Dealers of Light (11 page)

She cra
cked open the door and peeked through. The stairwell at this end was empty. Thank God. She pushed through the door and glanced at the address on her note again. It indicated the second floor, so she and Dusty crept up the steps. The reek of urine and the sour smell of old trash stung her nose. They continued down a narrow, ill-lit hall, and she scanned each side of the hall’s doors for numbers. They approached Nicki’s, and a rumbling noise stopped Cara.  It came from Dusty. The hair on his back stood on end. His ears pointed forward and he stared at Nicki’s door, straining on the leash.

“What’s wrong?” A chill enveloped her
, and her knees trembled anew. He’d never behaved this way before. Even when people came to her door, his actions were more of an alert than an aggressive response.

Dusty
dragged her forward, and she lifted one hand to knock on the door, but it was ajar. A faint sound of a scuffle emerged from inside then a moan. Dusty jerked at the leash, his rumbles now a full-blown growl. Fear momentarily immobilized Cara, but then concern for Nicki kicked her into action.

She
thrust open the door. Inside, shadows filled the small, cluttered space, with only the glow of outside street lights to slice through the darkness of the room. Across from her, thin curtains around the open window swirled in the evening breeze. Nicki lay on the floor with a dark, male figure straddling her, one hand pressed to her forehead. Her legs kicked and her arms flailed, penned beneath the heavy body. The floor creaked when Cara stepped inside, and the man turned his head to the door with a sneer. Dusty broke from her grasp and flew at the dark figure.

“Dusty!” she screamed. The man rose and
lifted an arm in time to deflect Dusty’s attack on his neck. Dusty, snarling, teeth bared, lunged again. The man kicked out and caught her dog in the chest, sending him spiraling across the wooden floor. At Dusty’s whimper, a jolt of anger pulsed through her and, relinquishing logic, she charged toward the man, her hands out like claws. “You asshole!”

Nicki
scrambled backward on her elbows. Her head met the wall with a thud.

The man’s
sidestep brought him into the faint light from the hall to reveal a face reddened and twisted, with dark soulless eyes, hooded and eerie in the dimness. He blocked Cara’s assault with his arm then grabbed her by the throat. One toss and her body slammed against the unforgiving drywall, sending spasms of pain down her spine. Flakes of plaster rained over her, and a picture from the wall fell to the floor, spewing glass shards.

“So, two for the price of one.
Fine with me.” He advanced on her, feet crunching on the pieces of glass.

“No
!” She clawed at his face, but his hands locked onto her throat again. Her eyes bulged out at the pain and her vision blurred. The man squeezed her windpipe, stifling her yell for help. Instead, only a squeak leaked through.

His
other hand pressed against her forehead. That must be his portal. He was about to take her Light. Frantic, she grabbed his wrist, but his force overwhelmed her, and lack of oxygen sapped the strength from her arms. He knocked her hand away and planted his fingers against her forehead, pushing back so her head banged against the wall. A gasp exploded in her chest and pain seared through her skull. She panted, panic stealing her breath when his connection sealed tight.

His greedy eyes glittered in the pale light from the window
, and an evil smile curled his lips. The Light in her center flared and she moaned. “
No, no, no.”
I’m about to die at the hands of this monster
. But her flicker of Light protested, curling in on itself in a tight ball. She blinked. Nothing happened.

The Taker’s eyes grew wide, and his smile faded. “What the hell
—”

Out of nowhere, a fist connected
with the creep’s temple. Her attacker loosened his grip and stumbling sideways. Cara fell to her knees, sucking air into her starved lungs.

A stealthy black shadow
advanced on the man, slammed her attacker against the wall. The Taker bounced off to land on a spindly side table which shattered beneath his weight.

The downed man
grabbed a piece of the broken table and hurled it at the shadowy figure bearing down on him. The Taker kicked Dusty out of his way and scrambled to the window. He threw himself over the sill to the alley below. Dusty ran and put his paws on the window, barking. In the light from the streetlamp, the dark shadow, her rescuer, took the shape of a tall man. He placed a hand on Dusty’s head. Her dog glanced up then licked the stranger’s hand.
Hey, dog, does the word ‘stranger’ mean anything to you?

The figure turned from the
window, lips curled back from his teeth and dark brows pulled together in a frown. Rolf Van Harding. Cara gasped, and her heart dropped. She put a hand to her throbbing throat. Pain seared her like a hot brand, and she massaged her back where it had slammed into the wall. She looked up and the hard creases of his grimace softened into concern.

“Are you all right?”
His deep, silken tone slid over her like black velvet.

She
hauled in a big breath, trying to calm her heart. “I think so…
Nicki
.” She swiveled on her knees and crawled to the girl. Nicki still lay stretched on the floor, eyes wide in terror. “Are you okay?”

“Who the hell was
that?” Nicki clutched her own throat, her eyes shaded with fear. The girl sat up to lean against a tattered chair, rubbing her thin arms with shaking hands. Her eyes darted from Cara to Rolf, who had stepped back into the shadows.

“
Nicki, we need to get you to a hospital to make sure you’re okay.” Cara put a hand on the girl’s forehead and found the skin ice cold to her touch. She ran her fingers over Nicki’s skull but detected no evidence of trauma.

“I’m
not
going to no hospital.” She pushed Cara’s hands away and scrambled to her feet. Her knees wobbled, but she staggered to the door.

“What the hell’s
goin’ on here?” a voice called and Cara recognized it as Mambo’s. He and several of his gang gathered outside Nicki’s door. Knives and guns flashed in their hands. Nicki sobbed and fell into his arms.

