by Jami Gray
Alexi moved cautiously out into the clearing and neared the shack. She scanned the area, going so far as to send out pulses of magic to search for spells. They found nothing.
The magic powering Raine’s wards beat seamlessly with the energy found in the natural world making them magically invisible. Score one for her Fey blood versus demon blood. Her eyes stayed focused, and a spark of anticipation firing as Alexi took the last step clear of the forest.
Alexi moved toward the tarp doorway and shoved it aside, peering in. Pulling her head back, she scanned the forest. Her face was cold and unamused. “All right, enough games. I have your payment. Come get it. I need to get back to open the bar.”
Raine’s lips curled into a feral smile. She pulled her shields tight, and dropped lightly into crouch at the head of the hiking trail. “Fancy meeting you here, Alexi.” Ice dripped from her voice as she strolled into the clearing.
Alexi’s face whitened in shock. “Raine? What are you doing here?”
Raine stopped and cocked her hip. “You know, I was just wondering the same thing about you.”
A sheepish look bled across Alexi’s features. “I got a call saying if I met a source at this location I could get some information to help you find out who killed that wizard.”
“Really? Funny, so did I.” Raine raised an eyebrow, giving her former friend points for her acting ability. It was truly amazing how good an actress she was. “However, my source has a name. Tarek. Recognize it?”
Undiluted fury transformed Alexi’s face. “That traitorous bastard! I should have killed him earlier.”
“Yeah, you probably should have.” For the first time Raine witnessed the warped being living under her friend’s mask. Tucking away the sickening pain—at being so obtuse as not to see this—she focused on the deadly force swirling inside her. “Should have done it before he killed Chet though.” She shook her head. “Really, Alexi, did you think you could try to take the three of us out and no one would be the wiser?”
Alexi snarled. Without warning a ball of flame arrowed straight toward Raine.
With a negligent flick of her wrist, Raine blocked it and stepped to the side as the flame petered out and fell like orange rain to the damp ground. She tsked. “Temper, temper. You’re going to have to do better than that.”
Alexi visibly pulled herself together. Her dark eyes, rimmed with red, turned shrewd, watchful. She began to circling to Raine’s right, putting the ramshackle building to her back.
Raine waited, her stare focused, watching like a cat with a small mouse. There was a rush of magic as the demon halfling threw a quick warding up to block Raine’s magical attacks, even as she tossed out a testing flicker of a spell.
The warmth of Cheveyo’s charm burned against Raine’s chest as her shields strengthened. They wouldn’t hold long, just long enough to start the chase. Hopefully.
Frustration bloomed in Alexi’s red-rimmed eyes. “Bitch!” Her lips curled back in a twisted grimace. “They won’t hold long.”
Raine glided a couple of steps to her left, slowly herding Alexi along the shack wall and toward the forest sitting behind it. “Maybe, maybe not.” She kept her hands loose and at her sides. “Before we start this, can I ask you something?”
Alexi moved a couple more steps to her left, her attention on Raine. In her hands, fire bloomed like flickering blades. “Are you going to go with the standard, ‘Why?’ You should be more original.”
Raine said nothing, just waited and watched, her body coiled.
“Did you know the only thing of worth my father gave me was this?” Alexi moved her hands bringing the two tongues of fire together, weaving the flames into what resembled a staff. “The wonderful ability to twist and mold fire into any shape I choose. I used it to kill him.” She briefly fingered the four thin scars on the side of her face. “He did leave this behind.” She cocked her head to the side, her curls bouncing innocently. “Does that shock you?”
“At this point, not really,” Raine drawled.
Alexi’s smile held a hint of madness. “Oh, that’s right. You’re one of the brave and noble pieces of shit known as Wraiths. All that bullshit about protecting the Kyn community from humans and humans from crazed Kyn. You’re just a bunch of hired killers, drawing a paycheck in blood.”
“Don’t hold back,” Raine said dryly. “Tell me what you really think.”
