by Serena Robar
She smirked and wandered back toward the living room, where Thomas was relaxing on one of the fluffy couches.
I returned with washcloth in hand and gently washed his neck and face. At first, he put up a fight about all the fussing but it didn’t take long for him to enjoy the extra attention. I waited until we were finally alone before I broached the subject.
“Thomas, how worried were you about demon possession before this happened?”
He thought a long moment. “It’s a concern most older vampires have. The ones who have been around a long while. They tend to get paranoid and that’s part of the process. I honestly didn’t worry about it until I started having those crazy dreams. By then, I guess it was too late. I wasn’t in full control and I couldn’t remember large blocks of time.”
“The symbol on your chest will protect you from demon possession but it has an extra, let’s call it, feature as well,” I told him.
He looked puzzled. “Really? What’s that?”
“I sort of fixed your whole missing piece of essence problem.”
“What do you mean?”
“You see, vampires can’t really get tattoos. We heal so quickly that a traditional tattoo disappears right away. We sort of stay the way we looked when we became Undead.”
He nodded impatiently. Every vampire knew that.
I struggled with a tactful way to put the next part. I felt like I was about to confess a shotgun wedding. “The only way for my plan to work was to create a potion that lasted on the Undead. It required the help of a witch, er, a Magick Engineer.”
His furrowed brow was a great indication that he was still clueless as to where I was taking this.
“So, the potion doesn’t just make a permanent tattoo. It’s a spell that filled the empty hole of your soul with mine and kind of fused them so we are sort of one. Entwined. Soul mates.”
I waited for the full implication of what I was saying to register with him. Did he realize that we were, in essence, married forever? If we separated or left each other, we would be incomplete.
He looked at me carefully. “And you were aware of this when you created the plan?”
“Yes.”
“How did you feel about it?” His voice was carefully neutral.
“I was fine with it. I mean, I didn’t really think it mattered since we were, you know, in love, but it occurred to me that you might not want to be saddled with me through eternity. I mean, you love me but that doesn’t mean you want my soul replacing your missing essence.” I was wringing the washcloth in my hands.
“Colby, you saved my life. And this isn’t the first time. The minute I met you, I knew you were the one. Every vampire dreams of finding someone they can love; the fact that you were already Undead, that I wouldn’t lose you to aging, was more than I could hope for.” He sat up, swung his legs off the couch and took the washcloth from me.
“I knew the first time we met that my soul belonged to you.” He took my hands in his. “We belong to each other, Colby. I’m yours forever and it seems you’re stuck with me forever as well.”
I smiled at his joke. “You’re not mad?” I whispered.
“Are you?” he countered. I was shocked.
“How could I be mad? You would have done it for me. You wouldn’t even have hesitated. I love you.”
“So there was hesitation?” he teased.
I rolled my eyes. “Uh, yeah. Did you not see my new ugly tattoo? But I did it for you. Now that’s true love, baby.”
Sixteen
PIPER
“Hunter, please wait up. I know you’re upset but can’t you see it wasn’t Thomas but Barnaby?” I tried to chase him down as he hurried out of the house.
I caught up to him and we walked down the street, away from Mrs. Murphy’s house. We came to the park outside the University and Hunter sat at the first bench he came to. I joined him.
“I had to leave,” he whispered when I didn’t say anything more to him.
“I understand.”
“No, I don’t think you do.” He shook his head. “I had to leave, not because Barnaby torched the archive,” he said, looking into my eyes. “And I do recognize it wasn’t Thomas but Barnaby.”
I was relieved.
“I should have been there. I should have saved my grandfather. I quit being a Demon Slayer because I didn’t like that it was forced upon me and now what? I’m still a Demon Slayer. I’ll always be a Demon Slayer. But now I’m alone.”
I thought about what he said. True, his family was gone, but he wasn’t alone. He wasn’t the last Demon Slayer. I was here. Maybe I wasn’t born to it and raised with it, but I was a Demon Slayer nonetheless. I reached over and put my hand in his.
Mr. Whiskers found us sitting in contemplative silence.
“Word on the street is you took out Barnaby.” He sat down in front of us.
“Not now, Mr. Whiskers,” I said.
He ignored me. “And my buddy who used to live at Mrs. Murphy’s has a new pad courtesy of the Huntress here.” I’d forgotten about the gray cat that warned me about the plot to attack Aunt Chloe using the blood van.
