Bad Mouth (18 page)

Chapter Twenty-nine

Someone screamed, and Val realized it was her. Her out-of-body sensation left her
and she raced toward Kade. He’d dropped to his knees, and his hands were at his throat.
Bloody spray flecked his left shoulder and the side of his face.

“Kade!” She searched frantically for his wounds to apply pressure. “Please open your
eyes. Where are you hit?” After surviving a swordfight with an Ancient, he couldn’t
possibly die from a mere bullet wound.

Ezra knelt next to Kade. “Dead doesn’t suit you, my prince. Get your lazy ass up and
take care of business.”

Val pushed at Ezra’s chest. “You’re not funny. Can’t you do something useful?”

Kade laughed weakly, his pain-glazed eyes opening finally to look between her and
his friend. “I thought it was funny.”

Oh God, he was okay. She nearly sagged with relief. Then a wrenching wail reached
through the fog of her mind. Evangeline.

Olen’s hands framed Evangeline’s face, and his voice dipped to a whisper. “What have
you done? What have you become?”

“No, Olen! We can be perfect again.” She sobbed. “Don’t do this. What will you do
without me?”

Don’t do what?
Val frowned and then gasped when she realized Olen’s intent. To her horror, Olen gripped
Evangeline’s head tighter and with a violent twist, ripped it from her body with his
bare hands. Blood sprayed and Evangeline’s body thumped onto the floor. Val’s stomach
rioted and shock numbed her body.

“Without you, my
Domina
? Without you, I will die.” Olen knelt to place Evangeline’s head lovingly on her
body. Val had never seen such emotion on Olen’s face. His grief was all consuming,
but when he arose, he appeared calm and collected. “Ezra,” he called.

Ezra’s head snapped up. “Yes, my lord.”

“How is the prince?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m still alive,” Kade answered for himself.

“She missed the artery but he needs blood, my lord.”

Olen, his features nearly gray, collapsed to his knees before Kade’s kneeling form,
bringing them face-to-face. Tears filled the
Rex’s
eyes, but never overflowed. He slit his own wrist and offered it to Kade. The darkest,
thickest blood she’d ever seen oozed out.

Ezra looked on with a dazed expression. “My lord, you know there are witnesses.”

“I’m aware of what I do,” Olen said without looking away from Kade.

Kade finally found his voice. “Olen—”

“Do not speak.”

Kade obeyed the command without question. His fangs extended, and then he accepted
the blood offering from his father after only a slight hesitation. There was no missing
the significance of the scene playing out. The other vampires looked on with matching
expressions of awe blended with astonishment. After a few moments, Kade withdrew his
fangs and bowed his head to the floor before the
Rex
.

Olen directed his attention to Val. “Ms. Craig, if you have any hope of making him
happy, you must become. We aren’t killers. The
Domina’s
execution should be sufficient to pay for her crimes.”

“Will this heal him?” She gestured toward Olen’s wrist.

“Don’t worry, young one. I give him no choice but to live.” A smile curved his lips,
which just about gave Val a heart attack. “Now off to the only adventure left of which
to partake. Liaison, you will care for him better than I ever did.” He made it a statement
more than a question. A command? Val looked down at Kade’s bowed form. The bullet
wounds on his throat were slowly closing. Olen’s blood had to be powerful stuff.

“Val, keep your head down,” Killian whispered at her ear with his slight brogue.

Didn’t he know telling her that would make her look up? So she did and regretted it
immediately. Without an iota of sentiment, Ptolomy neatly removed the
Rex’s
head with Olen’s sword. Bile rose up to the back of Val’s throat, and she turned away.

Killian shook his head. “What did I tell you?
Women
.”

“Val? Val!” Graham’s shout rang through the foyer. The SWAT officers were dragging
him away in restraints. “I did this for you!”

