Darkness Haunts

by Susan Illene

  I forced myself out of my musings to realize Lisette had changed the subject.

  "So, remember how you were asking about Aniya last night? Well, I got a weird email from her."

  I frowned. "What did she say?"

  "Something about not coming back. She says the guy she met up with in Alaska is so wonderful that she wants to stay with him. It was short and to the point. Not like her usual chatty messages. Doesn’t she have to be back for those teaching courses or something?”

  “Yeah, she does,” I said, trying to make out the scribbling on the calendar hanging on the wall. “They start the same time my classes do.”

  Aniya wanted to be an elementary school teacher. She had always loved kids and wanted to work with them. She’d delayed going to college so she could work and save money first, but now she was almost done. There was no way she would give that up. Something was seriously wrong. If I could run into a supernatural trap in a public place, who’s to say Aniya couldn’t have done the same in Fairbanks? Of course, my experience last night might have been making me paranoid, but it couldn’t be ruled out.

  "When did you get the message?” I asked.

  Lisette shrugged. “It came two days ago, but I didn't check my email ‘til today. Things have been a little busy and there wasn't a chance."

  "Something isn't right. She might be trying to tell us she's in trouble, but can't come out and say it."

  Lisette shoved her hair behind her ears. "What're we going to do? I have too much going on with the new shop and can't just close it down right now."

  “I know. School starts in two weeks for me, but we have to make sure Aniya is back before then.”

  My cell phone rang, interrupting us. I picked it up to check the caller ID—it was Aniya's mother. Lisette leaned over to see the screen and gave me an encouraging look. Maybe we weren’t the only ones worried about our friend.

  "Mrs. Singh, how are you?"

  "Melena, I'm so sorry to bother you, but have you heard from my daughter?” she asked, her accented voice coming through the line. “She hasn't called me in weeks and I'm worried.”

  "No, I haven't, but Lisette got an email from her.” I went on to explain the sketchy details we’d put together.

  "This isn't like her. I told Aniya not to go up there, but she wouldn’t listen. She was convinced this Philip was the one, and you know there is no talking her out of anything once her mind is set. We have to do something."

  "Did you contact the police up there?” I asked. An easy solution would have been nice.

  "I tried talking to them but they wouldn’t listen and were no help at all.” Mrs. Singh sniffled. "They wouldn't even consider searching for her. I don’t know what to do. Please help me."

  My heart ached for the woman. She had lost her husband ten years ago when a driver high on drugs hit him one night on his way home. They’d been in the country for a little over a decade by that time, but she’d had no support system to help her. Aniya was her only child and family in America.

  Since my own parents died not long before that, I understood their loneliness. We spent a lot of time being there for each other because of it. In most instances, it involved late nights with ice cream and cookies, but it had made things easier. It would be horrible if she lost her daughter as well. I was close to both women and would help in any way I could.

  "Mrs. Singh, I'm worried too. Lisette is here with me. Give us a chance to talk it over and I'll call you back, okay?"

  "Yes, that is fine.” Her words came out muffled. “Please, do let me know. I couldn’t bear it if something happened to Aniya."

  "I will. Until then, try to relax. We’ll figure this out. It could be we’re all worrying for nothing,” I tried to reassure her.

  It took a few minutes to get her off the phone, but she eventually let me go. Afterward, I filled Lisette in on the parts of the conversation she hadn’t overheard. She twirled her short hair in a nervous gesture.

  "If the authorities aren't going to listen, one of us has to go up there and check on her,” she said.

  “I agree. I could take some time off work, but I'd need to be back before classes start. A search shouldn’t take more than a few days. It could be as simple as taking her back from some crazy guy. I could handle that."

  "Yeah...maybe.” Lisette turned her face away and pressed her lips into a thin line.

  I hated it when she blocked me out. The emotions I sensed from her didn’t give away much. "What is it? I know you’re thinking of something."

