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She looked at me closely. "Great Mother, the mark on your forehead!"
"What? What is it?"
Menolly joined her. The men hung back, more out of respect than lack of curiosity, I thought. "It's swirling—all gold and black and red."
I reached up and lightly skimmed it with my fingers. My brow tingled, and I could feel the presence of the Autumn Lord, barely out of reach. "I think what just happened activated its power."
"Tell us everything," Camille said, a worried look on her face.
And so I did.
"We have to get medical help for Venus," Camille finally said when I'd finished. "And we need to return Rhonda… Rhonda's body to her family."
I nodded, silent. Trillian went into the other room, and when he returned, he was carrying Rhonda over his shoulder. Smoky picked up Venus, gently like he might carry a child, and Menolly gathered the Jansshi demon and Lianel. We'd return their remains to Elqaneve, just as we had the first demons.
Morio and Camille torched the eggs and webs in the other passageway. I leaned on Chase's shoulder as we made our way out of the cave. Nobody bothered us. In fact, there was no sight or sound of a single living thing in the cavern, and I wondered where the rest of the enemy had scattered to. Perhaps the Autumn Lord had killed them. Perhaps they'd recognized defeat. Whatever the case, they were gone for now.
We silently trudged through the snow, back to the road. As we passed through the firs guarding the path, the spirit guardian stood at attention, nodding silently as we filed by. I glanced at him, and his face crinkled into a knowing smile, but he didn't speak.
Back at the cars, we piled in, putting the demon in one trunk and the body of Lianel in the other. Rhonda, we covered with a blanket, and I sat next to her while Chase drove. Smoky and Trillian sat in the back of Morio's SUV, Venus spread across their laps. When we were ready, we headed out into the icy night.
I gazed down at Rhonda's body. What was I going to tell Zach? At this point, I was so numb that I couldn't even think. I leaned back and closed my eyes, drifting as we headed down toward the freeway. After all we'd been through, after all we'd seen and done, there was nothing left to say.
By the time we arrived home, Venus had come around. His wounds were nasty, but he'd live. Smoky carried him into the bathroom.
"Chase, would you and Morio help Venus? Clean him up and tend to his wounds?" I asked. They nodded and followed Smoky.
Menolly unloaded the demon and Lianel and put them on the back porch for the time being, while Camille and Trillian made the rounds to check on the land and wards. My leg had stopped bleeding. It would need a good cleansing and some rest, but if Kyoka had tried to envenomate me, it hadn't worked. I'd be okay.
I joined Zach in the parlor, closing the door behind me. He was resting. I sat beside him and took his hand in mine. "I have to tell you something," I said, not knowing how to start. "We found Venus. He's hurt, but he'll live. But the fighting got rough. There was a death…"
Zach looked up at me, his eyes full. "Rhonda?"
I nodded, feeling like I'd just stabbed him in the gut. "She died trying to save Camille. She was a true warrior to the end. We brought her body back so that you can take her home."
His face crumpled. Desperate to wipe away the pain—there had been so much pain—I leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips. He slid his arms around me and pulled me close, and I let him. He'd suffered so much over the past weeks, I couldn't pull myself away.
"She was good… too good for me. We just weren't ready to get married, but I never stopped loving her," he said, his voice breaking.
I wanted to ease his pain, wanted to put to rest the confusion and fear in my own heart. So much had happened, so much was happening. It would take a long time to sort everything out, and I wasn't sure we had that time. The second seal was still at large, and we had to find it before Shadow Wing did.
Zach shifted and reached under my blouse, fumbling for my breast.
"I'm grimy, I'm covered in blood," I whispered, but he shook away my protests. Unwilling to reject him, I let him unzip my jeans and slide them down over my hips. He rolled me over, easing himself between my legs.
"You have to be gentle with yourself," I whispered, but he just kept shaking his head, and finally, I opened myself up to him as he covered me in kisses. Desperate to find a touch of life in the midst of so much death, I shivered gently as he plunged inside me, driving deeper with each stroke, pushing away thought and memory and dark visions.
"Delilah, I need you," he whispered. "You're the first woman I've wanted since I broke up with Rhonda. Love me. Make love to me."
I held on, my hips moving against his hips, my breasts aching with a need so deep I thought I'd explode. He leaned down, took one nipple in his mouth, and sucked, the fire of his tongue driving me toward the edge. Everywhere I looked, there was fire and ice, flame and glaciers, passion and death.
"I can't love you," I said, gasping as I matched his rhythm. "As much as I like you, I can't give you my love." As I spoke, I finally broke through and heard what my heart was whispering. Somehow, beyond all sense, I'd fallen for Chase. I felt safe with him. I felt home. My body didn't care at this moment who wiped away the ache and pain, but my heart belonged with the FBH who had given me some sort of roots, as fragile as they might be.
"Then give me this," Zach said. "This one night." And with one final thrust, he drove home to my core, pushing me to the edge. I hovered for an instant, then let go, giving in to the passion, giving in to the feral energy that rose between us—puma and panther, puma and housecat, Were and Fae. Biting back a scream, I arched as I came, a shower of sparks racing along my body leading me to blessed release.
When it was over, I paused for a moment, then gently pushed him away. "I need to get up, Zach. I need to get dressed." I quickly stood and adjusted my clothing, desperate to collect myself before Chase stumbled in on us.
"It's your detective, isn't it?" Zach asked, leaning back, his hands behind his head. "You've fallen for him, and you're afraid he won't understand."
