Chapter 5

The Chevelle’s engine roared to life, the garage door rattling in protest. Sebastian cranked the stereo, and the opening riff of “Hungry Like the Wolf” blasted through the speakers. I winced, the sudden noise like shards of glass in my sensitive ears.

“Duran Duran,” I chuckled. “Ironic, right?”

“What? I can’t hear you!” Sebastian yelled over the deafening music. I leaned over and turned the volume down a few notches.

“I said, it’s kind of ironic we’re going werewolf hunting with this song playing.”

Sebastian glanced at me, amusement flickering in his icy blue eyes. “I guess it’s a little ironic. But it’s not really about werewolves, you know. It’s about a guy who’s hungry for a woman, willing to do anything to get her attention.”

I rolled my eyes. Was he really going to be like that? Classic rock snob. “Still ironic.”

Sebastian just shrugged and cranked the music back up, his fingers drumming along to the beat on the steering wheel. The wind whipped through our hair as we flew down the highway, the Chevelle’s engine purring. Maine was still hours away, nothing but darkness and road ahead.

I gazed out at the moon, nearly full in the night sky. The actual full moon wasn’t until tomorrow night. I leaned over and turned down the music again, cutting through the wailing guitar solo.

“So where are we staying tomorrow?” I asked. “You know I can’t be out past sunrise.”

Sebastian’s eyes remained fixed on the road. “I’ve got a place lined up. Don’t worry about it.”

I studied Sebastian’s profile, trying to get a read on him. He was still such a mystery to me.

“Where are you from, originally?” I asked.

Sebastian’s mouth quirked. “Here and there.”

“Yeah, but where were you born?”

He hesitated. “I’m not sure, exactly.”

Cryptic bullshit. I wondered if I’d ever get a straight answer out of him.

Sebastian glanced at me, as if reading my skepticism. “I don’t really have a place I call home. The garage back in Providence was just a rental. I’ve been using it to keep an eye on things the last few months.”

I raised an eyebrow. “So you were in Providence all this time? Why didn’t you help with Jector? Or the faeries?”

Sebastian gripped the wheel, his knuckles whitening. “I had other matters to deal with. And I knew you could handle it.” He flashed a sly grin. “I don’t usually slay well with others.”

I rolled my eyes again. “Yeah, well, you’re bringing me along this time.”

“That’s different,” Sebastian added. “You’re as much the mission as you are my assistant.”

I snorted. “I’m your assistant?”

Sebastian winked at me. “I bested you last time we fought. That makes you, the…” He trailed off.

“Your bitch?” I raised an eyebrow. “Were you seriously going to call me your bitch?”

Sebastian laughed. “No, I wouldn’t do that.”

I shrugged and backhanded the burly hunk of manliness beside me on his shoulder. “Well I am a bitch. Just not someone else’s bitch.”

Sebastian gulped. “No comment. I think that’s one of those things a female says that if a guy replies to it in any way at all, he’s screwed. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.”

I twirled my wand as I laughed. “Someone has trained you well.” I was fishing for more clues about the strange “sentinel’s” past, but he wasn’t giving.

I reached into the backseat, my fingers brushing against the strange gauntlet, part metal, part leather. Before I could grasp it, Sebastian’s hand shot back and slapped mine away.

The car swerved violently before he regained control. “Don’t touch that!” he snapped.

I held up my hands. “Whoa there, didn’t mean to ruffle your feathers. I was just curious about that thing. It’s the one that blinded me, right?”

Sebastian’s jaw clenched, his eyes fixed on the road. “Yes. But it’s not a toy. If I still had celestial power coursing through that thing, it would burn the shit out of you.”

“Sorry,” I said. “I’ve just never seen anything like it. How does it work?”

“It’s enchanted,” Sebastian explained, some of the edge leaving his voice. “I have a colleague who is damn good with magical artifacts. He made this for me to use in my work.”

I leaned closer, peering at the intricate tool strapped to his wrist. “What kind of magic does it hold?”

“Depends on the crystal I fit into it,” he said. “But the crystals are only a part of it. Right now, it has a silver dagger that can pop in and out. Squeeze my fist, deliver a swift punch to a werewolf’s gut, and the monster’s as good as dead.”

He paused, giving me a sidelong glance. “Before, when I was after you, it had a stake carved from oak wood.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Yet now you’ve already got it swapped to silver. That’s pretty bold, considering you’re driving around with me.”

Sebastian shrugged, eyes back on the road. “I don’t think you’re going to ‘turn’ on me. We want the same thing now—to get rid of that dragon rattling around in your head. And I meant what I said back there. I still believe the world’s a better place with you in it.”

His words sent an unexpected warmth through my undead heart. I quickly deflected. “So what other kinds of crystals can that thing hold?”

Sebastian relaxed, seeming glad to change the subject. “All sorts. Celestial light is useful against vampires, and can also smite demons. An infernal crystal channels hellfire for heavy damage, good against pretty much anything. I also have druidic crystals that can heal wounds. I even have a lightning stone I got from a voodoo priestess in New Orleans.”

“New Orleans?” I raised an eyebrow. “I’ve spent most of my vampiric life in that city.”

Sebastian nodded. “I know. Funny we’ve never met, right?”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah. Hilarious. Makes me wonder what you’ve been up to all this time.”

“If you’d heard of me, it would have meant I’d failed at my job. I’m not in this for the glory, Mercy. I’d rather people not know what I do.”

This guy was a mystery, wrapped in an enigma, shrouded in a giant package of what- the-fuck. The more I learned about him, the more curious I was. Who was he really? And what experiences had forged him into… whatever he was.

My curiosity was piqued, but Sebastian’s body language told me he wasn’t ready to delve deeper. I let it go for now. We still had a long drive ahead, and nothing fucks with a road trip more than awkward tension. After a few days in the void, I was just glad to be alive again.

I studied his face, trying to get a read on him. He seemed so casual on the surface, so rough and tough. But I could see it in his eyes. All of that was covering up a deep well of pain and purpose underneath.

There was more to all of this than saving me. It was personal. I just didn’t know why.

“Well,” I said, leaning back in my seat. “I guess I’ll just have to solve the mystery of Sebastian Winter one piece at a time.”

He smiled, the corners of his mouth tense. “Good luck with that.”