The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) (20 page)

Killian sent his thoughts to me.
Let me in. I can help you move it
.

I relaxed a little and sensed, rather than felt, Killian’s will join with mine. I pictured the puzzle piece again and started to peel it up. This time it moved a bit. Yes!

Calmly
, he cautioned.

Moving very precisely, we peeled the puzzle piece back and laid it facedown. A wave of images struck me like a tsunami. This was no kaleidoscope of random impressions or memories. This was a full-blown attack against my invasion. The images bombarded me from all directions and threatened to overwhelm me. They screamed defiantly as they flew at me. I saw James tied to a chair in dark room… the roof of a farmhouse with soldiers standing on it… tracers from a machine gun… James slumped over on the floor with blood running down his face… an odd-looking gun on a table… then an evil face laughing up at me… instead of flickering away like the other images, it pressed closer, becoming more clear. I tried to flinch, but I couldn’t look away, couldn’t break the contact.

Out of nowhere, words struck like stray bullets: Guardian! Protector! Primani! As abruptly as they came, the words stopped flying, and the images flowed in slow motion like an old broken movie. The evil face sneered with recognition. Demon!

He taunted, “
I see you, Mica! Want to come and play with me
?”

Ice dribbled down my spine as his words echoed in my mind. The sudden feeling of dread was so powerful that I whimpered. Every one of my instincts screamed at me. Run! But my brain wasn’t sending signals to my feet. Frozen in place, I couldn’t pull my eyes away from James. I couldn’t pull my mind away.

“
Come on, Mica, come play with me… Look! Your mother’s here
!” he said in a sing-song voice, dripping with malice.

Images of my mother burning in the flames bombarded me. She was screaming for me to save her. As I watched helplessly, she turned to ash and blew away into a firestorm. No! No! Come back! I started to chase her into the flames…

Mica! Don’t! Stand still!
Killian’s voice cracked like a whip.

I froze.
He’s got my mother!

No, he doesn’t. It’s a trick to distract you. Don’t follow the demon!

He yanked me back to safety.
Digging in my heels, I narrowed my eyes. So the ugly demon wants to play, does he?

Bring it, filthy soul sucker!

Showing rows of nasty fangs, the demon smiled at my challenge. He stepped up his efforts and flung hundreds of horrifying images at me, but I tossed them aside like garbage. I was getting tired and had to save James before my own brain simply shut down from exhaustion. We needed to end this.

Okay, big brother, keep up!

As quickly as the demon’s images were flung at me, I grabbed them and forced them into a box. Killian took over for me while I relentlessly stalked the demon. The demon lost confidence when he realized he was outnumbered and one of us was Primani. He backed away. I ignored the grotesque pictures of my mother he threw at me. They weren’t real. I wasn’t paying attention now. I wanted him--in this box I made. He had to go. He was killing James. We were going to end this now. I backed him into a corner of sorts, and he froze for a last stand. He raised his arm and fire appeared from his claws.

Really? Is that all you’ve got?
It was my turn to taunt him.

He unleashed an arc of flame just as Killian dropped a gold chain around him and tossed him into the box.

My awareness came back slowly. I steadied myself for the usual spinning sensation, but it didn’t come. Instead, Dec clutched me in his arms, sobbing against my hair. He chanted, “Please come back, please come back.”

Killian lay sprawled like a broken doll next to me. His eyes were completely open but unfocused, and he wasn’t moving. His hand held mine in a death grip. Our knuckles were white. Were my eyes open too? That would explain Dec’s hysterics. It was unnerving. I tried to say something but nothing came out. I tried again; still no sound. Frantic now, I tried to speak again but still nothing. This was bad…

Mica? Are you here?
He sounded strained even inside my head.

Oh, thank God! Killian, what’s going on? Why can’t I talk?

I think we have a problem, babe.

Chapter 19: Back from the Edge

“DAMN IT, SEAN, JUST CALM DOWN for a minute! It’s not as bad as you think.” Alex was forcibly keeping Sean from ripping me out of Dec’s arms. Actually it was Alex, Raphael, and Zadkiel
trying
to hold him, yet Sean was still dragging them over to where I was lying. Dec tightened his grip and continued pleading in my ear. He’d given up crying and resorted to pleading quietly. He thought he could reach me wherever I had gone off to. I heard his words but couldn’t answer him. His anguish was breaking my heart into tiny little pieces.

