Gideon snorted. "Really? I was thinking more of a Disney hero. Birds will be chirping on your shoulder in a few minutes. Or doing something else."

Daegan made a noncommittal noise, turned his attention to Anwyn. "You should feed before we land, cher cher. Would you like Gideon to mix his blood with your choice of wine? I know you like your white zinfandel."

"A vampire who doesn't go for red wine." Gideon cleared his throat, pushing off the unwelcome mood that Daegan had just set, instead going for the inexplicable antic.i.p.ation and simple arousal that always came to him when she had to feed. There was an intimacy to it that Gideon liked, though he didn't care to admit it. "Didn't you tell her that was poor etiquette?"

Anwyn rose and moved back to Gideon, sliding easily into his lap. She slipped her hand into the open collar of his dress shirt, opening a b.u.t.ton deftly to stroke the light mat of hair and muscles beneath. "I prefer to have my wine as dessert."

Gideon was caught by her blue-green eyes, penetrating and seeing so much. "We're going to be okay." She put a slim hand to his jaw. "Stop baiting him. Relax, and don't worry so much."

"Stop worrying about me," he responded, deciding not to comment on her other observation.

"Only if you'll stop worrying about me," she said.

Gideon glanced up at Daegan, who met his gaze briefly before turning his attention to pouring his own drink from the bar. "This is dangerous, Anwyn," Gideon said quietly. "I'm not scared of much, but I'm scared to death something is going to happen to you."

"I've nothing to fear. I'm with the two most dangerous males I know. Well, after James, that is. I'm pretty sure he could kick both your a.s.ses." At his snort, she leaned in, pressed her lips to his neck, letting him feel the teasing p.r.i.c.k of her fangs. "You know, you never flinch," she breathed against his flesh. "Only that first time. You accept this, what I need from you."

He slid his arm around her back, providing her support as the sc.r.a.pe angled down into his c.o.c.k. "Yeah."

"I'll make you a deal. If you decide to bolt, so will I. We can become fugitives together."

He closed his eyes, pressed his forehead against her shoulder. "Don't tempt me, Mistress." And he meant it fervently. "You need to be accepted into this world. I'm going to stand behind you, make sure that happens. Three paces back, eyes down, my lips kissing your a.s.s, yada yada yada."

"Well, the last part sounds pleasant." But she suppressed a sigh. Gideon pushed her hair off her shoulder, gathering it in the small of her back to keep it out of her way as her fangs sank deep, and she began to feed. Trying to keep his mind off the arousal her bloodtaking always seemed perversely to stir, Gideon turned his gaze to Daegan. "So you've studiously avoided telling us which Council member you think sold you out. You might want to make us aware of that."

"It is my issue to address. But I wasn't deliberately withholding information. I'm fairly certain it was Lord Stephen or Lady Barbra. Perhaps both."

"Steve and Barb? Sounds like a couple who should be sipping c.o.c.ktails in the suburbs."

"They are new Council members. Made vampires." At Gideon's raised brow, Daegan curled his lip. "Yes, I know. The older Council members thought it would be useful to have an advocacy position for approved approved made vampires." made vampires."

"Strange, since the Council's about as autocratic as you can get. I thought they slapped a moratorium on making vampires after the revolt at the Gathering."

"They did. But they are trying to smooth things with the existing ones. Too few vampires overall to completely marginalize made vampires. Bedfellows, politics and all that."

Gideon considered that, tracing Anwyn's spine with his knuckles, but grimaced as she rubbed her soft a.s.s against his thighs and groin, teasing him. When amus.e.m.e.nt crossed Daegan's gaze, he scowled. "Being the first made vamps to sit on Council, you'd think Steve and Barb would watch their ps and qs to make sure they keep the spot."

"Hmm. You might avoid calling them that when you meet them." Taking up his tumbler of whiskey, Daegan brought him a bottle of beer. Pulling up an ottoman, he sat on it, splaying his knees around one of Gideon's planted feet, and ran his hand down Anwyn's back, stroking her thick hair. As he did so, he brushed Gideon's hand. He'd been doing that more often, casual touches, as if the physical intimacy they shared meant something. Meant that he had the right to touch.

It wasn't outrightly s.e.xual like what the vampire was doing to Anwyn now, running a finger along her neck as she swallowed Gideon's blood, or stealing a brief kiss along that slender column, such that his thigh pressed the outside of Gideon's. Still, it was an unsettling reminder of what was possible between them. Except to decide no way in h.e.l.l was it ever happening again, Gideon hadn't even made peace with what had happened in the weapons room.

