Black bird a nevermore d.., p.27
Black Bird: A Nevermore Duet, page 27
“Like I said … I know as much as you do. The how and why is something we’ll have to learn when we get there. Are you ready?”
“I’m sorry … I—I know this isn’t your fault, I’m just … it’s been an interesting two days.” Sarah blew out a long breath and Rhaena raised a brow. Their eyes met. “I—I need my phone.” She disappeared down the hallway to Athan’s room and came back with her phone in the front pocket of the jacket. Poe screeched from his perch and Sarah was remarkably comfortable handling him and letting him back into the cage before closing him up.
“Wow.” Rhaena smiled as she leaned on the wall by the living room. “You two seem like old friends. That bird hates me.”
“He’s a sweetheart. They just have to build some trust. Ravens are extremely smart. They just look ominous.” Sarah shrugged, turning toward her. She paused and pink stained her pale cheeks when Rhaena crossed her arms.
“Ready?” Rhaena smirked.
Sarah cleared her throat, pulling a rogue strand of ebony hair behind her ear and nodding as she passed by her and toward the door. Rhaena followed behind, locking the door up for her and passing her the coffee she’d left on the table. “Thank you.” She hummed, flicking the lid open and sipping from it as they walked to the elevator. They stepped inside and the doors closed, a heavy silence passing between them as they started moving down.
“So?” Rhaena smiled, staring at their blurred reflection in the doors.
“I … tried.” Sarah sipped again.
“He wouldn’t?”
“He only let me go so far. Last night I—may have sexually assaulted his service weapon.”
Rhaena’s mouth gaped open, and she jerked her face toward Sarah who laughed through her nose with a mouthful of hot coffee. “You what?!”
“Don’t judge me.” She blushed without looking at her.
She had no words. Couldn’t even bargain how that might even feel, but also couldn’t see it being a very comfortable ordeal. Rhaena shook her head slowly. “I—didn’t see that coming …. Sorry,” she chuckled. Sarah giggled back.
The elevator dinged and the doors opened, two people and their small dog entering as they exited. They decided not to continue the conversation on the walk through the parking lot to Rhaena’s truck. She unlocked it and they both slipped inside, Rhaena taking in every possible point of view before pulling out. She saw nothing. The first couple miles were quiet and then Sarah finally broke the silence, looking over at her. “Say it.” She smirked.
Rhaena raised her brows and shook her head, watching the road. “To each his own, I suppose. I just … didn’t that hurt?”
“I think I was too “in the moment” to really notice.”
“Where was he?” Rhaena asked, curiously.
“Under me?” Sarah’s face turned red. “I was sitting in his lap.”
“And he just watched you?” Rhaena asked, glancing over.
“Umm …” Sarah bit her lip.
They pulled up behind a car at a red light and Rhaena gawked at her. “He did not.”
“He did. When it was over, I tried … I tried to kiss him but …” Sarah looked down at the cup in her hands.
“So … did he explain himself? That couldn’t have been an easy conversation.” Rhaena was treading as carefully as she could, not knowing what Athan had revealed. It was obvious that he didn’t tell her the truth, otherwise they’d be having a much different conversation.
“No. He was as vague as usual. He let me sleep next to him on the couch.”
“And that was it? He said he was almost across town this morning when Wren called. Why’d he leave?”
“He didn’t really say … I—” Sarah paused, looking over at her as the light turned green. “I told him what I told you about my blood. He said Brent admitted to dating me because Conrad made him do it. Brent said that he’d told him he was doing it for his mother. When I told Athan she had cancer, and that he probably wanted my blood to help her … he got really pissed and left. Said there was somewhere he had to go.”
Rhaena followed behind the traffic, taking a left at the next street. “So, you didn’t tell him this last night, I assume?”
“No, we got in a little … argument this morning.” Sarah sighed, sipping from her coffee.
“Already?” Rhaena huffed a laugh. “About what?”
“I may have … taken matters into my own hands this morning … literally. And then in my mouth.” Sarah turned her face toward the window and Rhaena laughed loudly.
