by J. P. Rice
Satoku avoided eye contact, shifting around on the cushion. “Think about it. You’re only twenty-three and I’m twenty-one. It’s nice to dream and think we would stay together forever through a long-distance relationship, but it’s just so unlikely. I think we would be doing ourselves a disservice to stay together.”
A wave of shock rolled over my body, causing that uncomfortable feeling of bugs crawling under your skin. It felt like she had just ripped my heart out and thrown it in the trash. I spoke, not knowing what words were coming out, “If that’s what you want, I won’t stand in your way.”
“I don’t want it to be like that. I think it will be a challenge. Who knows, we might split up only to realize how much we need each other. I don’t know what will happen, but this is going to be for two years. I don’t want you to close yourself off from all other women because of me.”
I tried to make sense of it all. “I don’t want to hold you back either. With my magic lifestyle, this is probably best anyway.”
That’s not what I wanted to say. I wanted to tell her she was making a huge mistake. That we were perfect for each other and she would find no one as good as me. I wanted to scream in her face.
But I didn’t. I didn’t really listen to the rest of the conversation. We’d already addressed the important matters. She’d just dumped me. A desperate feeling rattled around my insides, the same one I used to get when a family was kicking me out of its home. Why did this keep happening?
She hugged me like a stranger, her hands patting my back. Had I really known this woman? My entire body beat with my heart and numbness washed over me.
Why couldn’t anyone love me? Why couldn’t a relationship ever work out for me?
Satoku left, and I collapsed onto my couch, trying to hold back the tears. Colossus raced over, leaping up onto my lap. He mashed his head into my chest and licked my chin. Normally, these acts caused a huge smile to appear on my face. Not today.
I sat there with my dog, totally neglecting the dragons that could ravish the city at any time. The only thing I could focus on was my shattered heart. What the fuck had just happened?
The brusque breakup had only lasted a few minutes. Unsure of what to do, I stumbled into the kitchen. After pacing for a few minutes, I dug into the cabinet and pulled out an old friend who was always there for me.
Jameson Irish Whiskey.
I took a few gulps, trying to chase away the misery. It was as if I’d stepped into a vortex to nihility. Nothing. Darkness. There were my old friends. Hello, loneliness. Hi there, abandonment. Why did it seem like I was constantly being punished?
My mind kickstarted again, and I took another swig of Jameson. The breakup seemed to be a karmic response for locking the female demon in my office. Perhaps the cosmos had decided that I needed to learn a lesson. I knew one thing: I had to free the demon.
I wanted to talk to her first and be positive I was not unloading a demonic killer on Pittsburgh. However, I was rather certain she wasn’t like other demons. At least the demons I’d known. The brief storm died down and I made the short walk to my office to release her.
My phone rang right before I left. Caller ID said, Raymond Crenshaw. The Mayor of Pittsburgh.
I took a deep breath, trying to settle my fragile emotions. “Hello, Mike Merlino.”
“Hi Mike, this is Mayor Crenshaw. I wanted to thank you again for saving me yesterday. I wouldn’t be having this conversation if it weren’t for you.”
My dog rushed up and mashed his head into my calf. He never wanted to be left out. “I wish I could have saved more people.”
“You and me both. However, this seems like a problem that might take your area of expertise to solve. I just got off the phone with the President and he suggested military strikes with fighter jets and drones.”
“No. You can’t do that.”
“I told him that. We still have citizens trapped in our city. Also, it will completely decimate Pittsburgh. The enemy basically has hostages that can’t leave, insulating themselves from attack. We kiboshed the strike, but I need to come up with a plan.”
I paced back and forth. “I have firm footing to go on, but this isn’t something that can be taken care of in a few days. I have to go on a special mission that is our only chance. This trip will take at least a week though. And I don’t even know if it will be the ultimate solution.”
“We’re desperate. If you can solve this situation within a fortnight, I am prepared to pay you handsomely to return our city. How does one million dollars sound?”
Dollars signs clouded my vision, bringing tears of joy to my eyes. Growing up poor, a million dollars had never seemed attainable. Words eluded me.
The mayor countered his own offer, “All right, how about two million?”
I was a better negotiator than I thought. The Silent Assassin. “That sounds great, Mister Mayor, but I can’t guarantee anything.”
“I realize that but I just want our city back. I know that isn’t a wild amount considering you are saving a city, but with the amount of rebuilding that will be necessary, I think it’s fair.”
“It’s definitely fair. I don’t want to get your hopes up though.”
“I hate to say it, but my only hope lies with you or this mage named Felix that my aides keep telling me about.”
I knew Felix would accept that deal in a nanosecond. “I’ll take your offer. But as I said, there’s no guarantee on results.”
“Thank you, Mr. Merlino.”
“I’ll call you when I have updates to report.”
“I appreciate that. Bye now.”
“Goodbye.”
I hung up the phone, unexcited. What did money mean if I had nobody to share it with? I could be the sleazy guy at the strip club. Or the crazy cat guy living alone in a big house? Confusion clouded my head.
Why had she done it? Was it really Princeton, or was it me? Was there something wrong with me? Was I cursed in finding happiness with a woman?
