by LJ Swallow
Footsteps thud along the tiled floor, and Ewan bursts into the room.
He stands, face red and eyes filled with something I hate to see. Panic. Ewan's barely away from his laptop, attached to it like a life support system. Terrified he’ll lose hold of everything if it’s out of his hands. Each of us waits for Seth's next move—Ewan's determined he'll find and intercept it first.
"What happened?" I ask sharply and look behind him for the others.
He thrusts his laptop at me. "I fucking knew Seth would do something like this."
"More messages?" On the screen, there's a freeze-framed image and the name of Ewan and Vee's message board from the deep web runs along the top.
Ewan jabs his finger. "Remember the arsehole said he had files and images on us? Looks like that extends to a few supernatural—and he's uploaded the whole bloody lot to the boards he and Vee use."
I scratch my eyebrow as I attempt to work through the images on his phone. Many appear to be demons we've come across before in their various forms: close-ups of vampires attacking people. Huge werewolves prowling around. And some creatures I don’t recognise. “How many are there?”
“Dozens,” he growls.
“They could be fake. Or at least they could be made to look fake.”
“Videos too.” Ewan opens a file on his screen. The images he showed first were stills from these videos, which are filmed close up and in the daytime.
I ignore my panic growing to match his. “That’s okay, this board isn’t public.”
Ewan stares at me as if I’m insane. “Ten minutes, and this shit will be all over the internet with theories attached.”
“There are crazy conspiracy theories everywhere. Your boards are filled with idiots who try to link anything unusual to government conspiracy. Nobody believes anything for long.”
“I admire your confidence.” Ewan sits on a chair, laptop balanced on his lap. “If he’s looking to cause mayhem, this is a good start. Video evidence followed by real evidence? He’s planting the seeds before making another move.”
I place my bottle on the nearby glass table. He’s right. We’ve no way to predict what he’ll do next. “Shit. We need to wake the others.”
“Yeah, smart move from the fucker, doing this when he thinks we'd be asleep." He straightens. "We have time before the info spreads. This shit is easy to stage and people are naturally skeptical. Proving this is real would take time. I'll get straight onto taking everything down. DDOS attack on the site. I’ll stop this getting any further."
Does Ewan think he can? Once something goes viral online, even Pestilence won't be able to counteract that.
6
VEE
Waking again takes seconds thanks to Ewan's yelling. Joss and Heath remain next to me on the bed, both sleeping. I’m still spooned with Joss, whose hand is on my leg, and Heath’s heart beats slowly against my ear. For a moment I soak in the happiness and safety I feel, but don’t have time to follow those thoughts in any other directions—Ewan shouts again, and louder.
We head downstairs where I sit bleary-eyed, looking at Ewan's screen. Images of the guys with clear views of their faces. Their names. And worse—pictures showing them attacking people.
“That’s the night at the Warehouse.” Xander jabs a finger at the screen. “Vee is with us, Ewan.”
He blows air into his cheeks and flicks to a new image. “I know. Here. You killing the succubus nearby. This looks like you’re murdering a woman.”
“There wasn’t a body. No evidence.”
But he’s worried.
“Can someone track you down?” I ask cautiously.
“No,” replies Ewan. “We don’t exist anywhere. There aren’t any records of us. I’ll fix this—I’ve wiped evidence before. Our uh… activities are spotted occasionally.”
“Besides, this is all in the UK. We’re here now. Harder to find.” Joss’s encouraging comment doesn’t lift the mood.
“What else?” asks Xander in a tired voice.
Ewan clicks something new and sits back in the chair, rubbing his temples.
I've seen photo stills of some clips before, when Seth showed them to me at the hall. The day he walked into my life for the first time. I set my jaw hard at the memory, at how the bastard fooled me and Casey. Murdered her and the others. Is that why passports were hidden in bags in the storage unit? Had John and Casey discovered Seth wasn't who they thought? What did they see or know?
