“I said it’s not possible, mate. He…”
Val vanished as Drake sent him away. He felt power burning through him; the entire club trembled around him. “Silas!” he boomed.
An old man with a long, pointed chin, a long beard and white hair the made him look like he’d been electrocuted appeared. His blue robe glittered with stars and his amethyst wise leaned and swirled. “You’re losing control,” the old man cackled. “I haven’t felt the power of a true Akaran in millennia. It’s about time you started using it, boy.”
“You’re a seer, so see. Tell me where to find Myles Goodridge.” He grabbed Silas by the collar of his robe and shook him.
The tremors turned more violent, glasses and bottles fell from the shelves shattering around them. Silas grinned and shrugged him off. “Temper, temper, boy.”
Drake made a grab for the old man again but Silas vanished in a puff of smoke, then reappeared behind him, still laughing.
“I warn you, I’m not to be trifled with.” Drake spoke in a rough harshness of his own language.
Silas still smirked. “I’ve missed seeing you like this, Drakon. Reminds me of the demon you should have been.”
“TELL ME!” The walls rattled as every object within the bar exploded, glass crashing to the floor.
“I can’t sense him. Myles is an elusive bastard,” Silas replied. “What vexes you, boy?”
His hands clenched into fists, his patience wearing thin. “He took my life mate. I want her back. If you can’t find him, I’ll search myself. Even if it means shimmering all over creation.”
“Life mate? Gods below, you always let that silly notion prevent you from seeking dominion over all Demonkind.” Silas scratched his beard.
“I never desired to rule. I never will, I just want my witch back.” His eyes flashed, his inner demon clawing at his mind, rage heating his blood as power hummed through his veins. If Silas didn’t start talking he’d give in and use his powers.
“A witch? Even better.” Silas’s chest heaved from silent laughter.
Fire formed in Drake’s palm, he wanted to kill someone. Anyone. It didn’t matter who. He started to shimmer out.
“You can’t take on Goodridge on your own,” Silas snapped. “Even you’re not that powerful.”
Drake’s fangs came out. “Why not? If he’s a demon he won’t be able to resist my power.”
Silas’s lips thinned. “You’ll find out soon enough.” The old man’s eyes blurred to white. He shuddered. “The witch you seek is connected to the Srimtar. You need to stay away from her.”
“I’d never do that. I’ve waited too long to have her. What does that bloody orb even do?”
Silas shook his head. “It’s a curse, that’s what it is.”
“Can you tell me where she is or not?”
Silas rambled off a list of addresses and locations used by the gang. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Silas muttered as Drake shimmered out.
Chapter 13
The room shifted into focus when Charlie opened her eyes. Her face throbbed from where she’d been punched repeatedly. But her eyes cleared enough to see the gloomy windowless room around her. The door creaked open as a man with reddish gold hair came in, pushing a device on wheels. The machine had a small screen connected with wires.
She gulped. A mind-reading device. She’d seen them before, but they had been banned since the revolution. Charlie felt for her mental shields, prayed they would still hold despite her powerless state. She’d spent an entire year learning how to protect her mind. You can do this, she told herself. You trained for this. It didn’t mean it wouldn’t hurt like a bitch.
Damn it, how long had she been there? Power blockers only lasted a few hours but they hadn’t dosed her up again – that she knew. Goddess, she longed for her connection to Drake. Pathetic as it was. The link had been comforting over the years even though she often chose to ignore it.
“It won’t work on me,” she insisted. “I already told you I don’t know what happened to the orb. Last thing I remember you and Moret were carrying it out of the warehouse. You’re Goodridge, right?”
He smiled. “Clever little witch.”
She scowled. Only Drake got to call her that.
“It will work. The more you resist, the more it will hurt.” He stabbed a needle into her arm, making her wince.
“You’re going to be damn sorry when I get loose,” she told him. Her heart thundered in her ears. If she came close to death again, would it finally bring on the ascension? “I’ll kick your arse, then there’s my demon side, that gets pretty pissy.”
