by LJ Swallow
The growing black, with pinprick stars behind, grows around the demon, moving away from me and swallowing his figure. Syv says something behind me, but I don’t hear her words, totally fixated on the scene in front of me. I can’t see him anymore, just the absent part of the bathroom, as if I painted it away.
My body jerks as the darkness snaps to a small circle in front of me, and I’m pushed back onto the floor, landing on my ass. The demon has gone. I gasp for breath as a white light pushes forward, and this time when I stare at my hands the familiar glow from my magic has returned, obliterating the dark.
"Vee!" Syv moves away from the door and crouches down. I shake as I stare at my fingers. My chest hurts, the pain growing in my head too; a pressure as if I’m fighting a migraine. I blink around at Syv, who stretches out her fingers before withdrawing and covering her mouth.
The door slams open and a middle-aged woman in a museum uniform frowns down at me. "What happened?"
"I didn’t feel well," I croak out.
"She collapsed in front of the door," says Syv. "I just moved her."
“Are you okay? Does she need first aid?" Her anger turns to a troubled look and she barely glances at Syv.
"I’m fine now." I attempt a smile.
“Her nose is bleeding." She looks to Syv. "Do you have tissues in your bag?"
"I like to carry the essentials." Syv smiles through her pale shock and delves into her bag. Yeah, like a knife. Stolen artefacts.
"What happened to your neck?" The woman points at where the demon began to slice into Syv, and I stare in alarm at the amount of blood. How far from an artery was he?
"I really think I should get someone," the woman says. "Stay there." Without waiting for our response, she rushes from the room.
"Shit. We need to go. Can you walk?" Syv crouches down and offers me a tissue.
Taking hold, I nod and press it against my nose. She helps me stand on my shaky legs. "Your neck."
Syv touches her skin and looks at the blood on her fingers. "I’m good. I’ll head to the hospital to get it fixed up; I’ve had worse. Two secs.”
She produces a black scarf from her bag and tightens it around her neck. “Fashionable and practical.”
Wow. “You’re certainly prepared!”
“It’s bleeding a lot though, isn’t it?”
"I might be able to help," I suggest as I straighten my clothes and follow to the door.
"With that dark shit?" Syv arches a brow. "That’s not the kind of magic I want touching me."
"I wouldn’t—" I begin to retort, but Syv winks at me. "Fine. Come on."
Turning my head, I catch sight of myself in the mirror: the pale-faced girl with a tissue held over her nose.
Bile rises as I see my eyes. I don’t know whose they are, but they don’t look like mine. I squeeze them shut as Syv grabs my hand. "Quick! Where did you leave the guys?"
"Do my eyes look strange?" I ask her.
"No." I glance back at the mirror. They’re back to the same green as usual but hold the fear I feel.
Syv succeeds in dragging me from the bathrooms and in the opposite direction to the stairs I came down. We break through the fire door and an alarm sounds.
"Fucking love this part!" Syv runs ahead, hand on her neck, and lifts up her other arm. She waves the grey stone at me. "I found what we needed—a stone. Mission accomplished. Kinda."
Kinda?
12
JOSS
I wince as Xander drops into one of his rants, yelling across the kitchen at Syv, Vee, and anybody who dares interrupt him.
He barely said two words in the car on the way back. Vee, sensibly, accompanied Syv to avoid talking to him if she’d travelled with us.
I don’t know what the fuck happened at the museum. We found the pair in the car park. Eventually. They drove up in Syv’s Jeep, yelling at us to follow them before anybody saw. What had been annoyance turned to relief that they weren’t stuck in the back of the museum somewhere or had been seriously injured.
But even in the streetlight’s glow, I saw blood on Syv’s neck, soaking the top of her dress. There was blood around Vee’s nose and I was terrified they’d met Seth. Apparently not—but obviously whoever the guy they met is, he worked for someone else looking for the stone. So, yeah, probably Seth.
Now, back at the house, the demanding questions begin.
