Mortal Obligation (4 page)

The shadow of the creature shuffling toward them bounced off of the parking blocks as it walked under the street lights. Paden growled again, this time much louder. Her friend stepped in front of her, blocking her from the direct sight of the scary creature a few yards away.

“Patience, Paden. Let me handle this one.” Sophie walked forward, her stride purposeful and deadly. Her hands were at her side, slightly outstretched, a faint green glow forming at her fingertips.  She turned briefly to look over her shoulder, and Ree realized she, too, had fangs. “Watch what I do, Alastriana,” Sophie said.

Ree could now see that the creature was a man.  He approached slowly, his stride smooth. “Guardian, we weren't expecting you.” His voice wasn’t as brittle sounding as the other’s had been, and Ree briefly wondered why.

 Sophie tilted her head, regarding him. “Well, now that I’m here, what will you do?”

“Finish you.” Without any more warning he launched himself at Sophie. He moved faster than anyone Ree had ever seen. His motions were a blur as he struck at the tall woman. He tried to swing around her, but was pulled back by the scruff of his neck.

Sophie tsked at him. “Nah ah. Not today, newbie.”

Ree felt the boiling sensation from earlier, but not as strong, and more centralized in her chest. As she watched her boss, she realized she was feeling an echo of what the other woman was doing. She tried to focus past the flurry of movements and was able to sense the moment the woman released a short blast of that pent-up energy. The dark man disappeared just like the other one had done earlier.

Before the dust had even settled, Sophie turned and looked at the young couple. The two teenagers stared back in shock. She had been fast, just as fast as the dark man. And just as ruthless. Paden stood up straight and cocked his head to the right for just a moment as he watched Sophie walk back toward them. Ree wasn't sure, but she felt like he was evaluating her boss in some way. He ran a hand over his jaw cautiously, obviously frustrated.

“What the . . . ,” Paden began and then stopped. “Hey, they’re gone.” He opened his mouth and ran his tongue over his teeth.  “You okay?”

She nodded her head at him. “I’m okay. Sophie, are you all right?”

Sophie chuckled. “It’s been a while since anyone has asked me that. Thanks; I’m fine. He had no idea what he was up against. Must have been pretty new.”

“New to what?” Paden asked, frustrated. “What the hell is going on?”

 “There’s a lot to explain, but now is neither the time nor the place. We need to talk, but I think it can wait just a little while. Perhaps you and your friends would like to come to my house after the concert.”  It wasn’t a question.

“Talk? After the concert? How the hell are we supposed to walk into that concert and act like everything is just perfect?” Paden’s voice was beginning to get louder. Ree had to agree. This was insane, completely unbelievable.

A few people wandered around the corner, and Sophie took a step closer to both of them. “It isn't safe for us to talk about this right now. Not in the open. Do you know how to get to the dock for Sanctus Island?”

“The Witch’s Island? I think the dock is just off of Shipyard Road. But that doesn’t mean we’re going to come out there to talk to you in the middle of the night. Not to mention, I think it's illegal to take a boat over the water in the dark,” Paden said, raising an eyebrow.

“I understand this is a lot to take in. I understand that you have no idea what is going on. And I understand that you need to know, that you have to know. Go enjoy the concert, and I’ll have a boat waiting for you when you get finished. This is important for more than just the two of you.”

Ree looked at her for a moment, considering everything that had happened. She remembered that feeling of something powerful building up inside of her, knew the fear had been real and justified. She needed to know what was going on. She would go to the island. Her eyes met the dark eyes of the shopkeeper for a long moment before she nodded. “We’ll come,” she agreed.

Paden threw his head back and made a frustrated sound.

“Two houses down from the boat ramp, there’s a private dock. The boat’ll be there.” Sophie took a step back and gave them a serious look. “One more thing before you go. Beware some of the humans you spoke with at the restaurant. They are not what they seem, and would do you harm if possible. Also, you both have gifts you can’t begin to fathom. Do not fight your instincts, but try to keep them in control. You are both very dangerous at this point. Almost as dangerous as the Dark Ones that hunted you tonight.” With that final warning she turned, moving out of sight quicker than should have been possible.

Paden stood watching, looking in the direction Sophie had disappeared, his expression thoughtful. “I guess we should go in and find the others. They have to be getting worried about us,” Paden said.

Ree thought about that as they climbed the steps to the center and presented their tickets to the doorman. There was no doubt Sophie had meant to be wary of Michael and
Shannon. That left Juliette, Melanie, Bryce, and Weylin to come with them to the island. Were they involved in this as well? Didn't Juliette notice there was something unusual about Shannon tonight at dinner? Jules had made a comment about the way she smelled. Ree had no idea what that might mean, but her gut told her it was a bad sign.

As they made their way through the throngs of people loitering near the concession stands, Ree began to feel overwhelmed. It felt as if the people were pressing in on her, weighing on her mind. Without a word Paden put an arm around her shoulders and some of the tension melted away, but not enough to calm her completely. Ree’s breathing became heavy, and she ducked into a dark corner to escape the people walking in the hall. Her eyes pressed shut and she counted each breath to try and calm her speeding heart.

