The Angel's Vow: A New Adult Urban Fantasy Series (Bloodcaster Chronicles Book 2)

by R. L. Perez

  This was their last chance. But I knew by the look on their faces that they would refuse. I wasn’t exactly surprised. They’d been Damien’s most trusted officials in the coven.

  Aside from me and Benny, they were the only ones left.

  The thought sent a mixture of sadness and triumph through me. Sadness as I remembered the days when things had been easy and simple. Triumph because Damien’s reign would finally end today. And then, the coven could start anew.

  When the last member of the coven entered the room, the doors shut behind him, and silence fell. I clasped my hands in front of me and stepped forward to address my people.

  “Welcome,” I said loudly, spreading my arms. “I know things with the coven haven’t been easy lately, but I am grateful for your loyalty and the hard work you’ve put in. I assure you, things will be changing soon. The transition won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. I swear to you I will help this coven thrive again.”

  “You killed Damien!” a voice bellowed. “How can we trust you?”

  Other voices murmured their assent. Beside me, Benny stiffened.

  Fire burned in my chest, though I’d expected some resistance. My hands curled into fists at my side. “Damien betrayed us all. He was willing to sell coven secrets for his own benefit. He aligned himself with a Nephilim clan to take out members of his own coven.”

  “So you say,” snapped another voice in the crowd. “Where’s your proof?”

  I’d expected this too. I nodded to Benny, who turned to the desk behind us and grabbed a file before lifting it in the air for everyone to see.

  “These are Damien’s financial records,” I said. “All the hits he ordered in the past year, deals he struck with other covens, everything. Any of you are welcome to look through his file and see for yourself. There are transactions to Hector Moses, who was a Nephilim clan leader, as well as proof of extortion of members of our own coven.” Members like me, I wanted to add. But I figured that wouldn’t sit well with this crowd.

  It didn’t matter. If the demons here were determined to hate me, they could either leave or wait for me to kill them myself. I couldn’t force loyalty on my people.

  More distrustful murmurs rippled through the crowd. I was losing them.

  I cleared my throat loudly and gestured to the four prisoners. Kip’s eyes were hard as steel as he glared at me. Pete had the gall to look nervous. His eye-patch was lopsided, and his one eye was wide with fear. Conrad and Tucker almost looked bored.

  “These men have had six months to accept me as their leader,” I said, my voice ringing in the room. “They have refused and have brought too much tension to our already suffering coven.” Slowly, I turned to the prisoners. “This is my final offer. Will you pledge to follow my rules? To accept me as your leader? To live among us in peace?”

  The crowd stilled, the muttering dying completely as we all waited for an answer.

  “Go to hell.” Kip spat on the floor at my feet. The others grunted their agreement, glowering at me with eyes full of venom, their expressions unyielding.

  I stared at them, my face nothing but a hard mask. Facing the crowd again, I said, “I’ve been more than patient, waiting for these men to come around. But now, their time is up. Today, they will be executed.”

  A stunned silence filled the room. Heads turned, but no one made a sound.

  “This is a demonstration of what will happen to those who turn against me.” My voice was lethal. Here, I channeled my inner assassin. The woman most feared. “And this is the only warning you will receive. If you wish to leave and find another coven, I won’t stop you. But you will not threaten me or my people. I take care of my own.” My voice hardened as I slowly gazed over each member of the crowd, challenging them.

  No one would look me in the eye.

  A sliver of satisfaction wormed its way into my chest. Power filled me, swirling rapidly, waiting to be unleashed.

  I took a deep breath, allowing the tension in the room to simmer just a bit. Let them fret. Let them squirm.

  I lifted both hands, closed my eyes, and summoned my Bloodcaster magic.

  Purple sparks exploded from my hands. The crowd gasped collectively, and some of them shifted as if contemplating fleeing from the room. The lights flickered and went out, leaving only my magic to light the room. I closed my eyes, focusing on the four prisoners, picturing their faces clearly in my mind. Within me, my magic churned hungrily.

  Death, I thought.

