Chapter 13

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN

Getting a void hound into a car was fun.

There was no way in hell we were going to try and take the train or a bus back to Sias's side of town with the new puppy in tow. Even the stoic, uncaring masses of St. Athesall would notice a terrifying, undead hound following us around, what with its skeletal head and razor sharp teeth. People had their limits.

Instead, Sias had one of his driver's case the area for DHAP officers and any lingering Saint's Army people before scooping us up in a speedy get away. The most shocking part of my night, besides ripping Zane from the void, Sias's new set of eyes and abilities, and seeing my brother knock Magnus out, was witnessing a crack in the veneer of one of Sias's driver's professional demeanor.

The guy looked a little uncomfortable with the hellhound. There was a tiny flinch.

My guy had seen literal dead bodies being dumped into the trunk in multiple trash bags and had put up with Sias and me fucking very loudly in the back seat, but he finally looked a touch uncomfortable with the undead beast hound.

I loved that dude.

I almost thought he was going to say something. There was a little hesitation right as he started opening the back door for us.

It was a little tricky to fit us all inside considering how monstrous the damn beast was. I ended up squished against the window to try and avoid touching its fur, while the bulk of its body ended up mostly in Zane's lap. The vampire wasn't particularly amused by this, but Sias was exhausted and I think Zane felt bad.

I didn't argue because I didn't want Zane to shove the damn thing into my lap. It looked heavy and it was kinda funny that he got stuck with it.

The driver held the door for us as we piled out onto Sias's driveway, the night air thick with a threatening thunderstorm. I inhaled the smell of brewing rain, thankful to smell something other than dried blood and ash.

"C'mon," Zane was saying to Sias as he helped him out of the car, their hands clasped together so Sias could be heaved to his feet. The calm drive had given us all permission to let our guard drop, and Sias had gone from tired to bone deep exhausted, and was looking understandably sick.

"You still feeling bad?" I asked him, returning to his side to offer support. Sias allowed me to loop one of his arms around my shoulders, not protesting as Zane did the same.

"Tired. A little weak."

His second set of eyes had shut fully and were starting to blend back into his skin, which was clammy and sticky from the black goo that had leaked out earlier.

"How do we help him?" I asked Zane as we practically dragged Sias inside. "If he went into the void does that mean he's…"

"I don't know," Zane said. "I've never heard of someone without death magic going into the void and coming back. This is beyond me, hunter."

"You can help me by taking me to the shower," Sias mumbled. "I'm disgusting. I want a hot shower and my bed."

"You can barely stand, Sias. I think if we dump you into a shower you'll drown." I worked with Zane to heft our incubus up the steps to his front door. Forgetting I no longer had a right hand, I tried to adjust Sias's weight to open it and nearly dropped him in the process.

We managed to get Sias inside without him crashing to the floor somehow, and were greeted by an armed antiques dealer ready for battle. Barnaby wielded a bat shaped suspiciously like a penis cocked above his head and yelped when he saw us. The weapon flew from his grip, missing us by a hilarious margin, and clattered across the marble flooring.

This, of course, was a horrible method of attack, but was the epitome of fun for the hellish canine, who thought Barns was playing with it.

The beast birthed from the void gathered the wooden cock into its mouth with obvious glee, butt wagging in anticipation for more.

The dog, not Zane.

"Hi, Barns," I greeted my terrified, former landlord. "Can you stop hurling genitalia at us for a second and get Funus, please?"

"It…what…there's…" Barnaby floundered, jumping up onto a couch as the dog returned the phallic weaponry. "What is happening!"

"Sias trained an undead hound to love him because he went into the void and now has crazy powers that none of us understand. So, could you pretty please go get Funus before I lose my shit?!"

Barnaby stared at me with wide eyes, his gaze pinging from the hound, to the barely conscious Sias, back to me, then to Zane, looking for answers.

"Good to see you, Barnaby. He's not full of shit, we do need Funus."

"O-of course. Right." Barnaby descended the couch one tentative foot at a time, skirting around the hound like he was sure the thing was going to take a bite out of him.

"Thanks!" I shouted at him sarcastically as he ran away to do Zane's bidding, since apparently, I was full of bullshit.

With the couch now vacated, we placed Sias down onto the soft cushions to rest. I propped his head up with a throw pillow and smoothed away some of the hair tangled around his horns.

"Can you go get him a wet towel?" I asked Zane. "Kitchen is down the hall, to the right."

Zane followed my directions and disappeared, and Sias scowled as I moved some hair from his face.

"Are you in pain?"