“You know, it was pretty smart of you to call the animal police. They rounded up all those demons and really put a kink in Barnaby’s plans. You saved the day, girlie. Thanks to my friend. You won’t be forgettin’ a promise, now will you?”
“I never promised. I said I’d see what I could do.”
The cat snorted. “A promise is a promise.”
“Look, can’t this wait? We’re kind of in the middle of something.” I looked meaningfully at Hunter.
The cat licked its right paw. “Sorry to hear about the family, Hunter, I liked your granddad. He was a great ol’ Slayer. I missed him after he quit.”
“He didn’t quit, he retired,” Hunter corrected.
The cat snorted again. “Hardly. A Slayer doesn’t retire. Ever. You should know that. He quit. Plain and simple. He thought he could play with his books and study the journals but that’s not what a Slayer does. He let Barnaby get the drop on him. Wouldn’t fight him. Said he wasn’t a Slayer anymore.” The cat shook his head. “I’ve seen a fair amount of Slayers in my day but one thing is constant through them all. You can’t quit who you are. To do anything else is suicide.”
The cat stretched. “Now I’m counting on you to keep your word, missy. I’m sending my friend over to that fancy vampire house. You best make it right.” And he left us in the park.
We were both stunned. How was Hunter going to take this news?
“It doesn’t change anything,” he said quietly. “I still could have protected him if I’d been there.”
“Or you could have died with him,” I stated the obvious. “Listen, you saved all of us tonight. We couldn’t have done it without you. If Mrs. Murphy had gotten to Colby, it would have been all over. I’m very sorry about what happened to your grandfather, I really am; but you have a gift and, as much as you hate it, you have a responsibility.”
I stood up. “Do you think I want to be a Slayer? Look at me! I’m afraid of, well, everything, I freeze under pressure and my only Slaying skill appears to be menstrual cramps. But it’s who I am now. It sucks, but that’s the way it is. Colby never asked for the whole Protector gig, which has caused her nothing but problems, but it’s who she is. You think the full-bloods will thank her for risking everything and saving them from demon possessions? No, they’ll insist she’s still going to fulfill the Prophesy and end their existence in some other way.”
He grew agitated. “Do you think because two girls accept their lot in life, that will shame me into accepting mine?”
I stood up to him. “No, I think it’s time to stop feeling sorry for yourself and suck it up.”
Instead of getting angry like I expected, he gave me a hint of a smile. “You’re a bossy little thing, you know that?”
I dropped down to my knees in front of him. “I can’t do this without you, Hunter.”
He leaned forward an
d kissed me tenderly on the lips. “You won’t ever have to, I promise.”
He wrapped his arms around me and we kissed some more. He was such a great kisser. He made me feel complete. I hoped Colby was getting a similar treatment from Thomas when a thought struck me. I pulled away.
“Ohmigod! The Prophesy! That didn’t even occur to me. Come on, we’ve to get to Psi Phi House.” I jumped up and pulled Hunter to his feet.
“We have to go now?” He couldn’t believe it.
“Yes, yes. I’ve just figured it out. Come on.”
We made it to Psi Phi House in record time. Thomas and Colby were sitting together on the couch, completely oblivious to anything going on around them. They were so into each other. Ahh, that was nice. But I had something important to share.
“I figured out the Prophesy,” I announced, plopping down across from them.
Hunter stood awkwardly, staring at Thomas. “Hunter, this is Thomas. Thomas, this is Hunter. He’s a Demon Slayer.”
Thomas stood up and offered Hunter his hand. For a moment I worried Hunter couldn’t bring himself to accept it but he did.
“Colby told me all about your new status, Piper. That’s pretty amazing,” he said to me.
“No more amazing than you two. Want to know why?”
They exchanged a look.
“Well?” Colby prompted.
“We know Colby is the one in the Prophesy. The first two lines—‘This time the mixed blood will rise, The One who is Undead but Alive’—that’s Colby. But the second part is not Colby. ‘Who is pure but not whole’ doesn’t mean her at all. It means Thomas. He is a vampire who is pure in intention but not whole, because he is missing part of his soul. Get it?”
They both stared at me in confusion.
