Covet - A Novel of Fallen Angel Part 25

aWhat do you want me to show you,a he drawled.

aI want youato put your handa"a aHere?a he said, laying one over his pec.

aLower,a she whispered.

aHmmaa His broad palm drifted down across his ribs to the top of his six-pack. aHere?a aLoweraa He bypa.s.sed the head of his erection and went over to his hip. aLower still?a aTo your left. And higher.a aOh, you meanaa"as his palm found his arousal, he arched and his eyes squeezed shuta"ahere?a aG.o.d, yesaa Rolling his hips, he kept his hand still and she got exactly what she wanted: a stunning view of his blunt head piercing through his grip and disappearing, piercing through, disappearing. His heavy chest rose and fell, his lips parting as he pleasured himself.

aVinayouare so beautiful.a His lids lifted slowly and he stared up at her, his gleaming eyes pulling her into him. aI love that youare watching mea.a With that his other hand went between his thighs and captured his potent sac. As he squeezed himself, he worked his arousal in long strokes and moaned.

aI donat know how long Iam going to lasta.a GoodaLord. The entire building could have been on fire and she would not have been able to move as he squeezed his sac again and then focused on the head of his erection. After he pinched himself with his thumb, he went two-handed, his breath coming in punches.

He stayed locked on her eyes as he worked himself.

He was so sensual, soaunfurled in front of her, hiding nothing, both vulnerable and powerful.

aAre you goingato makeame hold ita?a he groaned between gulping inhales.

Her greedy stare roamed over him, and she committed the erotic sight of him to permanent memory as surely as if she had carved the images out of stone.

aI haveatoaa aCome for me,a she said. She wanted it to last forever, but she knew it was going to start to hurt in earnest soon.

Now his chest really got to pumping and so did his handsa"faster and hard enough so that the muscles in his arms strained.

When he o.r.g.a.s.med, he came all over his stomach and his thigh because he couldnat seem to stop. And his eyes never left hers even as his palms finally came to rest and then released and flopped to the side.

As his breathing eased, she smiled and went to him, capturing his face, kissing him softly. aThank you.a aAnytime you have a hankering for that kind of show, just let me know?a aYou can bet on it.a When they finally rinsed off and stepped out of the shower, they had identical ahhh-lovely smiles on their faces, and Vin got her a monogrammed towel from one of the warming racks. The white terry-cloth expanse was so big it covered her from breast to ankle, and by the time shead turbaned her hair with a second one, she felt as if shead been slip-covered in velvety softness.

Vin picked up a third, dried his hair until it sat straight in spikes, and covered his hips. aI like you in my towels.a aI like being in them.a He came over and kissed her, and in the pause that followed, her breath stopped in her throat.

She knew what he wanted to say. And agreed it was far, far, far too early for it.

aYou want something to eat?a he asked.

aIaprobably should head off.a She had a lot of packing to do.

aOkayaall right.a Sadness thickened the steamy air as they slipped their arms around each other and left the bathrooma"

aAm I intruding?a Marie-Terese froze and so did Vin.

The woman head shown up with at the Iron Mask was standing just inside the bedroom, her hands hanging loosely at her sides, her long glossy hair down over her shoulders, her black coat belted tight around her tiny waist.

In her resonant stillness, she looked exactly as any model-chic female would on the surface, but there was something way off about her.

Way. Off.

First of all, if shead been badly beaten the night before, her face wasnat showing any signs of it; her features and skin were as smooth and pristine as fresh-cut marble. Second, she looked perfectly capable of killing someone as she stared at the two of them.

OhaG.o.d. Her eyes. There wasnat a white rim around her black iris, her glaring gaze nothing but a pair of pits that were as dark and bottomless as sinkholes.

Could that be right, though?

As the skin across the back of Marie-Tereseas neck tightened, the woman focused on her and smiled like an axe murderer who was looking at his next victim. aI saw your purse down on the dining room table, darling. Given how much money was next to it, Iad say your prices have gone through the roof. Congratulations.a Vinas hard voice sliced through the air. aHow did you get in. I locked everythinga"a aDonat you get it, Vincent. Your door is always open to me.a Vin put his body in front, shielding Marie-Terese. aLeave. Now.a The laughter that sounded out was all nails-on-a-blackboard, high and cringe-worthy. aEver since we first met, things have been on my terms, Vin, and that isnat going to change now. Iave invested a lot in you, and I do believe itas time to call you home.a af.u.c.k you, Devina.a aYou certainly did,a the woman drawled. aAnd very well, I might add. But you werenat the only one. Your friend Jim also did right by me, and I think I liked him better than you. With him, I didnat need someone else.a aYeah, I had to have more than you gave me as well,a Vin snapped.

