Samael Page 3

  “Not push him in front of an oncoming city bus. How are you going to explain that to the police? There were witnesses.” He sat back and stretched his legs out, his hands going back to cradle his head as he looked up at the ceiling. “I can’t believe you did that. Your probation makes so much sense to me now.”

  She noticed whenever he got agitated he tended to move a lot. Stretching, running a hand over his face, tapping his foot—anything to move. She kept her voice to a whisper and watched the humans around them stare in their direction. The humans didn’t look away when she pinned them with a glare. It was creepy. Both of them were dressed like Wesley Snipes in Blade—one of her favorite movies of all time. “I thought I saw a dagger in his hands. I panicked.”

  She’d panicked because the visual of her dying had flashed through her mind. It turned out the vamp hadn’t been waving around a dagger. Her imagination had run amuck.

  “The detectives aren’t going to buy that.”

  No, they probably wouldn’t. “Sure they will. Will you just shut the fuck up for five minutes and let me think?” The horrific scene flashed before her eyes again. The vampire running at her, the crazed look in his eyes, the crunch of his head under the tire when she pushed him in front of the bus, and the screams of the humans when the vamp’s blood gushed from the wound.

  And then all hell had broken loose.

  Samael sat forward and braced his elbows on his knees, trying to look relaxed, but she could still feel the frustrated energy coming off him. “I can flash us out of here.”

  She rolled her eyes. That seemed to be a demons’ fix-all. “And then what? The police in this station know what I look like. Do you have any idea how many states I’m wanted in?”

  “I wonder why.” He pulled a hand down his face and abruptly sat up, causing those around him to become jittery. “We need to get the hell out of here. If you’re actually wanted in more than one state they’ll know who you are.”

  She shook her head and waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. “They don’t have anything to identify me with in their files. I don’t even think they have a picture of me. Maybe a sketch, but—hey, let go!”

  He pulled her to the door of the female bathroom, smiling congenially at people who passed. “Get in. I’ll be right behind you.”

  Oh, as if this wasn’t bringing attention to themselves. The druggies looked sane next to her and Samael. “This is asinine. The police only want to question me. It wasn’t like I was booked or anything.”

  He pushed her against the bathroom door and leaned in so close she could see gold specks in his eyes. “Get in the goddamned bathroom.”

  “Who’s making a scene now?” She launched herself through the door when Samael’s eyes turned red. If he did something stupid, she’d somehow get blamed for it. She could hear Ambrose now…

  “If you hadn’t done what you did in front of humans, you wouldn’t have been at the police station to begin with.”

  Blah, blah, blah.

  Within seconds Samael shouldered his way through the door. He grabbed her arm and the tingling began. She squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath. Teleporting sucked. Getting bullied by a demon sucked. Her life sucked at the moment. Cool air hit her face and she opened her eyes. They were standing by the rental. She placed a hand on the SUV and leaned against it as dizziness washed over her.

  “Get in.”

  She didn’t argue as she slid into the passenger seat, wishing the lightheadedness would go away quickly. If anyone should be put on probation, it was Samael. First he dragged her through the police department in front of everyone, and now he’d materialized them to the rental in broad daylight.

  “Where are we going?” They didn’t have a hotel room, and they had yet to get their next assignment from Ambrose. They had to let him know they’d completed this mission before new papers would be sent to them.

  Before Samael could answer her, his cell rang. He leaned forward and fished it out of his pocket. With a quick glance at the I.D., he answered. “Yes?”

  She could hear Ambrose on the other end. “How are things going?”

  Samael slipped the keys into the ignition and started the car. “Actually, quite well. We just finished up with our current assignment.”

  “How did she do?” Ambrose asked.

  A flash of anger raced through her. Over seven hundred years as a top assassin in the Alliance, and Ambrose was checking on her. Yeah, her life definitely sucked. She couldn’t really blame Ambrose for what he did. If she were in his position, she would have done the same thing. She considered telling him about Lexie’s vision, but then he’d take her off the streets altogether. She wasn’t sure she wanted to quit her job as assassin quite yet.

  Samael glanced at her. “I was actually amazed with her. She is very … efficient.”

  “Getting the job done was never an issue with her. She’s always worked fast. Did she bring attention to herself?”

  The muscle in Samael’s jaw tightened. Obviously he didn’t like lying to Ambrose. “It was more like a hit-and-run. We made it out of the building undetected.”

  Well, Samael certainly wasn’t a bad liar. He had made it out of the building without anyone the wiser. It was outside the building that she had been caught by crowds and onlookers.

  And the crack about the hit-and-run … classic. She gave him a thumbs-up, and he smacked her hand down. She settled back in her seat and rubbed the sting out.

  Ambrose and Samael would never understand her reasoning for doing the things she did. They might be secure in their fighting abilities, but she could do the math. Assassins in the Alliance had an expiration date—and that arrived around five hundred years in service. She was currently two hundred years overdue for death to arrive. Lexie’s vision made those numbers even worse.

  Ambrose spoke again. “Drop by the Alliance security office in that area, and I’ll send them your next assignment. Rest up tonight and review the papers. Call me if you need anything or have any questions.”

