by SM Reine
“Mary Poppins would love this,” Betty said.
Elise shoved the box cutter into the neck hole. Her face went slack with concentration as her back muscles worked.
A long minute later, she withdrew a strip of flesh covered in glistening black fluid—and demonic brands.
“Bring me the binder on the coffee table,” she said.
Anthony flipped it open to the page marked by a sticky note. Elise had drawn a list of brands on the page and labeled them with “desert daimarachnid” and the date they had been camping. He held it up so she could see. Each brand matched, all the way down to the extra marks that obscured them.
“Does this mean the assassin was a giant spider in a human skin suit?”
“I’m saying it’s a giant spider in a skin suit owned by the same master demon as the last one.” She set down the skin, peeled off the rubber gloves, and scrubbed her arms in the sink. Her skin was red from the venom. “But it’s impossible. Mr. Black has angels, not spiders.”
Betty sat up. “Angels?”
“Long story.” Elise rolled everything up in plastic and duct taped it together so it wouldn’t leak. The resulting mummy looked way too much like a small human body. “I’ll dump this while I’m in the desert later today. I have to make our new favorite enemy have a very bad day.”
Anthony brightened. “You’re going to attack the guy who’s been after us? This Mr. Black? Then I’m coming, too.”
“Fine. I can put your mechanic skills to use on this one. But that’s not for a couple hours, so you should both sleep while you can.”
Ignoring Betty’s protests, Elise put her in James’s bed, gave her a glass of water, and shut the door. Then she pulled extra sheets out of the linen closet and dropped them on the couch.
“Where are you sleeping?” he asked.
“I’m not.”
He pulled his shirt off. Even though he had recovered a few things from his closet at home, including his trusty shotgun, pajamas hadn’t been among them. “We could sleep on the floor together. There’s plenty of room.”
“I said I’m not sleeping.” Elise’s tone was curt, but she softened the delivery by dropping a kiss on his shoulder.
“What do you want to do if you’re not sleeping?” he asked, lowering his voice so Betty wouldn’t hear if she was still awake. He touched Elise’s hip. Her eyebrows lifted.
“Seriously?”
“I don’t think I told you how hot you look in that dress,” he said, hooking a finger under one of the straps.
“What is it with you and giant spiders?” She spread her gloved hands across his broad chest and kissed his chin. “You’ve got serious issues.”
“Coming from you, that means a lot.”
She actually kind of giggled—or at least, what was a giggle for Elise, which was more of a growl. Anthony loved that he could make her do that.
He lifted her onto the back of the couch, pushed the dress up her thighs, and pressed himself between her legs. She was wearing a concealed knife, and she smelled like summer heat and sweat. Anthony wanted to devour her.
Having sex with Elise was never like “making love.” Anthony had two girlfriends in high school that had been fun and affectionate and sometimes a little wild, but with Elise, it was more like fighting a forest fire. She didn’t know how to surrender or be vulnerable. And she was never affectionate.
When he tried to bend her back for a kiss, she climbed his body and dug her fingernails into his shoulders instead. When he tried to pull off her underwear, she locked her legs around him. He tried to grab her wrists and found himself pushed back against the kitchen table. The plastic sheeting crinkled under him.
It was an unpleasant reminder that they hadn’t gotten rid of the body, and that someone was trying to kill Elise’s friends. It should have been scary. But maybe she was right about him having issues. The adrenaline only made his blood run hotter.
He tugged the straps of her dress down her shoulders and found she wasn’t wearing a bra.
“You did that on purpose,” he groaned as he palmed one of breasts, which had a thick ridge of scar tissue down the side.
She ripped his belt out so hard that one of the loops popped.
“Hey!”
Another little growl of laughter. “Deal with it.”
He caught her lips with his and kissed her, long and hard. When he finally pulled back to take a breath, her eyes were lidded and her cheeks were flushed. She really could be so beautiful sometimes. Beautiful, and scary.
“Do you ever think about the future?” Anthony murmured into her neck, trailing his hand down her thigh. His fingers traced along the edge of the knife’s sheath.
“No.”
“But it can’t be like this forever. Giant spiders and assassins.” He kissed the soft hairs behind her ear and was rewarded with a shiver.
She still managed to sound stern when she responded, even though her voice had taken a husky edge. “You’re optimistic.”
Anthony leaned back. He searched her face and found no hint of joking in it. “You retired once. You could do it again.”
“I don’t think about the future. I’m too busy surviving today.” Elise popped his fly open and snaked a hand into his boxers. “Why are you talking?”
Normally, he would have been happy to shut his mouth and enjoy himself. But her resistance to talking irked him. “What about… you know… marriage?” He caught her wrist. “Children? We’re young, and there’s lots of time…”
Her whole body went rigid. She pulled her hand out.
He realized belatedly that he had said something wrong, but he wasn’t sure what offended her more: the idea of quitting again, or the idea of a family?
She stepped back and he didn’t fight her. “You won’t bring that subject up with me again.”
Anthony laughed shakily. “We’re dating, Elise. This isn’t some taboo subject. I know you’re not used to any of this stuff, but I can tell you it’s normal for people like us to talk about things like that.”
