Darkness Unveiled

by Emerson Knight

  I was going to ask more when there was a knock at the door. When Josh answered, Chris slipped past him into the apartment, bringing with her the foul stench of Demetrius that wafted from her pores and quickly diffused throughout the entire condo. Watching her unusually lithe gait, I knew immediately that she had recently traded blood with the vamp. I shook my head, scowling in disgust.

  Josh shot a cold look after her that she promptly ignored as she walked into the room. I stepped in front of the coffee table, blocking her view. Behind me I heard the faint scrape of the rod against the wooden table that indicated Sky had removed it from view.

  Chris did her best to ignore my disapproving scowl as she announced, “London’s gone.”

  “And?” Josh responded.

  She smiled. “You visited her last night—now she’s gone. A less cynical person would believe that was just a coincidence.” She looked between myself and Josh. When neither of us bothered to answer, she turned to Sky. “What’s going on?”

  Sky shrugged.

  “Chris,” Josh said, crossing his arms over his chest, “I don’t mind sharing information with you. In fact, you may be quite helpful in the matter. At this time, I have no new information for Demetrius. Are you here on your own or for Demetrius?”

  I wasn’t so sure she could distinguish between the two.

  She smiled, giving Josh a full measure of her casual, disarming charm as she sauntered toward him. “I’m just a friend, stopping by. There’s no harm in that, is there?”

  “We’re hardly friends. Chris, if you betray me—”

  “You have my word.”

  He scrutinized her, unconvinced. When his gaze finally met mine, I gave a subtle shake of my head. When it came to Demetrius and the vamps, she couldn’t be trusted anymore.

  “Okay,” he told her.

  Before he could say more, I took her by the elbow and led her into the next room. She followed, gaping at me in disgusted disbelief. Once in the room, she snatched her elbow away. As she tried to walk out, I grasped her arm and threw the door shut, but it bounced off the frame and swung back open. She rounded on me with red-faced fury.

  “Don’t touch me!”

  I stared back at her, wondering what in the world I could say this time that would get through to her. When it came to exchanging blood with Demetrius, she was like a drug addict amped up on her high. This is the worst time to talk to her, I realized, but it was too late. On an impulse, I’d already passed the point of no return. If I was to get through to her, I’d have to walk a very fine line. Frustrated, I rubbed my hands over my face and then through my hair, willing an answer that didn’t come. Finally I surrendered in a long exhale.

  “I know you well,” I started. “Whatever you’re sacrificing, tolerating, or dealing with to receive such considerations from Demetrius will eventually outweigh its benefits. I’m not sure when it will happen, but until then, don’t you ever come around me, reeking of him. Do you understand?”

  She reared back in offense. “You don’t know me as well as you think, or you would know I didn’t enter this foolishly or without considering the consequences. I can’t keep having this discussion. I’m tired of it, and I’m sure you are, too. Make your decision now: either you deal with it and we don’t have this discussion again, or you don’t and we’re through. Those are the only two options you have.”

  I leaned close to her, feeling the heat radiating from her body as my lips brushed against her ear. “I’m not the one who needs to make the decision—you are.”

  She pushed me back hard enough to bounce me off the wall. “You’re such a selfish bastard. I came to you first. I asked you to change me.”

  “I refused.” And I was right to.

  “So don’t bitch to me because you’re not happy that I went to Demetrius. That’s on you.”

  “You didn’t know what you were asking. You still don’t.”

  “You told me I can’t keep hunting and expect to stay on top. And you know what? You’re right,” she said through gritted teeth. “Happy now? But there’s nothing else for me out there. Can you understand that? I’m a Hunter. I belong in this world, not out there”—she gestured—“stamping bingo cards with a bunch of Q-tips. I can’t keep this up without getting killed. Not unless I get a leg up. You turned me down. Fine, but just remember, I asked you first. You think I want to be involved with Demetrius and the vampires? I loathe every second of it, but at least he’s offering.”

  “What are you offering in return?”

