The shifters all dashed, and Riley and I did, too.
By the time we got back to the bar, Quinn was ready to try another spell. Hours later, when I finally got into bed, I fell asleep before my head even hit the pillow.
The next day I felt hungover, but it wasn’t from drinking, it was from using my magic. And perhaps from spending an exorbitant amount of time at the library. My mood wasn’t improved by sitting and listening to a morose angel. Plus, it rained buckets outside. It was an altogether shitty morning.
“I can’t believe none of the spells worked,” Eli said for the millionth time, slumped over at the bar. “And I can’t do anything to help. It’s infuriating.”
“Yeah, well so is your whining,” I snapped.
He shot me a sour look. “That’s not helpful.”
“Sorry, but it’s true. We’re at a dead end. It sucks. Everyone knows it sucks.”
“I don’t want to give up. We can’t.”
“No one said we’re giving up. We just need to regroup and come up with another plan.” Though I had no idea what that plan would be. I was fresh out of ideas. Despite my words, I could hear the hopelessness in my own voice.
Donovan, who sat to my right, said, “If anyone can do it, it’s you, Zy.”
I groaned. In the mood I was in, even D’s attempt at a supportive comment irritated me.
Riley and Quinn came downstairs with Scorch. “How’s everything going?” Quinn asked, eyebrows raised at the tension riding high in the room.
“We’re trying to figure out what we’re going to do,” I said. “We’ve been on the case for days, and we’re no closer to a solution than we were when we started. Plus, we’re fresh out of leads. Any leads whatsoever.”
Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Scorch might’ve been on to something when he said the NHTF or angelic forces paid Ambriel to go into hiding. I hadn’t wanted to mention it to Eli, because I knew he’d pop a gasket. But at this point, I had no other options.
Eli put his face in his hands. “Things really couldn’t get any worse.”
“Actually, there’s something else,” I said. “But you’re not going to like it.”
He looked up at me, his lavender eyes several shades darker as they always were when he was upset.
At that moment, the front door blasted inwards. We spun around as a battalion of angelic warriors flooded the room. The angels streamed through the door in military formation, followed closely by a team of NHTF agents. Shouts rang across the room as Gus and the other shifters sprang to their feet. Those closest to the door were quickly disabled and placed in cuffs, and the wave of warriors moved efficiently toward us.
“What’s going on here?” Eli yelled. He stepped in front of us, wings flared out, his face a beautiful and terrible storm rivaling the one that raged outside.
“Step aside, Commander Whitesong,” one of the angels said. “This is an authorized raid.”
Eli’s face darkened, if that was possible. “On whose authority?”
The angel before him paled and opened his mouth to stammer a response, but a voice boomed out from behind them.
“My authority.”
Another angel stepped through the door into the bar. Lightning flashed dramatically behind him, and water streamed from his jet-black hair. He wore head-to-toe body armor wrought from gleaming silver and carried a helmet under his arm. Even his hands were covered in gauntlets. His skin was the color of dark cinnamon and his eyes a gold-green like a panther. And his wings—his wings I couldn’t stop staring at. They weren’t one color, but many; feathers of bronze and silver and pewter and moss green. They sung of death and victory.
Eli’s voice trembled and he bowed on one knee. “Michael.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
So this was Archangel Michael. Well, he may be Eli’s superior, but he sure as hell wasn’t mine. “Might I asked why a raid is being conducted on this bar?”
Those brilliant eyes turned to look at me. “Zyan Star, I presume. You may certainly ask all the questions you like, but the angelic forces do not answer to civilians.”
“I am currently working a case for the angelic forces, or weren’t you informed?” I crossed my arms over my chest and met his burning gaze with one of my own. Eli flinched.
“The HR in Seattle may choose to bring… beings of your nature into his employ. But I do not.” Michael bit off each word as if they were poisoned. “Consider yourself off the case.” Michael nodded to the angels closest to him and they flanked me. I noticed Commander Hunter had joined the group of NHTF at the back of the bar.
