Blood Ties Page 17

  "Killed him?” That part of the story glared out at Adrian, making him take a step back. He tugged at his hand, wanting Nikolai to let go.

  Nikolai released him before turning his back on Adrian and staring up at the statue again. “My Father and I were fighting. Virgil tried to stop me from attacking him. Wisely, he knew I was no match for Seneca, but I didn't care. I shoved Virgil to the side before he could be hurt for interfering. I didn't realize how close Virgil was to the fireplace. Flames caught his clothing, but I was so intent on getting at my Father that I didn't know what had happened. Even when Virgil screamed in panic, I dismissed it. Only the sudden sound of Father's laughter brought me up short, confusing me. When I turned to look at Virgil, the flames were already engulfing his body. Before I could go to him, Father grabbed me."

  Guilt threaded heavily through Nikolai's voice; his head bowed with its weight. “I tried to struggle against him, but I wasn't strong enough to free myself. I listened to Virgil's screams of agony as I watched him burn."

  Adrian laid his hand on Nikolai's shoulder. “I'm sorry, Nikolai."

  When Nikolai finally turned to face Adrian, the half smile showed bitterness. “I made Seneca pay for that death three hundred years ago."

  Even Adrian could see Nikolai still made himself pay for it. “You didn't kill Virgil; it was an accident."

  "Logic never works on the memory of what I saw, Adrian.” Adrian could see the memories were once again behind a closed door. “I had already heard stories about you. The first time I met you, you resisted me and then turned around and threatened me. You do remind me of Virgil."

  Nikolai's hand nudge Adrian's chin, lifting his face gently and giving him a searching look. “You will allow me the same chance as the others, will you not?"

  "I don't think that is something I can be fair about, Nikolai. I have more than enough.” Ruthlessly, Adrian suppressed any kind of reaction. Nikolai was undeniably a compelling man; however, Adrian's life was already a mess. The gentle touch of Nikolai's lips replaced his thumb, trying to coax a response from Adrian, but Adrian wouldn't allow it and drew quickly away from Nikolai.

  "Then I will be content with the fact that I sense you would like to. In time, you will allow more."

  Refusing to say anything, Adrian kept a bland expression on his face and some distance between them.

  "Are you returning to the house with me, Adrian?"

  "I'll be in soon. Don't let me keep you from your court."

  Nikolai nodded slightly to him before taking a quick step toward Adrian. The brush of his lips wasn't as gentle this time, and a harder intensity marked the brief press of Nikolai's lips against Adrian's. He moved back before Adrian could say anything and walked away, leaving Adrian staring at his back.

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  Chapter 20

  Adrian remained standing there for at least fifteen minutes, staring up the statue of Venus. His thoughts refused to be sorted out, even with the quiet peace around him, and he knew the others were waiting for him. He headed reluctantly away from the temple, ambling back along the path.

  Rounding the corner of one of the large hedges, Adrian saw Charles Remington leaning against a tree near the maze. The hard edge to his expression told him Charles wasn't there to be social. Tensing in reaction, Adrian's hand moved to his staker, but he wasn't fast enough.

  With preternatural speed, Charles tackled him, sending both of them crashing to the ground. Adrian got the gun out, but Charles’ hand slammed Adrian's down, breaking his wrist with a sickening snap. The gun skittered out of Adrian's hand, his fingers rendered useless with the pain.

  "Not so fast, ghoul.” Remington straddled Adrian, his hand pinning Adrian's to the ground. The other traveled to Adrian's face, fingers grabbing his chin in a painful grip as Charles leered down at him. The weasel like features of his face didn't improve up close. His pale blue eyes fastened on Adrian's throat.

  "Get the fuck off me, asshole.” Jerking his head to the side, Adrian twisted slightly to see where his gun had gone. It wasn't close enough to him to grab.

  "Now, now, no need for that kind of language. I'm not here to kill you.” If Remington had meant that to be reassuring, it wasn't.

  "Then get off me."

  "The others were right about you. You are feisty.” In a blur, an open-handed blow from the back of his hand struck across the side of Adrian's face. Sparkling pinwheels of flashing light danced across his vision. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as Adrian grappled to get his senses back from the hit.

