Devil Inside (35 page)

Harley hadn’t been able to clear her mind and fight effectively before because she really had no strong feelings of ill will towards any of her other partners before.  If anything, she genuinely liked them.  Therefore, she wasn’t able to push aside her distractions and fight.  Rafe on the other hand, she despised with everything in her.  Her dislike of him was a dead weight that if she didn’t cast aside would drag her down and get the best of her.  As she fought Rafe, it was easy to see what she needed to let go of in order to move forward.

Suddenly, everything lined up just right to prime Harley for a strong, powerful, clear attack.  Rafe was just the right distance away and Harley’s balance was just right.  She spun, building up momentum and landed a tremendous kick to Rafe’s chest.  She saw his look of incredulity when he flew backwards.  As he crashed onto the hardwood floor Harley felt the tension inside her explode in cold icy shards.  The burning anger in her belly flashed behind her eyes.  The heat was so strong she thought her eyes were going to melt.  Rafe met her eyes and when his blackened eyes widened in shock she knew what he saw.  Harley knew that her eyes had blacked out and a wicked giggled bubbled out of her.  As Rafe climbed to his feet she looked to Nya and the other women on the sidelines.

Nya glowed with excitement and Cassandra and Evie’s eyes were bulging out of their head.  Harley felt incredible.  He body hummed with strength and she felt like she could fly.  Her anger was no longer a weight in her stomach—it was a pounding in her chest.  It wasn’t holding her back—it was urging her forward.  She could feel her Nocte uncoil with the roar of a dragon and she basked in the surge of power flowed throughout her body.  Rafe climbed to his feet and when his eyes met hers again he blanched.  His features twisted in fury but that fury was layered with fear as well.  Harley could smell it roll off of him from ten feet away.  It smelled sour and it made her shiver in excitement.

Rafe charged at her in a blur of speed but Harley had no trouble following his movements.  It became much clearer which fighter had the upper hand and the intensity had increased exponentially.  For every blow Rafe landed, Harley returned it harder.  She couldn’t contain the surge of happiness that flowed through her at her success and she became the one that laughed and taunted Rafe.  His black eyes glared at her in anger and all his swagger and arrogance was gone as he battled to change the direction of the fight.

Harley had backed him towards the west facing wall and was continuing to close in.  As she lunged for him, Rafe ducked to the side but Harley saw it coming and wasn’t thrown off course.  She didn’t slow as she reached the wall.  Instead, she leapt towards it and let her speed and momentum carry her up the wall.  When she was about eight feet off the ground she used all of her strength to launch herself off the wall and she let instinct take over.  As she flipped through the air she saw Rafe below her spin to block her return attack.  She saw the look of confusion on his face when she wasn’t behind him.  He had only just figured it out and looked above him as she dropped through the air.  She didn’t question her aim; she just held her breath and let herself fall.  She dropped perfectly onto Rafe’s shoulders.  In one swift movement she twisted at the waist and heard, as well as felt, the sharp crack of Rafe’s neck bones breaking as she flipped herself backwards from his shoulders.

Harley landed on the hardwood floor before Rafe’s body did.  She landed on the back of her shoulders and let the momentum carry her over in a somersault and came to a stop in a crouching position. 
Now THAT’S what I’ve been waiting for,
she
felt the growl rumble through the teeth baring grin that split her face.  Her chest heaved as she panted with excitement through clenched teeth.  When Rafe’s body crumpled to the ground she let out a heavy breath and stood.  As quickly as it came over her the fury melted away as she stood over Rafe’s body.  In seconds she began to relax as her Nocte stood down.  Now that she was free and not fighting for release, the Nocte settled just below the surface and found a satisfied calm.  The anxiety was gone and she felt more at peace with herself then she had in months.  Harley knew her bond was finally complete.  The Nocte was now a part of her and not just with her.

With her Nocte’s sudden calm Harley was left momentarily empty.  She didn’t expect a crash to follow the completion of the bond and she felt cold and stunned.  Then just as quickly as they left, all of her emotions suddenly surged back to life as if they had just been knocked out in a power surge.  The result was an overwhelming wave of emotion that left her breathless.  Anger, heartache, frustration, happiness, sadness, loneliness, agitation and everything in between crashed over her.  She felt her legs collapse and she gulped at the air trying desperately to get a breath.

