by Juniper Hart
“Yes, sire,” Vaughan breathed, but Helios could hear the reluctance in his voice.
“What?” he demanded. “What is the problem?”
“Money, sire. We have no money.” Helios bared his teeth at the sheer stupidity of the sentiment.
“We’re demons, you fool!” he spat. “Go take money. Walk into a bank and take what’s ours!”
Vaughan eyed him uncertainly. “It’s not that simple, sire. Not anymore.”
“Why not?” Helios scoffed. “You’re being lazy now, Vaughan.”
“It’s not laziness, sire! It’s the fact that the Council is actively looking for you again. If they hear of a demon robbing banks, they’ll surely link it back to you. In this age of technology—” The slap that Vaughan had anticipated earlier found its way to his face now, and the smaller demon reeled back in pain, clutching his face in shock.
“Do I have to do everything myself?” Helios snarled. “What is the point of having you if you don’t do anything I ask?”
“I-I’m sorry, sire! I just fear that—” Another slap cut Vaughan off from completing his sentence.
“You shouldn’t have any fear,” Helios spat. “You’re a demon—or at least, that is what you claim. Come on.” He spun and stormed toward the cabin door, not waiting to see if Vaughan was at his back.
“Where are we going, sire?” he asked, hurrying after Helios. “You shouldn’t show yourself yet. It isn’t safe!”
“Vaughan, you have too much fear. And the only way to overcome fear is to face it directly. Come.” Through his peripheral vision, he caught Vaughan’s stricken look but ignored it.
Soon, I won’t have any use for this moron, he thought grimly. Soon, I will have the best, strongest demons bowing at my feet.
The dilapidated pickup truck didn’t start on the first try, but that was hardly surprising. No one had bothered to use it in years, since Helios’ driving skills were atrocious. After the third attempt, the vehicle started up, and the duo was headed into town at breakneck speed along the old, unmanned roads.
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Vaughan squeaked, holding onto his seat for dear life. There was little confidence in his voice, but Helios was unperturbed. The fire that had been lit inside him hundreds of years ago was becoming a conflagration now, and he wasn’t going to allow Vaughan to stop him.
“You question me?” Helios hissed, flames shooting out of his eyes to burn at Vaughan furiously. The smaller being slapped at his smoldering clothes until he was no longer smoking.
“Where are we going?” Vaughan insisted. Helios didn’t bother to respond, the lonely town appearing in the distance. “Oh…” Vaughan moaned shakily as the only bank appeared before them. “You can’t…” One more smack landed on his face, and it was enough to silence Vaughan entirely, knowing that any argument was bound to be futile.
“We need money, don’t we?” Helios retorted. “Isn’t that what you said? How else do you propose we get it if you insist upon being useless? I have to get it myself.”
The truck stopped, and Vaughan reluctantly followed Helios’ confident strides toward the building, a low whimper escaping his lips.
“Please, sire,” Vaughan begged. “You have been in hiding for so long, doing something like this will instantly expose you. All of our hard work will be for nothing! The hiding, the running, the—” But Helios didn’t seem to hear a word coming out of his sidekick’s mouth, his face contorting into one of demonic fury as he shifted.
Inside the small bank, everyone froze at the ugly creature coming toward them.
“If anyone moves, everyone is dead,” Helios snarled in Icelandic. “I want every krona in this establishment. If one is missing, everyone is dead. If you call the police, everyone is dead. If you look at me strangely, everyone is dead. Any questions?”
The two tellers shook their heads, unable to pull their eyes away from Helios’ insurmountably ugly face, and it wasn’t until he roared loudly that they jumped into action, filling bags they had found themselves with money to give him. He hung back nonchalantly to wait until the piles were dumped into his arms.
“Thank you,” he said cordially, accepting the cash after several minutes. “Have a nice day.” He strode from the bank as Vaughan ran to keep up, but Helios stopped him, raising a hand. “Where are you going?” the senior demon demanded.