I wallowed in misery, taking a few more pulls from the Jameson bottle and something tugged at my heart. Even though one girl had ripped my heart out, I couldn’t be cruel to another, demon or not. Time to free the woman in my office closet.
Chapter 6
The rambunctious demon booted me in the chest with the soles of both her feet, jostling me backward. I yelled, “Hey. Didn’t you hear what I just said? I’m trying to let you go, you stupid demon.”
She growled, “I tend not to trust kidnappers. And I’m half-demon.”
“What?” I deactivated the wards on her bungee cords and unraveled them. A ward was a magic spell created to lock something.
She clarified, “I’m half-demon, half-human.”
“Why didn’t you say that from the start?”
She rolled her wrists around as she spoke, “You were too busy being a high and mighty human for me to tell you. Don’t you have a little demon blood running through you?”
I helped her up to her feet. She wobbled at first but held on to my forearm for a few moments until she straightened out.
“You’re crazy. This is one hundred percent human wizard blood.” I held my arms out at my sides, showing off my six-foot-three frame.
She narrowed her eyes. “Do you even know anything about Merlin?”
“How do you know about that?”
After being cooped up in the closet for a day, the demon bounced up and down and stretched out her arms. “I know a little about Merlin. And the Red Cavern knows a lot about you.”
“How?”
“The same way you know things about them.” She played with her hair. “People talk. You do know that Merlin’s father was an incubus, right?”
Honestly, I was ashamed about the fact that I’d been thrown into the job of the magical guardian of Pittsburgh and hadn’t learned about my background. I didn’t know much about the famous wizard whose blood I shared.
I’d read a few accounts but Alayna had told me not to believe those stories. She said
that she would tell me the true story of Merlin and our connection when the time was right.
I spoke defensively, “That’s just a rumor about Merlin being part demon. Most historical accounts are wrong.”
She cracked her neck. “How do you know that your historical account is correct?”
I grinned. “Because I know people that were around when that stuff happened. I’m pretty sure my ancestor wasn’t half-demon.”
The demon chuckled. “Pretty sure? So you freely admit that you don’t know.”
I didn’t like being cornered by the truth and changed the subject. “Stop this nonsense. I’m trying to be nice to you. I saw your friends, the Jersey Devil and Aka Manah earlier today.”
“So that’s it?” Tears pooled in her eyes.
“That’s what?”
She sniffled. “You’re only letting me go because they are waiting outside for me. I should have known.” She lowered her head and marched toward the door.
I put out my arm and stopped her. “Will you let me finish?”
“So sorry for interrupting you, your highness,” she stated perfectly and completed the sentiment with a mock curtsy. She had no shortage of moxie.
I took a deep breath. “You’re making it awfully hard for me to be nice to you. They made me an offer. You for the knife that could save my life.”
“And you said...no?” She tilted her head to the side in confusion, jaw wide open.
“I did.” I nodded proudly.
Her mouth was still agape. “Why?”
“Because I’m not a monster. Despite every action you’ve seen from me, this isn’t actually who I am. I want to talk to you for a little bit and if I feel you are safe, I’ll let you go.”
She shook her head and backed away. “I can’t help but think this is a setup.”
She wasn’t naïve. I held up two open palms. “And I can’t blame you for thinking that. But it’s true.”
“What are you going to do about your knife?”
I scratched the top of my head, unsure of a proper plan. “At this point my only option is to kick open the door to the Red Cavern and take it back by force.”
She laughed. “I advise strongly against that. Unless you have a death wish, that is a stupid plan.”
“I know it’s a stupid plan, but right now—it’s my only option. I just need time to figure out something.”
She bounced from foot to foot, seemingly restless. “What do you want to talk about?”
I turned it around on her. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Okay.” Her eyes lit up. “If you were just released from prison on another planet, what place would you visit first? I want to see all the great sights before I die.”
I stroked the stubble on my chin. “Tell you what. Why don’t we go back to my house and talk about that? Make sure you stay in human form when we go outside. What’s your name, anyway?”
“Burn.”
“Burn? Like a fire?”
The demon nodded. “Exactly. It’s short for Burnette, which is short for Burnadette. I prefer Burn.”
“Burn it shall be. Ready?” I gestured with an extended arm toward the front door.
As we were walking the twenty yards to my apartment, Burn pointed to the road. “What’s that? It’s pretty.”
I peered at the reflective grease spot on the street. “That’s just gasoline or motor oil that leaked out of someone’s car and is causing a rainbow reflection from the sunlight. Just chemicals.”
Sunlight. The storm had passed, taking the dark clouds with it and letting the sun come out to play. I reflected on Burn’s observation. Most people would just see that brilliant image and dismiss it off hand, but she saw the raw beauty.
We got to my apartment, and I ushered her inside with an open, inviting palm. Upon entering, she exclaimed, “Books. I love books. You’re a bibliomaniac.”
Burn wandered over to the bookshelves in my living room. The small room housed a brown couch and matching loveseat. A rectangular coffee table sat in the middle of the room. Four bookshelves lining one of the walls completed the floor furniture. Above one bookshelf hung my Pablo Picasso painting of Mother and Child. Jonathan Rickleshaw had given it to me, and I loved it more with each passing day.
