A Phoenix Never Dies (Afterlife Book 6) Page 4

  Heather shook her head. "Maybe I can help in other ways."

  "And if we get attacked?" Harper asked. "If someone comes after us? We need your strength. We need it. Now get angry!"

  "What do I get angry about?"

  "Alec killed Miriam."

  "It's what she wanted."

  Harper sighed. She'd never been in the position to try and help someone become their true self before. She wasn't even sure what she was doing. She thought about asking Ileana for help, but the last time she'd seen Ileana, she'd gotten a lecture on multiple things. Her great-grandmother had been disappointed that Harper was too focused on men, and not enough on learning what her own powers were.

  "Listen to me," Harper said. "We're going to need you, Heather. We're going to need your powers. There's something happening out there. That's why we're quarantined. If we don't figure it out and stop it, they're going to level everything and everyone in it is going to die. Do you want that?"

  "Maybe it's for the best," Heather said.

  "You were in love with her, weren't you?" Harper said.

  "We didn't have that kind of relationship," Heather said.

  "That doesn't mean it changes how you felt," Harper said. "You loved her, and I think you felt more for her than she did for you. Am I wrong?"

  For a moment, she thought Heather might slap her. Then the other woman slumped, and gave a short nod. "If I hadn't loved her, I would never have gone with her plan. I wouldn't have gone after humans and supernatural alike. I wouldn't have helped start a vampire army. But I did love her, and I did believe in her."

  "Do you want to know a secret?" Harper said.

  Heather nodded.

  "I'm in love with Alec."

  "What? I thought you were with Conner?"

  "I am," Harper said. "I have feelings for him too, but Alec was the one who introduced me to this world. He used to cook for me. It's silly to think that's what I miss about him, but I do. I miss that he could look in a cupboard, stare for a minute, and then create something so delicious that it was unreal."

  Heather tilted her head. "If you are in love with him, why are you with Conner?"

  "Because it's easier," Harper said. "Conner can grow old with me. We can start a family someday. We can actually go on dates, and I don't have to worry that he might slip up and hurt someone."

  "But, love," Heather said. "It should surpass everything else."

  "It should," Harper agreed. "But it doesn't. The only way we would have worked was if he changed me into a vampire, and that's something he wouldn't do. At first, I was upset by it, but then I realized it's for the best."

  "And he wasn't worth that?"

  Harper sighed. "I don't know," she admitted. "But it's too late now, Heather. He's gone. So is Miriam. But we're not. We're here, and we can still do our jobs. Now, change!"

  Heather focused, her nose scrunching up as she did. She shimmered a little, and then there was a harpy standing before Harper. She was still beautiful, almost frighteningly so. She had a bird like face, vulture like wings, and long talons.

  "There you go," Harper said, delighted.

  Heather switched back to her human form, but Harper could still see her for what she was.

  "Thanks," Heather said.

  "So tell me, how did you get in with these guys?" Harper asked. "No offense, but I never imagined that a harpy would be fighting for the side of good."

  "And I never imagined an incubus or a vampire would either," Heather said.

  "Point taken."

  "I was young," Heather said. "I would kill indiscriminately, but I never felt right about it. It was like when you're a kid, and you steal a pack of gum from a supermarket. You enjoy the gum, sure, but there's always that lingering in the back of your mind that it wasn't right, and eventually you have to spit the gum out and throw it away."

  Harper nodded.

  "Killing was like that for me," Heather said. "And then I met Wren. He was the first. He took me by the hand and said, 'You don't have to be this person, Heather. I see into your heart, and I know you're not evil, or even bad.' And that was it. I decided right then and there that I wouldn't kill anymore.

  "The others came later. Miriam and Samuel were already working together. We met them at a charity event, as silly as that sounds. They were there on security detail because they heard goblins might try and steal the things on display. At first, they wanted to fight us. They thought we were there to cause trouble.

  "The truth was, Wren just enjoyed art, and I was eager to do whatever he wanted. It wasn't like I was in love with him, it was just... he saved me, you know? Can you understand that kind of bond?"

