Blonde & Blue (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #4)(63)

“I’ll be by your side. Don’t even consider going after them without me. You know Arys will have a fit.”

“I don’t doubt it. But, I have a secret weapon, something those vamps won’t see coming.” I gestured for him to follow me to the trunk of my car. I lifted the velvet lined box from its place under the spare tire. It was the best location I’d had to hide it.

Opening the lid, I released the breath I’d sucked in when I caught sight of that gorgeous blade. The Dragon Claw took my breath away as it had the first time I’d laid eyes on it. Shaz was immediately intrigued. Reaching to glide a hand over the flat side of the blade, he seemed to fall under its spell.

“It’s amazing. Where did you get it?” He stroked it almost lovingly, lingering on the jade handle. “It feels like you. Like its part of you.”

I met his confused expression with one of my own. “You can feel that?”

“Yeah. It’s strange, but I get this wolf vibe from it. Your wolf.”

“It was made for me, with a piece of my hair. By demons.” I paused. What more could I really add to that? “It will kill a vampire with just a cut. Doesn’t even have to hit the heart. It works like a dream.”

“So I take it this means you’ll be working with him. The demon that came to see you at The Kiss.” His response was guarded, but I knew he didn’t like it.

I shrugged and closed the dagger box. “The only thing I’ve agreed to do for Shya is kill Veryl. Beyond that, nothing has been determined. I don’t trust Shya. I can’t.”

“Kill Veryl? Wow. I knew you were pissed at him after the whole Raoul thing, but I didn’t realize you were that pissed at him.”

Slamming the trunk closed, I clutched the dagger box tightly. “He’s blackmailing Lilah. I can’t help but feel I don’t owe him any alliance. Not anymore.”

Shaz walked me to the door, and though I wished he would stay, I knew it was best for both of us if he didn’t. His eyes filled with longing, and he touched a hand to my face when he said, “Be careful.”

I smiled, glancing away to hide the shadows of pain I didn’t want him to see. “I will.”

A soft touch of his lips to mine had me fighting tears again. I was astounded that I had the energy for tears at all. Shaz lingered, kissing me again, tender and affectionate.

“Get some rest, Lex. You need it. I love you.”

I watched him go, wishing I could say everything I’d held back and knowing it wouldn’t change a damn thing. “I love you.”

The house felt especially large and quiet. I was seldom home alone. Without the sound of Shaz banging around in the kitchen or Arys offering random commentary on television shows that he simply had to pick apart, it seemed so vacant and lifeless.

Drained and exhausted, I hurried through a shower and slipped into a silk bathrobe. The delicate material felt good against my battered skin. Despite how fast I healed, stiffness had set in to make every bruise and ache excruciatingly pronounced. Soon, I would be healed and rejuvenated, one advantage of being inhuman. I’d had worse. I’d survive.

I climbed into bed with the remote in hand. Spreading out in the center, I had a moment of enjoyment at having the whole bed to myself. It wasn’t something I’d like to get used to, but it was perfect right then.

After channel surfing my way to a standup comedy special, I half-listened to the crude comedian. Though sleep was waiting to claim me, I couldn’t stop thinking about what Maxwell had said to Arys. I wanted answers.

I searched my memory, fighting to break through the barrier that kept Arys’ several lifetimes of memories locked away from my conscious mind. I should have been grateful for that barrier; it kept me from being overwhelmed by Arys’ past. It kept me sane. But, there had to be a way to break through, to pinpoint the one memory that would reveal to me what Maxwell meant. Besides, occupying myself with Arys kept me from obsessing over Shaz.

Settling myself comfortably amid the pillows and comforter, I let the haze of slumber creep in. My angle was to fall into that lucid semi-conscious state between awake and asleep. I knew I was slipping, and true sleep would claim me any moment. Fighting it, I focused on Arys, letting my mind wander over some of the memories of his that I had already seen clearly.

Most of them made little sense to me. They often came in random bursts of visions and feelings. When we’d first bonded our power, his memories haunted my dreams often. Now they were repressed, hidden away inside my mind where I generally preferred them to stay.

I drifted in and out of Arys’ past, seeking Maxwell. It was there; I knew it was. I just had to tap into it. I kept Maxwell at the front of my thoughts, hoping it would pull him out of the dredges of my mind.

‘What, pray tell, are you doing, my wolf?’ Arys’ voice boomed through my head, scaring me out of the hazy lull I’d fallen into.

Jerking upright in bed, I swallowed hard and gasped for breath as my heart pounded. ‘Nothing. Just trying to fall asleep.’

‘Fall asleep? Or dig through my memories for answers I’m not ready to give you?’

Tapping Arys’ thoughts was not part of the plan. I kicked myself, glad he couldn’t see me. I knew he’d be giving me the look, the what-the-hell-are-you-thinking look.

‘You weren’t supposed to know.’ Sometimes, censoring myself was for the best, but this wasn’t one of them.