Puzzled, I asked, “Why?”
“Who knows what’s going on around here and I don’t want to keep compelling them,” he declared.
“You had to more than once,” I asked.
Flynn looked over at me, guilt all over the guy’s face. He didn’t like to do the mind wipe thing. “Yeah, look there’s something I need to tell you about Adelina.”
“Morning fellas,” Sara voice called out, preceding her body into the kitchen.
Looking at Flynn to finish, he muttered. “Later.”
“Where are your two stalkers?” she asked. “Scratch that. Only one had the makings of a good stalker. The other well, she a little sweet, a bit naive but she has a wicked side.” Her flirtatious stare was in place as if all that stuff didn’t happen last night and she wasn’t the central cause of it all.
Flynn smiled and it was just us three. Thoughts of unspoken promises drifted into my brain but I knew it was all too late for that. “Tell us Sara, what are you?”
A quick glance at Flynn confirmed he had that same line of thinking. “Why you say that like I’m some alien and not a part of the human race,” she said calmly, exuding virtue.
Moving to the open space that led to the kitchen, Flynn remained near her by the open counter in case she leaped through it into the living room to make a dash to the door. “You’re not human,” I said.
Flynn added, “And you didn’t answer the question.”
“Wow,” she said, spearing a grape with her fork. Apparently, there was yogurt too because she licked it off the grape. “This wasn’t the double team I expected.” She was so casual, I knew despite whatever happened to her twice she was just as deadly as Flynn pondered when we first found her.
A buzz at my back scared the shit out of me, but I managed not to leap in the air like some ninny.
Putting her plate down, she moved towards me and over to the open doors of the utility room. “I bet that would be my clothes.”
She opened the door and I heard her stripping behind me. Flynn moved in my line of sight and I wasn’t sure if I was blocking his view. But the light in his eye said he saw something. “Just keeping an eye on our guest,” he said casually.
“It’s just a body, you can turn around and take in the view,” she said, to me because Flynn was already staring. I turned because it felt like it was a challenge and if she didn’t care, why should I?
My timing was poor because she was pulling her top down by the time I managed to turn fully around. Her jeans were pulled on and were too damn tight and so were things for me.
Licking her lips, she said, “Well, I’d like to thank you guys for your hospitality.” She stepped to me like she wasn’t afraid I’d subdue her. Her lips were warm when they met mine. “Mmm,” she said. “Never in a million years did I expect to kiss an angel boy like yourself.” My brows quirked up and she added, “I caught just enough of the light show to know for sure.”
Stepping over to Flynn, she pressed her mouth to his. “And you sexy boy, you and me, fireworks,” she said using her hands to mime explosions. “And thanks for the whole saving me thing. The both of you. I wouldn’t have ever imaged you two could coexist as friends, weird. There’s something to be said for that bumper sticker.”
Sighing, she stood between us. “But alas, I have to go. I fear, I have brought this whole mess on your heads. My leaving will ensure it doesn’t come back. See ya.”
Flynn and I both were at the ready to grab her but she just poofed out of existence.
“Damn,” Flynn said. “Demon.”
Her disappearance was more than a little disappointing on so many levels. She stirred something in me I hadn’t felt in a while. And she was the sure thing the other girl wasn’t. I had no idea if I had a chance with that girl. This one, Sara, had made her intentions crystal clear. Too bad, somehow I didn’t think she’d be back anytime soon or even ever.
“Yep,” I said shaking my head in agreement. “And that’s not the only thing,” I said pushing thoughts of Sara behind me. I told him about the demon hunters I met in the woods, Gaius and Phebe. I hadn’t even finished before the guy was laughing his ass off which chafed at my nerves. I’d expected it though.
“Yes, my lord,” he said giving me a bow. “Would you like me to polish your shoes or your knob mayhap?”
“Asshole,” I muttered. He kept laughing until the doorbell rang. That shut him up. I was sure it would be Chris.
Chapter Thirteen – Flynn
Luke and I hadn’t formulated a plan but I’d known him long enough that we could work off each other by just glances and subtle gestures.
Opening the door, the shifters filed in one by one. Tamera was last. She gave my hand a quick squeeze before she stood next to her intended, Mike. The guy didn’t deserve her but it wasn’t my business. It was hers and hers alone.
“Chris,” I said. With that, they all sat on and around their fearless leader on the couch. Luke and I stood leaning against the wall on opposite sides of the tv. They were here for our show I was sure of it.
“Did you guys find out anything?” Chris asked. It was always a little weird to watch the shifters sit and not speak unless spoken to. I was grateful every day I wasn’t born a shifter. They seemed to have a system that worked, but reminded me too much of servitude.
Luke took the lead and shared part of the story about what happened after they left which was nothing much. Conveniently, he left out the details of the demon hunters. He did mention them though. “You should be on the lookout for them. But they aren’t dangerous.”
