Grave Attraction (25 page)

Clutching the wound at her side, Marlena surveyed the damage. Antonella was laying on the ground about twenty feet away, the bite to her side bleeding heavily. Maria was crouched beside her, tending to her twin sister's wounds. The rest of the witches appeared unharmed but thoroughly shaken. Gina was still standing inside her protective circle, the braid of hair burned to ash. At least that part went according to plan. For better or for worse, the creature was now bound to this realm.

“Aw, hell,” Adam said, snapping her train of thought.

“What's wrong?”

“The fucker's regenerating.” As soon as Dmitri finished reloading his shotgun, he slapped a fresh magazine into his automatic rifle.

Sure enough, the creature's wounds were healing at an alarming rate. New skin grew over the repaired tissues and tendons, and fur sprouted up like weeds. A low growl emanated from deep in its chest as it lifted its massive head.

Adam pointed his shotgun and pulled the trigger, but there was only a click instead of a bang. “Shit.” Eyes wide, he backed up a few steps. Dmitri tossed him a box of shells, and while Adam feverishly reloaded, Dmitri unleashed a stream of machine gun fire.

Marlena rushed over to Gina. “Can you get that thing into the vessel?”

The witch held her hands out in a helpless gesture. “I tried. It won't go in.”

“Try harder!” She rounded on Dmitri. “So much for never meeting a creature you couldn't kill.”

He shrugged as he yanked the spent magazine from the machine gun and slapped in another fresh one. “Anything that lives can die. It's a good thing I enjoy a challenge.”

The beast stood, its red eyes glowing with fury. Adam raised his weapon and carefully took aim while Dmitri reached for one of his grenades. But before either man could act on his intentions, an invisible force immobilized the beast and lifted it into the air. It gave out a startled cry, thrashing in vain against the bonds holding it captive.

“How pitiful.” A man's British accent filled the night air, his tone thick with contempt. “Sending her pet to do her dirty work.”

A chill swept down Marlena's spine. Oh, God, she knew that voice. Four centuries had passed since the last time she'd heard it, right before the executioner lit the pyre. She spun around, and her lips peeled back in a snarl.

“Finch.”

I
t took every ounce of Adam's strength to hold Marlena back when she charged toward Samuel with her claws extended.

“Let me go!” Her legs kicked out when he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her off the ground. “It's Finch! I want to rip his throat out!”

Confused, Adam's gaze darted back and forth between Samuel and Marlena. “What are you talking about? That's my boss.”

“Your boss?” Her voice shot up an octave. “You
work
for Finch?”

“No, I work for Samuel. Why do you keep calling him Finch?”

“Because that's who he is. Reverend. Samuel. Finch.” Marlena spat out his name like it was an obscenity. “How can you not remember him?”

Adam stared at Samuel, and an odd feeling of recollection swept over him. Disjointed images flashed through his mind, but they didn't make any sense. Then a piercing pain shot through his temples and the feeling disappeared. “I'm sorry, I—”

“He's the witch finder who sentenced us to death!”

Stunned, Adam's jaw dropped open. Of all the things to be missing from his memory. He gawked at Samuel. “Is that true?”

Samuel's expression held a hint of compassion as he watched them from a distance. He tugged at the cuffs of his impeccably cut suit, such a change from the jeans and polo shirt he'd worn the last time Adam saw him.

“Yes. Back then I was known as Reverend Finch, but now I'm simply Samuel.” He said it so casually, as though he were verifying the score of a baseball game. “Don't be angry with him, Miss Walther. It's not his fault. I placed a block in his mind when he became a reaper to ensure he'd never recall my prior identity.”

“You son of a bitch.” She wriggled free from Adam's grip and rushed toward Samuel. With the grace of a predator, she leaped over the charred remains of Cassie's kitchen table but froze in her tracks a few feet shy of her target. Teeth bared, she fought against the invisible force holding her in place.

“I'm sorry, but I cannot allow you to do that.” Samuel shifted his attention back to Adam. “If you like, I could unlock the memories, but you're much better off without them.”

Adam wasn't sure if he agreed with Samuel or not, but one thing was for certain. He was really getting tired of being played like a puppet. He wanted some answers, and he wanted them now. “I don't understand. How could you be Finch?”

“We all have to start somewhere, boy.” Samuel sniffed. “Your journey as a reaper started on the streets of Chicago. Mine began with a holy crusade.”

“Holy crusade my ass,” Marlena snarled, still straining to break free of the bonds holding her immobile. “You're nothing but a fucking murderer!”

