Death of Darkness

by Dianne Duvall

  Her pulse raced at the touch of his lips and the feel of his large fingers giving hers an affectionate squeeze. Heat rose in her cheeks. “You love to make me blush, don’t you?”

  He winked. “Guilty as charged.” Stepping back, he bowed. “Have a lovely night, Leah.”

  “You, too.”

  Opening the door, he stepped out into the night.

  Leah retrieved her keys from the cash register and moved to lock the door. As she did so, she glanced through the window to get a last look at Seth… and saw only empty street. Frowning, she moved closer until her nose nearly touched the glass, then looked in both directions.

  He was gone. No sign of him walking away. No car pulling away from the curb. Nothing.

  She locked both locks on the door. “That’s weird,” she mumbled.

  Reaching over, she grabbed the rod and turned it to close the blinds, then did the same on the larger windows.

  A sigh escaped her. Oh well. It had been a fun interlude.

  Seth teleported to David’s home as soon as he left Leah’s store.

  Zach was already there, smiling down at Lisette, who played with Adira on the living room floor. When he caught sight of Seth, he frowned. “You look pissed.”

  Seth shook his head. He was, but he didn’t want to talk about it. “Here.” He tossed Zach his phone and caught the one Zach slung toward him. He wasn’t even sure if it was anger he felt or exhaustion. Or maybe disappointment, which didn’t make any sense at all.

  Zach shared a glance with his wife. “It wasn’t a big thing, Seth. Next time we’ll do what we did this morning and have Darnell and Chris take your calls before diverting them to me so the immortals will know whom to expect. We just skipped that step this time.”

  And Seth had needlessly alarmed his Immortal Guardians because he’d volunteered to look for a stuffed unicorn so he could see Leah again. “I wasn’t thinking,” he muttered, furious at himself. Cliff’s mental state was fragile. What if Zach and Bastien hadn’t been able to walk him back from the edge this time?

  Zach frowned. “Seth—”

  Skillet’s “Monster” interrupted him as Seth’s cell phone rang. “Yes,” he answered.

  Harsh breathing and the clang of weapons carried over the line. “Seth! I could use your help,” an immortal stationed in Scotland called.

  Reaching into his pocket, Seth drew out the little unicorn and tossed it to Lisette. Then he raced to his bedroom, retrieved his katanas, and teleported to Glasgow.

  “I’m worried about Seth,” Lisette said a couple of weeks later.

  “I am, too,” Zach admitted.

  The two of them lay in bed, their skin still damp from the vigorous lovemaking they’d enjoyed. Zach was stretched out on his back with Lisette curled up against his side, her head resting on his shoulder. He didn’t think he would ever grow tired of her touch. He loved the feel of her fingers stroking his chest in languid movements and the way her toes tickled his shins.

  He combed his fingers through her long, silky hair.

  “Has he said anything to you?” she asked softly.

  “No.” Seth wasn’t saying much to anyone. He had been quieter of late. Withdrawn. Zach had thought perhaps fatigue weighed him down on top of everything else, but Seth had refused to let Zach field his calls so he could get some rest. It was almost as if he feared something dire would happen if he relaxed his vigilance even for a moment.

  “I wish we could find the missing gifted ones for him,” she murmured.

  “Immortals,” he corrected. “The missing immortals.”

  She sighed. “I still can’t believe Gershom transformed them. How could he even do that when he isn’t infected with the virus himself?” That was something the other immortals didn’t know. Seth, Zach, and Gershom—and the rest of the ancients deemed Others—were not infected with the virus. Their immortality had instead been granted them at birth.

  It still bothered Zach that he couldn’t share the source of it with Lisette. But if he did, anyone with telepathic abilities would be able to pluck the information from her thoughts. And as Seth often said, violence always followed when humans learned the truth of who and what the Others were.

  David knew the source of their immortality. But everyone else believed the virus had transformed them as it had the rest of Seth’s Immortal Guardians.

