Firestorm

it was only at the last second that I realized he hadn't untied my ankles, and I was relatively safe from the traditional kind of assault.

But then, Eamon didn't strike me as a traditional kind of rapist, either.

'Shhh,' he whispered, and I froze as the sharp edge of a huge knife pressed against my throat. 'Say hello to your daughter and tell her not to be stupid.'

Imara? I gasped and blinked, and saw her face in the darkness, pale as snow. She was crouched in the corner, wild and feral as an Ifrit. Her eyes blazed hot gold.

'No,' I croaked out, and waved one bound hand ineffectively. 'Don't, Imara.'

'That's excellent advice. It takes one little slip to end your mother's life.'

No answer. No move from Imara. She just waited, staring, patient as a lion. Eamon's hand was trembling, just a little.

'I just want to establish the ground rules,' he said. 'First off, I'm keeping this knife in place until I have a clear understanding between us, all right? The drug that I injected in Joanne is toxic. Slow, but sure. I have the antidote. Not on me, of course. Do what I say, and everyone comes out of this alive and happy.'

'Mom?'

'I'm okay,' I said.

'No, in point of fact, you're not,' Eamon said. 'As I was saying. And if your offspring rips my heart out, you'll be buying burial plots for two, because your sister won't survive the day, either. I gave her a little shot, as well. Insurance. Now that we're clear about the cost of vengeance, I'm going to remove the knife from Joanne's throat, and you're going to be a very good little Djinn, aren't you?'

Imara's lips pulled back from her teeth in a snarl, but she didn't move. Eamon leaned back, then slipped off me with a creak of bedsprings. He used the knife on the ropes, quick slashes, and I rolled over on my side. I felt hot and sick. Drugged. Too drugged to do much. Eamon patted me on the shoulder. 'There, there. You'll feel better— well, if you make me happy. If not, you'll slip into a coma and die.'

Imara was up on her feet in one fluid motion. Her hands were at her sides, but I could see the gleam of claws, and threw her a warning shake of my head. 'He gave me a shot,' I said. 'Can't—just wait. Wait.'

Eamon hauled me to my feet. Cold air hit my skin, and I remembered with a bleary shudder that I was naked. He barely glanced at me, just shoved me forward into Imara's arms. 'Get her dressed,' he said. 'Don't think of trying anything tricky. If you cooperate, we'll be saying our fond farewells in just a little while.'

'Mom?' Imara sounded scared, and pissed as hell. 'Should I kill him?'

Funny, I'd been blaming David for murder in the name of self-preservation just a little while ago, hadn't I? But if I hadn't had Sarah's life depending on this, as well as my own, I'd have cheerfully watched Imara de-bone the bastard right in front of me. Flexible ethics. The key to a happy life.

'No,' I said. 'Not yet.'

She opened up a bag that was lying on the floor behind her. Clothes. Nice ones. Silky, formfitting underwear. A silky pair of gray microfiber pants. A pull-on black velvet scoop-necked top.

And a pair of elegant black shoes, sculptural and spike-heeled.

'Manolo,' my daughter said. 'For moral support. There's a more practical pair underneath.'

The other pair was Miu Miu fiats. I swallowed hard and slipped them on. Perfect, of course. I kissed Imara on the cheek and smiled at her. Weakly.

'I'll kill him for hurting you,' she said.

'Maybe,' I agreed. 'But for right now, let's just see what he wants.'

'What he wants,' Eamon said from where he reclined on the bed, 'is to get your lovely bums out of here and into the car. Shall we?'

I nodded. The room did a greasy, unpleasant spin, but I hung on.

'Fine,' I said grimly. 'The faster we can get you out of our lives, the better I'm going to like it.'

'Ah,' he sighed. 'Just when we were starting to bond.'

Chapter Seven

He'd said a couple of hours. Actually, in most cars it would have been about four; in the Camaro, with Imara behind the wheel, it was closer to two.

No small talk. I sat in the backseat, with Eamon; he had his knife out and tapped the flat of it restlessly against his knee. I felt sicker than ever, my head pounding so hard that I started to worry about an aneurysm. Resting my left temple against the cool window glass seemed to help. A little.

I roused to find that Eamon was taking my pulse. He seemed competent enough at it… He looked up when I tried to pull away and held on. 'How do you feel?' he asked.

'Like I'm dying.'

'I can give you something for the headache.'

'The last thing I want is you medicating me. Again.'

He shrugged and went back to tapping his knife. Imara was watching us in the rearview mirror. I nodded slightly to let her know I was all right.

The rest of the trip was conducted in tense silence.

We arrived in Boston just after dark, and Eamon gave directions in terse, single-turn increments. I had no idea where we were going, and it was a bit of a surprise to pull up in the parking lot of a huge granite building. I'd been expecting some deserted warehouse, some place where his sleazy business—whatever it might be—could be conducted in private.

This was a hospital.

'Out,' he said to me, and prodded me with the point of the knife when I didn't move. Imara growled, low in her throat. 'Let's all behave nicely. We're nearly done, you know. I'd hate for you to screw it up now.'

I got out of the car and had to brace myself against the cool finish. Oh, God, I felt sick. Nothing in my stomach, or it would have been on the pavement. Imara took my arm, and Eamon slid the knife into a leather sheath that he concealed in a folded magazine.

'Right,' he said. 'After you, please.'

We went in through the front door, just another concerned little family crowded together for support. All hospitals look pretty much the same; this one had a lived-in feel despite the constant application of astringents and floor wax. Lots of people in scrubs walking the halls, which were decorated with soothing framed prints. I barely noticed. I was too busy thinking about whether or not, since I was in a hospital, I should start shouting for help. The fact that the knife was still in Eamon's possession was a cause for concern, though. He could hurt innocent bystanders.

And would.

'Easy,' Eamon whispered in my hear, as if he'd sensed my inner debate. 'Let's not get tricky, love. On the elevator, please. And push six.'

A long, slow ride. It was just the three of us. I calculated the odds of whether or not Imara could take him before he could stab me, and I could see she was doing the same math problem. She slowly shook her head. Not that she couldn't take him—she could—but that she didn't think it was a good idea.

Neither did I.

The doors dinged open at the sixth floor, and there was another long, clean hallway. Deathly still. We moved down it, and as we came even with an inset nurse's station, the woman on duty looked up and smiled.

'Eamon!' She looked ridiculously happy to see him. Did she not have any idea? No, of course she didn't. He was turning on the charm for her. 'You're coming kind of late. Visiting hours just finished.'

'Sorry,' he said. 'My cousin and her daughter got held up at Logan. Is it all right—?'

'Logan? That figures. Sure. Just don't stay too long, okay?' The nurse gave us an impersonal smile, half the wattage she'd reserved for Eamon. She focused in on me, and frowned a bit. 'Poor thing, you look done in. Long flight?'

'The red-eye from hell,' I said. Before I could say anything else, like Call the police, you idiot, Eamon hustled me onward. 'All right, what is this?' I hissed. 'Why are you taking us to a