“I must count as a blood relative. It might’ve been reacting to the demon magic, if it’s similar. I... His...”
My eyes narrowed. “Spit it out.”
She sighed. “I was in contact with his ex-girlfriend, Calliope Young?”
They hadn’t dated in more than two years, from what I could recall, but he’d been fiercely in love with her. I nodded. “I know Callie.”
“I talked to her last week—she thought I might be able to get through the warding at his apartment and suggested I try. She was worried too, she was the one who said he was trying to find a way to get rid of the Aanzhenii.”
“So that wasn’t bullshit?” When it had turned out Melinoë was lying about knowing him, I’d assumed that wasn’t true as well as it seemed particularly stupid even for my brother.
She shrugged. “Might be, but that’s what she told me. She didn’t mention St. Philip Point, though, and now I’m wondering if she told him someone was looking for him and that’s why he left the motel in a hurry, the timeline fits. Now I can’t find her—she’s been missing since the day after I talked to her.”
This was all getting weirder and weirder. Callie hadn’t been one of the people who replied to my texts about Dev—I figured it had ended badly and she was ignoring me. And there was the girl with him when he fled from the room—could it have been Callie? I wasn’t sure but it seemed to fit the timeline. I didn’t even necessarily believe Melinoë now, but...
“I can help you—”
I raised my hand. “Seriously, fuck off. Your problems aren’t my problems. I was nearly killed a couple of times because of you.”
“I’m sorry—”
“I don’t fucking care if you’re sorry or not. You lied. You used me. I have nothing more to say to you.”
She hung there a beat longer and then dropped her gaze and headed for the door, shoulders turned inward. Woe is her, so dejected, blah blah.
“You know, actually...”
Melinoë glanced back at me, an unmistakable look of hope in her eyes.
“Give me Dev’s phone.”
Her lips parted as she stared at me, then she swallowed and glanced away, fumbling to pull the phone from her jacket. She tossed it to me and turned away as I caught it. This time I didn’t stop her again.
The door closed behind her and I flinched at the sound, a low bitter ache deep in my chest.
Get back in the game. Dev is still missing. The cops were closing in. If they question Joy or Yamila, one of them might crack.
At least Ashur was out of the picture now—or at least I could pretend Ashur was out of the picture. It would never be that easy with one of those creatures.
Instead I picked up my new phone and dialled home again, figuring Dad might be sleeping or—
“El,” he said after three rings in. “Any news on Dev?”
I hated the tinge of hope in his voice—and that I would have to dash it. Dad had been through so much, he needed a win. That I couldn’t offer.
“Dead ends,” I said.
“Is Melinoë still helping?”
I was silent for a moment. I didn’t want to get into it—he’d never say he told me so, but the hurt was still bright and fresh. “No. We parted ways.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I just...you were right, I shouldn’t’ve trusted her.”
“I...” He went quiet himself then, and sighed deeply. “I misspoke. I should not have—”
“It’s okay, Dad—”
“No, it’s not. Her mother...there is no love lost between any of us and Persephone, and the things she did were horrendous. But she’s why you exist.”
Understanding bloomed then. They never talked about before, not really. Not about when there were more than a handful of vampires in the world—when Mom was one, before a virus ripped through and changed everything.
“She’s why you lost Mom, then,” I filled in, and my eyes snapped shut, a deep ache and sob rising silently in my chest, filled with the anguish of a childhood cut short when I lost my mother.
Humans are such fragile beings.
“She’s why we have you, and I wouldn’t trade you for the world, Elis. Neither would your mom. You’re a miracle—our miracle. Never forget that.”
I swiped at my eyes as they opened, blinking back tears as the bright sunlight in my office assaulted me.
It was a lot of pressure, knowing you shouldn’t exist—that your life is due to a hundred different events, many of them supernatural in origin, that qualify your existence to be “miraculous”. I hadn’t grown up cocky—I shied from the word and downplayed it, rolled my eyes the handful of times it was mentioned.
Maybe that was why I turned out the way I did. I should not have been born, should not be alive in this world. Maybe that meant I was broken in some way, skewed. Didn’t quite belong here. Didn’t have human morals.
I was not so unlike the Aanzhenii that way.
His praise, his reminder of how much my mom loved me, wrapped around me like clothes that didn’t quite fit; clothes that were made for someone else.
I gave myself time to calm before speaking at last. “How are your experiments going?”
Silence on the other end.
My heart kicked up again. “Dad?”
A heavy sigh. “Nothing. I...I was so sure this time. But it didn’t work.”
Fuck. I wasn’t surprised. After all these years, nothing had worked, and...
And I was still disappointed. There was always just enough hope to let the crash back to earth really hurt. I’d never learn.
“I’m sorry, El,” he said.
I blinked back more wetness forming in my eyes. “I’m sorry too, Dad. You’ll figure it out, though. You’ve got all the time in the world.”
“You don’t,” he said quietly.
Sure, just remind me of my lack of immortality. He would one day outlive both his children. Dad lost everyone.
If only he could get Mom back.
I wanted to ask him about Maximilian Vasquez, about how he ended up in that dimension, about what conflict he had with my parents. I wanted to confess the deal I made with Ashur, to figure out if the creature would have further use for me. I wanted someone else to tell me everything was going to be okay.
But he didn’t need more to worry about.
“I’m...concerned about your brother,” he said at last.
“Me too,” I said.
“Do you think you can find him?”
I gazed out the window at the sunny day and busy city street, any sign of Melinoë now long gone.
Could I find him without her help? Maybe it might be easier without her throwing me off with her bullshit. And I had a new place to start: tracking down his ex-girlfriend, Callie.
“I don’t know. But I’m going to try.”
