by Vivi Anna
Daeva lay on her stomach in the backseat, gaining her breath and trying to gauge her injuries. Which was something new. She remembered being hurt when she had possessed a body. She’d felt pain before, but it had been buffered in a way. This was excruciatingly different. She felt the burn all the way to her bones.
“Are you okay?” Quinn asked.
“I’ll live.” She sat up, careful of her shoulder and her head. She had a headache that thumped all over her skull and neck.
He looked at her in the rearview mirror. “Are you injured?”
“A little. Nothing that won’t heal.”
He nodded, and it looked as if he wanted to say more, but he didn’t, just glanced down at the car controls and turned up the heat. “So, now that we’re out, where are we going?”
“North.”
“To?”
“Just drive north for now.”
“I need to know, Daeva.”
She sighed. “Get us to the Canadian border, then I’ll let you know.”
“Got a passport? You’re going to need it to get over.”
She smiled, then rested her head on the seat. “I’ll figure something out.”
“Which border crossing?”
“Through Washington. Easier to cross.” She shut her eyes, blocking out the pain, the streetlights and Quinn. For now, she needed to think about how she was going to get out of their arrangement and be able to stay topside. Because she knew deep down that he would look for some way to screw her over.
Chapter 8
Quinn watched Daeva in the rearview mirror as he drove out of the city. She had her eyes closed, and she looked as though she was asleep. He’d be surprised if she was. As far as he knew, demons didn’t need sleep. They recharged in other ways.
Wrath demons gained strength from anger, sloth demons from being lazy asses, and lust demons, of which he was sure she was one, got it from sex or sexual energy. She was certainly built like a lust demon. Curvy, sexy, intoxicating, really. He found it difficult to look at her and not think of sex.
He reached over to the controls and turned down the heat. He was already sweating; he didn’t need to make it worse. He flipped the vent toward his face and blasted it with cool fresh air. This was going to be one long journey.
“I’m not one, you know.”
He glanced in the mirror and saw that Daeva’s eyes were open. “Excuse me?
“A lust demon. I’m not one. Not really.” She shrugged. “Well, I definitely have ancestors in that realm, but I’m not full blooded.”
“I don’t know why you’re telling me this.” He licked his lips feeling uncomfortable.
“Yes, you do. Don’t be coy.”
He met her piercing gaze in the mirror. “It’s not polite to read people’s minds.”
She smiled then, and it lit up her face. “I wasn’t reading your mind. It was your...ah, other parts I was getting information from.”
Quinn grunted, then pulled the car off the road and into a busy roadside gas station and diner. “We should dump this car and get a new one. The Cabal saw this one. They might be tracking us.”
There were roughly twenty vehicles in the parking lot. He pulled along the side of the station, where there were another five. These likely belonged to the staff. They’d take one of these because it would likely be a longer delay until the vehicle was noticed as missing. Hopefully they’d be long gone and have switched vehicles again farther along the road in one of the small towns.
Quinn parked the car, then turned in the seat to look at Daeva. He took in her black leggings, noticing the small burn holes and the frays in her blouse. “You need to change clothes. You look too conspicuous.”
She smirked. “I didn’t really pack an extra set of clothes.”
“I have a pair of jeans and a T-shirt in one of the bags.”
She titled her head to look at him. Something sad filled her eyes. “Just like old times, hey?”
He stared at her, anger, sorrow and regret filling him to the brim. He had to fight two urges, one to punch his fist into the seat and the other to breach the distance between them and take her mouth with his. He hated her for making him feel both.
“It’s not old times. The woman who wore my T-shirt to bed is not here anymore. You killed her.”
“No. You did when you exorcised me back to hell.”
He’d had enough. He jumped out of the car, grabbing the bag off the front seat. Angrily, he pulled open the back door. “Get out.”
She did.
He shoved the bag into her arms. “The clothes are in here. I suggest you get changed quickly. I’m leaving in ten minutes.”
For a minute, it looked as if she might cry. He could see the liquid in her steely eyes. Quinn tensed up, guilt churning in his gut. But when he looked again, her face was hard and icy again, like a granite statue.
“Oh, I doubt that, Quinn. You don’t even know where you’re going.” Hooking the bag over her shoulder, she sashayed into the gas station as if she hadn’t a care in the world.
Once she was gone, he surveyed the choice of vehicles. There were three trucks and two sedans. Making sure no one was around, he discreetly tried the doors on the first sedan. All locked. The second sedan wasn’t as secure. The right back door was unlocked.
He slid in, jumped into the front and busted the ignition panel. There were several wires peeking out, but he knew which ones to cut and tie together. He’d hot-wired many vehicles in the past. It was part of the transient demon-hunting lifestyle. The trick was something his dad had taught him years ago.
He tapped two stripped wires together and the engine jumped to life. Quinn tied them off, then opened the door and slid out. He had to retrieve the other bag from his car. Then they’d be ready to go.
