Chapter 10

 

Daylight Savings – or more accurately the lack thereof – was wrecking havoc with her internal clock.

Rehearsal didn’t let out until quarter to seven, by which time it was already dark. Aleda walked the few blocks home as quickly as she could. Mom and Papá were already out hunting, which meant that she would get home to an empty house.

The temperature had also plummeted after she had barely had a chance to get used to the summer weather. It felt like the elements were conspiring to make her as uncomfortable as possible.

She reached her house within minutes. The cozy heat of the indoors felt wonderful after her brisk walk. Exhausted, she dropped her backpack by the stairs and went straight to the kitchen.

Dinner was in a Tupperware container in the fridge, topped by a note from Mom. It simply told her to put the pork fried rice in the microwave for two minutes and that they would be home as soon as possible. With sunset barely after five o’clock, that meant they should be back any minute. She heated up the rice and sniffed it uncertainly. Looked like Mom had attempted to make it herself. It tasted fine, though, so she ate it and went upstairs to get her costume together.

The white skirt was easy enough to find, as was a reasonable-looking white shirt. She would have to wear a coat over it on the way over, but Val’s parents kept their house well heated. Shoes were trickier. Did angels wear shoes? She didn’t think so. Sandals, maybe, but she didn’t have the right kind of sandals.

The flip-flops that Val had insisted she buy might do. Even if they didn’t look right, she could always slip them off once she got there. Mom and Papá got home just as she was finishing her makeup, so she put on the last touches and went downstairs to greet them.

“Hi Mom.”

“Hi, Sweetie,” Mom said. “You look nice. Very … white. Special occasion?”

“Yeah, Val’s having a Halloween party at her house tonight. I’m an angel.”

Mom smiled. “Sounds like fun! But aren’t you missing something?”

“Val’s going to let me borrow her fuzzy wings and halo when I get there,” Aleda explained. She pulled a heavy coat out of the hall closet and checked the clock. “I’m getting there a bit early. Hey, where’s Papá?”

Mom paused, then pointed to her right. “He’s coming. He found a particularly feisty set of therions. Should be here soon. So, how long is this party and who is going to be there?”

“People from school, mostly. A lot of the kids from the musical. I’m not sure how long it’s going to last.”

“Okay, Sweetie, it sounds fun. But I want you home before midnight – you have school tomorrow, don’t forget!”

“Okay, Mom. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Walking through the door, she passed a severely disheveled Papá.

“Hi Papá! Good hunting?”

He nodded at her. “Good enough. You are going out?”

“Yes Papá, to a Halloween party.”

“Be careful, okay little angel?”

“Okay Papá.”

The walk to Val’s house was short; she lived only three blocks away. She passed a group of trick-or-treaters: little children dressed up as witches and mermaids and several cartoon characters that Aleda didn’t recognize. At least her parents had remembered to set a bowl of candy next to the door for them.

More accurately, Mom had remembered. She watched the little group walk up to several doors, their parents watching from the street. Most of the houses had a few decorations up, and the ones that didn’t were dark. Others attending parties elsewhere, she guessed.

One house, though, had all of the lights on. Aleda frowned when she saw the woman who answered the door. Was that… It was Ms. Tyler! Aleda couldn’t hear what was said, but there was no mistaking the hostility in her posture. The children soon turned around, disappointed.

Aleda shook her head and continued on. Passing out candy wasn’t compulsory, of course, but would it be too much trouble to expect a little bit of civility? Especially to children! One of the parents glared in the direction of Ms. Tyler’s house.

Aleda reached Val’s house a few minutes later and was gratified to see that there were no extra cars in the driveway. She felt a little silly in her pristine outfit and did not want anybody else to see her before she was sure that she wouldn’t look like an idiot. Val opened the door to her hesitant knock dressed like a bright pink fairy. Aleda blinked.

“Chica! Come in, come in! You look great! Let’s get you those wings,” she said, hurrying her inside. “We’ve got about half an hour before anybody else gets here.”

Val pulled her upstairs to her cluttered room and started digging through the closet. “I know they’re in here somewhere,” she muttered. Aleda dodged a few shoes that got tossed out of the heap. Finally, Val let out a triumphant shout. “Got ‘em!” she declared, heaving a cardboard box out of the confines of the closet. From it she pulled a set of slightly bent white wings and a matching halo mounted on a wire headband. She handed the halo to Aleda, who looked at it curiously, and attempted to smooth out the wings.