“They hurt you?” He glared at Cara.

“No, no. They saved me. Some dude was goin’ to kill me, and they came in and saved me.” Nicki’s voice trembled.

Mambo’s glare softened, but he pointed at Cara. “I take care of my own. Remember. Now get off my turf.”

He backed away with Nicki under his arm, and the rest wandered off in their wake.

“
Nicki
.” Cara stood and rushed out the door, staring after the girl, but the gang continued down the hall without a backward glance.

“You have a cut.”
The smooth, deep voice startled her.

S
he whirled about. “
You
.” Still unsure if he was friend or foe, her instincts pushed her to step away from him.

“Yes?” He
stared at her.

“You came into my friend Amber’s shop. I saw you
…I…I—I saw you there.” Her head pounded with each beat of her heart. She put a hand to her forehead.

“I remember.” He
eased closer, his gaze roving over her from under lowered lids. He tugged at one of his ear lobes. “Your name is Cara.”

“What are you doing here?”
Her vision blurred and she slapped a hand to the cracked wall to steady herself. The blood drained from her head.

Rolf lurched toward her
, and everything faded in a black mist.

Chapter
Ten

Consciousness returned like a fog lifting, and she found herself in an unfamiliar room. Cara blinked several times, bringing the disjointed image into focus. Gold and green striped wallpaper covered the walls of the room. Furniture with gilded limbs and cushions of silk and velvet surrounded her. Thick rugs covered the marble floor. The soft sound of classical music met her ears—some tune she knew but couldn’t name. Oddly, a four foot tall, white stone obelisk stood in the corner of the room, out of place with the other decor. The smell of wood burning tickled her nostrils, and the crackling of a fire came to her ears.

Pain throbbed in her head.
Her neck and back hurt as well. She raised her upper body from the gold velvet chaise. A crimson satin pillow supported her head. She sat up the rest of the way, swinging her feet to the floor.

“I’m glad to see you’
re better.” Rolf’s voice filtered in from behind her. 

She turned her head and
sudden darkness curved the edges of her vision in response. “That sucked, I’ll just not turn my head for a while.” She closed her eyes for a moment, and her head cleared.

Rolf
, still dressed in all black but now a suit with a black T-shirt, sat in a chair beside a fireplace where a small fire burned. A book rested across his knees, and Dusty lay at his feet, contentedly snoozing.
The traitor
. An open door led into the hall—a possible escape route?

She rose and moved
around the chaise to face him, leaving a few feet between them. Just in case. “Where is this place? Why did you bring me here?”

“
We’re still in Norfolk, in a house I’ve rented while I’m staying here. I like to travel with my own furnishings. And I brought you here because you were unconscious.”

“You’re a Light-dealer,” she said. The half smile twitching at the corners of his lips both irritated and attracted her.

Dusty ros
e and padded over to greet her. He licked her hand and leaned against her legs.

“Light-de
aler.” Rolf shifted in his seat. “I’ve not heard that term in many centuries. How strange, yet soothing.” He glanced at the corner where the obelisk stood, his focus distant.

“What do you mean
centuries
?” Echoes of ancient secrets chilled her, yet an inexorable urge gripped her to be closer to him—to trust him. 

His eerie, ice blue eyes refocused on her
. “I’m sorry. Yes, I deal in the Light. I have not met very many in these days who have knowledge of what they do. What a welcome surprise it was to find two in one place. By the way, I can help with your headache if you like. Take away the pain.” He reached out a hand toward her, but she backed up until her butt pressed against the chaise.

“I’ll be okay.” She
touched a hand to her head and her fingers brushed a bandage on the skin above her left eye. “What are you doing here?”

“In
town, or at the apartment tonight?”

“Both.”

Rolf let out a small bark of a laugh and gestured for her to take a seat in the chair across from his. She shook her head, still not sure what to think of this whole situation. The heat that had emanated from him in the store no longer existed. He must be able to control it.

“I’m in town
to deal with a threat.  I went to the apartment because I followed the Taker there.”

“A threat?
Taker?” She tilted her head to one side and crossed her arms over her chest. “Please explain.”

“You really don’t want to be involved in this.” He shifted in his chair. “You have no idea of the danger.”

Cara pointed to her head, indicating her injuries. “Already involved.”

A half smile tweaked his full lips
. “It’s been so long since I had the opportunity to converse openly about the Light. Please, tell me how you know about Light-dealing.”

“I appreciate your attempt to divert me, but we’ve had some strange happenings recently and if you know anything about it, we really need to know.” She leaned forward and
jabbed a finger at him. “People are dying and not nicely. My friends and I know how, but not why.”

Rolf leaned back in his chair
and puffed out a big breath. “So, you demand the truth. It seems you may have some inkling of what I’m here to investigate. Please, trust me, my intent is to make sure no harm comes to anyone. Have a seat. You’ve been through a lot tonight.”

She eyed him askance and moved toward the chair
. The pain urged her to sit, so she complied. If he really came here to help, he needed to know about the murders. An image of Emmie popped in her head, igniting a sudden desire to tell him about the gift—

No, she should
keep that bit of information quiet for now. “I’ll tell you this much: there have been at least five deaths and two near deaths in the past few weeks in this area. All dead from being drained of Light.”

An ice blue flame
lit Rolf’s eyes. He lowered his head for several minutes, with his hands gripped together before him. The flame she’d seen in his eyes resembled that of a panther stalking its prey. A thrill of fascination coursed through her veins.

“Well?” she prompted after
the moment of silence stretched too long for her nerves.

He
glanced up and his broad shoulders slumped. “This is the worst possible news. It confirms my own fears.”