Avoidance would only work for so long, but he’d agreed.
Evalle had hugged her body as tight as she’d been able against the passenger door, acting as if she rested. But the muscles in her folded arms had been tense and her shoulders had curved inward defensively.
Nobody that tight would have been able to sleep no matter their exhaustion.
He was a hunter, a patient man who could wait out skittish prey, so he’d murmured a few words asking the spirits to ease her soul and allow her to rest.
Within minutes of their leaving VIPER’s HQ, Evalle had relaxed into a boneless heap. He’d slipped off her sunglasses, since the interior was so dark with Sen’s protective warding that the dash lights were on even though it was midafternoon outside. Sen hadn’t warded the truck from the sun or stuck the motorcycle trailer on the back with her crotch rocket as any favor to Evalle. He’d wanted to force her into an uncomfortable situation for two hours.
Sen hadn’t said he was gunning for Evalle, but even the blind could see he had a private agenda when it came to her.
Storm understood private agendas. He had one as well and would fulfill his agreement with Sen, but on his own terms.
Which was why he’d helped Evalle sleep almost the entire drive. She shifted, her black Gore-Tex riding clothes shushing against his vinyl seats. The movement stirred her scent around the cab. She had an earthy smell, something that piqued his interest in a way Adrianna-the-sex-toy-witch hadn’t. With all the lacy trimmings on the outside, Adrianna blew cold as an arctic winter on the inside.
Took more than window dressing to make a woman desirable.
He liked his women with fire under the surface. Evalle might project a chilly façade, but she had a core of heat he’d bet would burst into an inferno with a little encouragement.
But he couldn’t afford the distraction right now or get close to someone he was tasked with keeping an eye on.
No hardship there.
Her unzipped jacket had fallen open while she slept.
She wore a loose T-shirt underneath, but from the way she slumped it was pulled tight over her hard stomach, showing her body off to perfection. A wisp of thick lashes hid her finely shaped eyes above soft cheeks. He’d seen the shape of her eyes through her sunglasses, but not the color.
Didn’t matter. They could be purple or blaze orange and she’d still be beautiful. Her hair had dried during the ride, sweeping loosely over her shoulders. One long tendril lay quietly along her neck.
Only his iron will stopped him from reaching over to stroke his fingers through all that plush hair, black as a sinful thought.
He hadn’t enjoyed a female since …
He’d lost his soul.
Just another reason not to touch this one.
Traffic started moving again in his peripheral vision, pulling him back to the task of reaching downtown by three. He wanted time to snoop around after dropping her off at her home.
He caught a tiny movement within the cab. A human without heightened powers of perception would not have noticed, but it drew his attention to Evalle.
She studied him surreptitiously from beneath eyelashes hovering low over her pink cheeks.
He could let her sleep, but he wanted her company. “Feel better?”
She hesitated for a second, but to her credit she opened her eyes—exotic green eyes the color of a baby salamander—and sat up right away, stretching. “Much. Where are we?”
“Just inside the perimeter.”
She stopped moving as she realized her eyes were uncovered. “Where are my sunglasses?”
“Above the visor over your head.”
Once she had them on again she sat back and rested her arm along the edge of the window, tapping her fingers. “What’s got traffic bogged down in the middle of the afternoon? This sucks, even for Atlanta.”
“Wreck two miles ahead, but it’ll be cleared soon.”
Her eyes took in the radio he hadn’t turned on since leaving VIPER. “And you would know this how?”
He laughed at the obvious leap she’d made. “You think I’m psychic?”
“In our line of work, that wouldn’t surprise me. I don’t know what shamans can do.”
Storm suppressed the wry chuckle stirring in his chest. Sen had called him a Navajo shaman because Sen believed what he’d been told by an agent in the northeastern division where Storm had spent the last eight months. A fair assumption, based on what Storm had led everyone there to believe. Tracing a person’s background in the world of humans was much easier than determining the origins of those with supernatural powers.
He was not entirely Navajo nor exactly a shaman.
Storm grinned at her. “You think shamans can’t read electronic message boards with traffic warnings … like the one a couple miles back?”
“Oh, crud. Forgot about those.” She smiled at herself, unable to stop a flush of embarrassment.
Seeing her face light with a casual happiness pulled at him, rousing a warm feeling he hadn’t experienced in a long while. A human feeling. He considered telling her the truth—that he had seen the car collision ahead in his mind. At one time he would have shared something so simple.
That had been before a woman he’d cared about had used things he’d told her, simple details, to steal first his soul then his father’s.
Right before she’d killed his father.
The bitch had sent his father’s spirit to wander for eternity, then turned Storm into her personal weapon.
After what seemed an eternity in hell, he’d finally figured out how to break free of her.
She’d disappeared, but he would find her. No matter what—even if he had to hunt her through multi-dimensions. And when he did, he’d free his father first and get his own soul back next.
“So are you or are you not psychic?” Evalle looked anywhere but at him.
“Sometimes.” That was all she was going to get out of him.
He’d been born with a few gifts—thanks to his South American Ashaninka grandfather—such as the ability to affect emotional response around him and to strip the truth from a liar.
