The Banshee's Desire

Chapter 2



Angela left Merlyn's Bar through the back entrance. She'd parked her car behind the bar in order to keep it from getting scratched by the jerks who sometimes breezed in and out of the parking lot after one to many beers. While her vehicle wasn't some flashy sports car, it was the only one she had. Only one more payment left to make and then it would be hers free and clear.

No sense in taking chances. Park in the back where it won't get damaged.

That's what she'd told herself anyway. Now it seemed a bad plan. The back of the building faced the river and the tall trees lining the area swooped down low, casting spooky shadows everywhere. The gentle flow of the river should have soothed her, but for some reason her nerves were on edge. She stood just outside the closed door and looked at her car, sitting twenty feet away.

Just a short walk. Get goin'!

Angela sighed and started to the car, wishing she wasn't going home alone. While she truly was happy for Jacqueline, the green monster of envy that lived inside Angela was rearing its ugly head. Why had Derek Spark turn out to be such a loser, such a complete a*shole?

More importantly, why hadn't she seen it from the beginning?

Because the sex was so good, she reminded herself. Because you lose yourself too completely in a man and never stop to think about who he really is. Because when it comes to men you are nothing but a dumbass.

Angela was glad that no one could actually hear the relentless mind chatter that when on in her head. For the most part, she was a confident woman or at least, it was a persona she tried hard to give off. Admitting her insecurities was not a natural part of her nature.

Disgusted with herself, she plopped her purse onto the hood of her car, searching through it for the car keys.

Behind her a shadow moved from the wall.

"Where the hell are you, Keys?" Angela muttered, pulling out tampons and old lipstick from her purse but finding no keys. Where had she last had them? Oh yeah. She'd dropped them on the table she and Jacqueline had been sitting at when she'd first walked in. "Probably still there."

Resigned, Angela turned to go back to the bar.

A man shoved her hard against the door of the car. With only the dim light from the bar to aid her, Angela couldn't make out much of the man's features, but she could smell his breath. It reeked of stale beer, peanuts and sweat.

And then there were his eyes.

As long as she lived, Angela knew she would never forget those dilated eyes filled with loathing and hate. They mesmerized her for a moment, taking her breath away.

"Get off me," she said, sounding braver than she felt. "You don't know who you're messing with."

"Oh? And who's that?" The man's voice was low, but his words were slightly slurred. "That a*shole bartender kicked me out. Figured I'd wait out here and deal with him when he left for the night. But you look like a good way to pass the time. I'm just looking for some company. A little fun."

"I'm not." Angela brought up her knee, pleased when the man cried out in pain. She tried to shove past him, but his grip tightened on her shoulders and he slammed her back into the car door.

"Doesn't have to be this way," he said, giving her a swift jab in the stomach.

Angela doubled over in pain, struggling to keep her focus.

"I saw you earlier with your friend, that whore who is obviously screwing the a*shole bartender. Thought then you looked like a girl who liked to have fun. How about we get in the car and have us a little party? I can deal with the bartender later." The man grabbed her hair, pulling her up. The rage on his face frightened Angela, paralyzing her. "Where are your keys?"

"In…inside bar," she managed to gasp.

"You're lying." He slapped her. "Don't try to pull one over on me. Whores like you always lie."

"N..no..no," Angela sputtered.

He hit her again, the force of it knocking her to the ground. She tried to crawl away from him, but a swift kick to her side, left her unable to move as pain shot through her. The taste of blood filled her mouth and her heart raced with fear. All the self defense training she'd learned over the years froze inside her, and she could only stare up at the man above her, helpless and afraid.

"Fine then. We could have been nice and comfy, but I know a sweet spot on the banks of the river over there. A private place where we can really spend some quiet time together." He reached down, digging his cold fingers into her arms and forcing her to a standing position. "Oh, you're going to be lots of fun. I can see that. Not like those bitches two months ago. One of them tried to fight me, too but my knife shut her up. I never knew cutting someone's throat would be so f*cking messy."

He pulled out a pocket knife, flicked it open, and then pressed it against her cheek.

"You wear too much f*cking makeup," he whispered. "What you need is a natural blush. I can give that to you."

"Please…don't hurt me," Angela begged, but he ran the knife along the side of her face. Pain burned in its wake and she could feel the blood dripping from the cut. "Let me go. I won't tell anyone."

"No, sweetie. You won't tell. You're right about that." He cupped one hand painfully around her breast as he ran the knife teasingly across her throat. "When we're through, you won't be able to. And you won't be pretty either."

Using animal instinct, she swung her arm up, knocking the knife out of his hand. Angela screamed with every ounce of energy she had.

She only stopped when the man's fist connected with her face hard enough to make her see stars. Falling hard on her arm, Angela lay gasping on the ground. Her attacker picked the knife up and then pounced on top of her, the blade sliding into her body below one of her ribs. But he wasn't content with just stabbing her. He rolled her over and placed his hands tight around her neck.

