Death Wish (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #5)(19)

Arys demanding that we just get over it wasn’t going to make this all disappear. Still, he’d made a point. Love was hard. Fight for it or fail. I was going to fight.

I became increasingly aware of Arys’s intense stare, but Shaz seemed oblivious. He nuzzled the side of my face, his breath warm against my ear. “Don’t let me lose myself in that place, Lex. I can’t live that way.”

It was something eerily similar to what I’d said to him not too long ago. Asking Shaz and Kylarai to kill me if I rose after death as a maniacal, blood-crazed vampire had been my way of ensuring I never had to live lost entirely to the consuming darkness. Yet, I was already halfway there.

“I won’t let it have you.” I held him tight, my arms around his neck as I hugged him close.

The creak of leather was loud in the quiet as Arys shifted his weight on the recliner. He waited until we looked at him before speaking. “I won’t lose either of you to The Wicked Kiss. It’s vile and filthy. Stay away from it. I mean it. It’s Sinclair’s problem now.”

There was no room for argument in his tone. Since Harley had first come to town almost a year ago, The Wicked Kiss had been nothing but a blight. I’d spent more time there than anyone should in their lifetime, and I wasn’t even a patron.

“That place is pure evil.” Shaz’s words were muffled in my hair. He held me like he’d never let go. “I’m not myself when I’m there. I hate what it does to me.”

“It needs to be burnt to the ground.” Arys’s offhanded remark set off warning bells for me.

“Don’t do anything stupid, Arys.” I pulled away from Shaz so I could look at Arys but didn’t release him entirely. I clasped his hand in mine, fearful of letting go. “If The Kiss was destroyed, everyone who frequents it would find somewhere else to carry on their business. I don’t want that.”

I saw the hard set to Arys’s jaw, and I was sure he was going to fight me on it. So when he didn’t, I knew he either planned to argue later or go ahead and torch The Kiss whether I approved or not.

“Alexa’s right.” With an exasperated sigh, Shaz thoughtfully rubbed his chin. “The majority of the vampires there are less than twenty years old. It’s a safe hunting ground for them while the death toll stays far lower than if they were hunting on the streets.”

“Besides,” I felt deflated as fatigue crept in. “It’s better not to have to worry about them in great numbers wreaking havoc on the streets. Too many other things out there are a far bigger threat.”

“You both really have been spending too much time there,” Arys observed with a frown. “It’s warped your brains. Those willing victims are just junkies like the pup.”

“Hey!” Shaz protested.

Arys continued as if he hadn’t been interrupted. “If keeping humans from harm is your goal, allowing them to become addicted to the rush of the bite is hardly the way to do that. Everyone in that place gets off on giving, taking and f**king.”

I made a frustrated sound that was mostly a growl of expletives. “I get it. The place is seriously bad news. I still believe something can be done with it. Even if it takes turning it into a church, I will change that place.” Arys smirked, and I pointed a finger at him before he could open his mouth. “You stop being right. And, don’t get used to it. That streak will run out eventually.”

“Hey, I don’t give a damn about that place or the people there, other than the two of you. It’s a den of weakness and addiction for everyone that delights in the naughty backroom playground. It’s a candy bowl of pills with something for everyone. Up, down or sideways.”

The Wicked Kiss had a way of seducing even the most strong-willed. Vampires readily got their fix of fear, blood and violent sex while humans got off on the rush of screwing a vampire and playing in a dark world that would only consume them. Adrenaline can be just as addictive as anything. Why skydive or bungee jump when you can let death taste you?

I didn’t want to encourage destructive behavior among the human clientele, but I had to ask myself, if they weren’t finding a thrill in the vampire’s bite, would they be on the streets sticking dirty needles in their arms in a desperate attempt to find that rush? Which was the lesser of two evils?

“I don’t care. I’m not making any snap decisions. It’s f**ked up, but who’s to say what those people would be doing if they weren’t consorting with vampires?”

“Fine,” Arys said, stretching like a lazy cat. “You call the shots. I really want nothing to do with the place.”

With thoughtful intrigue, I studied him. “You don’t want much to do with anyone or anything outside your personal little bubble. Do you?” I was thinking about how Arys had refused to work with Shya.

“Not particularly. I prefer to look out for number one, and that doesn’t include demons pulling strings in the underworld or vampire junkies in tacky nightclubs.”

“Then what does it include?” Shaz suddenly looked exceptionally interested.

Arys smiled, secrets dancing in his eyes. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

There was a lull in conversation. The perfect moment for me to tell them what had happened outside the club. I still had the crossbow bolt sitting on the passenger seat of my car.

“So, uh, there’s something I should tell you both. Someone took a shot at me tonight.” I launched into retelling all of the events of my evening. As I spoke, I could feel the atmosphere in the room shift.