Karen Chance - Claimed by Shadow

One thing was certain: if we met again, Mircea and I would certainly complete the bond. It was embarrassing to have to admit, but the only reason we hadn't done it already-and in front of about a thousand spectators-was his self-control, not mine. And that would complete the ritual, which would bring me back to square one.

"Damn it!" Both options were unacceptable, but there wasn't a third. There was no way to get rid of the geis and avoid completing the ritual. Or, if there was, I had no way of finding it stuck in a cell in Faerie.

Everywhere I looked, I hit a brick wall. I hated not having options, of having someone or something deciding my life for me. It had been that way as far back as I could remember. Either Tony or the Senate or the goddamned Fey were making me a victim, taking away my right to choose. I'd never had the power to fight back, to forge my own life or just to keep myself and the people I cared about safe. I couldn't even deal with one rogue initiate! And, I realized, if things continued as they were, I never would.

"What is it?" Tomas' hand was delicately stroking the small of my back, trying to soothe, to comfort. It was comforting, I admit, but not soothing. Neither the ritual nor the geis cared if he was hurt, or if I was ambiguous about the idea of having sex in a dank, chilly dungeon with Billy probably listening in. The compulsion to turn around and take Tomas up on the offer he'd been making ever since I met him was so strong, I had to bunch my fists in the coarse blanket beneath me to keep them still.

I forced my mind back to the problem. I'd been telling myself that I could pass the power on to someone else, but who exactly would that be? There didn't appear to be any other candidates for the job who could be trusted not to fall under the control of the Circle or of Pritkin's faction, neither of which I trusted. There was a war on, and even the thought of the power passing into the hands of someone like Myra made me cold.

Tomas wrapped his arms around me, drawing me against the sultry cocoon of his body. My hand moved of its own accord to caress the warm, golden skin at the side of his knee, just where the slope of that long, strong thigh began. It would be so easy to give in, to feed the hunger I'd felt for so long. And did it really make that much difference? The Circle was already trying to kill me. Could I believe them if they offered a deal? Wouldn't it be better from their point of view to do away with any competition for their initiates, rather than leave someone like me around? If I was going to be hunted anyway, I vastly preferred to be in the strongest position possible. And that was doubly true when dealing with Myra.

"Are you sure you've thought this through?" I asked Tomas seriously. "There could be repercussions for helping me complete the ritual. The mages-”

Tomas tasted the inside of my wrist with the tip of his tongue. "I'm sure.”

"But what about-”

He smiled wryly. "Cassie, you know what hunts me. Do you truly believe I am concerned about the Circle?”

He had a point. And, as much as I didn't want to admit it, I still had feelings for him-or, to be more precise, for the person I'd thought he was. I really doubted that someone old enough to remember the fall of the Incan Empire bore much resemblance to the sweet street kid I'd known. I didn't know the real Tomas, who he was when the Senate wasn't pulling his strings. But they weren't here now. For once, both of us were free of them, even if it was only because we were prisoners elsewhere. And despite that, he still seemed to want me.

"The choice is yours, Cassie. You know how I feel.”

I looked at him searchingly. "Do I? Louis-César commanded you to come to me. All those months, you were doing a job.”

Tomas' hands stilled. "And am I still doing that job, Cassie? Is this all an elaborate hoax to persuade you to accept a position you do not want?”

"No." Vamps might not have the same reaction to pain as humans, but no one would allow himself to be carved up like that, not for any reason.

He pulled me against him, his eyes burning. "Do you think I am trying to win back the Consul's good graces by completing my original mission? Is that it?”

I didn't answer immediately. Tomas had betrayed me before, and although I'd convinced myself that he'd done the wrong thing for the right reasons, what if he hadn't? I knew for a fact that he was a good actor-most of the old vamps were. If they weren't born that way, they acquired the skill through centuries of practice. But it didn't make sense for him to be playing me. Even if the Senate was willing to wipe the slate clean and take him back, that wasn't what Tomas wanted. His main goal was to be free of his master's control in order to kill Alejandro. No matter how much they wanted me back, the Senate wasn't going to make war on another sovereign vampire body-especially not when they already had a war on their hands. They couldn't give Tomas what he truly wanted, and I didn't believe he'd sell me out for less.

"No," I finally admitted. "I don't think that.”

"But you don't trust me.”

It wasn't a question, so I didn't answer it. What could I say? He was right.

Tomas laughed mirthlessly. "How can I blame you? You put your trust in me once, and I lied to you. Anything I say now would only be words.”

"I'd still like to hear them," I said tentatively. Tomas had given me an explanation for the betrayal, but he'd said nothing about us. I needed to hear that not everything about our time together had been a lie.

He kissed me lightly, just below the indentation of my throat. "All my life, I only knew people who wanted something from me. When I was young, it was protection and a chance for revenge. After Alejandro turned me, it was skill in battle and a knowledge of the land that he didn't possess. For Louis-César, I was a living trophy, a testament to his power." He caressed my hair, lightly, reverently. "Only you ever cared about me as a person, without wanting anything in return. Te amo, Cassie. Te querré para siempre.”

I don't speak Spanish, but I got the idea. Once I'd have given a lot to hear those words, in any language, but now my feelings were too confused to even begin sorting out. I didn't know what I felt, much less what to say. "Tomas, I-”

"Don't. I want to remember this, just as it is. I will have to go back soon and I do not want to take lies with me, no matter how sweet they sound. The Senate deals in lies. This"-he rested his cheek against my chest-"this is real.”

"You don't have to go back, Tomas! I told you, we'll find a way to hide you.”

He laughed, and it sounded more genuine this time. "Little Cassie, always looking out for everyone. I am the one supposed to be rescuing you, didn't you know? Is that not how the fairy tales go?" His expression darkened suddenly. "But why should you think that way? I have been little enough use so far!”

"You saved me from Tony's thugs, or doesn't that count?" Tony had sent a crew to the nightclub where I'd been working to take me out. They didn't succeed partly because the Senate had assigned Tomas to guard me. Despite everything, I hadn't forgotten that he'd saved my life. But apparently he had, because he brushed it away with a gesture.

"You would have managed. You always do." His expression grew fierce. "Cassie, if you doubt how I feel, let me show you! Let me do this for you!”

I let my hand comb through the silky mass of his hair. The Pythia's position might be a cage, but at least it was one over which I'd have some say. I'd be stuck with the job, but I'd retain control over the rest of my life-something the geis would deny me.

"You'll hurt yourself," I protested as Tomas' breath started to come faster. A first-level master could heal almost anything, but there was no way Tomas was over his injuries already.