The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5)

by Laurie Olerich

  Frowning at the golden glow barely outlining his fingertips, he growled, “Don’t even think about it.” The helpful light retreated instantly.

  Feeling steadier on his feet, he took a shower and changed his bloody clothes. The safe house was theirs whenever they needed it so they’d gotten into the habit of leaving clothes behind. In their lives, they never knew when they’d be on the run or assigned a new mission without any notice. Sometimes there were other Primani here, today he was alone. He was fine with that. He didn’t feel like talking to anyone. There was nothing to say. He brushed his teeth and caught a gleam of metal on the corner of the vanity. It was Dec’s wristband. The bright gold thread winked up at him. Mica’s gift.

  Beautiful Mica--she was just a human, but she possessed more magic than he did. She might not be Primani, but she was something special. Raphael had blessed her more than once. That was no small thing.

  Did he give her the magic or was it all her own?

  He didn’t know the answer to that, but he knew she made the wristbands with her own two hands and asked the angels to bless them. That made them special. She’d once laughed and said she had no idea if they’d been listening to her request. Sean had smiled inside and assured her they had. Of course they’d blessed them. Hell, there was no way they would refuse her anything. She’d asked nicely.

  He fingered the worn leather of his own wristband. He kept his on all the time, like a lucky charm. He’d never admit it to Mica, but he was superstitious about wearing it.

  Why had Dec taken his off?

  Dec’s mischievous grin flashed in the mirror and Sean resisted the urge to look behind him. Stop friggin’ haunting me, Dec! Crushing the wristband in his fist, he shattered the mirror with a glance.

  A cab driver leaned on the horn as Sean barged into the street in front of the car. With eyes trained on the human he was tracking, he ignored the irate cabbie. He’d get over it. His life sucked anyway. Why the hell would anyone want to drive a cab?

  Sean’s prey was blissfully unaware of how short his life had just become. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time--It sucked to be him. Sean had been randomly hopping on and off the subways all day when he spotted the man. His name was Lyle Holliday. He was a middle-aged, balding, bland human that no one would ever suspect of his crimes. He was probably a cubicle mole in some basement maze here in Manhattan. Sean didn’t give a shit about where he worked. He could be the president and his fate would be the same.

  He was on the list.

  Five years ago, he’d raped and butchered a young boy, Luc Henricksson. He’d gotten away with it too. He probably didn’t even remember the boy’s name. But Sean did. He said a prayer for his soul on the anniversary of his death every year. He had a long memory when it came to dead women and children. Luc’s case had been particularly heartbreaking as he was his mother’s only child. She’d fallen apart, collapsing in on herself, after his death. Even with help from the angels, she never regained faith and committed suicide two years later. Sean had found her face down in a pool of bloody vomit, an empty bottle of pills beside her hand, a picture of Luc tucked against her chest.

  Sean and Dec had done their best to find the boy’s killer but he’d vanished off the grid. After the woman died, they were reassigned and forced to move on. There were always humans to protect and endless demons to kill. He hadn’t been allowed to focus on this one man. That was five years ago. He’d been assigned to Mica right after that.

  Things were different today. Now he had unlimited time. He allowed himself a feral grin and embraced the surge of power revving his blood.

  Oh, yeah, things were different now.

  He was off the grid.

  Lyle weaved his way between throngs of people heading home for the evening. His beige jacket was a beacon heading up the sidewalks. Sean followed, but not too closely. No one paid any attention to him anyway; he’d gone ghost. He was essentially invisible as he smoothly moved around the wave of humanity. If the humans noticed him at all, it was as a warm brush of air against their skin. After three blocks, Lyle entered the subway and slid his pass through the sticky turnstile reader.

  He was headed to Brooklyn. Perfect, Sean thought. I love Brooklyn. Maybe I’ll grab pizza at Gionta’s. Italian sausage and mushrooms sound good right about now. Sliding through the turnstile, he slipped into the crowded train car and rested his hand on one of the poles. A woman glanced up briefly at the disturbance in the air where he stood. Seeing nothing remarkable, she buried her nose in an e-book. Curious, Sean leaned closer to see what she was reading.

