Page 21 of Burn for the Devil
He was one of the few aware that I associated women with florals, scenting and tasting the blooms when one piqued my interest. I had no explanation for the unique phenomena. “Why do you ask? Do you?”
“I don’t. I still love her. Everyone reminds me of her.” Ilya’s eyes grew red, a thin band of light circling his pupils. I winced at his sappy words.
In light of past circumstances, it did not seem wise to update the man. However, if I didn’t lay my claim, she was at risk. “There is someone,” I remarked. “If you so much as breath the same air as her, I will gift her your entrails.”
“How romantic.” Ilya glared at me. “It was only Kiara promised to me, no one else. You stole my birthright, but I’ll stay out of your way.”
I didn’t have the energy to fight with him over another woman. “Good. I seem unable to run this company without you.”
He let out a long breath. “Alexander is on his way. I don’t know where the others are.”
The office door opened, revealing Matthew. Unsure whether to ignore him or hold him with a stare, I waited a beat before I watched the angel out of the corner of my eye. Satisfied he’d behave, I poured some whiskey. We’d known of each other, but I couldn’t say if we’d ever been in the same room together at any time.
He was dressed in much the same manner as I and possessed hair approximately the same texture, from what I could tell, though the color was the direct opposite. His hair was shorn low on the sides and left long on top; the length styled back. Skeletal tattoos adorned his hands, mimicking the bone structure that lay beneath. The same style of ink was etched along the length of his neck.
Matthew’s tall figure crossed the floor, his hand outstretched. “Ramone,” he greeted me.
I nodded, feeling the chill of his aura. An icy sweet wintergreen essence permeated the ether surrounding him. His irises glittered like pearlescent icebergs, an alien faint blue tone in their depths. He was my equal. The opposite, yet the same. I bristled as I shook his hand, sensing the same reaction in him, through the cool, smooth hand I’d clasped.
Matthew was the one responsible for manipulating time and ultimately leading to Kiara’s demise. Ilya had gone to him for help. They could both suck my dick.
Alastair, Alexander, and Stefan strode in after I’d returned to my seat. I perused the file Ilya had handed me while the tension increased in the atmosphere. A room full of apex predators was perhaps not the greatest idea, but we were out of options.
“You,” Matthew snarled at Alastair. “Why did no one let me know this cockroach bloodsucker would be here?” Slowly, he stalked toward an unmoving Alastair.
“Stand down,” I snapped.
He continued to advance on my best friend, halting when they were chest-to-chest. “You have something that belongs to me.”
“I believe it is nonrefundable.” My friend chuckled, referring to an incident involving his woman being kidnapped by this blond archangel. Miraculously, when Alastair fed on the man,he’d gained a measure of angelic magic. There was no way, as far as I knew, for that to be reversed.
Arrogance crossed Matthew’s eyes. “Your wife’s pussy tasted oh so sweet.”
“Enough,” Ilya raised his voice. “I don’t want to hear about Devane’s cunt. We all have to fucking work with each other. Get your shit together.”
Stefan stood up from where he’d planted himself. Alastair now had a hand around the angel’s neck, fangs bared. “How much would it take to kill you?” The vampire’s smooth voice wrapped around the room; his power of compulsion magnified by the alien magic running through his veins.
Stefan dipped his wrist and a shiny blade slid from his sleeve. “They’re both going to die,” he said to no one.
Glancing at Ilya, I saw that he’d hung his head down, running his fingers through his long hair. I stood up and he glanced at me, looked at the devolving situation by the door, and then back at me again. A silent agreement passed between us, the two of us having known each other long enough to be able to nearly read each other’s thoughts in certain situations.
Reaching into the cabinet behind my workstation, I retrieved a bottle of the tainted wine. Fortunately, this one was more potent than the others, possibly the original out of the known containers. Ilya tossed me two syringes that I quickly filled with the mixture while the others were distracted before deftly throwing them back to him. He proceeded to move faster than the human eye could detect, leaping over a chair and simultaneously plunging the needles in both Matthew’s and Stefan’s necks.
They had never partaken of the blood wine; they’d remained unchanged.
Ready for them to turn on Ilya, I stepped out from behind my desk and raised my hands, trapping the two men against thefront walls by the neck. Ilya moved back, stopping beside me and proceeded to straighten his cufflinks. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lit one. “Level playing field, now,” he remarked.
“Mm,” I said and dropped my hands.
Matthew and Stefan glared daggers at us while my co-conspirator smirked at them. Alastair raised his eyebrows and moved toward the couch. “Glad I’m not one of you,” he muttered.
I ignored my bloodsucking friend. “It wouldn’t do for us to all work together, and have such a chasm between us,” I said. Looking Matthew and then Stefan in the eye, I stated, “that wouldn’t do at all.”
“Sit down,” I ordered, turning my shoulders to them, half expecting retribution that didn’t arrive. Leaning back in my leather chair, I reopened the folder and read quietly. Ilya had done a thorough job, naming potential issues and viable solutions, from what I could tell. Lifting my gaze to his, I said, “Well done.”
He opened a soft briefcase and pulled out more files and some thumb drives, distributing them to the men in the room.
Matthew spoke first, after letting out a deep sigh. “What you are proposing directly interferes with the life blood of my operation.” He slapped the folder against his leg. “If you are requiring me to do this, I require you to release the souls in the Second Realm.”