Jude; The Fallen (The Fallen Series, Book 2) (24 page)

His head dipped, and snarls of dark curls fanned across his forehead, damp with sweat, even though the night was cool. Alex snuffled out a harsh breath, breathing through his nose. The tang of sand and memory filtered over his tongue with a rasp. He swallowed against the rising scream building in his lungs and raised his head to look at the sky.

The moon was full overhead, hanging so low he could have touched it if he had the strength to lift his hand. His ears searched the distance for sound, reaching out to grab onto anything that would anchor him and keep his head from spinning off his body. He blinked with furious focus as he panted for breath. He was so close, and all he needed was to keep it together long enough to finish his quest.

Alex’s fingers curled into the sand for purchase as he hauled himself to his feet, the handfuls of grainy earth dripping through his fingers back onto the dunes. His eyes fell on his prize. The tomb complex wavered in the distance, backlit by the haze of moonlight.

It was sudden and primal, and had never made more sense than at this moment. He threw back his head and howled, dark and sinister, into the night. It was a warning and a battle cry all in one. His feet moved as if they were guided by an unseen hand – straight toward the tombs.

I’m coming, Ash. Daddy’s coming
.

Chapter Thirteen

“Where is my child?” Coriander’s voice was low and tight, the words marked with venom.

The man smiled and smoothed the line of his tie. “Safe.” He tilted his head to consider them both. “For now.”

Jude’s fingers clenched, and he realized he was standing there like the idiot Coriander had pegged him for, with his hand curled around the bag instead of a gun. He shifted on his feet, calculating the wisdom of dropping the bag and yanking out the .45s. Coriander had him covered, but the narrowing of the man’s eyes told him a sudden movement would be foolish indeed.

Shadows flickered, and in the space of a blink, the man was flanked by four hissing demons. The man’s eyes glittered in a sickly shade of yellow. Coriander didn’t bat an eyelash, holding her arm steady.

“My daughter, asshole. Where is she?”

The suited man flicked his eyes over Coriander with arrogance, but widened as his gaze rested on the amulet around her neck. “I see you are agreeable to a trade, then.” A pink tongue darted out to swipe across his bottom lip. “I’m always open to negotiation.”

Jude found his voice. “No sale. Produce the girl.”

“Or what?” The man’s head snapped around as if it were the first time he noticed Jude was in the room.

“There is no ‘or what’. You’re dead either way. Save yourself the fight,” Jude growled.

The man shook his head, and behind him the demons hissed, the stench of sulfur stinking up the air. “I don’t think so.” He turned to Coriander. “We had a deal.”

Coriander’s lip curled. “Choke on it.”

The sound of the shot echoed in the small space before all hell broke loose.

The head of one of the demons exploded, spraying gore against the back wall, and another howled and lunged for Coriander as the other two descended on Jude. The man faded into the background, and Jude found himself on the ground, grappling, trying to evade the sharp points of teeth and claws. The bag, long fallen from his hand, had been kicked aside in the scuffle.

Coriander screamed, and the sound of more gunfire ricocheted, the smell of gunpowder mixing with fire and brimstone.

Teeth sank into his flesh, making him yell in pain, and his fists shot out to land solid blows on the two bodies pummeling at him. He managed to get his hands around one neck and twist, and the demonic bones snapped easily. Jude tossed the body off him and reached for the other.

Spittle, like acid, burned on his skin as the creature hissed and yowled on top of him. Jude kicked out with his feet, turning into a tight roll to reverse their positions. He spotted Coriander flailing over to his side, locked in her own physical confrontation. Her gun skidded across the ground, just out of his reach. It was an easier grab than getting to the bag, so he hauled back a fist and smashed it into the demon’s face. Going limp, it fell back, and Jude lunged across the body, his fingers making contact with the weapon.

He popped off two slugs, taking down the thing on top of her, before swiveling up to aim for the suited man. He was gone.

“Cori? You okay?” he asked, hauling her to her feet.

“Yeah,” she panted. “Got any more water?” She held up an arm, oozing with pus. At the sight, his own wounds throbbed with pain.

“Nah. We’ll have to wing it. Can you go on?”

Her face set into murderous determination. “He’s still got my baby. Hell, yes.”

Jude grinned at her. “That’s my girl.”

She leaned up and pressed a hard kiss to his mouth. “Damn straight.”

He trailed along the lighted corridors of the tomb complex, his nose leading the way. Alex stopped every so often and lifted his nose in the air to sniff and change direction. The smell of brimstone and sulfur was ripe in the heavy air, assaulting his sensitive nose. Underneath, a current of something familiar drifted. It was soft and light, like sunshine and smiles. He breathed deeply, sucking the scent into his lungs, letting it roll over his tongue as if tasting it would make it appear in front of him. It smelled fresh. And alive. It buried him in recognition, and all at once, his body snapped taut with awareness.

Ashtiru.

Alex’s feet shot off at a dead run, his nose anchored onto the scent of his daughter. His senses latched onto it like a homing beacon, everything else falling to the side as instinct took over. He passed through rooms, climbing steps, bracing himself for a fight around every turn.