“Well, they’re a little crooked,” Val said, “But you can’t really tell. Here, put them on.”

Val helped Aleda slip on the straps that held the wings onto her back. “There, now we both have wings!” she said. She took the halo out of Aleda’s hands and embedded the wire circlet in her curls. “Perfect.”

Aleda smiled into the mirror. She decided that the costume would do. It was impossible to feel ridiculous next to Val, anyway. She looked at Val’s costume again and smirked. It was a perfect match for her hair.

“You know, Val, you might consider dying your hair soon. I can almost tell you’re blonde.”

Val was properly horrified. “Me? Blonde? God, no! I am a natural fuchsia, thank you very much.”

“Whatever you say.”

“Come on, I have to finish getting the place set up. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Not at all.”

“Okay, we’ve got chips, salsa, pretzels, five kinds of chocolate, and soda. Did I forget anything?”

“Nope, I think we’re good,” Aleda said. She put one last piece of tape on the black streamer she was holding to the wall. Sufficiently convinced that the paper would stick, she gingerly stepped down from her perch on the chair. They heard a knock on the door.

“Come in!” Val shouted from the kitchen. “Door’s open!”

“Happy Halloween, guys!” Mara yelled from the doorway. “I brought popcorn!”

“Hey, Mara! What are you?” Aleda asked, accepting the large shopping bag full of pre-popped popcorn.

“Pirate, matey,” she said, opening her coat to reveal a tattered skirt and bodice. She pulled an eye patch and fake hook from her pockets. “Arr! You like it?”

“Love it! Where did you get it?”

“Mall. Oh! Wait,” she said, reaching for the bag again. She pulled out a soft tri-corner hat and placed it dramatically on her head. “Almost forgot my hat.”

“Now you’re a pirate.”

“And you’re an angel! I love the outfit. See? What did I tell you?”

Aleda grinned and nodded in submission. “Yes, you were right. I’ve got a costume and I’m at a party and everything is just fine.”

“That’s the spirit! Hey, Val, where’s everybody else?”

“Still on their way, I guess. It’s only eight, anyway. You know our friends, they’ll be here in about ten minutes.”

“True enough. Should have just said to get here at seven-fifty!”

“Possibly. But at least we have the time to finish setting up.”

“Looks just fine to me. What else has to be done?”

“Actually, I think we are done. We’ve had most of these decorations up for a week anyway.”

“Not the streamers, though, right?” Mara asked.

Val laughed. “No, no, Leda just finished putting those up. You like ‘em?”

“Very spooky.”

Mara plopped down on the couch. “So you just had that stuff in your closet? The skirt and blouse I mean.”

“Yeah. Well, I wore this shirt the first day of school.”

“Oh, that’s right!”

“And the skirt I got at the market in Spain. Bought it from a gypsy lady. I wore it half of the summer.”

“Gypsy, huh? Man, I’ve got to get over to Spain sometime. You’d have to pay massive amounts of money to get a skirt that nice around here.”

“Well… thanks?”

“You bet. Hey, I’m getting a drink, you want anything?”

“No, I’m fine. Thank you.”

It wasn’t long before others finally arrived. A few minutes after Mara had knocked, several girls she recognized from the play walked in. Aleda counted a witch, a cat, a French maid, and a vampire. They were followed by a zombie and a rockstar.

“Excuse me,” Val said, pushing through to greet the zombie. Mara smirked at Aleda.

“Looks like her Mr. Harold Hill showed up,” she said, laughing at Val’s attempts to hold his attention.

“What’s his real name, anyway?”

“Chad? Brad? I don’t know,” Mara said, shrugging. “We’ll just check the programs on opening night. What about your boy? When is he getting here?”

Aleda shrugged, trying to hide a grin. “I’m not sure. He just said he was coming.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll leave you alone,” Mara said. “I know you’re still nervous, though I have no idea why. He obviously likes you, and the entire school already knows it. I’ve heard that he’s been bragging to everyone he talks to that he’s going out with the hot new girl from Spain.”

