Champion of Midnight

by Debbie Cassidy

  A young woman came over and took our order.

  A few minutes later two mugs of coffee appeared.

  Ryker took a sip and sighed. “I needed that. Are you nervous?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. You should be. Never get complacent. Never take anything for granted.”

  “Yes, sensei.”

  He snorted into his coffee.

  I handed him a napkin. “Wipe your face, you’re embarrassing yourself.”

  He mopped up, shaking his head, and then his expression sobered. “How are you coping, though? Really?”

  He was talking about Drayton. How was I coping with Drayton being gone? “I’m good. Just focusing on the house games.”

  “But the games won’t last forever.”

  I puffed out my cheeks and blew out a breath. “I know, but I’ll deal with that when the time comes.”

  “And Bane?”

  My head whipped up and my cheeks heated. “Look, I had no choice. I was not letting Lilith get her claws into him.”

  He slid a hand over mine. “I know. Believe me, I get it. And it’s all right to give a damn.”

  I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I just need this to go right. I need to beat the Sanguinata.”

  “You will. I promise you.” He leaned in, his baby blues intense. “Listen to me, Harker. I promise you that I will protect you out there. I will not let any harm come to you.” He blinked and dropped his gaze. “Before Drayton died, he came to me. He was mad because he thought… he thought …”

  “I had romantic feelings for you.”

  His eyes widened. “You knew?”

  I winced. “I may have overheard your conversation.”

  His throat bobbed. “Do you know about my sister?”

  I fingered my coffee mug. “I know you had one. I know she died, and I think I might remind you of her.”

  He closed his eyes. “Pretty much.” He sat back in his seat. “It was a long time ago. Sometimes, it feels like she was just a dream. If not for the small mementos of her, I’d begin to believe she only ever existed in my imagination.”

  “How did she die?”

  “Painfully. I wasn’t there to save her. Decades ago, when we first began to protect humanity, there were no districts, no treaty, and many nephs—like the sea dwellers, the Lupin, and Sanguinata—fed off whom they pleased. Giselle was a fierce warrior, a champion of humanity and ferociously protective of them. Humans flocked to her. They adored her for her compassion and kindness. But the nephs who wanted to have free reign didn’t like that. There was a faction back then called The Supremacy. They believed themselves to be better than humans, better than other nephs. It was The Supremacy that killed her.” He picked up his coffee and took a huge gulp. “Rivers was with her when she was taken. He fought them, but he was unable to stop them. They disabled his weapon—his voice—using a specially made torque. He was unable to fight back the way he would have.”

  “With his voice?”

  “Yes. With his siren ability, Rivers could have convinced them to stop. To walk away. He could have convinced them of anything, and he could have disabled them with a shriek that would have made their brain explode. But he was powerless. They forced him to watch her be tortured.” He exhaled through his nose. “They sent her back to us in pieces.”

  “Oh, God.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed.

  “Rivers they left alive, as a cruel joke. He was almost catatonic when we found him. He made little sense, and he was unable to tell us where they’d been held. But you see, the joke was on them. A few nights later, Rivers went back. He’d lied to us. He’d lied about not knowing, and he went back alone and unleashed his voice.”

  “He killed them?”

  “Yes, along with half a block of human residents.”

  My hand flew to my mouth.

  “He didn’t care. He didn’t care for a long time, and when he finally surfaced, he was a wreck. Did you notice the silver shackle on his wrist?”

  I nodded.

  “It’s a muter. His punishment to himself for besmirching Giselle’s memory by killing all those humans she’d loved.”

  “I’m sorry. So sorry you lost her like that.”

  He smiled sadly. “And then I saw you walking into the Protectorate foyer and it was as if she were walking toward me. And when you were exiled to Midnight, I knew then that I was being given a second chance. I said to myself: Ryker, you need to keep her safe. And I almost failed. You could have died underground. Twice.”

