Authors: Violet Walker
T
he stench of alcohol and cigarettes surrounded him, but Damien Cladeaux was used to it. It was almost like home, but even it didn’t do anything to dull his inner turmoil. For decades, the same night haunted him over and over again.
“We could have it all, Damien. We could roam the streets freely again. How could that not be something that you want?”
“We do roam the streets freely, brother. Why can’t you accept an era of freedom and peace?”
“Freedom and peace? You move every ten years so people don’t become suspicious that you’re not aging. You haven’t joined in on the old celebrations in decades. You haven’t truly feasted since the turn of the century.”
“Humans are our equals.”
“And they should be our slaves. You’ll never be by my side.”
“I am loyal to the Slavante Brotherhood.”
“And what about me, Damien? Would you kill your flesh and blood for a seat at the head of the table?”
He tossed back another glass of whiskey and knocked the empty glass on the bar. He could not kill his brother, and now more than a few humans had paid the price.
And some of the brotherhood as well.
Every day, he remembered raising the sword to give his brother an honorable ending. And every day, he relived the moment he’d put his sword down and slipped away in the shadows, condemning his brother’s future victims.
Cresher had managed to call forth a demon. And the demon had called a nest of hybrids that destroyed many. The only bright side was that it drew his second hand man to Sierra, his Coyquiha, a hybrid’s better half.
And Cresher hadn’t summoned a demon just to kill. He experimented with the demon’s blood, mixing it with a human to see the reaction. It caused Lana to morph into a killing machine. Thankfully, she focused only on protecting her own love and destroyed the demon instead. The rancid blood dissipated, and she married Cole, another brother in the group.
And now there was no nest of hybrids and no demon to protect Cresher. This was Damien’s chance to act, but Cresher had disappeared. No one had heard from him in months.
With nothing better to do, Damien drank.
“Don’t you look good enough to eat?”
Damien spared a quick look to his left as the sultry voice wrapped around him. A beautiful young black woman dressed in a skin tight red dress took the seat next to him. The look she gave him was full of seduction and the promise of a night he would remember for a long time.
“He already has a date tonight.”
Damien cursed as two familiar shadows flocked behind the woman. She cast one look at the men and quickly slid off the stool. “He’s all yours.”
Damien pounded another one as Preston and Cole slid onto the barstools. “I thought I told you two that I wanted to be alone tonight,” he muttered.
“I don’t think you going home with her is considered alone,” Preston said gruffly. He held his hand up to the bartender, pointed to Damien, and slashed his finger across his throat.
Apparently, Damien was cut off. “Don’t you two have wives at home now,” he said as he glared.
“Yes, and the sooner we get home, the happier they’ll be. Pay your tab. We need to talk some place more private,” Cole muttered.
“If this is about my drinking, I’ve told you two time and time again…”
“It’s about Cresher.”
Damien immediately reached for his wallet. If Cresher had surfaced, Damien was ready to act. This had gone on for far too long. He tossed far too much money on the counter and followed his two best men out. The rain was still pounding on the streets as they folded themselves into a car.
“Has he surfaced?” Damien demanded.
“An elderly man came into the station this morning ranting that his best friend’s granddaughter was in danger. The granddaughter owns an antique bookstore, and we went out to talk with her. She claims the man is simply disoriented, but I pulled the tapes just to make sure there wasn’t something strange happening. Cresher was her first client today,” Cole muttered.
“Did the man recognize Cresher?” Damien asked.
“No, and when we asked for specifics, the man clammed up. Said we’d never believe him anyways. The bookstore owner seems to have no idea what’s going on, but if she did, she wouldn’t talk to us.”
Preston shifted in his seat. “I called someone that I know who deal in rare books. They said her shop is only a few months old and most of the collection comes from her grandfather. The books themselves are fairly inexpensive in the scheme of antique books, but they are priceless to a small group of collectors. She’s not dealing in first editions or ancient manuscripts. It’s mostly just journals.”
Damien sat back in the seat and frowned. “I have most of the notable old books. What could he be possibly looking for in an antique bookstore?”
“Maybe he’s not looking for a book,” Cole said darkly. “Maybe he’s just there for the girl. She’s not part of any hybrid family. I checked. But that doesn’t mean that she’s not valuable to him. Some of my contacts say that these bookstores are a great way for pockets of criminals to ship very rare and expensive books. The shipment looks legit, and they track it down and buy it for pennies. So we don’t have any way of knowing whether she’s legit or not.”
