A small smile played on Lailah’s lips. “Carry on,” she said before she disappeared.
We all shared a common sigh of relief at her sudden absence.
“Glad you thought of that,” Sasha said.
“How come angels can teleport, or whatever you call it, without a brilliant flash of light?” I asked. “Sometimes you guys light up like comets hitting the atmosphere.”
“If an angel is shifting from human to divine form, there’s light.” Sasha said. “If an angel is maintaining the physical form there isn’t.”
“So she’s off to see the Caretakers somewhere here on Earth? They live here?” I asked.
Sasha gave a half-shrug. “We don’t have access to their realm, so we meet on common ground here. I can’t tell you where that is, though.”
Of course not.
Dominic came up behind me and kissed the top of my head. “You ready for dinner?”
I leaned back and looked up. His movie-star good looks never failed to make my heart skip a beat. Dark hair, dark eyes, gorgeous smile. I thought about Sasha’s beauty and Lailah’s stunning looks and figured it was a species thing. Angels might be overrated, but they were blessed.
I smiled at him. “It smells good.”
He bent and placed a light kiss by my swollen eye. “After dinner, ice on that.”
It wasn’t the first black eye I would get from fighting the good fight. And I had a feeling there were far worse wounds yet to come.
CHAPTER FIVE
)o( )o( )o(
Before becoming a vampire, four-year-old Joy had been Belle Starr James, sister of Glory’s best friend, Jesse James. Influenced by Nyx, given mixed messages about evil by his whacky parents, and in a desperate attempt to cope with his own fears and insecurities, Jesse chose to become a demon. He celebrated his initiation by throwing Belle Starr to her death off the bridge above the Blood Mother River, and the Goth Girls turned her into a vampire before her spirit left her body.
Rory had been there that night. With the exception of Zane, all of the light warriors in Glory’s circle had been there: Kaia, Evan, and Raven; Dominic, Sasha, and Rebekah; and the Goth Girls. Glory was the one who insisted Belle Starr be turned because she believed that a cure for the vampire virus would be discovered soon. At least that course of action provided hope for the child’s future.
No one outside Glory’s circle of friends knew Joy’s true identity.
The night of Belle Starr’s death, Glory had a vision where Bo had implied he wanted Joy, but to steal her right from the home of the Goth Girls? Beyond bold. And now she was a pawn in the game between rival vampires.
“Yeah, I’m sure Bo has her,” Rory told Zane when she phoned him back. “Got your message and had a flash of her with him and his gang.” Rory, who prided herself as being unflappable, was flapped. She had seen Bo do terrible things to the girl. “We have to get to her quick, Zane.”
“Can you see where he took her?” His voice sounded calm and steady, and Rory tried to steer her stormy emotions to rest in his safe harbor.
“No, but I’ll head to your place as soon as Kaia’s plane lands which should be—” Rory glanced at her watch “—anytime now. Between us, maybe we can suss out her whereabouts.”
“Bo ... he’s....” Zane’s voice faded.
Rory knew that Bo was a monster, as evil as vampires got. She also knew that Bo had always been out to punish Zane for being one of the good guys. This was another in a long string of cruel things he’d done with that in mind. “I know, Zane. We’ll find her.”
Rory only hoped it would be in time.
)o( )o( )o(
Rory took a cab to the airport, and from there she and Kaia headed to Jinx’s house in a rented car.
Kaia lived in Atlanta with her new husband, Evan. As soon as Zane phoned her, she arranged a hasty private flight into Savannah. From the time of the phone call, until Kaia arrived in Savannah, it was less than an hour. Rory knew that wealth had serious privileges.
“Evan couldn’t get off work,” Kaia said. “If we don’t find Joy by morning, he’s going to fly in. Maybe he can help.” Like Rory and Kaia, Evan had strong psychic abilities.
Nineteen-year-old Kaia was only five feet tall. However, despite her petite stature and features, she had presence. Long, curly red hair spilled over her shoulders, hypnotic green eyes flashed, and confidence reigned. This was the first time Rory had seen Kaia since her encounter with Gaia, and she felt on shaky ground. She didn’t want her own inner storm to disrupt their joint effort to save Joy, so she erected psychic barriers to protect her secrets. Rory noticed that Kaia had done some wall building of her own.
