The rec room had become my nemesis. It seemed every time I entered the padded space, I ended up experiencing pain. This time however, I looked at it from a whole new perspective. A lesson in bitch slapping with talons. The other perspective dangled over my head in the center of the ceiling. A metal contraption to hang from, just like Deidra said, and it wasn't until I gave it my full attention that I remembered being told it was used to train young gollums to fly.

"Basic hook and pulley system," Vincent said as he followed my gaze upward. "I haven't used it for your flight training because I don't want you relying on a crutch."

"Is that the only thing it's used for? Flight training?" I turned my inquiry eyes on him, and he had no choice but to look at me, with a glimmer shining through the gray.

"No. It's not."

"What else do you use it for?"

Vincent's lips lifted into a knowing smirk. "When did Deidra call you?"

"A couple of hours ago."

"So, she told you about the..." He hesitated, giving me time to fill in the blank.

"The rope tricks."

He nodded and exhaled through his nose. "I thought she might play that card. She's likely to pull out every stop." Looking embarrassed, Vincent dragged his fingers through his hair. "I should have seen this coming. Did she say anything else?"

I didn't like the nervous scowl Vincent adopted when he talked about Deidra, like she could actually pose a serious threat to me. To us.

"She made her formal challenge, along with a very compelling argument."

"Oh? What was her argument?" Vincent took my hand, stroking the back of it.

"She said we weren't mated according to the magister council, and I need to fight her to prove my worth to them."

A throaty moan erupted from his chest as his fingers tightened around mine, but he loosened them before his grip inflicted pain. "Deidra is right. Although many gollums still practice traditional mating rituals to seal their bond, magisters are disallowed because they represent the council. I had planned to tell you during our visit to Italy, but after the final sentence was handed out, I didn't want to add to our burden. I'm sorry I misled you. As far as I'm concerned, we are mated."

I slipped into the swirling waters of Vincent's eyes as he offered his apology, and I was ready to swim for a while when he continued. "It appears Deidra has chosen a tactical game, so we'll need to approach it from an angle she won't expect. In the meantime, we have to get you battle ready."

"You think I should fight her?"

Vincent's expression smoothed out. "I don't want you doing battle until you're fully trained, which will take longer than six weeks, I'm afraid. But Deidra's argument will stand up in the magister's court. You are a gollum, and you will need to behave like one before we can be officially mated."

"Hell. That wasn't the answer I was hoping for." I felt a little lightheaded as I slumped cross-legged onto the padded floor, and Vincent dropped down next to me, resting his hand on my knee.

"It doesn't matter to me if you win or lose the battle, Reese. And it won't matter to the magisters, either. They will consider your inexperience and judge you on courage alone."

"Well, that's a relief," I said a bit too sarcastically. "Do we have to do it on top of a sixty story building, though? The last time I witnessed a battle on a rooftop, I was snatched by demons."

"No. There's a basement arena used by both gollums and demons. It's more discrete than rooftop fighting."

"You and the demons spar in an arena? I'd like to say I'm not surprised, but I am."

Vincent looked insulted, as if I'd judged him based on his association with such an establishment. "I don't use it, but Rafael and Adam like to blow off steam there."

"I don't want a bunch of guys watching me get my ass kicked, thank you very much. I'll take the rooftop where nobody can witness my humiliation."

"Believe me. None of them will be judging you on your fighting skills. Most males get off on watching females do battle."

I tweaked my eyebrows, giving him my opinion of that nonsense. "This challenge is sounding less like a fight and more like a wet t-shirt contest."

"I'm just putting it into perspective for you. Deidra has promised to take some unsuspecting schmo as a mate if she wins. So, in a way, if you give her the fight she wants, it will put an end to her bullshit."

"So, you're assuming I'm going to lose to Deidra?" I smacked him playfully on the arm. "Ye of little faith. I plan to best her at everything, which brings me back to the rope tricks. Tell me about them."

Vincent glanced at the ceiling as he scratched his chin. "How much did Deidra tell you?"

"Almost nothing, but she said I wouldn't be able to keep you sexually satisfied unless I submitted to this." I waved my hand at the ceiling but my eyes were on Vincent. He looked stricken.

"Kinbaku," he said.

"Kinbaku? Does that mean 'bullshit' in some other language?"

A smile broke through the hard lines of his face. "No. It's a Japanese style of bondage. I became interested in it during a sexually frustrating time in my life. After a difficult breakup."

Oh, what's this? A peek into Vincent's soul?

"Was this the Parisian woman you dated?" I asked this just before I realized his mother might have wanted me to keep my mouth shut about that.

"Yes. And afterwards, I couldn't be sated. So I turned to alternative outlets for my sexual tension. I studied with a Kinbaku master over the course of a year, then I started bringing women... well..." He paused to stare at me, as if he didn't want to reveal some awful, kinky truth about himself. I had to stifle a laugh.

"Then you started bringing women into your rec room to tie them up," I finished for him.