"All I did was go to the bathroom," says Vee, facing off Xander, arms crossed. "We didn’t exactly have time to call for the cavalry when the guy attacked Syv."
"She’s right, Xander," I say. "Vee didn’t sneak off. She told us where she was going."
"They should never have let you go alone." Xander’s eyes narrow. "We’d promised not to because of the fucking teleporting thing."
I sigh. "Xan. Come on. Calm down."
"If there had been more than one of us with Syv, the situation might not have happened." He turns to jab a finger at Syv. "Why the fuck didn’t you wait for us?"
"Because I saw somebody else hanging around, near the store room, who I knew wasn’t human. I had to get in and take the stone before he could."
Xander glowers. "You could’ve waited. We weren’t far behind."
"And what if he’d walked off with it while I did? Let me do my job, Xander. Everything worked out okay."
"Only because Vee was there. Someone could’ve found you on the floor with your throat slashed."
Syv steps toward him. "Plenty have tried, and nobody has succeeded. I would’ve got myself out of the situation. Eventually."
Xander yanks out a kitchen chair and sits beside Ewan. "What’s your opinion?"
"What happened to the demon’s body?" he asks in a low voice.
My suspicion piques as Vee and Syv exchange a glance. "What are you hiding?"
"She obliterated the dude. That’s all," Syv replies. "Joss, are you gonna fix my neck up or should I head to Emergency? I don’t mind, there’s a cute doctor there who’s often working."
I shake my head and pull out the first aid kit from a cupboard.
"Obliterated? Full story, Vee. Now." Xander folds his hands under his arms. Vee’s mouth thins at Xander’s attitude to her. "Please," he adds.
The demon was strong, if Syv couldn’t take him. Her magic powers may be weak, but I’ve said before, her physical ability comes from more than human strength.
Vee hesitantly tells us about the magic, but I swear she downplays the scene. A dark power? Okay, she used this on a demon, but it was a triggered reflex. What does that mean for the future?
"Can we talk about the stone that Syv found?" she asks eventually. "This must be what we need as the symbols look familiar. That’s what’s important here. Show them, Syv."
The stone Syv took from the museum is on the table between us. Flat, grey, with a few runes carved on both sides.
Broken.
"Why is there blood on it?" Ewan picks up the stone and examines it.
"I hit the bastard with it." She winces as I prod at her cut. "Careful, Doctor Famine."
"I think Steri-Strips should be okay." I delve into the box.
"What did you need to tell us?" Heath takes the stone and runs his finger along the rough edge. "It’s broken, isn’t it?"
"Looks that way. Clean break. I think someone took the other part elsewhere."
"Oh, for fuck’s sake!" Heath drops the stone. "Where?"
Syv reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a sheet of paper. She spreads it on the table in front of her as I attach the surgical tapes to her neck. "This was in the drawer with the stone. It’s a shipment record. The stone and other items are on loan from the Louvre museum in Paris. I think that’s where the other part might be."
"Shit!" Xander stands and kicks the chair back under the table. "What if Seth has that stone already?"
"The demon has been following me, so I doubt he knows where he’s going without me leading him there. Maybe if the demon had taken this, Seth would know." She taps the paper. "But he didn
’t. I did what I’m paid for."
"So now we need to go to fucking Paris?" Ewan’s face sours. "We can’t all go there and leave this place unprotected."
"Yeah, and we need to keep an eye on Ripley," puts in Heath.
"Well, we’re not splitting up." Xander takes the paper. "Are you sure the stone is in that museum?”
"No. But it’s a good guess," replies Syv. "I’m willing to look."
"You could ask the Collector go with you." I look in surprise at Vee’s suggestion to Syv. "You said he has strong magic."
Syv plays her fingers over the wound-closing strips I’ve put on her skin. "Maybe. Why? Don’t you trust me to go alone?"
"You need protecting, look at what just happened."
"S’pose."
Vee closes her hand over Syv’s and I’m surprised when Syv doesn’t withdraw it. "I just saw what happened, Syv. If he can’t go, one of us will need to."
