“Meanwhile,” says Rhine, “we’ll be hittin’ the streets tonight.” He looks at Seth. “You hungry?”
“Starved,” Seth admits.
“Well, let’s go get some grub.” Rhine inclines his head to the door. “Riley?”
“I’ll be down in a sec,” I say, and look at my brother.
He reads my mind because he comes straight to me, pulls me into another embrace.
“It’ll be okay, sis,” he says into my hair. “Whatever it takes, we’ll get Eli home and Preacher will make all of this right.”
“I hope so, bro,” I say. I squeeze him around his middle, locking my hands together. “God, I hope so.” I pull back. “Go. Eat. I’ll be down in just a bit.”
“Okay,” Seth says, and leaves with Rhine.
“I have to admit, Riley,” Noah says. He’s kicked off his black workout pants and is pulling on a pair of dark jeans. “Something doesn’t sit right with me about Arcos.” He buttons his fly, his stare remaining on mine. “There’s just more to it than him slipping into your dreams, then telling you to kill Eli. That’s just . . . too simple.”
“I don’t know,” I answer. “What motive would he have? Why doesn’t he just kill Eli himself? Why go through all this?”
Noah’s standing in front of me now, and he taps me on the nose with a forefinger. “Because, darlin’,” he says. His mercury eyes all but are illuminated. “That would be a big fucking no-no, now, wouldn’t it?” A smile lifts his mouth. “He can’t touch Eli Dupré. The Gullah, not to mention Eli’s entire family, would storm Romania and the House of Arcos would become a bloody vampire battleground. Senior Arcos knows it. And so does Valerian.”
I laugh. It’s almost too stupid to say out loud. “So Valerian seriously thinks he can simply put the Arcos whammy on me and make me kill my own fiancé?”
Noah shrugs and pulls on his boots. “Maybe.”
Maybe, indeed.
“Well,” I say, grabbing Noah’s leather jacket off the foot of the bed. I watch as he sheathes a few silver blades in the holster he’s now strapping on over his shoulders. “Whether Carrine is commanding the rogues, Eli, or Valerian . . .” I shake my head. “Either way, they have to be stopped. Maybe Eli doesn’t have to die.
“Why the rogues? What’s the—I don’t know—rationale? If Valerian in fact set free, resurrected, whatever—Carrine, why?” I ask.
Noah strokes his chin. “Maybe Valerian doesn’t have as much control as he thinks. Or,” he says, meeting my gaze, “maybe he does, and he’s just a sick bastard who gets off on the chase. The killing of innocents. And it’s no secret he loathes Eli.”
“Maybe he set Carrine free in order to use her for her witch powers?” I muse. “Valerian mentioned that could be how Vic disappeared and made it back to Romania.”
“Could be,” Noah answers.
I move to stand directly in front of Noah. I look up. “If there’s even a slight chance of capturing Eli and getting him back to Da Island, we gotta make it happen.”
“It’s going to take more than just us to subdue him,” Noah says. “He’s . . . full-on rabid, Riley. You were bad enough as a human with tendencies.” Noah takes the jacket from my hands and eases into it. His eyes never leave mine. “When we took you to Romania? God Almighty Damn, girl.” He chuckles. “You nearly tore the plane’s wiring out of the walls. You were some kind of out of control. Can you imagine what a full-blooded, blood-lusted two-hundred-plus-year-old vampire would be like?”
“I can imagine.”
“He’s strong, Riley. Damn strong,” he says.
I head to the door and stop, and Noah’s right behind me. I look up. “You scared?”
He smiles. “Hell yeah, I’m scared.” He shoves his hands into his jacket pocket and spreads it out like a cape, exposing the leather holster, sheaths, and blade hilts. “Just as I’m scared as hell that I’m gonna poke myself with one of these goddamn silver blades and turn to dust.”
“You’re not going to turn to dust, Noah,” I answer, and we both step out of the room. He closes the door and locks it, and we start up the corridor. Suddenly, I stop.
“Hey, I’ll meet you downstairs,” I say, and turn back to my room. “I need to change.”
“Why?” Noah asks, and starts up the hall. He throws a grin over his shoulder. “Can’t you run in them things?”
I take a look at the high-leather heeled boots I’m wearing, and shrug. “I can. For a while.”
Noah waves and hits the staircase. I turn and hurry into my room. I shut the door behind me and walk toward the bedside table. The moment my fingers graze the knob, I freeze. It’s dark, with only a small haze of streetlight shining in through the cracked drapes. The window is open, and cold November Highland air rushes in.
