Chapter Five
The next day, Sasha was still in deep denial. There was no way in hell she’d accept Razor as a partner. He was everything that would drive her nuts and distract her. Case in point, she was still thinking about all those lickable tattoos she’d finally gotten a glimpse of the other night.
So she decided to save herself the headache and tackle this case on her own, orders be damned.
Dressed in her signature biker boots, dark jeans, and a hoodie, Sasha locked up her apartment and ducked out of the building complex. Her tight curls bounced with her heavy steps. Looking over her shoulder and fruitlessly trying to push her wild hair out of her face while making sure no one suspicious was around, she pulled out her cell and hit her most frequently called speed dial.
“Sash, what’s up?” Sael’s rich voice filled the phone before the first ring even finished.
“Can you meet me? Nothing urgent, just want to chat.”
“Duh, of course I can. What kind of question is that?” By the tone of her voice, Sael had recognized something wasn’t quite right. They knew each other too well. “I’m just doing my rounds right now. I’ll be on Main and Ivy in five. See you there.”
Sasha hung up and felt relief rush through her. There was something to be said about the magical properties of being in the presence of your best friend. She and Sael had become close very fast. At first, it was because they were both fighters. Not just the physical type, either, though they were both pretty damn fierce, if she said so herself.
More than that, though, they’d both been through hell and back: Sasha figuratively, her friend literally. It hadn’t taken any words for both of them to recognize a kindred soul, one wounded mother to another.
They had first met not long after the establishment of Shadow Realm. Sasha had just been reassigned to the new realm from Russia and had been dealing with the aftermath of all the shit she’d gone through there. The very first soul she’d collected had been one of her now-best friend’s kills.
Her best friend was easily recognizable, her skin like nothing else Sasha had seen before or since. The cinnabar skin that shone like glitter was part of her DNA, as if she were made up of crushed rubies and diamonds. The woman had all the curves Sasha didn’t have, but nothing caught her attention like her friend’s youthful pixie face. It was difficult to believe that Sael had a grown daughter.
As Sael leaned casually against the crumbling building behind her, a machete propped up on one of her shoulders, her delicate facial features were at odds with how deadly she really was. Her friend liked close combat when she was working, and though she had some killer claws that came out when she was super pissed, she preferred carrying other weapons with her instead of shifting into her full Demon form. Even in the dull lighting, her skin practically sparkled, and Sasha liked to joke that it was a bold neon sign that said, Keep away.
It was nauseating to know that Sael’s species was hunted to near-extinction for their skins back in the Underworld. It was illegal, but that still didn’t stop it from happening. Plus, from the stories Sasha had heard, poaching didn’t seem too high up on the list of things for Erummon, the king of the Underworld, to crack down on.
“Hey,” Sasha said as she walked over.
The other woman gave her a friendly smile and pushed off the wall. “So, what’s really up?”
“I can’t fool you, can I?” Sasha smiled wryly.
“Not for a second. And let’s not even start on that ‘I just wasn’t busy’ bullshit. I hardly believe you sleep at all.”
“Sleep? Waste of time.” All with a few teasing words, Sael had managed to relieve her stress and relax her. Sasha ran a hand over her face, sighing as she got her brain back on work and what she really needed to talk about. “I have a job. From Xavier.”
“He hasn’t given you an assignment in a long time. Everything okay?” Sael glanced at her in concern as they walked down a nearly pitch black alley. They both had sharp enough vision that the low light didn’t hinder them in the slightest.
When they turned a corner, an icy breeze seemed to go straight through to their bones, and they both paused to huddle deeper into their jackets.
“No,” Sasha answered, her breath escaping as steam. “Things are getting very fucked up, and we don’t know why or how yet.” Lifting her hoodie, she pulled out her pistol from a shoulder holster. When wandering around Sector Three, it wasn’t a question of if you would get into a fight, it was a matter of when, and she liked to be prepared. “Xavier told me to get as much information as I can. I thought I’d start looking around here. But…” She paused, looking at Sael and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Souls are missing.”
“Oh hell…”
So she didn’t exactly have clearance to tell her friend any of this intel, but they had an unspoken agreement that what one knew, the other knew. They didn’t keep anything from each other.
