by Pond, Simone
I kicked and struggled against the vampire, but the bastard was powerful. I didn’t have enough strength to swing my sword. The vampire squeezed my throat harder and everything started to go black. I made one last attempt, kicking my magical boot and making direct contact with his groin. He swayed a bit, slightly knocked off balance, and loosened his grip a touch. I was able to breathe and the relief gave me enough strength to lift my sword. I clobbered him upside his head. It wasn’t much of an impact, but he dropped me.
I rolled away, holding up my shield just as he lunged at me. When he hit the force field, his body ricocheted and he smashed against the wall. Jumping up, I pinned the vampire against the wall with my shield, then sprayed him with lighter fluid, pulled out the lighter and ignited his skin. He screeched as the flames coursed over his body. I swung at his neck, hoping to hack off his head, but I hit his shoulder instead. He came at me, flames rising. He grabbed my wrist, scorching my skin. My sword deactivated.
“Some help!” I yelled, as the pain tore through me.
“Farrow!” Rocco lobbed a fiery wooden stake toward the vampire. The flaming piece of wood plunged into the vampire’s heart and the creature combusted, melting into the Persian carpet. I grabbed the bowl of silver dust; it would have to be enough because we were out of time.
“Help!” Charlotte screamed.
One of the vampires had Rocco by the throat. I lunged over, kicking the vampire in the back of his legs, knocking him to the floor. He kept his grip on Rocco and the two of them rolled around, punching and strangling each other in a supernatural wrestling match. Rocco hoisted the vampire and flung him into the wall, making a hole. The vampire leapt back over to Rocco and punched him so hard, the detective shot across the room. He smashed into the fireplace; pieces of brick crumbled around him. Dizzy and shaking his head, Rocco stumbled as he stood up. The vampire darted across the room and pummeled Rocco, knocking him down. I grabbed a piece of the wood and Charlotte caught it on fire. With all of my speed, I dashed across the parlor and drove the burning wood into the vampire’s back and right through its heart. He burst into flames.
But Rocco was out cold.
twenty-one
Charlotte guarded the entrance to the parlor while I shook Rocco, trying to wake him up. The helmet had saved his life because he was still breathing.
“Rocco, come on. Wake up.” I kept shaking him, but he was out.
We were running out of time. Charlotte used the can of lighter fluid and created a spray of fire, igniting another vampire who had gotten in. It was beginning to smell like burnt hair and sulfur in that room.
“Is he okay?” She kept her attention locked on the entrance.
“Can you try to heal him while I ward off the bloodsuckers?”
“Bring him over this way and I’ll try,” she said.
I hoisted Rocco’s heavy body and carried him over to the entrance, propping him up against the wall. I then grabbed a few of the wooden stakes and stood guard, while Charlotte got to work on Rocco, holding both of her hands around his temples. Light radiated from her palms like a pink Aurora Borealis.
Another vampire bolted into the parlor. I knocked him down with my sword just before he reached Charlotte. He sprang to his feet and charged at me. I didn’t have time to pull up my shield, so he rammed right into me, knocking me to the carpet.
“You’re a fool to think you can win this battle, Protector!” he sneered, swinging a punch.
I rolled out of the way so his fist careened through the floorboards. I was so over fighting the vampires. I mean, utterly over it. Springing to my feet, I then brought my sword down onto the top of his head. He didn’t flinch. He was more powerful than the grunts we had churned through. This must’ve been the superior line of attackers. I held up my shield, but he forced his fist through the wall of protection, his fingers brushing against my neck. Before he had a chance to choke me, a wooden stake came forward through his ribcage and he crumpled to the floor. Rocco stood there smirking with a satisfied nod.
“We gotta go,” he said.
Each of us grabbed a fistful of silver dust and edged toward the entrance. Rocco ripped down the chain and tossed it to Charlotte to aid in her protection. Then Rocco and I held up our shields and ran into the hallway with Charlotte at our heels.
