Born of Shadow (Shadow Walkers Book 1)

by Richard Murray

  “That’s one against and three for it,” Marie said. “Anyone else wish to comment?”

  “You should get her back,” Delilah said in a bored drawl and I blinked in surprise. Hadn’t expected that.

  “It’ll be tough,” Daz agreed. “But what sort of protectors of humanity would we be if we left her to die?”

  “Jo?” Marie asked.

  “Doesn’t make much difference,” she said. “Majority has it. We gear up and go.”

  “Very well,” Marie said. She nodded thoughtfully and her eyes flicked towards Barry for just a moment. I didn’t know why, but it meant something I was sure. “Gather your weapons, we’ll meet up with Jonah and plan our attack.”

  I looked at the array of implements designed specifically to kill. A couple of hand axes, swords and knives were lined up along the edge of the couch. Each with a wickedly sharp edge and all made of silver.

  Next to those were the bolts for the crossbows, compact and modern weapons in black. Lightweight with a powerful punch. Then there were an array of throwing knives and silver guards that would fit over the fingers to ensure every strike against supernatural flesh would bring pain.

  “Where's the guns?” I asked.

  “No guns,” Daz said with a chuckle. “This isn’t the old west.”

  “Yeah, but surely for an attack like this…”

  “Guns are indiscriminate,” Jo said without looking at me. “Fire a load of bullets around and innocent people get hurt. They’re also loud and hard to get in the UK.”

  “Besides,” Patrik added with a chuckle. “It would cost a fortune in silver to make the bullets that you can only use once. A silver blade can be used time and time again.”

  “Enough chatter,” Marie snapped. “Get your weapons and head to the cars.”

  “You can come with us,” Nazia said softly to me and I nodded gratefully before I scooped up a matching pair of daggers that were pretty much identical to the one I’d lost in the hotel. Long slim blade of shining silver, protective cross guard and carved pommel. Though when I looked closely, I realised one was shaped to resemble a wolf's head and the other a bat. Someone’s idea of a joke no doubt.

  “Ready love?” Daz asked his partner. He had a short sword strapped to the side of his torso, the hilt hanging down near his waist. He could reach across and pull it clear easily while being able to hide it beneath the thick bomber jacket he wore. She, in turn, had picked up a thick bladed knife, almost a machete and a brace of throwing knives.

  “What about these… Jurat?” I asked.

  “Traitors to their species,” Daz spat. “They made their bed, they can die in it.”

  “They’ll be outside only,” Nazia said. “Only vamps and their victims will be inside during the party.”

  “I’m not sure I could kill someone on purpose. Not someone human I mean.”

  “We understand,” she replied. “It’s fine. Really. Don’t you worry about the Jurat, we’ll all deal with them.”

  With a deep breath and a final look around at the assembled hunters and Shadowborn, I readied myself for the task ahead. Evie would be alive, I’d rescue her and together we could figure out what was going on between us.

  I followed Nazia and her husband out of the house, stopping only long enough to slide the sheathed daggers onto my belt. They rested comfortably behind my back, the sheaths crossing over each other to make sure I could sit down without impaling myself and in easy reach.

  A battered range rover had been parked just along the street and it was this that they led me to. It looked like a piece of crap that wouldn’t go more than a couple of miles without breaking down, but I suspected that was what they wanted people to think.

  True enough, the engine roared to life on the first turning of the key and I settled in for the journey. Nazia, pulled the car out slowly as Daz fiddled with the radio until he found something vaguely soothing to listen to.

  “Chopin,” he said with a look back over his shoulder at me. “Hope you don’t mind love. It relaxes me.”

  “Not the sort of music I’d have thought you’d go for,” I said and attempted a smile. It was strained and soon gone. He flashed a smile of his own that showed he understood the cause of my nerves.

  “When I was a kid I had to listen to all that neo-nazi crap my mates were into,” he said. “It was loud and ugly, full of hate and rage. I never realised there was music that could calm the fire in my soul.”

