Refracted (The Celadon Circle Book 2) (21 page)

“But–”

Moving to the bedroom, she called over her shoulder. “No buts. Get your ass home now.”

<><><>

After a quick shower, Jordan dressed and strapped her knife to her leg. She picked up her new FN Five-Seven. It was an extraordinary gun. She tested the almost toy-like weight while admiring the accessory rail that ran underneath the barrel. Right now, it sported a flashlight/laser combo. The heavily-textured grip felt comfortable and secure in her hand. With a 30-round magazine, she wouldn’t have to reload as often. With a 5.7x28mm round that could burrow through body armor; she would conserve ammunition, too. One shot usually got the job done. Of course, it wouldn’t kill demons, but the silver-tipped rounds would make them stop and think. 

An image of Orias sucking blood from her neck flashed in her head. Jordan’s hand shook so badly she nearly dropped the gun. She sat on the edge of the bed and took deep breaths.

Head in the game, Jordan.

When the moment passed, she checked the safety on the Five-Seven and slid it in her shoulder holster. Her bomber jacket covered it nicely.

Back in the living room, she placed her bag by the door. Xander sat at the bar with the phone to his ear, scribbling notes as he talked. Ivy passed her on her way to the bedroom and said, “It’s Orias’ contact. He has more news on the demon.”

Mazie sat on the couch and idly flipped through the television channels as if she had no place important to be. The girl was impossible.

“52 White Bear Avenue,” Xander said, slipping the phone in his pocket. “It’s a house on the outskirts of St. Paul.” He gulped the last of his coffee. “I’ll take our bags to the car and plug the information into the GPS.”

Jordan nodded, her eyes on Mazie. “Give me ten.”

Her sister stared at the T.V. as if Hugh Jackman was conducting the news on the Finance channel instead of some stiff shirt. Jordan rolled her eyes, doubting Mazie understood a word the man said about stocks and dividends. She grabbed the remote and shut it off.

“Time for you to go.”

The girl finally acknowledged her presence. “You’re not gonna change your mind, are you?”

“Nope.”

Maize stood and smiled – the first real smile Jordan had seen from her in a while.

“Yeah, I thought so.”

Shaking her head, Jordan laughed. “You are a stubborn one.”

“Just like my big sis.” Mazie chewed on her bottom lip. “Ivy told me when this hunt is finished you’re going back to your family.”

Jordan said nothing.

“I thought I was your family.”

“You are.”

“Then how can you leave me?”

Her voice was quiet – the words barely audible. Somehow, that made it worse. Jordan would have felt better if Mazie screamed and pitched a fit.

She sat on the couch, pulling her sister down beside her.

“You are my family – you and Ivy both. Even if I do go back to live with my uncle and brothers, it doesn’t erase
us
.” She waited for Mazie to look at her. Slowly, tear-filled eyes met Jordan’s. “You will always be my sister. We’ll still see each other, I promise.”

Mazie wiped at her tears. “You don’t understand. It won’t be the same if you leave. Before you came to the cabin, I hated it there. No one talked to me – not even Ivy. Do you know how it feels to live in a house full of people and still, no one ever
sees
you?”

Jordan sympathized, she really did. She couldn’t count how many lonely days and endless nights she’d spent at the farmhouse while her brothers and uncle Case were on hunts. Even when they were home, most of their time was spent preparing for another trip or in the fields. Still, they talked to her, argued with her, ate dinners together when time allowed. It hadn’t been an ideal life but dammit, it was hers, and she wanted it back.

“I had a family, Jordan, with two parents who loved me, supported me, and it was taken away. I went to school. I had friends. I had a normal life!” Mazie’s eyes smoldered with power, making her look older than her twelve years. The fire, however, died quickly. Jordan watched the familiar soft brown color return. She was once again a young girl, unsure how to find her place in this backward world that was so unstable.

Mazie squeezed her hand. “I can accept being a Cambion. I even understand why Mom and Dad didn’t put up much of a fight when Aamon came for me – even a parent’s love has some conditions,” she said bitterly. “But I can’t stand the loneliness, Jordan. I can’t bear the quiet. Don’t make me go back to that...please.”

