Flame Unleashed (Hell to Pay) (21 page)

It might not be enough.

Jerahmeel was currently weak, though, creating a slim window of opportunity. Odie and his friends had contacted every Indebted they knew; fewer than 100 of them existed now. Each man and woman had pledged to hold out against the urge to kill as long as possible.

But time was running out. They had twelve hours, tops, before an Indebted caved and killed—and Jerahmeel’s power surged.

In Barnaby’s empty house, all the etched glass, fine furniture, and rare decorations couldn’t distract from the fact that the heart and soul of this house no longer lived here. The rich wood and tile floors echoed with a stillness that felt more pensive than peaceful.

Odie found himself yearning for his plantation home in Louisiana. At least the crickets and tree frogs broke up the silence there.

Ruth left him in the sunroom while she changed into an outfit that Odie recommended. She returned in a flowing white skirt and blouse, a departure from the black leather hunting gear and her conservative khaki ensemble. Impractical ballet flats and cascading deep auburn curls completed the picture of innocence and sweetness. The image she presented stole the air from him, she was so impossibly beautiful.

Another costume? Or the real Ruth?

He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Wow.”

“Will this do?”

“If Jerahmeel desired you in your plain work clothes, he’ll be powerless to resist you looking like this. I almost can’t resist.”

Her cheeks flushed. “Let’s hope he agrees. So when do I need to contact him?”

It should take a little over an hour for Odie to fly to the airstrip in Yreka, California. Thankfully, the pilot from New Orleans remained on standby, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. Once in Yreka, he would have to get a loaner car and drive to Mount Shasta.

“Give me two hours to be on my way. Then do whatever you need to do to get Jerahmeel’s attention. It’ll take a large amount of his power for him to come get you and then transport you somewhere. But he’s so proud and he wants you so badly, he’ll do it, if only to prove that he can.” Simply saying those words put a foul taste in his mouth. “In all my research, the two closest options are Mount Rainer and Shasta, with the consensus that the main vortex is Mount Shasta.”

“So I could be going somewhere completely different?”

“It’s possible but less likely. If that happens, you’ll have to stall until I get it right. I am making my best educated guess.”

“How long would I have to stall if you’re wrong?”

“Too long for the plan to work. Days.”

The gold in her eyes dulled as her shoulders slumped.

She brushed a piece of hair back. “What’s he going to do once he has me?”

“I can’t say. You’ll have to improvise. Maybe use your power to manipulate his mind?”

“So do something I’ve never done before.”

“Basically.”

“Will it work?”

“No idea.”

“You have such confidence.” Her sarcasm made him wince.

“I’m confident that you and I can do this.” He projected much more positivity than he felt. All he had was an insane idea and a brash attitude. Nothing more.

But there was no other option, so for now he’d fake his belief in the plan. As long as Ruth believed him, then she’d play her part. Odie prayed he could manage the rest.

“Sounds terrifying.”

“If it’s any consolation, he has very little reason to kill you.” He caressed her cheek as her irises briefly darkened.

“Yeah, but every reason to want to kill other people.”

“True. But Javier and Gene will do their best to stay with your family.”

“Didn’t slow Jerahmeel down earlier today.”

“No, but we have to hope it will be enough.”

“We have to hope
I’ll
be enough.” The sadness etched on her face spoke volumes about the pain inside of her.

“You’ll do fine. I’ll be right behind you, I promise. It’s 12:30 p.m., so start making a ruckus at 2:00. Actually, make it 2:30. I have to purchase a few items to climb up the mountain when I get to Mount Shasta.”

“I’m getting abducted by the Lord of Hell, and you’re going shopping?”

He caressed her cheek, wanting to touch every inch of her skin. “It’s not like that,
chère
. The supplies will help us survive in the lair, and more importantly, when we leave it.”

“
If
we leave.”

“We will, I give you my word.” He wanted nothing more than to prove himself worthy to her.

The corners of her full lips turned downward. “You’ll forgive me if I don’t believe you. But I’ll do this for Hannah and Allie and their families. They don’t deserve to suffer at Jerahmeel’s hands. No one does.”

