“That doesn’t make sense. Every known demon uses violent force to kill.”
“Exactly. Nothing about it adds up.”
“And that’s why you became an agent.”
I nodded. “Someone in the agency knows the truth.”
“You could have told me all this before, you know. I feel like an asshole for teasing you so much about getting laid when you were over here trying to solve a cover-up.”
“I guess I just found it easier to keep it all inside. But I do trust you, and I really appreciate this.”
“For you, lover, anytime.” He winked, and I offered a wobbly smile.
“I mean it, Milo. I haven’t had a friend I could share this stuff with. . .well, ever.”
“That’s because you hadn’t met me yet.”
“You’re absolutely one of a kind,” I said, and he grinned.
“Don’t you forget it. Also, I’m still going to tease you about getting laid because life’s simple joys are what make it worth living.”
I groaned and looked at the report again, frowning as the truth of what the agency had hidden finally began to sink in.
“I can’t believe there are undocumented demons in our city,” I said.
“Oh, shit, I just remembered. Look,” Milo said, flipping through and pulling out a photo of a dead agent. According to the report, the man had been found alone and without any outward sign of injury. No demon in sight.
“They’re calling it a mentocule demon,” Milo said. “What’s that?”
“No idea.” I scanned the page for a description, but there were no other details beyond the name of the demon.
“There’s gotta be somewhere we can look for more info on these assholes.”
My eyes widened. “Hang on, I have an idea.”
I jumped up and grabbed the book Professor Kinrade had assigned me.
“What’s this?”
“Kinrade insisted I read it for extra credit,” I said, flipping through the glossary of creatures.
“I thought you were acing her class.”
“I am.”
“Then why do you need extra credit?”
“I don’t.” When he only looked more confused, I sighed. “I’m a legacy. For the teachers here, that means making my life harder than everyone else’s. I’ve had extra homework in nearly every single unit we’ve covered.”
“Are you saying the professors give you more work than everyone else?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
“That’s unfair.”
“Believe me, I agree. Write your congressman or something, because no one here gives a rat’s ass about fair.”
He snorted.
I found the page number for mentocule and flipped through until I found the correlating section.
“Look. It says mentocule demons can kill without touch using telepathic radio waves and—shit! They’re a level seven?”
“What?” Milo grabbed the book and leaned in to read where I’d pointed. “Holy Hellfire. I didn’t even know sevens existed.”
“Neither did I.”
We were both silent as we read the scant paragraph about the mentocule demon. There wasn’t much in the text, but what was there blew my mind.
Milo looked just as stunned.
“Gem, it says the mentocule can kill without piercing its victims skin. Just like—”
“My dad,” I breathed.
“This is crazy. They’re literally in here teaching us everything above a level three is extinct.”
“Who else knows about this? Who wrote the article?”
Flipping through the papers, I noted the clearance level on the reports. They were designated “for Neph eyes only.” No wonder no one here had been able to tell me what really happened to Desmond.
Where names would have been listed, there were only blank spaces. The heading underneath the blank space categorized the recipient as simply “Nephilim.”
“Who else has seen this?” I asked.
“Unredacted? No one. I swiped it from Wayne before he even read it,” Milo said.
“How did he get it?”
Milo shrugged. “No idea.”
I shook my head. “They’re hiding the truth from everyone,” I realized. “Even their own agents.”
“That’s weird.” Milo picked up one of the reports and studied it closer, frowning.
“What?”
“None of the reports list a Neph superior.”
“Why is that weird?”
“We talked about it during our protocol lecture last week. If it’s classified to the highest level, one of the council members has to be listed. Look, this is where it would usually give a name.”
He pointed to a space on the report that was still redacted.
“How did this redaction remain intact when you cleared the rest of it?”
“Hmm.” Milo’s brows wrinkled in confusion. “The spell should have removed all the magic,” he said almost to himself.
“How did you remove the redaction, anyway?” I asked. “I tried everything and couldn’t crack it.”
Milo shot me a crooked smile. “I might have traded favors with Professor Wayne.”
My jaw dropped. “You slept with Professor Wayne?”
“What? Underneath that Hawaiian shirt, he’s a DILF.”
“What’s a DILF?”
“Dad I’d like to fu—”
“Got it. Ugh.” I squeezed my eyes shut. “That is an image I did not need.”
“You asked,” he said, snickering.
He was enjoying this way too much.
“Okay, seriously, we really need to have a conversation about your lack of boundaries.”
“I have boundaries,” he said. “They’re just a lot more flexible than yours. With doors and gates. That are unlocked. And open windows. With signs that say ‘Come inside.’”
“No more sleeping with teachers,” I said.
“How about no more sleeping with teachers at the Tiff? There’s a librarian at my little cousin’s school who is just delicious—”
“Aghh. How about no more sex talk for tonight instead?”
He grinned. “Deal.”
Chapter Twelve
“Holy shit, why is it so crowded in here?” Milo complained as he wedged himself and his dinner tray into his usual spot.
“New group of trainees came in,” Tony said.
