Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins
“Wait.” Astaroth held out a hand to Pharzuph and nudged Mammon with his foot. Flynn’s father grabbed his temple and got to his feet. “Let Mammon do the honors.”
Pharzuph handed over the gun with reluctance. Mammon pointed it at his son with one hand while the other hand held the side of his head.
“Who are you working with?” Mammon demanded.
When Flynn grinned it was a frightening, powerful sight. Mammon moved to step closer and thought better of it. He kept himself out of arm’s reach.
“I gave you everything! I made you who you are! And this is how you repay me? Tell me who you’re working with!”
“I will tell you nothing, old man.”
“Truth!” said the daughter of Jezebet from the boat.
Mammon pointed at her. “Shut up, girl!”
And in a horrifying moment of crazed anger, Mammon let out a primal shout and shot his son in the chest. I pressed my lips together as Flynn grabbed the wound and staggered before collapsing. He crouched on the dock, sucking hard for air. The dark spirits danced and glided above the scene with wicked glee. Kaidan held me tight.
“Last chance.” Mammon stood over his son with the gun pointed to his head.
Flynn raised his blood-drained face and said, “I’ll see you in hell.”
Mammon pulled the trigger again, and Flynn jolted before becoming still. I would never forget the sight of our friend, our ally, a strong and vibrant life, crumpled on the edge of that dock.
Shaking breaths racked my body, as if my system wanted to hyperventilate but couldn’t quite manage it in this frozen state.
The Dukes and whisperers watched Flynn’s body with silent expectancy. I watched, too, in awe, as Flynn’s spirit slowly pulled from its shell. He wasn’t as glorious and bright as Sister Ruth had been, but neither was his spirit dark or weak. He lifted himself to his full height above the abandoned body and faced the Dukes head-on.
“Cheeky one, isn’t he?” Pharzuph said to Mammon, who could only stare at his son’s spirit with something like regret. Pharzuph nodded to the two whisperers hovering above. “Get him, boys.”
In a darting movement the dark spirits seized him. Flynn’s soul was a blur as he fought against them. Through it all I held out hope. I waited for a bright light to break through the night and an angel to save the day, but nothing came to Flynn’s rescue. I choked on a sob as the whisperers dragged his spirit down until he was gone.
“Damn,” Astaroth muttered. “You killed him too soon. We didn’t get any information from him.”
Mammon was breathing hard, a frenzied look still in his eyes. “He ticked me off.”
“At least we know for certain there’s a traitor in our midst,” Astaroth said. “Now we have to find out who.”
Mammon’s arms were limp at his sides as he stared down at his son’s once-strong body.
“Come on,” Pharzuph said. “Let’s get those human toerags back to the mainland. We’ll drag the Neph’s body out to sea by rope and let him loose. He’ll never be found. And you—” He pointed up at the Neph girl. “Get back into hiding.”
She scrambled from the ledge and disappeared.
“I’ll go get the women while you tie up the body,” Melchom said.
The Dukes got busy with their tasks, grumbling about how they should have brought along another Neph to do the dirty work. Pharzuph complained of blood on his shoe.
I thought I’d be ill when they tugged Flynn’s body from the dock and he landed in the water with a splash. They tied him up and pushed him under the dock so he’d be hidden from the women. The body floated a mere ten feet away. I squeezed my eyes shut and fought the urge to gag.
A few minutes later the women boarded and water swooshed around us as the boat began to move, dragging the body behind it. Kai helped lift me higher just in time to avoid water in my mouth.
Again we waited, encompassed in the icy sea, giving the Dukes ample time to be out of hearing range. It seemed like forever. And then Blake moved to the edge of the overhanging walkway inside the boathouse, grabbing it and pulling himself up. He grimaced, but managed to climb with stiff motions. Next he stuck out an arm to help Kopano, who gave a mild wince. Together the two of them pulled up Zania. Kai swam us over and lifted me by the waist. The guys were there to grab my arms and pull me from the water. It hurt to lift my arms, but it wasn’t a normal surface pain. It was deep within the muscles.