In response to her shining eyes, he pulled her into his arms, kissing her so hard, their teeth met. He buried his hands in the heavy fall of her hair, holding her flush against him. They were out of options, but still he wished there was something he could do to keep from sending this woman into the house of Satan.

She pulled back and laced her arms around his neck. “Can you do one thing for me?”

“Anything,
chère
.” Resisting her soft lips became easier when faced with her steady, serious expression.

“If I don’t come back—”

“Don’t talk like that.” Dread churned, slow and steady, like making hellish butter in his gut.

The corners of her mouth turned up. “If I don’t come back, I want you to do something for me.” She stepped back and took his hands. “Make sure Allie and Hannah and their families are taken care of, both physically and financially. They need to be safe. They deserve normal lives.”

The reality of what he had asked Ruth to do finally hit him. He was sending her into the lion’s den with only a promise that he would try to rescue her.

But despite the danger, her only thought was for the family she found out about only today. Love and loss flowed beneath her cool exterior. She had sacrificed for her husband and children years ago, and this amazing woman was willing to do it all over again. Because Odie had asked it of her. Because she wanted to keep her family safe.

Would any of his ancestors care if he died? All his talk of tracking down his progeny and helping them, and for what?

What connection had he truly forged with his family?

In twenty-four hours, this woman had gone from isolated and adrift to steely determination and sacrifice.

What had he done?

“If our plan doesn’t work, I’ll make sure your family is safe. But first, I will move mountains if necessary to get to you.”

She ducked her head, and his heart twisted in response. That unnamed emotion reared up inside of Odie.

“Hopefully it won’t come to moving mountains.” Her lips thinned. She looked everywhere but at him.

“I will come for you,
chère
. I promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that promise. Now get going, time’s a wasting.”

She turned as he left, but not before he glimpsed the shimmer in her eyes.

This house seemed so ... wrong ... without Barnaby. Ruth paced up and down the main hallway hundreds of times, checking her watch on every turn.

Seconds crawled by, each one
tocked
by the old grandfather clock at the end of the hallway.

The swish of her skirts and the scuff of her shoes were the only other sounds in the empty house as she turned and continued to walk.

Too much time to think. The heavy sadness weighted her limbs. Barnaby was gone. A sigh turned into a sob. She didn’t have enough time with him.

Time. Too much after 150 years, and yet not enough.

And now? Not enough time to prepare for what awaited her in Jerahmeel’s lair where she might have to use her power in a completely new way.

That damned power. Why had she not noticed any odd power sensations as she tended Hannah after she’d nearly died? No idea. Maybe it was because Hannah had been in a coma. Maybe Ruth’s emotional state had not been heightened at that time, unlike in New Orleans. If someone or something threatened those she cared about, or her emotions got the best of her, those were the times the powers flared. Just like her powers changed with the men dying in the war, and when her husband cheated, and in the last two days with Barnaby’s death and Jerahmeel’s appearance.

Prior to Barnaby falling prey to Jerahmeel, Ruth had to consciously work to enter anyone’s mind. Since then, the power had expanded and become more instinctive, more defensive and more protective. Maybe her gift would calm down after all this was over.

If she survived. If Jerahmeel could be destroyed.

If.

She had walked away from her family in Maryland so many years ago. Never looked back, never put up a fight. Maybe she should’ve watched over her children, like Odie did with his own descendants. If she survived this ordeal, perhaps she could spend some time with her new family. Her next job might be as a real-life fairy godmother to randomly help her progeny when things got tough. Now that was a pastime that interested her.

If she survived.

How things had changed in the space of a day.

What about Odie? She couldn’t deny their connection, but she suspected his ulterior motives. He’d gotten precisely what he wanted: a partner in the plan to destroy Jerahmeel. Certainly, he hadn’t caused Barnaby’s death, but the timing of Odie’s plan, Barnaby’s decline, the steamy sex, discovering her lineage—it all seemed too coincidental.

Had he used her?

