~Oh, this is delicious. Sister dearest is right.~
Cool air kissed his face as the demoness stirred. When it trailed to his neck, he shivered.
~The atmosphere’s dampened with shadow magic. Let’s play, Limere. Take the mage along and show him a good time.~
“You stirred the sleeping bitch, Sis,” Limere muttered in a scornful tone. “Thanks. I was relishing the quiet from my eternal hell.”
“Sanderson’s furious. He’s dispatching agents for clean-up duty. Eleven bodies and four cars submerged in Deer Creek, so our body count might rise. Neuro cussed me out for my side trip, claiming a dealer never changes. Travis puked himself hoarse, insisting he observed their last moments before dying.”
Jesus, that’s cruel… but believable with this sinister power.
Limere waved Aviere close as she covered her mouth and breathed through her nose. When she didn’t move, he drew her into a hug, cursing the center console for blocking their way. He gazed at her glassy eyes and her quivering lips, running a hand through her stringy brunette hair.
“Aviere, we’re close to a resolution. Even if Sanderson has feds and men lining his pocket, we have influence in the Underground. We know who is responsible for all our problems. So, we have to go after them.”
“How could we be so careless?” Fear lanced the intelligent woman’s voice. “For once, I can’t fault anybody else but myself.”
“No, the fault lies with me. If Chelsea didn’t know…”
“If I hadn’t confided in you, we wouldn’t be here!” she blurted out, thrusting both hands against his chest. “You knew it was against the rules to sell drugs, but we allowed it for the business. We had reasons. We treated people by homemaking medicines, and I went to school for it, so that’s how I got around the rules. You poisoned them and showed no remorse until you got caught. I covered for you until I lost everything.”
“I didn’t do this!” he protested, flinching at the accusation.
“How many innocents did you kill selling narcotics, Limere?”
“My God, you’re accusing me of mass murder, Sis!”
“These racers didn’t do drugs, you son of a bitch! You had access to them before I arrived!”
Limere plucked the long earpiece from Aviere’s ear and hissed into it, swiping his hand aside when she lunged for it.
“Give that back!”
“You’ll pay attention to some empty suits over your own flesh and blood.” Darkness crept into Limere’s eyes. “The minute I changed to protect you, you became like them. You’re so judgmental of humans, it’s nauseating. Not all of us plague humankind. But then, I forget, I saved one out of necessity.”
The mage reached for Aviere again, only to collide with her fist against his cheek, replaced by torn flesh and trickling blood seconds later.
“Jesus Christ, she was silent, Sis! Why did you wake her up?”
“You’re fortunate that I sensed the difference, Lim. I’m sorry about Summer. I wish I had comforting words, but I’m pissed. No one should protect someone out of obligation. You’re not like Jemina, who gloats every chance she gets.”
Melancholy replaced the momentary hatred in his eyes before he peered at the blood dripping on Aviere’s blue jeans. “I don’t.”
“How can I tell the difference? For all I know, you pushed shit to—”
Limere held his breath before slamming his hands on his sister’s shoulders, jolting her back and forth. “You stupid bitch! I’ve stayed clean and stopped selling to people! Honest to God, sometimes I think you need your head examined because I wouldn’t screw up parole again! I’m not like you!”
He ignored the sinking claws in his forearm as he stopped shaking her. Whispered voices distracted him, adding to his pounding heartbeat. He bared his square human teeth and delivered a human hiss, triggering the need for another Coke.
“You think Gunther will return if you show your ass, Aviere? Think about this a second.”
“I’m not who I used to be, Lim.”
“Oh, I’m aware. You’re not suppressing your suspicions anymore… or your distrust.” His arm tingled before he slouched in the driver’s seat, resting his hands on his thighs. “Sometimes, I wonder if you even love me.”
“I do, you idiot,” she whispered. “I do. It hurts, watching everything fall apart. You’re losing everyone close. Soon, you’ll be gone too. Everyone will if I’m not careful.”
