Take These Broken Wings_A novel of the Paramortals

by Livia Quinn

  "Timbuktu," Montana said. Zeus, she was quick. I stifled a laugh, but the green was back in Kat's eyes as she stared at Jane.

  "Is that anywhere near Chile?" Jane asked frowning.

  Montana just gaped at Jane. "Just down the interstate, why?"

  "They had a huge volcanic eruption there last night. Don't watch the news much, huh?" Jane snarked then aimed it at Katerina, "And don't get your trench coat in a twist, Katerina, I have my own hunk." Dick smiled down at her affectionately. There was definitely something in the water. Jane looked at Inez. "Who's your friend here?"

  Inez introduced herself. "I'm here to study witchcraft and tarot. But mainly I want to know how to cast a spell to up my sex drive."

  Jane's wasn't the only jaw to drop. Dick turned in his chair, took one look at Inez and dismissed her claim as dementia. Jane shrieked, "Witchcraft, I thought it was about baskets." She rose quickly, gathering her spools of raffia and her unfinished project. "I'll be back in a minute, don't let them start class without me." She spun back to Inez, "This will be a breeze. I'm a wiz at tarot."

  After she'd left the room, Inez said, "That woman is a dozen cards short of a deck."

  Laughter burst out of Montana, "You've got her nailed, Inez. Don't let her read your future."

  Inez said somberly, "I already know my future is with Phineas. I just need to figure out how to keep up so I don't lose him."

  The admin assistant passed around a sign-in sheet then introduced our instructor. "He's a renowned professor of anthropology with a PhD in cultural studies and ancient religions. He's traveled the globe for most of his life and we're lucky he's in the area and could spare a few nights to teach our class. Please welcome Dr. Alejandro Obejoyo."

  Montana's head snapped up and her eyes locked on the door. "What is it?" I asked, but she stood suddenly as erect as a Valkyrie statue, her eyes going deep cobalt.

  Chapter 36

  "Are we going to dance sky-clad under the full moon?"

  Jack

  Mystiq interrupted my thoughts, "Let's get back to the antidote theory. Now that Dylan has shed his old Finrir and has a new form, I can't say for sure, but this may be a maturation process."

  "You're saying all we can do is wait?" I could hear Conor now. Maybe he'd known all of this.

  Mystiq smiled and one brow arched delicately. "It plays a big part. You may be big and powerful and strong, but it's deceiving, because in supernatural terms, you're a newborn."

  Well, that was deflating. Here I was thinking I was about to get there. I was silent as I took her meaning to heart.

  "But…" she said. I could tell this was a big but. "Just because it's a maturation process doesn't mean it won't or can't be accelerated by any number of factors, like putting a piece of coal under pressure to create a diamond. Like what happened with Tempe. Conor contacted me last night and I shared my findings with him." That sneaky dragon…what was he up to?

  She tapped her fingers on the book and studied me. "Now, tell me the main reason you came to see me."

  An image of Conor and Montana as they'd been earlier flashed across my mind. He'd looped his arm around the intimidating woman's neck and pulled her to him. She'd responded instantly, and let him kiss her thoroughly with everyone watching. If anyone including me was uncomfortable, they didn't give a damn.

  Conor didn’t hide how he felt about Montana. And it didn't diminish anything about his skill, his power or his intimidation factor. I couldn't say Conor had changed since arriving in Destiny but Montana had. They took every opportunity to touch physically. There was one way Conor had changed since he arrived. He was happier; even I could see it had everything to do with Montana. I wanted to express my feelings through actions and words that weren't tainted by my past baggage, to be as open with my feelings toward Tempe as I was with Jordie. No holds barred. Could I do it?

  If Montana, a nearly four-hundred-year-old Dinnshencha with serious anti-relationship tendencies could do it, I could. I suddenly felt impatient to get to back to Destiny.

  I put the questions about my parents aside since my most pressing concern was about Tempe's little plan. I took a deep breath and let it out. "I don't know, maybe I'm…" jealous, a voice whispered "…reading too much into this. Tempe says there's something wrong with Harmony, like it's possessed or something. It happened after River came to visit. She's convinced he's in trouble and she's got this guy, Elvis—"

  "Elvis! What's he got to do with it?"

