Obsessions: A Monster Squad Novel 7 (12 page)

“Always.”

Jack stood and squared his shoulders. “Listen up, all of you. We don’t have a whole lot of time to dick around out there. From what I can tell, it will be sunrise in this area in about five hours. That means we need to locate the weapons and then get it all back here before sunrise in
both
locations. Major Tufo said that he can send transportation if there are more weapons than we can carry, so we have that to fall back on.”

“Transportation doesn’t necessarily mean sunlight-tight though, does it?” Brooke didn’t sound nervous but her eyes shot to Azrael.

“No, it doesn’t.” Jack shook his head. “I know we have both of you to worry about when it comes to—”

“Only him,” Brooke interrupted. “I have found ways around the sun.”

Jack gave her a quizzical stare. “Oh really? And just how do you do that?”

Brooke shook her head as she pulled her hood up and over her face. “It covers everything. I can see the ground, I just can’t see very far in front of me.”

Jack studied her outfit and noticed that her pants tucked into her boots, her gloves came halfway up her forearms…no skin was exposed. “We still don’t want to be caught out in the sun if we can avoid it.” He pushed the smaller door open and ushered the group outside. “Let’s move, people.”

Kalen took the lead and trotted to the large boulder behind the hangar. Jack and Azrael took up security positions on the boulder’s sides, and Brooke covered their rear while Gnat climbed the boulder and covered the forward area. All could see a golden glow emit from the rock before the door slid to the side, and Kalen stepped out of the way. “It’s open.”

“Go, go, go.” Jack tapped each on the shoulder and watched them rush into the boulder. He covered over Kalen’s shoulder as he sealed the rock behind them.

“Is this really necessary in your own backyard, Chief?”

“Brooke, we got attacked here not long ago. There’s no telling who might still be watching.” He motioned for Kalen to take the lead. “See if you can sniff out this weapons depot.”

Kalen drew his bow and took off at a trot across the foothills of the mountain. “Without a bearing, it’s difficult to know where we are.”

Jack pulled a GPS unit from his tactical vest and took a reading. He pulled the map and marked it. “We’re here.”

Kalen studied the location then glanced at the stars. “The stars are wrong.” He looked at the map again and then stared at the stars.

“What’s wrong, kid? I told you where we were.” Jack seemed more than a bit rushed.

“I think we are elsewhere,” Kalen answered softly.

“I can take to the air and get a better view.” Azrael kept his voice low, but was unsure why they were all whispering. He wasn’t sure where they were, but it appeared to be in the middle of nowhere.

“Be careful.” Jack stepped aside to allow the gargoyle room for liftoff. Azrael opened his wings and allowed the breeze to billow them. He bent low and leapt into the air, pushing with his mighty wings to gain altitude. Jack watched as he pushed further and further into the darkened sky, a sly smile forming as he disappeared. “Damn, I wish I could do that.”

Kalen folded the map and held it loosely while they waited for Azrael to return. “I could be wrong about the stars.”

Jack shrugged. “Electronic gizmos shit the bed all the time. If your gut tells you that it’s off, then it’s probably off.”

A few moments later the group heard the beating of Azrael’s wings as he came in and settled next to them. He folded his wings behind him as he strode toward Kalen. He reached for the map and spread it out on a flat rock.

“This spring? If we are here, then the spring is not. It feeds this small creek.” Azrael pointed to the map and Jack lit it up with his red lensed flashlight. Azrael turned the map and then glanced over his shoulder. “The creek and spring are here, which means we are here.” He pointed to the map and extended his claw like nail to scratch an X on it.

Kalen lifted the map and turned it, holding his finger where Azrael had marked it. “I believe he is correct.”

“Great,” Jack sighed. “That means we need to get on the other side of this thing, find the depot and then make it back before sunrise.” He pulled the sleeve of his BDU up and glanced at his watch. “We can’t make that. Let’s wrap it up and head back to the hangar. We can try this another time.”