Warm hands gripped her shoulders and pulled her to her feet.  Without looking she knew it was Nya.  Nya didn’t say anything as she guided her out of the training room.  Harley was a circuit that had too much power forced through it at one time.  So many thoughts and feelings zapped through her it left her unable to feel anything or think anything coherent at all.  Harley was a pliable robot that Nya guided and steered as she silently walked her through the house.  Neither woman spoke as Nya pushed Harley up the stairs, down the hall and into the bathroom across from her bedroom.  Everything was eerily quiet and Harley felt like the world had been put on mute.  Nya left Harley leaning against the shower wall in nearly a catatonic state.  Harley felt like she was falling into oblivion and she struggled to climb her way back out.    Nya turned the water on in the shower and tested the temperature.  Still not speaking Nya pushed Harley underneath the stream of water fully clothed.  Harley let her legs give out again and she sank down on the tile floor.

Harley let the hot water rain down over her head and shoulders.  The nearly scalding water felt good as it pounded down against her skin.  It gave her something to concentrate on instead of the suffocating raging turmoil inside her.  She didn’t know where these emotions were coming from.  She didn’t know if they were from her Nocte, her own, the act of breaking another Praesidio’s neck or just simply a reaction to the completed bond.  Harley could barely breathe in the emotional onslaught.  When Nya was sure that Harley was settled and OK where she was, she turned and left the bathroom.  Curiosity about where the other woman was going fluttered through Harley’s mind but it was hard to hold onto any one thought.  She didn’t know how long she sat under the shower before Nya was kneeling down in front of her again.  She was holding out a hand and in her other hand she was holding a red coffee mug. 

Harley took Nya’s hand and let the woman pull her from underneath the spray of water.  When she was out from under the direct rush of water Nya forced the mug into her hand.  Nya had to press Harley’s finger into a grip around the cup before it clicked and registered to her that she needed to grasp the cup.  When the cup was in her hold, Nya’s voice finally broke through the vacuum of sound that had surrounded Harley.

“Drink this,” she urged Harley.

Harley looked at her confused.  “Drink this,” Nya repeated firmly.

The meaning of Nya’s words finally clicked and Harley realized that there was some sort of dark liquid in the mug.  The smell finally wafted to her and her stomach clenched in hunger and her mouth began to water.  With a biting sting and intense pressure Harley felt her fangs push their way out of her mouth and she tasted her own blood.  She didn’t question what the drink was; she just knew she wanted it the same way an alcoholic wanted a drink.  She put the mug to her mouth and began gulping it down.  On some level she recognized the warm, metallic taste as blood but she didn’t care even as it dibbled out the side and down her chin.  Each gulp eased the crushing weight inside her.  It was the best thing she had ever tasted in her life and as she emptied the cup she continued to suck at the rim trying to get every drop that remained.  She could feel her fangs clank clumsily against the rim of the mug.

Nya pulled the cup away from her smiling in that burning amused way that she did.  “Are you back with us now?” she asked Harley.

Harley sucked in a deep breath.  The blood had soothed her and calmed the surging flood of emotions that had threatened to drown her.  She took another deep breath and took stock of herself.  She felt good—damn good.  A smile broke across her face as she met Nya’s eyes.  “I feel great,” she said finally coming up for air from the vortex she had been sucked into and she felt her fangs slid back into their pockets.  Nya matched her smile and clapped her on the shoulder.

“I was right,” she laughed.  “All you needed was some strong motivation and a little confidence.”

“Confidence?”

Nya crinkled with mischievousness.  “I figured that if you thought your Nocte was almost out anyway that you would have an easier time letting go.”

“Wait—what?”  Nya laughed at her confusion.  “Didn’t my eyes black out a little yesterday?”

“Nope,” Nya laughed standing up.  “Your pupils got a little bigger that’s all.”

Harley’s mouth dropped open.  “You lying bitch!” she said, unable to keep the smile off her face.

