Kindling Flames: Flying Sparks (The Ancient Fire Series Book 2) (34 page)

“What do you mean?” Vicky asked, confused.

“Each Hunt is different,” he explained as he settled at the head of the bed to talk. “The hounds are given the scent of the prey, and they take off. Anyone joining the hunt is swept along with them until they reach their quarry.” Darien kicked his feet up on the bed and leaned back against the headboard. He looked at the chewed cuff of his pants and grimaced slightly.

Vicky shifted closer to him. “But how will they find their target?”

“The hounds are smarter than anyone gives them credit for. They’ll use the burn on your hand to track the ifrit down, and I hope to find whoever gave you to it there.” A dark light shown in Darien’s eyes as he spoke. “And when they run, we’ll give chase. Once the Wild Hunt is given prey, it won’t stop till it’s caught.”

Vicky could hear the gravity in his voice; this was serious stuff. “It doesn’t matter where the target runs to, the Hunt will follow. The Hunt only loses a target if they tire of the chase, which is rare, or if the target goes some place the hunters cannot, like skipping dimensions.”

She listened, fascinated. “Will they run?” Vicky asked.

“If they’re smart.” A wicked grin curled the corners of Darien lips and drove a shiver up her spine. “They’ll know we’re coming, and if they have any brains in them, they’ll know going to ground is worse than trying to flee.”

Vicky shivered again. She didn’t like the idea of the Hunt or the terrible pleasure Darien seemed to get from the idea, but she couldn’t complain about it. This was being done to stop the ifrit and keep her safe. She picked up Zak from her lap and cuddled him to her like some strange stuffed animal.

Zak purred and wrapped his tentacles around Vicky, returning the cuddle.

Darien noticed how troubled she had become and shifted on the bed, going back to his normal self. “Why don’t you take that off before I need a new shirt?” He smiled warmly as he leaned forwards to pull the tie away from where Zak was trying to stuff it into his mouth.

Vicky giggled. Dropping the fay to the bed, she pulled the shirt off and handed it to Darien.

Carefully folding it, he felt the warmth she had left in the material. He wanted to rub it against his face and draw in her scent from the fabric, but he refrained and placed the shirt back on the pile of clothing he had prepared. “Let’s go get you some clothing, then head down to see who’s still here.”

***

A light pat on the shoulder woke Vicky from her nap. She rolled over on the couch and looked up at Darien, already dressed for the evening.

“It’s time to start getting ready,” he said softly.

Vicky nodded and shifted out from under Zak, who was snoring lightly on her legs. She hadn’t really wanted to take a nap after the game of Trivial Pursuit, but Darien had insisted they both get some rest. Complaining that she wasn’t tired hadn’t done any good. Darien solved that problem by pulling her down to the couch on top of him and putting her to sleep. Her fuzzy mind couldn’t understand how he had managed to slip out from under her without waking her, but Vicky let the thought go and stood up to get ready. She was going to need a shower to wake up fully.

Darien followed Vicky as she made her way upstairs to his bedroom. It was obvious she wasn’t functioning yet as she attempted to negotiate the steps and nearly fell up them. He smiled as she quickly recovered, shook her head to make it work, and started up again. It was well past the time he should have woken her, but she was so adorable curled up on the couch that he just stood over her, watching her sleep.

He loved watching her sleep, especially when she did it against him. Vicky didn’t really snore, but she made the cutest little noises as she breathed. She had been so distracting with those little noises and soft curls under his fingers, Darien had found it hard to rest. He finally forced his mind to stop thinking about how warm her skin was. When he had woken back up, he found his hand had slipped up her back, under her shirt.

This surprised him. He usually didn’t move in his sleep. Vampires practically died when they rested as their hearts slowed and breathing stopped. Most people didn’t like sleeping next to vampires for just that reason, but a while back, Darien had learned he could attune his body to take its cues from a living person if he was touching them. This skill had allowed him to pass for human on several occasions. He could still feel Vicky’s heartbeat and warmth in him as he followed her into the bedroom.

