Primal Burdens: (The Uruwashi Series #5) Read online

  “Or what? You’re going to shoot me?”

  She clicked the safety off and pulled on the slide, chambering a round.

  “Okay, okay,” he said, moving slowly to remove his seatbelt. “But you know, somewhere locked inside your head, your heart, you know me. You love me.”

  She hissed through her teeth and climbed out of the car as he did, keeping the gun trained on him and still managed to tie his jacket around her waist. What she didn’t notice was Murasaki Kaeru which he’d had stashed between the seat and the door and as he got out of the car he managed to drop it to the grass and nudge under the car. He didn’t want to use it, but it was good to have a backup.

  “We’ve been through so much. Alone and together.”

  She motioned for him to move away. Thinking he might slow her down a little, he moved to the front of the car. There was no way she’d run him down, right? Shoot him, yes, but run him over in a car… Okay, he was grasping now.

  “Look, I have proof. You and I, we’re more than strangers.”

  “Proof? You expect me to drink your Uruwashi blood? Do you think I’m stupid?”

  “No,” he said, shaking his head. “You’ve refused to bite me for months. I’m still a virgin Uruwashi. And we’re not enemies, Ash. We’re lovers.” She bristled, obviously not believing him. “Go on, look in my bag.”

  Keeping the gun trained, she reached into the car and pulled out the leather bag from behind the driver’s seat. She glanced in it, probably to make sure there were no weapons before tossing it at him.

  He tore through the packet of papers until he found the one he was looking for. Even seeing it for a second time in plain print was a shock to him; he was married.

  “See,” he said, holding it out.

  Ash snatched the paper from him, moving with a speed she usually hid and stepped back, out of his reach. “What?”

  She stepped close to him, looking incredibly confused and snatched the rest of the papers away. Tristan couldn’t help but smile at her incredulity. When she noticed how close they were and that stupid fucking smile he’d given her, she scoffed, jumping away. A car went by and she hid the gun, then gave a noticeable start.

  “We are in Maryland? How by the Goddess did I end up here?”

  Tristan sighed, rubbing his forehead. “It’s a long story that starts with Yuki and ends with, well, I guess Nastasia since it seems she’s the one behind all this.”

  He didn’t even have time to register that she’d moved and gave a deep oomph when he was laid out flat. Something cut into his back, a piece of road trash that threatened to break skin but that didn’t compare to the spike of fear that nearly stopped his heart.

  Another car passed by and he knew they were too far off to the side for them to have seen him trapped under a super-hot, but even more so, pissed off vampire.

  “How do you know about Nastasia?” she bellowed. “Where is she? Do you work for Malik?”

  “Wha—what? Ash, please. I know the name only. The kids we were after tonight, vampire twins, one of them said she was coming for me. And Malik’s dead. We killed him together.”

  “Lies!” she hissed.

  “You gotta believe me, I’m on your side. I’ve always been on your side.”

  With a roar, she dropped the gun. It thudded next to Tristan’s head and he thought, for a fraction of a second, that she was letting him up, albeit reluctantly. But then the hit to the face he never saw coming, a hit that could have killed him, told him clearly the reality of the situation. Damn, did she break his orbital bone?

  “If you follow me,” she hissed into his ear, “I will kill you.”

  He was still conscious, but unseeing when he heard her drive off. He felt like he drifted then, in and out of consciousness. Traffic passed but no one stopped. The night bugs were having a good go at him and finally it seemed as if all the little bites converged into one stabbing pain and he came to with a gasp.

  “What the—” He had to blink a few times to clear the spots, but he was sure he was looking into the concerned face of a someone who knew him. “Did you just hit me?”

  “Uh,” Lance looked away. “Noooo…”

  Tristan scoffed, sitting up and clutching his head. “Don’t look so upset, Lance, I won’t hurt you. But you know, next time, it’s best not to hit a person already down. ‘K?” he prodded at his cheek where Ash had socked him. I didn’t feel broken but hurt like hell.

