The queen laughed again, putting my nerves on edge. “Wrong, my dear.” She stalked over to me and put her hands on my cheeks, as if she were staring down at a lover. “Do you know what you’ll tell him?”
“No,” I said, shying away from the terrible face that hovered too close. “What do I tell him?”
“You’re going to tell him that I want the halo. But not because I want Joachim back. Oh, no.” The rumble of a laugh started in her throat. “Not after he betrayed me. But I do want his power. And when I have his halo, I will absorb his essence into my flesh and become the most powerful creature on either side of Heaven or Hell.”
It was too terrifying to even think about. “I’ll tell him,” I agreed, too scared to do anything else.
“Good,” she purred. “And tell him that you’ll be getting it for me.” Nitocris pressed her lips onto my forehead, directly over the spot that Uriel had kissed me on. My forehead flared with heat once more, then settled into a dull, burning ache.
I jerked away from her, forgetting that she was the hungry shark and I was a mere minnow. “Me?” My voice came out as an angry squeak. “Why me?”
Nitocris studied me, smiling. “Don’t you want to work for me, child?”
“No!” I clapped a hand over my mouth as soon as I realized what I had said. Nitocris raised an eyebrow, and I cleared my throat. “What I meant to say was that I can’t work for you. I’m sorry.”
“You’ll work for me, whore-child. Do not doubt it.” She laughed again, strolling back to where Remy was being held at one of the booths. A feeling of dread began to sweep over me. “You do value your friendship with this one, do you not?” she called over her shoulder, approaching Remy and putting her fingers under her chin.
Remy stared straight ahead, ignoring the queen, her eyes focused on me with a warning look. I couldn’t tell if she was warning me not to fall for the queen’s bluff, or to do what she asked.
“So pretty, isn’t she? But then again, that’s one of the trademarks of your kind. Pretty, and sexual. It’s been a long time since my men have tasted the flesh of a succubus, and I know that they consider it a rare and wonderful delight.” Her smile was turned back to me again. “I think your friend will stay with us while you go and find my halo. What do you think?”
“I think it’s a bad idea?” I offered meekly, trying to be tough and failing miserably.
Nitocris’s smile became thin. “Nevertheless, she’ll stay with us until you bring the halo back and place it in my hands. Understand?” She released Remy and pointed at two of her men. “Take her away and chain her up.”
The vampire pair immediately grabbed Remy, wide smiles creasing their faces. Dread settled in the pit of my stomach as Remy began to kick and scream, snarling obscenities at the two men. “Don’t do it,” she screamed over and over. “Don’t do it!”
I didn’t know if she was talking to me or the queen. I turned wide eyes on Nitocris, who was admiring her fingernails.
“Such a pity that she’s not in a more amenable mood, isn’t it?” She gave me a coy smile. “I’m sure that will change in the next twenty-four hours or so. How often do you girls have the urge? As often as my men must feed, yes?”
That
“No, she hasn’t,” the queen agreed. “Which is why you’ll want to free her from her prison. All you need to do is bring me a halo. Simple, isn’t it?”
Remy’s screams grew quieter and more muffled. Tears threatened my eyes, and I had to blink hard to force them away. I didn’t want to cry in front of her.
“Well?” Nitocris regarded me with interest. “What do you have to say, Colette?”
My body was numb. I felt my lips move, but it didn’t register, not even when I heard myself say, “You’ll get your halo.”
Queen Nitocris smiled. “I know.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
As soon as I was released from the nightclub, I stumbled outside and threw up. Shaking, sick, and frightened out of my mind, I wiped my chin and stumbled to valet parking and retrieved Remy’s car. No one seemed to think anything of me leaving by myself after entering with the famous Miss Summore, which made me wonder what kind of life she led, or what sorts of things truly went on in the club.
I got behind the wheel of Remy’s BMW and buckled in, turning the A/C on high. I felt overheated and like I’d been turned inside out. Nitocris’s hideous smile played through my mind over and over, as well as Remy’s terrified screams.
This was all my fault.
My skin crawled, too. Not with fear or horror (though those were certainly running through my mind), but with lust. Queen Nitocris’s kiss had canceled out the angel’s kiss and replaced it with something far more compulsive. My overheated flesh cried out for relief, the soft fabric of my clothing chafing against my skin. The Itch had returned.
I opened the glove compartment and yanked out Remy’s cell phone as I eased the car onto the highway, then hammered my thumb on the down arrow to flip through the saved numbers. Her address book was enormous, but I found Noah’s cell number and pressed the memory dial button. The phone rang once and went straight to voicemail. “This is Noah. Leave a message.”
“Shit!” I screamed into the phone. “Answer the phone, you asshole. I need you!” I slammed my finger down on the Disconnect button and threw the phone into the passenger seat.
Then I smacked my hand against the steering wheel. “Oh, shit-it’s night. Noah’s not up yet.” I winced. He wasn’t going to like my voicemail.
He wouldn’t be too keen on my news, either, come to think of it. The voicemail was the least of our worries.
I drove around for a while, trying to get my mind together. It was still at least an hour or two before dawn, and I wasn’t tired, of course. I didn’t need sleep anymore. I did, however, need a righteous shot of coffee and some headache pills.
I also needed to have a talk with my buddy Uriel, who’d sold me down a river with a smile and a kiss.
Half an hour later, I stormed into St. Anthony’s cathedral with a latte in hand. If I’d thought the church was empty at 6:30 a.m., it was a wasteland at four in the morning. I sat down on the back pew and sipped my coffee. The heat between my legs was uncomfortable, so I crossed my legs back and forth, squirming as I waited.
For like, two minutes. I’m not the most patient person. So when the cathedral remained empty, I decided the time for pleasantry was over. “Uriel,” I bellowed at the top of my lungs. “I know you’re out there.”
Still nothing. Oh, I knew he was there. The trick was making him show himself.
I lifted my coffee cup and threatened, “You’d better show yourself, or I’m going to head for the holy water.”
“Jacqueline.” Uriel’s voice rang from behind me and I turned, watching the angel move forward, the white wings flowing down his back. “It is so good to see you again.” He looked as beautiful and pure as I remembered. He also looked guilty as hell.
“Can the crap, Uriel. You used me because I didn’t know what was going on. I should never have listened to you.”
“I don’t know what you mean, Jacqueline. I thought our bargain was straightforward. You get a little info for me, and I return the favor with one of my own. I fail to see how that’s ‘using you,’ as you say.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Yeah? Well, the vampires figured me out in three seconds flat, and now they know that you’re checking up on them. They’ve taken my friend Remy hostage, too.” Tears threatened and I had to blink hard, which only made things worse as I got mascara in my eyes. Dammit.
“What?” Uriel’s features slid into a frown of concern.
“I know,” I sniffed, trying hard not to blubber and not succeeding very well. “They’ve got Remy and I don’t know how to get her back.”
He shook his head. “What did you say about the vampires knowing I’m-that is, we’re-involved? Did you find out why they are gathering?”
