Keri Arthur - Moon Sworn

For the barest of moments, he froze. Then he did the stupidest thing possible and lunged for his weapon. I fired, as did Rhoan. The twin beams of light cut across the room, hitting Daskill’s reaching hand. The smell of burning flesh stung the air as the lasers severed then cauterized the first three fingers on his left hand.

His screams joined his wife’s. Rhoan glanced at me, his expression one of disgust as he shook his head and walked forward. That’s when the wife moved. One minute she was screaming like a banshee, and the next she had a gun in her hand and was aiming it at Rhoan’s head. There was no time for finesse. I simply shot.

I meant to get her hand, but she was moving too fast, and the beam took off her arm instead. Her severed limb plopped inelegantly to the bed, and the weapon—thanks to the fact that her finger was still curled around the trigger—fired. The bullet skimmed past Rhoan’s nose and thudded into the wall behind him.

The wife went back to screaming. High-pitched, wailing sounds of horror, but I wasn’t feeling any sympathy. Not when the bitch had just tried to kill my brother.

He glanced at me, blinking, the tip of his nose somewhat blackened. “Damn, that was close.”

“Totally.” I strode forward, grabbed Daskill by the scruff of his neck, and dragged his wobbly pink butt off the bed. “Bobby Daskill, consider yourself under arrest. Now get your scrawny ass down those stairs.”

“But I’m naked—”

“Like I care.” I pushed him toward the door, my finger still on the trigger and the laser whining ominously at his back.

Rhoan hauled the still-screaming woman up by her good arm, grabbed the sheet, and threw it roughly around her body. Then, with his hand still clamped around hers, he forced her to march forward.

We headed down the stairs, then outside. I couldn’t sense Quinn near, but almost before I could form a question, his thoughts were flowing through my mind. I’m in the car. Things were getting a little warm, even with the protection of the sunscreen and the shade of the wall .

So do you brown or do you peel?

Brown. If a vampire burns, it usually results in the death of said vampire .

Well, I don’t want you dead before I swear to you, so good move .

His laughter ran through my mind, warm and light.

Daskill had finally realized we were going out into the main street and balked as we neared the gate. But a hard nudge in the back with the laser soon put an end to that.

The two vans sat several houses away, one holding Jack and the banks of computers that were controlling Daskill’s security system, and the other for the transfer of our prisoners.

The prisoner van door opened as we approached, and the stench of vampire wafted out. There were at least three guardians inside. Jack wasn’t taking any chances.

We handed over our prisoners and stepped back as the door slammed shut. Even though the van was reinforced, I could still hear the wife’s screaming as the vehicle took off.

“Well, that was almost easy,” Rhoan said, sounding more than a little peeved.

“And it makes a nice change,” I said, rubbing my arms. The time had come to talk to Jack, and I really wasn’t looking forward to it.

I can —Quinn started.

No , I said firmly. This is for me to do .

“Riley, Rhoan,” Jack said into my ear. “Go through Daskill’s house and see what you can find. Another van is on the way to take care of the guards. They’ll remain neutralized until then.”

Meaning Quinn had messed with their minds and told them to stay. I pressed the little earpiece and said, “I need to talk to you first, boss.”

He hesitated, then said, almost reluctantly, “Come on in, then.”

Rhoan gave me a smile and a quick shoulder squeeze for support, then spun around on his heel and headed back to the house. I took a deep breath that did little to calm the twisting in my belly, then strode forward determinedly.

I slid open the van door, stepping inside and shutting it quickly so there was no risk of sunlight touching Jack. Not that it would have, given he was down at the far end of the van, sitting in front of a bank of monitors.

“What is it, Riley?” he said without looking up.

“I don’t want to be a guardian anymore.” I said it in a rush, because any other way and the words would have stuck in my throat.

He leaned back in his chair and raised his hands, crossing his fingers on the top of his head. There was little surprise in the green of his eyes.

“You can’t leave the Directorate. The drugs are still affecting you, and we have no idea what direction the changes are likely to take.”

That sick feeling in my stomach increased, rising up my throat and momentarily preventing me from breathing. It was all going to hell—all my hopes and dreams of walking away turning to ashes simply because I knew what he was saying was true. And yet, that stupid, stubborn part of me refused to give up. “But—”

“There are no buts on this,” he said heavily. “We have no idea what might happen, and it’s simply too dangerous for everyone around you to let you go unmonitored.”

“There has to be some sort of middle ground, Jack.” I said it softly, without the desperation burning through me.

“I’ve given up so many of my hopes and dreams in the last few years that I really don’t want to give up any more. I want to live long enough to see my babies grow. And we both know that isn’t going to happen if I remain a guardian.”

“Riley,” he said, voice gentle, “you were growing weary of being my assistant when you actually were. Now that you’re a trained hunter, I very much doubt you could go back so easily to office work.”

Maybe. Maybe not. But he wasn’t saying no outright, so there was still some degree of hope left.

“Jack, I can’t continue like this. I won’t .”

“You know the choice, Riley. It’s us or the military.”

So much for hope. I stared at him for a moment, mouth drier than the Simpson Desert. “Is that a threat?”

He returned my stare, his green eyes showing little in the way of compassion. Not giving in, not giving up. “No. I’m merely stating your options. They haven’t changed. They will never change.” He paused. “The military has been keeping an eye on you.”

I clenched my fists and battled to remain calm—battled not to show the fear clawing away at my insides. Which was useless, given that he was a vampire and would sense it regardless. He couldn’t help it when my pulse was racing at a million miles an hour.

“You can’t make me do either,” I said, an edge creeping into my voice was that was part fury, part fear. “I’ll fight you, I’ll fight the Directorate, I’ll even fight the entire Australian military if I have to.”

“Riley,” he said softly. “You may be a strong telepath, but so am I, and so is Director Hunter.”

“And so is Quinn,” I retorted. “Do not think I’ll be alone in any battle.” Because if he tried anything like that, he’d not only lose me, but Quinn, Rhoan, and Dia, as well.

And he knew it. The frustrated anger that just about fried my skin said as much.

“What about a compromise?” I said, desperately battling the urge to cross my fingers. To pray to the gods I didn’t believe in.

“What kind of compromise?”

“You have specialist consultants on the books. Dia’s one. Why can’t I be another?”

“Meaning,” he said slowly, “you’d be willing to come to murder scenes whenever required, to talk to souls?”

“Yes.” I wouldn’t like it, but I’d do it if it meant not having to risk life and limb every single day of my life as a guardian.