Evermore (The Night Watchmen Series Book 5)

by Candace Knoebel

  There’s a quiet shuffle in the room as thoughts and memories pass through everyone’s minds.

  “Before we assign you to your teams of Elites, we want to go over what we’ve gathered between the UN and our Elite teams already on the ground,” Wistar continues. He looks to Maddock and extends his hand, turning the meeting over.

  Maddock steps forward. Introduces the many elders filling the wall of screens to the rest of the room and explains that everything passed within this room will determine the fate of our Coven. “As of tonight, there is a nationwide epidemic. We’re seeing numbers we’ve never seen before rise within the vampire lairs and werewolf packs. Demons have been making deals at an alarming rate, taking as many souls as they can back to Mourdyn and Bael. This is where we need to focus our attention. Controlling these numbers is the only way to make a head in this war before it officially begins.

  “I ask that these orders trickle down through the ranks. We must tighten our security within the cities of our great nation. Elites are already heading out to assist all Elders who have asked. What is discussed here is what will be carried out by you,” he says, looking to the screens for an answer.

  Several nods follow.

  “We’re opening the floor for ideas on the best way to handle this. Starting with the werewolves,” Seamus adds, eyes shifting to Evangeline.

  She doesn’t miss a beat. The attention of the room deviates when she stands. “I can help when it comes to the wolves. I am their alpha. Under pack laws, they must abide by my rules should I set them.”

  I notice Lukah and Damien stiffen, fists curled at their sides.

  “Angie,” Lukah says on a clipped tone.

  Her gaze carries over her shoulder in his direction.

  “You know what this will mean for Chrissa. What we’ve been trying to avoid from the moment we formed our pack.”

  She looks away from him, face plagued with things we couldn’t even begin to understand.

  “I was under the impression you didn’t have a good relationship with the rest of the packs out there after the murder of the werewolf king, Arakyll,” Mack poses without discretion. “That is why you chose to go in hiding before being allowed entry to this city, is it not?”

  Evangeline keeps her chin up, eyes forward, as strong as a steel pillar. “I don’t have a good standing with them,” she admits openly. “But should I send out an order, they must obey it. Should they choose not to, then they will become dust.”

  Murmurs spread throughout the room. I find my thoughts matching along with them.

  “Why haven’t you executed this right before?” one of the Elders on the screens ask. A man with gray, saggy skin and protruding bones.

  Evangeline closes her eyes for a moment, and then says, “Because of my daughter. Though she is a wolf, she is also a witch, like me. Something highly sought after within the packs of wolves. If I tried to exercise that type of authority over them, they would have taken her and killed me before I could utter the words. I never asked for this life. Never wanted to become the queen of wolves, so I took my daughter and my loyal pack and stepped down, turning my back for the sake of her.” She drags in a breath and opens her eyes. “I see now that I can’t run from my place in this world. I am the queen of wolves, and I can use that power for a greater good.”

  Jaxen grabs her hand and squeezes.

  She smiles at him and adds, “I will need guaranteed protection for my daughter.”

  “Anything you need, Evangeline,” Seamus says, his words as solid as a contract.

  Damien hisses through his teeth. He isn’t happy, but he must do what his alpha says.

  “Good. Then we have one problem solved,” Mack says, picking the meeting back up. “We will send you with a team of Elites—”

  “No,” Evangeline says, cutting him off. “I won’t need them. The Lost Crows and I will be enough. It’s hard enough heading into this without the respect of my kind. If I enter their grounds with Elites, I will surely never gain their respect. We may still be able to recruit more to the Lost Crows. Wolves that will fall in line and help us when the day comes. I need to do this. On my own.”

  She’s looking at Gavin and Jaxen when she says this, drawing that invisible line between them once more.

  “I understand entirely, but the offer will remain on the table should you ever need it,” Mack says. He claps his hands together and says, “Now, moving on to the next threat—demons.”

  Weldon stands this time. “I’m going to stop you right there, brother, and take a page from Evangeline’s book by offering my services.”

