Page 11 of Another Damned Storm (Another Damned #3)

NEVER

After checking the fence in both directions and not seeing a gate, I scaled it right where I was. A few people across the street watched me do it, but I didn’t care. What were they going to do, tell me to go back over and walk my ass around?

I didn’t think so.

Once I was on the other side, I turned back to Tenebris. “If you’re so worried about everyone else, then why don’t you help me find my brother and Lily?” I asked impatiently. “The sooner I know they’re okay, the sooner we can go.”

His head rolled back a little, like he was considering my request. Then he was by my side again. Apparently, his magic worked just fine.

Lucky him.

That was when the sky went dark. One second it was bright enough to make me squint, and the next black clouds manifested out of nowhere, plunging the already unfamiliar world around me into darkness.

“This is Charleston, isn’t it?” I asked. “Or is this some parallel universe bullshit?” I didn’t know if that was a thing, but it would certainly explain a lot .

When I didn’t get a response, I shot a glance at the unhelpful fate. His attention was on the people. Some were rushing to get inside like a little rain might make them melt, but a few hung back with no intention of hiding from the storm.

Or us, since they were all watching us.

“Any idea why they find us so interesting?” Those weren’t just ‘checking out the new kids’ stares.

They bordered on hostile, and I would bet money it had everything to do with the dude who looked like a reaper standing beside me.

“What would happen if you took off the cloak? Or maybe put down the scythe? That would probably help too.”

“I am not the problem.”

“A big guy in a dark cloak wielding a weapon associated with death? Check your math, Ten. That doesn’t exactly scream friendly.”

He let out a sharp huff that might have been a laugh. “Humans can’t see me.”

Nice try. “I can see you just fine.”

“I’m visible to you because I have chosen to be so.” He motioned to the strangers who were watching me like I’d come to steal their first born. “They are unaware of my presence.”

“Seriously?”

He nodded. A simple, short move, but something about it made me want to reach out and smack him. But it begged the question: if no one else could see the scary looking reaper guy, why were they all staring?

I remembered the way I’d lit up like a Christmas tree in the Alius and had a mini panic attack until I held out my hands and triple checked that my skin was just plain old boring skin.

“Do I look weird? Are my eyes glowing? Am I growing horns?” I combed my fingers through my tangled hair to check the last one.

Nope. No horns. That was a small relief .

Tenebris’s lips twitched. Was that… a smile?

“What?” I asked.

He shook his head, clearing that glimmer of humor from his expression. “You look like any other human.”

That was a good thing, wasn’t it?

“You also appear to be talking to someone who isn’t here,” he added.

Ah. The crazy lady talking to herself. That would draw some attention, wouldn’t it?

Whatever. As long as the looky-loos kept their distance, we would be fine.

In the meantime, I had questions. “Did I miss the apocalypse? Or did the Panthers finally win the Super Bowl?”

“Not exactly,” Tenebris offered.

“But you do know what happened, don’t you?”

His brow arched with so much judgment I felt like I’d been slapped. “You happened, Never.”

“What? No. I’ve only been gone for…” I did a little quick math in my head.

If it was late summer, which was how it felt, then we were talking eight months.

Was that right? It hadn’t felt anywhere near that long in the Nassa.

I folded my arms over my chest, wanting to deny everything, but there was no point.

Whether it had been a week or a year, this right here, this destruction, was what I feared when I made the choice to leave the Nassa and Hook.

Longing twisted in my chest at the thought of him. The ache had started even before I’d dragged myself out of bed and it hadn’t subsided in the least, only now it was like someone was pouring salt on the wound.

What if I could figure out how to summon him again? How much trouble would I get in ?

Better question: How much trouble would that create for him?

Before I could put more thought into it, the sky opened up and icy rain poured down out of the clouds in sheets.

Well, that’s unfortunate timing.

We’d already pissed off the fates once, and I was defying them again by coming here. Right in front of one to boot. As tempting as it was to try to call Hook back to my world, it was too risky, and not just because of them.

Let’s say I did manage to access my magic. There was no guarantee it would work the way I wanted. I couldn’t even figure out how to flash five feet. Plus, I apparently had a fate babysitter to deal with.

This sucks.

