Darkness Shatters: Book 5 (Sensor Series)

by Susan Illene

  The president continued to address the nation, telling us reports confirmed supernaturals had been around all along. There was no danger in knowing the truth. If they wanted to hurt us, they would have done it already.

  “He’s surprisingly calm,” I observed.

  Yerik gave me an affronted look. “After the amount of time I spent compelling him and his advisers he better be.”

  “So that’s what you and your cronies have been up to.”

  “Among other things. We couldn’t afford for the governments to turn against us when we came out, but since they change office so frequently it had to be the final step.” He rubbed his face. “The Middle East has been the most difficult.”

  I snorted. “What did you do? Compel every elected leader there plus all the extremist groups?”

  “More or less.” He shrugged. “But new ones pop up as fast as we can compel them. It’s kept the vampires and nephilim there quite busy.”

  “You might as well have tried for world peace while you were at it.”

  He stared up at the screen where the media showed riots breaking out in Chicago. “Convincing leaders to tolerate supernaturals is one thing—especially if we give them incentive. Going against human nature is another. Even compulsion can only go so far.”

  “If you were doing all this, I’m amazed Lucas didn’t notice it.”

  “That’s why it was so useful to have him looking for his missing brother in places we weren’t active.” Yerik’s vermillion eyes focused on me. “He stayed out of our way and got rid of troublesome supernaturals who could ruin our cause.”

  My fists clenched. Just because I understood why he did it didn’t mean I accepted his methods. It was a cold and ruthless strategy. If it weren’t for Micah wanting his daughter back, I never would have believed he’d have gone along with it. But when it came to children people would risk a lot to save them.

  “Lucas went after him, you know.” I gave Yerik an accusing look. “He flashed straight to New Orleans as soon as he saw his brother on the television. I haven’t heard from him since.”

  The daimoun returned his attention to the television. “He’ll be back. Give your mate time to come to terms with things.”

  I wished I could have been there with him and heard what Micah had to say. It must have been one hell of a conversation—one that would have Lucas torn up inside right now. He was one man who didn’t take betrayal lightly.

  “So what’s next?” I asked.

  There were more riots showing on the television. How much worse would it get?

  “We fortify this building. I’ve ordered all the care facilities for plague victims be made as safe as possible until things calm down. It wasn’t part of the plan for us to be this vulnerable, but there’s no help for it now.” He beckoned Derrick over.

  The alpha werewolf had been standing with Paula across the room. He left her and wove his way around the cots to reach us.

  “Did you get all the supplies I suggested?” the daimoun asked.

  Derrick nodded. “Yeah, they’re in the back storage room.”

  “Board the windows and seal all but the front entrance. Get the mystics to put up protection spells around it and the rest of the building. Everyone must stay here until this passes over.”

  The patient area already had its windows blocked and so did the break room where vampires slept when they went off shift. There were still a lot of other access points, though.

  The alpha turned and began relaying orders.

  I grabbed Aniya. “Can you take care of Emily’s room first?”

  “Of course.”

  Cage, the male vampire who’d been showing an interest in her, walked up. “I’ll help.”

  “Thanks.” I glanced between the two of them. There was nothing there yet, but Aniya was looking at him with more interest than before. “Just give me a few minutes to prepare her.”

  “We’ll get the supplies while you do that,” Aniya said, giving my shoulder a squeeze before walking off with the vampire.

  I headed toward Emily’s room, passing Yerik and the mystics along the way. They were already working magic wards onto the front doors, which were made of glass and had windows surround them. I sensed them strengthening the entire entrance so bullets and fire couldn’t penetrate. That was reassuring.

  Once on the other side of the clinic I reached Emily’s quarantine area. I went through the heavy door and shut it behind me, pulling the shade down. It took ten minutes to wash up and change into my suit. The process was getting more annoying every time I did it, but it was for everyone’s safety.

  I entered the room and found Kerbasi reading to Emily. He had an old edition of Better Homes and Gardens in his hands. Hunter was passed out in a chair in the corner, but her eyes were wide open. She lay on the bed listening to the guardian. Between long periods of rest she could wake up and hold a conversation for a little while. I hated to miss those.

  “You see this one,” Kerbasi pointed at a picture of a blue flower in the magazine. “I’m going to grow that one when this infernal place gets warmer.”

  Emily’s brows knitted. “Why?”

  “Well, because…” He glanced at me, where I glowered at him. “Melena has told me on more than one occasion that she hates it.”

  They were Forget Me Nots. Back in twelfth grade a guy used to tape blooms of them to my locker at least once a week for months. I wasn’t interested, and made that clear repeatedly, but he didn’t give up until after a big confrontation in the middle of the hall. Then he switched schools and I never heard from him again.

  That was only six months before I first met Lucas. Now that I knew he’d been watching over me since I was fourteen I had to wonder if he’d interfered somehow. One of these days when we weren’t facing a crisis I’d have to ask.

  “That’s not funny, Kerbasi,” I said in a tight voice.

  He gave me an innocent look. “It’s the state flower. I’m only showing my support for Alaska and helping you get over your little problem.”

