The Beautiful Ashes

by Jeaniene Frost

  He went to the door, but as he opened it, I couldn’t stop from asking a question that had nagged at me. This was the last chance I’d get, even if his answer was just another lie.

  “Forget our roles, fates, whatever for a minute. When it’s all said and done, who do you think is going to win this war? Archons or demons?”

  He half turned. Though his face was only in profile, I could see that his expression matched the absolute certainty in his tone when he spoke.

  “Archons.”

  I let out a short laugh. “Is it me, or do they seem outnumbered? I’ve seen several demons, but only one of them.”

  “You’re right, they’re outnumbered.” Something else lurked in his voice now. A pained sort of wistfulness. “When it’s light versus dark, that doesn’t matter. One shadow in a brightly lit room goes unnoticed, but shine a ray of light into even the darkest corner...and everything changes.”

  Then he left, splitting my emotions right down the middle. If he believed Archons would win, how could he betray me to the losing side? Was he that brainwashed by what he’d been told was his fate, or was he just saying that to play me?

  Jasmine’s face flashed in my mind, reminding me that I didn’t have time for second-guessing. I ran over to Adrian’s duffel bag, quickly rifling through it. Once I had what I needed, I dragged a chair over to the hotel room door and stood on it. Despite my preparations, two sides of myself remained locked in battle.

  Believe him! my hopeful half screamed. Just because he thinks his awful past has doomed him doesn’t mean it has!

  It’s too late! my cynical half roared. You can’t trust him, he’s already admitted that he’s too far gone!

  Somewhere in the parking lot, a trunk slammed closed, then footsteps approached the door. I sucked in a breath, my vision blurring as I raised my hands. I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t.

  But I had to.

  The door opened—and I slammed the same large rock we kept to smash mirrors down onto Adrian’s head before he even cleared the threshold. His fist shot out with his lightning-fast reflexes, but in the instant before it landed, his eyes met mine. His sapphire ones widened, then his hand buried into the wall instead of my face.

  “Ivy?” he asked, as though confused.

  Tears streamed from my eyes as I whacked him in the head again. This time, Adrian fell to the floor, and the thump his body made seemed to reverberate all through me. I dropped the rock, sickened at how it was now stained with blood.

  “I’m sorry,” I choked out.

  He didn’t reply. In fact, Adrian was so still, I wasn’t even sure if he was breathing. I knelt, my whole body rigid from fear as I checked his pulse.

  It throbbed beneath my fingers, sending an instant wave of relief through me. He was alive! Even if he’d always meant to betray me, I never would have forgiven myself if I’d killed him. I didn’t think I’d be able to forgive myself for doing this, and I wasn’t done yet.

  I grabbed the slingshot from his bag, tying his hands and feet together with it. Then I put duct tape over his mouth, deciding to add a few more layers to his wrists and ankles, too. When he woke up, he’d be pissed, and that was only if he were innocent. If he had intended to deliver me to Demetrius after I found the weapon... Well, maybe I should use all the tape.

  When Adrian’s wrists, arms, ankles and mouth were covered by the thick gray tape, I paused. There was one more thing I had to do, and I dreaded it even more than I’d dreaded knocking him out.

  With shaking hands, I went back to his duffel bag and pulled out his knife.

  chapter thirty-two

  I tried to ignore the screech of brakes from the car next to me, but I couldn’t ignore it suddenly swerving into my lane. I veered left, avoiding that crash, yet swiping the front of the Challenger against another vehicle in the process.

  Forget everything else I’d done. Adrian was going to kill me for damaging his precious ride.

  The driver I’d sideswiped blasted his horn and slowed down, but when he drew even with me, his expression changed from anger to pure terror. I hunched down and drew the bedspread over my head until I could barely see. Too late. Another screech of brakes and he was driving off the road, coming to a stop in the grassy shoulder along the highway.

  It was dark out, and I used the hotel bedspread like a veil, but one look at my face destroyed the notion that I was just your average commuter. Seeing a hulking demon lizard behind the wheel was too much for my fellow drivers. At least it was well past rush hour, so while I’d caused a few individual spinouts, I hadn’t been responsible for a real accident yet.

