Страница 47 из 48
He starts to circle. “Leave him out? He's the reason I've lost you. I should have simply killed him and been done with it."
Then what? Would you have gone after my parents next, and Max?
"If necessary. Frankly, I thought by this time you would have realized that mortals are food to us, like cattle, nothing more. I chose David to make the point because he is a friend, not a blood tie or an involvement. Once he was out of your life, you could move on.
He seemed the most expendable."
Expendable?
"An object lesson. You would have grieved for him, but that would have passed. Like your home, another tie to your life as a mortal would have been removed. Just as you came to me after your confrontation with the Revengers, and again after the fire, you would have turned to me for solace, and I would have reminded you how temporary human attachments are. I told you once before, it's a lesson best learned at the begi
And then I would have been all yours.
"You were all mine. You needed very little persuasion to fall under my spell."
He's still circling, toying with me again like a cat with a mouse, projecting a smug haughtiness that lets me know how insignificant I had proved to be in the scheme of things.
Your spell? Was it a trick, then? The way you made me feel?
He snorts and throws up a hand. “Spell? Merely a turn of phrase. I needed no spell to win you. You are a very sexual woman, A
Why do you think I chose David and not Max? I knew with Max it would be only a matter of time before you found sex with him unfulfilling. Even if you fed from him, it would not be the same. David, on the other hand, holds you in the stronger grip of friendship. I needed to loosen that grip."
His words prick at my conscience because I know he is right. I wanted to believe Avery somehow worked a spell on me that I was powerless to resist. But the truth is, I found him the most exciting man I'd ever been with. Even now, the memory of how it felt sends an involuntary thrill up my spine.
He laughs at my reaction. “You see."
No. I can fight it. I must. I shake my head, willing the feelings to pass. He's misjudged me. Sex would never be enough to make me forget the rest of what he's done. And I would have found out, one way or the other. He should have let me choose my own path.
Avery picks up on my last thought.
"You sound like a whiny child,” he says with another wave of his hand. “'Let me choose my own path.’ Why would I? I've lived three hundred years on my own terms. I've always dictated what choices my consorts have, not the other way around."
That ignites a spark within me. “Which might explain why Maria
He reacts as if I'd slapped his face. He rears back, teeth flashing, eyes sparking with fury. “Don't mention her name."
Have I touched a nerve, Avery? What did you want Maria
Avery lunges at me, bending me back over the table before I can counter his thrust. “I grow weary of this conversation,” he hisses in my ear. “It's time to end it."
His teeth grab the skin just at my jugular and start to rip it away. I work an arm between his face and my chest and heave him back.
He doesn't fall completely away, but his body gives enough for me to leverage myself with one hand on his chin and the other on his chest. I push with all my strength, keeping those snapping teeth away from my neck. But I can't reach his neck, either, so we're caught in a macabre embrace.
A
But I press my eyes shut. I know what he's trying to do.
No.
Open your eyes. You can't resist. You know that.
But I do resist, though I don't know how long I'll be able to hold him off. He's wearing away at my strength and resolve. He's in my head, telling me to let go, telling me how easy it will be and how peaceful when it's over.
No. I won't let him kill me.
I reach deep into myself and cha
It would have been so good, A
His anguish burns through me, first the love, then the hatred. It sears into my brain, cuts nerve endings and flays my flesh. I feel it stripping away. He isn't using his teeth, he isn't draining my blood. The intensity of his hatred peels my skin as if with a knife. I'm on fire. He wants me to suffer before he ends it.
Frantically, I feel around for something, anything, to use as a weapon. My hand closes around a wooden spool, the armrest of the chair I'm resting upon. I snatch it up, grasp it with both hands, and with a single motion, plunge it into Avery's back.
There's a moment when all time stops. Avery's face hovers above me, his eyes reflect surprise, then sadness. A pitiful howl erupts from deep inside him, and in the next instant, he's gone.
Chapter Forty-One
I don't know how long I lay there, alone, exhausted, afraid, the stake still clutched in my hands.
Finally, I hold up a hand before my face. I expect to see blood and exposed bone and sinew. Instead my arm is whole, unmarked.
It was a mind trick, the flayed skin, the burning.
It's over.
Avery is gone. Disappeared. As if he never existed. My heart thuds a dirge in the center of my chest. It could have been me.
Should have been me.
I can't figure out why it wasn't.
The answer comes from a now familiar voice.
Avery was careless. He underestimated you. And your loyalty to your friend.
I look around slowly, too weary to be startled. Casper?
Are you all right?
I gather strength, pull myself into a sitting position. My hand goes to my neck. There's some blood but Avery never got a real hold.
Thankfully. Where are you? Why don't you show yourself?
All things in time, he says enigmatically. I just wanted to be sure you were all right. Robert is out back with the car. He'll take you home.
Home. I shake my head sadly . I don't have a home.
Sure you do. Avery's place is yours now.
I sniff. I don't think so.
But it's true. You vanquished an old soul in defense of your own life. All his possessions are yours.
What if I don't want them?
Up to you. But before you dismiss it out of hand, think of how much good you could do with that kind of wealth. You could help a lot of people.
I have to think about that.
No rush. You have all the time in the world.
Chapter Forty-Two
I don't remember the ride to the loft or letting myself into David's or falling as if dead onto the couch. When I awaken, I simply find myself there, bone weary, despite having slept for ten hours. I drag myself into the bathroom, stripping off Avery's dress. Balling it up, I stuff the thing into the trash. Then I take a long, hot shower. Lately it seems I can't get the water hot enough. Still, even the scalding heat doesn't quite wash away the feel of Avery's hands on my body.