The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) (33 page)

“OKAY, DANI, TAKE CARE! See you later!” I practically threw her out of the car when we pulled up to her house. She was speechless as we drove away.

Dec said, “What on earth is the matter with you? Are you crazy?”

I swung around to face him. “Not a chance! Spill it, you. When were you born?”

He jumped like I’d scalded him. “Sean? What’s she talking about?”

Sean rolled his eyes and turned down the music. “The day you were hatched! You might as well just tell her. She won’t let it go.”

“Did you, uh, tell her when you were born?”

“Yep. The whole story.”

“Really? You told her everything?” He seemed skeptical and looked at me with a frown.

“Come on, Dec. Just tell me! What will it hurt?”

Resigned, he said, “Okay, fine. I don’t know exactly, but sometime around 426. We didn’t keep good records back then so I’m not positive.”

For the second time today, my mouth dropped open and I was speechless.

“And Killian?”

They looked at each other, unsure. We were pulling up in front of the house and the car was silent as Sean shut off the engine.

“And Killian?” I repeated my question.

“920 B.C.,” Killian said from behind me.

Shocked, I repeated, “920 B.C.” and fainted.

Someone dragged a cold wet rag over my face and I sputtered indignantly and pushed myself up onto my elbows. My audience wore identical amused expressions. Killian looked vastly more entertained than the other two though. He just smirked, smiled, and shook his head.

“Okay, so I was surprised. Don’t laugh at me. I’m new to this magical lifestyle, you know.” I studied their faces and felt the bond we shared.

My locket twitched against my chest and I smiled. Yes, we were connected by something extraordinary.

Killian broke the extended family bonding with an announcement that we had a new problem.

“So what’s going on now?” I asked.

Instead of answering me, he turned on the television and switched the channel to local news. After a short piece on the rising price of gas, the anchorman cleared his throat and put on his serious news face. A woman’s body was found in a cemetery near the old Plattsburgh Air Force Base. The local police department had not released her name, but she was described as an athletically-built brunette between the ages of 17 and 25. She had been raped and beaten. The cause of death was strangulation.

“That poor woman! That’s awful. But what does she have to do with us? Was she one of your charges?” I asked.

Dec’s face was white as he absorbed the news. Killian waited for me to catch up. I glanced between them for a moment before slowly sitting back down.

“I should’ve killed him when I had the chance!” Sean said harshly.

Killian raised a hand to settle everyone down. “We don’t know for sure it was him; could’ve been anyone. Let’s not jump to conclusions.”

Sean looked incredulous. “Who’s jumping? I’d say it’s pretty obvious.”

Killian said, “Look, our instructions are to warn Mica and keep her safe. That’s it. We have other orders that have priority. We need to follow up on some intel about Dagin. Rumor says he’s acquired a new supply of chemicals and two new scientists to resume production. Alex has the whole east coast looking for the new lab.”

“And Flynn? What do we do about him?” Dec asked.

“Officially? We do nothing. Not our focus.” He held up a hand again when we all protested at once. “Unofficially, however, we take him out if an opportunity presents itself.”

Sean’s smile was feral. “I’m counting on it.”

“Well, I’m totally freaked out now. I’m going to bed.” I yawned hugely and stood to go.

“Good idea, Princess. We should all get some sleep. We’ve got a lot to do tomorrow. Everyone meet up at 8:00 and we’ll go over the plans.” Killian searched my face for…what? Stress? Fear? Something else?

Setting my jaw, I gave him a look that he understood. We’d shared this look a thousand times while Sean was gone.

It simply said, “I’ve got this. No worries.”

And I did.

I was humming “Chasing Cars” in the shower when the clear curtain slid back. Sean leaned against the sink letting his eyes drift lazily down my soapy body. He still wore jeans but the button was undone and they rode low on his hips. He’d already stripped off the t-shirt he wore today. I licked my lips and tried to say something sexy but nothing came out. My tongue got stuck in my mouth. Instead, I stepped back to make room. The jeans hit the floor in a blink of an eye and his hands were everywhere at once. With my back against the warm tile, I closed my eyes and let the sensations overwhelm me. He dragged his lips away from my mouth and smiled wickedly. Nonplussed, I started to ask what he was up to, but it came out as a yelp when he scooped me up and wrapped my legs around his waist. His arms cushioned me from the hard tile as he impaled me with one quick thrust.

“Oh. My. God.”

Moving against me now, he bit my earlobe and murmured, “Not quite.”

After using all of the hot water, we stumbled to the bedroom to work out the bed. Exhausted and limp, I trailed my finger through the fine black hair that formed his happy trail and said, “There is no way that you’ve never had sex before me. You’re like a porn star.”

