by Ivy Sinclair
Still, it always made me wonder if there was more to my lineage than my mentor was willing to tell me. There were several pieces of things that I could do that definitely didn’t add up, but to get more information would require me to speak to her. That was something that I was unwilling to do. Whether it was for good reason or not was entirely another matter.
Shoving those thoughts aside, I opened the back door of the SUV and retrieved my kit and a light jacket. The jacket was black, and its material helped me blend further into the darkness. I rarely went anywhere without the kit. It came in handy more often than I ever would have realized. I also had lost it on more than one occasion when an interrogation went south, and so had culled down everything inside of it to truly just the essentials. Still, most of those essentials were valuable or rare items that cost a fortune to replace. It was safer on me than anywhere else.
Kit in hand, I moved so that I was able to travel parallel to the road but remained out of sight inside the tree line. I figured there was no sense letting anyone else know that I was out here. Although I hadn’t seen another house for miles, I knew from my brief inspection of the lake’s shoreline earlier that day that Christopher did, in fact, have neighbors. Seeing a man creeping around in the middle of the night would surely warrant a call to the Calamata police department, and I knew that Sheriff Halpren would be more than thrilled to get his hands on me again.
A smile briefly crossed my face. I guessed if our paths did ever cross again that he’d make sure there was cement underneath our feet, although that didn’t matter. When I called, the dead came whether they wanted to or not, and they always found a way into any nook and cranny available until the objective was achieved. The few times in my life that I had been held against my will were only because I was unconscious at the time.
I had a flash of a basement cell and then the memory of echoed screams whispered in my ear. My feet paused as I shut my eyes and forced those thoughts away. I wouldn’t remember that night. And yet it served as a vivid reminder of why I didn’t let anyone get too close, and that I could never let my guard down for a second. When I did, the people I cared about ended up dead.
That thought spurred my feet forward again. I was anxious to see Paige’s face. The more time that passed since I last saw her, the more the coil inside my core tightened and made it hard for me to breath. It was a small thing. I just wanted to know that she was safe and sound. Then I’d go and forget she ever existed.
At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
I broke through the brush and onto another small beaten road that angled to my right. I allowed a quick flick of the flashlight on my belt to see the number on the plaque nailed to the tree next to the road and confirm my guess. It was the driveway that led to Christopher’s cabin. I slid back into the trees and readjusted my path to bring me closer to the small structure.
It was easy to tell when I got closer. Lights burned in all the windows and lit up the night in the clearing. There was an unfamiliar car parked just outside. I thought that I could hear voices wafting across the breeze, but unless I opened my senses the way I had earlier, I couldn’t be sure. Although there was a part of me that wanted to, the logical part, trained well by my mentor, told me that to draw on that energy again so soon wasn’t a good idea. Little pulls of energy here or there weren’t likely to draw attention, but I wasn’t good at controlling the rush. It felt too good. When something felt that good, I didn’t think that anyone would have an easy time keeping a clear head.
Then I heard something else that I didn’t expect to hear at all. Not outside town, and definitely not anywhere near Christopher’s cabin. It was a familiar, unwelcome hum that reverberated through the ground at my feet.
“No, no, no!” The words erupted from my lips before I could stop them, but luckily I managed to keep the curse that followed at barely a whisper.
There were very few ears trained to hear the sound I just heard, and even fewer of those that would understand the full extent of what it meant given the present circumstances.
A demon had just been caught in a demon trap, which meant that there were demon traps set in the woods around Christopher’s cabin. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. Benjamin was paranoid enough that he would have put traps all over the island, including the less densely populated areas. But that wasn’t what I focused on.
With the number of demons on the island, it was a safe assumption that if one of them had managed to find their way out here, there were more that probably weren’t far behind.
I cursed softly again. It never occurred to me to check for a tail when I left Halpren, but it seemed likely that I was the reason at least one demon was out here. The timing was too much of a coincidence.
That’s when I heard a second hum, and I felt my chest tighten. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, or how the hell I was going to keep Paige safe.
As if the thought of her name conjured her from thin air, I heard the raised pitch of voices in an argument, and then the cabin door opened illuminating Paige for the briefest moment in a halo of light. If I had never seen her before, I would have guessed that she was an angel. Then I caught the twisted grimace and look of pain on her face, and then the door slammed shut taking the light inside with it.
It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, but then I saw that Paige remained on the porch. She was hurt and angry, and that made me want to kill whoever was inside the cabin that had done that to her. As much as I wanted to rush to her side at that moment, I had to play it smart. I wasn’t the only creature lurking in the darkness waiting for her.
I heard the harsh huff of her breath as she struggled to keep her cool. Then she plunked down on the front step and buried her head in her hands. She looked completely lost and alone.
She sat up then and pulled something small out of her pocket. She stared at it intently and then flipped it open, revealing a small screen of light. I realized that it was the phone that I had given her. She’d kept it. That gave me an idea.
I pulled out my phone and sank down to the ground. Using my body as a shield, I typed out a quick text and then hit ‘Send.’ Then I waited.
