Camille Prentice: The Complete Series

by S. A. Moss

  “What?” Alex raised a brow as he got out of the car.

  “It just looks so… normal,” I said faintly, following him up the front steps.

  He shook his head. “Oh man. Normal. I remember normal.”

  “You do? I’m not sure I can anymore.”

  “I feel like it involved eating a lot of sandwiches, watching bad movies, and lounging around in PJs.”

  I sighed. “That sounds nice. I want normal.”

  “We’ll bring it back. For everyone,” he said seriously, shooting me a look as we headed up to Eve’s apartment on the second floor.

  I scrunched my nose. “I still won’t be able to eat sandwiches though.”

  “Tell you what. I’ll eat twice as many in your honor.”

  A genuine grin split my face for the first time in hours. “Deal.”

  When we reached Eve’s door, Alex gave it a sharp rap. It was late at night, so she might be sleeping, but she should at least be home. I hoped she was, anyway.

  After a few minutes, a scuffling sound came from inside. But the door remained shut.

  “Eve?” Alex called. “Are you okay? It’s Alex! I wanted to make sure you’re safe.”

  Suddenly, the door wrenched open. Eve was dressed in blue cotton pajamas with little sheep on them, and she clutched a baseball bat that appeared massive in her small hands. “Alex! Thank God you’re safe! I called you! And I banged on your door. I heard noises, but you didn’t answer.”

  Her gaze fell on me, and she raised the baseball bat higher.

  Oh, for the love of…

  I really didn’t want to fight any more humans, least of all this sweet old lady.

  Raising my hands, I backed up a step. At least the rain had washed away most of the blood and sand that had coated me, so I no longer looked as horrifying as a demon myself. I just looked like a girl who’d had an extremely rough night. “I’m not going to hurt you, Eve. It’s okay.”

  Alex reached out and gently pushed the bat down. “She’s here to help.”

  Eve peered at me, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Help who?”

  “Humans,” I declared. “Always humans. The other ones, the Fallen—they’re not saviors. And I’m not with them, Eve. I want to stop them.”

  Her eyes darted from me at Alex. “I don’t watch the news, but my daughter called me from Seattle. She said there was an attack on Chicago. Some kind of… monsters.”

  I swallowed. “There was. We tried to stop it, but we were too late. But we’ll fix this, Eve. I promise.”

  She stared at me intently for a moment, then turned to Alex. “You trust her?”

  He nodded, shooting me a look that warmed my belly. “With my life.”

  Evelyn heaved a sigh. “I should’ve known something was strange about her. She dresses like a ninja.”

  Alex let out a burst of laughter at that, and Eve smiled, though suspicion still darkened her eyes. She rested the baseball bat against the wall beside the door, which I took as a good sign. I tried to imagine what she must think of me—of all this. She’d lived her entire life believing the world followed a certain set of rules, and it was probably hard as hell to adjust on the fly like she was having to do.

  But when her blue eyes met mine again, the hostility in them was gone. “So what’s going to happen now?”

  Alex and I shared a look. Good question.

  “We need to regroup and come up with a plan. Can I borrow your phone? And do you want to come up to my place? I know you’re just one floor down, but I’d feel better having everyone in one place.”

  The concern in Alex’s voice melted my heart, and apparently Eve’s too. She fluttered a hand by her face, blinking away the tears that glistened in her eyes. “Of course, dear.”

  She slipped her phone in the pocket of her PJs and stepped through the door. She was about to close it behind her when she stopped suddenly. Her hand snaked back inside through the crack in the door and re-emerged clutching the baseball bat.

  The door shut with a soft click as Eve rested the bat on her shoulder. “Just in case.”

  The three of us trekked up the stairs to Alex’s apartment. On the way up, Alex called Seth, who spoke so loud I could hear every word of their conversation though the phone. He seemed equal parts terrified and amazed by the appearance of supernatural creatures in Chicago. Having been glued to the TV and social media since the first moments of the attack, Seth actually knew a lot more about what was going on than we did, and he promised to fill us in when he arrived.

