Siobhan shrugged. "Maybe they're carrying a grudge? Someone I put behind bars before?"
Abyssinian's expression hardened. "I don't know. And I don't like things I can't puzzle out." He grabbed her hand. "Let's go. We've got about an hour and a half till sunrise."
<><><>
Sacred Harvest was two blocks down from Miracle Mile near Enchantment Place shopping center. The closer they got, the fewer people they came in contact with.
Abyssinian paused at the door. A small sign to the right read "Sacred Harvest Hours" and there were times posted below. "Do you hear anyone inside?"
Siobhan shook her head. There was no other heartbeat. "No."
He opened his right hand, splaying his long fingers wide, and held it over the knob. A soft red glow surrounded the door, and then a familiar click echoed in the alley.
"Neat trick," Siobhan followed him inside.
The place looked like any other doctor's office, with industrial stainless steel sinks, sterile white counter tops, and aged vinyl couches where donors rested and made money while giving their life's blood to sustain the docile life of a vampire. Apparently elves could move easily in the dark as Abyssinian moved with a grace she'd only noticed once or twice with Oberon.
"Why did you break up with him?"
The question was totally unexpected in the dark. Siobhan paused. "What?"
Her companion stopped and looked at her. "Why did you leave him? What—what did he do?"
"Oberon? What did he do?" She gave him a stilted laugh as she held her gun down low. It was easy to laugh now, but two years ago when she and the elven king were partners in not only fighting crime but in the bedroom, she had —for the first time—feared another living creature. "In truth, Aby, I didn't love him. It's hard to love a man—a mortal, vampire or elf—when they're so in love with themselves."
"I like you, Siobhan O'Donnell. You see the truth in most people, and you acknowledge it, no matter how ugly it is. That's rare these days—no matter who or what you are."
He glanced at the front window before leading her into another room. This one was much smaller and filled with shelves of cabinets. The elf had his right hand out, and a small ball of light formed. It grew to the size of a baseball before he tossed it into the air. Sparkling light filled the room's tall ceiling and cast a glow over the two of them. "That'll give us light to see, but it won't alert any sensors."
But Siobhan caught the smell of something else. Something…
Citric.
She had smelled it before—an hour or so earlier. And now she recognized it.
Elven blood.
She put a hand on his shoulder.
He paused. "What's wrong?"
"I smell blood. A lot of it."
"This is a blood bank."
"Well, duh. No, I smell elven blood." She spied a door on the opposite side of the room. Without a glance at her partner, Siobhan moved to the door. It was locked. Two powerful jerks and the mechanism broke under her strength.
The lemony smell of the blood assaulted her when she opened the door. The ball of light started to follow them inside but hesitated and moved away. She could still see with her preternatural sight. In the center of the room lay an examination table, complete with restraining straps. It was smeared with blood. Buckets of it sat in the far corner. Thick, coagulated, black dead blood. Elven blood died quickly once it left the body and became a thick, unpalatable porridge.
"What the hell is this?" Siobhan took a step inside. "Is this someone draining elves? What the hell for?"
"Siobhan," Abyssinian said behind her. She turned to see him kneeling down over a pile of broken glass. He looked up at her. "I think we need to get out of here. Whoever it is found the mirror, and they probably took the recording."
"No," she moved to stand beside him. "The AV transmits packets directly to my FTP. But they're encrypted with a code set by the sender. That way the information is safe."
"Does Oberon know that?"
Siobhan threw him a hard stare. "What has Oberon got to do with this?"
"Nothing. Do you have a way of accessing the packet?"
"Yeah, from the computer in my shop. But I'd need to know what Melissa's code might be."
Abyssinian swallowed. "Try the note—the one Oberon found on the body."
She stared at him. "The danger note?"
"It was for me." Abyssinian said. "Melissa called me a week ago. She was sure she was being followed. And she was certain the people doing this knew I was watching them—"
"Why are you in danger?"
