Obsidian Souls (Soul Series) (25 page)

The flames encircling us slowly lowered until nothing but a charred circle on the ground remained. Nervously, I looked back at Caden’s face hoping that his eyes weren’t still glowing. They were back to his handsome silver grey shade.

“Is this what I’m going to become?” I didn’t need to explain further.

“No.”

“But you don’t know?”

“No, I don’t, but you won’t.”

“Why?”

“I’ll explain some other time. Let’s just go find Mike.”

I pushed the red glowing eyes from my mind. This was Caden. He had been the one constant for me through this. He’d pulled me out of danger time and again. If he had a couple little idiosyncrasies, well, who didn’t? It’s not like he was a women beater or something. It wasn’t his fault he had freaky glowing eyes. He was what he was, and I was going to accept him as that.

He held my hand as we walked. It was completely out of character, and I couldn’t help but think it was only because I must have looked completely appalled by the whole show. He was probably afraid I’d bolt. I guess he didn’t read me that well. If I was going to bolt, I’d definitely wait until we got to a better neighborhood. No way I would bolt here. The demon you know is better than the thug you don’t and all that.

“This is it,” he said.

I looked up at the large warehouse with its broken windows and partial sign hanging crookedly. The only thing left on it was some green letters reading FLE with a DY hanging sideways at the end.

“Stay close.”

“Duh.” Wow, that was obnoxious, but I just couldn’t help myself.

“I would have thought you would know better than to have gone off with Jack. So now I’m just going to make everything explicitly clear.”

“You’re not going to let that one go, are you?”

“It’s going to be tough. It was pretty stupid.”

The most irritating thing about it was, he was right. I couldn’t think of an argument. All I could do is daydream about catching him doing something stupid. It would happen eventually, and I would beat him to death with it.

We walked in the place, and I accidentally kicked an empty box that read, “Fleming’s Candy” only two steps in the door. He turned, and I could see his face by the streetlights that were flooding in through the broken windows.

“Must you be so loud?”

“I didn’t do it on purpose. Not everyone is freakishly quiet.”

“How could someone so small be so frigging loud?”

“Just go!”

“Shhhh…. if they hear us and take him somewhere else, it could be another couple weeks until I find the new place again.”

I refrained from arguing this time. I wanted no part in screwing up a possible rescue. We were both anxious, afraid to hope Mike was going to be here somewhere although the place looked abandoned.

He continued forward, pulling me in tow behind him. We crossed the large open first floor that had to be at least ten thousand square feet to stairs in the corner. They only went up. I sighed in relief, finally not a basement. It only took how many creepy buildings? At least now, I could envision getting pushed to my death, instead of rotting away with rats eating me. Being thrown to your death seemed a decent way to go. Not as good as a heart attack in your sleep, but it ranked much higher than drowning.

We reached the fifth floor, and he put his hand up motioning for me to stop. He leaned forward, and I couldn’t see past his broad shoulders, so I poked him in the side and motioned to ask what was going on? He pulled me forward slightly and I saw Mike, crumpled in a heap on a dirty floor. He didn’t look conscious. My protective instincts kicked in immediately, and I went to rush into the room, but Caden wrapped his arm around me and pulled me back against him. He pointed to the other side of the room where three brutish looking men were sitting at a collapsible card table.

“Stay here. I’ll handle the three.”

I was watching Mike, who could be on the brink of death, but being pulled up against Caden, with him whispering in my ear sent goose bumps down my arm. I was instantly aroused. It was the most inopportune time possible. He instantly tensed and I knew he knew he was affecting me. I was watching my friend who was hurt and lying injured. What type of deranged sex crazed animal was I?

He pulled me slightly closer. “Wait here,” he said and then moved me to the side as he went into the room.

I watched as he strolled into the room like he owned it. The three men stood and all moved on him at once, and they were just as quickly laid out on the floor. I couldn’t even say for sure what had happened, he had moved so quickly. One second they were lunging for him, then it was a blur of movement and they were scattered at his feet. He turned to wave me in, as he walked over to Mike and kneeled to check his vital signs.

“Is he okay?” I asked kneeling next to him and feeling Mike’s wrist. I couldn’t feel a pulse myself, but his body was warm and he was breathing still.

“He’s fine. Only drugged. It’s very hard to do permanent damage to a Drauth.”

Caden threw Mike, who had to weigh at least two hundred pounds, over his shoulder as if he was tossing a sack of potatoes. I followed him down to the Hummer, which sat untouched and pristine, waiting. He laid him down in the back seat, and I jumped in the back with Mike, not wanting to leave his side while he was so vulnerable.

“Now, why aren’t I going to get red glow eyes?” I asked from the back seat. I couldn’t drop it.

“You won’t. Leave it at that?”

“Can you tell me why we should leave it alone?”

“Certain things you’re better off-”

“Not knowing, yeah, yeah, yeah. That seems to apply to an awful lot.”

“According to our earlier discussion, you might not be sticking around very long. Am I really supposed to lay out my every secret for you to peruse?”

“If I’m going to be like you, why’s it such a secret?”

“I don’t owe you explanations. I’ve taken you in, watched your back, and pulled you out of some real shitty situations. Some of which you brought on yourself. As far as I see it, you owe me.”

“You’re only protecting me because you don’t want them to get me. You didn’t do this for me.”

“I’ve saved your ass time and again. It doesn’t matter why. You owe me.”

“I owe you nothing. As far as I’m concerned you owe me for not having their little mean babies,” I tried to speak softly as I rested Mike’s head on my lap.

“If you did that it would make us enemies. You don’t want to be my enemy.”

