‘Dad told me her species used to be known for their ability to replenish, purify and empower. Although he also told me he believed they had been hunted into extinction. Ashley could very well be the last of her kind, or there could be more, hiding.’
‘I don’t know how you’ve managed to keep her a secret.’
‘Her mother took care of that. My father was lucky enough to recognise the sealing charm. But when she reaches her birthday, her nature will start to filter through, and being segregated from that part of herself all her life is going to cause complications.’ Alex groaned internally. His father had already secured the Mython base C.O’s blessing to take his sister in when she came of age. They had one of the only training areas that could withstand if she went berserk, which was a very real possibility given how such a large part of who she was had been repressed for so long. His father had ensured the measures were in place, and had even left instructions in case he was on a mission when the time came. As it turned out, his father’s obsessive planning had been a blessing.
‘You’ve got until May, right?”
‘Yeah.’
‘Good, that’s a month or so to figure out how to break the news she’s not only preternatural, but could sell her services to the highest bidder. Did they ever find her mother?’
‘Yeah.’ Alex gave what translated as a mental sigh. ‘Dad’s team found her discarded on some abandoned tracks a few stops away, drained. She was an Elder Witch. Apparently, there are still a few with that bloodline this side of the barrier.’
Elder witches were few in number as the blood coursing through their veins traded fertility for power, leaving them barren. The only reason their line continued at all was because the witch, male or female, was given one opportunity when they turned twenty-eight to create a child. But in doing so, the child took all that made their parent Elder into themselves, leaving its mother or father powerless. The blood for this line was literally passed from parent to child, except, it seemed, in Ashley’s case.
‘Father?’
‘Murdered. That’s why they were fleeing. Her mother had reached out to my father through P.T.F., that’s why he was on site and able to retrieve Ashley so quickly. If whoever got her mother had discovered there was a child, it would have been unthinkable for her. We had no idea what her father was until Dad saw the charm, and the only reason he knew it was because of what we are. In a way, she was already family, albeit very distant.’
‘Well, try and have her come to our side. We could use a power boost.’
‘At the moment, I’m just worried about getting her through this transition. Imagine if your abilities had been suppressed, then all of a sudden you found yourself with a limitless supply of power and no idea how to channel it. I’ve already made arrangements for her to stay with me at the base. We can arrange getting her registered, too.’
‘Why hasn’t she already been?’
‘Because until she knows how to protect herself, registering her will be like painting a target on her back, especially since the Blue Coats are no closer to discovering how the abduction victims’ chips are being disabled. Until that’s resolved, she’ll be in danger, and she’s too young to sign up to P.T.F. until her birthday.’
‘You think she will? What if you tell her what our logo really used to stand for?’ The P.T.F. had been dubbed the Preternatural Task force, but when first their agency began, the initials had actually stood for Pathway To Freedom, because their objective was to ensure everyone could live in safety and freedom. But this secondary name had been the one to stick.
‘I don’t think she has even given it any thought. I know she wants to use what she has, but I don’t think she has any thoughts on how. Besides, this gift she has now, it’s a drop in the pond. I’m hoping if I talk to her about us, she may conclude she can do more good as part of our service. But first, I have to help her come to terms with a secret we’ve kept about her all her life. I don’t think she’ll thank me for that.’
Bindu placed a hand on his shoulder gently and he gave her a smile, opening the passenger’s door to their vehicle.
“Oh no, it’s my turn to drive,” she scolded, plucking the keys from his grasp.
With a slight chuckle, Alex got in the car, prepared to clutch the seat for dear life. Combat and raids he could handle, but he was the worst passenger in the world.
Reuben sat with the crime scene data displayed upon the surface of his office desk, scowling as he rechecked all the information. He swiped a report away, replacing it with another before glancing towards the open fireplace. He watched the flames dance for a moment, bringing with them the cries of the wronged as they begged him to bring them justice.
