Playing with Darkness: Book 3.5 (Sensor Series) (6 page)

I picked up my pace. “What has he done now?”

“Oh, you’ll see.” Nienna’s voice resonated with doom.

Chapter Five

We rushed out of the palace to find a crowd gathered out on the street. A circle of smoke rose up from somewhere in the middle. I couldn’t see past all the fae to figure out what was happening. A shout from Lucas got them to clear a path, but it still took time to break through to the front. As soon as we did, I felt my blood boil with rage.

Kerbasi was fighting a half-dozen trolls within a ring of fire. The stupid creatures kept running up to slam him only to get thrown back. One of them landed in the flames and screamed before rolling away. Some of the fae watching yelled at him to get up and attack the guardian again.

I’d seen enough.

I pulled my Sig .45 out and shot three rounds into the air at an angle. Everyone—including the fighters—stopped to look at me. Modern weapons weren’t allowed in Feidlimid. It made for a good way to get their attention fast.

“Was that really necessary?” Lucas asked, rubbing at his ears.

He’d been standing next to me when I’d shot the gun, but unlike him I’d developed the habit of tamping down my hearing before firing.

I shrugged. “It always works in the movies. Looks like it does here, too.”

Kerbasi lumbered toward us, extinguishing the ring of fire along the way. He looked less than pleased with my intervention.

“Sensor, there was no reason to disrupt my battle,” he declared, putting his hands on his hips.

Other than his black hair flying wildly about his head, he didn’t look any worse for wear. The trolls, on the other hand, were covered in wounds.

“I told you to stay out of trouble while I was gone,” I said, matching his hard gaze.

“This was not trouble, but merely a test of strength and skills. I even promised not to kill them.”

“Well that just makes everything okay.” I rolled my eyes. “Everyone knows it’s a waste of time to fight trolls. They’re just like the ones on the internet and always come back for more.”

“Good, then I can be assured they won’t tire quickly.” He turned away and headed back toward his opponents. They were already on their feet with expectant expressions on their faces.

“Kerbasi, stop,” I ordered. “I can’t allow you to continue this.”

He looked over his shoulder. “I’m not violating our contract. I’ll do as I wish.”

The guardian flicked his hand and lit up the circle of fire again.

If talking to him wouldn’t work, I’d just have to resort to more drastic measures. I aimed my gun and shot him in the back of the head. He jerked, but kept going. I shot him three more times in rapid succession. He could only handle so many bullets in his head before it slowed him down. I’d been experimenting over the last couple of weeks.

In the next moment he disappeared and popped back up directly in front of me in a bright flash of light. While I was recovering from my temporary blindness, he knocked my gun to the ground. His hand wrapped around my throat next. I clutched at his wrists, but couldn’t break his hold.

Lucas was on him in the next instant. He pulled Kerbasi’s arm from me and nearly snapped it in half. The guardian power punched Lucas with his good arm. The nephilim’s head snapped back, but he managed to stay on his feet. He flashed behind Kerbasi and grabbed him by the neck. The two men went down in a tangle of limbs after that, jockeying for the better fighting position.

I pushed back the crowed, urging everyone to give them space. Once the area was clear I found my gun on the ground and put it back in its holster. A gasp in the crowd had me spinning around.

The two men were edging closer to the fire. When Lucas leaped up and kicked his leg out at the guardian’s face, he landed inches from the circle. Kerbasi couldn’t get burned by his own flames, but his opponent could.

I raced to the other side of the circle and pulled out my pocket knife, cutting into my palm. Since the flames were made by magic, I could use my blood to nullify them. As soon as a few drops hit the ground the fire extinguished. My palm began to heal even as I put the knife away.

The nearby fae gaped at me. While most of the residents in the city had heard of me, many of them didn’t know what I looked like. Putting out a magic flame created by a powerful immortal gave me away as a sensor. I smiled at them and waved before turning my attention to the fight.

Lucas was on top of Kerbasi and pounding his fists into his face. The guardian’s bullet-ridden head jerked back with every blow. I was glad I’d given Lucas that advantage. Kerbasi had two millennia on him in age and a lot more power. He wasn’t as good at fighting as the nephilim, but he made up for it in enthusiasm.

After taking a few more hard blows the guardian managed to shove his opponent off. He swung his leg and kicked Lucas in the stomach, sending him flying. A group of pixies leaped out of the way just in time. The nephilim hit the ground with a bone-jarring thud in the exact spot where they’d been standing. He sucked in a deep breath and staggered to his feet. Kerbasi was coming for him again.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned to find Ireth standing behind me with a livid expression on her face.

“This must end now,” she stated.

I gave her an incredulous look. “You want me to step between two men who are thousands of years older than me—and much more powerful—while they’re fighting and stop them?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

“You know I’d have to be crazy to do that, right?”

The sound of a bone crunching brought gasps across the crowd. A grunt of pain came next. Ireth shuddered, but kept her gaze locked on mine.

“If you want to prove to us that you can control the guardian, this is your opportunity. I can’t possibly allow you back into the city again if you’re going to allow things to get this out of control every time you visit.”

“It’d practically be suicide to get between them now,” I argued.

“That’s your…” Her eyes rounded as her gaze slid past me.

I spun on my heels in time to catch Kerbasi flinging a fireball at Lucas. He turned sideways to dodge it, but the flame grazed his chest and caught his shirt on fire. He ripped it off and tossed it away. There were scorch marks on his skin where the flames had burned him.

Now that was just cheating. The only range magic Lucas had was a weak smiting ability, but that wouldn’t do much damage against someone as powerful as Kerbasi. He had to duck when another flaming ball went flying at him. It flew over his back and hit the wall of a house behind him—where it thankfully extinguished—but that didn’t discourage the guardian.

