The Magical Christmas Cat

"II Gatto Nero," Henry said, taking her wrist and wrapping a length of fine red-silk fabric around it. She did not protest, not even when he tied her wrists together and tethered her to the bedpost. His sexual tastes were sometimes a bit odd, but he never hurt her, and he always saw that she found her own pleasure before he found his.

Amalie didn't like being tied up, but if it made Henry happy, it was a small price to pay.

"The black cat? I did not know you had a cat."

Henry took a nipple into his mouth and suckled it, and Amalie forgot about cats and charades. Nothing else mattered but this. She closed her eyes and savored the sensations. She wished to be able to touch Henry, to wrap her arms around him, but she could not. Her lover took his time, kissing and licking and arousing . . . then he was gone.

Amalie opened her eyes to find Henry standing beside the bed. He still smiled with great warmth, so she was not concerned. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes," Henry said. "Areyou happy, love?"

"Ecstatically so. Come back to bed." She wanted to gesture to him, but could not with her hands bound and tied to the bed.

"That is good." Henry reached beneath the mattress and withdrew a small jade figurine. A cat, she saw right away.

"II Gatto Nero takes greater enjoyment from a soul filled with pleasure as well as fear. Such a soul tastes sweeter, and he has waited a very long time for that taste."

"What are you talking about?" Amalie pulled against the bonds. She did not like the expression that crossed her lover's face.

"No one will miss you," he said softly. "Are you truly surprised? Did you not hear II Gatto Nero speaking to you in days past?"

The soft purring, the echoing meow, the distant roar of a large cat in the woods surrounding the remote cottage where Henry kept her. . . she had heard it all but had thought the sounds to be those of normal animals around her newly claimed home.

Henry began to chant, and a black smoke rose from the head of the jade cat. Amalie pulled at her bonds, but that did no good. She was trapped. Trapped by the man she loved. . . a man she had been so certain loved her. The blackness grew, and she jerked her head to the side and stared at Ruby.

Trust no one.

Ruby opened her eyes sharply. The scream that escaped was short and weak, but it was enough to catch the attention of a nearby nurse. Ruby glanced around, recognizing the place. She'd been here before, with Aunt Mildred. Minville had one small but well-equipped clinic set up to act as a small ER, and she was in one of the beds.

"What happened?" Ruby asked, and as she finished her question she remembered the damned cat, the telephone pole, and the dream.

"There's someone here to see you," the nurse said.

Ruby suffered a rush of fear. Somehow Zane had found her. He was here and he was going to seduce her and tie her to a bed and offer her soul to a piece of rock. Is that why he'd aroused her last night? Was he making her tastier for the demon? She shook her head and immediately wished she had not. It hurt.

The curtains parted, and Marielle stepped through.

Even obviously concerned she looked perky, with her long blond ponytail and heart-shaped face. "Oh my God, I was so worried about you," the girl said. "The police called the shop looking for family, and I came right over."

"Who's running the store?" Ruby asked.

Marielle pursed her lips. "The shop is closed and will remain closed until I'm sure you're okay. I thought you were sick. Why were you out driving around? What were you thinking?"

It was a question Marielle didn't expect an answer to, which was good because Ruby didn't have one.

"Take me to Nashville," Ruby said, sitting up carefully. She was suddenly certain neither

Birmingham nor Huntsville was far enough from Minville.

"You're addle-brained," Marielle said as she offered a steadying hand. "I'm taking you home."

"I don't want to go home!"

Marielle didn't ask why, which was just as well since she'd never believe the truth. "Well, my place is too small, and it's a mess. I wasn't expecting company so we can't go there. I'll take you home, and I'll stay with you until you're feeling better."

"The shop . . ."

"Ruby's Sweet Shop wili still be there when you're recovered. If there's someone else you can call to sit with you I'll keep the place running, but if not, then your loyal customers will just have to make their own cookies and cakes for a few days."

There had been a time when Ruby would've crawled on her hands and knees to keep her business open, but now her little shop seemed unimportant.

She didn't want to be alone. She couldn't call Zane. She didn't have anyone else.

Zane had been keeping an eye on Ruby's house all morning and all afternoon, waiting for her to return. It was after three when a strange car pulled into the driveway. The blonde he had seen at Ruby's shop stepped out of the driver's side door. Ruby, not instantly recognizable with the white bandage on her head, stepped carefully from the passenger side.

