Defying Eternity (An Obscure Magic Book 5) (13 page)

Nathaniel pulled up to the house, but there weren’t any lights on.

Leo whispered, “I really wish I had my bat right now.”

Antony came out of the darkness, and he asked, “What is it?”

“I got a text from Minny. She told me to come over right away.”

A harsh laugh sounded from the street. “You always were gullible, Leo.”

Robert stood there, and he waggled a phone in his hand. The scent of fresh blood wafted toward them, and Leo looked toward the house.

Antony shook his head. “They are fine, Leo. No one has touched them.”

Leo walked down the drive toward the road. “What do you want, Robert?”

“You know what I want. I want that baby dead so that I can claim my rightful place with my queen and rule this territory at her side.”

Leo cocked her head. “A queen in charge of the territory? Really? How interesting. I thought that the vampire king was firmly in charge.”

“That is what he thinks. She is massing an army, and soon, he will be a bloody pulp beneath her feet.” He jerked his chin up.

“With you by her side if you can kill a helpless baby.” Leo nodded. “Brave of you.”

“You don’t know how powerful I have already become while you whore yourself for protection.”

“How many lives did your power cost, Bobbie?” She knew he hated the nickname, and she waited for a response.

He grinned, bloody teeth and fangs showing. “Not enough.”

Leo stepped off the property, and he rushed at her. She struck him with an uppercut, elbowed him in the ribs and kneed him in the jaw when he knelt at her feet. He vomited blood across the asphalt, and she struck at him over and over, her rage at the death of the woman earlier in the night riding her. She beat at him until she heard the crunching of bone under her shoes and Nathaniel pried her away.

“Easy, Ms. Wicks. He is down and the property is protected. I will take you home.”

“Okay. Home sounds good.” She let Nathaniel put his arm around her and lead her to the car.

She sat numbly on the drive home. If only she had a weapon, she would have taken his head off.

Matthias met her car when they arrived at the manor. She was covered in blood and white as a sheet, but he lifted her bloody knuckles to his lips and kissed her. “Welcome home, Leonora.”

She looked at him, but her mind was numb. “I need a shower.”

“You do. Allow me to take some photos and remove your clothing.”

“Okay.” She was shut down inside. She followed him inside and stood where he asked, letting Dorn take pictures of her before she went to her room and handed Matthias her clothing. She heard him say something about gene typing the blood, but she wanted a shower.

She stood in the centre of the shower blasts and watched the water go from red to pink as she got clean. She scrubbed herself from head to toe and then started over again.

Wrapped in her fluffy and comfortable robe, she walked into her bedroom, unsurprised to see Matthias waiting for her. He opened his arms, and she walked up to him, cuddling against him as her night caught up with her.

One tear turned to fifty, and she sobbed at the waves of frustration at coming too late and arriving unable to act. She didn’t know her place in the world, and it scared her.

“I think I smelled demon tonight.” She sniffled and rubbed her cheek on his chest.

“You did. You did very well. The power that you sensed, the energy coming off the area around the body, those are things that can be used to confirm the diagnosis of demon interference. I have told the XIA.”

She nodded. “Good. Robert stole Minny’s phone and lured me to the house. I don’t know what he thought he would get out of it.”

“What did he say?”

“That the queen is massing an army to destroy you.”

He snorted. “She can try. She will fail.”

He stroked her shoulder. “Nathaniel said that the entire battle took less than three seconds. By the time he got to you, it was over.”

She lifted her head and frowned. “It took much longer than that.”

“No. It didn’t. Your time awareness shifted to match his. Do not worry about it. Rest now. I will be here when you wake up.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead, and a wave of fatigue washed over her.

She lay back as he settled her on her bed. “Cheater.”

He laughed and stroked her cheek. “Only when I need to win. Rest.”

She snuggled into the sheets, and another wave of exhaustion washed over her. She decided to rest.

* * * *

Matthias felt Leonora slip into unconsciousness, and his encouraging smile faded. He fought the rage that was ripping through him, and he returned to his guest with all speed.