“There’s, like, a million supes in here.” Milo elbowed the guy on his left, ignoring the scowl he earned.
“I heard the new crowd has to double bunk,” Tony said. “All the dorms are full. And the showers? Forget it.”
“Why are they bringing in so many?” I asked.
“Demons are on the rise.” I looked over at the girl who’d spoken up. She sat next to Tony and had broken off her conversation with her friends to answer. A pair of stubby horns protruded from the front of her head.
“What do you mean?” I asked. “The numbers have been holding steady for years now.”
Her brows crinkled in confusion. “Yeah, of course. I mean, until the past couple of months.”
None of us answered.
Milo and I exchanged a look.
“Don’t you guys watch the news?” the girl asked.
“Not in here,” Tony said.
“Not allowed,” Milo put in.
“Right. Well, there’s an increase in demon activity in the city,” she explained. “The SSF is recruiting the largest wave of new agents in a hundred years or something crazy. Signing bonuses too.”
“What?” Milo demanded. He looked at Tony and me. “We didn’t get shit.”
She shrugged. “It was either that or a supernatural draft.”
“What kind of demons are being reported?” I asked her.
“Mostly level threes. But I heard my dad talking a few weeks back to the wolf shifter rep for our borough, and there’s some chatter about a four out near the river. Probably gossip but still. Job security, right?”
“Right,” I muttered, thinking of that report. And of Desmond.
“Welcome to the ranks,” Tony said to her.
“Thanks.” She grinned. “I’ve always wanted to be an agent, but with the demons under control, it was so hard to get accepted. This was my third application. It’s so exciting.”
“So exciting,” Milo repeated.
I could hear the sarcasm dripping, but the girl either didn’t notice or didn’t care. She flashed another smile and then turned back to her friends, tuning us out once again.
“This is bull shit,” Milo hissed. “These newbies all get signing bonuses? What about us? We were here before it was cool again.”
“We’re almost out of here, and that’s bonus enough for me,” I said.
“Can’t argue there,” Tony agreed. “First thing I’m doing after graduation is taking Fiona out on a proper date.”
“First thing I’m doing is the hottest guy at Govenchy’s Club,” Milo said dreamily.
I shook my head.
“What about you, Gem?” Tony asked. “What’s the first thing you’ll do with freedom?”
I hesitated, actually thinking about my answer. “If you’d asked me that three months ago, I probably would have said buy a new car or a nicer apartment, but I don’t think those are me anymore.”
“What’s your answer now?” Milo asked.
“I don’t know. Nothing about my old life waits for me out there.”
They fell silent, their expressions matching shades of concern.
“That’s a little bleak,” Tony said finally.
I shrugged. “When we graduate, we become agents—which means we officially belong to the SSF. What’s free about that?”
“We work for them, sure, but we’re still our own people,” Tony said.
“Are we?”
I shook my head, pushing my food around on my plate. Somewhere along the way, my grief and anger had given way to something bigger. I thought about the report Milo had revealed. Undocumented demons. Dead agents. And lies to cover it up. Whatever was going on wasn’t happening to the SSF. It was happening because of them.
Had Dad known that when he died?
Was that what his “big find” had been?
The more I thought about it, the more convinced I became that it was all connected. Dad’s death. The increased number of demons. The recruits they’d hired to fight them.
Milo and Tony and the others might look at graduation as the end goal, but I knew better. The day we left these walls for the outside world was the day the real fight would begin.
My arms ached thanks to the weight of the rebar I’d been swinging for the past hour. Sweat had plastered my shirt to my skin, and I’d already found a second wind. Then a third. I was working my way through wind number four when the buzzer finally sounded, signaling the end of the training simulation.
There was a collective groan that echoed off the high walls as the other recruits dropped their weapons and shuffled back toward the center of the arena.
I caught sight of Faith approaching from the far end. Her clothes were smooth, her perfect hair un-mussed. But she looked way too confident to have been anything but successful. Sure enough, one of the instructors patted her on the back as she passed. She smiled graciously and then waited until his back was turned to flip me off.
Bitch.
Tony and Milo were already there when I reached the group. Tony had a shallow cut on his cheek, and Milo looked like he’d been through some kind of dust storm.
“You look like shit,” Milo said to me.
“You say the sweetest things.” I batted my lashes at him, and Tony snorted.
“What happened to your knuckles? Did you punch a wall?” he demanded.
“A fennec demon, actually.”
“Those are demon guts on your hand?” he screeched loudly enough that others turned.
Professor Thorne strode up. For the last few weeks, my class had combined with another and the professors were doubling up to accommodate the new wave of students. I wasn’t complaining. Professor Thorne was tough, but with her around, Rigo had been slightly less sleazy.
She grabbed my hand and frowned as she inspected it. “You’ll live,” she announced flatly and then marched away to address the class.
“Today was a great test of street skill,” Professor Thorne informed the group. “From our observation decks, we were able to see the improvisation you all displayed. Weapons were forged in the moment, and you all used everything from repurposed metal to a hanging plant to disable the enemy. Overall, very impressive.”
