Page 38 of Avenger of Sins

Megan’s crescent moon charm seemed to burn against his skin, where it hung tucked beneath his shirt. Under Harlow’s orders, she’d just been left there, sealed in until her forty days were up, until there was no way left to save her.

SPECTR agents kidnapped him, took him away from the mother who loved him, then allowed him to believe he’d been given away. They put Ryan in a lab, and trapped him, Jo, and poor Tim in SPECTR. Tim died in the line of duty, never even having a chance to learn the truth.

This burden on his heart shouldn’t be his alone to bear. Harlow and all his enablers should feel it too, right before they perish.

He took a deep, steadying breath. The banshee would tell him what he wanted to hear, try to align their interests. He needed to resist.

“But you are right to feel angry,”it whispered, and he couldn’t disagree.

Ryan stood very still, head cocked to the side. “Are you all right?” John asked.

“No.” Ryan cast him a rueful look. “But that’s not the point, is it? I can feel its power surging through me. I think it will be enough to get us out of here. And after we escape the compound, once we’re safe again, you’ll exorcise me. Just like before.”

John nodded. “Just like before.”

“Then let’s do this.”

Ryan crossed the room and stood beside the door. He closed his bloody eyes and took on an attitude of concentration. His breathing grew harsh, and a bubble of blood burst from one nostril.

What if he couldn’t do this? What if the NHE didn’t give him enough energy? What if…

A burst of gunfire sounded on the other side of the door, causing John to jump. It was followed by a beep as the door unlocked—then a single shot.

Ryan staggered. John grabbed his arm before he could crumple. “You can’t keep this up!”

Ryan licked the blood that had trickled down to his mouth. “No choice. Come on.”

He opened the door. The two guards lay outside, both dead from gunshot wounds. A sick satisfaction filled John, along with a murmur of“Their pain ended too quickly, but at least they’re dead.”

John shook his head, trying to dislodge the voice. His exorcist sense hummed like a live wire; when he looked at Ryan, he could see the demon within, hungry for more violence. Could feel other NHEs, like glowing lights beckoning to him from other points in the compound.

He couldn’t command them as he had the fully transformed ghouls in New Orleans. But some were so, so close to their forty days. Just a little while longer, and he could have them.

No—that wasn’t why he was here. He straightened his spine, tried to focus past the banshee’s influence that howled through his soul like a bleak wind, or a scream of the damned.

“Can you sense Harlow?” he asked. “Or Caleb?”

Caleb. Fuck, he must be so scared right now. They had to get to him, had to save Gray and Night.

Ryan nodded. “I can. Harlow is headed for Caleb now. I’ll try to shield us from any other guards, but I might not be able to get them all.”

John squatted by one of the bodies and took the 9mm from his belt. “I’ll take care of any you can’t handle. And any who are possessed, though it doesn’t seem Harlow has the same interest in demon soldiers that Forsythe had.”

“Just in boosting paranormal ability,” Ryan agreed.

John checked the clip, gratified to find it full. “We need to move.”

They started down the hall, Ryan leading the way to Harlow. Shouts sounded behind them; John spun and fired. He was already faster and stronger than an unpossessed human; how much better would he get if the possession lingered?

No, that was the banshee talking.

“Is it? Or do you just finally recognize the truth?”

One guard went down from the shot; the second collapsed beneath a mental pulse from Ryan. They turned their backs from the dead or dying men and continued on.

Time seemed to slow and speed up simultaneously; the banshee gave him an edge in each confrontation, but between fights they seemed to go from hallway to central tunnel, through the raised blast door, and to another hall in a series of blinks. Like a film carelessly cut.

Ryan moved like a hunter, the lycanthrope within lending his battered body strength and focus. As for John…

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