by S. J. Day
“Find out to whom,” he ordered, “and—if you can— what the ante is.”
“Well,” she drawled, “that will only take me a few decades. I am not even certain how many seraphim and cherubim there are.”
He knew she would find a way. She wouldn’t be the last female archangel heading a firm, if she wasn’t both ruthless and resourceful.
As for Raguel, Reed would have to seek alternate routes to reach him, and he would have to move cautiously and alone. No archangel would initiate an offensive maneuver against Sammael, which ensured that no mal’akh or Mark would help him either.
To whom did one turn when he wished to go where angels feared to tread?
He turned away from Sara.
To a demon, of course.
Another horde of tengu.
Alec looked at Eve and groaned inwardly. She attracted disasters. And it had nothing to do with her smelling like a Mark.
“Come here,” he beckoned, his voice resonant with an archangel’s command but lacking coercion. He wanted her to come freely.
She looked at him with wary eyes, sensing the turmoil within him. He wondered if she heard the stirrings in his head,the needs that hissed like serpents, prodding his temper and making him both irritable and mischievous.
If she only knew what that prim pink shirt of hers did to him. The snug fit made it hard for him to concentrate on the task at hand. He wanted her; the darkness in him pushed him to take her, while another part of him was far more fascinated by the little freckle on her nape and the small section of silky hair that was always falling out of her ponytail. The two halves were fighting all the time, exhausting him and leaving him confused.
Did all archangels suffer a similar duality? Or was he—Cain of Infamy—uniquely evil in a way he’d denied for centuries?
As an archangel, he had been stripped of the ability to love anyone but God, but his need for Eve was more urgent than ever. Malevolent voices had joined him with the ascension. They whispered deep within his breast, fueled by the connection he had to all the Infernals within the firm. As long as Eve was near, his control was tenuous. She was a beacon in the gloom and he craved her in a ferocious way, but he couldn’t relinquish her, even for her own benefit. She was a direct line into Abel’s head and all the knowledge his brother had gained in the centuries he’d been a handler. As a fledgling archangel, Alec needed that information to run the firm.
He couldn’t keep his promise to help free her from the mark. Not yet.
Maybe never.
“I can never read what you’re thinking,” she said, “when youhave that particular expression.”
“I can show you what I’m thinking. . .“ He was unable to curb the edge to his words.
“You and your brother are more alike than you realize.”
“Perhaps we’re more alike than you realize,” he warned. His smile felt cruel. He wouldn’t be able to resist having her much longer, and when it happened, he doubted he could be as gentle with her as he’d once been.
A shadow passed over her features and through her mind. A sense of loss and melancholy.
Regret settled heavily over him, his humanity waxing and the recklessness waning in response to her withdrawal.
“Come here,” he repeated, gentler this time, his hand extended to her.
With her chin lifted, Eve descended the few steps between them. Frustrated by that hint of reluctance, Alec caught her around the waist and pulled her flush against him. He shifted so quickly that she was still midgasp when they alighted on a nearby rooftop.
She smacked him on the shoulder. “You could have warned me!”
He nipped the end of her nose with a tiny love bite. “I could have. But this was more fun.”
“For who?”
“For both of us. I know you, daredevil. You’re the type of girl who’d take off with a stranger on a Harley just for the ride.”
Her nose wrinided. “Where’s a stranger on a Harley when I need one?”
“What? And miss this party?” He gestured to the roof of Gadara’s unfinished building.
A couple of dozen tengu danced excitedly around the massive ventilation and air-conditioning units dotting the shiny metal top. Each little gray stone beast was the size of a gallon of milk. They sported tiny wings and broad grins. Eve had once called them cute, although they were far from cuddly.
“Right,” she said, hands going to her hips. “Figures it would have to be the roof again.”
“Tengu were the original inspiration for gargoyles. What better place to hide than in plain sight?”
“I don’t care about that. I care about my fear of heights not meshing well with running around on rooftops.”