  Her arm was a blur as it swung out and slapped me, knocking me a step to my left. I resisted the urge to touch my jaw, even though it ached from the blow; I didn’t want to give her the satisfaction, but she’d surprised me. Without his blood, that wouldn’t have happened. “I know you think changing you is a simple matter,” I said carefully, “but it’s not.”

  “What’s so hard about it? Apparently I just need to growl a lot and lose my temper.”

  I turned my head and gave her a sideways look. “I was born a were-animal. Your body isn’t designed for the change. The first time you change, nearly every bone in your body will break. Your muscles won’t just expand like mine, they’ll be shredded and re-formed. You think everyone survives the change, but they don’t. Sometimes the body just breaks apart and fails to pull itself back together. Sometimes the shock and pain are so much the heart fails. I’ve seen it go wrong too many times.”

  “I can take it,” she insisted, puffing out her chest.

  “You’re strong. But you can’t will yourself through that kind of pain. Even if you did survive, there’s the constant struggle with your animal nature.”

  “You all do just fine,” she snapped.

  “It’s not the same. Everything will be harder for you.”

  “Steven was changed.”

  “He had Sebastian and Joan to guide him. And he was young. His body was more malleable.”

  “Screw you,” she snarled.

  I felt my fists clench and forced them open. Please understand. “I can’t. Do that to you.”

  “It’s not your choice,” she said softly. “I’ve got a job to do. And whatever you have planned, I’m going with you whether you want me or not.”

  I remained on the other side of the living room, fuming, while Josh filled her in on the capsa and what we intended to do. I did have one option Chris hadn’t accounted for; I could’ve tied her up and left her in her BMW, but if Josh was right we might be walking into a hornet’s nest. We might need her skills before the night was through.

  Once she understood the plan, we left together, climbed into my SUV, and began to scour the city while Josh held the capsa in his hand, waiting for some sort of signal that the rod was reacting to Ethos’s energy. After an hour of driving, I was about to give up when Josh straightened in the passenger seat, his excitement palpable as he brought the tip of the rod level with his eyes. Glancing from the driver’s seat, it seemed the glow of the rod had brightened slightly.

  Swiveling in the passenger seat, he slowly swung the rod in an arc, first to the right, then to the left, until he finally stopped and pointed. Following his direction, I turned at the next intersection. For the next hour we followed the glow of the rod as it waxed and waned, obliging me to double back and retrace our steps several times. Eventually, we found ourselves parked on the road, staring at a well-lit white farmhouse. As we sat parked at the end of the driveway, the smoky glow of the rod was strong enough to light the cab of the SUV.

  “We’re about twenty miles from the retreat,” I said.

  “That’s within range,” Josh said to me.

  In the backseat, I saw Chris was armed with two pistols holstered at her hips, and a knife sheathed to her thigh. Sky was on the edge of her seat, her eyes bright with anger. She was ready for revenge, but she was also weaponless. I reached across Josh to open the glove compartment, drew out a knife that I kept there, and handed it to her.

  “Let’s just hope we didn’t find Ethos himsel
f,” Josh said.

  At my direction, he tucked the rod inside his jacket, muting the light. I turned off the vehicle lights and backed the SUV up the driveway to the house.

  “What are you doing?” Sky asked.

  My attention remained fixed on the front door, via the rearview mirror, until I stopped about twenty meters out and left the engine running. “Leave your doors open,” I said as we emerged from the SUV. The edge of the soybean fields on either side of us provided at least a hundred feet of open, uneven ground, mostly parched grass and weeds. At least we’d have some warning if the genums tried to surprise us, but an attack in force could prevent our escape by the SUV.

  Most of the rooms in the house were lit, on both floors, but the curtains were drawn. We were going to have a hard time getting a look inside. The windows were closed, and there was no sign of movement.

  “Remember,” Josh whispered, “we’re not here to fight. We just need to verify the genums are there. Then we come back with reinforcements.”