  “Gershom must have extracted the virus from the vampire army he raised in Russia,” Zach surmised.

  She nodded. “Not being able to find the immortals and rescue them is killing Seth.”

  Again Zach nodded. But something else niggled at him. The last time Zach had fielded Seth’s calls—the night Seth had taken a few minutes off to fetch Adira’s favorite toy—Seth had returned to David’s home carrying the scent of a woman. Zach had assumed at the time that it had been some human he’d plucked from a vampire’s grasp or perhaps a female immortal he’d aided earlier in the night, but… what if it hadn’t been? That did seem to be the night that had initiated the disturbing silence that now cloaked him.

  “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” broke the silence.

  Zach retrieved his cell phone from the bedside table and answered it. “Yes?”

  “It’s Reordon. I need a few minutes of your time.”

  “When?”

  “Now, if possible.”

  “All right.”

  “Can you bring David with you?”

  “I don’t want to leave the house unguarded.”

  “It won’t be. That house is chock-full of immortals sleeping for the day. Ami will alert them if Gershom makes an appearance.”

  “Nevertheless, we should wait until Seth returns.”

  “Actually, I don’t want Seth to know about this.”

  Suspicion rose. Gently extricating himself from Lisette’s warm body, Zach stood. I’ll be back in a moment, he told her telepathically.

  Her eyebrows shot up as he grabbed a katana and teleported to the origin of the call.

  A second later, he found himself standing in a large, unfamiliar, circular room that bore no windows.

  Chris Reordon leaned against the front of a desk, facing him, a cell phone held to his ear. An alarm began to blare. Jumping, Chris dropped the phone, drew a 9mm from his shoulder holster, and aimed it at him. “Zach?”

  “Yes.”

  Swearing, he shoved the weapon back in its holster and grabbed the walkie-talkie attached to one shoulder. “Code seven. False alarm. All is well.” The alarm shut off. “Damn it,” he groused, “you know you have to give me some warning before you teleport in.” Then he grimaced and threw up a hand to block his view. “And put some fucking clothes on. What the hell, man?”

  Relaxing, Zach shrugged. “I wanted to ensure the person calling me was you and not Gershom impersonating you in an attempt to lure me and David away from his home.”

  “Well, it’s me. Go get dressed and bring David back with you. And don’t tell Seth if you run into him.”

  Zach frowned. “What’s this about, Reordon?”

  “I’ll tell you when you return.”

  Uneasy, Zach teleported back to the bedroom he and Lisette shared at David’s home.

  Lisette leaned back against the pillows, her brow furrowed. “Everything okay?”

  He nodded as he set the katana on the foot of the bed. “Reordon wants to see me about something. I wasn’t sure it was him, so I popped over to check.” He sent David a quick telepathic heads-up.

  Her lips stretched in a smile. “And how did he feel about seeing so much of you?”

  He chuckled. “Less than pleased. I’m to don some clothing before I return with David.”

  “Did he say what this is about?”

  Zach pulled on a pair of black leather pants. “No. But I’m going to see if he can make me one of those electronic devices Seth carries around with him so fielding Seth’s calls won’t cause any more problems.”

  “Good. Seth could use a break, though he’ll never admit it.” />
  Silently, Zach agreed. If he had to kick Seth’s ass to make him take some damned time off, he would. Or at least he’d try to, he amended silently. No one could match Seth in strength. Not even Gershom, though Seth might believe otherwise.

  Leaning down, he brushed his wife’s lips with a kiss. “Get some rest. I’ll return as soon as I can.”

  She smiled as she drew her fingers down his stubbled cheek. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Straightening, he teleported to David’s study.

  David strode around the edge of his large desk. “Ready?”

  Zach nodded. I don’t feel comfortable leaving the house unguarded, he told him telepathically.

  Over a dozen immortals slumber below.

  Any elders in the mix?