Alec looked at her. He knew she had a phobia about heights, but it didn’t affect her decisiveness. Her features were set in her gearing-up-to-brawl look: pursed lips, narrowed eyes, and a stubborn jawline. He didn’t like her being in the line of fire, but he sure liked her game face.
“Look at the little bastards,” she muttered, sending his gaze back to the tengu. “They’re trying to brain us.”
Sure enough, the tengu had formed a ladder of sorts by standing on each other’s shoulders. Other tengu climbed up the backs of their brethren to reach the top of the stairwell enclosure. They waited there for a chance to jump on whoever stepped onto the roof, their hands clasped over their mouths to stem their incessant giggling.
“Why do you think we’re over here?” he said. “I wanted you to see what we’re up against before you barreled headfirst out the door and into danger.”
“I wouldn’t have done that!”
“Would have been the first time you held back.” Eve faced him. “As a warm-up to kicking their asses, I’m about to kick yours. Why are you pushing me?”
“Because that’s what mentors are supposed to do, angel.”
She exhaled harshly. “Did you notice that it didn’t stink when the door was open? And look, they don’t have any details.”
“I noticed.
“The mask is supposed to wear off. Maybe we didn’t wipe out everyone who knew about the formula.”
“Yep. Could be trouble.”
“Or could be they were made with the masking stuff mixed into the cement.”
Alec smiled.
She shot him a wry glance. “You already thought of that.”
“Yes, but only a second before you did.”
“We could also have a leak somewhere in the firm.”
“It’s possible,” he conceded, “but that would be my last guess.”
While most firms had Infernals working within their ranks, they were rarely trusted with sensitive information. Demons never fully acclimated to the celestial life and the rules that came with it. Many considered their “conversion” temporary. They secretly hoped to get their hands on valuable information or an object that would prompt Sammael to take them back into the fold. However, both Raguel and Alec trusted Hank—an occultist who specialized in the magical arts—to oversee the investigation into the mask. Hank had been with the North American firm for so long that he was a fixture. He was still inherently evil, but he was content to be evil for the good guys.
“So how do we want to do this?” Eve asked, tightening her ponytail. “I suppose we should keep one of them to see what they’re made of.”
“If you can manage it this time.” The last time they fought tengu on Gadara’s roof, she’d vanquished both of them.
Shoving him playfully in the shoulder, Eve said, “Bring it on. Let’s see which one of us can catch one.”
“What’s the ante?”
“Hmm. .
“Sex.”
“With me? That’s worth more than a tengu.” Alec laughed. “Agreed. But I’m hard up, 1 had to try.”
“We’ll just keep it on retainer.”
“Works for me. Gives me time to come up with something really good.”
“Ha! Assuming you’ll win, which you won’t.” He held out his hand to shake o
n it. “Bring it on.” Eve accepted the handshake with a mischievous gleam in her dark eyes. “I’ll take the lower left corner.”
“Upper right. Meet in the middle?”
She nodded.
He snatched her close and kissed her. A hot, wet, deep kiss that took advantage of her gasp to sneak inside and lick. At the same time, he shifted them to the tengu-infested roof, so it was over the moment it started. But it was great while it lasted. He dropped her off, then shifted to the corner on the diagonal.
“Pretty Mark!” an observant tengu cried, followed by excited squeals from the rest of the mob. The few on the stairwell jumped down, one breaking off a leg in the process. It collected its detached appendage and continued on with a one-legged hop.
“Hey,” Alec roared as they all surged toward Eve.
“Cain!” several yelled gleefully, separating from the mass and changing direction toward him.
Eve was already in motion, darting to the side and catching a tengu by the arm. Swinging in a wide arc, she gained velocity. She hurtled the demon into its brethren like a bowling ball into pins. Some crashed into those behind them, some leaped over the tumbling wave. She knocked one back with a roundhouse kick and feinted away from another one. Her grim determination and unwavering focus arrested Alec. When Marks were on a hunt, they were bolstered by the effects of the mark—adrenaline, aggression, increased muscle mass. Fear was held at bay by those things. But Eve wasn’t on a hunt, she was on her own. She managed it beautifully.
