Chapter 12

12

I drank my last bottle of wine and fell asleep on the couch under the moon’s light streaming in through my apartment window.

Wolf songs, grunts, and snarls invaded my dreams, but the brawl and combatants remained out of sight. My hands were pulled behind my back and bound by rope, and an ultra-soft silk blindfold covered my eyes. Then the blindfold evaporated, and the ropes fell away.

Got to hand out props for dream state flexibility.

“The change is here. Prepare!”

The last shout startled me, and I bolted upright and blinked my eyes against the dark.

Oddly, a sense of cocooned safety suffused me. Did Thorn cast a protection spell over me, or did the Hand of Belial shade me? I must find an occult library of heft to research this. Thorn told me he assigned people to watch my place. They would have reported my break-in, but they are probably partially responsible for the feeling of safety.

At least they restrained tackling me like an actual intruder.

Thorn will never see me as more than a means to an end. It doesn’t matter. They’ll report me climbing into my window like a drunken idiot even if I can’t get drunk.

Part of me was disappointed I didn’t transform with the moon last night. I manifested all the metaphysical markers—heightened senses, now more than ever, tracking humans, differentiating them, and even spotting who I could most easily hunt. But no claws, no fangs. No change.

My phone, still in my back pocket, buzzed at me, shaking me from my thoughts.

Fuck. Thorn.

Thorn: Come to my penthouse.

Me: And I should why?

I imagined Thorn’s eyes swirling red in anger.

Thorn: I’m not in the mood to play games, Elena. Get here.

I’m not thrilled about heading to the demon’s casino. But Thorn had acquired a new trick. In my chest, where the hand’s mark rested, I experienced the sensation of tugging. Thorn was summoning the damned thing, which he could do because of our connection. It pressed against a major artery, and suddenly I couldn’t breathe.

Damn him.

Me: Okay.

He released the spell, and I could breathe again. A creeping sense of alarm spread through me. Could he off me that easily? Best to play along until I discovered the truth.

I’ll heed my demon’s call to the damned casino. Or was it Samara’s casino? Either way, I hope they’re all fucked out. And I’m hoping that instead of making me a voyeur in their sex games, Thorn is ready to progress to step two of the plan.

I packed, guessing at the tools Thorn’s job would require. All my usual tricks, headlamp, lock pick set, silk handkerchief-wrapped stone eye, and field tools. I tucked the butterfly knife, wire cutters, and a loop of fine gauge wire from my failed jewelry-making hobby a few months back into my pack. Thorn’s obsidian knife I stuck in my boot.

I watered my neglected plants and headed out the door with the spare key in my back pocket and sunglasses hooked into the front of my button-down shirt. It’s a cloudless day, with the sun high in the sky and not a wolf to be seen or scented anywhere around.

Why was that strange?

I hopped the bus to Thorn’s Casino, which was a pain because I had to transfer three times to get to that part of town. No further instructions blazed across my phone’s screen, so I slipped my shades on and enjoyed my new strength and energy. It’s less than last night, which roused my curiosity. Am I a child of the moon, still?

The clerk behind the desk changed. This one is older and more respectful as I give him my name.

“I’ll announce you, miss.”

I strode to the elevator and hit the call button, this time avoiding all thoughts of Thorn on the ride up. The episode with Samara was something I could not unsee or shake from my thoughts. It was a raw, embarrassing memory I’d give a piece of my soul to excise. Listening to and semi-experiencing Thorn’s carnal romp with Samara did not shoot to number one on my hit parade.

A gentleman in a white suit answered the door this time, and inside, a nice-looking woman smiled at me as she dusted.

Not like last night. There’s no sign of Samara anywhere. No pictures or belongings lying around to remind anyone of her.

“Took your time I see.” Thorn emerged from another room and glared with his eyes that were more red than brown.

Oh, he’s pissed. Good. That should keep the embarrassing situations at bay.

I offered him my sweetest smile. “You didn’t tell me you were in a hurry. Especially with Samara to keep you busy.”

He stared me down, but I couldn’t break even if I wanted to. I’m elated. The benefits of sharing the mark with him or accidentally absorbing the hand made me feel indestructible.

“Someone had a good night.”

My smile widened. “Oh, that would be me, sort of. I couldn’t enjoy it though, I was exhausted, but I slept well in my bed.”

His eyes stopped swirling red, and I spied the first glimmer of a smile twitching his mouth’s corners. “It’s not so bad being my partner, then?”

“Ooh, I like it when you call me your partner,” I said in a singsong voice. “It makes me feel all wiggly inside.” My voice fell to a deadly serious tone. “Especially when you employ our connection to suffocate me. And I absolutely adore when I vicariously experience your intimate moments.” I plopped my ass in the plush white chair he gestured to and waited for his eyes to flare red, but he surprised me.

Thorn chuckled. “You could join me, then it wouldn’t be vicarious.”

I sucked in a breath. “What?”

He regarded me for a long while. “It’s an offer, not a part of what I expect. There’s no pressure. What other benefits have you been experiencing?”

“I’m more focused, and my stamina is increased. I’m sure there’s more, but it’s only just beginning.”

“Of course.”

“But is it your mark or the hand?”

He wags his finger at me. “A good question. The truth is, a bit of column A, a bit of column B. I’ve done my best to mute the hand so it doesn’t overpower you. However, as long as it’s in you, it will increase your power in increments.”