He didn't care how much his skin tingled after Daegan touched it, a different but no less provocative sensation than Anwyn's fingers, tunneling under the open collar of his new b.u.t.ton-down shirt to tease his nipple. Dropping down, she stroked her nails over his abdomen, a sc.r.a.pe that had him shifting his hard c.o.c.k against her hip and earning a murmur of approval.

Pulling back from her feeding, she pressed her lips to his throat, sealing the wound with a faint blood imprint from her mouth. Daegan slid an energy bar and protein drink toward Gideon's right hand to supplement the beer. "I'll get you a steak later."

"Thanks, Dad. I think I can handle finding my own meals."

"You'll need your energy. Don't let stubbornness keep you at less than your fighting best." Daegan's steady gaze told Gideon he meant it. "And remember, you don't address any Council member, let alone Steve and Barb, as anything less than 'my lady' or 'my lord,' and you don't speak to them at all unless he or she addresses you first. If you hold on to nothing else, remember that one. It is the one thing that may save your foolish life, which is important to Anwyn's well-being, if not your own."

Since being p.i.s.sy would just upset Anwyn, Gideon swallowed his irritation along with the beer and plotted ways to get even with the vamp later for his high-handed tone and far too shrewd look.

Fortunately, Anwyn provided a distraction. When she slid off his lap, she had to straddle both Gideon's and Daegan's thighs to move past them. Daegan caught her hips, keeping her there as he cupped her b.u.t.tocks. As Gideon watched at close range, the way those long fingers kneaded the rounded fullness of her a.s.s, Daegan put his mouth between her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. He teased her there, a flick of his whiskey-flavored tongue in the low neckline of the silk blouse. "You wear these clothes just to taunt us."

"But unlike Gideon, you don't know how to mind your manners and ask for permission first. Hey." Anwyn turned a reproving glance on Gideon as he pulled his hand away. "I'm sure that wasn't a pinch, because if it was, I'd have to put my foot up your backside. I'm trying to build you up here. Make you sound reasonably housebroken."

"All they have to do is look at him to know that's a lie." Daegan rose and moved back to his own chair, bracing one foot on the footrest. It was his typically casual predator pose, but the s.e.xual energy around him, the fact he knew the vampire had to be hard, made it difficult for Gideon not to look where he wanted to look. Holding Daegan's gaze was far more hazardous, though.

"All dangerous eyes," the vampire mused. "Strong jaw. Body never completely relaxed, hard as iron." His gaze flicked downward, lingered deliberately. "In more ways than one."

"f.u.c.k. Off."

Anwyn shifted her gaze between the two of them. Gideon's mind told her little, because when he became like this, everything was still, focused on whatever might happen in the next few seconds.

Daegan remained in his position, just as still and silent. She knew it was pre-battle nerves that had made Gideon lash out with real venom in his tone. h.e.l.l, since he'd boarded the plane he'd been as unpredictable in his moods as Anwyn on a bad day. He was clearly testing, and she knew Daegan wasn't likely to put up with it much longer. Gideon was purposely being immature and twisted, goading such a confrontation. From his mind, she knew he had no clue whether he was angling for the a.s.s-kicking or something equally physical.

She'd been playing mediator-on-tenterhooks for most of the plane ride and it was dangerously adding to her anxiety. She'd heard Gideon's thought, knew she'd been doing a good job of keeping any trepidations she had under wraps, but these two were going to be her breaking point.

"You said Lord Stephen and Lady Barbra might have betrayed you," she said quickly. "Why, Daegan?"

He didn't remove his gaze from Gideon, unfortunately, but he did answer. "They were not part of the Territory Wars, and haven't faced the dangers that the others have. They don't understand that vampires who choose to ignore the rules risk harmful exposure of our kind to the human world. Being made vampires, they erroneously believe they should be loyal to all made vampires without discretion. So that they protect even those who commit vicious crimes, rather than advocating for the made vampires who do not. If they can undermine the strict position toward made vampires in a mult.i.tude of small ways, such as discrediting what I do, the Council may alter their stand on the matter."

"But if you step out and the Region Masters and overlords handle internal problems related to their vampires directly, it would cause more unease and power shifts within territories, allowing the problem vampires more lat.i.tude," Gideon pointed out.

