Darker Days (16 page)

“There’s no reason to be a bitch about it,” the original one said. “She’s just being a good friend.” Before I had time to blink, her hand whipped out and caught me hard across the cheek.

“Bitch!” Kendra snapped, slapping the girl right back.

I’d been drooled on by zombies, screamed at by banshees—even peed on by weres—but bitch-slapped by a girl wearing hooker heels and too much makeup?
That
was a first.

One of them made a swipe for me, but I dodged her and started to run. Luckily, Kendra took the hint and followed. So did the girls. I had to give them credit. To run—much less keep up—while wearing those shoes was impressive.

I got about eight feet before something rammed me from behind. My knees buckled and I collapsed under the weight of one of the girls. “Give—me—that—”

I jammed my elbow up, aim dead on. The girl let out a howl that would have made a banshee proud. She rolled to the side clutching her face and sobbing. Beside me, Kendra was fending off one of the others.

“Cow!” The shortest screamed as she charged. She grabbed me from behind while the third, having grounded Kendra, jerked on the cuff of my right sleeve.

Even if it hadn’t been one of my dad’s old jackets—even if it’d been a tacky pink blue-light special, I wouldn’t have given it to them. Mom had given me the jacket two years ago. It was worn and way too big, but it’d belonged to my dad. It was some small part of him that I got to keep with me on a daily basis. And sure, he was around right now, but when this was all over, all I’d have was a stupid jacket.

The Three Stooges of Bloomingdales were
not
getting their grubby little French manicures on it.

I jerked my head back and heard a sickening crunch. There was a slight buzz, but no real pain. Hybrid demon spawn kids didn’t get special super powers—but we were a tad more resilient than normal kids. I’d been known to take a little more of a lickin’ and keep on tickin’.

The blonde at my back screamed and let go. The one tugging on the jacket managed to free my right arm and was working on the left. She had the entire thing in her hands except the left sleeve—which was still on my arm. When she realized I wasn’t going to let go, she hit me again. Put her weight into it, too. Her fist grazed my chin as something sharp sliced into my lower lip. A ring.

Hell in a hailstorm. She
really
wanted my jacket. And that’s when I remembered what Meredith had said.

That is a really nice jacket, by the way…

Sonofabitch!

“Kendra,” I yelled. She was just picking herself off the floor. “Envy! They’re infected by envy.” And sure enough, on the periphery of my vision, I saw one of the women from the hall at school walking toward us wearing a huge grin. Envy.

The envy-infected girl came at me again, screaming incoherently. I doubted she knew where she was at that point, much less why she was doing what she was doing. Eyes glazed and fingers curled, she charged me like a rabid animal. I didn’t have to put any umpf behind the punch. She flew at me like a runaway train and wrecked herself on my fist. That was the good news. The bad? She stumbled back, knocking into Envy who was now standing by the curb. That whole thing about how bad things happen in slow motion? A load of crap. In fact, time seemed to speed up and take on a dizzying quality.

Envy, knocked back by the infected girl, teetered on the edge of the curb for a split second before tipping back into the street. Right into the path of an oncoming city bus. The vehicle tried to stop, the horrific sound of squealing tires mingling with the scent of burning rubber, but it was too late.

On impact, the body convulsed, a bright green light gathering in the woman’s midsection. Pulsing twice, it rocketed from her body—up her throat and out her mouth—and into the air.

There was no time to react. As I stood there, mouth hanging open and helpless, the ball of light collided with Kendra. She screamed. A horrible sound that, for as long as I lived, I’d never forget. Every limb went rigid. Her head rocked back.

And then, nothing.

As quickly as it started, it was over. Kendra rolled her shoulders and shook out both hands. “Ken?” I said, taking a tentative step closer. “Are you okay?”

She smiled at me, and that’s when I knew. A spark of something dark gleamed in her eyes. Kendra wasn’t in the driver’s seat anymore.

“Stay tuned, little Darker girl,” Envy said in Kendra’s voice. “Things are about to get interesting.”

As I watched her stroll away, casual as could be, I realized Mom was right. Something about this case
was
way off.

And I had a feeling I’d just figured it out.

