Dead End Diner: Book one

by Bea Biddle

  Jake licked his lips, nodded, and cast a fleeting glance at the dead body by the cage. "I can't say he deserved better."

  Then they stood in silence, the Were and the Vamp, eying each other carefully. Karen looked from one to the other and then back again, confusion tore through her. She wanted to scream at them, the absurdity at their action frustrated her. If a Were hadn't approached Jake, Karen would have interrupted this insane staring contest. "The body, Alpha?" he asked.

  "You know what to do," Jake said with a sigh, not lifting his gaze from Sylvester. The Vamp bit his lip playfully and Karen wanted to smack him. "Take him away." The pack moved as one behind him, picking up the body that used to be Garth and carried him away. "You two need to get out of here. Leave now, before it's too late. The Demons, they..." He trailed off in another deep sigh. ”Get out of here, this place isn't safe anymore.”

  "Is that an order, Alpha?" Sylvester asked, his tone teasing, drenched in soft sarcasm. "Only been an Alpha for thirty seconds and it has already gone to your head."

  Jake was unamused. "I'm taking the pack far away from anything that has to do with Demons."

  "You're kidding!" Karen exclaimed, jumping forwards before she could think. "You have to help us, you can't just leave. Cef is in danger. We all are. We have to help him.”

  "I'm going to do what's best for the pack," Jake growled. "And that is staying away from Demons. Garth may have thought what he was doing was for the best and interfered in things that weren't his to interfere with, but I know better. We have no business with Demons or the like. I am going to keep the pack safe. That is my job now."

  "But- But-" Karen stuttered in anger. "What the fuck?"

  Sylvester placed his hand on her shoulder, gently but firmly stopping her from jumping at Jake one more time. Karen snorted in defeat. She would never in her life understand these people. They were just standing there, glowering at each other as if Sylvester hadn't just been starving to death because of the damn wolf pack, as if Cef wasn't in danger, as if Garth hadn't just wanted to eat Karen, as if dead Garth hadn't just been carried from the warehouse. The silent conversation passing between them had Karen wanting to rip out her hair. They were wasting so much time.

  But the next moment, before she could scream at them, Sylvester snaked his long fingers around Jake's neck and pulled the Were to him, crushing his mouth to Jake's lips that opened in surprise. He was quick to retaliate though, with a groan he wrapped his arms around the Vamp, kissing him back. Their kiss was harsh, brutal, hungry and desperate. Their hands roaming wildly, their breaths mingled as their tongues locked in a ferocious battle of dominance.

  A longing groan escaped Jake's throat, purring into the kiss. But then he suddenly growled and pushed Sylvester off him with a hiss. He stepped back from the Vamp, his fingers tracing his bottom lip where an open gash trickled blood down his chin. His lip had been torn, and Karen knew by what.

  Sylvester didn't move a muscle, his face had hardened. Gone were the playful Vamp with the lusty looks. He watched Jake examine what little damage he had done with a clenched jaw. Jake looked like he wanted to argue but thought better off it and merely nodded in understanding. "I'll come to see you, at the diner," he said instead, "Later in the week, if I'm allowed?"

  "I will enjoy the company," Sylvester answered, his face softened, and his smile returned. "I think I will enjoy it very much." Jake nodded again. He licked the blood from his lip and left without another word.

  "What the fuck was that?" Karen concentrated hard on not yelling. "You let him just walk away? He almost killed you!"

  "No, he didn't. Garth and the Demons almost killed me."

  ”But he- he-” Karen groaned. ”No, no. I don't have time for this. Sly, they have Cef. We have to move.”

  Twenty-two.

  Zac crawled slowly towards the rift. His body flickered back and forth as he groaned in pain. His hands trembling on the concrete, he shook with every slow, inching move. Demon after Demon tried slicing through him. It was in vain. Their Skarrams couldn't hurt him. They couldn't touch him. "It is no use," the female Demon shouted in aggravation as her blade once again failed to do any harm to the crawling body. "It is as if he is not here."

