Chapter 5
“I’m going to be sick.” Savannah bolted for one of the large trash bins lined up in the hallway.
Jasper didn’t blame her one bit. He was just as nauseous as she was. Running into the demon… goddess… whatever Manea styled herself as these days… was at the top of things he never ever wanted to encounter again.
He’d half considered lying to Savannah and putting it all in an everything-is-gonna-be-okay light. But she was a grown woman, psychically powerful even if she hadn’t mastered her abilities yet. She wasn’t a naive human who had never experienced supernatural shit. He owed her the truth.
Jasper had left out one nugget of information—that Manea had been the one to kill him centuries earlier. It had been brutal, agonizing, and a slow death as she had shredded him into ribbons. On the upside, he had awakened in that same gulley of blood fully intact, all his pieces back in their original places. Since then, he’d been kicking demon ass and not bothering to take names.
Savannah wandered off—he suspected to a restroom, or she was making a run for it to get away from him. Too bad, the problem itself couldn’t be outrun.
He pulled his phone out of his pocket. No messages. That was odd. He figured it was past time for his pal, Thomas, to make a panicked call saying their mutual friend, Greylyn, had vanished or conjured up another fallen archangel to battle.
Thomas—an ex-rugby player turned occult expert and human sidekick to guardian angels like Jasper and Greylyn—liked to act like he had it all under control. But the man freaked out whenever he was actually confronted with any of the things he studied. Jasper half-wished the poor sap would call so he would have an excuse to hightail it out of town.
Savannah came back around the corner, her complexion pale to the point of being ashen. Learning an evil, supposedly nonexistent goddess had just used her as a puppet had taken a huge toll on the poor girl. It was nice, however, to see the fiery sparkle in her eyes again. She might be upset, but she was also super-mega pissed off. That could work to their advantage.
She sidled up beside him on the bleachers. “So, how do we kill this bitch? Like now!”
The loudspeaker blared on with ear-splitting static at first. The young man’s voice from earlier announced that pizza was being served in the food court area. Jasper, never one to turn down a meal, hopped up and extended his hand to Savannah. She looked like she might run for the trash cans again.
“You gotta eat, little one. Remember, we need to keep the others in the dark about what’s really going on here, or we’ll end up thrown out on our asses or arrested at worst.”
The blue in her eyes flared at his comment. “All right, but if I puke all over Mama, you have to clean her up.” A few moments of silence ensued. Her lips quirked up in a brilliant smile. “Yeah, Mama would probably enjoy that a bit too much, don’t ya think?”
Laughing, they walked away, side by side. Just as they were about to enter the food court, she stopped and grabbed his elbow. “Jasper, we can defeat this thing, right?”
“Of course, we can, little one. It’ll be a piece of cake.” He winked for added effect, but deep in his gut, a chill bloomed.
***
It was worth the effort of trying to force down two slices of greasy pepperoni pizza on her already queasy stomach to watch Mama Wedgefield fawn over Jasper. He was patient with her. Occasionally, he’d glance Savannah’s way and wink.
The group gathered around the pizza boxes was small. Most of the regulars of the rodeo had not arrived in town yet—just the small entourage that Mama kept close together. Savannah hadn’t decided whether being considered one of the few to travel with the rodeo boss was an honor or was just Mama’s way of keeping her eyes on those she didn’t trust. Regardless, she benefited from the proximity with a roof over her head and a truck to get her places.
Cody—one of the regulars and one hell of a cowboy—talked nonstop beside her. He had three dozen or more belt buckles and countless ribbons from bronco riding and bull riding competitions. He’d been part of the circuit since she could remember. Kinda cute too, with reddish-brown hair, the start of a full beard and mustache, freckles adorning his cheeks and nose, and playful green eyes. And it had been clear for the past three or four seasons, he was crushing a bit on her.
Savannah wished she could return his feelings, but romance was the one thing she was adamantly against mixing with business. Serious injuries and death had been rare with her particular skills on the rodeo circuit, but the recent accidents had unleashed a wave of anguish over the crew. She never wanted to experience that level of pain, watching someone she loved hurt or die from another freak accident in the arena.
She’d vowed to Mama Wedgefield when she’d joined up to follow the woman’s advice—which had been to keep to herself and to never fall in love with a cowboy. It had been clear that the hard-assed woman had suffered a tremendous loss and that had made her into the ruthless businesswoman she was today. Still, despite the not-so-nice treatment she received from Mama, Savannah empathized with her pain.
