The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) (106 page)

Geez. Was she greeting him or tasting him? The dog had no sense whatsoever.

“Dec? You can set me down now,” I suggested.

At the sound of my voice, the new guy stopped laughing and locked eyes with me. With a sound of annoyance, I flipped down my psychic shutters and closed my head to him. What was it with these guys?

“Stay out of my head, Legolas. I like my space.”

He blinked and inclined his head respectfully. “I meant no offense, miss.”

Dec cleared his throat and grinned from ear to ear. “Uh, maybe I should introduce you two? Dimitri, this is Mica. Mica Leahy.” He gave heavy emphasis to my last name.

Dimitri considered me again with a whole new expression on his face. Part curiosity, part fear, he respectfully looked me over and bowed at the waist. Without seeming to move at all, he suddenly stood in front of me and took my hand in his. His huge hand completely enveloped mine as he shook it gently. A small black rune was inked into the underside of his right wrist. There was a strange blue symbol in the center of it. It winked up at me like a gem, its iridescence surprising me.

“It’s my pleasure to finally meet you. I’ve heard much about your power, but not enough of your beauty, Mrs. Leahy.” His voice was deep and lightly accented. It wasn’t Irish. German? Russian?

“Mica. Please just call me Mica. It’s nice to meet a friend of Dec’s. Are you staying here?”

His mouth widened into a devastating smile and most of my blood rushed to my face in a burst of heat. He was captivating and supernaturally compelling--impossibly adorable. What was the deal with these Primani? They’re not gods; they’re warriors for crying out loud!

“It’s a job requirement, isn’t it?” I muttered to Dec. “Blond, blue, and bad ass.”

He burst into hoots of laughter until Dimitri frowned.

Dec finally calmed down enough to gasp, “You’re priceless.”

Amused, I shrugged out of my heavy coat and peeled off my hat. Underneath, I had on a pair of jeans and a sweater. Nothing special. It was more practical than stylish. Yet Dimitri’s eyes brightened at the sight of me.

Angel or not, I’ll bite you if you try anything. I shot him a warning glance and he ignored me. Before I could stop him, he placed his big paw over my belly and closed his eyes.

Really? “Haven’t any of you heard of personal space?”

Dec chuckled and patted my arm lightly. Apparently this was normal for Dimitri.

He murmured several words in his native language, and then smiled peacefully. “Does Killian know?”

“Of course he knows. He was there.”

Grinning wider, he nodded and said, “Of that I have no doubt. But that’s not what I meant.”

Hell, sort of:

THE DEMON’S FACE TURNED PURPLE. Sean’s fingers turned white as he tightened them around the rubbery neck. The demon cried out and weakly kicked at Sean’s stomach. Unperturbed, Sean growled in satisfaction as the reptilian eyes grew dim in the darkness of the corridor.

That’s a good demon. Time to die now.

“Sean!” Jordan’s harsh voice interrupted his playtime. “Put Xairin down this minute!”

Shit! Busted...again.

Sean’s eyes glittered dangerously as Jordan came up behind him. He wanted to turn around and grab Jordan’s throat and end this right now. But those were dangerous thoughts, so he shoved them out of his mind. Now wasn’t the time. Xairin gasped for breath and grumbled angrily when Sean threw him to the floor.

Jordan’s tone was gently chiding but his eyes seared him in place. “My boy, I thought we had an understanding. You are not supposed to kill my army. I need them to move my plan forward. He’s one of Dagin’s soldiers, correct?”

Sean forced himself to appear respectful and said, “I was simply defending myself, Commander. You don’t expect me to let them fuck with me, do you?”

Jordan shook his head in doubt. “I expect you to lead your army as I’ve instructed you to. Leave Dagin’s soldiers to him. If you have any trouble, bring it up with Dagin. I would dearly love, just once, to see you two brilliant strategists work together without having to scrape body parts off of the floor.” His tone had gone from chiding to complete exasperation. He threw his hands up and dismissed Sean.

Sean ground his teeth together as he stalked off towards his quarters. It had been a looonnnggg few weeks, beginning the night Sean called for Jordan. He’d been escorted here by his favorite demon.
Of course
it had been Dagin! He’d shimmered into the yard at the safe house and Sean immediately launched into attack mode. He’d seen nothing but red the second Dagin showed his face.
His
face! By the time they were done going at each other, Dagin’s mask was shredded into pieces and the black scales of his true form were all that was left.

To say that Jordan was pissed was an understatement. He’d sent two other demons to grab them and then read them the riot act. Dagin was forbidden to don Sean’s face again and Sean was hung up by his arms for three days--to think about his attitude. Jordan’s words, not Sean’s.

