Infamous

CHAPTER 3

Adarian froze as he felt a sensation he hadn’t experienced in thousands of years. For a full minute, he didn’t move as he tried to pinpoint it. If he didn’t know better, he’d swear it belonged to Noir’s primary guardian. But he’d made sure when he escaped the dark lord’s Nether Realm that the only creature who could find him would be punished to the point he’d never be able to track him down.

No, it couldn’t be Seth. Seth was still being tortured. Noir would never take a chance on sending Seth after him.

This was something else.

Where are you…?

More to the point, What are you?

He felt the creature pulling back before he could locate its exact position. Had it detected him? That was always his biggest concern. While he couldn’t be defeated openly, everyone was susceptible to a sneak attack, especially when they didn’t know what was stalking them.

“Malachai! You have a visitor.”

His gut tightened. Was the visitor the one he’d sensed? Or was it someone or something else? His senses and powers on full alert, he allowed the guard to cuff him so that he could be escorted to the visitation center.

As one of the most ferocious and feared inmates in Angola, he was always heavily guarded and never allowed near civilians without being fully shackled. Something he found hysterical since the only thing that kept him here was himself. There were no walls built by man that he couldn’t tear down with a whisper. No chain forged he couldn’t melt.

But he chose to live here for several reasons. The primary one being that all of this concentrated human malice cloaked his presence from those who were searching for him. The inmates’ negativity and hostility also fed his powers. With so many willing victims and predators on tap, his juices never thinned. He always had someone feeding him.

To a demon, this was paradise.

The guard opened the door and stood back so that Adarian could enter the small cubicle. As he sat down, the lights dimmed and he was allowed to see his visitor on the other side of the glass.

Adarian glared at the blond man who was drumming his fingers idly against the tabletop. “What are you doing here?”

“You told me to keep you posted.” That gravelly tone was spoken at a level that no human could hear. Only a demon.

And while he’d wanted updates on his son, he’d assumed they’d come through Caleb or in his cell at night. Not out in the open like this. The last thing he needed was for someone to identify the creature in front of him.

“Then speak and be quick about it.”

His visitor arched a brow at Adarian. Shifting slightly in his chair, he caused a portion of his black button-down shirt to fall open, revealing a grisly skull tattoo in the center of his chest. His black eyes flashed with anger. “You don’t order me around, Adarian. I’m not one of your slaves. I’m your master.”

“No,” Adarian corrected. “You’re my partner.”

“You bargained with me,” he reminded Adarian.

“True, and you accepted, thereby making us equals. You help me. I help you. That exchange of services makes us partners.”

Grim didn’t appear to care for that in the least. But then Death thought himself above everyone and everything.

One day, he would learn the truth. No one was above dying.

Not even Death.

Grim growled in the back of his throat. “I now know where your son gets his most irritating qualities.”

Adarian didn’t comment on that. “How goes his training?”

“Slowly. He lacks focus. Not to mention, whoever blocked his powers did a great job of it. Unlocking them isn’t as easy as it should be. Some of that is because he hasn’t been really hurt. Yet. His mother has wrapped him in a layer of love so thick, it’s hard to breach. The kid needs tragedy in his life. Without that, it’s impossible to push his hatred and make him act on it. He needs someone to hate with a burning passion.”

Adarian curled his lip. He couldn’t afford for his son to be slow. The sooner Nick learned how to hate, the sooner he’d learn to kill, and the quicker Adarian would be able to leave this place and have the freedom he’d craved since the moment of his birth.

Unlike his son, he’d always known who and what he was. His mother had purposefully conceived him to destroy his own father and to buy her freedom from the dark primal gods she served. From the moment of his birth, he’d been breastfed venom and succored on bitter hatred for everyone and everything. As soon as his powers had manifested and he’d killed his father, his mother had sold him to Noir to be enslaved and used by the sadistic god who’d wanted to destroy his enemies and take over the human realm.

Adarian still had nightmares over that quaint experience. If he’d ever possessed a shred of decency or humanity, his time spent in Azmodea had destroyed it.