  Okay, so I was right to be concerned. "He's got her and Dylan performing some kind of cleansing ritual at her house tonight. She mentioned a spell and their connection to River."

  "Jack, you need to put a stop to it. Conor asked me about River as well. He and Dutch are very concerned about his negative energy. I know about that house Elvis traded for. There's some old powerful magic that's never been exorcised from it. Some spirits known as the Shameful Hour have possessed it since the turn of the century. They are vengeful spirits with mercenary black hearts who prey on the greed and guilt of men."

  There was that word again, mercenary. "What can I do to stop it?" I asked, a new sense of urgency making me wish I could fly back to town.

  "You'll know what to do. Remember this—light always defeats darkness. If the light is pure enough, it will search out and destroy and hidden seed of evil. Sit back down and let me teach you a couple incantations. Then you must go."

  For the next few minutes I concentrated on committing strange new phrases to memory. Finally, I rose to leave, checking my watch. "Their class should be letting out soon, I have to hurry."

  "Go. Stop this however you can. Elvis is not the problem, merely a tool the Shameful Hour is using to usurp power and gain control over River and Tempe. I'll meet you there later and we'll cleanse her place properly." She reached for my forearm. "Be careful, this may have something to do with the others in the shadows… hunters."

  I thanked her and since I was in a hurry, didn't tell her the warning was a little late. Tempe didn't know what she was getting into. My stomach was in knots. I sped down the narrow lake road and prayed I wouldn't be too late. I'd made up my mind, I was not going to waste another minute looking back or whining about my life. If she would forgive me I'd promise her anything.

  Tempe

  "Oh, my!" Inez exclaimed as Montana seemed to grow in stature before our eyes. She was awesome. Inez' eyes glowed with excitement. "Is she some kind of superhero? Look at her muscles." She sighed and rubbed her wrinkly bicep wistfully, "I always wanted muscles."

  I cast an amused glance back at Aurora then to Kat who raised her brow. Montana's eyes flared as a slender bookish Indiana Jones type padded quietly to the makeshift lectern. His eyes went directly to her as if he'd sensed her focus, but how could that be? Had they met before? Did they know each other?

  Montana's aura was sparking and undulating as if she were close to going full Dinnshencha but I wasn't getting any bad vibes off the professor. He certainly didn't look threatening. His brown shoulder length hair was split down the center and pulled back neatly at his nape. He had black-rimmed glasses, a loose white shirt that buttoned up the front and brown leather pants tied with a long piece of braid. There was a medallion with a strange symbol hanging from a cord around his neck. He seemed so familiar.

  Seemingly oblivious to the tension, Jordie said, "Wow, our instructor is Johnny Depp? That's the bomb."

  The frozen warrior woman beside me continued to shimmer with restrained power. Then Dr. Obejoyo bowed slightly in her direction and turned back to the rest of the class, effectively dismissing her potential for violence. That brought our group to attention but amazingly, Montana relaxed.

  "Good evening." His calm voice didn't sound anything like the actor's, but like the deepest of wind chimes, low and resonant. After acknowledging the chorus of greetings he smiled, "Please don't worry about titles or formalities. Just call me Alej." He pronounced it, 'Alec'. "I'm just a humble historian who eagerly accepts any invitation to share my lov
e of ancient cultures. Now, if you don't have any specific questions…"

  Jane's hand shot up. "Professor. Are we going to dance sky-clad under the full moon? If so, we need to get organized because it's tomorrow night."

  To his credit, with only a slight hesitation Alej simply explained that he would go into traditions in a future class and no, the class would not include field trips. "Hera's holey panties, thanks for small favors!" I muttered while Montana struggled to keep a straight face. "The human body is a beautiful thing, some more than others, but forgive me if I skip the field trip where Dick and Jane get naked under the moon." I glanced at Dick and squeezed my eyes shut to banish the image.

  Due to Jane's constant bid for attention, the class stumbled into disarray despite Alej's competent leadership. After class we brainstormed a way to get Jane out of town before the next class. I apologized to Inez for bringing her.