  “It’s not a problem. It’s a bad memory—one I hope you’ll be someday.”

  I took the empty chair next to Kerbasi. “Anyway, I came to let you all know they’re fortifying the clinic. Aniya and another guy will be coming in here soon to cover the window.”

  I’d sent the guardian to update Emily and Hunter earlier so they already knew what was going on. It was easier to wait until I had more information before coming as well.

  “Do they have to?” Emily angled her head toward the window. “That’s the only nice thing about this room.”

  “I know, but riots are already breaking out across the country. It could happen in Fairbanks next. We have to be ready.”

  Emily pulled the blanket tighter around her. “Okay.”

  Hunter stirred from his seat and his expression became fierce. “I’m staying here with her.”

  “I was counting on it,” I said, inclining my head. “If things get ugly I need you and Kerbasi to keep this room protected whenever I’m not in here.”

  Not that I’d want to leave, but if something happened during the daytime when the vamps were out of commission I’d have to help protect the place.

  The guardian puffed out his chest. “I can promise they will not get through me.”

  “What are you going to do? Drop stink bombs on them?” Emily asked. She might be gravely sick, but it appeared the plague hadn’t taken her humor yet.

  “While that is not a bad idea…” Kerbasi tapped his chin. “I think some of your silly string would be more effective.”

  She laughed so hard she went into a coughing fit.

  “Okay, that’s enough joking.” I helped her sip some water through a straw. “I’m sure you guys can come up with something that won’t harm the humans too much if I’m not here.”

  Kerbasi wasn’t allowed to hurt them regardless, but the rest of us needed to show restraint. Positive publicity would become our ally, and negative our enemy.

&nb
sp; Someone pounded on the outer door. I checked my senses and found Yerik, Aniya, and the Cage waiting outside. Something told me I’d have to go through the decontamination process again. I headed out and looked through the glass window on the door. The daimoun curled his finger, beckoning me. I gave him a sour look and pulled the shade.

  Ten minutes later I stepped out, letting the vampires go past me. I followed Yerik to the front entrance where they’d boarded up the windows, but hadn’t blocked the door from opening. We headed into the parking lot and kept going until we were well out of earshot of any supernaturals. Yerik’s gaze searched our surroundings before coming close to me.

  “The weaponry you requested has arrived in Fairbanks,” he spoke in a low tone. “We will be moving to the next phase of our plan in two days.”

  I glanced up at the sky. “You think anyone’s watching us?”

  “We must be careful from this point forward.” There was a warning look in his eyes. “The last time I spoke with our…supporter she was worried her brethren were growing suspicious.”

  I nodded. “That’s what she told me, too.”

  “This is the part of the plan few know about yet, but we will need help with transportation upon our return. Would your friend Cori be willing to assist Derrick without asking too many questions?”

  “Yeah, she’d be up for it.” I stiffened when a car drove by with two human men, but they kept going. “What exactly will we be using to haul that many people?”

  “Buses at first. Planes once we’re in town and can take our friends to the airport, but I’ve got that part covered. We just need another driver who can move about during the day since we have no way to be certain what time we’ll return.”

  I pulled my jacket closer. The temperature was dropping steadily since the sun went down. “Anything else?”

  “Not for now, but be prepared.”

  I wasn’t sure I’d ever be prepared for a return to Purgatory.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  It had been a full day and no one had left the clinic. I spent half my time with Emily—who had taken a turn for the worse—and the other half watching the news. Fairbanks had remained quiet. Until now.

  “What were they thinking?” Aniya asked, shaking her head.

  Derrick growled. “They weren’t thinking. That’s the problem.”

  The TV screen replayed footage taken by some college students about two hours ago. It showed three teenage werewolf boys in front of the University of Alaska Fairbanks time and temp sign changing into wolves. Some passersby caught it with their cell phone cameras and turned it in to the local TV station. The boys had run off after shifting, but the damage was done.

  The screen flashed next to some locals arming up. They interviewed one guy with a beard and angry expression who swore they’d track down any supernaturals in the area and put them down. He was holding a shotgun in his hand as he said it.

  “That’s just great,” I muttered.

  Derrick pointed at Cage, who was standing with us. “Join the guard at the front entrance.”

  He nodded and took off. Aniya watched him go with a worried expression on her face.

  “How’s it going with him?” I couldn’t help but ask.

  Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

  “Just wondering. I see you two talking a lot is all.”

  “He’s nice,” she said, expression still confused.

  “Never mind.”

  I supposed now wasn’t the time to play matchmaker. Maybe after the world stopped rioting, the plague ended, the Purgatory invasion was over, and we got the nerou settled I’d find time to help her with her love life. For now I’d have to hope she was at least warming up to him enough to see his potential.

  “I’m going to go check on patients,” she informed me, walking away.

  I decided to take a stroll around the clinic, checking for any weak spots where humans could take advantage. If the news was anything to go by, they were arming up well enough to pose a real threat. Every window was solidly boarded up as I checked them. They had wards on them, too, but with so little time they weren’t very strong. If enough bullets were fired or some other type of weaponry, it would break them eventually.