Samuel moved closer to Marlena. His hands were clasped behind his back, his face giving nothing away. “You're right, my dear shifter, I am a murderer. I've killed so many, so often, that I've lost track of the exact number. At the time, I believed my actions were noble. Mankind was drowning in wickedness and decay, and I fought on the side of righteousness. And in pursuit of my holy cause, I committed unspeakable acts. At the time, I thought the ends justified the means, but upon the loss of my humanity Fate showed me the true depth of my mistakes.”

“Burning people to death isn't a mistake.” Marlena's eyeteeth had elongated into fangs, her voice low and distorted. “It's an abomination.”

If Adam hadn't been around Samuel so much in recent days, he wouldn't have picked up on the darkness passing over his features.

“Yes,” Samuel said, the word sounding flat on his lips. “I understand that now. And for those crimes I have paid penance for over four hundred years.”

Marlena's face pinched tight. “What, do you expect me to feel sorry for you? Forgive you?”

“No, you're far too spiteful.” Samuel gripped her chin, forcing her eyes to meet his. “Second chances are rare in this world. I suggest you not squander yours.”

Turning away, he walked toward the creature, which still thrashed against the bonds holding it captive. It stilled at his approach, not making a sound aside from its labored breathing. “I could destroy you, but that wouldn't send the right message to your master, now would it?”

The beast let out a high-pitched whimper, the sound so pitiful that for a moment or two Adam actually felt sympathy toward it.

“What are you going to do with it?” he asked.

“If you were in my position, what would you do?”

“I can't say, since I don't have all of the information. Is this the creature who attacked Cassie?”

“Oh yes, but she was acting on orders.”

“Whose orders?”

Samuel hesitated, as if debating how much to tell them. “Like Fate, her actual name is unpronounceable by humans. In this realm, she's known as Chaos. Over the past two years, her incursions on Fate's territory have become bolder and much more frequent. After this incident, she'll have to be dealt with.” He tugged at the cuffs of his white button-down shirt. “This creature may be a ruthless killer, but she has the mind of a child. It's not fair to inflict the ultimate punishment when she lacks the full understanding of her actions.”

“You murder innocents but spare the life of a killer.” Marlena snorted in disgust.

“Chalk it up to personal growth.” A ripple of power radiated from Samuel, an unspoken warning of the danger lurking beneath the veneer of civility. “Say what you want, she's merely a tool. The punishment belongs to the person who wielded her. Besides . . .” He cast a sidelong glance at the creature. “I know exactly what to do with her.”

The beast whimpered again, and this time Adam did feel sorry for it.

Samuel placed his hand on its arm, and in an instant, they both disappeared. The hold on Marlena must have released at the same time, because her muscles relaxed and her arms dropped down to her sides.

“Where did he go?” she asked, her claws still extended.

“Beats me. You don't have to have manners when you're omnipotent.”

She opened her mouth to say something but stopped when her phone rang in her back pocket. She answered the call without checking the number. “Hello?”

Adam watched while she spoke with the person on the other end of the line.

“What do you mean, change? What kind of change?” She paused, her free hand tapping against the side of her leg. “Okay, I'll be right there.” She disconnected. “That was the hospital. Something's going on with Cassie, but they said they couldn't discuss it over the phone.”

Adam and Dmitri exchanged a look. Dmitri nodded and then Adam dug his keys from his pants pocket and tossed them to Marlena.

“Take the truck.”

“What about you?”

He jerked his head toward the half dozen witches crouched down beside Antonella. The fabric of her shirt was pulled up on one side, revealing a nasty gash. “She needs help; she's bleeding badly.”

“We'll take her with us.”

Adam shook his head. “She can't go to the hospital looking like that. They'll ask too many questions.” And for the life of him, he couldn't come up with a plausible explanation for the giant set of teeth marks. He could mentally influence a doctor or two, but if pictures of her injuries leaked outside the hospital, he wouldn't be able to contain them.

“Don't worry. We'll take care of her,” Dmitri said. “Go to your daughter.”

Her gaze flicked back to Adam. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. Now go. I'll be there as soon as we patch her up.”

 

Marlena made it to the hospital in record time, pulling into the first open parking spot she found, and racing through the front entrance. Too impatient to wait for the elevator to arrive, she bounded up five flights of stairs and strode into the intensive care unit. She blew past the nurses' station and down the corridor, not stopping until she reached Cassie's room. She opened the door, and the sight of her daughter awake and alert sent her spirits soaring.

The ventilator had been removed, and Cassie appeared to be breathing on her own and without any difficulty. Only one IV was inserted in her arm. She was sitting upright, leaning over a serving tray and eating what looked like green Jell-O. When she saw Marlena, her mouth split into a huge grin. Her voice sounded like she'd been gargling glass when she opened her mouth and said, “Marley!”

