Bite Marks (13 page)

My jaw dropped. I’d been certain Vayl had forgotten how to play games somewhere near the turn of the nineteenth century. And he didn’t actually participate in the hiding or the seeking. But he did laugh out loud when Jack gave the game away by running straight to Laal and Pajo’s spots before Bergman and I could even get started. They didn’t seem to mind, because when he stuck his nose in their faces, they giggled too.

This is your window into Vayl’s past. Look carefully. It may never open again
, Granny May told me.
This is what got lost when his boys died. And who knows? Maybe this is what he’s searching
for just as much as the actual reincarnated souls of Hanzi and Badu. A chance to pull a little bit of
himself from the jaws of the predator he’s become.

Hard to fault that, especially when I remembered who I’d been before Matt had died. If I could retrieve the part of me that
hoped
, would I?

I realized the inside of my arm had begun to hurt. When I focused on it, I found I’d been scratching at it long enough to raise welts. A couple of them were even bleeding lightly.
This is my life now. Rashing
out due to an untimely possession. And if I don’t do something about it soon—

Give yourself to me
, Brude whispered, his voice itself like a lesion, searing bits of my brain as it crackled past them.
Fulfill the prophecy. Become my queen and together we will rule the Thin.

The Thin?
I asked.
Or all of hell?

Soon there will be no difference.

Get out of my head, you parasite.

Or you will do what? Run to Lucifer and tattle? Even a woman with your courage knows better
than to put herself near the Great Taker. No, there are only two ways to loosen my grip on you,
lass. And I would suggest you pick the first. Because the second sees you in hell.

I wanted to respond with something clever. But all I could think of was,
I’ll see
you
in hell
, which was kinda what he wanted. So I stayed silent and wished Granny May could pull in a couple of reinforcements. Anything to push the ancient king away from the front of my mind.

Her image appeared behind my eyes, just like I remembered her when we were dressed for church. She stood at the top of her steps, wearing a dark blue pantsuit and sensible brown slip-ons. Her bag matched the shoes. I knew it contained a few bucks for the offering as well as coloring supplies for us kids and a crossword book for her. She liked to say that she heard the Lord clearest when the reverend was droning and she couldn’t for the life of her figure out eighteen across.

She said,
I know of another one who can help. But you’re not going to like it.

I’m past the point of picky. Bring her on.

Gran moved aside, revealing Teen Me. From the amount of eyeshadow and blush she was toting, and considering she was hanging out with Gran, I put her age at right about fourteen.

I started to chuckle. Even more so when I sensed Brude’s spurt of fear at the realization that he was about to be set upon by an angry freshman who was old enough to play dirty and young enough not to give a crap how much it hurt.

Less than ten minutes later Ruvin and Tabitha appeared on the patio looking… mussed.

What the hell?

The backyard, recently the site of such a lively game of tag that we were still out of breath, transformed itself again as the boys squealed and ran to their parents, who stood beside the sliding-glass doors.

The rest of us joined them on the patio, each choosing a chair to fall into while the family enjoyed a second reunion. Vayl’s expression masked itself sometime during Ruvin, Laal, and Pajo’s bout of ecstatic hugs and kisses, watched somewhat indifferently by Tabitha. I wondered if she was jealous of their closeness.

Vayl seemed to have questions too, because I detected a hint of steel in his undertone as he said,

“Tabitha, I know you must be anxious to get your sons even farther from the warren. But we need to ask you a few questions before you go.”

She reared back her head.
She’s gonna tell him where to shove it
, I thought.
And not because of the
delay it’ll cause either.
Something about the jut of her chin and the set of her shoulders told me she thought any form of cooperation spelled weakness. And at her size, she didn’t think that was something she could afford.

“My husband said you people were filmmakers.”

Ruvin put his arm around her waist and rubbed. His touch, like his expression, was enthusiastic. “What I said was that they told me they’d come from Hollywood to scout movie locations. Now, I know studio executives aren’t normally capable of doing what they did. But these people are special, Tabitha.” He jerked his head toward Vayl. “They have Gerard Butler on their side! Remember him in
The Transporter

? He’s like a superhero!”

