Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

We stumbled out of the building from a side service entrance, and walked in the opposite direction to the fire crew's flashing lights. We'd gotten a block away, when a huge explosion rocked the early San Francisco morning.

Nothing needed to be said, because we all knew that was the end of the vampire's tracking program and Gideon Cain's hostile takeover.

Gideon had learned that if he took anything from Victor, Victor would burn it all down on the way out.

Zee was more clearheaded now his lungs were gas free. "Lemme count the ways I love birthdays. One, cake." He gave a nod to Victor, whose quick smile back was nothing short of a miracle, and was gone so soon nobody would believe it. "Two, surprise parties. Three, breaking into Reynard Technologies. Four, destroying shit. Five, bruised and fucked-up in a good way." He rippled his fingers. "Equals, best fucking night ever."

Though I smelled like a literal trashfire, and my side ached from the robot dog's stray bullet, I did feel pretty good. "We make a good team. "

"We do," Victor's smallest of smiles was back, but this time it stayed.

"Like the Spice Girls," Zee said.

I had no idea who they were. Perhaps they set fire to things too?

"How so?" Victor asked.

"You're Daddy Spice, obviously."

Victor's left eyebrow arched.

"I'm Sexy Spice, and Adam is..." We waited a while, until Zee shrugged and settled on, "Boring Spice."

"I like being SOS Hotel management."

"That's good too. When's your birthday, Daddy Spice?"

"After several hundred immortal years, birthdays become irrelevant."

Zee's eyes narrowed. "You're the fucking person who pops all the balloons at parties."

Victor's smile twitched, but it clung on, like the first little green flower shoot after a long cold winter.

Once we were far enough from the towering inferno, Zee used his phone to call an Uber. The driver didn't seem all that concerned that we were bloody, messed-up, and smelled like smoke, and dropped us off at the hotel just as the sun began to rise over the Bay Area.

"And that is my cue to take shelter." Victor stepped onto the porch, out of the sun's rays. "Thank you both, for a stimulating night, and for your continued compassion and kindness in what has been something of a taxing situation. And of course, happy birthday, Zodiac."

"Right." Zee said, hand on hip, eyes narrowed, tail flicking.

"We'll discuss what to do about Jimmy's family after we've all rested and cleaned up."

He dipped his chin.

"Hey? Daddy Spice? "

"Yes?"

Zee's grin broke out. "The fact you answer to that makes this inevitable." He crossed the deck, reached up to touch Victor's hard, lean face, and hesitated just a moment, probably to make sure Victor wasn't going to lash out.

Victor's vampire eyes softened, his lips parted, and he looked into Zee's gaze, perhaps for the first time really seeing Zee as the complicated, lovable, brilliant person he was, and not feeling guilty about caring for his enemy. Zee kissed him softly this time. Just a little hint, a tease. A promise. Victor's throat moved in a soft swallow, and Zee stepped back. "Rest up. We're safe here, all of us. Including you, Fancy Fangs. Now you're one of us."

Victor blinked. "Yes. I..." he croaked. "Thank you, Zodiac." After turning on his heels, he hurried inside the hotel.

Zee leaned against the porch pillar, softly chuckling. "Did he just thank me for kissing him?"

"I think he thanked you for more than that."

He shrugged a shoulder. "I should fucking thank him . I know what he did for me back there. And the birthday... That was... a surprise. Don't go thinking I'm soft on suckers, though. They are all the worst. Just maybe not him. I like him. It's weird. He's so not my type. Am I messed up?" Zee asked, sunlight catching in his purple and black hair.

"No." I tucked myself against his side.

"We should get cleaned up too."

"Wanna get cleaned up together in your shower?"

He pecked a kiss on the top of my head. "Always, Kitten." We lingered a while, watching the sun rise. The hotel settled and creaked behind us, preparing for another chaotic day. Hopefully those were good noises and not signs of imminent structural collapse. Even bursting at the seams with gremlins, I sensed the old building was content .

"Do you think Victor would like to get cleaned up with us?" I asked.

" That is a fucking question."

"We could ask him, right? If you're okay with it?"

"Kitten, I am always okay with more dicks."

We headed inside. Madame Matase looked up from her knitting and smiled, as she always did. She never asked about our drama, or the state of our clothes, or the fact I had blood stains on my shirt.

We headed up to Victor's floor, using the stairs. The elevator was still out. I probably should have someone check it over, and would add that to my long to-do list. Stopping outside Victor's door, I caught Zee's nod and knocked. "Hey, Victor?"

"One moment."

Zee leaned against the wall, but his smile slipped sideways, turning downwards. He winced, as though this may no longer be a good idea.

