ã€ŠFallen Angel of Mine (Overworld Chronicles #3)ã€‹


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    Chapter 1

    Police officers outfitted in black body armor burst from the back of a SWAT van and stormed my school, assault rifles held at the ready. Wailing fire trucks and ambulances zipped past while police cars screeched into blocking position across the roads leading into and out of the school grounds. Pandemonium reigned at Edenfield High.

    And it was all my fault.

    Well, mostly anyway. Elyssa and I stood at the back of the milling student body. We''d evacuated to a church parking lot across the road and had front-row seats to the three-ring circus. I didn''t want to watch. I knew exactly what had happened and didn''t want to think about it. People had died. I was responsible for one of the dead. Vampires, half-crazed by the vampling virus, had killed everyone else.

    The face of Mr. Turpin, my English teacher, caught my eye as he met a group of the po-po in the middle of the road and spoke with them. "If only those cops knew who they were talking to," I muttered to Elyssa.

    "He''s a creep," she said, gripping my hand as her gaze found my target. "But he''s also full of useful information."

    Mr. Turpin, aka Underborn, was the most notorious assassin in the Overworld. But whatever information he had to offer wasn''t worth it. "His price is too high." I let go of Elyssa''s hand, trading it for her shoulder so I could pull her closer. Without her, I wouldn''t have survived the past few days. Underborn had marked my father for death. When I tracked him down and demanded he rescind the hit, he admitted it had mostly been a ploy to lure me to him. To test me, as he put it. As a price for calling off the hit, I''d had to help him with a vampire problem at my high school. Now our institution of lower education looked like a warzone.

    "What a mess," I said turning away from the school. Violent images flashed through my mind, a stark reminder of the death and destruction that claimed the lives of nearly nine people, one of them a former classmate. "Everything I touch seems to go to hell, and Underborn thinks I''m supposed to be a leader?" Stress wormed its way into my insides, abrasive and painful.

    "Even the best leaders can''t plan for everything." Elyssa pecked me on the cheek. "Just ask my dad."

    I chuckled. "Yeah. I''d rather not." I''d be more likely to receive a sword through the guts than advice.

    Elyssa''s violet eyes met mine. "Underborn will want you to go after Maximus, instead of your mother and sister, won''t he?" she said, phrasing it more like a statement than a question.

    Maximus was actively recruiting high school students all over Atlanta¡ªmaybe even the entire country¡ªto form a rogue vampire organization. I''d done my part, acting as Underborn''s errand boy and now I needed to find my sister and mother.

    "I know he''s not done with me," I said as my mind churned through plans to force Underborn to tell me what I wanted to know. "But I need to be done with him. Unfortunately, he''s the only person I know who might be able to help me find Ivy and Mom."

    "If I can convince my father to mobilize the Templars against Maximus, maybe that will be enough."

    I took my eyes off Underborn and turned to Elyssa. "You really think you can do that?"

    She shrugged. "Considering everything we''ve been through, talking our way out of a situation instead of fighting has a certain appeal."

    A smile died on my lips as I thought back to my last fight. Maximus was a vampire, true, but he wasn''t old enough to turn others into his kind. Instead, the turning failed, leaving behind an undead creature with vampiric abilities and a highly infectious virus, which would kill and turn others into what those in the Overworld called vamplings.

    Maximus had turned Brad Nichols and the result had been carnage.

    "Your dad is too focused on taking down the spawn to care about a rogue vampire." I thought back to my disastrous meeting with her parents. To say Thomas Borathen despised my kind would be a huge understatement.

    She brushed a lock of black hair behind an ear as a gust of wind dislodged it. "Underborn told us my father''s feelings might change if we figure out who engineered the Thunder Rock massacre."

    Thunder Rock. Before I was born, Thomas Borathen had led a group of Templars to apprehend a rogue spawn responsible for manifesting into demon form and consuming the souls of those unlucky enough to cross his path. Instead of finding a lone spawn, they''d encountered hordes of dark creatures from the demon plane. Only two Templars escaped that day: Thomas Borathen and Kevin Sorensen. But Thomas didn''t know about the second survivor. In fact, my eyes were looking at the presumed-dead Templar right now¡ªUnderborn.

    "Pshhhht. Yet another mystery our beloved assassin wants me to solve," I said. "It''s a never-ending cycle. He''ll always want me to do more while he dangles Mom and Ivy''s location like a carrot."

    Elyssa''s eyes narrowed. "We can''t just let him dictate terms for everything, Justin. I say we make him talk. Make him tell us where your mom is."

    "Or where Mr. Gray lives."

    She bared her teeth at the mention of the name I''d given the sorcerer who''d sent his gray-suited golems after me.

    The pressure of eyes watching me prickled the hairs on my neck. It took less than a second to find the source. Nearly a hundred yards outside the police roadblock to my left, a blaze of red hair in the window of a parked limousine captured my attention.

    Kassallandra.

    The breath caught in my throat as the window on the car rolled up and the pale face vanished from sight. This wasn''t good. Not at all. Dad''s family, House Slade, had arranged a marriage between him and Kassallandra of House Assad. Except Dad had fallen in love with my mother, Alice, and run away with her. I was pretty happy with the outcome¡ªbeing born and all¡ªbut hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and Kassallandra was a demon spawn like my father. Her temper obviously matched her fiery hair because she''d sent hellhounds to track Dad down and fetch him like a human Frisbee.

    But now she was here. Watching me. Why?

    It didn''t take long for my brain to connect the dots. She probably planned to use me to get to Dad. Time was running out for me to question Underborn. I gripped Elyssa''s hand. "Think we could kidnap an assassin?"

    Her eyes widened. "What?"

    Agnes Wright, Principal Perkins''s secretary, appeared through a break in the crowd. Her beady little eyes locked onto me. She jabbed a finger my way and spoke to two officers following close behind her.

    "Oh, crap." I took an involuntary step back.

    Elyssa saw Agnes leading the policemen our way and grimaced. "Did she see Principal Perkins and Coach Burgundy take you outside the school earlier?"

    I nodded. "Ted Barnes was there too. They took me to the football training room just before Brad and his two goons burst in and killed everyone." Just thinking about the black veins racing up Brad''s face made me shudder. The vampling virus had turned him into a half-dead lunatic with all the strength of a vampire. Perkins and his good old boys hadn''t stood a chance.

    Elyssa tapped her chin with a finger, eyes deep in thought. "If the cops ask you, tell them Perkins and Burgundy were telling you about scouts at the next football game."

    "Scouts?"

    "Yeah, college football scouts. Tell them they were tipping you off there might be scouts and that you could get a college scholarship. Then they let you go back to class and that''s the last you saw of them."

    "Yeah but what if these cops know about Perkins and the others blackmailing me to play football? For all I know the entire police department was in on it."

    "If there''s one thing I''ve learned about corruption, the big players hold the most valuable information close to their chest and only tell their underlings what they need to know. If they were planning to make big bucks by manufacturing supernatural steroids from your blood, there''s no way they would''ve told anyone outside their little group."

    I could have run away at supernatural speed and they never would have caught me. But if I did, the cops would assume I was guilty of something. Ending up on the FBI''s most wanted list would be the perfect capper to a crappy day. So I swallowed the nervous lump in my throat and tried to act natural.

    "He''s right there, officer," Agnes Wright said, voice crackling with accusation as she and two local police officers closed in on me.

    I almost gulped but somehow managed an innocent look of concern. "Who, me?"

    "Yes, you, you rotten kid!" Agnes screeched.

    "That''ll be enough, Ma''am," said the officer to her right, a dark-skinned officer of medium build who looked like he wanted nothing more than to get the school secretary as far away from him as possible. He looked at me. "Justin Case?"

    Technically, Justin Slade. I nodded. "Yes, officer?"

    "Mind if I ask you a few questions?"

    I managed a shrug. "Sure." Elyssa squeezed my hand as a jackhammer pulse pounded in my chest.

    "I''ll take him to my car," the officer said to his companion.

    I looked toward the milling mass of students in the church parking lot then across the road to where the nearest patrol cars sat, blue lights flashing. "What''s going on? What happened?"

    He gave me a shrewd look as we walked toward the car, a look that made me think he could see straight into my soul and pick out every little lie. Once we arrived, he retrieved a metal clipboard from the front seat and wrote a few things down on the paper clipped to it.

    "Where were you at ten this morning?"

    "Biology class."

    "And after that?"

    "Uh, Ms. Wright called my class on the intercom and told me to go to the front office."

    "And?"

    "I went there and met with Principal Perkins and our football coach." That much was true.

    He scribbled on his notepad. "What was the nature of the meeting?"

    "They took me outside and told me some college scouts might be coming to our football game this Friday and if I played well, I might have a chance at a scholarship." Actually, they hadn''t said much of anything until they''d gotten me inside the football training room where Sheriff Skinner, Chief Amerson, a doctor, and two goons with guns were waiting.

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    "Anything else?"

    "They said they were proud of me, sir." The absurdity of that lie almost made me burst into hysterical laughter. Instead, they''d informed me the blood sample I''d submitted for testing as part of the standard procedure for joining the football team had returned very surprising results. They mistook my supernatural abilities for a miracle steroid which had transformed my previous loser self into an all-star athlete. To them, I''d looked like a cash cow worth millions and they planned to milk my blood of the imaginary steroid. Then Brad showed up and killed them all.

    The officer scrawled my lies on his pad, stopped, and tapped the pen against his chin. "Where outside were you, exactly?"

    "On the side of the school, kind of near the cafeteria."

    "Did anything else happen?"

    "No. I left them right after they told me about the scouts and headed back for class. Well, first I had to go to the bathroom because I was kind of nervous about the scouts thing and it upset my stomach something awful. Whew, let me tell you it took a few minutes to squeeze those demons out."

    He cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow.

    I wondered if I might have over-embellished the details. "Uh, yeah, let me think. Oh, and then I headed to class but the bell rang and I found out we were evacuating."

    "Did you hear anything on your way back to class?"

    I shook my head. "No. Just the bells."

    He narrowed his eyes and stared at me for several seconds. "Are you sure that''s what happened?"

    "That''s exactly what happened." It took everything I had to look him in the eye and keep a straight face. For all I knew everything in my posture and voice was screaming, "Liar!" I swallowed and asked, "What''s wrong? Why did we have to leave the school?"

    "I''d like you to have a seat in this car until I say you can go." He opened the rear door of the patrol car and motioned me in.

    "Am I under arrest for something?" My heart was trying to burst out of my ribcage at this point, and it was all I could do not to run away at top speed.

    "No, but I need to confirm your statement before I let you go back to your friends, okay?"

    I nodded and got into the car. He shut it and walked across the barricaded road. Underborn met him halfway and drew him aside. My nerves splintered even further. No telling what the slimy, backstabbing assassin was saying.

    I slumped in the seat and buried my face in my hands. I could kick the door off the hinges. Run away and never look back. My normal life was all but over anyway. With the sheriff and his co-conspirators dead, my friends Ash and Nyte would probably be safe from retaliation. But another part of me recoiled in horror at the thought of giving up on a life that, up until a month or so ago, had been painfully boring and normal. I''d been an overweight dyed-in-the-wool nerd with a hopeless crush on Katie Johnson, who I''d mistakenly believed to be the one. My life had revolved around live-action role-playing by way of Kings and Castles.

    I shuddered at the memories, but still kind of missed being normal.

    Cries and shouts of alarm reached my ears and tore me from my thoughts. I peered through the windshield of the patrol car but saw only the other car blocking off the high school entrance. I looked through the driver''s window and noticed students scrambling deeper into the church parking lot in a panicked, screaming throng. One of the cops standing in the middle of the road pulled his sidearm and aimed at something behind me.

    I heard the roar of a diesel engine growing closer. I twisted in my seat. The officer fired. Bullets pinged off the grill of a huge truck. It was yards away and charging straight for me.

    Chapter 2

    I screamed like a little girl at the same time I tried to twist and kick open the car door, but it was too late. With a crunch, the truck smashed into the side of the car. My head whipped back and slammed into the window. I flew across the back seat and, for a stunned moment, couldn''t think straight. I flopped like a rubber chicken to the floorboard.

    As my wits returned, I noticed a flat metal blade like the kind I''d seen on forklifts had punctured the door to my left. I glanced through the center grille separating the back seat from the front and saw another flat blade protruding through the front driver door. It had driven itself through the seats. The computer console in the center sparked and died.

    The truck was a garbage hauler with a massive lift on the front for picking up industrial dumpsters and turning them upside-down over the enclosed truck bed. And this truck was roaring full speed onto the school grounds. The tires on the patrol car squealed and smoked as the truck plowed forward, pushing the car sideways. The high-pitched thrum of a hydraulic motor kicked in and the police car lifted off the ground, giving the tires some respite just before another chain-link fence loomed ahead.

    I ducked against the door as metal fence poles clanged and screeched against the side of the car. The forklift continued lifting and the car tilted, throwing me against the door closest to the truck. When I peeled my face off the armrest and looked out the window, I came face-to-face with the truck driver¡ªa gray man. He wore a gray business suit and wore his silvery hair slicked back. His gray eyes bore no emotion. He might be having the time of his life, smashing a patrol car with a person inside, but his face didn''t have so much as a smile on it.

    The lack of emotions wasn''t surprising, considering he, she, or it, was a golem¡ªa life-sized animated Ken doll sent by the mysterious Mr. Gray.

    "Let me out of here you oversized blowup doll!" I shouted.

    The truck rocked as it hit a concrete curb, tossing me around like a rag doll. The lift moved the car upward, perpendicular to the huge vehicle until I could see the rusted top of the cab through the window. I braced myself to kick out the left door, which, due to the angle of the tilted patrol car, I now stood on. Another jolt plunged my leg through the window.

    The window seemed to be bullet resistant so it didn''t shatter. Instead, my leg punched a jagged hole through it, tearing at my pants and ripping my skin. I gripped the back seat and pulled myself up. The ragged corners of the window further shredded the side of my name-brand jeans, probably making them more fashionable in the process. I kicked the door. But it was impaled on the fork lift and wouldn''t budge. The lift rotated the patrol car until it was upside down and shuddered to a halt. I tumbled across the headliner. Through the side window, I saw four black leather shoes slam atop the cab as two more gray-suited golems joined in the fun. In unison, they kicked the car. Metal screeched against metal as the vehicle slid off the forklift and tumbled into the back of the garbage truck.

    I yelped as the roof clanged against the truck bed, jarring every bone in my body. The roof of the patrol car crunched but held thanks to the stiff roll cage. The door nearest me pressed against the slick metal inside of the truck bed so I crawled across. Braced my back. Kicked the door. It shot off its hinges and gonged against the metal enclosure.

    I crawled out. The gray men jumped atop the undercarriage of the patrol car. The truck, still roaring ahead, slammed against a large bump, flinging us into the air. I took advantage of my airtime and gripped the top lip of the truck bed, some ten or more feet above the bottom, and pulled myself up. Hands like iron clamped my leg. Yanked me down. I kept my hold on the lip. Another tug yanked my arms straight. Pain flared in my joints at the intense pressure. I kicked the gray man holding my ankle. The bottom of my shoe stomped his face. He didn''t make a noise. I kicked him again and again. It didn''t matter to him. He just kept pulling my leg.

    "Let. Me. Go!" I shouted with each kick.

    His partner joined him, gripping my free leg and tugging. My arms screamed in agony as my shoulder joints popped. My sweaty fingers lost their grip. I flew backward, crashing into the golems. Pine branches shrieked against the sides and top of the truck as we entered the wooded area behind the school. The rugged terrain rocked the stiff shocks mercilessly, tossing the two golems and me around like circus freaks at a yacht club. The patrol car skidded sideways on its roof, trapping one of the gray men in the corner while pinning my arms, legs, and chest against the cold metal of the sidewall. I gasped as it crushed the air from my lungs. Even worse, I had no leverage to push it off.

    Golem two climbed back to its feet. Leapt atop the overturned car. Gripped my head. I braced as it twisted my head side-to-side, like it was trying to snap my neck. Somehow, I resisted, keeping my head straight. It increased the pressure. My neck muscles burned from the effort. I clenched my teeth so tight I thought they might crack.

    It reared back a fist and punched me. My head gonged against the truck bed. Stars exploded. The golem gripped my chin and the back of my head and jerked. Just then, the truck lurched. Wood cracked. Pine needles and cones showered the truck bed. The car slid away, freeing me. Golem two lost his footing and slipped, twisting my head as he tumbled away. A bone cracked loudly in my neck. I screamed.

    Pins and needles pricked my skin as blood circulation reached the places pinched off by the car. I wiggled my fingers. Looked left and right. Somehow, I was still alive. I felt my neck, expecting it to be dislocated horribly. Instead, it seemed to be intact.

    "You jackass!" I leapt for the golem. Slammed into it. It clanged off the metal wall and landed face down. I jumped, knees first, onto its back. Gripped its hair and beat the head to a pulp against the floor until a shiny knob of metallic skull showed through the freakishly realistic fake flesh. I stood. Backed away from the disgusting mess. The first golem¡ªwho I''d forgotten¡ªwrapped its arms around mine and lifted me off the floor.

    Pulpy-faced McPulperson staggered to its feet like a broken doll and came for me. A blood-chilling howl sounded. Something clanged into the side of the truck, ringing it like a massive bell. The metal frame groaned. Leaned to the side. Toppled over and slid along the ground. The two golems and I ricocheted around the metal cage. My face connected with the lights on the police car. Everything spun. Blurred. Suddenly, I was free of the truck, sailing through the open air.

    A tree caught me, its trunk slamming like a sledgehammer into my ribs. I heard a cracking noise and felt knives of bone pierce my vitals. I rolled on the needle-strewn forest floor in a blinding haze of pain, no breath left in my lungs for even a scream. Leaves crunched around me. I took a shuddering breath and looked up. McPulperson and his BFF dragged themselves from the truck where it lay on its side at the end of a long furrow of freshly ground earth and leaves. The passenger-side door of the truck screeched and flew twenty feet into the air, making a whistling noise as it flipped end-over-end before embedding itself into the ground twenty feet away. The driver pulled himself from the cab.

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    Why in the hell was Mr. Gray sending his toy soldiers after me? What reason could he possibly have for causing such a spectacle? I didn''t have time to think about it. I had to move.

    I rolled to my knees and staggered upright. Every movement sent fresh stabs to my insides, tiny daggers wielded by wicked little pain fairies, the evil kin of sleep fairies. My vision faded at the edges, dissolving into static.

    "Stupid gray bastards," I muttered through clenched teeth.

    Without a word, or even an indication that they''d heard or understood me, they blurred forward.

    I turned to run and yelped with surprise at a massive, drooling muzzle inches from my face. A gigantic hellhound, tall as my chest, blocked my way. Two more hellhounds sprang from behind bushes on either side of me. I was boxed in. Dead meat. The golems didn''t seem to care or notice. They rushed full steam ahead.

    Since I couldn''t fly, I stopped, dropped, and rolled. My broken ribs gouged my insides like a meat grinder. But it worked. The first golem, running too fast to adjust course on the slick forest bed of pine needles, tripped over me. Smacked face-first into Gigantor, the oversized hellhound.

    The hound''s jaws clamped around the golem''s waist and bit it clean in half, teeth shearing through fake flesh and metal bones like tin foil. The other hounds pounced on McPulperson and pal, tearing them to tiny gray shreds. The torso of the first golem pulled itself toward me by its hands. It reached for my ankle. Gigantor sank its teeth into the arm and wrenched it off with a savage jerk of its head. Then it leaned down. Sniffed the still-wriggling golem and, almost daintily nipped off the thing''s head and spat it out on the ground.

    Good news: The golems were dead. Bad news: I was surrounded by hellhounds. In my current condition, I wasn''t outrunning a pack of demonic hounds. So I opted for the next best thing. Sweet-talking.

    "Good boy," I said, reaching a very tentative hand toward the hound''s lean, almost Doberman-like head. I wondered how long, if ever, it would take my arm to grow back once this thing bit it off.

    It bared sharp canines and growled a deep rumbling basso, yellow eyes burning.

    I backed away. "Take me to your leader?" My voice sounded distant and thick. I wondered if my healing abilities were overwhelmed from the trauma I''d suffered.

    A small black ball of fur darted between the massive hound and me. It hissed and spat, fur standing on end to make it look bigger than it was. I stared in horror as Nightliss, the little cat I''d rescued from a slobbering dog at a dumpster not so long ago rawred and advanced on the creature towering over her like a giant. How had she found me? What in the hell was going on? It was like watching a crazy, surreal dream unfold right before my eyes. Then again, it could have been a hallucination thanks to brain trauma caused by McPulperson punching me in the face.

    The hound''s growl turned into an uncertain whine and it backed away, shaking its head in confusion and glancing at its pack mates who still surrounded us.

    "Nightliss, no!" I scooped her up and cradled her to my chest. "Are you trying to get yourself eaten?"

    Nightliss glared at me with angry green eyes. She meowed and struggled against my arms, setting off more agony in my snapped ribs. I set her down, expecting her to run. Instead, her body seemed to melt and flow, expanding until a very familiar and very naked girl stared at me with those same green eyes.

    Chapter 3

    My mouth dropped open. "You? You''re Nightliss? Who¡ªwhat are you?" This was the same mystery girl who''d helped me save Stacey after hellhounds nearly killed her and showed up to help me carry Elyssa from an alley after gray men attacked us in the Grotto. This couldn''t be happening. Then again, only weeks ago, I would have thought none of this possible. Hellhounds, golems, vampires, demon spawn like me¡ªall real.

    And this girl was every bit as adorable as her cat form.

    Nightliss brushed long, dark hair from her face and smiled. One of the hounds growled and advanced. She turned and gave it a furious glare, more cute than scary, considering she stood maybe five-feet tall. The hound whined and retreated, circling back and forth as though uncertain what to do next.

    "Hi," she said, and kissed me on the nose.

    "Hi?" Though petite, Nightliss possessed womanly curves, beckoning my eyes to stare. But a storm of questions overwhelmed my teenage hormones and incubus instinct. Who was this woman? Was she a felycan like Stacey? "Who¡ª"

    "Who are you to interfere in my business?" said a cold, angry voice with a British-tinted, Russian accent. The owner of the voice, a tall woman with flowing crimson hair and matching eyes, pushed past one of the hounds and planted herself in front of the diminutive woman.

    The girl responded in a strange melodic language and the redheaded woman''s eyes flared in either disbelief or outright surprise.

    "Kassallandra," I said, unable to stop staring at the succubus my father refused to marry. She wore a slinky red dress hugging tight against her curves. A pair of expensive-looking platform heels accented smooth, fair calves, adding a bit more oomph to her curvy rear end. This woman was smoking hot in more than one sense but looked completely out of place in the woods.

    She planted both fists on her hips and raised her glare to me. "I am Anae Kassallandra to you, Castratae. You would do well to remember your place rather than sully me with your words."

    "Ooh, I guess your poop doesn''t stink," I said, unable to keep the petty retaliation off my tongue. According to Elyssa, spawn adhered to a strict social caste system. Since I was half-human and half-spawn, not to mention the son of an outcast, that pretty much damned me to the lowest of the low, the Castratae, whereas Kassallandra was almost as far up the chain as spawn could go.

    Kassallandra ignored my response. Looked back at Nightliss whose olive skin and dark hair seemed a stark contrast to the snow-skinned woman with flaming red hair.

    Kassallandra hurled what sounded like a heated question in the strange tongue at Nightliss. The girl responded, the melodic language flowing from her throat like lilting music on the air. I found myself lulled to peace by her voice and shook my head to clear the fog. The hounds seemed mesmerized, their great yellow eyes growing unfocused, tongues lolling as Nightliss spoke. The redhead threw several more sentences in the foreign tongue at her opposite, though her accent didn''t have the same clarity.

    Whatever they were talking about didn''t seem to be going anywhere.

    "Can someone translate for me?" I asked.

    They both looked at me. Turned back to each other and kept on talking. I took a deep breath and, for the first time since being thrown from the truck, a pleasant but somewhat itchy tingle spread through my battered ribs. Apparently, my wounds were healing. I traced my bones to make sure they hadn''t somehow reattached themselves all crooked, but aside from a little mushiness, they felt normal. As the pain subsided, the toll from the trauma settled into my body. My muscles felt like lead. I''d need to feed soon, and what my demonic nature desired couldn''t be satisfied with a burger and a super-sized order of fries.

    Nightliss shouted a single word at Kassallandra and shook her head. Tears pooled in her huge eyes. An almost sympathetic look crossed the redhead''s face and she touched the smaller woman''s bare shoulder. Said something in a comforting tone. Nightliss nodded slowly and looked at me, the tears trickling down her cheeks.

    She walked over, pressed her hands to my cheek, my lips, and ran her fingers through my hair. I stood in dumbfounded confusion. Then she kissed my lips and sighed.

    "I cannot," she said in a tearful whisper.

    "Can''t what?"

    She sniffled. "Interfere."

    Kassallandra said something else in the strange language.

    Nightliss scowled. "Have hunger?" she said in a whisper, concern tightening the corners of her large eyes.

    I nodded. "Famished." I almost expected her to tell me to eat more chicken.

    Her lips pursed like those of a rebellious child. She pressed her lips to mine. Warmth flooded me, running from my lips to my toes. It felt amazing, like a flush of warm hot chocolate taking away the chill of a lonely winter night. Nightliss cast an angry look at Kassallandra and blurred away into the forest.

    I stood for one stunned moment as the needle on my demonic gas tank pinged full. How had she done that? I hadn''t fed from her¡ªat least not in the usual way. Kassallandra''s stern gaze pulled me from my thoughts. Anger replaced confusion. "Where is she going?" I asked. "What did you say to her? What the hell is going on?"

    "Where is Daevadius?" Kassallandra shot back, ignoring my questions.

    "My father?"

    "Not only did he dishonor me and my family, but he insulted us by bearing a child with a human!" She shuddered, her lips peeled back from her teeth in revulsion.

    My fists tightened, though I didn''t dare advance on this succubus diva with her pets shaking off their Nightliss-induced trance. "Well, whoopty-friggin-doo! Maybe you need to get over yourself, lady. My dad followed his heart instead of your nasty, incestuous customs." Though, considering how hot Dad''s sister, Vallaena, and Kassallandra were, I could kind of see the appeal of mating with relatives.

    Did I really just think that? Gross!

    Anger flared in her crimson irises as her pupils shrank to pinpricks. "His dishonor forced this course of action upon me, Castratae. I was unaware of you until the day I tracked him down."

    "The day your pets chased us all over creation?" I glared at the largest of the hounds. I remembered him now, how he and his buddies had run us through the gauntlet. If he weren¡¯t so huge and scary, I''d beat him like a rented mule. "I don''t know what you hoped to gain from attacking us."

    "I went there to talk with him. To make him see the course of redemption. But you ran like frightened children."

    "And you sicced your hounds on us?" I took a step forward and a growl like thunder rumbled in the huge hound''s throat. "One of them almost killed my friend, Stacey."

    "I ordered no such violence."

    "Yeah? Well my werewolf friend killed one of your puppies."

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    A red eyebrow shot up. "As you can see all of my companions are just fine." She rested a hand on the large one''s massive head. "Who is this Stacey you speak of?"

    "A felycan. Blonde, British, and snarky. She lives¡ªor lived¡ªin some abandoned warehouses near my house."

    Kassallandra looked at the oversized hound for a moment. He gazed fondly back at her, his great tail wagging, and urine-colored eyes bright with puppy love. After a moment, she shook her head. "Malkesh says they did no such thing. But he did detect the scent of other hounds near your house some time ago." Her perfect lip curled into a snarl. "Someone else is interfering. Another of House Slade, no doubt, who wishes to prevent Daevadius from redeeming his standing."

    I considered this disturbing nugget of information as doubt and distrust¡ªnot to mention old blood¡ªleft a sour taste in my mouth. I couldn''t be sure she was lying. And why would she? Had another spawn already discovered where we lived even before the ruckus yesterday morning?

    "That still doesn''t excuse their behavior. They could have killed someone, rampaging through town like Godzilla."

    Her irises went from vivid red to arctic frost. "Who do you think you are to challenge my decisions?"

    "You need to get off your high horse, Kassallandra. If what you say is true and there''s another spawn out there trying to wreck your plans and kill my friends, we have enemies in common. Just think, we could become best frenemies."

    She wrinkled her nose in distaste. "We do not call ourselves spawn, you ignorant Castratae. It is a derogatory term. We are Daemos." She sniffed. "Common enemies or not, why would I ally myself with an abomination?"

    I almost laughed, the anger evaporating and turning into outright disbelief at the haughty nerve of this woman. "Abomination? Ouch. Someone''s manners are still stuck in third grade."

    "You are an abomination, child. Formed from the loins of a cowardly traitor and a human."

    I grinned. "Vallaena didn''t have an issue talking to me. I guess the women of House Slade are made of stronger stuff."

    Kassallandra pursed her rosebud lips, the color in her eyes fading to a muted blue. "If Anae Vallaena found you worthy to speak with, then I shall make an allowance as well."

    I already knew women were crazy, but good lord! Spawn women had enough crazy to make other women look sane.

    The sound of people yelling and crashing through underbrush caught my ears. The hellhounds'' ears were already angled that way, their bright yellow eyes alert. We didn''t have long before the police showed up. If they''d had questions before, I couldn''t imagine what they''d ask upon seeing my unscathed body after playing demolition derby with a ten-ton garbage truck.

    Malkesh whined and looked toward a tree about a hundred feet away.

    "Elyssa Borathen, show yourself," Kassallandra exclaimed.

    Elyssa slid into view, quiet as a ninja. "Let him go," she said, her voice tight with apprehension.

    I wondered how long she''d been hiding there. A chill ran down my back. She would slice my nanner off if she''d seen the kiss Nightliss had given me.

    "I am not holding him against his will," Kassallandra replied.

    "Oh really?" I said. "So your lapdogs are just sitting around, waiting to be petted?"

    Kassallandra arched an imperious eyebrow. "The police are nearing. I suggest we retreat to a better place for discussion."

    "Discussion?" I said, the pitch of my voice jumping up an octave. "I don''t call it ''discussion'' when you''re going all grade school on me with the name calling. Haven''t you ever heard you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar?"

    Her eyes narrowed, though the corner of her mouth lifted ever so slightly. Probably not quite a smile, but close enough.

    I glanced in the direction of the voices. "Better make up your mind fast, Kassallandra, ''cause I''m not going anywhere with someone who''s being ugly to me."

    She took in a deep breath. "Fine. I¡ªI apologize for my harsh words."

    I cupped a hand to my ear. "Wait a minute, what was that? I didn''t quite hear."

    She pressed her lips into thin lines, took a deep breath and said, "I apologize for calling you an abomination." Malkesh pressed his great head to her side and whined. Man, apologizing had to really hurt for a stuck-up snit like her.

    "You promise to be nice?"

    "Really now, the police are¡ª"

    I raised my voice. "Kassallandra. Do you promise to be nice, or should I go away and leave you all by your lonesome?"

    She bared her pearly whites and grunted in a most unladylike way before saying, "Yes. I will endeavor to be nice."

    I grinned and took a step toward her. Malkesh snarled so I took a hasty step back. "See now, that wasn''t so hard, was it?"

    "May we go now?" she said, looking through the dense pine trees toward the sound of encroaching people.

    I glanced at the gray-suited remains of the golems, dissolving into gray sludge and soaking into the ground. I wondered if the stuff was biodegradable. "Yeah, let''s go." I motioned at Kassallandra. "Lead the way." I took one last look at the chaotic scene: the slime-filled gray suits, the overturned garbage truck, and the torn earth. I almost felt sorry for the detectives who had to figure this mess out.

    Kassallandra motioned us to follow. "My car is back this way."

    "I''m not blindly hopping into your car," I said. "If you want to talk, we''ll meet somewhere else. Somewhere very public."

    "You have no reason to trust me, but I give you my word I will do nothing to harm you, and you can leave whenever you wish."

    "I don''t know you, Kassallandra. How do I know your word is worth anything?"

    Her irises darkened to a deep red and her gaze focused into a glare. It seemed to cost her something to hold her tongue as a war burned behind her eyes. I wondered if she was counting to ten or about to order Malkesh to bite my leg. Her glare faded and softened, and a single, soft word emerged from her lovely lips: "Please."

    There was something powerful about that word, especially coming from her. This was not a woman who said "please" often, if at all. My ability to read women wasn''t that great, but it had only taken me a minute to classify Kassallandra as a world-class diva who expected everyone to bow to her whims. After everything I''d been through over the past few days, I wasn''t about to kneel to anyone, much less her.

    I glanced at Elyssa and could tell she was thinking the same thing, from the thoughtful look in her eyes.

    "Your word," I said.

    Kassallandra nodded. "You have it."

    Elyssa nodded. "She''s being honest."

    "Fine." I motioned onward. "Lead the way."

    Malkesh growled. The other hounds'' ears swiveled ahead, their noses testing the air. Kassallandra looked at Malkesh and her eyes grew wide. "More golems ahead and to the sides, closing in fast."

    I looked back. "We''ll have to chance it with the police then." The prospect didn''t excite me. A new scenario, however, filled me with dread. What if the gray men attacked the police?

    "No. There is a better way." She pulled something from her pocket, simultaneously motioning Malkesh toward a flat spot of pine-covered forest floor. The dog raced forward and pawed the pine needles and leaves away until only bare earth remained in a ten-foot radius.

    "What is that?" I asked, as she placed what looked like a curved black earring onto the bare ground.

    The redhead motioned us into the large circle, pressed a thumb to the edge, and whispered a few words. I heard the hum as the circle closed and felt the magic as it pressed upon us in its tight confinement.

    "You can do magic?" I asked.

    "Almost anyone can do simple magic," she said.

    The voices of pursuers grew louder. I angled my head and tried to pinpoint their distance. I heard the rustling of pine straw and bushes from countless other directions as golems raced toward our position. I couldn''t see them yet, but they were in a hurry. Malkesh, ears already perked and angled toward the sounds, looked at me with yellow eyes seeming to search my own.

    Not far, said a deep voice in my head.

    I jumped back. "Who the hell said that?" I looked at the hound but it was staring off into the distance toward the distant noise of rustling bushes and trampled leaves.

    "Said what?" asked Elyssa.

    "Uh, someone said something in my head."

    Kassallandra glared at the massive hound and then back to me, her fiery eyes filled with confusion. "They are close, but I am ready." She shouted a single word and pointed at the arch. It sprang upward and outward until it was nearly the width of the circle and a few feet taller than me.

    "Is that an Obsidian Arch?" I asked.

    She nodded. "It is very much like one."

    The center of the arch crackled and hummed, flickering between black, white, and cloudy gray.

    "Isn''t this dangerous?" Elyssa asked as the humming grew louder. "What about the cracks in reality forming around this thing before the gateway is open? We could end up in the Gloom."

    "Safety is not my top priority at the moment," Kassallandra said. She pointed up a nearby rise as a figure raced over it and came for us.

    My eyes stretched wide as a small army of golems burst over the hill and sprinted toward us.

    "I would usually take my time with such a dangerous endeavor, but we have no time," Kassallandra said, raising her voice over the throbbing hum from the arch.

    The center of the arch flickered and the grayness clarified, showing rocky granite walls beyond.

    "Where is that?" I asked.

    "Thunder Rock."

    I stiffened. "Why the hell are we going there?"

    "We have no choice. We must go, now!"

    I looked into Elyssa''s wide eyes. "Maybe we can outrun those things."

    Elyssa shook her head. Glanced up the hill. "No, she''s right." Her black hair whipped in the wind coming from the arch. "We don''t have a choice."

 Page 5

    I followed her gaze as the army of gray men streaked toward us, their faces and eyes devoid of all emotion. Two hounds leapt from the cover of bushes and attacked the front line, savaging the first golem. But three other golems leapt on one of the hounds. The huge dog shook them off like fleas. The automatons swarmed it, punching and kicking. It snarled and snapped at the attackers. Two gray men gripped its neck and twisted. The hound yelped as a horrific crack filled the air. Its body collapsed in a silent heap.

    "Ketsheva!" Kassallandra screamed.

    Malkesh howled.

    Kassallandra wiped angry tears from her face. "Follow me now!" She leapt through the arch. The other three hounds went through after her.

    I looked up and saw one last hound circling the gray men, snapping and biting to delay them, but there were too many.

    "Come on, you stupid dog!" I yelled at it. "Run!"

    Its yellow eyes met mine and it hesitated. Then, tongue lolling, it raced forward and leapt through the arch. I pushed Elyssa. She stumbled through with an indignant yelp. I glanced over my shoulder at the woods as I raced through the arch to the other side. A face caught my gaze as I made it through. Underborn. He stood next to the thick trunk of a pine tree. And I could have sworn a smirk lit his face. A gray man dove toward me from the other side.

    Kassallandra shouted a word as the golem''s shoulders came through the gateway. The arch shuddered and collapsed back to its original diminutive size in a heartbeat, slicing the thing in half. The gray-suited torso hit the ground with a meaty thud. The golem''s hands grasped at my feet. Malkesh leapt forward with a snarl and ripped the golem''s head off with a savage yank. Then he coughed the nasty thing back out and booted it away with a huge paw.

    "Why are those stupid things after me?" I said, breathing heavily as my heart pounded like a timpani.

    "They were sent by someone allied with those who wish to kill you," Kassallandra said, standing among a spread of loose rocks and boulders, which had probably tumbled from the granite cliffs surrounding us and the lake in the middle of the abandoned quarry.

    "Obviously," I said, my voice sparking with sarcasm. "Until about twenty minutes ago, I would have sworn that you were on the KJ side." I took a seat on a nearby boulder and took off a shoe so I could dump out the debris irritating the bottom of my foot.

    Kassallandra arched an eyebrow. "KJ?"

    I gave her a cross look as pine straw, leaves, and an acorn tumbled from my sneaker. "Yeah. Kill Justin."

    Kassallandra leaned against a rough slab of granite and peered around the steep gray walls of the quarry. "Welcome to the place where Templars massacred my family and yours, Justin Slade."

    "What the hell are you talking about?" Elyssa said, eyes narrowed and wary. "I think you have your history confused. Spawn ambushed the Templars when they came to apprehend Vadaemos Slade."

    "Do not insult me with that vile term." Kassallandra''s face hardened. "We are Daemos, not spawn." She waved the offense away with a flick of her wrist. "In any case, it is you who are mistaken about the events here. Your father led an unprovoked Templar attack on House Assad and Slade members while they were seeking Vadaemos and his illegitimate bride, Orionas of House Assad. Your father interfered with an internal affair."

    "It was hardly an internal affair," Elyssa said, her porcelain cheeks flushing pink. "Vadaemos was manifesting into demon form and consuming the essence of innocents. He was breaking Overworld law. My father did his duty and lost every man under his command. He barely escaped with his life."

    Nearly every man, I thought. All except for Kevin Sorenson, aka Turpin, aka Underborn, aka Jackass Supreme. That guy had more pseudonyms than I had pairs of underwear. Underborn had fallen into the lake in the middle of the massacre at Thunder Rock, thinking he was dead meat, and woken up in southern Colombia instead.

    "Your father nearly provoked a war!" Kassallandra was on her feet, the blaze of her hair matching the color of her irises.

    I wondered how she could change eye colors like that and if I could do the same. I then realized shiznit was about to get real if I didn''t do something fast to end this argument. I put myself between the two women as they closed on each other. "No need to get nasty, ladies." I looked at Elyssa. "Remember what Underborn said about the whole thing being a setup?"

    She folded her arms and backed off a step before nodding. "Someone wanted the Templars and Daemos to be at odds."

    The red in Kassallandra''s irises faded. "Are you referring to Underborn, the notorious assassin?"

    I nodded. "Why don''t we all calm down a bit and talk facts instead of yelling." I took my own advice and sat back down, taking time to empty leaves and other outdoorsy stuff out of my other shoe. Nature sure was dirty. Kassallandra lowered herself to a boulder and rested a hand on Malkesh''s head. Elyssa took a seat next to me.

    Neither of the women spoke, so I took it upon myself to break the silence. "Underborn said House Slade was here during the incident, but he didn''t say anything about House Assad joining the party."

    Shades of red danced in Kassallandra''s eyes. "When House Slade cast out Vadaemos, Anae Orionas, to our great shame, joined him and made her love for him public. She was never to be shared with House Slade as a bond, but meant only for our own males. To break custom and mate with a male from another house without blessing is shameful."

    I shuddered. "What''s shameful is not allowing a person to be with someone they love and then making them bang their own relatives." I made a gagging sound to underline just how nasty it was.

    A scowl marred her pretty face, but she moved on. "The Vadaemos-Orionas matter had to be settled. Once our families learned the two fugitives were hiding at Thunder Rock, we each sent our own task force to bring them back. Instead, a host of Templars beset them and only one member of Assad escaped to tell the tale. The Slades claimed the same happened to them, though we never were able to confirm this."

    "Only one Assad and one Slade escaped?" Elyssa said. "Did they happen to be high-standing members of each family?"

    "Yes, as a matter of fact, the heads of security for each family were the ones who survived."

    "And those are the ones that other Daemos believe and respect, right?"

    "Of course." Kassallandra tilted her head slightly. "Why do you ask?"

    "My father is such a person among the Templars. He''s someone others would believe without question. How is it all sides lost everyone except for their most important people?"

    "Perhaps because they are the most skilled at surviving."

    Elyssa crossed her arms. "I don''t think that''s it. In fact, I think Underborn was right, Justin. Someone played us all."

    Chapter 4

    "You truly think a fourth party engineered this debacle?" Kassallandra''s eyebrows arched with skepticism.

    "I think there''s too much coincidence involved." Elyssa picked up a pebble and tossed it into the murky green water filling a large portion of the abandoned quarry. "I never knew the story because my father never talked about it. But hearing your side makes the whole thing stink to high heaven."

    "Then why wouldn''t your father have picked up on this?" I asked. "He''s not stupid."

    She shook her head. "No, but he''s also a very hard man and this is a grudge he''s nursed for a long time. He thinks his people were led into an ambush by a spawn¡ªI mean Daemos¡ªinformant. He''s convinced it was part of a despicable plot to severely weaken the Templars. Now he absolutely and universally despises them. Your people, Anae Kassallandra, were led into the same trap."

    "But why would anyone go to such lengths?" Kassallandra asked.

    "The Templars and Daemos are two of the most powerful and rigid clans of Overworld society. Daemos are the most politically evolved, and the Templars are the backbone of order. If those two factions were at war, then the others would be easy pickings."

    Kassallandra''s eyes softened with what seemed like appreciation. "You know a great deal for one of few years, Templaras Borathen."

    Elyssa wrinkled her nose. "I just paid attention in history class." She tossed another pebble into the lake. "I was supposed to be taking the Cho''kai any day now. All I wanted to do was please my parents. Make them proud. I studied texts on the battles my father fought over the centuries and determined if I would''ve done anything differently or kept his course."

    "Centuries?" I asked. "How old is your dad?"

    "Old. But that''s a story for another time. The one thing I discovered about my father is, though he''s a brilliant tactician, he absolutely despises dishonorable people. He never forgives betrayal or desertion. Even worse, he couldn''t care less why someone would commit such an act. All he sees is black and white."

    "Blinded by self-righteousness?" I asked.

    She nodded. "Unfortunately, yeah."

    Kassallandra''s eyes flared. "My house believed House Slade and the Templars were in league, though we never found proof."

    "Even though the Slades lost people too?" I asked.

    "As I said, we had no proof any of their people were killed. Only their belated assurances and accusations."

    "So your survivor never saw any Slades actually die."

    She shook her head. "The Slades contacted us later demanding retribution for their dead. Our people simply assumed it was part of a ploy so we would only blame the Templars for the betrayal. Truth be told, only the threat of open war between both House Slade and the Templars stayed our immediate retaliation."

    "While House Slade thought the Templars were in league with the Assads." Elyssa said.

    I snapped my fingers. "And the Templars blamed all spawn. Holy crap, what a number someone did on them. No wonder your dad''s been warring with spawn all this time."

    Light dawned in Elyssa''s eyes as if a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Justin, your father''s marriage would have healed that rift."

 Page 6

    Her statement opened another can of worms in my thought processes. "Not that I''m unhappy about my dad hooking up with my mom, but what if someone intervened? Convinced him to run away and shirk his duty to Kassallandra?"

    The redhead''s eyes widened. "This deception grows deeper and more devious with every connection." She paused, eyes narrowed. "If this is true. The Templars have been relentless in their dealings with us, especially against the minor houses, which lack the manpower to fight back. Several smaller houses banded together so they could overwhelm the common enemy."

    Elyssa nodded. "In eastern Europe. I heard about it. But the sides are too evenly matched here in the States. My father knew a direct onslaught against the major houses would not only draw the attention of the noms to the Overworld, but the casualties would be astronomical."

    "And so he resorts to sanctions and apprehending anyone he deems suspicious." The redhead''s forehead pinched. "Sooner or later the dam will burst and noms and supers alike will be drawn into a war no one will win."

    "So who benefits the most from pitting Daemos and Templars against each other?" I asked. "Vampires like Maximus?"

    Elyssa had an answer already on her tongue. "The vampires are opportunists. Maximus and his rogues are a side effect. But I can think of one person who clearly benefits from the chaos. Vadaemos. Both sides wanted him out of the picture, which means he benefits if the Templars and Daemos are too busy fighting each other to care about him."

    "It''s simple then," I said. "Find Vadaemos, force him to ''fess up, and everything is peachy keen in the world again." Not to mention Elyssa''s father might give me a medal and ask me to marry his daughter. The simple thought of being accepted by him filled me with hope and terror.

    "Would anyone else benefit from this deception?" Kassallandra said, crossing her arms. Doubt still lingered on her face, but she looked almost convinced.

    Elyssa shrugged. "It''s possible. Maybe Vadaemos had help."

    "At this point, I''m willing to believe just about anything." I sighed. "With all the creepy golems, rogue vampires, hellhounds, and crazy relatives after me, I wouldn''t be surprised if this isn''t all a universal conspiracy to make my life miserable." Vadaemos seemed like some historical figure from the distant past who had no connection with my present. And we were related. I wondered if Dad knew him. It made me feel gross. Like I was related to a war criminal.

    Elyssa drew in a sharp breath.

    "What is it?" I asked.

    "I just realized something."

    "Elvis and aliens are behind everything, right?"

    She snorted. "No. At least, I hope not. Your dad didn''t marry just any old human woman. He married Alice Conroy, the daughter of the most powerful Arcane family."

    "House Assad was ready to go to war with the Arcanes over the insult," Kassallandra said. "A marriage between Daemos and human is abominable enough, but to do it in such a way as to defy a contractual marriage between houses further incensed both sides."

    "Your people blamed all Arcanes for the choice two people made?" I scratched my head. "That doesn''t compute."

    "Daemos don''t think the way we do," Elyssa said. "To them, any faction not of their kind is regarded as a single unit, with a ruling council and high families with great power. The Conroys might be viewed as the equivalent of a royal family for the Arcanes."

    I whistled. "Man. That''s old school."

    "Our ancient beliefs and morality are not subject to whim," Kassallandra said in a cold voice. "I am much younger than most of my relatives and understand foreign societies better than those who have adhered to the same customs for centuries. This is why I did not order my hounds to tear you apart when you spoke directly to me or when you insist on calling my kind spawn."

    "How sweet," I said. "I''m glad you''re such a rebel."

    Her eyes flared for an instant. "Suffice it to say, House Assad viewed the rebellion of Daevadius Slade as an insult from his house and the acceptance of Alice Conroy as interference by the Arcanes. We felt certain the Slades decided to widen their alliance and, using the Templars and the Arcanes as cudgels, planned to destroy us."

    "But the Conroys hate my dad, and the Slades sure as hell didn''t want him marrying a human. I''m sure someone explained that to your people."

    Kassallandra''s raised eyebrow and tight lips told me what she thought of that. "If the Slades and Conroys did not do everything in their power to stop it, they did nothing."

    I booted a rock near my foot and grunted. "Sounds like Vadaemos''s plan is working even better than he thought. If Maximus and his clowns succeed in creating their vampire army, it might just be the end of the world. "

    "You might be more right than you know," Elyssa said. "Vampires attacked an Arcane school in Dallas. Killed dozens of kids and teachers. The Red Syndicate, of course, denied all knowledge."

    "Probably because it was Maximus," I said. "What better way to keep the Reds off his back than if he makes it look like the Syndicate is declaring war on the Arcanes?"

    A disturbed look passed across Kassallandra''s face. "I almost wish I didn''t know this," she said, her radiant confidence dimming in the light of these revelations.

    "It''s spiraling out of control," Elyssa said. "My god, when I put all these separate incidents together¡­" She put a hand to her lips, as though afraid to continue her line of thought.

    I voiced what she hadn''t. "What we have here is a systematic attack against the glue holding the Overworld Conclave together. It seems way too big for one person, even Vadaemos." Solving the conspiracy behind Thunder Rock suddenly became a lot more complicated in my mind, like one of those corkboards with tons of pictures pinned to a map and a mile of red yarn connecting them all. Detective work definitely wasn''t my forte. In fact, it was giving me a headache.

    One thing was very clear, however. Vadaemos was like the center of a wheel with spokes radiating in all directions. He might be a real mastermind, or he might be just another pawn. Either he was the man with all the answers, or he knew who was. He was the reason Elyssa''s father hated spawn. He might even be the reason my parents got married. If that were true¡ªmy breath caught in my chest at the possibilities. Having my family together was good for Vadaemos because it kept the spawn at odds with the Arcanes. Maybe he would help me bring my parents and sister back together. Outsmart the Conroys.

    But if he helped me, it meant I couldn''t bring him to Templar justice and exonerate all spawn-kind for Thunder Rock. Thomas Borathen would never accept me as his daughter''s boyfriend¡ªor anything more. It would mean never having a chance at an extended family. No meeting the weird aunt who likes to pinch cheeks, or having big family holiday dinners. No vampire hunting with the brothers, or defeating supernatural attempts at world domination with the father either. I tried to imagine Thomas patting me on the back and calling me son. Instead, all I could think about was how nasty he''d been to me the first time we met.

    I would be willing to do almost anything if it meant I could ensure a future with Elyssa. Then again, I would do almost anything to make my family whole and rescue my mom and sister from the Conroys. There had to be a way to have both, damn it!

    I leaned forward and stared into the murky waters of the lake. Something crinkled in my pocket. I reached inside, withdrew several folded sheets of paper, and unfolded them on my knee.

    "Are those the pages Underborn gave you?" Elyssa said in a low voice, peering over at the wrinkled sheets.

    I nodded. "Yeah. I was thinking about what he and Vallaena said." Both the assassin and my dear aunt seemed convinced I was at the center of a prophecy, though for some reason, they referred to it as a foreseeance, claiming it wasn''t the same thing. Auntie Vallaena wanted to take me into her protective custody so I could perform whatever dread duty lay in store for me, while Underborn seemed to think it had some connection to his investigations regarding Thunder Rock. I had yet to do more than glance at what he''d given me, but maybe, just maybe, these pages held an answer or two. Maybe Thunder Rock was the start of a conspiracy, or maybe not.

    I shuffled through the pages. The first few bore a list of names, while the last few had what looked like several random sentences. Both Underborn and Vallaena claimed they had tried to locate a copy of the full text of Foreseeance 4311, the assigned name for this particular jumble of prophetic nonsense. Apparently, more than one person could see the same future events, but every recorded copy of 4311 had vanished, and many of the foreseers were either dead or had forgotten their own words by the time Underborn tracked them down. These sheets bore the withered fruits of his investigation.

    "Who are these people?" Elyssa asked.

    Kassallandra peered over my other shoulder, the curtain of her flaming hair dangling next to my face. A sweet odor like a field of flowers mingling with a barbed, burnt scent tickled my nose, reminding me of Vallaena for some reason. Something deep within me stirred, and I found myself turning ever so slightly to draw in another breath flavored with her scent. What was it about spawn women that tantalized my nose? Succubus pheromones?

    Thankfully, neither female seemed to notice as they stared intently at the list, and I recovered, forcing my face away from the redheaded temptress. Many of the names on the list were crossed out in various colors of ink, the names and addresses still visible through the hasty slashes. Hand-written notes crowded the margins next to the names. Deceased and Missing were the two most-used words. Some names had a small number next to them and the numbers corresponded to numeric notations next to the sentences on the last page.

    "Where did you get this?" Kassallandra asked, walking around to my other side and taking a seat next to me on the flat boulder.

    "Underborn," I replied.

    A look of mild amazement crossed her face. "You keep dangerous company."

    "My girlfriend is the most dangerous of all."

 Page 7

    A smile touched her face and just as quickly vanished. She took a page of names from my hand and examined it. "I believe I know what these people are¡ªor were."

    "Foreseers," Elyssa said, pressing her curvy hip to mine and sandwiching me between the two women.

    I took a deep breath, trying to concentrate on the paper, instead drawing in a heady dose of female-scented air. Brain number two perked up along with the insatiable incubus inside of me. I frantically shifted my train of thought to baseball before something embarrassing happened.

    Kassallandra took the page with numbered sentences on it, hopefully unaware of the hormonal war raging in my bloodstream and said, "Underborn was tracking down these people, trying to piece together the complete prophecy?"

    "I think so," Elyssa said with a nod.

    "How interesting." She shifted sideways so she could view both of us at once. Her eyes, now a muted amber hue, searched our faces for a moment. "Does this foreseeance have something to do with Thunder Rock?"

    I shrugged. "Underborn said it might be connected to the events here."

    Kassallandra eyed the page in her hand, eyes narrowing with every passing second. "This speaks of momentous events and an important choice." Her gaze met mine. "Are these fragments of Foreseeance forty-three eleven?"

    My eyebrow quirked. "You''ve heard of it?"

    "Only by chance." She ran a finger down the page. Her eyes snapped up to meet mine over the edge of the sheet. "This is about you, is it not?" Her voice was heavy with accusation.

    I scooted sideways a bit, pushing Elyssa with my hip as my body tried to get away from Kassallandra''s stare. "Vallaena and Underborn seem to think so."

    "Vallaena is so convinced she tried to put Justin under her protection," Elyssa added.

    Kassallandra pushed her hair behind an ear. "How intriguing."

    I was tempted to snatch the sheet back from her. "Well, what does it say?"

    She ran her finger to the top of the page. "As the alliance splinters into factions, so come the destroyers. None shall be strong enough alone to withstand their might. For they once ruled here and once again shall they rule. Unless the half-damned soul reunites the dissolution, all shall once again descend into the shadow of the light."

    Elyssa pressed a hand to my thigh and leaned over. "That''s exactly what''s happening now. The Conclave¡ªthe alliance it mentions¡ªis falling apart."

    "And I''m supposed to unite it?" I said, my voice going up an octave.

    "Perhaps," Kassallandra said. "There is more from a different seer." She smoothed the sheet against her leg and continued. "I see not one, but two half-damned upon this plane. One is wreathed in the dark, the other in the light. Both gather their armies for the fight. In the end, two choices will be decided, but only one will matter. And the sacrifice must be made."

    "Two half-damned?" I pressed my face against my hands as a hollow space formed in my chest and pressed outward, threatening to consume me. "Am I really half-damned because of my Daemos half?"

    Kassallandra touched my hand and offered a grim smile. "Those who believe in damnation because of our lineage are fools. Just because we are the progeny of those who come from another realm does not make us intrinsically evil or condemned."

    "Then why do they say it in the foreseeance?"

    "The seers are merely human, their visions tainted by subjectivity. It is in their nature to condemn that which they do not understand."

    Elyssa gripped my other hand and grinned. "Besides, they don''t want nerds in Hell."

    I tried to push down the dread consuming my chest in a hot blaze. Maybe I really was doomed to a pit of fire all thanks to my dad''s side of the family. "Yeah, you''re probably right." I offered up a fake chuckle so Elyssa wouldn''t think me a wimp. "Anything else?"

    Kassallandra resumed her recitation. "One comes in the name of Moses to sweep the land of the gifted and unmake that which was freely given to man." She ran her finger down to the next one. "The cleansing flood will wash away the infestation."

    "Moses? A flood? This sounds like someone was reading straight out of the Bible." I looked on the list and found the number corresponding to the last sentence. Incomplete recollection was scrawled next to the name.

    "The rest of these all say something very similar," Kassallandra said. "Except the last two."

    I stared at the writing. "What, do they say it''s gonna rain frogs?"

    She held out the page so we could both see it and read. I couldn''t help but notice the author of these particular snippets was someone by the name of Beulah T. Atkinson and wondered how parents could curse their child with such a name.

    Kassallandra raised a red eyebrow at the name and read the passage. "In the year of plague comes the Unmaking or the Remaking. The half-damned will make a choice. Each will ally with a harbinger. Should the light prevail, all will be cast in shadow. But should one light the flame in the dark, the shadow may not rise. With either choice comes the end." Kassallandra opened her mouth to read further but froze, her eyes wide and alabaster skin growing paler.

    "What?" I asked, looking back at the sheet.

    Kassallandra swallowed with some difficulty. "The last sentence reads, ''I fear my vision shows a great smoky shadow engulfing the Earth as all light is drained. We have no hope of salvation.''"

    Chapter 5

    My own heart solidified into a lump of lead at the words on the page. "The seer said she sees the light drained from Earth? We''re screwed no matter what?"

    "I am as in the dark as you," Kassallandra said, apparently unaware of her own grim pun. "Though foreseeances are usually anything but clear."

    "I think I see how the pieces fit together," Elyssa said, rising and taking a few steps, her brow pinched. "The first part is about the alliance splintering into factions. The alliance must be the Overworld Conclave. It''s pretty obvious this part is happening with the Templars and Daemos at each other''s throats, and now the vampires and Arcanes."

    "When did Thunder Rock happen exactly?" I asked, trying to form a mental timeline.

    Elyssa braced her chin on her fist. "You and I were about three. So, about fifteen years ago."

    "The foreseeance known as forty-three eleven came to light nineteen years ago," Kassallandra said.

    I raised an eyebrow. "How do you know that?"

    "I assumed the dates next to the sentences were when the seers had their visions."

    I glanced at the page. "And they''re all around the same time?"

    She nodded. "Give or take a few days or weeks. Some seers are more sensitive than others."

    A big fat shiny light bulb powered on in my head. "I got it!" I shouted.

    Elyssa jumped back a foot, hand over her heart. "Justin, will you please warn me next time you''re going to do that?"

    "I connected the dots!" I could totally do the pictures on the bulletin board thing.

    Kassallandra raised both eyebrows.

    Elyssa folded her arms. "This ought to be good."

    "Thunder Rock was all about casting the Templars and Daemos against each other. My parents'' marriage killed off relations between the Daemos and the Arcanes. Maximus''s rebellion splintered the vampires, and whoever attacked the Arcane school just declared war on the Arcanes. Every major faction hates and distrusts the other now, and some factions are at war within themselves." I let my statement saut¨¦ in the juices of their lovely brains for a moment before continuing with my Blue''s Clues moment.

    Elyssa lifted an eyebrow. "Didn''t we just figure all this out a minute ago?"

    "Exactly, but now I know how Mr. Gray and his Ken dolls connect to this. If I''m the half-damned who can reunite the Overworld, then whoever is behind this wants me dead."

    "And you think Mr. Gray is working for the bad guys."

    "He might be just another sock puppet, or he might be a major player." If Thunder Rock was the genesis for the chaos consuming the Overworld, finding the engineer behind it might solve a lot of my problems. Or it might not. But where to begin? I smacked the back of one hand into the other palm and got up. My eyes met Elyssa''s. "We''ve got to find Vadaemos. If we can convince the spawn¡ª"

    Kassallandra''s gaze hardened to stone.

    "Ugh, fine! If we can convince the Daemos and Templars to make up, the Templars can concentrate their full strength on Maximus and the spawn might even pitch in since you once told me they''re big on political stability. Your father has to come to his senses, though, and let go of his vendetta."

    Elyssa blanched. "That''s a tall order, Justin." She shook her head. "Even if we somehow find Vadaemos and make him talk, there''s no guarantee my father will do that."

    I gripped her hands and drew her closer. "We''ll make him see sense." I let go and paced for a moment. "Kassallandra said the Templars are harassing Daemos. Is that true across the board? Are they close to real war?"

    "Like I said, in eastern Europe, we''ve already had some real battles. In the States, it''s mostly been small skirmishes and political maneuvering." Elyssa twisted her lips thoughtfully. The Synod asked my father to join them, but he refused."

    "Because he hates politics?"

    "He despises them. He wants to fight, not talk."

    "Maybe Kassallandra could help with the Assads," I said. "After all, she has quite a gentle touch when it comes to dealing with people."

    The redhead folded her arms and gave me a cross look. "I can be quite diplomatic when the need arises."

    I returned her glare. "Because sending hellhounds after my dad was very diplomatic."

    Her eyes flared. "I was and still am furious with your father for the dishonor he caused me and my family. I wanted my hounds to bring him to me as a normal dog would fetch a twig. I wanted him to feel as low as I felt upon learning that he''d left me for a human."

 Page 8

    In a way, I could totally identify with that anger. I certainly remembered how infuriated I''d been after Katie spurned my lovesick attentions. Now I had all sorts of women fawning over me all thanks to incubus pheromones. At least I knew Elyssa had liked me even when I was still a chubby nerd. My thought process took a detour back to one of the newer women in my life, namely, the olive-skinned girl who was also apparently Nightliss, the cute little black cat.

    I''d nearly forgotten the encounter, what with all the post-traumatic golem stress and prophecy talk. "Kassallandra, who was the girl you were speaking with in the forest? Is she a felycan?" It was the only thing Nightliss could be. Then again, Stacey was a felycan and she''d never had a clue about Nightliss''s true identity.

    Kassallandra sniffed. "A felycan? Don''t be silly."

    "In case you hadn''t noticed, she turned from a cat into a human."

    "You''re talking about that dark-haired girl I saw running away into the woods?" Elyssa said.

    I breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Elyssa hadn''t seen the kiss. If she had, a response wouldn''t have been long in coming. Elyssa wasn''t one to bottle up her emotions. "The girl was Nightliss."

    "What?" Elyssa said. "Nightliss is a felycan too?" She shook her head. "That can''t be right. Two female felycans would never live together. That''s not their modus operandi."

    "What is she, Kassallandra?" I asked. "You two seemed pretty chummy and all, not to mention the language you were speaking sounded pretty funky."

    Kassallandra''s eyes flickered bright red and her pupils shrank to pinpoints. "I do not know who she is, but I think I know what she is."

    "Whatever you said made her leave even though she was scaring your dogs."

    "They are hellhounds, Justin, not dogs. And only one thing I know of can cause them such distress."

    "A giant squirrel?"

    A sarcastic smile broke through the flat line of her lips. "She spoke to me in Cyrinthian."

    I remembered how surprised Kassallandra had looked when Nightliss yelled at her. I also remembered someone else mentioning this language. "Shelton said sorcerers use Cyrinthian to write scrolls. He said it''s the base language or something like that." Ever since Shelton had first tried to capture Dad and me for a bounty, he''d become a useful source for information on all things magical, if not a friend. I''d been meaning to learn more about the arcane arts but something always seemed to come up. Hellhounds were obviously a detriment to my higher learning.

    "It is, although I believe the Arcanes only use it to look impressive just as others still speak Latin, if only because they wish to brag about it." She touched a dainty hand to her chest. "I think it rather pretentious. Scrolls do not require Cyrinthian to work, as the paper they are written upon is sealed with the spell and unlocked by the triggering words on the page. But since very few people speak the language, there''s little danger of someone accidentally casting a scroll by saying the proper word combinations."

    "Is it a dead language like Latin?"

    "Nearly. Daemos must learn the language as part of schooling. Arcane Academy requires some proficiency in it as well. But I have never heard anyone with such a grasp on the language as the girl. It sounded as though it were her native tongue."

    "Did she give you her name?"

    "No."

    Elyssa spoke. "You said you only know of one thing that can cause such distress in a hellhound, Anae Kassallandra."

    "You may think me unbalanced for supposing such a thing, but once I grasped her nature, I was able to use it against her."

    "I already kind of think you''re unbalanced," I said, "even though it''s probably not your fault."

    Kassallandra narrowed her eyes. "You would do well to learn some manners from your beloved, boy."

    "He''s a bit rough around the edges, but adorable once you get to know him," Elyssa said, one corner of her lips curling into a lopsided smile.

    "Does that not describe all men?" Kassallandra said with a huff. "So very few refined males." Another sigh followed her pronouncement, as if adding italics to an already bolded and underlined sentence.

    "Ha, ha, fine, make fun of me all you want." I threw my hands up in exasperation and clamped my mouth shut before I went on a rant about crazy women. The best way to see crazy was to tell a woman she''s crazy.

    Kassallandra walked to the boulder where the giant hellhound, Malkesh, rested, his yellow eyes following each move we made. His ears raised and swiveled on occasion, probably due to some noise even my super-hearing couldn''t pick up.

    She rubbed him affectionately on his great head and said, "I believe your dark-haired girl is, in fact, an angel."

    Chapter 6

    Elyssa burst into laughter which she quickly stoppered by jamming her hand over her mouth. "I''m sorry, Anae Kassallandra, but are you kidding?"

    I gave Elyssa a questioning look. "Hey, remember back in the Grotto? You told me that if demons came from one plane, it''s entirely possible that angels could exist on another."

    "Yes, but¡ª"

    "Were you were just saying that to make me feel better? Or did you mean it?"

    Elyssa''s face flushed. "You seemed so depressed."

    I turned back to Kassallandra. "Do you honestly believe the girl is an angel?"

    She nodded gravely. "It was just a feeling I had as I spoke to her."

    "Did you ask her outright?"

    "No. But I told her she couldn''t directly interfere in our affairs. She is forbidden by ancient pact."

    I frowned. "Ancient pact?"

    "Legend has it, their kind and our distant relatives¡ª"

    "You mean full-fledged demons?"

    Her eyes met mine. "That is exactly what I mean. Those known as demons made a pact that our plane was off-limits to interference."

    I thought back to the demon that had killed Meghan Andretti''s mother. "It just so happens I saw one¡ªa big green one with a huge shark mouth¡ªkill someone when I was a kid. Obviously, our dear relatives aren''t following that agreement."