  Harper thought of Chloe and Alec, and nodded. "I can understand it," she said.

  "We ended up bidding on the same piece of art," Heather said, a touch of nostalgia in her voice. "What Wren and I didn't know was that the piece of art was actually stolen, and that Miriam and Samuel were trying to buy it back to return it to it's original owner. The bidding war got bad. We ended up paying more than what it was worth, because Wren just wouldn't let it go. Then in the end, we ended up giving it to them anyway."

  Harper smiled.

  "Neither of them had the Sight," she said. "They didn't know what we were. And when they found out, Miriam tried to kill us. We had to convince her that we weren't bad guys. It was Wren who managed to change her mind about us. He could convince someone that the sky was green and the grass was blue if he wanted to."

  Both of them let out a low sigh.

  "I guess we have to continue," Heather said.

  "We do," Harper agreed. "It's what they would have wanted. Miriam and Alec. Let's go back to Conner's room, where everyone else is."

  Heather nodded and got to her feet. She followed Harper inside the hotel and they went straight to Conner's room. She used the extra key she'd gotten to swipe through the lock and go in.

  Sarah and Samuel were both in animal forms, sitting by the window, not talking. There was some unspoken tension between the two of them, but Harper didn't know what exactly it was.

  Brittney was laying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking. Harper wondered if she was thinking about Chloe, or about their current problems. She thought maybe it was a mixture of both. Wren was sitting on the other bed, reading a book. Harper was amused to see that it was a romance novel.

  "Where's Conner?" she asked.

  Nobody answered.

  She knocked her fist against the wall. Everyone looked up at that. "Where's Conner?" she repeated.

  "He went for a walk," Brittney said.

  "That was hours ago," Harper said. "Did he say where he was going?"

  "Just for a walk."

  Harper cursed. "Something could have happened to him," she said. "How long has it been?"

  "At least six hours," Sarah replied as she turned back into her human self. Her clothes morphed with her, and Harper was glad that she was able to exert more control over her powers. "No, it's been closer to eight."

  "And nobody thought to text him and make sure he was alright?" Harper said.

  "He didn't take his phone," Sarah said.

  Harper cursed again.

  "He can take care of himself," Brittney chimed in. "I wouldn't worry too much."

  Harper was worried and angry that nobody was taking it seriously and then there was a rap on the door. She ran over to it, unlocked it, and opened it. Conner stood there with Jeffrey and...

  "Chloe?"

  This caught everyone's attention, and suddenly everyone was on their feet.

  "Hi, guys," Chloe said cheerfully.

  Sarah made it to her first. She started to hug her but stopped, staring at her burns. "My God, are you alright?"

  "Jeffrey saved me from burning to death," Chloe said. "But I still got third degree burns. I know, it's not pretty." She looked over at Brittney at this.

  "You still look beautiful," Brittney said.

  "Why haven't you healed yourself?" Harper asked. "I've seen you do it
before."

  Chloe shrugged and then winced. "Honestly, I don't know. My powers are a little muddled right now. I had a concussion, and I think that had something to do with it. Sucks, really. I look and feel like a mess."

  "Shouldn't you still be in the hospital?" Brittney asked.

  "No," Conner said. "They moved her out of critical, but the police kept questioning her. We had to get her out of there before someone put two and two together. She can recover here, with us."

  Wren walked up to her. "I don't have the power to heal," he said. "At least not like you do, but I can do a little. Would you like me to try?"

  Chloe nodded.

  Wren put his hands on her, and Chloe winced again. Harper saw the way his hands illuminated as he touched her. Slowly, the burnt flesh started to disappear, replaced by healthy, hairless pink skin. After a minute, he stopped.

  "That's all I can do."

  "Thank you," Chloe said. "Trust me, it's a lot."

  Harper noticed the way Chloe's eyes kept finding Brittney's. She cleared her throat. "I have an idea."

  Everyone turned to look at her. "Why don't we go back to my room, order some pizza, and watch a movie."

