The Fallen (Angelic Redemption) (9 page)

“Can you teach me that disappearing trick?” she
asked as they walked past the whining dogs.

“Not really.”

“How come you can do it and no other hunter I’ve
ever known can?”

“You knew me and Micah and we can both do it. You
used to be able to do some pretty powerful moves too, but maybe dying threw off
your mojo?”

Lila glared at him. “Stop talking about me dying
and don’t you dare tell Sophie she was a corpse. She won’t be cool about it.”

“You and I work better when we don’t boss each
other around.”

“Back then, yeah, but things change. If you want
to hunt with me, then you have to play by my rules.”

“Or what?” Roman said with a slight grin.

Lila shrugged, unsure of what she would do if
Roman decided to stop playing nice. He was clearly superior to her as a hunter
and she was finding herself increasingly attracted to him. While Lila wanted to
put him in his place, Roman had the upper hand. Not that she would ever admit
this fact out loud.

“What’s with the dogs?” Lila asked, changing the
subject.

“They get intimidated by some hunters.”

“Why were they hot and bothered earlier? They
looked ready to tear you apart, but now they’re pissing themselves.”

“They wanted to tear apart the villains hiding out
here.”

“You take care of that?”

Roman nodded.

“Good. I don’t need the distractions right now.”

Approaching the front door, Roman placed his hand
on her shoulder, sending a chill through her body.

“The villains are hunting you.”

“I know, but don’t care.”

“Not to start a fight, but you should care. Maybe
it’s because you’re Micah’s sister? Or because you’re hunting this rogue?
Either way, you’ve got a big target on your back. With enough numbers and
firepower, those villains will get to you.”

“Then I’ll just have to come back from the dead
again, won’t I?”

Roman clearly didn’t like this answer and the
darkness in his blue eyes once again betrayed his feelings for her. No matter
Roman’s unhappiness, Lila knew her biggest problem was selling this big dog
hunter to Sawyer and Daisy who were now on alert.

“Let me do all the talking,” she said.

“That I know how to do.”

Lila knocked on the front door and waved at Sawyer
and Daisy inside. Leveling their weapons at Lila and Roman, they headed to the
door.

“We talked, Sawyer, and he’s cool.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that. Now, can you help me find Joaquin,
so we can head out?”

Sawyer didn’t answer immediately or open the door.
Lila glanced at Roman who stood passively at her side.

“If you’re not going to let us in, can I at least
get my stuff and Sophie?”

“How do I know he didn’t put some kind of spell on
you?”

“Because if he did then I’d just tell him to poof
himself inside and force you to let us in. Hey, maybe I should do that now?”

Grunting with irritation, Sawyer opened the door
and waved them in while Daisy kept her weapon pointed at them. Ignoring their
unease, Lila enjoyed how she had the upper hand now.

“Can you do whatever it is that you do and find me
info on Joaquin?”

Nodding, Sawyer headed back down into the bunker,
leaving Daisy to watch Lila and Roman.

“You do know him then?” Daisy asked.

“Apparently, but I have amnesia or something.”

Daisy nodded, unconvinced. She kept her gaze on
Roman while Lila tapped her foot impatiently.

“Can’t we just go downstairs and wait?” Lila
asked.

Shrugging, Daisy let them pass. Lila walked ahead,
assuming Roman would follow which he did. Downstairs, Lila found Sophie staring
at her hands, eyes full of tears.

“Buck up, Sophie, we have some real firepower now,”
Lila said, motioning to Roman who nodded at the blonde.

“I don’t get it.”

“Turns out you, me, and Roman are old buds, but
you and I have amnesia. Roman’s gonna come along and help us with Joaquin.”

“Is that a good idea?” Sophie said, eyeing Roman.

“Joaquin’s a big dog. Combined, you and I are like
a Labrador. A really mean and deadly Lab, but a Lab nonetheless. Roman here is
a big dog and that’ll come in handy since most rogue hunters work with packs of
villains,” Lila said then turned to Roman. “Right?”

