by Susan Illene
I’d listened earlier while O’Connell questioned Cage before the other officers arrived. He’d said he tried to keep them from taking Aniya, but they’d been too organized. The masked intruders started their attack by shooting them in their beds while the sun was at its highest and they were sleeping—both vampires being too young to fight their lethargy during the day. Before Cage could even react, they were already pulling Aniya away.
He’d tried to follow by crawling out of the room after them, which was evident by the fallen blankets and blood trails on the floor, but they shot him again in the hallway. That’s where he watched them cover Aniya in a body bag. She’d fought her attackers, but they’d put several bullets in her head, rendering her unconscious.
I heard his description over and over in my head as I surveyed the scene of the crime. Seeing all the blood made me want to curl up in a ball and cry—or break something. Aniya had not deserved this, and it was my fault. I should have warned her to be careful, but I’d been too wrapped up in my own world to think of her. My fingernails dug into my palms as I balled my fists. I had to do everything possible to find her before it was too late, but I would need some help.
Lucas and Derrick were standing by the front door talking to O’Connell when I returned to the living room. They were discussing ways to track down the culprits. Somehow, I doubted we’d find Aniya through conventional means.
I stopped next to Lucas and pulled him aside. “I’m going to talk to Derrick for a few minutes and then we need to go. I’ve got an idea.”
“What idea?” he asked, lifting a brow.
“I’ll explain when we leave. Just let me talk to Derrick alone for a few minutes first.”
“Very well.” He ground his jaw. “But do not take too long, or I may grow impatient with these humans.” Lucas ran his gaze around the room, staring at the police officers like they were prey encroaching on his territory. We’d been here for almost two hours. I supposed I should have been grateful he’d tolerated their presence for that long.
“Do not hurt anyone!” I hissed, pointing a finger at him.
“I guarantee nothing.” Which translated to—I better hurry up.
“Fine.” I gestured for Derrick to follow me outside.
“What is it?” he asked after we stopped in front of the garage.
“I’m going to Yvonne’s to see if she can do a locator spell on Aniya,” I informed him.
He rubbed at the dusting of whiskers on his face. “Do you think it will work?”
“Maybe, maybe not.” I shrugged. “But we have to try.”
“You’ll need something of hers,” he said.
I dug into my pocket and pulled out a gold necklace with dried bits of blood on it. I’d found it while going through the bedroom. Aniya had gotten the necklace for her sixteenth birthday from her mother and always wore it. I could only guess it broke off during the scuffle.
Derrick peered closely at it before nodding in approval. “I should go with you.”
“From the looks of it, Cage needs you more right now. He’s even worse off than he seems—trust me.”
Derrick glanced toward the house. “I’m afraid you’re right.”
“How are you doing?” I asked, giving him a consoling look. “I know the thing with Zoe must have been shocking.”
He worked his jaw. “Rebecca and I knew her mother had done somethin’ to us. We already decided we could either let Zoe ruin our lives or choose our own path. I don’t care what brought us together. I ain’t givin’ my girl up for nothin’.”
“That’s good.” I smiled at him. “You deserve happiness.”
“So do you, Melena.” Derrick’s expression became stern. “Don’t think for a second this thing with Aniya is your fault.” He put a hand up when I started to argue. “We both know that’s what you’re thinking, but you can’t protect everyone—take my word for it.”
He knew me too well. “I’m still going to track Aniya down and rescue her.”
“Anything you need, you let me know.” His tone brooked no argument.
Lucas stepped outside and began pacing the front porch. Judging by his mood, he was about three seconds away from mass murder. I really needed to help him with his people skills.
“I’ll keep you updated,” I promised Derrick.
Then I grabbed my husband before he could commit any felonies.
***
Yvonne opened her front door as soon as we stepped onto her porch. Her gray hair was in a braid, and she wore a pink robe that went all the way down to a matching pair of slippers. It was after midnight, so I hadn’t expected her to get dressed up for us, but I’d thought she’d at least put on some sweats or something. She put a finger to her lips and gestured for us to come inside. Toward the back of the house, my senses told me her daughter and grandson were sleeping soundly. She’d warned me on the phone that she didn’t want them woken if we wanted her help.
Lucas and I walked silently behind her as the mystic led us to her dining room where we each took a seat at her round table. I wrinkled my nose at the herbs burning on a glass dish at the center. The aroma was potent and spicy, but I couldn’t identify the ingredients.
“Do you have the necklace?” she asked in a whisper.
I drew it out of my pocket and handed it to her. “It fell off her neck during the attack.”
“Good,” Yvonne said under her breath, grazing her fingers over the chain. “Her essence is strong. If this doesn’t do it, nothing will.”
That was comforting—sort of.
Yvonne closed her eyes and began a soft chant. I couldn’t understand a word of what she said, but eventually I began to catch the rhythm. She was repeating the same lines over and over. Smoke from the burning herbs shifted and swirled around her. The level of power she used now wasn’t as great as when she designed wards, but I could feel the air thickening around us.
With each moment that passed, her face became more strained. It wasn’t hard to figure out the spell wasn’t working. I looked at Lucas and mouthed at him. “Can you help her?”
