Authors: Alicia Dean
How would it feel to stroke her skin? To hold her throat between his hands, to feel it pulsing with life, like a butterfly beating delicate wings against its cage? How would her breath taste? So sweet and warm as he drew it in...
“Get away from her!” Dimitri’s harsh command snapped him back to reality.
Son of a bitch, the guy was a killjoy.
Dimitri stormed toward him, his hands clenching and unclenching, no doubt with the urge to throttle him. Gaylen’s smile widened. The only thing better than being close to Audra was knowing Dimitri didn’t want him to be.
“Chill, man.” Gaylen lifted his hands. “I’m not going to hurt her.”
“Damn right you’re not.”
Audra’s beautiful hazel eyes filled with confusion and fear, but she hadn’t tried to flee. Curious little kitten, wasn’t she?
Gaylen forced his face into a trustful ‘I only want what’s best for you’ mask.
“Audra,” he said gently. “Please don’t let him convince you I mean you harm. I’d never hurt you. Dimitri’s a little—” He gazed heavenward, searching for the right word. “He’s a little paranoid, a little melodramatic.”
Audra laughed without amusement. Her full, silky lips pulled back in a sneer. “You think I’d trust you?” Her eyes shot to Dimitri, then back to Gaylen. “Either of you? You’re
reapers
, for God’s sake.”
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean we’re evil.” Gaylen took a step toward her and she backed up.
“Stay away from me. Both of you.”
She panted, her breath puffing like smoke in the chilly wind. Gaylen’s chest tightened. He met Dimitri’s eyes. He’d seen it too. Had also been affected by the urge. Cocking his head, Gaylen licked his lips and winked at Dimitri. Dimitri started toward him, but Gaylen moved closer to Audra.
“Hey, now. You don’t want anything to happen in front of our new friend here, right? She’s frightened enough as it is. Look at how her chest rises and falls as she struggles for air. She’s panting so hard you can literally see her breaths. Sorry, Audra. The grouch and I have a history. We go back a long way, and we weren’t all that chummy then.”
She snorted. “Why not? Did you fight over who was going to club the women over the head and drag them into your cave?”
Gaylen howled with laughter. Even Dimitri’s mouth twitched. Perhaps a sense of humor lurked somewhere beneath all that rage after all.
“Cavemen,” Gaylen said. “I get it. No, Audra. Not that far back, but it was a very long time ago. Hundreds of years.”
Her brow furrowed. “Literally hundreds of years? You two have been alive...” She shook her head. “...Existed, for hundreds of years?”
“I think tonight has held enough surprises,” Dimitri barked. “We’ll leave you alone, Audra. We have no business interacting in your world. I’m sorry. I’ll do my best to make sure he doesn’t—”
Dimitri halted in mid-sentence, and a pained expression crossed his face. He lifted a hand to his chest.
Fucking A
. He was being summoned. He shook his head in a quick, vigorous motion, like that would make it go away.
“You’d better go,” Gaylen said, trying to keep the satisfaction out of his voice.
Dimitri glared at him.
“Or...” Gaylen cocked a thumb over his shoulder and lifted his brows. “I could go for you. How about that? Want me to go in your place?”
A sound between a growl and a snarl came from Dimitri. Gaylen couldn’t make out what he said, but would have guessed it was something other than, ‘Sure, it’s very kind of you to offer.’
Dimitri’s expression darkened, reflecting his internal battle. Stay or go? Perform his beloved duty or rescue the damsel? Gaylen knew what he’d choose. For a conformist like Dimitri, not going would be unthinkable.
Predictable as always, Dimitri let out another frustrated growl and turned to Audra. He moved close to her, so close Gaylen thought he was going to merge with her.
“Be careful,” he said quietly.
“Careful? How the hell am I supposed to do that after you two death mongers have entered my life?”
Dimitri stared at her, but didn’t speak. After all, what could he say?
He slowly backed away, shooting Gaylen one last, parting look. “I’d tell you to stay away from her, but I know how pointless it would be.”
“So, don’t bother. Just run along. Audra and I want to get acquainted.”
Dimitri scowled, but continued to retreat. He made his fingers into a vee, pointed them at his own eyes, then toward Gaylen. The message was clear.
I’m watching you...
And then he faded into the darkness.
Gaylen turned back to Audra. “Alone at last. Thought he’d never leave.” Her lips parted and a puff of air escaped. Excitement surged in his chest. “Now, where were we?”
~*~
Audra skirted around Gaylen, keeping an eye on him, but maintaining a safe distance. She didn’t trust either of them, but she damn sure didn’t want to be alone with this one.
