She didn’t want to wipe her hands on her new clothes. She looked for an alternative. Off to her right a tapestry hung, it was already dirty. Savanna used the bottom corner to clean her hands and hoped Warren wouldn’t notice.
“How can I help—” The words died on her lips as she turned around.
“Hi,” Sing said quietly. He looked good. She couldn’t see a trace of his wounds. Exhaustion haunted his eyes—exhaustion and something else she couldn’t quite read. Mercedes entered the shop behind him and hung back, near the door.
“Sing,” she said with a smile. She wanted to give him a hug but she wasn’t sure what he would allow. In the end, she settled for a nod. She glanced over at Mercedes. In her dark suit, she looked very sharp. Sharp and intimidating.
“What… uh… what brings you here?”
Sing’s expression melted into a smile. “First of all, I wanted to thank you again for saving my life. I know what it cost you.”
She blushed They’d never really spoke of it. After Connor died, it seemed awkward. “How did you find out?”
“Connor told me.” He paused. “You know, before.”
She nodded. Her eyes wavered and she struggled to maintain her facade. “I’ve tried calling. Why didn’t you answer or return my calls… a message even?”
“Politics at work… shifted after the event. Monique’s gone, moved up supposedly. Our new director is—” He looked behind him to check with Mercedes, and the woman gave him a shrug in response. “Our new director is less inclined to work with unauthorized assets. The whole agency is off. I’m not even sure what we’re a part of, anymore.”
Savanna heard the French woman snort from across the room.
“He said Savanna was ‘devil spawn, and a murderer’. Don’t sugar coat is Sing,” Mercedes said. “Not that anyone who was there agrees with him.”
“M-murder?” Savanna’s voice threatened to revolt.
“There are some at the Arcanum who think you murdered Connor, and both you and Alexi were in league with the demon at the stadium.”
Savanna stumbled backward against the counter. They think I killed Connor? She took a sharp breath held it for a few seconds, then let it out slow. She was having a hard time making out what he was saying. She shook her head several times.
“Savanna, no one who was there, or in town at the time, thinks such things. The higher-ups want someone to blame for the fiasco, and they’re more than happy to pin it on you two. Since we became aware that there have been two possibly world-ending events, they want answers and are too afraid to ask the right questions.”
“Are they going to come after us?”
“No. I’m the senior agent in town. If they want to come to you, they’re going to have to come through me.”
“And me,” Mercedes added.
“Thank you both,” she said with a forced smile.
Connor… She pushed the image of his dying face from her mind.
“Sing, we’re out of time,” Mercedes said quietly.
“We blocked our GPS signal. We can only do it for so long before they catch wind. Got to go,” he held his arms out to her.
Savanna leaned forward, tried to stop herself, then plunged against his chest. She sighed as his arms wrapped around her. Sing was Connor’s best friend, and for him to be okay… it meant a lot.
“He would be proud of you, don’t forget that,” he whispered as he kissed her head. Sing turned to leave, Mercedes followed him out the door. She turned her head back to give Savanna a small nod before the door closed.
Savanna leaned against the counter, not sure of what to do. Her emotions were raw, unrefined, and close to the surface. Connor’s death haunted her nightmares. Every night, it came back to her if it happened yesterday. Savanna, racked with guilt, tried desperately to keep it together.
She didn’t murder him. He sacrificed himself to save the world… and they took it away from him. At least Sing knew, if anyone knew the truth, Connor would have wanted it to be Sing.
“Is this the place?” whispered to her. Alexi glanced behind her. Savanna crouched down low, mimicking Alexi. They were on top of a cargo container made of corrugated steel.
“Yeah, I can smell the wolves. They’re out there.” She sniffed the air. “Sweat, fear. The kids are here, too—a lot more than John’s niece, from the smell.”