  I slashed my hand through the air. A jet of purple flames sliced through each prisoner like a blade. They crumpled without a sound.

  It was so quick that some in the crowd didn’t see what happened. I dropped my arms, and the lights flickered back on. Several demons craned their necks to look at the prisoners, who lay motionless on the floor.

  I felt Benny’s eyes on me, though it was hard to tell if he was pleased or disappointed.

  He’d told me I couldn’t kill them myself.

  But this was different. I’d hidden my identity as a Bloodcaster my whole life. Now, it was time to reveal the truth about myself. I’d only ever killed with a weapon. Never with my own magic.

  This coven already suspected who I was after my battle with Damien. This only confirmed it.

  I was a blood witch. And I was to be feared.

  7

  Vince

  The sleeping quarters reminded me of military bunkers. Dozens of bunk beds filled a wide room. No privacy. No bathroom. Mom showed me the washroom down the tunnel, and my head ached with the thought of stumbling my way down there in the middle of the night when nature called.

  With every passing hour, I became more and more uncertain about being here.

  I spent the next several hours following Mom around, trying to memorize the confusing map of tunnels to follow. Occasionally, we passed other Reapers. Some wore blank expressions like Ellis, and it made me shudder. I’d hoped to pass Jocelyn again, but no such luck. I was desperate to find someone sane to talk to about all this.

  “What about Hector?” I blurted, interrupting Mom discussing the schedule of meals.

  She blinked, her brows knitting together. “What about him?” Her voice was hard.

  “You Reapers clearly have a lot of power,” I said. “Can’t you use your magic to find him? He’s still out there.”

  An unreadable expression crossed Mom’s face. “You mean we Reapers.”

  It took a moment for me to realize what I’d said. I shook my head. “Right.”

  Mom sighed. “We don’t deal with mortal messes anymore, Vince.”

  Indignation roared within me. “But he’s a monster. Look at what he did to you! What he almost did to me and Dad! How can we just let him go?”

  “We’re not letting anything happen. The magical authorities will take care of him. It’s not our problem.”

  I scoffed. “Yeah, right. He’s one of the highest-ranking Nephilim in the world. I doubt the Council will do a damn thing.” Last I’d seen, the creepy Timekeepers had shown up and taken him away. He could’ve been anywhere by now. Luke made it clear Hector couldn’t be killed because it would threaten the timeline. Whatever that meant.

  Mom grabbed my arm suddenly, her expression cold as ice. “Vince, listen to me. Everything you left behind in that realm doesn’t matter anymore. Your duty is to the souls of the dead now. That’s what a Reaper does. If we fretted over every mortal squabble, we’d never get our job done.”

  My jaw went rigid, and her words sent an icy shiver through me. How could she say that? I’d left behind my father. How could she say he didn’t matter? Or Cora? They were the most important people in my life. And so was Mom.

  But now, I wasn’t so sure she felt the same way.

  “Is that the real reason why you never came back to us?” I asked in a quiet voice. “Because Dad and I didn’t matter once you became a Reaper?”

  Mom’s head reared back. “What? Vince‍—‍”

  “That’s what you said. Everythin
g in the mortal realm doesn’t matter.”

  Her mouth opened and closed. Regret filled her eyes, but it mingled with resignation. “I—Yes. I won’t sugarcoat it, and I won’t lie to you. The work I do as a Reaper is much more important than living a life with you and your father in the mortal realm.”

  I wrenched my arm free of her grasp. My brain was numb with shock, and for a moment, all I could do was stare at her.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she said in a low voice. She ducked her head, her nostrils flaring. She seemed angry. But when she looked at me, her eyes were full of sorrow.

  Not anger. Shame.

  “Is this my future?” I asked in a weak voice. “Am I doomed to forget everyone I loved? To stop caring about them at all?” My voice broke on the last word, and I shook my head.

  “It’s much bigger than that. Just listen‍—‍” Mom reached for me again, but I stepped away from her. Hurt shone in her eyes. She swallowed. “I still care about you.”

