Vessel of Destruction (Daizlei Academy Book 4)

by Kel Carpenter

  “Ugh,” I groaned.

  “I’ll take that as a ‘yes, I’m fine, Blair. Thank you for asking,’” she said, ducking out of the room. Keyla strolled past my door in sweatpants that read ‘Booty Call’ on the ass, and I made a mental note to burn them before Ash visited and Blair and I got in trouble for letting her run wild.

  As I laid there, contemplating getting off the floor, Roar came bumbling into my room. His paws were giant compared to his lanky body. He peppered my face in kisses, and I jumped away when he turned to trying to nibble my ear.

  “Keyla,” I called.

  “What?” she yelled from the bathroom the three of us shared in our tiny upstairs apartment.

  “Your dog wants out.”

  “Can’t you do it?” she whined. “It’s early and Blair coming home woke him up.” She sounded so pitiful my demon pushed me to relent.

  “Fine,” I groaned. “But he’s your dog. Get him some food while I’m out, won’t ya?”

  “Okay dokay,” she called back through the bathroom door as the shower started, her voice more chipper than it was a moment ago.

  I dragged myself up and slid my feet into my flip flops. I grabbed his leash. Roar bounded after me as I took the stairs two at a time. I maneuvered around our desks toward the front door of the shop. Roar ran smack dab into it, making the bell that hung off the handle jingle.

  “What was that?” Blair called.

  “The damn dog just being dumb again,” I said. She chuckled under her breath as I leaned over and clicked his leash. The door swung open with only a thought from me and we strolled out into the chilled morning air. Los Angeles was already up and moving this time of day as I walked the dog halfway down the street, unable to help myself from monitoring for threats.

  Over a year had come and gone. Blair and I settled here, opening up a shop to hunt rogues and demons. To some it would be an exciting life, but after the one I’d lived, it was downright peaceful. Simple. After the Alpha’s death, Keyla struggled too much with her own kind, and while she loved her brother, Ash wasn’t truly equipped to help a young teenage girl dealing with grief. Just over eighteen, Blair and I took her on as an apprentice—training her to protect herself and teaching her to use her powers while simultaneously raising her as best we could.

  It wasn’t always easy. I’d learned a lot from raising my own sisters, though. Keyla was just as wild as Alexandra, but inquisitive like Lily. She swore like a sailor when Ash wasn’t around, and Blair and I let it go—choosing to pick our battles with her. Battles like getting a damn dog.

  I scowled at Roar as he tried to run into someone’s legs. He curbed last second as an invisible barrier rebuffed him without anyone noticing. The dog turned and gave me a look, like he knew. I snorted, turning and heading back for the shop.

  On the outside our windows were tinted black. The sign above read that we were a kickboxing school, though anytime someone came in to sign up for classes we were always ‘full’. Most passersby didn’t bother us, unless they were looking for it, and that suited our purposes well. I grabbed the handle and wrenched it open. Roar ran past me, and I let his leash drop as he bolted between the gap in the desks and up the stairs to our apartment loft. Sighing, I locked it behind me and followed after.

  The puppy pawed at the bathroom door while the shower ran. Instead of unleashing him upon her, I turned and opened Blair’s door next to it. The dog decided she was a decent consolation prize and launched himself onto her bed. Blair huffed, pulling her pillow over her head as she growled, “Whyyyyy would you do this to me?”

  “You woke the dog up. You can deal with him,” I said, closing her door with him in there.

  She groaned, and I heard as she shifted, making room for him. I snorted, knowing that she secretly liked him. Even if it was Keyla’s dog.

  I walked back to my room, humming to myself and stepping past the door, I blinked. In the middle of my room stood Ash, my signasti, and the current ruling Alpha.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked. “I was supposed to come to you this weekend—”

  He closed the gap between us and pulled me in for a kiss, slamming the door shut behind me with one hand.

  Both Blair and Keyla groaned loudly. Advanced hearing was a bitch sometimes.