"Look at this.” Ewan clicks through to a new clip and turns to me.
I watch the footage taken from a fixed CCTV camera as a couple walk through the dusk along a street, the tall man with his arm around the girl's shoulders. The pair veer off into a side alley leading to nearby houses and the CCTV footage again shifts to a handheld camera. A wide shot of the alley zooms in as the couple stops. The girl is smiling, resting against the wall with her arms loosely across the guy’s shoulders.
They kiss for a few minutes and as the clip continues I become more uncomfortable. The girl wraps her legs around his waist, and the guy pushes her skirt higher as he presses his hips against her. I almost look away as the couple wrap themselves around each other in public and in the semi-darkness. The camera zooms in further.
"Seth's a pervert too," says Heath. "No surprises there."
"Watch," replies Ewan.
Joss scrunches his face up. "I prefer something consensual when I watch—" He pauses and glances at me, and I arch a questioning brow. "Stuff."
Amused at his slip-up, I shake my head at him and return to the vision. "Holy crap!" I can't stop myself exclaiming when the girl struggles, pulling at the guy's head, which is against her neck, and attempts to push him away.
But I know this isn't a sexual assault. I know exactly what this is before I witness what happens next.
The vampire releases her and she slumps to the ground. The still zoomed-in camera films blood pouring through her fingers as the terrified girl attempts to stem the bleeding from her neck. The guy crouches down and I'm surprised further to see him push his hands over her neck to help, touching her face with his other hand.
Or is he a vampire?
A voice shouts out and the man turns his head, teeth bared. He rushes at a man with a dog who’s walking along the side-alley. I step back and place a hand over my mouth as he throws the witness to the ground and savages him. Vampire or shifter? What is he? The man struggles for less than ten seconds as the dog cowers nearby.
The creature ends his attacks by crushing the dog's neck and dropping the body beside his lifeless owner. As the footage continues, the creature changes from a man to something else, body shrinking and morphing. A shifter?
Onscreen, in front of us, the creature morphs into the girl whose body lies on the floor. Moments later she stands, still bloodied, glancing around the empty alley.
"What the fuck?" breathes out Heath.
Ewan shakes his head and we keep watching.
"How did nobody see this?" I whisper.
The screen fills with wavy lines, distorting the footage, and I lean forward, attempting to see what's happening.
When the vision clears, the street is empty of bodies and whatever the hell that creature was.
The other guys look in silence until eventually, Heath speaks. "That's pretty damning."
"Could be a horror movie. Staged," I reply.
"What the fuck was that creature?" asks Heath. "We've never seen anything similar before.”
A pale-faced Xander slumps onto his seat and drags a hand though his hair. "No. Which means he’s new."
"You think Seth opened a portal?" asks Joss. "How? We never felt anything?"
Xander slams a hand on the table. "Fuck! He's one step ahead. Every time."
And that's the problem. Seth is one step ahead. Always.
"If anybody saw, the vamps have members in the police authorities. They'll smooth this over," replies Joss.
"That wasn't a vamp, Joss." Heath drags a hand through his ha
ir. "We need to talk to Ripley and find out what the fuck is happening. He must know if things like this are walking around. He has men everywhere."
Ewan flicks a nail against his teeth. "But what if the next thing Seth does is worse? What if he stages something to prove his footage? Don't you remember that he threatened this when he killed the fae?"
Xander shakes his head. "What's the point in him exposing that shit to the world, if he's intending to wipe everything out?"
Ewan gives a derisive laugh. "Seth is Chaos. Chaos. He thrives on watching the panic and confusion. He's not done with that fun yet. He's not done with us yet."
“Clearly.” Ewan taps his keys and a message on the boards appears. “Look.”
I peer at the post on the message board:
"Fuck." Heath stands. "We need to find him before he unleashes... whatever."
"Contact Ripley," Joss urges Xander. "Explain what's happened and ask him to help where he can."