“About which part?”

“The rogue hunter, villain thing.”

“I haven’t heard of many rogue hunters. Most
hunters who stray, just give up the Lord’s calling. They don’t usually turn
against their own kind.”

Lila frowned at him, wondering if he was dumb.
Leaning closer, she bumped his arm.

“These people don’t like you. It’d help if you’d
just agree with me and play nice.”

“I am playing nice.”

“I misspoke. Just lie, will ya?”

“About what?”

Lila threw up her hands. “Fine, then explain to me
why I need to bring you along, if you’re not really necessary to stop Joaquin?”

“I’m coming along to protect you from the packs of
villains trying to kill you.”

Lila shrugged. “Okay, so that’s why you’re coming
along. Whatever.”

Plopping into a chair, Lila hated the way she felt
about Roman. Her vision never showed anything about Roman. Lila wondered if she
should just ditch him and keep her mind on the mission?

“Wait,” Lila said, recalling a sign from her
vision that she had missed. “I saw a scythe in my vision. Like the Grim Reaper
carries.”

Moving to Sawyer’s side, Lila felt a surge of
excitement, totally forgetting about Roman and his lies and half truths. “Can
you see if anyone knows about a hunter known for using a scythe?”

Sawyer nodded, leaning closer to whisper away from
Roman.

“What does he want?”

“He thinks I can find Micah. I’m not sure how, but
it’s what he wants.”

“And that’s it?”

“What else would there be?”

“He isn’t your mate, is he?”

“Who cares if he is? I’m not looking to settle
down.”

“It doesn’t work like that. If he’s your mate,
then he’s not going to be easy to shake and we both know you’re planning to
shake him.”

“Just look up the info for me, will ya?”

“Fine, but you’re in too deep and you don’t even
see it.”

Lila brushed off Sawyer’s concern then sat next to
Sophie. The blonde was no longer crying or staring at hands or clueless. Lila
felt Sophie’s eyes on her, but said nothing.

“Here we go,” Sawyer said. “There’s buzz about a big
dog rogue who’s killed a few packs in the south recently. They call him the
Reaper.”

“What else is there?”

“Not much. He’s taken out a few packs in Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. They think he was behind a fire that killed a few hunters in
Mississippi too. No one knows much since he kills everyone he runs into.
Sound like your guy?”

“I saw him in the vision and I could pick him out
of a lineup, but otherwise, this could or couldn’t be the guy. The Reaper thing
sounds right though. When was his last attack?”

“Two weeks ago in Arkansas,” Sawyer said then
turned his chair to look at Lila and Sophie. “The thing about these rumors is
that they aren’t always reliable. I mean, it could be the Reaper in Arkansas or just some villain attack. I don’t know if rumors are enough to go hunting a big
dog over?”

“Enough for me. We’ll head out and see what we
find.”

Lila noticed how Sawyer turned to Roman for
reassurance. This created a tight ball of anger in her stomach.

“Is there a problem?” she asked the men.

“You really ready to take on a big dog like this
Reaper?” Sawyer asked. “He’s wiping out whole packs and not newbie hunters
either. One of these packs was the real deal. I’m not sure you’re ready for
that.”

Lila wanted to rant at Sawyer. With all eyes on
her though, she only shrugged.

“The Lord gave me a vision and I’m going to follow
His will.”

“Yeah, well, you’ve been doing this all under a
year and Sophie here hasn’t been doing it at all.”

“And him?” Lila said, thrusting her thumb back at
Roman.

“We all know you’re planning to ditch him, so I
don’t see how he’ll be much help when you meet up with the Reaper?”

“I didn’t know that,” Sophie said.

Lila rolled her eyes and sighed. “Don’t second
guess the Lord, Sawyer. He really hates that.”