  The fae looked ready to bolt, clutching Ash’s sword to his chest. “Well, nothing else was working.” He suddenly grinned. “I figured if you woke up without your pants on you’d be really pissed.”

  Tristan frowned at the man. “Do… what? Ugh, never mind. We need to find Ash.”

  “Not a problem. I already know where she’s at.”

  “How?”

  “She called Desmond.” He paused a beat and grinned. “And I tapped into the GPS in your bag to find you.”

  Hearing that the first person she reached out to was Desmond hurt a little, but he sincerely hoped the big ape was able to calm her down a little.

  “And?”

  The fae flinched. “Oh, right, er, maybe we can drive and talk?”

  Tristan grunted, grabbing the bag Ash dropped and got in the car, a Lexus that didn’t look like a rental. Frankly he didn’t care whose it was, so long as it didn’t cause them trouble.

  “She went to your new house,” Lance said as he buckled up.

  “I thought it wasn’t ready yet?”

  “Nope, not yet, but I’ve got the permits guy coming out tomorrow afternoon for the final occupancy permit. Then it’s all yours, legally.”

  “And you’re sure she’s there?”

  Lance pulled out into traffic, not that there was a whole hell of a lot. “Yep. At least, that’s what she told Desmond.”

  “I’m surprised Yuki didn’t have us both bugged. Wait. How did she get Desmond if it’s—” he glanced at the clock. It was just past eleven. Ridiculously early still. Jesus, hadn’t the night been long enough already? “Only noon in Japan?”

  The silence that followed was heavy and Tristan slowly turned to look at his fae companion.

  “Er…”

  “He’s here too, isn’t he?”

  Lance frowned at the windshield. “He left Japan just before you did, arrived shortly after you landed in Alaska. He was helping me with some of the house things…”

  Tristan covered his face with his hands and groaned. “Please don’t tell me Yuki came with him.”

  “No, she’s still in Tokyo.”

  Small consolations.

  “Simon?” He never did get on the plane back in Alaska. Either that or he was hiding out in the cargo. It hadn’t really occurred to Tristan what’d happened to the kid, he was so concerned about getting to Gillian.

  “Master called him back.”

  He huffed, dropping his hands into his lap. “Do you know where Innokentiy got off to?” Somehow, he figured he’d need the man’s help soon.

  Lance shook his head. “No. And he’s had his phone off since he left. I guess… I guess he’ll call when he’s ready. He is supposed to be dead, anyway.”

  Tristan sighed and cursed softly. Innokentiy was busy, he got that—busy helping Tristan. But still, Tristan felt lost with his closest companion set against him. Innokentiy wasn’t exactly good—he did like to kill when he fed even though it wasn’t necessary—but Tristan trusted him to have his back. To keep him and Ash alive.

  “So, um,” Lance glanced at him, frowning. “Do you want me to take you to the house?”

  “Okay, ugh… Just give me a minute here to think.”

  “Sure, but the turn’s coming up soon.”

  “I know where it is, just keep going and if we have to turn around, then we turn around. I just need to think.”

  He scrubbed at his face. “If you follow me, I’ll kill you” was a pretty clear way of getting himself into some serious trouble, but he needed to figure out what happened to Ash. Why wa
s she suddenly acting like they’d never met? Just what could someone like Castor or Pollux have done to her to make her— “I’ll be damned,” Tristan whispered.

  “Hm?”

  He dug into his pocket and pulled out the necklace he’d taken off Castor. The one that made him look like something he wasn’t. Sure enough, when he took the time to really look at it, he realized how stupid he’d been all along.

  “It’s a talisman,” he said. Lance made a noise of question and Tristan sighed. “Ash has been spelled.”

  “Oh,” the fae said, slowing down for a light. They were almost to their turn, it was just past this intersection. “I guess that makes sense.”

  “Is Nastasia a pythia? I remember Ash talking about her but I’d always assumed she was a vampire—Hey, take this right here instead of straight.”

  Lance nodded, flicking on the blinker and sideling over to the turn lane, all the while saying, “Nastasia? You don’t know that she’s—Whoa!”