Paden squeezed into the corner and gently tilted her face up to his so he could search her eyes. He didn’t say anything for a while, just let her catch her breath. When he saw that she was in better control of herself, he squeezed her shoulder. “Are you alright?”

She nodded her head. “Yeah, but I don't know if I can handle being around all of these people right now. This is going to sound crazy, but it feels like they’re weighing on me. When someone brushes my shoulder, I get this flash of something. My ears ring.”

His eyes became concerned and he reached a hand up to brush her cheek. She closed her eyes, just letting him touch her, accepting the comfort he was offering. She was overwhelmed by tonight. This was all so crazy. When she was finally able to look at him, her heart skipped a beat. His face was tight and his dark green eyes were thoughtful.

“Alright. Let’s go find the others and get out of here. Can you last that long?”

She nodded her head. They were about to leave their hidey-hole when someone cleared their throat loudly. Both of them jerked around guiltily. Juliette wore a large grin on her face, and Bryce pulled Paden out by his arm and slapped him on the back.

“What is going on over here?” He chuckled loudly. Juliette rolled her eyes at Bryce's lack of tact. She met Ree's gaze and raised an eyebrow in question. Ree gave her a head a quick shake no. Juliette pressed her lips into a disappointed line. She was one of the only people that knew how Ree really felt about Paden and she had sworn herself to secrecy a while ago.

Paden shrugged uncomfortably. “It's not what you think,” he said, embarrassed.

“Sure, sure.” Bryce laughed. “Okay. Then why were you two all huddled up in the corner? Looked rather cozy . . . .” He let his voice trail off suggestively.

“Come on, Bryce. Leave them alone,” Juliette pulled him around to face the concession stand farther down the hall. “You said you would get me a drink before the opening band finishes. You guys haven't missed much. The cover sucks.”

At that point Melanie and Weylin caught up with them. “There you are. Dude, some guy took your seat,” Weylin said, his face solemn.

“What the hell?” Bryce shoved Weylin’s shoulder. “Are you a man or not? You just gave up our seats?”

Melanie snickered.

“The guy is a giant, wearing all leather. I have to protect the face, man. For the ladies,” Weylin waved at his face. “It's your seat, anyway. He said he would watch ours.” At that, Melanie laughed out loud, the sound contagious. It was almost enough to lift some of the dread in Ree’s heart.

“Uh, not to freak you out or anything, but did you know that your eyes are glowing?” Weylin leaned close to look at Ree’s face. His eyebrows were pulled together in confusion. “Are you wearing contacts or something?”

Paden nervously shoved his hands in his pockets and gave them a crooked grin. “What, that? It's nothing.” But he was looking around the place suspiciously, as if trying to spot something.

Melanie was looking at them both, unconvinced. “Nothing?” she asked.

“Actually, we wanted to talk to you guys about something. This is going to sound completely off the wall, but, um, we need to leave. And we want you guys to come with us. It’s really important.” Ree said urgently.

“Is everything okay?” Juliette asked, concerned.

“Yes. No. We're not really sure.” Ree made a face.

Melanie was watching her carefully, with eyes squinted. “Um, Ree. I'm not sure if it is just the light, or what, but–” Melanie started to say, but was interrupted.

Weylin gave a loud groan and rolled his eyes. “Crap. There's Michael and his rag-tag team of weirdos. I thought we had escaped them after dinner.” He looked down at the floor. “Quick, no one make eye contact.”

Paden’s eyes widened and Ree noticed that he was running his tongue over his teeth behind his lips. Fangs, again? When he looked at her, he almost choked. His eyes widened even larger and he jerked his head at her. What was wrong with him?

Bryce was watching them, his eyes calculating. “Listen, I'm not sure what is going on with you two, but I think it would be a bad idea for Michael to see you guys right now.” He looked at Ree and raised an eyebrow. “I mean, he might try to exorcise the demon, if you know what I mean.”

Jules grabbed Ree's arm. “Come on. Let’s go to the bathroom while they go get the car.”

She dragged Ree toward the ladies room near the exit. Melanie looked torn about whom to go with, but seemed to decide the boys might need her more, so ran off after them.

Ree squinted as they walked down the brightly lit corridor.  Everything seemed a little more intense, more alive. She could almost hear the hum of the lights overhead. The annoying buzzing from earlier had returned, and weighed heavily on her mind.

Juliette all but shoved Ree through the bathroom door, towing her toward one of the back stalls. Thankfully, most of the lights in this bathroom were either out or so dim they might as well have been dead. And, oddly enough, there wasn't anyone else using the smelly room.

“Hey, not so rough, Jules. What are you so upset about?” Juliette closed the stall door behind them, and started rummaging in her purse. She pulled out a small mirror and handed it to Ree.