Broken Souls (Primani Book 4)

by Laurie Olerich

  The air behind him thickened, and he recognized the saols of Sean, Killian, and Rivin without turning around. Where had Rivin come from? Didn’t matter; they could use his help. If they survived, they’d get chatty over a beer later. The three Primani fell in line beside him, fanning across the lanes, eyes locked on the demons standing no more than 30 feet away. Even numbers for a fight, but the demons didn’t budge. They waited on their master’s leash. One stupid human got out of his car to protest his broken window. The demon closest to him whipped up the athame and gutted him without batting an eye. As the man slid to his knees, both hands trying desperately to hold his guts inside, the demon wiped the blade on the vic’s leather jacket. More screaming. Probably from the guy’s wife. She should shut up and run, but that was her call.

  Dec didn’t care. He tuned out everything but the couple in front of him. His eyes were glued to Rori, to Azrael. Concentrating, focusing his mind…

  The demon nuzzled Rori’s cheek and purred, “Happy birthday, baby girl. I have such a party planned for you.”

  Rori snapped, “It’s not my birthday, asshole. I’m not going with you. Forget it!”

  “What are you playing at, demon? It’s not her birthday.”

  Azrael smiled over Rori’s head. The feral smile showed off his impressive set of canines. He tugged her head back even farther to expose the delicate skin of her throat. Her pulse thudded so fast Dec could see the artery twitching. She was terrified. Putting up a good show, though. Running the backs of his claws across her throat, Azrael shrugged a wing. “Sure it is.”

  What the hell? “No it’s not. Her birth certificate says she was born on March fourth.”

  He sighed long and dramatically. “Yes, I know. It’s very easy to change those things. Father Joseph took care of that for me after I got rid of her mother.” He shrugged again. “What can I say? Hell gets boring. It’s my little games that keep me amused. The poor souls look so surprised when I come early. Trust me though. Her true birthday is today.” While his eyes were locked on Dec’s, he caressed her cheek, letting his hand drift across her throat, settling on her breast. “I was there when her mother pushed her out. She screamed her head off then, too. Both of them did. It was one of my finer moments.”

  “Well, aren’t you clever? You should be proud.”

  He jerked Rori’s head back hard enough to make her cry out. Dec flinched. Azrael laughed long and hard. The hand on her breast moved underneath to cup the soft weight in his palm. “So lovely.” He snapped his gaze back to Dec’s furious face. “Go ahead. Embrace that rage. You want to rip my throat out. I know it. You know it.” He squeezed again, and Rori elbowed him hard in the gut. Her bravado was short lived. In response, Azrael dug his claws into her skin. She groaned like a wounded animal, eyes rolling back in her head.

  “Come on, come on, you’re almost there. I’m hurting your pet. Aren’t you going to stop me?”

  “Keep it up, motherfucker. You feel safe now, don’t you? I will come at you on my terms. When you’ve all but forgotten me, I’ll be there to rip your head off.” Dec studied the demon as he bragged, keeping his image in his mind, holding it still, chipping away at the edges. He had to focus just a little longer. They always bragged. They friggin’ loved the sound of their own voices. Letting him go on and on was useful for a minute. All of his Primani brothers were also watching for weakness and were poised with blades out. They’d move in a blink when it was time. Meanwhile, he carefully pushed his mind to its limits.

  Think, Rori, think! Every part of her wanted to lash out and struggle against this monster. He was massively strong, massively smelly. Burnt dirt. Rotten food. Gross on every level. Curiously, she wasn’t really afraid now. Pissed, yes. Scared, no. She was sick and tired of being manhandled, or demon-handled, in this case. And she was really tired of this RBD talking about her like she was some kind of freakin’ prize.

  He had a death grip on her hair and another hand clamped around her breast. Her body remembered his touch. Oh, yeah, she remembered it so much she wanted to puke all over his shoes. In the position she was in though, she’d only end up choking on it and ruining her jacket. So now she was pissed and nauseous.

