Green Flame Assassin (Demon Lord series, book 2) (27 page)

The trail of magic led off the path to a regular street and stopped abruptly.

“He got into a vehicle here, I’d guess,” I said.  “Maybe a car-jacking.  Maybe he parked his own car here, and has gone out looking for a new feeding ground.”

Josh sighed.  “Not much else we’re going to be able to do around here.”  He settled a big, heavy arm across Kat’s shoulders.  “Better call the girls in, have them pick us up.”

“Good,” Kat said.  “I don’t like us being involved in things like this.  Too much death going ‘round.”

“That’s exactly why you guys need to help end this,” I said.  “If this beast is killing pooka, then it’s already killed humans which are easier prey.  We just haven’t found what’s left of them yet.  A
nd ending the threat sooner is better than later.  Next time, fire-girl and bear could show up at your house, wanting to borrow a cup of blood.” 

“Maybe she’ll kill you and just blow town.” Kat said.  “That might be best for  everyone.”

I was pissed by her stubbornness, and knew I couldn’t push any more.

“What’s next?” Josh asked.

“Lunch,” I said.  “Then I’m going back to sleep.  I need to give Vivian time to check out Mason and the rest of the dhampyrs, and Osamu could probably use a break from guarding the house.”

“Food and sleep,” Kat’s voice dripped with sarcasm.  “Well, you’re motivated.”

“I want to be fresh for tonight,” I said.  I want to go up to the casino and see what Intel their Shaman might have on what we’re hunting.”

“You can gamble away some of that anger I see hiding behind the deadness of your eyes,” Joshua said.

“I love gambling,” Kat said.  “Count me in.”

I smiled.  “I wouldn’t mind winning a few extra souls.”

Josh’s easy smile fell off his face.  The ex-fed in him surfaced as he glowered at me.  “They don’t do that kind of gambling there, Caine, not even in the back rooms.”

“Yeah, I need a demon place for that.”

Josh sighed.  “You’re not a demon, Caine.  What would you even use extra souls for anyway?”

A passing mother with a baby in a stroller looked at us rather strangely, and hurried on a little faster.

My brows shot up.  “Hey, I’m more demon than most demons, despite being human.  And souls come in handy for powering up the really advanced spells.”

“I don’t think I want to hear anymore.”  Kat looked down the street, watching for her girls to come and pick us up.  “I need to stop by the house and change clothes.  I’ve got blood on my pants and shoes.”

“It’s only pooka blood,” I said.  “You’re lucky it’s purple instead of red.  Explaining bloodstains to a passing cop could ruin our whole day.  You’ll be happy to know that the blood will wash out easily in salt water.”

Josh looked at me, speculation in his eyes.  “I’m not sure I want to know how you happen to know that.”

I smiled, seeing a couple cars coming to get us.  “Good, a little mystery keeps things interesting.”

*    *    *

  The day passed quietly.  Lunch was followed by me and the werekitties finding a bed and engaging in carnal bliss before sleep took us away.  I don’t remember my dreams, if I had any.  It seemed like I’d just closed my eyes when I was shook awake.  The kitties were showering and dressing, and yelling at me to come along as they were planning on clubbing till dawn.  I begged off, getting myself together to leave with Josh, Kat, and Osamu. 

It took us close to an hour to get to the Thunder Creek Casino.  The entrance was huge.  The gold letters above the door, with the yellow neon lights inside of them, stood out.  The concrete in front of the building had swirl textures to give shoes a better grip.  Square islands of grass and miniature Japanese maples dotted the area.  Between the squares, three-foot posts were evenly placed, lighting the way to glass doors with gold trimming.

We strolled in and I stopped us with an upraised hand, feeling the faint feather-touch of Indian magic on my skin.  Brown marble floors matched the walls.  The ceiling overhead sported electric chandeliers, hung a good twenty feet above me.  They were the source of the magic touch I’d felt.  I pointed them out to Josh.  “Some of those crystals have been made sensitive to magic.  A magical security system.”  I took some pictures with my smart-phone and put it away, knowing they were probably watching me through two-way glass somewhere.  I hoped it pissed them off.