A wave of coldness rippled out from the woman, and her eyes, those awful black holes, shifted to Marie-Terese and locked on. aYouave met Jim, havenat you. You ever been alone with him? Maybeain a car? Maybe when you were taking him back home yesterday?a How the h.e.l.l did she know that? Marie-Terese wondered.

As Vinas body stiffened, the woman continued. aWhen you took him back to that s.h.i.tty studio of his over the garage, you liked the taste of his c.o.c.k, didnat youa"but you would have blown him even if you hadnat. You need all the money you can get, and he was willing to pay for it.a Marie-Terese glared across the room. aThat never happened. Never. I didnat go to his place.a aSo you say.a aNo, so you say. I know what I did and didnat do and with whom. You, on the other hand, are a desperate b.i.t.c.h whoas trying to hold on to someone who doesnat want her.a The woman recoiled a little, and Marie-Terese had to admit there was some satisfaction to be had with that.

But then Vin stepped away, and one look in his pale face made her realize that Trez had been tragically right. A past like hers had a long reach, and Vin and she hadnat known each other long enough for even rudimentary trust to have developeda"much less the kind of faith required for a man to believe that a prost.i.tute wouldnat be doing her ajoba with his friend.

Thank G.o.d for all the towels she had on, she thought.

Because she suddenly felt as though she were out in the frigid wind.

aJim.a Standing in front of Devinaas bathroom door, Jim measured the expression on Eddieas face: dead serious. More to the point, that big-a.s.s body was going to be in the way if Jim made any move for the doork.n.o.b.

Releasing his tight muscles, Jim eased up his body and looked over his shoulder at the bureaus. Adrian was pulling open drawers in a methodical manner and rifling through whatever was in thema"and there evidently was a lot given all the rattling.

aFine,a Jim murmured. aGuess we should join in the Easter-egg hunt?a aI know itas hard,a Eddie said. aBut you have to trust me.a Eddie clapped him on the back and together they turned to head over to his buddy. Jim followed one footstepa"

And wheeled around for the doork.n.o.b. As the fallen angel barked out a curse, Jim yanked open the slab of wood and jerked to a halt.

A young woman was hanging naked and upside down over the porcelain tub, her legs open in a V, her ankles bound with black rope to the circular rod that should have held a shower curtain. Her hands were tied together with the same black rope and pulled tautly up her body so that her fingers just barely touched the top of her s.e.x. All around her belly there were deep cuts, arranged in a pattern of some kind, and red blood covered her white skin, running down her torso before splitting around the jut of her chin and jaw and flowing through her blond hair.

The tub was plugged and full.

Oh, Lordaabout two inches above the pool she hung. Her eyes were open and fixed straight ahead, but her mouth was working ever so slightlya.

aSheas alive!a Jim called out as he leaped forward.

Eddie caught him and yanked him back. aNo, sheas not. And weave got to get out of here now, thanks to you.a Jim thrashed free of the hold and rushed forward, raising his hands, ready to start on the complex series of knotsa"

A hard, heavy palm locked onto his shoulder. aSheas f.u.c.king dead, man, and weave got a problem now.a When Jim shook his head roughly and fought against the hold, Eddieas voice rose. aSheas deada"those are autonomic spasms, not signs of life. See the cuts on either side of her throat?a Jimas eyes careened around her body, desperately looking for a shallow draw of breath or recognition in her face that she was going to be savedasomethingaanythinga.

aNo!a He pointed to her fingers as they twitched ever so slightly. aSheas alive!a As he strained until he roared, the scene changed before his eyes, flipping from current horror to remembered tragedy. He saw his mother surrounded by blood, her eyes blinking slowly, her mouth working to form the words necessary to get him to leave her.

