“She can’t shift to the darkness without killing the light, you know this,” Shawn said, giving his hands a vigorous shaking.
Xic shrugged. “A man can wish. It worked with Sheridan.” He looked sad for a second. “Too bad she went and ruined what we had by getting pregnant.”
“Well, if you had kept it in your pants she wouldn’t have,” I said, feeling the anger fading from me. I grabbed Adam’s hand, knowing that everything was going to be all right, for now.
“True.” Xic pondered. “Very well, so what do you want to know?”
“The girl,” said Adam firmly. “She was eighteen. She was found dead in the woods, throat slashed, no blood.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a picture of Noreen that he had taken from Nathan’s locker. As he handed it over to Xic, he was careful not to touch him.
“She’s pretty.” Xic stared. “Dark Earth.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked.
“Her eyes are hard. Her mouth is set. Even when she smiles, she looks angry. Besides, I know her face, can’t tell you from where, but I do know it.” Xic handed the picture back to Adam. “Next?”
“The boy. He was also eighteen. He was found dead in the woods with his face ripped off. It took two days for them to identify the body.” He reached into his other pocket and pulled out a prom photo of both Noreen and Nathan.
“Oh, aren’t these two an odd pair,” Xic exclaimed. “Here you have Dark Earth and White Water. These two were a couple?” he asked. He registered my confusion. “Have you never felt pulled to someone? Like the force was so strong you couldn’t keep away?”
“Yeah…” I said slowly, trying not to expose my weakness.
“These two should not have had that.” Xic handed the picture back. “Anyone else?”
“We didn’t get into the principal’s office, so we don’t have anything to hand you of his,” Adam said, holding up empty hands.
“Now, that is a tricky subject. Your Mr. Walsh was a pureblood,” Xic said, crossing his arms.
“How do you know that?” I demanded.
“Because he used to run around with Shawn and me back in the mid-1800s during his first run on Earth. He was one of the few angels that I actually enjoyed spending time with.” Xic’s face fell. “I came here for his funeral, but apparently I arrived a few days early so I figured I would check out the school. I didn’t realize that the other two murders could somehow be connected to this one, because his death wasn’t at the hands of a were-vamp. It was something else.”
“What was Mr. Walsh?” I asked, my heart racing. So, it was true an angel could be killed!
“He was a Watcher. He’d been a Watcher for many, many years. He always enjoyed working in the school system. Good man.” Xic sounded genuinely sorrowful.
“You can’t judge a book by its cover, Dawn,” Shawn explained. “Some of the most caring beings I have met in this world were demon-born. Some of the most sinister and evil have been angel-born. It all really depends on where their heart goes. The Creator knows all but does not interfere. God will smite an angel only if he feels that it needs to be done. Same with Lucifer. There is always a loophole. That is why I told you that you have so much goodness in you that you can stop hiding behind your dark exterior.”
“What just happened here?” Adam said, his eyes widening. “One second you’re all ‘stay behind us we will protect you.’ Now all of a sudden this demon is our best friend?”
“I wouldn’t say ‘best friend,’ exactly,” I said, smiling.
“More like… jaded lovers,” Xic broke in, blowing me a kiss.
I rolled my eyes and squeezed Adam’s hand.
Chapter 18
Old Friends
“Well, that was interesting,” Adam said as we got into his SUV. It was after dark now. We had spent several hours in the High School going through plans and discussing the wonders of the elements.
“You’re telling me,” I replied under my breath, climbing into the back seat, and fixing my ponytail.
“Xic was always eccentric,” Shawn mentioned as he got in the passenger seat. “You should have seen him a hundred years ago. Always the odd one.” He shook his head.
“It’s hard to think that he’s the father of Miranda.” I shivered. “I suppose her mother is ruthless, even if her father is crazy.”
“She’s a nutcase too,” Shawn said flatly.
“You said he saved you from her,” I mentioned as Adam pulled out of the parking lot.
“Yeah, she has a thing for hybrid mixes, as if you didn’t know already. She was all set on changing me till she figured out I was a fire carrier. Then she just wanted to kill me,” he replied, with a shrug.
“She really doesn’t like fire, does she?”
“If vampires bite a fire bearer they burn internally. The fire is in our blood, after all.” He laughed. “I really liked that girl till she tried to murder me.”
I grunted. “What makes her so special?”
“She’s quite persuasive.”
“I am so tired about hearing how persuasive some people are,” I grumbled. “Tell me about your mother.”
“She loved our father very much. To my understanding, he loved her too, but he had this unfortunate obsession with an angel, your mother. My mother knew she was going to die giving birth to me if you can believe that.” He sighed. “I wish I knew her when she was alive and not just as a ghost.”
“I’m sorry,” I apologized. I saw I was lucky to have my mother in my life.
“You know, all those years ago it was your mother who came to see me most. Puriel came at least three times a year. Usually at Christmas and Easter as well as with my father on my