  I try not to get offended when I realize everyone is looking between us, as if I already know what Weldon’s about to say. How could I when he’s pushed me away? Locked me out of the secrets he’s hiding within the walls of the correctional facility?

  Mack rolls his eyes. “And just how do you think you can help?”

  “Oh, it’s simple really. Bael is the king ding in charge, is he not?”

  Mack doesn’t look impressed.

  “Well, we take him out and we can pretty much sweep through the rest. Mourdyn will be left to fend for himself, and the demons will be scrambling for a new leader.” He puts his hand to the side of his mouth as if telling a secret and adds, “Despite what people may think… demons aren’t very bright.”

  “That would explain a few things,” Mack says looking directly at Weldon. “So, I’m guessing you plan to take Bael out?”

  Weldon rocks forward on his heels, a bright smile on his face. “That I do, brother.”

  “Just how do you plan on doing this?”

  “Well, if I tell you, I’d have to kill you. And we wouldn’t want to stain this nice suit of yours, would we?” He pulls on the edges of Mack’s jacket, straightening them out.

  Mack grabs his hands. Pushes them off him. “Fine. Continue your little plan.” He waits for Weldon to sit, and then adds, “In the meantime, we will deal with them as we always have. Take them out by their stigmas. As for the vampires, we want their nests taken out swiftly. The president has given us the okay to inflict controlled fires on any nest we come upon since they mostly inhabit the uninhabited. Does everyone feel comfortable with this plan?”

  Several nods form around the room. No objections are made.

  “Good,” Mack says. “We have a list of teams posted on this wall. The leaders to each team will be on top, along with your stationed area. Once you have found yours, head to the weapons room and meet up with them. Brief them with your game plan, and then head out. We want you to report back to the city every morning for relief. Another round of Elites and leaders will be briefed before you return.”

  Faces disappear on the screens as we get up, one by one, and head to the list of names. I search and search until I find my name next to Weldon’s listed under Gavin’s unit. Toby and Bianca are also assigned with us, settling my nerves just a little. They were with us in the Underground when we went to take out the Exanimator. I can trust them. Even though they were captured by demons, they’re quick on their toes and fight hard despite the circumstances.

  “Is this a joke?” I whisper to Weldon as my stomach turns on itself. Gavin can barely stand the sight of me, let alone be responsible for my actions once we’re out in the street.

  “If it is, I applaud the humor,” Weldon says against my ear, eyes still roaming the list. His shoulders round the moment his eyes stop moving, and it’s then I realize who he was looking for—Claire. I quickly find her name next to Meredith’s under Jaxen’s unit, and then reach for Weldon’s hand.

  “She’s with the best,” I say, squeezing his hand.

  He squeezes back, plastering a weak smile on his face. “It’s kind of fitting. Jaxen takes my girl and I take his.”

  “I’ll need you both to meet me in the morning, same time and place,” Alesteria says from behind me.

  I turn and nod with Weldon.

  She passes by me with Wistar and the rest of the Divine, taking the tensi
on along with them. Mack hovers close by, watching as we stand in front of the list, and then Weldon spins around, finger in the air as if he just remembered something.

  “You know what, dear brother of mine? I thought there was something missing from these meetings, but you’ve done such a good job filling in for his bull-headed, stick-up-his-ass attitude that I hardly noticed until just now when going over the list you printed out.”

  Mack’s face screws up. “Who are you talking about?”

  Weldon opens his hands and looks around the room, as if it should be obvious. “Why, only my most favorite asshat to bicker with—Tillman! Duh! Where is the asshole? Why has Sterling replaced him?”

  Mack rolls his eyes and shakes his head. “You really are pretentious, you know that? He was fired shortly after the Divine returned. He didn’t agree with their… passiveness as far as the war is concerned. Nor with their patience concerning you.”

  He’s looking at me, eyes drilling into me.

  Weldon makes a snickering noise and tosses a look over his shoulders at me. “Ding-dong the witch is dead,” he says, laughing as he heads out of the room, leaving Mack shaking his head.