Eddieas calm voice came right into his ear, as if the guy werenat so much speaking, but implanting the words: aJim, weave got to get the f.u.c.k out of here.a aWe canat leave her.a Was that his voice? That reedy croak?

aSheas gone. Sheas not here anymore.a aWe canat leave hera. Sheasaa aSheas not with us, Jim. And we have to go. To save Vin, we have to get you the f.u.c.k out of here.a Adrianas voice exploded from the doorway, aWhat the f.u.c.k is wrong with youa"a aShut the h.e.l.l up, Ad.a Eddieas words cut through the interruption. aHe doesnat need you busting his b.a.l.l.s right now. JimaI want you to back out of the room.a Jim knew the guy was right. The girl was dead, bled out like nothing but an animal, and that wasnat the worst of it. Her frozen death mask was one of horror, as if her suffering had been great.

aCome on, Jim.a So help him G.o.d, he knew he had to listen to the angel and force himself to accept that there was no battle to be fought here: The time for conflict and the possibility of victory had come and gone without his even being aware it existed. And he believed Eddie about the taking off part. At this moment, risking an altercation with Devina would not have been good.

Right now one-third of the team was a total head case.

Jim went to turn around, but got slapped from behind, Eddieas huge hand catching his face and holding it where it had been.

aKeep your eyes straight ahead and back out with me. Do not move your head. Do you understand? I want you to step back with me and keep your head where it is. Weare going to back awaya"a aI donat want to leave her,a he moaned. aOh, s.h.i.taa Such suffering, the terror etched into the soft, pale planes of her lovely face. Where were her parents? Who was she? As he stared at the young womanas corpse, he memorized everything about her, from the mole she had on her thigh, to the light blue of her lifeless eyes, to the pattern that had been cut into her stomach.

aSheas gone,a Eddie said softly. aHer bodyas just a leftovera"her soulas not here anymore. You canat do anything for her, and we are in a dangerous situation right now. We need to get you out of here.a The more he looked at her though, the more his insides started screaming again and he couldnata"

All at once, he heard a rush of noise that sounded like the feet of rodents in a sewer. It wasnat hundreds of rats, however. The clocks had started up, every single one of them energized at precisely the same moment, the chaotic ticking of countless second hands rising up in the loft, filling the air.

Abruptly, Adrianas voice was grim instead of angry. aWe have to leavea"a His words were cut off by a rumbling and then a vibration that emanated from the floor, one so great it rattled the smoky window over the toilet and created waves on top of the blood in the tub.

aLike exactly now.a aI donat want to leave hera"a Eddieas voice turned into a growl. aSheas gone. And we need toa"a af.u.c.k you!a Jim lunged forward.

Eddieas ma.s.sive arms were iron bars. Even as Jim fought the hold, and went animal on the guy, clawing and ripping to get free, he got nowhere.

Voices rang outa"his and Adrianas. But Eddie was silent as he started to pull Jim from the room.

Then Eddie cut through the vocal chaos and the flapping of clothes: aKnock him the f.u.c.k out! I canat keep him from seeing the mirror!a Adrian stepped in, rolled up a fist, and c.o.c.ked his arm back. The strike was hard and fast, the crack cutting through everythingaand stunning Jim into compliance.

He was dragged out in a daze, the heels of his Timberlands streaking across the hard floor, his head ringing like a bell. Once his boots were past the bathroom door, Adrian slammed the thing shut, and Eddie flipped Jim up off the floor and into a firemenas hold.

Dizzy and disoriented, Jim tried to place a new fleet of strange sounds that came from a vast distance. Glancing over at the counter in the kitchen, he saw that the knives were moving around, arranging themselves, making order out of the mess theyad been in. And it was the same with the dressersa"which explained the reverberations: The chests of drawers were trembling on their feet, finding positions like soldiers called for a lineup.

He barely remembered leaving the loft and he didnat register much of the trip down the stairsabut the cold air outside did revive him enough so that he was able to push himself free of Eddieas hold and make it to the truck on his own two feet.

As Adrian drove them away from the warehouse, all Jim could see was the girlas face.

There was no singing as they went off this time.

No talking, either.

CHAPTER 34.

Devinaas taunt ricocheted around Vinas inner pinball machine, triggering all kinds of evil bells and anti-bonus points: Jim and Marie-Terese had been aloneain her caragoing back to his studioa aYou know everyone youave been with?a Devina said to Marie-Terese. aYou must have an incredible memory. But right now only one of those men mattersa"isnat that true, Vin?a This was a crossroads, he thought, a place of choosing one or the other way to go.

