Death's Storm (The Divinities Book 2)

by Lia Davis

  The plan was to go in and grab the kids without detection. In a perfect world, that would work. This wasn’t a perfect world, and these were demons they were dealing with. Demonic beings with supernatural hearing and strength.

  Khloe was ready for the charge as they opened the back entrance, only to be highly disappointed when no stood on the other side. Not good. “I don’t like this.” So what were they doing? Playing poker, watching a football game? She wanted to scream, call out to the bastards that they were here.

  Ayden leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Zach, Ryn, and I will get the children. You and the others search the house.”

  “Those fuckers are up to something, and I want to be able to get the kids out of here before the shit flies.”

  Khloe smiled at Ayden’s telepathic statement. She loved her brother-in-law.

  Advancing toward the living room with Jagger and Mel close behind her, she flexed her fingers and opened her senses to the elements. Power filled her from head to toe, energizing her. When they entered the room, no one was there. Strange. Where the hell was everyone?

  “This smells too much like a trap,” Khloe said through her teeth. Cowards. All of them.

  It wasn’t smart for the Underworld scum to make her wait. Her patience was running very thin. Breaking glass came from the kitchen. Fear for the children burned in the pit of her stomach. Instinctually, Jagger and Mel flashed to the other room. But, something held Khloe in place. Something was very wrong. She tried to teleport, but she couldn’t.

  What the fuck?

  Screw it. She took a step to join the others as they rushed toward the back of the house but froze when two very large demons stepped into her path. Hairless heads sat atop broad, muscular shoulders. Their skin possessed a purple hue. Silver hieroglyphics, which she didn’t recognize, stuck out from under the black tees hugging their chests.

  Good color choice in clothing. It matched their dark aura.

  “You boys looking for a good time?” She laughed at their confused looks. Poor things. They’ve been deprived of humor. Too bad they won’t live long enough to find out what they’ve been missing.

  With a flick of her hands toward the creepo-brothers, she released the energy she’d built up when entering the living room. The magical orb hit an invisible wall and bounced back at her. She twisted out of the way, but she wasn’t fast enough. Searing pain hit her in the back and knocked her to the ground. Stunned, she tried to catch her breath and will herself to move before those bastards reached her.

  Whatever was keeping her from teleporting also slowed her down. The air felt thick, as though she were trying to walk against the wind in a hurricane, and that feeling wasn’t from the energy blast she’d just taken. There was something else, someone else controlling the magic in the room. Only one being possessed the power to do that. An elf, and not just any elf.

  Samoan.

  Rolling to her side, Khloe reached for the sofa and pulled herself to a stand. She glared at Samoan’s smiling face. Her blue-black hair was pulled back in a ponytail, revealing her pointed ears. Those cobalt-blue eyes were a little darker than normal. The demoness wore leather pants and a black tank top that put her full breasts on display.

  Khloe rolled her eyes, straightened to her full height of five-nine, and glared at Samoan. “It’s not a pleasure to see you, Samoan.”

  “Aw. It’s a pity you say that, Khloe. Because I am happy to see you. Where is your sister? It’s not a party without both of you.” Samoan’s sweet smile made Khloe want to hurl.

  Fake bitch. What the hell was she up to?

  The vision Ayden had shared with her flashed briefly in her mind. There was something there that she’d missed. It was a given that Samoan wanted to kill her, but what else?

  The demonic elf shifted a step to her left, bringing Khloe’s focus back to her. Samoan’s hand rested beside the blade strapped to her leg. So, that’s how she wanted to play?

  Khloe conjured a knife and returned a smile of her own. The male demons, who moved to stand behind Samoan, inched closer in a weak attempt to protect their leader. Samoan held her hand up to stop them. They obeyed like well-trained animals.

  Suddenly antsy, Khloe pushed down the urge to charge forward and pound the shit out of the she-demon. She needed to stay focused and think about her options. Because, according to the vision, Samoan was going to kill her.