“And it pissed him off?”
“No … he let me do it. He seemed really desperate, Rhaena.” She slowly turned her face back toward her, her expression almost sad. “I think someone’s really hurt him to cause him to be like this. And he wouldn’t tell me why he’d let me go that far, but still not any further. So, he rejected me again and got off the couch. I said I wanted to go home, and he told me about Brent. That’s when all the other shit came about.”
“I’m so sorry. I should never have told you to do that.” Rhaena sighed.
“I wanted to. I think he wants it too. He said as much last night.”
Rhaena tightened her grip on the steering wheel. “He does, Sarah.” She felt Sarah’s eyes on her as she kept her focus on the traffic. “Athan’s not … he’s been through a lot, too. It wasn’t my place to butt in, and it’s not my place to tell his story. But I will say this … in all the years I’ve known him, he’s never so much as faced me while … you know. Let alone, the other activity you mentioned. It was always, hands to myself and enjoy it while it lasts. And we’ve never slept beside each other. Not ever.” She hoped maybe it offered her a little comfort, at least.
“Is he sick?” she asked.
Rhaena’s face scrunched and she glanced over. “Sick? No … why?”
“I fed Poe this morning. He’s out of meat. I didn’t know what else Athan fed him, so I looked around the fridge. Did you know about the blood bags in the drawer?”
Rhaena felt the color drain from her face. “Yeah, I did.” She scrambled to come up with a good explanation and finding nothing. Her stomach churned.
“Why would he have something like that? And from EverLife?”
Rhaena swallowed, and hoped Sarah wasn’t paying too much attention to how nervous she was getting. “Umm … EverLife was broken into weeks ago. Athan and I are on that case. We’re still trying to deal with your boss on that front. Those bags … they’re—think of them as evidence.”
“Do you not keep evidence at the precinct? Why would he have them?”
Fuck …
“You remember how I told you, when you were at the hospital … that we get the cases that no one wants?” She saw Sarah nod in the corner of her eye. “Sometimes we work on parts of those cases out in the open … like the web. Other parts, we don’t. He never said why, but it’s obvious he wants that blood away from curious hands. Any hands that are trying to reach into the pot and pull some big stunt that’ll wreck our case.” A horrible example of a lie. But she was trying.
“So, you don’t know what it’s for?”
“I’m assuming it has something to do with whatever Athan and Nick Specter are working on. Your boss might seem like a good person, and I’m not saying he isn’t … but he’s a slippery little shit. I’ve questioned him already, myself.”
“Is it part of my case?” she asked warily.
“We’re still trying to figure that out. We think not, but if certain pieces fit … it could explain some things.”
“So, I shouldn’t ask him about it?” Sarah asked softly, thumbing the rim of her cup.
“You should feel comfortable asking him anything. That’s what we’re here for. Just … remember that you might get answers to these questions that you’re not prepared to deal with just yet.” Rhaena glanced toward her, and Sarah seemed to understand, nodding slowly and looking back down at the cup.
“Fair enough.” She sighed.
“As far as the other problem … just give him time. You know he’s not the most social person. You’ve got farther than anyone else, and that’s saying something.”
“You’re right,” Sarah agreed.
They pulled up to the 12th and Athan’s motorcycle was already parked out front. Both of them leapt from the truck and rushed inside. As the elevator doors opened, Sarah rushed past Rhaena to where Wren was sitting with a mug of coffee at Athan’s desk, pale … green really, and her face slackened in utter shock. Athan moved aside when Sarah hit her knees in front of Wren’s chair, pulling her into a tight hug. He glanced up as Rhaena rounded the desk and their eyes met briefly.
“Who was it?” Rhaena asked softly, as the girls tearfully reunited.
“She managed to get a few pictures before the crash. I haven’t seen the body, but I know who he is.” Athan handed her printed copies from Wren’s phone. She squinted and moved the photos closer but didn’t recognize the man. “That’s the guy whose arm I nearly broke at the Halloween party when I picked Sarah and Wren up from the bar,” he clarified.
Sarah’s face shot up toward him from her spot on the floor. “What?” she asked.
