The Brethren - Dark Hunger Part 17

"Our kind, you know, Brethren. Can we freeze to death?"

"I don't know. Sure, I guess."

Rene nodded, giving an experimental tug on the cord to make sure it was secure. He rose to his feet, giving Martin a rough pat on the shoulder. "Well, don't worry, mon ami. Unless there's a late-season snowfall, you probably won't have to worry about that."

Martin glared up at him, shrugging against his bonds and snarling around the washcloth between his teeth. "Mmmfllffrrr!"

The cell phone in Rene's pocket, the one belonging to Martin, suddenly vibrated against his hip, startling him. Monica Davenant had been calling her husband all G.o.dd.a.m.n day. He'd finally become so sick of the constant ringing, he'd pulled out the phone and figured out how to switch off the ringer. "Looks like your old lady is calling you," he remarked, fis.h.i.+ng the phone out of his pocket.

He held it out, waggling it at Martin. "Your first one, anyway. Anything you'd like me to tell her?"

"Rene, don't-" Tessa began, but it was too late. He answered the line.

"Bon jour." He heard a clipped intake of surprised breath, a pregnant pause, and then a woman said, "Martin?"

"I'm sorry, chere," Rene said. "Monica, is it? But your husband is sort of...tied up at the moment. No wait, hold on. He'd like to speak with you."

"Mmmrrrgggllrrrrpphhh!" Martin yowled around the gag as Rene again held the phone out toward him. Or something to that effect anyway.

"Did you catch all of that, chere?" Rene asked with a chuckle, drawing the phone to his ear again. "The reception out here is for s.h.i.+t most times."

"Who the h.e.l.l is this?" the woman asked, her voice icy and brittle, like the edge of a razor blade sc.r.a.ping against a tin roof. "What have you done to Martin?"

"Nothing he didn't have coming," Rene replied wanly. "Au revoir, madame. The pleasure's been all mine, I'm sure."

He hung up the phone and tucked it back in his pocket. "She sends her love," he said, dropping Martin a wink as he walked toward the door. "We'll check back with you in a couple of days. I'd leave you some food, but it attracts bears."

"Grrrlllmmffrrr!" Martin yelled in garbled protest.

Rene slipped his arm around Tessa's shoulders and turned her around, steering her in step with him. He didn't doubt for a moment that Martin could smell the lingering scent of their lovemaking in the air and that made the entire arrangement all the more satisfying.

"Come on, pischouette," he said as they left. "I'm starving."

Less than thirty minutes later, Rene parked the Jeep in the parking lot outside of the Burger Lounge in South Lake Tahoe. It was the perfect place to meet Lina and Brandon, because even though they had never been to Tahoe before, there was no way to miss the distinctive sign, shaped like an enormous beer mug overlooking the road.

"You sure you want to do this?" he asked, as she checked her reflection in the sun-visor mirror for at least the thousandth time since leaving Emerald Bay. She kept dabbing and redabbing powder and makeup on her face, trying to disguise the purple discoloration left in the wake of Martin's attack. He might have told her there was no use; Brandon was deaf, not blind, but knew she realized this, just as she recognized her own futile efforts.

Tessa closed the mirror, her eyes anxious and fearful as she glanced around the parking lot. Lina and Brandon were already there; the silver Mercedes 280 they had borrowed from Rene was parked almost directly across from them.

"I can call Lina," he offered. "Tell them something came up, we can't meet them until tomorrow."

She shook her head, closing her little powder compact and tucking it back into her purse. "No," she said. "No, that's all right, Rene. I...I should do this. It's probably about time anyway."

He took her hand because she was trembling, and drew her knuckles to his mouth, kissing her lightly. She glanced at him and smiled. "Thank you, Rene," she said. "For everything. You've done so much for me...and for Brandon, too, and I...I'm really grateful."

He leaned across the SUV's center console and kissed her on the lips. "It's been my pleasure, pischouette. Now stop talking like we're about to die. Lina's not that p.i.s.sed, I promise."

At least, he hoped Lina wasn't p.i.s.sed enough to kill him. As they walked into the small, crowded dining room and caught sight of Lina and Brandon at a four-top table, he could tell that she was still pretty d.a.m.n close.

