"I don't know," the vampire responded. "But it doesn't matter. They can make all the demands they wish, but they have no true power over me."

"Yeah. If they and all their minions attack, you can fight them off. I get that. But what about with Anwyn in the middle? It only takes a second to stake a vampire."

"Aren't you worried about yourself, Gideon?" Anwyn freed her hands, rubbed them in frustration over her own face. "What if-"

"It wouldn't matter, Anwyn; you know that. Something kills you, we both die. That's part of the link."

"That's supposed to rea.s.sure me? I don't like this place, or them." Standing up, she moved away from them both, but turned to look at Daegan. "And I understand about the t.i.the, but it's so . . ."

"Feudal?" Gideon supplied helpfully. "If you're looking for that group to go all free-market capitalist, don't hold your breath. That's a pure oligarchy in there."

"There are overlords and Region Masters who abuse their t.i.thes. But many use them for what they are intended," Daegan a.s.sured her. "To protect and enhance the lives of all the vampires in their district. It is a closely connected, interdependent network."

"But one that hasn't ever included you," Anwyn observed. "Why do they hate you?"

Daegan looked startled they'd noticed it, which surprised Gideon, because it had been just as obvious to him. So he supplied the answer for her. "Whatever's different, whatever they can't defend themselves against, they fear. Unlike humans, they don't give a rat's a.s.s about pretending to be fair-minded or tolerant. He can melt in the shadows and never be seen again. He could kill off the entire vampire population, one by one, and they'd never have a chance against him. He's not just an a.s.sa.s.sin. He's a ghost, just like they call him."

Something in Daegan's dark eyes made him reluctant to continue in the same frank manner, but he knew the reminder was needed. "They'll turn on you if Steve and Barb plant enough seeds. You can already see it happening. You said it yourself. Your mother's gone. You've done a lot of cleanup; they've pa.s.sed more stringent rules about making vampires, et cetera. Now they feel more comfortable testing you, seeing if you'll prove their fears right, that you'll try to take over their narrow little psycho world."

"For a loner, you know a great deal about politics, vampire hunter."

"Some of the same s.h.i.t happens in vampire hunting cells. h.e.l.l, anytime more than two human beings get together in the same room. There were times I thought what I was fighting alongside might be as bad as what I was fighting against." Gideon smiled grimly, but brought Anwyn back to the chair between them, squeezed her still-too-cold hands. "Feeling better, honey?"

"As opposed to what?" She sighed. Sliding her feet out of her shoes, she braced the stockinged soles on Gideon's bent knee and leaned into Daegan's side. "How is it that you two, when you combine forces, always make me feel things will be okay, even when everything tells me things are going to h.e.l.l in a handbasket?"

"We're good bulls.h.i.tters," Gideon offered.

"But I can read your mind."

Daegan pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "It's because he and I are united in one resolve. Nothing is going to harm you, ever again, no matter what we have to do."

"Then make sure you both stay okay." She put a hand on his face, one on Gideon's, linking them to her. "You can't protect me from everything, but if I know you two will be there, no matter what happens to me, I'll be okay. I mean that for tonight, too. You've told me about vampire dinners." Her gaze lifted to Daegan. "Tonight they become reality. I know I'm the low man on the totem pole, so it's possible"-she bit her lip, firmed her voice, though they both heard the quaver-"they might want to test me with some of their games."

"No, dearest. They'll test your servant, and your command of him." Daegan cast a faintly apologetic look at Gideon for using him as the sacrificial lamb to rea.s.sure her, though Gideon knew it was only the truth. "This is the Council, Anwyn. While there are power games that go on within territories that might demand shows of s.e.xual and physical submission by younger vampires, the Council typically doesn't dirty their hands with that. They will test Gideon's obedience to you, however." Daegan met Gideon's eyes. "And they can be ruthless."

"Then we should leave now," Anwyn said.

"It was my original intention. But they have made it clear they will oppose that. How stringently, I do not know. Gideon, if you think you cannot handle what may happen tonight, then now is the time to tell me. I can send you back to the plane, and have you flown out of here."

"What will happen to you and Anwyn?"

"We will be fine. Their ire will be toward me. Anwyn is a fledgling in the company of a stronger vampire. The responsibility is mine."

"But you've applied to be her guardian of sorts. That will ruin that chance."

"I tire of repeating this to you both." Daegan said with an edge. "I do not need their approval for any of my actions."