Vicky’s mind was still not awake as she staggered into Darien’s suite to get ready for the evening. With barely open eyes, she found her clothing piled on the bed and picked them up to take to the bathroom. She was going to need a good, hot shower to get her blood flowing, and then a large cup of coffee. Afternoon naps almost always threw her off, but she also needed to be rested for whatever was going to happen tonight.

Dropping her clothing on the counter in the bathroom, she cut on the water and stripped. Somehow, she had completely missed Darien’s presence as he leaned against the wall next to the counter, watching her get into the shower. It wasn’t until she stuck her head under the hot water and groaned that she realized he was there. The snicker was what gave him away. Shock filled Vicky as she finally opened her eyes fully, turning around to see him watching her through the glass door of the shower.

Darien leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. “You really need to be more aware of your surroundings.” He looked so good, standing there barefoot in the black shirt and leather pants.

Vicky turned around so her back was to him, embarrassed. There was really no place in the shower to hide. “Um… could you maybe, um… not watch me shower?” she said, embarrassed she had just stripped in front of him.

Darien chuckled at her. “As you wish,” he said, and walked across the room to lean against the door separating the toilet from the rest of the room. “Is this better?”

Vicky turned around and sighed with relief at not being able to see him. “Yes. Thank you.” She turned her mind back to her shower, unaware Darien had a great view of her in the mirrored wall over the sinks.

He watched as she leaned her head back to wet her now waist-length hair. Her back arched slightly as she raised her arms, running her fingers over her scalp. His eyes followed the water droplets as they cascaded down the sides of her head, across her collarbone, and down the pale skin of her breast. He had to tear his eyes away from the scene before he opened the glass door next to him and stepped into the water with her.

“Did you sleep well?” Darien asked as he closed his eyes and tried to distract his mind from the girl only two feet away from him.

“Mmmmm,” Vicky answered.

He could hear the contented, positive note in the sound. It did nothing to help his self-control.

“I still can’t figure out how you can get me to go to sleep like that.” It usually took her forever to fall asleep with someone else around.

Smiling, Darien opened his eyes to find the hot water had fogged over the glass somewhat. “Suggestion is a wonderful thing.” He could still see her moving in the stall, but the fine details were obscured enough that he couldn’t focus on every inch of her skin. Watching the shape moving in the shower, he closed his eyes again to block out the sight. Just knowing it was her in there was driving him nuts, but he wasn’t about to leave her alone with the possibility of the ifrit coming back into his home.

“Suggestion?” Vicky asked as she rubbed soap into her hair. “Like hypnosis?”

“Something like that,” he answered as he worked through sword exercises in his mind. “Only not as complicated and more powerful.”

“So you could get someone to do anything you wanted them to?” she asked, starting to get concerned. Did all vampires have this power? Should she be worried?

“To an extent. Most vampires can do it to some degree. It helps unwilling victims be… um… more willing.”

Vicky shivered in her hot shower at his words. “You could do terrible things with that.” She was horrified that Darien had such a power.

“True,” he said. “If the person giving the suggestion is good enough, the victim won’t even remember it the next day.”

Vicky froze in her motion as she took that in. “Like erasing memories?” she asked, starting to rinse the soap from her hair.

“Not quite.” Darien shook his head. “Suggestion is more often used to change the person’s perception. Like the bite they just got was just a rough kiss, or that they’re more tired than they really are. Sometimes you can prevent memories from being made by suggesting the person doesn’t see something, but that’s tricky. It’s usually better to suggest they see something else instead. There are ways to erase memories, but they can leave the person’s mind a little addled if not done right.”

“Umm… should I be worried?” Vicky asked quietly. The information he’d just given up scared the crap out of her.

“No,” Darien said reassuringly. “I’ve only used suggestion to get you to sleep when you needed it.”

She ran her fingers through her hair. “But you could use it in other cases.”

“True,” Darien answered. “But I don’t use it on people I trust without a good cause. Forcing someone to your will adds unnecessary strain to a relationship. If I can’t convince them to do something through reason, then it’s probably not something that I should be having them do.”