And those gory centuries spent there were why he’d gutted his mother the instant he’d escaped Noir’s custody. Why he would never allow himself to be enslaved again. Not to anyone.

Even Grim.

But Grim wanted to see the Apocalypse he’d been created for. And like Adarian, Grim didn’t want to be in a subservient role when he delivered it. He wanted to lead. Adarian could respect that.

However, he didn’t really care about Grim. He wasn’t capable of caring.

At least that was the lie he told himself.

“You want your Apocalypse, I want my revenge. Train my boy and deliver his powers to me. I need them.”

Grim nodded. “If you would allow me to kill his mother—”

“No!” Adarian growled. “You harm her and I will rain down a hell on you that you can’t even imagine.”

Grim’s eyes snapped fire from the fury he kept repressed because he knew better than to show it to Adarian. Not even Grim would get away with that. “Fine. But you better remember what I’ve done to work this little miracle for you. I want a piece of Nick when all is said and done.”

“You can have it. Now go and don’t let me see you here again.” Adarian got up and left the room. His original plan had been to use his son to rebuild his army. But this last year, as Nick’s powers had grown, he’d felt his own start to wane—something he couldn’t allow anyone to know.

There couldn’t be two Malachais in existence. It was forbidden. But if he could unlock Nick’s powers and have Death kill his son before Adarian lost all of his, he could feed on Nick’s heart and absorb his powers, too. It would give him the strength of two Malachais.

Then no one would ever be able to defeat him. He wouldn’t have to fear Noir or anything ever again.

That was what he lived for. Then he’d be able to find the ones who’d cursed him to this existence and end that curse once and for all.

But first, Nick had to die.

After finally being liberated from his detention, Nick wanted to hunt down whoever had humiliated Brynna and beat them until they begged for mercy. Never in his life had he been angrier.

His stomach knotted, he headed into the gym to meet up with Kody, Madaug, Caleb, and LaShonda. The son of two scientists, Madaug was one of the smartest people Nick had ever met. The kid knew something about everything. And like Nick, he felt invisible unless one of their resident bullies needed someone to kick or shove into a locker. Just under six feet tall, Madaug had dark blond curly hair and bright blue eyes. He always wore glasses, and preferred hoodies over all other attire.

LaShonda was one of the prettiest girls in the school. Barely an inch shorter than Madaug, she had a pair of hazel brown eyes that practically glowed. And her dark brown hair was ever changing. This week, she wore it straightened and to her shoulders. She’d been one of Brynna’s best friends since second grade and the two of them were almost always together.

“Are we it?” Nick asked, dropping his backpack next to Caleb’s.

LaShonda’s eyes sparkled furiously. “Everyone else banged out. They didn’t want to be on a committee with a slut like Brynna.” She curled her lip. “I take that back, but I won’t repeat what some of the guys said. Gah, people disgust me.”

“It’s ridiculous so don’t get me started.” Nick let out a long breath, then frowned at Madaug. “Boy genius? Any chance you can shed some light on who planted that crap against her?”

“I wish, but they deleted it from Tendyk’s computer immediately and reformatted the harddrive before writing over it. Since it’s legally considered child porn, they were afraid of a lawsuit. Head is hoping he can scare someone into a confession.”

“Yeah, ’cause that works so well on hoodlums,” LaShonda huffed. “I don’t know about you guys, but without Brynna, I really don’t want to do this. Screw the dance. Let the jerks show up to an empty gym. It’s what they deserve. I just want to go home and make sure she’s okay. I’ve been trying to call her, but she won’t pick up.”

Kody folded her arms over her chest. “I think we all want to check on her.”

Nick agreed. “I’ve been over it a thousand times in my head and I can’t figure out who or why anyone would do this to her. Shon? You have any ideas?”

“None. It’s not like she goes around collecting enemies, you know? We’re talking about Brynna, here. Has there ever been a nicer person created? Ever?”

Nick would say his mother, but he didn’t want them to mock him for it.

LaShonda checked her phone. “Why don’t we call in a rain check and do this on Monday? Hopefully, Bryn will be back by then.”