And he had the crystal clear sense that if he let what Devina was saying sink in, he was lost forevera"yet there was a side of him that found what she was saying inescapable: Marie-Terese had been alone with Jim, and she had been with men for money, and if those the pair of them had been together s.e.xually, that was something he wouldnat be able to get over.

Devinaas voice dropped low. aYou were always afraid of turning into your father. And here you are, getting played by a wh.o.r.e.a Vin took a halting step toward her and away from Marie-Terese. Played by a wh.o.r.ea Images of his father and mother were amplified by Devinaas words and the reality of what Marie-Terese had done for a living.

Played by a wh.o.r.ea He focused on Devina, really seeing hera aYouare so right,a he whispered, the truth revealed to him.

Abruptly, Devinaas face and eyes changed, sympathy warming her features and draining out the anger. aI donat want this for you. Any of it. Just come back to me, Vin. Come back.a He walked forward, getting closer and closer, and she lifted her arms out to him. When he was in front of her, he reached up and brushed one of those dark waves back from her ear. Leaning in, he put his mouth close and tightened his hold on her hair.

aVinayes, Vin.a His name was spoken with relief and triumph. aThis is the way it needs to bea"a af.u.c.k. You.a When she started to yank back, he held her in place by the skull. aYouare the wh.o.r.e.a Trez had called it. Back at the Iron Mask, the guy had said that a moment would come when head have to believe what he knew of Marie-Terese instead of what he had always feared would be true about a woman he cared about.

aYouare not welcome here,a he said, releasing Devina with a shove and going back to Marie-Terese. As he grabbed onto his womanas arms and held her behind him, he wished he were in the master bedroom, because his gun was there. aGet. Out.a All at once, the air around Devina warped, as if her fury were causing a molecular disturbance, and he braced himself for impact. Instead of lashing out, though, she seemed to gather herself.

With an eerie control, she walked over to the windows, and his first thought was sending Marie-Terese from the room. Unfortunately, the distance between the view and the open door was short enough so that Devina could close it easilya"and the b.i.t.c.h was staring into the gla.s.s, effectively giving herself eyes in the back of her head.

aYou canat rescind the pact, Vin. It doesnat work that way.a aThe h.e.l.l it doesnat.a Devina turned around and wandered over to the bed. Bending down, she picked up his boxers and looked over the rumpled duvet and the tossed-around pillows.

aMessy, messy. Do you want to tell me exactly what you did to her, Vin? Or should I use my imagination? Sheas had so much practice, Iam sure she satisfied you.a Devina deliberately rearranged a pillow, returning it to a spot against the headboard. With her attention briefly distracted, Vin moved fast, pushing Marie-Terese backward into the bathroom and slamming the door shut. When the lock was immediately turned, he took a deep breath even though it was clear that Devina had no problems getting through Schlageas best dead bolts.

Devinaas black orbs flicked up. aYou do realize if I wanted to get in there I could.a aYouad have to go through me first. And somehow I donat think you can do that, can you. If you were going to kill me or her right now, youad have done so the second you walked in here.a aYou just tell yourself that if it makes you feel better.a Leaning down, she took something off of the twisted duvet. aWell, what do you know. I believe I havea"a Devina froze in midspeech and swiveled her head around so that she looked out the windows. Abruptly, her brows screwed down over the black holes of her eyes, and the features of her face morphed briefly, showing a flash of what head seen of her real side: For a split second, all that gorgeous beauty was replaced with rotted, gray sheets of flesh, and he could have sworn he caught a whiff of dead meat.

s.h.i.t, maybe it should have freaked him out more, but he knew from experience that the unexplained and unexplainable were no less real for their being crazy. More important, Marie-Terese was on the other side of a thin door, and he was going to fight to the death to protect his womana"no matter what the f.u.c.k it was coming at her.

Humanademonacombo of the two. Definitions didnat matter.

Devina looked back at him. Slipping something into the pocket of her coat, she said in an oddly echoing voice, aIall be seeing you both very soon. I have business elsewhere.a aYouare going to get a facial?a he said. aGood call.a With a hiss, like she wanted to claw his eyes out, she dissolved into a gray mist and ghosted out of the room, boiling across the carpet and down the stairs.

