by Dora Blume
“Look alive, Bryant just pulled down the road.” Erik sat up straighter in the seat. Ely bowed his head and went still. Sloane assumed he projected into another car as suggested.
“Is Amy here yet?” Sloane asked.
“No, I’ll let you know.” He poked Ely’s still form. “How do we let him know?”
“He’ll figure it out. He can see them coming.” Sloane sat up in the seat.
“Sloane, we should lay low. We don’t want them to see us.” Mike pulled her back against him. He kissed her quickly. She gasped in surprise.
“Could you two not do that around me? I’d like to keep the images of my sister pg, thank you.” He turned back to the front, his eyelids sliding closed to focus on the meeting.
“You can always keep your eyes up front,” Sloane shot back.
“Oh shit, Amy’s here and she brought a friend,” Erik stiffened.
“Who’s the friend?” Sloane asked. She couldn’t help but sit up in the seat even though they were supposed to be inconspicuous. It was good they were parked behind a van and out of sight.
“It’s another demon. Not Mr. Hall but someone else in charge. He was a Shikari at some point, maybe an elder.” Erik clasped the seat tightly. “We have to get that demon out of her.” Erik let the pain color his whisper.
“Don’t worry, we will. As soon as Bryant leaves, we’re going after them.” Sloane clenched her fists. Mike’s hand rubbed circles over her back.
“Love, you need to relax. You’ll give us away.” He kept his hands on her back and stroked up and down the length of her spine. She was instantly calm. She heard a car door shut in the distance and tensed. This was it, this was the proof they needed against her father. She held her breath and tried to listen to the conversation. She could only hear muffled voices. She hoped Erik was getting everything. She couldn’t even see what was happening.
“Bryant’s letting them know about the plan to invade tomorrow. We can’t let them take that information back to the other demons. He’s definitely a traitor,” he paused. “Huh, well at least he made them promise no harm will come to us. Maybe there is some part of him who still cares about us, no matter how little that part may be,” Erik mused.
“Really? You think he wouldn’t care what the demons did to us? Besides, he’s sending us into a battle he already knows we’ll lose. Who does that?” Sloane huffed. It was one thing to suspect your own father and quite another to have your suspicions confirmed. They just needed to find out how deep his betrayal went. She needed to know if he was responsible for killing their mother. She didn’t think he was capable of it. But after this, she didn’t know for sure.
“Shit, Amy’s heading to her car. We need to stop them without alerting Bryant to us being here,” Erik cursed.
“I can still track them when they leave,” Mike pointed out.
“Yeah, but what if they make a call back to their demon friends before we get to them. Our entire plan for tomorrow will be ruined with one simple phone call.” Sloane glanced around. She wished Ely were back. She shook his still body.
“Sloane, what are you doing?” Mike asked.
“Trying to get Ely to come back. Maybe he can stall them without alerting Bryant. Can he knock them out in his astral form?” she asked.
“I think he can,” Mike mentioned, shrugging. She realized she really didn’t know the extent of his powers. She shook him again. His eyes popped open, and he stared back at Sloane.
“What the hell?” he asked, glaring at Sloane.
“Hey, Amy and the guy are leaving. We need to stop them before they tell the other demons about our plan tomorrow without letting Bryant know we’re here. Any chance you can help with that?” Sloane waited.
“I guess I can project into the car. I’m not sure how they’ll react though. What if they freak out and Bryant hears them?” Ely asked.
“Bryant is on his way back to his car now. They parked a little ways from each other. If we time it right, maybe you can startle them right when he drives away.” Erik turned to look at Ely. He nodded. “Okay, wait for my cue.” Erik closed his eyes. Sloane sat forward in the seat, her hand holding the edge. She felt Mike’s hands on her back again. She knew she was getting excited, but she couldn’t help it.
