Infamous (20 page)

“Yeah, by trying to help me, Ambrose screwed us over big time.”

Thorn gave him a sarcastic salute. “That’s a little harsh, but true. Now no one can predict what will happen to you. How this newest twist will unravel. But one thing you can bank on,
you
are the grand prize in a bloody contest. Whoever can bring you in to Noir will dominate this world and be rewarded greatly. Nick, my boy, to the preternatural creatures of this universe, you’re infamous, and there’s a bounty on your head that’s staggering. Hell, you’re lucky I’m not turning you in.”

The way Thorn said that, it made Nick wonder if one day Thorn might not change his mind and hand him over.

*   *   *

Kody stood up as Dr. Burdette came out with Nick’s attending physician to speak to his mother.

Her eyes swimming in tears, Cherise went over to them. Kody followed with Caleb until they stood behind her and Menyara. The others stayed back, giving Cherise room.

“Will he live?” Cherise’s voice shook.

Dr. Burdette pulled her into a tight hug. “Sugar? Didn’t I tell you we weren’t going to let that baby die? We have him stabilized and he’s resting.”

Cherise’s blue eyes widened. “That sounds like there’s a ‘but’ in there.”

It was the male doctor who answered. “There is. He’s in a coma and we’re not sure why.”

Frowning, Cherise reached out for the support of Menyara before turning her attention back to the doctor. “I don’t understand. What do you mean?”

The doctor sighed. “He has no reason to be in a coma. His injuries weren’t
that
extreme. Don’t get me wrong, they
are
bad, but not life-threatening. Not to mention there’s a lot of brain activity going on that we can’t explain. It’s like he’s not really in a coma … that on some level he’s highly alert, but nothing we do can revive him.… I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Kody exchanged a nervous glance with Caleb. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” she whispered.

“Yeah. Nick’s somewhere he doesn’t need to be.”

“If it’s where I’m thinking, I can’t go.”

Caleb growled low in his throat. “Yeah, that would wreck my sucky day even worse than what I’m about to go do.” He winked at her before he headed out the door.

Dr. Burdette squeezed Cherise tight. “I can’t imagine he won’t come out of it in a day or two, honey. He will be fine, Cherise. You’ll see.”

Cherise drew a ragged breath. “I have told him so many times not to fight. Why couldn’t he, for once, just listen to me and do what I say? Why didn’t he give over his wallet and—”

“He didn’t fight his attacker,” Kody interjected, wanting to protect Nick any way she could.

Even from his own mother.

Cherise frowned at her. “What?”

“That was the only thing he’d say until he passed out. He wanted me to make sure you understood that he’d done what you asked and hadn’t fought back when he was attacked.”

“She’s right,” the doctor concurred. “All of his wounds were defensive, and not a single mark on him says he fought back in any way. From the looks of his injuries, I’d say he was on the ground in a fetal position, covering his head with his arms the entire time he was being beaten.”

Cherise sobbed even harder. “So I’m the one who got him hurt like this.…” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Oh God, what have I done?”

Kody rubbed her back. “He just wants to please you, Mrs. Gautier. He’d eat broken glass for breakfast if you asked him to.”

But the self-loathing and torment in her blue eyes said that she wasn’t going to forgive herself anytime soon. “Can I see him?” she asked his doctor.

“Sure.” Dr. Burdette led her to the back while Kody closed her eyes and tried to sense Caleb’s location. He was completely gone from this plane of existence.

If he had descended into the Nether Realm to find Nick, it wouldn’t be fun for him. Unlike her, he’d known the horrors of that place firsthand. What little she knew about it had come from others.

You’re too close to the Malachai, Nekoda. You’re losing your objectivity.

She knew that deep masculine voice inside her head. It came from Sraosha. His title was her guardian, but in truth, he was more like a warden who reported her every move to their superiors.
I’ve lost nothing.

He grumbled, but didn’t speak again. She knew what he and the others thought of her. That she should kill Nick and move on to the next Malachai.

