Angels of Darkness

was. Even Marc might not realize that she’d concealed his body and created a perfect double of him, an illusion that immediately mirrored his voice and movements—except that it landed five feet closer to them than he truly did.
    Radha settled gently onto the ankle-deep layer of crunchy snow covering the field. This illusion required her to watch Marc continually, so that she could perfectly mimic his actual movements. By standing off to the side and even with Marc’s double, she had a wide enough view to see both him and the girls, standing shoulder to shoulder at the midfield line.
    Or what would have been the midfield line in real football, Radha supposed. She didn’t know what they called it in American football.
    The little blonde closest to her was Miklia, she remembered. The slim, dark-haired girl had been driving the Jeep—so she was Jessica, the coroner’s granddaughter. The two other girls were Lynn and Ines, but Radha wasn’t certain which one was the tall, dark blond teenager and which one was the redhead with the faint orange tan.
    None of them carried weapons, unless they’d managed to stuff some beneath their puffy coats or under their knitted caps. They definitely didn’t have any room to hide something in their tight jeans.
    Marc didn’t vanish his wings. With mouths half open, the girls stared at them—or at the double’s wings, in reality. That’s right, Radha thought. Be impressed, you little murderers. She added a subtle glow to the white feathers and his skin, then let a hint of a complex, spicy scent drift toward them. Different, exotic.
    And that was laying it on thick, but these girls needed to understand right away that they had no real understanding of anything a Guardian was or did. And that when Marc told them, they needed to listen.
    He waited, giving them the opening. If they dared to take it. Tall and strong, arms crossed over his broad chest and legs braced apart, he clearly intimidated them.
    And he was clearly so hot .
    Swallowing hard, Miklia reached for Jessica’s hand, seeking support. Kind of sweet. Too bad they were deluded murderers. “You’re a Guardian?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œAnd you know . . . you know what we’ve been doing?”
    â€œYes.” Marc’s expression turned dark and forbidding. “I know you killed your brother. Why?”
    Miklia’s face fell. Disappointment and dismay leaked through her psychic shields. “You don’t think we should have?”
    â€œGuardians only slay demons. Not vampires, not unless they deserve it. Did your brother hurt anyone?”
    Her jaw set; her lips formed a stubborn line. “He wasn’t my brother anymore.”
    â€œYes, he was. The body changes, but the soul doesn’t.” His gaze moved to meet Jessica’s. “Abram Bronner, too. The same man. The same good man.”
    Jessica’s chin lifted. “Can you prove it to us?”
    â€œYes.”
    She blinked. They all looked startled for a moment. Then Jessica collected herself, glanced at the redhead next to her. “Ines, you and Lynn need to be watching on each side of the field now, making sure no one is coming.”
    Ines looked at Marc again, her gaze lifting to the apex of his wings. “But—”
    â€œWe talked about this, Nessie,” Jessica snapped, cutting off her protest. Clearly the leader. “You got to see him up close. Now you have a responsibility to uphold—or will you fail us and leave us all exposed, like you almost did when you left your book open for everyone to see?”
    Oh, guilt trip, because someone might have seen a book open. This was a hard-core little group.
    Ines’s lower lip trembled. “No one did.”
    No one except for Gregory Jackson. But Radha noticed that Marc didn’t point that out—probably to protect the kid. These girls would probably go after him if they knew he’d seen a few titles and drawings.
    â€œOnly because someone is looking out for us,” Jessica claimed. “The book said a door would open, and it did, didn’t it? We’re on the right path, but only if you take the needed steps—and right now, those steps are not standing here. So, go. And you, Lynn. Now.”
    No more arguments. The girls took off in opposite directions, heading for the stands. So they had worked it out in advance—probably using the highest bleachers on each side as a