“Yeah,” she replies, and I can sense the sadness in her voice.
“Who are his parents?”
“Doctors Kurt and Alon,” she replies.
“Shit,” I say, shaking my head. “Do you know where he’s staying?”
“I heard he’s with one of the teachers. I think her name’s Lilia.”
“Thanks, Sora.”
“No problem,” she says. “Just catch whoever did this, okay?”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Do you want me to go with you?” Kateri asks.
“Would you?”
“Of course,” she replies with a warm smile. “Trista’s boring me anyway.”
Trista shakes her head and laughs.
“Well excuse me,” she says, chuckling.
Kateri winks at her before leaning over and giving her a hug.
“I’ll be back to see you,” she says.
“Or I’ll come see you,” Trista replies with an expression and tone full of hope.
“It’s a deal.”
“Take care of her,” I say to Sora.
“I will.”
We both stand, giving both of them a final smile, before we turn and head toward the elevator. As we’re walking, Kateri reaches out and takes my hand.
“You know that none of this is your fault, right?” she asks.
“I’m telling myself that.”
“But you don’t believe it, do you?”
“Not really.”
Kateri shakes her head.
“This wasn’t about you.”
“How do you know? Maybe this is retaliation for the attack on Sirix’s tower. That thing said, ‘you’re the one.’ What else could that mean?”
“I don’t know, but this doesn’t feel like revenge to me. It’s something different. It’s something worse.”
I nod as we reach the lift. I press my palm on the panel and a few seconds later, the doors slide open. As soon as we’re inside, I press my finger to my Bluetooth earpiece.
“Evan. Do you have an apartment for Lilia?”
“Hold please,” comes the prompt reply.
The doors close and we wait for Evan’s reply. In the meantime, Kateri runs her hand up and down my arm in an innocent gesture, but it feels incredibly intimate.
“Eve?” Evan asks, pulling me out of my reverie.
“Yes.”
“Her apartment is 141B.”
“Thanks, Evan.”
I touch the earpiece again and Kateri presses the button for the appropriate floor. A second later, we ascend. We both stand there, watching the numbers change on the display above the doors as people do when they’re in an elevator.
“What am I supposed to say to him?” I ask, looking over at her.
She lowers her head and sighs.
“I don’t know. I really don’t.”
She reaches over and takes my hand, holding it firmly in hers.
“I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
“I know what you mean.”’
Chapter Four
As we’re walking down the narrow, gray hallway toward Lilia’s apartment, I can feel the rising tide of nervousness threatening to overwhelm me. I don’t know if she sensed it, or maybe I thought about it, but the next thing I know, Kateri is holding my hand and a sense of calm flows over me. We stop in front of the door and I sigh.
“You ready for this?” she asks.
“Yeah. I have to be.”
I press the buzzer and a moment later, a pretty girl with short blond hair and dark eyes swirling with light green and yellow answers.
“Yes?”
“Lilia…hi…um…I’m Eve. I’m here to talk to Corwyn,” I say, sounding awkward and weird.
“Oh. Sure. Please come in,” she says.
We step inside and the door closes automatically behind us. The apartment is light and airy, very unlike many of the other ones I’ve seen. It’s small but has two large windows that let in a lot of natural light. Decorations adorn the walls, most of them look like the work of children, including drawings, paintings, and even a few sculptures; each one framed like priceless masterpieces.
“Do you think he’s okay to talk with us?” I ask her.
“I don’t know. I don’t think he quite understands what’s happened.”
“This is Kateri, by the way.”
She nods and smiles at her, and Kateri responds in kind. Lilia looks tired and a little wary of us.
“He’s been through a lot. Is this absolutely necessary? Can’t it wait?”
“I wish it could. I promise we’ll be quick.”
She sighs quietly and then leads us into the small living area. Corwyn is sitting on the floor, hidden by a couch, playing with a collection of toy trucks. Lilia squats down next to him and gently touches his shoulder.
“Corwyn. These people are here to talk to you. Would that be all right?”
“Okay,” he replies without looking up from his toys.
I sit down on the floor, as Lilia takes a seat on the couch, watching us closely. Kateri kneels down just to my right side.
“Hi, Corwyn. Do you remember me?” I ask.
He looks up at me for a few moments, studying my face.
“You’re the one who found me.”
“That’s right. Do you remember my name?”
“Eve?”
“Very good. You have a good memory.”
He smiles at me and then looks over at Kateri.
“Who is she?”
“I’m Kateri.”
He seems to study her; just like he did me before replying.
“You’re pretty.”
Kateri chuckles.
“Thank you.”
“My mommy is pretty, like you,” he says, and my heart breaks.
I can see Kateri struggling to hold back tears.
“She is. I know your mommy. She is very pretty.”
He nods and then he looks at me again, his expression darkening.
“Is this about the monster?”
“Yes. Yes, it is, Corwyn.”
“Are you going to catch him?”
“We’re going to try, but we need your help.”
“Me?”
“Yes,” I whisper.
