Raz

by J. S. Striker

  But what if she did?

  The emotion that entered Raz at the thought of the kids dead had him pulling in a sharp breath. He pressed his palms to his face to steady himself as an image of Eva protecting them and dying in the process filled his mind in vivid details. Her blood staining the ground. Her green eyes open and unstaring as her heart stopped beating.

  No.

  Just as he was trying to erase the thoughts, a scream came, piercing the silence. In an instant, Raz’s body went tense. In another, he was running up the steps and slamming open the room where the noise was. There was a huge commotion of voices going on inside, and Raz was greeted by the sight of Eva and Ana facing each other, with Ana scared and angry. Eva turned her head at his entrance, and it was only then that he saw the expression of anger and panic on her face.

  She didn’t mince words.

  “Peter’s gone. He went out to hunt.”

  “You don’t understand,” Ana said, and Raz heard her voice shake with a certain fear for the first time since he’d met her. “He needs to go out. I tried to stop him, but he needs to.”

  And now he was out there and in danger. Belatedly, Raz realized that he could no longer sense the demon’s presence—something that he should have noticed beforehand, but was too distracted to because of what happened with Eva.

  The two of them stared at each other, the knowledge of that eating at them. Then Raz nodded.

  “Let’s go. He won’t be far off.”

  He hoped to hell they got to the kid in time.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Ana insisted on tagging along and refused to be coddled. The stubborn stare she gave Eva reminded Eva too much of herself, which was why she found herself saying yes before she could change her mind. Eva took a big dagger from her knife collection, then a smaller gun, and off the three of them went, tracking down the demon as they were pretty sure the creature followed Peter the moment he stepped out of the house.

  Eva’s niece offered no explanation as to why Peter needed to go out, and while Eva wanted to interrogate Ana, there was no denying one fact: she was just a kid despite being a volatile vampire, and there was no point interrogating a kid who had nothing but fear snapping in her eyes at the moment. It was stark and brightening her eyes with unshed tears, an expression that Eva had never, ever seen in her.

  And it was obvious that she was blaming herself for sleeping early and not watching over her brother.

  Raz was quiet beside her, which brought to the surface Eva’s own guilt for being too consumed with her feelings and the kiss to notice anything odd happening right away. Like him, she could have easily detected that the demon presence was gone—but there she was, kissing a man who wasn’t a man and admittedly getting more turned on than she was supposed to. Now, the demon might have already gotten to Peter, and there was no one to blame but the adults who should have been responsible enough to know better.

  But Eva pushed it out of her mind, knowing it wasn’t going to help. Instead, she took Ana’s hand in hers, surprising the little girl enough that her head snapped up in shock. Eva gripped her small fingers tight. Then she squeezed hard, not saying anything as they walked faster and verged on a run.

  A few seconds later, Ana returned the gesture.

  “They’re close,” Raz warned beside her. He wasn’t looking at them, but she was sure he saw everything.

  Eva nodded her head and let Ana go, following as the vampire indicated with his hand and they turned away from the streets and into a forest area, which was dark but teeming with animal life. The demon’s presence was ripe here, seeping into Eva’s skin and making her shiver involuntarily at the darkness she felt in it. But it didn’t grow stronger, which meant that the demon was no longer here but they were close.

  They went beyond the forest onto another road, then past that, too. Eva’s neck prickled as the presence pulsed more steadily now, and soon they found the destination they were looking for.

  The smashed chains of the baseball field’s gate confirmed her suspicion. Eva opened the gate wider, letting Raz and Ana slip in before she followed. She gripped the dagger tighter and pressed her hand on the gun in her pocket, knowing she was in for a sight as horrible as the one in the alley.

  They got to the open area, and she stopped.

  No, it wasn’t as horrible as the alley—it was ten times worse.