“Please excuse my departure, Shaline. I had to attend to one of my staff.”

The nest queen winced. “It is fine, my king. Was your staffer badly injured?”

He looked over the woman who had turned into a translucent creature over time, in the shadows with nothing but blood to sustain her.

He waved at her to sit across from him on the couch.

Dorn brought in a decanter of wine and served two glasses.

Matthias offered one to Shaline. “Would you care for one?”

She politely declined. “No. Thank you.”

He shrugged and sipped at the dry red wine. “You are missing out. Speaking of staff, how is that new consort of yours doing?”

Shaline looked nervous. He could see her throat swallow convulsively. “He is well. It was kind of you to give him a dispensation for his offspring.”

“It was the simplest solution. After all, holding to tradition can get you into all kinds of trouble.” He sipped at the wine. It was a prop, but it was something the nest queen couldn’t enjoy, so he made a show of being fascinated by it.

“My king, I hear that you have a new apprentice.”

He smiled slightly. “Have you heard such a thing? Interesting.”

“Are the rumours true?”

“Of course. It was time.”

She brushed her black and silver hair over her shoulder. “What will you do if your human suffers an accident?”

Matthias leaned forward and offered her a deadly grin. “I would remove the entire line of those responsible from this earth and pave my garden path with their bones.”

Shaline swallowed again. “I see. Well, my king, it has been wonderful to confirm the truce once again. May I be dismissed? The sun is coming up.”

He nodded. “Of course. I always forget that the taken do not enjoy the caress of the sun. Yes, you may go. Oh and Shaline?”

“Yes, my king?”

“Make sure that when your consort is restored to a more mobile state, he learns what the traditions mean and he adheres to them. He will not be able to crawl away from another meeting with my apprentice. I will let her destroy him, and I will give her the tools to do it.”

Shaline jolted and swallowed. “She is here?”

“Oh, yes. She is here and unscathed, which is good for you, as I am aware of your attempt to distract me while your consort lured her to an ambush.” He released the leash he kept on his power and pressed down on the nest queen. “Do not think that you can depose me, Shaline. It is not the first time a taken has had that idea. I destroyed the one who spawned your line, and I will not hesitate to remove parasites from what remains.”

Shaline bowed low and backed away; she didn’t respond. She couldn’t. Matthias kept the pressure on her throat until she had reversed herself to the entryway.

The moment that he released her, she darted away at full speed.

Dorn came out of the shadows, and he asked, “Do you think that she got the hint?”

“Oh, I think that she caught on. It will take her days to repair her beau, and in the meantime, Leonora can begin training.”

“I do not think she will enjoy that.”

He chuckled at the understatement. “I do not care. For her safety, I want her able to drive any vehicle and use any weapon. Magic is off limits to her, so that leaves everything else.”

He returned to Leonora’s side and undressed, crawling into bed with her. Her heartbeat sounded deafening in the dark room, and he let it lull him into the closest thing he could feel to sleep.

“Leo, I love you, but your boss is really highhanded.” Minny sat with Leo in the front yard and watched the moving vans bring everything she owned through the heaviest wards money could buy.

“Yes, but he is the mayor and does get what he wants.” It had been thirty-six hours since the fight with Robert, and Leo was back to normal, more or less. Her skin tone was back to pink.

“He came in and talked to me, you know.” Minny looked over to where Leela was playing with the baby.

“The mayor? Odd. He is not normally chatty.” Leo smiled.

“It might have been a dream, but I remember his eyes glowing as he spoke to me. He said that you had done more than just take the job with him. You had attacked a vampire queen.”

Leo shrugged. “She is a nest queen who is getting above herself. She came in search of Robert. She was the one who chewed on me.”

“I don’t remember much from that night. Robert came to the door, and then, he lunged at me with those fangs.” She shuddered. “I can’t imagine one of those blood fans letting themselves be bit.”

Leo shrugged. “It takes all kinds.”

Minny leaned in close and whispered. “You haven’t let him...”