“Evan’s job seems to be going well,” Rory said. Evan had gotten his job at CNN straight out of college. Despite his bold rule bending, he remained one of the youngest reporters working for the network.
“Evan’s socially and politically well connected,” Kaia said with a scowl. She never hid the fact that Evan’s elite lifestyle bothered her. Kaia was an earthy hippie at heart.
“Well, despite those ghastly things, he is the shock and awe of cute,” Rory said.
Kaia grinned. “Yes, there’s that.”
Small talk masked simmering anxiety.
Kaia slapped the steering wheel. “Poor, sweet Joy. She’s had such a rough life so far.”
“It’s gonna get way worse, real quick, if we don’t find her tonight.”
“What did you see?”
Rory didn’t want to admit how much spilled blood she saw. “Nothing good.”
Rory felt Kaia trying to probe her mind, but she couldn’t get past the shields.
Kaia backed off.
“Why did White Bear take it upon himself to look for my daddy?”
Kaia shook her head. “I’m not certain. He just said he felt it important that you know. I had been trying to get to the bottom of the mystery for you but couldn’t, so he took over.”
“After we rescue Joy, let’s take that road trip,” Rory said. “I home school, and Father doesn’t really care what I do or where I do it.”
“That would be good. I really need to get out of the city.” There was a sharp edge to Kaia’s voice.
“You still having problems being a city witch?” Rory asked.
“I miss the wilderness. Things were simpler there. The influences, the choices, they weren’t as complicated.”
Rory sensed chaos behind her words. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” Kaia said, a little too quickly.
“Well, if you ever do.”
Kaia changed the subject. “Once we get to the girls’ lair, I think you should sit this out.”
Rory snorted. “Hello? Have you met me?”
Kaia glanced at the silver knitting needles Rory had used to pin her long hair into a casual bun on top of her head. “Those real silver?”
“Totally.”
“Silver’s tough on vamps.”
“Yeah, it is. I’m ready to rock and roll.”
They pulled into the winding driveway of the centuries-old mansion that belonged to the Goth Girls. Through the darkness and fog, Rory noticed Zane standing beneath the porch light. Seeing him, her stomach flip was intense ... and it had nothing to do with Joy. Zane rocked her world, which was a totally ridiculous and untough thing to have to deal with. “Crap,” she muttered.
Kaia gave Rory’s arm a comforting squeeze. “We’ll find her.”
“Uh, huh.” Rory took time to gather her things, grateful when Kaia got out and headed toward the house.
Rory dawdled in the car until she saw Kaia go inside, then steeled herself, stepped out, and shuffled up the stairs onto the porch.
Zane’s rugged hunkiness stole her breath. He stood with his back against the house, one booted foot flat against the wall. His hands were stuck inside the pockets of a brown leather jacket, and a cowboy hat was perfectly cocked on his head. The fact that he had a hundred-sixty-year-old soul and a nineteen-year-old body didn’t
matter. Or that he was in love with Glory. Or that he considered Rory to be a little girl. He was her first crush, and she was just going to have to accept the inevitable heartbreak of it all.
Rory stepped onto the porch and into his open arms. He smelled like leather and sage, with a hint of wood smoke. His aura, vibrant and alive, embraced her more tightly than his arms.
“You’re so hot.” She didn’t mean to say it, but her body insisted. Pulling back, she used her hand to fan herself. “Damn hormones anyway.” Avoiding his magnetic eyes was impossible.
His dazzling smile flashed.
“Oh, get over yourself,” she said. “You’re not that hot. It’s just a puberty thing.” Rory’s face burned. “Ah hell, truth be told, you totally slay me.”
“I make you laugh?”
She shook her head. “You completely overwhelm me. I’ve never felt like this.”
Zane’s smile disappeared, and he caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. “Don’t get hurt, sweetheart. I couldn’t bear you getting hurt.”
“Some things just can’t be avoided, Zane.” Rory sucked in a deep breath and steeled herself. “Let’s find Joy.” She waltzed into the house as casually as possible.