  There were dead bodies piled up in the middle—not just two, but so plenty that the scent that permeated the air sent her stomach heaving. Beside her, Raz was calm as he surveyed the scene, though his jaw was clenched tight. Ana trembled, her eyes flaring with a hunger that she obviously tried to push down as she fisted her hands.

  Eva couldn’t help counting it in her head. Eleven. One of them moved, and someone slipped out from between the pile, covered from head to toe in blood and munching relentlessly on a piece of torn limb.

  Bile rose in her throat as she stared at Peter.

  Almost immediately, she took a step forward, then managed to control herself before she could fully walk towards him. But Ana didn’t have the same instinct, launching herself right at him and worriedly calling out his name. It was Raz who took hold of the girl’s arm, keeping her in place.

  At the mention of his name, Peter’s head snapped up, revealing black orbs for eyes similar to the demon. Her heart stopped as every memory came back, from the dead boy in the forest to the dead dog on her porch. The kids claimed they hadn’t done what happened in the alley, because that was the demon’s work.

  But they didn’t claim the same on all the others.

  She didn’t mean it, Peter had said. And Ana had said nothing…because she was covering up for her brother.

  The puzzle clicked into place.

  Peter kept staring at them, blood dripping from his fangs and his claws, which again resembled that of a demon in the way they irregularly curved out. She tried to search for any humanity left, but she found none. Dismayed, Eva turned to Ana.

  “What is he, Ana?”

  Ana looked at her defiantly, still struggling from Raz’s hold. Then her face crumpled, and the tears that she’d been holding back finally came.

  “He’s my half-brother,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “He’s half-vampire like me. His other half…”

  “His other half is me.”

  The familiar sweet voice had all their heads snapping in that direction, where they found the female demon standing right beside Peter, her hands on his shoulders. The familiarity of the gesture answered questions again, those that Ana wasn’t able to voice out.

  “He was doing so good,” Ana said in a small voice. “I was…he was trying to control himself…”

  A subtle, sharp breath came out from Raz. “You knew, Ana?”

  Ana nodded. “He can’t help it. But he’s trying to stop the urge to kill.”

  “You’ve turned him into a weakling,” the demon snapped. “Do you know what a half-Greater-demon and half-vampire could do to the world?”

  “It could destroy it,” Raz replied softly, his expression hardening. “Was that your purpose, demon?”

  The demon laughed, a high, tinkling sound that sent the air shivering and had Eva mesmerized. She shook the feeling off, listening as the demon explained how this had all been an accident, but had turned out to be the greatest creation on earth—and with more creatures like Peter, who could hide his demon presence well, then the opportunity for the demon’s kind would grow, allowing them to finally take the reins from the vampires and the shifters.

  The demon suddenly stopped talking, smiling at them brilliantly. She removed her hand from Peter’s shoulders, patting his head.

  “Get your hand away from him,” Eva growled.

  The demon turned her smile in Eva’s direction. “If you say so,” she said softly. She leaned down. “Peter, kill them all.”

  Then she was stepping away.

  Everything happened at the same time. Peter’s head snapped up, zoning in on her. Eva readied her dagg
er.

  “I’ll handle him,” she said to Raz.

  Then Raz was gone, a blur as he went after the Greater demon. Eva never took her eyes off Peter, readying herself—but she wasn’t ready enough as Peter turned to the side just as she pushed the dagger at his stomach, where it could only injure him.

  Then Peter was jumping her from behind, and they both crashed on the ground with a thud.

  Eva fought him off, shocked by the strength that he’d been hiding. She got a slash in his stomach, growing afraid that she was hurting him. But it didn’t stop Peter as he clawed at her repeatedly, and a certain knowledge flew in her head and smacked her in the face.

  He wasn’t going to stop until he killed her.

  It stopped as soon as it came, and Eva heard Ana shouting at Peter to stop. Then there was the sound of a scuffle, one Eva couldn’t see as blood dripped from her forehead and covered her vision. She wiped it off and ignored the pain, standing back up with effort. She grabbed her dagger again and took out her gun, turning in the direction of the sounds.

