In Darkness We Must Abide: The Complete Second Season: Episodes 6-10 (36 page)

Gripping Armando’s hand tightly, Vanora straightened, glaring at the demon. “You told me this why?”

“To fuck up his plans. Make him suffer. Fight against the Fates.”

“How do you know all of this?” Armando demanded.

“Because, Armando DeLeon, I’m an incubus and oracles need loving, too. Pillow talk reveals a whole lot of secrets. I’ve been sitting on this primo information since before Christ walked the earth. When I found out about Vanora from Carlotta, I knew this night would come. It was inevitable. In fact, the main reason I friended that crazy gypsy bitch is because she’s Aeron’s kid and a horrible gossip.”

“Why didn’t you warn my brother? My parents?” Vanora stood, her hands in tight fists. “Why didn’t you stop Aeron before this point?”

“It’s so much more fun this way,” Greg said with a shrug. “Especially when I get to rile up the Spanish lover here.”

Vanora sputtered, but couldn’t find the words, she was so enraged.

“How does it feel to be at the center of a big ol’ conspiracy? Do you really think it’s coincidence that Carlotta went flitting into your brother’s life? Aeron has been watching you for a very long time.”

Grabbing her coat, Vanora desperately wanted to flee the hot, small room.

“But the good news is this, cupcake....The Fates aren’t fond of Aeron.”

“The Fates?” Vanora gaped at the demon. “You mean the literal fates. The three women measuring out our lives?”

“Maybe. Or maybe I’m talking about the universe in general. Or God. Mother Nature, or Mother
Super
nature. Or maybe I’m full of shit. But I can point to one thing that shows that Aeron may have a greater enemy than my big mouth. Your brother became a vampire and could have disrupted Aeron’s entire plan by turning
you
into a vampire.”

“But the argument could be made that because he didn’t turn me the prophecy is true,” Vanora answered.

Greg shrugged. “Just food for thought. Or thoughts for food.” The incubus looked significantly at Armando. “Get my meaning?”

The glower on Armando’s handsome face was terrifying, but the vampire merely nodded.

“I want to go now,” Vanora said.

“Not without this.” Greg handed her a sheet of paper. It was a printout from Google Maps. “That’s where Carlotta lives.”

“You’re helping us?”

“Anything to fuck up Aeron’s neatly laid plans,” Greg answered, grinning.

“You must really hate him.”

“Demons hold grudges forever. Best to remember that.”

Shrugging on her coat, Vanora stared at the demon for a long moment. “I’m just a pawn, aren’t I?”

“Aren’t we all? In someone’s game.”

Armando slid his arm around Vanora’s shoulders to guide her out. “Let’s go now.”

“Oh, yeah. One more word of advice, cupcake,” Greg said as they neared the door. “Loving a vampire is always a bad idea. They have such a long, complicated past that you can never really know what’s really going on with them. Right, Armando? I mean, you two kids look madly in love. Hell, you still smell of sex, but have you ever really wondered what tall, dark, and broodingly handsome keeps hidden in his black little heart?”

“We’re done here,” Armando said briskly whipping open the door.

Vanora cast one last worried look at the demon, then let Armando guide her out of the smoky club.

Leto sat naked and covered with blood among her wolves. The vampires she had slaughtered had fought valiantly, but they had been weak on their diet of animal blood and died so easily. The house they had resided within was rather nice and cozy. It was a shame it would have to burn.

Dexios, one of the eldest of her children, approached her still swathed in his human form. Clad all in leather, he smelled of feral things. Black hair falling around his shoulders, he squatted next to her.

“Mother, the demon wishes to speak to you,” he said, then held out the phone.

Leto wasn’t fond of technology, but understood its worth. Taking the iPhone in one hand, she lifted it to her ear. “Speak.”

“The deed is done.”

A thin smile spread over Leto’s lips. “Excellent.”

“I also inferred to the vampire who was with her that maybe she’d be better off as a vampire.”

Leto laughed. “Diábolos, you always entertain me so.”

“You can call me Greg,” the incubus said chaffing at the Greek word for devil.

“Greg,” Leto said in a tone that implied he was lowly, “you did well.”

“You know, everyone always talks about making deals with devils, but never about making deals with werewolves.”

“She-Wolf,” Leto corrected him.

“Whatever.”

“Your debt is paid. Leave the city and I’ll spare you.”

“So, why are you all chummy with Aeron one minute and trying to fuck him over the next?” Greg asked, obviously dying for an answer.

“I hear Tartarus is nice this time of year.” Leto studied her long claws, the implication of her words clear. She would call upon her priestess to vanquish the demon if he dared question her again.

“Consider me gone,” Greg said hastily, obviously afraid.

“Good.”

Dexios accepted the phone from Leto and killed the call for her. “What is your wish, Mother?”

Leto stood slowly, the bits of vampire blood and flesh sliding over her pale flesh to pool at her clawed feet. “If he’s not out of town by sunrise, have him vanquished.”

Dexios bowed his head.

The massive wolf-like creatures rose around her, ready to obey her bidding.

“Burn the house. We move on to our next target.” Leto had no issue killing the rogue vampires for Aeron. It would save her the trouble later when she finally finished what had started so long before.

Aeron wasn’t the only one with an ancient prophecy to fulfill.

Armando ushered Vanora through the darkened alley toward her brother’s car. Their earlier moments of joviality were lost in the tense silence between them. Though Vanora didn’t pull away from his touch, she was remote and kept her eyes averted from his seeking gaze.

The desire to drown the incubus in holy water blazed inside Armando, but he had to keep focused on protecting Vanora. The revelation of the supposed role Vanora was to play in the fulfillment of the prophecy Aeron so fervently believed had left Armando stunned. His Master had never shared that information with him and it staggered him.

