by K. F. Breene
I headed to the desk, hoping there was any info on it about where we were. My spectral limbs dragged, getting tired. I pulled power from the Line and the spirit around me to keep me going, but time was running out, I could feel it. I’d need to head back and recharge.
“Yes, sir, as you see. But it took a while to get the Wi-Fi working. I had to hack into a local business, and I only have a basic understanding of computers. I’m not typically a field operative without support.”
“Alexis.” Jack shivered before looking back at the wall. “I hate that feeling.” He spotted the woman in the corner. His eyes turned to slits. “That bitch is the one that took me down.”
“Yeah, I know.” I couldn’t get into any of the drawers, but there likely wasn’t anything in them anyway. This place was a shell. I hurried to the couch, looking down at the papers. Code and computer gobbledygook. I had no idea what any of it meant, but regardless, it wasn’t the location. “She had a memory blackout, too. Sounds like you two were hoodwinked somehow.”
“Magic,” Jack said.
“Well, yes, that is what your whole world runs on,” Harding said. “Some spirits get a case of the stupids when they lose their bodies, but this is ridiculous.”
“I was just thinking about what kind of magic it could be, dumb shit,” Jack retorted.
“Yeah. I’m the dumb shit,” Harding said, looking out the window. “I gave you a hint and still you are in the dark.”
“What?” I asked, jogging toward the door. “What hint? What do you know?”
Harding put up his hands. “Here’s what I don’t know—where we are. Anything else is unimportant right now. You’re running out of steam.”
He was right. I needed to get the show on the road.
“How come I’m not running out of steam?” Jack asked.
“Because you don’t have a body, and she is acting as your anchor.” Harding crossed his arms, not as helpful in all this as I would’ve hoped.
“Okay, I’ll just pop outside and…find some street signs. Jack, go look through that red car. Maybe there is an address. Harding…come with me, just in case…”
Before I could dash through the door, the woman said, “Yes, sir. What should I do with the body? I’ve heard the new Demigod of San Francisco is smart. If they find the body here, they can probably trace—” The man cut her off before the screen went dark. She huffed, clicked the computer closed, yanked the earbuds from her ears, and tossed the whole lot onto the couch. “Sure, transport a bleeding dead body in a trunk with nothing to wrap it in. Great.” She rolled her neck and stretched. “Fuck it, I can just strangle her and dump the car.” She looked around before throwing up her hands. “But what the hell do I wipe the car down with? My bra? This is bullshit. How the hell do they expect me to work like this and actually pull off the job?”
She turned toward the door leading to Daisy’s prison, then hesitated and glanced back at the one leading to a hall. She wasn’t sure what to do first, kill Daisy or get the car ready.
Terror choked me. I had to do something, but what?
“You might switch to your shadow form to conserve energy,” Harding said with a feigned nonchalance that rang false. Teamed with the way he’d mentioned hints a moment ago…
Why he didn’t want to openly help me, I didn’t know, but I’d take what I could get.
Energy.
I closed the distance as she pivoted, heading toward Daisy’s door, and slapped a hand onto her shoulder. She startled and swiped at my hand, clearly feeling a presence and thinking it was as harmless as a spider. I bore down, sucking energy from her as hard as I could.
She blew out a breath and wiped her forehead, feeling the drain. My own tanks were filling up, but I kept going. Her body bowed slowly as she took her first step. She was moving slowly, haltingly, but she’d nearly made it to the door.
“I should grab that trail mix,” she muttered, her eyes drooping. She leaned forward and braced a palm against the doorjamb as Jack rushed back into the room. She shook her head and straightened up, trying to push through it.
“Jack, hurry,” I cried, sucking energy with everything I had.
Seeing what was happening, he wasted no time. He was at the woman’s side in a moment, both hands on her upper arm.
“What’s your story, bro?” Jack asked Harding. “You can’t help?”
Harding leaned against the wall. “I could, but I won’t. She needs to learn to fight her own battles. I’m merely the guide.”