  Conner caught on quickly. "Good idea," he said. The others were a little slower on the hint, and Harper jerked her head between Brittney and Chloe pointedly. The others finally realized what she was doing and they followed her out the door, leaving the two women alone.

  "I can't believe she's alive," Sarah said, once the door was shut. "Jeffrey, we owe you a major debt of gratitude. I know you went in there to die, and instead, you rescued my best friend. What can we do to repay you?"

  Jeffrey shook his head. "Just let me help with whatever is going on here in Phoenix. This is my home. I want to make sure it comes out of this okay."

  "It will," Harper said. "We're going to make sure of it. In fact, tonight, let's go out and see if we can meet some of these vampires."

  "Tonight?" Samuel said.

  Harper nodded.

  Samuel looked over at Sarah. She didn't meet his eyes, but she gave a shallow nod of consent.

  "Well, I think it's a great idea," Wren said. "I mean, we have to start sometime. Better late than never. Of course, Brittney and Chloe will have to stay here. Chloe's too injured to be up and about, and my instincts tell me that Brittney isn't going to leave her side."

  "You're right about that," Conner said. "They're going to be glued at the hip for a long time."

  Sarah ran a hand through her hair. "Let's split up," she suggested. "Those that want to go talk to vampires, go with Jeffrey. The others come with me. Let's go get some answers from the Guardsmen."

  Conner snorted. "You think they'll talk to us?"

  "Don't you have a way of making people talk to you?" Sarah said with an arched brow. "I mean, you got Chloe past the police..."

  "Yeah, that's true," Conner said. "Okay, so how do we want to split this up?"

  "I'm with you," Sarah quickly said. "We'll take Wren too. He's got a knack with people. Samuel, Harper, and Heather can go together with Jeffrey."

  Samuel looked over at Sarah, and Harper felt like something silent had passed between them. She'd been curious about their relationship for a while. She knew they were sleeping together. Samuel always left her room late at night. But something must have happened, because they could barely look at each other.

  There was a little discussion on the matter, but in the end everyone agreed to the roles that had been suggested.

  "Well, it's just about dusk," Conner said. "The vampires are going to be much stronger tonight. I suggest we get ready."

  "Sure," Harper said. "Let's go get our supplies."

  SEVEN

  "I wish you wouldn't look at me like that," Chloe said to Brittney. They were sitting next to each other on the bed.

  "Like what?"

  "Like you feel sorry for me," Chloe said. "You shouldn't, you know. I did what I thought was right, and I suffered the consequences. The last thing I need is for my girlfriend to look at me with pity."

  Brittney smiled, and took her hand. "So I'm still your girlfriend?"

  Chloe blinked. "What? Why wouldn't you be?"

  "I don't know," Brittney said. "I thought that maybe after everything you went through, you might not want a relationship at this point. That you'd want to focus on getting better. Stupid, I know, but I couldn't help but worry."

  Chloe squeezed the hand that Brittney had taken. "The entire time I was in the hospital I was thinking of you. I was thinking of how you must feel, believing me dead, and I was thinking how nice it would be to see you once I was released. If I hadn't lost my phone, I would have texted or called, or something...

  "Though, you know, if anyone should be worried, it should be me. I look terrible. I had my doubts you'd want to stay with me while I look like this. I don't even have my hair."

  "It was never your appearance that drew me to you," Brittney said. "And besides, hair grows back. You still look beautiful to me, you know. You always will. I didn't fall in love with your hair, Chloe."

  Brittney leaned in and they shared a soft kiss. Then Chloe winced and put her hand on her ribs.

  "Sorry."

  "It's okay," Chloe said with a smile. "So tell me what's been going on in my absence. What happened while I was gone?"

  Brittney laughed. "Well, Conner and Harper are officially a couple."

  "What?"

  "Yeah, it surprised me too," Brittney said. "But they are. You should see the way they look at each other."

  "But she's in love with Alec!"

  "I know," Brittney said. "But she can't have Alec, so she's settling for Conner. Sounds pretty harsh when you put it like that, but that's what she's doing. I don't know if it's right or wrong, but they both seem happy enough with each other."

