by Noree Cosper
“What happened?” he asked.
“I found her being attacked by a demon who wasn’t Faust. Unfortunately,” I said.
“Does she need rehabilitation?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. I didn’t see any signs, but she’s a nephilim.”
He moved closer to her, his expression softening to almost a protective look. He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. “You needn’t wander anymore. You have found your flock.”
“Since when have we added the nephilim to our list of squatters?” Adrian asked. “We are not a charitable organization.”
Esais narrowed his eyes at him. “We swore an oath to protect humanity.”
“It’s debatable that these are human.”
“What about Lucy? Or Viktor?”
“We know Lucy, and your affection aside, Viktor seems to have his own home.” Adrian waved a hand in the girl’s direction. “We don’t even know her name, much less what she can do.”
I threw my hands up and looked at Tres. “Is she going to come around soon, or do I have to listen to them argue all night?”
He chuckled as he continued to examine the girl on the table. “You should be used to it by now.”
“How about you call me when she wakes up?” I said.
I turned, without waiting for him to respond. As I passed between Esais and Adrian, a chilling presence filled my mind. I stumbled forward with a loud gasp. Adrian caught me around my waist before I plowed headlong into the ceiling-to-floor glass panes that separated the clinic from the foyer. The shadow in my mind slipped through my memories of the last few hours, pulling them forward with enough strength I could smell the wet mildew of the abandoned house. I stiffened, stepping away from Adrian, and turned my narrowed eyes to Esais, the telepath, and only person capable of reading my thoughts.
“Are you in my head again?” I asked through clenched teeth.
Esais let out a loud sigh. “We’ve been through this. I don’t go through your thoughts on a whim.”
I crossed my arms and lowered my chin to level a glare at him. “What about when you read my mind that time at the warehouse, after Marge got hurt?”
“I needed to know what happened quickly.” He gave a soft chuckle, his gaze flashing to his brothers, before returning to me. “I think you’re imagining things again.”
“Strange how I only imagine this around you,” I said.
He opened his mouth for a comeback, but Tres flicked his hand in a quieting motion.
The girl turned her head from him and blinked at us with bleary eyes. She swallowed hard and propped herself up on her elbows as her gaze traveled over Adrian and me before stopping on Esais. She jumped when Tres touched her shoulder.
“You’re safe here,” he said. “You don’t have to be afraid.”
“I’m not,” she said in a husky voice as she glanced at Esais again.
He smiled and stepped forward, taking her hand in his. “I’m Esais. These are my brothers Adrian and Tres. The little angry woman at the door is Gabby.”
She cleared her throat. “I’m Irae.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Irae,” he said.
“Do you remember how I found you earlier? With the demon?” I stepped closer to her.
She nodded slowly as a shudder passed through her. “I couldn’t move, but you destroyed the vile abomination.”
I raised a brow at the strange choice of words. “Right. Can you tell me how you got there?”
“I really don’t remember.” She glanced to the floor and pressed her lips together.
Esais patted her hand. “She’s had a trying experience. Let’s let her rest for now.”
“Since you’re awake and don’t have anything useful, how about I call you a cab?” Adrian pulled out his cell phone.
Irae sat up, wrapping her arms around herself. “I don’t have any money. I can just walk.”
“I don’t want you walking in your condition,” Tres said. “You should at least stay for the night.”
“You can stay as long as you want,” Esais said, shooting Adrian a dark look.
“We’re becoming a homeless shelter,” Adrian muttered and walked out the door.
“Looks like my job is done and you’re in better hands than mine.” I tried to give Irae a warm smile, but it didn’t reach the ice flowing in my veins. “Maybe we can talk another time about what happened tonight.”
Irae leaned closer to Esais with a slight nod. He moved in front of her slightly as if to shield her and his eyes paled to almost white as he looked at me with a gaze that promised pain.
Chapter 3
In the daytime, I would never board the subway with the throng of people. However, in the wee hours of the morning, my only fellow passengers were an old, Hispanic woman and a middle-aged, black man. A quick spirit glance told me that neither were possessed, just tired and ready to be home. That I could relate to. I leaned my head against the window and tried not the think about the fact the doors were sealed shut on the metal box, hundreds of feet underground.
The train screeched to a halt and a small bell rang, indicating my stop. The doors slid open, and I stepped into the platform and headed up the stairs to the city streets. I pulled my jacket tighter around me as a cold breeze hit me. Despite the predawn hours, several businesses were open, their lights showing on the wet parking lot. The cold had stripped away most of the stench of exhaust that filled the air in the day.
I sprinted across the street and didn’t stop until I was inside my apartment. I let out a sigh and glanced around my living room. Everything appeared in place. Time for my nightly routine.
I walked through every room, checking each corner for the metallic symbols I had painted in the corners of the walls when first moving in. All were intact if not fading a little. I’d have to touch them up soon. The sigils were devils’ traps that kept the demons and devils from getting in. Really important for a demon hunter who wanted to get some sleep at some point. Like now.
