Chapter 3

The alarm bells in Ree's head grew louder, shriller. Something was building in her, making it hard for her to breathe. A hot feeling prickled under her skin, the energy moving and shifting in the pit of her stomach, choking her breath.

“Paden! Watch out!”

Before she had finished that short sentence Paden had wrapped her in his arms and thrown them both to the concrete ten feet away. She barely had time to register the impact of the cold ground before she felt something brush over their heads. The strange man barely missed them with his outstretched fingers as he seemed to fly past. Without thinking, she pulled out of Paden’s arms, rolling to her knees, and flung her hands in the direction of the man. If you could call it a man. A feeling akin to boiling water seemed to bubble out of her. With a shout, green energy flowed from her hands and collided with the thing, splintering its body. There was nothing left except for a fine dust floating to the ground.

Paden was on his feet before the gritty flakes settled. He walked over and kicked at the pile, but the ashes disappeared as he watched. He looked around the area, but there was no one else to be seen. Ree moaned and sagged back toward the ground. She propped herself up on one elbow, the other hand cradling her head. Paden rushed to her side, and cool hands cupped her face.

“My head.” She gasped as he tenderly stroked her temple, and after a moment the pain began to recede. Carefully, she opened her eyes and looked up at him.

“Are you alright? What was that? What did you do?” His voice was a harsh whisper.

Ree shook her head, just as confused as he was. A wave of exhaustion swam over her, and she had to fight a yawn. But the feeling between her shoulder blades returned, and the heat swimming in her stomach allowed her to shake off the heavy sense of sluggishness. Paden growled and jumped to his feet, his gaze constantly shifting.

“Watch out,” someone said from behind Ree. A woman, dressed in jeans, a black turtleneck and boots walked into her line of sight. “There’s one more.”

“Ms. Diakos? Sophie?” You could have knocked Ree over with a feather. Sophie Diakos was the owner of the antique shop where Ree had been hired a couple of weeks ago. She reminded Ree of a Greek goddess -- tall, slender and exotic. Despite her regal looks, Sophie was kind of young to own her own business, maybe in her mid-twenties, and she insisted Ree call her by her first name. 

Before the woman could respond, Paden made a sputtering noise. His hand reached up to his mouth, his fingers feeling along his teeth. “Whath the hell?” he said. “My teefth!”

The shop owner gave a bark of laughter before doing her best to stop smiling.  Ree shot her an angry look before making Paden move his hand. Wide-eyed, he shook his head no.

“Dammit, Paden. Let me see!” She yanked his arm down and stared at him until he opened his mouth. Slowly, he bared his teeth in a grimace, causing Ree to gasp. “Fangs. Paden, you have fangs!” Her eyes were huge as she looked at them. She couldn't seem to tear her gaze away from the white pointy teeth. In his tan face, it made a striking appearance. Actually, it bordered on frightening.

“Don’t worry, dear. It’s natural. You’ll get used to them soon enough.” Sophie was a picture of calm. “Right now we have more important concerns.”

“More importvanth? More importvanth van fangths!??!” Paden demanded, pointing at his teeth.

Sophie chose to ignore him, but the corners of her mouth twitched. “Yes. I’m sorry I wasn't here for the first one. The second gave me a merry chase and managed to lose me near the river.”

“Ms. Diakos, what’s going on? What are those…things?” Ree stopped and took a deep breath. Why were they asking for her? By name, no less.

Paden had closed his mouth, careful to avoid his fangs, but he was nodding his head vigorously. Apparently he was going to avoid talking if possible.

“Sophie, dear. Call me Sophie. And I realize all of this is a bit of a shock, but right now we have to focus on other things. The other Dark One is still out here, and it’s not playing by the rules.”

Ree whipped her head around toward the far side of the Civic Center parking lot. Sophie nodded her head in appreciation. “Yes, it’s watching us. Deciding on its next move. They hadn't thought you would be able to call the power this early.”

Paden stepped forward and crouched down into something Ree could only assume was a fighting stance. He growled, baring his fangs. His face was angry, his eyes flashing, and Ree was struck by how menacing he looked in that moment. His body tense, muscles flexing, he looked fierce. She shook her head to clear it. If there were ever a time to not notice how attractive Paden was, now would be it.