  Aidan and Dana are here. Aidan was a nearly three-thousand-year-old Celtic immortal who boasted powerful telepathic, telekinetic, and healing abilities. He was also an exceptional fighter with incredible speed and strength. Because he had transformed his wife himself, Dana was just as strong and fast, though she lacked his multiple gifts.

  Anyone else?

  Ethan and Heather.

  Ethan was only a century old and not as fast or strong as the older immortals, but he’d had Aidan transform his wife Heather for him so she would be as strong as an elder.

  I also called in Chaak and Imhotep, David added. They’re in the living room and will remain until we return.

  Zach nodded, though unease still taunted him. Let’s go.

  Chapter Five

  As soon as David drew near, Zach touched his shoulder and teleported them both to the odd round room in which Reordon waited for them.

  Chris nodded. “David. Zach. Thanks for coming.”

  Zach surveyed the room. It was huge with a high ceiling. But there wasn’t much in it to give him a clue as to where they were. A desk rested near the wall on the other side of the room, two cushioned chairs facing it. A rectangular table nearby had eight chairs on wheels pulled up to it and looked like a much shorter version of the one in Chris’s boardroom at network headquarters. Not far from that, a large flat-screen television adorned the wall with some electronic devices resting on a stand beneath it.

  “Where are we?” he asked.

  Chris strode toward the television. “The abandoned missile silo I bought and retrofitted for our needs.”

  David frowned. “Why don’t you want Seth to know we’re here?”

  Chris picked up an iPad. “Because we have a problem.” When he tapped the tablet’s surface, the flat-screen on the wall lit up.

  Zach turned to face it and crossed his arms over his chest as he waited.

  David did the same. “What kind of problem?”

  “Just a second.” Chris tapped the tablet a few more times.

  The inside of a shop suddenly appeared in high-def on the screen. Brightly lit, it looked like a clothing store for children, one that also peddled an array of books and toys.

  David’s eyebrows rose. “That’s Little Gifts.”

  Zach glanced at him. “What’s Little Gifts?”

  “Ami’s favorite store. It’s where she buys most of Adira’s clothing and toys and takes her for storytime.” He frowned at Chris. “You put it under surveillance?”

  Chris nodded and typed something else on the tablet. A small box appeared in the upper left corner of the large monitor, offering another view of the shop’s interior. “As soon as Ami started frequenting the shop, I sent a crew in to install surveillance cameras.”

  “Does Leah know?” David asked.

  Zach looked back and forth between them. “Who is Leah?”

  “The proprietress,” David responded. “Leah Somerson.”

  Chris shook his head. “I did it after hours while she was out visiting family, then wiped all record of it from the surveillance system.”

  Zach eyed Chris, concern rising. “Did you have reason to believe she might be up to something?”

  “No,” he answered absently. “I just like to cover all bases.”

  David’s brow furrowed. “What have you discovered? Is she is working with Gershom?”

  “I’ve seen no evidence of that thus far.”

  “Nor did I when I scanned her thoughts the night I met her,” David murmured.

  Zach cast Chris an exasperated glance. “If you found nothing suspicious, then why are we here?”

  “Because,” Chris said, stepping back to stand on David’s other side, “as I said, we have a problem.” He tapped the tablet one last time and set the surveillance footage into motion.

  Zach watched the screen. A tall, slender woman with long, straight brown hair entered from a back room, pushing a cart loaded with small garments on hangers. Rolling it to the back wall, she started distributing the clothing to the racks that peppered it. Her head began to bob to music they couldn’t hear.

  The video must not contain audio.

  A second woman, younger than the first, danced out of the other room, bouncing on her toes as she swung her hair back and forth. When the two women started dancing together, each trying to outdo the other in silliness, David chuckled.

  Zach smiled. “Seriously, Reordon, why are we here?”

  “Keep watching,” he murmured.

  Zach sighed.