Jordan’s mind raced, torn between wanting to keep Mazie safe and not wanting her to feel abandoned. Meanwhile, the clock was ticking. They needed to get on the road.

“How about this,” she began.

Mazie groaned and flopped back on the couch.

“No, listen. I think I have the answer.” Her sister raised an eyebrow and Jordan hurried on. “If you go back to the cabin and
stay there
until I finish this job, I’ll come for you when I’m done.”

“Come for me to do what? Say one last goodbye?” 

“No, to help you pack so you can come live with me.”

Her sister’s face lit up like the sky after a long storm. “You mean it?”

“Yes, you pain in my ass, I mean every word.” Jordan grinned to let her know she was joking, then pulled her into a hug.

“But what will your uncle and brothers say?”

“Eh, they’ll learn to love you, just like I do.”

Mazie pulled away, eyes shining. “Okay.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Jordan

“So, how do we play this?” Ivy asked.

She sat in the backseat with her laptop open, a poor image of the house where they’d been told to find the demon pulled up on Google maps. The good news was there was plenty of cover, and the house was fairly isolated. The bad news was that, even off the beaten path, it was still a residential area. They were thirty minutes away and had no definite plan.

“I don’t want to say until we have a look around,” Jordan said. “We can’t rush in, guns blazing, only to find the demon has moved on and we’ve scarred a human family for life.”

Ivy tapped on the keyboard. “According to records, the house is owned by one Clayton Shoop.”

“Any family?” Xander asked.

I hope not
, Jordan thought.

“There’s nothing pertaining to immediate family but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have any.”

Twenty-eight minutes later, they slowly cruised by the address. The house was hidden from the street by large oaks and cedars with the thick forest of Battle Creek Regional Park to the right. On the left, a fair distance away and also surrounded by trees, stood another house.

They passed East C Street which circled to South B, a much more populated neighborhood. After that, there was nothing but densely packed woods on both sides of the road. White Bear Avenue South came to a dead end about a quarter mile past their target with barely enough room to turn the SUV around.

Nature was attempting to take back what man had stolen. Branches reached out on both sides, barely missing the car that Xander kept on the faded center line. Potholes and huge, weed-filled cracks dotted this section of pavement. There were no houses. Jordan had no idea why the road extended this far.

The SUV dipped into a particularly deep pothole and Xander swerved to the right. Gravel and crumbling asphalt pinged underneath the carriage as the tires struggled to find purchase on the eroded shoulder.

“Jesus,” Ivy said. “Someone call the Department of Transportation. They must’ve missed this area on their scouting missions to find ways to blow taxpayers’ money.”

“I don’t think it was missed.” Xander wrestled with the steering wheel and managed to get the car back in the center of the road. “They probably decided not to bother. With the park here, it’s likely no one can erect so much as an outhouse this far down.”

He stopped the car once they saw sunlight again. East C Street was ahead on their left, but not so close that they could see it or anyone could see them.

“Hand me the laptop, Ivy.”

Her sister passed it over the seat and Jordan scanned the map.

“Okay, here’s what I think.” She pointed to the screen, marking a path with her finger. Xander and Ivy leaned in to see. “We enter the forest here and walk to the house. The woods will conceal us almost all the way to the north side.” She pointed to a large copse of trees. “From this spot, we can watch the front of the house. If we move back into the forest and walk about twenty feet east, we can also see the back.”

“Do we all go or does someone stay here by the car, just in case we need to make a quick escape?”

“Where are the radios?”

Ivy pulled them from the equipment bag, fully charged and set to the same channel.

“One of us needs to stay behind. All we need is for a nosy park ranger to have the car towed.” Jordan looked around. “I doubt many people come this way but still, better not tempt fate.”

“I’ll stay,” Ivy volunteered.

They piled out of the SUV and Jordan rummaged in the hidden compartment for a pair of special manacles. Made from a blend of the purest silver, titanium, and iron, they were engraved with a Devil’s Trap. Once in place, they would render a demon powerless.

