The Complete Protected by the Damned Series

by Michael Todd

  When they got there, the guys stood behind her.

  The two pretty females eyed Katie, but the sales guy had his smile on and was looking to see if Calvin or Korbin were going to ask questions.

  That just pissed Katie off.

  She put up a hand. “I’ll do this, thank you,” she told the man, and grabbed the first bit of armor. “Ok, this crap is ceramic-disk tactical armor. Completely useless when shot at by armor-piercing ammunition, and rejected by the US Government.”

  How the hell do you know this? Katie wondered.

  Just keep spouting my notes. I’ll update you…maybe never, Pandora replied.

  “The US Army released information,” Katie continued, “back in 2007 about their tests on the design of Dragon Skin Armor.” She dropped the vest.

  Katie took a deep breath and continued to repeat everything Pandora said, talking about the options, the best comfort, and the ones that would even offer some protection from demon scratches.

  The guys looked at her like she was crazy, or maybe someone other than the Katie they knew.

  “How did you know all that?” Korbin asked.

  “I did some research,” she told him, shrugging her shoulders.

  “What about this?” Derek laughed, holding up a vest with a cross stitched across the front.

  “Wow,” Katie said, shaking her head. “Not only is that hideous, but there is no way that stitching a cross on the front is going to do anything to stop demons. Whose ill-advised idea was that?”

  “Meh, some novice will buy it thinking he looks suave and is ready for action.” Derek shook his head and dropped the piece back onto the table.

  “And get a demon hand through his chest for his efforts,” Korbin said. “It’s a shame. How about this one, though?”

  Korbin held up one of the woven carbon vests with full clips, straps perfectly spaced for carrying gear, and a pull-strap on the back.

  “What’s the strap on the back for?” Derek asked.

  “In case you go down and I gotta drag your ass to safety,” Korbin answered.

  “Or I get tired of your ass and want to strap you to the hood of the car.” Katie laughed, elbowing Derek.

  “That’s messed up.” Derek placed it back on the table.

  Katie laughed and kept walking, browsing the different sections. There was a lot there, but most of it was good for places like the Sandpit, not downtown Vegas during a demon attack.

  It was too bulky, and too hard to maneuver in.

  Katie looked back at her team. They had started to mingle with the other teams from across the country but she wasn’t really feeling up to conversation, so she turned back, spying a small booth in the back row.

  There was a younger guy tucked in there, barely visible in the dark shadows of the dim lamps. That was the kind of place she wanted to check out—the guy with the secret weapon in the back.

  That, or the guy was there to offer something new and unique. Either way, it was bound to be an interesting conversation.

  Oh, lord, Pandora sighed. Trying to save the little guy again?

  Somebody has to, Katie said, approaching and smiling at the kid behind the table. “Hey there.”

  “Uh, h-h-hello.” He spoke with a slight stutter.

  She admired the silver weapons on the table, gleaming in the reduced light. Their blades were all shiny, but had different hues depending on how the light reflected. “Did you make these?”

  “Mmmhmm, yeah,” he answered, shifting on his feet. “I have been studying the old ways. My grandfather, he left me some old books, and that’s how I got into it. Then I-I-I traveled to Palestine and Jerusalem, and I studied there too. I even went to a few of the rocks and pulled some materials from those. Uh, so to speak.”

  “Really?” Katie answered, wondering what ‘pulled some materials from rocks’ meant. “And who are they specifically made for?” She looked at the weapons and then back to the guy. “For tactical, police action…or Damned?”

  “Oh,” he answered. “Just for those that fight…the Damned. They would be wasted on regular people, that’s for sure. It’s what I do for a living. It’s what my dad did, and he was a team member too, but I can’t,” he rocked back and forth, “be on a team. You know, because I have coordination issues.”

  “Right.” Katie wasn’t sure how to make him feel any more comfortable, so she tried another smile. “They are beautiful.”

