Bound, p.16
Bound, page 16
“I consider myself forewarned and will not hold you responsible for any consequences that might get inflicted on me.”
Saoirse hit the unlock button on the SUVs and then headed for the one whose doors it didn’t unlock.
“I thought it was the other one,” Corinne said.
“It is,” said Saoirse, pulling a small dagger from a strap hidden high on her thigh and plunging it into one of the tires. “That ought to slow them down.”
They were pulling out of the driveway when Eddy and Gabe came barreling out of the restaurant, shouting after them as they drove away. Once they were back in the city, Saoirse drove them to Chelsea and pulled down the alley behind Holmes’ townhouse.
When she drove past the back gate, Corinne swiveled her head around “What did you see?”
“The gate had been unlocked and opened. They pushed it almost shut, but not enough for it to relock. Call the boys and tell them it’s about to go down.”
“No thanks. I’m going to text Spense. He’ll have his phone on vibrate; then I’ll call Anne.”
Anne answered on the first ring. “You are in so much trouble.”
“That’s fine and dandy, but someone has gone in the back way.”
She looked down, and there was a succinct reply from Spense’s phone:
WE HAVE THEM BUT ARE WILLING TO MAKE A DEAL
“You know we can’t go in there,” said Saoirse. “It’s a trap.”
“I’m sure it is, but I can’t not go in. Holmes put the weapons in a hidden safe in what used to be a priest hole. Whoever it is will never find it, and Holmes will never give them what they need.”
“So we have nothing to trade.”
Corinne unbuckled her seat belt, twisted around and opened the case containing Courechouse.
“I wouldn’t,” said Saoirse. “That thing packs a nasty punch.”
“I’m under no illusion that it would prefer to have Gabe here, but I’m hoping it’ll recognize I have one of the other swords and let me try to save our friends.”
Hoping she was right, she reached into the case and picked up the sword by its hilt. There was a nasty little charge of that same electrical surge she’d felt earlier in the day, but not much worse.
“I think we’ll be okay. You take the SUV and go down to the alley entrance and direct them down this way.”
“I don’t think you should go alone.”
“And I don’t think we should risk both of us. I may wield Galatine and the lions, but you have magick. We don’t stand a chance against whatever’s coming if both of us fall this night.”
“Not the front or back gate. Most likely they’ll be waiting or at least watching. There’s a hidden entrance down here. Once you get to the tunnel, it’ll lead you straight to the townhouse’s pantry. That’s your best bet for getting in.”
Corinne nodded and when Saoirse stopped the SUV, Corinne slipped out, lifting the cover to the entrance and climbing down the ladder into the dark. She ran along the tunnel, feeling her way with her hand against the damp wall, until she came to the ladder that would lead her up into the townhouse. Slowly she climbed up, peeking through a small hole to ensure no one was in the pantry. She let herself in and then tried to quiet her breathing so she could hear.
“Has she replied?” said a voice that sounded all too familiar.
“Nothing yet, my lady. Can’t you find the damn things without their help?” said a male voice.
“If I could do that, I wouldn’t need you idiots, now would I?” the woman said in a scathing tone, immediately before there was a crackle of lightning. “Care to be next?”
Corinne crept out, forcing fear and tension from her body. Her fear would serve no one. What was it Eddy had said? Courage was doing what needed doing, even when you were afraid. She had a job to do—secure the freedom of her friends regardless of the cost. She moved quietly and efficiently. At this moment, silence was her only ally.
She made her way down the back hallway until she could see into the sitting room. The woman was standing with her back to her, as was her thug. All three men—Holmes, Roark and Spense—were tied together sitting on the couch. She couldn’t see a gun.
All three men spotted her, but not one of them betrayed it with their expressions. She curled back around the corner out of sight and made a tiny scratching noise.
“What was that?” said the thug.
“Probably nothing, but go see,” replied the woman who had once been her aunt’s caregiver. Corinne had a few questions to ask her about her aunt’s rapid decline.
The thug came around the corner, but before he could sound the alarm, Corinne had swung the sword and removed his head, which fell with a thud and a lot of blood before rolling back into the sitting room.
“Corinne? Come in, my dear. We have much to discuss.”
Straightening her shoulders, Corinne walked into the room, the sword held at the ready.
“You don’t look surprised to see me,” said Delores.
“I recover quickly when that last little piece falls into place. How could you?”
“Your aunt wouldn’t give me what I needed to appease my mistress.”
“Who might that be?” asked Corinne.
“She who bore the son of the king that was and will be again,”
Delores’ laugh bordered on the maniacal and she directed her wand toward Corinne, releasing its power. Instinctively, Corinne brought the sword up in front of her, deflecting the deadly bolt into a large ornate mirror and shattering it.
“Galatine…” whispered Delores, the first notes of concern entering her voice.
“Nope, but you’re close. I suggest you get out of here before the sword’s true master shows up.”
“I fear no man,” said Delores, in a tone that indicated just the opposite.
