Chapter Twenty-Two

T hey were in the mines. Shay was excited, nervous, yet ready for whatever was going to happen. Nic had walked them in through the high-security front entrance and into the offices, where they were given guest badges with full access. Nic was responsible for them, but as one of the owners of Diavolo Diamonds, he had carte blanche. He could take his guests anywhere, including down into the excavation part of the mine itself, no questions asked.

Perfect. No one batted an eyelash as—weapons stored in their bags—they passed through the security offices behind Nic and headed into the harsh daylight of the outer mine area.

They stood in an open pit of rusty orange, with rising steps of rock surrounding them.

“Welcome to the Diavolo mines,” Nic said.

“Okay,” Derek said, looking around. “Where do we start?”

“Most of our crews are excavating over on the east side, using our traditional open-pit mining, which is all aboveground. I checked the schedule for underground excavation. No one is assigned down there for the next week, so we’ll be completely alone.”

Nic led them to a massive elevator, large enough for all of them to pile in and still have room for a lot more people. He pressed the button and the elevator started down.

The ride took a while, Shay’s stomach doing flip-flops the entire way. She knew it was nerves, and not the ride, causing her anxiety.

Maybe she should have allowed the vision, though it would have probably been the same one again. She didn’t want to see it anymore. No matter what her vision told her, that wasn’t what was going to happen.

Nic wasn’t going to become like his father.

While the elevator descended, they pulled their weapons, strapped on holsters, and loaded extra ammo. By the time they reached the bottom, Shay was fully armed and ready for anything.

She hoped.

It was dark and cold, kind of like being in a cellar. Rather than using their lights, they’d slipped on their night-vision shades in case they ran into demons. Though it was bright daylight topside, they could potentially run into demons down here, since it was cool and dark. Demons wouldn’t need to hide out away from the light and heat, no matter the time of day.

Twenty-four-hour demon threat. Great.

They moved along the tunnels, but they hadn’t walked for more than ten minutes when sharp pain struck Shay’s temples. She halted, blinked, and moved on. But with each subsequent step Shay experienced a profound sense of dread she simply couldn’t push aside, like she had with other visions. It was weakening her to the point she had to stop and lean against the wall. She felt closed in, suffocated, unable to breathe.

Something was trying to get at her, through her. A vision that would not be ignored.

Nic was at her side in an instant, grasping her around the shoulders as she sank to the floor.

“Shay, what’s wrong?”

She shook her head, trying to pry his hands loose. “Don’t touch me.” His touch sent the visions careening toward her like a violent storm, dizzying her even more.

He pulled his hands away and she forced normal breathing. In through her nose, out through her mouth. Passing out would be such a bad thing right now.

“Is she all right?” Gina asked, crouching down beside her and pressing a cool hand to her face.

“I think it’s her visions,” Nic answered.

Shay gazed up at Nic, at the lines of worry furrowing his brow. She closed her eyes to block everyone out. She wanted to reassure Nic that it was nothing, but she couldn’t.

“Shay.”

Lou’s voice was a quiet balm in the storm of her head.

“Shay, listen to me. Your visions are calling to you. You must heed them.”

Squinting her eyes harder, she brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them tight. “I know.”

It hurt. The pain was like a hot knife in her head. The more she fought against it, the more it sliced through her.

Lou reached for her hands, his touch comforting. “Let me help you. Let me go with you.”

She shook her head. “I have to do this alone.”

“No, you don’t. You just think you’re alone. You’re not. I can go with you.”

“Nic. He—”

“I know, child, I know. Let me see.”

Lou’s voice, so gentle and caring, so much like her father’s, before…before he had stopped caring. She let Lou in, and let him take the journey with her.

This time it was different. She stood in front of a door, opened it, and she and Lou descended and traveled through the tunnels. It was as if she knew exactly where she was going. Though they were still in the caves, she found herself in a big room, decorated lavishly, complete with a throne. Standing next to the throne was Nic, his hands on a glowing blue orb, his eyes lost in that demon kind of way that always made her shiver. Demons were all around, focusing on Nic.

And behind him stood Bart, and Ben, their faces also demon, and grinning with pure evil satisfaction as Nic reached out his hand to Shay.

“You belong to me, with me. I claim you.”

Shay shook her head, wanting out of this vision now. The force of evil in the room was too intense to bear.

“Wait. Watch. Pay attention to Nic,” Lou instructed.

Through the haze of demons, Shay focused on Nic. Much as she hated to see him that way, his face distorted by the demon mask, his fangs dripping, his forehead knotty and bulging, still she forced herself to watch him as he seemed to revel in the demons’ adoration.