"Being ostracized by this group can be about as bad as a physical attack, particularly for Anwyn. That's why you brought her here, to get validated, right?" Gideon glanced toward Anwyn. "I can handle this. I will will handle this. I've faced death and torture." He forced himself to hold her gaze, though his tongue had difficulty with the words. "If some Council member wants me to suck his d.i.c.k or have every one of them take me in the a.s.s to prove I'm subservient enough for them, then I'll do it. It's one night out of my life. It's my choice, which was a h.e.l.l of a lot more than you got, right? And h.e.l.l, as Daegan said, that night in the weapons room was about preparing me for this, right? I pa.s.sed that test; I'll pa.s.s this one." Rising to his feet, his hands sliding from Anwyn's, he nodded. "I'm going to go take a shower. Probably the first of a hundred tonight." handle this. I've faced death and torture." He forced himself to hold her gaze, though his tongue had difficulty with the words. "If some Council member wants me to suck his d.i.c.k or have every one of them take me in the a.s.s to prove I'm subservient enough for them, then I'll do it. It's one night out of my life. It's my choice, which was a h.e.l.l of a lot more than you got, right? And h.e.l.l, as Daegan said, that night in the weapons room was about preparing me for this, right? I pa.s.sed that test; I'll pa.s.s this one." Rising to his feet, his hands sliding from Anwyn's, he nodded. "I'm going to go take a shower. Probably the first of a hundred tonight."

She could tell he hadn't liked comparing that night to this, the only comfort Anwyn took from his words. She watched him disappear into the bathroom area and looked up at Daegan. "If that's what happens, he'll do it, but it will break something in him." It will break something in me. It will break something in me.

Daegan cupped her face, his fingers sliding along her cheek. "Nothing can break you, cher cher."

You'd be surprised. A trembling fear grew in her belly a little more every day, telling her what she'd told Gideon earlier. Once she got past the drama of being initiated in the vampire world, she'd be in for some major post-traumatic effects from the alley and everything that had happened since. A trembling fear grew in her belly a little more every day, telling her what she'd told Gideon earlier. Once she got past the drama of being initiated in the vampire world, she'd be in for some major post-traumatic effects from the alley and everything that had happened since.

Daegan bent, pressed his forehead to hers. "Oh, cher cher."

"I survived. I'll be fine. But he . . . It's not fair, Daegan."

"He loves you, Anwyn. I don't know if he loves you you, or the idea of having a woman to protect with everything he is, but in this moment it is all the same. Love is vital, not fair. Fair doesn't really matter."

"I think I love him as well." She managed a half smile. "Both the idea and the actual man."

Daegan nodded, unsurprised. "I saw it in your eyes when you let him lay down upon you in the Queen's Bedchamber. It took me months before you could relax when I did that. It took him minutes."

Though he displayed no hurt about that, Anwyn understood his emotions a little better than that. "It took him minutes because because it took you months," she said truthfully. "What took me so long to see in your eyes, I didn't forget, not once I learned what it looked like. I saw it in his, recognized it. If I'd trusted that feeling sooner, maybe I would have become your servant, and then all of this would have been different." it took you months," she said truthfully. "What took me so long to see in your eyes, I didn't forget, not once I learned what it looked like. I saw it in his, recognized it. If I'd trusted that feeling sooner, maybe I would have become your servant, and then all of this would have been different."

Daegan shook his head. "You are no servant, Anwyn." When her lips curved, he chuckled. "I know. Neither is he. You've acquired the most terrible servant possible."

"No. I've acquired the best."

Her vampire's eyes darkened in fierce agreement, his mouth firming. "Then tonight, focus all you are on helping him. He will think he can shut it all out, everything they do to him. He will believe if he goes on autopilot, he will be all right. Vampires are the cruelest, most clever Dominants imaginable. They can take away the deepest anesthetic of the soul, hold it above a human head and laugh as he struggles for it. As a result, he will need the sanctuary of your your soul-the soul of the best Dominant I know-to survive tonight." soul-the soul of the best Dominant I know-to survive tonight."

13.

GO numb. Just as Daegan predicted, that was what Gideon had decided would be his best strategy. She could hear it in his mind when he came out of the shower at last. She hated to knock him out of his false calm so quickly, but she'd been thinking. Presentation, drama . . . the impact of appearance. These were all parts of her skills, and she was keenly aware they would be useful tonight. Looking through the extra wardrobe items she'd brought also gave her something to do other than go insane at the idea that she was about to lead him into the same kind of alley she'd experienced, only he'd be fully aware of what could happen there as he walked into it. Just as Daegan predicted, that was what Gideon had decided would be his best strategy. She could hear it in his mind when he came out of the shower at last. She hated to knock him out of his false calm so quickly, but she'd been thinking. Presentation, drama . . . the impact of appearance. These were all parts of her skills, and she was keenly aware they would be useful tonight. Looking through the extra wardrobe items she'd brought also gave her something to do other than go insane at the idea that she was about to lead him into the same kind of alley she'd experienced, only he'd be fully aware of what could happen there as he walked into it.