  Dec was doing it again. She saw the intensity in his stare and felt the ripples of power wash over her. He was homicidally pissed off, yes, but this was different. He held himself very still, face set harder than it should’ve been. He was focusing his energy. She didn’t dare say anything that would give him away. She blinked her eyes rapidly to get his attention. He didn’t see her. He was clearly letting RBD talk to stall for time. She tried to swallow a scream when those claws dug in, but she couldn’t help groaning. Oh, my God, that hurt. The intensity of the pain nearly knocked her over.

  And Dec nearly lost it. His hands shook until he clenched them into fists. She studied his face again. It was hard to see the strain through all the dried blood. His eyes were already bleeding…

  He’s bleeding inside his melon. Killian’s words after the last time he’d done this. How many times could he recover? How many times would he have to push himself to the point of death just to save her ass?

  Give me a chance to love you.

  She wanted that chance. She wanted that chance more than anything she could imagine.

  Pain throbbed behind Dec’s left eye. Everything was beginning to blur. Come on, come on. This has to work. They were running out of time. He was running out of time. Where were they? He swept his gaze over Rori’s face and froze. What was wrong with her eyes? She blinked like a crazy person before finally staring into his with such a look of longing, of love, that he felt it to his bones. What was she doing?

  “Don’t lose me!” She winked.

  “No!”

  Her body slumped in Azrael’s grip.

  She was gone.

  The demon roared up at the sky as her soul slipped away. Completely unhinged, he threw her body to the ground, giving it a kick in the ribs for good measure. She rolled over and over before coming to rest against the wheels of a beat up Chevy Impala on the other side of the bridge. “You little bitch! Go ahead and run! I’ll find you!”

  As if some signal had sounded, all hell truly broke loose. Both sides exploded into action. With a shout, Sean tossed him a blade, and then it was on. The fight was bloodier than usual. Neither the demons nor the Primani were in the mood for dragging this out. It was straight up slice and dice. More demons dropped in until the bridge was swarming with them. They overturned cars; people screamed and ran for cover. Fireballs hit humans, vehicles, and the bridge itself, as the demons took the opportunity to fuck up everything they could. A pickup truck exploded, sending Rivin sailing off the side of the bridge. With arms pinwheeling, he vanished from view. Harsh laughter rang out from above. Two demons swung from the steel cables before dropping onto the bridge. Their laughter cut off abruptly, thanks to Killian. With an ugly snarl, he yanked two blades from the demons’ backs before turning his attention to the asshole sneaking up behind him.

  As usual, Dec and Sean fought back to back. Dec swung his blade in an arc that hit his target across the throat. The black-hooded dick gurgled in surprise, his yellow eyes going wide. In one fluid motion, Dec swung around to take the next one, while Sean finished the first guy off with a through and through to the gut. Bam! No more gurgling; just a pile of ash. Moving with rhythm and perfect synchronization, the two of them hacked and gutted their way through a Baker’s Dozen without breaking a sweat.

  Just like old times. Caught up in the moment, Dec flashed a grin at the next contestant and waved him forward. “Dude, I can do this all day!”

  Sean barked a laugh, decapitated one of the shorter demons, and then asked, “You want to grab IHOP after this? I’m in the mood for pancakes.”

  He ducked a boot aimed at his head, swiped his blade out to sever the idiot’s Achilles tendon. Said idiot yowled and fell to one knee. Sean took his head off in one swing. Dec tossed him a glance, “I could go for pancakes. Bring us some back. R
ori’s going to feel like shit when she gets back to her body. We’ll be at the usual place.”

  Sean started to reply but was cut off by the staccato sound of a machine gun firing. He flew backwards into the railing, blood blooming from a bullet hole in his shoulder. “Sean!” He flashed to Sean’s side, kicking a hooded asshole over the railing just as he was about to skewer his brother. “Sean! Get out of here.”

  Gritting his teeth, Sean shook his head. “Yank it out! Hurry the fuck up! Killian’s about to get overrun.”

  He glanced over his shoulder. Killian was playing whack-a-mole with two assholes. One threw a fireball at his head, but he simply teleported out of the way. The energy hit a steel cable instead. It swung free, knocking a frantic woman completely over the side and into the freezing river below. The next demon landed behind Killian. He vanished. The next second, the demon turned to ash and joined the rest of the air pollution. Killian grinned behind him. The decision took barely a second. Killian was fine. Sean was another story. His face was white with pain, eyes dark.

