“A fucking sleeper agent,” Rowen swore. “He’s just a puppet, and he doesn’t even know? We can’t let Dash get away with that.”
Smoke spewed from between Rowen’s lips as he sucked angrily on a joint. His free hand drummed an aggressive beat on the steering wheel. We sat in his car outside the small office where we’d be meeting with Joe. We were just waiting on the arrival of our bandmates.
“Try to look at the silver lining. Arrow isn’t lying, and he isn’t a murderer. Not a willing one anyway.” I shook my head when he offered me the spliff, instead opting to stare down the street, looking for Jett’s Mustang. “We’ll help him. Just no rash actions, ok?”
It was the third time I’d said that, and each time Rowen avoided a direct response. After Cinder shared this bit of terrible news, we’d had to get ready for the meeting. So the entire drive over had been spent listening to Rowen vent his frustrations.
This whole ordeal was weighing on us both. I hadn’t seen him smile since Arrow turned up at my door. Having this new information on what was going on with Arrow should’ve been a relief, but it felt more like another brick stacked on an already heavy pile. Eventually, the weight would become crushing.
“I still don’t know what to tell Joe about where he is.” Rowen jerked his chin toward the office building. “Think he’ll buy it if I just say Arrow’s at home with the flu?”
“You might not have a choice. If he’s not here, then he can’t make a fuss about the song. You know that’s the only reason Joe’s meeting with both bands together.” I fidgeted with the spiked leather bracelet adorning my wrist. Spinning it, pausing to touch a pointy tip, I breathed a sigh of relief when Jett pulled up with Rubi and Tash.
We got out of the car to chat in the parking lot until Sam and Greyson showed up. They were right on time, giving me little chance to fill Jett in on recent developments. It was too sensitive an issue to share by text.
The seven of us filed into the office, cramming into the small waiting area. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to these meetings. Even though we weren’t with a huge Hollywood record label, it was still a label, and the first real stepping stone on the way to our dream career. Having a manager was surreal, a small victory of its own. Too bad it was tarnished by demon crap.
A few minutes later we were ushered down the hall to an office with a large enough table for all of us. Seated at the head of the table was the man who’d taken us on after the Battle of the Bands event: Joe Russell. Next to him was an assistant, a laptop open in front of her. I sat heavily between Jett and Tash while Rowen and the guys sat across from us ladies.
Catching Rowen’s eye, I smiled, hoping it would be echoed. He tried, a tug of his lips that looked almost painful. With a shrug, he sat back in his seat and tried to appear attentive.
“Thank you for joining us here today.” A dazzling grin lit up Joe’s face, revealing a mouthful of expensive cosmetic dental work. Nobody had a smile that perfect by nature. “Just wanted to go over a few things with you all, but I’m sure you know that our main focus today is deciding who will record “Love Song For An Angel.” This will be a quick meeting.”
We all nodded, and I could feel Jett bristling next to me, likely trying to rein in her wolf’s temper. Though I’d never say so aloud, I was glad Arrow wasn’t there to make this more difficult.
Joe glanced around the room, meeting each of our gazes in turn. It was a nice effort on his part to make us all feel welcome and important, but even as newbies we knew how this worked. It was all about the money.
He frowned, his gaze locked on the guys. “No Arrow today?”
Rowen held Joe’s stare as he decided which lie to tell. “Arrow wasn’t feeling too hot this morning. Figured it would be better if he stayed—”
“Sorry I’m late.” Arrow burst into the room, trailing a cloud of cigarette smoke and cologne behind him. He plopped down in a chair across from me and turned a huge smile on Joe. “So, what did I miss?”
We all stared at Arrow in various levels of shock. It wasn’t so much the disheveled hair in need of washing or the rumpled clothing probably fetched from his living room floor. No, it was the raw, harsh evidence of the beating he’d taken.
One eye was bruised black, streaks of red from broken blood vessels discolored the white around his iris. The other eye was also bruised but less so, more blue than black. Various scrapes and cuts marred his face, the worst being the split through his bottom lip.
