Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Tanner saw the flames before he saw her. Red, gold, twisting and crackling, the flames rose up around his building.
Humans were out, running, screaming for help.
But Marna just stood in the middle of the flames. What the hell?
“Marna!” Tanner yelled her name but wondered if she could even hear his call over the crackle of the fire. In the distance, he heard the wail of a fire truck’s siren, but this wasn’t a fire that humans could handle. They couldn’t fight magic.
Marna’s arms were up in the air, and her face—even through the flames he could see the light of power that bathed her features.
“Marna, pull it back!”
The flames flared higher.
Tanner knew he had to go into the fire, for her. Jaw locked, he raced forward and bellowed her name once more.
Just before the flames would have licked over his skin— like it would be the first time he felt that agony— Marna’s head turned and her eyes—dazed, wild—found his.
The fire died away, vanishing in mere seconds and leaving behind only wisps of smoke that drifted into the air.
“T-Tanner?”
The humans had hauled ass, so, luckily, no one was left to see his angel just extinguish those flames with a stray thought. No one was?—
His nostrils flared as he pulled in the scents. The fire had been so strong that he hadn’t even noticed…
Jonathan.
His partner lay on the ground near Marna’s feet. Not moving.
Tanner rushed forward. “What did you do?”
She shook her head. Glanced down. Her hands lowered and a loose handcuff banged against her wrist. “He was trying to make me leave with him.”
The sirens were coming closer.
“I wasn’t going to let him hurt me.” A different note had entered her voice now. Harder. Colder. “No one’s going to hurt me again.”
Tanner crouched next to Jonathan. He rolled his partner over and sucked in a breath at the man’s ashen features.
“He’s still alive,” Marna said. Did she sound disappointed?
His angel?
What was going on?
“Yeah, he’s still alive.” Tanner grabbed Jonathan and tossed the cop over his shoulder. He wasn’t leaving him. Not when he had so many questions for the man. “And we all need to go, now. ”
“You’re helping him?” Marna backed up a step. “He—he wanted to hurt me. He tried to take me away.”
“And we’ll find out what the hell he was thinking once we get away from here.” Once they’d gotten out of sight and didn’t have trucks full of firefighters racing toward them.
She drew in a ragged breath. “He wants me dead.”
Not gonna happen.
Tanner stared down at her, willing Marna to trust him. They all needed to leave, but he had to make sure she wasn’t about to unleash hell on them all again.
As he stared at her, Marna’s eyes seemed to darken. The blue deepened. Seemed to almost flash…black?
What?
The sirens screamed.
“He said—he said someone was waiting for me.”
Tanner had Jonathan flung over his shoulder. With his other hand, he caught Marna’s hand. Locked his fingers with hers. “Then we’re gonna find that someone.” The same SOB who’d set him up? Who’d set her up?
Time to end this nightmare.
Marna nodded, and her gaze flickered back to blue. He felt the punch in his gut. Angels weren’t supposed to have eyes that looked like a demon’s, were they?
But he didn’t have time to worry about her eyes right then. They rushed away from the smoke-filled area. Rounded the corner. Marna climbed into his SUV. Tanner dumped Jonathan into the back.
When he leapt into the front seat, Tanner spared Marna one more glance. Her hands were fisted in front of her. She wasn’t looking at him.
He gunned the engine.
“Something’s wrong.” He almost didn’t catch her whisper. Even with his shifter hearing, it had been hard to hear her. She breathed the words more than said them. “Something’s wrong with me.”
“Nothing’s wrong.” Her eyes had been black. “Everything’s fine.” They’d find the demon who was setting them both up, and Tanner would end that bastard.
The tires squealed as he raced down the narrow streets.
“I like it too much.”
Another confession that was little more than a breath.
“I’m not supposed to like the fire,” she said softly.
His hands clenched around the wheel.
“I’m not supposed to lust, not supposed to want so badly.”
His gaze cut to her and found her stare on him.
“I’m not supposed to want so badly,” she said again, louder now, “the way I want you.” She swallowed. “The things I want, the things I want to do …this isn’t me.”
No, it wasn’t who she’d been, but Tanner realized that Marna was becoming someone else. Someone stronger.
Someone…someone who could be very, very dangerous.
“Tanner, what happens…” Now she looked away, staring out at the blur of buildings, and finished, “when an angel goes bad?”
Hell came calling. Tanner knew because he’d seen it happen before. He didn’t want to face that nightmare again.
Tanner dropped his partner in an old chair, then bent to quickly cuff the human. Tanner made sure that Jonathan was locked up tight in the cuffs, and then he gave the man a good, hard slap.
