Zoey Rogue (28 page)

Eric looked like he wanted to say something else, changed his mind and smiled.

“Take care,” he said, gaze lingering on Zoey.

“You, too,” she whispered. He turned away.

“Don’t you dare let him see you cry,” Vikki ordered. “Drink this.”

Zoey obeyed, gulping the tart mixed drink down.

“I can’t believe the new girl set you up. I mean, they aren’t even officially dating. They can’t be.”

“Like I’m not bound to some random Incubus I just met?” Zoey challenged, slamming the drink down.

“Well, that’s different.”

Zoey shrugged. “God, that hurt.”

“Does Declan have a phone number?” Vikki asked casually.

“No idea. Don’t care. He’s taking you away from me,” Zoey said, anger rising.

“We’ll still be friends.”

“We should form our own vigilante group. Just you and me and the other girls on Team Reject.”

“I’ve been thinking about it all week long,” Vikki said, thoughtful. “Liam says I can’t be associated with the Sucubatti. But if we formed our own group, it wouldn’t be. He thinks less of the Cambions than the Sucubatti do us horrible Halflings. He doesn’t care if I’m killing them. He doesn’t want me working with the enemy.”

“I wouldn’t have to tell the Sucubatti,” Zoey added. “Just do what they say then on the side, hang out with you and kill Cambions. I could even use them to supply us with weapons.”

“We could use their intel, too, to find hotspots,” Vikki said. “Like we do for our unauthorized missions.”

They were both quiet. The more Zoey thought, the more she liked the idea. Vikki glanced down at her phone. By her smile, she was texting with Liam. Zoey watched, her gaze going again to where Eric sat.

“No more stupid rules,” Vikki said. “I’d have Liam to take the edge off, so I could kill more than the Sucubatti let us. You’ll have …”

“The football team?”

“There are some hunks on the team,” Vikki said with a wink. “Seriously. What are you going to do about Declan? The bond can’t be broken.”

“Nothing. I’m going to get killed by Cambions.”

“Whatever.” Vikki rolled her eyes. “Let’s do it!”

“Really?” Zoey asked, brightening.

“Yep.” Vikki’s gaze returned to the phone. A surprised look crossed her face. “Hey, did you know Declan is the son of an Incubatti Council member?”

“Yeah.”

“You shitting me?”

“No.” Zoey looked at her curiously. “Why?

“Wow. I asked Liam if he knew him. And told him we’re forming a vigilante group,” Vikki said, smiling. “He’s okay with the vigilante group, by the way.”

“Omigod. You ask him for permission for everything now?” Zoey snapped.

“Nope. Told him we’re doing it. He’s going to give me Declan’s phone number.”

“No! Are you crazy? Declan wants to kill you! Vikki, they know you’re with Liam. They have pictures. Declan will -”

“Well, he doesn’t need an excuse to talk to him,” Vikki said, hesitating. “Think about it. Declan. Liam. Two totally Irish names.”

“You think they’re related?”

“They are. Zoey, you idiot, they’re brothers.”

With her head buzzing with alcohol, Zoey assumed she misheard. She drank another beverage. Vikki stared at her.

“Did you hear me?” she asked finally.

“Yeah.”

“Are you that drunk?”

“No,” Zoey said. “I don’t think that makes sense. How can they be brothers?” She thought back to the pictures the Enforcers showed her. It made no sense that Declan would be collecting intelligence on his own brother’s soul-mate. “If they can ask each other for phone numbers, why are they frying me in an inquisition about you and Liam? Why not just talk to him directly.”

“I think they wanted to see what you knew. If I’m being exiled, maybe they were seeing if you should be, too.”

“Speaking of killing things, what’s next?” Zoey said, reaching the end of her drink. She stood. She felt woozy already, the world spinning in an array of pretty colors.

“Are you in meltdown mode?”

“Think so.”

Vikki stood. Two college-aged couples, the lurkers waiting for a table to free up, all but shoved past her. Zoey’s world swam more than usual from the alcohol, but she managed to catch Vikki before her best friend hit the ground.

Zoey helped her stabilize then shoved the shoulder of the football-player sized guy who had taken Vikki’s chair.

“Hey, jackass, is that how you treat a lady?” she snapped.

He didn’t even turn around but glanced over his shoulder. “I don’t see no lady.”

