Chapter Five
Jacoby watched Den throw Kari over his shoulder then they both started to run. He had no time to think, no time to wonder what the hell had just happened. He only knew they had to get to the car and get the hell out of here before those men and that demon regrouped and came after them. He figured they’d be motivated as hell to get to Kari now that they knew what she could do. He still couldn’t believe she had that much power. The implications of that made him shake his head as they made it to the car. Den ripped open the passenger door and carefully settled Kari in the back seat while Jacoby got behind the wheel and started the car. When Den slid into the passenger seat, Jacoby revved the engine and shot down the trail leading to the nearest paved road. Since he knew they only had one place to go, he headed for the nearest road heading south. Since there was literally only one major road out of the area, he knew where he was going. But that meant the Mal would be on their asses. He had to put enough miles between them and their pursuers so when they reached civilization and he attempted to lose them, they might have an actual shot at it. With his foot heavy on the gas pedal, he had to keep his attention laser-focused on the road. It helped keep his mind off the scene they’d left behind. Den sat just as silently, gaze trained straight ahead. They drove in silence for at least half an hour, the radio filling in the dead space in the car. But finally, he couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “What the hell happened back there?” It took Den a full minute to answer and, when he did, it wasn’t an answer at all. “Did you have any idea she had that much power?” Jacoby shot Den a glare. “How the hell would I have known that?” “Shit. I didn’t— I’m not accusing you of anything. But holy hell...” Yeah. Holy hell was an understatement. “Do you have any idea what she did?” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Den shake his head. “When she touched me, I felt like every single fear I’d ever had in my life hit me all at once. I wanted to curl in a ball and hide in a dark hole. I figure I got a pretty low dose. I can’t imagine what she unleashed on them.” They both fell silent again but Jacoby knew it wouldn’t last. “They’re not gonna stop,” Den said. “Christ, she put an even bigger target on her back.” “And made my sister an even bigger commodity.” “Shit.” Den turned to stare at him. “Fuck. I didn’t even think of that. Vaffanculo, I hope to hell the lucani got her out. We need to call.” “We can’t. The phones have GPS—Fuck, so does the car.” He yanked the car to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes. “What the hell—” “We need to disable the fucking GPS so they can’t track us.” “How the hell are we supposed to do that? Do you even know how—” “I just need a minute.” Sucking in a deep breath, Jacoby attempted to calm his nerves. Yeah, it was pretty much a losing proposition but it did help. A little. Okay, not that much but he didn’t have time to fuck around. And no, he wasn’t sure he could do this but it was either this or ditch the car and steal another. You can do this. Just focus.
Closing his eyes, he put his hands on the dashboard and unleashed the magic he typically hid deep inside himself. The magic not even Den knew about. It had become second nature to keep this secret, one only he and his sister knew. A secret she’d made him promise to keep to himself. To never use it unless his life was in danger. Because if the Mal found out what he could do, they’d use him for much worse than simple guard duty. He had a vague notion that the GPS chip was located somewhere in the dash, so that’s where he started. Using his magic like a bloodhound, he sent it into the car. Magic and technology didn’t play nice together. Usually, you couldn’t use one against the other and, if you tried, you ended up frustrated or worse, you burned out your magical powers for a certain period of time. His father had once explained that technology was like a black hole that, when you attempted to affect it, the resulting explosion blew back on you. His father didn’t have a clue. But Jacoby did, because of his rare talent. Technology wasn’t a black hole. It was another form of magic. And Jacoby could control it. He’d never heard of another person who could do what he could. He’d grown up being told by his sister to hide what he could do, to pretend he was less than what he was. Now he had to use his power to save their asses. No pressure at all. From the electronics in the steering wheel, he followed the wiring into the dash and from there spread out, hoping like hell his connection to the electronics would lead him to where he needed to go. Magic was an imprecise art but it could be controlled and directed. Usually. Luckily for him, the car had a built-in navigation system. It’d make sense that the chip would be there. And finally, he caught a break. As his arus passed by the other electronics, they gave off energy, some of which he could read. Understand was probably a better word to describe it. Whatever word you wanted to use, the end result was he could figure out what type of information that piece of technology was transmitting. When he brushed up against a certain chip, the image he got in his head was of maps. That had to be it. In the next second, he sent a bolt of energy directly to that chip and