Burning Dawn (Angels of the Dark #3)(55)
Author: Gena Showalter

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NIGHT HAD FINALLY FALLEN.

Elin nearly broke down when Xerxes deposited her on her parents’ old doorstep. The four-bedroom spread in the valley, with the gorgeous red mountains in the backyard, brought back the best—and worst—memories. She decided not to ask the new owners for a tour, and left.

She trudged four miles to the strip and pawned one of her bracelets. Though the diamond band was worth thousands, she only got five hundred. A hose job, but whatever. Because she was without any type of ID, she was unable to rent a car. Or rent a room. No one was gonna fall for the old “the dog ate it” excuse. But thanks to the daily paper she purchased from the convenience store across the road, she had been able to call people selling cars. Problem was, most of the sellers either hadn’t answered or had already sold their vehicles.

What was she going to do?

New life goal: come up with new life goals.

Without a coat, she was cold. Her shoulders ached from lugging around a ten-thousand-pound bag filled with clothes and jewels. Needing a quick rest, she leaned against a shadowed wall in the alley between two buildings crying out for major repair, and sipped the hot chocolate she’d purchased with the paper.

Maybe it was a good thing she was without any ID. The entire world might think she’d killed her father and Bay, and abducted her mother. Her name might come with media attention she couldn’t afford. Ugh. From now on, she was off grid. Anything to keep the Phoenix from finding her. Heck, anything to keep Thane from finding her.

As if he’d really look. Prejudiced winger! He had to go and ruin everything.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed the shifting of certain shadows. Heart pounding, she turned to watch more intently. A moment passed. Then another. All remained still.

No. Not true. A snakelike creature peeked from behind a trash bin. She said snakelike because the thing had gnarled antlers rising from its head, and its fangs were so long they almost scraped the ground. As it opened its mouth to unfurl its forked tongue, she saw there was another set of teeth in back.

Elin straightened and backed away from it. Glowing red eyes followed her.

Another snakelike creature emerged from the shadows. Then another. And another. Each one focused on her, slithering closer.

What the heck were those things?

“The prince would like to ssspeak with you,” the one closest to her said. “Preferably alive.”

The others chortled.

Keep a cool head.

Use someone. Who? Xerxes? No. You’ve cut ties, remember? And there was no way she would throw innocents in the path of these…things.

She dropped her chocolate, and, as the liquid gushed out, she ran, her bag slamming against her side, slowing her down. Dang it. Money or escape? She couldn’t have both.

She released the handle and, without the weight, picked up speed.

Even still, the chortles pursued her…and closed in.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

XERXES, SHE’S NOT HERE.

Frantic, Thane checked the entire house, misting through the walls. Two human adults and two human children were inside, but not Elin.

Try this location. The warrior rattled off another address.

Even more frantic now, Thane darted across the night sky. The apartment was close to the college, and young partygoers were spilling from the building. He performed the same visual sweep, scanning every face in every room. Still no sign of Elin.

Not here, either.

Where was she? At this late hour, demon activity was always heavy. But here, it was heavier than usual. At least thirty viha, ten envexa, fifteen pică, and forty slecht slithered over the walls, searching for potential prey. Whispers meant to elicit whatever emotion the creatures fed upon soon rose. Any humans who responded drew the notice of other demons.

Any other time, Thane would have shot into battle. Now, he just wanted to find Elin. He’d misjudged her terribly. She might be part Phoenix, but she wasn’t evil. In fact, she had reason to hate the Phoenix more than he did.

She’d told him about the murder of her father and husband, but not the abuse her mother had suffered. Chained in a tent, given to multiple warriors every day, until she became pregnant. Then Elin was forced to witness her death—and the death of her babe—while she was tied up, unable to reach her, unable to help, forbidden from speaking.

Afterward, Elin was denied the right to mourn.

She had been utterly friendless. Trapped. Scorned, mocked. Beaten far worse than he’d suspected. Treated like an animal. And yet, knowing she could be treated far worse if she were caught, she’d helped Thane escape the camp. And then, when she finally had begun to feel safe, he—her protector—dumped her on the floor and threatened her.

He was so ashamed.

I’ve tried to initiate contact, Xerxes said, but I can’t get through her mental shield.

Impossible. She couldn’t have learned to block so quickly. Not as open as Xerxes claimed she was, and not against a centuries-old warrior. So, a block must have formed on its own. And there were only two ways that could have happened. Through fear…or through pain.

Bust through the shield, he commanded.

I would cause her untold anguish. Perhaps even permanent damage.

There’s a chance she’s already suffering. And he couldn’t make it stop if he couldn’t find her.

True, but I told her I would never use force.

And a Sent One would not go back on his word.

Thane had to do this on his own, then. As he darted through the town, staying low enough to see every face he passed but high enough to cover more than a block at a time, he tried to calm his raging emotions. He noticed hordes of demons headed in the same direction. Racing, really. Laughing, excited.

Clearly, they were on the hunt.

Dread filled him. Demons could scent Sent Ones, a single whiff causing the demons to scurry away in fear. But there was an exception. When the demons realized the scent was mixed with a human’s. After what had happened in the elevator, Thane’s scent was most definitely all over Elin.

He followed the trail to a little park at the edge of town—

And that was when he saw her.

His heart withered, forever useless. The demons had cornered her atop a child’s wooden fort. A pile of rocks rested at her feet, and she tossed what she could. The strength of her fear gave the demons the strength they needed to materialize. From spirit, unable to touch her, to tangible…able to destroy her.

Claws had already shredded her jeans and left her calves bleeding. Fangs had already punctured her neck and arms. Her eyes were glazed, and she was wavering, about ready to tumble over.