The week had gone by so fast that Jared had a hard time believing that he hadn’t just gotten here. It had been a wonderful five days of doing basically nothing, with a little bit of destructive mayhem on the side. Just not having to hang naked from chains on a rock wall was pure bliss. Then again, he’d actually paid one night to be in the same situation, complete with whips, and scantly clad women… but that was where the similarities ended.1
That had been his own little version of putting a completely perverted spin on his constant predicament, and although it had been fun and would probably sustain his mind for a few centuries, he’d soon be back to cursing his whole life. 2
With two days left, he contemplated just what to do and who to do it with, and how to make it ever so kinky, fun and memorable. A thousand ideas went through his mind, and he found that he actually only wanted to do one thing…not return. Grimacing when he realized that Zephyra’s little ploy had worked, he sighed in annoyance. 3
The bitch had set him free, and now that he’d remembered what it was like, he’d probably be a little more compliant in the future just to get to taste it more and more. Yeah, well, he had a surprise for that lady… he’d go back, stand against he wall, and then fight her tooth and nail like he always did. Since Zephyra, or even her hubby Stryker tended to piss people off fairly regularly, Jared knew he’d be let off the wall here and there to carry out whims, wishes and orders. 4
Hearing her before she even entered the house, he looked up and waited for Helen and Nim to come in from outside. He could read the thoughts in her mind before she even had them, and frowned. 5
“You’re not meeting Asya,” he said, the tone leaving barely any room for argument. 6
As usual, Helen found the small niche that allowed disagreement. “You don’t own me, Jared, so don’t think you can tell me what to do.” 7
“Helen,” he warned.8
“What happens when you go back to just hanging around the wall?” she asked. “I’ll have no real protection, and I need to get this sorted out before then.”9
“There’s always the Hunter.” He looked at Nim. “When I leave, I need you to remain.”10
“No.” Nim shook his head.11
”Please.”12
Nim shook his head again, and then looked at Helen. “Vaughn needs to help her. They smell different around each other, and-“13
“Stop,” Helen said, her voice harsher than she intended. Softening it with a smile, she looked from Nim to Jared. “If I meet with Asya, and let her know that I’d never offer her my soul, then maybe she’ll stop trying to gain it.”14
”Do you really believe that?”15
“No. But it’s worth a try. At least this way, I can see exactly what’s against me, and try to get around it.”16
“I can tell you exactly what’s against you,” Jared said, his tone conversational. “You’ll show up to meet her, Caras will be there, grab you and offer you the chance to give it up freely. When you refuse, he’ll kill-“ He stopped as a thought ran through her mind. “He’ll threaten to kill Vaughn, and you’ll refuse…which will end up with Vaughn being a shade.”17
“A what?” she asked, not shocked that he’d incorporated her sudden idea of being escorted by Vaughn to the meeting. 18
“A shade. Non-corporeal being…what happens to a Dark-Hunter when they die without their soul. Forever destined to roam the earth, never communicating, touching or feeling anything beyond a crippling hunger and thirst.”19
“Oh.” Not wanting to sentence Vaughn to something like that, regardless how much he annoyed her, Helen looked at the floor as she tried to work up another plan.20
“There’s nothing you can do,” Jared said gently. “Unless you offer your soul to someone else.”21
Giving him a deadly look, Helen took a step back. “You mean Jaden, don’t you?”22
“I never said that,” Jared replied warily. “Although yes, he could protect you.”23
“I’m in this predicament because of that mediator in the first place.”24
Jared and Nim exchanged confused glances until a picture formed in his mind of the reason. “That was a long time ago,” Jared said gently.25
“He gave my husband all he needed to take everything away from me,” Helen told him. “Jaden doesn’t care who gets caught in the crossfire, or who get tromped on as a result of his bartering. As long as he has a soul to play around with, then all’s fine to him.”26
“Okay, you’re wrong on so many levels there,” Jared said. “But if you’re not willing to pledge your soul to him, then there’s not much that can be done.”27
“I can pledge it to you.”28
”Can’t,” he said. Regardless how much he loved her, there was no way he’d bring her soul into his misery. “Zephyra owns my ass, and would also own yours if it was given to me.”29
“Then what can I do?” she asked, feeling about as helpless as she’d ever been.30
“Fight.” Standing, Jared looked down at her. “I’ll do all I can, but drawing unwanted attention to you is something I’m trying to avoid.” 31
