Sin & Surrender (Demigods of San Francisco Book 6)

by K. F. Breene

“Well…with the former, you wouldn’t really see the person’s face anyway, given there’d be a knife in it. The blood would obscure your view.”

  He barked out a laugh. “Right you are, Miss Alexis. I’ll have to settle for stabbing someone in the heart.”

  I checked my phone and then made sure it wasn’t on vibrate. We were supposed to leave our phones outside with our staff, but I wasn’t going to. I wanted to be connected with my kids. Everyone knew to only call me in an emergency, and I didn’t want to leave it to Juri’s staff to decide if the situation was sufficiently urgent.

  “A lot of these people just like to hear their own voices,” Parker said as he took a left. Up ahead, another line of golf carts pulled into the round driveway in front, the entrance here much grander than the one to our lodge. “Sometimes it’s best just to let them get on with it. They never even notice you’re not contributing.”

  I nodded as a wave of frustration welled up in me—something was starting to really annoy Kieran.

  “If you fall, blame someone else.” Parker slowed, and I knew he was allowing time for the party in front of us to disembark. “If you spill something on yourself, also blame someone else, but then tell her staff to fix it. They’ll know exactly what to do.”

  “It sounds like you’re helping me prepare for making an ass of myself,” I mumbled.

  “You’re not like the people in there, Miss Alexis. They’re mostly full of hot air. You’re good people. But even good people have their fair share of clumsiness. I figured I’d offer a few insights on what to do after.”

  “So…yes, then. You’re helping me prepare for making an ass of myself.”

  “You don’t mince words, I like it. Basically, Miss Alexis, I’m helping you prepare for what to do after you make an ass of yourself.”

  19

  Daisy

  “Ah crap, what’s this?” Bria blew out a breath and slowed, leading the crew since Alexis had gone to that stupid afternoon tea with all the other hoity-toity plus-ones.

  Daisy veered out a little to see around Thane’s girth. If he was nervous about accidentally being killed by another nut-case Berserker, he didn’t show it. He looked completely laid-back.

  The Necromancers who’d had their asses handed to them by Bria the other day waited down the hall, one single body on the trailer behind them. A few of their crew waited behind them.

  Bria didn’t drop the handle of her trailer. She’d brought the cadavers and her backpack, not because she’d thought she would need them but because it was expected of her. “What do you guys want? We’re on our way to a Berserker battle.”

  “This won’t take but a minute,” the man with the gray beard said, sounding smug.

  Daisy glanced at their shoes, and those waiting behind them. Boots, all, black and finely polished. Not her secret admirers.

  “We’ve done this song and dance, bub. Step aside. We’ve got stuff to do.” Bria motioned him away.

  “Don’t think we will,” the guy with the gray beard snapped. They brought forth their TV-tray-looking tables, the same style as last time, already all set up. They apparently walked the halls with those things. “Where’s the Soul Stealer?”

  “She’s at Juri’s tea party. I bet your mistress was left off the list this year, huh? Poor old Aaron is dragging her down. I wonder how long she’ll stand for that.” Bria checked her watch.

  “Go ahead, Bria, we’ve got plenty of time,” Thane said, crossing his arms and moving so he could lean against the wall.

  It was true, they’d left early in case something like this happened. Thane had wanted to soak in some rage and battle energy before his big show-off. Daisy wondered if there would be a sweet release to it.

  Bria eyed the one cadaver in the other Necromancers’ cart, lying all by its lonesome on its wide trailer. Her knuckles turned white where they gripped the handle of her own trailer. She hesitated, something Daisy had rarely seen her do. Possibly going up against some like Lexi, though, would have anyone’s nerves frayed.

  “Your Soul Stealer wasn’t on the list for Juri’s party,” the guy with the gray beard said. “She should be headed to the Berserker thing with you.”

  “Haven’t you heard? Her mark was approved, and she’s moved up in the world. What do you want with her?”

  The two Necromancers down the way exchanged a few words, debating something. After a minute, the one with the gray beard shrugged and turned to his tray.

  “Arm yourself,” he yelled at Bria.