My sneakers squeaked on the hardwood as I spun around to close the door.
“Sort of. I don’t officially own all these books. My mentor lent them to me. Those are my shared, but also prized, possessions there. Do they have a lot of books in the Red Cavern?”
“Yeah,” Burn confirmed and smirked. “They steal books from the humans. And we have our own originals. If they can’t get their hands on physical copies, they will have the text typed into a database that keeps digital copies. Demon women basically have the duties of a housewife. Cooking, cleaning and raising the children. Surprisingly, it leaves a lot of time to read and learn.”
She spoke with an air of intelligence so that made perfect sense. “I guess we have to get you fed. I’m not familiar with demon dining habits. Are you omophagous?”
“No, I like men,” she said with an awkward giggle.
I cocked my head to the side and scrunched my eyebrows. “No, I meant do you eat raw meat?”
“I heard humans like to joke.” Her ugly smile faded. “Guess not.”
I wasn’t in a comedic mood right now. “Not true. We just enjoy good jokes. So, about the food?”
Burn scrunched up her nose and shrugged her shoulders. “Well, I’m going to keep trying with the jokes. I need practice. Let’s see—my dining habits are varied. I can eat raw meat, but I prefer it cooked.”
We went into the kitchen and I made her a huge meal of breakfast sausage, eggs, toast and home fries. I grabbed a red plate about the size of a frisbee and loaded it up, assuming she wasn’t still full from the beef jerky I’d given her.
Peeking out of my peripheral, I noticed her inspecting the fork I’d given her. I barely had time to lay the plate in front of her before I nearly lost a finger. She attacked the meal with vigor, scarfing down the full plate of food in less than two minutes.
She hadn’t given me the chance to introduce her to the wonderful world of Heinz Ketchup. I finished my meal, feeling emasculated by her impressive eating habits.
We moved into the living room and seated ourselves on the couch. She said, “I can’t believe you cooked a meal for me.”
“Why not?”
Burn explained, “Because it would never happen in the Red Cavern. The demons believe in a very paternalistic society. They breed dependency on the male to survive. Women are simply viewed as empty vessels to serve the needs of the men.”
“On earth, you’ll find a lot of role reversals in the gender game. Some men up here do the same exact things you do in the Red Cavern.”
She picked a chunk of sausage out of her teeth as she nodded, and said, “Very interesting. I’m still trying to learn the American culture and all of its nuances.”
“How do you learn about American culture? I assumed the devils would burn those kinds of books.”
“They do. I try to get to them before that happens.” She shifted around on the cushions. “We also have the internet, which is where I do most of my research, but it isn’t exact. The funniest thing I’ve seen are the videos individuals post on...what is it called...me tube?”
“YouTube.”
Her visage bounced around like a bobblehead doll. “And a YouTube to you too.” She giggled again, this time not sounding as awkward as the first effort. Demons enjoyed stupid videos and jokes too, who knew?
I realized she probably didn’t get much time to laugh and be merry in the demonic underground known as the Red Cavern. The relaxed conversation continued, but all I could think about was Satoku. Had we really broken up earlier today? Was that just a dream?
The aroma of burnt orange and toasted sesame wafted into my living room. I instinctually got up from my couch and followed my nose to the kitchen. My special candle on the kitchen count
er was burning. How?
I poked my head back into the living room and pursed my lips, deep in thought. “Do you like to drink alcohol?”
Chapter 7
“I’ve only drank alcohol a few times,” Burn said shyly and rocked her head back and forth in a wishy-washy way.
“That’s a yes. I’ve got a special treat for you.” I poured a few rocks glasses of Jameson and returned to my living room.
Burn took a tiny sip and her eyes shot open like she’d just mainlined a pot of coffee. She fanned her mouth with her right hand and spoke in a low, gruff pitch, “Ironically, it burns.”
I chuckled.
She rolled her eyes. “Really. A stupid pun about my name is funnier than those golden jokes from earlier?”
I nodded, starting to forget about Satoku. “Much more humorous.”
She playfully slapped me in the chest. “You never told me a location I could visit to see the wonders of earth. Seeing and hearing about them in books and computer screens just isn’t the same.”
I sank back into the couch, feeling comfortable with the demon. “I’m probably not the best person to ask that. I haven’t done very much traveling in my day. Plus, I’m headed to a little place called Sleepy Hollow soon.”
Her eyes widened and the silver flecks in her irises danced with excitement. “The land of Fae? You should take me with you.” She nodded rapidly, trying to influence my decision.
I took a sip of my beverage and thought about it for a moment. “Not going to happen. They don’t take kindly to demons from what I’ve heard. Also, my mentor is a faerie and she is biased against demons too. Not only that, but there is a good chance you will get killed.” I punctuated the point with a stern look as I tapped my fingers against the rocks glass.
“That’s exactly what I want.” Her pupils widened with wanderlust. She said excitedly, “A wild adventure where I can see new and wonderful things. Don’t you need someone who has a strong grasp on magic to go with you?” She winked.