She snorted. As if she’d want a vamp—oh. She did want a vampire, but not simply any
vampire. It had to be Kade and only Kade. It wasn’t what he was. It was who he was
that made her love him with her whole heart and her entire soul. She needed more time
with him, and even that wouldn’t be enough.

He had come so close to death. If she ever lost him, she didn’t know how she’d cope.
She turned her attention to the unlikely love of her life. “How are you?” she asked.

“Fine,” Kade growled. “But what the fuck are you doing here?”

She didn’t care about his anger. She peeled off her vest and launched into his arms.
“Kade.” Her lips slammed into his. His response was immediate. She gripped his hair
in her fist and then leaned back, bringing him closer as he followed her lips. Locking
her arms around his shoulders, she cupped the back of his head and met his gaze. He
needed to see what she felt for him.

“I don’t want to wait anymore to tell you.” She stroked his hair, her heart aching
with the depth of her emotion. “I love you, Kade.”

His eyes closed, and he groaned. “Val, my sweet.” His arms tightened around her. “You
have no idea what that does to me. I’m so out-of-my-mind in love with you.”

He pulled her in for another delicious kiss. In a million years she could never tire
of the pressure of his lips on hers, the taste of his mouth, the—whack at back of
his head. He nearly bit her lip before he pulled away.

“You’re gonna make me vomit. Time to go, Casanova,” Ian said.

Kade gently placed her on her feet and grabbed his sword out of Ian’s hand. With a
blur of speed, he disappeared only to reappear behind his friend and take a bone-jarring
swing at the man’s rear with the flat of his blade. Ian yelped.

“You’re a brave man, Ian,” he said. “But you’re right. We have to find Will.”

“Wait. You’re leaving?” Val rushed to him, her gaze automatically scrutinizing his
quickly healing wounds.

Kade tossed the sword back to Ian and dragged his fingertips up the sides of her throat.
The ruby of his eyes grew brighter. “We won’t be long. Find out what you can from
Graham and then call me. He may know where they’ve been keeping the little fucker.”

She nodded. His hands dropped to rest low on his hips, and his smile faded. The shadows
she’d noticed so often in his eyes surfaced in full force.

“Kade?”

“Heya, Val,” Alice said. “Would you please do something about Graham? He’s driving
me insane.”

Kade closed his eyes and shook his head. “Go on, Val,” he said softly. “I have some
things I have to take care of.”

Alice grabbed her wrist and towed her toward the door. Val freed her arm and twisted
around, searching for another glimpse of Kade. He knelt beside Olen’s body with his
back toward her and his head bowed. They had been the worst of parents, but they’d
been all that Kade had known. Pain jabbed beneath her left breast. How she hated to
leave him this way.

The worry didn’t leave her as she climbed into the back of the SWAT van and faced
Graham. She didn’t think she’d ever get used to him having red eyes and fangs. She
pictured herself with similar eyes and fangs. Could she do that? A week ago, her answer
would have been a resounding
no
. Now she wasn’t so sure. Deep inside, she believed Kade wouldn’t leave her if she
remained human, but she would age as he stayed young and fit. He’d be helpless as
he watched her succumb to all of the weaknesses of humanity. A shudder hit her spine.

As she sank onto the bench across from Graham, she wanted to verbally tear him apart,
but his darn puppy-dog expression held her in check. Vampirism hadn’t done anything
to diminish that in him. The van started moving as they headed back toward Seattle,
and Val sat quietly watching him for a long while before he broke the silence.

“Do you hate me?”

“You almost got me killed, Graham.”

He scrubbed his face and sighed. His voice was mumbled. “You weren’t supposed to be
there, Val. It was only supposed to be him.”

“And you think that makes me any happier?” She yanked his hands down. “You were trying
to get the prince of vampires killed. Did you really believe that would fly with the
Legion? The Trackers would eat you alive.”

“Evangeline—”

“Was crazy. And stupid if she thought for a second Kade’s murder wouldn’t get her
destroyed and you along with her. You’re as ignorant of the politics behind the Legion
as the Ancients were.”