  After Alex hung up, he passed the phone to me so I could call Sarah. The relief of hearing her voice almost made my knees weak, and I could tell she was speaking through tears as she promised to pick up Seth and meet us at Alex’s place.

  As I hung up the phone, Alex unlocked his door and ushered me and Eve inside.

  My feet had barely crossed the threshold when a loud, sustained squeak met my ears.

  I had just enough time to register a furry tummy and four little limbs flying toward me before Will greeted me with his favorite maneuver—starfishing my face.

  “Hey, buddy.” I laughed into his soft belly, wincing slightly as his sharp little claws dug into my hair and the side of my neck. “Did you miss me?”

  26

  Will squeaked.

  “What on earth is that?” Eve asked, sounding shocked.

  “I’m not—” I tried to speak around his fur, but it muffled my voice. I plucked the squirrel-creature from my face and deposited him on my shoulder. He grabbed onto my ear with both paws, chittering contentedly. “I’m not exactly sure. I picked him up in the… uh, the place where Alex was last week.”

  Otis leapt down from his spot on the couch to twine around my legs. Apparently he’d decided if Will liked me, I must be tolerable after all. I was feeling very loved all of a sudden.

  Eve crept closer, holding out her hand tentatively toward Will. I bit my lip, ready to snatch him away if he made a move to bite her—he was friendly, but that didn’t change the fact that he was a wild animal from an alternate dimension.

  Luckily, Will sniffed at Eve’s fingers without trying to take a taste as well. He cocked his head at her, his beady eyes gleaming as his little ears twitched forward and back. Then he crawled up her arm to smell her short white hair.

  She jumped in surprise, then laughed. “Oh, you’re a sweet thing, aren’t you? So cute!” She looked at me, and for the first time in a while, distrust didn’t cloud her gaze. “I think he likes me!”

  “Yeah, he does.” I smiled.

  Apparently, all I needed to do to win people over was introduce them to Will. I shouldn’t have been surprised. He was a cute, fuzzy little squirrel-thing, while I was… a bedraggled, barely human-looking girl covered in streaks of sand, blood, and dirt. Ugh. It was much easier staying clean when I spent most of my time in the mid-plane.

  Eve settled on the couch with Will on her shoulder, cooing at him.

  I turned to Alex. “Can I use your shower? I want to get all of”—I gestured to my entire body—“this off me. I’ll feel a lot more human with a clean set of clothes on.”

  “I think it’d take more than new clothes to turn you into a human,” he teased, one side of his mouth lifting in a lopsided grin.

  “Har har. I’m still human, dummy.” I hesitated. “Just an immortal, undead one.”

  “Ah, right.” The smile slipped off his face as the moment of levity ended. “Yeah, of course. You know where everything is, right?”

  “Yeah. Thanks.”

  I grabbed a fresh set of clothes, identical to the destroyed ones I was wearing, and headed to the bathroom. Soon enough, Sarah and Seth would be here, and we’d have to face the question of what to do next. But before we did that, I needed a few minutes to myself to process and get my thoughts in order. Or better yet, to not think at all.

  Alex’s bathroom was small but clean, with a dark blue bathmat and matching shower curtain. I pulled the curtain aside and turned on the spray, then
stripped off my clothes and tossed them in a pile by the door. Thank goodness I’d bought more than one outfit.

  I stared at myself in the mirror as steam from the shower began to fog the surface. My skin was still smeared with patches of red where the rain hadn’t entirely washed away the blood. There were large pink scars on my shoulder, stomach, and legs—all the evidence that remained of the red-skinned oni’s attacks. I ran a finger over the scar on my stomach. In another hour or two, it’d be gone entirely.

  My dad had known that. That no matter what his Fallen compatriot did to me, I would survive it. But he’d still let the oni hurt me over and over.

  I’d seen the haunted look in Sirius’s eyes, and I wanted to believe that he’d felt some pain or regret at seeing his daughter tortured. But I honestly didn’t know anymore. Driven by grief and bitterness over the loss of my mother, he’d joined forces with Akaron out of a misguided attempt to set supernaturals free.

