Insidious Winds (12 page)

Hunt reached out, separated the metal casing, and
retrieved a dark blue glass ball. “If you need advice, you can use this, but
only once.” He tossed it to me, but before I could scramble to try to catch it,
it stopped in midair and slowly floated itself into my hand.

“Why haven’t you made this before?”

“Because Vincent did not tell me you would need it
before. This will guide you when you are lost, but only you and only once. I
cannot make another one for you.”

I slipped it into my pocket. “How do I use it?”

“You break it. Now go.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“Can you tell us where my son is?” Henry asked.

“I could, but it would only slow you down.”

“You know this for sure?”

“Vincent does.”

“How convenient.” I nudged Henry. “We’re wasting
time. Let’s go.” We went outside, where the storm was still going strong.
Knowing Darwin was probably right about the fire storm, I directed my thoughts
away from flames. Instead, I followed my instincts.

I raised the sword up into the air with the blade
pointed towards the sky. Wind swirled around it, creating a miniature version
of the storm, which grew to enclose me. I felt Darwin reopen the well-used
mental link between us. “
It’s okay
,” I told him in his mind.

When spots of light formed inside the wind swirling
around me, the blade of the sword emitted a dim, yellowish glow. Still letting
my intuition drive my actions, I opened my mind to the storm.

It was afraid.

Just like Darwin said; the air was upset. Selfishly,
I pushed the sensation away and focused on calling something to me. I needed
something to control the storm. I sensed it; a presence was approaching. It was
just as strong as a dragon and more powerful than most of the wizards I knew.
It was a creature of history and wisdom, but not above savagery.

It reminded me a lot of Alpha Flagstone.

As if made of the wind itself, three large beasts
took form in front of me. Although I had never seen such a creature in person
before, I knew exactly what they were. Three majestic griffins stood nearly as
tall as me. Their heads, wings, and front legs were that of eagles with the
body, tail, and back legs of a lion.

The wind stopped swirling around my sword, though the
blade still glowed dimly. The griffin in the middle made a sharp bird call and
the other two dipped their heads in agreement. “This can’t be good.”

“You know, I don’t speak bird, but I’m pretty sure he
just said they’re having people for dinner,” Darwin said.

Henry stepped between me and the three beasts. I
recalled how nonchalant the jaguar shifter was when we first met him. There was
a lot more to him than my first impression, which was a good thing, since I
originally thought he was a pompous asshole. One of the griffins lunged at him,
but I had been expecting it. I aimed the blade at the beast so he had to either
stop or impale himself.

The beast froze.

“Be respectful,” Darwin warned me.

“I’m always respectful.” I addressed the griffin.
“Help us, and we’ll repay the favor. Fly away, and I won’t blame you. Attack
us, and we’ll be having fried griffin.” The griffin’s eyes displayed as much
displeasure as an eagle’s eyes could. He stepped back. “Leave or help us.” None
of the griffins moved. “Can they understand me?” I asked Darwin.”

“I’ve never met a griffin, but they were once one of
the three iconic familiars of the most powerful wizards. They should be able to
understand you.”

“Good. We need to get through the storm without being
attacked.”

All three griffins turned and went towards the storm.
Before they reached the tornado, they stopped. “I think we’re supposed to
follow them,” Darwin said.

“Sure, because suicide was on my list of things to do
today,” Marcus said.

“Maybe you should stay,” I suggested.

Darwin made a sound of disapproval. “Bro, think about
that. How long before Jackson figures out he’s human? How do you think the
vampires are going to react after being on syntho-blood for a month?”

“On second thought, I’m with you all the way, Dev,”
Marcus said quickly.

We went forth and joined the griffins, who entered
the storm with no hesitation. The wind parted around them. It took about ten
minutes to make it through the tornado, but we weren’t attacked. As soon as we
were relatively safe, the griffins flew off.

We started down the mountain for the small field,
half covered by the mountain side, that the students’ cars were kept in during
the term. “I wonder what kind of payment they’re going to want in exchange for
the favor,” Darwin said.