  "This must be a trick," Tamas yelled, his Skarrams raised in the air in defense, looking left and right, desperately trying to figure out what was going on. "He must be somewhere." Tamas no longer paid any attention to Cef behind him. The Demons were panicking. With only one confused Demon pressing him against the stone Cef quickly pushed himself loose, the Demon didn't seem surprised, only stumbled away from him in the confusion. He was the first to die, Cef found a discarded Skarram on the floor and ran him through. Tamas whipped around. "Ceftion, this is your doing," he roared at him.

  "Whatever you are planning, Zac, do it fast," Cef called out as he blocked the first strike from Tamas with ease.

  Tamas was frustrated, his concentration faltered, his attacks were random and Cef had no problem charging at him, dodging his blows. He found an opening and kicked Tamas in the chest, he flew back against the wall with a disgruntled scream. "Forget the apparition, he is only tricking you, get the Betrayer!"

  Demons instantly turned their attention to Cef, but before they could advance on him, the shadows behind them had darkened to the blackest of black. Spreading through the room at an alarming pace, they slithered like snakes against the walls, twisting and turning around the Demons. Sharp claws reached out of the darkness, tearing the head off one of them, it rolled along the floor. Another was pulled back into the shadowy blackness. A furious roar followed. Then silence and it was spat back out, the body mangled and almost unrecognizable. The shadows retracted to the corner, swirling together until the solid form of Alyssa walked into the room. Her boots clicked on the concrete, piercing the hum from the stones and pulsating vibration of the rift.

  "Witch!" Tamas roared, shakily pointing his Skarram at her. "Kill her!"

  Alyssa nodded in greeting to Cef. She appeared calm but the very air around her whipped and howled, tugging and tearing at her untied hair and coat. The Demons never knew what hit them, tearing them limb from limb before they could even reach her. Tamas was furious, angry eyes narrowed at Cef as he raised his blades. "You will die tonight, Ceftion," he said, ”This I promise you.”

  "Proceed," Cef encouraged him with a humorless smile. Tamas charged. Frustration etched on his face. He was sloppy, his attacks weak. Cef effortlessly blocked him. With a single strike, Cef's Skarrams knocked Tamas' blades out of his hands, and he punched him on the jaw with the hilt.

  Tamas stumbled back before he went down, his body shaking with anger as he scrambled away from Cef, pressing his back against the wall. His hands combed through the dusty piles that used to be his men and found the sharp blades left behind. An evil glint shone in his eye along with an idea. "I wonder if your human knew how much you enjoyed her before her untimely death? Before she was torn apart and eaten by these strange wolfmen." Cef's expression didn't waver, gave nothing away, but the grip on his Skarrams tightened and the muscles in his arms tensed, only a little, but enough for Tamas to notice the small change in Cef's stance. Tamas laughed scornfully. "I wonder if she begged for mercy," he added.

  Cef attacked at the words. He shouldn't have. He knew he was being taunted, tricked into an aimless charge but couldn't stop himself. He swung his blades, they sang through midair. Metal clashed, sparks flew. Tamas had blocked the blow with the blades he had found and quickly he was on his feet again. Cef had not been surprised at the action, he had expected it but still couldn't help the scowl on his face at the mention of Karen.

  “Oh, Ceftion,” Tamas burst out in a screechy laugh, blocking another attack from Cef. “You used to be a hero, you used to be a god. But now? This human? What has happened to you on this side?”

  Cef growled in warning but didn't answer. He had already given too much away, given Tamas too much power. He was playing on his nerves and he knew this, he knew he shouldn't be rattle
d. But he was. He had no way of knowing what happened to her, he had no way of knowing if she was dead or alive at this point. And the uncertainty was making the sweat roll down his back.

  "She is dead, Ceftion," Tamas spat as if reading his thoughts. "She did not stand a chance." Tamas charged at Cef. Blades dancing, meeting again and again, sparks hung in the crisp air along with misty puffs of hard breaths. "And it was all your fault, you realize," Tamas continued to taunt. ”She should never have been involved in this. Never. She belonged to you, did she not? You should have protected her.”