“How do you know that? Chris asked.
“They look as green as grass laid out for pasture,” Luke said. When that didn’t get a response, he added. “Just let me know if you encounter them again and I’ll handle it.”
Chris nodded. “Sure. They whole Christians against demons thing is in your realm. Just remember that shifter business is mine.”
“Agreed,” Luke said. “Hey, I’m going to walk through the woods before we go to make sure they left.”
“Cool, sounds like a plan,” Chris said. “Jo, why don’t you go with him.”
Luke stiffened. Jo was the oddest of the crew. She wore all black and put the capital G in Goth. But her black clothes, nail polish and lipstick weren’t the trappings of a girl crying out for help or rebelling against the world. It was the part she played, scary as all hell. “Luke is good on his own,” I said in his defense.
“I don’t doubt the guy is lethal, I saw him fight first hand. But he doesn’t have the nose. And Jo is the best of us at sniffing the enemy out.”
Looking over to my friend, he gave me the look that he was okay with it so I didn’t say anything else.
Luke pushed away from the wall and headed to the door, dodging the gaming equipment we brought to pass the time. It was just as we’d left it because we hadn’t had time to do anything as harmless as that.
Watching Jo’s eyes framed in heavy black liner, she looked like a bomb ready to blow and silently I wished Luke luck with that one.
The rest of the shifters got to their feet once Chris stood. Walking over to me, we bumped fists before he headed to the door. His girl Melanie opened it and everyone filled out. Tamera held back and shouted she’d catch up with them. That got a growl I didn’t see but knew came from Mike. She simply closed the door.
Moving from the wall, I sat in the single chair. Tamara in her low riding shorts and tank top draped herself over the arm of the chair to look into my eyes. The hazel was a tangle of greens and golds and soul searching. “So Flynn,” she said reaching out a hand to touch me.
With swift movements, I stopped it by holding her wrist. “Tam, don’t. You’re playing with fire.” What I didn’t add was that I didn’t want to get burned.
Pouting, she puckered those sexy pink lips of hers it was becoming hard to deny her. Her need was demanding my attention. Times like this I felt like a slave to the demon within me. That part of me was at the ready to fill her ev
ery desire. “Come on, we’ve messed around before,” she pressed.
“Yeah, before I knew you were mated to some guy for life. If you don’t want part of that lifestyle, stand up to your dad and brother. Don’t use me to piss your boyfriend off.”
Moving closer to me, I could smell the soap she used this morning in a shower. Their noses were better than mine, but the hint of soap still caught my scent. No doubt Mike would be scenting her the moment she got back. If all he did was smell my scent on her wrist, I wouldn’t have to worry about kicking his ass later. “Come on Flynn, I know you want to.”
“Maybe but,” and I was really about to say it. The word just popped from my mouth, “Girlfriend. She wouldn’t be too happy about me being with someone else.”
Pushing back, she said, “You have a girlfriend.”
“Yes,” I said. Technically, I did even though Amanda had given me a free pass this weekend. And really this was a partnership of sorts but I didn’t have to get into that.
Standing up, she looked me over and it was a shame. “That’s too bad then,” she said dragging her nails across the back of my neck as she walked behind me.
“It is, but if you and Mike ever officially break up and I’m not with anyone, who knows,” I said. Why I added that last bit, I had no idea. Being with Tamera had been fun. I hadn’t been with any non-human girls except her. And it was quite the experience.
Heading to the door, I opened it. Smiling she left without trying to touch me. Closing the door, I wondered how Luke was fairing.
Chapter Fourteen – Luke
At first, walking in the woods with the creepy girl was fine. She didn’t bother to speak to me and I didn’t talk to her either. The sounds of the forest creatures filled all the spaces between us. The further in we got, the thicker the trees were choking out the sunlight. All in black like a thief, she began to blend into shadows.
Ignoring her, I just moved through the path headed to the place I last saw the pair of demon slayers. I’d been caught up with thoughts of my father and all the plans he had for me. Not to mention the clashing thoughts of the girl who’d been in our lives for a day yet she left quite the impression. She wasn’t the type of girl I’d bring home to meet my mom. Hell, I’d never brought a girl home to meet my mom. But she was interesting and fun. Then there was the girl at school. The one I knew Flynn was interested in.
My thought ceased when the Jo girl took off in a looping run with her nose in the air. At first I watched her, then I thought she might have caught the scent of the demon slayers so I took off after her not being stealthy either. Catching with her, she had a something pressed close to her chest.
“What is that?’ I dared to ask, breaking the silence between us. When she turned, I saw she held a squirrel. The thing squirmed in her hands looking terrified.
“I don’t know,” she said. “They are so fragile and to think I can shift to make myself just like them.” Her hand twitched and she dropped the thing on the ground and walked away like it was nothing.