“Souls are popping off the radar in record numbers, and all we have are coincidental observations. Archer saw an unidentified creature ripping throats off around one of the victims, but nothing else. All we know is that people who shouldn’t be dead are, and some of their souls are MIA. Have you seen anything strange recently?”
The Demoness snorted. “Stranger than usual, you mean?” She lifted a shoulder, her wrist rotating to spin the machete. It was a physical tic she had when she was thinking or processing information. “I’ll keep my ears and eyes open.” She was quiet for another moment, then added in a thoughtful voice, “You know, Ever mentioned there were girls disappearing. More than usual. Not in their group of friends, but younger girls they knew from parties and bars. I should check in on her.”
Sasha stopped, grabbing her friend’s arm out of concern. “Is she out tonight?”
Ever went to as many parties as she could attend, and her best friends were the same. Even though Ever was actually over two hundred years old, she still acted like she was a hundred. She and her two best friends—affectionately known as the Terrible Trio—were mostly good girls, but they also happened to fit the profile for the missing girls. Serenity, a mischievous Kitsune, was nearing her hundredth birthday, and could probably out-dance, out-sex, and out-party Night himself if she wanted to. The third girl in the group, Amelia Vidal, didn’t actually live in Shadow Realm, but resided in the realm across the border, Celeste Nation. She also happened to be the seventeen-year-old human daughter of Celeste Nation’s president.
Together, the three of them were a volatile mix.
Sael nodded. “They’re probably out, yeah. Want to go crash their party?”
Sasha met her friend’s gaze. “Definitely. They fit the profile a little too well.”
For a moment, she wondered if she was overreacting. Maybe. But this visit could potentially kill two birds with one stone. If it resulted in a lead, the case could be solved sooner and things could get back to normal.
They were both silent as they turned and walked quickly through the sector. Using a gateway wasn’t even necessary because their destination wasn’t far. Sael led them to a house on a hill in the distance. The indistinct beat of music was audible even from where they were, and strobe lights flickered inside every once in a while.
“There,” her friend said. “This has been their favorite party spot recently.”
Sasha looked up at the house, dread settling into her stomach. A house party in any neighborhood was likely to have its problems, but a house party in this area of Sector Three was like summoning a Demon straight from hell: so dangerous that you had to have a death wish to even be in close proximity.
As they approached the house, they both saw Serenity’s flashy new sports car. A red convertible, of course. With the top down. Sasha groaned. If her motherly instincts were screaming to give those girls an earful, she could only imagine what Sael was feeling.
She glanced behind them, doing a sweep of the area. “I think we have a tail,” she murmured. It annoyed her; she was usually good at sensing and flushing out whoever followed her. But this tail was skilled enough to cover their tracks and not give her any hints about how close they were, or even if they were truly following her.
Sael subtly inclined her head as they walked up the front steps. “We’ll lose them in the crowd. Meet back here in ten.” Her best friend sheathed her machete while Sasha slipped her pistol into the front pocket in her hoodie. Readily accessible, but not out in the open to scare all the kids away.
Sael opened the front door, the dull thumping music turning into a roar. A sea of bodies writhed inside. Both women lithely moved inside as one, but got separated and pushed in different directions in a matter of seconds.
Some kind of techno or rave music was playing on the ground floor, but every once in a while, the rhythm of heavy rock thumped from upstairs. It was crowded enough that the only way to move from room to room was by squeezing past people.
No one was turned away from these kinds of parties, so Others of all kinds swarmed around her. Vampires, Shifters of every breed, Demons, humans, and Others she couldn’t identify immediately. Couples crowded every visible surface—couches, chairs, table, countertops, anything and everything. It wasn’t a writhing orgy like the one undoubtedly happening already at the Night House, but it was close enough.
Sasha moved with the motion of the crowd, which brought her into a large kitchen. She spotted Serenity first. The Kitsune’s dark, wide eyes twinkled with mischief as she danced seductively on the counter in obnoxiously tall heels, wearing only slips of material that were probably sold in the lingerie section. Shameless as always, the girl swayed her hips, with one of her hands holding her long, black hair up while the other held a drink. Two Demons danced on either side of her, and the Kitsune looked like she was having a blast.
