Kat Redding 03 - Blessed by a Demon's Mark

by E. S. Moore

  I took a step forward and one of the wolves noticed me. He broke away from the fight to leap at me. Before I could raise my sword, Lefty lashed out, catching the wolf in the back with a claw. The sound of snapping bone followed and the wolf crumpled to the ground, spine shattered.

  Lefty grinned at me as I moved to fend off another vampire. He started to turn back to his own fight just as something small hit him square in his chest.

  The wolf looked down at the tiny feather, turned to look at me, and then slumped to the ground, out like a light.

  I looked up in time to see the last Pureblood duck behind a car . . . And the two dozen wolves running up the aisle.

  “Shit,” I said, retreating. There was no way I was going to be able to handle all of them on my own.

  I knew Lefty was still alive, knew he’d stuck around to defend me for some reason. I felt bad leaving him behind, even if he was one of Adrian’s thugs who had been sent to bring me in. The guy had at least been somewhat respectful. It was more than I could say about a lot of people.

  But I couldn’t stay here. If Mephisto caught me, I’d be done for. Nothing Ethan or Jonathan or anyone else could do would save me.

  I turned my back on the vamps and wolves, and ran to my bike. I felt something hit my coat, but whatever it was didn’t poke through. The dead wolf was still tangled in the wreck, and I yanked on him as hard as I could.

  He was heavy, but not so heavy that I couldn’t move him. He trailed a thick stream of blood, spilled it over my seat and into the workings of my Honda. I winced, knowing it would be a bitch to clean out and the smell would probably never go away.

  A wolf dove at me just as I righted the motorcycle. I still had my sword in hand and used it to knock him away, though I didn’t manage to cut him. He landed on his feet, spun my way, and charged again.

  This time he wasn’t so lucky. I drew one of my knives and before he could so much as open his mouth to howl, I threw it. The knife took him in the throat and he dropped, mid-leap.

  I knew the others were just behind me. I leaped on my bike, drawing my other knife, knowing chances were good I’d have to throw it, leaving me dangerously short on weapons.

  But no one came. I started the motorcycle and turned so I could flee, only to find all the remaining wolves and vamps on their knees. I hesitated, wondering what was going on; then I saw him.

  The vamp was tall, dressed in flowing black silk. He wore sunglasses despite the fact that it was snowing and nighttime. He was staring at me, and what I could see of his eyebrows were furrowed, as if he wasn’t quite sure what he was looking at.

  Mephisto. It could be no one else.

  My blood ran cold and I didn’t know if it was because of his intense stare or if it was something else, something magical. I decided I didn’t want to wait around to find out.

  I gave the Honda as much gas as I dared and sped out of the parking lot. I waited for a shot to be fired, for something to leap out and tackle me, but nothing happened. I hit the road going far too fast and nearly collided with a salt truck. A horn blared, but I barely heard it over the pounding of my heart.

  I was halfway down the road before I even dared to breathe. I slowed down and nearly collapsed. Why had Mephisto let me go when he had me trapped? Chances of me escaping with so many of them right behind me were slim. He could have had me.

  I’d been stupid. I never should have gone there, never should have fed that openly. I didn’t know how Adrian’s wolves found me, and quite frankly, I didn’t care.

  After what I’d just seen, I was happy I was still alive.

  I tore down the road, my heart pounding. With the way my life had been going lately, I wasn’t sure I could say that for much longer.

  10

  As I rode home, I started getting pissed all over again. It wasn’t so much about the fight or about Adrian’s wolves coming to gather me. I’d brought that on myself by going out like I had.

  No, I was fuming over something else entirely.

  I’d always been someone who did what I thought was right. I did whatever I wanted, how I wanted, and when I wanted. I never bowed down to anyone, never let myself get distracted from what needed to be done. I was focused.

  Yet somewhere along the way, I let others in. I’d gotten weak, let others dictate how I lived my life. They didn’t come out and say it, didn’t even tell me what to do, but I was doing things based on what they’d think of me, how they’d react.

