Absolute Surrender (25 page)

Christ, she couldn’t stay here moping. She’d go crazy. Throwing a few things together, she locked up her apartment and headed for Kira’s.

Echo pulled up in front of the brownstone fifteen minutes later. As she parked her Volkswagen Beetle, the front door opened. A black-haired Kira rushed out, a pink streak weaving between the strands. A smile of relief brought out her dimples. She tugged open the car door and hauled Echo into a hug.

“I’m so happy to see you’re in one piece and all better.” Kira looked her over, as though confirming she really was better with no new injuries. Another hug followed. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” Echo could never tell Kira the horror of almost being hauled into Hell. She reached into the passenger seat and pulled out her overnight bag.

Kira linked her arm through hers as they walked toward the brownstone. “Now, tell me about the gorgeous hunk with the blue hair.” She nudged Echo playfully with her elbow. “Is it real? Man, he’s really into you—hey? How come you never told me about him?”

Echo’s heart dipped at the mention of Aethan. She didn’t want to talk about him and had hoped some time with her friend would help ease her pain and confusion. But faced with Kira’s questions, that wasn’t going to happen. She’d have to tell her friend something. Only what that was, she had no idea.

***

“You’re pacing again,” Kira said, from where she sat on the couch reading her magazine.

“No, I’m just restless. Too much energy,” Echo responded, turning away from the window. She had no idea what it was, except that, like a compulsion, the urge to leave took hold. “I’m going out.”

Kira tossed her magazine aside and grabbed her jacket. “All right, let’s go then, before you wear a hole in the carpet.” She patted Echo’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, you guys will work it out. It’s just a little disagreement.” When Echo didn’t respond, she said, “Come on Echo, even I agree with Aethan. You can’t go hunting for
demoniis,
not with them looking for you.”

Unable to meet Kira’s eyes, Echo was filled with guilt that she’d lied to her best friend—made up a story that she and Aethan were dating, and they had an argument because he didn’t want her on the streets at nights. The humiliation of telling her friend the truth of why she left—she’d rather have a root canal done, without anesthetic.

Echo drove around, listening with half an ear to Kira, until she found herself in Times Square. “You want coffee?” she asked Kira, parking the car in a no-parking zone.

“God, yes! Need something to keep me warm. Your heater’s busted,” Kira grumbled, buttoning her jacket.

“I know. Damon said he’ll see to it when he gets back.”

Kira snorted. “His idea of fixing is to stare at the thing then call a mechanic.”

Echo smiled. “Back in a sec.”

She hurried across the street to Starbucks. A few minutes later, with a tall latte in each hand, she left the coffee house and headed for her car. The edgy feeling that had taken hold of her at the house spiked again. Stopping, she took a deep breath and searched the busy street. Cars swished by, people chatted. The dissonant sounds filled her ears, but still the sensation persisted. Echo glanced back to where she’d parked her car. Her gaze drifted to the dingy side street nearby.

She walked toward the dark gaping maw, as if under a compulsion, and down the bowel-like street with its sweaty buildings. Stopping near a boarded-up office building, she swiveled around searching.

Something didn’t feel right here
.
She took a few more steps past reeking dumpsters and gasped. Unexpected pain swept through her. Echo cried out and doubled over. The coffees fell from her hands and splattered onto the asphalt.

Dizziness took her hard.
What’s wrong with me
?

Whatever was in this place hurt her. She lurched into a crate and grabbed onto a dumpster as she stumbled back to the mouth of the alley. Footsteps echoed, growing louder as they hurried to her.

“Echo, what happened? What’s wrong?”

“Help me—”

Kira grabbed her around the waist. “Echo, you’re scaring me. Tell me what’s wrong?”

Echo heard Kira’s frantic words but, unable to answer, she shut her eyes as darkness claimed her.

CHAPTER 17

Aethan materialized at the front of the castle. For once he didn’t bother to scan the estate to check if the wards were still secure. He walked straight into the foyer and hesitated, glancing up the stairs.

Echo must be out of her mind with worry or ready to tear into him for leaving so abruptly. But what choice did he have? If he’d stayed—

He scrubbed a hand down his face, unable to think about how badly things could have ended. He’d rather face her fury.

Footsteps echoed in the corridor. Moments later Michael appeared, followed by Blaéz and Týr, their expressions grim

Did he miss a meeting?

Judging by their unhappy faces, oh yeah, he did. Had to have been an important one, too, since they should’ve been out on patrol at this time of the night. Whatever. He’d catch up later. As soon as he reassured himself Echo was safe. Exhaustion beating at him, Aethan headed for the stairs.

“She is not here,” Michael said.

No! She wouldn’t. Unwilling to believe she’d leave him, he reached out with his psychic senses and scanned the castle for her.

Nothing. The emptiness, the lack of her presence floored him. Pivoting on his heels, he headed for the front door.

“Aethan.”

“Not now, Michael. I have to go find her.”

“She is safe.”

Michael’s clipped words penetrated the fog in his mind. Aethan eased his brutal grip on the door knob and turned.