But her brother had promised her that within the balance that had allowed one of the Sephirii to turn against his own and bring them down, the Malachai could do the same. A Malachai would be born with equal balanced parts inside him—just like Jared had been, and that that one special beast could be turned to their side and used against Noir and his sisters.

Nick was the only one, in all these centuries, who’d been born with that unique criteria. And there would never be another. He was their one and only hope.

If she and Caleb could turn him, they could stop Noir. Without his Malachai, he would be controllable.

Forever.

However, Sraosha and the others were correct. If they failed to kill Nick before he came into all of his powers, because of that mixed blood he would be the only Malachai who could destroy all of them. He would truly be invincible.

And they would all be dead or imprisoned.

We are not assassins,
she reminded Sraosha in her head.
Especially not of children.

He’s not a child, Belam. You know that. He is the deadliest creature ever born. For now he’s weak, but every day, he grows stronger. Deadlier. Meanwhile, you’re growing weaker where he’s concerned.

I’m not weak.
She had never been weak.
Don’t mistake my mercy for weakness. I assure you, if I know he is lost to us, I will cut his throat myself and deliver his heart to all of you.
Because if she didn’t, he would destroy everyone she loved.

The only problem was, he was fast becoming one of the people she loved most.

You will do your duty.
Sraosha pulled back from her.

Yes, she would do her duty, and she would keep her promise to her brother.

Even if it killed her.

And especially if it meant killing Nick.

CHAPTER 9

In his raven form, Caleb drew up short as he found Nick in the last place he’d expected.

Under Thorn’s protection in the center of hell. Or more pointedly, in Thorn’s office, learning how to sword fight …

The bright summer sun is shining in the darkest corner of Tartarus.
That, and snow in August in New Orleans would be more likely than the sight below him as he used his powers to see inside the massive black mansion. Thorn hated everyone. No, not hated. That was too kind a word for the utter contempt and disdain he held for every living and undead creature in existence. His hatred was so intense it practically oozed out of his molecules.

Centuries ago, the two of them had been friendly. At least as friendly as anyone could be with something like Thorn who only trusted others to screw him over. Ironically, that was what had bonded them together—their mutual disdain and mistrust for everyone else in existence.

A true nihilist, Thorn believed in nothing. And nothing believed in him.

Well, not entirely true. Caleb believed in Thorn’s willingness to kill any and every thing around him, especially if he found it or them annoying.

This can’t be good.
Thorn taking a liking to you had to be the same as trying to befriend a starving bear. Sooner or later, it was going to look over at you and think,
Lunch.

Yet there he was, protecting and teaching Nick.

Talk about a mind freak. It went against all natural laws as Caleb knew them. Next thing, cobras would be sleeping with mongeese. Not mongooses, ‘cause that just sounded stupid to him. LSU and Alabama fans would be having cookouts together, and one might actually put the other out if he or she caught fire.

Yeah, and the mighty war god Ares would go picking roses with a Girl Scout troop.

All of the above was much more likely than Thorn helping Nick.

And Caleb refused to believe there was some selfless reason motivating this. There had to be something in it for Thorn, or he wouldn’t do it.

But what?

Tucking his wings in, Caleb swooped down to dive bomb them through an open window.

Please don’t let Thorn be sadistic enough to have glass there.…

*   *   *

For the first time ever, Nick heard the voices in the ether speaking. Some were left from past spirits who’d gone on, while echoes of their life forces remained trapped. Most were from the living … the thoughts they let out into the universe, never realizing beings who were sensitive could pick them up and hear their innermost secrets. The rest were warnings from the living things people didn’t know they could communicate with.

All you had to do was listen.

It was like hearing static on a radio. Just noise at first and then above the friction, total clarity. The more carefully you tuned in, the clearer it became. And once you had the right frequency, you heard every nuance.

Thorn cupped Nick’s head in his massive paw of a hand. “That’s the source of life you hear now. Feel your place in the universe and see how vast it is. How many beings call it home.”

