Pulling to her feet, Kayla stepped back to stand beside Joel.
Aaron took up a position on the other side of her, his handgun targeting Amber.
Chris, Wylde, and that Mary/wolf creature completed the circle. Mary was nowhere in sight, so that had to be her.
Amber’s expression hardened to a sneer as she morphed once again into the demon. “I told you he makes you weak. You don’t dare keep me submerged. You need me.”
With a downward sweep of its great wings, the demon leapt into the air. Its sword sliced through El Brujo’s energy net, and it just kept flying.
Aaron fired off a few shots, but they didn’t seem to have any effect.
Necromance was soon just a vanishing dot, high in the sky, flying away.
~ ~ ~
Joel sent Kirk an urgent message.
Joel: Any chance you can track her?
Xi_Force_Control: Negative.
Damn.
Groaning, Rory rolled over and pushed to his feet. “Sorry I wasn’t more help, sir.”
Kayla slid into Joel’s side. He wrapped an arm around her waist as he surveyed the carnage in the clearing. Then he noticed her bloody arm. “You’re wounded.”
Kayla shook her head. “I’ll be fine. The others . . .”
Through gritted teeth Joel did what he had to do. He took control. “Rory, get Wylde back to Heather for treatment.”
Blood soaked Wylde’s shredded shirt front. He looked to have been stabbed repeatedly. How was the man even standing?
But Wylde waved Rory off. “I’m not leaving without my pack.”
He crouched down beside the limp form of Clark, running his hand through the pup’s coarse fur.
Dove Locklear rose from where she’d been checking out Natasha. “The wolves seem fine, just unconscious.”
The skin showing through Wylde’s shredded, blood-drenched shirt had already knit back together. His face set in a grim cast, he moved from one wolf to another, checking on each.
Carlos Diego settled to the ground below where he’d been hovering.
Joel loosed his grip on Kayla and stepped toward him. “You can fly?”
Nodding, Carlos stretched out his hand toward Joel as he approached. “More levitate than fly, but yes, though it does burn a lot of energy, I thought it might also give me better positioning on the demon.”
Accepting the outstretched hand, Joel caught Carlos’s gaze. “I may have to start believing in Bigfoot.”
Carlos chuckled. “You’ve been reading my press.”
Holstering his side arm, Aaron joined them. “It appears that the person we’ve been looking for found us.”
“My sister informed me you wanted to talk with me. On my way to your headquarters I noted the use of magical force out here in the forest and came to investigate.” His gaze swung to the wolf-like creature in women’s clothing. “Let me help you.”
As his hands wove an intricate design in the air, an orange glowing trail of light followed his fingers.
The creature began to pulse and morph. Within seconds it was replaced by Mary Cullen, holding little Jimmy in her arms.
“He was . . . inside me. We were merged. I could hear his thoughts. He could direct our movements.” Tears streamed down her face. “What the hell happened to us?”
Jimmy whimpered, burrowing deeper into the crook of her shoulder. Mary calmed as she ran her hand through the fur on Jimmy’s back.
“I know. I know. But we’re fine now.” Mary’s focus reverted completely to the little pup.
Around Joel, the other wolves began to revive. Yips and growls filled the air as Natasha, Wanda, and the pups pulled drunkenly to their feet and staggered toward Wylde.
He did his best to settle them down, but Natasha, Clark, and Bruce continued to growl their discontent. “I’d best take them back to the compound, away from the scene.”
Looking down at his shredded shirt he added, “And maybe shower and find a fresh change of clothing.”
The blood was caked and drying, but the metallic scent still hung in the air, and was probably what was driving the more alpha wolves in his pack to discontent.
“Go.” Joel nodded to him. “But as soon as you can, get to Heather for a checkup. I don’t care how fine you’re feeling.”
He cocked his head at Rory. “You too. Full checkup. That’s an order.”
As the pack moved out, Clark and Bruce confronted Jimmy, barking and growling at him and stopping Mary in her tracks.
Jimmy’s head sprang up. He bared his teeth and growled back. A strange move for the usually passive pup.
The wolves continued to growl and yip at each other until Mary stomped her foot. “No. Jimmy’s right. He needs to be with me. You go on without him.”
Then her tone softened as tears once again rimmed her eyes. “And I need him right now.”
As Wylde moved to reign in the two alpha pups, his gaze swung to Mary. “Did you understand that exchange?”
Mary’s eyes widened. “I . . . did. I heard it through Jimmy. Like we were still joined together.”
“Maybe you still are. There’s a strangeness in both your auras,” El Brujo interjected.
Nodding, Wylde shooed Clark and Bruce back toward the rest of his pack. “I think you’re right. Jimmy should stay with you . . . for now.”
As Wylde left with his pack, Joel confronted Mary. “And I want you and Jimmy in Heather’s office as soon as you feel up to it.”
She might have to stand in line.
Heather was about to become one very busy doctor. Her lab would most likely be like a packed emergency room, but Joel had no doubt she’d want to see and assess each case herself, and if anyone could handle the chaos, it was her.
He released his hold on Kayla, but turned to catch her gaze. “You too. Get those cuts bandaged.”