Once she had him dressed, he stood in front of the mirror, scowling at himself. "I look like one of the Village People."

Anwyn rolled her eyes. "Shut up or I'll put my foot up your backside."

"That might prepare it for tonight," he jested, a brittle note to his voice.

Impulsively, she slid her arms around his chest from behind, putting her cheek against his shoulder. "Gideon, I hate this. I hate it so much. But no matter what happens, I'll be with you. If things get too difficult, you come into my mind, you hear me? You talk to me, cry out to me, whatever you need to do to get through it alive. That's what matters most to me. That we're all headed out together on that plane as soon as possible."

He clasped her hand, his grip almost bruising. "Don't worry. I can handle the dinner. These clothes, on the other hand . . ."

Knowing about vampire "dinners," Daegan had encouraged her to include such garments in their suitcases as a precaution. As a result, before they left, she'd made a short foray with Daegan to the fetish store that Atlantis had on its premises. The fetish fashionista that ran it a.s.sured her the newest line of men's pants, made with a cunning combination of latex and spandex, would mold a slave's body in a way that would make her order him to wear them seven days a week. Looking at Gideon now, she had to agree.

She'd been familiar with all the store's offerings, but had found herself looking at them with a new eye. She'd considered the Coc.o.o.n, a suit that encapsulated the slave from head to toe, trapping his arms and legs inside a tight latex mesh, with zippers at the crotch, mouth, nipples and b.u.t.tocks. Of course, since Gideon was chafing at one pair of tight pants, she knew it was good she'd left that one in the store. For now. She'd use that at a later time, when his only source of anxiety was what she might demand of him, not a phalanx of vampires.

It was good to be thinking of the future, thinking of her club, of having him serve her. A life beyond all this. She couldn't afford to get upset about the rest, the thought that Gideon was being despicably sacrificed for her preservation.

When he turned self-consciously at her command, she forced herself to concentrate on this moment. This man. At least her vampire and female libidos didn't have any problem changing focus. In fact, they responded vehemently to the display. The pants fit like a second skin, shiny, sleek and black, molding the curvature of the b.u.t.tocks, the groin area so that the c.o.c.k and b.a.l.l.s made a tempting and very eye-catching package. It took a very fit man to pull off something that defined every muscle group so distinctly, and he did it-in spades. She'd kept his upper body bare, wanting the Council to see the impressive musculature and scars, reminding them of his capabilities. The trinity mark would remind them of what he'd decided to do with them instead.

His carefully crafted appearance was intended to make a psychological impact on the Council. So, too, was the last item in her hands, but that wasn't why she'd purchased it. She'd bought it because of its psychological impact on her her. Ostensibly, she could tell herself it had to do with this "performance," but she wasn't in the habit of lying to herself. The price she'd paid for it had been far more significant than what she'd pay for a simple showpiece. When Daegan had watched her charge her store account for it, by his silence she knew he understood.

"You know, when you get worried, sometimes you still drop that screen between our minds, the one that keeps your thoughts and gremlins down to a dull roar, like a dinner crowd at a nice restaurant." Gideon sat down on the ottoman. He'd been sitting there earlier so she could use charcoal to embellish his third mark. She'd made the scarlet teardrops stand out more dramatically. He seemed surprised the pants gave easily, since they looked so tight, but she knew the fabric combination gave him almost full flexibility.

"Yes. I'm still working on that."

"Hmm." Gideon slid off the ottoman, dropped to one knee before her, making her throat thicken. It put his head on a level just above her waist, at her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, and while his gaze flickered there, it was to her face he went.

"You know, a lady used to give a knight a favor, telling him that whatever he did, it was in her honor. I think this is kind of similar, in a way. Don't you?" His gaze moved to the collar in her hands.

"Does it help you to think of it that way?"

"Maybe. Am I right?"

"It's a part of it. But you're wrong. Not about that, but about your brother being the only knight in the family." It gave her poignant pleasure to touch his hair, brush a fallen lock back over his brow. "He might be Sir Galahad, but I think you're gruff Sir Kay. No less n.o.ble or brave, merely rough at the edges."