Two tengu launched a third one at Alec like a missile. He ducked. Like Eve, he used rapid kicks to keep his immediate perimeter clear, but maintenance wasn’t the goal. Eradication was. A loud crash and high-pitched shouts of dismay on the other side of the roof told him Eve had just smashed one. Tengu were all for having a little evil fun, but not if it meant getting hurt.
Catching a tengu in each hand, he bashed them together. Debris exploded outward and turned to ash before hitting the ground. “Two down. Ten more to go.”
“Cain can’t save pretty Mark,” a tengu sang, flapping its stone wings. “Sammael gets what Sammael wants.”
“Sammael is going to get me,” he barked back, “if he doesn’t keep his minions to himself.”
Laughing, the tengu regrouped and rushed him. He waited until the last minute, then shifted away. The converging tengu collided. Two overzealous ones hit each other with enough force to wipe each other out. A cloud of ash plumed upward and dissipated in the gentle breeze.
The sound of thick metal sheeting bending in ways it shouldn’t turned his head toward Eve. His gaze found little cement feet protruding from a hole in the air-conditioning unit. They’d already repaired the massive and expensive system once before, due to their last altercation with tengu on this roof.
Hang in there, he said, sensing Eve’s strength was strained by the heavy beasts.
Don’t worry about me. Take care of yourself.
Alec wondered if she knew that she was the only person in existence who worried over him. He stepped up his pace. He snatched up any tengu unfortunate enough to get too close and used them to crush their friends. As he worked, he crossed the roof, closing the distance between him and Eve. She was still several tengu deep, but seemed to be holding her own.
I’m winning, he taunted.
In response to his challenge, she became more aggressive, lunging and catching the little demons just like he was. Considering her much smaller size, he was impressed with her ability to keep up.
They should have backed off by now, she grunted. Eve was right. Tengu liked to play, but when the tide turned against them, they ran.
They want you, he explained.
Huh?
I’m thinking the ice bitch wasn’t kidding.
Fucking fabulous, she muttered, hefting a tengu overhead and braining another with it. Both burst into ash.
Alec grabbed two tengu by the backs of their skulls and pounded them together. Then he moved toward Eve.
Back off, hero, she said, kicking another into a ventilation turbine. I’ve got this.
Grinning, he stepped back and crossed his arms. There’s one to your left. Right. Left. Behind you. Ooh, great shot. Kick it again. Duck!
I’m going to kill you next, she bit out, struggling to shake off a tengu clinging to her back.
You’d miss me. He rubbed at his chest and the swelling pride that made it ache.
Not right now. She snatched at the demon and yanked it over her head. She swung it like a golf club into the one wrapped around her leg, knocking both free and sending them flying. With anus splayed, Alec caught them in each hand and launched them discus-
style into the heavy stairwell door. Stumbling from the blow to her leg, Eve faced the last tengu standing.
“Sammael wants you, pretty Mark,” the Infernal said, hopping.
Eve regained her balance and pushed a few stray stands of hair back from her face. “He’ll have to take a number.”
“You can’t run, you can’t hide.”
“You can’t scare me,” she sang back with a humorless smile.
“Sammael will.”
He dashed toward her with a growl. Alec straightened abruptly, prepared to leap in. Eve feinted to the side, catching the demon’s arm as he passed. She swung him up, then hammered him down into the rooftop. Ash mushroomed and hovered for a heartbeat in a pocket of still air, then burst free in a sudden breeze.
Alec applauded. He doubted many novices would have handled multiple opponents with as much aplomb.
It took her a moment to shake off the bloodlust brought on by the lingering effects of the Novium. But when she did, she smiled sheepishly and sketched a quick, exaggerated bow. He loved the bow and the strength of character that made it possible for her to dust herself off so quickly.