*
Author’s Note & Thanks
What was intended to be a quick 20K-word novella for a friend’s birthday rapidly became much more. Elis O’Connor leapt on the page with a crackle of blue lightning and penchant for homicide, and I’m glad of it. She’s a no-fucks-to-give kind of character, this was my no-fucks-to-give kind of book, and I certainly hope you enjoyed her whole man disposal service.
While intended as a standalone, it does take place in the larger Demons of Oblivion universe, about twenty-five years after the final full-length novel Oblivion. Obviously, many things were set to happen in those intervening years to the characters from the original series, but high levels of piracy resulted in the cancellation of future books after the first main arc. So if you read the main series and then this story and felt like you missed something, no, there are no other books out there to fill in any blanks, but some parts can be pieced together as Elis’s story continues. If you didn’t read those books, you should be able to go back to the beginning with Bloodlines and learn more (the novella Counterpoint: Always Kill a Boy on the First Date is most closely related to Blood Ties), but it shouldn’t be necessary to con
tinue with Elis’s adventures.
And yes, she will be back! I can’t say when as I have a lot of works in progress, but she’ll return with even more misandry and magic (you’ll find the jacket copy for the next book on the following page).
Special thanks to my tremendously supportive Patrons of Snark for helping this story, and others, get written: Riley, Robert, Michelle, Dina, Steve, Krista, Elizabeth P., Brianne, Kate, Tindra, Taya, Shaun, Jen, Jen H., Lynda, Jane, Nanci, Skye, Jordan, Jeff, Marisha, Nina, Lyn, Carrie, Amy, Elizabeth C., Peter, Joe, Annette, Naomi, Nancy, Steph, Ryan, R.C., Elizabeth G., Mary, Henry, Douglas, Karen P., Karen G., Suzanne.
Elis O’Connor will be back in...
Witch Hunt
Abducted and dropped in a dense forest in the middle of nowhere, serial killer and witch Elis O’Connor is being hunted for sport. Her magic is restricted, her resources are few, and it’s a night no one ever survives with human religious extremists in pursuit.
But she’s not trapped in the forest with them: they’re trapped with her.
And they’re about to regret a whole lot of their life choices.
Now Available: Demons of Oblivion (The Series)
A narcissistic vampire assassin. A demon-hunting nun. A sociopathic part-demon mercenary. A very dead witch. When the apocalypse is nigh, these very different women and their friends come together to uncover a secret society, unravel a demonic prophecy, battle big bads, and (MAYBE) save the world.
If they don't kill each other first.
Warning: this release contains many explosions, a lot of snark, frequent homicide, naughty words, sexy times, and a saber-tooth cat named Rodney Ballsgalore.
Available as a bundle or as individual releases in ebook and paperback.
Other DEMONS OF OBLIVION Stories
Main Novels (Series Complete)
Bloodlines
Hunter
Lineage
Exhumed
Oblivion
Shorts, Novellas, & Collections
9 Crimes
Damaged: A Zara Lain Novella
Whiskey Sour (& Other Stories)
Tales from Alchemy Red: Hungry Like the Wendigo
Tales from Alchemy Red: Dial V for Vampire
Tales from Alchemy Red: Prey
Amends: A Zara Lain Serial (Patreon Exclusive)
Resist: A Zara Lain Short Story (Patreon Exclusive)
Counterpoint: ALWAYS Kill a Boy on the First Date
Other Books by Skyla Dawn Cameron
LIVI TALBOT
MAIN SERIES
Solomon’s Seal (#1)
Odin’s Spear (#2)
Ashford’s Ghost (#2.5, novella)
Emperor’s Tomb (#3)
Shiva’s Bow (#4)
Yampellec’s Idol (#5) (coming soon)
EXTRAS
A Livi Talbot Holiday Short (#2.4)
King’s Bounty (#3.5)
Tiger’s Memory (Patreon exclusive, West prequel novel)
Santa’s Secret (Patreon exclusive, West prequel short story)
Solomon’s Seal – West POV (Patreon exclusive, West story)
RIVER WOLFE
River
Rebellion: A River Wolfe Story
How the Werewolf Stole Christmas
Wolfe (coming soon)
WAVERLY JONES MYSTERIES
The Killing Beach (coming soon)
STANDALONE
Soulless
Now Available: Livi Talbot Vol I
Meet Livi Talbot: ex-debutante, single mother, treasure hunter.
About the Author
Skyla Dawn Cameron has been writing approximately forever.
Her early storytelling days were spent acting out strange horror/fairy tales with the help of her many dolls, and little has changed except that she now keeps those stories on paper. She signed her first book contract at age twenty-one for River, a unique werewolf tale, which was released to critical and reader praise alike and won her the 2007 EPPIE Award for Best Fantasy. She now has multiple series on the go to keep her busy.
Skyla is a fifth-generation crazy cat lady who lives in southern Ontario, where she writes full time, works as a freelance designer, stabs people with double pointed knitting needles, is an avid gamer, and watches Buffy reruns. If she ever becomes a grownup, she wants to run her own Irish pub, as well as become world dictator.
You can visit her on the web at www.skyladawncameron.com. When she’s not writing or being glared at by cats, she’s probably on Twitter. You should ping @skyladawn and tell her to get back to work.
Want to Keep Up with New Releases?
Sign up for Skyla’s mailing list options by visiting her website at http://www.skyladawncameron.com/newsletter/
You can also follow her on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/skyladawn
Occasionally she can be found at Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SkylaDawnCameron and Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/skyladawnc
Connect with other readers (and catch sneak peaks at what she’s working on) at her Facebook fan group, Alchemy Red: https://www.facebook.com/groups/AlchemyRed/
For exclusive content, sneak peeks, and free books, you can support her work directly at Patreon as a Patron of Snark: http://www.patreon.com/skyladawncameron
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