The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) (74 page)

Nodding, I said, “And you think Sean’s letting his anger take control? Do you think he’ll be so pissed off that he’ll fall? I can’t believe that.”

“Not that simple, babe. He’s still Primani and he’ll never willingly give that up.” He tapped his temple. “But up here? He’s all screwed up right now. He was already struggling with things before what happened in the tunnels.”

“Dec?”

Sighing with uncharacteristic emotion, he lowered his voice. “Yeah, Dec. They were tight. Dec was his…
our
balance. He reminded us that we were really here to help humans, not just to slaughter demons. We tend to forget that sometimes. It’s easier to ignore the messiness of mankind than to deal with it. But Dec never let us forget that humans were our number one priority. I think he missed being human…Anyhow, Dec and Sean were like brothers. They’d already been through a lot together before we met you. When Dec died, the humanity in Sean went with him.”

“He’s in so much pain. I feel it…like a force that surrounds him. I
feel
it too and it’s breaking my heart.”

Killian’s eyes were troubled. The shifting blue irises seemed to separate into tiny layers of color as I watched. He blinked and said, “Sean’s keeping a secret and it’s eating him alive. That’s bad enough. Add James’ and Jordan’s betrayals to the mix, then top it off with Dec…Sean’s had a bad year.”

And then there’s us; I didn’t dare say the words out loud. It would be like an admission of guilt. So I said, “True. But Killian, I can’t believe he’d ever fall. He’s stronger than that!”

He shook his head at my innocence. “I know him better than you do. This has been building for decades. His feelings aren’t unique, you know. Primani live a long time and many go through a sort of identity crisis. We work it out though. The problem with Sean is he’s got enough power to take out half of Ireland by himself. He’s walking a tightrope and any little thing could tip the balance. Jordan is out there just waiting for the right moment. If Sean crosses the line, it’ll be over in the blink of an eye. We’ll lose him.”

Forever.

I thought that over and eventually said, “What do you want me to do?”

He pulled me closer and said, “Whatever it takes, babe; whatever it takes.”

IT WAS LUNCHTIME when I finally made an official appearance downstairs. Killian had stayed a little while longer but had to get moving. He had an early meeting in Switzerland. Sigh. I wanted to see Switzerland too. Maybe someday…for now, I had
orders
to carry out. We’d spent some time talking over practical matters and I had a list. Killian didn’t want to leave me here, but had other responsibilities and someone had to give Sean something to focus on. My job was to somehow get inside his head and keep him from losing his mind. Remembering his smart ass attitude, I thought it was more likely to backfire on us both. The first thing on my agenda was finding him. Barefoot, I padded into the kitchen expecting to find him. It was empty. It was also spotless and there was no sign that he’d eaten anything today. Come to think of it, did we even have food?

I pulled open the empty fridge and my stomach growled in irritation. Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s empty. Deal with it. I rubbed it hard just to get the point across.

“Sean?” I called him and searched the tiny first floor. There was no sign of him anywhere. Did he take off? I will soooo kill him if he left me stranded here! Calling his name, I flew out the front door and bounced off the biggest man I’ve ever seen. I flew backwards through the screen door and into the foyer. Landing hard enough to slam my teeth together, I grunted and stared up into the face of Sasquatch.

“Oh, lass, I’m so sorry! Let me help you up!” A huge hairy paw reached down and latched onto my hand. Yanking me gently to my feet, my hero bowed at the waist and introduced himself.

“Beggin’ your pardon, I’m so sorry! My name is Joseph. Joseph O’Neill.”

Dusting off my butt with one hand, I offered the other. “I’m Mica. Are you here for Sean?” Nervously, I peered at his broad stomach wondering if maybe he
ate
Sean…on cue, he belched delicately and apologized again.

“I’m the caretaker for the house. I got a call from the security company. Said there was someone here. I figured I’d better come by and check it out.” He glanced around the living room with a professional eye. He didn’t miss a single detail.

Caretaker, my ass. This guy had ‘security’ written all over him.

“Oh, well everything’s fine. I’m here with Mr. O’Cahan.” Unless of course, he’d teleported out and left me here with Big Foot.

He looked suspicious now. I mentally smacked myself in the forehead. Geez! Do I look like a criminal? It was time to find Sean. “Why don’t you have a seat? I’ll go find Sean.”