  Remington leaned down to lick at the blood, and Adrian's hand came up, grabbing a fistful of the auburn hair and yanking back hard. Charles’ nails cut into his hand as the vampire tried to force Adrian to let go. Strands of his hair came away in Adrian's hot little grip. That made Adrian happy.

  "Do we talk, or do I continue breaking things?” Remington kept his hand curled painfully tight around Adrian's uninjured wrist, just in case.

  Adrian needed at least one of his hands intact. Hissing in a breath, he calmed slightly. “What do you want?"

  "Now, that's better.” Releasing the hand, Charles patted his cheek before tilting Adrian head to the side, eyeing Adrian's throat. “Do I feed from you first, or feed you, Adrian?"

  "Nikolai and Gabriel will kill you, and you know it.” This little shit thought he could make Adrian his ghoul. Moron.

  "Nikolai won't mind at all. As for Gabriel, he'll try, but he won't have your power anymore. I will.” Remington seemed very positive about everything, which made Adrian wonder who had given him the idea Nikolai wouldn't mind.

  He wanted to strike the mocking smirk from Charles’ face, but he'd had enough of the who was stronger than whom game. His gun lay too far to reach, and his strength would be only half Charles'. Adrian was in deep shit and knew it.

  "It would take three weeks to do that. There is no place you can hide where Gabriel won't find you."

  "It's already taken care of.” Standing, he dragged Adrian with him.

  Adrian screamed mentally for Gabriel. He prayed even with the distance between them, that Gabriel would answer. Both of his hands struck at Charles’ chest, shoving him back as Adrian felt the immense rush of power almost drowning him. The energy overrode the jarring pain riding up Adrian's arm. Adrian scrambled for the gun even before his mind could finish the thought of getting it. His power more than equaled Charles’ now, drawing on Gabriel's.

  The enormous tidal wave of energy swept through Adrian, setting his body inwardly on fire. Shock made Charles hesitate for the split second it took Adrian to shoot him. The stake hit Charles, but, left-handed, Adrian wasn't as accurate with the staker. He got the second shot out before Charles could advance on him, and it took the vampire down.

  Groggily, Adrian shook his head. The sense of Gabriel's presence overwhelmed him as he rode the intoxicating rush. He looked around, expecting to see Gabriel. It quickly faded as the burst of power left him. Holstering the gun, Adrian staggered toward Charles. Adrian would have bruises to show for this later and dull pain jolted up his arm in repeated throbs. He knelt beside the prone body, trying to work out the best way to do what he needed to do.

  Kyle wandered out into the garden, searching for Adrian, then quickly took in the scene as he moved to stand beside Adrian. “What the hell happened this time?"

  "I need your hunting knife.” Adrian could tell Kyle instantly understood what he wanted to do, and Kyle had the knife in hand right after Adrian asked for it.

  "His heart?"

  "Yeah,” One handed, Adrian tore open Remington's shirt, popping the buttons. Adrian knew Charles was aware of them, but there wasn't a damn thing the vampire could do. Staked, Charles was paralyzed and helpless. And Adrian would kill him.

  "Let me take care of it, Adrian. I know the anatomy better than you do."

  "I'll help anyway."

  Kyle started to carve into the chest cavity, slicing open the skin to get at the heart. He made a blo
ody mess in his enthusiastic work. It wasn't easy opening a body to get to the heart. It didn't bother Adrian, though. This wasn't exactly a living body. Remington was already dead. He'd just never stopped moving around until now.

  They worked together silently, their hands slippery with blood. Kyle continued determinedly until Adrian got his hand around the dead heart. With a hard yank, Adrian ripped it out of Remington's chest, his own strength enough of a match to achieve it. That took care of Remington. The loss of blood wouldn't do him in, and he remained alive because his dead body didn't need the heart to survive. However, his body would disintegrate the moment the morning sun touched it, as he'd lived way past his natural lifespan. Charles would remain paralyzed for eternity now without his heart, or until the rays of the sun got him.