“Are you leaving?” he asked in an injured tone. “I thought we were having fun.”
“Listen, I don’t know what either of you want and I don’t care. You stay the hell away from me.”
He crossed his arms and moved slowly toward her. His eyes dropped down her body. “Your limp.” He moved his gaze upward, settling on her cheek. His eyes glittered. “That scar. I was there that night. I saw it happen. You were so helpless, so close to death.”
“Too bad for you and your buddy I survived, huh?” Audra’s stomach quivered. Her heart pounded a loud, fast rhythm that seemed to say
flee,
run, get away…
“I thought so, but I kind of like you this way, too. Talking, breathing, spitting fire. It’s cute.”
He moved closer. A wave of fetid, warm air enveloped her. An unpleasant energy reached out to her, something inhuman and despicable. It was different from the aura Dimitri carried. Although she was loathe to admit it, Dimitri’s caused her pulse to race. Gaylen’s, on the other hand, made her stomach heave.
“I’m leaving now. Please don’t follow.”
He rubbed his hands together, chuckling. “I don’t have to follow you. I can just...appear...any time I want. Why are you being so standoffish? I want to be your friend. I tried to help you that night in the hospital, remember? I wanted to take your pain away. I’m not your enemy. Would an enemy do that?”
She frowned, trying to remember the details of that nocturnal visit. He’d said,
I can take your pain away
or
I can make it go away,
something like that. “Dimitri stopped you. He didn’t want you to help me. Why?”
He rolled his eyes. “The guy is such a stickler for rules.”
“Really,” she scoffed. “Somehow he doesn’t strike me as the law abiding type.”
“Oh, yes. He’s all about rules now. In the days before he became a reaper, things were different.” His eyes took on a faraway look. His face contorted in what almost seemed to be a human emotion. “Back then, he was a cold-hearted bastard. He made his own rules and what he wanted was all that mattered. To hell with the consequences or who he hurt along the way.”
One part of her wanted to hear the story, but the other wanted to run like mad, to get as far away from this monster as she could. “I’m going,” she said. “Stay away from me.” She backed away. “Don’t either of you ever come near me again.”
“What? You’re not having fun?” He feigned injury.
“Just stay away,” she choked out, then whirled and hurried toward her car.
His voice echoed behind her. “No point in running. We’ll always be around. Me, Dimitri, you. Together forever. The fun is just beginning.”
Even as she reached Jaxon’s car and thumbed the unlock button on the key fob, she could hear his laughter, following her, mocking her.
~*~
Barney sat in his car, his gaze searching up and down Main Street in downtown Broken Arrow. It was after midnight, few people around, but he needed
zero
people around.
Well, maybe not zero.
One
was more like it. The one sitting no more than twenty or thirty tantalizing feet away.
At the moment, she wasn’t alone. A couple of teenage boys were coming down the sidewalk, smoking cigarettes and engaging in a shoving match, playfully shouting
mother fucker
and
fuck off
at one another. If they kept walking, he was home free.
While he waited, he flipped down the visor, then slid the cover back from the mirror and stared at himself.
Facial hair in place...check. Green contacts...check. Friendly smile...check. All was good to go.
“Barney,” he whispered, trying the name aloud.
Although he’d used it several times, he still wasn’t used to it.
Barney
didn’t really fit him, but it worked. What other name would evoke as much familiarity with a generation that grew up watching the lovable purple dinosaur?
He’d chosen the name for multiple reasons. He’d recently read a novel featuring a character he’d admired named Barnabas Silent. And, who could forget the ever-lovable, classic vampire from Dark Shadows, Barnabus Collins?
Yep, he couldn’t have chosen a name that would mean so much to him, yet at the same time, inspire such trust in his young, impressionable, barely-out-of-childhood prey.
He waited a few minutes after the boys had disappeared before climbing from the car and heading toward the lone figure sitting on the curb.
Smoke rose from her cigarette, dancing in the glow from the streetlight before dissipating. She was maybe sixteen. A white girl, but her hair was in a bunch of little tight braids all over her head. Not an attractive look.
“Hi there. Is everything all right?” he said as he approached her.
She looked up at him with a face that had once been pretty, but was now gaunt, the green eyes devoid of hope. “What?”
“I said, are you okay, you need help?”
She shook her head. “I don’t need help.”
The look of wariness was there, as it always was with these street kids. Poor things.
“My name is Barney. I won’t hurt you. I’m just concerned. It’s dangerous out here.”