Images rose before her: her children’s smiles, Emma’s sweet face, and the horror written on Hannah and Allie’s expressions. The decision settled on her like a yoke, and she adjusted her mind to support the extra weight.

Used or not, she’d try to carry out her mission, if only to give her family a chance to survive.

Two thirty. The time for planning and second-guessing had passed.

She squared her shoulders and forced her pounding heart to calm down. Damn, how her hands shook as she arranged her hair in the hall mirror. This might be her last acting job. How would she pull it off?

How could she not?

No more delays.

Then she started yelling. “Jerahmeel! I’m ready for you, My Lord Jerahmeel. Come and get me.”

Nothing.

She repeated herself until she was hoarse. No response.

What if Jerahmeel didn’t even show up? Odie hadn’t entered that possibility into the equation.

And Odie was headed right into Jerahmeel’s lair, regardless of whether or not she was there. He would be walking directly into his destruction.

Jerahmeel would still kill all the mortals she cared for.

What if Odie didn’t make it to the lair in time? She’d looked up the weather for Mount Shasta, and the forecasters predicted storms on the mountain. How would that change Odie’s timing? Could he even get to her?

No time to dwell on what ifs. The plan was already in motion.

Holy hell. Time to take this up a notch. She had to get Jerahmeel’s attention.

How did Jerahmeel track her all these years? The knife. If blood flowed into her knife, Jerahmeel arrived. So knife it would be.

Simple enough.

She stepped into the powder room, put her foot on the toilet seat, and pulled the knife free of the holster. Damn, the urge to kill ratcheted up ten times as the naked blade glowed its eerie neon green color. For several long moments, she stared at it, torn between signaling Jerahmeel and heading into downtown Portland to find an adequate kill.

By sheer force of will, she stayed put, bared her arm over the sink, and pulled the knife across her skin. The red blood bloomed from the line of the cut and the knife drank its fill. Unfortunately, the blade found no satisfaction if she provided her own blood. Not only did her hunger to kill not abate, it rose another few notches.

Even as she pressed the razor-sharp edge against her open skin, the wound began to heal, typical for an Indebted. Though the injury hurt like a beast, the gash had already closed. If this injury didn’t draw him out of hiding, she’d have to cut again, not something she eagerly anticipated.

Volcanic sulfur odor wafted over her.

Her heart thudded.

Jerahmeel’s ash-colored face appeared outside the open bathroom door. He sagged against the doorframe. Her stomach twisted.

“
Mon ami
, you are delectable. I am without words.”

She had a few words for him but bit her tongue.

“I didn’t know if you’d come.” She tried to hit the right tone between coy and awestruck.

“For you, I would travel around the world.”

“Doesn’t that make you tired?”

Even his unnaturally red lips had paled. “For someone as strong as I? The effort is but a soupçon of my total immense power.”

His narrow shoulders sagged. She wasn’t buying the tough-Satan act. But he wanted to keep up pretenses. Even better for her plans.

She batted her lashes, ignoring the nausea that came with flirting with evil. “So it won’t be a problem taking me with you?”

Flipping her hair back, she avoided dragging the strands through the last bit of blood on her arm.

His narrow glare had her on edge. Even his immaculately groomed eyebrows drew together in speculation as he studied her.

Prickles of heat broke out on her upper lip.

Had she overdone the flirtatiousness?

Did he know about Odie’s plans?

Maybe he saw right through her. Oh God, her family. If Jerahmeel knew about the plan, they were all doomed.

A bead of sweat rolled between her breasts.

Why didn’t he say anything?

He simply watched her.

She fought to hide her disgust, a struggle when looking at his oiled hair, the way he dabbed a pinkie finger to his tongue and smoothed his brows, and the way he licked his lips. He preened in front of her. The avid, cruel glint in his tiny eyes told the tale.

He believed he was getting his lover eternal.

The mere thought of intimate relations with his red tongue brought a wave of lightheadedness. She surreptitiously gripped the edge of the sink to remain upright. But thanks to her ingrained manners, she kept her face fixed in a polite, bland smile.

He examined his unmarred cuticles. “How do I know you’re not leading me on?”