    "They can come when summoned." Kassallandra shrugged. "As I said, the pact is more myth than reality. We know of no written accord or book of rules we can consult. In all likelihood, entities of that sort do not stoop to using pen and paper."

    I didn''t know what to think. Had I really been kissed by an adorable angel? Or was I confusing the biblical or mythical definition of such a being with their true nature? The classical definition of an incubus or succubus made us out to be dream invaders who seduced humans. The reality was quite a bit different. "What were you and the angel talking about? I want to know everything."

    "She told me not to harm you, that you were very important. I asked her who she was and what right she had to interfere with my business. She then told me she was the only one who made it through and would do whatever it took to keep you safe. It was then I felt the strange energy between us, like magnets pulling one moment and pushing the next. I just knew what she was and forbade her interference."

    "And just like that she gave up?" I groaned. "Guess I don''t have a guardian angel anymore."

    "I think she''s just another felycan with the hots for you," Elyssa said scowling.

    "Babe, you know I''m yours."

    "Yeah, but you have incubus issues." She sighed.

    I laughed. "I think most guys my age have enough hormones in our blood to give us issues, incubus or not." I glanced back at Kassallandra. "Can angels turn themselves into cats?"

    The redhead quirked an eyebrow. "Obviously."

    I rubbed my eyes and paced for a moment. Looked out at the green-hued lake and the gray granite walls beyond. Vegetation grew through cracks in the rock, clinging to the chiseled cliffs. A couple of trees had also taken root, the width of their trunks evidence of how long this place had been abandoned. "Of all places, why did you bring us here? Couldn''t we have had this discussion at a coffee shop?" I looked at Kassallandra.

    She produced the tiny black arch. "This artifact was brought back by our lone survivor of the Thunder Rock slaughter, Pallassiana Assad. She was thrown into the lake by an explosion and a slab of rock fell and pinned her to the bottom. As she struggled to free herself, the bed of the lake collapsed beneath her and she fell into an underwater cavern. She won her way free and found an air pocket. During her search for a way out, she discovered a polished circular surface at the bottom of the cave."

    I couldn''t help but notice how similar this story sounded to Underborn''s own experience when he escaped the carnage that fateful day. It only served to reinforce my belief everything had been carefully staged and planned.

    "A circle?" Elyssa said.

    "Yes." Kassallandra rubbed her thumb against the surface of the tiny arch. "One exactly like the polished circle beneath the Obsidian Arch in the Grotto."

    "My God, so this place really is another relic."

    "It would seem so. Pallassiana examined the circle and found something in the center." Kassallandra held up the arch. "This is what she found."

    "She told you all this?" I asked.

    "No, I read this in her secret reports many years later, though they had been warded and sealed by command of the Paetros."

    "In other words," I said, "you broke into her files."

    "Yes. I have long sought answers for the Thunder Rock massacre. Since I was to serve as a sacrificial bride to House Slade, it seemed only fair I understand what caused the rift between our families."

    "Doesn''t your duty override all else, Anae Kassallandra?" Elyssa asked.

    A wistful smile played about the other woman''s lips. "While I am a firm believer in our customs, I also believe a strong woman should understand the many underlying facets of her duty. I also wish to see the true perpetrators of this crime punished."

 Page 9

    I looked at the manmade lake. "You''re saying there''s an underwater place here similar to the Grotto?"

    "More like an unfinished construction site which, if completed, would have been like the Grotto. I''ve spent countless hours exploring the underwater areas. Why it was abandoned, I do not know. This place is situated over the crossing of several powerful ley line conduits. It appears that these particular ley lines may differ in quality from those beneath the Grotto."

    "How so?" I asked.

    "I don''t know. If I had a sorcerer I could trust, I would bring one here to determine what makes these different from others." She regarded the tiny arch in the center of her palm. "Unfortunately, this arch can only bring us to Thunder Rock or I would have used it to take us elsewhere."

    I raised an eyebrow. "That''s all it''s good for? Just to bring us to this lousy place?"

    "I have never been able to attune it to another arch or location. I can only assume it was tethered to this place somehow, but never fully affixed."

    Elyssa looked at the cliff walls in alarm. "How are we supposed to get out of here? Isn''t there a magically protected perimeter surrounding this place?"

    "The underground cavern has an exit which is not too difficult a swim."

    I groaned. "We have to go in the water?"

    Kassallandra nodded. "With the golems and police closing in, I felt this place was our only chance for escape." She glanced at the pink-tinged sky. "It will be dark soon. There are things which lurk here in the night and I do not wish to be present when they come out."

    "What sort of things?"

    She shuddered. "Who knows what they are? Remnants of the massacre? Dark spawn trapped in this realm? I do not wish to find out."

    I clapped my hands and rubbed them together. "Well, might as well get this over with." I bent down and touched a hand to the water. It was so cold my nipples hardened at the thought of jumping in. We might be having a mild winter, but the water didn''t care.

    "How deep is the lake?" Elyssa asked.

    "Forty feet to the hole, and another twenty feet to the first air pocket," Kassallandra said. "An easy swim for those with our strength, though I suggest you grab a hefty rock and use it to assist in your descent."

    My hands trembled at the thought of those dark murky depths. "Just great." I paced back and forth. "Any chance there are leftover creepy crawlers or anything nasty down there?"

    Kassallandra shook her head. "No. I''ve been in this lake many times during daylight hours and have seen only fish and vegetation."

    It was hard picturing this beautiful fair-skinned woman, clad in an expensive red dress and fancy shoes swimming and exploring this place. She looked like a real diva.

    Elyssa, who was definitely no diva, pulled off her shoes and socks, looked at the water for a moment and then stripped down to her pink T-shirt and matching Hello Kitty boy-shorts. Kassallandra did the same, fastening her long red hair into a tight ponytail as she walked away toward one of the small caves pockmarking the cliffs. I suddenly wished for a bucket of cold lake water over my head¡ªnot to mention other parts of me. I''d seen Elyssa half-naked before, but at the time, she had been unconscious and covered in gore from our fight with vamplings. Having two hot, mostly naked women near me was triggering a volcanic chain reaction in my hormones.

    I caught Elyssa grinning at me, her eyes angled ever so slightly down. "You''d better strip too," she said and winked. "Even with our strength, wet clothing is gonna feel like lead weights."

    Kassallandra entered a nearby cleft in the rock wall and returned moments later with waterproof backpacks and diving masks for each of us. "After coming here several times for my research, I decided it best to be prepared, though I never refilled the oxygen tanks I used in the past."

    "Can the hounds swim?"

    "Quite literally, like fish." She whistled at the largest hound. "Malkesh, come here, my sweet." The hound padded over, tongue lolling and eyes vivid yellow. She took both sides of his huge head in her hands and massaged it vigorously while kissing him on his nose. "Prepare the way."

    He ruffed a few syllables and the other hounds appeared like ghosts from hiding places in the surrounding boulders, one of them giving me a start as he nuzzled past. They jumped toward the water, their hindquarters morphing into large flippers as they dove and were gone.

    "They can turn into fish?"

    "In a manner of speaking," Kassallandra said, stuffing her clothing into one of the backpacks. "Well-trained hounds have limited morphing abilities and mine are the best."

    Wondering if they had a hellhound category in dog shows, I tore my eyes from her snow-skinned cleavage and stared at Elyssa''s shapely bottom as she bent over her backpack. The incubus inside me drooled with desire. Standing strategically behind a waist-high boulder, I pulled off my own clothes until I was down to my boxer-briefs and stuffed everything into the backpack, strapped it tight onto my back, and hoped against hope the second man brain in my shorts wouldn''t make itself obvious.

    Elyssa graced me with a sexy, naughty smile and a wink. I made a dash for the water as man-brain number two tried to wink back.

    "Oh, oh, cold!" I shouted, thinking I''d wade in until I was waist deep, finding instead a steep drop-off and plunging in up to my neck. At least it stopped the rebellion in my underwear.

    Kassallandra hopped in and squealed, followed shortly by a screeching Elyssa.

    "Follow me and stay close," Kassallandra said her teeth chattering. "There are a couple of tricky spots to watch for."

    It was so cold in the water I found it difficult to breathe as my muscles clenched and refused my commands. I looked at Elyssa, expecting to see her Templar training keeping her calm and reserved. Instead, her teeth clacked away at full speed. "C-c-cold," she said, her entire body shivering.

    "Once we start moving, our bodies will heat up," Kassallandra said, pulling her mask down.

    Elyssa nodded and did the same, forcing herself to take deep breaths.

    I pulled the diving mask over my face, making sure it was tight and peered under the water. My night-vision kicked in after a moment, but failed to reveal much of anything except a few startled fish. Kassallandra and Elyssa each grabbed a large rock from the side of the lake, took deep breaths, and plunged under the water. I gripped the largest rock I could find¡ªa small boulder, really¡ªand sucked in a few breaths to fill my lungs.

    With trembling hands, I pulled the large chunk of granite to me, gulped down one last big breath, and pushed off. The boulder dragged me quickly into the dark depths, the water pressure increasing until it felt like tiny needles in my eardrums. The chill in the water deepened, covering my body like an icy glove. Even with my night vision, the murky water obscured everything past twenty feet, so any random fish scurrying into view nearly gave me a coronary.

    I looked for Kassallandra and Elyssa but saw no sign of them. Worry gnawed at my stomach because I didn''t know where the hole in the lakebed was supposed to be. For all I knew it could be in the middle somewhere. Why hadn''t I asked Kassallandra for a precise location? Just great. I was going to be groping around the bottom while my breath ran out and the others waited in the air pocket. My worry sprouted into low-level panic as I realized I didn''t know where the air pocket was either.

    What kind of an idiot was I not to ask where these very vital things were, or at the very least follow Kassallandra down the instant she dove? Thankfully, my lungs still felt fine, and I didn''t seem to be in any danger of running out of oxygen just yet.

    My boulder finally clunked against the rocky surface of the bottom. I released it and I looked about for a hole. Instead, I spotted a silvery length of chain bolted to the granite lakebed. I gripped the chilly metal and pulled myself hand-over-hand along it for about twenty feet until I reached the end. At its terminus, a ragged gap in the granite yawned into pitch black. I pulled myself down past a relatively thin lip of rock and found another chain bolted into the ceiling of the cavern beneath.

    When I reached the end, I came upon a space considerably larger than an air pocket. In fact, Kassallandra and Elyssa stood inside a perfectly square room, shivering, arms crossed over their chests. A warm yellow glow suffused the walls.

    "Finally!" Elyssa said, springing toward me, pressing her cold wet skin to mine. "I was worried you missed the chains or something."

    I kissed her, pressing a hand to the small of her back and finding a patch of bare skin beneath the backpack and shirt. Kassallandra''s eyes glinted with what I interpreted as amusement. Or, she could have felt like hurling her lunch for all I knew. That woman was way too serious.

    "Where''s the light coming from?" I asked, looking at the ceiling for a bulb or other source.

    Kassallandra shrugged. "I assume whatever lights this place also prevents the water pressure in the lake from flooding it."

    Whatever lit the room also gave it some warmth, for which I was grateful. My nipples were hard as icicles and both females had their metaphorical brights on¡ªnot that I minded all that much.

    Elyssa pressed herself to me and shivered. "I hate to think we have more to go."

    Her soft curves were enough to override the cold water and part of me began to respond. Her eyes flared and a devilish grin lit her face.

    "Unfortunately, I don''t have chains leading all the way to the exit," Kassallandra said, thankfully unaware of the developing situation. "We''ll follow one more down toward the circle. Near the edge of the wall is a tunnel leading into an underground river. The current isn''t very strong, but there are some very sharp rocks. Once you hit the river, you can swim up a few feet and you''ll find the surface. There is plenty of room, for the most part, until you arrive near the end and then you''ll have to duck under a shelf of rock, follow the river through a tunnel about fifty feet, and eventually exit a hole in the side of a granite cliff a short distance outside of the quarry."

    My second brain abruptly withdrew at the thought of all the water and sharp rocks between me, a warm bed, and my hot girlfriend. "I thought this was an easy swim," I said, grumbling. "My nerves don''t enjoy hearing words like ''for the most part'' and ''eventually'' when it involves the possibility of drowning and-or being shredded against sharp rocks."

 Page 10

    Kassallandra raised an uncaring eyebrow. "For a human it would be rather treacherous. For us, it should be nothing more than a long inconvenience."

    "Let''s get this over with," Elyssa said.

    I squeezed her tight. "Be careful, hot stuff."

    She patted my rump. "You too."

    Kassallandra sighed.

    "I guess you find our involvement disgusting," I said to her, thinking about the way she''d reacted when speaking of Mom and Dad''s marriage, not to mention calling me an abomination.

    "I find it very unsettling any time a Daemos enters a relationship with a human, no matter the type. However, since you are half-human, it may not be quite so repulsive."

    "Why thank you very much for your approval," I said with a mocking half-bow. "I''m glad you don''t care if humans date abominations."

    Her eyes crystallized into a pale blue. "You asked my opinion, boy, and I gave it." She stepped into the water. "Now, shall we get on with it?"

    I took a deep breath and made sure to follow our flame-haired guide much closer this time. As we took the chain bolted to the bottom of the cavern, something black flashed past in my peripheral vision. A quick glance revealed nothing but a dark expanse of water just outside the range of my blue-tinged night vision. Elyssa and Kassallandra had pulled ahead of me by a few feet during my look around so I hurried to catch up.

    Something I couldn''t quite make out hovered in the murk a few feet from the chain. I stopped and peered closer but the darkness hid its identity. It was probably a fish, I figured. Of course, I had flashbacks to every scary movie I''d seen with giant man-eating fish in them. I renewed my effort to catch up with the girls again as fear colder than the water around me twined around my bowels. A glint of yellow in my night vision drew my attention yet again to the side. Despite my unease, I pushed off the chain and swam a few feet forward. A black shape rotated slowly in the water, strands of something cloudy trailing from it. I pressed forward another foot and bit back a sudden gasp that would''ve sucked water into my lungs. I knew what the black shape was.

    The head of a hellhound.

    Chapter 7

    I jetted for the chain, legs kicking furiously to get away from the gruesome sight and to warn the others that something was down here with us. The chain shuddered and jerked. I flew down the length of it, desperate to catch sight of the women again.

    I spotted them near the bottom, surrounded by three giant-looking fish. I realized with relief that the fish were, in fact, the hellhounds, or maybe they were hellfish now even though their front halves definitely appeared canine, paws, muzzle and all.

    Kassallandra reached the tunnel at the base of the chain and gripped the largest of the hellhounds, the one she''d called Malkesh. He jetted into the tunnel, pulling his mistress along for the ride. Elyssa looked back up the chain at me, her eyes glowing like violet fire in the darkness.

    Something brushed my leg. Something infinitely colder than the water around me. I bottled up the shout threatening to burst from my lungs. At this point, I felt a slight burn in my chest as my body devoured the oxygen thanks, in no small part, to the terror hammering in my chest.

    Elyssa''s eyes widened. She jabbed her finger over and over at something to my right. I looked that way in time to see a black blob twisting and churning straight at me. One of the hellhounds, its flipper-like appendage leaving a trail of fine bubbles in the water, opened its jaws wide and bit the thing. The oily-looking glob vanished into the hound''s maw. I stopped staring and frantically pulled myself hand-over-hand down the chain.

    A gurgling yelp sounded behind me. I turned to see the black substance oozing from the hellhound''s nose, mouth, and eyes, popping the orbs from the sockets to dangle gruesomely by slender threads of nerves. The hound''s body twisted and turned, front paws churning at the water until, with a loud crunch, it seemed to twist itself in half, tearing flesh and leaving a bloody cloud in the water. A tentacle of the black cloud speared toward me, coiling around my leg and drawing tight like a noose.

    It was all I could do not to scream as the intense cold of its grip bit into my leg. Elyssa was swimming for me but another hellhound pinned her between its forelegs. The creature jerked at my foot again until I thought it might entirely wrench off the appendage. The chain shuddered with each pull. The lower mooring bolt snapped loose from the bedrock and suddenly I was flying backward away from Elyssa and into the dark as my hands glided down the slippery length of the metal chain.

    I tightened my grip. The chain snapped taut for a brief instant before breaking free of the other bolt back at the air pocket. My heart pounded mercilessly against my ribs and the ache in my lungs turned into an intense burn as terror depleted my remaining oxygen supply. I had nothing to grab hold of as the flowing black thing pulled me toward what would likely be a horrific death.

    The walls of a narrow tunnel surrounded me. I tried to grip them, but mold and slime coated the surface, mocking my feeble attempts to save myself. I broke free of the water with a loud splash. The achingly cold clamp around my ankle vanished. I tumbled along a rocky passage, each jolt sending a wave of agony into my naked skin as I slid along it until the upward slope of the passage arrested my momentum. Gasping each breath of air like the treasure it was, I pushed myself up and examined the surrounding passage.

    A warm yellow glow illuminated the tunnel. It reminded me of the small square room and I wondered what purpose it served. But even more immediate on my mind was the location of my insidious-looking kidnapper, the black tentacle, or whatever the hell it was. Had it gone back after Elyssa now?

    "Dah nah?" croaked a tiny voice from the direction of the water where it lapped against the downward-sloping sides of the tunnel that, presumably, led back to the cavern.

    Cold, awful dread snaked into my abdomen, and I backed away as a small black creature with the body of a chubby toddler dragged itself from the water and stood. Its arms reached out as it gained footing and limped toward me. A huge head tottered on a thin, elongated neck while its body wobbled on unsure, knobby, and malformed feet. The tiny body shimmered with an ultraviolet halo. The aura flickered and danced, occasionally giving the creature the appearance of having insubstantial wings, misty shadows that spread behind it and vanished. I wondered if my eyes were playing tricks or if this creature was a demonic cherub, crawling from the depths of hell to scare my pants off. A black orifice opened in the smooth, featureless surface of the head.

    "Dah nah," it said in a whimpering moan.

    I screamed like a little girl and backed away. The dark cherub wobbled toward me, little nubby arms grasping.

    "What the hell are you?" I shouted.

    Cupid''s evil little brother made a high-pitched screech and kept coming.

    I turned and raced down the tunnel, my bare feet slapping painfully against uneven rock, until I came to a branch where the tunnel floor smoothed out from the rough-hewn passage behind me. I could go forward, left, or right, but if any way was better, I had no clue. Maybe one of the passages was a way out. Maybe none were. My chances of guessing correctly didn''t seem too great, though. I went left. If my sense of direction wasn''t totally messed up, I should be moving away from the granite quarry and maybe, just maybe, toward an exit. I could always believe in miracles, right? My brain presented the cold, hard math, reminding me a thirty-three point three percent chance of guessing the correct passage likely meant a sixty-six point six percent chance a horrible, gruesome death awaited me in a dead end down this winding corridor.

    I told my brain to kindly shut up and leave me alone.

    The tunnel curved around a long bend and ended in a rectangular room the size of the school gymnasium. Bands of silver metal set in perfect rows encircled sections of the room, each one set apart from the other by about five feet or so. At the center of some circles stood black arches. Some lay shattered or in crumbled ruins, others were completely missing. Only a handful looked whole. To my left stood a lone arch, a large one easily three times the size of the others. Where they measured ten feet tall by the same distance wide, this arch towered over them, the silver circle around it claiming far more real estate. Not only was it larger, but the coloring was bizarre¡ªsnow white veined with shiny obsidian.

    "Please be a way out," I said, not caring if the thing was orange with purple polka dots.

    "Dah nah!" echoed a tortured scream from the tunnel.

    I rushed into the room.

    Each of the intact arches looked shiny and black, just as I remembered the Obsidian Arch. It was like a huge terminal of the things, maybe a transport hub. Perhaps I could use one and close the silver circle around it like Shelton had taught me. Somehow, make it take me where I wanted to go.

    A tiny whimpering sound echoed from the tunnel mouth. I turned to see my little stalker had found me. It staggered along on its ghastly legs, the yellowish light around it shimmering with darkness. I could probably lure it to the back of the room and circle around it. Maybe make it back to the water, but then what? If it was the same black ooze that had brought me here, I wouldn''t get far before it caught me and dragged me back. I didn''t have a clue where the tunnel to the river was, having lost all sense of bearing during my capture.

    The arches were my only chance. I mentally flipped a coin and chose the undamaged arch farthest from the tunnel and the little horror chasing me. During my mad dash to the back of the room, I spotted a map of the world centered above a raised platform and set inside the granite wall. I looked behind me. The toddler from hell remained well behind, its tiny legs not meant for fast travel. The map might be important. It might tell me where to go. I detoured between the arches and raced to what looked like the front of the huge space.

    When I reached the map, it turned out to be much larger up close, bordering on ten feet tall and twice as wide. Tiny silver stars dotted the surface. The outlines I would usually associate with the borders of countries bore no similarities to the ones I knew. In fact, the landmasses looked different, though they were close enough in shape to be familiar.

    Symbols, resembling something like an ancient alphabet, lined the wall to the left of the map. I recognized some of them. I''d seen them in one of Shelton''s spells¡ªone he''d written in Cyrinthian. If Nightliss spoke the language, did that mean her people built this place? A gurgling wail echoed from nearby. My butt cheeks clenched. I had no time to waste before nightmare baby, slow as he was, caught up with me.

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    I touched the first symbol. A gentle chime sounded, echoing off the hard walls. Keeping my finger on the cool metal, I looked around the room and saw a broken arch highlighted by a glowing circle of white light from the surface of the silver band set into the floor around it. When I removed my finger, the light stayed on while the stars on the map pulsed white.

    I touched a star in North America. Two chimes sounded and the other stars on the map winked out, leaving only the symbol to the left side of the map and the star on the map glowing.

    I touched the still-lit symbol. A klaxon trumpeted, causing me to flinch, and the star and symbol winked off. I ran my finger down the odd symbols, touching each one to activate the light around their assigned arch, hoping to find the symbol that highlighted an unbroken structure. The map was positioned perfectly in the room so I could see each arch light up. But some symbols didn''t activate the light over any arches, and the ones that did revealed only broken ones.

    I glanced around the room and saw the glistening shape of the cherub wobbling its way through the long rows of arches. I still had a minute or two before it reached me.

    At the bottom of the rows of Cyrinthian symbols, I noticed a larger icon like a solid circle with two lines angling from the top in a ''V'' shape. I was pretty sure I knew which arch it went to. I touched it.

    Instead of a gentle chime, a deep klaxon note bellowed across the room and the white arch glowed. White and black energy streaked through the air in all directions, mesmerizing me for a brief moment before another cherubic wail slapped me in the face. I glanced at the map. None of the stars were lit. The devil only knew where that arch led.

    Something scraped against the floor behind me.

    I spun and yelped in alarm as the cherub lunged for me. I jerked back, barely avoiding its grasp, but a knobby finger trailed down my bare leg, setting every cell on fire with intense cold. Nausea twisted my stomach and cold sweat burst from every pore on my body. The creature''s face met the ground with a sick wet thud. I backed away, wondering if I could kill it with a sure-footed stomp. It jerked back to its feet with an ease that belied its disproportionate body. Shrieking, hands spread to its sides, fingers crooked like little claws, it came at me. Smoky wings flickered over its shoulders and I could almost see a crazed, maniacal face trapped behind the smooth oily surface if its head.

    The sound echoed. A chorus of shrieks answered. I backed away in wide-eyed horror at the sight of dozens more of the creatures shambling through the rows of arches. My own shriek of terror joined with the cherubs'' and I streaked away, not stopping until I nearly collided with an arch in the far back of the room. I pressed my thumb to the silver circuit and willed it closed. After a couple of tries, a crackle in the air and the pressure of an immense amount of magic welling around me told me I''d done it.

    My body felt as though it was in the middle of a cloud of static electricity. Apparently, the power here was extremely concentrated. I had no idea what a ley line looked like but I pictured giant glowing conduits of magical power humming beneath the ground.

    The symbol in the floor next to this arch looked like a circle with multiple lines crisscrossing it, crossing the edges. Nothing matched it on the huge map. In other words, I had no idea where it went, if anywhere.

    The first glistening cherub reached the circle. I jumped back, cursing. The creature bounced off and fell on its back, squealing and shrieking in a miserable voice, sending needles racing up my spine.

    "Dah nah!" it wailed.

    The others answered in the same words.

    I shivered violently, gasping deep breaths to calm myself. The little freaks couldn''t get me in here, but I had to find a way to activate this thing. If this arch really didn''t go anywhere, I was screwed. There was another possibility to the odd symbol, though. Maybe these arches weren''t connected to the map for a reason. If this place really was a transport hub where beings came from all over, maybe they had to build something that was easy for the average Joe to use. The other rows might be for newbies while these arches were for advanced users. Maybe the lines on the circle meant these could go anywhere. Or maybe I was wrong and these arches weren''t finished. Maybe a void of death waited at their terminus.

    For all I knew, this row of arches was where they disposed of trash, and the circle was a garbage compactor, like the one on the Death Star. "This isn''t Return of the Jedi," I hissed, hoping to the Force I was right.

    I slapped my cheek to snap myself from the daze of indecisiveness.

    More cherubs crowded the circle while newcomers threaded through the arches. The place was crawling with them. I had to face facts. There was no escaping this circle. Not without using the arch. I turned back to it, forcing myself to ignore the shrieks and wails and the possibility the circle might collapse from the weight of bodies pressing against it.

    Unfortunately, there were no big green buttons or easy-to-follow instructions mounted on a placard nearby, so I did the next best thing by pointing a finger at the arch and saying, "Activate!" When that didn''t work, I tried a few other words, some of them very descriptive of my situation and not at all suited for mixed company. Shelton had told me several times intent and will were important in making something work right. Perhaps I just had to focus on somewhere specific I needed to go. Doing that while panic streaked through my veins and fear twined a cold coil around my guts seemed impossible.

    Standing halfway between the arch and the silver ring, I concentrated on the arch again and said, "Take me home."

    An azure string of power lanced from one side of the arch to the other, running up the black stone like something in a mad-scientist''s lab. I jumped up and whooped as the air between the arch flickered from black to gray to white. The gruesome baby things screeched and pressed against the invisible circle, throwing tantrums as they shouted what probably passed for obscenities in scary baby language.

    "Hurry up, stupid arch!" I said.

    Images of different places flashed across the arch like a slide show, but too fast to follow. Then they slowed, each one lingering a little longer than the last. I saw my old house, police tape across the smashed front door where hellhounds had burst in and a possum taking a poo on the carpet. I saw Shelton''s underground lair flash past, my father and Shelton, each with full-to-bursting duffel bags in hand, making for the exit, but the scene vanished before I could even think to leap through. Next, a blonde woman appeared, kneeling before a blonde girl, gripping her by the arms and talking in low tones as tears streamed down their faces. My heart stopped as I recognized my mother. And the girl¡ªshe had to be my sister!

    I screamed, "Ivy!" and lunged forward. Before I could step through the circle, the scene blinked away and another replaced it. Seconds passed before I realized this one might be the last. Ten feet away, Elyssa climbed from a river, coughing water from her lungs as Kassallandra knelt at her side and patted her back. Two hellhounds, including the massive Malkesh stood nearby, their eyes gleaming in the dusk.

    "He can''t be gone," Elyssa said, sobbing. "He can''t be! We have to go back."

    "We can''t," Kassallandra said, her voice somber and sad. "In all the times I''ve been in that place, I''ve never seen that creature before. It killed two of my hounds." Tears glistened in her eyes. "My poor babies."

    "Screw your hounds!" Elyssa screamed. "Justin needs our help!"

    "I''m here!" I yelled. I wondered why the arch had chosen this, of all places, to stop. I''d expected my old house since I''d specified I wanted to go home. I felt my face go slack as the truth hit me. Home is where the heart is. And my heart was with Elyssa. In ten steps, I''d be with her.

    Brilliant balls of energy shot into the dark air, casting dark flickering shadows along the wooded riverbank. Masked figures in black clothing similar to what Elyssa favored for her night operations melted from the dark. In front of them stood an unmasked man, his close-cropped salt and pepper hair betraying his identity in a heartbeat. Thomas Borathen.

    "Father?" Elyssa shouted. "What¡ªhow did you find us?"

    "I''ve been tracking you for some time, daughter."

    "Ryland betrayed us?"

    He shook his head. "No. Ryland was merely a decoy. I knew you might rebel, much as it pained me to think of my precious daughter doing such a thing, so I placed a tracker on you the night you brought that thing to our home."

    "Justin is not a thing."

    Thomas scowled. "I can hardly stand the shame you''ve brought me, Daughter. I expected so much better from you. Especially from you."

    "I don''t expect you to understand. You''re blinded by misplaced hatred." She took in the other Templars surrounding her and Kassallandra. "Why did you wait so long to come for me if you''ve been tracking me all this time?"

    "I thought you might uncover something of interest. A visit to this unholy place certainly qualifies." He looked around the area. "Where is Justin Slade?"

    "He''s not here," Elyssa said, outrage heating her words. "And don''t expect me to tell you where he is."

    I clenched my fists and stared with disbelief at the number of Templars forming up around Elyssa, Kassallandra, and the two remaining hellhounds who stood before their mistress, hackles raised and thunder rumbling in their throats.

    The cherub creatures continued to wail outside the circle but no one on the other side of the arch seemed to hear it. Somehow, I had to get through the portal and rescue Elyssa from her dad, although that looked impossible from where I was standing. Maybe I could blur through, snatch her, and dash back inside the arch. Sharing a room with these creepy little monsters scared the crap out of me, but so long as the circle held them out, we''d be okay. Then all I had to do was redirect the arch somewhere a little safer than Templar central.

    Thomas Borathen sighed. "Where did I go wrong with you, girl?" He glared at Kassallandra who was calmly pulling her clothes from the backpack and putting them on as the hellhounds paced around her. "You really leave me no choice."

    Elyssa clenched both hands to her sides. "What''s that supposed to mean?"

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    "You will take the White."

    "No," Elyssa said, her voice low with horror. "You wouldn''t dare. I''m your daughter for god''s sake! Your own flesh and blood!"

    Thomas slammed a fist against his chest. "And that is why I cannot allow this insubordination, child! You will take the White, your mind wiped of the taint of Justin Slade. You will retrain and make yourself fit for duty. You were so close to the Cho''kai, daughter. So close to being the youngest to have taken and passed it."

    "I guess you don''t get a trophy then, Father." She spat the last word like a curse.

    Kassallandra snatched Elyssa by the arm and drew her close as the hellhounds tightened the protective barrier around their mistress. "I cannot let you do such a thing, sir. Your daughter can be a salve for the wounds that separate us, Templaros Borathen. Together we can mend the errors of the past and uncover the truths hidden for too long."

    Thomas narrowed his eyes. "I have enough Templars with me to kill your hellhounds, demon spawn, and if you think I''ll hesitate to end you as well, then you''re sadly mistaken."

    "I had no idea you were so eager for open war between our houses, Templaros. Surely¡ª"

    Thomas slashed his hand through the air. "I would like nothing better than direct hostilities after dealing with the hide-and-seek politics you creatures employ to deny me justice. Test me, spawn, and find out."

    Elyssa stepped from the protection of the hellhounds and went toward her father. Tears sparkled down her cheeks, caught in the bright orbs of light hovering above them. "If that happens, our factions will plunge into a war and destroy the Conclave. I can''t let that happen, Kassallandra."

    And neither could I. They might outnumber me. They might kill me. But stealing the girl I loved by wiping her memory was worse than death.

    I stepped for the gate.

    Streaks of white and black energy lanced from the obsidian structure and arced against the silver circle. Jagged bolts erupted in a dazzling array of light. I knew in an instant something was wrong. Without hesitation, I flung myself for the gate and Elyssa.

    I landed stomach-first on a slab of slippery rock with the river just to my right and the others yards away. "Elyssa!" I yelled, scrambling to my feet and falling again as the slick moss stole all traction from my bare feet. I''d totally forgotten I was clad only in my boxers, my clothes still secured in the waterproof rucksack on my back.

    Elyssa spun toward my voice, eyes glowing with hope. "Justin! Oh my god, you''re alive!"

    "Get her out of here," Thomas said, drawing his silvery sword and turning for me.

    "I love you!" Elyssa screamed as three figures in black dragged her away.

    "Stop!" I yelled and tried to run after her. But the world five feet beyond me warped as if I were in a bubble looking out. I moved my feet against the slick surface of the rock but something else had me and drew me back like a taut rubber band. An arc of pure white energy lanced and crackled against the ground. Blinding bolts of black and gray shattered my eyesight.

    Flicker.

    A void surrounded me and I floated in freezing nothingness. Moisture on my scantily clad body flash-froze to ice, stiffening along my arms and burning my lungs with frost. I couldn''t breathe. I couldn''t move. I couldn''t see.

    Flicker.

    I lay on polished black stone similar to the material I''d seen around the other arches. The air still felt freezing cold but not absolute zero like before. Ice shattered and cracked off of my skin as I sat up. Beings with human features but an unearthly, soft white luminescence to their bodies gathered at the edges of the polished stone, apparently unable to cross the circle. Their ethereal beauty caused my heart to ache for the simple touch of their hands.

    One of them shouted in a hauntingly familiar tongue and held his arms high, his face jubilant.

    Flicker.

    I sat on another black slab. Twin moons hung above a landscape of purple sky dusted with stars. A hot wind grazed my skin, drying it and my hair within seconds. Babbling noises echoed from the darkness around me. Beneath the cone of yellow light streaming from somewhere above the black arch, tiny black figures emerged, each one wobbling and screeching.

    Horror burst from my lungs in a panicked shout. My guts clenched and ice-cold fear left me shivering with sweat. I scrambled to my feet, shrinking back against the arch as the circle of pitch-black cherubs tottered for me with outstretched hands. They had no better luck crossing the edge of the polished stone than the beings in the last place, bouncing off and landing on their backs, terrible screams ripping from their throats. I clamped my hands over my ears, willing the horrible racket to stop.

    Flicker.

    I fell several feet and landed hard on a crushed jumble of black stone. Half an arch stood a few feet away, pale white and black strands of energy flickering in it before dying out and leaving me night blind for a brief moment. Once my eyes cleared, I looked up at the sky, found a familiar white moon, and prayed I was back on my own plane of existence. I ran from the circle, threw myself onto the hard-packed earth beyond, and lay there for a moment, breathing heavily as bowel-clenching dread eased slowly from my body.

    After a few minutes, I pushed myself up and brushed the dust off my skin before pulling the clothes from the waterproof backpack and putting them on. I dug my phone out of the front pocket. No signal. The area around me buzzed with life. Birds called to one another, insects chirped and hummed, and I even heard something sounding suspiciously like a monkey.

    I took further stock of my surroundings and saw what appeared to be the ruins of an ancient city. I walked a few feet and found a placard near the corner of a huge stone structure reminding me of something out of an Indiana Jones movie. The writing was in a language I couldn''t speak, but knew enough of to identify thanks to my Spanish teacher. That''s when it hit me. I had some idea where I was¡ªthe same place Underborn had ended up after the massacre at Thunder Rock. Part of me felt relief. Another part filled with dismay.

    I was on Earth. More specifically, I was in Colombia.

    The love of my life was about to have her mind-wiped. Thomas Borathen was ready to start a war with the spawn. Nobody knew where I was, nor could I contact anyone.

    And it was a long walk home.

    Chapter 8

    The first sign of trouble was a whisper on the wind. The calls of wild animals filled the warm, Colombian night. Crickets chirped, a bird made a funny whooping noise, and another answered with a screech. But the whispers made me stop dead in my tracks, heart pounding with fear and thudding against my chest so hard I thought it might blow a hole through the bone and scamper away to join the native birds and monkeys in a tree somewhere.

    I was thousands of miles from Atlanta, stuck in a jungle somewhere in southern Colombia after a freakish ride through an ancient arch, which hopped across god only knew how many planes of reality. The crumbling remains of that arch stood adjacent to the massive moss-covered structure before me now, and I knew of no way to activate it and get back home.

    I had never felt more alone in my life.

    Another whisper drifted into my ears. I listened hard, trying to make sense of the words. Was it saying that''s nice, or you die? I decided the words didn''t matter. The mere fact a creepy whisper was emanating from somewhere in the pitch black beyond my blue-tinged night vision sent another chill creeping down my back and panicked my already racing heart.

    Animals, as far as I knew, couldn''t whisper. By default, that meant it had to be a someone and not a something whispering. Though an occasional breeze rustled leaves and combed through my sweat-dampened hair, I could tell it had nothing to do with the whispers.

    "You''re imagining things, you nitwit," I said aloud, hoping the sound of my own voice would somehow make me feel a bit braver. It didn''t work.

    I pulled out my cell phone and checked the signal meter for the tenth time. Still nothing. Even if there were people whispering in the dark, I could outrun them. Provided they were normal humans, I could whip them in a fight, no problem. There was absolutely no reason for me to stand here ready to poop in my pants all because some bored native wanted to scare a tourist by whispering.

    A lone whisper sounded from ahead. Another responded from behind. Yet another and another hissed from all sides until it was a constant susurrus.

    "Who''s there?" I yelled into the black of night.

    Something shimmered in my night vision. Something humanoid and hunched. It shuffled from the dark and into the range of my night sight. Clouds of oily black smoke drifted from it, but it wasn''t on fire. It was almost as if the thing leaked shadows from its skin, its eyes, and any other visible orifice. A twig snapped behind me and I spun to find another of the things encroaching. It didn''t take my brain long to calculate the possible existence of similar creatures to all sides.

    I stared in fascinated horror at the sickly pale flesh of the nearest of the beings. He, she, or it wore ragged clothes barely hanging by rotted threads. Beneath the mop of filthy matted hair, darkness oozed from the eyes, two smoking craters of malevolence.

    "Who are you?" I asked. "Who in the hell are you?" My limbs trembled in fear and revulsion.

    The nearest creature stopped and regarded me, tilting its head slightly to the side like a curious animal. Then it whispered. As it did, writhing darkness poured from its mouth like a foul cloud of pollution from burning oil. I almost expected to smell that very odor, but sensed only a cold sterile absence. I tuned my ears to the whispers but couldn''t understand a thing.

    "You''re not making sense," I said, trying to calm the rapid-fire beat of my heart. I spun, keeping an eye on the thing''s companions. They reminded me eerily of the cherubs, though those little creeps didn''t whisper. Cherub voices sounded like a mix between a wet cat and a screech owl and their oily skin seemed to emanate a dark ultraviolet light of their own as opposed to throwing off black smoke like my new friends.

    These things were also adult-sized with flesh of various sickly shades: white, olive, and ebony. The ragged remains of a dress hung from one. Another wore the barest remains of what might have been a pair of shorts and a hat. They couldn''t be vamplings. The stench from the putrid flesh of one of those zombie-like creatures would have alerted me well before they even got close. And their skin wasn''t rotting, unlike most of their clothes.

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    As I tried to understand yet another whisper from the creature before me, I sensed a spike of cold at my back. I ducked and rolled just as a tendril of shadow speared into the space where I''d been.

    The darkness exploded into motion. A group of shadow people rushed from my right. I knew if I hesitated, I''d be surrounded. Another dark tentacle lashed at my chest. My panic turned into pure adrenalin. I leapt far over the shadow in front of me and almost collided with another group of them as they shambled from the trees at the border of the ancient building.

    At least they''re slow, I thought.

    Then the insidious figures blurred with speed.

    Despite all the scary crap I''d been through in the past few weeks, I shrieked at the top of my lungs and ran for all I was worth. Even with my night vision and my supernaturally acute reflexes, branches whipped into my face and I stumbled over branches, rotten logs, stones, and just about anything else in my path. After nearly colliding with a tree¡ªa move that would''ve knocked me senseless long enough for the shadows to catch me¡ªI decided it might be smarter to dodge back into the crumbling city. At least it had pathways for the tourists.

    I zipped to my left just as a shadow blurred from the dark and smashed into the trunk of the tree I''d narrowly avoided. Bark and splinters exploded, but the creature merely ricocheted like a pinball and veered straight at me. It was then I noticed the lack of ambient background noises in the jungle. It was as if every animal had fled or hidden. Now all I could hear were the whispers of the shadows.

    A chain sectioning off the tourist pathways took my legs out from beneath me. I tumbled through the air for a helpless moment before bouncing off the ancient stones of a nearby building and rolling several yards. I scrambled to my feet and raced down the path, dodging around buildings and hoping, eventually, the blasted thing would lead me to a road or some way out of this haunted maze.

    Instead, I stumbled into an open square surrounded by tall stone slabs. It reminded me, for a fleeting moment, of the massive square in the middle of the Grotto. Except, in the place of statues of the founders, this one had engravings on the slabs. On one, a grinning male looked down from a pyramid at a woman wreathed in flames, her mouth wide in agony. Another intricately detailed a woman perched atop another pyramid as a priest sacrificed an infant. Each slab bore horrendous images of human sacrifice in grisly detail and vivid colors. It took me only a split second to take in my surroundings, but I sensed death closing in with every passing nanosecond.

    I couldn''t stand around gawking at mosaics. I had to find a way out. Paths branched out in all directions from the square, each one leading to its own gargantuan pyramid at the terminus. I might be able to reach the top of one and spy the exit. Before I could launch myself down a path, however, shadows melted out of the night. The whispering grew louder and before I could bolt away, they surrounded me.

    I jetted toward a crack in the circle. The shadows closed the gap just before I reached it. I jumped, hoping I could escape this circle of darkness with another feat of athleticism. A shadowy wisp lashed out and gripped my foot as I sailed over their heads. A familiar, cold sensation bit straight through my flesh and into bone. My forward progress stopped. The tentacle slammed me back onto the hard stone of the square. A shout of pain tore past my lips, momentarily drowning out the whispers.

    Screams echoed in my mind. A man cried out as a crude knife ripped into his stomach. A woman wailed as a priest ripped a child from her arms and presented it to one of their gods. Frenzied shrieks of pure agony tore from the throat of a burning woman. More scenes of horror piled upon the first, each more brutal and terrible than the last, and I realized I had joined my screams with theirs.

    The dark tendril still had me by the ankle. It had to be the reason I was seeing this, some rational part of my mind realized. Something orange had fallen from a pocket on the side of my backpack after the shadow had slammed me to the ground. A flare. Using every last ounce of control left to me, I grabbed the slender rod. At the very least, I could light it and hold it against the smoky tentacle, possibly burning it loose. My desperation made any action¡ªno matter how feeble¡ªpreferable to dying at the hands of these beings.

    My leg felt numb with cold. An icy sensation crept up my calf, my thigh, and started for my chest. My limbs barely moved no matter how hard I pushed them. Another wave of savage images washed over me and the flare faded from my view. Somehow, my numb fingers found a plastic cap.

    I snapped it off.

    A brilliant orange light exploded against my closed eyelids. The whispers turned into high-pitched shrieks, like violins in the hands of morbidly depressed, candy-fueled five year olds. The cold grip on my foot vanished. These things couldn''t handle light, I realized, watching their forms retreat.

    I tried to run, but my legs wouldn''t move. They were as unresponsive as slabs of meat. I couldn''t even drag myself more than an inch. The flare burned bright, but it wouldn''t last long. And even so, I didn''t know if it''d be enough to hold off the shadows for long.

    I jammed my hand into the backpack, searching desperately for something, anything that might save me. Elyssa, the OCD planner she was, had crammed in a load of stuff before we''d dived into the icy depths of the lake at the center of Thunder Rock. I thought back to the oily black shadow, which had dragged me away from her as we tried to swim to an underground river beneath the caves. The sensation had felt very much like this one. Except I hadn''t seen any visions and the cold hadn''t progressed past the point of contact.

    Either these things were not quite the same, or they were even darker and more twisted than the underwater monster. My hand found a rounded shape, dusty and dry against my skin. I pulled out a thick piece of chalk and suppressed a crazed laugh of hopelessness. Chalk? Seriously? What in the world was I going to use this for? Maybe I could draw some stick figures illustrating my horrific demise should any other fool come across this place. I uttered a prayer to karma and dug deeper into the pack.

    In a side pocket of the waterproof backpack, I found two more flares. Nothing else. The only thing standing between dark insanity and me were these last beacons of light in a pitch-black world.

    The first flare burned on but it had dimmed considerably, giving me only a small circle of radiance. Outside this circle, the shadows tightened around me, slim tendrils drifting from their darkly shimmering figures like cold nooses poised to drag me into eternal night. Were these things anything like the tiny wailing cherubs? I thought back again to the ones from Thunder Rock. They might have killed me if I hadn''t¡ª

    "You moron!" I said to myself, foregoing a face-palm only because I needed to grab the chalk, which I''d stuffed into my pocket.

    As the circle of light grew dangerously small, I struck another flare and held it above my head. My legs had regained feeling but it was all I could do to stagger to my feet. At the center of the square was a chest-high platform of stone, possibly a podium. I didn''t know what its purpose was, but it suited my immediate needs. I grabbed the backpack, took the original flare in the other hand, and hobbled the several yards to the center of the open area. The shadowy figures followed, staying precisely outside the cone of light given off by the flare. I threw the original flare at a group of them. Several didn''t react in time. The smoky shadows drifting from their bodies blazed like gunpowder as they shrieked and blurred away from it.

    I balanced the new flare atop the platform. Pulled the chalk from my pocket and traced a circle several feet in diameter around the base of the structure, thanking whoever built the place for using such smooth massive tiles. Smaller tiles would have had spaces between them and I might not have been able to draw a circle without breaks in it. I thought back to all the little things Shelton had told me about circles. He hadn''t told me much, but I remembered him saying certain ones could act as barriers against specific entities. The silvery rings surrounding the arches at Thunder Rock had kept out terrifying cherubs. I had to hope a circle would keep these things out as well.

    Just in case, I thought extra hard about my extreme desire to keep these creeps out of my safe place.

    Circle close and keep these shadows out. Keep them out!

    A familiar crackle in the air told me the circle had indeed closed, and the static pressure of magic washed over me in an intense wave.

    The incredible concentration of magic made me realize this place was directly over ley lines as powerful as those at Thunder Rock.

    As the flare died down over the next few minutes, I tried to force back the fear that my pitiful chalk circle wouldn''t work. "Moment of truth," I said, trying to comfort myself as the flare dimmed enough to allow the shadows past the edges of the circle if it didn''t work as desired.

    They flowed inward like a sea of black malevolence. And broke against my circle.

    "Yes!" I shouted, pumping a fist in the air. "Go back to hell, you shadowy ass wipes."

    Some screeched. Some whispered. One of them whirled like a black tornado.

    "You mad bro?" I said, taunting and giving them the finger.

    As the flare died down, so did my exuberance. After my night vision kicked back on a moment later, I leaned against the stone column and slid to the ground. My hands shook and my teeth chattered. Half the shaking was probably from fear, the other from fatigue and hunger. After the challenging swim through the lake at Thunder Rock and the extreme fear and adrenalin I''d burned through from tonight''s activities, I had not been ready to deal with this kind of garbage.

    Why couldn''t the forces of darkness leave me alone?

    Bunch of inconsiderate jerks.

    I stared at the massive engravings throughout the square. Each was poised before one of eight paths leading to a particular deity''s pyramid. I strained to make out the engravings from my position at the center, but the range of my night vision wasn''t quite strong enough to reach across the expanse.

    One of the pyramids appeared larger than the others, from what I could make of the hulking shadows in the darkness, lit only by a tapestry of stars and a nearly full moon. It seemed to be the north-most pyramid, if my limited knowledge of the North Star was actually paying a dividend.

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    I strained my eyes against the dark, peering past the shadows and toward the engraving marking the north path. I discerned the very detailed likeness of a woman with a stern expression on her face. I couldn''t determine if there were any sacrifices illustrated on the stone, but something seemed oddly familiar about the woman''s features. The harder I focused on the engraving, the more my eyes adjusted, zooming in like binoculars until I had a much clearer view.

    What I saw nearly stopped my heart.

    Chapter 9

    Elyssa

    Elyssa struggled against the two Templars holding her, one by either arm. "You can''t do this to me, Father! Are you insane?" Another twenty or more Templars stood in the woods near the riverbank where she and Kassallandra had emerged only minutes before. The river offered her only chance at escape if she couldn''t talk her father out of his plans to wipe her memories.

    Thomas Borathen regarded his daughter, his face etched deep with the scowling lines of disappointment. "You, daughter, are the insane one. Forming a romantic relationship with one spawn and conspiring with yet another are not only signs of mental unbalance, but are actions of treason as well." He turned his dark look on Kassallandra, who stood between her two remaining hellhounds, one of them the pony-sized monster she called Malkesh. Though formidably strong, they''d have no chance against this many Templars. She returned his gaze with a cold stare, broken only when the wind tossed her flame-red hair into her face.

    Elyssa tried once more to reason with him. "Treason against whom? You or the Templars? Because there''s nothing in our rules¡ª"

    "I''ll hear no more of this," Thomas said, waving a dismissive hand at her. "You will take the White. Thankfully, you''ve known this Justin Slade for no more than a month or two and it won''t wipe away much training or other essential experiences."

    Elyssa swept a foot from beneath the Templar holding her right arm. Whipped a knee into the gut of the one on the left. A back flip twisted her arms completely from their grips and landed her behind the guards. She was one step closer to the river and freedom which lay a hundred feet or so behind.

    Thomas caught her arm. She spun on her heels, using his grip like a hinge and drove her elbow at his temple. He ducked. Planted a fist in her ribs. She grunted but used the force of his blow to pivot the opposite way, aiming her elbow once again at his head. He leaned his head back rather than ducking, playing right into her feint. Her leg swept his from beneath him.

    Before his back hit the ground, he turned the momentum into a back handspring and vaulted to his feet. Elyssa ran. Thomas blurred from behind and performed a sliding kick, upending her. She barely caught the ground with her hands before her face plowed into the hard rocky soil near the riverbank. Thomas''s foot lashed out at her stomach. Still standing on her hands, she twisted sideways and felt the wind of his kick''s passage. Before he could pull his foot back, she swung her legs forward and clamped his between her thighs. Spun away from him and came down on her side. With his leg in her grip, Thomas''s body had no choice but to follow. He hit the ground with what Elyssa thought was a very satisfying smack before she drove an elbow into his spine.

    By then, however, she was surrounded by the rest of the Templars and the river was no closer than it had been a moment ago. The only thing she''d gained from this escape attempt was a really pissed-off father.

    Kassallandra rested a perfectly manicured hand on Malkesh''s huge head and smiled. "Impressive, Templaras Borathen. You are a credit to your house."

    Elyssa clenched her fists and stared at the other Templars, anonymous thanks to the night-camo masks they wore. One of them stepped forward and pressed a finger to his neck. The mask detached from the collar and flowed from his face in a wave of black.

    "Elyssa, how could you?" Despite his size, the man''s voice had no trace of cruelty or roughness to it. Elyssa would have known him simply by his voice.

    "Jack?"

    He nodded. "Commander Borathen is doing what must be done to preserve our just cause, little sister."

    "Why don''t you call him Father, Jack? Or are you as brainwashed as Michael?"

    Thomas stood and brushed himself off. A trickle of blood from his nose quickly stanched as the supernatural healing granted by the Divinity kicked in. Instead of anger, however, pride shined bright. "You''re an amazingly talented fighter, Elyssa. The best I''ve seen in ages." The smiling lines on his face drooped back into a mask of disappointment. "Taking the White will give you a chance to redeem your reputation and reclaim yourself. You may hate me now but believe me, Daughter, when I tell you erasing the harm caused by these hell-born creatures will cleanse your soul and bring you back to the light."

    Jack approached and put an arm around Elyssa''s shoulder. "You know I would never do anything to harm you, Elyssa. Please, listen to Commander¡ªto Father, and do what he says."

    All the fury in her body melted into helpless frustration. She couldn''t escape. And even if she did, they still had Kassallandra, a very important Daemas from House Assad. If Thomas did anything to harm her, it would mean war between the Templars and the spawn. Both sides would suffer immensely, leaving a power vacuum and possibly toppling the entire Overworld into chaos.

    Why do I worry about these things?

    Less than two months ago, before Justin had come into her life, she''d thought of little else but passing the Cho''kai and advancing from Templar recruit to a full-fledged member. She''d been assigned to Edenfield High due to reports of vampires mingling with the student population, some of them decades older than the students. Vampires with such tastes might be fine and dandy in the land of make-believe, but in the real world, it didn''t matter how young a super looked, they were still a creepy pedophile if they wanted to date a teenager.

    Then she''d met Justin. Trouble followed him like a lost puppy with a rocket launcher. And ever since discovering Foreseeance 4311 from Vallaena Slade, Justin''s aunt, her mind seemed to tune into things on a much larger scale. For instance, worrying about whether the Overworld Conclave was falling apart as opposed to busting a single pedophile vampire. Elyssa had never felt particularly brilliant. But something in her had changed. Made her see the big picture. Taking the White would probably kill off that part of her along with every last memory of the one she loved.

    An ache gripped her heart with all the force of a roundhouse kick to the chest. She fought against tears as she realized the love she felt for Justin was more magical than anything she''d ever known in her life.

    "Death cannot stop true love," Justin would probably say, quoting the Princess Bride.

    But a mind wipe probably could.

    Jack and two other Templars escorted her into the back of a panel van. She didn''t know what Thomas planned for Kassallandra and her hellhounds or, for that matter, why the Daemas hadn''t simply escaped while she''d had the chance. Elyssa had given the woman plenty of time by giving herself up to her father.

    "Others have taken the White," Jack said as the van lurched into motion and bumped down a rutted dirt road. "In all cases, it''s helped purge the ignoble parts of those who are troubled and bring them back into pure clarity of thought."

    "Jack, you know I love you. But how can tearing memories from someone''s mind help?" And what had happened to her brother? He was five years older than her, putting him at twenty-three. The last time she''d seen him, he''d been so excited to have finally passed the Cho''kai and gone on full duty. But his exuberance had apparently morphed into a pedantic self-righteousness, making her want to slap him so hard he saw stars.

    "I agree, it doesn''t sound pleasant, but this is for the greater good. Spawn exist only to corrupt. You know this, or you should if you paid attention in class."

    "I paid attention in class, thank you very much. It sounds to me like you ran off and joined a seminary though. Where did they assign you? Communist kindergarten?"

    A grin broke on his face. He still looked just as young and dashing as ever, his square jaw and blue eyes enough to make most females swoon. He definitely favored his father. Jack was the only fully human of the three siblings, whereas Elyssa and Michael were dhampyrs. As far as temperament, however, he wasn''t nearly as bold or headstrong as Thomas Borathen. Instead, Jack had always been a bit soft at heart, though always willing to do his duty.

    "You always have a smart remark for everything, don''t you, sis?"

    "I''m surprised you remember. I haven''t heard from you since you left on your last assignment. At least Michael shoots me an email or calls on occasion."

    His smile faltered. "The world is harsh. Sometimes you have to do things you don''t want to do in order to keep the masses safe."

    "What happened to the idealistic brother I used to know?"

    "He''s still here. But my idealism has been tempered by reality, Elyssa. Father is right in what he plans to do. Once you''ve taken the White, you''ll agree."

    Elyssa grimaced and looked at the floor. Four Templars, including her brother, sat closest to the back doors on the quick-deployment bench seats along the sides of the van''s cargo bay. She could probably kick the doors open, but she''d have to get past her Templar escorts first. Escape was out of the question for now, so she bided her time, waiting for an opening.

    An opening never came.

    The van pulled up the long drive to the Templar compound at Big Creek Ranch, a horse ranch near the edges of Decatur, an urban extension of Atlanta. As they unloaded from the back, Elyssa''s shoulders slumped as hope drained from her heart. There would be no escape. Not like last time when she''d knocked out her mother. Jack and the others took her into the barn, down a set of wooden stairs, and through a pair of thick titanium vault doors guarding the brig, a high-security holding cell where prisoners usually awaited transport before delivery to the Overworld Tribunal Court. Except, she wasn''t going anywhere. At least not until they''d wiped her memories.

    Cruel barbs of hopelessness gripped her heart so tight she stumbled.

    The other Templars, apparently taking this for a feint preceding another escape attempt, tensed and watched her until the vault doors slammed shut. The shiny metallic floor reflected Elyssa''s grief-stricken face. She stiffened her features, ashamed at her weakness. They might wipe her mind, but she would find a way to fight back. As Jack led her to the cell, one side of his mouth curved up in a sad smile.

 Page 15

    "I love you, sis." He gripped her hands as his eyes misted up. "We''ll get through this together."

    "Thanks, big brother." She hugged him, feigning gratitude and fighting the desperation coiling tight around her guts.

    The cell was much like the corridor outside, a sterile titanium box with a windowless door embedded in the reinforced frame. Titanium, in and of itself, wasn''t strong enough to contain some supers which was why each plate was also woven with diamond fibers, the same material used to make nearly indestructible diamond rope. Not even a sorcerer could melt through them.

    On the bright side, the room had no cameras, only a bunk bed, a toilet, and sink, all made of the same material as the cell. At least the mattress was normal. And the good thing about no cameras meant nobody would see Elyssa attempt her last desperate bid to keep her memories.

    She pulled Jack''s cell phone¡ªwhich she''d stolen during their hug¡ªfrom the back pocket of her night-camo outfit and was relieved to find he hadn''t password-protected it. She put it into airplane mode, which turned off the GPS and cell signals since the walls blocked those signals. She needed all the battery life she could squeeze from this thing. Flicking through the menu, she opened the video camera app.

    Rather than sleep, Elyssa spent the entire night reciting history. How she''d felt the first time she''d met Justin. What she''d done after finding out what he was. Who he really was despite his half-incubus side. How, despite all her fears and built-in prejudices, she¡¯d been unable to deny the love she felt for him.

    "I know you don''t remember this, but it''s important, not just for the sake of love, but for the survival of us all. Trust Justin with your life. He may be half spawn, but he''s a hero to the core and will do anything for you." Tears clouded her eyes and her voice choked on the lump in her throat. Deep breaths didn''t help overcome the despair. But she soldiered on, determined to record every last thing she could remember before her cherished memories were burned away like old photos in a house fire.

    She watched the video once more and realized there was nothing more she could say. On a whim, she turned on the video recorder a last time and said, "He is your Westley, and you are his Buttercup. Death cannot stop true love." If a quote from the Princess Bride couldn''t shake up her memory, nothing would.

    After powering down the smartphone, she removed the tiny memory card from the slot on the side and stared at it. It was such a tiny fragile hope for all her memories to be riding on, but it was all she had. The second part to her plan would be much harder. She had to hide it somewhere she''d eventually look because remembering she''d even made this recording wasn''t an option. First, she crushed the phone to tiny bits and flushed them down the toilet.

    The few places to hide such a tiny memory card reliably were also unpleasant to think about. Before taking the White, they would strip her and bathe her by hand in blessed water as ancient custom dictated. Then they would dress her in a white gown of silk and lead her into the chapel communionary where a Templar would light the White Torch and bar her inside.

    Beyond the ritual, nobody knew what happened inside.

    Every Templar compound had a chapel with a White, Black, Novice, and Blessed Torch. The first wiped away memories. The second took away life. The third was used to give recruits a temporary blessing, while the fourth added the permanent blessing of the Divinity, granting immortality and strength among other abilities.

    The problem with hiding the tiny chip on her person would be the stripping and bathing. Her old clothes would be burnt and she couldn''t conceal the chip in her hands. This particular card was weatherized to protect it from extreme conditions since the phones they used were often subjected to extreme situations. It might survive if she swallowed it.

    But then¡ª

    She shuddered at the thought of recovering it. And why would her freshly-brain wiped self even know to search for it after¡­after doing her business?

    Gross.

    She could hide it in her mouth, but what about after she was mind-wiped? Would she spit it out and forget it? Elyssa cursed and paced the floor. She didn''t have much time to decide and the last remaining place she could think to hide it made her shudder again. It wasn''t ideal, but she had no other choice.

    The sound of a door sliding open awoke her sometime later. She hadn''t even realized she''d fallen asleep.

    Jack smiled at her. "It''s time."

    Elyssa went with him and three other guards meekly, hoping against hope she could convince them she was no threat and manage escape at some point. As they stepped outside the barn and headed for the large stone chapel nestled in the trees behind the huge manor house, her senses picked up a white-hot blip, absent only a moment before. Jack and her guards sensed it too.

    And all hell broke loose.

    Chapter 10

    I could hardly believe my eyes but there was no denying how familiar the image on the massive stone slab seemed. The dark and my night vision had to be playing tricks on me. Though I could zoom in, the oily wisps of darkness drifting from the shadow people around my circle made it hard to stay focused, like staring through a thick haze of gasoline fumes.

    My eyelids felt like lead weights and it was all I could do to stay awake. But I couldn''t sleep knowing a thunderstorm, a wild animal, or anything might blot out a part of my hastily-drawn chalk circle and destroy my only protection. There was no way in hell I was shutting my eyes for a second around these monsters.

    I woke up as the first rays of dawn caught my eyes. Panic swept over me in a wave. I leapt to my feet, pivoting on my heels and searching for any signs of the dark creatures from last night. But they were gone, vanquished, apparently, by the light of the sun. I dropped to my knees and blew kisses at the great pinkish hue spreading across the horizon. I was so happy to see it, I swore I''d never complain about it being in my eyes again.

    After gathering up my things and stuffing them inside the backpack, I walked over to the engraving I''d noticed last night. By sunlight, the engravings were even more impressive, their dappled hues sparkling in the light. From a distance, they could pass for paintings. I realized then they weren''t simply engravings, but intricate mosaics, inlaid with what looked like crushed colored stones or maybe even jewels, rather than painted. Then again, there might be some magic involved in their preservation¡ªnothing I had the skills to detect.

    Aside from the strokes of yellow indicating blonde hair and the pale color chosen for her skin, this woman looked so familiar and so much like someone I knew, it had to be more than coincidence. I thought back to the small olive-skinned girl with slanted green eyes and black hair I''d met just days ago, only to find out she was Nightliss, formerly just a cat as far as I knew. This blonde woman could be her sister. Maybe even her evil mirror universe twin.

    Where the other engravings showed horrendous variants of human sacrifice at the bottom, this one illustrated what appeared to be throngs of people kneeling, hands outstretched over their heads, threads of white connecting their fingers to the fingers of the woman. Whoever this chick was, she had been a bigwig back in the old days.

    "This is crazy." I shook my head and stared harder at the mosaic then at the others situated around the square. None of the people in the others looked vaguely familiar, though they all had a similar ethereal beauty about them. I couldn''t imagine how long it had taken someone to create these masterpieces or why I''d never seen them on Discovery Planet. They might not be members of the Seven Wonders of the World, but they had to be in the top twenty.

    My gaze caught on the last mosaic and stuck, taking in the long silvery mane of hair, the haughty cast of the face, and most importantly, the crowd of gray-robed men depicted at the bottom, standing and looking with emotionless expressions toward whoever viewed the image. When I thought none of the other effigies looked familiar, I''d been wrong. The hair was longer and he wasn''t wearing spectacles, but this guy was¡ªno it couldn''t be¡ªit simply couldn''t! I stepped closer, peered up at the monument, and saw the cruel cast of those gray eyes staring out at the world.

    This man was no other than Mr. Gray. The man whose gray-suited abominations had attacked me once in the Grotto, and again with a garbage truck.

    I closely studied the other engravings, but aside from Nightliss''s Barbie wonder twin, none rang a bell in the slightest. What was this place and why in the hell was Mr. Gray''s mural in the mix?

    It was enough to make my head hurt. I reached a tentative hand toward the slab. My fingers met a slick surface a few millimeters from the eye of one of the gray men. I pressed my palm to the surface and ran my skin against it. It felt slicker than a greased pig. I looked around in case a security guard or someone had arrived to start daily patrols. Seeing no one, I turned back and spit. The glob didn''t even run down the side, instead dropping straight to the ground without leaving a mark.

    Yeah, definitely magic.

    No doubt, I should investigate this place more thoroughly, but I didn''t want to stick around. If those shadow creatures returned at night, I wanted to be a long way away. As I traveled along the paths, eventually retracing my steps back to the broken arch where my night of bowel-churning panic had started, I realized, despite the mid-morning hour, there were no tourists, guides, or guards wandering the paths. Surely this was a hotspot for tourism, considering the ancient buildings and amazing mosaics.

    Or maybe I was missing something important.

    It was too late to stop my palm from slapping my forehead as I remembered an app I''d stuck on my phone some time ago to combat my terrible foreign language skills, namely Spanish. I turned on my phone and pulled up the Spanish-English dictionary I''d downloaded and translated a placard near the broken arch, which had unceremoniously dumped me in this hellhole.

    It read: A broken Obsidian Arch, presumed destroyed by whatever calamity killed the inhabitants this marvelous city many centuries ago.

    "How would noms know about Obsidian Arches?" I wondered.

    I found an area map entitled, El Dorado, An Overworld Historic Reserve. The map offered a tiny stick figure to show me where I stood on the path, and an arrow to show which way I was facing. When I took a few steps in the real world, so did my little partner on the map. I turned around a few times, keeping my eyes on the map and watched the arrow spin with me.

 Page 16

    Cool!

    Unfortunately, the box for extra maps was empty, or I would''ve taken along the magical version of a GPS. On the plus side, the map clearly indicated the path I was on would take me out of this god-forsaken place and back to civilization. The name of the city tickled my brain, though. Where had I heard it before?

    My dictionary translated it into golden one. Then it hit me. El Dorado was the mythical city of gold. I vaguely recalled reading about some dude named Montezuma coming down with a really bad case of the runs here too. Or maybe I was mixing reality with the plot of a video game I''d played. I certainly hadn''t seen any gold lying around, but if it truly was the same place, I wanted no part of it. Any movie I''d ever seen or video game I''d ever played where the main character was looking for a mythical city only led to disaster, not to mention an ending scene where everyone had to run for their lives as the place broke apart and fell into an abyss all around them.

    "Nope, nope, nope," I said. "You can keep your gold, you friggin'' creepy place."

    The path terminated about a hundred yards later. At the head of the path sat a marble slab displaying a long list in dozens of languages. I found the English version and read it.

    Please state your preferred language.

    "English?"