“Okay, now,” Erik said. Ely closed his eyes and went still in an instant. “Okay, we have to be close behind. Bryant is pulling out of the lot. If we wait another few seconds, he should be far enough down the road that he won’t notice. Amy hasn’t started the car, so we should be good. He probably won’t notice them. He’s not very astute when it comes to caring about others. He thinks they’re waiting as to not be seen.” Erik shook his head. Sloane heard a scream followed by a thump.
“Can we go now?” Sloane asked.
“Just a few seconds more, we really can’t chance him seeing.” Erik held his head down and his eyes closed. “Okay, now we should be good.” His eyes snapped open, and he reached for the door. They all darted to the car with Amy and the other demon. Sloane let out a relieved breath when she saw Ely unharmed in the back seat. He was pushing against the demon in the passenger seat.
Mike went for the passenger door. She went for the driver’s door and Amy with Erik close behind. She wrenched the door open and yanked out her friend. She was surprised the demon didn’t put up much of a fight. After a second, she felt a jolt of electricity go through her. She dropped Amy’s hand. “What the hell was that?” she asked.
“A taser, bitch. I know how you operate, Sloane,” Amy spat the words at her.
“What the fuck? Really?” Sloane charged at her again. This time she dodged the small blue lights she could see and punched Amy in the temple. She flopped to the ground and Erik caught her before she hit the dirt.
“What the hell, Sloane?” he asked.
“What? She tased me. It seemed the quickest way to subdue her,” Sloane shrugged.
“She’s your friend,” he accused.
“So what, she’ll have a headache later. At least she won’t be possessed. Speaking of which, do you think you could say the thing, so we can be on our way?” She fluttered her lashes and glanced over to the other two guys.
“Fine, Sloane, someday your flippant disregard is going to get you in some serious trouble,” he muttered in annoyance.
“Yeah, hasn’t happened yet.” She strode over to the other two. “Should we stuff them in the back and head back to the lake house? They probably have some valuable intel once they wake up.” She shrugged.
“Sounds like a plan,” Ely said. He pulled the guy from the front seat and Mike helped lift his feet into the back.
“Alright, I’m going to ride with Erik and Amy. I’m hoping she can fill us in on some details.” She turned on her heel and headed back to help Erik. He was already carefully laying her in the backseat. She wondered what Jessie would think of her, since the last time they were together, Erik was hitting on Amy. She shrugged, that would be their problem to deal with, not hers.
“Back to the house?” Erik asked.
“Yeah, the guys will meet us there.” She slipped into the front seat. Erik got in and followed Mike out of the industrial park and onto the freeway.
“Bryant didn’t suspect anything did he?” Sloane asked.
“Nope, but if we go around him again, I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep my cool. Bastard is a traitor. We need to stop him before he takes this shit any further.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Sloane folded her arms over her chest. She promised herself that her father would get what was coming to him if it was the last thing she did.
CHAPTER 21
“Did you dispossess her?” Sloane asked as Erik lifted her to take her into the lake house.
“Yes, of course I did. What would have happened if I didn’t, and she woke up in the backseat?” Erik rolled his eyes at Sloane.
“She wouldn’t have woken up,” Sloane muttered.
“No shit, you hit her hard. I’m not sure when she’ll wake
up from her head injury.” Erik shook his head and Sloane held open the door for him. “I’m going to go put her in one of the bedrooms. Then we can figure a way out of this mess.”
“Mess? What are you talking about?” Sloane rested her hand on her hip.
“I’m talking about the fact that the person who could fill us in on everything is currently unconscious for the foreseeable future, and we’re walking into a trap tomorrow.” Erik darted down the hall before explaining any further.
“A trap? What the hell are you talking about? We stopped them from telling the other demons when we would be there.” She shook her head. She still held the door, knowing that Ely and Mike had pulled up shortly after them.
“Talking to yourself, love?” Mike asked, amusement in his voice.
“Just commenting, Erik thinks we’re still walking into a trap. I thought we stopped them from telling the demons when we would be coming tomorrow.” She glanced from Mike to Ely.
“We did, but they still had plans before today’s meeting. The only reason Bryant had us going in tomorrow was because they had an ambush planned. He wanted enough demons there to possess all of us, with the exception of him and his children. Aren’t you the lucky ones?” Ely smirked.