She snorted. “I can bandage myself. I am a doctor. Well, almost anyway. Then I’ll help Heather with the mess you just sent her.”
“Dove, go with them as well. I want you to give the wolves a thorough checkup, especially Jimmy. I need to spend some time with Carlos to figure out what we’re up against.”
Chris stood to the side, arms crossed. “What about me?”
So many disjointed things just happened, Joel’s head reeled. Chris had suggested setting up a multi-tasking app on his internal computer. Maybe he should, but he wasn’t quite ready to surrender more of himself to his machine side. There were times already where he felt more robot than man.
He took a GPS reading on the forest clearing and sent a message to his forensics team. “Stay here and do a complete scan. I’m sending out some people to help. Anything you can find, however insignificant it might seem, record it and put it in a file. I’m still not sure what the hell happened here.”
But he was damn sure going to find out.
Chapter 24
Coffee brewed and served with a pile of emergency sandwiches delivered to the control room by the cooks, Joel was ready to dig in and try and figure out what just happened.
First things first.
“What is she? What has Amber become?” He needed to know, and Carlos Diego offered the best hope of finding out.
Aaron paced the room, as usual, hands behind his back, taking everything in, but letting Joel drive the discussion, at least for now.
Seated across from him at the conference room table, Carlos opened his hand, palm up and an old tome appeared in it out of nowhere. “She is possessed by a demon, and this one is nasty, with a really bloody history.”
He opened the book and read a couple passages from it.
The history of that sword was grim. The Death Blade they called it, the last of the swords made by Muramasa Sengo, a famous Japanese swordsmith from the turn of
the 16th century.
Through the eyes of an unnamed apprentice, the story unfolded of Muramasa dying at the forge in the midst of his last and greatest creation. No heartbeat, no breath. Yet the corpse reanimated long enough to finish the work. The blade sharper, stronger than any forged to that time.
A sword that became renowned and feared. Tales of voices haunting the blade-wielder, some of whom found it impossible to sheath the sword once drawn, unless it drew blood or took a life. Warriors rising to great fame only to succumb to madness.
The sword was lost, found, taken, and used until at last it was obtained by a sect of Buddhist monks who hid it away in plain sight in a Japanese museum.
Aaron paused in his pacing. “So if it’s the sword that has the powers, then we just need to separate Amber from the sword to defeat her?”
Joel had a feeling it wouldn’t be that easy.
Carlos shook his head. “The sword is the conduit, but the demon resides inside her now. It has already crossed over from purgatory into our realm, using that bloody ritual she performed in that portal castle. We need to find a way to pull Necromance back into the Death Dimension, then take the sword away from her.”
Yeah, that sounded much tougher to accomplish. “So how do we do that?”
A knock at the door.
It opened and Kayla stepped in. Apparently she did still know how to use a door. She’d changed her shirt to a plain, white tee. The bandage on her upper arm showed below the sleeve. Heavy duty. That had been more than a scratch.
“How is everyone?”
She plunked down in the chair next to his. “Wylde is fine, healed completely up. Not a scratch showing. Dove is still checking over the wolves, but they appear to be fine as well.”
Not surprising. “And Mary?”
“Sleeping, with Jimmy curled up at her side. They were both exhausted. Heather has no idea what happened to them, but you know her, the testing will continue, probably as soon as Mary wakes up. There is some kind of bond between them. Mary can hear and understand what Jimmy says, just like Wylde understands his wolves. Poor Jimmy is pretty shaken up.”
Her hand sought out his, warm in his grip. She squeezed in reassurance. But she rolled her bottom lip between her teeth, a clear indication there was something else.
He caught her gaze. “And?”
Kayla took in a deep breath, the huffed it out.
Delaying.
What didn’t she want to tell them?
“Wylde said Amber kept repeating that she didn’t want to kill anyone. That she couldn’t kill anyone. I heard her say it too, though in my case she seemed ready to make an exception.”
Everyone walked on eggshells whenever they talked about Amber in his presence. He got that. But he and everyone else needed to get over it. Amber was the enemy once again, and they needed direct and clear talk when addressing the threat she presented.
“That seems out of character for Amber.” The name came out with barely a quaver in his voice. “She never had any qualms about killing.”
“Wylde said she was saying it not so much to him, but almost like a mantra, as she stabbed him again and again with that sword.”
Shaking his head, Aaron huffed. “Maybe she’s just finally gone completely over the edge.”
Carlos rose from his seat. Hand to his chin, he ran fingers through the thick hairs of his goatee. “It actually makes sense, under the circumstances. That must have been why she targeted Mr. Wylde. She couldn’t accidentally kill him.”
Aaron pulled back. “Then why did she even bother to attack him?”
Hands behind his back, Carlos began to pace. “The sword acts as a conduit to more than just the Death dimension. It pulls life-force from its victim into the human host, to make them more powerful. It could do that even before Necromance bridged the gap between dimensions. It’s what makes the sword so intoxicating to the wielder. Each time it draws blood, the wielder gains strength, power.”
