by Mason Sabre
“Perhaps.”
She cast her eyes out along the route he must have taken. “Maybe we go this way and see what we find. It won’t be long before he kills again. That will give us a better location.”
“You will let people die so that you can find him?”
Nina straightened. “I will do whatever I need to locate him and box his ass back up.”
Chapter 5
Nina strode ahead with determined steps. The damage that Arioch could do with the body he was in ... He would literally run around with a fresh set of claws he could use just to cause chaos.
She hadn’t meant it when she said they’d wait for the next kill; she was just desperate. She had tried to mean it. Tried to be like the others of her kind—ruthless—but that just wasn’t her way. She needed to find Arioch, and she needed to find him right now. It would take a heck of a lot of bullets to take the asshole down, too. It wouldn’t matter if she got on Aboas’ radar, because if the shit really hit the fan, and Arioch spread his chaos around, she would have to tell him before it got any worse.
Either that or hide for all eternity.
The trail through the roses was easy enough to follow. It led to a half-fence at the back. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be half. Actually, right now it wasn’t even that. Arioch had torn through it. Leaving it split open much like the woman’s chest on the slide. Nina squeezed through, forcing her wings through the tiny gap and making it worse.
Henry had gone back to get Yvette and to release the people from their glamour. They would wake soon enough, wondering what the hell happened, checking their watches, and trying to figure out how time had just gone, and all they had done was blink. She’d thank Henry later for all he was doing.
Blood stained the fence. Not a lot of it, more like a handprint … She examined the different spots closer. It was like he had run with his hands out and happily left this trace of breadcrumbs for her to find. This was on purpose, she was sure of it. The bastard was probably feeding off her, too—her panic and the images in her mind of her getting her ass handed back to her by Aboas.
She had no chance of finding him, though. She realised with sinking conviction as the blood marks got less and less that this would be harder than she expected. If she could get to who had summoned him, maybe then she had a hope. Demons don’t go straight to their summoned if they don’t want to. Arioch had been caged for centuries. Of course he didn’t want to. He wanted to taste his freedom, just as anyone in his position would have wanted to do.
“Any luck?” Yvette asked when they finally caught up to Nina.
“Nothing.” She was standing in the middle of a crossroads—four roads going in different directions, and aside from the one she had come from, Arioch could have gone any way he damn well wanted. She had checked each corner for blood, hoping that he had left a marking. He liked games ... he’d have left something. She had to find it. “He must go to his summoner soon,” she said, defeat in her words, and the weight of the hopelessness threatening to settle in her chest like an unwelcome guest.
“He won’t right away?” asked Yvette.
“It would be easier if they did. But no. Arioch will get to his summoner soon enough, and God help whoever it is when he does.” Nina could only hope she could get there first. “They think they can control the demon, but it is all lies and games. Arioch will twist his way out of whatever it is the Human wants. They always do. But the longer he stays away from his summoner, the more he drains them and the easier it will be to gain his freedom.”
“Drains him?” Yvette said. “Like we do?”
“His life force.” Demons relied on that. One sure way to trap a summoned demon was to kill the summoner, but that also held risks of freeing the demon. It would just depend on how drained the summoner was, and how much power the demon held. “The summoner will pay with his soul. Someone like Arioch, the Human …”—she suspected the summoner was Human. It usually was—“he’ll wish he had never bothered.” Nina stopped and crouched down as something on the ground caught her eye. She glanced ahead of her. “Plus, all of this, the killing, it is strengthening him. Filling him with chaos.” She rose again, frowning at Henry and Yvette. “If he gets too strong, he can break the tie with the summoner and then he is free.” She focused on Henry. “Are you sure you can’t trace him? He has left a trail of blood, but I can’t seem to find it now.”
“I can scent blood,” Henry said in contemplation. “But it is weak.”
“Anything is better than nothing,” Yvette added with a smile, ever the optimist.
