Page 21 of All Your Deadly Truths (The Filthy Duet #2)

Kairhyse

“ K airhyse!” I’ve never heard Sydni say my full name, and if I weren’t already fully sprinting to her, I would’ve picked up speed.

Barely a minute has passed since her scream, when I round the hallway that leads straight to her. From the doorway, I see her stepping back, hands clasped over her mouth, shoulders hunched forward. Niyla is nowhere in sight, but the low growl echoing in the room tells me Brice is somewhere near.

I’m in front of her in seconds, shielding her from—I don’t even know what—until I see it.

I’m not entirely sure what I’m looking at.

Its eyes are gray, almost white. The color bleeding into the rest like there’s a film over them.

Patches of black hair cling stubbornly to its head, though most of the scalp is bare.

I can’t tell if the hair was burned away or torn out, but the skin looks raw and uneven.

Fresh scars crisscross its body, and the tattered clothes hanging off it suggest it shouldn’t even be capable of standing, let alone walking toward us.

“What the fuck?” I spit out. “Where is Niy?—”

“I’m here…” she groans, and it’s now I can see she’s peeling herself out from under a pile of rubble.

What the Beyond is going on?

I shift my gaze to Brice, who is in a couching position, hackles raised, preparing to pounce.

“She said you’d come.” The voice that escapes this thing is raspy, parched, like its throat hasn’t known moisture in years.

Just as it lunges toward us, Brice is on it. His canines sink into its neck, and he thrashes it around like a rag doll. With a final snap of his jaws, he hurls it against the wall—right where Alaric is stepping out.

The Fallen doesn’t miss a beat. He rushes to Niyla’s side, helping her to her feet with steady hands.

I turn quickly to Syd. “Are you alright?”

She looks petrified, eyes slightly sunken, a gentle twitch occurring in her left one. I convince myself she is just in shock. I don’t have time to assess if there are any injuries because I hear groaning coming from the pile where that thing was thrown.

When it drags itself from under the mess, it isn’t bleeding. And I physically saw Brice’s canines pierce into the flesh.

“Interesting,” Alaric comments while rounding in front of me. “Never thought I’d see one of these.”

“What is it?” I shift to stand beside him just as whatever the Beyond this is pops its head from side to side, eyeing me .

I’m not afraid of this thing , but I need to be cautious not to give it a moment to get to Sydni.

If it just survived a Werewolf tear, something tells me it won’t go down with ease.

“It’s a Necroth. Likely once a Shifter with a strong skeletal system.” Alaric’s gaze shifts from left to right.

Now that he says the name, I can connect their appearance to those creatures. This looks exactly like history books tell them to be.

These things aren’t seen past the wall that lines Demour. Definitely never this far west. They are the undead; created by the Ashpyte toxic waste that settles under Old Hearth.

“Why is one here?!” Sydni shouts.

“I don’t know… but we can’t worry about that right now, someone?—”

“Someone planted this here,” I finish for him. “They don’t do people’s bidding willingly, so someone is controlling it.” Xeraphine said she had done something similar to that driver, Jonathan, when she killed the twins. But he was Mundane, from my understanding.

For someone to control a Necroth without being present, that’s powerful.

We barely make it any further into our conversation before it lunges at me. My stride is steady as I intercept its flying fist. The sharp smack echoes, sending dirt scattering around us, and it’s a wonder my wrist doesn’t snap from the force.

Alaric moves in, locking his arm around its neck, but a quick jab to his face forces him to falter. He stumbles but manages to hold on, regaining his grip almost instantly.

Seizing the moment, I pivot, gathering momentum, and drive my elbow into its nose with all the force I can summon, aiming to break it.

It doesn’t work.

In a blur, it seizes my wrist and twists it into an excruciating angle. Pain shoots through me, and I drop to one knee, my body yielding to the pressure.

This power—it’s far beyond anything a typical Shifter could possess.

Niyla appears out of nowhere, driving her shin into its face. Already reeling from the last hit, it stumbles, giving Alaric the opening to heave it over his shoulder.

As its grip on my wrist loosens, I’m back on my feet, darting around to intercept the Necroth before it can recover.

The instant I secure one of its limbs, Niyla and Alaric grab hold of the others, and together, we pull.

“Wait!” Sydni shouts. “What if it knows something?!”

Grunting, I shift my arm around its neck and pull back. Unfortunately, I don’t think that there will be much talking to it. Its heart isn’t even beating, and with the amount of pressure that it is applying back, I worry it could tear us apart given the chance.

“Brice!” My backward pull wrenches the undead Shifter down to its knees. Its hands claw desperately at my forearm as its strength falters, leaving it subdued.

Just as the Werewolf is mere steps from me, Sydni is between both him and us. “Stop, please, at least let me ask!”

“Syd!” I grit through my teeth—I don’t think she understands just how strong this thing is. My arms shake as I fall down to situate myself on my knees behind it, pulling it and curving its back.

“Where is Xeraphine!?” Her voice is tinged with anger and guilt.

I’m grateful when Niyla steps in, pressing down hard on its shoulders. Even so, the strength of this thing is… it’s unreal. It shouldn’t be possible, and yet here we are, struggling to pin down what should be just a simple Shifter.