“Are you taking me into custody?” I growled.
Michael spun on his heel and stalked back out into the night, not bothering to answer or even look at me as he did so. The angels moved toward me warily, as if I were a loose tiger at the zoo.
“Go quietly, Zy,” Eli said, his jaw clenched. “We’ll get this straightened out later.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not dumb.” I stepped forward and held my wrists out. “I actually like getting cuffed now and again. Usually I’m the one doing the cuffing.” I winked and blew a kiss at the closest angel, and he blushed.
Donovan chuckled and followed suit. Riley and Quinn did as well.
Eli put a hand on my shoulder. “I’m right behind you. Don’t worry.”
That’s when Scorch started glowing like a solar flare.
I could hear his panicked breathing to my right. “Scorch, it’ll be okay,” Quinn said in a soothing tone.
But he was already just about gone. His eyes burning orbs, skin sizzling, lines of red criss-crossing his limbs like a molten rock about to explode. Flames burned from the tips of his fingers.
The angels looked aghast, and in their moment of indecision, Scorch bolted out the back, a flash of crimson and gold.
Shouts rang out and a few angels tore after him, but we were led in the opposite direction, none too gently. As I was shoved through the room, I heard Eli say, “Marissa! What are you—wait, did you know about this?”
I missed her response as I was led through the rain and put into the back of a waiting truck, packed in amongst the other cuffed shifters. Yeah, Little Miss Stick-up-her-ass had some serious explaining to do this time. I wished I could hear her trying to sweet talk her away out of this one.
The truck engine rumbled and we pulled away from the curb. “Well, what a fun night this is,” I said, wringing freezing rainwater out of the tips of my hair.
“Why do you think they’re taking us all in?” Donovan asked. “I mean, what semi-legitimate excuse could they have?”
I shrugged. “Hell if I know. They’ll make something up to pin on us.” I turned to Gus. “Sorry about this. Didn’t mean to drag you into a big mess.”
Gus frowned. “This has been a long time coming. It doesn’t have much to do with you.”
I wondered if the HR in Seattle knew about any of this. Was he the only one of the twelve HRs in the world open-minded about supes? I hated to think what that meant about his career tenure if so. I didn’t know whether it would be any better if more HRs sided with him, because that just meant the whole system was divided. Things were really turning into a mess.
“I hope Scorch got away,” Riley said, breaking into my thoughts.
Quinn nodded in agreement. She looked like she was going to cry or kill someone, or both.
We rode in silence for a while, the trucks lurching up and down the streets of Dublin. Finally we came to a stop, and after a lengthy wait, the back of the truck opened and we were all escorted through an underground garage into the stark NHTF headquarters.
Unsurprisingly, they took us to separate rooms. Then the real waiting began. Or, what they intended to be the real waiting, to make us on edge and everything. To hell with that. I was still tired from the day before, so I kicked my feet up on the flimsy metal table in the middle of the room, leaned back in my chair, and went to sleep. I made sure to snore a bit just to be annoying to whoever watched me on the little
video cam in the corner.
Several hours later the door finally opened and Commander Hunter came in. I should have known it would be her. I let out a big yawn and stretched. “You’re interrupting my beauty sleep.”
She kept a neutral expression. “I have a few questions for you, Ms. Star.”
“Actually it’s Special Agent Star.” She opened her mouth, but I cut her off. “Oh, and I don’t care if Michael thinks he can yank my title. I like it, so I’m keeping it. For my bounty hunting business.”
Hunter ignored me and set a recording device down on the table between us.
“Though of course, you can call me Zyan. Eli does.” I smiled sweetly.
She tensed momentarily before sitting in the chair opposite me. Her pretty doe eyes met mine. “Please recount your business in Dublin since you arrived.”
“What did you tell Eli about the raid tonight? You know, since you knew about it and didn’t give him a heads up. Like the other night at Loch of the Irish when you followed me.”
