by Liz Schulte
Will wrapped his arms around Olivia’s waist and nuzzled her neck—then she coyly danced away from him. She put the couch between the two of them, waggling her finger at him with a come-and-get-me smile on her face. I couldn’t even think through my fury at seeing him touch her. I nearly stopped the video to kill Will, but I kept watching. I needed to see this. I had to know.
She looked like a gift from heaven. Pure and innocent with a streak of wild. That white dress, those slender shoulders, the curve of her neck . . . she was . . . bait. Understanding thundered down over me. She wanted in the office, so she roped herself a key with a jinni attached. Maybe the bartender could die fast. Olivia continued her seductive teasing, letting him get close enough to touch her before darting away again. When his back was to the door, another girl came through and in one fluid, graceful motion slit his throat. Olivia’s eyes went wide and all traces of humor melted from her face. She said something to the other girl who merely shrugged and dragged the body to my coat closet.
I paused the video and walked over to the closet. Sure enough, my bartender was folded on the floor, well on his way to making a full recovery. Had I not just watched him paw at Olivia, and had he not had the potential to be a problem for her later, I might have let him live. He was a good bartender. Instead, I pulled a saw from the shelf of the closet and finished the job, removing his head. Jinn could come back from most any injury, but I didn’t know of anything that could survive decapitation. I tossed the head on the floor and shut the door. After washing my hands quickly at the sink, I went back to my computer to finish the video.
The girl, who definitely wasn’t a guardian, pointed to the desk and said something to Olivia. Olivia walked over to the desk and sat in my chair. The other girl began cleaning up blood from the floor. Olivia picked up a few of my papers. She looked at the first one, then leaned in closer and looked again. She set the pages back down and looked around the office slowly, like she was memorizing everything she saw. Her mouth fell slightly open, and she pressed two hands flat against my desk. Then she stood up and ran a hand over the back of my chair. Her shoulders and chest rose as if she were taking a deep breath. The other girl’s mouth moved, but Olivia didn’t respond. Her face was an impenetrable mask as she went back to her partner and pulled her by the arm out the door.
I wish I could say seeing her made me want to let it go, made it possible for me to walk away from all of this, but it didn’t. All it did was resolve me towards seeing her in person. She was just here. We were in the same city. How could I resist such a temptation? She was within my grasp so long as I could find her in time. I glanced at my watch. Where the hell was Juliet? I went back down to the club. It was a pit of sweaty flesh and deafening music. I found the jinni I’d sent after Juliet and inquired after her whereabouts. He said she wasn’t there, but he’d called her and she was on her way. I told him to send her up when she arrived, then went back upstairs, unable to concentrate among the hordes of people. I paced around the room when sitting still failed me—God knew what happening to her out there.
I forced myself to settle down. If Juliet came in while I was acting like this, she would immediately be on edge. With several deep breaths and all of my concentration, I refocused my energy and walls. I picked up the last thing Olivia touched on my desk and held it as if I were reading it, rather than imaging her hands on the paper. After what felt like hours, my office door opened and Juliet strolled in with a wide smile.
“Holden, I thought you weren’t coming in tonight.”
“Oh, I’m not,” I said, glancing up at her and giving her a small smile. “I’m here for you.”
She strutted around the desk and lay a hand on my chest. “I’m flattered.”
I took her wrist and twisted it to the point of breaking. “Don’t be.”
“Hol … Holden,” she sputtered.
“Don’t bother begging. It won’t help. It’s time you tell me about your little side projects with Danica.”
“I don’t— I swear—” I cracked her wrist, and she cried out in pain. Minor injuries might not kill, but they still hurt like hell.
“The thing about being here is no one will hear you scream. Have you heard that music downstairs? Positively deafening. I suggest you start talking because you have a lot more bones to break, and I have all night.”
“What do you think I’m doing?” she asked in a high pitched voice lined with fear. It was a good show, but not one I was falling for.
“Tell me about the warehouse, Juliet.”
“You … you know about that?”
I twisted harder. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Fine, fine. I have a side project, which is none of your business.”
I yanked her arm out of its socket. Her knees gave out, her face went red and her eyes bulged, but I caught her before she hit the floor. “Unacceptable,” I breathed into her ear.
“I’ve been working with Danica.”
“Tell me things I don’t know. How long? Why? What’s your plan?”
She didn’t say anything. I tightened my arm around her waist taking hold of her other arm. Juliet tried to pull away from me. “No, don’t, please,” she begged.
“Answer the question, Juliet. I can do this all night.” I twisted her arm back accenting my point.
“Since the beginning. I was supposed to keep you distracted, occupied. But I was unnecessary. You distracted yourself better than I could distract you. You’ve hardly shown any interest in me.”
“Why, to what purpose?”
“So you wouldn’t stop us.”
“What exactly are you doing?”
“It’s not a big deal. She has a guardian in her pocket. He arranges for us to be able to capture guardians, and we sell them to demons for a little sport.”
“You’ve been doing what?”
“What’s the harm? There’s good money in it, and there’s no rule against killing guardians. Besides, technically we aren’t killing them, the demons are.”
