Defeat the Darkness (Paladins of Darkness 6)

by Alexis Morgan

  Before Hunter could decide whether he should punch Larem or if perhaps the Kalith might be on to something, he realized they weren’t alone. Someone had just disappeared around the bend in the trail just ahead.

  Larem looked disgusted. “So much for the signs keeping the locals out.”

  “Or else he’s got pressing business down below and doesn’t give a damn what the sign said.”

  “Do you think—”

  Hunter laid his hand on Larem’s arm and put his finger across his lips. The sound of voices carried softly on the breezes from the bluff below where they stood. With a slow nod, Larem drew his sword from the harness strapped to his back under his coat. When both of them were armed and ready, they started forward.

  With luck, the long-awaited battle was about to begin. Once the enemy was defeated, Hunter would figure out what to do about his future—and what role Tate might be willing to play in it.

  ———

  Tate stood at the window in the back of her house, watching Hunter disappear into the woods with Larem.

  She said a soft prayer for their safety before making up the bed for Mr. Kincade. Once she brought in some clean towels, she’d get started on the second room in case his friend showed up. Why hadn’t she just said no? The last thing she needed right now was the added stress of houseguests.

  As she tucked the sheets in, she frowned. What was it about Mr. Kincade’s associates that was bothering her? She could only remember him having guests a couple of times when she’d visited her uncle, but there’d been something different about them. It probably wasn’t important, but she knew she’d keep thinking about it until she figured it out.

  Straightening up, she walked back to the window again. There was no sign of Hunter or his companion. Immediately, her mind pictured Larem and Barak with their accents and Old World mannerisms. Or, according to Hunter, the more accurate description would be alien world mannerisms.

  A chill raced through her as the dots began to connect faster than she could follow. When she’d first met Larem and Barak, she’d been too upset by their effect on Hunter to realize why something about them was so familiar. She’d never met them before that day, but she had met others of their kind.

  Had Mr. Kincade been bringing Kalith into this world, into her home, for years? Uncle Jacob couldn’t have known the truth about them or he would’ve said something. How often had it happened? Maybe she should take a quick peek back through the ledgers and see if she could find something concrete to show to Hunter.

  She tossed the towels on the dresser and headed for the small office she kept off the kitchen. Uncle Jacob’s old-fashioned ledgers were lined up on a double row of shelves above the desk. She picked a book at random and opened it. The familiar sight of her uncle’s nearly illegible scrawl tugged at her heart. How many nights had she played on the floor by his feet while he’d labored over the books?

  But now wasn’t the time for reminiscing; it was time to hunt for proof. No sooner had she sat down than the shop bell rang. Sighing, she selected two more books and headed out into the shop to see who’d come in. It was with some relief that she saw one of her regulars there to pick up the special blend of green tea that she’d ordered. After a quick transaction, Tate was again alone.

  Rather than retreat to the office, she spread the books out on the table that gave her a clear view of the garage apartment and the route Hunter had taken to the woods. With a cup of her favorite chamomile tea to help calm her nerves, she opened the most recent ledger and started scanning the pages for a mention of Mr. Kincade and his mysterious companions.

  Sure enough, at least once every few months Mr. Kincade showed up for a two-day stay. Only about half the time did he end up with one of his special guests joining him. She made note of each date and whether or not he’d been alone. There didn’t seem to be a regular pattern, although he rarely went longer than three months without a visit.

  That had remained true until a few months ago. What if he had already known about Jacob’s death? Could that have forced Mr. Kincade to find a new way to operate, like prowling around town at night? What was he really up to?

  She sat back and stared at the ledgers scattered across the table. It would be nice to have Hunter come back so she could discuss this with him. Maybe she was jumping to conclusions. After all, she was basing all of this on the vague memories and a personal dislike for an irritating customer.

  The lights were on over at the apartment, which probably meant that D.J. or one of the other guys was using it. Maybe she should go talk to them. It wouldn’t do to leave the ledgers out, not with Mr. Kincade likely to show up any minute. She also didn’t want to risk carrying them over to the apartment in case she ran into him on the way.

