Chapter 19
Nineteen
Fox sat in the passenger seat of Winter’s SUV and rubbed his tired eyes.
They’d just suffered through the longest twenty-four hours in existence.
Winter wasn’t only opposed to his idea, he violently hated it.
When the vampire finished shouting about how he was never letting Fox out of the loft, he stormed off, slamming doors behind him.
Then he came back, and they argued for several hours only to have Winter storm off again.
When the sun started to edge toward the horizon and the metal shutters fell over the windows, Fox crawled into the guest bed feeling frustrated, sad, and lonely. The loneliness didn’t make any sense because he was far more accustomed to going to bed alone than having company.
Sleep had been slow in coming and restless. But at one point, he woke to find Winter wrapped around his body, his warm lips pressed to Fox’s bare shoulder as he slept. When he woke near sunset, Winter was gone again.
Over cereal, Winter was finally ready to make plans.
“I’m sorry,” Winter said softly. Those two words jerked Fox’s head up, and he looked over at the vampire seated with both hands on the steering wheel despite the fact that they were parked in a shadowy parking lot.
“Do you understand that this isn’t about trust? Or me not believing you can do this?”
Actually, he didn’t know that. It had been the one thought plaguing him all through the previous night.
He wanted to believe that Winter trusted him, but he had his own doubts as to whether he could pull this off.
But he wanted to try for the Variks. He wanted to prove that he could help.
He wanted to prove to Rafe that he could keep the smile on Winter’s lips.
Winter sighed. “I’m not used to doing things where someone else could get hurt. It’s usually just me out there. It’s…it’s easier that way.”
Fox reached across and placed his hand over Winter’s right wrist. “I understand, but this gives us a shot at getting some solid intel.”
“What if they take you back to Damon before I can get you free? What if they kill you before you can even tell them who you are?” Winter’s soft words sped up accompanied by an edge of panic. “I’ll try to be right beside you, but I can’t get in a car with you. If they lose me—”
Fox released Winter’s wrist and pressed his fingers to his lips, stopping his words. There were a lot of ways this plan could go wrong. “Please believe in me. I need you to believe in me. I’m a pretty smart guy. A fast talker when I need to be.”
Winter pressed a kiss to Fox’s fingertips and gently pulled his hand away. “I do believe in you. So much. I know you can do this. It’s the other vampires that scare the shit out of me where you’re concerned.”
Those desperate words strengthened Fox’s resolve. He was going to do this for Winter and his family. He was going to get the info they all needed. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to do anything to ruin my chances at more mind-blowing sex.”
“Good to know you’re coming back to me for my dick,” Winter muttered.
“And your video game selection. Let’s be realistic,” Fox teased, trying so damn hard to get some of the fear to leave Winter’s pale eyes.
“Be careful,” Winter replied.
Fox nodded and climbed out of the car. Winter left the driver’s side at the same time and walked around.
The fear and worry had cleared from his eyes to be replaced by the same determined look Fox had first seen on Winter’s face when he stepped into the prison in Damon’s house.
This was Winter’s game face, and it was a bit scary.
All the tender concern and warmth were gone.
Before him stood a man who would do whatever he must to protect his family.
“Do you remember the directions to Luke’s house?” Winter asked.
“Got it. About six blocks from here. Plenty of time for me to work up a proper sweat.”
“You know what you’re going to say?”
“You were holding me in an old garage downtown, but I escaped during the day. I’m searching for a way back to Damon. I’m the prophecy’s chosen one,” Fox repeated carefully, though he planned to put a lot more emotion in it later.
“Do you remember the location of the garage?”
Fox shook his head. “No. I don’t know Hartford. Been running all day.”
“Okay. You’ve got this. We’ve got this. I’ll be following you as close as I possibly can. Be careful.”
Fox bit his lip. Part of him was terrified of throwing himself into the view of other vampires. He wanted to stay safe with Winter. But he also wanted Winter to stay safe, and that meant protecting all of the Variks.
“Wait,” Fox said. He stopped and swallowed hard. This was almost as hard as leaving Winter. He didn’t want to ask this of Winter, not when the man had been so gentle with him. Winter treated him like fine china, and he was going to hate this. “You need to hit me.”
“What?” Winter lurched a step backward.
