Relics and Runes Anthology

by Heather Marie Adkins

  She wiped her face and blew her nose in one of the napkins she kept in the cup holder before pulling back onto the road. Last time she'd faced off against the soul eater, she'd gotten her ass kicked. Even though she now had a better idea of what she was facing, she still didn't want to fight it head-on unless she had to. That wasn't her plan.

  No, tonight she was going to find the witch responsible. This ‘Reaper.’ She was going to have to think of that name without laughing. That was her real target. He was the one she really needed to stop.

  The Great Oak — or what was left of it — was a couple blocks from the cemetery. Nicky left her car in an empty parking lot between the two locations and went on foot. If nothing else, she was better equipped to handle the soul eater this time just by wearing better clothes. The t-shirt beneath her jacket was way easier to move in than the dress she'd been wearing last time. She could put up a better fight like this.

  Brass knuckles on one hand and dagger in the other, Nicky crouched on the other side of a dumpster, waiting for someone or something to come out. The stench of garbage made her want to gag, but not only did it have the best view of the hole where the tree had one been; it would also hide her from anything that tracked by scent. Even if she was hunting a witch and a demon, neither of which were particularly known for their senses of smell, it was better to be safe than eaten. Who knew what else might have been out there looking for her?

  Besides; no matter how much her blood sang for one, Nicky wasn't looking for a fight tonight. This was strictly a recon mission.

  Half an hour, then an hour, then two hours went by. Even shifting every twenty minutes, Nicky thighs cramped and tingled. She didn't dare move much in case she unknowingly spooked the witch.

  Maybe I already did.

  If that was the case, this was an entire waste of time. She could have been asleep. Her eyelids were starting to burn. Would anybody care if she went into work an hour or two late? The amount of caffeine she drank to function was probably going to kill her before any vampire or demon did. What if she just rested her eyes for a couple seconds? Not long enough to sleep, just long enough that she didn't feel the urge to stab herself in the face.

  A couple seconds turned to a few seconds, then a couple minutes. Her head lolled forward on her chest. If not for the flash of bright light on the other side of the dumpster, she absolutely would have fallen asleep crouched right there. Her head snapped up. The light was too bright and focused to have come from a car. Carefully, Nicky peered out from the side of the dumpster. Her brass knuckles dug into her fingers as she tightened her grip on the dagger.

  With the momentary light gone, the night seemed so much darker than it had before. At first, she didn't see anything. Then, as her eyes re-adjusted to the black, she caught sight of a figure standing at the mouth of the hole where the tree had been. A faint shimmer of silver illuminated it. Nicky inched forward. As a kid, her dad used to take her and her sisters hunting. It wasn't so they could actually kill anything; they only took guns in case they got attacked by something. No, the aim had been to get as close to the animals as possible without spooking them or being noticed. Jessica had always been the best at that game, but Nicky was alright at it. The closer she got now, the more of the person she could make out.

  From where she stood, it looked like a woman. She looked small, almost like a teenager. There was no way this was the same person who controlled the soul eater. Statistically, there was probably more than one witch living in Abundance Falls. According to Jessica, some one in twenty people had an affinity for witchcraft. There were way more than twenty people in Abundance Falls.

  Nicky was about to slink back to her hiding spot when the woman raised her hands and a cloaked shadow rose from the hole.

  The soul eater.

  Which meant this woman was the Revenant.

  Suddenly, this was much less funny than it had been a few hours earlier. It was even less funny when the woman turned to her. Nicky froze in the middle of the street and stared. There was no possible way she was seeing right. The way the shadows fell across the woman's face was messing with Nicky's head. There was no way—

  “Nicky?” Megan said. “What are you—”

  “What am I? What are you?” Nicky interrupted. She swallowed, her voice dropping to a raspy whisper she wasn't sure was even audible. “You're the Revenant?”

  The surprise on Megan’s face was quickly replaced with anger.

  “How do you know that name?”

