bedeviled & beyond 05 - bedeviled & besmirched (19 page)

“That’s simple. We need to divide and conquer.”

“Okay. Let’s start with Crisanne.” I gave him a grin that should have turned his knees to water.

Being Slayer, he just laughed and shook his head. “I’m almost afraid to ask what you’re thinking.”

“I’m thinking we need to find Crisanne again so you can convince her you still have the hots for her.”

Slayer turned gray around the gills. “I knew it was a mistake hanging around you, Astra.”

I threw him my handheld communication unit. “I don’t feel a bit sorry for you. I did warn you. But, as I recall, you insisted.”

“I’m a very stupid man.”

“On that, at least, we can both agree.”

~SC~

The area around the little house was so overgrown with trees it felt like a jungle. I stepped forward and almost tripped as a prickly vine wound itself around my ankle. “Ouch! Frunkin’ hell!” I reached down and tried to pry the vine away from my leg. I’d picked the perfect night to decide not to wear boots. “Are you sure she lives out here? We’re out in the flippin’ boonies. I’m pretty sure only bugs and green stuff live out here.”

Slayer’s aura pulsed bright and golden in the overcast night. He stood with his eyes closed and his hands lifted as he sensed the immediate area for life forms.

Fortunately he could multi-task.

“Ralph ran her, and this house was listed as her last, and only known residence. Her air vehicle is also registered to this address.”

I ran a finger over the scratches on my ankle, which burned and itched at the same time. My fingertip came away with a drop of blood. “Just frunkin’ great! I’ll probably get some horrible disease from this.”

Slayer threw me a look. “You’re very cranky tonight, Astra. Something wrong?”

Not a thing. Except that my body screamed with the need to jump on top of anything phallus shaped and pound it for about an hour. I alternately shivered and sweated with Settling induced fever, and my skin was so sensitive it hurt. My panties were so wet it was a wonder I didn’t slosh when I walked.

It didn’t help that Slayer smelled like the equivalent of a twelve-course meal to a woman who hadn’t eaten in days. And he always looked edible.

My imagination kept flinging Slayer to the ground and stripping off his jeans. When I didn’t shove the thought away fast enough, the vivid movie in my mind showed me pulling his long, thick shaft into my mouth and sucking hard, bathing his fine balls with my tongue as I tweaked the perfect brown buds of his nipples with my fingertips.

A wave of heat flowed over me, leaving me sweaty and shaking. Moisture slipped down my clenched thighs beneath my jeans. Hades! If I didn’t have sex in the next five minutes I was pretty sure I was gonna die! Even
I
could smell my need on the air. Judging by the way Slayer’s gaze kept sliding in my direction, I was pretty sure he could smell it too.

I wanted to explain but...what was the use. He knew what I was going through. He’d gone through it recently too. So he also understood that there was nothing either of us could do about it. It was better just to try to ignore it.

Slam
! Slayer hit the ground again inside my mind. My vivid imagination had me unzipping his jeans with my teeth when a familiar voice rang out of the darkness ahead of us.

We both jumped and matching power balls appeared on our palms.

“It’s about time you got here, my queen.” Brina emerged from a dense thicket wrapped in the same vine that had snagged me. Of course the vine left her unscathed as she shoved through. “I’ve been here for at least an hour. I’ve already been through the house.”

I let the power fizzle away from my palm and took a deep, calming breath. “How’d you know we were coming here?”

She snorted. “Please. You don’t think the very first thing I did was put an electronic tracker on the werewolves’ information units?”

Slayer slid a knee-melting look down her body and started walking toward the small, scarred, wooden house, which was temporarily bathed in weak moonlight as the clouds overhead parted.

I shook my head and followed Slayer, trying to ignore the way Brina sniffed the air as I passed.

Appearing as empty as Brina declared it, the little house gave off an aura of long-term neglect. Whatever paint the walls once wore was faded and chipped, showing half rotted, gray wood underneath. The long, narrow windows were cold slashes of charcoal against the night, the glass too dirty to even give off a shine as the weak rays of moonlight skimmed them. The single door in the center of the sad building was open, and fabric danced in a slight breeze from the thin curtain hanging on the inside.

