Balance (The Divine, Book One) (29 page)

Three
to one were bad odds against a demon that was impervious to almost everything.
I focused my will inward; pushing myself to be stronger, faster, and tougher
than any human could ever hope to be. I was almost decapitated when my first
effort failed, my skill at bending the universe still not a surety. The attack
put a deep gash into my neck and sent me skidding across the floor, the
gargoyles trailing right behind. It hurt, and the sensation of having my head
hanging from my spine was weird and creepy.

I
focused again, rewarded for my persistence with the results I had been looking
for. I healed in no time, and grabbed the first gargoyle that tried to jump on
me and threw it away. I could hear it go smashing through the living room, but
I didn’t know how much damage I had inflicted. It didn’t matter, because I had
more demons incoming. I pushed off on the ground with my free hand, the
augmented strength sending me high into the air. Everything around me looked
like it was in slow motion, and I felt as though I had all day to make whatever
maneuvers I needed on the way down.

I
lashed out with my foot at one gargoyle, launching it backwards to land on the
floor stunned a dozen feet away, whipped around with the sword on two more, hit
the ground, crouched under an attempted grab, then propelled myself into the
fourth blade-first. I landed on its chest and it slid across the floor,
impaled. When I looked up, Rebecca was standing over me, her mouth wide in an
impressed grin.

“Having
fun yet?” she asked.

To be
honest, I was.

There
were five gargoyles left, and Rebecca and I tore into them with an unmatched
fury. She was a blur of steel, legs, and hair, leaping into the air, kicking
the gargoyle’s claws aside and depositing one of the blades deep into its
skull.

I
used Boots’ sword to remove a claw, then a leg, leaving a howling monster for
Rebecca to finish off while I stabbed the third in the heart. The remaining two
decided it was time to flee, but Rebecca threw a blade into one of the
gargoyle’s backs, then pounced onto the other one, hissing as she reached
around and cut its throat. She was wiping the weapon clean on its skin before
it hit the ground.

“I
didn’t know you could fight like that,” I said to her after she retrieved the
other sword and rendezvoused with me. She leaned in and kissed my cheek.

“Me
neither,” she said. “Your blood is amazing.” Her eyes changed back to their
beautiful blue, and the look she gave me melted my brain.

“I
think we better check on Obi,” I said, trying to catch my breath. We made our
way to where the former Marine was working the electromagnetic lock.

“Man,
I don’t know if I can hotwire this thing,” he said when we got to him. “This
isn’t the standard software package, it’s been seriously customized.”

“The
gargoyles may not have gotten away, but its a good bet they sent an alarm out
when they woke,” Rebecca said. “I don’t think we have a lot of time.”

“It
looks like Plan A is the new Plan B,” I said. “Both of you back away from the
door.”

Once
they had moved, I stood in front of the door and focused, trying to force the
lock to disengage. It was a futile effort. I tried to short out the electrical
connection, and was rewarded with a whole bucket of nothing. We were running
out of time, and we weren’t getting anywhere.

“Obi,”
I said. “Go back to the service area and let out whoever is trapped in there.
Bring them back here, they aren’t safe on their own.”

“I
don’t think that’s a good idea, man,” Obi said.

“Do
it,” I shouted.

Obi’s
expression said ‘screw you’, but he followed the order. I looked at the door
again. There had to be some way through. I crouched down and lifted the
fingerprint sensor so I could look at it. If Rebecca’s grandfather had ever
touched the surface, maybe I could get his print. I stood up again.

“Open
your mouth,” I said to Rebecca.

“What?”

“Just
open your mouth.”

She
did, and I took my thumb and ran it up along her fang, slicing it open. She
licked at the blood that dripped onto her lips while I crouched back down and
pressed it to the sensor. I focused on it, using it like a detective would use
chalk. It was our lucky day, because a defined print assembled itself in my
blood. I focused again to thicken and solidify it, creating enough light resistance
to fool the system. The door clicked and swung open a few inches. We were in!

