by E.J. Stevens
I let out a heavy sigh and wondered if this was how Achilles felt when Paris shot that poisoned arrow into his heel. It sucks having a weak spot.
I closed my eyes and tilted my head back against the couch that Darryl had let me sprawl out and bleed on in the archives. I’d have to get Darryl a thank you card. Did they make Braille thank you cards? I’d have to find out.
My head spun and my side burned, so I remained still except for the rise and fall of my chest. Right now, even that hurt. Some of my stitches had opened, and I was dehydrated from running around in fifty pounds of armor, but I hadn’t let them bring me to the infirmary. I wasn’t ready to face the doctor’s empty desk chair, not yet.
Plus, if Chad woke up right now, I was likely to bash his face in. I was tired and cranky and in no mood for insults and lectures. Getting dressed-down by Master Peeters was bad enough.
“You should get some sleep, love,” Ash said.
The couch shifted as he sat next to me. I wasn’t sure how that worked. Sometimes Ash could float through walls, and other times he was as solid as the books in this archive.
I’d lived with ghosts my whole life. I thought I’d known the rules that governed them, but Ash changed all that, and my head hurt too much to figure it out.
What I did know was that Ash hadn’t left my side all day and long into the night.
“I can’t,” I said, forcing a grin and opening my eyes. “I have one more call to make.”
“Just one?” he asked. “Somehow I doubt that, love.”
I’d been making calls all day, so he had every right to be suspicious. But this time I meant it. I was nearly done for the night. Sleep was calling like a mermaid ready to pull me under the waves, and I was ready to let it.
“Just the one, I promise,” I said, stifling a yawn.
Ash winked.
“I’ll hold you to that,” he said.
Chapter 51
“It’s just us Hunters against the monsters, as it always has been, as it always will be.”
-Niall Janus, Master Hunter
It was only one phone call, but it was over an hour before I was free to get any sleep. Master Janus was in another time zone, not that it would have mattered if he was as exhausted as I was. We had a lot to discuss, all of it important.
Master Janus was a powerful Guild master, but more importantly, I trusted him. I also respected his opinion. If he believed that my actions warranted punishment, then I would bow before Master Peeters and request an inquiry by the council of elders.
I’m sure Chadwick would love to see that. He’d probably sell tickets and save a front row seat for himself. I swallowed hard and pushed on, keeping my voice steady.
“Martens died of the wound I knowingly inflicted with my own blade,” I said, finishing my report.
“And the wee bairn, Clara Martens?” he asked.
“I sent men to guard her, not that I had the authority,” I said. “Master Peeters wasn’t too happy about that. He’s pretty angry about a lot of things I’ve done. But the girl is safe, for now.”
“And why did you not go through the proper channels to assign guards to the girl?” he asked.
I stifled a yawn. I probably should come up with some flowery excuse, but I was too tired to make something up, and I’ve never been good at lying. Plus, Master Janus had a knack for seeing the truth of a thing. It was part of what made him such an effective Guild master.
“There was no time to file paperwork and wait for a hearing,” I said. “I believed that the girl was in imminent danger. The Hunters I sent to guard her can confirm that a strike team of vampires bearing the mark of House Capet tried to enter the boarding school at nineteen hundred hours local time. But that doesn’t excuse what I did. I broke the rules, and I did so knowingly and of my own volition.”
It was true. A dozen vamps with fleur-de-lis tattoos had made their move on Clara’s school just after dusk. The Hunters had staked and killed every one of Philip’s vampires, preventing injury to the children and the school’s staff. I didn’t regret my decision to send those Hunters to Clara’s boarding school, but I’d broken the rules to do so. I would live with the repercussions.
“You did a risk assessment and made a decision,” he said. “In the heat of battle and with the blood of a fallen Hunter on your hands, I might add.”
I stared at my free hand, wondering if I’d ever feel clean.