Jonathan groaned, and his eyes slowly opened. He focused first on Tanner, then on Marna, then his gaze swept around him—and Tanner knew his partner took in every aspect of the old, abandoned warehouse with that sweeping glance.
If you needed a private place to torture or dump a body, Tanner knew this was a perfect spot. No one was around for miles. That meant there was no one to hear the screams.
Not that he expected Jonathan to scream. At least, not right away.
Jonathan jerked at his cuffs. “You really think these are necessary, partner ?”
“Was it necessary to cuff me?” Marna demanded, stepping forward.
Tanner wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Easy.” Who would have thought that he’d be the one playing good cop?
Jonathan’s gaze slid over them both. Lingered on the arm that Tanner had around Marna. “I thought it would be…like that.”
“Watch it,” Tanner advised, voice still mild.
“I mean, why risk everything? Why put your job on the line? Why lie to me? Unless…unless you were screwing her.”
Tanner kicked out, sending the wooden chair slamming to the floor. It hit on the side, and Jonathan groaned when his arm rammed into the cement.
“Told you,” Tanner said, “to watch it.” That jerk wasn’t going to insult Marna.
Jonathan looked up at him and his lips tightened. “You think you can keep her? You think there aren’t a dozen paranormals in this town desperate for a chance to get at her?”
“Is that why you were trying to get her?” Tanner demanded as the fury rose inside him. “Were you planning to sell her off to the highest bidder?” Over my cold and dead body.
Marna’s hands pressed against Tanner’s side. “I told you that he said there was someone waiting for me.”
Jonathan shrugged and tried to lever himself off the floor “What can I say? Angels are in demand.”
Growling, Tanner surged forward and yanked the bastard to his feet. Tanner’s boots kicked away the shattered remains of the chair. “I thought you wanted me to trust you,” Tanner said. Right, he’d known that was bull. Mocking now, he continued, “I thought you wanted to help. ”
“I did! Then I realized you weren’t exactly playing on the side of the good guys anymore.” Jonathan didn’t fight Tanner’s hold, but his eyes blazed. “Turning on your own, leaving that poor kid to?—”
“That wasn’t me!” Tanner shoved him back. He had to. His claws wanted to break free, and he didn’t want to accidentally behead the jerk.
Maybe not so accidentally.
“I saw the video.”
“What you saw…” Tanner glanced back at Marna. She watched the human with narrowed eyes. “What you saw was a demon using one hell of a lot of glamour magic. My face, not me.”
Jonathan blinked, and his shoulders seemed to slump. “What? They can…they can do that? I-I thought they just had the eye trick.”
Marna laughed. The sound was bitter, not like her. “If they’re strong enough, they can do almost anything.”
Since Cody was a demon, Tanner had learned early on about the power levels among those beings. Some demons were on the low end of the demon power scale, ranked as ones or twos—pretty much humans with a few extra skills. But, while the majority of the demons running loose on the earth were low-levels, there were some badass demons out there.
Demons who tipped the scales by hitting a power level of nine, or even…in the worst case situation, ten.
Level-tens were supposed to be able to bring hell to earth. Literally. To be able to control the minds of humans with barely a thought. He’d heard rumors of one level-ten in Atlanta. A guy named Niol who could destroy a city block with a wave of his hand.
Just another reason why Tanner made it a point not to visit that area.
Was he dealing with a level-ten in New Orleans? If so, they could all be screwed.
“I’m supposed to just believe you, right?” Jonathan blasted, face reddening as he pulled against the cuffs again. “You’ve been lying to me for days. You’re hiding a killer and screwing her!”
Tanner punched him. Jonathan slammed back down to the floor once more.
Marna’s breath whispered out in a soft exhale. Tanner caught her hand and rubbed his fingers over the back of her knuckles. He wasn’t just…screwing her. If Jonathan said that again, he’d taste some more cement.
Groaning, Jonathan managed to crawl back to his knees.
“I’m not a killer,” Marna said quietly. Then she added, “Not anymore.”
Jonathan’s head lifted, and he stared at her. Tanner didn’t like that look. Too intense. Too dark.
It’s the way I look at her.
Tanner put his body in front of hers. “I lied to you.” Fine, time to clear the air. “But what the hell was I supposed to do? Tell you that the suspect we were bringing in was an angel of death? That you couldn’t touch her, because she might kill you?” Jonathan didn’t need to know that her touch didn’t work anymore.
No one needed to know that fact. If he could keep her safe by making everyone else think that she was too dangerous to be around…
I’ll lie my ass off. And he wouldn’t be sorry about it. Hell, he wasn’t ever sorry. Just another line. Another lie.