  She shook her head. "Nothing. I'm just worried and Alaska is far away. It’s a big state. That guy could have moved her anywhere and it might be impossible to find her. I'm hoping you don't have to look too hard."

  She wasn’t telling the whole truth. My senses could pick up lies, but further pressure wouldn't get Lisette to reveal what she was thinking. A characteristic I’d learned about her long ago.

  "Listen, I know you can't come with your new herb shop keeping you busy. I’ll have to go on my own, but it isn't a problem. I’m a big girl. I’ve traveled to much worse places than Alaska. After the Middle East, this will be nothing."

  She shook her head. "Don't be so sure."

  "Why the negative attitude?"

  "It’s nothing, but maybe we should find someone else. I have an uncle who might be willing to go. You shouldn't be traveling there alone when we don't even know what happened to Aniya. It could be dangerous. That's all I'm saying."

  I patted her on the leg. “I’ll be fine, don't worry. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

  She spent the next few minutes arguing the point, but eventually gave up and left. I called Mrs. Singh back and let her know I’d be heading up to Alaska to check on her daughter in a couple of days, after arrangements could be made. She cried at the news and thanked me. I had some savings left from my parent's life insurance, which gave me a little wiggle room since I had to quit my job now as well.

  That train of thought reminded me of my own problems from last night. Maybe this could work to my advantage by going away for a while. It would allow some time for troubles in Monterey to die down. I could focus on getting Aniya home safe, and then worry about myself. If all went well, finding her wouldn't take long. Mrs. Singh had the address where her daughter was supposed to be staying. She could give me it to me before I left. At least that would give me a place to start.

  ***

  The next day I was browsing online when a flash of golden light sparked from behind me. I almost choked on the immense power that flooded the room. The presence it indicated was not one I wanted to face right now, or at any other time for that matter. I turned to glare at him.

  He reclined on my bed with his arms behind his head and legs sprawled out on my navy blue comforter. He must have lain in that particular spot to provoke me. My jaw clenched. There would be no escaping this sup.

  He was my angel of death—compelling and dangerous. His looks would captivate most women. He had broad shoulders and well-defined muscles. Golden tones tinted his skin and short hair, along with a slight glow that always seemed to be emanating from him. Enough angelic blood ran through his veins to give him a stunning aura of power. In general, nephilim were not a race to be messed with, but at twenty-five hundred years old he could put up a serious fight. My senses hadn’t encountered many who were stronger.

  I had learned firsthand how he could use his strength. He had been the one to kill Wanda. Why he hadn’t chosen to do the same to me remained a mystery. The man continued to disturb me with his presence, whenever the urge came for him to do so. Because of him, I couldn’t relax, not even in my own home.

  The grudge I held against him burned deep inside, with no way to lessen it. It might have been a quick death, but Wanda had known the terror of seeing him come at her with a massive sword. The blade had cleaved her body in one stroke and given me nightmares for years afterward. I’d had enough other bloody memories added since then my mind had begun locking them a
way in a box for my own mental protection. That one scene tended to crop up more than the others, though.

  Before her death, she had warned me there were two races a sensor needed to fear more than any others—nephilim and vampires. That day this man proved her right about one of them. He became a sporadic presence in my life from that point forward. In the beginning I feared him, but that emotion turned to resignation over time. He would kill me someday, I had no doubt. It was what his kind did to mine. Lucas just wanted to draw it out and make me squirm.

  "Come to finish me off, Lucas?”

  "It seems you’re doing well courting death without my help, sensor.”

  I coughed. "What’s that supposed to mean?"

  His eyes reflected the cold intensity I had grown used to seeing. "I know about your run-in with the witch."

  It didn’t surprise me. Lucas always appeared to be aware of what went on in my life. Nephilim kept their unique abilities well guarded, but he’d revealed a few things during the time we’d known each other. I had learned he could teleport wherever he wanted and track my activities without me even knowing it. How that was possible with my immunity to magic, I didn’t know, but it appeared he had a way. I was half-tempted to get a full body scan done to see if he hadn’t somehow managed to implant a tracking device on me.

