The Quest (6 page)

Jonas shifted the gear and drove away from the curb.

Boss bent down, his gaze aimed at the sky. “Let’s see if it follows us. If it does, I want to capture it.”

I leaned between the two seats and faced Boss. “You want to capture a garguman.” The evil creatures with their ugly gray bodies, razor-sharp claws and piranha-like teeth were incredibly strong.

“I want to find out what it knows and who sent it,” Boss said.

I swiveled my head to Jonas. “Did you find out who the demon was that attacked me?”

He checked his side mirror before he nodded. “Yeah, I found out.” His grim voice concerned me.

“His name is Billy Rodriguez.” Boss twisted to meet my gaze. “Ring any bells?”

“No, and the slam into the wall didn’t jolt any loose either.”

The corner of his mouth twitched in amusement. “There’s always hope.”

“Billy is the leader of the underground movement,” Jonas said.

“What? Like resistance?”

“More like the mafia.”

“The mafia?” I asked, voice elevated. “Why would they want me? Why would the leader threaten me and tell me I knew nothing about politics or our world? Better yet, how did he get my father’s watch?”

“He has the watch?” Boss glanced at Jonas first, then at me.

“Well, maybe. I saw it had two dials. I suppose it could be another type of watch.”

“Did it have several diamond shaped buttons along the rim?” Boss asked.

I lowered my eyes as I recalled what it looked like. Two dials. Silver outside. Black Roman numbers. Flashy studs on the outside. “Yeah, I saw one north, south, east and west.”

“Then it is a demon watch, and considering only thirteen exist, I think the odds of it being your father’s is high,” Boss said.

I couldn’t agree more. “Okay, so the underground movement doesn’t like me and purchased my father’s watch. Why? What did I do?”

“Get on the interstate and take us away from the city. We need the garguman to follow us to a more secluded area,” Boss said to Jonas.

I leaned against the seat and glanced over my shoulder, out the back window. In the dark sky, I spotted an odd shape moving. At closer look, the large wings of the garguman were unmistakable. “It’s following us.”

“To return to your prior question, I think we need to find out how Billy knows about you,” Boss said. “What connections does he have?”

“He mentioned politics. I think he might have a connection with the Senator. Maybe she paid him to attack me. Besides us, she’s the only other person to know what I am.”

“I have a difficult time believing he was paid by the Senator,” Boss said.

Briefly, Jonas removed his eyes from the road. “Do you think he’s working for or with the Senator?”

“Both groups or persons want the same thing. Throughout history, the mafia has worked secretly with agencies and politicians. Why wouldn’t the two work together to achieve their goals?” Boss asked, but it sounded more like a statement.

“But wouldn’t they fight each other to be on top?” I asked.

One of his brows jerked up. “You raise an interesting point. Demons all want to be in control. Billy is full-blooded. Galluzzi is not. They would fight for dominance, unless–”

“They were romantically involved,” I said.

“Which is speculation. We need to prove it.” Boss stared at Jonas.

“I’ll do more research at home and see what I can find. If they were involved, they probably don’t want the public to know,” Jonas said.

Whether the two were lovers or simply working together mattered none to me. Clearly, they both wanted me dead.

A thought popped in my head. “Does Sal know Billy?”

“He’s in the registry. I don’t know if he knows Billy or not,” Jonas replied.

“Send Sal a message letting him know Billy paid a visit to Shelley and see what he responds with,” Boss said.

“I could call him and ask,” I said. “I ran into him visiting the Senator when I started work, and he wants me to set up a meeting with him so we can catch up.”

Boss’s brow went up. “Catch up on what?”

“He said he had some important news to share.”

“I’ll arrange for a meeting. Whatever news he has to share with you, he can share with me too,” Boss said with a sly grin.

Perfect. I didn’t want to visit the demon alone anyway.

A sharp cramp tightened in my stomach. Holding my hand over my abdomen, I bent forward. Damn, I really needed a blood fix instead of wasting time interrogating a garguman.

“How are you managing?” Boss asked, his voice soft.

I nodded. “I can hold off a little while longer.”

He opened the glove compartment and withdrew a cloth. Twisting around, he delicately handed it to me. “You may need this.”