“So, you’re saying we’re the only ones he’s not planning on having possessed tomorrow. That means there’s demons waiting for us. Great, that’s just great.” Sloane threw up her hands and Mike walked through the door with the body of the man in his arms.
“Hopefully, your friend can shed some light on the situation. If she can let us know where the demons are, we could dispose of them before they have the chance to find a host body.” Ely gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder before following Mike into the house. Her mother had taught her a few potions and spells that were able to dispel the particles of demons outside of their host. She couldn’t remember them off the top of her head but that information had to be written down somewhere. Jessie would also probably know better than her. Jessie had studied potions when they were younger. Sloane chose to focus on combat. Something she found to be more useful in her time as a Shikari warrior.
Sloane slipped passed the door. Tamslyn was standing in front of the stove. “Hello dear, I made a pot roast for dinner. I hope you guys are hungry.”
Sloane’s stomach rumbled. She had to admit. She was hungry. “That’s Awesome, Tammy. Thank you.”
“Oh, you’re very welcome dear.” She bent to take a large pan out of the oven. “Will you tell the boys. They went by so fast, I didn’t get the chance.”
“Yeah, I can let them know.” Sloane went back to the bedrooms. She assumed they were setting the two unconscious bodies down. She opened the first bedroom door on the right. Mike and Ely were facing each other.
“You don’t know anything,” Mike spat in a hush. Sloane closed the door, pressing her back against it. They needed to work out what was going on between them before they rushed off into any more battles.
“Hey, what’s going on?” Sloane took a step toward the men. Mike flashed a heated look toward her but softened the moment his eyes met hers.
“Nothing, love, we’ll be right out.” He gave her a reassuring smile.
“It's not nothing. What are you two arguing about?” She rested her hand on her hip. She had a feeling the argument had to do with her. Ely looked quickly at Mike then away.
“It was just about the demons. It really isn’t that big of a deal.” Mike took a step toward the door and her. She shook her head at him.
“Mike, I know you’re lying to me right now. Did you know that when you lie your right eye narrows just a tiny bit? Come now, gentleman. Now I know you’re arguing about me. Spill.” She rested her arm against the door jamb. Neither of these men were leaving the room until they told her what it was they were arguing about.
“Fine, Mike’s pissed at me for upsetting you.” Ely rolled his eyes. “Like you’re some delicate flower or some shit.” His words came out crass. Sloane had never heard Ely talk like that. It was kind of hot.
“Don’t talk to her like that,” Mike growled.
“She can speak for herself, Mike. You don’t have to fucking protect her all the damn time.” Ely glared at his friend.
“Whoa, you two are fighting because of me? That’s ridiculous! Stop, now.” She turned to Ely. “I know I was being stupid the other day when we had a job to do. I just wanted to…” she paused looking over to Mike. “I don’t know what I wanted. I love Mike. I don’t want to jeopardize what I have with him. I should have been focused and I wasn’t. Because of that, we had a whole mess. Mike was able to work it all out in our favor, thankfully.” She gave Mike a heartwarming look. “Please don’t fight over me. I understand why you were upset the other day. Continuing to fight now, when we have bigger issues is stupid. We need to get along to do our job.” She dropped her hands to her sides feeling a bit defeated. She didn’t mean for so much to happen because of one little thing. She just wanted some freedom. That’s it. Now, it was turning into one big mess.
“Sloane, you don’t know what he was saying about you. I couldn’t just stand back and let him say those things.” Mike held his hand out toward Ely.
“What? What were you saying?” Sloane turned on Ely.
“I said you were selfish and that you’d put your own needs before the needs of others. I said it would get us hurt or killed if we let you continue like that.” He crossed his arms with a huff.