Delores fired off another round and Corinne was able to repel it with the same deft counter measures, this time destroying what she was sure was a valuable vase. Corinne was more prepared for the third salvo as she and Delores circled each other. Instead of redirecting the lightning wildly, Corinne was able to give it more aim and specific direction, landing it at Delores’ feet and causing her to jump back.
“Bitch,” screeched Delores, clearly surprised at Corinne’s deft mastery of the blade.
Speaking in a language Corinne had never heard, Delores released another discharge from her wand. Growing more confident in her ability to wield Courechouse, Corinne advanced on Delores, deflecting the deadly lightning as Delores fired at her repeatedly. Delores was able to avoid being hit and aimed the wand again. This time, Corinne stepped in its direction, lifting the blade and angling it so that the bolt of energy seemed to bounce off the gleaming sword and reflect it back to its sender.
Delores screamed as the lightning ran up the wand to envelop her in an electrical storm of sparks and crackling energy. It only lasted a moment until Delores was gone, vaporized by the magick that she had ultimately unleashed upon herself.
“Are there any others?” Corinne asked as she rushed forward, using the keen blade to cut the rope from the three men.
“No. There were only three, and she killed one right before you got here,” said Roark.
“Spense, you might want to give Saoirse the all-clear. I suspect the rest of them are headed back.” She looked down at the shirt she’d been wearing, which was now soaked in blood. “I think I’d like to take a shower.” She wiped the blood from the blade of the sword, setting it inside the umbrella holder by the front door. “You should tell Gabe that’s where it is. I wouldn’t try picking it up. It can give a rather nasty shock.”
She turned, feeling like a zombie as she trudged up the stairs. She entered the room she shared with Eddy. As weird as it was, she hoped he’d spank her. She knew she had disappointed him by disobeying, but at the time, she hadn’t seen any other way to do it. Of course, she knew that was wrong. She could have made Eddy and Gabe see that she and Saoirse were right, but that time was past.
Corinne made her way into the bedroom she shared with Eddy and stripped out of her clothes. The shirt, she wadded up and put in a trash bag; the rest, she put in the laundry hamper. She entered the bath and turned on the shower. Opening the glass door, she stepped in to allow the heat and steam to envelop her completely.
Chapter 22
Corinne stepped under the hot, pelting water. It felt wonderful. Downstairs she’d felt perfect, strong and in control. Severing the thug’s head from his body hadn’t bothered her in the least. Killing her aunt’s former caregiver had seemed like the thing to do at the time. It was only now when she was once again alone that she realized the consequences for what she’d done might be more far reaching than she’d bargained for. She wished Eddy had been here—not to wield the sword or even protect her, but to hold her in his arms and tell her everything would be all right.
When she finished washing herself clean, she stepped out of the shower to find Eddy leaned against the vanity.
“Are you all right?” he asked with no intonation to give her a clue as to how he was feeling.
“I’m not hurt.”
“That’s not what I asked. Are you all right?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know.”
He reached out to grasp her hand and drag her into his body.
“I’m going to get you all wet.”
“I don’t care,” he said, wrapping her in his strong embrace. “You scared the shit out of me.”
“I scared the crap out of myself.”
“It didn’t show. Holmes said he’s never seen anyone face down an enemy with the calm and courage you did.”
“Appearances can be deceiving.”
“What do you need from me?” he asked.
“You don’t have to feel like you need to do anything. I can ask Rachel if she has another room, or I can find a couch to sleep on.”
Eddy frowned at her. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I won’t make a scene. We can fight this evil thing coming and then go our separate ways.”
“Are you saying you no longer want to be with me?”
“What? No! I’m saying you shouldn’t feel obligated…”
He shook his head. “The only obligation I’m feeling right now is to turn that ass of yours a delightful shade of pink. Now, put your hands against the countertop, step back and spread your feet shoulder-width apart.”
“I just fought the minions of whatever is coming…”
“And won without so much as messing up your hair. What you also did was blatantly disobey me, and for the record, I don’t give a shit that it was in front of our friends. What I do give a shit about is that you took it into your head to do something dangerous without even bothering to talk to me about it. That is not okay. Since I can only assume you wouldn’t know that would get you spanked, I’m going to go easier on you than I ever will again. Now, get into position.”
She searched his face. She needed and wanted comfort, yet Eddy was going to spank her. Well, maybe he deserved at least that. She turned and put her hands on the counter, leveling her back and submitting her ass to his discipline.
Before she could prepare herself, his hand smacked her ass, the sound echoing off the tiled walls. She didn’t have time to catch her breath or utter a sound before his hand came down again and began to rain hellfire all over her backside.
Tears welled in her eyes, and she moaned as the heat and pain flared across her buttocks and then seemed to sink in. She wasn’t sure how many times he spanked her and knew it didn’t matter. She knew that he would give her no more or no less than she needed and deserved.
There was something about the way Eddy spanked her, pain and pleasure twisting together and morphing into something new and exponentially more intoxicating than either by themselves. She realized in that moment how much she needed him. Needed him to take control so that if—no, not if, but when—she had to do something like this again, he would be there to pick up the pieces and see that it didn’t shatter her soul.
