Eternal Flame

“Dee! Simon! Get the hell out of here!” Zane shouted, and he kicked down the door on the left, ignoring the flames that burned his legs and his arms. That blood … he raced down the hallway, getting a few desperate inches in front of the fire. Hurry, hurry. Another door. Another—

His foot slammed into the door. Wood shattered. The thick stench of death hit him then. “No! Fuck, no, Tony!” He shoved his way past the broken wood.

But Tony wasn’t the one on the floor. Kelly lay there, her eyes wide open, and her throat ripped out. The flames raced toward her, as if homing in on her.

“Tony!” He spun around, but the flames were walling him in. Zane pushed his power at them, but that fucking kid was stronger than he was. Stronger than any demon he’d ever seen.

Playing with me before. Just jerking me around. More screams rose over the flames. Dee. Simon. They needed him.

Zane stopped pushing his power at the flames. He just ran forward and jumped right through the fire.

Something tapped her on the cheek. “Hey, pyro, come on, wake up.” Another tap, harder this time. “Zane’s not even around now. You’ve got to wake up soon.”

Zane. Her eyelids flew open, and she found Jude staring down at her, his nose less than an inch from hers.

“About time.” He grabbed her arms and hefted her up. Because she’d been on the ground. What? Why had she been lying on the ground? “I’m smelling fire, and I’m not leaving my team in there alone with the flames.”

Fire? His team? She stood on shaky legs and turned-then caught sight of Dusk. Jana sucked in a sharp breath. “That ass left me.”

“No, he tried to protect you.”

Same thing.

“But now they need us.”

Yeah, she could see that. “Then let’s get the hell in there.”

Zane raced after the second snake of fire, even knowing that he was too late. The den fell around him. The beaten walls couldn’t hold up against the flames again.

“Zane!” Dee’s desperate voice called through the fire and the smoke.

“Get out!” Vamps had a tendency to burn way too fast, and he didn’t want Dee burning because she was trying to save his ass. “Go!”

Everything was falling around him. He lunged forward, no longer even feeling the blazing bite of the fire on his flesh. The door had burned, and he rushed inside. Zane flew down a corridor, following the flames and—

Tony’s desperate eyes met his. The cop had a gag in his mouth, and he was handcuffed to a chair—and flames were eating at his legs.

Zane leapt across the room and knocked Tony back. They hit the floor, hard, and he started slapping at Tony’s legs. But those flames-those flames flared brighter.

They homed in on Kelly. They’re fucking doing the same with him. Zane had to get Tony out of there. He grabbed the cuffs, jerked, and they broke apart.

Tony started slapping at the flames.

“Run,” Zane shouted.

Tony coughed. Choked. “Wh-where?”

Because there was no way out. The flames had circled them. The flames had—

Zane blew out the back wall. He hoisted Tony over his shoulder and hauled ass, running right for the streams of sunlight he could see flickering through the smoke.

He hit the cement, and felt the bite on his knees. Zane glanced back. The flames were higher, surging and twisting, but not coming past the edge of Dusk.

Maybe there were some fucking limits to Davey’s power after all.

Tony coughed and heaved against him. Zane lowered him carefully.

“You got him!” Dee ran up to him, her face stained by soot. Simon was at her back. Sweat sliding down his face. “I knew you would!”

He hadn’t been so sure.

Tony was crouched on the ground now, almost hacking his lungs up.

“Those demons are burning in there.” Simon’s voice was cold, hollow. “They were pumped up so high that they ran toward the flames, not from them.”

The roof collapsed on Dusk. Far, far away-sirens called out. The human cavalry. Coming, at long last.

He slapped his hand on Tony’s shoulder. “You’re gonna be okay.”

Tony turned toward him, his eyes stained red, and the skin on his hands blistering. He wouldn’t be healing so easily from those wounds. No, as a human, he’d carry the scars. “F-fucking k-kid…”

Zane tensed. He could see the claw marks on Tony’s neck now. Not deep enough to kill. Just deep enough for Davey to play.