  If I wanted to keep it that way, I had to get off the road. Sooner or later, some cop would finish a hysterical motorist’s sobriety test and decide to check out their story of a monster driving a vintage Challenger. Add in the fact that some of the Bennington cops were minions and I’d really be screwed.

  Still, I had to get as close to Bennington as I could. Ditching the car to run around in the open raised my chances of being seen. Not driving also meant it would take longer to get where I needed to be. I’d left Adrian back at the motel over two hours ago, so at any minute, Costa would return to the room and find him.

  Adrian. I forced back the guilt that made me feel like I’d swallowed a bellyful of acid. He’d told me he’d betray me if we continued to spend time together! Demetrius and Zach had thought so, too, and with Adrian’s admittedly bloody history, many people would agree he deserved what I’d done.

  So why was I the one who felt like a betrayer?

  To keep myself from brooding over that, I turned off at the next exit. According to the map on Adrian’s phone—yes, I’d swiped that, too—the Green Mountain National Forest bordered the part of Bennington where the B and B was located. I vaguely remembered the woods from my visit to the B and B, so if I kept to the trees, I’d be able to stay hidden until I reached it. The realm gateway was in there, Adrian had said. Too bad he hadn’t specified where in the B and B, but I had a plan for that, too.

  I ditched the Challenger in the woods behind a gas station, but only after I wrapped some supplies in my blanket. Then I hoisted it over my shoulder like a sack, held Adrian’s phone out in front of me so I could see the map, and started running.

  Once, I would have found the dark expanse of woods creepy, but not now. Maybe it was because no animal in its right mind would attack me with my Hound disguise. Same went for people, and though the air was distinctly chilly, the cold didn’t affect me like it once would have. Must be my growing abilities. After all, it couldn’t be coincidence that I barely needed the light from Adrian’s cell phone to see.

  You can do everything I can do.... It’s in your blood. Adrian’s words stole through my mind, encouraging me and slamming me with guilt at the same time. Dammit, I needed to stop thinking about him! I’d made the only choice I could by not trusting him, same thing he’d urged me to do over and over again. Jasmine was the person I should feel guilty about. If Adrian had been lying and she was dead, then I’d failed my only remaining family. Worse, I’d lost my best friend.

  Memories began to assail me. Jasmine screaming with excitement because she’d been accepted to the same college as me. Her countless pranks, like adding BENGAY to my suntan lotion or replacing my shampoo with bubble bath. How she’d hugged me after my disastrous prom night, and how she’d never told any of my friends—or hers—why I really went to the doctors so frequently. Jasmine as a little girl, sitting with me in a psychologist’s waiting room, her blue eyes somber as she whispered, “If you say you see stuff, Ivy, I believe you....”

  The cell phone vibrated, startling me so much I almost dropped it. Incoming call, read the screen. Unknown.

  I slowed, torn between curiosity and caution. If I answered and heard Demetrius’s voice on the other line, it would confirm all my suspicions.
But what if it was Zach? I could really use the Archon’s help, and for all I knew, Zach contacted Adrian by phone; not to mention unknown would be a damn good description of where his calls were routed from.

  I hit Accept but didn’t say anything, hoping whoever was on the other line would speak first.

  My gamble paid off.

  “Ivy.” Adrian’s voice was hoarse from anger or urgency. “Don’t go in there alone. Don’t—”

  I hit the End button so hard, it cracked the screen. Then I threw the phone down, as if that would further sever the connection between us. Still, the forest seemed to fill with Adrian’s presence, until I could swear that the breeze ruffling through the trees was whispering his name.

  “Leave me alone!” I yelled, sinking to the ground next to his phone. “You were going to betray me, so I had to do it.”

  Saying it didn’t make me feel any better. Believing it hurt almost as much as hoping I was wrong. If I was, I’d ruined any chance between us by doing the one thing Adrian had managed not to do, despite heaven and hell telling him he had no choice. He wouldn’t forgive me for that. No one would, myself included.

