by AE Jones
“Then why can these other demons manage it?” I pushed.
“There is a conduit between the worlds that ebbs and flows like electricity,” Katya answered. “Some demons are in tune with it and can manipulate it. They’ve made a lucrative business out of transporting other demons back and forth.”
“Abstatholm,” I said.
Katya’s eyes sharpened on me. “Yes.”
“The demon who burglarized the art museum had multiple powers—invisibility, telekinesis, and the ability to suppress the security cameras. Do any of the five clans have demons who could have all three of these abilities?” Misha asked.
Irina pursed her lips. “The realm demons are dangerous. But even there, it’s not common for demons to have that many powers. Only two of the clans might have someone who is this powerful.”
“Is one of them Majock?” I pushed again.
“Yes,” Irina said. “It could be a Majock. Do you think it’s the Majock Boris asked me about last year, when everyone was hunting for the Key?” Her wizened eyes tightened on me. “Has the hunt started again?”
Dalton tensed next to me, and I stifled a groan. He probably believed we were keeping things from him again. More explanations would be in order later.
Irina sat waiting for my response. She was a smart old broad. There was no point in lying. “Possibly.”
Katya picked up a folded piece of paper and held it out to me. “Irina and I composed a list of the five clans and what we know about them. Demon skin, eye color, powers, etc.”
I reached for it, and Katya pressed it into my palm.
“Can demons have different eye colors within their clan?” I asked.
“I’ve not seen it before.” Irina answered. “What about you, Katya?”
She frowned. “No.”
“Then I don’t think the demon was Majock. Majocks’ eyes aren’t white, are they? The demon’s eyes glowed white.”
Irina and Katya exchanged startled glances. “His eyes were white?”
“Yes.”
“And don’t forget about the green blood, Kyle.” Talia said.
“That changes things,” Irina mumbled.
Dalton frowned. “Why?”
“Because no demon on earth or in the realm normally has white eyes while in their demon state.”
“Normally?” Jean Luc asked.
“There is one possible reason for the white eyes. If a demon forms a bond with another demon, they borrow powers. It’s a dangerous situation, because it puts the demon who has borrowed those powers into something like an indentured servant relationship with the other demon.”
Before I could ask another question, a tall male stalked into the room. He glared at all of us before turning to Boris. “What’s going on here?”
“We’re meeting with the BSR to discuss a case,” Boris answered.
The demon glared at Misha. “It is one thing if Mikhail wants to associate with outsiders, but it is quite another when he brings them here.”
I snorted at his high and mighty intonation, and his piercing glare turned on me. But I wasn’t intimidated. I had been glowered at by supes way scarier than he was.
“Did I say something amusing?” he asked, and actually looked down his nose at me.
“No,” I replied.
He started to look away in triumph, so I decided to enlighten him a bit. “What you said was rude.”
“Excuse me?” He pulled himself up even taller and crossed his arms. He was wearing a designer suit and a pair of shoes he or some suitably humble minion obviously buffed daily.
“Rude. You might think we outsiders aren’t worthy to shine your incredibly shiny shoes, but you shouldn’t say so in front of us. That. Is. Rude.”
He opened his mouth to bluster something, but Misha interrupted him. “As usual, Aleksei, your first impression leaves much to be desired. You have just insulted your sestra.”
This was Aleksei? While Misha didn’t look like Boris except for their matching ice blue eyes, Aleksei looked just like his father, except his eyes were moss green.
Irina sighed. “They came here so Katya and I would not have to leave the compound. Would you rather have us meet them outside these walls and be vulnerable?”
I doubted either of these females was ever vulnerable, but I had to hand it to Irina for putting Aleksei in his place. He unfolded his arms and moved to the side. I was fine with that. Again with the glowering, though. Seen that, done it myself. So last year.
“How do you plan to locate this demon with the white eyes?” Katya asked.
How much could I say without sending Dalton into a conniption fit? “We’re working on some connections who may lead us to the Abstatholm. If we can get a handle on how demon trafficking works, we hope to stop it and find the white-eyed demon in the process.”
There. That should be generic enough to avoid Dalton’s wrath. I glanced at him to find him frowning at me. Okay, maybe not.
Aleksei scowled at Misha. “This is dangerous. You bring this trouble into our clan?”
Misha scraped his chair back, but before he could stand, Irina held out a staying hand.
Irina pinned Aleksei with a glare. “Aleksei, leave us. Mikhail did not bring trouble to the clan. I do not have time for your squabbling.”
Aleksei stalked from the room in much the same way he had entered it. The tension sucked out the door with him.
Boris placed his hands on the table, palms down. “I must apologize for my son. Aleksei can be a bit zealous when it comes to protecting the clan.”
“A chip off the old block?” I winked at Boris, who laughed out loud.
“I’m afraid so.”
There didn’t seem to be anything further to discuss, so we began our goodbyes. Katya nodded and left the room.
Irina gestured to Misha. “Mikhail, come closer and bring the smart-mouthed one with you.”
“I’m in trouble now,” I muttered.
“You’re not in trouble.”
I stared at her.
“I might look like I’m about to bite the dust, but my demon ears are working just fine.”