  Throughout the night I switched between sitting with Emily and patrolling the clinic. It wasn’t until five in the morning I relaxed enough to sleep. A few hours later I was awakened by shouting outside. My senses didn’t pick up anything except strong emotions—anger and frustration. Considering there weren’t any supernatural signatures out there, the noise had to be coming from humans.

  I jerked out of my seat.

  “You hear it, too?” Kerbasi was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

  “Yeah, the humans found us.”

  His eyes swirled. “They’ve been attempting to bust the door down for the past few minutes. By the amount of cursing they’ve let loose I assume they’ve failed to break inside.”

  “And you didn’t wake me?” I gave him an accusatory look.

  He lifted his brows. “There are protection spells on the entrance, are there not? And anyway, I don’t care what they do as long as they stay out of this room.”

  “We didn’t have enough time to ward this whole place, you idiot. If they get in, they could start a fire—which could spread to this room.”

  He gave me a stubborn look. “No, it couldn’t.”

  Kerbasi could control fire, but he wouldn’t help the other patients. He’d let the whole place burn while leaving this one section perfectly intact. That was great for Emily but not so much for everyone else.

  My senses told me the vampires were already down for the day. All we had were a couple of humans, a mystic whose magic had been depleted putting up wards, and an inexperienced shaman. If the wards broke, the patients and sleeping vampires would be completely vulnerable to their attackers.

  I took one last glance at Emily. Her eyes were shut and her breathing was labored. How much longer could she fight the disease? She’d only woken once since the previous evening and that was to throw up. The plague was getting stronger and ravaging her body.

  Dammit. Why did the humans have to find us now? I didn’t want to leave her, but she had enough protection without me. The rest of the clinic didn’t. I had to trust Hunter and Kerbasi to guard her while I was away.

  I headed for the door. “You guys stay here and watch over her. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  In the decontamination area, I hurried through all the steps and grabbed my cell phone from my bag, putting the battery back in it. I hit Lucas’ name on the speed dial. Two rings went by before he answered.

  “Can you get here?” I asked, not bothering with a greeting.

  “I’d hoped to be there already, but I had a run-in with humans while waiting for my power to recharge. I fear it will be a few more hours.”

  I hurried down the hallway. “What did you do?”

  “Took them to visit the middle of Lake Pontchartrain. It required multiple trips.”

  I would have smacked him if he’d been closer. “Why?”

  “They recognized me from the news and began throwing things at me,” he answered in an annoyed tone.

  “You didn’t put up glamour?” Usually, Lucas was more careful than that.

  “I did, but it appears someone is giving humans an elixir. One that allows humans to see past glamour and it makes them immune to compulsion.”

  “How is that possible?” I stopped in my tracks.

  “There was a powerful witch at the sensor hideout. Perhaps she made batches of it for distribution. She was the one with a daughter they held hostage. Jerome may have been able to blackmail her that way.”

  “Damn him.” I resumed walking.

  Lucas grunted. “My thoughts exactly.”

  “Okay, well, we’re getting attacked at the clinic so get here as soon as you can.”

  He cursed. “Be careful. The humans are starting to resort to extreme measures.”

/>   “I’m always careful.”

  Which was a big lie, considering I was looking at an entrance that was about to break apart. It would be me who the attackers met. Derrick was busy guarding the back entrance where more humans were trying to break through.

  “That’s what worries me,” he said in a dry tone.

  Tires screamed against pavement.

  “Gotta go!”

  I stuffed my cell phone into my pocket, grabbed Yvonne, and pulled her away from the doors. Just in time, too. A truck came crashing into them, spraying glass everywhere. The wards bent under the pressure, which was what had allowed the vehicle to get that far. One more hit like that and they’d be down.

  “Go protect the patients,” I ordered her.

  The older woman rushed off.

  “What can I do?” Ajax asked, coming to stand beside me.

  “Can you compel the humans to go away?”

  The truck had pulled back and was revving its engine for another go.

  He shook his head. “I tried it already. For some reason it didn’t work.”

  It had to be the same elixir the humans in New Orleans were getting. I hadn’t been paying attention the last time the attackers hit the doors, but I’d know the next time they got close whether they were under the spell or not.

  The sound of tires peeled as the truck headed toward us again.

  “Get back,” I screamed.

  This time, the vehicle broke through and kept going. It sailed through the lobby, pushing through the chairs, and crashed into the far wall. The humans inside hopped out and came straight for us with their rifles raised high. I grabbed the shaman right before the bullets started flying.

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Several rounds hit me as I pulled Ajax to the floor. They burned and took my breath away, but they hadn’t hit anything vital. I rolled away from the shaman and grabbed the nearest assailant, taking hold of his legs and yanking him down. As soon as he lay flat I bashed his head into the floor. Not enough to kill, but enough to knock him out.

  The other human from the truck came toward me. I rushed him, took his rifle, and knocked the butt of it into his jaw. He stumbled back but didn’t fall. I swept a leg out and knocked him over. This time he fell to the floor where I kicked him in the side of the head. He stayed still after that.