  “Damn it,” Bria said softly, unslinging her backpack. “Everyone get back. I don’t know what they are about to unleash, but it’s likely our worst nightmare. They were hoping to catch Lexi up in this. It’s probably terrible news for us that they didn’t.”

  Dylan fell in beside Daisy and gently wrapped his hand around her upper arm.

  “Let’s give them a little more space,” he said, dragging her backward.

  “When did you get so grabby?” Daisy asked as Zorn glanced back and nodded, agreeing with Dylan.

  “You saw me cry for an hour. We’re friends now,” Dylan murmured, stopping well back from the action.

  “I fail to see what that has to do with you getting grabby.” Daisy frowned. “What are we expecting?”

  “The other Soul Stealer. Bria is worried they won’t be able to hold him. I have better range, so falling back won’t keep me from helping.” He stepped partially in front of her.

  She sighed and slouched against the wall as Mordecai joined them. This was all starting to get tedious. They treated her like she was breakable. And yes, okay, she was at a disadvantage, but good grief, this was a little much.

  “Have you worked with that spirit before?” Bria called down, her hands moving quickly.

  “We’ve taken him on a couple of trial runs, yes.” That gray beard dude still sounded awfully smug.

  “There is a nuance to Soul Stealer magic, you do know that, right?” Light flared, Bria using candles to prepare. “If you rip a soul out, it is not easy to put it back. The last Soul Stealer didn’t know the ins and outs.”

  “What makes you think we’ve got the last Soul Stealer?” Gray Beard asked, and it was so obvious that was exactly who he had.

  Daisy took another few steps back. She wasn’t trying to mess with that. Not without Lexi on scene.

  “Cut the crap. Are you hearing what I am telling you?” Bria demanded. “You have absolutely no idea what you are messing with. None. That is not a power to play with, dickface. Without Lexi here, we’re all vulnerable. All of us, you included. If he gets out of your grip, you’ll die first.”

  “If it were the last Soul Stealer”—Gray Beard paused for dramatic effect—“you wouldn’t have to worry. He was ten times better trained than that naive girl you have.”

  Daisy noticed the other Necromancer, with the badly dyed hair, didn’t share Gray Beard’s delight. His face had closed down in an uncomfortable mask, his mouth a thin line and his bearing tense. He was nervous about what he was doing.

  “He was ten times better at killing, yes,” Bria said, and readied herself to call spirits. Daisy had seen her do it often enough to know. “But he wasn’t trained in preserving life. It’s easy to rip out a soul. It is not easy to put it back in.”

  “What do you know about it?” Gray Beard asked.

  “Ten times more than you ever will if you let your hold on that Soul Stealer waver. You’ll be first to see what spirit looks like, mark my words.”

  Across the hall, their single cadaver rose to standing on shaky legs. Bria had stuffed spirits into bodies in record time, so she had nearly a dozen ready to face him. Thane checked his watch.

  “Watch yourself,” Bria told the spirits. “If you get ripped out of that body, get the hell out of here. Don’t stay and be a hero. They don’t have a clue what they’re messing with. Also, I’ll remind you that I can’t hear you. So don’t try to talk to me.”

  A strange feeling pressed in on Daisy, like intense hands pushi
ng down on her shoulders. A black shape zipped out of the corner of her eye. She started and looked that way even as Dylan did, his brow furrowed. Nothing lurked in the hallway behind them. If someone had run by, they weren’t visible, not even as a sparkly sheen.

  “I take it back. I want to stay at the lodge,” Daisy said.

  “I might want to join you. Did you…see that?” Dylan whispered, looking around again. “Something feels off. It feels like something is pressing on my shoulders.”

  “Yeah. This feels like Lexi’s shit. Things are about to get ugly.”

  A low growl rumbled in Mordecai’s throat. He pushed in closer to her. For once, she wasn’t annoyed by that.

  The lone cadaver stepped forward once, then again, as though it were slogging through waist-high mud. Daisy could just see the faces of the two Necromancers turning crimson. The one with a really bad dye job and a tuft of hair implants rang a bell, and the cadaver took another step forward. There it halted, shaking all over.

  “Get the incense,” Gray Beard said, his voice strained.

