Inevitable Darkness

by Cassandra Lawson

  He shook his head. “It’s nothing.” It wasn’t the time to share with Vexx that he was thinking about getting her pregnant. She wouldn’t appreciate it one bit.

  “Before we head off, I have some new information that might help on your trip,” Connor announced.

  They all moved closer to Connor—all except Abram and his three vampires. They were close enough to hear, and Abram had already told his people to stay away from Ian.

  “What have you learned?” Winter asked.

  “There’s a settlement about thirty miles northeast of here,” Connor began. “I’ve been trying to get in touch with them, and they finally got back to me. They might be able to help you.”

  “Did they say they’d help?” Vexx asked.

  “They said they’d decide when you get there,” Connor replied. “I know that’s not a great response, but this settlement isn’t like any other I’ve ever been to.”

  “They aren’t friendly,” Ian added.

  “And no one visits their settlement,” Simon stated. “Not even the council.”

  “Why doesn’t anyone visit their settlement?” Mitchell asked. “I’ve heard of remote settlements with no ties to the council not allowing visitors, but the council likes to have more control over the settlements under their authority. They’re too paranoid to leave one unsupervised this way.”

  “The council even sends people to Treasure Island,” Abram added. “They hate having to travel through Connor’s territory to get there, but they still do it to make sure I’m following the rules.”

  Connor had broken ties with the central vampire council after they’d put his people in danger one too many times. Jase didn’t blame him for his decision. For many settlements, it was far too difficult for them to break ties with the vampire council. They relied on them too heavily for trade agreements. Connor had trade ports in his territory, so it was easy for him to get what he needed. The council also required access to his trade ports, so they’d been forced to come to an agreement with him—one that involved their promise to leave Connor’s people alone.

  “This settlement flew under the radar even back in the early days of the Moon virus,” Simon explained. “The vampires living there had some help to avoid detection in the early days.”

  “Humans were afraid to set foot on the property, so they were able to hide there,” Connor added. “Few people go there even now.”

  “Are they dangerous?” Vexx asked. “I don’t like the idea of showing up there and having them try to kill us.”

  “They can be dangerous, but they’ve mostly agreed to help you,” Connor told them. “I know that doesn’t sound convincing, but it’s the best I can get from them.”

  “We have some trade agreements with them,” Ian added. “I think they’ll agree to work with us this time because of those trade agreements. We also set up communications for them. They like having access to the internet and phones.”

  “But you still don’t sound convinced they’ll help us,” Abram interjected.

  “They don’t need the trade agreements as much as other settlements do,” Simon explained. “As a result of their lack of dependence, they often don’t behave the way we expect them to. As long as you don’t come off as a threat, you should be fine.”

  “Why are people so afraid to go there?” Mitchell asked.

  “A doomsday cult used the property until about six months before the Moon virus outbreak,” Connor explained. “After a mass suicide and several arrests, the land remained unused until after the initial Moon virus outbreak. People tried taking over the land to house born vampires since it’s a fairly secure area, but it developed a reputation for being haunted. Keep in mind, this is all second and thirdhand information I got years after the fact. No one realized there was a small vampire settlement there until about fifty years ago. They claim to have been there since the beginning, and the woman who runs the settlement says the land belonged to her parents. Some unknown magic keeps the place safe.”

  “I’ve been there twice, and it makes my skin crawl,” Ian stated. “You won’t want to stop for an extended visit, but they've agreed to provide you with some bagged blood. That’s worth the stop.”

  “Unless they change their minds, you’re welcome to spend one night there,” Connor added.

  “I’m not sure we should stay,” Jase muttered. “Stopping for blood is still a good idea.”

  One of the hardest things to arrange for the trip was blood for the vampires. The jeeps were all equipped with refrigeration units, but they wouldn’t hold enough blood for the entire journey. Zane also didn’t mind donating blood, but he couldn’t keep five vampires fed on his own. Jase would willingly provide blood for Mitchell, but he had no interest in helping Abram or his people. That meant they needed to make stops along the way for blood, so stopping at the creepy settlement was a good idea. Staying there seemed foolish.

