Fallen Death (The Trihune Series Book 3) (25 page)

Chapter 46

It was a full time job, keeping the terror contained. Asjhone didn’t know how much longer she could do it. Gabe’s story about who he was, who Sarid was, what they did for a living managed to ease her fears for a little while. Allowed her to focus on something other than what Wayne could be doing to her little boy right now.

She let out a sound that had Gabe’s head jerking to her. She waved her hand, wrapped her arms around her chest, bent forward. Oh, God. It was all her fault. Keandre must be so scared right now.

No. Stop it. This wouldn’t help. Think of something else.

Gabe and his story. The Trihune. Behns. Fighting evil. The man on TV, the one claiming to be Jesus, actually the devil.

But it wasn’t a story, was it?

If she hadn’t seen Sarid change into a ten-foot monster with claws and red eyes, she’d introduce Gabe to the psych ward, stat. But she had.

And when Gabe’s eyes had glowed bright blue, lighting the whole interior of the car and he’d curled his lips to show his fangs . . . Yeah, okay, so maybe they both needed a trip to the nut house.

Keandre would probably think it was cool. He certainly handled Sarid changing into a monster better than she had. She clamped her lips shut before another moan could escape. “So, Sarid has those.” She spoke quickly. Said the first thing that came to mind. “The blue eyes, fangs?”

His gaze landed on her briefly before focusing on the road again. “Yes.”

“I’ve never felt his fangs.” How many kisses had they shared? How many times had her tongue been in his mouth? In different circumstances she might’ve been embarrassed about admitting that to a practical stranger.

“It’s the same as with our eyes. We can control their release.”

More silence. More time to think. Couldn’t this car go any faster? Her breaths came faster. “Tell me more. Tell me about Sarid.”

“What do you want to know?” His voice was soft, kind.

“Anything.” Anything to stop this fear from suffocating her. She shoved her shaking hands under her thighs. Made herself take a deep breath. A slow exhale. “How did he become like he is? What’s that thing inside him?”

“And the first question you ask is the one I can’t answer. I don’t know how the Other came to be or truly what it is. I mean, I’ve seen the monster. Been hit by it more times than I care to remember. Watched Sarid’s eyes glow red when it was close to the surface. Seen the skeleton face make an appearance like a monster of the week from a Buffy episode. But Sarid’s never talked about it.”

“And no one’s ever asked him?”

“He’s not much of a talker.”

She frowned. “He talks to me.”

“Well, you’re different.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not sure he’d want me talking to you about this. Actually there’s no sure about it.” He paused. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Yes.”

“How do you feel about my boy?”

Air gushed out of her mouth. Tears were too close to the surface. Her throat burned. She pinched the skin between her thumb and forefinger to fight them back. “If you asked me yesterday I would’ve told you I love him.”

“What’s changed since then?”

“Are you kidding? I found out he’s a monster.” Like the one who has her baby.

“Sarid’s not a monster,” he said softly. “Okay, so he has a Hulk inside him. One he constantly struggles to keep at bay, but that’s not all he is.” Pause. “And I think you know that.”

Hulk. Keandre used the same word. She pushed the thought away. Replayed Gabe’s words. Then bit the inside of her cheek, glanced down at her lap.

“He keeps to himself,” Gabe continued after a moment. “Suppresses all emotion because too much will feed the monster and bring it out. His whole life has been focused on keeping that demon contained. And when he’s not doing that, he’s out protecting humans from the Fallen.”

The tears pooled. She blinked rapidly. “If he’s so great, why aren’t you closer to him? If you’re truly his friend, shouldn’t you know more about him?”

“We don’t want to keep our brother on the outskirts, but it’s what he wants. He doesn’t interact. We’ve invited him in many times, but he refuses.”

“Well, of course he does. It’s all he’s known growing up. I mean, look at what his mother did to him.”

“What do you mean? What did his mother do to him?”

She twisted in her seat. “You don’t know about the marks on his cheeks?”

Gabe’s eyebrows lifted. “You do?”

“Yes.”

He shook his head. Sighed. “We’ve tried to get close, Asjhone. We really did. He didn’t want to let us in.”

She rubbed her chest. That’s because he was afraid.

“No human ever survived meeting the Other,” he said quietly.

Her mind too readily supplied the memory. The monster’s powerful muscles. Long claws. How close it’d come to her. Its breath on her face. She shivered.

“You’re special,” he continued. “If you came face to face with the Other and survived without a scratch it means you can only be one person.”

“Who?”

“Sarid’s soul mate.”

“Soul mate?” She wanted to laugh. Didn’t have enough air in her lungs to do it.

