Soulmates

by Nadine Nightingale

  They stare at me like little boys.

  “Now,” I say, pointing a finger at Bay. “You better tell me what this is all about before I show you what real witches have up their sleeves when they’re mad.”

  Bay brushes a hand over his shaved head. “It’s complicated.”

  I swear, I’m gonna throw punches at the next person who says “it’s complicated.”

  Alex’s grip on his Beretta tightens. “Answer the question.”

  Bay arches a brow and grins. “Or what?”

  He shouldn’t have said that. Messing with Alex never ends well. “Or I’ll make you.”

  Every guy with a brain would do as Alex says. Bay, however, stretches his brawny body. “Think I’m scared of you, Remington?” He sounds relaxed, but the look on his handsome face screams slaughter.

  I stop the two testosterone-fueled idiots. “Drop it.” I eyeball Alex. “I can fight my own battles, thank you very much.”

  Bay throws his head back and laughs. “Hear that, Remington?”

  I narrow my eyes at demon-hunter-idiot. “Shut up and answer my goddamn question, Bay.”

  It’s then he understands how fucking mad I am. He exhales sharply. “It’s a long story, Amanda.”

  “The short version will do.”

  Alex laughs. “Hear that, moron?”

  “You know,” Bay says, a smile creeping into his hard features. “I’ve heard you’re an asshole, Remington, but your reputation doesn’t do you justice.”

  Like the demigod who owns a freaking hammer, Alex curls his hands, ready to punch Bay in the face.

  Gosh, what is it with guys and their fucking ego trips? I give Alex a shove. “Stop.” I glare at Bay. “Both of you. Or I swear I will put a fucking love hex on the two of you. Let’s see if you still want to kick each other’s asses then.”

  They both freeze. They look terrified. Most importantly, they shut their arrogant hunter traps.

  A victorious smile rolls over my lips. “Now that we all know who’s the boss…” I look at Bay. “You better start telling the truth. We witches aren’t exactly known for patience.”

  “All right.” Bay looks over his shoulder. “But not here. There’s something you need to see.”

  Alex throws his hand on my shoulder. “The hell she’ll follow you.”

  “Dude.” I face him. “I can totally speak for myself.” Then I look at Bay, who’s grinning as if he wants Alex to lose his temper. “Show me what?” I ask, trying to break the eye-battle between the guys.

  “You’ll see.” Bay walks toward the hallway.

  He leads me up the stairs to the attic. Of course, hunter-heroic is right behind me. “This is a stupid idea,” he mutters under his breath.

  Tell me something I don’t know.

  We walk into a beautifully decorated room. Usually, attics are creepy. This one looks like a room in Buckingham Palace—flowers everywhere, an antique sofa in the center, white chiffon curtains at the window. There’s an automatic coffee maker, for Christ’s sake.

  “Told you my mom is a neat-freak,” Bay says when he sees the startled expression on my face.

  At least he didn’t lie about that.

  “Cut the crap and tell us what we’re doing up here.” Alex is mad at Bay, mad at me, mad at himself ’cause he didn’t haul my butt outta here when he still could.

  Bay flings himself on the couch and pats the empty spot next to him. “I won’t bite,” he assures me.

  I stay where I am. Far, far away from demon-hunting, lying-idiot Bay. “You’ve got two seconds before I make you tell the truth.”

  “I have no idea where to start,” Bay grumbles.

  “How about at the beginning?” Alex suggests, voice dangerously low.

  Bay pays no attention to jerk-face. Instead, he locks his gunmetal eyes on mine. “Just to be clear, Amanda. I didn’t follow you.”

  I laugh. “It was a coincidence you showed up here after your boss approached me in New York and a couple of hunters put out an APB on me?”

  His already hard face turns to marble. “I’m not lying.” He eyeballs Alex. “I’m here because of what had happened to old George. The last thing I expected was meeting you guys here.”

  I can’t read his aura, but his voice is even. Not a trace of deceit in it. “Keep going,” I order with a queen-like hand gesture.

  Bay gets on his feet and saunters to a desk near the round window. “I need to show you something.”

  He points to the desk. It’s covered with newspaper articles. Some are recent, others date back decades. I scan the articles. They’re all about weird animal attacks. “What’s this?”

