Darkness Divides (Sensor #3) (30 page)

She smiled. “The portal itself is not magic—only the device which opens it. Rest assured that you will have no difficulties passing through to the other side. Angels do not need the device at all, but the earthbound races do, which is why it was created.”

I couldn’t work magic spells, but sometimes there were things I could use. Being able to throw fairy dust on people was one example and this made another. As long as the magic acted on its own and wasn’t directed at me, it could work—provided I didn’t spill any of my blood and nullify it.

“So that’s it? No other pearls of wisdom?” I asked. Now that she’d filled me in on all the basic details, I wanted to get going.

“Do not get caught. Now that you’re immortal you can be held there the same as some of the other supernatural races. This is the risk you take by going there. Are you prepared for that?”

I thought of the arsenal that I’d soon be picking up. “Oh, I’m ready.”

She nodded her approval. “It has been a long time since I’ve had cause to fight in a battle. We’ve been relegated to observers for so long now that I must admit to envying you this journey. Know that I’ll be watching and rooting for you along the way.”

Before I could reply, she left in another brilliant flash of light. She wasn’t much of one for a proper farewell. I stuck the device back in my pocket and hopped on my bike. Now for the final step before heading to Purgatory.

***

Emily and Hunter were waiting for me with my Jeep when I arrived at a small airstrip north of Fairbanks. For two teenagers hanging out in the middle of nowhere just before dusk, they looked rather nonchalant leaning against the vehicle. I pulled the bike up next to them and shut it off.

“So everything went okay?” Emily asked, coming up to give me a brief hug. It wasn’t the clingy ones she used to give, but I’d take what I could get.

“Yep, I got it.” I pulled the disc out for her to see.

“Wow, that thing feels weird.” She wasn’t touching it, but apparently she got the same weird vibe I did from it.

Hunter walked up and took a closer look. “It opens a portal?”

He didn’t know where it opened to, but we’d told him just enough to satisfy his curiosity.

“It does.” This time I put it in the pocket of my cargo pants since I’d be getting rid of the jacket.

I walked over to the Jeep and dug through the backseat. Emily had put together all the things I’d need in the same pack I’d used for my trip to the Fae city. I took my jacket and baseball hat off, tossing them on the seat. Then grabbed a pair of sturdy hiking boots and switched them out from the tennis shoes I’d been wearing. Exchanging my t-shirt for a tank top came last. Hunter was courteous enough to look the other way, though the door was blocking most of his view.

I pulled my holster from the pack and strapped it to my leg before tucking my Sig .45 inside it. Various knives went wherever I could fit them comfortably, including a set strapped to my arm. Finally, I put a pair of fingerless gloves in my pocket. If it was going to be hot, I wanted something on my hands to soak the sweat. The last thing I needed was to have my weapons slipping from my grip. As a final touch, I braided my hair so it would stay out of my way.

“Okay, you two. Fallon’s going to ride with me to the portal, but you all need to get back and let everyone know I’ll return soon. Make sure there’s plenty of food ready for Lucas. He’s going to need it if we’re gonna get him in fighting shape anytime soon.” I gave both teenagers hugs.

Though I was mostly confident that I could pull this off, there was that small niggle of doubt. No one had ever pulled off what I was about to do—at least, that I knew of. My adversaries were immortals who’d never seen modern weaponry and wouldn’t know how to react to it until too late, but who knew how many I would face. I could only carry so much ammunition and it might not be enough.

“Be careful, Mel. We’ll be waiting for you when you get back.” Emily gave me a look that said I better return or she’d be pissed.

“If you pull this off, you’ll be my hero,” Hunter said, grinning.

“This trip would almost be worth it to impress you, big boy.” I gave him a pat on the back. “Now be careful driving back to Charlie’s house. If all goes well, I should be there in a few hours.”

Fingers crossed that I would be.

Hunter hopped on the bike first and Emily followed, getting behind him. I handed her the helmet and she took it reluctantly. She might be healed now—except for some personality changes—but that didn’t mean she couldn’t get injured again. I had no desire to make any more visits to the hospital in the near future. Especially with Micah missing.

