Chapter 12
Seraphim
As I stared down at the flames engulfing my hand, I imagined that I saw shapes there, dancing in the sway of the tendrils. I adjusted the heat of it. Orange, yellow, blue. Black may have been physically impossible in the human world, but magic didn’t abide by the laws of science. It was the absence of color and, from experience, I knew it was the absence of control.
I let it dance on my fingertips for only a moment, careful not to let it catch on anything. If it did that, there was no stopping it. Even holding it in my grasp tugged on my blood, ate away at it. That’s what the ebony flame did. Ate and ate and ate.
Glancing around the apartment, I put it away quickly. I knew there was nobody here, but displaying this type of magic was dangerous. It was my greatest secret and my greatest shame. If things were different, it could’ve been my liberation, but I wasn’t strong enough. I was the elemental flame, one of the most powerful classes of magic, but it meant precious little on my own.
My only avenue to freedom was finishing this. Even considering something else was dangerous. Risky. It wasn’t worth it.
After shifting to smoke, I materialized in my truck and headed toward Mars Corp. Sam generally got up around this time, at least for a little bit. If I was going to execute my plan, I needed to learn exactly how their days went. Sam would have to leave the tower at some point and I would have to be ready.
When I got to the top of the building, I focused on their room, but it was empty. She wasn’t in the bed or anywhere to be seen. It was possible she was up and about, but I had the feeling she wasn’t here at all. My blood didn’t sense her and when I focused, I couldn’t detect her aura anywhere nearby.
Shit. Where had she gone?
It had to have something to do with what happened yesterday. I knew I should’ve stayed longer, but I assumed it would’ve been more of the same. She’d wake up and be pissed at him; he’d be annoyed, then he’d either coddle her or challenge her. Those seemed to be his only two modes with her. It was sort of funny to see when he was soft with her. It was so out of character for him in any other context.
Whatever had happened, I needed to find her. Using our bond would be the fastest and most effective way, but she’d feel it. If she wanted to, she could block it. With how little she knew about anything, though, she probably wouldn’t even know what I was doing, nor would she have any idea how to push me out.
I shifted and descended into the parking garage, finding a nice shadow to lurk in. This was a busy place, so it didn’t take long for someone to come down on the elevator. I stepped out of the shadow, immediately sending a single spark up their nose to travel to their brain. After singeing their occipital and frontal lobes, I steered them over to my dark corner.
They could no longer see anything and with the damage to their lobes, it was unlikely they’d be able to speak or do anything meaningful to fight me. With the trauma, they probably wouldn’t really be capable of processing what was going on. I wouldn’t have to hear them scream or beg for their lives.
Gripping them under the jaw, I tilted their head to the side to drink from their neck. They whimpered and made some jumbled sounds, but quickly quieted down as they lost blood. I drained them entirely, then set them aflame with a fire so hot, they simply became ash. Soon, they’d just blend in with the dust and dirt while people walked on them and brought them home on their shoes.
Step one was complete. Now to deal with my other little problem.
I climbed into my truck and focused my attention on Sam. The new blood in my veins made my body heat with the flame that lay dormant beneath my skin. It flared hotter as I reached for that bond between our blood. I reached further, further, further. She was so far away. Why the hell would she be so far away?
Damnit. She must’ve been hours away, for god knows what. Had she run off or did they decide to take a spontaneous vacation? I didn’t want to leave the city, but I couldn’t just wait around and assume they were coming back soon.
Upon returning home, I quickly packed a bag and tossed it onto the passenger seat. Shifting to smoke, I headed to the top of a warehouse building a mile away, where three vamps were lounging. Two were playing cards and one was stationed at the edge of the roof, facing my apartment.
“Shit. I lost him.” the guy said.
“How’d you lose him?” one of the card players asked, scrambling to his feet.
“Don’t you hate it when you’re the dumbest person in the room?” I drawled as I leaned casually against the access door.
They whirled around with wide eyes. As soon as they saw me, their fear was evident on their faces. It excited me, brought out the predatory instincts that none of us could truly control entirely.
The woman of the group stepped forward, her lip curling defiantly. She opened her mouth to speak, but before anything came out, I turned her heart to ash. Her body thudded to the ground and the other two vamps backed up.
“Are you going to run? I expected more.”
Their resolve hardened and they lunged for me. I sent a cloud of smoke toward one, searing the skin from his bones, while I sidestepped the other and embedded a stake through his back, straight into his heart. The vamp that was still screaming hit his knees, clutching at his skin. With a quick flick of my wrist, I put him out of his misery, letting the flame take care of the rest of his body. Two sparks leapt from it, igniting the others.
Dropping to the ground, I rounded the building, coming face to face with the last one.
“Sorry. Can’t leave the messenger alive.”
