Chapter 2
Zachary leaned against the banister at the top of the stairs looking down on the main floor. He became very still when he spotted one of the youngest and newest members of PIT… Tiara. She’d always been an unofficial part of PIT, even though as a child she didn’t have any powers and never went out on assignment.
Because of her mother’s necromancer abilities, Tiara had been dragged around with the PIT team all her life.
He’d heard from some of the others that it was kind of like being an army brat... just better protected. While the parents went out to war, the child was usually placed in a secure area… normally a hotel room that was guarded by the CIA. There was something about being different … sometimes the last of your kind that made their lives harder than most. It tended to kick in their strongest instincts… too survive and protect their young.
Every PIT member had enemies… it was one of the drawbacks of being a trained demon assassin. Those same enemies had learned a long time ago that the fastest way to get a rival’s attention was to steal their child. In this case, it would be a demon stealing the child of a PIT member that had crossed them. Lessons were a bitch to learn and the children being kept in seclusion was the price.
From what Zachary noticed, Tiara had been one of the most guarded children out of all of them. Even he’d only seen her a couple times and he had top clearance.
Well, the lack of contact could be blamed on the fact that for the last ten years, he’d gone out of his way to avoid her mother… Myra. But Tiara always had someone shadowing her, following her every move, especially if she ever ventured out into the occasional eye of the rest of the organization.
After Myra’s death only a couple weeks ago, her team had dispersed into other areas of PIT, as was the tradition when the leader of a team dies. Making that a golden rule had cut way down on distractions and complications… or so he’d heard.
He himself was more of a freelancer, a gun for hire, and he worked best when he was alone. Angelica had been the only stable person in his life because she could see past the mask he wore… the mask that led everyone to believe he was a bit of a comedian.
Myra’s necromancy powers had passed on to her only child at the exact moment of her death. Tiara had taken the reins and stepped forward as a permanent player by showing up here. He thought it was a little strange that she was so quick to get over her mother’s death… one would have thought she’d still be mourning.
Zachary had been privy to seeing her mother work several times. He’d been a teenager at the time, about sixteen years old actually. He still remembered the first time he’d watched Myra raise the dead. She’d done it in order to find the location of the demon that killed the victim she’d revived. Zachary shivered in remembrance of that night… it had filled him with fear and longing of the afterlife. It still haunted his dreams.
Myra had been the most beautiful and mysterious person he’d ever met and he was drawn to her… so were many men. He’d seen other guys beg to be put on her team for the night in hopes that they would get to sleep with her.
Rumor had it that those she slept with were more than simply lovers or one night stands… there was also a deep-seated friendship attached to it that kept the group together even when they were between jobs. It was almost impossible to get on her team because the men never left her side willingly… only by way of body bag.
The PIT members with wives or mates were never allowed to accompany her on missions as a rule, much less become a member of her regular team.
The dead also seemed to flock to her like a siren’s call. Unfortunately, demons were prone to the call as well. It was usually a powerful demon that had awakened the dead in the first place and when their underlings were called back to their graves, that demon would follow to see who was stealing from them. It was the reason why Myra had never been left alone in graveyards, funeral homes, or morgues.
The third time Zachary had been chosen for her team he’d shown up late, having been caught up in a fight with another demon. As he entered the graveyard, he’d witnessed something he knew he wasn’t supposed to see… even at that distance.
Myra had just put the graveyard back to sleep when her necromancy was answered by a very powerful demon.
The other PIT members present abruptly crumbled to the ground, knocked unconscious by an unseen force. Zachary had still been young, with only a few demon killings under his belt and quickly took refuge behind a tombstone… uncertain of what else to do. The power coming off the demon was something he’d never felt before and he knew it had to be one of the few master demons that still roamed the earth.
After a few moments of nothing happening, he gathered his courage and peeked around the edge of the grave marker.
The shadows in front of Myra were writhing, almost breathing with anticipation. That was when a tall handsome man with long silver hair much like Myra’s appeared from the darkness. Even with the distance separating them, Zachary could see the way the demon gazed at Myra… like he wanted to devour her. The demon then approached the necromancer who had just laid his zombies and ghosts to rest.
