Eternal Hearts (51 page)

“Good morning sleepy head,” he whispered.

Her smile faded right before she buried her face in his chest and started crying. He pulled her tighter against him and stroked her hair as her body shook. He wasn’t sure what her tears were for this time, but whatever the reason, good or bad…they’d face it together.

“Dominic is dead and so is Christian,” she sobbed.

Drake leaned back a bit so the he could see her face. “Christian and Dominic are both fine, Toni. Everything is fine. You don’t have anything to worry about.”

“But Stryker said that…she told me…”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Stryker was an idiot.”

“Where’s Dominic? What happened?”

“He’s still with Christian. By the time he made it to Prudential Plaza last night, the wolves had already killed Christian’s
Servios
and were in the process of attacking Christian.”

Her eyes filled with tears again as her bottom lip quivered. “Please tell me Robert wasn’t there, Drake. Please…”

“He wasn’t there,” Drake said as he hugged her again. “Robert was here at the hotel when everything happened. He’s fine. Everyone’s fine.”

She started crying again. Her tears were hot against his skin, filling him with the burning need to do everything in his power to make her smile again. He kissed the top of her head. Maybe knowing the rest of the story would make her feel better.

“Your brother was able to help Christian take out what was left of the werewolves, but by the time they got to the Planetarium, you were gone. From what I understand, they pulled up outside The Rivers Building just a couple seconds before the sun rose.”

She jerked back away from him. “What about the guy who brought me my sword? I don’t even know who he was. Is he okay?”

Drake nodded. “His name is Jayson, and yes, he’s fine too. He’s probably gonna be pretty sore when he wakes up, but Christian pulled him into the limo just before sunlight hit the sidewalk.”

“How did you know what was happening?” she asked as she sat up. “How did you know where I was?”

“I felt you. I hadn’t really felt you all night…but all of a sudden your blood inside me started screaming. And the minute I heard it, I knew something was wrong.”

She wiped the tears from her eyes. “You were a werewolf…but you’re a vampire.”

He smiled at her. “I was kinda hoping you didn’t notice.”

She pinned him with a serious glare. “How are you a werewolf?”

“I was born that way,” he said with a shrug. “I didn’t really have a choice in the matter. And I can’t exactly change it. Well, I can…but I have to split myself in two to do it, and sometimes my werewolf side tries to fight with my vampire side and it’s all very…weird.”

She tipped her head to the side and stared at him for a long moment. “Clint told me a story about how vampires were created. I don’t remember a lot of it, mostly because he made it sound kinda complicated. But I remember him saying something about a guy who was supposedly born as both a vampire and a werewolf. He got all of the power and none of the bad stuff. And he could like…kill everyone with a thought.”

Drake nodded at her.
“The Equilibrium?”

“Yeah, him,” she said somewhat cautiously. “Is that you?”

“No, no, no, no…
not
me.
Not me at all.”

She arched a brow. “But if it’s not you…then how are you both?”

“The guy you’re talking about is my dad. Apparently, someone forgot to tell him that his junk still worked. So, much to a lot of other supernatural’s shock and horror…here I am.”

“So you get all of the power and none of the bad stuff?”

He tipped his head back and forth. “I may be a hybrid, but I don’t really agree with the whole idea that my line gets all the good and none of the bad. I hate myself, pretty much all the time.”

Sadness marked her face. “What do you mean you hate yourself? You’re the most beautiful person I know.” And almost as if to prove her belief, she leaned forward and captured his lips.

Drake smiled and kissed Toni back like there was no tomorrow. The woman was crazy if she thought he was all good. But he was more than willing to believe he was better when he was with her.

When she pulled back from his mouth, he smiled again. “The vampire side of me hates the werewolf side of me and vice versa. It’s why I’m in the profession I am.” He looked down at the bed. “If I don’t find a way to let out all the hatred inside me, I can turn into a monster without much warning. I was pretty much born and bred to fight. It’s really all I know.”

When Toni leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him, Drake followed suit. “I can’t change what you are,” she whispered in his ear. “Not that I’d want to, because I love you the way you are. But whenever you feel bad about yourself…I’ll be there to tell you otherwise…for as long as you’ll let me.”

Warmth flooded Drake’s veins at her words. “It’s a deal.”

They both groaned when the doorbell screamed at them…again.

“It doesn’t like you,” she laughed as she leaned back from him. “That stupid thing doesn’t like it when I think about you. It doesn’t like it when I touch you. It won’t even let me read letters from you.”

Drake grinned. “Well, it’s just gonna have to get used to me, because I’m not going anywhere. Well, except over to answer the door. You might wanna get dressed.” He picked up the hideous pajamas from the end of the bed then handed them to her. “Those things are still ugly.”

She slid the tank top over her head. “I know, but I love them.”

Drake crawled out of bed and willed his clothes on as he walked over to the door. As soon as Toni had her pants on, he pulled the door open and smiled when he saw Robert.

