Green Flame Assassin (Demon Lord series, book 2) (9 page)

She was mad now, her eyes pale red flames.  “You should have just sent for me.  Picking on my people pisses me off.”

I paused to let her catch up.  “Okay, next time we’ll do it your way.”

She swung back to the guards.  “You guys need medical treatment?”

The one on the right pulled himself up.  “Don’t worry about us.  We’re tough.”

The Slayer on the left straightened a second later.   He shoved his chest out in a manly fashion.  “Our wounds are badges of honor, medals of valor...”

I wiped a crocodile tear from my eye.  “Almost makes me want to be a Slayer, too.”

Vivian glowered at me.  “There’s a height requirement.”

Vivian often reminded me of a snarling dog, the kind that only respect those that snarl back.  I did, “I’ve killed things ten times my size with a rusty pen knife, so you know where you can stick your height requirement.”

She curled the fingers of one hand into a tight fist, a heartbeat away from decking me.

I smiled.  “Hey, have I reminded you lately that I saved your life from that badass warlock six months ago.  He was cutting you up something fierce.”

Her anger dimmed along with the red glow in her eyes.  “You can stick my gratitude up your ass, Caine.”

I flashed a smirk.   “Yeah, but since that would make me walk funny, I’ll pass.  C’mon.”

I led the way to my car, got inside, and let the security program know I was back.  The engine turned on.  Vivian opened the passenger door and slid in.  She slammed the door.  “Were you serious about the twenty K?”

I put the Mustang in gear.  “Sure I was.”

“And you don’t expect me to sleep with you as part of the deal?”

“Well, if you really want to deny yourself the greatest sexual satisfaction ever known to womankind…”

She glared with conviction.  “I do.”

I hit the gas.  “Fine, be deprived.  You’re only hurting yourself.”

As we got to the end of the block, I felt a tingle at the back of my neck.  Hidden eyes were still watching.  I checked the mirrors, looking for a tail.  I kept checking, making several turns to see who might turn to follow.  Since I couldn’t pick out the tail, I decided that a magic cloak, maybe fey glamour, was at work.

Damn fairies, always pulling magic out of their asses.

“Someone following us?” Vivian asked.

“Yeah, but don’t bother looking.  Fey.”

Her right hand settled on the knife strapped to her outer thigh.  “I’ve iron for their kind.”

“Not all fey are evil.”

She snorted.  “You’ve got a lot to learn.”

I made another turn.  “One of us does.”

Her skin-tight, black leather pants made rubbing noises on the leather seats.  Her hand stayed near the knife on the slow drive home.  I couldn’t make good time through the day traffic.  Too many cars.  Too many people that didn’t know they were supposed to pull over and get out of my way when I wanted to go somewhere. 

I think I need to hire a publicist.

Almost an hour later, I pulled up to my
Malibu home, driving into the garage.  Osamu came out with a very large drink in hand; the only thing I could think of—
someone’s here I’m not going to be happy with.
  We got out of the car.  I grabbed the drink and made introductions.  “Osamu this is Vivian.  She’ll be going to Sacramento with us.  She’s dhampyr, so make sure the blinds are closed during the day.  Daylight won’t kill her, but we want her to be comfortable.”

Osamu gave Vivian a small bow and a smile.  “Shall I contact a butcher and stock up on fresh blood as well?”

I gave him a nod.

Vivian had braced at the mention of what she was.  At Osamu’s calm acceptance, she relaxed, her brow only slightly furrowed.  “It doesn’t bother you, what I am?”

Osamu backed away, opening the door to the kitchen for us.  “I’m a combat butler that works for a demon clan.  Dhampyr do not distress me.”

We left him in the kitchen.  I took Vivian through the living room, into my office. 

William and Achill were having a heated conversation, dropping growls left and right.  William roared, “But it makes perfect sense.  You should let me take the wolves here down to Sacramento.  As the new Alpha there, I’ll have things settled in no time.”

“What I’ll have,”
Achill said, “is an ever bigger mess.  The Sacramento Alpha needs to be cool-headed, able to play well with others.  I need a scalpel there, not a hammer.”