The two teens sped off with a wave.

I settled in the Jeep, knowing I’d have to wait over an hour before Fallon arrived. With the sun setting later each day he couldn’t leave Juneau until after eleven o’clock. He’d flown in the night before and brought body bags, various other supplies, and more burner phones—getting them from out of town made them even harder to track. Unfortunately, his contacts couldn’t get the weaponry I needed until today, so he’d had to make a return trip early this morning to get them.

The sound of a plane’s engines came close and I looked up at the dark sky, but didn’t see anything yet. A moment later my senses picked up Fallon coming from the same direction. He’d returned as promised. I’d worried he’d change his mind after having more time to think about what I planned to do. Fallon supported his master above all else and wanted him free, but he also felt some obligation toward me and knew busting Lucas out would be dangerous.

I climbed out of the vehicle about the time the plane came to a full stop after landing. Fallon came out soon after with his hands full of the items I’d requested. The fifteen-hundred-year-old vampire looked good for his age. He had a medium build, stood about six feet high, and had shaggy brown hair that made you wonder if he’d woke up that way or purposely styled it to be a mess.

He nodded as I walked up and handed me a large pack, along with a rifle. “Everything is in there. It wasn’t easy to obtain some of those items on such short notice, but for Master Lucas the trouble was worth it.”

“Good,” I said, digging through the contents and rearranging the ammunition to optimum advantage. I’d need to be able to get to some things faster than others. Once satisfied, I slung it over my shoulder. It weighed a ton. Before, I wouldn’t have been able to carry it far, but now it didn’t feel that bad.

“You ready?” I asked, nodding at my Jeep.

“Of course.” He followed me as I led the way.

I set the pack in the backseat next to the one that had my clothes and found the Jeep keys still in the ignition. We wasted no time leaving. The plane Fallon had arrived on had already hit the sky. I didn’t know the pilot, but he registered on my senses as a young vampire. He must have been one from Juneau.

“Oh, by the way,” I said after getting onto the highway, “I took care of your warlock problem. Turns out he was a Zoe supporter and got in my way tonight.”

His head swung over to me. “I had wondered why he’d been quiet the last few days. Micah was on the verge of killing him before other things diverted our attention. I am glad it is one less thing to worry about.”

“He was annoying, anyway.” I shrugged.

For awhile we rode in silence, but occasionally I felt Fallon’s gaze on me. It was like he was studying me and trying to figure me out.

“Are you sure you can handle this?” he asked when we got close. “I could go in your stead if you prefer.”

My fingers tightened their grip on the wheel. “I’ve got this—and it’s daytime there now anyway. You’d burn up as soon as you went through the portal.”

Besides, I didn’t trust anyone to do this but myself. I needed to be the one to get Lucas out considering it was my fault he was there in the first place. Not to mention the numerous times he’d save my life. I owed him more than I could ever repay.

“For the sake of my master, I hope you do succeed. But at the very least…” He glanced back at my pack. “You should give them a good battle.”

“That’s the plan,” I said.

Chapter Thirty-four

Traveling through the portal felt similar to what I’d always thought moving through a wormhole would have been like. Except it was dark. So dark that I couldn’t see anything and only had the sensation that I was traveling very fast. By the time it kicked me out, my stomach was tied up in knots. I also had to spit out a mouthful of salt water that immediately flooded my mouth.

I’d landed on my hands and knees in shallow beach water that was as warm as the Gulf of Mexico during late summer. Lifting my head, I found myself on a desolate beach with high mountains rising up less than a mile away. Micah had mentioned Purgatory was an island. I wasn’t sure that I’d have guessed it, otherwise. The beach seemed to extend for quite some distance in both directions. The place also vibrated with foreign magic, humming against my senses.

The sound of a big wave coming up from behind had me scurrying for dry land. There was no need for the rest of me to get wet. I almost tripped over an oddly shaped piece of driftwood. There was nothing similar to it on the beach, making it a good marker for where to return.

