Demon Kissed: Book 2 of the Venandi Chronicles (An Urban Paranormal Romance Series)

by Sara Snow

  She’s stubborn. I’m stubborn. We’re a match made in . . . wherever.

  As it turned out, I didn’t have to hold myself back. Georgia reached up and threw her arms around my neck, pulling me into a deep kiss that left nothing on the table. Her lips were so hungry, her body so giving that I felt I was drowning in her need.

  When she finally let me go, my knees were so weak that I had to prop my hand against the car to keep from falling.

  “Sometimes I have to work really hard to keep from falling in love with you,” she said softly.

  “I’ve stopped trying,” I admitted.

  “Excuse me!” Olympia’s shrill voice shattered the moment. “Would you two mind getting your butts in the car before we get attacked by repulsive lizards again?”

  “I agree. Let’s hit the road,” Jacob said curtly.

  As he climbed into the back seat, Jacob gave me a long, hard stare. I knew he’d seen me breaking our truce with that kiss. For a second, I thought he was going to call me on it right there in front of Georgia.

  Jacob didn’t say anything, but I knew he wouldn’t forget that I’d gone back on our agreement. And he probably had no intention of giving up on winning Georgia’s heart—if we all got out of this alive.

  At this point, I didn’t care about which one of us ended up with Georgia. She wasn’t up for winning, like some tacky stuffed animal at a carnival. All I cared about was making Georgia happy and holding onto her for as long as I could. It was the first time in my life that I could remember caring about anyone more than myself.

  Jacob’s not the competition that I’m worried about. It’s Georgia’s father.

  Jacob

  Two hours after the battle with Paimon’s gang, I was still buzzing from the adrenaline rush. The whole scene had blown my mind. I couldn’t believe we had gotten out of that mess with our skins intact.

  If not for Georgia, I had no doubt that all of us, except for her, would be dead. If they wanted to separate her from us, they had almost succeeded.

  Thank god she was still on our side.

  The attraction to Georgia that I’d felt before now seemed like a junior high crush compared to the feelings I had for her now. I still wanted her, sure. Who wouldn’t? But now my desire had an undercurrent of deep respect for her, and I had to admit that I was also afraid of what she could do.

  It was a relief to follow Olympia into the truck stop’s convenience store, if only to get a break from the surreal atmosphere of our journey. The glaring fluorescent lights, country music, and colorful rows of junk food woke me out of my shock, reminding me that there was a whole world of mortals who knew little or nothing about the invisible realm of angels and demons.

  “So, what do you think about Carter and Georgia? Do they have a chance?” I asked Olympia. No sense beating around the bush with her—she knew all about the soap opera that had been unfolding back at the warehouse.

  She tossed her long blonde curls and sighed. “It’s a love-hate thing, from what I can tell. There’s definitely an attraction, but they butt heads a lot. I offered to make a love potion for Georgia to use on Carter, but she wasn’t interested. To me, that’s telling.”

  Olympia eyed me as we waited in line at the cash register. “To be perfectly honest, Jacob, I think you’d be a much better match for her. You’re much more easygoing. Carter’s a bit of a control freak, whether he wants to admit it or not. And Georgia can be hard-headed, too, especially now that she’s learning what she’s capable of. Eventually, they’ll clash in a big way. You could either be there to pick up the pieces, or jump in now and save them both some heartache.”

  “You should have your own talk show,” I said. “I’ll be your first guest.”

  “I’m actually serious,” she said with a smile. “Why not take a real shot at it?”

  “Oh, I will. Trust me. I’m just waiting for the right moment.”

  “Why wait? You’re wasting time.”

  I didn’t get a chance to tell Olympia about the truce. As we walked out of the store, I saw Georgia and Carter standing next to the car. They both stood in a rigid stance, as if they were facing off in one of their arguments.

  Maybe my chances are even better than I thought.

  “Whatever happens, don’t give up,” Olympia said. “You’re Kingston’s son—you’ve got everything going for you.”

  Then, Georgia pulled Carter into a big, messy kiss, and my heart sank like a busted balloon.

  “Don’t give up!” Olympia insisted as we approached the car. “Today, they’re kissing. Tomorrow, she’ll be throwing weapons at his head or setting him on fire.”

  Olympia broke the kiss by reminding Carter that we needed to get going. I don’t know if Georgia realized that I was watching the two of them. I did know for sure that Carter had violated our agreement, and I wasn’t about to let that go.

  I would honor the truce because I was my father’s son, and my dad was the most honorable man I’d ever known. Carter apparently had no moral compass, at least when it came to women.

  As soon as our mission was over, I would get back at that half-vamp bastard.

  25

  Carter

  No one gave me any pushback when I told the team that we’d be driving all night. They were just as eager to see this thing through to its conclusion as I was, if not more so. Now Jacob and Olympia were snoozing in the back, while I sat at the wheel, holding Georgia’s hand.

  The current of energy coursing through her flesh was more than enough to keep me awake.

  There had never been a question in my mind that Georgia was special. After the events of the past twenty-four hours, I had more than enough proof to confirm my belief that she was more powerful than any of us had realized.