“A porn star?” He propped himself up on his elbow and frowned at me.

He looked so disgruntled, I started to giggle. “Baby, wait. I meant that as a compliment! You’re just so amazing when we…uh, do it.” I blushed.

“You’re a mess. You know that? Of course it’s amazing! Hello? Supernatural beings here! Our souls are connected; we share the same
saol
. God Mica, when I see you my brain and my body go into hyper-drive with awareness. I’m aware of every breath you take, every heartbeat, every emotion. When I touch you, I feel your blood flowing under your skin. I feel it under my fingertips. I have the power to draw it to the surface anywhere I want. Do you know how hot that makes me? I want to lose myself in you.” He gently traced the pale blue vein on my chest with his thumb. It pulsed in response. “I can give you pleasure because I feel what you want when your breath catches just so.”

My breath caught as he nipped my collarbone with his teeth. I felt my bones turn liquid again and knew he was right. I felt the same things when I touched him. I was turned on just standing close to him. He hummed with energy that I felt on every inch of my skin. I assumed everyone in love felt this way, but maybe he was right. Our souls were entwined as much as our bodies. Maybe this was special.

He peered up from the vicinity of my naval and asked, “Besides, what made you think I was a virgin?”

Whoa! What did he just say? I started to sit up when a loud crack of thunder sounded close by, and I jumped out of my skin. The glass in the window rattled, and a bright flash of lightning lit up the room. Domino jumped up and barked madly at the window. In a flash, Sean was up and dragging on his shorts. He stood near the window and listened. Not tonight! I knew the drill. Freaking demons again…

I threw on shorts and a tank top and combat boots. I’d rather fight naked than barefoot. I hated fighting barefoot. I always ended up hurting my toes. I didn’t hear anything unusual but Domino continued barking madly. She was in anti-demon mode. Dec rematerialized next to me and tapped my arm to let me know he was there. Grateful for another body, I squeezed his arm in response.

“Where’s Killian?” Sean asked.

“Out. It’s just us. Who is it?”

“I’m still listening. I can’t pick up his thoughts in this rain.”

“Mica can. She does it all the time.”

He whistled softly. “That’s new. Give it a try, would you?” Sean nudged me.

I moved closer to the wall and closed my eyes. The rain and wind could be distracting, but I’d learned to tune them out. I did that now. I sent my mind out to probe for any other mind that might be loitering on the property. At first there was nothing. But as I focused on the back of the house, I sensed two others: one human, one demon. Hmm. That was interesting. Without breaking my connection, I held up two fingers--one on each hand. That was the code Dec and I came up with this year. Right hand for demons, left for humans.

“Back door,” I whispered and finished scanning. “Only the two.”

Sean said, “Let’s go then.”

He took the lead and we made our way through the house. All the while, I listened for more intruders. Finally, I stood still again and probed the human’s mind. It made me queasy.

This motherfucker better not stiff me my money. I don’t know why I had to bring him at all. I don’t need help to snuff a couple of losers.

“Jesus! He’s here to kill us.” I repeated the human’s thoughts.

Sean smiled whitely in the darkness. “He can try.”

Dec chuckled and tensed. I sensed rather than felt their bodies prepare for the fight. I called it going into soldier-mode. They called it “supernatural flight or fight response” minus the flight part--they never ran from a fight. They didn’t know how that would feel.  We were spread out a bit so we couldn’t all be shot at once. Sean was closest to me so I glanced at him and suppressed a shiver. His body was taught like a wire, and I could already feel the waves of heat coming off of him. Dec’s eyes were gleaming hotly when he turned to look at me. I knew they would be fully ready in another second or two. Suddenly my vision wavered oddly. The room brightened like I had on night vision goggles.  I wasn’t wearing them now, but I could see everything clearly, including the two bodies that were approaching the door on the porch. I could see straight through the walls. I bounced on the soles of my feet and glanced around. It was the oddest thing. I felt light as air…I wanted to fly.

Sean gave the signal and both of them disappeared and rematerialized behind the intruders. The human took one look at Sean and bolted for the road. Dec’s hand whipped up and he hit the demon right between the eyes. The demon screamed shrilly and disintegrated into ash. Okay, well now I had nothing to do. There was no one to fight. So I waited while the adrenaline, and whatever new fluids I had, flowed through my jerky muscles. I sat down heavily and focused on trying to breathe. Dec strode inside covered with ash and paused when he spotted me.

“Whoa, darlin’! You don’t look so good. What’s going on with you?” He came over and looked closely at me.