  That was one thing she couldn’t let happen. She had a mission and, for the first time in five years, a future. She’d be damned if Samoan was going to take that away from her.

  Samoan advanced on her suddenly, unexpectedly. Khloe ducked her swinging fist and punched her in the stomach. She staggered back a step but quick recovered and charged back at Khloe again. This time, the female demon made contact. Both of them hit the ground and rolled until Samoan pinned her.

  A sharp prick in her hip made Khloe gasp. A spit second later, her veins felt like someone had shot lava into her. As the fire raced through her bloodstream, each joint ached as though they were being pulled apart.

  “What the fuck did you do to me, bitch?” Khloe growled out, finding it hard to catch her breath.

  Samoan let out an evil, much-too-satisfied laugh. “Your father was part were. Now you will be one.”

  Then she vanished, taking her demon guards with her.

  Khloe couldn’t think. The pain was too much. Every bone felt as though it were breaking. With every breath, she screamed in agony until darkness overtook her.

  Jagger twisted the neck of the last demon in the room and let the lifeless body drop to the floor. Zach had managed to get the kids out the back door and, hopefully, was waiting in the van they’d rented earlier that day.

  Looking at Ayden and Mel, he asked, “You two okay?”

  Ayden nodded. “Yeah. Thanks.”

  Where was Khloe? Her scream brought the answer.

  Heart stopping, he fought to breathe as fear flooded him. He flashed from the back of the house to the living room. But, he didn’t see the Khloe he recognized. A black leopard with the same magical signature as Khloe lay on the floor, breath labored as if in pain.

  What the fuck? Jagger dropped to his knees beside her, unsure if he should touch her. No movement. That told him she’d passed out from the pain of the change. How had this happened?

  Glancing around the room, he spotted a syringe a few feet away. He leaned over and picked up the needle and growled.

  “What the hell?” Ayden kneeled down beside him.

  “That’s what I want to know,” Jagger mumbled.

  Ayden glanced back at Khloe and hovered his hand above her still cat form. “Well, shit. She’s going to be pissed.”

  Jagger raised an eyebrow at the sheriff, noting he was as freaked as Jagger was. Fuck. He scooped her up in his arms and stood.

  “Where are you taking her?”

  “To the condo. She needs to adjust to her…new form.”

  Ayden shifted his gaze from Jagger to Khloe. “How long is she going to be like that?”

  Jagger sighed, fully understanding why he’d asked. Kalissa would want as many answers as she could get. “I’m not sure. A couple of hours, couple of days. It depends on her ability to control her emotions.”

  “A couple of days, then.”

  Jagger nodded. “At least.”

  “Keep us posted.”

  “I will.” There were a few minutes of silence before Jagger added, “You going to take care of everything here?”

  “Yeah.” Ayden raised his hand and a small fireball formed in his palm.

  Without another word, Jagger teleported to Khloe’s condo.

  Once safely inside the condo, he laid her in the middle of the bed. His Khloe looked so peaceful and beautiful in her black, and very large, cat form. Her breathing was still labored. He stroked her silky coat, and she calmed.

  Thank the gods. She recognized his touch. That meant she hadn’t gone insane. He hoped. He would still have to deal with her when she woke. She wasn
’t going to like this, not one bit.

  Willing a blanket from the closet, he draped it over her and snatched up the phone to call her twin.

  Kalissa answered after the first ring. “What happened? How is it possible that my sister can shift into a cat?”

  Jagger suppressed a growl. “I was hoping you could answer that question for me.”

  “Me?”

  “I need to know your family history. Especially your father’s.”

  “Our father’s? He was human.”

  Clenching the phone a little tighter, he spoke through his teeth. “Are you sure?”

  She fell silent for a couple of moments before whispering, “No.”

  Fuck. Fuck. Stay calm, Jag. Going all demon isn’t going to help Khloe. “All right. Can you look into it? Find out anything you can about both sides of your family tree.”

  “Why does any of it matter?”

  “Because I need to know if it is an actual wereleopard gene you carry or a demonic one.”