Her eyes slid away from his. “I’m waiting on my mom to pick me up. She’ll be here any second.”
He smiled. “Come on, we both know that’s not true. You’re on the streets. I don’t know if you ran away or were kicked out, but I’ve seen it too many times not to recognize it. I can help you.”
“How?” A twinge of hope glistened in her eyes
“I’ll get you a motel for a few nights. Something to eat. Then, we’ll figure it out from there. If you want to contact your parents, go to a shelter, whatever. Your call.”
She frowned suspiciously at him.
He held out a hand. “I want to help you.”
“I—I don’t know.”
“Look, if I wanted to hurt you, wouldn’t I do it here?” He glanced behind him. “There’s no one around. I could do whatever I wanted right now. I just want to help you.”
She sighed and swiped a hand over her face. “I wouldn’t say no to some food.”
“All right. Come on, then.”
She slowly rose, but didn’t take his hand. Good enough. She was coming. That was all that mattered.
“My car’s right over here.”
She followed obediently. Once they were inside, he started the engine. “You in the mood for burgers, pizza, tacos, what?”
“I can have anything I want?” Her voice lilted with delight, the child she’d been not so long ago beginning to surface.
“Sure. Name it.” He tried to regulate his breathing, tried to ignore the soft flesh of her neck. His fingers nearly ached with the urge to slide around it...gripping...squeezing...
He shifted the gearshift into drive, but hesitated when a sharp pain hit his heart. He let out a grunt and grabbed his chest.
“Hey, you okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. Just didn’t take my medicine.”
He’d been so excited, he’d forgotten. That happened a lot more often than it should. He had to be cautious. Take better care of himself.
He retrieved a bottle from his jacket pocket. Shaking out a couple of nitro pills, he swallowed them dry. In seconds, the pressure subsided. He smiled at his passenger. “All better.”
He eased the car out onto the street. Reaching over, he turned on the radio. “Put that on whatever kind of music you like.”
The girl pointed at his arm. “So, what’s that tattoo? I can only see the bottom part. Is it a dragon?”
Audra rubbed her temples, trying to ease the pounding in her head. Her eyes were raw and dry, as though they’d been scrubbed with sandpaper. She’d barely slept last night and now, she was paying for it. The normal rhythm of hospital sounds—pages over the speaker, rolling carts, chatter of her coworkers, beeping of machines, sounds that were always just background, comforting even—now ate at her brain like termites on a tree.
She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
Just get through the day, put them out of your mind. You can do this. You
have
to do this.
She sat at the nurse’s station, studying Trevor Rosdale’s chart. Poor kid was admitted this morning. His leukemia had been in remission, but now it was back. Death reaching its greedy fingers out to...
She shivered. Death now had a face, a name.
Make that
faces
and
names
, plural.
Had she actually met two Grim Reapers last night? There had to be another explanation, but no matter how hard she tried, nothing occurred to her. Not after everything she’d witnessed. What she’d felt when Dimitri had been...inside her. She shuddered and closed her eyes. That had been the strangest sensation she’d ever experienced. She hoped to God it never happened again.
“Hey.”
She jerked her head up at the sound of Jaxon’s voice. Her heart stilled, then raced like it might leap out of her chest.
Calm down, Audra. Get a grip.
“Hi.” She forced a smile. “How are you? I’m sorry about what happened last night.”
The man he’d treated at the mall had died. Heart attack. Maybe if she’d helped Jaxon instead of chasing after a phantom, who turned out to be a reaper, who turned out to have an accomplice...
She shook her head.
Stop thinking about that. Stop it.
Jaxon peered closely at her. “I’m okay, but I’m not sure about you.” His mouth turned down at the corner. “You look like shit.”
His words sent a sharp pain through her heart. “Oh yeah?” She barked a laugh and jumped to her feet, clutching the chart to her chest. “Not exactly the revelation of the century. You don’t find me attractive when I look my best, so what the hell, right?”
A pained look came into his eyes, and for a split second, she regretted her words. But only for a second. She’d had a helluva couple of weeks, a horrific night, and she was in no mood to make apologies. He could just suck it up.
“Excuse me. I need to check on Trevor.”
She rounded the desk and brushed past him, not checking to see if he still had that hurt, puppy dog look in his eyes. He’d get over it. She’d earned being a little pissy to him once in a while. After all, she’d gone along with marrying him, helping him in his quest for a straight, ‘normal’ life—something his father and the staid citizens of Boon Springs wanted more than he did—and in doing so, she’d given up Shane.