His eyes still blazed and they hurt mine when he looked into them. I winced and squeezed them closed.

“Sorry! Hang on a sec and I’ll help you.” Completely unselfconscious, he pulled the ash-covered t-shirt over his head and tossed it in the corner. He stuck his head under the kitchen faucet and rinsed off the ash. Demon ash burned the hell out of human skin. I learned that the hard way…

My muscles were settling down again, and I was only sporadically jerking now. My arms were twitching uncomfortably like I had been hit with a stun gun. I really, really needed a pair of rubber shoes. He came over dripping wet and knelt in front of me. His hair hung in wet clumps in his face.

“You…lllook lllike a drown…ed rrat,” I stammered out.

“Yeah, yeah. Hush. I’m working here.” He studied me and then ran his wet hand down my arm from shoulder to fingers. He repeated this with the other arm. His touch quieted the twitching. Then disaster happened. It always did. I’m not sure why I didn’t expect it. Just as he reached up to feel my forehead, my leg shot upward. His mouth made an “O”, and he rolled over into a fetal position.

“Oh, Dec! I’m so sorry!” Mortified, I kind of fell out of the chair and crouched next to him.

He wasn’t in the mood for help though. Through stiff lips he said, “Go away!”

I was still hovering when Sean walked in pushing the human in front of him. I nearly jumped out of my skin. I needed to talk to these guys about sending me telepathic warnings. Constant surprises couldn’t be good for my heart. Holding my pounding heart, I checked out our would-be killer. He didn’t look so hot. To start with, he was blindfolded and blood was running out of his nose onto his faded Metallica t-shirt. Unfortunate, that; I loved Metallica. His hands were tied behind him and he was limping badly. He was missing a shoe and his baggy jeans were ripped and bloody in several places. Domino peered around his legs and smiled an evil doggy grin.
I told him not to run…

“He’s getting blood on my kitchen floor,” I commented to Sean.

He shrugged. “I’ll be in the basement.”

Dec moaned and tried to straighten up. “Wait for me, bro. I’m coming.”

Sean tilted his head curiously at me. “It was an accident!” I cried.

“It always is.”

“OUCH! OKAY, THAT STILL HASN'T CHANGED. Well, that sucks.” I rubbed my burning hand and started for the sink to wash it.

Killian watched from the doorway. “What are you doing with that shirt?”

“Demon guts.”

He peeled away from the wall and crossed to me. “Demon? When? Are you okay?” He grabbed my shoulder and held me at arm’s length. Scowling, he looked for injuries. Finding nothing obvious, he relaxed his grip on me and asked again, “Want to explain about the demon?”

He seemed cool, but I sensed his tension. He was afraid for me. I patted one of his biceps and gave him a reassuring smile. I filled him in on the night while I scrubbed the ash off of my hand.

“So do you think my powers are evolving again? I was hoping to be immune to the ash, but that isn’t the case.”

He thought for a minute before answering me. “Well, it sounds like your
optical
vision is evolving to give you greater sight like your telepathic powers. That would make sense if your vision is your greatest power. We have the same ability to see things in the dark, and the fight response works to sharpen that. It makes us more powerful.” He tented his fingers and considered me with new intensity.

He stared at me for so long I squirmed uncomfortably. What was he doing? Was I giving off some kind of weird psychic vibes?

Finally he shook his head a little and said, “I’m just not sure about your description of feeling like you could fly. Have you felt like that before?” He paused and said urgently, “Tell me you haven’t actually
tried
to fly?”

“What? No, I’m not an idiot!”

He snorted like he could argue that point but didn’t. Smart man. We stood there for a minute just looking at each other until a muffled scream drifted up from the basement.

He smiled nastily and headed to the basement door. “I’m glad you’re okay. Do me a favor and stay that way.”

The lights were off in the basement, and I had to pick my way carefully down the stairs. No one had bothered to finish this side so the concrete walls and floor were bare and cold. The only things down here were the furnace and hot water heater. Even the washer and dryer were upstairs. There had been two tiny windows, but Killian covered them over to keep anyone from getting in. Sean turned to greet us when we rounded the corner.

“Good, you’re here. Meet our houseguest, Ramon. He’s been very cooperative so far.”

“Is he conscious?” I asked skeptically. He didn’t look conscious…his head was lolling against his chest.

Sean nudged the man with his boot and ordered, “Don’t play dead. Say hello to your target, asshole.”

Ramon immediately raised his head in our direction and woodenly said hello. Huh. He
was
being cooperative. That’s a surprise.  He also looked very, very stoned.

“Uh, hey killer, can I talk to you for a second…privately?” I asked Sean.