He seemed to have trouble making eye contact with her. And then the depth of
her
ignorance struck her. Graham had turned too quickly, and now he faced execution at
the hands of the
Immortalis
because whoever had sired him had failed to complete his training. He hadn’t learned
enough about the castes to function within them. The only thing Graham could be thankful
for was that he hadn’t been abandoned to become deranged.

Val rubbed her temple to soothe the ache there. “Do you know who was with Will at
the World Journal?”

“I assumed it was one of Evangeline’s subjugates. I don’t get how any human could
keep a deranged under control.” He gave a tired shrug. “But I guess we’ll never know
now.”

“How’d you figure out Kade would go after Will?” she asked.

“Easy enough assumption. Everyone was looking for Will. Besides, Evangeline said Kade
would have his friends searching. I don’t know how she knew. She wasn’t one to share
information, only take it. I don’t even know how she led Kade to Will.”

“And what information did the
Domina
take from you?”

“She wanted transformation applications.”

Val shook her head and frowned. “But she had access already.”

“Only to the ones approved by the VLO.”

She blew out a frustrated breath. “Okay, but we already found staff she had on the
inside. She could have gotten them from Ginger or Jenna.”

“No, they were Olen’s insiders.”

“I can’t believe you knew about them.” She stared at him as if she’d never known him
before. It killed her that he’d hide such information.

“Stop looking at me that way. I didn’t know until after I…you know.”

“Right.” She turned away, unable to stand the sight of him anymore. “Why wouldn’t
she just get them from Olen?”

“You’re asking the wrong guy. She told me nothing, but I know she was hiding a lot
from Olen. I kind of think…”

“Think what?”

“I think she was succumbing to the
vesania
.”

She snorted. “Well that explains a lot.”

More tight silence passed while they swayed with the van’s movement. Graham had to
have been desperate for something in order to stoop as low as he had. She’d known
him for years and never suspected he’d be capable of what he’d done.

“I didn’t think it’d be a big deal if she had the records,” he said. “What good would
they do her? What harm would it do us? It didn’t seem like much of a payment.”

She glared her displeasure at him. “I’d rather not listen to you justify your actions.”

“Val—”

“Just tell me why, Graham. Why would you transform? That’s what I don’t get.”

“I told you. I did it for you.”

“You knew how I felt about vampires.”

“And I saw how you looked at Rollins,” he snapped. “For years, nothing I did caught
your attention, and all it took was an
Immortalis
—”

“Don’t you dare blame me for your mistakes. It’s not his immortality that I love,
Graham.” She stood, fighting a wave of fury so sharp she had to leave before she physically
assaulted him.

When she headed toward the cab’s window, he called after her. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t tell me it was about love because I know now what love looks like. Nothing
you did was about me. It was all about you.”

He shook his head helplessly. “I don’t know how to fix this.”

“You can’t change anything now, and I’m not sure it matters anymore.” Her shoulders
drooped. The pain on his face was almost too much to bear.

“If Will had waited just a little longer, none of this would be happening. I never
thought I’d say this, but I hope they kill him when he gets out of the cellar.”

“
Where
is he?” Her hand froze on the barred cab window.

“They were punishing him and buried him in the cellar two nights ago.”

“Graham, he could be free by now. He could be loose in the house!” She pounded on
the cab until one of the officers slid the window open. “Go back. We need to get back
to the mansion now.”

They slowed the van and swung back around without questioning her. The roads were
winding out here, and it took too long in her mind to get back to where they’d started,
every minute stretching her patience toward a breaking point. She tried Kade’s cell
several times, but the weak signal refused to connect her calls. When they finally
arrived, she jumped down from the van and ran full-speed toward the mansion. She hadn’t
quite reached the door when she heard that dreadfully familiar enraged shriek.

