The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) (72 page)

Beautiful, sweet Declan…my healer, my brother, my friend.

How is he gone? How is that even possible? It was like waking up to find the sky suddenly green and the grass blue.

It seemed like a bad dream…

Crazy with rage, he’d launched himself at Jordan. And Jordan had killed him.

Abruptly. Effortlessly. Coldly.

When I closed my eyes, I could still hear the echoes of breaking bone. Jordan had stunned us with his smug little victory speech. No one had known how strong he was, how powerful. Although he wasn’t Primani, he had angelic powers. But no one knew he had familial powers. He’d kept his family’s magic a secret from everyone. Like Killian, his powers were his by birthright. He’d grown stronger with the help of
Sgaine Dutre
.

And then there was Satan.

Satan had granted him more power as part of a deal they made. Jordan had been an angel once. Now…he was fallen.

Fallen and taken my friend with him.

Damn you, Jordan! How could you kill him? How could you be so evil? Dec was just a baby!

The dam finally broke and I let myself feel the agony I’d been holding inside for hours. The pain was impossibly sharp as it carried me to a darker place. My fist shook with the urge to hit something. My blood raced through me as I lay there helpless to save Dec. The tears weren’t cleansing; they were fuel for the anger simmering below the surface. More than anything, I wanted to rip Jordan’s face off and bury him in the darkest pit in Hell. I wanted to hurt him like he hurt Dec. But even that wouldn’t bring Dec back. Nothing I could do would bring Dec back. Killing Jordan wasn’t the answer to my pain. What I needed was Dec. I needed to know he wasn’t really gone. I wanted to search for him, go to Heaven and reassure myself he was there. I needed to know he was okay, somewhere…Where did Primani go when they died? Did they go to Heaven? Lying stiff with cold, I thought about Dec and cried without a sound. My throat threatened to strangle me from the pain of holding back the keening wail that was trying to break out of me. I wanted to howl like a banshee, but I choked it back, shaking and trembling alone. I wanted comfort but there was none in this cave. Sean was a million miles from me, lost in his thoughts, his memories…unreachable.

Don’t go too far, my angel…

Shivering in the darkness, I tossed and turned, not sleeping. I was cold and uncomfortable and dirty. My stomach was in a knot and I wanted Killian’s strength to steady me. I wanted his arms around me so I could let my human weakness take over for just a minute. But he was too far away. He was chasing Jordan across some other dimension and he couldn’t stop for me now. He’d find him. And hopefully rip him to shreds with a fork. If anyone could find Jordan, it was Killian. If anyone could destroy Jordan, it was Killian. I wished I could be there to watch. Frustrated, I pushed myself up and stalked outside into the paleness of dawn.

“I’m taking you back to the farmhouse.” He’d slipped up behind me and stood just out of reach. His voice sounded strained as if he was holding himself together by sheer will. He was trying to be civilized, but he really just wanted me gone so he could be alone.

Turning, I said, “Killian wouldn’t like that. I have orders.”

“Like I care what Killian would like? He doesn’t control me. I don’t want you here,” he snarled at me with bared teeth.

So much for civilized. “Maybe not, but I’m staying until we figure things out.”

“No, you’re not.” He reached out to grab me and I blocked his hand and pivoted to one side.

I crouched and waited for his next move. Eyeing me carefully, he edged to my left and took a step forward. Anticipating his feint, I moved farther to the left and tripped him when he lunged to my right. He thought he was clever…Springing back to his feet, he glared at me beneath lowered lashes, his eyes just beginning to burn. Oh, so it’s like that, is it?

Going all
supernatural
on me?

My own anger caught and I felt the heat build inside of me. My vision went white when he tensed to travel, and I threw myself at his waist, pulling him back from his attempted flight. Crashing hard, we both lost our breath as we hit the ground. Grabbing me around the waist, he tried to throw me to one side but couldn’t budge me. Still trying to anchor him, I held him in a death grip until he growled at me.

“Jesus, you’re like a friggin’ leech!” He squirmed underneath me and sneered, “Are you going to get off me or should I reach for a condom?”