My shoulders slumped as exhaustion came crashing through me. I rested my head on the doorframe between the bedroom and the bathroom and blinked away the blurriness. My bed invited me to fall into it, but I needed to wash the truaco dust off first. Despite my fatigue, I didn’t want to sleep in demon dust.
After a quick shower, I trudged to my bed, flopped into it, and pulled the oversized comforter over my head, sighing at its warm cotton welcome. I drifted off in seconds.
The double doors of the manor open inward. I step into the parlor, taking in the rich view that surrounds me. A double staircase made of mahogany curves up, leading to the second story. The floor is made of white marble. Two large windows shine light down on me.
“Bella,” I say.
“I know.” Dimitri Van Helsing wraps his arms around me from behind. “My father, Abraham had it built after he defeated Dracula. He said he wanted a place to watch for more fiends. They are numerous in this area. I think my mother had something to do with it. He met her here in the local village.”
I lean against him, resting my head on his shoulder with a smile.
“And now it will be your home,” Dimitri says.
“Not yet.”
He turns me to face him. “You’re worried about this Allegra. Don’t. You have a Van Helsing at your side. We will end this curse.”
I take his hand. “Together we can do anything.”
“Come. There is more to see.”
The colors fade to a smoky gray and the world blurs. I blink and find myself standing in a huge library. It takes up two stories with a staircase of its own. Books line the shelves from the vaulted ceiling to the burgundy carpet. On the wall before me is an embossed depiction of a tree with many branches. In the middle of the tree is a crest of a shield behind two crossing swords and an intricate metal cross.
“Our family tree,” Dimitri says. “It’s mostly empty now, but my father foresaw many generations.”
“But it’s not.” I lean closer, reading
the names on the branches.
The top is Abraham and his wife. Below them, of course, is Dimitri. The name beside his is blurred but they give birth to Alexander who has Andrei. He and his wife Marusca have Adam, Esais, Adrian, and Tres. I take a step back, shaking my head. That’s not right. Not yet. The names blur and shift until they are symbols. One looks like two curved swords while another looks like a backwards seven with a loop on its edge. Dimitri touches the plaque in the center of the crest. I blink and the names are normal again.
“Our blood oath. Each boy is supposed to swear to it,” he says. “We, the chosen of archangel Michael, do pledge on this day the 1st of January 1890 year of our lord, to become the protectors of mankind.”
I read the next words. “We take this oath, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, that from inhuman monsters shall we safeguard humanity.” I smile at the next line. “From demons and any other dark spirits shall we protect the innocent.”
“From those who traffic with devils shall we extract the vengeance of the Lord,” he says.
“From all vice kind who would desecrate or pervert Creation shall we preserve the Holy Spirit.”
“Let our vow be written in blood and soul, for powerful servants unto the Lord shall we be,” he ends, his voice triumphant.
“You were telling the truth about your family being tasked.” I grin at him.
He laughs and takes my hand again and the world begins to fade to black.
“Come meet my Uncle Jonathon and his daughter Lucy,” are his last words.
The sunlight streamed through my window along with the rumble of motors from the street two stories below. I groaned and rubbed my face, rolling over on my side. I pulled the cover over my head and closed my eyes, determined to drift back into sleep. For once, my dreams were better than the frozen morning that waited for me.
Sleep and dreams of Dimitri eluded me as John’s lifeless face flashed through my mind. With a groan, I flipped the blanket away from me and sat up. I couldn’t sleep my life away while Faust roamed freely. For what he had done to John, Faust would feel my wrath. Just as soon as I could find him.
Chapter 4
I arrived at the office a few hours later with one goal in mind: to find Lucy and get Faust’s location. Despite Faust’s continued efforts to elude us, Lucy was still my best option at finding him. None of my contacts had been able to turn up any new leads. Faust had been jumping from body to boy, and with his ability to possess even demons, it made things more difficult.
The door shut behind me, muting the sound of the wind and street traffic. I blinked as the foyer wasn’t as empty as I was expecting it to be.
Jonah stood in front of the elevator with his arms crossed over his pressed and fitted suit. Despite the wrinkles that hung around his eyes and mouth, his face still held a youthful air. It had remained almost the same since the day I’d met him almost a century ago. A disdainful glare hung on that face as he looked down his nose at a thin man with his back to me.
Jonah glanced my direction and the sour look faded, replaced by a smile that hovered on his lips and in his eyes. His slight nod at me gained the attention of the man and he turned in my direction. Recognition wriggled at the back of my mind though I couldn’t say from where I’d met him. His skin was pasty, and his sunken eyes stood out against the protruding cheekbones and gaunt cheeks. His brown hair hung in a mess of curls around his head and brushed the bottoms of his ear. His grin turned into a leer as his gaze swept over my body.
“Gabby,” he said. “What a pleasant surprise. Here I was expecting to speak to the old man.”
With a raised eyebrow, I stepped closer to the two of them. “And you are?”
His smile faltered before reappearing. “I’m hurt. You don’t remember me? Well, I guess I can forgive you since we only met for a few moments. We met briefly about a month ago. I think you claimed to be John Roda’s journalist assistant.”
