Right to Silence

by Lily Luchesi

  “Hold still, Mark, okay?” Angelica said. “I’m going to heal you.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “No, I don’t want to be...a vampire. I’m too far gone...for you to...heal me as a human.” His breathing was wet and wheezing. “Let me go. Know it’s my choice. My sacrifice.” He coughed, and blood went flying. “I’ll be with Brighton again.”

  Angelica was shaking, listening to him. Another one was dying, and though Mark and Bart had not been killed by her hand, she knew she was responsible. Just because they knew her, they were targeted.

  “I don’t want to lose you, too,” she said, gasping out the words.

  He didn’t answer, just stared up at the ceiling. “So you know...you’re going to be a...brilliant Empress.” And with one last wheeze, a death rattle, Mark Evans was gone, leaving behind a broken, bloodied mess of a corpse.

  ***

  Danny had no idea any of this was going on. He heard the gunshots, but barely registered them. His head was roaring with the demonic powers, as well as the myriad of emotions he was getting from all of the PID employees who were being slaughtered. He felt like he could not breathe, and he could not think.

  Some central part of his mind knew he had a job to do, but he was incapable of doing much of anything at that moment.

  “Daniel, stay still because this might feel a bit odd,” he heard Harriet say. There was a tingling in his head and he heard her say, “Praeligo!”

  All of a sudden, the noise in his head went from eleven to a dull roar that he could manage. Unclenching his eyes, he looked up at her. “What did you do?”

  “There are dark wizards who can read minds and send visions to others, get them to harm themselves or murder people. This is a spell a...former mentor created to stop the voices and feelings from getting in. I wasn’t quite sure it would work on you.” She looked impressed with her own spellwork, and Danny decided she should be. He felt nearly normal...well, normal for him, in any case.

  He stood up, grabbing his guns, and said, “Let’s go kill that bastard.”

  “You sure you’re up to it?” Harriet asked.

  “By the time the ritual is completed, I’m sure I’ll be able to shoot an immobile target,” Danny snipped.

  He followed Harriet down the hall to the empty office she had warded. Every inch of the room had been covered in symbols, most of which Danny didn’t recognize. It looked like a schizophrenic’s hideaway once the disease had gotten unmanageable. The only furniture was a small table she had made into an altar. She had removed everything to make room for more warding. Danny was pretty sure that what wasn’t paint was blood.

  On the table was a small clay bowl, and a few jars and vials. Harriet stood at the table and began to mix things. “Stay where you are, and for whatever deity you believe in’s sake, don’t scuff the symbols! One little aberrance, and we’re goners.”

  Danny stood and watched as Harriet added in what looked like the bones of some small animal, various herbs, and then cut her hand, letting blood flow into the bowl, soaking the ingredients. Healing her own hand, she then took the vial that held Leander’s sulfuric residue and sprinkled that into the bowl.

  “Demon et deprecabuntur: veni foras! Leander pretio obligandi vim essentia tua et esto mihi!” [“Demon I seek come forth! Leander Price, by the binding power of your essence, show yourself before me!”]

  Thunder crashed outside, and Danny knew that there had to be some natural disturbances in this plane’s atmosphere. Summoning a demon as powerful as Leander had to have some side-effects.

  Lightning flashed through the warded windows, momentarily blinding Danny. When he opened his eyes, the sulfur stench was permeating, and standing in the middle of the room was Leander Price, the bastard who had taken the woman he loved and ordered demons to torture her. He might have done other things, worse things, but to Danny that was his worst offense, and for that he was going to savor this kill.

  Leander looked mildly put out, as if a Cubs game had caused the cancellation of an episode of his favorite TV show. “Well, well. What did I do to earn the honor of the strongest witch in Britain summoning me?” he asked Harriet, smiling at her.

  “I summoned you to help cut your throat,” she replied with a pleasant smile.

  Leander went to move, to attack her, however, he found himself immobile. “How on Earth did you—”

  “When you’re determined, you always find a way,” Danny said, making Leander notice his presence for the first time. “It’s over, you sadistic prick.”