  There were several weapons laid out on the table, including some short knives, short swords, and even a couple of those huge-ass knives named after the guy who died at the Alamo in Texas. Their edges glimmered as if dipped in oil as she moved down the table, but when she touched them there was nothing there.

  Great, Pandora said. Just what you need, a no-name two-cent useless—

  “Do you mind if I pick this one up?” Katie asked, narrowing her eyes.

  “Oh, sure.” He stepped forward and picked it up, handing it to her. “Just be careful. They are really sharp.”

  “That’s what I am counting on.” She smiled at the guy.

  Katie hefted the knife for weight and balance, and ran her finger down the side, admiring the beauty of the craftsmanship.

  She had a feeling about this weapon. It had something none of the others she’d seen so far at the show had. Pandora continued to bitch and moan, driving Katie absolutely nuts.

  Katie turned slightly and stabbed the tip of the knife into the palm of her hand.

  I just don’t understand, Pandora continued, why we have to…. HOLY DOUCHING BATSHIT! Pandora screamed. What in the ever-loving fuck do you think you are doing, you fucking bitch? And what the hell kind of weapon is that? You better fucking set that shit down and walk away, because I am not playing with your human ass anymore. Do you hear me?

  Katie chuckled, realizing that she had found the jackpot. Her eyes narrowed and she pulled the knife back, setting it gently on the table. The young guy tried not to stare, but she could tell he was wondering how she liked it.

  “What’s your name?” Katie asked politely.

  “I’m Joshua,” he answered.

  “Nice to meet you, Joshua. I’m Katie,” she replied with a bigger smile. “I was wondering, how much for this?” She waved a hand across the table.

  “Uh.” Joshua twitched slightly and looked at the table. “Which one? They are all different.”

  Katie wasn’t normally in the business of doing crazy things besides demon hunting, but she felt like this kid, Joshua, and his daggers had come into the right hands.

  Hers.

  There was no way she could walk away, and nor could she let someone swoop in and get them before she did.

  She smiled and held out her hand.

  “I want to know how much it would take for me to buy your business and have you come work for me?” Katie asked, leaving her hand out there. “I mean, unless you have something else going on. These are amazing, and we wouldn’t want them to fall into the wrong hands. I happen to have the right hands, and I can afford to at least attempt to help you and have you help me.”

  Joshua narrowed his eyes and rubbed his chin, looking at Katie suspiciously.

  She smiled widely, adjusting the sunglasses she was wearing.

  “All right,” Joshua said. “H-how about a half a million for my business, paid in one day. You g-g-get to walk away with all the product in front of me, and then me and you, uh, we can talk about what you will need. I’ll even have some sort of contract drawn up, and we can sign everything with a l-lll-lawyer or something.”

  “Five hundred thousand in one day?” Katie said, thinking. “Like tomorrow?”

  “Y-y-yes,” he said, looking nervous. He didn’t look directly at her.

  Katie continued, “And you would hand all your inventory over and come work for me?”

  “Mmmhmm,” he said. “I’d come work for you, or for whoever you needed me to work for.”

  “It will be hard to pull that much together in one day,” she said. “How ab
out giving me seventy-two hours to come up with it?”

  “All right.” He nodded, then added, “And a hundred thousand dollars for my salary. Each year.”

  Katie stood there with a smile on her face, her hand still outstretched toward him. He looked at her for a second and licked his lips, adding, “And you pay for all the material.”

  When her hand still didn’t drop he looked around, wringing his hands in his lap.

  Katie narrowed her eyes, but she still didn’t drop her hand.

  She liked this kid. He had guts and he knew what he needed to be successful, which was a lot more than most people she had met. She tried to hide a smirk as she glared at him.

  “And my tools,” he added.

  “You better be done,” she said with a chuckle.

  “Done,” he said. He smiled, then reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

  As soon as his skin slid across hers a sharp shock bolted through him, and she pulled her glasses down on seeing his reaction. He stared down at her hand for a second, then slowly looked up at her flashing red eyes. He stepped back and started to wring his hands together nervously again.