    The marble shimmered, erasing the list, and replacing it with a couple of paragraphs of text. A disembodied voice rang out, sounding exactly like the dude who voices over apocalyptic movie trailers. I jumped five feet back with a yelp.

    "Welcome, visitor!" the voice boomed. "El Dorado, Overworld Historic Reserve number one, one, nine, has been interdicted by the Conclave and closed to the public due to unstable variances coexisting between Earth-plane and the Gloom. Field trips must be cleared by the Master of Overworld History, Skavius Peckmoore. His office is located at The Ezzek Moore Arcane Academy for the Gifted, number twelve Conroy Place in the Grotto. Please direct all inquiries to his office.

    "This site is protected by a physical interdiction barrier. Should you somehow find yourself trapped within, the safe word is Exodus. Please note this will only work during daylight hours to prevent hazardous otherworldly entities from egress. Should you find yourself surrounded by the aforementioned hazardous otherworldly entities, use the safe word Illuminate. This recording is a service of the Overworld Conclave Safety Administration, all rights reserved."

    I read the notice once more, cursing whoever hadn''t thought to post a few more warning signs throughout the place, especially with this guy''s voice boldly declaring the certain doom one faced while trapped inside this insidious ruin. Then again, they probably figured nobody would ever come through a broken arch smack-dab in the danger zone. I made my way down the path, holding my hands out. An invisible barrier greeted me after only a few feet. My stomach clenched at the painful memory of the last time I''d come across such a barrier.

    My mom had put it up to keep me from reaching her. Then she''d stabbed me in the heart with a devastating declaration, telling me Dad and I were no longer a part of her family. And if we dared look for her, she''d ask for Templar intervention.

    Shoving aside those grim thoughts, I stood near the barrier and said, "Exodus."

    I expected a bright light accompanied by some cool sound effects. Instead, an invisible bell dinged and a red arrow appeared on the path a foot to my left, pointing, I hoped, toward escape. Using my hands against the invisible barrier as guides, I found the exit and slipped through.

    "You are now exiting Overworld Historic Reserve number one, one, nine," the announcer declared in bombastic excitement, nearly scaring the pants off me. "Thank you for visiting!"

    Once I recovered my wits, I took a good look at my new surroundings. From outside the barrier, the rain forest appeared to go on for miles and miles without a trace of the ancient city hiding behind the magical shield. An intense desire to walk away urged me to get moving. I realized a spell must be behind it, probably to keep noms from coming close enough to bump into the invisible barrier. Why anyone would wander all the way out here without foreknowledge of the hidden city, I couldn''t imagine. Still, I supposed it was better to be safe than have one hitchhiker discover and post about it on the internet.

    The rising sun seemed a little brighter outside the barrier and the air a bit more humid. I blew the blazing, heavenly body another kiss to make sure it understood just how much I appreciated all the hard work it did for the citizens of Earth, protecting us from Gloom monsters and such. A series of loud dings interrupted my Sun worship. I turned and saw a timer on the path counting down from ten. I wondered if the barrier would slice anyone in half if they were standing there when it closed.

    "The barrier is now closing," the automated voice shouted cheerfully. "Please stand clear. Keep all extremities away from the invisible opening, as amputation is likely to occur. Thank you."

    Not wanting to risk my limbs, I set out at a brisk pace to move myself away from the cursed city and hopefully toward a town or, at the very least, a cell phone signal. I found a winding road made partially of broken and crumbling asphalt, but mostly of rutted dirt and pockets of mud where trees shaded it from the sun. I was eager to run as fast as I could and hopefully find a town somewhere, but the tiny bits of wisdom my thick skull had somehow accumulated offered advice of its own: Running might get me someplace faster, but such a someplace would likely be in the middle of nowhere and devoid of humans. My incubus tummy required essence from human emotion. Dashing blindly into the wilderness would only increase my demonic needs and the insane, gut-clawing hunger accompanying it.

    My supernatural batteries were already running low again thanks to my night of terror straight out of the X-Files. I knew I couldn''t count on Nightliss to give me another of her magic kisses, so I decided to take it easy and hope someone might come down this lonely road.

    Hours later, I realized just how foolish such hope had been. In fact, it wasn''t until late afternoon I finally stumbled upon a larger road. Sure, the surface was just as terrible, if not worse than the one I''d just left, but it was another road. That had to mean something, right? As if in answer to my prayers, I saw a pickup on the side of the road. Next to it sat a little old man with wrinkly skin and a complexion darkened by many hours beneath the sun.

    His brown eyes widened as he took me in.

    "Hola," I said, coming dangerously close to exhausting my Spanish skills.

    He responded with a rapid-fire sentence, the words bouncing off my ears without making even the tiniest bit of sense.

    At a complete loss of how I should respond, I smiled. "Gracias," I added, and nodded my head.

    His wrinkled little mouth lifted into an amused smile. He pointed at the front tire on the pickup. "No va."

    I peered closer at the tire and saw it was flat. Just great. I finally find a ride and it''s borked. I looked in the back of the pickup and saw a spare tire that didn''t look much better than the one already on it. I pulled it out and pointed to it.

    He smiled and shook his head. "No bueno."

    I grinned because I knew exactly what those words meant. But I realized why the spare wouldn''t help. Nowhere in the crowded bed of the pickup could I see a jack to lift up the truck, or a wrench to loosen the lugs.

    I pulled out my phone and looked at it. It had miraculously found a signal¡ªonly one bar¡ªbut informed me it was incompatible. I groaned and pointed at the phone. "You have phone?"

    "No telefono, senor."

    I suspected he was waiting along this road in the hopes someone would rescue him too. Just as frustration threatened to drag my wretched mood even lower, I realized we didn''t need no stinking jack or wrench. I crouched next to the tire, using my body to block the old man''s view, gripped a lug, and twisted it.

    It gave with hardly any resistance. I removed the remaining ones and heard a gasp from the old man as I removed the last one.

    He shot another sentence of gibberish at me. I smiled and said, "Me make go vroom, vroom!" and slid one hand quickly along the other like a car taking off to further demonstrate my complete inability to communicate across cultural barriers.

    He backed away uncertainly, his face wrinkling even more with consternation.

    I hated to scare the little man any further, but I really needed to get the wheel on. I motioned him over and he came, albeit a bit reluctantly. I made some vague motions with my hands, showing him he needed to pull the tire off. He shrugged, let out a little sigh, and, I supposed, resigned himself to whatever terrible fate awaited him.

    I lifted the corner of the pickup by the front bumper. It groaned and complained. I hoped the bumper didn''t fall off. The man tugged on the flat tire, giving it his all until it came off and fell to the ground. Then he stooped down and levered the spare into place, pushing it on with a little grunt. I shifted the pickup sideways a foot so the new wheel rested on a flat surface and then set it down and tightened the lugs.

    The little man made a show of flexing his bicep and pointed to me while saying something sounding suspiciously like "muy farta".

    I nodded in agreement and pointed to my bicep. "Farta, my little friend, farta, indeed." I figured it must be Spanish for "strong" as opposed to indigestion brought on by baked beans. At least he hadn''t had a heart attack.

    The little man climbed into the passenger seat of his truck and motioned for me to drive. I decided my lack of a Colombian driver''s license probably didn''t matter out here in the sticks, so I cranked the old truck to life and drove in the direction the old man pointed, namely, straight ahead.

    We reached a town about an hour later, a tiny eye-blink of a place along the seemingly deserted highway. Several small houses dotted the few streets, each one an identical shade of white. They appeared to be constructed of adobe, if their rough-textured exteriors were anything to go by. A few people walking the streets stopped to stare as the pickup puttered along, and a group of kids ran in circles as a small dog yapped and chased them. If this was what passed for entertainment round here, I pitied the fools. Someone needed to put together a care package with some video games.

 Page 17

    The little man pointed down a side road leading through a thick copse of trees and into a large clearing where a two-story abode stood, complete with an old-fashioned pump well in the front, and clotheslines drooping with laundry.

    I parked next to what looked like a Toyota straight out of the dark ages and followed the little man toward the house. A young man, probably in his mid-twenties, a worried expression on his face, stepped onto the front porch and spoke to the old man in rapid Spanish. The old man chuckled and replied, then pointed to me.

    At this point, the young man raced into the house and appeared a moment later with a long wooden staff, which left no question in my mind as to what he was. His eyes wide with fright, he spoke a word. A white glow lit the staff.

    And then he pointed it at me.

    Chapter 11

    Elyssa

    A dark figure blurred past Elyssa and sent two of her guards spinning away. Her training left no hesitation in her response. She delivered a roundhouse to the guard on her left, the blur of her leg just missing Jack as he ducked.

    She checked her spin and drove the heel of her foot down on his head. Momentarily stunned, he reeled back on his butt. Elyssa had sparred with family members plenty of times. None of them ever held back, and if not for supernatural healing, she''d have plenty of bruises to show for it. Maybe even a few scars. But this wasn''t sparring. This felt like a matter of life or death.

    Sprinting down the long driveway, she risked a glance back. Whoever had initiated her escape hadn''t stuck around and the guards were already on their feet and in full pursuit. She faced forward and saw the fence over a hundred yards away. While Elyssa was, without a doubt in her mind, one of the best at sparring, Jack had always been extremely quick on his feet, even before the Divinity had upgraded him from a mere mortal. And the remaining distance gave him plenty of time to catch up. She''d have to¡ª

    "Ungh!" was all she managed to say before crashing to the earth with a heavy weight on her chest. A huge silver wolf leered down at her, its tongue lolling in what might have been amusement, judging by the glimmer in his eyes. She looked between the massive forepaws at the belly of the beast and determined, within seconds, it was definitely a "he". The only lycan she knew of was Ryland. Whoever this person was, it wasn''t him.

    "Get off me!" She struggled against the creature''s strength, but lacked the leverage to dislodge him.

    Jack''s face appeared behind the wolf''s. "I see you''ve met Quinn." He slapped the wolf on the back. "Quinn, this is my little sister, Elyssa."

    The great beast howled.

    "Son of a bitch," Elyssa growled, trying to kick him in the goods.

    He leapt back, tongue lolling. A crowd of Templars gripped Elyssa and snatched her off the ground. One of them punched her in the ribs the moment she was upright.

    "Oof!" she said, unable to move her arms and protect herself.

    "You kick me again, and I''ll break your rib next time," said the aggressor in a youthful female voice.

    Elyssa felt her eyebrow rise. "Tasha?" She was a recruit, one of few females who joined the Templar ranks.

    The girl let the form-fitting mask flow off her face, revealing a tight bun of black hair and dark skin. "We''re sick of this behavior, Elyssa, even if you are sick in the head thanks to friggin'' spawn boy. But don''t expect us to treat you nicely if you keep trying to punch your way free."

    "I don''t exactly see anyone offering to let me go peacefully."

    The girl snorted. "And let you spy on us for the spawn?" She shook her head. "No freaking way."

    "We should''ve knocked her out with sleepers," grumbled another Templar, his face still hidden behind the masked hood.

    "Tell me about it," grumbled another. "Reminds me of the crazy sorcerer chick who set Polinski''s hair on fire."

    Several of them chuckled as they dragged Elyssa along.

    "Ha, ha, laugh it up," said Polinski, his identity betrayed by his short stature and high-pitched northeastern accent.

    The huge silver wolf trotted beside Jack who remained outside the tight circle of Templars.

    "Doesn''t it strike you all as incredibly wrong to do this to me?" Elyssa said. "Polinski, Tasha, you know me. You both trained with me for the past year. How can you believe I would ever betray the Templars?"

    Tasha looked uncertain. "If anyone besides Commander Borathen accused you, I''d tell them to go to hell."

    Polinski retracted his hood by pressing a finger to the neck seam and tilted his head, revealing a round face and brown eyes set beneath a large brow. "I agree with Tasha. Your dad wouldn''t jerk us around. Besides, you''re his daughter. He''d never do this to anyone, much less a family member, unless he knew what he was doing."

    "What if I told you I''ve been investigating Thunder Rock? What if I told you the entire event was a setup designed to set the Templars against the spawn? If you let them do this to me, all the evidence in my head will be lost."

    "We''ll take a recorded statement if you want," Jack said. "But I don''t see how anything you think you know will be any more insightful than our father''s records. He was there. And he''s been doing this for centuries, sis. You''re only eighteen, for god''s sake."

    "So that''s what the spawn woman was doing with you," Polinski said.

    Elyssa nodded. "Exactly! Kassallandra was¡ª"

    "She was using some kind of spawn trick to make you think you knew about Thunder Rock. Then, once you convinced us it was a setup, we''d lower our guard and the spawn would wipe us out."

    "Say what you want about spawn, that Kassallandra chick is smoking hot," said one of the masked men.

    "Shut your mouth, Andrews," said the gravelly voice of Sergeant Oren as he appeared, silent as a ghost next to the group. Elyssa had heard his voice too many times to mistake it for anyone else''s. "And the rest of you shut it too. You''re not to communicate with the prisoner. Understood?"

    "Sir, yes sir!" the group shouted in unison.

    Tasha gave Elyssa one last look of uncertainty before touching the neck seam of her outfit. The black material flowed up her neck, over her head and face, shutting Elyssa out like a door slamming.

    Ten minutes later, they reached the manor.

    "You want to give a statement?" Jack asked.

    "Will you promise to take it seriously?"

    Jack raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

    "Okay, lead the way."

    "Leading the way" consisted of the guards taking her inside the manor, fastening her to a diamond-fiber chair, and standing guard.

    Jack produced a digital recorder and clicked it on. After naming himself, Elyssa, and the witnesses in the room, he asked her what she knew.

    Elyssa explained the best she could. Two major spawn families, House Slade and House Assad, had formed a joint operation to capture Vadaemos Slade and his consort, Orionas Assad. Thomas Borathen had discovered Vadaemos was hiding out at Thunder Rock and, unaware of the spawns'' operation, executed his own bag and tag operation. Instead, everyone except for him was killed in an ambush. He''d assumed the spawn set him up, not knowing both House Assad and Slade had lost all but one person as well. And those survivors returned to their own houses and claimed the other side had betrayed them.

    She kept it simple, leaving out the apocalyptic scenarios depicted by Foreseeance 4311 and the survival of Kevin Sorenson, aka Underborn. Her father might divert resources to capturing the notorious assassin instead of tracking Vadaemos, should he believe her, though she doubted he would.

    Instead, she boiled it down to the essentials, saying Vadaemos wanted spawn and the Templars off his back for good and sowing distrust among an already fragile trust had worked better than he could have dreamed.

    Though Jack listened patiently and even asked a few clarifying questions, it looked obvious to Elyssa he was only going through the motions for his deranged sister.

    "It''s certainly quite an interesting theory," Jack said as he shut off the recorder and gave the data card to a nearby Templar so the information could be transferred to their secure network. "But if all sides were ambushed, then why were the attackers demon spawn?"

    "As I said, the demon spawn involved in the attack weren''t Daemos. They were crawlers, rippers, and chargers, which, if I recall correctly, are creatures native to the demon plane."

    Jack leaned back in his chair. "I think it far more likely none of the Daemos were actually harmed. In fact, I''d be willing to bet a select few Daemos unleashed the creatures and watched the slaughter from the protection of a circle while Templars had their souls devoured." He sighed and leaned forward. "Sis, you''re going off the word of one Daemas. She could be feeding you a story. I imagine it''s hard for you not to believe her after the neat little brainwashing job Justin Slade did on you."

    Elyssa wanted to scream. And then she wanted to beat the crap out of her brother. Again. But none of it would do a bit of good and her window of escape was dwindling to a tiny sliver. In all likelihood, it was already too late to prevent the mind wipe from occurring.

    A sharp rap sounded on the door an instant before it opened. Jack''s eyes widened. Elyssa turned and saw who had entered and felt surprise light up her own face.

    "Michael?" she said.

    He was even brawnier than the last time she''d seen him, his tall hulking frame dominating the room.

    "I''d like a word with my sister," he said, his deep voice almost a growl.

    "Michael, we weren''t expecting you," Jack said, walking to his brother and giving him a hug¡ªone which Michael didn''t return. "I thought you were still¡ª"

    "Alone." Michael crossed his arms and glared at the other Templars.

    They wasted no time clearing out until Jack was the only one left.

    Jack nodded. "Well, we''re alone."

    Michael''s violet eyes blazed momentarily. "Perhaps you don''t understand the definition of ''alone'', brother. I want to have a word or two with my sister without anyone, including you, present."

 Page 18

    "But I''m family."

    "Don''t you dare pull the family card on me, boy. Not when you''re all aboard for white-washing your sister''s mind."

    Jack puffed out his chest. "Commander Borathen¡ªFather¡ªgave me all the information regarding her circumstances and I happen to agree with him. Besides, it''s only a couple months'' worth of memories¡ªnothing that''ll cause serious harm to her mind."

    "You always were the one quickest to jump to Father''s side, Jack. Even when he''s clearly overreacting."

    "Mother agrees as well," Jack said, as if her word should set all doubt aside.

    "Our mother fought tooth and nail to prevent this from happening. But she''s a Templar, first and foremost, bound by the word of our commander." Michael took a step toward Jack. "Now, little brother, may I please have a word with our sister?"

    Jack threw up his hands. "Fine. Just don''t take too long. And be careful. She''s been a handful to control tonight."

    Michael shut the door in Jack''s face even though he''d clearly planned to say more. The lock clicked and it was just the two of them in the windowless room. Elyssa opened her mouth to say something but Michael put a finger to his mouth. He slid a quarter-sized black disc from his pocket, set it on its side, and sent it spinning across the table with a gentle thump. A barely discernible sonic vibration hummed as the disc spun, making it impossible for anyone outside the room to overhear their conversation.

    "Are you here to rescue me?" Elyssa asked, hope rising in her heart, despite Michael''s penchant for unquestioning loyalty for the Templars. He''d rarely gone against their father, but something about him seemed much different than the brother she''d always known.

    Michael sighed and shook his head. "I already tried once but it wasn''t enough."

    "You''re the one who attacked earlier?"

    He nodded. "I didn''t count on Quinn returning from assignment as you were making your escape." He pounded his fist against the wooden table, causing the black disc to jump mid-spin. It landed and continued to rotate as though nothing had happened. "You don''t understand how important it is you and¡ªthat spawn stay together."

    Elyssa strained against her restraints. "He has a name."

    "I know. Doesn''t mean I have to use it."

    "And yet you want us to stay together? What the hell kind of logic is that?"

    "Wanting and needing are two separate things. I don''t care for spawn, never have. But I don''t have the blind hatred toward them Father does."

    Curiosity tickled Elyssa''s brain. "Wait a minute, why do you think it''s so important we stay together?"

    "Suffice it to say it''s very important in the coming days and weeks."

    "Since when do you, of all people, go against one of father''s decisions?"

    His somber eyes darkened. "He''s not in his right mind about this. Then again, few are these days."

    He was keeping something from her, but Elyssa knew from experience how hard it would be to wrest information from her oldest brother. His inner thoughts were locked in a vault he rarely opened for anyone. She skirted the question. "Are you going to give me a speech about Justin after the mind wipe and just hope I''ll believe you?"

    He shook his head. "I don''t know what to do. I was hoping to gain access to a memory recorder, but they''re under lock and key and it''d be too obvious stealing one, especially after arguing with Father about it."

    Elyssa wondered if she dared trust him with the recording she''d made, although at this point, it might be too difficult to retrieve, not to mention messy. But what if this was a plot by her father to make sure she hadn''t made any last-minute efforts to keep her memories? She felt much closer to Michael than she did to Jack, but Michael had always been loyal to the core. The question was, who was he more loyal to, her or the Templars?

    She couldn''t bring herself to take the chance. Odds were good she''d find the recording herself within a few days and hopefully believe everything from her own mouth before anything anyone else told her. She certainly wouldn''t believe Justin, if only because they would be certain to poison her against him.

    "So what can we do?" she asked after a long silent pause.

    "I don''t know. After they''re done with you, I''ll have to convince you Justin is okay. But I can''t be overt about it or then it''ll be me taking the White as well."

    "Or facing the penalty for treason."

    He nodded. "We''re in dangerous waters, Ninjette."

    A smile stole over Elyssa''s face at the sound of the nickname Michael had called her ever since the first time she''d done a flying kick and dislocated his jaw. He''d been seventeen at the time, and she''d been only ten.

    "I''m trying, Michael, but I don''t think I''m going to make it."

    He knelt in front of her and hugged her tight despite the bonds holding her prisoner. When he withdrew, his eyes looked away from her, the shame evident on his chiseled features. "I''ve failed you."

    Elyssa took a deep breath to keep the tears at bay. "No. I''m the one who''s failed. I never should have let things reach this tipping point. I underestimated Father''s reaction and didn''t try to appeal to him. Now everything has reached a boil and I''m in the water." Justin''s face flashed into her mind and pain stabbed into her heart. Her head sagged. "It''s over."

    He kissed her on the forehead. "Be brave. We''ll get through this." Michael snatched the still-spinning disc from the table, went to the door, and opened it.

    Jack stood outside, curiosity plain on his face. "Finished?"

    Michael scowled. "The conversation is." As he walked away, Leia, their mother, walked around the corner, her mouth set in a tight line.

    She walked past her two sons and entered the interrogation room, slammed the door in Jack''s face behind her.

    "You couldn''t listen to reason, could you?" Leia wiped a tear as it escaped the corner of her eye.

    Anger heated Elyssa''s face though sadness tightened her throat. "I followed my heart."

    "I tried to convince Thomas this wasn''t the answer." Leia squatted in front of the chair and looked Elyssa in the eyes. "But after your trip to Thunder Rock and showing up with a Daemas of House Assad, I''m afraid his decision became final."

    "That doesn''t make it right."

    Her mother nodded. "I know. But if we don''t follow orders¡ªif the wife of Thomas Borathen doesn''t follow orders¡ªthe Templars will fall apart. I can''t be the cause of disruption and your father is convinced this will set things right."

    "Or it might wipe out a lot more than just the past two months. It might be the end of us all. Justin is important. I''m supposed to be with him. Why can''t you two just accept I''m not brainwashed? Maybe I''m the one acting rationally while you two are overreacting like a couple of hover parents?"

    Leia pressed a hand to Elyssa''s cheek. "Maybe so."

    Jack cracked open the door and peered in. "It''s time to light the torch."

    Leia nodded. "I''ll be in the escort."

    He smiled. "See, sis? We care about you. This will all be over soon."

    Elyssa clenched her teeth to bite back a brutal retort.

    The other escorts waited outside. Elyssa had hoped Michael would be there as well, but saw no trace of him. She couldn''t blame him. If the positions were reversed, she wouldn''t want to be a part of this travesty either.

    They left the manor through the back door and took the stone path to the chapel. Inside and out, the building looked much like a small church from the dark ages with a three-story tower housing the communionary. The Templars had, in fact, relocated the ancient building from Italy, stone-by-stone, and reconstructed it.

    They entered the chapel and took her inside a room with a pool lined with brilliant white stones. Two female attendants waited there for the ritual bath. She decided not to give them any trouble and emerged fifteen minutes later, dressed in the white ritual robe, to rejoin the others who''d kept a tight guard on the door.

    The group trudged up the spiral staircase to a thick iron door guarding the circular room beyond. A rack held several torches, some Elyssa knew by sight, others she had either never heard of or forgotten. Thomas Borathen stood nearby, his face grim but set in stony determination.

    He gripped the White Torch in his right hand and opened the iron door. "May the Divinity bless you, Templar."

    Elyssa glared at him and thought briefly of kicking the torch from his hand. The handle looked like engraved porcelain but was actually something much stronger, though nobody knew exactly what. The head of the torch also had little in common with its medieval kin as it had no oily rags wrapped around it. Instead, the handle ended in a flat surface with a hole in it. The Novice Torch, Blessed Torch, and other holy torches looked much the same. The Black Torch, an ebony version of the White, was used for executions, though Elyssa had never heard of it being used.

    All thoughts of torches fled from her mind as the Templars led her to the Chair of Communion in the center of the round room and bound her there with diamond fiber. Two shiny black pedestals stood to either side of the statue of a woman who held her arms outstretched in greeting. Thomas placed the torch into a hole atop one pedestal where he knelt and whispered a few words while the other Templars filed out.

    Elyssa''s mother gripped her hand and looked her in the eye for a brief moment before following the others. Thomas finished the ritual prayer and stood.

    "Journey well, Templar," he said, his tone formal, his face betraying not a hint of uncertainty or regret in them.

    "Go to hell, Father."

    A glint of emotion sparked in his eyes before he turned and walked through the door, closing and locking it with a clang, leaving Elyssa in the pitch black of the windowless room.

    Just as she wondered what would happen next, the torch burst into a flame of pure white, illuminating the room like a small sun. Desperate to hold onto her memories, she recited her most treasured moments over and over again, telling the stories in the hope of beating this stupid torch at its own game.

 Page 19

    Nearly half an hour passed, however, and despite the knot of worry in her stomach, none of her memories seemed to have faded in the slightest. Maybe the torch was broken, she hoped. She didn''t know how the others outside would know the ritual was over, though with the Blessed Torch, the candidate rang the bell after receiving the blessing.

    Elyssa thought back to when she''d received the novice blessing and found her memory of the trial to be rather fuzzy. No one was allowed to ask others about the novice trial. Even if she wanted to tell someone about it, the only recollection she had consisted of her father placing the Novice Torch in the pedestal and then of her walking to the rope at the back of the room and tugging it to ring the bell atop the tower. Everything in between was a complete blank. Even stranger, she couldn''t recall thinking about the novice trial a single time since then or wondering about the missing time.

    Did all of the torches screw with memory?

    The ball of nerves pressed harder into her guts. She might pass out and wake up without a single memory of the events inside this room, though she had to say it had been awfully boring up until now.

    The statue shimmered.

    Elyssa stared at it, unsure if it had actually moved or if the torch flame before it had simply played a trick on her eyes. The black pedestals to either side of it crackled with white and black sparks. Jagged bolts of plasma arced into an invisible shield around the statue, looking much like one of the lightning globes she''d seen at a novelty shop in the Grotto once.

    All at once, the jagged arcs dissipated, leaving the room with the faint odor of ozone. The statue seemed different too.

    Elyssa almost shouted when the statue blinked its eyes. Except it wasn''t a statue. It was a woman. And as the woman smiled at her, Elyssa realized she knew this woman.

    And so did Justin.

    Chapter 12

    Staring down the barrel of a glowing magic staff didn''t seem a prudent way to prolong my life. I dove behind the old man''s truck as the young man shouted at me. A female voice joined in the shouting. Someone cried out in pain.

    I risked a peek and saw a dark-haired girl beating the young man with the bristly end of a broom. His staff no longer glowed and he was, in fact, now using it to shield himself from the girl. She looked close to my age, her skin a deep copper hue. For a brief moment, I thought she might be Nightliss, come to rescue me from this madness, but aside from a similar skin tone, her big brown eyes were round and without the exotic slant of Nightliss''s.

    "Senor?" she called, looking at me. "Please come out. My brother is stupido."

    The young man fired back at her in rapid Spanish, his face tight with worry.

    "I''m not dangerous," I said, more for his sake than for the girl''s.

    "What is your kind?" the girl called back in her heavily accented English.

    "If I tell you, promise not to freak out?"

    She quirked an eyebrow. "What is ''freak out''?"

    "Don''t go loco on me." Ah, one more useful word dredged from my meager Spanish database.

    "Okay."

    "Promise?"

    "Si, I promise you."

    I stood up, still keeping the truck between myself and the angry man with a sorcerer staff. His sister might not want to protect me after my next revelation. "I''m spawn."

    She sucked in a breath, pressing both hands to her cheeks. Her brother apparently understood English because his jaw dropped a fraction.

    "Oh my god!" the girl exclaimed and squealed.

    I prepared myself to run as the young man lowered his staff and stared at me.

    The girl rushed over and grabbed me by the arm. "Are you hungry? What is your name? I cannot believe this is happening!"

    "Huh?" I said as she dragged me toward the house.

    The young man spoke with the old one who nodded sagely at whatever he was saying.

    "Um, you know what spawn are, right?" I asked the girl.

    "Of course! You are related to demons. We have been waiting on this day for so long." She took a deep breath and regarded me with her big eyes. "I am so sorry. I forgot to, how you say, introduce ourselves. I am Lina." She pointed at the young man. "This is my brother, Alejandro, and our grandfather, Senor Eduardo Romero."

    I gave them each a nod. "I''m Justin Case¡ªerr, Slade."

    "And you are the one we have waited for?" Alejandro said, hardly a lick of an accent in his English but a whole lot of doubt weighing down his words.

    "I had no idea you were waiting for anyone," I said.

    Eduardo spoke in what sounded like a scolding tone and Lina looked embarrassed.

    "I am so sorry, Justin. You must be very tired, judging from how filthy and smelly you are. Please use our washroom in the hall. You look close to my brother''s size so I will get you a change of clothes."

    I looked at my hands. Rust, mud, and grime coated them and lodged beneath my fingernails. Dirt crusted my ragged jeans and my ripped shirt. I probably looked like a zombie. A very fashionable one. "Yeah, a shower would be great," I said.

    I followed her down the hall to the bathroom. It was a mid-sized affair with a large claw-foot tub squatting atop what looked like a painted concrete floor. A hand shower hung from a hook above the tub. Lina vanished down the hallway and returned a moment later with a towel and a change of clothes.

    "Thanks," I said, before shutting the wooden door and sliding the locking bolt into the frame. The water wasn''t exactly hot, but it felt great to remove the layer of muck off my body. My hair had gone stiff with mud and other grunge from my swim in the river, profuse sweating, and, of course, a healthy dose of plain old dirt.

    Alejandro''s clothes fit reasonably well, though he was a bit shorter, and the jeans hovered a fraction above my ankles. The aroma of food tickled my nose as I emerged from the bathroom. I followed it to the kitchen and found Lina and Alejandro cooking and chatting before the stove while their grandfather rocked in a creaky wooden chair, smiling and drinking green juice. He said something in Spanish and nodded at me.

    "You look much better," Lina said as she sprinkled shredded meat over a flat piece of bread. "And your smell is not as bad."

    "Not as bad? Do I still reek?" I wished fervently for deodorant.

    She laughed. "No, I mean you do not stink. My English is un poco rough."

    "It''s actually really good," I said as my stomach growled.

    She smiled wide. "Thanks." She waved a hand at the small wooden table in the center of the floor, brought a plate over, and set it on the table in front of me. "I hope you like arepas and empanadas."

    I salivated just looking at the food. "I''d eat just about anything right now."

    "Please, go ahead."

    I didn''t need to be told twice. I dug in and finished about the time the rest of them joined me. They ate, speaking in a mix of Spanish and English about the weather and other inconsequential things until my curiosity smashed through my impatience like the Kool-Aid man.

    "Why were you so excited to see me? I don''t usually get a great response when people find out I''m part demon."

    Alejandro glanced at his sister a moment before answering. "We are no ordinary community."

    "So I gathered. You''re obviously a sorcerer. And your English is too smooth for someone so far from any countries where it''s the primary language."

    "Yes. I went to an academy in the United States. English is the preferred language of the Overworld Conclave anyway, so even if I had gone to school elsewhere, I would have learned it." He took a sip of his juice. "Our town is made up mainly of Arcanes. We''re here to guard El Dorado and make sure noms don''t stumble into it."

    "That place is a deathtrap," I said. "I barely made it out alive."

    "Our grandfather said he found you wandering from the only road leading there. When you told us you were spawn, it seemed clear you were the one spoken of in a foreseeance almost eighteen years ago."

    My brain perked up at the mention of a foreseeance. I wondered if it was another foreseeance about me, or 4311. The pages Underborn had given me were fragments of Foreseeance 4311¡ªall he''d been able to collect since most of the foreseers were either dead, crazy, or both. The assassin had also told me those who were behind the upcoming catastrophe had systematically destroyed all copies of the foreseeance. I didn''t know what to believe, but I''d seen enough weirdness since discovering my demonic origins to take more things on faith nowadays.

    "Are you referring to Foreseeance Forty-Three Eleven?"

    Alejandro shook his head and looked questioningly at me. "This is Foreseeance Forty-Two Nineteen."

    "Do you have a copy?" I asked.

    "Several in fact." Alejandro pushed his chair back and stood, reaching for a book atop the pantry shelf behind him. "After the original copy was almost stolen by a rogue vampire, our city council decided it would be wise to keep multiple copies of it and any other foreseeance."

    "You have records of other foreseeances?"

    He shook his head. "Only three or so. True foreseeances are very rare. Some among us believe foresight occurs when a major future event causes ripples across time, not only affecting the future, but also triggering the most sensitive mediums among us in the present. Others think it is because foreseers detect a pattern of events in the present which lead to a certain outcome."

    "Like when a bunch of kids are forced to fight gladiator battles to the death, one of them will eventually rise up, overthrow the government, and fall in love along the way?"

    Alejandro laughed. "That''s a pretty far-fetched series of events, but I suppose it could apply."

    The theories he described were novel, making not only scientific sense, but also appealing to my inner nerd. Sure, magic was cool and all, but I still had a hard time believing it was actually real, even with all I''d been through. Anything related to time travel or seeing the future still seemed too impossible to believe. But I supposed it was possible if something caused a huge splash in the future of the space-time continuum, it might send shockwaves to the past. Still, there were plenty of paradoxical situations that might apply.

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    "Is there any such thing as little foreseeances? Like if little Johnny is going to have explosive diarrhea, would something like that pop up on the radar?"

    "Oh, it has happened before," Lina said, an amused smile lighting her face. "But only because the foreseer knows the person."

    Alejandro nodded. "It''s a very tricky skill."

    "Are you familiar with Foreseeance forty-three eleven?"

    The brother and sister looked at each other and then shook their heads. Whoever wanted 4311 out of circulation had done a good job so far.

    "This is Foreseeance forty-two nineteen," Alejandro said. "The Arcane Council assigns an official designation once it has been vetted by peers and deemed genuine."

    "What does it say?"

    Alejandro opened the book he''d retrieved, pulled a slip of yellowed paper from within, and unfolded it. Even from my position, it was clear the cursive script was not in English so I didn''t ask to see it. The writing filled the entire page, and I ached to understand what it meant. My Spanish teacher would have been so disappointed in me.

    "I will translate as accurately as I can," Alejandro said, "but do not expect the entire thing to make sense."

    "As if these things ever do," I said, thinking back to the snippets of Foreseeance 4311 I had in my backpack.

    Alejandro took a sip of his drink and began. "No, young one! Do not go into the light, for your path lies in darkness and shadow. The light and the dark battle but it is the gray which threatens to overcome both until there is no more light and no more dark, and only the murk between the two. Through gloom will the old masters return, their savage hunger slaked by the harvest of our world.

    "But hope rides fragile wings, for I see the young man in his tattered clothes and filth as he flees the victims of light. And he may yet survive this and emerge from the city of shadow. And if he does, he will find you, guardians. He will appear on your doorstep and reveal his demonic nature for he is half again divided of the immortal world. You must welcome him and tell him though the light has robbed love from the heart of his beloved, hope is never lost and must never be lost if his choice is to prevail in the unmaking or remaking."

    Alejandro looked up from the sheet. "That''s it."

    Lina slid a sheet of paper over to me where she''d written a translated version.

    I puzzled over the words again and again. They seemed to apply to me, especially beginning with how I showed up here. After all, the forsaken place I''d escaped from was, by any definition, a city of shadow. How those dark creatures in El Dorado were the victims of light, I had no idea. They''d seemed more like servants of the dark. But the last part sent a shard of glass deep into my heart.

    ¡­though the light has robbed the love from the heart of his beloved¡­

    Could the sentence possibly be referencing Elyssa? I fought back the desire to smash my fist on the table as frustration and panic took turns twisting my guts. I had to get back to the States. Had her father actually meant what he''d said about erasing her memories? Thomas Borathen didn''t seem like the kind of guy to make jokes.

    Lina rose from her side of the table and took a seat next to me, her brown eyes brimming with curiosity. "What is the matter?"

    I really didn''t want to discuss my love life with strangers so I concentrated on the rest of the stuff on the page. "This foreseeance sounds virtually identical to what I''ve heard before. It always boils down to the ''unmaking'' or ''remaking''. Whatever it''s referring to, you can bet it''s going to be bad."

    "I wonder who the old masters are," she said. "Could they be the same people who built places like the dead city?"

    That was a really good question. The engraving of the blonde woman had looked so much like Nightliss, and Kassallandra had claimed she was an angel. Nightliss¡ªthe human form of her¡ªdidn''t have wings, but what did I know? Heck, if she could turn into a cute little black cat, what prevented her from sprouting wings? And what about Mr. Gray? The mere thought of his amused face sent a chill through my heart.

    I shrugged. "There are huge mosaics in El Dorado. I think the beings depicted there might be the old masters."

    Alejandro leaned forward. "There has been a lot of speculation about those murals. The magic used to seal them from damage is older than the Roman Empire."

    I gave a low whistle and folded my arms. "Everything I''ve read up until now always mentions the light and the dark. But this is the first time I''ve seen anything about the gray."

    "The city council has had many discussions about this foreseeance," Alejandro said. "They think the gray is a metaphor for those who disagree with both the light and the dark and wish to find a middle way."

    "But I told them I think the gray is something created when light and dark fight each other," Lina added. "And I also told them I think the ''gloom'' is not a¡ªhow you say¡ªa description word?"

    "An adjective?" I said.

    She nodded. "Yes. I think it is a noun. The Gloom. The place between planes."

    "Lina thinks a little differently," her brother said with a smile.

    She crossed her arms and pursed her lips at him. "I think smart."

    When I looked over the words again, though, something clicked this time. "It says the old masters will return through gloom. What if they''ll somehow use the Gloom as a path? Maybe they''re locked up in another plane right now, but since the Gloom consists of cracks in reality, it allows them to slip through?" I only knew the little Elyssa had told me about the archways, but the Gloom part stuck out, since falling into one of those cracks could mean you''d be lost forever.

    "And the Gloom is gray," Lina said. "At least from what I have read."

    Alejandro stared at his copy. "If this is true, then the shadow city is full of such rifts in our reality. It''s one reason the city was interdicted. Some believe the rifts are the reason the builders abandoned the site, while others argue they are the result of some great battle or catastrophe."

    "Does Thunder Rock have cracks in reality too?" I asked.

    "Definitely, although they are deep under water. Arcane researchers claim the membrane between planes is very delicate there, making it a dangerous place to build arches. They said the power draw from an arch could rip the barrier between planes wide open and let terrible things into ours."

    "Let me get this straight," I said, feeling the excitement of a nergasm building to epic proportions what with all the inter-dimensional and alternate realities discussion. "El Dorado was once a stable place, whereas Thunder Rock was abandoned before completion because it was too unstable?"

    He nodded. "Or so the theory goes. Some beings require a great deal of power and effort to cross through the barrier between planes and enter ours. But in places like Thunder Rock it might be relatively effortless. Like breaking through wet tissue paper as opposed to diamond fiber walls."

    "It is because of the ley lines," Lina said. "They are usually light and dark in balance. Too much of one can cause rips in reality."

    Their mini-course in dimensional physics stretched another strand of yarn to the Vadaemos thumbtack in the corkboard of my mind. It now made perfect sense why he''d chosen Thunder Rock for his ambush. The creatures he''d used were from the demon plane. What better place was there to bring across an army of dark minions than where the planar membrane was weak?

    Although my mom had blurred certain childhood memories from my mind, a few had returned, namely one where gray men unleashed a true demon to kill both Mom and Meghan Andretti''s mother. The attackers had used a simple slab of plywood studded with nails and copper wire woven into an intricate pattern. A large portable generator had energized it with a torrent of electricity. Somehow¡ªmaybe with the assistance of a spell¡ªit had torn open a portal to the demon plane and nearly sucked me in like a trans-dimensional vacuum cleaner. Obviously, I knew next to nothing about the preparations involved with such a thing, but if it took that much power to pull across one demon, it might be a heck of a lot harder to pull across a horde large enough to kill a squad of Templars and two teams of spawn without perfect conditions.

    "What about the Grotto?"

    Alejandro shrugged. "The Grotto is very stable. Gloom cracks appear only when someone uses an Obsidian Arch, but if any appear at all, they are temporary and short-lived. Bogota has a stable place we call La Casona¡ªThe Big House. But we have also uncovered other unstable relics like Thunder Rock and El Dorado."

    "Hundreds of them all over the world," Lina said.

    All those stars on the map¡ªhundreds of them. Holy crap. It didn''t take long for my brain to process that tidbit of information. "And if your interpretation of this is right, each one is a potential portal for the old masters."

    We were so screwed.

    Chapter 13

    Elyssa

    Nightliss smiled at Elyssa. At least she looked like Nightliss. Except for her golden hair, blue eyes, and fair skin, she could have been a carbon copy of the other woman. Her face, height, and build matched, as did the slant of her eyes. But something in Elyssa''s gut told her this woman was not the same person who turned into a little black cat.

    The newcomer stepped across the room and Elyssa realized the statue itself was still in place. Was it some sort of portal? The black pedestals to either side of it must somehow create a gateway. She''d never seen anything like it.

    Elyssa finally found her voice. "Who are you?"

    "Is it not clear, child?"

    "You''re the Divinity?" No written record describing the Divinity existed as far as she knew. The most anyone remembered was a flash of light. Elyssa had always imagined it to be a glowing ball or something funky like the Flying Spaghetti Monster, not a woman who popped out of statues. Kassallandra had called Nightliss an angel, a notion Elyssa found absolutely ridiculous at the time. But if that was true, could it mean this woman was an angel as well?

    Golden blonde hair spilled down the other woman''s shoulders as she held a hand to Elyssa''s forehead. "I do not often see the White, but it has recorded the ritual words and here I am. Fear not, child, for it will take only¡ªah!" She jerked her hand back and held it against her body as if she were in pain. Her kind blue eyes turned hard. "So. You are the one."

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    "One what?" Though the woman was petite like Nightliss, Elyssa had learned the hard way size rarely mattered when it came to supernaturals, and the Divinity looked pissed.

    "How problematic this is," the blonde woman mused, putting a finger to her chin as she sank into thought. "We had hoped to possess the other, but the White will suit you nicely."

    "What are you talking about?" Elyssa said, struggling futilely against the diamond straps holding her fast. "I don''t want my memories erased."

    "Yes, yes, it will work out better than expected," the Divinity said, as if she hadn''t heard a word. "She will forget him. He will go mad trying to win her favor once again, and the factions will be thrown into even greater disarray. Oh, why can''t my mind work like it did before the Scattering? The pieces fit together but not like they should. Scattered like my children. The four corners of Eden. My poor little ones."

    The woman sounded absolutely mental. And this was the entity at the core of Templar power? Did Father know about this? Did anyone? Elyssa had to figure a way out of this mess. Convince the Divinity to leave her alone. So she played the only card in her deck and hoped it wasn''t a joker.

    "Do you know Nightliss?"

    The Divinity stopped her rambling mid-sentence and looked with wide eyes at Elyssa. In a split second, she was leaning over her, blue eyes blazing. "How do you know this accursed name?"

    "Wow, you two don''t get along?"

    "Tell me how you know this name, child."

    "I''ve met her. She looks just like you only a little more tanned."

    Shock exploded in her eyes and she backed away from the chair. "No, this can''t be true. A Darkling, here? They''re gone. All gone. We made certain."

    Elyssa wanted to scream and hope someone might hear her. But she knew it would be futile. The acoustics of the stone kept any sounds from escaping, according to her Templar History class, and no one would come to her aid anyway. But she had to let someone know the Divinity was a stark raving lunatic. How had the Templar order lasted this long? More importantly, what was this woman and why was she helping the Templars? Provoking her to further hysteria might not help, but Elyssa didn''t know what else to do.

    "Is she your twin?" When the other woman took no notice of the question, Elyssa tried a different approach. "Is Nightliss your twin?"

    The name drew the woman¡¯s attention like a slap to the face. The Divinity anchored her gaze into Elyssa''s. "We all have our dark sides, child. But not us, not my people. We purged the darkness from ourselves long ago. We are pure. But the dark ones continue to haunt us. They want what is ours but can never have it." She sliced the air with a hand, leaving a blazing trail of pure white energy in its wake.

    Elyssa felt the warmth as the brilliant arc faded and hoped the other woman didn''t accidentally roast her. "And Nightliss is a dark one, a Darkling?"

    "I must feed," the woman said. "This is too much." She glanced at Elyssa. Reached a hand toward her and spread her fingers.

    A tingling sensation started in Elyssa''s heart and worked its way down her arms, leaving a trail of warmth all the way to her fingertips. Pressure built like water in a clogged hose within each finger until white energy burst from the pores and whorled into the outstretched palms of the Divinity. Rather than pain, Elyssa felt the lethargic embrace of peace settle over her. Her mind fought back with every Templar trick she knew to prevent a leecher from feeding, but none of them worked, not against the gravity of this woman''s will.

    Taking the White meant nothing compared to this. Instead of a mind-wiped daughter, her parents would find a withered corpse. Or something even worse.

    Justin, I love you.

    Something black and smoky drifted from her fingertips, mixing with and fouling the pure white energy. The Divinity shrieked and leapt back, severing the connection and brushing her hands against her simple white dress as if spiders were racing up it.

    "You are filled with darkness, child. Corrupt and filthy. My sister has ruined you."

    "Aha! So Nightliss is your sister."

    The madness in the other woman''s eyes seemed to have faded, because she contemplated Elyssa with narrowed eyes and focus, something not present in the woman''s demeanor before she''d tried to drain the energy from Elyssa¡¯s body.

    "In a manner of speaking. We are all related and have been since far before Eden had anything of value to offer."

    It was the second time this woman had used that name. "Eden? Like the garden of Eden?"

    "It is the name of your realm." Her tone indicated it as a simple state of fact.

    The certainty in her voice filled Elyssa with both dread and awe. How old was this woman¡ªthis being? "How did you become the Divinity?"

    "This realm required a beacon of light and order. I required protection from my enemies during my long, lonely time here."

    "Who are your enemies?"

    "None I need name before you, child."

    Elyssa paused a moment before blurting out the next question. A question so important she could hardly contain the anxiety accompanying it. "Are you an angel?"

    The Divinity laughed, a beautiful note of crystalline clarity. "Your people have called us many things. Are you aware ''angel'' simply means ''messenger''?

    "It also means ''messenger of God''," Elyssa shot back, feeling a bit smug about one-upping the Divinity even if it was on something really minor.

    "If you are referring to winged beings with glowing halos, then yes, we have taken such guises for your kind. However, we are more. So much more. But if it calms your inadequate little mind by affixing a name to our being, then do so and I shall not judge you harshly."

    Elyssa''s eye twitched. Oh, this bitch was all about the judging. "What''s your name?"

    The woman smiled. It was an amused smile. But it also scared the crap out of Elyssa because something twisted and evil seemed to lurk behind those beautiful red lips. The smirk reminded Elyssa uncomfortably of Marjorie Foreman, the evil queen of after-school detention who had put her and Justin through a week of hellish punishments, including cleaning out the school cafeteria grease traps.

    "You may call me Daelissa for the short period remaining to us. Afterward, I fear you shan''t remember a thing about this conversation. In fact, the taint upon your mind your father wishes removed may be the cause of much distress in your pathetic life. You will be happier once it is gone. Perhaps it will even purge the darkness from you."

    "Actually, I''m pretty happy as I am. Oh, and the darkness inside me? That''s called Goth. I''d like to hang onto it."

    "Child, there are other far more important reasons to remove this taint. It appears as though you may stand in the way of our champion and prevent our light from returning to this realm. Do not allow your petty concerns to obstruct the light."

    A cold lump settled into Elyssa''s chest as she realized exactly what this woman was saying. "Who''s your champion?"

    A perfect blonde eyebrow rose on Daelissa''s face. "Once you are cleansed, perhaps you''ll live long enough to see for yourself."

    Ignoring the arctic cold fear raising bumps on her skin, Elyssa tried for another tidbit of information. "Are you the only one of your kind here?"

    "Am I not enough?" A smug smile lifted her lips. The woman seemed narcissistic to the point of puke-worthiness.

    Elyssa decided shake her up again. "Are there more Darklings like Nightliss here?"

    Daelissa recoiled. "I should hope not! Their scourge would only hasten the corruption of this realm to the point of no return. They were banished, each and every one, long ago to the Pitch."

    "Pitch? As in pitch black?"

    "I am weary of this discussion, child. But before I bless you and remove the taint, you must tell me where you saw this Darkling and where I can find her."

    Elyssa didn''t have a clue where to find Nightliss. Maybe she was back to pretending to be a cat with Stacey, for all she knew. The last she''d seen of the woman had been just before Kassallandra yelled at her in the forest. "I saw her at my high school. As for where she is now, I have no idea."

    "Did she leak darkness?"

    "Uh, she looked fine to me. Tanned, spunky, and cute."

    Daelissa sighed. "Pathetic. Our absence has allowed this realm to fester with ignorance and darkness. So many gifts we have given you, and yet you allow them to be used for purposes contrary to our hopes."

    "Gifts? You mean like the blessing for Templars abilities?"

    "Oh yes, and many more, though apparently some humans have developed interesting gifts on their own. That, I must admit, was unexpected. We have yet to see the like in other realms." A tiny moan escaped her throat. "Though with the near destruction of the Grand Nexus, we may never have the chance to discover more."

    Elyssa felt torn. Daelissa might actually be good, albeit a bit twisted and insane after decades or centuries of isolation from her kind. Or maybe she and her kind were warped and evil as a whole. They might all be leechers who wanted to use Earth as an all-you-can-eat buffet. And what were these other gifts Daelissa spoke of? Had they granted other beings supernatural abilities as well?

    Underborn''s warnings flashed back into her mind. He had told her and Justin an organization was undermining the various factions, while Foreseeance 4311 warned of a huge catastrophe lurking on the horizon. Daelissa might be a part of it. Or Nightliss might be playing sweet, luring Justin into a false sense of security. One claimed to represent light while accusing the other of being full of darkness.

    "How long ago was the Grand Nexus damaged, Daelissa?"

    The other woman''s icy eyes met hers. "Two thousand years ago. Perhaps three thousand. I have long stopped counting."

    Two or three thousand years ago? Elyssa could hardly imagine living so long. And this woman¡ªthis being¡ªhad probably been alive much longer.

    "The gifts have been misused," Daelissa said, more to herself than Elyssa. "They must be reclaimed. Taken away from the abusers. Only those who walk in our light will keep their rewards." Her words trembled with notes of insanity again. Apparently, what little sustenance she''d drawn from Elyssa hadn''t lasted long.

 Page 22

    Her rambling continued, some of it in a musical language Elyssa found very familiar. If only she had a way to record this. The information was too important to forget. But whenever Daelissa recovered her wits, she''d wipe it all from her mind and nobody would have a clue the Divinity was really a deranged lunatic from another plane of existence, not to mention a member of the race who had created the Grotto and its sister sites.

    Father would just die if he knew any of this.

    The thought of his ignorance almost made her smile. Almost. The hopelessness of the situation murdered the smile before it could reach her lips. She glared at the strap around her right hand and pulled hard as she could, but it didn''t budge. The paint near the arm straps on the chair bore numerous scratches, as if people before her had also struggled against these very same bonds and failed.

    Frustration built like a rising flood of anxiety, gripping her insides and squeezing. She jerked and strained again, but only succeeded in adding another scratch to the cheap paint. In a flash of inspiration, it occurred to her what she could do. It wasn''t much, but maybe, just maybe, she would see it and remember.

    The chair''s armrests were a little wider than her forearms and extended past the palms of her hands where they ended in a hand-sized circle. Using the fingernail of her right forefinger, she pressed it against the paint and scratched in a final and very short message. With her left hand, she inscribed a tiny bit more. It took only a few seconds, thanks to a combination of hand strength and the crappy paint on the diamond fiber chair. It wasn''t much to go on, but it was better than nothing.

    Daelissa abruptly ceased her rant as clarity shone through the cloud of dementia in her blue eyes. "I must go, child. But first, the ritual must be completed." She held a hand toward the White Torch and pressed a hand to Elyssa''s forehead.

    Tears gathered in Elyssa''s eyes and trickled down her cheeks.

    Justin, I love you. Don''t forget Justin. Hold on, girl. Hold on! Stay with me Justin!

    The world vanished in a flash of blinding white light.

    Chapter 14

    I heard Elyssa calling out to me, crying for help. I followed her voice down endless corridors, which morphed into cavernous rooms, each one darker than the last until I couldn''t see a thing. The world was dark and the darkness alive. I wandered, hopelessly lost in a morass of twisting, black tendrils, and my night vision refused to flicker on.

    Cold hands gripped my wrists, my legs, and pulled from all sides. It was all I could do to hold myself together, to keep the unseen creatures from tearing me to bits. Pain built from a low burn to the sharp stab of agony as muscles failed and flesh tore.

    "Help!" I shouted. "Someone help me!"

    A brilliant mote of dark light drifted from somewhere above, falling toward me like a snowflake infected by ultraviolet starlight. Screams echoed from every side and the icy grips weakened and vanished, leaving me almost alone. As the speck of light drew level with my eyes, I held out a hand and caught it before it reached the floor. I expected it to be hot or at the very least, warm. Instead, I hardly felt its presence.

    "I love you, Justin." Elyssa''s voice sounded so muted and tiny, coming from the speck of light as it did. "I will always love you. Help me."

    I held the speck to my ear but no other sounds emanated from the bit of stardust.

    "Elyssa?" I called. "Elyssa, answer me!"

    The brilliant light flickered. Dimmed. Died.

    The sound of countless moist bodies wriggling and squirming toward me caught my ears. Closed in from all sides. Icy cold ripped into my flesh. Tore me to bits.

    I awoke with a shout. Fumbled for a lamp and found it. When I turned it on, I saw pink walls and frilly purple bed covers. A soft teddy bear regarded me from the nightstand. Lina had given me her room to sleep in, I remembered.

    "It was just a dream," I said. "Just a nightmare." But deep down I knew it wasn''t a simple nightmare. I''d had dreams like this before, dreams connecting Elyssa and me in ways I didn''t understand. The last time it had happened, I''d been dying or mostly dead after Meghan had used my blood to save Stacey from an infected hellhound bite. Elyssa, glowing with an ultraviolet aura, had visited me in the dream and told me she was my light in the dark.

    I shuddered at the significance of the dream I''d just had. Did this mean Elyssa had been mind-wiped already? Even worse, had something horrible happened to her? My heart thudded with anxiety and pain. Sweat gathered on my forehead. I pulled out my phone, but there was still no signal. Not like it mattered. I''d asked to use a phone but the tiny town didn''t have landline phones and it was nearly forty miles down the road to get a signal on a cell phone¡ªa signal which was incompatible with my phone. Alejandro told me he would take me outside town to a place I could get a signal and use his cell phone. But it wouldn''t be until tomorrow. Damn it, I should have insisted he drive me out there after dinner.

    My stomach growled even though it was still full from the meal earlier in the evening. My demon blood cried for essence, making me feel hollow. I''d ignored the feeling all evening, unwilling to latch onto any of my hosts, not just because they might detect my efforts to feed off them, but also because it was just plain rude.

    The bedroom door creaked and Lina poked her head into the room. "Are you okay? I heard a shout."

    I nodded. "Just a nightmare."

    She tiptoed into the room and shut the door behind her. "You frightened me. What was it about?"

    I couldn''t help but notice she wore a pair of tight short-shorts displaying the contours of her smooth brown legs and a purple tank-top adhering to her curves like a second skin. "Oh, nothing much. A bunch of monsters tore me to bits and probably ate me. I wouldn''t know. I was dead by then."

    She grimaced, her big brown eyes reflecting the lamplight. Then she took a seat on the foot of the bed. "I wanted to ask you something, Justin."

    "Fire away." My stomach made a noise like a starving Wookie. I winced with embarrassment.

    "Are you hungry?"

    "That''s what you wanted to ask me?"

    She smiled. "No, but your stomach is making funny noises."

    I shrugged apologetically. "It''s not food I need."

    Understanding lit her face. "Oh, demon hunger. I have never seen spawn feed, but heard it is very interesting." Despite her strong Spanish accent, her English seemed mildly improved from earlier and I wondered if she''d been practicing.

    A chuckle escaped me. "Yeah, if you''re into voyeurism. When I was first learning to control it, I had a few interesting experiences." Interesting was hardly the word to use, considering I''d nearly had sex with a woman in the grocery store and my gym trainer all thanks to my special incubus temptations.

    "How does it work?"

    "Well, I feed off of a person''s essence, mainly through emotions. The more positive the emotion, the better it ''tastes''." I made air quotes.

    "And what emotion tastes the best?"

    I wondered if I should be discussing this with her at all. It felt kind of strange and embarrassing to tell someone what rocked my socks when it came to leeching. "Happiness is pretty good."

    "Is it the best?"

    I pursed my lips. "Well, in my experience, the biggest rush comes with love or lust."

    "Yes. I imagine sex would be very tasty." Her throaty Spanish accent made it sound all the more sensual. Then again, she could make peeling potatoes sound alluring with that accent.

    I licked my lips and cleared my throat as the room suddenly became much hotter. She looked so innocent but sounded oh-so sexy.

    She bit her lower lip and smiled. "Why do you look at me so strange?"

    I tore my eyes from her full lips and did my best to recover. "Uh, I''ve just never heard it put that way before." I would have tugged at the collar to my shirt but realized I wasn''t wearing one. I almost pulled the sheets over my exposed nipples.

    "If you are hungry, would you like to feed?" She held out her arm, wrist up. "From me?"

    The demon inside me clapped its hands, jumping up and down with glee while the responsible nerd wagged a finger. I didn''t need the nerd to point me in the right direction. "I, um, it wouldn''t be right of me." Elyssa would kill me for feeding off someone with such great, err, teeth. Yeah, she has great teeth all right.

    She scooted closer to me, her dark eyes giving me a look I''d seen before. Puppy dog eyes. Kiss me eyes. Her shorts barely reached halfway down her flawless copper thighs, and the purple tank top she wore pressed against small breasts and a flat stomach, showing me curves my libido wanted to ride like a sexual roller coaster.

    "Lina," I said, placing a hand on her warm shoulder. "I can''t."

    "But you are so interesting, Justin. I only want to see what it feels like."

    "I have a girlfriend."

    Her eyes tightened for a moment before relaxing once again. "I am not asking for sex. If the foreseeance is true, Justin, the world needs you, and I want to give you what you need." She scooted even closer and my blood temperature spiked to volcanic temperatures. "Do you not need it?"

    Need it? What I really needed was for the tidal wave of testosterone in my bloodstream to calm down before it lobotomized the brain in my head and put the other one in charge. The hunger for essence howled like a mad wind through a hollow space in my belly, clawing at my insides until I felt myself hovering on the edge of sanity. I had to do something or it was likely I¡¯d really lose control. Lina might as well be offering an alcoholic the key to the liquor store. I trembled, a junkie staring at a mountain of cocaine.

    Before my raving teenage hormones washed all reason from my mind, I sent out a tendril and latched it onto the halo of golden light around Lina''s body. As I did, I sensed curiosity, longing, and no shortage of lustful feminine need. With every ounce of effort I had, I homed in on the curiosity, thinking it might be the safest emotion to equalize with my own. Anything to keep lust from overwhelming her. A slight trickle of warm essence rewarded me and our mutual lust faded into the background.

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    Her dark eyes shimmered in the lamplight and she smiled. "I feel connected to you. It is so strange to look into your eyes and know a part of you is inside me, taking what it needs. What it wants."

    Another wave of lust coursed through my body. I beat it back down by thinking about Elyssa and her fierce violet eyes as I touched her soft cheek. Before things spiraled out of control, I had to tell Lina about my girlfriend. So I gave her an abbreviated version of mine and Elyssa''s history, and told her about the nightmare. Talking about the woman I loved dimmed the lust I felt for Lina to almost nothing, and made feeding easier. I wanted nothing more than to feel Elyssa''s soft lips pressed against mine. No other woman compared.

    Tears sparkled in Lina''s eyes by the time I was done, and it was all I could do to keep the bitter taste of sadness and disappointment from fouling our connection.

    "How romantic," she said in her cute accent. "But so tragic as well. You will stop her father from doing such a terrible thing to her, yes?"

    "I think it might be too late. I think she''s already been mind-wiped."

    "The dream told you this?"

    I shrugged. "I''ve learned ignoring dreams of this kind are dangerous. I absolutely have to get back home. I have to save her and figure out a way to make her father accept me."

    "And you think answers about what happened at Thunder Rock would help?"

    I nodded. "The ambush caused him to hate spawn. I have to prove they had nothing to do with it. From what I understand, he didn''t have a beef with them before the massacre went down."

    "You should take the arch at La Casona in Bogota. It is very expensive, but maybe we can find a way to pay for it. You can reunite with your girlfriend if her memory of you is still there."

    Taking another arch was not what I wanted to do. But it seemed the fastest way home. "How do I get to Bogota from here?"

    "It is almost twenty hours by bus. Maybe more."

    "You don''t happen to have any flying carpets do you?" I asked, remembering when I''d seen the novelty items floating around the Grotto.

    She laughed. "I do not know of any."

    "Isn''t there a faster way to get to Bogota? This town is full of sorcerers, for goodness sake."

    "I am sorry, Justin, but I do not know of a magical way to get from here to Bogota."

    I groaned. On the upside, my demon tummy was feeling better so I cut myself off from Lina. Her eyes popped wide.

    "You just pulled out, didn''t you?"

    My face went hot at her choice of words. "I disconnected."

    "You are already full?"

    "Full enough. I''ll get by." I leaned back against the headboard. "When does the bus leave?"

    "The buses leave all day, but it is two hours from here to the town with the bus depot. We will take you there whenever you wish."

    "I want to leave tomorrow."

    Her eyes grew sad. She placed a hand on mine and squeezed. "I wish you could stay longer. You are the most exciting thing to happen to me."

    I laughed. "Exciting is not always a good thing. Just ask my friend Shelton."

    "Who is he?"

    "A sorcerer. I think I''ve made his life more interesting than he wants."

    Lina yawned wide. Smiled sheepishly. "I think I will go to bed, Justin. Sleep well."

    "Good night, Lina. And thanks."

    She kissed me on the cheek and slipped out of the room. I lay back down, rubbing my cheek and doing my best not to think about Elyssa and what my nightmare meant.

    After breakfast the next morning, Alejandro, Lina, and I piled into the pickup truck. Their grandfather, Senor Eduardo, waved goodbye from the front porch as Alejandro drove around the unpaved circular driveway. A narrow dirt road bordered by a dense canopy of trees and underbrush connected their home to the main road in town.

    "There is a spot about sixty kilometers from town where you can use my cell phone to call home," Alejandro said, showing me what looked like an ordinary cell phone as opposed to the ones made by Orange and MagicSoft. "We should have a signal by then."

    But as we reached the end of the long driveway, a beat up old van appeared from the right and honked its horn at us.

    "What''s going on?" I asked, an uneasy feeling bubbling up in my stomach.

    Alejandro stopped the truck and looked at the other vehicle. "I don''t know. Wait here while I check."

    He hopped out and walked toward the van. Two figures got out. Men with staffs. Arcanes. They spoke for a moment before Alejandro turned around and came back. The two men didn''t seem angry or threatening, but the mere fact they''d stopped us couldn''t mean anything good.

    "They want you to meet with the council," Alejandro said when he came back.

    I looked around. "Who, me?"

    He nodded. "I told them you only wish to go home, but they insisted."

    I growled. "How did they know I was here?"

    "Several people saw you driving through town with Grandfather. From there it probably took five minutes before everyone else knew."

    "But what makes them think I''m not just some average Joe passing through?"

    "Old Bella told them you were the one the minute she heard about you."

    "Who?"

    "She''s the one who foresaw your coming all those years ago."

    "Fine, fine! Can we just get it over with?" It took all my willpower not to just jump out of the truck and dash through the woods. But where would I go? I had no idea where the bus depot was, and I''d run myself ragged in the middle of nowhere, knowing my luck. On the other hand, one of the crazies who did these foreseeance things was here. My curiosity was definitely piqued. Maybe this Old Bella woman could enlighten me.

    Alejandro signaled the other sorcerers, who hopped back into their van. We followed them less than two blocks before parking in front of a large one-story building standing next to a grocery store. A group of chickens strutted around in front, clucking and pecking at the dirt.

    We entered the building, revealing a large room filled with foldout chairs arranged in a haphazard circle. A large yellow cooler sat atop a stout wooden table along with an assortment of food, mainly rice and beans with fried eggs on top¡ªexactly what I''d just eaten for breakfast. I hoped they had good ventilation in this room after everyone chowed down on all those beans.

    A little old woman sat at the other end of the room. Old Bella, I presumed. I walked over to her and took a neighboring seat. She took my hands in both of hers and kissed me on both cheeks.

    After I recovered from the surprise of her Colombian greeting, I remembered what I''d wanted to say. I smiled. "Look, I know you think I''m someone important and all, but I really need to get home. My girlfriend is in danger, and there''s a big crap storm about to take a dump on my hometown. Maybe you can clarify a few things now, or friend me on Facebook and we''ll chat."

    The old woman smiled and nodded. Her wrinkly hand gripped mine and she said something in Spanish.

    Just great. I motioned Alejandro over. "Can you tell me what she''s saying?"

    He listened for a moment. "She says you''re a handsome young man and if she was younger, she would marry you in a second and teach you things only an older woman can."

    I blushed¡ªI didn''t know why after all the scandalous comments and actions I''d endured from Stacey and Elyssa¡ªand smiled stupidly at her. I looked to Alejandro. "Will you tell Bella I really can''t stick around?"

    "Sure, if you want. But she speaks English."

    "Then why''d she answer me in Spanish?"

    A confused look came over Alejandro''s face for a moment before he laughed and shook his head. "This is Grandma Lola. She''s not a sorceress, but she likes to sit in on the meetings." He pointed a thumb over his shoulder at a short, dark-haired girl who couldn''t have been more than twenty. "That''s Old Bella."

    "You people really need your eyes checked if you call her old." I shook my head and, after kissing Grandma Lola goodbye on the cheeks, strode across the room to the girl¡ªyoung woman, whatever. I noticed her violet irises the moment she looked at me. "You''re a dhampyr?"