Vin jolted forward, slammed the bedroom door, and locked it, even though he had a feeling that in that form she could just gust right under the thing. Whatever, it was the best he could do.

He went right to the bathroom and knocked. aSheas gone, but I donat know for howa"a Marie-Terese threw open the door. She was white faced and scared to death, but her first words were: aAre you okay?a It was at that moment that he knew he loved her. Plain and simple.

There was no time to go into that s.h.i.t now, though.

Vin kissed her quickly. aI want you out of this place. In case she comes back here.a And as soon as Marie-Terese was safe, he was going to call Jim. He needed one h.e.l.l of a wingman, and he couldnat think of anyone better than a son of a b.i.t.c.h whoad already beaten death once and didnat seem freaked out by s.h.i.t that would make most guys take a c.r.a.p in their Calvins.

Abruptly, she wobbled. aIa"I think Iam going to pa.s.s outa"a aPut your head downa"come on, kneel for mea.a He laid his hand on her bare shoulder and gently eased her onto the floor. Then he bent her over so that her long hair touched the marble and her hands fell to her ankles. aBreathe nice and slow.a As she took a couple of inhales and her body shuddered, he wanted to peel his own skin from his bones. G.o.dd.a.m.n him, he was worse than her ex-husband. Much more destructive.

Even though his heart was in the right place for the first time in his adult life, what he had exposed her to was more horrifying than anything the mob could pull out of their back pockets.

And it wasnat like that bunch of sleep-with-the-fishes types were nancies.

Marie-Terese glanced over at him. aHer eyesaWhat the h.e.l.l did I just see?a aVin! Yo, Vin?a At the sound of the m.u.f.fled holler, he leaned around the doorjamb and called out, aJim?a aYeah,a came the response. aIam here with reinforcements, as they say.a aIn that case, come up.a This was perfect. There was a back exit on the second floor they could get Marie-Terese out ofa"and wouldnat it be great to do that with some cover.

aIam going to run across and get some clothes on,a he told her. aHow about you get dressed, too?a When she nodded, he kissed her, went and gathered up her clothes for her and then closed the bedroom door on his way out.

As heavy boots. .h.i.t the stairs, Vin went to his room, pulled on a pair of sweatpants, and got his gun out of the bedside tablea"all the while hoping like h.e.l.l that the abackupa was along the lines of Jim.

And what do you know, they were. The two big b.a.s.t.a.r.ds were the ones whoad been at the hospital after Jim had been electrocuteda"and in spite of the fact that the pair were dressed as civilians, they had the stares of fighters.

Jim, on the other hand, had the gla.s.sy, hollow eyes of someone whoad been in a bad car accident. Clearly, head had some bad news recently, and yet his voice was still strong and level as he nodded to the one on the left first.

aThis is Adrian. And Eddie. Theyare our kind of friends, if you know what I mean.a Thank f.u.c.k, Vin thought.

aYour timing couldnat be better,a he said, shaking the guysa hands. aYou wouldnat believe who just left.a aOh, I bet we would,a Jim muttered.

aSo I got some questions for you,a the one with the piercings said. aWe know your girlfriend. Very well, unfortunately.a aSheas not my girlfriend.a aWell, sheas not out of your life yet, unfortunately. But weare going to try to take care of that. Our boy Jim here says that when you were seventeen, you performed some kind of ritual. Can you describe it?a aIt was supposed to get rid of whatas inside of me.a Naturally, Marie-Terese opened the guest room door at that moment. Dressed in her jeans and fleece, she had pulled back her hair and tucked her hands into the front pockets of her pullover.

aWhatas inside of you?a she asked.

Vin rubbed his face and glanced back at the men. Before he could figure out how to shade the truth appropriately, Marie-Terese cut off his mental gymnastics. aI want to know everything, Vin. The whole deal. And I deserve to know now that Iave seen her up closea"because frankly, Iam not sure what I saw just now.a s.h.i.t. As much as he wanted to keep her out of things, he was hard-pressed to deny her reasoning. But man, he wished like h.e.l.l he didnat have to have this conversation.

aGentlemen, will you give us a minute alone?a he said without looking away from her eyes.

aYou got any beer around here?a Adrian asked.