* * * *
When Jones went into the damned gas station to pay, Mena disappeared. No doubt making a mess and a possible problem for them. Like they needed more exposure when it seemed both the fae and Silver Council were looking for them.
He twisted the gas cap back on, making it click twice, and started around the building. He hoped she was nearly done and the remains could be easily hidden.
Muffled groans of pain came from the men’s room. He sneered as he shoved the door open and stepped into a gruesome display. The filthy bathroom had a fresh coat of blood paint.
A trucker, who happened to be a troll, was chained with iron, no less, to the toilet, face down. The iron burned his skin. Mena had stripped off his shirt to tie around the knucklehead’s mouth, forming a gag.
She stood over him, drawing her nails in patterns over the troll’s back. His undershirt had been torn, and hung around him in tatters. The troll’s ass was exposed, his pants around his knees. Blood seeped from his anus. Mena carved symbols from hell over the exposed flesh. They were now burned into his skin. Her claws secreted a poison that few creatures had any resistance to.
“I thought I told you to stay in the car,” Jones called.
She turned back with her eyes flashing orange. “Didn’t like the way he was watching me. Then he made the mistake of coming to the window to tell me he wanted to bend me over the hood and show me a good time.”
Her eyes slid back to the troll as a dreamy smile brightened her expression. “I told him I’d show him something better.”
“We’re out of time. We need to go.”
She grabbed a handful of hair, lifting the troll’s face, she pulled aside the gag before forcing his mouth open and grasping his tongue. Reaching down to his belt, she extracted his own knife and sliced his tongue out of his mouth before shoving it down his throat.
“Remember,” she whispered, “no spilling a word of this.”
The troll gagged and Mena leaned down to blow a stream of fire into his open mouth before hopping up. She gracefully leapt out of the way of his thrashing limbs as he shoved his face into the toilet, trying to get to the water.
Her eyes danced in delight. “Bring the car around, would you?”
Rubbing at his forehead, he went to grab the car. Fighting over her game of torture when she was like this wasn’t effective. The boost he got from her toy’s fear was worth the short delay, but they needed to move.
* * * *
Preston shoved through the doors at Edenton’s police station. He lifted a hand in a wave at Erik, who was on the phone. Without waiting for the go ahead, he strode back to Hayden’s office and stepped inside.
Hayden sat at his desk, tapping his fingers on the surface.
Slater paced back and forth like a caged animal.
“Well isn’t this a piss party?” Preston muttered.
Slater stopped, and turned toward him. “Any news?”
“Not good. But, yeah.”
“Well, talk,” Hayden snapped.
“Toryn’s people tracked down Jones and Mena. They hopped a chartered plane to a small airport outside of San Diego. After that, they disappeared, but it seems they’re travelling by car.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Received these an hour ago.” He threw down a stack of gruesome photos. “They found signs of Mena’s work at a gas station along I-5. They’re heading north all right. Ditched that car and I assume they’ve already stolen another.”
“Fuck this,” Hayden growled. “What in the abyss are they?”
“This is Mena. A pain demon seduced Pantera, and she was the result.” Preston dropped a couple more pictures on the table.
Hayden’s brow arched. “Other than the scowl, she looks unremarkable in her human form. But in beast—her head is mostly human.”
“She has claws, not finger nails, and they’re poisonous. Her fangs secrete the same toxin. Not to mention she breathes fire.” Preston pointed at the picture of the dead troll. “She cut off his tongue and shoved it down his throat before breathing fire to sear it all together. That was after drawing some creepy ass symbols all over his back and literally shoving his keys up his ass.”
Slater shook his head. “Sounds like a peach.”
“They’re moving fast. They could be here sometime in the middle of the night.”
Slamming his fist on a table, Slater growled, “I’d rather take the fight to them. Any chance we can corner them before they make town?”
“I have a team scouring the surrounding areas for where the rest of their people are hiding. They weren’t at the facility we found Victoria in.”
Hayden shoved his chair back and stood. “Why wouldn’t they keep their base of operations with the ones they’re testing on?”
Robert shrugged. “Best guess, they don’t want the Others they’ve coerced into helping finding out how badly they are mistreating people in an effort to make stronger hunters. They create better, stronger hunters, and once they are positive they can keep them in line, they bring the new creatures in with the rest of them. They probably do a large dose of brainwashing in the process.”
Preston interjected, “I have wards being set up on any road into Edenton. We won’t have a huge amount of warning, but at least we can all be in one place when they get here.”
Slater’s hands clenched into fists. “I say we keep looking for them and try to take this fight outside of Edenton. There are too many innocent people who don’t need to be involved with the bullshit.”
“We are, Slater,” Hayden assured, “but the way they’ve stayed ahead of our efforts, I make no guarantees.”
Chapter 27
Lincoln sat at the counter drinking a cup of Earl Gray tea. Victoria told him she would get up, but she couldn’t stop yawning. He’d pulled her closer and rubbed her back until she fell asleep in his arms.
He could have stayed in bed longer but worry about Victoria plagued him. Her nightmare had jolted him awake and he couldn’t go back to sleep after that.
