Lethal Rider

Shade nodded. “Any medical concerns? Has the pregnancy been normal?”

“There was a minor incident at the beginning of my sixth month. Some cramping and bleeding.” When she saw Than stiffen out of the corner of her eye, she added quickly, “Everything’s okay. The docs suspected placenta accreta, but the ultrasound didn’t reveal anything.”

“What is that?” Than asked.

Shade frowned. “It’s when the placenta attaches itself too deeply into the wall of the uterus. It can require surgery after the baby is born to remove it.” Shade stood. “Are you on any special treatment?”

“Bedrest for a while, but it was just a precaution.”

“Okay,” Shade said. “Since I can’t do much more here, get some rest and food, and call if you need anything. I’ll have Eidolon come by when he gets a chance.” He shouldered his medic bag, but before he could leave, she shocked herself by calling out his name.

“Shade, wait.” When he paused at the door, she chewed her lower lip.

She wasn’t used to having civil conversations with demons, and besides, the first time she’d met Shade, a couple of years ago in Egypt, he and his brothers had been antagonistic sons of bitches with no respect for The Aegis. They’d all gotten off on the wrong foot, for sure.

“Was there something else?” Shade finally asked.

“Yeah. Um…thank you.”

Shade grunted. “Look at that. A thank you from a slayer. The Apocalypse really is here.”

“I take it back,” she muttered, and fell back into her pillow as he stalked out, not even bothering to smother his laughter. Thanatos followed him, leaving her alone.

Normally, she’d be grateful. She’d always been comfortable with her own company. But for some reason, she didn’t want to be alone right now. What she wanted was to go home. To the only home she’d ever known.

The Aegis.

Thanatos followed Shade out of the room and stopped him when they reached the great hall. “Tell me the truth, demon.”

Shade’s expression shuttered. “What makes you think that anything I’ve said was a lie?”

“I don’t think you lied. I think you omitted.” Than smiled grimly. “I deal in death, and I sensed your fears for Regan.”

“I’m a paramedic,” Shade said as he adjusted the medic bag on his shoulder, “not a doctor. You need Eidolon.”

“Yeah, well, he’s apparently not available, and don’t give me the paramedic bullshit. You know more about medicine than most human doctors, so spill.”

Shadows flickered in Shade’s eyes, and Than wondered what gifts this Seminus demon possessed. “The baby is fully formed and ready to be born, but he’s big. It could be a difficult birth, made more so by her earlier problem and the fact that right now it appears that there can’t be any medical intervention as long as no one can touch her.”

Women had been giving birth since the beginning of time, and although Thanatos knew how dangerous it could be, he tried to comfort himself with the fact that females were designed for reproduction, and there was nothing more natural than having a baby.

“If she were able to be touched, what would a human doctor do in this situation?”

Shade shrugged. “Monitor closely. Probably induce labor by now to make sure the baby doesn’t grow any larger. Maybe schedule a C-section to be safe.” He shrugged again. “I haven’t kept up on human obstetric medicine, so I could be talking out my ass.”

Thanatos suspected the demon was covering his ass. “You have non-demons on staff. Maybe one of them can handle her case. A vampire at least, since we know vampires can touch her.”

“We do have a vampire medic,” Shade said. “And we have a lot of non-demon doctors. It’s possible one of them can deal with this.”

“What can I do in the mean time? What would you tell me to do if things were normal?”

One black brow arched. “Fuck her.”

Than wasn’t sure he heard that right. But the demon couldn’t have been clearer. “Ah…what?”

“Have sex with her. It can help induce labor.” Shade smirked. “And unless you’re jumping up and down on her belly, it’s not going to hurt.”

Thanatos rolled his eyes. Stupid sex demons. “Tell Eidolon I want to see him immediately.”

“Yeah, that’s the thing, Horseman,” Shade drawled. “You don’t order Eidolon to do anything.”

Most demons had more respect for the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, but not these Seminus brothers. It was annoying as shit. The only one Thanatos liked was Wraith, but that might be because in a lot of ways, the laid-back demon reminded Than of Reseph.

“You said you like the planet the way it is. You sure about that? Because the female in my bedroom is carrying a child that could make or break the world. And I probably don’t need to remind you that your sister started this all.”

“No, please remind me, a**hole. There’s never enough blame to throw around.” Shade paused, oddly hesitant. “Ah … speaking of blame, you should probably know that I’m the reason Regan is pregnant.”