The panic that filled Zachary’s mind overwhelmed him and fire leapt from his hands in anger. He stood up from his hiding place, desperately rushing to save the woman he was supposed to be protecting.
Zachary hadn’t wanted the demon to hurt Myra and had every intention of rescuing her even if he had to burn the entire graveyard to the ground doing it. However, the demon had something else in mind. He slowly turned his head and locked his startling silver eyes with Zachary's.
Much to Zachary’s horror, his fire went out… so had his control over his own body. Although he’d fought it with everything in him, he still hit the ground, unable to move or speak. The first thing that went through his mind was that he was still conscious… unlike the other men littering the graveyard, and he had a perfect view of what was about to happen.
Myra had let the demon touch her… appearing to welcome it as she smiled seductively and placed her hand on his chest. She’d even called the demon by name… Deth.
Clothing was quickly removed and Zachary watched as the demon laid claim to Myra’s body. They’d made love against the tombstone behind them multiple times before the demon had whispered something in her ear making her lock loving eyes with him. They had shared one more kiss before the demon vanished into the night.
Zachary watched as Myra had slowly turned her head and looked at him… she’d known he was watching the whole time. Without a word she’d gathered her clothing and gotten dressed then waited for the rest of the team to gain consciousness. Zachary had regained use of his body after only a couple minutes and sat up, remaining where he was… as far away from Myra as he could get without leaving and silently stared.
She still looked just as lovely and even wore a soft smile. He didn’t understand… he didn’t understand any of it.
When the others awoke, they had no memory of what attacked them and, when asked, Myra had simply explained that all was quiet and the ‘attack’ had been nothing more than the backlash of power from returning the dead to their grave.
Zachary never repeated what he’d seen that night to another soul. However, after that, his trust in Myra had been shattered. He’d even made it a point to request other jobs so he would not have to go near her.
He’d also done his research on the demon she’d met in the graveyard and discovered that he’d been right… Deth was an ancient demon. The demon could have killed them that night, all of them including Myra if he’d wanted because he had killed in the past… killed many.
Myra was obviously playing for both teams… and that was a line none of them ever dared to cross. He found it mildly ironic that she’d met her end at the hands of a demon… or so the story had been told. Apparently, crossing that line had dire consequences.
Zachary refused to feel the sadness that tried to creep across his chest at her death… the last thing PIT needed was a traitor walking among them.
Pulling himself from the past, Zachary watched Tiara move across the large room below, listening to the India bells around her ankle jingle quietly and wondering how much like her mother she was. She could have been her mother’s doppelganger… just a younger version. She resembled a child in a woman’s body, completely innocent of the violence around her yet more than aware of it at the same time.
She possessed a golden tan, flawless skin, and the wide eyes of an innocent child. That innocence was somehow tainted by full pouty lips that made him want to feel them against his own. As he gazed at her, he realized he was wrong… her mother’s beauty didn’t hold a candle to Tiara’s. Just watching her made him feel like a stalker but instead of backing off he looked closer.
Her way of dressing made her look like she’d been taken straight from the caravan of a gypsy clan that had been lost in time. It was the same way Myra used to dress. He assumed it was tradition within that line of necromancers.
Tonight, her shirt was little more than a black square scarf folded into a triangle and tied around her chest, leaving her sides and back bare to show her temptingly flawless skin. Her skirt was dangerously low on her hips but covered everything else clear down to her ankles.
Doors started opening all around and people appeared from all corners of the castle, crossing the main room under him and he frowned at the distraction. Zachary’s cell phone went off and he took it out to read Storm’s text message.
‘Meeting in Ren’s office, bring Jason.’
“How the hell am I supposed to do that, use smelling salts?” Zachary muttered putting his phone away. Looking back toward the medical room, he blinked in surprise when the door opened and Jason poked his head out in the hall.
He cocked an eyebrow wondering if Storm spent every day popping in and out of existence to make things happen on the right time line. Just thinking about how long a day could stretch for the time traveler gave him a headache. But then again, if something was done wrong, couldn’t Storm always go back and fix it if he wanted?
“Glad to see you’re awake,” Zachary said with a smirk. “I trust you slept nightmare free?”
Jason came the rest of the way out of the room and slowly approached Zachary. “Yeah, I feel a lot better now that the death mark is gone.” He looked down at the activity below them and asked, “What’s going on?”
