by Noree Cosper
Tres stared at me with wide eyes and his mouth agape. “You’d be willing to just destroy a soul like that?”
“As a mercy, yes,” I said.
“Mercy or no, I still want to continue this. Even if there is a chance we can refine it to save human lives and souls. I have to take it.” Jonah’s gaze slid between Tres and Adrian. “Besides, there may be an issue with the Menrazine Ose had injected into the two of you.”
I gasped. Ose had been the first to develop brimstone in the form of a drug. As a devil—an angel that had fallen to Hell—he’d had much more power than most demons. He’d used his power to drive the citizens in the town of Hampton, Texas mad in order to test the drug on them. He’d named that drug Menrazine. From what we’d been able to garner, he’d wanted something to make humans easily possessed. At one point, he’d captured the brothers and had injected them with the drug.
Adrian’s eye narrowed. “Why didn’t you mention this before?”
“It was a small amount and when I studied you after the incident, it appeared inconsequential,” Jonah said. “It may be nothing. Nevertheless, I want this cure in case I am wrong.”
“Fine,” I said. “But finding demons for you can’t get in the way of my hunting Faust. He needs to be taken down.”
“That hasn’t been going so well for you though,” Jonah said.
“That’s because I’ve had to depend on your unreliable daughter.” I glanced at Adrian. “With help, things may change.”
“What about the humans who haven’t been possessed, like Delilah? Don’t they deserve a chance? We’re in the business of saving people, aren’t we?” Tres spread his arms wide.
“No,” Adrian said. “I’m in the business of hunting things.”
“I’m for kicking monster ass,” Marge said. “Besides, it’s her own fault for putting something in her body.”
I sighed. “If you and Jonah want to continue, I don’t have a problem. But, I think our main effort should be focused on getting rid of Faust.”
“And the other demons,” Marge added.
“Right,” I said.
Tres gave a small huff and turned to Esais. “You were the one who always said that we should focus on saving people.”
Esais stood up and straightened the legs of his jeans. “Not everyone should be saved. This city needs to be purged.”
He walked out of the office, pushing past Adrian and me, leaving everyone in a stunned silence. Heat and cold prickled along my scalp at his touch. Something had changed with Esais, and it wasn’t good.
Chapter 14
The stunned silence at Esais’s departure seemed to stretch on before Jonah broke it with the clearing of his throat. Tres sat in Esais’s vacated chair and rubbed his face with his hands. It didn’t remove the look of shock on it.
Jonah directed his gaze at Adrian and me. “Did you at least find a demon suitable for the next test?”
I nodded. “Down in the garage cell.”
“Excellent,” he said. “Tomorrow, I’ll prepare a new batch of the formula. For now, I am heading to my flat for a shower and some rest.”
“What about Delilah?” Tres narrowed his eyes.
“She needs to go back to her own quarters,” Jonah said. “We will do a checkup of her tomorrow.”
Tres’s bottom lip puffed out slightly as he frowned. “But…”
Jonah stood up, slamming his hands on the desk. “No more buts. You’ve already possibly placed her life in danger. We cannot risk her wandering off on her own without knowing the effects. If you wish to assist in this, you will follow my lead.”
Tres seemed to shrink under Jonah’s glare like a child being scolded by their parent. His shoulders slumped as he sat back in the chair with his head bowed. In the end, he just nodded.
“I’ll get Delilah to her room, then,” he said.
With a sigh, he hauled himself out of his chair and lifted the sleeping girl up. He cradled her close and stepped out of the office, muttering under his breath.
“Should one of us follow him in case he decides to make a break for it?” Marge asked.
Jonah shook his head. “Hopefully, he realizes that she’s better off here so we can monitor her progress with the drug.”
“I have some testing and adjustments I want to make on my tracker.” Adrian glanced at me. “If you aren’t too tired, I’d like your help.”
“I can work a few more hours. Years of hunting demons has made me a night owl.” I paused. “I’d like to speak to Jonah first, though.”
“Whatever.” Marge waved her hand and pushed past us. “Sun’s coming up in a few hours. I’d rather be passed out when it does. I’m gonna borrow one of the rooms.”
I sat in Tres’s vacated chair and threaded my fingers together, resting them in my lap. “Have you gotten any information on Irae or Aaron?”
Jonah cleared his throat and pulled a manila folder from a drawer on his desk. “I was able to retrieve a little. Mr. McDonald was easier to find, of course, as he’s established in the city. He does indeed work for a newspaper. The Island Gazette. It is little known and has been struggling for some time.”
“So, he came here looking for a story that could get him and his paper some recognition?” I asked.
“Raina was high profile with her recent promotion as head of Acesco,” Adrian said. “Many have been speculating on her disappearance.”
A chill ran up my spine. “Anything that could lead to us?”
Adrian shook his head. “I made sure it wouldn’t.”
“But Aaron came here,” I said.
“And luckily, or unluckily,” Jonah said, “he’s found a distraction with Esais.”
I sighed. “What about Irae?”
“I am still attempting to find more information. Irae is not her real name, of course. The girl is reluctant to give that information over.”
