Hunted tgl-3 (20 page)

“We do things democratically around here, Lunaris,” I said firmly.

“My name is Solaris,” she snapped rudely as though insulted I couldn’t tell them apart. She jerked her thumb and indicated her twin.
“She
is Lunaris.”

I kept my cool when all I wanted to do was snap back, but I was leading this mission and that meant keeping my cool, just like Remy or Bran would. “We usually go with what the majority decides, which means we vote.”

“Then I vote we don’t fraternize with any demons, active, neutral or whatever you want to call them,” Solaris said.

Her sister nodded. The two were angry about something, though I wasn’t sure what. Esras’ gaze moved from me to the twins and back to me again, but he didn’t speak. I had a feeling he was one of those guys who just watched and listened without intervening.

“That’s going to be interesting, because we are going to Jethro’s Bar and Jethro is a demon, a Neutral to be specific,” I said with just a tiny bit of glee. “And if you didn’t already know, Cardinal Bran is considered a Souled Demon by some.”

The twins looked at each other and made faces. Their attitude was beginning to piss me off. Lucien raised a finger to get my attention. “Yes?”

“Can we eat at Jethro’s since it’s getting close to lunch time?”

“No,” the twins said, in unison this time.

Esras shook his head, too.

I gave Lucien a sheepish grin. “Sorry, we’ve been outvoted. We’ll probably be back here by lunchtime anyway. If we are not, we can eat at a restaurant owned by a Guardian.”

Lucien was disappointed, even though he tried to cover it with a smile. “Is Jethro a member of the Outcasts?”

“It’s an insult to use the term ‘Outcasts’,” I corrected him impatiently.

He blinked, his smile waning. “I didn’t know.”

Feeling bad since he was the only nice SG in my unwanted new team, I gave him a smile. “They are called the Brotherhood of Guardians or just the Brotherhood. And no, Jethro is not a member. He is a neutral Hermonite.” From the corner of my eyes, I caught the glance and eye rolls the twins exchanged. Grinding my teeth, I added, “But that doesn’t mean he didn’t go after human souls at some point. What matters now is he doesn’t do it anymore. He supplies us with information on demonic activities that our Psi-dar can’t pick up. We, in turn, offer him protection.” I glanced at my watch. Eleven o’clock. I gave them a sweeping glance. “Do you know where the weapons room is?”

“Yes, Cardinal.” Esras frowned. “Master Haziel showed us around.”

“Did he give you hunting coats to conceal your weapons, too?”

They all nodded.

“Good. Wear them and let’s meet outside the weapons room in thirty minutes. Oh, and Esras?” He glanced at me. “Don’t call me Cardinal. Everyone calls me Lil.” I waited until they teleported, then sighed. This mission could turn disastrous if I didn’t watch my temper.

T
he alley behind Jethro’s bar was filthy, as usual. Leading with Lucien, I slowed down our teleport until I found a spot away from the icky puddles, then rematerialized.

Lucien grinned. “That was cool. How did you slow down?”

“A trick I learned recently,” I said absentmindedly, reaching under my trench coat to touch my lower back. It felt warm and tingly, like an itch that wouldn’t go away. Not sure what it meant, I ignored it and focused on Bran.

A quick scan told me he wasn’t at Jethro’s, which was packed as usual. I still didn’t understand why he chose to sleep at Jethro’s when it took less than a second to teleport home.

The twins appeared, one after the other. They looked around with disgust. Once again, I couldn’t tell them apart until they spoke.

“Where are we?” one asked. Her voice was gentler, which meant she was Lunaris.

“L.A. warehouse district. This building belongs to Jethro. The bar’s entrance is that way.” I pointed toward the front of the building.

“Yeah, I can feel them,” Solaris said in her high-pitched annoying voice. “Demons,” she added, reaching for the ninja stars she’d placed in sheaths around her waist when we were in the weapons room.

“No weapons, please,” I warned. Her eyes narrowed as though she wanted to defy me, then she backed down, her hands dropping to her sides and forming fists.

“Where’s Esras?” I asked when the Guardian didn’t appear.

“Master Haziel came to the weapons room right after you teleported and needed to have a word,” Lunaris answered.

“He’ll miss the telegate if he’s not careful,” I warned. A telegate was a trail of energy disturbance left behind when one teleported. “One time, when we teleported here, only two of us made it while the others ended up across town.”

Esras appeared just as I finished speaking. He was red in the face, uneasiness pouring from him.

“Is everything okay?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said and tugged the collar of his shirt. The fact that he couldn’t meet my eyes told me his nervousness had something to do with me. If he didn’t want to talk about it, fine. I couldn’t take any more mess directed at me. What bugged me more was the twins’ antagonistic attitude toward all demons. They had grumbled while we chose weapons, and I was sure they wouldn’t stop.

“Before we go inside the restaurant, you need to know it is packed. Don’t do or say anything to antagonize them, because we are not here to fight. In fact, Jethro has a policy against many things, including fights and teleporting, in his bar. If a demon makes a sudden move, don’t assume he or she is about to attack. If you have to respond, just subdue them.”

