Heir of Night by Emily Goodwin
Chapter 20
“War?” Melinda echoes. Whoever is on the other side of the door knocks again.
“One of the Horsemen. Remember when Easton was hunting a demon that infected everyone, including me? That demon was trying to find someone worthy or whatever to get Pestilence busted out of Hell. I don’t know exactly how it got powers from Pestilence, but that dude was bad fucking news. Not to mention the plague rats taking the form of hellhounds.”
“How do you know it’s War?” she asks, ignoring the knocking.
“It told me that lady was possessed and I needed to kill her before she killed me. When Lucifer explained how the Horsemen work, he said it would be like that. Subtle influences that can spark something bigger.”
“Like getting the most powerful person in the entire city to go all Carrie on us, exposing you as a witch to the people in Chicago and pitting humans against witches.”
“Exactly.”
She puts her knife back in her jacket and eyes me apprehensively. “Better question: how do I know you’re not under its influence anymore?”
“Once I used my angel powers, it went away.”
“And into the mirror?” She motions in front of us. “I fucking hate monsters that use mirrors for transportation. Creepy as shit.”
“I know, right? Kristy and I used to cover our mirrors with black lace for a couple years after I kind of accidentally summoned the real Bloody Mary. She’s dead,” I add with a shrug. “Demons can’t possess angels. When Bael wanted to use me as his vessel, he had some sort of ritual planned that would turn off that part of me so he’d be able to get inside.” I shudder. “And right now, I’m more human than ever.” I pat my stomach. “Having this much humanity inside me suppresses my angel side. I had to reactivate those powers.”
“I’m going to need another drink.”
“You and me both, but I can’t, so have one for me.”
Melinda unlocks the door. “Trust me, I will.”
Min was the one knocking and gives us a friendly smile. “You feeling okay?” she asks, thankfully mistaking the worry on my face for a sudden rebound of morning sickness.
“Yeah. I’m tired, that’s all,” I reply. “I’m going to head home.”
“It is getting late. It was nice meeting you.”
“You too,” I say and let out a sigh. Min walks past, going into a stall, and I look back at the mirror. If the demon is still hanging around, it’s dumber than I thought. Just to be safe, I hold my hand out and say, “Nubes tenebrosa.” Gray smoke clouds the mirror, making it look so dirty you can’t see your reflection.
“Cool,” Melinda says. “But I think Eliza is going to kill you for that.”
“The spell will wear off in about twelve hours or less. I didn’t put much into it.”
Melinda tips her head. “I’ll never fully understand how magic works.”
“It’s magic,” I say with a smile. “You just—ouch.” I bend over, hand flying to my stomach. That same weird feeling ripples out, making my entire middle feel like it’s tightening in one painful squeeze.
“What’s wrong?” Melinda grabs my arm, helping me stay upright. Something is different this time. It hurts worse than before and feels hot, like Elena is suddenly a ball of fire instead of a baby.
“I don’t—” I cut off as searing pain tears across my abdomen. I grab onto Melinda, digging my fingers into her arm and gritting my teeth. Then as suddenly as the pain came on, it stops. I don’t move, afraid it’s going to come back.
“Callie?” Melinda asks and helps me straighten up. “Should I take you to a hospital?”
“I can’t go to a hospital,” I say, feeling scared all over again by that very fact. If this is how labor is going to be, I’m not going to make it to the birth.
“Your sister is a doctor.” She motions behind us at the closed bathroom door. “So is her friend.”
“They’re drunk, and I feel…I feel good.” I run my hands over my stomach. Elena is moving around, and it sounds crazy even to me, but I feel like my stomach popped even more just in the time we’ve been in the bar. “This has happened before.”
“And that’s supposed to be reassuring?” Melinda makes a face. “It’s not normal to have pain like that, Callie.”
“I know. I’ll call the midwife from my coven. She knows I’m only half-human.”
“That’s a good idea. Let’s get you home.”
“Callie fucking King.” Eliza speeds over, stopping in front of me with her hands on her hips. “I had to overhear you say you’re calling your midwife from across the fucking bar. What the fuck?” She narrows her eyes, hiding her worry. “Go sit in the office. I’m calling Lucas to come get you.”
