The Savage Grace: A Dark Divine Novel (16 page)

I gave him a slight smile. He really was happy about the idea of our hunting together again. “How are we even going to find Pete?”

“New Akhs are predictable because of their hunger. He’ll seek out whatever place has the most psychic and sexual energy wafting off of it. He’ll be able to smell it. Somewhere like a big party. Normally, new Akhs flock to the Depot. That’s how we recruited so many of them to the Shadow Kings. But now that the Depot is no more, he’ll have to find somewhere else.” He snapped his fingers. “I know just the place.”

“Where?” I stepped closer to him.

“There’s a trance party tonight.”

“A what party?”

“Trance party. You know how Akhs can put their victims into trances by staring into their eyes? They do it to feed off a human’s psychic energy and mess with their free will.”

“Yeah.” I knew all to well. I’d almost been killed the last time it happened to me.

“Well, a trance party is kind of like a rave, except humans use Akhs to get high instead of Ecstasy.”

“You mean people go to these parties and willingly let Akhs feed off of them?”

“Pretty much. The Akhs get to feed without a hunt. The humans get high and let someone take away their free will for a night. Some people get off on that.”

“Eww.” I made a gagging face. “But aren’t people afraid the Akhs will feed too much off of them and they’ll die?”

“It happens,” Talbot said. “Especially if new Akhs are in the mix. They don’t come just to get a quick fix; they feed to kill. But I guess the danger is part of the thrill for some people. And a lot of them are just stupid kids who don’t really know what’s going on. Most don’t remember in the morning.”

“And we’ll be able to hunt down Pete there?” I gazed up into his green eyes. At the same time I reached into my jacket pocket and clicked a button on my phone.

“I’d bet my truck on it.”

“But where is the party?”

“There’s always one a week or two after Halloween in a haunted house that’s just been closed down for the season. Before they strike all the creepy sets. Rumor has it, tonight’s trance party is going to be at Frightmare Farms.”

“That old farm outside Rose Crest? Didn’t that place get shut down for being unsafe?” April and I used to frequent the corn maze at that old farm-turned-Halloween-attraction, but we didn’t make it this year because it got shut down opening night after some kid fell through the rotten floorboards in the haunted barn. I’d heard the owners had left it abandoned the way it was, rather than spend the money to get it up to code.

“You can see the appeal for this kind of party then?” Talbot reached out like he wanted to caress his fingers along my cheek. “But we’re going to have to cover up that pretty face of yours, find you a disguise. The party will be crawling with Gelals and Akhs. I wouldn’t be surprised if a few Shadow Kings showed up for recruiting.”

Shadow Kings. That’s what I was afraid he was going to say.

“People wear pretty crazy stuff to these things, so you won’t stand out in a costume,” Talbot said. “I don’t want any SKs getting wind of us being there. I imagine I’m the last person they’ll feel like being friendly to.”

“That’s okay,” I said, taking a large step back, away from him and his truck. “Because you’re not coming.”

“What? You think I’m going to let you go alone?”

“I won’t be alone.” I glanced over at the motorcycle driven by a lone rider pulling into the parking lot next to us. The green Corolla followed just behind him. Right on cue. “You’re just not coming with us.” I backed away quickly.

“What’s going on?” Talbot started to come after me, but he stopped when the motorcyclist got off his bike and removed his helmet. Talbot’s eyes widened as he recognized Daniel. The four lost boys got out of the car and stood behind their alpha.

“So he’s back?” Talbot asked.

“Yep.” I couldn’t help smiling a bit and thinking of that song from the oldies station my Grandpa Kramer used to listen to.
My boyfriend’s back, and your gonna be in trouble.…

“Despite your best efforts, I hear,” Daniel said, tucking his helmet under his arm.

Talbot’s mouth hung open with shock, but his hands balled into fists.

“Do you need any help here?” Daniel asked me.

“Nope. I got what I came for.” I looked at Talbot. “Thanks for the information. We’ll be taking care of the Pete problem without you.”

“This was a setup?” Talbot asked. I could see the storm brewing behind his eyes. He took a stride toward me, but the four lost boys stepped forward, creating a barrier between us. Talbot stepped back slightly. “But I thought … you and me, Grace. This is what we’re supposed to do together.…”

“There is no you and me, Talbot.” I got on the motorcycle with Daniel. “You’re not a part of this anymore.”