Now with her teenage-fantasy-romance partner within arm’s distance, Savannah wasn’t so sure she could stay uninvolved. Not philandering around with Cody was one thing. But resisting Jasper was something else altogether. Not that he had any inclinations of being personal with her, but gazing on him now, she knew that if he ever did want more from her, she’d jump into the pit of Hell itself to finally experience what his lips felt like on hers.
“Savi? Did you hear me?”
Oh shit, Cody had said something, and she had completely ignored him. “Sorry, it’s been a long day. I’m not feeling myself.”
It wasn’t a complete lie. That didn’t prevent his sweet face from falling and his eyes from doing that cute puppy-dog pout.
“I understand. Lot of excitement today.” He jerked his chin to where Jasper and the other guys were laughing about whatever it was that the guardian angel had just said.
How can he do that? Just blend in with any crowd, including this crew of roughnecks, while still looking like he should be sipping champagne on a yacht in the Mediterranean.
Cody touched her elbow to draw her attention back to him. How long have I been staring across to the other table?
“You feeling okay, now? Never known you to faint or even so much as catch a cold. You sure you don’t want me to take you to town to see a doctor?” His eyes reflected sincere concern for her well-being.
Too bad she couldn’t confide in him that a doctor could do nothing for her problem. What would she say? Thanks, Cody. But I don’t think the local ER has a cure for the demon-goddess-whatever who likes to possess my body from time to time.
“I’m much better, but thanks for asking,” she said for the fifth time in the last thirty minutes. “Really, I don’t know what came over me. I usually don’t allow myself to miss a meal. Guess I’ve been preoccupied.” For effect, she patted her tummy.
“We’ll just have to take better care of you.” Jasper’s husky voice startled her. She had not witnessed him move from the other table to stand right behind her. The warmth of his body radiated through her back; he was so close. “Isn’t that right… Cody, was it?”
“Yes, sir.” The cowboy stepped away as if he’d been dismissed by a drill sergeant.
The other guys, and Mama, had suddenly vanished from the food court as well. Savannah wasn’t sure why she was relieved. If anything, being alone with Jasper was not in her best interest.
Absentmindedly, she started to clean up the mess left behind, but he put out a hand to stop her. The shock from the contact caused her fingers to jolt open and a pizza box dropped unceremoniously to the concrete floor.
Did it just get warmer in here?
“Leave it.” Two words and nothing else. He grasped her hand and pulled her outside, through the pasture that would soon be a parking lot, to a beast of a machine covered in red dust.
“That’s…” Savannah ground to a halt, then rushed over to the motorcycle. “…that’s the same bike you rode when you swept in to rescue me all those years ago.” Her hands caressed the handlebars, then the silky-smooth leather seat.
The highlight of their last encounter had been riding behind Jasper for hours, her arms tight around his torso, with nothing but the wind whipping through her hair and a feeling of pure exhilaration. For the first time in her young life, she experienced the joy of freedom. Her one wish on a star that had fallen from the sky that night had been for that feeling to never go away. But it had the moment Jasper had dropped her off with the McCluskey family and had ridden away without saying goodbye.
She shook her head to force the memory into the dark recesses of her mind, to never come forth again if she had a say-so. The family had been wonderful to her and had introduced her to the rodeo circuit. Bill had been a well-known announcer when he’d retired from bull riding, following a fall from a steer that had led to smashing both his kneecaps. Savannah traveled with them from state to state. When they’d left to settle in Nevada, she’d been eighteen and chosen to stay with the rodeo. Despite the silver lining, the sting of Jasper’s leaving still hurt.
“Yeah, I thought you’d like to see the old girl again. Runs and sounds just as perfect as ever.” Jasper handed her a shiny black helmet. “How about a spin, for old times’ sake?”
A little tickle of something—could that be happiness?—sprung in her belly. She laughed. “I don’t recall having to wear one of these last time.” She took the helmet from his hand.
“Safety first.”
His grin was so infectious, there was no choice but to smile back. She just hoped she didn’t look like a kid again, staring at her crush, inwardly fan-girling that her hero had acknowledged her presence.
Jasper straddled the giant beast, then motioned her to slide on behind him. Her hands tentatively held onto his shoulders as she swung her leg over. “Hang on tight.”
As soon as he fired up the engine, the thunderous roar quaked beneath her and all around. Every nerve ending came alive, lighting her up from the inside out. That feeling of power and surrender of all other thoughts to the giant abyss of don’t-care-about-a-damn-thing-for-now washed over and through Savannah’s entire body from the tips of her cowgirl boots to the top of her head.
Within seconds, they were down the dirt road, red dust trailing behind them like a dragon’s tail.
Freedom.