He was tempted to rush over there to ask what had happened, but she'd made it clear this morning that she no longer wanted him around. He wasn't sure why, but .he suspected it had something to do with the most recent dream she'd had. She no longer trusted him, that much was clear. She had gone to sleep in his arms and had awakened afraid of him.

What if he couldn't save her? She was the ninth, the last, and he could not allow her to become a part of the demon. The males of his family had been important members of the Brotherhood for generations. Stopping II Colletore was a purpose he had lived with since the age of fifteen. Twenty years devoted to research, training, and waiting for this moment. No matter how much he liked Ruby, he could not allow the demon to live.

He waited for the blonde to leave, but she didn't.

The car remained in Ruby's driveway. The curtains to the cheerful yellow house remained shut. Night fell, a few lights came on, and still the blonde remained in the house. A bad feeling crept down Zane's spine. This was it. It had started.

For a few moments he hesitated, his hand on the telephone receiver, his heart physically heavy as if it were weighing him down. Not Ruby, please. He would not wish for anyone to be taken as a sacrifice for II Colletore, but of all the possibilities in the world— why her? She was good and fragile and had only begun to live her life. If the situation were different, he might ask her on a real date, make love to her, make her laugh.

But his time for pretending the situation could be different was done. He lifted the receiver and dialed, and snapped out a crisp "This is Benedict. It's here."

The older man on the other end of the line actually tried to argue with him. Apparently there was a gathering of known members of the Order north of London, near a particularly powerful vortex. Many warriors of the Brotherhood were gathering there.

"I'm telling you, it's here," Zane said. "The UK assembly is a distraction."

Still unconvinced, the dispatcher reluctantly agreed to send a few men to assist, just in case. When that was done, Zane closed his eyes. A moment later, he threw the phone across the room.

Chapter 6

Ruby was not surprised to see the jade cat sitting on her bedside table when she crawled into bed. She hadn't slept well in two days, her head hurt, and Marielle had prepared a very nice chicken soup that had really hit the spot. Now Ruby could barely keep her eyes open, and for the first time all day she didn't feel as if she needed to run as if the devil were on her tail.

Marielle had been very attentive since arriving at the clinic, and Ruby was thankful to have such a good friend. When the younger woman had insisted on spending the night, Ruby hadn't protested. Maybe if someone else was here, the walls wouldn't purr.

With her blond ponytail dancing, Marielle walked into the dimly lit room to make sure her patient was settled for the night. She even straightened the covers.

Ruby didn't mind.

"Take that damn cat out of here," Ruby said, her eyes barely opened as she pointed to the night table.

"Throw it in the trash." It wouldn't stay, but there was something satisfying about plunking the thing into the garbage.

"This?" Marielle lifted the jade cat and studied it casually. "It's pretty, and it looks kinda old and expensive. Why would you want me to throw it away?

Shoot, if you don't want it, sell it on eBay. Or I can just keep it."

"No!" Ruby tried to get up but couldn't. Her head was so heavy. "Stay away from that damn thing," she said, wanting to protect her friend from whatever had ruined her own life.

"Okay." Apparently forgetting the original request, Marielle placed the figurine on the bedside table.

Ruby thought about reissuing the order to take the thing away, but she didn't have the energy to speak, and besides, if the cat wanted to be there, watching her, it would find its way back. Her fear was no less sharp than it had been when she'd tried to flee, but somehow Ruby felt safer than she had earlier in the day. She was not alone; Marielle was here. There was no more mewing, and Zane Benedict wasn't going to get anywhere near her.

She heard the front doorbell ring, and thought nothing of it. Marielle went to answer and was back shortly, wearing a big grin on her pretty face. "Some guy in a tie-dyed T-shirt wants to take me to a concert on Thursday. I think he wanted to ask you, but I told him you were under the weather. He won the tickets and is desperate for a date."

"Todd wins everything," Ruby said, her tired voice slurred.

"He really wanted to come in and check on you, but I wouldn't let him." She shuddered. "What a loser."

"Yeah." Ruby closed her eyes, aware that Marielle remained by the bed, standing guard.

There was snow all around. Trey a felt cold, but that cold was the least of her worries. Her hands and wrists were tied, and she had been staked to the ground. A full moon made the night bright white, and the icy cold cut to the bone as surely as the fear that gripped her.