"Not happy about that," mumbles Xander.
"Let me talk to Col. I promised I’d head back to him as soon as we’d finished up in Cambridge." She gives a half smile. "He worries about me, y’know."
Beneath her words, I sense a different sentiment. Syv likes that someone cares about her. This girl isn’t the flirtatious assassin with an attitude as big as her knives. I’m unsure if the guys see past her front, but I do. I figured her out early on, and the more time we’re around Syv, the more I see who she hides beneath. She pretends not to give a shit but I sense she’s lost in the world too.
"Do you want us to come with you to the Collector’s?" I ask as I tidy the bloodied gauze into a pile.
"All good. It’s a short drive. I’ll be fine."
As Syv leaves, Vee follows. I walk to the lounge and watch out the window. They pause by her Jeep, chatting. Syv places a hand on Vee’s shoulder and for a weird moment I think they might hug.
They don’t. Vee walks back to the house as Syv drives away, and as the light from the open front door catches her expression, her pale-faced worry shines back at me.
13
VEE
Syv’s chat to the Collector goes well, which surprises us. The reclusive fae must be worried if he’s stepping in to help out. Or is his concern for Syv? The decision is made; Syv and the Collector head to Paris to follow her lead—he can protect her, and we can keep our fingers crossed the Louvre is the correct place. I could tell the guys were split between wanting to go with her and staying here. The decision we stick together as much as possible, and as closely as possible, is made. They toyed with the idea half our group could go, but Paris is too far apart for us all right now.
We’re counting on a couple of days at the most. Syv and the Collector left straightaway the next morning, and both want to be there and back as quickly as possible.
I walk into the lounge where Xander and Heath stand together, jackets on, and halt. "Where are you going?"
"A night away from crazy shit. We can't do anything else until Syv and the Collector find what we need. Seth is quiet, probably watching them, so I've persuaded Xander to take a night off." Heath pokes his brother.
"Let me guess. Pub?"
"Not a total night off," he says gruffly. "We can check out the local area in case any supes are taking advantage of our distraction and are up to no good."
Heath chuckles. "Check out the bars, more like."
"Warehouse, La Fee Verte, or the King's Arms?"
"Why not just have a pub crawl?" I ask and snicker. "Enjoy."
I make to walk past to the kitchen and Heath stops me with a hand. "Aren't you coming?"
"Do I translate that as 'you're coming with us'?"
"Vee might not want to go. We can go somewhere more interesting if you want, Vee?" Joss walks into the room. "‘We’ as in me and you."
"We stick—"
"—together." I finish Xander's sentence for him. "I know."
"Aww, so no date with Vee?" Joss pouts.
I pat his cheek. "No special treatment for you today. Maybe another time."
"What are you talking about?" Ewan appears and flops down in his chair, feet on the table.
"We're going out, apparently," I tell him.
"Oh? I'm not."
"Yes, you are," Xander replies.
"No. I'm not. I'm going for a ride later, now the snow has melted. I want to clear my head a bit." Ewan leans forward and switches on the TV.
"You know? You’re right," I say. "I’d like to forget about some of this for a few hours. Is that okay? How about The King’s Arms? I haven't been there since the day Heath took me to meet his smoking hot friends and a guy called Fay tried to kill me."
Stony expressions look back at me.
"Come on, guys! I'm trying to do what you're saying. Switch off. Down time."
Pretend to be human.
"It's quieter than the Warehouse or fae joint," suggests Joss. "Ewan, you can ride there if you want. Do both."
"Yeah. Maybe." He flicks through to a music channel.
"We're leaving." Xander picks Heath's car keys up from the table and throws them at Heath. "You're driving."
"Huh? Isn't it your turn?" Heath throws them back at him.
"Nope." The keys pass between them again and Heath scowls.
With a sigh, Joss grabs his keys. "I'll drive. Vee? Are you coming?"
I glance at Ewan. We need to talk. "Maybe I'll persuade Ewan to join you. He can take me on his bike again."
