by Jus Accardo
“So was there a point to this whole show? You’re not just here to ask me to be your Facebook friend?”
The second bell rang and the halls cleared—but we weren’t alone anymore. Several others had joined the party.
“Gang’s all here,” Vida purred. She pointed to the tall woman on the end. “Let me introduce you around. I think you’ve seen some of their handiwork around town? That hot ticket is Envy.”
The woman—maybe somewhere in her early thirties with bleach-blond hair and pouty pink lips—winked and blew me a kiss. “I just love your jacket.”
“Next, we have Gluttony, and standing next to him, well that little tyke is Greed.” An overweight older man stood with his arms resting on the shoulders of a small child. The little girl couldn’t have been more than eight, complete with shiny Mary Janes, snow-white knee-high socks, and a worn teddy bear hanging from her left hand.
The little girl glared at me. “And Tony. Let’s not forget about Tony.”
“She’s already met Tony, Ava,” Meredith said in a light tone, then turned to glare at me. “We’re going to need him back, by the way.”
From the back of the group, a small framed redhead pushed forward.
“This is the one you’ll really want to meet,” Vida said, excited. “Something tells me you and Amari have a lot in common.”
The woman stepped up and flashed us a wicked grin. “Oh, yes. She’s just full of me.”
It had to be Pride. Everyone else was accounted for. Huh. I was actually kind of insulted.
She reached out to touch me. With an echoing slap, Meredith knocked her hand away. “Hands off,” she snapped. With a nod to Vida, she turned and started in the other direction. One by one, they followed. Like a conga line of evil sheep.
Over her shoulder, Meredith called, “That is really a nice jacket, by the way. We’ll be seeing you again real soon, Jessie Darker. Real soon.”
I watched them disappear around the corner. The urge to book like a little kid in a room full of clowns was overwhelming, but I held it together. I took Kendra by the arm and backed down the hall slowly until I made it to the exit—I didn’t trust Meredith not to come at me from behind as soon as my back was turned.
I couldn’t get out of that school fast enough. I didn’t even bother being discreet about it. Normally, I’d have taken my time to be sure I wasn’t caught—Dubois had it in for me already—but not this time. And considering how blasé some of the teachers were acting today—Sloth hangover, I guessed—I didn’t think anyone else would either.
Once we made it several blocks away, I unleashed question hell on Kendra. “Your mom said they couldn’t find anything on the Wells line.”
Kendra’s face turned bright red. “Don’t blame her, Jessie. You know the coven has rules.”
Then it started to sink in. “Wait—you’re saying Cassidy lied to us?” Cassidy Belfair had never been a fan of the Darker family, but I couldn’t help feeling betrayed. Kendra and I had been friends since kindergarten. She should love us by association if nothing else!
Kendra looked uncomfortable. “The coven is scared of this chick. Like, terrified. After Mom went to bed last night, I snuck downstairs to peek at the information she’d found. I didn’t understand it all at first. There were like six names—all with birth and death records. And then I found the pictures.”
“All Meredith,” I confirmed.
Kendra nodded. “Back in the eighteen hundreds, she was strong, but nothing too special. What the Elders today would call a mid-level witch. But in 1882, something changed. Suddenly, her magic was off the charts.”
“Changed? What changed?”
“No clue. The Elders don’t know, either. All I know is that they’re terrified of her.”
Whatever it was didn’t really matter. All that concerned me was getting her to free Lukas somehow. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful you told me, but what will they do if they find out?”
Kendra shrugged, then flashed a sad smile. “What can they do—take away my magic? Big deal. I suck at it anyway.”
I grabbed her hand and squeezed tight. “It won’t always be that way. I think, eventually, you’re going to be badass. Just like Cassidy.”
“That’ll be the day.” She sighed and kicked at a stone. “I’d settle for being able to turn soda to beer.”
“It’ll happen, Ken. I have faith.”
“I’m glad one of us does. I can’t help being jealous. My little cousin Mindy has more juice than I do.” She shook her head. “But, anyway. Time to dish. I wanna know more about your tall, dark sin.”