“This is
his
fault!” Sean lunged for Killian’s inert body. Alex threw himself against Sean’s legs, sending them both crashing to the floor. Temporarily insane, Sean struggled to get up, swearing in a language that might have been Latin. Alex finally punched him in the jaw to stop him.

“Stop it! Right now! Don’t you see they’re still joined? If you rip them apart one of them could be lost: maybe Killian, maybe Mica. Who are you willing to lose?” Alex yelled.

Breathing hard, Sean lowered his head for a minute before getting up to pace. I guess he wasn’t one to get hysterical for long. He pointed to the demon in the chair.

“What’s with the prisoner?”

“Oh, him? He’s a gift from those two over there,” Alex answered with a hint of sarcasm.

“Come again?” Sean peered more closely into the demon’s face. His mouth was smooshed flat with duct tape. He mostly made grunting noises and wriggled his weird eyebrows a lot. Sean dismissed him.

“Mica’s plan worked, you see. Except that, apparently, there was a demon actually possessing James. She and Killian managed to corral the scum and evict him. Just before they collapsed on the floor, the demon flew out of James and landed at my feet.” Alex shook his head ruefully. “It was the strangest thing. He was wrapped in the chain from Mica’s locket and couldn’t get loose.”

He pierced Sean with a steady look. “You gave her that locket. What’s the chain made of?”

Sean turned positively green, swallowing obviously. “The three of us made it to link her to us to keep her safe.”

“Yes, but what’s it made of?”

Sean refused to meet his eyes.

Alex blanched. “You didn’t? Tell me you didn’t!” 

“She has our blood too, Alex! It was necessary!”

Okay, this was getting ridiculous. Everyone was losing their minds, and I was lying here staring at them with wide open eyes. This had to stop. There had to be a solution… With that in mind, I called Killian. No response. I called him again.

Killian! Get back here!!

You don’t have to scream; I can hear you just fine. What?

What do you mean ‘what?’ We have to get back. Look at them! They’re having kittens, and my eyes are drying out!

If a disembodied voice could shrug, his just did.
Shut up and let me think.

“Mica? Can you hear me? Blink or something if you can hear me!” Sean was searching my eyes for some kind of recognition. He threatened in a low voice, “If you don’t come out of there right now, I’m going in after you! James won’t mind another hitchhiker!”

Killian exclaimed,
That’s it! James! Whatever happens, don’t let go of me!

Dec jumped out of his skin and nearly dropped me on the floor. “Did you see that? Their hands twitched!” He crushed me against his chest lest I physically disappear.

Sean said urgently, “That’s my girl! Come on, baby, you got this!”

Raphael spoke up. “Alex, James seems to be waking up. His lips are moving, but I can’t understand what he’s saying.”

Alex put his ear to James’ lips and listened. He said, “James, this is Alex. You’re safe now. If you can hear me, please do as I say immediately.”

I strained to hear the rest of it, but Alex turned away, and I couldn’t hear him. A few minutes went by, and an odd pressure pushed against me. What the hell was that? It was gentle at first like someone pushing me on a swing… back and forth. It knocked me off balance, and I wobbled. Killian’s presence was next to me, his strong hand holding me steady. I squeezed until my knuckles were white. The pressure began to build and soon was a strong wind pushing me relentlessly forward. I struggled to stay on my feet.

What’s happening?

James is awake. Stop anchoring to him and relax. Just don’t let go of me!

It was like standing in a hurricane holding onto a palm tree... I knew I needed to let go and let the wind take me… but my cowardly survival instincts screamed to hang on. I tried to let go, but my hands were too stiff to bend. The winds howled, plucking at my hands until I was slipping off of my anchor. To my horror, my hand was slipping out of Killian’s. I tightened my grip as a final jarring shove pushed me off my anchor, whipping me away into nothingness.

I sat up abruptly with a loud gasp. The room spun and I blinked rapidly to clear my eyes. I was back! My head was fuzzy, and my stomach rolled uncomfortably, but I was clearly among the living and the sane again.

Sean cried, “Oh, thank God!” and steadied me with both hands.

