A Slither of Hope (20 page)

“Woman troubles?” the Fallen around the corner shouted.

“Yeah. Give me a sec,” he called over his wing. “Calm down,” he hissed through gritted teeth.

“Screw you!”

He reached for me. Instinct kicked in. I used my forearm to deflect his hold, stomped my heel into his foot, and elbowed him in the midsection. He doubled forward. I looked down at my hands. I did it. He'd been trying to get me to learn that for weeks and I finally got it. With adrenaline and anger still overflowing in me, I jammed the heel of my palm up into his nose. It connected with a sharp snap and a rush of blood.

Kade's hand flew to his nose and his mouth dropped open. He was just as surprised as I was.

I backed away three steps, watching him, still unable to believe what he'd done.

Bastard
.

With one last, satisfying look at his bloodied face, I turned and ran.

***

Options, options, options.

I couldn't go back to the apartment.

Emergency procedures. My mind was foggy. What were they again? That traitor had drilled them into me again and again.

One: Get somewhere safe. Two: Ditch everything you don't need, it'll only slow you down. Three: Get to one of the three meeting points. That one I wouldn't be doing.

Safe. The city wasn't safe for me anymore. Where was safe, then? Dad's house was out of the question. So was Aunt Nora's. If she was still up there with Dad and Laylah I'd never find a way in.

First things first. I had three small storage spaces in town in case Kade and I ever had to leave quickly. I headed toward location number two. It wasn't the closest to the apartment, which was why I chose it. Kade was probably on his way to location one: a small locker at the train station where I kept a wad of cash, a small bag, and a burner cell. The other two only had some cash. I couldn't risk going to the one farthest from downtown, for fear he'd catch up to me. I just had to hope he wouldn't be thinking the same way I was.

He'd go for the first locker. He had to.

A splitting pain began to carry all the way up my side, but I had to keep moving. Kade was just like any other Fallen now. I had to make myself believe that or I might not make it out of this alive. I was on my own.

At a busy intersection, while I waited for traffic to pass, I pulled out my cell phone. I switched the power off and removed the battery, tossing it in the storm drain by my feet. I threw the other half of the phone in a garbage can once I crossed the street. At least Kade had taught me something useful.

With the storage facility finally in sight, twenty-four blocks later, I picked up my speed, then thought better of it. I slowed to a stroll, watching every rooftop and possible corner. So far so good. I punched in the six-digit code for the automated gate and bolted to the second set of buildings. I flung the door open and ran until I reached the bend in the hallway. It was late enough that no one else should be here, but just in case, I peeked around the corner. Empty.

I ran to unit two-fifty-three, a small five-by-five unit, and started on the combination lock. A scuffling noise sounded across the hall. I fumbled with the lock. It clacked against the corrugated metal door, rattling through the hallway like a siren. I cringed and placed my hand on the door to stop the noise. Checking over both shoulders, I headed farther down the hall, where the rustling came from. The sound came again. I looked around the corner and cringed. A rat was shuffling though a discarded bag of chips lying on the floor.

I returned to my unit, fingers shaking. The lock gave way on the third try. There was no need to roll the door all the way up when it took just a few inches. I reached in around the left side and grabbed the Ziploc baggie, shoved it in my pocket, and locked up the unit. It cost me an extra few seconds, but better that than getting caught for being careless.

Now that I had money, I could find someplace safe. While leaving the storage space, I thought about my options. The airport was too risky. Who knew if my fake ID was good enough to get me past security? Besides, I couldn't risk going home to get it—back to Kade's. That place was not my home. Not anymore.

I hailed the first cab I saw. “What's the closest way out of the city, bus or train?” I asked.

“The train station is closest,” the cabbie said with his fingers working away on the machine that would be counting my time in the back seat and charging me for it. Good thing I had cash now. “Is that where you want to go?”

I thought about it. “No, take me to the bus station.” Better to cover my butt in as many ways as I could. If I zigzagged, Kade—or anyone else looking—would have a harder time finding me.