  "What do you want, Lucas?"

  He ignored my question and came over to peer at my computer screen. His body moved without a sound. I reached to shut off the monitor, but he grabbed my hand before my finger could graze the switch. His grip was tight and unyielding, much like the man.

  "Booking a flight to Fairbanks?” he said close to my ear. “Interesting. You do have a death wish.”

  I managed to jerk my hand free. Of course, it worked because he allowed it. He straightened to a full standing position, forcing me to lift my head up.

  "I’m not sure I know what you mean.” I scooted my chair back a few inches. “But one of my best friends is in trouble. Someone has to check on her and there is no one else who can do it. Not that it’s any of your business.”

  Why was I even bothering to explain this to him? Lucas always had a strange effect on my sensibilities.

  His eyes glinted as if he knew what I was thinking. "You do realize Fairbanks is a supernatural haven? They will not respond well to your presence."

  "A haven?” I asked. “Like a hot spot?”

  His face reflected disgust. "Of course. Though not all of them stay for the summer months, there are still enough to be a threat to one of your kind.”

  I focused on a bare spot on the wall to avoid his all-knowing gaze. “Then I’ll have to make sure they don’t discover what I am.”

  The fact he bothered to divulge such a critical piece of information made me want to doubt him, but my senses revealed he spoke the truth. One of the more useful abilities I had—neither sups nor humans could lie to me.

  Not even him.

  Now I had to factor in the idea Fairbanks might be a more dangerous place to travel than expected. Not as bad as staying here. At least the supernatural population up there didn’t have any reason to suspect me of being anything other than a normal human, but still not as safe as I’d hoped.

  “I'm not going to be the one to stop you.” He shrugged. “By all means, go and get yourself killed. Saves me the trouble of doing it later."

  Whenever he said things like that, it didn’t settle well with my truth meter. Not to mention his past history with me didn’t quite match up and that made me wonder what his real game was. It had been three years since we'd last seen each other. He'd been avoiding me until now. What had changed?

  "Speaking of my impending death, want to explain why you stepped in to save my life? I’ve wanted to ask, but you haven’t given me the chance. You could have let me die in that explosion."

  His face hardened. "I had my reasons. Don't read too much into it."

  "Based on the way you act, it doesn't make sense. I want to know why. Not that it will make me forgive you for killing Wanda."

  "Your Wanda got what was coming to her,” he growled out. “As for the rest, there are some things better left alone. Let it go, sensor.”

  He told the truth on that one, which bothered me. My need to understand his actions overcame my fear. I stood up so that our faces were not more than a foot apart.

  "You saved my life,” I said between clenched teeth. “Despite killing my guardian and threatening many times to do the same to me. I have a hard time believing there isn't something more behind these random visits of yours."

  One moment I stood beside the chair, and the next he had me against the wall. One hand wrapped around my throat. I struggled to breathe while being dangled at least a foot off the floor. Maybe yelling at him hadn't been such a good idea.

  "I said leave it alone. I'm not warning you again.”

  Unable to move, except to grip Lucas’ wrist in an attempt to relieve the pressure on my neck, all I could do was stare into his golden eyes. They projected suppressed rage. Maybe it would be better not to push my luck any further—not that talking was an option at the moment. He let me go right as my vision began to blacken. I fell to the floor in a heap, gasping for breath.

  "Enjoy your trip to Alaska. It may be the last place you ever see.”

  By the time I sucked in enough air to reply, he’d left. Why did he have to flash in and out like that? Once again he’d disappeared to avoid answering my questions. Why had he shown up that day and saved my life? I would be dead now if he hadn’t shielded my body from the rocket attack.

  A souvenir from the experience still remained. Thinking of it made me feel for the scar above my hip. My fingers traced the rigid path where a piece of metal had managed to find its way around his formidable protection. It was several inches long and reached across my left side. Sometimes it ached as a reminder of that day. He had taken most of the damage, so the injury wasn’t as bad as it could have been.