  “What’s the source of the magic there?” Vexx looked intrigued. “It has to be a spell that makes people want to stay away.”

  “That’s a good question,” Connor replied. “No one’s entirely sure. As I said, they don’t like interacting with any of us. Just be polite and get out as quickly as you can. I can see you’re curious about them, but I don’t recommend sticking around to figure out the source of their magic. Stay one night, take the blood, and head out.”

  Vexx nodded. “We need to get Kishara to my coven before the demons trace her here.”

  “Is there anything else we should know?” Mitchell asked.

  Ian hugged him and whispered, “Be careful.”

  “I will,” Mitchell assured him.

  Cord had remained silent throughout the entire exchange, his fingers laced with Winter’s. He didn’t look happy.

  Winter brought their laced hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

  “Of course, it is,” Cord agreed with a laugh. “You and Vexx are too stubborn to allow anything to go wrong.”

  Some of Jase’s tension eased because Cord was right. Vexx had said they could do it, and she wouldn’t allow anyone or anything to prove her wrong.

  Chapter 34

  The portal took no time at all, much to Mitchell’s surprise. It seemed that, each time they tried, it got easier. The distance between beginning to end also got shorter, even though they were traveling farther. Then again, maybe distance didn’t matter.

  Deciding where to exit the portal hadn’t been easy. They’d used Winter’s knowledge of the area to pick a spot about a mile from the jaguar settlement. Not many jaguars had seen them return Kish to their territory, so few in the clan would recognize them, and the jaguars might see them as a threat. It was best to get Kish out with as little drama as possible.

  Mitchell reached over to squeeze Winter’s hand since he could feel the tension radiating from her. “Are you okay?”

  She looked around the jungle before nodding. “I’m better than I thought I’d be. All the time we were planning this trip, I worried I’d be overcome with emotion when I saw the places I used to run with my clan, but that life is in my past. The cougars are my clan now, and while I feel some sadness for the loss of my brothers and father, I’m past it. Everything’s changed.” She motioned around them. “Even this spot where we’d come out to lie on the jungle floor has changed. I’m okay. This whole situation puts me on edge.”

  “We should find Kish and get out of here as quickly as possible,” Mitchell stated.

  Winter opened her mouth to respond as they approached the jaguar housing, but she closed it when she noticed Kish stomping their way.

  “What the hell are you doing here?”

  It wasn’t the response Mitchell had expected from Kish. Though he hadn’t expected her to rush forward to hug him as if they were old friends, her hostility still surprised him. It’s not as if he’d wronged her in the past. On the contrary, he’d helped get her back home and made it possible for her to save her sister.

  “Isn’
t it nice to know she appreciates us saving her before?” Vexx muttered.

  Kish’s eyes narrowed and landed on Vexx. Before she could say anything that would result in a fight, Mitchell spoke. “Your brother, Legion, sent us.”

  “Funny how he does that, yet he’s never come to see me,” Kish grumbled. “You’d think, if he was so concerned, I’d have met him.”

  “He’s trying to protect you,” Mitchell told her.

  “Saint Legion,” Kish said with a humorless bark of laughter. “Are you going to tell me what an amazing demon he is?”

  Mitchell snorted. “I’m not here to defend Legion. If he wants to do that, he can do it himself. He’s never done anything to make me think he’s a nice guy, and I don’t care if you like him or not. I’m here because you’re in danger. Your demon uncle sensed your magic last year, and he’s looking for you. From what I’ve heard, that’s a bad thing.”

  “If he’s been looking for a year, then it seems safe to say he won’t find me,” Kish pointed out.

  “From what Mitchell heard, he’s getting close,” Winter stated. “He might plan to kill you, but it’s more likely he wants to use you as a weapon.”

