A Fire in the Heart

by L. J. LaBarthe

  “It could work,” Angelique said.

  “No, it won’t,” Declan said, shaking his head. “You’re forgetting those wards. If any of you Venatores try it, they’ll grab you.”

  Liam sighed. He knew what that meant. “We’re going in, huh?”

  “I think we have to, bro.”

  “We can go with you, though,” Baxter said.

  “No. We’ll try the one near the library first, but you guys stay in the library itself and don’t you damn try to follow us. My brother loves you too much for you to be all heroic and get nabbed by a bunch of nasty fuckers, and Angelique, I kinda like you, enough that I don’t want you to get nabbed, either. Same for you, Riley.”

  “He’s right,” Riley said. “Michael’s already had enough stress from one of us being injured; can you imagine how he’d react if one of us were captured or worse? It wouldn’t be good and it wouldn’t be rational. I can imagine him marching on these places and trying to use his power and finding himself in a whole heap of trouble.”

  “But you’re a shifter, Declan,” Angelique said.

  Declan nodded. “Yeah, and I know how to hide it so wards and such won’t pick up on it. You don’t.”

  Angelique huffed. “I don’t like this.”

  “Who does?” Baxter was frowning. “You better keep Liam safe, Declan, or I’ll be angry.”

  “And I wouldn’t like you when you’re angry?” Declan asked, quirking an eyebrow in amusement.

  “No, no you would not.” Baxter leaned back in his seat. “When are you going to do this?”

  “We need to get a few things. Meet us back at the library in four hours.” Declan got to his feet. “We’ll take care of things and come and meet you after we’ve been inside and taken a look around.”

  Angelique sighed. “Fine, okay. Good luck.”

  “Thanks,” Liam said. He stood up as well. “We’ll let you know if we need anything, but I can’t see that happening.”

  “Me either.” Declan clapped Liam’s shoulder. “Let’s do this.”

  Liam nodded and followed his brother out of Starbucks and onto the street. He didn’t dare look back at Baxter. He didn’t want his concentration or focus distracted by his worry that he might disappoint his lover in some way, and he knew that Baxter was already worried.

  “It’ll be fine,” Declan said as they walked down the street.

  “I know. I’m just not happy about this whole situation.” Liam shook his head. “Are we going to leave our stash here?”

  “Yeah.”

  Liam nodded. After the war, he and Declan had left stashes of necessary items in various cities around the US—caches of magic supplies, money, fake IDs, and a few changes of clothes, most of them nondescript and designed to make them look no more threatening than a tradesman. It had been one of the first things they’d done as they’d started tracking and killing demons who chose to linger on Earth and try to harm humans, and it had proven to be a very good idea.

  “Damn lucky we passed through here a few years ago,” Declan said as they turned down a narrow alley.

  “I was just thinking that. What are the odds, of all the towns and cities we’ve been to, this is one of the places we left our gear, for a ‘just in case’ moment?”

  “I want you to know how hard I’m trying not to cite our Santeria upbringing as a helping hand here,” Declan said.

  “Why? It’s a valid reason. Selana taught us damn well, and the spirits and loa have been incredibly helpful.”

  Declan looked relieved. “Thank fuck. I thought it might sound a bit… I don’t know. Airy-fairy or something.”

  “Not at all.” Liam grinned at him. “Not to me, anyway.”

  “Good enough.” They’d reached the end of the alley, and Declan looked around before reaching for a rickety-looking steel ladder bolted to the wall. He began to climb, and Liam followed him.

  It wasn’t a hard climb, but it was a fair distance, perhaps two stories straight up. As they stepped onto the roof of the building the ladder was attached to, they were both puffing.

  “We’re out of shape,” Declan grumbled.

  “Time to get back into working out,” Liam agreed.

