Sebastian"s tongue lightly followed the contours of my earlobe. A hot spike of delight throbbed between my legs. "I can"t. Not here."
"I don"t know if I can wait," Sebastian whispered. His teeth nicked my ear again. "I"m weak."
He"d never get enough from that tiny pinp.r.i.c.k. I turned around and kissed him hard on the mouth. We usually avoided tongues when his fangs had dropped because they were sharp enough to sever flesh to the bone. So it didn"t take much before our mouths filled with blood.
I started to gag, but his arms pulled me tightly to him. Somehow his hands, still ice -cold, found their way under my coat and sweater. My skin raised in gooseflesh. My nipples stiffened as his fingers found the swell of my b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
All the while, Matyas was two feet away.
I shivered. Sebastian"s hands began to warm as he expertly stoked my pa.s.sion.
Then, as a complete mood killer, I heard Matyas moan. It was more of a weak, protesting kind of sound, but still. Meanwhile, Tereza made sucking sounds.
I pulled my lips from Sebastian. "Okay, this is just too weird."
Sebastian looked dazed. His eyes were completely dilated, and my blood was on his lips. "Just a little more," he said.
I shook my head. "I"m all for father-son bonding, but this-"
Sebastian plunged his teeth into my neck before I had a chance to finish my sentence. My first panicked thought was: I"m going to die. But even though I"d underestimated how hungry Sebastian was, he apparently still had enough sense and willpower to aim for the muscles of the lower part of my neck. Even so, I wasn"t used to being nabbed like this. All I could do was look over his shoulder and hold on tight.
His teeth-all of them-broke my skin. Involuntarily, I gasped. Lilith began to ripple along my nerves. I could feel her strength digging my fingernails deep into Sebastian"s back.
But, after the initial bite, the violence of the experience mutated into something much, much more s.e.xy. Sebastian "s tongue probed and tasted tentatively. Meanwhile, his hands stayed busy, keeping me distracted by fondling and stroking my ribs, b.r.e.a.s.t.s, and stomach.
Lilith relaxed slightly, but I could sense her wariness just under the surface. For my part, I still felt strangely paralyzed and could only watch the growing darkness. Stars had begun to appear. I felt a little dreamy, like the pain belonged to someone else. I thought, maybe, I could let go and float up into the sky.
"You"re killing her, Papa," Matyas said drily. "Not that it matters to me, but you were planning on marrying this particular chew toy."
Somewhere, far away, I heard Tereza hiss. Then, without further warning, Sebastian and I were pulled apart. Tereza grabbed my arm. The copper tang of blood on her breath as well as her cloying scent of decay choked me. "Mine," she said, her fangs bared.
That was all the excuse Lilith needed. I felt my body go all Jackie Chan. I pulled away from her and raised my foot to slam it squarely into her solar plexus. She flew backward into the snow.
"No, child, mine," I said with Lilith"s voice. I crouched, ready for action. My fists were raised slightly in front of me.
"Such a lovely moment," Matyas said to his father as he helped Tereza to her feet. "You must feel like the faerie princess the knights fight over."
"Shut up," Sebastian said quietly. Then, looking at me, he added, "Anyway, there"s no contest. I"ve already made my choice."
"Like a raindrop in the ocean," Tereza said. She had a steadying hand on Matyas"s shoulder. Though, given how pale Matyas"s face looked, I wasn"t sure who was supporting whom. "Choices are ripples."
We all stood silently in the snow for a moment, as though absorbing Tereza"s words of wisdom.
Finally, I said, "Did that make sense?"
"You"ll return to true, Von Traum," Tereza said. "You always do."
"Not this time," he said. "I"ve carried your burden long enough. I"ve buried and reburied you a thousand times. But you"re free of death now. Go with my blessings."
"You think you can dismiss her so easily?" Matyas said with a snarl.
"If only," I muttered to myself. The moon was coming up on the horizon. My cheeks felt frozen solid. My ear tip began to throb where Sebastian had nibbled at it.
"I"m doing more than dismissing her," Sebastian said. Despite the dark, when I looked up into his face, I thought I could see a faint golden glow around the circle of his pupils. "I"m breaking the blood bond."
Moving with superspeed, Sebastian s.n.a.t.c.hed a fistful of Tereza"s hair. She screeched with indignation. Returning to a position some distance from her, their eyes locked.
"What? What are you doing?" Matyas shouted. "No! You can"t!"