“We’re ready,” she said.

Xander took one of the radios, made sure the volume wasn’t loud enough to draw attention, and clipped it to his belt. Ivy kept the other.

“If any badges come snooping or you find yourself in trouble you can’t drive away from, push the alarm button three times. We’ll teleport back.” Jordan gave Ivy a quick hug.

She nodded. “Same goes for you. You need me, I’ll flash to the front door if I have to.”

Jordan smiled. “This won’t take long. After we round up this heifer, we’ll call Orias’ contact to haul her ass back to Purgatory and we’ll all go out for burgers and Starbucks.”

“Hey, we’re spending Orias’ money. Let’s make it steaks and Starbucks.”

“You got it.”

Jordan and Xander began walking. 

We have a plan. We have weapons and powers. I have plenty of experience hunting evil bitches. Capturing this demon will be as simple as sweet tea.

She could taste the white-chocolate mocha from Starbucks (and her freedom) already.

But pride always goes before a fall.

<><><>

After grappling with thorn bushes, prickly vines, and a close encounter with a very inquisitive badger, they finally made it to their surveillance point. Xander walked farther down to get a look at the back yard while Jordan kept watch on the front.

The simple clapboard house wasn’t much to look at. Most of the beige paint was chipped and, in some places, hung in long, peeling strips. The front porch listed to one side where a set of cinderblocks had begun to crumble. The shutters, perhaps once a burgundy color, had faded to a light pinkish-purple from the weather and sun. The yard, the part not taken over by trees, was tastefully decorated with empty beer cans, a set of bald tires, scraggy weeds, and a lone, wild rosebush that looked as if it were transplanted from some place in Hell.

“Ugly isn’t it?”

In one smooth movement, Jordan drew her gun and spun around before the person finished her question. She came face to face with Mazie, who found herself looking down the barrel of the Five-Seven.

The girl threw her hands up and whispered, “Don’t shoot me! Didn’t your uncle teach you not to play with guns?”

Incensed, Jordan thrust her weapon back in its holster and grabbed her little sister by the collar. She yanked her farther into the woods and gave her a shake.

“I ought to whip your ass!” What in the hell are you
doing
here? I told you to go home.”

“I,” Mazie gulped and tried again. “I thought I could help.”

Jordan turned away. Her hands itched to give the girl a few good smacks. After showing up at the hotel the night before, she shouldn’t have been surprised to see Mazie again, but this was no place for a young, lower-level demon.

Footsteps sounded from the right and Jordan grabbed her sister, pushing her behind her. When Xander emerged seconds later, she let out the breath and moved aside so he could see their visitor.

He stopped and stared. Mazie wore a bright, X-Men sweatshirt, blaring pink jacket, yellow sweatpants, and Uggs. She looked like a drug-induced hallucination.

“Son of a bitch,” he mumbled.

“She was just leaving.” Jordan scowled at her sister. “Now.”

Mazie sighed. “Fine, I’ll go, but you’re not gonna find any demons in there,” she said, gesturing to the house.

Jordan was tired of her sister’s attempts at stalling. She’d had a few nerves left when she got up that morning and the girl had stomped on every damn one of them.

“Mazie, enough! You have no idea what’s in that house. By the time I count to three, you’d better be back at the cabin. And trust me, I
will
call Aamon when I’m finished here. Disobey me again and you’ll be grounded until you’re old enough for Depends and Polident.”

“I may not know what’s in that house but I do know it isn’t a demon.” She puffed her chest out and smirked. “It’s my power. I’m an Intuit.”

Eyebrows raised, Jordan asked, “Did you say you were a twit? If so, I agree.”

Xander placed his hands on her shoulders and Jordan immediately felt more composed. She took the opportunity to take a few cleansing breaths.

“An Intuit,” he explained, kneading the tight muscles in her neck, “can detect what classification a being is, like demon, werewolf, vampire, and so on.”

Jordan leaned back into him, wishing she was anywhere but in the woods contemplating Mazie’s demonic power, worrying about keeping her safe, staking out a demon that may (or may not) be inside the house, and being bitten by chiggers.