"Shut up, bitch!" He squeezed her throat, cutting off all sound from her, as well as oxygen. "I'm gonna have to be a little harder on you now."

Oh God. His eyes. So devoid of humanity.

As Angela stared into them, she became conscious of the fact that those cold eyes were the last thing she was going to see. She grabbed at his hands, scratching and clawing, but her strength slowly ebbed away.

She could feel herself dying.

It wasn't just the lack of air, but the fact that blood spurted from the knife wound, carrying with it her will to live.

The man removed his hands, before she completely faded away.

"That's more like it! Now you're just how I like my women to be. Docile. Obedient." The man sneered. He sat up and fumbled with his belt. "I was trying to be nice, providing you with a quiet location to keep things private, but we can just take care of things right here."

"D-d-don't…"she tried to choke out the words, but the expression on his face stopped her.

"Don't tell me my business, whore." He jerked down his pants and then groped under her skirt, the touch of his fingers against her, rough and hard. "I have all kinds of ways of hurting you. We've only just begun."

"Buddy, if you want to keep all your vital appendages, you better get off her now."

She knew that voice, but her hazy mind couldn't quite place who it belonged to. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a male figure approaching them.

"Please…" she whispered. "Help me."

"Let her go, Fortensky." The strong and clear voice of the other man snapped with restrained fury. "Let her go and I'll give you a head start before I kill you."

"Gabe, right?" Fortensky stood up, wiping at his sweaty forehead. "You're the one who helped me out just a little while ago."

"Yeah, but if I’d known you were going to end up trying to rape a friend of mine behind the bar, I might have thought twice about saving your life." Gabe stepped closer. "Let her go."

"Mind your own business."

"Now you're just pissing me off, making it worse for yourself." Gabe cracked his knuckles. "I've got a bad temper. Been trying to keep it in check, but I think it's starting to get the better of me."

Angela couldn't quite figure out what happened next.

One moment her attacker had a firm grip on her. The next, he was sailing through the air. She hadn't even seen Gabe land a punch. In fact, he still stood several yards away, a mean expression on his face as he stared at Fortensky.

"You okay, Angela," he asked, without looking at her.

"Yes..."

But it was a lie. She was far from okay. Pain crawled through every pore of her body.

Jacob Fortensky hauled himself up and took off towards the river.

"Shit!" Gabe looked down at her. "Hang in there, Angela. I'll be right back."

Angela thought she heard tenderness in his voice.

It hurt to move so Angela lay on the ground, watching the dark area where Gabe had disappeared. She could hear shouts and it seemed like Gabe or the other man had a light of some sort because she kept seeing little flashes of it darting through the trees.

Before she had time to really think about that, dizziness and pain overwhelmed her.

The last thing Angela heard before passing out was the sound of a man screaming in terror.



****





"She's starting to come around."

Jacqueline looked down at her friend. Angela's eyes fluttered open and she gave Jacqueline a wan smile.

"Did Gabe get that bastard?"

"Yes. He's in the police car right now." Jacqueline glanced towards the flashing lights. She could just make out the silhouette of the man in the back seat of the car. Anger flared within her.

She couldn’t wait to get her hands on Jacob Fortensky's soul.

"Where is Gabe?" Angela tried to sit up on the gurney, but the paramedic who'd been tending to her pushed her back down. "I need to thank him."

"Just rest right now," Jacqueline soothed. "They're taking you to the hospital."

"I'm fine."

"That a*shole stabbed you. You are not fine," Jacqueline said. "Don't worry. I'm going to follow right behind you in my car."

The paramedic pushed the gurney into the ambulance.

Jacqueline couldn't get the image of Angela's pale and bruised face out of her mind as the door to the vehicle shut. Her friend looked so defeated lying on that gurney. The red marks on her neck where Jacob Fortensky had tried to strangle her stood out against the white sheet tucked around her for warmth. And the long red cut along the side of her face…

Just the thought of what he had tried to do made Jacqueline's blood boil.

Toby put his arms around her and she leaned against him, hoping his strength would quiet the anger within her. He kissed her head and said, "Breathe deep."

She did, surprised at the sudden scent of lilac that tickled her senses.

"Just a little soothing spell," Toby whispered. "Your whole body is vibrating with energy."

"I just can't believe that this happened to Angela. I mean, after everything she went through with Derek. It's so unfair."

"She'll be okay. Angela is one tough lady."

Gabe walked by, his shoulders hunched as if he didn't want to be noticed.

"Gabe," Jacqueline called out and broke away from the warmth of Toby's arms. "Are you okay?"

He scowled.

"I'm fine. If the cab driver hadn't pulled up and started hollering for people to come out and see the girl in the parking lot, I would have killed him."

"Thanks for looking out for Angela. She's…she's like a sister to me."

"She's a fighter." Gabe glanced at the ambulance which was pulling away. "She gonna be okay?"

"Yes. Thanks to you."

"Men like Fortensky are scum. I should have let you have his soul earlier." Gabe gave her a grim smile. "He deserves a slow, painful reaping."