  Cef's stance was shaky. Tamas was getting to him. He shouldn't let him, but he was right. It was his fault. It was all his fault. Karen would have been safe if he had just protected her better, if he hadn't involved her. He should have stayed away from her, told her to stay away from him. Never should have let her into his apartment that first time. Shouldn't have- shouldn't have wanted to claim her as he had. No wonder Tamas knew which buttons to press. The faint trace of her was embedded in his skin, his very being, no matter how hard he had tried to disguise it. Tamas had picked it up the second he entered this place. He felt defeated even before Tamas swiftly twirled to the back of him and kicked the back of his knees, forcing him down. He blocked the incoming attacked but Tamas had the upper hand, he broke through Cef's defenses, slamming his hilt in his face and wrestled Cef's Skarrams to the ground where he kicked them away.

  Meanwhile, Zac had made it to the rift, he was panting and groaning in pain. "No more," he breathed, "No more rifts." And then he threw himself into the swirling gray light. He was gone. The rift flared. Rippling blue filled the room along with deep swirling shadows.

  The only remaining of Tamas' soldiers jolted at the sudden change, but then he was grasped by Alyssa's shadow-like claws. His head instantly ripped from his body. Alyssa tossed it across the room, hurling dust as it disintegrated mid-air.

  Tamas was the only Demon left standing. He roared with anger and frustration at the situation, shaking with heavy disappointment and immense resentment at the situation. He knew this was it, he knew he had been beaten and would die. With a grunt, he turned his attention to Cef he had pinned on his knees in front of him. "At least I will not go alone to the Fields of Eternal Glory," he growled at him. “Come, Ceftion, you first.” He raised his blades high, ready to take his head.

  He never got to use them. The next moment a Skarram protruded from his chest, rammed through him from behind. He spluttered in surprise at the sight of it and turned around. "You," he coughed out as he stumbled back. "His human?"

  Karen scoffed at the words, her hands shaking, her heart pounding in her throat and her knees threatening to give any moment. She hadn't accounted for the Skarram to slice through the Demon so easily, sharp as she knew it had been, it was a surprise how much force she didn't have to use. It hadn't been a hard decision to make, after running to the room and watching Cef on his knees about to be decapitated by Tamas, she couldn't help herself. Not even seeing Alyssa there had made her flinch, she had picked up a Skarram from the cold floor, covered in dead Demon, and had sprinted to them before she knew what she was doing. Before she even knew what she was going to do. "I'm not his human," she spat at him, "I'm his... waitress. I- I guess." That had sounded a lot better in her head.

  "I do not... understand..." Tamas whispered.

  Cef didn't need him to understand, rising quickly, he withdrew the Skarram from Tamas' back, earning a gasp of surprise from the Demon. One clean swipe and Tamas' head was no longer attached to his body. It collapsed on the floor at Cef's feet, the head rolled away, both parts of the former Warchief disintegrating into dust, joining the rest of them blowing around the room in the wind from the open door.

  The Skarram clattered on the floor as it fell from Cef's hand. He reached out, gently cupping her face in his hands. She was alive. She was there. And she had come for him. “You are not dead,” he stated when all other words failed him.

  Karen held on to his hands, pressing her face closer to them, enjoying the familiar warmth. She couldn't help the relieved giggle that burst out of her, couldn't help the overwhelming sense of happiness she felt at exactly that moment. Cef was alright. Cef was alive. “It looks that way,” she breathed with a short laugh. He moved closer, she could feel the length of him against her, but he did not let go of her face. His eyes drilled into her, black pools searching her face with disbelief at her presence. The corners of his mouth tugged upwards and soon his whole face broke into a grin. “I mean, I almost wasn't,” she confessed, returning the grin. “But then I found Sly."

  Cef's eyebrows knotted together, the grin disappeared. “You're hurt," he said, examining her skin complete with toothmarks and smeared blood.

  "Yes,” she quickly agreed, ”Also thanks to Sly.”

  His eyes softened, resting his forehead on hers with a deep sigh. His shoulders slumped as the tension left him. "I am so glad to see you." He was glad to see her, he was glad to touch her, to feel her. He was glad he had her in his hands. She should always be in his hands. She belonged in his hands. The thought should have scared him, should have infuriated and confused him. But at that moment, all he felt was contentment and relief that he still had her.