Nick nodded. “Sounds like a plan. Are you going over to Brynna’s from here?”

“Yeah.”

“Call me and let me know how she’s doing.”

LaShonda patted him on the arm. “Will do. I’ll see you guys later.”

Madaug shrugged his backpack over his shoulder. “I wish I could have seen the photos.”

Caleb arched his brow at the comment.

“Not for that reason,” Madaug snapped as he realized what Caleb was thinking. “I don’t want to see her in any kind of graphic portrayal, but I know the pictures had to be Photoshopped. If I had a copy, I could prove it.”

Nick scoffed. “Given how foul they were, you’re better off not seeing them. I’m still traumatized.”

Madaug pushed his glasses back up on the bridge of his nose. “You know, I tried to invent eye-bleach when I was a kid. Didn’t work out, though. But I haven’t given up. One day, I will find a way to erase recent memories before they move into permanent storage.”

From anyone else, that would be a joke.

From Madaug …

You could put it in the bank.

Madaug retrieved his hoodie. “I’ll see y’all tomorrow.”

Nick didn’t speak until he was alone with Kody and Caleb. “Is there really no way to do some of the voodoo whodoo mojo things you two do to find out who was behind it?”

Caleb snorted. “Nice rhyme there, Dr. Suess. And sorry. There’s nothing I have to trace it.”

Kody dittoed Caleb’s sympathy and his comment.

Nick checked his watch. “Fine. I need to head over to Kyrian’s for work anyway.”

Caleb retrieved his backpack. “I’ll walk you over.”

Nick hated the thought of being walked home like he was incompetent. “Not your prom date, Cay. Don’t want to be, neither.”

“Have no fear. You’re too hairy for my tastes, Gautier. And no offense, you’re not pretty or sexy enough to change them.”

Nick gaped. “Now that was just hurtful and mean. Why you want to hurt me in my tender place like that, cher? Don’t let this calm exterior fool you. I got feelings, too.”

Kody laughed at them. “I swear, there are times when it seems you two are the ones dating, and I feel like the third wheel.”

“Ah, baby,” Nick said with a grin. “You know better. You’re the only girl for me. Caleb is no competition whatsoever for you.”

Caleb shoved Nick’s backpack at him. “Get out of here before I hurt you.”

Laughing, Nick opened the door that led to the back hallway, then froze as he saw a small group of students gathered around graffiti someone had painted across several lockers.

Spencer Sexton is gay! If that wasn’t bad enough, there were photos of Spencer necking with another guy taped all around the words.

What the …

“Students!” Mr. Head snapped as he came rushing toward them. “Get out of here. Now! Disperse!”

As Nick left the building, Spencer grabbed him and hauled him to the side, away from the cameras and any possible faculty sightings. Even though he was only fifteen, Spencer was already over six feet tall, with enough muscle on his body that most people thought he was a lot older.

Caleb started to follow after them, but Nick motioned to him that it was all right. He could handle Spencer without help, and he had a pretty good idea what Spencer wanted with him. And the last thing Spencer would want for this was an audience.

“Who did you tell?” Spencer growled in his ear.

“Nobody.”

He glared at Nick. “You’re the only one who knows about me, Gautier.” Something Nick had discovered purely by accident one night when he’d stumbled across Spencer on a date with another guy in the back row of the almost empty movie theater.

“I told you I’d take it to my grave, Spencer, and I meant it. I haven’t breathed a word of it to anyone. Ever. Not even in my sleep. Are you sure your boyfriend didn’t spill it?”

He saw the doubt in Spencer’s eyes. But he didn’t know if that was for him or the boyfriend.

“On my life, Spence, I wouldn’t do this to you. I wouldn’t. I know what it’s like to be picked on for things you can’t help. I’m not about to do that to someone else.”

Spencer finally let go of him. He raked a trembling hand through his hair. The anguish in his eyes made Nick feel for him. “Those photos aren’t me. Where did they get them?”

