I grabbed my phone, then stood and eyed the expanse of embedded, broken glass between me and that door. There was no obvious path where the glass wasn’t quite as sharp.
I breathed deep, my nostrils flaring and filling my lungs with the scent of my own fear, then gingerly stepped onto the glass. The jeans helped a little, as long as I didn’t put too much weight on my feet for too long. I took another quick step, then another, concentrating on that door and the freedom it represented. The metallic tang of blood began to taint the air. Sweat trickled down my hairline, and my breathing became short and sharp. The jeans grew heavier and my feet felt like they were on fire. I kept my gaze on my target, and punched the bolt across when I was near enough, then thrust the door open.
I was dead meat if there were guards. But I knew that, and I didn’t care. I just had to get off the glass.
Thankfully, there were no guards.
I caught the door before it could slam back against the wall, then leaned a shoulder against the brickwork, hopping gently from one foot to the other, trying to ease the pain. It didn’t help much.
But my head felt clearer, and the aching buzz that had become such an underlying presence in my mind had gone. Still, I didn’t reach for the Aedh. Not only because I was so weak, but because they might just sense the surge of power. Even us half-breeds could sense the presence of another Aedh, and I had no doubt that a full blood would have sharper senses than us. Besides, Lucian had commented that I felt full Aedh even in human form, which might just mean that if anyone did notice me out here, they’d maybe dismiss me as one of their brethren.
Maybe.
I unwound the bloody remnants of my jeans and tossed them back into the cell. If I was caught and put back, maybe I could use them again. If they didn’t take them away, and if I managed to survive another bout of questioning, that was.
I shut the door, then looked around. The corridor was long and filled with shadows. Though the air was rich with the earth and humus, the corridor itself was lined with red bricks that looked to have seen more than a few hundred years of wear and tear. It made me wonder if it had been a part of the sewerage system that had serviced Melbourne from settlement to the twenty-first century. If it was, then there had to be a way out—service entry points or whatever the hell they were called. The system might not be in official use, but there’d been recent newspaper reports of the “mousers” who spent every available free hour down here, and there were undoubtedly a ton of homeless folk who’d made themselves at home, too.
I padded forward. The cold bricks soothed the fire in my feet, but I had no doubt I was leaving bloody footprints behind. The taint of it curled through the air.
The silence was unnerving. I couldn’t sense anyone nearby, but there were at least two Aedh here somewhere, and undoubtedly some form of human guards as well. After all, the Aedh who’d attacked me at the restaurant hadn’t come alone.
So where was everybody?
There had to be guards here. Even the youngest Aedh couldn’t be that oblivious to the instinct of survival—and neither of the two who’d questioned me had felt young. Surely it would make sense to post one or two of their servants at strategic points along the corridor.
Not that I was complaining about the oversight, but I couldn’t quite believe that luck was going my way, either. There would be checkpoints somewhere, and if they weren’t staffed by humans, then they would be some kind of physical or magical barriers. I had to hope for the former, because I was all but useless against the latter.
I walked on, keeping to the shadows and trailing one hand against the coolness of the bricks, more to keep my still-quivering limbs steady than from any actual need to maintain something solid by my side.
The bricks began to curve gently to the left—something I sensed more than felt. Sound began to invade the rich, damp air—two men talking over what sounded like some sort of sports commentary.
I’d found my guards.
I edged closer to the wall and slowed even further. As the bricks continued to curve away, light began to shimmer up ahead. It was a stark, almost fierce white that pooled brightness across the floor and walls. The minute I tried to cross it, they’d see me.
“Azriel, where the hell are you?” I murmured.
He didn’t pop into existence—which was typical, I thought sourly. The one time in my life I would actually welcome the arrival of a reaper was the one time I couldn’t find one.
As I crept closer to the two men, it became obvious they were watching football. Which meant it was either Friday evening and I’d lost a whole lot of time, or they were watching a replay.
I drew in the air, sorting through the scents, trying to discover just what I was dealing with. They smelled human, but the last couple of days had proven I couldn’t exactly rely on my olfactory sense when it came to these people.
My gaze went from the large pool of light in front of me to the doorway. I couldn’t actually see the men, which meant they had to be sitting in the rear section of the room and would have a good view of the corridor beyond the pool of light.
Leaving me with two options—turn around and try to find another exit up the other end of the corridor, or risk trying to get past the guards.
I looked over my shoulder, contemplating the darkness. If there was an exit at the other end, then it would more than likely be guarded as well. My father had said all Raziq had Razan, and while I’d only felt two, I had no doubt there would be more.
Besides, the longer I remained in this hall, the greater the chance I’d be discovered. It was better to risk this patch of brightness than backtrack and risk the unknown.
I closed my eyes and gathered the remnants of my strength. I could do this. I had to do this. There was no way I was going back to that cell.
I sprinted forward as lightly as I could. The TV was loud, but even so, the sound of my footsteps seemed to echo above it.
My body hit the light. I kept my gaze on the darkness beyond it, my heart in my throat and determination in my limbs.
I could do this. I would.
But just as I hit the shadows, one of the men in the room swore and scrambled to his feet.