“Hmm.” If she moved any closer to the passenger door, she’d meld with it.
He opened his senses to Evalle’s emotions. She was as calm as a summer sky ahead of a brewing storm, waiting for him to pounce on her. Might as well get to the heart of what had her agitated. “Tell me about Alterants.”
“Like Sen hasn’t filled you in?”
Storm ignored the swirl of anger Evalle generated and pressed again. “Is it true the last one killed nine Beladors before it was destroyed?”
Her anger whipped through her as she tensed. “He.”
That anger confused him. “He what?”
“You called the Alterant ‘it.’ We’re not things. We’re people, just as much as you or anyone else born of human parents. Yes, he shifted and killed Beladors.”
During the time Storm had been with VIPER, little had been said about Alterants until that incident. VIPER had a no-tolerance policy when it came to talking about agency business.
They silenced those who spoke too freely. Permanently.
But word traveled fast when one beast killed nine powerful beings. Impressive for any creature. He doubted mentioning that would encourage more dialogue at this point. “What else can you tell me about Alterants?”
“Like I know anything?” Evalle scoffed softly. “I’m the only Alterant walking around free I know. Never met any of the ones they caught even.” The anger smoldering beneath her earlier bout of apprehension flamed up. “Want to cut to the chase? Even if I could tell you something about Alterants, you don’t really care if they live or die, do you? Especially since the only reason you’re here is to report everything I say and do back to Sen.”
“If that’s what you want to believe—”
“That’s what I know. But I’m willing to consider testimony to the contrary if you think you can convince me.”
Storm switche
d lanes. “Just be a waste of time from what I’m hearing.” He had a choice for the next fifteen minutes they’d be in the truck. Try to settle her back down by talking about the city and how her division of VIPER operated, or stir her up a bit.
He’d never been one for the easy way, and he knew her current hot button. “If you don’t want to talk about Alterants, then tell me about your local demon problem. Counting the Birrn killed this morning, that makes two, right?”
He paused for her to answer. Not a word. “Going to be hard to work together if we don’t share information.”
“What do you want to know?”
Time to find out if she lied as much as Sen indicated or if Sen really was singling her out unfairly, as she believed. “What do you know about the demon killed in Atlanta this morning?”
Silence is usually the first sign of a lie, and her lips were buttoned tight.
EIGHT
Evalle cursed herself for letting her mouth walk her from an annoying conversation into a dangerous one.
She shouldn’t have gotten her dander up when Storm asked about Alterants and played the conversation for a bit. Now she had to talk about the demons, a topic where she might not be able to answer every question truthfully. With his ability to tell a lie from the truth, running blind across an interstate in Atlanta at rush hour was safer than any discussion with him.
“Your demon problem?” Storm pressed.
As if there was only one?
The blasted clock and traffic were conspiring against her. She needed a diversion. “Got any water in here?”
Storm didn’t respond or acknowledge her comment.
Not verbally anyhow.
He drove his olive-green Land Cruiser—not one of the hot new models but a classic from the ’70s—with one hand on the steering wheel, eyes staring at nothing, yet taking in everything. Including her, but the only change in his face that indicated he’d heard her speak was the dubious tilt of his mouth. She wouldn’t call it a full commitment to smile, just enough to let her know he’d only allow her to evade him for so long. “Water’s behind your seat. Grab me one, too.”
She wrenched around and lifted the lid on a scarred-up six-pack-size cooler and dragged two plastic bottles out of the ice. After handing one to him, she slumped back against her seat, wishing she could use her power to lift cars out of the way.
It would take maybe another fifteen minutes to reach her exit. Sen had never liked her much, but bringing in Storm to hang her surprised even Evalle.
That she’d actually fallen asleep in front of him surprised her even more.
Storm cleared his throat. That would be warning number two that he was not going to wait much longer.
She zipped her jacket, appreciating the cool air circulating through the truck even if it did push his attractive scent past her defenses to make her notice. “What do you want to know about our demons?”
“I’m most interested in the Birrn.”
Of course he was, ’cause she was just that lucky. “What about him?”
“Did you kill him?”
That was direct as all get-out, but she had an honest answer. “No.”
“Do you have any idea who killed him?”
Think, Evalle … If she gave up Isak, it would implicate her in the worst sort of way. So she settled on another truth that would keep Polygraph off her back. “Yes, but I’m not ready to say until I have solid evidence. VIPER’s rules,” she added, reminding him that agents couldn’t make claims of any wrongdoing without proof. Isak hadn’t killed the demon.
His friggin’ awesome gun had.
More to the point, the Birrn’s master had killed him by sending the demon into the line of fire.
Storm flipped on the truck’s turn signal and slipped into a space in the bumper-to-bumper traffic that magically opened up. She eyed him closely, trying to discern if he’d used any power to do that. He drove with a fluid grace, confidence in every move.
This guy could probably do ten things at once, so why had he stopped rattling off questions?
She would normally welcome silence right now if she didn’t feel as though she was waiting on the hangman to build his gallows.