  With a hard swipe at the tears filling my eyes, I grabbed the phone, got up and started to run again. Right or wrong, I’d made my choice. Whether Adrian intended to stop me or betray me, he knew where I was headed, so I didn’t have much time.

  * * *

  Last time I’d seen the Paulson bed-and-breakfast, autumn leaves had been swirling around the lovely white house. Now, all the trees were bare and a dark, decrepit shell hung over the B and B, like the negative of a double-exposed photo. It didn’t vanish after a couple blinks, either. It stayed, mute testament to how much my abilities had grown.

  That’s also why I could now see words carved into the side of the house, like “LEAVE!” “HELP!” and “DEMONS.” Of course, no one else could see the warnings from people trapped in the other realm. Tourists who pulled up would only see a sign that said “Welcome, Friends!” on the portico over the front door.

  I lurked at the far end of the yard, concealed by the trees that butted up against the foothills of the green mountains. Lights were on inside, giving off a warm amber glow, and two cars were in the gravel section where I’d parked the first time I came here. The B and B had guests.

  And I was going to crash the party.

  I started taking off my clothes, not stopping until I was down to only boots and the itchy leather bikini that doubled as Hound straps. I put the clothes in the blanket with my other supplies and hefted it over my shoulder again. Then I ran toward the house. When I reached the front door, I tried the knob. Just like before, it was unlocked. Silently, I entered the house, trying to focus on the here instead of the dark, double image that showed a place far different than this one.

  No one was in the parlor where I’d first encountered Mrs. Paulson, but laughter came from farther down the hallway. I followed it, ending at the dining room. Two youngish-looking couples sat at the table, and for a frozen second as their heads swung toward me, no one moved.

  Then screams coincided with the sound of chairs and other items crashing as they knocked things over in their panic to leave. I bared my teeth, hissing and waving my arms, hoping to scare them right into their cars. They needed to get out of here for more reasons than what Mrs. Paulson had probably been planning for them.

  Not that the guests were grateful for my saving them. I had to dodge several plates one of the guys threw at me before he ran down the hallway. Finally, the woman I’d been waiting for appeared, looking flustered as she entered the dining room.

  “What is going on—” Mrs. Paulson began, only to stop dead at the sight of me.

  “Dyate,” she whispered.

  chapter thirty-three

  My grin must’ve looked savage, because I felt every inch the fearsome creature she thought I was as I came toward her. The innkeeper looked like the same salt-and-ginger-haired old lady I’d first met. She even still had on an apron, as if I’d interrupted her while she was baking dessert, but out of the two of us, she was the real monster.

  This bitch had delivered my sister to demons. She’d also sent Detective Kroger after me, and for all I knew, might’ve been the person who’d messed with the brakes on my parents’ car. I wanted her dead so badly, it burned. But first...

  I dropped my sack when I was a few feet away. She still didn’t move, following protocol on how to avoid being mauled by a Hound, but her gaze flicked to the sack in surprise. Guess she hadn’t noticed it before, what with not expecting a hulking demon lizard to show up in her dining room. Then I pulled out the note I’d written earlier, shoving it in front of her.

  Take me to the gateway.

  Her face puckered into a frown as she stared at it. I knew she could read what I’d written; my note to Costa had proven that. My hope was that she’d think I was a stray who’d gotten separated from its handler, but that had a note telling whichever minion that found me to send me back home. As for the sack, well, dogs carried stuff sometimes. Maybe I should’ve held the sack in my teeth to look more Hound-like.

  When her frown cleared and she looked at me with palpable hatred, I knew my plan had backfired.

  “Davidian,” she hissed, yanking something out of her apron.

  I lunged to the left when I caught sight of a barrel. Her first shot missed me by inches and her second one went over my head as I ducked. Then I charged, steamrolling into her, fueled by hatred and strength from a legacy I still didn’t understand. She went down, the back of her head smacking against the tile floor. But she still didn’t let go of the gun.