  Leaving the carcass, they went back into the house, heading for the throne room. A few shocked looks greeted them as they walked down the halls, but the servants didn't intervene. As they entered the throne room, the buzz of voices faltered before going completely silent in complete astonishment. Nikolai rose from his seat, staring at Adrian. Before Adrian could say anything, another servant, ignoring the bloody mess in Adrian's hand, tugged at his sleeve.

  "Sir, Prince Garland wants to speak to you urgently.” He held out the phone, waiting for Adrian to take it.

  "This is not the time. Tell Prince Garland everything is fine, and I'll call him later.” Adrian started moving toward Nikolai as the servant repeated the message to Gabriel. Xander, Skye and Indy crossed the room to intercept Adrian. Nobody had said a word yet except for the servant and Adrian, though the tension level in the room had tripled.

  "Whose heart is that, Adrian?” Nikolai asked calmly, as if he'd already expected something like this to happen.

  Adrian doubted Nikolai would be in on this because Nikolai would never have agreed to let him be Charles’ ghoul. However, Adrian had a fair idea of someone who might have supported it. The look on Ash's face pretty much confirmed he was behind it; he seemed stunned to see Adrian, and he never once looked at the heart in Adrian's hand.

  Another tug on his sleeve stopped Adrian from answering. The servant held out the phone to him again with a pleading look. Apparently, Gabriel hadn't accepted the explanation and had unleashed his anger on the poor servant.

  Adrian grabbed the phone awkwardly. Now that the adrenaline rush had faded, pain throbbed through his arm. With his wrist broken, he had to use one hand for the heart and phone. His arm held the phone to his ear and blood dripped on his hair from the heart. “Gabriel, everything is fine. Can I call you back later?"

  Gabriel's voice sounded at the edge of panic when he answered, “I felt the energy drain. What happened, Adrian?"

  "Another coup attempt, I took care of it."

  "I want you home right now, Adrian. No arguments, do you understand me?"

  "I won't be arguing with you on that, I promise. We will be returning tomorrow.” Adrian looked directly at Nikolai who had stopped in front of him, listening to Adrian's part of the conversation. “But I need to explain a few things to everybody else, so if you don't mind, I'll hang up now."

  "If I have to come get you myself, you will come home.” Gabriel wasn't about to let go so easily.

  Adrian dropped the phone, and Skye grabbed it from him, talking in a low tone to his Father. Nikolai stared down at the heart in Adrian's hand, before the vampire took it from him.

  "I never doubted you could take care of yourself, but tell me exactly what happened, and why I have—” he paused, nostrils flaring slightly as he took a breath before continuing. “Why I have Charles Remington's heart in my hand?"

  "He attacked me in the garden.” Adrian's tone remained casual as if they were having a normal, everyday conversation. “Seems he wanted to ghoul me, and he didn't think you would be bothered by it."

  "Now, I wonder where he got that idea?"

  Ash stared at Adrian, not bothering to hide his contempt as he stepped forward. Xander, Kyle, Skye and Indy stood behind Adrian, keeping Ash in their sight. Several of Nikolai's enforcers stepped behind Ash with one look from Nikolai.

  "I think I have a fair idea, don't you?"

  "I believe I agree with your assessment.” The casual tone turned to steel as Nikolai addressed his son. “Ash, what have you to say to this?"

  "He serves a better purpose that way, Father. Either that, or dispose of him, then we need not be bothered with him."

  "You don't seem to realize this is my business, not yours, child, and you have overstepped your bounds.” As he spoke, Nikolai strode over to Ash, grabbing his son's face.

  Ragged slashes marred Ash's face when he didn't even try to block the attack. His voice remained quiet, not once rising despite the blood that dripped down his face. “You can't do this to me, Father. He is nothing but a ghoul."

  "You will be silent, my boy. Accept your fate quietly, or it will be the worse for you.” Stepping back, Nikolai spoke to his enforcers. “Take him downstairs, and I will deal with him later."

  As they hauled Ash away, Adrian stood to the side, ignoring his angered curses. Nikolai would deal with his kid however he thought best.

  "I will be leaving tomorrow, Nikolai.” It would be one night less than Nikolai bargained for, but Adrian didn't care. He'd had enough.

  "I would argue; however, I understand.” Nikolai didn't push at all. It vaguely surprised Adrian, as he had expected some show of force. “Will you at least allow me to talk with you later tonight?"