“Well? What are we waiting for? Let’s go check it out.”
Preston hesitated. “The other brothers are concerned.”
Damien stiffened in rage, but there was really nothing he could be upset about. He was supposed to kill Cresher decades ago, and he didn’t. All of those deaths were his fault. He couldn’t blame the others for wondering if he could finish the job now. “I just want this to be over,” he said tiredly.
“We’re not concerned that you can’t follow through,” Cole said as he started the car. “We’re concerned that you’re too drunk to keep from getting yourself killed.”
“If that were the case, I’d be dead already.”
“True enough,” Preston muttered.
Damien ignored the comment and settled back. “What’s the girl’s name?”
“Jade Morgan.”
Jade Morgan. “Never heard of her.”
Jade cradled the phone between her ear and shoulder. “I don’t know, Mom. I mean, the police came to the shop yesterday. They said Dale went to them and claimed that I was in trouble. They took video footage of my shop. I couldn’t tell if they wanted to protect me or arrest me. Are you sure you don’t know anything about these books? I’m going to be really upset if I open up one and find drugs or something.”
“Jade, I’ve already told you. I didn’t know much about Darren’s father. Darren never really talked about him. Dale’s an old man. He’s probably just mixing up information in his head. I wouldn’t worry about it, honey.”
Jade sighed as she hefted another box on the counter. “Well, now I’m worried about Dale. He’s all alone, and he still travels so much, and you know he’s not well. We should have done more before Dad died. He listened to Dad.”
“Sweetheart, if it makes you feel better, I’ll call Dale today. He’ll probably not even going to remember the event. Maybe I can get the number of a relative of his that might be able to convince him that it’s time to see a doctor.”
“Thank, Mom.” Jade carefully cut into the box as she said her goodbyes. Hanging up the phone, she pulled out the three leather books inside.
Adjusting her black-framed glasses, she entered the account numbers in the computer and set them aside. She repeated the process with the second box before shelving the books. She was several stacks back when she heard the bell on the door.
“I’ll be there in just a minute,” she called out as she hefted the large books on the shelf.
Scurrying around the corner to greet the guests, she ran into something warm and solid. Shrieking, she fell back only to have two hands grip her tightly just before hit anything.
“Goodness,” she muttered as she looked up. Beautiful grey eyes. Jet Black hair. Strong chin. High cheekbones.
Hard body.
The man pulled her up effortlessly and stared at her. “Are you okay?”
She shook her head as she pulled herself out of the sudden erotic daydream that popped into her head. “Ah, yes,” she said breathlessly. “I’m so sorry. Most people that come in don’t really browse, so I figured you’d be waiting for me up front. I’m Jade.”
“Damien.”
He stared at her and offered no additional information. She cleared her throat nervously. “Damien. What can I do for you?”
“As it so happens, I think I’m just here to browse.”
She smiled warmly. “There is something so exciting about getting lost among books for a bit. Feel free to take a look around. If you have any questions, just give me a shout. I’m doing some stocking.”
Jade stood a second longer staring into those eyes before she forced herself to move away. If she started being creepy, no one would buy any books from her. Still, she kept one eye on him while she unloaded another box.
Frowning, she pulled out the first book. “What the hell is this?” she murmured. There was an odd set of symbols on the front. She pulled up her computer and checked her order. It was only for two boxes. So where had this one come from?
Grabbing the phone, she called the collector. “Hi Jim, it’s Jade. First of all, thank you so much for the books. They’re in great shape, but I think you might have made a mistake. I ordered seven books, but you sent me eight. I’ve never heard of Ormassus Lenthys. Did you send it to me by mistake?”
She gasped as the customer in the store suddenly appeared at the desk. Damn, he was fast. “No? Are you sure?” she asked as Jim assured her that he’d only shipped two boxes.
There were something intense in Damien’s eyes, and she slowly hung up the phone. “Did you find something you wanted?” she asked softly.
“Where did you get that book?” he said in a low voice.
A light bulb went off in her head. “I think it was a mistake. Do you have a brother? I swear there was a man in here yesterday who looks quite a bit like you.”
His eyes widened. “You did meet with Cresher.”
“Oh.” Jade smiled. “You are his brother. That’s great because he didn’t leave me his name or contact information, but he was looking to add to his collection. I’m not sure where this book came from, but he might really like it. Let me do some research to find out who sent it to…” she reached for the phone and gasped when Damien suddenly ripped the receiver out of the wall. She stumbled back in fear. “Or I don’t have to. That’s cool too,” she mumbled. Immediately, Dale’s warning echoed in his head. She was in danger.