Henry grimaced. “Whatever it is, I will pay it
myself.”

“We’re not going to worry about it right now,” I
said. The thought of Scott alone, afraid, and having no idea what he was made
me sick. “You know what orphanage Luana dropped him off at, right?”

“It burned down.”

“Yes, but you also said she wouldn’t give up that
hold over you completely. She would know if he was adopted out or sent to
another orphanage.”

“If we can find out his name, I can get his info in a
few minutes unless more records were burned down. If I knew his name and if he
was adopted, we can find him in a hot second,” Darwin said.

“You two do what you have to do to find him, and I’ll
make people tell us what they know and use my instincts for the rest.”

“What about me?” Marcus asked.

“You’re going to hide out at Henry’s house,” I
answered.

“What?!” he screeched. Henry and Darwin both flinched
and covered their ears. “I came all this way because I need your help and
you’re turning me away?!”

Ouch
. “I’m not turning you away. Henry’s house
is completely safe.”

“Except for that time when someone broke in and shot
him,” Darwin added helpfully. “We can take him to my place… oh, wait. My
parents are on a holiday thing until Friday and the pack’s not going to be cool
with a human staying at home without their alpha’s say. What about your place?”

“Not safe,” Marcus and I answered simultaneously. If
Marcus’s father found him despite all of the elaborate precautionary measures
Marcus used, then it was possible that he found out about me.

“My place it is, then,” Henry said.

We reached the car lot and piled into Henry’s pickup.
Darwin sat in the passenger’s seat, Henry in the driver’s seat, and Marcus and
I were in the back. Fortunately, my sword stopped glowing by then. I slipped it
behind the back seat.

“So what was up with the yellow glow?” Henry asked as
if he read my mind. “It was red before.”

“The undine said it’s the sword of balance, not
fire,” Darwin said as if it were completely obvious.

Henry didn’t say anything. “It can apparently use any
element,” I explained, trying to lessen Darwin’s rudeness. I thought it was a
pretty amazing discovery, but Darwin was actually less impressed with it than
when he thought it was a flaming sword. Only then did I realize I had left my
bag on the ground when we met the griffins.

Between the soft glow of the radio, the light
vibrations of the road, and the draining adrenaline, I was asleep before the
truck had warmed up.

*          *          *

Astrid was warm and lying naked in my arms. We were
in my bed at my apartment without the threat of Krechea or the worry of who
would betray us next. I kissed her, but she pulled back. “I’ve missed you,” she
said.

“Is this a dream or a vision?”

“The fire salamanders made it so that we can’t have
visions together. You already know that.” She kissed me.

“I spent more than half of my life hating you, but I
never stopped loving you. Now that I finally started getting over it, that---”

She cut me off by kissing me again. “Shh. You’re
going to wake up.”

“Why did you let him take you there?” I asked, but I
didn’t actually expect an answer since it wasn’t really Astrid.

“You know why. You haven’t figured it out yet, but
you know. Now, let’s make this dream worth the guilt you’re going to feel
later.” Before I could respond, there was a bump in the road and a harsh
rattle. It didn’t completely wake me up, but it was enough of a jolt out of my
subconscious that my dream changed.

This time, my vision was odd again, like I could see
light reflecting in the darkness in a way I shouldn’t have been able to. In
what I’m sure was pitch blackness, I saw Scott hiding between three huge,
wooden crates. If there was writing on them, I couldn’t tell. He looked up at me,
obviously able to see in the dark like his father. If I were seeing through
normal eyes, his would probably look silver.

He reached out his hand for me and whispered
something that was drowned out by the sound of a gun.

*          *          *

The loud noise startled me out of the vision and I
found myself back in the very stationary truck. “What happened?”

“The truck just died. It’s practically new!” Henry
said. His voice was heavy with frustration.

“Sorry. That might be my fault. I had a vision.”

“This is how horror movies start,” Marcus said.

“Oh, well, there’s an idea,” Darwin interrupted
brightly. “We have a human, so we’re not going to starve to death or anything.”

