“Maybe. I don’t know the answer to that.”
“Neither do I. It’s scary. But exciting, too. I liked that power.” She lifted her head and he read the truth in her eyes. “It’s both exhilarating and terrifying and I’d like to know the answer myself.”
She was right about that. He would have to figure out what had happened to her. But one thing had happened.
She’d surprised him. She could have run like hell when he’d been engaged with the demons. Instead, she’d stayed and fought. She’d even had his back, killing a demon in order to save his life.
“You killed your first demon.”
She grinned. “I have to admit, it feels good to know that, even if the method was bizarre. If we did, in fact, kill them.”
He shrugged. “Who knows. Either way, they’re gone. And so are we.”
“What do you mean?”
“They found us again. I don’t know how, but they obviously know where we are.” He stood and gathered up the weapons he’d used to fight the demons. Angelique bent down to help him.
“So where are we going?”
He took the daggers to the kitchen to clean them off. “The one place we’re not going is where the black diamond is hidden.”
“Because the Sons of Darkness will be able to find it then.”
“Yes. They’ve tracked you to every location where you’ve hidden.”
“Based on what happened with me, do you think I’m connected to them somehow?”
He turned and studied her. She asked the question matter-of-factly, as if she really didn’t know the answer. He didn’t think she was trying to hide anything. It seemed as if she was as much in the dark about her newly demonstrated power as he was.
“I don’t know. It’s possible that you have some kind of connection to the Sons of Darkness. Either way, I’m not going to risk the black diamond by letting you lead me to it. Not right now, anyway.”
He turned off the water and grabbed a towel, pivoting around to lean against the sink so he could face her.
“Where are we going?” she asked again.
He knew the question she wasn’t asking. She wanted to know if he was going to take her to her sister. Now more than ever he was convinced that was a colossally bad idea.
“I’m not sure. But we’ve gotta keep moving, and hope we can stay a step ahead of the Sons of Darkness until I can figure out what the hell is going on.”
“Okay.”
“Better get packing. I want to leave now.”
She nodded and headed into the bedroom. Ryder jammed his few things into his bag, pausing when he was finished to stare down the hall into her room.
Okay, she amazed him. Infuriated and frustrated him. But she was an exceptionally strong woman. She didn’t scare easily, she was a fighter, and she didn’t run. A lot of women, and men, would have buckled under what had just happened. Angie accepted it, played the possible scenarios over in her mind, and came up with possible outcomes.
She’d make a good hunter. And an ally. And a partner.
It was going to really suck if she turned out to be a demon, because he was starting to care what happened to her.
CHAPTER TEN
Angelique was so tired she couldn’t see straight.
Ryder had kept them moving, driving all night and well into the next day. She was tired of sitting in the car going nowhere, nodding off only to jerk upright and wonder where they were, how long she’d been asleep and how far they’d traveled. The island wasn’t that big. For all she knew they could be driving in circles. She wanted a shower and a bed.
“Ryder, please. I’m hungry. I’m exhausted and my back hurts. Just stop at a hotel so we can get a few hours’ rest.”
He glanced her way, and she must have looked pitiful enough, because he nodded. Within a half hour he had pulled into a coast-side motel and gotten them a room. They grabbed a quick bite at a small restaurant a short walk down the road. Her stomach full, the next objective was a shower and clean clothes.
Ryder unlocked the door, stopping her and making her wait outside while he inspected the room as if he expected to find demons lurking inside. Ha. He should have let her go in first. At this point she was a demon’s worst enemy. She’d have fought fiercely to the death for the rights to the shower and bed in that room. For some reason she found that visual amusing, no doubt due to her lack of sleep. Ryder motioned her inside. A tiny room, with a small double bed, crisp white sheets, and airconditioning. She breathed a sigh of relief. To her, it was a palace. She tossed her bag on the bed and went straight for the bathroom to turn on the shower, desperate to wash off the grit.
The steamy water felt magnificent. She could stay in there forever, but didn’t want to hog the shower, so she cleaned up and got out, grabbed a towel, and tucked it around her. When she stepped out of the bathroom, Ryder stood at the window, peeking outside through a slit in the closed curtains.
“Any demons in the parking lot?” she teased.
He turned, glanced at her, then frowned. “You should get dressed.”
She didn’t, irritated and cranky and tired of taking orders from him. She sat on the bed. “I’m exhausted, Ryder. Why don’t you go take a shower?”
He turned back toward the window. “I’m fine.”
She stood and approached him, lifting on her toes to peer over his shoulder. “It’s almost dark again. You haven’t slept in almost twenty-four hours.”
“I can handle it.”
She placed her hand on his shoulder, refusing to pull back when he flinched. “I can feel the tension in your body. You need to unwind a little. We’ll be okay.”
He didn’t answer.
“You’ve got to let go. If demons come, we’ll deal with it, but you have to rest sometime. If you don’t, you won’t do either of us any good. Now go take a shower, let the water relax your body.”
“That’s not what I need.”
“Then what do you need?”
“I need you to back away from me.”
“Why?”
It took him a few seconds to answer. “Because you smell good.”
She snorted. “That bothers you?”
“Yes.”
Ah. Now she understood. Suddenly the room seemed smaller, and her body grew warmer. She should step away and give him some space, but something stopped her. Instead, she squeezed his shoulder, felt the muscles there coil up.
“I’m warning you, Angie. Back off.”
He was exhausted and on the edge. So was she. And she sensed he really didn’t want her to back off, even though the warning tone in his voice said so. But was he trying to push her away, or was he trying to tell her he’d reached the edge of his endurance?
Was that such a bad thing? Maybe this was what they both needed. They’d been dancing around it for a long time-ever since Australia-and she was tired of it. There was something between them and she wanted to explore it, even if he didn’t think it was a good idea.