  I find Jaxen in the hallway, waiting with Jezi near my group of seven hunters. Weldon passes us all, disappearing within a shadow without a word on where he’s going.

  “I’ve been assigned to a city near here,” Jaxen says, keeping his eyes forward. “I see you’ll be working under my brother not too far from where we’ll be.”

  “I saw,” I say, placing my hand on his chest.

  “I know he’s just as good as, if not better than, I am, but I can’t help but worry.” His voice drops off into an abyss of pain and concern, and then he looks up at me, eyes scanning mine. “Don’t let him run you into the ground.”

  “Jaxen, he won’t. You know that.”

  Jaxen shrugs. “Though he doesn’t have his powers, he can still wield a flux better than anyone I know.” He dips his head, his voice lowering. “I think it’s better… safer even, for him to be out there, fighting and staying busy, than being cooped up in this city.”

  I pull him into a hug. Kiss his cheek, telling him I love him.

  “We have to go, Jaxen,” Jezi says a moment later, sounding sorry for having to say it.

  “Be safe,” I say, wishing for the first time in a long time that I was still linked with him so I could know he was okay.

  He kisses me one last time, and then turns and heads down the hall after Jezi toward the weapons room.

  “Shall we?” Weldon says, moving out of a shadow. He flicks a smile in Number One’s direction, and then turns back to me.

  “Where did you just go?” I ask, spinning on him with hands on my hips.

  “Nowhere.”

  I level on him. “What are you up to, Weldon?”

  “Other than trying to save your ass and everyone else’s… a big lot of nothing.” He walks past me, heading for the weapons room, using his back as a shield from my interrogation.

  “After all we’ve been through, you’re really going to shut me out?” I ask.

  He doesn’t say anything. Just picks up his pace.

  I latch onto his shoulder and use all my strength to spin him around. “Weldon!”

  “What!” he shouts in my face. “If I thought you should know, don’t you think I’d tell you? You don’t have to know every part of my life to be my partner. I’m not Jaxen. I’m not going to be your little puppy chomping at the bits to be at your beck and call every time you have a thought or a feeling. And I damn sure won’t be made to bend down and tell you everything just because you bat your lashes at me. Just stay out of it. Okay?”

  He yanks away from my grip and storms down the hall, leaving me standing there, speechless.

  Something isn’t right. Something has changed in him. A darkness spreading through the light in his eyes like a sickness. He may not want me to know what it is or what he’s up to, but I refuse to sit back and watch my best friend turn back into the monster he once was.

  He might be part demon, but I’m a woman… and I’ll be damned if I don’t find the truth.

  “I’M JUST SAYING, I THINK we should focus on the demons and let the rest of the Elite groups handle the vampires,” Weldon says as our van comes to a halt just outside of downtown Brooklyn.

  We’ve been driving for over an hour in one giant circle around town, waiting for word from Mack about what our next mission is. Frustration has misplaced the air in the van.

  “I heard you, Weldon,” Gavin says from the passenger seat. He runs a frustrated hand through his hair. “Believe me. You haven’t shut up about it since we left the city. I get it. You know the ins and outs when it comes to them. We can probably hit a good quota tonight. Yada yada… can you please just shut up for a minute so I can think?”

  Weldon pretends to be offended. “I’m just passionate about the things I stand behind. You don’t have to yell at me. Sheesh.”

  Toby pulls the door to the van open and hops out, holding his hand out to his partner Bianca. A second later, I take my exit, followed by Weldon and then all seven of my hunters. Our feet land with slick thuds against the melted snow glazed over the sidewalk.

  Fall is here in full force.

  Toby snickers when the hunters, who I’ve decided to call The Seven, line up behind me like toy soldiers ready for battle.

  “Are they always like this?” Bianca asks, peering around me to stare at them.

  “I get that question a lot. Yes. They are.” I turn to Number One. “Could you back it up a step? If I can smell you, that means you are standing too close.”