“How?”
“I need you to tell me everything you remember about what happened…about the monster.”
“Okay,” he says, sitting up a little straighter.
“Where were you when you saw him?”
“I was with mommy. Daddy had brought me to the hospital to have lunch, and mommy was busy talking with a girl, so I was being good, sitting and waiting.”
“I bet you were.”
He nods before continuing.
“Daddy went to talk to some of the other doctors, and I sat on one of the beds near mommy. I was just looking around when I saw this shiny thing in the corner by the wall.”
“Shiny thing? Like a box or something?”
“No. Not a box. It was like a shiny cloud.”
I look at Kateri and she frowns at me.
“Like a shiny cloud?”
“Uh, huh. It was floating near the wall.”
“And then what, Corwyn?”
“I think mommy saw it too, ‘cause she stopped talking to the girl and told me to go wait in her office.”
“She did?”
“Yeah. So she took me in there and told me to stay there till she came back.”
I nod and sigh.
“Okay. Did you see anything else?”
“Before she closed the door, I saw the monster.”
“Where did it come from?”
“From the cloud.”
I look at Kateri again.
K ~ Shit.
E ~ You can say that again.
K ~ Shit.
“Did you see anything else after it stepped out of the cloud?”
He thinks for a few seconds before answering.
“No. Mommy closed the door and then there was a ‘splosion.”
&n
bsp; I nod and sigh.
“Thank you, Corwyn. You’ve been very brave,” I say smiling and holding his hand.
“Did I help?”
“You did. You helped a lot.”
He nods and smiles at me and then the grin fades, his expression darkening.
“Do you know when mommy and daddy are going to come pick me up?”
I stare at him, trying to formulate an answer in my head, when all I want to do is cry.
“I’m not sure, honey. It’s nice here with Ms. Lilia, though, right?”
He looks at her for a moment before turning back to me.
“Yeah, but she’s my teacher. I want to go home.”
“Yeah, I know, but um…maybe you can stay here a little longer?”
“Okay,” he says, turning back to his toys without another word.
I look at Kateri and I can see tears in her eyes. Lilia smiles at me and we all stand.
“Take care of him, okay?” I ask, my voice cracking at the edges.
“I will,” she replies, her eyes filled with sadness but also full of determination.
“Bye, Corwyn. I’ll be back to see you soon,” I say, looking down at him.
“Okay. Can we play trucks?”
“Sure. We can play trucks.”
Kateri and I leave Lilia with him and let ourselves out. As soon as we’re in the hall, I lean against the wall, close my eyes and try to gain some composure before I cry. Kateri comes up behind me, hugging me tightly. We stand there for a few minutes before I feel more in control.
“Thanks for coming with me,” I say, looking over at her.
“Anytime. I told you I’d follow you anywhere.”
I nod and smile at her, cupping her cheek gently in my hand. She leans into me and I close my eyes.
“You okay?” she asks quietly.
“Yeah,” I reply, looking at her again. In reality, I’m far from okay. I touch my earpiece. “Evan.”
“Evan here.”
“Was there any evidence of an incursion just before the explosion?”
“I don’t believe so.”
“Can you check?”
“Sure. Hold on.”
“Come on Kateri, we have to talk to Father.”
She nods, and we head to the elevator, hand-in-hand. Just before the doors open, Evan speaks into my ear.
“No records of an incident.”
“Can you dig a little deeper? Look for anything out of the ordinary.”
“Will do. It might take me a few.”
“That’s fine. Just get it done.”
“You got it. Evan, out.”
Kateri opens the doors and we step inside. I look over at her and she shakes her head as the lift moves.
“You believe the kid?”
“I do,” I reply. “I sort of wish I didn’t.”
Kateri nods and sighs quietly. A few seconds later, the doors slide open and we head toward Father’s office. Suddenly, the incursion alarm goes off in our earpieces and Kateri responds almost instantly.
“We got this,” she says.
“Affirmative,” the voice says into our ears. “Vine and Irving.”
“On the way.”
Kateri looks at me and grins.
“We need some outside time,” she says.
“What about Father?”
“Evan said he’d need some time to find out what you need. Are you with me, or not?”
I smile at her.
“Always.”
I stream off the top of a four-story apartment building, throwing myself into the shadows. A second later, I reappear two blocks away on the sidewalk just outside a shuttered check cashing store.
E ~ Where are you?
K ~ Up above.
I look up and spot her as she dives off the fire escape of an old factory of some sort and then steps out of the shadows right next to me.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” I reply, smiling at her.
I know we should be working on the bombing, but it’s been over two weeks since we’ve been demon-hunting, and I miss it. I miss the feeling of the sword in my hand, the weight of my crossbow hanging from my belt, and the exhilaration of battle. Sometimes, I think I’m becoming addicted to this life.
“You see anything yet?” she asks.
“Nothing.”
We’re at the right intersection, but there’s no one here, at least no demons. There are people all around, but no sign of an intruder.
