"Indirectly, maybe. Hey, are you supposed to be nibbling on my neck while you"re grilling me?"
I can do anything I wish to do. I am a Moravian Dark One.
I waited for the other shoe to drop.
And you are my Beloved.
By which, I a.s.sume you"re implying I too can do anything I want?
His fingers slid up the curve of my waist to cup my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Anything, he breathed into my mind as I turned my head and found his mouth.
You have to feed. You are weak, and we need your strength right now. Blood is all I can offer you; please take it.
His tongue was fire in my mouth. The flames licked down my chest, filling me with need and hunger. You have so much more to offer, Beloved. I believe in you. I believe you can do anything you desire.
He merged with me then, his thoughts filling my head, my soul cleansing his, our hearts beating in time. His faith glowed bright, absolute faith in me, in my abilities, in us. I smiled as I kissed him, tears streaking my cheeks even as I slid my arms around him, his strength no threat to me, but an aid, a protection, a part of my life that I knew I wouldn"t want to be without.
He pulled my hand forward and pressed the ring into it. Do it, Beloved.
I stared at it, doubt tugging at me.
I know you can.
The underlying power in magic, as I have said before, comes from the belief of the pract.i.tioner in her own abilities. If you don"t believe, the magic won"t work. I looked from the ring to Christian"s eyes, those beautiful dark eyes that now were smiling at me, full of love and pride and quiet expectation that made warmth bloom inside me again.
"Will you still love me if I fail?"
"I will always love you, no matter what you do."
I held on to the belief he poured into my mind as I set the ring down onto the floor, patting my jeans until I pulled a crumbled piece of chalk from my hip pocket. Christian"s hand rested warm and solid on my back, a reminder that I was not alone as I drew the circle. It was odd, this knowledge that I could be myself, be everything I had fought for, and still be a part of Christian, but I had no more time for introspection and other mushy types of thought, no matter how enticing they were.
I had a demon lord to send back to h.e.l.l.
"Why is it never easy with you? Why must you insist on making even the simplest of matters difficult?"
A dull thud from the door reverberated around the small, soundproofed room.
I"m not being difficult; I"m being practical. Now bite me!
"I do not need to feed."
The door shuddered as another thud, louder this time, echoed into the room. The sword Christian had wedged into the door frame clattered against the metal, giving warning it was about to be dislodged.
Yes, you do. They drained you; I can feel how weak you are. Drink!
"I will not take from you when you need all your strength."
I"m not so hung up on my own independence that I don"t realize that your strength is an integral part of mine, Christian. Either you drink my blood this very minute, or I won"t do a thing about closing this circle. I figure those demons are going to break through in about five seconds, so either you bite me now, or forever hold your peace.
His fangs pierced the hollow of my throat, sharp needles of pain dissolving into a sensation of intimate ecstasy. He drank deeply, making my head spin with both the pleasure of his feeding and the power that surged through him as my blood gave him new life. The door shuddered, thought about giving, but changed its mind at the last minute and held solid once again. I knew the next blow the demons made would destroy it. It was now or never; either I believed in myself, or I didn"t.
I turned my head and bit Christian"s thumb, squeezing his finger over the circle until three drops of dark red blood landed next to Asmodeus"s ring. Christian"s tongue was warm on my neck; then he pulled away. I wiped the smear of red from his lips, using my blood to trace a binding symbol in the middle of the circle, my finger tingling with the familiar sensation of power.
"Asmodeus, sixty-seventh spirit of Goeth, commander of the thirty legions, I Summon thee by the power of thy own talisman. Come forth and be bound under my hand."
The demons were gathering for another a.s.sault on the door; I could feel their intentions pounding against us. Christian stood and prepared to defend me.
Belief is everything. I rose to my feet, grimly tracing protection wards around us, daring them to defy me. The wards allowed themselves to be drawn, wavered, then glowed red as power began to grow within me.
"Asmodeus, sixty-seventh spirit of Goeth, commander of the thirty legions, I command thee to appear before me!"
The demons slammed through the door as Asmodeus snarled into view, confined to the circle, held only by a few drops of blood and the combined belief Christian and I shared in my abilities. The demons stopped, unable to move so long as their master was bound by the circle.
"You do not have the power," the demon lord said with a sneer, his ravaged frame growing until it seemed to fill the room. "You cannot hold me, for I am all-powerful."
