Demons

by Heather Frost

  “You're not even a teacher?” For some reason, that really bothered me.

  He rolled his eyes at my outraged tone. “Of course I am. I used to teach high school. But with a little Demon help, school districts don't ask a lot of questions.”

  “You expect me to believe that you actually care about Lee's mom?” I asked, incredulous.

  “Yes.” The truth in his aura was undeniable. The sudden burst of yellow and blue were undertones of that conviction. “And that's why I have to listen to Selena. If I don't… she's going to come after Jeanette and Lee.”

  I let that sink in, and suddenly the air was a lot heavier. Even without his aura, I knew from his eyes that he was telling the truth. He was being completely honest with me in this moment. He really didn't want to be doing this.

  “Why? Why are you following Selena's orders? How does she have any hold on you?”

  “Selena made me,” he said simply.

  “Made you do this?” I asked, confused.

  “No. Well, yes… But she made me. Turned me into a Seer.” He must have seen my incomprehension. He sighed deeply. “I was sailing with some friends, just over a year ago. A terrible storm came up out of nowhere. We were experienced sailors, but the lines ripped during the storm, and we overturned. I nearly died, Kate. All of us did. And then Selena was there, with some of her Demon friends. She saved us, pulled us from the water.” He shook his handsome face, a snort punctuating the air. “She rigged the whole accident, of course. She wanted us to nearly die. She wanted us to be like this.”

  I could feel the horror on my face. “You mean… she intentionally turned you into a Seer?”

  He nodded once, and the gun quavered at his side. “She took us to a prison, locked us in cells. She explained our new world to us, and then she promised to kill us if we ever disobeyed her.”

  “You and your friends—you work for her?” I was still trying to grasp the fact that the Demons had created their own Seers. Maybe they were sick of fighting over the regular rabble, sick of dealing with the Guardians. It was a disturbing thought.

  He laughed mirthlessly at my halted question. “Don't sound so accusing. I didn't have a couple Guardians looking out for me. It was help Selena or be killed. Devin—he learned that the hard way. Only three of us are left now. We have no other choice.”

  “That's not true. Of course you have a choice. All you had to do was find a Guardian, tell them what you've been through—”

  “And have Selena come hunt us down?” He shook his head. “No. I can live without that experience.”

  “So you'd rather be her puppet?” I questioned stiffly. “Demons kill people.”

  “Yeah. I know.” We both looked down at the gun directed at me. It was as steady as a rock.

  I glanced out my window, saw that Lee was staring through her window at me. Her face was a calm mask, but her aura was terrified.

  I pulled in a steadying breath and looked back to Peter, who was scowling out the front window. “What are you supposed to do?” I asked softly. “What are you going to do to me? To Lee?”

  He avoided my questions. “What did Selena say on the phone?”

  I decided resisting wouldn't do any good. “Not much. She was wondering if you'd done it yet.”

  Surprising me, he rolled his eyes in exasperation. “That woman needs to get a life…”

  “What did she mean?” I dared ask. I was feeling a lot less threatened somehow. Maybe because I now understood where he was coming from—the terror he'd been living with, and the realization that he was trying to protect Lee and her mom. The gun seemed less like a threat and more like a formality. Neither of us wanted it there, but for the safety of those we loved, it needed to stay in place.

  Peter sighed and then tried to explain. “She wanted me to corner you. I've been meaning to do it for days, but… I lost my nerve every time. I don't want to be this person, Kate. But I don't have another choice. Selena will kill us all.”

  “Peter, we can protect you. I promise.”

  “Like you protected your family? No offense, Kate, but Selena told me everything. She got your sisters easily enough. I'm not letting Jeanette and Lee get dragged into this.”

  “You've sort of already done that. You pulled a gun on her,” I reminded him bluntly.

  He sighed again, more heavily this time. “I know. But I couldn't let you get away—or get hurt. You were driving like an idiot.”

  “More like driving to avoid the idiot chasing me.”