Daegan lifted a shoulder. "Possibly. It would certainly slow down the swift retribution we implement now. Then again, Lord Stephen and Lady Barbra's motives could be more personal and less political. For all I know, before Stephen and Barbra were appointed, I may have been a.s.signed to kill someone they considered a friend or preferred lover. While these two are not excessively clever, vampires are good at keeping their personal baggage under wraps." He shrugged. "Honestly, with vampires, it can always be a variety of motivators. They are not highly predictable in their grudges or politics."

Anwyn slid her hip next to Daegan's braced foot, putting a hand on his hard thigh. "I'd agree with the not very clever part. What did they think telling a crazy vampire where to find you, particularly one like Barnabus, would accomplish? Surely they didn't think he'd kill you."

"It was a limited risk. They didn't expect it to be tracked back to them, and if they killed me, so much the better."

"Yeah, that much may be true, but I don't think that was their primary motive." Gideon spoke up now, his hard eyes resting on Daegan. "What they did was force your hand, made you take Barnabus's life and the lives of his little band unsanctioned. No matter how justified, it means you've given Steve and Barb the opening to discuss whether you have too much autonomy, and cast suspicions on how powerful you are and how dangerous that makes you to them."

"The rest of the Council has known me a long time."

"They're vampires. Do you know how long it takes them to turn on one of their own? Lady Lyssa practically gave them her soul since the day the Council was founded. They turned on her in the s.p.a.ce of one Council meeting, one piece of information. All it takes is a seed of doubt to be planted." Gideon scowled at Daegan's shuttered look. "h.e.l.l, humans are just as bad. People like to believe the worst about each other. Look at how they always scream government conspiracy, at the same time they talk about how completely incompetent the government is. Conspiracy by its nature suggests cleverness, discretion."

Anwyn nodded. "When it comes down to it, we're idiots. We're the Roman mob. We'd rather be thrown sc.r.a.ps of bread and shown a good gladiator fight than think for ourselves."

Daegan shook his head. "This isn't a mob. This is the Council. Gideon, I know your own shadow world, the vampire hunters, rejected you because they believed you had become too sympathetic to the other side, and were only killing vampires your brother sent you. Both of which were true. It does not mean that you can extrapolate their disloyalty to the Council."

Gideon's eyes narrowed. "Which one is it?"

Daegan lifted a brow. "Pardon me?"

"Which Council member was f.u.c.king your mother, and therefore still has you fooled into thinking you should trust these vipers?"

Anwyn knew she could move a lot faster now, but she had no chance of moving faster than Daegan. And Daegan in a temper could take Gideon through the side of the plane.

"Stop it," she snapped. "Both of you."

The syllables reverberated through the cabin, harshly enough she wondered if the pilot had felt the vibration. At least it brought their attention from each other to her. She was impressed herself by how intimidating she sounded.

"Gideon, it doesn't matter how much you insult him, how much anger you take out on him." She tried to calm her tone, cognizant of how they both went on alert whenever she showed the least bit of agitation. Which irritated her even more. "Nothing is going to change the fact we're vampires, and your loyalties are shifting. Nothing is going to change the fact you enjoyed being f.u.c.ked by both of us. By him. him. Or that, in your heart as well as your c.o.c.k, you know if you stay around the two of us, it will happen again." Or that, in your heart as well as your c.o.c.k, you know if you stay around the two of us, it will happen again."

She'd tapped the right b.u.t.tons. He surged to his feet, his fists clenched as he loomed over her. "Stop f.u.c.king around in my head," he snarled.

Daegan tensed, but Anwyn spoke in his mind. My servant, my problem. Do My servant, my problem. Do not not interfere. interfere.

His dark eyes flickered to her. He's out of line with you, He's out of line with you, cher cher. If you don't set him back on his heels, I will take him down, no matter what kind of pain he is in.

I can protect myself, and your feelings are as much the problem as his. It p.i.s.ses you off that you told him about Laura, and he didn't react as you expected. You want to help him and you don't know how. You don't know what to do about how much you care about him. Neither does he.

She took advantage of his momentary surprise to square off with Gideon, rising from her seat in front of him so decisively he had to take a step back. "I don't need to be in your head to know what you're fighting. You'd face ten vampires without batting an eye, but when it comes to your own heart, your head, you're still that teenage boy. I can accept that you're immature emotionally, but you're not going to goad Daegan into a fight."

His lip curled but her eyes flashed a warning. "We're going into an uncertain situation, and I'm nervous enough as it is. Whatever baggage you have-either one of you-stow it until this trip is over." She tossed a meaningful glance at Daegan. "Or I swear I will kick both your a.s.ses. There are all sorts of ways to entertain yourselves on this plane. Movies, books . . . h.e.l.l, computer games. You two can beat the s.h.i.t out of each other in World of Warcraft or Bug War, or whatever the h.e.l.l you can do with your joysticks. Just quit. It's too small a s.p.a.ce for this kind of bulls.h.i.t."

