Damian's Assassin

by Lizzy Ford

  Damian’s Assassin (revised)

  War of Gods, Book II

  By Lizzy Ford

  http://www.guerrillawordfare.com/

  Edited by Christine LePorte

  http://www.christineleporte.com/

  Cover art and design by Dafeenah

  http://www.indiedesignz.com/

  * * * * *

  Damian’s Assassin (revised) copyright November 2011 by Lizzy Ford

  Smashwords Edition

  Cover art and design copyright 2011 by Dafeenah

  * * * * *

  Includes exclusive excerpt of Damian’s Immortal,

  War of Gods Book III

  * * * * *

  You can follow the GW team on Twitter:

  @LizzyFord2010

  @cleporte

  @dafeenajameel

  Twitter hashtags:

  #guerrillawriter, #fantasy, #romance, #paranormalromance, #eclective

  Chapter One

  Fifteen years ago

  Bianca looked from her pale brother lying too still on the hospital bed to the smiling nurse. The room was dark except for the light above Jonny’s bed and the red and green lights dotting the machines keeping him alive.

  “Sweetie, you can lay down in the bed next to your daddy’s,” the nurse said.

  Adults would argue with her if she told them she wasn’t leaving her brother, Jonny’s, side until he was healed. They thought her too young to understand words like coma and deteriorating, and they accused her of lying when she said she could help him.

  “Okay,” Bianca replied.

  The nurse handed her a thin blanket and pointed to the phone. “Call me if you need anything, okay? All you have to do is pick up, and I’ll answer.”

  “Thank you,” she said.

  Satisfied, the nurse swept up the linens she’d changed and left. Bianca waited until she heard the door click closed and looked across the small bay to make sure her daddy still slept.

  Why couldn’t she heal her brother? She scooted forward, frustrated and tired, and touched Jonny’s arm. She felt death within him, as she had with her cat Snickers after a car ran him over. She’d saved Snickers. She’d kept the flowers around Jonny’s bed as fresh as the day they arrived last week. She’d helped her father sleep.

  She couldn’t help Jonny.

  Maybe Daddy was right. Maybe she was too small. But she was nine, and Jonny was even smaller at four. He really wasn’t too much bigger than a cat, not when compared to an adult.

  She cried again, snuffling and wiping at her nose before she pushed herself off the chair. She concentrated hard on another wilted flower, bringing it back to full bloom.

  “Jonny …” she whispered. “I’m so sorry, Jonny!”

  It was her fault he was in the hospital. Her stepmother-- Jonny’s mother-- had said as much. Bianca cringed as she had earlier that day when her mother and Jonny’s mother screamed blame at each other until the nursing staff kicked them out of the room.

  She hadn’t meant to hurt him. He was annoying, and she wanted him to leave her alone. All he ever wanted to do was play with his stupid baseball, and she’d taken it and thrown it into the forest. He went after it, and she played with her toys all day. He didn’t come back, even when it got dark and it was time for them to go inside.

  “I can help him,” a man said. She jumped. No one had come in through the door she faced. She twisted in her chair to see a man near the dark windows whose eyes were the color of her bright purple Easter dress.

  “Are you a doctor?” she asked, wiping her eyes.

  “I can make it so he doesn’t remember that you did this to him,” the stranger said. “But you understand that medical treatment isn’t free?”

  Her chin trembled as guilt flowed over her and she swallowed hard, nodding.

  “It will cost you something.”

  She dug through the pockets in her jeans and pulled out the stash of one dollar bills she’d been given for trips to the candy machine down the hall. She counted them with shaking hands.

  “I only have four dollars,” she said with some dismay.

  “I require more than that.” His eyes seemed to swirl, around and around, changing from the color of her mother’s tulips to a color almost as dark as the night. He wasn’t like the other doctors. His voice wasn’t kind. He had no emotions, like a man in a Halloween mask.

  “I don’t have anything else!”