  He smiled just a little, and I truly felt bad for him in that moment, despite everything he'd just put me and Lee through. “I've made a mess of things,” he whispered, almost to himself. “Lee thinks I'm insane now, and when your Guardians find out what I've done… I'm a dead man either way.”

  I tried to distract him from thoughts of death and Selena's dreaded revenge, and help him toward making a decision—letting us go. “So you were supposed to corner me. Then what?”

  “Pass along a message.”

  “Which is?”

  He hesitated, but not for long. “‘You have my number. Call me when you run out of ideas.’ “

  I blinked, shocked by the simplicity of the anticlimactic message. “She threatened all our lives, just for that? What sort of…?” My words died as the full impact of her words hit me abruptly.

  Patrick. She knew about Patrick. There was no other explanation. She knew that he was sick. Had she planned all of that too? Had she purposefully planted an infected Guardian in the area, knowing that Patrick would try to help him? It was the sickest thing I'd ever heard. Mostly because it had worked so effectively.

  But how had she known he would contract the virus? Terence had made it clear that most Guardians seemed immune…

  And then her message was suddenly so clear, and nothing else mattered.

  She had the cure.

  Of course she did. That was the whole point, after all. The Demons wanted me, and now they had the most tempting bait. They'd lure me in with the promise of saving Patrick's life. It was a perfect plan. A horribly perfect plan. Because just as she'd known that Patrick would go after the sick Guardian, she knew that I would do anything to keep him alive. Meeting with Clyde was no longer a priority. Not when Toni and I could work out a more definite course of action.

  Peter was speaking, unconscious of the fact that I was undergoing one of the most overwhelming moments of my day so far—worse than being kidnapped by him was the knowledge that Selena had complete control of the situation. “I know—dumb. And message delivered. I'm supposed to threaten you into silence, so your friends and family don't find out. But obviously that cat's out of the bag. Your Guardians are probably searching for you already.”

  I nodded distractedly, forcing thoughts of what exactly Selena would want from me, aside from my freedom. What the Demon Lord could possibly want me for. “Yes,” I answered his half-question distractedly. “And you need to let me call them.”

  “Kate, I can't let them find me. I have to stay here and do whatever Selena wants—or else Jeanette and Lee… I can't let your Guardians kill me or stop me from following Selena's every order.”

  “But I can protect you from her,” I protested, trying to keep the impatience out of my voice. “In a way, we're all after the same thing—keeping people safe.”

  He shook his head. “I need to help her. Please, try to understand.”

  I glanced down at the gun he held and then spoke mildly. “So what now? You hold me at gunpoint the rest of our lives? How does that help anyone?”

  His eyes became earnest. “I want a compromise. If you're willing.”

  What choice did I really have? I needed to get Lee out of this mess, and I needed to talk to Patrick and Toni. They needed to know that Selena held the cure for the virus.

  “What are your terms?” I asked.

  He looked relieved, and his words were rushed. “I want you to call your Guardians off. They can't touch me. I also want you—and them—to keep from interfe
ring with any of my future orders.”

  I shook my head. “I can't just let you work for Selena. She's trying to hurt everyone I care about.”

  “Those are my terms. Agree to them, and I'll let you go.” I knew he didn't want to draw these ultimatums—but I could sort of see his point too. He was just doing what he thought he had to do to keep the people he loved from getting hurt. I could understand that, even if I wished he could see my side.

  “I won't stop you from helping Selena,” I finally agreed. Before he could thank me, I continued firmly. “But I will try to keep her plans from succeeding.”

  He blew out his breath. “That seems like a bit of a gray area, but… I can live with it for now.”

  I held out my hand. “Give me a phone. I'll negotiate your terms with my Guardians.”

  A heartbeat later Peter was reaching into his pocket, drawing out my phone. He handed it to me, almost eagerly. “Don't tell them where we are,” he warned as an afterthought. “Not until they agree to the terms.”