After he got his other bag, he walked back to the sedan. That’s when he saw Daeva coming toward him. She’d changed clothes as he requested. He’d been sure it would make her less sexy, less of a standout, more like the average girl next door. But seeing her with his T-shirt on, pulled tight across her breasts, his jeans tight around her hips and with her long hair pulled back from her face into a high ponytail made his heart skip a few beats and his gut tighten.
She looked like the woman he remembered loving years ago. She’d often wear her hair pulled back, especially on the weekends. It was something he’d always found attractive about her, because her face was striking, electric, and it had always lit up when she’d seen him.
Like now.
He rubbed a hand over his stomach. Damn, she was potent. It was like getting hit in the gut by a battering ram. But it had to be her demon powers working their mojo on him. It had to be. Because the alternative made every part of him hum with nervous energy.
“What?” she asked as she neared him. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
He scanned her, spotting a rather long scar on her forearm. He gestured to it. “How did you get that? I thought demons can regenerate.”
She lifted her arm and regarded at it. “Yeah, well, let’s just say it’s a reminder of why I’m here and what I need to do.”
“That’s pretty vague.”
“Yes, it is.”
He shook his head. “Fine. Forget I cared.” He pulled open the car door. “Let’s just go.”
She rounded the car, opened the back door and dumped the bag, then opened the passenger door and slid in. After buckling up, she tossed him a granola bar. “Thought you might be hungry.”
He picked it up and looked at it. “You didn’t steal it, did you?”
She unwrapped the one she had in her hand and took a bite. “Nah. I found a ten-dollar bill in your jeans pocket.”
He laughed then. He couldn’t help himself. He tore off the wrapper and took a healthy bite. “Thanks.”
“You’re most welcome.” She smiled around the next bite in her mouth.
He put the car into drive, backed up out of the parking stall and drove it out onto the road.
After a
bout ten minutes of Quinn fiddling with the heat controls, seat adjustments and the radio, Daeva turned it off. “Are we going to talk about it?”
“Talk about what?”
“You know what.”
He sighed, and ran a hand over his face. He was tired. There was nothing more that he wanted right now than to lie down and sleep for a few hours. To turn the world off for just a little while. But Daeva wasn’t giving him that time.
“Why? What difference does it make?”
“If we have to work together for the next few days, I think we should clear the air.”
“I’d rather not, okay?” He flipped on the radio again.
She shut it off. “Why? It’s been years, let’s just talk about it.”
“Because it still hurts, damn it!” He slammed his fist against the steering wheel.
She was silent, but he could feel her gaze on him. He didn’t want her to look at him, to see the hurt on his face. He’d been sure he’d gotten over it, gotten over her. The way his heart throbbed and his gut churned told him he wasn’t over anything.
“I’m sorry, Quinn.”
He glanced at her. There was a liquid shimmer in her eyes. A shimmer he wanted to convince himself couldn’t possibly exist. That she was incapable of such emotion.
“You never gave me a chance to explain. To tell you how it happened. How I came to be inside Rachel and how I fell for you.”
He shook his head. “I don’t want to hear it.”
She reached across the seat and settled her hand on top of his on the steering wheel. “You need to hear it. And I need to say it.”
He was about to respond when bright lights flashed on behind the car. Headlights bore down on them. Quinn could hear the roar of an engine.
“Shit! They found us.”
Daeva swirled in the seat to look out the rear window. “How did they track us?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know, but hang on to something.”
Daeva gripped the door handle and the dash as he stepped on the gas and veered around a truck on the road in front of them. The vehicle behind them followed closely. It was going to take more than going faster to shake them.
“I can blast them.”
Quinn glanced over at Daeva. Her right hand was starting to glow red. “Wait. Wait until we’re off the main road. I’m going to take the next turnoff.”
Racing at seventy, it was hard to see the exit. But the second Quinn spied it he yanked the wheel to the right and they were skidding sideways to take the road. The car felt as if it was going to tip, but he had control. He’d done his fair share of fancy driving in the past. He knew how to handle a car.
Once they were righted, he pressed on the gas. They needed to find a way to hide. He wasn’t going to be able to outrun the other vehicle. Not out here in the middle of nowhere without anything to hide behind.
“Look for a place to turn off. Lots of trees would be good,” he instructed.
He checked in the rearview mirror for the other vehicle. He saw headlights not far behind them. “Damn it! If we turn they’ll see it.”
“Turn off the lights.”
He gaped at her. “How is that going to help? I’ll crash if I can’t see.”
“I can see in the dark.” She unbuckled her seatbelt and started to slide across the seat. “Trust me. Let me drive.”
“We can’t do this at this speed.”
“Slow down a bit, then.” She glanced back. “We have some space.”
Quinn thought it was crazy, but he couldn’t think of another way. Being in the dark would give them the advantage. He braked a little, slowing to fifty. He undid his seatbelt, then lifted up so Daeva could slide in under him.
He felt her foot next to his, and he took it off the gas pedal and pushed himself to the right over top of her. The car veered a bit, but Daeva was down in the seat, hands on the wheel and foot on the pedal before they could go into the ditch.