“Don’t you see? Only when you two fused together and became soul mates did you save Thomas, not only from demon possession but from all those other annoying vampire maladies that plague older Undead, such as paranoia, isolationism and flat-out craziness. Those were all caused by having a hole in the soul.
“‘And they will bring forth the beginning of the end’ means you two showed the way. Half-bloods who bond with full-bloods can save the vampire race by filling the missing pieces in their essences. No more nutso older vampires who go rogue, become possessed by demons and try to knock each other off. They keep their humanity, therefore staying sane.”
It was like a lightbulb went off over both of their heads.
“I can’t believe it! I think you’re right, Piper!” Colby exclaimed. “I think that must be it. The beginning of the end doesn’t refer to the beginning of the end of the world, but the beginning of a new era for vampires, ending the old ways.”
Thomas nodded. “You might have it right, Piper. But will they believe it? Change is difficult for us. Will other vampires accept this new interpretation of the Prophesy?”
Colby chimed in, “If Mr. Holloway includes this interpretation in the vampire bulletin then we’ve got a shot. It’s more likely to be believed coming from the Tribunal.”
Thomas looked at me with something akin to awe. “Not bad, Slayer. Not bad at all.”
There was a ruckus at the front door. It sounded like a cat, mewling at the top of its lungs. I jumped up to answer the door.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. I didn’t even ask them yet,” I said to the gray cat.
“This is nice, real nice.” The cat nodded in approval. “I’m gonna like it here.”
“Piper, who’s at the door?” Colby asked.
“It’s, well, it’s—”
“Fluffy?” Hunter asked.
“Hunter! Long time. Glad to see you made it through the action. Was worried about ya. Mr. Whiskers filled me in on the details. You got one heck of a gal on your hands,” Fluffy said.
“Piper?” Colby asked uncertainly.
I wasn’t sure what to do. Technically, Fluffy helped in the demon defeat but I was in no position to give him a home at Psi Phi House.
“You see, Colby, Fluffy told me all about the Avarice Demons at Mrs. Murphy’s and even warned me about the plot to get Aunt Chloe. That’s why I called Animal Control on them. He wanted, well, he’s looking for a new home and wants—”
“Oh, no, not here. You know I’m allergic.”
“I know that. I told him I’d see what I could do. I swear I didn’t promise him a home, just that I would ask you.” I looked helplessly over at Hunter, who raised his hands, indicating he wasn’t going to get sucked into this one.
“That’s a fine how-do-you-do. After what I did for you?” The cat circled me.
“Listen, I’m sorry. But she’s allergic to cats.”
Sophie made her way downstairs in time to see the cat in the living room. “Oh, miss!” she cried. “Did you change your mind? Is this our new pet?” She rushed over and scooped Fluffy into her arms, stroking his fur and making kissy noises at him.
Colby and Thomas exchanged a look.
“I think this dame likes me,” the cat purred.
“Miss?” Sophie asked, her bright eyes shining.
Colby looked at Sophie, the cat and then me, her eyes narrowing. “You owe me. Big-time.
“Fine, Fluffy can stay but he lives in your room, Sophie. I don’t want cat hair on everything. I’ll just take allergy medicine if I need to,” she finished lamely.
Sophie squealed in delight, taking Fluffy straight upstairs. Thomas hugged Colby. “It won’t be that bad, I promise.”
“Oh, I know it won’t,” she said smugly, looking at me with calculating eyes. “Because Piper is going to move in here and make sure of it. Aren’t you, Piper?”
“But why do I have to?” I choked.
Colby smiled in satisfaction. “Because you’re a Demon Slayer, Piper, and he’s a demon. You’ve got my back, right?”
I looked helplessly at Hunter, then at Colby. “Fine, I’ll move in, but I’m not playing Dr. Dolittle and reciting everything he says to Sophie.”
But we all knew I would.
Author’s Note
But what about Carl? You send him off to New York City and then what? Nothing? Never fear, dear reader, Carl is Undead and well in an anthology with Julie Kenner and Johanna Edwards entitled Fendi, Ferragamo, and Fangs.
Carl holds a special place in my heart and since I knew I was hooking Piper up with Hunter in Dating for Demons, I wanted to give Carl his own story and the romance he deserved. I think you’ll find Sydney is a perfect match for him. And you thought I’d leave you hangin’? Sheesh.
Enjoy the bite!
—Serena Robar