Tricking Talbot into thinking I was going to go hunting with him, and then leaving him in the lurch, felt cruel. But he needed to know that despite his lies and betrayal, I’d gotten Daniel back—and I didn’t need Talbot anymore.

“I need you to realize, Talbot,” I said to him, solemnly, “when it comes down to it, I’ll
always
choose Daniel.”

SEVERAL HOURS LATER, EVENING

April was all over the needing-to-wear-a-disguise thing. I was starting to wonder if she had a frequent buyers’ reward at the thrift shop/costume closet in Apple Valley. We’d convened at her house to get ready for the trance party, and I watched in awe as she pulled outfit after outfit from her closet.

“Wow, you’re really taking your role as my Alfred seriously,” I said. When April had learned about my quest to become a superhero—a quest I’d all but given up on while trying to find a way to bring Daniel back to me—she’d insisted on becoming the Alfred to my Batman. Which, unfortunately, often involved a BeDazzler.

I seriously wouldn’t be surprised if she’d put “superhero stylist” as one of her qualifications on her Trenton application.

“I design when I’m anxious,” April said. “And I’ve had a lot to be anxious about lately.” She pulled a yellow Day-Glo jumpsuit with a matching cape from the pile. “I put this one together after you got kidnapped by the Shadow Kings.”

Daniel smiled wryly.

It was nice to know April cared so much.

“I even collected a few things for Daniel … you know, just in case he ever turned back into a human.” She picked up what looked like a bundle of black leather. She handed it to Daniel. “Glad you’re back, by the way.” She smiled at him.

“Thanks.” Daniel unrolled the bundle. It turned out to be a long leather trench coat. “This I can handle,” he said.

“Only twenty-five bucks at the thrift store. Can you believe it? Pair that with some black pants and black shirt, and you’re good to go.” She picked up another bundle of clothing and handed it to me. “Grace, on the other hand, needs a little more
oomph
.”

“These are pleather shorts,” I said, holding up the pair of fake black leather Daisy Dukes.

“You wear them with fishnets.” She handed me the tights and a lacy black cami. “There’s a jacket for you, too.”

“Yeah. But. These. Are.
Pleather.
Shorts.”

“And. You. Wear. Them. With. Fishnets,” she responded, as if I hadn’t heard her properly the first time. She pushed me toward the bathroom to get changed.

Daniel smiled so wide I thought his face was going to crack.

NEARLY MIDNIGHT

Daniel was oddly quiet as I drove the Corolla—it’d been too cold for the motorcycle, considering my short-shorts—down an old country road that led to Frightmare Farms, just outside of Rose Crest. The boys followed in April’s red hatchback, borrowed as payback for my ridiculous outfit.

Shortly after the “pleather shorts incident,” Daniel became more and more withdrawn as time drew closer to go hunt down Pete at the trance party. He hadn’t even protested April’s insistence that he wear the black mask she’d pilfered from a Zorro costume. The perfect finishing touch for his “Bad A outfit”—as she put it.

I’d figured he must have been bothered that I’d had to turn to Talbot for information, but the way he stared far out the passenger’s-side window made me worry that something deeper was eating at him.

I parked in a field full of cars outside the decrepit “haunted” farmhouse. Possessed-looking scarecrows hung limp from their stands in front of the entrance gate, and part of the roof of the barn that loomed behind the house looked like it could cave in at any given moment.

I knew from experience that a corn maze stretched out for a good five acres beyond the barn. Secluded from town, I could see why Akhs would choose this place for one of their creepy trance parties—and based on the crowds of teens that headed from the parking field to the farm, they’d pulled in a pretty good turnout.

“Are you okay?” I asked as I pulled the keys out of the ignition.

Daniel shrugged.

“I’m sorry you’ve gotten dragged into this mess. And I’m sorry you had to see Talbot.”

“It’s not any of that.” Daniel sighed heavily and pushed his hand through his golden hair. “I’ve been trying not to let it get to me all day. Move on and get the job done, you know. It’s just that … she looked at me like I was a monster.”

“Who?” I hadn’t seen anything like that from April.

“Charity.” He looked down at his finely muscled hands. “After I was cured, before my powers came back—when I was normal for once—there was a time when I thought I’d never have to deal with anyone looking at me like that again. Calling me that. And now, I don’t even know what I am anymore.… Maybe ‘monster’ is all I’ll ever be.”