Kerbasi started sending smaller baseball-sized flames at a rapid-fire speed. Lucas flashed around, but couldn’t move fast enough to avoid them all. Black and red scorch marks trailed across his chest and arms.

I didn’t need Ireth’s encouragement to step into the fight anymore. There was one way I could protect Lucas. As soon as I could get close enough to him, I leaped up and wrapped my arms and legs around his body. The heat of the balls singed the back of my clothes, but went out as soon as they touched my skin.

“Sensor,” Lucas growled into my ear, “this is not a good time for foreplay.”

A ball of flame almost singed his hair off so I climbed higher on him to protect his face.

“This is a great time for foreplay.” I gave him a quick kiss.

As soon as our lips parted I caught a flash of orange and black fur flying by. I turned my head in time to catch Sable latching her teeth onto Kerbasi’s groin and clamping down. He screamed and tried to yank her off, but she held on with fierce determination.

I grinned. That was my cat.

Sable wasn’t going to be able to hold her own for long with still being weak from an illness, though. I hopped off of Lucas and pulled my knife from of my pocket, running up to the guardian. He was swatting at the shape-shifter, still trying to remove her. Every time he struck her, her teeth tore into him some more.

I plunged my knife through his chest and straight into his heart. He looked up in stunned amazement before crumbling to the ground, taking the cat with him. The blade wouldn’t hold him for long, but at least it would keep him down for a bit.

Cheers went up among the fae spectators. A group of children jumped up and down pointing at Kerbasi and laughing. Everyone else was looking at Sable, Lucas, and me with admiration in their eyes. If I’d known fighting a battle with the guardian was all it took to win them over I would have suggested that to the council.

I looked down at Sable. “You can let go of him now.”

For still being weak, she had a remarkable grip on him. The cat slowly unclenched her jaw, revealing a bloody mouth. I picked her up and hugged her close to my chest. I could sense the pain she felt from Kerbasi’s blows, but she didn’t seem to mind me coddling her.

Lucas staggered up to us. “Is she okay?”

“Yeah.” I ran my hand along her back. “He struck her a few times, but I don’t think anything is broken.”

“Good. That was an unexpected move on her part, though it worked well enough. I’m surprised she knew to do that.” He lifted a brow.

I cocked my head. “Guess she had a good trainer.”

“I’m rather certain Garvan does not instruct his cats to attack the groin,” Nienna said, coming up behind me.

“Then Garvan lacks vision.”

She didn’t argue the point.

Kerbasi moaned from where he lay on the ground. When he started to reach for the knife, I kicked his hand away and stomped the blade deeper into him. His body jerked once before he fell unconscious again. He was going to stay out as long as possible if I could help it.

Sable wiggled out of my arms and hopped to the ground. She walked over to Lucas, sniffed him, and then sat down to clean herself as if she didn’t have a care in the world. At least licking up the guardian’s blood on her fur would help her heal faster.

Ireth joined our group. “It appears you are able to control the guardian with a little help.”

She looked down at Sable, who continued to lick her paw.

“The guardian has had his fun for the day.” Lucas rubbed at his chest. It was bloody, but it looked like the burn marks had already begun to heal. “He shouldn’t cause any more trouble before we leave in the morning.”

“We’re staying the night?” I asked.

He closed the distance between us and pulled me to him. “I see no reason for you to travel back to Fairbanks this late in the day. There are better things you could be doing with your time.”

“I’ll have to let my pilot know we’ll be staying.” Ulric would be expecting me by dark.

“Where is he now?” Lucas asked.

“He said we could find him at The Slap and Tickle.” I managed to keep a straight face while saying the name.

Lucas’ lips twitched. “We’ll go there after we get cleaned up.”

I glanced down at Kerbasi. “We’ll have to take him with us.”

“He should find the place particularly interesting.”

For once, Lucas didn’t look upset over the prospect of having the guardian tag along. That sent my alarm bells ringing, but we had to go regardless. I’d just have to deal with whatever kind of place it might be.

Ireth moved closer to us.

“All three of you better stay out of trouble if you’re going to stay here for another day. I don’t want to see any more fights or fires.” She scowled at the scorch marks on the cobblestones.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Lucas reassured her.

Chapter Six

It took almost two hours before we were ready to head out. None of us had eaten all day and the men needed food even more than usual after expending so much energy to heal themselves. Nienna was nice enough to bring us steak dinners from a nearby tavern while we took turns in the shower.

She’d stuck around for awhile and kept me company until Lucas ran her off. I was going to have to work on his social skills. They could be almost as bad as Kerbasi’s.

We stepped outside and Sable ran in front of us.

I sighed and kneeled down in front of her. “You’ve got to stay here and guard the house, girl.”

She gave me a look that said she wasn’t fooled.

“Get in the house.” Lucas pointed at the open doorway.

She flattened her ears at him.

He picked her up, ignoring her struggles, and put her in the foyer before quickly slamming the door. While he was locking it, she yowled loudly from the other side. It was a good thing we’d gotten someone to board up the living room window while the men were getting ready. She’d shattered it to get out of the house during Lucas and Kerbasi’s fight. I hoped she didn’t decide to break another one.

“You’re going to pay for that later tonight,” I warned him.

Whenever she got angry with me I didn’t get much sleep. She’d turn herself into a larger breed of cat—often a tiger—and proceed to take up as much of the bed as possible. Sometimes she’d even take to clawing the sheets up. I’d gotten used to the fact that I’d have to buy at least one new set each month.