Somehow I doubted that. I might not have had much experience with hell and its denizens, but I did have a healthy respect for just how dangerous they could be—something Lauren appeared to have lost.
“Look, I really don’t think a ward powered by the energy of hell is something I should be handling.” Especially not when I had a sword at my back eager to kill all things related to hell.
“You cannot make that judgment without at least looking at it,” Lucian commented. “I have handled it without harm, and its magic seems no better or worse than what the Raziq use.”
I cast him a somewhat wry look. “You would say that, given how desperate you are for revenge.”
“I cannot deny I have a stake in this device working. If we get the remaining keys, we can force a confrontation with the Raziq.” He hesitated, and something flickered briefly in his eyes. Something that was altogether too dark for my liking. “That is something I have long desired.”
“If you confront the Raziq, you’ll be dead. There’s too many of them.”
“I am not suicidal, dear Risa.” He slid his hand under my skirt and gently squeezed my thigh. His fingers were warm and familiar, but there was no must-have-you-now-or-I’m-going-to-melt hormonal attack. Which didn’t mean it had no effect, just that my response was basically normal when being intimately touched by someone who was as sexy as all get-out. The charm, it seemed, was working. He added, “I plan to be around to devastate your bed long after the keys are history and the Raziq are little more than a bad memory.”
Anger stirred the air, a sharp burst that was quickly contained. I glanced at Lauren. Her expression was as calm and as regal as ever. The only sign that the flash had come from her was the whiteness of her knuckles as she gripped her wineglass. But the moment she caught the direction of my glance, her grip eased. I resisted the temptation to smile. Lauren was in for one hell of a shock if she thought Lucian would ever stay with just her.
Although it had to be said, if they were lovers, then Lucian was playing with fire. A sorceress wouldn’t be someone you’d want to make an enemy of.
“Which is presuming I’d actually want you in my bed by then.”
Amusement crinkled the corners of his eyes. “Of course you will. I’m a magnificent lover, and we both know it.”
“What you are is conceited, Lucian Dupont.”
“It is not conceit when it’s the truth.” But he removed his hand and took a drink of wine. His gaze, I noted, went to Lauren, almost as if he were daring her to react.
She didn’t.
“However,” he said, after a moment, “we are not here to discuss my bedroom skills, but rather the ward. And I reiterate, it cannot harm you to simply look at it.”
That statement should not be taken at face value when dealing with someone involved in the dark arts, Azriel commented.
I know that, Azriel. I’m not a total ignoramus about magic, so please don’t treat me as such.
I merely comment. It was not a rebuke.
Well, it sure as hell had felt like one. I drank some Coke, then met Lauren’s gaze and said, “I thought you said it had to be fine-tuned?”
“It does. To work fully it has to be tuned to your energy.”
Energy, or aura? I very much suspected the latter, and that had my doubts rising even higher. “Where is it?”
“In my purse. Lucian?”
He rose and walked over to the bench. I put my Coke down and followed. I wanted some distance between me and Lauren when I studied her creation.
Her purse was black leather, and was about as far from feminine as you could get. In fact, it looked more like an over-the-shoulder briefcase than an actual handbag. Lucian gamely delved into it, and his hand came out holding what looked like an oversized die. Only there were no dots on its black surface, which held an odd sort of oiliness that gleamed in the sharp overhead lighting. He set it down on the counter in front of me.
I leaned closer, but didn’t immediately try to touch it. Despite the oddness of the surface, there was no sense of energy radiating off the black stone. It really could have been nothing more than a numberless die.
“It won’t bite,” Lauren said, amusement clear in her voice. She hadn’t moved, but I had an odd sense that she missed nothing, despite the fact that I had my back to her.
“Forgive me for not taking you at your word.” I shifted around to study the other side of the die. It didn’t look any different, and I wasn’t entirely sure why I’d bothered moving.
“Here, look.” Lucian picked up the die and deftly tossed it from hand to hand. “See? Nothing bad happens when you touch it.”