“You shouldn't wear that,” Maura said.
“What? Why?” Tessa spun the ring from her finger and tucked it deep into her pocket.
“Do you want suspects to know you have a family?”
She didn't answer.
“I can tell you this,” Maura fanned out the pages on the desk. “You're looking at it wrong.”
“How…how am I supposed to look at it then?”
She slid Vincent's arrest record into Tessa’s trembling hands. “Tell me what isn't there.”
Tessa read the page-long list several times, and Maura let a few minutes pass before she snatched the paper from her. Tessa jumped in her seat.
“Convictions. Does he have any convictions?” She threw the papers down on the desk.
Tessa glanced at the sheets. “No–no.”
“Ah.” She sat back in the chair. “Odd, right?”
Tessa nodded.
“Give me your thoughts. Why wouldn't he have convictions? He's been arrested for petty crimes, things that can be brushed off with a warning. Let's not think about those. He’s assaulted a Keep official, a Collector, and a Mystic. He's even been arrested for murder in the first degree. Yet he's never been charged.”
Tessa froze.
Maura highlighted Vincent's major crimes with a pen. “It's because he's one of Adrian's top men.” She tossed the pen to the other side of the desk. “Vincent never spent more than a night in the cells because someone always bailed him out. Once bailed, Adrian hired the best damn lawyers, and the cases never went to court.” She pulled out a random folder from a tall stack. “See here.” She pointed to a list of crimes a lower ranking Vampire committed and his dates of conviction. “The bottom guys do the time. They aren't worth Adrian's money. They're dispensable.”
She tapped Vincent's folder. “But Adrian can't afford for the higher level guys to spend years in prison. They know too much. All those years out of Adrian’s earshot, and they might say something.”
“That's how you figure out who the top guy is?” Tessa's lips twitched upward. Her eyes squinted as if she were concentrating too hard.
Maura yanked her from the chair and pulled Tessa into her office down the hall. “You need to start seeing what isn't there.” She shut the door and pointed to a seat. “What you don't see is what will kill you.”
Tessa sat, wiping sweat from her brow.
Maura sank into the leather computer chair. “I'm not going to hurt you.”
Tessa strained a smile.
“Do you know why we are hunting Adrian?” she asked.
Tessa’s lips quivered. “Because he's a Vampire. He's killed people…?”
“Do you know why I hunt Adrian?”
Tessa raised a shaky hand to her temple. “He killed your family, right?”
“Did Heidi tell you that?”
“Y–yes.”
“It isn't the only reason.” She slid a red file across the desk. “Tell me what you see.”
Tessa opened the folder and splayed the two pages on her lap. She read the first paper. “Okay…this is an order from Commissioner Sayer.” Tessa mouthed the order before speaking. “Sayer ordered Collectors to investigate Viper. That's the nightclub, right?”
“Correct. Why do you think?”
Tessa knotted her fingers together, biting the corner of her lip. “Adrian…?”
“Good.” She pointed to the second paper. “Read it.”
Tessa’s jaw unhinged as she moved her gaze along the page. “These are phone records.”
“From who to who?”
“From Commissioner Sayer to…” Tessa knitted her eyebrows together. “Adrian?”
“Sayer contacted Adrian shortly after authorizing the mission to arrest him. Collectors were to be deployed that same night.” She placed four pictures of Collector agents on the desk and tapped each image. “Adrian killed them.”
Tessa grazed her fingers over the photographs.
“What you don't see will kill you,” Maura said.
“Why haven't you brought this to Dimitri?”
Maura sat back in the chair, the wheels squeaking. “He might be the head of The Keep, but he has connections the same as Sayer.” She stashed the papers away in a bottom drawer, locked it, and tucked the small set of keys back down her shirt. “Besides, I obtained the evidence illegally. It'd never hold up in court, and I don't want them sending Adrian after me.”
“What about other Collectors? Do they know?”
Maura shook her head. “Some have their suspicions.”
Tessa sat quietly, rubbing her hands on her pant legs.
“I hunt Adrian because someone has to. Don't you agree?” Maura said.