  "Tempe, that woman is a loon. I haven't had this much fun in a long time. I would like to come back and hear what that lovely young man has to say, and I still haven't learned how to cast that spell. I guess I'll have to settle for phone sex tonight."

  Everyone within earshot was envious. I know I was.

  I asked Aurora to drop Jordie off since I was running late to meet Elvis and Dylan. Montana and I were going have a heart to heart the next day. She was keeping something from me, I could see it in her aura.

  I'd no sooner unlocked the front door at Harmony than Elvis rushed in behind me sprinkling some kind of crushed substance in every corner. I followed him around asking him to explain what he was doing because it just looked like he was spreading dirt. And the more he put out the worse it smelled. I noticed he'd confiscated the tarot cards he'd given me. When I asked him about it, he said it was an important part of the ritual.

  There was a tap on the storm door and Dylan let himself in, his tall frame filling the opening. "What the hell is that smell?"

  "Something Elvis is tossing around. Come on, I'm not sure I trust him around my stuff."

  "Or the knives," said Dylan. He followed me as we toured the rooms searching for the impersonator. But he'd disappeared. "Elvis!" I called. "He must be upstairs."

  Dylan took the stairs three at a time while I trailed behind but once on the upper landing he stopped, listening. "Wait here," Dylan said and shifted. Right, I was just supposed to stay there while he searched my house for intruders, but he moved so swiftly down the hall I had to duck into several rooms before I found him… growling, in front of a black ball of sentient smoke that filled half of River's bedroom.

  Chapter 37

  “That's lame, Lang. Can't you shift. . .”

  Tempe

  "What is that thing?" Dylan had shifted back. He must have realized that claws and teeth weren't going to do any good against it. The presence in front of us was thick with malice, growing into the shape of a tall ghostly specter shaped like one of Elvis' witchy singers, only way less fun. The sound it made was like wind coming across a field on a brutally cold night. Dangerous, deadly. It was a spirit but a fae spirit, I thought, not a ghost.

  He grabbed my arm. "Do something," he demanded.

  "Like what? I'm willing to try wind, but I have a feeling neither water nor fire are going to touch that. Its aura is almost completely black. We need to get out of here. I turned, started forward with Dylan but the door slammed shut, cutting off our exit.

  Dylan said, "Buy me some time."

  It advanced toward us so I called the wind, extending my hands out. I'd been correct; the wind had little effect. It might not actually be a ghost but I decided to risk a little electric shock therapy, something ghosts were said to abhor. Sending pulses of power to my fingertips I cast a spray of negatively charged orbs at it. They disappeared inside the swaying phantom like little space ships entering an anti-matter cloud. But nothing bad happened and I momentarily felt a sense of relief. I heard a loud crack behind me and turned to see Dylan pull his foot back through the splintered door.

  "Shootfire, Dylan, do you know how old that door is? I'll never find a replacement…" Zeus, it looked like he and Freddie were working together to wreck my house.

  His eyes widened. "Look out," he shouted, jerking me out of the way just as Smoky spit my own energy back at us. It hit the door and finished the job Dylan started. Dylan didn't waste time on words, just pulled me through the hole and down the hall to the stairway. "Is there a quicker way out than the front door?" But we didn't make it that far.

  At the bottom of the stairs two more of the eerie specters stood guard, one at the end of the hall leading to the kitchen, the other between us and the front door. Again, the black aura. Why hadn't I realized… these were vengeful spirits that traveled in groups, kin to the harpies, known as the Shameful Hour. They preyed on weak creatures like Elvis to gain control over beings they wouldn't normally care about. But why us? We had to avoid touching them or we’d be sucked into that soulless mass and be lost forever.

  "Don't come into contact with them," I said to Dylan. "Shameful Hour."

  "Great. What now?"

  For the first time I noticed the symbols drawn around my door facing with black soot. I pointed at them. "Elvis must have done that while we were upstairs. It wasn't here earlier."

  Pounding came against the front door, making the dark heints jump in unison. "Who is it?" I yelled.

  "It's Jack…me in."

  Dylan yelled, "We've got hostiles—three of 'em. Can you break in?"

