“I know him.” He said, leaning closer. The dark curly hair and muddy eyes were so familiar, but it took him a moment to connect the face with a name and location. “I know him.” He repeated and Adrian watched him, waiting.
“This is CeCe’s research assistant-Xander something.” He said his eyes wide. “This can’t be the one that killed Nicky. CeCe said it was-smaller. This isn’t the demon we’re looking for. It’s still out there.” Adrian ran a hand over his mouth. Remy rose slowly his mouth suddenly dry.
“What does this mean?” Adrian asked.
“It’s hunting her,” Remy whispered. The words were barely out of his mouth when Gaston spun on them his face pale and tense with fear.
“Gaston? What’s wrong?” Remy was beside his brother in a second.
“Where is Celeste?” Gaston grabbed Remy’s arm with such force that he was momentarily thrown off balance. The sheer panic in his eyes did nothing to ebb Remy’s rapidly overwhelming feeling of dread.
“Who was on the phone, Gaston?” Remy asked, grasping his older brother’s shoulders. They stood staring at each other, not saying a word.
“Gaston!” Remy yelled and seemed to break the trance his brother had fallen under.
“What’s going on?” Adrian asked, a cold chill running down his spine. He had never seen Gaston Kent look anything other than the cold businessman. But now his usually cool demeanor was shattered as he shook silently, tears pooling in his dark brown eyes.
“Did it bite her, Remy? Do you know if it bit her?” He gave Remy a shake, his brow peppered with sweat, his eyes large almost manic. Remy shrugged, as he tried to think. He’d only spoken to her on the phone, he hadn’t actually seen her. She had been sobbing, her voice high and cracked.
“I think she said it did. Yes. It bit her arm, she said. Why?” Remy’s own voice rose an octave as his stomach seemed to sink lower. “Who was on the phone, Gaston?”
“Silver Wolf, she said that Briar is turning. That thing bit him, and he’s turning and he’s out. He’s looking for her.” Remy felt his blood run cold. “Where is she, Remy?”
“With the cop,” Remy gasped. “I told her to go to the cop.”
“Why would you do that? He can’t protect her.” Gaston asked a bit taken aback. “We have to get her to the Collective’s chamber so that they can help her. She will be shielded and protected-”
“He can protect her, Gaston.” Remy said, “I’ve seen his true face. He’s Nephilim, the God Destroyer.” Gaston dropped his hands from Remy’s shoulders and Adrian gasped. “He is The Fallen One.”
FIFTEEN
Someone, no something was coming. Eli could feel the anger and pain rising in the creature and sat up with a jolt. Beside him, Celeste slept, her body relaxed her bandage arm propped up on a pillow. She looked pale to him, her forehead beading with a light sheen of sweat. Tucking the covers up around her, he kissed her warm cheek. Rising slowly as not to disturb her, he slipped on a pair of sweats and gingerly removed his Glock from the drawer in his bedside table. He glanced back at her one last time, before silently slinking down stairs to greet his guest.
The first floor was quiet, save a slow creaking coming from the kitchen. Eli paused and listened, his eyes closed, he moved closer. The creature was in the kitchen pouring something into a mug.
“Tea?” He asked and opened his eyes. Lowering his gun, Eli padded into the kitchen to find him sitting at the kitchen table, rocking back and forth in his chair, a warm cup of herbal tea on the table before him. He didn’t look up when Eli entered the room, he simply sighed.
For some reason, Eli wasn’t surprised to see him sitting there in his skin tight leather pants and stylishly ragged t-shirt, his leather jacket was well worn, but obviously very expensive. He wore no jewelry except small gold hoop earrings in each of his ears. He leaned forward, his elbows on the table as he inhaled the sweetly floral aroma of the herbal tea.
“Celeste always told me that I should drink chamomile tea. She said it would help me sleep better.” He said. Eli didn’t respond.
“She’s still asleep then? Good. I came to talk to you.” He looked up and Eli was taken aback by his appearance. The once golden skin was pale, almost ashen. His bright blue eyes were obsidian and hollow, his cheeks sunken and the platinum hair was tinged black at the roots.