“This is not right,” Solaris murmured.

“Solaris,” her twin warned.

“You know I’m right,” Solaris snapped. “He did this on purpose. He knows how we feel about…about…” she glanced at me and lifted her chin, “about being friendly with demons.” I had a feeling she meant to say something else.

Lunaris sighed and glanced at me. “I apologize for my sister—”

“You don’t need to apologize to
her.”

The way she said “her”, I might as well be something that crawled from the sewer.

“What is your problem, Solaris?” I asked, working hard to control my temper. “If you feel so strongly about them, why did you volunteer to come with me?”

“We didn’t volunteer. The senile old fart told us to come,” Solaris said.

Something inside me snapped. “Don’t call Master Haziel names. He’s many things, but he’s not senile or a fart, whatever that is. I’m sure he had his reasons for choosing you.”

“Of course, he does,” Solaris snapped. “He is playing head games with us, as usual.”

My eyes narrowed. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“He knows how we feel about demons because they killed our parents,” she snarled.

I blinked at the hatred in her voice. “Oh, I didn’t know.”

“Why should you? It happened thirteen years ago during the demonic raid,” she answered, her eyes flashing. “You were only three.”

Oh, no, not that again. Did they know my father was behind it? Would I ever put what he did behind me? My father had gone on a murderous rampage while searching for my mother and me, but no one had ever made me feel guilty for his actions until today.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“You should be,” Solaris said with so much venom I cringed.

“That is enough,” Esras interjected.

“You stay out of this, Esras,” Solaris snapped.

Solaris
, her sister warned her telepathically, but somehow I heard her.
It is not her fault
.

Of course it is. He was searching for her
.

Was this the purpose of this mission? To see if I could work with people who hated my guts?

Solaris continued to glare at me. “Your father—”

“Is in Tartarus,” I said with as much venom as I could master, which was easy because I was now pissed.

“No, he’s not. He’s been seen more than once the last two weeks.”

My stomach hollowed out. “That’s crap. My grandfather defeated him during the battle on Jarvis Island, and anyone who claims he’s alive is calling my grandfather a liar. I’m sorry you lost your family, but I lost my mother and grandmother, too.
And
, I am not responsible for Valafar’s actions.”

Solaris opened her mouth again, but her twin grabbed her arm and marched her to the back of the building. I didn’t bother to listen to their exchange. I took some deep calming breaths, then glanced at Lucien and Esras.

“You handled that very well,” Esras said. Lucien nodded.

I shook my head. The very thought that Valafar could be alive filled me with dread. My feelings toward him were still conflicted. Part of me wished he wasn’t suffering in Tartarus. He had once loved me enough to raid Guardian enclaves while searching for my mother and me. The other part of me wished he would just disappear forever. He’d been ruthless and ambitious, and if by some remote chance he’d survived Jarvis Island, he’d come for me again. Even giving weight to Solaris’s rants pissed me off.

“Are your feelings going to get in the way of this mission?” I asked when the twins rejoined us.

“Of course not,” Lunaris answered and I could tell she was telling the truth.

Solaris glowered instead.

I cocked my eyebrow, but she still refused to speak. “If you can’t be objective, Solaris, then go back to the valley and report to Master Haziel.”

A flicker of uncertainty flashed in her eyes.

“I mean it. If you can’t take orders from me, you have no business being here.”

“My feelings won’t get in the way of my duties,
Cardinal,”
she said through clenched teeth.

“Good because rule number one is never let personal feelings get in the way of getting a job done.” I glanced at Esras, then Lucien, before coming back to the twins. “If any of you have a problem with me because Valafar was my father, put it aside for now. You’ll have plenty of time afterward to continue hating me. Jethro may be a Hermonite, but he’s an ally. His customers are our allies too. You don’t attack anyone unless I say so.”

Silence.

“Is that understood?”

“Yes, Cardinal,” the four said in unison.

This time, I didn’t tell them not to call me Cardinal. We’d wasted enough time talking. “Let’s go.”

No one spoke as we sidestepped puddles of grey muck and walked toward the entrance. Valafar alive? What utter nonsense. We exited the alley and entered the road running in front of hulking warehouses. The parking area in front of the bar was packed with bikes.

Like most of the warehouses in the area, the exterior needed fixing. In fact, it looked exactly the same as the first time I saw it. The green and black canopy above the metal railing was faded, the chairs and table were chipped and paint was falling off the surface. The only new additions were the ancient words scrawled on the glass window.

“Ready?” I asked before opening the door. Lucien and Esras nodded right away. The twins took their time, but they eventually did.

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee mixed with spicy foods greeted us when I opened the front entrance. The tingle and heat at the base of my spine slowly spread upward and outward as though someone had injected something hot into my spine. My fingers grew warm and for one brief moment, my vision blurred then sharpened as I glanced around.