  Leander started to laugh. “I have hundreds of demons in this building. Sure, many have been killed, but so have everyone you work with. In fact…” He paused and then nodded. “Yep. There went Director Evans. Heaven, of course, but still, I can’t wait to taste your girlfriend’s tears.”

  Danny felt like someone had punched him in the gut. Was Mark really dead? It didn’t matter now. It would matter soon, and soon he’d be able to mourn, but right then what mattered was getting rid of this filth who had haunted the Earth for far too long.

  “The only thing you’ll be tasting is your own blood as you choke and drown in it,” Danny promised. He noticed the look in Leander’s eyes, a mix of surprise and concern. He’d had it before when Danny had threatened him. “What’s with that face, ancestor?” Danny asked. “Unable to believe your own blood could kill you?”

  Leander shook his head, his normal glee and arrogance no longer present. “All this time I was worried about the darkness Angelica had inside of her— and you should be worried about it too —but I realize now I underestimated the void inside of you. You truly are my ancestor. Hunters always were the most vicious types of humans out there.”

  Danny did not want to listen. Leander was trying to mindfuck him, and he refused to let him.

  Raising his gun, Danny knew the formation he had to make the bullets go into to fully destroy the demon inside. Concentrating, he shot the first one and watched as blood began to seep through Leander’s crisp white shirt, adding decoration to the black hole the bullet had left.

  “No last words?” Danny asked.

  “You win. You get me. But you should know that my death changes nothing. Others will either kill the Empress, or she’ll go darkside on her own. The question is, what side will you be on when that happens, and how long will it take for you to give in to the vicious nature all hunters are born with?”

  Four more bullets, in quick succession, hit Leander and Danny was sad to find that he was not able to rejoice as he watched the blood spread on Leander’s body as his infernal existence was finally put to an end. He had only wanted him to shut up, and stop infecting his mind with lies and cryptic warnings.

  Leander’s body began to disintegrate, first the skin cracked like porcelain, leaking blood from every crevice, and then the skin that cracked began to fly away from the flesh, shattering like glass as Leander screamed with the pain. Then...he was laughing. The man was disintegrating, but he was still laughing.

  “This should be her in my place, but I’m sure I’ll be seeing her soon back in the Pit.”

  With those words, Danny saw him finally disperse, the black leaking out with the blood, dissolving in the blessed room. The bloody corpse fell to the floor, turning to dust. It was finally over.

  But if it was over, why did he feel so fucking rotten?

  Epilogue

  One month later

  “Are you sure you want to do this, Angie?” Danny asked as he sat with her at her desk in their house.

  “I have never been more sure of anything in my life,” she replied, taking a pen and signing her name to the document that would hand the PID over to Harriet Galbraith. The entire PID.

  In the month since Leander was killed and Hell had sieged the PID, Angelica had done a lot of soul searching, and every avenue she looked down all led to the same destination: she was burned out. She was done. After one hundred and twenty-odd years, it was time to hang up her holster and hand the company over to someone else.
That someone else happened to be one of the only two friends she had left alive.

  Harriet was a Coven leader for centuries. She’d run the new PID wonderfully, and Angelica did offer her nearly unlimited funding and advice to Harriet. After she had ensured the portal to Hell was sealed with new, stronger wards and that the company had its new personnel, she felt that she could go into retirement with a clear conscience.

  Danny had been unsure of her decision. He had told her he thought it was just her being too steeped in grief to think straight, but Angelica had never been thinking so clearly in all her life. She’d lived an existence dominated by death, and now that she had, essentially, a kingdom to keep track of, she knew she wanted to ditch death and embrace immortality.

  She’d been obsessed with protection, leadership, and yes, death, for all too long. Her life had been controlled by the darkness she fought against, and it was time to live in the light for as long as she could. Once she explained it to him, he had accepted her decision, providing he could go on the occasional case so he didn’t go stir crazy.

  “I love you and your adrenaline addiction,” she told him, before sealing the envelope that contained the papers and putting Harriet’s name on it. She’d take it to her the next evening. This night, she simply wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet of a snowy Valentine’s night in Chicago.