Wren answered for him, wiping her eyes and sniffling. “The guy you were dancing with. From Dom’s party. I killed him, Sarah.”
Sarah covered her mouth with her hand, glancing between all of them. “Who is he?” She started shaking. “Why was he following her?”
Jenkins approached from down the hall with a few papers in his hand, one of them a mugshot with his personal information. “His name is Freddy Dowell. Goes by the name ‘Tank’. Plates on the car were stolen. We don’t know who he’s working for.”
“Was …” Wren corrected hoarsely, staring off with a numb expression. “Was Freddy Dowell.”
Rhaena sat her stuff on her desk and leaned over it toward Wren. “Wren, you did nothing wrong. It could have been you, today,” she offered, grazing her shoulder with a gentle hand.
“Doesn’t change the fact that I took someone else’s life,” she whispered, crying again. She buried her face in her hands, Sarah taking her mug and leaning her over to let her cry on her shoulder. Athan reached a hand out and Sarah handed the mug to him, holding her friend closely.
“Kane let’s take a walk,” Rhaena urged. He cautiously nodded, glancing back at Sarah who paid him little mind as he rounded the desks and followed her to the break room. Rhaena cracked the door behind them and started making cups of coffee. Athan stood close, pouring out the mug Wren hadn’t touched. “She knows,” Rhaena whispered. His face paled and he jerked his head up, panic flashing in his eyes. “Not about that. She found your blood bags after you left. I told her you were keeping them there as evidence for EverLife’s case. It was the only thing I could come up with.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Fuck …” He mumbled under his breath. Rhaena refilled Wren’s mug.
“You’ve gone a bit too far with her not to tell her, Athan. I scented it as soon as I walked into the apartment this morning.”
“Did she tell—”
“Yes.” Rhaena cut him off, emptying the rest of the pot and washing it out in the sink. She started filling it with water. “You can’t keep letting this go on. Things are getting crazier for these girls, and somebody is gonna get hurt. If she’s mad at you, then she’s mad at you … and you might be able to come back from that. But if one of them gets their hands on her …”
“They’re both after her for different reasons. It’s obvious after today that they’ll go through anybody to get to her. They won’t kill Sarah, she’s too valuable. But Wren …”
“Killing Wren would have lured her out,” Rhaena agreed. “She can’t go home. Neither of them should. I’ll take Wren, if you want.”
“I could put her in witness protection.”
“You’d need Cap for that … he’s not here. Let me see if she’s comfortable going home with me until we figure out what to do.”
Athan nodded. “I think I’d die if something happened to her,” he breathed, staring down into one of the mugs. She’d never seen him like this.
“I think you might be in love, bud.” She pushed the button to restart the coffee maker and he rubbed the back of his neck. “Tell her.”
They stared at each other for a moment, his breathing shallow and uneven. He nodded again, slowly, grabbed two of the mugs and walked out. Rhaena watched him pass one to Sarah. Watched the way they looked at each other even after all that had transpired. She might not take it well, but that girl was tougher than she looked. She silently prayed they’d all make it through this and somehow be happy at the end of it all.
CHAPTER 11
QUIET
Black Bird roared with the happenings of seductive metal, thrashing half naked bodies, and dirty dealings as Dahlia sat behind her desk in her office just down the hall. There was little noise in this room, though she remained close enough to hear any commotion. It had been nearly two weeks now since the redhead had gunned down her human spy. A loss that Dahlia rendered very small as she had little regard for his mortal life anyhow. She had others. She’d needed as many as she could muster to walk within the daylight and do her groundwork when she couldn’t, promising them immortality and power if they’d only do her bidding. The fools were all too eager to please her, begging for more ways to prove their worth and loyalty. None of them had any idea that she rarely made good on those promises and sought out her prey on her own. Patrick was a perfect example of that as he stood silently in the corner of the room, hands at his back and not daring to look at her. She liked them that way … like injured little birds.
“Patrick, my love …” She curled a serpentine smile, and he stepped forward, visibly shaking as usual. “Why don’t you go see what’s keeping them?”