The ride seemed to take hours. I scanned every street, every person for black wings. It was the most nerve-wracking car ride of my life. My stomach gurgled. I didn't know whether it was lack of food, too much stress, or a combination of the two, but I'd get something to eat as soon as I was safe.

When we neared the bus station—I recognized it by all the buses parked out front—I was tempted to direct the car around the corner or a few blocks up, but nerves got the better of me. Being this close, I was bound to get sloppy. The shorter the walk to the inside of the bus terminal, the better. There would be people—witnesses—inside, and possibly even cameras. The sooner I got there, the better off I'd be.

As soon as the cab stopped, I threw the guy a twenty and ran toward the entrance. No one stopped me. No one even cared enough to watch me while I found the ticket counter and waited in line.

“I need a ticket to the first bus headed out of town.” Yeah, that didn't sound suspicious at all.

“We have three buses leaving in seven, ten, and twenty-two minutes. Where are you headed?”

Good question. “Give me a one-way ticket to Safford, Arizona.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

Kade

Son of a bitch. I pinched the bridge of my now-broken nose, fingers slick with warm blood, and snapped the damn thing back into place. Tears burned my eyes, coming instinctively with the rise in pain. I took one step forward, ready to stop Ray before she got too far, but familiar laughter called my attention back to the alley.

“What was that, brother?”

Stay cool.
I wiped at the already slowing flow of blood. “Just a silly girl who got the wrong idea about our relationship.” Damn it. I'd have to deal with Ray later. Sorath had information I needed. “Now, back to the hunt.”

“Lucien's in the city tracking the girl down himself.”

Lucien. Lucifer's only son. On Earth. Tracking Rayna. Things had just gone from shit to thoroughly fucked. Lucien was a shape changer, a talent his father had seen to instill in him upon his creation. The type of energy used to create such a being was said to have sucked all of the nine circles of Hell dry for centuries. Which was why Lucien was one of a kind, and could hopefully never be made again. As a shape changer, Lucien could have been anyone, anywhere.

Last time it took an army of angels to send him back to Hell. Now it was up to me to stop him. Alone. We were so fucked.

“I could use some help,” Sorath said, snapping me from my thoughts. “I left quite a mess inside.” A smile darker than his eyes grew wide on his face.

To a depraved scum like Sorath, that could only mean one thing.

I stood closer than I'd dared to recently. “Where is Lucien? We should be helping him.”

He clapped his left hand on my shoulder, his face smug with that exacting nod of his. “In time, brother. First, your help?”

Time. We were all made of it. I wiped at the remaining trickle of blood above my lip. Time for Shelly and her customers was most likely up thanks to the Fallen I once called brother. Hate simmered in me. I turned down that emotion. Time was a tricky thing. Unfortunately for Sorath, I was out of time. And so was he.

I slipped the knife from the inside of my jeans, the metal handle warm from being pressed against my skin. In one quick, fluid movement, I placed my left arm on his shoulder, flicked the blade out, and stabbed it into his heart. With a quick, forceful twist, I sunk in deeper.

His warm blood mingled with my own—dripping from my nose—flowing out of him and over my knife. His eyes widened, becoming more white than black. It had to be this way. If I'd given him a chance to fight, he would have snapped me in two.

I would say I was sorry, if it were true.

I watched the river of blood continue to pour until his eyes went still. When I was sure his heart was unsalvageable, I removed my knife and folded it away, blood and all. Sorath's body slumped to the floor.

Now to see what he really knew. I pulled his wallet and cell phone from his pants and shoved them in my jacket pocket. He was heavier than he looked—which was saying a lot considering how stacked he was muscularly. I dragged his body to the dumpster and finally tossed him in after six tries.

Wiping the blood from my hands on my jeans, I thumbed through Sorath's phone. A text stood out. The most recent one. From someone called Mihr. With a San Francisco area code. It had to be one of Sorath's minions. “We think the girl may have been spotted. We are on her trail.”

Damn it. I had to call Sorath's dogs off Ray. I rapidly tapped the phone’s screen, replying to the message sent less than an hour ago. “Don't do anything without me. Meet me at the church. Now.”