  I glanced at Sky and frowned. I shouldn’t have let her come. If the genums were inside, there was a good chance we were going to get their attention. Depending on how many were there, the situation could deteriorate quickly.

  “If I tell you to run,” I said softly, “run to the SUV. Do not hesitate.” I pointed out the cardinal points of the compass as I said, “North, south, east, west. If I tell you to run in any of those directions, do it. Don’t wait for clarification. Don’t second-guess me. Just run, and don’t stop running until I tell you.”

  We were about six feet from the porch when the front door gently swung open and six small, hairless monkeys spilled onto the porch to scrutinize our arrival. Genums, I assumed, but they had a simian appearance, with long hands and feet, and walked on their knuckles as they slunk toward us.

  “Well, that’s confirmed,” Josh whispered, raising the rod in front of his chest.

  They were too close to us to run for the SUV. I crouched, drawing a knife from my boot sheath. Sky crouched with her knife held in front of her, while Chris laid her palms over the grips of her pistols.

  Three of the creatures sprang toward me, nearly quadrupling in size as they rose onto their feet. Their short noses extended into long snouts and their canine teeth grew to unnaturally long fangs. Mangy gray fur burst from their skin, completing the disconcerting impression of large bipedal wolves.

  I shifted, putting my back to my brother and forcing two of the genums to come around the third to reach me. The lead genum leapt snarling. I brought one hand up and caught its throat mid-leap, then drove my knife into its chest. The genum instantly disappeared, only to reappear on the ground in front of us, seemingly dead. I felt Josh shift away from me toward the motionless figure as I sidestepped again to position one of my remaining two genums in front of the other.

  The popping of gunfire erupted behind me, and I heard Sky’s frustrated growl, but I didn’t dare risk a glance as the next genum swiped its claws at my head. I pivoted on my heel, positioning myself on the outside of its extended arm, then drove the knife up into the neck and into the brain. The last genum leapt just as its partner disappeared. I ducked, narrowly missing its fangs, and jabbed the knife up beneath its ribs toward its heart. The genum disappeared before it hit the ground.

  Turning back to the porch I saw it reappear next to the other five, all seemingly dead—three of them with gunshot wounds to the forehead. A dark, thick ether rose like a roiling steam from the creatures as Josh gathered it with the capsa, moving from one corpse to another.

  I glanced to Sky, relieved that she appeared unharmed, as did Chris.

  “Ethan,” Josh said, backing from the house as another fourteen genums emerged from the door.

  “I think we should leave,” Sky urged.

  One genum emerged from the others, rising onto its back feet as it strode toward Sky. Like the first group, it transformed into a large mangy wolf. Almost immediately, it transformed again, this time into a distorted human figure. The genum hesitated, seemingly confused, as it continued to change. Sky gaped at a grotesque scaled humanoid with jet-black reptilian skin. It screamed as scales peeled away from its body, revealing a bright inner light that seemed to be burning its way out from the inside until the dirt around it was littered with smoldering scales and the thing became a humanoid body shaped by light.

  The other creatures stared at Sky, seemingly in awe.

  Horrified, she began backing her way toward the SUV.

  “Run to the car,” I said calmly. She broke into a run and Chris and Josh followed. I jogged backward at first, making sure the genums weren’t on our heels, but their attention was absorbed by the light creature. When I heard car doors slamming, I turned and ran the last dozen feet, jumped into the driver’s seat, then raced the SUV down the driveway to the street and sped away. I assumed the creatures couldn’t drive, but that didn’t stop me from keeping an eye on the rearview mirror.

  The drive back to the condo was quiet as we all tried to grapple with what we had seen. Josh frequently glanced over his shoulder at Sky, at times with awe, at other times with an intense curiosity. I did the same. What are you? The question kept going through my mind, and I had no answer. The mystery that was Sky had only gotten deeper. Judging from the look of shock on her face, she didn’t have any answers.

  I looked to Chris, who appeared equally confused. Worse, she was curious. When I dropped them off at the condo, I wanted to pull Sky aside, but she went straight to her vehicle, ignoring our stares as she drove away.