"I have to," Sebastian said sadly. "Besides," he added, looking at me, "she has another Sire. I"m absolutely sure of that now.
Maybe it won"t kill her."
"Maybe?" Matyas repeated. "Don"t."
He dropped his fangs and bit deeply into his other palm. Blood and hair mixed and, to my surprise, began to smolder. Matyas had said that when Tereza had bitten Sebastian, there"d been a flash. Perhaps their bond, being mostly made of volatile magic, was literally explosive.
Tereza screamed as if pierced by an unseen arrow. She clutched at her heart and fell to her knees. After shooting Sebastian a withering glance, Matyas sank into the snow beside her and threw his arms around her shoulders.
Sebastian started muttering something in Latin . . . or German . . . or Greek. Honestly, I had no idea, but it sounded impressive.
Though I didn"t know what the words meant, I could tell the sounds repeated. He was saying the same thing over and over, like a chant or a spell.
"You can"t do this," Matyas begged. "Are you trying to kill her?"
I glanced up at Sebastian. His face was stern and resolute as he continued to repeat the phrases.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I asked quietly. Tereza didn"t seem to be faring very well. Her skin had started to shrivel.
"Mother, oh G.o.d, no," Matyas shouted. He stood up, his hands balled into fists. He launched himself at Sebastian. "Stop! I won"t let you kill her!"
I, stupidly, stepped in between them. We all went over into the snow like a football skirmish. I heard Sebastian grunt underneath me when we hit the ground at full force, but he went on with his spell otherwise uninterrupted. Matyas tried to get his arms around his father "s throat. I mostly just tried to untangle myself. Sebastian continued to drone out the magical words. I could hear Tereza whimpering.
"Maybe you should stop," I said to Sebastian, once I"d freed myself from the various body parts I"d been wedged between. I was on my hands and knees. Sebastian held Matyas"s wrists at arm"s length. Tereza had curled into a fetal position and appeared to be smoldering.
After the illicit kiss in the woods, I knew Sebastian needed to prove his love for me. But I didn"t want him to kill Tereza to do it. The fact that he"d even consider tying to break the bond seemed like proof enough to me. Besides, Matyas would never forgive Sebastian if he killed Tereza.
And Tereza did not look healthy.
"Stop!" I shouted, but no one listened. Matyas continued to grapple with his dad, and Sebastian continued to repeat his measured phrase. I knew that if I called up Lilith, that would be the end of everything. She "d see all of them as a threat and, instead of a wedding, I"d be attending a funeral. Several of them.
Things were getting desperate, so I called out to Athena again. This time, however, I took little time to prepare. I simply asked for help.
Suddenly, I felt a presence. Looking over at Tereza, I saw Athena standing over her once again. Athena wore full battle armor, including a feather-crested helmet like the one Brad Pitt wore in Troy. She held a spear and a short sword in her muscular hands.
The G.o.ddess looked at me and then put up her shield. I caught only the merest glimpse of bronze and serpentine hair before I remembered to look away.
Thunder clapped overhead. The sound made everyone jump. I looked down at Sebastian and Matyas, who had frozen in place. For a second, I thought maybe the Medusa"s head had turned them to stone, but then Sebastian blinked. "Is it over?" he asked.
Daring a peek in Tereza"s direction, I saw that the G.o.ddess had gone.
Tereza lay still-deathly still.
Ninth Aspect: Occultation
KEY WORDS: Stumbling Blocks, Setbacks
"She"s dead," Matyas said, peering into Tereza"s wide-open eyes.
"She"s in torpor," Sebastian said, putting fingers on her wrist as though checking for a pulse. Given that Parrish didn"t have a heartbeat, I wondered if Sebastian really sensed something or simply did the gesture to rea.s.sure Matyas.
"She"s probably cold," I said. I stood some distance away, shivering in earnest. I"d been out in the cold far too long. My toes had lost all feeling some time ago. "Let"s bring her back to the house. My folks are probably worried sick."
At the thought of them, I stared in the direction of the house. I felt kind of surprised they never came out after us. Maybe we hadn"t been outside as long as it felt like.
I glanced back to see Sebastian and Matyas looking at me like I"d suggested something preposterous.
"What?" I asked. "We could all use a cup of hot chocolate. I"m freezing." "You would invite Tereza in?" Matyas said, incredulous.
"Why not?" I said. "I mean, I know she"s a vampire. . . ."