Limere used his tingling left arm to reach for her once again, but she faced away from him. Her slouched shoulders and sniffles wracked his frazzled nerves. He’d anticipated her unconscious tic, but blinked in surprise when the peridot’s light reflected from Aviere’s driver’s side window.
I’ve never noticed the peridot give off energy before, yet Sis is distracted. Damn it, focus. Stop paying attention to bullshit and calm her down.
“I didn’t choose to meet with Sanderson or his associates. Peters and Travis aren’t enough of a threat to worry. In fact, I’m protecting them from other Renegades offing their stupid asses. Peters pops his mouth at every opportunity, so someone will ice him first.”
“Yeah, I don’t doubt it.”
“Armandi… I’m not positive about him. He knew Ma, but he’s taking advantage of me, like everyone else. I didn’t ask for tonight to go crazy. Armandi’s tired of screw-ups, even if they’re not my responsibility. Never mind that Armandi ordered me to investigate the goddamn cartel pushing narcotics through his territory.”
“Yeah,” Limere answered again. “I get the idea.”
“Tonight got fucked.”
Limere nodded. “Yes, it did.”
“I don’t have enough Armor-All to cover up the stench of vomit.”
He grinned as Aviere faced him with a sober expression. “I’ll pay to have it detailed.”
“Money’s not the issue. I’m driving with the window down!”
“Yeah, and?”
“If it rains, it will ruin Jet’s interior. Leather’s expensive, man.”
The lack of inner commentary from the demoness surprised Limere as he took notice of his sister’s soprano voice prattle on about her beloved vehicle. Her complaints quieted his reservations, despite her blow-up a moment before.
Lulled by her voice, Limere brushed his fingers against Aviere’s ear as he secured the earpiece inside.
“You still don’t hold me responsible, do you?”
“Part of me will always question you, since you’ve lied on countless occasions over the years. It’s a change to work with you, not accuse—Neuro, I didn’t ask for your goddamn opinion!”
Limere parted his lips to speak but rubbed his neck instead while studying Aviere’s stormy expression. The approach and tone she used mirrored the commanding presence she had when she ordered her men. Her posture was similar as she crossed her leg and drummed her fingers along the car door.
“I assume you’re finished scoping the addresses of pharmaceutical companies I’m scouting tomorrow… good. Then get to work and stop logging into Knights of Cornivea. You’re finishing the database and sending forensics to collect Summer Watson at the Port of Baltimore. She’s inside one of the freight ships in a makeshift laboratory.”
You have grown, Sis. It’s more than ordering them—it’s training them for performance and efficiency. With time, they will become stronger than empty suits, even the neurotic one. I’m surprised he knows how to shoot, but there’s a first time for everything.
“Aviere, there’s stuff Summer left inside the safe house. Darren mentioned it.”
“Tell the forensic team to only retrieve her body. If I find anything disturbed when I visit tomorrow morning, I’m holding you responsible.”
As Aviere’s voice softened at the end of her warning, Limere probed at his sister, slapping his thigh when he met the mental block inside her head. He waited for a condescending apology but blinked at her melancholy stare. A hand clasped her shoulder as she lay her head against the crook of his neck.
“
Christ, stop arguing with me, Peters. My brother lost his goddamn friend, and she is missing her right hand. We’re not profiling a random killer. It’s a message to me. We owe Aquarius, considering she did me a favor by turning into an experiment and lived through it. The infection never killed her.”
A cold arm slid around his abdomen, squeezing every few seconds.
“Limere, Neuro’s got some nerve. These idiots want to lift fingerprints from her remains. Didn’t they train them about assassins that clean fingerprints from their casualties, or that the victims do it themselves during injuries? Blood is the number one culprit.”
Limere groaned, using his half-numbed hand to cover up his face. “Sis, you’re incriminating yourself again.”
“I’m running a unit. They need to be educated. Being ignorant is one thing; stupidity is another.”
Her arm pulled tighter against Limere’s queasy stomach as he draped his good arm around her shoulder. Within seconds, he recognized Aviere’s warning growl.