She finished at a near shout, her hands on her hips. It actually felt good to vent some of her worry, rather than bottle it. At the flex in Gideon's jaw, the flash of frustrated anger in his gaze, she saw Daegan had nothing to worry about. Her vampire hunter wouldn't strike out at her. He was far too busy flagellating himself.

The thought she sent him now was considerably softer, a balm to her anger. You think I'm past all of it? I still haven't faced what happened in that alley. Once this part is over, I'm going to need a month on my couch with old movies, chocolate ice cream and fuzzy slippers to come to terms with it. h.e.l.l, with everything that's happened and that I've lost. We don't have time to be fighting our personal demons. Not now. But we will. Later. Both of us. You think I'm past all of it? I still haven't faced what happened in that alley. Once this part is over, I'm going to need a month on my couch with old movies, chocolate ice cream and fuzzy slippers to come to terms with it. h.e.l.l, with everything that's happened and that I've lost. We don't have time to be fighting our personal demons. Not now. But we will. Later. Both of us.

Gideon stared at her a long moment. When she saw a quiver at the corner of his lip, as if he'd been knocked off stride by the visual, she c.o.c.ked her head. "Maybe I'll have an extra spoon," she murmured.

He picked up the magazine he'd been staring at blindly earlier. He twisted it into a roll in his hands, reflecting his inner twistings and turnings. The anger had drained out of his face. "I don't really like chocolate ice cream. I've always preferred vanilla."

The warmth spread through her. He'd made that turn once again, away from his own darkness. She gave him an arch look. "Yeah, right. You keep telling yourself that."

"I'm sorry, Anwyn. I apologize. It's just pre-battle nerves, of a sort." He was charmingly formal, her rough vampire hunter. He even sent an awkward nod, almost like a courtier's bow, in Daegan's direction. It somewhat alarmed her, truth be told.

"It's tougher to go into a dangerous situation, knowing weapons aren't going to be an option," Daegan agreed quietly, his guard relaxing.

"And something that matters to me will be right in the middle." Gideon took a deep breath, met her eyes.

"Fifteen years ago, I was a kid. A kid thinking about junior varsity football and what a pain in the a.s.s my little brother was. On one afternoon, that all ended. My parents died in a freak lightning strike. I can still feel the sand and sweat on my palms as I did CPR on my mom, not believing she was gone. Seeing Jacob's scared face, then him going into shock later."

"Gideon." It was Daegan who spoke, his voice kinder. Anwyn hadn't seen this coming, and so was rendered silent by the raw emotion in her servant's voice.

Gideon kept going, as if Daegan hadn't spoken, as if he was talking to some place deep inside himself, rather than to the two of them. "Several years later, I'm in high school. We ended up with my uncle and aunt, who love us, but you know, they aren't our parents, didn't ask for us. I'm playing ball, though, and Jacob seems to be doing okay. I meet this perfect girl. A girl who loves me, and believes I'm strong and capable. Her hero. I thought of us as engaged when I gave her my high school ring, even though everyone thought we were way too young for that. But for the first time in my life I think, Hey, maybe there was nothing else I could have done that day to help my parents.

"Then one night, a vampire takes my girl down in an alley, drains her, rips her open. She dies alone while I'm running off for help, when any fool could see it was over for her. What she needed was for me to stay, be there with her. She was begging me not to leave."

Anwyn closed her eyes, pain suffusing her face, but Gideon continued. "So I drop out of school, become a vampire hunter. For my twenty-first birthday, I staked my tenth vampire, my gift to myself." His gaze locked with Daegan's. "I mired myself in blood and rage, but there was still some part of me, some closely guarded part, that was still that kid. The kid who'd hung out at the dinner table with his parents, laughing and picking at each other. h.e.l.l, we played cards some nights, and Mom would cheat, shoving us cards under the table so we could beat Dad, but he'd always catch us, grab her and tickle her. We'd join in . . ."

He paused, his face getting such a strained look it was as if he were strapped to a rack, being tortured. "That guy who gave Laura his ring? The one who thought getting the chance to make love to her in the backseat, sweet and slow, was the closest thing to Heaven anyone could ever get? Maybe I thought that guy was still inside me, somewhere.

