"I can seduce women?" Ash said, a hopeful look in his eyes.
Nyte's mouth dropped open, and I could practically see his head filling with the possibilities.
Meghan shook her head. "No, I don't think so. You would have shown signs of it before now. Aside from the obvious strength you've gained, I can't be sure until I run more tests."
Ash backed away a step. "Tests?"
Bella grinned, holding her wand in a tight grip. "Oh yes. And anal probes."
Nyte and Ash went white as ghosts.
Meghan rolled her eyes. "Really now, Bella. Why would I use something small as my wand for anal probes? I use my staff for that."
I wanted to laugh and enjoy the feel-good moment, but I couldn't. Felicia weighed far too heavily on my mind. I pulled Meghan aside. "The ring. It didn't light up around Barclay or Maximus." Her grin vanished. "But who else could it be?"
I looked up and saw Adam coming our way, his face daring to express hope. My heart sank at the thought of dashing his fragile hope to pieces. A buzzing in my pocket startled me from my thoughts. I pulled out my phone and saw Unknown Caller flashing on my screen. I answered.
"I see you're staying on task, Justin," said a very creepy, very familiar voice.
My body went rigid. I held up a finger to the others, and walked closer to the booming speakers. "What do you want, Underborn?"
"First, congratulations. Yet again, you've proven yourself quite worthy, young man." I could hear the smile in his voice.
"Get to the point. Elyssa told me all about your offer to her, and how you backed out."
"Yes, well, I gave her certain conditions, and she couldn't meet them in time. I'm sure you understand."
"And you dragged Katie into this mess?" I huffed out a disgusted breath. "Used her feelings for Ash and Nyte to get her to spy for you? And then you didn't even lift a finger to help. You're a slimeball. A cowardly piece of sh—"
"Now, now, Justin," he said, the amusement gone from his voice, replaced by a calm, cold tone. "Perhaps you've forgotten the key."
"You didn't mean for Elyssa to get that," I replied. "And when she did, you lied about it."
"Actually, I knew if I gave it to her, she would be suspicious of the gift."
"Damned right."
"But my reasons were not entirely selfless, I must admit." Underborn chuckled, as if he'd just cracked an amusing joke. "You see, the Relics of Juranthemon sense each other. They're drawn to each other. But they also have minds of their own, it seems. Though I knew another of the relics was near, the key refused to draw me any closer. I suspected you had found another Relic. The one I have been hoping to find for years. You have the map."
I almost laughed into the phone, and pulled a "Nyah nyah, you can't have it" on him, but miraculously stopped myself. "The only map I have is from Triple-A. I know which map you're talking about, though. Elyssa told me all about your little conversation." It occurred to me that Underborn hadn't just made idle conversation about the map. He had known it might be nearby thanks to the key. That bastard did everything for a reason.
Underborn sighed. "Justin, I know you have the map. And even if you have another of the relics instead, they will lead me to the map eventually." He paused. "I would like the ey back and the map."
This time, I did laugh. "Screw you. You gave Elyssa the key. She's keeping it."
"I propose an exchange."
"Can I have my life back?" I asked. "Or how about a scholarship to MIT?"
He chuckled. "The second could easily be arranged, though I doubt you'd have much time to enjoy a higher education. No, I have something far more valuable, but time is ticking away before the value of this gift expires."
"Did you buy me an ice cream cone?"
"As usual, young man, I have something far more valuable. Information. But this time, I went a step further. The item my information would have led you to is here. If you meet me in five minutes, I will give you that which you seek."
"And what is that?"
"Felicia's sire."
Chapter 41
My grip tightened around my arcphone. Thankfully, it was a lot stronger than the nom version, and didn't crack under the strain. "Who is he?"
"The correct pronoun would be 'she', Mr. Slade. I will send you a text with a location. You have five minutes to reach the location with the map and key. If I see anyone besides you and your girlfriend, I will vanish. Your friend Felicia will die. Do we have a deal?"
I wanted to roar with frustration.
Instead, I pulled the map and key from my pockets. Stared at them. Using them, figuring out how to make them function together could give us a huge upper hand. We could strike at the enemy from any direction. Go straight where they lived and stop them in their tracks. Each one was priceless. Together, they were even more priceless-er. I glanced over at Adam. Saw the pain in his face as Meghan spoke with him. Saw the hopelessness take the life right out of his expression.