"Because I already know what that recording is going to show, Siobhan. Like I said—I've been looking into this for a while. And let's just say I've pissed off the wrong people. I probably shouldn't have shown up at Mirror, Mirror, but I needed to draw my suspect out. Right now we need to get to your shop and get that packet to a safer place before the murderer does. He's not going to want this kind of evidence out."
Abyssinian turned abruptly as he stood, his eyes narrowing, his sword suddenly in his hand.
Siobhan listened as well, "Someone's coming."
"We tripped an alarm," he moved back out of the secret room. "And I'd say there are a lots of someones."
She followed him out, and the two of them made their way to the back door. Only now three humans blocked it. Two brandished swords, the other one a large book.
"Magicians," Abyssinian hissed, indicating the man with the book, and held his sword at the ready in front of him. He leaned back toward her. "That gun's going to be useless. Can you shift?"
"With pleasure."
In an instant Siobhan slipped into her wolven form, a beast with gray fur and bright silver eyes. Her clothing fell away in pieces as she snarled at the men. They attacked—one sword after Abyssinian, the other after her. It was easy to dodge the sharpened blade in such a small space and as the attacker tried to recover, she twisted around and sank her teeth into his left thigh. He screamed as he fell and tried to twist around to hack at the wolf with his sword.
Another lunge back and Siobhan was able to duck beneath the sword again and sink her fangs into the man's soft side. He lurched and was still.
The clang of swords told her Abyssinian was also engaged in a fight. The air buzzed around her as she felt the tingle of a spell and realized the magician was bringing the dead swordsman back to life beside her.
She moved away from the soon-to-be zombie and charged at the magician, but something kicked her back, slamming her into the wall. Dazed, she reverted back to her human form and sat blinking. Abyssinian parried several moves by his attacker and thrust up, then down, before bringing the sword up in a stroke that cut through the man from his left thigh to his right shoulder.
The new zombie charged the elf, but Aby twisted and cleanly sliced off the monster's head.
The magician began to ,chant again, and the two attackers came back to life again, completely whole.
"That is not sanctioned magic," Siobhan mumbled as Abyssinian bent down to help her. He removed his jacket and handed it to her. It barely covered her enough to avoid public decency laws. She saw he was bleeding along his neck where the attacker's sword had struck. It wasn't fatal, but it could cost him strength if he lost too much blood.
"Are you surprised?" he muttered as he grabbed her arm and pulled her in the opposite direction.
But there were two more swordsmen and another magician at the front and another set in the filing room. With a curse, Siobhan took off toward the only unguarded room.
It was a back office, with an uncovered window facing the eastern sky. The dark was nearly gone, the dawn's colors quickly pushing aside the night's shade. There was no sign of a door or anything else save a single desk and chair. No closet.
"We're trapped."
Siobhan shook her head. "I am, you aren't." She nodded to the window. "In a few minutes I'm going to be a little less than toast. You can break that window and get away."
But Abyssinian was locking t
he door. "I'm not leaving you."
"Why not?"
"Because you have to know a secret. You have to know what it is these people are trying to do." He went to the window and braced himself against the pane. "If the murderer finds the files, if he destroys them, he'll come after you. You're vulnerable during the day, and he's a powerful mage in his own right. " He looked out the window. "There aren't any attackers out there."
"Because they know I won't make it past sunrise."
"But I will." He lowered his sword and leaned against the window. He looked pale in the rising sunlight. "Unless they know I was wounded."
She saw the second hit—a wound in his lower left side. "Abyssinian…" she moved to him, careful not to get her hands in the direct light from the window. He moved closer to her, staggering just a bit. She could only assume the adrenaline that had been pushing him was wearing off, and now his body was reacting to the damage.
The cut on his shoulder was deep, and it looked as if it had nicked the collarbone. Her hand sought out the wound in his side and she gasped when she realized how deep the attacker's sword had cut. He was going to need serious elven medical attention and quickly—and he was going to need to rest. "You're right—once I'm ash, you'll be at their mercy."