  The shock was beginning to wear off. Nicky’s mind raced. Had there ever been any evidence that Megan was a witch? There must have been, she'd just been so caught up in vampire hunting that she hadn't even thought to look for it. It was why they'd broken up. There wasn't enough space in Nicky’s life for another commitment.

  Is that why she did this?

  Anxious paranoia soaked her brain before she shook it off. Why would she be the cause of this? She was the one who'd gone after the soul eater, not the other way around.

  Nicky started stalking across the street again, dropping the dagger to a more useable position. The ‘why’ didn't matter. But still, Nicky had to know.

  “Why would you kill your own sister?”

  Megan stepped back and waved her arm. The soul eater moved between them, baring rows of teeth. Nicky faltered. She really did not want to get close enough to that thing for it to take her soul. But the only way for her to get to Megan was to get through the soul eater.

  Fuck.

  So much for recon only. She still could have left, could have regrouped. She had no idea how to get ahold of Corrine, but Alison must have been close enough by now for Nicky to call as backup. And if she asked nicely enough, David Milne might just take enough pity on her to come help her out.

  It was absolutely not Nicky's ego that made her step forward despite the soul eater looming above the ground.

  “Why did you kill Lauren?” She asked again.

  Maybe she could distract Megan enough to do some damage. In her back pocket, Nicky’s cell phone vibrated in a quick, rhythmic succession. She didn’t give the number out to just anyone, which meant the caller was almost definitely one of her sisters. She hoped it was Alison with instructions on how to kill the thing she was absolutely about to fight again.

  “I didn't kill her!” Megan shouted.

  “Don't give me that shit. Why'd you make this thing kill her, then?”

  “I didn't! I never picked any specific targets.”

  That was right; the soul eater had first gone after Mister School Board. If Nicky had let it kill him, would it have gone after Lauren? Would it have gone after anyone else that night? Who else might it have gone after?”

  “So you’re saying it's just shitty luck? Am I supposed to believe that?”

  “I don't give a shit what you believe. I never killed anybody.” Megan’s head dropped to the dagger glinting in the dim light of a not-so-far streetlight. “What are you?” She demanded.

  “I'm a hunter. I take down people like you.”

  Megan snorted. “Yeah? Then come and get me.” She waved her arm again, and the soul eater lunged.

  11

  Nicky hit the pavement hard, narrowly avoiding the soul eater’s claws. She rolled immediately to see where it went. It hovered over the dumpster she'd been hiding behind for a moment. Nicky wondered if she'd been wrong about. Demons not hunting by scent. She turned her head to find Megan running in the opposite direction.

  “Oh, fuck!”

  Nicky scrambled to her feet and bolted, both toward Megan and away from the soul eater. Megan had the advantage of her head start, and the soul eater was faster than any human. Sharp claws punctured her jacket and dug into her left shoulder. Her scream seemed to get Megan's attention. Megan stopped running and turned to face her. For a second, Nicky thought Megan was going to come back or at least call off soul eater, but she didn't. After a moment's hesitation, she kept running away from Nicky.

  I can't believe I dated h
er. What happened to, ‘I miss you?’

  This was why Nicky didn't date, thank you. Clearly, the fallout was absolutely not worth it. The soul eater’s claws were still stuck in Nicky’s shoulder. Blood dampened her t-shirt. She dropped forward, pulling it down with her. She twisted and rammed the dagger into whatever part of the soul eater she could reach.

  A high shriek rang out through the air. Nicky’s eardrums rattled so hard, it felt like the membrane was separating in two. The sound alone made her vision blur. She yanked the dagger back and pressed her palms to the pavement to steady herself. The soul eater pulled back. Without the claws closing the wounds in her shoulder, blood began to flow freely.

  And this was her fucking favorite jacket.

  At least this time it was her left arm that was injured. She could almost fully move her right arm without regretting it too much. The adrenaline masked the pain for now, but she knew it wouldn't last.