I glanced at Brina. “Did you leave that door open?”

“It was that way when I got here. The interior of the house has been destroyed.”

Slayer disappeared inside and I slipped in behind him.

Brina hadn’t exaggerated. Somebody had really done a number on the contents of the little house. Furniture was shattered, lying in pieces all over the floor and glass littered the thin, dusty carpet. Jagged burn marks ripped across nearly every wall and scorched the ceiling, as if someone had cut the space with a power arrow. The guts of one wall spilled out in purple froth that looked like congealed blood in the dim light. Pillows and cloth from the furniture sat in thick piles on the floor, their contents skittering across the floor as we moved.

There was no sound except the insects singing and chirping outside. The faint odor of sulfur tickled my nose.

Slayer disappeared down a hallway, his power throbbing around him in a protective bubble.

Brina climbed a worn and sagging staircase to the second floor. She looked bored.

I slid my gaze around the room, feeling out of sorts and off balance. It wasn’t only my Settling that was making me uneasy. I’d learned long ago to trust my instincts. And in that moment my instincts were screaming that we weren’t alone in that battered house.

A slight thickness in the air gave him away. I narrowed my gaze, recognizing his aura, and settled my own power bubble around myself. “Come out, come out wherever you are, Advocate.” The air shimmered and revealed him with a final hiss, like air escaping through a tiny opening before an explosion.

I knew what the explosion would be.

The advocate was leaning against the wall, his long legs crossed at the ankles and his hands stuffed into the pockets of tight leather pants. “You look a bit jittery, my queen. Would you like me to assuage your needs for you?”

“Yeah, um, not. Just keep your magic libido on your side of the room, demon. What are you doing here?”

His black eyes sparked with anger. “I came to kill the bitch.”

Ah! Honesty. Refreshing. “So I guess you’re the one who trashed the place?”

“That would be me, yes.”

“Why?”

“She poisoned the king.”

“And me.” I knew I shouldn’t goad him but I was feeling devilish.

His thin, upper lip curled upward in a tiny snarl. Almost imperceptible. I was glad to see I could still get to him. He inclined his dark head in a shallow bow. The silky curtain of his long hair slipped forward, hiding his expression.

Probably for the best.

“Of course, my queen. I live to protect and serve.”

I snorted. “Frunkin’ awesome. I was starting to think you didn’t like me.”

A power arrow exploded in front of Milc, pinging harmlessly off his protective bubble. I glanced toward Slayer as he strode angrily into the room. He held another power ball in his hand, ready to throw. “What’s he doing here?” He glared at the advocate, not bothering to hide his disgust. “Are you okay, Astra?”

“I’m fine. The Milc-man was just telling me about how he came to ‘kill the bitch’.”

Slayer lifted an eyebrow. “Interesting development.”

“Isn’t it.” I cocked my head at Milc, whose gaze had slipped to Brina, coming down the stairs. She gave him a little finger wave. He barely managed to hide his surprise at seeing her. Only a slight widening of his black eyes gave it away.

“We figure you’ve been working with said bitch,” I told him.

He swung his gaze back to me. “Why would I do that?”

“Power.” Brina offered. “You think you can kill the king and take his spot on the council.”

Slayer and I shared a look. Apparently we weren’t the only ones indulging in speculation.

Milc snorted. “It is true, the halfling came to me and asked me to help her kill the king. But I spit in her face and she left. I haven’t seen her since.”

“Yet you immediately assumed it was her who poisoned Dialle.”

His black eyes flashed with ill humor. “That is correct.”

“Why?” Slayer didn’t look convinced.

“I don’t need to explain myself to you, halfling bug.”

“But you do need to explain yourself to
me
...the other halfling bug.”

He stared at me long and hard, hostility throbbing between us, before illuminating us further. “The creature had stolen the poison from the witch. She told me as much. She explained that she had as much power as you did...and that she and I could take the Royal Court and fill the Sovereign’s spot on the council.”

“That’s a pretty tempting offer, Advocate.” Brina’s pretty gaze narrowed on him. She didn’t look like she believed his side of the story.

“It might have been. If I were interested in mating with a half-breed.” His thin lips curled derisively as he looked at me. “But I am not. And I don’t believe she is as powerful as she proclaimed.”

