Immortal City

The darkness felt suddenly alive all around her. Then she heard it. The faintest sound of air.

She could hear the thing breathing.

A suffocating heat permeated the darkness like growing fire that gave off no light. The pungent smell of earth, decay, and something worse wafted out of the darkness toward her. It smelled like death, Maddy thought. Stinking death itself.

A scream rose up her throat and she slapped her hand over her mouth. It took all her strength to stop it.

Maddy listened as the thing began to move through the room.

Step, click click. Step, click click.

Jacks held up one finger. Maddy stared at the silent signal, willing her terrified mind to understand. Then she got it. One. It was behind the first counter. Jacks crouched with his feet under him and beckoned her. Maddy shook her head. She was frozen with fear.

Jacks pointed toward the door. Through a red fog of terror Maddy realized what he was indicating. They had lured the thing into the maze of the lab, and they were going to slip out while it searched for them. They crawled on their hands and knees, listening to the steps of the creature.

Step, click click. Step, click click.

Then the footsteps stopped.

Silence descended over the room. Jacks put a hand on Maddy’s forearm, an indication to be absolutely still. She held her breath. At last, Jacks pointed up.

It was right above them, on the counter.

Maddy felt the scream rising up inside her again, and this time she didn’t know if she could stop it. She pressed her trembling lips together, but they were numb. She felt herself losing control of her body. Her mouth opened to scream.

Jacks’s hand closed around her mouth like a vise. His other hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her toward him. He held her in the darkness as the scream died silently in her mouth.

The second passed like hours. After what seemed like an unbearable length of time, Maddy heard two footfalls as the thing stepped off the counter.

Step, click click. Step, click click.

It was back on the ground, continuing its methodical investigation of the lab. Jacks released Maddy from his grip and mouthed a single word.

“Move.”

On their hands and knees again, they circled around the second counter and headed for the third. Maddy saw they were close to the door now. A tiny spark of hope leapt inside her. They could do this, she thought. They could make it. She scooted quickly around the corner and her shoulder collided silently with the counter, jarring it.

Perrrring.

It sounded like the ring of a delicate bell. The sound seemed to roll and then disappear. In the rush of adrenaline, Maddy recognized the sound instantly. A test tube had just rolled off the counter in front of her, and it was heading toward the floor. She thrust her hands out blindly in front of her. She was terrible at any sport that involved catching anything — or really, any sport at all. Miraculously, she felt the slap of the delicate glass cylinder against her palm. It leapt up again, and for a single breathless moment it danced across her reaching fingertips. Then it was gone.

The sound of the tube shattering was like a gunshot in her ears. It was followed by the most awful, inhuman sound she had ever heard. It sounded like tearing metal, like the growl of some rabid animal, hungry and guttural. It was so loud it was painful. Instantly Maddy felt something grab her by her hood. She heard fabric tearing.

It was a claw.

Maddy shrieked and threw her arms backward, wrig-gling out of the hoodie as the claw cut it cleanly in half. She felt Jacks’s strong hands around her waist, pulling her away from the beast.

“Run, Maddy!” he yelled.

Maddy tore into the black hall. She was alone now, terrified and blind, running through the darkness. Arms that were not Jacks’s wrapped around Maddy. She screamed.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” a voice whispered. “You’re okay now.” Maddy looked up at the man who was holding her. He was older and wore glasses. His face was creased and worn.

“It’s got Jacks!” Maddy protested, her voice muffled against the man’s jacket. “We have to help him.” Maddy twisted away from his grasp and ran back down the hall.

The man followed quickly. They found Jacks crouched like an animal waiting to attack. His wings trembled in the air, ready. In a blur, he had thrown the man against the lockers.

The Angel’s eyes burned in fear, almost unrecognizable.

“Jacks, wait!” Maddy said.

“It’s. . gone. .” the man choked. “Please, it’s gone.”

It was several seconds before Jacks released his grip on the man’s throat. The man slumped, coughing, against the lockers. Jacks’s chest was heaving. His eyes darted to Maddy and then back to the man.

“Wait a minute, I know you,” Jacks said furiously.

“My name is Sylvester. I’m a detective with the ACPD.

We met when I interviewed you at your house earlier this week.” Jacks’s face tensed. Sylvester held up a hand in surrender. “I’m alone. If my intention was to arrest you, this place would be swarming with police right now.”

“What are you doing here?” Jacks asked. Sylvester rubbed his throat.

“Up until tonight I was leading the investigation into the Angel attacks on the boulevard. I started tracking the demon two days ago. I tracked him here.”

Demon, Maddy thought. She had heard the word before but never thought they were real.

“It just left,” Jacks said, his eyes bewildered. “It was right there, facing me, and then it just disappeared.”

Sylvester nodded. “I was hoping this would work if I ever made contact, and it did, but it likely won’t again.” He opened his fist. A small amulet with an ancient inscription sat on the palm of his hand. He retrieved the brass ornamental box from the pocket of his jacket and carefully placed the object on the crushed purple velvet inside. He closed the box securely.

Jacks studied the tall, tired man before him. His eyes narrowed.

“You’re an Angel,” Jacks said in disbelief.

Sylvester nodded again. “Yes, I am.”

“How is that possible?”

“Not every Angel is still a Guardian, Jackson,”

Sylvester said, “and not all Angels are loyal to the Council.”

Jacks stepped back. Sylvester straightened up and smoothed his coat.

“You have a theory?” Jacks said. “About this. . this thing?”

Sylvester shrugged. “It’s just a hunch.”

Jacks considered his words. “We need to talk,” he said after a moment.

Sylvester’s brow furrowed. “Technically I should be bringing you in.”

“But you’re not going to do that,” Jacks said carefully.

“Are you?”

Sylvester sighed.

“No, I’m not,” the detective said. He removed his glasses and rubbed his face. He looked between Jacks and Maddy.

“My car is parked out front. I’ll pull it around.”