"No." Sias adjusted his head and blinked his normal set of eyes. They were the same hot shade of green I knew from when he told me the story about his stupid golden gun. "I don't like people fussing over me."

"Yeah, well. Getting tossed around the void a few times qualifies for a bit of fussing, I think."

"I'm just tired," he defended. "Pushed myself a bit too hard with these new powers."

"Understatement of the year." I sat on the ground beside the couch as Zane returned, warm washcloth and a glass of water in hand as well as an extra, dry towel draped over his arm.

"Are you hungry?" Zane asked as he parked himself on the couch, sharing a cushion with Sias's hip.

"No." He reached for the cloth Zane was holding. "Give me that. I can take care of myself."

"We know you can. But it's kinda nice, isn't it?" I asked. "Having people around who don't mind wiping weird blood off your face?" I brushed a strand of hair away that had been stuck to his cheek. The void hound beside the couch rested its giant head across Sias's legs and sighed through its nose hole. It whistled a bit.

Sias's eyes cooled to an emerald around the edges, embarrassment and pride still lingering in the centers.

"I don't hate it," he confessed after a few heartbeats.

"When you say you're not hungry, do you mean you don't crave anything at all, or you feel a pull for something else?" Zane wiped some of the crusted blood from Sias's cheeks and neck, his movements careful.

"Are you asking if I want blood?" Sias lifted his brows. "Do you think I'm going to turn into a vampire?"

"I don't know." Zane frowned as he smoothed the cloth over Sias's jaw. "I don't know what any of this means. I'm trying to cover all bases."

We heard Barnaby and Funus bickering long before they made an appearance, their hushed squabbles not as quiet as they thought. They came into the room and Barnaby stood a few feet back, his fear of the hellhound still firmly in place.

"By the Goddess! It really is!" Funus's eyes lit up when he saw the beast, who was now trying to climb up onto the couch. The creature was far too big to have any room on the narrow furniture, and compromised it by just hefting its chest and head up to sprawl over Sias's legs. Its golden eyes dimmed a little, and we collectively leaned away from it.

"Is it…sleepy or are we about to die?" I asked warily.

"We're both very tired," Sias explained. "No need to be alarmed."

"That is truly amazing," Funus said from across the room. "Influence over creatures of the void is rare, even for the savants of necromancy. Though, I suppose we'll learn more as your powers manifest."

"You don't sound surprised that Sias has any powers, Funus," I probed, a sharp suspicion clawing at my stomach. "Do you know something about this?"

"Ah." Funus cleared his throat out of nervous habit, since he didn't have a throat to clear. "I do, yes."

"What the hell, Funus?" I stood, pausing when Sias grabbed my hand and tugged.

"Relax."

"Relax? Are you serious? I thought you fell into the void by accident. Was this shit planned?" I looked between the two parties. "Barnaby, stop being a worm and get over here. The dog isn't going to hurt you."

"I'm fine here, thank you." Barnaby squared his shoulders. "You can hear Funus just fine." He squeaked as I took a step to snatch the head away.

"Knock it off," Zane barked, passing me the rag as he stood. "You're a pain in the ass like this. Sit. Barnaby, I'll take Funus if the dog is making you uncomfortable."

"I'm just not sure how it responds to outsiders," Barnaby admitted, cradling Funus against his chest. "I'm the only one here not part of the void club now, you know. I have a right to be cautious."

"It's not going to hurt you," Sias told his fellow incubus. "I promise. Please." He gestured to the matching chair beside the couch, inviting Barnaby to sit with us.

Barnaby took a long, measured breath and inched his way over, sitting right on the edge of the chair in case he needed to make a speedy retreat. Funus was placed on the armrest so he could chat with us.

I knelt back down on the floor, still angry but tasked with cleaning Sias's cheeks. I dabbed some dried blood away and allowed the process to calm me down a little bit.

"Tell me what happened," I told Funus. "And what all of this means for Sias."

"This wasn't planned, not in the way you think," Funus explained, yellow eyes darkening with sincerity. "I was ‘holding the door,' if you will; keeping the void stable for you. After you tackled the hound in, Sias went tumbling in after you. You sank like a rock, connected to the void through our lessons and your…well. Prior visits. Sias didn't."

"I was trying to find you," Sias whispered. "But you fell so fast. I could sense you deep down in the void, but I didn't know how to get to you."

"I felt him starting to drift. I took it upon myself to offer guidance, as is my nature." Funus's ‘smile' was weak, his eyes brightening just a shade too pale. "If he were to find you, he'd need to ask the Goddess. With him not being human and having no training, I brokered the meeting. Helped explain the terms."

