Was he asking for her help with a case or trying to seduce her? Or both? She pondered what he’d said. He needed a tracker. And a little girl’s life hung in the balance. A little girl somehow tied to her demon problem. She wondered why he didn’t just come out and ask, and then remembered Alex standing like an overbearing chaperone. Daric didn’t want an audience for some reason.
Curiosity burned through her. Why keep something like this a secret when everyone kept telling her to accept help?
She turned back to give Alex a piece of her mind for being a jealous idiot. Clearly their little adventure had changed things, despite his promise to the contrary. But he’d been replaced by her mother and sister, with several Sentinels lined up behind them. She remembered what her sister had said about extra security and about Tarian not being allowed around the portals. It wasn’t going to be easy to get out of here to meet up with Daric, even if she wanted to. She was a prisoner in her own home.
Frustrated, Tarian turned her back on them and stormed down the hallway to her bedroom. Heavy boots followed behind her but no clickity clack of heels. She wondered if Calliope would tell her mother that she had a secret way out. When she got to her room and closed the door, she discovered Calliope didn’t have to. Her carefully constructed back door had been sealed.
Damn it! She kicked a chair, then hobbled to the bed to kick off her ridiculous shoes and nurse her injured toe. If she stayed here, the demon won. Sooner or later, he’d have her power and she’d be his. Didn’t they see that? She had to get out of here. She had to find the demon and stop this before it was too late. She had to help Daric save a little girl from the same fate as Chester. Nobody deserved that. Nobody. Well, maybe one person. The demon sure deserved it.
She paced over to the mirror. The girl she saw there was completely clueless. A trapped princess, all dressed up and ready for market. No, thank you. She ripped the sparkling beads out of her hair, then stripped off the outfit her sister had made. She wanted to rip it off, but love for her sister made her slow down and be careful with the buttons. Once she had it off, she threw it onto the bed.
A soft knock on the door followed by “Tarian?” made her clench her teeth. Calliope.
“Feeling guilty?” She shouted through the door on her way to the closet. She needed jeans. T-shirt. Denim jacket. She needed to be herself.
“Tari? Please. Let me in.”
“Go away.”
“I didn’t tell, Tari. Mother and Jonus found it while you were out.”
Like hell she didn’t. She pulled on her jeans, shoving one leg through and then the other as if the jeans were fighting back.
“I brought a cheesesteak.” Calliope’s tone was singsongy.
Tarian’s stomach growled in response and her mouth watered. Dammit, she really was hungry.
“Look, I know you’re mad. But I think you’re going to want to hear this. Don’t make me shout it through the door.”
Tarian snorted. What could her sister possibly have to say that she needed to hear? Unless she had another way out of the House. The thought made her pause. There was a serving entrance, used to bring in supplies, and food. The tiny entry behind the kitchens was usually guarded, but only buy one or two Sentinels. The kitchen always entertained a few people, even at odd hours of the morning. Surely the guard back there hadn’t been increased. She could sneak around one or two people, especially if Calliope helped to distract them.
She pulled on the T-shirt and crossed to the door and opened it, letting her sister in. She grabbed the plate Calliope held and sat down to eat the sandwich. She hadn’t realized just how hungry she was until this moment.
“Spill.” She took another bite, savoring the juicy beef. Heaven.
“When I left, the archivists were close to an answer. They seemed to be arguing about it actually.”
“They know where to find the demon?”
Calliope hesitated. “Not…exactly.”
“This is what you came to tell me?” Tarian took the last bite of the sandwich.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re trying to rush out of here?”
“Maybe because I am. Daric needs my help to save a little girl, and thinks he might have a solution to my problem. Tonight. The longer I wait, the worse this is all going to get.”
Her sister frowned. “Why can’t you can take a team with you?”
“Nobody here would go with me, Calli. They’re only interested in incarcerating me.” She watched as her sister gently picked up the outfit she’d worn earlier and placed it on a hanger. It really had made her feel feminine and beautiful.
Or maybe it was Daric who’d made her feel that way.
“I don’t think you should go out alone, Tari. Forget the ritual and all that. I don’t want to lose my sister.” Calliope turned to put the clothes back in the closet.
“You aren’t losing me. And I won’t be alone. Daric will be there.”
“Can you trust him?”
Could she? She didn’t really know him at all but somehow, she did. She trusted him. “I think so. He seems…familiar somehow. Like I’ve known him for years.” She crossed to the door, but Calliope stopped her before she could open it.
“Tari, wait. I need to tell you this. I checked with the archivists after you left dinner, just to see if I could start them on another query. They told me to tell you ‘beware of danger from within’ and that you should ‘knowledge is key.’”
Tarian turned the words over in her mind. Danger from within. Within herself? As in the tracer? Like she needed a hint about that. Knowledge is key. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“No idea. They wouldn’t tell me anything else. They wanted to tell you directly. It sounded like they have to tell you, personally. I think you should go talk to them.”
“I will, but not right now. It’ll have to wait. I’ll go to them when I get back.”
Tarian pulled the paper Daric had given her out of her pocket and studied it. All he’d written was “PJ.” Well, that was easy enough.