Despite how fast he’d sat down, his body remained stiff, as if it hurt too much to relax in the chair. How many more injuries were hidden from sight? He regarded us all with a raised brow, like he couldn’t imagine what had us so captivated.
“Um.” Joe glanced over at his assistant’s laptop screen, clearly flustered. “Nice of you to join us, Arrow. We were just getting started.” His dark eyes bounced around the table, searching us for a reaction, frowning when we masked it. “Anyway, about that song, Dark Mountain Records feels it has real promise. However, I understand that it belongs to Rowen and Spike. Is it possible we can agree today on which band will record it? I’d like to be able to give them an answer sooner than later.”
Jett and Arrow stared at one another. I couldn’t decide which of them wore the deadlier expression, Arrow with his abused face or Jett with the beast moving beneath her skin.
“It should be our song,” Arrow said, unflinching in the face of Jett’s silent wrath. “Rowen wrote most of the music. If it sells, we’ll give Spike a cut. But it belongs on our album.”
I should’ve been irritated that we were there to argue over a damn song, but I was still too stunned by Arrow’s condition.
The werewolf at my side was not as distracted. “No. It doesn’t.” Those three words were spoken between clenched teeth. Jett was trying to stay professional. The lack of curse words made that evident. “The lyrics are too deep for you, Arrow. Don’t pretend you can relate to that song.”
Joe opened his mouth to speak.
Arrow cut him off, having eyes only for Jett. His tone was snide, dripping with condescension. “What the fuck do you know about love songs? You wouldn’t know love if it bit you in the ass.”
Gripping the edge of the table, Jett leaned forward. Her eyes flashed wolf, so fast I hoped Joe hadn’t seen it. No, he was watching Arrow, unable to tear his gaze from that battered face.
“What the fuck do you know about love?” Jett snarled.
I thought she might reach across the table to throttle him.
Apparently so did Joe because he cleared his throat and said, “Rowen. Spike. What do you think about all this? Your friends seem to really love your song, as do I. Do you have an opinion on which band should record it?”
Rowen and I had bigger fish to fry than the damn song. I was starting to wish we’d never written the friggin’ thing or at least hadn’t shown it to our friends.
“I don’t care.” Rowen sounded bored with the conversation, but I knew it was because his mind drifted elsewhere.
Joe’s gaze landed on me, along with everyone else’s. I shrugged. “Maybe we should just flip a coin or something. I don’t think it’s worth fighting over.”
Joe nodded, his lips pressed together as he considered our response. “How about you both record it, in your house or your jam space, whatever, and the record company can decide who they think does it better?”
I shrugged and nodded, worried about Rowen who was worried about Arrow. Arrow, however, looked smug. Jett sat back in her chair, defeated.
“Sure, whatever. That’s fine.” Rowen shifted uncomfortably in his seat. His knee bounced, like he couldn’t sit still. Restless.
Arrow ran his pierced tongue over the cut in his lip. Bright hazel eyes danced from me to Jett. “Works for me.”
“Good.” Joe seemed relieved and ready to move on to a new topic. “Now, just a few other things to go over: recording dates, album promotion. That kind of thing.”
It was hard to stay focused on Joe. Between the pissed off wolf at my side and the two moody nephilim across from me, the urge to tune his voice out and get lost in my thoughts was as welcoming as it was strong.
I didn’t understand why Arrow believed the song to be worth fighting for. Considering everything he faced, it struck me as odd. Perhaps the song meant more to him than I realized or maybe there was more to it than pissing off Jett. This had to be about so much more than a song.
* * * *
“You slimy little piece of shit. Who the fuck do you think you are?” Jett’s outburst was followed by a shove hard enough to take Arrow’s feet out from under him.
A few of us gasped in unison, me being one of them. Jett had managed to keep a lid on her temper until we were outside. Now that we were in the parking lot, she unleashed.