Aleda turned bright crimson; Mara just cracked up.

“Oh, God, Leda,” she gasped when she could speak again. “You should see yourself! Bright red angel!” She took a deep breath. “Sorry, it’s just… calm down, would you? You are way too self-conscious.”

Aleda sighed. “I know I am. I was like this in Spain, too. Well, not as much. But my friends were always telling me to lighten up. So, wait. Did he really say I’m hot?”

Mara just laughed and got up to get herself another drink. Aleda turned to watch the people come in, now in large numbers. Two larger guys walked in hauling a keg.

“Beer’s here, people!” they announced. Aleda watched them set it up in the kitchen with a certain amount of bemusement. She had heard stories about American ‘beer’.

“Hey, Val,” one of them said, “We’ve got another one in the car. You want us to bring it in?”

“Nah, leave it out there, it’ll stay cold,” she said. “Hey, did you bring cups?”

“Right here, Val,” the second one said, producing a bag of plastic cups.

“Excellent. Here,” she said, handing them a handful of bills. “That should cover it. My regards to your big brother.”

“Thanks, Val. Oh, hey Nate!”

Aleda turned quickly towards the door. Nate had just walked in, dressed like a werewolf. She walked over to greet him.

“Hey, Leda!” he said. “Great costume! I like the wings!”

“Yeah?”

“I love wings.”

“Well, thanks. You look great yourself. Werewolf?”

“Yup! So, do I look vicious?”

“Positively ferocious,” she agreed.

“Oh, hey! Keg! There’s no cup charge, is there?”

“Nah, Val’s got it covered.”

“Awesome! Wait here, I’ll get us drinks.”

Aleda stared after him. “Um. Thanks?”

She sipped the yellow liquid apprehensively. A few swallows more and she still couldn’t figure out the appeal. Nate seemed to be enjoying his, though, so she swallowed the beer dutifully.

“What’s with the face, Leda?” he asked. “Don’t tell me you’ve never had beer before!”

“I’ve never had… American beer before,” she said carefully. She attempted to grin. “This isn’t really what I expected.”

Nate laughed. “Oh, yeah, I should’ve known you’d be all used to good European beer. What do people drink in Spain, anyway?”

“Wine, mostly,” she admitted. “At least in my family.”

“Oh, ritzy! Your parents let you have any?”

“Yeah, sometimes. They usually give me a glass at fancy dinners. Haven’t had one of those in a while, though.” She finished off the last of the beer in her cup. “I have to admit, I like it a bit better than this stuff.”

“Fair enough,” Nate said, grinning. He took her empty cup and finished off his own. “Be right back.”

Aleda looked around the room. Val had her stereo system blasting a mix of pop music. Not really her taste, but it worked well enough as background music. So far the party seemed to consist of people talking to each other in clumps and drinking.

Nate returned with two filled cups and Aleda accepted her refill absently. He chatted with her about nothing in particular, and she responded as well as she could.

To be honest, she wasn’t terribly impressed with the party. Aside from the festive decorations, this could be any day after school. It was sort of fun seeing everybody dressed up in costume, though. Occasionally other people from school would wander by and chat for a few minutes.

The conversation became increasingly silly as the hours passed. Nate in particular was getting goofy. Aleda had lost track of how many times he had refilled their cups, but he seemed very enthusiastic about it.

She was still unimpressed by the beer, but then she had heard that guys usually liked it more than girls. Aleda didn’t really mind, though, since she didn’t have to pay for it. By eleven-thirty she was starting to get a bit bored.

“Hey, Nate?” she said. She set her cup down. “I should probably get home. I’ll never wake up in the morning.”

He glanced at the clock, hesitated, then nodded. “If you want, Leda. But the party won’t be over for another hour.”

“Yeah, I know. But I want to go home.”

“Want me to walk you back?”

“That would be great, thanks. Hey, Val! I’m headed out!” she called. Val looked over and nodded.

“Ok, Chica! See you tomorrow!”

Her coat was still upstairs, so she ran up the stairs to fetch it. Nate met her at the bottom of the steps. She smiled at him and wrapped her coat up tight, not even noticing the small fuzzy wings crumpling underneath.