“You will tell me everything my brother said. Word for word,” Damien hissed.
Jade put her hands up. “Look. I’m not trying to get in the middle of some family feud. If you want the book, you’re welcome to buy it. I really don’t care.”
“Don’t move,” he muttered as he spun the book around and opened it. She watched his face pale as he flipped through the pages. “Fuck. We need to leave. Now.”
“What?” Jade pressed up again the wall. “We?”
“Yes. We. You see, I don’t know how you’re involved, but I don’t intend to let you out of my sight until I figure it out. Let’s go.”
“Okay, see I’m not involved in anything. I just own a bookstore. You can have the book. It’s not even in my inventory yet, so it is not harming me in anyways. Take the book, but I’m not going anywhere with you,” Jade babbled. She heard the fear in her own voice, and she struggled to gain control of herself.
She gasped as his eyes suddenly turned black. “Almoro Assiati,” he said in a low voice. A dull ache spread behind her eyes, and she stared at him. His eyes were turning black.
“What are you doing? How are you doing that with your eyes?”
His jaw dropped open. For a moment, they only stared at each other. “I don’t have time for this,” he suddenly hissed. He reached over and grabbed her arm.
“Ow,” she said. She tried to pull away, but he had her in an iron grip. “This is kidnapping!” She opened her mouth and started to scream at the top of her lungs.
“Damn it,” he swore. Pulled her over the counter, he slapped a hand over her mouth. “Listen to me, Jade Morgan. If you are as innocent as you say, then your life is in danger. And if you’re not, then trust me, no one is coming to save you.”
Jade stopped screaming. “How do you know my name?” she whispered.
“Grab the book, get in the car with me, and I’ll tell you everything,” he said.
She laughed shortly. “I actually really don’t care. I’m not going with you.” The dull ache behind her eyes suddenly doubled, and Jade grunted as she reached up and grabbed her head. “God, are you doing this to me?” she gasped.
“Cresher,” he growled as he pulled something out of his pocket. Jade felt a sharp pain in her neck, and her world went black.
“
D
amn it, Damien. You do realize that kidnapping is illegal, right?”
“Calm down, Cole. He may have just saved this woman’s life.”
“Is this what I think it is?”
“Is she going to be okay?”
The voices, both male and female, seem to come from all direction. Jade slowly opened her eyes and tried to focus on her surroundings. Everything was blurry. She reached over for her glasses, but instead of her nightstand, she just gripped air.
“What?” she murmured.
“She’s waking up.”
The familiar male voice penetrated through the haze around Jade’s brain, and she jackknifed up with a gasp and squinted. The man from the store, two males, and two females stared at her.
“Glasses,” she croaked. “Aspirin.” Her head was still killing her.
“Ease up, Preston,” Damien snapped.
Suddenly, the pain lessoned. One of the females handed her glasses to her, and Jade pushed them back on her face. She tried to take in her all her surroundings at once.
Dark. Lavish. The cushions under her were plush and comfortable, but there was something off putting about the room. Something made her feel uneasy.
Maybe it was because she was there against her will. She focused on the faces around her and stopped when she got to the man on the left. “You’re the detective,” she sputtered. “What the hell is going on?”
Cole put up his hands. “I know you’re scared, but I need you to listen for a minute. Damien did not kidnap you to harm you. While he shouldn’t have kidnapped you at all, he believed you were in danger.”
“In danger? He drugged me with something,” she squeaked. “Are you mad? He’s the dangerous one!”
“I had to drug you because you’re immune to my power. Apparently, you’re immune to all demonic power,” Damien said as he studied her.
She laughed shortly. “Demonic powers. Right. Well, now that you’ve established that you can’t affect me with your powers, could you just show me the exit, please?”
Damien reached his hand out. He whispered some strange words in a low voice, and a ball of light appeared in his hands. Jade scrambled to her feet. “What the hell is that?” she hissed.
“Preston can manipulate human will. Cole can sense souls. My natural power is dominion over souls, but as the head of a powerful community, I’m gifted with several spells that offer me more power,” Damien said softly. “We are demon hybrids, Jade. And you’ve landed in the middle of a war.”
Jade licked her lips. Panic was rising, and it was bringing some acid bile with it. “If that’s true, then you’re holding someone’s fucking soul in the palm of your hand.”