I thought he might be out back so I walked around the garden path to the corner of the house. Pink rose bushes lined the side of the house making it smell like my mother’s bedroom. Sean’s black hair was a beacon among the pastel colors of the garden. I started to call his name but there was something in the way he stood that caused me to hesitate. He was staring off into space looking over the green horizon. Standing stiffly, his knuckles were white on the fence. Not wanting to startle him, I approached lightly. He was so lost in thought that he didn’t hear me at all. I stood at his side and followed his blank stare. There was nothing out there. It was just green rolling land punctuated here and there with a crooked stone wall. He was lost in his own head again. His lips moved as if he was going to say something and then pressed together in frustration. Abruptly, he ground his teeth together and jerked back from the fence nearly taking my head off in the process.

Jumping out of range, I waited for him to relax before saying anything. He beat me to it. He snapped, “What’s the matter?”

“You have company.”

Leaving me standing with the roses, he stalked off towards the house. I had to run to catch up with him. Opening the front door, he called out, “Joey? Is that you?”

Joey’s face lit up with a huge toothy grin that was just visible through the shrub of russet hair on his jaw. Gently shoving past me, he bellowed, “Sean! It’s good to see you, lad.”

Sean clapped him on the back in a man-hug and stepped back. His eyes were hooded, his expression tense. All business now, they stood together and talked about the general state of the house and the security cameras. Everything was working as it should and Sean was pleased.

After a few minutes, Sean asked, “Have you noticed any unusual activity in town in the last two days? Any strangers?”

Grunting with disgust, Joey answered, “Coupla strangers showed up last night and trashed the pub. Wouldn’t leave and got nasty when Jordy asked them politely to move on. The wee Duggan brothers jumped in to help and got a trip to the hospital for their troubles.”

Sean’s eyebrows lifted at that. “The Duggan brothers?” He rubbed at his scruffy jaw and thought for a minute. “Tell me more about these strangers.”

His tone had changed ever so slightly, and Joey must’ve sensed the dangerous tension that was beginning to ebb from Sean. He flicked a glance at me. His eyes seemed to ask if I should be here. I crossed my arms and met his suspicious eyes with my own. No way was I going anywhere.

Sean said, “She’s cleared. You can talk in front of her.” His lips twisted in annoyance and he added, “She’s got
special
access.”

Joey looked intensely surprised by that. He glanced back and forth between us before continuing, “Really?” He seemed fascinated by the idea.

Losing patience, I prodded, “So, Joey, the strangers…human or otherwise?”

His expression didn’t change but I sensed his surprise and immediate reassessment of me. He was trying to figure out who the hell I was and what I was doing here in the Primani safe house. It was obvious that I wasn’t Sean’s girlfriend. The hundred-foot wall between us was nearly visible. You’d have to be blind to miss it.

Deciding to ignore me, he turned towards Sean and finished his report. “Two big guys; and I mean really big. Bigger even than your brother.” His voice dropped. “Short hair, lots of tats. The one has a goat head on his arm. That one seemed to be calling the shots. You want to watch him. He’s carryin’. Got a knife strapped to his leg. Not afraid to use it either. He cut wee Mickey from shoulder to elbow and just laughed at him. Laid it open clear to the bone, he did.”

I’d been watching Sean’s face. He looked grim, but there was a light of excitement glimmering in his eyes.

“Friends of yours, Sean?”

Softly, he said, “Sarin. Half-human, half-demon. We go way back. It sounds like we might need to go into town and check this out. How does that sound to you, darlin’? Do you want to pick up our old cover?” His smile gave me chills.

I unfolded myself from the chair and said, “We need clothes and food first.”

The ride into town was a nightmare. Sean drove the Land Rover like it was a rental. Pushing it hard and ignoring its cries of protest, he bounced us over the rutted roads until my teeth hurt. One rut was so deep that my butt actually flew up in the air and I hit my head on the roof.

“Hey! Are you nuts? Slow down before you kill us.”

He kept driving like an idiot. “You’ll live.”

“Huh. Maybe I’ll live, but I want to keep my teeth.”

“Stop whining. You wanted to come.”

“You’re such a jerk.”

“Yeah, so you say. Funny, Lara doesn’t think so.”

Oh, no he didn’t! Dropping her name was dirty. Lara was the slutty receptionist at the crime lab in Manhattan. Beautiful and sexy, she makes me look like a nerdy 12 year old. According to Dec, everybody sleeps with her. I knew for a fact that Sean had--at least once. Immediately images of Lara’s blond hair falling like a curtain across Sean’s tanned skin popped into my mind. I could imagine those long red nails running down his back leaving tiny welts behind. Gritting my teeth at my helpful imagination, I forced myself to stare at the scenery and ignore him. The countryside was green with summer grasses and dotted with wildflowers. In the distance, rolling hills broke the horizon. The clouds were high today and the sky was a vivid blue. The sun lit everything in a soft light. It truly was a beautiful, wild place. I understood why Sean was drawn here. It was magical.