The air outside was as cold has she had thought it would be. The flowing white skirt might be perfect for her angel costume, but it did nothing to keep out the icy breeze coming from the west. She bundled up as well as she could and walked close to Nate, who was all too happy to keep her warm. All of the trick-or-treaters had long since gone home with their hauls of candy, and the streets were quiet.

Aleda looked around uneasily. The night was too silent for her. It was giving her the creeps. She reminded herself that her house was only two more blocks away, and that Nate was right there with her. He had walked to the party, too, but his house was several blocks in another direction.

A few streetlamps broke the darkness around them. They only seemed to deepen the shadows. She shivered. Too dark, too cold. Their footsteps echoed on the pavement. Many more of the houses were dark now. Everyone going to bed. Have to get up for school, for work. Even her own parents would be in bed by now, ready to wake up with the dawn.

Papá had to be at work early. Fixing broken computers. The hours were awful but that’s what happens when you work for a low-end temp agency. It was better than most hunters could expect. At least he had a regular job. Mom just liked mornings.

So did Aleda, at the moment. The same breeze that chilled her legs sent whispers through the trees. Leaves that would be golden in the sunlight drifted through the air, dark flakes that dropped to the ground and merged with the other shadows so that she could no longer tell the difference between leaf and grass.

More whispers through the trees. Of course she was frightened. Any young girl would be frightened to be walking the dark, silent streets. It was a perfectly natural response. So why did her hands tingle when she glanced between the houses to see the shrouded backyards?

Any girl would be frightened to walk this street. But this girl knew what creatures also walked the night.

 

----------

 

One house was still well-lit. Aleda focused her attention on it like a beacon. It was on the way to her house; she would get to pass that oasis of light on her way home and maybe not be so afraid. She quickened her pace. Nate noticed, and sped up to match her. He must think she was a complete coward. That’s okay. Let her be a coward. Just let her get home.

That house looked familiar, though. The porch light was off, now, but the she could see the same picture window that she had before, when it had helped illuminate Ms. Tyler and the unfortunate trick-or-treaters.

Still awake, then. Watching television? She saw a light in the backyard as she passed the house. Heard a woman’s voice. She looked at Nate and stopped, trying to hear what was said.

Ms. Tyler stood on the side of the house, a rag in her hand. She muttered angrily to herself, rubbing at her siding. Aleda couldn’t see what she was trying to clean. The light in the backyard barely lit the side of the house. She wondered vaguely what the point was. She was curious, though. What would bring the misanthropic Ms. Tyler outside at midnight?

Very curious. She walked closer, ignoring Nate’s hand trying to pull her back. Ms. Tyler didn’t hear her approach.

“Stupid kids,” she heard her mutter to herself. “No respect for adults. Throw eggs at my house, will they? No respect at all. No idea how hard egg is to get off siding.”

So the trick-or-treaters – or their elder counterparts – had exacted some vengeance on the miserly woman after all. She wasn’t surprised. Give a treat or get a trick. Wasn’t that the point?

She was about to turn around, about to return to Nate and return home when she saw a shadow pass behind one of the bushes. She looked again. It was nothing. It had to be nothing. She could barely make out the bush, and the rest was solid darkness. Trick of her mind. All this night and cold wind clouding her thoughts.

But it wasn’t. Aleda gasped. A large man stepped out of the brush. Ms. Tyler still faced her house. Nate was checking his watch. She shouted a warning. The woman turned, startled, looked at Aleda questioningly. Another punk kid come to vandalize her house? That was the only thought she had time for.

The man leaped. Changed. Fur sprouted from his skin, clothing merged into the pelt. His nose lengthened, teeth bared, and long claws sprouted from his paws. He was on her in a moment, Aleda racing to the pair with no other thought but to save her.

Nate stared in horror.

Another shout. Who had shouted?

She threw herself on the feeder, tried to tear him off Ms. Tyler. He turned and snapped. Blood sprayed. Pain exploded from her arm. Aleda stared at her shredded coat for a moment, then back to the creature.

Right arm useless, she wrestled with her left. Blood everywhere. She couldn’t even see Ms. Tyler anymore, just tangled bodies and fur and blood, so much blood. Her fuzzy halo was lost, crushed by the melee. She yanked desperately at his legs, his fur, anything to get him off.