  A flicker of something like annoyance, or maybe confusion, passes over Number One’s face, but he steps back into the shadows, the rest following his steps.

  Toby has his bag on the sidewalk when I turn back, pillaging through the contents. “You want a flux, a gun, or both?” he asks, looking up at Bianca.

  She grabs both, placing the flux in one of the slots on her pant leg, and the gun in the holster on her belt.

  “That’s my girl,” Toby says, winking at her when she smiles.

  Gavin steps out of the passenger seat. After telling our driver to circle the block, he slams the door and tosses his bag on the sidewalk. I hate seeing him like this. Hate remembering how he always felt like the older brother to our group. He was there for me even when Jaxen wasn’t. Now, I feel like I don’t even know him anymore.

  I busy myself with sorting through my bag. I load the open slots on my pant leg with fluxes, and then insert loaded clips into two guns with bullets infused with the same magic as a flux.

  Gavin’s phone rings. After a quick conversation, he turns to us. “All right. You win,” he says to Weldon.

  Weldon bobs his head victoriously.

  “Mack wants us to look for a demon named Brian.”

  “Brian?” Weldon parrots with a snort. “Could he not think of anything cooler?”

  Gavin doesn’t address Weldon’s banter. “We need to do a quick sweep of the area,” he continues, all business as he points to various buildings. “We got a lead from a demon brought in that Brian might be staying somewhere on this street. Toby, I want you to take those four buildings over there,” he says, pointing to the left, “and do a voltaic sweep. I want numbers of how many we’re dealing with. “Faye, you can try the four over here,” he says, pointing to the right.

  He doesn’t look at me. Just keeps his eyes pinned to the small map Mack gave him.

  I don’t stop him when my brain scatters, worried I won’t be able to perform something as simple as a volation sweep. “Got it,” I say, grabbing Weldon by the hand and pulling him away before he can open his big mouth and cause problems for me.

  “Mouse, we don’t even know if you—”

  “Can it, Weldon. I can do this,” I say as my hunters stay just a few steps behind me. I’ve already let Gavin down once. I’ll be damned if I do it again.

  I stop across the street in front of the
first building, trying to pick up on the electric currents sparking through the air. Come on, I think, willing my body to relax.

  Weldon crosses his arms, watching me intently.

  “You’re not helping by doing that,” I say through my teeth as a slight breeze picks up, rustling the trees behind us.

  “What would you like me to do? What would make this easier?” he asks, his tone dropping a few octaves.

  I glare at him. “Go away if you’re going to be pissy.”

  “Fine. Whatever,” he says, throwing his hands in the air. I think he heads in Gavin’s direction, but I don’t turn to look. I want to get this right. It’s simple. I tap into the electricity in the air, and my volation comes to life. I’ve done it a million times. It’s as easy as breathing. Yet, I feel nothing.

  Readjusting my stance, I center myself and close my eyes, reaching out. Seconds tick by like prying eyes, watching… waiting for me to fail. Nothing happens, and defeat overshadows my will. I don’t want to fail. I can’t. I must do this… for Gavin.

  ”I can’t let everyone down,” I mutter to myself.

  A hand touches my shoulder, but I don’t jump. The moment we connect, I know it’s Number One. I can feel him as clear as I can feel the blood running through my veins. “Allow me,” he says, and the most extraordinary thing happens. With every breath I take, I feel some of his magic, and the magic of the others, pour into me, knocking at my volation’s door. They’re giving bits of themselves to me… recharging what had been taken by the machine.

  My eyes shoot open the moment I feel the first wavering sparks of electricity along my palm. Crackles of energy sizzle and surge in tiny tendrils, almost like hands reaching out to me, welcoming me back. I feel whole again, light and airy, as if I might float away.

  He lets go of my shoulder and steps back, a small, almost unperceivable smile on his lips.

  “How did you—”

  “Cecilia did say you would need us one day, yes?” he says, as if the answer was always there in front of me. “What was it she said about your powers... that they’d return from the touch of an unforeseen hand in a least likely place?”