  I offered a quick nod and then took the phone. I thought about calling Toni, but then I realized I wouldn't be sparing Patrick from anything because he'd been the last one to talk to Lee. He probably wasn't taking a nap anymore.

  I glanced out my window at Lee while the phone began to ring, and our eyes met briefly. She was obviously freaking out, but she was shockingly in control. At least on the outside. Her calm was enviable, and I don't think there was any way I would have been that confident looking if our places had been swapped. I offered her a timid smile, trying to reassure her that everything was going to be fine.

  I think I heard Peter sigh regretfully at my side, but I didn't comment on it because Patrick was answering.

  “Kate?” he gasped, his voice cracking.

  “Patrick, it's all right,” I soothed quickly, wincing sympathetically when I heard how terrified he sounded. “I'm all right, I promise.”

  “I heard you scream.” His desperate voice broke on the last word.

  “I'm fine. We both are.”

  “Where are you?” he demanded.

  I hesitated, casting a quick glance to Peter's tense face. “He doesn't want me to tell you that yet.”

  There was a slight pause—the thrum of the engine the only sound coming from the other side of the phone—and then his voice was dangerously narrow, barely controlled. “I'm going to kill him. I swear I'm going to kill him…”

  “Patrick, please calm down. You're going to make yourself sick.”

  “Nothing could make me feel worse than I do now,” he assured me darkly. “Kate, I need you to give me something. A hint. Anything to help us find you.”

  “I can't do that.”

  “Why?” I heard him struggle to swallow. “He's threatening you.” A statement of fact—no hint of question. “What has he done? Is Lee all right?”

  “He wants to negotiate a compromise. A truce.”

  “What sort of truce?” He seethed impatiently, upset that I wasn't cooperating with him. Or maybe he was just infuriated that we had to have this conversation at all.

  “I can tell you our location if you agree not to hurt him.”

  “I can't promise that,” Patrick nearly growled. I could hear the pain he was trying to mask, and I knew that his condition had somehow worsened since I'd last seen him—a mere half hour ago. My stomach clenched in awful panic, and I wondered how long he had left. A day? Maybe two?

  “Please,” I whispered, hoping that the softness of my voice would somehow calm his pain and fury. “This isn't what it looks like. Peter was only doing what he had to do—to keep Lee and her mom safe. He's working for Selena, but only because he's being blackmailed.”

  “He took you away from me. No excuses can save him.”

  “Patrick, I know this sounds crazy, but… I won't let you hurt him.”

  I could feel Peter Keegan's shocked eyes on my face, knew that Patrick was probably sporting a similar expression, so I hurried to explain myself to the both of them. “He's already put himself in danger for Lee and her mom. He doesn't want to hurt me—he's just trying to protect the ones he loves. Is that so hard to understand?”

  There was a long silence, then, “What are his terms?”

  I sent Peter a fast look, daring him to argue my next words. “Just promise you won't hurt him. We can discuss the rest when you get here. He can explain things to you as long as you give him the chance.”

  “Kate…” I imagined him looking to Toni, desperate for some way around this impossible oath he knew he had to make. “I… I promise. I won't hurt him.”

  I gave Peter a nod, and he nervously dipped his head, allowing me to continue. “We're at Johnson's Park. Do you know where that is?”

  His voice was curt. “We can find it.”

  “We're parked on the east side.” I hesitated, knowing that he wouldn't want to hear what I was going to say next. “Patrick, I'm going to have to hang up.”

  “What? No. I need you to stay with me.”

  “Lee needs me right now. She's completely confused. Please, try to understand.”

  There was a long, icy silence. But when he finally spoke he seemed to be in control. “You're right. Of course. Just… just promise me that you'll be okay.”

  “Honestly, Patrick, I'm fine. He's not going to hurt us.”

  “I'll be there soon.”

  “I love you.”

  He swallowed. “I love you.”

