Chapter 15

"Vivian," I said to Eligor. "That's her name? The Magelore that's in one of the facilities?"

His swelling eyes went wide. "You know her? How?"

I leaned my head back in the seat and closed my eyes, Ruby curled up at my feet. "I'm the reason she was captured. I thought I'd killed her, though. She'd never talk to me even if we had no other option."

Vivian had worked for my father, had worked with Mancini. I had a sudden niggling thought that maybe Mancini and the demons had been keeping the fallen at bay. What if . . . by killing them, I'd opened the gates for Gardreel?

"Fuck," I whispered. I didn't even want to voice it out loud, the idea was too damn messed up to let it take root.

The others grew quiet, and Killian kept a steady pace on the highway until we were nearly out of fuel. We pulled over and everyone piled out at a shitty little gas station in the middle of nowhere. I hadn't even been paying attention to the area, so caught up in my own existential crisis that I was.

That maybe, just maybe I'd been the reason that the fallen were now out in the open.

Eligor stayed in the vehicle, which was fine by me. I strode toward the gas station and pulled Dinah. "No killing. We just want money and food."

"Spoil sport."

A similar conversation rolled between Easter and Diego. Only he laughed and she laughed right back. They were a good match. It felt right.

Even so, I could feel my other hand itching for a second gun.

"You need a backup with me?" Dinah seemed to read my thoughts as we stepped through the glass door, the little bell dinging, announcing our arrival.

"I like to be prepared," I said as I lifted her up and pointed at the clerk. He was in his later years, salt and pepper hair, unshaven, and blurry-eyed. "Cash. Now."

He frowned, his eyes narrowing until they looked as though he were sleeping sitting up. In a sloppy move he yanked a shotgun up from under the counter. I squeezed the trigger, putting a hole directly between his eyes. He flopped backward and I strode around the side.

"I thought you said no killing!" Dinah barked and then laughed. "Not that I'm complaining."

"He started it." I pulled out the cash tray and took all the bills. A few hundred dollars, not much. But it wasn't really about the money. I lifted Dinah and shot out two of the cameras. Easter took out the third at the back of the store.

She and Pete gathered up a bunch of food—and I use that term loosely. Potato chips and chocolate bars were barley substantial meals for a car full of adults.

As I stepped out of the gas station, the TV sitting on the counter blared to life.

"Looking at the forecast, you're going to want to set some time aside three nights from now. Just after dark on the fifteenth, we're going to have an amazing meteor shower. Best seen out of New Orleans, ‘the night of the bleeding stars' as some of the locals call it, is sure to be a real show."

The voice clicked off along with the TV.

"Subtle." I muttered.

Dinah sniffed. "Wait. Three days? Do we suddenly have a time limit?"

"Looks like it." I pushed out the door, the bell jingling over my head.

I paused at the vehicle parked to the side of the station. An old Bronco, top heavy, and likely to tip over if you hit a corner too hard. Jacked up so it would be even more likely to roll. I went over to it and opened the door. The keys dangled from the ignition. I slid in and turned the key. The engine rolled over, purring like a damn kitten.

I pulled it around the front. "We're going to caravan."

Ruby hopped right in with me. Easter took the driver's seat in the mom wagon, and Eligor looked torn. I shook my head. "Fine, come with me. Carlos, you ride with Easter. Pete, you come with me and Killian too."

In under five minutes, we were on the road again.

"Let me drive, lass. You need to sleep if you can." Killian motioned at me to move over.

"So sweet," Pete laughed, and then held up his hands when I twisted around to look at him. "It's just unexpected, Nix. One thing to hear you two shacked up, another to see that it's real and not some game to gain power."

Dinah sniffed, but I didn't even bother to give Pete a response.

"We've got a couple days to get there," Killian said, also ignoring Pete. "You think we can stay ahead of this Gardreel?"

I handed him a bottle of water and nodded. "We have to." I paused and reached a hand over for him. "There is no other option."

He lifted my hand and kissed the back of it. I could feel Eligor in the back of my head, even though they were in the car behind us. Irritated, angry and so very confused about the emotions.

I leaned back, hanging onto Killian in a way I chose not to think about. The time in the facility . . . had broken something in me. Ruby set her big head on my thigh and let out a snuffling sigh. Pete and Killian were silent, and I let sleep take me over. For the first time in I didn't know how long, I was safe.

Or at least as safe as I was going to be.

I didn't dive into the fog of my mind, the river, I didn't go looking for Bear no matter that I wanted desperately to see him, to check in with him. I knew that if something happened, he'd reach for me.

Instead, I let myself sink deep into a healing sleep that my body and my mind craved like a drowning man craves air. I took it.

Somewhere around the three-hour mark, my sleep was interrupted by a whisper that rolled up from the backseat.

"Pete." I said only his name and felt his attention shift to me. I closed my eyes and sunk into that space of in-between. There was a tension that Pete was giving off, and with the bite between us . . . I blinked and stood, fully clothed on the edge of the raging river.

The fog rolled up around us and Pete stood across from me.

"Something is happening," Pete said, his body tense like a deer knowing it was spotted by the hunter. "There is a connection between Magelores. I'm not supposed to ever say anything, but I think this warrants it. Gardreel is with Vivian, I'm sure of it."