The shadow of the creature shuffling toward them bounced off of the parking blocks as it walked under the street lights. Paden growled again, this time much louder. Her friend stepped in front of her, blocking her from the direct sight of the scary creature a few yards away.

“Patience, Paden. Let me handle this one.” Sophie walked forward, her stride purposeful and deadly. Her hands were at her side, slightly outstretched, a faint green glow forming at her fingertips.  She turned briefly to look over her shoulder, and Ree realized she, too, had fangs. “Watch what I do, Alastriana,” Sophie said.

Ree could now see that the creature was a man.  He approached slowly, his stride smooth. “Guardian, we weren't expecting you.” His voice wasn’t as brittle sounding as the other’s had been, and Ree briefly wondered why.

 Sophie tilted her head, regarding him. “Well, now that I’m here, what will you do?”

“Finish you.” Without any more warning he launched himself at Sophie. He moved faster than anyone Ree had ever seen. His motions were a blur as he struck at the tall woman. He tried to swing around her, but was pulled back by the scruff of his neck.

Sophie tsked at him. “Nah ah. Not today, newbie.”

Ree felt the boiling sensation from earlier, but not as strong, and more centralized in her chest. As she watched her boss, she realized she was feeling an echo of what the other woman was doing. She tried to focus past the flurry of movements and was able to sense the moment the woman released a short blast of that pent-up energy. The dark man disappeared just like the other one had done earlier.

Before the dust had even settled, Sophie turned and looked at the young couple. The two teenagers stared back in shock. She had been fast, just as fast as the dark man. And just as ruthless. Paden stood up straight and cocked his head to the right for just a moment as he watched Sophie walk back toward them. Ree wasn't sure, but she felt like he was evaluating her boss in some way. He ran a hand over his jaw cautiously, obviously frustrated.

“What the . . . ,” Paden began and then stopped. “Hey, they’re gone.” He opened his mouth and ran his tongue over his teeth.  “You okay?”

She nodded her head at him. “I’m okay. Sophie, are you all right?”

Sophie chuckled. “It’s been a while since anyone has asked me that. Thanks; I’m fine. He had no idea what he was up against. Must have been pretty new.”

“New to what?” Paden asked, frustrated. “What the hell is going on?”

 “There’s a lot to explain, but now is neither the time nor the place. We need to talk, but I think it can wait just a little while. Perhaps you and your friends would like to come to my house after the concert.”  It wasn’t a question.

“Talk? After the concert? How the hell are we supposed to walk into that concert and act like everything is just perfect?” Paden’s voice was beginning to get louder. Ree had to agree. This was insane, completely unbelievable.

A few people wandered around the corner, and Sophie took a step closer to both of them. “It isn't safe for us to talk about this right now. Not in the open. Do you know how to get to the dock for Sanctus Island?”

“The Witch’s Island? I think the dock is just off of Shipyard Road. But that doesn’t mean we’re going to come out there to talk to you in the middle of the night. Not to mention, I think it's illegal to take a boat over the water in the dark,” Paden said, raising an eyebrow.

“I understand this is a lot to take in. I understand that you have no idea what is going on. And I understand that you need to know, that you have to know. Go enjoy the concert, and I’ll have a boat waiting for you when you get finished. This is important for more than just the two of you.”

Ree looked at her for a moment, considering everything that had happened. She remembered that feeling of something powerful building up inside of her, knew the fear had been real and justified. She needed to know what was going on. She would go to the island. Her eyes met the dark eyes of the shopkeeper for a long moment before she nodded. “We’ll come,” she agreed.

Paden threw his head back and made a frustrated sound.

“Two houses down from the boat ramp, there’s a private dock. The boat’ll be there.” Sophie took a step back and gave them a serious look. “One more thing before you go. Beware some of the humans you spoke with at the restaurant. They are not what they seem, and would do you harm if possible. Also, you both have gifts you can’t begin to fathom. Do not fight your instincts, but try to keep them in control. You are both very dangerous at this point. Almost as dangerous as the Dark Ones that hunted you tonight.” With that final warning she turned, moving out of sight quicker than should have been possible.