Paige’s gasp of surprise traveled to my ear moments later and I wanted to hiss in frustration. Although her movements were small and relatively unobtrusive, they were enough to draw attention to her. I was certain that the demons were about to attack at any moment.
Then I felt Paige’s eyes swing in my direction. She wouldn’t be able to see me, but now she knew that I was there. The decision was up to her. I had told her the barest minimum to let her know what was about to happen. She could either trust me or she’d attempt to do it on her own. Either way, I wouldn’t let her fight alone. She wasn’t getting rid of me whether she liked it or not.
As she stood up, I caught a glimpse of a face in the window looking out at her from inside the cabin, and my blood froze. I knew that face, and I knew that man. The only thing I didn’t know was why in the hell Benjamin was there at all.
CHAPTER FOUR- PAIGE
Benjamin’s words and accusations against Riley played over and over again in my mind, and I couldn’t get them to stop. Everything about what he said was counterintuitive to the man who I had spent the last twenty-four hours with, and I refused to believe it. There was more to the story, or Benjamin was outright lying. I had to remember that I was told these things by someone who hadn’t been honest with me for the last three years.
Riley might not have told me the whole truth either, but he also hadn’t completely lied about his profession. Still, it hurt me that he hadn’t trusted me enough to tell me more about it. And I needed to know more about it if I was going to be able to trust him. Someone who bent the dead to his will was a scary person in my book, maybe even scarier than demons. At least with demons, you knew what you were getting.
I almost let out a mirthless laugh then. Here I was acting like a big demon expert when less than two days ago I was blissfully unaware that suc
h creatures even existed. A big part of me wanted to go back and be that girl again, but at the same time, I had an opportunity in front of me that also hadn’t existed then.
Finally, there was the chance to learn who I was and where I came from. After three years, I had given up all hope of ever finding out that information, but now it seemed possible again. Benjamin said that he knew something about me, but I didn’t trust him at all. Not after the deceit of the last three years. But Riley said that he could help me find those answers, and I wanted to trust him with every fiber of my being.
I just wasn’t sure that he meant it when he said that he would. I’d given him the perfect out. Had he taken it?
I pulled the phone he had given me out of my pocket. I stared at the screen wondering if I had the balls to go through with it and call him. What would I tell him? Come get me? Apologize for being such an idiot to have left the coffee shop without telling him in the first place? If he was still willing to help me, he was going to be furious that I hadn’t followed his instructions.
I chewed on my lower lip trying to do decide what to do, and that’s when a text message popped up on the display. Immediately I saw the contact name, and my heart started to beat faster. It was Riley.
U R in danger. Get up. Go 50 paces right. Now. Meet u there.
I sprang to my feet looking around wildly. If Riley said I was in danger then I wholeheartedly believed him. There was also nowhere else I wanted to be than at his side. I had been a complete idiot to go with Benjamin.
Even as I moved to my right, I looked over my shoulder. Benjamin was looking out the window staring back at me. I saw his mouth move, but I wasn’t going to let him distract me. I made my decision, and it was Riley.
As soon as I was clear of the porch, I started to run. And it was as if the forest lit up with roars even as I felt the earth vibrate underneath my feet. As I approached the edge of the clearing, I saw Riley emerge from the tree line, and for a moment my heart stopped.
He looked terrified and down right scary at the same time. He held out his hand to me, and my hand was barely in his when I heard the swish of air that told me that something was coming at my back from above. I barely saw the flash of a gun whip out over my shoulder as Riley yanked me hard into his chest. A loud blast shattered the night followed by a shriek of pain from an inhuman voice.
“Come on. We’re getting you out of here.” His words warmed me even though I was scared shitless. “We’ve got demons coming out of our ears.”
“How? Why?” I had too many questions, and I couldn’t seem to get a single one out of my mouth properly.
“Later. Right now we need to keep your pretty skin intact.” He gave me a lopsided grin. “I was thinking about doing this earlier. Now it seems more than appropriate.”
I didn’t even have time to react before Riley knelt down and then grabbed me around my waist, swinging me up over his shoulder. I smacked him against his back. “Hey! Put me down!”
“Can’t run and shoot and make sure you’re behind me,” Riley said, his voice tight. We started to move, but not before I heard another shotgun blast that made me jump.
“Paige! Paige, where are you?” Benjamin’s panicked voice rose in the air.
Riley immediately switched the angle of his feet, and we were inside the tree line.
“If you breathe one word and let him know where we are, I’m going to spank you,” Riley threatened. Given my current position over his shoulder, he had ready access to carry through on his threat.
I didn’t say anything, but at the same time, I didn’t want to. I would have to tell him later why I wasn’t interested in letting Benjamin help me anymore. I also didn’t need any further warning to be quiet. I needed to let Riley do his thing, which involved several more shotgun rounds being fired followed by a low string of curses that burned my ears.