  The man with purple eyes knelt in front of her. His face didn’t look rubbery like a Halloween mask, but he didn’t look normal. The air around him was cold like it was around an air conditioning vent. She took a step back.

  “You have to help him,” she whispered. “Please!”

  “I will help him, Bianca. If you make me a promise,” he said. “You must keep this promise no matter what, or your brother will get sick and die. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “There is a man you will meet when you are older, a man who-- ”

  “This is low, even for you,” a second man’s voice said.

  She jumped at the new voice. The second man’s hand clamped on the first man’s shoulder. The eyes of the newcomer were the color of their Christmas tree. He had Papaw’s face, with wrinkles around his eyes and a kind smile.

  “By divine code, you can’t interfere,” the man with the purple eyes said in a tone that made her shrink away.

  “By divine code, neither can you.”

  Purple-eyes rose. Green-eyes stepped between Bianca and Purple-eyes, and Purple-eyes backed towards the window again.

  “We’re so much better than this, brother,” Green-eyes said. “Children are off limits.”

  “For your kind, Watcher. There are no boundaries for us.”

  “Divine code disagrees with you and the rest of the Others.”

  Purple-eyes looked at her, and she shrank behind Green-eyes.

  “The Grey God will destroy us all, brother. You can stop this war here, now,” Purple-eyes said with a look that made her snap her eyes closed.

  “You’re a fool led by a fool. Go, brother,” Green-eyes said.

  Bianca held her breath and waited, able to feel the tension between them even with her eyes closed until he spoke again.

  “He’s gone, Bianca.”

  She opened one eye, then the other, confirming his words. She started crying again.

  “Jonny’s gonna die!”

  “You can save him.”

  “I can’t! I tried! I can’t!”

  “Listen, Bianca.” He took her arms and sat her in a chair, handed her a fistful of tissues, and knelt. She blew her nose loudly and looked at him through blurry eyes. His small smile was kind, his bright eyes unblinking. “You have a very special gift. No one else has one like you.”

  “But I’m too little to save Jonny.”

  “Nonsense. You can save Jonny. You hear his body speak of the death in him?”

  “It’s awful,” she whispered.

  “If you listen really hard to what his body tells you, you can save him. No one wants to die, and his body will tell you what it needs from you. You need to rest tonight, sleep as much as you can. In the morning, you’ll be able to heal him.”

  “But I’ve been trying for days!”

  He touched her again, his hand cool but the electricity that shot through her warm.

  “I’ve woken your gift completely,” he said. “You must promise to keep it a secret and to make Jonny keep it a secret.”

  She blinked rapidly, startled by the sensations going through her.

  “Do you promise?”

  “Yes.”

  “You must also never harm another. It is the way of ancient healers. Do you understand?” he asked.

  “Ancient healers?”
/>   “In time you’ll learn more. Do you understand what I ask of you?”

  “I don’t know. I think so,” she murmured.

  “Can you promise to keep Jonny safe?”

  “He’s my brother,” she said, sniffling again.

  “Good. Go to sleep, Bianca. I’ll watch over your brother tonight. In the morning, you’ll save him.”

  For the first time, she noticed he wasn’t wearing a doctor’s white coat. “You’re not a doctor, are you?” she ventured.

  “No, but I’m a friend here to watch over you and Jonny.”

  Something about the man made her feel safe, and the warm electricity in her body made her sleepy. She kissed Jonny goodnight and crossed the bay to curl up with their father.

  When she’d gone, the Watcher placed a hand on Jonny’s forehead.

  Come back, god-slayer. Your time is yet to come.

  As strong as the girl was, she was too small to bring Jonny back from the place the Others sent him. The Watcher’s hand fell away, and his gaze went to the dark side of the bay, where the little girl was already fast asleep.

  A healer and a god-slayer born into the same family. It had always been so. The Black God’s sister was a healer who died at her brother’s hands.