Sloane tried to stay relaxed. “Okay, I do act impulsively sometimes. I have to admit, I can be selfish. You’re not wrong. I’m just not willing to sacrifice my entire life for the Shikari. I watched my mom do that, literally. She died for it. I am not willing to follow in her footsteps, so yeah, I act selfish and impulsive sometimes. I also get the job done. So, most of the time, I don’t act that way. I would never do it to get anyone I love hurt. I know you don’t know me that well, yet. But know that. I would never do anything that would hurt someone I love.” Sloane dropped her eyes to the ground. Mike stepped around Ely and pulled her into his arms.
“I love you so much,” he breathed against her hair.
“I love you too.” She squeezed him tight. Her eyes looked up to meet Ely’s. He looked ashamed. “It’s okay,” she mouthed. He nodded. She stepped back from Mike, their eyes meeting for a brief moment. Taking Ely’s hand, she held onto both of them. “I want to make whatever this is work. That means we need to be honest with each other. I understand if you don’t want to anymore. I get that I put you in an awkward position and for that I’m sorry. But, if you still want to try this, I’m game.” She gave him a tentative smile and squeezed his hand.
“I don’t know. I have to think about it. I had a good time with you, with both of you, but I don’t know if I want it to be a full-time thing.” He dipped his head and walked passed them and out of the room.
“What was that about?” Sloane looked to Mike.
“He has a history, love. Let’s leave it at that.” Mike pulled her against him again, kissing her tenderly. She could spend all day kissing Mike, and she’d never get tired of it. His tongue slid across her bottom lip, and she opened for him. He slipped his dextrous tongue between her parted lips. He tasted of mint and sunshine. His mouth was warm and fresh on hers. She wanted to stay in this room, enjoying the love she had for him. But she knew that wasn’t a possibility. They needed to talk strategy now that they knew what Bryant and the demons were up to. She saved her friend, but they hadn’t saved the others. Bryant apparently wanted to possess the entire Shikari. There was no way she would ever let that happen.
Mike placed one last chaste kiss on her lips before staring down at her. “I know you’re not a selfish person. You just like to have your fun.” He moved next to her neck, brushing kisses lightly along her skin. “I do too.” He whispered and a shiver of delight ran down her body. Damn, he knew just how to turn her on. She wanted to be selfish. She wanted to take him in this room right now. Damn her father and all his destructive plans.
“Come on, we have to go make plans to stop my damn father from bringing down the entire Shikari.” Her voice was sharp and Mike let out a chuckle. She pulled him behind her and out into the hall. “Tamslyn cooked for us,” she mumbled as she made her way with Mike to the kitchen.
“It’s about time you joined us,” Erik said, giving them both a knowing smirk.
“Oh, shut it, Erik. Have you started working out a plan yet?” she sat in the seat across from him and Mike took the place next to her. Jessie handed her a plate with meat, and she happily slid a slice onto her plate.
“Not yet, we figured we’d wait to talk with you first. Bryant has plans to have demons waiting outside of the archives for us. When we go in to attack, their orders are to possess everyone. We wouldn’t see it coming. They’ve got something that will knock us out, so they can do it. We have to play it like we don’t know and ambush their attack somehow. I just don’t have all the logistics figured out yet.” Erik took a bite of his potatoes.
“Okay, well I remember Mom talking about something that would dispel demons before they took a host. I can’t remember what was all in it, but if we could make that, we could take care of the demons before they are able to possess anyone. They’d be kaput.” Sloane tapped her finger on her fork as she thought. “Do any of you know what that potion thing was?” She glanced at Jessie expectantly.
“I vaguely remember, but I don’t know that we have all the ingredients.” Jessie looked up as she thought.
“I think I can get everything we need. Didn’t any of you study potions?” Tamslyn asked.
Sloane smiled wide, “Jessie did.”
“Doesn’t mean I remember every one. We had books to reference. I don’t exactly carry any of them around with me since they decided I was more valuable as a fighter than a sorcerer.” Jessie shrugged.
“It might have something to do with the fact that you can freeze the entire room without much effort.” Sloane shrugged as she scooped a bite of potatoes into her mouth. “Tamslyn, this is really good.”