  "Wait a second…don't hurt the house, Jack!"

  There was a thump against the door—he was throwing himself against it and each time, our attackers jumped.

  "That's lame, Lang. Can't you shift and push the door in or something?" Dylan called out.

  Not a good idea. Harmony was starting to look a lot like Humpty Dumpty about to take a great fall. Anyway, I didn't think Jack could hear him over the roaring the Shameful Hour were making. All at once, white bolts sparked from their black cloudy depths. Weather I could handle. Maybe.

  "Dylan, watch them." I yelled over the din. "They're producing electrical energy." Well, duh, Tempe. I was fairly sure I could withstand or repel whatever they could dish out but Dylan couldn’t. "Can you lure this one toward the dining room and then get back behind me?"

  He looked dubious. The house shuddered under constant blows of our mid-sized dragon, and the monsters dimmed to a lighter shade of gray. Going pale must be an indicator of distress. That was a positive development. While they were distracted Dylan shifted ad bound through the opening to the dining room. The one nearest the door followed, not through the door exactly but fading through the wall and appearing on the other side. I bit my lip when I couldn't see Dylan. It seemed like forever but was probably a blink of an eye then Dylan slipped around the door and backed toward me.

  I thought from the continued attacks on the outside wall that any second Jack would crash through the side of the house but he didn't. The shivering of timbers told me he wasn't giving up and I shuddered, picturing what he was doing to Harmony's lovely exterior. Two Shamefuls advanced, joined by the third resembling floating black holes. This was what I'd felt in the house all along, and the spell Elvis had woven and Dylan's presence were giving it power.

  "So you're mad, now, huh?" I taunted them. "Stay behind me—" I hissed at Dylan but the "leader", the one that had confronted us first upstairs threw a charge of power at Dylan. I tried to intercept it with one of my own but I was too late. He crashed to the floor, his body jerking and spasming as if he'd been tazed, which of course, he had. Hopefully that was all.

  The door split under Jack's next kick, the point of a giant claw poking through the crack, but the wood held, then the claw withdrew. The evil spell must have created some kind of invisible barrier that even a dragon couldn't get through. That was depressing.

  I heard rhythmic sounds coming from outside, like chanting. I couldn't make out the words but the symbols around the door started to smoke then the markings themselves caught fire
. I watched as one by one each symbol turned to flames and the wood burned around the perimeter of the door. The Hour watched as well, their energy dimming just a little.

  Dylan lay still but at least they weren't focusing on him. "Dylan!" I called to him but it sounded only in my mind as menori responded to the diminishing energy from my opponents. A charge surged from my core through my cells and nerves, and out through skin and bone and tissue. Blue fire crackled along my arms but when I raised them to send a bolt in their direction it felt as if it was blowing back on me, the charge entering my lungs, freezing them.

  Sunlight streamed through the wall in my periphery but some corner of my mind said it couldn't be, because it was night. Then several of the burning symbols merged together and bright beams filled the holes left in the wood. Again, the three dark masses in front of me flinched.

  Come on, sweetheart, grab my hand.

  Jack's voice. Where had that come from? Oh, right, the mindlink I had with Jack, I thought dully, as I automatically extended one hand toward his.

  That's it. Now, give me some of those blue bolts!

  As soon as my hand clasped his, power burst from me in a long strobe-like flash that would have blinded Dylan had he been awake. It went on for several long seconds, the brilliance pulsing, expanding across the floor, through walls and ceiling, into corners and cracks until I sensed that there was no space or crevice left in shadow. I got an image of Harmony from outside, beams of bright light shooting out into the night from every opening.

  I was vaguely aware of the door disappearing, letting in even more of that brilliance and slowly normal sight returned. Shading my eyes, I realized it was Jack sparkling like a zillion stars.

  Chapter 38

  “I’ll get right on that. . .eat him, Jack.”

  Tempe

  I scanned the foyer. Dylan was stirring, the Shameful Hour was gone, and Elvis was stumbling down the stairway. My house felt as clean as a whistle though the front of the house was going to require some repairs. Now I just needed to get Elvis out of it.