  Kish let out a frustrated sigh. “Why is so much of my family messed up?”

  “I don’t know,” Mitchell replied. “Can we worry about that later? We need to get out of this area as soon as possible.”

  “I can’t leave my sister here if this demon might come after me,” Kish argued. “I’m not going to let another power-hungry bastard threaten her or try to use her to get me to cooperate.”

  Mitchell didn’t know too much about Kish. There hadn’t been a lot of time for them to talk when he’d first met her. He had figured out from their short acquaintance that the only family Kishara cared about was a younger half-sister. Her mother had only seen Kish as a way to move up in their clan. Kish had been a tool, nothing more.

  “We don’t have time to stay here,” Winter snapped. “The longer we sit around here waiting for this demon to arrive, the more likely it is your sister will be used or killed.”

  “Then we take her with us,” Kish argued.

  “Kishara?” a young jaguar shifter called out as she approached. She was a few inches over five feet tall with a slight build, chocolate brown eyes, and curly black hair. “Who are these people?”

  “No one,” Kish told her, moving to stand between them and the female who had to be her sister.

  “What’s your name?” Mitchell asked the shifter behind Kish.

  Kish opened her mouth to speak, probably to tell him off, but the shifter pushed her way to the front and answered him. “My name is Moon. I’m Kishara’s sister.”

  “I’m Mitchell,” he replied. “These are my friends, Vexx and Winn.” He used the name Winter had gone by with her clan, the one she went by with the cougars.

  “My father was the leader of this clan decades ago,” Winter added.

  Moon didn’t hesitate; she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Winter’s waist. “I’m so sorry about your family. That was such an ugly time. It was before I was born, but I heard your father was a good leader.”

  “He was,” Kish replied quietly. “It was before I was born, but I’ve heard stories.”

  Moon released Winter but remained close to her side.

  “He was a great leader,” Winter agreed. “My father would have protected you, Kish. You wouldn’t have felt like an outsider because of your mixed blood.”

  Kish met Winter’s gaze. “Didn’t he send you away?”

  “It wasn’t his choice,” Vexx snapped.

  “We don’t have time for this,” Mitchell stated. “We need to get out of here before people start dying.”

  “I’m not leaving Moon,” Kish insisted.

  “People will die if you don’t come with us,” Mitchell argued urgently. “Your sister will die. She hasn’t been with us in any of the visions I’ve had, so I don’t know if she’s meant to go with us.”

  “But you don’t know for sure that she’s not,” Kish insisted. “You don’t know if she’ll die if we leave her here. Maybe your visions didn’t include Moon because you don’t know her.”

  Mitchell moved forward to stand in front of Kishara; his gaze locked with his cousin’s before he spoke. “She’s safer here than with you. They aren’t hunting her.”

  “But if they come here and find out I’m gone, they may start torturing people for answers,” Kish pointed out.

  Mitchell blew out a frustrated breath because she was right, and he didn’t know how to prevent that from happening. They hadn’t discussed bringing Moon back with them. They were already pushing their luck by asking the witches to help hide Kish.

  “She can go back to the cougar land with me,” Winter offered. “That’s the best we can do.”

  “Will Cord be okay with that?” Mitchell asked.

  “He should be,” Vexx replied. “Once she’s away from Kish, there won’t be any way to trace her. I doubt the demons would even think to try it. I’m not that familiar with how demons trace magic, but with witches, we can’t trace shifter magic because it doesn’t leave a trail.”

  “You can trace magic?” Mitchell asked her.

  She shook her head. “Only some witches can do that. It’s not a skill we all possess.”

  “I can trace magic, but not very well,” Kish added. “For me, I have to have touched the magic of that person. I also can’t trace shapeshifters, so I think it’s safe to assume demons have that in common with witches. I still don’t like leaving Moon with strangers.”

  “We need to get out of this area, now,” Winter said urgently.

  “Come on, Kishara,” Moon coaxed. “They’re doing the best they can to keep both of us safe. They didn’t have to come here at all. I think we should try to work with them.”