He laughed. “Are you going to tell me your auntie will come after me too?”
“Maybe. My family are very overprotective. Then there’s my life mate, he’s even worse. You’ll have a lot of people after you.” She hoped he’d leave her alone soon. She had to figure out a way to break loose.
“Drake? How is he? Still trying to be good?”
She frowned. “He is good.”
“Is he now? You don’t know who or what he really is, do you?” Myles snorted.
She glanced up at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. Just he’s not what he seems. He’s not good, he’s pathetic. How he threw away all his power I’ll never understand.” He chuckled. “But then he never deserved it.”
Charlie wanted to ask more but he stabbed another needle into her arm and then hooked electrodes to her aching scalp. He injected something into her and pulled her into a vision. Charlie found herself back inside the warehouse, crouching in position.
Boom, blue light exploding.
Not again! She felt herself falling, next she stood in front of the box.
“Where is the Srimtar?” Goodridge demanded. “Tell me where it is.”
Charlie gritted her teeth, wondering why he wanted the orb so much. “I told you I don’t know. I passed out before I was rescued.” She paused, unsure if more questions would earn her another beating. “Why do you want it so bad?”
He responded by sending a wave of dizzying pain through her brain. Charlie gritted her teeth. Focus, she told herself. Take control. Damn, she would have welcomed a visit from that blue light demon just then. Sending the thing postal on this guy would be good.
She felt her mental shield still in place, despite her lack of power it still remained. She thought back to her training as she tried to figure out a way to gain control. Her brow creased.
“Hey, McCray, you can treat us all to drinks tonight.” The sound of Natalia’s voice made her feel a sharp pang of sadness.
Pain jolted through her, rolling down her neck to her back.
“Show me where the orb is. What did you do with it?”
More pain followed but Charlie retaliated by showing different memories of her team. The torture seemed to go on for hours as they poked, prodded and jolted her with pain.
When Myles finally stormed out of the room, Charlie let her head slumped forward. Her limbs felt like deadweight, her head felt like a jackhammer was hitting her brain. Blood dripped down her broken nose. She had to get out of there.
Her magic still felt out of reach. Guess I’ll have to improvise. She saw nothing but the machine and a few pipes behind her. No windows or any objects that could be of use.
“Drake?” She tried calling for him again. Drake? she called in thought. Can you hear me?
No response.
Leaning forward, she examined the machine, searching for anything that could break her bonds. Her blood wouldn’t do much good as she still had the blocker running through her veins. The machine looked old judging from the style of it. Maybe a few centuries. Which meant it had no communication capabilities.
Charlie glanced at the bonds around her wrists, chains made of infused Silveron, not the usual cuffs. She moved her wrists around, trying to pull them free. That didn’t work; she felt the silver ring on her left index finger still there. Great, they hadn’t stolen it. They wouldn’t have
even noticed one of Steve’s inventions since it wasn’t magical. She turned it, pushing it to turn on the laser.
The door burst open as TJ and Goodridge came in.
Weird, she couldn’t sense what Goodridge was.
Myles gave her a bright smile. “Hello, McCray. Nice to see you again.”
“Wish I could say the feeling was mutual,” she replied. “I told you, I have no idea where that damned orb is.”
“No, but you are the key to finding it. You weren’t harmed by it.”
Charlie shook her head. “I can’t find it. I don’t even know where it went.”
Myles came closer, muttering words of power she didn’t understand but thought she heard the word “Srimtar”.
Something jolted through her, making her body straighten and her eyes burned with light. In her mind, Charlie saw the glowing blue orb. It sparkled, whirling with stars inside it. No, she thought. Don’t show them where you are. Come on, demon thing, come and get me out of here. The other presence took over. Charlie felt energy surge through her. The chains fell away as the strange entity fazed her body free.
