Page 38 of Claim the Twilight
I strode into the night in search of the white wing and answers to questions I didn’t fully understand myself.
Chapter 16
ORINA
Raffleton Street was carnage. Toppled lampposts, crushed cars, and debris from the broken houses littered the road and pavements. Tulpas huddled on the pavement in frightened groups, sobbing or comforting one another. The Sangualex and ghouls were gathered in a separate group talking to Ezekiel. There was no sign of the white wings, but Godor and the batlings were present. Ezekiel must have used his vampire abilities to summon them during the skirmish.
I hurried over to Ezekiel. “Where’s Kaster?”
“He left with his battalion once the cold ones vanished,” Ezekiel said. “Another attack somewhere across town.”
The young female ghoul who I’d recognized earlier stepped forward. She had a bat clutched in her hand, and her gray skin was speckled with cold one blood. “Remember me?”
“Yes, I remember you.”
Her mouth twisted in a bitter smile. “I suppose missing people are no longer high on your priority list now, are they?”
A cold spot bloomed in my belly. She didn’t know about Lomax. And Wendy Diago didn’t know about her husband, andthere were a host of other supernaturals who weren’t aware of what had happened to their family members.
She frowned, her eyes scanning my face. “What is it? What do you know?”
I took a deep breath. “Lomax was alive until a couple of days ago. Along with all the other missing supernaturals.”
Wendy Diago pushed through the crowd. “My husssbaand?” she asked in her long, drawn-out drawl.
“Yes. They were all alive, but they died.”
A cacophony of sound filled the road. Rage and sorrow and accusation.
Ezekiel and Ordell stepped close to flank me. To protect me. But I didn’t deserve their protection.
I was the key that had allowed the deaths of hundreds. Me.
But hadn’t those supernaturals been evil?
No. That was Loviator trying to mess with my head. It had to be. Kaster would confirm it.
I took a step forward, offering myself to the mob. “I’m sorry I failed to save them.” Silence fell over the gathered in increments, and all eyes turned to me. “Your missing loved ones were used in a spell to release Loviator, a goddess of pain. The same goddess who’s sending her minions to attack Dracul now.” My throat grew tight. “I’m sorry. So fucking sorry I wasn’t able to save your loved ones. I’m so sorry I was too late.”
Atlas came to stand next to me. “We all failed,” he said. “All law enforcement. We all fucking failed. But we won’t fail now. This goddess won’t take any more of us. She won’t take any more of you. We will fight!”
The crowd cheered, raising their weapons, and dread sank its claws into my belly. Letting these supernaturals fight would be inviting more death. “No!”
The cheers died.
“What do you mean, no?” ghoul girl asked. “We just kicked ass here.”
“You wounded cold ones, yes, but you can’t kill them, and you risk getting killed yourselves. Every supernatural that a cold one kills fuels Loviator. Right now, she’s too weak to fully tear down the veil that separates her world from ours, but with every soul consumed, she grows stronger. We can’t give her the chance. You need to get to sanctuary. Brimswood Park has wards, and we’ll speak to the fae leader to get you sanctuary there. Alternatively, you can come to Branwood Castle with me. There will be wards there soon.”
“Hell no!” ghoul girl said. “That bitch killed my Lomax. I am not going to hide in a crusty castle while she attacks more innocent people.”
They were evil.
I pushed the thought aside once more. “Did you not hear any of what I just said?”
“We heard you,” another ghoul said, “and we get it. You don’t want to fuel this goddess bitch with our souls, but what about all the other supernaturals hiding in their homes with no idea that there’s sanctuary available? Someone needs to be on hand to protect them. You telling us you got enough boots on the ground? Your white wings showed upafterus. Without us, there would have been even more casualties.”
“He’s right,” Ezekiel said. “They fought well, and we need all the help we can get fending off Loviator’s attacks. They’re not trained fighters, but what choice do we have? The only people we know that are safe from Loviator are the humans. But we can’t use humans to fight the cold ones, especially when they’re under a spell that renders them oblivious to the chaos around them.”