Marcus pulled a switchblade from his pocket and
flipped it open. “Try it, buster.”

“This must be Hell,” Henry said. “Had I known I would
be stuck in this truck with two Darwins, I would have abandoned it on the side
of the road months ago.”

“Don’t compare me to him!” both Darwin and Marcus
yelled simultaneously.

I had to bite my tongue to hold back a smirk. They
definitely had some similarities, but although Darwin’s brain worked like a
supercomputer, I would bet on Marcus when it came to mastering an actual
computer. Fortunately, when Henry turned the key again, the engine fired back
to life.

“What was your vision?” Darwin asked when we were
moving again.

“Scott was hiding behind some crates.”

The steering wheel cracked. “Was he hurt?”

“No.” I wouldn’t tell him how scared the boy looked.
I was just very glad it wasn’t the full moon, because otherwise there would
already be dead bodies in his wake, and he didn’t need any more stress. We
reached Henry’s quiet town about twenty minutes later.

Henry’s house was in a considerably better state than
the last time I had seen it. The windows, mirrors, and furniture were all
replaced. Where the smashed television had been before, there was just a blank
space. I didn’t fail to notice the sign out front.

“You’re selling the place?” Darwin asked.

“Now that I know what my parents have done, I refuse
to have anything to do with them. The only reason I have not killed them is
because of Scott.”

“I’m guessing your folks are bad guys?” Marcus asked.

“The worst,” Darwin cut in. “They drugged him, killed
his wife, and kidnapped his baby. Then they made him think he killed her and
said that if he didn’t do what they wanted, they’d hurt his son or that he
would.”

“Thanks,” Henry said sarcastically.

“It’s not your fault. You shouldn’t keep it a
secret.”

“It’s not easy to let go of secrets you kept for your
entire life,” I told Darwin. Sometimes I forgot how young he was, but he always
reminded me. Of course, I could imagine it was also a cultural thing. “How many
people have you told my secret to at the school?”

“That you’re in love with a vampire? Everyone,” he
announced proudly. I rolled my eyes. “That you’re a P.I. and thought you were
human before? No one.”

“And why is that?” I don’t know why I expected a
serious answer.

“Because everyone thinks you’re a cop and no one
would believe you were even remotely human. Vampire hunter? Yes. Human? No.”

“There is nothing in the fridge, but the diner down
the street is pretty good,” Henry said, moving aside a small, hanging bookshelf
to reveal a wall safe. He opened it and I saw many stacks of money as well as
jewelry and antique-looking objects. He took out a couple stacks of bills with
paper slips keeping them sorted and tossed them to Marcus. “This should tide
you over until Darwin’s pack can pick you up.”

Marcus’s face was ashen. “Did you kill someone for
this?”

Henry scowled. “Of course not. I procured it from a
drug dealer before I broke thirty-two bones in his body. I was a little
irritated at the time. Sufficed to say, he disappeared off the streets. Do you
have a problem with that?”

Marcus’s face colored slightly and he shook his head.
Drug dealers were a sore spot for him; he knew his father was one since he
could talk. The concept of secrecy had been beaten into him for as long as he
could remember, so he was still afraid to even say those words. He acted as
though, if he said the word “drug,” his father would appear and kill him.

Knowing his father, it was not impossible.

“Take this,” I said, trying to give him my gun.

He stared at it like I was trying to hand him a
rattlesnake. “No, thanks. I’ll stick to computer-controlled explosives. Human
error and all that.”

“Should you decide to blow up my house, I would
appreciate it if my parents were inside,” Henry said.

“You Brits are all weirdos,” Marcus responded.

Darwin scoffed. “Excuse me?! He’s Brazilian, I’m
English.”

“Then why do you have an Aussie accent and he has a
Limey one?”

“Because we’re weird. If you’re going to be racist,
at least know what you’re talking about. Otherwise you’re just a troll. Britain
is England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. I was born in England and
have an Australian accent. A person from England is both English and British
whereas a person from Scotland is Scottish and British. Henry is Brazilian, but
he picked up his accent in England.”