I couldn’t tell what Jack muttered, but it didn’t matter. The woman swayed, her side brushing Jack’s. Mumbling, she staggered toward the couch, our hands still on her, still pulling energy until she spread out, her arm thrown over the couch arm, her head lolling to the side.
I stood back, high on energy yet out of breath. “How long will she be out?” I asked Harding.
He stared at me for a long moment. “If you’d been properly trained…forever. You are a Spirit Walker. You don’t need to be physically present to dislodge someone’s soul. It’s why your kind make the absolute best assassins. It’s why you are so sought after.”
“That’ll never be her fate,” Jack said, crossing his arms. “Kieran will never let that happen.”
Harding’s eyes sparkled. “One hopes so. But it’s really such a waste.”
I looked down at the woman, then used my magic to reach into her chest. Her spirit box greeted me, hard and unyielding. I changed tactics and soaked down into it, feeling the prongs holding her soul in place. All I really had to do was break those suckers. She probably didn’t have enough energy left to bounce back.
The first felt like aluminum, bending before I finally managed to twist and turn it into breaking. The second was harder still, resisting. The third might’ve been iron for all I could handle it.
Out of breath, I shook my head. “Too hard.”
Harding smiled. “As I said, you need more training. So…I’d give her forty-five minutes, maybe an hour. But do you know where we are?”
“Berkeley.” Jack nodded at me. “We’re in Berkeley. I couldn’t figure out how to move a piece of paper out of the way, but I saw the city and zip. That’ll be enough to get us here.”
But would it be enough to get us here in time?
26
Kieran
“Sir.” Zorn stalked into Kieran’s office with hollow eyes. He’d taken Daisy’s kidnapping hard. The man was loyal to a fault. If you were lucky enough to have him on your side, he would tear down the world for you. He’d taken Daisy under his wing, promised her safety, and now felt like he had failed to deliver. He would never rest until he righted this wrong. Whoever had ultimately been responsible for her abduction had created a savage enemy, not least because Kieran wouldn’t stop until he made sure Zorn got his vengeance.
Zorn held up his phone.
“Bria wasn’t sure if she should call you. Alexis has gone into the spirit world with the Spirit Walker to track Daisy.”
Kieran stood from his chair. He’d sensed Alexis had gone into the other plane—her presence had disappeared from his radar—but it had bleeped back before he could react. It felt distant, though, further away than when she’d left. She’d been doing it so often lately, including during sleep, that he’d been taking pains to study the patterns.
“Was she successful?”
Zorn’s brow furrowed, probably because of how calmly Kieran was taking the news. He couldn’t prevent her from learning her magic, and he didn’t want to suffocate her. If she didn’t think she needed him, he had to respect that—while preparing to help at a moment’s notice in case something went wrong.
“Bria doesn’t know. She’s still…out.”
“What do you mean?” Kieran asked, getting a jolt of alarm. “She’s still in the trance?”
“Sir.” Red stepped into the room with someone Kieran couldn’t see at her back. “The Defalcator is here—”
“Nester,” came the disembodied voice.
Re
d barely paused. “The Defalcator is wondering when he might tutor his new pupil.”
Kieran heard a sniff.
“That guy has taken residence in this office since he showed up,” Zorn said, annoyance in his voice. “He was told we’d get in contact. Yet…”
It was clear Zorn thought Nester was snooping. Given what had happened last night, there was no doubt he was right.
“Show him in.” Kieran took a couple of steps to clear himself of the desk. A kaleidoscope of emotions pulsed through the soul link. The clearest was pain.
The slight man with bony shoulders stepped into the room. Medium height, bland face, no discerning characteristics whatsoever. The eye wanted to slide right past him. That alone set him up to be an excellent pickpocket. Good thing they had nothing of value around the office.
“Sir, yes.” Nester bowed slightly before pulling his hands behind his back. “I was just wondering when I might be of use.”