  “You shouldn’t be having this much trouble controlling one spirit,” Bria called, her hands working again. Hopefully she was setting up some sort of protections should that opposing spirit break loose. Or maybe it was just a matter of when. “He’s more knowledgeable than you are. He’s like a Necromancer on PCP. Your techniques are known to him, and he can work around them. Get him out of that body so he can’t do any harm.”

  “This is standard…operating…procedure,” Gray Beard ground out. “He’ll…yield soon…enough.”

  “He feels…more powerful…now,” Bad Dye Job said, and rang a bell. “This isn’t…like when…we practiced.”

  The pressure increased, and the back of Daisy’s neck and shoulder blades tingled as if someone were standing directly behind her, breathing down her shoulders. Something mighty and dangerous. Something different than that fae yesterday. Much different.

  She glanced around again, ready for someone to sneak up on her.

  Still nothing.

  “Something isn’t right,” Dylan murmured, and rolled his shoulders.

  Up the way, Thane was doing the same thing—looking around, rolling his shoulders. He felt whatever Daisy and Dylan did. Mordecai’s hair was standing up along the center of his back, but he didn’t react. It meant he didn’t smell anything. He didn’t sense anything tangible.

  Bria’s cadavers charged the opponent cadaver. When they were within ten feet, they fell. No pausing, no shuddering, just one step, then facedown on the carpet.

  Just like when Lexi ripped out souls.

  Gray Beard laughed. “So easy.”

  “Get the hell out of here,” Bria yelled, and Daisy wasn’t sure if she was yelling at the spirits or the crew.

  “We’ve got it, Bria,” Dye Job said, his hands curled around the handles of his bells. He rang one, then the other, then both at the same time. “We’ve…got him.”

  “Well, don’t bring him over here,” Bria said. “I yield. I yield!”

  “Ah, but we were just starting to have fun.” Gray Beard smirked.

  One of Bria’s cadavers wiggled, as though trying to find life again.

  “What are you doing?” Dye Job asked his buddy, sounding pissed.

  “Think what I could do with this sort of power at my disposal,” Gray Beard said, a wide grin across his flat face. “My job would be so easy.”

  “Don’t mess around with that magic, you nitwit. You don’t know what it can do. I yield!” Bria yelled.

  “She yields,” Dye Job said. “Let’s wrap this up.”

  “Wait. Just a moment,” Gray Beard replied. “Can’t you feel it? There are spirits hanging around. All I have to do is use him to—”

  The cadaver wiggled again, started shaking, and then rolled over onto its back.

  “Stand up, damn it,” Gray Beard yelled.

  “You are trying to control a spirit through another spirit—that takes twice the effort. Do you have twice the effort to give?” Bria asked, packing all her stuff away. She wasn’t planning to watch these idiots play with their new toy. Daisy was one hundred percent behind her decision. Time to run.

  The cadaver flopped over again, but it only got halfway before it stalled and started shaking. It didn’t want to be manipulated. Lexi had strong spirits at her disposal—spirits who had been done wrong. They wouldn’t go quietly.

  The main cadaver was still struggling and had yet to take another step forward. Dye Job rang a bell to get it moving again, struggling with it.

  “It’s too powerful,” he yelled. “Something has changed!”

  “Nothing has changed. Hold it,” Gray Beard yelled back.

  Heat roared to life within Daisy. It melted through her middle and pooled really low, in a place she’d never felt before, but one she theoretically understood.

  She looked around, knowing exactly what she’d find. Half afraid to find it.

  A boy a few years older than her stood not far away, his body sparkling and shining within its glamour. Those green eyes from the beach, the most vivid shade she’d ever seen, with a flare of gold around the irises, sat below black, arching brows. His severe cheekbones would break a fist crashing against them, and the soft cleft in his chin gave a pleasing contrast to the strong jaw. His full lips were twisted to the side wickedly, as though he was thinking about an unsavory joke.

  His gaze was like a brand upon her skin, awakening something she didn’t want to set loose, sparking something primal and setting it ablaze. His rugged, almost cruel handsomeness was nothing compared to the sparkle of deviousness in his eyes.