Chapter Twenty-one

By the time I pushed through the office door, my lip was good and swollen, my hip throbbed, and I was pretty sure a few of my teeth were loose. Oh, and I lost my best friend to the dark side. That, too. As the door closed behind me, three sets of eyes turned my way, and I felt like a fish in a bowl.

“Do I want to know?” Mom asked from behind her desk. Standing over a large map, Dad on one side and Lukas on the other, she looked from my ruined lip and scuffed chin to my muddy jeans.

I touched a finger to my lip and cringed. “Zombie assault, toxic dog drool, and now attacked by a college chick wearing a pink rhinestone belly shirt. I’m not having a good week.”

“Attacked?” Dad growled, stepping around the desk. “What do you mean, attacked?”

“Relax, Damien,” Mom said. She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and gently pulled back. “She’s fine.” She turned to me for confirmation, and I nodded.

“As all right as possible. I know we don’t need another problem, but unfortunately we have one.” I took a deep breath. “Kendra is Envy.”

“Infected, you mean?”

“No. I mean, the body Envy took over had…an accident. Kendra was there with me and it took her over as a replacement.”

“How—”

“Think about it, Mom.” I came around and sank onto the couch. “Ken is wicked jealous of the coven. She can’t even do the simple stuff. She’s the perfect host.”

“This is bad. Kendra may not have the ability to tap into her powers yet, but they’re there.” Mom turned to Dad. “Will Envy be able to access them?”

Dad shook his head, genuinely concerned. “In theory, I’d say it was possible. When demons possess humans, they have access to their skills and memories. Kendra’s power is a part of her…” He slipped his hand into Mom’s.

“Let’s not wait around to find out.”

“Oh, and you were right. About something being off? Remember how you said it was odd that the Sins weren’t running crazy? I think it’s because someone is keeping them on a leash and pulling their strings.”

Mom’s eyes widened. I knew that look because I’d seen it a thousand times in the past. Each time I tried to talk my way out of something. Dad didn’t look convinced either, glancing from me to Mom, brows furrowed. He was subtler than she was. Probably not wanting to discourage me.

Lukas shook his head slowly. He rolled up his own map, securing it with a thin rubber band, and set it down beside Mom’s. “That doesn’t sound probable.”

“I know how it sounds, but it’s true. I had a little run in with Vida at school today and—”

That
got everyone talking.

“Who’s Vida?” Mom and Dad asked in unison, while at the same time Lukas surged forward, fingers clenched, and said, “What did she do?”

They didn’t come up for air, either. Going a mile a minute despite my best efforts to get a word in. I was about to scream—the only thing I could think of drastic enough to grab their attention—but someone did it for me.

Or, something.

An eerie growl filled the room, and a puff of black smoke erupted on top of my desk. Everyone froze mid-sentence, all eyes whirling toward the other end of the room.

“
What
is that?” Dad asked, taking a step closer.

“That—” Mom said with a sigh, “—would be your daughter’s new
pet
.” Something told me Mom and my new shadow wouldn’t be snuggling up or going for walksies anytime soon.

Dad gave the demon corgi a once-over, then turned to me. He looked almost proud. “You’re keeping a demon as a pet?”

“I’m not keeping him as much as he’s keeping me. He followed me home from a job and just kind of stuck around.” On the desk, the corgi barked once, then circled several times, plopping down on top of a stack of neglected paperwork to watch the show.

Lukas cleared his throat. “About Vida?”

Vida. Right. I took a deep breath and turned to Mom. “Vida is one of the Sins.” I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “Lust.”

And I could see it in her eyes. She knew me better than anyone else on earth and was starting to connect the dots. “And you’ve met her before, I take it?” She didn’t have the details—and hopefully she’d never ask—but I knew in the very pit of my soul that she’d just figured out what happened with Garrett.

“At school yesterday.”

“And what happened?” Her voice was even, but she was upset. I could tell by the way her fingers drummed across the top of her desk. Mom was a picture of stillness and self-control. She didn’t have nervous ticks.

“At first I thought it was just another case of threats. You know, we’ll get you, and your little dog, too—she doesn’t like me very much. Thinks I’m a troublemaker.”

Mom’s expression didn’t change. “You have that effect on people.”

“But then she introduced me to a few of her friends.”

“The other Sins?” Lukas asked. “You’ve seen them?”

I nodded. “Them—and someone else.”

