Darkness Rising: The Dark Angel Series: Book Two (20 page)

“Yes.”

“So why didn’t you come riding to my rescue when I had the car accident?”

“Because the Raziq attacked us at the house.”

I spun around. “What? Is Ilianna okay?”

“Of course. They attacked in force, which meant I had to flee rather than fight.”

I studied him for a moment, hearing the annoyance in his voice even though it didn’t show in his features, then turned around and squirted some soap into my hand. “And you would rather have fought?”

“Of course. The more Raziq I destroy, the fewer there are to find and use the keys.”

“So why not gather together a group of Mijai and hunt them down?”

“Because,” he said patiently, “that is against—”

“—the rules,” I finished for him. “Whoever made these rules of yours really sucks, you know that?”

“There are times when I think a certain amount of absurdity has been added to the whole process,” he agreed solemnly.

I glanced at him again and saw the brief twinkle in his bright eyes. “It’s hard to believe that, when I first met you, I thought you were devoid of humor.”

“I’m afraid it’s merely a side effect of holding this form.”

“How can holding human form affect whether or not you have a sense of humor?”

“It’s not just a sense of humor we gain.” He hesitated. “We are not without emotions, as I have said, but holding this shape for any length of time sharpens certain emotions, and that is often inconvenient.”

“Meaning it makes you more like us?”

“No.” Again he hesitated. “It simply makes us more … susceptible … to certain types of emotion.”

“What types of emotion?”

He shrugged and his game face came back down. “That very much depends on the situation we find ourselves in.”

“So if you find yourself guarding a totally annoying woman who won’t listen to reason and who insists on seeing an Aedh you distrust intensely, you’re liable to become more angry and more unreasonable the longer you hold this form?”

Amusement briefly touched his lips. “More than
likely. Luckily for us both, I am not stuck guarding a woman who totally ignores reason. She just ignores it when it suits her best.”

A smile twitched my lips. “Ah, but she
is
seeing a fallen Aedh.”

“I didn’t say she was perfect.”

I laughed and he smiled. It made his whole face seem warmer, more alive. More handsome.
And I shouldn’t be noticing
. I turned around and finished washing myself.

“Did you discover anything else about Forman when you examined him?” I asked as I turned off the taps then reached for a towel.

“No. And there certainly wasn’t enough of his brains left to enter his mind and read the lingering shadows of his thoughts and life.”

“Yeah, Lucian did get a little trigger-happy.” I walked across to my locker and began dressing. “I would have loved to have questioned him about his boss.”

“So Forman did not set the magic?”

“No, and it wasn’t an Aedh, either, because the magic had a different feel. It was darker.”

“Suggesting a sorcerer or Charna, perhaps?”

“Perhaps.” I finger-combed my hair. “But why would either of those want control of the gates?”

“Power,” he said simply. “Especially if we’re dealing with a dark sorcerer.”

“And if the dark sorcerer is also behind the buy-up of the businesses around Stane?”

He shrugged. “West Street sits on a major ley line junction. That would be a huge draw to someone
after power—especially if he cannot naturally walk the gray fields.”

I raised my eyebrows as I grabbed my bag of clothes and closed the locker. “How could a junction of ley lines help a sorcerer walk the grey fields?”

“As I have said, these intersections are places of such power that they can be used to manipulate time, reality, or fate. But they can also be used to create rifts between this world and the next.”

I frowned. “So a powerful enough sorcerer could enter the gray fields and presumably find the gates, even though he doesn’t have that ability naturally?”

Azriel nodded. “Although it is not so easy to find the gates in the fields. We are attuned to them; the sorcerer would not be.”

“But that might not matter if he finds the keys.”

“Which is why we must find the keys first.”

“Well, we won’t be able to do that until Ilianna creates the void for the book.” I hesitated. “But there’s one thing I don’t get. What was the point of buying up all the businesses around the ley lines? Why not just buy the building where they intersect?”

“Potions and spells do not require protection circles, but
real
magic—be it big or small—does. When it comes to an intersection this large, a prudent practitioner would want to build something rather more substantial than just a normal protection spell.”

“Something more permanent?”

“If they intend to use it more than once, yes.”

Then I guess the buyout made some sort of sense. “I think I’ll head to my hotel room to grab some sleep.”

“Get something to eat before you do,” he said, his tone indicating it was an order more than a suggestion.

“Are you always this bossy?” I said, exasperation in my voice as I headed for the door.

His lips once more twitched. “Only when the person I am supposed to be guarding is less than cautious about her own well-being.”

“And do you guard such people often?”

“This is the first and—more than likely—the last time I will undertake such an endeavor.”

I stopped next to him and met his gaze. “If you don’t like the mission, why not ask for a transfer?”

“It is my duty, and no one else’s.” His gaze didn’t waver, and yet something in those blue depths—something fierce and raw—made my stomach quiver. “And I never said I didn’t like it.”

“You’ve a funny way of showing it then, my friend.”

“That is because,” he said softly, “I fear it more than I like it.”

And with that, he winked out of existence, leaving me with dozens of questions I knew would probably never find an answer.

“Damn you to hell, Azriel,” I muttered, and clomped down the stairs.

Tao raised an eyebrow as I entered the kitchen. His brown hair was covered by an old baseball cap worn backward, and his white chef’s jacket was splattered with a colorful array of the evening’s cooking.

“You don’t look happy,” he commented. “Do you need a shoulder, drink, or food?”

“Mostly the last option, but a little of the others wouldn’t go astray right now, either.”