Arrow sat on the ground, staring up at the angry wolf who stood over him. His expression was void of emotion. The sky was overcast, allowing the shadows creeping around him to thicken. They snaked around his legs and arms, crawling over his chest before slithering over to Jett. Though not as strong as they were in the dark, the shadows did a fine job of winding tight around her wrists and ankles, shackling her in place.
“I’m Arrow Fucking Lynch, bitch. If you have a problem with it, you can go fuck yourself.” Arrow got to his feet, wincing as injuries we couldn’t see pained him. With a snap of his fingers, the shadows released Jett, thrusting her backward into me.
I braced for her weight, managing to keep from being knocked down. With a hand on her shoulder, I tried to calm the beast within.
No luck.
She shook me off and stepped forward, both hands up in invitation. “You want to take me on, Arrow? Let’s go. I’ll leave you in pieces, asshole.” A growl rumbled in her throat.
While our friends stepped back, away from the scene, Rowen and I moved closer.
“Do it then.” Arrow shrugged, fearless in the face of Jett’s rage.
I imagined he’d seen much worse. Demon wrath was like no other.
“Guys, what the fuck?” This from Sam who threw his hands up, both shocked and exasperated. “Is this really necessary? It’s just a damn song. Maybe nobody should record it.”
Jett never looked at him when she replied. Her eyes were wolf, and they saw only Arrow. “It’s not just about the song. It’s about his need to step on everyone else, to take from them without giving back. It’s about what a constant selfish prick Arrow is, using anyone to get what he wants without a care for the repercussions. Even his own flesh and blood.”
Arrow’s eyes narrowed, and his upper lip curled into a snarl. The subtle reaction gave away how sensitive he felt about Rowen.
Jett saw it too. She smiled.
Rowen stepped between them, a hand held up as if he could ward off any further blows. “Guys, this has to stop. We’re friends. We’re supposed to be a team. It’s never going to happen if we can’t work together. Compromise somehow.”
Purple hair whipped around Jett’s head as she gave it a vigorous shake. “There’s no compromising with blackmailing, drug-pushing liars.” To Arrow, she said, “You deserve whatever’s coming your way.”
“Jett, stop it.” I was starting to get mad. Everything she said was the truth, but ganging up on Arrow and belittling him could only produce a negative outcome. Anger and hatred grew like weeds. There was already so much of that in his life.
“Actually, Spike.” Jett whirled on me, fangs bared, huge in her human mouth. “I think you need to start. You’re too willing to overlook the shit he pulls. Stop letting him get away with it.”
Her hands vibrated with the intensity of her scalding hot anger. There was more to this outburst than the song. All the time I’d been spending with Rowen and, because of that, with Arrow, was threatening to Jett. She didn’t say so, but I knew she suspected that they would cause a division between us, that at some point I would have to choose between them and my band.
Things had changed recently, she was right. In some ways I did overlook Arrow’s actions and piss-poor attitude, but it wasn’t because he deserved it or because I was in love with his brother. It was because I had a calling, which included him. Couldn’t she see that? Was she unable to understand?
“It’s not like that, Jett.” I spoke with calm determination, refusing to allow either of them to provoke me to anger. “I don’t overlook anything. I just choose to forgive it.”
Now the wolf eyes landed on me, judging me for what she perceived as weakness. “Then I guess that makes you better than me. Or it makes you blind and manipulated.”
“Then I guess I’m blind and manipulated.” I relented with a shrug. “But I’m not going to kick someone while they’re down. Look at him. Do you think he needs anymore enemies right now?”
Arrow recoiled, disgust overflowing from him to the shadows writhing like a black cloud around him. They swelled with it, stretching out toward us. “Do you think you’re doing me some kind of favor, Spike?” He spat my name like it left a rotten taste in his mouth. “I don’t need you to defend me, and I sure as fuck don’t want your God-forsaken pity. I can fight my own battles. Stay out of it.”