“I’m telling you,” Mazie said. “There’s no demon in there.” She studied the broken-down house. “But something else is.”

“What?” Jordan asked before she could stop herself.

Face pinched in concentration, the girl shook her head. “I don’t know. I feel one type of presence more than the other. There’s more than one being inside.” She cocked her head. “If I get closer, the vibes will be stronger.”

“Absolutely not.”

Jordan pulled away from Xander and took Mazie’s face in her hands. She gazed into her sweet eyes, reminding herself that this girl loved her. More importantly, Jordan loved Mazie. The sprite tried her patience but she only wanted to be included.

“Sweety, please go home and wait for me. I
will
come back for you, I promise.”

“But I can help.”

Jordan opened her mouth to protest and Mazie held up her hand. “It’ll only take ten seconds to teleport to the porch and back. No noise, no danger. They won’t even know I’m there.”

Jordan shook her head. There was no way she was letting Mazie do this. It might only take ten seconds, but that was ten seconds she’d be away from Jordan and closer to whatever was in that house.

“It’s faster than sitting out here for hours, twiddling our thumbs.”

Jordan couldn’t believe him. “Xander, she’s twelve.”

“She’s a Cambion.”

“She’s a
twelve
-year-old Cambion.”

“The demon may not even be there.”

“I’ll be damned if my little sister’s going to be the first to find out.”

Mazie’s head followed their back-and-forth bickering as if watching a tennis match. When Jordan and Xander paused for a breath, she stepped in between them.

“I can do this.” Her sweaty hand found Jordan’s and held it tightly. “Don’t you believe in me?”

Jordan pushed a stray curl out of the girl’s eye and kissed her forehead. “I believe you can do anything.”

“Then trust me,” she begged. “Let me help.”

Was Mazie trying to prove she was brave? Jordan wondered if this stemmed from Gina’s dream-walking. That witch really had done a number on her. Just thinking about it made Jordan want to snap Gina’s neck.

She pulled Mazie close. The young girl who loved X-Men, who was so full of life.

“I do trust you, and I know you’re brave. You don’t have to prove anything to me.”

“But I need to prove it to myself. You understand that, right?”

Jordan did. Reluctantly, she nodded. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Mazie squared her shoulders.

With Xander’s help, she shrugged out of her loud jacket. The pants couldn’t be helped, but if Mazie teleported away from the windows, hopefully no one would see her.

“Ten seconds,” Jordan said firmly. “That’s all you get. Do you hear me?”

“Yes.”

“I mean it!”

“I know, I know, sheesh.” Mazie cracked her knuckles. “Be back soon.” 

She disappeared and Jordan’s eyes immediately went to the front porch. The girl materialized to the right of the door, well away from the windows. She pressed her back against the house and closed her eyes.

Hurry
.

Five seconds passed. Jordan counted them off in her head.

Hurry
.

Ten seconds. Mazie pushed away from the wall and Jordan silently thanked God. Her sister was coming back. She looked at Xander, intending to ask if he thought Mazie picked up anything. His attention was focused on the porch. Like a horror movie, Jordan saw his posture become rigid, his eyes wild.

She didn’t want to turn around, didn’t want to know what frightened him so. But she did. She
had
to.

The door to the house was wide open. Mazie struggled with a man in black. Another stood nearby…
with a sword
.

What the hell?

Xander burst from their hiding spot and ran toward the porch, Jordan on his heels. With Mazie’s life on the line, it didn’t occur to either of them to teleport and possibly have the element of surprise on their side.

As he ran, Xander snatched the radio from his belt, pressed the button on the side, and screamed for Ivy.

“Meet us on the porch,” he yelled. “Hurry!”

Jordan pulled her gun from the holster. By the time she ran up the swayback steps, the men had dragged her sister inside the dark recess of the house, and Ivy was there.

She took in Jordan’s heavy breathing and the gun in her hand. “What the fuck?”

Jordan could barely keep it together. She wanted to bust inside, peg anything in black that moved, and get Mazie back. A thin wail escaped and she fought the urge to cry.