I couldn’t feel my body and it was a struggle not to collapse. Zania cried out in pain as she reached for me and we lay side by side in the night air. Kaidan splashed his way onto the platform with a curse as Blake tugged his arm.
“We g-gotta g-get the boat,” Blake said through his teeth.
“I will go w-with you.” Kope’s voice was a hoarse whisper.
With jerky movements, Kaidan sat on the dock next me and pulled me to his lap, then helped Zania settle against me. Together she and I battled violent tremors. I couldn’t keep my eyes open or make out what Kaidan was saying. Something about hypothermia. My heart and body were broken.
At some point Zania left my lap and I was lifted in the air. Kaidan’s breath warmed my temple as he whispered over and over, “You’ll b-be all right now.” I wanted to tell him he was shaking, too, but I couldn’t talk.
I found myself in a chair next to Zania in the boat while the others rushed around, hollering to one another in shaky voices about blankets and heaters and wet clothes. With much effort I raised my arm across Zania’s lap and took her hand, damp and cold like a dead fish. My head fell back and my eyes closed. Multiple footsteps banged overhead on the boat’s deck as someone started the engine and a blast of heated air rushed through the room.
“We must remove our wet clothing,” said a soothing deep voice in front of us.
I tried. I really did. When it didn’t work I felt my shoes being removed. They hit the floor with a squishy thud. Next my socks were peeled off, but the hilt stayed around my ankle. Kope murmured something to Zania in Arabic, but she was unresponsive, asleep.
“Can you do the rest?” he asked me. I reached for the button of my shorts, fumbling with tingly fingers while Kope undid Z’s sandals. With great effort I got the zipper down and lifted my hips, pushing. The wet fabric stuck to my skin and I was too weak to push the shorts all the way down.
“I can’t,” I whispered. Had I been in my right mind, I would have told him to focus on Zania while I waited for Kaidan or Blake to come down. But I wasn’t thinking clearly, and under the circumstances the entire scenario of undressing was a necessity. Nothing more.
Kopano grabbed a blanket from the bed. “Here,” he said, laying it across my midsection. “I will not look. Try again.” He stared down at the floor next to me.
I whimpered and pushed my shorts farther. When they were at my knees Kope grabbed the bottoms and tugged down my calves, keeping his eyes averted. A growl of fury sounded from the doorway and my heart stopped.
“Get. Your. Bloody hands. Off her.”
Kope shut his eyes and gritted his teeth before moving away from me. My eyes flickered to the middle of the room where Kaidan and Kopano faced off in their dripping clothes. I sensed Zania awaken next to me at the sound of raised voices.
“She is in the worst condition. The wet clothing must be removed—”
“Not by you!” Kaidan yelled. “I can’t believe you’d take advantage of this situation.”
Kope’s eyes flew wide with a flash of anger and he stepped closer. “You go too far, brother!” He shook, and I knew it was from more than the cold. He wasn’t stable enough to control his wrath. His hands clenched into tight fists.
“You will never touch her again,” Kaidan said in that deadly low voice.
“G-guys,” I whispered pathetically through chattering teeth. “We’re all upset. Don’t do this.”
They ignored me, nose to nose, ready to fight. I was in no shape to try and stop them.
I mustered enough energy to call for Blake. He came
“Chill,” Blake told them. “I think enough damage’s been done tonight.” His body trembled from the lingering effects of cold.
Kope and Kaidan continued staring, but Kai took a step back. All three of them were shaking.
“Go,” Blake said to Kai. “Take care of Anna.”
That seemed to fully snap him from his jealous trance. With one last glare at Kope, he shouldered past them and came to me. Zania helped hold the blanket over me while we got my shirt off and Kaidan picked me up with the blanket around me, carrying me to the bed and laying me in the middle, throwing another blanket on top. Everything ached down to my bones.