  She walked to the balcony in the bedroom and stepped out, breathing deep of the cold air. She was free. For the first time in two hundred years, she was completely free. Free to live, to love, and to accept her new role as the Empress.

  “Angie,” Danny said, coming behind her. She could feel his warmth through his parka. She turned and kissed him, her fangs already itching in her gums. Lust really did bring out her hunger, but only around Danny.

  “Now that this is over, now that we can have some peace, there’s something I have been meaning to ask you for some time now,” he said, holding her cold hands in his. He wasn’t wearing any gloves, and his hands felt chapped from the cold already.

  “Shoot.” She leaned against the railing and waited. He really was cute when he was nervous. A brilliant woman like Angelica Cross should have anticipated his question. However, they had lived such an unconventional life, and this was such a predictable, such a normal question, she had never thought of being asked it again.

  Bending down to one knee and revealing a platinum ring with a black diamond and two rubies, Danny asked, “Angelica Cross, will you marry me again in this life?”

  Unable to contain a gasp of surprise and tears of joy, Angelica nodded her head, black curls brushing her skin. “Yes, of course you fool, now get up and kiss me!”

  Danny laughed, slipping the ring onto her finger and then obeying her command. As his warmth suffused her in their embrace, Angelica finally felt a happiness that had eluded her for too long. She finally felt at peace with her life.

  Time for the next chapter to begin, she thought, resting her head on his shoulder.

  ***

  “What a lovely display,” said the handsome, silver-haired man who was watching Angelica and Danny on their balcony. He spat on the ground, disgusted and amused all at the same time. “The Empress, willing to wed a mere mortal? Willing to spend a mortal life with her prey? What a disgrace.” He chuckled and licked the blood from his hand. The neighbors he had just feasted on had been so delicious. Filled with fear. His favorite flavor.

  “Enjoy your normalcy, this bit of humanity, little one. It’s the last taste of it you’ll get for a long time.”

  To Be Continued...

  Acknowledgements

  Thanks for reading! I really hope you enjoyed Right To Silence and are looking forward to the next Paranormal Detectives book, which will be coming to you by summertime from Vamptasy Publishing.

  As always, writing a book is not a lone effort whatsoever, and I have the following people to thank for the following reasons:

  My wonderful mother for being my biggest fan, strictest critic, and most faithful supporter. Without you, this would not have been possible.

  Sarah Davis Brandon, my amazing publisher who gave me my start and believed in Danny and Angelica even more than I did.

  Rue Volley, who has made my books look absolutely stunning!

  Elizabeth Anne Lance, who once again did an amazing editing job on this book made the inside match the outside.

  My fellow authors at CHBB/Vamptasy/HIP/Encompass, you guys are the best friends, colleagues, and family a girl could ask for. I am so blessed to have you all in my life.

  Sarah Fairbairn, the ladies of Knightingale Reviews, Dr. John Benedict, Paul Cude, Louise Hunter and the other Assassins, the fellow members of Authors-Professionals Co-Op, Stephen Kozeniewski, Kim Vanderbloom, Barbara Gartman, and every other member of my Vamplets street team: without any of you, I’d be sitting here writing stories for no one but myself. Your promotion, support, reviews, and enthusiasm make this all worthwhile.

  Most of all, to you, holding this book in your hands. You mean the most of all, because without readers, writers are basically crazy people writing down the adventures of their imaginary friends!

  Happy reading!

  xoxo LL

  About The Author

  Lily Luchesi is the author of the bestselling and award-winning Paranormal Detectives Series, published by Vamptasy Publishing, as well as various short stories in the horror, paranormal, and erotica genres.

  She’s an active and out member of the LGBT+ community, a self-professed nerd, music-lover, and just a little obsessed with vampires. When not writing or reading, she can be found drinking copious amounts of coffee, getting tattooed, going to concerts, or watching too much of the CW.

  She was born and raised in Chicago, but now resides in Los Angeles. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and Pinterest.