Darker (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #6)(17)

I threw my hands up and turned on a heel to go. “I can’t listen to this. I’m sorry. I’m a killer. A monster. That’s all.”

“If anyone has a chance to stop him, it’s you.”

Father Andrew’s voice followed me out of the church, but I didn’t look back.

Chapter Five

“I don’t believe it,” Jez announced. “I refuse. Kale can’t be dead.”

Her red lips twisted into a scowl. With a vigorous headshake, she huffed. I had anticipated her reaction. Disbelief still held me in its grip as well.

We sat on one of the couches at The Wicked Kiss, looking on to the near empty dance floor. After the disturbing evening I’d had so far with Gabriel and the priest, I decided to follow through with my plan to close the club for a few nights. Only regulars were allowed in, which meant more action in the back than out front.

“Briggs can’t be that good of a liar,” I replied, watching a middle-aged man offer himself to a vampire. The man had more visible bites than I could count. These people must get damn good at hiding the truth behind their daytime personas.

“Says who? He’s a government drone. They mess with mind control. Just because he believes it doesn’t make it true.” Jez’s haughty green cat-like gaze landed on me. “You don’t believe it either. Otherwise, you’d be a total mess.”

I scoffed. “Give me a break. I care about Kale. The last thing I want is for anything bad to happen to him. But, I’m not this lovesick puppy you insist I am.”

“Bullshit.”

I turned my attention to a loose thread on my sleeve. I’d been wearing a lot more long sleeve shirts than usual these days in order to cover the dragon etched into my forearm thanks to Shya. The ugly demon mark drew a lot of unwanted interest.

“If he’s not dead, then where the hell is he? He’s been missing for too long. It can’t be good.” My stomach flipped a few times in response to the anxiety-riddled scenarios that played out in my head.

“I bet they still have him,” Jez mused, chewing on a long, tapered fingernail. “Locked up somewhere in that hospital of horrors. We have to know for sure, Alexa.”

“Are you saying you want to go in there? Jez, trust me, you don’t want to see the inside of that place.”

She fixed me with a pointed look. “Let’s just say there’s a possibility he’s in there. How can you live with not knowing for sure? He would go in after either of us. If he is alive, we can’t just leave him there.”

Such seriousness was rare for the fun-loving leopard. Jez was far more worried about Kale than she let on. Of course, it was possible. I’d entertained the idea more than once myself, but trespassing on FPA turf wasn’t going to go over well.

“The chance of getting in there undetected is slim to none,” I warned, but I could see the determination in her eyes. She was set on this.

“Then let’s not go in undetected. They want you to become an informant so use that to get us in. Tell them you’re willing to negotiate.”

“That would be a lot more believable if I hadn’t attacked one of their agents.”

“Your sister is there. That gives you some leeway.”

Jez wasn’t having a hard time convincing me. Perhaps I didn’t need much encouragement. I wanted to believe Kale was alive. Going into FPA headquarters was dangerous. No matter what I told Briggs to get in the place, he still wasn’t going to let me search the building.

“Fine,” I relented. “I’ll try to get us in there, but let’s not do anything rash. I don’t want to give the FPA any more reasons to keep me on their watch list.” After my last experience inside the haunted old hospital that the FPA used as their local headquarters, I was reluctant to go back.

I reached for the bag containing my laptop, itching to get cozy with Veryl’s secrets. Butterflies beat a steady nervous rhythm against my ribcage as the computer went through the start-up process. I looked longingly at the bar. Having a whiskey in hand would be nice. Staying alert meant staying alive, so I dismissed the thought immediately.

“The moment of truth, huh?” Jez fidgeted in her seat. “Think there’s anything on there about me?”

“We’ll find out in a matter of minutes.”

I stared at the list of files, unsure where to start. So, I started at the top. Most of the folder names were random letters and numbers. Others had a name mixed into the mess. Kale’s, Jez’s and mine all jumped out at me right away. My palms grew moist as the first one opened.

It was a brief bio on Falon, of all people. I was intrigued. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as juicy as I’d have liked. Falon took his leap of disgrace long after Lucifer’s exile. There was much speculation as to what drove Falon to it. Some believed it was a human woman. Other studies concluded that he’d strayed on the promise of power and glory. Regardless, his reputation had always been shady. Nobody but Falon knew why he fell. Whatever it was, it had made him a nasty thing alright.

“Can’t say I’m surprised Falon is documented as an ass**le,” I commented after both Jez and I had read it.

“He makes my skin crawl.” She visibly shuddered and made a sour face. “There’s something really not right about him.”

“There’s something wrong with anyone that willingly chooses to embrace darkness after once being light.” The words left a bitter taste in my mouth; they hit a little too close to home.