“D-demon’s eyes … sh-shifter’s … claws …”

Dee hurried to Tony’s side. “Easy.” She pushed him back onto the ground. Her hands were so gentle on him. She brushed back his hair. “Just take it easy.” There were tears swimming in her eyes because she’d seen the full damage to Tony’s legs. “Simon, get a damn ambulance!”

Simon took off running.

“Who did this to him?” Dee whispered.

“I did.” Because he’d been soft. He’d shown his weakness, and Davey had seen it.

She looked back at him with a furrow of confusion between her eyes. “What?”

“Stay on guard, Dee.” Because he knew Davey hadn’t died in the flames. He knew and—

And a tiger’s roar shook the streets. Oh, shit. No.

But Davey was going after everyone who’d brought down Perseus, and Jude had been there that night.

“Kill anyone who comes close-and if it’s some eighteen-year-old kid with demon’s eyes and blond hair, don’t fucking hesitate.” Because he’d hesitated.

She nodded.

An ambulance sped up, following close behind Simon as he rushed back to Dee. A fire truck raced behind it.

Zane followed the roar as fear tightened his heart. If Davey had found Jude, the bastard had also found Jana.

Jana. He didn’t realize he’d screamed her name.

Zane rounded the corner, running fast to the spot he’d left Jana. She was supposed to be safe. She was supposed to be—

She was locked against Davey. The bastard’s claws were at her throat. Jude stood less than five feet away from them, his own claws out, and his fangs bared. “Let her go!” Jude snarled.

But Davey just jerked her closer against him, and blood leaked down her throat. “Stay back!” Davey ordered and his eyes flew from Jude to Zane. “Both of you, stay the fuck back, or I’ll rip her throat out!”

“Then you’ll die,” Jude told him, edging closer. “Because your shield will be gone. I’ll be on you, and you’ll be dead.”

But Davey, smart, slick Davey, just smiled his still-bloody smile. “She’ll be dead.”

Jana’s gaze met Zane’s.

“He’ll be crazy.” Davey stared right at Zane as he tossed that out. “And you, shifter”-now his eyes darted back to Jude—“you’ll get your ass kicked five seconds later. Because I’m the strongest damn thing you’ve ever seen.”

Jude growled in response, but his body had frozen.

“I knew you’d come for her,” Davey said, and he wrenched Jana back a step. “When I left the fire and I caught her scent …” His head lowered toward her hair, and he inhaled deeply. “I could have walked away, could have just got in my car and left, coming back to hunt another day. But with such great prey close by, how could I leave?”

Sick fuck. “She isn’t prey.”

More blood trickled down Jana’s neck, but she didn’t make a sound. “She’s the prey I’ve been after for a very long time.”

“Y-you …” The word seemed to break from Jana’s mouth then. “Not B-Beth, was it? You were Perseus.”

What? This damn kid? No fucking way.

Davey’s smile flashed again. “I was wondering if you knew. Beth liked to take credit for every damn thing, but Perseus-that was my baby.”

“What the hell?” Jude shook his head. “You’re Other. Why would you hunt your own?”

Davey’s gaze again tracked to Zane. “Why would he? Why would you?” He licked away some of the blood on his lips.

Zane saw Jude’s hands clench into fists. “We go after the bastards who have crossed the line. We don’t hurt innocents. We stop the Other who can’t stop themselves.”

“So do I.” Davey blinked a bit, as if surprised they’d even doubt him. “Perseus goes after those who hurt humans, we- they—”

“That’s a damn lie!” Jana’s eyes were bright. “Marcus didn’t hurt any humans. He—”

Davey’s left hand wrapped in her hair, and he yanked her head back. “He sliced open the throat of Clayton Ridge-way.”

“Because Ridgeway killed Marcus’s girlfriend! And a dozen other women!” Jana didn’t sound scared. Didn’t look it either. Her eyes were so bright … and starting to become streaked with the faintest of red lines.

Zane sucked in a sharp breath. Charging up. Could Davey tell?