  I glanced over at her and saw that her eyes were wide open, gazing through the cracked windshield into the darkness.

  “You’re quiet tonight,” I said softly, trying not to wake the two in the back seat. “What’s on your mind?”

  She waited for a while before she spoke, and I could feel her hesitation in the silence.

  “I’m thinking about what happened last night in the motel. Not the fire, but what happened before, when the incubus attacked me.”

  I cleared my throat, hoping that whatever came out of my mouth would be the right thing for her to hear.

  “That must have been a nightmare. I’m sure it brought up a lot of shit from your past.”

  Like how she came into being. Her human mother with her demon father.

  “Yeah. It was. But at first . . . at first, I thought it was you.”

  That caught my attention. “You thought the incubus was me?”

  “He made me think he was you in bed with me. I guess he took your form. I saw him in the light of the window, and he looked just like you. Your hair, your face. Then, he lay on top of me, and kissed me, and that’s when I knew what he was.”

  Georgia turned to face the passenger-side window. I heard a catch in her voice, as if she were struggling to get the words out.

  I didn’t know what it felt like for a woman to be taken over by a being with supernatural strength or unnatural hungers.

  Who are you kidding, Carter? You’re a half-vampire. How many humans have you seduced into believing that you wanted them for more than their blood?

  “It makes me sick thinking about it,” Georgia whispered.

  “But it wasn’t your fault. You had nothing to do with it. You were his victim—he was stalking you from the time we walked into that diner. Maybe even before.”

  “I know. But my body didn’t know that. It turned me on when he kissed me, and I thought it was you.”

  I didn’t know what to say to that. The phrases that floated to my mind were nothing but cliches, the kind of things you hear actors say on television when they’re pretending to be therapists. No true comprehension, just hollow words shaped like empathy.

  “I would have driven a blade through the fucker’s heart,” I said, “but he was ashes b
y the time I got there. Does it make you feel any better that you set him on fire?”

  She nodded slowly. “Yeah. Because it proved that I could defend myself, and that I can defend other people, too.”

  “I’d hold you in my arms,” I said, “but I need at least one of them to drive.”

  I saw the side of her mouth curve up in a smile.

  It’s mutual. It has to be, or she wouldn’t be holding my hand.

  “You know that it’s only going to get worse,” I said. “Everything that’s happened since we left the warehouse was just their opening act. Your father is going to pull out all the stops to get you away from us.”

  I felt her shudder. “I wish you wouldn’t call him my father.”

  “That’s what he is, Georgia. I’m not going to pretend that I can make you accept it, because I honestly wish it weren’t true. But you figure big in his plans, and he’s going to do everything he can to get you on his side.”

  She turned away from the window to look at me again. “You’re afraid I’m going to join him, aren’t you? That I’ll follow my demon side. Listen to me, Carter. I am not his daughter. Maybe I’m the accidental by-product of some demonic rape, but that doesn’t make me Paimon’s daughter in spirit. He can’t have me. I won’t let him.”

  Georgia was squeezing my hand so tightly that I thought she’d crush my bones. Even in the darkness, the intense violet light of her eyes burned through the layer of cynicism that shielded my soul.

  Careful, Carter. You’re dancing on quicksand.

  I ordered that voice in my head, the one that sounded exactly like my vampire mother, to shut the fuck up.

  Carter

  Still clutching my hand, Georgia fell asleep as we continued on through the night. As soon as I heard her steady, rhythmic breathing, I decided to check my phone again.

  The phone had been connected to the car’s battery charger since we left the truck stop, but the thing had been as silent as a high-tech tombstone. Eli had told me he’d call me with a status report on Jose, and I needed to update Kingston on everything that had happened since we left the warehouse.

  Silence. Total silence.

  I couldn’t blame the phone itself, since I’d gotten a couple of robo-calls reminding me that I was missing out on some great deals on burial insurance. But I hadn’t heard a word from the warehouse, and that scared the shit out of me.

  “Hey, Eli. It’s Carter. Can you call me as soon as you get this?”

  It was the third voicemail I’d left for him. None of the texts I’d sent him earlier had been answered. I’d even taken a stab at telepathy—with no luck.

  I need to know what’s going to happen to us. I need to know about Jose’s visions. Most importantly, I need you to tell me that this fucking mission is going to succeed.

  Maybe it was the control freak in me, but I was starting to get very edgy about their total lack of communication. Had Jose had any glimpses of our future? Was he still having seizures?

  Are they all dead?

  Time to try calling Kingston. He was notorious for ignoring his cell phone, and I always suspected that he relied on Eli or Jose to check his voicemail for him. But I had no other option.

  The number you have called is out of service.

  The calm, slightly regretful tone of the recorded female voice made me want to jump out of my skin. Kingston had had the same phone number for as long as I could remember. It couldn’t possibly be out of service. The recorded bitch was wrong.

  The number you have called is out of service.

  I scrolled through my contacts and found Eli’s number. The call went to voicemail, but it was slightly reassuring to hear the sound of his voice.

  “Eli, call me as soon as you get this. It’s urgent that we talk,” I said. I ended the call and let the phone drop to my lap.