He seemed charmingly taken aback by that, but she looked down at the object in her hand. "Gideon, I don't really think in terms of boy-friends, or lovers. I've never wanted a husband. That's not who I am. When you walked into Atlantis, I looked at every inch of your powerful body, the wariness in your eyes, the danger you carry with you, the pain and n.o.bility, the intelligence and resourcefulness. You know what I thought?"

She knew he was capable of delivering a smarta.s.s comment at the most inappropriate times, but this time he didn't. He waited for her to answer her own question, gazing up at her with those serious blue eyes.

"That's my my slave. Mine." slave. Mine."

His mind tumbled that over, but didn't outright reject it. "So that's what this collar says. No matter what happens tonight, you're mine. They won't take that away from me, from us. Even though they might have something to prove, you still belong to me. Your pleasure is my property. I won't see it abused." She gripped the collar, and felt the power of it vibrate up her fingertips. "I asked you to trust me, before I became this. Will you trust me to be your Mistress tonight, Gideon? Everything after that, we'll negotiate. Vampire or not, I go in there as a Mistress. Will you go in as my slave?"

"Yes." Seeing and feeling the core of her resolve, so strong it rippled over his skin like erotic heat, Gideon spoke from his heart. "Anwyn or Mistress, they're the same to me. I can't claim to understand what I want or need most days, but the answer to that one is clear enough in my head. I'm yours. Whenever you need me, however you need me."

Within limits. But she knew his limits, didn't she? When she put the collar on his throat, sliding the buckle into place, her fingers lingering, Gideon felt the emotion well up inside her. It was like a divine energy, a strong magic that held him still beneath her hands, as if he was part of a sacred ritual in truth. Fleetingly, he wondered if this might be what marriage felt like, that commitment to forever. What he might have felt sooner, if they'd had more time to do the third marking the way he'd heard it was supposed to be done. But she knew his limits, didn't she? When she put the collar on his throat, sliding the buckle into place, her fingers lingering, Gideon felt the emotion well up inside her. It was like a divine energy, a strong magic that held him still beneath her hands, as if he was part of a sacred ritual in truth. Fleetingly, he wondered if this might be what marriage felt like, that commitment to forever. What he might have felt sooner, if they'd had more time to do the third marking the way he'd heard it was supposed to be done.

The collar was definitely for a male slave, a wide three-inch strap with p.r.o.ngs worked into it so there was a warning p.r.i.c.k of steel all the way around the top and bottom edges. Two long lengths of chain ran from the front steel loop, and fastened to two matching cuffs she tightened over his wrists. She closed her hand on those two lengths of chain where they met at that collar loop and followed them down, drawing his hands together until they rested on his knee and he felt the pull against his throat. Her gaze was molten, a blue-green sea under a hot sun, so that his skin burned beneath it. Latex didn't have as much give as it first seemed, for his c.o.c.k swelled painfully, pushing its limits. His body responded to that collar in a primal way, and he couldn't control it. The collar was the sign of her ownership, his fealty to her. Whom he served.

His own fervency made him uncomfortable. Better able to handle his physical reaction than his incomprehensible emotional one, he let his gaze pa.s.s over her. She'd prepared herself as well. She'd put a sleek corset over a black bodysuit. There was a brace of topaz at her throat, one additional sparkling pin to dress her hair. A loose braided belt, studded with silver metal pieces, embellished the corset, low on her hips. Thigh-high boots with her trademark stiletto heels inspired a sudden desire to put his mouth on them, a peculiar feeling he hadn't experienced before.

"My ankle, Gideon," she said softly. "The material is very soft. I'll feel your mouth through it."

He bent, not caring about the extreme subservient position as he brought his lips to the creased ankle of those s.e.xy-as-h.e.l.l boots encasing s.e.xy-as-h.e.l.l legs. She shifted, putting the other boot on the curve of his bare back, holding him in the clamsh.e.l.l position as she adjusted a lacing, the point of the heel digging into his flesh. Catching his hair, she brought his head up, his mouth mere inches from her p.u.s.s.y. His nostrils flared so he could almost taste the scent through the thin fabric, saliva gathering on his tongue. "Smell that arousal? That's all for you, Gideon. Be good tonight and you might get some of that."

"I expect I might get more if I'm bad." He tossed his head back against her hold, gave her a s.h.i.t-eating grin. She bared her fangs at him.

"I'll be happy to beat him if you'd like to watch," Daegan offered, now standing in the doorway to his room.

Before they could respond to that, there was a knock on the door and an envelope slid beneath it. Glancing at Anwyn, Daegan retrieved it, looked at the addressee and extended it to her. "Apparently the Council has before-dinner instructions for you."