  “I am glad to see you, too,” Karen whispered, closing her eyes, enjoying the feel of his rough, calloused hands on her skin. “Look at me, saving your ass again,” she added with another laugh. It was easy to joke now, she felt positively giddy after everything.

  “Look at you,” Cef breathed out softly, “Saving my ass again.” Then he could stand it no longer. He kissed her, hard and deep and demanding. Wrapping his arms around her, holding her tightly, making sure she was real, making sure she was actually there with him.

  She moaned into it, tangled her hands in his dreads, letting him take her away, letting him make everything better as only he could. Her feet were no longer on the ground, he had crushed her to him in a fierce embrace, lifting her off the ground as he devoured her. And she never wanted him to let her go again. Everything was done, everything was finally over. The only Demon left was Cef, and that was exactly as it should be.

  Cef had not been prepared for the piercing loss he felt when he thought she was dead. This damn human, this annoying creature, she felt so familiar, she was a part of him now. And hard as he tried, he could not regret that, not at that moment, it was impossible. Breaking the kiss, she slid down his body, her feet on the ground again, but he didn't let her go. Couldn't let her go. He continued to hold her against him. Brushing her dirty hair out of her face, tugging it behind her ear, he kissed her forehead. She was dirty and bloody, but her eyes shone with victory and her smile beamed up at him, making his insides churn and jump. He felt like he was about to burst but had no idea with what or why. That smile had to always be on her face. It needed to always be on her face. With his thumb he tried to brush some of the smudges off her cheek, he kissed her forehead again, then her eyelids, her nose, her lips. There were so many things he needed to say to her, but the words all crowded his mind, pushing and tugging to get out first, that all he could get out was, "You need a wash."

  Karen chuckled. "So do you."

  The rift flared behind them, interrupting them, the swirling mist cracking and snapping around their ankles as it spread throughout the room, cascading against the walls in waves. Soft blue light filtered around them, flickering, brightening gradually. Alyssa took a step forward, cutting through the mist like water.

  Sylvester, who had been lounging in the doorway as he watched the exchange between human and Demon with great amusement, marched to the Witch's side. "What is going on?"

  Alyssa merely shook her head, she had no clue. The light became brighter and brighter, blinding them in brutal illumination. And then, as fast as the rift had flared up, just as fast did it die down again, and they were all left in darkness. Not even the swirling gray light remained.

  "What happened?" Cef asked in a growl, tightening his arms around Karen.

&nbs
p; No one answered, no one knew. Alyssa clapped her hands together twice and slowly light returned to the room. It was soft and pulsing, and it appeared to be coming from the Witch herself. Where there used to be a rift swirling on the floor, they instead found Zac. He was panting and gasping, groaning in exhaustion but with a giant smile on his face. He opened his eyes, staring straight up into to the ceiling. And then he laughed. A deep, roaring laugh that rolled out of him all the way from his belly.

  "Zac?" Alyssa asked carefully, ”Zac, what happened? What did you do?"

  "I closed it," he answered curtly. He inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly. Then he stood, a lot more easily than expected. He was no longer shaking, no longer clutching his stomach. His face no longer screwed up in pain. His body didn't flicker, didn't wash out. With a smile from ear to ear as he looked at everyone.

  "I didn't know Ghosts could do that," Sylvester offered. Putting his hands on his hips as he asked Alyssa conversationally, "Did you know Ghosts could do that?"

  When realization started dawning on Alyssa, she returned Zac's smile. ”Perhaps, only this one Ghost.”

  He was glowing. Zac examined his hands with a sharp intake of breath, touching his arms, his chest, looked down his own body with a joyful shake of his head. All of him giving off a faint golden glow. He finally looked up, locking eyes with Alyssa. "It doesn't hurt anymore," he stated proudly. "I think- I think I'm going," he added, and if it was possible his smile would have widened. "I guess... this is goodbye?"

  "We will miss you." Alyssa nodded a final goodbye to him, knowing full well what was going on. He was disappearing, his feet had already gone. Karen only managed to choke out a ragged, emotional goodbye, with a final wave of her hand, before he was gone. His smile was the last to go.