“Yes, mi’lady.” He slightly bowed, ducking backward, and scooting out the door. As it snicked shut, Dahlia reached beneath the desk, opening the mini-fridge, and plucking out one of the blood bags within it. She kept her hideous smile as she flipped the bag over, revealing the patient’s name from the front.
ST. JAMES, SARAH L.
BLOOD TYPE - UNK
DATE: 10/13
Patrick re-emerged a few moments later, Decclan and Devin in tow. Dahlia raised her eyes to them. “Has she arrived?”
“Yes ma’am.” Decclan nodded.
“Bring her to me.” She leaned back in her seat, crossing a leg over her knee and dangling her ankle over the floor. Patrick and Devin took their places in the corners on either side of her. It was silent as Decclan entered the room again with the quirky blonde human. Her features were sharp, eyes a rich brown, and hair that was long and voluminous. She reminded Dahlia a great deal of herself with the spark of mischief in her eyes. “Have a seat,” she said, gesturing to the leather-bound chair in front of her desk.
“Love the office.” The girl flashed an approving smile.
“Thank you.” Dahlia rolled her eyes, watching her lower into the seat. “I’m assuming you know what’s happened to your partner.”
“I heard.” She shrugged.
“What was your name, again?” Dahlia asked, leaning forward and keeping the blood bag safely concealed in her lap.
“Lorraine … but everybody calls me Raine.” She shrugged. Dahlia chuckled through her nose, looking down it as the overconfident girl in her chair continued to take in the room.
“And what is it that you wanted from me?”
Raine smirked, seemingly unfazed by the danger she’d found herself in. “I want power. I wanna be able to do what I want. I’m tired of living in my parent’s house. I’m sick of working at coffee shops, or retail stores. I wanna have a good time, without rules and stereotypes. I want freedom.”
Freedom … what a laugh.
“Well … if that’s what you desire, I’ve told you how to acquire it. How is it that you’ve failed so badly?” Dahlia interlocked her fingers over her propped elbows. Raine shifted in her seat.
“It wasn’t my fault. Tank drugged her. Everything was going fine until that cop showed up.”
“Tell me about that.”
“He came in and she went straight for him. Everything we’d done didn’t even matter. He twisted Tank’s arm, and I backed off. She left with the guy and her friends, and after that we haven’t been able to find her. I heard the ginger shot him up. He was being fucking stupid. I could’ve taken her out if that’s really what you wanted.”
Dahlia raised from her chair, leaning over the desk and bracing her palms on it. “I didn’t ask either of you to kill the redhead. Wherever she goes, our new friend is sure to follow at some point. Contrary to what you might believe … you did fail. I was to have her in this building over two weeks ago now.”
Raine’s eyes refused to meet hers. “Fine. I’ll go, then.” She made to get up from the chair but was stopped as Decclan’s broad hand shoved her shoulder back down. She seemed a little worried then. Dahlia’s smile grew wide.
“Go?” Dahlia slowly shook her head, the human’s fear feeding her every pore. “I’ve never claimed to be a patient individual, Lorraine. But … I do sometimes give second chances.” She glanced at Devin and jerked her head toward the girl. He moved to the other side of Raine’s chair, both males holding her down.
“What the hell are you doing?” Raine panicked. “Let go!”
“Now, now, pet … fighting me won’t do you any good. Just hold still. This will be over before you know it.” She grinned.
“Oh, fuck … fuck! I won’t—I won’t tell anybody about you! Let me go!” She started kicking against the desk, both the males finding purchase with their hands along her arms and thighs.
“Patrick,” Dahlia said with deadly calm. “If you will.”
The young newborn seemed as if he were trying desperately not to appear hesitant. Dahlia had spent the last few days breaking him in. He moved swiftly, leaning over the terrified host and grabbed her by the hair.
“Please! No!” She wailed. “Pl—” Her breath caught as Patrick tore into her neck like a rabid animal, feeding on her like an experienced immortal. It made Dahlia’s blood sing. Raine kicked and struggled, slowly losing her strength … her life.