He was too focused on his prey, plenty of meat on this one. Not even struggling anymore. Just lying there, blood flowing from a gaping wound while the demon fed.

Still she pulled. The demon growled and snapped again at this annoyance. Something pulled her away. Just in time. She was dragged across the lawn and into the house.

So weak. She had lost so much blood. She tried to focus as she was set on a couch and her ruined coat was removed. Something was wrapped around her arm.

She lifted her eyes to see Nate. He finished tying the torn cloth around her arm. He was visibly relieved that she was still conscious.

“Leda?” he asked gently. “Leda, are you still with me?”

She nodded at him in a daze.

“It’s okay, Leda, we’re inside. The feeder can’t come inside. We’re safe. You’re going to be okay,” he said. He held her other hand. She just stared at him. “I know. I know it was scary. What were you thinking, going after it like that? That feeder—wolf—could have killed you!”

“Feeder,” Aleda whispered. She looked hard into his eyes. “Therion.”

 

 

----------

 

He made sure her arm stopped bleeding. Before anything else, Nate made sure she lost no more blood.

“Stay right there, okay? I’m going to call your parents.”

She didn’t answer.

 

----------

 

Aria was startled from her dreams by the ringing phone on her nightstand. The clock glowed midnight. If that was Aleda asking to stay the night, she had better think again. Not on a school night.

“Hello? Nate? What is it? It’s midnight. Whe- What? What happened?”

Alex stirred next to her. “Who is it, mi amor?”

She held out a finger. “Okay. Yes, we’ll be right over. Just keep pressure on her arm until we get there. We’ll be right there.”

Alex had heard the comment about the arm; now he was awake.

“Aria? What happened? Is Aleda alright?”

“Get your shoes on. Aleda ran into a therion,” she said, pulling a coat over her pajamas and putting on the first pair of shoes she found. Alex hurried to do the same.

“What do you mean, ‘ran into a therion’? Is she alright? What happened to her arm?”

“It’s okay. She made it into a house, the one down the street with lights still on. But she was bitten.”

Alex’s eyes widened. Bitten? By a therion? But then…

Aria nodded. “I know. That’s why we’re hurrying.”

This demon would not see another sunset. “How far?”

“Not far. There. Just a block away.”

He broke into a jog, Aria by his side. They reached the house quickly and found the demon still feeding on his latest victim. Aria winced but Alex simply strode over and skewered it. The woman was long since dead. He shook his head and hurried Aria into the house. The neighborhood would be on alert for a rabid dog for the next few weeks.

They found Aleda inside, curled in the corner of a couch and staring into space. Blood covered the pristine skirt. The boy sat next to her, looking useless. Aria hurried over.

“Aleda? Aleda, it’s Mom. Honey?”

She removed the crude bandaging from her arm and blanched. The flesh had been shredded.

She took Aleda’s hand and pulled it gently so that she could reach the wound more easily. The boy must have bandaged it quickly and tightly – only a trickle of blood escaped from the torn flesh.

Aria sliced into her own arm, opening a vein. She held it against her daughter’s flesh, letting her blood replace the blood the girl had lost. Let her be healed, let her flesh be whole, and let no taint remain from the creature that harmed her. This, my life, I give to thee.

Within moments her arm had regrown, not a mark on the smooth skin to betray the damage she had suffered just minutes before. Aria’s own arm closed just as quickly. The only blood left was the blood Aleda had shed before her mother had come.

Alex looked from his wife and daughter to the boy, now standing in the middle of the room. He showed no surprise at the scene. Odd. But this was no place to be asking questions.

“Come. We must leave here before somebody notices.”

They walked home. Aleda still clung to Aria like a lifeline, so she carried her down the block. Nate walked silently beside them, his thoughts unfathomable. Aria could feel the anger burning in her husband.

Not at their daughter.

The demon.

The demon had dared to touch his little angel. Her arm may be healed but her spirit was not. His little girl had not needed to be carried in a decade. She curled up in Aria’s arms, burying her face in the ruins of her coat. Aria glanced at him with a worried expression on her face. She could take care of Aleda, but if it happened once, it could happen again.

Mike had been right.