“Maybe I’d have lots of mean little babies that would kick your ass.” Now I was getting crazy and I watched as Caden’s knuckles became white against the steering wheel, and I hoped he didn’t break our ride home.

“Do we really need to do this?” He stared me down in the rear view mirror.

“Do what?”

“Act like we’re five?”

“You started.”

“What? By saying that I’m entitled to some privacy?”

“No. You did it by insinuating I would ever join with them.” I turned my gaze away from his eyes boring into me through the mirror.

I stared out the window for the rest of the ride. We drove back in silence.

By time we got back to the bar, Mike was starting to come out of it a little and was moaning. Caden hoisted him up and carried him into the bar. I followed him into the elevator as he punched Mike’s floor into the elevator panel.

I’d never been to Mike’s level before and was completely taken aback by his place. The entire floor was wide open with just a bamboo privacy screen in the corner. The walls covered in painted murals from top to bottom. A huge impressionist painting of ocean waves and another of what I would describe as a bronze sunset.

“Did Mike do these? They’re stunning.” I was in awe.

“Yes.” He said with such an attitude it was hard to ignore. I guess he was bent out of shape from our fight.

Caden was laying Mike down in his bed when Joey showed up.

“You did get him! I knew I sensed him.” Joey ran to his side checking him out for himself.

“He’s fine. Just drugged. He’ll probably come out of it completely in the next hour or so.” Caden said reassuringly to Joey.

I walked over, and sat on the bed next to Mike, and felt his head.

“I’m going to go tell the guys.” Joey said as he ran out excitedly.

Caden moved to follow, looking back at me.

“He’s not going to be awake for a while.”

“I’ll wait.” And I turned my head back to Mike. I could feel his angry stare burning into my back, but I refused to look at him. I had no desire to talk to him right now or to go sit in the same apartment with him if he wasn’t even going to be civil. I had my own gripes.

I heard the doors close, and I went and got a wet towel that I ran over Mike’s forehead. He looked a bit thinner than when I had last seen him at the diner and his cheeks, usually glowing in good health, were ashen now. I ran my hand through his hair, and he moaned.

I whispered his name, and I saw his eyelids slightly crack open.

“You’re home.” I said to him.

He smiled weakly up at me, and I finally relaxed for the first time in what seemed like forever. He was here, and he was going to be okay.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to get you hurt!” I said as I could feel tears starting to run down my cheeks.

“I’m fine.” He tried to sit up and groaned slightly, then actually laughed about it. “Or I will be.”

I laughed with him. I was just so happy to have him back.

“Ugh, I smell. Don’t get too close to me.”

“You smell better than apple pie to me.”

“I don’t know what bakery you go to but it’s time for a change.” We laughed again, and my heart felt like it was lifting higher by the minute. My friend was alive and back.

“Can you get me a t-shirt out of the top drawer over there?” He point to a bureau against the wall.

“Sure.” I opened it and grabbed the first one I saw. I headed back over to him as he was struggling to lift his soiled shirt over his head. “Here, let me help you.” I stood in front of him and helped pull his shirt up and off. I was going to help him put the other one on, but I was distracted by the bruises on his ribs. I sat down next to him and started to well up with tears again.

“Lex, they’ll be gone by tomorrow. You’re acting like a crazy chick now.” He smiled again at me. “I’m serious. They won’t be there tomorrow. I’ll let you check to prove it.”

I nodded okay but couldn’t help grazing my fingers over the injuries.

“Whoops! You guys need some privacy?” It was Joey voice and I realized this probably looked a great deal more intimate than it was. I was sitting very close to Mike on his bed, with his shirt off, touching his torso. My cheeks flamed red from embarrassment as Mike told him I had just been helping him change.

I turned to look at Joey and saw Caden right behind him. He looked even more put out than before if that was possible. I would have sworn he was jealous, which is odd considering he wasn’t interested in me. Perhaps he was naturally territorial. He walked in past Joey and stopped right at the bedside, looming over Mike and myself.

“So what happened?” Caden asked Mike.

“It was pretty boring, really.” He said and shrugged his shoulders, like no big deal. “They shot me up with this shit that knocked me out. Then when I woke up, we were in a warehouse. I was expecting all sorts of interrogations on what we had going on, but all they really asked about was what Lex was. I told them I had no clue what she was then they just kicked the shit out of me and knocked me out again. That was pretty much the daily routine.”

I felt even worse after hearing this. I’d gotten him tortured. It didn’t matter how casual he acted about it. The guilt weighed me down. How could I ever make this up to him?

“Why does it matter so much to them what I am?”

“It’s all about power. They think you can increase theirs. They’ve always been more of a nuisance, but as they’ve managed to increase their numbers it’s gotten progressively worse. If they find a way to breed without diminishing their powers, they’ll have the manpower to take over not just our area, but the city as a whole. Who knows where they’d stop.” Mike explained.

“Are you going to be up for recon tomorrow Mike?” Caden asked him. He was completely ignoring me, and the fact that I would definitely want to go, not to mention the deal we had.

“Absolutely. Wouldn’t miss it,” he smiled. He looked like he was completely alert now, with all traces of the drug erased.

“Yeah, I’ll be ready too.” I chimed in, reminding him not so subtly about our arrangement. I wasn’t staying behind anymore. This was as much my fight as theirs, maybe more so.

“You’re not going.” He said without even looking at me.

“Oh yes, I am,” I said. Mike threw me a look and made an eye gesture toward Caden that silently asked what was going on with us.

“No.” Caden replied.

I widened my eyes back at Mike, and shrugged slightly, to silently respond that I wasn’t even sure myself.

He responded back with a silent keep me out of this mess look, which I quickly motioned a thanks a lot.