  But my father hadn’t always been so cruel. How long did a person have to be exposed to pure evil before it started to seep into them too?

  And more to the point, when will I stop trying to defend his actions?

  I sighed, swiping at the mirror. Drops of condensation beaded on the surface, sliding down in clear trails.

  Stepping into the shower, I let out a sigh. I couldn’t feel the heat as intensely as I would’ve if I were still alive, but the spray felt purifying and refreshing anyway. Pink water swirled in the bottom of the tub before slipping down the drain. I poured some of Alex’s shampoo into my palm and massaged it through my hair, enjoying the way it made me smell like him.

  I had thought it would be impossible to turn off my chaotic thoughts, but for the next few minutes my brain actually did clear as I mindlessly scrubbed at my face and body. When the water ran clear, I spent a few extra minutes dithering, trying to prolong my blissfully blank state.

  But I should’ve known it couldn’t last. As soon as I turned the water off and stepped out of the shower, reality came crashing back down on me like a ton of bricks someone had rigged as a booby trap over the bathmat. The weight was so palpable my legs actually buckled, and I sank down to my butt, back pressed against the edge of the tub.

  I drew my knees up to my chest and sucked in deep breaths, trying not to weep. If I started, I might not stop, and badass supernatural warriors weren’t supposed to cry.

  A knock came at the door. I scrambled to my feet, snatching a towel off the rack and wrapping it around myself. “Yeah?”

  The door opened a crack.

  “Hey. You okay?” Alex asked softly.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, I didn’t mean to take so long.” My voice sounded normal, I thought. Mostly.

  Alex pushed the door open wider, peeking in. When he saw I was decent, he slipped into the steamy bathroom, closing the door behind him. “I don’t care about that. Shower until the paint peels if you want to. Are you really okay?”

  I bit my lip, trying to force myself to answer. But I was certain that as soon as words came out, so would the tears I was holding back. So I just shook my head.

  Alex stepped toward me, pulling me into his arms. My body was damp from the shower and his was still wet from rain and dirty from—well, everything. But it didn’t matter. I clung to him, squeezing my eyes shut and pressing my cheek to his chest. He kissed the top of my head.

  “This is so stupid,” I muttered into his shirt. “I’m supposed to be the powerful Guardian. I should be comforting you.”

  “Who says you’re not?” he asked roughly, squeezing me tighter.

  We stayed like that for several moments, just breathing each other in. His heart thudded evenly in my ear, and he stroked my wet hair gently.

  When we pulled back, he bent down to kiss me. “We lost tonight, and we can’t change that, but we have two choices going forward. Lay down our heads and quit, or keep fighting until we win. We’ll keep fighting, Cam. Until we beat them.”

  I rested my hands on his chest. “I love you.”

  “I know.”

  “You stole Han Solo’s line. Nerd!” I accused with a laugh.

  Alex grinned. “I have never denied that.”

  That was true. He was a bona fide hot nerd, and I loved him for it.

  I pressed another quick kiss to his lips, then shooed him toward the door. “Get out of here, nerd! I have to get dressed.”

  “You’re not making me want to leave,” he countered, glancing at the towel wrapped around me with a wicked look. If I could’ve blushed, I would have.

  Fortunately, like the true gentleman he was, Alex slipped out the door before I could change my mind about making him leave.

  27

  I stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later, dressed in a fresh “ninja outfit” and clutching the wadded up ball of my old clothes. Alex headed into the bathroom to take a shower himself, and I wandered into the kitchen to throw away the mass of bloodstained cloth.

  When I re-entered the living room, Eve sat on the edge of the couching staring intently at the TV. Otis was curled up in her lap, and Will perched atop her head like an explorer at the helm of his ship.

  The TV was tuned to CNN, and the chyron at the bottom of the screen read Breaking News - National State of Emergency Declared.

  “While some are still claiming that terrorist groups are to blame, no organizations have stepped forward to claim responsibility for the devastating attacks in Chicago. Other cities have reported attacks as well, but Chicago has certainly been hit the hardest. It appears several bombs have been set off at various points throughout the city, although bomb squads at the scene can’t find any evidence of explosives. Which is why many people…”

  The newscaster trailed off, fear momentarily breaking her carefully crafted composure. She cleared her throat.