“That must have been why Amber had such super strength when she attacked us in the restaurant,” Kayla said. “She’d been using the sword, building power.”
Carlos nodded. “A certain amount of death is required before the demon can cross over and into the sword-wielder’s body. But any death caused by the sword after that point increases the demon’s control of its host. If she can draw blood . . . life-force . . . without killing, she grows stronger but stays in control of the demon. If she kills, Necromance grows stronger. This woman with the sword seems to be playing a grisly game of Russian Roulette, trying to build her own power while reigning in the demon inside of her. Mr. Wylde would be the perfect pawn for her, as it appears he can’t be killed.”
This was the type of evil game Amber would excel at. Power and control.
~ ~ ~
Movement flickered at the edge of Kayla’s vision. When she looked that direction, nothing was there. It was like when . . .
She phased, and the girl appeared clearly in her peripheral vision like before.
It felt like she was in two places at once. She was still seated next to Joel, though now her hand phased through his, and she lost contact. Concentrating on her anchor atoms kept her seated in the chair, but the rest of her went to that other place. The real world around her dimmed.
“Hi again,” the girl said.
The lights in the room flickered.
Carlos paused in his pacing and raised his hand. “A moment, please. My sister calls.” He then recited a short, strange sounding chant, with no recognizable words.
Kayla looked straight at Carlos but kept the girl in her peripheral vision.
“What?” Carlos’s voice reverberated, as if coming from two different directions at the same time.
The girl pointed at her. “She’s here again, physically, just like that sword.”
Eyes widening, Carlos uttered another incantation. “How is it you can enter the Realm of the Dead?”
An icy tingle swept up Kayla’s spine. The Realm of the Dead?
“Cut the crap, hermano, you’re freakin’ her out,” the girl said. “Call it Purgatory or something.”
Kayla took a deep breath, trying to center herself. “Yeah, you are kind of freaking me out.”
Carlos, eyes wide, caught Kayla’s gaze. “Wait, you can hear Olivia?”
“Olivia? Is that your name?”
“Yeah.”
Kayla held out her hand. “I’m Kayla. Glad to meet you.”
Giggling, Olivia shook her head. “You have more substance here than me. I can’t touch anything. I can see the real world, but can’t interact much with it, except to mess with electricity a little.”
“Oh.” Kayla pulled her hand back. “Sorry.”
“No problema. It’s nice to meet you too.” Her ghostly smile appeared genuine. “Actually, it’s nice to meet anyone when you’re dead. Most of the other ghosts here tend to be a bit standoffish. Hey, I know this great little male strip club. Want to go sometime? You know, girl’s night out?”
“Olivia.” Carlos furrowed his brow.
Olivia just waved him off. “They can’t hear me anyway, but okay, we’ll keep this our little secret. Still, you know, if you ever want to . . .”
“I’ll check my calendar.” Kayla almost laughed at the exchange. The humor at least lightened the moment. But she did have to get the conversation back on track. “What did you say about the sword being solid in this dimension?”
“It’s solid like you, and there’s not much in Purgatory that’s solid.”
Which must be why she didn’t hit anything when she phased.
Joel cleared his throat. “I get the feeling I’m missing half this conversation.”
Carlos nodded. “You are. Olivia is here.”
“But I can see her a
nd talk to her when I phase.” Kayla solidified, and Olivia disappeared.
Heather would so want to study this.
Joel stood, leaning forward with his knuckles on the table, his gaze on Carlos. “What were you saying about that sword?”
“The sword serves as a conduit between the two dimensions, thus it exists in both. From what I’ve been able to ascertain, demons are sent up from the lower realms to harvest the souls in the Realm of the Dead just as the light is sent from the upper dimensions.” Carlos’s gaze shifted to Kayla. “Purgatory that is, the place the dead go before they move on.”
“It’s okay, Carlos,” she assured him. “I can handle whatever you want to call it.”
He nodded. “Anyway, demons can’t enter the Realm of the Living without some kind of conduit. A ceremony, a sacrifice, an enchanted object. Whatever Muramasa Sengo did during the crafting of that weapon made it real in both dimensions and bound Necromance to it. Perhaps it was Necromance that was sent to take his soul, and they made some kind of deal.”
Pushing out a breath, Kayla sunk deeper into the plush office chair. She was in no hurry to join the tangle of three pacing men in the conference room. Her mind whirled with the day’s events and discoveries. She could use some time in bed.
Okay, she could use some time in bed with Joel. But she could also use a little sleep. In any case, some escape from all this . . . drama.
“So how do we destroy this thing? How do we get that demon out of Amber, and Amber back in prison?” Aaron asked.
Carlos shrugged. “I don’t know . . . yet. Give me a couple of hours.”
Chapter 25
Quiet quarters and a powerful computer were quickly arranged for Carlos, and the man was left to his own devices, with a pile of ancient looking tomes he’d pulled out of the air from somewhere.
El Brujo, the Warlock. An impressive man. Joel wondered how long it would take Aaron to ask Carlos to join the team on a permanent basis. Had Joel still been in charge, he’d have asked already. But that job fell to Aaron now, and Aaron was more cautious.
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