The holding dock lay at the corner of highway ninety-nine and the West Seattle bridge. It wasn’t much more than a large parking lot for corrugated containers waiting to be filled, or shipped out on the next train. To the west was Harbor Island, and the east—suburbs. Between the waterways, the freeways, and the parks, there were lots of exits from the immediate area. Rayburn had picked well. Short of a helicopter and thermal trackers, nothing could stop him from escaping if he chose to run.
Alexi really hoped he wouldn’t.
She knelt down and closed her eyes, letting the sound of the yard wash over her. She tuned out Savanna’s heart, her own breathing… the traffic in the distance, a chain that rattled in the wind… then she found it. Small feet shuffling against metal. No talking, no words of comfort, just an eerie silence from children who had to be scared half to death.
Alexi stiffened. The kids were oddly quiet, but she managed to pinpoint where the shuffling was coming from. It had to be one of three containers she saw in the distance.
“Let the detectives know I’ve found them. Once the kids are free, they need to get them out of here. They won’t be safe until Rayburn and the buyer are dead.”
Savanna tapped away on her phone. Alexi heard it buzz in response. The two detectives were out front with a SWAT team, ready to come in and rescue the kids. Alexi came in first because she was reasonably sure the wolves would tear the cops apart, and she didn’t want that.
Focus. Don’t be stressing about John when you have your own things to worry about.
She’d stayed the night at his apartment. They’d fallen asleep together, intertwined on his couch. It was the first time in a long time she had slept without waking up afraid, or alone.
His cell phone went off in the morning with a police emergency, he had rushed out the door with little more than a quick kiss and a promise that she would call so they could talk. That was twelve hours before, and the only time they had to talk since was to arrange the back-up for the rescue.
She put it out of her head. He’d enjoyed himself just as much as her. Maybe even more. She knew from experience that the feeding must trigger some sort of euphoric reaction in her… there was no other way to say it. Her victims. The way it felt to her, and the way he responded… it was an incredibly intimate experience.
She shook her head. She couldn’t think about this right now.
“Okay, were going to make our way over there.” Alexi pointed to a fork lift, “Then we’ll head to the first container. I should know pretty quick which one they’re in. Once we find it, we open it, and get them out of here.”
Savanna nodded. The witch’s hand stretched out before her, she murmured a few words Alexi didn’t understand. Her hand sparked blue for a moment, and then a shimmer briefly sprang up around her.
“What was that?”
“A shield. If I did it right, it should protect me from one or two blows.”
Alexi shook her head. Savanna’s power was a marvel under any condition, but her power since they returned from the Fae was off the charts.
She slipped down from the container, her boots splashing in the unavoidable puddles. Savanna floated silently down behind her. Alexi slipped from shadow to shadow silently as they creeped toward the first container. She closed her eyes, listening.
Nothing.
With a shake of her head she moved to the next one. It was thirty feet from the first one, with no cover between them. Alexi leaned forward, spread her booted feet for traction, and surged toward the container. The world blurred for a heartbeat…and she stood next to it. It stunned her how fast she could move, if she needed too. A bead of sweat form
ed on her forehead and she felt the drain. The hunger, despite having fed to fullness the night before, returned.
She placed her hand against the container to feel for vibrations. Nothing.
Only one more container. Alexi slipped around the back, staying in shadows to recon the last one. She felt Savanna come to a rest behind her, the witch hovered in the air to keep from making noise.
“That’s the one, then,” Alexi whispered.
Her heart pounded in her ears, the blood in her veins ran fresh from her recent feeding. It powered her, and brought life to her skin and heart. She took a deep breath… The world blurred again and she was next to the last container.
Moonlight flickered in the puddle beside her. Cold air rushed past her hair, tickling her neck.
Alexi dropped to a crouch. A massive fist slammed the steel wall with a bang. A large dent in the container appeared where her head had been moments before. She rolled to the side as a foot stomped the ground. Alexi spun to face her opponent.
Not Rayburn. He was huge. He towered over Alexi, his upper body bare and thickly muscled, but a wolf—not a man.