He gasped for breath as he ran, panting with every step. His hands grasped at the walls, fingers digging in and breaking off chunks of ancient stone as he hauled himself around corners. Growling brought him up short, skidding him to a stop as two demons appeared out of nowhere, hissing and snarling. Evil yellow eyes glowed back at him, and saliva pooled and dripped from their gaping mouths. Mottled flesh pulled back over razor- sharp teeth, and they lunged.

Clawed, gnarled fingers reached for him and he stepped back, but he was too close. The pointed nails scratched at his flesh, ripping and tearing into his shirt, dragging him forward. Brimstone burned his eyes, making them water. He yelled and flailed, knocking one to the side, giving him enough room to try to spin out of the clutching grasp.

It didn’t work, and it advanced, pulling him closer. Saliva ran from the open maw, dropping onto his neck. His skin burned, and his hands shot up to close around the neck. He gripped hard and squeezed, listening for the tell-tale snap of bones. The thing wheezed, and he adjusted his hands, grabbing the face. He twisted hard and snapped the demon’s neck with a sickening crack. It fell back, limp, onto the ground, but there was no time to regroup before the second one launched its attack.

They fell to the ground in a tangle of limbs, both of them snarling and lashing out with frenzied abandon. Alex writhed and shifted his body, trying to avoid the onslaught of claws and teeth. He slammed his knee up into the demon’s torso, knocking the wind out of it, and threw it off. His fingers scrabbled for purchase on the floor, and he regained his footing. The demon howled and snaked its hand around his ankle, pulling hard to drag him back down. Alex’s foot shot out and caught it in the face, and it rolled over on its back with a gurgle.

The demon’s chest heaved with labored breaths and Alex threw himself down, straddling its chest. His head reared back, and with a bellow that originated from his toes, stabbed his hands into the diseased flesh. Alex’s fingers curled as the skin gave way, and he yanked his hands apart, tearing open the chest cavity. The demon screamed, and he tore harder, until the sound faded into a bubbling whine before it went silent.

Alex snorted and jumped up, shaking the gore from his hands. He burned from head to toe, covered in the poisonous fluids. Ashtiru’s scent came back to him in a flood, and he closed his eyes, concentrating. Ignoring the pain, he ran on, tracking the smell.

Alex raced, his heart pounding in his chest, lungs burning with each labored inhale and exhale. Deep inside, the jackal roused, growling to life with purpose. It flooded his nerves, saturating his brain with consciousness and fighting against his humanity. He passed by another open room when a soft whimper stopped him in his tracks. He backpedaled and ran inside.

The chamber was large and empty, with one small torch burning inside the door to cast a dim, flickering light within. The scent was strongest here, and his nose twitched in triumph. The rumble from his chest startled him as his eyes focused inside. Something small was huddled against the wall, almost near the corner, shaking with soft tremors. The hiss of breath that escaped him echoed, causing it to move. Alex locked eyes with his daughter and sank to his knees in the doorway. The rush overwhelmed him, and blue light shot from around him as the jackal in him howled with relief.

He crawled forward on hands and knees, and scooped up the child into his arms, the pulse of light growing stronger as it trailed around the chamber and out into the corridors.

“I’m here, Princess. Daddy’s here.”

As he gathered her closer, the jackal surfaced, unwilling to be denied any longer. Alex threw back his head and howled out loud, the deep sound trilling in the air like a benediction.

Jude and Coriander ran back out into the hallway, searching for any sign of the suited man. Her reclaimed weapon hung loosely in her hand.

“Come on,” she shouted, taking his hand. “This way.”

He followed hot on her heels, tamping down the urge to rush ahead of her. The feeling tasted strange in his mouth, but he swallowed it down with instinct to trust that she knew what she was doing.

A shadow rippled past, and Coriander’s arm lifted to pop off two rounds as they entered another room. The light chuckle brought them up short and face to face with their quarry.

The man smiled with ease, but his face paled as a sliver of blue light drifted in, covering them all.

The ripple of blue light pulsed through the chamber, resonating off the walls with an eerie howl. The hairs on the back of Jude's neck stood on end, and Coriander's eyes grew wide with recognition. Her lips turned upward in a menacing sneer.

"You can't hide her now," Coriander said. "You can't keep her from me." Her voice grew in cadence, gaining strength as she spoke. "He'll find her. He'll sniff her out." She shook her head, escaped strands of auburn hair flying through the air as she laughed. "If you thought you had your hands full with me, just you wait." Her eyes glittered as she tracked the haze of blue mist that still lingered. Another howl vibrated through the walls. "Call more of them if you want. It doesn’t matter now. He’ll take them all.” Her smile was pure malice. “The Anubis has come home."

“He has no home,” the man snapped back. “His death is mine as surely as yours is. We had a deal, and The Dealer has come to collect his prize.” He snarled as his yellow eyes flashed with hate, and two demons appeared behind Jude, taking him to the ground from behind.

Coriander yelled and fired again, missing The Dealer by a fraction.

“Give me what I want, you bitch!” he screamed, lunging and grabbing for her.

Jude grappled, twisting to get free, but claws and teeth held him tight, and he was helpless to get a handhold on anything. He could only watch as The Dealer knocked the gun from Coriander’s grasp and pulled her to him.