To be fair, she hadn’t been in love with Shane. She’d loved Jaxon. But, who knew what might have happened? She could have ended up falling in love with Shane.
Of course, if she were honest, her actions hadn’t been completely selfless. She’d been so in love with Jaxon, she’d hoped she could somehow make him realize their marriage was the path he wanted to take, the life he wanted to live. In the meantime, she’d lost her chance at something real, allowed Shane to leave, hurt, because she’d chosen Jaxon over him
“Hell of a wise choice, Audra,” she muttered as she stalked down the hallway.
Her anger abated when she went into Trevor’s room. She found him sitting up in bed, his face pale, his shoulder blades protruding like knives beneath his hospital gown. All in all, a nice-looking kid, but it wasn’t easy to see with his shaggy hair hanging in his face, hiding his pretty blue eyes. The hair wouldn’t be a problem for long. Not when the chemo treatments started again.
Wilton, the nurse’s aide, stood next to Trevor, adjusting his bed, helping to make him more comfortable. Wilton looked up when Audra came in, then said to Trevor, “All set, dude?” Trevor nodded. “Then I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Miss Audra. Later.”
When Wilton left, Trevor looked up, flipping the hair back with a jerk of his head. His fingers kneaded the blanket, and he glared at her, tears swimming in his eyes. He sniffed and swiped angrily at his face.
“Morning,” she said brightly. “I heard you were back with us. Couldn’t stay away, huh?” She gave a cheerful smile, although neither of them was in the mood for gaiety.
Seventeen years old. Last year of high school. So much to do, so much to live for, yet so little chance to live it. Or, at least, so little chance to live it without trips back to the hospital, suffering through weakness, pain, nausea, depression, lost hope. It sucked like hell. The vile, despicable disease took over a person’s body with no regard for age, no regard for the bright future they could have, or for the people who loved them.
“It’s back.” His voice was accusatory, as if she’d invited the leukemia to return. “I was supposed to try out for Varsity on Friday.
Fuck
.”
She put a hand on his. “I’m sorry, Trevor. We’ll do the best we can to get you better.”
He jerked away. “Yeah, but your best isn’t very damn good, is it? I thought I was cured the last time. You said the cancer was gone!”
“I said it was in remission. The doctors—”
“Fuck the doctors! They all suck and so do you. Leave me alone.”
“I have to start your IV. Please try to calm down. Let me help you. This will ease your pain.”
She was surprised at how much his diatribe hurt. She was used to crabby patients, used to being blamed for their discomfort and pain, but Trevor had been in and out of the hospital several times, and she thought they’d bonded. But then, who could blame him for his anger? If she were in his shoes, she’d be a raging bitch.
He glared at her, then turned his head away. “Yeah, you can take the pain away, but the poison will still be there. What the fuck, right?”
She let out a breath. Talking to him would do no good while he was in this state. Once his medications started working, he’d feel better. Physically and mentally.
She tied the tourniquet around his arm and swiped his hand with alcohol pads. “This will sting a little, but I’ll be quick.” The needle trembled as she moved it toward his vein. She paused. Damn. What was happening? She’d never had trouble starting an IV before. That was one of her specialties. She took a deep, calming breath and tried again. The needle refused to be still.
Trevor snorted. “Right, you’ll help me. No wonder I’m dying. The people in this hospital suck.”
Unexpectedly, tears stung her eyes. He was right. She sucked. She’d hurt Jaxon’s feelings, and now she couldn’t even help a sick boy who needed her. Those assholes had taken over her life and rendered her a useless mess.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’ll get someone else to do it.”
“Yeah, you do that.” His bitter words followed her out of the room. “Get someone else to prolong my misery. Why the fuck can’t you people just let me die?”
-~*~
Dimitri filled a glass with scotch. Holding it up in front of his eyes, he swirled the amber liquid, watching it catch light from the flames in the fireplace. This was just what he needed. This, and solitude.
Thank God Veronica wasn’t here. Her incessant chatter, her clingy, needy whining might send him over the edge. For God’s sake, you do your duty, mentor a reaper, and you’re stuck with her for fifty years. He’d mentored other reapers and they’d gone their own way.
Hadn’t followed him home like a stray dog.
Of course, he
was
sleeping with her. That might give her the impression he didn’t mind her hanging around.
“Big mistake,” he muttered, then downed the liquor, letting it burn where his heart once beat.
On top of that mistake, came the Audra slip-up. Fucking Gaylen. He’d screwed everything up. The last thing they needed was for a human to know about their existence. Audra would end up getting hurt. He knew it as sure as he knew Davy Crockett hadn’t fared well at the Alamo. And he’d had a front row seat to that.