“I didn’t know you people could get any uglier.” Alexi kicked forward as he lunged at her. Her boot connected with his groin. He howled as he dropped to his knees. Alexi clenched a fistful of hair on his bizarre head and brought her knee to his chin with everything she had. His head snapped up and he flew backward to land in a heap.
Alexi heaved great breaths and forced them out of her mouth in slow, steady waves. The adrenaline had kicked in and made her hands tremble and her thoughts race. She checked Savanna’s position— the witch nodded. The now unconscious werewolf must have been a lone guard… possibly a scout.
She checked his pulse to make sure he was out, not dead. His heart was still beating. This container certainly had the kids in it. With the immediate threat down, she could hear their shuffling, feel their agitation. They didn’t make any other sounds though. Alexi thought they would be screaming, especially after the wolf growled.
The front of the container had three large chains looped around it all tied into a central padlock. The chains themselves were thick, an inch per link, and the lock appeared as formidable. She pressed her hands to the door and leaned close to it. The children's heartbeats, like little rabbits, pounded inside. Their bodies were the only noise. No one spoke, not even a whisper.
Alexi fiddled with the lock for a moment. It was thick steel, the kind train yards used. She placed one foot on the door, grasped the lock with both hands and pulled. Her arms strained against the metal. She inhaled deeply and forced herself to pull with all her strength. Her fingers ached from the exertion and her arms felt like they wanted to pop out of their sockets.
She growled and jerked one more time. The lock squealed as she stressed it beyond its ability to stay together. With a ping the loop broke. Alexi flew backward, catching herself with several steps and a wave of her arms for balance.
“Sonofa—” The shattered lock fell to the ground. Her arms and shoulders ached and she felt her hunger keenly. The kids were free though.
With a bang of metal, she jerked open the door.
“Whoa,” she stepped back. There were over thirty kids crammed into the container. Some looked like they hadn’t eaten in days. They all cried as one when the door opened. Alexi dropped to one knee and raised her hands up.
“Shh, shh. It’s okay.” The crying faded and the kids were left sniffling. She saw kids who couldn’t be older than four all the way to ones who were almost teens. From what she could tell the older kids were doing their best with the younger ones, but who knew how long they’d been locked in here. From the stench, it had been sometime.
She spotted a little Asian looking girl in the front. Her pajamas were far cleaner than anyone else's.
“Are you Wei Po?” Alexi asked.
Wei’s eyes lit up, she nodded.
“I’m a friend of your Uncle John’s, and were going to get you and everyone else out of here.”
“We can’t,” she said with a shake of her head.
Alexi froze, had she set off some form of trap? She didn’t expect the wolves to booby trap a bunch of little kids.
“Why not?” She asked carefully.
“He said he would eat us,” she whispered.
Alexi’s fist clenched until her nails drew blood. “Listen honey, he’s not going to eat anyone okay? I’m here and I have friends outside…” Her sentence trailed off when it became obvious the kids weren’t moving. Alexi swallowed. What could be keeping the kids rooted in place? She took a long look at their faces. Her pupils opened wide to allow her to see in the moonlight as if it were the sun. They were scared, far more than she would expect them to be. A sniff of the air told her they had all defecated themselves, but none moved to clean it up.
“Did he hurt any of you?”
Wei nodded her head up and down. She pointed off to the right. Alexi walked to the corner of the container, not sure of what she would see, but positive it would be horrible. The smell hit her before she saw it.
She closed her eyes, unable to examine the little pile of clothes and blood. Nausea washed over her as she squeezed her eyes shut. She took a couple of deep breaths through her mouth. How could anyone do that to a child? After a moment, her stomach settled and she turned back to the kids.
“Did you see him do that?”
One of the older boys shook his head.
“No,” another one answered.
“But we heard it,” a third said.
Alexi wanted to rip Rayburn apart. She forced herself to remain calm and smile at the children.