My eyes fell upon the guy as it lay on its back twitching. Moving to the spot it now rested, I bent on one knee and placed my hand on the dying creature. A burst of tiny light was all it took to ease the pain of the thing. It rolled and hauled ass in the opposite direction now healed. I didn’t blame it. The whole thing to save its life only took a few seconds. The same amount of time it had taken for her to put its life in jeopardy. Swiftly, I stood and continued to walk but keeping more distance between us.
Not too much longer we stepped into the clearing where the fighting took place just yesterday. Coming up empty on demon slayers, I tried to think of how I could part ways with psycho girl who got off on killing animals. Mind you, she was part of the animal kingdom because she could turn into one. You’d think she’d have a little more respect.
“Hey, why don’t we kill time by a little sparing? I know we are on the same team and all but I wondered what it would be like to fight an angel.”
Creepy girl just went a little too dark for me. “Uh, no, I probably should head back,” I said to no one apparently. When I looked up from the ground trying to think of what else to say, she’d disappeared from my line of sight.
Hell, it looked like she wanted to play no matter if I wanted to or not. Standing still, I tried to separate the noises of the forest from anything unnatural. My vision narrowed time down frame by frame. A leaf that had separated from a tree fell frame by frame as I watched for movement everywhere. A butterfly took flight from a tree to my right. Its yellow against the brown bark of the tree drew my line of sight.
Then a subtle sound, a slight rustle of a twig against the hardened earth and a whip like noise in the wind had me jerking to the left. The shifter girl did a gymnastic move full with back flips and cartwheels to land in my previous position. Extending a leg out like a dance, graceful and all, I spun out of reach just in time. A no-hand flip and she dipped to kick out at my shins. My hand shot out to her throat, not to choke but pushing her out of reach. Falling back, she kicked out and back flipped to land on her feet.
Running full out at me, she changed tactics. I really didn’t like fighting girls. It didn’t matter if they were as strong as I was or not, it just didn’t feel right. So I disappeared this time. Taking flight, she stopped just about where I had been.
“Come out, come out where ever you are?” she crooned.
Okay, that just begged for an answer. “I’m up here.”
Tilting her head back, she looked up at me. I lowered myself to the ground hoping she’d gotten the answer. Too late, she hadn’t.
A jab came at me. I knocked away before her other fist was up and I captured that one. Doing sort of a dance, I blocked her kicks and then more of her punches until it became a little ridiculous how easy it was. She was a fighter yes, but not trained well. These wolves seemed to depend on their animalistic abilities over their human ones.
Finally, she stopped. “Are you done?” I asked flatly.
Breathing hard, she said, “You’re not even tired?”
Shaking my head, she ground her teeth in frustration. “Look, I have to go,” I said and disappeared not waiting for her answer.
She let out a little scream and I watched her stamp her foot until she finally stalked off. Moving in stealth mode going back the direction I came, I took several long moments before I let myself be seen. In the end, I decided maybe airborne would be the best mode of transportation. That Jo still may not have given up.
Chapter Fifteen – Flynn
After a bit of clean up at the house and eating the rest of the breakfast that was left over for lunch, we decided to head back. Luke shared the story about Jo and I laughed at the guy again. He wasn’t pleased which made it even funnier.
In order to keep the guy from going on a bender out of frustration, I called shotgun. And not just for the front seat, but specifically the passenger seat. Laughing again, I watched his jaw tightened because he knew why I’d done it.
“Do you think we’ll ever see Sara again?’ Luke asked.
Scrubbing a hand through my hair, I asked, “I don’t know. Do you want to see her?”
His hands became white knuckles on the steering wheel. “Do you?”
“No, dude, I asked you first,” I said.
“Yeah, I guess. She was interesting,” he said with a slight smile. There were those stars again.
“Uh, huh, interesting how?” I asked. Oh, I knew how interesting the girl was. Her kiss lit a fire in my gut. And that did some wild shit to me, a stupid kiss. And the guy was going to hook up with her if that shit hadn’t gone down.
“She was just different, real in a way I’ve never seen,” he confessed.
“What you liked was that she said what she meant and wasn’t afraid to do so,” I stated, rather than asked.
“Maybe,” he said. But I knew it was true. It’s what I liked about her. Amanda had that too but she wasn’t as “real” as Sara. I wished we would see her again. I could only imagine he
r actually shock me with stuff I didn’t even know about.
The niggling thing at the back of my skull was what the hell she was. Not many things could go disappearing and stuff. Luke could wink out but he was still there. No doors opened of their own accord. So unless she’d hung out all morning, she’d actually disappeared for real. Where did she go and who had been after her? Questions, I wondered if I’d ever get answered.
We didn’t speak for a while both of us caught up in our own thoughts. With my seat angled back, I considered getting a little shut eye. The closer we got back to town, the more I started to feel like a man about to be caged. “Is this what married men go through on their wedding night?” I asked Luke.
No Mercy (Cambions 2.5) Page 7