  The Watcher smiled. He saw a different fate for the little girl in the next room, a better one than that of any of the ancient Healers. As long as the Watchers could keep the Others from tampering with their fates, both children would fulfill their paths and usher in a new phase of the war between good and evil.

  Chapter Two

  Present Day

  Miami, Florida

  Bianca drew a heart around her ex-boyfriend, Aaron’s, name, followed by a huge X. She’d pined for him for five years, accepting his excuses of flying around the world for work while he just went across town to his wife. She’d left town a year ago to get away from two heartbreaks: Papa’s death and Aaron’s unavailability, only for him to call out of the blue when she just so happened to be in town. She blamed Jonny for that one. He’d always wanted a big brother and idolized Aaron.

  What a waste of five years.

  “I probably shouldn’t have come back to Miami,” she said into the phone pressed to her ear, wishing she could talk to him without the butterflies in her stomach. “I should’ve just sold all Dad’s things after he died.”

  “I wish you’d told me he died when you left last year. But I’m glad you’re back,” was the smooth reply.

  “Sorry to hear about your split,” she managed. “She was a nice lady.”

  “Thanks. It’s been a bit rough lately for both of us. I could use a friend. I’m sure you could, too.”

  Not falling for it this time, she vowed to herself. At her silence, he continued.

  “If you have time while you’re in town, we could get together for coffee or something.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she said.

  “Might as well. You’re too sweet to get over me,” he teased.

  “Just because I dropped at your feet whenever you called for five years doesn’t mean I’ll do it now. It’s been a year since I found out you were married and we split!”

  “Hey, I really am free this time. Got the divorce paperwork to prove it.”

  A part of her still longed for him, to smell him and feel his skin against hers. She’d fallen for him the day she met him seven years ago. He was her world, but she’d been nothing more than an afterthought, strung along with promises for years. Now, he could deliver what he’d always promised-- a life together-- yet she didn’t feel like leaping for joy like she would’ve a year ago.

  “I’ll even bring the paperwork with me,” he offered. “Lunch, nothing else. If we still click, we’ll go from there.”

  She chewed her lip. By the confidence in his voice, he expected her not only to agree, but to resume her place on his arm.

  “Lunch,” she agreed slowly.

  “Great! How about a week from Sunday? I’ll send you an email of where and when.”

  “Fine. Look, it’s late. I’m going to bed.” She hung up, sick of him and her weakness. She’d sworn off men-- especially this one-- a year ago! After all of Jonny’s childhood injuries she’d healed, she couldn’t fix her own heart!

  Uncurling from the couch, she started to the bedroom of her father’s small Miami apartment. Jonny stayed after their father’s death, while she moved closer to her mom on the west coast. He hadn’t changed a thing, as if expecting Papa to come home at any minute. Saddened, she considered calling him to check in when a sudden pounding at the door made her jump.

  Aaron! Her heart soared. She clawed her way into a sweatshirt as she hurried to the door. The pounding didn’t stop until she wrenched it open.

  “Kyle?” she asked, looking up at the freaky-looking youth in Goth clothing and multiple facial piercings. He pushed his way into the small apartment and flung the unusual Miami rain from his clothes. “Jonny’s not here.”

  The pale, dark-haired youth was drenched, but it was the wild look on his face that made her stop in the middle of the foyer and watch him pace with agitated energy.

  “You okay?”

  “I don’t know,” he said at last and flung himself into a chair, planting his hands against his forehead. “I feel funny, like really cold.”

  She was used to the teenage fits of temperament after spending the summer with her newly turned twenty-year-old brother. She tied her hair back and straightened the sweatshirt, somewhat relieved and disappointed it hadn’t been Aaron at the door after all.

  “You want some cocoa?”

  “B, I did something wicked wrong!” Kyle said, following her into the kitchen. “I have to tell you about Jonny.”

  “He’s visiting our grandparents. He’ll be back next weekend,” she said. “You wanna call him or something?”

