Katie's Hellion (Rhyn Trilogy, Book One) (17 page)

"I need some coffee," she said.

Kris relaxed, as if expecting a refusal. He
motioned toward a hole in the wall, and he and Jade and Ileana
trailed her out of the destroyed building.

"I really am sorry about Andre," Katie said.
"I liked him."

"He kept the Council focused on defending
humanity and not killing each other," Kris replied. "I’ll miss my
dear brother."

"There are…were seven of you, right?" she
asked.

"Who told you this?"

At his sharp tone, she quickly changed the
subject, saying, "After the meeting, I have to go."

"No. You’re staying where my brothers can’t
get to you, which is with me."

"No can do. Gabriel knows where I’m staying.
You can send him when you want."

"It’s too dangerous for you alone," he said
firmly.

"I’m not alone, and I’m leaving."

They squared off, glaring at one another. His
gaze dropped to the thin, stubborn line that was her mouth and then
to her scarf. Understanding crossed his features, and he unwound
it, ignoring her attempts to slap him away. His stunned look was
accompanied by Jade’s alarmed exclamation.

"That son of a bitch claimed you? I thought
he was dead-dead!"

"Betrayer of humanity," Ileana whispered.
"Almost succeeded in destroying the world."

Ileana's reaction scared her. Jade's look
turned to one of horror.

Katie knew Rhyn was a monster, but of this
magnitude…

"Thank god Gabriel got you away from him.
There’s no telling what he’d do to you," Kris said. "He’s been in
Hell for hundreds of thousands of years. He and Sasha betrayed the
Council and humanity long ago."

She gazed at him, confused. Rhyn had been a
prisoner like her.

"There goes that plan," Ileana said with a
sigh. "Kris had planned to claim you. Ully found out Kris can use
your power to make him immune from the other Ancients."

Jade glanced sharply at Ileana, then at Kris.
Kris met his gaze, and the intensity of the exchange left her no
doubt as to their relationship. A red flush rose in the normally
unflappable Council leader's face.

A chill went through her. Was this why Jade
sold her out? And did Rhyn know of her gift? Was that the plan of
the betrayer of humanity, to use her to destroy the world?

But he’d treated her so differently than
Sasha. Sasha she could see raping and bleeding her nightly to mask
him from the Ancients. Rhyn had been…nice. Almost.

"Kris, what time is the damned…"

The voice was unfamiliar. She turned to see a
tall, lean man with olive features that more closely resembled
Rhyn's.

"Tamer, this is our Katie. Katie, my brother
Tamer, who's in charge of Africa," Kris grated. "The meeting’s at
seven."

"So you weren’t lying, brother," Tamer
purred.

His gaze fell to her neck. He frowned.

"Kris, you have enough immortals to destroy
Rhyn again? He can’t be allowed to betray us again."

…
destroy Rhyn again…betray
us.

"I'll keep an eye on her," Jade offered.

How did she tell Kris his closest advisor had
betrayed him? She was panicking, recalling the horrors of the hours
at Sasha’s hands. She met Jade's gaze, unable to look away. Her
throat felt raw again, and the scent of her blood returned. If she
looked, she’d be covered in it…

She had to get out of there before Jade found
a way to alert Sasha.

"You look sick, Katie. I’ll get you some
whiskey," Ileana said. "And a bottle for me as well."

Katie nodded stiffly, unable to speak. She
sensed Rhyn's presence before any of the others and braced herself,
almost hyperventilating.

"Fuck," Kris whispered, rigid.

He stared past her. She feared looking at
Rhyn, feared knowing what shape he’d taken. Instead, she tried to
keep her trembling body upright and her vision from growing
tunneled.

"You have something that’s mine, brother,"
came the familiar, low growl.

"You should be in Hell with your fuck-buddy
Sasha."

"You couldn’t defeat me and Hell couldn’t
hold me."

By the look on Ileana’s face, Katie knew Rhyn
spoke the truth. Katie faced him and saw that he was dressed like
Gabriel, all in black. His chiseled features were sinister in the
fractured light, his eyes glowing with quiet fury. He was as tense
as she’d seen him, ready to morph and attack.

Without looking at her, Rhyn pointed to the
spot beside him.