  The Angel’s Burning Sword.

  Shit, that sounded like herpes.

  Rolling his eyes, he checked out her left hand and wondered what her husband thought of her sexy books. Did he even know about them? Was it her dirty little secret? Maybe she needed the fantasy? A little distraction to make her boring human existence worth living…Shrugging invisibly, he thought about women, females, in general. What male really understood the female brain? He huffed in silent laughter and shook his head. God knew he certainly didn’t…

  Dismissing the woman, he leaned against the pole and closed his eyes. His head was aching but not as badly. He wondered idly if he’d accidently healed himself. That would be a first. Bored and restless, he stared down at the woman again. She was middle-aged and attractive in a soft, feminine way. She took care of herself and looked pretty perched on the edge of her seat. Her lips moved slightly while she read. She read something, stopped, and blushed. Guiltily, she peered around to see if anyone was watching her.

  Intrigued, Sean slid into the empty seat beside her and read over her shoulder.

  “Valor dragged his tongue over the delicate skin of Ambrosia’s neck. She trembled with desire, her hand on his impossibly big sword…”

  Sword? Really?

  Stifling a snort of derision, he carefully ran his fingers along the nape of her neck. She stiffened and flushed. Reaching back, she rubbed at her neck and bit her lower lip. Very carefully, he leaned close and blew a kiss against her ear. She jumped like she’d been slapped. Several passengers looked up startled. She turned hot pink and hid her face behind the book.

  Grinning wickedly, her invisible teaser sat back in the seat and crossed his arms. It was too easy…With a grinding screech, the train slowed to a stop and the sheep trundled out. With eyes on his target again, Sean went ghost and followed him. After zigzagging down a couple of streets, the man stopped in front of a 1950’s-era duplex house. His half of the house was sided in faded yellow. The other wasn’t. The man went straight inside and flipped on the television.

  Sean waited for him to get comfortable and tried the door knob. Locked. Stupid man, there’s no hiding from death. He held his hand to it and the door swung open with a slight creak. Lyle sat in a recliner with his back to Sean. Sean stood behind him and watched his target with grim satisfaction in his eyes. Finally, this piece of shit would get his reward. Switching channels one after another, Lyle was too focused to notice the angel of death bearing down on him. By the time he felt the heat of Primani eyes on the back of his head, it was far too late. One minute he was grunting over the mayor’s new gun control initiative, the next he was smoldering in Hell.

  Kneeling on one knee, Sean bowed his head and said, “Go and find your mother, little man.”

  No one answered him, but the feathery brush of tiny fingers lingered on his hand. Glancing up, he saw the palest hint of Luc standing before him. His unruly black hair hung low on his forehead as it had in life. Sean reached out and gently pushed the silky hair back letting his hand linger in comfort. The tiny boy met his eyes gravely and nodded once. Sean blinked and he was alone.

  “Guinness?” Sean signaled the bartender and scanned the tiny bar for trouble. No demons. Good. He was thirsty and his eye was twitching again. It was making him nuts. He wanted a few minutes to regroup without having to blow anything up.

  “Bud Light. Will that work?”

  Indifferent, Se
an shrugged, “Sure, why not?”

  He took a seat at the farthest end of the bar away from a couple of obnoxious idiots who were yelling at the flat screen. The Yankees were losing. They weren’t taking it well.

  The bartender wiped down the peeling vinyl countertop, eyeing the black-haired Irishman with suspicion. This one was trouble, he thought to himself. His eyes were creepy, watchful. He was edgy, tense, and spoiling for a fight. The bartender had seen men like this before…they had nothing to lose. After hanging up the towel, he took stock of who was in the bar tonight. He didn’t need any trouble here. He was still trying to recover from a storm that had closed him down for months. He couldn’t afford to close his doors for anything else. Letting out a small sigh of relief, he relaxed. The place was empty of the usual troublemakers.

  He spoke too soon.

  The Romano brothers, Mario and Joey, burst through the door, hollering for drinks. The boys were big, loud, and already drunk. The Irishman’s eyes narrowed with a gleam.