  I returned home and poured myself a Scotch, hoping to soothe the questions that now played on an endless loop through my mind, leaving no room for answers. I was pouring my third drink when my phone vibrated. Stacy.

  “It’s late,” I answered.

  “Yup. Are we doing criminal cases, now?” she asked in a nervous tone. “Or doing research for some as yet unannounced paranormal TV show?”

  I scowled. “If you’re going to drunk dial, call someone who isn’t your boss.”

  “Well,” she sighed heavily, “I e-mailed you my research on those names you gave me. And then I took a muscle relaxer and a sedative. If you need anything else, call me. I’ll get back to you as soon as I wake up, about twelve hours from now.”

  I ended the call and opened the e-mail app on my phone.

  It had been a long time since I’d first learned that my godmother was a Moura. It had been the only time she’d offered an explanation. Much of the history of their tradition had been lost over generations, but the Mouras were always women with supernatural abilities, which meant they could be elven or fae as well as witches. Whatever they were, they took human form in order to better disguise themselves in the world. In the beginning, there were five Mouras Encantadas, each assigned to protect one of five powerful mystical objects. When a Moura died, her responsibilities fell to the next female in her family line.

  The first name in Stacy’s report was the last protector of the Gem of Levage. I already knew she was dead, but I wasn’t prepared for what appeared to be a police photo of her body. It showed a woman who had died in a moment of severe terror, her arms frozen in an outstretched position as if forever reaching out in a desperate plea for help that would never come. According to the baffled coroner’s report obtained by Stacy, the body showed no visible signs of direct damage. I assumed she’d died at the hands of some sort of magic—or from pure terror. Demetrius had obtained the Gem last year, though I doubted he’d been the one to kill her.

  The Moura protecting the Clostra had been living in Texas before she disappeared from any public records over two decades ago. I made a mental note to follow up with her, then remembered my promise to Claudia. I would ask my godmother about the Clostra later. The Moura protecting the Fatifer had only a brief record of visiting the country a decade ago, traveling to and from Holland. Presumably she’d immigrated there.

  That the Moura protecting the Aufero was deceased was hardly a surprise, considering i
t had eventually been destroyed by Marcia. This Moura had been known by several names, although Claudia had only given me one. I rubbed the tension from my eyes and read the names again. I’d read correctly the first time. The Moura had emigrated from Portugal over thirty years ago, then changed her name a number of times, as if running from someone. Her final name, the name she was using when she was murdered, was Senna Nunes. She was Skylar’s biological mother.

  I drank my Scotch, then carried my phone into the living room and dropped into a leather recliner. According to Sky’s family, Senna had estranged herself. Whether that was before or after she came to the United States wasn’t clear. Apparently, she hadn’t surrendered the Aufero to them. I knew because they’d come looking for it. They had a duty to perform, but Sky was Senna’s only daughter, which made her first in line to take on the role of Moura. Thanks to me, her family now knew of Sky’s existence. Their interest in her was hardly passive, and no amount of threats from me would stop them from finding her unless they chose to accept her as Moura. Hardly a safe bet. They know nothing about her. They did know about Maya, who had to be involved with the Aufero as well. Was she dormant, or was she playing a role now?

  The only thing I hated more than questions was not having answers.

  The family was the least of Sky’s concerns. The orb was protected for a reason. Sky was more mysterious and in more danger than I’d ever imagined. Does she know? Has she been lying this entire time? I found that hard to believe. How could she even know, unless Senna had passed on the knowledge of Sky’s heritage through her adopted mother. Or Sky could’ve learned her heritage directly from Maya.

  I brought the tumbler to my lips before realizing it was empty.

  A few hours later I stood at Sky’s door, calming myself by slowing my breath. She answered with an expectant smile that quickly faltered.

  Who were you expecting?

  “May I come in?” I asked as a formality, hoping to put her at ease. “Drop the ward.”