The man waved his hand, and it disappeared. “In this day and age, manipulating souls isn’t all that useful. I can capture the newly dead before they pass, but I won’t command them to do anything.”
She closed her eyes. “It’s just a magic trick. No. It’s not even that. I’m dreaming. I’m dreaming, and I’m going to wake up now because this cannot possibly be real.”
She cocked one eye open. They were still there. The dark haired beauty smiled softly. “Why don’t you sit down before you fall down?”
At the suggestion, Jade’s knees buckled. “My name is Lana, and just a few months ago, I was also trying to process all this. Sierra is a little better off. She grew up in a family of demon hunters. But I’m a stripper.”
“Exotic entertainer,” Cole grumbled.
Sierra smiled. “I was attacked by a demon, and trust me, it did not feel like real life.”
“None of that explains what I’m doing here. I own and sell a bunch of old books,” Jade muttered. “And he was the only person that attacked me.”
“Cresher is more…”
“Stop.” Lana cast an irritated glance as Damien stopped forward. “There is no need to give her more information that she needs to know. We still don’t know if we can trust her.”
“She sells a bunch of dusty books,” Lana said with a frown.
“And she’s in possession of a very powerful and very old book,” Cole said quietly. “Cresher could do a lot of damage with the spells in here.”
“I’ve already told you. I don’t know how I got the book,” Jade said defensively. “It came with a shipment, but I didn’t order it.”
“Cole,” Damien said quietly. “See what you can find out. Preston, take the women home. I want to talk to Jade alone.”
Sierra stepped forward. “Damien,” she said warningly. “The woman is human. She has no weapons on her, and you have very little reason to suspect her of anything.”
“Relax, huntress,” Damien said as he stared at Jade. “I won’t hurt her. I just want some information.”
Lana grabbed her hand. “He won’t hurt you,” she whispered.
“Don’t go,” Jade said, but the group was already sliding away. When the door shut, it was just her and the gorgeous man.
And he did not look happy.
Damien watched the woman as she paced slowly around the living area. “You have some nice things here,” she said slowly.
He growled in response. She was stunning. Long blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and a body that had him stirring. And although most of her delicate features were hidden behind her large dark framed glasses, he thought she looked lovely with them.
But looks were deceiving. She could be as sweet and innocent as she looked but she could also be the person standing in his way of killing Cresher.
“What did Cresher say to you?”
“First of all, I don’t know that’s his name. Just because you look like him doesn’t mean that you’re his brother. And all he did was ask for certain books. He wanted something in mysticism. He didn’t threaten me. I just got one of those headache things, and I asked for his information. He refused to give it, and he left.”
“This headache thing? He was probably trying to make it so that you forgot what he looked like. I have a problem with your story, Jade. You see, Cresher doesn’t ask for things. He simply takes them.”
Jade tried to look as small as possible against the ornate wallpaper. “I don’t know what to tell you. He was very polite.”
“Unless you’re lying.”
“Sure. I’m lying to the man who could rip my soul out of my body. That makes sense.”
“I wouldn’t rip your soul out of your body.”
“And I’m not lying to you. Yesterday was the first time I’d ever seen him. Just like today was the first time I met you. And your friends. And the inside of your home. Seriously, do you live here? Some of this stuff looks centuries old!”
“I do live here, and some of this stuff is centuries old. And none of this is the point. I intend to kill Cresher, and I’m not letting you out of my sight until that happens.”
“Just so we’re clear, I’m stuck here until you kill your brother?”
“Yes.”
She rolled her eyes. “Do you at least have a book I can read?”
He moved, and in the blink of an eye he was over the couch and pushing her against the wall. “It is as if you have no idea how dangerous and important this is,” he said in a low voice.
Her breath hitched, and he watched her eyes dilate. Was she scared? Or turned on? Because he was definitely turned on. He breathed in her scent, and it fanned a flame inside him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt like this.
“Well, I certainly feel in danger when you’re standing this close to me,” she whispered. He watched the pulse flutter at the base of her throat.
He reached out and slid his finger over her throat. “So that’s fear I’m sensing and not desire?” he murmured.
“Fear.”
It was like a dose of cold water. He immediately backed up. “You will not leave this place. When this is all over, you can be your own way, and you will never speak of this. And believe me, if you do, there will be consequences.”
“It’s not like anyone would believe me.”
“Right.” He watched as she inched herself away from the wall to put as much space between him and her as possible.
“Where are you going now?”
“None of your concern,” he growled before he stomped out of the room. The faster he finished this and got her out of his home, the better.