“She’s dangerous,” I said. “You may try looking for any incidents involving fire.”
Jonah raised an eyebrow.
“She’s pyrokinetic,” I said.
“And unhinged,” Adrian added.
“Very good,” Jonah said. “I will add that to her file. Perhaps my contacts in the Organization can provide some information based on what you told me.”
“How are things going with connecting the other hunters under the Van Helsing Organization?” I asked.
“Many have signed on. They are happy to have legal, medical, and financial support when it’s needed.” Jonah narrowed his gaze at Adrian. “I only wish the boys would be more active in reaching out to the other hunters.”
Adrian gave him a cool smile. “That’s more of Esais and Tres’s area of expertise. However, if any hunter wishes a special weapon, I’m willing to oblige.”
Jonah shook his head with a sigh. “Was that all you wanted to ask?”
“For now,” I said, standing. “You’ll let us know when you find more on Irae?”
“Of course, however her power does concern me.”
“I’ll be watching,” Adrian said. “As much as Esais will allow.”
“Very good,” Jonah said.
Adrian walked out the door and I followed behind him. I hesitated, glancing from the stairwell to the elevator. Adrian grasped my wrist and pulled me towards the elevator.
“One floor,” he said. “Remember.”
I gritted my teeth and followed behind him. I stopped as we stepped into the open space that was the library.
“I should probably get a few books that may help,” I said.
“I’ll wait,” he said.
“You’re not going to let me go on this elevator thing, are you?” I asked.
“No.”
“Bastardo.”
“I think we’ve already established that.” The smirk remained on his face.
With a huff, I gathered several books on different types of supernatural creatures from their places on the shelves. I heaved the stack towards the elevator where Adrian held the doors open. I gu
lped a deep breath and released it before stepping inside. Adrian pushed the button to the third floor. The doors slid shut and the elevator began to ascend. Beads of sweat formed on my forehead as the walls loomed around me in the stark white light. I closed my eyes.
One floor. It would all be over before I could count to ten. I would prove it.
One.
“You know, we’re not going to get to all the creatures tonight,” Adrian said.
Two.
I kept my eyes closed. “I wasn’t sure which one you wanted to start with. I decided to come prepared.”
Three.
“I prefer to start with nephilim.”
That figured after our earlier encounter with Irae. Adrian always saw anything with not normal abilities as a threat. Of course, in Irae’s case, that could well be true. She still hadn’t told me why she’d been in the house I’d first found her in.
Four.
The doors opened with the usual soft ding. I rushed into the hall of the third floor. I leaned against the wall and panted as my heart rate returned from its insane patter to normal. The smell of metal and oil that drifted from Adrian’s workshop actually calmed my heart.
“It’s a wonder how you survive,” Adrian said as he passed me.
“Immortality, remember?”
We walked to Adrian’s workshop and he unlocked it. The door swung open, sending the scent of oil and ozone into the hall. Three long tables were pushed up against the walls that didn’t have the door. Silver glinted in the light from gadgets and weapons in various states of completion that lay on most available surfaces. Papers filled with diagrams and symbols lined the walls like wallpaper.
I’d entered a world of destruction and creation.
Adrian sat in one of the rolling chairs near the back table and waved for me to take another as he pulled out the tracker from his pocket. I set the books on the corner of the nearest table, gently pushing the mechanical bits and pieces closer to the center. I pulled the book that contained information on nephilim to the top and flipped it open. Not that I really needed it yet, but it was good to have for reference.
I glanced at him, letting my gaze linger on the hint of muscles under his shirt. I shook my head. What was I thinking? This was Adrian, of all people.
I cleared my throat. “What do you want to know first?”
“Let’s start with where nephilim come from. Is it some sort of deal with demons or other spirits?”
“Not exactly,” I said. “A nephilim is the child of at least one emissary. So, I mean the emissary might have made a deal, but the nephilim didn’t.”
“How is that possible if the bond between the spirits and the emissary aren’t corporeal?”
“The bond changes the emissary physically,” I said. “Like Tres’s ability affects him physically. It causes him pain if he heals too much without harming someone.”
Adrian grimaced at the mention of Tres and leaned forward to unscrew the back of the tracker. “The bonding must change the DNA, somehow. All right, so nephilim are born with their powers. What do you see when you look at them?”
I leaned back and stared up at a diagram of a binding symbol on his wall. Adrian had combined it with another symbol to create something he could inscribe on weapons to destroy demons.
“Most of the time I see glittering halos and horns. They’re the most common. A few times I’ve seen something different. Like glittering wings on someone’s back,” I said.
Adrian muttered something and adjusted the tracker with a small screwdriver. “So, the most common would be connected to what we consider angels or demons?”
“I believe so.” I flipped through the book. “This claims that the nephilim were the children of angels… both fallen and those still held in God’s love.”
“Hmmph, a lot of poetic nonsense,” he said. “What do you see with the nephilim we know?”
“Viktor, Aaron, and Irae all have halos,” I said. “Lucy has horns.”
Adrian’s mouth thinned into a line.