    A smile brightened her pretty face as she gripped one of my hands in both of hers. "Exactly, my dear. It is so wonderful to finally see this day come." Her accent sounded different from the others¡ªnot entirely Spanish, and every bit as fluent in English as Alejandro.

    She stood on tiptoes and graced my cheeks with the touch of her lips. I decided it must be a Colombian thing and wasn''t sure if I should return the favor or not. "Uh, I didn''t realize dhampyrs could foresee stuff. I thought future vision was something Arcanes do."

    "It''s all magic, young man. I am the daughter of a sorceress who, unfortunately, was turned by vampires. She took her own life nearly a century ago to rid herself of the curse. I followed in her professional footsteps and practice the arcane arts."

    "My mom''s a sorceress too," I said, ignoring the sharp stab in my abdomen at the mere thought of my traitorous matriarch. "One of my friends told me I should study magic."

    She reached up, pressed a hand to my forehead, and closed her eyes for a moment. "Yes, I can see potential in you."

    "How can you tell? Is it like midi-chlorians?"

    "Midi what?" Her expression turned bemused.

    "Never mind. Do I have a lot of potential? Or crappy?" My nerves knotted. What if my magic mojo was poop?

    "Potential is very hard to measure, young man. And it is like a muscle. The more you use it, the greater it grows. That is not to say some people don''t have a natural advantage. Some are better at conducting large amounts of raw power while others have less strength, but finer control. Neither is better, simply different."

    "Do you think it''d come in handy if I learned some magic spells before all the bad stuff from your foreseeance happens?" I had visions of driving into the dense rainforests of Colombia to search for the Overworld version of Yoda in the quest to save my friends.

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    She smiled. "It couldn''t hurt. Foreseeances are tricky things. I never place much stock in them myself."

    "But you''re the one who foresaw this crap storm!" My forehead wrinkled with consternation.

    She smiled. "As my mentor Beulah used to tell me, ''Honey, you''re having an episode''." She perfectly mimicked the genteel accent of a southern belle with the last bit, laughing afterward. "What a character."

    "Wait a minute¡ªare you talking about Beulah T. Atkinson?" Her name was on the list of foreseers Underborn had given me. Most of them were listed as dead. Beulah remained one of the few living ones, as far as I knew.

    "She came down here to mentor me once I discovered my sensitivity to future shock."

    This woman might have answers. Better yet, she might have insight into the mysterious sentences Underborn had given me. It might be worth hanging out a little longer if I could get more info. But first, I had to call Dad and the others. Right after the meeting.

    I decided to wait before pummeling Bella with more questions, instead watching her greet the people piling in, each one giving me curious looks, and some hanging around behind Bella. Maybe they wanted a chance to speak with me, or maybe they were just sizing me up. Bella looked around the room and motioned for me to take a seat next to her. An older man closed the front door and stood with his back to it.

    Bella stood and smiled. "Welcome council and citizens. We have long guarded El Dorado, the dark city of shadows, and hidden its terrible truths and secrets. Over eighteen years ago, I foresaw the coming of a tattered young man from the dead city. Though my words were mysterious, we now have hope of discovering the deeper meaning behind this mystery."

    As she continued to speak, I looked around the room and noticed a smattering of ethnicities. Though the majority of people looked Hispanic, this place was obviously a hub for Arcanes from all over the world. It also explained why she spoke in English.

    "Justin," Bella said, turning to me, "would you enlighten us on this Foreseeance Four-Three-One-One Alejandro told me about?"

    Great. As if explaining it all over again was going to help. But I forged ahead anyway, going so far as to pull the papers out of my backpack and reading back the few mysterious snippets of 4311 Underborn had managed to recover. I read each one as the audience dutifully took notes, making me feel like Oprah Winfrey giving diet tips.

    After an hour of discussion, the council was no closer to deciphering the foreseeance than I was. Though my internal clock was painfully aware of each passing minute and desperately eager to be on the road, another part of me realized getting this information out there was exactly what I needed. There had to be some geeky Arcane with the answer. And the other side¡ªwhoever they were¡ªwouldn''t be able to suppress the information any longer.

    "It is a shame this foreseeance was blockaded by the enemies of truth," Bella told me after she called for a break so everyone could stretch their legs. "For so many foreseers to have had a similar vision, the upcoming event must be catastrophic indeed."

    "Didn''t you have your foreseeance about me around the same time as forty-three eleven?"

    "If Underborn''s dates are correct, it would appear my foreseeance occurred on almost the same day."

    "When you say ''occurred'', do you mean you can''t control this prophecy stuff?"

    She smiled. "There are very few who can activate foresight, and even fewer still who can control it enough to see farther than a day or two ahead."

    "Isn''t there a way to re-see the thing?"

    She tapped a finger on her chin. "What an interesting question. One of the major theories of foresight is the Ripple Event, which theorizes a major event in the timeline will cause ripples traveling not only into the future, but into the past as well, like a stone in a lake. When a ripple washes over our present, it triggers a foreseeance. For something so far into the future to trigger a ripple reaching back almost two decades, it must be the metaphorical equivalent of a boulder in a lake."

    "But if it already happened in the future, can it be changed?"

    "There are entire courses on that very question. I happen to agree with the corollary, which states such a ripple is only a potential event as two opposing paths in our present converge. Others argue there is no such thing as free will and our destiny is written in stone, much like Oedipus."

    "Remind me never to take those courses," I said, pressing a hand to my forehead to ward off a headache. "For one thing, your ripple theory doesn''t explain how you knew I''d show up in your town. It''s not like I rode in bareback on a dragon, and nothing exploded when I got here either. So the boulder in the lake theory doesn''t hold water. On the other hand, I sure hope we do have free will because killing my dad and marrying my mom doesn''t appeal to me in the slightest."

    A cute laugh tinkled from her throat. "Dragon riding and explosions are not the only sorts of major events, young man. The mere fact you survived and arrived here is obviously of great import and my physical nearness to the future event is probably why I alone experienced it."

    "Will you stop calling me a young man? I know you''re older than you look, but it''s kind of creepy when a cute girl is talking like an old lady."

    Another giggle escaped her lips. "I know, I know. I suppose living so long will do such things to your perspective even if the same person stares back at me in the mirror every day."

    I smiled, hoping my comment hadn''t come across as too harsh. "Look, I''m smart enough to realize helping you guys decipher this stuff will help all of us, so I''m willing to stay longer. But I absolutely have to call my dad and girlfriend and let them know I''m okay. Can Alejandro take me outside town so I can use his cellphone?"

    Bella raised an eyebrow. "There''s no need." She reached inside a large, very pink Hello Kitty purse under her chair and pulled out a phone wrapped in a Hello Kitty case. I wondered if she wore Hello Kitty underwear like Elyssa. She pressed the top edge of the phone and an Orange logo appeared onscreen. With a swipe of her thumb, the virtual orange peeled naked and the home page of her smartphone appeared. The signal strength boasted two solid bars.

    "How in the world do you get a signal?"

    "Magical signals are stronger out here, even if we are miles from the powerful ley lines beneath El Dorado."

    "And I can call a nom phone with this?"

    "Of course!" Her eyes sparkled with amusement. "Arcphones are far more versatile than what the noms inaccurately refer to as smartphones."

    Pulling out my cell phone, I scrolled through and found Elyssa''s number. My memory had gone soft relying on a contact list. I dialed her number. Less than a second later, a ''service disconnected'' message responded. Fear clenched my stomach. I dialed Dad''s cell number. His voice mail answered immediately, short and to the point: "Leave a message."

    I almost hung up, but decided leaving a message was the smart thing to do. "Dad, I wanted to let you know I''m fine, but I''m stuck in Colombia in a small town near El Dorado. Please call me back at this number when you get this message." I recited Bella''s number.

    Scrolling through my contacts, I found Shelton''s number and dialed. His returned a ''service disconnected'' and suspicion crept into my mind. Then again, maybe Shelton had changed numbers after the messes I''d dragged him through. I didn''t have Smith''s number because he didn''t have one. I called his sister, Felicia, but reached voice mail. Since she was back with Maximus, supposedly undercover, I decided leaving a message wasn''t a good idea. Stacey didn''t have a cell phone, and I didn''t know Ryland''s number. Calling Katie wouldn''t help. She might know about the Overworld now, but drawing her into my affairs would only get her killed. Both Ash and Nyte, my friends from normal high school, remained blissfully unaware of the supernatural world, and I wanted it to stay that way. I was out of options. My last fragile hope rested on Dad hearing his message.

    "Any luck?" Bella asked as I handed the phone back to her.

    I shook my head. "No. I''m really worried."

    She rested a hand on my elbow and gave me a reassuring smile. "Look, I have a little secret which may help once we''re done here."

    "Oh?"

    She leaned over and whispered, "I have a flying rug."

    My eyelids sprang wide open. "You mean a flying carpet?"

    "Rug, carpet, beach towel¡ªreally, what''s the difference?"

    "And you''ll take me for a magic carpet ride?"

    "I''ll take you all the way to Bogota if I have to. Well, at least to a place close-by because a flying rug would give the noms a collective heart attack." She giggled as though cardiac arrest on a major scale was the funniest thing ever.

    I grinned and hugged her, the fear melting away, if only a little. "You''re my new best friend."

    She kissed my cheeks and tucked away her phone. "Now, I suppose we should finish the business at hand."

    We went over the foreseeances and all sorts of other related items, but really only ended up chasing our tails in an endless circle. I told them my theory about the ancient masters possibly utilizing the Obsidian Arches one day, but they''d heard that one before. A good portion thought it was true, while others figured it didn''t make any sense. Several hours and a whole lot of empanadas later, Bella called the meeting to a close.

    Exhaustion weighed me down like a sack of bricks.

    "It''s dark," Alejandro said. "We can leave for the bus in the morning."

    I told him about Bella''s magic carpet offer and his eyes lit up. "She never told me she had one."

    "Well, don''t go telling anyone then," I said. "Maybe I shouldn''t have spilled the beans."

    He laughed. "Her secret is safe with me."

    I said I''d meet him outside in a minute, but first, the bathroom was screaming my name. Damn all those beans! I went through a door in the back of the large room, into a cramped hallway, and toward the tiny unisex bathroom crowded in the corner near an exit. The door at the end of the hall was propped open a crack, letting the air-conditioning escape into the oppressive humidity outside. A dark-tanned man with a bandanna on his head and a scar across his left eye entered the door and walked to the bathroom, reaching it about the same time I did. He stank of cigarette smoke.

 Page 25

    "You need to go?" I asked him, pointing at the bathroom door.

    He shook his head and waved me in with a couple of quick motions. I didn''t need another invitation. Several minutes later after doing my business, I stepped into the hallway. The man with the bandanna leaned against the wall across from me, waiting patiently. Something glinted in his hand and a sharp pain pierced my chest. By reflex, my hand flew to the point of discomfort where it found something metallic lodged in my skin. I pulled it away and looked with shock at a large tranquilizer dart.

    My brow furrowed. The other man''s brow crinkled and his eyes widened. I only realized a split second later, he wasn''t confused by the dart. He was probably wondering why I hadn''t passed out yet. Because he fired two more shots. Darts sprouted from my torso, little metal carrots in the garden of my chest.

    I charged him¡ªor tried to. Instead, my legs gave way and the last thing I saw was a pair of black tennis shoes rushing to meet my face.

    Chapter 15

    Elyssa

    Elyssa stared groggily at the stone floor for a moment before wondering why she found it so fascinating. A string of drool hung from her lips, stretching almost all the way to the floor.

    "Huh?" She jerked upright and took in her surroundings. Tried to get up and move, but diamond fiber straps held her fast to a chair.

    A chair? Diamond fiber straps?

    "What''s going on?" she shouted, her voice fumbling through mushy lips as she tried to recollect something, anything to explain her current situation. The last thing she remembered was bagging and tagging a rogue vampire with a fetish for feeding off unsuspecting teenage girls. Even though he looked like a hot teenage Romeo with a foofy hairdo and metrosexual aura, his real age hovered around seventy-five. The dude was positively geriatric by human standards.

    Nasty perv.

    She shuddered. It was just plain gross thinking about vampires who were old enough to be her great-grandfather trying to date people her age.

    Beyond that memory, however, she couldn''t remember what had happened next. Had someone captured her? Did the rogue have partners who''d knocked her out and kidnapped her? Panic raced in a white-hot streak from her stomach and through her lungs. Why couldn''t she remember?

    "Calm down," she told herself, forcing her eyelids closed and slowing her breathing until her racing heart relented to a steadier beat. When she opened her eyes again, she looked around the room, noting its round dimensions, the statue, and the onyx pedestals sitting before her. Recognition dawned in her sluggish brain. This was the communionary. The pedestal where a torch would usually be placed was empty, which meant whatever ritual she''d been taking had already finished.

    Had she taken the trials? Was she now a full-fledged Templar?

    Excitement consumed the remaining panic. She''d been dying to take the Cho''kai though Father had told she wasn''t quite ready for it. Had he finally allowed her? More importantly, had she passed? Perhaps being tied to a chair was part of it. She glanced down at the straps. Nothing she could do would break the diamond fiber. Something on the armrest near her left hand caught her eye. She peered at the letters scratched into the paint: Dvnty crzy bad.

    What did that mean? Beneath her right hand were two words: trust justn.

    Someone must have been awfully bored to go scratching stuff into the paint. Maybe the trials were easy. Maybe all they consisted of was sitting in this stupid chair. Speaking of which, what was she supposed to do now? Escape? Scream for help? Bolts held the chair to the floor so she couldn''t very well move it. Maybe this was part of the test.

    Using a trick she''d learned from her brother, Michael, she relaxed her right hand and then contracted the muscles as fast and as tight as she could, folding her fingers and hand into a funnel shape before trying to pull it through the loop in the strap. But the snug fit of the strap allowed no slack to slip her hand through. As she relaxed her hands, she noticed flecks of gray paint lodged beneath the fingernails of her left and right forefingers. Had she been the one to scratch the paint on the chair?

    She stared once again at the letters and back to her fingers. Who was¡ª

    The door to the room burst open and her brother, Jack, came in, a huge smile on his face. "I heard the bell and came as fast as I could. You''ve been in here for quite a while, sis."

    "Jack? Did I pass the trials? Am I a full member now?"

    Her father, Thomas, entered the room. "You have passed a trial, yes. Now it''s time to see if it was worth it." He touched the straps on the chair and they dropped open. "What''s the last thing you remember, Daughter?"

    "Busting that vampire at my high school." She squinted, trying hard to see into the past, but it was like peering through dense white fog. "After that, I came home." Another minute of concentration revealed nothing else. "I guess that''s it."

    He nodded. "Very good." Taking her by the arm, he led her out of the room.

    Elyssa glanced at the rack of torches on the wall near the door. No absences gave her a clue as to which ritual she''d taken. Somehow, the used torch always ended up back in its spot on the rack after the ritual.

    Thomas directed her down the hall. "We need to put you on assignment, so I''m taking you out of the high school operation for now."

    Elyssa furrowed her brow as she thought of her two best friends, Ash and Nyte, both of whom attended her school. She wasn''t supposed to form attachments. That was why she''d chosen a Goth look for her undercover identity. Even though her clothes, makeup, and attitude stood out, most people tended to ignore her like they would any social outcast. But Ash and Nyte had been her friends early on, never judging her by the clothes she wore or the piercings and horrendous amounts of makeup. After a while, she''d discovered she enjoyed her new style.

    But part of being a Templar meant following orders no matter her personal feelings. "I understand, sir."

    Thomas smiled¡ªa rarity for him. "You will be assisting in remote operations against rogue vampires."

    "Remote operations? Where, Commander?"

    "Possibly Europe. We''ll talk about that more at your briefing," Thomas said.

    Europe? Yes!

    A thrill fluttered through Elyssa''s stomach. Thoughts of chasing rogue supers through the streets of Paris filled her mind. It was all she could do not to pump her arm in celebration. Then again, counting her vampires before they turned might not be a good idea. Western Europe was one thing. If she ended up in eastern Europe¡ªbetter not to think about it.

    No matter the assignment, she''d long dreamed of going on a special operation. Of proving herself to her father after all these years. Jack and Michael had been doing this for ages and finally, it was her chance to shine. Which reminded her of something.

    "Jack, I thought you were off on assignment yourself."

    He smiled and nodded. "I was, but I''m back for a short time now."

    Elyssa''s mother, Leia, waited outside the chapel as they stepped into the cool night air. Worry etched her eyes. She gave Thomas a fiery, violet glare, which would have sent a lesser man running for the hills. She offered Elyssa a tight smile. "How did it go?"

    "Very well it would seem," Thomas said.

    "What exactly was I doing in there?" Elyssa asked. "If I wasn''t taking the final trials, I don''t know what else I could''ve been doing."

    Thomas sighed. "I''m afraid you won''t be happy to learn the reason, but I''ll tell you at your briefing."

    Elyssa''s internal radar twitched with curiosity while doubt spread a sickening glaze across her insides. This couldn''t be good at all. What had happened to her? She must have failed miserably at something. The thrill of her upcoming assignment lost some of its luster.

    "When is the briefing?"

    He led the way into the manor house and turned straight into the war room. "Now is as good a time as any."

    Anxious energy burned in her lungs, seeming to remove oxygen with each breath before she could soak it in. She wanted to know the bad news but didn''t want to hear it. Didn''t want to know how badly she''d failed. The anxiety must have shown on her face because Thomas laid a hand on her shoulder.

    "Don''t worry yourself too much, Daughter. There are some things beyond even our control."

    She nodded and tried to relax the taut muscles in her forehead.

    Leia and Jack took seats at the large table in the center of the room. Elyssa sat next to Jack.

    "Is Michael here too?" she asked, wondering why this looked like a family affair.

    "He is. Perhaps he''ll join us soon." Thomas pulled a red file from a cabinet. He took a seat. "Now, about what happened¡ª"

    "I''d rather not know," Elyssa said, as dread constricted her throat. "I must have screwed up something awful."

    "It''s in your best interest to know," Thomas said, arching a stern eyebrow. "I expect you to sit quietly and listen. You are a Templar, not some unruly child."

    Her fists clenched under the table as the desire to fire a volley of retort nearly overwhelmed her. "Very well, Commander."

    He nodded curtly as though he''d expected no other response. "While you were on assignment, the spawn sent an agent, one of their own, to subvert you. Using his ability to manipulate emotions, this spawn very nearly had you working with him. Thankfully, you realized how impaired your judgment had become and came to me for help. We determined the only way to cleanse this taint was for you to take the White."

    Elyssa felt her jaw sag open and sucked a hard breath into her lungs. Humiliation and rage fought for first place in a war of emotions as her skin flushed with heat and her eyes went to the floor. She couldn''t even look at her family. How had she let a spawn get close enough to her to influence her? Her training and senses had never failed her and yet, she''d somehow let a demon spawn so deep into her life she''d nearly started working for them?

    Unbelievable. Unacceptable!

    She jolted to her feet and backed away from the table. "H¡ªhow? Why are you allowing me to stay in the Templars?" She nearly tripped on the chair as it toppled behind her. "I''m unfit for duty if I couldn''t sense a spawn."

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    Jack stood and gave her a sideways hug. "It wasn''t your fault, sis. They used a spawn who was just coming of age, so he got under your skin before his abilities developed enough for you to detect them."

    It didn''t make her feel much better, but at least it explained how it had happened.

    Thomas nodded. "This is your chance to redeem yourself, recruit. Now that your mind is cleared of subversion, you can learn from your mistakes."

    "Was I really that far gone?" she asked, trying to imagine herself as a brainwashed spy.

    "I''m afraid so." He stroked the stubble on his chin and flipped open the red folder. "You will report to another commander for this operation. The location will be revealed after you''ve landed. Until then, here''s a redacted dossier on our targets. Their identities will be revealed during your classified briefings onsite."

    She nodded, forcing back the tide of painful humiliation as it tried to erode her pride and ego. She''d never thought of herself as overly prideful or boastful, but knowing what she''d done hurt. Time to earn back her stripes and clean the tarnish off what little reputation she''d managed to build over the past few years.

    "Go pack, recruit. You''re shipping out in one hour."

    Elyssa gave her father a nod before turning and leaving. As she left the room and entered the hallway, she stopped and planted her back against the wall, sucking in deep breaths and fighting back the tears threatening to overwhelm her. So much for passing the Cho''kai. So much for proving herself to her father. She was a failure.

    "Don''t give me that look, Leia," Thomas said from inside the room. "This will all work out."

    "Oh really?" Leia replied, her tone laced with frost. "Or maybe you''ve scarred her for life."

    "I did what I had to do."

    "As what? A Templar, or a father?"

    "Both."

    "Where are you sending her?"

    "Europe. That should keep her far enough away."

    "First you tell her she took the White because a demon spawn subverted her and now you''re exiling her in the space of a day." Leia made a disgusted noise. "You shouldn''t do that to anyone, much less your own daughter."

    "Please don''t argue," Jack said, a desperate note in his voice. "You saw what she was like. Now she''s back to being herself again." He sighed. "I''m going to find Michael. He needs to be a part of her recovery too."

    Elyssa hurried away and trotted upstairs to her room before Jack came around the corner and caught her eavesdropping. When she closed the door and locked it, her hands trembled and tears trickled down her cheeks. She sniffled. Cursed herself for being so weak, and took deep breaths. Why was she so emotional all of a sudden? Failure happened to everyone. Even Jack had nearly blown an entire operation himself and that was under their father''s supervision.

    She paced the room, thinking hard and trying to remember where things had gone wrong. But all she found was a huge foggy gap. She glanced at the date and time on her phone and realized that she''d lost over two months of memories. Wiping away more tears, she forced herself to pack. The information in the red folder told her virtually nothing and the usual climate advisory was missing, so she had no idea what to expect for weather or what civilian clothes to pack. Templar camo adapted to various temperatures and situations, so at least she only had to pack several sets of the uniform.

    It was likely she would be in uniform most of the time. Time off to enjoy the sights wasn''t an option¡ªnot if she was to make up for the horrendous lapses in judgment leading her to this sad, sad state of affairs.

    Besides, her father had probably left out the information on purpose. If she didn''t know better, she''d suspect him of taking joy in bossing people around and sending them to mystery locations. Since there was no telling how long she''d be there, she tossed a variety of civvies into her bag. She''d buy anything else she needed onsite.

    A hot shower not only made her feel cleaner on the outside, but also seemed to wash away some of the accumulated emotions toying with her relentlessly. Perhaps her overly emotional state was a side effect of taking the White because it sure as heck wasn''t due to hormones. The Blessing relieved most females of certain womanly "curses".

    After cleaning, she tossed on some jeans and a T-shirt, took one last look at the humble room she''d known all her life, and then carried her suitcase downstairs where Jack was waiting.

    "Am I travelling by Obsidian Arch?" she asked as Jack hopped in the driver''s seat of a black sedan parked outside the manor.

    "Usually, yeah, but not this time. Strange anomalies have been popping up with the arches, so we decided it''d be better for you to go by jet."

    "Anomalies?"

    He looked both ways before pulling onto the main road and nodded. "Started a day or so ago. One of our Gloom operatives reported that reality fractures are popping up all over the place when someone tries to use an arch."

    "No idea why?"

    "Nah. The Arcane Council is investigating after our people had to rescue three different groups of travelers from the Gloom."

    "Three incidents from different arches?" Elyssa had never heard of so many at once.

    "Yeah. Crazy, huh? I think the last time anything close to so many was back when they were just figuring out how to operate the things."

    They rode the rest of the short distance to the private airfield in silence as Elyssa considered Jack¡¯s words. Gloom assignment was something she never wanted. Even the most careful operatives got lost in that screwed up place. She''d heard stories of monsters and all sorts of horrible things trapped in that in-between hell.

    A shiny black jet waited on the tarmac, its engines giving off a low rumble. She hugged her brother goodbye.

    "I''m proud of you, sis," he said, winking. "I know you''ll do us proud."

    "Thanks, Jack." She kissed him on the cheek and boarded the jet, keeping her upper lip as stiff as possible. Regret weighted every step with leaden uncertainty. She didn''t even remember her mistakes, couldn''t remember them now if she tried. She thought back to the friends she''d made during training. What did they think of her now? Were they whispering about her right this very moment? Shaking their heads at the failure she''d become? The thought made her sick with anger. She had nobody to blame but herself.

    "Welcome on board," the pilot said with a grin. Elyssa wanted to punch the smile off his happy face. "Help yourself to whatever you need from the galley after we depart." With that, he went into the cockpit and revved the engines for takeoff. At least Templar pilots didn''t have to worry about setting flight plans thanks to the jet''s charmed hull, which kept it off civilian radar.

    Elyssa took a seat and buckled herself in after grabbing a couple of blood ration packs from the galley fridge. The blood was chilly and tasted disgusting. She activated the heating spell on the bag with a swipe of her finger, bringing it from slushy to a touch above body temperature within seconds. She took a sip and sighed. Warm blood was so much better. Especially with a bit of Godiva chocolate syrup or Nutella.

    God, what she wouldn''t give for a container of chocolate chip ice cream and a mindless reality TV show right about now. Anything was better than brooding and wondering about a past she could no longer remember.

    Exhaustion tugged on her eyelids even as the blood revitalized her tired body, but jumbled thoughts plagued her every time she tried to rest her eyes. Staring out the window at the darkness, she wondered where in Europe she was going and why her father had decided now was the time to send her on a remote operation. His shame over her poor performance must have been even deeper than he''d let on.

    A short woman with dark hair and tanned skin peered through a sliding glass door beaded by rain and fogged by humidity. She tapped against the glass and said something, but Elyssa couldn''t make it out. She wiped the surface with her sleeve, but failed to clear it enough to make out the other woman''s details. Tugging on the door handle did nothing. Despite the lack of locks or bars holding the door shut, nothing she did would open it.

    The woman banged against the glass and appeared to be pointing toward the rolling banks of fog behind her. Elyssa looked around the tiny room and wondered where exactly she was. A single chair bolted to the concrete floor sat in the center of the room. Behind it was a door. She walked to the door and grasped the handle. It turned easily.

    A great banging on glass drew her attention back to the woman in the back. She slammed the glass with the palms of both her hands as though frantic about something. Elyssa turned to the front door and opened it. Sunlight like beaten sheets of gold danced off a huge lake. A blue sky brushed with lazy white clouds greeted her as a warm breeze filled with the fresh aroma of spring tickled her nose.

    Why was the weather out back so much different than the front? And why would she want to go into fog and rain anyway? Was the other woman crazy? Elyssa took a step toward the sunlight. The glare increased, going from yellowish to a stark white. Her foot halted an inch above the sidewalk as a thought occurred to her. She turned toward the back door. Considered the frantic woman on the other side. Wasn''t it her duty to save people? To help them? She couldn''t abandon that poor woman. Somehow, she had to open the door.

    Elyssa slammed the front door shut and strode to the back of the room. She crashed her shoulder against the sliding glass door over and over again, but it did no good. She tugged on the chair, hoping to use it as a way to smash the incredibly tough glass, but the bolts held it fast. The other woman stopped pummeling the glass and now stood with her entire body pressed against it.

    Something looked different about her. Elyssa walked closer and looked. The woman''s hair was still dark, but her skin looked fair now. Even stranger, she looked to have grown several inches and now rivaled even Elyssa''s tall frame. Violet light shone through the glass. With a start, Elyssa realized it was the other woman''s eyes. By the light she could almost make out her¡ª

    A gasp burst from her mouth as the face came to light. The face was her own.

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    Elyssa''s eyes flew open. She flinched. The startled pilot backed up a step, his hand toward her as if he''d tried to shake her awake. "We''re here," he said, offering a smile. "I guess you were dreaming."

    She sucked in a breath, feeling mortified. "Yeah, I guess so."

    "There''s a vehicle waiting outside."

    Elyssa grabbed her suitcase and descended the stairs to the tarmac. Stifling humidity greeted her in waves as she strode across the worn surface and toward what looked like a helicopter. She knew better. It was probably a slider, tantamount to a magical flying box charmed with illusion to make it look like its mundane counterpart. They didn''t use them much in urban locations¡ªat least not during the day. The strict regulations about flying in the city meant any unregistered aircraft were likely to be reported by concerned citizens. The pilot, a tanned man with black hair, sauntered forward and offered his hand.

    "I''m Commander Christian Salazar," he said with a light accent she could almost place. "Welcome to hell, recruit."

    "Hell?"

    He grinned, showing neat white teeth. "We''re only a few hours away from some of the worst supernatural scum you''ll ever meet. Blood farmers, drug dealers, slavers, you name it, they''re down here."

    A thrill of excitement spiked Elyssa''s adrenalin. Finally, a real challenge. "When do we get started?"

    "We''ve already got an op ready to go, Recruit Borathen. Now that you''re here, you''ll get to see firsthand what Templars on the fringes have to deal with."

    "And where, exactly, are we, anyway?"

    He bared his white teeth again. "Colombia."

    Chapter 16

    I woke up on a muddy concrete floor with a heavy shackle around my leg. A chain ran from it to a thick bolt in the floor. I wiped crusted goo from my eyes and tried to focus on my surroundings, but a thick haze of grogginess beat back my senses and nausea sent a chill shivering through my body. I dry-heaved and banged my forehead against the rough texture of the concrete.

    "Ow, ow, ow," I said, rubbing the tender spot and finding blood on my fingers.

    Rolling onto my back, I was able to discern a single light bulb on a cracked gray ceiling. Gray concrete walls surrounded me on three sides and thick iron bars gave me the middle finger from the fourth. A depression in the floor revealed itself to be a rusted drain cover the same circumference as a soda can. I rotated with laborious effort to my knees and pushed myself into a kneeling position. The memory of darts sticking from my chest staggered through my brain in a drunken haze. I lifted my shirt and checked for puncture wounds.

    Little red dots remained where the darts had struck me, and my muscles felt sore and sluggish. Strange. They should have fully healed by now. And what in the world was in those darts? That dude had pumped three or four into me, probably way more than an ordinary person could handle. He''d looked so confused. Panicked. He couldn''t understand why I hadn''t dropped from the first dart. In all likelihood, he hadn''t known I wasn''t quite human.

    My hands trembled and another sickening wave of nausea churned its way up my guts and into my throat. Warm liquid trickled on my upper lip as I came up for breath after another round of dry heaves. I touched it and found blood on my fingers. Something was wrong. Really, really, really wrong. I was still bleeding from smacking my head on the concrete and still sore from the darts. Had it been hours since the incident? Days? I had no idea.

    I tried to stand and only managed to totter on unsteady feet, hands held out for balance before my butt planted itself on the concrete and pain rocketed up my spine. The shackle dug into my leg, scraping skin already raw from the rough metal. My incubus belly gurgled and complained as my senses fought their way back from oblivion.

    My sluggish brain pieced together what was ailing me and why my supernatural healing had gone on hiatus. The sheer volume of drugs pumped into my blood from those darts probably would have killed an elephant. My superhuman ability to quickly recover from trauma had been severely overtaxed, leaving me with almost nothing in the energy banks. As the numbing effect of the tranquilizer wore off, the ache in my stomach grew worse and worse.

    I stared past the iron bars and saw another prison cell across from me. Was I in jail? Who in the world was the guy who''d shot me in the first place? I staggered forward, groaning like a zombie, and leaned against the bars, trying to get a good angle to peer at the hallway beyond. More cells lined the wall to my right. On the left, I saw a steel door set in a cinderblock wall. If this was a prison, why did they have shackles in the cell? I had a bad feeling they were about to open a can of third-world whoop-ass on me.

    Or maybe they knew what I was. Maybe the guy who took me down was a Templar and I was in one of their holding cells. I touched the shackle, taking in the rough galvanized texture. If this was ordinary iron, it wouldn''t hold me, at least not when I was powered up. When Meghan had tied me down so she could use my blood to save Stacey, she''d used something called diamond fiber. Ryland explained later Templars used the stuff because it was virtually indestructible, at least by most supernaturals. If this place were run by Templars, surely they''d use diamond fiber to hold me and not ordinary metal.

    The door at the end of the hall creaked and opened. A short Hispanic man in khakis, a yellow T-shirt, and a gun holster strapped over one shoulder walked down the hallway with a tray piled with rice, beans, and what looked like fried plantains. My normal stomach wasn''t in the mood for a meal at the moment though my demon blood probed greedily for emotional sustenance. Unfortunately, this guy wasn''t giving off a happy vibe or much of anything I could use. It took really strong positive emotions for me to feed off a male, for some reason. Dad hadn''t explained everything to me, but he''d mentioned feeding off the same gender required a perfect situation such as extreme happiness or lust, whereas feeding off the opposite gender was child''s play.

    The man set the tray on the floor outside and pulled out a notepad. "What is your name?" His voice carried a heavy Spanish accent.

    I wondered why he asked me something he could easily answer by looking through my wallet or maybe even my phone. Then I remembered I''d left all that in my backpack in Alejandro''s truck. "Who are you and where am I? I demand a phone call." Hopefully I could at least get out of the cell long enough to find someone I could feed off of in this police station or whatever it was. Any female would do at this point¡ªeven a hooker.

    He pressed his foot down on the tray of food, squishing half of it. "You answer, or I step on rest."

    I really didn''t care about the food, but answered anyway. "My name is Philmore Butts."

    He wrote it down. "Give me phone number of family."

    Oddly enough, I really couldn''t remember my dad''s cell number. Why? Because it was programmed into the contacts on my phone. I hadn''t manually typed in a number in ages--just like everyone else on the planet. I actually would have gladly given him the digits if only because Dad would probably bust me out of this crap hole. I tried to remember a number, any number, and failed.

    "All my numbers are programmed into my cell phone. I don''t remember. Why do you want a phone number?"

    He scowled and stomped on the rest of the food, splattering it on the floor. "You better remember or no ransom. No ransom, you stay here or maybe we just kill you."

    A bell dinged in my head as I realized what sort of situation I was in. I''d read about it on the news, though I mainly heard about stuff like this happening in Mexico. "Are you with a drug cartel?" I mimicked sniffing cocaine off my wrist like I''d seen in the movies.

    He jumped up and down on the food then kicked the tray down the hallway, scattering beans and rice everywhere. "Give me number!"

    I managed a laugh at his ridiculous antics. "Man, you''re right out of a nineteen-eighties action movie."

    That comment apparently escaped his brilliant intellect. He stormed away and back through the steel door. Amusement and no small amount of fear at this new conundrum perked my brain from its sluggishness. I took advantage of this newfound clarity, sitting cross-legged on the floor and closing my eyes in concentration. When I reopened them, I let my gaze drop out of focus until I could see the tendril of my parasitic essence drifting in the air. I sent it down the hall, sensing everything along the path and searching for a female or the magnetic draw of hot emotion.

    Walls and doors were no obstacle, though my sensitivity dropped like a rock when I overextended. Dad hadn''t really taught me about feeding like this, but then again, he probably hadn''t expected me to be kidnapped for ransom in a third-world country either. My sense twitched like a wolf''s nose. Women were nearby. Unlike men, I could latch onto women in just about any state, or so had been my experience.

    But as I strained for that hot, pulsating femininity, I reached the end of my tether and the essence hovered just out of reach, tantalizing, teasing me. I pushed harder and harder. The heat just barely tickled the tip. My tendril snapped back into me like a rubber band. The shock hit like a physical blow and laid me flat on my back, head pounding in agony. Darkness crowded the edges of my vision, threatening to cast me into unconsciousness.

    I had only one choice left, terrible as it was, if I were going to escape. I let the agony build into frustration. I pushed that frustration into anger, thinking about the man as he stomped my food. Elyssa was in danger. These people had kidnapped me. They thought they had some weak nom in custody. I''d teach them their mistake. I would make them pay. I pounded the walls with my fists, pulling myself hand-over-hand up the white-hot chain of rage until I hit pure fury. My headache grew in magnitude like metal shards drilling into my skull.

    I was going to manifest into my demon form and show these assholes just what hell on Earth felt like. Boney spikes poked from the skin on my brow. Blue flames danced in and out of my vision. My head exploded in a final burst of agony as muscles strained against suddenly tight clothes.

    Sometime later, I pushed myself off the filthy concrete floor. Miniature supernovas of blinding torment pulsed in my head. I looked around, confused. The shackle still held my foot. The cell around me remained undamaged. I found two tiny horn nubs on the floor next to me and let out a string of curse words I''d been saving for a rainy day. Either I hadn''t had enough juice to manifest, or I just wasn''t doing it right. Either way, I felt even weaker than before and my body trembled with hunger.

 Page 28

    I imagined how pale my eyes must look by now. How the gaunt lines of my cheeks and jaw probably appeared as they edged toward an almost inhuman mask I''d once seen on Dad''s face when he was starving. If only I could reach those women, somehow.

    "Is anyone else in here?" I called out. No response came. Either they ransomed people fast, or the pickings were slim in this neck of the woods.

    Sometime later, the short-tempered food-stomper man returned, but this time without any food. I noticed the rice and beans he''d kicked all over the place were gone. I wondered if they''d made him clean it. I wished I''d been awake to make fun of him while he did.

    The door at the end of the hall slammed open again and a tall thin man wearing a black suit and dark shades strode through while one of his cronies held open the door. A ponytail barely held back a thick mane of coarse hair. His skin, though olive-toned, looked pasty.

    The short man''s face went deathly pale and his eyes dropped to the floor. He spoke a sentence in tremulous Spanish and pointed at me a couple of times. I reached with my senses toward this new guy¡ªobviously a head honcho¡ªand felt only a whisper of cold aura. I must have sprained my brain earlier because it took all I had. But what I felt was enough. My stomach roiled and an arctic chill shivered all the way from the peach fuzz on the bottom of my butt cheeks to my scalp.

    This guy was a vampire. No question about it.

    He regarded the short man with a cruelly amused expression, and in a rich Spanish accent rivaling Antonio Banderas said, "Diego, get out of here."

    Diego burst out of there with speed almost supernatural for a human, leaving me alone with El Mysterioso Strangero. I''d figured out by adding an ''o'' to the end of most of my words, it was practically like speaking Spanish.

    "Greetings, Justin Slade," the man said with the hint of a cunning smile. "Maximus sends his regards."

    Anger burned through the frost of fear. I gripped the bars. "Who are you?"

    He leaned against the cinder block wall and regarded me as a cat might look upon a trapped mouse. "I am Marcel, right hand of the man who runs this compound."

    "Maximus runs this place?" Good lord, this wasn''t the ordinary ransom by a drug cartel like I''d thought.

    He threw back his head and laughed. Light glistened off his fangs. "Maximus, in charge here?" His laughter cut off suddenly and cruel cunning once again filled his eyes. "I can assure you, such is not the case."

    "But it''s a vampire compound?"

    "Such questions are beyond your concern, my friend," he answered coolly.

    "How the hell does Maximus know where I am? Is he here? Did he send that guy after me?"

    Marcel chuckled softly, clearly enjoying my confusion. "So many questions, friend. All you need worry about, however, is keeping me and Franco full of sweet spawn blood."

    I shuddered and backed away, my mind groping for some way out. "Maximus might not appreciate you keeping me."

    He removed his sunglasses and tucked them into a pocket, revealing the red irises, a dead giveaway to his supernatural affiliation. "Maximus does not need to know."

    "Obviously, he somehow knew I was down here and asked you guys to kidnap me." I raised an eyebrow. "He''s not stupid. How long do you think it''ll be before he comes to collect?"

    "You seem to know Maximus very well, friend. But he is a young vampire and poses no threat to us."

    "Not even with his army of vampires?" I was grasping at straws here, but I remembered the compound full of vamps Maximus had recruited, not to mention Underborn''s dire warnings the rogue vampire had extended his tendrils into schools all over the nation and had his sights set on other countries as well.

    Marcel''s eyes flickered uncertainly for the first time, though his fanged grin never faltered. "We provide him with certain services. If he wishes those services to continue, then keeping you will pose no problem."

    "You know, if I were any other spawn, I might say you''re right. But Maxi-poo and I go back a long way. You''re going to have a fight on your hands." Part of my brain raised a metaphorical eyebrow and gave me a crazy look, probably wondering why in the world I was so eager to make this guy hand me over to Maximus. Or maybe I was just desperate to keep his nasty, diseased fangs out of my skin. I couldn''t repress a shudder at the thought.

    "How did Maximus know I was down here?" I asked again, voice hoarse and trembling.

    "You placed a call to your father''s phone and left a rather detailed message. Maximus forwarded it to us and requested we bring you in."

    My stomach suddenly weighed a ton. Did Maximus have my father''s phone, or had he somehow tapped it? Had something horrible happened back in the States while I''d been stuck down here? I had to keep these guys from feeding off me. I remembered how weak my father had been during his incarceration by Maximus. If they got me in that state, I''d be useless. Oh, who was I kidding? I was already beyond useless in my current condition. I had to play Maximus against them. Give myself time and a chance to recover.

    An even taller man with cropped black hair strode inside. Golden gem-encrusted rings occupied every slender finger. Chains hung from his neck, and diamond studs twinkled from his ears. A thick black goatee and long sideburns graced his narrow face. This dude was the king of bling. I wondered if he had a gold-plated Rolls Royce with hydraulics too.

    I took an involuntary step back from the bars, my leaden legs threatening to give way, and said, "Franco, I presume."

    He crossed his arms and looked me up and down like a piece of juicy, grade-A beef before turning to Marcel. "He is the one?" His accent had a well-educated British quality to it.

    Marcel nodded. "Should we move him to the low cell? We need to keep him away from women."

    "Once he''s in the low cell, he can have all the women he needs to stay healthy." Franco motioned me closer. "Come here, boy. I want to taste the merchandise."

    I backed away. "I don''t think so, twinkle toes."

    Franco gave Marcel a look and motioned toward the door with his head.

    Marcel produced a radio and barked something in Spanish. A smug smiled appeared on his face. He was planning something nasty, I could tell. The steel door creaked a few minutes later and a hulking muscle-bound dude with enough testosterone in his swagger to impregnate a woman from thirty yards out strutted in. Looked me up and down. My legs wobbled but somehow I kept them from buckling by leaning against the back wall.

    Marcel spoke in rapid-fire Spanish. He repeated one sentence three times, so even with my horrible comprehension, I figured out what he was saying. "Absolutamente no mujers. No muchachas. Comprende?" Absolutely no women. Understand?

    "When I return, I believe you will be more than happy to let me sample your blood," Franco said with a cruel smile. "Jose will make you eager to do as we say."

    He and Marcel left. Jose pumped a meaty fist into his palm and smiled. Diego, the short food-stomping man came in a moment later with a stool. He obviously wanted to watch Jose pound the snot out of me.

    Jackass.

    "You must have the tiniest little pee-pee in the world," I said to Jose, showing him my pinky finger and wiggling the tip. A hysterical laugh burst from my dry ragged throat. Apparently, my hunger had deteriorated into dementia. I also didn''t recall drinking anything since my arrival, so my brain was probably dehydrated and shriveling into a gray prune. My legs finally gave way. My knees crashed into the concrete, sending a jolt of pain through my bones.

    I was in horrible shape. Overdose of tranquilizers, no water, no food, no essence to feed on. This was not going to be pleasant. I groped desperately at Jose''s aura, but his happiness was so sadistic, it repulsed me. I tried to tweak his mood, but without a female presence, I was fiddling in a lock without a key.

    Jose said something to Diego and they both laughed. I heard him say something about the no women rule and they laughed again.

    "Do you know what Franco and Marcel are?" I said.

    Diego grinned. "The bosses. They own you."

    My forehead furrowed and worsened my headache. "What about Maximus?"

    "How you know about Maximus? He sells us guns. He no interested in you."

    "What about vampires?"

    A puzzled look wrinkled the little man''s face. "You crazy gringo." He spoke to Jose and they guffawed long and loud, Jose bending over and slapping his thigh with merriment.

    Holy crap. These guys didn''t have a clue who or what they were working for.

    The big guy opened the cell and, gripping me by my shirt, tried to drag me onto my feet. My T-shirt, a loaner from Alejandro, stretched and tore. I thudded back onto the concrete like a sack of potatoes. He kicked me in the ribs with pointy-toed boots. Something cracked. I was going to set a record for breaking my bones this week.

    His kick ripped an incoherent scream of pain from my throat. I folded into the fetal position, holding my sides. Jose jerked me to my feet and punched me in the stomach. His fist finally did what all my earlier dry heaves couldn''t. I vomited a stream of stomach acid all over his face. He yelled what had to be every Spanish profanity in the book, spitting, sputtering, and backing away. I slumped against the wall, my entire body feeling more like jelly than flesh and bone.

    A hard kick from the walking testicle slammed against my ribs. Something else cracked. A hard breath wheezed through my raw throat. Jose kicked me over and over again until the pain was so blinding black spots dance before my eyes. I heard someone yelling¡ªit sounded like Diego¡ªand the kicks stopped. Warm fluid pooled in my mouth. I angled my head and saw bloody drool leaking onto the floor in a grim puddle.

    This might be it, I realized. Unless I figured out a way to feed off these turds, I was going to die, probably bleed to death from internal injuries. Endorphins flooded my system and took the edge off the pain, but beyond that, the raw ragged edges of agony seeped into every part of my body.

    The short guy rolled me onto my back. I screamed as the sensation of icepicks stabbed into my right side. He yelled at the big guy who vanished and returned moments later with a white guy carrying a black bag.

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    The newcomer pulled away my already torn shirt and pressed against my side. In response, I screamed, though it sounded a lot more like a desperate moan.

    "Bloody ribs are broken," he said in a decidedly British accent. "Do you feel any pains inside?"

    I managed a cross-eyed glare before answering in a hoarse whisper, "Like knives."

    "Bloody hell." He pulled out a needle and filled it with something from a tiny glass container. "Morphine ought to take the edge off." With that, he jabbed the needle into me, though I didn''t feel it over the other agonizing pain. He looked at Shorty. "Get this man some water."

    "You do not tell me what do!" Shorty hollered back. Despite that declaration, he barked a command into his radio.

    Jose stared down at me, a smirk on his face. Then he spit on me, much to the disgust of the doctor.

    "I take it Franco wants this man alive?" He turned his gaze on Diego. "If he does, then keep your bloody ape away from him!"

    The steel door creaked and someone spoke to the short guy. My senses perked up at the tone of the voice. Female. I extended my delirious awareness toward the sound, feeling for the sensual morsel since the doctor blocked my view. The heat rising off the woman''s halo-like aura radiated nearby. My questing tendril shot for it. Or tried to. I was so weak it meandered toward her like a snake slowed by cold weather. I was vaguely aware of a glass being pressed to my lips and water running partly down my throat but mostly down the sides of my face.

    Just as I closed in on the source of femininity, her heat signature shrank and receded. Panic increased my efforts as I pushed my sense to catch up, to reach her. I failed. Within seconds, all trace of her had vanished.

    The steel door slammed shut, leaving me alone, cold, and without hope.

    Chapter 17

    Elyssa

    The canopy of trees beneath the slider blurred past in a kaleidoscope of green. Aside from the muted whistle of air against the body of the aircraft, it was absolutely quiet. Though it looked like a helicopter, the rotors were illusion, making it the perfect camouflage for the enchanted transportation it was.

    Colombia?

    Elyssa couldn''t stop thinking about her new assignment. Why would her father tell her she was going to Europe and tell her mother the same thing when Elyssa was supposedly out of earshot? Was it a diversion? Maybe he''d changed his mind at the last minute or someone had really screwed up the paperwork. Transfers from one compound to another happened all the time and were generally simple matters.

    Trying to unravel the confusion frustrated her until she couldn''t take it a moment longer. "Did my father send the order for my transfer here?"

    Christian slowed the craft and dropped it straight into a dense copse of trees. It dropped through the illusion to reveal a large compound bustling with the activity of dark-clad figures. Once he set down, he looked at her and nodded. "I received the request only a few hours ago. Apparently, you were all set for Europe but a change order came through. Normally, we like more time to prepare for transfers, but hell if I''m going to question Thomas Borathen."

    So much for chasing vampires up the Eiffel Tower. Duty was one thing, but doing duty in Paris would have been better than Nutella-flavored blood. "He didn''t say why?"

    A smirk spread across his face. "No. Then again, I didn''t speak directly with the Commander."

    "Oh." It wasn''t unusual. Her father had probably barked the order at someone and expected it to be done. But what if some idiot had screwed it up?

    "In fact, I spoke with your brother, Michael."

    "What?" She felt the shock register on her face. Why hadn''t her brother spoken to her before leaving? Anger and disappointment left a sour feeling in her stomach.

    Christian stepped from the aircraft and motioned her to follow, continuing to speak as they walked into a compound populated by low adobe buildings and metal sheds. "Your brother worked with us down here for a while. Damned fine soldier. Best blade master I ever saw, too."

    Elyssa walked by his side but words abandoned her. She wanted to be angry at Michael, but deep down she knew why he hadn''t spoken with her before leaving. He''d trained with her and pushed her hard to be the best. Without him, she never would have been eligible to take the Cho''kai at such a young age. She''d thrown it all away, outsmarted and beguiled by a spawn. No wonder her father hated them with such passion. Michael probably felt nothing but bitter disgust at her for this failure.

    She was so busy fueling negative emotions, Elyssa almost collided with Christian as he stopped and pointed to a long metal structure with an arched roof standing some distance apart from the other buildings. "Grab your gear in the armory and meet me in the briefing room across the way." He jabbed a finger at a single-story building closer to the center of the compound. Flat-roofed barracks dotted the area around it.

    "Yes, sir."

    He regarded her with stern eyes for a moment before speaking. "You might be used to circumstances in the States, Recruit. A strong nom government goes a long way toward keeping rogue activity down. In these parts, we don''t have that luxury. You''ve been living on a Care Bear resort, Borathen, but now you''re in the real world."

    "I understand, sir."

    "I hope you do. I know about the White. I heard why you had to take it. But if you excel here, you''ll do more than restore your tarnished honor and reputation. You''ll turn it into pure gold."

    Elyssa felt absolutely mortified. Heat blossomed in her face and flushed down her neck. She tried to speak but couldn''t muster a word past the dry lump in her throat. How did he know? Did everyone know about her failure?

    Christian gave her an easy grin, somewhat shedding the role of stern commander, and rested an arm on her shoulder. "Don''t let me down, Recruit Borathen." With that, he strode away.

    Elyssa looked back at the slider in which they''d arrived. The illusions on it had already winked out, leaving only the nacelle and landing gear on an otherwise plain-looking, metallic box. She wanted nothing more than to run back to it and fly away from everyone. She could never live this down.

    Wimp.

    A jagged lash of anger pushed back the embarrassment. Memories of boys making fun of her for wanting to be a Templar struck every nerve in her body. She''d trained relentlessly, foregoing a real life, and sacrificing childhood fun to be the person her father wanted her to be. By the time she was seventeen, nobody her age could beat her in hand-to-hand or swordplay.

    There was no way she''d run from this. It was simply another challenge to be beaten into submission, even if she had to do it one smart-mouthed brat at a time. Elyssa took a deep breath. Set her mental sights on the goal. She could do this. Show them all. And most importantly, prove to herself she could climb out of this crap-hole and back into sunshine.

    A hand clasped over her mouth while another twisted her arm behind her back. She ducked beneath the hold. Swept her leg around and knocked the legs from beneath her attacker¡ªor at least tried to. He leapt over her leg, kicked the other one out from beneath her, and pinned her neck to the ground with the heel of his boot. Amused brown eyes stared down at her from a familiar face.

    He reached down a hand and pulled her to her feet. "About time I knocked you on your ass."

    A spark of recognition burst into familiarity. "Beck?"

    A grin lit his face. "I thought you were beautiful three years ago." He whistled, eyes roaming up and down her figure. "Obviously, you blossomed since I moved away."

    A warm blush worked up Elyssa''s neck and into her cheeks. Beck had bulked up since the last time she''d seen him, but he''d been eye-candy even then with dark eyes and chiseled features. His thick brown hair was shorter than it used to be, probably due to regulations, but when it grew too long it had an unruly curl to it she liked.

    "You''re not looking too bad yourself," she said, looking him up and down like a piece of meat, just to let him know that he couldn''t faze her with his alpha-male machismo. He''d been one of those boys she''d had to teach a lesson back in the day. He might be due for another.

    Beck motioned her on toward the armory and fell into step next to her. "What brings you down here of all places? I never thought your dad would let you out of his sight."

    This comment sent a flush racing to her cheeks. He doesn''t know about the White? "He wanted me to broaden my horizons."

    Beck laughed. "Yeah, that''s what he told my father after he caught you and me kissing."

    Elyssa stopped dead in her tracks and faced him. "That''s why your father was reassigned? Thomas told me your father had requested reassignment so he could earn his own command."

    "You really thought that?" He rolled his eyes. "Thomas Borathen is a legend, not to mention scary as hell. But he''s more overprotective of you than a werewolf mother."

    A sharp pang of regret pressed against her chest. She really missed¡­something. Maybe someone. Whoever or whatever it was, she couldn''t quite nail it down. Or did she feel bad about what Thomas had apparently done to Beck and his father just because of a couple of harmless kisses? Jeez, it wasn''t like they''d even used tongue.

    "I''m sorry. I really had no idea." Elyssa started toward the armory again.

    He kept pace with her. "Yeah, Dad and I bounced around a while before he found a good fit. I decided it was time for me to move on and make a name for myself. These South American countries are like the Wild West, and Colombia is the hottest spot, so I jumped at the chance to join Christian''s squad."

    "Any place has more action than Atlanta." Aside from the occasional bust, Atlanta was like a retirement home.

    "It''s amazing, out of all the places you could have gone, you''re here. Maybe fate isn''t done with us." He winked.

    How ironic was it her father assigned her here to keep her away from the spawn who''d bedazzled her only to put her right back next to Beck? "Are you in on the op today?"

    He checked the time. "Yeah. Man, they''re running us tight." He sighed and pulled a ration bar from his equipment vest. "A group of rogue vampires up in Bogota are stirring up trouble. Some crazy vamp named Maximus convinced a bunch of young vampires to break off from the Reds and go with his splinter group."

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    Something about that name tickled at Elyssa''s memory. She''d heard it before, hadn''t she?

    "Are you okay?" Beck asked.

    Elyssa looked up and realized she was scrunching her forehead and wincing with the effort to recall the missing bits in her mind. All she came up with was a big fat zero. "I thought the name sounded familiar, but I guess not."

    He laughed. "You look kind of cute when you''re concentrating."

    She punched him on the shoulder. "I''ll show you cute."

    "Anytime, hot stuff."

    They pushed through the metallic doors and into the armory where a girl about Elyssa''s age and build was polishing a silver katana. By her black hair and fair complexion, Elyssa guessed she was probably not from these parts.

    "Recruit Borathen?" the girl said without looking up from her work. Her accent sounded Italian.

    "That''s me."

    The girl twirled the katana, the muscles in her arm rippling, before effortlessly slipping it into a leather sheath on her hip. She stood and walked to a table piled with equipment and held up a matte-black belt woven into a dense mesh. "This is your Nightingale armor. A lot more protection than the garbage you wear in the States." She tossed it to Elyssa. "Put it on."

    Sure thing, Miss Bossy Pants.

    Resisting the urge to fling the belt back at the mouthy twit, Elyssa strapped the belt around her waist and pressed a hidden spot on the side of the buckle. The black material flowed down her legs, up her torso, and across her arms, covering her hands with gloves of the same material. Another pressure point on the uniform''s neck sent the material washing across her face, molding perfectly to her head and forming a hood. Even though it covered her eyes, she could see as clearly as though nothing were there.

    The girl''s arrogant posture deflated a bit. "You''re already familiar with the armor I see."

    Elyssa retracted the armor back into the belt. "Just because we don''t use it that often doesn''t mean we don''t have Nightingale armor."

    "Then you are not as ignorant as I had feared." The girl pushed an equipment vest across the table. "If something does confuse you, don''t be afraid to ask me for guidance."

    It took a great deal of effort to keep from punching the officious bitch in the nose. "And you are?"

    She returned a condescending smile. "I am Fausta."

    Weird name.

    Inside the equipment vest Elyssa found sleeper cuffs, a wrist-mounted Lancer, which shot silver projectiles charmed to incapacitate just about any kind of supernatural, and a variety of survival supplies she rarely used for urban enforcement duties in Atlanta. Maybe this place really was like the Wild West.

    A set of matched katanas rounded out the package. Elyssa slid them from their sheaths and tested one in each hand with a few twirls. The superb balance in both blades reassured her, though she wasn''t a fan of their length. "Do you have any sai swords?"

    Fausta grunted. "Of course, but why would you want toys over these?"

    Elyssa shrugged. "I like the feel better. Comes from fighting in tight quarters."

    "Well, before you go back to your kiddie swords, why don''t you give these a try?"

    "They''re not kiddie swords," Elyssa growled.

    "Maybe you''ll realize they are when someone guts you with the extra foot of blade a katana gives you."

    "Want to test my kiddie swords against your oversized kitchen knife?"

    Fausta snorted. "You use sais, and you''re calling these oversized kitchen knives?"

    "Any man-at-arms should know the value of different blades. Oh wait, I guess you''re actually a girl-at-arms. My mistake."

    "Ladies, we don''t have time for this," Beck said, pushing between the two of them as Fausta tried to get in Elyssa''s face. He glanced at Elyssa. "Do you really want sai swords or are you trying to be difficult?"

    She flashed a sarcastic smile at him. "Maybe I should test them on you."

    Fausta huffed out a loud sigh and dropped a matched pair of sheathed sais on the table. "Fine, have it your way."

    "Not like we''ll be slicing and dicing anyway," Beck said, making the sign of the cross on his chest. "Don''t want to piss off the Reds."

    "I sincerely doubt they''ll care if we wipe out a splinter group," Fausta said. "I read about the last time a group of newbie vamps pulled this crap on the Red Syndicate. The Reds eradicated every last one without a second thought."

    "Yeah, but something strange is going on with the old-school vamps," Beck said. "They don''t even seem to care about the Maximus issue."

    "Probably because the Arcanes are ready to go to war with the Reds over the Dallas massacre."

    Now that was something Elyssa did remember. "You mean when vampires attacked the Dallas branch of the Ezzek Moore School for the Gifted?" Templars had briefly investigated the horrific crime before the Arcane Council told them they''d take care of it internally.

    Fausta nodded. "Yep. Bunch of vamps killed the best and brightest upcoming kid sorcerers before the teachers could kill the attackers."

    Beck picked up a slim silver dagger from a nearby table and made a show of picking his fingernails. "The Reds said they didn''t have anything to do with it, but the Arcane Council claimed that one of the attackers was a high-ranking officer in Red Cell."

    Red Cell was the vampire equivalent of the Templars, protecting the interests of their ancient masters and taking care of internal affairs, but the Syndicate hadn''t used them in offensive operations for centuries, as far she knew. Physical fights among the major Overworld factions were also rare, which made the Dallas incident all the more troubling.

    Beck tugged on her elbow. "We''d better go. Christian''s gonna start the briefing soon."

    Elyssa grabbed both sets of swords¡ªjust to be on the safe side¡ªand shoved the other stuff under her arm.

    Fausta smirked. "I hope your toothpicks keep you safe." She walked back to her chair and looked up just as Elyssa opened the door to leave. "Oh, and I''m more than happy to spar anytime you like."

    Elyssa raised an eyebrow. "Looking forward to it." She resisted the urge to stick out her tongue and left.

    "It''s good to see you make friends just as easily now as the last time I saw you," Beck said with a dry chuckle.

    She would have punched his shoulder again, but her arms were full. "I''m not the one who got bent out of shape over someone else''s choice of swords."

    "Yeah, don''t take it the wrong way. Fausta thinks she''s a badass. Then again, so do you."

    "Is she?"

    One corner of his mouth curved up into a lopsided grin. "Pretty much, yeah."

    Several Templars hurried past them into the building that housed the briefing room. Elyssa followed them inside the squat building and down a wide hallway until she reached an auditorium semi-circled by raised tiers of stadium seats. Christian stood next to a black table in the front. She and Beck took adjoining seats as the room filled with fully outfitted Templars. The air conditioning and ceiling fans made the only noise aside from the occasional shuffle of someone slipping into a chair. This group seemed disciplined. Battle-ready.

    Christian checked the time and made a crisscrossing gesture at the doors, sealing them into a seamless surface. He withdrew a shiny white globe, an all-seeing eye the size of a marble, from a chest and placed it on the table. The ASE spun on its axis, spinning faster and faster until a holographic image burst to life, dominating the table surface.

    The Templar commander paused the playback. "Meet Maximus, a former Red Cell recruit who went rogue a couple months ago, according to our information." He waved a hand at the ASE and playback resumed.

    The ASE had obviously been spying from the ceiling of a room and provided a great view of the packed audience¡ªmostly young people¡ªwith a platform in the center. Atop a podium stood a tall, muscular male in a long, leather trench coat and wrap-around shades. A thick goatee multiplied his douchebag factor by about a million.

    Maximus smiled at the crowd. "For too long, we have let the ancients push us around and tell us who could join the Syndicate and who couldn''t. I''m here to tell you that everything is about to change and we''re the ones to do it!" Maximus pumped a fist in the air and displayed his fangs in a predatory grin.

    A roar of shouts and applause met his declaration. Although Elyssa pegged the speaker''s physical age at about thirty, she knew he could be hundreds of years older.

    "Our work here is just starting," Maximus said, "but we have allies who will push our agenda forward until our voice is heard. They will not ignore Blood Rush."

    The crowd roared. A chant went up, "Max-i-mus, MAX-I-MUS!"

    He stroked his goatee and smiled, wallowing in the adoration like a pig in poop for a moment, before holding up a hand and silencing them. "How many of you are candidates for the gift?"

    A hundred or more hands went up.

    "I have personally given the gift to thousands, and you will each receive your reward in turn. Go spread the word. Recruit, recruit, recruit!" He pounded the bottom of his fist into the other palm for emphasis. "United, we will force the ancients to give us the immortality and power we deserve!"

    The mob exploded into jubilation.

    Christian motioned for the ASE to stop playback. "This is what we''re up against, people. A cult filled not just with young vampires, but noms who fanatically want to become vampires. Maximus calls his movement Blood Rush, and it''s spreading across Bogota like a cancer."

    Elyssa thought the name sounded like something a hormonal teenage boy would name his band. How could people take an idiot like this Maximus creep seriously?

    "Shouldn''t Red Cell be taking care of this?" someone asked.

    "Red Cell is occupied with the Arcane Council, and all our attempts to push them to action have been met with silence or bureaucratic red tape. The Overworld Conclave has also taken no action. However, supers are revealing their existence to noms, a clear violation of Conclave rules. What that means, people, is this is our mess to clean up."

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    A man in the front pointed to the mob in the image. "But those noms look like they want to be vampires."

    Christian shrugged. "Recruiting noms for membership by any supernatural nation is forbidden, no matter how much the noms want in. Incidental exposure is technically allowed, but this, obviously, goes way beyond that."

    "The vamps have always been the biggest abusers of the incidental exposure clause," someone near the front said.

    "The Arcanes use it too," Christian replied. "Daemos are the ones who usually fight tooth and nail against these things because they can''t turn anyone into one of them, unlike most other supers." He pinched two fingers together over the image, zooming out until the area outside the building could be seen. Cramped streets and crowded buildings surrounded it.

    The engagement zone looked a lot tighter than what Elyssa usually faced in Atlanta, allowing ample opportunity for concealment. She noted six exits on the building, five sewage covers, and over a dozen possible staging areas for Templar forces to gain superior elevation.

    "What''s the target''s traveling contingent?" she asked.

    "His entourage consists of nearly thirty vampires, some with military training. All are less than a century old."

    Elyssa had seen this sort of situation before and opened her mouth to tell Christian what he should do when a chiming noise dinged from the back of the room. She turned in time to see doors form in the wall. A man stepped through and hurried down the aisle to Christian. After a moment of consultation, the man nodded briskly and sped back out of the room.

    A smile broke onto Christian''s face. "It appears a high-value target on the Hot List has been reported in our territory. The window of opportunity to catch him is short. Prep for armed, rural engagement and meet on the air pad in fifteen. Dismissed!"

    Beck groaned as Templars hurried out in orderly fashion.

    "What''s wrong?" Elyssa said.

    "Nothing, if you like dodging a hail of bullets."

    Bullets didn''t worry her¡ªthe Nightingale armor would stop them. What did concern her was how quickly Christian switched from what appeared to be a high-priority mission to their new assignment. Templars didn''t put just any old criminal on the Hot List without a really good reason. They also didn''t just fly off on a new mission half-cocked. Whoever they were going after probably not only threatened the stability of the Conclave even more than Maximus, but was exceedingly dangerous.

    And Elyssa had a really bad feeling about it.

    Chapter 18

    I must have passed out for a moment. Maybe longer, because I opened my eyes when someone slapped me.

    I need a woman.

    But how was I going to convince them to bring in a woman after Franco made it very clear there were to be no women in here?

    It was all I could do to keep my eyes open. Dark spots crept along the edges of my vision. I had to do something. Anything. These guys were grade-A bullies if ever I''d seen one. They made Nathan Spelman look angelic. To get what I wanted, I had to be pathetic. Make them think they were crushing my spirit. I knew one thing guys would pounce on in a heartbeat.

    "Mommy?" I said. "Was Mommy here?"

    "No, young man," the doctor said, his voice full of pity. "That wasn''t¡ª"

    "Mommy?" Diego said, sheer joy lighting his voice. He rattled off a sentence in Spanish. Jose roared with laughter and said something. Diego crouched next to me, putting his ugly little face right in mine. He reeked of beans and cigarette smoke. "You want your mommy? We get her. She kiss you all better."

    "Please, I want my mommy," I wheezed in a harsh whisper. It wasn''t hard to sound pathetic with morphine pumping through my battered body.

    Diego laughed so hard, his face turned red and tears streamed down his face. He reached for his radio and barked something into it. The radio crackled with a response. "You promise to do everything I say if I bring your mommy?" he said, a cruel teasing edge to his voice.

    "I promise," I croaked, moaning and fluttering my eyelids for effect. "Momma, bring me my snuggy blanket!"

