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of the little courtyard behind the bar.
From that point on I forgot Rogue was even there. The thrill of the ride swept me
away. The liberation of speed, the heady rush of power, the sensual feel of the bike
beneath me carried me toward euphoria. I never expected it. I never expected to love
this. I certainly never expected me, a scion of European aristocracy, the daughter of a
pope, a descendent of kings, to be bound to a group of outcast vampire biker
"brothers" with a bond as powerful as blood.
Know thyself, Socrates said. What a laugh. I seemed to have no clue who I was. Again
and again I surprised myself. Vain self delusion, for a vampire, could be a very
dangerous thing.
Since it was close to morning the ride was short. My regret at its ending was long.
Rogue dropped me off in front of my building. I saw Mickey peeking at me from behind
the glass lobby doors.
I pulled off my helmet, shook my hair loose, and looked at Rogue. "What should I do
with the bike?" I asked.
He said he'd take my bike home with him for tonight.
"Home? Where is that?" I asked, realizing I didn't know where Rogue lived any more
than I knew his real name.
"Newark, New Jersey," he said without hesitation.
"Do you have a garage?" I asked.
He threw back his head and laughed. "No. And I don't have no wife, kids, or dog
either."
"Well, thank you for the information," I huffed.
"Rambo, you want to know something about me? You just ask. Now that you're a
Blood, I got no secrets from you."
I was tempted to hand him a laundry list of questions, but I could see the sky getting
light in the east. I settled for asking him where he was going to keep my bike. Would it
be safe? He was living in Newark, not Short Hills.
"Don't you worry. I park my bikes in the living room, right next to the sixty inch TV."
He wasn't being at all sarcastic. He meant every word.
We agreed we'd find some time tomorrow night for him to give me a lesson. Before I
turned to go, I said I was concerned about his getting back to Newark before the sun
rose.
Rogue laughed again, the sound rich and deep in his chest. "The sun won't catch me,
Rambo. I'm not somebody you need to worry about." With a roar of the bike's engine
he zoomed away, leaving me standing there, the helmet in my hands.
Immediately Mickey opened the lobby doors to let me in. I saw him staring at my
leathers. I could see he was eaten up with curiosity about the way I looked, about the
motorcycle, and about what I was doing with Rogue.
"I just got a birthday present." I smiled a secretive smile and headed toward the
elevator. Before the doors shut I saw Mickey standing there, mulling that over, his
mouth open.
I winked.
I had been wrong about a lot of things tonight. One of them was about Darius not
showing up. I let myself into my apartment, preoccupied, thinking about Rogue racing
the rosy fingers of dawn.
No dog came to greet me.
I looked around, my anxiety instantaneous. She had been stolen before. I hurried into
the living room. Jade had climbed onto the sofa. One eye opened to acknowledge me.
Her head was on Darius's lap. She was comfortable. She wasn't moving.
Darius had been waiting for me. He didn't look happy.
"What have you been doing?" he asked. He looked at me in my leathers. He noted the
helmet in my hand. That must have given him a hint. He sounded majorly annoyed.
"Working," I answered.
"Nice work," he said.
"I didn't think you'd be here," I responded, my hands now on my hips, my stance wide.
"Why didn't you call me? Why didn't you send me a text message? I would have tried
to get home sooner if I had known you were coming over. I haven't heard from you
since yesterday." I was feeling a little pissed off myself.
"I just got here a couple of minutes ago. I did plan on calling you. I couldn't."
"Why not? My cell phone was working. I know. I checked it often enough." My voice
sounded shrill. I realized I was preparing to hear what I referred to as one of his
bullshit excuses.
Darius gently dislodged Jade and rose from the sofa. He started toward me, his step
slow. Fatigue made his shoulders sag. His face was pale and gray.
"I couldn't reach you because my phone was confiscated," he said.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Your mother had me arrested. I thought she was going to have me staked."
Chapter 14
Bring me my how of burning gold!
Bring me my arrows of desire!
Bring me my spear!
O clouds, unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire!
William Blake, "And Did Those Feet"
It was another oh shit moment.
I dropped my helmet on the floor, rushed over to Darius, and put my arms around him.
He held me tight, his cheek against my hair.
When would I get it through my thick skull that Darius was not my enemy? He was a
man, doing all the stupid, screwed up stuff men did. But he was my guy. He loved me.
And when it came to our problems, I had to take at least equal responsibility for our
rocky road.
My mother was a different story altogether.
I had known that my mother would move swiftly once she received the Khan letter. I
never suspected, not once, while Benny and I were with her in Scarsdale, that events
were already in motion.
She already knew about Darius's kidnapping of the cleric and the loss of the bottle
because she had just interrogated him. She knew Opus Dei had orchestrated the
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