  Her words sounded so feeble that I laughed without humor. “Right. Very convincing. It’s a miracle you’ve convinced yourself all these years.”

  “No, you don’t get to judge me like that,” Mom said, her voice harsh. “You have no idea what I’ve been through or what I’ve done.”

  “You’re right. Because you never bothered to reach out to us! Maybe if you had, we would’ve had some kind of closure, knowing you’d so easily forgotten us.” My heart broke as I said it because no matter what Mom had done, Dad and I would never have gotten over that loss.

  Which made this sting worse, knowing Mom was happily fulfilling her duties as a Reaper without a care in the world.

  “I told you, things are different down here,” Mom said. “This realm doesn’t work the same way! Over time, you adapt to that way of thinking.”

  “I don’t want to!” I shouted, my voice ringing in the tunnels.

  “You don’t have a choice!” Mom cried. “This is your life now, Vince. This is what’s expected of you. It will be easier with time, and soon you’ll forget all about your mortal life.”

  I gaped at her. “If I’d known that’s what I was signing up for, I never would’ve agreed to become a Reaper. I don’t want to leave behind my mortal life! You keep telling me I’ll adjust, that my magic will change, that I will change. But I don’t want to!”

  I stormed away from her, unsure of where I was headed. But I couldn’t be around her right now. Fury boiled in my veins, consuming me like a raging fire.

  Did she expect me to just hop on board the Reaper train until I turned into an emotionless shell like Ellis? Until I became a willing and obedient servant, imprisoned by the will of whatever the hell sort of magic lived down here?

  I couldn’t do this. Becoming a Reaper had been a huge mistake.

  But I hadn’t pledged a vow yet. Maybe I could get back to the mortal realm somehow. Surely, I could find a way.

  I left the sleeping quarters, moving toward where I thought the washroom was. But the farther I walked, the more lost I became. The washroom was supposed to be a few paces away from the bunkers, but I’d been walking for ten minutes and hadn’t seen it.

  My furious stomping faded to a slow trudge, my anger ebbing. My breathing was still hard and fast, and I longed to grab my crosse and ball and head to the field to play out my frustrations.

  Another thing I hadn’t considered. I would never get to play lacrosse again. These tunnels didn’t really seem like they’d accommodate any physical recreation.

  Damn this place. Damn my own stubborn will, thinking I could change things by becoming a Reaper.

  I couldn’t do anything here. And Hector was still running free. My Nephilim clan was in turmoil, and I couldn’t do anything about it.

  And Lilith knew where my dad was. I hoped he’d found a job and a life. That he wasn’t suffering.

  “Vince?”

  I jumped, whirling to find Jocelyn a few steps behind me, her face blank with shock. I glanced behind her, expecting to see Ellis’s creepy face. But she was alone.

  “What are you doing here?” we both said at once.

  Jocelyn laughed, but I couldn’t even crack a smile. Her grin faded, and she stepped closer to me. “What’s wrong?”

  I shook my head, running a hand through my hair and leaning against the cold metal wall behind me. “I just—I can’t do this.”

  “Do . . . what?”

  “Be here. Be a Reaper. I’m worried I made a huge mistake, Joss.”

  Jocelyn was silent, and I couldn’t look at her. She’d come here because of me. If I hadn’t shattered the façade the clan had built about Reapers, she would’ve happily pledged to stay.

  “What makes you say that?” she finally asked. There was something uncertain in her voice. Something I couldn’t place.

  I swallowed. “Everything. Mom keeps saying we’re going to change once we’ve been here long enough and have adapted. But I don’t want to change. I don’t want to become a zombie like Ellis!”

  Jocelyn flinched. “I know.”

  “She’s trying to convince me nothing in the mortal realm matters anymore.” My words sounded harsh and bitter.

  Jocelyn’s blue eyes snapped to me. “I’m guessing it didn’t work.”

  I shot her a flat look, and she chuckled.

  “I get it, Vince.” She sighed and leaned against the wall next to me. “But we made our choice. We have to accept whatever comes with it.”