Surprised, I laughed, “Oh, very funny! I’m not getting off until you tell me what’s going on in your head. Like it or not, we’re stuck with each other for now.”

He hissed in frustration and looked around like a trapped animal. Just for a second, his eyes were unguarded, and I caught a glimpse of the pain and confusion that roiled inside of his head.

“I don’t want to talk about it. Period. So stop wasting your time.”

Leaning my forehead against his chest, I counted to ten before I responded. “Okay, fine. Can I talk then?”

Dumping me rudely onto the grass, he said, “No. I don’t want to hear you talk either.” Standing up, he looked out across the countryside and ignored me again.

He finally turned to me and said, “Listen, I’m not in a good position. I don’t want you with me, but Killian’s off the grid or I’d bring you to him. And Dec…God, Dec.” His voice caught and he clamped his lips together.

My own throat tightened in response to his pain. He was sending off waves of it right now and my enhanced empathy gladly gathered it all up and processed it for him. Between the two of us, my head was about to explode.

Laying my hand on his arm, I tried reasoning with him. “I’m not trying to be difficult. But you can’t leave me alone. I’ve got a target on my back, you know that.” I paused and added, “Unless that’s what you want?”

Sucking in his breath, he snapped, “Don’t be stupid! You know I don’t want you dead. That’s not even in my nature.” He glared pointedly at my hand and I moved it.

“Yeah, well, it wasn’t supposed to be in James’ or Jordan’s nature either. You’ll forgive me if I don’t believe you?”

“Touché.” He touched his forehead lightly with two fingers. His smile didn’t reach his eyes.

The sun was fully up and glowing brightly against the eastern horizon. It should’ve stayed down though. Sean was still shirtless and his torso was liberally smeared with dirt from the hut. His pants were filthy from struggling with Dagin in the tunnels and sitting in wet dirt all night. He desperately needed to shave and his face, neck, and forearms were splattered with dried blood that hadn’t come off in the ocean. Apparently, I was the only one who landed in the water. His nose and left eye were swollen and he had a huge blue bruise from his temple to his chin on the left side of his face. Both hands were scabbed and there were long, jagged claw marks across his forearm.

“You don’t look much better, so stop staring at me,” he commented shortly. “You’re filthy and your hair’s a disaster.”

My stomach growled loudly, and I shoved my hand against it to quiet it down. Thinking back, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten anything. Two days ago? Did we eat before we went zombie hunting? My mind was blank on the subject. It had more important things to obsess over and I didn’t have much of an appetite anyway. Sean didn’t seem to be interested in food either and I didn’t want to disturb him. After snapping rudely at me earlier, he’d turned and left me standing alone. Dismissing me completely, he went back to the hut and retrieved his disgusting shirt and put it on. It was so stiff it actually crackled when he dragged it over his head. I watched him like a hawk as he peered around the tiny room. I still didn’t trust him but I thought he’d keep his word and not leave me stranded here. How many times had he sworn he’d never hurt me? He’d blown those promises to Hell and back, but I had to believe he still loved me someplace deep inside his soul. He might be slipping towards the dark, but he wasn’t there yet. I had a claim on him that he couldn’t ignore and I was going to exploit it if that’s what it took to keep Sean on the right path. I chewed my lip and wished for help. Killian would be able to reach him.

“Let’s go,” he barked abruptly to my right.

Startled out of my reverie, I jumped with my hand to my heart. “Where to?”

“Safe house.” Without waiting for my reply, he gripped both of my shoulders and the hut disappeared into oblivion.

The feeling of a pressure change was the only sensation I felt when we teleported. Normally controlled and natural, traveling this way was familiar for the Primani. They did it all the time, like it was part of their benefits package…perfect teeth dental, self-healing medical, unlimited 401k, free teleporting, ability to kill demons, etc., etc.  It wasn’t natural to me yet, but I’d done it enough now that I wasn’t surprised by it. Unless of course, we’re tumbling out of control and Sean throws me out in front of him like he did yesterday. That little experience was unusual and I didn’t like it. God only knew where I could end up next time.