fried it. When he opened his eyes, he turned to Den, staring at him with a steady gaze. “Whatever you did, did it work?” Shit. He’d never heard Den direct that tone at him. He’d only ever heard his friend use it against people he didn’t trust, which was pretty much everyone else. Everyone except Jacoby. “Den—” “Not now.” Den shook his head and glanced over the back seat, to where Kari was still out cold. “Just get us back on the road. We need to get far enough away from here to dump this car and get another one. Can you hotwire a car with your gift?” “I’ve never had to but it shouldn’t be a problem.” “Then the first car you see that won’t raise an immediate alarm, stop and we’ll take it.” An added level of tension descended when Den fell silent. Jacoby kept his attention on the road and his mouth shut. He knew Den was pissed but he also knew his friend well enough to know Den was working through his anger and, when he was ready, he’d ask questions. And Jacoby would try to answer them. “So this gift...” Den finally spoke fifteen minutes later. “How long have you had it?” Jacoby breathed a sigh of relief before he answered. “Since birth, I think. My parents always had trouble with computers and electronics in the house. They kept getting fucked up. Same for the TVs. My dad wasn’t home much so he didn’t notice or he didn’t care. Or my sister just got good at covering for me. Either way, we managed to keep it hidden until I could control it.” “Does anyone else know?” He shook his head. “Emelia knew if anyone found out, the Mal would take me and she’d never see me again. She helped me control it, helped me hide it. I’ve never heard of anyone else who can do the
things I can do. I’m not saying I’m the only one out there. I’m just saying, if there are other people with the same ability, they’re either hiding it or suppressing it.” Den didn’t respond for almost a full second. When he did, his question was unexpected. “So your magic disrupts technology. What makes your power different?” “I can control it.” “How the hell did you manage to keep that a secret? Jesus, my parents were all over me about my Gift, even though it’s barely usable. It’s not like I can talk to animals. I can just barely influence them. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. And when it does, I can maybe understand what the hell deer are thinking or if there’s a predator in the area.” Jacoby knew this. He and Den had been friends for years. Which just made Jacoby feel even more shitty for not telling Den. “I’m sorry. My sister made me swear as a kid never to tell anyone. Maybe I was a little too paranoid. Maybe I took it too far. Maybe—” “You did what you thought was best. You don’t have to apologize. That’s not...” Den paused then sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “It’s just a shock. Just let me work through it.” He huffed out a dry laugh. “Just when you think you know everything there is to know about someone...” Jacoby felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He’d hated keeping this secret from Den. Had never wanted to but his sister’s fear had worked a little too well, apparently. “So no one else knows?” Shaking his head, he navigated through the increasing darkness of the night. No street lights lit this stretch of road and the wildlife population in the area was dense. He didn’t want to accidentally hit anything. “No.” “No one’s ever suspected?” “Maybe.” He shrugged. “I don’t know. If they did, it wasn’t enough to investigate. Besides, as far as I know, no one else has this kind of a Gift so no one’s looking for it.” More silence, this time less filled with tension. Den sighed, staring at him outright now. “We should go to Vegas. Christ, we’d be rich.” It took a second for Den’s words to sink in then Jacoby began to laugh. Because that was the real Den. The one who managed to make him smile when he threatened to become too damn morose. “I’ve considered it a few times but I don’t use it enough to make it work like that.” “Then I guess we need to get you to practice. Christ, Jack, with a little effort, there’s no telling what you’d be able to do.” “Do with what?” Kari’s voice sounded weak but alert and Jacoby allowed himself to take his eyes off the road for a few brief seconds to check on her in the rearview while Den swung around in his seat. “How are you feeling? Are you okay? What the hell happened back there?” Jacoby winced at the demand in Den’s voice. Kari was a goddess, not just an ordinary woman to order around. She demanded a level of respect. So he reached over and punched Den on the arm. “For fuck’s sake, Den.” He kept his voice low. “Watch your godsdamn mouth.” Den didn’t even bother to glare at him, just kept his attention firmly on Kari, who yawned and almost made him drive off the side of the road when he caught a glimpse of her as she stretched. Fuck. He was just as bad as Den. At least he didn’t broadcast his lust as clearly as Den. Not that she seemed to mind. Yeah, he really didn’t need to be thinking about shit like that right now. They had a long drive and he need to keep his attention focused. And not on her. “It’s okay, Jacoby. He’s worried and that’s my fault. I didn’t mean to worry you.” Another glance in the rearview and he caught her smiling that sleepy, sexy-as-fuck smile that made him want to climb into the back seat and take her hard and fast. And then watch Den do the same.