  Declan grunted and made his way over the roof to a small brick structure that had at one time been a furnace. Now it was bolted closed and had the appearance of being soldered shut. Declan squatted down on his haunches and ran a hand over the seam between the door and the brick, murmuring a few words. In the wake of his hand, a soft gold light traveled downward, and when he’d finished, there was a click—and the door opened.

  “All here,” Declan said, reaching in and pulling out a large canvas bag.

  “Good.” Liam set down his backpack and began to tug off his clothes. “Let’s look like janitors.”

  Ten minutes later, dressed in dark blue coveralls, fake IDs on lanyards around their necks, Liam repacked the canvas bag and pushed it back into the recess of the old furnace. He closed the door, and just as Declan had earlier, he ran his hand down the seam between door and wall, murmuring in Spanish, reestablishing the magical security that protected the structure and their supplies within. He got to his feet when he’d finished and stretched, then looked at Declan, who’d donned a pair of sunglasses.

  “You know those aren’t a great disguise, Clark Kent,” Liam said.

  Declan flipped him his middle finger. “The sun’s bright, doofus.”

  “Oh, okay, not planning to change into blue and red Lycra, then?”

  “Nah, it’s being dry-cleaned today.”

  Liam laughed. “Fair enough. We should go out onto the street by a different route—just in case.”

  “Do you think I’m dumb or something? I know that. This isn’t my first job, you know.”

  “Sorry, sorry.” Liam held up a hand. “I just want this over with.”

  “Yeah, I get that.” Declan looked around. “Over there.” He pointed to an adjoining building to their right. “There’s a fire escape we can climb down.”

  “Okay. Lead the way.”

  Carrying their backpacks so they looked like nothing more threatening than work bags, Declan and Liam made their way down the fire escape, then back out to the street. They crossed the road and walked briskly toward the building by the library, talking about the weather and giving every indication that they were exactly what they appeared to be: two janitors on the way to work.

  Continuing along as if they were meant to be there, the two of them made their way around to the building’s side entrance. There was a sign marked, “Service entrance,” and taking a quick look around to be certain no one was watching them, Liam moved to try the door. It was unlocked, so with Declan close behind him, he opened it and went into the hallway beyond.

  “Into the belly of the beast,” Declan muttered.

  “It really feels like that, doesn’t it?”

  “Yeah. You wearing your protection amulet?”

  “Of course I am. Are you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then we’re good.” Liam walked to the end of the hall and paused, looking first left and then right. Although they both wore their amulets, crafted by Jake and spelled by Selana, Liam wasn’t sure they’d be able to do more than ward off a curious look. He reached out, using his Necromancer talent to feel for any ghosts or psychic disturbances, and found nothing. That was actually more eerie, and he frowned.

  “Well?”

  “Nothing.” Liam turned to his brother. “It’s just an empty corridor.”

  “Okay. Let’s go find the janitor’s room and look like we’re cleaning.”

  They walked down the corridor, opening the few doors they passed. Liam was on edge; he felt as if his nerves were wound so tight that they might snap like a brittle twig. Each room he and Declan looked into contained little more than bare tables and stacks of chairs. Frustration began to war with tension, and he almost jumped out of his skin when Declan hissed his name.

  “Found the janitor’s closet. Though it�
�s more like a janitor’s storage room.”

  “Thank God. I’m getting too old for these stressful jobs.”

  Declan chuckled and went into the janitor’s room. “Yeah, me too. Still, no one else to do it, is there.”

  “No.” It hadn’t been a question, but Liam answered it anyway. In the janitor’s room, they found the usual tools of that trade, and Liam shrugged on a backpack-style vacuum cleaner as Declan grabbed a large plastic carry tray containing cleaning products.

  “Let’s go upstairs. Do they use the whole building or just one floor?” Declan asked.

  “Top floor. I’m sure they use the whole place, but the important things will be up there.”

  “How do you figure?”

  “Because it’s up high and they can survey their domain like evil overlords? I don’t know, I’m guessing. Let’s start at the top and work our way down.”