Sighing, Helen sat and ran her hands over her face. “All right. Enough talk… it’s giving me a headache.” She looked at the two beings. “Since you’ll be leaving soon, and I’ll most likely never see you again, I’d prefer to just… not think about it.” 32
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~33
The throne was about as opulent as one could get, but it held no joy for its occupant. Sitting back as servant after servant made offerings, Asya tried to keep a serene look on her face while battling anger inside. It was taking longer than it should have to get one simple soul from a demon who couldn’t protect herself. 34
It was bad enough that a Dark-Hunter happened along on the first night, but to have a Charonte guarding her on the following attempt was more than she could believe. Somehow, somewhere, there were greater forces than she involved in this, and she had to find out just who it was. 35
If she was able to take the higher force unaware, then siphoning off power to feed herself might just solve her little power problem and she wouldn’t have to hunt down the last of her bloodline. It might be worthwhile to capture the little demon, and torture the information out of her, instead of torturing for a freely given soul.36
Spotting Caras as he slipped in through the door and waited in respectable silence against the far wall, Asya let a few more servants leave offerings before dismissing the rest until next time. 37
Waiting while the room cleared, Caras kept his gaze on the floor while he went through the information he had gleaned from various sources and those that recently died by his hands. 38
“Speak,” Asya said, summoning her most trusted, and vicious demon servant forward. 39
“The demon Helen Vandis seems to be guarded by the Atlantis goddess Apollymi,” Caras said, his gaze still on the floor.40
“She is still in confinement in her own hell,” Asya said. “How can she offer anyone protection?” 41
“The demon who betrayed Helen described a bodyguard of sorts that she had,” Caras began. “A young demon hybrid whom I believe to be the demon Nim. He belongs to the one they call Jared, who belongs to Strykerius’ woman.”42
”And Strykerius is the Destroyers son,” Asya finished for him. “So, she finds another way to try to destroy me.”43
“It appears so, my goddess.” Lifting his gaze slightly, Caras still kept it below her eye level. “Since this Jared is not well known, and the ownership of him is secretive, then it may prove to be a point that can be exploited to Apollymi’s enemy.”44
“And how did you get this information?” Asya wanted to know. 45
“The Daimons are hunting the Gallu,” he said, not wanting to give too much away. “There are some Gallu who hinted at seeking refuge with your league in exchange for information.” 46
“I would assume that you killed them after gaining this information?”47
“Absolutely, your goddess.” 48
Studying he demon in front of her, Asya reached a decision. “Pay a visit to the soul I require,” she ordered. “Let her know that if she gives freely to me, then all will be well, and she’ll even be allowed to remain alive.”49
”If she refuses?”50
”Then she will live to regret it.”51
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~52
Walking out of the door to his house, Vaughn came up short when he noticed Ash leaning against the top railing of the steps. “What’s going on?” he asked, starting down the steps. 53
“Need you to watch Helen,” Ash said, staying where he was.54
“No,” Vaughn replied, stopping when Ash appeared in front of him. “Never knew you could do that,” Vaughn commented, then stepped around his boss and continued on to his car. 55
“I need you to do this,” Ash said. 56
“Already slept with her, so I really shouldn’t see her again,” he said, feeling annoyed at the possibility.57
“Allow me to rephrase,” Ash said. “You’re going to watch Helen.”58
Stopping at the order and staring at the sky with a sigh, Vaughn turned around. “Why?”59
“Meet me at her place.” 60
Growling as Ash vanished, Vaughn got into his car. Not even bothering to consider ignoring Ash’s orders, he drove towards Helen’s, and was soon knocking at the door. It was opened by Ash, who moved aside to let him in. 61
“Guard this, guard that.” Vaughn looked at Ash as soon as the door closed. “What’s so important about her that it warrants me not hunting Daimons?” 62
“She’s important.”63
“No offence, Ash, but that’s not a good enough reason for me to risk…how many others… for one being.” 64
Not wanting to tell more than he had to, Ash stared for a moment at the Dark-Hunter. He’d noticed that Vaughn seemed a little less intense than usual, and had to repress a smirk at the reason. “Ask me the same question tomorrow, and you’ll have your answer.”65
Normally, Vaughn would argue such a cryptic response, but there was something in the way Ash said it that made him pause. “Why did my life just flash before my eyes when you said that?” he asked. “And yes, it sucked just as much in rerun.” 66
