They brought Ecco to a room too bland and clinical to be called a hospital room. Nanette looked around. “And I thought our church was ugly.”
Niall pursed his lips. “I take it you aren’t host to a seraphim?”
Sera gestured from one to the other. “Nanette, this is Liam Niall, leader of the Chicago league of teshuva. Liam, Nanette is a faith healer.” She took a breath. “I wanted her to help my father.”
“Angelic possessed can’t aim their healing,” Niall said.
“I told her,” Nanette said over Sera’s “I had to try.”
Niall dragged a hand over his head. “Not that it matters. What happened?”
Ecco, laid out on the bed, stirred. “I was escorting Sera and Nanette to the door of the nursing home, Zane behind me. They came out of nowhere. Seven, maybe nine ferales. They were huge, biggest I’ve ever fought, quick too.”
Archer studied him. “You took a helluva beating.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it. They attacked in concert and kicked my ass like my teshuva was getting its nails done. Three of them cut between my group and Zane, forcing us up the walk. The rest went after Zane.”
Archer frowned. “Why Zane?”
“Hell if I know.”
“He was certainly the easiest to take,” Nanette offered. “Even I could see his demon was weakest.”
“But to what purpose?” Niall paced the edges of the room. “Ferales devour on the spot. They don’t take leftovers, much less prisoners.”
“Things are different now,” Ecco said grimly. “I told you.”
Sera shivered. “My fault.”
“How?” Archer demanded. “Because you didn’t get taken yourself?”
She met Archer’s violet-tinged gaze. “You warned me. You said he wanted me.”
“Not bad enough to make a feralis smart,” Ecco said. “They grabbed the wrong person.”
“If they were sent for small and weak,” Nanette said, “they wouldn’t understand their master wanted female. They would only sense Sera’s strong demon and think, ‘Not that one.’ ”
Sera’s blood congealed in her veins. “We have to find him. We should all be out there.”
Niall shook his head. “No one gets between Valjean and the tracks. Once he’s on the scent, I’ll throw everything we have into finding Zane.”
“I may not rank in the upper echelons of the celestial hierarchy,” Nanette said, “but perhaps the heavenly host can be of assistance.”
“They never have before,” Ecco said.
Nanette steepled her fingers. “Since there’s a djinni involved, playing some deeper game, they might be more open to alliance.”
Niall sighed. “Ma’am, I think you’ll find your kind are hard-hearted when it comes to us.”
“ ‘Love the sinner,’ ” Nanette said piously.
“So I’ve heard,” Archer growled. “But we are the sin.”
“We need to get Nanette home,” Sera said. “Will she be safe?”
Niall lifted one empty hand. “You said the djinn-man wants you.”
“Haji will take her,” Archer said. “He can watch her place overnight.”
“I have my own protections.” Nanette took Sera’s hands. “Tell Wendy I’ll be back to visit your father. I can reassure her everything is fine.”
Sera slanted a glance at Archer. “Just in case that impressive tangle of lies didn’t do it.”
He folded his arms over his chest. “It was for her own good.”
So, the man who said fallen angels didn’t lie could make an exception for the good of others. Although she supposed he’d never claimed to be any kind of angel.
Nanette sighed. “I can’t promise the power will rise in me for your father’s sake, but I can at least pray.”
Ecco sputtered.
Sera didn’t even glance at him. “I’m sorry I dragged you into this. I didn’t intend—” She held a flat palm out toward Ecco. “Nothing from you about paving the road with intentions.” She sighed. “Pray for Zane as well.”
Nanette nodded.
Ecco groaned. “All of you, get out. Give me an hour’s sleep and I’ll be back on my feet. Then I’ll be wanting me some ferales screaming.”
After a hug between the women, Niall escorted Nanette out to find Haji.
Archer lingered near Ecco.“An hour won’t be enough to get you sitting upright, much less off your knees. And you know your teshuva didn’t desert you, so you might want to spend this time contemplating why you weren’t on your game.”
Ecco turned violet-tinged eyes on him. “I ain’t got no death wish, pretty boy, unless it’s dead ferales. Unlike some others I could mention. Even if I did, I would never sacrifice anyone else to reach my glory day.”
Sera put her hand on Archer’s arm. “He did everything he could. There were just too many.”
Archer shrugged her off. “Fine. We’ll see how many references Bookie can find to ferales’ pack behavior under djinn control.”
“No.” Up her spine, the demon mark burned until she straightened. “No more research.”
“Valjean is looking for a trail, and our contact at the Coil knows—”
“We have to do something to find Zane.” She took a breath. “After all, we have the bait they want.”
Archer glared at her, violet swirling brighter in his dark eyes. “What?”
Ecco pursed his lips. “I get it. We set a trap, and she’s the bait. Sounds like a good idea to me.”
Archer rounded on him. “Since when are you the strategist?”
Ecco gave him the middle finger and rolled over.
Archer dragged Sera out into the hall and slammed the door on Ecco’s room. “You think if you read a few histories, learn a few moves, you can turn the tide of battle?”
She gritted her teeth. “You said I was different.”
His tone edged toward a sneer. “And I’ve always been wrong.”
“I have to find Zane.” She tried to keep her voice hard against the quiver that threatened. “I lost him.”
“He’s a fighter, not your baby boy.”
“You’ve never lost one before, have you? They’ve been killed, yes. But lost?”
“We’re all lost,” he said.
She snarled. “Don’t get metaphysical on me.”
“Fine,” he snapped back. “You want to be realistic now? Then stop trying to find a loophole out of madness and death.”
She recoiled.
He stepped into her space to loom over her. “You want us to save Zane. You want Nanette to save your father. You want to save the world. Hell, I think you even want to save me.”
The scorn in his voice raised her hackles even as something else in her withered. “A few of those, at least, are worth saving. Which is more than I can say about giving up your life and soul for a slaver’s ill-fated cotton farm.”
He went utterly still.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she regretted them. Why was she fighting him? What was the point? “That was a hateful thing to say.”
“You’ve been doing more research than I realized.” He took a step back. “Hateful but true. My father owned slaves. I would have if I’d managed to keep the farm, if the South had won the war. And you’re right; it was stupid to sacrifice my soul when the battle I was fighting was already lost. Which is why I won’t let you make yourself bait.”
Wouldn’t let? She bristled, remorse morphing to anger. She echoed his words back at him. “Not your call. You’ve kept yourself an outsider in the league. If Niall, like Ecco, thinks it’s a good idea, I’ll do it.”
He shook his head. “Always pushing. The universe probably crushed your spine just to make you sit down and shut up for a minute. No wonder the demon was able to tempt you so easily with the promise you could just keep pushing.”
Her throat tightened. She clenched her fists as if she could shift the tension away from the threatening tears. “You’re asking me to just give up?”