Los Angeles

by Tiffany Aaron

  “Do what?” She wandered in the direction of his voice. Kaiser kept pace with her, though he stood on her other side away from Lucifer. Kaiser didn’t like the fallen angel and she couldn’t blame him. Hurt and anger shot off Lucifer like bright Chinese fireworks to stab into her mind and soul.

  When she’d first discovered she had this ability, it had been so painful to be around Lucifer. She had no way of controlling her powers and he didn’t seem interested in containing his own emotions. Over the centuries though, she’d got better and Lucifer had dulled his rage. At least he did when he was with her.

  “Help them out with these crimes?” Cinnamon and sulphur filled her nose as she approached him. “Why tire yourself out when it doesn’t matter?”

  He loomed over her, a dark shape with red and gold streaks running in his aura. Cassandra placed her hand on his arm and gasped as a strange current raced through her.

  “What was that?”

  His arm shifted under her hand like he’d shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “You have someone else’s power. Did you take a fallen’s soul, Lucifer? You said you’d never do that.” Raising her face, she sent him an accusing glare. Well, she hoped it was accusing and a glare. She was never sure what she conveyed anymore.

  “Let’s go somewhere else to talk, Cassandra. Being in a room coated with blood isn’t where I want to spend my time.” Lucifer wrapped his arm around her shoulder and a surge of energy rippled over her.

  When she had sensation again, brightness beat down on her skin and she knew they weren’t in California anymore or if they were, they were out at one of the beaches. The heat didn’t have the same filtered feel it did when she walked around Los Angeles in the smog.

  “Where are we and did you remember to bring Kaiser with us this time?” She might have been the one person—angel and human—who would talk to Lucifer that way. She wasn’t afraid of him and never had been. Lucifer sometimes forgot about the dog and left him behind. Maybe that was why Kaiser didn’t like him.

  “Somewhere in Tahiti. I think. And yes, your dog is right by your side, none the worse for wear.” Lucifer took her hand before leading her forward seven steps. “There’s a chair to your left. The seat is about four inches lower than you are.”

  Once she found the arm, she could judge distance and height with her fingers. After sitting, she leant back and crossed her legs. “Why did you bring me here, Lucifer? I have things to do back at home.”

  He chuckled and she sighed silently as the sound combined with the crash of the waves to drift over her. There was tragedy in his laugh, but there was just the tiniest hint of hope as well, and that was what she clung to.

  “I hate Los Angeles. All that hustle and bustle and pollution. I’ll never understand why these mortals destroy their world like they do. It’s not like they’ll get another one.” Lucifer cleared his throat. “But my thoughts aren’t important. I wanted to warn you about this case you’re working on with that detective.”

  “I hear you had a run-in with Nevan.”

  “Nevan? On first name basis already?” He leaned into her and breathed deeply. “And you smell like him as well. I’m impressed, Cassandra. I never imagined you had the good sense to grab onto a man like him.”

  She eased back, not liking his invasion of her personal space. Nevan was the only one she seemed able to handle being that close to her without her initiating contact. “What are you? Some kind of bloodhound? Sniffing me like that.”

  Lucifer rubbed his thumb over her cheek and she jerked away from him. “I don’t have an interest in who you fuck, my dear, but your scent has changed. I find that very intriguing. But to be honest, I don’t care who you chose to share your bed. I brought you here to warn you.”

  “You’ve already done that,” she pointed out as she lifted her face to the salt-scented breeze.

  “I know, but the more I look into this case, the more I’m not happy about it.” The creak of the chair next to her told her that Lucifer shifted in his seat. “There is something more than just a simple murder.”

  There was a subtle inflection in his voice warning her that he knew more than he was saying.

  “What do you know about this case? What ‘more’ is there?” Cassandra let her hand drop to Kaiser’s head then played with his ears like she often did when she needed reassurance.