“Yes, his blood is on my hands,” I said. “I accept whatever punishment you, Master Peeters, and the council see fit.”
“Don’t be daft, Lehane,” he said, voice gruff.
I sat up, his voice pulling me up straight.
“Sir?” I asked.
“There will be no punishment, so stop your havering,” he said, his words becoming thick with his native Scottish brogue. He was definitely annoyed with me. “You’ve proven yourself, lass. What you’ve done wasn’t easy, but you never shirked your duty. You saved the life of a child you felt was in your charge, and you saved countless more by taking down Dampierre and preventing Philip from stealing a relic of great power. I’m proud of you.”
Sobs burst from me with a gasping breath and big, ugly tears ran down my cheeks in waves. I’d been holding so much inside while I made phone calls and met with Darryl, Ash, and Zarkhov. I’d stayed busy issuing orders and checking status reports. But those four words from Master Janus broke through my defenses, shattering the last shreds of my control.
I’m proud of you.
I couldn’t see how my mentor could possibly be proud of me, but the words held value all the same. Master Janus was a skilled Hunter and a venerable leader, but he rarely gave praise. I hoarded his words, greedily drawing them inside myself for days like today when I needed a reminder of how winning can feel like failure.
I had a nagging suspicion that this was one lesson that would bear repeating. As Jonathan used to remind me, I have an incredibly thick skull for such a tiny human.
“Thank you, sir,” I said, when the sobbing subsided. I kept my voice low, not trusting that my crying jag was over.
“Don’t thank me yet, lass,” he said, sighing heavily. “You might wish I’d stripped you of your rank and knocked you down to novice by the time this is over.”
I scraped a hand through my hair and let out a shaky breath. I didn’t like the sound of that.
“What do you need me to do?” I asked.
I would do whatever Master Janus asked of me, and he knew it. For the first time, I wondered if he regretted that kind of power. It couldn’t be easy, sending young Hunters to their deaths. Did he stare at his hands wondering if they would ever feel clean again? If so, we now had something in common.
“This is in confidence,” he said, voice going hard. A chill ran along my spine at his tone. “There’s a time and a place for bending rules, Lehane, but this isn’t one of them. What I am about to tell you cannot pass the walls of the Guild.”
“For Hunter ears only,” I said. “Got it.”
“There is a war on the horizon, lass,” he said.
I swallowed hard. That wasn’t exactly news to me. Some of the Hunters here in Belgium knew of the coming war, and I’d overheard Master Janus and another man saying as much before I’d left Harborsmouth. Would it count that I’d passed that information along to my friend Ivy Granger before Master Janus told me not too? I didn’t think I’d be that lucky. Hopefully, Ivy was careful with what I’d shared with her.
Of course, I hadn’t had much choice but tell her about the coming war. From what I’d overheard, the opening battle would likely take place in Harborsmouth. With the Guild sending me off to Europe, there was no guarantee I’d be there for the coming fight. That meant someone needed to start preparations for the war, and the psychic detective had proven herself a hero.
Ivy Granger had defended Harborsmouth against an each uisge invasion. She would do whatever was necessary to protect her city in the coming war. Ivy might be half-fae, but I trusted her with this implicitly
. But I didn’t think Master Janus would share my opinion of the wisp princess, so I kept my transgression to myself.
“Yes, sir,” I said.
“The supernaturals, the fae and the undead, are amassing their troops,” he said. He paused, and I held my breath. “Military might is not the only thing to fear from the supernaturals. Their magic is also formidable, and they have found a new way to amplify that strength.”
“How?” I asked.
I knew that a handful of witches would stand with the fae and the undead, but I didn’t think that was what Janus was getting at.
“They are gathering objects of power,” he said.
My blood ran to ice in my veins.
“Like the Holy Blood,” I said.
“Aye,” he said.
“How many magic items have gone missing?” I asked.
“More than a dozen, so far,” he said. “Probably more that we don’t know about.”
