Chapter Eight

Memories of pleasure dwindled, as they always did, but impressions of her voice, her face, remained. Even her scent seemed to linger long after he knew it was gone.

Sequestered in his office, shut away from the noise of the club, Cravis hunched over his desk, rubbing his temples. He hadn??t slept in days. Every time he closed his eyes he recalled the details of watching his brother feeding Fae. The way her lips parted, her little smile as she savored every new thing. He could be finding more new things to show her, learning her likes and dislikes, experiencing the world anew through her eyes. Instead, he??d lost her.

His account book was open on the desk, various figures scribbled on the pages where he??d worked out ways to liquidate any available assets to pay every contact he and Travis had to join the search for Fae. He and Travis took turns scouring the city, hunting down leads. One always stayed behind in case she came back. So far neither had any luck.

Slamming the book, rage erupting at his own incompetence, Cravis threw it across the room. Travis opened the door and ducked just in time to avoid getting hit. He laughed as pages rained down on him.

??I take it he??s not here yet??? Travis strolled across the room, dragging a velvet wing chair from by the door behind him. He plunked down and swung his feet onto the desk. ??You??d be in a better mood if you??d heard the news.??

Cravis sprang out of his chair. ??He? Who? What news???

??Cresil.?? Travis fished a chunk of cigar from his pocket and set it between his lips. ??He says he knows where Fae is.??

The marrow in Cravis??s bones seemed to turn to ice. He clenched his jaw and inhaled shakily. Cresil was a coward, but he??d have no problem victimizing someone as innocent as Fae.

??Is he bringing her???

Travis shook his head as he lit his cigar. ??No. He doesn??t actually have her, but he knows who does???? Travis scrambled out of his chair when Cravis lurched around the desk to grab him. The cigar fell out of his mouth onto the chair. Tendrils of smoke floated up between them, stinking of burnt fabric and stale tobacco. ??What? He said she??s safe!?? Travis kept the chair between them, making no sudden movement, like he was facing a rabid dog.

Feeling a little rabid, Cravis closed his hands over the arms of the chair and tightened his grip until the wood cracked. ??Do you have any idea what Cresil could have done to her? We don??t even have her back yet, and you??re ready to celebrate???

??You??d know why if you??d listen!?? Travis shoved the chair out of the way, stepped up to Cravis, and stabbed a finger against his chest. ??Cresil admitted that he??d had Fae. He wouldn??t say so, but I got the impression she gave him trouble. He said someone showed up while they were ??discussing?? where they should go. He told me Fae went with her willingly.?? Travis crossed his arms over his chest, looking smug. ??Fae??s with a woman.??

Unsure whether he should laugh or shout or commit fratricide, Cravis went around the desk to put some space between them. He found a flask of whiskey in his top drawer and downed it. Finally, he looked at Travis. The urge to kill him had lessened. Slightly.

??She??s with a woman, so that means she??s okay? Do you think every evil in this world has a dick???

Travis winced. ??No????

??You??ve spent millenniums among the most heinous creatures this world has ever known, and you??re telling me you can??t fathom horrible things happening to Fae at the hands of a woman???

Cravis couldn??t look at his brother now. He knew very well if something horrible had happened, he was equally at fault. He tossed the flask and rested his hands on the desk, head bowed.

??When will he get here???

??Any minute. I told him to give me an hour so I could get the money he wanted.?? Travis stomped on the velvet seat of the wing chair to snuff the smoking embers. ??He??s greedy and too lazy to earn money on his own. He??ll be here.??

Cravis looked up, brow furrowed. ??How did you get money? I??ve been through everything. There??s nothing left that won??t take weeks to sell.??

Head down, Travis shrugged and started cracking his knuckles, giving the act an exaggerated amount of attention. ??I sold my truck.??

The truck. The truck that Travis had coveted for years, a custom-made monster with a big engine and tons of gleaming chrome. Cravis hadn??t thought it a good investment, so he??d refused to let Travis take money from the business coffers to buy it. So Travis had gotten a job as a bouncer without telling him. And learned enough about stocks and bonds that after five years, he had the money for his truck. Cravis had been so impressed he??d stopped shutting his brother out of important business decisions. They??d been closer in the three years since he??d gotten that truck than they??d been in centuries.

And Travis had sold it. The implications were astronomical.

??I??ll get it back for you. It??ll take some work??our finances are screwed??but I??ll get it back.?? Cravis met his brother??s eyes, tone firm, hoping Travis knew his words as truth. Again, Travis shrugged. Cravis pushed away from the table and brought up a hand to rub his temple. ??Seriously though, I want Fae back too, but I don??t get it. Your truck???

Travis gave him a grim smile. ??It??s not about wanting her back. I feel responsible for her. We stole the choices from her that we demanded for ourselves. When I got the chance to show her what she had gained, it started as manipulation. But after that, I kinda liked the pleasure the simplest things could give her.?? He dropped his head and went back to cracking his knuckles. ??I want to do that for her again, and if she doesn??t want it from me, I intend to see that she gets it somehow.??