Searching for awareness, he scrutinized every inch of my face. Was I still locked inside James or was I really back? He stared into my eyes, and I smiled back at him this time. Apparently satisfied that I was conscious for real, he breathed a sigh of relief and bent down to kiss me. He kissed me lightly at first and then crushed me against him. My eyes flew open in surprise, but I quickly got over it and kissed him back with much enthusiasm. He was kissing me like I just returned from the dead and would disappear again. He shoved Dec rudely away and dragged me against him like a drowning man clings to a life preserver. My own emotions were out of control as I realized how close I came to disappearing. What was I thinking? How would I ever survive in this new world of ours?

Next to us, Killian blinked groggily. His skin was so chalky that his dark blue eyes stood out like fresh bruises. His pupils were still fully dilated. He reminded me of a strange night creature. After a moment of deep breathing, his face regained some color. He frowned at Sean with disapproval. Sean glared at him and forcibly pried our hands apart.

A dry, scratchy voice interrupted us. “Can someone please do something with this demon? He smells bad.”

Chapter 20: The Seedy Underbelly

AS IT TURNED OUT, the demon was full of information. According to Alex, all evidence suggested there was something unusual going on in Vermont. While I hung out with James, Alex, Killian, and Sean took turns interrogating the demon whose name was Dai Li.

These interrogation sessions were off-limits to me. I was absolutely not allowed in the room with the demon for any reason. I didn’t really want to spend time with him anyway, but it chafed to be forbidden. Geez, they treated me like a child. I had to admit Dai Li freaked me out a little. Okay, a lot! His cold sing-song voice echoed in my head if I let my guard down.

I see you, Mica! Want to come and play with me?

The last time I saw him, Killian and Dec were pulling him out of James’ room the day of the exorcism. I stood out of the way with Sean, but Dai Li’s red eyes held me paralyzed. The duct tape covering his mouth didn’t disguise his thoughts. He wasn’t done with me yet.

With a stony-pissed-off-boyfriend expression, Sean calmly extended his hand towards Dai Li’s eye. The effect on Dai Li was electric. He squinted and flinched away in terror. As Sean’s hand got closer to his face, the demon trembled and pled behind the tape. The hair on my arms stood up as the mewling whine got louder. I tried to step around Sean to see what he was doing, but he blocked me with his other arm. Dec frowned and shook his head at me. He mouthed ‘go’ at me. I backed away. Dai Li made a high-pitched keening sound just before the odor of sulfur tickled the back of my throat.

I hadn’t seen Dai Li since. I asked Sean what was going on, but he refused to answer me. I’d hardly seen him the past few days. He got up early, got back late, took a shower, and crashed. His eyes were hooded whenever he looked at me now. My gut told me he was keeping secrets. I knew it but couldn’t bring myself to confront him. The feeling of dread still haunted me and was getting more and more pronounced as the days turned to weeks. My stomach ached with it, but I had no answers. To make things worse, my playmate was out of reach. Dec was gone for days at a time, and I missed him painfully. Alex had them searching the city for another demon named Xarchi. Dai Li had fingered him as a mid-level demon running operations across Manhattan. Alex felt he would know about other operations in the northeast region. All of them were gone, and I was stuck here with James. Gazing wistfully out the window, I sighed into my tea cup.

“That’s the third cup of tea you’ve let grow cold. Am I such poor company then?” James asked with a sardonic smile.

Chagrined, I said, “I’m sorry, James. It’s not you. It’s me. I’m the one who’s poor company.” I saluted him with the cup.

We were in a breakfast nook that was bigger than my entire apartment. After helping himself to coffee and a bagel, he settled into a chair and considered me over the rim of the cup.

“Maybe it’s time for us to have a talk,” he began.

Uh-oh, this always means bad news. I groaned dramatically, and he grinned at me. He looked much better now that he was healed. His face was strong and lean but kind underneath the hardness. The bruises were gone, and his olive complexion was clear and vibrant again. The only detraction from his otherwise handsome face was the odd caterpillar eyebrows that perched uneasily above his heavily lashed eyes. Those pale blue eyes were sparkling at me now so maybe it wasn’t such bad news after all.

He cleared his throat, and said, “We’re living in very strange times, Mica. There are events taking place that we’ve never expected, and we’ve got to get answers. We can’t afford to be surprised by the other side. Our powers are too evenly matched. Any surprises can tip the balance in their favor.”

“Evenly matched? I thought you, I mean we, are the good guys. Doesn’t that mean we win? I mean, I assumed we were stronger.”