The hallway was packed with vampires, lined up and waiting their turn to enter the parlor. Rocco and I took positions back-to-back with Charlotte sandwiched between us. Our shields slowed down any immediate attacks. And once any of the vampires got close enough, one of us would blow a small burst of silver dust into his face. Skin sizzled and burned as they collapsed to the ground, writhing and howling. We couldn’t use our swords because we had to keep the shields up. But Charlotte was able to lob a few wooden stakes and whip that silver chain at any vampire who came within our perimeter.
Once the pack realized we had more silver, most of them backed away. The more prideful ones took their chances and paid severely. The silver dust was much more potent than the aerosol spray. Something to keep in mind for future reference: bring a shit ton of silver dust to a vampire fight.
By the time we reached Lilith’s room, the majority of the pack had scattered off. They weren’t risking their immortal lives for anyone. Narcissists. Cagliostro would most likely have a tough time trying to tame these creatures and persuade them to fight for his cause. They didn’t seem very loyal. Not to Lucius Diamond and not to anyone other than themselves. Made sense. Their very nature was to drain life for their own selfish purposes.
I picked off the last few stragglers, while Rocco secured the entrance with the silver chain. It was good enough for the time being. We weren’t planning on staying much longer.
twenty-two
Charlotte stood over her sister, shining her healing light onto Lilith’s mangled body. The succubus had been passed out in the same spot. Still minus a wrist and a foot.
Charlotte frowned. “Did you have to cut off body parts? I’m not sure I can heal all this.”
“I went easy on her. And she can regenerate. The only reason she’s still alive is because she’s your sister. And I know you love her, but come on, Char. You know Lilith is an evil—”
“Bitch!” Lilith shot back to life and clawed at me.
Charlotte held her down. “Easy, Lil. You’re in bad shape. Lost a lot of blood.”
“No thanks to your lame friend,” she sneered.
“I gave you a chance to tell me where Charlotte was, but you decided to do things the hard way, Lilith.” I backed away. Not because I was afraid of her, but I was kind of grossed out by all the blood.
Lilith started crying a little bit, and that damn rush of guilt came back like a punch to my gut. “Who do you think you are? Coming in here, trying to take my sister away from me. This is the safest place for both of us. Cagliostro is out there hunting us down for what I did in San Francisco. Demon mages don’t appreciate when you stab them in the back.”
I sat on the bed. “This place isn’t safe anymore. Cagliostro set up Diamond and is trying to take over the AOV.”
Lilith bolted up. “Cagliostro killed Lucius?”
“Not exactly. That was Farrow,” Rocco said.
“You killed him?!” Lilith yelled.
“He didn’t leave me much of a choice,” I said. “Cagliostro was going to take him down either way. His power is getting stronger and he has moles all over the place.”
“Well, Fiona, now that Cagliostro probably has access to everything—including Diamond Escorts—you’ll have to protect Charlotte and me.”
“Hold up,” Rocco said. “I ain’t protectin’ no succubus.”
Charlotte’s eyes bugged out. “You can’t just leave her here. Cagliostro won’t kill her. He’ll torture her the rest of her life. Can you live with that?”
Rocco shrugged. “Sure.”
Charlotte flipped around toward me, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Can you, Fiona? Can you live knowing that your best friend’s sister is be
ing tortured every day? Maybe there’s hope for Lilith. She saved me. Where’s her redemption? If you don’t bring Lilith, then I’m staying.”
I started pacing around the room, organizing the hundreds of thoughts shooting through my brain. I couldn’t leave Charlotte behind for Cagliostro. He’d torture her just to spite Lilith. But could I bring along the succubus? She wasn’t to be trusted. In the past, she had tricked me and turned me over to the very evil she’s running from now. However, Charlotte had faith in her twin sister, so maybe there was hope for Lilith?
“Okay, she can come on one condition,” I said.
Rocco yanked my arm. “Whoa, what are you doing, Farrow?”
“We were taught that the Light binds the Darkness. Shouldn’t we be able to bind the Darkness in Lilith’s heart? What if she renounces her powers?”