Vivian had stopped behind me.  I turned to her as she dipped low to draw a silver combat knife from her left boot.  Her right hand plucked out a Colt .45 automatic.  Knowing Slayers, I suspected she used the same type of explosive rounds I did.  From the blaze of hate in her eyes, I realized my office was a heartbeat away from becoming a battlefield.

“Wolves!” She spat the word like an obscenity.

SIX

“I’ll live forever because Heaven won’t

take me, and Hell’s afraid I’ll take over.”

                                 
             
—
Caine Deathwalker

The wolves paused in their argument, swinging curious faces toward Vivian.  Since she wore her vampire-Slayer longcoat and crested body armor, they saw at a glance what she was—and didn’t seem to care, going immediately back to their argument. 

She clicked the safety off her Colt.

I seized her wrist, immobilizing the handgun.  “While you’re a guest in my house, I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t kill anyone not trying to kill you.  It’s one of my rules.”

Vivian’s burning eyes welled with unshed tears.  “A wolf killed
...”

I clicked her safety back on.  “
Your mom, I know.  I did my research.  But it wasn’t one of these wolves, right?”

“Probably not.”  She wrenched her hand free of my grasp, but didn’t start pumping anyone full of bullets.  “But I get a little more peace with every shifter I kill.  One day, it might be enough.”

She had a hole in her heart that could never be filled.  I’d pity her, if I knew how. 

From the edge of sight, I caught motion, turning my head.  A swirl of black mist formed in the space between Vivian and the wolves.  The darkness became a black leopard with molten gold eyes.  Those eyes were on Vivian. 

Anticipating an attack, the Slayer lowered her gun muzzle, sighting on Leona’s head. 

The leopard sat on her haunches.  Her teeth flashed white as she spoke, “There are entirely too many people staying in this house.”

I muttered, “Like anyone invited you to move in.”

Leona glared at me.  “Did you say something?”

Wisely, I shook my head no. 

Vivian recovered somewhat.  “It talks.  You’ve got a talking leopard!”

Old Man came into the room.  “Doesn’t everyone?”  He moved to the bar, taking a seat, watching the Slayer with naked curiosity. 

Vivian’s eyes locked onto the Old Man. Identifying him as the strongest threat in the room.  Her eyes widened.  She used the silver knife as a pointer.  “You’re Lauphram, Atlantean demon, water mage, the power behind the Shadow Throne.”

The Old Man’s face brightened with pleasure.  “You’ve heard of me?”

“What the hell’s a Shadow Throne?” I asked.

“Nothing relevant to this millennium,” Lauphram said.  “Someone want to make me a drink?”

I waved a hand at him, making a sort of mystic gesture.  “Poof!  You’re a Blue Lagoon.”

“I’ll make a pitcher of something.”  The Fenris stalked away from William, heading around the far end of the bar.  I think he just wanted something between him and Vivian in case she remembered she’d been about to open fire on wolves.  It hadn’t escaped my attention that while he’d been arguing with William, he’d kept his body angled to Vivian to present as small a target as possible.  William hadn’t bothered.  Since being brought back from the dead a few months ago—as a sort of zombie wolf—he’d developed an immunity to silver.  Vivian’s slugs would only have annoyed him—until he killed her, or forced
me
to kill
him
.

Whatever action William had urg
ed hadn’t been well received.  Left at loose ends, he stalked over to the bar, taking a stool where he could glare at me, and drool over Vivian.  She shuddered slightly, slanting him uneasy glances, as if expecting his inner wolf to take over the human persona at any moment. 

I thought he put too much confidence in her restraint; all she needed to gut him was the smallest nod from me.  All I’d needed to give her that nod was a few more drinks.
  Speaking of which, I stepped behind the bar with Achill, needing a refill or two.  I put one of my PPKs on the counter.  The noise got William’s attention, turning him more to me than Vivian.  He stabbed a finger my way. “I still owe you for pistol-whipping me in the face.”