That soul-sucking bastard was going to pay for that. Oh yeah, Dagin would pay. He was so sick of him--had been for centuries. It was about time for that asshole to kick it.

Yanking a can of Coke from the vending machine, he headed into his room and carefully shut the door and locked it. Some welcome he’d gotten that first night. It had taken five of them to force his wrists into the metal manacles and he’d killed two of them by the time they were finished. Bloody and furious, he cursed them as they laughed and left him alone in the dark. His left arm was dislocated in the fight and the pain nearly drove him insane for three days.

Jordan had laughed at his protests and said simply, “You’ll behave or you’ll die here.”

Sean punched the wall and smiled grimly at the cracked plaster. Jordan was going down. That rat bastard traitor’s days were numbered. In the meantime though, Sean was the model fallen angel. He’d
learned his lesson
and was toeing the line now. Jordan had made him the commander of one half of his army while Dagin was in charge of the other. They were gearing up for a major assault. Sean knew he wasn’t getting the whole story from these demon idiots, but they didn’t know he already knew the grand plan.

Bring on the apocalypse, Jordan. We’re so going to kick your sorry ass all the way back to Satan’s hot tub. Yeah, let’s see how happy the Deal Maker will be when you fail. With that thought fueling his determination, Sean pumped out 200 pushups and 200 crunches. He spent another 20 minutes practicing some of his favorite martial arts moves. The room wasn’t big enough to do much, but he was faithful to his body. He’d work out every day to keep himself physically strong. Couldn’t afford to get soft.

He hadn’t been allowed outside yet, but he got the feeling they were in the subterranean floors of the lab in Lucerne. He sensed a large human presence above him and some of the rooms were unused offices. The Coke machine also gave it away. The maintenance instructions were printed in Swiss. Duh.

His room looked like a dorm room: small, impersonal, and undecorated. He had a bed and a table. That was all he really needed though. With any luck, he’d be outta here in a few more weeks.

The woman with sad blue eyes haunted him. Every night she crept into his mind calling to him for help he couldn’t give her. Mute and immobile, he could only stare helplessly as the dream unfolded.

She gazed at the stars above her and wiped tears from her heart-shaped face. Something was different about her. She’d been lithe and graceful when he’d seen her last. Her delicate beauty and strength had comforted him when he was at the end of his rope. But something had changed her. Her shoulders drooped with fatigue and something more...sorrow, defeat? Unable to stand any longer, she dropped to her knees on the bank of the stream. Head bowed, shoulders shaking with the force of her sobs, she cried as though her heart was broken. Sean watched in shock, unable to help her, unable to stop her.

Aisling.

She raised her face to the sky and cried, “Why have the angels forsaken us? Please God, I’m begging you.”

Sean reached out to her but his hand was as inconsequential as mist. She turned towards him and her eyes met his. Sean flinched at the raw pain.

She whispered, “Please, Sean.”

Gasping for air, he sat straight up in the bed and looked wildly for her. A dream. It was just a dream. Throwing himself from the bed, he paced until his heartbeat settled to normal again. He was a wreck. Sweat dripped from his face and his breath came in harsh gasps. Her face swam into view and he squeezed his eyes against it.

Aisling.

Where was she?

She haunted him with those eyes.

Accusing him, begging him, damning him.

He rubbed his eyes as shame swamped him, and he sniffed hard against the sudden rush of emotion.
I’m so sorry, baby!
He was the lowest piece of shit for leaving her there alone. She needed him, but he couldn’t do anything for her. It was making him crazy with frustration, hence, the nightmares. He wanted nothing more than to be her knight in shining armor and rescue her from her solitude. Then they’d...what? Hell, he didn’t know what he expected from her. Nothing? Everything? He couldn’t let himself feel anything for her.

Not here. Not now.

All soft emotions were out; freakin’ demons could sense weakness in a heartbeat. He couldn’t afford to even
think
those kinds of thoughts. They’d just get him killed down here. He’d only survive on his animal instincts. There was no time for anything besides rage, violence, and cunning.

He’d buried all tender feelings the minute he ripped Dagin’s face off. Failing here wasn’t an option. The stakes were too high. But maybe...

Raphael? The wanderer’s in trouble.

The archangel’s calm voice came back immediately.
Don’t think on it. I have it under control. Focus.

And that was that. Short and sweet--there was no sense in testing their boundaries. So far no one had discovered their telepathic conversations, but they didn’t know how long that would last. Sean let out the breath he wasn’t aware he’d been holding.