My cheeks burned with his rejection. It shouldn’t have bothered me, but it did. I knew that I couldn’t save everyone. I wasn’t supposed to. But Cinder had planted this idea in my head, this belief that Arrow was worth saving, and I wanted to make it happen, if not for me or for him, then for Rowen.
I held up both hands in surrender and backed away, toward Rowen’s car. Fine. Neither of them wanted me to play peacekeeper, so I would remove myself from the situation. Rowen, however, was much too stubborn to do the same.
Standing between Jett and Arrow, he held up a hand. A golden ball of light glowed in his palm. “Go ahead. Either of you. Make another move.”
Our friends stood silent, mouths agape. Over time they’d come to know who and what we were, but displays like this were never seen. We did our best to keep this stuff from them.
The tension grew. Arrow and Jett stared at one another, each daring the other to make a move. Finally Jett spun away, slamming her fist into a nearby trash can. Her fist left a basketball-size dent in the side, but her hand remained unmarked.
The wolf was fading from her eyes when she turned to me. “Whatever happens with him, I want no part of it. Tell Cinder I’m sorry but maybe this dream team of his is just that. A dream.”
“Jett—”
She stormed off without letting me finish. The door to her Mustang slammed shut hard enough to echo in the parking lot. Tash and Rubi made haste, each shooting me an apologetic look before climbing into the car. I sighed, watching as the car sped away with a squeal of tires.
Greyson cleared his throat and pulled car keys from a pocket. “I think Sammy and I are gonna take off too. We’ll catch up with you guys later.”
Sam seemed reluctant to leave but made no attempt to stay behind. Worry furrowed his brow as he retreated to Greyson’s SUV. I waved and forced a smile that I didn’t feel, hoping to ease his concern.
As soon as they were gone, Rowen advanced on Arrow and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. “What is wrong with you? Do you hate yourself so much that you would do anything to make sure that everyone else hates you just as much?”
Arrow stood stiff, fists clenched at his sides. “I don’t really give a shit what anyone thinks of me. You included. Now let go of me, Rowen.”
“What happened to you last night?” Rowen released him but stood close, ready to shake answers out of him if need be. “Did Dash do this?”
There was a snicker as Arrow ran a hand over his beaten face. “He doesn’t like it when I cozy up with you white lighters. Apparently, he didn’t like that I went to you guys for help that night. Free will doesn’t exist in his world. I’m expected to be loyal to the dark at all times. La de friggin’ da.”
“How bad is it?” The anger faded from Rowen, replaced with concern. His gaze searched Arrow, looking him over for wounds we could not see. “Tell me what happened.”
Arrow stood stiff, unwilling to allow us to see how hurt he was. There was a stubborn set to his jaw as he eyed us each. “What’s to tell? Koda took me to Dash, and I spent the rest of the night getting my ass beat. You’d be surprised how creative demons get with that kind of thing.”
“Just because you came to us when you needed help?” I asked, hoping that Arrow would simmer down now that it was just the three of us.
His hazel eyes rolled upward, and he shook his head. “That’s what Dash wanted. He wanted me to go to Rowen. He just didn’t want that to include you, Spike. I failed. Again. I paid. Again.”
“But that doesn’t make sense.” I murmured this to myself, unable to understand what Dash’s goal was.
“So you did kill her.” Rowen nodded as if his worst fear had been confirmed. He’d held out hope til the last possible second that his brother could be innocent. It was just another reason to admire him. He wanted to see the best in everyone, even those so far removed from good.
“I still don’t really know. Dash won’t say much about it.” Arrow leaned against Rowen’s car, a hand going to his side. He winced and dragged himself onto the hood. “If I did, I don’t remember it. That wasn’t a lie.”
The breeze caught Rowen’s hair, tossing the long front piece of his hawk into his eyes. “I know. I believe you. Cinder thinks Dash is using you as a sleeper agent. He’s controlling you somehow, Arrow. Why would he do that? You’re dark. What’s he got to gain from such a stunt?”
Arrow went silent for a moment. The wind whipped his mess of long black hair about too. He made no move to smooth it down or control it in any way. “You. He wants you, Rowen.”