  Lucifer hissed and she faced him, wondering what had happened to get that sound from him. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” He seemed to be forcing his words through gritted teeth. “I have to go, Cassandra. I’ll send you back to that horrible house, but promise me you’ll be careful. I wish I could tell you more about it. Unfortunately, it seems like my hands are tied when it comes to you.”

  “Is Mika’il around? Is that why you’re leaving?”

  To say the archangel hated Lucifer was an understatement. Cassandra had been caught between them when they argued, so she knew what she was talking about.

  “No. The self-righteous prig isn’t anywhere near here. I simply remembered a problem I have to take care of.” He laid his hand on her shoulder and another dark shot of power saturated her.

  When she became aware again, she sensed she was in a room and a brief flash told her Lucifer had returned her to the crime scene.

  “Kaiser?” She called. The click of toenails across a hardwood floor informed her that Kaiser was with her.

  Once the dog leaned against her leg, she sighed. “Thanks for bringing me back.”

  “I wouldn’t leave you stranded, my dear. I might be an ass, but I’m not interested in hurting you, or anyone for that matter.”

  Cassandra wasn’t entirely sure about that, but she didn’t feel like arguing. “You be careful, Lucifer. Someday Mika’il will run out of patience with you.”

  Lucifer snorted. “Cassandra, he never had any patience for me. Other forces are staying his hand, but maybe they should just let him go.”

  Exhaustion waved over her and she didn’t know if it was hers or Lucifer’s.

  “Remember watch yourself, Cassandra, and keep an eye on your detective. Powers are work here that could do damage to everyone if they aren’t contained.”

  “Thanks for the warning.”

  Then he was gone, leaving Cassandra confused as to why Lucifer had chosen to warn her. Usually it was Mika’il who delivered cryptic messages before disappearing. Like he had yesterday.

  “Cassandra?” Nevan shouted from somewhere else in the house.

  “In here,” she yelled back as she moved to the middle of the room again. Crouching, she pressed her hand to the floor and opened her channels.

  Blood everywhere, yet she was detecting a pattern in the splatters. So maybe it hadn’t been completely random. The more she studied it, the more it began to look like there’d been a purpose to the bloodletting.

  “It wasn’t just a random killing here. I think you’re going to find out that some of this is your cousin’s blood. He was killed here, but for a definite purpose. This definitely wasn’t a crime of passion.” She spoke out loud when Nevan walked into the room.

  “Yeah. I’ve been thinking about what you said the other day while you were channelling Patrick. Something about a gate and a spell.” Nevan approached her then touched her shoulder. “Are you sure you should put your hand in the middle of things, so to speak?”

  Laughing, Cassandra straightened. “The only time it’s a problem is if the blood is fresh. I can never be sure I get it off my hands and people tend to have weird reactions when they see a person with blood on their hands.”

  “Everyone has blood on their hands in some way or another.” Both Mika’il and Lucifer spoke in her head, saying the same thing. She blinked as she tried to adjust to both of them being there. It had never happen before. She just hoped they didn’t start arguing while in her head.

  “I’m sure that’s true.”

  The forward push of his aura warned her and she was ready for the kiss
he gave her. Cassandra pressed her entire body against Nevan’s, letting him take her weight while they embraced. She had no doubt he could support her without trouble.

  He slipped his hand in her hair, twisting his fingers in the strands to hold her still. She wasn’t inclined to move, but she also knew it wasn’t the right place for this. Trying to step back brought resistance from him for a second then he let her go.

  “This isn’t the place,” she murmured, stroking her hand over his chest.

  “I know and I’m sorry. It’s just been a long morning already and I missed you,” he admitted.

  She grinned as happiness surged through her. Hearing Nevan confess to missing her brought a different kind of warmth than the sunlight in Tahiti. “We just saw each other this morning before you left for work.”

  He chuckled. “Yeah. I’m starting to become pathetic. Anyway, have you learned anything new? I’m not sure coming here again was a good idea.”

