Page 86 of The Vampire's Thirst
“Are you okay? What happened?” His fingers rubbed up and down her arm.
“I don’t know.” Jace shook the fog from her head. “I saw Celene’s kidnapping.”
Ram drew closer, no longer watching the game. “What?”
“I watched Celene jump Angel Falls. No. That’s wrong. I was Celene.” Jace bragged about her friend’s courage. “She was like that. No fear. A self-described adrenaline junkie. Anyway, the guys captured her. Me, in this case. They put her in a cell, like mine but somewhere else. Next, I woke up on her bed in that house we shared.”
Jace looked down at her necklace but avoided fingering it again. “I think it happened when I touched the pendant.”
The two men exchanged glances.
“The necklace was Celene’s. Does that mean something?” Jace looked into Tyr’s neon purple eyes for the answer.
He lifted her from the chair, sat, and resettled her in his lap, continuing to caress her arms until she stopped shaking. “You found your gift, witch.”
“Really? What am I?”
“A diviner. Some mages can read an object’s history. Where it’s been. Who owned it. Stuff like that.”
“Is it a helpful gift?”
“For authenticators, scholars, crime-fighters. My uncle contracts out to museums all over the world. Guy’s loaded and in demand. Here as well as on Earth. Of course, humans don’t know he’s a warlock. ”
“Can I find Celene because it belonged to her? She gave it to me as a going-away gift.”
Ram drew fingers through his caramel-streaked hair. “No. You can see your friend’s history only for the time it was in her possession. We already found the house where you escaped. It was deserted.”
Jace’s shoulders slumped. Then she squealed as she twisted in Tyr’s lap. “How stupid of me. Damn. Skyler can use it to scry. She needs something personal. I forgot about the pendant.” Jace threw her arms around Tyr’s neck. “I’ll keep my promise to bring Celene home.”
****
Kolepounded the table, sparks shooting from his fist like fireworks. “We need to find Arisen Dawn’s garrison and crack whatever spell they got going.”
He, Rein, Nico, and Sabine rushed to Cadmon’s meeting fresh from the battle at the portal. Not even a shower.
Nico, his face streaked with sweat and dirt, pushed aside the stray lock of hair which fell across his vision. “I’m telling you, we’ve been over every square foot of Scath. No Arisen Dawn fortress, garrison, barracks, or whatever-the-fuck. Their people ghost into nowhere once they access a portal. Maybe the expert warlock who Alarik sent us is defective. Or maybe Cerberus is just better than us. Whatever the case, we’ve done due diligence.”
Sabine, the only one of Kole’s warriors who still looked fresh in her unwrinkled tan cargo shorts and combat boots, patted her mate’s leg. With the stroke of her hand, Nico took a calming breath, his shoulders relaxing.
“It makes no sense,” said Rein, his torn shirt stained with the blood of Arisen Dawn soldiers. “How can you just lose track of them? Your D-chips should keep you glued to their asses through any portal.”
Nico slammed back his chair when he jumped to his feet. “Speaking of asses, why don’t you get off your righteous vampire one and look for them if we’re doing such a shitty job?”
Rein shot the warlock a fangy grin.
Kole bounced a ball of fire in his animus demon palm. “Sit down, Abello. We’re all frustrated.”
Tension was high among the Firebrands.
Despite the turmoil, Nace’s second, a shifter called Mix, sat at the table cleaning his nails with the tip of a pocketknife. He seemed to pay little attention to the negative energy bouncing around the room. If he wasn’t grooming his nails, he was flipping his blade into the air.
Maybe it was just an act. After all, protectiveness was built into Firebrand DNA. Without a solution or a big win, they would self-implode.
Nico wasn’t helping the situation. Once a respected agent high in the ranks of Earth’s Alliance, he tested positive as a Blood Coven descendant. Kole ordered Sabine and Tyr to bring him kicking and screaming to Scath. The male used bribery to land a spot with the Firebrands but hadn’t enjoyed being one of the weakest members on the team. Too many years as top dog. Then he got his power. Even with it, he was still a hothead. Being mated to the nymph Firebrand Sabine should have calmed him. It did. Sometimes. Somewhat. But he was arrogant and aggressive. Like most of the warriors.
So Kole bounced a fireball, tempted to lob it at Nico. Most of his Firebrands had been on the receiving end of his hands-on discipline. He loved them, but they were an exasperating lot.
With a tug on Nico’s arm, Sabine said, “We’re as puzzled as you are. They just poof into air when we follow them through a portal. Damn strange. Alarik’s warlock can’t find them. Obviously, they are gathering somewhere.”
