Night Child

by Lisa Kessler

  Issa’s stare weighed on her shoulders. “Why do you care about the future of the Night Walker race?”

  “Gretchen just said the mortal world will be next to fall, right? Besides, Lukas is my friend. He’s been a part of my family for generations.” She glanced at Lukas and then back to Issa. “And if that’s not enough for you, how about this? He knows what I look like, and where I live. If that guy really is Apep, I won’t be living much longer if I can’t find a way to stop him.”

  “Let me see the codex.” Zafrina held out her hand. “We need to protect the child.”

  “No.” Issa caught her wrist. “The only way to ensure the child’s safety is to keep this knowledge from Apep for as long as possible. If any of you see it, and he can find the information he seeks in your minds, he will no longer need the codex.”

  Gretchen nodded. “Issa is right. It’s too risky to read it right now.”

  The room went silent. Muriah tried not to hold her breath. Finally, Issa released Zafrina and came to Muriah’s side. “I will take the mortal—”

  “My name is Muriah.”

  His mouth twinged, but there was no hint of a smile. “I will accompany her to Egypt. I know the area. If there is a way to stop Apep, we will find it there.”

  “I need to talk to her first.” Lukas frowned, his gaze shifting between her and her new tall, dark partner in crime. “Alone.”

  Issa rolled his shoulders back, power rippling through the thin fabric of his shirt. Muriah buried her body’s reaction. Lukas’s Night Walker powers had never affected her like this.

  She followed Lukas out onto the balcony and shut the door behind them. She glanced through the glass at the gaggle of immortals gathered inside. “You know they can all hear us, right? Super Night Walker hearing and all…”

  “I don’t care. I need to talk to you.”

  She pulled her gaze from the others and focused on Lukas. “I’m sorry I found this codex. It was just a job. I didn’t know what it said.”

  “I know. That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. We all understood Gretchen was putting herself in danger by agreeing to carry this child.” He swallowed and lowered his voice. “Before you agree to travel halfway around the world with Issa, I want you to understand who you are traveling with.”

  “He’s got to be better than creepy snake tattoo guy waiting on my front steps.” Lukas didn’t reply. A chill skipped down her spine, and it had nothing to do with the cool sea breeze. “You’re not reassuring me here.”

  “Sorry, but you deserve to know. He’s ancient, Muriah, alive since the beginning, since man started walking this earth. He’s the Mayan God of the West.”

  Her gaze flicked over to see Issa inside talking with Zafrina. “That doesn’t sound so bad.”

  “Muriah, the God of the West was the hand of the sacrifice. He’s sacrificed mortals and immortals alike. Tearing beating hearts out of chests eventually leaves the executioner with scars you can’t see with your eyes.” He let out a slow breath. “You said that guy with the tattoos couldn’t read your thoughts. You could stay here with us. We’ll protect you, and Issa can take the codex to Egypt and lure Apep out of San Diego. You don’t need to make this trip.”

  Her stomach roiled with indecision. Her mind kept replaying the vision she’d seen when she’d touched the codex. She’d glimpsed the arrogant, immortal jerk, bare, without his emotional armor. She witnessed the raw pain. He’d met her eyes, pleading for understanding, for safe passage through the storm.

  At that moment, standing inside the house, he turned, his gaze holding hers. Something shifted inside her. I must be insane.

  “He’ll need me to find out how to trap Apep.” She stared up into Lukas’s eyes. “I’m the best there is, and I have contacts over there, remember? He may be ancient and immortal, but it’s all about who you know… I have to make this trip.”

  “Please be careful.” Lukas embraced her. “I gave my word I’d keep the La Deaux family safe.”

  She smiled against his chest. “And you’ve done a super job.” She pulled away. “I’m all grown up now. And for once, you need me to keep you safe. You and Gretchen.” She reached out and gave his hand a squeeze. “I can do this. Plus, it’s the only way to be sure Apep won’t come after me.”

  “I’m not sure Issa is stable.”