  The younger woman looped a purse over her shoulder and strolled away from Leah, leaving their view. Zach’s gaze went to the small box in the upper left corner that showed the interior of the store near the front door and cash registers. The woman walked into view there and exited. A moment later, on the opposite side of the glass door, she turned back and unlocked it. But she didn’t open it. Instead, she walked past the front window and left the camera’s sight. Seconds later, the door swung inward and Seth stepped into the shop.

  Zach frowned. “Is that Gershom?”

  David shook his head. “It’s Seth.” David knew Seth better than anyone. The two had worked together to lead the Immortal Guardians since biblical times.

  Zach consulted the time stamp at the bottom of the screen. It was late, surely past closing time for such an establishment. “What’s he doing there?”

  “Adira left her favorite unicorn toy,” David responded, no concern apparent in his voice. “Seth dropped by to retrieve it so Ami and Marcus wouldn’t have to.” His lips turned up in a broad smile as he watched Leah continue to dance, unaware that she was no longer alone.

  But Seth didn’t call attention to himself or ask the woman for the missing toy. Instead, he leaned against the nearest wall, crossed his arms, and watched Leah dance, a smile dawning.

  Zach wasn’t much of a lip-reader, so he didn’t know what words passed between them when the woman inevitably turned around and found him watching her. She blushed and laughed and seemed to know Seth, who actually grinned as he spoke to her.

  She walked toward the back room, then halted, turned back to face Seth, and…

  Zach almost laughed. She must not know him very well, because she appeared to be asking Seth to dance. As if he would ever—“Holy shit!”

  He and David both stiffened, arms dropping to their sides as they gaped at the screen.

  Seth removed his coat and strode forward, pushing clothing racks out of the way to clear some space before he—

  “Holy shit,” Zach repeated as Seth began to dance with her.

  Utter silence engulfed the room.

  Though the music they couldn’t hear seemed to have a quick tempo, something Latin he would guess, the dance the two engaged in was far different from the swing dancing Lisette and Ethan occasionally roped Zach and Heather into doing. This was… provocative. Sensual.

  Very sensual.

  Seth twirled the woman and drew her back against him. Zach watched in utter astonishment as Seth’s eyes flared bright gold when the woman’s shapely ass rubbed against his groin. Even more shocking, Seth didn’t step away and end the dance. Instead, he rested a hand on the woman’s flat stomach and slid it up almost to the woman’
s breast. He dipped his chin, breathing in her scent. He closed his eyes a moment. And when he opened them, they were dark brown again, the glow gone.

  Zach nodded. So he had come to his senses.

  After another series of steps and turns, the woman ended up pressed against Seth’s back. She slipped an arm around to caress his chest… and Seth’s eyes flashed golden again.

  Holy shit.

  David slowly moved forward, his eyes glued to the screen.

  Zach tried to gauge the other immortal’s response but couldn’t.

  When Zach looked back at the monitor, Seth and the woman were once more facing each other. Seth pulled her closer, as close as he could get while still dancing, even going so far as to insert a thigh between hers. A smile on her pretty face, she nuzzled his chest. Seth’s eyes lit with golden fire once more before he closed them and forced them to return to dark brown. The fact that Seth was having difficulty keeping that part of his nature from exerting itself spoke volumes.

  The dance ended in a flourish of twirls and a dramatic dip.

  How the hell did Seth even know how to dance like that? The man’s entire world revolved around keeping his Immortal Guardians safe and making their lives as happy as—

  Oh. Right. Seth must have learned to dance for Lisette. He tended to be more protective of female Immortal Guardians, who were far more rare than the males, and had probably learned so he could dance with Lisette and lift her spirits when guilt and regret over inadvertently turning her brothers had weighed her down and Ethan hadn’t been available to partner her.

  But Zach knew without even asking that Seth had never danced with Lisette like that.

  Seth chatted with the woman, smiling more than Zach had seen him do in… hell, thousands of years. And the woman laughed and talked with him as though they were old friends.

  Seth took a phone call… then took another and another, his face darkening with both tension and annoyance.

  Realization dawned. “That was the night we switched phones and I fielded his calls without telling Darnell first.”