    "Good heavens, he''s delirious," the doctor said. "I need to operate on this man and playing games with him isn''t helping."

    "You shut up!" Diego shouted. He knelt and gripped my face, his rough callused hands scratching my skin. "You do what you promise or Jose pound your balls to dust, amigo."

    "Yes, yes, please," I said in a rasping desperate voice, not faking it at all. Consciousness was fading fast.

    Someone pushed open the door and a woman appeared, her forehead furrowed in confusion. She made a querulous sound as though she couldn''t believe they needed her.

    Finally!

    I extended a tendril of my essence and latched onto her deliciously shimmering halo as her footsteps tapped closer to the cell. It took every ounce of willpower not to suck her dry as fast as I could. Instead, I let the energy trickle in ever so slightly. The demonic hunger jerked and tugged like a newborn calf sucking desperately for milk and the faucet opened a bit wider.

    "Mommy is here, gringo. She bring your blanket and teddy bear too." He and Jose snorted with laughter. Tears of mirth spilled down their cheeks. "Now, you do what Franco say, promise? Or we take Mommy away and shoot her."

    Hate surged in me at his words.

    I cracked open an eyelid. A grandmotherly woman hovered over me, worry adding more wrinkles to her forehead. She said something to the short guy, but he only yelled back at her. She cringed. I strained to control the flow of energy, but it slipped further and further from my grasp. The woman''s eyes widened. Glazed. A deep sensual moan escaped her lips. Her tongue worked an erotic circuit around thin, cracked lips. She pressed both hands against ample hips, working up and down in slow rhythm with her moans.

    Little Diego''s thin face wrinkled into a perplexed expression. The doctor''s mouth dropped open. I couldn''t see that ball-sack, Jose, but I imagined he was just as puzzled. This probably wasn''t the mother-son reunion they''d expected.

    I felt the shards of agony in my ribs subside and the click of bones as they knitted and popped into place. The pulsating misery in my ragged throat eased to a euphoric numbness. Energy flooded my veins. The woman pressed her body against Diego, grabbing at his belt, desperately trying to tear his pants off. He resisted, but she was a swarthy woman and he was such a little man. Jose giggled hysterically, his voice high-pitched as a schoolboy on helium.

    The doctor''s astounded gaze shifted back to me and his eyes shot wide. "What the bloody hell?"

    I smiled the most evil smile I could muster and climbed menacingly to my feet. Gripped the shackle on my leg and tore it off. Jose''s eyes widened. He swung his arm at me. His fist smacked into my face and crunched like it''d hit a brick wall. He stared with disbelief at his broken hand and wailed.

    My inner demon burst from its cage with a roar. I grabbed his throat. Slammed him against the wall so hard his eyes popped out of their sockets and bloody snot spurted from his nose.

    Diego screamed. Demonic anger burned through my veins like lava. I jerked the little man from the lustful attentions of my stand-in mother and slung him down fifty feet of hallway so hard he cracked the cinderblocks at the far end. It took several seconds before his body peeled off the wall and slumped to the floor.

    The doctor backed into my cell as I faced him. "Please, I''m as much a prisoner as you are. They force me to work here."

    I cut the connection to the woman before I drained her essence dry. I caught her as she fainted away and settled her on the floor well away from the mess that had been Jose.

    Resisting the urge to grab the doctor by his shirt, I asked, "Where am I?"

    "Bloody hell." The doctor''s fearful eyes moved to Jose''s gruesomely disfigured face.

    This time I grabbed his shirt. "I asked you a question."

    Sweat dribbled down the man''s pale face. "Y-y-you''re on a cocaine plantation filled with mercenaries and enslaved locals."

    I let go of him and left the cell. "I''m getting out of here."

    He ran after me. "There must be over a hundred armed men out there. How the bloody hell are you going to get past them?"

    I bared my teeth into a snarl and punched a hole in the concrete. A fine white dust drifted from the hole. "Do you really think guns will stop me?"

    The doctor gulped. "Will you take me with you?"

    I regarded him for a moment, wondering if he really was a prisoner, finally deciding it didn''t matter. I needed help getting out of here. "Do you have a map or any idea where to go?"

    "I know the perfect place. The leader of this god-forsaken hellhole has an airstrip less than a mile away. One of his courier jets is waiting there. I imagine someone of your abilities could persuade the pilot to ferry us out of here."

    It sounded like a good plan.

    Something outside popped, followed by a crackling noise like fireworks shooting off or the noisiest bowl of Rice Krispies ever. An explosion shook the ground and I knew something bigger than a kid with bottle rockets was wreaking havoc outside.

    "Are explosions like that normal around here?"

    The doctor''s eyes grew wide with terror. "It sounds like a bloody turf war again."

    "Turf war?"

    "Rival cartels fight all the time, although I''ve never heard an explosion like that."

    I walked to the steel door at the end of the hall and tugged on it. It latched from the other side. "Watch out," I said and slammed the bottom of my foot against it. With a metallic screech, the door flew free. A man''s scream cut off abruptly the moment the steel clanged against something hard in the next room. A limp hand poking from behind the warped door dropped a blood-stained romance novel to the floor. The unfortunate guard had apparently been sitting in a chair opposite the door. A rifle leaned against the wall to the right of the squashed man. I picked it up and examined it for a moment before deciding my zero experience with guns would only lead to shooting myself in the foot. I offered it to the doctor.

    He waved it away. "I don''t think I could kill anyone."

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    "At least carry the stupid thing. Wave it around¡ªjust not toward me."

    He took it reluctantly. As we passed through an area that looked like a barracks, he snatched a pistol from a peg on the wall and dropped the rifle. I looked more closely at the pistol and realized it looked a lot like the dart gun Franco''s man had had nailed me with earlier. A cartridge held extra darts and slid into the handle.

    "I won''t be afraid to shoot people with this," the doctor said, pushing up his glasses and doing his best to imitate the nerdy version of Rambo.

    Ceiling fans hummed on the rafters overhead and air conditioners set into windowsills blasted away with all they had. Even so, the snap, crackle, and pop of gunshots rose above the clatter. We emerged from the barracks and into the humid night air. About a hundred yards away stood a three-story mansion protected by a towering wall. Palm trees jutted above the adobe walls. Towering behind them stood the third story of the palatial abode. The lights were off inside but occasional muzzle flashes lit the interior.

    Bullets pinged off the side of the barracks as we stood gawking like a couple of idiots. The doctor shrieked and hit the dirt. I ducked behind the low concrete wall next to the barracks and risked a peek for an escape route, preferably bullet free. Tall lampposts lined the perimeter of the house. Scattered street lamps around the rutted dirt roads managed to keep the place lit enough my night vision didn''t kick in.

    My sensitive hearing caught the sound of boots on gravel. I stayed low as a group of men in jungle camo ran past us toward the mansion, their automatic rifles swinging in white-knuckled grips.

    "Are you like Franco and Marcel?" the doctor asked in a low voice. Sweat funneled down the worry lines in his face.

    I cast him a confused glance. "What do you mean?"

    "Those two are insanely strong. A rival gang member shot Franco in the leg not long after they kidnapped me. He didn''t even ask for my help. The bullet hole healed up within minutes."

    "I''m nothing like them," I said. "They''re vampires."

    His brow crumpled. "Surely you must be joking."

    I shook my head. "Afraid not. But don''t worry, I''m not a vampire. I''m demon spawn."

    He gulped. "That sounds immeasurably worse."

    "I''d like to think I''m kind of a nice guy." I glanced down the muddy road ahead. "We need to head for the jet now. You still coming?"

    He looked back as the muzzle flare of rifles lit the night. Back to me. A resigned look wrinkled his face. He nodded.

    I paused to make sure there were no more gunmen coming and was just about to lead him across a wide-open gap between our flimsy wall and a concrete barrier when a tall figure streaked at inhuman speed out of the back gate in the adobe wall. I knew who it was by the long black ponytail¡ªMarcel. He appeared to be heading the same way we were, toward the airstrip. I did not want to fight him or his boss Franco for a seat on the jet. Thankfully, he was looking back over his shoulder at the mansion. I blurred into his path and clotheslined him with an elbow right to the old noggin. His body left the ground and went parallel to it. I grabbed him by his neck in mid-air and slammed him viciously to the gravel, sending out a shockwave of dust. A satisfying punch to the face insured he was out cold. The doctor peeked from his hiding spot and shot a dart. It whizzed past my leg and lodged in the vampire''s thigh.

    "Whoa, watch it!" I said.

    The doctor poked his head back out. "Sorry."

    I glanced down at the unconscious vampire. "If Marcel is here, Franco must be nearby."

    "Indeed he is," said Franco from somewhere behind me a split second before a gunshot exploded. I dove left on pure reflex. Rolled to my feet and blurred to the right. Franco spun with vampiric speed, following my every move, and fired the gun again. Even if I had a good chance surviving a bullet wound, simply knowing someone was shooting at me incited an almost blind panic. I dove at the vampire. Searing heat ran down my right arm as the bullet whizzed by. I slammed into his midsection. He hit the ground and slid on his back through gravel and mud while I rode him like a vampiric boogey board until he ground to a halt.

    Just as I cocked my fist back to punch him, a dart sprouted in his neck followed by another. I jerked back as one whizzed by my nose.

    "Sorry!" said the doctor as he aimed with trembling hands.

    "Give him another to be safe," I said.

    The doctor pumped two more into him. I glanced back at Marcel and noticed three more darts sticking out of his chest. Franco growled and grasped for my throat, but the tranquilizer kicked in and his beady red eyes rolled up into the back of his head.

    "This is exhilarating and terrifying all at the same time," the doctor said. He pressed a pair of fingers to his own neck. "I do believe a myocardial infarction on my part is rather imminent."

    I turned toward the road leading to the airfield and motioned him on, but my conscience unfolded from the fetal position, crawled out from its safe place, and tapped me on the shoulder. I knew not all vampires were pure evil just like not all demon spawn were the Devil''s cabana boys. But these two vampires were obviously rotten to the core, running a drug farm and a slave operation. My survival instinct unabashedly tugged me toward the airstrip, though my chest constricted with shame for leaving Franco''s victims to rot. While the rest of the cartel was fighting a war, I might be able to save some people.

    You have to save Elyssa! You don''t have time to run around saving the world.

    But I knew guilt would follow me forever if I abandoned innocents to these monsters. I groaned and gave myself a hearty face-palm. "Where do they keep the slaves?" I asked the doctor.

    His already trembling hands shook even more violently. "Are you bloody insane?" He looked at Franco''s unconscious form. The vampire''s fangs protruded from beneath his lips and I could practically see the doctor''s mind make the transition from disbelief to absolute horror. "My god, it''s true, isn''t it?" He stumbled backward and fell on his butt. "Those people weren''t just slaves. And their babies¡ªoh dear lord, the babies." He blanched and stared blankly into the distance.

    "They did something to babies?"

    His voice rose to a hoarse whisper. "They vanished."

    I gagged as the reality of what he was saying hit home. "My god. They were using those people as food."

    He nodded. "I had to check the health of the incoming workers and people they kidnapped. They brought in women, some of them pregnant. Sometimes they''d bring in a tourist, but they always ransomed those types."

    I couldn''t stand around any longer, especially with a gun battle raging not far away. "Point me toward the place they keep the slaves. I''ll meet you at the plane."

    "I can help."

    I almost refused him. But his knowledge of the layout might help me direct those poor souls out of this wretched place. He gripped the dart gun in a trembling hand. His shaky trigger finger fired a dart into the dirt, narrowly missing his foot. His shoulders slumped as he regarded his shaking limbs.

    "I''m a sodding mess." He offered me the gun. "With your speed, you could hit anyone before I even saw them."

    I pulled the belt off one of the unconscious vampires along with the pistol holster and put it on so I could secure the gun. If I tried to tuck it into my pants, I''d probably end up tranquilizing my ass. I motioned for the doctor to proceed. "Let''s do this."

    We ran behind a tin shed. Scanned for bad guys. Ran to a copse of trees. Looked again. Five minutes later, we arrived at the doors to an underground cellar. The steel doors were locked and inset into the ground against a concrete frame, but I ripped one off the hinges with a few hard jerks. I''d expected a filthy root cellar filled with grubby starved people and rats¡ªlots of rats. Instead, I found a set of bleached concrete stairs leading into a polished, marble-tiled hallway. A large communal bathroom with showers and stainless steel toilets without partitions filled the first room. Doors lined the rest, like a dormitory.

    "The other end leads into the mansion," the doctor said.

    "Wow, this place looks nice."

    "Looks can be deceiving."

    I knew that all too well. I bashed the first locked door open with my shoulder, glad that it was wood instead of metal. A woman on the other side screeched and hid behind the bed. A television hummed in the background. She assaulted us with a stream of Spanish. The doctor replied in kind and after a moment she calmed down. When she neared us, I realized that her eyes flickered between normal brown and vampiric red. I also noticed the hump in her midsection and my stomach clenched.

    "Ask her if she''s pregnant."

    He did and she replied affirmatively.

    "She''s turning into a vampire," I told him. "I think Franco is trying to make baby dhampyrs."

    The doctor''s face blanched and he backed away from the woman, terror in his eyes. "She''s a bloody vampire?"

    I grabbed his arm. "It''s not like the movies," I said. "She''s not going to freak out and attack you."

    "How do you know?"

    "Because not all vampires are pure evil like the jackass who runs this place." I noticed an empty blood pack on the dresser nearby. "Plus, she just ate."

    He turned a shade of green I''d never seen before and ran out retching.

    Even if the woman wasn''t going to attack anyone, I didn''t know what to do about her. Someone else would have to break out the vampire handbook and give her the lowdown, because I wasn''t exactly a fountain of knowledge. It was really too bad Shelton''s place wasn''t nearby because I''d gladly dump these newly fanged females on his doorstep. I could imagine the panic on his face if I turned his hideout into a halfway home for pregnant vampires.

    The doctor and I went through the rest of the rooms, freeing what turned out to be nearly a dozen women. Some were pregnant. Others cried about having their babies taken from them after birth. At least a couple others showed signs of vampiric turning.

    "Did you deliver their infants?" I asked the doctor, clenching my fists and trying to decide just how innocent he was in the wretched scheme of things. My lack of Spanish prevented me from questioning the women, but at least none of them had attacked the doctor on sight which would have been a clear indication to me his hands were filthy with this dirty business.

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    He shook his head. "I don''t know who delivered them."

    I led the group of ten women to the back. Most of them wore only bed robes, lingerie, and slippers. Apparently, the vampires used them for their blood and other sickening purposes I didn''t want to think about. This Victoria''s secret was one I didn''t want to know.

    Before we left this place, I was going to do something about Franco and Marcel. Much as I hated to do it, the only way to ensure they never did this again was to kill them. My guts knotted at the thought, but I felt like I had no choice.

    The women and doctor gathered in a tight circle around me as we stood near the exit. I felt their expectant eyes on me, like bayonets pressing hard against my back, urging me to show them a way out of this hellhole. I didn''t have a clue what I was doing. For all I knew we''d be mowed down by automatic gunfire twenty feet from the compound. The jet might be gone, leaving me stranded in the middle of the jungle with pregnant women who were turning into vampires. I couldn''t think of anything stranger or more frightening.

    One of the pregnant women took my hand and squeezed. I looked into her eyes as they cycled between honey brown and crimson red. She smiled. It was a weak, worried smile, but a smile nonetheless. I didn''t know this woman. I owed her nothing. But she was counting on me to rescue her from a life of degradation and slavery and, damn it all, I had to try. I might not be able to plan my way out of a paper bag without burning it to the ground, but for these people, it really couldn''t get much worse. I would burn this place to ashes if I had to.

    I smiled back. Squeezed her hand. "We''ll get out of this," I said with more confidence than I felt.

    I don''t think she spoke much English, but she nodded anyway and let go of my hand.

    The gun battle had dwindled to an occasional random shot punctuating the night. Our return to the airstrip necessitated passing by the unconscious vampires, so I let the doctor lead the way while I thought about the best method for executing the evil duo.

    Franco and Marcel still lay where we''d left them.

    One of the women shrieked and rushed Franco, kicking the unconscious vampire in the ribs as tears poured down her face. Another woman shrank behind me, sobbing, while yet another grabbed a nearby shovel and pounded Franco on the face until blackened blood oozed from the ruin of his nose.

    I grabbed her arms and took the shovel away. "Doc, get them out of here. I''ll meet you in a minute."

    "What do you plan to do?"

    I sighed and found the pistol Franco had tried to shoot me with earlier. "We can''t let them live."

    One of the women, a short pregnant girl who couldn''t have been much older than me, said something in Spanish and held out her hand, presumably for the gun.

    "She wants the honor of putting them down," the doctor said.

    I almost gave the scrappy chica the gun, but what kind of man would I be, letting a woman do the dirty work? Maybe I was being a pig for not letting her, but it just seemed wrong, letting a pregnant woman shoot two unconscious people¡ªrotten disgusting jackasses or not¡ªin cold blood. I aimed the gun at Franco''s head. My hand shook and sweat gathered on my brow. A cramp tightened in my guts and a little voice in my head screamed, No! You''ll scar yourself for life!

    My mind flashed back to Diego and his muscular friend, Jose. I''d killed them. A sick feeling rose in my stomach and I tasted bile. Things had been so hectic and crazy I hadn''t given it much thought. Strangely, I didn''t feel all that guilty about Diego and his pal, even though the gruesome memory played over and over in my head. But I remembered Sherriff Skinner. I''d killed him by slamming him into a wall. Then again, he''d just tried to kill Elyssa. He''d tried to harm someone I loved.

    Just because these two deserved death, did that mean I had the right to carry out their sentence in cold blood?

    A gentle hand touched mine and I flicked my gaze away from the vampires to see the pregnant girl looking at me with big brown eyes. "Bad."

    I nodded. "I know. Dammit, I know, but I don''t think I can do this. I don''t think I can kill them like this."

    Something whistled through the air. Instinct took over and I swayed left as a silvery dart flashed past my shoulder and caught one of the women in the cheek. She stiffened and collapsed even as my ears detected more projectiles coming our way.

    "Duck!" I shouted, and followed my own advice by diving to the side and rolling behind the tin shed the doctor and I had used for cover earlier.

    Unfortunately, none of the others were as quick and slumped to the ground like a pile of abandoned marionettes.

    "He''s behind the shed," someone shouted.

    "Flank right!"

    A dark figure flitted beneath one of the street lamps and my heart seemed to pause mid-beat. I''d recognize the wearers of that night camo anywhere.

    Templars.

    Chapter 19

    Demonic energy thrummed in my blood. Even so, I doubted I could race through the forest at top speed, make it to the jet, and convince the pilot to take off before a dozen or more well-trained Templars caught up and beat the snot out of me. Then again, these guys weren''t giving me much of a choice. I looked down the road leading to the jet. The doctor told me it was less than a mile. I hoped he was right.

    I''d already learned the perils of running blindly through a rainforest. Namely, I would be more likely to beat myself bloody against branches than get anywhere very fast. So I sprinted down a nearby path and raced behind a garage, hoping to reach the road leading to my destination. A nearby shout told me they''d spotted me. My legs spun beneath me, churning up loose gravel and mud. I dashed down the awful excuse for a road. Risked a glance back and spotted several dark specters streak beneath one of the few street lamps bordering this area.

    The Templars were probably as fast, if not faster. Sure, football practice trained me not to fall on my face every time I ran at super speed, but I hadn''t exactly honed my skills to ninja level ninety-nine. Running from hellhounds and evil shadow people had, at least, taught me to run without wetting my britches.

    What in the hell were the Templars doing here, anyway? Either this was a raid on rogue vampires or Thomas Borathen had found me and sent a squad to finish me off once and for all. Elyssa''s father took the definition of "overprotective" and "obsessive" to terrifying new levels.

    Despite the wind rushing past my ears, another noise caught my attention: the roar of jet engines powering up. The pilot must have heard the shooting or been alerted by radio because it sounded like my ride out of here was going buh-bye.

    I invented a few new curse words and sped up. The road terminated at a clearing the length of several football fields. A narrow strip of asphalt ran down the center. I saw a small jet turning around at one end of the runway, prepping for takeoff. Veering right, I angled for my last chance out of here, some hundred yards away. The plane straightened out. Turbine engines roared at full blast. The vessel charged down the runway.

    My brain recalculated my escape plan. The only way to get inside that jet was to somehow open the door on the side, maybe even rip it off all while it was moving. Such damage would undoubtedly make the aircraft hazardous to fly. I looked back. My night vision picked up at least six dark figures racing across the field after me, their legs blurred with speed. Flying in a broken plane suddenly seemed like a very viable plan. My brain analyzed my assessment and pointed out the swirling turbines just behind the wings and the tiny external handle on the door I''d have to grab to avoid being sucked into the deadly blades. Super healing or not, those things would inhale me and spit out incubus-flavored chop suey.

    I''m going to do this whether you like it or not, I told my brain. It responded by flashing gruesome images of my body whirling like a frog in a blender after my sweaty fingers slipped off the red handle on the jet''s hatch. I wondered if the door was locked from the inside. Considering the way things usually went for me, I felt certain that it was locked. Or jammed.

    It didn''t matter. In a few seconds, the jet and I would intersect and I''d have to hope I was quick enough to grab that door handle. I focused my eyes on the target and noticed the handle sat in a shallow circular recess on the door. Maybe this wouldn''t be so bad. The pilot, however, had other plans. Maybe he''d noticed the ominous figures dashing after him, or maybe he was just a jackass who hated me, because the jet lurched forward with a sudden burst of speed. My breath came in ragged pants as I willed my tired legs to speed up. But they were already going flat out. I reached the runway a split second before the aircraft roared past.

    My eyes locked onto the prize: the tiny red lever about a foot long. I dove. My fingers touched it. Slipped. Caught on the edge of the recessed area. Agony shot through my arm as my tendons, muscles, and bones groaned at the sudden change of direction. I flung my other hand toward the lever as wind tore at me, threatening to tear my sweaty hand loose, tossing me into the roaring maelstrom.

    The aircraft lurched. Angled upward. Left the ground. Gravity yanked my guts downward. The wind clawed, making my eyes water so fiercely I could hardly see. Something thudded behind me. I risked a glance back and saw two black-clad figures gripping the wing.

    Seriously?

    The air buffeted the aircraft violently and one Templar banged against the wing, his feet less than a yard or two from the roaring engines. The other lost his grip on the tip of the wing and tumbled forty or more feet back to the ground. I would have gulped except my mouth and throat felt parched as the desert. I hoped the remaining Templar''s hood hid a terrified expression as well. Or maybe Templars were so badass this was no worse than using the bathroom to them. My right hand found a metallic rung inside the recess and clung to it with manic force. I gripped the red handle and pushed on it. It didn''t budge.

    Of course!

    Since the handle hadn''t moved while pushing it, I gave it a yank. It moved a fraction but stopped as if it had hit something. Something told me I was turning it the right way, but it was definitely locked. I spared a glance back at the Templar. He shuffled his hands along the edge of the wing and reached the junction between it and the nacelle. My legs flapped up and down at the mercy of the wind. He reached for my foot. I tried to curl up, but my leg muscles had already given up the ghost and gone on vacation. A gloved hand clenched my calf.

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    "Are you crazy?" I shouted back. "I can barely hold on!" The wind and the roar of the jets obliterated my words the second they left my mouth. I tightened my grip on the rung and yanked on the door handle again. If I could have braced my legs, I might have had a chance. The Templar, however, had other plans. He reached for my other calf.

    I alternated between kicking at his hand and playing keep away but he was too fast for my tired legs and snagged the other one. This put the full weight of both our bodies on my right arm, the only thing holding us onto the plane. Agony lanced through tendons, muscles, and flesh. My shoulder felt like it might separate from the socket. Using the rung gripped in my right hand as a brace, I pushed against it while jerking on the handle. Metal groaned. Popped. The handle swung up with more force than I''d intended and the hatch popped open. My hand on the door lost purchase, and the wind slammed the Templar and me against the nacelle, pounding us like rag dolls. Someone screamed. An armed man flew out of the hatch, his gun firing wildly as he spun away into the darkness below. A bullet pinged off the metal. The Templar jerked, sending a fresh wave of agony into my arm but I couldn''t look back. It was all I could do to reach forward and grab the open hatch as it bobbed up and down with each jolt of the plane.

    I noticed with alarm, the jet was straining to stay aloft. Trees loomed close below as the engines screamed with effort. I gripped the doorsill with my left hand. Switched my right hand from the open hatch to join it. I craned my neck back, glancing at my unwelcome hitchhiker.

    I looked toward the hatch just in time to see the glint of a gun muzzle poking around the edge. A man in a harness leaned out and fired. The only thing saving me from a bullet in the brain was the air turbulence. It bounced the man like a frog on a trampoline. Searing pain blazed into my thigh, followed shortly by the sensation of a hammer pounding into the calf on my other leg. The Templar''s grip on my legs loosened, and I felt his hands slide until my feet were the only things between him and a future as fertilizer puree for the rain forest.

    Another bout of turbulence jolted the plane. The gunman bounced up, slammed his head on the doorframe. His gun spun away. I gripped his harness and, using the rest of my strength, pulled myself through the raging wind toward the cabin, one agonizing inch at a time while the man pounded on my hands with his fists. The Templar lost hold of one of my feet. I briefly considered letting the idiot fall.

    But I didn''t need another guilt-ridden nightmare to keep me up at night. I knew I''d regret it, but my conscience would gnaw my insides to raw bits if I didn''t try to rescue him. With a secure grip on the harness, I pounded the gunman in the face and sent him to la-la land. My torso rested on the edge of the cabin and the hatch, giving me a little extra leverage. I reached my hand back, groping for the Templar''s wrist since his other hand hung uselessly behind him but I couldn''t reach low enough.

    There was only one way this would work. Mustering a last surge of strength, I pulled up my leg. It was like doing a leg-lift with a boulder. A roar of pain tore from my throat as I gave it everything I had. Five inches more. Three. Two. Somehow, I found the energy to grip his wrist. As I squeezed, his grip on my ankle tightened. He probably thought I was going to tear him loose and drop him into the engine. He probably deserved it. But not today. Nope, not with tenderhearted Justin at the wheel.

    I''d make a terrible bad guy.

    I kneed him in the face with my free leg. His head snapped back, bounced off the nacelle. The hand on my ankle went slack. I pulled his body alongside mine until his hand reached the harness. I almost burst into tears of joy when he gripped it and the agonizing pressure on my joints subsided. Using the harness, I pulled myself into the cabin and dragged the Templar in after me. He rolled aside and lay in a motionless heap.

    Wind tore through the narrow space, flinging paper and empty cups around like a miniature tornado. Four cushy chairs rotated aimlessly in the chaos. The unconscious gunman hung limp in the orange safety harness. I unbuckled him and left him on the floor before hauling in the harness so I could close the hatch. But one of the hinges had warped. I tried to force it shut, but the weld holding the hinge to the nacelle broke loose. When I tried to force the handle into a locking position, the stupid thing popped loose, falling open again. The remaining hinge couldn''t take the strain and snapped. Wind snatched the door and it shot back like a rocket, glancing off the side of the engine. The plane shuddered. Miraculously, the engine didn''t explode and kept right on going.

    Someone screamed what was probably the mother lode of Spanish obscenities from behind the curtain separating the cockpit from the cabin. I added a few of my own as white-hot fear twisted my bowels. I hoped whoever was flying this thing could hold it together. I wasn''t too worried about him looking back here, not with him barely keeping this bucking bronco under control.

    I noticed blood seeping from wounds along the Templar''s body and realized that the bullets must have hit him. Supposedly, Templar outfits protected against mundane stuff like that. This uniform had failed miserably. I counted five punctures in the material and shuddered.

    My own legs felt like knives were burrowing into them, one in my thigh muscle, and the other in my calf. Since I was more or less safe from a jet engine turning me into lobster bisque, my body turned its full attention to the pain. The sensations of torn muscles and tendons joined forces with the bullet wounds and turned my body into a theatre of agony. I reached a hand to my injured thigh and pulled back bloody fingers.

    Movement flashed in the corner of my eye. The formerly unconscious gunman swung the barrel of an orange pistol at me. I lashed out lightning-quick with a foot and caught his hand. His arm snapped back at an awkward angle just as the gun went off. Brilliant light flooded the compartment as a flare exploded like a fireball through the cockpit curtain and burst into cheerful flames. The pilot screamed like a man falling into a tub of molten lava. The jet rolled hard to the left, sending us tumbling. The gunman''s screams as he rolled out of the hatch joined the pilot''s.

    His fingers caught the orange harness an instant before gravity claimed him. The nylon fabric snapped tight. The cockpit curtain burst into orange flames and the plane rocked back to the right, sending the Templar and me bouncing off the chairs in the cabin. The smoldering pilot burst through the burning curtain, squealing like a pig, arms flailing. Stop, drop, and roll apparently hadn''t been taught in his elementary school. He ran headlong into the bulkhead, bounced off, and tumbled out the door with a fading shriek. Gagging at the awful odor of burnt flesh and hair, I pushed myself up and staggered as the wind rocked the jet back and forth.

    The gunman, who''d miraculously held on to the harness lost his grip for an instant and slid farther outside. His body thudded against the nacelle, cracking three windows. The harness clip, already weakened, snapped loose. The gunman''s scream lasted a nanosecond before the engine on that side made a horrific grinding noise and, with a thunderous boom, sent more cracks racing across the windows on the left. The jet frame groaned. Lurched sickeningly to the right. I raced into the cockpit. The flight stick jerked this way and that, wobbling up and down before deciding gravity had won. Below us stretched an endless canopy of forest.

    I flung myself into the copilot''s seat. Pulled on the control stick. It responded easily¡ªtoo easily. I wiggled it and met absolutely no resistance. I tested the stick on the pilot''s side. Same thing.

    "Seriously?" I shouted, slamming the stick back and forth. Hurtling at hundreds of miles per hour into a forest while a jet exploded around me did not seem survivable, even with my remarkable healing ability. I considered jumping. The tree canopy might slow me down, break a few bones¡ªor more likely every bone in my body¡ªand then, with a lot of luck, I might heal. With that many broken bones I''d end up looking like a lopsided ostrich in a yoga class. An exploding jet, on the other hand, would probably burn my body to crispy bacon.

    The floor shifted beneath me. Metal groaned. The remaining glass cracked and shattered. A pocket of turbulence slammed the aircraft so hard my head hit the ceiling and I bounced around like a pinball, biting my tongue hard enough to draw the metallic taste of blood. I couldn''t waste another second. Pushing my exhausted body to the limit, I dragged the Templar to the door and prepared to hurl us out into the void.

    Chapter 20

    Instead of black night, a long fall, and the promise of brutal pain, Lina''s brown eyes greeted me across a span of empty air. Bella stood beside her, staff extended and glowing with blue radiance. Alejandro, for his part, seemed to be piloting an aircraft of some sort. And it was no ordinary aircraft they stood on. It was a flying carpet. A big one.

    I could hardly believe my eyes.

    "Hurry, child!" Bella shouted. "I can''t hold this craft upright much longer."

    The carpet slid close enough for me to step across. I braced myself for the onslaught of wind, hoping it wouldn''t fling me right off the carpet. Instead, I found nothing but calm, as though I were inside a car, sheltered from the elements. I dragged the Templar along with me, out of the jet and onto the carpet. Alejandro held his hand atop what looked like a sphere of polished black stone veined with green and gold, hovering almost stomach level above the carpet as he rotated it. The carpet banked gently to the left, away from the jet.

    I looked at the fatally crippled aircraft and gawked at the blackened ruins of the engine the gunman had fallen into. As we cleared the wings, Bella gave a mighty grunt and the glow from her staff winked out. The jet plummeted like a rock, plowing into the trees with horrible screeches, groans, and the crack of wood. She dropped onto her backside and set the staff aside to wipe beaded sweat from her forehead. Her violet eyes regarded me for a moment. They reminded me so much of Elyssa''s, I had to swallow a lump lodged like broken glass in my throat.

    I succumbed to my own weariness and slumped to the carpet between the injured Templar and Old Bella. Lina dropped in front of me.

    "Oh, Justin! You are so hurt." She pulled a first-aid kit from a satchel and, after looking from it to me a couple of times, shrugged and winced. "I don''t think this will help much."

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    Bella patted her hand. "He''s tired, child. Once he feeds, he''ll be good as new."

    Lina leaned into me for a hug and whispered, "You can feed off me again, Justin. I don''t mind."

    Bella rolled her eyes. Despite her own, very youthful appearance said, "Young lust. How precious."

    Overcoming my state of shock, I found my voice. "How in the world did you find me?"

    Bella frowned. "Someone saw men throw you into a truck and speed away. The only men anywhere near our town who would do such a thing worked for Franco, a local drug lord who, until now, has never given us cause for alarm."

    "I told the council this snake would bite us one day," Lina said, her brown eyes flaring with anger.

    Bella shrugged. "We assume he discovered a North American was in town and wanted ransom."

    "No, he and his right-hand man are vampires," I said. "They wanted my blood."

    Her eyes grew wide. "Vampires? We never knew."

    Lina glared at her. "Because we let those scum grow too strong."

    Bella''s gaze frosted over. "Drug lords are not our responsibility, child."

    Lina looked away. "We called the Templars to help us," she said. "When I told them your name, they were very eager to rescue you."

    "More like eager to put me down," I grumbled.

    Bella folded her legs beneath her. "The Templars are usually very responsive, but they asked so many questions about your identity I knew something was not quite right. So I told Alejandro to ready my flying rug."

    "You mean flying carpet," I said.

    She shrugged. "Same thing, dear."

    "When we arrived we saw you leading those women out of the cellar," Lina said, excitement causing her heavy accent to thicken even more. "But Bella saw the Templars fighting the men with guns and made us wait."

    "I didn''t want a stray bullet to hit us," Bella said. "We had trouble keeping up with the jet until the engine exploded."

    I glanced back at the black smoke rising from the tree line. "Yeah, things got kind of messy in there." I gave her a sideways look. "Were you actually holding up the jet with your staff?"

    She nodded. "I have to say, the gizmos they put in staffs these days really help with airspeed calculations quite a bit. I don''t think I could have done it nearly so well by myself."

    Alejandro brought us to a halt. Turned around and sat cross-legged on the rug. The control sphere lowered itself to about an inch off the surface and hovered behind him. We were now a good distance from the smoking wreckage. "Is the Templar alive?" he asked.

    I touched the Templar''s neck and found a pulse. He still lay sprawled face down on the rug, his only movement caused by breathing. Bella pulled a small wand from a pouch on her belt, whispered a few words, and touched it to the Templar''s back. He trembled ever so slightly and went still.

    "What did you do?" I asked, horrified.

    She smiled. "Don''t worry. I only made sure he stays asleep until we get home."

    Lights appeared above the trees. Alejandro sucked in a breath and turned back to the control sphere, pressing it down. The carpet dropped to tree level and hovered as three helicopters whizzed toward the smoking wreck some distance behind us. The aircraft stopped with pinpoint precision and dark figures leapt from the sides, vanishing into the forest. I realized, with a start, the only sound besides the creatures of the forest and the wind was the thudding of my heart.

    "I don''t hear the blades on those choppers," I whispered. Even at this distance, the noise from the rotors should ripple the air.

    "Those aren''t real helicopters," Bella replied. "The rotors are illusion."

    "You mean they''re like flying carpets made to look like choppers?"

    "A very apt description, young man."

    "Brilliant!" I said, abruptly grimacing at how loud I''d said it. I lowered my voice to a whisper. "You don''t have to be invisible. Just hide in plain sight."

    She shrugged. "Illusion requires a great deal of power as well."

    "We should go," Lina said, gripping my arm.

    Bella nodded. "Once they find the wreck empty, they''ll scour this area."

    Alejandro pushed down on the control sphere, taking us into the dense forest. My night vision revealed a landscape filled with life. Reflective eyes gleamed back at me from a nearby tree. The chirping and buzz of birds and insects projected a blanket of sound. Alejandro rolled the sphere forward a notch and the carpet glided smoothly forward, coasting between branches and finding narrow gaps in the foliage. After an hour of wending our way through the maze of vegetation, he took the carpet above tree level and looked back. The lights of the Templar choppers remained barely visible.

    Keeping us feet above the trees, Alejandro urged the carpet forward, speeding us along so fast, the treetops blurred beneath us. A bird squawked as the turbulence of our passing sent it tumbling.

    Within another hour, we reached the tiny town where my companions lived. "What''s the name of this one-horse town, anyway?" I asked as Alejandro guided the carpet in for a smooth landing behind his house.

    Bella smiled. "It''s one you may find familiar. Los Angeles."

    "Interesting." It sure as heck had a lot less traffic than the city in California. Even though I''d heard the name a ton of times, the meaning of the name had never really hit me. Not until my thought process wondered what it meant. My brain rolled its eyes at my thoughts and said, it means the angels, stupid.

    "The ancient tribes called El Dorado ''Ciudad De Los Angeles'' when the Spanish first arrived here, even though nobody dared live there. The first conquistadors to reach this far inland were more astonished by the gold and called it ''Ciudad De Oro'', or city of gold, which they later shortened to El Dorado, or Golden One." Bella stood up and stretched. "We named this city in remembrance of the original name."

    "Why didn''t the Overworld Conclave change the name back on the placards in the city?"

    She shrugged. "Who knows? They only care for the magical history of the place. Once they discovered the dangers lurking there, they quickly quarantined it. The Spanish lost three expeditions sent by conquistadores to remove the gold from the underground vaults beneath the place. They proclaimed it cursed by evil and abandoned all efforts."

    I shuddered at the thought of the resident shadow creatures. "What keeps those monsters from spreading all over the planet?"

    "They appear to be tethered to the city. Our studies have not discovered why, and nobody dares go into the underground vaults."

    "The shadows live there?"

    Fear flashed in her eyes as she nodded. "They live beneath the surface, banished by sunlight, if such an existence could be called ''life''."

    "The Arcane Council tried to kill them once," Lina said. "A very long time ago they sent their very best battle mages to clear out the vaults." She grimaced. "None of them came back."

    I thought back to the chambers beneath Thunder Rock and wondered if the vaults under El Dorado bore any resemblance. I remembered the huge engravings dominating the square where I''d spent the night hiding from the soul-sucking shadows, and two more dots connected. If Nightliss was truly an angel, and the engraving of the blonde woman really was her or a close relative, then the ancient citizens of El Dorado might have been right in calling it the city of angels. Furthermore, if the images of human sacrifice on the engravings were correct, those beings were not the kind of angels from the Bible. True, not all angels were exactly loving or caring¡ªthe Angel of Death came to mind¡ªbut I''d never heard of angels requiring human sacrifice or building pyramids in the middle of the jungle.

    This realization put another kink in my plans. Rescuing Elyssa and finding the truth behind the massacre at Thunder Rock still held the top slots. But what if these angel dudes were the same as the old masters, the ones who would return via the Obsidian Arches? The engravings made it clear these beings had used humans as slaves and worse. Were they the ones behind the unrest in the Overworld? The ones referred to in Foreseeance 4311?

    If so, they were responsible for Maximus and probably a whole lot more. One thing was clear: I needed to break out the yarn and thumbtacks because a king-sized flowchart was the only way I could remember everything. Pain and exhaustion, however, were pressuring me to forget all this crap for a few hours and sleep.

    Bella stepped from the carpet and pointed somewhere out in the darkness with her staff. "It is said that a man actually lives in El Dorado."

    I raised an eyebrow. "A man? You''ve got to be kidding. Nobody could survive there."

    She nodded. "One of our aboveground expeditions was cataloguing artifacts. In one of the pictures they took, you could clearly see a man watching them from the woods."

    "Oh my god, that''s creepy." I shuddered. "Are you sure it wasn''t one of those shadow things?"

    "This was a daylight expedition. We would never go in at night."

    "Well, whoever it was is probably dead by now. There''s no way anyone could live in that place with the shadows."

    An amused smile crept across Bella''s face. "Normally, I would agree with you. Very few people could or would want to live in that cursed place. But I recognized this man."

    "Recognized him?"

    "Oh yes. The Templars wanted him very badly at one point, but after Thunder Rock, he was presumed dead."

    My heart froze. "Vadaemos Slade?"

    She nodded. "I am almost certain it is he who lives there."

    "Impossible. The shadows would eat him alive."

    "Do you really believe someone capable of avoiding the Templars and his own people couldn''t find a way to survive in El Dorado?" She shook her head. "The man is a roach."

    Holy crap.

    If Vadaemos really was living in El Dorado, I had no choice. I absolutely had to go back and track him down. Make him answer questions about Thunder Rock. After all, if this guy had lived at Thunder Rock to avoid the authorities, it made perfect sense for him to pull the same stunt at El Dorado or a place like it. Why? Because who in their right mind would ever go there? Vadaemos might be a sneaky cheat and murderer, but he had giant balls of steel.

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    Fear squeezed my stomach while my heart floated on air. I might actually have a solid lead on the mystery of Thunder Rock! I needed to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, only one spawn was responsible for the massacre. Maybe, just maybe, Thomas Borathen would see the truth and let me date his daughter in peace.

    And maybe goats will poop gold.

    Alejandro nudged me on the shoulder. "Can you help me with the Templar?"

    I jerked from my thoughts and nodded. "We need to talk about this later," I said to Bella as Alejandro took the backpack and equipment belt off the unconscious form and piled them to the side. It amazed me the Templar had been able to run so fast with all that added weight. Alejandro gripped the slumbering form beneath the armpits and I gripped the feet. My body ached ferociously with each step as we carried it inside, setting the body atop a cot in a room near the back of the house.

    "I will get the healer for her," Lina said.

    "Her?" I looked closer at the figure and realized the form beneath all that bulky equipment was undeniably feminine even though a thick vest hid the curve of her breasts beneath the tight black material. Bella had managed to stop the bleeding, but the bullet wounds hadn''t healed as they should have. She''d temporarily reduced my own pain, though my skin still throbbed angrily where the bullets had bitten into my flesh.

    Just thinking about my own wounds turned my legs to jelly as the full weight of the insanity I''d been through climbed on my shoulders like a sumo wrestler. I dropped into a chair across from the cot and stifled a groan.

    "I don''t understand," I said to Alejandro. "Even though I''m tired, I''m not to the point where my wounds wouldn''t heal."

    He pointed out a bloody rip in my shirt I hadn''t even realized was there. Beneath it lay crusted blood, but no wound. "It looks like you have healed except for the bullet holes."

    That worried me.

    Lina returned a moment later with a pitcher of water and some towels. "Bella is gathering the city council to tell them what happened, and the doctor, Devon, is on his way." She looked at the bullet wounds on the Templar and gagged. "This is horrible." She grabbed a pair of scissors and tried to cut the material around the wounds, but the scissors balked each time she pressed down.

    "Let me try," I said. I poked the tip of the scissors at the fabric. The black material hardened the instant the metal touched it. I jabbed at it. Once again, the uniform became rock hard at the point of impact. The armor seemed to work fine now. It had failed miserably against the bullets. "I guess we''ll just have to take it off."

    Lina tugged on the hood but it didn''t budge. It looked different from the ones I''d seen Elyssa wear before. This one had no eye slits or any point of vulnerability where flesh showed through. The black hood and mask molded over the facial features, all without compressing it tight like pantyhose. Lina finally found a tiny irregularity on the seam where the hood met the collar of the shirt. She touched it but nothing happened. A flash of inspiration lit the tiny light bulb in my head. I took the Templar''s gloved hand and pressed it to the button. The seam popped loose around the front and the hood split in half across the bridge of the nose, retracting into the nape of the uniform.

    Black hair spilled from beneath, now freed from its confines, and splayed out across the fair skin of the female''s face.

    My legs collapsed underneath me, and I crashed into the chair I''d been sitting on, catapulting the pitcher of water and causing it to splash everywhere. Lina sputtered as water streamed down her face. But I couldn''t take my eyes off the Templar, off her face.

    Chapter 21

    "Are you okay?" Lina said as she cleared a curtain of soaked hair from her face. "What''s wrong?"

    "Elyssa," I said, my voice a low whisper. A playback of the night''s near-death experiences flooded my chest with horror. I could have killed Elyssa. Kicked her into the jet engines and never known it was her. Another thought pummeled my stomach and the pain in my heart squeezed tighter until it ached like someone had shoved a silver dagger inside me. Had she been trying to kill me?

    Not once had she called my name or identified herself. Her insane actions screamed her intentions. If her father had followed through on his threats, then Elyssa and I were strangers. I was just another perp she wanted to bring to justice.

    My body shook and a voice penetrated the haze of discombobulation muting my senses.

    "What''s wrong, Justin? Answer me!" Lina''s face appeared inches from mine.

    "The Templar. Her name is Elyssa. She''s my girlfriend."

    Lina growled a stream of something that sounded suspiciously like cursing in Spanish and glared at the unconscious form on the cot. "If this is your girlfriend, she has serious mental problems. That chica tried to kill you!"

    No, I realized, she hadn''t been trying to kill either of us. Elyssa wasn''t someone who gave up¡ªever. I tried to puzzle things out, if only to push aside the painful emotions throwing ninja stars into my heart. What in the world was she doing all the way down in Colombia, for starters? And how much of her memory was gone? Dozens of questions boiled in my head. The instant the healer arrived, he absolutely had to wake her so I could find out what in the world was going on.

    I checked her pulse by pressing two fingers against the creamy skin of her neck. Her heart beat strong. A sharp needle of ivory protruded beneath her red lips. I pushed up a corner of her mouth to reveal fangs. She must be starving.

    "Do you have any blood packs?"

    Lina curled a lip in disgust. "No, but Bella probably does." She stood and regarded Elyssa''s slumbering form for a moment. "I saw what you went through to get into the jet, Justin. What kind of girlfriend tries to kill you?"

    "She''s not in her right mind."

    "Si, she is loco!"

    "No, it''s just¡ªugh, it''s really complicated to explain."

    "I can listen," she said, kneeling in front of me and taking my hand in hers. "I want to understand."

    I forced a grin and pushed a wet lock of hair dangling in her face behind an ear. "Would you mind getting some blood from Bella? Then I''ll tell you whatever you want to know."

    She leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek. "I will be right back, guapo."

    Once she left, I knelt beside Elyssa and kissed her gently on the lips. God, how I''d missed those perfect lips. I peeled back an eyelid and looked at the sparkling violet iris beneath. She didn''t so much as flinch. Whatever Bella had done to knock her out was pretty strong, apparently. I found another tiny button to release the top part of the uniform. After putting a blanket atop her for modesty, I used her gloved hand to press the button. The gloves and shirt melted away into the lower part of the uniform. Thankfully, she had a sports bra on beneath that looked painfully tight. The last button released the pants and strange, five-toed shoes she wore, all vanishing into a thin belt of material which remained around her waist. A pair of purple boy shorts, which, coincidentally, matched her bra, were revealed.

    Without the dark uniform in the way, crusted blood stood out in stark contrast to her fair skin. Bullet wounds pockmarked both legs, leaving swollen welts on her skin, one in the hamstring, the other on the side of her thigh. Another bullet had impacted her lower back while yet another had lodged in the shoulder of the same arm she''d used to hold onto my leg. I didn''t know how in the world she''d managed to cling to me so long. The burn in my own wounds was a constant throb, at this point, and each minute increased the pain factor. Franco must have known Templars might try to break up his organization. These bullets could be laced with silver or something even nastier to stop supernaturals.

    "My word," said an older gentleman as he stood in the doorway. He was Caucasian and pronounced "word" like it started with a "v". "Let me have a look." He pulled a chair next to Elyssa, not even taking the time to wipe the water I''d spilled earlier off the seat. "Cursed bullets."

    "Yeah, damned things."

    He pushed a pair of thin spectacles up the bridge of his nose. "I meant that quite literally. These bullets were enchanted¡ªor cursed as I like to call harmful enchantments¡ªand made specifically to penetrate protective charms and kill supernaturals who are vulnerable to silver."

    "Can you heal her?"

    He reached into a quaint doctor satchel and pulled out a thin rod. "I will need to remove the bullets and give her something to thin the amount of silver in her bloodstream." He noticed the blood on my leg. "Were you hit?"

    I nodded.

    "Let me know if the pain becomes too much. In the meantime, we should get these out of her first." He looked me up and down, apparently taking stock of my condition. "Can you assist, or will you faint?"

    "Just tell me what you want me to do."

    He offered me a pair of latex gloves and put a pair on himself, then checked the skin around Elyssa''s shoulder wound. Silvery-blue lines veined her skin around the puckered wound. "Silver poisoning for sure," he said and reached into his bag for what looked like a set of stainless steel clamps. "Hold these against the skin like so." He pressed them flat to either side of the wound and opened them. The skin splayed wide to reveal the gristly hole beneath.

    I suppressed a gag and held the clamp against her skin while he inserted the thin rod carefully into the gap, muttering words in what sounded like Latin. The rod shimmered, seeming to turn almost liquid, but held its form and the healer eased it out. At the tip was a flattened silver slug clinging like a drop of mercury to the end. He pulled a metal container from his duffel bag, muttered a word, and the bullet slug dropped inside with a clink.

    "Continue to hold that open," he said and inserted a tube made of some sort of flexible metallic-looking material. A few words later, a thin stream of watery blood dripped from one end and into a transparent container.

    "Is it sucking out the silver?" I asked, captivated by the strange device.

    "It can be attuned to draw various substances from the blood. In this case, it is indeed targeting the silver in the blood."

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    As it leeched the poisons, I noticed the silver-hued veins in her skin lighten until they looked just as healthy as the surrounding tissue. In fact, her flesh began knitting itself together before he''d even removed the tube. Before I could point this out, however, he smoothly withdrew it and moved to the next wound. Sweat dripped down my face and it wasn''t because I felt squeamish. The pain in my own injuries had increased substantially. What had started as a sharp throbbing now felt like fire. I tore one of the bullet holes in my pants a bit wider and grimaced at the bluish-black color of the skin beneath.

    Devon looked where I was looking and drew in a deep breath. "Good heavens! We should tend to that straight away."

    I shook my head. "No, let''s finish Elyssa."

    He glanced back at the darkening skin around her wounds and back to mine, obviously torn about which patient to work on first. "Perhaps we should do yours first."

    "Do you have anyone else who can do this? An assistant?"

    "No, and even if I did, I have only one extractor and one cleanser. The wound must be purged right after removing the bullet so the flesh doesn''t try to heal and seal the poison inside."

    "We finish Elyssa then."

    He returned an uncertain look but finally nodded and returned his attention to her.

    Lina returned as I placed the clamp over the darkening wound in Elyssa''s thigh. In her left hand, she held a jar filled with what had to be blood. "How''s it going?" she asked, resting her hand on my shoulder.

    For some reason, I felt hyper-aware of her hand and the heat radiating from it, though I wasn''t exactly uncomfortable enough to ask her to unhand me or anything. My body had no complaints about a cute girl touching me, but my conscience had trouble with it, especially with my unconscious girlfriend right in front of me. Sweat trickled down my forehead, coming to rest in a bead at the tip of my nose.

    "Smoothly," Devon said. "But we are on a time limit here. The silver poisoning is spreading further with every moment and each wound will take much longer to clear than the last."

    "What about Justin?" Lina said, her mouth open in disapproval. "Why aren''t you helping him first?" Her eyes grew wide as she examined the blistering gash on my leg. "Madre de dios! Look at him!" She knelt and gently touched the skin. "Why have you not removed this?"

    Devon sighed and, while extracting the bullet from Elyssa''s leg, explained in patient tones what he and I had just discussed. He inserted the tube into the wound. The last time it had removed watery blood. This time, the blood came out thicker and almost purple. It smelled like death. Lina made a choking noise and backed away. It took almost twice as long before the skin looked healthy enough to heal on its own.

    Elyssa''s breathing, which to this point had been quiet, burst into a shallow fluttery cadence, each gasp carrying a desperate note with it. Her body shuddered and her hand gripped the edge of the cot so hard, the metal crumpled.

    "What''s happening?" I asked, trying to hold her still.

    Devon''s calm demeanor transformed into that of a battlefield commander under fire. "Lina, get me some diamond fiber, now!"

    She raced from the room. He looked at me. "Get her off the cot and onto the floor before she breaks that thing in half."

    Fighting against my own agony, I lifted her so he could slide the cot away and then set her down on the rug. One of her flailing hands smacked me in the face and a galaxy of stars burst into my eyes as I stumbled backward from my squatting position and cracked my head on the chair behind me.

    Lina returned with several thick crystalline strands of diamond fiber. The healer instructed me to hold Elyssa down while he secured her extremities. Her entire body abruptly went limp and my heart thudded against my ribs like a lead hammer.

    "What happened? Is she okay?" My chest constricted with panic. The oxygen seemed to have vanished from the air and I could hardly breathe.

    "Tie her down," Devon commanded to Lina.

    She tossed a couple strands to him and, within seconds, they immobilized Elyssa''s arms and legs by pressing the diamond fiber to the floor where it seemed to meld into it.

    Nausea poured into my guts like molten vomit and the taste of acid splashed against the back of my throat. "Is she okay?" My words came out thick and I couldn''t hold myself in a sitting position any longer. Tears of pain or worry¡ªI didn''t know which¡ªobscured my vision.

    "Justin!" Lina said.

    "Help me, girl," Devon said, glancing back at me. "Help me now, or we''ll lose both of them."

    "Oh my," said another familiar voice. I looked up into Bella''s concerned face. "Can I help, Devon?"

    He spoke to her, his voice clear as ever, but for some reason, I couldn''t hold onto his words. Couldn''t make sense of what he was saying. A dull roar, like distant ocean waves crashing against a rocky shore rumbled in my ears and I felt my mind drifting away.

    I fought against the oncoming oblivion, but the strength in my body melted away like butter on hot asphalt. Lina''s face appeared close to mine, her brown eyes wide, her lips moving. Tears glistened and ran down her cheeks.

    The last thing I heard was Devon saying, "We''re losing her."

    Chapter 22

    I stood at my bedroom door, looking up and down the hall, the doorway at one end bathing the silhouette of a man in a top hat in brilliant white light. The other end of the hallway oozed dark wispy shadows from a gaping hole in the wall. I looked at my tiny hands and said, "Hello?" in a midget voice. I was back in a dream I''d had before, obviously the result of the traumatic memory of when my Grandpa Conroy abducted my baby sister.

    But something was wrong with the scene before my eyes. First of all, I felt anchored and lucid. Usually, this part of the dream was terrifying and hectic as powerful forces tore at me and tried to drag me one way or the other. Aside from the wailing of a baby echoing from all directions, there was no other sound in the house. I reached a tentative foot into the hallway and tested the floor. Hardwood creaked beneath my padded pajamas.

    My curious gaze wandered the hallway, going back and forth between the light and the dark as I tried to recall what had been different the last time I''d dreamed this. No tornadoes of destruction? Check. No intense vacuum threatening to suck my body one way or the other? Check. No maniacally evil laughter? Check. I wasn''t complaining about the lack of elements wishing me bodily harm, but some tiny niggling thing was bugging the heck out of me and¡ªsomething in the Jenga pile I call a brain finally clicked.

    The dark end of the hall was an empty roiling void. The last time I''d been here I could have sworn there was a silhouette of light and now there was nothing.

    "I will be your light in the dark," I said, remembering Elyssa''s words. It took me back to the dream I''d had recently, about the tiny mote of light. What did that mean? Had Elyssa''s memory loss altered her role in my life? Or was this just some stupid dream? I ran for the dark, hoping against hope if I looked hard enough, I''d stumble across her. Just as the pitch should have swallowed me whole, I met an elastic force. My body rebounded, sending me skidding across the floor on my bottom until I came to a halt in front of my bedroom again.

    I lashed out with a string of profanities, which sounded even more obscene in my little boy voice. My butt felt warm from the friction. Dreams were not supposed to feel so real. Then again, memories my mother had blurred from my mind had been trying to resurface and it seemed certain I was headed for serious brain damage and emotional trauma all wrapped up in a nice little package.

    Crossing my legs, I propped my elbows on my knees, chin on my hands, and pouted. "Wake up," I said. "Boo! Ahh!" I pinched myself so hard tears formed in my eyes. I slapped my cheeks until they went numb with pain. Grabbed a flower vase off the narrow table in the hall and upended it over my head, sending water streaming down my face.

    So much for that little test.

    The ground trembled and the low baying of a horn split the air.

    I pitched face-first toward the brightly lit end of the hallway just as a petite silhouette appeared in the door and walked my way. The light around her shadowy form seemed to disintegrate into particles, and tiny beads of white danced in the air, as if momentarily caught in a tornado, before soaking into her. The uncanny sensation of someone else watching me drew my attention to the dark end of the hall where a figure swathed in a white glow emerged from the gaping maw of pitch. The surrounding darkness fragmented and fell into the glowing outline as though drawn into a black hole except it was more like a white hole.

    I dove for my bedroom and bounced off an unexpected wall. The door had vanished. I staggered back to my feet. Gripped the flower vase in my tiny hand for a moment before dropping it and resigning myself to whatever horrible fate was about to give me a butt kicking of epic proportions.

    The mysterious forms drew closer, two silent wraiths obliterating the environments around them. As they closed to within several yards on either side of me, the wooden floors and wall of the hallway splintered and shredded to dust, until I stood astride only a narrow three-foot precipice of creaking hardwood with a blinding white vortex to my right and the black of oblivion to my left, each with a figure the polar opposite in color at its core. I realized, with a start, both figures were females, both by the long hair, the curve of hip, and the graceful strides as they glided across thin air.

    The woman from the brightly lit end of the hall was fair of skin, wearing a long white dress a Greek goddess might have favored. A mind-bending weave of golden hair perched like a crown atop her head. A vortex of shadow surrounded her like oily wisps of dark smoke, fragmenting the light into crystalline shards. The other female wore a simple black dress. Silky raven tresses cascaded over the olive skin of her shoulders. A nimbus of swirling white surrounded her like a misty shroud, destroying the endless dark.

    The wispy veils whorled around both figures, making it nearly impossible to discern their facial features. All the while, they reminded me of my terrifying night in El Dorado and the shadow creatures pacing around my tiny safe zone. As these new beings drew to within ten paces on either side, I braced for whatever horrors were about to come.

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    Instead, they stopped and regarded each other, looking right through me. The blonde spoke first in an all-too-familiar musical language¡ªthe same one Kassallandra had spoken with Nightliss. Unfortunately, I didn''t speak a lick of Cyrinthian. But as the whirling shadows around the brunette cleared for a second, I caught a glimpse of the face hidden inside.

    "Nightliss!" I shouted.

    The dark air stilled and cleared, revealing her petite form. Her almond-shaped eyes met mine. A sad smile lingered on her face. The blonde followed suit, revealing a nearly identical face with a scary crazy smirk. Obviously, I wouldn''t be doubling my pleasure with these two. They were the Doublemint twins from hell.

    "Why have you brought us here?" the blonde asked in a demanding tone. "Release us!"

    "Huh?" I cast a questioning look at Nightliss but she looked just as confused as I did.

    The blonde stepped closer but stopped abruptly as if she''d just run into an exceptionally clean sliding glass door. She pressed her fingers against the invisible barrier. "Vadaemos? Half-damned?" She gave a toothy smile and then screamed at the top of her lungs, pounding her fists against the solid air like a spoiled child.

    Nightliss jumped back a foot and I pressed back against the wall as the madwoman raged just a scant five feet from me. What in the world was going on?

    The blonde abruptly stopped her frantic activity as lucidity crept back into her eyes. "What? I''m still here?" She spun in a slow circle, taking in her surroundings, and focused on me again. "This is very rude of you."

    "Who are you?" I asked.

    She opened her mouth as if to reply when her eyes grew wide and horrified, focusing on someone else, namely Nightliss. "The girl spoke the truth. You''re here. This can''t be."

    Nightliss pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes in what I gathered was an angry expression. Really, though, she looked too adorable to be scary. Plus, I couldn''t stop thinking about how she looked as a little black cat, especially when I scratched her under the chin.

    "Weren''t you just speaking to her in Cyrinthian?" I said.

    The blonde touched a finger to her chin. "Yes, now that I think of it." She sighed. "This is so troublesome."

    "What is?"

    "Insanity. I simply must accelerate events if I am to avoid a permanent descent into madness."

    "Events? What events?"

    She wound a strand of her golden hair around a finger and toyed with it. "I suppose it is of no consequence if I tell you everything since you will soon be dead. Many centuries ago we¡­" Her eyes focused on something apparently only she could see. Her jaw went slack with fascination and she snatched at the air, each time laughing with the joy of a child.

    "Hey, you!" I shouted. I stepped closer to her, expecting to collide with the same invisible barrier she had, but instead, found nothing separating us.

    "No! No!" Nightliss shouted. I turned to see her pounding on her own invisible wall, eyes wide with horror. "No touch her!"

    The blonde woman''s hand flashed toward me. I felt a whiff of air next to my cheek as she tried to grab her invisible butterfly yet again. Jumping back, I narrowly avoided her hand yet again and made it back to the sliver of safety.

    "Why no touch?" I asked Nightliss.

    "It might be bad," she replied in heavily accented English.

    "Sounds like you''re learning our language."

    She beamed at me and blushed.

    "Kassallandra told me you''re an angel." I glanced at the blonde woman and prayed that they weren''t all as insane as her. Turning back to Nightliss, I said, "Is it true?"

    Her smile faltered as she gazed at her mirror twin. She shook her head. "Not the same."

    "Oh." Disappointment smacked me on the back of the head. A part of me hadn''t really believed Kassallandra, though the other part had secretly hoped Nightliss was my own personal angel. Since I was technically half demon spawn, it couldn''t hurt to have an angel as a friend.

    "Must feed," the blonde said as sanity cleared the glaze in her eyes.

    "Wait, tell me about your plans. You were about to tell me everything, remember?"

    The ground trembled and the flooring cracked. I tumbled to my knees. Despite the fact the two women were apparently hovering in midair, they staggered with the effort to stay upright. The remnants of the house groaned as though every fiber of it was being strained to the max. The splintered frame to my left where Nightliss crouched snapped away and fell into a dark void. She dropped into the pitch, vanishing without a sound. The other side snapped away and the woman in white screamed as the blinding light sucked her in.

    The small section I stood on rocked back and forth, threatening to topple me to one side or the other. The wall behind me splintered. A crack ran down the surface and into the remaining hardwood beneath my feet. I gripped the crevice in the wall as the floor disintegrated, falling away into a swirling gray mist where the light and the dark met, perfectly aligned beneath my flailing legs.

    I got the sudden sense someone wanted me to choose a side and they were forcing the issue. "I''m not playing this game," I shouted as the rumbling noise grew louder. Gripping desperately at the broken wall, I tried to pull myself into my bedroom, which floated like an island above the gray abyss. The drywall crumbled in my hands. I clawed desperately at the hardwood. My fingers slipped. I fell.

    Wind rushed against my back as I plummeted toward oblivion. I twisted and turned facedown just in time for the gray mist to swallow me.

    Chapter 23

    "Justin?" said a soft voice. A warm hand caressed my jawline and I touched it with my own, pressing it against my cheek.

    "Elyssa," I whispered.

    The hand jerked away. I forced my groggy eyes open and found Lina looking down, her generous lips pouting. "No, it is me."

    I pushed myself into a sitting position, expecting a pounding headache and sore muscles. Instead, I felt pretty darned good. Lina sat on the edge of my cot. "What happened?"

    "Devon saved you."

    A sharp pain lodged in my chest as I asked the next question. "And Elyssa?"

    She sighed and stood, brushing lint or something off her red dress. I couldn''t help but noticed how short the dress was and how it showed the muscular tone of her bronzed thighs. "The girl is fine. It was very close for both of you."

    I blew out a breath I hadn''t realized I''d been holding and looked around the room. "Where is she?"

    "Drinking tea with Bella."

    That definitely didn''t sound like something Elyssa would do. I stood up and gave an experimental stretch of the old muscles. My body seemed pleased as punch to be up and moving. Heck, I was pretty darned happy to be out of that bizarre nightmare with Nightliss and her insane wonder twin. Lina walked to the door and stood with her back to me. Her dark hair hung shiny and straight. Flowery perfume tickled my nose and made me want to sneeze.

    "Can you¡ª"

    "Yes, yes. Follow me." She took off without waiting.

    I really didn''t know what to say. She obviously liked me¡ªI didn''t need incubus super powers to know that. But Elyssa was all I could think about. Her rosebud lips were the only ones I wanted to kiss. I wanted to look into her eyes and see the love I felt looking right back at me. But the sharp thudding pain in my chest told me I knew otherwise. My Elyssa wouldn''t have tried to kill us both. She would have said something. She would have helped me instead of using me like a human stepladder. And if she was already up and about, my Elyssa would never have left my side.

    Lina abruptly stopped and spun to me, anger flashing in her eyes. "You still did not tell me the whole story of this girl and you. I want to know everything."

    "It''s really complicated."

    "You promised me."

    I sighed and gave her a ten-minute tour of my disastrous love life. How Elyssa''s father had reacted to me, and how he''d threatened to erase her memory because of me.

    "This girl is no good for you, Justin." She took my hand and pressed it between hers. "Her father has bad manners and is so mean."

    I felt uncomfortable holding her hand, but she was squeezing mine so hard, I didn''t want to hurt her feelings by prying it loose. "He is pretty mean."

    "Men. I do not understand. Why are you all loco?" She opened her mouth to say something else and instead pointed out the front door of her house and down the narrow driveway. "Go right at the end. Bella''s house is, how you say, um, rosa. Pink."

    I opened my mouth to thank her but she stormed away before I could force the words from my dry throat. I felt really lousy, but what else could I do? It wasn''t like I''d kept Elyssa a secret and dropped the bomb at the last minute. The situation only reinforced my notion that women were freaking crazy. And I would give anything to have my crazy woman back. Maybe that made me crazy too. I shrugged.

    Guess we''re all crazy.

    Rather than streak at top speed down the driveway, I took my time with a leisurely stroll. I ached to see the girl I loved but I also dreaded it. What in the world would I say to her? How could I convince her of our past? I also wondered if she would beat the donkey snot out of me. Every step I took felt heavier than the last while my mind raced through a thousand different versions of what to say to her. I sucked in a deep breath of the heavy humid air and sighed. A group of black monkeys leapt from tree to tree in the dense growth to my left. Did monkeys have romance issues? Or did they just fling poo at each other until everything was okay?

