Broken Warrior

Perfection in Souls

Eliza

I had heard what she had said in the cell. I had known about the fury and pain that she carried and why she carried it for Carbry. But until Eirene sang that ancient lullaby and calmed the child in my arms, I had not understood it.

This woman, this killer. This assassin who had been molded into a weapon for centuries. She had been a mother once. She had known how to love and had it ripped away from her. That was why the children today mattered.

Once we landed, the girl who we all strongly suspected had been orphaned by the Hunters attack, was taken by a team of medics to be cared for. I regretted letting her go, knowing that she didn't need more cold clinics and strangers. It was a cruel twist of fate that the nurturing, protective side of vampires was so strong, when we could not procreate ourselves. It was the only thing I regretted about being turned.

I had always wanted to be a mother.

Before Eirene could disappear on me, I reached out and grabbed her arm, holding her in place in the flurry of activity that rushed around us unheeded. "Please. We need to talk."

She looked surprised, giving me a careful, almost wounded look before nodding. "I will stay as long as you want me to."

The broken pieces of my heart shifted and ground together, a small voice in the back of my mind telling me that I would hold her to that promise despite what she meant by it. Still, I held on to her and pulled her into one of the vehicles heading to the office, knowing that there was a shitstorm inevitably waiting for us. Would the Head Order know that Eirene had been there? Would they suspect that it was the same person we had told them had died? I wanted to think that there was no mole, no one would pass on the information. But I had no idea.

"Boss says for you to take the rest of the day and the night off, ma'am." The young vampire who was driving us glanced at me in the rearview mirror, flashing a toothy grin. "And he says that if you think about coming in before he calls you in, you're fired."

I had a good feeling that it was a hollow threat but I was too tired to push the issue just yet. I would see how I felt after feeding and having a couple moments to myself. I frowned then, a realization dawning on me. "I left my bike in Vegas."

Eirene laughed softly, the sound was barely a whisper and I only knew it was a laugh by the smile on her lips and the amusement in her eyes. "You can get a new bike."

It was a glimpse, a tease, of what she could be.

What we could be, if I could only convince her to give it a chance. But I shook my head and smiled, holding onto her arm just as firmly for the remainder of the drive. I could sense that Eirene was tense as we walked back into the place she had been imprisoned for so long, her expression getting blank as we walked through the parking garage to the elevator.

I only let her go once we had stepped into my apartment, watching her glance around the modest space I allowed myself to occupy with a sort of fascination. I could tell she wanted to explore it, but something held her in place After a moment, she turned to look at me, those dark eyes watching. "You lived so close to me, all those weeks."

There was no accusation in her words, only a soft sort of thoughtfulness that broke my heart. "It was incredibly difficult to resist coming to see you. But I was angry at you, so that helped."

"I'm sorry." She whispered and shook her head, looking down at her hands. "I had intended to get information out of you. Talk to you once. But the rest of it... it... was not... as part of a plan."

"I know." I nodded and motioned her deeper into my apartment, pulling off my jacket and hanging it on the back of one of the kitchen chairs before I walked to the fridge.

I was surprised to see her unbuckle her cloak and carefully fold it over the back of another chair, delighted, but surprised. Perhaps she had meant what she said. It wasn't until I saw her lean against the counter that I remembered she had been injured, that the smell of blood on wasn't entirely from the people she had killed.

"I know I can not... I know I have no right to ask for forgiveness." She whispered, pausing when I pulled out a bottle of blood and pressed it into her hands, nodding toward the couch.

"Funny thing. If you actually apologized and stuck around to try, you might be surprised." I grabbed another two bottles of blood, glaring at her until she turned and walked to the couch, sitting down on it.

She looked as exhausted as I felt, opening her bottle as I sat beside her and opened my own, putting the spare bottle on the table in front of us.

She finished the first bottle before responding, closing her eyes for a moment, then nodding to herself. "I don't know how to do this. Any of it."

"You did once." I offered softly, possibly far too bluntly for my own good. I saw her wince as she put the bottle down and forced myself to continue. "And I know those are bad memories... but you're not a monster. I saw you today. "

"Killing." She nodded, watching something in the distance, some memory I could not see.

"Singing." I whispered, finishing my own bottle, putting it down before reaching out to open the third. I took a sip, before handing it to her. "I saw your relief when you heard the children were safe. That is what you are. That is what you can do. I don't want you to be an executioner for Knight Corp. None of us do. We want you... for... what you did today."

"Tim told me the same thing. " She whispered softly, brokenly, taking the bottle and taking a long swallow before offering it back to me. I suspected that it was more about the ritual of sharing that drove her to continue drinking, so I accepted and took a small drink as she spoke. "That I could work, and not have to worry about Ryker or Carbry. I would just go through Timothy. They told me before that I would have complete control over what I did. I would just... take what files they had for me... and follow their rules."

"Our rules." I whispered, handing her back the bottle, reaching out after she took it, to put my hand on her arm, needing the contact. "Would you stay for me?"

"I thought you would want me to go." She flicked her eyes away from me, frowning softly, before taking another drink of blood. "And your friendship with Ryker.. I would not steal that from him. Or you."

When she moved to hand me back the bottle, I only took it so I could put it on the table, before climbing into her lap. When she relaxed back into the couch and slid her hands over my legs, I lifted my hands to her face. "Ryker may never forgive you, but he would never ask me to make that choice. I can be friends with him and still... see where we can go with this. I love you, Eirene. I know I barely know you, and what I do know... well, nothing about anything that's going on is a healthy start to a relationship. But I want to try. Please say you want to try. Even if it doesn't work, I love you, and you'll always have me, even as a friend."

She leaned her face into my hands and closed her eyes, her arms wrapping around my waist and holding me close. "I would like that. "

"And even if you turn down Tim and Knight Corp. Even if that part doesn't work out... you and me, we can still..."

Eirene grinned and kissed me, halting my words with her lips as she pulled me even closer to her until my head swam and her pupils were dilated. She leaned her forehead against mine and nodded, her eyes searching mine as she hugged me close. "Ok. And I will give... Timothy and Knight Corp a shot."

"Good. Now you need to get undressed and have a shower, so I can make sure that you aren't injured." I grinned and stood, pulling back out of her embrace and grabbing her hands, pulling her up and toward the bathroom.

She followed, laughing softly as she did so. "I have healed."

I glanced over my shoulder at her, giving her a hopeful look. "I still need to check."

Eirene didn't object to it as she followed me into the bathroom.