Steal the Day (Thieves #2)(91)

I actually felt the room swell with Daniel’s rage. I took a step back and suddenly Dev was at my side pulling me close, and I knew there was a real chance that this was going to get violent.

“You think to break your oath to me, wolf?” Daniel’s voice took on the tone of that beast that slept inside him.

Neil turned on his heels, his hands shifting back and forth from claws to fingers, not quite deciding which one would be of use. “You’ve already broken it. This is what everyone warned me about. You just use the people around you. You don’t really care about any of us. You aren’t capable of caring about anything except your own ambitions. I owe you nothing.”

“I’ll decide what is owed to me, and never doubt that I will claim my due.” There was such will behind Daniel’s words that I didn’t doubt it was a threat.

“Daniel, what are you doing?” I tried to pull away from Dev. I needed to stop this fight before someone got seriously hurt. The idea of my husband and best friend going after each other made my heart hurt. “Let me go.”

Dev trapped me in his arms and whispered in my ear. “You’ve done enough damage, Zoey. Be quiet now. He’s doing what he has to do. Neil is being unreasonable. Don’t make this worse.”

Neil looked back at Dev and me. His eyes took on his beast. They were a winter, glacial blue, but there was no mistaking the rage in them. “Hold her, Dev, while you can. You made a mistake last night. You let him in. Do you really think he’ll share her with you for any length of time? He’s using you to get back into her bed. I assure you, some handy accident will be coming for you. Zoey’s grief will only make her vulnerable. She’ll turn to him. Can’t you see that? He’ll never share his precious blood with you.”

“Enough,” Daniel roared. He held his hand out, and Neil’s body jerked, limbs twitching in an odd, ungainly manner. “My blood is in your veins, and it will run true. You will obey me in this. You will protect your queen and guard your mouth tonight. Is that understood, my servant?”

I watched as Neil tried, really tried, to form his own words, but what came out of his mouth was, “Yes, master.”

“Now go and stand guard at the door,” Daniel commanded.

Neil walked away to do as he was ordered. His movements weren’t graceful, as though he was fighting the compulsion.

When he was out of the room, Daniel looked at me, obviously anticipating a fight. His hands were shaking slightly with the force of his anger, but he stuffed them in his pockets. “Get her dressed. It’s time to go.”

“What the hell was that, Danny?” I dug my heels in the carpet, unwilling to ignore what had just happened. Had Daniel really taken control of Neil?

Daniel stalked toward me, gesturing to the door Neil had walked through. “That was necessary. What am I supposed to do, Z? Am I supposed to let him go? Am I supposed to leave you unprotected? He knows everything. All he has to do is open his mouth and this evening becomes an execution. Do you want to watch as your husband and your lover are decapitated? Don’t expect Marcus to save you. His head will be right beside ours. They’ll leave you alive, baby. Remember that ceremony you witnessed? If Neil opens his mouth, you’ll be sold tonight. I have no doubt your price will make Meredith look like a value meal from McDonald’s.”

“He would never do that.” Neil might be angry, but I knew him. He might run off, but he wouldn’t betray us.

“I can’t risk it. There’s far too much on the line.” Daniel looked at Dev, his eyes bitter. “You have no idea how I envy you. She’ll blame all of this on me.”

Dev looked down at me. “Zoey, you should know I agree with everything Daniel has done tonight. He is right. We can’t risk exposure at this juncture. Neil isn’t thinking straight. All it would take is one bitter word from him and we could all be dead, including Chad.”

“You said it yourself, Z,” Daniel reminded me. “You told me we should pick the strongest of our vampires and make him our spy. Did you forget your own advice?”

I shook my head because I remembered it all too well. I just hadn’t expected to care about the person we sent off. Daniel was right, but I didn’t have to like it. “How are you controlling Neil? You said it was your blood. I’ve taken your blood. Can you do the same thing to me?”

Daniel walked up to me. I could see how much he wanted to touch me, but he held back. “The relationship is different.”

“Neil is Daniel’s animal. It’s a specific power,” Dev explained. “Although up until tonight, I believe the power has been nominal. He could call Neil but not bend his will. I suspect it’s another effect of the particular energy you drew from me last night. It’s a supercharged sexual energy you seemed to be able to feed on. Can you hold him?”

“Oh, yes,” Daniel said with a wicked certainty. “I can hold him. The way I feel now I could hold a whole pack of wolves. I’ve never felt anything like it. I could make an army of them.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Dev murmured. “I’ll make some calls because you’ll need to replace Neil. I believe Roman can make a deal with some of the werewolves we have working in the club. The pack here is extremely weak. Money and the promise of power could sway a few. We’ll need bodyguards.”