Burning Dawn

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

ANOTHER WHIPPING, YES. That was what Thane expected. Or, finally, the end of his immortality. He would have begged for another change. Instead, when he came to rest at the edge of Zacharel’s cloud, the leader of the Army of Disgrace was waiting for him. He cupped the back of Thane’s neck and pressed their foreheads together, the wind blustering around them.

“You could have killed hundreds of humans,” the Elite soldier said.

“I know. The prince—”

“Acted because you did not heed my order.”

He gave a stiff nod. “I know that, too. I regret my actions.”

Surprise whisked through eyes so green they could have been mistaken for emeralds. “Do you?”

“Yes.” Arrogance had cost him a much-desired victory. Maybe more.

“I hope so. Because every decision you make affects more than your life,” Zacharel said, black hair brushing his cheek. “It affects the lives of those who love and depend on you.”

The words struck a very sensitive chord inside Thane. He knew his actions affected the lives of his loved ones. He’d chosen to stay at the building, and Bjorn and Xerxes almost died. Elin almost lost her protector. His club almost fell under new management. Immortals from all over the world would have made a bid for it.

“I have a new assignment for you,” Zacharel said, and Thane realized with startling clarity that he would not be receiving punishment.

“Have you nothing more to say about Rathbone?” he demanded.

“No. You endangered lives, but you also saved them. Now, listen.”

Dazed, he nodded. In that moment, he felt...loved by his leader. Accepted.

It was humbling.

“It’s imperative that we diminish the prince’s growing army.” Determination pulsed from the warrior. “One of his many hordes has been found in New York. I’ll send you the coordinates when you reach land.”

He flexed his fingers with anticipation. “How was the horde found?”

“Maleah.”

Maleah. Of course. A fallen Sent One. She monitored the world and its happenings, never resting. Once, she had been one of the most beloved members of the heavenly armies. Now she was determined to help the people she’d let down when she gave up her wings—for whatever reason. Speculation was rampant, but facts were few and far between.

Once, Thane had lusted for her. Now, he mentally placed the pale-haired gothic beauty next to the dark-haired, delicate Elin. There was no contest.

“Take the soldiers you need and kill the demons,” Zacharel instructed. “Kill them all. Leave no minion standing.”

Very well. No mercy. A policy he still excelled at. Thane nodded, anticipation already slithering through him. “And if we come across the prince?” he asked.

“Summon me.”

“All will be done as you have said.” Unfortunately, his meeting with Lucien would have to wait.

As he dived from the cloud, he communicated with Magnus, Malcolm, Jamilla and Axel all at once, commanding their presence on the roof of another building owned by Rathbone Industries in Times Square. Now.

Zacharel gave him the coordinates he would need as he landed. Thane tucked his wings into his back and peered down at the colorful human world. The streets were crowded. Neon lights flashed. The atmosphere was thick with scents of food, perfume and exhaust. Voices chattered; cars honked. Some footsteps click-clacked. Some thumped.

He heard the warriors arrive behind him. He turned, told them what Zacharel had said and where they were going. The same anticipation he felt was mirrored in their expressions.

“I want one demon left alive,” he announced. “Doesn’t matter which one.” Post-battle interrogations were always fun.

Nods of agreement met his words.

“Let’s do this thing!” Axel said with a whoop.

In unison, the group leaped from the building and arrowed toward the ground below. Because the warriors were in the spirit realm, their bodies were like mist as they bypassed the road, the subway system, and entered a labyrinth of dark, dank, forgotten tunnels.

At the bottom, Thane solidified his body and palmed a sword of fire. The others did the same, and the flames acted as torches, casting golden light in every direction. The smell of sulfur stung his nostrils. Cackles echoed up ahead, but it was impossible to tell where they originated. The blood-splattered walls provided too many options.

Thane held up his free hand and signed the direction he wanted each warrior to go. The group split up, everyone snaking their assigned corner.

