Bittersweet Blood (The Order #1)

“Assassins are paid. I was never paid for killing your kind. I did it for pleasure.”


“Ditto,” Piers said.

Christian’s muscles tightened as he watched the two circle each other. Piers opened his coat and placed his hand on the pistol at his thigh. The Walker flung back his cloak and his hand rested on the hilt of his sword.

“Nice outfit,” Piers said, “It’s good to see you’re making a real effort to blend in here.”

Christian sighed. “Piers, could we get to the point here?”

“Hey, I’m not the one who called this meeting.”

“No, but as head of the Order you have a duty to listen to emissaries from either side. Hear what he has to say.”

“Yeah, a duty, right.” Piers frowned. “You know it was a lot more fun in the old days. We could have just drained him dry.”

“I doubt that very much,” the Walker replied. “I could take you both.”

Piers stepped forward, showing fully elongated fangs. “You want to try?”

“Fuck this,” Christian muttered. “Both of you, get a grip.”

The tension stretched out, straining, humming in the air, until Christian was sure it would snap. Easing his hand beneath his coat, his fingers gripped the knife hilt at his waist. He was unsure if they could take the Walker, but it looked like they were going to find out, and a slow roil of excitement tightened in his gut.

Piers stepped back. “One day, Walker. One day, I would very much like to try, but perhaps not today. Now, tell me what you want.”

For a moment, the Walker’s tall figure remained rigid, then the tension drained from him and Christian released his grip on the knife.

“I seek the Order’s help,” The Walker said.

Piers laughed. “So you thought you’d try a little charm, did you? Well my friend, you suck at charm. So tell me how can we help the mighty fae?”

“During the last war the demons stole something from us.”

Piers raised an eyebrow. “And you want us to get it back?”

The Walker shook his head. “You promised your help in recovering what the demons stole. We made a deal, we would depart to our lands in peace in exchange for you returning the item to us. You banished the demons, but what they stole was never recovered. You failed.”

Piers raked a hand through his hair. “Are you going to get to the point?”

The Walker pursed his lips. “We are giving you a chance to redeem yourselves, to make good on your promise.”

Piers rolled his eyes. “Did I mention, I hate the fucking fae?”

Christian decided it was time to take control and get this over with. He would trust Piers to watch his back in a fight any time, but he should have remembered that diplomacy had never been his strong point. “Walker, tell us what the fae require.”

The Walker nodded. “There is one we seek. One who has the ability to enter both the Abyss and the Faelands.”

“Is this a demon or a fae? I’ve never heard of someone who can cross both the boundaries.”

“It shouldn’t be possible. This being is an abomination and needs to be destroyed. We are asking for your help in this matter.”

“Do you know where they are?”

“Not yet, but we are hunting them and they will be found. Must be found before the demons discover them, and use them to infiltrate our lands.”

“They wouldn’t do that,” Christian said. “It would break the Accords and cause another war.”

“Your faith in the demons is quite amusing,” the Walker replied. “Are you aware that they are targeting you personally?”

Christian’s eyes narrowed. “You know this? How?”

“We have our contacts. Have you not lost agents? You must have noticed even with an imbecile in charge.”

Piers lunged toward him and Christian stopped him with an arm across his chest. “Stop it. Can’t you see he’s trying to wind you up?”

Piers took a deep breath and relaxed. “You can let me go now, I’m cool.”

Christian dropped his arm and turned to the Walker. “Let the Order know when you have any information, we’ll see that it’s done.”

“You pledge the word of the Order on this.”

“We do.”

The Walker nodded. “Thank you. You will hear from us soon.”

He walked away, his figure fading until only a faint drift of mist remained, and soon that, too, was gone.

Christian stared at the empty rooftop. “Well, that went well. I’m so glad you decided to shelve your personal prejudices and behave in a professional manner.”

“Fucking asshole. I told you, I can’t stand the fae. Except to eat of course, then I like them a lot.”

Christian wasn’t interested in the fae right now. Or at least not pure fae. He had a flashback to the taste of Tara’s blood, the unique blend. Bitter and sweet. Demon and Fae. He glanced across to where the Walker had vanished. What did the fae hunt? A being who could travel to both the Abyss and the Faelands. He wasn’t sure there was a connection, but the unease twisted in his gut.