    Bella''s house stood in sharp contrast to most of the whitewashed adobe houses with its vivid pink exterior and purple accents. Surrounding buildings hid the atrocity and prevented it from making a public spectacle of itself. Bella and Elyssa sat outside on lawn chairs, a round table between them, and a large umbrella shielding them from the sun. Bella wore a simple green dress while Elyssa sported a pink soccer jersey and ill-fitting cargo shorts.

    She looked absolutely beautiful.

    Elyssa stood the moment she saw me. Her fists clenched restlessly at her side and her violet eyes sparkled with what seemed like uncertainty. She glanced at Bella and the other woman nodded. I braced myself as Elyssa strode forward.

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    She stopped a couple feet away and extended a hand. "Thank you."

    I took her hand, wondering if she was about to flip me over or just whip out a sword and cut it off. Instead, she shook it.

    "You''re welcome," I said, stumbling over my words and feeling sick to my stomach. Punching or arresting me would have been better.

    Her hand released mine and she observed me for a moment. "So you were our target? I don''t understand what''s so terrible about you."

    "I''m spawn." That ought to rile her up.

    She shrugged. "Most spawn are pretty low and devious, but I''ve never known one to risk his own life to save someone else''s." A genuine smile lit her face.

    My heart almost broke. She didn''t have a clue about me. About us. I wanted to kiss her so bad it hurt.

    The front door to Bella''s house opened and a guy who looked like a male model strutted outside. A fair-skinned girl with her black hair up in a ponytail and large round sunglasses covering her eyes followed him. The guy''s face gave definition to the word "chiseled" with a square chin and straight nose. His muscles filled out the blue T-shirt he wore. A not-so-genuine grin flickered on his face when he saw me. "Dude, I owe you." He gripped my hand and squeezed it tight. Apparently, he was one of those guys, the ones who think every handshake is a test of manliness.

    I fought the urge to respond in kind. The effort to plaster a smile on my face actually hurt more than his grip. "What for?"

    "Saving my girl."

    I almost barfed on his face. "Your girl?"

    Elyssa punched him hard on the shoulder. "Your girl? Beck, you talk that way again and I''ll cut your boys off."

    He laughed and let go of my hand. "Geez, woman, calm down. I didn''t mean it that way."

    "This is Beck Andrews," Elyssa said, rolling her eyes as she waved a hand his way. "He''s a Templar recruit like me."

    "I''m standing here too," said the other dark-haired girl, her words gilded with an unmistakable Italian accent. She stood a fraction shorter than Elyssa, but otherwise had a very similar build. They could almost pass for sisters.

    Elyssa''s lip curled a smidge. "And this is Fausta."

    The other girl extended a hand and took mine. Her grip was firmer than I''d expected, but I made sure to return the grip. "Nice to meet you," I said.

    She looked me up and down, still gripping my hand. "You''re spawn?"

    "Half."

    Fausta glared at Beck and withdrew her hand. "Why would Christian change the plan at the last minute for this boy? He hardly looks like a threat."

    My face burned. "Hey now, I can be dangerous when I want to."

    Beck burst into laughter. "Maybe that''s what he wants us to think."

    My eyes found Bella who still sat beneath the umbrella. "I assume the Templars know I''m here." I took a step her way. "So why isn''t this place crawling with them? Why haven''t they tried to take me by force?"

    "We called the Templars and let them know everyone was alright, dear," Bella said as she took a sip from her teacup.

    My eyes went wide. "Are you kidding me? They tried to kill me last night!"

    "We weren''t trying to kill you," Elyssa said.

    "Could have fooled me." I paced toward the trio of Templars. "You followed me onto a plane that was taking off, for crying out loud."

    "It looked like fun," Fausta said, casting a dirty look at Elyssa. "Would have been more fun if you hadn''t knocked me off."

    "I didn''t knock you off," Elyssa said, teeth tight. "You fell off."

    "I almost broke my teeth on a rock, too."

    "Almost?" Elyssa smirked. "Looks like you''re missing a chip in your front teeth."

    I face-palmed and mustered a disturbed look. "You''re both crazy. Why would you risk death and dismemberment to capture me?"

    Elyssa stared at the hand on my forehead as though she were in a daze. She shook her head and gave me an uncertain look. "It was reflex. I saw you escaping and followed."

    "And tried to climb over me? I guess you didn''t care if I got sucked into the engine."

    Her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed. "I had no intention of killing you. But after those bullets hit me, I¡ª" her eyes looked into the distance. "I thought I was a goner. I thought you were trying to kick me off your leg." Her eyes met mine. "And then you saved me."

    "Hey, even spawn know better than to kill a Templar," Beck said, pulling out a pair of aviator sunglasses and slipping them on. "He''d know the true meaning of ''wanted'' if he did that."

    I glanced over my shoulder at Bella. "All they sent were two extra Templars? This doesn''t make any sense considering the number they had chasing me last night."

    "You were hot-listed, according to their commander, Christian, who, by the way, is a very fine looking man." She moved her gaze to Elyssa''s. "I don''t suppose he''s single, is he, dear?"

    Elyssa looked flustered and shrugged. "I don''t know him that well."

    Beck took a seat at the table and smiled. Despite his stupid-looking sunglasses, I could have sworn he was looking at Elyssa''s ass while she faced me. I couldn''t blame him. But I could hate him for it.

    "What''s hot-listed?" I asked, trying to keep my cool. Fausta came to stand next to my other shoulder and I suddenly felt hemmed in and wondered if they were about to make a play for me.

    Beck moved his gaze from Elyssa''s rear. "It means a high-ranking commander recommended you be put on the Hot List¡ªa list of our most-wanted fugitives."

    I squeezed my eyes shut and rubbed a hand down my face. "In that case, I know who did it."

    Elyssa tilted her head a fraction. "Who?"

    "Daddy dearest, of course."

    "Who?" Her eyebrow quirked up in the adorable way I''d always loved.

    "Thomas Borathen."

    "My father?"

    Beck laughed. "Whoa man, your dad really hates spawn."

    "I can''t believe they would put this boy on the hotlist," Fausta said.

    I didn''t find it amusing in the least, especially being called a boy by a stupid girl. As I regarded the confusion on Elyssa''s face, I wondered if I should tell her why her father had hot-listed me. Then again, it would be the worst thing I could do right now. Telling her about our past would only confuse or anger her.

    "Are you still supposed to bring me in?" I asked.

    Beck shook his head. "The people in this town vouched for you and, given the testimony of the hostages we rescued from the compound last night, it seems that you''re not evil enough to be on the list."

    "You spoke with the doctor and those girls?"

    "I didn''t, but Christian did. He sent me and Fausta to get Elyssa and to invite you in as our guest so you could give your statement."

    I offered him a humorless smile. "Thanks, but I''d rather send a postcard."

    Beck shrugged. "Suit yourself, dude."

    "What I really need is to go to La Casona in Bogota so I can take the Obsidian Arch back home."

    Elyssa shook her head. "You don''t want to take any arches right now."

    "Why not?"

    "They aren''t safe. Something happened to them a couple days ago and now you''re more likely to end up in the Gloom than your destination."

    "What? Two days ago?" What were the odds those stupid things would stop working as of two days ago? Perfect timing, as usual. I''d only arrived here a couple of days ago. It abruptly occurred to me the timing wasn''t a coincidence. What if I''d screwed up the entire space-time continuum by taking that joy ride through the arches from Thunder Rock? Lovely.

    I looked at Fausta, catching her in the act of looking me up and down again and sighed before moving my gaze to Bella. Surely, her magic shag carpet could get me back home.

    She apparently read my mind because she shook her head and said, "We can''t take you all the way back to the States on the rug, I''m afraid. You''ll have to go commercial."

    "I don''t have a passport. I couldn''t buy a ticket if I wanted to."

    "We could get you back on one of our jets," Elyssa said. "I can guarantee it. But I''ve got to know¡ªhow did you end up down here? Did you come via arch in the first place?"

    "If I''m on this Hot List, how is it you Templars know almost nothing about me?"

    "We didn''t exactly get a full briefing," Beck said with a snort. "In fact, we were about to hit a rogue vamp in Bogota who split off from the Syndicate when Christian got the word about you and diverted us."

    "By definition, anyone on the Hot List is someone who should be captured immediately," Fausta added.

    I blew out a loud sigh. "This whole thing sounds sketchy to me."

    Beck shrugged. "Exactly what I thought." He gave me a once-over. "There''s no way someone like you should be listed."

    "So you''ve repeatedly said," I growled.

    "My father isn''t sketchy," Elyssa said, her voice tight with anger. "I''m sure he had a good reason to list you." Her eyes narrowed as if something had just occurred to her, and I prayed it wasn''t something that meant she''d be whipping out a knife or punching me.

    The way she spoke to me without any clue as to who I was pierced me in the guts. This was agony. The love of my life stood only feet away but she was out of my reach unless I figured out how to reverse the memory loss. And the only people who could do that were the Templars.

    "Are you feeling okay?" Elyssa asked, the anger fading from her gaze. "You look a little green."

    I sucked in a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, I''m fine."

    Beck shrugged. "Like Elyssa said, Christian can get you home. You go in, give a statement, and he''ll help you out. Get you home to mommy and daddy."

    "Or toss me in a cell and call Thomas Borathen to come get me?"

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    "How do you know my father, anyway?" Elyssa said, eyes filling with suspicion.

    "That''s a story I''d rather not get into right now."

    "I have time."

    I glanced at the others and shook my head. "No. You really don''t want to know."

    She took a step toward me, fists clenched and eyes glowing. "I think I have the right to know."

    Very Spanish-y sounding music blared from somewhere. Bella pulled out her smartphone, arcphone, or whatever she called the thing, and spoke for a moment before hanging up. "The council would like to meet with all of you for a recap of yesterday''s events."

    "Council?" Beck gave her an uncertain look.

    "Yes, our town council. We are very nosy people and love gossip wherever we can get it. Not only that, but the removal of two very dangerous and corrupt drug-dealing vampires is worth a celebration."

    "What kind of celebration?" I asked.

    "Oh, a dance, of course! We celebrate anything around here. If Juan mows his lawn, we celebrate. If Maria finds an extra egg from her chickens, we celebrate. Otherwise, this place would be too dull to bear."

    "I don''t know how to dance."

    Bella winked at me. "You will learn, young man."

    "Ugh. There you go again with the creepy grandmother words again."

    She smirked. "I may look close to your age, but I have decades of experience that would probably disintegrate your young little mind."

    Beck grinned. "I don''t care how old you are, I think you''re hot."

    Pink colored Bella''s cheeks. Elyssa flashed Beck a look of what might have been jealousy or just simple disgust, but hard as I tried to interpret her look, I couldn''t tell. Fausta didn''t seem surprised a bit. Her eyes met mine and held my gaze for a moment, but if she were trying to communicate anything, I couldn''t sense it.

    "I will definitely teach you how to dance, young¡ª" Bella paused and took a breath. "I mean, dude."

    I couldn''t help myself and felt a genuine grin creep onto my face. Bella''s cheerful attitude seemed infectious and even drew a snort of laughter from Elyssa. It reminded me of the time I''d shown her a trophy with lopsided boobs and we''d laughed so hard, Ms. Foreman, the Evil Queen of Detention, had made us stay even longer. The memory punctured my happy balloon, leaving me feeling even more depressed than before.

    Bella stood and motioned for everyone to move out. "Before we go to council, Lina has invited us over for lunch. Do you require any more blood, Elyssa?"

    "I''m fine. Thanks so much."

    "It''s very nice to meet other dhampyrs. Our kind are so rare, in the grand scheme of things."

    We walked toward Lina''s house while Bella chit-chatted about the weather and other things holding no interest for me. Fausta walked to my left, well away from Elyssa, her eyes alert, as if danger might be upon us at any moment. I had to force myself not to look at Elyssa, though it didn''t work. My eyes sought out her fair skin, those amazing eyes of hers, and the smile that set my heart afire. I smelled the underlying hint of oil and leather on her, not to mention the indescribable scent all her own. The lustful demonic part of me strained against my indecision.

    Take her. She''s yours!

    Elyssa''s eyes wandered my way a few times, and for one electric second, our eyes met before I pretended to look at a plant. Beck, for his part, took every chance he had to check out every female rear end within range of his vision. I wanted to punch him every time his gaze settled on Elyssa. And when he pursed his lips appreciatively, I wanted to murder him.

    As we reached Lina''s house, the aroma of arepas drifted out and curled around my nose. My stomach gurgled and whined with anticipation. Lina was setting the table when we stepped inside, Alejandro pouring drinks into cups. Eduardo smiled from his place at the table and said something in Spanish to Bella.

    "Eduardo, you old dog," she replied, before rattling off a reply in his language.

    Beck said something in Spanish. Bella blushed and Eduardo laughed until he coughed.

    I caught myself staring at Elyssa and looked away, only to meet Fausta''s smirking gaze. I turned away from her and caught a glare from Lina. She shook her head slowly and gripped a fork in one hand like she wanted to skewer me with it.

    "I hope you are hungry," Lina said, her large dark eyes regarding Elyssa.

    "Famished," Beck said, and winked.

    Good lord, was there any woman this guy wouldn''t flirt with? Then again, maybe it would be a good thing for him to set his sights on Lina and get me out of her crosshairs.

    "This looks delicious," Elyssa said. "Can I help you with anything?"

    Lina''s eyes traveled up and down Elyssa''s body before casting a venomous look at me. Her expression abruptly changed to a sweet smile faker than a blonde in California. She aimed that smile at Elyssa. "Well, Justin, your girlfriend is very pretty."

    The room went absolutely silent. Except for Eduardo who was already digging into a baked plantain Alejandro had just set before him. I froze. Bella''s eyes widened. Beck stared at Lina''s chest. Elyssa blanched. Fausta''s eyes lit up like she''d just won a rare vermillion unicorn at a raffle.

    "What did you say?" Elyssa said in a strained voice.

    "Oh, Justin did not tell you?" Lina gestured at me to be absolutely sure there was no mistaking to whom she was referring. "He said you were his girlfriend but your father erased your mind so you would forget him."

    Fire blazed in Elyssa''s eyes. I could practically feel the heat as they settled on me. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt one thing was for sure.

    Things were about to get painful.

    Chapter 24

    Elyssa clenched her fists and stormed toward me. "Now I know why my father hotlisted you."

    I dodged around the table, putting it between us. "Whatever you think you know, it''s not right!"

    "Who, what?" Beck asked, coming out of the boob trance he''d apparently been in since the inception of this crisis.

    Elyssa lunged across the table. I jumped back and hit the cabinets. She raced around the long table. I scrambled past Eduardo as he munched on his plantain, and hid behind Bella.

    "Look, I know it sounds really bad, but I have a reasonable explanation."

    "You''re the spawn my father warned me about," she said, stalking toward me, squeezing between the chairs and the cabinet.

    Bella held up her hands. "Please, everyone, calm down."

    Elyssa''s lip curled into a snarl. "Not with that thing in here."

    I moved Bella out of the way and waved Elyssa on. "Fine, bring it on. I''m sick and tired of everyone dehumanizing me just because I''m part spawn. What makes you any better, dhampyr?"

    "I''m half human."

    "Big deal. So am I."

    She paused for a moment. "There''s no such thing."

    "Is too."

    "Is not."

    "Is too!"

    "No there is not!"

    Bella cleared her throat. "Justin is telling the truth, dear."

    Elyssa shook her head. "Even if he is, it doesn''t change what he did to me. He used his incubus abilities to pull me under his influence and indoctrinate me so I''d betray the Templars."

    I laughed.

    "What''s so funny?"

    "I''d like to see someone try to do that to you. You define the term ''strong willed''." I blew out a breath and took a seat at the table. "I''m not leaving. I''m hungry and I plan to eat something. If you want to really know what happened, I''ll tell you about it later. Otherwise just shut the hell up about it."

    I grabbed a fork and dug into the chicken-covered arepa, eating with a gusto I really didn''t feel. Part of me wanted to bend Elyssa over my knee and spank her. The other part of me didn''t want to die, so I kept eating while the others looked around uneasily. After a moment, Bella took a seat beside me and, after touching my hand and offering a reassuring smile, took a bite of her own food.

    Alejandro followed suit while Beck and Fausta exchanged amused grins and whispered. Elyssa strode to the far end of the table and dropped into a seat. Beck sauntered her way, parking his macho butt in a chair next to her. He flashed a smirk my way, probably figuring it would be easy sailing right into my girlfriend''s pants. Except, she wasn''t truly my girlfriend¡ªnot until or if she remembered me. One seat remained conspicuously unoccupied. Lina had apparently left the room. Probably for the best. I was so angry with her right then I would have said something nasty. Something I couldn''t take back later. I wanted to blame her, but couldn''t. It might not even be me, Justin, she was attracted to, but my incubus traits or the thrill of someone new. I didn''t know for sure and probably never would.

    Crazy women.

    Eduardo gave me a gap-toothed grin as he ate another plantain. He said something in Spanish and an uncomfortable look came over Alejandro''s face. Beck laughed.

    "What did he say?" I asked.

    Alejandro cleared his throat. "He says you are quite the Casanova."

    My face grew hot and I stared at my food while Bella snorted with the effort of not laughing.

    "It''s not funny," I hissed at her. "Really, I''m feeling very emotional right now."

    She nodded and tried to give me a serious look as her face contorted with the effort to hold in her mirth. A tear trickled down one eye and she looked away, her sides shaking. I groaned and gave myself a well-deserved face-palm.

    Risking a sideways glance down the table, I noticed Elyssa''s gaze seemed to have settled on me. Her lips parted a fraction as if her jaw had gone slack, and her eyes grew unfocused. I removed my palm from my forehead and looked behind me in case Lina was sneaking up on me with a butter knife. No one was there. When I looked back, Elyssa''s attention was back on her plate.

    "Can you tell us the story now, man?" Beck said as he chewed a mouthful. "I''m dying to hear this."

    Elyssa shoved him so hard his chair fell over sideways with a thud.

    "Ouch, woman!" He sprang back to his feet and put his chair upright. "Gotta watch this one. Nasty temper."

 Page 41

    "Tell me about it," I said.

    Elyssa jolted to her feet. "What did you say?"

    I ignored her. How could someone go from being the love of my life one day to a complete stranger? My experience with women before Elyssa had been overwhelmingly bad. Awful, in fact. I really didn''t have a basis for comparison. It felt worse than just about anything else, like glass churning in my stomach and my heart sputtering and clenching like it might stop at any moment. It felt like the time Elyssa had figured out I was an incubus and told me she never wanted to see me again.

    My heart welled with agony as I glanced up and saw Beck talking to her in hushed tones while she smiled. Her eyes caught mine and, for a fleeting moment, I saw something besides distrust in them. Something so tiny it was possible I''d just imagined it. But it was enough to blow a gentle breeze on the spark of hope I still held onto.

    I would not give up.

    After one of the tensest meals I''d ever endured in my life, Bella led us to the town hall to meet with the council.

    "I''ll come in after the spawn tells me the story," Elyssa said, crossing her arms and standing outside the building.

    "Let it wait," I said.

    "I think the council should hear both sides," Bella said, eyes shining with curiosity. "It will be very interesting gossip."

    I groaned. "Exactly what I need."

    "Do you have any sensitives?" Elyssa asked. "I''d like him to tell the story to someone who can feel his lies."

    "As it happens, we do!" Bella rubbed her hands together. "So, it''s agreed. We''ll ask Maria to judge the truth of the matter."

    "Agreed?" I said. Before I could object, Bella pushed me inside and announced my predicament to the council and her solution. They cheered. These people were way too delighted with my misery. I felt as though I were in my own reality show and everyone was enjoying the train wreck of my life. Maria, a plump middle-aged woman, wasted no time in directing me to drag two chairs into the middle of the circle.

    "Wait a minute!" I shouted, finally finding control of my mouth. "What''s the meaning of all this? Why am I being subjected to a lie detector test?"

    "This is to help you," Bella assured me with a smile. "If a sensitive confirms your story, then Elyssa will have no choice but to believe you."

    "Doesn''t mean she won''t still be a bitch to you, though," Fausta said with a grin.

    "How accurate is this¡ªthis sensitive reading stuff?" I asked Maria, my stomach doing flip-flops. The last thing I needed was an inaccurate reading. For all I knew, she was worse than a regular old lie detector.

    "She has never failed to detect a lie before," Bella said. "Though it is very exhausting."

    "How does this work?" I asked Maria.

    "I will bind us together and when you tell your story, I will feel the truth."

    "Bind us? With rope?"

    She giggled. "No, with magic."

    "Um, didn''t you guys want to talk about something else besides my love life?"

    "Oh, no, absolutely not," Bella said. "We must get to the bottom of this and help you solve your problems."

    Great. The magical equivalent of Oprah and Dr. Phil were about to tag team my ass.

    Maria didn''t waste another second, drawing a circle around the chairs and sealing it, infusing our small area with the static sensation of magic. She sat facing me and gripped my hands in hers. A knot of panic grew tighter and tighter in my chest. I saw Elyssa sitting forward in her chair, hands clenched in white-knuckled fists. Beck flirted with Bella who kept trying to shush him.

    The door opened and Lina entered. Red rimmed her large dark eyes. She had changed from the revealing red dress into a tank top and khaki shorts that seemed pale next to the copper of her skin. She slipped into a chair against the wall.

    I thought back to the conversations I''d had with her trying to pinpoint a moment where I''d given her any sort of hint I liked her like that. I''d told her from the beginning I had a girlfriend. Had I somehow increased her desire when I''d fed on her? Guilt became roommates with the butterflies in my stomach and I looked away from her. Somehow, it had to be my fault. I was still a newbie when it came to feeding and if I''d damaged her or made her feel more strongly about me because of it, I didn''t know how to set it right.

    "I am ready," Maria said, releasing my hands and sitting back in her chair.

    I nodded. I felt sweat beading on my forehead and wiped it away with the back of my hand. "What now?"

    "First, I ask you to lie."

    That seemed pretty standard, given what little I knew about lie-detector tests. "I am Zargon, master of the universe."

    She smiled. "And now tell me a truth."

    "I am not a bad person."

    Another smile. "You do not believe yourself to be a bad person, but tell me something more concrete."

    "I have ten fingers."

    She nodded. "I believe I am in sync." She looked to the side. "Bella?"

    The dhampyr''s eyes lit up like Christmas ornaments. "Please, Justin, start at the beginning."

    "Beginning of what?"

    "Your association with this pretty young woman."

    Elyssa blushed.

    "Um, well, that might take all day."

    "Please, Justin, the television reception in this town is terrible, and Colombian TV is even worse. Allow us to enjoy a good story. Hopefully, a true story."

    The rest of the council seemed to lean forward in unison.

    "Good lord, you people must be deprived."

    I sighed and rewound events in my head all the way back to what seemed like the beginning. "It all started with a girl named Katie, a big ape named Nathan, and a Goth girl named Crye Rayne."

    Elyssa''s eyes widened. She fell back in her chair as though I''d slapped her.

    "Little did I know this girl named Crye would be my princess bride and I would be her Westley."

    Even more shock mounted on her face and I could tell it was taking everything she had to keep from blurting out a response.

    I told them just about everything I could remember, giving them every gory detail about how grossed out I''d been initially by Elyssa''s Goth dress code and how I''d grown to regard her, Ash, and Nyte as friends. How suddenly one day, I felt a connection click between the two of us. I kept things somewhat sterile, however, because I knew if I expressed my emotions, I''d probably lose it in front of everyone and break out in girly tears. So I told my story¡ªour story¡ªabout how we''d met and the crap we''d been through since then.

    When I reached the part where I''d first met Elyssa''s father, I caught her nodding as I recounted how he''d responded to me, and tried not to smile despite the negative emotions associated with the incident. What an awful night that had been. I''d saved Stacey from hellhounds later and nearly died for it.

    By the time I hit the part about running from shadows in El Dorado, everyone seemed entranced by the story even though I''d already told the council most of this. I decided to end the recitation of events at the part where I discovered the Templar I''d saved from the aircraft was, in fact, Elyssa.

    "The end," I said with a croak and slumped back into the chair. My dry throat ached for water.

    "Hopefully to be continued," Bella said to murmurs of agreement from around the room.

    "And it was true," Maria said. "I only detected minor falsehoods. For example, he really did think the felycan, Stacey, was very attractive and it took far more effort than he admitted to not take her up on her offer of sex."

    My entire body went white hot with embarrassment.

    She patted my hand. "And there were other sexual encounters with random women that he barely avoided. Not just the one with the woman in the grocery store."

    Beck burst into laughter. "Dude, you are the worst incubus ever."

    "Shut up," I said, unable to force my eyes off the floor.

    "Sexual super powers and you want to stay a virgin?"

    "I said, shut up."

    "That''s just sad, man."

    I stood so abruptly that my chair almost toppled over.

    I gave Beck my meanest glare. "Guys like you don''t understand, Beck. Maybe I''m a hopeless romantic. Maybe I''m a loser virgin in your eyes. Frankly, I don''t give a damn what you think. All I know is that none of my carnal urges for other women meant a thing. There''s only one truth that matters to me." I glared at the faces around the room. "I only want to be with one woman and she''s sitting right there." I stepped toward Elyssa.

    "No!" Maria said. "I haven''t unbound myself. You must not break the circle."

    My foot brushed the circle and the magic escaped in a tidal wave through the gap. "I love you, Elyssa."

    Gasps went up around the room. Elyssa pressed a hand to her heart and sucked in a breath as she stared at me. Beck''s forehead wrinkled in absolute befuddlement. Maria loosed a string of angry Spanish and grabbed me.

    "You shouldn''t have broken the circle."

    "I felt that," Bella said, a tear trickling down her cheek. "Oh my, I have not felt such young love for so long." She wiped away the tear. "How I miss that innocence."

    "It felt beautiful. So pure," another woman said in a thick Spanish accent. "Even better than the romance novel I am reading."

    "Even better than El Diablo Del Mi Amor?" asked another woman in a shocked voice.

    "I would not go that far."

    Elyssa jumped from her chair, shaking her head as if she could fling away an unpleasant memory. She gave me a look bordering on anger and contempt.

    Then she stormed from the room and slammed the door behind her.

    Chapter 25

    Beck sauntered over to me, a smirk on his handsome face.

    "Dude, that''s really sweet how you feel for her and all, but I have bad news."

    "Yeah, what''s that?" I growled.

    "Taking the White is permanent. She won''t ever remember any of the stuff you talked about. To her, it''ll just be a story."

 Page 42

    "Thanks for giving me hope."

    He rested a hand on my shoulder, his eyes full of malicious amusement. "I grew up with Elyssa. She wanted to be a Templar since we were like three. And since her dad wiped you away like bleach on a skidder, she won''t ever come back to you. Especially now that she knows what her father went through to get you out of her life. You''re trouble, man."

    I resisted the urge to snatch his arm off my shoulder and break his fingers one by one. The odd thing was, mean as he sounded, I could actually feel in my guts he was being sincere with me. "She almost died on me once, Beck. I don''t intend to let our love die either."

    He shrugged. "She''s like a sister to me, man."

    "Yeah, right. You''re sick in the head if you''d look at your sister''s ass like you look at hers."

    He laughed. "Okay, I admit it. She''s hot. I''ve liked her since we were kids. If I ever saw myself settling for one woman, it would be her."

    "Please don''t take this the wrong way, Beck, but I would do my absolute best to cut off your daddy-bags if you ever tried anything with her."

    He held out his hands in a half-shrug and said, "Dude, if she doesn''t want you, she doesn''t want you. You have to let go."

    Maria gripped my hands all of a sudden and, after an intense moment of furrowing her brow and muttering incantations, let go. "Finally, I have cleared the air."

    A conflicting knot of emotions I hadn''t even realized was crowding my insides faded. "What happened?"

    "The circle kept the spell limited to you. When you opened the circle I was interpreting the truth of all feelings in the room and sharing them." She shook her head and slumped back into her chair. "Madre de dios, I really need a drink."

    "Justin, I gotta ask you about something else from your story," Beck said, motioning me away from Maria.

    I followed him, wary about whatever subject he was interested in. He probably wanted the hookup with Stacey. I''d enjoy letting him meet her werewolf boyfriend, Ryland, also a Templar and undoubtedly more qualified to kick this punk''s ass.

    "What is it?"

    "You talked about that vampire, Maximus, the one who kidnapped your dad."

    I shrugged. "And?"

    "He''s the same one who''s organizing here in Colombia. The one we were supposed to take down before our mission changed to apprehend you."

    I remembered the conversation I''d had with Underborn about Maximus. He wanted me to take the rogue vampire out. I shivered with the realization of just how far the malignant cancer called Maximus was spreading. How many other drug lords did he have ties to? How many new recruits had he added to his army of brainwashed kids? I had a feeling Underborn didn''t know the half of it. Or maybe he did and had no compunctions about throwing me into the fire.

    "What about vamplings? Have there been any reports of those here?"

    He shook his head. "Not that I know of."

    "Good lord, do you even know where his headquarters are? He might have a basement or something crawling with the things."

    "He''s in Bogota, or at least a splinter cell is. They''re organizing in the old section of town."

    "I hope you guys are planning to put a stop to that."

    Beck nodded. "Christian plans to proceed with the operation soon. It might help if you came back with us and gave him the details on your encounters with this guy."

    I thought back to what Bella had told me about El Dorado and seeing Vadaemos. Maximus was a major player, but finding the demon spawn who''d brewed the bad blood between my kind and the Templars was even more important. A very clear flow chart existed in my brain. It started with finding Vadaemos and ended with me striking peace with Thomas Borathen. Well, technically, it ended with me enjoying some intimate time with Elyssa, but that all relied upon her father fixing the mind wipe. Everything else could wait.

    "Tell you what, Beck. If you help me, I''ll help you."

    He folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. "This should be good." He looked around conspiratorially. "Well, what do you want? You know I can''t make Elyssa like you¡ªnot that I would if I could." He winked.

    I resisted yet another powerful urge to punch him in the face. "I don''t expect you to. I want you to enter El Dorado with me to capture a fugitive."

    "A fugitive?"

    "Yeah."

    Fausta came up behind Beck. "What are you conspiring about over here?"

    Bella appeared from somewhere, gripped my arm, and tried to pull me to the side. I resisted. "Justin, you should not do this. Even without El Dorado to worry about, you-know-who is extremely dangerous."

    "Everything and everyone is dangerous," I countered and glanced at Fausta. "You look like you think you''re a badass. Maybe you can help me if Beck is too scared."

    Fire danced in Beck''s eyes. "Me scared?" He snorted. "Count me in."

    "In on what?" Fausta said.

    Beck scratched his arm and shrugged. "Some kind of fugitive hunt."

    "You just agreed to help him hunt down a fugitive and you don''t even know who it is?"

    "Vadaemos Slade," I said enunciating each syllable for the proper affect.

    Fausta''s eyes went huge. "I am in." She clapped her hands with joy, like a little girl with a lollipop. "This will be the biggest takedown ever!"

    Beck high-fived her. "You know it!"

    She practically squeed with happiness.

    "We have to take him alive," I said, trying to curb their enthusiasm a bit. It didn''t work. "I need to interrogate him so I can prove he''s the one who set up the massacre at Thunder Rock, not House Slade."

    That got their attention.

    "You think this guy is the one behind Thunder Rock?" Beck asked and looked at Fausta. She shrugged.

    "Let''s just say he knows a lot more than anyone else does about what happened there."

    "This is insanity," Bella said, putting both hands to her hips. "I can''t allow it."

    "You''re not my mom," I said.

    "Maybe not, but I am trying to talk sense into you."

    I bit back a smart remark and took a deep breath, giving me time to find the right words. "Vadaemos Slade is the key to solving a lot of problems. First and foremost, if I can make him admit to Thunder Rock, the Templars and spawn can resume normal relations."

    "And perhaps a certain young lady''s father will approve of you?" She raised a dark eyebrow. "Hmm?"

    "Maybe. It''s a long shot but it''s all I have left." I tried to keep the desperation out of my voice but did a lousy job of it.

    Bella took my hand and patted it. "You are hopelessly in love, aren''t you?"

    I gripped her hand tight and nodded, swallowing the sudden lump in my throat. Thankfully, Beck and Fausta were too busy one-upping each other''s plans for capturing Vadaemos to notice the conversation.

    "At the very least, catching Vadaemos will bring a really bad man to justice."

    She nodded sympathetically. "Then I suppose you''ll need my help."

    "Really? You''ll help?" A ray of sunshine warmed my heart.

    "Yes. I''ll ask a couple of others who are familiar with El Dorado to come as well."

    "We''ll need plenty of light sources," I said. "That''s the only way to keep those shadow things away."

    Bella smiled. "Light is one thing you won''t have to worry about with Arcanes on hand." She took me by the arm and steered me outside. Beck and Fausta followed, arguing about what sort of arsenal they should bring with them. "Gather whatever supplies you need and meet back here first thing in the morning," the dhampyr said. "We''ll want to be there by the time the sun is rising to maximize our daylight hours."

    I hugged her. "Thanks."

    She giggled in a way that totally belied her age and kissed me on the cheek before heading back inside the meeting hall.

    Tomorrow couldn''t come soon enough for me. I walked back to Alejandro''s place and paced restlessly, trying to think of anything useful I could do to prepare for the next day. I didn''t know magic and didn''t have much else of use with me to take, so it appeared I''d have plenty of time to kill before we left. About all I could do was practice making magic circles since one of those had protected me against the shadow horde.

    I grabbed a chunk of chalk and drew a circle on the floor, concentrating on closing it until I felt the static whisper of magic close around me. Then I brushed away a bit of the circle to open it, reclosed it, and started over again.

    "Is that all you know how to do?" Lina said from the doorway.

    A sound like a terrified dog burst from my mouth as I toppled on my butt. I''d been so intent on the circle I hadn''t heard her approach. When I gathered my wits, I said, "Once I tried to short circuit a security door in a vampire stronghold and accidentally blew out power in the whole place."

    She laughed. "You are so funny."

    "Even when I don''t want to be."

    She laughed again, but her smile faded and her bloodshot eyes told me laughing was an effort. "I am sorry, Justin. I should not have said those things about you."

    I wanted to be angry with her, but couldn''t find it in my heart to go through with it as she stood there, her big brown eyes still glistening with tears. It was definitely those guilt pheromones girls had in their tears at work again. I waved her apology away as though it was no big thing. "You''re a beautiful girl, Lina, but my heart already belongs to Elyssa." I sighed and stared at the circle.

    "Would you like me to teach you some spells?" Her face brightened a tad.

    "Sure. Just don''t expect any miracles."

    By dinnertime I was famished and had a headache. Lina wasn''t a master sorceress, by any stretch of the imagination¡ªin fact, she was still a novice by the Arcane Council''s standards¡ªbut she knew a heck of a lot more than I did. The basics were the same across the board, it seemed, and concentration was an important part of making anything happen. My brain could only take so much concentrating before it tried to think about more interesting topics, namely El Dorado and Elyssa.

 Page 43

    Though my ADHD hampered my efforts to do any real magic, I did manage to make the air in front of me glow for two seconds, caused a gust of air to knock over a picture frame, and caught my shoelaces on fire. Thankfully, Lina was able to put it out pretty fast.

    "You are not bad for someone who does not know what they are doing," she told me as we went into the kitchen and prepped food for dinner.

    I pressed fingers to my temples to soothe the headache. "Is this normal?"

    She nodded while kneading a ball of cornmeal. "Magic focus is different than thinking hard about things. The magic¡ªhow do you say¡ªpresses the mind into shape."

    "It molds our minds?"

    "Ah yes, that is it. Like new languages make new paths in the mind, so does magic. But it hurts for the first months."

    I grimaced. "And it doesn''t give you brain damage?"

    She giggled. "No more than you already have."

    "Ha, ha," I said and tickled her while she had her hands in the dough. "Now who''s brain damaged?"

    She laughed and jerked her hands from the cornmeal, spraying bits everywhere including my face. I sputtered.

    Lina giggled and gently wiped the dough from my face, pausing perhaps a little too long for my comfort with her hands against my cheeks. Her dark eyes shimmered with emotion.

    "Interesting," said a familiar voice from behind.

    Lina backed away, her smile flattening into a hard thin line before turning back to the cornmeal.

    I twisted my head and saw Elyssa standing in the door, her left eyebrow raised. "Uh, hi," I said in a weak voice. It was the only thing that came to mind as I felt my face burning bright.

    She walked into a back room and emerged a moment later with the Templar equipment we''d stripped off her the night before.

    "Where are you going?" I asked.

    "I''m staying in the town hall and leaving first thing in the morning."

    "Why are you staying there?" Lina asked pausing as she rolled the cornmeal flat.

    Elyssa''s violet eyes settled on me. "Even you should be able to figure that out."

    A hurt gasp from Lina failed to soften Elyssa''s hard gaze. "You are very rude, but if you want to stay for dinner, please do."

    "Thanks, but no thanks." With that, Elyssa left.

    My heart dropped to a new low.

    The next morning crawled into being after a long night of tossing and turning. My mind rewound history over and over again, analyzing and rehashing each detail, searching for something, anything I could have done differently to keep Elyssa by my side rather than captured and mind-wiped by her father. I wondered if they had time turners in the Overworld. I could definitely use one to go back and fix my mistakes.

    My stomach growled feebly but my appetite had vanished. I forced down some rice, beans, and eggs Lina''s grandfather, Eduardo, had made and hoped they didn''t give me gas. After retrieving my backpack¡ªthe very same one Kassallandra had given me¡ªI set off outside and down the driveway.

    When I got to the town hall, I noticed a bus parked in front. People milled nearby, loading coolers, folding chairs, and blankets into the back. Bella spotted me and strode over, an almost apologetic look on her face.

    "What''s going on?" I asked, looking at the crowd.

    A sheepish grin underlined the embarrassment in her eyes. "It appears your quest has attracted more volunteers than we thought."

    "Wait a minute¡ªthis bus is for El Dorado? All these people are going?"

    "No, no, no, not all." She smiled reassuringly. "Three old people aren''t going because the bus ride is too stiff for their bones."

    My mouth dropped. "This isn''t some joyride. This is dangerous!"

    Her hand touched my arm. "I know. But while we plumb the depths of El Dorado, there will be a picnic and a history tour. During the day, it is perfectly safe."

    My palm slapped my forehead before I could stop it. When I looked up, Beck and Fausta stood there.

    Fausta gave the villagers a disdainful gaze. "Looks like we have a three-ring circus accompanying us."

    Elyssa appeared from behind the other two Templars and gave me a grudging nod. Dark, bruised lines underscored her eyes, and her hair hung limp in a messy ponytail. "We''re going under El Dorado?" She shook her head. "You''re crazier than you look."

    Just peachy. Instead of capturing Vadaemos Slade, I might end up being responsible for shadow creatures annihilating an entire village.

    Chapter 26

    I slashed a hand through the air, drawing a line somewhat less substantial than drawing one in the sand. Still, I had to put an end to this nonsense. "Forget it. I''m not going if the entire village is. We''re talking major league bad guys here."

    The embarrassment in Bella''s eyes vanished. Her chin angled up an extra inch, buoyed by local pride. "Lest you forget, Justin, nearly every one of us are Arcanes. We are more than capable of taking care of ourselves."

    My feet took an involuntary step back at the ferocity in her gaze, and I felt stupid for making out like I was the expert on supernatural dangers. Not that it made me feel much better about the bored citizenry of Los Angeles, Colombia, turning my plans to rescue my love life into a picnic of all things. These people were really cashing in on my misery. "Exactly who will be joining us in the vaults?"

    "Myself and three other experienced sorcerers."

    "And me," Elyssa said, her eyes hard as steel.

    I''d seen that look before and knew it too well to bother arguing with her. Beck and Fausta chimed in.

    "I will also come," Lina said, stepping into the small circle.

    "Child, you''re far too inexperienced to join us," Bella said. "Does your brother know?"

    "Why should that matter?" Lina said, jutting out her chin. "I can make light globes as well as anyone else and it would free up the others to be on the lookout."

    "Absolutely not," I said.

    Anger flared in her brown eyes. "I am not a child. I can make my own decisions."

    "This is no decision, young lady." Bella crossed her arms. "This is a mistake. I am sorry, but you cannot come."

    A tear welled in her eye. "But I want to help Justin." She glanced at Elyssa and her face hardened.

    I took Lina by the arm and led her away from the group. She offered no resistance. I stopped. She refused to look up at me so I put a hand under her chin and raised her eyes to mine. "Thank you."

    Her brow crinkled. "For what?"

    "For caring. For helping." I sighed and looked at the others, at the back of Elyssa''s head and felt my heart pinch with pain. As if she felt my gaze, her head turned and our eyes locked, like two tractor beams. I could feel the power sizzle in the air between our eyes. My heart felt electrified and tight at the same time.

    Lina pressed a hand to my chest. "I care about you Justin. I want you to be safe."

    Forcing my eyes from Elyssa, I met Lina''s sad face and took her hand in mine. "I''ll be safe as I can be. I don''t want you risking yourself."

    She nodded silently. Leaned up and kissed me on the lips. Turned away and paused for a second before facing me once again. Digging in her pocket, she pulled out a small black square and pressed it into my hand. "Devon found this next to the bullet wound in Elyssa''s leg. He gave it to me."

    My eyebrows pinched as I held up the bit of plastic to examine it. It only took a glance to tell what it was¡ªa tiny memory card, the kind made for smartphones and other computer devices. "This was inside her leg?"

    "Just under the skin. Devon said it looks like it was placed in just the right spot for the skin to heal over it, but not deep enough for the muscle to reject it and push it out."

    "What''s on it?"

    She shrugged. "My phone doesn''t have a slot for that kind of card. I probably would have looked at it otherwise."

    I didn''t blame her for being curious. What could be stored on this thing that Elyssa or someone else would insert it surgically beneath her skin? "Thanks, Lina. I''m glad you gave this to me."

    "I almost didn''t. I was so angry with you. With her." She gave a curt nod in Elyssa''s direction. "But I realized it is not your fault you love her. And it is no fault of my own I¡ª" She broke off and a tear trickled down her face. "Anyway, I hope it helps."

    I hugged her and pecked her on the cheek. Backed away, leaving my hands on her shoulders. "Thanks, Lina. I mean it."

    She nodded as another tear joined the first.

    I dashed back to her house and grabbed my smartphone. With trembling hands, I slid off the back cover and pushed the tiny card into the appropriate slot. Thankfully, my phone had plenty of battery left since it had been off all this time. It recognized the card when I powered it back up. The only thing on it was a fairly large video file. My heart thudded hard against my ribcage as I started the video. Elyssa''s face appeared. She looked tired, defeated. Judging from her surroundings, she was in some sort of high-security cell.

    She looked so vulnerable. So beautiful. My heart ached for her.

    "This is Elyssa Borathen. I am of sound mind. You may think I''m crazy, but I''m not. Elyssa, hopefully you''ve found this. The story I''m about to tell you may seem insane, but it''s true. Your father wiped your mind not because you did anything wrong, but because he couldn''t control you. Because he couldn''t stop you from falling in love."

    I stopped the video. My pulse hammered and hope rode a swelling victory tide in my heart. Holy crap. Holy mother up in heaven! Elyssa had somehow managed to record her memories! This was irrefutable evidence. I saw the time on my phone and realized with a jolt it was past time for the circus to move out. Grabbing a pair of Lina''s headphones so I could privately preview the rest of the video before showing it to Elyssa, I stuffed my phone into a pocket and rocketed out the door, back to the bus.

    The bus was gone but a white, full-sized van waited. Bella and the other members of my intrepid group sat inside. Elyssa, Beck, and Fausta sat in the third-row seat speaking in hushed tones while Bella sat shotgun next to the driver, a middle-aged Asian man I didn''t know. Alejandro and a light-skinned man with short, red hair sat in the front bench seat.

 Page 44

    "There you are," Bella said, breaking off her conversation with the driver and turning to me. "Are you ready?"

    "Ready as I''ll ever be," I said, trying to keep the joy bubbling up inside from making me sound like this was going to be the best field trip to Disney World ever. I buckled up for safety''s sake, and because I remembered how rough the roads were in these parts.

    "Justin, this is Master Curtis," Alejandro said, indicating the man sitting to his right. "And Master Pokito is driving."

    Curtis looked like the ginger version of Gandalf, complete with a wizard robe and a pointy hat. I couldn''t remember meeting or seeing a single Arcane wearing such a ridiculous getup, but even with the giddiness doing backflips of happiness in my heart, I somehow managed to keep from laughing.

    "You''ve been kissed by fire," I said, unable to control my smartass mouth.

    He looked confused but took my hand when I held it out to shake. He smiled, revealing deep wrinkles around his eyes. "You can just call me Curtis." His voice was deep with a touch of Irish lilt.

    Pokito made eye contact with me in the rear-view mirror and nodded before starting up the van and moving out.

    I''d wanted to watch the rest of Elyssa''s video along the way, but paranoia made me turn off my phone. Even if I watched it with headphones, I couldn''t be sure that Elyssa''s supersonic hearing wouldn''t pick up on it. And I wasn''t quite ready to reveal this bombshell to her. While it was highly unlikely I could fake anything like this, I didn''t put it past her to react negatively at first, especially considering what her opinion of spawn must be thanks to her dear old dad.

    We reached El Dorado and found a bored-looking sorcerer standing outside the invisible barrier. He said a few words to open it and hopped inside the van with us after we passed inside. Pokito dropped him off at a large grass clearing overlooked by one of the imposing pyramids. The picnic was already well underway. A few kids kicked a soccer ball back and forth while a plump sorcerer grilled chicken with the help of his wand. A large group of people were making their way up one of the smaller pyramids. I couldn''t help but feel queasy thinking of all the lives in danger and hoped the Arcanes knew how to protect themselves. Then again, they always had the safe word for light.

    The van bumped along a the same stone-lined road I''d used to get out of the place a couple days ago, except it went into the last place I wanted to be¡ªthe huge square with the giant mosaics. We piled out of the van near the square pedestal I''d slept next to on that terrifying night. Elyssa stretched. Turned. Saw the mural with the blonde woman on it and took in a sharp breath.

    "What is it?" Beck said, looking in the same direction.

    "I think I''ve seen that woman before," she said. "Except¡­something was different."

    "Did she have dark hair and olive skin?" I asked.

    Elyssa''s head whipped toward me, violet eyes boring into mine. "How do you know that?" She turned the rest of the way toward me, arms tensing.

    "Because you saw her for the first time a few days ago. Her name is Nightliss." The blonde woman was obviously a relative¡ªa sister maybe? I wasn''t sure. After my dream with the two of them, I didn''t know what to think. All I knew was if this mural really depicted the blonde version of Nightliss, El Dorado hid ancient secrets perhaps best left forgotten. Instead, we were about to plow right through them.

    Fausta swept the area with her gaze then turned to me. "We are being watched."

    Beck knelt down to fiddle with his shoelaces before muttering, "Yep, over next to the painting of that dude."

    "As it so happens, that''s near the entrance to the vaults," Curtis said, sliding a slender black wand into a leather holder on the belt around his gray wizard robe. He reached into the back of the van and produced a staff a couple inches taller than him. Alejandro, Bella, and Pokito had similarly outfitted themselves, sans the silly-looking robes.

    "Vadaemos?" I asked Fausta.

    She shrugged. "I saw movement and a flash of pale skin. It''s unlikely anyone from the picnic wandered this far."

    A chill worked its way up my legs. I looked down, halfway expecting to see shadow tendrils writhing from the ground and grasping at me. Before Curtis closed the back doors on the van, I peeked inside. "Where are the flashlights?"

    "We didn''t bring any," Curtis said.

    "None at all?"

    He shrugged. "You have us. We can light the place up like the sun if we have to."

    Bella touched my arm. "Light will not be a problem, Justin. We are particularly good at illumination."

    I hoped they were right, I thought, slipping my heavy backpack onto my shoulders.

    "What the heck do you have in that thing?" Beck said, studying my full-to-bursting pack.

    I shrugged. "Supplies."

    Fausta unzipped her jeans and started to pull them down. I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my skull. In fact, I was just about to ask why she''d suddenly decided to disrobe when I noticed the skintight Templar uniform beneath her civilian clothes. She saw me looking and winked. "Hoping for a show?"

    "I know I was," Beck said, waggling an eyebrow.

    She didn''t so much as look at him. "The hood on my Nightingale armor provides night vision, should I need it."

    Elyssa''s expression soured, probably because she hadn''t thought about it. Unless they''d brought her a spare uniform, though, her old bullet-riddled outfit probably wouldn''t have worked too well. Or maybe it was because Fausta''s curves looked pretty fantastic outlined by the sleek black material. When she tied her glossy black hair up in a ponytail, it amazed me how similar she and Elyssa looked. Their faces, thankfully, were distinctly different thanks in part to the Italian nose on Fausta''s face.

    "We ready?" Beck asked, his eyes making one more pass over Fausta before trotting toward the place our watcher had been.

    The others looked to me. "Uh, head out," I said. Oh yeah. My leadership skills were amazing.

    The rest of us sauntered toward the entrance Curtis indicated earlier, while Elyssa and Fausta fanned out around the structure in case our watcher bolted from cover. Maybe Vadaemos would save us the trouble of entering a shadow-infested warren of tunnels fraught with danger and give himself up outside. We had no such luck. Beck, however, found muddy footprints leading from behind the massive mosaic to the base of the towering pyramid.

    Half a footprint protruded from beneath a slab of rock. My Indiana Jones training kicked in almost immediately. "A secret passage." I looked for torch sconces, usually the most obvious concealment for levers in every adventure movie I''d seen, but saw only rock roughened from the passage of time and elements. I pushed against the slab, looking for an indentation or hidden latch to pop it open, but the aforementioned pits and scars from the elements made that all but impossible.

    "This is not the entrance I would use," Bella said. "Or am I remembering incorrectly?"

    Curtis nodded. "The researchers made note of this particular passage as very dangerous thanks to a steep slope and a pit at the bottom filled with spikes."

    My lips peeled back in a grimace. "Wait a minute, you already knew about this hidden passage?"

    "We know about several of them, primarily in this pyramid." Curtis motioned to the other structures around the huge plaza. "Each one has what we think are sacrifice pits and entrances into the underground city, but many of them are caved in. This particular one is the most intact." He waved his staff at the area where the muddy footprint disappeared and said, "Open sesame."

    The stone vanished into thin air.

    I stared at the gap. "It''s gone? I was expecting it to slide open."

    Curtis chuckled. "No, the entrance is a combination of a barrier spell and the illusion of stone. We don''t know how it''s stayed powered all these centuries."

    "It taps into the ley lines somehow," Bella said.

    Curtis raised an eyebrow. "That''s one theory. Actually, my paper on¡ª"

    "Hello down there!" Beck shouted down the open passage. His voice echoed several times, as if whatever chamber lay below was huge. He tapped a foot inside what looked like a ramp descending into the darkness but his shoe went right through it. "Illusion," he said. "That''s a nasty trap."

    Fausta''s eyes narrowed. "Our watcher wanted us to fall into that trap."

    I shook my head. "If we''re talking about Vadaemos Slade, the same jackass who outsmarted the Templars and spawn all at once, this little trick is child''s play."

    "I agree," Elyssa said, tossing a fist-sized rock down the tunnel. It skittered down the unseen slope, scraping as it went. When the scraping stopped, everyone listened intently for the thud.

    A soft, meaty smack sounded seconds later.

    "Doesn''t sound too far," Beck said.

    A loud RAWR-HEEHAW echoed from the pit, sounding like a mix between a lion and a pissed-off donkey. Everyone jumped about a foot. Fausta''s eyes went huge. Elyssa pressed a hand to her heart. Bella gripped my arm in a vice and squeaked.

    "What in the hell was that?" I asked, backing away from the opening.

    Elyssa touched the hilt of her swords where they protruded diagonally over her shoulders, as if their presence soothed her fears. I felt particularly naked with only the simple silver knife I wore on my side. Then again, what good would knives or swords do against whatever thing lurked down that passage?

    I thought the shadow people were the worst this place had to offer. Obviously, I was wrong. And if I wanted a chance at getting Elyssa back, I had no choice but to face it.

    Chapter 27

    "Close sesame," Curtis said, a slight tremble in his baritone. The barrier and illusion sprang back into place, cutting off the angry roars and braying reverberating from below. He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. "Well, I certainly hope the normal passage doesn''t intersect with that one."

    "Heaven help us if it does," Fausta said, her usual mask of bravado cracking at the edges.

 Page 45

    We walked around the corner from the passage of death and Curtis opened what probably passed as the front door of the structure by waving his staff and calling out another phrase. Beck insisted on throwing in a few pebbles to make sure the floor really existed before we chanced our hides down a steeply sloped dark tunnel. Bella lit the way with a globe of light drifting several feet above our heads. From the outside, the pyramid looked absolutely monstrous. Each stone slab underpinning the structure stood about a story tall and probably took a team of mutant elephants to pull it into its assigned slot. Or maybe they''d done it with magic. From the inside, the place felt cramped even though the tunnel was easily wide enough for two semi-trucks to drive side-by-side.

    Our steps echoed down the long sloping corridor, accompanied by the occasional clatter of pebbles as Beck picked them up and tossed them ahead.

    "You really don''t need to do that," Curtis said. "Pokito is a master of illusion. He''s using a reveal spell to make sure we don''t blunder into anything."

    Beck took a long look at the small, thin sorcerer who, to this point, hadn''t uttered a word. "Fine with me, dude. But if I fall into a pit of acid, I''m gonna be pissed."

    I almost smiled at the thought.

    A creepy, dreadful sound interrupted my amusement. The sound I''d heard my first night in the dead city above. The sound of whispers, as if a crowd of invisible people waited ahead down the corridor and were speaking in hushed tones. Elyssa shuddered. I felt every individual hair on my neck stand up straight in an attempt to pluck itself from my skin and run for the hills. Beck took some pebbles and threw them into the pitch black ahead. Their scattered flight made no difference. If anything, the susurrus seemed to gain volume. Or maybe we were just getting closer to the source.

    The walls of the tunnel ended with hardly a warning and Bella''s light was just a bright stain in what felt like a yawning void all around us. I looked back to the tunnel mouth. Ahead, I could see nothing but tight-set stone slabs on the floor. A thin layer of dust and debris lay on them, disturbed only by a few scuffs here and there. Elyssa knelt next to one of the scuffs and motioned Beck over. I approached uninvited to see what was so marvelous.

    "Hard-soled shoes." Elyssa traced a black mark. "Maybe dress shoes."

    "Who''d be lurking down here in nice shoes?" Fausta said.

    I thought back to the shadow people and wondered if one of them had left the mark. "The shadow people who attacked me in the city had on clothes and shoes. I assume they''d leave marks like anyone else." But thinking back on my close encounter, I remembered only the tattered remains of rotted clothes hanging from their sallow frames. I hadn''t exactly focused on their footwear.

    "There are other marks," Fausta said, looking to the sides and pointing at very slight scuffs in the dust. "Whatever made those marks wasn''t putting a lot of weight on the ground."

    "I suggest we follow this trail," Curtis said, kneeling down and examining the marks.

    "If this is anything like those muddy footprints up top, they''ll probably lead us into a death trap," I said. "Maybe we''re better off not following them."

    Curtis pursed his lips and nodded, as if deliberating internally. "You could be right. I''m going to send up a flare to give us a better idea what to expect. Then we can make a decision."

    The whispers continued around us, unabated. I shuddered, almost certain what lurked in the pitch beyond. I gave Curtis a nod. He whirled his staff above his head in a couple of tight circles before slamming it down and shouting a word. A dim pellet of light streaked upward, hardly bright enough to see, much less illuminate our surroundings. I''d just lost sight of it when a loud boom echoed and brilliant white light blossomed into fiery display about a hundred feet over our heads.

    This dude totally thought he was Gandalf.

    Whispers turned to screeches as the light caught darkly shimmering figures unaware. Dozens of shadow people blurred away into the edge of darkness, black smoke roiling from their skin where the light hit it. Their sounds of inhuman agony scraped my nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard. One of the creatures must have been hiding right at the edge of Bella''s light. It had the form and shape of a woman with long, distended fingers, blackened and clawed, only inches away from where Elyssa had squatted to peer at the scuff marks. If she''d moved a hair more, that thing might have gotten her.

    The intense onslaught of light froze the shadow woman in place like a current of electricity. The light burned away the shadow in a brilliant light show, sucking smoky tendrils from her body while her mouth remained locked in a rictus of agony. The scream was unbearable. I pressed both hands to my ears in a desperate attempt to block off the wall of sound. Her ragged cry cut off. The black wisps of shadow were gone, leaving only pale skin and rotted clothing behind. The woman''s eyes locked onto mine. Her gaze seemed to soften. Maybe because her pain was gone. Maybe her humanity returned. I didn''t have time to figure it out before her eyes glazed over, as if a gray mist had infected them from the inside, and she slumped to the floor in a lifeless heap.

    I was the first one to approach her. My fingers probed for a pulse, but her skin felt ice cold and hard. When I pressed beneath the curve of her chin, the flesh cracked like sunbaked leather and flaked away. I jerked my hand back.

    "She''s dead." Nobody else said a word, not even Beck, as Curtis''s flare began to dwindle and flicker to nothing overhead. I suddenly knew what I''d seen in that woman''s eyes. I''d seen it before when I''d saved Stacey from hellhounds. I''d seen it when Elyssa had woken from her near death experience at the hands of vamplings. She hadn''t been relieved because the pain was gone. She hadn''t been afraid. This woman had been grateful. Thankful. For her, the long nightmare was over.

    For us, it was just beginning.

    "It¡ªwhat¡ªshe?" Beck''s mouth stopped moving. His eyes never left the corpse. Other fissures joined the first along the dead woman''s pale skin, like cracks and veins in a marble statue.

    "Fascinating," Curtis whispered in a low voice. "I didn''t realize they could be killed."

    "Killed?" Bella said in an incredulous voice. "I wasn''t even sure they were real."

    "You didn''t believe me?" I said, a hard edge to my voice.

    "It isn''t that, dear. I simply thought they were ghosts or shades, not corporeal."

    "I don''t suppose anyone took a look around while the flare was going, did they?" Elyssa asked, her eyes meeting mine and lingering with a questioning gaze that had nothing to do with the question she''d just asked.

    Headshakes all around met her query. I couldn''t blame anyone. The death of the shadow woman had been pretty hard to ignore. On the upside, we knew it was possible to kill the things, but you obviously had to catch them in enough bright light to freeze them. Those at the edges could still escape.

    Curtis sighed and checked his staff. "That''s not an easy spell. Give me a minute to recharge."

    "I might be able to do it," Alejandro said.

    "Yours isn''t quite as good," Curtis replied. "Better let me do it."

    Alejandro''s eyes hardened, but he didn''t argue the point.

    Curtis''s minute turned to five before he gave it another go. This time, the light was noticeably weaker and didn''t last as long. It also didn''t catch a single specter. Those things were smart. Or maybe they just had an acute animal instinct. In any case, I had a feeling they''d attack at some point and it wouldn''t be pretty. But as long as Bella kept the lights on we had nothing to worry about, right?

    I didn''t feel reassured.

    "At least the whispers stopped," Beck said.

    It was true. I hadn''t heard another whisper since the first flare.

    Everyone gazed into the vast space Curtis''s flare had lit. Massive square columns vanished into the darkness above. Somewhere up there, they probably supported the base of the pyramid. The sloped tunnel had brought us further underground than I''d realized, and I couldn''t help but think about the Gothic school Maximus''s vampires had converted into a barracks back in Atlanta. I remembered the crypt where they''d kept my father locked away and the horde of rotting vamplings. I wasn''t sure which was worse¡ªvamplings or these shadow people. At least I didn''t have to put up with the awful stench here.

    Despite our concerted scans, nobody spotted the other side of the room or another door for that matter. We talked in nervous, hushed tones for a moment before arriving at a consensus to simply move straight ahead.

    "Maybe we should get a few more able bodies," I said before we embarked into the unknown. "It probably wouldn''t take more than thirty minutes to run back up the ramp and snag a few from the picnic."

    Curtis gave me a look involving pursed lips and a crinkled brow, clearly conveying his opinion on the matter. "I think we have things covered," he said. "Anyone else would just get in the way."

    I mustered a confident look of my own and said, "I don''t think the entire population of the town would get in the way in this massive place."

    "We''re good," Beck said, pshawing and shouldering past me.

    I looked at Bella. She shrugged. "I am fine with what everyone else decides."

    Alejandro, who''d been a bit sulky since Curtis''s dismissal of his flare abilities shook his head. "Too long. We want to be finished while it''s still daylight."

    Elyssa gazed back at the tunnel mouth, now barely visible at the edge of the light from Bella''s wand, but said nothing.

    Fausta merely shrugged.

    Pokito, who until this point still hadn''t said a thing, opened his mouth, apparently thought better of imparting any mind-blowing wisdom, and closed his mouth again.

    "Fine, just a thought," I said. I really didn''t know what else to say. These people were older and more experienced than I was so maybe it''d be better just to let them lead away.

    Curtis pointed to Bella. "We''ve got light." He pointed to Pokito. "He''ll warn us of any illusory traps." He jabbed a thumb against his chest. "And I''ve had training as a battle mage."

 Page 46

    "I''ll beat the crap out of anything else," Beck said, pacing impatiently at the edge of shadow and light.

    And so we headed onward with the Gandalf wannabe and Beck''s endless supply of testosterone. With that combination, how could anything possibly go wrong?

    The place was quiet as a tomb without the whispers to accompany us. The occasional groaning of stone or the echo of falling bits of debris were the only noises penetrating the pressing silence. Some fifteen minutes later, we finally drew within sight of a tunnel on the opposite wall. The path inside spiraled downward.

    "This thing goes deeper?" Elyssa said.

    Beck shrugged. "Looks that way." He tossed a handful of pebbles down the tunnel where they skittered and slid. He obviously didn''t trust Pokito.

    We walked down the winding ramp for what seemed like an eternity, finally reaching the end only after I''d made myself dizzy and a bit nauseated from going round and round and down and down. The tunnel widened into a chamber. I strode across the room, still keeping well within Bella''s light when a fluctuation in the smooth floor caught my eye.

    Jerking to a stop, I held out a hand, motioning the others to halt, and examined the floor. Intricate etchings ran along the stone floor from one side of the room to the other. The four sorcerers knelt to examine it as well.

    Curtis shook his head and grunted. "You know what it is Pokito?"

    The untalkative sorcerer didn''t break his silent streak with an answer at first, apparently thought better of it, and decided to speak. "I sense no illusion." His voice was deep and rich despite his petite frame. "Perhaps it is decoration."

    "In this place?" Fausta said with a laugh. "I haven''t seen any decoration or carvings down here until now."

    "It looks really suspicious," Elyssa said, examining the length of it. "Almost like a line drawn to keep this side barricaded from the other."

    "I will probe it," Pokito said, going for broke and uttering a whole sentence without being prompted.

    He pulled out his wand. Did a swirly move with it. Muttered something. A spark of blue energy drifted from his wand and toward the etchings.

    Bella gasped. "Stop! Stop! I just recognized this thing!"

    Pokito wiggled his magic wand, but it was too late. The blue cinder crossed the woven channels carved in the stone and spilled across them like azure, glowing water. A bright red light burst from the lines. Bella''s globe of light warped and distended like a sun being sucked into a black hole. White energy poured from the other staffs and wands. The sorcerers slumped and fell to the floor, puppets with cut strings. A slight dizzy spell hit me and I suddenly felt a strange vacuum in my body. But it wasn''t anything I''d experienced before, not the ravenous hunger I felt when my supernatural stomach craved sustenance.

    I had no idea what I''d just lost, or if this trap we''d just fallen into was sapping strength from all of us. The etching absorbed the last whirling dot of Bella''s light globe. For a second, the glow from the trap bathed us in a surreal, bloody light. Then it winked out and pitch black claimed us like an infinite ocean.

    All around us, whispers rolled in with the dark tide.

    Chapter 28

    It sounded like we were surrounded. The echoing whispers seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. The dark pressed into my body like a physical force, blocking and choking all my senses. My heart turned to ice while my bowels seemed to liquefy. I fumbled on the ground where Bella had fallen and found her, warm and breathing. For now. She gripped my hand.

    "My staff," she said, her voice high-pitched with worry.

    I scraped my hands blindly along the smooth stone floor until they touched carved wood. I grabbed it and handed it to her. She spoke a spell. A tiny spark lit the room for an instant, just long enough to hurt my eyes. A brief screech went up from somewhere nearby and I suppressed a girlish scream.

    "The rune drained us," Bella said. "I only recognized it at the last moment because I remember seeing one in pictures taken at Thunder Rock just before the Arcane Council interdicted it."

    "Light, we need light!" Elyssa said, somewhere off to my right.

    "We can''t make any," Curtis shouted. "My internal well of energy is empty. My staff and wand are completely dry."

    "We have all we need," Beck said in a mocking voice. "Who needs flashlights when you have sorcerers. You idiots!"

    I unslung my backpack.

    "Something has me!" Curtis said, his voice rising in pitch. "Oh god, it''s so cold." His teeth chattered so loudly I heard them over the whispers.

    "I''ve got you," Alejandro said.

    "Let go of me, you bastard," Fausta shouted, presumably at a specter and not Alejandro¡ªunless Beck had decided to make a move and pinched her butt.

    More shouts joined hers, including my own, as icy tentacles latched onto my legs. Someone screamed bloody murder, as if he were being tossed into molten lava, but I couldn''t tell who it was. The horrific, draining cold clamped into my muscles, sending waves of uncontrollable shivers vibrating through me. My teeth chattered like jackhammers. It was all I could do to unzip my backpack with uncooperative fingers. I dug inside and gripped my emergency provisions. Sorcerers could tell me all day long how great they were and how they could handle everything. I''d learned something valuable in my short but violent life¡ªbeing prepared was much better than blindly accepting assurances other people give.

    I had Elyssa to thank for that.

