Samael by Heather Killough-Walden Read Free Book Online Page B

band in the world, didn’t falter.
    They were more fragile than angels, vampires and dragons, yet mortals seemed to work harder. They never seemed to sleep. So, despite the recent excitement Max and the archangels had experienced over the archesses, troubles with Sam and the Adarians, and the dangerous, terrifying newcomer Gregori, Max’s people made sure the Valley of Shadow concert was planned out to the last detail. And the show went on.
    So here she was. Just like she’d had a feeling she would be.
    When Angel had learned of this concert, she’d ear-marked it in her mind as a good place to hide. She’d known the vampires would be here. She’d known the angels probably would be as well. Not to mention upwards of fifty thousand screaming fans. Here, atop the Colorado Plateau , the crowd could sprawl like nobody’s business, and a good portion of it would consist of supernatural blood, which would blur and disguise her own magical presence.
    Now, Angel looked up at the stars, tried to figure out which direction she was facing, and then looked down at the hills surrounding the desert valley. Once she knew which way to go, she set off through the crowd at a furious pace, making certain to change her appearance as often as possible along the way.
     
     

Chapter Nine
    “How wonderful. We’re all here together.” The tall man in white scanned the thumping, churning crowd, then turned to the group who stood beside him, waiting and attentive. “Is our guest of honor ready yet?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “I think now would be a good time to test his newfound loyalties.”
    One of the men turned to another and nodded. The second man left.
    Gregori turned back to the lights and madness and smiled. It was a wholly unnerving smile.
    *****
    She’d used telekinesis to carve the tunnel out months ago. Moving this much earth by hand in the amount of time she’d done it would have been impossible for a single person of her stature, but the mind was monumentally stronger than the body, and hers was especially so. The ability to move matter with mere thought was one of her various plentiful abilities.
    Telekinesis was the tip of a supernatural iceberg with her. But right now, she was sort of more grateful for that ability than any other. Transporting would be detected. She didn’t need to heal anyone. She didn’t need to change the weather, as most supernatural creatures were immune to weather changes, and anywhere Sam went, it was storming anyway. He could handle lightning.
    Starting a fire or frost and throwing fireballs or ice spears would be not only pointless and worthless, but dangerous. Breathing under water wasn’t going to be necessary in Death Valley. Entering someone’s dreams was something she rarely did – it was disturbing and confusing – and again, was non-applicable just now. Transmorphing objects into something else might come in handy in a bit, if she found herself in need of weapons, but it was very draining, and at the moment, what she really needed was a way out .
    Her telekinesis had afforded her one where nothing else could.
    So she thanked her lucky stars for it while she slipped behind a mess of parked cars that went well beyond the monument’s parking lot, shifted into invisibility to avoid detection by about thirty cops, and found the dust and dirt-covered trap door she’d created months ago. It was easy to extend the invisibility over the door too, drop down into the tunnel below, and secure the door above her once more.
    The sound of the concert was slightly muffled underground. There were approximately eight feet of earth between her and the revelry going on above. It was enough to take the sting out of the volume, but that was about it. Valley of Shadow played loud .
    Angel waved her hand, and the tunnel in front of her lit up with a dim light sufficient for her to find her footing. She left the entry-way and began running, casting one last glance at the sound of the concert behind her before