  “Okay, fine,” she said. “I’ll deal with you first.”

  Sweat dampened her hairline. She wiped it away with the back of her wrist and ran at the soul eater. If anybody drove by, would they see it or just her swiping uselessly at the air? The soul eater was much faster than her. Corrine was right, she had absolutely no hope of killing it on her own. But what other choice did she have? She had no idea where Corrine was, and she couldn't let the soul eater get away again, at least not without putting up the best fight she could. If Megan had summoned this thing again, it was probably to steal another soul. If Nicky didn't stop it now, there could be another death on her hands.

  She wasn't going to let that happen. Not tonight. Not ever.

  Nicky lunged again at the soul eater. It let out that piercing shriek again. It was enough to make Nicky stumble. The soul eater rushed her. She landed flat on her ass and rolled back up to her feet in the same rapid heartbeat.

  “You don't have to do this,” she said, panting.

  The soul eater had communicated through Regina. Maybe that meant it had a consciousness she could get through to. She seriously, seriously doubted it, but it was worth a shot. Really, it was her only hope.

  If the soul eater understood her words, it gave no outward indication of it. Instead, it lowered its jaw. This time, when it lunged, Nicky was ready. She raised her dagger and sliced its arm. With her free hand, she plugged her ear to block some of the shriek she knew would come. What she didn't expect was for the soul eater to immediately turn and throw her into the ground. Her dagger skittered to the other end of the road. Before she could so much as make a move for it, sharp claws grabbed her hair. They scraped across her scalp as the soul eater smashed her head into the pavement.

  Sharp pain bloomed across the front of her skull. Nicky gasped uselessly, her bruising brain struggling to catch up to what was happening. The second blow burst the skin around her eyebrow. A waterfall of red streamed down her face and made it impossible to see. She struck back with her fist. The brass knuckles hit something solid, but not hard enough to make the soul eater let go. Nicky struck again. White flashed across her eyes.

  An angry roar echoed over the ringing in Nicky’s ears. The soul eater pulled off her, taking a chunk of hair with it. She was only vaguely aware of the additional pain. With the soul eater no longer trying to crush her skull into a paste, Nicky pushed herself up into her hands and knees. Dizziness made her retch onto the pavement. She wasn't entirely sure whether or not anything came up, and she couldn't see well enough to tell. Wiping the blood from her face only made her feel marginally better.

  The world spun around her. It took much longer than it should have for Nicky to realize which way was up, especially since she was already half-upright. She wavered on unsteady feet, searching frantically for the soul eater.

  Nicky didn't see it, but she smelled something familiar. Wet earth and flowers. She caught a flash of bright blonde hair. She wiped blood from her eyes again. Head wounds always bled a lot and usually looked worse than they were, but the resounding headache and constant dizziness was starting to worry her.

  “C’rrine?” She slurred.

  Oh, that wasn't good either. Where was her dagger? Nicky looked down and immediately regretted it. Her knees nearly buckled. She felt like she was in a spinning tunnel, about to fall over even though she was standing on firm ground.

  Corrine’s struggle with the soul eater was impossible to follow, and not just because of the obvious concussion Nicky was suffering from. They moved quickly, dark rushes of motion that made the dizziness even worse.

  Do vampires have souls?

  That was a question. She'd heard arguments for both answers. Yes; they were technically living animals, so they had souls. No; the soul left the body at death and as they were technically dead, they had no souls. It wouldn't matter much to Nicky except for this: if Corrine had no soul, she would have to worry about it getting sucked out now by the soul eater.

  Maybe vampires did have their uses.

  Corrine's head turned to her briefly. Her iridescent eyes, bright white fangs, and furious expression triggered every instinct to flee Nicky had ever ignored. She stumbled back. Her heel caught against the curb. The next thing Nicky knew, she was staring up at the stars, and the sky was coming down around her.

  “Nicky. Nicky, wake up!”