The pace of the spanking slowed. She felt each and every blow distinctively. Each time his hand struck, he would hold it against her flesh, containing the heat and seeming to press it into her body. He spanked the back of her thighs and up where her ass met her legs. Corinne tried to keep from crying. She wanted him to be proud of her for being able to hold it together, but she was having to chew her bottom lip to keep from giving in.
“It’s all right, Corinne. I’m here. I love you. I will take care of you.”
If he’d yelled or even sounded disappointed, she could have held it together, but this was more than she could bear. The tears started to fall. She could lose control because Eddy was there to keep her safe.
“That’s right. You don’t have to always be brave. You can be afraid. I know how scared you must have been. But I also know it wasn’t for yourself that you feared, but for our friends. So, you did what you felt needed to be done.”
Corinne turned and clung to him and sobbed into his shirt. She was not a pretty crier—her nose ran, her eyes turned red, and her face turned blotchy, but Eddy didn’t seem to mind or even notice.
“I didn’t want to die. We didn’t think there would be anyone here yet, if they were coming at all.”
“I know, sweetheart, and maybe we should have given more consideration to you and Saoirse’s arguments, but we didn’t. We’re men and we’re flawed. We make mistakes, but regardless—if you ever disobey me again, that nice pink glow that’s staining your backside will become a serious shade of red. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Sir… Wait… What did you say?”
“That if you disobey me again, I’ll give you a spanking you won’t forget anytime soon.”
“No, before that.”
“That I understood…”
“No, before that. The mushy French stuff.”
Eddy look confused but then recognition set in, and he grinned. “You heard that, did you?” She nodded. “I love you.”
“Say it again.”
“I love you. I love you. I love you. And if you ever doubt that, I’ll lay so many welts across your ass you won’t be able to tell where one begins and another ends.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Corinne?”
“Yes, Sir?”
“I don’t just like saying the mushy French stuff; I like hearing it too.”
“We’ll have to work on that, but I promise to tell you how much I love you every single day.”
Eddy laughed. “And how much is that?”
“More. I love you more.”
“Bien. Pull some clothes on and let’s go back downstairs.”
“I don’t think that I’m going to be able to sit down.”
“Not with any degree of comfort…”
“Won’t they be able to tell?” she asked in dismay.
“Probably. That’s the part that makes us even for them all knowing you disobeyed me. You don’t want anyone to know you got disciplined? Then don’t act out when there are others around. N’est-ce pas?”
“Yes, Sir.”
She hated to admit it, but that did seem fair. She pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and pulled on some clothes. They rejoined their friends, who had ordered Chinese.
Eddy sat in one of the wingback chairs and tossed a pillow onto the ground beneath his feet. Without a word passing between them, Corinne sank onto the pillow between his legs and laid her head on his thigh as she’d seen Rachel do with Holmes. Eddy’s hand immediately came to rest on her head and stroke her hair. She found it far more soothing than she’d thought it might be.
Spense and Saoirse weren’t with them yet, and she rather imagined Saoirse wouldn’t be sitting too comfortably either. When they joined the rest of them, Spense drew Saoirse onto his lap and held her close. At first the witch’s body language was stiff and angry, but gradually that gave way to acceptance, and she leaned against her husband.
“Corinne, you seemed to know that woman,” said Roark, whose cuts and bruises had been addressed as had Spense’s and Holmes’.
“Yes, she worked for my aunt as a caregiver. I knew my aunt was dying, but she took a sudden turn for the worse. It seemed odd at the time, but I had no reason to question it. As she was on hospice care, no one really questioned it.”
“We can have the body exhumed to have an autopsy done to determine the true cause,” offered Holmes.
“To what end?” asked Corinne. “It won’t bring my aunt back, and the woman who did it is gone. Do any of you know who she was talking about?”
Spense nodded. “Saoirse is pretty sure she knows who’s behind the whole thing.”
“Morgan Le Fay.”
“As in high priestess of Avalon, Mordred’s mother, Arthur’s half-sister?” asked Rachel.
“Spense said she said she served she who bore the son of the king that was and will be again. The king who was and will be again is King Arthur, and Morgan Le Fay bore his bastard son.”
“So why the hell does Morgan Le Fay want to release demons into the world?”
“Because she wants to rule here, and to do that she has to disrupt everything. Shattering the wall between this dimension and that of demons would sure as hell do that and create a power vacuum for her to rule the world.”
“Why does she want the swords?” asked Gabe.
“According to legend, because only the swords have the power to defeat her,” supplied Rachel.
“Who forged the swords?” asked Corinne.
“Some say an Avalonian elf; but I don’t think elf magick is that strong. An elf might have forged them, but my guess is that Merlin imbued them with their power,” said Saoirse.
“I hate to be a killjoy,” said Sage, “but can we talk about anything other than dark magick, swords, beheadings, and the like? You know they say for writers, everything is grist for the mill. Problem is, if I tried to use any of this as a plot for a novel, people would say it was too far-fetched, proving the old axiom, truth is stranger than fiction.”