“I present your king,” Ben said to the demons. They cheered while Nic kept his hand on that glowing ball, his expression triumphant and utterly cold.

Nic’s gaze settled on Shay.

Then he changed. Something in his eyes, no longer red with evil, but clear blue like a sunlit ocean.

And beseeching her.

That’s when she heard him in her head.

Shay, help me. Get me out of here.

He wasn’t like them. He didn’t want to be there.

Lou turned to her. “He needs you to get through this. Don’t lose faith in him.”

The vision evaporated, and Shay found herself on the ground with Lou holding her hand. The rest of the hunters looked down on her with a mixture of concern and curiosity on their faces.

She nodded at Lou and he helped her stand.

“Are you all right?” Nic asked, reaching out a hand to her, then hesitating.

Shay slid her hand in his and smiled. “Yes. I’m fine.”

“You want to tell us what you saw?” Derek asked.

She’d seen what she needed to see. She knew what she had to do now.

“It’s going to be all right,” she said to Nic, needing him to know that first. “But it’ll get bad before it gets better.”

She filled them in on what she saw, but kept her gaze on Nic as she did. His eyes widened as he listened, then he shook his head.

“I’m going to turn into a demon.”

“That’s what my vision showed.”

“I’m going to fight it.” He glanced up at Derek. “I am going to beat this. They’re not going to take me.”

Derek laid a hand on Nic’s shoulder. “You won’t be doing it alone. We’ll all be right there with you.”

Nic nodded and seemed to relax.

Lou was right. She’d needed to see that vision, to know what was coming. Nic would need her help to get through this, in ways she didn’t yet understand.

But no matter what it was, she wouldn’t let him down.

Nic was more determined than ever to take control of the situation, especially after seeing what Shay had just gone through. She’d carried the burden long enough.

After she told him what she’d seen, the lines of strain had eased from her expression, and the smile she cast in his direction seemed genuine. She believed he could beat this. That was good. Maybe in her mind, her vision represented a light at the end of all this—a happy ending.

He really wanted that happy ending.

A sense of urgency drove him, as if there was someplace he needed to be. He pushed on without a word, letting his instincts guide him.

And his gut told him they needed to go down. But down where? They were already as deep as the elevators went, as far as the crews had dug.

There had to be something below this, and some way to get down there.

“In my vision I saw a door and went through it,” Shay said.

Nic nodded. “Start checking the corners around these tunnels. Look for a doorway. We need to go down.”

“Aren’t we already as deep as we can go?” Derek asked.

“That’s what I thought. But we need to go farther. Whatever we’re looking for is deeper than this.”

He wished he could figure out how he knew that, but there was definitely something driving him. Almost like an unbearable itch—and if he didn’t scratch it soon, he was going to go nuts.

They walked the tunnels until there was a split—right or left.

He looked to Shay.

“Left,” she said.

Good choice. They hadn’t moved far when they found a short corridor. They followed it, and found a door.

“That’s the one I saw,” Shay said.

It took some maneuvering—the door looked as if it hadn’t been opened in ages—but they managed to pry it loose. Dirt flew out from the other side as they swung it open, creating a cloud around them as they passed through. Nic stayed at the door until they’d all moved inside, then he pulled it shut, erasing any evidence of their being in the area.

The ladder was metal at least, though it didn’t look all that solid. The drop was steep, at least a hundred feet. Nic followed them down, taking one step at a time and hoping like hell the damn thing didn’t fall apart before he reached the bottom. It wiggled a few times, but otherwise held.

He was grateful for the night-vision glasses when he reached the bottom, because there was nothing down there but utter blackness. The ground was firm and rocky under his feet, albeit a bit dusty. They were in a fairly decent-size, hollowed-out room, no doubt once used to transport ore up to the surface. Long pipes were situated in various spots around the room, as well as containers connected to the bottom of the pipes. Other than that, nothing but a wide shaft leading somewhere else.

“Now what?” Derek asked him.

“We walk.”

They moved out of that room and through the shaft, maneuvering between oversize rails that must have been used to transport the trucks of rock.

“They mined down here sometime in the past,” Nic said. “Though it looks like this section has been shut down for a while.”

Abandoned mine shaft. Good place to stage…whatever the Sons of Darkness had in mind.

Nic had a feeling he’d found the right location.

Shay felt the weight of the mountain pressing down on top of her and hoped like hell the ceiling above them was well reinforced. Thoughts of a cave-in were first and foremost on her mind, especially when small trails of dirt and tiny pebbles trickled down in front of her.

