Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Book 14. Danse Macabre(162)
But Haven was one thing that Richard was not, a professional thug. He did two things simultaneously. He released Noel's hair, and he tried to hit Richard with his other hand. That fist going over us was a blink of the eye, too fast to see, more just an awareness of air moving, and the afterimage. Richard saw it, because when the fist tried to land on his face, he wasn't there to take the blow. He rolled backward, and pulled Haven with him, with one hand on the other man's wrist. Haven's own momentum made him fall forward, and Richard did a move that I'd showed him ages ago. His sport was karate, mine was judo. But if it had been me trying for the tomenage throw, I'd have failed. Because Haven was half-collapsed on Richard's legs, not high enough above the ground, unless you had the strength to plant your feet in the man's stomach and lift with your legs. I would have just ended with Haven on top of me, not an improvement in a fight, but Richard pushed him skyward and was strong enough to keep the momentum going.
Haven flew across the room and hit the fireplace. Richard had time to stand before the other man got to his knees, then charged him. The fight was on.
37
THE FIGHT ROLLED over the couch, and vanished from sight for a minute.
Noel shivered on top of me, and it wasn't pleasure. «Are you hurt?» I asked.
His voice was breathy from pain or fear. I didn't know him well enough to guess which. «Anita, you're about to pick an animal to call.»
I patted the top of his curls, gently. «You're not thinking clearly, Noel.» I started to try to sit up, but he wrapped himself around me. Not pinning me, but making it so sitting up would be an effort.
Richard was the one who staggered back from the couch, blood spattering his face. Haven got to his feet like he was on springs, and they squared off. Both of them went down into fighting stances that said that Haven knew some kind of martial art, too. Not good.
«Let me up, Noel.»
He raised his face, so I could see how frightened his eyes were behind his glasses. «You are about to have another animal to call.»
«Nathaniel is my animal to call.»
«He's your animal for Damian and you, but Richard is your animal with Jean-Claude.»
Richard and Haven were circling in the bare area just in front of the far hallway. They feinted with legs and hands, but they weren't fighting. They were getting the measure of each other. Once they had it, the fight would get serious. I didn't want that.
Noel gripped my arms, turned my attention back to him. «Joseph thinks that something about the vampire marks is giving you an animal to call to match each of your beasts.»
«That's not possible.»
«Everything you do is impossible, Anita. My Rex thinks it is possible. He hopes that if you feed from more than one lion, your power won't bond to any one person.»
Travis collapsed to his knees beside us, blocking my view of the growing fight. He was cradling his arm tight against his chest. The side of his head was bleeding into his brown-gold curls. «But if you do have to bond to a lion, Joseph would prefer that the strongest preternatural power in his territory not bond itself to a lion who would try to take over his pride.»
It seemed stupid having this conversation flat on my back with a nearly perfect stranger on top of me, but I couldn't figure out how to sit up without getting rough with Noel, and Haven had been rough enough. «Why did Joseph send you to me?»
Travis shrugged, and winced, his shoulders hunching around his arm. «Our first task is to keep you from bonding with blue-boy over there. Whatever it takes, to stop that from happening.»
I looked at them both. «You're kids. You don't want to be bound to my life, to me, forever. You don't want that, you can't want that.»
«I'm only five years younger than you,» Travis said. «Hell, I'm two years older than Nathaniel.»
«But Nathaniel needed me. You got drafted.»
Noel pushed himself up on his arms, which meant I was able to get to my gun, not that it would help, but it was still a thought. His lower body was pressed a little closer to my lower body, but for once it wasn't erotic. It wasn't anything. «Our lion group, our pride, works, Anita, it's our home. I felt blue-boy's power, just walking down a hallway. You can feel it now, coming off him in waves.» Noel licked his lips. «Joseph is powerful, but I'm not a hundred percent certain he's more powerful than what's behind us.»
«Let me sit up, Noel.»
Noel glanced at Travis, and the other man gave a small nod, then hunched over his arm again. Noel moved back so I could sit up, but he stayed kneeling between my knees, I think so he was close enough to grab me if I tried to go to Haven, again.