“Just because she’s born with it doesn’t mean it dictates her personality.”
“This is Lucy we’re talking about,” he said.
“And she’s always been there for your family when you needed her,” I said.
“Not so much for you lately.”
I shrugged and picked up a tiny metal ball bearing from the table. I rolled it along my fingers and stole a glance at him. He looked up and our gazes met. I shivered as a tingle of electricity passed through me.
“What do you feel about what Esais said tonight?” I asked. “It doesn’t seem like him, does it?”
“It seems he’s grown up a bit.” Adrian turned back to working on the tracker. “It’s sad, but the world isn’t idealistic like he’d hoped.”
“Maybe it’s something more,” I said. “I think maybe is has something to do with Aaron and Irae.”
“Irae seems to have more influence over him than either of us want,” Adrian said with a sigh. “Your theory could be right. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”
I nodded and rubbed my eyes as a wave of exhaustion hit me. I stifled a yawn and blinked several times.
“You should get some sleep in one of the rooms down the hall,” Adrian said.
“What about the tracker?”
“I think I have all I need from you for now. I need to make adjustments and that is going to take time.”
“Fine,” I said with a small wave before standing. “I want to see how it works tomorrow.”
I trailed my hand on the wall as I trudged to one of the empty rooms, feeling the rough texture of the paint. I slid into the bed and pulled the covers over my head in order to muffle the sounds of Marge’s snoring. As I drifted off to sleep, the sight of Irae standing over the body of the demon played in my mind. The girl was dangerous and I had brought her to our doorstep.
Chapter 15
The sun sets as Dimitri and I walk through the cemetery. We are in the newer section where the engravings are fresh and the stones still shine. The smell of fresh cut grass hangs in the air and mixes with moist upturned earth.
“So, why are we hunting at night?” I ask. “Don’t vampires rest in the day?”
“It looks like I’ve become the teacher.” He chuckles.
I give him a look.
“For the most part, yes, but they can be active in the day. They just have no powers,” he says. “This is a new one. I want to catch her on her first time rising.”
“Oh. Wait, she was buried?”
Images of my time trapped in a coffin flash through my mind. My breath catches in my throat and I have to stop walking for a moment. I focus on the grave in front of me. The name on the headstone blurs and shifts into a language of broad strokes and square letters. Dimitri pauses and takes my hand, squeezing it. I blink and the name is normal.
“This is something I wanted you to see,” he says.
He pulls me along to a fresh grave. The black dirt stands out from the green of the lawn. He pulls out a wooden stake and holds it out to me.
“Really?” I ask.
“We all have to start sometime.”
The moon hangs high in the sky, illuminating on the one grave. The dirt begins to grow darker, taking on a mud-like quality. Liquid pulls itself up from the dirt and slides along the ground. I gasp, my eyes widening. The liquid rises up and splits. Two legs form, then hips and a waist. The coppery smell of blood fills my nostrils. The figure of a woman finishes forming. The dark color is replaced by the paleness of flesh, alabaster in the moonlight. She stands, runs a hand through her hair, and scans the graveyard. Her gaze falls on me. She smiles.
Dimitri leaps at her from behind and knocks her to the ground, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She screams, twisting in his arms. He rolls on his back, taking her with him so that her chest is in the air.
“Now,” he says.
I jam the stake in her chest, but it goes in at an angle, catching her in her right breast. Damn, I miss
ed. I yank the stake out, stumbling backwards. She flies at me. I pull out my sword and slice through her neck. She falls to the ground, reverting to a pool of blood.
I flick the blood off the blade and chuckle. “I think I’ll stick with the sword.”
Dimitri gets to his feet, laughing. “Not what I had in mind, but it works.”
The night fills with the ringing of bells.
“Get out of my head,” Marge’s voice bounced along the walls, jarring me from my dream.
I jerked up in the bed, pushing the tangle of bedsheets off me. Marge’s voice had seemed so close, almost as if it had been in the room. I looked around, but it was empty. Hallway, then. What was she pissed about this time?
With a groan, I dragged myself out of the bed and onto my feet. I paused at the doorway, staring blearily down the hall. Exhaustion pressed down on me. I’d had too much action and very little sleep in the last twenty-four hours. Leave it to Marge to mess everything up.
“I don’t care what reason you have,” she said from two doors down. “I’m not your family. You have no right to read my thoughts.”
There was a low murmur in response. I moved down the hall to the middle makeshift bedroom. Esais sat on the bed with the pillows resting against the walls and a stack of books on the nightstand. One book lay open across the blanket. Marge stood in the middle of the room with her shoulders hunched and fists clenched. Her face was scrunched up in a deep scowl.
“That is bullshit and you know it,” she said. “It’s happened every time I’ve been here.”
“What’s going on?” I asked.
She glanced back my direction and gave a slight nod before turning back to Esais.
“Marge thinks I’ve been invading her mind,” Esais said with a nervous laugh.
“Not think,” Marge said. “Yesterday I heard you call me a sinner in my head. No one else can do that.”
“Are you sure you didn’t imagine it?” Esais asked. “Maybe as some sort of guilt.”