Anwyn took it, turned it over in her hands and opened it. From where he now stood, Gideon could see only several lines of writing, but her mouth tightened in a hard line, matched by a sharp, vicious anger that electrified her mind and sent her shadows stirring with blood-thirsty eagerness. Daegan stepped closer and Gideon became instantly more alert. "What is it, Anwyn?"

"d.a.m.n it." She closed her eyes, shook her head, fighting for calm. She handed it to Daegan. As he read it, his brow creased.

"They want me to dress in women's underwear," Gideon guessed, hoping they'd tell him before he had to s.n.a.t.c.h it from them or pluck it out of Anwyn's head.

"Nothing so dire," the vampire said, though there was a spark of angry fire in his gaze as he glanced at him. "They want Anwyn to mark you in some way before we arrive. Something that will have some pain and blood a.s.sociated with it, so they can see that you stood for it."

"Why not once we get there?" she asked. "Wouldn't they want to see me do it?"

"This is just an appetizer, Anwyn," Daegan said quietly.

Her expression hardened. "b.a.s.t.a.r.ds," she said with quiet viciousness. "Gideon-"

"Your belt," Gideon nodded to it, meeting her gaze. "It's a whip, isn't it? It'll do as well as anything. They like floggings. Jacob told me."

When she said nothing, her eyes stormy, he c.o.c.ked his head. "You get aroused at the thought of flogging me. You like pain, Mistress."

"Just because I can't keep you out of my head when I get upset is no reason to take advantage of it," she snapped. "And I like pain if it takes the submissive in the proper direction. You don't do it just to torture a person."

"I don't suspect you will be." Conscious of Daegan's regard, trying not to think about the indecent fit of his clothes, Gideon took a step forward. Deliberately, he let his gaze wander over her, just a shade on the insolent side. "The thought of it makes you hot. You're already creaming the nonexistent thong you're wearing under those f.u.c.k-me pants."

She narrowed her gaze. "You think baiting me will make me accept this?"

"That's my hope." He forced heat and challenge into his expression. Whether it was the overabundance of nerves and emotion in the room, or anger, it wasn't really feigned. He took another step, deliberately using his greater height and weight to intimidate her. "One of the things you like about me is that I'm tough to tame. That we could go three hundred years together and I'd never be your pet."

Anwyn unclipped the whip, let it slither off her hips in a practiced sensual move that made Gideon's c.o.c.k harden even further. Was it possible for a d.i.c.k to suffocate? Jesus, it was painful. And pleasurable at once. He was glad he hadn't had to walk more than a couple of steps.

"Turn around," she ordered. "Put your hands on your head, fingers laced. You'll stand without a wall. If you fall to a knee, I'll make it worse, twice the number of strikes."

"You need to mark him with your blood, Anwyn," Daegan interjected, his voice neutral. "Otherwise the strikes will heal. They want whatever you do to leave a permanent scar."

That was bad enough, but when Gideon obeyed her, turning away, Anwyn's gaze fell on those old lash marks, the ones that had been left by one of the vampires who'd captured him. The vamp had tortured him until he bit into the wood of the beam he'd been restrained against and his nose had bled. She knew, because she'd seen the images when he came out of nightmares.

The thoughts were too strong to mask from her servant. His voice came into her head, steady. When you stripe me, they'll be gone. The scars will belong to you, like the rest of me. When you stripe me, they'll be gone. The scars will belong to you, like the rest of me.

Overcome, she shot a glance back at Daegan, her gaze full of helpless fury. He held her gaze, understanding but implacable. It proves your strength to them. And don't you dare ask his permission to do it. You know the kind of Mistress you are. It proves your strength to them. And don't you dare ask his permission to do it. You know the kind of Mistress you are.

That they need me to be? Her lip curled. Her lip curled.

No. That he needs you to be. He's an untamed tiger, cher cher. You know it. No matter your distaste, you know he's responding to this. He requires a firm hand to balance the gentle. Break him down to build him up. You've done it before.

No one mattered this much before.

So do it better than you've ever done it before.

Anwyn tossed her head in defiant answer, but turned her burning gaze back to Gideon. G.o.d, she wanted to hate herself for it, but she felt it as he'd known she would, the surge of that pleasurable power, looking at him waiting for her, the skintight outline of his a.s.s the pants provided, every thigh muscle delineated.

Open the pants so they'll drop lower on his hips. I don't want him to take his hands from his head.

Giving orders to me, cher cher?

She closed her eyes at that silky, dangerous tone. I'm angry. What if I am? I'm angry. What if I am?

There are always consequences.