"Now she"s a vampire of someone else"s blood," Sebastian reminded me.
"Oh, right," I said. "Still, we can"t leave her out here. She"ll freeze to death, and so will I."
"If she"s not already dead," Matyas said.
"She"s not dead," I said, feeling quite certain of it. I didn "t know exactly what Athena had done when she raised her shield between Tereza and Sebastian, but I was sure it didn"t kill her. Athena had sworn to protect Tereza. So had I. "I wouldn"t let that happen," I said.
"Garnet did protect Tereza earlier from the sun," Sebastian said, still frowning into Tereza"s gla.s.sy-eyed stare.
"She did?" Matyas said.
"I felt it," Sebastian confirmed.
"It"s true," I said. "Now, can we all make nice before I get frostbite on my toes?"
Matyas gaped at me. Then, as if deciding something, Matyas looked down at his mother. "Fine," he said. "We"ll take her home with us."
After standing at the threshold for a moment to allow us to officially invite Tereza inside, Sebastian carried her upstairs to the guest room. The guest room had belonged to Vivian, the late wife of our house ghost, Benjamin. Benjamin had probably axe - murdered her in there. He wouldn"t let Sebastian redecorate it and got very violent when any living human slept in the bed. We thought Tereza might be safe, however, being dead and all. Sebastian would have a talk with Benjamin, though, just to be sure.
The second they were headed upstairs, I tossed my clothes and boots into a heap by the front door and settled in as close as possible to the fire. My parents must have tended it, because it was blazing. The light scent of oak smoke mingled with the smells of b.u.t.ter-sauteed mushrooms, garlic, and onion. The odor of baking spinach and ricotta cheese pried me away from the fire to peep curiously in the kitchen.
My mother sat at the table reading the New York Times. My dad washed the dishes in the sink. Something bubbled in the oven.
Folding the paper down slightly, my mother peered at me. "h.e.l.lo, honey," she said. "Your father and I were making a late din-oh my G.o.d, what happened to you?"
Abandoning the paper on the table, my mother rushed over and cradled my face in her hands. "You"re so cold," she said.
Taking me by the elbow, she propelled me back out into the living room toward the fireplace.
Before I could say, "It"s nothing, I"m fine, Mom," I found myself wrapped in the down comforter and deposited in front of the fire. My mother clucked her tongue and inspected the bite mark on my shoulder.
"The heck," my dad, who had followed us into the living room, said. "Did you get bitten by a timber wolf or something?"
"No, just Papa," Matyas said from where he"d thrown himself on the couch.
Upstairs, something crashed to the floor.
"Oh, look at your arm, dear," my mother said, pulling up Matyas"s torn and b.l.o.o.d.y sleeve to examine his wound. She shook her head. "I"ll get a warm washcloth for this. Do you have any antibacterial cream or anything?"
"It"s all in the medicine cabinet," I said, starting to get up. My father put out a hand.
"I"ll get it. You tell your mother what happened." As my father headed upstairs, the lights flickered. He paused for a moment and leaned down toward us. "You know, I think this house is haunted."
"It is," Matyas and I said in unison.
Matyas caught my eye and then said, "Jinx! Buy me a c.o.ke."
"What are you talking about?" I asked him. "You"re not supposed to talk again until he says your name, honey," my mother explained absently, from where she still fussed over Matyas. I could see her fingers trying to smooth out the ragged edges of his shirt, like they were itching for a sewing kit.
"Didn"t you kids do that in school?"
"I"m not doing that," I said with a little smile. "He"d never let me talk again."
"Too true," Matyas said with a touch of snark, but the fight was out of his voice. We were back to our usual pleasant exchange of harmless barbs.
Doors slammed upstairs. I heard my father swear, and then Sebastian followed suit, only his was in another language. Lights flickered throughout the house.
"If it"s not a ghost," my mother said, "you"ve got really bad wiring."
"It"s a ghost," I rea.s.sured her.
Matyas pulled the patchwork quilt from where it hung on the back of the couch. Since my mother still scrutinized his one hand, he did it rather awkwardly with his other hand. But he still managed to fluff it around his legs and feet. "I don"t think Papa is winning this argument with Benjamin, however," Matyas said.
As if in response, we heard the sound of books falling to the floor. Sebastian yelled, "Stay out of my room!" I could only imagine the mayhem Benjamin must be causing in the sunroom, which doubled as Sebastian"s occult library. "Fine, you win!"