    My hand closed on a flare as a female screamed in counter-harmony to whichever guy was still shrieking his lungs raw. I pulled it free from the backpack. More tentacles wrapped around my thigh. The whispers grew to an excited crescendo while my energy levels drained into cold oblivion. I squeezed shut my eyes. Jerked the plastic cap off the top. Blinding light exploded. Blinding and glorious. The brilliance hurt even through my eyelids. The awful screeches of the shadow people almost overwhelmed our own cries of pain. The numbing cold on my legs vanished.

    Bella stopped mid scream. Curtis curled into a fetal position, shivering violently, while the others looked dazed. Pokito, however, kept screaming. His wide eyes focused on something only he could see and he sounded like a sharp-clawed wildcat had him by the balls. I shook him. Didn''t help. I slapped him. His scream shut off like a dead radio.

    I set the flare atop the rune trap to see what would happen. It didn''t so much as flicker. Apparently, it only affected magic.

    "I was blind," Elyssa said. "I couldn''t see anything. My night vision never came on."

    "Mine either," Fausta said, still shivering.

    It hadn''t occurred to me during the panic, but mine hadn''t either.

    "Some of your abilities use magic energy to work," Bella said. "The rune drained us."

    Beck picked up a rock and crushed it in his hand. "But I still have strength."

    Bella nodded. "Your strength doesn''t rely solely on magic. Instead, magic altered your body, made it stronger. For some reason, night vision is one of those things that uses magical energy as opposed to your eyes being altered. Or so goes the theory."

    Elyssa squatted next to me and touched my shoulder. "Thanks."

    I almost took her hand in mine and kissed it. Somehow, I resisted the instinct before I lost a hand to her sword. "Someone close to me showed me the importance of always being prepared."

    "Your father?"

    I shook my head. "You."

    Her lips tightened, but she didn''t take my head off. Instead, she asked, "What else do you have in that backpack?"

    I pulled out several clamshell LED lanterns, unfolded them from their almost flat state, and showed her the stash of flares in the bag. "Enough to get us out of here." I actually had Lina to thank for the supplies. Despite her town being full of Arcanes, it still relied on electrical power, and keeping a magical light globe lit during their frequent power outages wasn''t always possible.

    She smiled. "If I taught you, I obviously did a great job."

    I thought about the recording on my phone. What if we didn''t make it out of here? What if I died without ever kissing my beloved ninja girl again? I wanted to show it to her so badly, but by now, everyone else was staring intently at the two of us and now was definitely not the time. I cleared my throat and forgot whatever it was I''d been about to say.

    Instead, I decided we should abandon our attempt to find Vadaemos before someone died. "Is everyone okay?"

    Bella touched my arm and smiled gratefully. "I''m glad you decided to ignore my assurances, Justin."

    I grinned back. "Maybe we should get the hell out of here now."

    "Are you kidding?" Beck said. "We''ve come this far. I want to nail the son of a bitch who put this thing here." He jabbed his finger at the rune and spat on it.

    "We seem to be well provisioned," Fausta said, looking over my stash. "I am fine with moving on."

    Curtis took a look at Pokito who lay twitching in a puddle of his own vomit and shook his head. "We need to go back. I knew this was foolish."

    Just lovely. We''d run into our first major problem and Ginger Gandalf was the crybaby who wanted to go home. I had to admit, I was a tiny bit impressed with Beck''s desire to push on.

    "Least we know why the survey teams never made it any farther than this," Alejandro said. "Or why the other ones never returned."

    Bella shuddered. "I''m feeling better now, Curtis. Perhaps you and Alejandro can take a lantern and return to the top with Pokito."

    "No way," Alejandro said. "I want to go on." His eyes blazed with anger and determination.

    Curtis narrowed his eyes. "If you think for a minute I''m going to retrace our route while drained of magic and dragging Pokito along, you''re crazy."

    I opened my mouth to speak when I heard a snuffling noise from behind us, somewhere up the curving tunnel. All heads swiveled toward it. A roar like no other echoed down the passage and everyone except the catatonic Pokito flinched. Whatever we''d disturbed in the trap hole earlier was on our scent.

 Page 47

    There was no further argument about which way to go, and the only words spoken were curses. Alejandro and Curtis draped Pokito''s arms over their shoulders and got him on his feet. Thankfully, he was short and thin, so it didn''t take much strength on their part. Elyssa and Fausta took the lead with lanterns while I handed flares to Beck and Bella in case we needed them. The passage widened in places and narrowed in others, but never opened into a monstrous cavern like the first part. It meandered in gentle curves back and forth, up and down, until I wondered if it was leading anywhere at all.

    After an interminable time, I heard the patter of water somewhere ahead. The sound grew louder, more insistent, as we closed the gap between the source and us. I was grateful the corridor never branched off, especially with the sounds of snuffling pursuit echoing some undeterminable distance behind us.

    Moments later, we reached a precipice spanned by a wide stone bridge. A smoothly polished ceiling arching a story or so overhead, curved down into smooth walls and blending into the misty black oblivion below. The chasm might have dropped thirty feet or three hundred feet. I couldn''t tell since the light from the lanterns didn''t do much to penetrate the darkness. I smelled and tasted water in the air. Its trickles and gurgles bounded off the unyielding walls and played havoc with my hearing. Beck dropped one of his pebbles over the side. I never heard it splash, nor could I have over the ambient racket.

    Not much further on, the sound of rushing water grew louder until we reached a waterfall plummeting from a long gash in the ceiling. We had no way around it, only through it.

    "Guess this is a trap for people using torches," Elyssa said.

    "I think you''re right," Bella replied, nodding in agreement. "But it won''t do much against flares or flashlights."

    "Unless something is wrong with the water," Fausta said, staring at it suspiciously.

    Beck snorted. "Or maybe this part of the bridge is illusion and we''ll fall through it."

    I hadn''t thought about such a possibility since the roaring beast hot on our trail had triggered my primal instinct to flee. Beck''s observation reactivated the rational part of my forebrain and gave me pause just when we couldn''t afford to pause. As if in answer, another roar rose above the sound of the waterfall.

    We didn''t have time to dither. Without another thought, I strode for the waterfall.

    A black streak raced past me. Elyssa. She splashed through the waterfall, vanishing into a watery blur. Her feet abruptly went out from beneath her. Oh god. It was a trap. I didn''t care. Didn''t even think about it. I just ran after her at top speed. I hit the same spot and realized immediately it wasn''t a trap. When my feet flew from beneath me and I slammed down on my stomach, I realized it was something far more mundane and simple: slippery, wet moss.

    The entire surface was like an oil slick and utterly without friction. I had no way to stop myself. I saw Elyssa''s body twisting. Saw her hands scrabble for purchase. We both hydroplaned toward the sloped and rounded edge of the bridge. No ledge to grip. No imperfections to hold. We were about to find out first-hand how deep this gorge was.

    Elyssa bared her teeth in determination. Clawed at the moss. Her fingernails scraped free some of the slippery vegetation, slowing her down, but she would never stop in time. I had more momentum now than she did. In a second, I''d be on her and probably shove her right off to her death with me close behind. This was not how things were going to end.

    Hyper-aware instinct took over. Time seemed to slow. I reached a hand out for hers as my body closed the distance. She seemed to see me for the first time, and slung her hand out to meet mine. Moss and grime coated her hands, made them slick, and she slipped from my fingers. Her feet were at the edge. I lunged wildly for her. This time, her hand clamped around my forearm. Her legs went over the edge. Her torso followed.

    With my other hand, I jerked the knife from the sheath at my side. Offered the quickest prayer in my life to whoever was listening. Stabbed the knife into the stone with all my strength. Buried it all the way to the hilt. I jerked to a stop so suddenly I almost lost my grip. Elyssa''s fingers dug hard into my arm and it burned in agony at the awkward angle. But I had her.

    I had her.

    I sucked in a deep breath. Tried to jerk her back up over the ledge, but even super-strength is hard to use without leverage.

    Another hand gripped mine. "Let go of the knife," Fausta shouted over the roar of the waterfall.

    I looked up and saw her and Beck forming a chain. I nodded, trusting the Templars had solid footing. Fausta and Beck pulled us to the opposite side of the waterfall with little effort where Elyssa and I lay on the dry stone panting and staring at the void that had almost claimed us.

    "How did you do that?" Fausta asked, shaking her head at the knife embedded in the stone.

    I shrugged. "I just stabbed it in. I wasn''t really thinking."

    "Cheap metal like that usually shatters."

    "Cheap?" I glanced up at her. "What do you mean?"

    She pulled out a katana. It seemed to glow in the light of the lanterns. "I''m an expert on blades. I don''t know where you got the knife, but it''s a piece of junk."

    I didn''t know how to answer her question. I really didn''t want to think about it. About how stupidly my quest for love had almost ended.

    After testing a cautious path through the middle of the waterfall, we helped the rest of the group across. Either the creature following us had stopped roaring, or I couldn''t hear it over the waterfall. Nonetheless, I spurred the others across as quickly as was safe, hoping the creature might have the same difficulties we were having. Aside from a few indignant outbursts at the cold water, everyone made it across, lanterns intact. I couldn''t help but notice what cold water did to female anatomy, especially while in a skintight Templar uniform. The results were mesmerizing. Beck''s gaze was locked on Fausta''s chest.

    She growled and snapped him from another one of his boob trances.

    Another of the bizarre lion-donkey roars echoed from what was hopefully far behind us, but it was hard to tell. We sprinted for the other end of the cavern and entered a tunnel, but slowed so Curtis and Alejandro could catch up. Neither of the sorcerers had supernatural strength or endurance, and Curtis and Alejandro were still carrying Pokito.

    We hadn''t gone much farther before discovering a new challenge. Around the next curve, our single tunnel split into three.

    "What the hell!" Beck shouted, staring ahead. "Game over, man. Game over."

    "Maybe not," Bella said, pulling out her wand.

    "Aren''t you drained?" I asked.

    "There''s plenty of magic in this place," she said. "If you''ll recall, I told you about the powerful ley lines running through here."

    "You''re recharged?"

    "Perhaps enough to figure this out." She popped the micro-magic generator from the wand and examined it. Put it back in and fiddled with it. The sorceress took a deep breath and concentrated for a long moment before casting a spell. Three little hummingbirds hovered before her, their wings thrumming the air. Before I could get a good look at them, they darted away, each one taking a tunnel.

    "What now?" Elyssa asked.

    Bella took a seat. "We wait."

    Curtis dropped to the floor muttering curses in the way only an abused Irishman could.

    Fausta and Beck prowled the perimeter, swords out and ready in case the beast stalking us made an appearance. Elyssa had her own swords out, eyes wary. I felt antsy¡ªready to plunge into the unknown, but we were between a rock and a hard place. Running down the wrong tunnel might trap us in a dead end or drop us a thousand feet onto spikes. We had no choice but to wait and hope Bella''s little spell operated quickly.

    Alejandro pulled out his wand, shook it a few times, and put it back in its holster. "It''s taking me forever to store any magic in my well," he said to Bella. "How did you recharge so fast?"

    "A combination of age and experience," she said.

    I gave them a quizzical look. "Is the well a term for your internal store of magic?"

    Bella nodded. "Filling and replenishing your well is an elementary course for Arcanes. Otherwise, your magic would rely solely on external sources."

    "Like when I make a circle?"

    "Yes, in a way. Circles are used to make external wells, so to speak. I use them all the time to increase the power of my own spells."

    "Why is it so hard for me to recharge?" Alejandro said. "There''s so much power in this place, I should fill up in no time. Instead, it''s like squeezing a river through a straw."

    Bella offered an understanding smile. "The rune we encountered sucked us completely dry. I don''t believe there was any way to cross it with stored magic. The trauma caused by such a violent leeching from our systems has had lingering effects, like an overtired muscle." She sighed and glanced over at Curtis. "I have been through great trauma before, Alejandro. I have known pain that should have stripped me of humanity. Somehow, I survived, and by surviving, increased my ability to recover from such traumas."

    "What happened?" Elyssa said, her wary eyes softening as she regarded Bella.

    "Life happened, dear."

    Elyssa lowered her sword. "My mother went through some awful times. Some so bad she won''t even tell me the whole story."

    Bella reached up and patted her hand. "Many dhampyrs do, child, except perhaps those like you who are born of two loving parents instead of turned by vampires while pregnant."

    I thought about the women in Franco''s compound and shuddered with revulsion. "Bastards. Sick, abusive bastards."

    I felt a warm hand settle on my shoulder and was surprised to see it belonged to Elyssa. She seemed just as surprised and pulled it back

    The scuff of what sounded like paws echoed from somewhere behind us. Everyone tensed.

    "How long does this spell take?" Beck asked, his voice tight.

    She sighed. "It all depends on how long the passages are."

    "Yeah? Well Mr. Snuffleupagus could show up any minute. Maybe one of you should throw up a shield."

 Page 48

    Bella arched an imperious eyebrow. "Perhaps you weren''t listening to our conversation, Beck. None of us could raise a shield much less maintain it right now."

    The hum of wings drew our attention to the middle tunnel. A hummingbird emerged and puffed into a cloud of red smoke.

    I glanced at Bella. "And the verdict is?"

    "Not that tunnel."

    I jumped to my feet, unable to relax with the threat still lingering behind us. I felt reasonably certain three well-trained Templars could hold off just about anything short of a giant nuclear robot. These tunnels were fairly narrow and constrained, however, so the creature stalking us couldn''t be too large. That didn''t make it any less dangerous.

    Another minute of eternity passed until the second bird appeared from the right-hand tunnel and vanished in a haze of red smoke. The predator back down the tunnel somewhere roared again, reminding us we didn''t have all day to sit around waiting on Bella''s hummingbirds.

    "The left-hand tunnel it is," I said, rising to my feet.

    Bella gripped my wrist. "We should wait. There may be more forks ahead."

    "How do those stupid birds know the tunnels are bad?" Beck asked. He leaned against the wall on the opposite side of the room and stared down the right-hand passage, his hand fidgeting with a sword.

    Bella took a deep breath and pushed to her feet. Looked at her wand. "I suppose I still have enough."

    "Enough of what?" Beck asked.

    The red mist from the first bird still hovered where it had appeared. Bella rotated her wand through it until it whirled in a vortex of red smoke. An image appeared in the center. Everyone crowded around. The image showed the route from the perspective of the bird as it zipped at hyper-speed down the winding tunnel. I could hardly keep up with the twisting and turning, but it was obvious the passage went on for at least a mile or two before turning into a slick slide leading straight to hell via a terrifying fall into pitch black.

    Beck grimaced. "Holy crap."

    Bella showed us the feedback from the second bird. Its tunnel stopped at a wall of rock. But the bird swooped down and hovered to expose a line in the floor. It slammed its tiny body against the line and the dead end vanished, leaving only a void beneath.

    "Very cunning," Bella said, though her face had gone a bit pale. "A magical barrier that feels solid until you trip the trap and it vanishes."

    I could picture everyone''s legs spinning in mid-air like cartoon characters before dropping like rocks, our screams fading into the depths.

    Beck gulped, his face even paler than Bella''s. She looked drained. Exhausted.

    He was about to speak when the third hummingbird emerged from the left tunnel and dissolved into a green mist.

    "Green for go?" I asked.

    Bella smiled and nodded.

    Beck didn''t seem convinced. "Uh, you sure that green bird found a safe way?"

    "My seeker spell has never failed me before," she said.

    "How many times have you been lost in tunnels underneath a cursed city?" Beck asked, disbelief on his face.

    "Only once. But the spell works for more than just tunnels. It plots safe routes through all sorts of dangerous terrain."

    "I guess if it ever did fail, you wouldn''t be around to tell anyone."

    She chuckled wryly. "Indeed."

    Curtis groaned and pushed to his feet. "I, for one, am beyond exhausted from carrying Pokito." He ran a hand through his carrot-colored hair and gave us expectant looks.

    The small Asian man still hadn''t snapped out of his blank-eyed trance.

    "Beck, you mind helping out?" I asked.

    "What do I look like to you, a babysitter?" He snorted.

    "Well, if you''re not strong enough¡ª"

    "Yeah, buddy. Reverse psychology isn''t gonna work. You don''t want me burdened down with that guy. If that thing following us attacks, you''ll want me ready and primed to go. I might be the only thing standing between you and mealtime for a monster."

    "My knight in shining armor," Fausta said, an amused grin on her face. She braced both fists on her hips and tilted them. "Whatever would we do without you?"

    Elyssa seemed to overcome whatever aversion she had for the Italian girl and nodded. "You just let the pros handle that monster, Beck. Mr. Pokey needs you."

    Fausta snorted with laughter, barely stifling it with her hand.

    Another roar from behind us seemed to settle the matter.

    Beck glared at them. "You know what? I''ll carry him and still save your asses when the monster catches up." He slung the little man over his shoulder like a sack of beans and stormed down the left tunnel.

    Bella and the two girls set off after him while Alejandro, Curtis, and I took up the rear. We hadn''t gone more than twenty feet when the entire tunnel rumbled, rocking back and forth. It threw us around like lace thongs in a strip club. The rock splintered and cracked beneath our feet. Behind us, the ceiling collapsed in a blanket of rubble.

    "Run!" I screamed above the roar of crumbling rock. "Run!"

    Chapter 29

    We ran.

    A problem quickly became apparent. Curtis panted and wheezed, stumbling along and barely keeping his feet. He had no supernatural speed or strength. Alejandro was young and quick, but nothing compared to those of us blessed with demonic or vampiric speed. And the crumbling tunnel was catching up to them. I did the only thing I could. Without pausing in my sprint, I slung Curtis, staff and all, over a shoulder, and grabbed Alejandro around the waist, picking him up and racing for all I was worth after the girls.

    Curtis shouted something. I could feel his back arch as he craned his neck to look behind us. The creak and groan of tortured rock drowned out his words. I looked back. What I saw set fire to my stride: Parietal eyes the size of boulders gleamed red like burning rubies above a long, narrow muzzle filled with jagged, black teeth, obsidian shards set in a tunnel to oblivion.

    "It''s a leyworm!" Curtis screamed frantically into my ear.

    I almost tripped as the ground went out from beneath me. Leapt a small gap. Poured on the speed. "A leyworm?" Yet another denizen of the Overworld out to kill me.

    "They''re giant reptiles. Attracted to powerful ley lines." Curtis gasped as I jumped over a fallen rock. He caught his breath. "Feed off them. They can tunnel through solid rock."

    "Reptiles? Like a snake?"

    "No, more like an¡ªoof!" He caught his breath. "A dragon."

    He had to be kidding me. A dragon? "Is it the same monster that''s been following us?"

    I felt his lungs inflate against my shoulders. "No. This is something else." He didn''t sound exhausted anymore. In fact, he sounded pretty alert. Terror has a way of doing that. "No idea why it''s after us."

    The passage split into five more ahead. Bella pointed at the second from the right where a bright green slash marked it. We followed. So did the giant worm, snake, dragon, or whatever the thing really was. I looked back. Its mouth scooped up loose rubble like a vacuum where it vanished into the glowing maw. A pulsating light emanated from deep down the corridor of its throat.

    Good god, I hoped that thing couldn''t spew fire.

    Curtis kept talking, spouting facts about leyworms, though I could hardly hear half of it over the din and roar of the creature or the cacophony of falling rock.

    I looked forward just in time to see Bella jabbing a finger at one of two tunnels just ahead. As before, a green slash marked the way. I angled for it, barely keeping my feet as a chunk of rock broke loose and rolled directly into my path, nearly blocking the tunnel. I sucked in a breath, somehow squeezing past with my two passengers. I heard a thump and a yelp. Curtis''s educational lecture on leyworms abruptly stopped. His head bounced against my back.

    "Whoops," I mumbled. I hadn''t been quite as precise as I''d hoped and probably knocked the poor man senseless against the rock. Alejandro, for his part, seemed unharmed. But holding him tucked under my arm was cumbersome. Another close scrape like that, and we might not make it. "I''m putting you over my shoulder," I said.

    Slinging him over my shoulder from his position was a hell of a lot harder to do while running than I thought it''d be. Somehow, I did it without throwing him over like a pinch of salt and into the worm''s mouth. I figured Lina, should we live to see her again, would be grateful for that.

    As we cleared the next tunnel, we burst into a massive chamber ringed with dark tunnel entrances on all sides. Bella sprinted ahead, obviously uncertain which one we needed to take. I quickly saw why. Glowing green slashes marked the air in front of almost every tunnel. Were they all safe? Or had someone tampered with them?

    The group raced to the center of the room. Elyssa abruptly stopped and held out her hands. "The rumbling. It stopped."

    I looked back. She was right. The worm or whatever had been chasing us was gone.

    "Where the hell did it go?" Beck asked, pivoting on his feet as if it might burst from beneath us at any minute.

    "Far away I hope," Elyssa said.

    "They''re all marked!" Bella said, breathing heavily, her face red with exertion and possibly anger as she looked at the passageways around the room. "I have no idea which way to go."

    "Someone please remind me to get better underwear next time," I said, panting.

    "Eew, what did you do?" Fausta said with a grimace.

    "Not what you think." I blew out a breath. "But I have the mother of all wedgies and it hurts."

    "You carried them all this way?" Elyssa said, looking querulously at my passengers.

    I gave her a What can you do? shrug and, sensing we might possibly safe for at least the next few seconds, put Alejandro on his feet and lowered Curtis to the ground so I could pry my underwear out of my own crevice. The ginger sorcerer''s head was thankfully still intact, albeit bleeding from a bump. His pointy Gandalf hat, however, was long gone. It was a miracle I hadn''t tripped over the ridiculous robes he wore.

    "Thanks," Alejandro said, gripping my shoulder and giving me a quick bro hug. "You saved us."

 Page 49

    "Uh, sure," I said.

    "You never think, do you?" Elyssa said. "You just plunge straight on without a thought, as if everything is going to somehow work out."

    I gave a rueful chuckle. "You''ve made that observation about me before."

    She squinted, as if trying to see me through different eyes. Her effort seemed to fail. "What now?"

    "Now," said a strange high-pitched voice from ahead, "it is time to see an end to this merry adventure."

    All heads turned to face the voice. A tall thin man with unruly black hair and bright commanding eyes strode across the room. Next to him stood a shaggy four-legged beast with a feline face, and tall pointed ears. A long thin tongue lolled from its mouth. The creature looked odd, no doubt, but the strangest thing about it was the luminescent glow emanating from its body. It wasn''t a bright light, but it was certainly enough to illuminate a twenty-foot radius around the creature.

    "Vadaemos?" I said, moving my curious gaze back to the thin man.

    "You have found him." His imperious voice bore a combination of several accents, none of which I could pick out. If anything he sounded slightly British with a twist of Russian.

    I clenched my fists and squared my shoulders. "You''re under arrest."

    He replied with a high-pitched, hysterical giggle. I couldn''t believe this was the super-dangerous fugitive I''d heard about. When Vadaemos regained his breath, he looked me up and down. "You are a strange one."

    "I''m strange?" I returned his once-over. "You''re the one living beneath a cursed city with a glowing chia pet."

    "Was that thing behind us all that time?" Beck said, pointing at the animal.

    Vadaemos nodded. "Yes, he did an admirable job herding you where I wanted, but I couldn''t have you mapping out safe routes, now could I?"

    "The leyworm was your doing too?" Elyssa said, tone defiant, chin jutting out like an angry child''s.

    "More or less. I don''t control those wondrous beings, to be sure. But Yolo was quite capable of diverting him onto your path." He gave the shaggy creature an affectionate pat on the head. Its eyes narrowed in appreciation and a soft braying noise wheezed from its throat.

    "What in the hell is that thing?" Beck asked.

    "A mutant. An outcast like me. But a wonder nonetheless." Vadaemos strode closer, obviously unafraid of us, drawing to within a few feet. He wore expensive-looking slacks and a dark red, button-up shirt. The worn, yellow flip-flops on his feet bore a marked contrast to the rest of his clothes. I wondered if they indicated eccentricity or hinted at an intellect so cunning I could never hope to understand why he''d chosen such footwear over a comfortable pair of Crocs.

    Beck flashed toward him. Before he could get to within a foot of the fugitive, he bounced off an invisible barrier, his nose making a sickening crack with the impact. Groaning, the Templar reeled backward, arms windmilling to keep his balance while blood poured down his face.

    Vadaemos laughed. "Not the brightest of the bunch."

    I couldn''t blame Beck a bit. I''d been ready to do the same thing before he beat me to the punch. Even though his nose healed quickly, blood crusted his face and neck. He looked like a vampling.

    Inspiration hit me all at once. I pulled out my smartphone and powered it on, inwardly cursing how slowly it took to get to the home screen.

    "What do you plan to do with us?" Bella asked, leaning against her staff. Her olive-toned skin still looked sickly pale from her earlier exertions.

    "I thought we could sit down for tea and crumpets," the demon spawn said, clapping his hands together with feigned delight.

    "Tea and crumpets?" Beck said, using the shirt he wore over his Nightingale armor to wipe away crusted blood.

    Vadaemos shook his head with exaggerated sadness. "Oh you poor boy. You really are quite daft, aren''t you?"

    My phone finally reached the home screen. I tapped the camera app and, holding the phone unobtrusively by my side said, "So tell me, Vadaemos, why did you ambush all those Templars at Thunder Rock? Why did you kill your own people along with them? Are you a complete psychopath?"

    His eyes lit with blue flames. His fists clenched as the skin on his body rippled and undulated. Tiny black horns pierced the skin on his forehead, curving up as they lengthened. "You accuse me of murder?" he roared, his voice now considerably lower in pitch and a hell of a lot scarier.

    Coils of striated muscle wormed beneath his skin, stretching and snaking around the bone, thickening and pulling tight until his thin arms grew brawny. I was mesmerized by it in the same way my eyes would be drawn to a tub of squirming snakes. Vadaemos was spawning right before our eyes and I knew what that meant. He''d lose all control and crush us into meaty bits. Yolo, however, didn''t seem too concerned about his bestest buddy in the world turning a literal shade of Smurf blue and growing horns. A long tail tore through the seat of Vadaemos''s slacks and uncurled, lashing back and forth like that of an angry cat''s. It was blue and prehensile, but looked almost reptilian with a little pointy fork at the tip.

    My long-lost relative fixed me with his glowing eyes and spoke. "I was fooled. Tricked!" A growl sounded deep in his throat. Razor sharp teeth protruded beneath dark blue lips. "That cursed Daelissa did it to me. Promised to cure all my problems at once and then used me as her scapegoat."

    I noticed with some relief as his transformation stopped somewhere between fully manifested demon and human¡ªa bizarre but badass combination. "Who''s Daelissa?" I asked, desperate for a solid lead.

    But Vadaemos was too preoccupied with proclaiming his innocence. I recorded him, hoping against hope the video quality from this phone was decent enough for anyone viewing it to make a solid ID.

    "When Orionas and I left House Slade and Assad, we wanted nothing more than to be happy and live in peace. But our families hunted us relentlessly. We fled, but the other great houses wouldn''t take us in or offer protection." He braced one of his large blue hands atop Yolo, as if his half-spawned demon form needed emotional support. "I told Orionas to go back to House Assad. I told her we had no choice and it was the only way to protect her from harm." A crystalline tear sizzled from his eye, caught in the blue flames burning against the blackness of his orbs.

    "What happened?" I asked, softening my voice with false sympathy.

    Vadaemos wasn''t listening to me. His eyes were looking into the past at a tragedy only he could see.

    Elyssa cast a questioning glance over her shoulder at me and noticed the phone. Her gaze turned immediately to understanding. She turned back to the distraught spawn and asked, "Where is Orionas?"

    For another long moment, it appeared he wouldn''t answer. But then he looked up abruptly as if realizing he still had guests he intended to kill. "She went back to her family, or so I believed at the time. But my family would no longer have me back. They said I was out of control."

    "You were stealing souls," I said, remembering what Meghan Andretti had told me about her father. How he was tricked by a rogue demon spawn into trading his life essence for a cure to his sister''s cancer.

    "I took what was mine by right," Vadaemos spat, clenching his fist tight. Sharp black spines unfolded along each knuckle. "They made deals with me. Bargains."

    I suddenly knew for sure this half-insane spawn was the one responsible for Meghan''s father. He had to be. The timeline fit and it was patently obvious he was the kind of person who''d do it and suffer no remorse. "What about the bargain you made with the Andrettis?" I said, unable to remember her father''s name. "After having one of your minions give her cancer?"

    The flames in his eyes leapt higher at the accusation. Then a sharp-toothed smile carved his blue lips. "Perhaps I tweaked the conditions to suit my needs. But I am Daemos. I am above mere mortals."

    "You are crazy," Fausta said, lips curled back in disgust.

    "You killed all those Templars," I added. "Killed them with creatures from the demon plane. Left their soulless husks to wither at Thunder Rock."

    "And killed your own people," Elyssa said. "Ambushed them like a coward!"

    "That was not me!" Vadaemos''s roar echoed off the walls. He tilted his head back and loosed a howl filled with anguish and rage. His foot slammed hard against the stone floor, crushing what was left of one flip-flop. His head snapped down. Eyes focused on me. "I was told House Assad hunted down my beloved Orionas and killed her like an animal. I was told they burned her to ash so I could never look upon her beauty again." His fists crackled with tension and more tears sizzled. "I planned my revenge against House Assad. Vile murderers." His voice trailed off in a harsh hiss as he paced away from Yolo. Stopped and faced us. "Daelissa told me this. Claimed she would aid in my revenge. Instead, she drew the Templars and the others to Thunder Rock after me. She activated the Amber Arch. The gateway into the Void. She unleashed the vilest demon spawn from that place and laughed as those creatures destroyed my persecutors. Had I not been near the way station, I would have died. As it was, I barely escaped to this place before the husks reached me."

    I wanted to ask him more about Thunder Rock, about the strange room of arches I''d found. Was that the way station he spoke of? And the husks¡ªwhat were they? Maybe they were demon spawn like the crawlers.

    But I couldn''t interrupt him. Vadaemos''s story transfixed us all. Nobody said a word as he told the tale of slaughter and how Daelissa made sure to mark those she didn''t want killed so they could report back to their people about how they had been betrayed. House Slade believed the Templars and House Assad to be responsible. House Assad accused the Templars and House Slade. Thomas Borathen blamed all spawn, no matter which house they belonged to, and his word mattered among the Templars. How Vadaemos knew so much about Daelissa''s plans or the aftermath of the massacre, he didn''t say.

    My curiosity and impatience overwhelmed my desire to listen to his monologue, and I asked the most important question. "Who is Daelissa?"

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    "You''ll never find her," he said, a hysterical laugh working up his body. "Never. She''s too powerful by far. Her kind lives beyond the Alabaster Arch. They ruled this world before even Daemos set foot on it."

    "Oh god," I said, a sick feeling working its way up my guts. "Is she one of the people in the murals in the plaza?" There was only one female I could recall with clarity, thanks mostly to the bizarre dream with her in it. "Blonde hair, kind of short, scary as hell?"

    His eyes widened. "Yes, yes. That is her. The centuries have not been kind to her mind, but that hasn''t diminished her power a bit." A giggle burst from his lips. He stifled it with a hand. "You don''t even know the funniest part." He burst into crazed laughter, doubling over. His spawn form withered as he cackled away, thick bands of muscle retreating and his blue skin fading to a pale hue. When his horns detached from his head and clattered on the floor, he abruptly snapped from his bout of hysteria.

    "What''s so funny?" Elyssa said, taking a step toward him. "Tell me!"

    Vadaemos looked up between gasps for breath and said. "You''re a Templar and you don''t even know. But how could you? She has played us all for fools like the mortal toys we are to her."

    Elyssa''s jaw tightened. "What don''t we know?"

    Beck and Fausta exchanged puzzled looks.

    Vadaemos narrowed his eyes. His lips curled into a cruel smile. "Daelissa is the Templar Divinity."

    Chapter 30

    Elyssa''s jaw dropped farther than I thought possible for someone who wasn''t in a cartoon. Fausta had to grab Beck by the arm as he tried another foolish charge at Vadaemos. A clammy hand closed around my arm and I looked to see Bella, her face slightly less waxy than before.

    "I think I have determined the true path from this place," she said in a whisper. "Vadaemos hurriedly marked each exit with an illusion, but the spell he used is of novice quality and the images it casts flicker at times." She nodded toward a passage diagonally behind the huge shaggy form of Yolo, the whatchamacallit. "Watch the green mark there."

    I did. A second later, the marks on the passages to either side of it faded and flickered ever so slightly while the mark she indicated held solid.

    "You''re lying," Elyssa said to Vadaemos. "Why should we believe a thing that comes out of your lying mouth, demon spawn?"

    Beck unleashed a torrent of profanities, all the while straining at Fausta''s grip on his arm.

    I looked back to Bella. "What good does it do to know which one it is? You look on the verge of collapse and Vadaemos has that oversized yak to protect him."

    "Let''s not forget he can apparently spawn at will," she added.

    I furrowed my forehead. "Yeah, exactly. So what does it matter if we know where the right exit is? There''s no way in hell we can all get past him."

    "I have enough left in me to divert their attention. It should give you time enough to escape."

    "You can hardly hold yourself up as it is, Bella."

    "As I said, I have enough."

    A knot formed in my chest as I realized what she was contemplating. "No. Absolutely not. I won''t let you die to save us."

    "I am not offering you a choice in the matter."

    "Don''t you dare." I gripped her by the shoulders.

    She smiled a sad little smile. "I''ve lived a long life Justin. It wasn''t an easy life at first, but I eventually found happiness in this little corner of the world. I''ve done my part. You have a very difficult time ahead of you, and I fully intend to give you every chance to succeed."

    "I don''t care if you believe me or not, you dim-witted tools," Vadaemos yelled back at Elyssa and the other Templars.

    "You must win her back, Justin," Bella said, giving me a kiss on the cheek. "I believe the future depends on it."

    A new sound reached my ears as the shouting between Elyssa and Vadaemos reached a lull. Feet shuffled against stone. A whimper echoed.

    "Dah nah?" called a querulous little voice.

    "Dah nah," replied a ragged infantine voice from the opposite side.

    Yolo brayed, the slits of his yellow eyes casting about as he sniffed the air. Vadaemos went absolutely pale.

    "No. I waited too long. I should have been¡ª" he leapt atop the shaggy beast''s back. "Go, Yolo! Go!"

    But the darkness teemed with life, closing in fast. Yolo galloped a few feet before rearing like a crazed horse and yowling as a horde of tiny bodies shambled into range of his glow.

    "What the hell are those things?" Beck shouted, the whites of his eyes growing huge.

    I opened my backpack and popped the caps off several flares, tossing them into the darkness. As each one landed and illuminated a little more of the cavern, it only deepened my horror. Cherubs waddled everywhere, their shiny black bodies glistening in the flare light. Some of them wailed as the flares landed next to them but the light did absolutely nothing to harm them.

    "Why aren''t they running?" Fausta asked, drawing her swords. "Why isn''t the light killing them?"

    "I don''t know," I said, my voice trembling. "I''ve seen them before at Thunder Rock." I glanced at Elyssa. "You were with me when one of those things grabbed me and hauled me away."

    "I remember your story," she said. "You made a circle and it kept them out."

    "But this time, there''s no way out. No arch to go through."

    "There will be," said a voice I''d heard sparingly this entire trip. Pokito pushed himself off the ground. He seemed a bit shaky, but otherwise okay.

    "There will be?" Beck said. "What, you can make one out of thin air?"

    "We need to bring Vadaemos with us," Pokito said, his voice low and determined. "It is part of the plan."

    "The plan?" I asked. "Whose blasted plan?"

    Vadaemos screamed as another wave of cherubs closed in from his right. The air shimmered azure blue around him as they pressed against his invisible barrier. He strained, both hands held out in front of him until with a loud crackle and blue flash, the barrier collapsed. The concentrated scent of ozone permeated the musty air. Yolo brayed and ran straight for us. We yelled and dove to the sides as the lion-sized beast lumbered into our midst and cowered like a frightened dog.

    "Oh my, the poor thing is scared to death," Fausta said, patting Yolo''s shaggy head.

    He made a tiny little donkey whimper and pressed his shaggy head against her shoulder.

    I felt like face-palming in the midst of the pandemonium. We''d run like frightened sheep from a beast with the temperament of a golden retriever.

    Vadaemos backed into our tightening circle, stumbling as he approached. The strain of keeping his barrier up had obviously weakened him. The empty space around us was quickly vanishing. What had moments ago been twenty yards of open ground was now down to fifteen. We had no time to lose. I dug in my backpack and tossed a piece of chalk to Elyssa. "Make a circle with me, fast!"

    She caught on immediately. We blurred around the group, completing a circle maybe ten yards in diameter. Pokito cut his thumb with a knife and dripped blood on the chalk. Trapped magical energy slammed against my senses the moment the circle snapped shut. Good god, there was a lot of power down here.

    I rushed to the small man. "What next? Where''s the arch you were talking about?"

    "Where''s my pack?" he said, fumbling at his waist. "My black pack?"

    I looked to Curtis who was groggily coming to and going wide-eyed at the horrors closing in.

    "Do you know where Pokito''s pack is?" I asked him.

    He looked confused for a moment. Shook his head. "Huh? What pack?"

    "I don''t remember seeing it either," Alejandro said. "I didn''t pay attention."

    "What kind of pack?" I asked. "A backpack?"

    "No, a fanny pack," Beck said. He drew in a breath between clenched teeth. "It was on him when we got to this room. I remember, because it was digging into my shoulder. But it snagged on a chunk of fallen rock and broke the strap." He pointed toward the shadowy outline of a boulder, caught in the flicker of one of the flares I''d thrown.

    "Oh no," Pokito said, his eyes widening. "The arch is in my pack."

    "An arch?" I asked. "How did you¡ª" I remembered Kassallandra''s miniature arch. "You have a portable one, don''t you?"

    He nodded. "It was part of the plan."

    "Whose freaking plan?" I asked, resisting the urge to shake him by the shoulders since he looked ready to hurl his lunch.

    "We need my pack."

    I stared hopelessly at the mass of cherubs. The first of them reached the circle and pressed against it, their ungainly bodies and huge heads causing them to bounce off and topple backwards screaming and wailing. Fausta covered her ears. Yolo brayed long and mournful.

    I gripped Vadaemos. He shoved me off with surprising strength, considering how wimpy his arms looked. "Don''t touch me!"

    "What are these things?" I asked. "Why are they after us?"

    "They crave the light." His eyes were transfixed on the little horrors. "They want what was taken from them so long ago."

    "Who took what from them?"

    "They were once just like the others until the Nexus was destroyed. Most caught in the wave of destruction were absolutely annihilated. The others were drained and malformed into these¡ªthese husks."

    "You''re talking about Daelissa''s people?"

    He nodded. "And if they drain you, you''ll end up just like the shades."

    "The shadow people? That''s what happened to them?"

    His lip curled into a snarl. "We''re all dead. All of us, do you hear!" He gripped me by the collar and stared madly into my eyes. His breath smelled awful, like burnt onions and rotten cabbage. I had a feeling brushing regularly hadn''t been one of his fugitive-related activities.

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    I didn''t resist his hold. Instead, I looked him in the eye and said, "You deserve to die. Becoming a shade is fitting punishment, as far as I''m concerned." The problem was, I most definitely didn''t think the rest of us deserved it. He dropped me and sank glumly to the ground. Yolo licked him and I caught a whiff of the big animal''s breath. It wasn''t quite as bad as Vadaemos''s.

    A hand tugged on my elbow. "What''re we going to do?"

    I turned to find Elyssa and Pokito looking at me. If only I had an idea. The cherubs, or husks, were clumsy, uncoordinated. How the one had been able to shift into that tentacle underwater, I didn''t know. What I did know was they hadn''t done it on dry land, so I might be able to lead them away long enough for someone to get the pack. By now, the little monsters were packed against the circle''s barrier so tight, I didn''t know how to bypass them, much less lead them away.

    "What exactly do they want from us, Vadaemos? Life force? Karma?"

    "Life force?" He chuckled without mirth. "That''s far too general a term for what these¡­things want from us.

    "How about you explain?" Maybe there was some way to bait the terrifying toddlers away from us. A magical lure we could use.

    "Explain? I may as well explain physics to Yolo." The left side of his mouth curled into a sneer. "Every being''s well is filled with good and bad life force, bright energy and dark. It is the way of balance."

    "Yours must be overflowing with the blackest, nastiest stuff," I said, unable to hold my tongue.

    "Your assumption highlights your ignorance, you puny speck. Dark and light no more equal good or bad than being tall means one is intelligent, as evidenced by you. They are only different parts of a whole. As Daemos, I can siphon such energy. But I can''t break it down into anything more elemental than the combination. Daelissa''s kind can." He waved a hand across the swarming husks. "These miserable creatures are empty vessels, eager to be filled."

    "They don''t have any energy in them?"

    "They have only the dark energy. They crave the bright."

    "Will they return to normal with bright energy?" Bella asked, her face still blanched and sickly. "Is there some way sate them?"

    Vadaemos burst into condescending laughter. "There is no way to restore these things. Not even all of the bright energy within us would provide enough sustenance for a single one to return to normal." He spread his arms wide. "And do you see how many there are?"

    By now, the cavern echoed with pitiful wails. The edges of the circle flared black and white. Pokito gripped my arm. "Even with ley lines underpinning the magic in this place, the circle won''t hold up much longer. We must retrieve the arch."

    "How exactly do you propose we do it?" I asked. "Won''t the circle break the second we cross the line?"

    "Not if you don''t rub out the chalk," Pokito said. "The barrier is passable for us."

    "Fine, but even so, I couldn''t wade two feet through those creepy little freaks." The moment those words left my mouth Elyssa hopped from the circle and ran on top of the husks, using their tightly jammed bodies as a walkway. "No!" I shouted, my voice frantic. What the hell was she thinking?

    Nubby little T-rex arms grabbed for her by the flickering lights of the flares, but she was too fast. Unfortunately, it didn''t take the intellect of a genius to figure out where she was going to get into trouble. The shattered boulder Beck had pointed out as the landmark for finding the fanny pack was fifty yards out. The crowd of husks thinned considerably by then. Not enough to run on, but too many to dodge for long.

    Only a split second passed in my assessment. I didn''t need any more time than that to reach a decision. I leapt from the circle, using the wobbly heads of the cherubs as stepping-stones. It was a lot harder than Elyssa made it look, especially by the flickering lights of the flares I''d thrown into the mob. I was much more coordinated now than I''d ever been, but it was nothing compared to the ninja training Thomas Borathen put his daughter through. A tiny hand snagged my shoe but couldn''t hold on. I slipped on the slick surface of one husk and barely avoided tumbling into the mob.

    I tried not to think about the horrible fate awaiting me should I find a hole while crowd surfing these creatures. Elyssa reached the rock and scanned the ground, all the while dodging the scattered cherubs wobbling her way. Those toddlers massed at the back turned her way, sensing life force or whatever drew them like moths to flame. I almost lost my footing again and narrowly avoided a gap in the heads. The crowd thinned to the point where I''d no longer be able to use their heads.

    Brilliant light exploded across the massive room. I looked back for a split second and saw Pokito pressing his staff into the floor. Bright, yellowish light lanced to the ceiling like a giant laser and coated the ceiling. The cherubs didn''t seem to notice.

    Elyssa snatched something off the ground¡ªa black nylon pack. She dug through it, all the while dodging husks and racing back for the circle. Her hand emerged with something in it. The arch, she must have found it. A spark of dark violet energy burst from within her clenched hand. Her eyes shot wide and she cried out in pain, but her hand only clenched tighter around the prize.

    The ground rocked beneath our feet. I tumbled into the roiling mass of husks, shouting, punching and fighting my way back to my feet as they weeble-wobbled and collapsed to the floor. A huge crack rumbled down the cavern wall a hundred yards away. The rock groaned. Shifted. Exploded outward in a cloud of dust and rubble. Two nostrils set in the end of a narrow muzzle burst through. A ridged forehead and glowing crimson eyes followed shortly after. The giant creature reared back its head and bellowed. A sound like a tuba on the deepest possible note vibrated every molecule of my being and a hot sulfuric odor filled my nostrils.

    Our friend, the leyworm had returned.

    Chapter 31

    Elyssa rolled left as a chunk of ceiling smashed into the floor mere feet away. A cherub grabbed my pants. At first, I thought my clothing was protecting me. Then an icy feeling stabbed into my leg. I grunted and kicked the creature, sent it crashing against more of its comrades.

    I sprang to my feet and ran, dodging and kicking the little monsters out of the way. By now, even more were turning from the protective circle and coming our way. Another slab of rock fell two feet from me, crushing cherubs beneath it, and spraying rocky shrapnel in my face. Half blinded, I tripped over my own feet. Jagged rocks dug into my chest. Inches away, a tiny arm flailed from beneath the fallen rock. It was still moving, and I had to wonder if the husks could even be killed. I sprang to my feet as another boulder narrowly missed me.

    A scream of pain drew my attention back to my goal. One of the smooth columns of rock running from floor to ceiling had toppled, pinning Elyssa to the floor. The reptilian worm writhed straight for her at a lumbering pace. I put on a burst of speed, plowing through anything in my way. By the time I reached her, Elyssa had freed herself and her broken leg was healing.

    "Are you okay?"

    "Why did you come out here?" she asked, her eyes blazing. "Now both of us have to make it back."

    "Because¡ª" I didn''t have a chance to finish my thought. The leyworm continued toward us in what seemed like slow motion, it shiny, black scales scraping the rock with every serpentine undulation of its massive body. Its long narrow muzzle unhinged and widened, scooping up a pile of rubble in its path like a giant reptilian dustpan. Why had it returned? I grabbed Elyssa''s arm and ran as fast as she could limp. But the mass of cherubs had broken into a loose swarm¡ªtoo scattered to use as a path to safety, especially with her injured leg.

    "This way," I shouted, pulling her around the massed bodies. "They might be packed tighter on the other side."

    The tunnel ahead shattered wide. Another leyworm rumbled through. Elyssa and I ground to a halt. Looked back at leyworm number one. Back at his brother. At the swarm of wobbling husks coming from all directions, arms grasping for sustenance. I stretched my cursing abilities to the max. There was no way out. No way back into the circle. Not across that deadly expanse of ravenous monstrosities.

    The light Pokito cast dimmed slowly but surely. I saw him kneeling in the center of the circle, all concentration on his staff. I thought about the arch in the pack. Could I activate it, use it to send Elyssa to safety? Then I could throw it to those in the circle. Maybe they''d escape.

    "You''ve got that look," Elyssa said, delivering a crushing kick to a cherub as it wandered too close and sent it flying to smack off the scaly hide of the leyworm as it inexorably crept its way toward us.

    "I can get you out," I said, digging in my pants for a bit of chalk. "I''ll activate the arch and you go through it. Then I''ll get it to the others."

    Her gaze hardened. "And what about you?"

    "I''ll be fine." I was lying. But she didn''t need to know.

    Elyssa wasn''t stupid. "You have the worst ideas and you''re a terrible liar." She face-palmed and shook her head. "You''re absolutely hopeless."

    "I know. You''re the planner. I was just learning to rely on you, too. And then¡ª" I waved my hands around at the chaos. "And then this has to happen."

    "I have bad news," she said, punching another husk as we backed away from the encroaching horde and ran left toward a clear area. The leyworms both re-oriented, following us like needles on a compass.

    "I can handle bad news. Anything is better than this."

    She smiled. "I don''t have a plan, hotshot. I can''t think of a damned thing to save our asses."

    I pulled my pockets inside out. No chalk. "I don''t have any chalk, so I can''t use my brilliant plan either." I gripped her hand. Kissed it. Considering how close death was, I figured she might not punch me.

    Her eyes lingered on mine before drifting down to my lips. She sighed. "We can run for it. Maybe we''ll make it. Maybe we won''t."

    We dodged to the left as a line of husks worked its way toward us. The leyworms shifted again. Why were they following us? What reason could they have? Did I stink? I sniffed an armpit. Somehow, my deodorant was holding up.

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    "This thing is creeping me out," Elyssa said, digging a tiny black arch the size of a big earring from her pocket. It looked identical to Kassallandra''s. She dropped it into my hand. "When I grabbed it, it started pulsating."

    The instant it touched my skin, I knew what she was talking about. A prickly sensation ebbed and flowed from the thing. A light bulb flickered on in the dark recesses of my cranium. "Go over there," I said, pointing to a non-infested spot in the cavern, some thirty feet away.

    "What are you going to do?"

    "Test something."

    "You''d better not do anything stupid."

    A grin broke out on my face. "Don''t tell me you actually care."

    She narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to say something. Closed her mouth. Grabbed me by the collar and jerked me in for a kiss. When she pulled away, we were both breathless. "If you die, I will hunt down your soul and beat the crap out of it." With that ultimatum, she dashed away toward the place I''d indicated.

    The leyworms didn''t alter their path. I took five steps left. They followed. Twenty steps right. They turned again. I put the tiny arch on the ground and ran a few yards to the side. They stayed their course. Somehow, Elyssa had triggered the arch. Turned it on by touching it, maybe. I didn''t know or care, but I knew how we were going to get back to the circle now.

    I waved Elyssa over.

    "What was that all about?" she asked.

    "They''re attracted to the arch," I said.

    "Why?"

    "Was this thing pulsing when you pulled it out?"

    She shook her head. "Not at first. It only started after I grabbed it."

    The leyworms undulated closer while the cherubs wobbled blindly in their paths. The giant worm scooped most of them into its maw as it moved along while others were shoved aside. Maybe the little horrors would drain the leyworm from the inside out or, at the very least, give it diarrhea. Using this arch, I planned to use the worms as giant vacuum cleaners to clear us a path. Elyssa saw my intent before I could brag about it.

    "I have to admit it." She chuckled as she followed close behind me. "Sometimes you''re actually kind of smart."

    "And you''re lucky enough to be here for one of those rare occasions." I motioned her to follow me along the circumference of the cavern. The leyworms twisted and rolled to follow me, sending waves of little bodies flying and scattering. I ran back the other way, using the giant beasts like oversized windshield wipers to clear a path. It didn''t take long until the black husks were scattered like ants from a kicked anthill. But while the path was clear of husks, the worms were still smack dab in the way.

    "Get to the circle," I said.

    "No, we''ll do it together."

    "I''ve got to draw them further out before we can go. The moment I make a run for it, they''ll spin around and probably crush us. I need room to maneuver."

    "And then you''ll run into the husks." She shook her head. "We''re doing this the wrong way."

    "What way should we be doing it?"

    "The others should come to us. They have a clear path now."

    She was right, but not everyone was in any shape to run. Somehow, I had to make it work. "Okay, go tell the others and bring me some chalk when you come back."

    Elyssa gave me one last look before sprinting for the circle. She appeared so tiny compared to the hulking leyworm as she dodged past its twisting body. I shifted to the right, trying to keep the thing from her path. Elyssa reached the circle seconds later and wasted no time slinging Bella over her shoulder. Beck and Fausta each took Curtis and Alejandro and sprinted back to me while the massive worms closed the distance like lumbering giants. Bella staggered to her feet and began drawing a circle.

    "Beck, help her," I shouted and set the arch in the middle.

    He didn''t argue.

    It was then I noticed Vadaemos. He was making a beeline for one of the other exits.

    "Son of a biscuit eater," I growled.

    Elyssa dropped my backpack at my feet. She noticed Vadaemos too. "We either escape, or we go after him," she said. "He''s a lot stronger than he looks and we''re out of time."

    "No," I said, pounding a fist into my palm. "I can''t let him go. He''s my only¡ª" I broke off before finishing that thought.

    "Only what?"

    I looked into her amazing eyes. "My only chance to make your father stop hating me."

    "You think¡ªsay what?" Understanding flashed on her face. "Are you kidding me? You want to end the war between spawn and the Templars all to gain my father''s approval?"

    I gave her a sheepish nod. It sounded really stupid when she put it that way. Maybe even a tiny little bit selfish. Okay, fine, it sounded a lot selfish. But I didn''t give a damn. "Exactly. I didn''t go through all this crap for some noble cause, or to make the world a better place. I did it because¡ªbecause I love you."

    "You''re serious."

    "As a heart attack."

    The circle thrummed to life around us as Bella activated it. We didn''t have time to talk. I grabbed another handful of flares. "Fausta." I held out the flares to the Templar. She took them. "Light these around the circle and along the way back to Pokito. You need to get him and bring him here, but his light will go out when you grab him."

    "I''ll help," Beck said, taking some flares from her.

    I reached into my backpack and pulled out Plan B. It had worked against me, and I hoped it''d work against Vadaemos. I pulled a fresh magazine of tranquilizer darts from the backpack and clicked them into the dart gun. Then I sprinted after my dear relative.

    It didn''t take long to catch up. The scattered cherubs blocked his path to freedom. He spun at my approach and growled. Muscles coiled around his limbs. His skin went blue. A new set of horns sprouted from his forehead. I assumed he meant to make short work of me so he could escape. I was right. He blurred at me so fast, I didn''t have time to aim the gun and it spun from my grasp.

    His body drove me against a stone column so hard I heard it crack. Or it might''ve been my skull. I couldn''t tell. All I could see were stars. Then he threw me to the side. I bowled over a column of cherubs as I fell. Before I could push myself up, he was on me again, his hand around my neck. He held me up and grinned.

    "I only just realized something, boy." His voice was deep and ominous. "You''re Daemos, aren''t you?"

    I couldn''t nod or speak, not with his hand on my throat. The light in the cavern abruptly winked out except for the feeble glare of a few scattered flares in our area. Beck and Fausta must have reached Pokito. Something made a rapid clicking noise. A surprised look crossed Vadaemos''s demonic face. He dropped me and spun. Elyssa jammed another magazine into the dart gun and fired as fast as she could pull the trigger. I looked up groggily from my place on the ground and saw a garden of darts sticking from Vadaemos''s back and chest.

    Somehow, I found the wherewithal to push to my feet as Vadaemos laughed and pulled darts from his meaty pectorals.

    "You fools. Idiots! These insignificant little things can''t harm¡ª" He face planted on the stone floor with a wet smack and a crunch. His body morphed back to normal almost by the time his body stopped twitching.

    "Oh man, that had to hurt," I said, noticing a pool of blood forming beneath his face. I flipped him over. The broken, crooked mess of his nose greeted me. "I hope that hurts like hell, jackass."

    Elyssa looked at me. I looked back. Without another word, I scooped Vadaemos over my shoulder and we sprinted for the circle of safety like our asses were on fire. The roar and din of hundreds, possibly thousands, of cherubs filled the room, sounding like the nursery school of doom. If there was a special place in hell for child abusers or people who loved Valentine''s Day, this was it. The rumbling bays of the writhing leyworms formed a deep, basso counterpoint to the high-pitched wailing.

    Another wall shattered open and yet another giant worm broke through. Elyssa and I raced alongside the writhing form of the latest arrival, dodging its undulating body as it scattered cherubs along the way. I looked up at the massive creature towering over us. They''d looked huge from the front, but from the side, the sheer scale of it made me feel tiny. This thing was three stories high and at least a hundred feet long. It could eat a city bus and not even realize it.

    We finally reached the circle. The arch, now full size, hummed and gleamed with ultraviolet sparks. Pokito shoved people through. I had bad memories about the last time I''d been through such an arch, namely Kassallandra''s, but given the circumstances, I figured anyplace had to be better than here. A glowing form caught my eye and I saw Yolo''s shaggy form dashing into a tunnel. I didn''t know what in the world the crazy-looking thing was, but I hoped he''d be okay.

    Elyssa grabbed my arm and dragged me through the arch before I could give it another thought. Pokito came through last and closed the gateway. It shrank back to the tiny earring-shaped statue within seconds. I looked around. We were in another huge cavern.

    "Are you kidding me?" I said. "We just escaped one underground deathtrap and you brought us to another cave?"

    "Wait a minute," Elyssa said stepping across the black polished floor. "I recognize this place."

    "Hello guvnah!" said a bright cheerful voice as a young boy approached from what looked like stables.

    My brain didn''t need long to figure out where I was after that. "We''re in the Grotto? Back in the States?" I looked behind us and saw the Obsidian Arch towering above.

    "Back home," Elyssa said, her eyes looking relieved and troubled all at the same time.

    "We''re in Atlanta?" Beck said, his eyes wide. "Why the hell did you bring us here?"

    "It''s part of the plan," Pokito said.

    I spun on him. "What''s this plan you keep talking about?"

    "I cannot say more."

    Beck grabbed the little man''s shirt and jerked him forward. "You''d better start talking, Mr. Miyagi. You should''ve taken us back to the closest arch, not the Grotto!"

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    Pokito simply stared at him, neither scared nor angry and shrugged. "It is the plan."

    Beck groaned and let him go, running a hand through his hair, which for once, looked messy. "I told Christian we''d bag Vadaemos and bring him back."

    "You told Christian that?" Fausta said with a roll of her eyes. "I suppose you were hoping for a promotion."

    "So what if I did?"

    "Can I help you at all?" the young stable boy asked, his large eyes wide and confused at our argument. "Most of the stores are closed, but there is lodging inside."

    I grinned at the kid. "Nah, we''re good. Do you have a car we could borrow?"

    "Oh dear, sir, I''m afraid not." He pointed a thumb at a cart brimming with fly-covered manure. "Perhaps I could give you a ride to the surface in my cart. Once I empty it, of course."

    "I''m not riding in a pile of horse crap," Fausta said indignantly.

    "At the very least, sirs and madams, you should clear the circle in case someone else comes through the Obsidian Arch."

    We made our way outside the yellow and black warning lines circling the smooth, black slab the arch sat upon and stood there. Walking was apparently our only way out, and it was a long way to the surface, but I''d take it any day over a husk-infested cave. The faint squeal of tires on the spiraling ramp leading down to this place caught my ears. Within a minute, a windowless black van pulled up in front of us. Whoever owned it might as well have spray-painted Serial Rapist Inc. across the side. The driver door opened and a huge man got out. Elyssa''s eyes brightened and she squealed like a little girl, running to the driver.

    "Michael!" She squeezed him with a hug. He wrapped his muscular arms around her.

    His eyes met mine. He knew who I was, I could tell. But he didn''t seem surprised to see me. On the other hand, his eyes clearly conveyed a message: Touch my sister and you die.

    Chapter 32

    I gulped. This dude obviously worked out, probably by doing arm curls with trees, and bench-pressing pregnant yaks. His violet eyes gleamed with violence barely contained just beneath the surface. This guy wasn''t one to fool around with, especially with his little sister involved. It seemed vaguely ironic now was the first time I would meet one of her brothers. This familial adventure didn''t seem to be going any better than meeting her parents.

    A question occurred to me. "How did you know we were here?"

    "Part of the plan," Pokito said from behind me. I resisted the urge to punch him in the face.

    "Did you call him?" I asked the little sorcerer.

    "He did," Michael said in a deep voice. "Everybody get in."

    "You''re Michael Borathen?" Beck said, his eyes wide with wonder. "But you were so skinny the last time I saw you."

    "I grew."

    Beck didn''t belabor the point. He and Fausta helped Bella and Curtis inside, while the others piled in. I dragged Vadaemos''s limp form over and set him inside. I wanted to pull Michael aside and question him, but now wasn''t the time. The big Templar hopped in the driver seat while Elyssa sat shotgun.

    "Where are we going?" I asked.

    "A safe place, for now."

    "Take me to your father."

    "Now isn''t the time."

    "A good a time as any."

    He glanced back at me. "So eager to lose your head?"

    "No, I''m eager to give him Vadaemos along with proof the spawn nation had nothing to do with Thunder Rock."

    "It can wait a night."

    I gritted my teeth but said nothing more. If he made me the least bit suspicious I would¡ªwhat? Jump from the van with my prisoner and make a break for it? I wouldn''t get far carrying a body with trained Templars after me. If I left, it''d be without Vadaemos, and that wasn''t happening.

    We reached a dubious-looking motel sometime later. Michael stopped the van and put it in park. I glanced at the weather-beaten doors lining the outside of the two-story building. A florescent vacancy sign flickered in a small office down at the corner and the glow of a handful of lights from behind closed curtains indicated at least a few other people were staying in this dump.

    The motel door in front of the van swung open and a familiar face appeared. A breath caught in my chest as Meghan Andretti stepped outside, followed by Mr. Smith, aka Adam Nosti. What in the world were they doing here? Michael approached them and took Meghan aside. Her eyes flared and hardened. I knew exactly why. She was a Templar. Thunder Rock was a blight on their history. Even more importantly, she might have figured out it was Vadaemos who devoured her father''s soul.

    I left the slumbering killer and joined the conference. Meghan saw me. Tears gathered in her eyes. She threw herself at me in a tight hug and kissed me on the cheek. "Thank you," she said. "Thank you."

    Her actions left me speechless. The last time I''d seen her she could hardly look at me because of my demon spawn heritage. Now she was kissing me. "For what?" I asked, my voice uncertain.

    "You caught my father''s killer."

    She knows. "You know what I plan to do with him, right?"

    She backed away and nodded. "I won''t interfere."

    "Uh, good," I said, still a bit uneasy. "You do realize you just kissed a demon spawn, right?"

    She smiled shyly. "You''re different. You''re not pure evil."

    Well, I had to admit, it was a step in the right direction.

    Smith came forward, hand extended. We exchanged grips.

    "Damned good to see you''re still alive," he said. "Your father and Shelton had to go into hiding after you vanished, thanks to Maximus."

    "What about Stacey and Ryland?"

    "What about us, love?" said a familiar British voice from behind me. I spun as a huge wolf melted into a dark-haired man. Thankfully, Ryland morphed into human form behind a waist-high bush so I didn''t have to see his dangly bits. The speaker was a hot, buxom blonde in a simple, curve-hugging, black dress.

    My eyes misted up and my heart gained strength at the sight of my felycan friend, Stacey. I rushed over and squeezed her tight. She stood on tiptoes and kissed my cheeks as tears ran freely down her face.

    "I missed you," I said, a huge grin breaking on my face.

    "My lamb, I''ve missed you more than you know. We thought you were¡ªdead." She choked on the last word and fresh tears ran down her cheeks.

    I heard a sharp intake of breath and looked to see Bella staring at Stacey. When she saw me looking, she turned away.

    Stacey''s gaze followed mine. "Bloody hell."

    "Do you know Bella?"

    A mischievous grin curled Stacey''s lips. "A story for another time, love."

    Ryland approached, fully clothed, thankfully. "Hey now, don''t I get a kiss too?"

    I laughed and shook his hand. I''d missed them all more than I realized. "Do you know where my dad is?"

    Stacey nodded. "He''s safe. He and Shelton will meet us here later."

    Thank goodness. Tonight was turning out a lot better than I''d thought. "How did you know we were here?" I asked. "And if you say, ''It''s part of the plan,'' I''m going to scream."

    "Meghan called us," Ryland said. "Told us you''d be here tonight."

    I turned to Meghan. "And you knew this how?"

    She looked to Michael. He nodded. "Pokito called us a day ago and told us what you were planning. Michael came up with a plan to get you out of there."

    "But why? And how did he know to contact you?" Meghan and Ryland were about the only two Templars besides Elyssa I could trust with my life.

    Michael said nothing in reply to my questions.

    "You''re responsible for this?" Elyssa said, looking at her older brother.

    "Elyssa!" Stacey said, apparently seeing her for the first time. She wrapped her arms around Elyssa''s taller form.

    Elyssa''s eyebrows arched as she uneasily hugged the blonde bombshell back. "I''m sorry, have we met?"

    Stacey gasped. "Oh bloody hell, they really did you in, didn''t they?" She shook her head sadly.

    "I¡ª" My brainwashed not-quite-girlfriend shook her head. "I''m not sure what to think anymore." She considered me with a very analytical look. "Or what to believe."

    "There will be time for the truth," Michael said. He went to the van and hauled out the slumbering form of Vadaemos.

    I followed him inside the door Meghan had exited. One of her ultra-strong diamond-fiber cots was inside. Michael plopped the demon spawn on the cot and fastened the unbreakable straps on his legs, waist, and arms. The sight of the cot caused a nervous flutter in my chest. Not so long ago, Meghan had strapped me to one of those things so she could save Stacey''s life with my blood. The effort had nearly killed me. At least I knew Vadaemos wasn''t going anywhere.

    Michael turned for the door, but didn''t exit. Instead, he shut it and turned on me. I backed up a step, anticipating some form of violence. Judging from his hefty build, I was certain he could dish it out. Aside from the glare he fixed me with, however, he made no other move.

    "Let''s get something straight, spawn. I don''t trust your kind. I don''t particularly like your kind. But I''ve got a duty to do, much as it goes against every instinct I have to punch you in the face for even looking at my sister."

    I held up my hands in mock surrender. "Whoa there, let''s not get all mushy on each other." I rolled my eyes. Par for the friggin course. "People like you make me sick." I jabbed a finger his way but stayed well clear of his massive arms and meaty fists. No sense in walking out of here with two black eyes. "You don''t even know me. And just because I happen to share a bloodline with this loser, doesn''t mean I''m his clone."

    "Doesn''t matter. I''ve seen enough to know you''re all bad."

    "Is this the part where you tell me to stay away from your sister or you''ll tear off my head and poop down my neck?"

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    I''d expected him to at least tense up or look a little angrier. But aside from the sharp violet glare from his eyes, he still looked very calm and composed. Which made him seem all the scarier. In fact, he kind of reminded me of someone else I''d met. Whoever it was lingered right on the tip of my brain but didn''t quite drop into place.

    "Unfortunately, you have to be friends with my sister."

    My eyebrows almost shot through the roof. "I have to be?"

    "Foreseeance four, three, one, one."

    I groaned. "Next thing you know I''ll need prophecy to tell me when I can wipe my butt."

    For the briefest second, I could have sworn the corner of his mouth twitched up.

    "Just watch yourself, spawn. If you try anything with my sister, I won''t kill you, but I''ll make you wish you were dead."

    That did it. Before I''d turned into demon boy, I''d been a nerd. A kid who''d enjoyed live-action roleplaying, had B-cup man boobs, and glasses half an inch thick. I''d been bullied. A lot. I wasn''t about to let the supernatural equivalent of Nathan Spelman enter my life and push me around, especially when it came to the girl I loved.

