Dusk Avenger (Flirting with Monsters #3) - Eva Chase Page 0,110
put her on speakerphone. “I knew I’d get you.”
Omen’s posture went rigid. He stared at the phone as if he’d suddenly realized he was holding a viper. “Who is this?” he asked again, but with a slight hesitation that suggested he was bracing for an answer he already expected.
“My goodness. I recognize your voice after all this time. Do you really not know your favorite associate in all things havoc-raising? I’m wounded.”
A chill shot down my spine, my own troubles briefly forgotten. What was the name of that formidable shadowkind Omen had said he’d harassed mortals with ages ago?
He offered it up hoarsely, his knuckles whitening where he was gripping the phone. “Tempest. You—I watched a squad of wingéd murder you.”
“You watched them attempt to murder me. I must have put on a very convincing show of being murdered. It was necessary, you know, to get those stuffy windbags that call themselves the Highest off my back, and once I had the freedom of being supposedly dead, I didn’t really want to give it up. I’m sorry if you’ve grieved for me across all these years.”
From the set of Omen’s mouth, I suspected he was more likely to be grieving her return. “You had to do what you had to do,” he said, evening out his tone with his usual strict composure. “Why are you honoring me with the secret now?”
The sphinx tsked. “It seems you’ve been making mischief for the wrong side. Nearly putting all my diligent work to waste. Thankfully I caught on and knocked the delusions out of my good friend’s head before he blew up the entire Company of Light.”
I wouldn’t have thought I could get any more stunned, but that comment smacked me right through speechless and out the other end. “You’re working with the Company of Light?”
“One of your new friends, Omen? She catches on quick. Although I’m not so much working for them as they’re working for me. Tempest the sphinx bows to no one.”
“If I could interject,” Ruse said, looking as discombobulated as I felt. “I don’t know who you are, but you’re obviously shadowkind. Why in blue blazes are you running a ‘company’ set on destroying the lot of us?”
“Oh, you haven’t told the stories of our glory days, Omen?” Tempest sighed with exaggerated dramatics. “No matter. I can assure you the mortals won’t manage to wipe us out no matter what they do—at least, not those of us smart enough to deserve this life. If you’d like to discuss the matter further, I won’t make it hard to find me. You remember that architectural dream of mine? I got to make it come true.”
Omen froze and then gave a disbelieving chuckle. “You didn’t—”
“Oh, I did. The king was only too happy to oblige when I nudged him in all the right directions. I suppose I’ll see you there shortly. I’d appreciate it if you’d leave my sycophants alone until then. You’ve already caused me enough of a headache.”
The connection cut off as abruptly as her voice had first blared out. For several seconds, we all just gaped at Omen, who was trying valiantly not to gape at his phone and not entirely succeeding.
A fresh wave of heat swelled inside me. “A shadowkind is convincing people to torture and slay the rest of you?” We’d made that claim to the big bosses just hours ago—but nothing I’d actually heard from any of my companions would have indicated it was true. And the damage the Company had done to untold numbers of shadowkind certainly wasn’t make-believe.
“She always did care more about sowing chaos for her own satisfaction than anything or anyone else,” Omen said in a shell-shocked tone.
A flame broke out across my forearm before I could suppress a surge of anger and betrayal. I slapped it against my side, but the hellhound shifter’s gaze snapped to it.
He shook himself as if shedding all the bewilderment of the last few minutes and pushed himself away from the table. When his eyes met mine, something in them made the bottom drop out of my stomach.
“Dealing with her will have to wait until later. First we have to deal with you. I’m sorry.”
My heart lurched. “Omen—”
He didn’t give me a chance to plead or protest. As his name slipped from my lips, he lunged at me, his arm swinging faster than I could track.
With the slam of his fist into my temple, my mind spiraled into darkness.