They were coming.
The realization sent a surge of fresh energy through my limbs. I kept running, following the wall, hoping against hope to find some sort of vent or shaft that would offer a way out of this tunnel.
But there was nothing.
Still, the air seemed fresher and came with a tantalizing hint of rain. Freedom was out there somewhere. I just had to find it.
Awareness shimmered across my battered body. Though I heard no sound, the men were behind me. I could feel the heat of them, smell their anger.
Somehow, I ran faster, but it wasn’t enough. It was never going to be enough. Before I knew it, one of them grabbed a handful of shirt and yanked me backward. I didn’t fight it, allowing myself to pulled back into a body that was well muscled and lean. But before his grip could shift and secure me more tightly, I lifted my elbow and jabbed it—as hard as I could—into his midriff. He hissed in pain and his hold loosened. I spun around, raised my other elbow, and smashed it into his face. His nose shattered even as the force of the blow sent him sprawling backward into the other man. Then I turned and ran.
They were after me all too quickly. But the smell of rain was growing, and in the distance came the steady trickle of water. If the rain was getting in, then surely that meant there was some sort of storm water opening ahead. I hoped so.
Hoped that I could get out through it.
But the men were once again closing in fast and time wasn’t on my side. Panic surged, but this time, there was no answering rush of energy to accompany it. My body had nothing more to give.
Azriel, I thought again, where the hell are you?
Fingers reached for me—something I felt rather than saw. But this time, it came from the front rather than behind. I slid to a halt, but to no avail. A hand grabbed me and yanked me forward—not i
nto capturing arms but behind a body that blazed with heat.
Azriel.
He took shape, his sword dripping blue fire as it arced over his head, slicing the air with a scream. Slicing the throats of the two men as easily as a hot knife through butter.
As their bodies and severed heads dropped to the floor, Azriel turned, his blue eyes as bright as the blaze of his sword.
“We must go. The Raziq will have felt the death of their creatures. There are far too many of them here for me to battle.”
I nodded, unable to speak, my breath rasping and body shaking with fatigue and reaction.
“Risa,” he said, my name sounding oddly sweet on his lips. “We must go.”
“I can’t,” I said, the words forced and hoarse. “No energy to change.”
He said something I didn’t understand, the words musical but oddly vehement. “Wrap your arms around my neck,” he added, then glanced over his shoulder. His sword seemed to blaze brighter and began emitting a soft hum. “Hurry. They come.”
I didn’t argue. I wasn’t in any state to face the Aedh, and I sure wasn’t about to argue if Azriel felt no inclination to do so, either.
I pressed my body against his and hugged him close. Though he had no identifiable scent of his own, he smelled of rain and freshness, and the heat of his skin burned into mine, chasing away the chill and lending me strength.
His arm came around my waist, holding me steady as his gaze met mine. “Ready?”
I nodded, my eyes searching his, wondering at the slight flicker in those bright depths. It was almost as if he were fighting a reaction—although maybe that was just wishful thinking.
Or rather, stupid thinking. I had no real desire to get involved with a reaper, no matter how pretty or sexy the packaging. And he’d certainly given no indication that he wanted anything to do with me. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Power surged through the darkness. His energy enveloped me, running through every muscle, every fiber, until my whole body sang in tune with it. Until it felt like there was no me and no him, just the sum of the two of us—energy beings with no flesh to hold us in place.
And then the darkness was gone, the brick tunnel was gone, and we were in a place that was bright and vast and beautiful. The gray fields, but not as I saw them.
Then it, too, was gone, and suddenly I was surrounded by the familiar walls and scents of my apartment.
“I found her,” Azriel said, rather unnecessarily, because both Tao and Ilianna were bolting out of the kitchen and heading toward us at full speed.
And Ilianna at full speed was a fearsome sight. Even Azriel took a step back as she all but threw herself at us.
I disentangled my arms from Azriel’s neck, grunting as her weight hit and barely holding us both up. In fact, I think it was only the steadying hand Azriel placed on my back that kept me upright.
“You’re safe, you’re safe,” she whispered, smelling of fear and relief and tangerines. “God, I’ve been having such weird visions—”
“Ilianna,” Tao said gently, his gaze meeting mine briefly over the top of her head before moving on. He nodded an acknowledgment at the man who stood behind me. “She’s battered and bleeding. Right now she needs medical attention, not your weight.”
“Oh God, sorry.” She jumped away, her gaze sweeping the length of me. “You look like crap. And where are your jeans?”
“I used them to escape.” Her gaze jumped back to mine, but I waved the unasked question away. “Long story. Right now, I need Coke, something to eat, and to get off my bloody feet. Oh, and I need to get my bike back before someone decides to steal her.”
“I retrieved the bike once it became obvious you were missing. I knew you’d worry about her.” Tao stepped forward and swung me into his arms. “Ilianna, grab the med kit. I’ll handle the rest.”
He walked me across to the table, kicking a chair to the side and placing me on it. My feet he propped up on a second chair. “Stay,” he said, and disappeared into the kitchen.