A polite knock pulled him from his thoughts. He strode across the kitchen and through the foyer to answer the door.
Jophiel stood there with his hands in his pockets and a grin on his face. Hadraniel was beside him with an air of mischief in his stance.
Hadraniel nodded outside. “Why don’t you come out here and we’ll see what else we can teach you about your wings.”
Lincoln stepped outside and closed the door. “We’re staying here, right?”
Jophiel nodded. “We have every intention of staying close. Several enforcers are also patrolling. We aren’t going to let anything happen to Victoria.”
Lincoln walked into the yard and turned around with his arms hanging at his sides. “So, what exactly are we doing?”
“Teaching you how to effectively use your wings in combat. It’s mostly instinct, like you did with Jones the other day.”
Lincoln shook his head. “What did I do?”
“You gashed his face with your wing,” Hadraniel pointed out.
He closed his eyes, trying to remember, but nothing came to him.
Jophiel explained, “You were pounding on Jones. He got his legs between you and shoved you back. When you twisted, your wing came up and caught him in the face, throwing him in the cell with Mena. They got through the portal too fast for us to stop them.”
“I did?” he asked, dumbstruck.
“Yup. Now we plan to show you more tricks so you have them in your head the next time you need to fight.”
* * * *
Victoria woke to the sound of grunts and blows. Opening her eyes, she found herself alone. Using the remote, she opened the shutter. The sun wasn’t down yet, but it was on its way.
Lincoln rushed toward Clint, his wings out behind him. Her breath caught as he dove at Clint who charged him.
Her heart thundered in her chest as she moved toward the window. Watching him fight was both frightening and exhilarating. Lincoln knew how to handle
himself, but the fear he might get hurt wound through her.
Lincoln caught Clint around the waist and flew forward, until they hit the ground. Lincoln straddled his waist and threw a blow he didn’t connect.
A smile spread on her lips, pride that her man so easily took down a werewolf.
Hopping back, Lincoln graciously pulled Clint to his feet. Clint nodded and gave some praise.
Slipping to the closet, she pulled on a pair of slacks and blouse while dialing to order food.
A moment later she headed outside. As she stepped through the door, Lincoln turned with a smile.
Victoria couldn’t help herself, she rushed to him. He scooped her into his arms and planted a kiss on her.
Slater’s gasp brought her head up. “You’re okay in the…” he looked up at the waning sun.
Victoria grinned. “Yeah. The first time was uncomfortable. This time, it feels warm.”
“Still winter. You can hardly call it warm,” Slater teased.
She shrugged. “Warmer than moonlight.”
“Good point.” He walked over to give her a hug. “I’m glad to see you so happy.”
She glanced at Lincoln and winked. “Needed to find the other half of my soul. Who’d have thought it would be a man a quarter my age?”
“Neither of us were very suited for our generation. This is a much better fit, for both of us.”
She laughed. “Indeed. Now, are you all hungry? I called for food. I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure what everyone would eat, but Jess promised to take care of it.”
Lincoln grinned. “I’m starved. Thank you.”
She leaned up to whisper against his ear, “Then let’s feed you, because you’ll need your stamina later. I’m addicted to you and what your body does to me.”
Blushing he leaned back, nodding.
Jophiel landed beside Lincoln. “Good evening, Victoria.”
“Same to you,” she replied.
“Seems we have the enforcers coming, Robert and Preston, as well as Hayden. It’s going to be a full house shortly.”
She smiled. “Jess promised to bring enough to feed an army.”
“That’s my woman for you,” Slater said with a laugh.
Victoria looked over. Jophiel walked toward her bare rose bushes. She wondered how Lincoln managed to keep his blooming in winter when an expert gardener couldn’t do the same for hers.
Smiling back at Lincoln, she offered, “We’ll go inside. Talk to your father.”
He brushed a kiss over her lips. “I shouldn’t be long.”
“Take all the time you need.”
After one more kiss, he crossed the yard to where Jophiel stood.
“Come on, let’s give them some space.” Victoria led everyone inside.
* * * *
Watching his son with Victoria made Jophiel miss Ethyl that much more.
“Hey… Dad.” Lincoln let out a small laugh. “That doesn’t feel as weird as I expected.”
Jophiel turned to smile at the man beside him. He tried to fight back the tears, but he didn’t have much luck. “You are an amazing man, and you deserve every ounce of happiness.”
“So do you.” Lincoln smiled slightly. “Look, I know you want to see my mother, and you will. I wish we didn’t have HARP to deal with.”
Clapping a hand on his son’s shoulder, he grinned. “Don’t say that. Without HARP you may not have gained your wings, and I might not have found you.”
“Still, they’ve caused a lot of pain and suffering for too many people.”
“I’m sorry we couldn’t get there before they hurt Victoria.”
Lincoln nodded. He touched one of the roses and watched as life infused the flower, spreading up the stem to the rest of the bush. “So am I. By giving her blood, I think I broke down the last of our barriers. She finally realizes I’m not letting her go for anything.”
