Jenna Black - Dark Descendant

“The best thing you can do for your sister,” Anderson said softly, “is to ally with me. I’m not a tyrant like Konstantin, and my people do what we can to make the world a better place.”

I pushed my fears for Steph to the side and met Anderson’s eyes. Maybe it was just my imagination, but I thought I saw something warm and wise in those medium brown eyes of his. Eyes I’d once dismissed as ordinary.

But as friendly and non-threatening as he was being now, I’d seen another side of him that first night. I wanted to trust him, if only because it would make my own life so much easier, but I couldn’t allow myself to forget how little I knew about him.

“So that Hand of Doom thing you did to Jamaal isn’t something you consider tyrannical?” I challenged, watching his face carefully in hopes his expression would reveal more of his hidden depths. No such luck.

“Hand of Doom?” he asked with a little smile. “I’ve never heard it called that before.”

“You think it’s funny?”

His smile faded, replaced by an almost sad expression. “No. No, it’s not funny at all.” He sighed and reached for his cup of coffee, which was almost empty. I think he was just stalling for time as he tipped the last few drops into his mouth.

“I suppose I have my own tyrannical moments,” he admitted, staring into his empty cup. He seemed to catch himself doing it, then carefully placed the cup on the table and looked at me once more. “Gentle rebukes don’t have much of an effect on most Liberi , especially not on someone like Jamaal. I know you’ve seen no evidence to support this, but he’s a good man at heart. He wants to control his dark side, but he isn’t always able to, especially without Emmitt to help him. When he loses control, there have to be consequences.”

“So that was special treatment you reserve just for Jamaal?” Instinct told me the answer was no.

“I don’t run around hurting my people on a regular basis, if that’s what you’re asking. But I am their leader, and I do expect them to obey me when I make a direct order.” He leaned forward, his expression intense. “Understand this, Nikki: you’re very new to being Liberi , but the rest of my people are not. Being immortal and having supernatural powers will change you over time, will corrupt you, if you let it. If I let my people get away with defying me, then I risk losing them. Not right away, but over time, as they find they can do anything they want without suffering any consequences, year after year after year. I’ve seen it happen too many times, and so have my people. They’re with me because they don’t want to go down that road, and they believe I can keep it from happening.”

“And what’s to keep you from going down that road? Or do you punish yourself when you’ve been a bad boy?”

I thought my sarcastic question might piss him off, but Anderson just smiled. “There are some checks and balances in place.”

Not the most specific answer in the world, but it was apparently all I was going to get.

“All right. Let’s say I accept that you’re not a tyrant and that becoming your ally is the best way to protect my family. What would I have to do to join up?”

“First, you would have to move into the house, because those are the terms of my agreement with Konstantin. Any Liberi who lives in this house is considered to be one of mine.”

I had no intention of moving into the mansion permanently. I loved my condo, and there was no way I was giving it up. I also loved my freedom, and sharing communal quarters with Anderson and his flock of Liberi would be like living in a barracks. A luxurious, beautiful barracks, but a barracks all the same.

However, I’d already established that I needed Anderson’s help, and if temporarily moving into the mansion was what I had to do to get it, then I was going to have to suck it up, at least for a while. I’d just have to consider it as an indefinite hotel stay.

Unfortunately, Anderson had already let me know there was another condition I had to meet to earn his help.

“And second,” I continued for him, “there’s someone you want me to find for you. Who? And why?”

The corners of his eyes tightened with what looked like pain. “Her name is Emma Poindexter,” he said. He swallowed hard, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “She’s been missing for almost ten years. And I want you to find her because she’s my wife.”

I sat in stunnedsilence at Anderson’s kitchen table. I don’t know why I was so surprised. He might not be drop-dead gorgeous, but Anderson was certainly attractive enough, and he obviously had money and power. Why would I assume a man like him was single? Especially when he was most likely centuries old?

“Your wife,” I repeated when I could find my voice. I glanced at his left hand, but there was no ring on his finger. At least I hadn’t missed so obvious a clue as that.

He nodded. “She’s a Liberi , descended of Nyx—the Greek goddess of night.” He shifted in his seat, no longer meeting my eyes. “Konstantin and I may not be at open war with each other now, but that wasn’t always the case. Konstantin hates me more than words can express for challenging his ‘rule.’ So to punish me for luring some of his Olympians out of the fold, he kidnapped Emma.”

Anderson closed his eyes. His fists were clenched in his lap, his shoulders tight with strain. I felt a very feminine urge to comfort him, but I managed to stifle it. I didn’t know him well enough to offer comfort.

When he opened his eyes, there was a hint of red around the edges, like he’d been crying, although I saw no evidence of tears. “He claims he interred her. Buried her alive.”

I couldn’t help the little gasp that escaped me. “But she’s Liberi …” I whispered.

“Yes. She’s Liberi . If he’s telling the truth, if he didn’t just have one of his pet Descendants kill her, then she’s been in the ground, unable to escape even through death, for almost ten years.”

He blinked rapidly, as if trying to stave off tears. His voice was steadier when he resumed, but there was a faint, husky tone to it. “You see, Nikki, I know what it’s like to have someone you love used as a weapon against you. I’ll do everything in my power to help you protect your family if you will do everything in your power to help me find Emma.”

In all honesty, it’s a case I might well have taken on without any need for threat or ultimatum. How could I not take pity on someone who’d suffered so horribly? Even if Emma was a raving bitch, I’d have felt sorry for her, but since I didn’t know her it was even easier to picture her as the innocent victim of an evil, vindictive bastard.

As a P.I., I’d always specialized in locates and skip traces—basically, finding people who didn’t want to be found. But this wasn’t going to be a typical locate. None of the tools I used to find missing persons—things like online searches and interviews with people who might have heard from her—was going to help me find someone who was buried, and had been in the ground for almost ten years. Everyone seemed to assume I had some kind of supernatural hunting powers, but other than my sudden improvement in marksmanship, I’d seen no sign of them.

“Will you help me, Nikki?” Anderson asked, and the plea in his voice made something in my chest hurt. I wasn’t trusting enough to believe everything he’d said, and I had the distinct impression there were plenty of things he’d left out of the story, but I did believe he was hurting. A lot.

“Yes,” I said, because what else could I possibly answer? Even if I didn’t need his help myself, I doubt I could have resisted that plea. Never mind that I hadn’t the faintest idea how I could actually go about helping him. “If you’ll help me protect my family, I’ll do everything I can to help find Emma.”