“Usually does,” Ash agreed, then turned and walked away. 67
Vaughn watched as the door closed, then turned and gave Helen a slightly helpless shrug. “So,” he said, stretching the word out, “what makes you so important?”68
Jerking as if she’d been slapped, Helen gaped at him. “Damn,” she said, raking him over with an impolite glare. “Pity that someone as talented as you in the sack can be such an obnoxious jackass at all other times.”69
Blinking in surprise, Vaughn had to force himself not to laugh. “You seem to excel at taking every word I say completely the wrong way. “ 70
“It’s a gift,” she snapped. 71
“Much like my talent in the sack.” 72
Unable to help herself, Helen laughed at that. Shaking her head, she motioned to the couch. “Just sit your arrogant ass there, and you’ll be fine.”73
“Yeah,” he said. “My arrogant ass is going to take a tour around your property, and make sure it’s secure.”74
“Demons don’t need an invite to pop in here,” she pointed out. “Besides, you’re supposed to be guarding me, not taking a moonlit stroll.” 75
“That’s why you’re coming with,” he said motioning for the door. Sighing when she shook her head, he contemplated how to get her to accompany him without saying something totally innocent that she would overreact to. “Humor me.”76
Sighing, and forcing herself not to tell a joke to ‘humor him’, Helen walked to the door. She paused just as he hand landed on the knob and turned. “Nim?”77
“Helen?” he replied from his perch on the couch. Since Ash had been there, Nim had remained unusually quiet, and hadn’t talked even after the immortal had left. 78
“You want to come patrol the property?”79
“No,” he replied in a quiet voice.80
Shrugging, she turned the knob, only to have it closed as Vaughn’s hand pushed on the door. “Just give me a minute,” he said in a quiet voice.81
Growling lightly in annoyance at his impertinence at making her wait after he had rushed her, she folded her arms and glared. The glare lessened as he made his way to where Nim was sitting, and she watched as Vaughn crouched on the floor in front of the demon and talked in low tones to him. She couldn’t hear what was being said, that in itself a shock since her hearing was at par with most demons, so she assumed he was speaking barely above a whisper. 82
Nim went from quiet to sullen, to something not quiet the level of happy. It was more of a pleased, and he seemed to relax somewhat as Vaughn straightened and walked back towards her. Nim gave her a brief glance, then picked up the game controller and began another round of virtual combat. 83
Vaughn waited for a moment, then cleared his throat to get her attention. “The door?” he said when she looked at him. 84
Pulling the door open, Helen strode outside, then headed off towards the front gate. Stopping when she realized she was alone, she slowly turned around. Vaughn was in the doorway, scanning all he could from where he was standing, his eyes seemingly taking in every detail. 85
Moving from the doorway, he turned and looked up over where he had been, making sure that all was how it should be. Heading off in the opposite direction from Helen, he kept an even pace that prompted her to trot to catch up. Just as she reached him, he stopped. 86
“What are you doing?” she asked in annoyance. 87
“Checking out your property,” he replied as his eyes played over every inch of the small Zen garden in front of them. Walking a respectable distance around it, he continued on his journey, stopping here and there, and making her annoyed with each sojourn. 88
“What did you say to Nim?” she asked, her curiosity about that finally getting the better of her.89
“Besides the front gate,” he said, ignoring the question, “how many other exits do you have?”90
“What?”91
“A demon may not need an invite,” he told her as he started walking again, “but they can pop in and out through magick…which you lack.” 92
“Thanks for telling me,” she said, sarcastically. “I hadn’t noticed.”93
“Never lose the attitude,” he said, switching directions and heading back to the house. Stopping again, he waited until she caught up, and looked at her.94
”What?” she asked. “Think of another way to remind me of my shortcomings?”95
Rolling his eyes, Vaughn gave her an amused, yet totally condescending look. “No,” he said. “But ask me again in a few minutes.” Resisting the urge to laugh at the expression on her face, he sighed. “I was just wondering if you’d actually tell me why someone wants your soul.”96
“Does it really matter?”97
“Well, yeah, actually it does.” He shrugged noncommittally. “I mean, it’ll go a long way in me understanding the reasoning behind this Brin willing to betray someone like you, and make a deal with another demon.” 98
“Someone like me?” she asked, holding back anger at the implication. 99
Vaughn nodded as he looked over the fence behind her. “Someone that really doesn’t seem to hold any real sway in the demon community, and hasn’t actually done much harm in the past couple thousand years.” He looked into her eyes, and had to remind himself that due to his Hunter code, one night with her was all he was really allowed. 100