Alert, on guard, he raced forward, using his wings to propel him faster and faster despite the tight, cramped space. The voices grew louder. He heard humans now. Whimpering. Pleas for mercy that would never come. He gave up following the man-made tunnels and ghosted through the walls, the vibration of the sounds guiding his feet. But he took a wrong turn and ended up in an empty room.

Scowling, he tried again.

And again.

And again.

Finally, he cleared the mud and concrete and entered—

A hell on earth. A scene from his deepest nightmares.

At least thirty demons of every type congregated in a large room with crumbling stone walls, dilapidated wooden columns, and a floor swimming with dark, congealing blood.

Six humans were chained throughout. Two females, three males. One child. Thane’s stomach twisted. He sent his warriors a mental map of his location.

He didn’t understand this. The prince’s demons were supposed to do anything necessary to possess certain humans. This went far beyond possession—it went far beyond depravity. Some of the creatures lounged in the blood, lapping at it. Some still tormented the humans, clawing at bits of exposed flesh and laughing.

Thane’s sword illuminated every wicked act, and one by one the demons noticed and faced him. Maniacal glee gave way to fear in every glowing red eye as the Sent Ones entered and closed off every possible exit.

That was all he’d been waiting for.

“Now!” Thane shouted.

Chaos erupted.

The Sent Ones jolted into action, swords swinging with lethal purpose. The demons with wings tried to fly away, but Thane and Axel were having none of that and clipped the appendages before a single creature could leave the den of horrors.

Heads began to roll across the floor. Arms no longer attached to bodies flew through the chamber. Howls of pain rang out. Thane remained in constant motion, happily slicing, slicing, slicing at his enemy. No one could escape him.

“Someone do me a solid and try to make this difficult for me,” Axel quipped. “Or am I just too good? Yeah. That one. I’m so good I couldn’t beat me.”

Magnus and Malcolm played hack and sack with a serp demon, punting the snakelike creature at each other—but only after removing another appendage each time. Soon, there was nothing left to punt.

Jamilla pinned an envexa to the ground and plucked out his eyes...then cut out his tongue...then ripped out his throat.

Thane stabbed a viha through the chest and moved toward his next target. Only there was a problem. There was only one demon left standing, and Axel was about to remove his head.

“Stop,” Thane said, and surprisingly enough, the Sent One complied.

Thane stepped past him and backed the demon into a corner. It was one of the larger ones, with gnarled antlers extending from a misshapen head. Red skin matched its eyes—eyes nearly overshadowed by the protruding bones of its brow. It had no nose, merely holes for breathing. Its lips were thin, revealing teeth big and sharp enough to rival a great white.

A menacing snarl rose from it.

Thane smiled his coldest smile, then said to his warriors, “Take the humans to a safe place. Get them medical help, and assign a Joy Bringer to attend to each.” Otherwise, the humans would crack, never be able to mentally heal. “I’ll take care of the creature.”

Again, he was met with obedience.

“Now...your turn. Allow me to help you shed a few pounds,” Thane said, and promptly removed the demon’s arms and legs, making it impossible for the creature to get away. Then he hauled his bounty to the Downfall’s dungeon.

“Where’s Adrian?” he asked the guards waiting in the doorway.

“Xerxes has him following the human girl.”

Good.

As Thane marched down the corridors, the undernourished Phoenix trapped in the cells were too weak to do anything more than look at him and moan. When he reached the center alcove, he pinned the demon to the wall, directly across from Kendra. Once again she had a place of honor.

She had more energy than the others and hissed like an angry cat. “Release me, Thane. Now.”

Still so high and mighty. Despite his newfound clarity and remorse, rage surfaced. He turned and gave her the cold smile he’d given the demon.

She trembled and pressed her lips together.

“Pay attention, Kendra, because you might be next.” He pulled a dagger from the air pocket. The metal was already stained with blood. He faced the demon. “I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I’m very good with knives...and my interrogations never stop until I have what I want.”

