Muttering a vile oath, he lifted his head, sealed the wounds in her neck, released her from his thrall, and sent her away.
He thought briefly of following her home and snatching her youngest kid. But only briefly. Kadie would never stand for it. Kadie, Kadie. She had been human for a time after the plague that had affected all the young vampires in Wyoming. She had begged him to see if Izabela could make him human again. Reluctantly, he had agreed, but at the last moment, Kadie hadstopped Izabela, for which he was eternally grateful. The last thing he wanted was to be human again. But he would have done it for Kadie. Perhaps they were even. He had been willing to be human again for her. And she had given up hope of a child for him.
And at times, both of them dearly regretted their decisions.
Standing on a street corner, surrounded by dozens of mortals, he had a mad impulse to destroy them all. It would be easy. So easy. He could go through them like a lion through a flock of sheep. For a moment, he indulged the thought, gradually realizing it was the poison in his blood urging him to do so. And realizing, at the same time, that he needed to contact Oriana again. Moving into the shadows, he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths until he had the urge to kill under control.
A thought took him home though he was loathe to see the pitying look in Kadie’s eyes.
~ * ~
The house was dark when he got there. A quick glance at the living room showed that at some point Kadie had swept up the shattered window glass and disposed of the broken lamps and other debris. She was waiting for him on the sofa, hugging a throw pillow to her chest, her eyes red, her cheeks damp.
Standing in front of her, he said, “I’m sorry, darlin’. Sometimes I can be an ass.”
She sniffled, refusing to meet his eyes.
“Kadie.” Dropping to his knees in front of her, he took both of her hands in his. “I’d like to blame whatever’s in my blood for my angry words, but I guess I’ve been holding them back for a long time. When you were human, it made me feel less of a man because I couldn’t give you kids.”
“I know.”
“I guess, deep down, I still feel that way.”
“It doesn’t seem to bother Elowynne.”
Saintcrow sat back on his heels and then he laughed. “Kadie, Kadie,” he murmured as he pulled her off the sofa and into his arms. “What would I do without you?”
“I don’t intend to let you find out,” she retorted, still not meeting his eyes.
“I love you, Kadie, darlin’.” Putting his finger beneath her chin, he forced her to look at him. “Tell me you love me.”
“You almost killed that woman.”
“Thinking about you saved her life. Tell me you love me.”
“I love you, Rylan,” she whispered as she slipped her arms around his neck. “I love you with every fiber of my being. There’s no room in my heart for anyone or anything else. Only you.”
He kissed her then, a long, slow kiss that sealed the love between them and erased all the old hurts. He was exploring the body he knew so well when something exploded inside of him.
With a roar, he sprang to his feet. Hands curled into claws, his gaze darted wildly around the room. “Show yourself!” he roared, and his voice echoed off the walls like rolling thunder.
Kadie sprang to her feet, her gaze searching the room. “Rylan, what’s wrong?”
Eyes as red as flame, fangs bared, he looked at her as if he had never seen her before.
Kadie stared back at him. It was like looking at the face of a stranger. Power rolled off of him in waves. When he took a step toward her, she transported herself to Kincaid’s house and hammered her fists on the door. “Jake! Jake! Oh, Lord, Jake! Let me in!”
Kincaid didn’t ask any questions, just opened the door, pulled her inside, and locked the door behind her. A muttered word warded the house against vampires and witches.
“What is it?” Rosa asked anxiously. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know!” Kadie gasped. “It’s...it’s Rylan! I think he’s lost his mind!”
~ * ~
Deep in her lair, Elowynne smiled as a few enchanted words increased the potency of the poisoned ashes in Saintcrow’s blood. She had mesmerized every man who had ever caught her attention and infused their blood with her own brand of dark magic, enabling her to torment or destroy them at her whim.
Gazing into her cauldron, she watched Saintcrow destroy the furniture in his living room, ripping the heavy sofa and chairs to shreds as if they were made of paper. He had a ferocious temper, she mused. It would be fun driving him slowly out of his mind before she exacted her final revenge.