After a few moment of silence, Riley started moving again, far stealthier than I expected considering the fact that he was carrying me. I didn’t need to ask Riley where he was taking me once I figured out the direction we were heading. We were on our way to the lake, but it appeared by the most roundabout path possible.
The air around us grew silent again, which set my nerves on edge. I flashed back to every horror movie that Christopher made me watch. Things always got super quiet just before the big strike.
“Seriously, Riley, I can walk on my own,” I whispered. “I also know how to shoot a gun, so let me help.”
“Since when do you know how to shoot a gun?” he whispered back. There was a pause, and I figured that he was trying to sense where the next attack might be coming from. That’s what I would do.
“This morning, when you gave me that gun,” I said, wondering if he really intended to have this conversation right at this moment. It was true though. I couldn’t recall ever using a gun, but then, I had amnesia for the last three years. After Riley had handed me one of his guns to keep watch, I realized that I knew exactly how to use it. It made me wonder what other useful knowledge was stored in my head waiting for me to find.
I felt his hand on my hip, and then he let me slide down his body until my feet touched the ground once more. My hands rested flat against his impossibly hard chest, and I didn’t back away from him right away. Instead, I enjoyed the smell of his skin and the warmth of his body pressed against mine. Three years with no sex was a long time, and I didn’t realize until now how much I missed it. Given the waves of desire suddenly humming through my body and the thoughts crossing my mind, I surmised that I definitely wasn’t a virgin.
His fingers swept under my chin and brought my eyes up to his. “You okay?”
The simple question was delivered with a tenderness that belied the gruff, hard exterior of the man in front of me.
“Scared out of my mind, but yes,” I nodded.
“It’s okay to be scared, but we’re not out of this yet,” he said softly. He pushed me away from him, and I felt a flash of frustration. Then a gun appeared in the small space between us. “I’m not sure how many are out there. If we get separated, you’ll need this.”
What he didn’t say, but didn’t need to, was that he had no intention of letting me leave his side. I implicitly understood. Riley had come for me. That was all I needed to know.
I took the gun from his hands and instinctively checked the barrel and pulled off the safety. “I’m ready when you are.”
“Stay close to me,” he said. Then his eyes seemed to be scanning everywhere at once. His shotgun settled into the crook of his shoulder, and he slung a backpack over the other. I wondered how he managed to carry all of it and me and still shoot with any accuracy. Riley Stone was a constant surprise.
Minutes later, we emerged onto the shoreline.
“How far do you think we are from Christopher’s boat landing?” he asked.
I considered the landscape for a moment and then pointed to my right. “About a hundred yards that way, give or take.”
Riley considered my words and then nodded. “I found a canoe there earlier. It won’t take those creatures long to find the path and head this way.”
“Will Benjamin be okay?” I hated to ask the question, but I couldn’t help myself. The demons that were descending on his cabin were there because of me. I was angry with him for lying to me, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to get hurt.
Riley swung toward me with a look of shock on his face. “You know Benjamin?”
“He’s Christopher. I mean, he told me his name was Christopher,” I blurted out. “Then when he came to the coffee shop and talked me into leaving with him, he told me his real name was Benjamin. It’s all so confusing.”
“Wait,” Riley put his hand up. “You’re telling me that the Christopher you’ve been talking about all this time is actually Benjamin?”
“Why do you make that sound like that’s a bad thing?”
Riley laughed, but it was a harsh and ugly sound. “You’ve been shacking up with the archangel of this territory for th
e last three years, and you fail to see why I might be a bit taken aback by this revelation?”
My mouth fell open. “What’s an archangel?”
Riley’s mouth twisted in a grimace. “He didn’t tell you that part.”
“What’s an archangel?” I repeated. My mind blanked. I wasn’t even sure that I was going to register the answer.
“Think of an archangel like a general, but instead of troops of men, archangels command troops of angels here on earth,” Riley said slowly.
I felt anger begin to seethe inside of me. “All this time, you’ve been telling me about demons. Did you deliberately forget to tell me that there were ANGELS in this story too?”
Riley grabbed my arm with a warning look at my raised tone, and he scanned the trees behind us. “It hardly seemed relevant at the time. We had a demon problem. That’s why I told you about demons.” He dropped his hand. “Christ, Paige. I can’t even begin to think about what this means if Benjamin is involved too.”
“It’s quite simple,” a familiar voice replied.
Both Riley and I turned, and my heart sank as Benjamin stepped into view. I had no idea how long he had been there listening to our conversation. What I did know though was that he didn’t like Riley, and we had no idea if more demons were about to appear out of nowhere to try to grab me. Things were going south fast.
Riley gave me a small nudge so that his body was in front of mine. I saw the look of annoyance cross Benjamin’s face before he could hide it. The last thing I wanted to do was put Riley in any more danger than I already had. I had no idea what an archangel could do, but something told me it was more than blow a pretty trumpet and fly.
I put a hand on Riley’s arm and stepped next to him. “If it’s so simple, then maybe you will finally explain it to me.” I directed the comment at Benjamin.