“It worked though didn’t it,” Nya laughed again.  “Get yourself cleaned up and meet me in my office.  You’ve got blood all over your face.”

Harley knocked softly on Nya’s door before opening it and walking in.  Nya was expecting her so she didn’t wait for her to tell her to come in.  She was showered and dressed in jeans and a sweater feeling as comfortable on the outside as she now did on the inside.  She didn’t feel drastically different than she had before the bond completed.  She just didn’t feel so agitated and she couldn’t feel her Nocte writhing below the surface.  Now she just hummed along inside her, content and calm.  It was like an embrace from an old friend.  When Harley entered the room Nya was sitting behind her multicolored desk looking at papers spread out in front of her.  She smiled at Harley and gestured towards the chair in front of her desk.

“So,” Nya began.  “How do you feel?”

“I’m still good.  Better than I have been in a while actually.”

“Good,” Nya said and waited for Harley to speak.

Harley wasn’t sure what she was supposed to say.  Finally she went with the first thing to pop into her head.  “Where did the blood I drank come from?”

“I had Cassandra bring some back the last time she was out on a hunt.  I thought you might need it soon.”

“Oh.  I guess I just didn’t realize that we could keep a supply around.”

“We usually don’t really.  It’s not as good and doesn’t last long in storage.  The spirit of the Ignis fades after a short time.  And you won’t really need it often enough to keep a supply around for ready access.  Usually you’ll kill enough Ignis to easily feed your Nocte.”

Wow. 
That was a lot to take in.  If that wasn’t as good as fresh she couldn’t imagine what fresh would feel and taste like.  And she was a little surprised that she wasn’t thrown off by drinking blood for the first time. 
But really?  With everything else that shouldn’t come as much of a shock anyway.

“So what now?” Harley finally asked.

“I want to finish up some training with you.  Then…I’ll figure out where you should be placed.”  Nya had a small smile on her face and her eyes glowed.  The General was definitely feeling proud of herself.

Harley’s Nocte might not be simmering inside her any longer, but she could definitely still feel her urging her forward.  “I would really like to help Levi hunt the murderer from Miami.”  Harley could kick herself.  She really wanted to let that go, but her Nocte wasn’t going to and those words had popped out before she could stop them. 
What the fuck?!
  “Actually, what I meant to say was—I really want to search for Blondie.”

“Blondie?” Nya raised her eyebrows at Harley indecisive outburst, but she didn’t press that issue.

“Sorry.  The blonde Ignis responsible for Jamie’s death.”

“Oh!  You mean Cutter.”

“That’s his name?”

“I’ve been doing some research.  I’m pretty sure that is who you are after.”

“I don’t think I even considered that he would have a name.”

“Well, it’s probably not his real name.  But that’s what he goes by.”

“How do you know it’s him?”

“I’ve been looking for field reports from the area and time frame of your parent’s death.  As well as Levi’s reports from when he met you.  They line up and match the description of a Burner that calls himself Cutter.  He’s got a small following which is unusual for Ignis.”

Harley felt cold.  She and Nya hadn’t discussed her parents.  She had assumed that Levi had told Nya about it, but Nya had never brought it up.  She had always seemed to focus more on the present and the future than the past.  “Unusual?”

“Yes.  We call the Ignis the Turba, but really that’s our label for them.  They don’t band together all that much.  But Cutter seems to have gotten his own horde together.”

Harley’s nose wrinkled in distaste.  “Do you know where he is?  Is he not still in Kentucky?”

“All signs seem to indicate that he left Kentucky about the same time you did.  And no, I haven’t found him yet.  I’m still tracking him.  I’ve got word out and Nocte are on the alert for him or any of his followers.”

Harley hesitated.  “Can I be sent where ever he is?”

Nya was thoughtful for a moment.  “Maybe.  I can’t promise that you that I can send you wherever he is.  But I will do my best.  I know you want revenge, but you have to consider the greater good—the big picture.  And I know you want to help stop the Rogue—whatever/whoever it was that was killing in Miami—but you need to take things a step at a time.”