  No more. I refused to let myself get killed because someone didn’t want me to do something I knew was necessary. I never should have let Jonathan talk me into not killing Adrian. I should have shot the backstabbing bastard the first time I saw him at The Bloody Stake. But no, I just had to see what he wanted, and by then it was too late to act.

  Next time I saw Adrian, he was dead. If Jonathan didn’t like it, then screw him. He didn’t own me. No one did. Everyone has stuck their noses into my business for far too long now. It was time I put a stop to it.

  By the time I pulled into the garage, I was fuming. I’d even managed to get the Honda all the way up the driveway despite the increasing snow. It was a wonder I hadn’t broken my neck with as wild as I was driving.

  I turned off the motorcycle and stormed into the house, ready to start setting things to right.

  “Ethan!” I shouted, throwing my coat onto the table. I started to strip off my belt but stopped myself. With what I was about to do, I’d probably want what weapons I had left on me close at hand. “Ethan!” I called, angrier this time.

  I glanced into the living room and saw a wide-eyed Jeremy staring at me. He was propped up on the couch, a bowl of popcorn in his lap. The TV was on with the volume so low only a werewolf could hear it.

  Some watchdog he was. He should have been on his feet the moment I’d come storming into the house, yet there he sat, like the cripple he was.

  “Where is he?” I snarled, hating him more than I thought possible. Rage continued to build. I was nearly seeing red.

  Jeremy’s eyes flickered toward the stairs and then back to me like he didn’t trust me enough to look away. He opened his mouth but closed it again when I turned away without waiting for an answer. His eyes had been answer enough.

  I headed straight for the stairs. The light in the sitting room was off, but a fire was burning. It warmed the room considerably, and its comforting flicker eased my anger somewhat, but it couldn’t fully quench it.

  What I’d give to be able to sit in front of the fire and just relax without wondering if someone I knew was dying because of me. Just one night to forget everything, to have peace within my home and around those I cared about.

  I took a deep breath before opening the basement door. I knew it would never happen, not while I was who I was. Someone would always be after me. Someone would always get hurt because of me.

  I went down the stairs, trying really hard not to stomp.

  Ethan wasn’t in the first basement, so I assumed he was in his lab, most likely talking to his demon. That would make what I had to do go that much quicker.

  I walked over to the door that led down into his lab and pressed the intercom button. “Ethan,” I said in what I hoped was a reasonable voice. “Come up here.”

  There was a long pause; then his nervous-sounding voice came through the tiny speaker. “Okay.”

  I waited as he finished up whatever he was doing, trying my best to calm myself. I stared at the lab door, wondering why Ethan thought it prudent that I didn’t have a key. It was the only door in the house I couldn’t get into. The entire room was soundproof and bombproof. Nothing could get in there without Ethan letting them in.

  I wondered if the reason I didn’t have access was because he wanted the sanctuary for himself. Or was it because he was afraid I might break someday and wanted to be able to hide inside where I couldn’t get to him?

  The door opened and he stepped out, eyes wide. I almost punched him because of it. I was so tired of people looking at me that way
.

  And he wasn’t sweating, which only served to upset me more. Whatever he’d been doing, it hadn’t involved his demon.

  “I want you to summon Beligrow.”

  “Beligral.”

  I glared at him.

  “Sorry.”

  “I want you to summon the bastard so I can talk to him and get this fucking mark removed.”

  Ethan glanced toward the lab door. He’d closed it when he’d come up. “Are you sure that’s a good idea right now? You seem a little . . .” He winced.

  “Why the fuck wouldn’t it be?”

  He opened and closed his mouth a few times, then visibly slumped. He knew there was no chance he was going to talk me out of this, not with the mood I was in.

  “Um, okay,” he said. “Let’s go.” He started to open the door but stopped. “You’ll want to leave your weapons here.”

  “No.”

  He blinked at me like I’d spoken in Swahili. “What?”