  Kish finally nodded. She didn’t look happy, but at least, she’d agreed.

  “Grab anything you need, and let’s go,” Winter told them.

  Chapter 35

  “Shouldn’t they be back by now?” Abram asked as he looked around the clearing. He’d done his best to remain quiet up to that point, but his patience was wearing thin. Until that morning, he hadn’t felt edgy about the trip.

  “Why are you so stressed out?” Jase asked.

  “Kishara is one of his obsessions,” Cord answered for him.

  “Was one of my obsessions,” Abram corrected him. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

  “Don’t be an asshole when we’re trying to be nice to you,” Cord snapped. “You make it difficult for anyone to put up with you.”

  Elena laughed, shrugging when Abram glared at her. “Sorry.” She wasn’t sorry.

  “Go check on the jeeps with Maddox and Davin,” he ordered.

  “Right away,” Elena told him, giving him a mocking salute before walking off.

  “Your attitude could be why so many people don’t like you,” Jase remarked.

  Abram shrugged. “I don’t care if people like me, but I guess I do need some of you to at least put up with me. Vexx never asks me to act like a good person around her. She’s the least annoying shapeshifter I know.”

  “No one is telling you to become something you’re not,” Jase insisted. “I think it would be impossible for you to pretend to be anything less than a complete dick.”

  When Abram looked over, he found the lynx shifter’s lips twitching.

  “I know you’re making a joke, but it’s the truth,” Abram stated. “I like being a dick, so it’s not likely I’ll change.”

  “Vexx says you can behave when you want to,” Cord added. “Of course, she also said you don’t want to behave. Are you excited about seeing the demon again?”

  “Not really,” Abram replied.

  “Nervous?” Jase asked.

  “I already told you I’m not interested in Kishara anymore,” Abram snapped. “Why the fuck can’t people get that through their heads?” Then again, it might be best if they didn’t g
et it. Connor and Ian would be happier if they thought he still wanted Kish. “I’m getting tired of waiting around. I hate standing here and doing nothing.”

  “They should be back soon,” Cord replied, but Abram caught the worry in his voice.

  There was a chance something could go wrong. The jaguar shifters might not welcome them. Kishara might attack. The demon looking for Kishara might have arrived while they were there, and then they’d know about Mitchell.

  “This must be hardest on you,” Abram began awkwardly. “You have your daughter and your pregnant mate out there. That can’t be easy.”

  Cord’s eyes narrowed, and he looked pissed. “What the hell are you getting at?”

  “I think he’s trying to be understanding,” Jase remarked in awe.

  “Fuck my life,” Abram muttered. “I am trying to be nice, though I have no clue why.”

  “Mitchell must be rubbing off on you,” Zane said as he approached them. He’d been standing back, trying to pretend he wasn’t listening to them. That surprised Abram since Zane didn’t strike him as the type to care what anyone thought of him or his actions. He seemed like the type to interject himself into any conversation that even mildly interested him.

  “You have been spending a lot of time around Mitchell,” Jase added. “Wouldn’t it be something if you stopped being a total bastard because of your friendship?”

  “Abram is a lot more than Mitchell’s friend.” Zane’s words hung in the air.

  They were shapeshifters, so they all knew when he got turned on, and it was better having them realize it had to do with Mitchell than suspect it was Vexx or Winter getting him hard. Under other circumstances, the fight could be fun, but he needed to keep his focus on what was important—helping Mitchell.

  “Aren’t any of you going to ask for details?” Zane asked, looking disappointed that no one had taken the bait. “Don’t you want to hear how Abram feels about Mitchell?”

  “Nope,” Jase replied.

  “This is one of the weirdest fucking conversations I’ve ever had, and that says a lot,” Abram muttered.

  Before anyone could say more, the portal opened and out stepped Mitchell, Winter, Vexx, Kish, and a woman he’d never met.