  After nodding to his request, Adrian hightailed it out of the room. He needed to clean all the blood off and get his wrist attended to. The pain had already subsided, but it still needed to be taken care of. After Kyle checked it over to make sure it would heal right, he taped it to keep it immobile.

  * * * *

  Adrian had settled comfy-cozy in his bed for the night, enjoying a great dream involving Xander, him, and a deserted beach. Something disturbed his sleep, awaking him from the pleasant dream. When Adrian opened his eyes, the sight of Nikolai sitting on the edge of his bed made him freeze.

  "Nikolai, can't you just knock?"

  "I didn't think you would answer, and I wanted one more chance on my own terms to convince you to stay with me."

  "At least you are honest, but what makes you think I will allow it?"

  "You are not exactly immune to me, Adrian.” The silvering of Nikolai's eyes flared as they slowly roamed over him.

  "That is a problem I have with a few people lately. It doesn't exactly make me eager for everything. Now get the hell out of here.” Adrian started to edge away from Nikolai, moving cautiously to the other side of the bed. “No tasting the mortal, remember?” He quickly reminded Nikolai, catching where the vampire's gaze was headed.

  "Not unless he agrees, and I wish you would.” Nikolai made no effort to seduce him, which puzzled Adrian to say the least.

  "Get out of here, Nikolai.” Adrian grabbed at the sheet as he eyed Nikolai warily. Moving to the edge of the bed, Adrian stood, tugging the sheet and drawing it with him.

  "I could easily force you into this, Adrian. You know that as well as I do. I gave you my word I wouldn't, but my word can be broken without much thought on my part."

  Adrian stepped back, trying to reach the nightstand where his weapons were. He didn't quite like the bad sense he felt.

  Tendrils of shiny blackness uncoiled from the shadows in the far corner. They danced eerily like snakes as they lengthened over the floor, moving toward them. Adrian had never seen anything like it, and he didn't want to see it now. One strand wrapped around his ankle as another slid up over the sheet like a shot and coiled around his wrist. “What the hell is this?"

  Trying to jerk himself free of them only tightened their grip. The attempt caused Adrian to lose hold on the sheet.

  "The shadows sense my frustration and are acting accordingly, Adrian.” Nikolai didn't seem too terribly upset. “I haven't quite made up my mind yet on you."

  In the blink of
an eye, two more black threads confined Adrian's other wrist and ankle as another slithered slowly over him, creeping up his leg. When Adrian stumbled, trying to get away, he tumbled back, falling onto the bed. The free ends of each ribbon of black tangled to the posters of the bed, and Adrian started to panic. “Get them off me!"

  "Unfortunately, I don't control them."

  Adrian knew Nikolai lied. The cold chill crawling over his belly made Adrian frantically pull against the ones that held him.

  "Do you even realize what I can do for you?” The soft voice took on a carnal darkness. The relentless grasp of the shadows tightened, keeping Adrian held down as Nikolai bent over him, trailing one finger downward on Adrian's thigh. “With a touch, I can show the true meaning of darkness, or give you mindless pain and unbelievable pleasure."

  The room disappeared, and a haze of ebbing shades of black danced around Adrian. The expanse revealed a yawning chasm: hidden within, darkness beyond comprehension, painfully slow in revealing itself. Adrian could see it, yet in the seeing, couldn't grasp it all. Infinity opened before him in an endless ream of blackness.

  He could see nothing but blinding night, the understanding of it opened deep in Adrian's mind. He knew it to be a living thing, but the thought was impossible. The overwhelming realization that it was real, and not a hallucination, hit him. Its very existence summoned Adrian to it as he felt the brush of things he couldn't see, crawling over him.

  Sudden pain rushed through the emptiness, engulfing Adrian and driving out all sanity except the need to escape. His body writhed in torment, trying to free itself from the restraints as he screamed. He couldn't even hear the sound. Barely aware of anything, Adrian struggled for breath in the airless cavity of nothingness as it sought to claim him.

  "Ride with it, learn from it." Disembodied words that had no form reached his mind. A dim perception of someone else briefly touched Adrian. Nikolai?