Hunter stared stonily at me. “Answer the question, Ms. Star.” She enunciated the Ms.
“He was mad wasn’t he?” I grinned. “Really mad. No one gets mad quite like Eli.”
“I can come back in a couple days if you prefer,” she asked, making as if to stand.
“I doubt your superiors would be happy if you gave up my interrogation after less than a minute. Doesn’t show much command over the situation.”
We stared each other down for several moments. “Zyan, answer the question.”
“Gladly.” I laced my fingers behind my head. “We arrived at Gus’s bar. I got a bit drunk. Some shifters got in a fight outside. Then Eli got really drunk—he’s a real lightweight, by the way. Then my boyfriend and I had sex. Twice. Then—”
“As it pertains to Ambriel. You can leave out the personal bits.” She wiggled her fingers at the last two words.
I went over the details of the last few days, leaving out the parts about Pan and Scorch. When I got to the part about finding Anna, Hunter tensed. “Repeat that last part?”
“Yeah. My sister. A known associate of Lucifer. Not sure what she’s up to. But I plan to find out.” I sighed.
“We’ll be assigning someone else to investigate that. You’re no longer on the case.”
I rolled my eyes. “You apparently missed the “family” part. It’s not a case you can take me off. I’m kinda stuck with it.”
Hunter ground her teeth together. “You will not be permitted to interfere with the investigation of a known criminal.”
I laughed. “You guys are so territorial.”
She stood. “This is serious. You’re lucky you’re not all being thrown in prison.”
“For what? None of us have done anything even remotely illegal.”
“You’ve done plenty of illegal things over the years. The others have, too. The government has been lenient with supernaturals until now, but not anymore.” She placed her palms on the table and leaned toward me. “Consider this a final warning.”
I felt a flash of rage and my demon mark pulsed hot against my skin. I rose out of my chair in a blur of speed, and it flipped over behind me. She had enough balls not to flinch, though her eyes widened. “Is this lovely interrogation over, then?”
“One more thing. Eli won’t be working with you anymore. The HR has reconsidered his alliance with you. Things will be strictly in-house from now on.” She smirked a little as she said it.
“Is that so? I’d love to hear what Eli has to say about that.”
Hunter reached forward and clicked off the recording device. Her eyes burned into mine. “Anything you have—anything you think you have—is merely a passing flirtation. An angel could never be with something like you. The forces of Heaven wouldn’t allow it.”
Her words hit me almost physically, an icy fist to the stomach, but I forced a smile onto my lips. “Poor Hunter’s afraid she can’t keep her man. Must be a terrible feeling. I wouldn’t know.” She looked as if she was going to punch me, and I really wished she would. “You’re a pretty girl, but insecurity has a way of leaching the attractiveness right out of someone.”
Hunter’s fingers flexed and her nostrils flared, but she simply spun on her heels and exited the room, letting the door slam shut behind her.
I should have known since I taunted her that I’d be sitting in here for a very long time. Not that it would have changed what I said at all. My stubborn streak ran wider than the Nile and I was okay with that. I kicked my feet back up on the table and pretended to sleep again, but my mind raced. Hunter had said we were lucky we weren’t getting thrown into prison, but what were they going to do with us? And where was Eli?
After a couple hours I started to get antsy. I considered jumping through the interdimensional pathways, but surely they had security to block that sort of thing. Plus, I didn’t know if the others were still being held. If so, that might make things go badly for them, which was a risk I wasn’t willing to take. It would also put me at the very top of an international criminals list, and as glamorous as that sounded (really, epically badass), it would also be a gigantic cramp in my style. I’d have to give up Noir and that place was my home. I wasn’t quite ready to part ways with her yet.
Five hours later I was beginning to think they’d decided to keep me prisoner. Really, it would be a smart move on their part. They knew I wasn’t going to stay out of the way. I’d go after Anna like I told Hunter I would. Not to mention they probably had info on my demon mark, and knew I had a potential link to Lucifer. I was really bad news bears from the perspective of the good ole gov, and the angels, too. Well, if I was going to stay, I’d really have to work on redecorating this room…
The door swung open.