ELIN HEARD THE newest round of agonized screams and flinched. How long had this been going on? She’d lost track several hours ago.

After practice—where, big shocker, Bonka Donk was declared an abject failure at the fine art of boulder tossing—Savy, Chanel and Octavia tried to distract her from the noise with a game of favor-poker. Boons were the currency, and Elin had lost every round. But the only boon the girls desired from her was to never again have to sample her desserts.

After that, they’d switched to strip poker, and even though she was down to her new bra and panties and highly embarrassed, she still wasn’t distracted.

Apparently, Thane was in the dungeon “going native on a demon’s ass.”

“I’m done,” she said, throwing her cards on the table.

Her announcement was met with boos from all three women. And more screams.

“Done? You can’t be effing done.”

“We just got started!”

“Are you seriously pussing out?”

Ignoring their questions, she asked one of her own. “Where’s Bellorie?” She hadn’t seen the girl since—

Never mind.

Chanel frowned. “You mean you don’t know?”

Her stomach clenched. “Know what?”

“Thane banished her.”

“What?” she gasped.

Octavia nodded. “It’s true, petal. Axel brought her to the club. Xerxes told her she’d showed off her hodad and had to go. He watched as she packed her bags, then escorted her from the building. That’s the I done been exiled, ya’ll routine.”

Just like that? “Okay, let’s back up a little. What’s a hodad?”

“Hands of death and destruction,” Octavia explained.

But...Thane showed off his hodad every danged day. Why blame Bellorie for a single indiscretion?

Elin still wasn’t a fan of violence and had trouble meshing the Bellorie she adored with the Bellorie who’d callously reached inside a man’s chest to perform a heart amputation, but that didn’t mean she was going to let this banishment thing happen without a fight.

Years ago, her father gave her sage advice. Sometimes emotional terrain is too mountainous to run, Linnie, my girl. Sometimes you just have to walk it.

In other words. Baby steps.

Step one. She would stop avoiding Thane. Step two. She would begin a new round of interaction with him. Step three. She would nag him until he returned Bellorie to the club.

“I’m going to talk to him,” she said, standing and tugging on a fresh set of clothes. A pretty pink tee and a pair of hip-hugger jeans. She didn’t bother with shoes.

“Uh, I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Savy said. “You’ll end up banished. Or worse. No one questions Thane when an order has been given. Not even his...whatever you are.”

“Pet human,” Octavia offered. Helpful, as always.

Chanel snorted. “I don’t know how it happened, the lion and the lamb, but I think she’s more than that.” Her head tilted to the side as she pondered. “And I think he’ll make an exception and do whatever she asks. He did rush to her side when there was nothing effing wrong with her.”

“Excuse me,” Elin huffed. “I was screaming, and practically catatonic.”

“Maybe he rushed to her side because he needs her for some type of ransom.” Savy spoke over her, drumming her nails against the table. “Or some kind of revenge against the Phoenix. Or, maybe he experienced a moment of insanity. Did you ever think of that? No offense,” she said to Elin. “He just isn’t the type to chase a woman. No matter how awelicious she is.”

How could Elin take offense when she suddenly had the same suspicion? Why did he want her? Wait. She had to rephrase. Why did he used to want her?

“Maybe he’s just a nicer guy than any of us realized,” she muttered.

Of course, that was when the demon issued another blood-curdling scream.

Chanel and Octavia giggled like naughty schoolgirls.

“Care to make another wager?” Chanel asked Savy. “Double or nothing.”

“Know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em.” Elin strode out of the room. Adrian stood sentry just outside the door and quickly swept up beside her.

“Where are you headed, human?” he asked.

He made it sound like her humanity was a crime. Well, it wasn’t. Just ask Thane. To him, it was the only thing that wasn’t, and for once, she was going to use it to her advantage. She was going to stop worrying about being found out, and start taking charge of her life.