Eli took the seat across from him, placing the gun on the table before him. That garnered a raised eyebrow from his guest.
“Planning on shooting me, Det. Cain?” He asked with a crooked smirk. His smiled was the only thing that remained of the golden rock star.
“Won’t work. Believe me, I’ve tried.” To illustrate his point, his lifted his chin to expose a scarred over bullet wound. “But I’m always willing to give you a shot at it. Pardon my pun.” He sipped the tea and grimaced. “What’s the point of having eternal life if you can’t enjoy it?” He signed and ran a hand over his spiky hair. “You know your senses are heightened to the point of pain. Every sense is magnified to the point of insanity. I guess that’s why we mostly come out at night. Less people on the streets, less activity, less...noise. But it’s so lonely.” He whispered.
“Did you come here to tell me that, Nicky?” Eli asked. He wanted a beer, he thought and it appeared before him, a tall cold bottle of beer, cap off and waiting. It surprised him, but then, it was something he thought he could get used to.
“Nice trick. I’ll bet you’re learning all sorts of things about yourself.” He teased, sipping his tea carefully. Eli rolled his eyes.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re here? It’s late.”
“Yes,” Nicky conceded. “It is, and he’s coming, the giant.” He said remorsefully. “I came here tonight to warn you.” He said after a while. This time Eli lifted a brow. “Something is coming for you. And it’s not just the Assiri.”
“Assiri?”
“The little demon hobbit who did this to me; it’s called Assiri. I think it may be as old as you are. Yes. I know who you are. I know because it knows. When it changes you, you become connected; it’s like a symbiotic relationship. I know what it knows, I see what it sees. And what it sees is a way to take down the Council ... with you. The Assiri is about to set off a chain of events that will bring about a war in otherworld. The Dark Fae are counting on it. You and Celeste, together are the key to stopping it. So the goal of the Dark Sisters and the Dark Queen is to use the Assiri to bring out the Fallen One.”
“You mean me?” said Eli. Nicky put his finger to his nose and smiled ruefully.
“I’m not a demon. I’m an angel, at least that’s what I was told.” He grunted and swallowed the remainder of his beer.
“You’re a god, but that’s beside the point. Demons and Angels are not that different. In fact they are one in the same. All angels have demonic blood and vice versa. The king of all demons, Satan himself was born an angel. Anyway, getting you to go rogue as it were, that’s where the Assiri comes in. Since you are a ghost, you have no alliance with either side. In football terms you’re a free agent and can sign with anyone you want. You’re not obligated, but you are involved with one of the highest ranked members of the Collective.” He gave Eli a wink.
“Broke the maiden head have we?” Eli gave him a warning look and Nicky laughed holding his hands up in surrender. “Don’t get upset. I’m just saying I know that she cares for you, loves you. I get it. And so do The Dark Fae, those damn sisters planned on that happening once they discovered you. They managed a deal with the devil so to speak. It was to get close to her. The idea was to use your love for Celeste to release the beast, but something about the Assiri that the sisters didn’t understand when they set it loose. That fucker is insane. You can’t control insanity, and that is where they lost it. You see the Assiri likes what it calls pretty things, hence, my initiation into the land of the undead. I guess I was a little too sparkly to resist. Same thing with CeCe, she’s a little too dazzling to resist. Only problem is she didn’t do what the Assiri thought
she would, and she killed one of us...them. Whatever.”
“And they thought killing her would bring me to their side?” Eli asked, manifesting another beer. Nicky nodded.
“By killing Celeste, you would become their weapon against the Collective. The Collective who were supposed to be protecting the Caelestis. They would use your pain to take down the entire otherworld government, then the Council of the Gods. After all, who better to kill a God than a God? And you, my very pretty friend are one of the oldest and most powerful. Don’t get me wrong, the Collective isn’t completely innocent either. Some of them have motives regarding you that are purely selfish. They want you in their service just for the intimidation factor and the bragging rights, and because you’re a breeder. They would keep you two and use you to breed an army of super soldiers, breeding Nephilim, an army of indestructible killing machines.”