“Daniel.” I placed my hand on his shoulder. “You are not a monster. And no, you’re not
normal
anymore. You never have been, really.”

He winced. Being
normal
was what Daniel had always desired more than anything. Normal meant Trenton, and family, and having a life. But I saw in him a potential to have all of that and so much more.

“You’re something greater than that. I really think you’re like an—”

“Angel?” He shook his head and looked out the window instead of at me. “I don’t think so.”

“Daniel, I really think you can use your powers for good. I thought that before you were even cured. I know you’re skeptical, and I know you’ve always felt that being an Urbat made you a monster. But Gabriel told me about the original Urbat, and the good things they were created to do. Like protect people. Like we’re about to do now. I think, together, we can be heroes.”

“Didn’t the quest to become a hero almost get you killed?”

“Only because I was trying to do it alone—or not exactly alone, but with the wrong help. But now that I have you to be a hero with me, it could totally work.”

A bubbling of hope trilled up my body into my heart, and I suddenly wondered, if I could convince Daniel that his powers could be blessing instead of a curse—that he could become a hero—then maybe there was a chance to convince other Urbat, like Sirhan’s pack, that they could do it, too. I could help them reclaim their blessings—just like Gabriel had said I could.

“I’ve never seen myself as a hero,” Daniel said.

“Maybe it’s time you start.”

I could tell Daniel was about to protest, but he then suddenly sat up in his seat. “He’s here.”

I looked up just in time to see Pete Bradshaw, looking all too alive, slink through the line of teens gathered outside the entrance gate. A couple of burly-looking guys stood aside to let him enter the farmhouse.

“Bouncers,” I said. “I didn’t think an Akh party would have bouncers.”

“I’m sure they’d want to keep people like us from crashing their fun.”

“Right.” I took in a deep breath and let it out in a puff. “So this is it? The end of our story with Pete Bradshaw? As much trouble as he’s given us, I never thought I’d be the one to kill him.”

Daniel put his hand on my arm. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

“I’ve killed a demon before. He was a Gelal, but according to Talbot, Akhs die the same way. They just explode into dust instead of burning acid. It should be cleaner, I guess.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Daniel looked me right in the eyes. “I know Pete isn’t really Pete anymore. But we still
knew
him. You guys were friends once. Killing a demon wearing the face of your old friend, that’s got to affect you differently than just killing some random Gelal. And we both know what happened last time.…”

I bowed my head. “I know.” The first, and last, time I’d killed a demon, I’d experienced such a power rush that I’d almost lost control and given in to the wolf. “But I think I’m ready. I need to clean up the messes I’ve made.”

Because deep down, I knew Pete’s undeath had happened, ultimately, because of me. Even if I wasn’t the one who killed him the first time, it was my responsibility to do it now.

“Either way, I want you to wear this. Maybe it will help you avoid any side effects.” Daniel removed his moonstone necklace and handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I said, remembering what it had been like to go into battle against a demon without one.

Daniel opened the weapons pack that April had sent us with. He handed me a stake bedazzled with bright pink and orange gemstones, and he selected for himself a stake that had a gold wolf’s head attached to the end.

“Sure you don’t want the sparkly one?” I dangled my stake in front of him.

“I don’t do sparkles,” Daniel said. He cracked a smile for the first time since we left April’s. “But the whole ensemble looks pretty darn hot on you.”

“Wait.” I pulled down the black mask, adorned with three matching pink gemstones at the temples, over the upper half of my face. “What do you think now?”

“Cute, but I prefer seeing your face.” Daniel tied his own black mask over his eyes. Luckily, his was free of any sparkles. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

I nodded. “What about you? How’s your shoulder?”

The way he’d been carrying himself all day, I’d almost forgotten about the bullet wound. I realized that it might not be the best idea for us to head into battle with one of us injured.

Daniel rolled his shoulders. “It stings like crazy, but I’ll be okay. I think it’s even started to heal a bit.”

“That’s good.”

“Let’s go.” He reached for the door handle.

I put my hand on his arm. “Thank you.”

His dark eyes blinked behind the mask. “What for?”

“For not suggesting that I stay in the car while you go in and take care of things for me.”

