The Darkening (31 page)

Darius scowled. "I don't know her last name."

Just then another knock sounded on the door and Darius hurried to answer it. Mai stumbled in. She would have collapsed to the floor if Darius hadn't caught her. Picking her up, he carried her to the couch, and laid her down.

With her pale complexion, the dark circles under her eyes and bruises on her body, she looked like she'd been beaten.

Darius knelt beside her, barely reining in his rage. "Mai, what happened? Who did this to you? Where's Lexi?"

Heather had joined him by Mai's side and was digging through her large purse. She pulled out a vial. "Where's the kitchen?" she asked.

Darius pointed, his attention focused on Mai.

"Make her as comfortable as you can," Heather said just before she disappeared.

Darius had no idea what to do, so he remained kneeling beside Mai, gently stroking her hair away from her face.

A minute later, Heather was back holding a glass filled with an amber liquid. "Help me get her to drink some of this," she said.

Darius gently raised Mai to a sitting position and supported her with his arm while Heather held the drink to her lips. "Drink this, honey," Heather whispered. "It will help you feel better. That's right," she added when Mai took several sips.

Soon Mai's eyelids fluttered open, and she took a shaky breath. She looked about wildly until her gaze rested on Darius. Then she reached for him, her expression wobbly with emotion. "I made it. I knew I had to find you."

"Mai, what happened?"

"I thought I'd found one of the Immortals," she said, surprising him. "He had the pentacle tattoo-on his cheek."

Tam?
Had he escaped his captor? Darius wondered.

"He said his name was Kalen," Mai continued, giving Darius a start.

"Are you sure?" Why would Tain pretend to be Kalen?

Mai shook her head. "Lexi said it was wrong. She told me we had to leave, but I didn't listen." She took a breath. "I don't remember much after that. Kalen came out of the bedroom. There was a flash of black light, and then it was like a freight train hit me. I've never felt such pain before." She visibly trembled.

"And Lexi?" Darius asked.

"She's gone."

Darius felt his heart stop, and for a moment he couldn't breathe. "She's. .." He stopped, finding it difficult to ask the question. "She's dead?"

"What?" Mai looked at him, horrified.

"You said she's gone," Darius said. "Gone how?"

"Missing," Mai clarified. "I don't know what happened to her. I was hoping she might be herealthough I knew she wasn't. Lexi would never have left me there like that if she'd had a choice."

Darius gritted his teeth. At least he knew who had Lexi-Amadja. Only a demon could generate the black magic that had knocked Mai unconscious. And it made sense that he'd try this ploy Amadja had interrupted the Calling, so he knew they were expecting other Immortals to appear. He knew Mai was a friend of Lexi's, and it wouldn't take a leap of logic to know that after last night, Lexi would want to check on her. Amadja had the ability to change his form, so he could easily disguise himself as Tain. But if Amadja wanted Lexi dead, he could have killed her and left her at the apartment for Darius to find. That must mean the demon had something else in mind. Something for which he expressly needed Lexi.

The only thing Darius could think of was that by taking Lexi, Amadja knew Darius would follow. "I'm going after her," Darius told the women.

Heather put a hand on his arm. "You can't do that. You know it's a trap."

"I know, but I can't let them hurt Lexi."

Heather's lips thinned. "I don't want anything to happen to her either, but Adrian and the Coven need your help. Only by combining your power with ours can you hope to defeat this demon. If you go after him by yourself" she paused-"you could be condemning the world to death."

Darius shrugged off her arm. "I know I should be considering the greater good and the whole future of the world. But if Lexi dies, I'm not sure I care what happens to the world."

Heather studied his face and then nodded. `All right. What can I do to help you?"

"Me too," Mai said, struggling to a sitting position.

"Nothing." He held up a hand to stop their protests. "Yet. What I need now is for you both to stay here. I'm expecting a call from my brother in Seattle. Heather, when he calls, can you please tell him what's going on?" He looked at them both. "Do either of you know Ricco?"

Mai gasped. "I do."

Darius was confused by her attitude. "What's the matter? Don't you like him?"

Mai looked worried. "I like him fine. I just didn't think you knew him-and if you did, I didn't think you'd like him. He and Lexi are-"

"Friends," Darius finished for her. "As of a couple of days ago, strictly platonic friends." Darius ignored the way Mai's face broke out in a smile. "I need you to wait for Ricco. He should be on his way before too much longer, now that the sun has set. Fill him in on what's going on and then ask him to meet me beneath the Chrysler Building."

At the women's perplexed expressions, he tried to explain how to find the meeting place as best he could, but all the while, in the back of his mind, the clock was ticking.

Darius's cab trip to the Chrysler Building passed in a blur. He was preoccupied with trying to remember all the bits and pieces he'd heard over the past couple of days and figure out what they meant. He knew the answer would play a critical role in saving Lexi's life.

He tried to get past his worry for her safety and think in terms of Amadja's greater purpose. Was the demon's entire plan to lure him into a trap to kill him? That would mean he knew about Darius's vulnerability. Maybe there
had
been demons present in the dream dimension when Whitley told him about the spell. He'd know the truth soon enough.

When the cab pulled to a stop, Darius got out. He'd borrowed money from Mai and now used it to pay the driver. Glancing up, he studied the building. The light of the full moon reflected off the scalloped pieces, making them glow brightly.

Tapping into his magic, he used his key to open the metal doors that led down into the utility room. Once he was through, he concentrated on the wall where he knew the magically concealed door lay. It took careful focus, but the edges of the door slowly appeared.