  The tires chirped on the wet pavement as Lance stomped down on the brakes. Thankfully they weren’t going that fast to begin with.

  “What the hell happened to you?” the fae squeaked.

  “Uh… Ash hit me?” He was going to have a nasty bruise on his face from that last hit. Thankfully it didn’t hurt as much anymore, so probably nothing broken.

  “N—no.” The fae’s hands were shaking as he reached across and pulled down the visor for Tristan to see himself.

  “Holy shit,” he whispered when he caught his reflection in the mirror. “Huh, will you look at that.”

  “Goddess of Spring, you look like you’re ten!” The fae was nearly laughing and Tristan couldn’t help but snicker at the innocent wonderment in the guy’s expression.

  There was a car behind them honking now, but they barely heard it as they stared amazed at Tristan’s transformation. The car roared by and Tristan looked down. To himself, he looked the same, but looking in the mirror again, he was in fact the ten-year old version of himself—with his deep adult voice. That was just creepy.

  “Hold this,” he said, passing it to the fae. “Hm, no change.”

  Lance laughed, handing the talisman back to him and started the car moving again, taking that right turn. “Well, I wouldn’t think so, I am a faerie. We don’t age much or change really. You’d have a mild coronary if I told you how old I am.”

  Tristan nodded and shoved the necklace into his pocket. A thought was forming around the idea that he might be able to use the talisman. Emerging from his thoughts he motioned. “Go left there.”

  “Where are we going?”

  He looked away, out the window and hoped that he could keep his tone even. “Someplace safe.”

  4: Lost Moments

  UM,” LANCE said, looking restless. The car was off and it was starting to get stuffy. “Are we… going inside?”

  Tristan let out a long, shaky breath. “Ye—yeah.”

  He got out of the car and stopped a moment to look over the place. Even in the dark he could tell that at least one of the people he paid to take care of the house in its vacancy was doing their job. From the outside the house looked like a home, a place where a family lived in happiness. Instead it was just an empty shell, a symbol of all the things he lost.

  Tristan grew up here and yet, he couldn’t bear to go inside. But it was either suck it up and wear his big boy pants or stand outside and sulk. Taking in a deep breath of damp, cold air, he took a step forward. Then another. And another until he was standing at the front door. His hand was shaking as he pulled the key out of his wallet and put it into the lock.

  The light in the foyer immediately switched on and he jumped, having forgotten he had a motion sensor switch installed.

  “Come on in,” he said softly as he took the short flight of steps to the main floor. “Uh, there’s probably some soda in the fridge. It’s a little old, but if you don’t mind, help yourself.”

  “Thanks,” Lance said cheerily as he tried to change the mood.

  Tristan went to the sink to look out the backyard window, seeing only darkness. In the day light, he knew there was a nice deck with built-in seating, a grill and hot tub. It was a nice place to spend hot, lazy summer evenings. The last time he sat out there he’d had a beer with his Dad while talking cars. That was the night before the car crash. Tristan rested his hands on the edge of the counter and hung his head, taking in a deep breath. The air in the house was stale and close. It didn’t smell like his house anymore.

  “If you’re tired,” he forced himself to speak, “you can sleep in the guest room.”

  “Hm, oh I’m fine. I’ll just nap later—you know we fae only sleep about four hours a day anyway. So, what’s the plan? Can I help?”

  What was his plan? “I have no idea,” he said with a sad little laugh.

  “Oh, right. Almost forgot. I’ve got some luggage in the car for you, want me to bring it in?”

  “Hmm? Oh, sure, I guess. Thanks.”

  He wasn’t sure what sort of luggage he might have since he never got a chance to finish packing at his apartment when Xuejiao abducted him. He had nothing, not even Ash at the moment.

  Tristan went into the adjoined dining room and collapsed in the comfortable parson’s chair to think. Ash may have had Desmond to go to, but who was there for Tristan to go to? No one that he trusted. Or could tell the full truth to. Lance meant well, but he was still Yuki’s lacky.