Patting Ramon on the top of the head, he said, “Don’t go away.”

I pulled Sean into the other side of the basement and hissed, “What are you doing to him? He’s like a zombie over there!”

Firmly dragging his hand out of mine, Sean crossed his arms. “Nothing painful, he’s just groggy. But I could
torture
him for information if you’d prefer that.”

“No! That’s sick. Don’t hurt him any more than necessary.”

“Make up your mind. Do you want me to torture him or not? We don’t have all night.”

I threw up my hands. “Oh, do whatever it takes. I just don’t want to hear the screaming!” I said the last part as loud as possible. Hopefully our houseguest had good hearing.

It was still dark in here, but my eyes had adjusted so I could see pretty well. Killian had spent the last few minutes stalking around our guest. The poor guy was shaking in the chair and moaning pitifully. I stomped down a wave of sympathy for him. After all, he
was
trying to kill us. Killian hadn’t touched him, but he didn’t need to. I felt the wave of heat from here and knew the man would feel it like an open furnace. His terrified eyes were blank and staring. His mouth opened and closed in silent screams. I shuddered and wrapped my arms around my chest.

Killian paused behind him. He put both hands on Ramon’s shoulders and Ramon twitched violently. The chair rocked from side to side. He groaned like a trapped animal making my skin crawl. Killian calmly closed his eyes and whispered in his ear. His words echoed inside my head.

Neaon dagon a stlaya, neaon dagon a stlaya

Fascinated, I couldn’t look away. Hypnotized, Ramon sat frozen while the whispering went on. The tone was at times cajoling and then harsh. Killian’s knuckles were white on Ramon’s shoulders and he bent closer to his ear. His lips barely moved as the whispering continued. It sent chills down my spine, but I still couldn’t look away.

Ghara a dagon stlaya ul cthuli? Neaon dagon a stlaya

Killian’s voice boomed inside my head and cold sweat trickled down my back. The ancient words made no sense to me, but the power behind them was unmistakable.

His
power was unmistakable.

His voice, his words, his power…his insistence was impossible to resist. I was captivated and would have done anything he asked at that moment.
My
will was crumbling into tiny little pieces, and I wasn’t even his target. What was he saying to Ramon? His face was frozen in a mask of horror.

Ghara a dagon stlaya ul cthuli?

As the last of the words echoed inside of me, I started to back away. I didn’t want to see any more. I didn’t want to hear any more. I backed into Sean and turned to leave. But he stopped me and held me in place. I tried to struggle with him, but he was too strong and I couldn’t move away. Frustrated, I blinked back tears and bit my lip. Refusing to watch, I shut my eyes.

Taking my chin in his hand, Sean forced my head up and said, “Watch, Mica.” His voice was hushed with awe and his eyes glowed with reverence.

Killian stopped whispering and I heard him sigh in my mind. He stood perfectly still for a few seconds and then let go of Ramon’s shoulders. Nothing happened at first, but then Ramon’s face was transformed. The mask of horror melted away and an expression of profound peace took its place.  He nodded in my direction and slumped in the chair.

“It’s done,” Sean said against my hair.

Numb, I stared at Killian in horror. Oh, my God! What did you do? His head snapped up and he started towards me and I backed away. Shaking my head in denial, I wrenched away from Sean and stumbled back up the stairs. Dec caught up with me halfway down the driveway. Instead of stopping me, he matched his pace to mine. The moon was low and covered with stringy clouds that seemed sinister above the trees. The rain had stopped but lightning still streaked the sky. Thunder grumbled in the distance. I ran until I was out of breath and slowed to a stumble by the side of the road. Dec waited patiently while I bent over sucking in air. When I was breathing normally, he tentatively offered his hand. Automatically, I reached for it but then stopped. What did I really know about him? Any of them? What power was he hiding from me? Would he take away my will? My life? Was it that easy for them? Oh, God! I’m a part of this now. What does that make me? Would my powers evolve until I could kill with my mind? Jesus…it was unthinkable.

With haunted eyes, I bit my lip to stop its trembling.

Like approaching a dangerous animal, he circled me with hands out. His eyes were soft, but his mouth was set in a firm line. He was worried and it showed.

“Just leave me alone, Dec. I don’t want any of you near me.”

He flinched and dropped his hands to his sides. “Mica, please,” he pleaded.

Something in the tone of his voice made me look up at him. He was standing so close, but I felt a chasm yawning between us. His expression was pained as he watched me struggle. What was I doing to him? Dec was my friend, my healer. He’d been the one steady rock in my life for two years. I was hurting him now. Damn. My lip trembled and I bit it again. I needed to get a grip. He must have sensed the change in my mood because he took a tentative step in my direction and held out his hands again. Sniffing, I lifted one hand.

He pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head. “Let me help.”

I nodded against his chest and relaxed as his body grew warmer around me. My fears slowly disappeared and my heartbeat returned to normal. I sighed and pulled back. His beautiful blue eyes were grave as he gauged my mood.

“You’re afraid. Again.” He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “Damn it! What’s happened now? You’re not supposed to be
afraid
of us.  We’re here with you…because of who you are!”

He laughed bitterly and added softly, “Somehow, we keep failing you. I’m so sorry, darlin’.”

“No, Dec, stop it! You haven’t failed me. I’ve failed you.” I whirled around and faced the trees. I couldn’t look at him anymore. “Don’t you see? I’m the weakest link…I’m afraid of what I don’t understand because I feel vulnerable, weak. Killian’s power…” My breath caught in a sob and I bit my lip.

Turning me around, he said furiously, “You are
not
weak! You’re a human; and an amazingly strong one too. Over the past few years, you've evolved from a typical teenager into a scary bad ass member of our team. You’re a natural. You scare the hell out of me sometimes, especially when you’re pissed. You’re handling your new powers like a pro.” He stopped to suck in some air and said more patiently, “I know it’s hard for you. But damn it, Mica, you are strong and capable. You’re one of us.” He shook me by the shoulders to make his point.

“But I don’t want to be!”

He flinched as if I’d slapped him. “What makes you say that?

I hesitated and inhaled sharply. “What Killian did to that man…” His whispering voice still echoed in the back of my mind. “I don’t want to be like that. That’s not who I am.”

“That man is better off now.”

Shocked at his callousness, I backed away from him again. “I can’t believe you’d say that!”

His silence was deafening.

The sound of the wall going up between us was not.

I closed the door softly behind me and steeled myself for the argument to come. But the living room was empty when I walked in. Good. I just wanted to go to bed. My brain hurt from thinking so hard and my heart felt tender in my chest. Hugging Sean’s pillow to my chest, I lay there staring out the window. Sleep wouldn’t come. Instead, I relived the scene in the basement again. Sean’s face had been…admiring, even awestruck, when Killian finished with Ramon. He’d made me watch! What was the point of that? Was I supposed to swoon over Killian’s power? Did they want applause? Were they getting off on it? It made me sick.

Maybe they’re not as good as they say they are.
A soft voice commented in the back of my mind.

Ignoring it, I turned my thoughts to Sean again.

I couldn’t understand his obvious admiration of Killian’s actions. I mean, Killian killed that guy, didn’t he? Was it the way he did it that was cool? Was twisting his mind until it imploded cooler than, say, slitting his throat? It was
cleaner
; maybe that’s the point. I wasn’t squeamish about killing in general; sometimes you had to do it or be killed yourself. I got that. I just didn’t get how he could so coldly kill that guy for really no reason. So he tried to kill us. Big deal! A lot of people have tried to kill me this year and no one killed them because of it. Scott Flynn’s heavy brow and deep-set eyes leered into view and I rolled over to avoid the picture. I loved Sean and Killian. I loved Dec, too. Maybe I was so used to seeing their caring or protective sides that I forgot they’re warriors first. Sean once told me that other Primani weren’t as
friendly
as these three. Maybe they’re just doing what they need to do, and I’m too much of a wuss to blow it off.

The dream was insidious. It crept up on me while I lay in that vulnerable window between consciousness and the early stages of sleep. My body was floating off into oblivion when the first images tickled my sight. Caught in the paralysis of sleep, I was helpless as the dream unfolded. I watched from above as Sean walked into my mind. He was bloodstained and weary as he crossed a clearing. Early morning mist softened the harshness of the bare trees. The silver light cast no shadows as he slowed to a stop. Stretching wearily, he sat down on a rock and dropped his head into his hands. He was heavily armed with an automatic rifle and extra ammunition looped over his right shoulder. His shoulders drooped and he rolled them tiredly. A shadow moved behind him, but he didn’t see it. My heart pounded in my chest as the darkness moved closer to him. Run, Sean! I tried to warn him, but my voice had no sound. Sean sat perfectly still, unaware. The shadow moved closer and a tingle of recognition crawled down my spine. Sean slid his hand to the sheath strapped to his calf and tensed as the shadow took human form. No! Wait! I screamed at him. But it was too late. He couldn’t hear me anyway. He’d whipped around and thrown the shining knife without hesitation. I gasped in shock and the dream world wavered out of focus.