Misha bent down to kiss Irina’s cheek. “Babushka, this is Kyle.”
“Ah, that explains it. Boris told me you have a tendency to talk back.”
“I would say it’s more a matter of speaking my mind than talking back.”
She smirked. “Like right now, you mean?”
I smirked right back. “Exactly.”
“Well, I find it refreshing. And I would expect nothing less from my granddaughter.”
My eyes widened. “What?”
“Boris is my son. As much as I love him and my three grandsons, I am happy to have a woman in our family.”
“Why didn’t he introduce you as his mother?” I asked.
“Because I was serving as an elder for our meeting, not his mother.”
So in one fell swoop, I had met practically the whole fam-damily.
Irina examined me for a moment in silence before speaking. “Are you and Misha an item?”
Misha winked at me.
“No, ma’am. Misha is one of my best friends, but we’re not involved romantically.”
She sighed dramatically. “It would be nice if my grandsons would marry and give me grandbabies.”
I chuckled at Misha’s sour face. “Maybe we can work on that together.”
Chapter 18
Was there a pain reliever for demon information overload? Jean Luc drove out of the compound gate, and I glanced back at Dalton. It was best to let him think we were being upfront about everything. Even if it wasn’t exactly true. “Before you pop a blood vessel, let me fill you in on the Majock Irina referenced.”
Dalton leaned forward on his elbows, looking attentive, and I continued. “Last year, we had several supernatural factions looking for the Key. One was a pair of crazy-ass vamps who, I am happy to say, are both dead. As in really dead, not vamp dead. Another was a Pavel demon. Pavels are a clan living on eart
h. And we also had a Majock demon that was somehow mixed up with the vamps. Misha didn’t recognize him in his demon form, so Boris checked with the elders to see if they could help identify him. Irina told us about the Majock and the demon realm.”
“What about the angels?”
“They have a tendency to stay detached from what’s happening on earth. Until last year when one of them…detached…a vamp’s head to stop him from finding the Key.”
Dalton rubbed his hand over his face. “No wonder you were freaked out when you saw the Key box. And now someone is after it again.”
I swallowed hard. “Looks like.”
“Do we have any idea where this Key could be?”
I schooled my face into a blank expression. Or at least I hoped I did. “No.”
“What happens if they find it?”
“I’m not sure. Certainly they’ll want to control it and use the power for their own gain.” I picked at the fraying knee of my jeans. This conversation was making me sweat. ’Cause the bottom line was, it was technically me, and I didn’t want to be controlled by anyone.
Misha interrupted the barrage of pointed questions Dalton was lobbing my way, thank God. “Let’s discuss this demon list Katya gave us so we have an idea of what we might be up against.”
“Good idea,” Talia chimed in from the front seat.
“We know about the Majock, but let me bring Joe up to speed. In demon form, Majock are blue with black stripes and orange eyes. They have the ability to manipulate energy, and the more powerful of them can read minds. Next are the Kelmar. Orange skin and yellow eyes, they can manipulate matter and move through space. The third are the Dragans.”
“There are dragon demons?” I interrupted because, seriously, dragon demons would be awesome.
“No, these are spelled an, not on. Although the myth surrounding dragons probably originated from them, since Dragans control fire and heat. Their demon form is green and brown skin with red eyes.
I glanced at Dalton, and the holy shit look on his face more than likely mirrored my own.
“And the other two clans?” Dalton asked.
“The other two are the Palthat and the Lagfel. Palthat are light blue with green eyes, and they are telekinetic. Lagfel have gray skin and purple eyes, and their primary powers are brute strength and speed.”
Jean Luc stopped at a light. “It sounds as if the demon at the art museum had several powers at his disposal.”
“Yes,” Misha answered. “If Irina is correct, he’s borrowed several clan powers.”
“To what end?” Talia asked. “Irina made it sound as if these clans warred against each other. Why would they be willing to do this?”
“Because whatever they’re after is worth the clans working together,” I answered.
Dalton leaned forward again. “They want the Key.”
I jerked when my phone rang, interrupting the onset of my mental breakdown. “It’s an unlisted number guys, so keep quiet for a sec.” I clicked accept. “Hello.”
“Carly, it’s Eli.”
“Eli. I hope you’re calling me with some news.”
“I have someone who’d like to do business with you. Can you meet tonight at eight?”
“Yes, tonight works. Where?”
Eli rattled off the address, and I repeated it back to him so Misha, aka Mr. Perfect Memory, could memorize it.
“If everything goes smoothly, we’ll expect an electronic transfer of funds at that time.”
“Why wouldn’t it go smoothly?” I asked while the tiny hairs on the back of my neck started doing the mambo.
“I don’t anticipate any problems.”
“Neither do I.” I hung up. “It’s on.”
“We need to discuss the plan,” Dalton said.
Misha held up his phone. “The address he gave us is a warehouse building on St Claire. It looks like it hasn’t been used for a while.”
Talia turned around. “How did you figure that out so fast? Are you tied into the database?”
“Nope. Google Earth. Big brother is watching at all times.”