“Listen, I know it’s scary, but I promise you that I will get you out of here alive, and in one piece.” She picked up the discarded chain, wrapped her fingers around one link and squeezed. The deformed chain collapsed under her fist. She tossed it down for the kids to see, “I’m strong too, I can keep you safe.”
They looked on with open mouths.
“Wei, please. Your Uncle John is a few hundred feet past the gate. We can make it,” she pleaded as she held her hand out to her. The little girl bit her lip, then carefully, as if she still wasn’t sure, she slipped her fingers into Alexi’s.
Savanna slapped her hand over her mouth as Alexi vanished in a blur of speed. She hadn’t even seen her move. The vampire shimmered then disappeared. Savanna crouched in the shadow of the first container unwilling to risk the wide-open ground. She looked down at her hand. Her fingers clasped together in a fist. How much could she use? How much power could she draw on before the Fae came for recompense?
It was a question for another day. She summoned the power to her finger tips before casting it loose. It spread around her like a fine powder covering her immediate area. The little particles filled the holes and crevices. As it faded a pattern became apparent. There were smudges on the containers, stains of something unearthly. Whatever it was hid its presence well. There were no footprints or obvious signs of its passing. Whoever it was, they drew magic to them like a sponge.
Savanna glanced at Alexi, who was checking the containers. Nothing yet. She closed her eyes and focused her mind for a moment, letting her perception drop to the other, to her witch-sight. When she opened, the world shifted. Gone were the dark colors of moonlight and sky, replaced with the vibrant colors of life and magic.
The magic she used a moment before stood out brightly against the ground, illuminating everything in a kind of eerie under light. The shapes she had sensed before coalesced into something far more specific. Foot prints the size of a small car made a path through the containers, directly to the one Alexi now stood beside, and out to the West.
The sudden bang of metal made her jump and she crouched down next to the container. By the time she located the source, it was over. Alexi had overpowered one of the wolves and had him laid out on the ground. She kept watch as Alexi broke the lock and pulled the doors open.
Savanna waved to Alexi as she spoke to the ch
ildren. When she was sure there were no more immediate threat she, let her vision wander to the path of magical footprints. Two things were clear to her: it wasn’t the wolves who left the magical residue here, and whatever was responsible had to be incredibly powerful.
She glanced to Alexi. Her friend was crouched down, speaking to the children. If the wolves showed up, Alexi could handle it, but… if whatever was leaving this residue joined the fight too, she wasn’t sure Alexi could win.
Savanna took a deep breath. Her witch-sight would let her see magic, but it also would leave her feeling dizzy if she looked through it for too long. She had to risk it, though. With one last glance at her friend, she turned away to follow the foot prints.
“This way.” Alexi waved the kids toward the next container. They were far too quiet. Children were never this quiet, she was sure of it. These poor kids were cowed into an unnatural silence. How would they ever recover?
She motioned for them to keep moving, hoping Savanna could lead them to the front of the yard.
The container emptied out until only one little boy remained. He was cute in a way that parents hoped their kids were never aware of, with dimples and a little superman curl in the middle of his forehead. If it weren’t for the dirt and excrement on him, he would be perfect.
She motioned for him to come forward. He didn’t move. The container was large enough for her to walk in, but she still ran her hands along the top as she carefully moved up to the boy. Kneeling down next to him, she put her hand on his shoulder. He jumped at the contact, but made no noise.
“It’s okay. I’m Alexi, what’s your name?”
She could feel his heart through her hand, racing like a hamster. His eyes darted back and forth, expecting death at any moment.
“T-Trevor,” he said. His voice was barely pitched above a whisper. “We’re not supposed to talk. The bad man said if we talked he would eat us…” His fear hung in the air like a palpable stench. The terror in his eyes touched something deep within her, something instinctive and ferocious.
Wreathed in Flame (Faith of the Fallen Book 3) Page 9