“We’re investigating paranormal activity. It will not appear in placement photographs, you mook. If someone is attacking me, I’m not stopping to take a picture on my goddamn iPhone. If you want photographic evidence, quit hiding behind your laptop and come out with us. Sanderson’s not stopping you from working with the big, bad shifter bitch.”
Limere disengaged from Aviere and peered through the darkened windshield, fixating on the bright lights instead of the hushed conversation beside him. For the most part, he ignored her, musing over the deeds his family had accomplished in their short life span. As he pondered, Limere thought of Aviere’s previous demeanor, compared to the authoritative aura she carried now. Once mousy and demure, she’d transformed like a half budded rose—close to blossoming, but wavering, as if skeptical of her true identity.
~You better hope she’s able to accept the truth. She doesn’t have time to hesitate or question her actions.~
Darkened eyes glazed as he drifted through pleasant nostalgia. He licked his lips at the demoness’s last sentence and his breathing slowed down, imagining the sensations she murmured. An eerie calm passed through him before glaring at Aviere’s bewildered expression.
Before he spoke, a fluctuating energy spike caught Limere’s attention inside Aviere’s vehicle.
Platinum light and darkness warped into a contorted mass around her partner’s body, enveloping him like a shield. Tendrils of shadows intertwined with those of light, struggling to preserve each element. When Limere probed deeper, he drew back, recoiling from the intense emotions lying underneath the surface.
Even the demoness gasped before giggling in delight.
~Delicious, boy. Torment is a delightful dinner course. The sunglasses hide his anguish, but not the undeniable body language. See his pained chest… his withheld breaths. It’s merely a matter of time, now.~
“Aviere, stop arguing with your human and hurry. Agent man’s like a ticking time-bomb… waiting to implode with dangerous amounts of power.”
The conversation ceased the moment Limere’s remarks reached Aviere’s ears. “Got it. Thanks, Lim.”
He threw open the car door and stepped outside, shivering at the drastic temperature change. Leaves plucked from the trees as the blustering wind kissed them, scattering them across the ground. His companion’s sultry humming entertained him, but he stopped paying attention after spotting Aviere’s glowing partner.
Even in monochrome, light and darkness were easy to recognize.
“They’re close, Dalara,” Travis warned, voice ragged and his eyes radiating a tormented hazel, exhaustion emanating from them. “Several of Sanderson’s agents just met their death. There’s only two units that escaped, but Vasquez is one tough broad. She’s sprinting like the dickens, though. Mye, come with me—no time to drive.”
Limere reached for Aviere as Travis’s shadowy tendril encircled her waist and yanked her close. Right after her exclamation, dark specks shattered around the agent as they vanished from view. From behind him, footsteps clomped against the asphalt, followed by heavy breathing.
Travis, you should have listened to her. Vertigo will knock her down, and you’ll get reamed for leaving Jet unsupervised.
“The desperado made a mistake,” Maurice mused. “He’s got a death wish, abscondin’ with baby girl and leavin’ her Ferrari.”
“Reese, take Karyn home. We don’t need her involved in our family drama.” Limere gripped his shoulder. “The last thing I need—”
“We got separated. She got high-strun’ and bolted after hearin’ somethin’ a mile down.”
Clammy fingers gripped his aching shoulder harder. “So you left her.”
“I needed help. Figured bein’ the next victim on that demonic psycho’s list wasn’t a good thing. Besides, they got a bunch of people fightin’ it. Jem’s tryin’ to beat the demonic guy with a freakin’ tree. I steer clear when she’s involved in anythin’.”
The words ripped through Limere as his inner voice grew, admonishing him about his part in Aquarius’s demise. Memories of his childhood friend plagued him—various times he escorted her to dances, the times they hung out and worked on school projects together—even the unfortunate accident of working together in the cartel, where she became his biggest source of support. Even through their arguments and disagreements about Aviere, they continued on, each holding themselves liable for his misfortune and depression.
Nevertheless, he remembered her small smile, her natural bright golden-blonde hair before dying it and her sincerity, despite abandoning her to fix his personal life.