The admission shocked Cravis. Not only because it mirrored his own thoughts, but because Travis??as far as he knew??had never had an unselfish thought in his life.

A rap on the door cut off any further contemplation. Travis shoved the chair against the wall and then plopped onto the sofa. Cravis took his place behind the desk.

??Come in,?? Cravis said.

Cresil slipped into the room, a big grin on his pretty-boy face, his shifty green eyes betraying his fear. He glanced from the papers scattered on the floor to Travis lounging on the sofa, then finally to Cravis before he locked his gaze on the floor.

??Travis. Cravis. Looks like you??ve been doing well.??

Elbows on the desk, fingers steepled, Cravis leaned forward. ??Where??s the girl, Cresil???

??Money first.?? Cresil looked at Travis, who gave him a lazy smile. ??We had a deal.??

Travis made a vague motion with his hand. ??Everyone knows I??ve got no head for business. I??m letting my big brother handle the details, make sure I??m getting my money??s worth.?? His smile widened to show his teeth. ??You understand.??

Arms crossed, shaky hands tucked out of sight, Cresil nodded. ??Sure.?? He swallowed and turned back to Cravis. ??So how we doing this???

Rising slowly, Cravis pressed his hands on the desk and stretched his neck to one side, then the other. Then he rolled his shoulders, all the while keeping his eyes on Cresil. ??You are going to tell me where the girl is. If you??re right, you??ll be compensated.??

??But Travis said????

Cravis stalked around the desk, skin shifting to black, tone feral through his fangs. ??Where is the girl???

Cresil scrambled for the door. Travis blocked him. Cravis latched on to the smaller man??s collar and hefted him up, dangling him a foot off the ground.

Clawing at his collar, Cresil squeaked. ??Andrais has her!??

??Andrais??? Cravis dropped Cresil and sneered down at him. ??The mistress of the Fallen? You folded against a damned angel???

??Semiazas is a damned angel, and he supports Andrais. I won??t go up against him.?? Cresil scuttled away from Cravis, his shoes scuffing on the carpet as he found his feet. ??I thought about it though. Your girl is fine. That sweet face, that tight, pale ass????

Fury took Cravis like a flash flame. He roared and slammed his fist down. Wood shattered beneath carpet. Travis had gotten there first. He hauled Cresil up with his hands around the other man??s skull and wrenched his neck. A loud snap and Cresil folded to the floor. Travis dropped his head back and screamed, kicking the limp body once before dropping to his knees. He raked his fingers through his hair.

??He raped her.?? Travis groaned and rocked onto his heels, lost his balance, and fell against the desk. ??We left her alone and the bastard raped her.?? He slammed his elbow into the wood and snarled. ??I??ll kill him.??

Cravis lurched forward and caught his brother. ??It??s done, Travis. He??s dead.?? He clasped Travis??s face in his hands and stared into his wild eyes. ??Andrais might have gotten to her in time. And if Fae??s with her, she??s okay. But not for long. Andrais can stand against a tool like Cresil, but there are greater threats to consider. One way or another, Fae??s going to need us.??

Tears wet Travis??s lashes. Cravis released him and turned his head to let Travis compose himself. He walked to the office door to ask a waitress for a bottle and took his time filling two glasses with absinthe while Travis dragged himself off the floor and scrubbed his face with his sleeves. He joined Cravis at the desk, red-faced, but relatively calm.

??You really think Fae is okay??? Travis took the drink and gulped it down, making a face and letting out an ??ugh?? sound when the burn of the strong liquor hit him. ??I never paid much attention to talk of the Fallen before.??

??There aren??t many of them; most end up as demons or dead. But Andrais has a reputation for saving those that can be saved.?? Cravis patted Travis??s shoulder awkwardly. The emotional display was unsettling. ??Fae will be fine until we find her.??

Travis sniffed and hunched his shoulders. ??Okay.?? He swiped his sleeve under his nose. ??Well, if you don??t mind, I??m gonna go look around. Maybe someone knows where Andrais is.??

Cravis nodded, not because he agreed, but because he didn??t know how to handle his brother acting so??human. He knew Andrais kept well under everyone??s radar, and for good reason. The Fallen were despised by angels and demons alike. If she could be easily found, she??d be dead. But it gave Travis something to do.

And left Cravis with nothing. Fine, he could pour all their money into the hunt, but what would that leave for Fae to come back to?

Leather whispered against his jeans as he slid onto the chair behind his desk. He dropped his head to his hands. Why would she want to come back anyway? As one of the Fallen, Fae would develop a sense of self-worth. What had they given her that would tempt her to return? Pleasure?

Their last moments spilled over him like an acidic wave. He remembered telling Travis to fuck her, too lost in the moment to care how disgusting it sounded. Was Fae remembering that too? If she were, did she pass it off as a remark made in the heat of the moment, or did she think he saw her as nothing but an object? Did she recall any of the care he??d taken with her after?

One more chance, that was all Cravis wanted. One chance to show Fae she was more; that to him, she was special.

Or had he wasted the only chance he would ever get?