Passionate Flames, page 6
Whoa. How could she put a spell on metal cables? No one he’d ever known could have done that other than maybe the Four Sisters of Fate. Now however wasn’t the time to dig into her abilities.
Using his considerable strength, Thane pried opened the doors and looked down. “The elevator is between the first and second floor.” He turned to Griffin. “Come on. We need to help whoever is in there. Angelique, stay here.”
“Hell no.”
He didn’t have time to argue. She was one stubborn woman. “Fine, but we need to hurry.”
The three of them took the stairs instead of using the remaining elevator. This had to be sabotage. Their maintenance of the SinCas building was impeccable. He knew because he was in charge!
When they reached the first floor, he and Griffin opened those elevator doors.
“Oh, thank goodness. I thought I was going to crash,” Greer said in a voice that sounded eerily calm. Her composed attitude didn’t surprise Thane even though she’d experienced a harrowing event.
Griffin’s sister was slumped on the floor with her skirt hiked high on her thigh with one of her red shoes on the other side of the elevator. After the abrupt stop, she’d be bruised for sure.
Griffin reached in. “Give me your hands, and we’ll help you out.”
Greer did as she was asked, and a second later, she was on her feet, straightening her beige skirt. “Thank you.” She looked between Thane and Griffin. “How did that happen?”
Griffin retrieved her other shoe and handed it to her.
Angelique grabbed Thane’s arm. “He’s here.”
Thane stiffened. “Fuck. Where?”
The front door they’d come through slammed shut. “He’s gone,” she said with a determined look in her eye that implied Angelique was ready to go after him right now.
“How did he get inside in the first place? It doesn’t matter. He did. I need to find him,” Thane said.
“No! You’re no match for him.” Angelique was nearly shouting.
“I’ll help,” Griffin said. “We can take him down, but we’ll have to hurry before he gets away.”
Thane’s shoulders sagged as reality struck. “Except we won’t find him.” He turned to Angelique. “Will we?”
She shook her head. “He could be sitting across the street sipping coffee, laughing at us right now. We have no idea what he looks like.”
“If we check the security cameras, we’ll be able to see him, assuming he didn’t wear a mask,” Griffin said.”
Thane placed a hand on Griffin’s shoulders. “The hunt will have to wait. Even if we see his face on camera, he might have changed it by now.”
“Are you kidding me?” Griffin asked. His usually calm cousin appeared agitated and with good cause. The Guardians were born to seek justice.
“I wish I were. Let’s head to the conference room. We’ll try to explain everything.” Thane turned to Greer. “Are you okay to join us?”
She straightened. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
When Angelique walked into the conference room, the place was packed, but she only recognized about half of them. Thane’s hand to her back comforted her as he guided her over to the large wooden table where four seats remained vacant.
Thane pulled out a chair for her. “Sit here.”
He dragged out the chair next to hers but remained standing behind it. Griffin and Greer sat at the far end. Finn, Declan, Nessa, and Kaleena were also there. The other four people she didn’t know. Thane introduced her to each of them.
“I asked Anderson here because there’s been a homicide,” Thane said.
“You said you know who did this? What can you tell us?” Anderson asked.
For the next fifteen minutes, Thane gave an accurate detailing of how Denalt had been infected with a dark entity and why he’d died. “We don’t completely understand what we are up against, but only Angelique seems to be able to identify him.”
“I know from experience that you are a very powerful white lighter,” Declan said, “but the way Thane describes this Mange guy, he seems similar to you—other than the fact you do good and he does bad.”
Angelique pushed back her chair and stood. “Declan is right. I’m different from your traditional white lighter. I’m a white entity.” Her hands shook as she described where she came from and why.
“Can you turn into white light at will?” Declan asked. “Because that’s what it felt like when you were inside me.”
“No. Fate decides when I can do that. Chelsea and her baby were in danger, which was why Fate allowed me to intervene.”
“So you’re here to protect my baby and Chelsea’s?” Kaleena asked with her eyes wide.
“Yes.”
A ton of questions followed until Thane intervened. “Let’s not get sidetracked. We had an incident just moments ago.” He explained about the elevator sabotage.
“I thought I was going to be severely injured since the elevator was too small for me to shift,” Greer said, her voice suddenly shaking. “While a fall of thirty feet wouldn’t have killed me, I wouldn’t have relished the pain of a few broken bones.”
“Are you thinking it was a warning of some sort?” Jamison Sinclair said as he moved his gaze between Thane and Angelique.
She held up her hand, indicating she would field that question. “Mange—my name for this dark entity—has a hidden agenda. Even if we look at the security tapes and find this man, if you attempt to capture him, Mange will exit that body and leave the man dead, only to enter another.”
“Fuck,” Anderson said. He was glancing down at his phone. He looked up. “Sorry. That was the station. Seems you are right. Apparently, another man with the same burn mark in his chest was found two blocks from here.”
Noise from the group erupted. Finally, Thane had to pound the table for quiet. “I don’t want anyone to think they can hunt this guy down and kill him.”
“We’ll travel in pairs,” Griffin said.