"I'm sorry I didn't call," he said as they approached, not even bothering with a greeting or other bulls.h.i.+t. She wasn't about to believe it anyway, so he figured he'd best save his breath. "My phone's been acting up. I told you. Maybe it's busted."

He'd also hoped that Tessa's cosmetics might buy them at least a few minutes, but that didn't work, either. Before they'd even reached the table, Brandon was on his feet, his dark eyes round with alarm.

Jesus Christ, Tessa! What happened? he asked, his voice nearly frantic in Rene and Tessa's minds. He rushed toward Tessa, visibly upset, and tried to cradle her cheeks between his palms.

I'm all right, Brandon, she said, ducking away from him. It's nothing. I- Nothing? That's bulls.h.i.+t. His eyes cut toward Rene, his brows narrowing slightly. Who did this to her? What the h.e.l.l happened?

"Let me guess," Lina said, rising to her feet. She no longer looked p.i.s.sed; she looked as worried as Brandon. "Tessa got busted along with your phone." She cut a glance down at his bandaged hand-another crock of s.h.i.+t she wasn't buying-and then back at Rene. "Or maybe you had to change a flat tire and the jack slipped again?"

"Touche, chere," Rene said, then clapped his hand against Brandon's shoulder. "Let's sit down. Everybody relax. We'll order some food and tell you all about it. I promise."

He let Tessa do the talking, at least through her mind, while they occupied their mouths eating. As nervous as she'd been to tell her brother the truth, once she'd started, it was like a dam had broken, and the words had flowed like an unleashed torrent.

So Martin's here? Brandon asked. He and Lina both looked decidedly anxious about this revelation, neither particularly pleased with the news. In Lake Tahoe? Why did you bring him with you?

Because the last thing you need is to have Martin running loose in the world to tell the Elders where you are, Rene replied, drawing the younger man's gaze. Their food had arrived-half-pound burgers all around-and he thought this as he munched a bite of a three-cheese behemoth the menu touted as a "Happy Cow." That a group of vampires sat around sharing an oversized basket of garlic-laden French fries was an amusing paradox not lost on Rene. Had the circ.u.mstances been different, a little less tense all around, he might have shared the observation and a laugh over it with Tessa and Brandon.

"You guys are all telepaths," Lina said. "Martin Davenant doesn't need to run loose in the world to tell the Elders. He can just think it-and is probably up at this cottage of yours in the middle of f.u.c.king nowhere doing exactly that." She slapped her napkin down and glared. "What the h.e.l.l were you thinking, Rene?"

It's okay, Lina, Brandon thought before Rene could swallow and reply. That's not how it works. We have to be near someone in order to communicate with them.

"So if the salaud is out in the middle of f.u.c.king nowhere-your words, chere," Rene said to Lina. "That's the best place for him at the moment. Trust me. He's not going anywhere."

Rene thinks we can use him to get the Grandfather off our trail for good, Tessa said. She'd ordered a "Sticks and Twigs"

veggie burger with avocado, but hadn't eaten much of it. Now she unconsciously draped her hand against Rene's, sliding her fingers between his against the tabletop; a tender gesture that Brandon didn't miss, to judge by the momentary surprise in his face...

Oh, s.h.i.+t, Rene thought again.... or Lina, either, to judge by the fact the daggers in her eyes had returned...only this time, they were f.u.c.king broadswords a la the movie Braveheart.

Oh, s.h.i.+t.

Martin's been stealing money from the Grandfather through Bloodhorse Distillery, Tessa said, making Brandon blink at her in new surprise. She nodded. We have the papers to prove it-a bunch of invoices and bank statements for a company called Broughman and a.s.sociates. Rene thinks Martin made it all up-the company, the invoices, credit cards, everything-all so he could take money from the Brethren and not get caught.

"How did you get a hold of these papers?" Lina asked.

"I took them accidentally when I left Kentucky," Tessa replied.

How are they supposed to help us call off the Elders? Brandon asked.

"Because Martin chased me halfway across the country to get them back," Tessa said. "He and Monica don't want anyone to know about them, that's for sure. So we convince him to help us, to get the Elders to go home in exchange."

Brandon raised a dubious brow. He's not going to do that. Why would he?

"Because we're not going to give him a choice, pet.i.t," Rene said.