“Come on, Z, let’s go,” Vikki urged, gripping her arm. “That shit I gave you – it’s gonna knock you flat in about five minutes.”

“What? I don’t care!” Zoey wrenched away. She loosened her sex magic, focusing it on the idiot who bumped her friend. He turned, and the look on his face changed from angry to interested.

Zoey waved him over to her playfully and took two steps back to give herself room to hit him. He stood and approached, eyes on her breasts.

“Zoey, no!” Vikki hissed.

Zoey ignored her and punched him as hard as she could in the nose.

“You little bitch!” he snarled, the pain pulling him out of the mild trance she put him in.

Before he was able to object, she kicked him in the crotch and punched him again in the face. Suddenly, her already wobbly world was spinning. Someone smashed her into the floor, the body on top of her too light to be anyone other than the guy’s girlfriend. Random, unschooled punches tried to do damage. Zoey laughed and maneuvered out from under the girl, slapping her hard enough to stop her movement.

And then, the bar exploded. Zoey was too disoriented to understand who fought who or why, except that someone was trying to hit her. One blow landed before she was able to get to her feet, and her head snapped back in response to another blow. Her body followed, and she prepared herself for another hard landing.

“I gotcha,” Vikki grunted. “Come on, before they call the police.”

Zoey’s drunken mind took in the fight at the bar. She laughed at the chaos.

“Hey, V, I defended your honor!” she giggled.

“Can you walk?”

Zoey nodded, but wasn’t entirely certain. Vikki kept one arm around her and navigated them through the mess towards the door. The bar customers scrambled back from the bar area.

They worked their way through the crowd to the door. Zoey’s gaze was caught by Eric’s. There was sadness in his eyes. Sadness she put there. She smiled and waved farewell.

Forever farewell, she knew as she walked out of the club and not only to him. They walked down the block, the sound and warmth of the club fading.

This was her world now. Cold and wet and filled with Cambions. Eric was gone tonight, taking with him any hope she had of finding balance in a place where she didn’t belong. Zoey spun in a drunken circle, barely catching herself against the building. She lifted her face to the rain.

“Okay, you’re fucking toasted,” Vikki’s voice broke through her thoughts. “You can’t kill Cambions like this.”

“I totally can,” Zoey said, pushing away from the wall. “I have to catch up. I have to.”

“Hand me a knife.”

Zoey’s hands fumbled for her thigh. After a couple of attempts, she got it free.

“Thank god. I thought I’d have to drop more pills in your drink.”

Zoey glanced up. “What?”

“You’re an emotional basket case tonight. You don’t need to be anywhere else but home. I dropped a couple of those alcohol enhancers in your drink,” Vikki said. “The ones that makes you feel drunker than you are. Now, I’m calling a ride.”

“No!” Zoey groaned. She tried to put her knife away and cut her leg. “I want to kill things!”

Vikki snatched the weapon and replaced it. Zoey sagged against her. Vikki grunted.

“Did I give you too many?” she asked.

Zoey was like spaghetti. “If we can’t kill things… Declan wins, Vikki.”

“Oh, god. Focus. Let’s not cry. Just focus. Your nose is bleeding and you’re going to have a black eye in the morning, if you don’t suck up your pride and just call Declan.”

“No. I’m focusing,” Zoey repeated, confused. “I’m the worst person on the planet.”

Vikki laughed. They stood in silence. Zoey almost felt a little better. A car pulled up to the curb, and she took a step towards it. Vikki caught her as she tripped.

“I’m good,” Zoey said, straightening. “I’m good.”

Vikki opened the back door, and Zoey dropped into the backseat. Vikki climbed in front.

“Vikki, where we going? We gotta go kill Cambions,” she said.

“No, we’re going home,” Vikki said.

“I swear, I’m okay.” Disoriented by the blurry lights they passed, Zoey’s drunken thoughts didn’t register that Vikki wasn’t driving for a few minutes. She looked at the man behind the wheel. “Who the fuck are you?”

“Liam,” he replied, amusement in the familiar whiskey-colored gaze in the rearview mirror.

Zoey’s mouth dropped open. “Vikki…”

“Chill,” Vikki replied.

“Chill? Do you have any idea what his brother put me through today?” Zoey demanded. “I got my ass kicked in front of the Enforcers and then he sits there and goes through my mind and totally dimes you out.”

