by Vivian Wood
Kira woke long after Asher slipped out, stretching and smiling at the delicious soreness in every inch of her body. She’d earned it, that was for sure.
Pulling on a slinky dove gray cotton sundress, Kira headed out of the bolt-hole in search of food. She accepted a sandwich and side salad from Duverjay, who somehow managed to have all Kira’s favorite foods at the ready without any notice.
Sitting at the granite kitchen island, she almost moaned at the amazing quality of the food Duverjay had prepared. Once her stomach was full, Kira sipped a cup of French press coffee.
“Man, this is good,” she sighed. “Duverjay, is this local?”
“French Truck Coffee, madame,” Duverjay told her. “I believe it’s a Chiapas blend from Mexico. Organic!”
Kira raised a brow at him.
“Coffee is one of my passions,” Duverjay said. “New Orleans has some of the best local coffee roasters in the country, you know.”
“Gotcha,” Kira said with a nod. To her relief, Mere Marie made an entrance before Duverjay could educate her any further.
“Ah, Kira. You’ve surfaced,” Mere Marie said, giving Kira a long look.
“Uhhh… yeah,” Kira mumbled into her coffee cup.
“Asher told me that he filled in some details about your past,” Mere Marie said, her gaze searching Kira’s face. “Particularly about your parents.”
“Yeah,” Kira sighed. “Apparently my father is pretty scary. I’m doomed, Asher is doomed. So on. It’s all I’ve thought about for two days, so I’m kind of jaded at the moment.”
“I’ve only met Rezeal the once, when I accompanied Asher back to Union City. I would not relish meeting him again,” Mere Marie said.
Her words made Kira’s stomach drop. Mere Marie was terrifyingly powerful, in Kira’s mind. What kind of power did someone have to wield to intimidate a legendary Voodoo priestess?
“I’m hoping that I never have the chance,” Kira said with a shrug. “I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do. Just… hide from my father, forever, until I die from natural causes. How long do Revivers live, generally?”
“A few hundred years at least.”
“Great. So… just another, what… two hundred and forty plus years in hiding? And I probably can’t even spend them with Asher?” Kira groaned and pressed her fingertips to her temples.
Mere Marie took a seat next to Kira at the kitchen island, lacing her fingers together and giving Kira a speculative look.
“I think there is a reason why you were dropped on our doorstep by supposedly mysterious kidnappers,” Mere Marie said.
“You think my father had something to do with it?” Kira asked, startled.
“No. There is a force of darkness growing here in New Orleans, headed by a Voodoo king named Pere Mal,” Mere Marie said. “I believe he knows about your parentage, somehow. I can only assume that he is planning something, and was behind your kidnapping.”
“What could he hope to gain from that?”
Mere Marie’s lips creased into a frown.
“I have no idea. Perhaps he believes that he can trade you to Rezeal… But then, why drop you in our lap? It makes no sense.”
“You think Pere Mal would know how to summon Rezeal? Assuming he had some kind of sinister plan,” Kira said, cocking her head thoughtfully.
“I have no doubt that he could find a way, if he chose. He’s clever, not to mention persistent.”
“Makes the mystery of me getting fake kidnapped all the more enigmatic, doesn’t it?” Kira said.
“That it does. I can only imagine that it must relate to Asher, I just don’t know how. With Cassie, Pere Mal needed her to find Gabriel…” Mere Marie rolled her eyes heavenward, considering.
“Why?” Kira asked.
“Apparently once he lost control of Cassie, Pere Mal realized he could control the Oracle within her… but only once Cassie was pregnant.” Mere Marie’s gaze raked over Kira’s body, and Kira blanched.
“I can’t be pregnant,” Kira informed her. “I’m on the implant. It must be something else.”
“Well, some creatures don’t come into their full power until they lay with their mates. I suppose I need to do some more research on Revivers, but that’s a possibility. Unless you and Asher completed the act back in Union City—”
“No,” Kira said, shaking her head. “I don’t know. If my powers had changed, don’t you think I would have noticed something by now?”