  She finished marking the pages with slips of paper and stashed the ledgers behind the counter. Then she hurried out the door to see who she could talk to over at the apartment. Failing that, she’d head down the trail herself and see if she could find Hunter and Larem.

  There was no sign of her missing guest, which was just as well. This could all be her overactive imagination at work, but she didn’t think so. Either way, she had no desire to see him until she knew for sure.

  When she reached the top of the garage stairs, she looked through the window and knocked on the door. Someone was curled up on the couch looking awfully uncomfortable. She knocked again, louder this time. D.J. lifted his head and blinked sleepily.

  “D.J., open the door. I need to talk to you.”

  The urgency in her voice brought him to full alert. He threw back the blanket and sat up. She looked away while he yanked on his jeans and a shirt. A few seconds later, he opened the door.

  “Come on in. Let me roust Penn out, too, so you can tell us both at the same time.”

  Too restless to sit down, she paced the length of the room and back while she waited for the two men to join her. Time seemed to drag, although it couldn’t have been more than a minute before they joined her.

  Penn stretched his arms over his head, his joints cracking. “What’s up, Tate?”

  Drawing a deep breath, she did her best to sound calm despite the staccato beating of her heart. “Okay, now this might sound crazy, but I think I know who’s behind what’s been going on around here.”

  D.J. looked understandably skeptical as he flopped back down on the couch. “How so?”

  “That day Larem and Barak first showed up, my first thought was that there was something familiar about them. But I forgot about it in all the excitement.” She still had nightmares about the crazed look on Hunter’s face when he’d tried to kill Larem.

  “What do you mean ‘familiar’? There’s no way you’d ever seen them before that day. I know for a fact that neither of them had ever been up this way.”

  “I know, I know. But early this morning one of my uncle’s old customers showed up unexpectedly wanting to rent one of my rooms. Mr. Kincade has been coming here for years. One reason he stuck in my mind was that he’s always demanding special privileges.” The words poured out, as if the faster she said them, the more likely D.J. and Penn would believe her. She paused to catch her breath.

  Penn prompted her to go on. “And the second reason?”

  “Sometimes he’d have a guest or two join him. We always wondered what country they were from because of their heavy accents and odd attire.” She stared at each man in turn. “They mostly wore all black. Their hair was long and shot through with gray and silver. And I might be wrong about this, but I think they all had those same pale eyes that both Larem and Barak have.”

  D.J.’s glittered in excitement. “Describe this Kincade. We know a Colonel Kincade, and I’m betting it’s the same guy.”

  Tate pictured him in her head. “Late fifties, just under six feet, carries himself like he owns the place no matter where he is.”

  “Well, I’ll be damned. Who’d have guessed that bastard Kincade was the one behind all of this?” D.J. was already reaching for his cell phone. “
How long do you think this had been going on?”

  “Before I came over here, I looked back through my uncle’s ledgers. I only check out about four years’ worth, but I know it went on longer than that because I can remember seeing them pass through here when I was still in my early teens.”

  “First, I’ve got to call this in to Devlin. Then we need to—”

  He stopped midsentence at the sound of three loud popping noises. Her first thought was that it was an odd time of day for anyone to be shooting off fireworks. But she knew she was mistaken when D.J. and Penn went from relaxed to warrior mode before the last echo died away. Swords and guns seemed to appear out of nowhere.

  “Tate, go home and lock yourself in. Then call your neighbors and tell them to stay inside.”

  D. J. was already on the move and leading the charge down the stairs outside, leaving Tate no choice but to follow along in his wake. “What’s going on, D.J.?”

  Penn loped on ahead of them as the other Paladin stopped to answer her. “We told Larem and Hunter to fire off a couple of shots if they needed backup. Get inside. It could be nothing, or all hell could be breaking loose. Hunter will have my ass if I let you get caught in the crossfire.”