“Athena save us all,” I said.
“We can’t leave this to the gods, lass,” he said. “It’s just us Hunters against the monsters, as it always has been, as it always will be.”
I didn’t completely agree with Janus. There have always been those, human or supernatural, who would stand with us. But I didn’t correct him. Now was not the time for debate.
“What do you need me to do?” I asked.
“Assemble your team,” he said. “Choose from the Hunters you’ve worked with in Bruges, the ones you trust.”
“What about Master Peeters?” I asked. “These Hunters are under his leadership.”
“Leave Peeters to me,” he said. “You worry about your team, and your mission.”
“And what is the mission?” I asked.
“Chase down those relics,” he said. “Get them back, and keep more from going missing. We can’t have those relics in the hands of the enemy. And don’t forget, lass, that this is war. You’re authorized to use all necessary force.”
I bit my lip, considering what Master Janus proposed. The Guild was giving me a whole lot of latitude for this mission, and one hell of a lot of responsibility. I was pretty sure that I’d just received a promotion.
Janus was right, I’d rather they dish out a punishment.
“So you want me to lead a team to protect and retrieve objects of power that the rogue supes have targeted,” I said.
“Aye,” he said. “I’ll text you a current list. So far, they are focusing their efforts on Europe, but it won’t be long before we have a similar crisis over here, and in Asia, Africa, and South America.”
“They’re starting where there’s the highest concentration of magical objects, aren’t they?” I asked.
“It would appear so,” he said. “Though our relations with the Asian branch of the Guild have been strained over recent decades. They may not be jumping at the chance to admit to what they’d see as a sign of weakness. They may already be missing such relics as well.”
“You want me to stay in Europe, and focus on the locations on your list?” I asked.
“Aye,” he said. “Asia and Africa will likely assemble their own teams. Your job is to stick to Europe, for now. Though we may see you back on American soil, before this is over.”
The Hunters’ Guild needed me in Europe. My lips lifted in a grin. Philip and I had unfinished business. If I could take the vampire master down while completing my mission for the Guild, I’d be one happy Hunter.
“Have any relics gone missing in or around Paris?” I asked.
I crossed my fingers and held my breath.
“Aye, as a matter of fact, one went missing from the Louvre this morning,” he said. “I just got the report.”
I nodded. Master Janus may not have faith in the gods, but that didn’t mean they didn’t award favors every once in awhile.
“Good,” I said. “I’m going after Philip, the vampire master of House Capet. While I’m in Paris, I’ll look into your missing relic.”
“Philip is not your primary mission, Lehane, not unless he’s the one behind the heist,” he said. “You’d do well to remember that.”
“Yes, sir,” I said.
I smiled. He didn’t say I couldn’t go after the bloodsucking bastard, just that I had to find the missing relic. I was a Hunter, which meant that I was good at multitasking. I would take care of both.
“Have your team ready to take the bullet train from Brussels to Paris day after tomorrow,” he said. “That’ll give you time to make preparations and read through what intel we’ve assembled.”
It also meant I’d be able to attend Martens’ funeral. A day and a half wasn’t a lot of time, but it was good enough.
“We’ll be there,” I said.
“Good,” he said. “I’m sending Jonathan Baldwin. He’ll rendezvous with you in Brussels.”
“You’re sending Jonathan?” I squeaked.
I hadn’t expected Master Janus to send Jonathan, not that anything should surprise me at this point. I was being put in charge of a team of Hunters to protect and retrieve magic relics that had the potential to become weapons—weapons that our enemies would use against us in the coming war. But sending my werewolf roommate, the one who still had a crush on me the size of Texas, was a complication. I wasn’t sure how I felt about having him at my back.
“Don’t worry, lass,” he said. “Jonathan’s coming as a member of your team, not to usurp control. You’ve demonstrated an ability to lead. I have faith in you.”
“Yes, sir,” I said. “Thank you, sir.”
