Chapter 20

Luc drove me back to Vivienne’s house in silence. I could only assume he wasn’t happy with the abrupt ending to our night, but whatever. Friend-duty called, and although I’d decided to put pleasure and fun first, I felt obliged to find out what catastrophe had Abby sending a million messages to my phone. I’d returned her text, asking what was going on. Up until now there’d been no further response from her.

We pulled up in front of the house, lit with a pale buttery glow. Vivienne’s car was still gone, and she’d likely be out till the small hours of the morning. Temptation to invite him in would have been strong if it weren't for Abby.

“Well...” I shifted in my seat to face him. “Thanks for everything.” I smiled.

He didn’t return it.

“Venus, I had a good time with you tonight. I genuinely did,” he said. Then he added, “I hope you’ll remember that.”

I was debating on a reply, between saying something witty, something sarcastic, or something a little naughty, when he suddenly leaned over and kissed me.

Now, this was a kiss worth talking about. I actually felt flames ignite in all the right places.

When he pulled back, he gave me a sheepish grin. “Had to do it.” He shrugged lightly.

“Glad you did,” I replied, sweeping my hair over my shoulder. It was the last night I’d ever see him. Because let’s face it, the number of miracles that had to occur before I’d be free to return here and find him alive and unharmed in the wake of an impending war were insurmountable. Considering those facts, I was glad that he had.

I watched him drive away before letting myself into the big empty house. The house that was finally beginning to feel like a home at the moment I had to leave it behind. But cutting my trip short seemed the only way to give the people here a fighting chance. I had to warn the powers that be in my world of what was happening. And we had to decide what was to be done about it.

Blowing out a sigh, I slipped Vivienne’s shoes off my feet and set them on the bottom step, then tried Abby’s phone again. Still nothing.

The beep of my phone echoed in the vaulted ceiling entry. I’d had my fill of empty houses, and the last thing I felt like being was alone. Maybe I should have invited Luc to stay. But Abby needed me. That girl had worse timing than her bestie.

I pulled out my phone and hit redial again. It went to voicemail, and I hung up before the annoying music and message could start playing. Maybe I should go right to her door; it was the only way to calm the unsettled feeling I had in my gut.

I set the phone down just as an odd thought came to mind. Venus. Luc had called me Venus, not Isobel. He’d never done that before, and yet he’d done it twice this evening.

The sudden knock at the door brought an embarrassingly wide smile to my face. He came back. This was just a boy. A human one. But he represented a few moments more of the life I should have lived.

It was only upon opening the door that my smile dropped away. A face I didn't recognize stood staring back at me through the screen. A face that wasn’t Luc's.

He wore dark gloves and even darker shades, at night, and his blond hair was slicked back to his skull. He looked like a case study in villainy. Only, he was a human and, let's face it, they had nothing on the villains I knew. Or the villain I was. So I tilted my head and arched my brows impatiently. “Yes?” I waited for the guy to say something.

He didn't.

Planting an impatient hand on my hip, I asked, “Can I help you?” I didn’t try to hide my irritation. Whoever this man was, he wasn't the one I was looking forward to seeing.

He stepped closer, putting one hand on the doorframe.

“Venus. You're Venus,” he said. I bristled at hearing my name used by someone I didn’t recognize. His voice had a hint of an accent, but not one I could place.

I squinted at him in the dim porch light. “I am fairly positive we don’t know each other,” I said, tightening the belt around the coat I was about to remove just seconds ago.

“You're not quite what I was expecting.”

I know the feeling. I made a face. "Not to be rude, but who are you and what do you want?" It was late. I was tired. He wasn't Luc, and I needed to reach Abby. It was well past my patience-o'clock, so blunt was all I had in me.

His mouth stretched into a grin, and he stepped onto the threshold. "Venus, alive and in the flesh."

He knows my name yet seems surprised that I’m here. I stared at him harder, trying to place him.

“Was that the door?” An Irish voice wafted down the stairs. Brigit was home. Not ideal.

I pushed the guy back out the door, and stepped out onto the porch, shutting the door behind me. Brigit would come nosing about, and if this guy did know me from before, well, I’d prefer her not hearing whatever he’d come to say.

Under the porch light, I was able to get a closer look at the stranger, who still hadn’t told me who he was or how he knew me. Attractive. Well-dressed, mid-twenties, no rings or jewelry to indicate attachment. A hot, young boy-toy of Vivienne's, perhaps? No. Not quite handsome enough and far too well kept, assuming Oberon was her type. And this guy seemed only interested in me. I wanted to know why.

“Listen, darling, if I could be bought by a pretty smile on a pretty face, I'd have been off the market a century ago.”

His brows tightened slightly, then furrowed. “A century you say?”

I didn't respond. Humans did that whole polite thing. I wasn’t human. I didn’t do nice.

"Okay, here’s how this goes. You have exactly five seconds to tell me who you are and what you want. After those five seconds are through, so are you.”

“Poetry becomes you.” Another broad smile.

He was flirting, not well, but to what end exactly? “Five... four.”

“I've come for something,” he said slowly, stroking his stubbled chin.

“Three...”

“But now I've seen all that I need to.”

“Two...”

He reached inside his jacket. The porch light shimmered across something metal. I caught the glimpse of a silver blade and tensed, but he only withdrew a small card.

Then his narrow gaze measured me. "You’re not the one I came for, but you'll do." He said it more to himself than to me.

I cocked my head. "Now there, see—here we're having a nice conversation and you have to go and insult me.” I offered a tight smile. "One. We're finished here."

I turned toward the door to head back into the house. My hand had barely touched the knob when the silent whir hit me.

A shockwave of heat slammed into my chest and hurled me backwards.

I landed on the ground, unsure if I was conscious or not. Heat from the explosion came at me, sweeping over my chest like a fiery wave. I cried out as vicious pain took me over.

My head turned away from the spray of gravel and billowing smoke that engulfed me. When I managed to crawl onto my belly, I stared into the waves of heat and dust to where Lorelei's house—my house—used to stand. It was decimated.

Random dissociated thoughts came to me. That Brigit was dead. That I would be blamed. That everything was gone, and with it my efforts of doing things differently... of being a part of a normal life.

I was numb. Stunned. Confused. Had I not been, I would have heard the crunch of footsteps approach before strong hands lifted me to my feet.

“You...” I sputtered the word, each breath filling my lungs with bitter smoke and fury. “You did this.”

The man who'd neglected to reveal anything about his visit wrapped a firm arm around my waist. I pushed him off, but he was strong.

His expression tightened. “Don't be so stubborn, Venus, you need help. We’re going to help each other.”

Profanity in every language scraped from my throat as he dragged me away from the blast area. I managed to gather enough strength to kick him in the shins. His grip on me weakened, enough for me to twist away from him.

Pushing with strength I didn't have, I limped as fast as I could down the middle of the street, screaming for help. But I didn't make it more than a few steps before his hand wrapped around my hair and he yanked me back. “Why do they always try to run?” he muttered.

That's when the nip of a needle bit into my neck, filling me with a cool liquid that numbed my senses, paralyzed my limbs, and made it impossible to escape.