He shook his head. This woman—no, this goddess gave him all sorts of ideas he’d never had before and he couldn’t tell if they originated from him or from her. And did it really matter? He only knew he needed to get her to the lucani and make sure his sister was safe. Then maybe he could get his head back on straight and figure out what the hell he was gonna do now that he’d burned the only life he knew to the ground. “Then what the hell happened back there?” Den asked again. “You scared the shit out of us.” “I am so sorry about that.” Her voice held a deep sorrow that made Jacoby want to wrap his arms around her and pull her close. “I didn’t mean to hurt you—” “I’m not talking about what you did to us. I’m taking about you hurting yourself.” She fell silent and Jacoby glanced in the mirror to make sure she was okay. Not crying. Crying would be bad. If Den had made her cry, he’d have to beat him. She wasn’t. At least, he didn’t think she was. She looked mostly confused. “You’re not afraid of me?” “Why would we be afraid of you?” Jacoby asked when Den seemed to have lost his voice. “Because of the way I used my power against you. It was the only way I could think of to get you to release me. I didn’t want you to be touching me when I turned it on the Mal.” “Shit, no. I’m not angry about that. I’m pissed off that you hurt yourself. Are you okay?” “Yes, I’m fine.” In the rearview, Jacoby saw her lips curve in a smile and he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t realized how much stress he’d been holding until it lifted. “So what happened, Kari?” Jacoby glanced into the review again because he couldn’t help himself. “Why’d you pass out?” He heard her shifting around the seat behind them a second before she put one hand on his shoulder and the other on Den’s. Her touch sent electricity sparking through his body, causing his hands to clench around the wheel. He wanted to reach for her but the twisting road required both hands on the wheel. Den grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to the palm. It should’ve made Jacoby uncomfortable. Why it didn’t wasn’t something he wanted to explore right now. Instead, he pressed the gas pedal a little closer to the floor as they hit a relatively straight stretch of road. The faster they got to the wolves, the better he’d feel. They were too exposed out here on the road. And he didn’t want anything to happen to her. “I overextended myself. I haven’t had to use that much power in so long that I forgot how to regulate it. I’m afraid I might have caused some of those men serious damage.” She sounded so upset but he shook his head. “You know what they have planned for you. Don’t feel sorry for anything you do to them to keep yourself safe.” “I understand that. It also goes against everything I am.” “Yeah, well, don’t do it again.” Den’s tone gentled some but not much. “We’ll handle the Mal.” “You can’t handle the demon.” “You didn’t give us the chance.” Den’s voice rumbled with anger and Jacoby shot him a glace to get him to shut the fuck up. “I’m not trying to be mean but you couldn’t have handled the demon.” Her hand gripped his shoulder tighter and he had to resist the urge to put his hand over hers. “And this one had a hell of a lot of power. I’d love to know what it was doing with the Mal. I haven’t seen one in centuries and I know they don’t normally walk freely on this plane.” This plane. Tinia’s teat, that rattled him. Theoretically, he knew there were other worlds, realms, planes of existence, whatever the hell you wanted to call them. But they’d always been more idea than reality. Now... Damn, he’d actually seen a demon. From hell. Aitás was much more real now than it’d been before. It was going to take some time to come to terms with that. Says the man who can interface with machinery.
