Whispers in the Ether

by Jena Gregoire

  Again. Something about the sound is familiar, but I can’t place where I’ve heard it.

  “No,” Dez says in a breathy panic.

  Another chime, and this time Dez’s face looks like she’s seen a ghost.

  “Vegas,” she whispers, an edge of hysteria to her voice.

  Another chime, and she collapses on to the bed beside me, holding her head.

  “Dez,” I ask in a panic, “what’s going on?”

  Another chime. Dez rolls off of me and drops into her pillow, face down, sobbing. The sobs quickly morph into the maniacal laughter of an insane person.

  “I knew it!” she yells. “I fucking knew it!”

  “Okay! You knew it!” Another chime. Where is that noise coming from? “Care to clue me in?”

  Deziree turns over and sits up, the sheet pulled up to cover her body. She stops laughing, wipes the tears from her eyes, and turns to me.

  “Tell me,” I plead. “What exactly did you know?”

  She smiles and says, “Never trust something if you think it might be too good to be true. It probably is.” She rests her hand on my cheek. “Even I was fooled. It all seemed so real.”

  “No,” I whisper to her, the truth plain as day.

  Another chime.

  “You’re not real. Or, at least, you’re not really here. I remember everything now, all of it. Right now, I’m actually asleep in some small town on the outskirts of Phoenix. I fell asleep thinking about you. I miss you.”

  Another chime, and it feels like my heart is breaking in my chest. I wipe at the tears streaming down her cheeks. I wanted to believe this wasn’t a dream. Instead, it was just another nightmare. A cruel fabrication of my own subconscious.

  Another chime, and this time it seems louder somehow.

  “Dez-”

  “Shh, I have a feeling we don’t have much time left.”

  Another chime, louder still.

  “I want you to know something. I love you, and we will see each other again soon, I promise.”

  I pull her face to mine, and before she can utter another word, I crush my lips to hers, not wanting to let go.

  I snap awake, gasping for breath. I quickly reach beside me and turn on the bedside lamp. I glance around, trying to make sense of what just happened. I am alone in my room, just as I had been when I laid down.

  The twelfth and final chime sounds from the antique grandfather clock in the hall outside my bedroom door, letting me know it is midnight.

  Happy fucking New Year, indeed.

  Hellfire 2.5

  In the book Dance with the Devil, you meet a character by the name of Jamie Hayes. She’s going to be a big part of the Hellfire universe as she’s headlining her own spin-off, the Executioner series. The story you’re about to read is what happened to land her foul-mouthed ass on the radar of Kade Walker, the head of the Walker vampire coven in New York City. The events in this story are addressed briefly in Dance, but I thought it would be fun to see how it actually played out.

  This story will introduce you to another new Hellfire universe character as well. This story is told from the point of view of Marcel Cross, the alpha of one of the NYC werewolf packs. He and his pack members will end up becoming familiar faces soon. This is a brief glimpse into their world.

  Enjoy the story!

  ~ Jena

  RECKONING

  CHAPTER ONE

  I touched the smooth glass and my phone beamed to life. We’d arrived at the Silver Bullet, a local werewolf hang out, only about an hour ago, not the three I could have sworn had passed. I let the screen timeout and washed my disappointment down with another sip of scotch.

  My pack was scattered around the room doing whatever was needed to work off some of the energy from the coming moon. Every month, just before we were forced to shift, we all started to get antsy, the wolf within pacing in anticipation of the ability to run free. Those of us with some years behind us didn’t struggle with the urges anymore but the younger ones still need to be kept out of trouble. Times like these, I felt the term babysitter described me a lot more accurately than alpha.

  To any humans who accidentally wandered in, we looked like any other crowd of drunk bikers partying a little too hard, but almost every person in the room was touched by magick. Most of us were wolves, but there were a few other supernaturals as well.

  The overcrowded bar stank with a mixture of cheap perfume and stale beer. Max and Aidan, the two oldest pack members after me, were in the corner playing pool. They were supposed to be relaxing, but after every shot on the table, they’d each take a sip of their beer and scan the room. Ever the watchful sentinels.