“Home. With you, sire,” Vaughan answered in disbelief.
“Not until you take care of the mortals.”
Vaughan blinked several times, uncomprehendingly.
“Take care, sire?” he echoed. “What do you mean?”
Slowly, Helios’ face melded back into his mortal form, and he sighed. “What do you think I mean, Vaughan? You yourself said that the Council is looking for me. We can’t leave any witnesses behind to speak, can we? Your concern is that this might get out, but if there are no witnesses, how can it?”
Disbelief colored Vaughan’s face. “You want me to kill them?”
“Set it on fire. It will take care of all the evidence,” Helios agreed, his tone almost conversational. He turned back to the truck. “You better hurry,” he added, dropping the bags on the bed. “You don’t want me to leave without you, do you?” He chuckled and climbed into the driver’s side before whipping his head around to glower at Vaughan with his iridescent eyes. “What are you waiting for, cretin?” he snapped. “That bank isn’t going to burn itself.”
“Y-yes, sire,” Vaughan choked, whirling back toward the building to finish Helios’ bidding.
Fool, Helios thought, shaking his head as the lackey limped back toward the credit union. How did I get so unlucky as to be stuck with him alone? This lack of loyalty will not be forgotten in the long run.
But Vaughan was all he had for now, and Helios knew he couldn’t afford to lose him. Yet that didn’t stop him from putting his key in the ignition and driving off as Vaughan re-entered the building.
Hopefully he can find his own way back to the cabin, Helios thought cruelly, laughing to himself as he left the scene.
When he arrived back at the cottage a few minutes later, Helios pulled the cash from the bags and counted his ill-gotten gains eagerly. To his dismay, there was only the equivalent of four hundred thousand euros between the two bags.
I’ve been out of the loop for a while, but I don’t think this is going to do the trick, he thought, gritting his teeth. I’m going to need more money than this for everything I require to regain my rightful place among the Enchanted.
He sat back and reached for his computer, Googling more banks nearby. Now that he had a taste for what it was like out of hiding, he was feeling an itch growing inside him. He found several other financial institutions, and slowly, Helios developed a map to help guide him through. If he averaged half a million euros in each of the six banks on his list, it would be a start. He wouldn’t need Vaughan anymore or depend on the slow demon’s laborious updates.
I can get to Madrid and find that sword and destroy it while going after the creator of all my misery, Helios thought. And I can end Vaughan’s miserable little existence when I get my hands on that sword. Whiny brat.
Excitement started to course through his blood for the first time in years. There was finally an end in sight, and Helios intended to seize it fully. Cruz Reyes was in his sights after far too long.
The only thing that might make Cruz’s death more delightful would be taking the life of his mate while the bear watched, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. If he hadn’t found his mate yet, there was little Helios could do about that. He was happy enough to know that the sword was in reach and his exile was almost over.
Ready or not, Helios thought, snickering aloud, here I come. You can’t hide. Helios is back, Enchanted beings. I hope you’re ready for me.
8
“Don’t you forget about the little people, Miss Tight-Ass Purser,” Dayna cackled, and Sage whipped an empty plastic cup at her head before her friend could duck. They were sitting in Central Park on a pla
id picnic blanket, drinking a bottle of wine and celebrating. Sage was relishing the feeling of warmth and security, even though she knew it wasn’t real.
It’s fleeting, just like everything else, she thought with wistful bliss. Sunshine, happiness, soulmates—everything is fleeting in the grand scheme of things, isn’t it?
“What’s with the attitude?” Sage laughed, shifting her attention back toward Dayna. “It was your idea that I apply for the promotion.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t think you’d actually get it,” Dayna chortled, throwing the cup back. It bounced off the redhead’s forehead, and Sage snickered as she refilled their drinks.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, you bitch,” she said. “I’ll remember all your support when you need it.”
“Unlike you, I don’t need to be surrounded by the ever-adoring.” Dayna laughed. “I wouldn’t need you to tell me that I’m perfect, amazing, and incredibly sexy, because I am already well aware of my many talents.” Sage giggled.