  “No, B, he’s …” Kyle met her gaze, flushing.

  “Are you hurt?” she asked, leaning against the counter. There was blood on his trench coat. It mixed with the rain to drip pink puddles on the ceramic floor.

  “Jonny didn’t go to your grandparents’!” Kyle blurted out. “He was seeing this girl, and he told you he was going to go so you didn’t think he’d spent the night with her and … you know …”

  “Jonny’s not in Indiana?”

  “He’s in trouble, B, and it’s all my fault!”

  “In trouble how?” she demanded.

  “His girlfriend is so hot but she’s like a vampire,” Kyle said. He ran his hands through his wet hair again.

  “Vampire?”

  “He went to see her yesterday, and he asked me to stop by and meet all her friends tonight. I went. Fuck … I mean, shoot, B, it was terrible. They really are vampires! They were killing people in front of me, and his girlfriend bit him, and now he’s going to be a vampire. They said-- ”

  “Kyle, are you on drugs?” she asked, baffled.

  “No, B, I promise. I’ve been clean as long as Jonny.”

  “Jonny’s on drugs?”

  “Not anymore. I didn’t want to come here but I know about … he told me-- and I never told anyone, I swear it-- about your healing ability.” His voice turned to a whisper and he looked at her, conflicted. He’d been Jonny’s best friend for ten years, and they’d started the Goth-vampire stage when they got to college. She never thought much of their black clad, piercing-decorated vampire girlfriends and couldn’t help being irked that Jonny had told his friend her biggest secret!

  “What’re you telling me, that Jonny’s hurt?” she asked.

  “I think so.”

  “You think he’s been eaten by a vampire.”

  “Not eaten, B,” Kyle corrected her. “Just bit his … actually, it was his arm, right in the middle of his forearm. She bit him there.”

  “Kyle, you’re scaring me. But, whatever. We’ll talk about the drugs later. I’m going to get him.”

  “I’m not going back there,” he said resolutely.

  “
You’ve been inseparable for ten years,” she said. She studied him, alarm swirling through her for the first time. “What gives?”

  “I don’t know, Bianca,” he whispered. “You shouldn’t go either. We should just call the police. They can go. We’ll stay here. You’ll be safe.”

  “Show me where this party is,” she told him. She’d never seen him so upset in all the years she’d known him. She retreated to her bedroom to grab her purse. “You sure you’re not hurt?”

  He gripped his forearm in the same spot he’d told her Jonny had been bitten but shook his head. More blood trickled onto her tile. She frowned, uncertain what to think of his story. She planted her hand on his forehead, coolness flowing through her. His arm was wounded, and something akin to poison ran in his blood. She couldn’t quite understand what the poison was; it wasn’t a normal infection, and yet it couldn’t be anything else.

  “You were hurt,” she murmured, pitying her brother’s friend. “And if you tell anyone I can do that, you’ll be in big trouble.”

  “I feel strange,” Kyle murmured, trailing her out the door.

  “How far is this party?” she asked. “Oh, wait, don’t shut the-- ” The door to the apartment clicked shut, locking automatically. “I forgot my keys. You have a car?”

  He nodded and led them into the rainy night. His ancient, rusted Camaro was illegally parked in front of the building. She almost scolded him before stopping herself. The kid was already too upset about something. His body assured her he wasn’t on drugs when she’d healed him, and she couldn’t grasp that any normal party would upset the usually jovial young man.

  She pushed fast food trash from the passenger seat. Sitting, she gave up on the jammed seatbelt after a few useless tugs.

  “B, how do you do it?” Kyle asked.

  “Do what?”

  “The healing thing.”

  She rolled her eyes, irritated that her brother hadn’t taken his promise to her seriously. Of course, if he was on drugs and running around with a vampire chick at parties instead of going to Indiana like he was supposed to, she shouldn’t be surprised he’d spilled the beans.