Page 37 of Killer of the Bells
“But,” I added, “I have a feeling you could be of help if you chose to be.”
Echo laughed and paused in the middle of applying conditioner to my hair once more. It was unnecessary, but far be it from me to stop him from touching any part of my body. “I’m a mental case with a specialty in dead languages and ancient burial rituals. I’m sure I’ll be indispensable in your battle with the cultists.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You’re Corpselover, yes?”
Echo colored and began to stammer. “I’m not… How did you… Why would you think that? I mean… who’s Corpselover?” Echo covered his face with his hands and moaned in embarrassment.
“You know exactly who he is. The trap you were setting when I found you was exactly the style that’s been terrorizing the fae community for half a decade. You’ve been slowing down all my competition for me. I should thank you for making my victories so easy.”
Echo peeked through his fingers. “You’re Deadlynightshade?”
“The one and only,” I confirmed a bit too eagerly. Me? Proud? Surely not. “Which means I know better than anyone how tricky you can be. It takes a lot of talent and creativity forsomeone to trap so many fae creatures in a way that keeps from harming them enough to hold a grudge.”
I almost added that he’d avoided several gruesome attempts on his life due to his restraint, but I didn’t want to give him any ideas. If his death was going to happen, it would be by my hands or nothing.
And I had no plans to end Echo’s life.
Death sang to him. It was impossible not to notice, but I didn’t care. If I had to, I’d become strong enough to defeat death itself. Until then, I would cover his ears to muffle the song.
I would give him things to live for. I would find things to entice him, to give him so many reasons to live that he would never ask me, or anyone else, to kill him again.
First on the list was giving him all the orgasms he could handle, so before we got out of the shower, I used the strongest healing magic I dared to use on him and then fucked him until he was clinging to the safety railing for dear life and screaming my name.
After that, we cleaned up once more. I considered having one more round to drive the lesson in, but as I was helping Echo towel off, Gareth’s voice came over the intercom.
“Now, Vale. Kill him or fuck him later. I don’t care which, just get your ass to the garage right now.”
“Your boss is bossy,” Echo informed me as he picked his tattered, bloody shirt up off the floor. He wrinkled his nose in distaste. “I don’t suppose you have a shirt in my size?”
I eyed his slim frame. He was too big to borrow clothes from the shorter members of the household, but he was smaller than the rest of us. “You can use something of mine for now. We don’t have time for anything else unless we want Gareth to drag us both to the garage.”
Echo shuddered. “Give me a shirt. I think if Gareth touched me, I’d pass out from fright.”
I rummaged through the closet in my lab. I had a lot of accidents happen that required new clothes, so having extra clothes around was a necessity.
I tossed Echo the softest sweater I owned, and he shrugged it on. It was loose on him, and the sleeves came past his fingertips. I allowed myself a tiny smile when he stroked the merino wool.
I would find everything in the world that made him happy and give it to him.
“Why is Gareth like that?” Echo asked.
“We don’t have time for the whole story, and it’s Gareth’s story to tell.” I hesitated to continue because I wanted to tell Echo anything he wanted to know, even though the timing wasn’t right for that particular story. Eventually, I settled on saying, “I can tell you that it was done to him, and it’s not a voluntary action. He can’t turn it on or off at will.”
Echo winced. “That sucks. He must have a hard time finding friends.”
I snorted. “Gareth doesn’t do friends. The man is a machine. Baz swears he caught him doing pushups in his sleep, and for once I’m inclined to believe him.”
“No friends? That’s so sad.” Echo looked down at his feet. “I don’t really have those either, I guess, so I’m not one to talk.”
I didn’t know how to respond to that. I was hardly one to offer comfort or advice on the subject of friends. I had colleagues I tolerated to varying degrees, and I had Wraith, who was with me whether I liked it or not, so it didn’t matter what I called him.
So, instead of offering useless words, I kissed Echo until he stopped looking sad.
It took long enough for Gareth to yell at us through the intercom again, but it was worth it.
“Time to go,” I said after flipping off the intercom. There weren’t any cameras in my lab, but I knew Gareth would know. Gareth always knew.
Echo was almost smiling by the time we reached the garage. He seemed to enjoy the happy chatter of Love, even if he wasn’t able to talk to her beyond echoing. It seemed that the honor of receiving his unfettered thoughts belonged only to me.
