Shadows of Fate (Shadow Born) (14 page)

Snow crunched beneath his boots as he moved around to the front of the house.

And found Brenna alone, sitting on the front stoop.

Although she was a small woman, the rotting wood was shifting beneath her, creaking in the silence. He imagined she had come outside to calm her nerves or to escape the others.

The sight of her struck a long untapped chord in his heart. Her long copper hair hung in waves down her back, sprinkled with dots of ice and snow. She didn’t move, either she was ignoring him or she hadn’t noticed him yet.

He moved forward. His feet sunk into the snow and the sound echoed around them.

Straightening, a sigh shifting her shoulders, she turned to face him. Her golden eyes glistened. “You’re back.” Brenna got to her feet. “I was wondering where you went. I felt you shift out.”

A glimmer of regret flashed. The blood exchange must have stirred the connection between them if she had felt him leave. Any bond between them risked exposing him, but they would share blood again. He wouldn’t be able to resist. Another taste of her was worth the risk.

He dropped the case at her feet. “I come bearing gifts.”

She wrinkled her nose. “They stink, even through the metal.”

“Which is why I don’t want to take them inside,” he said. “Is there somewhere I can put them?”

Stepping off the stoop, she motioned for him to follow. “No one uses the shed out back.” She paused, glancing back at him. “What are they?”

“Torture devices.”

She stopped. “Excuse me?”

“I got them from the Brotherhood. They found them at one of their own shrines.”

Her pale skin flushed, slowly moving up her neck until her face was deeply colored. He cringed as she ripped open the door to the shed, the deadlock flying across the snow.

“You went to see Adare. Did you even consider the risk?”

How did she know Adare? The leader of the Brotherhood kept his identity under tight wraps. The IRT was better informed than he thought.

“It needed to be done.” He said, ignoring her glare. “I know how to handle him.”

“I doubt that.” She bent down, opening the case, and pulled back as the scent of rotted flesh filled the air. “He must like you.”

“We have an understanding.”

She snorted, looking at the gruesome contents. “Clearly.”

“There’s another group working with the demons, bringing them over. They are using these.” He bent down and picked up a stick, then lifted a pair of blood covered handcuffs from the case. “Lucy might want to run tests on them.”

“Yeah. She’ll love that.”

Her anger hung in the air between them, a large white mammoth stomping across the room. Gray waited for her to say what was on her mind.

“Seraph and I have an agreement. All contact with Adare is supposed to go through me.” She turned to face Gray. “Do you have any idea what you’ve jeopardized?”

“He’s a big boy. I doubt he’ll get his panties in a wad over it.” Gray grinned. “Besides, my connection with him predates my tenure with the IRT.”

Her eyes narrowed. “So does mine. He’s a friend.”

His suspicions rose. “What type of friend?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

Gray growled. If Adare had touched her, he was a dead man walking. He grabbed her wrist. “He works with demons and uses people to gain power. You can’t find that attractive.”

Brennan fought his grip. “Things aren’t always what they seem. He’s not a monster.”

“Close.”

She pulled her arm free, but Gray’s eyes hardened. “So was it Seraph’s idea to whore you out for the team, or did you come up with it by yourself?”

She brushed past him out of the shed. “It’s nothing to you if I decide to whore myself. It wouldn’t be the first time.”

Her meaning struck him like ice water. “Seraph is not your father. You can say no to him.”

She laughed. “You’re right, I can.” She glanced back at him. “You’re assuming I want to.”

He followed her outside, spelling the lock on the shed. Her reaction bothered him. He cursed himself. Only an idiot would imagine she held no bitterness at being told to sacrifice herself for her people. But before the wedding, he had thought she was willing.

“I didn’t know you were so bitter,” he said. “A hundred years is a long time to hold a grudge.”

Brenna stopped and turned back, fire dancing in her irises. “I’m not bitter. I’ve made a career out of being the sacrificial lamb.” She stared him down. “Adare is my friend. Whether or not he is my lover is none of your concern.”

“It is if it affects our job.” How could she flirt with the idea of being with Adare when she had sworn a blood oath to be faithful to someone else? Betrayal singed his emotions. He struggled to control his anger.

“The only thing affecting our job is your refusal to play well with others. Contact Seraph and have him pick those things up. Some dried blood and guts might make Lucy’s day. I’m going to go clean up your mess.”

“Take someone with you,” he ordered as she turned. The glance she shot over her shoulder would have castrated a weaker man.

“Once again, last I checked, you weren’t the boss. Call me if Marissa shows up, or you find out anything new.”

Gray watched her disappear into the house. His rage simmered. Only a hundred years had passed since Dunham’s death, had he meant so little to her? He wanted to demand answers. Instead he had to hide behind this glamour and pretend to be something he wasn’t—a man who had no reason to care.

He slammed his fist deep into the tree beside him, and pulled back bloody knuckles. Once he had regained control, he pulled out his newly imprinted phone and rang Seraph.

No one answered. He imagined Brenna had gotten there first.

Do not turn around. Do not give him the satisfaction.

Brenna repeated the mantra in her head as she stepped into the front hall. Hands shaking, she pulled out her phone to contact Seraph. Gray was going to get them all killed.

She didn’t wait for the sound of Seraph’s gravelly voice to start her tirade. “Why did you think it was a good idea to assign this moron to me? Does he listen? Is he helpful? No. He’s going to get Adare killed.”

“Take a breath, Brenna.” He sounded amused. That did nothing to calm her down.

“Not until you take him back. I don’t want him. I can’t work with him.” She moved further into the room. “Give me someone else.
Anyone
else. What about Shepard? I can’t babysit a Shadow Bearer right now. I don’t have time.”

