Fading Light: Shadow Born, Book 2 (8 page)

Chapter Eight

Brenna held up a pair of pink lace thongs. They weren’t practical, but she could find a way to put them to use. Smiling, she threw them in the bag on top of her jeans. Her resolve was fading fast. But she didn’t want regrets, only memories.

The trip to Colorado Springs would mark the first time she and Gray had been completely alone. The chaos of the boarding house, the constant interruptions by their housemates, would be gone for at least a few days. And a lot could happen. It could be life changing.

Or a complete disaster.

Brenna sighed. A part of her dreaded the trip, but she told it to buck up. It wasn’t like she had a choice. She tossed the duffel bag complete with sexy lingerie and utilitarian granny panties—she wanted to be covered regardless of her mood—over her shoulder and made her way outside.

Gray waited beside the truck. He was leaning against the steel door, arms crossed. The wind had freed most of his hair from the thick leather strap, and it fell in long layers around his face. He turned to her, an irritated glint in his violet eyes.

“Seraph wants us to teleport.” He stepped forward. “Three more bodies were found. He doesn’t want to waste time.”

Pain streaked across her temple. “Same time of death?”

Gray shook his head. “No. It’s a new batch.”

“Which means there will be more.” She tossed her bag on the ground. “This has to stop.”

“Agreed.” He moved to her side and slung her bag over his shoulder. It joined the messenger bag strapped to his shoulder and the scabbard across his back.

They would be too close to Manitou Springs for comfort. The area was surrounded by powerful covens. They needed to be at full strength. But Seraph was right. It would take several hours to drive. That didn’t seem like much, but it was time they didn’t have.

“We’ll go separately.” She took her duffel bag back from him before he could protest. Teleporting items took extra energy, and he had his own stuff. When he began to speak, she raised a hand to stop him. “If this is going to work, we have to be a team.”

“But—”

“This isn’t a negotiation.” She took a long breath. “It’s a deal breaker.”

Gray’s frustration was tangible, but, after a few moments, he nodded. She felt him call upon his magic. It funneled around him, the fiery glow bright in the dim light. Then, he was gone. She had no choice but to follow.

The day was in full bloom when they arrived at the Garden of the Gods. Once filled with stunning red rock formations, the park was now a shattered landscape of broken stones and scorched sand. And a habitat for the unfortunate drudges of human society. When they weren’t making their way into the cities to look for work, they lived inside the once pristine caves.

Gray stood alongside the former trailhead. His aura was dark, the drain in his magic evident. Brenna checked to make sure all her parts had successfully made the trip before she moved to his side. “This place is a mess.” She kicked at the pile of broken beer bottles along the trail. “It’s hard to see the beauty.”

Gray considered. “You can if you look hard enough.”

“If you say so.” She studied the landscape. “The amphitheater is in the middle of the park.”

“Might as well follow this.” He motioned to the dirt trail they were on. “It’s got to lead somewhere.”

“I hope the house is still standing when we get home,” Brenna said as they followed the winding trail through craters of rock and ash. “Keegan better not burn it down.”

Gray laughed. “He’s done worse.”

“You’re not making me feel better.” She stopped as they came upon a clearing.

In the center of the field sat a makeshift theatre. Rock slabs littered the dirt in a circular pattern. There were at least twenty rows for spectators to sit. An elevated platform of white rock sat in the center of the stones.

“This must be it.” Brenna stepped onto one of the slabs. “If you want to check out the stage, I’ll walk the perimeter.”

Gray moved toward the center of the stage. He was almost halfway there when Brenna felt it. The hint of a spell. Something was wrong. She didn’t know what, so she held her tongue. But her apprehension grew with each step.

Paranoia was getting the best of her. She tried to shake it off and concentrate on the task at hand. But no matter how hard she tried to push it aside, the feeling remained. Once she finished walking the boundary of the theater, she moved to Gray’s side like the devil was at her heels. Maybe he was.

“Find anything?”

She knew he felt her anxiety. “I can feel the remnants of a powerful spell, but I can’t tell what it is because something is interfering.”

Gray moved closer. “Can you tell where it’s coming from?”