  I stared at her. “Do you really believe that? Don’t you think there’s a way we can go back? We haven’t sworn in yet.”

  Jocelyn raised an eyebrow. “We can’t go back. We might not have sworn in, but by refusing to pledge, we severed ourselves from the clan. There’s no coming back from that.”

  A lump formed in my throat, and I leaned my head back, closing my eyes against the ache in my chest.

  “What would you do?” she asked. “If you could go back?”

  Be with Cora. The words almost left my lips, but I shoved them back down. Instead, I said, “See my dad. Hunt down Hector. Make things right with the clan.”

  Jocelyn nodded, her gaze contemplative. “Well, maybe you can do some good here.”

  I frowned at her. “What do you mean?”

  “There might be things here that you can make right. Maybe cutting out the mortal realm is something that can be fixed.” She shrugged. “Maybe there’s a way to merge the two realms so it’s easier to access.”

  I went still at her words. Merge the two realms. My blood raced with excitement at the idea.

  Suddenly, Jocelyn laughed. “You’ve got that look. Easy now, Vince. I said maybe.”

  “But I’m a Jumper,” I said. I couldn’t hide the eagerness in my voice. “If anyone can do it, it’s me, right?”

  Jocelyn seemed doubtful. “You must think very highly of yourself.”

  I shoved her arm. “Come on, Joss.” When she continued to look uncertain, my hope faded. “What do you think about this place?”

  Jocelyn grimaced, gazing around the musty and damp tunnel that surrounded us. “I agree with you. It’s weird. But . . .” She exhaled. “Change is always difficult. I don’t think I’ve given it enough time to form an opinion. Yes, there are things that give me pause, like—like Ellis.” She shuddered. “But there were worrisome things about the clan. You and I know that better than anyone.”

  My gaze settled on the dark, stony ground, my thoughts far away. Was I really just being a petulant child, resisting change? Was that how Mom saw me?

  But no. My instincts screamed at me that this was wrong. It was something more than my resistance to change. Especially if there was a thief skulking around, robbing souls of their magic.

  But maybe Jocelyn was right. Maybe I could do something about it.

  “Whatever you decide, I’m with you.” Jocelyn’s eyes were earnest. “If you want to try to find a way back, I promise I’ll help you.”

  My lips tugged with a soft smile. “Why would you do that? Yo
u don’t owe me anything.”

  Jocelyn’s eyes warmed. “Because that’s what friends do, Vince.”

  8

  Cora

  “Have you seen this?”

  Benny dropped a stack of papers on my desk. I took a long sip of my coffee, still blinking exhaustion from my eyes. It was too early for this.

  I swallowed and said, “Good morning to you too, Benny.”

  Benny crossed his arms, his eyes flashing. My smile faded. This had to be serious.

  Setting my coffee down, I leaned forward and leafed through the stack of papers. When I realized what it was, I laughed and relaxed in my chair. “That’s nothing.”

  “They’re threats, Cora.”

  “And I’ve been threatened before. It’s no big deal.”

  “As a coven leader, it is.”

  I sighed. He was right. After my little display in the conference room last week, half a dozen demons had opted to leave the coven. As promised, I didn’t stop them. The ones that remained seemed too terrified to get within five feet of me.

  Which was fine by me.

  “They’re afraid of you, Cora,” Benny said.

  I spread my arms. “And?”

  Benny rolled his eyes. “A leader should be feared, yes. But they should also be respected and admired. Trusted.”

  I snorted. “Damien wasn’t.”

  “He was definitely more likable than you are right now.”

  My smile vanished. Rage boiled through me. How dare he imply that Damien was better than I was? Damien was a manipulative pig who thought only of himself.

  Before I could retort, Benny lifted his hands in surrender. “I like you more than I liked Damien. But your coven doesn’t know you like I do. Damien was friendlier. More personable. He let the coven see that side of himself.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying I should go around shaking hands and kissing babies?”

  “I’m saying you need to let these people know you. They only see you as a monster who kills people. And while that’s good for inspiring fear, it’s not great for inspiring loyalty.”