  A gasp filtered through the phone. “What would happen if the gene is demonic?”

  Jagger closed his eyes, and his chest tightened at the fear in her voice. “If Khloe’s new shifter abilities are a result of being part demon, we may never be able to bring her back.”

  Chapter 23

  Khloe opened her eyes to a delicious sight and smell. Jagger’s bare chest lay against her cheek, and his sandalwood and spice scent invaded her nose. She snuggled farther into him, relishing his warmth. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her on the top of the head.

  She lifted her head and stretched to kiss his lips. Groaning at her aching muscles, the fight at the farmhouse came back to her.

  Samoan.

  Her words filtered in, bringing back the memory of being injected by something that felt as though she were being turned inside out. The words Samoan had spoken after injecting her flowed inside her mind. It wasn’t possible. How could she change into a cat?

  Fear flooded her, and she scrambled off the bed. “What did Samoan do to me?”

  Rising to his knees on the bed, Jagger peered at her with fear and concern in his expression. This couldn’t be good. If the Death Demon was afraid, then the world was about to end. “Listen carefully. It is very important that you remain calm and keep an open mind.”

  Uh-oh, she wasn’t going to like it one bit. “She said my father was part wereleopard.” Reality slammed into her as her mind connected with the meaning of the demon’s words.

  Now you will be one.

  She took another couple of steps backward. “This can’t happen. It’s not possible.” The statement came on a growl that sounded too close to that of a cat. She clamped her hand over her mouth.

  “If you don’t calm down, you’ll change again. And it will hurt like hell.”

  She froze, disbelieving and pissed at the whole situation. Taking several deep breaths, she calmed her irritation, a little. “How is this possible?”

  He stood and turned his back on her to stare out the floor-to-ceiling windows. She watched his back muscles tense. He was hiding something.

  “Samoan gave you a serum that awakened a gene inside you that allows you to shift.”

  “A gene? Samoan said my father was a were.”

  “We’re not sure. You could be a wereleopard or something else.”

  Something else? He believed she was a monster. Fury burned its way through her veins. How could he say that? What did he mean? Pain gripped her, and she shook. Fuck. It was happening again. “How…do…I stop it?”

  He turned to face her, shaking his head. Anger blurred her vision. Every joint in her body ached. Why wasn’t he helping her?

  His mouth moved, but she couldn’t hear him.

  An aggression unlike any she had felt before filled her, and the urge to attack was fierce. She fought it, trying to push it back. She called the elements. The French doors flung open, slamming against the walls. Wind blew furiously through the opening. Lightning flashed in the night sky.

  But nothing eased the pain or slowed the shift.

  No. I’m speeding it up.

  Damn it. Jagger did nothing to help.

  One last scream ripped from her throat, and she lunged for her prey.

  Jagger dodged Khloe as she jumped toward him, her long, sharp fangs bared as she hissed and growled at him. He tried to calm her, telling her not to resist the change, but she didn’t hear him. His heart ached to witness the amount of pain she went through. The first time she’d changed at the farmhouse in Georgia, she hadn’t understood what was happening. She still didn’t understand it, but she’d known it was coming.

  This time, she fought—and fought it hard. That only made the shift into the leopard more painful.

  In two strides, he had her pinned to the bed with his body and held her huge cat head in his hands to keep her from biting. He couldn’t allow her to take blood this early. She would crave the hunt, and they were in the middle of the city with roughly eight hundred thousand people.

  She growled deep in her chest, and her tail slapped against the bed repeatedly.

  “You have to calm down.” Jagger loosened his grip on her slightly.

  Big mistake. Her hind leg kicked him in the groin, loosening his hold more. The sting of sharp teeth puncturing his hand drew a curse from him. He jerked his hand back, and Khloe fled. Fuck. She’d drawn blood. Jumping off the bed, he faced her as she panted by the opened French doors. He held a hand out, and she growled and moved back, closer to the balcony.

  He stopped and dropped his hand. “Lo. We can work through this. We’ll figure it out.”