The Trio was never too far from each other, so all Sasha had to do was find a trail of trouble and follow it. Standing still in the chaos, she closed her eyes. Tuning out the constant noise from the music, then the loud voices fighting for dominance, she could then sense the ebb and flow of the souls around her. All it took was a process of elimination until she found the two familiar souls of Ever and Amelia upstairs. They were especially close, and were probably right next to each other.
Walking into the next room without even opening her eyes again, Sasha didn’t bump into anyone. She could sense Sael in the other room, her soul instantly recognizable. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion when she sensed something in the distance, maybe still at the front of the house. This soul wasn’t easily identified, but neither was it the general impression she got from the people she didn’t know. She couldn’t put her finger on why this one was so different. All she knew was that they shouldn’t be here. It must have been her tail.
Before she could backtrack to investigate that, she made her way upstairs. There. Ever and Amelia were in a bedroom to the left. She sighed in relief as she saw the door was open and both girls were completely safe. They were sitting next to each other on a couch, laughing and sipping drinks while a group of boys vied for their attention. Yeah, they’d be fine.
After making sure they were safe, Sasha let her eyes drift closed to find her friend’s soul so they could get out of there—but something snapped her back to alert first. There were two very powerful souls to her right, with two human souls. Except there was a disturbing sensation about the human souls. She didn’t know what was off about them, but there was something wrong.
The Terrible Trio wasn’t in danger tonight, but these two human souls were. Beyond that, it seemed like a huge hint for her investigation. She didn’t hesitate.
Her eyes snapped open and she hurried to the right. There were as many people on the second floor as there were on the first, but she managed to get to the bedroom quickly. The door was locked not only with a physical lock, but also with magic. Dark magic. While she couldn’t do anything about unlocking the magic, she knew how to take care of the physical lock.
Slipping her pistol out, she turned the safety off and shot the lock.
Shouts and curses erupted from inside the room. Sasha pounded on the door, ignoring the people around her who were also in a dazed panic from the gunshot.
“Open up!” she yelled, kicking the door uselessly. When there was no response, she pulled a bluff and leaned in closer. “Sael is here to bring you to the Judge. Do you really want to face him tonight? I can get you out of his way and he’ll never find you.”
Across Shadow Realm, Razor’s unofficial title was the Judge, for obvious reasons. He was the law of the land, and doled out punishments accordingly. The name struck fear in the hearts of even the most menacing creatures, and for good reason. As far as bluffs went, this one would work on anyone.
Time stretched, Sasha’s heart beating too quickly. Before the stupidity of pulling that move could sink in, the door was flung open.
Blood red eyes stared back at her. A truly vicious Vampire with too-fresh blood dripping from his mouth looked her up and down once, and then again, more leisurely. His shoulders were broad enough to span the entire doorway, and veins in his neck bulged. She had never seen a Vampire this big. It called to mind the description of the creature Archer had seen. “Who are you? And can you really hide us from the Judge?” He had a thick accent that swallowed his vowels, but Sasha could still understand his meaning.
“Yes,” she said, ignoring his first question. “But we need to get out of here. Now.” She glanced into the room and glimpsed another Vampire on the bed. It was crouched over not one, but two bodies that she knew were probably drained of blood. They’d already broken a law—Vampires couldn’t drain or kill those who they fed from—but beyond that, Sasha still felt the wrongness in the human souls. Like they were damaged somehow. She could tell the souls were still in the bodies, but the Vamps had been doing something to them. It was clear they were naughty, souped-up Vamps who would feel the consequences for breaking Shadow Realm rules very soon. They were also a lead in her case. She had to get answers out of them before she threatened them.
Sasha walked inside and closed the door behind her, heedless of the danger. The Vamps were too genuinely scared of Razor closing in on their asses to try anything with her. She hoped. But as the other Vamp slipped out of the room through the window, holding his hand out for Sasha to escape with them, she knew she had extended a thin bridge of trust. With it, she’d definitely be able to squeeze some information out of these two. They were at least part of the operation, and any answers were better than the great big pile of nothing she currently had.
Except when Sasha reached the ground and turned to thank him, the Vamp’s decapitated head was bouncing down the hill.
And she knew who was responsible without looking.