“I don’t know.” Nick glanced over to Kody and Caleb who were close enough to watch them, but not enough to overhear their conversation. “Someone’s trying to mess with people’s lives for some reason. We know what they did to Brynna is a lie. Maybe that’s what they’re doing to you, too. Maybe they have no idea that you’re really gay.” But those rumors had been circling about Spencer since grade school. While everyone pretty much suspected the truth, no one had proof of it. Spencer even had a girlfriend he’d been ‘dating’ for over a year now. The last thing Spencer wanted was to be bullied or attacked for being different.

Nick couldn’t blame him for that and he definitely wouldn’t judge him for it, either.

Caleb and Kody approached them slowly.

“You okay, Spencer?” Kody asked.

His eyes watering, Spencer shook his head. “No. I feel like I’ve been publicly violated. But I’m going to find out who did this, and when I do…” He turned his steely gaze to Nick. “You’ll be real glad you’re not them.”

“Already am.”

“Sexton!” Mr. Head shouted from the door. “I need you here, immediately.”

Sighing, Spencer headed over.

Nick jumped as his phone went off again. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw a new text message from an unknown number.

Want more dirt on our classmates? Visit my site: theothersideofStRichards.com

“Got you, you worthless pig-dog.” Nick actually smiled.

Kody frowned. “Got who?”

Nick held his phone up in triumph. “Whoever is doing this just made the mistake of texting me with their stupidity. I’m going to Bubba’s. Y’all coming?”

Kody inclined her head. “Right behind you.”

“You lead.”

Gripping his phone, Nick walked the few blocks over to Royal Street where Bubba’s store, The Triple B, was located. The only combination gun and computer store in the world—that Nick knew about anyway—it had the largest selection of guns and computers in the state of Louisiana. Which said it all about the owner. Bubba was a different breed, unlike anyone Nick had ever known. He danced to his own tune and didn’t care who saw him do it, either.

Bubba was also a walking enigma. Most people dismissed him as a total rube, but that would be like trying to define the ocean as simply wet. While Bubba did have a thick Tennessee mountain drawl, he’d graduated with honors at the top of his class from MIT. He had several Ph.D.s, including a doctor of science degree in theoretical nuclear and particle physics. Nick didn’t even know for sure what that was, other than impressive.

The man also knew more about horror movies than anyone with a real life should. In fact, Bubba was forever wearing a black horror T-shirt of some kind, and it was usually accompanied by a red flannel shirt. Even in the summer heat.

Though to be fair to Bubba, the server farm Bubba ran at The Triple B had to be kept around fifty degrees year round. And since that was where Bubba spent much of his day, Nick could understand wanting something a little warmer than a T-shirt.

Still, that was why the good Lord had given them hoodies. Too bad Bubba couldn’t find that section of a clothing store.

But as Nick entered, he drew up short as he caught sight of Bubba behind the glass counter in an expensive black suit with a blue dress shirt and blue striped tie. Even more shocking, Bubba had on a pair of glasses, and his thick beard had turned into a fashionable goatee

Holy hand grenades. The man almost looked normal. He was still humongously tall with an aura of I’ll-kick-your-butt-if-you-laugh-at-me, but …

Please, don’t tell me you finally blew up Mark …

“Someone die?” Nick asked.

Bubba gave him a droll stare. “I’m about to leave to pick my mama up from the airport, and I know she’s going to want to stop by church as soon as we get into town, so that she can thank God she didn’t crash.”

That only confused Nick more. “I’ve seen you in church … a lot … and you’ve never been dressed like that before.”

“That’s ’cause my mama wasn’t there. If I went into a church in jeans with her, she’d beat me senseless. The woman still won’t wear pants to Mass. She says it’s disrespectful to the priest and to God.” He held his hand up. “Don’t ask. I’ve tried talking sense into her, but she don’t listen to me.”

Nick was baffled by how anyone could cow the mighty Bubba of all people. The man was epic. Larger than life. Most of all … “Yeah, but you’re old.”

Bubba arched a brow at him as if he was offended by Nick’s words. “I’m not that old. I’ve barely cracked past thirty. And in mama years, it don’t matter, boy. Hell, she still cuts my meat up for me at Thanksgiving before she gives me my plate. I’m lucky she’s not still spooning me Gerber in a high chair.”