“Perhaps,” Mere Marie said with a shrug. “Perhaps not.”
“I guess it remains a mystery, then,” Kira said.
“We’ll figure something out, Kira. You won’t run forever.” Mere Marie gave Kira’s hand an awkward pat.
“I don’t mind the hiding,” Kira said, thinking aloud. “It’s just… I can’t accept that I have to leave Asher behind. Rezeal can find him anytime, hurt him. He could hurt any of you, really. Asher said my father is determined to find me. He has almost endless power. Eventually he’ll find someone who knows me and hurt them until they tell him what he wants to know. Even if he doesn’t go for Asher first, my father will go after him at some point. It’s the most direct route to get to me.”
“Kira… I don’t like where this is going,” Mere Marie said with a frown. “Nothing is inevitable, and Asher can take care of himself. We found one solution. We’ll find another.”
Kira glanced up at the older witch, giving her a half-hearted smile.
“Sure.”
“Don’t go getting any ideas or running off to fight all the bad guys by yourself. Lord knows we’ve had enough of that around here,” Mere Marie lamented.
“Okay,” Kira said, sipping her coffee.
Mere Marie gave her hand one more pat and then rose to leave.
“It’s going to be okay,” Mere Marie said as she left, giving Kira a meaningful glance.
Kira nodded, but the movement was hollow. Her heart was still in turmoil, her mind restless as ever.
Nothing was really okay, and it wouldn’t be as long as the situation with Rezeal still hung over her head. Kira just hadn’t quite figured out how she was going to deal with it… yet.
Later that night, Rhys called everyone together and announced a night off for all the Guardians. Mere Marie didn’t give them many details, but apparently she’d lined up some potential Guardians candidates to patrol for the night, leaving all the current Guardians free to relax for a full twenty four hours.
Somehow Echo managed to convince Rhys that the Guardians all needed a night out together, which ended up including a fancy dinner and wayyyy too many drinks at an upscale tiki restaurant called Latitude 29. Kira borrowed a stunning sapphire-beaded cocktail dress from Cassie, who apparently had several closets jammed full of designer clothes. Cassie herself was far too along in her pregnancy to wear her usual flashy garments, but she was more than happy to dress Kira to the nines.
Then there was Asher. Kira had never seen him in a suit before, much less a tuxedo. So when he stepped into his bedroom decked out head to toe in a tightly-fitted tux complete with bow tie, Kira’s tongue almost rolled out of her mouth like Wile E. Coyote.
“Good?” he asked, raising a brow. There was a hint of humor in his voice, so clearly Kira’s ogling was more than a little obvious.
“Very, very good,” she said, blushing.
“Good enough that you want to get back in bed instead of going out?” he asked, flashing her a wicked grin.
“I have plans for you and that tux,” Kira said. “But later, after we go out. I haven’t spent any time in New Orleans! I want to see the Vieux Carré at night!”
“Mmmm… alright,” Asher said, eyeing her appreciatively. “I’m only saying yes because you look so fucking hot in that dress. I guess I could stand to show you off a little.”
Kira and Asher flirted through the whole meal, getting handsy as the drinks flowed. Kira wasn’t overly worried about it, since the other Guardians couples seemed to be doing the same thing. Even Cassie, wh
o abstained from drinking for obvious reasons, was all over Gabriel after dinner.
After leaving Latitude 29, they strolled to grab a coffee at a place near Jackson Square and then walked north toward Rampart St, intending to catch a taxi back to the Manor. The cobblestone streets of the French Quarter were damp from a recent downpour, mist clinging to the looming wrought-iron balconies and bleeding the vibrancy from the colorful buildings around them. It was quiet and still, giving Kira an idea of what a late evening stroll in New Orleans might have been like a hundred years earlier.
Arm in arm with Asher, Kira leaned against him and sucked in lungfuls of his spicy, masculine scent. Just smelling him gave her butterflies, which probably should have freaked her out.
I love him, she thought, giving a tipsy giggle. The other two couples drew ahead, giving Asher and Kira a bit of privacy.