  The sight that greeted her when her eyesight was finally back was one she would carry in her memories forever.

  Ana was lying on the ground, her head twisted at an unnatural angle. Her eyes stared into Eva’s, no longer sparkling with life. A hand fisted itself on Eva’s heart as she watched Peter tear off Ana’s hand and eat it.

  With a sob, Eva pointed the gun in his direction and fired. He ran again in her direction, but his mouth was full, giving her the chance to fire three more times—all aimed at his chest and all hitting him squarely. Then, when he leaped at her, she finished it off with a dagger to his stomach, saying sorry over and over again as he went limp against her and finally stumbled to the ground.

  Tears freely flowing now, Eva’s knees gave in on her. Then she crawled in Ana’s direction and grieved for the child.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The demon wasn’t letting up, forcing Raz to use all his efforts into trying to stop the awful piece of shit from killing him completely and laughing in his face afterward. Knowing her kind, he was pretty sure that was going to happen, followed by her feasting on his flesh because, hey, they weren’t particularly selective.

  Demons, even Greater demons, ate what they could and relished in the chaos they brought.

  The same could be said about some vampires, but Raz could argue that there were plenty of good ones to balance out the bad. The thought that more bad was coming if this certain demon’s plan came to fruition pissed Raz off, the balance between the vampires and shifters finally had an alliance and things were relatively at peace.

  So Raz fought as hard as he could, scratching and biting the demon as much as she did him. They rolled on the ground and attacked each other. They bathed in their blood, the stench from the demon now more putrid as her true nature came out the more she fought him off. If she kept this up, his strength wasn’t going to stop her in the long run, and he knew he had to end it fast before that happened.

  Cries of pain could be heard on the side, but he ignored them and focused his attention on his own fight, knowing one slip up would cause him instant death. The demon managed to wrestle him to the ground, pinning him in place as she grinned in delight, then licked the blood streaking her face with her long tongue. She leaned forward, practically giddy.

  “Once I’m done with you, she’s next,” she said softly.

  There was no mistaking who the “she” was that the demon meant.

  Rage filled Raz, hot and pulsing with life. It propelled him to finally push the demon off, wrestling with her again until he got the upper hand and pinned her down this time. She hissed and spat at him, gleefully telling him he was no match for her and she was going to tear him limb for limb, then relish in the taste of his soft flesh and—

  Raz hissed once. Then he used his hands to open the demon’s mouth, ignoring the teeth and using everything in him to pull it open.

  The sound of bones breaking filled the air, followed by flesh ripping as the demon’s jaw fell apart. Then Raz was tearing the head off the body, as was what needed to happen to kill it. He watched it roll over and over before it stopped beside the pile of bodies.

  Violence was never the answer, but this time, he wasn’t sorry for making an exception.

  With a deep, unsteady breath, Raz stood up. Then he limped his way towards where Eva was.

  The sight of her still alive had relief pouring out of him in waves. But the sight of who she was cradling on her lap had his heart stopping, even while his mind scanned the situation. Ana no longer had any breath in her, and the odd angle of her head confirmed the horror of her situation in less than a second. Peter lay unconscious a few feet near them, which had Raz moving to kneel beside him and check for his pulse.

  At first, there was none. But after a while, Raz detected something faint, which was a miracle in itself considering the bullet holes riddling his body and the open wound on his stomach area. He turned to the person who did this to Peter and waited for her to meet his gaze. Then he asked the question that mattered.

  “Do you want to save Peter’s life?”

  Eva just kept staring at him, her eyes dull. Then, finally, she whispered the words.

  “Yes.”

  Raz nodded. “Then we need to get to my home and save him.”

  Eva’s hands shook, and she looked like she was about to protest. She closed her eyes.

  Then she opened them and let Ana go.

  “Okay.”