I closed my eyes, let the rain soak my clothes, and gave myself to the count of ten to pull my shit together. “Focus on the mission,” I whispered.

Matty and Lily. They were the reasons I was here.

I pictured my brother’s face in my mind before opening my eyes, pulling in a bracing breath, and heading down the sidewalk.

Several sets of eyes followed me as I walked.

The awareness of being watched crept along my nerve endings.

More unsettling, though, was the state of the neighborhood surrounding the park.

The buildings were all battered and rundown, like a hurricane had hit the area but no one had gotten around to starting repairs.

The same went for the road, sidewalks, fences. Everything. And when did the city put up that shitty chain-link fence? From what I could see, it probably went all the way around the park.

Thankfully, once my brain adjusted for the wear and tear, I was able to get my bearings. “We’re not far from my apartment,” I said, wiping the water from my eyes .

If a bunch of strangers wanted to huddle in their alcoves or peek through their curtains at the chick talking to herself, good for them. What I wasn’t quite so cool with was the fact that a few of them had started following me.

I stopped and turned, eyeing each of them openly. “I count four stalkers,” I said, just loud enough for Tenebris’s ears.

“There are five.”

I turned back around and resumed walking at a normal pace, or as normal a pace as I could manage while consciously trying to walk normally.

The cool water soaking my hair and dripping down my neck wasn’t much help, either.

“The guy on the steps of the apartment building across the street. The one a few yards behind him hiding in the alcove. And the couple on this side with the umbrella. Who did I miss?”

“The man on the bicycle.”

“He was going the other way,” I said.

“And now he is coming this way.”

I twisted back to check and sure as shit, he was pedaling along slowly, his tires kicking up a fine spray of water from where the rain was gathering on the asphalt.

He was wearing a dark blue rain jacket with the hood up, and when he caught me looking, he curved his bike around in a wide arc and headed the other way.

“Subtle,” I snarked.

Tenebris said nothing.

“What happens if I get into a fight with these people? Are you on my side or theirs?”

“I don’t have a side,” he said flatly.

I didn’t believe that for a second. He might not take sides in a human-on-human throwdown, but he had to have a stake in what was happening. Why else would he shadow me?

“Can you do anything in this realm, or are you like a ghost?” I had the sudden urge to reach out and see if my hand would pass right through him.

Except I’d grabbed his scythe back on the island.

“I can affect the physical world around me, if that’s what you mean.”

“So, they can’t see you, but you could shove them into traffic if you wanted to and no one would know what happened?”

“I would never push a human into traffic,” he said, with a hint of distaste in his tone.

“It was a hypothetical question, Ten.” It wasn’t like there was any traffic, anyway. In fact, the only vehicle I’d spotted was the one kicking it turtle-style on its roof.

“Fates only interfere with the living when necessity demands intervention.”

“Which still doesn’t answer my question.

” But rather than waiting for him to come up with some other way to avoid telling me the truth, I let it go.

I opened my mouth to tell him my apartment was about a ten-minute walk from where we were, but a tingling in my spine pulled me to a stop, and the words died on my lips.

“Something’s wrong.” I turned, half expecting my stalkers to be charging toward me. Instead, all eyes were on the park. I followed their gazes, and a shot of adrenaline pulled me up straight.

Demons—two big, ugly bastards—came lumbering out of the trees, headed straight for the couple that was tailing me.

Could the couple actually see them? It looked like everyone else on the street could.

That was new.

I kneeled, yanked Hook’s dagger free of my boot, and took off toward the couple. “Run!” I yelled.

They were going to be slaughtered if they just stood there. A six-foot fence versus two big ass demons? It might slow them down for a few seconds.

A moment later, both the man and the woman were holding weapons of their own. The guy had a blade a little bigger than mine, and the woman held a gun.

Okay, who the hell are these people?

The first demon let out a shriek as it charged the couple. Three gunshots rang out, somewhat muffled by the rain, but either the woman missed, or her bullets were no match for the monster closing in on her.

Further down the road, Bike Guy circled back and was barreling toward them.

What the fuck was he thinking? Was everyone high or something?

“Get back!” I tried to wave him off, but it was too late. The first demon spotted him and lashed out with its long arm and thick black claws, batting the fool off his bike like a badminton birdie.