Angelique wasn’t getting across to them. “The only way to kill him is to infuse him with my white light. The problem is that I can’t be sure I possess enough to totally destroy him.”
“What if I add mine to yours?” Kaleena asked.
Thane’s sister was so sweet. “Not on your life. That might be exactly what Mange hopes will happen. My goal is to protect your child, and I won’t jeopardize your baby for any reason.”
Chapter Seven
Given the timing of the attack, Thane was pretty sure Mange was behind it all. What he couldn’t figure out was why attack an elevator? Had Mange meant to mess with the one Thane, Angelique, and Griffin had been in? Thane could have chosen the other elevator just as easily.
Shit. He had no idea what a fall of that kind could have done to Angelique if she’d been the one inside. She didn’t possess the ability to shift and heal herself. His gut twisted at the ramification of the near catastrophe.
“I want to see the body for myself,” Thane announced.
“Why?” Angelique asked.
“I want to make sure Mange caused this man’s death.”
Anderson waved his phone. “My coroner claims the wounds looked similar.” He stood and shoved his phone in his pocket.
“I’d still like to see him.” Thane pushed back his chair.
Angelique followed suit. “I’m coming with you.”
He wanted her by his side at all times—for both of their safety. “Good idea. Griff? You want to join us?” While his cousin wasn’t a white lighter, he possessed other talents that would be useful. Between the three of them, along with several members of the police department, Mange should keep his distance.
“Sure.”
When the four of them arrived at the scene, the body was covered with a white sheet. Anderson jogged toward the coroner and asked to see the corpse. Thane followed right behind but not before pleading with Angelique to stay put. For once she agreed.
When the coroner pulled back the sheet, the evidence was irrefutable, except this time, instead of exiting from the middle of his chest, the entity left through the man’s face. Thane’s gut churned at the horror. The poor soul. Now more than ever, Thane was truly scared for the people of Edendale.
“Do you have an identification?” Anderson asked the coroner.
The doctor shook his head. “No. He had no wallet or any form of identification on him. We took prints, but it will take a while to process them.”
Anderson motioned Thane off to the side. “This is worse than I could ever imagine.”
“I know.” If Angelique ever went against this guy, Thane feared he might destroy her. “So far, both victims have been human. Not that I’m suggesting a dragon shifter could take him down, but I’m thinking he’d have some kind of advantage.” At least Thane wanted to believe that was true.
“Let’s hope,” his cousin said.
After asking a few other questions, Thane returned to Angelique. “I think I should take you back. It’s been a long day.”
“It was the entity’s doing, wasn’t it?”
“I’m afraid so.”
Griffin turned to Angelique. “Thanks for being so forthcoming about what you are. That took a lot of guts. We might have gone in blind against this entity if you hadn’t warned us. Some of us could have died while trying to take him down.”
“I’m happy to help. I’m not sure if any amount of warning would help the ordinary person.”
“Probably not.” Griffin turned to Thane. “I’m going to stop by Danita’s place. While her white light power is slowly returning after her experience with Sanditra, I want to warn her to be careful. No telling who this Mange will want to harm next.”
Angelique placed a hand on Griffin’s arm. “If it’s any consolation, I don’t think he wants to mess with white lighters. They can do him some harm.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
All during the drive back to Angelique’s house, she remained quiet. “You’re really worried, aren’t you?” Thane asked.
She twisted in her seat toward him. “Of course. I’m torn too. I’m the only one who can stop him, and yet I fear I may not be strong enough to end his existence. I’m really worried for everyone on Tarradon.”
Thane worked to keep his anger in check. “Isn’t there some trap we can set for him?”
“Like what? Have him walk into a field of explosives and blow him up? Or trap him at the bottom of a mine and collapse it?”
That was exactly what he was thinking. “Maybe.”
“I wish it were that simple. Mange would leave whatever body he was occupying and slide out of wherever he was trapped. Normal light might travel in straight lines, but our light can bend.”
She painted a dim picture. “Great.”
Thane pulled into her driveway. As much as he wanted to comfort her, Thane wanted to honor her wish for them to keep their distance for a while. Though after what just happened, he wasn’t sure he could.
He rushed to her side to help her out. They were halfway to her front door when she held out his hand to stop him.
“I sense something.” Her whole body shook.
“Get inside,” he commanded.
“You get inside.”
Thane couldn’t help but laugh, though he was well aware the situation was not funny in the least. Angelique was capable of a lot, but he’d die first before he let her tackle this dark entity alone.
A man emerged from the side of her house and smiled. “Well, well, Angelique. We meet again.”
Thane didn’t recognize him, but the unknown man could be a customer of hers.
She stepped forward, but Thane stopped her before she moved too close to him. “What do you want, Mange?”
Thane had to force his dragon not to attack. Timing was the key to taking him down.
“Mange? Is that my new name? How cute.”
Angelique wisely didn’t answer. “You need to leave,” Thane said, stepping in front of Angelique. “Now.”
The man scowled. “This is between Angelique and me.”
She puffed out her chest. “What do you want?”
“For you to stop interfering. Fate has given me a job to do.”
“And what job is that?” she asked.
The creepy man smiled. “Something you won’t like.”
