Shadows of Angels (ebook)

The airlock took ten times too long to open, and then Rachel was on the darkened streets. A hint of illumination lit the red sky, so it must have been afternoon, though it was hard to tell through the thick atmosphere.
Passersby watched Rachel as she ran. She needed to move fast, but running would draw too many eyes. She darted into an alley and slowed her pace. Every few steps she found herself glancing over her shoulder. Hostility seemed to waft off the entire planet. It filled the city and choked her as surely as the atmosphere itself would. It seeped through her pores, suffusing her consciousness. The vile dregs of humanity threatened to consume her.
She caught herself running again, gasping for breath. It was her fear, only. No one watched. No one. Her breather felt too confining. If she could just remove it for a second …
She hailed a cab and jumped in. “Just drive. South district.” It didn’t matter where they went, just away from here.
The driver watched her from the rearview display, lust and rage oozing from him. Would he rape and murder her given the chance?
Rachel’s heart throbbed against her chest. She was panicking. She knew it. This was just a guy at work. She was letting fear drive her empathic senses into overload, fixating on every hint of a feeling. Her hand trembled as she reflexively brushed the MAG at her side. She had to get this thing working. It might be all that stood between her and God knew what fate.
Galizur’s company made the damn thing. Endbringer, indeed.
Void. She’d been living with an assassin who was likely using her on behalf of the government. Maybe killing his own people waiting for her to unlock the secrets of the Sefer. Of course he was! Because only an empath could unlock it. So who was he really working for? Jericho? Why not? They seemed to be pulling all the strings.
And she’d slept with him. Angels above, what a fool she’d been. She’d let a moment of passion, of weakness, throw all her judgment to the wind.
OK. OK. That was done.
Knight wasn’t here. Maybe he’d really gone back to Machpelah, maybe not. Either way, she didn’t have much time. Could she trust him? No, she could never take that chance. She’d known—she’d known—he was dangerous from the moment he killed those Redeemers. If she’d listened to her instincts, she wouldn’t be here now.
Of course, she might not have the Sefer either.
His attraction to her had been genuine, but she was used to that—it came with being an empath. And sometimes she felt an undercurrent of warmth coming off him.
Or … had he been focusing on his attraction in order to distract her from his true intentions? That would make sense.
Rachel stared out the cab window at the monochrome city. She hated this place. She hated everyone here.
And Knight … Pretending not to care about the Sefer. Simple reverse psychology to keep her from realizing who he really worked for.
The truth was, even if he did care about her, she couldn’t trust him. A man like that would kill anyone he was ordered to, emotions be damned.
“Stop. Stop! Stop the damned hover!”
Rachel paid the driver, not even sure where she was. She rushed from the cab, dimly recognizing the area.
There was a trade tower nearby, with a pub on the first floor. She forced herself to walk to the airlock and hit the buzzer. No one knew she was here. No one would find her.
Except that … people like Knight could find anyone.