“Could you really be this stupid? There’s no Abyss law, but do you honestly expect the guardians to sit idly by and let you capture and kill them? Do you really think there won’t be repercussions? We’ve had a treaty with the guardians since the beginning. We leave them alone, and they leave us alone. It has worked for thousands upon thousands of years and your little bit of “sport” could undo everything. We’re talking war.”
“They’re weak,” she snarled.
“You’re an idiot. Are you listening to yourself? You’re following Danica. I can’t remember the last time she had a good idea. I thought you were smarter than that. War isn’t good for business. If we get caught up in battles, how will we continue to recruit? Without souls, the demons have no interest in us. They’ll abandon us up here and the guardians will eventually kill us all. They may seem passive, but have you ever encountered an angel?”
She didn’t respond.
“I didn’t think so. Think natural disaster, hand of God, plague—we don’t want to poke that bear. Really, Juliet, Danica?”
“She’s the only one who cared enough to help me after I changed. If it weren’t for her, I would’ve failed. She took the time to teach me things, to explain this world to me. I owe her my life. I owe you nothing.”
“Danica’s using you.”
“And you’re not.”
“I absolutely am, but I’ve never expected loyalty from you. Just obedience. This cannot continue. I will kill you if need be—you understand?” She nodded sullenly. “I mean it—it stops now. Do you have anyone captured at the moment?”
“Yes, we have one waiting to be picked up tonight.”
“Only one?”
“Yes, for now. We were supposed to have another, but plans changed last minute.”
“Does Malphas know?”
“No. He’s management … he’s no fun. Just like you.”
“I should call Malphas. You both deserve to be sent to hell for this. Why would you jeopardize everythi
ng you have for a little guardian killing? You can’t possibly need the money.”
For the first time real fear penetrated the crazy in her eyes. “Holden, no! Don’t do that, please. Please. I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you. Whatever you want, just give me a second chance. I was blinded by my loyalty for Danica. You’re right, I knew better. Don’t send me to hell. I’ll do better, I’ll be smarter.”
“Why did you do it?”
“I told you for Danica.”
“Okay, then why did she do it? What’s her angle?”
“I don’t know. You have to ask her. I can take you to her.”
“Where is she?”
Juliet rattled off an address. I knew I should kill her, or, at the very least, involve Malphas, but what she knew about my past was dangerous to me. They only had one guardian right now, Quintus. If I could end this racket tonight, then Liv would be safe.
I couldn’t trust Juliet, but I didn’t want her dead, not yet. I let go of her arm and she began to relax. I snapped her neck before she could say anything else. “Stay,” I commanded, letting her body crumple to the floor.
I left without calling Malphas. I’d kill Danica and release their prisoner before deciding what I needed to do with Juliet. It would take her a while to heal, so I had time. I couldn’t have her plotting against me, trying to trip me up with every step. There had to be a way to spin all of this so it worked to my advantage and eliminated my enemies.
And how would I fit Liv into everything? I had no idea. All I could do was take one step at a time. Make no rash decisions. I left my office, locking the door behind me.
****
I went back to my apartment before seeing Danica. I needed supplies. My mind was still and quiet, ready for what I had to do. I put on my bulletproof vest and leather jacket, then filled it with knives and spare clips. This wasn’t the first fight I had been in, nor was it the first war. Danica had no idea what she had called down upon herself.
The address Juliet gave me was in Gary, IN. I drove with the traffic on the way there, not wanting to draw any police attention while I was armed to this extent. The house was large, old and looked like it had seen its better days thirty years ago. Lights were on inside, otherwise I would have never believed anyone lived there. I sat in my car and watched the house for movement, as I spun the silencer onto my gun. I looked at the saw in my passenger seat. I’d have to come back for it later.
I walked up to the porch, gun drawn, without slowing or hesitating even slightly. My foot met the door, cracking the frame and sending the feeble lock flying. I didn’t bother with witty one-liners or any words at all. If they were in this house, they were going to die. Firing off six shots, I put a single bullet in the head of each jinni in the room before they could even draw their weapons. Movement and footsteps rumbled above me. I slowly walked to the stairs and waited to pick them off one by one.
After the first couple fell, the others thought better of the stair route and retreated back up, firing shots at me over their shoulders. I abandoned my post at the bottom of the stairs. I wouldn’t waste bullets on pointless shooting back and forth. They would come for me without that nonsense. I loaded a new clip in the gun and pulled out my other gun as well. With my back to the brick wall, I patiently waited for them. They came at me in all directions. A couple I shot through the window, a couple as they came down the stairs, and a couple as they came through the garage door—but there were too many. When the bullets in my spare gun ran out, I tossed it to the side and replaced it with a knife. Jinn continued filing towards me. I started choosing my shots, only shooting those who had guns and leaving the others. Bullets whizzed past me, some connecting, but nothing that I couldn’t handle.
Something attacked behind the group to the left hand side of me and drew their attention away. I couldn’t see what it was, but I was grateful for the distraction. Blood and bullets sprayed the room, painting the walls red. I sank my knife to the hilt in someone’s chest and twisting the blade, then shot two more jinn. They were finally starting to thin out. I took another three with my knives, then moved back to work on the left side.