Tessa nodded.
“Our job is to protect. Don't ever forget that.” Maura motioned to the door, and they walked to the cubicles as Heidi exited the interrogation room.
“Bastard won't budge,” Heidi sighed, cursing under her breath.
“I’ll go back in,” Maura said.
Heidi put a hand to Maura’s chest. “Not you, Beth. We'll find someone else.”
She pushed her away, and Heidi hardened her stance at the door. “I'm serious.”
“We're running out of time,” she growled.
Two colleagues, broad shouldered and tall, shadowed her from behind. Their defensive magic bound her hands behind her back.
She’d built a reputation as one of the few Collectors who possessed powers other than the defense spells most had. After using Shearing charms and Impact spells that left criminals fingerless or with broken bones, she was rarely allowed in the room.
She shattered the charm with an Impact spell that left a taste of electricity in the air.
“Stand down, Agent Hollings,” Heidi ordered through tight lips.
“Five minutes. Five minutes, and I'll get the answer from him.” Maura stepped forward, their noses grazing. “And I promise you won't have to summon an Elixir when I'm done with him.”
Heidi looked down either end of the quiet hall. All eyes honed in on her. She sighed. “Five minutes.” Heidi slid her authorization card through the slot to unlock the door.
Maura walked in and took a seat across from Vincent. His smirk faded. She folded her hands on the metal table and leaned in close. “I gave you many chances to tell us where Adrian's next hit will be. You're a Vampire, I'm a Vessel. Abysmal to Abysmal, tell me.”
He smiled wide enough to reveal the fangs every Abysmal possessed. Even in his tattered black suit and dirty white collared shirt, Vincent could seduce a girl with his pearly white smile.
“You don’t want to cooperate,” Maura sighed. “Now, I have to take matters into my own hands.”
With the snap of her fingers, the cameras in each corner of the room exploded. Black and silver threads from her magic slunk along the floor and sealed the door. She turned to Vincent.
Fists banged on the door and screams from Collectors pleaded with her to come out.
“You hear them?”
He shifted in his seat.
“They're trying to protect your sorry ass.”
He pushed himself far into his chair and attempted to angle his face away while maintaining eye contact.
“I'm giving you five seconds,” she tapped the table, “before I do what my colleagues over there,” she motioned to the door, “are afraid I'm going to do.”
“Kill me?”
“In your dreams.” She smiled, revealing black fangs that grazed blood red lips. “What I have planned for you is far worse than death, Vincent.” She retrieved a silver blade from the holster around her ankle.
He paled, and his white fangs retracted to Mundane canines.
“A beauty, isn’t she?” She held the blade up to the light. Spindles of magic, turquoise and silver, wove in and out along the length of the blade. “I forged her myself. Melted down the silver, molded the blade, and the best part,” she spun the handle to hold the dagger sideway, “I diluted the silver with magic. While the blade can'
t kill you bloodsuckers unless driven into the heart, it still hurts like a bitch.” She slammed the flat of the blade onto the back of his hand.
Vincent howled. He writhed, twisting and turning.
“Tell me where Adrian is going to be tonight.”
His screams brought the fists of Collectors harder against the door. Their shouts drowned in Vincent's pleas to be freed. Tears squeezed from the corners of his eyes as he jerked in his seat.
“It'll only get worse,” she shouted over his voice. “This can all stop if you tell me what I want to know.”
His flesh bubbled. Green pus mixed with bright red blood.
“Connecticut,” he choked out.
“Come on now, Vincent. It's a big state we live in. Don't make me knock on every door to find him.”
She pushed harder. The block on his mind faltered and released a coordinate.
“Riley. The Riley's,” he stammered.
She stopped, and he slumped forward, cradling his hand.
“Was that so hard?”
***
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. The methodical sound of Maura’s watch grew louder as the slight breeze ceased. Trees froze mid-sway, grass blades looked like sharpened points, and clouds hovered in front of the moon. The faint light dimmed, bringing a blanket of darkness over the hills. The empty house below, nestled between a slope and a pond, disappeared from sight as lights in the windows went out.