Chapter Thirty

Ezra was making a disaster zone of the Ancients’ files, but Kade didn’t give a shit.
The Ancients were dead, and there were plenty of subjugates to clean the mess. He
only wished for the night to end. He wanted to crawl in a hole somewhere and mourn
privately. His friend must have sensed his despair because, for once, Ezra said nothing,
not one inflaming remark. If Val didn’t contact him soon with information, he’d call
off the search for the night, track her down, and drag her into his hole with him.

She loved him. His mind reeled at that euphoric knowledge. In all the centuries he’d
existed, he’d never been loved. His soul sizzled with new life, firing each synapse.
He’d absorb her into his spirit if he could. He’d never regret the absence of the
sun another day of his miserable life because he had her to light him up. But for
how long? Dammit, he couldn’t think about that now. He had too many other problems
to deal with.

He needed to find Will so the VLO could wrap up their blooding cases, and there was
still the question of the throne to deal with. He was too young to take over the
Dominorum
, and therefore the
Immortalis
as a whole. No way in hell he’d leave the vampire nation open to chaos, which would
happen with a headless
Dominorum
.

Dammit, Olen, why’d you have to go and off yourself?
But he knew the answer. His father might have been obligated to execute Evangeline,
but no vampire could live on without his lifelong mate. Olen had known what he was
passing off to Kade when the man gave up his blood, had known it would bring him death.
A
Rex
was forbidden to give of his own blood other than to his mate, not even to create
another
Dominus
. Not even to save the life of his only son, a son he’d said he was proud of.

The memory of Olen’s praise burned and eased his mind at the same time. Why had Olen
never told him this? His father had left him in fetid isolation, an island in a perpetual
typhoon surrounded by a sea of evil and lies. The man deserved to be dead, but justice
didn’t relieve Kade’s grief. Funny how he didn’t hold the same grief for Evangeline.

Clearly, she had never been his mother. It had been Annette. All those centuries ago,
Olen had impregnated Annette the old-fashioned way. Suddenly much of Evangeline’s
behavior toward Kade all his life made sense. He hoped wherever Annette was, she knew
his gratitude for all she’d sacrificed and for all her love.

“Find anything?” Ezra asked. Kade snapped back to his purpose. He’d been standing
at the window gazing over the tops of the Douglas firs encircling the mansion.

“Nope. I doubt anything’s here,” he said. “Evangeline wouldn’t have wanted Olen to
find any sign of her treachery.”

He’d sent Luc and Guns home. Ian and Declan were pumping the
Dominorum
Enforcers for information, but he predicted they wouldn’t have any luck. The Enforcers
were all useless dipshits, a bunch of royal meat puppets. He’d make the overhaul of
that organization the first matter on his agenda, modeling them after the Legion Trackers.

“Know what you’re going to do yet?”

Kade laughed. “Hell no, but I’ll figure something out.” He glanced out at the darkness
again. “Dawn’s not far off. Enjoy what’s left of the night. We’ll pick up tomorrow
evening. Guns and Luc can search during the day.”

“I’m sure you’ll enjoy your night.” Ezra waggled his brows. Kade gave him a shove.
“And I thought such a night might never come. You’ve chosen well, brother. She’ll
make a fair and perfect queen.” With that, Ezra opened the windows wide and leaped
two stories to the ground outside. A moment later, he was gone. His friend made flashing
look easy. Show-off.

Kade closed the windows and left the office. The
click
of the door shutting was like a death knell. He’d never step foot in that office
again. He’d never step foot in this mansion again. He might even have it burned and
leveled to the ground. Nothing good had ever come from here.

He started down the hallway when a shriek vibrated along the cold stone walls. That
could only be the wail of one of the deranged. With the wolfish grin of the battle-hardened,
he jogged toward the stairway landing when he heard a woman’s scream.
Val!

He barreled to the foyer and found two subjugates on the floor, one with her throat
torn to a single fleshy strand and the other with his abdomen ripped open. Against
the wall, Val slumped to the ground with Will standing over her. Kade’s vision went
blindingly red.