These voices were one of the reasons they’d had to move to Overton. While they begged an ifrit to bring their killers to justice, they provided no insight into how they met their demise, or by whose hand. When Solomon had pulled their ancestor from the realm of the dead, they had maintained their connection to that plane and now, whenever an innocent life was taken, the person could cry out to an ifrit, seeking justice. This was the reason his kind found work in homicide. Often, they were drawn to the scene of a murder by the blood of the wronged, but whoever had killed these people had been careful. He could sense it had happened in this territory, and the only reason he would be unable to locate the scene of their death was if someone had driven an unused nail into the blood. They hadn’t done it quickly enough in some cases, but Reuben was certain there were more deaths than there had been calls for justice, and the fact someone knew to take such action spoke of the murderer’s age. Very few knew of this ancient lore.
Rubbing his temples, he turned his focus to the paper map lining the far wall. While technology was also used to track data, sometimes seeing the information this way helped him to interpret it better.
Small red pins marked the areas of abductions. Normally, the map would possess black pins too, but no bodies had been recovered. Those in the department were hopeful this meant the victims were still alive, but he had informed them at least some were deceased. Worse still, there appeared to be no correlation between the places people were abducted from. By now, normally some manner of pattern had emerged, but here, the only pattern was that there wasn’t one. Nor was there a specific profile. The people being abducted didn’t fall into any age bracket, nor did they all share a single interest or trait.
Leaning back, he turned his thoughts to the evening. Selene had been correct, it had been a long time since Conrad had brought anyone home to meet them, and he couldn’t remember the last time his son had smiled so much. They had been sitting watching an evening movie together, as a family, when he had noticed that Ashley had closed her eyes and beads of sweat were forming on her forehead. As he examined her more closely, he could see she was shivering. Nudging Selene, he drew her attention towards her, noticing Conrad had already seen his friend’s condition. She jerked almost fitfully, as if lost to a nightmare. When Conrad had lightly touched her arm, she had startled and, letting out an ear-piecing shriek, had struck out before realising what she had done. She froze, like a deer in headlights, her chest heaving. After a flustered apology and explanation about the night-time fever and hallucinations, Selene had given her something to help her rest, and Conrad had shown her to the guest room, deciding to turn in for the night himself.
Reuben had spent the time since checking and rechecking all the crime scene information. There had been a lot of foot traffic disturbing the gravel, but no signs of a struggle. The forensics came back with a lot of results, most of which had been ruled out as things expected to be found in such a public place. With no evidence of any foul play, it seemed likely this case would either be ruled a suicide, or go cold, as he predicted. It wasn’t unheard of for two vampires, whose clans were at odds, to take their lives together in a grand romantic gesture; perhaps they would believe this is what had occurred in this instance. One thing was certain; from the evidence he had seen, Ashley was not at risk of being
discovered.
“What’s the verdict?” Selene questioned, moving to stand behind him and placing a gentle kiss on the crown of his head.
“She’s clear. But we do have another problem. I witnessed something in the kitchen today. We’re going to have to talk to Conrad. She turned his eyes gold.” There was a heaviness in his voice that even he heard, and he regretted that it stole the smile from his wife’s lips.
“Ashley?”
“Mmm, before dinner. I’m sure he must have felt it himself. Do you think she’s the one he was talking about when he was asking if a human could survive courtship?” He moaned in delight as Selene’s fingers began to work their magic on his shoulders, easing the building tension.
“I have no doubt. You’d have to be blind not to see the way the two of them look at one another. It reminds me of us,” she said, kissing the crown of his head gently.
“Except you were never in any danger of been combusted if things got a little too heated.”
“I don’t know, you still make me burn,” she said, chuckling as she moved her kisses to his cheek. He swivelled his chair, grasping her hips, pulling her to sit on his lap.