“Thank you, Nester, yes. It was good of Demigod Nancy to recommend you. At present, Alexis is exploring other avenues. Just as soon as she is ready, she’d be happy to entertain you. Until then, please enjoy the city, on me. San Francisco is an absolutely lovely place to visit. I’ll set you up with a driver and an itinerary.”
Nester opened his mouth to argue.
“And of course I’ll make sure Nancy knows the delay is at my discretion,” Kieran said.
The Defalcator closed his mouth. Kieran had stolen his only defense. Nester nodded briskly. “Of course, yes. How good of you.”
“Red, see that he’s taken care of,” Kieran said, clearing his throat when sadness and then fierce determination radiated through the link.
Henry turned sideways, slipping in past the exiting Nester. He closed the door behind him, drawing attention to the papers in his hand.
“You’re sure she’s still in the trance?” Kieran asked Zorn, staring out the window. Zorn had probably hoped the news would drive Kieran from the building. Zorn was more useful in the field.
“When Bria called, yes.” Zorn tapped his phone then lifted it to his ear. “I’ll double-check.”
“Sir.” Henry dropped the papers onto Kieran’s desk. “I have information. We have the car narrowed down.”
Zorn turned back, his eyes hungry.
Henry spread the half-dozen pictures out on the desk, all different colors and makes. “We’re still trying to hack into the satellite owned by the Chester government, but this is what we have so far. Each of these were seen leaving the area in the correct window of time. In addition, most had an entry time stamp that would make sense with the battle. Now, this might not be all of them. We are relying on a few traffic cameras and a couple of gas station cameras that look out on the street. If the perpetrator knew to watch out for these cameras, there are two ways to get around them. But this is a start. We are working on getting the various records and checking out the drivers.”
“She’s still out, sir,” Zorn called from the back of the room. “Lying still as a stone. Jack has disappeared from the area too. Bria felt his soul take off. She has no idea where, obviously.”
Kieran nodded to Zorn, forcing himself not to react to the gut punch, as Henry continued.
“I researched the types of magics that can control another person’s actions. Most of them are more persuasive. The magical user convinces the victim what to do. Almost always, the victim remembers what happened, but there are a couple of instances where the magic causes a blackout, like Jack experienced. One is dark fae magic, and the other, which makes more sense, stems from Hades. I checked them both out, of course.”
“Hades,” Kieran said, knowing it was rare for dark fae to work for Demigods or anyone else. They had their own lands and their own established royalty. Their lineage didn’t stem from the Olympian gods, nor did they believe in the various human gods. They were an independent people, embroiled in their own cutthroat society. Their magic was potent and dangerous, and Kieran was glad this didn’t seem like something they’d be interested in.
“That’s the conclusion I’ve come to,” Henry said. “A Possessor. Someone that can take over a person for an hour or two. He grabbed Daisy using Jack. But here is where it gets fuzzy: why grab Daisy in the house instead of Alexis in the battlefield?”
“Alexis would’ve ripped the soul right out of him,” Zorn said, back to staring out the window. “It would be asinine for anyone to try grabbing her without drugging her first.”
“Unless they underestimate her. Everyone knows she’s untrained,” Henry replied.
Zorn shrugged. “So he grabbed Daisy, fine. Handed her off like a baton. What now? It’s been nearly twenty-four hours and no ransom call. No offer to trade. No gloating from Aaron or anyone. Something isn’t adding up.”
“No, it isn’t,” Kieran said, staring at his computer, thinking beyond it. “Does Aaron have a Possessor?”
“No,” Henry said. “His databases barely have a firewall, they are so open. He has no secrets from us. As for who does… Well, we’re checking.”
“Check the other Hades Demigods first.”
“Already on it. They both have their systems locked up tight, but it’s nothing we can’t get through. One thing of note—Possessors can hop small distances. Very small. Like from Jack to the woman he ran into.”
Kieran slipped his hands into his pockets and turned to the window, looking at the glittering blue waves. They weren’t doing much for his turbulent mood, emotions that matched Alexis’s feelings at present. She wasn’t liking whatever she was finding.