Helen noticed the subtle change in his eyes as he stared into hers. It was barely perceptible, but they widened ever so slightly as he continued to stare. She hadn’t expected a logical, non-insulting response from him, and it took a few moments to realize that he was earnest. 101
“A goddess wants my soul to prolong her life,” Helen told him. 102
“Explain,” he said, taking a small step closer to her. Try as he might, he couldn’t stay away, even after all the insults, and his usual adherence to the Dark-Hunter Creed. One-night stands were their lot in life, and being with someone more than that one night was a big no-no. 103
“I’m apparently from her line,” Helen said, acutely aware of how close he was standing. Although the thought of him irritated her, she had to admit that he was oddly compelling in the sexual magnetism department. “I have to freely give my soul-“104
“Wait,” he interrupted. “Freely?” 105
“Apparently so.” 106
“And you’ve no intention of dong this, right?” 107
Helen nodded. “Not in the slightest. But, it’s been mentioned that some torture would change my mind.” 108
Vaughn nodded. “Torture does tend to make you promise all sorts of things.” Taking a step back to distance himself, he motioned to the house. “Perimeter looks good, but with only one exit through the main gate, you’re boxing yourself in.”109
Getting slightly depressed at the idea of being trapped on her property, Helen sighed. “Anything else?” she asked.110
“I’d like to kiss you under the stars.”111
Stopping at that, she stared at his back as he continued to walk. “Say what?” 112
“What?” he asked, pausing to look over his shoulder at her. “Has no man ever suggested that to you before?”113
“Well, no.”114
“Pity.” Turning, he continued to walk, smiling to himself as he heard her running to catch up. Making it to the front door at the same time, he gave a brief smile before opening the door and moving aside to let her enter. 115
“Why are you doing this to me?” she asked as she stepped in the house. 116
“I don’t know,” he replied honestly. Grimacing as she snarled and stormed away, he looked up at the sky and exhaled before entering the house. 117
Helen strode into the living room, nodded to Nim when he looked at her, and stared at the game he was playing as emotions tore through her. Vaughn’s words touched a part of her that she’d forgotten existed... the portion of her soul that was still a frightened being that was trying to exist without powers and protection that all others around her had. 118
She’d tried to keep nearly invisible after she’d been bound, since it was an open invitation for others to abuse her in any way they could. Century upon century had hardened that invisible wall into something nearly opaque, but sometimes the oddest things would slam clear on through. 119
She couldn’t detect anything but absolute honesty when he said he wanted to kiss her, and he’d also not been lying when he claimed he wasn’t sure why he’d said it. So deep in thought about the issue, she didn’t hear Vaughn as he walked up to her. 120
Nodding a greeting to Nim, Vaughn quietly walking up to Helen as she stood in the living room. Needing to somehow clear the possible problem that he may have tossed at her, he reached out and placed a hand on her arm. 121
Before he could even react, Helen spun with a fist already in the air and nailed him straight in the nose. A sickening cracking noise vibrated through his head, while a nauseatingly familiar pain exploded in its wake. 122
Hands automatically went to his face as he stumbled back, and he glared at her, primed for the attack. Nim was already up from the couch and standing in front of Helen, watching both with a guarded expression. Forcing himself not to lash out at Helen, Vaughn stomped his foot on the floor.123
“Damn it!” Taking his hands away, he sighed at the blood. “Great.”124
“Oh my God,” Helen said, hurrying to him. “I’m sorry, you startled me, and-“125
“It’s all right,” he said, grabbing the handful of tissue that Nim created. Placing it against his nose, he hissed in renewed pain. Turning before he gave in to the urge to verbally blast her, he headed for the bathroom. 126
He’d barely taken a step when a whooshing sounded through his ears, followed by everything dimming slightly. 127
“Vaughn?” Helen asked, worried.128
“Nothing,” he muttered. “Probably a concussion. It’ll be fine after I sleep.” Dodging her attempts to help him, he slowly made it to the bathroom, pushed the door shut, turned on the lights and projected his image into the mirror. 129
The nose did indeed look broken, again, but that wasn’t what Vaughn was staring at. He blinked in confusion as he looked intently at something he hadn’t seen in a long, long time. Glancing to the side as the doorknob moved, he went back to the mirror.