  “Oh, shit.” His eyes opened wide and he looked left and right, then back at Katie.

  Look what you did, Pandora said. You went and scared the kid off.

  I scared him off? Katie said. You are the demon inside me. You are the thing he is trying to kill. I would say your red ring of death is what is freaking him out.

  “I-I don’t have to eat a demon, do I?” he asked, realizing he just made a deal with one of the Damned.

  “No.” She shook her head. “But you will have to move your business to Las Vegas.”

  “I can definitely do that.” He smiled, relieved. “I don’t have much, so I can go just about anywhere.”

  “You won’t have to go far,” she told him. “We can get started right away, or as soon as I give you your five hundred thousand.”

  “Sounds good,” he said. “I trust you. I know you are with Korbin’s Killers. I saw you walk in.”

  “Then let’s get talking.” She smiled, lifting the blanket and tossing it on top of the weapons. “And remove this product. This shit is going with me.”

  “I really like these all steel knives,” Korbin said to Derek. “I like how they are all one piece instead of a separate handle.” He looked up, then around a moment, his jaw setting. “Where’s Katie?”

  “I don’t know, sir,” Derek said. “She wandered off after the armor talk when we ran into Amy’s team.”

  “Dammit, I want her input,” Korbin said. “Go search for her. When you find her, tell her I need to know what she wants for the armory. Tell her it’s time to start making choices, and as the team’s heavy she needs to get her ass down here and choose for her damn team.”

  “Yes, sir.” Derek sighed. “I’ll be back in just a minute. I’m sure she hasn’t gone that far.”

  Derek wandered away from Korbin and through the small crowd by the armor station. He stood to the side and looked around, then got up on a small ladder and he spotted her talking to someone in the back corner. He took a deep breath, jumped off the ladder, and walked to where she was, shaking his head at Katie.

  “So, short swords are great,” she was saying, “but I think we should work on tipped arrows. You know, things I can utilize from a distance.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” the kid said, as if she were his boss.

  She picked up several knives and a sword off the table and pulled at the straps on her armor, locking them into place. They were interesting weapons—that was for sure—but he had no idea what the hell she was doing.

  “And make sure that the test on the ammunition is a priority, got me?” she explained pointedly.

  “Absolutely.” He nodded, wringing his hands.

  Derek was confused, but instead of saying a word he just stood there waiting for Katie to pay attention.

  When she was done locking the last weapon onto her vest, she turned to Derek and put up her finger. She knew he was going to ask questions, but she didn’t want him to—not just yet.

  “Let me guess, Korbin is wondering where I am?” she asked, one eyebrow raised.

  Derek didn’t say a word, just nodded his head up and down and watched the rainbow shimmer move across her new sword.

  Katie put her hands on her hips, looking Derek up and down. She bit the side of her cheek and smirked. Derek was nervous. He had seen that expression on her face before, and it meant nothing but trouble.

  And this time she was eyeing him.

  “You got four hundred grand for an investment? Ten percent of a business?” she asked. “I’ll pay you back double in four months, or you can keep your ten percent—your call.”

  Derek looked from Katie to the nervous kid behind the table and back to Katie. She looked confident and he looked nervous, the kind of nervous Katie inspired in people when they didn’t fully know her.

  “What are you up to?” he asked, his eyes narrowing in thought.

  “Let me see your finger.” Katie smiled and pulled out her new dagger.

  He shook his head. “Uh, no.”

  “Come on,” Katie replied, giving him a stern look. “I’m not gonna cut your hand off or anything. I want to show you why it would be wise for you to invest, that’s all.”

  He gritted his teeth and let out a deep breath, then stuck his hand out toward her.

  She smiled and grabbed his hand, flipping it palm up. She pulled his pointing finger out and put the blade to his skin, watching his face as she pricked him just enough to draw a tiny bit of blood.