Zachary threw his arm around Jason’s shoulders and steered him toward the stairs. “Wanna see something really cool?”
Jason shrugged, “Sure, why not?”
“Good,” Zachary smirked, “you’re presence has been requested by our boss… your first official PIT meeting.”
Jason cocked an eyebrow. “But I’m not a member of PIT.”
Zachary smiled mischievously, “It’s either join us, or suddenly come down with a huge case of amnesia.”
Jason pulled away from Zachary with a worried frown. Holding his hands up in surrender, he nodded, “Lead the way.”
When Zachary laughed and took off down the stairs, Jason had no choice but to follow… though he did so at a safe distance.
*****
“I’ve got something for you.” Storm said and took out a small USB drive from his shirt pocket.
Ren took it from him and plugged it into the computer. He smirked when he saw the same map he’d created… only this one was more updated. Where the original map had only a few blips on it focusing on the centralized power recorded, this map resembled a child’s Lite-Brite on speed. Different colored lights now lit up every inch of the city and were extending outward toward the slums, the preserve, and even the beaches… they were everywhere now.
“Where did you get this?” Ren asked in awe, slowly rising from his chair in the process to get a better look at the huge screen on the wall.
Storm looked down at his nails and examined them with great interest, “You.”
Before Ren could say anything, the doors of his office suddenly opened and some of the PIT members who had filtered back to the castle walked in. Ren felt the accumulated power in the room and fought to keep his own power under control. Though his face was outwardly expressing boredom, inside he was almost panicking.
Reaching out for the blocking power he’d felt earlier, Ren latched onto it and felt his world stabilize again. He nodded at Zachary as the other man entered and joined him and Storm at the desk.
Zachary let his gaze slowly filter across the people, quickly skipping the area Tiara was standing in just to prove to himself he could do it. It was harder than he thought. When his gaze swung back to her, he noted her flinch and she quickly looked from him toward Storm. Zachary frowned and crossed his arms over his chest wondering why she’d reacted to him like that.
Jason looked around for Angelica and was disappointed when he didn’t see her among the exotic looking group. He quickly drew back against the wall swearing he’d just seen a guy teleport into the room. One second the spot beside him had been empty… and the next it wasn’t.
Guy immediately sought out Tiara with his gaze and tried to think of the best way to approach her with his plan. He’d just spent the last couple of hours tearing his and Carley’s room apart trying to find a spell for what he had in mind.
During his grief-fed rage, he had remembered Carley stumbling across it in one of her ‘acquisitions’ as she’d called the stolen scrolls. The two had shared a bit of amusement at the time, believing they would never have a need to bring the dead back to life.
The spell was an old one that had been transcribed from an ancient text… a way to bring the dead back. In this case however, it would only tie the spirit to the human realm while it remained attached to the spirit realm. In short, Carley would become a ghost.
Guy knew there was another part of the magic that would allow Carley to return to her body but you had to have the power of necromancy for that to work. Tiara was the only one who could help him bring Carley back… it would take Tiara’s power to bond his sister’s soul back to her body.
Tiara felt eyes on her and looked up wondering if it was Zachary. Instead, she found Guy staring longingly at her. She calmly met his gaze knowing what was going through his mind. She’d heard about his sister’s death and hoped that he would change his mind. Her mother had often been approached by the loved ones of those who had been killed in the line of duty. She’d have to avoid him for a while… at least until he calmed down.
“Glad all of you could make it,” Storm said once the doors were closed. “I’ve got good news and bad news.” He nodded toward the huge computerized map on the wall, “That’s the bad news.” There were several murmurs within the crowd.
“What’s the good news?” Trevor frowned from the doorway as he entered the room.
“The good news is that the most powerful demons are smart. They just made it back into this world and they’re not stupid so they’re not going to out themselves right away by going on killing sprees.
In the past, the master demons liked to control humans… not kill them. They will set up shop first and try to claim a territory. My hope is that some of them will even kill each other in order to stake their claim on an area and it will narrow down the playing field.”
“Are you saying they’re all going to stick around this area instead of scattering to other states?” someone near the window asked. “Why would they do that when it’d be smarter to get the hell out of Dodge?”