My heart tightened at the mention of John’s name and I swallowed. “I think I remember. At the Acesco conference, correct? It’s good to see you again…” I trailed off as his name didn’t come to mind.
“Aaron,” he said. “Aaron McDonald.”
His outstretched hand sent a small shock of memory. Right. He’d been the one to shake my hand too long. I didn’t waste time in his grip this time and pulled my hand from him as soon as possible.
“I’m sorry to hear about John, by the way,” Aaron said. “A real loss.”
“Thank you.” The tightness increased and I sucked in a deep breath. This was one subject I didn’t want to discuss. “What brings you to the office?”
“What indeed?” Aaron asked.
Jonah cleared his throat. “Mr. McDonald is interested in the exact nature of our business.”
“Oh.” I glanced back at Aaron with a raised eyebrow.
“Well, I’d heard some things, and I came to investigate, as you know, reporters like to do.”
I shifted to my spirit sight and studied him for a moment. Colors swirled around him, conveying emotions of excitement and suspicion. However, the gold glittering in the shape of the halo above his head stood out the most. I blinked, but then schooled myself to keep the surprise from my face. He was a nephilim. How had I missed this before? I must not have looked. He’d only been a random reporter at the conference and I’d been more focused on finding the demon responsible for the brimstone drug.
“I’m sure Jonah has told you we are a private investigation team,” I said.
A triumphant gleam flickered in Aaron’s eyes. “So, you admit you’re not a reporter.”
“I don’t believe I ever said I was,” I said. “I have taken what John taught me and put it to use here.”
“And just what do you investigate?” Aaron asked.
“As I said before,” Jonah cut in, “we have a very special list of clients that we handle delicate cases for.”
Aaron took a pad out and scribbled something on it. “I couldn’t by chance get the names of some of the special clients?”
Jonah’s cheek twitched. “That’s confidential.”
“Why exactly are you investigating us?” I crossed my arms. “I doubt we have very little of interest to the public.”
“Something tells me that’s not true,” Aaron said.
I opened my mouth to reply, but the elevator dinged behind Jonah, distracting me. The doors slid open and Esais stepped out. He stopped short and looked at the three of us with wide eyes behind his glasses. A boyish smile appeared on his lips.
“I didn’t know we had a visitor,” Esais said. “Is he a new client?”
I studied him with narrowed eyes. Esais should have been able to sense someone who wasn’t us with his telepathy. Was this just a ruse for Aaron?
Aaron stepped forward. “Aaron McDonald. I’m a journalist. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Esais took his hand. “Esais Van Helsing.”
“Like in Dracula?” Aaron laughed. “I never knew there was actually someone with that last name.”
“Well read, I see,” Esais chuckled. “Yeah, Stoker kind of took our name and made a crazy story with it.”
“Well, I am a journalist,” Aaron said.
“You still haven’t told us you interest for investigating our business,” Jonah said.
“Actually it’s because of her.” Aaron nodded in my direction. “I’m looking into the link between John Roda’s death and the disappearance of Raina Benson.”
Mt heart fluttered. My eyes widened with the look of intrigue I put on. “She’s missing? I hadn’t heard that.”
Raina had been a vampire working for the Acesco corporation. They had been responsible for creating a version of brimstone that they planned to sell as a diet supplement. Adrian and I had been able to stop it and kill her. It looked like the company had covered it as a disappearance.
Aaron nodded. “Her assistant was found dead, but there was no trace of her.”
The assistant he was ta
lking about had to have been the body Faust had possessed while supplying brimstone to Raina. He’d managed to escape me that time as with all the others.
“I’m not sure what her disappearance has to do with John or me,” I said.
Aaron shrugged. “Let’s just call it a hunch. So, I tracked you down. And here we are at this business. What was it you do again?”
“Private Investigations,” I said, trying not to clench my teeth.
Esais moved closer to Aaron and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Mr. McDonald, while Mr. Roda was a liaison for us, Gabby had nothing to do with Raina. She was merely doing a favor for her friend.”
Aaron’s eyes took on a glassy look as his gaze locked with Esais’s. “Interesting.”
“How about I show you around? We can go to lunch and I can tell you more about what we do here,” Esais said.
“That would be wonderful,” Aaron said with a reverent tone.
Aaron and Esais strolled through the opening elevator doors, chatting like they were old friends. I shook my head. Leave it to Esais and his telepathy to smooth out any suspicious reporters.
“Should he really be giving him a tour?” I asked.
“He won’t show anything we don’t want known. Esais will see to that as he does with any police questions,” Jonah said. “I haven’t seen you in a while.”
“I’ve been busy,” I crossed my arms and glanced around the foyer. “Have you seen Lucy?”
“Not today.” Jonah stroked his beard. “Your demon killing spree isn’t going to ease the pain. You need to mourn.”
I gritted my teeth. “I’ll mourn when Faust is dead.”
Jonah sighed and took my hand. “It’s just that I worry about you.”
I gave him a ghost of a smile. “I’ll be fine. I’ve been taking care of myself for five hundred years.”
