”

“No. You can stop right there.” I sit up on the bed. “I don’t want to know. I have a job to do, Red, and I intend on finishing it. It has nothing to do with whether I want to or not. It’s her ass or mine. And guess what? I choose mine. So telling me what I’m destroying in the process won’t slow things down,
comprende
?”

Valery smiles. “Sounds like you’re getting a bit of a conscience.”

I throw my hands up in the air. “Yeah, that’s the exact opposite of what I just said. I. Don’t. Care.”

“Which is why you treat her like she’s made of glass and attack anyone who tries to break her.”

I think about what she just said and realize she must have seen me beat that guy’s ass and threaten Taylor at Centennial High. My tongue runs over my teeth.
Careful what you say. Remember which side you’re on—the side no one walks away from.

Valery crosses and uncrosses her legs, waiting for me to answer. “I’ve got all night.”

I swallow, then smile like I’m about to let her in on a wonderful secret. “You know why I’m the best collector? Because I know how to play the game. I play to win. Understand? I do whatever it takes.” I lean forward. “And I do mean
whatever
.” Then I laugh like it’s the most hilarious thing I’ve ever said, because I know it’ll help drive home what I’m going for—which is a big, fat lie.

Valery stares at me, trying to decide if I’m telling the truth. “You’re not that good, Dante.”

“Aren’t I?”

She takes a long drag and flicks the cigarette out onto the balcony. From where she’s sitting, it’s actually pretty impressive. “You think you know that girl?” Her eyes narrow into slits. “You know nothing. You have no idea what she’s capable of, do you?”

“I just got done telling you I don’t—”

“But you do, Dante. You care. I see it in the way you look at her. You’re no actor. You’re just some washed-up collector who’s terrified of pissing off his boss. So you’re doing what you know how to do, looking out for number one. Because it all comes down to your promotion, doesn’t it? Getting a ticket out of hell?”

My jaw snaps together, the clicking sound giving me away.

Valery shakes her head. “Even Lucifer’s best man doesn’t want anything to do with him. And why would you? Who would want anything to do with that place?” She frowns. “I just hope it’s bad enough to warrant what you’re sacrificing.”

“You. Know. Nothing.” My words march out like tin soldiers. “You have no idea what it’s like down there.”

“No, I don’t,” she agrees. “And you don’t know what you’re destroying by completing this assignment.”

I want to prove to Valery that I don’t care. It doesn’t matter what Charlie is or isn’t, because I will always choose life outside of hell. But there’s also a part of me that wants to know who Charlie is and what she’s capable of. Because, truth be told, I want to know her. I don’t want the guilt of what this knowledge might bring, but I want to know her to the core. So I meet Valery’s eye and wait for her to tell me. I won’t ask for this information, but I know she’ll volunteer it if I remain silent. And so I do.

Valery lifts herself from the loveseat and crosses the room, gazing out the open balcony door. “Charlie is special.”

“I gathered that much.”

She shoots me a look that says she’s within an inch of physically attacking me. As funny as it’d be to watch her try, I shut up and let her finish.

“Her birth wasn’t an accident. It was planned. Not in the way two people get married, buy a house, and plan to have a baby. Her birth was ordained by…” She stops and points upward. Apparently Big Guy has become the new Voldemort, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Valery turns back to the cool Las Vegas night. “Charlie will change people’s lives, Dante. She’ll change the way they think about themselves, how they think about their neighbors. She will be…a tool in his plan.”

“A tool?” I stand up from the bed. “As in, if we don’t get her, then he will? And then he’ll use her like a pawn to do his bidding? No. That’s not going to happen. At least my way, I’ll have freedom, and she’ll have the rest of her life to herself.”

Valery whips around and crosses the room in a breath. Her words snap from her mouth. “You idiot! You ignorant, selfish prick. Don’t you understand? It’s already done. Seventeen years ago, her birth fulfilled His commandment.” She puts a hand on the center of my chest, and a warm sensation floods from the spot. “Three years ago, Charlie started an organization. That organization will continue to grow and flourish, and in time, it will change the face of humankind. It will remind people how to love another. It will show them how to care again.”

“Her volunteer thing?” I say with disbelief. “That’s what this is all about? If so, then you’re wrong. I’ve seen it. It’s a few bored people trading favors. It’s nothing.”

“It is
everything
. It is the beginning of the end.”

“The end of what?”

“Of hate. Of jealousy. Of selfishness. Her work, her life—it will end an era of hate, and usher in Trelvator.”

I push her hand off my chest. “You’re making up words now.”

“
Trelvator
means an era of peace, lasting a hundred years.”

“You’re freaking nuts, chick. Like, true psych ward material,” I say. “There’s no way mankind could be peaceful for two weeks, let alone a hundred years.”

Valery ignores me. “Her work will touch enough people to create a phenomenon. It will feel like…Christmas, a day when people are nicer and more generous. Except that day will be a year, and that year a century.”

“Something will happen. A war will start, a political fight will erupt. Something.”

“Things will happen, but they won’t be damaging enough to end Trelvator. Not for a hun—”

“A hundred years. Right.” I sit back down on the bed and rub my hand along my jaw. If it’s possible that Charlie will usher in an era of peace, isn’t that all the more reason for me to stay on earth? Why would I choose hell over rainbows and cotton candy? I glance at Valery. “Why does this have to do with her soul? If I collect her soul, she’ll go on living. She can still change the world and all that.”

Valery turns away, but I can still see her chewing her lip.

“Oh, snap! You don’t know,” I say. “O Wise One doesn’t have a clue what her soul has to do with any of this.”

She moves to the loveseat, picks up her bag, and pulls it onto the crook of her arm. Then she faces me. “You’re right. We don’t know what Big Guy wants with her soul. But here’s what I do know. Something big is going down. Something larger than you and me and all the other collectors and liberators. Charlie was born to help bring peace to this world, and your boss is trying to destroy that. So remember that when you’re choosing sides, Dante. Remember that this isn’t just about you and her. It’s about the fate of mankind for the next hundred years.”

Valery heads toward the door, and my stomach twists until I can hardly move.

“I don’t have a choice, Red.” My voice sounds serious, even to me. “Who I report to…it doesn’t work that way.”

She stops but doesn’t turn. “Something’s coming, Dante. And you better be sure you choose the right side.”

Then she moves away, and even though I’m expecting it, I jump when the door slams shut.