I couldn’t hold back my smile. “Assuming you mean Lukas.”
She nodded enthusiastically and the tip of one of the horns peeked out from under her blonde curls. “What’s he like?”
There was no need to put any amount of thought into my answer. The response came as naturally as breathing. “He’s annoying and stubborn.”
“So, the perfect match for you, then?”
“Smart ass.” I snickered, punching her lightly in the arm. “He’s also sweet, and under all his stuffy grandpa tendencies, he’s actually pretty funny. Oh. And he’s an amazing kisser.”
“OhMyGod!” I knew that’d get a reaction from her, which is why I saved the tidbit of information for maximum effect. She was hopping up and down like a five-year-old at the toy store. “How could you keep that from me? Spill. Right. Now.”
I giggled, caught up in her enthusiasm. The deepest parts of my mind chided me for it. There was no future with Lukas. A relationship from the box was more long distance than I’d be able to handle. But I wanted this moment with my best friend. For as much as I hated normal, I realized it wasn’t as overrated as I’d been making it out to be. Normal could be just as exciting as paranormal. “All I’m gonna say is, thank God he’s not Lust.”
“Amen to that, sistah!”
I don’t know what it was, but something told me to turn around. When I did, I saw we weren’t alone. There was someone behind us. Several someones, actually. And they were getting closer with each step. At first I didn’t think anything of it. It was just group of people walking down the road on a pretty fall day. But as they closed in, it was easy to see just how out of place they were. Girls like that would never be walking down the street in The Pit.
Girls like that would never be walking anywhere—unless there was an audience.
Perfect hair and sky-high skirts, these girls were runway wannabes in stripper chic—and I had no doubt that they were following me.
“Hey,” one of them shouted. “Wait up.”
I didn’t stop. Hell, I didn’t even slow down. I leaned close and grabbed Kendra by the arm. “Don’t turn around. We have company.”
“Company?” she squeaked, letting me tug her along.
“Hey,” the same voice snapped. “I’m talking to you.” She rushed forward and grabbed my arm, spinning me around. Kendra came with me by default.
I flashed her my best innocent smile. The one I used on Mom when she caught me nosing through the filing cabinet at the agency. “Me? Sorry. Totally didn’t hear ya. What’s up?”
There were three of them. All blond and of the Bimbo Bitch school of fashion. Any minute now, I expected to see one of those annoying toy doggies pop its head from each designer purse. Where was Smokey—that’s what I’d started calling my demonic doggie stalker—when you actually needed him?
“I really like your jacket,” the tallest one said. She ran perfectly manicured fingers through her long hair. “Can I try it on?”
I balked, sure I hadn’t heard her correctly. A sidelong glance at Kendra revealed she was just as stumped as I was. “You want to try on my leather jacket?”
She offered me a wolf in sheepskin smile. 100 percent predatory. “Please.”
Kendra folded her arms. “You don’t seem like the leather type.” With a dismissive shrug, she started walking again.
I turned and started after her.
Behind
us, three sets of heels clinked the ground in unison.
“That was rude,” one of the others said, jumping out in front of me. She had on a tight white t-shirt that said bitch in pink and white rhinestones, and when she grabbed my arm, her fingernails dug into the skin. “My friend likes your jacket. You should give it to her.”
“Your friend can buy one of her very own. I hear the biker Barbie look is hot right now.” I wrenched free and took a step back.
“There’s no reason to be a bitch about it,” the original one said. “She’s just being a good friend.” Before I had time to blink, her hand whipped out and caught me hard across the cheek.
“Bitch!” Kendra snapped, slapping the girl right back.
I’d been drooled on by zombies, screamed at by banshees—even peed on by weres—but bitch-slapped by a girl wearing hooker heels and too much makeup? That was a first.
One of them made a swipe for me, but I dodged her and started to run. Luckily, Kendra took the hint and followed. So did the girls. I had to give them credit. To run—much less keep up—while wearing those shoes was impressive.