“Let’s go get another sandwich.” She grinned at her sister.
Chapter 20
Tarian stood outside PJs, trying her best not to have flashbacks. The morning sun didn’t warm her skin, and memories of the demon struggle in the alley next to PJs tied her blood in cold knots. She’d never been timid, far from it, but she was a bit unnerved by being so close to the alley where she’d been attacked. Damn that demon for making her hesitate. She couldn’t afford to be weak. Not now.
Calliope hadn’t wanted to help her sneak out, but in the end she’d done it after Tarian explained what she’d seen in the basement, and how another little girl might suffer the same fate. Calliope loved children and her soft heart relented despite her misgivings. Her sister distracted the guards while Tarian made a portal in the entry off the back of the kitchen and popped through before anyone could stop her. She closed it as soon as her feet touched the sidewalk on the other side.
Her blood and power both trudged through her veins. Slow. Too slow. Maybe the demon had already stolen enough power to make a real dent. The thought chilled her.
She needed coffee, for the routine if not the caffeine. At least it would get her blood flowing in the right direction. She got in line and ordered her usual, then moved over to the condiment bar to stir in cream. A decent sized crowd filled the place, mostly tourists or people on their way to work. They filled most of the small round tables, but she spotted a vacant couch in the back.
“No sugar?”
The deep voice behind her sounded amused, and the touch of warm breath on the back of her neck sent shivers all the way to her groin. Damn the man!
“Definitely not.” She threw the stir stick away and turned. He had the same grin and dimple on his face he’d worn earlier, like she was a source of perpetual amusement. “So what’s the plan?”
“Sit with me for a minute. I’ll explain while you drink up.”
They moved to the empty couch. She sat in on
e corner so she could face the door to the place. Happy faces all around. No demons. Yet.
Instead of taking the other corner, Daric sat next to her so their thighs touched. It perked her up in a way the coffee hadn’t, and her groin pulsed in response, which she refused to acknowledge. Her hormones could just learn to take a back seat.
She raised the coffee to her nose and inhaled. One of life’s pure joys, this coffee. Not only did the smell promise the delights within, but it temporarily overloaded any magical signatures on the air that might be infiltrating her nose. It was a reprieve she loved, especially around the House filled with so many in a fairly small location. She sipped, and closed her eyes to savor it, and the short absence of Daric’s heady signature, for a heartbeat.
“You going to drink that or make love to it?” His eyes crinkled and his dimple deepened as he watched her.
“I might do both.”
He laughed, then his expression turned serious. He reached into his front pocket and pulled out a necklace, which he laid across her leg. It sparkled against the denim.
“What’s that?” She picked it up. A small blue crystal on a silver chain caught and held the light.
“I’m trying to find the girl who owns it. She’s about 12. Been missing for over a week, from Chester’s neighborhood. No registered magic talent in her or her family.”
“So no Sentinel attention.” Tarian nodded and ran her fingers over the smooth stone. It gave off a slight vibration, enough to tickle her nose. If the girl didn’t have overt talent, she certainly had some latent ability. This thing hummed with energy.
“And no police attention because of the neighborhood. She’s been written off. I’ve been able to follow her movements up until she was grabbed out of that park in the Mansion. She was walking with her cousin when two men pulled up in an old clunker and grabbed them. They must have used magic, because after the initial struggle both girls got into the car on their own. The description fits Mark Chester and his cousin, Kevin. Now that they’re both dead, my leads have run dry, and judging by what you found in that basement she’s running out of time.” Daric put a hand on her thigh. “Can you track her?”
Warmth ran up her thigh and onto her back from the contact, but she ignored that and stared at the necklace. If the girl was alive, sure. But she’d have to use magic. Magic that felt sluggish and somehow less than the day before. Not by a lot, but enough to make her uneasy. Just how many times could she use her power before the demon gained control?
“Why didn’t you say all this back at the reception? Why keep it a secret?”
“I figure they’re keeping a tight lid on you now. I knew if I asked through proper channels, they’d tell me to shove it. I wouldn’t blame them. I almost told myself.”
She nodded. “How is this related to my little problem?”
“It’s just a hunch. The girl who was killed in that basement, these girls, you…it’s a pattern. Your name on the floor. Call it a gut feeling.” He glanced at her arm.
“You think the demon is collecting blood from more than just me?”
“Can you track her?”
“You’re avoiding the question.”
“I don’t know. What I do know is, if he needs these girls, we might be able to use them to flush him into the open. If she’s still alive, then he’s not finished with whatever it is. He’ll have to come back to check on her or to finish up. We save the girls, then get backup and be waiting for him.” Daric squeezed her leg. “You, me, and maybe some of your friends.”
“You mean Alex.” It felt odd, talking about Alex with Daric. It also felt odd to realize how quickly she’d placed the “friend” label on Daric.
“And anybody like him. Muscle is always useful. So, can you track her?”
She thought for a moment. The girl in that basement, and the horror of what happened to her, still lingered. Now another girl, only 12 years old, was in the demon's hands. Her and her cousin and possibly even more. She couldn't just leave them there. Not when it might be her own fault these girls were being attacked. They'd done nothing to deserve this. Even if it didn't solve her own problem, she'd still do it.