He settled in the passenger seat and buckled up. “Okay. We’re good to go.”
She fiddled on the left side of the steering wheel and then the headlights flicked off. She fiddled some more with the wires hanging out and the brake lights blinked off, as well. It was nearly pitch black in front of them. It scared the hell out of him, driving blind, but it looked as though Daeva had it under control. She was focused on the road without any problem.
“Get ready. There’s a turnoff ahead on the left. Lots of trees and bushes.”
Quinn braced himself against the dash and floor.
Without another warning, Daeva yanked the wheel to the left. He could hear the gravel spitting up behind the tires as they took the corner. Once around, she slowed down a little.
He turned and watched out the back window. After another five seconds, he saw the vehicle speed past. “It worked.”
“We should still get off the road.” She made another left turn onto a heavily treed gravel road, then slowed even more.
“Pull it into the ditch.”
She did, in a space behind some bushes. She put the car in Park but left it running just in case. “How could they track us? We ditched the car.”
He rubbed at his forehead, a headache threatened to come. “Not sure. They do have magical tracking abilities. As far as I know they can’t pinpoint an exact position, just an area.”
“Yeah, but don’t they have to physically touch you or something?”
“Just their magic,” he said.
Her eyes went wide as she looked at him. “I think I’m bugged.”
“What? How?”
“I got clipped in the shoulder when we were getting out of your place.” She hooked her fingers in the hem of the T-shirt and pulled it over her head.
“What are you doing?”
She pointed to the burn on the back of her right shoulder blade. “Look.”
He did. At first he saw nothing but the raw and bloody skin, but when he peered at the wound closer, he spied the telltale green glow of magic still pulsating. It was a tracer and it was deep inside Daeva’s flesh.
Chapter 9
“It’s there, isn’t it?”
Quinn nodded grimly. “I’m going to have to dig it out.”
“It’s going to hurt like hell, isn’t it?” The thought of more pain made her stomach roil. She hadn’t quite gotten used to the agony of being almost human yet.
He licked his lips, then nodded. “Yeah.”
“Then do it quickly.”
“Daeva...”
“Look, we are only safe for a little bit, then they will be following this tracker. You know it’s the only way. So just do it.”
Quinn unbuckled the knife on his belt. “Turn a bit, so I can get at it.”
She did, then one of his hands was on her shoulder and the other had the blade tip braced against her skin. She sucked in a breath, preparing for the pain that was sure to come. But Quinn was hesitating.
“What’s the holdup? You need to do it.”
She looked over her shoulder at him, but he wasn’t focused on her wound. He was looking farther down her back. And she knew what he saw there. Long raised welts. Ones a person could only get from a whip.
“Jesus, Daeva. What happened?”
“It doesn’t matter. Just do what you need to do.”
“Who hurt you?”
She sighed, not wanting to talk about it. She wanted to forget the whole thing ever happened. But she knew she couldn’t, not with the evidence on her skin. “Before you summoned me, I was...interrogated about you.”
“What? Why?”
“Because the demons are looking for the same thing the Cabal is, or are working with the Cabal. Don’t know which. Everyone is looking for the key and the chest.”
“You told them where I lived?”
“No.” She licked her lips, not wanting to remember the torture. “But after twelve hours of...well, I sure wanted to.”
She laughed it off, but she felt no humor in it. This was just one of many reasons she
never wanted to go back to hell. She couldn’t and stay sane.
“No one should have to go through something like that.”
She shrugged. “It’s just another day in hell.” She saw him cringe at that, maybe feeling a little guilt at having sent her back there. “It’s done, so let’s move on and get this over with. We don’t have much time.”
Quinn nodded. Then, gripping her shoulder hard to keep her from flinching, he pressed the tip of the knife to her skin. Without any more hesitation, he slid the blade in, slicing skin and flesh.
The pain ripped through her, but she kept still, knowing he had to dig the tracker out. If she moved, he might cut her unnecessarily. She bit down on her lip as Quinn scraped at her flesh. Sweat popped out on her forehead. It took all she had not to cry out.
Then it was done, and he was wiping his blade clean of her blood.
“It’s gone. It dissipated.” He set the knife down, then grabbed one of the bags and took out a first aid kit to doctor her up quickly and efficiently.
Once she was bandaged, Daeva pulled his T-shirt back on. The ache in her shoulder was deep, but she’d push through the pain. It could’ve been worse, she supposed.
“Let’s get out of here. They could still be around.” She put the car in gear and pulled back out onto the road. The one back wheel spit back gravel, but they got out.
As she drove, making several turns and loops in case they were still being followed, Quinn busied himself by cleaning his knife and re-sorting his medical supplies. She caught him glancing at her every so often. She could tell he had something to say to her.
“Just spit it out,” she said.
“What?”
“I can tell you have something on your mind. You’re looking at me when you think I won’t notice.”
“Do they hurt?”
She glanced over at him, saw the remorse on his face. She didn’t have to ask what “they” he was talking about. “A little. It’s manageable, though.”
“I’m sorry they used you to get to me.”