Demon Retribution (Shadow Quest Book 3) (12 page)

She rolled her shoulder, feeling where she’d
been shot. It didn’t hurt as bad as she thought it should.

“
You’ve been asleep for two
days,” he answered her unspoken question.

Her wound was almost healed then, same as
his. “You can’t keep a shirt on for long, can you?” she cracked a
smile.

He grinned. “A work of art shouldn’t be
covered up.”

She snorted, thinking his ego had escaped
intact.

“
However, it’s less
distracting for me if you are.”

She blinked twice. Looking down, she pulled
at the loose fitting shirt that covered her. Under the covers, her
legs were bare.

Zoey said, “Your clothes are hanging up in
the bathroom. You were soaked and shivering the whole way here, so
I sent Cale to get snacks while I took them off and put you under
the covers. But then you kept throwing them off, so Cale lent you
his shirt.” Dramatically, Zoey fanned herself and added in a lower
tone. “Lucky me, right? That is one fine horned-thing from outer
space.”

Kyra shot an incredulous look at Cale. “She
knows?”

“
We’ve had some time to
talk. The chit asks a lot of questions. Thought you wouldn’t
mind.”

Zo smiled. “I always knew aliens existed, I
just never would have thought I’d be best friends with one.”

She studied Zoey’s exuberant expression and
observed, “You’re not freaking.”

“
You slept through that
part.”

“
And Kevin? Is
he…?”

Zoey’s face fell, and she glanced toward
Cale.

Cale replied, sounding exasperated, as
though being accused of some trivial thing for the thousandth time.
“It was a reflex.”

Kyra wasn’t sad about Kevin’s fate, but she
was worried for Zoey. Forensics would place Zoey at the scene,
without a doubt.

Curious, she asked Zoey, “What did he tell
you, exactly?”

“
Well, you’re a Faieara,
which sounds a lot like fairy to me. That would explain the ears,
though I’m disappointed I didn’t find wings on you. You’re from
another world, and so is he, but his was destroyed.”

That caught Kyra off guard and her eyes
snapped back to Cale. His expression went blank.

Zoey didn’t seem to notice and continued.
“Your people are magic.”

“
I didn’t say magic,” he
protested.

Zoey waved his comment away and then started
to recite something that sounded far too much like a fairy tale.
“He’s come to rescue you, take you aboard his ship, and reunite you
with your long lost sister.”

“
Ach, you’re getting it all
wrong,” Cale groaned.

“
Alright, alright,” Kyra
interrupted. “We don’t need to go into all the little details now.
First, we need to cover our tracks. Zo? Do you have your
phone?”

“
It’s in my
purse.”

“
Toss it. It’s too easy to
trace. No credit cards either. Cash only. How did you pay for the
room?”

“
Cash,” Zoey
confirmed.

“
Good. I have enough in my
purse to get us to my cabin. It’s secluded and not under my current
name, so it should be the perfect place for us to hide, for now. I
have money stashed there too. On the way, we’ll stop and get some
clothes for everyone.” She ran her hands through her hair and met
with resistance. “Scratch that. First, a shower. Second, everything
else I just said.”

Cale felt like some child’s dress up toy,
standing in the store while Kyra and Zoey held up outfits against
him. They’d already replaced his old hat with something larger that
had a belt wrapped around it. Zoey said it made him look rugged.
Kyra smiled and nodded, so he allowed it.

Then came the shirts, pants, and footwear.
He was glad when they finally let him sit while they searched the
store for themselves, only asking on occasion what he thought. He’d
had more than enough experience with females to know that you
always say they look perfect, even if they didn’t. But with Kyra,
he found it was nearly always true. There was, however, an
oversized sweater that he’d “vetoed” as Zoey called it.

Other than helping Kyra choose clothing, he
tried to keep his eyes off her—a pursuit that was proving
impossible. Everything she did distracted him. Every expression,
every sound she made.

In the clearing, when he’d kissed her, it
had been like hovering on the Edge, only better. A light breeze
could have pushed him over. All thought had been drained away, and
only she had existed.

It had been reckless!

But then, his reaction had been entirely
unexpected. He still couldn’t understand how he could possibly have
let his guard drop. Not only that, but the aftermath of the kiss
had been unforeseeable.

Velicia’s betrayal had been the most
devastating experience of his life. His father’s death, his
mother’s wretchedness were nothing in comparison. For years, the
Edge had been his home, madness his friend. After Sebastian and
Sonya had painstakingly helped him find his way back to a saner
state of mind, he’d tried to forget his love for Velicia by losing
himself in the arms of as many women as possible.

Mated demons, like himself, only crave a
mate’s touch. He could attest that touching another felt detestable
and vile, even in the height of ecstasy. The guilt that followed
each liaison—each deceptive kiss—was like his own personal
self-mutilation. The pain was almost physical, though not
quite.

But with Kyra, it had been.

Merely kissing her had been far worse than
any female he’d brought to his bed. It made him wonder how terrible
it would be to take her fully. Perhaps it would finally destroy
him.

He was intrigued.

But he wouldn’t risk it again. Not with the
Kayadon threat at hand.

The fact that Kyra had to bail him out with
a gift that cost her so much was embarrassing. Sebastian would have
kicked his ass for it. Then Sonya would have waited for him to heal
and kicked it again.