“A hanging plant?” I whispered.
“Guilty,” Tony muttered.
I muffled a laugh.
“Improvising with weaponry and strategy is your best chance at survival,” Professor Thorne went on. “Now, the following students are dismissed and will report back tomorrow for a secondary test. If you pass that, you go on to your final exam. If not, you will get one more shot at this. Those who fail to complete their last mission will be eliminated or assigned to a support position with the agency.”
I tensed.
Milo and Tony stilled, and the rest of the students fell silent as we all waited for the names to be called.
“Faith Greene, Brent Trettel, Milo Mercer, and Gemini Hawkins. Please report back tomorrow for the partnered portion of your exam.”
My relief was short-lived as Professor Thorne ended the session and Tony’s face fell. The other students broke apart and headed for the showers. I hung back with Milo and Tony.
“Fucking hanging basket,” Tony muttered. “I should have gone for the broken bottle.”
“It’s not a big deal,” Milo said, clapping him on the back. “You’ll get it next time.”
“If there is a next time,” Tony said.
Chapter Thirteen
Darkness hung over the entire alley like a curtain. I knew because I’d put it there. My magic hummed like a song being quietly played in the background. Like the soundtrack to my new life, I realized. If it were a radio station, it would be goth punk grunge. Angry. Loud. Without any discernible words.
“What about Phillip?” Milo asked.
The question distracted me from my music-as-life’s-soundtrack imaginings. I cut Milo a look.
“No.”
“Why not? He’s polite and very athletic and really freaking hot.”
“Because I’m not dating, that’s why.”
He huffed.
I ignored it.
“Okay, how about Faith instead?” I swung a look at Milo, who shrugged. “Look, all I’m saying is if you’re batting for the other team, you can tell me.”
“I’m not batting for any team. Ugh. Can we just kill this demon and get back to campus? I’m starving.”
“Fine. But let it go on the record that you’re not very fun in the field, Gem Hawkins.”
I didn’t argue.
I wasn’t trying to be fun. I was trying to be good at this. At least I hadn’t gotten paired with Faith.
And I was currently outside the walls of the Tiff. That was something I could appreciate—even if we were stuck out near the docks far away from so much as a scent of the city.
Professor Thorne and Rigo had given us GPS coordinates and instructions to hunt down and destroy whatever demons were camped out down here. If we succeeded, we passed this test. This late in the training process, failure meant being sent home.
That wasn’t an option.
With renewed focus, I motioned for Milo to follow me. The river was just ahead, and while our current location was several miles outside of the city, I knew this area well. Dad and I had come out here often in recent years, spending afternoons navigating from the rooftops above or shifting into griffins and taking to the skies. He’d always point out demon evidence, showing me how to track them properly. As I’d gotten older, he’d even shown me how to kill them. But only as my beast.
Being here now brought back so many memories, and I shoved the
m away, determined to focus on the assignment instead.
Milo and I walked in silence for several minutes, both of us using our supe senses to detect the location of our prey.
A buzzing sound interrupted the stillness and we both jerked our heads toward the noise.
Milo leaned in to swat at the bug headed straight for my face.
“Back off, fuckshuttle!”
A beetle slammed into my cheek.
I jerked aside, rubbing my stinging skin.
“Gran?”
“Well, it ain’t the Pope.”
The June bug dropped into my open palm, and Milo’s jaw fell open.
“That bug just talked.”
“I’m not a bug, you lintlicker,” Gran retorted.
Milo’s eyes widened. “I stand corrected. That bug just talked shit.”
“Gran, what are you doing here?” I glanced around for some sign that Rigo or Professor Thorne had decided to track our progress. So far, we were alone, but who knew how long that would last.
“I was cruising around at the docks for fresh shipments of mustard greens,” Gran said. She looked at Milo. “They’re my favorite, you know.”
“Uh, of course.” Milo blinked.
“Anywho, I heard you two chatting, and I said to myself, ‘I’d know that voice anywhere.’ So I hightailed it over, and sure as shitnuggets, it’s my beautiful granddaughter and her devilishly handsome new beau.”
“Milo is not my beau, Gran.”
“But he is devilishly handsome,” Milo put in.
“Gran, you can’t be here,” I said. “We’re in the middle of a test right now.”
“Oh, are you slaying a demon down here?” Her wings buzzed as she lifted high enough to fly in a circle so she could scan the area.
“Yes, and we have to do it alone. If our professors find out you were here, they might fail us,” I told her.
“Not to mention, they’d have questions.” Milo arched a brow. “I mean, I have questions.”
“Don’t we all, son.” Gran turned back to me. “How’s the school thing going? You whooping ass?”
“I’m getting close to graduation,” I said.
“And she’s whooping ass,” Milo put in.
“Hot dog, that’s what I like to hear.” Gran flitted closer to Milo. “You are a bite of deliciousness. Whew, if I had a working vagina—”
Kiss of Death (Supernatural Security Force Book 1) Page 10