“You are all those things,” she conceded. It was a beautiful summer afternoon, and she was feeling happy for the first time in weeks.
After what had happened in Madrid, she had thrown herself into work, stopping only to sleep and eat. She picked up extra flights and refused to let herself think of Cruz or how stupid she had been, becoming emotionally attached to a stranger.
You need to re-evaluate your priorities, she told herself. No more one-night stands, no more partying on the islands. You’ve been wrapped up in this life for a decade, but you forget that there’s a real world out there, one that you can’t escape, even in the air.
She would never admit it to anyone, but she had been questioning her self-worth, her confidence terribly shattered by Cruz’s abandonment. She’d considered searching for him, if only to give him a piece of her mind, but through sheer willpower, she had managed to stop herself.
“You should apply as a purser,” Dayna had suggested one afternoon when Sage had mentioned her plans. “If you’re serious about getting out of the business one day. The pay is better, and you get to boss everyone around.”
Sage had chuckled. “That sounds like it’s more up your alley, then.”
“Nah. I still like my Thai orgies and Roman bathhouses. I’ll catch the next one,” Dayna joked, but Sage knew she was probably telling the truth about that.
Sage had been forerunner for the position of purser. Her track record was stellar, she had never been written up, and her peer reviews were outstanding. She was offered the job within a week of her application being submitted.
“Are you going to stay in New York?” Dayna asked, stretching her long legs against the prickly blanket. Sage nodded, staring absently at Dayna’s shapely calves. An unexpected surge of hormones coursed through her, and she balked at her purely impure thoughts.
What the hell is wrong with you? Are you checking Dayna out?
“Of course. Where else would I go?” Sage asked, pulling her eyes away from her friend’s tanned legs, her cheeks crimson with embarrassment. Dayna didn’t seem to notice where Sage’s eyes had gone, and she shrugged.
“You can go anywhere in the world,” she replied. “It’s one of the perks of being a purser. They will schedule your flights from wherever you decide to live, provided it is in within fifty kilometers of one of the cities we fly from. But you already knew that.”
Sage had considered it at first, thinking of the dozens of cities she would have happily called home: Perth, Tangier, Amsterdam, Cape Town, or Vancouver, to name a few. Yet when she thought about it, really debating which country she could call home base, she realized that any semblance of a family she had was based out of the affluent condo residence on Park Street.
Northeastern is my family, she thought with some regret. And New York has always been my home since I started working with them.
Her father and the blonde tart still lived in New Jersey, but Angelique did her best to ensure the time Sage spent with David was short and impersonal. Micheline had also remarried, but she had moved to Paris with her new husband and the children they shared. Sage would stop to see them every second trip she made to Paris, though it was more to spend time with her stepsisters than her father’s ex-wife.
I am lucky to have my crew, Sage thought. God knows I will never have another family without them. And where would I be without Dayna? That is my family. And of course, there was always the pack, but the longer Sage spent inside Northeastern, the more she distanced herself from the other shifters. I understand more and more where Dayna is coming from, she thought wryly. She really is rubbing off on me.
“Are you okay?” Dayna’s voice brought her back to the ground, and suddenly, she was staring at her best friend uncomprehendingly. There were two Daynas sitting before her.
“Yeah, I’m…” A swooping dizziness overwhelmed her, and she was finding it hard to breathe.
“SAGE!” Dayna screamed. Without warning, Sage fell face forward into the grass, and the world went black.
“What the fuck was that?” Dayna yelled as Sage came to. “Are you drunk?”
The redhead blinked several times, staring at her friend, who straddled her, gently slapping her face. She was lying on the picnic blanket, her head swimming as Dayna peered at her with intense concern.
“Are you all right? Talk to me!” Another quick, sharp slap followed before Sage could react.
“Should I call an ambulance?” someone behind Dayna called, but Sage could not see who it was. Dayna held up a hand as if to have him wait, and Sage struggled to sit up.
