Ties That Bind: a New Adult Fantasy Novel (The Spire Chronicles Book 2) (5 page)

“And it didn’t stick?”

“Nope,” I said, popping the “p.” “Besides, when’s the last time you heard about a vampire or demon or whatever going after someone while the sun was up? We live in a world of night and as such must adjust our habits accordingly.”

“Which is basically your attempt at giving a profound reason for oversleeping.”

“It’s not oversleeping if you never wake up early.”

Alex snorted and kissed my forehead. “So, are you going to tell me what brought on this change of heart?”

“I killed Lily and ate her heart, so now I’m nice.”

“That explains all the laughing and screaming.” He was silent a moment. “I’m glad you’re coming with me. It’s been fun working with someone else.”

“The life of a hunter can be pretty solitary,” I admitted. “That’s why I’m glad I had Rowan. Have Rowan.”

“And me?”

I shot him a coy grin. “You’re okay, I guess.”

Alex scrunched his face up but didn’t reply. It was a good thing, too, because I don’t think I’d be able to say anything back; the cuteness of his action had rendered me speechless.
Still full of surprises, eh, Mister Campbell?

My fingers traced random patterns along the planes of his chest. There were surprisingly few scars on him for a hunter. Badass supernatural healing was why I didn’t have anything more than a tiny scar on my shoulder, but I had no idea how he did it. Guess you had to be extra careful when you couldn’t magically heal up from a knife to the chest.

I shuffled my legs around restlessly. “Do you think your friend’s been asked to investigate the murders?”

“Murders?”

“Right, you left before Rowan mentioned it. Bodies of both werewolves and shifters were found skinned with their organs removed. I don’t know who was killed first, but apparently both sides are accusing the other and it keeps escalating.”

“What are the chances the murderer isn’t from either tribe?”

“I don’t know, but I doubt either side would knowingly harbor a murderer. The tribes that reside in Dovesport’s forest are honorable. They wouldn’t be allowed to settle so close to the city if they weren’t.”

“Hopefully, we can find out more when we get there,” said Alex. “I’m sure Tom will be helpful; he’s got a knack for keeping his fingers in plenty of pies.”

“I hope that’s not a euphemism,” I said while reaching over to turn off the lights.

“It’d be weirder if it wasn’t.”

“Well, it’d make me nervous about eating pie around him. How’d you two meet, anyway? Did you accuse him of murder, too?” I teased.

“Totally. I do that to all the people I like.” He pulled me back to him. I relaxed against his chest immediately, the warmth emanating from his body soothing against my back. “We were roommates at the academy. The last time I saw him was around two years ago on a case, some banshee nest in Seattle.”

“What’s he like?”

“Tom is…” His nose wrinkled in that way I found absolutely adorable as he tried to find the words. “He’s a puckish rogue, for lack of a better term. He’s the kind of guy who was always broke and looking to make a quick buck. Life of the party and a constant truant, Tom was the guy everyone thought would crash and burn – but at least he’d have fun doing it.”

“Okay, and you were friends? What’d they call you two, Fire and Ice?”

“Opposites attract.” He chuckled, his breath tickling my neck and rustling my hair. “I don’t know, Tom was charming. Everyone liked him. I was pretty awkward and quiet as a kid, so I envied that.”

“Well, you are very charming now.” I wiggled around to face him, tangling our legs together, and kissed him. What was it about him that made me want to constantly be entwined with him? Whatever it was, it scared me.

But I didn’t hate it.

“Thank you,” he mumbled against my lips.

“So, did any of Tom’s “get rich quick” schemes work out?” I asked, trying to focus on anything other than how our bodies fit together perfectly. “Is he a billionaire now?”

“He’s a hunter, which should tell you everything you need to know.”

“Hey, the Order provides enough of a paycheck to have a comfortable life. Unless you’re one of those people who fuck up all the time and need to keep buying potions, weapons, ammo…” I waved my hand around as if that would magically complete the list.

“
Or
you’re the only breadwinner in a big family. Or something bad happens that ends up costing you a lot of money.”

“Or you have a gambling addiction–”

“Or a shoe addiction.”

“I can afford to have a shoe addiction,” I said. “I’m not that worried about getting hit by a car and having to pay off hospital bills, so I don’t have to budget for those kind of emergencies.”

“And for those of us who don’t have super healing abilities?”

“Get an accountant? And shop less.”

“What if you get a wasting illness? Even magic can’t cure things like cancer or schizophrenia.”

“Aren’t you an optimistic ball of sunshine? Look, I can’t comment on providing for a family, and I refuse to comment on getting some debilitating disease, but most of the time it’s all about handling your money properly. I happen to have a nice little nest egg stashed away in–” I pursed my lips and gave him an exaggerated look of suspicion “–somewhere safe.”

“Some secret offshore bank account? Or just buried in a box in your backyard?”

“It’s cute how you think I’d go through the trouble of digging anything.”

He rolled his eyes. “I have some money saved up, too, but most of the time I use the rare stuff we find as bargaining chips instead of selling them off for cash. I try to keep the favors I owe to a minimum.”

“Same, but I’m too greedy not to sell stuff off for myself. One of those favors I owe is probably going to bite me in the ass one day – and not in the fun way.”

“Hmm,” he said, stroking his chin. “So, can I borrow a few bucks?”

I scoffed and rolled back onto my other side, pulling one of his arms around me.