“Don’t mock me!” Alexi’s face contorted before she took a deep breath. “You’re supposed to protect the Kyn and mortals alike, right? So why did I find Quinn in his own blood? Who stood for him? Who stood for my mother after one of your thrice-cursed demons raped her? Who stood for me when she killed herself when I came into my power?” This last was wailed—the echoes of a tortured child threading through the madness.
“So, what?” Raine quashed the pity whispering through her. “You’re not the only one with a troubled past. Is that how you justified your actions?” She shook her head, letting her contempt show. “Quinn sold out other Kyn for experimentation. Why should anyone stand for him?”
Alexi took a few more steps.
Raine held steady, waiting for the woman to drop her guard long enough for Raine to make her move.
Alexi began to twirl the flaming staff in her hands, her mad gaze never leaving Raine. “I loved him,” Alexi’s voice was calm, almost normal, her tone soft. “Quinn was it for me.”
Without warning, she shifted her grip and struck out with the burning staff. Flames ripped through the air between them. When they hit Raine’s shields, the magic shimmered briefly, but held.
Alexi’s smile was confident. “A couple more hits, and you’ll be a smoldering pile of ash.”
Raine shifted closer. Needing Alexi out of control, she let derision fill her voice, “You know it’s a pretty fucked up relationship if a date night includes the murder and evisceration of a wizard. Perhaps the two of you should’ve looked into counseling.”
Alexi snarled, hurling another wave of flames.
Raine dropped, using her arms to cover her head, and rolled. The blasting heat shimmered above her. Her hand came away with one of the throwing knives and, as she came up on her knees, she threw it. At the sound of Alexi’s short scream, Raine’s smile flashed, savage and cold. The throwing dart sliced into Alexi’s right shoulder. With a quick mental push, Raine released the attached magic activating the blood tracer spell.
Cursing and unaware, Alexi let her flaming staff falter. Her right arm hung uselessly at her side. Without warning, she turned the staff into a snake-like whip in her left hand and sent it lashing out.
Shocked at Alexi’s speed, Raine barely managed to roll away from the flames. Unfortunately, they breached her weakening shields and seared her left side. She hissed as the pain streaked from shoulder to hip.
Alexi’s eyes narrowed and an evil smile played along her lips, twisting the scars on her face. “Bet that stung.” She watched Raine stumble to her feet, then reached up and gripped the small throwing knife. With a grunt, she yanked it free from her shoulder.
Raine straightened slowly, keeping her breathing even while her voice remained rock solid. “I can’t figure out why you had someone kill Mayson, or how you got to him so fast.”
“Quinn’s spells were still active, and he placed one on that freak after a meeting.” There was a sort of perverse pride in Alexi’s answer. “I just continued to monitor those that stayed active.”
“You killed him?” That was an alarming bit of news. If Alexi was able to pull off such an intense spell, she was much more dangerous than Raine anticipated. Not that being a crazy, psychopathic demon was any better, but Raine would rather attributed Mayson’s death to Tarek.
“What?” Alexi laughed, correctly reading the shock on Raine’s face. “Did you think I let you know the full extent of what I can do?”
Raine shrugged, ignoring the whiplash of pain down her left side. “Obviously not, since you’re a sick murdering bitch.”
Alexi faced
her, blood leaving a red trail down her right side, malicious humor flashing in her eyes. “Oh come on, Raine. Your hands aren’t any cleaner than mine.”
“Depends on your definition of clean.”
Alexi snorted. “I took out those who took mine. Chet killed Quinn, I killed him. Tit for tat.”
“Wrong, Alexi.” Raine shook her head, slowly letting her recently embraced darkness shine through. “He didn’t kill Quinn. That pleasure was all mine.”
Alexi froze, sanity breaking through the haze of madness for a single moment before rage took over and she took a flying leap at Raine.
Raine braced, letting Alexi slam her to the ground. Alexi’s fingers curled into claws and she raked them down the right side of Raine’s neck, drawing blood. Using Alexi’s own momentum against her, Raine got her feet and hands between their bodies. With a quick shove, she threw the smaller woman off. The adrenaline rush blocked out all pain as she flexed her hands and legs, lunging back to her feet.
