“He’s different.”
“How?”
She shook her head. “You agree to help, I tell you. You don’t, then I’m gone.”
I thought it over. Several things made this seem like a good idea. One: she was hot and had stirred feelings, and a need, I hadn’t had in a long, long time. Two: she had information that might keep Terric, Zay, Allie, and the rest of the Soul Complements safe. Which meant it was possible she either worked for the government or worked against them. Three: did I mention she was hot? Four: that kill-you thing she offered was a pretty sweet way to deal with my ultimate dilemma—my problem, as she called it.
It would, however, be insane to commit to a revenge that I didn’t give a damn about.
It would not, on the other hand, be the most insane thing I’d ever done.
“No,” I said.
It surprised her and she didn’t bother to cover it up. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Yes, I am.”
She pulled her hair back with both hands and let it cascade back into place. “We would have made a hell of a team,” she said.
“Undoubtedly.”
“Was it the glorious death that turned you off?”
“No. I thought that was a nice touch.”
She smiled. “Well, then. To happy endings.” She held up her drink and I picked up the shot.
Touched the edge of my glass to hers. “To endings, happy or otherwise.”
She nodded, then took a long drink.
I slammed back the whiskey, enjoying every moment of the burn. I only wished it were enough to put out the fire she’d started in me.
A slightly sweet aftertaste coated my throat. I wondered which brand she’d ordered.
“Now that business is out of the way, care to stay for a couple drinks?” I asked.
“Maybe. What do you have in mind?”
“I thought I’d unpack my boyish charms and try my hand at seducing you.”
And the smile she gave me.
It lit up her face. She was, I realized, the kind of woman who knew how to laugh. Who was probably gentle to small animals, and kind to old people. Behind her mask, she was vibrant. Alive.
I wanted that.
“First,” she said, “don’t tell a woman you’re going to try to seduce her.”
“Oh, I don’t think that’s fair. Relationships are much more fun when . . .” The pub spun to the left and I braced my hand on the table edge so I didn’t slap it with my face.
“That’s not right,” I mumbled.
Dessa leaned forward. “Second, don’t accept drinks from strange women.”
“What?”
“Well, look at that,” she said. “Your boyish charms are working. I’m just all wobbly in the knees and so are you. Why don’t you come home with me, kitten?”
“Kitten?”
And before I could make any damn sense of that, she was next to me, then standing with me. Her arm was surprisingly strong around my waist, and I wanted like mad to pull her into me. But the pub was coming in and out of focus as I blinked, and the only thing that convinced me I was walking was that the place was moving past me.
“Spiked my drink,” I said.
Now we were standing outside.
“Yes, I did.”
“Naughty girl.”
She sighed. We were moving again. Around the corner. “I am sorry about this. You could have just agreed. It would have been easier.”
“You knew I wouldn’t. Otherwise why spike the shot?”
“I wasn’t sure I could be convincing enough. One thing you need to know about me, Shamus Flynn? I never give up.”
I would have told her the one thing she should know about me is I never do things the easy way, but the world was a blender of light and darkness. I didn’t know what she’d dropped in my drink, but it was not a drug or magic I was familiar with.
That worried me.
Could I use magic to get myself out of this? Sure, if I could concentrate long enough to trace the glyph of a spell.
So: no.
Could I just drain down her life?
Strangely, and really, most frighteningly of all, I couldn’t even think straight enough to do that. That drink had pushed magic—even Death magic—way out of my reach.
“Here we are,” she said. “You can just relax. Lie down. Let me take care of everything.”
“I don’t even know your last name,” I mumbled. I thought she was easing me into the back of her car. I was pretty sure I heard a car door open.
But I’d gotten that wrong too.
She’d popped the trunk. And gave me a shove down into it.
“You have got to be kidding me,” I laughed as the world spun and shook.
“No. I am completely serious about this. Deadly, even.”
She leaned above me, her lips slightly open as she adjusted something near my head. And all I could think of was I should kiss that woman.
What can I say? I like a woman who can surprise me. She’d certainly done that.
Too bad I couldn’t move.
“You should be comfortable,” she was saying. “And don’t even think about using magic. It won’t work.”
Too late. I was already thinking about it. But that was about all I was doing. Because the lumpiness I was lying on wasn’t the spare tire and crowbar. It was Void stones. As a matter of fact, the entire trunk was lined with them, completely canceling my ability to draw on magic.
The woman knew how to plan ahead. I wondered if she’d lined the top of the trunk too.
“I’d tell you to get some sleep,” she said. “But this is going to be a bumpy ride, so just try not to get a concussion.”
As the trunk slammed shut, I noted that yes indeed. The inside of the lid was lined with Void stones too.
Damn. I really should have kissed her.
Chapter 8
Here’s where I act the hero and do something smart, like call someone. Or do something brave, like kick out the trunk. Or come up with a sneaky plan, like find the biggest Void stone so I could brain the bitch.
Instead I got nauseated and unconscious. In that order.
I came to no longer in the trunk. I had no memory of walking or of her dragging me. But somehow she had managed to get me into a motel room and strap me down to a chair.
This was so not how I had imagined spending the night with her. Well, not the first night, anyway.
She was pacing. It was the thump, thump of her flat bootheels on the carpet that had brought me awake.
Thump, thump, pause.
“You are a very bad girl,” I said. It came out a little ragged. Whatever she’d poisoned me with had done some damage to my throat on the way down.
“You do make me want to do bad things to you.” Her fingers drew across my shoulders and even though I was still clothed, I felt it like a lick of heat that made me shudder with need.
No fair. Focus, Flynn. She doesn’t mean those kinds of bad things.
“Aren’t you the sweetest?” I said. “How about you give a guy back some feeling in his hands?”
She finally walked around from behind me.
She was wearing a red satin bra and panties. And her combat boots.
And nothing else.
Well, a smile.
Holy shit. Maybe she did mean those kinds of bad things.
Please let her mean those bad things.
She turned so I could get a good look at her ass too. Lordy. Someone spent time in the gym. Or chasing after her brother’s killer. I hear revenge is a great full-body workout.
She turned back to me. With guns in her hands.
“There’s some mixed signals,” I said.
“This,” she said, “is to get your attention. How am I doing so far?” She bent at the waist so I got a good eyeful of her guns.