“Like what?”

“Like strength, or abilities more like a shifter, jumping, climbing. I suppressed the dark magic, but it’s still a kinetic stone.”

“I broke into my apartment last night.”

He nods. “I heard.”

“Yeah, I figured as much. The point is, it was easy.”

“The hand,” he replied.

I shifted a little in my seat, wondering how much to share. “I could also see auras on people, sense their mood, their needs, their hungers. I could have tracked any of them the way I track artifacts, and I felt the desire to hunt them.”

“That’s all you.”

“I’ve never felt those things before.”

He leaned forward. “My mark on you isn’t likely to lend power you don’t already possess. It will make you faster, stronger, able to take and give more damage. But it also will undo any other suppression you’ve been under. Over time, you gain even more abilities.”

I didn’t know what to say. So I leaned back in my seat and closed my eyes. “What a freaking week.”

“What about the eye? Where did you hide it? It isn’t at the warehouse.” His voice was nonchalant, but I sensed worry.

I patted my hip pocket. “It goes where I go until you take it off my hands. I’d rather not go back to some so-called safe place, only to find it missing.”

“Good. That makes this easier.”

I sat up and opened my eyes. “What?” I glance around, but we’re still alone. “Is this where you kill me?”

“Fucking hell, will you let it go? If I wanted you dead, I’d have killed you, not given you my power.”

I huffed out a breath, recalling the conversation in Thorn’s headquarters. “It’s not my fault you always sound vaguely threatening. Jesus. God, even your crew thinks you’re a murder machine.”

Thorn scrunched his eyebrows.

“What do you mean?”

“I overhead them speculating how long you’d keep me around.”

Confusion washed over his face.

“What did they say, exactly?”

I told him word-for-word, and a skeptical look washed over his face.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” he exploded. “Not everything revolves around you, Elena. I have other business concerns. In fact, most of them have nothing to do with you.”

I shrank back in my chair. This explosion frightened me more than his eyes turning demonically red. He must have noticed my reaction because his expression softened.

“I won’t kill you, ever, unless you put me in a position where I have no choice.”

“How can I be sure of that?” I argued.

He gave me the most curious glance, and it seemed he didn’t want to speak. But he did, though it seemed against his will.

“Because I’d probably die with you.”

He glanced away, and his mouth drew into a line as if I had asked him to suck on a bar of soap.

Jesus, fuck. He was as serious as a crutch when he spoke these words, and I’m sure as hell he didn’t want to reveal that to me. There was a weird tension between us, an intimacy that shouldn’t have been shared, and I squirmed in my seat. So I said something stupid to break the tension.

“I bet all the girls tell you how romantic you are,” I said teasingly.

He whipped his head and gazed at me again. This time a sardonic smile played on his lips.

“I bet all the guys think you’re a brat.” He held out a key ring with three keys on it.

“It’s plain you don’t feel comfortable at the warehouse. And your former pack has it, and your apartment, staked out. So, these are for you. Living in an undisclosed location for a while is a good idea. One of my men will take you. Don’t tell anyone else the address.”

He reached forward, our fingers touched, and a spark popped between us as I took the keys.

I stared in surprise, and Thorn made a sucking noise between his teeth that was almost a hiss.

“Sorry,” I said. “I guess it’s that electric personality of mine.”

He shook his head with a wry smile on his lips. “You are something else, Elena. Quite a surprise and I thought I couldn’t be surprised anymore.” And then his voice turned cold, like a sudden winter shower. “But I have other business to attend to. Time to go.”

Keys in hand, I searched for signs of Thorn’s girlfriend. If she had been here, she’s been exceptionally quiet, which does not strike me as her style.

“I’m sorry I interrupted your evening last night with Samara.”

He shook his head and chuckled. “You didn’t. Samara can be impulsive, and despite having broken off with her years ago, it’s usually easier to let her have what she wants before she gets really demanding.”

I blinked. “So she demanded sex three times last night?”

He shrugged and looked amused.

“There could be worse things than letting a woman have her way with you,” I said.

Thorn looked away, turning those enticing eyes away from me.

“You’d think.”

He didn’t expound, and I couldn’t dig for more information about the gorgeous creature who made me feel two inches tall without insulting me once.

“Mr. Thorn,” I begin, even though I’m unsure how to say what needs saying.

“Elena.”

I laughed nervously.

“Demon marks and artifacts aside, thanks for not letting me drown in the swamp with my face in the mud. If you could have possessed the hand, well, in hand, if you’d let me die.”

“I’m not a monster, Elena, despite what people may say. Besides, it wanted you, which intrigues me.”

Thorn walked me to the door and opened it. You would think he was a solicitous swain instead of a demon crime lord.

“Take care, and try and lie low until I tell you. No one knows the location I’m sending you to. Stay safe. Don’t let the new power go to your head.”

“No problem, Boss. I’ll wait for the next job.” I paused just outside the doorway. “Are you disappointed I made sure not to touch the second artifact?”

He laughed aloud, and my stomach filled with butterflies. “I am curious what would have happened, but I think it’s best if we only do that in a controlled environment, if at all.”

He shut the door, and I hit the call button on the elevator, watching his silhouette shrink and disappear behind the frosted glass.

And damn, there was not much I wouldn’t do for that deep, sexy laugh of his.