Shift - 02 (3 page)

I looked out the wall of windows that lined the condo. The sun was setting earlier as the seasons changed. It was seven o’clock and the sun was gone. Darkness beat down on the city, but the lights and traffic made it look very much alive.

Life had changed so much in the past few weeks. I’d lost my mom. I was living with people I hardly knew, and I no longer had a job. I should’ve known I couldn’t miss that many days without repercussions. I’d tried to get another, but Marcus had stressed that it was for the best. I needed to lie low until we knew what had become of Riley. My father. The man I was trying to stop from raising a demon god. The man who had killed my mother.

The strangest adjustment of all was the lack of Underworld attacks. Since we’d gotten back from Drakar, there hadn’t been any. I’d never gone more than a few days, let alone weeks, without a demon coming after me. It should’ve been comforting, but all it did was make me nervous.
 

I flicked the TV on, stretched, and flopped onto the couch. I tried to fight it as a yawn crept up on me, but I was unsuccessful. It was early and last night’s lack of sleep was already getting to me. My eyelids were starting to get heavy, but the sound of wings and footsteps snapped them back awake.
 

Rayna came down the stairs with Rai not far behind her.

Two sets of white wings flapped rapidly, landing on the iron railing that separated the third floor library from the main floor living room. Her golden feathers gleamed as flickers of light flashed in her eyes.

“Hey!” Rayna stepped into the living room with an unusual bounce in her step. She had showered away the filth, and her skin was glowing. You’d never guess that less than twenty-four hours ago she’d nearly turned into a werecat.

A yellow halter top hugged her small frame and dark blue jeans hung low on her hips, covering long, toned legs. Her hair hung down over her shoulders, red strands mingling with the black, decorating the thick locks.

“Hey...” I said, clicking the television off. “Feeling better?”

“I'm starving, but otherwise, great.”

“Well you'd better hurry. We’re leaving soon.”

“Leaving…” Rayna brought a hand up to her forehead. “We have a meeting at the Circle tonight. I totally forgot.”

“Are you going to be up for it?”

Rayna pulled out a huge sandwich from the refrigerator and took a bite. “Well, I don’t want to go explain myself to a bunch of old guys who think they’re better than me, but yeah, I’ll be fine. Why?” she asked, watching me out of the corner of her eye.
   

“I don’t know, maybe because you nearly became a giant cat last night?”

“It’s just like before. It’s not a big deal, especially now that we know how to handle it.”

“Rayna, it’s far from fine, and from where I was standing, it wasn’t like before. That monster inside you keeps trying to rip itself out, and last night was the worst. How do you figure we know how to
handle it
?”

Rayna winced as I said
monster
, and I realized I was almost yelling. I hadn’t meant to get angry, but how could she act like this was no big deal?

Rayna closed her eyes and took a breath. “Your element stopped the beast in its tracks last night. If it happens again, we know that works.”

“For all we know it was a fluke. The beast inside you is getting stronger each time. We need to find a way to subdue it. Permanently.”

“The full moon has passed. We don't even have to worry about it for another month."
 

“Well, I’m worried now. I’m not going to lose…” I cut myself off. “We’re not waiting ‘til next time. We need to figure this out before it happens again, or
next time
you might not be so lucky.”

“Will you relax? Nothing is going to happen to me. Besides, as long as you stick around, we have nothing to worry about. Wait…you’re not planning on leaving are you?” Rayna smirked.

“Really, you're joking about this? With everything that’s happened during the past few weeks, we need to find out how to fix this, not deal with it.”

Rayna’s smile faded. “Look, I know it’s been hard with everything that’s…happened. With Riley still alive–”

“We don’t know that for sure,” I snapped.

“All I’m saying is we’ve had a lot going on. If you need someone…you know…if you need to talk…”

“You too? Really?” I asked. I wasn’t ready to talk about
it
yet. I wasn’t sure I’d ever be.

“Me too, what? What are you talking about?”

“Forget it.”

Silence filled the air around us and I thanked the gods when the buzzer rang.

“I’ll get it,” I said.

I moved to the stainless steel box in the wall and pushed the talk button down. “Hello?”

“If you expect me to join you on this ridiculous escapade, I suggest you let me in.” Vincent’s voice rattled through the intercom carrying an accent I recognized, but couldn’t quite place.

I pressed the buzzer and the thought of him being near me sent chills down my spine. What was he even doing here? Before I could answer my own thought, Vincent’s fingers tapped along the door in an annoying, chipper melody.

I grabbed the silver handle and pulled the giant oak slab towards me. Vincent’s golden orbs looked up at me and an amused expression played at his lips. Black hair was styled in perfect spikes, decorating his head and contrasting the pale skin that covered his body. His shirt was a shiny yellow silk, mostly unbuttoned and revealing a smooth chest. His shirt matched his shoes in an odd collaboration, and black pants fit snug against his legs.

“Could you have left me out there much longer?” Vincent pushed past me. This was one of those moments where I wished vampires actually had to be
invited
in. “Gods know what kind of monsters are running amok. This town is full of them, you know.” Vincent walked into the room and twirled around in an overdramatic maneuver. The smile that accompanied his words managed to be both suave and unsettling.

“You don’t say,” I replied, closing the door.
 

The awkward silence I thought I'd avoided settled over us. Vincent’s golden gaze flickered between Rayna and me, his smile changing to one of pure satisfaction. “Have I interrupted?”

“No,” I said.

Vincent’s hand came to his mouth, idly tapping a finger over his lips. “A lover's quarrel perhaps?”

“Who’s a quarrel?” Willy asked, jumping down the last step with Tiki behind him.

Willy’s flannel shirt was missing buttons, flaring out over acid washed jeans with a hole in the knee. The beard he was still trying to grow stuck out in awkward patches on his chin, never growing past stubble.