He was foolish not to have brought Sonya
along to watch his back, like Sebastian had wanted. Arrogant and
foolish. The idea of having the Kayadon to himself, to destroy them
all for what they’d done to him, had been too tempting. He knew
their weapons were advanced, but he hadn’t expected them to put him
on the ground so fast.

He vowed it wouldn’t happen again.

The trees outside the car window followed
the road in a tightly packed order, exploding with bright color. It
was a two-hour drive to Hunter Mountain, where her cabin waited,
and Kyra was eager to finally get there.

Zoey rested in the back seat with her eyes
closed. Still, Kyra wasn’t sure if she believed the calm exterior
her friend projected.

Cale relaxed in the passenger seat, being
suspiciously quiet as he gazed at the scenery. He’d hardly said a
word to her since they’d left the department store.

“
So, your planet was
destroyed?” she said, breaking the long silence.

He took his eyes from the scenery and
settled them on her. She peeked at him from the corner of her
eye.

“
Aye,” he
replied.

She waited for him to continue, but he went
back to watching the trees fly by.

“
How did it happen? Global
warming?”

“
Hardly.”

“
Nuclear
disaster?”

“
No.”

“
Why did you tell Zoey and
not me?”

“
Like I said, she asks a
lot of questions. Couldn’t shut the girl up otherwise. And,” he
paused, “I was hoping to delay telling you. I figured it would
alarm you to know.”

“
Why would it…” She trailed
off, feeling her throat go dry. There could only be one reason to
keep such a thing from her. Only one thing would cause her to
stress over the destruction of a planet to which she had no
connection.

He inhaled deeply and let it out slowly.
“The Kayadon came to my planet long ago.”

Kyra began flicking her nails around the
wheel.

“
They sold many of my
people as slaves, killed those they could not control, and then
destroyed our home. My family and I now live as nomads.”

Her heart sank. She chewed her lip, gripping
the wheel tighter. “Are my people…are they…?”

“
We don’t know anything.
That’s why I didn’t want to tell you. It does no good to jump to
conclusions.”

“
It’s maddening, all this
time not knowing.” Her voice held all the frustration she kept
locked inside.

“
Yeah, it is.”

Kyra felt there was more to his words than
he let on, but her cabin finally came into view.

“
Zoey! Wake up. We’re
here.” She forced the conversation to the back of her mind. Surely
there was hope. Otherwise her father would never have sent Cale to
her.

She held onto the idea like a lifeline.

Zoey sat up, mid yawn, but her mouth didn’t
close as she took in what Kyra knew was an extravagant sight laying
just beyond the flat surface of a small lake.

“
Holy mother of…how
rich
are
you?”

A deep deck surrounded both levels of a
stone and wood cabin, complete with a high angular roof and a set
of chimneys. Another deck protruded from the second story. The
landscaping was colorful and pristine against the dense, rough
wooded area. Kyra paid a hefty sum for its upkeep.

“
Why on Earth are you
living in the city, and working at a crappy coffee shop, when you
have this?” Zoey complained.

“
Solitude gets dull,” she
replied with a shrug.

Over the gravel driveway, she wound the car
around the lake and parked near the front entrance. Zoey jumped out
first and stretched. Kyra and Cale followed.

“
What do you think?” she
asked Cale over the hood of the car. “Do you think we’ll be safe
here?”

He took a moment to look around before
answering. “Seems so. No scent of Kayadon in the air. Not sure how
they found you in the first place, so we’ll have to keep our guard
up.”

Kyra recalled Cale used her father’s book to
figure her location. “Do you think they have a book as well?”

“
They have your father, why
would they need a book? Who knows what they’re doing to him to
get…” He paused at her grimace. “Sorry. I’m no good at—”

“
No, it’s fine. I should
have figured…” She ran her hands though her hair. “I just didn’t
want to consider it. But of course that’s what’s
happening.”

“
Try not to think of
it.”

She squared her shoulders. “I’m not soft.
I’d rather know, than not. It’s best to know,” she added as if
trying to convince herself. “Please, don’t think you need keep
anything from me to spare my feelings.”

He gave a tight nod, and they walked up the
broken stone path to the front door where Zoey waited, peeking in
through the windows.

The inside matched the outside in its
decadence. This was one of Kyra’s favorite escapes, so she spared
no expense. Tall windows let in the evening light. At the touch of
a button, heavy shades would drop, if desired. Sparse but
intricately placed lighting bathed the large main room in a warm
glow. The furniture was designed to be as comfortable as any bed,
and more than once she’d fallen asleep on the soft couch while
reading.

A bar counter top separated a kitchen area
that was full of all the amenities needed for proper cooking and
storage. On the drive up, they’d picked up a few food items to fill
it.

A wooden staircase led to the second level,
where a U-shaped balcony lined a hallway leading to the bedrooms.
Kyra was glad she’d decided to keep them fully furnished as well.
It was done with the intent of putting the house on the market.
Luckily, the recession put a hold on that plan.

“
This place is amazing!”
Zoey declared. Then she planted herself on a chair, gripping a
decorative pillow like it could anchor her in place. “I am never
leaving.”

Kyra laughed. “How about I give it to
you?”

Eyes wide, she gasped. “What?”

“
Yeah. You’re going to need
a new identity anyway. And I have a few hundred years worth of
wealth that I can’t take with me. I will just need to do a little
forging—”

Zoey jumped up and wrapped her in a tight
hug. At first Kyra took it as a thank you, but a bit of sadness
seeped into the gesture. “I’m going to miss you,” Zoey said.

“
Me too. But I’m not gone
yet.”