The room was too quiet and the awful tension was still there. One look at Kope told us why. He stood with his eyes closed, fists like rocks, breathing hard, about to lose it. His badge was larger than I’d ever seen it. We all glanced around at one another, eyes wide. None of us was sure how to diffuse this ticking bomb.
And then Zania’s voice rang through the room, clear as a bell despite her trembling.
“Brother Kopano.”
We all stilled, surprised. Kope kept his head down, but with slow force he opened his eyes and shifted them to her. He was barely containing his rage. Nobody moved. Zania met his fearsome gaze, and in a bold voice she asked, “Warm me?”
I’d stopped breathing at that point, waiting. She had succeeded in morphing the room’s angry tension into something expectant.
Kope stared at her, a steely expression on his face. He never took his eyes from Zania as he stepped across the small space to her. I still couldn’t breathe when he stood in front of her chair and pulled the shirt over his head. I shouldn’t have stared at the two of them, but something big was happening and I was riveted. We all were.
They stared at each other, unsure, and then she began unbuttoning her blouse. Kope watched her face, really watched her with that intense, serious way of his. When she struggled to wiggle out of the wet garment, he gently pulled it from her arms. Then, without a word, he grabbed a sheet from the shelf to cover her then helped her pull off her tan slacks. I looked away when he unbuttoned his wet jeans, but I heard him tugging them off. And then he was carrying her to the bed, laying her next to me. He climbed in beside her and raised the blankets over them, spooning close behind her.
I saw him shoot one last scowl toward Kaidan, who stood at the end of the bed, but his anger vanished as he put his face in Zania’s neck and closed his eyes. She looked at me with a faint smile of disbelief and my lips rose in return.
I finally looked at the other two, who were both standing there as amazed as me. Blake shrugged, pulling off his T-shirt and dropping his shorts. He stood there in his boxers.
“Ready to s-snuggle?” he asked Kaidan, a slight chatter in his voice. Only Blake could joke on a night like this and get away with it.
Kaidan shook his head and undressed down to his boxers, too, the tension finally shedding away from his frame.
“I swear, mate. If I feel something poke me in the back . . .”
Blake’s laugh was dry. “I’m pretty sure my junk froze off, man, so don’t worry.”
Kaidan climbed into the bed next to me. I put my back to Zania, pressing as close as I could to her. Kaidan faced me, and Blake lay behind him. It was a tight fit, but we were all skin to skin under layers of blankets, which is what we needed. I slid a leg between Kaidan’s thighs and I felt him take a jagged breath before relaxing. Together we all shivered while our body temperatures rose.
Blake got up after some time, claiming he was sweating because of Kaidan, the human furnace. As my internal thermometer stabilized I fell in and out of sleep. I seemed to recall a visit from Azael, saying the Dukes were at the airport, headed back to Vegas. As the boat began to move, my mind registered that we were safe and I passed out hard.
I dreamed of Flynn “the Ghost” Frazier bouncing on the balls of his feet in the middle of the ring. His giant smile. Our fearless ally. I dreamed that Kaidan told me he loved me, just before Rahab and Pharzuph pointed guns to our heads. And all the Dukes laughed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
TRUTH COMES OUT
I woke up sweating, covered in four blankets. I pushed them off and let out a little squeak when I realized I was in my bra and panties. I yanked a sheet back over myself and looked around, but it was only Zania and me. She’d kicked off all but the sheet, too. I sat up, spotting my clothes laid out across chairs. With stiff, painful movements I got up and grabbed the shirt and shorts. They were still damp, but dry enough, so I put them on. My phone sat on the tabletop where I’d left it the day before. I sent Dad a message: A911, then went up to the deck.
I shielded my eyes against the bright morning sun to see we were docked at the port outside Los Angeles, a warm breeze blowing through the sunny skies. Kope and Kai were both dressed, standing at opposite ends of the boat and looking out. Kope’s arms were crossed, while Kai leaned against the side on his elbows. I shook my head, sad to see they were still at odds. With so much against us, we couldn’t afford any rifts.