“What’s so funny?” Asher asked, glancing down at her.
“Ohhhhh, nothing,” Kira said, but a snort of laughter escaped her lips.
“Cute,” Asher said with a grin.
“Shut up. This is all your fault. You’re the one who got me drunk.”
“If I recall, I think you are the one who insisted on ordering that last Rum Keg,” Asher said.
“What about all the drinks before that?”
“No idea how that happened,” Asher said, feigning innocence.
“You look way too good in this suit,” Kira said, her brain jumping tracks.
“Speak for yourself.”
“I’m not wearing a suit!” Kira cackled.
Asher shook his head and kissed her cheek, steering her back to the sidewalk. Alright, maybe she had gone a little overboard with that last drink. When they were about a block from the spot where they hoped to catch a cab, Asher slowed to a stop, holding Kira back with a hand.
Kira glanced up and saw that Rhys and Gabriel were doing much the same.
“Shhh,” Asher warned, glancing around. He steered Kira to a deep-set doorway in the building to their immediate right, pushing her up against the closed and shuttered door of an art gallery.
Kira wanted to peer out into the street, curiosity rising along with her heart rate, but Asher was blocking her view entirely. Protecting her with his big body, but from what?
“Don’t move from this spot,” Asher growled over his shoulder.
Kira tensed when he vanished, moving up the street toward the others. Unable to contain herself, she poked her head out. She gasped when she saw two dozen figures in dark robes, faces obscured by heavy hoods. They seemed to glide toward Asher, Gabriel, and Rhys as the Guardians stood three abreast in the middle of the street. As the creatures grew closer, Kira could see thick red and black auras hovering about them, making her skin crawl.
Gabriel held a thin silver wand, but Asher and Rhys were unarmed. Kira’s heart leapt into her throat as the Guardians moved as one, ready to engage their foes.
“Echo, throw a cloaking spell!” Rhys shouted.
Without waiting, Rhys crouched and shifted, a massive, magnificent bear bursting forth. Asher followed suit, and Kira was taken aback by the beauty of his bear form. He was a stunning Grizzly, his bared teeth and bristling fur only increasing his impressiveness.
Asher and Rhys rushed the first few robed figures as Gabriel hung back, orange light surrounding his hands as he formulated some spell. He began lobbing fire at the oncoming enemies, though they hardly seemed to take notice when their robes began to smolder and flame.
The Guardians drove the creatures up the block, and Kira hoped against hope that some innocent gaggle of tourists wouldn’t happen upon the scene. Asher ripped one of the foes in half and then startled when it went up in a fiery blaze, leaving only darkened ashes in its wake.
Kira leaned further out of the doorway, catching Echo’s eye. Echo hesitated, then bolted across the street to another doorway, presumably where Cassie was hiding. Sucking in a breath, Kira made a run for it, cramming herself into the doorway with the other two women.
“We have to help them,” Cassie said, her expression tormented.
“You aren’t helping anybody. You need to get somewhere safe,” Echo said, sliding her gaze down to Cassie’s pregnant belly.
“I feel so damned helpless,” Cassie spat, shaking her head.
“I’m sorry to be the one to say it, but you can’t just run for cover alone. There might be more of those creepy robe guys around the corner,” Kira said. “Echo, you should help get Cassie inside. There’s a bar around the corner where you can take cover.”
“We can all go together,” Echo said.
“No. You two go. I’m going to call the Manor for backup and follow the guys,” Kira said.
“Oh, Kira…” Cassie said.
“No arguing. Go!” Kira said, checking the street and then pushing the other two women toward safety. “Incinerate anything that tries to stop you.”
After one last glance over her shoulder, Echo grabbed Cassie’s arm and towed her away. Kira pulled out her cell and texted Mere Marie and Duverjay, then slung her purse over her body and moved out of the doorway.
The Guardians were moving across the big intersection now, driving the attackers into the cemetery. Smart, getting them away from all the late night French Quarter revelers. Kira kicked off the low heels she wore, leaving them on the sidewalk as she sprinted to follow the retreating figure of Asher’s bear.
