Hearts At Stake

chapter 16

Lucy

Saturday night, very late

I ignored the pleasantries being stiffly exchanged since Nicholas was lying really close to me. It was so wrong that I wanted to snuggle against his side.

It was Nicholas.

Byron was a welcome distraction as he ambled up the stairs and lay on my other side. He had kibble breath and was close enough that he drooled on my arm. I nudged him.

“Move over, you big lump.” He just gave me that doggy look, the pathetic one I could never resist. “Fine, but at least quit drooling on me. It’s gross.” I scratched his ear briefly. “Some watchdog you are.” I knew the other two Bouviers would be lying down near Hart and Hope, eyeing them hungrily.

“I want to assure you,” Hart was saying in the living room, “that I have officially retracted the bounty on the Drake clan, just so there are no more misunderstandings.”

“We’re glad to hear it,” Liam said blandly. I could just imagine what retort Helena was biting back.

“It was an accident,” Hart continued, sounding hard. “And one that will be rectified immediately.”

“I suggest you keep a closer rein on your organization,” Helena said. “Or I will cease to keep such a tight rein on mine.”

“Understood. We stand by our treaty,” Hope interjected. “This is an internal problem and should never have leaked out.”

Their voices dropped slightly. There was the clink of glasses. I squirmed, trying to peer around the stairs into the living room. I could see the edge of a chair and nothing else. There wasn’t even anyone sitting in it.

“I’m going to try and get closer,” I murmured.

When Nicholas didn’t try and stop me, I turned to look at him. He was asleep. His cheek rested on his hand, pale skin gleaming, dark brown hair tousled. His features were sculpted, sensual, and dark. It was totally unfair how beautiful he was. Even if it did sound like he might be snoring a little. Byron snorted and rolled over.

“You two are a lot of help,” I said.

And then the quiet shattered.

There was no actual sound of warning, only Hart sailing out of the living room, crashing into the foyer wall and sprawling across the floor in a heap. The chandelier above him rattled alarmingly. At the sound, Nicholas startled awake and flipped himself over me, as if he was protecting me from an airborne missile. He pressed into me, about as yielding as a slab of cold marble. He looked slightly disoriented, not quite fully awake.

“Can’t breathe,” I croaked.

He shifted slightly but didn’t get off me. I could see the thick fringe of his eyelashes, his hair falling over his forehead to tickle mine.

“Foyer,” I wheezed. We both craned our necks. Helena marched out, all black leather and motherly fury. Byron raced down the stairs.

“Where is my daughter?” She seethed, her pale eyes practically glowing. Liam flanked her, simmering. I could all but see the leash on his temper straining to release. Hope took a stake from her belt.

“I wouldn’t,” Bruno advised quietly.

“What the hell was that for?” Hart sat up, his left eye already purpling.

Liam lifted his cell phone. “That was one of my sons, gone to ground because of your blasted league.”

“I told you we didn’t set the damn bounty,” Hart said through his teeth. “I explained.”

“Then explain to me, human,” Helena sneered, “why my daughter has been taken by your agents.”

Hart stared at her. “What?”

Sebastian and Geoffrey joined them from the living room. Boudicca barked once, blocking Hart from doing anything more than sitting up. Nicholas shifted off me, growling low in his throat.

“That’s impossible,” Hart insisted. He reached for his own cell phone and punched in a number. He barked out questions, swore viciously under his breath at the replies. Sunlight touched the windows on either side of the door.

“Unit’s gone rogue,” he declared.

Hope paled. “No.”

Helena sniffed the air delicately, then nodded at her husband. “He’s not lying.”

Beside me, Nicholas sniffed as well. He frowned. I frowned back.

“What?”

“It’s not a lie, but I smell something else. Something I can’t quite place.”

“More lemon shampoo?”

“No. Definitely not that.”

Bruno signaled to the dogs and they eased back, letting Hart get to his feet.

“We have to shut them down,” he said darkly. I wondered if he had a gun strapped inside a shoulder holster under his coat. “Now. Before the damage becomes irrevocable.”

“I am forced to agree.” Liam held up a hand. “However, we had a treaty, Hart. And it was broken. Under the circumstances, I believe a show of faith is in order.”

Hart sighed. “What did you have in mind, Drake?”

“One of you stays here.”

“You’re taking hostages now?”

“You have our daughter. Her safety must be assured.”

“You have our word,” Hope said.

Liam raised one eyebrow. “Not nearly good enough.”

Hart rubbed his face wearily. “All right. All right,” he repeated. “I’ll stay.”

Hope whirled on him. “No, I’ll stay. You know how some of the units still see me as a paper pusher. They’ll respond to you quicker and with less posturing if they truly have gone rogue.” She squared her shoulders. “So, I’ll stay.” She narrowed her eyes. “You don’t have a dungeon, do you? Because I expect a guest room.” She showed her teeth in a bare approximation of a smile. “As a show of good faith, of course.”

Hart met Liam’s grim gaze, returned it with his own. “I expect her to be safe here.”

Liam inclined his head. “As long as our daughter is safe.”

Hart barely suppressed a wince. “I’ll do my best,” he said.

“If your best isn’t good enough?” Helena said softly, silkily. “I will personally drain every single person in your league. Understood?”

He nodded stiffly.

“Your mom rocks,” I muttered. “You know he’s totally shaking under all that suave sophistication.”

Bruno showed Hart outside, trailed by the dogs, except for Byron, who kept sniffing suspiciously at Hope. Geoffrey nodded his head at the stairs.

“Your room is this way.”

Nicholas and I scrambled to our feet. He pulled me down the hall, his fingers like a vise around mine. We leaped into Solange’s room just as Geoffrey led Hope to one of the guest rooms with its own bathroom. He shut the door behind her and locked it, with an ominous click that seemed to reverberate. He paused on the other side of Solange’s door, and I half expected him to lock us in as well.

“Get to sleep, you two,” he muttered before walking away.

I turned back to Nicholas, who was already stretched out on Solange’s bed, his head resting on the Hello Kitty pillow I’d given her for her ninth birthday.

“What do we do now?” I asked. My eyes felt gritty and dry. I’d been awake for nearly twenty-four hours. I felt a little lightheaded. Nicholas didn’t even open his eyes.

“I have to sleep.” His words were slurred. I sat down next to him, touched his forehead. There was an unhealthy pallor to his skin. “Save Solange.”

He didn’t say anything else for a long time. I poked him once.

“Nicholas?”

Nothing.

It felt wrong to sleep when my best friend was out there at the mercy of rogue vampire hunters. Buffy wouldn’t have slept.

Of course, Buffy had supernatural powers.

Me?

Not so much.

“Shut up about Buffy already,” Nicholas muttered. I hadn’t even realized I’d spoken out loud. He didn’t open his eyes, only reached out and yanked my sleeve until I fell over, sprawled next to him. “Go to sleep.”

The bed was soft and smelled like vanilla fabric softener. Nicholas was a comforting presence against me. He was already asleep again. He wouldn’t notice if I snuggled in just a little bit closer.

For safety’s sake, of course. There were bad guys everywhere, after all. One couldn’t be too careful.

He shifted midsnore and pulled me closer.

I fell asleep feeling better than I had all week.