Fire with Fire (Demonblood Series #2) (6 page)

She falls to the floor with a graceful
plop.
Slowly, she arches her back and sits upright, then turns to me with a disapproving scowl.

“Lucky, how dare you disturb me when I’m deep under? Don’t you realize I was trying to see what it is that’s happening here? Now it will take me several hours to get back to where I was.”

“Tat, this is an emergency!” How was
I
supposed to know? Tatiana usually saves her really weird voodoo stuff for after I’ve gone. She’s supposed to be here for me to talk to when I need her; that’s her job. And I need her
now
. “Tat, you know I’m in crisis mode. Did you see anything? What’s going on in Dryndara?”

Tatiana closes her eyes and lets out a troubled sigh. “I fear, despite my best efforts, I am unable to penetrate the magical barrier of Thiberoux. I thought this latest spell would work for sure, but…” Her voice drifts off as she slowly rises to her feet.

“It’s war.” I grasp her hands and help her up. “It has to be. But why now? And who was it?”

She shakes her long, silver hair. “I wish I could see more, but alas, I cannot. But there was something else…something that is most alarming…”

My eyes widen. “What?”

“It’s here, in the mortal world. Liora’s world. A strange, supernatural force.”

“What do you mean? Like what?” I pace around her like a lion circling its prey. If whatever happened last night somehow spilled over into the human world…That would
not
be good.

She shakes her head again. “I fear, I do not know. I cannot see it clearly. But whatever it is, it’s strong…very powerful. More powerful than anything I’ve ever felt here before.”

“Are we in danger?”

She drops her head. “I do not know. I’m sorry.”

I stare at her, my frustration building to dangerous levels. “So, let me get this straight. We get suicide bombed at Demon Bar, and who knows how many of us even survived…I mean, Bones and I
barely
made it out a secret exit…it’s only by the luck of Lucifer we
happened
to be sitting in the back corner in the first place. If we’d been in our usual spots when they attacked us…” I shudder and head to her room to grab some energy stash. I need a drink badly, and now the routine act of replenishing at Demon Bar is in doubt.

Fortunately, Tatiana always has a never-ending supply, as she’d been able to clone some original Source Energy and infuse it with her own magical potions. But as good as it is, it’s not as powerful as that from the Source. It does the job, but I never feel quite one hundred percent. And who knows what’s in store for me tonight? I might have to fight for my life the moment I step foot inside Dryndara.

I emerge from Tatiana’s bedroom clutching a vial of Energy and chug it as I cross the cabin to my bedroom.

Tatiana follows me. “Lucky, have you ever wondered
why
exactly it is we live here? Why there are so many demons clustered in this area?”

No, and I don’t care.

“Not really. I thought demons were everywhere.” I scour my closet looking for something suitable to wear. As usual, Liora has us dressed us in shabby black rags not fit for a homeless beggar.

I toss aside several long gowns…tormenting is
definitely
out of the question tonight. After what happened, I can only assume war is on the horizon. No vintage dresses for me. My fingers grace the red leather pants and halter top—one of my favorite outfits. I quickly change as Tatiana sits on the edge of Liora’s bed, her opaque eyes cast downward.

“Yes, this is true…,” she murmurs, as if she’s talking to herself. “Demons can be found almost everywhere. But they always tend to cluster around the kinetic hot spots. Your world of Thiberoux may seem huge to you, but in essence, it only covers a very small part of this countryside.”

“Yeah, so?” I slide on my boots and start brushing my hair.

“So, there are many other demons all over the world who have homes in realms other than Thiberoux, but who also live in the mortal world.”

“Yeah, I know. What’s this all about?” I give her a curious look as I fix Liora’s hideous raccoon eyeliner into something more smoky and sultry.

Tatiana fingers the lace of one of the gowns I’d tossed aside and presses her lips together. “I’ve never told you this, but I was raised by a demoness. She found my sister and me abandoned and left to die. Much the way I found you. Although later we came to find—”

“Wait, you have a
sister
?” I turn to her, my mouth agape. Tatiana had never mentioned she had a sister before. Truth is, I’ve never asked about her family. I just figured she’d always been exactly how she is now. Actually, I can’t imagine her
ever
being a teenager, or a child. Or with a family. Or having a mother. The idea is unsettling.

“Yes, I have a sister. Actually, she’s my twin, younger by five minutes. Her name is Anastasia. She lives in California, in a lovely seaside town called Crystal Cove. We each certainly have our own talents, but Ana’s gift of sight is one that has no equal, and I’m afraid I come up short time and time again. It’s times like this I wish she was closer…that
we
were closer.” Her thin lips draw into a small frown, and her petite shoulders hunch forward.

“Wow. So how come you’ve never mentioned this sister of yours before?” I turn and glide on my favorite cherry-red lip gloss.
And why is she bringing her up now?
My world is falling into chaos, half of Dryndara is dead, and she’s talking family reunions?

“I can’t help but wish I had more Sight right now. Something big has shattered the spiritual energy of Liora’s mortal world at the same time you tell of unprecedented turmoil in your world. To have two such anomalies occur simultaneously is a matter of great concern to me, and one which I fear is out of my reach.”

I give her another strange look but continue dressing, and quickly brush out my long ebony hair, twisting it up into a high ponytail.

“Tat, I love you…you know I do. But you’re kind of all over the place right now. I wake up needing details about what went down in Dryndara, and you’re telling me of demoness mothers, long-lost witchy twin sisters, and a supernatural explosion in Liora’s world. Not really helpful.”

Tatiana sighs and hangs her head.