“Nice
trick.”

I
knew that voice. Rebecca and I both turned our heads to see Merov standing at
the end of the hallway with two burly weres. One was restraining Obi. The other
one was holding the girl I assumed was Merov’s prisoner. She was young, a
little chubby, wearing a grey wool sweater and a pair of jeans. Her face was
ordinary; her eyes brown and glazed from tears. She was still whimpering. I had
been too distracted with the lock to notice them coming.

“Wait
until you see my next one,” I replied. It seemed like as good a time as any for
a smartass remark. Merov was unfazed.

“Reyzl
was sure you’d be back. I told him there was no way, but I guess that’s why
he’s the Boss. I’m surprised you brought a human with you though. He’s not even
Touched
! And he was trying to make off with my virgin!
By the way, it’s good to see you again my dear.” Malicious was too soft a word
for the smile he gave his daughter.

 I
held up my hands. “Okay, you’ve got us,” I said. “Now what.”

He
laughed. “As if it would be that easy to capture you. I didn’t rise this far by
being stupid diuscrucis.” He raised his hands and gestured for his goons to
release their prisoners. Both Obi and the girl stumbled down the hallway. “I
know if it came down to it, you’d just kill them to get to me,” he said.

I
would never have told Obi, but the vampire was right.

“So
what is it you want?” I asked. When they reached us, the girl put her arms
around Obi and continued to shake.

“A
deal of course,” he replied.

“Landon,”
Rebecca said. “Be careful making deals with demons.”

“Of
course. Name it,” I said.

He
walked forward, unconcerned for his safety. I doubted he was as vulnerable as
he appeared. “My sweet daughter owes me a dance,” he said, looking right at
her. “If she wins, I’ll be dead, and she’ll be in control of the family. You
can get whatever information you want, no tricks needed.” He stopped right in
front of me. “If I win, you’ll kill Reyzl for me. Once he’s dead, you’ll leave
me to control the Northeast, and take your nasty business elsewhere.”

There
was something amusing about him calling my work nasty. I wasn’t the one
torturing young virgins before drinking their blood.

“Landon,
don’t,”
Rebecca
said. “Remember what I told you.”

Merov
laughed. “Did she tell you she can’t beat me?” he asked. “Ironic that it should
come down to a question of faith. Do you have faith in my daughter, even when
she doesn’t have it in herself?”

I
looked at Rebecca. She was frightened. “What if I just kill you where you
stand?” I asked him.

“You
won’t,” he said.

“Because...”

He
smiled again. “Because then she gets nothing. You know where she stands. Now
imagine having our family capitulating to her orders; three thousand nosferatu
following her lead.”

He
was willing to do the deal because he was confident. He had no doubt in his
mind that he could kill his daughter, and this was his big chance to get rid of
Reyzl, get rid of me, and put himself into greater power. Rebecca had said
Reyzl could make him an archvampire, but why settle for that when you could aim
even higher? I glanced between Merov and Rebecca - the confident father and his
frightened child. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.

“You
have a deal,” I said.

“Landon,
no,” Rebecca cried. It was too late, and she knew it.

“You
have five minutes,” Merov said. “I’ll be waiting in the living room.” He turned
and left, his heavies following close behind.

 “What
did you just do,” Rebecca hissed once Merov was out of range.

I
took hold of her shoulders and lowered my head so she could see into my eyes.
“I doubled-down on your bet,” I told her. “Like you said, it’s a risk, but it’s
one both of us need to take.”

Her
angry expression softened. She slumped forward into my arms. “I’ll do my best.
If I lose... I’m sorry.”

I
held her for a minute before easing her out of the embrace. My heart was
thudding in my chest, my body feeling an unnatural chill. It wasn’t the
temperature that was making me so cold. I was finding the thought of Merov
winning more frightening than anything I had experienced. Merov winning meant
Rebecca would be gone.