I glanced across to Azriel. He was still standing where we’d appeared, but his sword was sheathed and his arms were crossed. It was a defensive stance, a watchful one. It had me suddenly wondering if the Aedh could track us here.
“Yes,” he said softly. “And the scent of them lingers. They have been here already.”
“Oh God—”
He disappeared before I’d even finished the sentence, then reappeared a heartbeat later. He did not look happy. “The book has gone.”
I closed my eyes briefly, relieved and yet not. Because while they’d at least taken it without harming Tao or Ilianna, they couldn’t read it or find the keys without me—if my father was to be believed, anyway.
Would they come back here the instant they realized that?
“Yes,” Azriel said.
I glanced up at him. “So you really can read my thoughts?”
“Sometimes,” he admitted, a glimmer that could have been amusement flaring briefly in his eyes. “But I have discovered over the years that human thoughts are often not worth listening to, so I usually don’t bother.”
“I’m not human.”
“No, you are not.”
And again that glimmer rose. Damn, I thought, a hint of heat touching my cheeks. He’d heard those thoughts.
I cleared my throat and said, “What took you so long to find me? I must have called your name a hundred times when I was being questioned.”
“There were impediments—barriers that prevented me getting any lock on your location.”
I remembered the rainbow shimmer. “The cell had some sort of magical halo around it. It almost killed me when I tried becoming Aedh.”
He nodded. “What restricts your shift would also restrain my connection with you. Until you were clear of that halo, I could not answer your call. The earth is restrictive as well.”
“Why?” I asked. “And if that’s the case, how do people involved in accidents underground ever get moved on?”
“A reaper’s sense of death is more attuned than the connection I share with you.” He hesitated, as if to say something else, then glanced past me as Tao came into the room. “I think it would be better if we left this place.”
“We’re as safe here as anywhere else.” Tao dumped a large glass of Coke and a sinfully large burger in front of me. It had obviously been microwaved, but I wasn’t about to complain. Food was food, and I needed it badly. He turned to face the reaper. “We have Ilianna’s wards, cameras, and motion detectors activated. No one is getting in here without us knowing.”
“The Aedh have already retrieved the Dušan’s book from this building,” Azriel said. “And my sword is no match if they come in a group.”
“He’s right.” Ilianna walked back into the room, med kit in hand. “The wards are designed to work against evil, but the Aedh—as far as I know—are not intrinsically evil. And the sensors can only detect flesh, not those who are fundamentally energy.” She nodded Azriel’s way. “They didn’t go off when our not-so-grim reaper appeared, and if the Aedh have already stolen the book, they’re obviously not impeded in any way by my magic.”
“I guess not,” Tao said. “But that leaves the problem of finding a place where the four of us are going to be safe.”
“Speaking of that,” I said, looking around, “where’s Stane?”
“Catching some sleep,” Ilianna said. “He was practically dead on his feet, so I frog-marched him to bed.”
Tao snorted. “He took his laptop with him, so I’m betting he’s just retreated to quieter quarters.”
“Has he had any luck finding out who Joseph Hardy is, or uncovering the names of the people behind the consortium?” I asked.
“Not yet.” Ilianna placed the kit on the table, then carefully picked up one of my feet. Her nose screwed up. “Damn, girl, your feet are a mess.”
“They’ll heal soon enough.” And we had bigger problems. “Ilianna, you need to warn your mom about the copies of the book
pages you gave her. The Aedh may not go after them, but just in case—”
“She’ll be fine.” Ilianna began wiping down my feet with a lotion that was cool and soothing, and smelled faintly of lavender. “Both she and those copies are at the Brindle, and not even the devil himself could get into that place uninvited.”
“What copies?” Azriel asked.
I glanced at him. “We made copies of the Dušan’s book.”
“An excellent move, but why would you give that copy to the witch repository?”
“Because I need the contents translated.”
“But I told you—”
“No,” I interrupted. “You told me what you thought I needed to know. But there was more than just an incantation in there, wasn’t there?”
He merely lifted an eyebrow. I snorted softly. The reaper, like everyone else, was looking after his own interests first and foremost.
“So what is in there?” Tao said, propping his butt on the table and pushing my burger forward.
I took the hint and picked it up, taking several delicious mouthfuls before answering, “According to my father, it’ll tell me what the keys are.”
Ilianna’s gaze jumped to mine. “You talked to your dad? What’s he like?”
“Ghostly.”
“As in dead and just a spirit?” Tao asked with a frown.
“No. He’s alive, but the ability to take on flesh has been taken from him.”
“Oh.” Ilianna began slathering a thicker, smellier cream over my feet. “Why don’t you just ask the reaper what the keys are?”
“Azriel is my name,” he said, voice holding a slight edge. “Not reaper. And you can ask me questions directly.”
She glanced at him in surprise. “Fair enough. So tell us, Azriel, what do the keys look like?”
“I do not know, because there is no such description in the book. Maybe Hieu lies.”
“He said I was reading it wrong, so maybe you were, too.” I winced as Ilianna’s cream began to sting, then added, “He wants these keys found as much as anyone else. Only he wants me to find them.”
“Why?” Tao said. “That’s what I don’t get. Why you, and why now?”