  “Will do.”

  Jade held her hands in front of her and studied them, not wishing to look at Samael at the moment but wanting to thank him. He didn’t have to lie for her, and she wasn’t sure why he had. “Thank you.”

  “What the fuck did you do to your fingernails?”

  She dropped her hands in her lap, curling her fingers so he couldn’t see them anymore. “I bite them, okay?” Jesus, he was rude. She got nervous before carrying out her missions lately, so she bit her nails sometimes. How gentlemanly of him to point out that particular flaw.

  “I’m going to start calling you Stumpy.”

  She gritted her teeth and glared at him. “That nickname can go both ways, buddy.”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Not bloody likely. If you need proof just wait until we get to a hotel. I’ll give you all the proof you’ll need, and there will be plenty of it, let me assure you.”

  He pulled out of the parking lot and she buckled. “Why do men do that? Stack so much importance on the size of their dick?”

  He grunted. “When’s the last time you heard a female bragging to her friends that her man had a short dick?”

  The conversation had taken a turn into Twilight Zone territory. She had to get it back on track, because now all she could think about was the size of Samael’s dick. Everything about a former angel was perfect. Everything. She had no doubt—focus. “What happened to the vamp’s body after it got plowed by the bus?”

  “I called the person in charge of body pickup in the area, and he said he would see to it. He didn’t sound pleased. He’ll have to go to the city morgue to retrieve the body. Hopefully he gets there before the vamp wakes up. Obviously his head wasn’t severed, it was crushed. He didn’t die.”

  Those responsible for body pick-up didn’t like to deal with EMT’s or police. It made their job that much harder. “Do you know where the Alliance office is in this city?”

  “I do.”

  How did he know where the Al
liance office was located? She’d been in the Alliance much longer, and she still had to call for directions eighty percent of the time. “You know this how?”

  “Before I go to a mission, I get all the information I believe is necessary to complete the job. Obviously you don’t feel the need to do that.”

  She could tell he was still angry with her. Even though she disliked Samael, she didn’t want him to think her a liability or a failure. “I’ll do better next time.”

  He stopped at a red light and turned to look at her. “That’s good. Because the next time I’m not going to lie for you.”

  “Did I ask you to lie for me? Why did you do it if you’re so against it?” She respected that he had no desire to lie, and yet she’d never asked him to lie for her. It remained a puzzle he did at all, since he was obligated to report to Ambrose on her progress.

  “You’ve been an assassin for a long time. Until this afternoon I thought Ambrose went too far by putting you on probation. Part of me believes you just need a vacation, and now another part of me thinks you might have lost the finesse this job requires. Did something happen in the past few months that changed your outlook on the job? Do you honestly believe you’re still a good assassin?”

  The question stung. “If I believed otherwise, I would quit.”

  A few minutes went by and she assumed the subject had been dropped. He pulled in front of a small building, just off a busy street. When he turned the car off, he sat sideways and looked at her. His spicy scent permeated the SUV. She shifted in her seat.

  “You answered only one of two questions.”

  “Are you under contract to interrogate me as well?”

  “It’s a simple question.”

  And one she wouldn’t answer. “Is this the Alliance office?”

  An uncomfortable silence fell between them. Only the soft crinkling of her leather jacket as she shifted in her seat could be heard.

  He placed his hand over hers. His warmth sent a jolt of electricity through her body as their energies collided. “I’m not only here to report on your progress. I’m here to help you. But I can’t do that if you don’t trust me.”

  What she trusted was Lexie’s vision. The part about the masculine hands added just another nail in Jade’s coffin. She hadn’t completely dismissed Lexie’s warning in the beginning, but Jade held onto the fact that she worked alone. Now that Samael was by her side for her missions, the vision was that much closer to coming to fruition. She had no doubt he would rush to her side and try to save her if she took such a deadly hit.

  She wanted to tell him about the vision, but in turn he would tell Ambrose, and she’d be yanked off the streets without hesitation. She slipped her hand from his and opened the passenger door. “Let’s get our next assignment.”

  Before she shut the door she heard him sigh. Hopefully that meant he’d grown tired of trying to extract information from her.

  She wasn’t ready to share Lexie’s vision with anyone. She needed more time.

  * * * *

  Samael set his dagger on the bed and picked up his Smith and Wesson semiautomatic pistol. He had yet to use the weapon issued to him by the Alliance, but where Jade was concerned, he didn’t know from day to day what arsenal he’d have to rely on. Best to keep it clean and in good working order.

  He hoped to gain insight to the way her mind worked earlier, when they were parked in front of the Alliance office. Instead of learning anything about her, she’d closed up, refusing to let him in on whatever had happened to her in the last few months, and something had happened. No one changed that drastically after centuries of repetitive work. She’d either snapped from the stresses of her job, or something had happened to change her outlook on life. He was betting the latter. The look in her eyes said it all.