Caleb and Nick laughed at the ludicrous image.

Kody made a sound of irritation. “Well, I think it’s sweet.”

Bubba inclined his head respectfully to her. “Thank you, Miss Kody. Now what can I do for y’all?”

Nick stepped forward to hand Bubba his phone. “There’s someone messing with the kids at school, posting awful stuff about them, and whoever it is, just texted me this Web site. Can you help us find out who it is?”

Bubba grumbled in the back of his throat. “I would. You know that. But I can’t be late to pick up Mama. She’ll end up adopting half the staff at the airport if I leave her there unattended. Mark!” He shouted out so unexpectedly that all three of them jumped.

A few seconds later, Fingerman snatched at the curtain that separated the front of the store from the back room. In his midtwenties, Mark had shaggy brown hair and bright green eyes. Dressed in a baggy tan T-shirt that had seen better days, he looked like he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days.

Ah, that was where Bubba’s beard had gone.

Mark had been working for Bubba off and on for years. But more than that, the two of them were best friends, and Mark was every bit as crazy as Bubba.

Wait, on second thought, he was even crazier. Bubba didn’t make a habit of dousing himself in duck urine to ward off zombies. Thank goodness Mark wasn’t wearing it today, ‘cause that stuff stank with a big capital S.

“Dang it all, Bubba, how many times do I have to tell you not to do that? You scare the crap out of me with that booming voice of yours. It carries and breaks the sound barrier. One day, you’re gonna cause me to leave a pile of it in the back room and I’m not gonna clean it up. You cause it. You clean it.”

Bubba mumbled something that sounded like Latin.

“I’m not a wimp,” Mark said defensively. “And I’m not your dog. Don’t bark at me, boy. One day you gonna make me bite.”

Nick cleared his throat to remind the two of them that they weren’t alone. “Uh, guys? My phone? Malicious lunatic at school? Your mom at the airport?”

That snapped Bubba’s attention to where Nick wanted it. He handed the phone to Mark. “I need you to trace the IP on this and find out who registered the domain.”

“Yeah, all right. I can do that.”

“I know you can. That’s why I called you out here.”

Mark clenched his jaw in a way that let Nick know he was having to force himself not to comment. After a few seconds, he gestured toward the door. “Don’t you need to go get your mama? It’s a long trip from Bucksnort to New Orleans, and God love the good-hearted woman, she never met a stranger a day in her life.”

“I’m going.” Bubba opened his jacket to check the pocket and make sure he had his wallet. He patted his pants, then frowned.

Mark picked his keys up from the counter and held them out.

With a sigh of relief, Bubba took them from him. “Thanks.”

Inclining his head, Mark didn’t say anything until after Bubba had left the store. “I swear, I love his mama, but I hate whenever she comes to town. That boy gets so beside himself he can’t think straight.”

Caleb snorted. “I didn’t know he ever thought straight.”

Mark laughed at that. “True. All right, y’all, come on back and I’ll trace this for you.”

They walked around the counter and through the curtains. Kody took a seat at the long, tall worktable that was strewn with various computer parts. When she reached for a motherboard, Mark grabbed her hand. “Make sure you ground yourself before you touch anything.” He stressed the last word.

She frowned. “Ground myself? I’m not floating, am I?” From anyone else that would sound like a joke, but since Kody could actually fly …

Mark placed her hand on the metal computer casing. “Static electricity is your worst enemy in computers, and when pumping gas.”

Caleb and Nick exchanged an amused grin. Knowing Mark, this had to be good. After all, Mark was the only one Nick knew who could set fire to his jeep by simply answering his cell phone.

“Pumping gas?” Nick asked.

