4
He carried her up the stairs, heading toward his room at the far end. He deposited her on the black comforter, then stared down at her.
"I don't know how long I can keep her under," the younger man said from the doorway. "Humans react in different ways...I don't know how she'll take being..."
"She will be all right Randy. She carries the mark, doesn't she?"
"Yeah. I guess." Randy shook his head, stepping into the room. "The others...how close are they?"
"An hour. Probably less. They were close by anyway." He shrugged carelessly. "Let them try to find her here. Once they leave, we can wake her and then we'll wait...for him."
Randy was still eyeing the girl on the bed. She looked so damn...innocent. "I am sick of this life."
"I know." There was a sigh. "You can only play the hand you are dealt though."
"I was happy being...thinking...I was human," Randy said softly.
"Yes."
"I can never go back to my old life." This thought had not just occurred. It was something Randy had dealt with every day, many times a day, since the older man had found him, had saved him.
"No." Green eyes met his. "But you can form a new life. Just because you are not one of them does not mean you cannot live among them."
"You make it sound easy," Randy grinned.
"It is easy if you choose it to be."
"And what do you choose?" Randy asked. And wished he could take it back. The green eyes turned hard.
"My choices were made for me."
"Sorry..." Randy winced. "I'll stay with her if you want to rest for a while. I need to be close to her so I can make sure she stays under."
"Yes." He raised a hand and rubbed it wearily over his eyes. "You will have to stay. But I can't rest. Not yet." He wanted to be awake. The others were coming. Faster than he'd at first thought. Their presence was like a hot spark in the periphery of his vision.
They were not coming because they suspected he already had the girl. No. They would be coming just so their leader could see him. So she could try to convince him that human ways were not his ways. He already knew that. But he would not become what she was. Never.
"I think I hear..." Randy shook his head. His powers were different. He had the touch. Dangerous in itself if not controlled. He could also sense thoughts...which was what he was doing now. "They aren't blocking themselves. They don't know about me?" It was a question. He found his own answer. "No. And they won't." He was silent for a minute, concentrating. "Ten minutes. Maybe fifteen. They are really flying."
"I'll be downstairs. Stay with her," he jerked his head at the girl. "Do not open this door or come out for any reason."
"Right," Randy's voice was distracted. This was the first time he'd exercised his power at any length, and in so many different directions. It was taking all of his concentration. He made sure the girl was deep enough. Yes. There was nothing there. She might have been dead except for the shallow rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. He did not notice his friend leave the room, closing the door behind him.
He made his way downstairs, out the front door, to the porch. Tattooed arms crossed, he waited, his expression conveying nothing but boredom. Exactly eleven minutes after he settled into his stance, a car pulled into the driveway.
He watched as it rolled to a stop behind the truck. The driver and passenger doors opened, its occupants getting out at exactly the same time. The driver was male, young, rough looking. Still wet behind the ears.
The female though...this was not her first go round. She was well seasoned in what she was doing. Short hair barely brushed her shoulders, so black it was nearly blue. Her eyes were black too, the pupils and irises having no breaking lines. She dressed in red, always. Blood red halter top, red pants.
She walked forward, her steps gliding, as if her feet never touched the ground. She stopped at the foot of the porch steps, smiling up at him suggestively, pink tongue slipping out to whet her lips.
"Mark..." His name was a purr of husky overly-seductive voice. He did not respond to it. Not anymore. Those days were gone.
"Pandora." He nodded.
"Still as social as ever, I see," her voice dropped even lower. Her succubus nature was coming to the front, responding in part to the human blood Mark had in his veins.
And he had fallen prey to it. For almost a year, they'd used each other relentlessly, until all he could remember was a blur of pounding flesh, of scratching nails, of frenzied...fucking. That was all it had been. All it would ever be. He'd grown tired of it after a while. His human side craved more...but he did not understand what more there could be.
Pandora had not taken his rejection well. She had other...suitors...who were willing to cater to her specific tastes. But she wanted Mark. She wanted to break that side of him that was human. Wanted to revel in being the one who fully turned him into...what she was.
"What do you want?" He finally asked, forcing himself to keep his face a mask of neutrality. "Did you find the fourth? I hope that is the reason you came all the way here."
She made a sound in her throat. "Now...what kind of attitude is that to take with your...friends?" Suggestive again. She reached out a hand and lightly traced his jean-clad thigh with a finger. He would not give her the satisfaction of seeing him jerk away from her. Or any other reaction. She sighed, realizing he wasn't going to bend. "Not yet. But we will. We will..." She smiled.
"Well...until you do..." He stood straight. "I have my own things to take care of." He was dismissing her. Pandora did not like it but there was nothing she could do.
"Mark..." She slid her tongue over her lips again. "I have not forgotten us..." She took the first step onto the porch. "How can you act like you did not love every minute of it?" She'd dropped back into purr mode. "That you wouldn't love to do it again, right here, on this spot..."
"Like animals?" He asked. Her eyes narrowed. "I am not an animal. You will not turn me into one. Get it straight in your head. I'm only talking to you now because you owe me a favor..."
"I owe you nothing," Pandora said hotly.
Mark eyed her, then shrugged. "Right. And that is why you keep updating me on this chase. On these girls." He stared at her. "How can I be sure that you aren't lying to me again?"
Pandora's anger flared, turning her eyes a red that matched her outfit. She reigned it in with considerable effort. As powerful as she was, she was no match for the half-human that Mark was. And she knew it.
"This is no lie." She hissed out. Gone was the purr, the seduction. This was her true nature. Fiery anger, rage. "He marked them himself. He was seen...actually killed one who tried to stop him..."
This was the first time Mark had heard this. He sucked in a breath and held it for a moment, then sighed it out. All right. Good. That was what he wanted. "And you have...disposed...of the other three?"
"Yesssss," She dragged the word out, savoring it. It was obvious she'd had her hand in at least one of the kills. "It was quite..."
Mark waved a hand. He did not want the details. "And the fourth?"
"Shall be ours within the day. Sooner," She corrected herself. "We've destroyed his chosen. He will have to act fast to get to his last one before we do. We'll not fail...this time." She looked pointedly at Mark, then smiled. "Are you sure you don't want to..."
"No." Mark turned from her. "Take your...friend...and leave this place. You are not welcome here."
Pandora made a choked sound of rage. Mark ignored her, going into the house, shutting the door behind him. He heard footsteps, voices, but did not pay them mind. The slamming of the car doors was what mattered. And the engine. It was fading, fading...gone. They were gone.
"Good riddance." He lifted his gaze to the stairs. The fourth. Pandora and her scouts could look all they wanted. They would never find her. Not while she was with him anyway.