  “Now that I’m prepared for it, nothing here can hurt me, Nevan. I’ve done this hundreds of times, so I’ll be fine.” She gripped his elbow with one hand while taking a hold of Kaiser’s harness with the other. “Why don’t you take me out for some lunch and we’ll exchange information?”

  “Sounds like the best offer I’ve had all day.” Nevan and Kaiser escorted her through the house then out to Nevan’s car.

  “Where is Tommy?” she asked once they were all situated in the vehicle.

  Nevan pulled out into traffic as he said, “He had to meet Sheldon for some kind of appointment, so they were going to have lunch together as well. We’ll regroup at the station.”

  “Good. I like having you to myself.” She rested her hand on his knee and tried not to freak out when she heard the other cars rushing past them. Even after having centuries to get used to it, she still wasn’t comfortable with putting her fate in others’ hands.

  It was especially bad on highways or in heavy traffic. Eli was an experienced driver and she trusted him with her life and Kaiser’s, yet there were times when she’d emerge from the back of the car soaked in sweat. It wouldn’t be nearly so bad if she could see what was going on around her. Her other senses had developed to help compensate for the loss of her vision, but they couldn’t completely take its place.

  “Tell me about McCallen. Did you know he was a member of the IRA back in Belfast before he came to the States?” She pursed her lips then qualified, “He’s probably still a member. One doesn’t give up that connection easily.”

  “How did you know that? Was there something in your visions that told you that?”

  His gaze whispered over her face before leaving and she shrugged. “Do you want to know the truth or would you prefer me to just say I have my sources?”

  Nevan’s thigh twitched under her hand, showing his discomfort. “I know you have resources that us mere mortals don’t. Keeping them secret from me doesn’t work. If it’s something I think Tommy and the others need to know, I’ll figure out a way to tell them.”

  “All right. Mika’il stopped by earlier today shortly after I arrived at the shelter. He informed me about Mr McCallen’s affiliations. Also, I had a visit from Lucifer before you arrived at the scene.”

  Tension filled the car and Kaiser growled low in his throat. Cassandra hummed to reassure him.

  “Does Lucifer visit you often?” Though it sounded casual, she could hear the worry and displeasure in Nevan’s question.

  “Yes, quite often, which I admit seems rather weird to me. All that I’ve heard of about him says he chooses to stay away from all of the fallen—Enforcers and unrepentants alike. The only one he bothered with was Christian, and I think that was because they used to be like brothers before the fall. Oh, and Mika’il. He lives to torment the archangel.” She shook her head.

  Nevan coughed like her statement shocked him. “Is that a good idea? Can’t Mika’il destroy him?”

  “Maybe that’s why he does it. Maybe he’s looking to die and since Mika’il is the one who can do it, he pushes. He hopes that one day Mika’il will forget what God told him and not stay his hand.” Cassandra wrinkled her nose. “I have no real idea why he bothers the archangel so much, and it’s not my place to worry about it.”

  “Right.” Nevan fidgeted for a second. “We interviewed McCallen, and while he didn’t mention anything except wanting a lawyer, we discovered he was part of a club here in the city.”

  She ran through the vision she’d had of Patrick’s memories. “That would make sense. If he’s involved, there would be more than one person and they would have to have some reason for getting together that would look normal to other people. Do you know if Patrick was a part of the same club?”

  “We haven’t found a connection yet, but it has to be there somewhere. Either the group buried it or Patrick did to throw everyone off.” Nevan’s muscle flexed as he applied the brakes. “We’re here.”

  “And where is here?” She knew they were in the city proper as she stepped out of the car. The sound of the traffic sort of echoed like they were in a tunnel, created by the buildings on every side, blocking them in.

  “I thought we could eat at Engine Co No 28.” Nevan tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow.

  “Oh, I’ve been here before. It’s good.” She appreciated that he waited until she had Kaiser beside her before he started walking. That way she wasn’t forced to run to keep up and Kaiser could still do his job, even with Nevan there.