"Is he okay?" I whispered. Zee had clearly picked up on Victor's emotion and not liked what he'd tasted.

Zee cringed. "Don't wanna creep on him, but no. Maybe this isn't a?—"

"You may as well enter, both of you."

I slowly opened the door. The drapes were drawn, but it was light outside, so the room wasn't all that dark. Victor sat on the floor against his bed, knees drawn up, arms draped over them. And he didn't look... happy. Not that he ever looked happy, but I didn't need to be Zee to sense his sadness.

"Hey." There was no hesitation, not from me or Zee. I knelt at Victor's side, then twisted, to drop next to him. "Do you want to be alone?"

"No. Please, stay."

We had just destroyed his life's work on this side of the veil, and the last remnants of anything he owned or controlled. He was adrift, without a family. No wife, no purpose, and with the entire vampire race against him. He'd never been so alone.

I knew exactly how he felt.

The empty, endless burn of emotion that slowly devoured you from the inside out. I took his hand and gently squeezed. This hotel had saved me, and Zee. We'd saved each other. And maybe that included Victor now too.

"Wow, you kept the frog ornament," Zee remarked, after he'd decided to take himself on a tour around Victor's room. "Weird."

Zee had his back to us, so he couldn't see how the corner of Victor's mouth twitched. His fingers tightened in mine.

Zee opened the closet. "I am aghast. The horror. My eyes!" Every hanger had identical grey suits hanging from it. Zee plucked a pale blue tie from a rack and sighed. "This here? This is a travesty. Imma buy you some kinky shit, since your billionaire ass is poor now."

Victor bowed his head, and sighed.

"Are you okay?" I asked him.

"I am now you're here."

Zee had made his way around the room, looping the tie in his hands, and stopped outside the open bedroom door. "Why does Daddy Vampire have the biggest walk-in shower?"

"He is... was our first guest, so he got the master suite. Remember?"

"Oh fuck, yeah. Master suite. So... here's an idea." Zee turned and looped the tie around his fingers. "You two wanna fuck around? Just a suggestion. An option. It's good to have options. And now that one is out there. On the table." Zee eyed the coffee table. "Like we could be on the table. Another option. So many options between three consenting adults. "

"Does he ever stop?" Victor asked, with a smile.

Zee beamed. "I can fucking do this all day and night."

"Come here." Victor said, in his mastery voice.

"Fuck, yes." Zee sashayed across the room, hips swaying, wings bouncing. "Just so we're clear, what happens between the sheets is different to what happens outside them." Zee knelt, placed his hands on Victor's knees, and slowly spread them apart. Their locked gazes burned with tension. "I'll be your bitch on this side of the door, but not outside it. You feel me?"

"Didn't I say come here ?"

His tone tightened a delicate thread of need down my back, and must have done something similar to Zee because his wings pulsed wider and his pupils swelled.

We were a mess, hadn't slept in almost a whole day, smelled of blood and smoke, and were coming off a high of Tom's cocktails, but somehow all of that made this even more perfect. Even more us . We were broken, but like one of those cracked bowls that was fixed with molten gold, after every break we somehow got better? Was that even possible?

Smiling, Zee spread Victor's knees farther apart and leaned in, as though to kiss him. "The safe words are Zodiac is the best ."

"The safe word is indigo ." Victor raised his free left hand—the right I still had hold of—and stroked a finger along Zee's jaw. "Understand?"

"Fuck."

"I shall take that as compliance."

Zee leaned in and scooped up Victor's mouth with his, silencing him and leaving no doubt where this was headed. Zee had his wings up, arched behind him, out of the way, while he knelt between Victor's knees and kissed him softly—at first. Asking permission to do more .

Victor's hand tightened on mine. Did he need me, or was he letting me know I wasn't forgotten? Perhaps both.

Such a momentous occasion should be accompanied by fanfare, trumpets, and applause, but the quiet of the hotel and the thump of my heart was all I needed to know this was special. We were special. And this was more than just fooling around.

Victor ended the kiss with a soft lick of his lips, then took the tie from Zee's hand, and held it up in silent query.

Zee's pupils swelled. He plucked the tie from Victor's fingers, then with some hesitation, covered Victor's eyes with it and tied it off behind his head.

Oh. My. Stars.

I'd forgotten how Victor had reacted when Zee and I had held him down to force feed him my blood. It had been a good reaction. Zee had clearly remembered.

Zee beckoned me closer and nodded at the now blindfolded Victor—his knees spread, lips slightly parted, waiting and expectant. "He's all yours."

Victor rested his head back, exposing the pale length of his throat. "Do as you wish."

I swallowed hard. My Victor Reynard gift had been delivered. All I had to do was unwrap him.