"He'll either help us or I'm dropping all of his papers in the mail to Dad," Tessa added. "Dad can get a hold of the Grandfather and tell him all about it."

"Which will leave Martin Davenant up s.h.i.+t creek with no paddle," Rene said. He tried to smile, but didn't miss the fact the sentiment wasn't shared by Lina as again, Tessa reached for him, holding his hand.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Lina asked him an hour later back at the motel. She and Brandon had checked into a room down from Rene and Tessa. Each room had its own small patio, big enough-barely-to accommodate two adults standing shoulder to shoulder, but offered a nice view of the mountains and lake. She and Rene stood in their coats watching their breath frost in the air, hazy and iridescent in the moonlight while they took swigs from bottles of beer.

"Sure I am." Rene shrugged. "I know you think I'm this strung-out loser ever since I lost my leg, chere, but I promise you, I can have a beer now and then and not get wasted. Besides..." He awarded her a wink and a smile. "I can't get addicted. My healing won't let me."

"You can still overindulge," Lina said pointedly. "Which you do. A lot. And that's not what I meant."

Tessa and Brandon were behind closed doors in Rene's room having a little one-on-one follow up to the conversation broached over supper. He was worried about her, half tempted to use his telepathy to try and overhear their conversation. Facing Brandon alone, confiding in him all of the details she'd only hinted at during dinner would be difficult.

"Look, you don't have to worry about Martin Davenant," he said to Lina. "I'm sure about that, too. I've got him trussed up like a G.o.dd.a.m.n Christmas goose, and even if he somehow gets loose, he's got nothing but forests all around him for a good twenty miles.

He's got no coat, no flashlight, nothing, and it's the middle of the night with a frost advisory issued. I told you-he's not going anywhere."

Lina raised her brow. "That's not what I meant, either." After a long moment of dark scrutiny, which he tried his d.a.m.ndest to ignore, she said, "Are you sleeping with Tessa?"

"What?" He tried to feign surprise. "No, chere, why would you-?"

"Because if you are, you'd better knock it off," Lina warned. "Jesus Christ, what the h.e.l.l's the matter with you? She's not one of your little hired guns, Rene. She's a nice girl and-"

"What are you saying?" he asked, bristling. "I'm not good enough for her?"

"Don't be an a.s.s, Rene. That's not what I meant," Lina replied coolly. "All I meant was that Tessa doesn't need a f.u.c.k-buddy right now. She needs someone who's going to look out for her and the baby." Even Lina-the woman who knew him better than anyone in the world-thought he didn't deserve Tessa and that wounded him to the core. It was just like Thibodaux, Louisiana, all over again; just like Gordon Maddox, his childhood nemesis who had bullied him for being poor. It's never enough, is it, chere? he thought about saying, but pressed his lips together, forcing himself to remain mute. No matter what, I'll still just be white trash, no? Here's a news flash-I've been shot in the hand and burned 10 hours worth of rubber off my G.o.dd.a.m.n tires looking out for Tessa and the baby. If that doesn't make me f.u.c.king good enough, I don't know what will.

"You sure you know what you're doing?" she asked.

"Are you?" He glanced at her. "I'm not the only one sleeping with one of the n.o.ble twins. And you've got a lot more to lose than I do, chere."

"It's not the same thing."

He took a swallow of beer. "How do you know?"

"Because I love Brandon. Are you going to tell me you love Tessa?"

"I am, yes, and I do," he said, meeting her gaze. When she rolled her eyes, it stung all the more. "Quoi? You think you have a monopoly on feelings, Lina? You're the only one who can fall in love these days?"

"No," she said. "That's not what I meant at all. It's just...I've known you a long time, Rene, and I've never seen you fall in love with anybody. You're just...you..." Her voice faded and she averted her eyes.

"What?" He frowned. "I'm what, Lina? Don't be shy. Whatever it is, just come out and f.u.c.king say it."

Lina's eyes flashed angrily. "You're still in love with your wife," she said, startling him. "Yeah. You've told me about Irene. You don't remember? You've given me earfuls over the phone during several of your 'I-can't-get-addicted' drinking binges. You told me about her and the baby. And I'm worried that you're trying to get that back with Tessa, all of the stuff you lost with Irene."

He blinked, as shaken as if she'd physically struck him. "Thanks, Lina." Shoving the beer bottle at her, he turned, walking back through the door into the motel room. "Thanks a h.e.l.l of a lot."