"But two nights ago, I found out that kid is completely gone. That I'm f.u.c.ked-up in my head and d.i.c.k over two people, and one of them happens to be a male vampire, one that represents a lot of what I'm supposed to be fighting. Yeah, I deal with it in an immature way, Anwyn, throwing out insults, hoping he'll get p.i.s.sed off enough to tear off my head. Because it's a lot easier than dealing with this s.h.i.t storm going on inside me. Jacob told me a while back that he doesn't even know who I am anymore. After that night with the three of us, I don't either."

He stopped, let the mangled magazine fall to the seat. Straightening, he looked at them both. "I'll just . . . I'm going to go take a nap for a couple of hours, make sure I'm fueled for this."

Abruptly, he slid past them, left the main cabin. When Anwyn moved to go after him, Daegan closed a hand on her wrist, though his own expression was troubled. "Let him go, cher cher. As you said, until this is over, we all will have to manage our own demons, in our own way. He will stand fast for you; never fear."

"That's what worries me." Anwyn reached out, a simple touch to Gideon's mind. Do sleep, Gideon. And dream good dreams. It will be all right. Do sleep, Gideon. And dream good dreams. It will be all right.

She wondered if he realized that she had as urgent a compulsion to protect him as he did for her. When her gaze shifted back to Daegan, she knew that was another thing they had in common, another quality that bound the three of them together. Only time would tell if that triangle was made of Tinkertoys, easily broken apart, or a silver instrument that resonated with a beautiful tone on all three sides, no matter what struck it.

12.

As he got out of the limo, holding the door for Anwyn, Gideon looked up at the castle looming against the night sky. He shook his head.

"What is it?" Anwyn asked, her fingers a light hook over his hand as she stepped out onto pavement.

"I just imagined sending my brother a postcard from here. 'Hey, hanging out with the Council this week. Wish you were here.' He'd s.h.i.t a brick."

"If they have a gift shop in the creepy castle, we should definitely pick one up."

He gave her an amused look, one that lingered over her in a flattering way. She smiled up at him. "Do I meet inspection?"

He shrugged. "You don't look as pretty as me, but you clean up good." He caught her fingers before they could pinch his arm, and kissed them, a brush of warmth. Despite her banter, he felt her nervousness, but it was impossible to tell from the outside. She looked every inch the part she was going to play tonight.

They had changed on the plane. A Council audience was a formal one, even if, as Daegan explained, it was a completely private audience. So Anwyn wore a blue silk dress that clung to her curves and stopped just above her knees. She could have walked out of a silver screen decades ago, her hair perfectly coiffed and makeup in place, a pair of s.e.xy, strappy pumps adorning her feet. By exactly following direction, Gideon had helped her with the hair and even had a go at applying her makeup. He'd won a few teasing laughs at his attempts. But the hand she laid on his shoulder now was cold.

"I'm sorry about this," he said on impulse. "All of it. I know I said it before, but . . ."

"It wasn't your doing, Gideon. The world can be a terrible place. I can be afraid of that, live my life cowering in the shadows, angry at everything that happened to me, or see if maybe a new path has been opened up to me."

"Was that one of those subtle hints aimed at me? I know how women like to twist words around and baffle the linear male brain."

"There you go, acting like it's all about you. Don't sa.s.s me, servant." She gave him a half smile. "I'm a terrifying vampire, you know."

"You're a terrifying woman. The vampire part is icing on the cake."

It was natural at that moment to slide an arm around her, but before he could, Daegan shouldered between them. As the vampire took her hand, he barely glanced at Gideon.

He says we're already being watched, Gideon. I'm sorry.

She was, but Gideon also saw how easily she fell into it, accepting a male servant following at her heels. He knew she was drawing on her experiences at Atlantis, but it still chafed. He put it away. There were more important things to him than his pride. For one thing, the more un.o.btrusive he was, the more time he'd have to examine and size up their surroundings. It was a strategic advantage.

They'd taken a Mercedes rental from the airstrip to the castle court-yard, and now that Daegan had dealt with the driver, they found themselves facing a lone individual standing in a stone archway. The thin man's sharp features were caught by flickering torchlight. A cool wind swept through the confined area.

"My lord." The man bowed. "I am Vincent, one of Lord Belizar's servants. The Council has instructed me to show you and the fledgling to your quarters. They will provide you an audience in thirty minutes, unless more time is necessary to recover from your travel."

"Thirty minutes is fine. In fact, we're adequately prepared now. I don't wish to linger here longer than necessary. The sooner we leave, the sooner the Council may resume its public business."