Rory accepted grateful hugs from each of the Goth Girls, which did help steady her and get her back on point. Especially when she saw the blood-tinged tears streaming down Jinx’s anguished face. She had never actually seen a vampire cry before, but had heard rumors. It was heartrending to witness.
The girls gathered around Rory and Kaia, offering personal items to help them scry: photos of Joy, hair harvested from her hairbrush, her favorite stuffed toy.
Nothing gave Rory any more clues. She shook her head. “All I get is what I already got—a captured moment of time where it was night, foggy, and ... well, bloody. I had impressions of terror. Definitely felt Joy. Not good.” Sighing miserably, she looked at Kaia, who stared at the photo for what seemed like forever.
Finally, Kaia said, “I see the night fog too, but I’m also getting wolves and cougars. Why would I be getting that? Certainly, Bo’s gang couldn’t have taken her too far in this short period of time.”
Zane regarded them with a thoughtful expression. “What else, Kaia? Please. Try for more.”
Kaia lost herself in the photo once again. “A sprawling red brick Georgian-style kind of mansion with white pillars?”
Jinx snapped her fingers. “The Oatland Island Wildlife Center. Here in Savannah. Wolves, cougars, that building. Let’s go.”
As the Goth Girls sprang into motion, Zane grabbed Rory’s arm. “Stay here.”
She grunted. “When have I ever stood down in the face of a fight? Besides, I saw myself there.” She gestured toward Kaia. “I saw both of us.”
“Not this time,” Zane said. “It’s too dangerous. You both should stay here. No offense, but vamps are way stronger than witches.”
Exasperation filled Rory, and she threw it at him. “Dammit, Zane, you’ve seen me take on demons, so don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m made of. I fight the good fight. It’s what I do.”
He closed his eyes and she felt his internal storm.
“You can’t expect us to not do our jobs,” Kaia said. “Everything about being a witch is dangerous. We accept that. You need to as well.”
He sighed, pulled his keys from his pocket, and headed for the door. “Ride with me. The girls can take the Batmobile.”
Zane had a monster Ford King Ranch F-350 truck, and Rory made sure to sit in the back seat so she wouldn’t get distracted. Early in life, she had learned that the best way to summon courage was to focus on the object of the quest, the prize—in this case, Joy. Her mind sent out tendrils of hope in the child’s direction.
The Batmobile was a sleek black Jaguar XF. Back in the day, Jinx had been the infamous Spanish pirate Donna Diabla, and she invested her treasure of pirated gold well. The Goth Girls were beyond loaded.
Rory glanced at Zane. He was always cowboy cool, but in the soft blue light cast by the dash she could see his clenched jaw and fierce grip on the steering wheel. The truck barreled through the lightly traveled streets at heart-stopping speed—traffic cops were still a thing of the past—and ten minutes later they stopped about a mile from their destination.
The drivers killed their lights right after crossing the Wilmington River drawbridge and pulled off into the parking lot of a public boat ramp where the seven of them gathered in dark shadows to discuss their rescue strategy.
The Oatland Island Wildlife Center was located on one hundred seventy acres of maritime forest. Roughly triangular in shape, two sides of the property bordered marsh. A tall chain link fence topped by barbed wire shielded the third side from encroachment. The huge, nearly century-old building Kaia had seen in her vision housed the center’s offices, and over fifty species of animals populated natural habitat environments.
“There are armed guards stationed at the center,” Jezebel said. “A lot of hungry people are itching to harvest the animals.”
“Pretty sure Bo would have killed the guards right off,” Zane said.
Rory thought about the tactical situation. Rolling fog swirled around them, a thick cloak that helped to mask sound and smell. Although that provided an advantage in shielding their approach, it would also inhibit their ability to locate the enemy. “Let’s see if Kaia and I can sense anything more now that we’re closer.”
Even though it was only in the mid-fifties, a deep chill seized Rory as her mind reached out to Joy. She zipped up her hoodie and closed her eyes.