He lunged into Will, taking the vampire to the ground. The deranged was fast, the
man’s bestial reflexes far advanced for a new vampire. Will rolled to his feet. Mud
and blood splatter coated his ragged clothes. He smelled like a corpse. Will’s hands
came up, curling like talons with the fingernails missing. Wherever the man had been,
he’d had to claw his way out, which would make him a dangerous adversary.

The deranged came at Kade hard and fast, but lacked finesse. Kade dodged and responded
with a vicious blow that sent him sprawling. Will jumped to his feet, shrieked, and
charged again, but Kade met him head-on. The vampire’s fangs bit through Kade’s shoulder,
tearing muscle and tendon. The pain wasn’t new to Kade, nothing compared with the
pain of seeing Val lying limp on the floor, possibly near death or worse.

With a desperation he’d never known, Kade threw himself full-bore into transformational
change and countered Will’s attack. The deranged couldn’t fully change and posed no
match for Kade in this state. His fangs at full-length, Kade sank them deep into the
young vampire’s throat, pulling back as he’d done a thousand times with his subjugates.
A gurgle bubbled from the deranged’s foul lips, and then the man sagged against him.
He bit down repeatedly, only releasing when he was certain Will was dead. With a swipe
of his sleeve across his mouth, he dropped the dead weight and changed back to his
more human appearance.

He rushed to Val with his heart in his throat. She was pale. So fucking pale. He scanned
her body but saw no wounds, only bloody handprints on her sleeves, but she wasn’t
moving, and he couldn’t see her pulse. Panic seized him in a vise. His eternal winter
flashed through his head, a vision of a future more hollow than any void. No fae eyes
to gaze into at sunset. No lilacs in the desert of his life. No angry punches when
he’d pushed too far. No vases flung at his chest.

“Val,” he whispered. She whimpered, her eyes fluttered, and he came back to life.
He lifted her carefully onto his lap and cradled her head. “Wake up, baby. Wake up
for me. Did he hurt you?”

She shook the groggy look from her eyes. “Kade? I saw…Where’s Will?”

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. Hard. “You scared the fuck out of me!” Tears
pooled in her eyes. “Ah, fuck. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

He folded her into his arms and buried his fingers into her gorgeous golden curls.
He kissed her temple and then her forehead, each eyelid, each cheek, and ended up
on her lips. He kissed her over and over, not stopping even when she tried to speak.
Finally, she pushed him away. Her electric eyes sucked him into their depths like
a whirlpool. He could live there forever. Except they didn’t have forever, not even
one measly century.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Will’s dead.”

She didn’t cry like he’d thought she would. Regret was all he saw in her expression.

“Better him than you,” she whispered.

“Or you.” He kissed her again. He could have lost her. Drawing her against his chest,
he stroked his hands along the curve of her spine. How he loved the satin of her hands
against his skin. That pretty floral scent of her filled his senses, making him crazy.
“I love you. I love you. I love you.”

“And I love you. I’m all right, Kade. I’m okay.” She brushed against his stubble and
then back down along his face. Pleasure lit her expression, and his breath seized.
He rasped his cheek along her throat, and she shivered. Hell, he’d rub his face all
over her body now that he knew how much it turned her on. The thought of leaving marks
on her breasts thickened his erection. She squirmed in his lap.

“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered against the shell of her ear. He nuzzled the
sensitive spot behind it. Her shiver was more pronounced this time.

“I have to see him.”

“Val, it’s not a pretty sight in here.”

Uncertainty flickered in her gaze, but then she did that damned sexy-gunslinger thing
again. “It’s not a request.”

“Fuck me,” he said. “You’re one tough woman.”

“If
that
was a request, it’ll have to wait a few more hours until we get home.”