I could just keep the map. Never tell him about this conversation with Underborn. Dammit, we needed every advantage in this conflict, war, whatever the hell you wanted to call it. Giving up the relics meant doing things the hard way. But saving a life—saving Felicia—that would be doing things the right way.
"Deal," I said, my voice rough with anger.
I hung up and went over to Elyssa.
Adam, his eyes red, put a hand on my shoulder. "Thanks, Justin." He choked up. "You—you put it all on the line for Felicia, and I'll never forget that." He turned and punched a divider. Dropped his forehead against it. "If I had listened to her. Talked to her, I might actually know who her sire is. I could have saved her. Now it's—it's over."
I gripped his shoulder. "Don't give up just yet. I might have a lead."
He spun, the barest flicker of hope in his eyes. "What is it?"
My phone buzzed with Underborn's text. "No time to explain but I have an option. A deal. Wait here, I'll be right back." I looked at Meghan. "Where are Felicia and Nightliss?"
"At The Ranch. I had them relocated.
"Meet me there. Make sure Nightliss is awake and ready to go."
Meghan gave me a curt nod. "I'll be ready." She handed me a vial. "Just hold this against the sire's skin and it'll draw blood."
"I'm going with you, Justin," Adam said.
I shook my head. "Can't. If anyone but Elyssa is with me, deal's off. Understand?"
He looked like he had plenty more to say, but backed off. Nodded. "I'll be waiting with Meghan." The look of hope in his eyes made me hurt inside.
I looked at the text on my phone. Set my GPS to give me walking directions. Grabbed Elyssa's hand. "Let's go."
We blurred out the back door. The time on my GPS dropped from a one-hour walk to four minutes at the speed we were going. I was going to need every second.
The address was an abandoned building once owned by a power utility. A train rumbled past on tracks less than a hundred feet away. A row of houses lined the curving road on the other side while a chain-link fence with numerous holes provided a weak defense to the red brick structure.
We sped inside. Underborn stood in the middle. Alone.
"The relics, please," he said, holding out a hand.
"Felicia's sire first," I growled.
Underborn paused. "Phissilinth informs me you have come alone." He smiled and my blood went cold. "It's heartening to see you adhering to the terms of our agreement." He motioned with his fingers and a masked man shoved a hooded figure from behind a column.
I pulled out the ring and noticed a dim ember burning inside the gem. As I stepped closer, it brightened until the entire gem glowed.
"She's drugged," Underborn said. "And she won't offer any resistance."
"How did you know we needed Felicia's sire?" I said. "Did Michael tell you?"
He smiled. "No. Naturally, he is not my only resource."
"Then—"
His hand went up in a halting gesture. "I will say nothing more on the matter. I suggest you give me the relics, and return with your prize."
I pulled the map and key from my pockets. The pleasure on his face at seeing the map made me want to punch it right off his stupid head. My leg throbbed as the anger simmered in my blood. An icy stab of fear at having an episode right now drove the anger back into its cave.
Underborn took the relics, and motioned with his head toward me. His helper guided the wobbling form to me. I pulled Meghan's vial from my pocket and pressed it to a bare patch on the captive's arm. Blood welled inside, filling it. I handed it to Elyssa.
"Get back to The Ranch. I'll be right behind you, but don't wait up."
"No need to walk," Underborn said, walking through the door and outside. He pulled a dark green tarp off a humped shape to reveal a red Mini Cooper beneath. "I thought it only polite to provide transportation since—" he check his watch, "—time is ticking." He tossed me the keys. "I recommend, however, you not use it as a daily driver since the previous owner might report it stolen come morning."
A slew of nasty replies popped into my head. "You realize by taking away the relics you're making things a lot harder on me. They would have tipped the balance in our favor."
"Indeed." He rolled his shoulders in a shrug. "You should go. Tick, tock. Tick, tock."
Elyssa climbed into the driver seat. I shoved the captive into the back, took shotgun.
As we sped to The Ranch, my mind spun in an endless circle of reasoning. Why was Underborn doing this? Did he want the relics for his own personal power? Why had he even "helped" me before—if marking my father for death to put me through an elaborate test was considered helping. He seemed to give with one hand and take with the other. He wasn't working for the other side, or I felt quite certain I would be dead or in captivity. He definitely wasn't working for our side either—whatever side that was.