“Yeah, I once blew up my uncle’s motorcycle by accident and set fire to my favorite pair of jeans. ’Course it’d been even more wrong had I done it intentionally. Anyway, I slid off the vinyl seat and touched the nozzle without grounding myself. The spark ignited the fumes and that was all she wrote. You’d be amazed how many people a year blow themselves up. Believe it or not, I’m not the only one … Not exactly sure how that makes me feel, though. Glad I’m not the only one, but still…”

Mark sat down at the bench and pulled the keyboard toward him. “Did you know there’s been over two hundred reported cases of people who ignited themselves and their cars because they didn’t ground themselves before touching the nozzle? It’s true. Most are women who started pumping, gas, that is, then got back in the car, and when they got back out to touch the nozzle, ka-boom. I have to say that I am not proud to be one of the very few men who have done it. Kind of embarrassing, but if I can keep one of you from learning my lesson, then it’s worth a little humiliation. I’m just glad Bubba wasn’t there to see it and mock me for it.”

Nick laughed. “That’s what I love most about you, Mark.”

“What?”

“Your whole purpose in life seems to be to serve as a warning to others on what not to do.”

Laughing with him, Mark started typing. “Sad, but true, kid. Sad, but true. Now let’s see what we can find.”

They waited quietly while Mark worked.

Nick’s phone started ringing. Without missing a single keystroke, Mark handed it to him. Now that was impressive. But then, Mark was the master of one hand speed typing. Something he’d perfected while keeping one hand buried in a potato chip bag while he worked or surfed.

Pressing the answer button, Nick held his phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“Are you dead?”

Nick hesitated at the sound of Kyrian’s deeply accented voice. “No, but that tone sounds like my death might be imminent. Why?”

“You know what time it is?”

Nick glanced to the clock on the wall and cringed. It was after five. “Sorry, boss. I got distracted.”

“Yeah, and you didn’t call your mother and she called me worried sick about you.”

Nick scowled. “Why didn’t she call me?”

“She tried and you didn’t answer. Then she tried again and it rolled straight to voicemail. She now thinks you’re dead in a ditch.”

Great. Detention and grounded. Just what he wanted. “I’ll give her a call.”

“And…”

“I should have called you and told you I’d be late to work. I’m really sorry, Kyrian. I am. I had something come up at school, and I’ve been working on it since I got out of detention. I just let time get away from me. It won’t happen again, boss, I promise.”

“It’s fine, Nick. But only because this isn’t a habit with you. That’s why we got worried. You’re always so good about keeping in touch that when we lose you, it rattles us.”

Nick cringed at that. He couldn’t stand to upset his mother. “Sorry. I’ll head on over and—”

“Don’t worry about it. I don’t have anything that can’t wait until tomorrow. Go see your mom so that she’ll know you’re all right.”

“Okay. You sure you don’t need me to do anything?”

“Did you check with Kell about the status on my replacement sword?”

“I did, and I tracked it down. It’ll be delivered tomorrow morning. They accidentally sent it to Cleveland. I also dropped off your dry cleaning on my way to school, and will pick it up tomorrow afternoon. During lunch, I scheduled an appointment for the Lamborghini to be serviced on Friday, and I got Mr. Poitiers to agree to pick it up and drop it off for you. I e-mailed Acheron about Halloween, and he said to tell you and Talon that there will be two new additions moved in for it. Someone named Gallagher and Wulf. They’ll arrive on the twenty-eighth. I’ve already e-mailed Talon about it and was going to tell you when I got over there. Lastly, I called Liza and she will have Rosa’s birthday present from you wrapped and ready. I’ll grab it on my way home and make sure Rosa gets it tomorrow along with the card you have in your top desk drawer. Anything else you need?”

“No. You are on top of it and I appreciate it. I really am impressed with you, Nick. You’re a good kid.”

Nick’s face ignited. He wasn’t used to praise from anyone and it always embarrassed him to get it. “I’m just trying to do my job, boss.” But it was more than that. Nick owed Kyrian a debt that couldn’t be repaid. The man had saved his life after Nick had been shot last year. Not only had Kyrian kept Nick’s friend from killing him, he’d taken Nick to the hospital and paid for them to patch him up.

It was that debt that had led to Nick working part time for him so that he could repay the hospital bill.