“No.” She climbed onto the stage. It wobbled beneath her feet. “Didn’t Seraph say the victims came here for a concert?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“There’s no way a band could play on this. It’s too unstable.” She jumped up and down, and the rock shifted beneath her feet. “Something must have damaged it.”

Brenna jumped to the ground to follow him as he circled the stage. There was a gathering of loose rocks near one edge. Kneeling, she grabbed a stick and poked at them. They crumbled, the largest rolling out of formation to stop at her knee. The stones were fragments of the larger slab which made up the stage. Someone had intentionally busted it up. She used the stick to push aside the debris, uncovering a hole. Suddenly, it all clicked.

She stood and motioned to Gray. “There’s a hole underneath the stage. Someone rigged it. If we push the larger rock at the right angle, we should be able to move it and get underneath.”

Gray lifted his brow.

“Trust me.” She slipped off her duster and threw it on the ground. She was stronger than a human. Even if she was wrong, and the rock wasn’t designed to slide, she could still move it.

“Wait,” Gray said, moving beside her. “Let me help.”

She rolled her eyes. As if she couldn’t do it herself. “Fine,” she said. “Push.”

The stone groaned, but slid easily across the makeshift lever. “I knew it.” Brenna stood and surveyed their work. There was now a hole where the rock had been. She crouched to peer inside. “It doesn’t look that deep.”

“It must connect with the underground caves.” He stripped off his overcoat. “There’s only one way to find out.” Gray jumped into the hole.

Bravo to him. He was either fearless, reckless or both. None were attributes she valued. Fear was a virtue. It kept you aware, on your toes. Recklessness was just stupidity disguised by bravado. Still, she closed her eyes and leapt into the dark. The pit opened into a series of tunnels.

“Do you feel that?” Gray asked as she landed. Magical residue thickened the air, making it difficult to breathe.

She motioned to the tunnel in front of them. “It’s coming from there. It looks likes it leads deeper into the park.”

Gray stepped forward into the passageway.

They didn’t get far. The walls were covered with blood soaked carvings of demonic runes. A plain brown clay pot and a bloody pestle lay in the dirt, on top of another series of runes. These she didn’t recognize.

One thing was clear. Whatever spell had been cast, it had required a life. The smell of death permeated the space. Blood magic danced in the air. It lay dormant, waiting.

“I don’t trust it.” She knelt at the edge of the runes to get a better look. “If it is Adare and Ga’loh, they’re too smart to leave this here.”

Gray let out a harsh breath. “That’s true. But what if it’s not a trap? Whatever substance they mixed up is losing its potency every second we stand here. We know the toxin doesn’t last inside the victim, what if it begins to deteriorate once it’s exposed to the air? If we wait for the others, there might not be anything left.”

Brenna waved her hand over the rune. No magic tickled her palm. The spell was latent, but it was still worrisome. “I understand that, but something’s off. I don’t like this.”

He walked toward her as she stood. “I have to at least try, Brenna. We’re both strong. If it’s a trap, we’ve got a decent chance of escaping it. Humans are dying. We can’t risk the wait.” He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. “Besides, you’ve got my back, what could go wrong?”

Groaning, she kissed him back. “You had to say that, didn’t you?”

Her heart slammed against her chest and her stomach flopped around like a beached whale as he moved into the circle of runes. But nothing happened. There was no explosion. No catastrophic event. Gray was fine.

It didn’t make sense. Her intuition was never wrong. Either her time on this plane had weakened her abilities, or she
had
overreacted.

“What’s in the bowl?” She remained behind the line of runes, not wanting to push her luck.

“Blood.” He picked up the bowl to take a closer look. “It smells acidic, not metallic.”

“Demon blood.” She shook her head. They should have known. “Can you tell what he mixed with it?”

“Not yet.” He knelt to replace the bowl. “I don’t recognize the runes either. They’re not the same ones Orien carved onto his victims.”

“We’ve got demonic blood and runes. That’s something.” She turned away to search the rest of the tunnel. “We need to take a sample back to Lucy. She’s been working day and night trying to find a cure, and this might help.”

Several seconds passed and Gray didn’t answer. Brenna turned to find him still crouched before the bowl. “Gray?” She stepped closer.

He didn’t respond.