"I'm sorry," he said and pressed his back against the far wall. The sword fell to the ground with a clash as he lowered himself down against the wall. "I'm not strong enough. I was manacled…for too long."
"Abyssinian…" she touched his face. His indigo eyes focused on her. "I’m sorry I'm not much help either. Vampires are always painted as invincible and powerful. I wasn't those things even when I was a detective."
He leaned his head back against the wall. The light from the sun—now beginning to stream into the room on their right—illuminated his features. Oberon was beautiful—she would admit that. But it was stagnant beauty, with no character or emotion.
But not his brother. Abyssinian's features were much harsher. Rougher, and yet, kinder. Abyssinian wasn't just beautiful, he was exquisite. He touched her face with his hand. "Do you trust me?"
"Trust you?" She shrugged. "Yes, I trust you."
"Then kiss me."
She blinked at him, aware of the heat radiating from the quickly encroaching sun. “What? “
"Kiss me, Siobhan." He smiled. "Please."
She wanted to kiss him. Had wanted to since she first met him, years ago, a victim of a drug bust gone bad. He'd come from the shadows and cut down her attackers. She'd seen his hair like flame, his eyes the color of amethyst, and he'd introduced himself as the King's nuisance.
Even now as he lost blood, she wanted to kiss him. And before she died…it would be nice to hold him. To be held.
Just once.
But as she came closer to him, she felt his right hand caress the back of her head, and then as she neared his face, he forced her head down, shoving her open mouth onto the wound at his neck and shoulder. "Drink!"
No! She struggled against him, pushing herself away. But he was strong—stronger than he appeared and she felt her stomach growl as her lips and tongue tasted his life's precious nectar.
I can't drink! An elf's blood is poison! He's trying to kill me like this—to save me from a burning death! No!
The thick liquid filled her mouth, and she drank deeply, filling her belly even as the first morning's rays touched her bare hands, and then her arms, warming them. She drank…and drank…
"I loved…you…"
Too late she realized what she was doing—
Abyssinian!
She wrenched her thirst away from his neck. He was bone white, his eyes closed, dark circles beneath them. Siobhan pressed her fingers to his neck. There was no pulse. She yelled out to him, shook him, but his head lolled to one side, his life…gone…
Backing away, she left him on the floor and stood in the full sunlight.
And froze.
Slapping her hands to her face, she waited for the burning to begin as she stood in the light. Instead, it was warm against her skin. Tingling. Siobhan closed her eyes.
Laughter welled from deep inside her chest as she spread her arms wide and drank in a different power. The sun.
Abyssinian…he'd known. He'd known this would happen! How was this possible? Everyone knew that an elf's blood was poison…but was that a lie? Was this the thing that would happen if a vampire drank from an elf?
What a dark and dangerous secret.
Aby had given her a gift—but how long would it last? She had to use it well. She had to discover Melissa and Abyssinian's killer.
And she could do it in the daylight.
<><><>
Walking the Mile in the daylight was different from the night. Darkness hid so many ugly things. Trash, cracks in the pavement, even the ugliness of neon signs with no light.
But to Siobhan, it was all so incredibly beautiful. She stopped in each of the shops along the way, admiring the colors, some faded and washed out, some vibrant in the sun. Early morning risers noticed the half-dressed brunette with the bloodied katana and moved quickly away, or avoided her direction all together.
It was close to eight before she reached her own shop. A yellow and black line of tape blocked the entrance, but she didn't detect anyone inside. Snatching the tape away, she opened the front door with a swift kick.
The body was long gone, as was any remnant of what happened the day before. It wasn't until she ascended her stairs that she saw the destruction wrought on her place. She had been invaded; her possessions tossed aside as the killer looked for what Melissa had stolen.
But they hadn't found the secret room, hidden behind the mirror in her bedroom—though the mirror now lay in a thousand pieces. She tried to sieve through the wall but bumped into it instead. Had she lost her powers? She tried to shift into a wolf.