Putting her back to the shack, she faced Alexi, who now knelt on the ground at the foot of a tree. The woman pushed herself to her feet, her eyes bleeding to red. “Speaking of men, how’s your walking wet dream?” Her voice was a sibilant hiss. “I heard he hooked up with a redhead.” A trickled of blood marked the corner of her mouth, and she used an arm to brush it away.
Raine banked her fury at Alexi’s verbal strike. Too bad it hit so close to the mark. “I guess you didn’t hear,” she said, her voice scathing. “He’s fine. The redhead? Well…” She shrugged. “She’s had better days.”
Alexi snarled and shot forward, leading with her fist.
Raine didn’t go for her blades. No, she needed the sensation of flesh meeting flesh. Blocking Alexi’s clumsy attack, she struck out with a short arm jab into Alexi’s ribs, sending the woman to her knees again as she struggled to catch her breath. Raine stepped back and around, putting the shack at her back.
“Oh, Alexi.” She watched the dark haired woman regain her feet. “You know how you forgot to mention a few things?”
Alexi raised her eyes as Raine removed the two stilettos and tossed them into the forest. They were quickly followed by the other throwing dart.
Raine’s deepening voice and glowing silver eyes held Alexi immobile. “Well, so did I.”
One moment Raine stood there, in the next a large black leopard with the same glowing eyes crouched in her spot.
Shocked, Alexi took a step back then turned and did exactly what Raine hoped she’d do. She ran.
Letting loose an eerily feminine scream of triumph, the big cat dashed after its prey.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Deep inside the cat, Raine marveled at the power held in the leopard’s body. The padding footsteps were nearly silent on the spongy ground. Using her whiskers, she took in the scents of the forest, reveling in the bouquet of odors assailing her nostrils.
Over there was a rabbit—quivering, hoping not to be seen—the faint smell of deer, the crispness of the air cutting through the trees, the earthy smell of fertile soil buried under the fallen leaves. The leopard’s head came up sharply, there—just there—the sharp smell of other, something that didn’t belong in the natural world. The leopard’s lip curled with a silent baring of teeth.
The woman inside recognized the stench of demon, even if the animal didn’t.
Raine tried not to dwell on the alien sense of invasion as her mind and the creature’s shared the same body. Letting the animal’s intellect take over, she submerged her sense of self, trusting the leopard to stalk and hunt their prey.
There was no more conflict over hunting Alexi down and shedding her blood, no guilt for Raine’s part in Gavin’s condition. Just quiet anticipation of a good hunt, fresh meat, and warm blood.
The leopard stopped, bunched its muscles, and sprang up to the overhanging branches, moving along a barely discernable pathway overhead. It didn’t take long before the cat was crouching like a menacing shadow above Alexi’s head.
The demonic gypsy rested against a tree, eyes darting around frantically for a glimpse of the big cat.
The sharp scent of blood and fear made its way to the leopard’s nostrils like some mouthwatering aroma. The whiskers twitched once, but it held still, obeying the inner woman’s urging.
Alexi cursed softly as she slid down the trunk of the tree—just as the leopard landed like smoke in front of her. Unable to stifle her short scream, Alexi scrambled to her feet and took off.
Deep inside the leopard, Raine grinned. Woman and cat bounded after the fleeing prey. The scent of blood, the tantalizing smell of fear-soaked sweat drifted back to them.
When Alexi tripped over a log and struggled back to her feet, the cat crouched, waiting, wanting to play with this mouse.
Raine got lost in the fun of the hunt, the joy of chasing down that which was weaker. Time after time, the cat pulled up short as Alexi stumbled blindly through the forest.
Strung out with exhaustion, Alexi tripped once again and fell. When she didn’t rise, the cat took a couple of cautious steps closer.
“Bitch, you think this is a game?” Alexi’s harsh breathing made her words hard to understand.
Both the cat and the woman were taken by surprise when Alexi—moving with unnatural quickness—threw a whipping tongue of flame at them, while muttering indecipherably under her breath.
Raine fought the cate for dominance. When the flame whipped along their chest, they screamed. Pain made the cat angry. It wanted to jump on its tormentor. Hissing, it began circling Alexi. Raine finally cut through the animal’s instinctive need to mindlessly attack and shred. Such a move could kill them both.