  “Hang on, bro. I’ve got this.” He pressed his palm against the entry wound. Closing his eyes to concentrate, he drew the round out and sealed the hole all in one motion. “Good as new. Let’s rock. Azrael’s moving.”

  Like most of their brawls, the action could be counted in seconds, rarely in minutes. Everyone moved faster than most humans could even track with the naked eye. The fight started only minutes before and was nearly over now. No new demons had dropped in to pick up the slack. That could only mean one thing. Azrael was ready to move.

  The bridge was a warzone. Burning cars puked out heavy black smoke, filling the air, making it impossible to see. Overturned cars littered the road; bridge supports hung loose, parts of the railing blown away. Worse, there were bodies everywhere. People were trapped in some of those cars; many were gunned down by the same weapon that hit Sean. The cries of wounded humans broke through his battle haze. There would be no way to contain this from the public. No way to erase this from history. Well, that was above his pay grade. He was only worried about one dark-haired woman.

  Coughing in the smoke, he searched for Azrael. There! Azrael picked his way around a smashed SUV, heading towards Rori again. Before he could get close enough to grab her, Dec and Killian blocked him. Sean and Rivin materialized behind them, guarding their backs from the few demons who still wanted to fight.

  He unfurled his wings and sneered, “Do you really want to do this?”

  As strong as the Primani were, even together, they couldn’t hold the demon back for long. His power was overwhelming. The fact that they had slowed him down at all was probably due to his wanting to play with his prey before killing them. Dec looked around feeling something like panic seizing up inside of his gut. Where were they?

  “Coward!” The word rang louder than the screaming wounded and police sirens heading their way.

  Primani and demons froze at the unexpected voice.

  “Leave my daughter alone! Your fight is with me.”

  Halle-fucking-lujah!

  Raphael stood beside a warrior Dec never dreamed he’d see again. He called himself Keil Stone. His real name was unpronounceable so he invented a new one. Made by Uriel, the Primani was a legend among legends. The stories claimed he fought with Genghis Khan himself back in the day. No one could either confirm or deny that. He was also known for his love of waves, women, and fighting. Taller than most of Khan’s men, Keil was impressive. Women loved him; men feared him. Made when in his late 20s, he kept the powerful body and hard face he had at that time. He was big. He was pissed. And holy shit, he was Rori’s father. Dec took a step back. Dripping with weapons and dressed for combat, he strode forward until he stood a few feet from Azrael.

  Azrael narrowed his eyes and waved his boys back. “I thought I banished you.”

  The huge Primani palmed his silver blade and planted his feet. “I was thinking the same thing about you. How did you get free?”

  “No matter.” He shrugged, clearly not concerned. “You’re years too late. Annalisa gave her soul to find you. Wanted you to know you had a kid. Scattering you in front of her was genius, if I do say so myself. The guilt of ‘killing’ you ate her alive. She ran straight to Father Joseph to have the stain on her soul removed.”

  Keil hissed, “That was you? You sonofabitch! You targeted her because of me? She was innocent!”

  Azrael brought the top of his wing around his shoulder to straighten a twisted feather with his claws. He dismissed the fury that was clear in Keil’s tone. Looking straight down his nose, he agreed, “Of course I did. After all, you tried to banish me. Did you think I’d forget that? I haven’t survived as long as I have by letting enemies slip past.”

  “By the way, I don’t know what you saw in her. She was the most boring lay I’ve ever had. No life in her at the end. She was so boring I killed her early. You could say I terminated her contract. She’s been screaming in the pit ever since.”

  He pointed a wing tip at Rori’s prone body. “Ah, now your sweet daughter Rori’s been showing promise since she was just a little girl. I’ve been priming her up for the big day. She’s got a beautiful soul. I’ve been drawing from it for years. She warms me from the inside out.” He rubbed his hand over his crotch and smiled. “I can hardly stand the wait.”