  If he’d not come when he did, though, I wouldn’t be alive—a point that was hard to admit. Several of my comrades lost their lives that day. I’d seen the horrific damage done to their bodies and tried to save the ones I could, but not many had made it. The same could have happened to me, but instead I was awarded for bravery under fire. Like a cruel joke. Lucas’ immortality and ability to block the worst of the blast was what really made the difference and allowed me to help them. I wished I could have done more.

  Lucas had suffered plenty of injuries himself, but healed after I helped him remove all the shrapnel from his body. He didn’t stay long, leaving me to deal with the rest of the mess. It still begged the question—why would he suffer even temporary pain if he wanted me dead?

  I had no easy answer and it didn't matter in the scheme of things. His being a nephilim and me a human would keep us at odds. Nothing could change that. I shrugged off his strange behavior for later speculation and focused on more imminent concerns.

  Discovering Fairbanks might be more dangerous than expected meant I had even more preparations to make. Its supernatural haven status wouldn't stop me from searching for my best friend, and in fact made me want to check on her more, but it would be a greater risk. I couldn’t allow my fear of sups to get in the way this time.

  Chapter Three

  The Fairbanks airport wasn’t the largest one I’d ever flown into, but it had everything a sprawling metropolis of 35,000 people needed. Okay, more like 91,000, if you counted the neighboring towns. It seemed hard to believe the city rated as the second largest in the state at that size. The temperature outside didn't feel all too different from Monterey, and according to my research, the weather in August wouldn't be too bad. It made for an ideal time to come—if you discounted my missing friend and the supernatural element of the place.

  The rental car company had my four-wheel drive Nissan Pathfinder ready when I arrived to pick it up. The plane had landed close to midnight and all I could think about was getting to my hotel and falling straight to sleep. With any l
uck, there wouldn't be any nocturnal sups to get in the way during the short drive. At only ten days into the month, vampires were limited to about seven hours of darkness for their outdoor activities. I figured they would use every minute of it to their advantage.

  Nothing eventful happened along the way. I sensed the occasional sup nearby but none worth worrying about. The sight of the motel sign flashing ahead brought a sigh of relief. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a typical 1950s style complex with rooms running on three sides of the parking lot. All at ground level. The cheap price was what had sold me.

  After getting the keys to my room, I hauled my bags inside. Most people would think they were filled with a ton of girl stuff, but I’d brought a few tools of the trade as well in case things didn’t go as planned. Not wanting to waste time, I dumped it all into a corner and wiped my hands off on my jeans while surveying my surroundings.

  The room wasn't much better than the outside of the motel. It had shabby furniture and drapes to match. I didn't care for the strong smell of cigarette smoke lingering in the air, but at least everything appeared clean. There were far worse places to lay my head. In my army days I’d had to sleep on the cold, hard ground with nothing more than a sleeping bag for protection. That made me less picky than most people.

  Discovering the weak water pressure in my shower the next morning didn't start the day out well, though. With wet hair clinging midway down my back, I dug out my laptop and managed to connect to the motel's complimentary Wi-Fi signal. A glance through my email showed Aniya still hadn't responded to any of my attempts to contact her.

  A check of the weather report told me it would be a warm day, for Alaska, with highs in the upper seventies. Not too hot to leave my hair down. I dressed in jeans and a light blue t-shirt that matched my eyes. My backpack came with me, filled with various essentials that might come in handy. Knives, duct tape, first-aid kit, extra cash, and a change of clothes were all inside. If things got complicated, I’d be prepared.

  The cafe adjacent to the motel turned out to be a good place to grab breakfast. Some of the locals were eating in there, along with a few tourists. No one paid much attention to my arrival, which suited me fine. At least my fair skin blended in well, along with my casual attire. You could pick out a lot of the visitors based on their expensive outdoor clothing and tanned complexions.