The creature just hisses and grunts at my butterfly, not saying a word.

My eyes shift to Sydni’s, and she screams again, “Where is she?! Who took her?!”

She gets dangerously close as she leans forward, and the moment I recognize it, the creature’s hand is out grabbing at her. Her quick instincts to lean back isn’t fast enough and it grabs a fist full of her pink hair.

No longer than it takes her to start shrieking, does Brice have his jaw latched around its hand and is grinding against the flesh. It releases her, but Brice doesn’t relent, and completely clenches his jaw closed.

Gripping what is left of the hair on this creature’s head, I tear it back, and only when my fingers are brushing against the wolf’s canines, do I remove my hand.

While he tugs, I pull, and with Niyla’s help and a lot of grunts, its head finally separates.

Holy fuck.

Seconds after tearing the head off, I kick the lower half of the creature off me—one that just took on two Vampires, a Fallen, and a Werewolf.

I push myself to my knees, rising quickly to move toward Sydni, but Brice’s massive head appears in front of me, his snout nudging her shoulder. Her face is hidden in her hands, and I can see the faint tremble as she attempts to hold back tears.

“ Sydni, are you okay? ” Brice’s low hum nearly comes out as a whine.

I turn my gaze over my shoulder, watching as the Fallen grabs hold of the creature’s head—something I’m surprised Brice didn’t just devour. Both of Alaric’s hands cup its cheeks, his thumbs forcing its eyes open.

My own narrow in consternation. What is he doing?

“Sorry…” I’m dragged back to Sydni apologizing. “I should’ve listened… I just… I…”

Brice’s yellow eyes shift to me, though his head remains still.

My distrust for all of them is a thick, suffocating weight—his gentleness right now doesn’t change that.

I need my butterfly to remember that he tricked her once.

So the moment her arms begin to lift toward his head, I move in swiftly, snatching her under the arms and pulling her to her feet.

The action is so fast that she gasps, meeting my eyes. “Don’t, it’s fine.” I place a hand at the back of her head and pull her into my chest, glaring down at Brice as he slowly rises to his full height.

Niyla steps up beside me, her voice sharp. “I don’t know about you, Kairhyse, but I was putting every ounce of my strength into holding that thing down.”

I nod. “I’ve never encountered a Necroth before, and I can’t say I’m eager to face one again.” Sydni clings to me, wiping her face against my shirt. “Butterfly, did you get the disk drive?”

“Yeah, I…” She sniffles, taking a deep breath before continuing, “The moment I got it out that thing showed up, punched Niyla, and immediately came after me.”

“ Alaric, what do you see? ”

See? I’m taken aback by his question. It’s only now that I look back at the Fallen, and see that his eyes are as white as the creature’s he holds.

“I couldn’t see anything with the ones upstairs. Their lifeforce was their means of death, so their life was gone instantly.” He blinks and takes a breath, releasing a groan. “I can see clearly the moment this one’s life ended.”

“What exactly are you doing?” I ask, needing to understand more about what this Fallen is.

“I can see the moments just before, and as they ascend to the Vayl.”

Fallen…

Fall …

Where would he…

Am I stupid? How did I miss that? Xera has consumed every inch of my thoughts. There’s no other reason I didn’t realize it sooner.

“Are you fucking telling me you are an Angel?” I don’t hide the disgust in my tone. They’re described in the sacred texts of our Gods as servants to the Twelve. I always imagined them as relics, idolized alongside their mighty counterparts, not as physical creatures.

He huffs out a laugh. “Not quite. We were once retainers to our respective Gods, yes, but as the name sort of indicates—I’ve fallen from grace.

” The disdain in his voice is enough to show he’s not pleased with that outcome.

“I couldn’t see the ones upstairs because of how they died.

When your lifeforce is sucked out, you don’t linger around your body after death.

Your existence disappears immediately, and either waits in a void for Belial’s servants to collect you, or you appear before the Vayl gates. ”

“That’s a lot to consider…” Syd murmurs against me.

Alaric sighs. “Yes. This one’s neck was snapped.” As he drops the head, Sydni flinches, pulling back from me but not fully breaking free of my hold.

“We weren’t wrong, but definitely not right, either.” He looks at Niyla, Brice, and then to me. “Looks like we are heading north. We will stop to get you a new laptop and a driver attachment so you and Brice can work on getting into that.” He points over my shoulder, but I keep my eyes on him.

He isn’t saying something. I can smell it coming off of him.

“Where, exactly?” I ask.

“Ashfer.”

I’m having to think of which state that is. I think Alameris. Suddenly, my butterfly says in a patronizing tone, “That is four states north! That will take us days… How can you be certain?”

“It’s where they said they were going to be taking her.”

I’m pretty sure my heart stops. “What?!”

“Coastline. Ashfer, Pier 3.”

“Who said that?” I want to hold onto this hope that is exactly where I’m going to find my little demon. However, it just feels far too easy .

“Based on her appearance.” I want to understand his demeanor. It’s nonchalant, as if none of this surprises him. “Xeraphine.”

I swallow roughly. “What?”