  “Well, I’m positive Apep isn’t.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “He tore Richard apart piece by piece. I think I’ll take my chances with Issa.”

  The door opened, making both of them jump. Gretchen stepped out. “Everyone’s anxious to get Muriah’s package out of here.”

  “Good plan.” Muriah walked toward the door and stopped, turning back to Lukas. “I’ll be all right. Promise.”

  Chapter Six

  Issa paced around the mortal woman’s shop, glancing at the worn titles on the bookshelf behind the coffee bar, grateful to be far from Calisto’s home. Apparently, Calisto and Kate were out with her mortal friends, shopping for a wedding dress.

  He found the thought of a wedding laughable. They were on the brink of extinction; poor timing for a celebration. He could almost hear Kate explaining that hope was every bit as important as preparing for battle.

  Hope. What did it even mean?

  Muriah came out of her office with a backpack and her keys. “I need to stop by my condo to grab some clothes and see about plane tickets. Or do you fly yourself?”

  “Fly myself?” Issa frowned.

  “You know.” She moved behind the counter toward the espresso machine. “Lukas’s spirit animal is a huge great horned owl. Do you fly, too?”

  “No.” The surreal moment, discussing Night Walker spirit animals with a mortal, caused an unfamiliar bubble of laughter in his chest, almost bursting from his lips. He cleared his throat, banishing the unwelcome chuckle and regaining his mental footing. “My spirit is connected to the black jaguar.”

  “A jaguar?” Her dark eyes sparkled when she smiled, tempting him with a desire to make her smile again. “You’re going to show me sometime, right?”

  He shook his head. “I do not shift to impress mortals.”

  “Oh, I forgot. I’m so much lower than you.” She rolled her eyes. “We’re going to be partners on this trip. Try calling me Muriah.”

  “I also do not take orders from mortals.” He glanced at her pack sitting on the bar. “Get your things. We should go.”

  “I don’t care if you’re some kind of Mayan god, that’s no excuse for being a condescending ass.” She shook her head, smile vanishing. Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not excited any more than you are about going to Egypt and trying to evade the God of Chaos. I’m just trying to make it a little less miserable.”

  A bell rang behind him, and Issa spun, ready for battle. A tall mortal stood in the doorway. His light blue eyes bored into Issa shamelessly for a moment before his attention shifted to Muriah where she stood behind the counter.

  “Miss La Deaux?” He came closer. Issa watched the calculated movement, the way the man’s fingers twitched at the end of his right hand, aching for a weapon that must be hidden within his suit jacket.

  “Please, will at least one of you call me by my name?” Muriah glanced up and sighed. “Agent Bale. What can I do for you?”

  Agent. Issa’s body tensed. If this man was a law enforcement officer, he could impede their progress. He needed to get Muriah away from San Diego and Apep as soon as possible. Reaching for the mortal’s thoughts, he found a legal code being repeated, acting as a mental shield. A crease marred Issa’s brow. Interesting.

  “I have a few more questions.” The man glanced at Issa. “Can we speak alone for a moment?”

  Issa shook his head. “We have an appointment. Perhaps you could call her. Later.”

  “We?” The agent turned to look at him again, and Issa gave his gaze a push of suggestion, encouraging the agent to turn and leave. The man reached up and wiped his eyes, breaking contact with Issa’s ancient stare. He looked at Mur
iah again, undeterred. “This is very important. It will only take a moment.”

  She glanced at each of them and blew out a sigh. “Fine. We can talk in my office, but Issa’s right, we’ve really got to get going.”

  The agent followed Muriah to her office and closed the door. Issa leaned against the wall of the hallway, listening.

  “Okay.” Muriah’s voice carried a touch of annoyance. “What do you need?”

  “We need to get you out of here.”

  Issa crossed his arms, tilting his head closer to the office door.

  “No problem. I’m leaving today.”

  “I’m armed. I can get you out right now.”

  Issa tensed.