I peeled back the layers and saw my dagger. Instantly, my heart jumped with excitement. “Thank you.” I slid my weapon into the inner lining of my boot. “I missed it. Now that I have my State ID, I don’t need to pass through security. I can keep my dagger with me.”

“And you should. I also think you need to carry a small gun.”

“I don’t know where I’d put it.”

Boss’s gaze slid down to my chest, paused, and then drifted farther south. “I can think of a few places.”

His seductive gaze made me warm and tingly. “Maybe you could help me find those places.”

The dark centers of his eyes expanded. A smile full of temptation spread across the vampire’s face. Oh yeah, his needs and mine could use a little one-on-one time.

Jonas cleared his throat. I glanced up at the rearview mirror. He stared at me, then shook his head. I smirked and then faced the window on my side.

Playing with Boss definitely had risks, and Jonas kindly reminded me of them. Half-breed angels were rare since everyone and their uncle drained them of their righteousness in order to gain something. Vampires especially loved half-breed angels for their pure blood and strong energy. The one time Boss bit me, Jonas threatened to shoot him in the head. I really didn’t want a repeat.

“You mentioned earlier you had more information to share,” Jonas said, and I redirected my attention. “What else happened at work?”

Boss met my gaze. “Is there more?”

“I ran into Jackson in the cage.”

“You were in a cage?” Boss asked with a touch of rage in his voice.

“No, no. That’s the name of the warehouse. They call it
the cage
,” I said. “Jackson happened to be there. He knows my name now. My real name.”

Boss gave me a pointed look as if he suspected trouble. “What happened?”

“The werewolf wasn’t happy to discover I’d lied to him. He wants to know the truth. I told him I’d meet with him and tell him everything.”

“Boss, the pack is more concerned about finding who killed their Alpha. I doubt any harm can come from telling him the truth,” Jonas said.

“From what Lizzy told me–”

“Who?” Boss asked.

“The gal I work with. She said werewolves are in the cage a lot, searching for information. Maybe Jackson can help me find evidence to convict Galluzzi.”

Jonas steered the car off the interstate. “The quicker Shelley can find evidence, the safer she’ll be.”

Boss scratched his cheek. “It’s your choice. But if he threatens–”

“Jackson wouldn’t do that,” I said.

“He would to protect his pack brothers, but at this point, you’re not a threat to them. If anything, you can help them.”

True. I could help him, and he could help me. We’d make a great team, if he would believe me.

“Anything else?” Boss asked.

“Benny stopped by for a visit.”

“What?” Jonas asked, surprise in his voice.

“He gave me a warning.”

Boss shook his head. “What did he say?”

“He said my life was in danger and I should leave. He also said I would accomplish my goal.” I rubbed my hand over my belly as another painful cramp hit me.

Jonas and Boss exchanged quick glances.

“An angel warns you that your life is in danger–you should listen,” Jonas said. He steered the car away from the interstate.

“I’ll listen, but I’m not letting it stop me. I can’t.” Someone needed to stop Galluzzi, and I doubted anyone else had the guts or power to do it. Hell, even Sal feared her because of her connections.

“Then it will be imperative that you protect yourself and gather whatever evidence you can, as quickly as you can,” Boss said.

A smile slid across my face. I loved his logical answer.

He faced the front window. “Is there anything else we need to know about?”

Biting my lip, I hesitated. If I told him about the horrible images I’d seen, he’d probe my mind and possibly find more. Considering we were about to interrogate a garguman, I decided now was not the time to bring such macabre memories to the surface. “It can wait.”

Jonas stared at me through the rearview mirror.

“Why not tell us now?” Boss asked, his gaze pointed out the side window.

“Because I need your help, and it’s not really important. It’s just about me.”

Jonas’s brows tightened above his eyes as he watched me.

“At the next street, turn. We need to bring it down,” Boss said.

Another pain jabbed at my insides. The anticipation of fighting and talking to this garguman seemed to increase the frequency of my cramps. I really hoped interrogating the ugly creature wouldn’t take long.

Jonas turned the corner and slowed the car. We’d reached a quiet area of town with a large manufacturing plant off to one side and acres of land on the other. Farther away, a single farmhouse sat atop a hill.