“Vaughn?”130
”I’m all right, Helen,” he said loud enough so she could hear him through the bathroom door. “Honest.”131
“I’m sorry.”132
”It’s okay. I startled you.”133
“Let me in, please.”134
”No,” he said, a little louder than he intended. “It’s okay. Just… give me a few minutes.” Reaching for a towel to stop the blood that was still flowing, he grimaced as he applied pressure. Pulling his cell phone out, he made a call, and went back to the reflection135
“Yeah, Vaughn?” Ash said as he answered.136
“Ash,” he said, his voice oddly calm as he stared. “My eyes are brown.”137
“Really,” Ash replied slowly. “Appears you’ve found your out clause.” 138
“No,” Vaughn said, confused. “I mean, I thought it was supposed to be a true love, or something. I don’t even like Helen.” 139
“But you’ve slept with her.”140
“What does that have to do with liking someone?”141
True. Sighing, Ash tried another tactic. “What happened to change them?”142
“She hit me.”143
”She...” he trailed off. “What?” 144
“I startled her and she basically broke my nose.” Vaughn pulled the towel away. “It’ll be fine after a sleep, but that’s not why I called.”145
“The eyes.”146
“I’m kinda close to absolutely freaking out here, Ash,” he said, the calm voice starting to deteriorate. 147
“What’s the worse that could happen?” Ash asked.148
“Besides having to die a second time?” Vaughn replied. “How about if I get the soul back, that I’ll be alone more than I already am.”149
“Why alone?”150
“Forget it,” Vaughn muttered.151
“Look, just sleep on it,” Ash advised. “You’re only going to end up freaking yourself out even more if you start making up a future you can’t see. I’ll call tomorrow.”152
Vaughn muttered a goodbye and flipped the phone shut. Leaning forward, he inspected his eyes, then turned quickly at a small flash in the corner. 153
Nim stared at him. “Helen was worried, so I said I could check and what happened to your eyes?”154
”Don’t tell Helen,” was all he could think of saying. 155
“Why not?”156
Vaughn looked back at the mirror. “Because I don’t want to mess her life up any further than I already have.” Placing the towel over his nose, and squinting so that his eyes were concealed, he walked past Nim and opened the door. As he expected, Helen was standing on the other side.157
“Let me see,” Helen said, reaching for the towel. 158
Pulling back, Vaughn shook his head. “I’m fine,” he said through the towel. “Just need to lay down and heal.” Pushing past her, he went to the bedroom he slept in on the first night. 159
Feeling a little morose that she’d actually physically hurt him, Helen slowly walked down the hall, and placed her hand on the door. “Vaughn?”160
“It’s okay,” his voice said. “I’m fine, I’m not angry, and I really need to sleep.” 161
“It’s not even midnight,” she pointed out.162
“When a Dark-Hunter is injured, the first instinct is to sleep,” Vaughn said, then gasped slightly as his Hunter powers came flooding back. 163
“Is it that bad?” she asked, worried. Taking a step back as the door opened, she returned his gaze. His black orbs bore into her, almost seemingly looking for some hidden secret. 164
“I’ve had enough concussions over the years to recognize the feel,” he said, then gave her a light kiss on the lips. “It’s getting hard for me to keep my eyes open right now, and I don’t feel like landing on the floor.”165
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~166
Flipping his phone shut and sliding it into the backpack he always carried with him, Ash continued on his walk through the streets of New Orleans. He had known that placing Vaughn with Helen would result in the Hunter realizing a few things, but Ash had been surprised that it took a punch to knock the powers out of Vaughn. 167