Raphael would take care of Aisling. There was no doubt about that. The angel would move Heaven and Earth to find the wandering Primani if Killian failed to bring her in. Damn, I wish I could be there when he finds her! He couldn’t help wishing, but it was pointless. They all had a job to do, and his wasn’t rescuing the damsel. If all went well, he’d get to save the world...Hell, can’t complain about that!

Sean glanced at his watch. It was nearly dawn already. Time to slap on his game face and try not to die.

Looking out into the corridor, he scanned for life. The hallway was empty, but there were a few demons in the other dorm rooms. No doubt they were still busy brushing and flossing their endless rows of fangs...Sean slipped into the hallway and used his powers to go ghost. Instead of teleporting, he channeled his inner-Han Solo and used hyperspeed to get to the stairwell without being seen. A wave of the hand released the padlock on the fire door and he slipped inside. He took a second to reattach the lock and then crept down the pitch dark stairs. The air was thick and heavy with the smell of sulfur. Demons. He planted his molars together to keep from gagging on their disgusting smell and scanned for company.

So far, so good. He smelled them, but didn’t sense any nearby. The door at the next landing wasn’t locked. Odd, that. He flattened himself against the wall and listened with his ears and mind.

Wait a minute...

The childlike singing sent a chill crawling over his skin.

“Hush little baby, don’t say a word...”

Frozen against the wall, he closed his eyes against the burning that was taking over.

“Mama’s gonna buy you a mockingbird.”

Oh God. No, it can’t be.

He curled his fingers into the concrete wall behind him to keep from charging blindly into the darkness. He sucked in another deep breath when the singing continued. Killian’s mantra echoed inside his head and he let it calm his impulse.
Careful and smart.

“
And if that mockingbird won’t sing
...won’t sing...won’t...” The hypnotic voice cut off abruptly replaced by the scream of a wild animal. The feminine lilt was replaced by a hoarse plea. “James? Where are you, James? I can’t remember...can’t remember...”

Silence.

Okay. Okay. Shit. Sean rubbed his eyes and thought over his options. None of them were good. All of them would probably kill him.

Rolling his shoulders and palming his blade, he eased into the dark passageway and cranked his senses to high alert. As he ghosted down the hall, he tried not to breathe. The air was rank with death and dying. He passed locked doors that no force on Earth could get him to open. No way in hell. Those doors reeked of death and suffering--entrails, blood, brain splatters. Torture chambers. He’d been in one of them already. That was enough. He could give a shit less about the demons being tortured. Let them rot.

The smell changed when he got to the middle of the corridor. He slowed down and drew in a deeper breath.

Human.

Female.

The door was locked, but the key hung on a hook next to it. Tensing for an attack, he unlocked the door with a swipe of his palm and waited for the door to swing open. It creaked on rusty hinges and stopped halfway. Drawing in his breath, Sean let his Primani night vision take over. This wasn’t a cell.

This was a tomb.

A woman sat in a rocking chair with her arms wrapped oddly around her middle. She rocked mechanically. Back and forth. Back and forth. Her feet hung limply above the floor. The chair simply moved without her help. Her face was shrouded in a dark hood, her body covered with rags of a dress long since destroyed. Pale skin gleamed dully in the darkness. It smelled like a nightmare in there.

The sweet sickening scent of death clung to his skin while he hesitated in the doorway.

Poor woman would welcome death. It would claim her soon.

What was he going to do with her? He didn’t dare teleport her out of here; Jordan would know the second he tried to leave.

Raphael? Found Dani.

Is she dead?

Damn close.

Several seconds ticked by before the angel gave him instructions.
Mark the location and I’ll send someone in five minutes. Get out of there before you get caught.

Roger that.

Sean placed his open palm on the door and focused his
saol
into it. The bright light outlined his hand and sank into the metal door. It winked softly and went dark. Raphael was right; he shouldn’t be here now. But he couldn’t just leave her like this. Mica would lose her mind if she saw her friend now. He paced for a minute and jumped when the singing started again.

“
Hush little baby, don’t say a word
...”

Her voice sent his blood to the freezer and he forced himself not to shiver. He wasn’t afraid of a human woman...no matter how creepy her lullaby sounded.

Her eyes were open and staring, but she wasn’t awake. She stroked her belly with an odd jerky motion. Mechanical.

No, not her belly...

Ah, hell.

Closing his eyes, he swore in three different dead languages before swallowing the bile that rose in the back of his throat.

He sighed and said a silent prayer to Raphael. He moved closer and lifted the corner of the material covering the bundle on her lap.

Jesus.

That explained the smell.

The air shifted behind him as someone materialized. He stepped into the shadows and went ghost.