  “I said no. Your goddamn demon can deal with the weapons. If I wanted to kill him, there’s more than enough lying around down there to get the job down.”

  Ethan paled and licked his lips. “He won’t like it.”

  “I don’t give a fuck about what he likes and doesn’t like.” I was breathing hard now, so angry I wanted to hurt someone. “I want this mark taken off me and I want it done now.”

  Ethan scrambled to get the door open and rushed down the stairs ahead of me. I stalked after him, my anger back in full force. How hard would it have been for him to simply do what I asked him to do without arguing?

  A drawer slammed as I reached the hard concrete floor. Ethan turned back to me, red-faced. I didn’t want to know what he’d just hidden from me, I really didn’t.

  “Summon . . .” I trailed off as my eyes took in the rest of the room.

  A lot of the stuff was the same. The shelves with the darkened containers were still there. The workbench was in the same spot, as was the circle on the floor with the recliner planted firmly in its center.

  But the cage across the room was new.

  I stared at it, dumbfounded. Why in the hell was there a cell in Ethan’s lab? A silver one at that.

  “Ethan,” I said warningly.

  He gave a nervous laugh. “I knew you’d hate it,” he said. “But Jonathan thought it would be a good idea in case something like . . .” He coughed and changed what he’d been about to say. “In case we have to hold someone,” he finished lamely.

  “Why would we need to hold anyone down here?” I was nearly growling my words by now.

  “It works wonders during the full moon,” he said. “Jeremy comes down here and it keeps him from going all crazy on me. Well, he’s still crazy, but he can’t eat me while he’s inside.” Another nervous laugh.

  I had to close my eyes to keep from exploding. I hated cages. I didn’t care whether Ethan decked it out with all the comforts of home or if he kept it as a bare stone floor as it was now. It was still a cage, meant to hold people inside against their will. I’d been trapped in more cells than I cared to remember.

  But it did make sense. If we’d had the cell when we’d caught Thomas, he’d still be alive today. He might even have recovered. I should have thought of it before.

  “Fine,” I said, opening my eyes, though I pointedly looked elsewhere in the room. Maybe if I refused to acknowledge it, it would go away. “Summon your damn demon so we can get this over with.”

  Ethan nodded and rushed over to his desk. He withdrew his fleshy candles and his sidewalk chalk, and went about setting up the circle.

  I watched him for a few moments before I couldn’t take the silence anymore. “Is all of this really necessary,” I said. I was tired of waiting. I’d waited too long already.

  He glanced at me as he set one of the candles. “What do you mean?”

  “All the candles and circles and chanting you do. Isn’t there an easier way?”

  He laughed again, but it was still nervous sounding. “Not really,” he said. “But it helps me focus. I’ve done it this way since I was little.” He sort of mumbled the last.

  I didn’t know much about Ethan’s life before I’d met him. I suspected his demon summoning was the reason Count Valentino had kept him locked up and hadn’t fed on him like he had the others. I’m not sure if there was more to it than that, but honestly, there really didn’t need to be. It kept him alive when the rest of his family had died.

  Ethan set the last two candles and turned to face me. “It isn’t the words or the ritual that summons the demon, really. It’s the will of the summoner, the desire to bring the demon into this realm that matters.”

  I cocked an eyebrow.

  “So, let’s say Bob the neighbor finds a ritual in a book. If he doesn’t believe in it or doesn’t want it to work, he could repeat it over and over and nothing will happen. The summoning comes from within the summoner. You have to believe in it and want it to work at the same time. After that, it’s cake.”

  “So that means you wanted to summon a demon as a kid?” That seemed wrong on so many levels.

  Ethan’s face reddened. “I didn’t have many friends,” he mumbled as he turned to start the ritual.

  I felt bad for him. How bad of a life did he have that he had to resort to summoning demons to keep himself occupied? Did someone show him how to do it or did he go looking for it himself? I just couldn’t picture a young Ethan looking for trouble of this sort.