“Don’t,” I protest. “You’ll worry him, and he’s in the middle of a meeting. Walk home with us and then I’ll text him and ask him to come home. I feel fine now.” It’s almost the same feeling of a weight being lifted when I tapped into my angel powers again, but deeper. I can’t make sense if it. “I’ll let my sister know and really will call the midwife.”
“Fine.” Eliza purses her lips. “I’m calling us an Uber. We’re close, but you’re not walking.”
“My truck is just down the street,” Melinda says. “I can drive us.”
The look on Eliza’s face is a dead giveaway that she’s not a fan of trucks, but for my sake, she nods. “If you feel so much as a twinge of pain, I’m carrying you.”
I do my best Eliza impression and roll my eyes. We go back to the table but don’t sit down.
“I’m not feeling too well,” I tell Abby and Ricci. “I’m going to take off.”
“Are you okay?” Abby asks.
“Yeah, just that round ligament pain again.”
“Are you going back to the house on North Orchard or the apartment at the Waldorf?” she asks, slowly getting to her feet.
“North Orchard.”
“I’ll come with you,” Abby rushes out. “It’s right by my house, and I can give you a quick checkup.”
“You don’t have to leave,” I tell her. She silently gives me a pleading look. She wants to leave, and taking care of her pregnant sister is an excuse no one can argue against. “But I would really appreciate being checked on. Checked up on? You know what I mean.”
Abby nods. “Better safe than sorry when you’re pregnant. How much do I owe for the drinks?” She turns around, eyes bloodshot, and looks at the drinks on the table.
“Don’t worry about it,” I say, and Eliza huffs. Ricci tries to get Abby to stay, but one disapproving look from Eliza shuts her up. I text Lucas on the way out, telling him I’m going back to the house in Lincoln Park and want to go home to Thorne Hill if possible.
“Where are you parked?” I ask Melinda.
“Around the block. It’s not far, but I can drive up.”
“I can walk,” I say.
“Are you sure?” Abby asks, blinking a few times, trying to keep her composure. “If the pain is the same pain you’ve been feeling, you know you’re supposed to take it easy.”
“I can manage half a block,” I press and pull on my jacket. The temperature has dropped in the short amount of time I’ve been in The Taproom, and a cool breeze greets us as soon as we step out. Out of habit, I look up to see the stars, forgetting they’re hardly visible in the city.
There’s a decent amount of people out, feeling spring fever as badly as I am, despite the drop in temperature. It’s about this time every year when I question why I live in the Midwest. There are hot spots along the Ley line in the south, after all. Though, really, I love my little town, and even though Chicago left a sour taste in my mouth for many years, I like being this close and having the ability to come and go from small town to city living with ease.
We turn a corner, and I notice a guy pacing along the sidewalk a few yards from us. He has his hood up, hands in his pockets, and gives off a bad vibe. Melinda notices too and puts her hand out, stopping Abby from walking forward.
“Hey,” the guy says gruffly and comes over. “I don’t wanna do this.” His eyes twitch. “He’s going to kill me if I don’t give him the money,” he mutters to himself. “I won’t hurt you. Just give me what you got.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” I let out a sigh. “Look, asshole, you picked the wrong group of seemingly innocent women to prey upon, and I’ve already had a long, fucking night, and I don’t care who you owe your drug money to.”
The guy attempting to mug us thrusts his hand in his pocket forward, trying to make it look like he has a gun. “He’s gonna kill me,” he mutters again. “I need your money.”
“And if you leave it up to me, I’ll snap my fingers and turn you inside out.” I hold up my hand, rubbing my thumb over my fingers, summoning hellfire instead of my usual string of blue magic, which was what I was going for. “Or I could let my friends take their turns with you. See that pretty blonde over there? She could rip your still-beating heart right out of your chest before you can blink your eyes. And her?” I turn my head slightly toward Melinda. “She could beat your ass so badly you’ll be crying for your mama. And my sister? She’s a doctor and can kill you and make it look like natural causes. No one will ever suspect anything.”