“…And speaking of Liora, what
is
that girl doing to me these days? Why have I been waking up feeling so crappy every night and needing a drink before I even change my clothes? I’ve felt like she’s getting sick or something for a few weeks now…”

“She hasn’t mentioned anything to me,” Tatiana replies. “But perhaps you’re just picking up on how
you
make
her
feel every morning. You know how detrimental it is on her body when you drink so close to sunup. I am going to
insist
you taper back. I do not want to repeat myself on this matter one more time.” Her white eyes narrow and I quickly look away, pretending to dab at my lip-gloss.

I decide to change the subject. “Any sign of Kieron?”

Tatiana shakes her head again. “No. Sorry.”

I shrug and stroll past her, feigning indifference. But the truth is, every night he’s gone the achy emptiness in my chest gets bigger, not smaller. Whoever said time heals all wounds was a total idiot.

My black velvet cloak hangs from the back of the door. I wrap it over my shoulders and fasten it with my Boumeaux—the most important possession I have. The black diamond broach was a present from Bones when I was just a young demion. The stone itself is a magical concoction forged from the deepest fire-wells of Thiberoux and can only be touched by those of us belonging to the sacred order of
demonia angelis.
If humans touch it they will instantly turn to ash. It also serves as the ‘key’ for entering the land of Thiberoux, the mystical realm of the Dark-angels. But most importantly perhaps, the black diamond will shine bright white if I’m ever unfortunate enough to find myself in the presence of my most mortal enemy…the Light-angels. Thankfully, I’ve never had mine start glowing, but after the scare we had awhile back, I never let it out of my sight. I head to the back door.

“Lucky, I would prefer you stay close by tonight. Avoid Dryndara.”

I stop and spin around. “And
why
would I do that?”

“I’m worried for your safety,” she replies softly.

“Sorry, Tat, but there’s no way I’m not going in there tonight. I have to see what’s going on. Remember, I’m not afraid of a good fight like you are. Truth is, I’d
love
to get my hands on some of those demons from last night and show them what—”

“This is different, Lucky. I fear something big is happening.”

I sigh and drop my shoulders, walking back to her. She seems so tiny and vulnerable right now. “Tat, I appreciate your concern. Really I do. But this is something I have to do. Bones is in there, and as good as your stuff is, I need to drink from the Source. Dryndara is my home, and I’m not about to run and hide just because some assholes decided to ambush us during happy hour.”

“Lucky…”

I sigh again and give her a quick peck on the cheek. “I’ll be careful, Tat. I promise,” I whisper in her ear. I know she’s concerned because she loves me, but sometimes she doesn’t understand that she and I don’t think the same way. Personally, I wouldn’t mind if we were in a full blown war and could battle every night and kill whomever we wanted without repercussion from the Legionare. Actually, at this moment I can’t think of anything I’d like
more
than to get my drink on, then find the bastards responsible for last night’s massacre and rip them to pieces with my bare hands…

The image of Kieron’s face floats in my mind.
Okay, maybe there’s
one
thing I’d rather do.
The memory of him kissing me for the first time by the River of Kings…that feeling of complete euphoria that made me love being alive, if only for a moment…the intoxicating happiness that flooded through me, erasing my innate desires to hunt, kill, and destroy…Those precious memories of his love are all that have sustained me for this long.

But Kieron is gone, and from the looks of things, he’s not coming back to me anytime soon, if
ever.
So, hunt kill and destroy it is.

Love can shove it.

~~~

I lean forward, wrapping my arms tightly around Diablo’s neck as he tears through the forest at lightning speed. His silky mane flies back in the wind, mixing perfectly with my own hair. I don’t know what’s racing faster, his powerful legs or my apprehensive heart. When we near the Portal to Thiberoux, I wrap my hand around my Boumeaux and prepare to utter the silent words granting me passage.

“LUCKY! STOP!” The firm command rings loudly through the night, even over the sound of Diablo’s pounding hooves.

“Stop,” I whisper to Diablo. He immediately slows to a prancing trot, and we turn around to see Bones standing a few feet away.

His thick bronze hair is disheveled, his chocolate eyes deep as the night sky. He obviously has just shifted, and stands nude and proud…as exquisite and flawless a specimen as was ever created. Even though I’ve seen Bones in his natural state countless times, I always admire the pure beauty of his form. There is something almost godlike in the symmetry of his perfection. Yet, I know he is anything
but
perfect…and it is these flaws that make me want him. And the fact that I can never have him,
really
have him, makes me want him all the more.

You always want what you can’t have...

“Bones? What’re you doing here?” I jump off Diablo’s back and into Bones’ arms. He embraces me in the way only he can. Strong, yet gentle.

“I’ve been waiting for you. I—”

“What’s going on?” I pull away to meet his concerned gaze. I’ve been friends with Bones nearly my whole life, and meet up with him almost every night on my way to Demon Bar. But always
inside
Thiberoux, usually near the River of Kings. He’s never stopped me outside before.

He lets out a low whistle, and it’s only then I realize we’re not alone. Several figures I recognize as Bones’ hellhound buddies emerge from the shadows. A demon named Micah throws a pair of pants at Bones.

“Cover up, dude. You’re making the rest of us look bad.” Micah, a hellhound like Bones, has golden white hair that flows gently to his shoulders, and is wearing nothing but a pair of jeans and a cocky grin. Standing beside him is another hellhound, Alik, a silent, muscular, ebony-skinned demion. Just behind them is Khalil, a younger version of Adonis with the body of an Olympic athlete. All physically perfect in their human form, and wearing only jeans, they look like a group of male models getting ready to pose for an Abercrombie & Fitch commercial. Not the wicked predators that Sapie nightmares are made of.