He leaned down near Robert’s ear. “Brace yourself, Old Man, the minute I let you in – she’s gonna attack hug you.”

Robert nodded as he stepped inside. “I’m prepared.”

Drake laughed when Toni spied Robert and rocketed off the bed. She ran straight to him and jumped into his arms, much like Drake thought she would. “I’m so glad you’re okay…”

Robert hugged her tight. “I’m fine, my dear. But how are you?”

She held onto him for a minute then asked, “Is Christian all right?”

“Yes, he’s fine. He was able to heal all of his wounds, and looked as good as new when I left him earlier this evening. However, I wish I could say the same for you,” he said as he lightly touched the deep claw wounds on her neck. He then cast a glance to Drake. “I’m surprised you haven’t healed her yet.”

Drake raised his hands. “I wanted to…but I wasn’t sure how Christian would take it. I didn’t know if he wanted to see her wounds to make sure most of them were defensive or what. I just didn’t wanna do something that might cause a problem for her.”

“Hey,” Toni said. “I’m still alive, and that’s all that matters.”

“Yes, my dear. That, above all else, is the most important thing. And now that I know you’re all right, I must pass along that Christian would like to see you in his office as soon as you are able. He would like to discuss the results of your investigation.”

She nodded at him. “Okay. I’ll get dressed and go right over.”

Robert smiled at Toni. “I’m so very glad that you’re all right.”

“Thanks, Rob,” she said, and then kissed his cheek.

Robert reached up and patted Drake on the shoulder. “Drake, as always, it was a pleasure to see you again. Be good.”

Drake winked at him. “I’ll try.”

Robert had no more than closed the door when Toni turned and stared up at Drake. “I broke the rules, Drake. I killed Stryker…”

“I don’t think Christian’s going to punish you for killing Stryker, especially after what happened. I have no doubt that the Locke could’ve killed all the werewolves by himself, but he wouldn’t have walked away near as well if it hadn’t been for your brother.”

She flashed a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I hope you’re right. I’m gonna get dressed and go talk to him. I won’t feel right until I know if I can stay, so I’m just gonna go get it over with.”

Drake nodded at her then wandered into the kitchen while she got dressed. He opened the refrigerator door and pulled out the tray of meat and cheeses he’d partially demolished the other night, then went to work at making another sandwich.

“You can eat, too?” Toni asked from behind him.

He smiled down at the tray. “Yes, yes I can.”

“That’s just not fair. You can make your clothes appear out of nowhere, you can teleport from one place to another, you can go get a tan anytime you want…
and
you can eat. You suck!”

“I like to think it’s a nice trade off for wanting to kill everything. And, I do suck…but only for you and only if you ask nicely.”

“I’m sorry, Drake. I didn’t mean it like that.”

He turned around to look at her. “Don’t worry about it.
It’s
part of who I am, and I’m okay with it…especially now that I have you.”

She only shook her head as she slid her t-shirt on. “I still shouldn’t have said it.” She stepped into her boots before she joined him in the kitchen and kissed his cheek. “I’ll be back.”

Drake smiled as he watched her walk out the door. He could really get used to hearing her say that. He finished making his sandwich and had no more than sat down to eat it when someone knocked sharply on the door.

“Who is it?” he yelled.

“It’s Derek. I need to talk to you.”

“Come on in. It’s not locked.”

When Derek walked through the door, Drake purposely pulled an Odin and smiled up at his Boss with a mouth full of food.

Derek scowled at him. “Now, that’s just disgusting. How the hell does she put up with you?”

“She loves me,” he said with a shrug. “Did you talk to Crypt?”

“Is Toni here?” Derek asked.

“No, she left to go see Christian a little bit ago.”

Derek nodded, but then took a deep breath that made Drake a little nervous. “Okay. I talked to Crypt. But I have good news…and I have bad news. Which would you like first?”

Drake set his sandwich on the plate. “Give me the good news.”

“You can stay with Toni as long as you’d like, as long as you don’t part with any more information about The Organization.”

Drake smiled as happiness raced through him. That was the one and only piece of news he’d wanted Derek to tell him. But that same smile faded when Derek’s face sobered remarkably. “What’s the bad news, Derek?”

Derek’s eyes went straight to the floor, his shoulders close behind. “Crypt fixed The Box so it would hold you…”

Drake surged to his feet. “I thought you said I didn’t have to leave her!”

Derek put his hands up. “Crypt fixed The Box so it could hold you, and he wanted to put you in there for three months, but…someone else took your punishment.”

Drake blinked at him. “Don’t tell me he put my dad in The Box.”

“Yeah right,” Derek said with a half smile. “Nothing Crypt ever does is going to make that happen. You may be your father’s child, but you aren’t the same when it comes to power.”

“Then…who’s in The Box?”

“Oktober…”

Drake growled and closed the distance between him and Derek within a few strides. He grabbed Derek by the shirt and slammed him into the wall. “You did not just say that Tober is in The Box.”