Thanatos jerked as if he’d closed his hand around a live wire. Teeth clenched, he growled, “Explain.”

“I hooked up her egg and your sperm. I didn’t know any details about the situation at the time, and I’m guessing Kynan kept them from me so I wouldn’t have to go through some overly moral internal struggle.” He shrugged. “Humans. Anyway, there you go.”

Than wasn’t sure if he should kill the demon or give him props for admitting what he’d done. Took balls, for sure. “If you’d been aware of the situation?”

“Does it matter? It’s done. But I will say that when it comes down to it, I’d sell my soul—hell, I’d sell your soul, to keep my mate and kids safe. I’d do whatever it took. I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t. You’ve got a kid on the way, so think about how far you’d go to protect him.” Shade spun on his heel. “I’ll tell E to come by. In the meantime, keep Regan safe.” The demon disappeared through the front door.

Keep Regan safe? What did Shade think Thanatos was trying to do?

Needing to make sure she was still okay, he quietly pushed open the door to peek into the bedroom. Regan was sitting on the bed, one hand clutching a sandwich, the other stroking her belly. A hint of a smile curved her lips as she looked down, and no, that wasn’t the picture of a woman who was prepared to easily give up a baby she didn’t want. That was the picture of a mother, and even if she didn’t admit it to herself, Regan loved the child.

The knowledge was both a relief and a fist to the gut. How could she love it, yet be so willing to give it up? Was it because the baby was his? Did she hate him so much that she didn’t want the reminder toddling around behind her?

Cursing, he stalked into his library. In a fit of temper, he swiped his arm across one of the shelves. Books, baskets, and baubles crashed to the floor. Something metallic clattered across the tiles. Reseph’s iPod.

Thanatos scooped it up, the smooth, black case so cold in his hand. Reseph had loved the thing, which was why it had been buried in the leather basket—Than had hidden it from him as a joke. Well, sort of. Reseph had often driven them all crazy by singing country songs at the top of his lungs. Sure, he’d actually had a great voice, but one could only take so many hours of twang.

“What are you doing?” Regan’s voice came from behind him, and crazily, his pulse jumped.

Thanatos gave a casual shrug, but his body wasn’t fooled, not when he saw her in the doorway, still in his T-shirt and a pair of his sweats she’d cinched beneath her belly. No female had ever worn his clothes, and an oddly primal instinct got him all growly and possessive at the idea that something of his was both on her and in her.

“Nothing,” he muttered, tossing the mp3 player onto his desk.

“‘Nothing’ involves making a mess of your library?” She walked over to the desk, her bare feet not making a sound on the stone floor. Even as pregnant as she was, her confident grace wasn’t diminished.

“You need socks.”

She blinked. “What does that have to do with the messy library?”

“Nothing. But I don’t want your feet to get cold.”

A soft smile curved her lips, and he wished she wouldn’t do that, because a smile like that could disarm him eventually. “You’re an odd man, Thanatos Horseman.” She picked up the iPod. The screen lit up, and her eyebrows lifted. “I wouldn’t have taken you for a country music kind of guy.”

“I’m not. Reseph is. Was. And you should be in bed.”

“I feel fine, and if I lay down for too long, my h*ps hurt.” She eyed the iPod again. “Alan Jackson. George Strait. Jimmy Buffett. Conway Twitty. Wow. Not a single rock band.”

“Reseph was the flightiest person I’ve ever met, but when he latched onto something, he went all out. Totally single-minded. He even had a couple of favorite country bars where he’d go to dance. He loved to two-step.”

Regan’s nose wrinkled. “I can’t imagine him doing anything…normal. Or nice.”

“In a strange way, he was the most normal of all of us. He was definitely the nicest.”

“I’m having a hard time believing that.” She shot him a sideways glance. “You know, seeing how he tried to kill me today.”

If that had happened… Thanatos couldn’t even go there in his thoughts. He was intimate with death the way regular people were intimate with their lovers, but it had been four thousand years since he’d experienced a personal loss. He was pretty sure he would react … badly.

“If Reseph had wanted you dead, you would be,” he said levelly. “His arrows don’t miss.”

“Maybe the baby was protecting me.”

Than frowned. He hadn’t thought of that. “Doesn’t matter. If you hadn’t taken off like that, he wouldn’t have had an opportunity to try.”