  Once they were seated in a quieter corner, she checked to make sure Kaiser was tucked out of the way of the serving staff and other customers. It wasn’t fair to them to have to avoid stepping on her dog, plus it also kept Kaiser from being tripped over. He was usually even-keeled and didn’t tend to snap at people, but there wasn’t any point in testing his amiable nature.

  Nevan read the menu to her and she told him what she wanted to eat. If she had forewarning about what restaurant she was eating at, she’d check the menu online, using software that would read it to her, and make her decision before she got there. It was a way to be independent and not be a burden to the other people who might be eating with her.

  After the waiter had been and gone, Nevan took her hand in his and started talking, “Did you get anything new from your second visit to Patrick’s?”

  Nodding, she began, “There is a pattern to the blood splatter. I guess I shouldn’t call it splatter then. At least the newest blood. If they are druids, or think they’re druids, then they were doing a ritual with it.”

  “Patrick said they were trying to cast a spell to open a gate for some high priestess to return,” Nevan commented. The clink of metal on metal said he was playing with the silverware. “Do you think the group sacrificed Patrick?”

  She bit her lip for a second then said, “Druids were said to have performed human sacrifice to their deities. It might be possible that they felt such a ritual was needed to get this priestess back.”

  “I wonder if it worked,” he muttered.

  “I haven’t noticed any change in the balance in the area. Not that it would make a difference, though I would think if she was as powerful as Patrick believed, there should have been some surge or something when she returned.”

  Nevan’s sigh was long and drawn out. “Why couldn’t it have been a straight-forward murder? Normal human murders are easy to deal with. Usually love or greed causes it. With this, we have no real idea why they did, except that they might have needed his blood to cast a spell to bring back a dead druid.”

  She held out her hand and waited for Nevan to take it. “Don’t worry. We’ll figure it out. We’ll just have to see if they kill again or if it was a one-off.”

  His hand trembled in her grip. “I’d hate to think they might start murdering more people just to complete this spell.”

  Cassandra wrinkled her nose, not liking the overwhelming scent of peppermint and lavender that suddenly surrounded them. She sneezed once then again. After grabbing a napkin, she tried to contain them, but
she couldn’t. Finally, she pushed to her feet and Kaiser came out from under the table.

  “I’m going to the bathroom. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  “Are you okay?” Nevan asked.

  She swiped at her runny eyes. “I’ll be fine. Just need to go to the bathroom.”

  Nevan asked one of the waitresses to show her to the restroom. Cassandra could find her way back afterwards. She just needed to get away from the smell.

  Watching Cassandra and Kaiser navigate the crowded restaurant, Nevan hoped she’d be okay. What caused the sudden sneezing attack? It couldn’t have been anything we ate since we haven’t got our food yet.

  Before he could sit, a small woman approached him. “Excuse me, sir.”

  “Yes?”

  She was tiny and of indeterminate age, but she studied him, her gaze sharp, like she was searching for something. “Is your friend okay? I noticed she had a little attack there.”

  “Oh, she’ll be fine. Just went to the bathroom.” Nevan smiled. “Thank you for your concern though.”

  “I’m Mary St Timus.” She held out her hand and he couldn’t refuse, as much as he didn’t want to chat.

  “Nevan Largent. It’s nice to meet you, Ms St Timus.” He shook her hand, managing to keep from grimacing at how cold and clammy her skin was.

  Ms St Timus held on longer than was polite, but Nevan didn’t know how to break away without being rude. His mother had taught him to respect his elders and from what he could tell, she was elderly. A hint of peppermint drifted through the air.

  “It was nice to meet you, Mr Largent. Take care of your lady.” Her grip tightened to the point where Nevan winced as the bones in hands ground together.

  “I will, ma’am.”

  He dropped to his seat when she disappeared. What the hell was that? She had a grip like a trucker. Their food arrived at the table just as Cassandra returned. He held her chair for her then told her where everything on the table was so she could eat with making a mess.