Maura crouched, pushing away thin tree limbs. “Get ready.”
The atmosphere thickened, weighing down on the Collectors hiding in the shadows. Static stung the air.
He was coming.
Blue lightning tore apart the sheet of black sky without a sound. It sizzled, sending a halo to float above the home. Its illumination danced on the front lawn and skimmed the ripples in the pond, making the water glow.
Maura scanned the surrounding areas, noting the silhouettes of her squad lingering behind bushes and trees.
Jackson, another Collector, crouched beside her.
“Where's Heidi?” Maura whispered.
He wiped his brow. “Flat tire on the interstate.”
She rolled her eyes. “She knows she can conjure The Wend, right? I gave everyone the coordinates to get here.”
“She said she didn't want to use all that energy.”
“Figures. Where’s Defense Forces?”
“On their way.”
“They’re the only ones with offensive spells.”
Jackson smiled. “We have you.”
A shock wave expanded over the quiet land. Water from the pond exploded and charged with a deep rumble that shook the earth. Collectors retreated from its reach.
Maura conjured a Shield spell. The water crashed against her shimmering blue dome and pounded with violent determination to break through. She strained to keep the weight of the water above their heads. Just another day at work.
A blast of electric red penetrated her Shield. Another loud crack from an explosion threw them deep into the forest. Maura curled into a tight ball and parted the forest with a spell. Rocks tumbled away from her. Trees swayed from her reach and the ground bowled to catch her and Jackson. They crashed into a dirt patch. Pain radiated throughout her legs. Groaning, she stretched. Her knees crunched with the movement.
“Fuck,” she moaned through clenched teeth.
Silent minutes passed before she conjured magic to wrap around battered joints and pull them tight. She tensed as bones realigned with quick snaps and gashes cauterized and disappeared. Her knee caps swiveled before locking in place. When the healing was complete, the magic disappeared.
She rose and ran to the clearing, leaping over rocks, swerving between trees, and building a sweat. Jackson reached the clearing first, others emerging behind him. Another loud crack shook the ground.
The back of the Riley house exploded, the force knocking everyone off their feet. Those close by were thrown into the pond or the forest.
Maura’s throat clenched when their bodies never resurfaced. She refocused on where the magic came from. It twisted beyond the house, flowed past the front garden, and disappeared behind a black car hidden in the shadows. She dodged fragments of loose magic, running from the border of the forest to the car. Whizzing charms flushed her skin with stinging heat. Spells from Vampires sizzled and evaporated when their energy burned out. Dark figures appeared, releasing waves of magic when she passed.
Fucking Vampires.
The blue halo in the sky released a soundproof dome that encased the land in one swallow. Sparks of lightning cracked under the dome, paired with the roar of thunder. Another bolt of lightning struck the Riley home, ripping it to pieces and engulfing it in flames. Burning shrapnel rained onto the ground. Maura dropped to the grass, covering her head. A chunk of debris knocked her to the side and pinned her ankles. She threw a flimsy Shield, vaporizing the chunk of concrete, and rose unsteadily.
“Beth!”
Maura turned to the voice. Tessa clung to the edges of a deep crater, her fingers clawing at the earth. The ground shook, and Tessa’s grip slipped further away. “Help me!”
Maura’s gaze flitted between Tessa and where Adrian lurked. She growled. I can't take care of both. She ran toward Tessa and dropped to the ground at the depthless crater. Tessa clung to Maura’s hand, her grip slippery with sweat.
“Tessa, The Wend. Use The Wend to get yourself out.” The ground shook again, rock crumbled beneath her body and into Tessa’s face. Maura dug her feet into the ground as she slipped forward, her hands like shackles along Tessa’s arms. The strain radiated into her shoulders and down her back.
“I–I can't,” Tessa whimpered.
