Midnight Fire - Rise of the Dark Angel - Book One (5 page)

             
They hadn’t even had time to be surprised
. I
t had happened too quickly. Jayden knew
he should
n
’
t be happy
to kill, and normally he wasn’t.
With
men like them
,
it was a victory to wipe them from the planet.

             
“
I’
ll call in the demons. There’s no use wasting the human bodies while
they’re
still warm
,”
Vyco
told
him
.
Jayden wanted to get far away. He never liked witnessing the demons eat the humans, whether those humans were good or evil. It was disgusting.

             
“What would happen to us if they did wipe each other out?” Jayden asked with concern.
A lot of the demons depended on the humans as their food source.

             
“Food will never be a problem
, as it’
s nearly impossible for
any demon to
die. We can live off
the humans or animals.
But,
like I told you
earlier, no matter what happens they’
ll never be able to de
stroy each other completely, “he said.

             
“
You have a journey to take and I want you to get started now
,”
Vyco
said in a tone that let Jayden know the conversation was over. He knew when he could push, and when he needed to back down, and right then it was time to back down.
Vyco didn’t like anyone ever doubting him and Jayden’s questions would look like doubt in the demon’s eyes.

             
“I will leave now,” Jayden obeyed. He turned and walked away. He wouldn’t mind some time away from Vyco or the other demons.

             
I was listening in on a private conversation I knew I had no business hearing. I couldn’t help myself. For the past two years my parents had been away so much and when home, they were always whispering. I didn’t catch a lot of what they said but enough to cause chills to run up and down my spine.

             
There were several men and women in my dad’s office and they hadn’t come out for hours. John, Brian, Sadie and I planned a recon mission to try and get information. We’d probably get grounded for life if
we got caught
.

             
“Okay, I’m really sick of
my parents being so secretive
. Sadie, you cause the distraction. Phoenix, get inside with the radio and we should be able to hear everything. You’re the only
one small enough to fit under D
ad’s desk,” John said.

             
I was shaking but knew I couldn’t let them down. I nodded my head,
then
we went to work. Sadie took a deep breath and downed a tablespoon of
Tabasco
sauce, which immediately turned her nose red and made her eyes start to water. She let out a loud cry,
then
went running down the hallway.

             
It didn’t take long for
D
ad’s office door to open. He stepped out to see what was
wrong
.
C
haos
surrounded
him, which was our plan.

             
“What’s going on out here?” Dad asked Brian and John, the oldest of us kids.

             
“We don’t know. Sadie started crying and ran down the hallway. She looked like she was hurt but we haven’t caught her yet,” John said in a very convincing performance. I was surprised how easily he managed to lie to our father. I looked up, expecting lightening to strike any moment.

             
“Jeff, something’s wrong with Sadie,” my dad said and the office cleared out. The adults quickly descended the stairs in search for the howling
girl
. John looked at me and I took a deep breath,
then
slipped inside the forbidden room.

             
I was terrified of getting caught. It wasn’t like my parents would beat me or anything but they’d look at me with those disapproving eyes, which was much worse than a spanking. At least with
a spanking,
you didn’t have to wonder if your parents would ever trust you again.

             
When I’d cheated the one and only time in my life
,
they’d looked at me like I’d destroyed their trust. I wanted them to spank me or yell at me, to do something other than be disappointed. They never did. They just shook their heads and told me to go to my room. I remember lying there for hours, sobbing into my pillow. Mom eventually came in and told me she was so disappointed in me, which made me cry even harder.

             
She pulled me into her arms and told me she hoped it would never happen again. I promised her there was no way it would. Her comforting me made it somehow worse. I wanted to make her disappointment go away. From that moment forward I never even thought about doing the smallest thing that could be construed as cheating.

             
I crept into the room and slipped under the desk, scooting myself deep inside the hole. It was really dark under there and I started getting a bit freaked out at the thought of spiders crawling all over me. John forbade me from talking into the radio but I needed to make sure he was there. The adults weren’t back in the room yet.

             
“John, you’re there
,
right?” I whispered.

             
“Yes, now quiet. They’re coming,” he whispered back and was silent. I heard the door open and the adults stepped back inside.

             
“I hope she’ll be okay,” my mom said.

             
“She didn’t know what happened. I think she stubbed her toe but I couldn’t find any marks. She couldn’t be faking those tears
,
though,” Megan said.

             
“The boys are keeping an eye on her and we’re only a door away,” my dad said.

             
“Of course.
We need to finish this meeting. I know the more we meet like this with the children around
, the more suspicious they become
,” Greg spoke up.

             
“Okay, back to where we were. All the animals are in place. The produce is doing much better than I imagined it would. I’ve also scouted the area and the seedlings we scattered throughout the forest are blending in well. One of the reasons for that
location
is the vast supply of food,” my dad said.

             
I stayed in my hiding spot, even more confused. What were they talking about? Nothing they said was making any sense. Were they planning a garden? Were
we all
worried about nothing? It seemed to be the case at that particular moment.