“Fine, you do what you want. Yet if even only half
of the rumors about the Reaper are true, you’re in over your head. Don’t go
ditching the big dog here and getting yourself killed.”

Lila glanced at Roman who studied her with that
passive expression of his. Whatever he was thinking wasn’t clear from his
reaction to her. Lila wished she could read his mind, just to know what he was
hiding.

Turning to Sophie, she waved for her to get up.
“We’re leaving.”

Instead of complaining like Lila assumed she would
do, Sophie stood up quickly. She retrieved her bag and headed toward the hallway.
Turning to follow her, Lila found Roman blocking her exit.

“I know you better than Sawyer and I know he’s
right about you planning to ditch me. I also know telling you not to ditch me
will only ensure that you do. You do need me though, whether you’ll admit it or
not.”

Lila studied him, once again irritated by how she
found him the least bit appealing. Whether she would admit needing his help,
Lila couldn’t deny she liked the way he looked at her. Whatever they had
before, she probably liked it back then too.

“I’ll play nice, Roman, but you need to remember
that this mission is for me and Sophie. You weren’t part of my vision, so when
the time comes, back off. Deal?”

Grinning, Roman nodded and Lila couldn’t help
grinning back at him. Spotting Sophie waiting patiently down the hall with her
own casual smile, Lila realized these hunters were bound to her by their shared
pasts, even if only Roman knew the details. While Lila wanted to embrace this
fact, she couldn’t really trust Roman or rely on Sophie which left her dreading
the trip ahead.

The walk back to the room was a quiet one and
Heidi said nothing before climbing into bed. Exhausted, she moved only once
before her breathing shifted and she fell into an easy slumber. Spellbound by
her breathing, Joaquin felt overwhelmed by many emotions, none of them helpful.

Watching her sleep from his chair near the door,
Joaquin felt as he always did on assignment – alert and restless. Even with his
mind on possible threats, he couldn’t help being irritated with Heidi. Curled
up under a sheet, wearing only a shirt and panties, she apparently felt no
concern over Joaquin taking advantage of her. Her naiveté or stupidity,
whichever applied to Heidi, bothered him.

Leaving her to sleep, Joaquin stole a new car. He
felt certain they would be on the road again by dawn. Returning to the room and
his spot near the window, he peered out of the curtains a few times and stared
at the back of the girl’s head.

Those emotions stirring in him felt awful and more
than anything distracting. He could protect Heidi, return her to the US, and move on with his life without having any emotional connection to her. Or even a
grand sense of redemption. Joaquin might not want to be a monster, but that
didn’t mean he was looking for a chance to be a saint either.

Yawning painfully now, Joaquin knew he needed
sleep, but his mind refused to relent to this necessity. He eyed Heidi in bed,
wondering how she slept so comfortably when trouble searched for her in the
darkness. Having gone over a decade without sleeping in a bed, he couldn’t
imagine it feeling safe. Not tonight, not ever.

Once again, he found himself irritated with Heidi
for her foolish behavior. No matter how she challenged him at dinner, she was
just a lump – unwilling to think or act in a way that any normal person would.
It unnerved him how he prolonged his life, let alone cared for, such a woman.

As hours passed, the girl continued to taunt him
with her serene breathing. She should be frightened of him and the situation
she was in. Instead, she slept peacefully as if to mock his predicament.
Listening to her breathing forced him into another endless yawn. Feeling the
fatigue infect him, he checked his weapons in the bag under his chair. Joaquin
stretched, forcing himself to stay awake.

Heidi’s rhythmic breathing drew him closer to
sleep. Closing his eyes finally, Joaquin imagined himself back at the motel.
This time though he used his gun before the girl arrived to ruin his plan.

Joaquin didn’t even realize he had succumbed to
his fatigue until his eyes opened to find Heidi edging towards the door.
Dressed and holding his bag of supplies, she easily could have escaped if
Joaquin hadn’t awoken at this exact moment.