Grabbing his dagger, Darius slipped through the door.

On the other side, he found himself standing alone in the hallway. Cocking his head to one side, he paused to listen. Silence.

He proceeded directly to the chamber with the pool. He was fairly certain that Amadja would not have set any traps for him, but he still moved cautiously. He remembered the guards standing outside just before turning the corner, and he stopped. Moving slowly, he peeked around the corner and saw the guards still there.

It was impossible to know whether they would stand aside and allow him to pass as they had last time, or whether Amadja had ordered them to watch for him.

He took a breath and stepped out into the open. The minute they saw him, the guards squared off, answering at least one question. Darius gave them a slow, predatory smile and moved forward at a leisurely pace. The two guards exchanged quick looks. He could tell that the guard closest to him was looking forward to the fight, while the other one seemed hesitant, fearful.

Darius moved in, focusing his attack on the more aggressive guard. The vampire had probably been a bully in life, because he showed more attitude than talent. Soon Darius had reduced him to nothing more than a withering corpse.

Then he turned to the remaining guard. He'd clearly been young when he'd been converted and didn't look to be more than nineteen. Darius had no way of knowing how long ago that conversion had taken place, but the boy clearly did not want to fight.

"Get out of here," Darius told him. "Don't go back to the Crypt or the Vlads. Leave and don't come back for at least two days. After that, go to the Blood Club and tell Ricco that Darius sent you. Understand?"

The boy nodded. "If I find out that you disobey me, I'll hunt you down. When I find you-and I will find you-I'll finish what was started here tonight. Now go."

Darius watched him leave, then turned to face the door.

He briefly closed his eyes and sent a prayer to the Mother Goddess that Lexi was here and still alive. Then he opened the door. He half expected to find Amadja on the other side, sitting on his throne, waiting for him to appear. But the demon wasn't there.

In fact, at first glance, the room appeared to be empty. The light from the pool flickered and reflected off the walls, giving the room a peaceful feeling. Above, the large circle in the center of the domed ceiling was lit-as Lexi had predicted it would be for the full moon.

He noticed all this in an instant. His sole focus was on finding Lexi, and he couldn't believe she wasn't here.

He caught the faint jangling sound of chains coming from the shadowy opposite wall. Going around the pool, he approached cautiously.

As he drew closer, he saw not one but two figures chained to the wall. The first was Lexi, who seemed unconscious, and the other was. . .

"Darius, is that you?" Tain called, his voice sounding raspy, like he'd been shouting for help a long time.

Darius rushed forward. "Tain, I'm here."

Tain heaved a sigh of relief. "I knew you'd come." He tugged on his chains. "You have to get us out of these before Amadja comes back."

Darius did a quick visual check of Tain, saw that he seemed to be okay, and then turned his attention to Lexi. Laying his hand against the side of her head, he felt a rush of relief when she opened her eyes. It was quickly replaced by worry, however, when he noticed a shimmer of magic all around her.

"Damn," he swore. "What did they do to you?" Her eyes had partially shifted to wolf, and when he stepped closer to her, she dipped her head to his shoulder and

inhaled deeply. Then her mouth was on his neck, tasting his skin as she breathed in his scent.

"Oh, you smell so good," she moaned.

Surprised at her behavior, he turned to look at her. That was when her mouth swooped down on his, and she kissed him with something akin to desperation.

He'd wanted her so badly for so long, it was impossible not to respond, but this was neither the place nor the time.

"Easy, baby. There will be plenty of time for that later."

"No," she insisted on a ragged breath. "Now I need you now." She twisted in her chains, doing her best to rub up against him as he struggled to pull the key from his back. The task was made more difficult because of the way Lexi kept moving against him, distracting him.

"What's wrong with her?" he asked Tain, trying to keep the key over the lock long enough for it to change shape.

"Amadja gave her Demon Fire."

"That bastard," Darius swore. Demon Fire was the most powerful-and long-lasting-aphrodisiac in the magical world. Giving it to a werewolf in heat was just plain cruel. There was no need for it.

But it explained why she was in the state she was inand why there was a field of energy surrounding her.

"What about you?" he asked Tain as the key finally began to change its shape. "Are you hurt? Did he-"

"No. He hasn't touched me since the last time I saw you.

"Thank the Goddess," Darius said. "I was worried about you. Thank you for stepping in when you did." He glanced over and saw Tain watching his every move. "I'll have you free in a second."

Darius ducked his head, trying to escape Lexi's mouth and managed to unlock one of her cuffs. The instant that hand was free, she was reaching for him, running it along his shoulders and neck.

When her hand stroked down his belly and still lower until she cupped him, his eyes nearly rolled back in his head. It demanded the utmost control to pull her hand away. "Lexi, honey. Not now," he croaked, trying to hold both of her hands with one of his while trapping her against his body by tucking her under one arm.

Unfortunately, now both his hands were occupied and there was not a limb left to operate the key.

"Where's Amadja?" he asked, having a hard time remembering why he was there at all.

"I don't know," Tain said. "But I know he'll be here tonight. He said he had plans for that one," nodding at Lexi.

Darius felt the pressure of needing to get them both out of there. "I'll probably have to carry her," he said. "Can you walk?"

"Yes. Just get me out of here." There was a shared sense of urgency to Tain's voice.

"I'm trying," Darius muttered, inserting the key into the cuff around Lexi's other wrist.

When it came undone, she threw herself into his arms. "Darius-oh, Goddess," she breathed. "Is that you?" She rubbed herself against him. "Oh," she moaned. "You feel so good."