The woman who’d freed Mordecai hadn’t had a chance. It was bad enough that the women who’d freed the jaguar and phoenix died, but at least the warriors they’d freed tried to protect them.
Time to put that unsettling thought aside and concentrate on the positive. “But you have powers, right?” That could only be good.
Arand growled in frustration. “My powers are weakened. I can manifest my clothing and weapons and not much else. My senses have always been acute so they are not affected by the long period in stasis. I do not know why my other powers have not returned.”
She could tell that was bothering him a lot. “Maybe you need time to recharge.”
“Time is one thing we do not have.” Arand turned away from her and stared out the window. Their conversation was officially over, for now. She’d give him some time before questioning him again.
Sabrina couldn’t imagine coming awake to a world that no longer remembered you, that was completely different from the one you’d left. Yes, he seemed to have absorbed learning and understanding, but seeing was believing.
She wondered what it was like for him to be sitting in a car watching the world go by. Sure, he’d been in the back of a truck when he was still in the form of the carousel animal. Had he known what was happening to him then?
She wanted to ask him but bit her tongue instead, giving him some time to himself. She tightened her grip on the steering wheel and followed the road out of town. She hit the I-10 and felt herself relax. Not too much longer until she could turn off onto the I-55 toward the Maurepas swamp and her granny’s home.
Jessica willed the taxi to hurry, but she supposed the driver was going as fast as he could. She breathed a sigh of relief when Tilly’s house came into view. “Thank the goddess.”
“You say somethin’, lady?” the driver asked.
“Just talking to myself.” She smiled sweetly at him, although from his startled expression after he glanced at her in the rearview mirror, it had probably looked more like she was baring his teeth at him.
The driver said nothing as he pulled the car to a stop in front of Tilly’s place. She all but threw the money for the fare at him, grabbed her stuff and bolted from the taxi. Tilly was waiting for her, the front door to the shotgun-style house open. Like many older New Orleans’ homes, each room of the small house was directly behind the other, creating a clear view from front to back door so a shotgun blast could go in through the front door and out through the back. Hence the name.
“Did they make it off okay?” Jessica hurried toward Tilly, unable to rid herself of the feeling that time was running out for Sabrina and her warrior.
“They left almost an hour ago and should be there soon.” Tilly waved her into the living room where Jessica dumped her loaded tote bag on the sofa. “You got everything you need in there?” Tilly asked.
“I hope so,” Jessica muttered. She could only pray she wasn’t forgetting anything. “Have you had any luck lining up a ride yet?”
Tilly shook her head. “No. Most folks aren’t real friendly when you wake ’em early in the morning.”
“It’s past dawn now,” Jessica pointed out. The sun was rising over the horizon and the day promised to be a warm one, but a cold shiver raced down Jessica’s spine.
“My Granny Ledet is working on some extra protection for us.”
“You told her about what was going on?”
Tilly nodded. “I figured we could use all the help we could get.”
Jessica couldn’t dispute that. “We have to do something. There are twenty-four-hour rental places or we could spend the money on a cab.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Getting worked up wasn’t going to help anyone.
“We will if it comes to that,” Tilly agreed. “But I think we have enough time to find a ride from someone we know.”
“I’m scared,” Jessica blurted out. The minute the words were out she wished she could call them back. There was no room for doubt. The devil would use such misgivings against them. She had to be strong, to believe they could beat this threat away from their friend and from them.
Tilly bent down and hugged her, wrapping Jessica in her strong embrace. Tilly always smelled exotic, like sandalwood or jasmine or a combination of the two. It gave Jessica a sense of safety and bolstered her courage.
“We can do this thing.” Tilly pulled back and their eyes met. “We have to.”
“I know.” This was their destiny, and there was no outrunning it for any of them. “What about Jules? He’s always at his shop early and he has a truck. He did sell Sabrina the carousel animal that broke this whole thing wide open.” It was still hard to wrap her head around the whole idea of a shapeshifting warrior and a curse, but there was no time to question. There was only time for action.
Tilly nodded. “We can ask him.”
“What will we tell him?” That was the thing, knowing how much to tell anyone. Jessica didn’t want to involve anyone else and possibly draw them into the line of fire, but Jules was already a part of this.
“As little as we have to. I know we both want to get on the road, but it’s better if we give Jules time to wake up before we ask him for his truck. He’ll be in a much better frame of mind.” Tilly glanced at her watch. “Why don’t we go down to the café? That way I can organize staff for the day and we can grab a coffee and something to eat. If I’m going to be gone for a day or two, I need to schedule people in to work.”
Jessica almost protested, but knew Tilly was right. It wouldn’t do to rile Jules up and have him say no. If they didn’t have a car by the time the café opened for business, they could always rent a car. Plan decided on, Jessica was in a hurry to get going. She grabbed her bag and headed to the front door. “Let’s get going. I’ll help you at the café so we’ll be ready to hit Jules up as soon as we figure he’s at his shop.”
Chapter Ten
Arand watched the world speed by outside the glass window. The tension in the vehicle was growing with each passing minute, but he didn’t know how to diffuse it. He hated waiting, not knowing when or how Hades was going to attack them. The only thing he knew for sure was that it was only a matter of time.
The more he thought about it, the more unsettled he was about what happened back at her apartment. Sure, there was a lot of growling and noise outside her apartment door, but no demons had broken through and no demons had attacked them on their way to her friend’s house.
He cursed under his breath.
“What?” Sabrina asked, giving him a quick glance before returning her attention to the road.
“It’s a trap.” It was so obvious he should have seen it sooner.
“What do you mean?” The worry in her voice ripped at his gut. He wanted her somewhere safe from Hades’ grasp.
“We’re being herded out of the city toward a more secluded spot.” He couldn’t believe he hadn’t caught on faster. “Hades will have to expend less energy keeping the fight shielded from others if there is no one else around. We should turn back.”
Sabrina shook her head. “Not happening. No way am I risking any of my friends. They’ve already done enough. I’d rather be isolated and fight Hades on our own than to involve any innocent bystanders.”
Pride swelled in his chest. His Sabrina was loyal and courageous. It didn’t feel strange to refer to her as his. She’d freed him so she belonged to him.
A low growl vibrated in his chest. And if there was one thing he knew how to do it was how to protect what was his. He hadn’t been able to save the Lady or his friends from Hades, but he would not allow Sabrina to fall into the devil’s clutches.
“You okay?” she asked.