My feet settled lightly on firm ground this time and Sean held me steady for an extra few seconds. His irises were glowing softly above the purple shadows under his eyes. His cheekbones were white with exhaustion and grief but he hid it well. The tension in his hands gave it away. His fingers were digging into my biceps hard enough to leave bruises, but I didn’t have the heart to point out that he was hurting me. I’d live. The waves of pain rolling off of him were making me queasy and I tried to send soothing vibes in his direction. Scowling deeply, he peered at something behind my back and clamped his teeth together in resignation.

“Come on, let’s get moving.” With that, he walked past me so quickly I had to sprint to catch up.

Apparently, our destination was an old stone farmhouse squatting in the middle of a grove of ancient trees. The huge trees surrounded the house and shielded it from prying eyes and poor weather. The two-story house was made from sun-bleached cut stone. It had a large overgrown garden in the front with a small covered porch standing guard. Climbing roses scaled one side of the house and wild flowers rioted across the sunny patches of the yard. The property was bordered by ancient black and grey stone fences that zigzagged drunkenly around the perimeter. It seemed to be several acres and was isolated on this sweeping plain. There wasn’t another building in sight. It was beautiful, but desperately lonely. Was the house abandoned? Who lived here? Sean? If so, in what century?

Was it my imagination or did the shuttered windows perk up at the sight of him? The closer we got, the brighter the house appeared; its vibes went from depressed to joyful. It seemed to welcome us. My imagination was in overdrive today. Are those bells ringing? No, wait, it’s not my imagination. I do hear bells ringing! Stopping in the middle of the overgrown stone walkway, I gazed around in amazement. The garden was overflowing with flowers, and butterflies flitted industriously from bloom to bloom. I buried my nose in a purple flower and smiled hesitantly at Sean. His face was a blank mask as he faced the front door like it was a firing squad.

Tucking the bloom behind my ear, I asked softly, “Is this place safe? It seems
alive
…”

Instead of answering me, he turned and lowered his face to mine. My pulse jumped automatically, but he didn’t kiss me. Instead, he inhaled the delicate fragrance of the flower and drew back with a wistful sigh.

“That was my mother’s favorite too. I guess you two have something in common.”

Unable to resist, I held his fingers against my cheek and said, “Besides loving you, Sean O’Cahan?”

His eyes brightened for just an instant and flattened out nearly as fast. Giving my hand a squeeze, he didn’t comment but headed for the door. It had a large deadbolt lock on it and a tiny red LED light glowed unobtrusively in the corner above the door. Hmm, it had modern security equipment. That’s interesting. Hopefully that meant the house had running water (correction;
hot
running water). At this point, my nose was trying to lean away from my body. Sea water, blood, mud, sand, sweat…I
really
needed a shower.

The inside of the house was a nice surprise. The floors were dark wood with thick wool carpets covering the main areas. The bottom floor had a living room with a flat screen TV and overstuffed leather couches. The small dining room contained a simple wooden table and six maroon leather chairs. A pewter chandelier hung over the table, but other than that the dining room was empty of any decorations. The walls were bare in all of the rooms except for a large wood-framed mirror in the entrance by the front door. Just like our farmhouse in New York, there were no curtains or useless knickknacks. It was simply furnished for function and not for style.

The tiny kitchen had been upgraded with a new refrigerator and stove, but nothing special had been done to the room. I couldn’t resist getting on my tiptoes to look through the window above the sink. It overlooked part of the rear garden and my mouth dropped open in surprise.

“The garden is beautiful back here. Can we go outside later?”

Blankly, he said, “You can go anywhere on the property. Just don’t wander off after dark.”

His expression told me he was thinking of something else again and I watched him for signs of departure. Was he going to bolt? He seemed stable enough…but starting to weaken. I studied him carefully as he stared out the window over my head. He was exhausted; he hadn’t eaten, he wasn’t sleeping, and he was forcing himself to be strong. I knew he was dying inside over Dec. He was his closest friend, his partner in crime. He considered him his little brother. They were soldiers together and had each other’s backs.