Blood Promise (A SkinWalker Novel #4) (A DarkWorld SkinWalker Novel) (25 page)

I
ENTERED
S
TORM
'
S
BUILDING
WITH
my stomach feeling like a giant ball had taken residence there.

What the hell was I doing? What the hell was I even thinking?

But ever since Jess had come by, I'd been fixated on the only Immortal I knew. Storm.

Even the
thought
that he could be involved in something as heinous as genocide seemed wrong.

I knocked on Storm's office door, and didn't have to wait long before his deep voice rolled out bidding me enter. I turned the knob and went in.
 

Storm was sitting bent over at his desk, studying something, afternoon light from the window behind him glinting off his golden hair.

It didn't surprise me that he was able to tame so many of the young children that came to his guardianship. He was kind, strong, solid, and handsome. All in all, an arresting man.
 

And here I was, suspicious, worried that he might be guilty of all these horrible murders. Or at least know something about them.

He looked up and smiled, his bright blue eyes gleaming. Nothing about him shouted, "Suspicious!"

He sat back in his chair and his smile broadened. "He's doing fine."
 

I blinked, then realized Storm was referring to Baz, our new vampire.
 

"I'm glad," I said, instinctively forcing my mind to think worried thoughts about Baz. "I was worried,"
 

Then I remembered Jess had given me the mind shield. At least I didn't have be concerned about Storm reading my thoughts and knowing immediately why I was there.

"So has anything else happened?" I asked, watching his face. He shook his head, looking a little unsure as to what I meant. "Any disappearances on your end?" I made the question clearer. "Any suspicious deaths?"

Another shake. "Not that I know of. I'd tell you if I did."

I wasn't so sure about that anymore.

"I know you would." I forced a bright smile onto my face. "I just came by to check on Baz. Is he around?"

"He's in the mountains. We sent him on a training mission."

I tried to imagine Baz on a training mission and grinned. "He's a geek. Is it a geek retreat?"
 

Storm returned my grin, relaxed and easy. "Exactly that. I'll tell him you came by."

"Thanks. I'll call in again next time I'm passing." I felt the weight of flash-drive in my pocket. I'd have to find another way to get the device to him. I was done here, that much was clear.
 

I hesitated then turned to leave and the door opened.

Niki came in, neutral smile on her face as she saw me. She glanced past me at Storm.

"Yes?" he said.

"The team has returned from the site. They didn't find a killer. We have managed to identify the dead though." Her eyes widened.

I looked at Storm. "What is she talking about?" I asked, a hint of annoyance in my voice. He
had
lied to me. Not that I was going to say so in front of the girl, though.

"Oh. You didn't tell Kai?" asked Niki softly, her face a little fearful that she'd made a mistake and yet she did look curious too.

Storm's face tightened, his blue eyes darkened. "I intended to tell you only when things were verified. Now that they are, yes, unfortunately we do have something to report."
 

I waited, understanding that he'd been forced to tell me only because Niki had revealed the information in front of me.

"That's okay. I'm glad to save you a call. Any help in this case is progress--although more death is the last thing we want."

Storm nodded then jabbed a few keys on his keyboard. "I've emailed you the crime scene pictures. Details from this recon will be sent as soon as I have them."

"Great." And I'd chase him for them if necessary. "Where did it happen?"

"The train station." Members of City Deep haunted the abandoned lines of the old Union Station. I nodded. I'd been to many a City Deep meeting there. "Were the victims young?"

Storm nodded and Niki gave a watery sniff.
 

I glanced over at her. "Did you know them?"

"One of them," she said. "He helped me out when I first arrived."

I reached out and touched her arm. "I'm so sorry."
 

She nodded and then looked past me to Storm. "Do you need anything else?"

"Just the debrief notes when they return," said Storm.
 

Niki nodded and exited the room quietly.

I faced Storm, analyzing his expression. He looked tired, strained. Affected. Maybe I was on the wrong track entirely. Maybe he was innocent after all and I was chasing a dead lead. But, I had to make sure. I'd deal with the guilt if I was wrong.

I was about to leave for the second time when I remembered I'd also meant to ask about my sidekicks. "By the way, any idea where Anjelo and Lily are? I haven't heard from them in a little while."
 

In fact, it had now been almost a day since I'd last spoken to either of them. I was tempted to pull out my phone and check my messages, despite my gut telling me that there would be nothing to see.

Storm got to his feet to walk me out, ever the gentleman. "Unfortunately, no. They both took off yesterday afternoon. In fact, they said it had something to do with helping you out." He shrugged. "I knew they'd return when they were able, so I didn't worry. But now ... I am worried."