“Keep us away from the lights,” Boss said as Jonas turned into the parking lot of the large building.

The car crawled to the midpoint of the lot, far enough from the lights above the buildings. Jonas turned the vehicle around until we faced the road we’d come from, and then stopped the car.

“Wait here.” Boss opened his door, then left Jonas and I alone.

I crawled into his vacant seat. “The last time he told me to wait in the car, I ended up having to save his ass.”

“Since I’m here this time, you can sit this one out,” Jonas said, reaching into his jacket. He pulled out his gun and flipped the safety switch.

“Are there any others in the car?”

“Under the seat.”

Of course. How could I forget? I reached underneath me and opened the small compartment. Inside, I touched a small handgun.

“You know where to shoot them, right?” I asked as I lifted the gun.

He pressed his finger to the center of his forehead.

“Ever shot one before?” I asked.

He gave a light shrug. “A couple. Boss told me you killed some too.”

Indeed, I had. When five of them attacked Boss six weeks ago, I shot all but one in the head. At the time, I didn’t think I had the gumption to kill, but I did. My instinctive reactions amazed me.

Boss stepped in front of the headlights, a few feet away from the car. I held the gun tight in my hand as I stared at him.

“How is he going to get the garguman to talk?” I asked.

“I have no idea,” Jonas replied, holding the gun in his lap.

My heart rate accelerated. A loud shriek came from the sky. I held my breath, staring out the window, waiting for it to drop down near Boss.

Movement from the corner of my eye caught my attention. I looked at my side and saw the ugly garguman with its flat face and absent nose an inch from the window, staring right at me. The garguman raised its fisted hand and shot it at my face.
Oh fuck!

Chapter 5

Glass shattered and fell everywhere. The garguman’s fist, hard as stone, hit my cheek, igniting sharp pain and forcing me toward Jonas. I dropped the gun when the back of my head hit the steering wheel. Loud shots sounded and the smell of gun residue drifted in the air. The garguman reached in, wrapped its cold fingers wrapped around my wrist and pulled.

“No!” I yanked my arm back. “Get the fuck away from me!”

The creature tugged with more of its strength. He managed to get my forearm out of the car. I braced my other hand on the door and resisted his pull. To my surprise, he had the strength of a vampire. As I brought him closer, Jonas shot at the garguman a couple times, missing my arm by mere inches. The bullets had little effect on the beast. Its gray skin swallowed them whole, leaving no visible trace. The garguman jerked my arm, and my elbow scraped over the broken windowsill.

Jonas stopped firing. “Fuck! I don’t want to hit you.”

I didn’t want a bullet to hit me either, which meant I needed to bring the creature closer for Jonas to get an accurate shot at the beast’s forehead. Given that I couldn’t reach for my dagger, I had to rely on Jonas to kill the beast.

“Get the fuck off me!”

I yanked my wrist and brought it back inside the car. The creature opened its mouth, shrieked and revealed its piranha teeth.

“Shut your fucking trap,” Jonas yelled.

As if the beast understood, it closed its mouth. Jonas fired another shot and the garguman turned its head to the side. The bullet hit the creature’s cheek and disappeared within seconds.

Boss appeared behind the creature. He shoved the garguman toward me, slamming the beast into the side of the car. The vehicle shook slightly and the creature’s grip lessened, but not enough to free my wrist.

“Let go!”

Boss thrust the garguman’s head against the car, right above the window. I jerked my wrist while Boss repeatedly banged the creature’s head on the vehicle. The damn beast still refused to let go of me.

Jonas leaned closer to me and aimed the gun at the garguman. “Hold his head still!”

The garguman suddenly went wild. He let go of me, swung his arms in the air and twisted to face Boss.

“Damn it!” Jonas retreated to his seat, lowering his weapon.

Time was of the essence. Boss wanted to capture one to talk to it, but I couldn’t think of anything other than killing the fucker. Clearly, Jonas followed my same thought process. Since he couldn’t get a clear shot at the kill point, I knew of one other way to destroy the beast. I reached for the dagger inside my boot and slid it out. Not even a second later, Jonas grabbed my arm and yanked me toward him.