“No one is going to believe that you didn’t rough me up a little. I’m the key to destroying the Varik family. They’d expect your interrogation to get rough if you wanted information out of me.”
Fox didn’t think it was possible, but Winter actually paled before his eyes. The vampire shook his head and took another step away. Fox closed the distance between them, not letting Winter escape.
“They were happy to tell me horror stories about you. Winter, the Varik executioner. Winter Varik is death. Winter the cruel murderer.”
“You knew?” Winter’s voice cracked.
Fox’s heart broke at Winter’s surprise. Had he thought he was keeping some great secret from Fox? He could see Winter’s shame over the names. It was clear that this was not who Winter wanted to be.
But Fox needed to use it now. If this was going to work, they had to sell it completely. He’d never find his way to Winter’s arms again if Paavo’s man didn’t believe he’d escaped.
“You gonna go spineless on me now? Over a witch? You’re going to choose a worthless witch over your family?” Fox snarled. “You’re supposed to be this heartless killer. I thought all the vampires feared you. But you’re nothing. You’re going to let your entire family down, let them die—”
Winter’s hand was a blur, the back slamming into Fox’s cheek and jaw with enough force to stagger him into the warm hood of the SUV. Pain exploded across his face and it felt like his damn brain had been rattled. Fox moaned and slowly flexed his jaw, just making sure everything was still connected.
The vampire was at his side in a heartbeat. Fox blinked and could see Winter’s hands hover just inches away from him, as if he were afraid to touch the witch. Fox couldn’t imagine a time when he wouldn’t want to feel Winter’s reassuring hands holding him tight.
Fox stepped right into Winter’s open arms, pressing his uninjured cheek to Winter’s shoulder. “I’m okay. I swear.”
Winter’s arms closed around Fox, still holding him as if he were made of glass. “Please don’t ask me to do that again,” he whispered. He sounded so broken on the inside, as if Fox were in danger of pushing him too far.
“I’m fine. When this is over, you can take me home and cover me in bubble wrap.”
“Don’t tempt me,” Winter said, but there was something of his old self in his voice again, as if he’d regained his bearings. He released Fox and took a step back. “Get going. We need as many nighttime hours as possible.”
With a final nod, Fox darted away from Winter and started jogging in the direction of Luke’s house.
As soon as he hit the sidewalk, he glanced over his shoulder to find the SUV still parked in the nearly empty lot but no sign of Winter.
He smiled and picked up his pace. Winter was with him.
He couldn’t see him, hear him, or even sense him magically, but Fox knew it in his heart.
Winter Varik was jogging alongside him in the world of the dead.
Winter would not leave him to face this insane plan alone. His own guardian angel.
After four blocks, Fox’s shirt was sticking to him, and he was starting to pant.
Had he really gotten this badly out of shape?
He’d never been a runner, but he thought hiking in the Rockies had kept him in shape.
Well, maybe it had been a few months since his last hike.
Work had been busy, and he’d been spending a lot of time with his gaming systems.
“Okay,” Fox huffed. “After this, we’re getting a treadmill. Or maybe one of those stationary bikes with the tablet. This is ridiculous.” Fox wanted to smile, part of him dying to know what Winter thought of him making plans for the loft.
There wasn’t any sound other than the rushing cars and trucks, but Fox imagined Winter was chuckling beside him.
By the time he was less than a block from Luke’s place, Fox’s face was throbbing in time with his pounding heart, and he was covered in sweat.
The air had stayed warm and sticky that night, helping him to look an utter mess when he reached the vampire outside the plain-looking house with heavily covered windows.
For a second, Fox wished for some sign that Winter was still right there. Just a noise or a little touch. Something to reassure him, but Winter couldn’t risk it. Fox only saw the one vampire, but they couldn’t be sure there wasn’t another keeping watch.
Pushing for one last burst of energy, Fox waved one hand in the air at the vampire standing guard outside the front door. “Damon! I ha-I have to get back to Damon!”
The vampire was a huge monster with broad shoulders and thick chest. His dark hair was long and braided down his spine.
Several ugly scars marred his face, making him appear even more ferocious.
The glowing eyes and fangs definitely weren’t helping either.
Fox wanted to dig his heels in and run in the opposite direction, but that wasn’t an option. He had to keep moving forward.
“Please, help! Need…Damon…” he panted. At least the breathlessness was mostly real.