When she speaks, her voice is low and melodic, but with a hint of authority. “Your friends are in need of help.”
I pick up my own and grunt as I take a sip. “I don’t need help.”
“I take a wager you do.”
I don’t answer her, just take another sip of my drink. I have been sitting here trying to make sense of my feelings, and this ominous feeling twisting at my insides. Seeing Salena almost killed has me flashing back to my brother. Only it is her I’m watching being dragged away. I can’t lose her like that. Maybe I should just leave now and save us both. A thick cloud of despair descends over me. I am cursed, I’m sure of it.
I can feel her dark eyes watching me, so I slowly turn to face her. Everything in me freezes. There’s something old, almost ancient about her. Wisdom shines in her eyes, contradicting her young appearance.
“Who are you?” I murmur.
One side of her mouth lifts. “Someone who can help.”
“Help with what?”
She doesn’t answer, and as intrigued as I am, I’m not interested in playing games. Finishing the last of my drink, I stand and throw some notes on the bar. I start to turn away when I hear her voice, my skin tingling with awareness.
“You still have vivid nightmares of that night, don’t you?”
I pause without turning back, a chill running down my spine. Her words are like a bucket of cold water.
“You’ve been marked. It will come for you.”
Fear chokes me for a second at the thought of that creature.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Still not looking at me, she knocks back the rest of her drink. Then she spins on her chair to face me. “Don’t I? The creature you faced in the woods as a child, it left you with multiple wounds. Wounds that didn’t heal properly. Along with new wounds that appear after the nightmares.”
It’s a statement, not a question,
“I can smell its taint on you,” she adds.
I take a step closer to the darker-skinned woman, her onyx eyes seeing more than I want her to.
“Who are you?” I demand.
She smiles, holding out her hand. “I’m Ash, and I’m going to help you get rid of your demon. The taint on your soul. For a favor, of course.”
I look down at her hand and frown, the buzz from the alcohol making my brain fuzzy. Ash drops her hand and stands. “Look, I know Salena. When all this shit started, she called me for help and asked me to keep an eye on Reaper to make sure he wasn’t a threat to you. But it’s not Reaper we need to worry about, it’s you. You have an evil spirit attached to your soul, and if we don’t destroy it, it will destroy you. It will come in the night, like a storm, wreaking havoc and destruction on you and those you love.”
Disappointment hits me square in the chest. She is either crazy or being paid to make a fool out of me. I turn and make my way out of the small dive bar and onto the street. I round the bend and Ash is leaning against the wall, playing with the feather she has braided into her long black hair. How did she get out here ahead of me?
The moonlight glints off her face as she speaks into the night. “You don’t believe me.”
“Look, I don’t know who you are, but I’m not interested.”
“Even if you get Salena killed?”
My stomach drops out and I step into her space. A savage, feral need to protect what is mine fills my veins. “Are you threatening her?” I snarl.
The instant reaction shocks me. I can’t believe I ever thought I could walk away from her.
“No, I like Salena. I consider her a friend, and I don’t give out that title easily. I’m simply stating that if you ignore this, it will put both her and you in grave danger. It would make a serial killer brother look like a walk in the park. You possess a unique talent, one that few humans can retain beyond their eighth year.”
“Humans?”
Ash nods, her long silky black hair glistening in the moonlight as she turns and starts walking toward my car, stopping at the passenger door to wait for me. I curse under my breath as I unlock the car and slide into the driver's seat, the leather creaking beneath me.