He caught my elbow and led me over to a chair in the far corner. “Sit,” he ordered, “while I rustle up a meal and a drink.”

I did as ordered. Tao, like most wolves, tended to be on the lean side, but he worked out religiously and, as a result, had not only wonderful shoulders and arms but a nice V-shape to his body as well. And he moved with a grace that belied his height.

“So,” he said, coming back ten minutes later with a thick steak sandwich and a huge glass of Coke, “what’s been going on?”

I updated him on everything that had happened over the day as I ate, and when I’d finished talking, he frowned. “So the first priority now has to be tracking down this Harlen fellow.”

“Stane’s not going to make much headway until we can get a full name,” I commented, grabbing a tea towel and wiping my hands on it. “I think we’re better off trying to find the man in charge. I mean, how many dark sorcerers can there be in this city?”

“Probably more than you or I are aware of,” he said grimly, crossing his arms as he leaned a shoulder against the wall. “And Ilianna is probably getting close to using up all her goodwill at the Brindle.”

“Which is why I’m going over there myself tomorrow to talk to them.” I wanted to see their reactions when I told them someone had raised a Maniae and had sent it after members of the high vampire council.

“You want company?” Tao asked.

I hesitated, then shook my head. I had Azriel and, at this point, it seemed wiser to keep contact with those I cared about to a minimum. At least until we
sorted out the Aedh problem. They’d already gone after Ilianna—they might try Tao next.

Which only meant it was all the more urgent that Ilianna find the wards my father had set and try to reuse them around our place.

Of course, as Azriel had already pointed out, I was probably endangering both Ilianna and Tao just by being here at the café. I finished my Coke and stood up with a sigh. “I’ll be staying at the Langham for the next few days. You’ll need to find someplace else to stay, too.”

He grinned. “Finding a place to bunk down will
not
be a problem, let me assure you.”

I eyed him for a minute, then said, “How are you and Candy doing?”

“Sadly, it was just a fling, and now she’s moved on to greener pastures.”

I blinked. “You almost sound upset.”

“I am. It’s usually me doing the dumping, not the other way around.”

I leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “Well, I can’t say I’m sad she’s out of your life, but I doubt she’ll find a better lover than you.”

He smiled and touched my chin lightly. “Damn right,” he said, a smile teasing his lips. Then it faded a little. “Be careful, okay?”

“I will.” I kissed him again then headed out of the café, catching a passing cab and heading to the Langham. Once in my suite, I crawled into bed and went straight to sleep.

The sharp trilling of my phone woke me. I groped for it blindly and croaked, “Hello?”

“Risa? It’s Mike.”

It said a lot about my state that it took me several moments to remember that Mike was our accountant. He’d also been Mom’s accountant and, I suspected, a whole lot more—although
that
was something neither he nor she had confirmed.

“Mike,” I said, rolling over onto my back and wiping the sleep from my eyes. “What’s up?”

I glanced at the clock as I said it and discovered it was nearly midday. I’d slept a whole lot longer than I’d intended.

“I need you to come in and sign some documents so we can complete the transfer of several of your mom’s assets,” he said. “I’m free at three—does that suit?”

I somehow restrained a yawn and said, “I guess.”

“Good. I’ll see you then.” He hung up, but the phone rang again almost immediately. This time, the vid-screen opened up, revealing Stane.

“Hey,” he said, sounding far too cheerful for someone who spent his entire life sitting behind com-screens. “How’s it going?”

“I’ve had better weeks,” I replied honestly enough. “What’s up?”

“I’ve done a sweep of your place and removed several bugs. You’ll be pleased to know there were no monitors.” He paused, then added a little dramatically, “And I’ve had a minor breakthrough.”

My heart skipped several beats. “You’ve found the missing man behind the consortium?”

“Nope.”

“You’ve discovered who our mystery man known only as Harlen really is?”

“Remember, I used the word
minor,”
he said drily. “So no.”

“Then what?”

“Remember that rat-faced guy you were looking for? The one who delivered the Dušan’s book and the first letter from your father?”

“You’ve discovered who he is?”

“Better than that. I know where you can find him. And he’s there right now if you want to talk to him.”

T
HE CAB PULLED UP SEVERAL DOORS DOWN FROM
the run-down building. I paid the driver and climbed out, the wind snatching my coat ends and flinging them backward. I shivered and zipped it up, shoving my hands into my pocket as I studied the building.

According to Stane, this area had recently been rezoned from industrial to residential, but the demolition teams had yet to move in. As a result, the city’s homeless had taken up residence.

The building the rat-faced courier had entered was a quaint two-story brown-brick building sandwiched between two bigger warehouses. Large windows looked out onto the street but there was little chance of anyone seeing me standing here, as somewhat grimy blinds had been drawn down in all of them.

“These are the premises we seek?” Azriel said softly.

I nodded. “Stane couldn’t give us his name, but thanks to the traffic cams down the road, he spotted our rat-faced shifter enter here forty-five minutes ago. He hasn’t come out.”

“Then let us go in and find him.” He drew his sword. Valdis gleamed brightly in the dull afternoon light.

“You do realize we can’t kill him?” I commented as we crossed the road.

Azriel looked at me. “You seem to be of the opinion that I enjoy shedding blood.”

“I am of the opinion that you’ll do whatever is necessary to complete your mission. And if that means killing, then yeah.”

“I cannot kill if it is not warranted—something you’ve been told several times.”

Then he pushed the door open and stepped through, Valdis’s fire imparting an eerie glow to the shadow-filled hallway.