Cops weren’t supposed to lie. Killers were. Some days, it was so hard to be both.
“She can kill with a touch?” Jonathan managed to stand on his feet with only a slight stagger.
“I told you not to touch me,” Marna said as she stepped around Tanner. “You should have listened.”
The lady still wasn’t lying. Maybe he should learn to twist the truth the way she did. Would that make his conscience any cleaner?
“So you did kill those men in that alley.” Jonathan shook his head. “And you did it with just a touch? No drugs. I thought for?—”
“I didn’t kill them!” Marna’s voice was fierce.
“You were seen—” Jonathan began.
“Just the way I was seen on the video,” Tanner cut in. “It wasn’t me. It wasn’t her.” How many times would they have to say it before it sank in for the man? “A demon is behind the attacks. He took her face, and he took mine, and he was trying to set us both up.”
“Why?” Jonathan demanded. “Why the hell would he do all that?”
“As soon as I find him, you can be sure I’ll make him tell me that.” But Tanner already had suspicions. Why set up Marna? Maybe because the killer had wanted to draw her out. To cut away the safety of her secrecy and push her into the spotlight. The cops had yanked her from her solitude. Left her out in the open.
What would have happened to Marna at the police station if Tanner hadn’t gotten her free?
The suspicion gnawed deeper at his gut. Had getting Marna to the station been the plan all along?
Get her there. Make her vulnerable.
Only maybe the demon hadn’t counted on Tanner getting Marna out of the station so quickly. Getting her out and running with her.
When I ran, you had to set me up, too, didn’t you?
Because the killer had wanted to separate Marna and Tanner.
“There was no evidence left behind,” Jonathan muttered. “The scene in that alley was so clean. Everything pointed back to her. ”
“Cops know,” Tanner began as that gnawing suspicion dug deeper, “how to clean up scenes.” And even how to stage them.
He mentally flipped back through the possibilities.
You’d need a high-level demon to pull off a glamour trick like that.
A demon who knew his way around crime scenes.
One who had access to all the case files.
Another piece of the puzzle slid into place. “The patrol unit…that kid called in our location. He read out my badge number.” By doing so, he’d painted a giant bull’s-eye on his back. Someone with access to that radio line had known exactly where Tanner was.
And exactly how to set him up.
“A cop?” Jonathan whispered, eyes wide, and Tanner knew his partner had reached the same conclusion he had.
He and Marna were being set up, all right, and the demon had probably been working right beside him, and he hadn’t even noticed the guy.
Or the woman.
Jonathan yanked at the cuffs. “Unlock me! ”
Tanner dug the key out of his pocket. But he didn’t free Jonathan, not yet. “Who were you selling her to?”
Jonathan’s jaw clenched. “I wasn’t selling her, man. Get that part straight. I’m a good cop, okay? The captain…shit, she told me to find her. Pope saw her in the video, and the captain knew that you’d been hiding her. Hell, she’s the one who told me what your lady was.”
An angel.
“Captain Pope isn’t human.” Did Jonathan realize that?
Marna just watched them as she rocked forward on the balls of her feet. He could feel the tension rolling off her.
Jonathan swallowed. “I was beginning to suspect that was?—”
“She’s a demon.” Tanner just didn’t know how strong she was.
“Sonofabitch.” Jonathan’s gaze darted to the boarded-up warehouse windows. “She probably followed you. Probably set the whole department after you.”
She’d said that she was gonna clear his name. She’d told him to go.
Don’t trust a demon.
There was only one demon he’d ever trusted in this world. His brother. The captain had been desperate to find out where Cody was.
And I told her.
Fuck.
What in the hell was going on? Tanner hadn’t actually seen the footage from the patrol car. He had only the captain’s word that she’d seen demon eyes in that footage.
“Let me out of these cuffs!” Jonathan demanded, lurching forward. “Let me help!”
Tanner stepped toward his partner. Marna stopped him. “When Jonathan came to your apartment, he shot his way inside.” Her hand felt silken soft against his skin. “When I ran, he followed me, shooting.”
The panther snarled and tried to push past the man’s control.
Eyes wide, Jonathan scurried back. “Warning shots! I wasn’t aiming at her, I swear. If I had been, I would’ve hit her!”
Was that supposed to lessen his rage? The bastard had shot at her.
“Yes, he would have hit me.” Marna sent a hard glance Jonathan’s way. “Just like he did before.” She shook her head. “I don’t trust him, and I don’t want that human free.”
Yeah, well, after a bullet, who could blame her?