“We can do this, Chief Jack.” Kalen stood in front of him to stop him. “Let me try to open a portal to the other side of the mountain.”

Jack glanced at his watch again. “You’d better move quickly.”

*****

“If we can’t track Damien down, how the hell are we supposed to stop him?” Foster paced inside the small tent, his hands wringing.

“We are not done yet, brother.” Thorn turned back to the Angelica. “Please, can you assist in any way?”

She picked up the tarot cards and slipped them away. “I don’t know what it might be. You have nothing of his. You’re not living flesh. I can’t pull from your energy…you have none.”

Thorn smiled softly and patted the woman’s hand. “That is where you are mistaken, my dear, dear lady.”

“You have something of his then?”

“About the power.” Rufus let loose a wave of his power and she felt it. She wasn’t the undead and should not have been influenced by his ability, but she was a familiar…the wave nearly knocked her over. She fought to catch her breath and leaned heavily against the small table within the tent. “Forgive me!” Rufus stood quickly and steadied her. “I didn’t realize you would be affected so strongly.”

She nodded to him and gently waved him back. “You’re right. I was wrong.” She sat upright and steadied herself, her breath still fighting to escape her. “Give me a moment, please.”

Victoria stood behind her, unsure what had just taken place. “Are you okay, Angelica?”

“I will be fine.” She patted her hand as she settled into her chair. “Fetch me my crystal ball, please.”

Victoria pointed to the table. “It sits here.”

“No, darling. My
real
one.” She gave Rufus a wan smile. “This one is for decoration.” She lowered her voice as Victoria exited the tent. “They’re so expensive. I hate to risk the real one getting damaged.”

“I understand completely.” Thorn gave her a curt nod.

Victoria entered once more carrying Angelica’s case. “Please tell me it is in here.”

She stood quickly and unlocked the case. “I keep it locked up for good measure.” She lifted it gingerly and placed it on the stand on the table. Rufus stared at the crystal ball, his brows knit together. The ball appeared cloudy and misty to him. Not at all clear as he would have expected.

Angelica rubbed an oil on her hands and began massaging the ball, reciting an incantation she had learned hundreds of years prior. As Rufus watched, the ball seemed to almost glow. The imperfections within the crystal seemed to move, like mist on the water or smoke in a room. She continued to chant, her eyes closed, head tilted back.

Thorn watched the ball carefully as shadows danced along the table top, images appearing within the ball itself. “I think it’s working.”

Foster moved in closer and stared, his eyes glued to the shadowy images inside the ball. Angelica slowly lowered her voice and tilted her head forward, her eyes opening, and her gaze locked on the ball. She stared into the crystal, her lips still murmuring the incantation.

“What do you see?”

“I see the young man you seek. He is with a woman…a woman he cares for very much.” She narrowed her gaze and inhaled deeply. “Oh my…she has betrayed him for her first love.”

“Where are they?” Thorn’s voice took on an edge that surprised Foster. He turned and stared at his brother while the witch continued to commune with the dead.

“They are…in a warehouse…a dead place. In a dead city.”

Rufus turned a confused stare to Paul who simply shrugged.

“A name. I need a name.”

“Samael…” she whispered. “Samael…”

“Perhaps in Canada?” Foster offered.

“No, that is the name of Lilith’s first lover. A fallen angel.” Thorn turned a stoic look to Foster. “I fear that Damien is no more.”

“There goes our shot at surviving the Council.” Foster turned and headed for the exit of the tent.

“Where are they, witch? I need the name of the city.”

“Detroit.” Her voice sounded dry and raspy as she continued to stare into the ball. “Beware the legion. Beware the legion! They come to destroy! They will bring the world to its knees!” She screamed and collapsed on the table, the light of the crystal ebbing then dying out completely. Victoria rushed to Angelica’s side and held her up in the chair as she collapsed in place.