Eli stood there, flanked by an angel and an NHTF agent. Our eyes met and he looked at me unblinkingly, impassively. “Ms. Star, you’re free to go. We’ll escort you from the building.”
I stood and walked across the room to them. Eli took me firmly by the arm and led me down the hall, the other two right on our heels. We twisted and turned through the labyrinthine passages until we arrived at a door. The other angel stepped forward and punched in a long code, and the metal door opened onto a dark alley. Eli stepped me through the door out into the night.
He didn’t look at me as he spoke. “As you were previously notified, you are no longer a special agent of the HR. The forces of Heaven do hereby sever all ties with you. You will not pursue any further investigation into the missing angel Ambriel or the whereabouts of Anna McClellan or Alexander Roman.”
I trembled in rage at the audacity of it all, even though I’d heard it only hours before. My mark began to glow again, which wasn’t missed by Eli. He quickly unlocked my cuffs and I wrapped one arm over the other so the others wouldn’t notice.
“Further, it is strongly suggested that you leave Dublin immediately. Your actions will be monitored and any deemed dangerous to society will lead to your imprisonment.” He met my eyes finally. Whereas mine burned, his pleaded.
“Donovan and the others?”
“Released a few hours ago.”
I nodded. “I hope you find Ambriel.”
“Thank you.”
The angel behind us cleared her throat loudly. Eli stood up straight, his posture rigid as a mountain, like that first night we’d met. He gave me a weird salute, which must have been some angel thing, the muscles in his jaw rolling. Then he pivoted and went back into the building, leaving me standing in the alley alone.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I blinked, then sped through the night in a blur of speed that rivaled any vampire. I wouldn’t put it past those assholes to try and capture me again just for breathing, so I wanted to put as much space between us as possible. Well, outside of leaving the city. That sure as hell wasn’t happening. I could’ve laughed at the irony. Two days ago I was dying to get out of here. Now that someone told me I wasn’t welcome anymore? Well, they could go fuck themselves.
; A few miles later, I stopped into an elven coffee shop and called Quinn.
“Zy, where are you?!”
“The Fat Fox down on Earlsfort. We’ll talk when you get here.”
An overly-caffeinated perky blonde elf stopped to take my order. “I could really use a few shots of liquor right now, but if coffee’s all you have, what’s my best bet?”
She nodded, gazing at me with huge rosebud-colored eyes. “I have a blend from the Azoles that’ll really knock your socks off. The coffee beans are farmed by the Kelpies there, roasted by phoenix flame, and brewed with special toadstools.” She winked at me on this last part.
“Sounds stellar. Let’s do it.”
She grinned and skipped off to make my drink.
Sooner than I would have thought, my entourage arrived. Including the kid, meaning they must have found him. Quinn and Riley took turns hugging me, Donovan adding a kiss that made me ten degrees warmer. Scorch just gave me a sharp nod, jerking his Mohawk skyward.
“Why’d they keep you so much longer than the rest of us?” Riley asked.
“Did you find anything out?” Quinn added.
“I’m Zyan Star,” I scoffed, answering Riley’s question. “As for what I know: Michael is a giant douchebag, I’m no longer a special agent of the HR, I’m not supposed to see Eli again, and I’m not “allowed”—” I made air quotes above the table “—to look into the whereabouts of my sister and Alexander.”
“I’m sure you were given the final warning line, too,” Donovan said.
“Oh yeah, forgot that part. And it’s strongly recommended I leave Dublin at once.” I rolled my eyes. “They are now monitoring my activity to make sure I behave.”
“I can take care of at least part of that,” Quinn said. “I’ve already placed spells on the rest of us that block tracking devices.” She sent a quick pulse of magic at me, which tingled like moth wings against my skin. “You can’t be followed now, or your phone traced,” she said with a smug smile.
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