I got about eight feet before something rammed me from behind. My knees buckled and I collapsed under the weight of one of the girls. “Give—me—that—”
I jammed my elbow up, aim dead on. The girl let out a howl that would have made a banshee proud. She rolled to the side clutching her face and sobbing. Beside me, Kendra was fending off one of the others.
“Cow!” The shortest screamed as she charged. She grabbed me from behind while the third, having grounded Kendra, jerked on the cuff of my right sleeve.
Even if it hadn’t been one of my dad’s old jackets—even if it’d been a tacky pink blue-light special, I wouldn’t have given it to them. Mom had given me the jacket two years ago. It was worn and way too big, but it’d belonged to my dad. It was some small part of him that I got to keep with me on a daily basis. And sure, he was around right now, but when this was all over, all I’d have was a stupid jacket.
The Three Stooges of Bloomingdales were not getting their grubby little French manicures on it.
I jerked my head back and heard a sickening crunch. There was a slight buzz, but no real pain. Hybrid demon spawn kids didn’t get special super powers—but we were a tad more resilient than normal kids. I’d been known to take a little more of a lickin’ and keep on tickin’.
The blonde at my back screamed and let go. The one tugging on the jacket managed to free my right arm and was working on the left. She had the entire thing in her hands except the left sleeve—which was still on my arm. When she realized I wasn’t going to let go, she hit me again. Put her weight into it, too. Her fist grazed my chin as something sharp sliced into my lower lip. A ring.
Hell in a hailstorm. She really wanted my jacket. And that’s when I remembered what Meredith had said.
That is a really nice jacket, by the way…
Sonofabitch!
“Kendra,” I yelled. She was just picking herself off the floor. “Envy! They’re infected by envy.” And sure enough, on the periphery of my vision, I saw one of the women from the hall at school walking toward us wearing a huge grin. Envy.
The envy-infected girl came at me again, screaming incoherently. I doubted she knew where she was at that point, much less why she was doing what she was doing. Eyes glazed and fingers curled, she charged me like a rabid animal. I didn’t have to put any umpf behind the punch. She flew at me like a runaway train and wrecked herself on my fist. That was the good news. The bad? She stumbled back, knocking into Envy who was now standing by the curb. That whole thing about how bad things happen in slow motion? A load of crap. In fact, time seemed to speed up and take on a dizzying quality.
Envy, knocked back by the infected girl, teetered on the edge of the curb for a split second before tipping back into the street. Right into the path of an oncoming city bus. The vehicle tried to stop, the horrific sound of squealing tires mingling with the scent of burning rubber, but it was too late.
On impact, the body convulsed, a bright green light gathering in the woman’s midsection. Pulsing twice, it rocketed from her body—up her throat and out her mouth—and into the air.
There was no time to react. As I stood there, mouth hanging open and helpless, the ball of light collided with Kendra. She screamed. A horrible sound that, for as long as I lived, I’d never forget. Every limb went rigid. Her head rocked back.
And then, nothing.
As quickly as it started, it was over. Kendra rolled her shoulders and shook out both hands. “Ken?” I said, taking a tentative step closer. “Are you okay?”
She smiled at me, and that’s when I knew. A spark of something dark gleamed in her eyes. Kendra wasn’t in the driver’s seat anymore.
“Stay tuned, little Darker girl,” Envy said in Kendra’s voice. “Things are about to get interesting.”
As I watched her stroll away, casual as could be, I realized Mom was right. Something about this case was way off.
And I had a feeling I’d just figured it out.
Chapter Twenty-one
By the time I pushed through the office door, my lip was good and swollen, my hip throbbed, and I was pretty sure a few of my teeth were loose. Oh, and I lost my best friend to the dark side. That, too. As the door closed behind me, three sets of eyes turned my way, and I felt like a fish in a bowl.
“Do I want to know?” Mom asked from behind her desk. Standing over a large map, Dad on one side and Lukas on the other, she looked from my ruined lip and scuffed chin to my muddy jeans.