“Wonderful, the
help
is here.” Vincent rolled his eyes.
 

Willy jumped back into Tiki, nearly knocking them both down. He regained his balance and stumbled against the wall, his skin turning a dark brown to match the paint.

“Wha–, wha–, what’s he doing here?” His stutter thickened as his brown eyes found Vincent.

“He’s coming to the meeting. I already told you that.”

“Yeah, we–, well, I thought he’d me–, meet us there. You know, like you do at meetings.”

I shook my head. “Tiki, I told you, you have to wear clothes today.”

Tiki stood in the same rags he’d come here in. Baggy white pants were stained with dirt and hung from his waist with a frayed rope. His shirt was missing, revealing smooth caramel skin that covered an overly muscular body. His eyes were solid orange with the exception of large, white triangular pupils in the center, and the look on his face was not happy.

“Chase Williams, I do not like the clothing here. It is tight and uncomfortable. Especially when it bunches around my–”

“Okay, that’s more than I need to hear. Come on, we’ll try to find you something…less restricting,” Rayna said, leading Tiki upstairs.

“My, you do like to associate yourself with pathetic creatures, my dear hunter,” Vincent said.

The door opened before I could respond and the large body of Marcus walked in. Marcus’ dark gaze fell over the room, and he frowned when he saw Vincent. “I thought you were going to meet us there.”

“See?” Willy chipped in.

“Please. You think I’d go there alone? The only reason I’m even coming is to appease your associates. My family doesn’t need any more unwanted attention from
your
kind.”

“I told you, the Circle has sworn an oath of safe passage for all of you tonight,” Marcus said.

Vincent laughed. “I’ve not survived five centuries by believing in the oaths of hunters. I’ll come with you, but you will see to it that the Circle keeps their word, or my family and I will retaliate. Although we’d prefer to avoid the attention, if provoked, we will respond with a force you hunters can’t imagine.” Vincent’s voice was calm, but his eyes showed how serious he was.

“Why must you make everything difficult?” Marcus asked.

Vincent shrugged. “You call it difficult, I call it self-preservation.”

“A hunter’s oath is his bond. How can you even suggest otherwise?” Marcus asked. The frustration was clear in his voice, and it caught me off guard. Marcus never showed emotion.
 

“Anyone who dedicates their existence to hunting my kind is far from trustworthy,” Vincent said. “Why do we even have to attend this meeting? I don’t know about you, but I don’t owe the Circle. If anything, they owe
me
for the lives they’ve stolen from my family."

“They want to discuss Riley. He has so far been successful in evading the Circle. Although I would prefer not to share any information until we know who all is involved, it is best not to oppose the elders.”

“Says the rogue hunter.” Vincent smirked. “Either way, if you want me to go, I’m coming with you.”

“Fine,” Marcus said. “Chase, where is everyone?”

“We’re here,” Rayna came down the steps. "But we really need to take him shopping.”

Tiki stepped into the kitchen and looked as uncomfortable as I’d ever seen him. Long brown dress pants fit his waist loosely, and a tight white t-shirt stretched over his body. Tiki wasn’t a large man, but he was bigger than me, and his body was as fit as any I’d ever seen. I supposed living in a demonic dimension as an unwanted half-demon would keep you in excellent shape, but between Marcus, Willy, and me, it wasn’t easy to find clothes that fit him.

“I’m ready,” Tiki said through gritted teeth.

“Good,” Marcus said. “Rayna, how are–”

“I’m great.” Rayna cut him off. She stepped into her knee high boots, pulled them up the last few inches, and started walking out the door. “Let’s go before we’re late.”

********

The Circle’s facility was a few miles outside of town. I rode in the front, but with Vincent, it made for a cramped ride in Marcus’ car. I made it until the highway before I couldn’t take the bickering anymore.

“Will you guys shut up? We’re going to meet with elders. Do you get what that means? We need a united front, not a group of babies.”

“Well, it would be easier if we weren’t all cramped in this tiny car. You know,
my
people could have escorted us and we would have ridden with class,” Vincent replied.

I turned around and let my blue eyes pierce through him. “First, the only reason you’re cramped in the back is because you were too scared to meet us there. Second, I wouldn’t trust you or your people, to escort us anywhere. So deal with it, or get out and walk.”

I waited for Vincent’s anger, but he just smiled, which only infuriated me even more. “My, a little on edge, are we?”

“I’m about to be interrogated by the people who exiled and disowned me based on the advice of my father. Forgive me if I seem
on edge
.”

“I’d think you’d be happy to return. After all, that’s where all your brooding comes from, doesn’t it? Being exiled and not feeling like you have a place to belong? Isn’t that confusion why you associate yourself with all these…
things
?” Vincent looked to Willy.

I started to reach back in my seat, but Marcus’ arm shot out and stopped me. “Enough,” he said. “No more bickering. The elders asked us to come, but make no mistake, it was merely out of common pleasantries. Had we refused, they would have collected us and forced the meeting.”

“Are you suggesting we have no choice but to attend?” Vincent asked.

“You don’t understand the Circle. You only understand what you’ve seen. The Circle began millennia ago, when–”

“We all know how it started and how Rayna was the chosen one born of both worlds to open the portal and raise Ithreal. Blah, blah, blah. Thank you for the history lesson, Marcus. I know how my own kind came to be. Perhaps you can share something we don’t know?”

Marcus eyed Vincent in the mirror and shook his head. “The council has full control over everything the Circle does. They know more than anyone, and they filter everything a hunter knows to match their will. The council stated that Riley disappeared weeks before the…situation, but that doesn’t mean they’re not involved. Riley isn’t capable of orchestrating everything unbeknownst to the elders, which means we have a bigger problem.”