  Oh, man. He was putting himself into the role of my guardian. It was a role that didn’t belong to anyone but my demon. “I’m not your responsibility. I’m your teammate, your equal, and your friend. And even though I may remind you of her, I’m not Giselle. You do not need to watch over me, and frankly, if you did, I’d have to punch you.”

  “Serenity, I—”

  I held up a hand. “Let me finish. I may get into scrapes, but they’re my scrapes, and I have my demon to watch out for me, not to mention two awesome daggers to cut the shit outta anyone who messes with me.” The daggers materialized on cue. I winked and they vanished. “So, promise me you’ll stop stressing.”

  He exhaled. “Teammates.”

  “Yeah, teammates.”

  A commotion broke out at the front of the cafe. The server arrived with our food and slid the plates quickly onto the table.

  Ryker twisted in his seat to look at the entrance. “Is there a problem up there?”

  The woman wrung her hands. “Members of the Order of Merlin. They come by from time to time trying to recruit.”

  Ryker slid out of the booth and I followed. We walked toward the front of the cafe, and the commotion died down. Four Order members stood by the doors dressed in black, tight-fitted combat gear with cloaks draped over their shoulders. Three of them were new faces, but the woman I recognized.

  Marika.

  “So, you crawled back to Midnight, after all,” Ryker said.

  Marika ignored him and focused on me. “Hello, Serenity Harker. We’ve been looking for you.”

  “Me?”

  She smiled, and it was probably meant to be a warm gesture, but it failed to penetrate her eyes and left me feeling uneasy.

  “We just want to speak to you about your pretty dagger tattoos. It won’t take long.” She jerked her head. “Outside. Away from the fragile humans.”

  My skin broke out in gooseflesh. How could they have … Fucking Killion and his big mouth.

  Ryker leaned in. “Four more outside.”

  I nodded. “What choice do we have?”

  If we stayed indoors, we risked getting into a scuffle that could hurt the human clientele.

  I donned a nonchalant air. “Sure, mind if I get my waffles to go?”

  Marika arched a brow. “Be my guest.”

  I turned to the woman who’d served us. “Can you bag up our food, please?”

  She nodded quickly and hurried off.

  “Shit, my coat.” I went after her, back to the table. She was picking up the plates. “When we leave, call the Protectorate. Tell them Harker and Ryker have been taken by The Order.”

  Her eyes grew round.

  “Can you do that?”

  She nodded.

  “Thanks.” I grabbed my jacket and waved the server away. “You know what. Forget the waffles. They’ll just get cold, and I hate cold waffles.” I sauntered back up to Ryker. “Shall we?”

  Heart pounding like a drum, we stepped out into the night. The street was empty save for The Order and us. They surrounded us, with Marika taking point.

  She licked her lips. “Can I see them? Can I see the tattoos?”

  I crossed my arms. “No.”

  She sighed. “Look. I just need to confirm what they are.”

  “And what do you think they are?”

  “Something ancient and important. Something that belongs with The Order.”

  “Really? Then why the fuck aren’t they hanging out on an Order memb
er’s skin?”

  She blinked in surprise at the vehemence in my voice.

  “Here’s a newsflash for you: not everything magic is your property.”

  She looked taken aback. “Is that what you’ve been told? Is that what they’ve told you?” She raked Ryker over with disgust. “They would say that.”

  “Hey. I’m one of them.”

  “No.” She shook her head. “You’re not. You can’t be. If the daggers chose you, then you, Serenity Harker, are one of us. Come with us and let us enlighten you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “No, thanks.”

  She pressed her lips together. “Aren’t you curious as to what they are? Aren’t you curious as to why they’ve chosen you?”

  Damn it, of course I was, but not enough to go anywhere with her. Not of my own free will anyway. The Black Wings had warned me about them, Ambrosius had warned me, and so had the Protectorate.

  “Well? Aren’t you?” she pressed.

  I shrugged. “Nope. And I’m not going anywhere with you. So, you may as well piss off.”

  This was it. This was when they’d attack. Ryker tensed, ready to take on whatever. His hand twitched to draw his axe.