“This will not happen again.” The Archangel advanced on him. “She needs a protector who’s constant. Your emotions make you a risk factor. You cannot be relied on to safeguard her—you’ve been gone two days.”

Risk factor
? Like he needed that shitty reminder. With his cursed powers, unable to claim his mate...It took everything Aethan had to keep from lashing out at Michael and proving him right. His hands fisted. “Who’s going to take her from me?”

The air around Michael stilled. Ice formed in his eyes and seeped into every syllable. “You dare to over-ride me on this?” The Archangel was at his coldest.

“She is all that stands between me and this city,” Aethan said. The unemotional words were a deadly decree, his threat a serious violation of his Guardian oath, but he didn’t care. “I’m quite capable. After all, I had the best teacher in honing what I am.”

Tension crackled in the foyer.

It had been on Michael’s orders, he’d razed many towns and villages, killing the innocents along with
demoniis
and staining his soul forever
.
But the bastard cared little for innocent lives lost as long as his war against evil was won.

The Arc nailed him with a cool stare. “This is about protecting Zarias’s descendant. Had you been present for the meeting, you’d know this. If this female is who—”

“Not
this
female,”
Aethan snapped. “Echo is
mine
.”

“—we search for, then she’s the Healer,” Michael continued as if he hadn’t heard a word. “The one who will traverse all the realms. And it could be the reason the demons want her. I will meet with her.”

Why the hell would Michael do this now?

Aethan had to go find Echo, bring her back so he could breathe again—His rioting mind finally registered what Michael had said.

“
Healer
? No fucking way! She is not. She was here for three days—three fucking days and none of us felt a thing!”

Michael stepped closer, his expression rife with concern now. “There was a spike last night—a big one. Whoever she is, her power has awakened. We have major problems. Those bastards will come out in the droves and your female is out there. Alone.”

Like he didn’t know that? But Michael insisted on keeping him here with his damn orations, when all Aethan wanted was to find his mate and hold her, just hold her until his world was right again. Now she was gone.

But as much as he hated to admit it, Michael was right. Echo needed to be kept safe, especially with demons on the hunt for psychic females.

He headed for the doors.

“Aethan?”

He growled and snapped around to face Blaéz.

“She’s at the oracle’s. But I’d suggest a shower first. I don’t imagine she’d welcome you with open arms seeing you as you are.”

Aethan glanced down at himself and ran a hand through his tangled hair. The grit and griminess there stuck to his fingers. He hated the time wasted, but Blaéz was right. He looked like shit.

Blaéz strolled closer, his gaze steady. “She’s safe and that’s what matters. I think you could use a moment to cool off a little.”

His jaw set, lips tight, Aethan headed to his room.

***

“For someone who just wants a roll with a human, he’s got it bad,” Týr muttered staring up the stairs.

“A roll?” Blaéz repeated. “You ever stop to think why he goes batshit crazy when it comes to that female?”

“He’s too damn selfish to share, is what I think.”

Blaéz shook his head. “Not when it comes to his mate.”

Týr’s gaze sharpened in disbelief. “Mate—as in destined-mate and all that crap?”

Blaéz merely stared at him.

“You gotta be shitting me. But she’s mortal!”

“Indeed, she is—stranger things have happened.”

Týr snorted. “How do we know if she’s really his mate?”

“Every time he wanted to kill you for breathing the same air she did,” Michael said, his tone dry as kindling.

Týr dragged a hand down his nose and smirked at him. “My bad. But you rode his ass harder, Arc.”

“I don’t care for the imagery, but it’s the fun part of my job,” Michael retorted and headed for the kitchen.

***

A strangled scream tore from Echo’s throat. She fought the tangled covers, struggling to sit up, her hand clutched to her chest. Her heart thudded too fast, was seconds away from leaping out of her chest.
Oh God—oh God
!

The bedside lamp flickered on.

“Echo?”

She stared blankly at Kira, who reached out and swept the sweat-dampened hair out of her eyes. “Tamsyn,” she whispered. Wrapping her arms around her raised knees, she rocked herself. “Her throat—the blood...”

Kira hurried to the bathroom and came back with a glass of water. “Here, drink this.”

Echo grasped the glass, sipped. The cool liquid slid down her throat and eased her a little. Kira took the glass and set it down on the bedside table.

“Maybe this bug you picked up yesterday is more serious than we thought,” Kira stroked her arm, her hazel eyes clouded with worry. “And you still haven’t fully recovered from your injuries. That’s probably why you dreamed about her.”

Echo raised her eyes to Kira’s.
Bug
? Then she remembered the reason why she’d collapsed in the alley. She’d been dizzy and weak...all she wanted was to sleep. It had to be something she ate, she decided. Being so stressed out, something was bound to snap.

And now she was wound up again after her nightmare. She shoved the covers aside and found her clothes. Changing rapidly into jeans and a sweater, she pulled on her boots and grabbed her jacket. Her dreams of Tamsyn had gotten more frequent lately. It had to mean something.

Kira rushed after her. “Echo, what are you doing?”

“I need to get out for a bit. I’m sorry, Kira, I have to go.” She had to go back to the place she’d found Tamsyn. The place she’d avoided for five long years.