“Sen said you had other demon problems?” He asked that in a smooth and disarming voice, but she lived every day watching over her shoulder for a threat, with Sen and Tribunals leading the pack.
Nothing Storm could say in any tone could disarm her.
“As far as I know we have no current demon problem, especially since the Birrn was killed.” Truth. Technically. The Cresyl demons were also dead so, poof, no demon problem at this very minute.
However, the mauled body in the morgue?
Still a problem.
But she was getting the hang of maneuvering around his questions. She allowed her shoulders to relax.
“Is there any other problem connected to the demon death I should know about?”
“No.” That was the absolute truth. The less he knew, the better for her. She cheered silently when Storm turned onto Centennial Boulevard. A couple minutes and she’d be out of this truck. “Take the next left, then cross over Peachtree Street. I’ll show you where to park.”
He gave her a quiet nod.
Something warned her quiet was not necessarily an encouraging sign with him. He couldn’t have run out of questions, and she’d sparred nicely so far, if she did say so herself.
Bring it on.
When he reached a parking lot at the rear of a closed restaurant off Peachtree Street near North Avenue, she directed him to pull in and park. He should appreciate that the lot was empty, which allowed him plenty of open space for jockeying the motorcycle trailer.
As he parked the truck, his mouth quirked with that hint of a smile again, one that lacked any humor. “You want me to believe you live in this abandoned restaurant?”
“No. I don’t live here.” Evalle zipped her jacket up the last few inches to her chin and pulled her leather gloves on. She reached around to lift her helmet from the backseat. Every inch of her skin would be covered before she stepped outside. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Thank Sen. He’s the one who warded the truck so the sun wouldn’t affect you.”
Yeah, so the bastard could spy on her. She lowered the helmet to the top of her thighs. “I’ll be sure to do that.” She let her sarcasm flag fly high.
Other than the lifting of one eyebrow, Storm didn’t ask why she and Sen were like a cobra and a mongoose around each other. “First watch is scouting Piedmont for any sign of the Ngak Stone or anything out of the norm during the daylight hours. You and I are to take over for that team at dark. Give me your address and I’ll pick you up at eight.”
Did he really think that would work? That she’d tell him her address when she hadn’t let him drive her home? She had to find Isak, deal with a mauled body in the morgue, find the twins and talk to Grady first. “I’ve got a few things to do before I get to the park. I’ll meet you at the Piedmont Road entrance at midnight.”
No smile this time. Storm didn’t take the brush-off well. “Sen expects you to work with me.”
“Sen doesn’t own me, and VIPER doesn’t feed me or pay my bills.” She’d spoken softly, but he shouldn’t have missed the warning in her words.
“He is your superior.”
“Only in his mind. I answer to him because, as a Belador assigned to VIPER, I have an obligation to the team and I always honor my commitments.” She should just go along to get along, but she’d learned a few things after working around so many alpha males. The worst mistake she could make was allowing one to think he gave her orders. Storm was no higher in rank than her, even if Sen treated everyone else—even a Sterling witch no one in their right mind would trust—with more regard than Evalle.
For me, Sen brought in a two-legged truth serum who could track preternaturals.
But the bitch-witch had carte blanche.
Yeah, Sen was an idiot who let hatred blind him and make decisions he
would one day come to regret.
Her thoughts went back to Storm and what he’d done to settle her panic during the meeting. Had he been giving her a sample of his powers, proving he could influence her at will? She hated being at anyone’s mercy and would not tolerate him using his powers or majik to get his way.
No one controlled her. Ever. She was free and she intended to stay that way. No matter who or what she had to sacrifice.
Storm turned to her, a picture of calm if you didn’t notice the anger kindling in his brown eyes. “You have a duty to VIPER, which means following orders even if you don’t like Sen. You don’t want to answer questions. You don’t want to meet at a reasonable time to get started. You don’t want to work together, period. Sen said no one else would work with you besides your buddies Tzader and Quinn. I’m starting to see why.”
Oh, that set her off. The others wouldn’t work with her over a birth defect she couldn’t help, and all of them were quick to rub her nose in it. As for Sen …
“Let’s get something clear, Storm. My duty requires that I follow the agency rules—just like every other agent—but no one dictates what personal information I share, like where I live or what hours I work.” Because if they knew, they could come for her, spy on her, or worse, find evidence to lock her up for eternity. “Not unless Sen wants to make that a new rule for all the agents to declare their addresses on a community database.”
“Look, I didn’t mean—”
She didn’t take a breath. “I also have a job at the city morgue, a position that allows me access to vital information we need, especially for containment to protect the civilians. If I don’t check in with my supervisor there tonight, I will lose my job, and you don’t ever want to know how hard it is to find a night job with flexible hours that pays over minimum wage. And in case you were born on the sun and haven’t noticed, it’s summer and the night hours are short.”
“I understand—”
“No, you don’t.” He had the option of living a normal life in a normal world. People didn’t judge him based on genetics he couldn’t help, and no one had ever locked him away like an animal because of it.
Blood Trinity Page 11