“What the hell?” Kateri asks, sounding disappointed.
Suddenly, Clay materializes out of the shadows behind us, and I jump.
“Jesus, Clay! What are you doing here?”
“Heard there was an incursion. Came to help.”
I shake my head.
“There’s nothing here,” I say, looking around.
“I thought you were training Gabby,” Kateri says.
“I needed a break. Well, if you don’t need me, I’m gonna head back.”
“Okay, see you later,” I say before he vanishes into the shadows.
“Something’s going on, and it’s not good,” Kateri says.
I nod, and then a voice comes over our communicators again.
“Eve? Kateri?”
“Yes. What’s up?”
“Indications of a second incursion.”
“There wasn’t a first,” I say, shaking my head.
“Where’s the new one?” Kateri asks.
“Same location.”
We both look around, but there’s still nothing, and then I spot something out of the corner of my eye.
“Down there,” I say to Kateri, pointing between two short, brick office buildings.
We can see the glint of light reflecting off metal.
“Let’s go,” Kateri says. “This one’s not getting away.”
We dart across the street and into the alley. There is definitely someone or something shuffling around in the dark. Kateri fades out with a wink, but I stay corporeal as I make my way closer to the target. At ten yards, it’s obviously a demon, and a big one at that. I can see a massive sword in his right hand, the polished metal shining even in the dark. Slipping into the shadows, I continue ahead. At about ten feet, I re-materialize just behind him and raise my sword to strike.
He turns on his heel, catching my blade between his enormous hands.
“You need to be quieter,” he says, his voice deep and gravelly.
I reach for my dagger.
“Eve,” he says, and I freeze in place.
“Dray?” I ask, dumbfounded.
He nods and smiles, his rows of dagger-like teeth showing beneath his lips. He sidesteps to the right as Kateri emerges from the shadows. Her sword misses him by mere inches. She stumbles forward and then spins around.
“Dammit, Dray! You’re going to get yourself killed,” she says, sheathing her weapon.
“Not from a clumsy attack like that,” he replies, and I swear Kateri grins.
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to find you,” he says, looking at me again.
“Why?”
“Kyuki needs to talk to you.”
“What about?”
“I cannot say.”
“You cannot say, or won’t say?”
Kateri shakes her head.
“Does it make a difference?” he asks.
“Why didn’t she just tell you what it was?”
“We’re wasting time. It’s urgent that you speak.”
I grumble and look at Kateri.
“Should we call Father?” I ask her.
“I’ll text him.”
She pulls out her phone and her fingers fly over the screen.
“Did you see another demon here, a few minutes ago?” I ask Dray.
He frowns at me and shakes his head.
“No. I would have dispatched it if I had,” he replies.
“Crap. Where the hell is it?” I say, mostly to myself.
“Maybe it was a false alarm,”
Kateri says, not even bothering to look up from her screen.
“Have you ever had a false alarm?”
This time she looks up and considers that.
“No,” she replies.
“Come along. We have to go,” Dray says as we move further into the darkened alley.
“Did Father respond yet?”
“No.”
Dray moves his hands in a series of patterns, much like Jax did when he opened the portal to help us escape the Abyss. Slowly, the rift opens, flashing a few times before becoming more solid in appearance. I take Kateri’s hand and she nods at me.
E ~ You ready?
K ~ Always.
We step into the shimmering cloud and for the second time we leave our world behind and head into the demon realm.
Chapter Five
This time the trip is smoother, and I don’t feel as disoriented as I did the first time. I’m not sure if it’s because we’ve been through the portal a couple of times now, or because we’re not so worried. When we emerge into the Abyss, we’re only a few blocks from the cathedral base. We’re nowhere near Vine and Irving.
“How did we get here?” I ask.
“What do you mean?” Dray asks as we head across the street, cars and trucks passing through us like phantoms.
“I thought when you went through a portal you ended up in the same spot, just on the other side, so to speak.”
Dray chuckles, his laugh much more lyrical and comforting than I expected.
“You do, if you’re not skilled enough to guide yourself to a new location.”
E ~ That’s interesting.
K ~ Very.
“You!” someone yells.
I turn my head to the right and spot a troop of about five demons of various sizes and types quickly advancing on us. The two lead soldiers are the ‘human’ type, while the other three are more animal like, with thick, dark fur covering their muscular forms. They’re armed with a variety of weapons, all of which look capable of killing us easily.
“Run!” Dray commands. “Get to the cathedral!”
“We’re not leaving you!” I yell back, drawing my crossbow.
“Shayds,” he grumbles, raising his sword and facing the approaching enemies.
An arrow flies past my ear, close enough to rustle my hair. I raise my bow and fire two bolts. They strike their target; a large black-and-red demon with dagger-like claws. He crumples to the ground. His companions leap over his body as they continue to advance on us. Kateri winks at me before vanishing into a shadow thrown by a large tree growing along the sidewalk. I look at Dray and he nods at me, a wicked smile on his face.
All Things in the Shadows II Page 4