  I pursed my lips, murmured a last good-bye, and then ended the call. I handed the phone back toward Peter, but he waved his free hand. “Keep it.”

  I nodded my thanks and slipped it into my pocket. I took a deep breath, then faced him fully. “You need to let me talk to Lee.”

  He shook his head, almost to himself. “I didn't want her to know about any of this. Demons, Seers… I didn't want her to know any of it.”

  “Well, you either let me explain things to her, or she's going to press charges. You know that. If you really want to stay here and protect them, Lee needs to understand what's going on. Or else she's going to tell her mom all of this, and you'll be lucky if you don't get arrested.”

  “I know,” he whispered. “I just… I don't want her to be afraid of me.”

  “It's a little late for that,” I told him, feeling slightly sorry for him but keeping my voice firm. “Let me go to her.”

  He considered for just a moment, then he surrendered with a nod. “Just stay where I can see you.”

  I opened the car door, glanced back at the gun, then stepped carefully outside. Lee watched me as I closed my door and reached to open hers. Once I was holding it, she threw a look over my shoulder, toward Peter.

  “What's going on?” she asked lowly. “What's he doing?”

  I laid my hand on her nearest arm, squeezing gently. “It's okay. He's not going to hurt us.”

  She grunted, still not looking at me. “Good. I mean, now that that's all cleared up, I'll just go buy him a thank-you card.”

  “Lee.” The confidence in my voice finally caused her to move her stunned eyes to my face. My heart constricted a little, knowing that I'd put her through too much. “Lee, it's going to be okay. Patrick and Toni are on their way. You'll be home soon. I promise, everything's going to be fine.”

  “We were kidnapped, Kate. He had a gun—he pointed it at us. What does he want from us?”

  “It's kind of complicated.”

  “You saw his aura. How did you miss his psychotic edge?”

  I took a steadying breath, and then reached for her hand. “Walk with me. There's something I've been meaning to tell you…”

  Lee's aura was pretty wild. Almost every emotion possible to feel, she was feeling. But despite my fears about how she'd react to my secrets, I was just relieved to finally be telling her everything.

  And I told her everything. It was a rush of words, but once they were out I felt much better. I told her about Toni being the invisible man that had been haunting me in the beginning, told her
about the Demons who had been after me; all about Patrick, Guardians, and Seers… She listened without speaking, her eyes occasionally widening. Like when she learned my grandpa used to fight Demons. Or when she learned that Toni was immortal.

  “So… he's not a freshman in college?” Lee said, opening her mouth at last.

  I smiled just a little. “Not even.”

  We were sitting on a strip of grass, under a large tree. I knew that Peter was watching us from the inside of my car, but we were far enough that I felt alone with Lee.

  As my explanation came to an end, I saw Lee's aura lose a large portion of the fear and anxiety that had been plaguing her. Her tense shoulders were relaxed. Her eyes weren't as guarded.

  I took a deep breath. “And that's pretty much everything. That's why Patrick and Toni were here in the first place—to help me. To protect me.”

  Lee shook her head slowly, her eyes on the ground. “Wow. I mean… wow.”

  “It's a lot to take in.”

  “And then some.” She glanced up at me. “Why didn't you tell me this? We're best friends, Kate. Why would you keep something like this from me?”

  I'd known this question would come. It was one of the reasons I'd worried about telling her everything in the first place. But now that she'd asked it, I had an answer for her.

  “I didn't tell you because you are my best friend. I know that sounds messed up, but… Lee, I needed to keep some part of my life normal. And I entrusted that to you. Because you're one of the only constant, real things in my crazy life. I know I wasn't being fair to you, but…” The right words were suddenly lost to me, but I didn't need to continue. Lee was reaching for my hand, gripping my fingers.

  “It's okay. I understand. Yeah, I feel a little left out. But friends do what they have to do—be what they have to be. And I'm glad that you knew I would be this for you.”

  I smiled gratefully. “Thank you. You're the best.”