    I walked up to him, nose to nose¡ªor more like nose to chin since he stood a few inches taller¡ªand poked him in the chest with a grubby finger. "How about this, Michael? You don''t ever tell me what I can or can''t do again, and I won''t go Bruce Lee on your oversized ass."

    He arched an eyebrow. Turned and left the room.

    I stood there for a few second, wondering if I''d just won the argument, or ticked him off even more. The guy didn''t react normally, at least not by any pissing match standards I knew. Meghan entered and almost ran into me. She gasped, putting a hand to her heart.

    "You scared me half to death," she said, shaking her head and pulling out a wand.

    "This isn''t even my scary face." I crossed one eye. "This is."

    She laughed. "If anything it makes me less frightened and more sympathetic." Taking a seat next to Vadaemos, she ran her wand an inch above his body, back and forth.

    "What are you doing?"

    "Checking the level of tranquilizer toxins in his body." She flicked the wand up and smoky numbers hovered in the air. "Can you hand me those sleepers from the white bag with purple flowers on it?"

    I located the duffel bag she spoke of and pulled out a pair of the plastic-looking cuffs. I''d seen Shelton use them before on vampires, and they worked like a charm, keeping the prisoner unconscious until removed. I wondered if they were strong enough to keep someone from breaking them, but figured it was a moot point, considering the unconscious factor.

    Meghan cuffed Vadaemos and his troubled, shallow breathing morphed into the peace of deep slumber. Even though he was out, she didn''t remove the diamond fiber straps from his arms. I didn''t blame her.

    "What''s this?" she said, tugging a slim piece of old parchment paper from the pocket of what remained of Vadaemos''s shredded pants. She unfolded it to reveal what looked like a map.

    "May I?" I said.

    "Sure. I don''t want it." She handed it to me.

    I unfolded it. It wasn''t very large. There were no labels I could find to indicate what it mapped or who''d made the map. It occurred to me Vadaemos might have some kind of fancy magical map he''d been using for plotting his dastardly deeds, so it merited further study at some point, should the army of evil ever give me a vacation. For now, I needed some rest.

    I turned for the door. "Are you sure you''re not going to kill Vadaemos the minute I go outside?" Despite her earlier assurances, it didn''t seem likely she could refrain from doing something awful to him while he slept.

    "I promised Michael. Keeping him alive is for the greater good. For now."

    Smith walked in. He smiled at me, but I could tell something was bugging him from the concern in his eyes.

    "What''s been happening since I left?" I said. "I need to know the truth about my father and where he is."

    "Your father is fine," Smith said, his smile wavering for a moment before flattening. "Maximus''s vampires overran Shelton''s old hideout, but Felicia warned them in advance and they escaped."

    "Is that why you look so worried?"

    "Yeah. I can''t stop thinking about her."

    I''d forgotten about Felicia, his vampire sister. Smith was a very gifted Arcane. His younger sister, not so much. In fact, she hadn''t been graced with magical talents of any kind. When their parents were murdered, Smith had become obsessed with finding the truth, while Felicia had gone off the deep end with drugs, alcohol, and anything else she could lay her hands on. Then she''d met Maximus. He''d turned her into a vampire¡ªor someone affiliated with him had, since Maximus wasn''t old enough to have that ability.

    Not so long ago, she''d helped kidnap my father. I''d freed Dad, but run into Felicia again. She''d told me she wanted to turn over a new leaf. And then she''d run straight back to Maximus. Except this time, she''d supposedly gone undercover to spy on him.

    "Tell me," I said.

    "She couldn''t reach you, so she called me and let me know about her spying on Maximus."

    I grimaced. "I told her to give it up and come back, but she wouldn''t."

    The wrinkles on his brow deepened. "I know. She won''t listen to me either. Says she has a lot to make up for."

    "That much is true," I said, folding my arms and leaning against the wall. "But she''s still your sister."

    He sat on the edge of a bed. "I love her and hate her."

    I knew that mixed-up feeling all too well thanks to my mother. I guess we both had abandonment issues. "Did she have anything interesting to report?"

    He nodded. "Max has been a busy beaver. He''s got recruiters all over the country."

    I''d heard this before from Underborn. And according to Franco, the vampiric drug runner, Maximus was active in other countries as well. This was big. Too big. Maybe once I turned Vadaemos over to Thomas Borathen, he could set aside his war on spawn and concentrate on rogue vampires instead.

    I pushed off the wall and put a hand on his shoulder. "It''ll be okay, Smith."

    He chuckled. "I''m going by Adam now."

    "Oh?"

    Meghan took his hand and flashed a pretty smile. "I told him I wasn''t dating anyone named Mr. Smith. Makes me think of that talking horse show my dad used to love."

    "I think that''s Mr. Ed," Smith¡ªAdam said.

    "You two are?" I looked back and forth. Smith¡ªdarn it¡ªAdam had a smooth tongue when it came to women, even if he looked a bit gawky and nerdy. Meghan was cute, if a bit unbalanced and teetering on crazy scary at times due to her hatred of spawn. But maybe they would make a good couple.

    "We are," he said, patting her hand and grinning from ear to ear.

    "Congratulations!" I said. "Welcome to the family."

    "Are we part of your family now?" Adam asked, laughing.

    "Yep. The great menagerie of friends and family I''ve made along the rocky road I call life." I peeked outside through the blinds and saw Bella and the others from Colombia trailing wearily after Michael as he led them to an adjacent room. "In fact, I think I added a few more while I was down south."

    "You do have that effect on people," Meghan said. "I really wanted to hate you because of your heritage, but I just couldn''t. Not after all you''ve done for me."

    I gave them both a smile and put my hand on the doorknob. "Take good care of the prisoner," I said. "Not that I''ll complain if he''s missing his balls in the morning."

    Adam burst into laughter. Meghan looked scandalized. I winked and stepped outside, closing the door behind me. Michael directed Bella and Fausta into a room while a little further down I saw Pokito and Curtis unlocking a door. The big Templar approached me and pressed a key into my hand.

    "You''re at the end."

    "How generous." I noticed a scantily clad woman emerge from a room right next to mine and light a cigarette. A rugged looking guy with a beer belly and a tattoo¡ªpresumably of his mother¡ªon his cheek came out, pressed some cash into her hand, and rode away on a Harley. I gave Michael a disgusted look. "Are you paying for our rooms by the hour?"

    His lip twitched.

    "You smiled," I said.

    "No I didn''t."

    "Yes you did."

    His eyes narrowed. Then he turned and walked away.

    I glanced about for any sign of Elyssa, but figured she had to be in the same room with Fausta and Bella. My heart sank a bit. I''d really wanted to talk to her. She''d actually kissed me during our little escapade beneath El Dorado. I''d hoped to use that momentum for my own selfish gain. But now we were back in civilization, and her brother was around. Oh well. I turned back toward my room at the lonely end of the row, right next door to the lady of the night. She had the haggard look of someone who''d played the game of life and lost at every turn, no doubt due to subpar decision-making skills.

    The decor inside my room was identical to Meghan''s, right down to the old-school, nineteen-inch television and circa nineteen-forties rotary phone in a shade of green usually reserved for hospital bathrooms. The cheap laminate furniture looked like it belonged back in the sixties. The overwhelming odor of deodorizer barely covered the stench of decades'' worth of cigarette smoke, made worse thanks to my supernatural sense of smell.

    Now I knew how dogs must feel when they sniff each other''s butts.

    I closed the door behind me and let loose a depressed sigh. I should be thankful for the big blessings now, I thought. Capturing Vadaemos was huge. Maybe this would help Elyssa come back into my life. Such rationalization didn''t quite ease the knot of pain in my chest.

    Someone knocked on my door. I opened it and saw Elyssa standing there, fury coiled on her face like a dragon.

    I offered her a smile.

    She punched me so hard I saw stars.

    Chapter 33

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    I staggered back, holding my jaw where she''d almost dislocated it. She shoved me and I flipped over a vinyl chair, knocking over the flimsy table next to it. The door slammed. I looked up into blazing violet eyes.

    "Whatever you''re doing to me, stop it." Her voice was low and dangerous.

    "Doing to you?"

    She grabbed my shirt and pulled me to my feet. "Don''t even try to lie your way out of it. I can''t be feeling this. You''re doing something to me."

    I took in a hopeful breath. "Feeling what?"

    Her grip on my shirt tightened and her eyes grew larger with anger. "You know very well what I''m talking about." Her voice lowered to a whisper. "You''re doing it again. What my dad said you did to me the first time."

    "I''m not doing anything, I swear!"

    She growled. "As if I''d ever get the truth from you. If only¡ª" Her mouth went slack as if something had suddenly occurred to her. Her hand went toward a bulge in my pants¡ªand pulled my phone out of the front pocket. Another shove sent me somersaulting backwards over the bed. "You might lie to me, but your texts won''t."

    My texts? I had no texts on my phone. After my embarrassing drunk texting incident with Katie, I''d erased them all. All except for a few Elyssa and I had exchanged. I didn''t bother trying to stop her. There was nothing on my phone to vindicate or condemn me that I knew of.

    She stared at the screen, all the while keeping half an eye on me. I just took a seat on the bed and let her have at it. "What''s this?" she said after a few moments. "A file with my name?" A voice crackled in my phone speaker and the glow of the phone reflected in her eyes.

    "This is Elyssa Borathen. I am of sound mind. You may think I''m crazy, but I''m not. Elyssa, hopefully you''ve found this. The story I''m about to tell you may seem insane, but it''s true. Your father wiped your mind, not because you did anything wrong, but because he couldn''t control you. Because he couldn''t stop you from falling in love."

    Elyssa stared in horror as her past self told her current self everything she''d forgotten.

    "Justin looks harmless," said the voice from the past. "In fact, I felt sorry for him the first time I saw him. But then he showed me an inner strength I didn''t know he had. Before he ever came into his supernatural abilities, he was standing up to bullies and making friends with Ash and Nyte." She continued, her sad voice making a complete outline of our relationship from her perspective. So much of what she said mystified me. I''d never heard what I was like from someone else''s perspective, especially in such an open and brutally honest way.

    "I asked myself a million times how I could let some guy do this to me," her voice continued. "Make me feel this way. Then I stopped fighting it. The war was over because Justin had already won my heart."

    Elyssa clicked off the recording a moment later. Tears clouded her big violet eyes. She looked at me with an almost amazed expression. "I''ve heard enough," she said, voice trembling.

    My heart melted under her gaze. I wanted so badly to kiss those lips and taste the salt of her tears. To hug her and tell her it was true. I loved her. She used to love me. "Maybe you should watch the whole thing."

    She shook her head and stood up. Left the phone on the bed and walked my way. "No. I really don''t need to." She sat down next to me, leaned in, and kissed me gently on the lips. "I already know it''s the truth. I can feel it."

    I pulled her tight against me. Kissed her hard. I tasted her tears and maybe one or two of my own. She gasped as I ran a string of kisses up her neck. Nipped her ear. Pulled her down on the bed with me.

    Our breathing grew heavier, our movements frantic with need. She ripped my shirt over my head. I fumbled with hers, tugging it off and running kisses down her bare skin and around the curve of her bra. She shuddered. Gasped. Grabbed my back and pulled me against her, fingernails digging into my skin. We tore at each other''s remaining clothes until we were naked, our bodies pressed tight. Heat radiated from her bare skin, filling me with electric desire. It seemed I could sense everything right down to the very molecules of her delicious curves while my pulse seemed to pound in my ears.

    My inner demon, the incubus, practically slavered with desire. The elemental force clawed with fury as I fought to keep it in check. As I fought to keep it from reaching for the shimmering halo of essence emanating from Elyssa''s form. My physical body was more than ready. Every part of me begged for sweet release. I felt drunk with desire for her.

    I stopped. Took several deep breaths to clear my head before I took the irrevocable step, which would leave us both deflowered.

    "What''s wrong?" she asked, as breathless as I was. "Justin?"

    I ran a hand through the hair on her temple, reaching my hand to the back of her head and leaning in for another delicious kiss. My inner demon surged against the wall of my will. "I''ve wanted this for so long," I said at last. "Are you sure you want this? I mean, you don''t even remember¡ª"

    She pressed a finger to my lips. Smiled. Her full lips parted to show straight white teeth and the tips of her fangs as they extended ever so slightly. "I feel as though I''ve loved you since forever was born. I don''t know why. I don''t know how. All I know is I want you in the here and now. I want to be with you, body and soul."

    The demon inside me suddenly stopped its struggles and vanished, leaving me alone with my own feelings. It understood carnal lust. It didn''t seem to understand true love. I nodded, unable, at first, to speak. "Too much has tried to keep us apart. This is right. We''re right." I ran my hand along her bare skin, marveling at the beauty in every inch. Kissed her soft lips. Felt the sting of her fang on my lip. Not a shred of doubt remained. "I love you."

    She was mine. I was hers. And this was right.

    Sometime later as we lay beneath the covers, snuggled in each other''s arms, she pressed a hand to my cheek and gave a sad little smile. "I wish I could remember, Justin. I want to remember."

    "I want you to remember, too." My brain was working overtime on that problem. "If Daelissa is actually the Templar Divinity and the crazy angel behind all this, I don''t know how we can make her fix it."

    "I don''t either." She ran a hand down my bare chest, her eyes following her fingers. Her eyes jerked back up, as if she''d been caught doing something naughty. Which she had¡ªwe both had. Several times. "I keep having these dreams. I''m trapped in a house while a dark-haired girl tries to get inside through a foggy glass door. Out the front door, everything is sunshine and flowers. But the backyard is cloudy and rainy. The girl in back could be the twin of that blonde woman in El Dorado."

    "The huge mosaic?" I said.

    She nodded.

    I told her about my dream with Nightliss and the blonde woman, aka Daelissa.

    "What is it with those two?" she asked.

    "All I know is Nightliss seems to be the good one, even if she doesn''t have such a great grasp of the English language." A sudden thought hit me. "Maybe she can fix your erased memories. Maybe that''s why you keep having that dream."

    Her eyes went wide. "Do you think?"

    I almost jumped out of bed from excitement, but realized I had no idea how to find my guardian angel who sometimes turned into a little black cat. "I have to figure out how to contact her though."

    A familiar noise penetrated the wall opposite our bed and for the third time that night, we heard my female neighbor shout the same exact words over and over again in a slightly less than enthusiastic voice.

    Elyssa giggled. Her eyes went wide and nose wrinkled. She sat up, holding the sheets against her chest. "I just thought of something really gross."

    "Even more gross than that?" I jerked my head toward the noises next door.

    "At least." She took two fingers and gingerly pulled at the bed''s coverlet.

    I grimaced when I realized what she was thinking. "I''ll bet that comforter looks like a warzone under an ultraviolet lamp."

    She made a gagging noise. "Will you take it off?"

    I grinned. "Sure thing, love." I''d just slipped out of the covers when our neighbor yelled, "That''s it baby!" one last time and went silent. I heard the sounds of several car doors clicking shut and the rustle of numerous feet on the pavement outside.

    Police raid? I wondered. I blurred to the window, ignoring my nakedness and peeked outside. What I saw froze my heart solid. I backed away as panic took flight up my throat.

    "What''s wrong?" Elyssa said, hopping out of bed and slipping into her clothes at light speed.

    "Your dad is here!" I hissed back, and raced to put on my own clothes. Sure, I''d wanted to hand-deliver Vadaemos to him, but I sure as heck didn''t want him showing up right after his daughter and I had just deflowered each other. Perfect timing as usual. "Did Michael call him?"

    She shook her head. "No, he specifically told me he''d escort us both to the ranch tomorrow."

    "Then how¡ª" the question died on my lips as I peeked out the window to see Beck standing outside with the intimidating form of Thomas Borathen and pointing approximately at Meghan''s door. I had to go out there. "Wait here a few minutes, and see if you can get out without them realizing¡ª"

    Elyssa put a finger on my lips. "Already planned to, hot shot. Just in reverse order." She kissed me hard before slipping out of the room and vanishing.

    I squinted through the blinds again. None of the arriving Templars seemed to have spotted her. Taking a few deep breaths, and loosening up my clenched butt cheeks, I stepped outside and walked with bold purpose toward a man who probably wouldn''t hesitate to kill me, so long as he had a lawful reason to do so. I prayed he didn''t have sufficient cause to execute me in front of the others.

    Meghan and Adam stood outside their door blocking the way to Vadaemos while Thomas Borathen glared at them.

    "What''s wrong with you people?" Beck said. "Let him in and we''ll be out of your hair."

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    I suppressed the desire to sock Beck right in the noggin and instead, shoved him sideways. He didn''t even see me coming and hit the ground with a satisfying thud. I turned and faced the ice-cold glare from a man who wanted to separate my head from my shoulders.

    "You," he said in a hiss. "What''s the meaning of this?"

    "He''s the one who captured him," said a deep voice from my right.

    I glanced and caught sight of Michael.

    "Not only that, but he and your daughter saved our lives," Bella said, coming to stand next to Michael¡¯s towering form, her face still pale.

    "You''ve infected them all," Thomas snarled.

    "He hasn''t infected anyone, Father." Elyssa stepped from the shadows behind the group of twenty or so Templars who''d shown up with Thomas.

    "Elyssa?" said one of the masked figures. The mask retracted to show a young guy who was the spitting image of her father.

    She graced him with an embarrassed smile. "Hey, Jack. Guess I''m back a little earlier than expected."

    "Where have you been? You were supposed to be in Paris but nobody over there has seen a trace of you."

    "Wait a minute, you mean you didn''t re-route me to Colombia?"

    "That would be my doing," Michael said, staring Jack down with a grim but satisfied smile.

    Jack looked genuinely shocked.

    Thomas Borathen slid a slivery sword from its sheath and pointed the tip toward me. "How do you know this spawn isn''t in league with Vadaemos? That this isn''t all some part of an elaborate scheme to destroy us from the inside?"

    "Stop looking for conspiracies when the truth is right in front of your eyes," I said. I turned to Meghan and nodded.

    She opened the door. Adam went in and carted out the slumbering form of Vadaemos. I pulled out my phone, which I''d thankfully had the presence of mind to retrieve, and clicked on the video I''d taken in the cave. The quality wasn''t all that great, but Elyssa and I had watched it and agreed it was definitely incriminating.

    The Templar commander stared at the screen, disbelief clearly written on his face. When Vadaemos blurted the truth about Daelissa being the Divinity, Thomas''s eyes turned to stone but he continued to watch. I hadn''t stopped recording even when all hell broke loose as evidenced by all the screaming and rumbling noises threatening to rupture the phone''s inadequate speaker. The phone ran out of storage space somewhere around the time we were sprinting for Pokito''s backpack, though most of the action wasn''t visible since I''d jammed the thing back into my pocket before running crowd-surfing the cherubs.

    Thomas''s hand blurred so fast, I never saw it coming. He jerked me into the parking lot and made a hand signal. His Templars formed a circle around the two of us. He walked to one of his men and pulled a sword from the scabbard on his back. Tossed it at me. I caught it out of reflex. It was a long, thin blade, similar to a katana. I was decent with a sword thanks to years of fencing lessons, but I was nothing compared to Elyssa, and had a feeling I''d be less than nothing compared to this man.

    Stacey and Ryland appeared from the darkness in human form. Curtis, Pokito, Bella, and the others grabbed their staffs and formed a line outside the circle of Templars.

    "Let him go," Bella shouted, her voice sounding thin and strained. "Or we will free him ourselves."

    "Is he too cowardly to fight for himself?" Thomas said. "I''ll give him a warrior''s death which is more than this spawn deserves."

    Elyssa rushed toward the circle but two Templars grabbed her by either arm and held her fast.

    "Let him go!" she shouted. "He hasn''t done anything wrong!"

    My mind flashed back to the first time I''d met Elyssa''s parents. It had gone almost as well as this, except a sword fight hadn''t been part of the deal.

    "He''s not evil," Ryland said, his tone gruff but pleading. "Dammit, Thomas, take a step back and look at what you''re doing. This kid is a hero. He apprehended the most wanted criminal in the Overworld and you''re ready to kill him."

    "He''s part of it, Ryland," Thomas said. "Surely you''ve sniffed the truth, haven''t you? Or has he affected even your ability to find lies?"

    I was about to add my own two cents to the subject when Thomas attacked. I flailed with the sword, barely able to fend him off. He sliced the back of my sword hand and left a cut on my cheek. I knew he''d only meant to injure me, not kill me outright. He wanted to enjoy this. I could already tell I wasn''t going to enjoy a bit of it.

    Before I could recover from his first attack, he kicked my legs from underneath me and slashed my leg. I rolled away, wincing at the pain. My wounds were already healing, but the loss of blood and energy would take its toll. On the other hand, he was pissing me off. If he triggered my inner demon and caused me to spawn, it would be bad for everyone.

    Again he attacked, his sword blurring so fast I couldn''t be sure if I was blocking most of his attacks, or if my body was covered in cuts. Something deep inside me growled and awoke in its cave.

    For once, I didn''t resist. I let the demonic force crawl from the hole I usually stuffed it in and let it free. Pure instinct overcame me. It didn''t make me any better with the sword, but my eyes seemed more focused. My ears seemed to hear a little better. And the blur of Thomas''s swings dropped from hyper-speed into real time. I ducked, weaved, and rolled away from his strikes. Even with my new focus, he nicked me a couple of times. But I was making him work for it. Judging from the way he bared his teeth, it made him hate me even more.

    An ear-splitting yowl broke through my concentration. Thomas''s gaze flicked toward the source. Monstrous cats¡ªmoggies¡ªstalked from the shadows behind Stacey as she morphed into a black panther. Ryland melted into wolf form. The Templars holding the circle tight pulled their blades and tensed. Things were about to get real.

    Thomas backed off to assess the fluid situation, his back toward the hotel. I was glad for the respite, brief as it might be. I glanced at the room where Vadaemos was held and noticed the door was shut again. Meghan and Adam must have shoved the cot with the prisoner back inside. A flash of blonde hair appeared in the window and I thought it might be Meghan¡ªbut no¡ªshe stood outside with Adam, staff out and guarding the door while my friends encroached on Thomas''s people.

    Baying erupted from above, from the roof of the motel. I looked up and into glowing eyes, yellow against a pitch-black canvas dotted with stars. Black teeth glistened and dark tongues lolled. Hellhounds.

    Things were about to get even realer.

    Chapter 34

    Six of the huge hounds, bristling and reeking of sulfur, stood atop the motel. They pounced, plowing into the nearest people who happened to be Meghan and Adam. Thankfully, one of them threw up a barrier and sent the first creature reeling. A flash of silver caught my eye and I dodged back in time to avoid Thomas''s blade.

    "Are you crazy?" I shouted above the barking, howling, screaming, and yowling. "We''re under attack!"

    "I see multiple enemies, boy, and you''re one of them. These hellhounds are no doubt more of your minions come to fight." Thomas feinted. Spun. Delivered a kick to my stomach. It propelled me into the backs of the Templars on the other side of the circle. They were focused on threats outside the circle, not in and I sent them sprawling.

    Elyssa wrestled free from her captors with a back flip and a double-kneed kick to their groins. She jerked me to my feet, pulling her own sword free and jumping between me and her father.

    "What are you doing?" Thomas said in the commanding voice of someone who thrived under battlefield pressure.

    "This," she said, and held out my phone. "Watch."

    Stacey and Ryland, working with Meghan and Adam, corralled the hellhounds with the help of the moggies. The giant mutant cats hissed and clawed at the hounds while Meghan and Adam pushed a magical barrier against the enemy flanks. It was only a matter of time before they''d contain the hellhounds.

    Thomas snatched the phone from Elyssa and glared at it. Even with the fray in the background, I could, if only barely, make out the audio.

    "This is Elyssa Borathen. I am of sound mind. You may think I''m crazy, but I''m not. Elyssa, hopefully you''ve found this. The story I''m about to tell you may seem insane, but it''s true. Your father wiped your mind not because you did anything wrong, but because he couldn''t control you. Because he couldn''t stop you from falling in love."

    Thomas stared for a moment longer before his eyes looked up and met Elyssa''s. I saw the cocksure pride wilt away until another emotion was plain in his features. Shame.

    The blinds in the window of Vadaemos''s room vanished, revealing a woman. Lustrous blonde hair shimmered above icy blue eyes and a beautiful fair face. It had to be Daelissa. Holy crap, what in the world was she doing here?

    A deep roar overwhelmed the sounds of battle and even the hellhounds paused, ears pricked toward this new sound. The brick front of the motel room housing Vadaemos exploded, sending dust and people flying away as a massive demonic form charged from within. He''d manifested, all the way this time. Blue skin stretched tight across thick, corded muscles. A scaled tail, thick as my arm, whipped behind him. Blue flames flickered in the pitch black of his eyes, and dark horns nearly three feet long spiraled up from his forehead. His demonic form added to his already generous height, reaching seven or eight feet tall. Black-clawed feet tore at the pavement. Cruelly barbed fists clenched, knuckles cracking like fireworks. Vadaemos reared back his head and roared into the night sky.

    The hellhounds broke free of their containment and formed up around their master. He charged. Meghan lay in a heap of rubble. Adam stood woozily. I flashed toward them, scooping up Meghan and knocking Adam aside as Vadaemos''s clawed hand swiped where they''d been. A moggy leapt atop the blue demon, clawing and biting, its bulky form causing the spawn to stagger under the weight. Vadaemos''s tail whipped up, curled around the moggy''s neck, and squeezed tight. The huge cat went limp. A sick wet pop sounded and the moggy''s head separated from its shoulders.

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    Stacey, still in panther form, roared and attacked. Ryland went in alongside her. But hellhounds dodged into their path, forcing a fight. I grabbed the sword I''d dropped and sped for Vadaemos, no real plan in my head except to bring him down any way possible. A black form smashed into my chest and black teeth drooled inches from my throat. The hellhound snapped at my exposed neck. I gripped it by its muzzle just in time, my hands wrapping around the dark disgusting flesh, and squeezed it shut. A blue streak flew past me and slammed into Thomas Borathen. He flew backward, rolling gracefully and landing on his feet. I saw Elyssa fighting two more dark shapes behind him.

    The hellhound''s muzzle pressed hard against my hands, slick from drool and sweat. I wouldn''t be able to hold this monster back for long. I twisted its head, trying to break the neck, but on my back, I didn''t have the leverage necessary. My attacker tried another tactic, twisting and turning its head to wrench it free. The moment that happened, it was bye-bye Justin. The venom in its bite alone might be enough to kill me unless demon spawn had built-in immunity.

    Its head snapped back. My hands slipped free. It lunged. I threw up my arms in desperation the way I''d seen attack dog trainers do. Except they''d been wearing protective gear and I had nothing. My arms butted against the hound''s neck. Teeth snapped shut less than an inch from my nose.

    I was really wishing I''d watched The Dog Whisperer a few times because any inside knowledge would come in handy right about now. Desperation fueled my adrenalin rush, surging through my blood. The hound snapped again and a tooth nicked my nose. It felt like someone had injected acid into my flesh. I''d been through serious pain before, ironically, while donating my blood to save Stacey from a hellhound bite. Otherwise, the pain in my nose might have overwhelmed me. Instead, it made me angry. Furious.

    A hot red tide swelled in my chest. My survival instinct roared into high gear. And I felt the change struggling to overcome me. I turned my head to the right to avoid another snap of the jaws in time to see Vadaemos grab Thomas Borathen by the sword arm and slam him to the ground. Elyssa screamed. But the two hellhounds attacking her were relentless and she couldn''t break free to help.

    More hellhounds appeared behind her. I shouted her name, barely paying attention to the attacker on my chest. The new hellhounds charged¡ªright past her and tore into the ones she was fighting. Flaming red hair blurred past and smacked into Vadaemos before he could pound Thomas into the ground again.

    Kassallandra?

    Vadaemos hardly flinched, though it was clear the fierce redhead had put everything into her attack. His backhand caught her solidly in the face, tossing her like a limp doll through the air, hair blazing like a meteorite behind her until she tumbled to the ground, rolled, and lay still.

    My shout of anger turned into a roar¡ªdeep, guttural, and animalistic. My muscles pressed hard against my clothes, tearing and shredding, unable to contain the beast any longer. Agony stabbed through my forehead. The hellhound whimpered. Tried to back away, but my big blue hands flashed to its throat, clenched it and held it fast. Pain burned through my mouth as my teeth sharpened and extended. My clothes stretched and tore as the demon came out to play.

    Xhe jakini! I shouted. Or at least it sounded like that. My voice was deep, guttural. It reminded me eerily of the time I''d somehow spoken to the green demon that had killed Meghan''s mother.

    I leapt to my feet, hellhound dangling from my hand, and squeezed its neck. Bones cracked and the creature went limp. I threw the body at the group of hellhounds still attacking Stacey and Ryland. It slammed into one and sent it yelping and skidding across the asphalt.

    Kill. Devour.

    The imperative of the monster I''d become was clear. Just like the last time I''d manifested into demon form, my intellect rode in the back seat, unable to steer the baser instincts of this hellish vessel. I could see everything perfectly. Feel everything. But my mind seemed detached, unable to enforce anything I tried to impose on it.

    I lumbered toward Stacey and Ryland, the bloodlust making no distinction between friend and enemy. All were fair game. All would be devoured. This hunger knew no limits. My clawed fingers snatched at the black panther, but Stacey blurred to the side. Instead, my hand connected with one of the hellhounds.

    Kill.

    The hound yelped and bit my arm. Bluish blood welled from the puncture. I roared and slammed the hound to the ground. Picked it up and smashed it again. It was dead. But rage controlled the beast I''d become. It kicked the body, sending it flying into Ryland''s flank. He flipped end over end, unable to dodge thanks to the other hellhounds attacking him.

    "Justin!" someone shouted. "Justin, look at me!"

    My body paused. Sniffed the air. Looked around for the commanding voice. A familiar voice. And spotted Elyssa.

    Devour.

    Her soul spiraled like a shimmering halo around her body, dark wisps mixed with creamy strands of white. My demonic stomach growled. I wanted to consume her soul and fill the bottomless void of my hunger. My lumbering stride turned to an agile gait. I flashed toward her. She made no move to get away. My hand closed around her frame. Lifted her. Electricity surged through my body. I shuddered. Roared. The wall between my intellect and control of this body weakened.

    Stop! I commanded myself. She''s the one you love!

    Elyssa''s hands touched my monstrous face and gazed into my soul with glowing violet eyes. "Justin, you have to stop Vadaemos. You have to, before he kills everyone."

    I looked to the side. Templars lay scattered like black-clad dolls while the blue form of Vadaemos fought a small group of them. There was no doubt as to who would win the fight. A Templar slashed Vadaemos''s leg open. The brute hardly slowed, snatching up his attacker and opening his jaws wider than looked possible. The Templar screamed as the whitish gray mist of his life force was torn from his body in a vortex and drawn into the gaping maw.

    I felt warm lips press against my cheek and looked back into the eyes of the girl I loved. The creature inhaled deeply through its nose, drawing in the familiar scent of spring flowers mingled with oil and leather. It burned through my lungs and buried itself in my heart. The hunger subsided. I pressed hard against the barrier separating me from control of this monster. Something snapped. My vision blurred and righted itself. And suddenly, my body responded.

    "I love you," I said in a deep voice so alien it frightened me.

    Elyssa''s eyes widened in shock. I set her down and fixed my eyes on Vadaemos. Already, I felt my control slipping. For some reason, contact with her made me stronger. I didn''t have time to figure out why. I was on a timer before my body resumed its mindless rampage. If I threw myself against the real enemy, maybe I would continue to fight him even if I lost control once more.

    Vadaemos knocked aside his remaining attackers and reached for a struggling form on the ground: Thomas Borathen. I slammed into the other demon spawn''s back as he reared to deliver a deathblow to Elyssa''s father. With a grunt, Thomas fell to the ground. Vadaemos bellowed and tumbled forward, smashing into a sapling at the edge of the parking lot and splintering it into a thousand toothpicks.

    He sprang to his feet with a roar, ripping the broken pine tree free and hurling it at me. It speared through my thigh, branches and all. I screamed in agony. A blue streak slammed into me. I hit one of the Templar cars in the side, crushing it like an aluminum can. Vadaemos punched me in the face. His spiked fist deflected off one of my horns. I threw up my hands as he rained relentless blows down on me, hammering so hard, I felt bones cracking and stabs of pain from the black spines on his fists.

    A hellhound''s corpse nailed him in the back. He staggered. Pressing my shoulders back against the crushed ruin of the car, I swung my good leg up hard as I could and connected. I honestly hadn''t had time to find out if I had a monstrous pair of incubus gonads dangling between my legs or not, but I figured there was a pretty good chance I had something there. And if I did, so did Vadaemos.

    He howled and the flames in his black orbs seemed to go cross-eyed. I snapped off the bit of pine tree protruding from the back of my leg and pulled the rest from the front of my thigh, thundering in agony as I did.

    Whatever pause I''d bought myself with the cheap shot to Vadaemos''s daddy bags expired before I could stagger back to my feet. I rolled to the side, blue blood from my thigh wound dripping and steaming on the ground.

    A fist slammed into my back. Breath whooshed out in a gale. Another blow connected to the back of my head. The ground rushed to meet me. Only my horns saved me from the knockout blow, slamming so hard into the pavement they left cracks. I rolled left out of pure instinct. His fist crushed the asphalt where my head had been. Elyssa appeared, sword in hand, and slashed his hamstrings. He dropped to his knees. She dodged away, but his backhand delivered her a glancing blow and sent her skidding across the pavement.

    Vadaemos lunged. His huge black-clawed hand caught my huge throat and squeezed. He lowered his face to mine, a smile lighting his demonic features and showing his pearly black rows of sharpened teeth.

    " Xhe nevudi budo ceanas dahna. Xhe budi jakinis," he rumbled in that alien tongue. Somehow, I knew what he meant. No one will help you now. You will die.

    He squeezed. My throat muscles went taut. I clawed at his face, at his eyes. We both had long arms, but his were a little longer. He was stronger. Older. And he had experience with his demon form. The light faded from the world. Screams echoed in my ears from a million miles away. My struggles grew weaker. Slower.

    "Justin!" a female voice screamed. Was it Elyssa? Mom?

    Darkness fell like a curtain of silk but it wasn''t because I''d passed out or died. If anything, I felt oxygen wheezing through my throat where before there had been none. Jagged sparks of black lightning speared into Vadaemos, blistering his chest and blasting him off me. Before him stood a petite form made larger by ultraviolet wings unfurling wide behind her. Jagged bolts of furious energy raced along the seemingly insubstantial appendages. I rolled to my knees as my body shifted and shrank, gasping greedily for air through a throat still tight from injury.

    Somehow, I staggered to my feet. Fell to a knee. Pushed myself back up. Vadaemos lay unconscious, his mass shrinking and retreating back into his human form. Nightliss spun to face me. The anger in her eyes softened and her unfurled wings of dark energy dissipated into the ether like puffs of smoke. She took a step forward, but another pair of hands reached me first. I stumbled back into that warm embrace and looked into familiar eyes. Elyssa.

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    "Are you okay, Justin? Can you talk?"

    I gave her a thumbs-up, my throat too raw and tight to force words through. She peppered my face with kisses while Nightliss stood at my other side and smiled. She looked so cute and innocent. But the raw power she''d shown was amazing. Frightening. Vadaemos had wilted like a delicate flower before her wrath.

    "They''re all dead or fled," a deep, male voice told Elyssa. "I still don''t know how Vadaemos got free."

    I took a step, holding my hands out for balance as dizziness swept over me. Michael gripped my arm to steady me.

    "Daelissa," I said in a hoarse whisper. "She was in his room." I sucked in another breath, desperate for air. My supernatural healing wasn''t its normal self after the trauma I''d been through. But it needed to hurry up because I had a lot to say and ask.

    Michael grunted. "Pokito told me about her." He spared a glance at Nightliss and for once, I thought I detected a hint of fear in his eyes.

    "Casualties?" Elyssa asked.

    Michael''s grim face turned grimmer as he knelt to secure Vadaemos''s body with diamond fiber straps and sleepers. "It''s bad." He looked away. I followed his gaze where Templars were lining up bodies.

    Elyssa drew in a sharp breath. "No. Oh god no. No!" She ran and sank to her knees next to a body with a shock of black hair. She moaned, pressing the body to her chest as tears cascaded down her face. I made my way over fast as I could and recognized the fallen Templar. Her brother, Jack.

    "Elyssa," I said, my voice still hoarse. "I''m so sorry." I knelt behind her and hugged her tight. Her tears soaked my torn shirt and her sobs wracked us both. She hugged the body of her brother, forcing me out of the loop. But it was okay. I understood. And there was nothing I could do to make it better.

    Another scream of agony sounded in the night. I saw Stacey bent over a form beneath a hellhound. I staggered to her. She was bruised, battered, and obviously weak from the fight. The huge hellhound corpse resisted her attempts to move it. I put my back into it and shoved, rolling it off the unmoving body of Ryland. Tears welled in my eyes. And then I noticed two more familiar bodies face down on the ground near the hotel. My knees collapsed.

    Oh god no. Not Meghan. Not Adam. Not Ryland. I couldn''t speak. I couldn''t move from the sheer weight of guilt and grief pressing down on my shoulders as the agony of loss tore into my stomach and blinded me with hot tears.

    Chapter 35

    Ryland groaned.

    It was a faint groan, but a groan nonetheless. Stacey''s cries of anguish turned to delight.

    "You''re alive, you bloody fool. Oh thank god you''re alive!"

    I looked up and saw Meghan tending to the wounded, Adam at her side. The two bodies I''d seen still lay where they were, a blonde female and a male with dark hair. In my grief, I''d jumped to conclusions. Or perhaps my oxygen-starved brain was hallucinating. My heart grew strong at the sight of my friends, but worry quickly replaced it. I motioned Meghan to me and pointed at Ryland.

    "Are you okay, Justin?" she asked as she jogged over.

    I nodded and croaked, "Ryland."

    She glanced down. "I''ll make sure he''s okay."

    Adam clapped me on the shoulder and tried to smile, but his face was grim. "We lost a lot of people, Justin." His fists tightened around his wand. "I hope Vadaemos burns for this."

    I nodded again and jabbed my thumb over my shoulder. He knelt to help Meghan with Ryland. Scanning the area, I found Bella sitting on the sidewalk curb in front of the hotel. Alejandro wrapped his arm around her as she shook with sobs. When I got closer, I realized why. Pokito, eyes closed, lay on the ground not far away. Part of his throat was gone.

    Curtis had a bite wound on his arm, but otherwise seemed okay. "Meghan told me she slowed the infection and can cure it," he said, scratching his arm and examining the yellowish skin around the wound. "Told me she had some kind of vaccine left over from something you did."

    She probably still had the serum she''d made from my blood to help Stacey, I figured. Hell, if it worked, I''d offer up more of my blood so long as it didn''t hurt so darned much the second time around.

    Bella gripped my hand and squeezed. I knelt and kissed her on the cheek. Hugged her and wished I could tell her everything would be all right. But one, I could hardly speak, and two, I had no idea if this was the end or the beginning of something even worse. Judging from the look I''d seen in Daelissa''s eyes, this little battle was just a skirmish. True war with the minions she controlled would be immeasurably worse.

    I looked across the warzone. Smashed cars lay everywhere, on their sides, their roofs. The one Vadaemos had knocked me into was hardly recognizable as anything except a mess of wires, fluids, and metal. Two Templars laid the last of the bodies in neat rows. This hotel was remote, but if the clerk had called the police, they''d swarm it in no time.

    A black Cadillac screeched into the parking lot right in front of the clerk''s office. Two men in dark clothes rushed inside. I tensed, thinking another battle was about to start, but a hand on my shoulder pulled my attention to its owner.

    Thomas Borathen''s blue eyes looked into mine. For the first time, I detected no malice, only determination. "Don''t worry about them," he said. "They''re a Templar special task force assigned to interdict emergencies and prevent the public from finding out about the Overworld."

    "Are they mind-wiping the clerk?" My words emerged a little clearer and my throat felt marginally better.

    "Only helping him forget the incident and determining if the police are on the way. It would be of no small concern if the mortal authorities gained wind of our existence."

    I glanced down the row of rooms and saw a frightened face peeking through the blinds where the prostitute was staying. "They may have to go room-by-room."

    He nodded. "They leave nothing to chance." He looked at Elyssa where she and Michael sat next to the body of their brother. A third figure joined them. Her tear-stained eyes met mine and I recognized their mother, Leia.

    Thomas''s eyes looked troubled. But this man was hardened by the centuries. He''d probably seen more horrors than most people combined. I felt sure he was grieving in his own way. He and Leia exchanged a long look and I had the feeling there would be hell to pay between these two at some point in the near future, and fortunately, not by me.

    "I''m sorry about your son," I said, my heart filled with sadness more for Elyssa than anyone else.

    "The fault is my own." He let that simple statement hang in the air a moment before motioning me to walk with him. "My daughter loves you. And she was right. I wanted to control her. I wanted to control Jack and Michael, and everyone else around me. I wanted everyone to see the evil I imagined was there." He stopped and looked me up and down. "Do not mistake my realization for total absolution. I still feel the anger and betrayal I''ve harbored ever since that fateful day at Thunder Rock. My feelings won''t change overnight." He ran a hand through his dark hair, eyes taking in the destruction. "You might be a mule in a horse harness. Or you might be of genuine character. I am not yet willing to concede the latter. But if I''m to prevent another catastrophe like this from happening again, it appears I have no choice but to accept you." His eyes hardened. "For now."

    I could tell it took every fiber of his being for him to say those words. Bad enough he couldn''t keep his daughter safe from boys. Even worse, the one she loved was demon spawn. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost. Fighting against my own dislike for this man, I held out a hand and kept my face neutral despite the anger I still felt. Thomas Borathen had a lot to atone for, but now wasn''t the time to ask for reparations. The other man''s face stiffened. But he took my hand. Shook it. Walked away to be with his mourning family.

    An unmarked van pulled into the parking lot and backed up to Vadaemos''s unconscious form where Michael had left him trussed with unbreakable straps. Two Templars hopped out, wrapped him in a cocoon of diamond fiber, tossed him in the back of the vehicle, and drove off. Fast, quick, and professional. Service with a smile. I slumped to the ground, sitting cross-legged and watching as more people showed up and set themselves to cleaning up the incredible mess. I assumed these people were affiliated with the Templars, though they didn''t look quite as menacing or well-trained in combat. Then again, Meghan was an arcane healer with the Templars and I hadn''t seen her wielding a sword in the battle.

    Because she used a staff, dummy.

    A light hand rested on my shoulder. "You are okay, Justin?"

    I looked up into Nightliss''s almond-shaped eyes. She smiled.

    "I''m better." I stood and looked her over. She seemed different somehow. Less innocent than the first few times I''d met her. Of course it could have had to do with knowing she was an angel of darkness and incredibly powerful.

    "I am not allowed to interfere. But Daelissa did. I could not let it stand."

    "I thought Kassallandra drove you off."

    "She reminded me of the old rules. But the rules are changed."

    "Your English is a lot better."

    A smile lit her face, making her seem much younger, like a girl just going to college. "My mind is healing. The damage from the Nexus almost killed me. It has taken a long time to remember who I am and my purpose." She looked down, almost shyly. "And I took some English classes."

    An angel taking English classes? I almost laughed. But my mind focused on something else. "Your purpose? What is it? Do you know about Foreseeance forty-three eleven?"

    She took my hand and led me away from the busy parking lot where a small army of people were cleaning up by towing cars and sweeping the littered parking lot clean. Others were recovering human bodies in a tall black van, and dumping hellhounds and moggies in another. We sat on the open stairwell at the end of the building.

    "My purpose is to help you if you choose to accept it."

    This brought the dream, vision, or whatever it was back to the forefront of my thoughts. "Was it really you and Daelissa in the hallway in my house? Or was it a dream?"

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    "We were there, drawn to you. I do not know how, but I do know why."

    "Well, spit it out."

    She tilted her head, a bemused expression on her face before opening her mouth in understanding. "You must make a choice. Daelissa and I represent opposite sides to this choice."

    "What is it with all the dark and light stuff? It seems like everything always boils down to black or white."

    "I do not mean to insult your intelligence, Justin¡ª"

    "Go ahead. It''s not like everyone else doesn''t already do it."

    A laugh tinkled in her throat. "The human mind cannot see some things the way we do, the same way we do not see things the way humans do. This dark and light is how your mind interprets what it cannot understand."

    "So break it down for me."

    "It is not good or evil. It is not black or white. It is balance and choice. One choice will save this world the way it is. The other will remake it, perhaps condemn it, depending upon who you are."

    "Is that all?" I breathed a mock sigh of relief. "And here I thought it was something serious."

    "It is serious, Justin." Alarm filled her dark eyes.

    "That was a joke. Sarcasm."

    The relief was evident on her face. "Oh. Good. You frightened me."

    "So the bottom line to this whole mess is, you want me to choose your side, the side my mind says is the dark." I thought back to the many dreams I''d had, especially the one where Elyssa told me she''d be my light in the dark. My dark light. But what if our dreams were being manipulated? What if neither side was the right one? This whole mess might be some farce dreamed up by a bunch of bored angels. A game to pass the millennia.

    "You must choose me, Justin. Daelissa has powerful allies and I have none. She has had a very many lot of years to prepare and I only started to remember not a lot of many years ago."

    "Oh jeez. I gotta teach you to count."

    Her eyes pinched in a hurt expression. "I do know. Just not how to translate yet."

    I mulled it over for a moment. Daelissa had done some terrible stuff, no doubt. She''d incited the war between the spawn and Templars, and certainly had something to do with Maximus. The massacre at the arcane school in Dallas had her stink on it as well. The blonde chick with the burning blue eyes was bad news. The temples in El Dorado bore a permanent reminder of that.

    "Did your kind rule us once as gods?"

    She looked up and I could tell from the strain on her face, she was trying desperately to remember. Or pretending to. With a sigh, she gave up. "I cannot remember it all. I do know I punched Daelissa in the face once."

    I chuckled. The two could be twins from mirror universes. "Is she your sister?"

    Nightliss nodded slowly. "I think so. In some way."

    I stood and took a step away. Stared into the night. "It feels like your side is the right one, Nightliss. But I need to know more. I need you to remember. I''ve jumped into enough messes in my life, without plowing right into a choice like this. Besides, the dark side is usually made up of the bad guys, even if they do have cookies." Elyssa was right about my decision-making skills. I tended to jump without looking. Not this time. For all I knew, saying yes to Nightliss might start an Armageddon none of us were ready to face. And in my limited experience, the dark side was really good at manipulation. I couldn''t picture this petite cutie manipulating anyone for evil, but what did I know?

    "I understand," she said, her voice sad. "I cannot promise you cookies. But I will be patient and try to remember."

    Down the building from me, I saw Bella spot me and come my way. I looked back at Nightliss. "How do I stay in touch with you?"

    "I will try to stay close, but until you commit to me, I cannot give you a gift."

    "A gift?"

    "Yes. It is like giving you a part of my power."

    "Is this like what Daelissa does for the Templars?"

    She nodded. "It is the same."

    It reminded me of something very important. "Can you restore Elyssa''s memories? Undo whatever Daelissa did?"

    "If she wishes it, I will see what I can do."

    "Please."

    Nightliss stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the lips. Just a peck, but it made me wonder what sort of customs angels had for greeting people. Were they like the Colombian women I''d met who liked to kiss me on the cheeks every chance they got? I didn''t have a chance to ask. She left my side and walked toward Elyssa, and Bella reached my side a second later. She hugged me and kissed me on both cheeks.

    "You were magnificent," she said.

    My ego inflated by about a hundred pounds, but I was also a bit puzzled. "How so?"

    "You are a true leader Justin. The foreseeance spoke of it, but now I have seen you in action. You won others to your cause and they fought for you."

    "I never actually forced them to."

    "And yet they followed." Her complexion had darkened a bit more, closer to her natural olive tone, but dark rings underscored her eyes.

    I thought back to how I''d blundered along, somehow surviving, somehow making it through so many challenges. Somewhere along the way, I''d picked up a little confidence and added that to my determination. Had I become a leader? I looked at what remained of the carnage, now mostly a few bloodstains and shattered glass. This hadn''t been my doing. Thomas Borathen caused this destruction, at least in part. Daelissa had helped things along. That woman had a gift for mayhem.

    "Lina told me of her attempts to teach you magic." Bella''s raised eyebrow told me what she thought of those efforts. "I think it is time to truly teach you. You have the ability and you must have every skill available to you in the battles to come."

    "Magic is a lot harder than I thought it would be."

    "It is no easy skill to learn."

    I spotted a familiar figure in a leather duster across the parking lot, staff in hand. An older version of myself walked by his side. Next to him stood a woman with flaming red hair.

    Oh crap.

    My father had shown up at the wrong place at the wrong time. And Kassallandra was going to make him pay.

    Chapter 36

    It took me a moment to realize my father and the redheaded Daemas hadn''t come to blows just yet, nor had hellhounds hauled him off by his scruff. My eyes widened even further when I noticed Dad had an arm around her waist as she limped along in obvious pain. Bella and I hurried over to meet them.

    "Almost missed the fun," Shelton said with a smirk. "You were right, Justin."

    "About what?"

    "You are trouble."

    He grinned and held out a hand. I gripped it and shook. "Careful now, Shelton, or I might think you''re going mushy on me."

    He chuckled.

    Dad had a somewhat guilty look on his face. Kassallandra looked exceedingly smug, her rosebud lips turned up in a satisfied smile despite the long gash down her right leg and the blood on her torn shirt. Dad let her balance on her uninjured leg and took his arm away from her, embracing me in a bear hug.

    "I thought you were dead, Son."

    "I thought the same thing a few times myself." We released each other and stood back. "When did you get here?"

    "Your father killed two hellhounds and saved me from certain death after Vadaemos struck me," Kassallandra said.

    "Hey now, sweetheart, I helped too," Shelton said, sounding a bit injured.

    She pursed her lips. "I suppose you did."

    "Wow, two hellhounds," I said, thinking back to my own battle with the things. They were tough to take down.

    "My hellhounds fought bravely as well," she said, looking back at the monstrous Malkesh and one of his smaller siblings.

    "I thought Thomas Borathen locked you up. Did he let you go?"

    She shook her head. "A mysterious man helped me escape."

    "Mysterious?"

    "Dressed in black. Sunglasses and a mask. He looked very silly, but he freed me nonetheless."

    "Big guy?"

    She nodded. "A beast."

    A string of yarn connected two more thumbtacks on the corkboard in my head. Not a lot, but the best I could hope for considering my deductive reasoning skills weren''t the strongest in the world.

    "Justin, I have something really important to tell you," Dad said, his face going pale.

    "Oh boy, this should be good," Shelton said with a grin. I felt certain it took all his willpower not to rub his hands together with delight at whatever the bad news was.

    Kassallandra folded her arms and looked even smugger, if that was possible.

    My stomach turned to stone. "Don''t tell me you''re going to marry her."

    "Your mother¡ª"

    "Is still your wife!" My voice rose to a shout that echoed across the parking lot. "She''s obviously under the control of the Conroys and you''re going through with marrying her?" I shot Kassallandra an accusing glare. She actually had the grace to wilt a little under my stare.

    "It must be so," she said. "For the good of our people."

    "In case you didn''t know, there''s a law against polygamy, even in Utah."

    Dad gripped my arm and dragged me away from the others. I didn''t resist, despite the rage boiling in my chest. He turned and looked at me, eyes stern, gaze commanding. I had never seen him look so determined. It puzzled me even though I burned with anger.

    "Justin, we all have choices to make. Your mother made hers, you made yours, and now I''ve made mine. You captured Vadaemos. Meghan told me about Daelissa, and how she''s responsible for the mess between the Templars and Spawn. But you must remember House Assad and Slade are still at odds. The news of Vadaemos might heal those wounds in time, but we don''t have time to waste."

    "It''s not like the two families are fighting in the streets and killing each other," I said. "Look, even Thomas Borathen shook my hand tonight."

    He nodded. "I heard. I''m proud of you, Son. More proud than you could know. But spawn have a different way of fighting. They use politics. And the maneuvering both houses have used over the past several years has all the major houses aligned with one or the other and nobody wants to apologize and lose face. There are even talks of secession from the Overworld and creating a new supernatural government."

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    "Whose stupid idea was that? What are they going to name it, Underworld?"

    "House Assad wants to create an eastern bloc and a group of minor houses have already created an army of supernatural mercenaries to combat the Templars. Kassallandra and I can unite the halves again. Keep them whole."

    Fury and sadness ripped apart my insides and tears of anger threatened to break loose. He was abandoning Mom and Ivy. Giving up on them. Destroying our family. "This is stupid, Dad. What makes you think it''ll even work? House Slade¡ªyour own family despises you."

    "I''ve already worked out details with them. I''ll do my penance."

    I looked at the beautiful Daemas, her flaming red hair, the smooth curves of her body. "I know why you''re doing it. Mom obviously wasn''t pretty enough."

    He shook his head sadly and wiped one eye with the back of his hand. "Your mom is the most beautiful woman in the world to me. I still love her with all my heart." His voice ached with sincerity. "What I''m doing isn''t for me, Justin. It''s for the future of our race. For the future of this world. I know you don''t see it now, but you will in time." He touched my shoulder. Hugged me and kissed me on the forehead.

    I shoved him away. "Get out of my sight you faithless bastard. I never want to see you again." Everything inside me hurt. Part of me said he was right. Another selfish part felt he was betraying me. I grit my teeth so hard they ached. Turned my back on him as he walked away. Kept it turned so he wouldn''t see the tear leaking from the corner of my eye.

    A hand touched my shoulder. I shook it off and spun. Shelton backed away, hands up. "Whoa, cowboy."

    Bella stood by his side. I saw my father and Kassallandra walking away. I wanted to run to my dad and tell him I was sorry. I hadn''t meant what I''d said. But the hurt and anger surged again, reminding me why I had to be right. First, Mom had abandoned me. Now, Dad had given up on our family. Ivy and I were the only real family, both of us betrayed by our parents. Both of them had gone to the enemy¡ªMom to the Conroys and Dad to the Slades. We had no one else to count on. It was up to me to save her.

    "Bella tells me you''re ready to learn some magic," Shelton said, glancing back at my father as he spoke.

    I nodded, fighting back the regret. Pushing away the hurt. I braced my throat so I could speak without a trembling voice. "It''s time for me to prepare. I''ll need every advantage I can get."

    "We start first thing tomorrow then." His eyes hardened. "I won''t go easy on you, so you better man up and keep your mouth shut if you want to learn."

    My face grew hot but I stopped the smart retort forming on my lips. "You got it."

    By now, the parking lot was almost empty. No more bodies or wrecked cars, and the Templar mind-benders had evidently worked their magic on the local populace.

    "Looks like we''re in the clear," Shelton said. "No way in hell anyone at this place would call the cops even if a dragon took a dump in the parking lot. Ninety-percent of their business is probably from pimps and hookers, and the only kind of poking around they want here sure as hell doesn''t involve the law." He laughed. "Damn, I crack myself up."

    I didn''t ask Shelton how he knew such things.

    I found Elyssa and Nightliss sitting in the same spot the angel had taken me earlier. I decided I needed to figure out if the word "angel" really was the best word to describe her and Daelissa. I had, after all, seen Nightliss''s wings. They weren''t exactly how I imagined angel wings, consisting of pure energy rather than fluffy white feathers. Even so, the word "angel" sent images of corpulent cherubs with harps and love-inducing arrows dancing through my mind as opposed to an adorable gal who sometimes fancied turning into a cat.

    A white fog steamed from Elyssa''s eyes. I stood, mesmerized at the sight. I glanced around for a sign of her family, but didn''t see any of them. After several minutes of waiting, I took a seat. Nightliss continued the operation, seemingly oblivious to my presence. Fear tried to rear its ugly head. It questioned why I trusted Nightliss so much with Elyssa''s mind.

    "Dude, I hope she''s not turning her into an MRF," a familiar voice said from my side.

    I jerked from my thoughts and saw Beck. In an instant, I was on my feet, ready to punch him in the face for calling Thomas and his army of Templars.

    "Whoa, man!" he said, backing off. "I''m sorry, okay? I thought I was doing the right thing."

    "Getting yourself a promotion, you mean."

    "Not just that." He sighed and looked at Elyssa. "It''s just¡ª"

    "Wait a minute. You did it so you could get into her pants?"

    "Nah, man. I grew up with her. And when her dad caught us kissing and sent my family into exile¡ª"

    "He exiled you?"

    "Might as well have, sending us to Australia three years ago. I guess absence really does make the heart grow fonder. I love her."

    "You don''t love Elyssa. You just want to have sex with her."

    He laughed, sounding like a kid riding high on a sugar rush. "Well, okay, fine. I wanted her. Always have."

    "Just for sex, or because you want to be with her forever?"

    He scratched his head. "It''s not that simple."

    "Yeah. It is." I rolled my eyes. I''d been saving an eye-roll for a good occasion and this was it. I stepped closer to him. "Beck, let''s get one thing clear. Elyssa and I are together. You go have your fun with some other girl and forget about her."

    His eyes narrowed and his jaw went tight. But he didn''t argue. Just shrugged and said, "Whatever, dude."

    I turned. Stopped. "What''s MRF mean, anyway?"

    He snorted. "Mentally Retarded Female." Walked away.

    "Mentally retarded female?" I said, watching him go.

    "What are you calling me?" Elyssa said.

    I almost jumped out of my skin. I spun and looked into those gorgeous eyes. "Please tell me you remember."

    Her eyes widened. "I do! I remember it all!"

    Relief breathed into me like a calming salve. "Thank god."

    "Where''s Beck?" she asked.

    "Huh? What do you want with him?"

    "He''s my boyfriend." Her eyebrow arched. "Who are you and where''s my father?"

    "But¡ªbut¡ª"

    "Oh, I can''t wait to kiss my Becky-poo."

    I''d kill Beck before that happened. My fists tightened and I felt a mix of hopeless anger come over me.

    Elyssa burst into laughter. She laughed so hard, tears streamed from her eyes. "You should see your face right now. Oh god, I really got you good."

    Embarrassment burned through my anger. I face-palmed out of sheer habit. "I''m going to spank you for this one," I said.

    She leaned forward and kissed me hard on the lips, her hands pressing hard against my back. "Promise?"

    I grinned. "Promise."

    I hugged her and saw Nightliss still sitting on the stairs, tears streaming from her eyes, her body shaking with grief. Concern overwhelmed my happiness. What had gone wrong?

    I kissed Elyssa again. "Meet me in the parking lot in a minute? I need to talk with Nightliss."

    She nodded. "I need to find my Becky-poo anyway."

    I growled. "Only if you want him to die horribly."

    She stuck out her tongue as she walked away.

    I knelt next to Nightliss. "What''s wrong? Why are you crying?"

    She managed a tiny smile. "I thought while I was in there I would remove a burden from her soul."

    "A burden?"

    "The death of her brother."

    "Oh crap, please tell me you didn''t make her forget it. It''s not like she won''t find out in five minutes all over again."

    She shook her head. "No, she remembers. But I took much of the grief onto myself. Her heart was broken, but I have softened the loss."

    "How¡ªnever mind." I was tempted to ask for some grief management of my own, thanks to my father, but my sadness couldn''t begin to compare to the death of a sibling.

    Nightliss sniffled and wiped the wetness from her face. "You have some memories of your own, clouded by your mother."

    I hadn''t thought about it, but it was true. "Can you tell how much stuff I still haven''t remembered?"

    "No. The memory block your mother used is far different from what Daelissa used." She shook with sobs as grief overcame her again.

    "You''re in too much pain," I said. "Don''t worry about me right now. There will be time."

    She smiled and stood, leaning her head into my chest. I wasn''t sure what else to do, so I hugged her and let her tears soak my shirt. She pressed tight against me and for a moment, I thought she''d never let me go. Then she seemed to snap out of her distress and pulled away, an almost embarrassed expression clear on her face. "I must go for now, Justin."

    "Before you go, I have one more question."

    "Yes?"

    "When you turn into a cat, do you ever lick your bottom?"

    Her eyes widened and a smile broke through the clouds of sorrow on her face. She laughed long and deep until what I hoped were tears of mirth trailed down her cheeks. When she caught her breath, she kissed me on the cheek and squeezed my hand. "You are so funny. I love this about you." She sighed, and a hint of melancholy drifted across her features. "I will see you soon."

    I expected her to use angel magic or blinding speed. Instead, she walked away, shoulders slumped and head low, vanishing into the darkness at the far edge of the lot. I felt terrible for her and wished I could have done more than given her a good laugh. Was she all alone with such incredible pain? Could she recover faster? I didn''t know, but I wished I could help. I almost ran after her to tell her I would gladly join her side. But I had to stop. To think. To be sure I knew what I was doing.

    Even though partnering with Nightliss seemed like a slam dunk, I had a foreboding feeling my decision was a trigger to unlocking all kinds of world-wide nastiness. And I wasn''t ready. Not by a long shot.

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    I found Elyssa talking to Stacey and Ryland. Meghan had already patched him up, used the vaccine made from my blood to counter the hellhound bites all over his body. Stacey held him like she would never leave his side. I couldn''t blame her.

    Elyssa looked from Stacey to me. "Justin, my father spoke to me. He told me you two made peace."

    An uneasy peace, to be sure. I didn''t want to get my hopes up, but for now decided to be thankful for the small victories. "Yeah. I don''t think he''s exactly happy about it."

    She threw herself into my arms and kissed me like tomorrow would never come. I staggered back a few steps before catching my balance and kissed her right back. "I love you," she said. "I love you, I love you, I love you."

    "Someone''s getting kind of gooey," I said with a grin. "Don''t think I''m letting you get away with your Becky-poo stunt, though."

    "I couldn''t resist." She threw back her head and laughed. Nightliss really must have removed the burden of loss from her.

    "And you remember everything?"

    "I think so. I''ll have to watch my video again to make sure I''m not missing anything."

    And then it was time to test the waters. Gently. "I''m so sorry about your brother."

    Her eyes softened and a tear trickled down her cheek. "I can''t believe he''s gone. I remember now how he helped Dad. How both of them forced me to take the White."

    "Why didn''t they just use a Templar sorcerer to wipe out your memories?"

    Her gaze lifted from the far-off place it had wandered and met mine. "You''re the perfect example why. Sorcerers can blur memories, but not wipe them out. And sometimes they come back." She took her arms from around my neck, lacing her fingers through mine. "Daelissa''s method is almost perfect. And she''s mind-wiped every Templar for each trial they''ve taken. Now I know why nobody ever remembers what happens."

    "What does your father plan to do since he knows Daelissa is the Divinity?"

    She shrugged. "He didn''t say. I mean, how do you deal with finding out your entire organization is powered by a fallen angel with bad intentions?"

    "I don''t understand why she''d form an organization like the Templars only to destroy it. Why keep up the farce?"

    "Before Daelissa wiped my mind, she told me the Templars started as her own personal guard. I suspect she also used them for a steady food source."

    "Food?" Shock filled my voice.

    "She drained some kind of white energy from me. But a smoky shadowy substance came with it and it really freaked her out."

    Nightliss hadn''t mentioned her kind were leeches and my earlier sympathy for her turned a notch back towards distrust. How could we trust any entity so powerful? "It looks like there won''t be any more human Templars for a while, unless for some reason, Daelissa continues to indoctrinate them."

    "Why would she?"

    I shrugged. "The woman seems unstable. Maybe she wants to go back to basics and recreate her personal guard."

    "She is bat-poo crazy," Elyssa said. "Feeding seems to fix her insanity for a while, but she''s really unstable. You have no idea." Elyssa shuddered.

    "The last thing we need is an insane angel running amok on this planet."

    "We''ll be here to help," Ryland said in a gruff voice.

    "After I''ve nursed you to health, Wolfykins." Stacey pecked him on the nose.

    Ryland looked mortified. "Uh, yeah."

    Shelton pulled up in a van and honked the horn. "All aboard."

    "You came prepared," I said.

    He sighed. "With you around, I have to be."

    Stacey helped Ryland inside. Meghan and Adam piled in the third row seat. I looked for my father and Kassallandra, but saw no sign of them. Bella, Curtis, and Alejandro got in after I motioned them over. Fausta and Beck had apparently gone with the other Templars. I looked around and saw nobody else I was responsible for in the now-empty parking lot. And so I hopped in the second-row seat next to Elyssa.

    Bella climbed took shotgun. She looked back at Stacey and gave her a smile. "Your heart has healed, old friend?"

    A tear brimmed in Stacey''s eye as she met the dhampyr''s gaze. "Full and whole. It''s good to see you again."

    "Wait, when do I get to hear how you guys know each other?" I asked, curiosity driving away some of my exhaustion. I couldn''t imagine how the British felycan and presumably Colombian Arcane could possibly have a history.

    Stacey grinned. "I think he''s a bit young."

    Bella grinned back. "Far too young to hear that story."

    "Wait, I''m eighteen! I can legally buy porn if I want." I looked back and forth.

    "Don''t worry, dear. I''ll tell you soon. For now, I''m much too tired to go into it." Bella turned back toward the front.

    I decided to be patient, but it was damned hard. Stacey and Bella seemed like oil and water. Or maybe Bella used to be really bad, and corrupted Stacey. The possibilities were endless.

    Curtis, situated on Elyssa''s left, leaned wearily against the window. "I can''t wait to go home," he said in a quiet voice. "I need to tell Pokito''s family. Tell them how brave he was."

    "He will be missed," Bella said.

    Shelton pulled out of the parking lot and turned right.

    "Where to?" I asked.

    He glanced back at me. "Hotel Shelton. A different one since Maximus''s vamps overran the last."

    "And then?"

    He grinned. "The future."

    Elyssa squeezed my hand. I squeezed back three times.

    "What does that mean?" she said.

    I leaned into her ear and whispered, "I love you."

    "We''re resorting to secret code now?"

    "In a crowded van, yes."

    She smiled and returned the three squeezes, punctuating each one with a kiss on my cheek.

    The road behind had been rough. Treacherous. Deadly. I still had a long list of things to do, but I''d taken a huge step forward. Today Elyssa, tomorrow Ivy. Together, we would save the world or die trying.