Marlena hurried across the room and hugged her daughter, careful not to squeeze too hard. Cassie hugged her back lightly, a sure sign she wasn't up to full strength.

“In all the years I've worked in critical care, I've never seen anything like it.” Dr. Chan stood a few feet from the door, a notepad in his left hand. “There's no medical explanation for her recovery. Absolutely none.”

Marlena shot him a wry look. “Don't sound so disappointed, Doc.”

“I'm not. I'm just trying to understand how her condition changed so radically.” Clearly confused, he turned to Cassie. “With your permission, I'd like to run a few more tests to ensure we're not missing anything.”

“Sure, why not?” Cassie said from her bed. The swelling around her face had gone down considerably, and the ugly bruises had faded to brownish yellow. And although her eyes looked tired and puffy, they gleamed. “As long as I can leave when you're finished.”

“If everything comes back the way I expect, then yes, we can discharge you tonight.”

“How long will the tests take?” Marlena asked.

“About an hour, maybe two at the most.”

She watched as they wheeled Cassie's bed down the corridor and into the oversized service elevator. As the doors slid shut, her stomach grumbled. A good fight never failed to work up her appetite, and with Cassie in testing for the next hour or so, now would be the perfect time to grab a bite to eat. While she was at it, she'd also buy something for Cassie to wear once she was discharged. All of the witch's clothes had been destroyed in the fire, leaving her with nothing but a hospital gown and the tattered remains of what she'd been wearing the night she was admitted.

Relieved and elated, Marlena rode the elevator down to the first floor and powered up her phone once she stepped outside.

“How's she doing?” Adam asked when he answered her call.

“According to the doctors, she's a modern-day medical miracle.”

“That's great news!”

“Yeah, it is.” Although a part of her couldn't help but wonder how it happened. People didn't just go from death's door to fit as a fiddle in the space of a couple hours. Shifters? Yes. Reapers? Without a doubt. But witches were mortal, and they lacked the ability to spontaneously regenerate damaged tissues and failing organs. Who helped her? How? And why?

The thought of Samuel being responsible crept into her mind, but she quickly discounted the notion. No way would that prick help a witch, especially if he knew of her ties to Marlena.

“How's Antonella doing?” Marlena asked.

“Better. The puncture wounds were deep, but thankfully nothing vital was damaged. Dmitri was able to stitch her up. From what I can tell, he did a pretty good job, but she's probably going to have a scar.”

“Poor thing.” Marlena moved the phone to her other ear. “Are you still at the house?”

“No, we're heading over to Gina's. We decided to take the twins there once we got Antonella stabilized.”

Until Cassie got back on her feet, the coven would have to rely on Gina for guidance and support. And who knew, maybe Cassie would decide to step down and allow Gina to take over as coven leader. Stranger things had been known to happen. “When do you think you can come to the hospital?”

“Give me about an hour. I need to stop by the store for a clean shirt so they don't try to admit me when I walk through the doors.”

“Okay,” she said with a laugh. Good thing she'd left a sweater in Adam's truck or she would have had to do the same thing. “I'm going to grab a quick bite to eat and then I guess I'll meet you in Cassie's room.”

“Sounds like a plan. See you in a bit, kitten.”

She smiled at the term of endearment. “See you then.”

She disconnected, feeling more happy and content than she'd been in a very long time. Her daughter was on the road to recovery, and she had the love of a good man. No, he wasn't Christopher and he never would be, and that was fine by her. She loved him for the man he was, and even if she could, she wouldn't change a single thing about him.

Keys in hand, she strode toward Adam's truck. She'd locked her wallet in the glove box, and she needed it to pay for food. At this hour, there weren't as many cars in the visitor lot, and the majority of them were parked near the emergency room entrance.

Marlena rounded the front end of the truck and was about to unlock the door when a sharp pain stabbed the back of her upper thigh.

“Ow!” Her hand flew back to the source of the sting and found an object lodged in her leg. She yanked it out, horrified to find the same type of dart she was shot with when she was abducted. The area where the dart had pierced her leg felt tingly, and the sensation was spreading like wildfire. Christ, how much sedative was in the damn dart, enough to bring down a freaking elephant? It had to be for it to act this quickly. She shook her head and a wave of dizziness crashed over her.

A sudden movement caught in her peripheral vision. She twisted her neck to get a better look and saw a heavyset man climbing inside a white van about thirty feet away. He didn't look familiar, and with the wind blowing toward him, she couldn't pick up his scent. It wasn't Jeremiah, she knew that much, which meant it had to be his accomplice.