“Looking on the bright side.”
“Thanks to you.”
“No. Seems to me that’s your normal attitude. Come on. I hear there’s food. You must have gained an appetite by now.”
Lincoln hugged his father. “First, I want to tell you thank you for coming to me when I needed you the most.”
“Always. Just call me.” Jophiel tapped his head. “Up here. I’ll hear it and come when you need me.”
* * * *
Robert pulled Slater aside, looked around and pulled him further, onto the porch. “I hate to do this to you, but I think going through you might be best.”
“What’s that?” Slater asked.
Preston came out and shut the door. “You’re telling him?”
“Someone needs to.” Robert turned back to Slater. “We have a problem. Simons’ daughter has a blog that’s putting Edenton’s secrets out in the open.”
Slater’s jaw clenched as he blinked. “I’m sorry, what was that?”
Robert smoothed his hands down his lapels. “Byron found Victoria through the Edenton Crier. It’s made to look like tabloids or something, but it’s all stuff we can confirm. Things the general public shouldn’t know about.”
Preston nodded with a grimace. “As the Silver Council, we took the liberty of shutting the blog down from the server end. Simons is your enforcer, and his daughter, Amelia, is responsible for leaking Edenton’s secrets on her blog. You need to talk to them.”
“Shit. That’s not going to be a happy conversation. I should probably head over there after we eat. I won’t be long.”
Robert nodded. “Don’t be. We may have a location where the rest of Jones’ squad is.”
“Why didn’t you mention that sooner?” Slater scoffed.
Robert explained, “We need Jones and Mena to make it there before we ambush. I’d prefer to take them all out at once.”
“How many are we expecting?”
Preston shook his head. “Right now, there are five or six in the building. That doesn’t include underground, but if they do like they did when they had Jophiel, whoever they have in the basement won’t be called on to defend the rest. Mena and Jones are overly confident, and must be riding a pretty big high off the people they’ve tortured at gas stations along the way.”
“Which is how we know they won’t make it to their base for three more hours. After you talk to Simons and explain the problem to Amelia, come back so we can plan what to do about HARP.”
Robert cleared his throat. “I doubt the girl has any malicious intent with the blog. She’s part of her school’s newspaper. I think she wants to write, and this is the perfect outlet. In fact, the man who runs In Other News magazine is an old friend. I could convince him to hire her as an intern.”
Slater held up his hands. “Okay, wait. Why is it not okay for the blog, but okay for an actual publication?”
“Subscribers are screened to make sure they really are Other, and the magazine itself is spelled to that date’s Enquirer for mortals. Humans think it’s a gossip magazine, while Others can read about current news. Can’t do that to a website, and the ink is all enchanted.”
Slater rubbed his hand over his face. “I didn’t even realize publications were an option. I suppose I should know what’s going on outside of Edenton.”
Preston nudged Slater. “Indeed, but we’d warn you if there was anything big worth knowing.”
* * * *
Lincoln took his plate and sat beside Victoria on the couch. “Why out here?” he whispered.
“Table is full and I don’t eat food.”
“Would you prefer I ate at the table?”
“No. I like watching you eat.” She licked her lips and leaned in, putting her jaw against his ear. “Might be that full juicy mouth of yours.”
He swallowed hard, shifting in his seat.
“Sorry, I’ll behave.”
He turned, capturing her gaze. “Some night soon we should go out—somewhere no one knows me. I’ll make it worth your while.”
She groaned low in her throat. “Now my curiosity is sparked.”
&nbs
p; “Promise, and you’ll find out when we go.”
“You have my word.”
Preston plopped down beside Lincoln with a serious expression. “You ready to take the fight to them?”
“After what they did to Victoria, you bet. Besides, they won’t stop, and we’re all on their radar now.”
“Got that right.” Preston drew in a breath. “After Slater and Simons come back, we’ll head out.”
Victoria frowned. “Where’d they go?”
Preston rolled his eyes, shaking his head. “Amelia has a blog. That’s how Byron found you, Victoria.”
“Shit. That makes sense. Tell me Simons isn’t going to flip a lid. I can’t imagine she meant any harm.”
Clint came over. “Nah. That’s Simons’ baby. He’ll go easy on her.”
Preston laughed. “Well, Robert has a solution.”
Chapter 28
Jones’ nerves hummed with energy. Mena took a new victim each time they stopped for gas. Her insatiable lust for pain had come in handy, and surprisingly not jeopardized their travel. He expected the Silver Council would eventually catch up with them.
Their team was prepped and ready, awaiting their arrival at the abandoned high school thirty minutes south of Edenton. They were ten minutes out from there. The town had been abandoned for two decades. The school building was in decent shape, but most of the town was falling apart.
Mena sat perfectly still, her eyes trained outside. “I have a bad feeling, Jones.” Her voice took on that eerie quality when shit was about to hit the fan.
“Do you think we should skip the attack on Edenton? Wait and come back later?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think we have a choice. We can’t let them get away. They’ll be looking for us after the trail we left. I’m surprised they haven’t caught up with us yet. Feels like they are waiting.”
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