  “Why many people believe that these attacks come from a nonhuman source. The creatures that have been seen wreaking havoc in Chicago and other cities possess abilities scientists have been unable to explain. Body cameras from the officers at the site of the first attack revealed several men at the epicenter of the explosion, but none of them appeared to be rigged with a bomb.”

  As if pulled by a magnet, I drifted slowly into the living room, my eyes fixed on the TV screen. I sank down next to Eve.

  She glanced over at me and spoke over the newscaster’s voice. “It’s on all the channels. I don’t usually watch TV. I didn’t know. Thank goodness my daughter called me.” Her hands twined together. “I hope she’s all right.”

  “She will be, Eve.” I almost added, I promise, but bit my tongue. I really couldn’t promise anything, but I wanted with all my heart to believe it. “I know this probably doesn’t help much, but right now Chicago is the most dangerous place to be. Other places are in trouble, but not as much as we are here.”

  She perked up a bit, her wide eyes clearing. “That does help. If one of us is going to be in danger, I’d rather it be me. I’m tough. I can handle it.”

  I smiled at her, my gaze flicking to the large baseball bat propped against the couch next to her. “That’s for sure.”

  Eve patted the end of it. “Any creatures show up here, I’ll give them what for.”

  Presumably, “what for” was badass old lady speak for “a bat to the face.” Despite the worry eating a hole in my stomach, I grinned.

  She shot me a look before turning back to the TV. “I’m sorry I doubted you before, dear. I’m glad Alex has you. And that you have him.”

  My chest swelled. As much as her over the top matchmaking had made me cringe sometimes, her approval meant a lot to me.

  Before I could focus again on what the newscaster was saying, the sound of the buzzer made me jump. I leapt up and pressed the button to open the door downstairs, then unlocked the door to Alex’s apartment and peered out.

  Two minutes later, Sarah and Seth burst into the room like a whirlwind. Sarah’s eyes were wide, her blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail—but she must’ve snagged it o
n something, because a chunk of hair on the top was sticking up wildly.

  “Oh my god, Cam!” She flew into my arms, hugging me like a human vice. “Is Aka—Aka—whatever his name is behind this? And your dad?”

  I nodded, returning her hug. “Yeah, they are. But we’re going to stop them, Sarah.”

  Seth stood a few feet from us, staring at me with his mouth hanging open. I wrinkled my brows. Did I still have blood on me? I shouldn’t. I’d just rinsed off the last of the blood and sand in the shower.

  So why was he looking at me like—

  “I caught him up on the way over here,” Sarah whispered, giving me an apologetic shrug as she stepped back. “I hope that’s okay.”

  Ah, that explains it.

  Seth had always seemed to hold me in a bit of awe—probably because he was still convinced that the first time he’d met me, I was openly propositioning Alex in a bar. But I couldn’t tell what emotion was behind his slack jaw and wide eyes. Would he still trust me now that he knew what I was?

  “Is it true?” Seth moved toward me slowly. He reached out and poked my arm lightly, as if expecting his hand to go right through it. “That you’re a… a supernatural?”

  “Yeah.” I felt a little like a freak show exhibit, but I stood still and let him examine me. “But I’m not like the ones causing mass destruction. I’m supposed to protect you from them.”

  Even as I spoke, I felt like a massive fraud. How different was I from my father and Akaron, really? If Seth had seen footage from Nathan Reyes’s rally, would he believe I was on humanity’s side?

  A line formed between his eyebrows as he stared at me as if he were trying to see right through me.

  Before Seth could ask me any other questions, Alex emerged from the bathroom, dressed in fresh clothes.

  “Seth!”

  He pulled his friend into a tight hug, then stepped back and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. His still-damp skin was warm from the shower and smelled faintly of his soap, and I leaned into his embrace.

  Seth’s eyes bounced between the two of us, probably realizing that Alex was well aware of what I was. And that Alex still trusted me.