Lost Eden (The Soulkeepers) by G.P. Ching Page B

again. “Thank you, Frederick.” She tried to imitate what she’d heard earlier.
    “Perfect,” Ghost exclaimed.
    “Let’s do this.”
    A column of black smoke descended between them, forming into the Watcher with an echoing growl. He landed closest to Sam and blew into her knocking her to the pavement.
    “Jesse! Help!” Bonnie yelled to Ghost, who had the weapons from Eden in his backpack. She didn’t wait for him to save her sister. She barreled into the Watcher, fists flying. The creature retaliated, talons swiping toward Bonnie’s face. But before contact, the creature hesitated, confused by her mirror image appearance and his own vanity. It was all the opportunity Ghost needed. From the backpack, he whipped a chain around the Watcher’s neck. Blessed with Eden’s holy water, it hissed as it touched his skin. The man howled and fell to his knees. In a few brisk moves, Ghost lassoed his wrists.
    Standing, Bonnie tugged Samantha up from the pavement.
    “You two get out of here. I’ll take care of this,” Ghost said.
    “What about you?” Sam cried.
    “I’ll kill it and meet you.” He hooked his foot in the strap of the backpack.
    Bonnie tugged at Sam’s elbow.
    “Bonnie, here,” Ghost said, tossing her a card on a clip that he’d wrestled from the Watcher’s lapel.
    Bonnie caught the item. The Watcher’s picture stared back at her from under the Harrington Enterprises logo. This was his identification, and her only way of getting inside. The name on the card read, C. Maxwell.
    Ghost retrieved a dagger from the backpack and raised it to the struggling Watcher’s neck. Sam watched, shivering.
    “Do you need our help?” Bonnie asked.
    “No. You’re wasting time. It’s more dangerous if you’re here,” Ghost insisted.
    “Let’s go,” Bonnie said, grabbing Sam’s hand and forcing her to move. Ghost could take care of himself, and he was probably right. If something went wrong, he could dissolve into thin air. If she stayed, Samantha would be a liability, as small as she was presently.
    Bonnie forced Sam between the dumpsters, then back toward the building. Toying with the ID badge, she prayed she could pull this off. This Watcher wasn’t just influencing executives; he was employed by the enterprise. Bonnie wondered how deep she was descending into the enemy’s lair, and hoped she had what it took to make it out alive.

Chapter 13
    The Beast
     
    B onnie broke from Samantha and approached the security guard in front of the doors gripping the Harrington Enterprises ID between her sweaty fingers.
    “Mr. Maxwell. Back so soon?” the guard said, pulling the door open for her.
    Bonnie nodded. Best not to offer an explanation. “Thank you, Fredrick,” she said in the voice of the Watcher.
    “You’re welcome, sir.”
    As she approached the bank of elevators inside, she raised her knuckle to push the call button and noticed her fingers were white from gripping the ID so tightly. She slipped the square plastic badge into her suit pocket.
    “You know better than that, Mr. Maxwell,” a female voice said. Bonnie turned toward the click of heels on the marble floor. A gorgeous security guard with a thick braid of long blond hair approached, reached inside Mr. Maxwell’s pocket, and clipped the ID to the lapel of his suit. She gestured toward the doors. “With this chaos, everyone has to follow policy. Even you.”
    Bonnie smiled. “Thank you.” The words came out way too high. She cleared her throat. “Thank you.”
    The blonde giggled and winked. Oh crap, was she flirting ?
    To Bonnie’s relief, the elevator doors opened, and she escaped inside the empty compartment. She punched the button for the fourteenth floor, Harrington’s front desk per Gideon. The elevator ascended. Hovering above the number pad, Bonnie stared at her hands—man hands. Mr. Maxwell’s illusion had well-manicured fingers, long and tapered. These were executive hands, not hard-working hands like her father’s.