I can hear Earth’s heartbeat. I can hear Earth’s heartbeat. The words that arose in Rory’s mind danced in a sea of terror. Her eyes flew open. “I think I have her. She’s repeating something like a mantra to calm herself. Earth’s heartbeat?”
Jade nodded. “That’s Joy.”
“I sense her too,” Kaia said. “She’s surrounded by wolves. Their smell, the sounds of their breath, their shadows as they pace in circles around her. Oh Gods, how horrifying for her.”
“How could she be surrounded by wolves?” Jinx asked. “What has Bo done to her?”
“I’d guess that either he wants to scare her out of her little wits and then save her in a warped move to win her gratitude,” Kaia said. “Or they figured if you managed to track him to this place, the wolves would mask her whereabouts. Probably a bit of both.”
Zane threw his arm around Jinx’s shoulder and drew her close. “We’ll figure it out, darlin’.”
“Y’all know this is a trap?” Rory said, feeling lame for voicing the obvious.
Jasmine nodded. “Yeah, we get that.”
“What’s the plan?” Jade asked.
“I’ve been there before,” Jinx said. “Beyond the main gate is a trail that goes straight back to the visitor’s center. To the right of that is the wolf enclosure. A service road leads to the back side of it, where they access the animals to feed them.”
“I think instead of treading lightly and trying to sneak in, we just bust in with guns blazing,” Zane said. “Make as much of a ruckus as we can. It’ll get the animals riled, and there’ll be noise and confusion. Some of us hold off Bo and his gang, the rest will get Joy out.”
“Works for me,” Jinx said.
“If Bo is still traveling with the same crew as last time, we’re evenly matched,” Jezebel said. “Not counting the witches, of course.”
“Then we’ll have to be the ones to get Joy out of wherever she is,” Rory said, ignoring the vampires’ doubtful expressions.
“I can talk to the wolves,” Kaia said. “Maybe reason with them.”
Silently, the Goth Girls stared at her.
“Seriously, I can communicate with animals. It’s one of my best gifts.”
“She’s real good at it,” Rory said.
Zane took off his hat, ran fingers through his hair, and plopped it back on his head. “We don’t have any choice but to kick it in the ass. That’s Joy in there. Let’s go.”
Everyone piled into the truck: Jinx in shotgun position, Rory and Kaia in the back seat, and the remainder of the Goth Girls in the truck bed.
“Buckle up and hold on tight.” Zane punched the stereo up and cranked the volume, filling the night with throbbing music. Popping the truck into gear, he floored the gas.
Rory scrambled to strap in. Gravel flew from beneath the tires as the truck blasted forward. The Goth Girls whooped and shouted their battle cry of “Fearless!” Country singer Jason Aldean sang to the night that this was his kind of party, and the hulking three-quarter ton truck with the huge steel grill guard on the front busted through the locked chain link double swing gates at the entrance.
Jinx directed Zane to the wolf habitat where he slammed on the brakes. He left the engine running, and the headlights and music on. As they spilled out of the truck, Rory handed Kaia one of the silver knitting needles. Zane tossed Kaia a tire iron and Rory a pair of bolt cutters. Machetes made their way into vampire hands.
Wolves howled, cougars screamed, owls screeched.
Zane took a moment to look at each of them, and a slow smile crossed his face. “Let’s party.” He threw a wink at Rory.
Rory felt her confidence spike and nodded. “I got this.” Taking a deep breath, she followed Kaia to the chain link fence of the wolf habitat. Zane and the Goth Girls formed a semi-circle around them, facing outward, braced for attack. Within moments, shadows moved in.
“Gotcha!” a man shouted.
“We’ll see who’s got who, Bo,” Zane’s surprisingly calm voice replied.
“Oh, you brought us two pretty bags of fresh blood to get drunk on,” Bo said.
Rory silently dared him to try.
Zane laughed. “Ain’t gonna happen.”
Feral shouts, the clash of metal on metal, flesh pounding flesh, grunts and cursing erupted, and a splash of wetness splattered the side of Rory’s face. Her hand wiped it away; she saw the blood, and an even greater sense of urgency took over. She fell to her knees and snipped at the chain link with the bolt cutters.
Genesis (The Legend of Glory Book 3) Page 6