Henry inhaled loudly, whether it was for show or not, Nina wasn’t sure. They followed him around in so many directions that Nina started to feel sick. This was hopeless. She halted, shaking her head and sighing. Shit.
“I will have to find him myself. It’s too long.”
It had been almost an hour, and he hadn’t shown up. He could be so far away now. Searching for him herself could get her caught—it would light her up on the radar like a fucking shooting star—but every minute was another too long, and soon, the stones she had left would wake, bringing masses of demons out if no one noticed they were unguarded.
“I’ve got this.” She backed away from Henry and Yvette, needing space so she could push out her wings mentally and physically. She needed to drop her guard, and for a moment, that would make her vulnerable. She hoped that Henry and Yvette would stand guard.
She moved off the pavement and into the dark where no one could see her unless they came looking. Inhaling, she dropped her mental shields, releasing her wings and connecting to the Ether. Grappling onto it like it was a kite caught in the breeze. Her mind swam with the sounds from home, from here, from everywhere. People, voices, they all mingled into one inside her head. The hustle of everyday life. She had to focus to separate it all before it sent her insane. All the Humans and Others around. So many of them. So much ugliness in the world filtering into her mind. No wonder there were demons if this was what people were like.
She spanned her wings out, glorious wings that filled the space she had left. Reaching her arms out to the side, she welcomed everything to her. It was hard to balance between what was above and what was with her, without alerting anyone to what she was doing or where she was. Going to the Earthen plane was forbidden unless there was a reason. No reason to remind the Humans that angels existed. She let her mind go, spreading out like a wave on the metaphorical plane. Seeking, driving, spreading out a wave of hearing that absorbed almost everything it touched. He was too far away, perhaps.
“Come on, you bastard. Where are you?” She pushed harder, holding her breath, using every ounce of energy she could thrust through her mind. She searched, diving through mind after mind, leaping between them.
Eyes flashed in front of her face, the horrific expression of a malevolent grin, shocking her. Red eyes … no, yellow eyes jumped into her face, almost making a boo sound and knocking her off her feet and throwing her mind off the search.
Henry caught one hand, Yvette caught the other as Nina sailed backwards from the mental shove. “What on earth was that?” Henry asked.
“Arioch,” Nina breathed, inwardly cheering, his image flashing across her mind on repeat. “I found him.” She didn’t doubt for a second it was anyone else. He would know she was searching for him, and he would know she would use the waves to find him. The asshole was waiting, ready to jump out and throw her off. She lowered herself to the ground, suddenly heavy and depleted of energy. It took everything to do what she had just done. She lowered her head into her hands, crouching down on the ground … begging, praying she could just hold on a little longer.
“Nina,” Yvette said, a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll be okay in a second.” Just a second. She closed her eyes, let her mind silence and her body sag. She felt the earth below her, focusing on that to pull power from the very nature of the world itself.
You will not find me. Arioch’s voice echoed through her mind.
>
Oh, I will, she replied in soundless whisper to him. She had to … her life really depended on it. “I will find you.”
Clasping her hands together, Nina pulled at the wound in her palm from before. It had almost healed, but she tugged at the skin, trying to get it to split. It wasn’t working, though. The skin was too healed. She reached into her clothing and took out her angel blade. With intent, she pulled the sharp edge across the centre of her hand like she had with the stone. I will fucking find you. Slamming her hands down on the ground, she spread the blood out before her, smearing it. Closing her eyes again and ignoring Henry and Yvette, she drove her mind into the earth. She didn’t have the time for their questions.
Henry had the sense to move Yvette back. She sent her mind out again, ready for Arioch and his tricks this time. She would not be scared off so easily.
The scent of blood was thick in the air, the coppery scent filling every tiny hole. It almost knocked her back again, but she held on, pushing forward with the determination of a woman walking on the edge. She pushed against him, knocking against his mental shields to find him. He was not stronger than her. He wasn’t. She gasped as she broke through, but there was someone in front of him. A leg missing … lying on the ground ... They weren’t dead, but their mind was numb.