Other people would get hurt too. He had more to worry about than just Audra. Letting her take over his mind would be disastrous.
He lifted the decanter to refill the glass but halted when he sensed someone enter the room. Without turning, he knew who it was.
“Pour me one, would you?” Gaylen said from behind him.
Dimitri filled his own glass and set the decanter down. Turning, he tilted the glass toward Gaylen in a mock toast, then brought it to his own lips, swallowing half the contents in one drink.
Gaylen laughed. “You’re not the most gracious host in the world.” He moved to the decanter and poured a glass for himself.
Dimitri stepped away from the bar. “You’re not exactly an invited guest.”
“We’re not vampires. We don’t have to be invited in.”
“What do you want?” Dimitri swallowed more of the liquor, but this time it stuck at the base of his throat.
As reapers, they could still drink, eat, have sex, pretty much do all the things they did as humans. But it was nothing more than mimicking their past lives. They could go through the motions, they just couldn’t achieve the same effects. The tastes, the sensations were dulled. Like they were experiencing it all through a filter.
Gaylen sipped from his glass. “Just a chat. A little bonding, reminiscing, what have you. It’s been too long.”
“I’m not in the mood for your games.”
“Oh?” He cocked a brow. “What kind of mood are you in? I’ll tell you what kind of mood
I’m
in. Did you see Audra’s breath drifting in the night air?” Gaylen moved closer, his grin making Dimitri want to smash his face in. “Can you imagine how it must taste? How sweet her breath would be?”
“Shut up.”
“Come on. I know you’ve thought about it. Wanted it. We’re not that different, you and I.”
“I’m not like you.”
“No, no you’re not
like
me. You have no sense of adventure. No idea what you’re missing by being such a Righteous Randall. But, you still want it. You still crave human breath—crave Audra’s above all. Am I right? I know I do.”
Dimitri smirked. “Yes. I know you do too. But you’ll never have it, will you? You’re afraid to do the one thing it would take.”
“Not afraid. Just cautious.”
“Right. Because you know, the moment you turn human, I’m there. And I’ll tear you to pieces.”
“You’re forgetting. You’d have to turn human, too.”
Dimitri shrugged and set the glass down on the table. Although it would take gallons of the stuff to get him drunk, he was tempted to give it a shot. He’d welcome the escape. But it was best he didn’t. He couldn’t afford to let the alcohol muddle his thinking, slow his reflexes. Now that Gaylen had made contact with Audra, he’d be even harder to control.
A shudder ran through him. “I’m not forgetting. Unlike you, I’m willing to take that risk. I’ll do whatever it takes to stop you, Gaylen.”
Gaylen laughed. “Yes, but therein lies your problem, my friend. Just what will it take to stop me?”
-~*~
Audra parked in the Maroneys’ driveway and climbed out of the car. Jaxon’s parents were in Florida for the winter. Their large, two-story Victorian house was empty. It didn’t matter, though. The house was not her destination. She headed around back to where the yard fed into woods that she and Jaxon had played in as children.
Sunlight glinted through the trees as she moved toward the creek. She’d thought the workday would never end. If she had to listen to one more complaint, get bitched at by one more doctor, empty one more bedpan, she might explode. Not that she could blame anyone for the complaints. She hadn’t been much of an asset today. She hadn’t even been able to place an IV. Those monsters had taken over her thoughts, her life, keeping her so distracted she couldn’t think about anything else. And now, every waking moment—and most of her moments had been ‘waking’ since she’d discovered what they were—she was terrified.
She heaved a sigh when she came to the tree that had been hers and Jaxon’s sanctuary, their secret world. It was a humongous oak that had fallen across the creek years ago. She and Jaxon had actually seen it happen. A bolt of lightning had severed it from its roots, sending it crashing across the creek...a bridge created by nature’s fury.
It was Audra’s fault they were outside during the storm. She’d been upset over her father’s reappearance in her life. At ten years old, she’d hated her dad with an intensity as great as the tempest brewing around her. Yet, stubbornly, a part of her loved him.
After her dad’s phone call and his promise—threat—to visit her that evening, she’d taken off. Jaxon ran after her, even though his mother was calling, her voice panicky as she shouted for them to come back, to seek shelter in the cellar.
Jaxon caught up to Audra by the creek. Torrential rain mixed with her tears, but did nothing to dilute the hate she felt toward herself for wanting to see her worthless father.