  “Oh.”

  “Some of us have it worse,” he continued as he watched the world go by through the windscreen of the car. His partner glanced at him with concern clear on her face and beneath it, sorrow.

  “What do you mean?”

  He ignored my question and fell into a silence that seemed almost meditative as his eyes closed. With another look to him, Nazia answered instead.

  “You Shadowborn. Nearly all of you have it, that impulse to sow chaos. Some have it worse than others and the ones who are aspected with fire, they have it the worst.”

  “Not sure I understand.”

  “The urge to destroy,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “It’s what led him to the hate groups when he was young. Their poison appealed to him. He fed off of the discord they brought, the pain and suffering of others.”

  “It’s the other side of the gifts we get from our fathers,” he said without opening his eyes.

  “Infected with chaos,” I said softly and the corner of his mouth lifted in a half-smile.

  “That’s why so many of our kind end up in prison,” he said with a bitter chuckle. “Restless and angry, a demonic temperament.”

  I didn’t speak again and the two of them seemed inclined to silence themselves. Instead, I settled back in the seat and let the light, graceful sounds of the piano wash over me as I contemplated their words.

  Did I have that same temperament? Peter had suggested I didn’t. That because my father was one of the original demons, I was free of that urge to destroy. I didn’t actually feel any particular urge to hurt others which was probably a good sign, but even so, considering my history it was probably worth keeping an eye on.

  Not that it would matter if everything went tits up when we attempted the rescue. Hell, there was no actual guarantee that the others were interested in saving Evie. They just wanted to kill the vampires and stop the forming of a new family. Whatever that even meant.

  Well, I wasn’t going to kill vampires or stop anything. I was going to save my friend and while the rest of them were doing what they needed to do, that would be my goal. With that decided, I settled in for the drive.

  ****

  We parked up on the side of a road that was bordered on both sides by high walls and plenty of trees. The entire area fairly exuded wealth and privilege. There wasn’t a single home around us that wasn’t ten times the size of my crappy little bedsit that I’d not been back to since the incident at the supermarket.

  The roads were clean and the shallow strips of grass that ran alongside were neat and well-tended. There wasn’t any pavement since it wouldn’t do to have the peasant folk wandering around the neighbourhood making it look untidy.

  Each house had an extensive driveway and manicured garden along with high walls and secure gates. Security cameras were evident around the area and I highly doubted that any of the houses there would sell for less than a million pounds. Likely much more than that.

  Everyone gathered beside Marie’s silver BMW and I saw the man I suspected was Jonah for the first time. He was tall and broad shoulder with the look of a wrestler or a boxer. His rugged face certainly looked like it had taken plenty of hits over the years and his eyes, when they met mine, seemed to spark with fury.

  “House we want is at the end of a private road,” he said in a surprisingly high pitched voice that seemed entirely at odds with his appearance. “It’s set in the centre of an acre of landscaped gardens with wide open lawns around the house.”

&nbs
p; “No cover at all?” Patrik asked and the other man shook his head.

  “A screen of beech trees surround the property, running alongside the wall and are mainly there for privacy. There’s cameras set up amongst those trees and around the house, linked to a security room in a separate building just beside the gate.”

  “From what I’ve observed there’s six Jurat on guard around the property.” He paused to spit after speaking their name before he continued. “I’m not certain, but I think there’s a full-time staff of five to maintain the place. They’ll likely be gone once they’ve finished setting up.”

  “What do you know of the layout?” Daz asked.

  “Found a listing online,” he said and pulled out his phone. He tapped on the screen a few times and then held it out for us to see. “Was for sale about a year ago and they noted it’d been sold but never bothered taking the listing down.”

  “Eight bedrooms, five reception rooms, swimming pool and gym.” Daz let out a low whistle as he read it out to us. “This is gonna be a bitch to sneak up on.”