“Crisanne?” Slayer snorted. “Stupid advocate. She’s every bit as powerful as she told you...and then some. Aside from Astra she might be the most powerful of our kind.”

I turned and caught Brina looking at Slayer with deep speculation in her gaze. I figured she was probably wondering if Crisanne could mark a male too. If so, Brina would probably have more luck getting the information from Crisanne. Since I had no clue how I’d done it.

Milc’s face was an unreadable mask but when he spoke you could almost hear his teeth grinding together. “It is of no import. I have no desire to usurp the king.”

“Uh huh.” I turned to Slayer. “Any sign of her?”

“No. It looks as if she’s picked up and left for good. No clothes, no food, nothing. Her magic signature is too old to follow. Sorry, Astra.”

I sighed. “That puts us right back to ground zero.”

My portable televisual bleeped and Bob’s face came online. Considering my current companions, I put him on mute and inserted an ear bud for privacy.

“Hey, Astra. I wanted to let you know that you have a visitor.”

I frowned. I hadn’t been expecting anyone. “Please tell me it’s Mx. Diamon?”

“No. She says her name is Crisanne.”

~SC~

She stood with her back to the door, looking at the framed evidence of my qualifications I’d hung on the wall when I’d moved into my new office. It was the only piece of the old office I’d retained after the fire.

The yellowed parchment from the Institute of Demonic Studies was scorched, its edges browned and jagged, but the frame I’d placed it in was shiny and new.

I was proud of that yellowed, half-fried piece of parchment. It said I’d graduated Master of my class. Nobody kicked demon ass like I did. After all, I’d started at the age of five when I killed a demon in my sandbox for trying to steal my little purple bucket and shovel. He was trying to kill my sister Darma too but it was the bucket that really pissed me off. That was when I’d developed my future business plan.

See demon.

See demon run.

Zap demon’s ass.

Move on to next demon.

It’s been a very successful business plan.

But I digress.

The other halfling was taller than me, with softly curved hips and slim arms and legs that looked slightly too long for her height. She wore a short, black, leather skirt over skin-skimming tights that reached to just below her slim knees and stopped on a thin band of lace. Her long, narrow feet were encased in heel-less, black, leather shoes that looked like slippers. Her upper body was snug as a bug in something black and stretchy, the sleeves long and tight, flaring over her hands into feathery tails that dropped six inches from her wrists. The shirt wouldn’t be good for demon slaying—too frilly—but I liked the shoes.

“Crisanne?”

She turned and I immediately disliked her. Her shoulder-length, mahogany-brown hair slipped across her shoulders like silk, perfectly straight, hanging from a jagged center part and framing her oblong face in thick bangs. Her eyes were long and tipped up on the outside corners, giving her an exotic appearance. The eyes were a light golden-brown color that I’d never seen before, almost amber. Her skin was a flawless, creamy brown.

Crisanne’s mouth curved upward, the kiss-me fullness of her lips painted soft burgundy by nature. Her nostrils flared slightly, making her long, straight nose look wider.

Her eyes widened in surprise. “You are dealing with your Settling?”

Frowning, I moved to put my desk between us. That subject was just a little too personal to discuss with a stranger. Especially one of Slayer’s old girlfriends.

“I’ve been looking for you.” I sat down behind my desk but didn’t get too comfortable. I didn’t trust the woman across my office any more than I trusted Dialle’s advocate. Maybe less.

She crossed slender arms over her chest and bit her lower lip. It was a very good impression of a woman who was scared and worried about something. She was apparently a good actress. I wondered if that had been what fooled Slayer initially...or if she’d truly been good at one time and had been pulled to her dark side through her Settling as he’d assumed.

Worry settled over me as it always did when I thought about coming out on the other side of my Settling. I fought to keep it from my eyes.

Crisanne’s gaze narrowed on me, missing nothing. “I know. I decided it was in both our best interests for me to come to you. I need your help.”

I hadn’t expected that. “With what?”

Shrugging, she looked away, skimming her gaze restlessly around the room. “My life is in danger. Prince Nille wants me dead.”

“Why?”

“Let’s just say my purposes are cross to his.”