The expression on his face told me he doubted it, but he leaned forward and cupped his hands over Yvonne’s. She jerked but didn’t push him away. The herbs sparked in the glass dish and a small flame rose up. I struggled to take a full breath as the air became even denser. Lucas repeated her chants and lent more of his power to hers. The magic bombarded my senses, making my temples throb.
It went on for another minute before Yvonne collapsed in her chair. “It’s no use. They’ve blocked us.”
“There must be a sensor helping them,” Lucas surmised, voice coming out strained. He really had tried to help the mystic with her spell.
I leaned my elbows on the table, frustrated. “Cage said the attackers smelled human, but that doesn’t mean none of them weren’t sensors.”
Lucas nodded. “I doubt they stayed in the city long, either.”
We’d had Micah take Patrick on a sweep of the airport since it was about a ten-minute drive from Cage’s house, but he didn’t detect Aniya there. They did ask some questions and discovered one suspicious flight relating to a private plane. It’d flown out about an hour after the attack. Agent O’Connell had guys checking on it.
I gave Yvonne a grateful look. “Thanks anyway for trying so hard.”
“It’s for a good cause,” she said wearily. Then she patted my hand. “Aniya is a sweet girl who doesn’t deserve this. I’ll keep trying every few hours. If they’re moving her around much, there will be gaps where I might catch her.”
“I’d appreciate that.” I did my best to swallow back the despair threatening to rise up my throat.
Lucas stood. “We will find her, sensor—one way or another.”
Chapter Thirty-three
Melena
It had been thirty hours since Aniya was kidnapped, and we’d found no trace of where her attackers took her. With every moment that passed, I grew more despondent. Memories of the last time she went missing kept
running through my head. She might have “survived” that experience, but it hadn’t exactly ended well.
Forensics didn’t turn up anything useful, other than the types of pistols used. The intruders didn’t leave behind any DNA evidence, but Cage had said his attackers covered themselves from head to toe. We didn’t have any idea what they looked like. Derrick sent some of his werewolves around to sniff things out, but if the culprits had stayed in the area for any length of time, they’d chosen a remote location for their hideout.
We did have one witness—a middle-aged woman who lived down the street from Cage. She described a dark blue, windowless van and three men in black clothing. Because she’d already suspected Cage was a vampire, she’d been too afraid to report the incident at the time. Maybe if she had, we could have caught the guys before they left town. I knew they couldn’t still be around because Patrick and I had spent most of the day combing Fairbanks and the surrounding area to be sure.
Worn out and tired, we trudged up the steps and went into the house. Patrick headed straight for the kitchen, but Lucas gestured for me to join him in the living room. He took one look at my worn expression and pulled me into his arms.
“You will find her,” he said, kissing the top of my head.
“I know,” I sighed. “But she could be anywhere by now.”
Lucas pulled away, his expression solemn. “Give yourself a break for a few hours. We have dozens of people searching for her and more seem to offer their assistance every hour.” He shook his head. “You’ve gained quite a few friends over the years who wish to help you.”
“But I can’t stop—even for a few hours. Aniya is depending on me to find her,” I argued. God knew I was exhausted and running out of ideas for what to do, but it just felt wrong to relax when my best friend was being held by a ruthless killer somewhere.
Lucas grabbed an envelope from the coffee table and handed it to me. “There are other people in your life who you should be concerned about. This is from Emily’s school.”
It was a diversion, I knew, but he’d picked a good one. “Thanks.”
I opened it and pulled out a single sheet of paper. Classes had just finished yesterday so report cards weren’t supposed to be available yet, but I’d casually mentioned to Lucas that morning how I wished I could see Emily’s grades sooner. In the midst of everything, it occurred to me that I needed to know if I’d screwed up her life so much she was going to need summer school. He must have worked his magic to get the report in a day.
Lucas was right that even though I had a lot on my plate, I couldn’t ignore my responsibilities to Emily. She’d lost me for three months. I had to make her a priority as much as everything else—even if her school grades seemed like the least of my problems. One glance at the report, though, and a mixture of relief and fear swept through me.
“Did you look at this?” I asked Lucas.
He leaned down and stared at the paper. “I thought I’d let you see it first.”
“She got straight A’s. How is that possible?” I just couldn’t believe it.
Lucas rubbed his chin. “She missed some classes in January and February, but she spent a lot of time studying after that. We could hardly get her to leave her room.”
“You don’t think she talked anyone into compelling her teachers?” In our world, that was always a possibility.
Lucas gave me an amused look. “None of us would have done it, and she did appear to be studying diligently enough. I believe she did this all on her own.”
“You know we’re going to have to buy her a car now, right?” This was every parent’s worst nightmare—the dilemma of their child getting good grades, but not wanting to give them a reward that could put them in jeopardy. At least she hadn’t asked for a trip to Egypt or something.
“I should have encouraged her to go out drinking with her friends more often.” He sighed.
Micah flashed into the room. He must have just finished his shift at the nerou compound. He took one look at our faces and stiffened. “What has happened now?”