“So, do you use that at work?” Vicky asked as she shut the water off and started squeezing out her hair.

Darien chuckled. “No,” he said with a smile. “No matter how nice it would be to get that better hand in business, it’s unfair. The suggestion wears off, leaving the mark wondering why he made such a stupid decision. That’s when they come back to try to renegotiate, or renege on the deal. It also feels like cheating.” Stepping away from the wall, he pulled a towel down.

She opened the door to find Darien holding the towel open for her. Looking up into his eyes, she stepped into the circle of the towel. “So, vampires have feelings.” She grasped for something to take her mind off the man drying her.

“Oh yes,” Darien said.

Vicky was surprise by the warm quality of his voice. It pulled at her deep inside.

“But, that’s a topic for some other time.”

She tensed as her heart pounded and she reprimanded herself for the stupid comment. Of course they had feelings. Darien had made some of his feelings obvious over the last few hectic days, but did she really want to talk to him about them? Was she ready to talk to him about hers?

“Besides,” his voice was filled with amusement as he pulled her from her thoughts, “who needs suggestion when I can open a towel and you willingly step into my arms?”

Vicky was sure the blush covering her went clear to her toes and was glad when Darien left the towel covering her when he turned to get a new one for her hair. She wrapped the towel more securely around her as he started to rub the rest of the water away.

“Anyway, you can always tell when someone uses suggestion on you.”

“How?” Vicky asked. This was definitely something that she wanted to know.

“There’s always a touch of power that goes with it,” he said as he worked. “If you recognize that, you can fight the suggestion. Then it just comes down to whose will is stronger.”

Vicky thought about this.

“Let me show you. Just stand still. I’ll give you a suggestion, so you know what it feels like.”

She tensed, not sure if she wanted him to do that.

“Don’t worry.” Darien patted her on the shoulder to soothe her. “I promise it won’t be something you’re unwilling to do. Okay?”

“Okay,” Vicky agreed. She trusted Darien, but she didn’t like the idea that someone could control her.

“Just relax and stand still.” He soothed her with his hands again. “Ready?”

She nodded.

“Step forwards,” Darien breathed the command to her.

Vicky was surprised to feel the power wash through her and move her feet. She gasped as she took one step forwards.

“Did you feel it?” Darien smiled as he leaned over her shoulder.

“Yes,” Vicky said softly. She had felt the power flow through her. It was familiar and left her warm inside. “It was kind of like when you healed my burns. Warm and soft like feathers against the inside of my skin.”

Darien looked at her in the mirror thoughtfully. “I’ve never had it described like that before,” he said as he thought about it. “It is the same power used for different purposes. That energy comes from who you are, so the feeling will change depending on the person trying to bend you to their will. It’s like a fingerprint. No two people will have the same feeling.”

Vicky turned around to look at him. “And there is a way to resist a suggestion?” She was very interested in learning this.

Darien grinned at her eagerness. “Yes, but we don’t have time for a proper lesson now. Get dressed, or we’ll be late.” He looked over at the window and how far the sun had set. “I promise I’ll teach you all you need to know after this is over.”

Vicky agreed and went to her clothing on the counter. “Um… are you going to leave so I can get dressed?” she asked, looking back at the man watching her.

“No,” Darien said very bluntly as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall again. “I’m not leaving you alone. You had no problem taking your clothing off in front of me, why should you worry about me watching you put it back on?”

Vicky fidgeted a little before turning her attention back to the counter and her clothing. She looked at the man watching her in the mirror as an evil idea popped into her head. Dropping both towels to the floor, she exposed her skin to the air.

Darien straightened in surprise. He had expected her to be a little more modest like she had been in the past.

Vicky smiled lightly as she picked up the comb and started running it through her hair. She pretended to ignore the way Darien’s eyes narrowed and the set of his jaw as she worked the tangles out. Once done, she slipped into her clothing a little slower then she normally would. Closing her eyes, she pulled her shirt over her head and was surprised to find Darien standing almost against her back when she opened them again.