It was also rather surprising that it didn’t happen before now because of all the insulting that Vaughn doled out. Since he never liked anyone getting close in case they found out his secret, Vaughn tended to be more than a little acerbic with people. Ash could appreciate the lengths beings went through to protect secrets, but Vaughn had passed up on a lot of golden opportunities for friends over the past two thousand plus years because of his mouth. 168
Since Vaughn had a special sort of attachment with demons of any sorts, and could pick up on their moods, Ash had known he would strike a chord with Helen. It also showed in the way Vaughn treated Nim, and the way the young demon reacted. Usually timid and shy around anyone, Nim relaxed around Vaughn, since the Hunter tended to go out of his way to include and make Nim feel needed. 169
So far, everything was going more or less to the time line that Ash had seen for Vaughn, and there was no reason why it shouldn’t continue as such. All he had to do was make sure Vaughn didn’t balk at telling Helen the one thing he guarded with every fiber of his being. 170
Ash knew that Vaughn was embarrassed and ashamed of what he’d done and, although Helen would despise the action, she was smart enough to realize that Vaughn knew that he’d done irreparable damage with his actions, and was sorry. 171
The only real problem Ash could see in this entire situation was how he was going to retrieve Vaughn’s soul from Artemis. Since he’d turned his back on her continuing to be a part of his sexual life, she sort of vowed that no other Hunters would be freed. Ash refused to believe that… he just had to find a way to convince Artie of the fact. 172
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~173
Staring into the dark, Vaughn rolled over as he tried to get back to sleep. The healing that had happened while he slept had invigorated him, and made it near impossible to get back to sleep. Looking at the clock by the bed, he sighed when the time showed it was not even dawn yet. 174
He felt kind of bad for shutting Helen out earlier, and slipped out of bed to see if she was around so he could apologize. Making it to the living room, he glanced around. The only light was from the television, highlighting a lone figure that relaxed on a chair. Studying Nim as his legs were on the chair, his body on the floor, Vaughn cleared his throat.175
“She still up?” 176
Nim looked at Vaughn as he stood in the doorway of the living room. “No.”177
Turning to go down the hall, Vaughn paused outside her bedroom door. He really should let her sleep, but his need to see her outweighed that. Stopping at that thought, he grimaced, and then tried to push it away. Last thing he wanted was to get needy over anyone. Convincing himself that he was just there to apologize for being rude earlier, he continued.178
Slowly opening the door, he peeked in, then the door opened wider at what he saw. Lying on the bed, Helen was curled close to another figure, and it took Vaughn a moment to realize it was Jared. Anger and annoyance swept through him, and he was surprised that he managed to close the door as quietly as he had.
Walking back to the room he was in, he grabbed his things as he checked the clock again. Not yet dawn, he’d have just enough time to make it back to his house before the sun rose. Going back out to the living room, he looked at Nim.
“I’m leaving.”179
“Vaughn’s supposed to stay,” Nim said, slightly confused. 180
“I’m not needed,” he replied, trying to hold back the anger and the unexpected hurt in what he’d seen.
Turning for the door, he opened it, and walked out to his vehicle. Getting in, he gently closed the door, drove to the gate, pausing long enough to tap in the code for the doors, then drove off as they closed behind him.181
Making it home just as the first rays of dawn slithered over the land, he headed straight into the garage and waited while the doors closed. Sighing deeply, he stared out the windshield of the car, then got out and made it to the house.