The room was so quiet I could hear the water dripping from the bathroom sink. Each drop echoed. The seconds dragged. Were they considering my proposition or did I sound crazy? I had to believe in the power of redemption. Wasn’t Asher standing trial with the Monarchy that very moment? I wanted him to be forgiven for going rogue. Wasn’t it only fair that I extend the same principle to my best friend’s sister? If I didn’t believe that hearts could change, then there’d really be no reason to protect the Light.
“Well?” I asked Lilith.
She glanced up, her eyes brimming with tears and humility. “Yeah, sure. I’ll renounce everything. Every power and whatever else. It’s not like I ever really enjoyed being a succubus. It felt good at first, all that attention and power, but then things got out of control. And I turned into a monster just wanting more and more. But I couldn’t stop. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” She cried softly into her hands.
I have to say, I was shocked to actually hear the words coming from her mouth. But she sounded sincere. I could sense it in my heart. She wanted the Light.
“I knew you had it in you!” Charlotte hugged her sister.
“Rocco, should we call Ezra to do some sort of official renouncing?”
The tough guy quickly tried to brush away a tear I had caught leaking from his eye. Big guy, big heart. “Yeah, let’s get him down here.”
“Who’s Ezra?” Lilith asked.
“He’s my Guide. Works for the Monarchy. He’ll know if you’re full of shit or not,” I told her.
twenty-three
After a few minutes, Ezra showed up in a burst of violet light. He scanned the scene and looked right at me.
“One, what’ve you gotten yourself into this time? Two, what are you doing inside a vampire’s lair?” He glanced around the room. “Three, where’s Julian?”
“It’s way too long of a story, but suffice to say, the head of the AOV is dead, Cagliostro has the Scroll and is now trying to win over the East Coast vampires, Julian has been captured by Cagliostro, and Lilith here wants to renounce her dark powers. Especially that nasty succubus side.” I smiled.
Ezra shook his head. He was so over me. But deep down, I think he enjoyed the challenge. Maybe enjoy is too strong of a word. His violet eyes glowed as he studied Lilith, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed with bathroom towels wrapped securely around her ankle and wrist. Charlotte had stopped the blood, but she hadn’t been able to regenerate or reattach the appendages.
“Her intentions are pure,” Ezra finally said.
He was able to discern that just by looking at her. Pretty cool.
“I know my sister. She means it,” Charlotte said.
The love pouring from her heart made me really grateful for my decision not to lop off Lilith’s head earlier. There was something special about their bond. I preferred not to get between it.
Lilith looked around at us. “I do mean it. I don’t want to be a part of this anymore. I want to be released from the Darkness. Can you do that?”
Ezra nodded.
The whole room released a sigh and the dense energy immediately lifted. I was especially relieved because if someone as evil as the succubus could be forgiven, Asher had a decent chance. His worst offense was going rogue and becoming a bounty hunter. That wasn’t so bad, right? A butterfly of hope fluttered in my chest.
“Stand up,” Ezra instructed Lilith.
Charlotte helped her up, letting Lilith use her shoulder for balance.
“Can you do anything about her foot and hand?” Charlotte asked.
“I could, but I won’t. Let it serve as a reminder for when evil comes back around to tempt you. And it will,” Ezra said.
Surprisingly, Lilith didn’t argue. Instead, she gave a humble nod. Ezra placed his hands on top of her head and began speaking in an ancient tongue that reminded me of the Logos. Violet light bathed Lilith from head to toe, well, at least the toes on her remaining foot. He asked her a few questions and requested she repeat some words, but I couldn’t hear the specifics because a gale-force wind swept through the room, engulfing their voices.
When Ezra had finished, Lilith fell back onto the bed and passed out.
“She’ll be fine in a bit,” Ezra said.
“That’s great, Ez,” I said. “But she’s the only one who knows where the exit portal is.”
Ezra chuckled, rubbing his shaved head. “I’m a Guide, Fiona. I can get you all out of here.”
Rocco hoisted Lilith over his shoulder, and the three of us held onto Ezra as he glimmered us out of Diamond Escorts and back to the suite at The Plaza.