  *****

  In the end, they couldn’t leave Ana. So they both cleaned up, buried Ana in the forest, and took the unconscious Peter in the middle of the night as they traveled via a private plane Raz hired that asked no questions. They were in Manhattan in no time, then taking a hired vehicle to a building, where they waited until the vehicle disappeared before crossing the dead end of an alley. It wasn’t a dead end, but a pathway hidden by a charm, and beyond it was a small space where Raz’s house was located.

  The place was empty, which was how he liked it whenever he was around. He banked on that emptiness now to hide their presence here for a little bit, giving them the space they needed to deal with the mess that they got themselves in.

  The first order of business was to place Peter in the prison in his basement he reserved for enemies. It was made of the best steel and iron, and he knew it would hold. He was still unconscious, and Raz took that opportunity to remove the bullets from his body and clean him up. Then he stepped back and locked the kid back up, watching his innocent figure lying there helplessly and sleeping like the dead.

  Beside him, Eva remained quiet. The dull look in her eyes was still there, indicating the shock that still lay on the surface and wouldn’t be going away soon. Her body trembled from time to time, and it was only then Raz realized that they’d passed more than twenty-four hours fighting for their lives, escaping death with no sleep and no food between them.

  “I have food. You should get something to eat and get some sleep.”

  She looked like she was about to protest again, so Raz leveled her with a look that said he wasn’t in the mood for any. Finally, she nodded.

  “Let me know when he’s up.”

  *****

  Peter woke up eight hours after they arrived at Raz’s house, and the black orbs in his eyes were still there.

  The first thing he did was snarl at the sight of Raz. Then he jumped the cell bars, shaking them with his claws as hard as he could. Raz simply watched him until the boy got tired and stopped trying to attack him. Then the glares came, followed by hissing as the boy demanded to be released.

  The boy started screaming when Raz left him to get Eva, who was sitting in the dining room and eating something. She drank some water and rushed to the basement, but stopped at the bottom and took a deep breath.

  Then she went in and showed herself to Peter.

  Raz stayed behind just above the steps, feeling things out. Peter gave out the same reaction that he did to Raz earlier, but i
nstead of staying quiet, Eva spoke.

  “Come back, Peter. Come back to me and fight your monster. Please.”

  The cell rattled over and over, and the snarls intensified. Eva kept repeating what she said, and in her voice, Raz could hear the pain. But along with the pain was a bright hope that she couldn’t quite hide, showing how much she loved the boy and would fight for him until the end.

  She did it every single day—talking to the boy, feeding the boy some blood, and pleading for him to come back. Every single day, Raz watched the changes, from the black eyes steadily going white to the attacks lessening as Peter shook and strained against his body. Finally, four days after the boy woke up, it happened.

  It was at night, with Raz and Eva looking over him as he slept. They watched as he stirred, his eyes fluttering open. They watched as his normal eyes took in his surroundings, then zoned in their direction. They watched with bated breath as Peter knelt unsteadily and crawled over to the bars, watching them with a wide, innocent expression.

  He said—or rather, asked—only one word.

  “Ana?”

  Beside him, Eva’s hand trembled. But her voice was steady when she spoke.

  “I’m sorry. She is gone.”

  If Raz thought Eva’s pain was one thing, it was nothing compared to the pain on Peter’s face now. His body went slack, and his face fell. Grief filled his gaze, and he began shaking over and over as he wrapped his arms around his body and slowly rocked himself.

  “It’s my fault,” he sobbed, his voice raw with the pain he was feeling. “I shouldn’t have gone. I want my Ana.”

  He was ten. Hell. He shouldn’t have been experiencing something like this.

  But he was a damaged boy, and there was nothing Raz could do about it. So he kept watching as Eva comforted him, finally getting into the cage and hugging the boy tight. She kept whispering soothingly as she rubbed his back, the anchor to the wave after wave of sobs that shook the boy. It was a storm waiting to happen, and it happened now, taking over the basement and washing it with darkness.