“The one person in all the world for Sarid.” His tone was completely serious. “He’d cut off his right arm before hurting you. And if you asked him to walk away, he’d do it, despite the fact you’re it for him. You’re his one chance at true happiness.”

She hugged herself, turned to the window. Nothing more was said. This time her own thoughts kept the panic attack away.

“Listen, I need you to do something for me. In case things aren’t going well when we get there,” Gabe said a bit later.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, if Sarid’s doing what I think he’s doing, it could go bad. And you’re the only one who can calm the Other.”

She jerked back. “What are you . . . Are you saying . . . No. I’m not going near that thing again.”

“It won’t hurt you. You’ve gotta trust me. If you’re Sarid’s
bahshrett
, soul mate,” he clarified at her expression. “Then you’re the only one who can soothe him or the Other. Just until we can get everyone out.”

“If? I thought you said I
was
his soul mate. You don’t really know?”

“It’s a guess. But I’m a really good guesser. Like eighty percent right most of the time.” He threw her a grin.

She huffed. “I’m here to get help for my son. Not go face to face with that thing again.”

“And you need Sarid for that. Not the Other. So be prepared to keep him calm.”

Chapter 47

Sarid stood in front of the crowded conference room, hands clasped behind his back. Pieces of conversation reached him. Most were speculations on why they were assembled.

Other than low growls of displeasure, the demon uttered no death threats to the roomful of Trihune members. No vows of torture.

Asjhone was on their mind.
Leave and never return.

The demon just wanted to get it over with. It didn’t like this feeling in their chest. The despair, the guilt. A swift death was too good for them. They deserved to be hurt, killed, maimed.

Sarid’s gaze found Cade. The Sept One leader’s arm was around his
bahshrett
Emma’s waist. His hand lay protectively over her slightly bulging stomach. Lucas was next to Cade, hand entwined with his soul mate, Kate.

Mine.
The demon moaned.

“We are all assembled, my
ach
,” Cade said, raising his voice above the others. “What is it you need to say?” The room quieted.

“I’ve decided to leave the Sept.”

Glances were exchanged between Behns from other Septs. Those from Sept One, kept their focus on him. Cade stepped forward. “What are you talking about?”

“For all these years, I’ve withheld the truth from you under the pretense of keeping you safe, but it was selfishness that caused me to dishonor my Sept and the Trihune. I’m not here to seek forgiveness, as I know redemption will never be mine to hold, but I hope to right my wrongs, as much as I am able.” He paused. Took a deep breath. “The Other is a demon. We communicate constantly. It talks to me. Mostly to tell me who to kill or injure. No one is spared its descent. Especially those from this room.” Someone cursed. Weapons were drawn. “I tried my best over the years to prevent it from escaping. As you are aware, that wasn’t always possible. I wanted to believe the good I do as a Behn outweighed the destruction and death it caused when free, but I was just fooling myself.”

“My
ach
,” Cade said. “None of us have ever blamed you for the Other’s sins. And a few months ago we didn’t even know demons existed on earth. Monster or demon, evil is evil, no matter what it chooses to call itself.”

“It was going after children,” Sarid said. “The last time it escaped, it was going after a playground of young, innocent Followers. If I hadn’t run in front of that truck, it would’ve killed them all.” He heard Emma’s sharp intake of breath. Hushed words were exchanged in the back of the room. “And not swiftly either,” he continued. They needed to understand, to see this was the only way. “Mutilation. Screams. Death. That’s what the demon’s after when it escapes.”

Some stared at him with fear. Those who had weapons, gripped them tighter. Except the Behns from his Sept, their
bahshretts
, and the
ebheds
.

“What can we do?” Lucas asked. “How can we prevent—”

He gritted his teeth. They still weren’t getting it. “It knows Apollyon.”

Lucas trailed off, mouth falling open.

“It wants to join him. That’s where it was going, after the children, it’d planned to find Apollyon and join up with him.”

“If Apollyon gets a hold of you, then it will know everything about the Trihune,” John said.

“Yes.” Sarid nodded. Finally. “I’m unable to keep a secret from the Other.”

“Who’s to say Apollyon doesn’t know everything about us anyway?” Drew said. “He’s been on earth longer than we have.”

“And if your demon knows Apollyon,” Lucas said to Sarid. “Then your demon can tell us about him. We can find his weakness.”

Sarid shook his head. “It won’t work like that. I can’t force the Other to speak of its past. It’s not going to willingly offer information about its master.”

“Master?” Someone said from the back of the room.

“But you could ask,” Lucas said.

“This isn’t why—” He sighed. “I wanted you to understand why I’m leaving. To give you my last confes—”

“My
ach
, you don’t need to leave,” Cade said.

