“Then wait,” Lyssa said gently. “Wait until you’re ready. If you force it. . she’ll know you’re lying. And you’ll resent her for making you feel as though you have to say something you don’t mean.”
Eddie drew in a shaky breath. “Maybe you should be a therapist instead of an artist.”
“The artist is a therapist.” Her lips brushed his cheek with great tenderness. “But I’m better at dishing out advice than taking it.”
He took her hand and kissed it. “I want to introduce you a little better to my mom. Do you feel comfortable going back there?”
“Do you?”
When he hesitated, she said, “Let’s wait.”
“You must think I’m a coward.”
“No.” Lyssa rested her cheek on his shoulder. “When you returned home for the first time. . what was it like?”
“Horrible,” he whispered. “She was so happy to see me. . but she was angry, too, that I’d run away. Angry and hurt. She needed me after my sister died, and I abandoned her. I had a good reason — good, from my point of view — but she didn’t know any of that, and maybe it didn’t matter. Maybe I should have just stayed and fought it out — the fire, the guilt. All of it.”
“Early on, did you have trouble controlling the fire?”
“Yeah. It would just. . come on me. I spent a lot of time alone. I’m surprised I didn’t die from starvation or loneliness in those first few years.”
“I almost did,” she said. “And I’m surprised I didn’t accidentally murder anyone. I was a girl, alone. Men would. . men would try to take advantage of that. I’d fight them off, or they would see my right hand and freak. Or maybe they’d catch fire, and I would run like hell.”
He held her tightly against him. “I’m sorry.”
“Did that happen to you? You know. . with men who liked boys?”
“Yes.” Eddie closed his eyes, burying his nose in her hair. “I fought like you did, but it made me think of Matthew, and that was. . one more horrible thing.”
“He didn’t molest you, did he?”
“Not like that, but. .”
“You don’t have to talk about it,” she said quickly.
“No, it’s. . he would look at me. Me, naked. And. . say things.”
Lyssa gripped his hand so tightly it hurt. But he welcomed the pain.
“That’s all,” he whispered. “You want to walk now?”
“Yes,” she said.
Eddie was going to drive them back to his apartment, but he could tell that Lyssa was still thinking about what he’d told her — and that wasn’t the memory he wanted to end her night on.
So he took her to the Kosmo Klub.
Built underground, the bar was accessible via a narrow stairwell so nondescript and unadorned, the only way to know it existed was by the long line of people waiting to get in.
Fortunately, it was the favorite haunt of Dirk & Steele’s agents — and the owner, an endearingly eccentric elderly woman named Dame Rose — loved all those men and women. Like, she really loved them.
Eddie walked Lyssa to the front of the line, and she gave all the waiting people an uncertain look. He slipped a protective arm around her waist, aware of the women glaring — and the men checking out her flawless face.
“You sure about this?” she asked, checking her scarf.
“You’ll love it. Only the best musicians come here, and the food is great.”
“Mmm,” she said, peering at the diminutive, old-fashioned sign nailed above the entrance.
“Kosmo Klub,” she read out loud, and smiled. “For a kosmic good time.”
The bouncer recognized him, and was just beginning to unhook the velvet rope when a musical voice cried, “Eddie!”
An elderly woman hobbled up the stairwell, face lit up in a broad smile. She was dressed in emerald green sequins, with a matching feather in her silver hair. Her skin was very dark and fine, her bones delicate as a bird’s. But when she hugged Eddie, her fingers pinched his ass with unerring precision, and she pulled his face down for a hearty kiss on the mouth.
“Lord, you make me lusty,” she announced loudly, and turned her sparkling gaze on Lyssa. “And who is this lovely? Don’t tell me you finally have a girl?”
Lyssa grinned, and held out her gloved left hand. “My name is Lyssa.”
“And yes, Rose,” Eddie said proudly. “She’s my girl.”
“Well,” she said, hooking her arms around them. “This calls for free drinks and dancing. You, sweets, are my special guests tonight.”
“Be gentle,” Lyssa said, and Rose roared with laughter.
The bar was packed, and so was the cleared space in front of the stage, where a small band played. A tall, lanky black man in a T-shirt, jeans, and a suit jacket held the microphone like a lover, and sounded so much like Otis Redding that Eddie had to take a moment to make sure he wasn’t seeing the impossible.
“He’s something,” said Rose with a sigh, and led them to a small empty table on the edge of the dance floor. She plucked away its RESERVED sign, and as Eddie pulled out Lyssa’s chair, she said, “Some big-time movie star said he wanted dinner tonight, but he can just stand at the bar and drink his supper standing up. This, babies, is for you.”
“Oh,” Lyssa said, staring. “Are you sure. .”
Rose smiled and patted her cheek. “You are sweet. But you should know now that I take care of Eddie and his friends. And his ladies. . well, you’re the first I’ve seen, so I know it’s special. You’re always welcome here, Lyssa. Don’t forget it.”
Before Lyssa could say a word, the old woman spun and disappeared into the crowd.
Eddie caught her hand, smiling. “See?”
“I. .” she began, and gave him a peculiar look that was full of wonderment. “I’ve never. .”
“I know,” he said. “But this is your home now. All of this. Everything I have is your home, Lyssa. I want you to know that.”
She blinked hard and swallowed. “If she knew what I am, what I could do. .”
“You do good,” he said. “You help people and save lives. You’re an artist, a writer. A great one. You’re the finest, bravest person I know.”
She exhaled, slowly, her eyes beginning to glow. The small candle burning on the table sputtered, and flared like a firecracker. A grin touched her mouth, and Eddie laughed.
“Miracles,” she murmured, looking at him with a heat that made him feel his soul was burning in light. “I love you.”
The man onstage launched into a stirring rendition of “Try a Little Tenderness.” Eddie stood and tugged on Lyssa’s hand. “Let’s dance.”
“No,” she said, laughing. “I’ve never.”
“Then you have to, with me.”
“You’re going to regret this.”
“Only if you say no,” he said, pulling her off the chair with a flex of one strong arm. Lyssa’s laugh became a gasp as she slammed against him, his one arm sliding instantly around her waist and holding her so tightly he could feel every curve of her lush body. She held him just as closely, her right hand clasped in his left. He turned them slowly, swaying to that soulful voice singing about love and tenderness.
And then he looked past her, into the crowd — and saw a man watching them.
Time slowed down. Details stood out in the shadows. Every part of the man was sharp, jutting, hard. Maybe because he was so skinny, as if every ounce of fat had melted off him, stretching his skin tight as a drum across his chest and face. His eyes bulged, and his mouth was thick, making a long slashing line across his face.
Matthew Swint. It was him.
The world came unhinged around him, tilting sideways. Nothing seemed real. He was suddenly a kid again, heart pounding, crushed with fear.
The Cruor Venator couldn’t touch him, but Matthew Swint. . seeing him again was a greasy, sweaty nightmare filled with cigarette burns, and his pants pulled down so Matthew could make fun of his penis and threaten to set it on fire. It was seeing him kiss Eddie’s mother, and follow her into her bedroom, and seeing him in that same bedroom with his sobbing sister. .