  “Just read them.”

  I plop down on the chair and skim through them. Torn ribcage, weird carvings in the chest…They basically tell the same story.

  Bay shoves an old book under my nose. “Now look at this.”

  Alex spies over my shoulder. “Hellhounds?” He laughs. “Are you serious?” Bay and I stare at him, but he continues, unimpressed. “They don’t exist. Everyone knows they’re just a myth.”

  “Actually,” I say, meeting Alex’s malachite gaze. “That’s not completely true.”

  He narrows his eyes at me. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  Bay cocks a brow and smirks. “Sorry, pal, but she’s right. Hellhounds do exist. Been hunting them for a while now.”

  I don’t know what surprises Alex more, that hellhounds exist, or Bay claiming he’s been hunting them. He crosses his arms. “All right, let me get this straight. You’re a member of the Malleus Maleficarum Order, but instead of hunting Knights of Hell, you’re hunting hellhounds?” Alex shakes his head. “This gets more absurd by the second.”

  “Alex,” I warn as I see the pained expression on Bay’s face. “Why don’t you just shut up for a second and let him explain?”

  He holds up his hands. “Sorry, it’s just”—he looks Bay over—“the thought of a guy like him hunting hellhounds? Hilarious.”

  Bay’s jaw clenches, but instead of buying into Alex’s jerk-act, he faces me. “A hellhound killed my dad,” he says.

  Alex raises his brows. “Come again?”

  Bay presses his hip against the desk. Something incredibly sad passes through his shiny eyes. “I wasn’t joking when I said my mom is like yours, Amanda.”

  “You told him about your mother?” Alex barks as if that’s the most important thing right now.

  I flip him off and focus on Bay. “Ignore him.”

  Bay cuts his gaze to Alex and grins. “With pleasure.” He runs the heels of his hands over his eyebrows and sighs. “Anyway. The woman loves everything expensive and treasures her reputation above everything else. When my dad lost his job, and the bank was close to taking away our house, she completely freaked. Threatened to divorce him and take us with her.” The pain in his eyes is real and heart-wrenching.

  Jerk-face takes a seat on the arm of the chair. The smug expression on his face is gone.

  Bay draws a pained breath. “One night, Dad went to this bar. I guess he needed some space from my mother.” He shrugs. “Or maybe he just needed to get drunk. A weird guy approached him, said he could help him fix all his problems. All he wanted in exchange was his soul.” The lines around Bay’s eyes deepen. “The funny thing is, my dad never believed in the supernatural. The guy was the most rational person I’ve ever met, but with my mom breathing down his neck and the prospect of losing his kids, he took the chance.”

  Alex sighs. “Then what happened?”

  Bay starts pacing the room. “My dad signed the deal. A year later, I found him in his bed. Dead. Slaughtered. The sheriff thought a wild animal somehow found its way into the house. Not that far-fetched, considering where we live. But when I went through his stuff after the funeral, I found his diary. He’d written it all down.”

  “It sucks what happened to your dad, but what has any of this to do with me?”

  Bay pulls himself onto the desk. “Everything and nothing, Amanda.�
�

  My head hurts. “Could you be more cryptic?”

  “When I was eighteen, I left Winter Harbor, looking for the demon who did this to my dad. That’s pretty much how I met Legend and how I ended up in the Malleus Maleficarum Order.”

  “You thought they could help you track down the demon that brokered your dad’s deal?” Alex asks.

  Bay nods. “They taught me everything I know about demons and how they use hellhounds to reap their souls.”

  “I still fail to see what I have to do with any of this.”

  Bay catches my eye. “Look, Amanda, I don’t know much. But you were right about one thing: the Order is looking for you. They sent out a text to every hunter in the country.”

  “A text?” I almost laugh. “What, don’t they have a secret Morse code or something?”

  Alex shoots daggers at me. “That’s not funny, Manda.”

  “He’s right.”

  Wow, did Bay just say Alex is right? Maybe I’m in deeper shit than I realized.

  “The Order thinks a Knight of Hell wants you. Legend went to New York, hoping you’d help him.” He takes a deep breath. “You disappeared. Now every member has the same mission—kill you before the demon gets his hands on you.”

  Alex jumps up like a crazy person and grabs Bay by the collar of his shirt. “What did you just say?”