"He does." Jacqueline stared at the man in the cop car. "He certainly does."

"It's not up to us to decide when or how a man should die. Especially a regular mortal." The warning in Toby's voice was plain. But who was the warning for? "Don't get me wrong. There is nothing I'd like better right now than to torture him with every dark spell I know. But there are consequences for every action. Jacob Fortensky will get his punishment by the rules of human justice."

"There's nothing human in a man who kills women."

Jacqueline didn't wait to hear Toby's response. Instead, she made her way through the bystanders and cops towards the prisoner. She blocked out the noises around her and focused on one sound only.

The beating of Jacob Fortensky's heart.

It pounded in a strong intoxicating rhythm. A chill crept into Jacqueline's skin, a shroud that she allowed to surround and harden her resolve. The closer she got, the louder the heart beat became, and she enjoyed listening to the quickening of it as Jacob realized she was coming towards him.

Through the glass of the rolled up window, the two stared at each other. His face was bruised from the beating Gabe had given him, distorting his looks. Jacqueline felt that they were both monsters in a way, able to cause havoc, able to destroy life. But the way Jacqueline saw it, she was justified. She was only ridding the world of an evil creature before it could do more harm.

It was then that she saw the gray shadows again.

They materialized into the form of two women who stood outside the car, their eyes wide and pleading as Jacqueline took in their state of undress. Both were naked, but one of them had a deep cut in her throat and blood leaked from it. The other woman's face was mutilated as if someone had gone after it with a sharp object. There were multiple bleeding wounds all over their bodies.

"He did this to us," the scarred faced woman said. "He deserves to die."

These were the murdered souls of the women he'd killed two months earlier.

They hadn't been able to pass on and their grief almost took Jacqueline's breath away.

"Monster," she whispered, looking into Jacob's eyes. "Your victims can't even be at peace because of you."

"She would have loved it!" Jacob shouted the words so Jacqueline could hear. "She would have loved being f*cked by me!"

She bent closer to the glass, entranced by the glow of life she could see surrounding him.

"Just do it," the woman with the slit throat said.

"Reap his soul and be done with it," the other dead girl urged. "You are the mark of Death."

Jacqueline could feel the gentle tugging of a melody threatening to burst from her. A lilting humming sound passed her lips.

"Don't do it, Jackie." Toby stood next to her, one arm going around her waist. "This isn't the way. You are a human. Don't become a monster over this man."

"I have to do it" Jacqueline whispered, looking back the two murdered women.

"No, you don't. Let some other reaper--a reaper who has fully crossed over--take care of this. It's not the same as helping someone's soul cross. You would be the cause of death. You would be pulling a soul before its time." Toby tugged at her waist, trying to steer her away. "Please, Jacqueline."

Somewhere inside her, Jacqueline heard the words. She struggled through the darkness in her head and tried to grab on to them.

But the urge to reap was stronger.

The humming grew a little louder. She could see a tiny piece of his soul emerging from Jacob's head. Reaping always put the image of separating a shadow from its owner in her mind, and that's what she thought of now as little by little the soul loosened. She knew better than to pull it completely free all at once.

It would be over way to quick if she did that.

Humming the soul out was guaranteed to be a much slower and more painful process.

Already, Jacob Fortensky was beginning to gasp and wheeze. His face turned the color of ash. He hunched over in the seat of the car, wailing in pain.

Pure music to her banshee ears.

"Jacqueline, I love you. Do you hear me? I love you and this is not who you are!"

Love.

Jacqueline blinked and the soul snapped back into Jacob.

Toby wrapped his arms around her, holding her body as she began to shake.

"It's alright," he whispered. "You didn't do it. Everything is okay."

Jacqueline listened to his voice, unable to take her eyes off the man in the car.

An officer got into the vehicle and seconds later slowly began to drive away.

Jacob turned his head to meet Jacqueline's gaze. His eyes were filled with a wicked glee reminding her of a child who'd gotten away with something. He'd gotten away from her. Though he probably didn't know how, some part of him had registered that Jacqueline had been killing him. But not now. He'd escaped. She couldn't harm him now.

A vicious smile spread across his face.

Next to him, she could see the faces of the two murdered women as they pleaded to her with outstretched hands pressed to the glass.

Still, holding tightly to Toby, Jacqueline focused all her energy on the man in the car.

His soul ripped free.

Closing her eyes, she absorbed the energy, only dimly aware of the guilt. Toby held her closer, unaware of her action. She stroked the hair on the back of his head, breathing in the warm scent of lilac and the masculine smell of Toby. Turning her head to the side, she rested it on his shoulder.

It was then that she saw Gabe. His face was bland as he watched the two of them embrace, but when his gaze met hers, he gave her a small nod, as if to say he approved of what she'd done.

Worried, she stared back at him. Had he seen? Would he tell? Jacqueline couldn't say for sure, but she sent him a silent message with her eyes, one she hoped he understood clearly.

Tell on me and I'll make trouble for you, too.