Well, there went one of the ‘truths’ that kept me positive all this time.

He barked a laugh that sent one of those eyebrows jumping toward his forehead. “That would be nice if it were true, but it’s not. There’s just as much evil as good in the world. We stay ahead of some of the most heinous events by using informants and neutralizing the demons, or humans, before they carry out their plans. It doesn’t always work that way, of course. We win some and lose some.”

“Win some, lose some?” I repeated, surprised at his nonchalant attitude.

“Hey! Are you okay?”

The room went black as a vision came out of nowhere. Like a conscious dream, I saw a flash of a faded red door in an old rundown warehouse. Fire shot out from the roof as an explosion blew me off my feet. Before I could recover from that, a shocking image of Trevor burning to ash hit me between the eyes.

“No!”

I blinked furiously as the images faded into smoke. My head was killing me, and I pressed my fingers into my forehead against the pain. What the hell just happened here? Oh my God! Was that a premonition? I’ve never had premonitions before. Was this another new ability? Maybe it was just some random flash from my ever-evolving brain neurons?

I ran this theory past James. I told him the whole story from sharing Sean’s
saol
to my new ability to see into people’s minds. And I ended with the journey into his mind to remove the wall of flames that kept him from healing. This flash of insight or premonition was another new ability and not one that I wanted. How was this helpful? Was I supposed to use it to help the Primani? I wanted answers.

James was quiet for so long it seemed like he’d slipped into another coma. I was about to call for help when he turned to me. He was different. His irises were backlit with a faint light that captivated me.

He whispered in an odd gravelly voice, “You are not ready.”

I strained to hear him. “James? What do you mean? I don’t understand you.”

He stared at nothing, his eyes focused inward. This was clearly not James. My breath caught in my throat.

He leaned across the table, and said in the same broken voice, “Your destiny is still evolving… you must be ready!”

Unable to pull my eyes away, I stared into the pure white light. He kept whispering to me, and I found myself answering him.

I replied over and over again, “I’ll be ready.”

Later that afternoon, my boys came back to the penthouse half frozen in spite of their natural biology. Snow crusted their hair and boots, and they stomped off little piles of it in the foyer. Apparently New York City was in the middle of a historic cold snap. I wouldn’t know since I wasn’t allowed to leave the penthouse. Amused, I watched as Killian stripped off his boots and rubbed his toes. He saw my glance and cracked a smile but caught himself. 

Don’t worry. Your face won’t break
.

He burst out laughing, drawing questioning glances from Sean and Dec.

Sean snapped, “Do you two mind?”

“I’m sorry. It happens automatically now… I’m not doing it on purpose.”

“Oh, that’s fucking awesome!” He shook his head like a dog, pelting me with melted snow. “I’m too damn tired to argue about this. Just stop it.”

Before I could retort, Alex started the daily meeting. “Children! It’s time to get to work. Save it for later.”

Sean tracked down several leads that brought him to the conclusion the demons were working on something unusual. He was frustrated because he needed more information but kept missing the supposed informant. He spent the past two days trolling through dirty alleys near Chinatown. So far, he wasn’t having much success.

Dec was working the area near Central Park and was having more success. He talked to a store owner who saw a demon in a pawnshop off of 74
th
Street. The man didn’t realize the person he saw was really a demon, of course, but Dec picked up traces of him when he investigated the alley behind the shop. He’d gotten really lucky because he came across a chemical that wouldn’t normally be found in an alley. Like a CSI, he took a sample and gave it someone to verify.

“You guys have lab people?” I interrupted.

He winked with his usual good humor, and said, “Of course we do, darlin’. How do you think we get anything done?” He broadened his Irish accent, and added, “We’re not magic, you know!”

That night I got my wish and was allowed to go out. Several days of inactivity made my muscles stiff, and I was getting stir crazy. Regardless of the freezing temperatures, I had to get some air and exercise. I pled my case that afternoon, and Alex relented as long as I was with one of the guys. That suited me just fine as I didn’t exactly want to roam Manhattan by myself anyway. I flexed a bicep and was reassured I could still handle myself but didn’t want to go looking for trouble. All the fight training in the world was no match against a gun. I felt a little vulnerable so packed my Sig in my purse. I tucked in an extra magazine to even the odds. There, I liked my chances a little better.