"How can Ripley help?" I ask.
"His contacts. His people with skills like Ewan's."
"Yeah, but not as good," Ewan retorts.
"Ewan, Xander has accepted we need help from Ripley.” Ewan's face sours and the panicked conversation stops. We need to pull ourselves together, focus on our next move.
Before Seth makes his.
“Ripley’s in the States too. Apparently, he has business to attend to here."
Heath's mouth hardens. "I bet."
"Of course, he won't let his empire fade while this is happening," says Ewan. "I'm still keeping an eye on his activities. I've detected low-level demon activity, to maintain his grip, but no outright attacks on humans."
Joss laughs. "Well, I guess it's nice he’s confident enough that we’ll stop the apocalypse, so he can carry on as normal."
"Nothing carries on as normal after this, Joss." Ewan waves a hand. "We don't know what will happen to the portals, to us, to..."
Me. “We need to decide how much to tell Ripley. I know we're supposed to let him know everything, but I'm still cautious of him."
"We only have half a story, so we can tell him the basics. Is Breanna back? I want to know what else is in the book. "
We cling to hope that there's something written that gives me a chance to survive. A situation where I can beat Chaos. A spell. Anything. But the way I'm referred to in the book doesn't give much hope. I'm just a 'power' to be utilised. I'm not a person.
But I am.
"We’re suspicious. If we meet Ripley, it will be somewhere neutral."
"Everybody, on both sides, is suspicious."
I nod. "Understandable. But one thing we're learning is nobody wants Chaos to win. We deal with their motives afterwards."
The guys drop into silence. Everybody's future is unknown. I meet Heath's eyes, remembering our conversation in the pub. Whatever happens, the world will change forever.
Heath rubs his head and rests back in his chair. "I know nobody wants to talk about this, but we need to. Are we going to take Seth on, and when?"
Xander shoves his chair back and stands before walking to the window.
I sigh and look to Joss. Xander avoids this. Every time.
"When we're ready," he says to the window. "A hundred percent prepared and convinced we'll take the fucker down."
"Yes. We will. But we can't ignore how this is affecting us all," I say. "I know you’re emotional about this and—"
“I'm interrupted as Xander turns on his heel and walks away.
"He'll never admit his emotions are ruling his head right now," says Heath.
I listen as a door bangs somewhere in the house. "He can't let that happen. Just because he pushes them to one side in order to deal with what we learned, doesn't mean he doesn't feel anything."
"Yeah, I'm aware of that. He's taken over your overthinking role." Ewan gestures at Heath.
"Oh, come on, Ewan. You know this has fucked with all our heads. Some of us are better at staying stronger right now."
"That's unfair, Heath," I say. "I can sense from all of you how you feel."
Ewan chews a nail and flips open his laptop lid. "One thing at a time.”
Joss lowers his voice. "I say we agree to meet Seth and try to talk him down."
"You mean give him what he wants? Tell him exactly who Vee is?"
I blow air into my cheeks. "Shouldn't the decision be mine? After all, I'm the one who'll face him off."
"Uh. No. We all will."
"But when this comes down to the wire, it's me and him. We're not giving Seth any advantage. There wasn't any secret in the books as to how I can kill him or how he can stop me. Just that... it happens."
Heath rubs his temples. "I don't like this idea."
"I don't think he can do anything to me yet," I reply. "We've said before—if he could, he would."
7
VEE
I've met Ripley twice. The first time wasn't a long meeting, thanks to Seth dragging me through a rift he created to the middle of a forest.
The second time was overshadowed by Portia, and the situation diverted my focus from the desire to kill him. The burning need to rip into anything that threatens the world—demon or otherwise—builds. Wisely, Ripley hasn't asked to speak to me one on one. His suspicion is clear and the distrust mutual.
Distrust that leads to meetings arranged in public to ensure everybody’s safety.