“That’s not quite what happened,” Vikki said. She looked back, making shushing sounds with a frantic look at Liam.

“The hell it wasn’t. They had fucking pictures of you two and were asking me. I lied my ass off and then the picture of me leaving the apartment building came up and then it was like, game over. Declan said, rule number two: don’t ever lie to me. Rule number one was…” she drifted off, lost.

“No weapons,” Liam supplied.

“Yes! Vikki, do you know Liam’s Incubatti?”

Stopped at a red light, the two in the front seat were exchanging a long look. Vikki’s face was red, and Liam’s eyebrows were both raised.

“You didn’t tell her that, did you, Liam?” Zoey demanded. She wanted to hit him for lying to her friend, but the alcohol and Vikki’s drugs made her body feel much heavier than normal. She was also sleepy, the warm backseat becoming an appealing place for a nap. “Vikki’s my best friend. I lied to the fucking head of the Enforcers, not that it mattered, because he just pulled everything out of my
–
“

“Zoey, stop!” Vikki cried at last.

Zoey fell silent, surprised. Vikki’s gaze returned to Liam.

“You’re Declan’s?” Liam asked Zoey. “Seriously?” He appeared ready to laugh.

“I am
not
Declan’s,” she snapped. “He took Vikki away from me. He knows I had a date tonight with the ex. Said something like, rule number three: he knows where I play and where I sleep, and Eric couldn’t handle that but he could.”

Liam laughed.

“Zoey,” Vikki sighed.

“You tell me. Home or
home
?” Liam asked her.

“What’s wrong?” Zoey asked, aware for the first time she was missing something. “Why are there two homes?”

“Your call, V. Either way, Declan will never live this down,” Liam said.

“Home with us,” Vikki replied. “Someone’s gotta take care of this train wreck.”

“What does Declan have to do with this?” Zoey demanded.

Liam turned right at the intersection and Vikki rolled her eyes.

“You started the rite with Declan?” Liam asked Zoey.

“I am not finishing it. I don’t give a shit what anyone says.”

“Sounds familiar,” Liam said with a glance at Vikki.

“Liam, we’re going to start a vigilante group,” Zoey said.

“Why don’t you tell him about Eric?” Vikki snapped.

Zoey slumped. “Farewell, cruel world. Thanks for fucking me up.”

“Dammit, Zoey,” Vikki said. “You couldn’t keep your mouth shut, could you?”

“What the hell did you give me?”

“The wrong thing. You’re gonna have one helluva hangover.”

“Nooooo,” Zoey protested.

“Declan will fix it,” Liam said. “Vikki, text him.”

“No,” Zoey said. “Just take me home. I don’t want anything to do with him. I just broke up with one guy. Even if Eric wanted to give it a second try, I couldn’t, because I really did cheat on him this time. The other five hundred guys, nope. Declan said, do you wanna bleed out or fuck me? Not sure I made the right choice.” Her ears were buzzing so loudly, she had to shout to hear herself.

Liam laughed long and hard. Vikki was holding her forehead in her hands in a sign of defeat. They parked in what she took to be the garage beside the dorms. Zoey made it out of the car and two steps before almost dropping. Vikki caught her.

Zoey struggled to focus on her through the drunken haze that seemed to be closing in on her. She was so drowsy, and it took effort to keep her eyes open and her focus on the world around her. Liam reached them. He lifted her.

“I take it we’re not going out tonight?” Zoey asked Vikki.

“No.” Vikki sighed.

“But it’s our last night.”

“We have a plan, remember?”

Suddenly tired, Zoey leaned her head against Liam. They got in an elevator her drugged mind didn’t remember being in the Professor’s house or the dorms or Eric’s house. Where did they take her?

“At least I got closure,” Zoey murmured. “Didn’t I?”

“You did. I’m proud of you.” Vikki smiled. The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. “Call me if you need a ride in the morning.”

“Okay,” Zoey said. Melancholy settled over her. She was starting to hurt again as the alcoholic high wore off to be replaced by drowsiness.

Liam set her on her feet and knocked. Zoey looked around, uncertain where exactly she was.

“Nice to meet you, Zoey.”

“You, too, Liam,” she said, gazing up at him in confusion.

“I think this is yours.” He was addressing someone else. Her gaze went to the open door.