So was I. The last thing we needed was for the two kids to be in any kind of danger, especially with the killer lurking around knocking off paranormals left right and center.

"I'm sure they're okay," I said. And hoped I was right.

"I'm sure you're right," Storm told me. "Anjelo knows the streets very well. They'll be fine."

I nodded, barely hearing him. It was easy for him to say, but the two teens were family.

Of course I worried about them.

I
ARRIVED
IN
THE
A
LASKAN
forest surrounded by members of Logan's Omega team. Despite being accompanied by agents potentially aligned with the bad guys, I still felt safe. Probably because I knew most of them.

When I materialized within the trees, in Saleem's grasp, I found we were on the edge of a clearing that held a an enormous log cabin.

Three stories high, the mansion was huge enough to fit a clan.
 

I felt comforted that Saleem had finally shown up, but the tension in his face warned me that his presence was likely temporary.

As I followed Saleem's silent gesture, I understood that it probably
had
housed a clan. Its male occupants lay strewn across the lawn, staring with blank eyes at the afternoon sky. One of the older men was lying broken across the threshold as if he'd tried to stop the intruders using his own body as a shield.

Nothing external would alert a human eye to the fact that they were goblins. Yes, they had the obligatory pointed ears; glamored so only those human with the Sight could see them. And they were made of stockier stature than a human, but goblin glamor was inbuilt and so strong that it would take days after death before their magical wards would fade and reveal their true form.

When I entered I knew why he'd protected the house to the death. There were families here. A woman and her child lay on the floor near the door staring up at the wood ceiling, their blood pooling on the floor from a single wound to each of their chests.

Who were these bastards?

I tried to breathe through my fury, blink through the tears that filmed my eyes. They'd killed a defenseless innocent baby no more than two years old.
 

In the rooms beyond we found more death. And even more. After a while all I wanted was to leave. I wasn't sure how much more I could take.
 

The children were the worst to see. The hardest to accept.

I tried to keep my concentration on the details, like the splintered doorframes and the blood spatter instead of the ruined bodies. But I soon realized that focus wouldn't help. It especially wouldn't be respectful to the victims if I pretended they didn't exist.

I forced myself to concentrate on one detail at a time. The shapes of the wounds, the existence or absence of any kind of paranormal ammunition or residue--of which there were plenty--how the placement of the bodies revealed the journey the killers made through the house.

At last, we reached the attic door. It hung open and a child's shoe lay at the foot of the open ladder.

Logan looked over at me as I reached the ladder. "The techs have been up there. One body." His voice held a note of warning in it. It was going to be bad. I suspected it meant the child was young.

Logan climbed the stairs first. As I arrived at the top the air beside me began to shimmer gray and Nerina appeared, her expression apologetic.

"I came as soon as I could," she said.

I waved a hand. "You came. That's all that matters."

She nodded as she studied the attic space, her eyes falling on the little boy who lay sprawled in front of a giant silver mirror. His eyes were open, and the expression on his face was rebellious, as if whatever the intruders wanted, he'd never give. I could sense his bravery and wondered what he'd done that made him feel so resilient.

I hunched down beside him, swallowing against the lump in my throat. "He's so little."

Nerina's skirts swished beside me. "He looks about eight."

"Goblin years or human?"

"Human." Nerina sank to her knees beside me and touched the side of the boy's face. "He's been dead about two days. He may have already passed over into the Graylands, which would make it harder to access his memories."

"They'd be fading, right?"
 

Nerina nodded, her face a little strained. She looked angry and frustrated and I wondered if her reasons were other than the bodies littering the house. Had Kira chewed her out while she'd been at the estate? Or was she just tired and in need of rest?

I'd bet on Kira. But I didn't probe. She seemed too focused on the child as she leaned over him.
 

"Let me try," she said. "Anything is better than what we have right now."

"I agree," I murmured as I studied the room. Pulling on my panther sense of smell I scented the air, hoping to catch a sense of the killer. Or killers.

What I did scent was a shock in itself. So much of a shock that Logan sensed it.

He was at my side in an instant, his eyes filled with concern. "What's wrong, Kai?"
 

Even Nerina was looking at me, worried.

I shook my head and touched my finger to my lips. Then my attention shifted to the large mirror leaning against the wall beside us.
 

I pointed the finger at the mirror, mouthing a single word.

Silver
.

Logan's eyes widened as he gave me a short nod, then navigated to the other side of the mirror. I strolled the opposite end, finding my way blocked by a stack of old boxes.

Logan moved closer, then grabbed the mirror and swung it away, revealing a narrow space behind--a space containing two shivering little children who stared at us, terror in their eyes.