“There is something that’s keeping them bound to this area,” Storm pointed at the map, “The area you see and about a hundred miles out in all directions.” he decided to change the subject.
“More good news, the earthquake activity and the sudden oddities in the weather are forcing some of the humans to leave the area. I had to pull a couple strings but I arranged it for the press to announce that the series of quakes earlier tonight may be hinting at a larger earthquake… the ‘big one’ for lack of a better phrase.”
“However, we all know this isn’t the case. We don’t want to attract too much attention to LA, but if we can get even ten percent of the human population to leave on their own, then it will make our jobs a lot easier. I’m also working on getting the weather modification technology to create a hurricane and keep it dangerously close to the coast for a while. That may drive even more people out of the city.”
“Fear mongering at its best,” someone agreed.
Storm nodded, “We need to attempt to keep as much of this out of the notice of the humans as possible. I’ll need all of you to watch out for anyone with a recorder; those of you able to do mind wipes will have to do double time as damage control. All 911 calls are also being monitored. And don’t let your guard down. It’s dangerous out there… we lost several PIT members last night.” He finished softly as he gazed at Guy.
Guy kept his gaze locked with Storm’s daring him to try to put him on the sidelines with the excuse of appropriate grieving time. What he truly needed was revenge, and getting out there among the demons was the only way he was going to achieve that.
Zachary leaned against the desk and shoved his hands in his pockets. “I was there… not everything that came out of the rift last night is evil.”
Storm nodded, “Yes, quite possibly the only good thing to come out of this mess. When Misery opened the rift, she freed not only demons, she also succeeded in freeing a number of fallen and a few others who are, thankfully, on our side.”
“Like who?” Trevor asked.
“Like the ones who were protecting the seal from the other side of the rift.” A new voice said from the back of the room.
Everyone turned in the direction of the voice. A young man who didn’t look a year over eighteen was leaning against the back wall with his arms crossed over his chest. His dark hair looked windblown and the way the light hit it at certain times gave it a purple hue. When he opened his eyes, colors were fading in and out resembling a glittering tourmaline stone causing many in the room to look away.
“What are you?” Ren asked, puzzled that he couldn’t feel any power at all from the newbie.
The young man smirked, “To the demons… I’m the boogey man.”
“This is one of our allies from the other side.” Storm answered. “Kamui and his… brothers will be staying on the third floor.”
“I thought the third floor was sealed off.” Trevor questioned. “How can they get up there?”
The young man levitated off the floor by several feet and winked at the shapeshifter.
“A kid who can fly… great,” Trevor shook his head dismissively, “that will be a lot of help.”
Kamui smirked, “I’m older than the first of your kind. We weren’t thrown into that rift against our will… we went willingly, knowing exactly what we were getting into. And there were more demons on that side than there were here. We kept our side from being breeched… how’d you do?”
Ren cocked an eyebrow deciding he liked this boy already. He had to cough into his hand to keep from laughing out loud at Trevor, though he shouldn’t have bothered because several others were laughing without sympathy.
“Most of the demons have now scattered throughout the city and are hiding,” Zachary offered wanting to get the attention focused back on the meeting. “The ones who pose the most danger of being seen or attacking humans are the wraiths that were summoned.”
“I hate those things,” Trevor growled unable to suppress the shiver. “They hurt like hell when they pass through you.”
Zachary nodded, “They’re pretty much hanging out in every graveyard in the city and that’s a real danger to the humans. Hunter can kill them but only one at a time.” He paused in thought, “Actually, killing isn’t even the right word.”
“I’d like to kick their asses, but I can’t freaking touch them,” Trevor complained.
“You would be angry too if your rest was interrupted by a demon who wanted to bring you back only to be a servant.” A young woman with long silver hair stated. “They’re only expressing that anger… it’s not personal.”
“Tiara,” Storm said her name for the people in the room who hadn’t had a chance to meet her yet. “I’m glad you have come, and I’m sorry about your mother.”
“Thank you,” Tiara replied but her gaze was on Trevor. “You attract them because you have the lives of so many animals within you.” She stepped in front of him and pulled a dagger from her belt making Trevor flinch at the quick action. She smiled softly, “Here, you can use this to protect yourself from them.”