  “All right.”

  Together, they left the janitor’s room and walked to the end of the hallway. There was another hall there, and at the end of it was a pair of elevators. They went to them, Liam pressed the call button and they waited. A few moments later, the doors of one elevator opened, and they went in. Liam pressed the button for the top floor, the doors slid closed, and the elevator began to make its way upward.

  “I think we should just go into each room, clean, and look around,” Liam said. “Let’s not make this any more complicated than necessary.”

  “Agreed. Just one thing—I hate cleaning.”

  Liam laughed. “So do I, dude. But do you really think janitors enjoy it? It’s a job.”

  “I guess. Yeah.”

  The elevator came to a stop, and the doors opened. They exited and began the slow process of cleaning and searching.

  It took them a while. Liam was getting more than a little fed up. He’d vacuumed four large offices and rifled through filing cabinets and computer files and found nothing. And there was no one around—no one at all. Liam couldn’t hear any of the usual sounds made by people who worked in an office, nor the sounds of anyone in a board meeting of some sort.

  “This place is super creepy,” Declan said as he finished polishing a table.

  “Right? Where the hell is everyone?” Liam moved to sit at the table and turned on the computer. And then, “Holy fucking hell, pay dirt!”

  “What? Really?” Declan moved to stand beside him, peering over his shoulder.

  “Yeah. This explains why they’re not in the office today: they’re all on a building site, inspecting a new facility. Those bastards are going to keep on doing their experiments!”

  “This must be a manager’s office,” Declan said.

  “I’m copying the drive,” Liam said.

  “And while you do that, I’m going through this guy’s stuff.” Declan began to open the desk drawers, carefully going through the contents. “He’s got a wife and kids! Can you believe that?”

  “Yeah. He probably doesn’t think that what he’s doing is wrong at all. He’s a chemical physicist, too. There’s loads of notes here about various experiments.”

  “Copy ’em.”

  “I am.”

  Declan moved to the filing cabinet standing by the door and picked the lock with quick efficiency. “Did you bring that digital spy camera?”

  “Dude, it’s not a spy camera.” Liam shot Declan a look over the top of the computer monitor.

  “Whatever. Did you bring it?”

  “Yeah, it’s in here, in my bag.”

  Declan moved to grab the bag and pulled out the camera. “Files of interest,” he explained as he moved back to the filing cabinet and began to photograph the contents of various files.

  “Let’s be quick,” Liam said as he connected his portable minidrive and began to copy the contents of the computer’s hard drive. “I want to get out of here with no one the wiser.”

  “I know, I know.” Declan continued to work, and Liam watched the slow movement of the process bar as the drive copied over.

  Finally, after what felt like an eternity but was only five minutes, the drive was copied, and Liam disconnected his own and stuffed it into his backpack. Then he erased every trace of his presence, using every trick he knew. He heard Declan close the filing cabinet and jiggle the lock, and then his brother was at his side, putting the camera away.

  “Done?” Declan asked.

  “Just about.” The computer chimed, and Liam shut it down. “Now I am.”

  “Good. Let’s get out of here. We’ve been here too long as it is.”

  “How long?” Liam asked as he grabbed up everything and went to the door.

  “Three hours.”

  “Shit.”

  They ran down the hall to the elevator, and the short wait for the doors to open felt like excruciating torture. Just as Liam was on the verge of suggesting they take the stairs, the elevator opened, and they stepped inside, selected the basement level, and leaned back against the wall.

  “Goddamn,” Declan said.

  “Tell me about it. I won’t feel safe until we’re in the public library, though.”

  “Same here. But we need to go back to our stash and change.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  The elevator stopped, the doors opening, and Liam stepped out. Declan was right behind him as they ran back to the janitors’ rooms and returned the tools of their disguise, and then they were running out of the building, out of the side alley and down the street, heading toward the relative safety of their stash.