Nothing happened.
Siobhan ran to the bathroom and looked into the AV mirror.
She looked different. Her skin tanned, her eyes no longer held the sheen of death. How long will this last? Is it permanent? And even if it is—I would give it all back to have Abyssinian with me.
Picking up one of the statues scattered about the floor, she smashed into the thin wall and tore a hole so she could get to her computer. Once through, she logged in and downloaded the packet from Melissa.
She typed in YOU ARE IN DANGER and sat back and watched as three Seleighe—known by their light colored hair—held an UnSeleighe—dark haired and darker skinned—to the table she'd seen in the room and strapped her down. Then a tall, familiar elf entered and began to chant a ritual as the others shoved needles into the restrained elf's arms and neck and drained away her blood.
She'd been wrong. They hadn't used magic.
"It's old magic," came a familiar voice behind her.
She'd been expecting him. The instant she saw his face on the recording. Siobhan stopped the playback and with two clicks sent the packet to a safer place.
She stood and turned inside the small room and stepped through.
Oberon sat on her bed, his hands folded in his lap. His eyes widened when she stood in the streaming sunlight and he moved quickly to his feet. "I see…my brother finally unraveled it."
"Were you trying to create day walking vampires, Oberon?" She was trying to understand everything now.
"I was attempting to create an elixir to allow them to walk in the daylight." He stood and took a step closer to her. "Sell it to the highest bidder. Something even The Prince couldn't resist. Think of the money to be made, Siobhan. No more working as a Chicago cop. No more skimping by—not if I had that kind of power in my hands."
Yep. A demoted king through and through. Can't just live like the rest of us. "Abyssinian figured out what you were doing."
"And he also discovered how to make it work." Oberon swallowed. "Pity. I tried to take that information from him."
"You tortured him. I saw the mark on his wrist."
"Stubborn fool. He'd rather die than help me. Hi
s brother." He snarled as he put a hand to his chest. "The king!"
Siobhan couldn't stop the smirk that crossed her face.
He moved even closer. "Tell me what he did. How did he do this?" He reached out and put a hand on Siobhan's long dark hair. "Was it a spell? Did he use an herb? Some amulet?"
She paused as she watched him, saw the greed in his eyes. The self-absorbed man she'd believed she'd loved once. Should she tell him the truth? That it was the elven blood itself? Could she take Oberon here? Now? Drain him to the point of death…and leave him to die? Perhaps put iron manacles on him?
Something told her…no. Stop. He is death.
Maybe it was something in her eyes, but Oberon took a step back. For the first time she saw fear in his eyes. "Where is Abyssinian?"
She watched him. And smiled, allowing her fangs to slide down below her lip. "He gave me his life—so that I could defeat you."
She turned and took up Abyssinian's katana where she'd left it by the bathroom door.
"You…you drank Aby's blood? Is that it? Is that the secret? Elven blood is poison—was it just his blood? We might not have to kill another UnSeleighe again. We can use your blood to make the serum…whatever he did I can reverse engineer it."
"That's where you're wrong," she said as she held the sword high. Oberon started to stand, but he stumbled against a piece of wood and fell to the ground. Just one swing…one thrust through his cold black heart and Aby's torturer would die.
"Stop!"
Siobhan froze and turned to see a very pale and shaking Abyssinian standing in the doorway to her bedroom. She stepped back, nearly dropping the katana. "You—you're alive!"
Abyssinian held out a shaking, pale hand. "Killing him—isn't the answer. He has to pay…for what he'd done. He should be punished."
"Punished? Me? Never!" Oberon muttered as he started up from where he'd fallen.
Siobhan turned in slow motion to see Oberon pull his gun from inside his suit jacket. He brought it up and aimed it at Abyssinian.
But she reacted with vampiric reflexes, brought the katana up and cleanly cut him off at the knees.
Literally…cut off his knees.
Mirror, Mirror Page 2