"You are under no obligation to submit to my fetishes, Reese. Don't let Deidra plant seeds of doubt in your head. You slake my lust like no other female has, which is why Deidra is out for blood. She always wants to be on top."

"He says without a hint of sarcasm."

"Can we put aside talk of Deidra and focus on your training?"

"Hold on a sec. I want to see what you do with that?"

I pointed over our heads, and he pursed his lips, gearing up for a denial. "Can we revisit that too? I want to ease you into it, baby. Right now, I need my lovely gollum mate." He placed a soft kiss on the edge of my mouth, doing a lovely job of distracting me.

~ ~ ~

After an evening of crash landing on my ass, I ended up with a raging headache. Go figure. Vincent and I retired to his apartment to crash land on his bed, and he treated me to a back massage that made me climax. Okay, a massage that led into sex. Then we slept until two in the morning when my phone chimed with a text from Christoph.

Cecile wants me to relay a message to you.

I looked over at Vincent as he grabbed his phone from the nightstand. "It's Christoph. He has a message from Cecile."

I texted my reply to Christoph.

What is the message?

"What's the message?" Vincent asked.

"Working on it."

We laid there together, waiting for Christoph's next message to appear, and that stupid image of Christoph cocooning me in his wings rotated to the front of my thoughts. I worked diligently to reroute them before a blush gave me away.

She wants you to visit your grandmother in Chicago. You may find some answers about your gifts there.

I didn't have to repeat the message. Vincent read it over my shoulder.

Okay. How soon?

Christoph's response came swiftly.

ASAP. Any hits on the amulet?

At this point, I turned to get Vincent's input. "Do we know where the amulet is?"

After a moment of silent deliberation, he said, "Yes."

"Really?"

"Yes, Reese. I have the amulet."

"Since when?"

"Since we visited Venice."

"Oh. Should I keep that information to myself?"

"I wish you would. All three domi need to agree on what to do with it." He rested his phone on his chest and leaned back on his crossed arms. "It sounds like we've been handed our first assignment."

"Do you think Petula will know anything about a hybrid's gifts. She's a gollum."

"And she raised your mother in a demon hive. She may have had access to records, or there could be a hybrid pairing in her lineage. I guess I need to make arrangements ASAP. Typically, we would stay with relations, but with tensions running high... Do you mind if we skip protocol and stay at the Ritz-Carlton instead?"

"Hell no, I don't mind. When the alternatives are Boris or Deidra, I'd stay at the convent."

He cracked a smile, nodding his agreement. "And we aren't required to visit anyone else while we're there. The domi just need to know we're coming."

"Including Deidra, of course. I probably should avoid balconies while I'm there."

Vincent turned over, resting his cheek in his palm and letting his phone slide off his chest. "I take full responsibility for provoking Deidra's wrath. I should have severed that tie a lot sooner than I did."

"Severed that tie. Nice analogy. Is there an escape method for those Japanese ties, by the way?"

"Yes. Scissors. The only serious issue I see with this trip is Marco's wife, Manjari. She may want to meet you, so you cannot forget she believes you are the product of another gollum." Vincent's transition away from the ropes came off seamless, but that didn't mean I hadn't noticed.

"Yes, I'm fully aware of the ruse. Does this gollum who is my fake dad have a name?"

"Joseph Tavares. He lives in Buffalo."

"And he plays along with it? What does his mate think?"

"I don't know how that all went down. The failed rescue hasn't been a topic in over twenty years. When my father was lost during the mission, many chose to forget it ever happened."

"I don't think I'm up for meeting Manjari or Ruben. I don't want to blow it."

"I'll do my best to keep our visit low key and quick."

My phone chimed with an incoming text, and I glanced at the screen.

Are you still there?

"Argh, Christoph." I puffed out my breath as I typed a response. Something I hoped would appease both my demon stalker and my gollum boyfriend.

I do not know where the amulet is presently. I will follow Cecile's advice and get back to you.

"There, I got rid of him without lying," I said. "I don't know where the amulet is exactly, and you don't have to tell me."

"Good. It's better you don't know. And, for future reference, you don't have to justify your interactions with Christoph. He has proven his allegiance to you. Just because I want to punch him in the face doesn't mean you two can't be friends."

"Do you really want to punch him in the face?"

Vincent's lips tweaked as he adopted the look of a madman. "Very much. He has abducted you twice, kissed you twice, maybe more, and he has given you a wet dream. I want to pummel him into dust."

A completely unplanned flush swept across my face at Vincent's accusation. "He didn't give me a wet dream." 

"You were close, Reese. If I hadn't woken you up..." He closed his eyes and sucked in a breath, speaking through a long exhale. "I want to be the only one giving you pleasure. Even in your sleep."

Vincent leaned in and took my lips hostage, forcing the back of my head into the pillow as he introduced his tongue to my mouth. I knew jealousy had taken the wheel, and probably fear, the fear of losing me to another. This reckless passion drove him. It even provoked him to make poor choices in the name of protecting me. But, how could I judge him harshly for that? I was a goner too.