Suddenly she couldn’t breathe. But it wasn’t from fear of being smothered by rocks. She laid her hand on Nic’s arm, but before she could get the words out, Lou spoke.

“Demons.”

Everyone stopped.

“Quiet,” Derek commed. “Get out of sight.”

They flattened themselves against the walls. Seconds later, hybrid demons appeared from one of the caverns up ahead. One by one they filed out, each carrying boulders, just like the demons had done at the caves. Shay wrinkled her nose at the stench of them.

What were they doing? Clearing out the room? Hunting for the diamond?

One demon stopped, craned its head in their direction, and stared down the shaft. Shay stopped breathing as long seconds passed. Did it see them?

Finally, it turned and walked down the shaft in the other direction, entering another tunnel. The hunters still couldn’t move, though, because once they dropped off the boulders the demons came back and reentered the original room. Now what were the hunters going to do? Go back the way they came, try to slip past that room unnoticed, or engage the demons?

“Get your weapons ready,” Derek ordered. “Let’s find out what they’re doing in there.”

And there was her answer. She pulled her laser off her shoulder and rested her finger on the trigger. Heart racing, adrenaline pumping, she was ready. She took a quick glance at Nic, who seemed calm. He was even smiling, as if he was looking forward to what was coming. She shook her head. What was it about men and war games?

Derek pushed off from the wall, Nic moving ahead right behind him with Gina and Shay taking up positions flanking them. The rest of the hunters fell in line, and they stepped carefully, trying not to alert the demons to their presence. Shay hoped none of them came out with those big boulders in their arms. One toss of those monstrous things and several hunters could be crushed.

Almost there; just a few more feet and Derek would make the entrance.

Suddenly, he doubled back, pushing them all backward as demons rounded the corner.

Oh, God. They were going to have to engage in this tight tunnel. Weapons raised, they took position. Shay made careful note of where the other hunters were, as the demons spilled out of the room and moved toward them. She took aim and fired, hitting one point-blank in the chest with her laser. She heard weapons fire around her, but concentrated on one demon at a time, watching one stall, but continue to come at her. She hit it again, this time satisfied when it began to melt.

More were coming, and laser fire was zinging near her ears and around her head. They couldn’t let these demons back them up into the room they’d come from. They’d be cornered with no way out but back up the ladder. And the idea was forward progress, not backward. They had to fight them here. With determination she melted one, then another, working two at a time while dipping to avoid laser fire from other hunters.

Nic’s arm snaked around her waist and pushed her down, bending over her to fire his microwave at a demon. She pivoted, firing while still underneath him at an approaching demon.

This was insane, but somehow it was working. Every demon that poured from the room was going down. More importantly, the hunters weren’t having to back up.

Panting, fighting for breath, Shay and the others waited for more demons to round the corner and come at them.

None did.

Still, they waited, armed and ready for a second round of attacks. When none came, Derek signaled and they stood.

“Let’s head in,” he said.

Shay realized she was still under Nic. He lifted her, removed his arm from around her. She turned to him, grinning and he planted a quick kiss on her lips.

“We work well together,” he said.

“Yeah, we do.” It was almost as if she’d been able to anticipate his movements and make her own accordingly. Pretty damn cool.

Derek edged once again to the entrance of the room. He stopped, peering around the corner, then motioned them forward. They crept into the room, not making a sound. Once in, Shay scanned the entire area. The room was huge, but not empty. Demons were at the far wall, their backs turned to the hunters, allowing them to make entry without being noticed. They seemed to be surrounding something, or someone, but she couldn’t make out what it was. More large rocks were scattered to the sides of the room, piled on top of each other. A low rumbling came from the center of the demons, almost as if they were in a huddle, murmuring. Which was kind of odd because as far as Shay knew, the hybrid demons never spoke.

No one moved. Shay supposed Derek was waiting for the demons to turn around and figure out the hunters were there. Her finger hovered on the trigger of her laser, ready to target one of the hulking beasts and blast it to melted death. She knew there were hunters behind her with their backs turned, minding the entrance to this room in case more demons entered. Now it was just a matter of time until the show started.

Finally, the demon pile opened in unison, half of them moving in one direction, the other half in another, perfectly orchestrated, almost like a dance line. She’d have laughed if it wasn’t so bizarre.

But the demons didn’t come at them, instead lining up against the far wall. And in the center of their group was Nic’s uncle Bart. Dressed as he had been earlier, in desert camouflage, he stepped out of the circle of demons and into the center of the room.

Seemingly out of the rock walls, demons appeared. Hybrids, pure, and half demons filled the room. Shay and the others pointed their weapons, but the hunters were clearly outnumbered. Where the hell had the demons come from?