"No, Katie," Kris said quickly, starting
forward. He stopped at the growl that came from deep within Rhyn’s
chest. "Stay with us. He’ll destroy you and then the rest of
humanity."

"Stay with us, Katie," Ileana seconded.

She hesitated, her gaze turning to Tamer.

"Stay with us," Jade echoed.

"
Now.
"

Rhyn’s tone made her jump. She went to him,
shaking with the thought of being vulnerable to a creature like
Sasha again. Kris didn’t know what Jade had done; he couldn’t
protect her. Rhyn could protect her from anything. Her head was
spinning, her vision narrowing, and she paused close enough to Rhyn
to lean against him.

"Take us away, take us away," she
whispered.

He steadied her with one hand, and a second
later the cool dampness of the shadow world swallowed her. He
guided her through the fog, and they emerged in a dark room with
the light of streetlamps filtering through two windows across what
looked another hotel room. She rested fully against him, shaking
too hard to stay on her feet. He pushed her head to the side. She
didn’t object when his fangs bit into her, instead sighing as the
comforting warmth consumed her.

When he’d drunk his fill, his arms remained
around her. She rested her head on his chest, listening to his
strong heartbeat. Her shaking subsided. While she feared him, she
feared the rest of the monsters more. At least this monster had
indicated he was interested in keeping her around.

"Not so tough anymore, are you, little
girl."

"You’re not exactly the greatest
protector!"

"You’re still alive."

"Is that your standard? Me surviving?" she
asked incredulously.

"If they turn that beautiful face ugly, I
still get blood.

She opened her mouth to retort but stopped.
In his own twisted way, he’d just called her beautiful.

He smelled of rain and night, a masculine
musk she found as soothing as his bite. He seemed at once disgusted
by the fact she was a difficult mortal blood monkey and yet
primitively protective, holding her as she quaked after her run-in
with a man who wanted to kill her.

"Why on earth did you choose me over a
nymph?" she demanded.

He released her, the peaceful moment over. It
was dark wherever he’d brought her, and she looked around in wary
curiosity. He didn’t answer but crossed to a window and flipped on
a light.

"No more warnings," he growled. "You go
nowhere without my permission."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Nowhere," he emphasized. "I don’t care if
Death herself comes for you."

"It’s not like I have a chance to call you
when you disappear," she pointed out. "You want me to tell Death to
wait till you get back?"

His silver gaze swept over her.

"No more scarves. Or alcohol."

She rolled her eyes. There was one bed --a
California king --in what she now realized was a plain hotel room.
She flung herself onto her back and stared at the ceiling. He sat
at the window overlooking the street two dozen stories below.

"You need only say my name, and I’ll come to
you," he grated at last, as if the words cost him a hefty bet.
"Like you did when those immortal sons of bitches attacked you in
Ireland."

"Some sort of monster psychic connection
between us?"

He gave her a scathing look. She sighed,
exhausted.

"Thanks for rescuing me again. You can teach
me how to defend myself against monsters if you get tired of
bailing me out."

"It’s my duty," he said, eyes returning to
the street.

"Thank you anyway."

He bristled. She assumed he was angry with
her again for some reason. When she felt the cool touch of the
shadow world, she sat up straight.

"Gabriel!" she exclaimed, her gaze going to
Rhyn.

To her surprise, the monster didn’t leap up
and attack him. If anything, he ignored the death dealer.

"Sorry, Rhyn. I should've asked first,"
Gabriel said with a glance toward the window.

Rhyn shrugged.

"Gabriel, you have to tell Kris that Jade is
working with Sasha!" she exclaimed. "He can’t know."

"He doesn’t," Gabriel confirmed, and sat in
an armchair near Rhyn.

"Do
you
know?"

"Of course."

"Why the hell…is this that damn
I-don’t-interfere-in-other-people's-business thing?" she
demanded.

"Something like that," Gabriel said with mild
amusement.

"Can you tell him I told you to tell
him?"

"No."

"Can you take him a note?"

"Why do you give a fuck, girl?" Rhyn
snapped.

"He’s your brother, Shapeshifter," Gabriel
chided.

"Brother?" she repeated. She stared at Rhyn.
"You’re one of the seven Ancients."

"Who spent the last million years in Hell,
thanks to Kris."