  I yanked its barrel to the side just in time, sending the shot she fired into the wall instead of my stomach. Despite her aged appearance, she had a grip like a bear. Teeth like one, too. She tore into my shoulder, making me yelp with pained surprise. I couldn’t get the gun free, yet I didn’t dare let go of it to pull her mouth off me.

  As if Adrian were whispering instructions into my ear, I suddenly knew what he would do. So I did it.

  I threw myself forward, my momentum causing Mrs. Paulson’s head to smack against the tile again. Her scream reverberated against my aching shoulder, yet she didn’t let go of the gun or stop biting me. I flung forward several more times, ignoring how it drove her teeth deeper into my flesh. Finally, her grip on the gun loosened and I was able to yank it away. My shoulder throbbed—I’d need a tetanus shot now, dammit!—but my grip didn’t waver when I pointed the gun in her face.

  “Where’s the gateway?” I snapped, forgetting for a second that she couldn’t understand me.

  Mrs. Paulson spat at me, landing a disgusting glop on my cheek. I wiped it off with my other hand before grabbing the note that had fluttered to the floor near us.

  “Where?” I said, shaking it at her.

  She responded with a torrent of Demonish, some of which I recognized as more curse words. My jaw clenched. Adrian was on his way, and I didn’t know whose side he was on, so I had to be gone before he arrived. That meant I couldn’t waste any more time asking Mrs. Paulson nicely.

  I lowered the gun and shot her in the arm. At this range, it blew a large chunk off, coating me in an instant spatter of red. She howled, her agonized writhing almost dislodging me, but I held on and shoved the note in front of her again.

  “Where?” I yelled, putting the barrel to her leg next.

  She didn’t need to understand my words to translate the threat. “In my office!” she gasped. “Please, no more!”

  She deserved more. So, so much more, but I didn’t have the time or the stomach to give it to her. I hauled her up, planting the barrel of the gun into her side. She sagged, leaning against me so heavily, she almost toppled us over.

  “Show me,” I said, jerking my head at the hallway.

  Once again, she got the gist and bega
n staggering down the hallway. From the quiet around us, we were now alone in the inn. Guess if a massive demon lizard hadn’t been enough to scare the guests off, hearing several gunshots had done the trick.

  “Here,” she said, leaning against the doorway to an office.

  I couldn’t see through to the dark realm here, but then again, I hadn’t with any of the other gateways, either. Still, I wasn’t going to take her word for it. I jabbed her harder in the side with the gun and shook the note for emphasis.

  “Where?” I said, shoving her into the room.

  Blood had turned her graying hair crimson, and more dripped from what was left of her upper arm, but she still managed to catch herself instead of falling. Again I was reminded that minions might look human, but they weren’t, so while Mrs. Paulson was acting weak and defeated, the bitch still had lots of fight left in her.

  “There,” she said, pointing at the corner. Then she braced herself against her desk, as if she didn’t have the strength to hold herself up on her own.

  Sure she didn’t. I kept the gun aimed at her as I went inside. The corner had a bookshelf on one side and an oil painting on the other. Certainly nothing that screamed “Demon door!” but when had any of them been helpfully marked? I stretched out my hand toward the center of the corner—and gasped when the blood coating it suddenly pulsed with an almost painful energy.

  Adrian was right. It did feel like an electric shock, but only for the parts of me that Mrs. Paulson had bled on. That’s why I’d done the most awful, unforgivable thing to him before I left him tied up and alone in that room.

  I’d bled him.

  Adrian told me I needed minion, demon or Judian blood to cross through a gateway. I hadn’t been sure if Mrs. Paulson would be here tonight, so I’d taken precautions to ensure that I could get through the gateway anyway, and by precautions, I mean about two beer bottles’ worth of Adrian’s blood.

  Maybe now, I wouldn’t need it. The last thing I wanted to do was paint my skin with the proof of my awful deed. I could barely look at the bottles without feeling guilty enough to cry, so hopefully Mrs. Paulson had bled on me enough to—