The mystery assailant seemed to be doing fine. Bodies kept falling. I snapped a few necks and finally recognized the other jinn slayer—the girl from my security video. My shoulder burned with every movement as I started to feel some of my injuries—including what felt like a massive gunshot wound—so I let her kill the last jinn standing—well, except for me. When his body hit the floor, she looked up at me. I twirled my knife in my good hand, waiting for her to make her decision. Was she with me or against me?
She narrowed her eyes. “I take it you're Holden.”
I nodded. “And you are?”
“Looking for Olivia.”
“Last I saw her, she was with you.” Something other than cold detachment inched back into my chest.
“She went to find her partner and never came back to meet me.”
“They have Quintus.”
“I figured as much. They probably have her too.”
My stomach plummeted. I turned and ran up the steps, ignoring the bodies and the pain in my leg. I followed the foul stench to Danica’s room.
She had a gun and fired it wildly, but each shot went wide, slamming harmlessly into the walls above and beside me. I hurled two knives. One caught her wrist, making her drop the gun. The other buried itself in her heart. I pushed her against the wall and applied upwards pressure on the knife.
“Where are the guardians?” I snarled.
“What’s the matter, Holden? Can’t keep control of your region?”
“I don’t have time for this. Where are they?”
Olivia’s friend’s voice came from behind me. “I know where they are.”
I glanced back at her, and she nodded. I pulled the knife up as far as I could, lifting Danica from the floor before I threw her across the room. “Something you could have told me sooner.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “Olivia might trust you, but I wasn’t convinced you didn’t have her until now.”
“Where is she?”
“I’ll show you.”
“No, tell me. I'll get her, and you make sure they all stay dead.”
“I don’t take orders from you.”
“And I don’t work with people I don’t know. If you knew where Liv was, why are you here rather than saving her?”
“As I said, I thought you might have picked her up. When we split she was pretty worked up about you—and then she failed to meet me. I found where you live and followed you here, hoping I’d find Olivia. Instead you started this bloodbath. I figured you’re more useful to me alive than dead, if we have the same goals.”
I took a deep breath and willed myself not to stab her. “Look, these jinn need to stay dead or they’ll come after us. I cannot dispatch them and save her. Time is of the essence. You clean up here, and I'll get her. If I fail, then you know where we are, and you can alert whoever in the hell a guardian would alert. They're a lot more likely to talk to whatever you are, than to me.”
“Where do you want to meet?”
“You choose.”
“Olivia’s apartment, one hour.”
“Fine.” She gave me the address of a warehouse and told me what she knew. I gave her my saw before driving back to the city, no longer caring about cops. Outside the warehouse, I peeled off my blood soaked shirt. My shoulders still hurt, but were healing. I noticed another bullet wound in my side that was all but healed. I was going to be sore tomorrow, if I lived through tonight. I pulled on a black t-shirt and a leather jacket that were in my trunk, then once more, reloaded with knives.
The warehouse looked deserted. I walked towards the door, waiting for a trap. Two strapping jinn stepped out, blocking my way inside.
“What the fuck do you want, pretty boy?”
“Do you know who I am?” It was worth a shot.
“Dead,” the one on the right answered, coming towards me with a slow right hook. Side steppi
ng him, I grabbed his arm and stomped the side of his knee, dropping him. The other jinni came at me and soon he too was on the ground.
“Let me introduce myself. I’m the North American Jinn Commander—Holden Smith,” I said cheerfully as I crushed the second one’s throat with my boot and tugged the first one’s arm until it cracked. “Danica's dead, my condolences. If you’d like to join her, please keep pissing me off.”
Neither of them said anything which I took as a good sign. “Where are the guardians?”
“Inside,” one of them said.
“Is the girl still alive?”
“How’d you know about her?” the one trapped under my boot asked, causing me to stomp down.
“You don’t have the right to ask questions. What about you? You got questions?” I asked the other one. He shook his head. “Is the girl alive?”
“Yes, I put her in a cell.”
“Unharmed?”
“We haven’t touched her.”
“Good. You seem smarter than your friend. Tell me exactly where she is, and I’m going to let you go. You’re going to get the hell out of my region. If I see you again, you die. Understand?”
He nodded, said she was in the third room on the left, and I let him scamper off. I needed someone to spread the word that Danica was dead and I had complete control of my region.
I stepped over the other jinni, who was still unconscious on the ground, and opened the door. Looking around the best I could before stepping inside, I realized I’d forgotten to find out if anyone else was there. I pulled keys off the jinni’s body and walked in, knife in hand, ready for the assault.
Two came from the right; they each dropped to the ground with a soft thud. I was moving cautiously toward the door the jinni had told me held Olivia, when she popped into my mind.
“Holden . . . I need help.”
“On my—.” I heard the shot before I felt it, then everything went dark.
Thirty One
Stupid, stupid, stupid, I admonished myself.
I had transported into the warehouse, determined to get the evidence I needed with the intention of transporting immediately out, but they had some sort of symbols all over the inside of the building that prevented guardians from releasing their form. I had underestimated the jinn and now they had me locked in a cell with even more symbols on the walls, ceiling, and floor.