She pulled her dress over those gorgeous breasts again. It was like throwing a steel-clad door between them. “I will never have children,” Elise said. “Kopides don’t do that. And I’m never getting married, either.”
It was hardly the coldest thing she had ever said to him, but it still felt a little like getting punched below the belt. “If we don’t have a future, then what are we doing? What’s the point?”
“We have sex. We spend time together. Isn’t that good?”
“But what about a year from now? Five years?”
She fluffed the skirt out where it had become stuck in the thigh sheath. “I’ve told you what I think. You know what? I have things to do. You need to stay here and watch Betty.”
“Yeah, but where—?”
Before he could finish the question, Elise threw the remaining pieces of the daimarachnid’s body over her shoulder and went downstairs, leaving Anthony alone.
He tried to get comfortable on the couch, but it was strange being in James’s apartment. Everything smelled like sage and jasmine and someone else’s aftershave. It didn’t help that his feet hung off the edge and that he still had half an erection that was quickly losing all hope.
Pulling the sheets up to his chin, he tried not to imagine the shadows on the ceiling were demons oozing with black pus.
After a few minutes, he heard the chain of the punching bag rattle downstairs.
IX
Elise called James’s cell phone twice and hung up on the first ring both times. She glared at his name on her contact list.
He would want to know about Betty. He deserved to know what was going on. But every time she thought about his loafers at the side of the bed, lonely without the rest of his belongings, she found herself punching the off button again.
Before she could decide if she should try to call again, her phone rang. It was Stephanie on the other end.
“If you’re trying to reach James, that’s not the way
to do it.” She sounded exasperated. “He’s at a rehearsal downtown and forgot his phone. All you’re doing is preventing me from getting enough sleep for my shift tonight.”
“Fine,” Elise said.
“Why did Betty leave the hospital early?”
She didn’t feel like explaining. The good doctor would have only taken it as another sign that she was a bad influence who shouldn’t be allowed around normal people. Instead, she turned her phone off.
Hanging up had never been so satisfying.
It was almost eleven, but Anthony and Betty were still sleeping. Her boyfriend was sprawled across the couch with his arms and legs hanging off the side. She stood over him with her arms folded as he slept. Marriage. Kids. Three months together, and he had never once made the mistake of mentioning “the future.” It left a foul taste in her mouth.
He didn’t even twitch as Elise banged around in search of clothes. She ended up donning one of Anthony’s shirts and the same jogging shorts she had been wearing the day before.
Her car smelled of brimstone, even though the body in the trunk was thoroughly wrapped in plastic. She yanked the air freshener off the mirror and tossed it in the back before parking in a garage downtown.
It wasn’t hard to find out which theater was holding their dress rehearsals. The show James was choreographing was a major production, so there were signs plastered all over the casino to advertise it. Even so, it took Elise a few minutes to navigate the gloomy floors of the casino. Like all businesses of its type, it was designed to trap tourists among the slot machines with black walls, mirrored ceilings, and confusing signs.
She slipped in the side door behind the box office. It was propped open with an empty water bottle.
The theater smelled like fresh paint and turpentine. Pieces of the set were in place while others were assembled near the orchestra pit by stagehands. She picked a seat in the back of the theater and sat down.
“One more time, from the top,” James said from the front row. He wore sweats and a shirt with the studio logo across the back.
When he gestured, a tech in the sound booth started the song again.
Elise watched the dancers, some of whom were in the bulkier pieces of their costumes, with mild bemusement. She had never been a big fan of casino shows. There was far too much glitter for her tastes.
“Having fun playing voyeur?”
David Nicholas had joined her. He draped himself over the chair at her side, reeking of cigarette smoke and filth. She tried to calm her jumping heart. She hadn’t felt his approach. “You’re here.”
“Where else would I be? Unless you finished the Night Hag’s to-do list and stuck that kopis six feet deep, I’m still on babysitting duty.”
“You won’t be much longer.”
“Good. Want a smoke?”
Elise curled her lip at the proffered cigarette. David Nicholas was even fleshier than before. His shoulders were broader, his jaw was squarer, and he was starting to look like a thug instead of a dying addict. “Has anything come near James yet?”
“Nah. Too bad, huh? Sure would make this a hell of a lot more fun. I can only watch this guy bone his girlfriend so many times before it gets boring.” At Elise’s glare, he gave a helpless shrug. “Gotta keep my eye on him. What if the doctor tried to stab him or something? Sure would be a shame if I missed it.”
“If anything happens to James, I will exorcise you to Hell. And then I’ll come down, find what remains of your corporeal body, and remove your skin with a rusty potato peeler.”
He clucked his tongue. “Naughty, naughty. Remember what the Night Hag said about playing nice.”
“Fuck playing nice. You and I both know we’ll settle this the instant our truce is over anyway.”
“Oh, yes.” David Nicholas bared his yellow teeth in a grin that stretched back to flash every molar. It was a coyote grin, inhuman and hungry. “We definitely will.”