  He field stripped his pistol, laying the parts out before him. He was allowing the woman to get under his skin. In Hell he cared about his ultimate mission and made sure the demons under his command completed their jobs in a satisfactory manner. Other than that he’d kept all personal business to himself. The mission he was currently on dealt more with Jade’s psyche than her fighting habits themselves. Once he found out what was bothering her, she’d be good as new.

  A light knock on his door brought his attention away from his musings. He set his pistol down and opened the door with his powers, having felt Jade’s presence on the other side.

  She held out a brown paper bag. “I went downstairs to get something to eat. There was a burger joint next door so I brought you something back.”

  “Thanks.” He stood and smiled to himself, figuring she’d brought him dinner because she wanted to talk. Just as she was about to step inside the room he felt an ancient evil presence materialize behind him.

  He quickly blocked her path and snatched the bag. “I’ll talk to you in the morning.”

  She backed up and tried to peer around his shoulder. There was no doubt in his mind that she also felt the presence behind him, though he wasn’t about to introduce her to this particular demon. “Old acquaintance,” he said lamely as he shut the door in her face.

  “Cute girl. Does she have a sister?”

  Samael turned to face his intruder, uneasiness settling in his gut. He kept his face stoic. “What do you want, Luc?”

  Lucifer slapped an expression of hurt across his features. “Millennia of service and I can’t just pop in to see how my former Marquis is doing?”

  Luc had the power to read minds. Samael kept a tight rein on his musings. “You lead a life of purpose. Anything you do eventually has a reason behind it, even if that reason is not obvious at the onset.”

  Luc ran his hands down the lapels of his dark blue suit. “I believe you’re calling me devious.”

  “Why are you here?”

  “Oh very well. If you don’t want to play the mind games I love so much, I might as well get straight to the point. I’m here to give you one last chance to return to the ranks. No harm, no foul. We can make this a seamless transition.”

  “You have plenty of demons to fill my spot. There’s something specific I have now, otherwise you wouldn’t bother yourself.”

  “You’re getting good at blocking your thoughts from me.”

  “Years of practice.”

  “You’re no fun anymore, Samael.” Luc strode to the window and opened the blinds with his powers. “Hundreds of demons are murdered by the Alliance every year. They find themselves in the Pit, and I’m forced to take those whom I believe will aid me in my battle. Most want nothing more than to go after the assassin who sent them to the fire, and it takes me days to convince them that there are better ways to spend their time.”

  Samael kept his expression impassive when Luc glanced back at him.

  Luc turned back to the window and continued. “I could easily send those demons out to eliminate the Alliance, and yet I’ve held them back.”

  “Because you wait for Ambrose to join your ranks. If you attack what belongs to him, what he’s worked so hard to build, he’ll never join your side.” It was no secret Luc wanted Ambrose on his side. As a former Warrior Angel, Ambrose contained powers that rivaled Luc’s. He would be the perfect asset to Luc’s army.

  “Absolutely correct. I tolerate his vampires because I desire Ambrose to be my second-in-command. And now I must also tolerate my demons joining his Alliance? I do have a breaking point.”

  “You hope for too much. Ambrose seeks one thing—redemption. He must atone for his past sins.”

  Luc waved his hand and the blinds fell back into place, shutting out the outside world. “Convince him, Samael. Allow Ambrose to see what it’s like on the other side. He would answer only to me. He’d command my entire army with nothing and no one to hold him back.”

  Samael couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You want me to spy for you? Get close to Ambrose so I can recruit him?”

  Luc leveled his light green eyes on Samael. Black engulfed his irises as he moved to stand in front of him. �
�I know what it is you desire. Do you think you are capable of attaining redemption after serving in my army for so long? I could kill your physical body now and send your soul to the Pit for eternity.”

  “I will not do this for you.”

  Luc laid his palm on Samael’s shoulder. “You were right, Samael. Everything I do serves a purpose. I wait until the perfect opportunity to strike, and your time is drawing near. Think about my offer.”

  Samael stepped out of Luc’s reach as the demon disappeared. The silence that now permeated the room felt like a physical weight that settled on his shoulders. Redemption had seemed out of reach before Luc’s presence, and now it seemed even more impossible. His choices were diminishing before his eyes.

  There were only two choices left to him—ignore Luc’s offer and face the fires of the Pit, where redemption could never be found, or do as Luc had asked and damn himself for all eternity while bringing others down with him.

  Chapter Three

  Cincinnati, Ohio

  Jade had always wanted to make love in the snow. It was the one thing she had yet to do. Too bad she was with Samael, the arrogant bastard who’d been making her life a living hell, as the soundless flakes fell to the ground. And he’d know exactly how to make her life hell, having been a Marquis in that realm.

  Crouched down in the accumulating snow, wearing a knitted black hat with a crocheted ball at the top and thigh-high black leather boots, she looked like a hooker going into the third grade. Snow in November. Unbelievable.

  Samael hadn’t made a play for her since their shared kiss in the jail. From a woman’s point of view, that was one hell of a sucker punch. She didn’t want him, did she? Why then did she always think of him when she went to sleep? While she was in the shower? God, she was turning into a pre-pubescent teen. If he’d had a last name, she’d likely be scribbling it onto the hotel notepads right after her first name.