  “Okay, but…” Her voice cracked.

  D.J.’s smile was sympathetic. “Yeah, I know. We’ll do our damnedest to keep Hunter from collecting any more interesting scars.”

  “Not just him. All of you be careful. Now go. I’ll be fine.” She backed away, ready to bolt for home, her stomach churning with fear for Hunter and his friends.

  “Here.” D.J. tossed her his cell. “Hit two on the speed dial and tell Devlin Bane what you just told me. Let him know what’s going on and who’s involved. Tell him we’ll check in as soon as we can. Now get inside.”

  She ran for her back door, stopping only when she was inside. She flipped open the phone and hit the button.

  A gruff voice answered on the second ring. “Damn it, D.J., where the hell have you been? Do I really need to come up there and kick your collective asses?”

  This guy was so not going to be happy to hear from Tate instead of his friends. “Uh, I hope not, Mr. Bane. This is Tate Justice.”

  There was no mistaking the heavy sigh at the other end of the call. “Ms. Justice, I apologize. I assume there’s a good reason that you’re calling me instead of D.J. or Fitzsimon.”

  Tate immediately launched into her explanation, starting with the gunshots and ending with her theory about Mr. Kincade and his guests. As she waited for Devlin to respond, she could hear the clicking of a keyboard in the background.

  “Okay, good thinking on your part, Ms. Justice. We’ll want to take a serious look at your uncle’s ledgers at some point. For now, I’ve got an all-call out for Barak, Lonzo, and a couple of my other men. We’ll be on our way inside of ten minutes, but it will be awhile before we can get there, even by helicopter.”

  The relief of knowing that help was coming went a long way to help her stop shaking. “Thank you, Mr. Bane. See you soon.”

  “That you will.” Then he laughed. “And better make it Devlin, Tate. No use in formality among friends. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot of you.”

  Once she disconnected, she set the cell phone aside and reached for her own phone to begin calling the neighbors. After she hung up from talking to Mabel, she realized she was no longer alone. Slowly she turned to face the doorway, where her unwanted guest stood staring at her.

  Before she could react, Mr. Kincade grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out into the shop. He shoved her toward the table in the far corner, and she stumbled backward. By the time she caught her balance, she was looking down the barrel of his gun.

  “Tate, my dear, you’ve obviously been a busy girl since I left. How unfortunate for us both.” His smile was cold and nasty. “While we wait for my ride to show up, why don’t you tell me exactly what you just said to Devlin Bane on the phone and what he’s going to do about it. And maybe, just maybe, you might actually live through this.”

  Hunter parried and thrust, forcing his opponent to retreat backward toward the barrier at the rear of the cave. Damn, it felt good to be swinging his sword, which was probably twisted and sick. But for the first time since waking up in Doc Crosby’s lab, he was doing what he was born to do—protecting the barrier with his sword and his blood.

  That he was doing so standing shoulder to shoulder with Larem q’Jones was ironic, but it felt amazingly right despite their different fighting styles. The Kalith warrior was all grace and blinding speed, while Hunter fought with brute strength and determination. But between the two of them, they’d already forced one contingent of Larem’s countrymen back across the barrier. Right now, they were trying to block the entrance to the cave to prevent the latest bunch from reaching freedom on the hillside above.

  He’d spent his career fighting Others, but this was the first time he’d faced Kalith warriors in full control of their emotions. Sweat poured down his face, and his shoulders ached as he blocked another attempt to separate his head from his body. These bastards knew how to kill and fought with deadly intent.

  The barrier flashed bright and failed again. An older Kalith stepped across, his sword up and ready for battle. As soon as Larem spotted him, he screamed in rage and charged forward in reckless intent to breach the male’s defenses.

  Hunter lunged to the side, blocking Larem’s headlong charge. “Damn it, do you want to die?”

  Larem gave him a wild-eyed look but fell back into position. “That bastard’s why I’m trapped in your world. He’s mine to kill.”