“How do you expect me to stop doing something if you don’t tell me what it is?”
Thane had enough of this asshole. He shifted into his dragon form and shot upward, positive he could protect Angelique even from a height of fifty feet. Just as he was about to blow out a stream of fire, Mange also shifted into a dragon. Shit. While that came as a surprise since he hadn’t sensed the man was a shifter, it worked for him. After all, no one was a better fighter than Thane Sinclair.
Thane instantly went on the offensive, shooting higher, and then stopping without notice. Sure enough, Mange came after him. Fool. Thane swung his tail back and forth to gain momentum. Even though Mange was a dark entity, he wouldn’t be skilled in fighting like a dragon.
Once his enemy was close enough, Thane whipped his tail around Mange’s arms, preventing him from clawing out Thane’s heart. Mange struggled. To Thane’s surprise, Mange managed to free himself. Damn. He was a strong bugger. Mange shot out a rather weak blast of fire that Thane dodged. This monster’s life had to end.
Thane executed a quick maneuver to attack from the underside. As if Mange had the same idea, he flipped around, coming snout to snout with him. This was going to be a bit more challenging than Thane first thought.
Thane extended his claws and shot toward Mange. Before the dark entity could react, Thane dug his talons into the dragon’s chest. His attacker’s mouth opened and a pathetic puff of fire escaped. The dark entity’s wings fluttered as he tried to keep aloft but failed.
Not wanting to be taken down with him, Thane let go and joyfully watched as the limp dragon floated to the ground. Thrilled that he’d killed the biggest threat to Tarradon in a long time, he let out a burst of fire that was sure to impress Angelique.
When Thane dipped his head to return to the ground, his heart nearly stopped. The dragon was sprawled out on the ground. A human’s body had taken its place, indicating the dragon was dead. What nearly froze every muscle in his body was the sight of Angelique collapsed next to him.
The instant he landed, Thane shifted and rushed over to her. He dropped to his knees. “Angelique!”
When she didn’t respond, he scooped her up and pressed her warm body to his chest. Her heart was still beating, but her breathing came out so slowly he feared she would die. Only then did he notice that the man on the ground had a burned hole in his back. “Shit.”
With some effort, Thane scooped up her purse and rushed her to the front door. Holding Angelique in his arms, he worked to locate her door key. Once inside, he set her on the sofa and then rushed to pour her a glass of water. How he thought that would help he didn’t know, but it was all he could think of to do.
Thane placed the full glass on the coffee table and sat on the edge of the sofa. “Angelique, baby, can you hear me?”
He studied her mouth, her eyes, and her fingers for any signs of movement, but found none. Fearing the dark entity had entered her, he lifted her shirt. When he spotted no discoloration, he heaved a sigh. If the entity hadn’t taken over her, why wasn’t she waking up? His hand shook as he stroked her cheek. Her temperature felt normal to the touch, so what was wrong with her? “Angelique, sweetheart, open your eyes.”
Come, on, come on, he mentally urged. Damn it. The fight might have been a ploy by this entity to separate them.
His mind finally cleared. Declan was a healer. Thane bet his brother would know what to do. He yanked the phone from his pocket and dialed him.
“What did you find out? Was the dead man taken over by the dark entity?” Declan asked.
Thane forgot that he hadn’t spoken with him yet. “Yes, but that’s not why I’m calling. The dark entity hurt Angelique. We’re at her place. Can you help her?”
“I can go to her, but she’d be better off at the safe house.”
Shit. He hadn’t been thinking. “You’re right. I’ll fly her there now. Meet me at the mine.” Thane disconnected before his brother could answer.
If she needed something else to wear when she awoke, he’d come back for it. “Time to go, Angelique. We need to get you someplace safe.”
It took a bit of lifting and then setting her down, but eventually, Thane managed to take off with her in his grasp. Probably because of the stress, his heart was beating erratically by the time they arrived at the mine. He’d constantly searched the skies for someone who could be Mange in disguise but encountered no one. Never before had Thane met anything so vile.
Once he landed, he rushed inside with her to where Declan was waiting. “Tell me what happened,” his brother said.
As Thane carried Angelique into the bedroom where he would stay when he used the safe house, he explained how the dark entity had shifted into a dragon after Thane had. “The battle was swift and decisive. It probably lasted less than three minutes. I watched him plummet straight down to the ground after I’d managed to stab his heart with my talon.” Thane set her down on the bed.
“Did you see the dark entity attack Angelique?”
Guilt assaulted him. “No. I was congratulating myself for killing this evil force and didn’t think to watch Angelique. When the dragon limply sailed downward, I believed I’d vanquished him. In retrospect, the dark entity must have left the body before the shell of the dragon reached the hard ground.”
“Did you check her for any injuries?” Declan asked in his professional tone.
“Yes, but I couldn’t find any.”
“She hasn’t responded at all?” Declan asked.
“No.”
His brother nodded. “Why don’t you fix me a coffee, and I’ll check out Angelique?”
Thane knew what his brother was doing—getting him out of the way. Not that he blamed him. Thane would hover, which would distract him. “Be right back.”