  Nicky groaned and pressed her face to the warm shoulder supporting her. The smell of wet earth and flowers filled her nose. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn't get her eyes open.

  “Nicky, come on. You have to give me permission to go into your apartment.”

  The voice talking to her was pleading. Why was it so important? Why did she have to give permission?

  Because the person talking to her was a vampire. Vampires needed permission. It was what kept Nicky safe. Why would she ever give a vampire permission to go into her apartment? To go into the place where she lived? That was her place to be safe, her place where vampires couldn't tread. No vampire had ever been in her home before… Except for one.

  Corrine?

  Nicky struggled to move her mouth. The only thing that came out was another vague groan.

  “Nicky, please. Can I go in?”

  She'd trusted Corrine once before. She must have; otherwise she wouldn't have let her in before. Nicky didn't have much choice but to trust her now. The question made it easier. Nicky nodded, and they were moving again.

  12

  When Nicky came to again, she was in her bathtub. Cold water covered her legs. There was no feeling in them. Nicky jerked a little, relieved when her legs moved. Her heart raced, even as she let out a choked laugh. She wasn't paralyzed, just numb. Every single muscle in her body ached, though it all paled in comparison to the pain behind her eyes. Even keeping them open hurt.

  For a moment, she leaned back against the tub with her eyes closed. Her fingers brushed a half-melted ice cube. How long had she been in here? More importantly, how had she gotten in here?

  She was vaguely aware of Corrine asking permission to enter. Did that mean—

  “Oh, good! You're not dead!”

  Corrine sounded more annoyed than happy. Nicky forced an eye open. With the bathroom lights off, Corrine's eyes still had that eerie glow to them That Nicky was getting far, far too used to.

  “I'm not that easy to kill.” Nicky winced at the roughness of her voice. The motion pulled at her forehead.

  “Wanna bet?”

  When Nicky looked up again, Corrine had her fangs bared. Nicky shifted to be more upright. Her clothes clung to her, and she flushed a little. At least Corrine hadn't undressed her. The discomfort of soaking wet jeans was definitely better than that.

  “If you wanted to kill me, you would have,” Nicky said, parroting Corrine’s words from the other night back to her.

  “And if you wanted to kill yourself, there are way easier ways to do it. Hell, I know a couple vampires who'd be more than happy to help you along.”

  “Only vampire I'd be okay with killing me is you.”

  Wha
t the hell was she saying? Corrine seemed just as surprised by Nicky’s words as she was. She quickly blinked away her shocked expression and scowled again. At least she'd retracted her fangs.

  “You're concussed. That soul eater almost killed you. What were you thinking, going after it again?”

  Nicky sat up properly and tried to lifted herself out of the tub. She ignored Corrine’s hands helping her up. Grudgingly, she let Corrine lead her to her bedroom. It only took a sharp glare for Corrine to slink back into the hall so Nicky could change herself.

  “I didn't go after it. I was trying to see if it showed up. I thought I might be able to figure out who's controlling it.”

  “So you knew all that time what Regina meant when she said the soul eater would be at the Great Oak?”

  Nicky's silence seemed to be enough. Her struggle with the wet jeans was enough to let her ignore Corrine’s frustrated sound.

  “Why didn't you tell me? I could have been there when it showed up!”

  “You didn't want to do anything else tonight.”

  “Last night.”

  “Last—”

  Shit, how long had Nicky been out for? She was going to be in so much shit for skipping work without calling in first. It was going to have to be the first thing she did when she got changed. She bent down to try and get the jeans down and nearly threw up.

  That wasn't going to work. She peeled her shirt off first since that was easier, and grabbed a hoodie grabbing in the closet. It was soft and warm, exactly perfect for this time of year even when she hadn't spent who knew how long in a tub full of cold water. While she was there, she grabbed a pair of sweats. She'd only hung them up because she hadn't gotten around to her semi-annual tradition of trying on all her pants and donating whatever didn't fit anymore. There hadn't been anywhere else to put them.