At the warning note in Rhyn’s icy tone, she
fell quiet. He wasn’t a patient creature, whatever he was. She
crossed to the small desk and rustled around for the complimentary
paper and pen.

"Marriott, St. Louis?" she said with a frown.
"Never wanted to go to St. Louis."

Neither spoke. She glanced up. Gabriel’s head
was tilted to the side, as if listening, and Rhyn’s form had
relaxed.

They were communicating silently. She wrote
Kris a short message and folded the paper, presenting it to
Gabriel. Rhyn snatched it and read it before tearing off the strip
at the bottom with the hotel’s address.

He gave her a dirty look. She rolled her eyes
at him.

"I’ll let Kris know not to worry about
Katie," Gabriel said.

"He only need concern himself with his head,"
Rhyn responded. "The girl is mine. Nothing anyone can do about
it."

"Unless someone kills you permanently," she
said. "Right?"

Both looked at her, fleeting amusement on
Gabriel’s face but Rhyn’s gaze flaring.

"Try it, and you’ll spend eternity with
Sasha," Rhyn snapped.

"How much do you charge for assassinations,
Gabriel?" she asked, ignoring Rhyn.

"A life for a life."

"Defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?"

"Not if you’re already dead or immortal."

"Out, Gabriel," Rhyn growled.

The death dealer disappeared. Rhyn gave Katie
a long, withering look that she bore with crossed arms. Looking
ready to explode, he rose, snatching his trench coat.

"What does it mean that I’m your mate?"

"It means I can’t kill you, as much as I’d
like to!"

He breezed by her and wrenched the door open,
slamming it closed. Frustrated when he was around, she couldn’t
help but feel unusually alone when he was gone.

* * *

Gabriel returned to the Sanctuary in the
Caribbean and paced in front of the hourglass perched on the altar.
He wasn't able to shake his unease. Rhyn wasn't as far along as
he'd hoped.

The sand in the hourglass had begun to fall
faster the past two days. Rhyn didn't have a week.

He needed more time.

Gabriel crossed to the window and stared at
where the dark ocean and night sky met in the distance. He willed
his friend to learn the lessons he needed to, and fast.

Of all the mortals and immortals alike he'd
ever known, he'd never considered one a friend, not since his
father's death. He'd often wondered if he had more family
somewhere. If he did, he hoped he had a brother like Rhyn.

Feeling helpless, he glanced again at the
hourglass. For the first time since he was a child, he was
worried.

* * *

She awoke in a sweat, the blurred scenes of
gore and screams of dying from her dreams fading. The room was
dark; she was alone. Disoriented, she leaned over to turn on the
lamp. It was almost two in the morning.

St. Louis. She was in St. Louis.

Rhyn was still gone.

A tremor of dread slid through her. She’d had
an impending sense of doom since meeting Gabriel on the street
outside the faux police station, but this feeling was…defined.

"Rhyn? Can you hear me?" she called, feeling
foolish when nothing happened.

She rose. As she bent to tie her shoes, a
gory vision made her stagger. It was her dream all over, the
flashes of light, darkness and blood, the scent of sulfur and
death. She landed on her knees, horrified yet knowing something was
very wrong. Rhyn was in trouble.

She glanced out the window and spotted the
Arch. It flashed, silver glinting off its graceful curve. She
closed her eyes, and dampness slid through her, over her. She
opened her eyes and froze, recognizing the shadow world. Portals to
other places glowed around her.

"Rhyn?" she whispered, close to
panicking.

One of the portals flickered as if in
response. Terrified of what she'd find on the other side, she
stepped through and tripped. Grass tickled her hands, a chilled
wind nipped her neck, and the scents from her vision intensified
until she was near gagging.

She pulled her shirt over her nose and mouth
and sat back on her heels. She sat on the river bank across from a
series of wide, large steps leading up a hill to the park where the
Arch stood, framed against a black sky.

Death. It was everywhere. She rose, trying
hard not to look or touch anything. The grass, the road, the
steps…all were littered with bodies and soaked in blood. She didn’t
know what kind of massacre had occurred here --was it even real or
was it a dream? She stepped through masses of flesh and body parts,
holding her mouth, until she reached the road. It was less
cluttered with bodies. Some of the tattoos of the dead still
glowed, the eerie red tribal patterns punctuating the
landscape.