“You knew about the Seven Sisters,” Vanora said at last in a clipped voice.

“Yes. They’re our religion. Or they were.”

“But you never told Roman,” Vanora continued.

Armando unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for her. She slid in and stared straight ahead while he circled around. Once seated, he struggled to find an answer to her comment.

“Armando, why didn’t you tell Roman and Alisha?”

“Six of the Sisters were already dead by the time you were born. The Seventh was in hiding. It seemed insignificant. Their time had essentially ended. Roman was the new way. The new hope.”

“Did you know about the Aeron and the prophecy?”

“I’m from Europe, Vanora. It’s been his bloody battleground for ages. So, yes, I knew about Aeron and his war against the Seven Sisters.”

“But you didn’t tell Roman.”

“I warned Roman about the old ones,” Armando said sharply. “You know that.”

“But not by name. Lorelei.
Aeron
.”

“Names are not important. The threat is what’s important.” His tone was much sharper than he liked. He was furious not at her, but himself and his Master.

Vanora’s lavender eyes flicked toward him. “Did you know about me? My role in all of this?”

“No. I did
not
,” he answered truthfully. “I didn’t know you’re the supposed future mother of the new Seven.”

“Really?” Vanora sounded doubtful.

“Yes, really! I don’t even know if I believe you
can
be the mother of the new Seven. Vampires can’t have children! They die. They can’t survive.” The pain in his voice shocked her. He could see it plainly on her beautiful face.

“How do you know?”

“My son died,” Armando answered miserably. He ran his hands through his thick curls and stared into the night. The memory of his son’s birth and death was not one he wanted to revisit.

“You had a son?”

“Soon after I became a vampire, my wife became pregnant.”

“Your wife?” Vanora pressed a hand to her face, stunned.

“I was married when I became what I am. She remained human.” Armando rested his hands on the steering wheel in an attempt to steady himself. “My wife and son both died.”

Speechless, Vanora stared at him with a mixture of emotions. The predominate one was obviously compassion. Her hand gently rested over one of his and squeezed. “I’m sorry.”

Armando stared in silence at the grimy exterior wall of the club across the street. He was hungry, angry, and desperate. The chaos in his mind was overwhelming and it made it difficult to determine what he should do next.

“I wish you had told us about the Seven Sisters and Aeron. That I didn’t have to hear it from the repulsive asshole,” Vanora said finally.

“So do I,” Armando answered truthfully. The remorse in his voice softened her expression and she leaned over to rest her head against his shoulder. He slung an arm around her and kissed the top of her head gently. “We should run.”

A faint sniffle emanated from the young woman as she brushed away a tear.

“We need to get away from here tonight, Vanora,” Armando continued.

Raising her head, Vanora gazed at him with sorrowful eyes. “I can’t just run away. I need to talk to my sister...”

“Then we’ll go after you do that.” Armando was desperate to get her away from the city now that he knew exactly what Aeron wanted. Whether or not it could actually happen or not was no longer the issue. Aeron would try to make the prophecy become a reality at the expense of Vanora.

“Okay. Once I talk to her.”

Dipping his head, he kissed her firmly on the lips, tasting her tears.

Vanora responded with a fervor that surprised, but consoled him. The demon had tried to push a wedge between them, but had failed.

“I love you,” Vanora whispered.

“I love you.” Armando traced his fingers along her jawline, then finally started the car. “We’ll go back to the mansion, talk to you sister, then leave the city.”

Vanora didn’t answer, but stared out the passenger window. “It won’t matter in the end,” she said sorrowfully. “He’ll find us.”

The words of the incubus haunted Vanora throughout the journey to the mansion. The putrid reek of the room, the nastiness of the demon, and the taunting way he’d delivered the terrible news of her supposed fate filled her with despair and anger. She’d felt poisoned by his presence and words in the aftermath of their conversation. Fingers lightly tracing the edge of the map he’d given to her to Carlotta’s place, she had to wonder if it had been worth seeking him out to only be filled with such hopelessness?

Glancing at the silent man beside her, Vanora’s heart beat a little faster. Armando loved her. She knew that without a doubt, but she also knew he was the keeper of secrets. He was a liar. She’d seen it in his face, and heard it in his words. He’d known about Aeron all along, but had never warned her siblings even in the face of danger. Perhaps he had not known the exact role Vanora was to play in Aeron’s plans, but he’d definitely known it was Aeron who was coming to kill Roman. Why would he keep such a thing secret? How much more was he keeping from her? How deep were his lies?

The line of thought she was following was a slippery slope. All the pieces of her past were fitting together in such a way that she feared that by the time she saw the truth clearly, she would lose the man she loved.

If only she could go back to the earlier moments in the evening. If only she’d never gone to see the incubus. If she’d not decided to fight but run. Then she wouldn’t be on the verge of losing everything she held dear.

At a red light, Armando’s hand grasped hers and dragged it to his lips. He kissed her cold fingertips lovingly. The gesture only brought more tears to her eyes.

Yet, she couldn’t judge him. Not yet. She had done it once before and regretted it sorely. Her heart told her that he loved her completely even as her instincts whispered that he was a deceiver and an enemy.

“As soon as you finish talking to Alisha, we’ll depart for Dallas. We can stay there tonight, then leave for a new location tomorrow night. We’ll just keep moving until we find a safe place. I have connections,” Armando said as they drove on.

The light cast by the passing cars washed away the shadows clinging to his serious expression. His concern felt true, his fear real, and the love in his voice honest.

“Okay,” she answered.

The little convertible rushed along the street that skirted the outer wall that surrounded the Socoli Mansion. The tall pine trees obscured the view of the house, but not the weird orange glow filling the sky.