“Well, you could join the devil like those fallen angels.” I smiled. “Just joking. So, you truly have no choice at all in what you do?”
Eli shrugged. “There’s a little variety. You can be a warrior, or a healing angel, or travel and promote peace, things like that. What I mean is, I’m completely defined by who I am. I can’t go see a bloody action movie without putting on a glamour, or everyone will stare. There are strict expectations for my every action, thought, feeling. It’s a little stifling at times.”
“Yeah, that makes sense.” I leaned back in my seat and stretched my legs. “It’s been a little weird for all the supes coming out of the closet. But while everyone expects us to misbehave, the angels have got to be perfect.”
“Exactly,” Eli said, darting another look over to me.
“You know I’m going to see him if he comes out,” I said wryly. “You can relax.”
He was definitely ignoring me this time.
“Is it true humans and non-angel supes can’t go to the Heaven dimension, or do they just say that?” I pulled my knees up to my chest now, keeping one eye on the door to Arianna’s building.
“It’s true,” Eli answered. “Like some of the other dimensions, some beings just can’t travel there. Until they die.”
“So what exactly is that when you shoot up into the sky and we move through all that black space with the glowy white stuff? Some interdimensional back alley or something?”
Eli cast me an appraising look. “Most people can’t see anything at all when I do that.” He paused, mulling it over it seemed. “But yes, you’re right. It’s a way to move between dimensions. Kind of a shortcut.”
“Nifty,” I said, feeling a bit jealous. And that was something that didn’t happen often. “I wonder if I could learn how to do that.”
Eli shrugged. “Maybe.” But he didn’t look like he held much hope. “So, what about you? What’s it like being Anam Gatai? I mean, I know you told me a little before…”
“Well,” I said, looking at my nails, “About everything one could imagine being immortal, beautiful, super strong and extremely fashionable could be.”
He laughed. “Come on. I gave you an honest answer. Is that the best you’ve got?”
I sighed. “Fine, Dr. Phil. If you want the real answer, the real answer is that since I was turned, with each passing year I feel a little more of my humanity slip away. Now it’s little more than a fuzzy memory. A fable even, like a unicorn.” My tone was soaked with all the bitterness I felt. I shifted in my seat, kicking my feet up on the dash. “Whatever existence I live now is completely because of a stupid choice I made two hundred and forty-two years ago.”
“What choice?” Eli’s eyes were bright in the shadows of the car.
I looked out the window, away from that gaze. “Come on, Wings. The answer should be obvious.”
“Falling for Alexander?”
I turned back, feeling rather annoyed now. “Yes. I was a stupid love struck seventeen year old. It cost me my soul.”
“You said your creator found other girls that shared the same fate as her?”
A sigh escaped my lips. “Yes. It was my heartbrokenness over Alexander that attracted her. Anam Gatai are drawn to misery born of love and the betrayal of that love.”
Eli was silent for a couple long moments. “Have you been hunting Alexander this whole time?”
“No. Olga—my creator—and I traveled Ireland while she taught me how to survive. My magic, my powers as an Anam Gatai, they were extra strong, and got a little out of control sometimes. And one day—” I stopped abruptly. I didn’t want to talk about this. I’d never talked to anyone about it.
He waited a full thirty seconds before prompting me. “One day?”
“One day I lost control and demolished an entire village, every man, woman and child within.” The words hissed out in a rush, words I’d never said aloud before. It’s not true what they say. It didn’t make me feel an ounce better to admit my sins to another.
Eli just looked at me. It’s not like there’s anything comforting one can say about something like that.
“After that I gave up my search for Alexander, and parted ways with Olga. I started taking only the souls of those that harmed others, and here I am.” I stared intently through the binoculars, wishing very much to be anywhere but here.
“Everyone takes the wrong path at one point or another,” Eli said.
The silence hung thick between us, like a summer night in the Everglades. Despite his kind words, I knew that he had passed judgment on me, that in his eyes I was tainted. Hell, in anyone’s eyes I would be tainted. A darkness lived in me that could never be undone.
“Now that Alexander has shown back up in your life, just remember that he’s not worth whatever you’re planning on doing to him. I’m sure the temptation is strong, but…”
“I’d been willing to let it go, but he came here knowing this was my city. Plus, he’s trying to assassinate the HR. I think you should focus on that and not the purity of my intentions. I’m damned, remember? I can’t be saved.” I spat the last words out like they were poison in my mouth.
“Zyan—”
The door of Arianna’s building opened and a figure emerged. “Alexander,” I hissed.
He was alone, and he headed right towards us. For a second I thought he’d seen the car, but he strolled past casually. Seeing his relaxed stance made my blood boil. For a liar, thief and assassin, he seemed to lack a care in the world. Before the night was over, I’d make sure he had a few things to care about.