“Doesn’t matter what Ridgeway did.” No smile lifted Davey’s lips now. “Paranormals can’t kill humans. The two worlds aren’t meant to cross. When they do, hell comes.”

Hell comes. “The two worlds cross all the time.” Zane risked a few steps closer. The claws didn’t dig any deeper into Jana’s throat. “That crossing … that’s how you and I got to be here, right? Hybrids, both of us. For me, because my mother loved a demon, and for you, because your dad—”

“Don’t talk about him!” The scream echoed through the night.

Yeah, okay, obviously he’d just found Davey’s weakness.

“My dad did the damn best he could. He couldn’t help that a demon tricked him, got into his mind and—”

“Is that what he told you?” Zane asked quietly, keeping the emotion out of his voice. Her throat was still bleeding. If those claws dug in a bit more … “That your mother used her power to work into his mind and steal his will?”

“She was a demon. She tricked him. Made him think she was human.” Sweat slid down Davey’s temples. “He didn’t even know, not until she had me, not until he saw her eyes change.”

Well, shit. “The delivery, right?” Because when you were having a baby, you probably weren’t real focused on holding the glamour.

“He saw her for what she was then.”

Jana slammed her elbow into his stomach. “Demons are fucking people, too!”

“Jana!”

Davey snarled and held her tighter, harder. “The bitch deserved what she got!”

“What?” Jana taunted him. Always taunting, always pushing … and giving Zane the chance to slip ever closer. “What did she deserve? You for a son? The woman must have really screwed some people over to get—”

He whirled her around and drove his fist into her jaw. Jana went down, and Zane lunged forward as the fury burned through him. Davey was reaching for her again, death in his eyes, when Zane slammed into the bastard. ”Don’t fucking touch her!”

They crashed into the ground. The air thickened around them. So hot. Heavy with power and rage.

But Davey wasn’t attacking. He just stared up at Zane. “You understand. I know you do. You killed your father. You know what a sick bastard he was.”

And I’m not like him. He’d been afraid, for so long, but…

Demons are fucking people, too. Jana’s words rang in his ears. His strong, fierce Jana. “He was a bastard all right, but not because he was a demon. Just because he was one twisted addict who got off on his drugs and on giving pain to others.”

Davey blinked. “No, no, you understand—” “What do I understand?” He kept his arms loose at his sides. The attack would come again. He knew it. Jude circled behind the other demon. Jana rose slowly to her feet. He caught sight of blood dripping from her lips. Fuck. “I’m a demon, Davey. You are, too. And you’re a twisted asshole, that I know.”

“But you’re not, Zane.” Jana’s voice. Still strong. “You’re not like your father or like Davey.”

He stared into Davey’s black eyes. Demon eyes, but eyes filled with hate and fury. “No, but I think our Davey might be one hell of a lot like his old man. He taught you to hate, didn’t he, Davey? Taught you to destroy the things that were different in this world. To destroy the things he didn’t understand.”

Davey charged him with his claws out. “The bitch deserved to die! She would have made me evil, made me—”

Zane sidestepped the attack and drove a fist into Davey’s back. “You are evil. You don’t even realize it.”

Davey hit the ground.

“You killed a human, Davey. That girl at the college- Lindsey was human.”

Davey jumped back to his feet. The wind began to roar around them. “The bitch would have told what she knew about Laura and Perseus. I wasn’t gonna let that happen.”

“Why? Because then the big lie about Perseus defending the humans would fall apart? Because the truth is that you were just using the psychic to steal power, power that you took, that Beth took, hell, that others at Perseus probably took, too? Because deep down, you all just wanted to be the badasses that people feared in the night?” Zane shook his head. “Give me a break—”

The wind slammed into him with the force of a bus. Zane flew back and rammed into the brick wall. He heard Jude’s hard grunt and turned just in time to see the shifter slam face first into the side of a garbage dumpster. The shifter’s body slid to the ground, and a large dent hollowed the side of the dumpster.