“We’re partners in this.”

“Good,” I said.

We got out of the car. The lost boys, wearing various Halloween masks, fell in behind us and we made our way toward the farmhouse through the crowd of teens who were clamoring to get past the bouncers. Some of the partygoers were dressed in costumes, others just in assortments of black, camo, lace, and leather. I wondered if they were eager to get inside the trance party because they knew what was going on in there—or because they didn’t have a clue. Part of me wanted to shout at them to run away.

“Just act like you belong here, and no one will stop us,” Daniel said, bypassing all the wannabes standing in line. I called on my superpowered balance in order not to wobble in the high-heeled black boots that went with my ensemble as we strode right up to the large bouncers. Daniel gave one of them a slight nod. He let us pass.

Daniel pushed open the door, and techno music burst into my eardrums. Inside reminded me of the Depot, with strobe lights, dancers, and plenty of foggy smoke wafting in the air. The biggest difference here was the decrepit farmhouse furniture interspersed with garish haunted-house decor, looking all the more frightening in the flashing lights and smoke.

“Fan out,” Daniel said to the boys. “I want you to act as lookouts only. No engaging with any of the Shadow Kings.”

I knew he hadn’t wanted them coming along into a potential fight—didn’t want to feel responsible for them if anything went wrong. But I’d convinced him that they should be here. They were his pack after all.

“This place reeks,” I said, gagging on the mixture of smells in the air: alcohol, perfume, cigarettes, decaying wood from the house itself, the must from yellowed drapes that hung from the blacked-out windows, and an underlying scent probably only someone like Daniel or me could pick out—like garbage that’s been baking out in the sun. The stench of sour milk and rotting meat.

“Akhs and Gelals.” I covered my nose. “This place is crawling with them.”

“Feeding grounds,” Daniel said. He looked at me. “You okay? I know this isn’t your scene.”

The first time I’d been to a party like this, at Daniel’s apartment last year, I’d run away scared. The second time was when April and I went to the Depot looking for Jude, and we’d had to be rescued and dragged out of there by Talbot. The third time, I’d had to leave before I lost control and hurt someone.

But this time, I wasn’t leaving the party until I’d kicked some major butt.

“Yeah,” I said, and led him toward a crowd of dancing teens in the family room of the house. “There he is,” I whispered, and nodded my head toward Pete Bradshaw. He lurked in the shadows behind a group of girls dressed in matching red-devil costumes. The girls danced in a circle, close to each other in a fashion that would have been provocative if their arms and legs weren’t moving in a such a weird, jerking sort of way. Almost like someone else was directing their motions. Like puppets on strings.

“Why are they moving like that?” I scanned the room, noticing more people dancing and moving in that odd way. A girl standing on a tabletop, dressed as a fairy, looked particularly horrible the way her arms moved—like she was trying desperately to get them to stop but couldn’t.

“They’re in trances,” Daniel said. “If an Akh stares into your eyes long enough, it can keep you in a hypnotic state for quite some time, even without the continued eye-to-eye connection. These people are being controlled by someone else.”

“And they do this on purpose?”

“It’s quite the high,” he said in a way that made me wonder if he’d tried it before in his former life. “They feel stoned. But their brains are starting to fight it. Hence the jerking movements.”

I tore my sight off the gruesome dancers and looked back at Pete. He’d narrowed his sights on a girl in a curly blonde wig, dressed as a sexy vampire. Velvet cape and all. Her back was to me, and I couldn’t see her face, but I watched as she tapped the shoulder of one of the dancing devil girls. “Kristy, I want to go,” I heard her say. The other girl didn’t respond. “Kristy, please? Answer me.” Something about her voice made me cringe. It was laced with so much fear. Her friends had probably dragged her here, and she hadn’t known what she was getting herself into.

Pete must have heard the fear also. He licked his lips as he stared at her. I knew what he was thinking: easy prey. And I doubted it was just her psychic energy he wanted to feed off of.

I leaned in close to Daniel and pecked a kiss against his throat, making it look like we were merely on the dance floor to make out. “Pete’s on the prowl,” I whispered into Daniel’s ear.

“Then he’ll be easily baited.” Daniel kissed me. “What do you think?”

Our plan had been to find away to lure Pete to a secluded area of the haunted house—in order to kill him without attracting any attention.