Blood Trinity (Belador #1)(50)
“It’s not human.”
FOURTEEN
Piedmont Park covered over sixteen city blocks of open green space that linked thick stands of trees, a small lake and recreational areas most people found relaxing.
Evalle knew what could lurk in all those dark corners at night, and none of it was relaxing or fun—at least not for the victims. She left her bike parked two blocks away and hiked to the park, reaching the Piedmont entrance a minute after midnight.
No Storm.
While she paced outside the gate, she sent a telepathic call out. Tzader or Quinn. Are you in Atlanta? Helloooo?
Nothing stirred along the sidewalks, human or otherwise.
I’m here, Evalle, Tzader’s voice brushed through her mind. Quinn’ll be back in the city in another hour or two. Where are you?
At Piedmont Park, meeting the new guy. You hear about Storm?
Trey filled me in on the Ngak Stone and Storm, but he didn’t have much on this guy.
She sighed out loud. All I have is what Sen told me when he stuck us together. Storm’s a shaman who can track supernatural activity and tell if someone is lying or not. She hesitated to mention how Storm had influenced her emotions, since Tzader only needed pertinent details at this point. I think Sen brought Storm in intentionally to find proof that I pose a threat to the rest of you so he can lock me up for eternity.
Eve … I know he stays on your ass, but I wouldn’t say he’s trying to get rid of you. VIPER needs your power and skills. You don’t help the situation when you go out of your way to bust on him.
Don’t tell me you’re justifying Sen’s actions?
Not even, but I have to keep peace between him, VIPER and the Beladors for the safety of our tribe. I won’t let Sen get away with abusing his position when it comes to you, but antagonizing him only makes it easier for Sen to justify his actions.
The fact that she breathed antagonized Sen. But she understood what Tzader was saying. I hear ya. Where are you now?
In Decatur. Still trying to find my source on the Noirre. He disappeared, running from something. I’m hoping no one got to him.
She felt Storm’s presence an instant before he stepped into her path. “Thought you weren’t going to make it tonight.”
“I’ve been here,” she told Storm, then silently informed Tzader, New guy’s here. I need to have all my attention available to deal with him. Meet you at my place by daylight.
We’ll be there.
Good. Quinn would be there, too. For some reason, she needed to feel less alone tonight. Though she prided herself on being independent, there were times when even the strongest needed reinforcements.
Storm made no move toward the park as he eyed her with an intentness that unsettled her. “Finish all your errands?”
“For now.” She’d have to come up with a believable reason for taking off to meet Isak by four thirty, which was only a few hours away.
And before that she needed to come up with a reason why her aura wasn’t human. Luckily Isak’s phone had buzzed less than a heartbeat after his declaration that her aura didn’t appear human. She had no idea what it’d been about, but it’d caused him to excuse himself and take off immediately.
She had a couple hours to come up with some way to explain her nonhuman aura.
In the meantime, the safest conversation around her foremost problem—Storm—would be for her to ask him questions. “You find anything on the stone yet?”
“Just got here myself.”
“Where’ve you been?” She inwardly cringed the moment the words were out of her mouth. Why didn’t life have an Undo button? He’d been tracking the Birrn and looking for her ties to it. Which was the last thing she wanted to remind him of and talk about.
His expression gave nothing away. “Running down rabbit trails trying to confirm some leads.”
When he didn’t share anything more like playing chess with Kellman, she decided a change in topic was the safest course of action. “Let’s start walking the park.”
“After you.”
Double cringing at the thought of having him at her back, she angled toward the darker parts of the park, where her vision thrived.
But honestly, her thoughts were not on the stone. They were on her goose getting fricasseed.
How would she know if Storm had found something damning? The quickest way would be to ask, but that was also the fastest way to walk herself into verbal quicksand if he turned the conversation around to what she knew about the demon appearance—especially with his powers. Better to stay with safe subjects. “Anybody have new intel on the stone?” She still couldn’t shake that feeling she’d had about it being found.
Or forget the voice in her head that had warned her.
Had it been real or imagined?
Friend or foe?
Until she knew for sure, she wasn’t putting any stock in the unidentified voice. It could just as easily have been an enemy trying to throw them off the scent and get them out of the vicinity before one of them unearthed it.
Storm cleared his throat as he kept pace with her. “No one’s found anything yet, but the creek running through the park had an unusual overnight eco-change with hyacinths growing like …” He paused, clearly at a loss for an analogy.
“Like Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors?” she supplied.