"Rene, wait." She hurried after him, but when she hooked her hand against his coat sleeve to stay him, he flapped her away. "Come on, Rene. I didn't-"

He slammed the door behind him, leaving her alone in the room.

Chapter Twenty-one.

Is the baby all right? Brandon asked Tessa, his brows lifted, his eyes round with worry. She sat against the edge of the bed while he knelt before her, draping his hands against hers at her knees and looking up into her face.

Yes. She nodded, brus.h.i.+ng his knuckles lightly with her thumbs, struggling to smile at him in rea.s.surance. I can still sense it and everything feels okay. I think I would know somehow...sense something different...if the baby was hurt.

He reached for her neck, tugging lightly against the high collar of her turtleneck sweater. Rene had bought it to help hide the bruises-dark violet splotches against the pale skin of her throat that formed ghostlike impressions of Martin's hands. She tried to shrug away from her brother, but he eased the collar back enough to catch a glimpse.

Jesus, Tessa. Brandon leaned forward, drawing her into his arms. She tucked her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes against the sting of tears. I'm so sorry, he whispered helplessly in her mind. All of this time...all of these years. I wish you had told me. When he sat back, his eyes were hurt and confused. Why didn't you? "There was nothing you could do," she said, cutting her gaze to her lap, knotting her hands together.

Nothing? Brandon hooked his fingertips under her chin, forcing her to look up at him. His brows had narrowed, his mouth turned down in a frown. I would have killed that son of a b.i.t.c.h if I'd- "And that's exactly why I didn't say anything," Tessa cut in. "You would have gone after Martin and then the Grandfather would have gone after you. It's not like you didn't have enough trouble living in the great house and I..." Her voice faltered. "I didn't want you to know. I didn't want anyone to know. There was no undoing it. I was stuck there." She brushed his hair back from his brow and smiling sadly. "Kind of like with you and Caine."

His eyes traveled along her face, from one bruised and battered place to another. "It's all right," she told him. "We're safe now- all of us. You, me and the baby. They can't hurt us anymore, Brandon."

I don't know what I would have done if something had happened to you, Brandon said. If Rene hadn't been with you...if he hadn't found you and Martin... He stood, forking his fingers through his dark hair, his expression strained. I don't know what I would have done, he said again.

He walked away, standing before the closed drapes, his arms folded across his chest, his back to her. His posture was rigid with stress and, as always, it amazed Tessa how Brandon could communicate so much so well-all without saying a word. He was blaming himself, probably delivering a mental reaming and she rose to her feet.

Brandon... she began gently.

None of this would have happened if I'd just stayed in Kentucky, he said without looking at her. If I'd just gone through the G.o.dd.a.m.n bloodletting like you asked me to, like everyone f.u.c.king wanted. If I hadn't run away, Lina's life would still be normal, not like this-f.u.c.ked up and on the run...Caine and Emily wouldn't have followed me...you wouldn't have, either.

He turned, pained. Martin wouldn't have done this to you.

"He would have hurt me anyway," Tessa said. "He never needed a reason, Brandon, just like Caine never needed any to bully you.

He's a monster, just like Caine was. Just like you always said. And I never would have been brave enough to leave him if it hadn't been for you."

I never would have met Rene if it hadn't been for you, she thought, closing her mind momentarily so Brandon wouldn't overhear.

I should go, Brandon said. It's getting late and we've been on the road all day. You need to sleep. The baby- "Wait." Tessa caught his arm. "There's something else, something Martin told me."

Brandon raised a curious brow. What?

"He said the Grandfather murdered Grandmother Eleanor," she said and when his eyes widened in surprise, she nodded. "When he was choking me, he said that's how Eleanor died, and then later...once Rene had him tied up, I asked about it and he told me. He said his father had witnessed the entire thing. Do you think it's true, Brandon? Do you think the Grandfather could really do that?

You know how much he loved Eleanor."

Brandon's brows narrowed slightly. I don't think the Grandfather has ever loved anyone in his entire life. I don't think the son of a b.i.t.c.h is capable. He shook his head. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he killed her. Frankly, I don't give a s.h.i.+t either way.

Tessa bristled at this. "What the h.e.l.l does that mean?"