“Tanner, man, listen to me.” Jonathan’s voice was desperate. “Don’t do anything crazy, okay? Don’t do anything like?—”
“Like let my animal side out?” Perhaps it was time Jonathan saw just what he could do. Tanner let his claws break free. Razor sharp. Ready to kill.
Jonathan scrambled back some more. His back almost brushed the wall. “ Please, man, I?—”
“Come near her again,” Tanner told him, “and you’ll see just how dangerous my beast can be.” Jonathan’s bullets wouldn’t have killed her, but Tanner couldn’t stand the thought of Marna in pain.
She took his hand, not even seeming to see the claws. She’d been so afraid of them before. But now…
“Let’s get out of here,” she urged him.
They needed to haul ass. Needed to find Cody and make sure the captain wasn’t going after him next.
How many more dead bodies? Blood was starting to fill the streets in the Big Easy.
“I can help you!” Jonathan’s stare was fierce as he gazed at Marna. “Just give me a chance to make things right.”
But she wasn’t looking at him. She’d already turned away and headed for the door, giving them both a view of her slim back.
Tanner tossed the key to the cuffs. He threw it toward the far wall. By the time Jonathan freed himself, they’d be long gone. He marched toward his partner. Kept his claws out. “A shifter’s claws can slice through just about anything.”
He could smell Jonathan’s fear. The panther liked that scent.
Tanner brought his claws up to Jonathan’s throat. “You ever shoot at her again, and you’ll see just how sharp they truly are.”
A fast nod. “I-I swear, I?—”
“Stay the hell away from her.” Because he wouldn’t play so nicely the next time.
Then, because Jonathan had shot at her, Tanner punched him once more. The detective hit the floor, and Tanner knew he’d be out for a while.
That would give Tanner plenty of time to disappear with his angel.
“Sorry, partner, but I just don’t trust your ass.” Right then, there were only two people he trusted.
His brother—and his angel.
Bastion stared down at the male human. Paul Hodges. Weak. Helpless. His body was bruised and battered and connected to a dozen different beeping machines. Doctors and nurses rushed around him. Some barked orders. Others grabbed for needles. Tubes.
They were trying to save the cop.
They weren’t going to succeed.
Bastion stepped closer. The male’s eyes were closed. Drugs poured through his system, but…
The cop’s body twitched.
You know I’m here.
The dying always knew when an angel was close. Paul’s eyelids began to jerk.
The cop would die young. Leave behind no family. A few friends. He’d drift right away. But his life had served a purpose. Did he realize that? He’d been useful.
A tool.
A broken tool. One that had been cast away now.
Bastion eased closer to the bed. No one else there could see him. Only humans were in the room.
They could only see his kind when their time was at hand.
One of the nurses shouted, “We’re losing him!”
No, they’d already lost him. They just didn’t realize it yet. He’d been lost from the moment his patrol car had stopped on that dark road. He should have stayed away from the shifter and the lost angel.
Should have kept driving.
But…really, there was no changing fate.
Paul’s eyelids flew open. His stare locked right on Bastion. He tried to scream. Impossible, of course, especially since he had a tube shoved down his throat.
“Time to go,” Bastion told him and lifted his hand.
But Paul began to thrash violently. His head shook, back and forth, and his right arm flew out.
His fingers clenched around a scalpel. Someone screamed.
The cop tried to use his weapon on Bastion.
Strange. He hadn’t expected the human to fight so fiercely.
Paul’s eyes were stretched wide, and fear rolled from him in waves.
A doctor wrestled the scalpel away from him. “We’re trying to help you!” the man exclaimed.
Trying. Failing.
Paul kept fighting. Tears slid from his eyes and a mewling sound broke from his throat.
Bastion’s hand lowered over the man’s chest.
Paul shrank back. The fear in his eyes deepened.
Paul looked at Bastion, saw him for exactly what he was, and the cop was terrified by that sight. Why? Paul hadn’t led a bad life. No agonies waited on the other side for this man.
Yet the human feared.
He fears me.
Bastion’s wings stretched behind him. The human stared at them with…recognition?
A low, long humming filled the operating room.
“He’s flat-lining!”
And the human’s eyes stayed open. Terrified.
Another soul to take.
Bastion’s wings spread more as he rose. He wondered…when had he begun to dread his duty?
To resent the souls?
I want more.
An image of Marna flashed before his eyes. Not the Marna he’d known before. Quiet. Innocent.
Perfect.
The Marna he’d seen just a little while ago. Moaning. Eager. Flushed with pleasure.
I want more.
The doctors and the nurses gasped when a long, thick crack ripped across the ceiling.
I’ll have more.
And he left, without taking the soul of Paul Hodges.