  “Perhaps,” Marie said with a thoughtful look at me. “What else do you know?”

  “There’s a garage on the western side,” Jonah said as he tapped once more on the screen of his phone and a sketch app opened, revealing the rough plan he’d drawn. “Immediately behind that, inside the building, should be a few smaller rooms and the kitchen.”

  He paused and scratched at his nose as he enlarged the image for us to better see.

  “I think, and I could be wrong. That there’s a utility room, study, and cloakroom. Other side of the kitchen is the main entranceway and beyond that, dining room and largest reception room.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “As sure as I can be from looking through the windows,” he said. “The gym and the swimming pool are on the far eastern side.”

  “Any idea about the second floor?” Marie asked and he shook his head.

  “Bedrooms mainly from what I can guess. There’s a basement too and that’s where I’d bet they’re keeping the girl.”

  “Evie?” I asked and he nodded.

  “Her and a few others.”

  “Others?”

  “Yeah, they’ve brought in a few people today. Could be serving staff for the party but none of them seemed happy to be there and I’m betting they’re the party favours.”

  “Shouldn’t we be off the road if the vamps are going to be arriving?” I asked and Jonah gave me the kind of look usually reserved for the terminally stupid.

  “Fang’s all arrived last night,” he said. “They’ll be waking soon and preparing for their party.”

  “So shouldn’t we attack before it starts?”

  “Need to wait till it starts getting dark,” Patrik answered for him. “In the house, out of the sun, it doesn’t matter if its day or night. All the same, ja? But during day, neighbours see and call police.”

  “Discretion is preferred,” Nazia said with a smile of understanding for me. She at least seemed to grasp that this was all new to me.

  “Suggestions then,” Marie said and looked at each of us in turn.

  “Split up,” Jo said straight away. “Leave the Jurat to Barry and me. Once they’re dealt with we need you and Abe to stay by the front gate to stop anyone getting out.”

  “Fine,” the older woman said. “What about the rest of you.”

  “Cameras won’t matter much once Jonah does his thing, but we’ll need to move fast to clear the security room anyway. After that, we split into two groups. I’ll lead Patrik, Barry, and Jonah through the swimming pool. Nazia, Daz and the new girl can go through the garage.”

  “And do what?” I asked. “How many vampires will be in there? What’s to stop her mind-whammying me like last time?”

  “Embrace your power,” Patrik said. “Less likely to work on you if you’re powered up. If it does start to affect you, fight it.”

  “We go in fighting,” Jo said. “Kill any vampire you find but leave Anahella to me.”

  “Still need to avoid being seen by the guards,” Nazia said with a look to Marie. “Any ideas?”

  “Yes,” the older woman replied as she stared straight at me. “Lena will help with that.”

  Chapter 22

  As the sun dipped below the horizon, I turned to Barry and offered a strained smile that he didn’t return. Just stared back at me with those dead eyes of his and I held back a shiver.

  Marie seemed to think I could do this. Get Barry over the wall, through a screen of trees and across to the security building without being seen by any of the Jurat guards. She’d explained the concept but I really did think she was nuts and it wouldn’t work.

  Of course, it didn’t seem to matter whether I thought it would work or not. Marie had given the instruction that I had to do it and the others had apparently never questioned her orders. My protests had fallen on deaf ears as Barry led me around to the back wall.

  Barry pulled a serrated, black carbon steel combat knife from the sheath beneath his left arm and looked at me expectantly. I held back a sigh as I reached for my power, only to have it slip away, refusing to be caught.

  Fear was keeping my anger at bay and without that anger, that fury that was needed to use my power, I was stuck. Unable to do anything but feel the heat colouring my cheeks as my companion stared at me impatiently.

  “Your friend,” he said in a voice that sounded like he was chewing rocks. “Will probably be dead soon.”

  “What?”

