“Forgive me, lord. I only thought of my injured mate.”
Those sharp-as-fuck claws tapped, drawing blood. “I know.” Jaden grunted. The Hob had exacted blood price from him as well. “The kill is mine.”
“Yes, sir.” Akane remained bowed, waiting for Robin’s permission to move.
“Take the female. Make an example of her, but leave enough recognizable that Glorianna will be satisfied with the death.”
“Yes, my lord.”
She didn’t hear Jaden respond. For a split second she was afraid for her partner, that Robin’s price had been higher for him than it had been for her.
“Rise.”
Akane lifted her head, almost dizzy with relief when Jaden appeared unharmed.
“Whatever you do, stay away from the back parlor. Do you understand me?” Robin’s hand pushed back her hair from her forehead like a proud papa. “I will be most displeased if you disobey.” The tone of voice was quiet and pleasant, but the intent was not. Whatever Robin had in mind for his errant child was not to be witnessed by outsiders.
“Yes, my lord.”
“Yes, sir.” Jaden nodded once, his gaze already glued to the upper story of the safe house. Green flashed through his ebony eyes. “She’s up there. Hobart is in the basement, my lord.”
“I know.” The Hob once more sounded amused. “Go. Exact Oberon’s Justice for what was done to Shane Joloun Dunne. May the gods have mercy on her soul, for we shall not.”
The Hob smiled at them, sauntered up to the door as neat as you please, turned the handle and went inside the house, for all the world as if he lived there.
“That man has diamond balls.”
“You mean brass,” Akane corrected. She took a deep breath and looked around, hoping the street was empty despite the early hour. But the fact that they were in a fairly nice neighborhood put paid to that hope. People were beginning to come home from work in the early evening light. She eyed the front door and considered whether or not she had the same balls her boss did.
“Nope. Diamonds are a lot harder. Besides, they’re a girl’s best friend.”
Akane stared at her partner. “That’s just wrong.”
Jaden winked and began climbing up the side of the building.
“Show-off.” Akane braved the front entrance but extended her claws just in case. If Constance made a break for it the punishment would be over far too quickly, but Akane couldn’t risk the Sidhe female escaping. She set her foot on the first stair when a feminine cry of distress echoed down to them. Jaden had apparently made his appearance and Constance was none too happy about it.
“Hey! Leave some for me!” Akane cried out, racing up the stairs.
Tonight Constance Malmayne would die.
Akane burst into a very feminine room. Pale pastels adorned the walls, matching floral prints on the bedspread and sheets. The furniture was a pale golden brown. A nicely padded armchair rested before a fireplace faced with white marble.
“What took you so long?” Jaden had his arm wrapped around Constance’s neck, his hold just tight enough that the Sidhe female couldn’t break free. He shook the woman’s head. “Stop that. Only three people in my head at a time, thank you.”
Akane grinned. “Let me have her.”
“Are you going to do that head ripping thing? That is
Akane tilted her head and pretended to think about it. “Nah. I was thinking of playing butterfingers.”
“Butterfingers?” Jaden frowned. “Isn’t that the game you used to call bombs away?”
“Yep.” Akane examined the toe of her shoe, frowning. Something dark and icky stained the point. She rubbed her shoe on the pale rose carpet to try and clean it.
“You can’t kill me.” Constance trembled in Jaden’s hold, whether from fear or from the effort to break into the vampire’s mind Akane didn’t know.
“Haven’t we heard this song before?” Jaden tossed her like a doll, sure Akane would catch her.
Akane grabbed hold of the flailing Sidhe. “It’s an oldie but a goodie.”
“You think I’m no threat to you? You think if you kill me the Malmaynes will leave the Dunnes alone? Is that it?” Constance laughed, the sound bitter. “She has plans for them, plans we were only a small part of. This is bigger than the stinking half-breed Dunnes.”
Akane caressed Constance’s cheek much as Robin had done hers. “Really?” She exchanged a look with Jaden, getting his approval to continue questioning Constance. “Tell me more.”
Black lace over blood-red eyes. Claws ripped away the veil and revealed nothing but darkest night. Bright light dimmed in the face of tragedy. Chaos became blind in the name of love. White cloth coated in innocent blood. Rage and grief took vengeance side by side as love drained away.
The visions were coming too fast now to make much sense. Shane held on to the sweetly singing voice, his only lifeline in the maelstrom around him. Without that voice he’d already be mad, the visions driving him over the edge.
Lost. He was lost. They were lost, memory a fragile thing, easily broken. Tainted blood brushed against his tongue, poisoned his dreams. His only hope lay in the rise and fall of the fickle sea.
“There’s some sort of plot against Oberon, but I don’t know all the details. Just our part in it.” Constance wriggled, trying to break free of Akane’s hold. Just because Akane was short people continued to underestimate her. There was no way the Sidhe female was getting away.
“Which was to get the child of Dunne.” Jaden gripped Constance’s chin, forcing her to stare into his eyes. “I take that personally.”
“The child of Dunne will one day perform an act that will change our world.” Constance parroted the prophecy. “The child had to be in our control.”
“So you could hand him or her over to the Dark Queen.”
Constance nodded. “My father had it all planned.”
Jaden barely blinked, but Akane’s partner was shocked. If this went back to Cullen… “What about the original marriage contract between Duncan and Aileen?”
“That had nothing to do with the prophecy and everything to do with power. We knew Sean Dunne would marry into the Joloun family. If we had a toehold in the family we thought we might be able to influence him.”
“How?”
Constance bit her lip, refusing to answer.
“Answer me!” Akane breathed pale flame on the column of Constance’s neck.
The Sidhe shrieked. “How what?”
“How did you know Sean Dunne would marry into the Joloun family?”
Constance tried to protect her neck, lifting her shoulders. “The Seer.”
Akane’s eyes closed. Damn her mother and her policy of handing out visions. “But you didn’t know it would be
“Thus becoming part of the prophecy.”
“Is that why Kaitlynn insisted on Leo as her sperm donor?” Jaden’s claws scraped down Constance’s arm, raising red welts on her pale skin.
“She wanted the Dunne with the purest Sidhe blood.”
“And you? How would Hobart feel if you got Leo in your bed?”
“He understands prophecy,” Constance whispered.
“Oh yeah. Every man thinks of prophecy when another man is shoving his dick in his woman.” Jaden rolled his eyes. “It’s sort of like England but…different.”
“The child would have been ours!”
“If it wasn’t for us meddling kids?” Jaden gripped Constance’s throat, ignoring her yelp of pain. “I say we kill her.”