Alexi’s chanting grew stronger, but Raine didn’t recognize the language rolling from her mouth. She did, however, recognize the energy building up as some serious magic.
Pushing the cat to jump, Raine slashed out, catching Alexi across the chest with the leopard’s razor sharp claws. The woman stumbled back, the words cutting off abruptly as bloody furrows bloomed bright red.
While Alexi fought for footing, Raine shifted back to human form. Years of training blocked out the screaming pain of a fast shift of bones and skin merging with the burns down her left side and across her chest.
She stood naked, except for Cheveyo’s charm, with blood dripping from her hand. There was one moment to wonder distantly what happened to her clothes before Alexi let out a blood-curling scream and launched herself at Raine.
Alexi managed to catch Raine mid-body with a shoulder, sending them both rocketing to the ground. Raine’s bare back painfully met a tree trunk. White light exploded behind her eyes as air rushed out of her lungs in a whoosh.
Raine fought for oxygen, as red rage stormed free. She blocked Alexi’s swinging right hand and countered with a vicious left that snapped Alexi’s head back, sending her stumbling backward.
Alexi’s red eyes were lost in a haze of hate as she rushed Raine again.
When they crashed together, Raine could hear Alexi still mumbling through the spell. Some internal sense warned she couldn’t afford for the demon to finish it. Desperate, she slammed her right arm into Alexi’s diaphragm. Alexi’s eyes widened as she was pushed back, gasping for air.
Raine got her feet underneath her and stalked menacingly toward the woman sprawled on the ground. “Come on, you traitorous bitch,” she growled. “Get up.”
Alexi lumbered to her feet again, a calculating gleam in her eye. “Come get me, kitty cat.”
Raine took a running leap and got both legs up to slam into Alexi’s face. Alexi moved with that unnerving quickness, and Raine’s feet hit her left shoulder instead. Alexi used the spinning motion to reach out and wrap her hands around Raine’s right thigh.
Unexpected heat seared through Raine’s skin and bone, ripping a scream from her throat, momentarily drowning out Alexi’s crazed laughter.
Lying on the ground for a timeless moment, Raine waited for the sickness rolling in her belly to calm. Then, grittin
g her teeth, she forced herself to her feet once more.
Her right leg wouldn’t support her so she shifted her weight to her left. Streaked with blood and covered in dirt, she could feel the anger burning inside her, the depth of which equaled the madness in Alexi.
Alexi struggled for air. Her eyes sharp, predatory. “Did you like that one?”
Raine kept her left arm behind her as if wounded, hoping to lure Alexi closer. Raine’s strength was running out, and Cheveyo’s charm was close to empty. Keeping her gaze on the other woman, she allowed her left arm to shift and kept her voice breathy. “It was definitely interesting.”
Alexi moved toward her. “I have something even more interesting.”
Raine held her body still, ignoring the tremors running through her injured leg. She couldn’t afford any weakness, and from the amount of magic amassing around Alexi this was it. Raine watched Alexi’s body and at the moment Alexi’s legs tensed to spring, Raine braced.
Alexi hit her hard riding her down to the ground. Raine whipped her left arm up and used her claws to rip a bloody trail from shoulder to belly. Alexi’s spell slammed into Raine and both women screamed.
Raine fought the burning pressure trying to burrow its way into her soul. With blind instinct, she used her arm and slashed across Alexi’s throat. Blood fell in a warm rain across Raine’s face, but she barely noticed as she fought against the deadly spell Alexi unleashed.
The pain became unbearable, worse even than what she went through when she was younger. Her vision whitened, the edges going black. She couldn’t feel her body, just an all-encompassing fire burning her from the inside out. She fought to breathe, mindlessly slashing out at the weight on top of her.
Lost in the agony, she let survival instincts kick in. Her internal barriers went up, struggling under the weight of the spell and its killing magic. Lost in the battle, Raine felt her barriers start to crumble, and her awareness begin to fade. She centered her concentration and strength of will on shoring up her barriers, but she was so tired.