  I almost expect Bay to punch him. Instead, he gives Alex an apologetic look. “Relax, man. I’m not going to touch a hair on her pretty head. Haven’t told anyone she’s here either.”

  “Relax?” I shout, exploding out of the chair like a rocket. “You just said some merciless hunters are out there trying to kill me, Bay. And why? Because they believe some stupid Knight of Hell is looking for me?”

  “It’s more than that,” Bay says. “You’re an untouchable, Amanda. If a Knight of Hell gets his hands on you, there’s no way of knowing what would happen.”

  Alex lets go of Bay’s shirt and stumbles back. I wait for the “what is an untouchable” question. It never comes.

  I’d ask why he isn’t surprised about this tiny little detail, but I’ve got more important things on my mind. “How is it that everyone knew I was untouchable before I did?”

  “Look.” Bay walks toward me. “I don’t know how they know, but they do. And if you’re smart, you’ll leave the country ASAP.”

  I have a hard time wrapping my head around any of this. Bay being some sort of hunter, a secret order pining for my sweet little ass, Alex going to hell. Seriously, what the hell is this? A freaking horror film? You forgot the Knight of Hell. Right, how could I leave out the part where a lunatic demon wants me to do…Hell, I don’t even know why the thing wants me. But I start to connect the dots, and I’m pretty sure said Knight of Hell was the one who saved me from the other demons. The one who said he could get Alex out of his deal.

  “You okay?” Alex asks, concerned.

  “No, Alex. I’m not okay.” He reaches for my hand, but I pull back and glare at Bay. “Did you know I was a witch when we first met?”

  He nods. “When I saw you in that bar, I didn’t just know what you were. I knew exactly who you were.”

  “What?” Alex and I say at the same time.

  Bay cocks a brow at Alex. “Word between hunters travels fast.” He smiles and faces me. “When I saw the legendary Alexander Remington, who, by the way, is an even bigger asshole than I thought, parked in front of the motel—”

  “Careful,” Alex warns.

  Bay rolls his eyes and continues. “Whatever. When I knew who he was, it didn’t take much to figure who you were. Why do you think I told you about those kids? I’d heard of his brother and picked up on a rumor he’d gotten himself in trouble with the person responsible for the missing kids. Besides, they said the almighty Remington would never ride with a witch unless her name was Amanda Bishop.”

  Alex rubs his jaw. “And who is they?”

  Bay smiles. “Let’s just say your relationship is the most discussed topic in the hunter community.”

  Alex narrows his eyes. “What relationship?”

  Bay eyeballs him. “You’re saying you didn’t sleep with her?”

  Alex sighs. “Sure I did, but that doesn’t make us the next hunter fairytale.”

  I frown. Last night Alex insulted me, screwed me, and now he acts as if Bay told him he’s been sleeping with Satan’s bride? “You’re right,” I say to Bay. “He is an asshole.”

  “I’m right here,” Alex barks.

  “Good,” I mumble. “Means you definitely heard me.”

  “I should have told you what I am.” Bay grins. “But I liked you, and witches generally hate hunters. Especially Malleus Maleficarum hunters.”

  Alex’s shoulders suddenly stiffen. “All right, can we skip the part where you hit on her and get right to the part where you tell us why you haven’t called your hunter pals yet?”

  Bay shrugs. “As I said, I happen to like her.”

  My phone vibrates with a text from B. At Bobby’s. Where the fuck are you?

  On our way, I reply before shoving the phone back in my pocket. I slowly rise from the chair. “We gotta go. B and Jess are at Bobby’s.”

  Alex nods.

  I head to the door. “And Bay?” I say, looking over my shoulder. “I’d appreciate if you wouldn’t call your Order pals.”

  “I won’t,” he promises.

  “That better be the truth,” Alex warns.

  Chapter 34

  The second Bonnie lays eyes on me, she knows something is up. “Oh, shit. You look like crap.” JJ and Jesse sit next to her, nodding in agreement.

  I shove my hands in my pockets and sigh. “Why, thank you, B. Nice to see ya, too.”

  She hops off the grungy barstool and walks toward me. Her cognac eyes roam my face. “Seriously, have you slept?”