I kept moving away from the ocean, but hadn’t gone far before the scorching heat hit me full force. It was worse than anything I’d ever experienced, including summer in the Middle East. It burned my skin, turning it bright red and dried the saltwater that had soaked my pants and boots. Not long after that I was covered in sweat.

The sun beat down relentlessly as if it had a personal vendetta and I’d become its sole target. Though it wasn’t difficult to draw in air, it definitely lacked oxygen. I was going through the motions of inhaling and exhaling, but it just wasn’t giving me enough for the effort. Immortals were supposed to be able to survive without oxygen, but this proved we were stronger with it. I could already feel the effects of it draining me.

From the corner of my eye I caught the glimmer at the base of the mountains Ariel had mentioned. It didn’t appear too far away, but with every step it seemed like I wasn’t making any progress. My pack grew steadily heavier and the rifle I carried got hot enough to burn my fingertips where the gloves didn’t cover them.

I would have considered slinging it over my shoulder, but I sensed a patrol not too far away. A small rise in the sand blocked my view of them. Once they moved around it, though, their attention zoomed in on me right away.

In the time it took me to blink my eyes, both of them sprouted their wings and lifted into the air. They were huge and suddenly my rifle didn’t look effective enough. I slung it over my shoulder and pulled my rocket-propelled grenade launcher, also known as an RPG, from where I’d conveniently left it sticking out of my pack. The four warheads I’d also brought with me would fragment upon impact, making them perfect for targeting these guys. It was too bad they were too unwieldy to carry more.

I loaded the RPG and waited for the guards to draw closer. With so few rounds, I needed to ensure they all hit their mark. When they’d flown to approximately one hundred meters from me, I fired directly at the closest guy. He was just ahead of the other one, but when the warhead hit him he flew back into his buddy. In a tangle of torn wings and burning flesh, they fell to the ground.

Neither man was moving when I reached them. It was easy to identify which of the two I’d hit directly, since that one’s body took the worst of the damage. His immortality might have prevented the explosion from fully destroying him, but he was missing most of his limbs. Chunks of his body also lay strewn across the ground. His head, spine, and ribs remained intact, though. There probably wasn’t much of anything that could destroy those parts.

The other man he was in slightly better shape. His limbs were torn and bloody, along with his torso, but the only part of him that was missing was his wings. Both men had lost those entirely, making me think they were especially vulnerable to attack. Even without them, the second guy had a chance of recovering soon and being able to get back into the fight.

There were signs he was already starting to heal. Nothing too alarming yet—just burned tissue fading away. He was about five centuries old and just powerful enough that he might recover before I returned. I didn’t want to risk having to take him down again.

For both our sakes, it was better he stay down until I got out of Purgatory.

I pulled the Sig out of my leg holster and fired directly into his left eye. His head jerked. Then blood and other things started oozing from the socket. That was more than a little disgusting, but it did give me the idea that it might a useful method for taking down immortals in this place.

Micah had said brain injuries were more difficult to heal than other parts of the body. I’d found that to be true when I’d attacked other supernaturals in a similar manner. If I combined a shot through the eye with some other significant body injuries, they might just be down long enough for them to stay out of my way.

It sounded cold even to me. I just couldn’t dredge up much remorse for the guards since they’d helped keep Lucas locked up here—but my real beef was with Kerbasi. He was the only one that didn’t just need to be temporarily taken down, but made to pay.

After putting the RPG back in my pack, I continued to move toward the glimmer. It was steadily getting bigger as I got closer. The cave entrance it emanated from began to take shape as I closed in on it.

High above on the mountain I saw what I assumed were spirits moving around. They were shaped just like human bodies, but intangible. They floated about in an almost restless fashion, making me wonder what they were doing up there. Would I join them when I died? Nah, this little adventure would probably get me a one-way ticket to Hell—even with an archangel supporting me.

It wasn’t just souls up there. There were immortal men and women dotted amongst them and they seemed to be keeping a close eye on their charges. These didn’t feel like the guards I’d faced near the beach, but something more ancient and powerful. I quickly moved toward the cave, hoping they wouldn’t notice me.