  “Before that though,” he continued, a slight smile playing across his lips. “They will take her and use her. They might leave her mind free, but more likely they’ll make her beg for every degradation before they finally feed on her life-blood.”

  “Shut up!”

  “Vampires are soulless creatures.” His eyes seemed to be fixed on mine as he shoved each word home. “They enjoy hurting others. Watching them squirm and scream as they do all those things that humans want to do but are afraid of unleashing.”

  Without really thinking about it, I thrust out my arm and he was knocked backward against the wall, held there by the roiling shadow tendrils that extended from my hand. I blinked in surprise and he grunted.

  “You’re angry now it seems.”

  “Bastard,” I spat and he nodded.

  “I am,” he agreed though there was strain in his voice and his breathing was shallow as he fought to expand his lungs while pressed back against the wall. “But you needed it.”

  At a silent command, the shadow tendrils flowed back towards me, joining and darkening the mist that surrounded me, flowing over my skin like water. It seemed that I had a finite amount of shadow under my control and it rested comfortably over me until I used it.

  Without speaking, I held out my hand and he grasped it in his. As I concentrated, the shadows that covered me thinned out, spreading outwards over his hand and along his arm. His eyes widened slightly and he turned his head away as the shadows swept over his body and up his neck. It was my turn to smile mirthlessly as his breath quickened when the shadows crept slowly over his face.

  Fully embraced by the shadows, the world around me dimmed. It appeared as though everything was in twilight. Shadow covered everything and where there should be shadows, was a darkness deeper than anything I’d seen before.

  It was towards the nearest patch of darkness that I moved, holding fast to Barry’s hand as he was pulled along in my wake. I paused before it and pictured in my mind the security building as I’d seen it in the photos Jonah had taken as he’d observed the place.

  Much smaller than the main house, it was tucked away behind a screen of bushes beside the main gate of wrought iron. A single door was set into the brick wall on the western side and deep shadows were cast behind it. Those shadows were what I focused on as I stepped forward into the darkness beside the wall.

  There was an absence of light. Not just darkness, but an absolute lack o
f light as though it had never shone in that place. Silence surrounded us as the sounds of the world faded after the first step.

  On the second step, I was aware of something moving around us, something vast. On the third step, the world came back into view as we left the deep darkness cast by the security building and I released my hold on Barry’s hand, the shadows retreating from him and back to myself.

  He stared at me wide eyed and I managed a smile before I fell to my knees clutching my stomach, pain shooting through me. It was pain unlike anything I’d felt before, like tiny slivers of lightning flashing through my body.

  My shadowed veil fled, dissipating as it retreated back to wherever it went when I didn’t need it and I spat a splash of crimson blood onto the manicured lawn.

  “Here,” Barry said and handed me an energy bar that he pulled from his pocket. “You need food, fuel for your body.”

  “Damn!” I whispered back as I hugged myself, body shaking. “Hurts!”

  “I saw Jonah like this once,” he said as he tore open the wrapper and held the bar before me. I reached up to take it and bit a large chunk from it. “He’d used too much of his power and it ripped him up inside.”

  “Didn’t expect this,” I muttered as I swallowed the first bite and took a second.

  “You just did something… well, it must have taken a lot of power.” He shook his head as he pulled another bar from his pocket and passed it over. “Wait here.”

  He disappeared around the corner of the building as I finished the first bar and tore open the wrapping of the second. I was beyond hungry. It felt like I’d not eaten for a week.

  I’d finished the second bar and was pushing myself slowly to my feet as Barry returned, his knife wet with blood and a grim smile on his face.

  “Eaten them both?” he asked and I nodded as I hoped my legs would hold me upright if I let go of the wall. “Good. You just did something incredible and if you try it again it’ll probably kill you.”

  “Kill me?”

  “Yeah. You just used a lot of energy. Your body can only do so much. Give yourself a week or more rest and you can try it again. Until you’ve had a night’s sleep and a good meal, I wouldn’t even try to use your powers.”