Mom was genuinely surprised. Her fingers stopped tapping and she stood. “Someone else?”

This was the part I’d been dreading. Meredith was, understandably, a sore spot for Lukas. How bad was he going to blow when he found out she’d been alive and living free all this time while he was stuck in the box? “They found a witch…a powerful one.”

Lukas looked angry. “Already?”

“There aren’t many in the area. The Belfairs and the rest of their coven, plus a few solitaries. I don’t see anyone offering their aid.” Mom paled as the reality of what she’d just said hit her. “Oh, no…Are they being forced by the Sins?”

“It’s not someone from the coven, and no, they’re not forcing the witch to help them, either. She’s doing it on her own. I think
she
actually found them. If I’m right, this is the girl Dad took the box from. The one that tripped him.”

“What person in her right mind…” Mom breathed.

“That’s just it. This chick? She hasn’t had her right mind for a
really
, really long time. Probably not ever.”

I turned to Lukas. Showtime. “The witch they found—it’s Meredith Wells.”

Mom pinched the bridge of her nose and sank into her chair. “Wells? As in a descendant of the witch that trapped Lukas in the box? I looked everywhere, and Cassidy said—”

“Technically, Cassidy lied to you, Ma.” I shook my head, attention still on Lukas. He didn’t look good. Jaw clenched. Fingers knotted. Eyes stormy. “She found a Wells witch. Not a descendant of Meredith Wells, but Meredith herself. Kendra confirmed it.”

“That’s impossible.” Lukas’ voice was icy. “You must have misunderstood. She’s related to Meredith Wells.”

“She’s not,” I said softly. “She
is
Meredith Wells.”

“She wasn’t in the box.” His fingers curled around the edge of Mom’s desk, muscles in his arms taut like rubber bands ready to snap. “There’s no way she could still be alive.”

“If she had the power to trap you in the box, there’s no doubt she’d have the power to prolong her own life.” Dad snorted. “See? A pain in the ass, those witches.”

“You said you think she’s pulling their strings? Controlling them?” Mom was in all work mode. “What makes you think that? What did she say?”

I wanted to yell at them. We were wasting time chatting about this. We needed to get out there and find this bitch before she did any more damage. Instead, we were standing there playing twenty questions.

“I didn’t realize it at first,” I said with a bit of a bite. “She told me who she was, pretty much told me to stay away from her guy—then said she liked my jacket.”

“Liked your jacket?” Mom asked. “A little strange, but okay.”

“No,” I said, shaking my finger at them. Why were they not getting it? “That’s what did it. On the way home I was attacked by those girls and they wanted my jacket. Would have killed for it. Then Envy showed up to take in the show.”

“You think this Meredith girl sent them after you?”

“More like
had
Envy send them after me,” I snapped. In the corner, on top of my desk, Smokey let out a low growl. They were starting to annoy me with all the questions. Hadn’t I made it clear? If Mom kept this up, I was likely to start swinging.

Wait…

Swinging
?

Horrified, I whirled around. Lukas was pale and shaking and looked ready to collapse.

“Out! Everyone out.”

Dad cursed and stepped forward to grab my arm, but I jerked away.

“
You
guys out. I’m staying.”

“Absolutely not!” he roared and made another swipe for me.

I dodged him again and turned to Mom, eyes pleading. “I
can
calm him down.”

She looked torn. Unsure and maybe a little sad, she nodded and grabbed Dad by the arm. Despite his protests, she was able to haul him out the door.

Once they were gone, I turned back to Lukas. My earlier vow to distance myself from him and the feelings festering between us was forgotten. There was a little voice in my head still nagging me to keep away, but I pushed it aside. All I could think about was stopping his pain.

“Deep breath,” I said, tilting his head up. “Don’t be angry. Look at it this way. Meredith being alive is a
good
thing.”

Red eyes rose to meet mine. “Get—get out. I can’t control it.”

I let my fingers trail along the lines of his face. Across his cheeks and around to his ears, tucking a strand of hair back. “You can. I know you can. You’re amazing, Lukas. You can do anything.”

“No,” he snapped, voice taking on an otherworldly twang. “Get—Ahhhhh!” The scream that ripped from his throat stilled my breath and sent the temperature in the room plummeting. Still, I didn’t budge.