I touched a finger to my lip and cringed. “Zombie assault, toxic dog drool, and now attacked by a college chick wearing a pink rhinestone belly shirt. I’m not having a good week.”
“Attacked?” Dad growled, stepping around the desk. “What do you mean, attacked?”
“Relax, Damien,” Mom said. She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and gently pulled back. “She’s fine.” She turned to me for confirmation, and I nodded.
“As all right as possible. I know we don’t need another problem, but unfortunately we have one.” I took a deep breath. “Kendra is Envy.”
“Infected, you mean?”
“No. I mean, the body Envy took over had…an accident. Kendra was there with me and it took her over as a replacement.”
“How—”
“Think about it, Mom.” I came around and sank onto the couch. “Ken is wicked jealous of the coven. She can’t even do the simple stuff. She’s the perfect host.”
“This is bad. Kendra may not have the ability to tap into her powers yet, but they’re there.” Mom turned to Dad. “Will Envy be able to access them?”
Dad shook his head, genuinely concerned. “In theory, I’d say it was possible. When demons possess humans, they have access to their skills and memories. Kendra’s power is a part of her…” He slipped his hand into Mom’s.
“Let’s not wait around to find out.”
“Oh, and you were right. About something being off? Remember how you said it was odd that the Sins weren’t running crazy? I think it’s because someone is keeping them on a leash and pulling their strings.”
Mom’s eyes widened. I knew that look because I’d seen it a thousand times in the past. Each time I tried to talk my way out of something. Dad didn’t look convinced either, glancing from me to Mom, brows furrowed. He was subtler than she was. Probably not wanting to discourage me.
Lukas shook his head slowly. He rolled up his own map, securing it with a thin rubber band, and set it down beside Mom’s. “That doesn’t sound probable.”
“I know how it sounds, but it’s true. I had a little run in with Vida at school today and—”
That got everyone talking.
“Who’s Vida?” Mom and Dad asked in unison, while at the same time Lukas surged forward, fingers clenched, and said, “What did she do?”
They didn’t come up for air, either. Going a mile a minute despite my best efforts to get a word in. I was
about to scream—the only thing I could think of drastic enough to grab their attention—but someone did it for me.
Or, something.
An eerie growl filled the room, and a puff of black smoke erupted on top of my desk. Everyone froze mid-sentence, all eyes whirling toward the other end of the room.
“What is that?” Dad asked, taking a step closer.
“That—” Mom said with a sigh, “—would be your daughter’s new pet.” Something told me Mom and my new shadow wouldn’t be snuggling up or going for walksies anytime soon.
Dad gave the demon corgi a once-over, then turned to me. He looked almost proud. “You’re keeping a demon as a pet?”
“I’m not keeping him as much as he’s keeping me. He followed me home from a job and just kind of stuck around.” On the desk, the corgi barked once, then circled several times, plopping down on top of a stack of neglected paperwork to watch the show.
Lukas cleared his throat. “About Vida?”
Vida. Right. I took a deep breath and turned to Mom. “Vida is one of the Sins.” I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “Lust.”
And I could see it in her eyes. She knew me better than anyone else on earth and was starting to connect the dots. “And you’ve met her before, I take it?” She didn’t have the details—and hopefully she’d never ask—but I knew in the very pit of my soul that she’d just figured out what happened with Garrett.
“At school yesterday.”
“And what happened?” Her voice was even, but she was upset. I could tell by the way her fingers drummed across the top of her desk. Mom was a picture of stillness and self-control. She didn’t have nervous ticks.
“At first I thought it was just another case of threats. You know, we’ll get you, and your little dog, too—she doesn’t like me very much. Thinks I’m a troublemaker.”
Mom’s expression didn’t change. “You have that effect on people.”
“But then she introduced me to a few of her friends.”
“The other Sins?” Lukas asked. “You’ve seen them?”
I nodded. “Them—and someone else.”