  "Did Alec say where he was going?" Chloe said.

  "Nobody knows where he went," Brittney said. "We know he couldn't have left the city. Did you hear about the quarantine while you were in the hospital? Nobody can enter or leave Phoenix. The National Guard is at all roads and they're armed."

  Chloe let out a low whistle.

  "He thought you were dead," Brittney said. "I guess it just hit him too hard, because he killed Miriam, and then smashed his phone, and drove off. Nobody has heard from him since. I think he's done with us."

  "No, Alec wouldn't do that," Chloe said. "He might have left briefly, but he would have come back. And if he hasn't, there's a reason. He wouldn't just leave us."

  "Well, he did," Brittney said. "You know him better than I do, though. Maybe you're right. Maybe he's just waiting for the right time to come back, or maybe he's holed up somewhere figuring out what to do next. What I do know, though, is that he's not here, and we need him."

  Chloe waved a hand. "We can handle ourselves until he comes back around."

  "There's a lot of vampires out there, Chloe."

  "Not anymore," Chloe said. "We burned them, remember?"

  Brittney shook her head. "We burned the army. Unfortunately, that didn't take care of the real problem. The army fed indiscriminately. There's a whole horde of vampires out there who have no idea what to do. Harper's been watching them. She thinks a couple thousand people in Phoenix now belong to the dead."

  "No," Chloe said. "No way. There would be way more deaths."

  "We don't think they're feeding," Brittney explained. "We're pretty sure most of them don't even really know what they are. They know they feel weak in the sun and strong in the moonlight. They're probably thirsty, but they don't know how to quench that thirst."

  "When they realize what they are..."

  Brittney nodded. "I know. We have an idea, though. We want to find someone to lead them."

  "What do you mean?"

  "You know, like Miriam did, but someone better. Someone who can teach them how to control themselves and how to lead normal -- well, relatively normal -- lives. Someone who can keep them in check."

  Chloe considered this and th
en nodded. "Not a bad idea, but how are you going to rally them together?"

  "That's the plan for tonight, I think," Brittney said. "I'm not going, and you're not either, so don't even think about it. The rest are going out to try and, uh, well they're going to try and make friends with the vampires."

  Chloe laughed.

  "No, it's serious," Brittney said.

  "I know," Chloe said. "It's just a great image. Now, if the National Guard is here, how come they haven't just wiped Phoenix off the map? Unless they don't know what's going on?"

  Brittney shrugged. "I think they know," she said. "I just think they don't know how to deal with it. Wiping a city off the map isn't exactly a quiet thing."

  "They could just say there's a break out of some new virus here," Chloe said. "They'll come up with some kind of excuse the public will buy."

  "Maybe they will," Brittney said doubtfully.

  EIGHT

  Sarah, Conner, and Wren gathered together outside the hotel. Dusk was just settling in, and they knew more vampires would soon begin walking the streets. None of them were afraid of them. Even if they did try to feed, all three were extremely capable of taking care of themselves.

  "So, where do we start?" Sarah asked.

  "Easy," Conner said. "We'll hit the main freeway and take it to the barricades. Wren, you have a car, right?"

  "Yes," Wren said. "Follow me."

  The three of them walked through the parking lot till they came to a white van. Wren unlocked it and climbed in the driver's seat.

  "Do you use this for passing out candy to unsuspecting children?" Conner asked with raised eyebrows as he took the shotgun seat.

  "Oh, ha-ha," Wren said. "You know, it actually gets decent gas mileage."

  "Sure," Conner said. "And how many times have you been pulled over during an amber alert?"

  Even Sarah laughed at that. She was extremely happy knowing that Chloe was alive, even though she was badly injured. Mixed in with that, though, was how she'd treated Samuel. He'd been there for her, and she'd treated him like nothing more than a quick lay.

  She put that out of her mind for now. There were more important things to worry about. Wren drove to where the barricades were and parked. The three of them got out. Not for the first time, Sarah wished she carried an FBI badge like Brittney and Harper. It would have made things so much easier.