only one reason she wanted me that way: so she could take over my body and make it hers. George had said he wasn't here to hurt me. He was lying. He wanted to kidnap me and feed me to the Dark Mother of them all. So she could use my body to live again. Not hurting me? Yeah, right. George was a lying bag of shit.
Chapter Sixteen
THE WERETIGERS' DOCTORS and medics descended on the hallway not long after that. They took the more critically injured and left the dead to be carried away. Both the wounded and the dead were carried farther into the underground where they had their hospital area. We had one in the underground back home in St. Louis, too. They patched up the knife wound on Ethan's arm. It was shallow and long; if the knife hadn't been silver-edged he'd have healed it already. Edward reported the disaster of the tracking dogs after he heard my report about the Harlequin spy. The dog had been as useless as we'd said, but he was more concerned about what had happened to me than about the case.
Alex went with most of the guards to report to his mother, the queen. They left two on the door of the room where we'd managed to wreck half the machinery that handled ventilation to their underground lair. A repair person was coming to look at it later. Business was being handled once the wounded and the dead were tended to, because no matter how much blood is spilled, you still need your air circulation to work. The mundane aspects of life keep needing attention no matter what else is happening. If you live through the disaster you still need to get groceries, do laundry. That's one of the hardest things to understand when you first get involved in violence. That once it's over the world goes on, and you have to go along with it.
Edward was adamant about talking to Ethan and me in private. Once the door was closed, he let Ethan see just how unhappy he was with him. He was up in Ethan's face. "I thought you were supposed to be good at your job."
"I am," Ethan said, and that first trickling heat began to fill the room. He'd been patient, but no one's patience is limitless, not even Ethan's, apparently.
"Edward, this wasn't his fault. This wasn't anyone's fault."
Edward turned on me, hands in fists, eyes paled to that cold color of blue like a winter sky. I'd never seen him upset like this; he was usually one of the most controlled people I knew.
"I trusted your safety to him, Anita. I left you in his hands, literally." He was up in my face now, and the height difference made him loom a little over me. He was one of those men who weren't that tall, but could really loom when they wanted to, and he wanted to. "The only reason you're not dead is that he had orders to take you alive, Anita."
I realized something and did the girl thing and said it out loud. "You really do care that much about me."
That stopped him in midword. Made him close his mouth and just look down at me, shaking his head. "What?"
"Sorry, had a girl moment."
He frowned at me.
"It's just that I've been in danger before. I've had people try to kill me before and you were somewhere else when they tried. You've never gotten this upset."
He turned around, hands on hips. I think he was trying to regain control of himself. It wasn't like Edward to lose it. I had a thought: Was it the vampire? Was he that good, even in daylight, to spread anger like this?
"Edward, are you wearing your holy item?"
That made him turn around and face me. "What?"
"Are you wearing a holy item?"
He gave me a very Edward look, like I should know better. "You know I don't wear one."
"You've seen my cross glow. You know blessed holy water works. I've never understood why you don't wear something."
"Holy water works because a priest blesses it; a cross works only if the wearer has faith in God. I don't."
I let the theological discussion wait for another day. "The vampire caused Alex to be filled with rage and try to kill Ethan. Now you're as angry about something like this as I've ever seen you, and you're angry at Ethan again."
I had a thought: What if I wasn't the only one who had