Melinda already has a large dagger out—different from the knife she had before—brandishing it under the light of the streetlamp. Where she pulled that thing from, I have no fucking clue. The mugger can’t take his eyes off the fire I’m holding in my hand and starts slowly shaking his head back and forth. He backs away and makes a move to run.
“Not so fast.” Eliza speeds froward and grabs him by the throat, shoving him against the wall of a building. “I’ve had just about enough from men like you.” He thrashes against her, but she easily holds him in place. “Go on home, girls. I’m hungry.” With no hesitation, Eliza bites the guy’s neck and sucks a mouthful of blood.
The guy screams, and in a move I’m sure she’s done hundreds of times before, Eliza forces his chin up, closing his mouth, and turns his head away. Abby’s eyes bulge, and she stands there transfixed. She’s not squeamish in the least since she’s an ER doctor, yet seeing a vampire feed can be startling.
“Is it always that violent?” she asks quietly as Eliza shoves the guy against the wall again. Blood drips down his side.
“Not for me,” I tell her and take her hand. Eliza is clearly fine on her own, and I want to get home so I can figure out what the fuck happened with Elena, and then I need to scream for Julian to get his feathery butt down here and help me deal with War.
Fucking War.
“Let’s go.”
“And just leave her?” Abby stammers.
“She’s got it from here,” Melinda quips. “Unless she gets caught.”
Eliza pulls her mouth back and wipes a drop of blood that’s rolling down her bottom lip. “I never get caught. I was taught by the best.”
“Can’t she do that memory thing?” Abby whispers.
“Not yet,” I tell her. “But I can.”
Eliza sucks a final mouthful of blood and steps aside, holding the guy against the wall with one hand. She doesn’t put pressure on the wounds like Lucas does, and blood continues to run down the guy’s neck.
“Crazy bitches,” he stammers, reaching up to clamp his hand over the bite.
“Do your thing,” Eliza tells me. Looking around to make sure no one is watching, I step forward and grab the guy’s wrist. I find his pulse point, close my eyes, and focus. Once I’m in his mind, I open my eyes and stare right at him.
“You are going to turn yourself into the police for your attempted mugging tonight. You’re also going to confess to any past crimes, and you’re going to forget you saw the four of us here.” I can feel my magic working inside his mind with ease. The less strong-willed a person is, the easier it is to magically alter their memories. I’ve always had a knack for getting inside people’s heads like this, which makes sense considering angels can do it without having to make a magical connection the way I do.
“Yes.” His head slowly bobs up and down.
I press my finger a little harder against his pulse. “Go now.”
He nods again, and I let go of his wrist. He slowly blinks, looking at us like he has no idea where we came from, and then starts toward the street, waving his hand to get someone’s attention.
“Now let’s really get out of here,” I say, letting out a sigh and closing my eyes for a beat.
“I didn’t know you could do that,” Abby tells me as we start walking again. “That’s, um…impressive and scary. I thought only vampires could alter memories.”
“Angels can too,” I tell her. “Without trying. My dad said no one remembers when they appear or disappear. Same thing with Julian. People don’t notice or don’t remember.”
“When will you get to do the memory thing?” Abby asks.
“When I’m around five hundred years dead,” Eliza answers. She holds up a compact mirror and checks her makeup, making sure drinking someone’s blood didn’t mess it up.
“The magic inside vampires gets stronger over time,” I explain. “That’s why the older a vampire is, the stronger they become.”
“Opposite of humans,” Melinda mumbles.
“Don’t be jealous now.” Eliza snaps her mirror shut. I hold my hand out in front of me, walking toward Melinda’s truck again, and summon a small flame of hellfire. Hellfire burns red and turns purple when the usual blue magic I summon mixes in. What I’m holding in my hand is blue and almost feels cold. It makes no sense, I know. I put out the fire and look up at the dark sky.
“Julian?” I call. “Are you there?”
Abby’s heels click along the sidewalk, and a car drives by, blasting rap music. My cousin doesn’t appear, dammit. The clicking gets louder, and then I realize Abby’s not wearing heels today. I come to a sudden halt and whirl around just in time to see the shadowy outline of a red roan horse walking across the street.