Page 46 of Another Damned Storm

I scanned our surroundings, noting a number of people watching us from behind a large steel fence across the street. More peered out through windows and shadowed doorways.

“Do you have a location in mind?” I asked.

“Maybe twenty-six years ago. But now?” She shook her head.

We crossed the street, and her brother was there waiting for us. Through the closed gate, the armed guards on either side of him eyed us suspiciously. Or was their thinly veiled hostility aimed only at me? It was hard to say.

Either way, they kept their mouths shut as Never’s brother directed us down the street to an abandoned shop, with explicit orders to keep an eye out for rogue demons. They might come with the storms, but once they were in the city, many would go into hiding until nightfall.

Whether concealing themselves was instinctual or calculated, however, was yet to be seen.

The shop was boarded up, with a heavy chain and padlock securing the doors. “Are you sure this is the right place?” I asked.

Never shoved her wet hair out of her face. “I’m not sure of much at the moment.”

That was not reassuring. I broke the chain and opened the door. “Remain here until I’ve had a chance to secure the space.”

She rolled her eyes affectionately. “I’m not a weak little human anymore.”

“You were never weak.” She might have had a fragile mortal body, but it housed a willful soul that did not know how to quit.

“You get my point.”

I arched a brow. “That doesn’t mean I’m willing to let you venture into a potential demon’s lair ahead of me.”

She flashed me a sly look. “I guess chivalry isn’t dead after all.”

Was she mocking me?

“Just wait. Please.” It might not have been a request, technically, but the please had to count for something.

Her lips twitched, which I took as a yes.

The moment I stepped through the door, I knew it was empty. The air was stale, as though nothing had stirred it in years. My boots left prints in the dust coating the floors, and mold clung to the corners. Those dark spots climbed the walls and crawled along the ceiling, staining them a sickly color in the dim light.

It took only a few moments to check the space. Just three mostly empty rooms, save for a couple of dented metal chairs and a battered counter that looked as though a gentle nudge might send it crashing to the floor.

Light pierced the gloom and I spun to see Never peering through the open door. “We good?”

Stubborn didn’t even begin to describe her. “All is well.”

She slipped inside, then spun the lock on the door before turning to me. “I have questions,” she said with a sultry note to her voice that pulled my cock to attention.

“Starting with?” I asked, slowly closing the distance between us. A pulse of desire licked up my spine, but I couldn’t tell if it was coming from me or her.

“How are you here?”

“Magic.”

Her eyelids fluttered. “No shit. What kind of magic?”

“It’s not important.” I would tell her about Anya, eventually. Just not right at that moment. Not when I hadn’t seen her in days.

A little huff. “I thought you would be pissed at me.”

I was inches away when I gave her the truth. “I am.” I let asliver of what I was feeling bleed out of me. Despite the fact that I understood her reason for returning to the Alius, even if it was just a waypoint between the Nassa and the human realm, I was angry that she left. Or perhaps it had more to do with the way she left.

It didn’t matter that I knew it was coming. Waking up to find her gone was like a knife to the heart.