“Good hunting,” he said. “Good luck.”
Janus ended the call, and I took a deep, steadying breath. I was going to lead a blind archivist, a forgetful, drug addicted witch, a thrill seeking, one-armed demolitions expert, a lovesick werewolf, and a flirtatious ghost into the city of an ancient vampire, a former French king, whose plot I’d thwarted.
I was going to need all the luck I could get.
Chapter 52
“Those who lead other Hunters must have a confidence and strength of purpose to rival their Guild brothers and sisters.”
-Jenna Lehane, Hunter
I dropped my phone onto the low table beside the couch and turned to Ash who was looking at me, head tilted to the side like a cat.
“We have Master Janus’ approval to go after Philip, so long as we retrieve another relic the supes have snatched from the Louvre in Paris,” I said. I fidgeted, focusing on Ash’s scarf. It was suddenly easier than meeting his eyes. “He’s sending Jonathan. He’ll meet us in Brussels.”
While talking to Master Janus, I’d started to fool myself that I had what it takes to be a leader, but now that the connection to my mentor was severed, my confidence had gone to dance in the back room with the paintings of old vampires. Those who lead other Hunters must have a confidence and strength of purpose to rival their Guild brothers and sisters. I was sorely lacking in the former.
Fatigue and insecurity came flooding in to join the darkness that killing Martens had left behind. I wanted the oblivion of sleep and yet, I feared being alone with my own thoughts and all that I had done.
Ash looked at me as if he could read my mind, and perhaps he could. As a ghost, he’d walked this city unseen for two years. He knew what it meant to be alone.
“So, this Jonathan, is he your boyfriend?” Ash asked.
For the first time since we met, Ash took off his hat and set it on the table, placing it on top of my phone. I lifted an eyebrow and shook my head.
“No,” I said. “He’s just a friend.”
“Good,” he said.
Ash leaned in close and tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. I shivered as his cool fingers traced the edge of my ear and trailed along my jaw. He lifted my chin, forcing me to meet his steady gaze.
“I’m glad,” he said. The raw desire in his hungry gaze made my breath quicken. “If he was your boyfriend, I wouldn’t be able to do this.”
His hand moved to cup my face as he leaned in and brushed his lips
across mine. Ash’s touch was soft, tentative, driving me wild with his restraint. I returned his kiss, gently at first, and then with increasing urgency.
When I parted my lips, he let out a sound that was part growl and part moan that rumbled deep in his chest. He tasted of cinnamon and elderberry wine, an intoxicating mix that I could not get enough of. As our tongues met, I may have let out a small growl of my own.
His fingers trailed along my spine to move in slow circles at the small of my back. I let my hands slide from his hair, down his neck, and along his arms. I could lose myself in the way his muscles rippled and bunched as he stroked my back and drove me wild with need.
I reveled in the coolness of his touch, as his probing fingers calmed my mind and awakened my scorching skin. A small part of my brain warned that the reason his arms and chest felt so cool beneath my hands was that he was dead, but I didn’t care. I didn’t worry about the fact that Ash was a ghost, or that most of the time I found him more annoying than charming. For just a moment, the darkness of the past week was pushed away, and everything felt right.
I wanted to stay this way forever, but eventually Ash pulled away with a groan. I reached up to close the distance between us, but he held steady, his face mere inches from mine.
“You’re really here,” he said.
His eyes traced every line of my face, as if committing each detail to memory.
“Yes,” I said, running my hands through his hair.
“When we met, I thought you were an angel come to take me to Heaven,” he said. “I would have gladly followed you to Heaven, or to Hell.”
His lips quirked and I wanted to feel them on me again, but instead I focused on his eyes. If Ash could show restraint, so could I.
“Are you disappointed, that I didn’t take you to Heaven?” I asked.
“Who says you haven’t?” he asked. “It doesn’t get much better than this, love.”
I had to disagree. I could think of something that would make this better.