I went to Kai and took his hand, winding my fingers with his. He continued to stare out at sea. I didn’t like the blank look on his face—the one that had always meant he was shutting down—shutting me out. I knew he was thinking about the things we’d heard last night. I squeezed his hand and he looked at me.
My insides unraveled in relief as his face softened.
“Nice hair, luv,” he said, tugging a dry, salted lock.
I snorted a laugh and leaned my forehead against his chest. He wasn’t leaving me this time. Whatever was going to happen, we’d face it together, no matter how many miles separated us. That brought me no end of comfort. And then Flynn’s face floated into my mind and I clutched Kaidan’s stiff cotton shirt. Tears welled and a sob stuck in my chest. Kai pulled me closer and rubbed my back. Realizing we were in public and whisperers could be about, I yanked myself away and dried my eyes. Kai seemed to understand.
My phone buzzed with Dad’s number.
“Still in L.A.?” he asked when I answered.
“Yes, sir.”
“Take the girl where you need to take her. The son of Alocer’s got a flight out this afternoon, and you’ve got one this evening. I’m on my way there right now to talk in person. Azael said something’s going on.”
“He’s right.” My voice was thick as I pushed down the sadness and anxiety.
Dad let out one of his frustrated sighs and told me he’d see me soon.
Zania came up the steps with her hair in a sleek ponytail and her clothes slightly rumpled. But she stood tall with her chin up. She and Kope made brief eye contact before both examining the water and anything else they could look at. Blake walked up the dock toward us.
“All right everyone. Boat’s turned in. Time to go.”
He tossed each of us a protein bar and we ate as we trudged to the parking lot. The bright sun was a strange contrast to our darkened moods. The car was quiet the whole way to the convent. We all wore glassy-eyed looks, minds overwhelmed.
We parked in the gravel lot and I led us to the entrance, where we were greeted by the nun I recognized from two years ago, Sister Emily. I could have sworn she was wearing the very same flowered dress. Kope, Kai, and Blake hung by the door while Zania and I walked into a sitting room. I explained that my father helped save Zania from dire circumstances in the Middle East, and now she was a refugee. Zania allowed me to talk, nodding to confirm facts about her struggle with alcoholism and a difficult past with men.
The fact that Sister Emily’s colors never wavered from those of compassion helped dissipate some of the fears I knew Zania had.
“This will only be temporary,” I told the nun. “My father is in the process of finding her a home.”
“I’m so glad you’re here with us, Zania. We offer counseling services, rooms, and meals. You’ll be sa
We stood and went back into the hall, but Kope wasn’t there. Blake and Kai nodded to an open set of doors at the end of the hall. A chapel. The four of us walked down the quiet hall and looked in at the small sanctuary with five rows of pews.
Three older nuns were kneeling in front of a crucifix. Their guardian angels stood over them, keeping a loving vigil. Candles flickered around the room. Kope sat in the third row with his head lowered. I stepped into the room and was immediately overwhelmed with emotion so pure, so peaceful, I had to bite back tears. After the previous night, it was hard to believe there was a crevice of the earth untainted by the Dukes’ hatred.
Zania joined me, and I motioned my head toward Kope. She swallowed, but nodded, walking forward and sliding into the pew next to him. I sat on the end beside her and she took my hand. I peeked back at Kaidan and Blake, who stood respectfully in the hall, leaning against the wall. They wouldn’t come in.
“I have never prayed,” Zania whispered to me. “Will you teach me?”
I clamped my mouth closed. Despite being capable of wielding the Sword of Righteousness, I still felt inadequate.
“I just . . . talk,” I explained in a whisper. “How about I do the talking and you can listen. Okay?”
She nodded, looking just as nervous as I felt. But when I bowed my head and she followed suit, we inclined toward each other and together we became lost in the peace of the moment. By the end her face was wet and I instinctively wiped her tears with the back of my fingers.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “You have done so much for me, sister.”
“You’re welcome. I’m so glad you’re here with us.”