  In spite of my faith in Georgia and the rest of the team, in spite of my belief in our mission, I couldn’t shake the feeling that without any connection to the warehouse, we were thoroughly fucked.

  Eli

  Jose lay in bed, sleeping for once. It was my turn to sit with him while Kingston took a break to rest. We’d both been trying to write down everything he said when he woke, but his speech was often garbled or growled in such a deep tone that I couldn’t catch what he was saying.

  Now, as I sat by his bed, notebook in my lap, I kept catching myself nodding off. The rhythm of Jose’s breathing made me drowsy, and no matter how much black coffee I drank, I couldn’t seem to keep my eyes open. To keep myself awake, I went through the pages I’d recorded to see if I could catch any repeated words.

  A kiss will summon the king. The unseen will soon be seen.

  I’d written that down earlier in the day when I was a lot more alert. Kingston was better at interpreting Jose’s various voices than I was. He had caught several Latin phrases, and one statement that Jose repeated several times:

  The blood of two will conquer three.

  Not long ago, Jose used to write down his own visions and dreams in a notebook that he carried around with him. It was part of the role he played on the team, showing us the future, pointing us in the right direction. But lately, he’d been so shaky when he woke up that he wasn’t able to write, and he often couldn’t even remember what he’d dreamed.

  The demonic voices were different, too. Jose had never channeled them so frequently or with so much intensity, and he was exhausted. That was just one more reason I couldn’t wait to see them demolished.

  I thought about Carter and the team, and wondered what they were doing. I reached in my pocket for my phone. The battery had gone dead. Ever since that wind storm the other day, my phone had refused to hold a charge for more than an hour or two.

  I wanted to run down the hall to get my charger, but I was scared to leave Jose alone for even a few seconds. There was no way to know if Paimon and the other kings would decide they wanted to cut off communication with us—and end Jose’s life in the process.

  Charging the phone would have to wait. I rested the back of my hand on Jose’s forehead. His skin felt feverish. Long ago, before I’d joined the Venandi, I used to do that to my own son when he was sick and trying to sleep. But that was another lifetime, before a supernatural being stole my wife and kid from me.

  Jose, Kingston, and the rest of the team were my world now. I wasn’t going to lose another family to those demons, not even if it cost me my own life.

  26

  Carter

  We reached the outskirts of El Paso as the sky was lightening from black to a clear navy blue. This early in the morning, it felt like we almost had the highway to ourselves. The jagged silhouettes of the mountains and the crooked streets of Ciudad Juarez brought back memories of the first time I drove into this border city. Back then, I had been at the end of my mental rope—disconnected from any sense of who I was or where I had come from.

  As I glanced at Georgia sleeping, her profile as motionless as a marble angel, I thought about how different my life was now. Even though we all faced one of the most dangerous confrontations of our lives, I realized that I’d never been anywhere this close to feeling content.

  I touched the soft skin on the back of her hand. Georgia didn’t stir.

  If only I didn’t have this sick sense of dread in my gut, I’d be a hell of a lot happier.

  As far as I could tell, there’d been no calls from the warehouse since the last time I checked. Driving along the curved stretch of urban freeway, I had to leave the phone in my lap, but I hadn’t stopped obsessing over Kingston’s silence.

  What if Paimon and his crew decided to take a few hostages just to turn the screws on us a little? What if all three of them—Kingston, Eli, and Jose—are being held captive while Paimon waits for the perfect moment to demand his ransom?

  In the back seat, I heard Olympia moving around. I checked the rearview mirror and saw her blinking at the sight of the city outside the window. Jacob was a sleeping lump beside her.

  “Sh
it,” she murmured. “We’re almost there, aren’t we? Almost showtime.”

  “Yeah. We’re close. I’m going to need some driving directions,” I whispered.

  “Pull over when we get to the cemetery,” she said. “I’ll know more when we’re closer.”

  I reached over the back seat to hand Olympia my phone. “Could you check this for me? I’ve been waiting to hear from Eli or Kingston all night.”

  A moment passed while Olympia checked my phone for missed calls. “Nada,” she said. “Do you think something happened? Kingston should have called by now.”

  “All I know is that they were watching Jose in case he had another seizure.”

  The silence from the warehouse was making me extremely nervous. I didn’t want Olympia to know just how scared I was—not only for the four of us, but for the three who remained back in Chicago.

  Olympia helped me navigate through the city. I didn’t remember many details of El Paso, just the overall impression of being surrounded by mountains and the relief of being immersed in a history that was so different from my own. I remembered the broad streets of the historic downtown and the neighborhoods where I’d spent my nights hunting the streets.

  And I remembered the cemetery where I used to walk for hours. By the time Olympia guided me to the gate, I knew exactly where we were.

  Georgia and Jacob were still asleep. Georgia’s head rested against the window, and I could hear her snoring lightly beside me. I would have thought she’d be the type who didn’t sleep well—neglected and abused kids often developed sleep problems as adults.

  Get your rest, kid. You’re going to need it today.

  After I stopped the car, Olympia pulled her antique mirror out of her enormous purse. Then, she buttoned up her jacket and opened the back door of the car.