Once he was a safe distance past, I caught Eli’s eyes and nodded. I slipped from the car as he radioed our backup to let them know we were on the trail. Hands in the pockets of my jeans, I strode down the sidewalk, making my steps light. I watched Alexander travel down the opposite side of the street, across asphalt that glistened from a recent rain. With the stoplights casting cherry-red orbs on the road, and mist rising from the manholes like ghosts, it felt like we were players in a giant Pac-Man game. If only the stakes were that low.
Eli alighted beside me. “The rest are following at a safe distance. We just need to keep him in sight and find a good place we can close in.”
“There is no good place to close in on a two thousand year old vamp,” I said wryly.
“Well, a better place than out in the open where he could grab a hostage or just take off.”
“Hostages are expendable,” I said, straight-faced. My comment got the desired effect. Eli whipped his head towards me. I cracked a smile. “Joking.”
“Try to focus, will you?” He gave me one of his classic glowers. I could tell he was still miffed about the exchange in the car.
“I’ll think about it,” I said. “But right now I’m going to make sure I don’t lose our target.”
I pointed to my right, where Alexander was disappearing down a side street. We crossed the street and ducked into the deeper shadows of the alley. I could just make out Alexander’s shape a ways down. We hadn’t take two steps into the alley when he turned, and then in a blur was gone. “Shit!” I took off.
“Zyan, wait!” Eli yelled behind me.
To hell with that stupid idea. I hadn’t waited in the car for over three hours to lose him now.
The city became a blur around me as I melted into the night. I pulled on just a slight amount of my magic to aid my speed. Everything became mere streaks of color or varying shades of black, with occasional pinpricks of bright light. Everything but my prey. Him I kept a firm eye on as we raced through the urban backdrop. I could hear his footsteps faintly, as I knew he could hear mine. And though neither of us technically needed to breathe, our hearts still beat in our chests, and I could feel that, too. I could even smell his expensive cologne on the air. He would not get away.
I kind of lost track of where we were going until I smelled the fish. We were headed towards the bay, down in the grungy industrial section south of Pier 50. Alexander paused and looked back at m
e as he approached a low ramshackle building, then plunged inside. As I followed him through the doorway, I whipped out my sword, cutting through the darkness in case he tried to jump me as I came through. He didn’t. The lights flipped on, low rusty lanterns that cast brownish circles of light on the stained cement floor. I paused for a split second to let my eyes adjust. Alexander stood on the opposite side of the room. But he wasn’t alone. Another figure stood next to him, a woman with long black hair. The woman I’d seen in the safe room at HR headquarters. This time, however, she wasn’t wearing a mask.
I blinked through the low light, searching every inch of her face. Especially the rich brown eyes, eyes liked espresso swirled with cinnamon. Eyes like mine.
It was my sister. My sister Anna, who should have been dead for almost two hundred years.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
My sword dropped to my side, arm dangling limply. “Oh my God,” I whispered.
“God had nothing to do with it,” Alexander said, a smug smile on his face. “I did.”
“You motherfucking bastard!” My voice went from a low hiss to an earth-shaking shriek.
“Actually, I didn’t fuck your mother. Just you and Anna.” I realized then by the look on his face that he’d known all along we were tracking him. He’d brought me here for the sole purpose of shattering the one good human memory I had. “Well, at least in your family. Of course I have a few more notches on the bedpost. You would too if you’d been alive for as long as I have.”
I looked to Anna then, searching her face for the inevitable signs of disgust, of hatred. Surely he was keeping her against her will, a prisoner to do his dirty work. To help him on his jobs, with whatever special powers she possessed. She couldn’t possibly be with him willingly, knowing what he’d done to me, to her, to all the other girls. And his senseless killing, both for blood as well as his whole assassination gig.
But I didn’t see it.
No anger, no fear. Only a slight smile as she looked from him to me. Like all of this was… amusing.
“Anna.” It came out with all the heartbrokenness I felt, all the agony. A question, a plea. And for once I didn’t care how weak it made me sound. I needed her to hear me, truly hear me.
“No, no,” Alexander said, waggling his finger at me. “This is not sister bonding time. I only brought you here so you’d see that I still have the upper hand in our little situation. Besides, we have company. Someone has rudely interrupted our sweet reunion.”
I looked over my shoulder to see Eli standing in the doorway. I didn’t know how long he’d been standing there, but the look on his face said he’d heard enough. His eyes met mine in a look of sympathy, but then they widened, and his mouth parted in a yell.
I spun around as Alexander grabbed me and everything went black.
A moment later we were standing in the room again. Scratch that, a cave of some sorts.
Alexander let go of me abruptly, causing me to wobble on my feet. “Do you like my meditation cave?”
Holy shit—Alexander could move through the dimensional pathways like Eli? “Where are we?” I growled, looking around. The place was all lit up with candles. Oddly unsettling.