  “I bet Angelique’s about to have a conniption,” Liam said to Declan as they ran.

  “I wouldn’t bet on that, because she’s probably had two,” Declan called back.

  Twenty minutes later, back in their normal clothes, Liam and Declan made their way into the public library. Liam felt his heart still pounding, and he knew he really wouldn’t feel safe at all until they were out of this lovely city in Maine and back in Salem, in a building protected and warded by Archangel power and with dozens of Venatores and a handful of angels lingering nearby.

  Angelique all but pounced on them when they entered the library, her eyes wide and her cheeks flushed. “What the hell took you so long?” she hissed.

  “It took a bit to find something,” Declan said. “Can we call Shay now and get the hell out of here, please?”

  She glared at him for a moment and then nodded. “All right. Pack, let’s go.”

  Baxter joined Liam, taking his hand as they went back out of the library. “How’d it go?”

  “Damn stressful. I’ll tell you all about it when we get home.”

  Baxter gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “No problem, big guy.”

  11

  “SWEET BABY pandas, I’m glad we’re out of there.” Liam flopped onto his back in the long grass behind Michael’s mansion and spread out his arms.

  “Dude, I feel like a rock,” Declan said. He dropped down to sit on the grass opposite Liam.

  “I take it we’re going to sit outside for a while?” Angelique asked.

  Liam sat up. “Dec and me need to get our breath back. That was totally fucked-up. And what was most fucked-up was just how damn normal that whole place was.”

  “All right,” Angelique said as she sat down, “tell us what happened; then we’ll go inside and see what amazing things you’ve found.”

  “We should probably go to Portland and hang out in Archdemon central for that part,” Declan said.

  “Yeah, I bet Ondrass has some amazing, top-of-the-line, superpowered computer in his skyscraper lair of darkness,” Baxter added. He sat down beside Liam and gently slid his fingers through Liam’s hair.

  “That’s nice,” Liam said, turning to face him.

  “Get a room later, you two,” Angelique said. “What happened?”

  “We went in, pretended to be janitors, and cleaned four office rooms,” Declan said. “I’ve got dishpan hands.”

  Everyone burst out laughing.

  “Oh, you poor delicate petal,”
Angelique said. “I’ve got some lavender moisturizer inside; we’ll get that for your hands.”

  “Thank you,” Declan said. Then he sighed and leaned back on one elbow. “The whole place was creepy because it was so damn normal. I mean, we know these people are behind that nightmare mountain and those damn experiments, but there was nothing unusual in the entire building.”

  “We were damn lucky,” Liam said. “We picked a day when no one was in the office—they were all out on-site somewhere, looking at their new facility.”

  “Wait, what? You mean they’re building a new one to keep doing those horrible things?” Baxter asked.

  “I guess so.” Liam shook his head. “Anyway, the fourth office room was where we hit pay dirt. I copied the drive of the computer over, and Declan got some copies of some files. What little I did see isn’t good. They’re working on some kind of drug, some kind of chemical. They’ve got a new facility. They don’t seem to give a shit that the place in Yaak went all to Hell. They’re just determined to continue their asinine plan until they’ve made sure no one can get into Earth’s reality from any other reality.”

  “They think they’re on the right side of history,” Declan said. “The files I looked at… guys, they really think that we’re the bad guys. They know about the Venatores. They know about the witches that help the Archangels. They know about the shifters. They know this because they have a coven who works with them. That coven is now working on-site of the new location of their facility to make sure what happened at Yaak doesn’t happen again.”

  “A coven?” Riley echoed. “Do you know who is in that coven?”

  “It’s in the files I photographed,” Declan said. “There’s probably something in the stuff Liam got, too.”

  “We’re going to be spending a long time going through information,” Liam said. “So yeah, probably best to do it at Ondrass’s building. I mean, he’d have security to keep out just about anything, wouldn’t he?”

  “You know this place isn’t exactly unsecured, either,” Angelique pointed out.