Rocco set Lilith down on Julian’s bed and came back to the living room. “Thanks for the lift, Ezra, but Fiona and I got some work to take care of.”
“I want you both to get some rest,” Ezra said.
“We got a Scroll to retrieve and a Protector to find,” Rocco argued.
“You won’t be able to do anything if you don’t mentally, physically and spiritually recharge. Now that Cagliostro has the Scroll, you’ll need to be fully alert.”
“Okay, sure, boss. I could use a little shut-eye.” Rocco headed toward my bedroom.
“I’m going back out there,” I said, but Rocco ignored me.
“Fiona, I need to talk to you,” Ezra said.
I headed toward the door. I needed to go find Cagliostro and fast. “Can we talk later?”
“You need to calm down and listen to me.”
I stopped. My stomach knotted up. Was he going to punish me for losing Julian and the Scroll, and inadvertently helping Cagliostro take over the AOV? Would he put me before the Monarchy? Fire me as a Protector of Light and take away my Armor? Ironically, I didn’t want that to happen. I was finally starting to enjoy my destiny … Well, maybe enjoy is too strong of a word.
“Are you taking me back to headquarters?” I tried to sound casual.
“Why would I do that?” he asked.
“Because I made a bit of a mess down here.”
He shook his head. “No you didn’t. You’re dealing with some of the most evil forces in this entire dimension. And I’ve been getting good reports from Rocco.”
“You’re spying on me?”
Ezra laughed. “Not spying, more like spot checking. But his reports prove that you’re really coming along. Look, if Cagliostro fooled Rocco—a seasoned professional—you’re a piece of cake. Don’t feel too bad. It’s a learning process.”
I let out a huge sigh. “Well, that’s a relief. As much as I like Glimmer City, there’s only so much pink and violet I can take.” I paused and took Ezra’s hand. “We’re going to get Julian and the Scroll. I can promise you that.”
“Scroll first, Julian second. Remember your priorities, Fiona.”
“Yes, sir.” I looked to the ground, shame rising up my throat. “You should probably know, I sent a story outline to Somer Barrett implicating Diamond and IP Montgomery. I’m not working for her full-time or anything, but I didn’t see the harm in letting her know that IP Montgomery has been screwing a lot of innocent people out of their pensions. While I’m kicking ass in the supernatural world, why not expose the evil operating on a human l
evel as well? I’m sorry I kept it from you.”
He took a deep breath and grinned slightly. “I understand. Just as long as it’s not getting in the way of your Protector responsibilities. You’re still letting your earthly desires cloud your vision. But you’re improving. And that’s all I care about.”
I blushed a little. I really did care about being a Protector of Light.
Ezra’s eyes lit up as he smiled. “I have a surprise for you. Wait here.”
He glimmered away before I could say anything, but returned a few moments later in a burst of light. Standing next to him was Asher Wells, my angel-gone-rogue ex-bounty hunter boyfriend.
twenty-four
I flew across the room and collapsed against Asher, wrapping my arms around him. He held my waist and lifted me slightly so our lips could meet. Warmth tingled through my body as he kissed me. I mean really kissed me. My heart pounded against my ribs and I felt dizzy. How long had it been? A month or two? Asher rested his hands on my shoulders, peering at me with his gorgeous deep blue eyes, and smiled. “I’ve been cleared by the Monarchy.”
“How?”
He glanced at Ezra and grinned. “Ezra helped.”
“Really, Ez? I thought you hated Asher.”
He chuckled lightly. “Not exactly. It’s a long story. But he hadn’t harmed your dimension or the Monarchy, so I advocated for him. I was planning to wait until your mission here was accomplished, but now that you’re down a Protector I figured you could use the extra help.”
I began to sway and my legs grew weak. The lack of sleep, the exhaustion of slaying vampires and the excitement of Asher being released was overwhelming.
“You need to get some rest, Fiona,” Ezra said.
“I’m fine,” I protested, but then my knees buckled.
Asher took my arm and brought me over to the couch and forced me to relax. I was too groggy to argue and the words got stuck in my mouth. Asher gently tossed a blanket over me and settled into one of the armchairs.