“Sounds like a third party,” Zorn said. “They grabbed the kid, but they didn’t get to do whatever they were planning. They had to pivot when the woman confronted them. So they switched bodies and made use of the woman’s getaway car. Any idiot would’ve found the car—the woman was moving from that direction. Her plans were probably in the car, on her phone, whatever. A Possessor this skilled in working under the radar would’ve had all he needed to pull this off.”
Henry and Kieran nodded. But one thing still didn’t add up.
Until Zorn completed the puzzle.
“Kill the kid, blame the woman from Aaron’s staff, create a distraction as we figure out how to deal with a call to war…all of this is to open a door to this person’s true purpose.”
“Maybe the third party plans to use Daisy as a lure and is getting everything in order,” Henry said.
“Any third party operating under the radar doesn’t use a lure,” Zorn replied, his tone gruff. “The person pulling these strings is sly. Savvy. He might not even be after Alexis. Or be of Hades lineage. He might just want to see how Kieran reacts when someone gets personal. Without knowing who is behind this, we have no idea what their end game might be.”
Kieran had to agree with Zorn. Daisy was collateral damage. “Henry, if you can figure out who the Possessor is, get his ID. We can run him through the facial tracker in the city and see if anything comes up. He has to be on scene. I don’t know how far away a Possessor can be, but I know it isn’t across oceans. He’s here, somewhere. If we can grab his body, we own his magic.”
A swirl of emotion ran through his middle. He paused for a moment to catch his breath. Zorn’s phone rang.
Time to go.
27
Alexis
“I can’t use my fucking hands!” Jack tried to slam his fist against the laptop on the kitchen table. His hand went straight through both the computer and the table. “What the hell use am I if I can’t use my hands?”
Bria slid into the chair he was lurking in, then jumped back out. “That was cold. Jack, move. I can feel your soul.”
“This is a nightmare.” Jack turned away, dodging around the cat that once again housed Harding’s spirit. I’d put the spirit trapper/repellent back up, mostly to keep Frank out, but also as a little protection in case one of the Demigods sent spirits to spy. “How the hell am I going to find the place without going online?” The cat jumped up onto the island, and
Jack bent over it. “Can’t you figure out some sort of spirit information infrastructure?”
“They can always put you in a body,” the cat said, eyeing a hairbrush Aubri had left out on her last visit. “You know, in case you still have the stupids and didn’t think about a Necromancer using her craft on you.”
I motioned Bria back into the seat. “He said it’s in Berkeley.”
“Berkeley is a big place. Care to narrow it down?” Her phone vibrated and she glanced at it. “The guys are all en route except for Henry. He’s going to stay and look for more intel. Zorn is asking how Mordecai is.” She resumed looking at the laptop, preparing to type.
“Good. Just checked on him,” Jack said. “I can at least look and report. That’s about all I’m good—”
“Enough.” I slashed my hand through the air and accidentally put a little magic behind it. Jack jerked back, and the cat jumped and twisted at the same time, yowling. It landed on its feet and zipped away, Harding clearly not in control of that one. “Jack, I know this is traumatic for you, but Daisy is still alive. Right now, she is still alive, but we only have fifty minutes if we are lucky to get to her—”
“We’re lucky,” Bria said, nodding. “We’re lucky. We’ll get her.”
“So I need you to cut it out with the self-pity and get on board,” I continued. “Where is she being held?”
He took a deep breath and nodded before positioning himself to see over Bria’s shoulder. I saw goosebumps rise on her flesh, but she didn’t comment.
As I felt Kieran drawing closer, I relayed Jack’s instructions for a Google search. After five minutes of futzing around on street maps, we had an address in the non-magical zone, which I scrawled down on a sheet of paper.
It would take us over an hour to get there without traffic. The Bay Area, magical or otherwise, always had traffic.
“Move Mordecai into the panic room,” I told Bria, my hands shaking, tears threatening. Panic clouded my mind. “Think, think.” I took a deep breath. “If we get a police escort, there won’t be traffic. We could make it. Except it would take time to arrange all that.”