  “If you’re here for trouble, take it outside,” the bartender warned.

  Sean tipped back his beer and lifted an eyebrow. The bartender stiffened. Sean held up a hand and said, “I’m just here for a drink. No worries, man.”

  Not completely convinced, the bartender left him alone and Sean drank his beer in peace. Lost in thought, he carefully peeled the labels from the beer bottle. He’d done a good thing today. He thought of Luc’s ice blue eyes and sighed. He was just a little boy. How could someone kill him? It boggled his mind, but mostly it pissed him off.

  Humans liked to think they were civilized…some were…many, too many, were worse than animals. Animals killed for survival…they ate each other. Sometimes they killed the weak to preserve the pack. It was survival of the fittest to further their species. That was nature; he could understand that.

  Humans didn’t need to kill. They just enjoyed the feeling.

  What the fuck? Why was he running around protecting them? Sometimes he just didn’t get it. Maybe he should leave them to figure it out on their own. God only knew how long it would take for humans to be overrun by demons if the Primani walked away.

  The more he thought about it, the more that sounded like a plan. Why the hell not?

  The jukebox was playing in the background and Sean listened with half an ear. He’d been eyeing the two dark-haired men who’d come in earlier. There was something about them that bothered him. He nursed his beer and rubbed at his eye. The twitching was getting worse and a dull pain throbbed behind it. He didn’t have time for pain. He had things to do. “Kryptonite” was playing on the jukebox. How appropriate, he thought with a snort. The words could’ve come from his own head…Would she still love him if she saw him now: Drifting alone…hunting for trouble? He was careless with his life like it didn’t matter. To him, it really didn’t. But the woman would lose her mind if she saw him now. She’d be crazy with worry and pissed off as hell. Would he still be her hero? Who was he kidding? He wasn’t anybody’s hero. Wincing, he closed his eyes and counted to ten. A woman’s face hovered just behind his eyes…frowning, angry…vaguely familiar. Damn woman! Go away, witch! Irritated, he slammed the bottle down making the bartender jump.

  “Hey, man, you’re not gonna puke, are you?”

  Sean’s head snapped up at the interruption, his hand automatically going for his gun. When he saw it was just the bartender, he lowered his hand.

  The bartender reconsidered him. There was something wrong with this guy. He’d been rubbing his temples and squinting for the past few minutes. His face was losing color and his eyes didn’t look quite right. He peered closer and realized one pupil was nearly gone.

  Before Sean could answer, a woman leaned against the bar and ordered a drink. She had big green eyes that filled her delicate, elfin face. Waves of heavy black hair spilled down her back causing her head to tip back slightly. Shiny red lips curled into a sweet smile as she waited for her drink. Despite the pain in his head, Sean eyed her with interest. She was a pretty little thing.

  “For fifty bucks, you can undress me with more than your eyes,” she said. Her long red nails rested lightly on the back of his hand. She sipped her drink and peered up at him from lowered lashes.

  Sean’s eyes went flat but he smiled tightly and said, “Sorry, darlin’, I don’t pay for sex.”

  Leaning closer, she trailed one finger down the front of his chest and rested it on the button of his jeans. Letting it linger, she said huskily, “I can take you places you’ve never been.”

  “Like the free clinic?” He removed her hand and added, “You seem like a smart girl. Why don’t you get a real job? Maybe use your brain?”

  “Fuck you, asshole!” She turned and sashayed to the other end of the bar.

  Sean shook his head. Such a waste, he thought. Pretty girl, nice body, not too dumb…But she was perfectly content selling herself for cash. No self-respect…how did that happen? What pushed her down this path? He ordered one last beer and drank it while watching the hooker make her rounds at the tables. These men were rough, dirty, and crude. Yet she flirted with them like they were movie stars. Some men turned her down flatly, as he had. Others groped her a bit before turning her down. One man asked to see her breasts and laughed when she got mad. Another lifted her skirt up and shoved his hand between her legs. That’s it. I’m outta here, Sean thought. It made him sick to watch. These people were disgusting. He chugged the rest of his beer and stood to leave. The room tilted and he planted his feet to steady himself.