He was right, it was vast. But … “There’s so many people in pain.” It was overwhelming. While he’d known people suffered, to actually hear it …

Their combined pain opened his eyes. While he’d felt alone in his suffering, he realized that he was merely one of billions who felt exactly the same kind of impotent frustration that he did, that they were alone and that no one understood them, or their situation. That they had no control over the things that battered their souls, one after another, until they were reeling from shock.

Thorn narrowed those eerie green eyes on him. “Everyone’s in pain, Nick. Some just hide it better than others. As William Goldman so eloquently put it, ‘Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.’”

Nick nodded as he finally understood. “The whole point of life is learning to live with the consequences of the bad decisions we’ve made.”

Thorn scowled at him as if trying to read his mind. “Where did that come from?”

“It’s something Caleb says a lot.”

His frown deepened until he appeared to have an epiphany. “You mean the demon, Malphas?”

As if on cue, a raven cawed, then flew between them, driving them apart.

Turning around to face the raven, Thorn unsheathed his sword for battle.

With a bright flash, the crow became Caleb in his full demon form. The black armor he wore appeared to bleed from every crevice. Rivulets of red ran all over the metal and dripped silently to the floor. With long orange hair, he had yellow eyes like a serpent. If that didn’t clash enough, his skin was as red as the ooze on his armor. His black, leatherlike wings expanded and twitched as if daring Thorn to attack him.

“Dude,” Nick said drily. “We’ve got to see a plastic surgeon about your unfortunate birth defect. And the orange hair … really? We need to talk L’Oreal. Black’s a better neutral. You know? It wouldn’t clash with your skin tone so much.”

Flashing his fangs at Nick in irritation, Caleb stepped aside to give Thorn a clear path to him, and swept his arm out as if putting Nick on display. “If you want to kill him, Thorn, I won’t protest.”

Thorn laughed. “How many fools have fallen for that tactic?”

“Not enough, unfortunately.
He
still lives. And here I am.…” Caleb cocked his head to study Thorn intently. His gaze narrowed on the sword Thorn had yet to lower. “Are we fighting?”

“I don’t know. You plan to attack me?”

“Only if you attack the boy.”

“Well then…” Thorn sheathed his weapon and shook his head at Caleb. “I can’t believe even Adarian would waste a good daeva’s talent on babysitting.”

“Daeva” was Caleb’s demon classification. Though as a rule they were mid-level demons, Caleb’s powers were infused by something that allowed him to function much higher than that. He also had powers most daeva didn’t.

There had to be a reason for that, but Caleb wasn’t into sharing. Not even when Nick begged.

Caleb slid a suspicious stare toward Nick. “We have got to get you out of here. Immediately.”

“Good,” Nick agreed, “’cause Toto wanna go home, Dorothy.” He clicked his heels together. “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.”

Grimacing, Caleb glanced up at the sky. “If someone drops a house on me, I’m going to be really upset at both of you.”

Thorn snorted. “That would require a good witch.
Bon chance
finding that here,
mon ami.
”

“Good point. We are in the bowels of all evil, after all, and yes, Thorn, I do include you in that category. I’ve spent enough time around you to know how deep your wicked tendencies run.”

Thorn laughed. “If you were a woman, Malphas, flattery like that would get you lucky.”

Caleb tucked his wings down around his body so that they formed another layer over his armor. “I am not even going to respond to that. Now, while your brain’s functioning, any idea how to get snot-wit out of here?”

Nick gaped at the uncalled-for insult. Snot-wit? “Excuse me?”

“Really wish I could, Nick,” Caleb said under his breath.

Thorn considered the answer before he spoke. “Other than making him regain his consciousness … no.”

Caleb manifested a mace, then took a step toward Nick, who quickly backed up.

Thorn grabbed the mace out of his hand. “I said conscious, Malphas. Not dead.”

“Oh c’mon, demonspawn. Just one little concussion … please. I’ve earned it. If for no other reason than he made me have to come here to get him.”

Nick would be offended if he didn’t know Caleb was joking. At least, he hoped Caleb was joking. “That was a joke, right?”

Caleb patted him on the cheek. “’Course it was, punkin’. Why would I want to kill little old you?”

Yeah, that sent a chill down his spine as reasons stockpiled in his mind.