She gently removed his hand from her thigh, and then took one last sip of coffee. “Let’s find out.”
Daric followed her out of PJs. Once out on the sidewalk, she hesitated. She didn’t want to use the alley where she’d been attacked.
“This way.” Daric led the way around to the other side of PJs, to a red door embedded in the brick. Inside, narrow stairs made a steep climb to the floor above the coffee shop.
“You live here? I’d drown in coffee if I lived here.” She could smell the aroma even here in the musty stairwell.
“But it’d be a tasty way to go.” Daric opened another door at the top of the staircase and led her into a surprisingly modern, updated loft. It was open, with bright wood floors and very little anything else. It’d do.
“Stand over there.” Tarian pointed to the corner of the room.
“Where’s the trust?” Daric moved to the corner, but she could tell by the slump of his shoulders that he was hurt.
“I can’t concentrate with you that close.”
He raised his eyebrows, and the dimple reappeared.
“I mean your signature interferes with the signal.”
If anything, his dimple got deeper.
“Oh, shut it.” She closed her eyes and folded the necklace in her fist. Deep breath in, then slowly out. In, then slowly out. She let her heart rate lower and entered a near meditative state. If she could do this naturally, she wouldn’t have to draw as much power. Her talent was slow to answer the summon and weaker than she cared to admit.
She pushed the thought aside. It didn’t matter. Finding this bastard and saving those girls mattered.
The hair on the back of her neck wiggled, and an ache immediately settled in as her talent focused on the necklace in her hand. Any use of magic seemed to speed it up or excite it. Her heart pounded at the thought. She’d have to make this quick.
It didn’t take long to get a lock on the girl who’d worn the necklace. “She’s alive.” She took a long, relieved breath. She'd been expecting the worst.
“Where?”
“Hush.”
She turned slowly, letting her magic drift out along the invisible scent in the air. Her nose hairs twitched and fought as her body rotated until she found the general direction of the source. “Not far. A couple of miles, I’d say. That direction.” She pointed at his kitchen.
“What, no address?”
“I’m a compass, not a road map. Let’s head that way, and I’ll take another reading when we get closer.”
“So we need to triangulate?”
She nodded.
Daric thought for a moment, then opened a portal right there in his living room. She could see a large old building in it.
“No security?” She was surprised. Living here, in the city, with a demon attack nearby and he had no shields on the apartment. Brave man. Or foolish.
“No need. Coming?” He stepped through ahead of her. She followed, her fist still tight around the necklace.
When they emerged, they stood in the middle of a broken sidewalk next to a park. Tarian surveyed the area. The park, the row homes…it was the same block she’d landed in earlier, looking for Chester. This time she stood in front of the larger of the abandoned warehouses.
The warehouse huddled against the sky, a stain on the night sky. It was a cozy spot, with graffiti on every surface and boarded windows with the boards half falling off. Weeds overshadowed the walk to the front door. Broken bits of glass littered the ground, along with empty syringes and unidentifiable bits of trash. A rat ran across Daric’s shoes as he walked toward one of the boarded windows. The whole thing shouted, “Go away!”
“You sure can pick the spots. First a dingy basement, now this.”
“Are you kidding? This is perfect for a first date.”
“Is that what this is?”
/>
“Take another reading.”
Tarian glanced around. Even though a lot of the nearby row homes looked abandoned, she could feel eyes looking at them. “Why here?”
“Can’t you feel it?”
Tarian looked closer at the warehouse. “It’s subtle, isn’t it?”
“Easy to overlook, unless you focus up.” Daric pointed to the upper windows.
Tarian looked up. She opened her senses and felt a distinct magic trace coming from the upstairs window, along with a small illusion circling the perimeter. Someone had warded the building against any nonmagical intrusion. It wasn’t strong, but it would keep those with no magic out without even knowing they were avoiding the place. They’d simply walk on by. She didn’t feel any other magic trace. No demon. At least, not nearby.
“Hang on.” Tarian closed her eyes and focused once more on the crystal necklace in her fist. The signal rebounded on her, red hot, making her nostrils flare. She was as close as she was going to get without being right on top of the girl.
A pierce of pain hit her neck and traveled up into her scalp, where a headache bloomed. The demon made a grab for her along the open pathway of magic she’d used. A wave of nausea swept over her. She gasped and shut down her magic fast. Energy rebounded and nearly knocked her right onto her ass.
“What the hell?” Daric grabbed her arms to steady her.
She gritted her teeth, waiting for her stomach to stop flip-flopping. “Demon.”
“Shit. We have to move. I could put up a shield but no telling if it’d work.” Daric nodded to the building in front of them. “That’s made of steel and cinderblock. Natural signal blockers.”
Daric pointed to the side of the building. Tarian followed him down the tight alley between the warehouse and the home next to it. Glass and other debris crunched under her shoes. At the back of the building, a loading dock broke up the brick exterior. Metal steps led to a door to the left of the dock. Rusted locks remained firmly in place on both the door to the dock and the side door.
Demons & Djinn: Nine Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Novels Featuring Demons, Djinn, and other Bad Boys of the Underworld Page 125
