“I was a sort of fairy godfather, if you will. There when he needed me. Behind the scenes the rest of the time.” He stood, unnaturally unwrinkled. I took a step back, and he smiled benignly. “I could do the same for you.”
“I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“You’ll need help running this empire.” He gestured to the window, then folded his hands in front of him. “Navigating men like John who see only dollar signs when they look at you. They’ll see you as someone to run down on their way to a financial utopia. But I could teach you how to nullify his greed while using his skills for your own gain. I’ve known many such men myself.”
He was the archetype for such men.
I bit my lip, nodding, then changed the subject lest he think me too smart. “So what are you doing here now?”
“Paying my respects, of course.” He sighed heavily, looking over at Xavier. “Saying good-bye.”
Seeing if there was anything left of Xavier’s soul to drain, I thought wryly. Maybe I should offer him a straw.
“Well,” he said in the wake of my silence, “at least promise me you’ll think about it.”
He held out his hand. I looked at it as shock struck me like a bolt. He’d know who and what I was as soon as I touched him. He’d feel my too-smooth fingertips. And from the narrow, assessing look in his eyes, that was the point. He wasn’t here for Xavier, he was here because he knew Olivia Archer would be also. He was testing the waters of this relationship, beginning to build trust on both sides.
I swallowed hard, making damned sure to keep the scent of my emotions dampened, and took a step forward. But I let my gaze veer to Xavier’s lifeless body, willed my face into a teary frown, and ran right into the footstool that’d been pushed thoughtlessly aside.
“Ow!” I leaned down, rubbing at my shin.
“Are you okay?” Though buried beneath layers of control, the annoyance was sharp in his voice. I glanced up and gave him one of Olivia’s most sheepish and sweetest smiles.
“I’m such a klutz. I mean, I fell down half a staircase just yesterday. See?”
I pushed up my shirt to reveal the marks I’d received from Hunter. Most men would focus on the petal smooth belly and curve of my hip. The Tulpa, I knew, was only seeing the bruises. He relaxed further into the shadows, no longer interested in touching, testing me. Why should he? I was clearly mortal. “You should be more careful.”
“That’s so true,” I said, pulling my shirt down. I nodded vigorously, then looked again at Xavier.
“Oh…” The Tulpa stood fluidly. “How rude of me. Of course you want a few moments alone to say good- bye.”
“Yes.” I lowered my head, pretending not to see his outstretched hand. Fortunately, he dropped it. “Thank you.”
He slid by so smoothly I expected to hear a rattler’s tail. I stepped to Xavier’s bedside to ward off my shudder, and bit my lip as I looked at Xavier’s body.
“You may call me if you need anything at all. Helen knows how to get ahold of me.”
I nodded but didn’t look up, not wanting to give him too much deference, too early. Olivia would have no idea who he was, so this first impression wouldn’t leave much of a visible mark. But he would be back, I now knew, hearing the sitting room door snap shut. The Tulpa was going to try and use me. The Archer dynasty was too vast and strong to allow a little lost soul to get in the way.
I lifted my gaze to Xavier’s face, wondering how he’d feel about that. Again I was shocked from thought by his appearance. He was hardly much more than a skeleton with skin, a thin, brittle covering that would be decomposed by week’s end. I will not feel sorry for him, I thought, clenching my jaw as my gaze drifted down his once-great frame, snagging on the fingers that had once curled in cast-iron fists. They were pencil thin now. I could reach out and snap them like twigs.
No, I’d waste no sorrow on Xavier. The man had willingly sold his soul for status. He’d given the Tulpa a front of respectability, and a base from which to operate. Xavier, more than any other person, had helped the Tulpa actualize in this world.
“Don’t think of that,” I muttered to myself, wiping at my eyes. There must have been pollen or dander or dust mites thick in the room. “Just focus on facts.”
And the fact was, it made no difference that someone else would have taken up the mantle if Xavier had refused-there was no shortage of people who’d abandon morals for money-because it
So Xavier hadn’t died from something practical, like a disease that had forgotten to question his station and power and status before creeping up to strangle his arteries. He hadn’t even died from something as dramatic as a broken heart. No, he’d finally expired because there was so little left inside of him that was still human. This physical shell, which looked like it would blow away in the faintest of winds, was simply the last of him to fall to rot.
“I should dance on your grave,” I said, a tear from the allergens falling down my cheek. But there was no snapped comeback, no sense of being heard, now or ever. Xavier’s soul was finally, utterly depleted, and now the hollow shell his wealth had created could finally be put to rest.
I wiped my eyes and left the room.
There were twenty-eight messages of condolence waiting for me by the time I left Xavier’s home-now mine, I supposed-and twelve of them were from Cher alone. I cursed silently, but knew I’d have to visit her before I did anything else. That’s what Olivia would do, and people were certainly watching now.
By the time I reached the sprawling ranch house where Cher lived with her mother, the sun was once again blocked in by barren clouds, and a chilled wind whipped over the ground, causing me to think of Northern Lights instead of neon ones. What was going on with the weather? I gazed heavenward, but didn’t have much time to dwell on it. The door flew open almost as soon as I knocked, and I was swept up into an all-encompassing hug.
“Hey, Suz,” I said, sounding strangled. She loosened her hold. She was wearing thin fleece sweats, her gray zip-top making it clear she wore nothing underneath, and her hair was piled atop her head, dark roots visible at the base of her neck. It was still early morning, so her face was barer than I’d ever seen it, but it was creamy and smooth, still silky perfection at forty-something. She never spoke of her age. She considered it bad juju.
“Oh, darlin’,” she began, and it was all I could do not to sigh. She tilted her head, soft errant strands falling around her face as I turned to her. “We only just heard. It’s terrible. I’m so sorry for your loss. Are you okay?”
Pulling me through the threshold, she simultaneously answered her own question. “Silly. Of course you’re not. If anyone should know that, it’s me.” From all appearances, she was the typical Vegas trophy wife. She’d married someone far older than she, yet by all accounts she’d truly loved Cher’s father, something that’d been questioned in the recent spate of articles and gossip surrounding her new engagement…and that meant we really didn’t share the same loss. I did not love the man who had died in the night. Still, I appreciated her effort and knew Olivia would be grateful for it.
“Thank you.” Wanting to distract her, I said, “Where’s Cher?”
“She went to Xavier’s to find you, of course. You two probably drove right by each other on the way over. We should call.” As she picked up the cordless phone, I tossed my bag down on the cream sofa, immediately relaxing. It was nice to be in a safe, estrogen-filled environment that wouldn’t actually kill me. Thick white candles dotted nearly every surface, their sheer numbers and smooth melted shapes making them art all on their own. Their scent lingered among the silk and brocades of the pillows and throws, and softened the stark collage of photos blanketing an entire wall. My sister was a significant part of that collage, and in the past year I’d been incorporated as well… though, of course, in Olivia’s softly smiling, beautiful form.
Suzanne turned to me after she’d hung up with Cher, who promised to be right home, and gave me a watery smile. “Is there anything at all I can do to help?”
“You’re doing it,” I told her, and blew out a long sigh. And I did feel better. Lighter, though I had no reason to be down. “But what are you doing here? I thought Arun moved you into Asgard?”
Apparently the roomy but modest home wasn’t good enough for a future princess, and Arun had chosen the palatial suites at Valhalla as his bride’s new residence until he could have his own compound built. He knew she