Sucking in a breath, Nina let herself pause for a second. She didn’t want to get carried away with looking at the bodies on the ground. That would give Arioch the control he needed to get away again, and she was not letting that happen. She lifted her mental gaze away from the man to look around Arioch and where he was. Anything that would give away his location.
“Where is there a statue?” Nina said, her eyes still closed. “It’s a lion, but it has water around it. Like a bath.” She angled her head to look at it better. “No, the lion is a tap. The water pours from his mouth. Wait … there are four of them.” She snapped her eyes open, breaking the connection. “Do you know where that is?”
Henry shook his head.
“I do,” Yvette chimed in excitedly. “It is the old clock tower. Doesn’t work anymore. But I know it. It isn’t very far, either.”
Nina rose, slamming her mental shutters down and whispering silent thanks that she hadn’t been caught between the two planes. She pushed her wings back again. “Show me.”
Nina took the first couple of steps, but her head was so damn heavy she had to stop. It swayed, almost like her brain was rocking on itself in her mind. A little like a ship in the middle of a ferocious ocean—she felt as if she was just waiting for the storm to come. She wrapped her arms around herself, a vain attempt to feel like she was holding herself together, almost literally. Even her arms ached from the effort, and she was about ready to lie down, close her eyes, and give up. Every part of her was so tired and so heavy. It wasn’t just her mind in deep waters, her body was trying to wade through the sea, too.
Dragging herself behind her friends, Nina followed Yvette and Henry. It was like another park. Different to the last one, though. Whereas the other one was small, holding a child’s play area and flowerbeds all around it, this one was more like private gardens surrounded by a metal fence. Large gates stood open, and the sign stated that after hours, this place was open to Others. Hang out here at night, bump into a shifter, tough shit. Nina realised that places like this didn’t get all caught up with graffiti and things like that because they were open to Others at night.
Henry stopped at the gate. He had his arm in front of Yvette, stopping her from going in. Nina chastised herself. She had seen what Arioch had done, all the blood. What kind of idiot brings two vampires to a blood party? “It’s a lot of blood, isn’t it?” She asked Henry, confirming.
Henry nodded. His eyes glowed with liquid blue fire. His fangs had elongated, keeping his mouth open. The veins in his face bulged with the anticipation of the meal that was just ahead. His eyes tinged red at the whites, where all the capillaries readied themselves for a feast. Nina realised that he wasn’t just holding an arm in front of Yvette to hold her back. He was holding onto her. “We can’t go in. My bloodlust is rising. Yvette will never be able to control hers.”
Nina felt the disappointment in the pit of her stomach. No. She wouldn’t be able to go. “Stay out here?” She asked hopefully, not wanting to feel alone. She was pathetic, and she knew it.
Henry looked to the sky. “For as long as we can.”
Nina didn’t need Yvette now. The tower was so tall she could see it over the tallest of trees. She had said a clock tower. It sat in the centre of the park, deep in the middle of all the trees, all the walls and paths. A good place for a demon to hide and to trap someone—to trap an angel if he needed to.
Nina could let her wings out when she passed through the gate. No one would be here just now. No one that would be freaked out. She raced along a long path that ran between the overhanging trees. On either side, there were small cafes and even a small play area for the little ones. Nina pictured the place being alive with the hustle and bustle on a summer’s day.
Now it was nothing but silent.
The tower, she found, was just behind the tennis courts. It was lit up by the lights cast from them. But then it needed little light … daylight was rolling itself in. The shifters weren’t dead, but they were injured, and Nina was betting every single one of them had fallen under Arioch’s hands. She walked cautiously, not wanting to startle any of them and send them into a frenzy. Shifters could get a little violent when they were down like this … the animal inside them wanting to come and protect themselves. There were five of them. A soft wave of one long combined groan rolled out around her. Nina stopped and angled her head so she could hear better. They were all doing it together, all at the same time. A song of pain.