The connection clicked as if someone had tried to tap in.

“The bastard is trying to contact me,” Seraph said. “Probably to complain about you. So, what did he do?”

She filled him in.

“If you had told him about your past with Adare, this wouldn‘t have happened.”

She squeezed her hand into a fist. “This is not my fault. We were supposed to go together. Besides, Adare is in deep. I didn’t think Gray needed to know.”

“Even though the Brotherhood keeps coming up on our list of suspects?” he asked, not bothering to hide his censure.

“I didn’t want to blow Adare’s cover.”

“Gray is one of us. Couldn’t you offer an olive branch, instead of waiting for him to screw up?”

“No.”

Seraph blew out a hard breath. “Why not?”

She glanced across the yard to where Gray stood, next to a tree. “He’s a Shadow Bearer. We’re all liars. Besides, Adare cooperated with him. That is a major red flag.”

“So now you don’t trust Adare either?”

“I’m not saying that. I still trust him, but it doesn’t make sense for him to cooperate with Gray. They don’t know each other.”

He let out a deep breath. “Do you trust
me
, Brenna?”

She hesitated. “Of course.”

“Good. I didn’t put Gray with you for my amusement. He can be an arrogant ass, but he’s useful.”

“But—”

“Not negotiable,” he interrupted. “Cooperate with him. He’s your partner.”

She let out a breath, sinking against the wall. “Fine. But whatever he does is on you.”

“Agreed.” He paused. There was frantic yelling in the background. “I can’t get out there today. I’ll send someone when I can for the pickup.
Thirty
high ranking deviants disappeared last night. I’ve got everyone I can spare working on it.”

“The demons are stepping up their game.”

“Clearly. But I want it investigated. It could be a mass drug induced teleportation at a rave, for all we know. They could all be wandering
 
around the Nevada desert naked.”

“
Right
. I’m sure that’s exactly what happened,” she replied. “But don’t worry, I’ll keep an open mind.”

He laughed. “Exactly. No preconceptions. You might miss something.”

“Aye, aye boss man. I’ll even warn Nevada of possible invading nudists.”

Gray appeared in the doorway as she ended the call. The look in his eyes reminded her of a teapot that had sat on the stove for so long all the water had evaporated, leaving the metal scorched.

“He’ll get someone here as soon as he can.”

Gray remained silent.

“I needed to call him about something else,” she added, fighting the urge to squirm. “I didn’t remember until I came inside.”

Gray moved closer until she could feel his breath against her forehead. His hips pressed against her, pushing her backward.

“Do you mind?” she whispered. She could feel his blood pulsing hypnotically, his breath hot against her skin.

“I’m tired of playing games,” he said.

She shook as his fingertip trailed her cheek. He seemed to be in a daze, not quite in control.

“If you’re upset we shared blood, tell me. I’m not going to tiptoe around you just because you’re sensitive.” She pushed at his chest. He didn’t move. “You said it yourself. My reserves are low. We need each other to keep up our strength.” She pushed again. “Let me go. I need to see Adare.”

“Adare can wait.”

When she opened her mouth to speak, he placed one long finger against her lips. “No more words.” And then he claimed her mouth with his own.

His lips were hard. They slipped her lips open so she could taste his tongue. Unable to resist, she met him stroke for stroke. Her blood rose to a slow boil. The world slipped away in his embrace. She pulled him closer. His hard chest pressed against her breasts. It wasn’t enough. She needed more. Sweat beaded on her skin as her desire for him escalated.

He released her abruptly, holding her at arm’s length. “Tell me you want me.” He held up a hand as she began to speak. “Not my blood. Me.”

She took a step back. “We need each other, Gray, but… I don’t even
know
you.” Nevertheless she was nearly overwhelmed with the desire to be back in his arms.

“You know enough.” He stepped closer again. “You’ve known me longer than you knew Dunham.” The sound of her husband’s name cut through any desire she’d felt. Shamed at her loss of self-control, she stepped away from Gray. Her body protested.

Gray watched her, suddenly unaffected. He yawned as if it had all been an act. “Did you have time to go over the rest of the files Seraph brought over?”

She stared at him, unable to process his words.

“Brenna?”

How could he stand there as if nothing had happened?

She pulled herself together. “I slid them under your door. We can go over them when I get back.”

Gray called up the stairwell. “Sam! Get down here.”

A minute later the incubus stumbled down the stairs, shirtless, his jeans barely zipped up. He shuffled across the room in his bare feet. Sam was a living example of why pheromones were a dangerous thing. Two minutes alone was all he needed to have any ordinary woman salivating over him despite his slovenly appearance. Of course, he was gorgeous. That didn’t hurt.

“What? What happened?”

Brenna pulled her hands through her hair, trying to hide the fact they were still trembling. Gray had done a number on her, and Sam’s presence probably wasn’t helping. Again, she wanted to grab Gray and finish what he had started. But she couldn’t. And she hated herself for wanting to.

“Go back to bed, Sam. I’ve got this,” said Brenna.

Sam flushed. His tan skin swam with color. “Geeze. Come. Go. Make up your minds.”

Gray motioned Sam forward. “I am going to run an errand,” he said. “Watch her while I’m gone. If she leaves, follow her.”

Brenna sputtered, “You have no right —”

“Follow her,” he repeated. He let the front door slam behind him as he left.

“What did you do to tick him off?” Sam cocked a quizzical brow. “And, uh, is he your boss now?”

She was
so
not in the mood.

She pushed past him up the stairs. “Go back to bed, Sam,” she repeated, heading for her room. Gray had crossed so many lines there weren’t many left. She couldn’t work with the man. He was impossible. Yet she wanted him. Badly.