  “Our apartment is too small for you and your shenanigans,” my cousin griped. “I can hear your damn heartbeats in sync. It’s disgustingly sweet.”

  “They’ll manage,” Ash murmured against my lips. I smiled.

  “What about that important meeting with the Council—”

  “Amber is representing the Shifters. As my second, she can handle it.”

  “The residence—”

  “Alexandra and Tori took a weekend off to come down from Montana and watch over it. They just finished the monuments honoring Liam and Scarlett’s families for their service and their lives. Johanna is overseeing some of the final reconstructions at Daizlei while they do that.”

  “But—”

  “Shhhh,” he whispered, pressing his lips to mine. I groaned, opening up for him as my back touched the door. “It’s all been sorted. Don’t worry so much.”

  “Mmhmm,” I muttered even though I really liked that he took Friday off early. “How’d you get in here anyways? That’s a safety hazard.”

  Ash started laughing under his breath, resting his forehead to mine. “You’re incorrigible.”

  “I’m a paid demon hunter. If my house isn’t secure—”

  “I climbed through the window. I was hoping to surprise you while you were still sleeping . . .” He trailed off. Blair loudly grumbled about people having to work around here.

  “Well, I’m awake now,” I said suggestively, twining my arms around his neck.

  “That you are,” he grinned. “What do you suggest we do now with all this free time you have?”

  I opened my mouth to tell him exactly what we could do when the phone rang downstairs. I froze.

  “Don’t answer it,” he said.

  “But I gotta.”

  “No, you don’t,” he said. “As your Alpha, I command it.”

  My head hit the door as I laughed.

  “She’s a demon,” Blair groaned, “and as her partner who was up dealing with a band of Made in south Los Angeles, I say she’s gotta answer it.”

  I leaned up and kissed his cheek. Ash sighed and stepped back.

  “Sorry, babe,” I said as I dressed in a hurry. The phone still rang but being demon fast had its perks. “Duty calls.”

  Ash flopped back on my bed. “I’ll be here when you finish up. Happy hunting,” he called after me as I threw the door open. Keyla walked by at that exact moment, and Ash lifted his head.

  “Hey sis, how’s it—” His words came up short, and I sensed it the second he saw her sweatpants. “What the hell are you wearing?”

  “Nothin’,” she called back, slamming the door of her room. My bed creaked as Ash got up, and I raced down the stairs. Two thumps sounded above me as Ash called out, “Why does your ass say booty call?”

  I chuckled and blocked out her response. I was going to hear all about it later.

  I grabbed the phone and the caller ID was unknown, but I answered anyways.

  “Hello?” I said, not revealing anything past that.

  “Street camera shows suspected demons. Took three hostages, appear to be human. Corner of Mason and 42nd,” my contact within the police force said.

  “On it.” The phone clicked as I hung up and started for the door.

  As I stepped out into the morning air all I could think was that it was going to be a good day, because it was. Every day I was still breathing was a good day, and I was grateful for each and every one of them.

  I’d yet to hear or see the ancients again since they’d unleashed me back upon the world. I had to think that meant I was doing a good job. I don’t know how, but something told me they were watching. Waiting to see what I would do.

  If I would succeed.


  The way I saw it, I spent too long fighting for this life.

  Nothing was going to stop me from living it now. Not failure. Not fear. Not even myself.

  I was given a second chance.

  And I was going to make the most of it.

  Even if that meant hunting demons and other evil for the rest of my days.

  I rounded the corner to the warehouse location, pulling a knife from my belt with each hand. I kicked down the front door in a single motion.

  It fell back, hitting the cement floor. A plume of dust shot up.

  Two demons jumped to their feet and behind them the hostages looked on with pleading eyes. I threw my daggers, and they landed true with a unified thud.

  “Hello, boys…”

  I winked as they burst into ash.

  “Damn,” I muttered. I didn’t even get to finish the introductions.

  The end.