  Another growl followed by a hiss was his answer before she turned, ran, and jumped onto the patio railing. With one last look at him, she jumped.

  Jagger screamed her name and rushed to peer over the side of the terrace in time to see her dematerialize. He pushed off the railing when the phone rang. He groaned. Damn twins and their psychic bonds.

  “She’s on the run.” No use trying to lie to Kalissa. The witch already knew. Hell, she had probably already tried to link with Khloe and failed.

  “I know. She’s scared. What the hell is going on?”

  Breathe and count to ten. “She’s pissed at me, Samoan, the demons…because she doesn’t know for sure what is happening to her.”

  “I know that, too, but what did you do?”

  “I tried to calm her. Look, I need to find her. She bit me and could be high on bloodlust.”

  “I thought only vampires had that.”

  One…two… “Kalissa, I don’t have time to explain things now. I need to find your sister.”

  A shaky sigh escaped her. Great, an upset pregnant female. “I can’t link to her when she’s in animal form. I’m assuming she is a cat right now, right?”

  “Yes, she is.”

  Think, damn it. He could find her. She was his mate, after all. But they weren’t bonded. He had to try. “I’m going to find her.”

  He hung up before Kalissa had a chance to reply. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on Khloe, imagined her pink-streaked blond hair and teal eyes. The visual flashed in his mind, only to disappear just as fast.

  Pulse thundering in his ears, he couldn’t focus. Too much had happened, and there were too many possibilities. Where the hell would she go?

  Samoan.

  The one thing Jagger had learned about Khloe was her impulsive and controlling nature. She was pissed that control had been taken away from her. She would want to hunt down the person responsible.

  Without another thought, Jagger willed his body to fade.

  Materializing in a dark corner of the Riverwalk on the north bank of the St. Johns River, he inhaled deeply to take in the scents around him. All he could pick up were humans.

  He scanned the area as he walked down the sidewalk toward the center of downtown. A few yards away from the busy Riverwalk, he caught a glimpse of a large black blur. Scenting the air confirmed the dark, cat-like figure was Khloe.
<
br />   He lengthened his strides to catch up with her, but she noticed him and bolted to the other side of the street. With a soft curse, he tried tracking her with little luck. Rounding the next corner, he found himself facing a brick wall. Khloe was nowhere in sight.

  Fuck. Where are you, Khloe? How in the hell had she gotten away from him?

  A growl followed by a roar echoing off the buildings made his heart seize behind his ribs.

  Khloe.

  He took off in the direction of the sound. Rounding the corner, he caught a whiff of Khloe’s scent mixed with blood. Cold fear and adrenaline raced through his veins. His boots pounded the pavement as he ran at with inhuman speed, following Khloe’s growls.

  Skidding to a halt at the entrance of the alley, fury burned away his fear. Three demons had Khloe pinned to the ground, fighting to hold her still while Samoan crouched over her with a syringe.

  The demoness snapped her head up in his direction, her cobalt-blue eyes darkening as she smiled at him and plunged the needle into Khloe’s neck. With an evil laugh, she whispered, “It’s too late, Death.”

  They vanished, taking Khloe with them.

  Khloe’s eyes fluttered opened, and she squeezed them shut when the blinding light made her head feel like it would split open. She stretched out her tight, sore muscles and groaned at the feel of concrete against bare skin. Awareness filtered into her fuzzy memory of how she’d been captured.

  She’d been in cat form, pissed, unsure how to change back. As she’d padded through the downtown streets, trying to clear her head and figure out what the hell was going on, she came across a group of demons. They instantly knew who and what she was and attacked.

  Stupid, impulsive witch. She shouldn’t have lashed out at Jagger. She knew in her heart he had only been trying to help, but her fear of the unknown and anger at her parents for not sharing an important piece of her genetic makeup overrode her ability to reason.

  Opening her eyes slowly, she took in her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was the bars.

  Just freaking great. She was naked, cold, and locked behind bars like the animal stirring inside her.