“Why are you telling me this? How are you telling me this?” He finally asked.
“The Assiri is asleep, it’s like it dies when it goes to sleep. It can’t see me then. And I’m telling you this because I love her. I love her but I can’t protect her, I couldn’t even protect myself. Look at me Eli. I’m dying. This- thing is taking over and soon there will be no more Nicky, no more human left. Soon I will be just another symbiote to the Assiri like the half a dozen or so other pretty things it’s collected, unless it dies permanently. You are my only hope of killing it. You need to get her out of here. She’s going to need help now because it’s trying to take her as well. The Assiri has very different ideas for her than the Dark Fae or even the Council could ever imagine.” He reached across the table and grasped Eli’s hand in both of his. “Promise you will not let this happen to her.” Tears filled his eyes making them looks like wells of ink. “Promise.”
Eli nodded his own eyes wide. The emotion that poured from Nicky filled him, making him want to weep for the man. He was rapidly losing his battle with the Assiri, but he fought with all he had to protect his friend, no his family. Celeste was Nicky’s family.
“I promise,” Eli choked.
There was a thud coming from the front porch. The sound grew louder and louder, until it sounded as if someone were ripping the streets up outside. The walls shook, rattling the dishes in the cupboard. Something that sounded like a freight train made the entire house shake. Nicky sighed heavily and rose to his feet.
“He’s here,” Nicky groaned. There was a booming crash and the floor shook, knocking pictures off of the walls. Cold November air rushed into the kitchen in a gale, blowing the curtains and debris from the shattered door into the room. The lights flickered and the entire house seemed to vibrate every time whatever was approaching took another thundering step closer.
Nicky looked pained every time another footfall echoed from the blackness in the hallway. Whatever was coming was large enough to block out the moonlight. It looked like a mountain moving forward, large dark eyes glittered and the harsh sound of labored breathing preceded the moving mammoth.
“Just remember this, Eli, those that seem friend may in fact be your enemy. Those that seem enemy may be your greatest ally. The Dark Sisters are not what you would expect, so be careful. They are not what they seem; they are greed, betrayal, lust and envy wrapped in pretty packages. Watch your back because they will do whatever they can to tear you apart. Be wary of pretty little birds who whisper in your ear. You have the gift of truth, use it. Never let your guard down. Never let your emotions get out of control because the moment you do, they will have you. You are the only thing standing between them and the destruction of the human race as we know it. Beware Ragnarök.”
It happened so quickly, that Eli wasn’t even sure it had happened at all. As he rose to stand beside Nicky who stood near the archway to the hallway, Nicky turned on him. The barrel of his Glock was aimed at his chest. Nicky smirked and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit Eli in the center of the chest. He looked down to see the hole and the blood coursing down his bare skin. He took a step back, stumbled and found himself looking up at the ceiling. He heard a scream, somewhere, and turned to see the giant Briar grasp Celeste and toss her over his shoulder. Tears coursed down his cheeks as the pain rocketed through his body. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t move. He felt as if something were holding him down, pinning him to the cold tile floor. He gasped and heard a harsh whistling as air escaped through the hole in his chest. The bullet had pierced a lung and he could no longer breathe.
“Celeste,” he choked, the pain burning him as the last vestiges of air escaped his torn lungs. He realized then that he was dying.
Nicky knelt beside Eli, the gun still grasped in his hand. “Remember what I have told you. Remember your promise, and beware the Dark Sisters and Ragnarök. Now, time to wake up.” He placed the still hot barrel against Eli’s temple and pulled the trigger again. The room went dark.
SIXTEEN
He awoke with a start, his body drenched in a cold sweat. He touched his chest, expecting to find a gaping bullet hole, instead he found himself perfectly intact. Calming, he noticed the dim light coming from the bathroom and the sounds of Celeste being sick.
He rose from the bed, not bothering to cover his nakedness, to find her sitting naked on the floor beside the toilet. She looked pale, her body covered in sheen of sweat. He knelt beside her, and tucked a damp curl behind her ear.