  Her heart beat too fast. She couldn’t get enough air. She’d never felt this feverish, but she wasn’t sick. Never felt this terrified, but she wasn’t afraid.

  He winked, and his wicked smile grew.

  In a moment, he was gone, all hazy air and sparkling wind, rushing forward…toward the barely controlled Soul Stealer.

  “No,” she said, breathless, turning as he went.

  It must be done, little dove. There is no better distraction on these grounds.

  The haze dodged around Thane, slipped by Bria, and stopped just before the cadaver. A spark appeared right before an earthy smell curled around Daisy’s senses.

  A bell rang out. Then another. Gray Beard was trying to goad his puppet.

  Zorn started and stepped forward, his hand on Bria’s shoulder. He’d clearly recognized the fae.

  The fae darted so quickly that Daisy couldn’t keep track of it. And then she could. It stopped next to Thane, and that strange, earthy smell flowered in her senses again.

  “Shit—” Zorn lurched in that direction, but he was too late. The fae zipped away again, much faster than Zorn could ever move in his gas form.

  Thane sucked in a startled breath, flexing his biceps as he did so.

  “Fight the urge, Thane,” Daisy called out as the cadaver in the hall cocked its head. It ignored the bells. If it had the ability to work its mouth, Daisy knew it would be smiling.

  The cadaver turned slowly and looked back at its controllers. Their wide eyes, slack jaws, and bleach-white faces said it all.

  Control had been ripped away from them. Their cadaver had been set loose.

  In a heartbeat, the two Necromancers fell bonelessly to the floor. One minute they were panicking, starting to reach for their incense and candles, and the next they were on their faces, not moving.

  “Fuck,” Daisy said, taking a step back.

  The cadaver took two more steps in that direction, avoiding a body at its feet, and two more people fell, those who had been helping the Necromancers.

  The rest of Aaron’s people shouted and stumbled backward. The one who stood closest to the cadaver fell. Its range appeared to be smaller than Lexi’s, but not by much.

  The cadaver turned toward Bria.

  “Go!” Daisy yelled, her heart in her throat. Dylan stuck out a hand to stop her from running forward. “Get out of there!�
��

  Lightning rained down, striking the cadaver. The cadaver shook and jolted, but it didn’t go down. The body was already dead—it was just a shell. A little electricity wouldn’t bother it much.

  Donovan flung out his hands as Zorn yanked Bria to standing. The cadaver sailed backward and crashed against the little TV-tray desks the Necromancers had used.

  “Go, go, go!” Boman shoved everyone in front of him, putting his back to the struggling cadaver.

  Thane rolled his neck and then his shoulders. His eyes bled crimson. He was going to change.

  “Make Thane chase us, or he’s going to lose his soul to that Soul Stealer,” Bria yelled, jumping over her supplies and sprinting Daisy’s way. “Go! Get the hell out of here. Only death awaits us here!”

  20

  Alexis

  A familiar chime echoed through the sitting room filled with paisley-upholstered antique furniture. It chimed again, and the heads of the powerful, rich, and influential people gathered around me slowly turned toward the source of the disturbance.

  I didn’t indulge in a new wave of embarrassment at my latest faux pas. I thrust my drink at Lady Marmalade, the name I’d come up with for the woman sitting next to me, whose name I’d instantly forgotten, ignored her squawk of protest, and dug into my clutch. My phone chimed for the third time, and Juri peeled away from her group of chatting socialites with an annoyed expression.

  Bria’s name flashed on the screen. With suddenly shaking hands, I dropped the clutch and answered the phone. The cats slunk out of the other room immediately, taking residence at my feet.

  “What is it?” I asked, a wave of unease washing over me.

  “Aaron’s Necromancers called the last Soul Stealer, and he got loose,” she said, out of breath. Screams and shouts echoed through the phone, as though Bria was caught in a stampede. “It took them out like they were nothing. It took them out like it was you! Dylan tried to take him down, but he didn’t even feel the electricity. Then Thane went Berserk, of all things. We’re currently leading Thane away from the Soul Stealer. After that… Fuck, Alexis, we need help.”