“Do you think the Elder blood will make a difference?” After what happened with his last girlfriend, Reuben had been certain his son would shun romance of any kind, such had been his vow, sworn in anger and heartbreak after her hateful reaction. It was something he couldn’t understand, a reaction that had no explanation. The fact Ashley had managed to dissolve his resolve so quickly sung to the connection he felt. It pained him as it seemed this romance, too, was doomed to fail.
“I honestly don’t know. That girl’s a law unto herself. I imagine it’s possible, depending on her affinity.”
“I did discover something interesting, though.” He teased another kiss from her. His thoughts of Conrad’s emotional pain made him more appreciative of his own happiness.
“Oh? No, wait, don’t tell me you’ve run a background check on our son’s friend.” Her brow creased in a scowl that warmed his heart. He would never dare tell her, but the way her nose wrinkled, combined with the skittering of freckles, made her appear more cute than menacing. Although she did have one look in her arsenal that never failed to make him wither, and she had used it today at the dinner table.
“Turns out her brother, Alex Ciele, is part of the P.T.F. Just like his father. His father brought Ashley back with him from the other side of the border and adopted her.”
“They’re preternatural?”
“With an ice alignment. They were frost birds.”
“Were?”
“Ashley’s adoptive parents were killed in a crash a few years ago, hit and run. A vehicle pushed their parked car over the edge of the road. The case went cold.”
“Reuben, don’t you think you should give the girl a chance to tell us about herself on her own terms?” she scolded, attempting to pull herself free from his lap, only to be pulled back down by his firm grasp.
“Maybe, but Selene, his eyes were gold.”
“He loves her.”
“It’s beyond love. Both sides of his nature are agreed, she sings to his soul. What if it turns out her family adopted her because, even through the seal, they sensed a shared affinity?” Ice and fire, the two were mutually destructive, but when beings of that nature combined, only one would walk away, and an ifrit’s fire was not just mortal flame, it was born of Phlegethon itself. Even a soul bond wouldn’t protect a being of opposing affinity.
“Let’s not worry about that now, the answers will come to us. The moment I can study her, we’ll be able to tell what element she’s aligned to.”
“Do you think we should tell Conrad?”
“Have you not noticed he’s already fighting his heart? Until he’s willing to tell her the truth about what he is, he won’t pursue her, and Rei damaged his confidence more than he’s let on. I still can’t believe she managed to turn the whole academy against him because another ifrit had served justice to her father. But I guess that’s banshees for you, always screaming about something.” Reuben laughed at his wife’s attempt at humour, his face growing serious as he heard the notification. Lifting his wife from his lap, he grabbed his device.
“Another missing person, male, thirty-five, reported missing an hour ago when he didn’t come home from work. His chip data vanished this afternoon.”
“I’ll better let you get to work then.” She placed her forehead to his, and for a moment he closed his eyes, relishing how her touch set his skin aflame.
Chapter 7
Ashley slept like the dead, a phrase she thought would have been apt after her infection. After a night at Conrad’s, she had returned home to change, relieved to witness the fading tag mark on her leg, although the pink scar remained as prominent as ever. When the mark vanished completely, she was to let Conrad know so she could arrange a day with Selene to discover what secrets her amulet hid. She had to admit, after discussing everything with Conrad and his family she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and after the restful night’s sleep she was already feeling less exhausted.
Today, lectures had passed in a blur of excitement and, despite her exhaustion, her focus was returning. Looking in the mirror this morning, she had noticed her tongue was no longer doing that strange flickering thing Conrad had seen. Which she’d happily shown him when he made a sly comment about women taking too long to change, even though she knew she’d only been a few moments!
After her final lecture of the day, she had stayed behind in the cafeteria, helping to gather discarded dishes and wash pots while she waited for Tess. She had made Tess promise that, when the time came to make the final payment on her bike, she would be there, and so, with today being payday, she had waited for her friend to finish her lecturers. With her temperature still being elevated, she was still receiving notifications from work to advise her it was unsafe to attend, but a phone call to the home’s administrator had eased her financial concerns after he agreed to take her sick days as holiday since she had so many outstanding. Holidays were earned based on days worked, so the more shifts she picked up, the more hours of holiday pay she incurred. They had been more than happy to comply with her request, especially since in all the years she had been working there she rarely took time off, instead preferring to have the company buy the days back rather than take the time away from work. This day had turned out better than she had imagined was possible; everything had simply fallen into place.