Sun peeked through the curtains that covered the windows in the kitchen, bringing a tired sigh from him. Running through the kitchen to avoid the light, he hissed when he got to the darkened hallway, shaking his left hand in pain. Taking a look, he noticed that it was scorched from the sunlight touching it and centered on that pain so it would take place of the confusion he was feeling. 182
“Vaughn?”183
Looking up, he blinked a few times at his squire, then shrugged and started to walk past. “Heavier curtains for the kitchen,” was all he said as he made his way up the large staircase. 184
“You okay, boss?”185
Pausing, Vaughn wished that he had a squire that had been with him longer than Peter. At only a year in the house, Vaughn wasn’t yet used to the man, and although he tried, he found himself not being able to trust him as much as he had his previous squire. 186
“I’ll be fine,” Vaughn finally answered. Turning on the step, he looked down. “You’re doing a great job here,” he said. “Thank you.” 187
Confusion crossed Peter’s face as he watched Vaughn go the remainder of the way up the stairs. The confusion was so strong that he pulled out his cell phone and hit a pre-entered phone number.188
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~189
Jared raised an eyebrow and stared at Ash the moment he appeared in the living room. He already knew what Ash was about to tell him, and he waved for the immortal to hold off for a few moments. 190
“Helen’s sleeping,” he said in a low tone. “Nim, too.” Standing, he stretched. “Of course you know your Hunter left, like a thief in the night I might add, and if you’re looking for a way to snag his soul from Artie-bitch, then I’d be more than honored to go get it for you.” 191
Wondering sometimes why he even bothered to worry about certain things, Ash nodded once in agreement. That would certainly take care of the Artemis problem, and would also stop any argument he would have with Tory about his having to see his former lover… since his wife had certain issues with him being anywhere near the Bitch goddess. 192
“Just don’t kill her while getting the soul,” Ash said. 193
“I’m very discreet,” Jared replied in an innocent voice. “Now, on to the other issue, which would be the annoying Vaughn and him being stubborn in this.” 194
“I’m going to see him after I’m done here,” Ash said. “And you’re going to come with me since I’m thinking you had something to do with this.” 195
“I probably did.” Motioning, he started walking. “Get this over with, then I can top off my vacation with a trip to Mount Olympus, and possibly a few nymphs while I’m there, then I can get back to just hanging around.” 196
“You’re pretty chipper for someone who gets to hang around Stryker all day.”197
“He’s not too bad,” Jared admitted. “For a soul sucking megalomaniac demigod, that is.” He paused. “Since you’re the host, you can do the honors of popping us over to your Hunter’s home.” 198
“Much appreciated,” Ash said.199
Vanishing from Helen’s living room, they appeared on the steps of a large house. “Remind me again why I’m here?”200
Giving a side-glance, Ash rolled his eyes behind dark sunglasses. “Because you’re part of this little drama, and it’s not going to kill you to be here.” 201
“Fair enough.” Jared waited while Ash knocked. It was soon answered by a man that looked no older than Vaughn, though Jared doubted him to be in the two thousand-year range. No, this was a plain human, and probably every year his around thirty-five appearance. 202
“Thanks for coming,” Peter said, his gaze flicking to Jared. “Who’s this?”203
“Jared,” Ash replied, entering as Peter moved to the side. 204
“What’s with all the recent guests you’re dropping in with?” Peter asked. 205
“Explain again why you wanted to see me,” Ash said, ignoring the question.206
“Maybe I’m just finally getting used to Vaughn’s behavior,” Peter began, “but today he seemed totally weirder than usual. He even complimented me.” 207
“Odd,” Ash agreed. “But how was he weirder?”208
“He came back earlier, even though he was supposed to be gone all day, and he had a look on his face like someone ran over his dog.”209
Ash contemplated the reasoning behind the mood of the Hunter, and the leaving his assignment before he was supposed to. “Go get him,” Ash ordered. “He’s not asleep, so tell him I’ll be in his office.” 210
Jared followed Ash as Peter left to do the bidding. Walking through a rather nice house, he paused a few times to admire the paintings and furnishings. Since he spent most times staring at rock, he always found time to appreciate things of beauty. Making it to a door, the pair entered, then waited.211
They both looked to the door when they sensed someone approaching, and Jared took that moment to go through Vaughn’s mind. Hearing Vaughn’s thoughts nearly screaming, Jared had to sort through a jumble of things to get to what he was looking for. Anger, disappointment, hurt, betrayal and confusion all centered around the thoughts Vaughn was having of Helen, and he was trying to keep it from surfacing. 212
The door to the office opened, and Vaughn strolled in, gave the two beings a polite nod, and then waited for them to speak. 213
“Why did you leave?” Ash asked, referring to why Vaughn had gone home instead of staying. 214
