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“You’re not alone anymore,” I said softly. “Let me do this. Let me keep you safe. And when this mess is over, we’ll leave this damned town and do whatever we please. You’ve fought for your life, Juniper. You deserve to live out the rest of it without having to fight another day.”
She leaned against my hand. There had been ecstasy in taking her soul, but this? This went beyond words. The magic that bound us together could never mimic this feeling; no bargain of the soul could ever come close to a declaration like love. And a mere word couldn’t encompass what I felt for her — it couldn’t describe the surety that she and I were meant to be entwined. The wild energy that made up our beings was magnetic, there was no pulling that apart.
I’d lived for hundreds of years, and I knew how rare that was.
I knelt down and kissed her hands. “Just this one time, Juniper. Lay down your weapons, and let me use mine.”
She took a deep breath, and let it out with a shudder. She looked at me like she was trying to find a lie, like she was trying to find a reason to deny me. But I wasn’t budging on this. No fucking way. I took care of what was mine.
“I’ll let you fight,” she finally said. “But you’re not going alone. I’m going with you. I’ll stay back, I’ll stay hidden. But if something goes wrong, I need toknow. I need tobe there.” Her eyes were desperate; they were pleading. “I’ll keep my distance. I’m not afraid of them, Zane. There’s only one thing I’m afraid of — and it’s losing you.”
I knew she wouldn’t budge on this. At least this way, if things went wrong, she’d know immediately. It would give her a head start to run.
I nodded slowly. “You’ll stay back. You’ll stay hidden no matterwhat happens. Agreed?”
She nodded in return. “Don’t you fucking die, Zane,” she said. “Don’t you dare.”
I smiled. “You know I wouldn’t disobey you.”
47
The sun had set, and the smell of smoke was in the air. Something in Abelaum was burning; I could see the plume of smoke rising over the trees to the south. The air felt strange, it feltcharged. Like a livewire sparking electricity through a pool of water.
We drove into Abelaum with the headlights off, and as we reached town, I spotted the cause of the smoke: the Food Mart on the corner of Main Street and 1st had been burned to the ground. I stared as we drove past, the parking lot closed off with ribbons of yellow tape.
Police were everywhere, and the sharp scent of blood and gasoline was in the air. As I glanced over, a body bag was lifted from the concrete and loaded into the back of the van.
“Shit is escalating fast,” Juniper said softly.
“The God won’t waste time,” I said grimly. “Its return to power is too close for It to start slacking. It’s only going to get more vicious. More violent. And now It has Jeremiah to carry out Its will.”
“Not for much longer,” she muttered. I knew how badly she’d wanted to do it herself: she had wanted to end Jeremiah’s life by her own hand, and I didn’t blame her. But things had changed now, the danger was greater and far more urgent.
I needed to end this, and end it quickly.
Jeremiah had only a fragment of the Deep One’s power, but even that made him a significant threat. The power contained in him had been palpable when I’d seen him in the woods, but it was also chaotic, difficult to grasp the true depth of.
I wasn’t entirely sure what I’d be up against.
My own power was growing all the time, as all soul hunters’ did. Every soul brought greater strength, and Juniper’s had increased mine to levels I was still uncertain of. I rarely had a need to flex my full strength, so knowing what I was capable of at this point was difficult. But I sensed the changes in myself. Manipulating the energy and aether around me was easier than ever.
The whites of my eyes were darkening too. The golden irises I’d always had were deepening in color. If a demon grew strong enough, their eyes would turn black entirely.
Like the Archdemons. Like Callum.
I couldn’t match beings like that yet. But damn, I hoped I was close. I was going to need it.
Everything just smelled wrong, and it got worse the closer we moved toward the Hadleigh house. Rain streaked over the windshield as we drove, the road briefly illuminated by a flash of lightning. I was glad for the rain; it would cool down my raging body temperature and keep Juniper better hidden.
When we reached the property, approaching it under the cover of darkness beneath the trees, we found it had changed since we’d last been there.
The huge lawn, usually pristinely trimmed, had grown long and wild. White mushrooms had sprouted up everywhere, so prolific there was a stringy, pale webbing spread across the lawn between the various clusters.
The driveway was packed with cars, and through the lit windows, I could see a crowd of people gathered in the living room. They were young men and women with tired, wide-eyed expressions. I spotted guns on the counter, but no one seemed ready for an attack. They were drinking beers, conversing quietly.
There was no sign of Jeremiah.
“I’m going to go find him,” I said. Juniper nodded, her shotgun gripped tight in her hands. “If shit goes south, youleave. Understand?”