He shot a look at Den and figured they both had pretty much the same look on their faces. Shock. Disbelief. A whole lot of “holy shit” and “what the fuck.” Den was the first to find his voice. “We had no idea the Mal are working with a demon.” “I know that.” Kari’s voice coated the darkness inside and out of the car with warmth. And made Jacoby’s cock swell against the zipper of his pants. “This demon’s no low-level grunt, either. He’s hierarchy. And that’s a whole other worry on its own.” “Why does that make a difference?” Den asked. Before she could answer, she yawned. “Because it means Charun is either working with the Mal or he doesn’t know what his minions are doing. And that’s probably worse than anything else. Without Charun to keep them under control, the upper-echelon demons are brilliant and bloodthirsty and powerhungry. And they have absolutely no conscience.” Jacoby shook his head, trying to think. “So why the hell are they working with the Mal?” Kari’s hand tightened on his shoulder. “I don’t know but whatever it is, it’s not good.” “What did he say to you?” Den asked. “It was talking to you, wasn’t it?” “It was taunting me, telling me how obsolete and useless I was. It didn’t seem to have a purpose, unless it just wanted to piss me off.” “Can you think of any reason it would want you?” She fell silent for several long seconds, her index finger tapping a steady beat against his shirt. “No. I don’t have any idea why they’d want me. Unless...” “Unless what?” Jacoby couldn’t chance looking in the mirror. The road had started to twist again as they began to come out of the mountains. “Maybe they want what Charun wanted. To be free of Aitás. They can only spend a limited amount of time on this plane or they risk being wiped from existence. They were created to serve Charun and given limited powers, so they wouldn’t be able to revolt or escape...” She paused and Jacoby realized why immediately. “If they take your power, will they be able to cross through to this plane more easily and stay longer?” She removed her hand and slid back into her seat and he immediately missed her touch. “Possibly. Probably, yes. It makes sense. What I can’t figure out is why Charun would allow it. He wants out but he knows the demons can’t be allowed to roam. They’re too unstable, too violent.” “Maybe he doesn’t care,” Den said. “Maybe he doesn’t know.” Jacoby shrugged. “I guess it doesn’t matter. The end result is the same. They’re working with the Mal and we need to figure out how to fight that.” “I’m not sure there is any way to fight them.” Kari sounded much more somber than she usually did. And tired. “I need to talk to Amity and the rest of my sisters. We need...” another yawn that made her sigh, “to figure out how to send them back to Aitás.” He and Den exchanged a worried glance as she yawned again. “We’ve still got about five hours of driving before we get to the wolves, why don’t you stretch out and take a nap?” Jacoby suggested. Den would’ve demanded, which was why Jacoby had spoken up. “We’ll wake you if anything happens,” Den added. “You look tired.” Jacoby winced. He knew better than to tell a woman she looked less than perfect. Den should, too. Kari chuckled. “Yes, I’m sure I do. I feel tired. But I think I should be awake if they catch up to us.” “Aren’t you wiped out, magically speaking?” “I am, actually.” She paused. “But...” Jacoby knew she wanted to say something else. He didn’t know why she would hesitate. What wasn’t she telling them? “But what?” Den prompted. “What’s wrong?” “Oh, nothing’s wrong. Nothing that a good long sleep would cure. Or...” “Or what?” Den’s frustration coated every word. “Spit it out.”
“Well, sex is always a good way to recharge my battery.” Jacoby’s mouth actually fell open seconds before his libido leaped at the suggestion in her words and threatened to make him pull to the side of the road and climb over the back seat. He couldn’t chance a look in the rearview but he did glance at Den, who looked just as dumbstruck as he was sure he did. But in the blink of an eye, his expression flooded with lust. Holy shit. Did she mean—Could she possibly want— “Well, you both don’t have to answer all at once but I hope I didn’t scare you into silence.” Her tone held amusement but Jacoby thought he heard a little hurt as well. And that was unacceptable. But... Holy shit. Did she just want him to pull over to the side of the road? Or did she just want Den to crawl into the backseat? Jacoby wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep the car on the road if he had to listen to them— “As much as we would love to take you up on that offer,” Den had to clear his throat before he could continue, “I think we need to get to the wolves as soon as possible.” Her sigh made Jacoby struggle to swallow a groan. She sounded so...disappointed. Oh, fuck. Join the club, babe. “I suppose you’re right. Okay, I guess I’ll just stretch out here for a little while and—” “But as soon as we get to the wolves,” Den continued, “all bets are off.” He couldn’t help himself. Jacoby had to look in the rearview. Her smile, sleepy and sexy as fuck, threatened to obliterate his concentration. His cock swelled, threatening to split his zipper and his hands tightened on the wheel hard enough to make it creak. “Then I guess I have something to look forward to.” Her gaze met his in the mirror before sliding toward Den. “Drive safely. Wake me if you need to.” Jacoby heard her shift around on the seat then silence. Which held for at least ten minutes before Den finally cracked. “She’s out. Jack—” “We need to ditch this car and find something else.” Den’s heavy sigh filled the front seat. “We need to talk about this.” No, they really didn’t. At least, not now. “We can talk about it after we find another car.” “I need to know if you’re gonna be okay with this.” “This being a threesome? We don’t need to talk about it now.” “But we are going to talk about it. Jacoby kept his mouth shut and his concentration focused on the road. “Yeah, we’ll talk.” Jacoby just didn’t know what the hell he was going to say.