I recognized faces in the crowd, but the usual nods and smiles were missing. There was a mass transformation as the shape-shifters reverted to their human forms. Scales smoothed out and body hair shrunk until skins were human-like. Horns, tails, and claws retracted. Cat and dog-like ears shifted. Lizard-like tongues stopped lapping at bug soups. Then there was mass teleporting from the tables near us to the far walls, Hermonites tripping and bumping against each other.

They’d never run from us before. Maybe it was the new faces. I glanced back and was surprised when they all stopped walking and stared at me like I’d sprouted two heads. When Lucien’s eyes went to my hands, I looked down and gulped. My hands were glowing. Why?

The ancient texts were visible on my wrist and the back of my hand, and it hit me. I was a human lethal weapon. The Kris Dagger’s powers had sensed the demons, just like they had with Dante and Kael a week ago. Chances were I was already emitting rays harmful to everyone in the room. No wonder they’d teleported away as soon as we stepped inside the restaurant.

I glanced around and fought panic. Jethro’s customers stood near the walls and watched us warily. The tingle along my spine and arms intensified, and the glow around my hands grew brighter. If I didn’t control my powers, I’d flood the room with the Kris Dagger’s death rays and kill every Neutral in the room.

I focused hard on staying calm. It was one thing to control my powers when I sparred at home and quite another when I faced demons.
They’re not my enemies…they’re our allies…they’re not my enemies…they’re our allies…

Flashes of past scenes zipped through my mind—Jethro welcoming us with open arms, giving us information, riding in a motorcade, eating, playing a game of pool in the next room, listening to Karaoke singers. Some of the memories were hazy, possibly because I couldn’t remember when they happened, but being in the bar brought them back.

My hands grew dimmer. The more I focused on the Neutrals’ past goodness, the dimmer the symbols grew. After a few more seconds, the glow disappeared, though the buzz along my spine remained. I glanced at the other Guardians, who were watching me with a mixture of concern and awe. Even Solaris forgot to glare at me with hatred.

Let’s go
, I telepathed them.

Eyes followed us as we approached the counter. One of the bartenders teleported, leaving behind the one I recognized from a few months ago. He’d helped us locate a Nosferatu demoness. Because of my messed-up memories, I didn’t know how often our paths had crossed since.

A wave of fear and resentment flowed from him, his gaze shifting from me to the others then back to me again, but he didn’t bolt like his friend.

“We need to talk.” I could see the Neutrals watching us from the corner of my eyes, so I kept my voice low. “Privately.”

He nodded, then appeared on our side of the counter. I must not have been emitting the harmful rays because he didn’t appear to be in pain. We followed him across the restaurant, eyes drilling holes in our backs. I had no idea where the resentment came from. It couldn’t be because I’d become a demon’s worst nightmare. From what I remembered, Jethro’s customers had always liked having us around.

Before we left the restaurant floor and the narrow hallway leading to Jethro’s office and private quarters, I glanced back. The Neutrals watched us like hawks.

“Esras, you come with me. The rest of you keep watch out here. If anyone approaches, stop them and find out what they want. If they want to talk to me, ping me. If they attack, knock them out.”

They nodded, even Solaris. Her attitude had undergone a dramatic change, but I knew it wouldn’t last.

“I’m an empath, so I’ll know if you need our help,” I added, then followed the bartender and Esras down the hallway to Jethro’s office, which was a lot more spacious than I’d first thought.

The once dreary room had undergone some changes—several bunk beds and a dresser now replaced the piles of newspaper that had taken up most of the space. The lumpy sofa Bran had used when he’d lived with Jethro was still there along with the desk.

I faced the bartender, who kept his distance as though he expected me to hurt him. “Where’s Jethro?”

“He is missing because…because…” He swallowed.

I frowned. “Because of what?”

“His association with you guys…the Guardians,” he finished in a rush, his face flushing.

“What makes you say that?” I asked.

“Two nature-benders came looking for him last night after he left for a meeting with the Cardinals. They knew he was meeting with you. Not
you
, Cardinal Lil. I mean the older Cardinals, who picked him up. The nature-benders vowed to come back. As soon as the Cardinals brought Jethro back, they reappeared and took him. I didn’t know what to do, so I contacted the Hermonites out there.” He slanted his head to indicate the bar. “They organized a search party. Most of them spent the night searching for Jethro. Some are still out there.”

That might explain the resentment toward us.

“What did the nature-benders look like?” I asked, hoping they were Dante and Kael.

“Tall, big, long, curly brown hair. They looked like twins.”

Definitely not Dante and Kael. “Have you seen Cardinal Llyr?”

“He was here an hour ago. As soon as I told him about Jethro, he left to search for him, too. He thinks whoever took the others has Jethro.”

“The others?”

“Young Hermonites have been disappearing for several weeks now. There are rumors that the Guardians kidnapped them.”

“What would we want with demons?” Esras asked.

“To turn them into Guardians, like you turned Cardinal Llyr,” the bartender said.