             
“I have a large shipment to pick up on Friday. Who’s available to come with me?” Jeff asked. Several voices spoke up and said they could go. What could he be picking up? I sat
frozen
in my hiding spot for an hour. I was getting more freaked out by the minute. At one point I
felt something tickling my arm
and nearly screamed.

             
I don’t know how I was able to hold in the cry. I scratched my arm and felt a tear fall down my face. I just wanted them to finish so I could get out of there. The first thing I was going to do was rip off my clothes and shower. I wouldn’t even look in a mirror because if something was on my body or in my hair I would have a serious meltdown.

             
“Well, this has been a productive meeting. Thank you everyone for coming. Janet and I will walk you out,” dad said. I sighed in relief. I knew I couldn’t climb out until John gave me the okay but I edged towards the opening of the desk, making sure to be extra quiet.

             
“Phoenix, the coast is clear,” John said over the radio. He didn’t have to tell me twice. I jumped from under the desk and raced from the room. I never wanted to go in there again and I think that’s where I developed a serious case of claustrophobia.

             
“We heard everything. Great job, sis,” John said.

             
“I need to shower,” was all I said before racing to the bathroom. I stood under the water until it turned cold. I kept imagining creepy crawlies all over my body and washed one more time. I finally emerged, got dressed
,
and headed to John’s room.

             
Everyone was still there. It was summer
break
and we were having a sleep over. One thing about being good kids is
our
parents never worried about us all in a room together.

             
“We waited until you got here
,
before talking about anything,” Brian said. He was so dreamy I momentarily forgot all about my creepy desk horror for a moment. I finally realized they were waiting for me to say something.

             
“Thanks,” I managed.

             
“Did anyone get anything from what they were talking about?” Brian asked. He looked to Sadie and
me
, then John. We all shook our heads. Nothing they’d been talking about made any sense
,
whatsoever.

             
“Me either. I think I’m more confused now than I was before,” Brian said. He
stood
up and started pacing the room. We all hung out together for a while longer, then Sadie and I decided to go to my room. We weren’t going to figure out anything that night.

             
“I’m really scared, Phoenix. Mom and Dad have been acting weird,” Sadie said.

             
“I know. I wish we could’ve learned something tonight. Things have even been different at school,” I added.

             
“At least we have each other,” she said. I agreed with her and then we fell into an exhausted sleep. It was too much stress for
thirteen
year olds to deal with.

**********

             
“
W
hat do you think’
s going on?” Phoenix asked Brian. He seemed as stressed as the
elders
, of course he was technically one of them
since he’
d recen
tly turned eighteen
but
they ha
d
n’t yet called him up. She wasn’t looking forward to that day because then she wouldn’
t get to spend any time with him.

             
“I have no idea. D
ad’
s still in there with the othe
r high council
but
I know he’
ll fill me in when he comes
out
,” he answered.

             
“It’s so scary.
I’m sure glad you’
re
here
t
o keep us safe,” Jessica purred
,
then placed her arm through his. Phoenix had to once again keep from gagging at
the other girl’s
obviousness. She was pleased when Brian pulled his arm free, although she wished he wou
ld’
ve done it with more force
,
so
Jessica
would get a clue.

             
“We’
re all safe as long as we fol
low the rules. We really shouldn’
t be sneaking
out with something unknown out
here,” John said.

             
“Oh John, you know if something breaches the
parameters
the a
larms will
sound
and we’
ll have plenty of time to get to safety,” Jessica
whined. John was twenty-
two
and though he came and hung out with
them
sometimes
,
he was usually with the
elders
doing whatever it was they did. Jessica knew though
,
if John said they had to go in
then they’
d have to
listen
.

             
John only accompanied them on their little side trips to ma
ke sure
Phoenix
was safe. He’
d tr
ied stopping them several times until he
found it was much easier just
to join them.
T
he group
was determined to sneak out. He could keep an eye on
his sister
much easier if he just joined the group.

             
There were many girls
who
chased John,
with his great looks and amazing personality.
H
e hadn’
t settled down with anyone
though,
something that was
unusual in their community. Reaching the age of twenty-
two
and still remaining single was something of an accomplishment. He dated a lot
but
hadn’t been able to find the one he wanted to spend forever with. Divorce was unacce
ptable in their group so you’
d better choose wi
sely when you did marry
becaus
e you were going to be with the
person forever.

             
“We’
ll probably be fine if we aren’
t loud and we don’t stay out t
o
o late,” John conceded, which Phoenix was grateful for. She didn’t norm
ally get invited out with Brian
and she
wanted to go to the hot springs.
I
t was a
rare
treat.

             
The group finished walking the short distance
and of course Jessica was the first one to strip down to her incredibly small bikini. I
t was obviously something she’d had on her when she arrived
because the ad
ults would’
ve never stocked the place with something so revealing.

             
It was freezing out
,
and her
body certainly
gave that away
.
S
he did
n’
t seem in a hurry to hide herself.
Phoenix was thinking she’
d made a mistake in coming with them. The last thing she wanted to see was Jessica crawling all over Brian. She was going to have to put on h
er happy mask and pretend it didn’t
bother her.