Ewan tips his head upwards and back onto the sofa. "You don't like my bike."
"You said that last time. Maybe I want to try again."
Joss chuckles. "We'll expect you in a couple of hours, then."
"I'm not going for that long a ride."
"Yeah, but we all know what happens when you two are left alone in the house."
Ewan looks around to the TV again, and I pull a face at Joss. "I'm going to change. See you there," I tell him.
With everything happening, a night out feels weird, but I understand why. There's little we can do until Syv appears with the other half of the stone. All we can do is monitor events in the world and hope Seth's leaving his plans until he has the information we’re seeking too. A few hours won't hurt; besides, Ewan’s bound to spend time on his phone watching for anything suspicious.
I return downstairs dressed in jeans and a shirt. Ewan flicks a look the length of me before pointing. "Are you stealing my shirt again?"
I'm wearing the oversized black shirt over a tight black tank top. The material slips down my arm as I lift the sleeve to my face and smile. "I like this shirt. It smells of you."
He doesn't respond, so I cross to sit next to him on the sofa. Ewan shuffles along but I move closer to him and he keeps his attention on the TV.
I pick up the remote and switch off the music. "You're avoiding me again, aren't you, Ewan?"
He turns wary eyes to mine. "Are you surprised after what happened last time we uh... had sex?"
"I don't think that will happen again. You know that was linked to you being the last guy I had sex with." He blinks at my bluntness and continues to watch me doubtfully. "Didn't you enjoy it, Ewan?"
"What do you think? Of course I bloody did, but it's difficult to cope with the girl I love freaking out and running away afterwards, possessed by an unknown force."
He frowns when I laugh. "Sorry, but that sounds very dramatic."
"It’s true, Vee." His face hardens. "And you’re different. We can all feel it."
I run my fingers down his cheek. "But the human Vee is containing the power still. It’s stronger, but I’m in control of myself." Or I hope I am. Whatever triggered the darker magic yesterday wasn’t under my control. Please let that only happen when I’m around demons—but please not Ripley.
"The change is making all our feelings stronger." He catches my hand and kisses my fingers. "I'm damn sure we're all trying hard to keep our hands off you. Most of us are succeeding, but it's not easy."
I sigh. "Ewan, you overthink everything. So what if yo
u all don’t keep your hands off me? I’m happy and everybody accepts it. It’s just part of...this."
He chews on his lip and stares at his hands.
Oh.
"Are you saying you don't accept it?" I ask.
"No. Yes. I mean, I feel like with me, sex must be different, and I screwed this up."
"No." I hold his face in both hands and look back into his eyes. His confusion matches what I've seen before, when I want to see the love and desire. "You didn't."
"Yeah, well, I never had a girl react to me like that before." He half smiles and I push down the jealous twinge. What do other girls matter now?
"I’m sorry. I promise I won’t next time." I kiss his cheek and he turns away. "Ewan! Honestly, you’re pissing me off. Are you still angry with me about Seth?"
"Angry? I was never angry. Frustrated, maybe."
"I'm annoyed with myself for trusting Seth and not listening to you all. I felt a strong need to defend him and keep him close, and now he's gone I don't know why I did. I honestly can't figure why I trusted him so fully." I pause. "Do you think Seth had the ability to influence my thoughts?"
Ewan eyes me warily. "You won't want to hear this, Vee, but I think you contain part of his power too."
Ewan's words hit me in the gut. I've denied this thought whenever it crossed my mind. But the darkness. The void I conjured. "What do you mean?"
"I’m convinced part of what he is, is inside you. And if you’re linked to him, that's why you reacted the way you did."
I shift away. "That isn’t true! He’s barely touched me."
"You had part of us inside before we touched you. We just made it stronger when we did"
My stomach turns. "Do you think he’d try to..." Omigod. "He wouldn’t. I’d fucking kill him first."
"Which is why I think you’re here: to kill him. He’s scared of you, I’m sure."
"Good. Maybe this mysterious book has a spell or something—anything—to help us. Do you think?"