Rufus stood and turned to Foster. “Prepare the plane. We go to Detroit.”

*****

Lilith studied the map stretched out on the wall of her lair. She tapped her foot as her eyes studied the different red circles scattered across the world. “I worry about those traveling.”

“Don’t. If they are detained for whatever reason, they are instructed to detonate there and then return here.” Samael flexed his muscles in the full-length mirror then snapped his wings out for dramatic effect.

“Stop admiring yourself, my love. We have work still to do.” She tapped the map and turned to him. “What of the centurions working the eastern seaboard?”

“What of them?” Samael folded his wings and stepped closer to her, wrapping his great arms around her middle. “They will begin on the east coast and work their way across the nation.”

Lilith shook her head as he nibbled at her neck. “Won’t they increase security? Especially at the capitol?”

“So what if they do?” Samael nipped at her ear. “Imagine, if you can,” he spread his hand before her, his mind painting an image before her, “a hundred Centurions racing toward the White House, bullets not affecting them as they rip into their human hosts. The first wave hitting the fences and blowing them apart, their shrapnel levelling anybody who is within shouting distance. The next wave rushing in, hot on their heels, getting closer and detonating nearer to the capitol, removing even more of their security. Wave after wave of suicide bombers, impervious to their weapons, wrapped in explosives with ceramic bearings capable of doing more damage than any other projectile.” He smiled as he nipped at her chin. “It will be glorious as they remove those in power in a matter of moments.”

“What’s to keep the president from escaping in his helicopter? Or locking himself in a bunker?”

“And if he did? We’d simply rush the machine and detonate another human body. The shrapnel would remove the flying machine from the sky.” Samael laughed as he spun her around. “You think too linearly. We will send our bombers from all directions. We won’t just be attacking from the front.”

“If we played our cards right, we might be able to get one or two inside before the others attacked.” She hiked a brow at him hopefully.

“Possibly, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. These days, unless you have business there, they don’t let you close. We’d have better luck getting people inside the offices of Congress.”

“Attack both branches at the same time?” She closed her eyes and swayed in his arms while he nibbled and bit at her neck and ear.

“Of course, my love. The judicial branch isn’t important to our cause, but the legislative and administrative branches are key.” He pulled back and studied her map. “If we could coordinate the attacks so that the capitol area was first…we would definitely catch them by surprise.”

“Cripple them before they can react to the news. I like that idea.” She pulled form him and stood before the map again. “Make it so. I want Washington D.C. targeted first. All other targets become secondary.”

Samael gave her a mock bow. “As you will, my queen.” He walked to the door and bellowed for the watch commander. When the man came huffing to the door, Samael relayed the message. “Nobody else makes a move until D.C. has been leveled. Understood?”

“Understood, my liege.” The commander bowed deeply then spun and trotted off to spread the word.

Samael walked back inside and fell to the bed. “I think we send Gaius to D.C.” He stared at the ceiling blankly as he spoke.

Lilith turned and gave him a questioning look. “To ensure that our orders are properly enacted?”

Samael snorted. “To ensure that he blows himself up as many times as possible. If he’s in the first wave, then he’ll be amongst the first to return with a new body and get back into the field.” He turned and glared at her. “He needs to feel as much pain as possible for his insolence.”

Lilith smirked and stepped toward him, putting as much sway into her hips as she possibly could. “You truly hate the man, don’t you?”

“He dared to touch you.”

“Because his queen ordered him to please her.” She slid across the bed and ran her hands across Samael’s broad chest. “I
made
him take me. I made him please me.” She grabbed Samael’s chiseled jaw and pulled his face toward hers. “Does that displease you?”

“You know that it does.”

She smiled and crawled on top of him, straddling him. “I enjoyed it, you know.” She thrust her jaw out at him. “I
enjoyed
his taking me. I screamed out when he thrust his manhood into me.” Her eyes glinted with mischief. “I bit his flesh when he slapped my buttocks.”