  Marika massaged her temples. “Fine.” She withdrew something from her pocket and handed it to me.

  A card. A business card with her name and number printed neatly on it. What the heck?

  “We’re not your enemy, Serenity. Trust me. You’ll realize that soon enough, and when you’re ready for real answers, then call me.” She raised a hand and made a swirling motion in the air with her index finger. The Order turned away and strode off into the night.

  “Ryker, what the heck just happened?”

  He shook his head, his mouth parted in shock. “The world is going insane.”

  A screech of tires had us leaping back to avoid collision with a black van.

  The Protectorate van.

  Ryker looked to me in confusion. “What are they doing here?”

  “Oops.”

  Chapter 16

  The tall electrified fence stretched far to the left and right. For this event, Bane had agreed to have his wings bound. Rivers had placed a strange silver clip at Bane’s back, pinning his wings so it was impossible to unfurl them. Flags had been hidden by a human force employed by the council for impartiality. The whole event was moderated by them to ensure a fair outcome.

  This was our entry point. The House of Vitae and the House of Mort had their own. The plan was to get in, establish a base, and then get to work finding the flags. Ryker was responsible for setting traps. Bane was the muscle, and, with my newfound agility, I was the flag snatcher. This was my chance to turn things around. I’d failed Drayton and Jesse. I would not fail the humans relying on me to win.

  The human moderator cleared his throat. “Are you ready?”

  “Get on with it,” Bane snapped.

  He cleared his throat again and flipped the switch to open the door in the gate. It shuddered and whirred and then we were through. We stepped onto a huge stretch of land filled with forest, streams, abandoned buildings, and goodness only knew what kind of traps set by the opposition.

  Forest land lay to our right, and to our left were rolling hills.

  “Head for cover,” Bane said.

  We bolted for the trees. It was even darker under the canopy of leaves, and the silence was thick and heavy.

  “We need to find somewhere to set up base,” Ryker said.

  “Follow me.” Bane set off, his steps sure in the dark.

  I kept close to his broad back, not wanting to lose him in the dark. “It’s almost as if you know where you’re going.”

  Bane snorted. “This land wasn’t always used for the house games. It’s been here for almost a century, and the house games are merely thirty years old.”

  “So, you’re familiar with the terrain?”

  “Yes. I’m familiar. This forest land is dense. It covers most of the land. There’s an abandoned mansion east from here. It’s probably surrounded by an overgrown garden now. No doubt the Sanguinata will claim it, if possible. There’s a groundsman’s lodge to the west that the Lupin will enjoy.”

  Wow. “I’m glad you came.”

  He shot me a grin over his shoulder. “Just be grateful Dorian’s arrogance prevented him from figuring out I’d have an advantage.”

  We wove through the trees, quickly, stealthily. “Where are we headed then?”

  “There’s a cabin up ahead, just over the stream.”

  The sound of running water reached my ears, and then a stream came into view, shallow and rocky and easily crossed. The forest seemed even denser on the other side, and we had to fight our way through the tangle of branches and brambles.

  “Are you sure about this?” Ryker asked.

  Bane made a sound of exasperation and forged ahead. “Be careful, don’t damage the branches. It will make it easier for them to track us here.” And then we stumbled into a clearing, well, as clear as you could expect in the unkempt wilderness. A tiny log cabin covered in moss sat at the center.

  The door was stiff but opened with a shove of Bane’s shoulder, and then we were inside. It smelled musty and slightly damp.

  Ryker crouched by the dusty hearth. “I’ll get a fire going.”

  “No,” Bane said. “Do you want to announce our whereabouts?”

  “It’s fucking freezing? How do you suggest we stay warm?”

  “Body heat,” Bane said.

  Shit, he was good. I would have built a fire without even questioning it. Wait, did he just say body heat?

  “Don’t look so stricken, Harker,” Bane said lightly. “Everyone likes snuggles.”

  Ryker made a choking sound.

  Had he just said snuggles? What the heck?