I caught hold of my ponytail to keep it from slapping me in the face. There was more to these two brothers than I could fathom. I was sure of it. Dash knew though. He knew all about it. His determination and underhanded patience was frightful. An enemy with patience and time had an advantage over one who had little of either. The odds were not in our favor.
“I don’t understand.” Rowen sat on the hood of the car beside Arrow, propping his feet on the bumper. He stared at his running shoes. “This is about our father somehow, isn’t it? Why me? What makes me so fucking special? I can’t be any different than either of you. Can I?”
That was the question I couldn’t answer. Cinder and Dash had both alluded to Rowen being more than he seemed. Choosing the light had seemed like the best choice for Rowen. But was that the entire reason Dash was now tormenting Arrow?
“You’ve got to be. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be getting my ass beat on a regular basis.” Bitter laughter fell from Arrow’s lips, caught by the wind and flung away. “This is all about you, bro. Dash is trying to get to you through me. So you have to stay out of it. Ok? No matter what he does to me.” Arrow lay back on the hood and stretched, stopping short as a cry ripped from him. He clutched his side and sat back up with a groan.
“No.” Rowen braced for his brother’s reaction, ready to stand his ground. His gaze met mine, searching.
I nodded. We were all in this together.
“Spike, talk some sense into this fool, would you?” Arrow looked to me for back up that I couldn’t give him. “If you like him safe and sane, then stop him from doing anything stupid. I’ll be fine.” What he asked was more than ridiculous, more than foolish. Arrow was asking us to give up on him.
“Sorry, man. We can’t do that. He loves you, and I wasn’t given the Midnight Star so I could abandon a nephilim in need. Like it or not, you need us. So why not try working with us instead of pushing us away?”
Without asking permission, I grabbed the edge of Arrow’s t-shirt and yanked it up to expose his side. He should’ve been wearing a jacket in this weather. His ribs were bruised, blotchy smears of blue and purple. Broken, more than likely. I ran a hand over his side, feeling for anything extremely amiss. He sucked in a breath and swore softly but didn’t fight me off.
“I don’t suppose you’ve developed any new healing abilities.” His tone was hopeful. At my headshake, he nodded. “Figures. So you’re just trying to cop a feel of my hot bod then.”
Ignoring his jibe, I dropped his shirt and stepped back. “You can’t be left alone. Not until we know what’s going on. How often are these black outs happening? What else have you done? We need answers.”
“No, we don’t. You two need to go somewhere safe and screw your brains out like happy little bunnies. I can handle this.” Arrow hopped off the car, clutching the fender and growling as pain racked him. Pushing himself up straighter, he shrugged it off and produced car keys.
Rowen swiped the keys from his hand. “Are you kidding me? You can’t handle this, Arrow. You can barely even stand up. Spike’s right. You can’t be left alone.”
“Aw, come on guys. This is fucked. I’m not a child. I don’t need a babysitter.”
“I beg to differ,” Rowen said, wrapping a supportive arm around his brother.
“Beg to differ?” A wry smile lit up Arrow’s face. “Listen to you, sounding all educated and shit. She must be rubbing off on you.”
Ignoring Arrow’s attempt to change the subject, Rowen herded him over to the Charger and tossed me the BMW’s keys. I glanced over at Arrow’s sleek, black car. This was a good idea, wasn’t it? Though I wouldn’t say as much, I was nervous about the possibility of Arrow having one of his black outs with us.
“Don’t touch my stash in the glove box,” Arrow called after me as I headed for his car. “Or the one in the console. Or under the seat. Just don’t touch anything.”
It was after they’d driven away that I said a prayer I wouldn’t get pulled over in Arrow’s drug-filled party on wheels. And another, asking for a way through this.
Dash’s end goal seemed pretty clear to me. If he succeeded in his endeavor, I would lose both brothers. Dash was willing to destroy Arrow in an attempt to drive Rowen to the dark.