I stared hard at him. "Will she break?"

He rubbed a hand over his face. "Maybe? And . . . I can take us to her."

Fuck, of course he could.

"I wouldn't save her," I said.

"I know." He nodded. "The facility is close, like thirty minutes east. She said it's full of kids. Abnormal children. They were all put there, together. Away from their parents."

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Did we go? That was the question.

I didn't open my eyes. Instead, I reached through the connection I had to Easter. I felt her startle, but she stayed driving. My decision was already made. I spoke out loud. "We have a detour. Let's call it a practice run. Vivian is going to break. We have to kill her before she does, and while we're there, we might be doing some rescuing." Might. As if I could leave kids with Gardreel. Kids like Bear. Fucking right I was going to get them out.

Easter shivered and when she spoke, I heard her as clearly as if she was in the vehicle with me. "Into a facility."

"Yes." There was nothing else to say. We had our weapons; we had our team. But we had something Gardreel didn't know about. Two somethings. Ipos if he could be useful.

More than him though . . . I turned around and looked at Eligor.

"Eligor. We're going to need you to do this."

"I don't have any say in what happens there—"

"I need you to give Cowboy control of his body. We need his ability if we're going to take the facility. And then I need you to work with him to help us get through." I reached back and wrapped my hand around his neck, feeling him swallow. "Do it. Give him control."

"I . . . Okay." He bowed his head and a split second later his entire body stiffened and flailed. Cowboy's eyes were wild, as they locked on mine. "Jesus! Jesus H. Christ! That motherfucker has control of me, you have to stop him! Jesus. Stop him!"

I tightened my hold on his neck, keeping his attention on me. "Cowboy. You need to trust me. You did once, I need you to do it again." Once more I couldn't say what I wanted to, not without Eligor figuring out that I would help Cowboy regain his body at some point. But I had a feeling we'd need the fallen one throughout our trips in the facilities. Plural. Fuck me, I didn't want to go into one, never mind two.

Between Eligor and Ipos, I was hoping we'd have the upper hand.

Cowboy blinked a few times, his hands clinging to my arms, and I chose to ignore the tears trickling down his cheeks. I knew what it was to have your handler take control of your body. It wasn't pretty and it didn't leave you feeling like smiling. "Okay." His voice was scratchy, and his Adam's apple bobbed under my hand.

I let him go. "You're going to knock out the power, then you'll stay outside with Carlos. Pete, you'll lead us to Vivian. Easter, me and Killian will take point. Pete, which direction?"

They all nodded. No one argued. Pete spit out the general direction. "Take your next right, she's east," and Killian did his best to follow with the roads at hand. It was nearing noon, on a summer day. Bright sunlight, without even a distraction to help us out.

We weren't exactly going in under the cover of darkness. It might be our salvation, because no one would think we'd be so fucking stupid as to show up in the middle of the damn day.

"Cowboy, ask Eligor if Gardreel would expect a daytime hit." I deliberately didn't ask Eligor. I didn't want him back and running the show if I could help it. I wanted him buried and useful, not in charge.

The kid cleared his throat and grabbed the back of my seat. "I don't want to talk to him. I don't like how he feels in my head."

I could have killed him right then and not felt bad, except that we needed him. I didn't even bother to turn around and look at him. Again, it was best that I didn't. As it was, my hand inched across to Dinah's holster. "Don't bitch at me or Easter about having some asshole in your head. Ever. Now ask him."

Unfortunately for him, he couldn't seem to stop himself. "No, you don't understand—"

I climbed over the seat and was on him. I wrapped my hands around his neck and pressed down. He barely tried to fight back. I stared straight down at him as my body shook with a killing rage. "Don't ever tell me I don't understand what it is to have Eligor in your head, asshole."

Cowboy stared up at me. The look shifted and then it wasn't him anymore.

I took a breath to blow the worst of the anger away, and then forced myself to turn and get back into my seat.

Eligor cleared his throat. Funny, I could feel him rise back to the surface of Cowboy's body.

"Gardreel would not expect it," he said quietly. "He prefers to work at night. The number of guards and handlers will be lower too. The facility with children in it is not as tightly guarded."

I looked at Killian. "Ipos, you got anything to add to this?"

Killian stiffened and then blue eyes glanced over at me. "What could I have to add about a facility that the fallen have created?" The sparkling light in his eyes said it all. "I am just being well behaved so you don't choke the shit out of my body, too."

He was being very well behaved, which made me wonder just what the fuck he was up to. "Killian." Just his name and he was back.

"Don't like that one much," he rumbled, "but he is quiet at least."

That was the difference between Cowboy and Killian. One could control his fear, the other couldn't.

Eligor shrunk down. "Perhaps it is best if I stay in charge."

My jaw ticked and Eligor raised his eyes to mine. "Unless you want the boy back."

I did and I didn't. "Think you can trigger his power when I ask you to?"

Eligor shivered, or maybe it was Cowboy shivering when he realized he'd been cast out in favor of someone who would fucking well listen to me.

"I . . . I will make it happen," Eligor whispered, his words thick with fear.

I twisted back around in my seat and closed my eyes. And this time I sought out the river and the quiet calm. Because if I could find one Magelore there, I could find the other.

Vivian. It had to be fucking Vivian.