“You
won’t lose,” I said. “You can’t. You’re running on premium.”

It
was a joke that ended up feeling lame to say, but the statement perked her up.
She straightened her posture, licked her lips, and then smiled. “I hadn’t even
considered that. I’m going to wipe the floor with that asshole.”

“Can
somebody tell me what’s going on here?” Merov’s prisoner had stopped whimpering
long enough to speak. She was still holding onto Obi’s arm like it was the only
thing keeping her sane.

“I’m
sorry,” I said to her. “It’s better for you if you don’t know. What’s your
name?”

“Cathy.”

“Cathy,
I’m going to get you out of here unharmed, okay?”

She
didn’t look convinced, but she nodded. “Okay.”

“Good.
Don’t worry about anything. Rebecca, can you?”

Rebecca
stepped over to Cathy and took her face in her hand. “You’re so pretty,” Cathy
said.

“Thank
you Cathy,” Rebecca replied. “Now go to sleep.”

She
received the Command as though she had been hypnotized, her eyes rolling back
in her head and her entire body going limp. Obi caught her on the way down,
easing her fall.

“Time
to go kill my father,” Rebecca said.

“Rebecca.”
I reached out and grabbed her by the arm as she started to storm away.

It
was all I had time to say, because then her lips were locked onto mine, and she
was kissing me like it would be her last chance. Every sense of everything else
in the universe faded away. I absorbed every ounce of emotion that she poured
into the kiss, amplifying and returning it mixed with every feeling she had
created within me since we had met. It was deep, meaningful, and passionate, a
hello and a goodbye both. When she pulled away from me, it was all I could do
to stay balanced.

“Much
better than chocolate,” she repeated.

“Break
a leg,” I said, trying to catch my breath.

“I’ll
break a lot more than that.”

Obi
and I followed behind her as she resumed her angry march towards her destiny.
Reaching the main living space, I saw that Merov had stripped down to a white
t-shirt and a pair of black sweats. I had thought the vampire was stocky, but
his body was well muscled. It was his powerful barrel chest that had made him
appear fat. He looked like he could pulverize his child without effort.

“I’m
sorry to have to do this to you my dear,” he said when he noticed Rebecca
approaching.

She
didn’t waste time with formality. Instead she kicked off her shoes, opened her
mouth and hissed a challenge, her body shifting back into attack mode. This
time she did a complete transformation, her fingers and toes elongating into
deadly claws. She was on Merov in an instant, catching him off guard and
leaving a deep gash in his cheek before he could react. He bellowed and shifted
himself, showing us why he was the head of the family.

Where
Rebecca could grow longer fangs and claws, Merov’s entire body changed. He grew
at least six feet, his muscle expanding his skin so much it looked like it was
going to tear, his face taking on a non-humanoid look as all of his teeth grew
and pushed against his mouth. He was more beast than man, a monster in
civilized clothing.

He
caught Rebecca’s fist when she tried to dig into his chest, twisted her arm and
threw her across the floor. “Come now dear, you can do better than that,” he
said, his voice so deep it was hard to understand.

Rebecca
got back to her feet and approached again, more cautious after the last hit.
She looked miniscule framed against her father’s insane mass of power.

“I’ve
hated you my entire life,” she told him. “I can’t wait to watch you die.”

She
danced forward, dodged a heavy punch, and raked her claws across his chest. It
was so thick it didn’t even break through the skin, and
she
was rewarded by a backhanded blow to the head that sent her tumbling away
.
He was toying with her.

“You
know how I hate to disappoint you,” he said. “But I’m afraid I’ll have to make
you wait a while longer.”

He
dashed forward with a speed that should have been impossible for his size, then
raised his foot to stomp his daughter. I cringed as the huge claw came down on
her. Somehow she was able to get her feet under her, and she caught the foot in
her hands and shoved. Off balance, Merov crashed backwards onto the ground.