Page 39 of Dark Shadow of Guilt

A long pause had Praevus twitchy.

“Explain.” The voice was a low grumble.

“I had to change locations with the female since the Scourge Ike sicced the Feard onto me.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I know.” Praevus heard music fade and a door snick shut. Must be on the speaker’s end.

“How’d you find out?” The Mind Rat’s heart pounded against his ribs.

“Ely’s making the rounds. The one with ice in his veins. He’s looking for you.”

“They’re all mean fuckers. Is he on to you?” Praevus’s voice rose in proportion to his fear.

Papers were shuffled around as if the speaker were in an office at a desk. “Nah. When did you last see Serita?”

Praevus scratched his head. “A few days ago. That’s when she gave me the human for safekeeping. Anyway, Dom’s scouring the city.”

The silence from the other end of the conversation had his hand shaking. Did the conspirator believe Praevus? Surely he did.

After a while, the conspirator said, “Run to Serita’s cabin. It’s crappy, but it has four walls, a door, and a bed. Best of all, I have allies who will take to the air to guard its whereabouts. Take the human with you. You haven’t harmed her, have you?”

Praevus already knew about the isolated place because that’s where he took Madeline from Serita. “I’m heading there now, but the human’s not with me. I ditched her to save my own skin. And, of course, yours. The Feard would never stop looking for her. So, I turned her loose as a distraction. If they find her, they’ll be satisfied for a while.”

The speaker paused, a growl floating through the phone. “That’s not good. We need her. But I can arrange to snatch her later.” The conspirator suddenly sounded dangerous. Cold. “Has she transitioned?”

“Has she what?”

“Never mind. Who has her?”

“I don’t know.”

Praevus thought on better things. Madeline’s mind. Though he hadn’t reached the core because of her impressive shields, he had done enough. And, best of all, he had set triggers.Yes. Hiscoup de grace. Hiscreme de la cremeof skills. Only a handful of Mind Rats could compete with him. “Jokes on them,” he said, hoping one of the Feard located the human.

“What do you mean?”

“The female will surprise whoever has her.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“Nothing. It’s time to run. You’d be wise to do the same. Ike’s dead. Whoever is setting up this shit is capable of extinction. Is it because he squealed on me?”

The speaker met Praevus’s question with another long silence. “I don’t know. The leaders of the rebellion are powerful.”

“I’m not gonna waste my time figuring everything out. Can you get me out of Angor?”

The speaker laughed. “I can’t even get myself out of this cesspool.”

Praevus clutched his chest, his breath hitching. “Okay. I’ll take care of myself and go to the cabin.”

“Destroy the phone once you disconnect.” The speaker sounded a bit more nervous, his voice quivering, unsure. “If you are captured and you mention my name, Ike’s fate will await you.”

Praevus had no intention of getting rid of the cellphone. It was his only link to the conspirator. Already planning to fly to the Razor Mountains, he disconnected, flicking out his leathery wings, not as handsome as the ones he’d had when he was an Immortal. With a powerful downward stroke, he rose from the ground.

For a short time in Vast before his capture, he had enjoyed his Mind Rat gift, tunneling into the minds of ignorant Immortals. Getting inside their brains, he had twisted them to suit his desires. Praevus had been good at disguising his malady until he took things too far, opening himself for discovery.

Scourges developed their physical changes at different rates. Some slowly. Some faster. Praevus’s eyes did not turn pure white until late in his transition from Immortal to Rat.

Thus, it was easy for him to fool the OneCreator’s court favorite, Elise. She was a buxom blonde, not dissimilar from the human he’d had in his warehouse. Flaunting her beauty in front of him, she teased until he had no choice. He caught the minor goddess who was so proud of her status. Then he got to work. It was glorious to delve into her mind. So pure. So innocent. So simple. He wound his way through her brain matter. A twist here. A suggestion there.

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