“Look.” I handed the report to him. “We’re going to owe her a car for this, and she’s going to want to drive it—on roads and stuff.”
He skimmed the paper, then looked up at his brother. “If you’d let me take her to those rock concerts as I suggested, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.”
Kerbasi appeared in the living room next. He didn’t ask us what we were talking about. The guardian went straight to Micah and jerked the report out of his hands, skimming over it with a deepening frown. I supposed it was obvious the paper was the topic of our discussion.
“You aren’t really going to give her a car, are you?” he asked, handing the report back to me. He’d been there when I made the promise to Emily at the beginning of the school year.
“It’s not like I have a choice. I can’t go back on my word.” Then an idea hit me, and I turned to Lucas. “What if we got something with heavy armor on it?”
He canted his head. “That could work. I’m certain I could find something.”
“What’s going on?” Emily asked, coming from the foyer.
She and Patrick had been outside throwing a Frisbee in the yard. The man was trying to make up for lost time with his daughter in every way possible. She must have sensed us gathering together and decided to check up on us.
“We just got the report on your grades,” I answered, handing her the paper.
Emily barely took a glance at it before giving me a satisfied smirk. “You owe me a car.”
“Wait. What?” Patrick sputtered.
Emily handed him her report. “Mel promised me if I got good grades this year, then I could have a car. Now she’s got to pay up.”
Lucas cleared his throat. “We will take our time searching for the right one, of course.”
“Don’t you dare drag it out,” Emily warned, putting her hands on her hips. “You know damn well I earned it.”
“Language, Emily,” her father cautioned.
She composed her features. “Sorry, Dad.”
I was impressed. Every time I tried correcting her language, she didn’t listen. Maybe we needed to let him play bad cop about the car situation. She might take it better if he broke the news that it was best to wait a little longer.
Patrick studied the report. “She made all A’s?”
“You’ve got a smart daughter when she applies herself,” I replied, proud that at least I hadn’t screwed things up too badly for her.
If she kept studying hard during her senior year, she might get into a decent college. Of course, that would be bad, too. How would we ever be able to let her out of our sight? We’d have to give her a protection detail that rivaled the Secret Service. Why couldn’t Emily go back to being fourteen again? I was turning twenty-nine next month. Wasn’t I too young to be facing problems like this? Invading Hell was beginning to seem a lot less daunting than handling a teenager who’d soon be old enough to strike out on her own.
“If you can give me a couple of weeks, I might be able to pitch in on the car,” Patrick offered.
My hopes that he’d fight us on the car thing came crashing down. “What? How?”
“Well, uh, I have some savings stashed away in Montana.” He appeared a little sheepish. “I’d just have to make a trip to get it and tie up some loose ends while I’m there. I was thinking I should do that anyway now that I’ve got a job here in Fairbanks.”
“Really?” Emily hopped up on her toes. “That would be awesome!”
Lucas and Micah did their telepathic thing for a minute. Those of us who could sense it gave them annoyed looks for leaving us out of the conversation. After a minute, Micah addressed Patrick. “We could fly out late next week. Lucas still has his plane in Fairbanks, so we could be there and back in a day if we leave early.”
Patrick blanched. “That quick? I’m not sure I could get everything done in just a few hours.”
“Perhaps not by yourself,” Lucas said, tone fi
rm. “But I assure you my brother can speed up anything you think might take a while.”
Patrick hesitated, but one look at all our faces had him slumping his shoulders. “Uh, okay.”
“Then it’s settled.” Micah gave the sensor a pat on the back that almost knocked him over.
I grinned at the befuddled man. “You didn’t really think you would go back all by yourself, did you? One of the things about hanging around this family is we take care of each other.” I gazed around me. “Now who’s up for ice cream to celebrate Emily’s grades?”
Kerbasi perked up. “I would certainly enjoy a bowl or two.”
“Yeah, I bet.” We headed for the kitchen.
The guardian helped me pull out the ice cream containers, chocolate sauce, sprinkles, bananas, and whipped cream. Everyone else grabbed a barstool and took a seat. It was good to see everyone gathered together, though I was sorry Bartol wouldn’t join us. I dished up a serving for him first and sent Emily to give it to him.
As I started filling the other bowls, my senses alerted me to new arrivals heading our way. “Yerik and Lorna are coming.”
Lucas stiffened. “He’d mentioned he might visit tonight.”
We hadn’t seen him since the previous night at the compound. I hadn’t wanted to bother him yet, considering he deserved a little time with his family before we threw him into the thick of things. We were on a tight schedule, though, with Lucas and Micah. Remiel would be back soon to attach their ankle bracelets again. If we were going to rescue Ariel, we had to do it quick, or we’d lose our window of opportunity. The angel’s soul darkened with each day that passed, and in a few months it might be too late for her.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to squeeze in an invasion of Hell while also searching for my missing best friend, but I didn’t have much of a choice. We had no idea where Aniya might be, but we did have the exact location on Ariel.
“Well, they’re pulling up the road now,” I informed Lucas.
He got off his barstool. “I will meet them outside.”