  Before he could make it to the door, he spotted one of the loud drunks tugging the girl towards the back entrance. He gripped her by the elbow and propelled her along. Something in the way he controlled her sent a warning bell off in Sean’s head. His body language wasn’t right. He didn’t act like a man who was planning to get laid. As Sean followed them with his eyes, the brother joined them. He wrapped an arm around her and said something in her ear. She stiffened and dug in her heels. Laughing, the two easily pulled her along between them.

  The bartender watched the scene play out. He knew the second the Irishman made up his mind. You poor bastard. Reaching below the bar, he loaded the shotgun and slugged a shot of bourbon. This night was about to get more interesting.

  Sean left through the front door but circled around to the back. Moving like a shadow, scanning the darkness, he pointedly ignored the pounding in his head. He picked up the men’s voices as they bullied the woman.

  “Oh, come on, Gina. We’re gonna pay you.”

  “No! I don’t want to. Let me go!” she cried out as the sound of a slap echoed in the darkness. She fell to her knees with blood pouring from her nose. Joey, the taller brother, dragged her to her feet and tore her blouse down the middle.

  “Now this is how I like my hookers…bloody and pathetic.”

  Without warning, Sean tackled Joey from the side. Caught by surprise, he toppled like a tree. Sean punched him in the face once before the other one grabbed his arms from behind and dragged him backwards. Moving on autopilot, Sean twisted away and kicked Joey hard in the stomach. He doubled over, sucking air. Sean turned back to hit him again when his vision blurred and he lost his balance. Sensing weakness, Mario, the younger brother, grabbed him around the waist trying to hold him in place.

  Even dizzy, Sean was much more powerful. He threw him off, sending him sprawling to the ground. Before he could move out of the way, Joey rushed him and punched him hard in the temple. His head exploded in pain and his vision went black. Staggering to the side, he blinked frantically but his eyes saw nothing.

  “Hold him up, Mario. I’m just gettin’ started.”

  Chapter 10: Intervention

  Austrian Border:

  THE SKY WAS BEGINNING TO LIGHTEN as he pulled the McLaren into a highway center just over the Austrian border. Killian parked his baby in an empty slot near the entrance to the building. It was deserted at this time of day, but he wanted to be able to see the car. It didn’t hurt to be caref
ul. Stretching his arms out, he flexed his fingers and rolled his shoulders. He was tired of sitting already, but the trip couldn’t be helped. They needed wheels and he wasn’t leaving the McLaren in Romania just to get to London faster. They had time to drive back; a day or two wouldn’t matter at this point. He turned to Mica and studied her. She lay sleeping in her seat. Poor girl was drained and he felt a pang of guilt.

  Her head was turned towards him, her beautiful eyes moving restlessly under pale lids. Her mouth twitched at the corners and he smiled in spite of himself. She was breathtaking. He never got the chance to just look at her. She was always in motion…refusing to sit still long enough for him to look his fill. Now wasn’t really a good time either. He sighed and looked at the clock. There was still so much to do. She’d asked him to wake her for a bathroom break, but he couldn’t bear to do it. He’d let her rest a few more minutes. He owed her that much.

  When would it be over?

  Raphael hinted it would be soon. But soon for the archangels was a relative word. It could be this week or a thousand years from now! Please, God, make it be soon! He closed his eyes and saw her as she looked so long ago. The shape of her face was a bit different perhaps, but those eyes were the same.

  Her heart was the same.

  And it still beat for his.

  It was a miracle.

  When he had realized who she was, he’d nearly lost his mind. He had held himself back to keep from scaring her off, but the truth was he’d wanted to throw her up in the air and shout with joy. He’d wanted to hold her against him and run away to a place without angels and demons. He’d wanted to wrap himself around her and protect her from the world. He’d wanted to beat the shit out of Sean and pretend she didn’t care about him.

  He had wanted her to live…

  “Sean!” In one quick motion, she jerked upright shrieking, “They’re killing him! Killing him!” Her pupils were black, her hands clawed at his arm.