“What the hell happened?” she croaked as Dayna helped her rise. “Stop hitting me.”
“You tell me!” her friend replied, glancing over her shoulder at the couple who had stopped to assist. The man had his cell poised to dial 9-1-1. Relief flowed over Dayna’s face.
“I’m okay,” Sage called to them weakly, but they continued to stare at her skeptically.
“Are you sure?” the man asked uncertainly. Sage nodded, sheepishness overcoming her face.
“Probably too much sun and wine,” she said. He nodded, his mouth becoming a fine line of annoyance as he figured he had stopped to help a drunk. He turned to his companion and muttered something under his breath. “Thanks for stopping!” Sage yelled after him, but they didn’t turn around. Although she was sure they weren’t being kind to her plight, she wasn’t sure if she blamed them.
I’m sure they have better things to do than babysit a couple of tipsy girls in a park. She had to admit that the dizziness had been completely unexpected, and it worried her slightly. Still, she refused to let Dayna see her concern.
“Screw them,” Dayna said impatiently, turning to her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah,” Sage said, but she could not shake the wooziness. “I probably just need some water. Let’s get out of here.”
Nodding, Dayna gathered their stuff, and they started walking.
“See, this is what happens when you fake being sick,” Dayna commented after a moment of silence. “You end up cursing yourself. It’s called karma.” Sage shot her a perplexed look.
“When did I fake being sick?” she asked in confusion, not knowing remotely what her friend was talking about. Dayna snorted.
“I seem to remember you pretending you had the flu in Spain.” It was Sage’s turn to scoff.
“Seriously? Have you been harboring this resentment for two months now? How long have you been waiting to throw that back in my face?”
Dayna’s face puckered into a scowl.
“I don’t take too well to being lied to,” she replied sullenly. Sage shook her head and rolled her eyes. She instantly wished she had not, as another wave of vertigo washed over her. Pausing for a second to gather her bearings, she stared at Dayna again. Instinctively, her friend reached out to steady her.
“I’m sorry I lied to you,” Sage finally said, unwilling to go to war over ancient history. “But I hardly think this is karma for that.”
“Dayna! That’s awful!” Sage cried, aghast at her friend’s smug memory, but she couldn’t help laughing at the morbid nature of the analogy.
“That’s karma,” Dayna countered. “Sheer, unadulterated fate.”
I don’t believe in fate, Sage thought with some annoyance. Not anymore. She loathed that Dayna had brought up Spain when she had tried so hard to forget about it.
They continued to walk toward their residences.
“What ever happened to lover boy?” Dayna asked. “Was he worth it?”
Sage found herself bristling at the mention of Cruz. I guess we’re bound to discuss him today. No escaping that. So much for that minute of happiness I was feeling. Like I said, it’s all fleeting.
“Yep,” Sage answered shortly. “He was while he lasted.” Dayna sensed her anger and wisely dropped the subject.
In truth, Sage had thought of Cruz a great deal over the past two months. She could not understand why he would do that to her. Had her sense about him been completely off? She swore what they had shared was mutual. And if she had been wrong about the way he felt about her, had she also been wrong about what his intentions were on that flight? Could he have been a threat to international security? Or a threat to the Enchanted? Maybe he had felt like she was getting too close to him. Maybe he had a wife. Maybe Sage was going to drive herself completely crazy over it.
She had been tempted to dig into who he was, find out his last name, and confront him face to face, but she knew, logically, how stalker-like and strange that would be.
Meeting him was a blessing in disguise. If you hadn’t, you would never have had the motivation to change your lifestyle. So what if he ran off on you like you were some worthless piece of trash? It inspired you to do better.
She thought about the suit jacket hanging in the back of her closet, the one she had smuggled back to New York in her suitcase. Although she knew it was foolish and sentimental, Sage swore she could still smell the faintest whiff of Tom Ford Oud Wood on the lapel.