There was impatience in Kat’s voice, “Can we move on now?” 

“Soon.  Someone’s moving in on us,” I said.

“How do you know?” she asked.

Osamu just took my word on it, stepping forward, passing me and stopping as if he might need to throw himself in front of me and take a bullet. 
The guy really takes his job as my combat butler seriously.

I caught Kat’s eyes.  “You shifters wouldn’t have set off the sensors.  Indians do skin-walking all the time.  The system here is designed to find other types of magic.”  I heard the doors behind us open and smelled faint traces of white sage and tobacco.  “I must have set off every alarm in the place just coming in.” 

An Indian chant—a faint echo like ghost whispers in the wind—intertwined with the radio music playing over the sound system.  No one else looked at the speakers or mentioned the change.  The thronging gamblers kept going about their business, searching for the perfect slot machine—and they were everywhere, flashing, blinking, sirens calling the brave to financial destruction on the rocky shores. 

I knew that security would have come in behind us.  I saw two more Indians in dark blue suits approach us out of the crowd.  They stopped in front of us.  Both men wore earpieces, in touch with their handlers.  Their hair was long.  They wore gold necklaces with tribal symbols on them.  The tall one on the left looked straight at me.  “Sir, your kind isn’t welcome here.”

I could feel the magic coming from the symbols, earth magic.  These guys were heavy hitters.  They had to be to deal with any stray dragon, witch, or demon that might try to come in and rip off the House.

“I’m here on a different kind of business than you might expect.”  I called up the photos of the dead pookas on my phone, and held it out so the men could see.  I then showed him the bear tracks, “I’m looking for this thing.”

The man studied the photo and then touched his ear, receiving a message.  “Follow me, please.  My grandfather wants to know more about this.”

“I’ll be at the poker table,” Kat said.  “Come cheer me on when you guys are done.”

“Okay honey, have fun,” Joshua leaned down to give her a parting peck.

I caught Osamu’s gaze and murmured.  “Keep close to her.”

He nodded and went along in her wake, asking no questions of me. 

Josh’s eyes burned with curiosity. 

I explained, “She’s been investigating with us.  If someone wants to know what we’ve been doing, what we know, they could try and snatch her.  In my kinda work, a little paranoia is healthy.”

NINETEEN

“There are easier ways to get a

drink than stealing a bottle.”

                                             —Caine Deathwalker

With that out of the way, Josh and I followed the security detail through a side door close to the front counter.  We strolled down an extra-wide hallway with golden-taupe carpeting and a teal green runner striping the center.  Frosted glass shells wrapped lights mounted on the wall. 

We took a flight of stairs upward.  The air along the sidewall seemed oddly heavy. 

I gritted my teeth, warming my
Dragon Sight
tattoo.  Pain, a chainsaw in the guts, came and went.  The magic I kindled let me see a dull greenish brown glow, earth magic.  Flat ribbons of it peeled our way, stretching to stay with us as we climbed.  Hesitant, curious, the ribbons licked our auras, not quite touching flesh.  Someone was checking us out.  Had there been an evil intent, my protective shield would have snapped on.

I took a moment to grab two fronds of earth magic, and tie them together in a nice Christmas bow.

Our escorts looked at me funny, probably wondering what the hell I was doing with the little pantomime act.  I didn’t explain, moving on.  They led us to double doors, each with a soaring eagle carved in, their claws gripping lightning bolts.  The artist had designed the eagles so shimmers of light were suggested around them. 

No, not eagles—these would be much bigger.  They’re thunderbirds, a little more realistic than you normally see in Indian jewelry.

The doors were opened.  I saw a thin haze in the air.  I drew a deep breath.  They’d been burning white sage.  The security detail, except for one man, stayed in the hall.  Their leader used a gliding stride to lead us into a massive office full of Native American
decorations
, well, that’s what people would think if they didn’t have
Dragon Sight
.  Nearly everything in the room resonated with echoes of shamanic magic.