I interrupted. “So Talia and I will go in with Misha, and Dalton and Jean Luc can stay in close proximity as backup. We’ll wear earbuds and trackers so you two know where we are at all times. It sounds like they’ll want to make sure we have the money and that Misha is legit before we can do business.”
Dalton frowned. “No offense, Misha, but I would think you are pretty well known among the demon population, especially with that accent. Can we risk sending you in?”
“Losing the accent is not a problem,” Misha replied, and then dropped into a perfect southern drawl. “I’ll use the name Michael for tonight, y’all.”
I bit my cheek to keep from laughing. “You are one talented demon.”
* * *
What was it with supernaturals and abandoned buildings? Their MO was usually to conduct shady business in the most out-of-the-way places, the dumpier the better. This building was literally falling apart, right down to rainwater dripping from the high ceiling, plopping loudly on the cement floor.
Eli and bouncer Johnny stood in the center of the warehouse. I skirted a couple of collapsed boxes. Based on the rustling sounds underneath them, they were serving as rodent condos. I made a bigger circle around the next set of boxes until I came to a stop in front of Eli. Talia and Misha stopped next to me.
“Eli.”
“Carly. Is this your traveler?”
“Yes. Eli, this is Michael.”
Eli looked Misha over for a few awkward seconds.
“Are you ready to wire the money?” Eli asked.
I shook my head. “Not so fast. Explain to me how this is going to work.”
“We’ll open the portal, and Michael can step through and do his business.”
“How much time does he have in the realm?”
“That’s a bit relative,” Eli answered with a smirk.
I frowned. “Can you clue me in on the joke?”
“Time is different in the demon realm. For us it will feel like he is gone for an hour, but in the realm it could be a day or more.”
“And how does he get back here?”
Eli arranged the cuffs on his shirt. “I was getting to that. One of the Abstatholm will go with Michael, and then open the portal on the other side when it’s time to return. Any other questions?”
“Where are the Abstatholm?”
Eli nodded to Johnny, who texted something on his phone. “They’re on the way.”
Misha asked, “What if we need to have someone come back with me from the demon realm? How would that work?”
“I don’t handle those types of transfers,” Eli answered tightly.
“Who does?” Talia asked.
Eli scowled. “This is starting to feel like an inquisition.”
“It’s a business arrangement. We want to know how we can bring someone over from the other side,” I persisted.
“It can’t be done.”
The side bay door opened, interrupting my argument. Two males, assumedly demons, lumbered in our direction. This meeting was turning into a scene from a bad cop movie.
The demons were twins, with shaved heads and tattoos of various symbols wrapped around their bulging arms. If they were this badass in their human form, I didn’t want to imagine what they would be like as demons.
Eli jerked his chin in the direction of Tweedle-scary and Tweedle-scarier. “Your transport team has arrived.”
They both scowled in our direction, taking in Misha first and then Talia. When their eyes stopped on me they both growled. What the hell?
Eli jerked and looked over his shoulder at them, then ran for the door. Talia took a running leap and tackled Eli while Misha squared off with Johnny the Body-Building Bouncer. The spooky-ass demon twins stalked in my direction, and I yanked Stanley from his holster and pointed it at them. “Don’t even think about it.”
A rush of air blew the scattered packing peanuts across the
room as Jean Luc appeared from his flash. The twins took off running, splitting up, one careening to the right down a hall, the other skidding left behind a pallet of boxes. I motioned to the left and Jean Luc nodded, flashing toward the back loading dock.
Why didn’t anything go smoothly, ever? I ran after the other demon. The back door crashed open. I raised my gun…and came face to face with Dalton, or more specifically Dalton’s gun. We froze for a second and then lowered our weapons.
I gestured toward the hall. Dalton and I walked together slowly, guns ready, as we checked the empty rooms.
When we got to the last room and found nothing, I looked around again, carefully. “Where the hell did he go? We need to talk to him.”
Energy shot across the back of my neck down my spinal column. It was like static electricity times one hundred. And from the frown on Dalton’s face, I wasn’t the only one feeling it.
“We need to get out—”
A demon appeared in front of me in full demon form. Orange skin with tattoos circling his biceps. His yellow, glowing eyes stared at me defiantly.
“Freeze,” Dalton yelled.
The demon smiled. Who smiles like that, pointy teeth and all, when a gun is aimed at them? Someone with a plan, that’s who. He grabbed my arm. The air in front of me rippled like water. The ground shook, and I fought to get away from him, but it was like pushing my way through pudding.
Dalton yelled and lunged for me as I dropped through the floor, like Alice in freaking Wonderland tumbling down the rabbit hole.
Chapter 19
I landed hard on packed ground, which knocked the breath out of me. Dalton landed next to me with a hard thud and met my panicked look after a moment. He scrambled over to me on his hands and knees and checked me over while I tried to pull air into my lungs.
“Relax, McKinley. Stay still, you’ll be okay in a minute.”
A minute? Hell, I would be dead in a minute.
He grabbed my hands. “Look at me. Calm down.”
I nodded even though black dots were dancing and multiplying in my peripheral vision. After a few more seconds, the tightness let loose, and I sucked in a gulp of glorious air.
“That’s it. Take a deep breath, don’t hyperventilate.”