“You motherfucking son of a bitch,” she snarled. Turning, she came face to face with an incredibly furious Razor. His black eyes glinted with an animal madness she usually saw in Edge, but never Razor.
Glancing around, it was obvious that the other Vampire had sensed trouble and had taken off so as not to meet the same fate as his friend. Anger filled Sasha, and she pushed Razor’s chest. She might as well have shoved at a brick wall, but she did it again to make her point. “You lost me my lead!”
“No,” he growled back at her, his teeth snapping so that she caught a glimpse of fang. As far as she knew, Hellhounds only grew fangs when they were extremely pissed off, which should have been enough of a warning, but Sasha couldn’t find it in her to back off. “You almost lost your fucking head. What the fuck were you thinking?”
Sasha’s eyes widened in outrage. “I’m doing my fucking job. What the fuck are you doing?”
His face was suddenly inches from hers, though he wasn’t touching her. Hellhounds apparently didn’t know what personal space was. “Taking the proper steps, that’s what I’m doing. This is a serious investigation, Sasha. You can’t just barge into a party this way. That was a bad fucking call.” He was even closer now. “First of all, you could have gotten yourself killed, and second, you could have tipped off whoever is doing this that we’re onto them. And that’s not what we need. Goddess, I don’t think you know what the word subtle means, do you?” He released a mirthless laugh.
Their bodies were so close she could feel the heat radiating off him. She didn’t back down. “I’m not a rookie. I know what I’m doing.”
A muscle in his jaw ticked. “You just proved that you don’t. You could have easily ruined our investigation before it even really began.”
“They were doing something to the human souls, Razor,” she said sharply. “I think I interrupted them. I don’t know exactly what they’re doing, but it felt really, really bad.”
That made him pause. But a second later, he opened his mouth again. “Starting now, you aren’t allowed to go off on your own. I’ll be watching you. Even when you think you’ve lost me, I’ll be right on your ass. Because you will not fuck this up on my watch.”
Sasha sputtered, words failing her at the utter arrogance and revolting language dripping from his lips. When she couldn’t speak her mind with words, body language worked better for her. So she stepped back and swung her fist, aiming for his healing nose.
He caught her wrist before it connected, but she only clenched her fist tighter.
“Don’t you ever talk to me like that again, you flea-infested mutt,” she hissed. “I am not a simpering damsel for you to rescue. I take care of myself, and I had this under control. You’re the one who killed a Vampire and spooked the other. You caused the suspicious scene. Fuck you very much.”
“Oh, believe me, I know you’re no simpering damsel. But admit it, you fucked up. And Sael helped you do so. You thought to get one up on me and start working the case all by your tough self, and if I hadn’t gotten here, you’d be walking into who knows where with a drugged-up Vamp. He could have drained you and you wouldn’t have been able to stop him.” His gaze flicked to her throat, darkened, and then slowly moved back up to hers.
Whoa. That was…sexy. Sasha glared at him for another second, meaning to pull back, but she didn’t. They were both breathing heavily, chests heaving, and suddenly something was happening between them. She was aware of the scant inches separating their lips more than ever. His gaze flicked down first, and she could practically feel the caress his eyes gave her lips.
The heat of their anger had swirled into a dangerous, heady mix of lust. Oh fucking hell…
Trembling and not ready to admit the real reason why, Sasha snatched her wrist out of his grip and, without warning, transported herself back to her apartment.
She could admit to herself that she’d run from him. Again. She could also admit that she was afraid of what had just happened. What had just happened? She paced, thinking about what she would have done next, or worse, what his response would have been, and finding none of it acceptable.
Xavier had made a huge mistake pairing them up together for this case.
By the end of this, there was no way both of them were walking out of this alive.
If they didn’t kill each other first, they were going to burn each other up.
An hour later, she had cooled off enough to fool herself into thinking whatever tension she had felt spark between them had been her imagination only.
A text from Razor popped up on her phone.
Her eyebrows furrowed at the message. Was this some kind of olive branch? She replied with simplicity, telling herself she could be a professional about this.
Because even if they couldn’t get along, they still needed to work together to make sure no one else ended up dead or missing. There was too much at stake to be selfish.
If she had to continue to pretend to be unaffected by him to pull that off, then so be it.