With Sorath taken care of, I started down the street. The church was across town and I'd never make it without my wings or my car. I stopped at the corner, dread coating my throat. I didn't want to know, but I had to check. Peering in through the diner's window, I found Roxy’s empty. It couldn't be, though. I opened the door. The customers were crumpled, tucked away beneath their tables, and Shelly was behind the counter. All with the life sucked out of them.

I'm sorry, Shelly.
I covered her already cold body with an apron hanging beside the register and left.

I slammed my fist through the exterior wall of the diner and wished I could kill Sorath a second time. These poor humans. I zipped my jacket all the way up to hide most of the blood and ran home, where there was no sign of Ray. From the look of things she hadn't come here after our little spat either. Her stuff was all still in place. Even the stash of cash she kept tucked away in her sock drawer was still here. I tried calling her. The number went straight to voicemail. She was probably running through the emergency protocol I taught her. Don't go home. Pick up your stuff from a storage locker. Get out of town. What a time for my teachings to backfire on me.

I hurriedly washed the blood off my face and hands then changed my clothes and wiped down my leather jacket. I ran around the corner for my car and drove as fast as I dared, making it to the church in record time. The heart beating in my chest raced so hard it felt ready to explode. I switched Sorath's phone to silent and conquered the basement stairs.

All three of Sorath’s Fallen were huddled in a circle, yelling, no doubt pissed that their leader called them off the hunt. That was good. Arguing meant they didn’t have Ray.

“What's going on, guys? I got a text from Sorath to meet him here.”

The three of them turned, silencing their argument.

“He contacted you?” the slimmest one asked.

“I'm one of you now, didn't he tell you?”

“No, but we're glad to have you,” the one a half-inch shorter than the rest said.

“What's taking him so long?” This was the last one. The one that didn't seem to give a crap about my arrival.

“Do we know what the deal is?”

“We were on our way to Lucien who was tracking the girl with the gray wings. She was so close. Sorath's text to meet here was unusual,” Shorty said.

I made sure my eyes widened the right amount. “
The
Lucien?”

“The very one. Glad you joined us now?” Slim nudged me with his elbow.

As loyal as Shorty, Slim, and Other Guy were, they wouldn't wait forever for Sorath. And they wouldn't back down if they'd already been in touch with Lucien. Besides Lucifer himself, Lucien was top of the food chain to these junkyard dogs. Getting close to Sorath had been easy. He trusted me. I didn't have the same repartee or past with any of these three stooges.

I hadn't had time to scrape up a plan on my way here, but there were always a few tried and true go-to methods I had stored upstairs from longer ago than I should remember. My favorite? Divide and conquer. “If this is as serious as it sounds, we should probably bulk up, right?”

The three of them looked at each other, naturally leaning into that same huddle I'd walked in on.

“He's right,” Shorty said first.

Slim followed up with, “Sorath's not here yet. A quick zap of energy might not be a bad idea.”

Other Guy furrowed his brow. I refrained from rolling my eyes. My adrenaline was still sky high and if one of these Fallen didn't come with me soon, I'd have to try facing them all together. I
really
hoped I didn't have to face them all together. Impatience drummed across my skin, leaving my nerves, and my fingers, twitchy.

Finally, I cleared my throat and decided to use my eagerness to my advantage. “One of us should stay behind anyway, in case Sorath shows up while we're gone.” I headed toward the back area that led to the convent. “Thanks, buddy.”

Other Guy stood there, lips fumbling, while Slim and Shorty followed right behind me. If there was anything I could count on Lucifer's lot for, it was eagerness to cause chaos. Plus these three all seemed to be on the same level power-wise. I was older, therefore more powerful, and Sorath had trusted me. The trickledown effect couldn't have been better if I planned it myself.

The convent loomed in the darkness, a tiny white house against the starry backdrop of the night. Going in there to ravage what was left of the priests and nuns was exactly the opposite of what I saw myself doing today before this shit blew up in my face. But what was a man without a plan going to do? The pass-through between the church and the building next door was narrow and unlit, but it protected whoever walked through from the cold. On the right, a set of cement stairs with one iffy metal handrail led up to the church.