  As soon as Keil showed up, Dec began shifting closer to Rori. She wasn’t dead. He heard her heartbeat loud and clear. Projecting was genius. It would’ve been nice if she’d warned him first. He just lost a thousand years off of his life. A spike of fresh anger ran through him at the sight of her body tangled around the tire of a parked car. The car’s passengers ran screaming minutes earlier. As he watched, a shimmering ribbon of water caught his eye. It flowed slowly towards her. A familiar odor filled his nose. Not water…

  Rori’s astral body hovered near the top of the bridge. Careful to keep hidden, she watched the drama play out below. It was crazy. She recognized Sean and Killian, of course. Another Primani showed up. With a shaved head, jeans, and black leather, he stood out from the others who wore black shirts and black camouflage pants. Dec looked relieved to see him just before they attacked. There was no way to tell exactly how long it really lasted, but the fight seemed to last only a few minutes. Short and vicious. Bodies flew all over the place. People screamed and died. It was horrifying. She’d covered her eyes for most of the whole thing.

  Then he showed up. She felt him the instant he appeared at the back of the bridge. He and Raphael materialized out of thin air just as the fighting wound down. Her father. She knew it in her heart. Her saol knew it. She felt a connection to this man deep inside. She hadn’t clearly understood the meaning of the word ‘saol’ when Dec tried to explain. He said it was the Primani life force, the energy that kept them strong, that healed their injuries. It gave them immortality.

  Immortality? Wait a minute…

  Her mother was human. Her father was Primani? If he was immortal, then…did that make her…

  Oh, surely not?

  Raphael stepped between Azrael and Keil with an air of authority that was impossible to ignore. Despite his rage, Keil moved back to give Raphael plenty of space. The archangel had more power in his pinky than all the Primani standing there. Deference was definitely due.

  Looking the demon straight in the eye, Raphael said, “This is all rather interesting from a historical perspective. But I’m sure Rori needs her rest. You should be going now, Azrael, before Uriel runs to Satan and has a little chat about you. Guarding the gates of Hell does have its perks.”

  Azrael snapped his wings against his back and stalked forward until he was nose to nose with Raphael. “I’m not leaving without that soul.”

  “I’m afraid that’s not possible. I believe there was a short addendum. Annalisa had one final request. Didn’t she? She insisted the father be told so he could make the decision about the child’s soul if something happened to her. You agreed to make all reasonable efforts to find the ‘
angel’ who fathered her child. But you failed to do that, didn’t you? Once you put two and two together and realized you already killed the father, you thought you were home free. But he’s not dead. In accordance with the original agreement, it comes to down to Rori’s father. Keil, what are your thoughts?”

  Keil moved closer, hand on his blade, eyes hot. “If I’m getting a vote, I’m saying go fuck yourself. The terms of that deal were dirty to begin with. You deceived Annalisa, played on her fears, her guilt, just to get back at me. You have her soul already. You’re not getting Rori’s. I say she stays right where she’s at, and you get the fuck out of here.”

  Azrael’s entire body swelled with the force of the anger roaring through him. He took a step towards Raphael with hate in his eyes.

  Raphael curled his fingers around his sword and simply said, “Tread lightly, Azrael. This isn’t a war you want to start.”

  Freezing in mid-step, he growled, “Not today, but war is coming. As for this soul, keep it. It’s already broken. I can live with that.”

  He glared between Keil and Raphael, back and forth, mind racing, back and forth again, until his eyes swiveled to Rori’s body. He studied it for a moment before smiling coldly. With one dip of his wing, the gasoline ignited.

  Chapter 23: Resolutions

  HER FATHER WAS HOT in every sense of the word. Gorgeous? Yes! Body made for ogling? Yes! Supernatural power oozing from his pores? Yes! Her mother hadn’t had a chance. Rori closed her eyes to picture the scene. She could clearly see how her mom had fallen for him. What was their story though? How did they meet? Where was he for the last 25 years? She had way more questions than answers.

  The sperm donor was currently buried neck deep in an intense argument with Dec. They stood on the patio, their backs to her so she couldn’t see their faces. She didn’t really need to see their expressions at this point. The heaving shoulders, waving hands, and crossed arms definitely didn’t scream happiness and roses. She glanced at the clock on the wall. They’d been at it for an hour.