“All right,” Kyrian said kindly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay. If you need anything else…”

Kyrian laughed. “Bye, Nick.”

Nick hung up, then dialed his mother at work. Since she didn’t have a cell phone of her own, he had to call in on the restaurant line.

“Sanctuary on Ursulines. How may I help you?”

He’d know that sweet drawl that was tinged with a hint of a French accent anywhere. It belonged to a tall, beautiful blonde woman who was all legs and all curves. “Hi, Aimee, it’s Nick. Can my mom come to the phone for a second?”

“Boy…” she stressed that word in a way that made him inwardly cringe, “your hide is so tanned, I could make shoe leather out of it. Hang on and let me get her.”

Nick dreaded what he knew was coming.

Sure enough, he heard the tears in his mother’s voice. “Nicky, baby? Are you okay?”

I’m such a jerk. How could he have forgotten to call her? She’d been bad to worry about him before he’d been shot. Since that night when he’d almost died, she was barely one step short of insane when it came to his well-being.

“I am so sorry, Mom. I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“But are you all right?”

“I am.”

Those two words cured the tears. It also sent her reeling into a realm of anger that instantly knotted his gut. “How dare you scare me like that! Have you any idea how worried I’ve been? Why didn’t you answer your phone? Where have you been? Why aren’t you at work? I swear, if you’re hanging out with those hoodlums again, I’m going to ground you until you’re in an old-age home. You hear me? Why aren’t you answering me, Nick, huh?”

“’Cause you always yell at me when I interrupt you.”

“Are you sassing me?”

“No, ma’am.” That would be all kinds of stupid, especially in her current mood.

She let out a sound of ultimate peeve. “You’re grounded for a week. You hear me?”

“But Mom—”

“Don’t you ‘but Mom’ me. I’ve had it with your irresponsibility. And you think you’re mature enough to drive and date? Really, Nick? You can’t even remember to dial a phone or take trash to the curb or lower a toilet seat or pick your underwear up from the floor, and you think you can handle operating a car in New Orleans’ traffic? I don’t think so. You’ve got a long way to go to become the man you think you are. You hear me?”

He really, really hated those last three words that she said every other sentence whenever she yelled at him. He clenched his teeth to keep from arguing.

“Now I have to go and get back to work. I don’t know where you are, but you have fifteen minutes to walk through the doors here. If you’re further away than that, you’re grounded for a month. You hear me?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Clock’s ticking, buster. You better run for it.” She hung up on him.

Sighing, Nick looked at Kody, then Caleb.

“We heard,” Mark said. “Pretty sure the folks in Slidell heard, too. You better get on.”

“I’m going.” He held his phone out to Mark.

“I got everything I need. I’ll call you once I get it all tracked.”

“All right. Thanks.”

“You want us to come with you?” Kody asked.

Yeah, that was all he needed. There was no telling what insanity his mom would come up with if she knew he’d been with Kody when he should have been at work. “No, she already thinks I’m goofing off instead of working. If she sees you guys, she’ll really be hot. I’ll catch y’all later.”

Nick grabbed his backpack from the floor, shrugged it over his sore shoulder, and ran up the street toward Ursulines as fast as he could. Luckily Bubba’s store wasn’t all that far from Sanctuary. But he didn’t want to push it. The sooner he got there, the happier his mom would be.

He didn’t slow down until he reached the doors of the three-story red brick building that housed one of the most famed bar and grills in New Orleans. There was a huge bear of a man at the door to greet all newcomers. Most wouldn’t think anything about it, but Nick knew whoever was on door duty was there to assess the threat level of any preternatural clientele entering the building. And for reasons no one would explain, the doorman always had them cue Sweet Home Alabama on the jukebox whenever Acheron showed up. There was much about Sanctuary Nick still had to learn.

With long blond hair and beefy arms, the doorman was fierce and intimidating. Until he recognized Nick and gave him a wide, cocky grin.

Nick let out a relieved breath. Oh good, it was Dev. One of four identical quadruplets, Dev was always easygoing and fun to be around. While Dev’s brothers, Cherif and Quinn, were nice enough, Remi was the one who scared him. If Nick had to face his mom in this mood, he was glad Dev was on duty. He was the one being who might keep his mom from killing him.