  —This is the end of Selena’s story. If you loved this series and want to check out more from me, just flip to the next page for an exclusive sneak peek at the first chapter in my new series: The Grimm Brotherhood!—

  Sneak Peek

  Chapter One: Hostess Cupcakes

  My speedometer inched near one hundred twenty. I let out a low whistle under my breath as I beat my hands against the steering wheel like drums, Duran Duran drowning out my thoughts.

  The faded sign welcoming me to Farrow’s Square shrunk to the size of a pinprick in my rearview mirror. I whipped around a sharp curve with a quick stomp on the brakes and screech of my wheels. The sign disappeared entirely.

  Singing at the top of my lungs, a murder of crows scattered before me. I flipped them the bird as I floored it toward town. The Appalachian Mountains and roadkill were all I’d seen for the past few hours as I hightailed it back to the place I swore I’d never return to.

  I should have known better.

  Never say never.

  It’s a great way to tempt fate.

  And mine? She was a bitch.

  My right hand slipped from the wheel as I reached to my passenger seat, patting it until I found my purse. My eyes flicked between the road and the tattered multicolor monstrosity my best friend bought me for my eighteenth birthday four years ago.

  My hand latched onto something smooth. I pulled it out.

  Mascara.

  “Ugh,” I groaned under my breath as I tossed it in the back. Trying again, I pushed the crap aside, rummaging with half my attention until I felt the crinkle of smooth plastic.

  “Yes,” I purred, pulling it out.

  The golden wrapper of a condom was not what I was looking for.

  “Motherfucker,” I muttered, tossing that in the back too.

  Third time’s a charm. Isn’t that what everyone says? I rolled with it, cruising down the highway and going straight past the little town I’d grown up in. My house was still a half-hour out and the thick rain clouds overhead didn’t encourage me to stop when I had the top down on my convertible BMW.

  Resigned to carrying on, I reached for the purse again, feeling around for the pack of Hostess cupcakes I know I put in there. My hands just found purchase when something ran into the road.

  Large and furry. It skidded across my periphery, coming to stop in my lane.

  I dropped the cupcakes and slammed on the brakes. My hands moved on the wheel, trying to dodge, but it was too late.

  The last thing I saw before the car flipped were red eyes staring straight at me.

  I didn’t even have time to scream as my car went airborne. It careened to the side; the wheels unable to hold their grip any longer.

  My brain rattled, and my heart squeezed as the world turned over.

  Something crunched. Pain erupted everywhere. Stars exploded behind my eyes.

  And then, it all went black.

  All for some fucking Hostess cupcakes.

  When my eyes opened, I was not a Salem pancake as I’d expected. Not a crazy assumption given the open convertible doing somersaults down the highway. You know, that and the pain. I wasn’t even on the road anymore.

  Blinking a few times, I looked around at the scattered trees and clear night sky. I was standing in some kind of forest.

  “The fuck?” I asked, craning my neck as I tried to figure out where I was, let alone how I’d gotten there.

  “You can’t stay here,” a voice whispered behind me.

  I jumped and spun; arms already lifted to defend myself when I faltered. The girl was about twelve with an old-timey grace that felt way too out of place for Farrow’s Square. Her hair was a dark curtain that hung down her back, her dress some kind of antique black lace that covered her from neck to ankle. And she was pale, with black eyes that were far too old for her young face.

  There was no way I was going to let some kid from the Addams family know she’d just scared the ever-living crap out of me.

  “Listen, Morticia, you don’t just sneak up on people in the middle of the woods. That’s a good way to go and get yourself killed.”

  She blinked, a smile tilting up her lips. It was the creepiest fucking thing I’d ever seen. “That’s not my name.”

  I scowled at her, anger swiftly replacing my fear. “Like I give two shits, kid.”

  “You need to go back.”

  “Back where?”

  She lifted a hand, pointing in the direction of poor Bassy; my car was a mess of smoke and flame. “It’s not safe for you to stay here.”

  “And you think a pile of burning metal is safer?”