“A little place in the Himalayas. I come here to think things over. It’s very relaxing, being up here in the mountains near all these Buddhist monasteries. And the monks are just scrumptious, you really ought to try one before you leave.” His blue eyes danced. “You should be honored, I’ve never brought anyone here before.”
“I’m not honored. You’re a piece of shit. What have you done to my sister?” I started towards him, raising my sword.
In a flash he had my sword in his hands, the tip at my throat. “I am leading this conversation, Zyan,” he said, his tone cold. “Now shut up and listen.” His smile returned and he stepped away, then tossed my sword back to me. He began to pace slowly in the flickering light. “I brought you here to explain the rules of our game. Because it is a game, Zyan. This entire thing. You were a game, Anna’s a game, the HR, all of it. Not to use the seniority card again, but if you had been alive for over two thousand years, wouldn’t you want to find ways to keep life interesting?”
“Not like you do,” I said, shaking with cold fury.
“Really? I guess you’ll have to wait and see. If you survive this whole ordeal. Which I really hope you do, darling.” He smiled, throwing all his charm into it.
I remembered the first time I’d seen that smile, and I felt like I was going to throw up. If only I’d known what lay behind its gold…
“But,” he continued. “If you keep making me angry, I can’t make any promises.”
“Me? What have I done to you?” My hand tightened on my katana. His eyes darted down. He hadn’t missed it.
“Well, you want me dead. That’s not very nice, now is it?” Alexander crossed his arms over his chest and pouted his lips at me.
“It’s revenge, fair and square,” I retorted. “You took my soul, I take your life. Actually, that’s more than fair. Besides, you were the one that showed up in my city.”
“I didn’t take your soul. Olga did that, technically.” His eyes glinted.
“Because of you.” It took all I had not to launch myself at him.
“Semantics, darling,” he said with a toss of his hand. “It’s not my fault you fell for a scoundrel.”
I decided to ignore that last bit. Since we both knew vampires had more than ample powers of persuasion. “Why did you turn my sister?” I tried to keep my voice steady. I failed.
Alexander sighed. “I’m sure what you really want to know is why I stayed with her, why I’m still with her, when I left you. Right?” He grinned in enjoyment. “Like I said, it’s all part of the game. It’s your fault really. You see, what I love the most is corrupting the girls, before I even turn them. But you, you just wouldn’t be corrupted, even though I worked on you for months. I could feel your goodness, your purity, completely intact. Even when you finally slept with me, it was only because you loved me so much. Just so completely boring.” He let out another dramatic sigh.
“So that’s when the plan began to form in my mind. You’d talked so much about your dear, beloved kid sister, the only one you had. I just had to see if this stubborn goodness was a family thing. I had to wait a few years, of course, since she was only ten when you turned into a soulsucker and left her all alone. So, while you were off doing God knows what, I played the rich businessman who came by the house to visit with your uncle. Since you slaughtered your father and all. And of course, I brought beautiful, expensive toys for young Anna. I was there for her when you weren’t.”
I felt like throwing up again. I didn’t want to hear any more, but I had to. I had to know.
“So, she got older, and one thing led to another. Oh, and she was corruptible. It’s not a family trait after all.” His smile was its most wicked now, and I wanted nothing more than to run my blade through his body over and over again. “Anna is so much more fun than you. And with those nifty powers of hers, she’s proven quite useful. We made sure to run in different circles than you, so her existence remained a secret. Because of course, that was part of the game, too. The look on your face was well worth the two hundred years I’ve waited for it.”
I raised my sword up. I’d heard enough now.
“Yes. You want to kill me. Go ahead and try. Free shot.” He lifted his arms up in a gesture of surrender.
In a flash I was on him, my blade singing through the damp air. He dodged, which I expected, so I spun back around. But he was already on the other side of the cave. Damn, he was fast. Again I flew at him, and this time he stayed for a moment, blocking my jabs and slices with his hands, before knocking me flat on my back. I leapt back to my feet and flew at him again. Our movements were a blur. I didn’t think I’d ever moved this fast, but still he was faster. As I arced my blade in a tight circle towards his neck, he whipped it out of my hands and stabbed it into my chest, right below my heart. I gasped and dropped to my kne
es.
Alexander looked down at me, his expression pure ice. “You can’t beat me Zyan. And that’s the final card I wanted to reveal to you. Just so you know what you’re up against.” He leaned down, grabbing the hilt of my sword and twisting it in deeper. I bit back a cry. “If you keep up this job for the HR, I’ll be forced to kill you. And then our fun little game will be over.”
He straightened back up, smiling at the pain in my eyes. “I think I’ll leave you here to think about what I’ve said. In the meantime, while you’re trying to figure out how to get from the Himalayas to Seattle, I might visit that little witch friend of yours. She really does look like a tasty treat.”
I opened my mouth to speak but he cut me off. “Don’t bother with threats. We both know you’re in no position to back them up.” And with that, he waved goodbye and vanished.
Martinis with the Devil, Part One Page 10