Nerves. Maura sucked in a deep breath and pulled Tessa as she conjured The Wend that would transport them to safety. A hard blow to the side threw her from the crater. Tessa’s scream filled the air as she fell. Maura’s skin burned where her grip had torn into her arms. She rolled to her feet and steadied. A prickle from a pair of calculating eyes washed over her. The beast they belonged to shifted in the growing smoke ahead. She took a cautious step back. Locked in its gaze, the ability to rationalize disappeared. The desire to fight lessened. Screams died. Everything vanished.
The monster in his Armani suit with his dark red eyes and widening smile surfaced from the shadows.
“Adrian,” she breathed.
Time slowed to a stop. She was a kid again. Scared, alone, staring at the being who tore her world apart. She could still see her mother’s blood dripping from his fingers, etched along his broad smile. She quivered with a surge of emotions. Anger. Hurt. Sorrow. Hate.
Adrian stretched out his hand. A ball of translucent red grew in his fist.
Annihilation spell.
The Void rumbled. Memories came crashing back. Sounds of screaming victims, smells of burning flesh, and fear of staring death in the eyes scrambled thoughts and left her to the mercy of her instincts. Run.
Adrian released the deathly orb.
Chapter Two: A Traitor
Heidi Summers waited for the signal, the yellow flash at the end of the long street that signified it was done. One minute. Two minutes, and then five minutes passed since the last Annihilation spell lit up the sky. She curled her fingers around the leather steering wheel. Had Beth killed him? Chuckling to herself, she shook her head. He’s immortal. But the thought did little to ease her nerves. Beth's squad should be dead by now. Beth should be dead by now.
“What's taking so long?” Heidi muttered to herself, checking her phone for messages. Nothing.
Doubt poisoned her thoughts as the minutes crawled by. Adrian is alive, she reassured herself. He had to be. She needed his money.
A yellow flash, like the sun had risen for a moment, expanded across the night sky.
Heidi drove down the block and parked. She left the cover of the car and walked toward the Riley house. Limbless bodies, strewn clothes, and charred belongings littered the property. The wail of fried radios and roboti
c badges filled the thick air.
“Officer down,” a badge cried, its computerized voice slurred and disjointed. “Officer down.” The sound echoed from other badges, like deranged children all repeating a single line out of unison. “Officer do–”
Heidi stomped on the closest badge, separated from its officer. She wove between the destruction and found Beth lying between burning debris among other agents. Fire had eaten away at her clothes and skin. Taking Beth by the legs, she pulled her from the home.
Ew. The skin along Beth’s shoulders and legs had blackened from the fire. Flesh dangled from her fingertips, exposing fat, muscle, and bone. Heidi's stomach churned. The smell of burning flesh hit. She gagged, a hand over her stomach.
“Off…icer…do…wn,” her badge sputtered. Its little white light flickered chaotically before dying out.
Adrian walked beside her and kicked Beth’s twisted ankle. “She's alive.”
Heidi looked at the small rise and fall of Beth’s chest. She gagged, again. “Kill her. That's what you came here for.”
Adrian crouched beside Beth. He turned her head toward him and pulled back her raw lips. Two black fangs cut into her tongue.
“I told you she was a Siren,” Heidi said, covering her nose and mouth. “It takes one to know one.”
For the last year, she'd tried to figure Beth out. Beth never made casual conversation, didn't acknowledge others in the office. She worked, went home, came back, making it harder for Heidi to get to know her. Then one day she got lucky. During an interrogation, Beth’s aura wafted through the air with her magic. A cold winter’s wind mixed with a summer’s warm breeze. The aura of a Siren.
Beth sits outside, smoking a cigarette on a small concrete ledge around the front lawn of the office. Others join after a long and pointless interrogation of a Mystic, who had killed his family. One of the few Mystics with the capability to conjure an Annihilation spell. They knew they had their guy.
Heidi sits beside her. “Can I get one of those?” She points at the cigarette.
Beth reaches into the inner pocket of her blazer and holds one out.
Heidi takes it into her slender fingers and fumbles to light it. The cigarette helps to forget the images of the twin girls, five years old, dead in their playroom. “How long have you been here?”
Blue Ruin (The Phoenix Series Book 1) Page 2