  Bane’s lip twitched, and then he strode off to examine what would be our base for the next seventy-two hours. Every time I thought I had a handle on this guy, he switched things up. Just when I got accustomed to his snapping, he soothed things over, and when I got used to the lack of humor, he threw in a pun.

  Ryker jerked his head toward the door. “Harker, let’s scout the perimeter and set some traps to alert us to intruders.”

  The next two hours were spent helping Ryker roll out trip wire and tangle bells in the bushes to alert us of anyone coming or going. He’d arrived well stocked, his backpack bulging with strange items. We laid down spike mats, covering them with leaves and twigs, and even set up an alarm system. When we were done, he flicked his wrist to make the air shudder around each trap to test that it worked.

  “How do you do that?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. I just do. I feel connected to the air, as if it’s a friend.”

  “I wonder what Aether is.”

  “What calls to you?”

  “The energy inside others.” The answer tripped off my lips. “You think it’s something to do with energy?”

  “Everything is some form of energy. You’re not like the regular incubus who feeds off one kind of energy. You seem to be able to pick and choose. Maybe that’s the key. I’m sure we’ll find out eventually.”

  “Yeah, it hardly matters with my ninja moves, right?” I nudged him with my shoulder.

  He rolled his eyes. “Or your big head.”

  “Hey, my head is the perfectly perfect size for my body.”

  He looked me up and down. “Annoyingly true.”

  Perimeter secure, we headed back inside, where Bane was fiddling with some kind of machine he’d set on the rickety table.

  “A generator?” Ryker rushed over to take a look. “Damn it. We need Rivers for this shit.”

  Bane played with some wires and then flipped a switch. The generator made a strange chugging sound and then began to hum.

  Bane stood back. “Now we’re cooking. Or we will be once I get this plugged back in.” He carried the machine to the kitchen area and opened the cupboard under the counter. Five minutes later, we had light.

  “T
urn them off,” Bane said. “Harker, there are candles and matches in the drawer over there.”

  They were huge, chunky things. I lit them but kept them in the center of the cabin.

  Bane tested the two-ring hob. It worked, which meant hot food. We’d brought cans of soup and beans and some scones that Orin had packed. It would do for the seventy-two hours we’d be stuck here.

  We were ready to hunt for flags.

  ***

  An hour and a half later, we’d scouted two miles around the perimeter of the base, and were about to admit defeat, when I spotted the prize. Shining silver in the moonlight, the flag was tied to a high tree branch.

  “I got this.” I took a few steps back and then launched myself at the trunk. My nails elongated, jamming into the bark, and I was off, scrambling up like a marsupial on speed. Damn, it felt good. From up here, the forest was laid out before me, and far to the east, the rolling plains bathed in silver were visible. The flag was in my hand, then clutched between my teeth, and I was about to make a break for the ground when movement caught my eye. Shapes loping close to the ground and headed this way.

  The Lupin. It had to be.

  Shit. Time to shimmy my arse down to the team.

  Back on the ground, I tucked the flag into my jacket. “We need to move. We have incoming.”

  “Did they see you?” Bane asked.

  “I don’t know. But if I saw them, it’s highly possible that they saw me.”

  We took off back the way we’d come, moving fast. “Wait!” I ground to a halt. “We can’t lead them back to base. We need to split up and throw them off.”

  Bane nodded. “You head to base, and I’ll create a diversion.”

  “No. I’m faster. I’ll lead them off track and double back and meet you guys.”

  Ryker looked ready to protest. But Bane nodded. “Do it.”

  I spun on my heel and ran back toward the danger.

  Howls cut through the air. The Lupin were on the hunt. Wolf men, Ryker had said. Men who could tear you to shreds with their teeth and claws. It would be my first encounter, and, yeah, I was happy to skip it. I skidded to a halt by the tree where the flag had been and waited. They were getting closer. I needed to hold off. Let them catch my scent and then run.

  The next howl was so close I almost felt its vibrations.