“But your problem is with me. Don’t touch James.”
He laid a hand on his heart. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
The music reached a crescendo. James walked onstage, clapping his hands to attract the attention of the dancers. He all but glided inches off the ground. Of all the things that brought him joy—magic and music and teaching his students—nothing made him radiate like being in his element.
Watching him gather the dancers made jealousy wash over Elise. There was a time he only smiled like that for her, like when they managed to save someone or won a vicious battle.
She realized she was staring and turned back to make a parting shot at David Nicholas, but there was only emptiness beside her. He wouldn’t be far away. Nightmares never were. “I mean it,” she whispered. “Don’t touch him.”
If the nightmare was listening, he didn’t reply.
Elise found a program left on one of the seats and scrawled a note in the margin: Anthony and I are making a move against Mr. Black. I’ll call you when I’m done. She didn’t bother signing it.
When the music played again, James stayed upstage to watch the chorus line. She sneaked up to his pile of towels and tucked the program at the bottom.
She didn’t stick around to watch anything else.
Anthony and Elise stopped at a taco truck to pick up dinner before getting gasoline at the corner station. He ate as she filled a half dozen red jugs and loaded them in the cargo area of the Jeep. They had moved the body of the daimarachnid nurse behind the seats, too, and covered it in sweaters and trash to make it look unremarkable.
Elise paid for their food and gas in cash. She grimaced at the last twenty in her wallet.
“I could pay for some of this,” he suggested.
She snapped her wallet shut. “Don’t worry about it.”
They headed north out of the city, beyond the last housing development and into hills filled with wild horses. Evening fell fast in the valleys beyond civilization. The sky caught fire in a desert sunset, striping a violet sky with pink clouds and tinting the sagebrush blue.
Elise spoke on her cell phone for a long time as she drove. Actually, she didn’t talk so much as listen, punctuating the conversation with an occasional, “Okay,” or “Fine.”
“Who was that?” Anthony asked when she hung up without saying goodbye.
“That was the people I’m working with on this raid. They were arranging to pick up the cargo.”
“And who is ‘they’?”
“A demonic overlord and her court of nightmares. Nobody important.”
Anthony couldn’t tell if she was joking.
She steered the Jeep off the road, navigating carefully around the largest of rocks. Night sank over them, and soon they could only see within the beam of the headlights.
When they reached the top of a hill overlooking a dry lake bed, she turned the Jeep off and double-checked her map.
“This is it,” she said, peering through binoculars to the playa below.
There were lights at the other end of the valley. Wind rustled through the hills, carrying the sweet smell of sagebrush past them. The desert had probably gotten up to well over a hundred degrees earlier in the day, but the wind was already beginning to cool, and he found himself shivering. “See anything?” he asked.
“The odds aren’t good,” Elise said, lowering the binoculars. She tucked a dagger into her belt at the small of her back. “Probably a dozen guys out there. One per pickup. No sign of the semi yet.”
“What’s the plan?”
“I want you to disable the trucks so they can’t get away with the shipment.”
He held out a hand for the binoculars, and Elise passed them over.
They had assembled a loading bay in the middle of the desert and lit it with a generator-powered floodlight. He could make out the fleet of trucks, but he wasn’t sure how Elise deduced the number of people.
“It’s going to take a while to disable them all. I have to get into each glove box and pull the fuse for the fuel pump relay.”
“M
y contact said the semi should be due in about…” She checked the map again. “Twenty minutes from now. We need to be in and out before they realize their trucks won’t start.”
“What if they see us?” Anthony asked.
She just looked at him. Shadows carved her face with deep crags and harsh lines. It was the face of someone who had gone against such odds before and come out alive. He felt immediately stupid for asking.
“We kill them,” she said.
Anthony nodded and swallowed hard.
Elise took a moment to roll her shoulders and touch her toes, going through the motions of stretching while Anthony refilled the gas tank for a quick getaway. He dumped the plastic-wrapped body down a ditch, which felt like it had been almost entirely dissolved by venom, then fit his shotgun into his back scabbard and gave her a thumbs up.
She ran, and he hurried to follow.
The desert rushed past him. Elise dodged around the sagebrush and rocks and he followed. It’s just like our camping trip, he told himself again, and he tried not think about their odds of coming back.
There was no subtlety in their run, no grace. The semi couldn’t get to the bay before they did.
When they drew within a hundred meters of the ring of light, Elise stopped. Anthony was breathing hard. He didn’t do nearly enough cardio to keep up. “You good?” she asked, and he nodded as he wheezed. “We’ll sneak around back.” Another nod.
The men talked loudly by the loading bay—something about bitches and liquor—and didn’t notice their approach. Elise and Anthony ran to the tall end of the loading bay.
She crouched behind it, pulled him down beside her, and peeked over the top of the wooden platform.
The pickups were parked in two neat rows. Most of the drivers talked and smoked in a cluster by the light, leaving the vehicles unattended. Why worry? They were hours from the city. “Fifteen guards,” she whispered. “They’re human. And armed.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but she put a finger over his lips. Then she slid around the side of the loading bay, and he followed.