Every Order city had at least one Temple.

They were less a place of worship – though many did use it for that – than a gathering place for important Order business. They were designed based on religious buildings; the Temple in Haven was modeled after St. Stephen’s Basilica in Budapest, right down to its gorgeous stained glass ceilings.

Of course, the designs here were less art and more specially designed sigils against evil, but they were still pretty when the light shined through them.

Whenever the heads of the families would come visit, the Temple was where they came together and held meetings. Temples were considered neutral ground – no fighting was allowed, and anyone who broke that rule was dealt with immediately.

We walked past the pews and into the backrooms where everything really went down. There was a wooden door that led us down to the cavernous bowels of the church. Our footsteps boomed as we made our way downstairs, the dim light causing our shadows to cast twisted amalgamations of the human form against the grey stone walls.

Lily had been upset at our quick departure, but she understood the urgency of the situation. She also understood she was under no circumstances allowed to have anything even close to a party while I was gone.

I’d called Rowan to let her know I was going after all and was rewarded with a motherly put-down disguised as a compliment before she hung up. She also told me Sullivan’s men would be waiting for us at Dovesport’s Temple and I should behave myself unless I wanted to become her new scratching post when she returned. I knew she wasn’t bluffing.

In the very bottom of each Temple was a series of rooms filled with magical portals which allowed us to travel to a variety of places. Mostly they led to other Order cities around the world, but there were a few noteworthy exceptions. Like Hell, for example. Today, it’d make our trip from Minnesota to Maine take a few seconds instead of hours. Seriously, screw road trips.

The magic behind the portals was developed by reapers – the beings that came to free souls from their bodies after death. I’ve never had to deal with a reaper before, but I counted them as one of my favorite supernatural entities. Mainly because none of them had ever tried to kill me. I mean, they’ll definitely come after me when I die, but that’s still a long time away.

Hopefully.

We each had a backpack filled with clothes and another bag filled with various supplies. I didn’t usually bother to bring much – maybe a couple of rare items in case I couldn’t get information with regular cash. Or threats of violence. Or actual violence. Some magic users preferred to carry along a handful of magical gizmos or talismans to help them focus, and even strengthen, their powers, but I preferred not to do that if I could help it. Those things took time, not to mention rare and expensive ingredients, to create. If they were lost or destroyed, it’d be a pain to replace them. Plus, they could become a crutch. It’s never a good idea to become dependent on an object, magical or otherwise.

“So, what are we walking into?” Alex asked as we searched for the right door.

“I don’t know much about portals,” I said, purposefully misinterpreting his words. “They can only be created in certain places – with a few exceptions – which is probably why Order cities are built over ley lines. I think the founders requested help from the reapers in deciding locations, actually. Though it does take a great deal of effort for them, beings of great power – archangels, dukes, Lucifer, and the rest of those guys – are capable of creating a temporary portal in the Shadowlands that opens up almost anywhere in this world. They can’t create a portal anywhere on Earth, though; portals – permanent or otherwise – can only be created at special locations on our side. I have no idea why, but–”

“As fascinating as your speech is,” Alex said, his voice a dull drone. “I was asking about your father.”

I should’ve known better than to think Alex would let go of something. He was like a pit bull who bit your ass. A cute pit bull. Who could certainly bite–

“Morgan?”

I frowned at him. “I was having a fantasy.”

He returned my frown with an unimpressed look. “Did it involve you answering my question?”

“Not even a little,” I said. “But if you must know–”

“It’d be nice.”

“A big house and a stoic greeting.”

Alex waited for me to continue, but when it became clear I was finished, he pressed me. “And?”

“And…if he hasn’t replaced them, the cooks do a good job,” I finished with a shrug as we entered the room.

Portal rooms were kind of spooky. It wasn’t all white walls with blue and orange rings you could walk through – or fall through – over and over again in an unstoppable loop. The only lights in the room were from the portals themselves. There were eight of them in this room, lining the walls in a circular pattern. Their long, oval shapes emanated a thick and unsettling dark purple, almost black, mist that undulated in an otherworldly dance.

Rowan said the mist was the physical manifestation of the residual energies from Umbra – the realm of the reapers. When portals were first created, reapers infused the natural elements of their world into them in order to keep the gateways open. Reapers tended to be secretive by nature, so that was all she could tell me.

The shadowy, claw-like tendrils were actually quite cold, and when you got close to a portal, soft whispers drifted around you. The portals resembled giant mirrors, though they showed no reflections, just a hollow abyss. I used to stare at them to see if something looked back. Rowan told me I was being ridiculous, but I maintained that there could’ve been some funky stuff happening during the milliseconds I wasted blinking.

Alex looked around. “Isn’t there supposed to be a caretaker?”

“Bathroom break?” I shrugged. “It’s the fourth one. Let’s go.”

“Are you sure?”

“Best case scenario: we end up in Hell. Worst case scenario: we end up in Dovesport.”

“I think you got that backwards.”

I glanced up at him. “I really didn’t.”

There was no magical tunnel or vacuum that sucked us through, leaving us sprawled on the ground at our destination. Walking through a portal was like being submerged in ice water. My heart skipped a beat and I let out a shuddery breath as I stepped through, the inky tendrils winding around me like an old lover. The world went silent for a moment before the whispers overwhelmed me again, heralding my arrival in Dovesport.

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