  Immediately Derek yanked his hand back. Sweat poured down his forehead, and his whole body felt like it was on fire. Thirty seconds later the feeling began to fade, and he opened his eyes.

  “I’ll transfer it this afternoon,” he wheezed. “And I want in.” He shook his head. “No paying it back.”

  “Perfect.” She patted him on the shoulder. “I knew you would come around when you saw what kind of magic that Joshua here can work.” She pointed to the guy behind the table. “This is Joshua, by the way. He sold me his company, and he now works for us.”

  “Hey.” Derek, still trying to catch his breath, nodded in Joshua’s direction.

  “It was good doing business with you, partner.” She laughed and waved to Joshua. “Now let’s go see Korbin.”

  Chapter 11

  “What do you think Korbin will say?” Katie asked, smiling.

  “I don’t know, but if everything that kid makes is like that,” Derek said shaking his head, “we are going to walk into an all-new era of demon fighting. We could make bullets, swords, arrows, fucking bombs, grenades… These damn demons won’t know what hit them.”

  “That’s what I’m thinking,” Katie said excitedly. “It could mean our mortality rate goes down, and our success rate goes up.”

  Korbin stood there listening to Amy talk about her new recruits and how they were doing. He glanced toward the back of the convention hall, spotting Katie and Derek talking excitedly as they walked toward him through the crowd. He shook his head, irritated by the fact that no one seemed to be taking weaponry seriously.

  Not even Katie.

  “Would you excuse me,” he asked Amy, turning toward the two of them and walking forward to meet them in the center.

  They didn’t notice him at first as he stood there, his arms crossed over his chest and foot tapping on the floor.

  He had given them both an order, but instead of following it here they were, covered in random weapons and talking excitedly.

  It was like he wasn’t even the boss anymore, and fuck if he knew where Calvin had run off to. Finally Katie and Derek noticed Korbin and straightened their faces as they approached.

  “You are supposed to be two of my most trusted team members,” Korbin ground out angrily. “You are supposed to follow directives and take this shit seriously, but here I am, all alone, no orders fucking placed and nothing to show for our ti
me here.”

  Korbin glanced furiously at the shimmering knives strapped to Katie’s vest. He wanted to ignore them, but they were beautiful and there was something about them that just called to him.

  His eyes narrowed as he looked at them.

  There hadn’t been anything at the entire event that even came close to those, and he wondered where in the world she had found them.

  “What are those?” Korbin asked in a frustrated voice. “Are they possessed? Enchanted? What?”

  Katie put her finger to her lips and nodded to a space beyond the tables where they could have more privacy. Korbin glared at the two of them and nodded, not sure if he should have given in as he followed them slowly over to the area Katie had indicated.

  “Well?” Korbin asked.

  “Give me your hand,” Katie said, pulling a knife off her chest.

  Korbin chuckled at first, thinking that she was joking, but when she looked at him with her hand out and a serious look on her face, he realized she hadn’t been joking in the least.

  Korbin’s smile faded and he looked at Derek, who nodded gravely.

  Korbin looked at the floor and sighed deeply, then gave his hand to Katie. She flipped it palm up and pressed the tip of the knife into his finger, barely drawing blood.

  Sweat immediately broke out on his forehead, and he felt heat and electricity flow through him and his bitching, squawking demon. He didn’t flinch, though, even though a large part of him really wanted to.

  He pulled his hand back and sucked the blood off his finger.

  He looked past Katie and Derek into the open area of the weapons show. He hadn’t experienced a weapon that could do that to a Damned before. It was something that no one had come up with before now.

  Korbin’s lips pressed together, and his eyes shifted between their faces and the blade in Katie’s hand. He reached out and ran his finger across the shimmering blade, feeling the ache in his bones just from touching it.

  There was no fluid or magic on the knife, it was the material itself—it sent out negative vibes.

  The demon part of him wanted to destroy it, but the fighter in him wanted everything he carried to be made from it.