“What happens when there’s nothing to throw myself in front of the next time the demon gets out? Or what if the demon makes it to Apollyon? Tells our enemy everything it’s learned about us.”

“So we make sure that doesn’t happen,” Lucas said.

“Because you can control the demon if it breaks out? You cannot do that anymore than I can.” His voice rose.

Lucas’s brow furrowed.

“I didn’t come here to seek permission,” Sarid continued, softening his tone. “My decision has already been made.”

Nothing was said for a moment, then John spoke. “So you are choosing to leave the Sept?”

Sarid nodded.

“But that won’t stop the demon from getting out at a later time. From running to Apollyon then.”

“No. It doesn’t. Which is why I’ve decided to kill the demon.”

Voices rose at once.

“What?”

“You can do that?”

“Why haven’t you done that already?”

“How can we help?”

Sarid held up his hand. “The demon and I are bound. Soul to soul. Killing it will kill me.”

It was through shocked sounds of disbelief and protests that Sarid heard it. A soft, barely audible gasp.

Chapter 48

“Way to bury the lead, big guy.”

Asjhone barely heard Gabe. She stood next to him in the doorway. Her hand still in his from when he grabbed it upstairs to take her through the labyrinth of a house, but her entire focus was on Sarid. As was his on her.

She never believed it when the romance heroine said the world around her disappeared until there was no one except the two of them. But that’s what happened. When Sarid’s eyes locked on her, the rest of the room, the men talking over one another, faded to the background.

Then his gaze lowered. Nostrils flared. Eyes flashed bright blue for a long moment. Then shifted to red. At the same time his face changed into the skeleton one.

The room swiftly came back in focus with the sounds of weapons drawing. A loud, long growl echoed around the room. Nothing like the low erotic rumbles Sarid crooned in her bed. Shivers ran down her spine.

“I knew it. I was totally right.” Gabe was jubilant. And if Asjhone didn’t already think the man needed a psych eval, the grin across his face totally confirmed it. He let go of her hand, pushed her in front of him. “Doesn’t mean anything, big guy. Calm down.” Gabe didn’t raise his voice, but the thing heard him.

It answered with another growl. Asjhone stumbled back, bumped right into Gabe.

I can find out where he’s at.

She clenched her fists. Forced one foot in front of the other until she was threading her way through the large, muscular, weapon-wielding men. Sarid’s face flashed back and forth between his human one and the skeleton one. His eyes, too. Red. Blue. Red. Blue. She was almost to him when an arm shot out.

“Don’t get too close, ma’am. He’s dangerous.”

The skeleton’s red eyes fixed on the man blocking her path.

“Calm down, my
ach
. It’s okay.” A man with black long hair stepped forward, hands empty, palms out.

“Everyone start making your way to the exit. Move slowly,” A third man said from behind her.

Sarid didn’t even glance in their direction. His stare hadn’t wavered from the one in front of her.

“Better move out of the way, Seymon.” Gabe stepped next to her. “Unless you want an ass whopping, and by that I mean, sliced into pieces so tiny even your Momma wouldn’t recognize you.”

Seymon frowned. Didn’t remove his gaze from Sarid’s twitching form. “It’s not safe. We need to get her and the other women out of here.”

“That wouldn’t be wise,” Gabe said as Sarid’s growl grew to roaring levels.

Asjhone cringed. Gabe leaned closer, whispered in her ear. “Get over to him. Now. He’s going to lose it.”

She swallowed thickly. Moved around Seymon.

Gabe shadowed her movements, pushing the other warriors that would’ve come to her rescue out of the way.

“Gabe, what are you doing?” The third man asked.

“She’s his
bahshrett
.”

“Oh, shit. Really? Well, are you sure he won’t—”

“Positive.”

Asjhone kept her gaze on Sarid, much like she would a rabid dog, until finally there was no one between them. She stepped once, twice more, was an arm’s length away. His face was still the skeleton one. Eyes red. She opened her mouth, tried to speak, had to swallow to coat her dry throat.

Keandre. Be brave for him.

Oh, her lil’ man. How much time had passed since she last saw him? Her lower lip trembled. Sight became blurry. Tears slipped down her cheeks.

The skeleton whimpered. It was the same sound he’d made in her apartment.

Then Sarid’s body stopped shuddering. The skeleton face disappeared. Red eyes faded to brown. Sarid lifted his hand, but dropped it before touching her.

“Asjhone.” His tone was soft, low. So comforting. She wanted to go back to two days ago, where Keandre was safe in bed and she was wrapped in Sarid’s arms on the couch.

The tears fell faster.

“He has him.” Her voice was shaking so hard. “Wayne took Keandre. He’s gone.” A sob escaped. Then another one. “I need your help. Please.”