  Trevor, Red, and Nate were all bellied up to the bar. They’d spent every second since we arrived shamelessly flirting with the curvaceous bartender. I was fairly certain they were wasting their time. Looking the way she did — thin waist, round ass, and an aversion to modest clothing — in a bar full of wolves, she’d probably heard every pickup line ever invented and could handle herself against the likes of them.

  The two I needed to keep my eye on were Ace and Dylan. They were the newest members of the pack, both turned just a few years ago. They’d only come to us in recent months, and they’d already been in more fights than the rest of the pack combined. Since their arrival, I’d spent a good amount of time quietly reminding myself it wasn’t exactly their fault. Both were turned and abandoned. They never had an alpha or a pack to teach them how to temper their more primal inclinations. I was trying to change that, and I knew that given time they’d learn, but it was still a work in progress. My wolf had other suggestions for solving the problem. He was the dark voice in the back of my mind urging me to be just be done with it already and make it look like a painful accident. Lucky for them, their fate wasn’t up to him.

  Dylan’s hands were already full with a brunette near the dart boards. They were too busy giving each other a tongue bath to make any progress in their game, but at least there wasn’t an angry boyfriend around this time. In Dylan’s eyes, the words I’ve got a boyfriend were merely a speed bump. It just meant they were negotiating. Hence the bar fights.

  Ace on the other hand was up to his usual shit. He’d already singled a girl out in the crowd and he had his eye on her. I was pretty sure the guy standing with his hand on her ass would have a problem with Ace’s leering. Luckily, he hadn’t noticed yet so I took the opportunity to shift his focus elsewhere.

  Placing the tips of my thumb and forefinger in my mouth, I let out a sharp, high-pitched whistle, and every one of my wolves snapped around to face me. I stared Ace down and let my wolf make a brief appearance, my eyes flashing with a bright red glow. I slowly shook my head, the warning clear on my face. We’d had the conversation before so there was no need for further clarification. He knew exactly what the problem was, and he knew he’d be dealing with my wolf if he didn’t obey.

  He nodded and then submitted, bowing his head down in a show of respect. The rest of the pack waited, watching to see what I’d do. Satisfied with Ace’s response, I picked up my glass and took another sip of scotch, finally releasing Ace from my gaze. The pack relaxed and resumed what they were doing prior to my interruption.

  Thanks to the laws protecting the health of the city's human inhabitants, smoking inside a bar was no longer allowed. After catching Aidan's eye to let him know where I was going, I ducked down the hallway, the dim red glow from the exit sign acting as my own personal beacon to freedom. I pushed the metal bar and the heavy door swung wide. The night air felt cool against my skin and I took in a lung full as I made my way down the concrete steps. I got to appreciate it for about two seconds before the odor of rancid garbage assaulted my nose. I walked to the dumpster and slammed the lid shut but it did little to help with the smell.

  "It's the only downside to sneaking out here.” The raspy feminine voice came from a shadowy alcove in the side of the building. I could have seen her better if I let my wolf peek out but I didn’t want to scare her. �
�If you stand too close, it actually seeps into your clothing. You won't be able to get that fucking smell out of your nose for days.”

  She stepped into the light and was nothing I'd expected to see hanging around at the Silver Bullet. The women who trolled the wolves here tended to be a little on the trashy side, only coming around with the specific goal of going home with one of the boys. Their dresses were a little too tight, their makeup a little too heavy, and their minds seemed to travel the same single track Ace’s did. It could be argued that Ace genuinely didn’t know what it was like to be told no. He rarely had to go very far to find some hot young thing ready and more than willing. Maybe that was part of his problem.

  This girl was something else entirely. She was petite, maybe five-foot-four if she was lucky. A quick sniff of the air confirmed she was human. The thick tread of her black combat boots peeked out from the bottom of black pants fitted low on her curvy hips. Her bare midriff was taut with muscle, and the stone decorating her navel piercing twinkled in the streetlight. Her top looked like the vest from a three-piece suit, black with charcoal grey pinstripes. Her blonde hair was up in two French braids that curled down over her shoulders like pigtails. She stepped further into the light and for the first time I got a good look at her eyes. They were a bright blue, the heavy charcoal eyeliner making them stand out, but if I had to guess, she didn’t need it.