Snorting with laughter, Leo looked at her sister. “I haven’t let him do anything. What I have done was necessary.” She paused and answered honestly, “And some was for fun.”

Minny ducked her head to ensure privacy. “And he drinks from you?”

The cool feeling of his hair against my inner thighs and the steady motion of his tongue...

Leo cleared her throat as her blush burned her cheeks. “Not after I got the apprentice mark. Not blood.”

“Then what... oh.” It was Minny’s turn to blush.

The movers were walking slow and steadily into the house. The zombies could lift almost anything, and they may take longer, but they didn’t complain or file lawsuits if they were injured. They simply repaired themselves and got on with it.

The first moving truck was the entire contents of Minny’s drawers and cupboards. Matthias had requested that the furniture remain in place for a few weeks. He had provided complete replacements for everything, plus plenty of furniture for the rest of the house.

“You know, Leo. I never thought you would be interested in a guy.”

“You thought I was after girls?”

“No, you just never seemed to be interested in anything but work.”

“You were always too involved in your own relationships to notice mine. I have had a few, but they were little flares, no lasting burn.”

“What about Matthias?”

Leo sighed. “I am with him as long as it takes. I will keep you safe no matter the situation, by whatever means necessary.”

“Will he break your heart?”

“Probably. It is more likely that I will lose it.”

They watched two grey-skinned men carry a couch in under the new housekeeper’s watchful eye.

Minny finally said, “You don’t need to do all of this for us.”

“I do. Since Mom and Dad took off, you are all I have.”

Minny took her hand and squeezed it. “Not just me. Not anymore. There is Melly, too.”

“Melly has you and Leela. I am just backup.” Leo shrugged. “I am used to it.”

“You aren’t just backup. You are just so self-sufficient that I forget you need somebody to listen now and then. The other night, you needed to talk, didn’t you?”

Leo nodded. “I did. It’s okay. It has been resolved.”

Her sister stared at her for a moment. “That was when you two got physical?”

“Um, yup. I was in the Night Garden, drinking alone, and he came in to console me. The next thing I know, we were naked.” Leo shrugged as if she didn’t know what had happened next.

Her phone chirped, and she sighed. “Well, enjoy the rest of moving day. I have to get to work.”

“Will you be coming over later?”

“I will try to make it tomorrow morning before I pass out. Oh, you got your new phone?”

Minny blushed. “I had no idea that he had gotten it.”

“Well, you have a new number, and you need to start getting it to your friends. That should take you a few days.” Leo got up, and she started toward the wall that divided the two properties. A heavy door was being installed, but today, Leo could just walk through.

She crossed to the manor’s property and jogged across the grounds to the main house. She had half an hour to shift into her normal business garb. French braiding her hair was going to take nearly half that time, but she didn’t want to get helmet head. Today, she was learning how to ride motorcycles of differing engine sizes, in heels. She wouldn’t need to ride unless it was an emergency, and if it was an emergency, she wouldn’t have a chance to change. Learning how to ride in office clothing was the easiest way to make sure she could do it if necessary.

Yesterday, she had done some light fight training, and Reed was an excellent instructor. Today, Coren would show her the finer points of riding a two-wheeled vehicle. Tomorrow, Nathaniel was on schedule to teach her how to drive stick.

She passed Coren with the collection of vehicles from scooters to a motorcycle that looked like it ate lesser bikes for breakfast.

He looked at her as he arranged the vehicles, tapping his wrist and flicking his wings.

“I am on it. Promise.”

He grinned as she scuttled past him and into the manor, trying not to squeak her sneakers as she passed the deputy mayor’s office. Tiptoeing at high speed was becoming something of a habit for her.

She made it to her quarters and pulled off her top and shimmied out of her jeans, pausing to yank her sneakers off.

The dress went on over her head, the shoes were practically jumped into, and she ran back to the bathroom, took a deep breath and started working on her hair.

She finished her braid in plenty of time, stuck her phone into her bra and headed out of her quarters, toward the front entryway.

“Leonora, please come here.”

Matthias was sitting with a small group of people, which were obviously a family when Leo saw them together.