  He suddenly smiled as he thought of someone he could reach out to. Okay, he didn’t know the guy and definitely didn’t trust him completely, but he did trust in the man’s strong sense of honor. And he liked him for it. It was still the middle of the day in Japan, but maybe if the vampire got out of Japan after fleeing Amunet’s grasp, then there was a chance he was in a dark time zone. And then he could give Tristan some level advice. At the least, Tristan could leave a message and hope the vampire would call him back.

  Hearing Lance clatter up the stairs with two bags obviously too heavy for him, Tristan got up and headed over to help.

  The fae dropped the two bags just outside of the kitchen, huffing and puffing and smiling as if he was loving every minute. “Where to?”

  “Just leave them there for now. I’ve got a phone call to make, I’ll be right back.”

  Lance nodded, smiling. “Sure.”

  Tristan went upstairs to his old bedroom. He stopped in the doorway, frowning at the sad familiarity of it. He’d asked Gillian to clean the house out and sell everything when they fought last and that she hadn’t done that bothered him. He didn’t want to see his things again, not how they were for him growing up.

  He sighed heavily and plopped down on the bed. He’d never dialed an international number before and was convinced he did it wrong until it started to finally ring. What he didn’t expect was the click of the line opening two rings later.

  “Moshi, moshi, Toshiro desu.”

  “Ah…”

  “Hai? Dare ka?”

  “You—Hi, Wren. It’s uh… Tristan.”

  There was a long pause before Wren replied but there was a smile in the man’s tone. “Tristan. I’m surprised to hear from you so soon. But I am happy to hear from you at all.”

  “Where are you? What happened? Are you all right?”

  Wren chuckled lightly. “I took your advice.”

  “My advice? Wait, are you telling me you’re in in the states?” Was his luck that good?

  “I returned to my home in Baltimore.”

  Maybe his luck wasn’t so shitty after all. If Wren was just in Baltimore, that meant he was only a short drive away.

  Tristan sighed and lay back on the bed. The sheets were musty and he wrinkled his nose. “So that’s where you disappeared to, good for you. But you know, you could have told me, I was worried about you. I thought Amunet might have gone after you again after Xue—” Shit. He was going to cry thinking about the child burning alive.

  Wren sighed. “I see. She’s gone then—Xuejiao, that is.” />
  “Yeah. It was fucking horrible.”

  “Was it—never mind, I don’t need to know badly enough to sacrifice your mental health. Nor mine. So, tell me why you’ve called. Certainly not to be social.”

  Tristan forced a chuckle as the image of inviting the man out for a beer popped into his head. “No. I need your help. Although…” He sat up, leaning forward to rest his elbow on his knee.

  “Yes?”

  “Well, I’m not sure you want to get involved.” Tristan explained to Wren what happened Downtown with the twins and Ash right up to the part where she left him unconscious on the side of the road for Lance to find. “And, um, well, apparently Desmond’s here. Ash called him, so he’s probably with Ash right now.”

  “Naruhodo,” he whispered so softly Tristan almost couldn’t hear him. “My Master aside, what is it you think I can do for you?”

  “Oh Christ, I don’t know. I thought maybe you might know a pythia in the area that could help me reverse the spell Ash’s been hit with.”

  Wren seemed to think about it a moment and then made a noise that said he was sorry and disappointed. “I’ve been away from this area too long. I’m afraid I don’t know of any pythia that I trust. And in truth, I believe Ash herself far more knowledgeable about such things than most American pythia are. It’s only her blood that keeps her from being a great alchemist.”

  That surprised Tristan. He knew she had an affinity towards the pythia because she was born from one, but he never realized just how extensive her knowledge was.

  “You…” Wren hesitated with a little sigh. “You didn’t know?”

  Damn, the vampire was good. “No, well, I mean yeah, I knew she liked to spell and stuff, I just didn’t realize how much she actually knew.”

  “She spent a great many years after her escape from Malik as an apprentice, learning what she could. That pythia has since passed, but I believe Ash remains on friendly terms with his daughter.”

  Must be that woman in Hong Kong Ash talked about before.

  “Look, we’re getting off topic here.”

  “Hardly. And besides, I don’t believe I’m of any use to you.”