"What terms?" Zane asked for me, since my throat had gone dry.

"Sias is part of the void now. Not a true child like you, Zane. Not a vampire. Sias is one of her converted; soul bound and under her charge. His soul will join her when he dies, not allowed to roam free in the void with his passing."

I was able to find my voice after a few tries, but the only thing I could think to say was, "Goddamnit, Sias."

A fistful of sadness curled in my chest, an impossible weight of expectations I knew I could never fulfill. I wasn't worth such a high price. Sias had been a damn fool to cash in his ticket for someone like me, and I felt that bitterness like a twisting knife.

"Can it be undone?" I looked to Funus. "If I go to the Goddess, if I tell her I'd take his place?—"

Sias forced himself upright, eyes burning like emeralds dipped in gold. The anger was plain on his face, his handsome features dark as he aimed his fury my way.

"You don't get to make that call, Dallas."

"You gave up your soul, Sias! What the fuck!" I felt like my chest was trying to cave in on itself from how helpless and horrible I felt. "I'm already heading down that path with being a necromancer. You shouldn't have to give up a blissful eternity because I jumped into the tear like an idiot."

"You haven't been paying attention," Sias hissed. "That's not what happened."

"The Death Goddess saw an opportunity and jumped on it, is what happened," I corrected. "Snatched a non-human soul to join her harem. That's gotta be a rare treat for her. Like a taste of gourmet after being surrounded by fast food hamburgers for centuries."

"I wouldn't call us hamburgers . Bit rude," Funus mumbled, and Barnaby gave him a pat.

"The Goddess doesn't trick people, hunter," Zane added, deathly calm. "You're panicking because you're scared."

"Fuck you, Zane. I'm really annoyed at you right now, but I kinda missed saying that."

"Scared?" Sias looked to Zane. "Is that what you're feeling from him?"

"Hey! That's necromancer-vampire privilege," I cut in quickly. "Zane, shut up."

Zane crossed his arms and shut up, but the seed had already been planted in Sias's brain. Fucking vampire.

"Dallas," Sias whispered, the sound a snake hiss but without the threat of a bite. The golden anger in his gaze had softened, not quite gone. "Do you truly think anyone would be able to trick me? Do you think I'm that naive? Stupid?"

"I think even very powerful, dangerous people can be desperate. Getting lost in the void doesn't give you the upper hand," I said diplomatically. "And I don't want you to pay too high of a price for…this." I gestured at myself. "I don't even have two hands anymore, I'm damaged goods."

Sias watched me, emerald eyes flecked with gold, skin pale and bruised. My heart was hammering as he took a deep breath, seeming like he was about to unleash a fury on me I wasn't prepared for.

Imagine my surprise when he caught my chin and kissed me beside my mouth, pinning me with twin jade daggers that felt like they would pierce through my soul.

"You and I have some things to discuss, Dallas Wilde. But tonight, I'm going to bed, alone, so I can rest, and you are going to catch up with your well-earned vampire." Sias motioned to Zane's arm, which was still slashed to pieces from his wrestling match with the hound. "I believe some feeding is in order."

Guilt lanced me at having forgotten about his wounds, followed by a deep, warm excitement that bloomed at the remedy.

Zane needed to heal. He needed my blood. I was a bit of a bastard for being excited about that, but I couldn't find it in myself to care. The last memory I had of him before his horrible death was feeding him drops of blood from my tongue, my back pressed against the cold marble of a mausoleum.

God, that felt like a lifetime ago. I had been craving to revisit that moment like it was etched onto my soul.

A grin curled Sias's lips when I felt my face growing hot, a velvet chuckle tumbling from him.

"That's what I thought. I won't dare get in the way of that. For now."

A spark ignited in me over that comment, and I had to breathe through the thrumming desire to let my imagination cartwheel into Smutville.

My face was on fire as I glanced at Zane, the hammer of realization that he could peer into all my dirty little emotions hit hard enough to make me wheeze.

The cheeky vampire had his features schooled, giving nothing away at Sias's comment or the horny thoughts bouncing around like pinballs in my head. Zane offered his hand to Sias to help him to his feet, steadying him with a firm grip around his elbow.

"Take good care of him, Zane," Sias told him, tone growing serious. "He has shut himself off from care since you left. Make sure he gets a full release, hm?"

"My God , Sias!" I sputtered, flustered. I was actually flustered. He flustered me. "I know you're an incubus, but c'mon, man."

"I think that's my cue," Barnaby mumbled, getting to his feet.

"You sure you're okay?" Zane asked Sias, choosing to ignore the blatant sex talk. "I don't like how pale you are right now."