Oh. My. God.
I cleared my throat. “Um, Ruvin? I believe you’re thinking of Jason Stratham.” Tabitha had an even better point. She jabbed a finger at me and Vayl. “They had weapons.”

“We’re American. Pretty much everybody goes armed there,” I lied, figuring my country’s reputation would back me up. It did. She took a moment to watch Laal leap on Jack, his little hands disappearing into the malamute’s thick fur as he patted him on the back. Pajo preferred bigger prey. He ran to Vayl, jumped onto his lap, and wiggled himself into the crook of my
sverhamin
’s arm so he could gaze happily at the rest of his family.

Tabitha sighed. “What do you need to know?” she asked.

When Vayl looked up from Pajo’s grinning face, his eyes had lightened to gold with brown highlights. He blinked, the line between his eyes appearing briefly as he tried to refocus. He said, “We were just curious if the Ufranites told you why you were taken.” He glanced at Ruvin. “Stories are a weakness of ours.

You never know what will make a good movie.”

Tabitha shook her head, her thick hair barely shifting as she said, “They never said anything about that to me directly. But I heard our jailer talking to the woman who brought our food. She said this would show the shaman the true price of betrayal.”

“What do you think she meant by that?” asked Bergman.

“I have no idea. It almost sounded like kidnapping us was a punishment for the shaman. But we’re seinji.

We don’t even know any Ufranites.”

“Did you ever see the shaman?” asked Vayl.

Another head shake. “I demanded to see him. But the guard said a word I didn’t understand, and then he said, ‘As long as your husband is cooperating, you’ll be fine.’”

“What was the word you didn’t understand?” I asked her.

“Ylmi.”
She raised her chin, as if daring me to fight. About what though? I decided she must be a real bitch to receptionists and fast-food workers. Then I realized.

Ylmi was the word in the dead guard’s amulet. Dammit, Cole, how long does it take to assemble
a demon-bashing armory? We need your translating skills now!

Miles adjusted his ball cap while he traded a significant look with Vayl. So they’d both remembered the word too.

“What happened then?” I asked.

The sides of her mouth turned down. “I asked him what would happen if I didn’t cooperate. He laughed and said it didn’t matter. That Ufranite young would be feasting on my husband while he screamed for death by tomorrow afternoon.”

While the conscious part of me saw Laal pause in his Jack-petting to get a reassuring nod from his dad while Pajo tucked his head into Vayl’s chest, my inner librarian said,
You have less than twenty-four
hours to complete this mission. If you don’t succeed, people are going to die. You might blame it
on an evil, no-faced gnome. But you know it will be partly your fault.
She jotted the info on an index card and filed it neatly in a drawer the length of a tractor trailer.

Where have you been?
I demanded.
Granny May could’ve used backup when Brude was doing his
mental manipulations before, you know.

She sniffed and shut the drawer.
I’ve been organizing.

That’s no help!

She raised a slender eyebrow at me and tucked a stray curl into her French twist.
You’d be surprised.

For instance, right now I’m compiling a list of every item you’ve ever heard, read, or learned
about the Thin. If Brude wants to create a new hell based there, maybe something you know can
alter his plans. That might send him spinning out of your head. Alternatively, knowing more about
his species might help. You have no innate knowledge, so I suggest a session with Astral or,
perhaps, Raoul.

You know, for a brainiac, you’re not half bad. Just don’t let Brude know what you’re up to.

Robert, that.

Um, it’s Roger.

Oh. Sorry.

Well, it looks as if you are marshaling your forces.
Brude strode to the forefront of my mind, grabbing me so firmly by the intellect that I froze in place.
It will not work, my Jasmine. You must understand, I
am here for you. And also for what you can do for me.

What do you mean?

I already told you I never do anything for a single reason. So I slipped into your mind, which is

—he looked around and licked his lips—
nearly as delectable as your body. Because I promised to
make you my queen, did I not? But you never asked why. Why you?

He wants to transform the Thin into a chaotic realm and destroy hell
, my librarian reminded me.