“You’re burning up. How long have you been in here?” He asked.
“I didn’t want to wake you.” She croaked through dry cracked lips.
“You should have. Is it your arm?” She nodded tiredly and held up her arm. Panic immediately set in when he saw it, but he kept his face calm. Black vines of infection were growing from beneath the bandage and wrapping around her elbow. He removed the soiled the bandage, and she managed a sickening groan as she stared at it. The tiny holes were festering with something thick, black and sticky. Pus oozed from the dozens of holes and something dark moved beneath her skin. The skin between the holes was a thin net of broken flesh that strained to its breaking point. Her arm was red and swollen to nearly twice its normal size, turning yellow in some spots. The smell was that of rotting meat and filled the room, turning her already sick stomach.
“Oh my God.” She leaned over the toilet and threw up again.
“I have to get you to a hospital.” Eli said.
“No. Call Jonas or—Grace. We have to find a preternatural doctor who can fix this,” She leaned over again and threw up more.
The tinny sound of a car alarm somewhere down the block caught his attention, and Nicky’s words came back to him in a rush.
“I need to get you out of here.” He slipped on his jeans before searching for something to cover Celeste. The thudding of footsteps was coming closer and he could hear cats screeching and dogs barking. He looked out of the window and saw the shadow moving slowly up the street towards his house and his blood ran cold. He found a pair of gym shorts and a t-shirt and as quickly and carefully as he could, he dressed her, before lifting her limp body into his arms.
***
They were halfway down the stairs when the front door was ripped from its hinges and tossed across the yard. He paused and suddenly felt hands on his mouth. He turned to see Remy, whose eyes were glowing amber, and Gaston huddled with him on the narrow staircase. Remy point up, indicating that they go back upstairs, then placed a finger over his lips. Swiftly and quietly, they moved back into the bedroom, the four of them listening as Briar tore through the downstairs.
“How did you get in here?” Eli asked confused, “I thought vampires had to be invited in?”
“Really? Is that what you’re worried about right now?” Remy snapped and searched the room for some sort of exit. “Is there a back way out of here?”
“No.” Eli said. Remy and Gaston shared a look before turning back to Eli, who cradled Celeste close to his chest. Remy moved to the window, estimating the drop.
“You can jump.” Remy said. “You’ll be fine, big guy.”
/> “I can’t risk hurting Celeste. She’s already in pretty bad shape.” Gaston was touching her face, his eyes on the mangled arm that peeked from beneath the sleeve of the shirt. Nodding, Gaston looked at Remy and they seemed to communicate something before they spoke again.
“This is what’s going to happen,” Gaston was saying, “Remy and I are going to run the defense, when you see an opening, you break for the door and get her out of here.” He said. Eli found it a little disconcerting that the Frenchman in an Armani business suit was using football analogies.
They eased out of the room and moved with lightning speed down the narrow staircase. The brothers stood at the foot of the stairs, looking down the narrow hallway before signaling to Eli to follow and move into the living room. Eli sprinted down the stairs on silent feet past the two brothers standing shoulder to shoulder in preparation for battle. He’d just stepped into the destroyed living room when he saw a shadow barrel into Gaston’s back, slamming his elegantly clad form into a wall. Gaston grunted as the wall cracked open under his weight and the sheer force of the man. A human would have been knocked unconscious by such a hit. Gaston, Eli reminded himself, was not human.
“We’ve got this.” Remy smirked and ran at the mountain full speed. He launched himself into the air, landing on Briar’s leather clad back, and pulled at his neck with all of his strength, giving Gaston time to recover. He wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and smiled before he charged at the giant’s midsection, forcing him back into the hallway.
In an effort to keep from being pushed, Briar dug in his heels and grasped the wooden banister. Gaston’s surprising strength moved the mountain whose boot clad heels pulled up the floor boards. There was a ripping crack as the banister was pulled from its wooden spindles and the three went down into a tangled heap.
The First to Fall: A Fallen Novel (The Fallen Series) Page 31