"I'm fine, love. I just need some time alone to recover." He placed a sweet kiss to Zane's cheek. It made me feel things. Sias clicked his tongue, summoning the loyal hellhound to his side. The massive, undead beast wiggled its backside as Sias leaned on it for support, happily assisting his master.

"I'll check on him later," Barnaby offered as I stood there like an idiot, feeling helpless and a little bit like I had inadvertently triggered a ticking time bomb. "I have some spare intimacy magic vials he can have to help him recover his strength."

"Thanks, Barns."

"Of course." Barnaby positioned Funus to his side and gave my shoulder a squeeze, then turned to give Zane a quick, chaste hug and an awkward pat on the arm. "Good to have you back, Zane. I've saved your books for you and have some new ones I've picked up while you were gone. If that's alright."

"I've missed you too, Barnaby," Zane replied with an amused grin. "Thank you."

Barnaby allowed himself to smile, reminding everyone in the room how handsome he was when he wasn't glowering like a cantankerous grandpa.

"Right. Well. Off we go." Barns gave the hallway a nervous glance, like he was expecting the hound to be waiting to pounce, then scuttled off like a nervous spider clutching a skull.

I watched Barnaby disappear down the hallway, Sias and his hell beast gone from view as well. My head was threatening to burst from all the thoughts rolling through me, fear tripping over confusion and butting heads with the lingering guilt. I wasn't sure which direction I wanted to go as I stood in Sias's foyer, beaten and bruised, having liberated my vampire but cashing in Sias's soul to achieve it.

I shouldn't have been so distracted by Zane's presence.

I felt like a supreme asshole for letting my mind drift to the one thing I had wanted for months.

Yet there I was, being an asshole and staring at the big vampire watching me with a look not dissimilar to a starving monster, ready to eat me alive.

The gap between us was closed with two steps, Zane moving to stand before me so I had to tilt my gaze up. A few months ago, I would have called him a prick for lording his height superiority over me. In that moment, it wasn't just pushing my buttons, it was rewiring my circuits.

If it had been anyone else, I would have just jumped him there and then, pulled him down onto the couch and demanded all manner of filthy things, not giving a screaming shit who saw us.

But with Zane I was…awkward.

Nervous.

Hilarious, right? Zane. The big, gothy jerk with his flowy hair and oh-so-cool leather jacket, the vampire who had befriended a kitten and read murder mysteries. The same jackass who failed constantly at being my bodyguard, complained about my brilliant ideas and undermined me in front of my fish daily for months.

I wasn't supposed to be nervous around that guy.

I was Dallas fucking Wilde. I didn't get nervous.

This was new for me. I hadn't been nervous around a boy since I was a lanky teenager trying to unfasten a belt buckle in the back seat of a car.

To be fair, Zane wasn't a boy. He was a big, thick slab of undead bastard who wanted my blood and could do amazing things with his tongue. Not to mention he had fangs , which I was still grappling with, but was too excited to care about.

He was everything I hated. Everything I had dedicated my life to eradicating. A creature of malice and evil, birthed to serve death and be a blight on human and demonkind alike.

He was forbidden in every sense of the word.

The weight of that was making my palms very clammy. It wasn't a great start.

His voice was as calm and deadly as the rumbling before a volcanic eruption.

"Does your leg still hurt?"

I forgot how to form words for a second so I tested my weight on it and gave him a so-so gesture.

"S'fine," I managed, wiping my palms on my tattered jeans.

"Good," he said simply, then turned my world upside down in a very literal sense. One second, I was standing there feeling sweaty and tense, the next thing I knew I was being tossed over Zane's huge shoulder like I was a sack of flour.

It happened so suddenly and with such fluid force that I yelped in alarm.

"The fuck!" I balked, flailing like an honest-to-God fish.

Zane growled, "Where's your room?" in a way that shot right to all my fun parts.

"Are you whisking me? Am I being whisked?"

"Room, hunter," he snapped. "Otherwise, I'm tossing you outside."

"What else are you offering to toss? Because if you're going to be tossing—ah, okay, okay!" I pleaded as he started marching toward the front door. "Hallway to the right with the big mirror. Head that way."

Zane spun and walked with quick determination, and I got a prime view of his ass as I was whisked away like a very handsome princess. I would have preferred to have been carried like a damsel in distress instead of a burlap sack but, luckily, we didn't have far to go.

"How many fucking rooms does this place have?" Zane mumbled as I copiloted from behind him. When we finally made it to the room I had claimed, Zane kicked the door shut with his heel before literally throwing me onto the bed.