He glanced at the kicking feet of the tengu stuck in the side of the van-sized AC unit. “You win.”
“Damn straight.”
“Of course, you have a great mentor.”
The wry look she shot him made him laugh, something he only ever did around her.
“That—” she pointed a finger at the writhing tengu, “—isn’t going to fit on your bike.”
“Right. Do you want to go back for the car? Or have me do it?” He could shift with mortals and Marks, but not with demons. “I’ll have to drive back, so it won’t be quick.”
“Quicker than me. You can shift to the garage. I have to drive both ways.”
“You sure?”
“Sure.” Her gaze narrowed on the wriggling cement buttocks. “If it acts up, I’ll spank it.”
“Lucky tengu.”
With a wink, he shifted away.
CHAPTER 5
Less than half an hour later, Eve and Alec were exiting the elevators on the lobby level of Olivet Place with the tengu tucked under Alec’s arm. To mortal eyes the little beast appeared as rigid as its stone imitators, but it was in fact wriggling madly.
“Keep it up,” Eve warned, “and we’ll drop you to the bottom of the Mariana Trench and you’ll have to hike back.”
The tengu gasped, then stilled.
“Where are you going with that?” the mortal guard asked, but the Mark next to him touched his arm and shook his head.
“You won’t miss him,” Eve said, waving good-bye.
“Trust me.”
They stepped outside. She moved directly to the Harley and pulled her Oakley shades out of the leather pouch on the gas tank. “Where’s the car?”
“Around the corner.”
She gestured ahead with a wave of her hand. “I’ll follow you.”
Alec took the lead, shortening his long-legged stride to keep her close. Eve walked behind him and slightly to the left, allowing the tengu to be carried along the curb and away from other pedestrians. Her nose wrinkled as the scent of rotting soul roiled in the wind. She held her breath, but a hard bump to her shoulder by a passing pedestrian knocked her back and made her turn her head. She caught the culprit l
eering back at her. With fangs. His face was covered in writhing black details and his eyes glowed laser-green. With a chopping motion of his hand, he mouthed, Head will roll.
Despite an inner shiver, Eve flipped him the bird... and crashed into something rock solid.
“Watch it,” Alec bit out.
When she looked up at him to explain, she found him staring down the fleeing vampire with the look of death. Coming from Cain of Infamy, it scared even Eve. Then his head turned, raking their surroundings with an examining gaze. She followed suit and froze. Infernals littered the sidewalks in unusually high concentration for the area, far more than had been present when they’d arrived. Having the headquarters of the North American firm here in Orange County discouraged Infernals from playing in the vicinity, but apparently not today.
Alec’s growing fury filtered through her, chilling her with his cold aggression. A low, resonant snarl rumbled up from his chest and throbbed outward, visibly pushing every demon back. The power he exuded was dizzying for Eve, who felt it like a phantom limb. An archangel’s power alone would be too much for her, but Alec’s outburst contained an iciness that seized her lungs.
Alec...
The surge ebbed. She reached out to the nearby light post and sucked in deep breaths. That had been an act of possession and claiming, like a dog pissing on a hydrant. And every Infernal within a half-mile radius got the message loud and clear.
Eve studied Alec closely, slightly frightened by the look of mayhem in his dark eyes. “What the hell was that?”
“We need to get you out of here.” He gripped her elbow and pulled her down the adjacent street.
The weight of dozens of eyes goaded her into faster steps. She had to jog to keep up, but it wasn’t a struggle. Several feet away from her Chrysler 300, Alec hit the trunk release on the remote. He put the tengu in the back and tossed the keys to her. “Wait until I bring the bike around, and we’ll head back together.”
She nodded.
He shifted away. A moment later she heard the Harley rumble to life around the corner.
Eve closed the trunk, revealing a man standing directly beside her car. She jumped back with a squeak.