Hunted

hatred.

Let’s go, I telepathed them.

Eyes followed us as we approached the counter. One of the bartenders teleported, leaving behind the one I recognized from a few months ago. He’d helped us locate a Nosferatu demoness. Because of my messed-up memories, I didn’t know how often our paths had crossed since.

A wave of fear and resentment flowed from him, his gaze shifting from me to the others then back to me again, but he didn’t bolt like his friend.

“We need to talk.” I could see the Neutrals watching us from the corner of my eyes, so I kept my voice low. “Privately.”

He nodded, then appeared on our side of the counter. I must not have been emitting the harmful rays because he didn’t appear to be in pain. We followed him across the restaurant, eyes drilling holes in our backs. I had no idea where the resentment came from. It couldn’t be because I’d become a demon’s worst nightmare. From what I remembered, Jethro’s customers had always liked having us around.

Before we left the restaurant floor and the narrow hallway leading to Jethro’s office and private quarters, I glanced back. The Neutrals watched us like hawks.

“Esras, you come with me. The rest of you keep watch out here. If anyone approaches, stop them and find out what they want. If they want to talk to me, ping me. If they attack, knock them out.”

They nodded, even Solaris. Her attitude had undergone a dramatic change, but I knew it wouldn’t last.

“I’m an empath, so I’ll know if you need our help,” I added, then followed the bartender and Esras down the hallway to Jethro’s office, which was a lot more spacious than I’d first thought.

The once dreary room had undergone some changes—several bunk beds and a dresser now replaced the piles of newspaper that had taken up most of the space. The lumpy sofa Bran had used when he’d lived with Jethro was still there along with the desk.

I faced the bartender, who kept his distance as though he expected me to hurt him. “Where’s Jethro?”

“He is missing because…because…” He swallowed.

I frowned. “Because of what?”

“His association with you guys…the Guardians,” he finished in a rush, his face flushing.

“What makes you say that?” I asked.

“Two nature-benders came looking for him last night after he left for a meeting with the Cardinals. They knew he was meeting with you. Not you, Cardinal Lil. I mean the older Cardinals, who picked him up. The nature-benders vowed to come back. As soon as the Cardinals brought Jethro back, they reappeared and took him. I didn’t know what to do, so I contacted the Hermonites out there.” He slanted his head to indicate the bar. “They organized a search party. Most of them spent the night searching for Jethro. Some are still out there.”

That might explain the resentment toward us.

“What did the nature-benders look like?” I asked, hoping they were Dante and Kael.

“Tall, big, long, curly brown hair. They looked like twins.”

Definitely not Dante and Kael. “Have you seen Cardinal Llyr?”

“He was here an hour ago. As soon as I told him about Jethro, he left to search for him, too. He thinks whoever took the others has Jethro.”

“The others?”

“Young Hermonites have been disappearing for several weeks now. There are rumors that the Guardians kidnapped them.”

“What would we want with demons?” Esras asked.

“To turn them into Guardians, like you turned Cardinal Llyr,” the bartender said.

I sighed. How many times did we have to go through this? “Bran chose to be with the Guardians. No one turned him. And we have nothing to do with their disappearances,” I added firmly. “I’ll talk to the Hermonites before we leave.”

“Do you think that’s wise?” Esras asked.

“They are our allies, Esras. Of course we have to calm their fears or they could turn against us. With Jethro gone, that seems more likely than ever.” I turned my attention to the bartender. “Did Cardinal Bran sleep here?”

“No. He was in and out of here yesterday during the day. He told Jethro he was searching for his brother. He came back an hour ago, changed his clothes and was about to leave again when I told him Jethro was missing.” The bartender pointed at a scrunched-up black T-shirt and pants at the foot of the couch.

I picked them up with the tips of my fingers. They were filthy and smelled. Beside them were a plastic bag and several price tags. I glanced at Esras. “What do you think?”

He lifted the shirt, then the pants. “The dirt covers the front of his shirt and pants, which means he was on his stomach, either lying down or crawling.” He sniffed them. “Smells like sewer.”

If Bran had spent the night in some rat hole, it might explain why I’d tossed and turned all night long. I’d felt his discomfort. I glanced at the bartender. “Did Cardinal Bran say where he was headed?”

“No. Are you going to find them?” the bartender asked hopefully. “Jethro means a lot to us. This bar is a refuge for my kind, and half the people in the bar have called this home, just like Cardinal Bran has.”

“I know. Why don’t you go back to the bar and tell them I want to talk to them? They have to know we would never hurt them or turn our backs on—”

Several pings hit me at once. What is it?

A demon is here, and he insists on talking to you, Solaris telepathed.

I stepped into the hallway and frowned. All the three Guardians had their weapons pointed at…Gavyn? Dressed in white slacks and a matching blazer over a light blue shirt, his silver hair cropped in layers, he looked like he’d just stepped out of a country club.

He smirked and waved like we were best buds. The tingle at the base of my spine shot up my spine.

“Hey, little sister,” he said. “What are you doing in this dump? With the Tribunal’s army hunting your kind, I thought you’d be hiding with the rest of the Guardians.”

Tribe…Tribunal? The two words sounded almost alike. Did they mean the same thing? I had no interest in asking Gavyn because he’d only gloat and piss me off more. Already, I wanted nothing better than to wipe the smug smile off his face, but Bran would never forgive me.

I struggled to calm my mind and bring my powers under control. It wasn’t working. The power pulsing up and down my spine needed an outlet.

“What do you want, Gavyn?” I called out, fear of hurting him keeping me in the doorway.

“You and I need to talk. Alone. Tell your new minions to,” he wiggled his fingers, “move out of my way.”

“I don’t think so,” I said, aware that Esras had followed me. He stood protectively behind me, tension shooting from his body.

“Scared to be alone with me, little sister?”

“Yeah, scared for you, and I’m not your sister.”

He cocked his brow. “What? You’re not going to be mated with my brother? Last time I checked, the sun rose and set on him. You even saved my life from your malevolent sister. That’s the kind of thing you do for family, or family-to-be. By the way, I never got around to thanking you for that.” He touched his chest and bowed. “Thank you.”

No matter how annoying he was, I had to remember he was Bran’s brother. I focused on controlling my powers until the tingle on my back receded.

Meanwhile Gavyn lowered his head to peer into Solaris’s eyes and whispered, “How do you feel knowing your precious Chosen One is the reason you are being hunted, sweetheart? Why do your people have to suffer because of her? First Valafar and his raid, and now the Tribunal and its, uh, what do you Guardians call its army again? Yeah, the Tribe, the mighty Guardians’ worst nightmare.”

Seriously? He was like a child sometimes. When he didn’t get his way, he threw tantrums by saying the dumbest things. Solaris didn’t need him egging her on. “Let him pass.”

Instead of obeying, Solaris hissed out a breath. “What are you talking about, demon?”

He smirked. “Wouldn’t you like to know? Move aside like a good little Guardian.”