She stepped closer to them, her hand going to her mouth. One shifter had lost both of his legs. Her heart wept for him. Shifters healed, but there was a limit to their abilities. Arioch had taken more than his legs, though, he had taken away the ability for the animal to run. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered to the injured shifter. He was young, too. A whole life ahead of him. She placed a hand on his head, brushing back his hair and offering him some peace inside. He would need every ounce of fight he had within him after this.
“Nina, Nina, Nina ... took your time.” Arioch’s words sang out from a man’s voice, deep, rich. Very much shifter. Shit. He must have fucking attacked a pack.
She spun around, rising. “You need to come with me.” She couldn’t believe he stood there opposite her, blood dripping from his hands. He threw his head back and laughed. “What have you done?”
Her question seemed to make him laugh more. He walked around, surveying his work. But Arioch wasn’t a fool. He kept his distance from Nina. “They’re shifters,” he grinned, pure malice in his eyes. He was delighted with what he had done. “Do you know when shifters bite, they spread their disease? Just one lick of shifter blood, and poof, you become furry. Do you know it works the same way for me? Only I can infect shifters, too?”
Nina’s chest tightened as she glanced back at the shifters laying on the ground. Shit, he had bitten them. “Why?”
“Can you imagine? Highly infectious shifters running around biting everyone. It would be like an apocalypse, only without the zombies. How long would it be before every Human and Other would be infected with the madness?”
The bastard. He’d fucking done it on purpose. The disease would spread and with it, the chaos. “You could always kill them, Nina.”
She could. Then be classed as a rogue angel and be screwed for sure. The Seraph weren’t made to kill. No, she could hear Aboas’ words in her head already. This must play out as it will. It is not their place to interfere with these things—even if she reasoned with herself that she was just fixing something she had caused. Although she could reason with Aboas that perhaps this was meant to happen.
Yeah … she could imagine that.
Nina dashed forward, trying to catch Arioch off guard as he laughed at
her. But Arioch raced off with shifter speed. Shit. He ran around her and she spun on herself, slamming into a wall of hard muscle, yelping as she did. Her eyes rose to meet that of Jas.
“Do you want to tell me what is going on?”
She backed up, heart racing. “Nope.” She shook her head. “Maybe later?”
Chapter 6
Jas watched her, larger than life, making her heart skip a beat at the very sight of him—not with the usual feelings of love, but with fear.
“I ….” She couldn’t get her words out no matter how many times she tried. But then, what could she say to him? She’d gone and got herself caught, well and truly.
“This is what was wrong before?” His voice was thick, heavy—it held an accent when he wasn’t happy. It was one of his tells. Right now, that not happy was directed at her. She scanned the area behind him, trying to listen to him while also putting out feelers to see if he was alone. Maybe Aboas had sent him to come and get her. No. That was stupid. Aboas would never be that merciful. He would send Roman; no questions asked.
“Sorry,” she muttered in the end. Nothing else would work. She knew that ‘sorry’ wouldn’t work, either, but it was all she had. “Aboas knows?”
Jas sucked in his breath. “Do you know what happens when an angel goes renegade? Do you know what they do to them?”
Oh, Nina knew alright. She had seen it. Angel had the wrong definition to it in the writings of mankind. The last angel who had dared to defy Aboas had ended up a public spectacle. Roman had pretty much pulled his insides to the outside. If it wasn’t for the spinal cord, Kyshar would have been torn completely in two. Nina could see it in her mind; it wasn’t something she wanted to picture, either. The way his legs had still moved, and he had felt everything, because Roman was an asshole, and he had left it intact so that he could feel, and then he could scream. That was the problem with being immortal … they really could live through anything. The worst sound of all was when Roman had snapped Kyshar’s back in two, the crack resonating through the halls. He’d begged Roman to end him.