I’m not surprised when the guys suggest a local bar.
I'm already out of my depth, thrust into another country in the middle of what feels like a surreal dream, and have no idea what to expect. The borrowed Jeep must be fifteen years newer than Syv’s, and smells of sickly floral air freshener. Heath drives and I spend the journey half-squashed between Xander and Joss, which helps my desire to stay connected to them.
I’ve been nauseous since we arrived, which I’ve put down to jet lag and creepy video clips, and the others have commented how pale I am. I push away the idea the power attacks my body. This has to be my imagining symptoms now I know who I am.
We pull into the car park outside a low brick building a few streets from the main road. A green neon sign in the window informs us this is the Corner Bar, and another that they sell Miller Lite. A few motorbikes are parked to the left, beneath the curtained windows. I smile to myself when Ewan pauses to inspect them as we head to the door.
I blink and adjust my eyes to my first American bar, strangely relieved to see it matches ones I've seen in the movies. The smell matches pubs back home—stale beer and stale people. I nudge Heath and point at the pool tables, whispering we can have a rematch.
A few people turn to look away from the football game on TV to size us up from their seats where they sit at the bar. But Xander's only interested in one person: Ripley.
I don't need to look. I sense the demon straightaway. He sits facing the door at a round table close to the bar's rear, between the bathroom sign and an old-style jukebox.
Another person sits with him, the tall woman’s back to us, and she looks over her shoulder when Ripley waves.
Breanna.
I've wanted to see her again—badly—but I'm scared. Will she reveal worse news when we show her the book, or will her interpretation give us hope?
We gather around the small table, Heath dragging an extra stool to sit on.
"Occupying the same body?" Xander asks Ripley. "You surprise me.”
The guy fusses with his spiked hair and straightens to puff his chest out. He’s chosen a tight black tee and left his brown, muscular arms bare. I don’t think we’re the only people he’s hoping to meet tonight. He might look delicious to the girls around, but sitting with a demon leaves a nasty taste in my mouth and an itching desire to hurt him.
Ripley gestures at himself. "I like this body, because other people do too."
"Girls, you mean?" asks Joss.
He waves a hand at Joss. "This gives me the same advanta
ge as you, if I want to persuade someone to do what I ask. Shame you guys aren't adventurous anymore and decided to share the same girl."
"Watch your mouth, demon.” Ripley looks from Xander to me in surprise at my growled words. A surprise matched by the others.
"Excuse me?" asks Ripley in his smooth voice.
"I said watch how you talk about, and to, me."
His lip curls in amusement. "Why? What will you do?"
"Vee," whispers Joss.
I take a deep breath and look away. I want to tell Ripley, I'd prefer he was dead and I’m imagining killing him, but I'd jeopardise our alliance.
Breanna breaks her silence. "Let's keep this civil, children.”
I take a better look at her. Her distinctive red hair reaches halfway down her back and she’s dressed in a blue jersey dress. A small jacket is folded on a seat beside her, a handbag on top.
“Are Logan and Portia around?” Ewan looks around the bar.
“No. Fuck knows what the fae are up to. Distracted by Portia’s plans, I suspect.” Xander raps his fingertips on the table. “Or planning how to kill each other.”
Ripley shrugs. “They’re no real use anyway. Even their troops guarding the portal failed.”
“Did you Seth’s handiwork online?”
Ripley’s mouth thins. “Yes. I suggest you do your job and find and kill these things, if you can still manage that.”
Ewan’s face sours. “We would, if we knew where to find them. Have you any reports?”
Ripley shakes his head. “Nothing. This could end up very inconvenient for me. I’ve worked a long time to get established in smaller towns, and unwanted supernatural appearances aren’t helpful.”
“Inconvenient?” Heath blinks at him incredulously. “The creature came from a portal, we’re sure.”
“I thought you said the portal he opened with the dog inside was closed again? Or are you suggesting he’s opened others?”