  “Probably not,” JJ says, flashing me an “I know what you did last night” smile.

  Immediately, Jesse picks up on it. “No way. Really?”

  I clench my teeth, ready to tell them to go to hell, but Alex barrels through the doors. He walks straight to his brother and gives him a hug. “Good to see you, man.”

  Jesse studies the both of us. “What did we miss?” A deaf man could hear the undertone in his voice.

  Alex shoots me a look.

  I avert my eyes. My head still reels with information I can’t seem to make sense of. The whole fucking world knows I’m an untouchable, some high-ranking demon wants me, a creepy Order has put a reward on my head, and Alex is going to hell. Good times.

  Bonnie squeezes my arm. “Amanda, what’s going on with you?”

  Alex’s forehead is wrinkled. A sharp breath escapes his throat. “She’s in trouble,” he says.

  JJ, Jesse, and Bonnie wait for an explanation, but I spin on my heels and head to the restrooms.

  I press my hands against the sink and glare at my reflection. Bonnie was right, I do look like crap. My skin is raw and dry, the bags under my eyes are worse than ever, and my eyes are more brown than green. They often changed color when I was a kid. Grams used to say they reflected my emotions. If that’s the case, brown means total bamboozlement.

  I should focus on Alex and his problem, but I need to wrap my head around the reality that I’ve become the bull’s-eye for a Knight of Hell and the Malleus Maleficarum Order. As a witch, I know damn well there’s no such thing as coincidence. Alex being attacked before his time was up, him showing up at my place to ask for help, which then resulted in Legend putting an APB out for me, and on top of that, the demon who’s gunning for me, offering his help? Call me crazy, but it sure as hell sounds as if all of this is part of something bigger.

  I dig through my bag, searching for the card Legend had given me when we last met. It takes a while till I find it. When I pull it out, I’m not sure what to do with it. Bay didn’t lie when he said his boss wants me dead. He must know what’s happening to me. Maybe he can help me understand how my life turned from bad to freaking n
ightmare in a matter of days. Maybe he knows how we can save Alex. But isn’t it pretty stupid to call the sheriff, even if you didn’t shoot the deputy?

  It’s not like he can kill me through the phone, right?

  There’s a good chance Legend knows more about the demon who claimed he could get Alex out of his deal. Not that I contemplate accepting a demon’s help, but it would be good to know who I’m dealing with.

  I put Legend’s card on the sink and splash cold water in my face. “You got this,” I assure myself. After what feels like forever, I suppress the gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of my stomach and dial Legend’s number.

  Every time the phone rings, my heart beats a little faster. I’m diverted to voicemail. “In case of an emergency, call Daryl—”

  I hang up. I might have lost my marbles, but no way I’ll call that Daryl dude. There must be another way to get to the bottom of this. A spell maybe? I don’t even know what I’m dealing with here. What about a vision quest? Haven’t I had enough visions lately?

  Ah, fuck! I slam my fist against the wall, tearing the skin around my knuckles. Blood spills from the cuts. Pain shoots through my hand. Awesome.

  “Amanda?” Bonnie’s voice startles me. She’s standing in the doorway, staring at me. “What the fuck are you doing?” She rushes toward me. “Wait,” she says, opening the faucet and shoving my bleeding hand under the cool water. “Let me help.”

  Let. Me. Help. I remember the strip club and the demon who took over Bonnie’s body. What had it said? All in good time? Guess the time has finally come.

  A creepy smile crosses my lips. “Help, huh? Well, I could sure use your help.”

  Bonnie’s jaw drops, and she freezes. She so knows I’m not talking about my hand. “What’s going on?” Her voice trembles.

  “You won’t like it.”

  She shakes her head. “I already hate it.”

  ****

  Two days to hell

  It’s past midnight when I get back from the occult shop in Farmington. I didn’t do the 139-mile drive for fun. Hell, no. I needed some supplies, and it turns out Winter Harbor isn’t exactly equipped for voodoo rituals. I’ve got the herbs and candles from the Enchanted Herbs & Botanical store in Farmington, and the cat bones…well, they were a bit harder to acquire. Good thing Winter Harbor has a pet cemetery, ’cause no way in hell I’d kill an innocent animal. Not that digging up the grave of the poor thing was any better, but at least the cat was already dead.