Granny May rose from her front porch rocker.
But he’ll never do that without a massive army to
fight Lucifer’s hordes.

Where’s he gonna get that many lost souls?
wondered Teen Me as she sat on the ledge, dangling one leg over while she leafed through one of Granny May’s comic books.

“From me,” I whispered.

Bergman had leaned across the table, his hands inches from mine like he thought I might need to be pulled from the brink of something anytime now. “What are you saying?” he asked.

I couldn’t look at him. My eyes, glued to the covered barbecue, only saw my inner visions. Vayl stirred in his seat, gently lifting Pajo from his lap. “May I suggest that you take your parents inside?” he told the little boy. “Perhaps Jack will accompany you as well. Then you and Laal can play with him while Mum and Dad decide what to do next.”

Murmurs of agreement from the parents. The
shoosh-snick
of sliding-glass doors opening and closing. I forced the words through a throat so suddenly parched it felt like it was lined with sand-paper. “Brude knows who I am. He believes if he can subvert my missions, he can cause just the kind of death toll he needs to build up his forces. And what better way to do that than from inside my head?” I felt my lips cracking. Next would come the blood. I turned to Vayl. “I have to withdraw from this assignment. I need to take a leave of absence.”

“Absolutely not,” he said. “You and I are a formidable team. If they separate us—they win.”

“But… Vayl… the son of a bitch is in my
mind.
He can make me—do things. What if—” Vayl leaned forward. Not much. Just the fraction it took to capture my attention. Something about the intensity in his bright blue eyes demanded that I listen, not just to his words, but to the things he couldn’t say. Because Brude would overhear. “We will beat him. That is what you and I do, my
pretera.
We win.

Together.”

His touch, just a whisper of fingertips grazing my thigh, spelled out a sign we used for face-to-face attacks. I was so distracted by the zap of awareness his fingers raised, followed by an unbearable need to scratch, that I nearly missed the message.
You go in loud and annoying. I will slide in under the
radar to make the kill.

What the hell is that supposed to mean?

He caught me in his gaze, stared at me hard like I should be able to read his mind.
Geez, Cassandra, I
wish you were here right this second so I could slap your hand on his and get a freaking clue!

He whispered, “Trust me.”

Aw, shit.

We joined Ruvin in the living room. He shook everyone’s hand with a grip so firm I know my fingers tingled afterward. “We just can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done for us. You Hollywood types are so gifted! I wish I had half the talent!” He nodded toward the bedroom. “Tabitha thought it would be better for the boys if we talked privately.”

We’d all had enough of sitting. We wanted to run off in twelve different directions. Find the Rocenz.

Continue discrediting the shaman. Destroy the larvae carriers. Demon-proof the house. But it seemed rude to tower over the little man, so we all sat. Vayl and I took the couch. Bergman sank into a chair.

Jack lay at my feet, watching Miles tinker with Astral. He’d gotten her head reconnected, which Jack must’ve deduced was a good thing, because he kept flopping his tail against the floor hopefully.

Ruvin stood beside Miles, his eyes occasionally cutting to the intricate operation-in-progress as he spoke. “Again, I can’t thank you enough for getting my family out of the shit. And, um, sorry about the quick exit before. To be honest, we’re on something of a schedule. We are seinji, and it’s just our luck that this is the week of the year when she’s most likely to conceive…” His ears went bright red as he grinned down at his feet.

Collective “Ahhh” of understanding from our group as we realized why Tabitha had chosen an oooh-baby dress for a Wednesday evening when her hubby wasn’t even supposed to get home until the pubs had long been closed. It also explained why she’d kept checking her watch and pacing. Seinji find it tough to bear children, which is why their physicians are among the top experts in the field of infertility.

They combine cutting-edge science with some of the most off-the-wall rites in the world. Common practices included hanging upside down from a tree limb for three hours after sex and writing suggestive fan letters to the cast members of
Willow
. And if anyone questioned their approach, all they had to do was pull out the studies that proved their birthrate had risen by thirty percent in the past twenty years.