  I’d seen him do it before, but watching Ethan perform the summoning was hard. I couldn’t believe he of all people was capable of doing something so inherently evil. The guy hardly ever cursed and here he was doing so blasphemous, it made me look like a saint.

  Ethan drew a chalk outline around the silver circle on the floor, careful not to step inside. He’d said it was only precautionary, but I wondered how true that really was. I’d seen his demon. The thing was scary.

  He started his chant, keeping his voice low so that I never could quite understand what he was saying. The foul candles flickered, giving off the smell of burning flesh. My stomach curdled at the thought that they might have been someone once. No matter how innocent I thought Ethan might be, there was a dark streak in him that was scary as hell.

  The room started getting hot, and the mark behind my ear started buzzing. It felt like I had some sort of small vibrator beneath my skin and I reached up to touch the bumps. They were more pronounced now, as if they were trying to tear free of my skin in response to the summoning ritual.

  A dark speck appeared in the middle of the circle. The room got almost unbearably hot. Ethan was sweating so badly his shirt looked as though he’d dipped it in a bucket of water.

  Heat poured from the speck. It grew, rising vertically as if the opening between realms was being drawn by a zipper.

  The mark throbbed in time with the pulses of heat. Fear bubbled in my gut, and my brain kept screaming at me to run before the demon saw me, to get out and as far away as possible. Nothing good could ever come of treating with a demon.

  I held my ground even as the dark portal opened and a wave of heat poured out. It was like standing in front of the sun. Oppressive heat washed over me and I cringed back.

  The demon emerged.

  11

  My eyes burned and watered, but I forced myself to watch as Beligral stepped through the portal. There was a hint of red skin, of horns, and of black, demonic wings, but before the image could truly form, he turned into a seemingly dapper man, dressed smartly. Only his sharp yellow teeth and red eyes gave him away as anything but normal.

  I knew for a fact the human appearance was fake, a glamour cast to fool the eye, but I wasn’t sure about the other demonic visage. Did he do that only to confuse me about his true appearance? Or was he really as nightmarish as he appeared to be?

  Part of me never wanted to find out.

  As soon as he was through the black portal, Beligral turned to me and bared his teeth in what I took to be a smile. The t
ear between realms sealed itself behind him, leaving behind the heat and the demon trapped within the circle.

  “Well, well, well,” he said, leaning forward on a cane that seemed to appear from nowhere. Knowing him, it probably had. “Look who finally decided to make an appearance. I’m so glad you could join me on this most glorious of nights.” He took a deep breath and let it out in a contented sigh.

  I had to swallow a lump in my throat before I could even think to speak. Every nerve in my body was hopping. I wanted to run, wanted to flee right back to Delai and never look back. My skin felt as though it was just about to melt from my bones. Ethan didn’t look much better, even though he claimed to be used to the heat.

  Beligral laughed and walked over to the recliner in the middle of the circle. He sat down and laid the cane across his knees. There was something on the head of the cane, but I couldn’t tell what. The demon never lifted his hand enough for me to see.

  “Not much for words today, I see,” he said. “Sometimes my entrances can be . . . overwhelming.” He bared his teeth in that smile again. “But you’ll get used to it in time.”

  I took a deep breath and nearly choked when it burned my lungs. I knew most of the heat was imagined. Beligral probably created some of it himself just to fuck with anyone stupid enough to summon him. I had to admit, it did its job.

  It took me another moment, but I was finally able to find my voice. “What do you want?” I croaked. I sounded like someone stranded in a desert with no water and no hope of rescue. I cleared my throat, which helped a little. “I got your message.”

  My hand went reflexively to the mark behind my ear. It felt like I was touching a hot iron and I jerked my hand away. I was surprised my hair hadn’t caught on fire from the heat. I wondered if Ethan had the same sort of mark, and if it felt as hot as mine did or if the demon was only causing mine to flare for my benefit. I wouldn’t put it past him.

  Beligral leaned forward in his chair. That damnable smile was spread across his face. It made me want to step over the circle and punch him just so he’d stop, but that would be bad. Really bad.