“Hey, Dev.”

Dev clicked his tongue. “Nicky, Nicky, Nicky … I don’t envy you, mon fils. Your mama gonna take a bite of your hide and mount it to the wall.”

If the knot in his stomach drew any tighter, he’d have diamonds in the toilet later. “Yeah, I don’t envy me either. Want to trade?”

Dev laughed. “You’d think that, but no. Believe me, you don’t want to see my maman when she’s angry. You, Maman likes. Me, not so much most days. Trust me, she has a bear of a temper.”

Nick snorted at Dev’s play on words. Dev was poking fun at the fact that he and his family were shapeshifters whose alternate form was that of a bear.

Shaking his head at Dev, he went inside. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the dark interior.

Dev’s sister Aimee was at the bar, picking up drinks.

“Now where were you, mister?”

He jumped at his mom’s angry tone in his ear. How had she snuck up on him? Dang, he could rent her out as a ninja.

“At school. I had detention.” Go ahead, Nick. Throw gas on that fire.…

“For what?” she growled.

“Being late.”

She narrowed her blue eyes at him. “And why were you late?”

“Stone slammed me—”

She flung out her hand to signal him to shut-up. “Don’t even start that. You take responsibility for your own actions. You hear me? Now why were you late?”

He ground his teeth as he forced himself not to show any kind of anger toward her. But he was really getting tired of being treated like an idiot who couldn’t tie his own shoes. “I didn’t get to class until after the bell rang.” There, that was the truth.

“Nicholas Ambrosius … do not test me. Not today. I am not in the mood for your crap.”

You hear me, he mocked silently in his head. ‘Cause he wasn’t quite stupid enough to do that out loud.

He forced himself to speak in a calm tone. “I don’t know what to tell you, Mom. I screwed up by not calling and I’m sorry. It was a bad day at school and two of my friends are under fire. I was just trying to help them, and I wasn’t thinking about myself.”

She frowned. “What do you mean ‘under fire’?”

“Someone started attacking them publicly and posting awful pictures of them and insults for everyone to see.”

Anger darkened her gaze as he struck the nerves in her that Grim had mentioned. The one thing his mother couldn’t stand was for anyone to gossip or speculate about someone else. She’d had too much of that done to her when she’d ended up pregnant with him. “Who?”

“You don’t know Spencer, but Brynna was the other one they attacked.”

“Addams?” she asked incredulously.

He nodded.

Now his mother looked as sick as he’d felt. “Why would anyone attack Brynna?”

“I don’t know. That’s what I was trying to find out. She ran out of school crying earlier, and I just wanted to help her, you know?”

Finally his mother hugged him. “All right, Boo. You’re forgiven, but still grounded.”

Of course he was.

She gently pushed him toward the small booth where he normally did his homework. “I’ll bring you some food. You get your homework started.”

Not happy about this at all, Nick obeyed before he got into more trouble. He sat down and started rummaging through his backpack. As he pulled out his math book, he saw that shadow flit across the wall again.

Turning his head, he tried to pinpoint it. But it was gone so fast, he wasn’t sure he could trust his eyesight in the dim room.

Suddenly, his grimoire heated up beneath his hand. With a hiss, he snatched his hand back. He blew cool air across his palm to help with the stinging while he opened the book with his other hand.

“All right, what are you trying to tell me?” He pulled out his pendulum and pricked his fingertip. Reciting the spell to activate it, he squeezed three drops of blood onto the page. For a second, it didn’t react. Then the blood rolled across the page until it formed words.

Horror. Terror. Nightmares. Dreams.

Some things are never what they seem.

Discord. Strife. Shame and Pain.

Into all lives, they will rain.

But none of them will cut so deep …

As the enemy you did not see.

He was still trying to decipher it when his gaze was drawn to the napkin holder. There in the shiny metal, he glimpsed the future to come.

It was Brynna, and she was hanging by her neck in her bedroom.