“I wasn’t needed.”215
“I’ll be the judge of that.”216
“Really?” Vaughn said, then shrugged. “Pardon my interpretation of the order, but when I see flaky demon chickie snuggled up in bed next to him,” he said, nodding to Jared, “then it tells me that my watching her is over.” 217
Jared gave Ash an innocent expression when he looked from the Hunter to him. “Why were you going into her bedroom?” Jared asked.218
“None of your damned business,” Vaughn replied. 219
“Vaughn,” Ash said, his tone holding the ultimate warning. 220
Sighing loudly, Vaughn looked at the ceiling. “I just wanted to check on her.” He looked at them. “I sort of cut her off after she broke my nose and gave me a concussion, and I guess I wanted to make sure that she was fine.” The anger sprang back to his face as he looked at Jared. “Guess it wasn’t necessary.” 221
“You jumped to the wrong conclusion,” Jared told Vaughn. 222
“Opening the door to find her sleeping in your arms,” Vaughn replied in a dry tone. “However could I have misinterpreted that?” Turning, he walked towards the door.223
“You of all people should know better than to assume-“224
He stopped as Vaughn whirled, eyes blazing red and fangs bared. If Jared hadn’t been one of the fiercest things out there, then he would have been highly unsettled by the display. As it stood, it actually impressed him somewhat. 225
“Pretty impressive, but can you do this?” The words were no sooner out of Jared’s mouth than his skin morphed to red and black geometric shapes, and he seemed to grow double in size. 226
“Listen up, dumb ass,” Jared’s voice echoed throughout the room, “for some odd reason, Helen actually likes you. Yes, we share a bed, but that’s all it is. If you’d bothered to look while you were gawking earlier, you would have seen we were both dressed.”227
Deciding to prompt Vaughn into calmness, Ash looked at him. “Anything you’d like to say?” 228
Not one to back down, ever, Vaughn stood his ground even though he knew he was treading of very thin ice. “Kill me now?” Vaughn said sarcastically.229
Morphing back to normal immediately, Jared gave him an irritated looked. “I’d love to, but that would piss Ash off, and I can’t bother with that hassle right now.”230
”Appreciate it,” Ash said.231
“No problem.” Jared crossed his arms over his chest. “And it would thoroughly piss Helen off, and hurting her is one thing I’d never do.” Trading stares with Vaughn, he had to admit that the Hunter had balls to stand up to someone that he knew could kill him with a thought. “I see you’ve trained them well in looking intimidating,” he said to Ash. “But can he back it up?”232
“Depends on how mad he gets,” Ash said, not overly concerned at the scene in front of him. Vaughn needed to bleed off anger, and there was no chance of him hurting either immortal. 233
“Fuck this,” Vaughn said, his voice low and evil sounding. Turning, he stormed out of the room, punching out at a wall as he passed. His hand went clear through the wood, and he paused long enough to shake the dust off his arm before continuing out of the room. 234
“He likes her,” Ash said.235
“Kinda noticed,” Jared replied. 236
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Comments
1 - 5 of 5
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Sweet!
Lol. That was awesome. "He likes her," Ash said. "Kinda noticed," Jared replied. Rofl! Seriously those last two lines. Still, ouch for Vaughn. She broke his nose...punching things can be therapeutic I think...if you're punching a bag that is. Keep writing amazing Dark-Hunter stories. You have a rare talent for it.
beginning: 5, language: 5, plot: 5, ending: 5, dialog: 5, characters: 5.
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Confusing
I punched a wall once. I broke my hand. Anyways, I was a little confused at the beginning but as I read I got the answers I was searching for.beginning: 4, language: 3, plot: 2, ending: 4, dialog: 3, characters: 3.
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anger management much. my brother punches the wall when he gets angry and then ends up grounded for putting awhole in the wall. It's funny and i luagh at him, but then he punches me...[dickhead!!! XD]
oh wow, vaughn was punched in th face. haha!!! sucks for him. his own out clause, being hurt by the one he loves. [i want a dark-hunter! well more a were-hunter and their sexiness XP]
i feel bad for he fact that vaughn thought helen was sleeping w/ jared. now peoples kno not to jump to conclusions. I kno i try to keep my mouth shut and observe as i usally do in school. be like 'nope,im not saying anything, less it start to a fight and hurtful gossip.'
i still love nim. he is so cutie-kins. XD just i wouldn'tso agree w/ his choice in dreadlocks. i tried to put my hair in that and it looked horrible. now i know dread locks arent the way to go for me.
beginning: 5, language: 5, plot: 5, ending: 5, dialog: 5, characters: 5.
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Yeah, I thought it a nice irony that he has to be hurt to be saved.. sort of a reversal of his original death.
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Lol at the last paragraph :-)
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