Christian stood before the demons, his belief in me flooding my mind, turning to power as we merged together, one will, one mind, one spirit. "Asmodeus, sixty-seventh spirit of Goeth, commander of the thirty legions, bend thee to my command!"
"You will not triumph over me! You are not strong enough to-"
"Asmodeus!" My voice cut through the demon lord"s roars with the clarity of a bell, echoing throughout the room, sending the demons into a shrieking fit of cowering. Asmodeus twisted his body upon itself. I took a deep breath, throwing everything I had into the last few words. "Asmodeus, I return thee to the pit that sp.a.w.ned you!"
With a scream that shook the house to its foundations, Asmodeus turned into oily red smoke that hung in the air for a moment before slowly dissolving into nothing.
The demons left nasty little black marks on the floor as they disappeared with Asmodeus, dragged back to the infernal depths with their master.
Christian grabbed my hand and hauled me forward.
"Wait, the ring-"
"Leave it. The house is coming down."
He was right. The house, which shook as we sent Asmodeus back to h.e.l.l, continued to shake and rumble above our heads. Loud crashes and ominous cracks from overhead had us racing down the small pa.s.sageway, Christian more or less dragging me up the stairs to the kitchen. We made it through the back door just as the second floor crashed down onto the first, which sent it down onto the ground floor, and that to the bas.e.m.e.nt. I clung to Christian, his hand holding my face against his chest as wood and gla.s.s and debris flew around us as the house came down.
I wrapped my arms around him, holding him tight as we stood in the garden and stared at the remains of the Trust house. We said nothing. There was nothing to say.
Epilogue.
Christian moved within me, deeper, harder, surging into me, filling me with more than just his body, giving me his heart and mind as well. Water splashed around us as we moved together, the small seat in the tub not designed for the purpose we were putting it to. Despite the pain in my thigh, my legs tightened around his hips as his mouth caressed my nape, licking me, nipping at my flesh as our bodies moved in an ageless rhythm. I scored his slick back as he nibbled my neck.
Do it!
So demanding. His voice was as soft as his hair. I took a handful of the damp, inky black mane and tugged on it.
Do it now!
Have I told you how arousing I find it when you make demands of me?
I flexed my legs, thrusting my hips up to meet his as his hardness plunged into my eager flesh. I know how aroused you are; it"s fairly evident how aroused you are. If you were any more aroused, you"d be poking out my throat. Now... just... do... it!
Allegra, my Allegra, he sighed into my mind, his teeth teasing the tender spot beneath my ear as his fingers dug into my hips, pulling me tighter to him until there was no way to tell where his oil-slicked flesh ended and mine began. How could I live without you?
Do it!
Heat, sharp and sweet, swept down my neck as he claimed every part of me, taking life from me and returning it with a triumphant shout of my name as our bodies burned with a blinding light. I gave myself up to him, and received his exaltation in return.
"Weren"t we supposed to be having a discussion in here?" I asked later, once I could remember how to speak. We were lying together in the tub, our limbs entwined, the warm water lapping sensually against us. Discussion be d.a.m.ned. I tipped my head back and bit Christian"s chin. "You smell good. You smell like jasmine, and Christian, and just a hint of eau du after-s.e.x."
He opened one eye, "You have worn me out, Allegra. Instead of praising my prowess to the stars, instead of writing sonnets to my masculinity, instead of composing odes showering me with praise, you complain of the lingering scent of our lovemaking. I will make note of this aberration and ensure that any women who wish to apply for the position of my Beloved in the future are free from this prejudice."
I trailed a finger around his left nipple. "You think you"re so cute with all that "other Beloved" talk."
His eye closed. "I know I am cute."
I snorted and tweaked his nipple.
"You think I am very cute. You think me s.e.xy, as well. I can read your thoughts, remember."
I hoisted myself up and slid across his body. You are conceited, arrogant, and domineering, everything I dislike in a man.
And you are independent, stubborn, and heedless, everything I dislike in a woman.
I slid my hands under his back and kissed his dampened lips. So why is it that I love you so much?
He smiled a smug, masculine little smile and captured my legs with his. Because I love you, and to be loved by a Dark One is enough for any woman.
I pinched him in a particularly vulnerable spot and allowed him to kiss me with all the s.e.xy arrogance he had.