The runes began to glow, so brightly she could barely see him through the glare. She opened their psychic link, and a wave of demon magic invaded her mind. The pain was so intense she fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face. Something powerful was feeding off him. She hurled herself into the circle of runes.

And hit a wall.

Magic wrapped around her and squeezed until she couldn’t breathe. It slammed her against the dirt wall, playing against her skin as it tried to sink inside her body. She fought the onslaught with everything she had left. If she fell, they were both dead.

Sinking inside herself, she called on the power in her blood to force the invading essence out. Something shrieked inside her head, piercing her eardrums and rattling her brain. Nearly mindless with agony, she bit down on her lip. The contrasting pain help her focus, and she pushed again with her power. She heard a loud popping sound, then she was free.

She stumbled backwards, unable to see Gray clearly. He appeared as a dark mass several feet in front of her. Smog-like tendrils of dark magic wrapped around him until he disappeared from sight. She wasn’t sure how, but this magic functioned on a sentient level. With Gray subdued, it was only a matter of time before the spell returned its attention to her, and she was too weak to defeat it a second time. Her only hope was to get above ground and find help. Leaving Gray behind was perhaps the most difficult thing she had ever done. But it was her only choice.

It seemed like an eternity had passed before she pulled herself out of the ground. Blood dripped into her eyes, impeding her vision. She wiped it away as she crawled to her duster and pulled out her phone. But when she invoked the magical imprint that powered it to contact Seraph, it wouldn’t work. Cursing, she tossed the phone onto the ground. Even though her magic was weak, she closed her eyes and focused on Mira. Mira had drunk her blood, which would forever connect them. The vampire should be able to hear her call, if Brenna focused hard enough.

It was several moments before she felt Mira stirring in her mind. Their connection wasn’t strong enough to communicate through words, so Brenna mapped out their location. Mira would know to hurry. Out of respect for the vampire, Brenna never used their mental link unless she was desperate.

The communication with Mira drained the rest of Brenna’s power. Trembling, she collapsed onto the ground, the world spinning around her in chaotic abandon. Barely hanging on to consciousness, she waited. The cavalry would be here soon.

Brenna jerked awake. She felt like she had been trampled by elephants. It took several moments for the pain to fade, but once it did the day came rushing back. She threw her legs over the bed, but the abrupt movement intensified her discomfort.

“You’re in no condition to walk.”

Brenna glanced up, but her vision was compromised. All she saw were large black swirls. She let her head fall into her hands. “Where’s Gray?”

“He’s here, and he’s alive. Barely.”

Relief sweet as honey wrapped Brenna in its embrace, stealing her breath. “I need to be with him.”

The woman gave a low chuckle. “Yes. You do. But you’re too weak.” She sat beside Brenna on the bed. “My name is Agnes. I am the High Priestess of the Coven of Blood.”

A sigh escape Brenna’s lips. They had been rescued by Marissa’s coven. Marissa, Brenna’s first partner at the IRT, had wanted nothing more than to escape their restrictions. In the end, it had gotten her killed. “I didn’t recognize you.”

“Understandable.” Agnes handed her a small shot glass filled with a foul-smelling liquid. “We’ve only met twice.”

“I remember.” Brenna took the glass. The fumes made her eyes water. “At Marissa’s induction into the IRT, then at her funeral.”

Agnes nodded. “Your vampire couldn’t get here quick enough. She passed your message along to Seraph and he called me.” She took a long breath. “I came as soon as I could.”

“Thank you.” Brenna drank the potion. Amazingly, it tasted good. “How bad is Gray?”

The witch shook her head. “You almost lost him. The spell siphoned his magic. It drained him completely.”

“He needs blood.” Brenna tried to rise, but she didn’t have the strength.

Agnes gently pushed her back down. “He’s fine. Our magic will sustain him until you’re better. You’re in no condition to donate.” She rose from the bed. “Once he’s stable, I’ll bring him here. Right now, focus on getting better.”

“We’re bound. We’ll heal faster together.” Brenna tried to shift on the bed, but her body was suddenly too heavy to move. The potion had been a sedative, and she had taken it without question. Apparently her brain was as addled as her body.

“Normally, I would agree. But you’re too weak, and Gray’s need is too great. Let us use our magic to heal you, it’s not a hardship.”