  “Fine, you’ve called dibs, but another stupid charge like that will get both of us skewered.”

  Hunter managed to badly wound his most recent opponent as he spoke, but as that one fell back, another took his place. God, if that barrier didn’t go back up soon, he and Larem would eventually be overwhelmed. He could only hope that D.J. and Penn had heard the warning shots he’d fired.

  Speaking of which, while the barrier was down, it would be safe to use bullets instead of blades. “Larem, hold them for a few seconds.”

  He moved to the side, giving his partner more room to maneuver while he drew his revolver. He’d have to pick his targets carefully or risk a ricochet hitting him or Larem. He took aim and dropped two of the Kalith with shots meant to disable rather than kill. With luck, he and Larem would be able to shove the whole bunch back into their own world.

  When the barrier flickered to life again, he stuck the gun back into his waistband and rejoined the battle. A shout outside the cave caught his attention.

  “Inside, Penn!”

  “On your left, Hunter!” D.J. moved up beside him, engaging another of the Kalith. “Penn’s outside in case any of them get by.”

  That was relief. So far, he and Larem had kept the Kalith contained, but even one could do a lot of damage if he got past them. The thought of Tate or any of the residents of Justice Point at the mercy of these cold-eyed bastards made him crazy.

  “I had Tate call for reinforcements, but they could be awhile in getting here. If the barrier is down all through the region, they may not be coming at all.”

  “We’ll hold them.”

  D.J. lunged forward, laughing like a loon when his opponent ran into his comrade and almost went to the ground in a tangle of arms and legs. “Don’t suppose you’ve seen their human buddies down here.”

  “No.” Another worry. He was puffing like a steam engine, and his leg hurt like hell. “We saw somebody on the trail, but he’d disappeared before we caught up with him. Larem and I sensed the barrier weakening. Since then, we’ve been too busy to hunt him down.”

  D.J. looked worried even as he reengaged his opponent. Between blows he brought Hunter up to speed. “I was afraid of that… you see… Tate’s customer from this morning has been coming here regularly for years.”

  He spun and took out a warrior who’d thought to flank them while they were talking. “We’re pretty sure our
Colonel Kincade is the one who’s been working with these bastards.”

  Which meant the traitorous jerk was still on the loose, and Tate was up there without any of the Paladins or Larem to defend her. Hunter’s stomach plummeted.

  “Can you two hold these guys?”

  Not that it mattered. He wasn’t about to stay, not if Tate was in danger.

  It was Larem who answered. “Go to your woman.” A flash of his sword punctuated his words, and his opponent screamed.

  Larem shouted in triumph. “One less of your lackeys between me and you, Guildmaster. Hide back there if you want. I’ll get to you soon enough.”

  Hunter backed away from the battle. “Penn, I’m coming out.” He hesitated only for a heartbeat before charging outside.

  Penn had his gun trained on him but turned it aside as soon as he recognized him. Hunter sidestepped along the ledge as the other Paladin shifted his position to maintain a clear shot at the cave entrance.

  “How goes it in there?”

  “D.J. and Larem are holding their own. The Guildmaster crossed over the last time the barrier went down. It’s back up for now. As long as it stays that way, they’ll be all right until help comes.” He looked up the trail. “If it does. But I’m going up above. Kincade isn’t here. If he figures out Tate has identified him…”

  He couldn’t say it, but the threat hung heavily in the air. “I’ll be back when I can.”

  “Do you want backup?”

  Hunter appreciated the offer, but Penn was needed here. Hunter charged up the trail, ignoring the shards of pain in his leg. He’d get to Tate even if he had to crawl. At the edge of the woods, he paused long enough to decide which weapon would be best. The gun would be effective at a longer distance, but the sword would give him greater satisfaction. The traitor he was hunting deserved to die piece by piece.

  His decision made, he followed the woods around to the edge of the Auntie Ms property. Kincade was familiar with the area and would be watching for any sign of Hunter approaching from the woods. The only chance he had to surprise him was to come from the front.