"There you are! Sheesh, I thought you guys would never show up! We"ve been waiting forever for you! I would have thought you could have held on to your libidos for just a few minutes, just long enough for you to tell us what happened."
"Roxy, stop being so obnoxious!"
"I"m never obnoxious; I"m just concerned. You weren"t here when they came home. Allie looked half-dead when Christian hauled her in the door, and all Noelle said was that she had to go examine the remains of the Trust house to make sure nothing bad was hanging around. What remains? What happened to the house? What sort of bad thing is she looking for? That"s all I want to know, just a few simple answers to a few simple questions, and then I can get packed and go home to my husband."
"Not a moment too soon," Raphael murmured into Joy"s ear. She elbowed him gently, but leaned into him and twined her fingers through the hand he rested on her belly.
I looked around Christian"s study, overwhelmed for a moment with sadness that had tears p.r.i.c.king behind my eyes.
What is it, Beloved?
"The ghosts," I answered, swallowing hard. "I miss the ghosts. They loved this room. They loved the TV. And now with the house destroyed-"
Christian took my hand in his. "We will search for them, Allegra."
"Asmodeus probably turned them into phantoms," I said thickly, turning away from everyone so I could wipe my eyes. Christian pulled me to his chest and let me sob there while he quickly explained the events of day. His voice was soft, low, and true as it wrapped me in a blanket of comfort, but nothing could ease the pain when I thought of what I had asked from my friends.
"I"m sure they"ll be all right, Allie," Joy said thoughtfully. "I doubt if this Asmo-whoever had time to do anything to them. It sounds like he was awfully focused on you and Christian."
I sniveled a noncommittal answer into Christian"s black sweater.
"Yeah, and besides, they were smart ghosts," Roxy added. "Well, that Jem character wasn"t the brightest bulb in the pack, and that wrinkled up Welsh woman was not working on all six thrusters, but other than that, they were a pretty sharp bunch. They wouldn"t let themselves be phantomized."
I sniffed and breathed in Christian"s lovely scent. It made me feel better just knowing that even if I were guilty of the eternal d.a.m.nation of six ghosts, at least he"d suffer with me.
Or something to that effect.
"We will go back to the house as soon as the sun is down," Christian said softly in my ear. "We will search for any sign of your ghosts."
I nodded and sniffed again and made an effort to pull myself together. Christian sat and tugged me down onto his lap as everyone asked questions, hashed over the events, and heaped huge quant.i.ties of praise on Christian and me for our quick thinking.
I was utterly miserable.
"Hullo? Anyone home? Oh, hullo again, Joy, Roxy. You must be Raphael. Do you know that your eyes are yellow?"
"Amber, not yellow," Joy corrected Noelle.
"Really?" She tilted her head and examined Raphael. "If you say so. Allie, I was checking through the remains of the house for any signs of demons and imps, and I found this."
She held out her hand, the shattered remains of her amulet scattered across her palm.
"Oh, Noelle, I"m so sorry, I meant to tell you that I"d lost it. It cracked under the strain of Asmodeus"s power. I"m sure it was a one-of-a-kind amulet, but I"ll do everything I can to replace it."
"Don"t worry; I have a drawerful of them. After all, it"s not the amulet; it"s what goes into it."
I gave her a watery smile. "Have you met Christian?"
I tried to get up so he could greet her, but he held on to me with one hand and offered her another. She said something about it being nice to finally meet him, then asked, "What happened to the Dark One who was in the big bed?"
I leaned back against Christian and let myself drift along with his silken voice.
"Sebastian recovered from his ill treatment, a circ.u.mstance that leaves me profoundly grateful for your help. I understand you arranged for several units of blood to be fed to him."
"We weren"t sure if he"d like it if it weren"t on the hoof, so to speak, but he didn"t seem to mind," Roxy said. "In fact, he guzzled it all down pretty quickly. Made a world of difference in him, too, didn"t it?"
"It did," Joy agreed.
"He left me a note before he left, asking me to thank you for your kindness," Christian added.
"Oh, he"s left already?" Noelle asked, disappointment tinging her voice. I stopped wallowing in sorrow and took a good, long look at her. "That"s a shame. I"ve never met a Dark One, present company excepted, and I was looking forward to interviewing him as to the nature of werefolk in Moravia."
"Were what?" Raphael asked suspiciously. Joy shushed him.
"I would be happy to-"