The freezing wind caught us by surprise when we rounded a corner onto Broadway. I burrowed my face against Sean’s shoulder. Practically dancing, I tugged his arm and dragged him down the street. The sidewalks were still busy even at this time of night. People eddied and flowed around us as the current swept us along. Everyone seemed to be going someplace and stared straight ahead as they made their way along. No one stopped to look at anything along the way. Only tourists gawked at the glass storefronts. Real New Yorkers knew where they were going and forged ahead with that goal in mind. They didn’t have time for silly little side trips into liquor stores or pizza joints. Real New Yorkers also did not stop in the middle of the sidewalk to crane their heads at the ridiculously tall buildings that loomed above all real estate in central Manhattan. I learned this last rule the hard way. I was rear-ended by a man in a black leather jacket when I got distracted by the shining blue lights that capped the Empire State Building. We were walking along when the building suddenly came into view. I stopped to stare, and the man slammed into me from behind. He knocked me heavily into Sean who grabbed me to keep me from falling. I started to protest, but the man was gone.

“Freakin’ tourist!” The man mumbled as he disappeared into the sea of people.

It was Sean’s turn to tow me along. He guided me to the awning of a little grocery store and stopped. He leaned his back against the glass window and pulled me against his chest. For all the world could see, we’re just a couple of young lovers out enjoying the night. I tilted my face for a lingering kiss totally forgetting that I was supposed to be pretending. He kissed me back convincingly, but his eyes scanned the street across from us. A couple of bulky guys wearing black skull caps and heavy jackets whistled their approval. Sean gave them a head nod that meant something only guys understand. The two men laughed and kept walking. I flushed scarlet and buried my face in his jacket. He chuckled and patted my butt familiarly.

“Anything?” I asked. The rich smell of marinara sauce was drifting into my sinuses, and I realized we hadn’t eaten since lunch. My stomach growled with an alarming demand for pizza.

Sean remained still and continued scanning. He stood loosely with an arm draped casually around me while his eyes searched for our prey. I huddled against him for warmth and tried to mimic his casualness. In contrast to my beloved Secret Agent Man, I was coiled like a spring. I was unused to hunting, and my neck ached from the tension. He scowled slightly and massaged my shoulders. Even through the layers of my clothes, I felt the heat pulse from his hand and gradually the tension eased from my shoulders to a much lower spot.

“Is that better, love?” Warm blue eyes crinkled down at me as he kissed the tip of my red nose with cold lips.

Yep, I was warm pudding now. Let’s go to bed. I teased his bottom lip until he gave up and let me kiss him breathless. “I love you. You know that?”

“I
do
know. You’re a lucky woman.” He ducked my right hook, but grunted when my knee whispered passed the family jewels.

Twenty minutes later, I was drooling over the smell of freshly baked pizza and nibbling from the ceramic bowl of olives on our table. The little table was covered with an ancient red and white checkered plastic cover, the condiment jars were sticky, and the menus were wrinkled. The neon sign was only halfway lit up. Red letters proclaimed ‘Pizz,’ and a neon pizza slice was only half filled in. It looked like someone had already eaten part of it. It was awesome! This was a real New York pizza joint!

The guy behind the counter called our number. I snapped a picture of him with my phone. I hadn’t been able to tear my eyes away from him since we got here. He wore his head shaved and had piercings in both eyebrows and his lip. I tried not to stare, but the eyebrows were fascinating me. He had a hook in each brow and a small chain connecting them across the bridge of his nose. Hanging from the chain was a tiny green lizard. The lizard danced back and forth every time he moved. He caught me staring and smiled good-naturedly at me. He was sporting three gold teeth.

The wind had died down by the time we left Pizz. I was warm and drowsy from too much chewy crust and bubbly mozzarella. Pizza this good should be illegal. I bumped contentedly against Sean as we made our way down the other side of the street. We were heading back toward the penthouse for the night. Manhattan at night was amazing! Neon lights competed with every kind of LED display I could imagine. Buildings were covered with banners and signs. The skyscrapers loomed above as we made our way. The sidewalks were less crowded now, and there were fewer cars on the streets. Small groups of younger men stood together outside of the liquor stores. It was getting late. Uneasy, I walked a little faster until Sean suddenly stopped to zero in on something just ahead. What was he looking at? At first I didn’t see anything, but then a shadow detached itself from the side of a building. It slipped around the corner and disappeared.