His cock flexed like a muscle. She likely wouldn’t feel like sex after seeing the
carnage behind him, but he’d take what he could get. With a silent nod, he stood,
bringing her with him, and then stepped aside and watched her face.

When her eyes settled on Will’s remains, she didn’t even tear up, but her sorrow ate
him alive. She’d loved that guy once, whoever he used to be. Kade probably should
have felt jealous, but instead only pity filled him. The man could have kept her for
a lifetime.

Kade would give up vampirism in a heartbeat for her, if he’d had the choice. He would
have given up his heritage. Hell, he’d give up his last breath for her. For a human.

His old self would be rolling in his grave right about now, and that would be appropriate
because that old self was dead and gone.

The object of his love turned into his chest, sliding her slender arms around his
waist. If only he could wear her like this every day.

“Okay,” she mumbled against his shirt. “We can go.”

He laced his hand with hers and led her to the door just as Alice ran in.

“Okay, whew. I’m done dealing with the subjugates.” She brushed her hands together
as if she’d been doing dirty work. “Val, I thought you left already. What’s holding
you guys anyway? I mean, don’t you have to avoid the sun or something?”

He laughed. “Ran into some trouble. He’s in a heap in the foyer, if the SWAT would
like to claim the body.”

Alice’s pretty gray eyes went wide as dinner plates. “You found Will?”

“The report should say the
Rex
legally executed him,” Kade said. “That should wrap up your cases adequately.” He
caught her before she could go in. “It’s messy.”

“S’alright.” The woman shrugged, her expression bland. “I missed dinner.”

“Uh, okay.” Crazy woman.

Alice turned to Val, who still looked pale. “I’m so sorry, Val. I know you didn’t
want it to end up like this.”

“No, I didn’t, but I knew it would. I’ll be fine.” Val gave Alice a shaky smile, but
it was the look in her eyes that told Kade she really would be fine, a look that said
she could take on anything and anyone if she had to.

Alice gave Val a hug before disappearing into the mansion, and Kade was grateful for
her presence. It would take hours to clear the scene. He had no intention of spending
the rest of the night dealing with that mess.

He led Val down the wide stone steps toward his car and then he stopped her. It was
hard to look her in the eye, but he had to get this demon out. “I’m sorry, Val.”

“Sorry for what?” She looked at him with confusion.

“I killed him.”

She took his hands in hers and took a deep breath. “You had to. I know that. I’ve
known for a long time now what would happen to him, especially after seeing him in
the warehouse. That
thing
wasn’t even Will anymore.”

Her strength and understanding amazed him. He kissed her again. Seemed he couldn’t
get enough. “I want to flash you home.”

“I’m game.”

“Can’t,” he said with regret. “Unless you can close your eyes and hold your breath
for ten minutes.”

“You could kiss me the whole time.”

“You’ll be the death of me,” he muttered.

The trip by car back to Seattle was pure, unadulterated torture, and he wished he’d
called for a driver. He could have been in the backseat fondling his tiny bundle of
hotness in the hours left before dawn. By the time they got to the city, sunrise would
bite at their heels, and he’d be sucked into the pull of sleep.

Val was too quiet, her face turned toward the window. Maybe she needed some private
time as much as he did. He took her slack hand in his, and the squeeze of her grip
eased his worry. She never let go until they pulled to the curb at the Towers. When
she looked toward him, her expression was pensive.

“Are you taking over the
Immortalis
?”

“I can’t.” He dragged his hand through his hair and sighed. “I’m…at a loss. I’m too
young to take it, but it’s too dangerous not to. There could be an uprising. Things
were bad already between the
Dominorum
and the Legion. The Ancients didn’t want you to know this, but the number of rogues
has increased so sharply, the Legion Trackers can’t keep up with them. I tried to
warn them about that.”

“There’ll be a civil war.” Dread laced her words, and he couldn’t reassure her.

“Yes,” he said. “Even after all we’ve done to stop it, there’ll be a war.”