Summer… Celene… Aviere’s right. I can’t give up yet, not as other players develop and grow. It’s an injustice to roll over, especially when my family believes in me. No matter what, I cannot let them down again.
~Stop blubbering and concentrate on the mage. He’s your top priority.~
Limere straightened his stance and dropped his hand before whirling around to face Maurice. Color returned to his eyes as he examined the area, finding the spot Maurice mentioned. He made a stiff beckoning motion, marched to Aviere’s Ferrari, and squinted at the dried blood staining the cerulean paint job.
After swallowing a thick lump, Limere sat inside, blanching at the foul stench permeating the vehicle.
When the passenger door opened, Maurice gagged. “Lim, drive your car. Jet’s—”
“The mage watched some of them die. I can’t blame him if he’s seeing their last moments. Happened before, too.” Limere turned the engine, fastened the seatbelt, and pointed to her purse resting on the back seat. “Besides, Sis needs the car. Her anxiety’s through the roof, and all her stuff is here. I’m not leaving her defenseless if agent man goes bonkers.”
“Good point. Before everythin’ goes to shit, promise me somethin’.”
“What?”
“Make that blasted mage worth somethin’, other than some desperado playin’ assassin. Give me some confidence to believe you’re doin’ the right thing. I’ll pick up the pieces, but I’m not addin’ anythin’ to this clusterfuck. Finish this… for us, okay?”
Instead of answering Maurice’s plea, Limere headed down the hill, using the tips of his toes as he pressed against the accelerator. The small cramp from his discomfort seemed insignificant compared to his rising heart rate and increased anxiety. His mind operated on autopilot as he controlled Jet, but his inner voice scolded him as the perverse energy grew thicker.
They took Mom from us. I can’t let them take Reese and Sis, too.
Despite the mantra Limere chanted, the temptress’s laughter pierced through, intensifying his self-doubt while racing down the winding road.
Chapter Thirteen
Shadow magic crackled around them before shattering like glass as Travis appeared several miles away from the parked cars at the peak of Kilgore Falls, holding the Poisoner close as he stepped through the portal.
He echoed her tiny gasp as his powers morphed into an ungodly force only spoken of in legends and fa
iry tales. Travis mouthed out words, teetering between prayers and swearing in the same breath. His body trembled from its efforts while his mind struggled to grasp his newfound reality.
I’m one step away from becoming one of them. How long—
~Not necessarily true, Keith,~ Lyssa said as her voice lifted in bemusement. ~You have me… and Mye.~
You’re the one who said—
~This isn’t about jealousy. Look where your hands are resting, dear.~
The agent’s face flushed when he understood what Lyssa meant and he adjusted his grip to Aviere’s arms only as reality returned from his voidsent world.
~If she wasn’t dizzy, she’d smack you for touching her in inappropriate places. Always remember… you’re a gentleman when you’re not “saving the world”.~
That’s all I ever do these days, sweetheart. I never thought of myself as a hero.
As she wriggled from his grip, Travis directed his energy toward her, startled when a platinum thread wrapped around her wrist. He raised an eyebrow as he retracted the energy before scouting the area. Retching sounds came from Aviere’s direction and Travis sighed when she dived for cover behind some shrubbery.
One loud groan signaled the end of her self-control.
When her knees struck the dirt, Travis shook his head before rubbing the tense muscle over his right shoulder.
Never count on Mye for stealth missions after teleportation. I’m surprised she didn’t use those nifty pills for combating vertigo. Doesn’t she need them for driving, or are they for teleporting only?
To his right side, the wind shrilled while leaves were ripped from the trees, scattering across the ground. Travis turned his head, keeping Aviere’s retching in mind as he drew the Desert Eagle from his holster. He tiptoed toward the source of spiking energy, then blinked at several gray auras near the twisted demonic force standing in the middle of the road.
A giant tree sailed toward the graphite-tinted creature, succeeded by Spanish curses seconds afterward.
Drift: The Renegades Saga: Book Two Page 22