  “I don’t need your help. Thanks, though.”

  The agent’s voice raised a notch. “Look, I know this will sound crazy, but that man out there is more than he seems, and you shouldn’t go anywhere with him. He may have put a suggestion in your head to go with him. He can do that if you hold eye contact with him. You’re in danger, Muriah.”

  She paused. “What kind of agent are you? Exactly?”

  “I work for a branch of the federal government. That’s all you need to know.”

  “Which branch of the government?” When the agent remained silent, she went on. “I appreciate your concern, but I’m not under anyone’s power but my own. And while we’re talking crazy, a man with information about Richard’s murder paid a visit to my condo last night. Your weapons won’t slow him down. That man in the hallway that you’re warning me about is my best chance at staying alive.”

  Issa gave her words an almost imperceptible nod of agreement. Inside her office, the agent groaned, and Issa heard a chair leg scrape across the floor. He went to the door, but kept himself from opening it. Yet.

  “Muriah, he’s much older than he looks, and your thoughts are an open book to him. He’s got abilities you can’t imagine…” His voice trailed off. “He’s also a killer. For all we know, he’s the one who killed Richard. He’s dangerous.”

  The words stung, because the agent was right. He was a killer, and in his current mental state, he recognized danger in himself as well. Issa rubbed the back of his neck, struggling to battle the wave of thick, ugly emotions threatening to surface. The jaguar paced inside him, hungry to burst forth, to allow him to distance himself from the pain.

  So tempting.

  Muriah opened the door, but she still faced the agent. “Thanks for your concern. If you don’t have any questions for me, I really need to get going.”

  The agent walked out of the office and stopped in front of Issa, his voice low and controlled. “I know what you are, and I won’t rest until I figure out what’s going on here.”

  Before Issa could respond, the agent turned and left the shop, the bell on the door ringing his exit. Muriah’s hand brushed Issa’s, making him flinch at the gentle contact.

  “You heard everything.”

  He nodded slowly, his gaze finding her face, her dark eyes.

  “Can you really read my thoughts?”

  “Usually I can hear the thoughts of all mortals, but your mind is closed to me.” He wasn’t sure where her questions would lead, but he was grateful he didn’t sense fear in her after the officer’s warning.

  She didn’t look convinced. “What am I thinking now?”

  Issa raised a brow. “I have no idea.”

  “Good.” She nodded slowly. “Now I need you to do the eye thing he talked about. Try and hypnotize me, or whatever you call it.”

  Issa frowned. “Why would you want me to mesmerize you?”

  “Because I need to know if you can.” Her gaze pleaded with him. “If we don’t try this, I’ll constantly be second guessing every choice I make, wondering if you made it for me.”

  Issa sighed, deciding against telling her the sad truth that at his ancient age, most mortals fell under his enthrallment without any effort on his part. Eye contact was usually enough, although the agent obviously had been trained to battle the mental enslavement.

  Her dark eyes were like bottomless pools of mystery. He stared into them, allowing his mind to push toward hers, beckoning her free will to his command, enticing her to take his cool hand. He waited, suddenly yearning for her touch.

  But it never came.

  “Did you do it yet?” Muriah’s eyes searched his.

  A foreign sensation tugged at the corner of his lips. “You felt nothing?”

  She shook her head slowly. “No.”

  “Then you are immune to my mental suggestions.” His heart gave an extra thud inside his chest. What was this woman? She was mortal, human, but so much more.

  “Good.” Muriah nodded and walked past him to her knapsack on the counter. “Let’s get over to my condo so I can grab some clothes and then I’ll be ready to hit the airport. Lukas just texted me that Calisto has his private jet ready to take us to New York. We can stay there during the day before we make the final leg to Egypt.”

  He watched her in silence, again wishing he’d never left the Yucatan. He hated New York. He’d only been to the city once, and the lights, noise, and people had overloaded his preternatural senses. Her safety would be compromised in a concrete jungle where he might not see danger until it fell upon them.