“Will it kill them?” Trevor carefully took the dagger from her and held it up looking it over.
“They are already dead.” Tiara said calmly as if talking to a child. “This is a tool used for releasing… not killing.”
Trevor frowned but didn’t give the dagger back. He knew what those things were capable of and he would take all the help he could get. “Thanks,” he slid it into his belt and covered the hilt over with his shirt.
“Tiara, are you sure you’re ready for this?” Storm asked not really wanting to put any pressure on her knowing this would be her first time. “Vampires and wraiths aren’t the only things out there… zombies are being sighted all over the place. That’s not including master demons and the things we don’t have a name for… we don’t know what else is out there.”
“I’m ready,” Tiara answered with a slight defiant tilt of her chin. She tried to keep in mind that Storm thought she had only gained her power through her mother’s death and that was true in a way. She’d just inherited Myra’s powers but she’d been able to see ghosts since the day she was born.
Zachary pushed away from the desk in confusion as something dawned on him. “Are you saying this will be her first time using her powers?”
“Yes, the gift of necromancy can only be passed down when the parent with the gift dies… Tiara has only had the power a couple weeks,” Storm explained
Tiara looked up at Zachary… this time locking eyes with him fearlessly. If he had a problem with her then she wanted it out in the open now instead of leaving it hanging over her head later. If fingers were going to be pointed then she’d rather him go ahead and do it.
“And you’re going to send her out there all by herself?” Zachary suddenly didn’t like this idea. Her mother had been using necromancy for years and had a team of fighters with her. And as Storm had just pointed out… she’d still died at the hands of a demon only a couple weeks ago.
“I’ll go,” Trevor smiled laying his palm against the hilt of the dagger. “As long as this thing does what Tiara says it will, I don’t have a problem keeping an eye on her.”
Zachary looked at Trevor thinking about the way the shapeshifter had been so distracted with Envy lately. He wasn’t a good choice as far as the fire starter was concerned.
“Until Tiara chooses her own team, I propose that for starters, Trevor and Zachary accompany her. Zachary will be in charge of the team and he can also be back up in case someone witnesses her restoring the graveyards. He can easily erase the memory from them,” Storm announced.
Tiara’s eyes widened a fraction hearing that Zachary was in charge of her team. Myra had told her a long time ago about Zachary seeing her with Deth… that he’d kept her secret all these years. Myra had also pointed Zachary out to her a couple times over the years, but it had only caused a childish fear and awe to grow within her for the man who knew her mother’s secret.
Zachary relaxed some now that he knew Tiara wouldn’t be alone out there tonight. It surprised him at how much better it made him feel knowing he’d be right beside her if anything happened.
“I’ll join them,” Guy announced.
Tiara felt a flutter of unease knowing Guy’s true reason for wanting to come. Without looking at Guy she turned to Storm, “I only need three on my team for now, and one of them needs to be powerless.”
Guy’s expression darkened at Tiara’s refusal to let him join her team…. She was lying.
Zachary noticed the silent exchange between them and frowned. He wasn’t sure what Guy’s motive was for suddenly wanting to be placed on another team so soon… but then again, it wasn’t like they could take a bereavement leave. If that happened, no one would show up for work.
Storm nodded, getting the hint that Guy was not invited, “Then I have just the powerless man for the job.”
“Who,” Trevor asked suspiciously. He liked Guy and had seen his magic in action. It was a little disappointing that he wouldn’t be joining them.
“Jason.” Storm swung his hand toward the man hanging out at the back of the group.
“Oh hell no!” Jason exclaimed with a wide-eyed expression. “I’m not going out to chase dead things. If you ask me… it’s smarter to run from them.”
Zachary shrugged, “Okay, have it your way. But you know the alternative.”
Jason stumbled backwards, bumping into the young man with purplish hair as Zachary approached him with his hand raised toward Jason’s forehead.
“All right, all right,” Jason said while holding up both hands to ward off Zachary. “I’ll go. Put… the hand… down.”
Zachary smirked and clamped his hand firmly down on Jason’s shoulder, acting like that’s what he was going to do all along. “I knew you wouldn’t let us down.”
“Go to hell,” Jason grumbled making Kamui snort in amusement.