I’m not alone.
A sensation washes over me, and slowly, I scan the shadows. I search the other side of the room, and I turn back.
I gasp.
Eli is standing in front of me. A foot—twelve inches—is all the space that’s between us. His body is tense—so much I can feel the power rolling off him—and every muscle is rigid, hard. His eyes are red—not the beautiful cerulean I’m used to. But he’s not morphed into his vampirism. Only his eyes are different.
My vocal cords are frozen. My body is paralyzed. I stare hard at him, wishing him to recognize me. Why is he here? How the hell did he get in here?
His head cocks to the side, and he’s studying me so hard I feel adrenaline surge through me and realize it’s fear. I want to scan the room. Is Carrine here? Commanding him to kill me? Or to torture me, as Athios had warned? I want to run. I want to call out to him, scream his name, make him see me.
I want to touch him. So badly it hurts. Maybe if I do, he’ll remember me. He’ll remember us.
I concentrate. Focus. Holding his bloodred gaze, I breathe in. Out. Slowly, I lift my arm, reach my hand out to him. I’m grabbing blindly, gently when I feel his hand beneath mine.
For a split second, confusion flashes over Eli’s features. So quick I almost miss it. He could kill me so fast. I’ve seen how swift he turns. It’s little more than a blur, and his jaw extends, jagged teeth drop sharp and white, and he’ll go for my throat. He could snap my head right off like a dandelion. Right now he’s hesitating. And he’s alone. Is his resistance to Carrine’s control strengthening? Is he remembering me?
I swallow, pushing past my fear. My heart throbs inside my ribs, and I have to concentrate to keep my breathing under control. Staring, willing him to recognize me, I hold my hand against his.
“Eligius Dupré,” I whisper. “Eli, please, come back to me.”
Eli’s nostrils flare. His head cocks farther to the side, and his eyebrows pull together into a frown. He’s considering. Studying.
Or remembering?
“Riley, what’s the holdup?”
Noah’s voice startles me, and on instinct, I drop my hand and glance toward the door just as he enters. His face hardens, just that fast.
I turn my head back to Eli.
He has disappeared. My eyes move to the window, and the drapes are still fluttering. Hurrying over, I peer out into the night, my eyes searching the shadows, the street, the walk.
Eli’s gone.
At the window, I sag against it.
Noah’s beside me, his hand on my shoulder. “He could have killed you, Riley.” He squeezes me, his fingers digging into my bones. “I wouldn’t have been able to stop him, darlin’.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “I know that.” I look up at him. “He hesitated, though. Looked as if he was trying to figure something out.” I shrug. “Or figure me out. Do you think he remembered?”
“Hard to say.” He grasps my jaw gently and turns my face up to his. “If anyone’s capable of reaching a vampire through a bloodlust phase, it’s you.” He kisses me, a fast brush across the lips. “You’re kinda unforgettable, you know. And I’d like to keep you around for as long as possible, so if Eli approaches you again, call me.” He taps my temple. “In here.” He drops his hand and shakes his head. “Swear to God, for a human with so much power, you don’t utilize a third of it.”
“I guess I wasn’t thinking,” I admit. “Except to try and make him see me.”
Noah chucks me under the chin. “I know.” He inclines his head. “Let’s go.”
I finish changing, Noah helps me gear up, even though I don’t need the help, and we head out. Downstairs, Seth and Rhine stand together, talking.
Riley, please. I can barely stand this—being here, and not there. How are you holding up?
Vic, it’s okay. We’ve got a little unexpected help from a group of hunters here in Inverness. They’re apt. Kick-ass apt. We’re doing fine. I promise.
I don’t know what’s happening, Riley. I don’t like it. I have a horrible feeling about everything. I should come.
No. You stay put. At least until we get things figured out here. Eli is here, Vic. And he’s not himself. He’s being controlled by a witchpire, of all things.
Damn me. Haven’t heard that term in quite some time. Please. Don’t be overzealous with your abilities. Keep Miles with you at all times. I beg you.
I don’t think I have a choice anymore. He’s on me like glue.
Good. And a warning: The moment I feel you’ve upset the balance of safety there, I’m on the first plane to Inverness. I swear it.
I’ll keep you posted, Vic.
You’d better.
I finish my mind convo with Victorian Arcos and hit the living area. My eyes scan the room. My brother. He’s here. And I haven’t seen him in . . . weeks. Since before Edinburgh. I walk up to him, and he drapes a lean arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. I look up at him. “We run together tonight, bro,” I say.