By the time she got through the low white concrete wall that framed the cemetery, the robed figures seemed to have doubled in number. Gabriel had shifted at some point, and the three bears were frantically laying waste to robed figures left and right. Columns of fire burst up as each was destroyed, and Kira scented the sickly smell of burnt fur in the thick night air.
She hung back and watched, unsure how to help. The last thing she wanted was to draw attention to herself and have to grapple with one of those dark creatures. It would only distract the Guardians, who were already overwhelmed as it was.
Wishing she had a wand at the ready, though she had no idea how to formulate any kind of attack spells, Kira wove her way through the moonlit graves to follow the fight from afar. In the dark, it was hard to tell the three bears apart, and she struggled to identify Asher from her hiding spot behind a towering white crypt.
When she heard a snarled sound of pain, though, she knew it was Asher. Something inside her stirred as she watched him stumble back, one of the dark-robed attackers holding a flashing blade high, dripping red with Asher’s blood.
For a moment, Kira felt that something was wrong, physically wrong, insider her body. As if someone had thrust a knife in her stomach, gutted her, yanked away something vital… leaving her cold as ice, trembling, uncomprehending. She felt a gray mist descend over her eyes, and truly wondered for a moment if she was dying. Or already dead, even.
Instead, her hands shot out and clutched at the mist that fell all around her, as tangible as thick sheets of gauze before her face. Without thinking, she thrust her hands into the mist and parted it, trying to see Asher.
There was a tremendous rumble from the sky and the ground at once, lightning flashing dozens of times as the earth shook beneath Kira’s feet. She felt strangely calm about it, as if it were perfectly natural. As if the thunder and the earthquake were simply part of her, somehow.
Then she felt them. Dozens of them, though she was hard-put to understand what they were. Entities, gathered just on the other side of the gauzy curtain, thrusting their presence at her. Offering help, seeking her touch. Caressing her, almost.
Kira squinted, and she could almost make out ghostly outlines through the curtain, mindless, weak spirits. Waiting. Calling to her. Ready for her to… what, exactly?
“Can you help him?” Kira whispered to the thin, shadowy creatures.
“Command us, mistress,” came a hissed reply.
“Attack the robed creatures,” Kira said. “Destroy them!”
The rumbling came again, and this time Kira’s mouth dropped open. Cry
pt doors burst open, a few graves in the ground spewed thick, dark dirt. The curtain before her eyes ripped wide open, and she saw them.
The figures, come to life. But not life, exactly. No, they were the walking dead.
Because Kira had called them, commanded them.
Kira’s heart beat wildly as she watched a wave of sickly corpses converge on the enemies with jerky unnatural movement, ripping at the robed creatures with crumbling hands, sinking hideously bared teeth into the enemies attacking Asher and the other Guardians.
“Faster!” Kira urged, and to her shock the creatures doubled their pace, no longer stumbling. There must be fifty or more now, shredding the robed foes, groaning and hissing as they worked.
Even as her stomach turned at the sight of them, Kira felt a strange rush. These creatures were hers. She’d called them, made them live again, turned them against her enemy. Her heart swelled with a sick pride, pushing down the soft words of warning in the back of her mind. She couldn’t focus, couldn’t think…
Kira’s tiny army destroyed the last of the attackers, and an elated bubble of laughter escaped her throat. She felt so strong, so powerful. Invincible. The sensation burst through her veins, like a high no drug could ever produce. Her skin was tight, her heart pumping out of control, her mind bursting with idle, hungry energy.
Then Asher made another pained sound. Kira’s eyes snapped open, though she hadn’t remembered closing them. She stood, arms thrown wide, embracing the night sky.
When had that happened?
When she turned her focus to Asher, she saw that her creatures had backed the three Guardians into a tight circle, their backs together as they snapped and clawed, trying to keep the restless dead from turning on them.
“Cease!” Kira screamed, fear throttling her breath.
At once, the creatures dissolved into that fine gray mist, moaning and hissing.