“I want to go to the dungeon. Be a dear and show me the way,” she said, blinking her eyes in what she hoped was an innocent, flirtatious manner.

He tensed. He frowned. He shook his head. “No. Go back to your room.”

She put her hands on her hips. “I heard Xerxes tell you to take me anywhere I asked. And I just asked to go to the dungeon.”

“We both know he didn’t actually mean you could go anywhere.”

“No, we both don’t know that. He doesn’t strike me as the type to say something he doesn’t mean.”

Adrian glared at her.

“So, what are we waiting for?” she insisted.

His glare darkened. “Perhaps it will do you some good to see the nature of the male you provoke.” He led her into an elevator and pressed a series of buttons. Blue lights flashed over a small portion of the wall. The doors closed and the cart shook, carrying them down...down...down, before opening into an underground cavern with gray walls and a cracked stone floor.

Two vampires guarded an open doorway.

Unease pricked the back of Elin’s neck. The screams were far louder here, and they echoed. Worse, a familiar scent of old pennies clung to her nose and sickened her stomach.

“Wait here,” Adrian told her before motoring on, bypassing the guards.

The vamps gave her a once-over...no, make that a twice-over...and she pretended not to know they were sharpening mental forks and knives. She stared straight ahead. She could see bars, indicating a hallway of cells. She could even see fingers curled around some of the bars. The Phoenix were here? Xerxes had freed them from their stakes and escorted them inside, but she’d kind of thought it was for medical care or something.

Only an idiot wouldn’t have realized it was for further torture.

“My lord,” she heard Adrian say. “The human wishes to speak with you.”

“The human has a name,” she muttered.

“Tell her I’ll summon her when I’m finished here.”

She heard pleasure in Thane’s voice. For her...or the job he was doing? Either way, the low cadence of his tone made her shiver.

“Very well,” Adrian said. Footsteps resounded.

Oh, no. The last time she’d been forced to wait for Thane, nothing had been settled. “Thane Downfall,” she called.

Tension crackled in the air. The footsteps retreated.

“She’s here? You actually brought her down here?” Thane demanded, even as Kendra cried, “Help me, girl. You have to help me.”

“Sure,” Elin responded. “Here’s a tip. Be nice to people, no matter how low their station. You never know when they’ll be in charge of yours.” Not that she was in any way in charge. Still. Truth was truth.

“You should have known better,” Thane growled, and she figured he was talking to Adrian.

Was Thane going to punish him, too? She tried to step forward, intending to go in, but the vampires moved in her path.

“He did nothing wrong,” she said, speaking past the shoulders of the vampires now watching her with unabashed awe. “Your dearest friend Xerxes told him to take me wherever I asked to go. So, here we are. Now, listen. I want Bellorie brought back immediately. We need her for the Multiple Scorgasms.” And heck, as long as she was making demands... “And I want the screaming to stop. It’s screwing with my nerves.”

Like you have any right to make demands.

“Please,” she added, and slapped her hands together in the center of her chest in a classic begging stance, even though he couldn’t see her. “With an extra sweet cherry on top.”

Another pause.

“Bellorie shall return before the next shift,” Thane said tightly, “and screams will not be heard again.”

“Thank you, thank you, a thousand times thank you, Thane! Seriously!”

“Help,” Kendra shouted.

A rustle of clothing. A grunt. A gurgle. Then muttering voices, too hushed to decipher.

A cold sweat broke out over Elin’s skin, and she trembled. What had just happened?

Adrian stalked past the guards. His facial features were expressionless and cold. He didn’t glance in her direction as he spat a single word at the vampires. A word she didn’t understand.

She made to follow him, but one of the guards grabbed her by the wrist, halting her.

She tried to jerk away, but he held steady.

“Release her, or lose the hand,” a harsh voice whipped out, and the vise grip instantly fell away.

Elin’s gaze returned to the cells—and collided with Thane’s.