The damned therions were spreading. Taking over more territory. He had seen five therions in the past two days. That was too many. He would have to find the nest, and he would have to kill them all. Even if he had to call in help from Mike and the mercenaries from the entire peninsula. Aria smiled at him when he opened their front door. She trusted him to protect his family.

Aria set her daughter down at the dining room table, then hurried into the kitchen to make some hot chocolate. She figured even if it didn’t calm her down, it might at least let her fall asleep.

The boy sat to her left, holding her hand again. Things must have progressed further than they thought. Alex sat on the other side, looking at him curiously. There had been no time to conceal what Aria was doing, but the boy showed no surprise, and he clearly wasn’t in shock.

Had Aleda explained? There had been so very little time, and she hadn’t said a word since they had reached her.

Aria set a steaming mug in front of the girl, who curled around it instinctively. Aria sighed and rubbed her daughter’s shoulders. To be honest, she was feeling incredibly relieved. Their little angel was safe. If she had been further away from home, if it had been anything more powerful than a feeder… Those thoughts merited no consideration. She was home, and she was whole.

Alex was not nearly as calm as his wife. This should never have happened. He had fought too hard and too long so that his family could live in peace. When the war had ended, when he had married Aria and taken her far away from those haunted streets, he had sworn to himself that he would never again expose his family to those horrors. Now they were back, and his little angel had been attacked.

How was it that the boy was not harmed?

“So, Nate… I imagine you must have a few questions,” Aria said. She smiled faintly. If there had been any hope of concealing their nature it was lost when she had healed her daughter’s arm and carried the teenager home as if she weighed nothing.

The boy shook his head and chuckled. “Not really,” he said, “My parents already taught me about feeders years ago.”

Alex frowned. “Your parents?”

“Matt and Laurel Burns. We’re from Massachusetts,” Nate said.

“Never heard of them.”

“Mom’s maiden name was Connor, if that means anything.”

“Connor?” Alex asked sharply. “Laurel Connor? You are Mike’s grandnephew! Why did he not tell us you live here?”

Nate shrugged. “We haven’t actually talked to Uncle Mike in a while. We put in our change of address at Records when we moved, but I guess he didn’t see it.”

“That is a shame. I would hate to lose contact with any of my own relatives.”

“By the way,” Nate said. “Who are you related to? I’ve never heard of a Solana family.”

“My father was Alejo Solana. He and his relatives lived in Spain for many years,” Alex said. “My mother was Lily Carlisle.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “Lily Carlisle? Seth’s daughter? I know you… You’re Alejandro! From the war?”

Alex nodded. “One and the same.”

“Holy crap, Dad used to tell me stories about you, and Gabe, and Seth, and Uncle Mike! The four of you cleared out half the nests on the East Coast!”

Alex’s eyes darkened. “Not enough, though.” He looked at his daughter. She hadn’t even touched her hot chocolate. Aria glanced at the clock and he nodded.

“Come, you must return home. Your parents will worry.”

 

 

----------

 

Aleda stared at the mug in front of her. She could not remember what do to with it. Sounds of people talking reached her ears. The voices were familiar. Mom, Papá, Nate. Nate was hunterborn. Born to a family that hunted those things, those creatures. Creatures of darkness and death, slipping through shadow to feed on unwary souls. A shadow in shadows, whispering in the trees. She heard the wind rustling the leaves, only it wasn’t just the wind.

The door slammed shut. Aleda didn’t hear it. She didn’t even see the table in front of her. She stared at nothing. All she could see was the motionless form of Ms. Tyler lying on the grass, neck torn, surrounded by blood. So much blood. Blood and fur and flesh and a sickening smell that made her stomach turn. A smell like death.

Mom moved to her side of the table. Helped her up. She was worried. Her face was worried. Aleda couldn’t focus on it. Walked upstairs. It was very late. Have to get up for school in the morning. What time was it? She couldn’t make out the hands on her clock.

A strange weight on her shoulders. Broken angel wings, still strapped to her back. Her shoes had come off at some point. Her feet were dirty. So was her skirt. Her white, flowing skirt. Torn. Dirt caked on it. And the blood. Always the blood. Spattered across her skirt. Her beautiful skirt. She knelt on her floor, rubbed furiously at the stained cloth. She had to get the blood off. Get it off! O heaven get it off! She fell forward, clutched at the carpet, and sobbed.