I thrust my hand into her chest, crushing her heart. Her lips parted, then her eyes rolled back.
God damnit. Now I’d need a shower before I left.
A pulse in my chest made my breath catch. I pressed a hand to it, letting out a frustrated growl when it happened again. She needed to learn how to control that. Every time she was in distress or even just too stressed out, she sent a signal to me. It was meant to bring your Nexus to you when you needed help, such as when you were fighting or in danger. Sam kept calling out for me because she couldn’t handle her god damn emotions.
It didn’t matter. I had to head toward her anyway. What other option did I have?
Places up north were nice, at least. The less metropolitan areas were beautiful and the air was cleaner than it was here. I could see myself settling near Canada someday. The thought brought with it a pang of longing.
Someday.
Looking around the town, I packed the new box of cigarettes against the heel of my hand. It was a quaint little place, with a cute downtown area already decorated for the holidays. I’d actually forgotten it was that time of the year. Thanksgiving was in nine days, not that I would have any plans. Generally, I started cooking a turkey for the hell of it, but ended up getting so drunk or high that I passed out until the fire alarm started going off.
It was ironic, when I thought about it. I was a fire elemental that set the turkey aflame without even using magic.
“Good morning,” a woman said as she passed me.
“Morning,” I returned before sparking up my cigarette.
The woman looked back over her shoulder with a smile. Her blonde hair was stark against the deep purple knit beanie she wore. I might’ve enjoyed her flirtations if I didn’t have something more important to do right now. Instead, I just smiled back and leaned against the truck, turning my head in the opposite direction.
I wasn’t sure of the exact distance, but I knew Sam was near this town. It was probably safe to assume she was with Lock, otherwise there would’ve been an uproar at the tower, for sure. If I could venture a guess, I’d say they were in some nice cabin somewhere off the beaten path.
The town was small, but it was also done up for tourists. From the types of shops and signage I saw, this was the type of place where wealthy people purchased vacation homes and prided themselves on being ‘one with nature.’ Some probably came out here for hunting trips, while others enjoyed the lakes in the summer and the snow in the winter. They no doubt constituted the majority of this place’s revenue.
Stubbing out my cigarette, I tossed it into a can and headed into the visitor center. An older man with an out-of-style jean jacket looked me up and down, taking in my black jeans and sweatshirt, before plastering on a smile. With my long hair and hand tattoos, he probably thought I was here to cause trouble. Just to make it more fun, I rolled up my sleeves so that he could see more of them, then leaned my forearms on the counter.
“Morning,” I said, flashing him a friendly smile.
“Good morning. Welcome to Sterling Cove. What brings you in?”
“I’m meeting some friends here. We’re big nature lovers.”
“Oh, wonderful. This is the place to be. Where are you staying?”
“That’s what I’ve come here to figure out. They have a place, but I decided to come last minute.”
“I see.” He tapped his finger on the counter thoughtfully. “Well, there’s the hotel, of course. With the holiday so close, though, they could be booked up.”
“I’d prefer something a little more private.”
“Some people do rent out their cabins when they’re not using them. I can see if there are any available. Do you have time to wait?”
“How about I come back in a few hours?”
“That sounds great. We’re open in here until seven.”
“Perfect.” I glanced at his nametag. “Thank you, Kevin.”
“You betcha. Is there anything else you need in the meantime?”
“Actually, yes. Do you have a map of the cabins around here? I’m trying to find my friends, but the map on my phone is struggling to figure out the directions.”
“Of course. They all do that. We have a local map. If they’re in the city limits, they should be on there.”
He handed me a folded pamphlet and I smiled again before walking back outside. After lighting another cigarette, I unfolded the paper on the hood of my truck and surveyed the area. I could follow this connection right to her, but I’d just walk straight into two very surprised and angry vampires that want to kill me. It was smarter to try and figure out which place was theirs ahead of time so that I could formulate a plan.
I also wanted to get into a place somewhere close, if possible. Worst case scenario, I took an occupied cabin and evicted the current tenants. If there was more than one, I could keep them around to feed on, like the bleeders they used in the covens. It’d be easier than trying to be smart about the bodies I left behind for however long we were here. We weren’t in the city anymore, which meant that people going missing were much more likely to be noticed.
Clenching my fist, I tried to work through the pain that radiated through my veins. Sam was awake now, but things didn’t feel like they were okay. She was weak, just like she had been most of the time since she woke up. Maybe she was constantly expending too much magic still. If a storm started brewing, I’d be able to pinpoint their location, like finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.
By looking at the map, I could narrow it down quite a bit. I crossed out any houses that were in close proximity to others, as well as the smaller hunting cabins. There was a large lake with quite a bit of space between each home and it was in the direction I could sense Sam. It was probably my best bet and there were only five places to check out.
Maybe I wouldn’t need Kevin’s expertise, after all.