  “I’m telling you, man. You’re going to want to step away from there.” I realized I’d been standing there staring at her for longer than was comfortable. Heeding her warning, I crossed the alley and stood near the steps leading back into the bar.

  “Sorry, it’s just I don't remember seeing you around here.”

  She eyed me cautiously before speaking. “I didn’t realize I had to check in with anyone. It’s not a private club, is it?”

  “No, it’s public, but the clientele is usually a specific crowd. We don't get many new faces.”

  “Wolves? Yeah, I’m aware. How the fuck anyone could miss it is beyond me. You guys aren’t exactly subtle. But this place has cheap liquor and since I don't have a car, the fact that it’s within walking distance to my motel automatically shot it to the top of my list of favorite places to hang out. It’s not exactly a shining endorsement. My options were limited.”

  “Is it worth risking your safety?” I asked.

  “Who says my safety is in jeopardy?” she scoffed.

  “A human in a bar full of drunk wolves isn’t exactly a sound plan. You could get hurt.”

  “Thanks for the concern, but if shit goes sideways, I’m not the one you need to be worried about. You guys keep your hands to yourself and I promise to do the same.”

  With that, she stepped around me to put her cigarette in the butt can and headed for the mouth of the alley. If she were smart, she’d rethink her plans for the night. As she walked through the light shining down from the overhead lamp, something on her hip glinted and caught my eye. I squinted to get a better look. The top half of a black metal ring was sticking out of a discreet pocket near the hem of her pant leg. Then another right below it and another below that. If I had to guess, she had the same thing down the other leg. Throwing knives.

  “Hey, do you know how to use those?” She glanced back, saw what I was looking at, and smiled over her shoulder. Not a warm smile. A predatory sneer.

  “It’s best for both of us if you don't find out.” She kept walking and I watched her disappear around the corner where she turned left, likely headed to the front entrance. I shook my head and turned to go back inside.

  RECKONING

  CHAPTER TWO

  I bypassed my booth and joined Aidan and Max to watch them play pool for a little while. Max, as always, was effortlessly kicking Aidan’s ass. He’d already sunk all but the eight ball and Aidan hadn’t even been able to take a shot yet.

  “I’m telling you, he cheats and I’m going to figure out how, even if I have to lose to him a thousand times before I work it out.”

  “Well, brother, you’re well on your way.” Max looked up from his cue, poised to take his final shot, and flashed Aidan a devilish grin. With a quick snap of his arm, he sent the ivory cue ball sailing into the eight ball with precision and sunk it, ending yet another game.

  “Fuck you.” There was no real malice in his words, but I’m sure Aidan meant them all the same. Unless you were really good, playing against Max wasn’t much fun. Aidan took a sip of his beer and scanned the room. He was my second, my right-hand man. When I wasn’t around, he was my eyes and ears. On nights like this, he tried his best to keep tabs on things so I could kick back and relax.

  Although the pack didn’t actually have such a position in the hierarchy, Max was sort of Aidan’s second. The two had been best friends as long as I can remember. When they weren’t busy with pack business, they were out on their Harleys pissing off the suburbs with their loud exhaust.

  "You working tomorrow?” Max asked Aidan.

  "Yeah, I'm going to try to get Dave Winston's Panhead finished. I'm sick of looking at it." Dave was a regular customer who liked to buy old Harleys and pay us to rebuild them. It was good revenue for the shop, but Aidan preferred quick jobs where the bike was in and out in the same day. "I'd love it if he'd buy something new for once. Do you know how long it's been since I've done a simple routine tune up?”

  "He's using us as a restoration shop. We should be charging him a lot more,” Max added. He was right, but we weren't struggling and the repeat business would be invaluable if we ever were.