The town was bigger than I imagined. There were actually stores and a gas station. I spotted what looked like a grocery store. We needed clothes and food. My stomach growled loudly and my mouth watered.

“Let’s eat first and then shop. I’m starving,” I said and rubbed my temple. My head was beginning to throb like a cowbell.

Sean was focused on parking the truck in a small space but grunted in agreement. Two men stood outside of the pub and watched us with interest. Short, pale, and dumpy looking, they didn’t seem too dangerous. One smiled at the other and elbowed him in the ribs. The smile disappeared when Sean unfolded himself from the driver’s seat. That happened a lot. Even distracted as he was, Sean was imposing. At 6’1 and 200 pounds of heavy muscle, he was big. But more than that, he gave off waves of barely-controlled violence. More warrior than angel, he lacked all things angelic. No wings, no harps, no nice manners. Nope, he was a hardcore killing machine. Wired to destroy demons, all Primani were exceptionally good at killing. Sean was rumored to be one of the best. Of course, he was also
supposed
to protect his charges, and that included me. He wasn’t always very good at that, but in fairness, it was usually my fault.

As we approached the low stone entrance of the pub, one of the men made a comment to the other and gave us a long look. I couldn’t blame him, really. We had on the same clothes we wore to Manhattan three days ago. I had on black cargo pants with a long-sleeved black t-shirt and combat boots. My hair was braided and hung down to the center of my back. I had no make-up on since it all got washed off in the ocean. On top of that, I was shaky, angry, and starving. Scary was probably the most flattering description. Probably these guys didn’t see women like me every day. Sean was dressed nearly identical to me. The only difference was the bulge of his gun under the t-shirt. The shirt was taut over the muscles in his arms which bulged even when he relaxed. Add to that the fact that he hadn’t shaved in several days and the effect made him look a hundred times more dangerous. It was no wonder these two were staring at us.

The younger man made a move to block the doorway and I sighed. I wasn’t in the mood to argue. I was almost crazed with hunger. The greasy smell of fried sausage curled into my nose and made my head swim. The man said something to Sean, his voice coming from far away, and my eyes rolled back in my head.

Something soft tickled my face as the faint sound of voices woke me up. I blinked and opened my eyes to find Sean’s cobalt eyes peering into mine from an inch away. He was nose to nose with me, whispering urgently. When I cracked my eyes open, the world seemed oddly white…

He hissed, “Shut your eyes. You’re glowing!”

Crap! I took a steadying breath and drew in my
saol
so my eyes wouldn’t glow. What the heck happened?

“Is she awake?” a male voice rumbled above me. Strong fingers held my wrist, taking my pulse. The same hand lay across my forehead. “No fever, but her pulse is erratic and fast. “When did she eat last?”

Sean said, “I don’t know…shit. We haven’t eaten for…two, no, three days.”

Opening my eyes to the very interested crowd, I mumbled, “It’s been four days.”

Sean rubbed a hand over his jaw, his expression bitter again. “Damn it, Mica! Why didn’t you tell me you needed to eat? You’re probably dehydrated too.”

Through my teeth, I reminded him, “We’ve been a little busy. I’ll eat now.” I got up onto my elbows with every intention of standing up.

The rumbly voice belonged to a tiny gray-haired man with soft brown eyes. His face was pink with sunburn and creased like a Japanese fan. He squatted next to me and smiled gently. The fan unfolded…

“Well, hello there, lass. It’s a beautiful pair of blue eyes you have there. So nice to see them open.” He felt my pulse again and sat back on his heels with a groan. “Better. Your pulse is better. Can you sit up and have some water?”

“I’ll take care of her now,” Sean insisted and stooped to pick me up. “She’ll be fine.”

The older man laid a firm hand on his shoulder and said, “Boy, you’re going to let her be for a minute, and then we’re going to take her inside this pub and feed her some soup. The potato soup’s about the best you’ll find this side of Dublin. Judging from the black circles under your eyes, you need some food too.”

Sean started to protest but the man cut him off by holding out a hand to help me up. I accepted the help gratefully and stood. I must’ve swayed because a collective gasp went up and Sean quickly wrapped his arm around me. The lights blinked off and on and I slid down his side.

“Mica? Can you hear me? Come on, love, you have to wake up.” A cold trickle of water slid down my neck and I shivered. “Aren’t you hungry? If you don’t wake up, the doctor’s going to stick an IV in your arm. You hate needles, baby, come on…”

More cold water…and then a burst of putrid fumes that sent my nose into a violent sneezing fit. Sneezing and then coughing, I sat up abruptly, eyes streaming from the fumes.  Blinking through the tears, I looked around in a panic.

“God, that’s awful!” I managed to gasp out between coughs.