  “New York.” He answered flatly.

  “Yeah.” She glanced at him over her shoulder, hoisting the knapsack containing her laptop and the priceless codex. “Ready to go?”

  He would never be ready, but he would go. Apep, chaos incarnate, would never be his master. He needed to keep the codex and this strange mortal woman out of Apep’s hands. Somehow.

  Muriah left her car parked at the back of her bookstore, rather than drive two blocks and search for another place to park. They made the short walk to her condo in silence. His senses were on alert, watching for any sign of Apep. He’d met the creature once while he lived in the deserts of Egypt. He would never forget the way the snake tattoos moved over his body, fluid, eager for death and chaos. Hungry for it.

  Apep also had the ability to send his serpents into the world, slithering through the shadows, lurking and spying, making any darkness suspect.

  A man stumbled out of the back of a beach bar. Instinctively, Issa caught Muriah around the waist, pulling her out of the man’s trajectory. Her body pressed against his, and the unexpected spicy scent of her hair filled his lungs. He held her longer than he’d intended, frozen in the moment.

  “I’m all right.”

  The sound of her voice jarred him from the sudden intoxication. Issa loosened his grip on her, taking a step back.

  She ran a hand back through her long, tousled hair. “Thanks. I didn’t see him coming.”

  Issa nodded. “I am here to protect you.”

  Muriah met his gaze, dropping her hand to her side. “You could just say you’re welcome. You don’t have to keep reminding me that I’m a chore you didn’t ask for. None of this is what I wanted, either.”

  The dim streetlight sparkled in her eyes, and his gut clenched. He’d been so consumed by his own misery, he hadn’t considered her feelings about their journey. She’d been approached by Apep and still had possession of his prize. She was a mortal, but a mortal who had bested an Egyptian god.

  They walked to the end of the block before he finally spoke. “Who was Richard?”

  Muriah’s shoulders tensed, and her pace increased. “No one.”

  He lengthened his stride, staying right beside her. “I told you I heard the agent in your office. Richard is dead, and he was a friend. The Agent believes I killed him. That sounds like someone to me.”

  “That’s my place up there.” She pointed and jogged toward the door.

  Issa ground his teeth together. Why was she being so difficult? He crossed the street and stopped. Taking in a slow breath, he scanned the shadows. The jungle cat inside of him growled, aching for release. At the corner of her complex, lurking in the dark of the alley, he saw the flash of crimson.

  Apep’s
serpents.

  Chapter Seven

  Turning the key to her door, she suddenly had a hulking man beside her, his big hand on her hip, pressing her against him. The second the lock disengaged, Issa pushed her inside and slammed the door behind them.

  Instinctively, she shoved his hard chest, trying to get some distance between them. “Hey! What the hell—” He turned the deadbolt and walked around her condo like she didn’t exist. She followed him, her pulse racing. “Mind telling me what’s going on?”

  Issa continued to ignore her, flipping on every light switch until it felt like high noon inside her house. She blocked the doorway to her bedroom, feet in a fighting stance, her hands up and ready to fight. “This is my bedroom, and you’re not invited.”

  He raised a brow, and reached past her to flip the switch on the wall beside the door. “I do not need your invitation.”

  She socked him in the gut. Hard. And he stood like nothing happened. Great.

  Muriah blew out her frustration and stared up into his eyes. “You could at least pretend that hurt.”

  His lips twitched, hinting that this guy might actually have the ability to smile. Muriah scolded herself when she realized she wished she could see it.

  “You need to understand something.” He leaned against the opposite wall of the hallway, not violating the threshold of her bedroom, although it was painfully clear he could if he wanted to. “As long as I am with you, my intention will always be to keep you and the codex safe.”

  “Safe is one thing, but keeping me in the dark is something else.”

  He frowned, glancing down the hall and back to her face. “Is there a room I missed?”

  “What?” Muriah pressed a hand to her forehead. “What does that have to do with anything?” It was like they spoke different languages.