When Tess arrived, they began their short walk towards the busy town centre. After several discussions about their day, Tess grasped Ashley’s arm gently, and she knew what was coming.
“Now, are you going to tell me what’s been going on, what happened?” Tess asked, as they approached the dessert shop.
“Later,” Ashley acknowledged, knowing all too well that the answer was less than satisfactory, especially since it was the same answer she had given earlier today. “In here.”
Ashley led Tess into the dessert parlour, treating her friend to their favourite sharing ice-cream. The enormous glass bowl sparkled in the afternoon sun and as they shared its contents. Pretending to fight over who got the chocolate pieces, she steeled herself for the conversation. After a little while, Tess looked up at her, as if sensing she was ready, and Ashley told her everything she could as her friend listened in horror, unaware she was not being given all the information, just enough to explain the attack, the blood tag, and her unexpected immunity to the vampire toxin.
“So you weren’t even going to tell us, you were just going to…” Tears sparkled in her friend’s eyes, the hurt about Ashley’s decision to keep something so important from her clearly evident. It stirred her shame. How she had wanted to confide in Tess when she saw the tag, but in order to disappear, it hadn’t been an option. Even now, there were still things left unsaid. It was too dangerous to broach her other discoveries in this location, and continuing to keep secrets only gnawed at her shame more.<
br />
“Okay, I know that wasn’t one of my best decisions—” she began.
“You’re damn right it wasn’t,” Tess scolded. “Do you think we’d just let you disappear and not come looking for you?”
“Anyway, it doesn’t matter now.” Ashley reached over, grasping Tess’s hand, stilling the gentle tinkling sound of Tess’s spoon as it trembled in her hands against the glass. “Forgive me?”
“Don’t do it again. No matter what you think you need to do, or protect us from, never cut us off like that. We’re meant to be friends, to have each other’s back, not turn and run when things get hard. Surely you know we would have stood by you, supported you? Thank goodness for Conrad. I mean, really Ashley, how could you?” Tess’s manicured nail rose, wiping a tear from her cheek. Ashley lowered her gaze, unable to look any longer at the hurt clearly evident in her friend’s expression.
“I really am sorry. I thought it would be easier for you if I just vanished. It was stupid, I know that, but I was scared and the thought of being consumed by blood lust and putting any of you in danger…” Ashley shook her head, before allowing her gaze to fall on her watch. “Hey, since we’ve finished in time, shall we go pick up my bike?” Her grief morphed to a smile as she heard Tess chuckle.
“Smooth! You may have well have shouted, hey look, a distraction!”
“But, my bike,” she whined, pouting playfully before unleashing her best puppy dog eyes.
“Alright, but I’m still cross with you.”
Leaving the dessert parlour with a quick thank-you to their server, Ashley and Tess made their way to the second-hand store. Ashley felt her grin broadening more with every step. By the time the antique bell rang above the door, she was beaming.
Hesitating for a moment as the door closed, she took time to once again soak in the unique atmosphere of this curio shop. Dark shelves filled with bric-a-brac towered over antique furniture. This store carried everything, from old vases and wooden chests, to much loved furniture and toys, not to mention the more unusual items—things which seemed to hold an air of magic or mystery. The entire store possessed its own heady aroma, a mixture of wood, dust and incense. The olde-worlde feel was further enhanced by the bespoke wall-mounted lamps, designed to resemble old-fashioned oil lamps in both look and lighting effect. The overcrowded stock in the store meant the tightly packed wares could sometimes cast an eerie shadow, or make someone think they could see movement where there was none.
Salvation's Kiss (Tales Of Mython Book 1) Page 10