  "Leave it," I ordered. "Consider it money in the karma bank. He's a good guy and I'm okay with what he’s paying.” That was it. End of subject. Aidan challenged Max to another game and they went about setting up the table. I took a seat at one of the high tables behind them. Aidan came over and stood by me, chalking his cue while Max racked the balls.

  "Hey, do you know anything about that blonde chick?” I asked. I nodded toward her and he shook his head.

  "Nope. She’s pretty.” He squinted focusing on her. "That's interesting.”

  "What is?"

  "She's strapped with knives. That's an unusual accessory for a night out." He turned to me. "You think she's trouble?”

  "Not for us. I ran into her out back,” I explained. “I get the impression that she just wants to be left alone. She's got a drifter vibe. She mentioned staying at a motel within walking distance.”

  "Sounds like you two already made friends.”

  "I wouldn't necessarily say that, but I don't think she's an enemy.”

  "Who are we talking about?" Max asked after he'd finished setting the table.

  "The blonde sitting alone at the bar,” I replied.

  "She's cute,” he said appreciatively. “I like the braids. You interested?”

  "I'm intrigued.”

  "Isn't that the same thing?” Aiden asked.

  "The difference is which head you're thinking with,” I replied, hopping down off my chair. "I'm going to grab another drink and head back to my booth. Holler if you need me.”

  RECKONING

  CHAPTER THREE

  “You’re the head honcho, right?” I looked up from my phone to find the cute blonde from the alleyway sitting across from me. I'd been so engrossed in my book I hadn't noticed her sit down. I hit the power button and gave her my full attention.

  “Excuse me?”

  “El jefe? The Big Cheese? The Don?” I continued to stare at her, waiting for the real question. She huffed out of a frustrated sigh and rested her arms on the table, leaning in toward me. “Look,” she demanded, slamming a twenty dollar bill down on the table, “you’re in charge of that motley band of assholes, are you not?” I peeked around her to see Dylan and Ace having a bromancey high five over something almost certainly stupid.

  “I am,” I admitted begrudgingly.

  “Good, then this is for you.” She slid the twenty toward me. “Your next few drinks are on me if you promise to keep that one,” she turned and pointed to Ac
e, “in line. If you don't, I will.” Although she didn't explain further, the warning was clear.

  At first, I chuckled imagining her giving him a face full of liquor, but then I remembered the throwing blades. Provided they’re not made of silver, they wouldn’t do much to him except maybe teach him a lesson. Not a bad idea.

  “Did he touch you?” I asked, worried he’d already overstepped his bounds.

  “No, you would know if he did. Keep his ass in line. I’m not in the mood, and it’s, like, your job or whatever.”

  Without another word, she scooted out of the booth and walked away, leaving the twenty behind. I watched as she made her way to a seat at the far end of the bar away from the bulk of the crowd. Not thirty seconds after she sat down, Ace made like he was going to try his luck with her, but Dylan spotted me glaring at him. He grabbed Ace’s arm before he could get too far and pulled him in to whisper something in his ear. Ace turned to me, wide eyed, and nodded in obedience. I tipped my hat in thanks and returned my attention to the sexy mystery girl. Only her chair was empty.

  Her glass and her jacket were both gone. I glanced around the bar, but didn’t see her anywhere. Probably for the best.

  I turned my phone back on and picked up reading where I had left off. Only Aidan and Max knew of my propensity for reading. The rest of the pack probably assumed I was surfing porn.

  I was only reading for a about an hour when Aidan’s voice broke me from the story. I held my finger up wordlessly instructing him to wait while I finished reading the page I was on.

  “What’s up?” I asked when I reached the end of the paragraph.

  “Sorry to interrupt, boss, but it looks like you have an easy night tonight. The boys are going to head out. They all found other things to occupy their time for the evening, so you can take off if you want to.” I eyed my glass then glanced around the bar. A good portion of the crowd had cleared out. Ace and Dylan were still at the bar and Max was at the pool table, but Trevor, Red, and Nate were nowhere in sight. Realizing who I was looking for before I voiced it, Aidan informed me that they’d gone home already.