  She didn’t move, her body inhumanly still as she stared at me. “It’s not time for you to walk the in-between,” she tried again when I still hadn’t taken a step in the direction she pointed. “If you don’t go back, someone else will claim what you have abandoned.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” A normal person might have phrased that differently, but these days I had three modes: angry Salem, hungry Salem, and super angry Salem. Nowhere in there was there room for a filter.

  Not-Morticia scowled at me, taking two steps forward to shove me in the direction of the crumpled mess that used to be my car. “Go. Now!”

  I felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over me. I gasped, struggling to catch my breath as my mind was suddenly filled with memories that weren’t mine. Before I had time to process anything, she pointed at something that lay prone beside the car.

  Not something. Someone.

  A body.

  My body.

  There was no missing the bubblegum pink hair matted with blood.

  “You need to go back,” Not-Morticia hissed. “They’re coming.”

  Had I been looking at anything other than what could only be called my corpse, I might have thought to ask her who was coming, but instead, I started walking toward my body, drawn to it like a magnet.

  Soon I was on my knees, looking up at the girl like she could tell me how it were possible that I was both dead and yet alive.

  “Go back,” she said again, her voice so much older than her face. “Your answers wait for you on the other side.”

  Not knowing what else to do, I lifted my hand and rested it on top of my shoulder.

  My chest constricted, and I gasped. My eyes flew open, and I was no longer staring down at myself, but up at the sky.

  Deep breaths, I thought to myself as I started to hyperventilate.

  I was dead. I was so dead. Then I wasn’t.

  I looked down at my body. Scratches tore through my clothes. Dried blood made the material cling to me uncomfortably. I peeled my shirt up, trying to get a look at the damage. Despite the amount of blood and dirt stuck to me, my skin was smooth and even.

  I let out a shaky breath.

  Was I hallucinating?

  I looked sideways at my car. My beautiful fucking car that was now totaled.

  Nope. I was not hallucinating.

  Slowly I moved to my feet, running through my options.

  I could call my aunt, assuming I could find my phone, and
maybe she could come pick me up. The only problem with that was that I looked like a dead person because I had been—and now I wasn’t.

  Weird things did happen all the time, though. Miracles. They just didn’t usually happen to my family.

  I scratched my head, and my stomach chose that moment to rumble. I put a hand to it, thinking back on those Hostess cupcakes. They sounded really good right now, and I’d definitely missed dinner.

  I took a few slow steps toward the wreckage. Both sides of my car were slammed inwards. If not for the lack of a top it wouldn’t be accessible at all. However, if I climbed carefully over the sharp, jagged sides, there was a chance I would be able to rummage around to see if the cupcakes were still there.

  I patted my pockets to see if my phone was on me so I could use the flashlight.

  Being hungry and newly-not-dead called for desperate measures.

  Like eating before I decided how I planned to explain this.

  Luckily for me, my phone was still in my pocket. I pressed my thumb down to open it. The lack of signal had me unsure whether this was a good or bad thing. Either way, the flashlight worked.

  Cupcakes, here I come.

  I was just starting to maneuver over the edge of the wreckage when a voice behind me said, “What the hell are you doing?”

  A squeak left me as I jumped, falling sideways into the decrepit remainder of my car. I grunted, sitting up. Intense fluorescent light shined right in my face. I swatted it away, and the flashlight went flying.

  Without the blinding brightness, I could see clearly again. The stranger in front of me was quite a looker. Dark hair. High cheekbones and a strong jaw. Stubble and full lips. I blinked twice, questioning for a moment if it were somehow possible I was still dead.

  Then the blue eyes hardened.

  Definitely not dead, I decided again.

  “Who the fuck are you?” I demanded, pulling myself to my feet.

  “How about we start with what the fuck you’re doing trying to climb into a car that is on fire?” he snapped back.

  My spine straightened, and my eyes narrowed. This guy might be hot, but I was not in the mood. Dying had a way of doing that to a girl. Besides, no one talked to me that way. I was Salem Fucking Kaine. My family practically owned this town.