“Guardian,” Myles murmured.
Charlie’s lips curved into a smile. “You’re trying to find what doesn’t belong to you.” A harsh voice came out in a strange language. Charlie found she could understand it. Don’t kill them, just get me out of here, she told it.
“Avna!” Myles shouted, sending a burst of blue lightning.
Charlie’s body slammed back into the wall, knocking the air from her lungs. I’m gonna be so bloody bruised! The entity snarled, firing back with her own lightning burst.
Myles dodged it and TJ ran from the room.
Okay, now kick his arse!
The entity formed a glowing ball of energy in her palm and hurtled it at Myles.
Why can’t you just knock him out like you did with the Alliance? Charlie demanded.
He’s like us, the voice replied.
What does that mean?
His powers can match ours. Another blast sent Charlie crashing across the floor. She felt the other presence in her mind flicker. She grunted with pain, back in control her own body again. She dove through the nearest wall, body blurring as she fazed into an office with a console and a scattering of paperwork.
No, we must stop Goodridge! The entity screeched.
She grinned. Ha, not nice being stuck at the back of my mind with no control, is it? Now you know what it feels like.
The entity let out a harsh laugh. I’ve been trapped for years. First I remained dormant until you came of age, then you repressed me.
Excuse me? What the hell are you on about? Charlie demanded. Goddess, I’m arguing with myself.
I’m you, the part of you that you refuse to accept. The part you ignore.
Okay, I’ve clearly lost my mind now. I must have. She glanced around, searching for an escape. Again no windows, no phone either.
Charlie scanned through the piles of paperwork hoping she’d find something of use or an object she could use as a weapon. She flipped open the file and saw her name and picture inside. Skimming through it she saw mother unknown, marked next it was race unknown.
What the hell? My mum was a Denai – okay maybe part demon too. Thanks for that surprise, Mum. Another file caught her attention which was marked “Srimtar”. She stuffed it in her back pocket.
“Where do you think you’re going, witch?” Myles demanded as he appeared in the doorway.
“Getting the hell out of here.” She dove through the next wall. This time it ended in a corridor.
Two guards opened fire on her; she dodged the bullets by ducking around the corner. Great, just freaking great! If her fazing power worked, would her others?
Let me have control, said the voice.
Not bloody happening.
I can save us.
No, you can get the hell out of my head. Taking a deep breath, Charlie peered around the corner, raising her hand. The bullet bounced off her palm as her psychokinesis took hold.
Myles rounded the corner, and then threw another energy ball. She cried out as it struck her in the shoulder. Blood seeped from the open wound. Another blast had her crashing to the ground. Come on, demon. Fight back. The other presence took hold again; she blasted Myles with her own power.
“Avock!” he screamed.
The other presence in her mind vanished. Gone.
Drake? Charlie called.
Light blurred as Drake shimmered in, his eyes burning. Power rolled off him in violent waves, making the air around them sizzle. He hurled a fireball at Goodridge, striking the other man in the chest.
Myles chuckled, undeterred by the blow. He pointed at Drake and a bolt of blue lightning shot out.
The blast sent Drake staggering as Myles turned and fled.
An alarm rang out, flames appearing all around them.
Charlie clutched her injured shoulder as she stumbled over to him. “Drake, come on, shimmer us out of here.” She grabbed his hand.
His eyes still burned red. It reminded her of the blood rage, a state Denais could enter to use the full dark side of their gifts to kill if they lost someone they loved. The heat from the flames seared against her skin but it didn’t burn her. Orange flames licked at the walls, engulfing everything in their wake. “Drake, please, you have to get out of here before this whole place blows. I’m too weak to use my powers.”
Light blurred around them.
Charlie grunted as they landed in a heap on the floor, both breathing hard. Drake held onto her tight. “Ow!” She winced from the pain. She watched his eyes change back to normal as he released her.
“Where are you hurt?” He ran his hand over her, checking for wounds.
Charlie rolled away from him, clutching her bleeding shoulder. “I don’t think there’s part of me that doesn’t hurt right now.”
Drake pulled her hand away, placing his palm over the wound. She felt a warm rush of energy pass between them. The wound on her shoulder closed over and her nose stopped throbbing. “How did you do that?” She frowned. “I didn’t think you could heal people.”
He shook his head. “I can’t. I just gave you some of my own power. I’ve seen Jason do it with Cate.”
“I don’t feed off living energy. I’ve never really needed any energy,” she admitted. Most Denais needed to feed off living energy in order to survive but mediums took their energy from other sources.
Drake wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight against him. “Thanks for coming for me,” she murmured, returning his embrace.
“Always, little witch,” he said, kissing the top of her head. “I swear you’re taking centuries off my life though. Stop doing that to me.”
She snorted. “I’ll try, can’t make any promises though.”
Drake brushed her hair off her face. Charlie reached up and kissed him again, slow and tender. She smiled. “Let’s just take things slow for now, okay?”
He nodded. “I want you to stay here with me. It’s safer and you can have your own room.”
“Okay.” Charlie pulled away from him. “What was that back there? I’ve never seen you like that before.” Drake hesitated. “Come on, Vlad. If you want this to work between us we can’t keep secrets from each other.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “That was part of my true demon self. I come from a very old, very powerful race of demons. I haven’t used my power like that for centuries.”
“Why?”
“I don’t like what I become when I do. Besides, that’s not who I am,” he said.
She sat down and told him what happened. “Why do you think that thing keeps taking control of me?” she asked. “Do you think it’s the demon part of me? If so, why?”
“Have you explored the demon part of yourself?”
“No,” Charlie admitted. “I guess I don’t acknowledge it. I’m a Denai, that’s who I was raised as. I’m an enforcer, that’s I choose to be. But there’s more to me than that.” She remember
ed the file she’d seen and pulled it out. “Drake, can you sense what kind of demon I am? I mean, part demon?”
Drake shook his head. “No, I assumed Zexen and I can sense what any Demonkind is – it’s one of my gifts.”
She shot her feet. “I have a way of finding out if that voice in my head was telling the truth. Let’s go.” They shimmered into her apartment and saw items scattered all over the place.
“Shit! I thought I had this place shielded,” she gasped. “Damn it, we need a lab.” She opened the wall where she kept her most important items and pulled them out.
“I can help with that.”
Drake opened another door when they returned to his house. Inside was wall-to-wall computer equipment, plus a countertop for lab testing.
“Wow,” Charlie breathed.
“I created it when Jason and the team were here during the early months after the revolution. I thought it might come in useful again someday. What do you need a lab for?”
“To test something. I told you about a file I saw, I can’t do this at the station without raising any red flags.”
Charlie found her way around the equipment with ease thanks to her dad and Uncle Ian’s teachings. She pulled out a scanner, pricked her finger, placed her blood on a slide and waited. “This will tell me what races I have in my DNA. I know what some of them will be, but even my dad didn’t know much about where my mum came from.”
Drake frowned. “What do you want it to tell you? DNA can give only basic answers.”
“I need to know what I am.”
The scanner bleeped. Charlie, heart pounding, pressed a few buttons to pull up the results on screen, thankfully the tech was connected to the databases back in Elaris. Lines started appearing as the computer threw out the names.
Charlie began interpreting the results. “Denai, there’s Ashrali fey like my dad, there’s a strand of Phoenix. The other strand is black and blue.” The screen read ‘race unknown’. “How is that possible? If my mum was part Zexen that would show.” She stared at him. “What am I, Drake?”
Chapter 14
Drake and Charlie shimmered into the foyer of Cate and Jason’s house. A beam of light shot down from the ceiling, roamed over their bodies and scanned them, then blinked out.
Shadow Walker_Urban fantasy romance Page 9