“Sorry,” I muttered. “Um, are you okay with this?” Don’t you know he’s a demon? I wanted to shriek. “And does he know?”
She was silent for several seconds. “Yeah, he knows, and yeah…I think I’m okay with this. It was a shock, to be sure. I use protection, but nothing’s foolproof, I guess. But if I have to get knocked up by accident, at least it’s with a guy who’s pretty damn awesome.”
I reached out and squeezed her hand, since it seemed like the right thing to do. “That’s great, then.” And because I couldn’t hold the question in any longer, I blurted, “How much do you know about Zack?”
She opened her mouth, then closed it and gave me a penetrating frown. “Why? You have that look on your face.”
“What look on my face?”
“The one that you get when you’re—” She broke off as the door opened and the two men entered, laden with my stuff. We both leaped up to help them, and the next several minutes were occupied with getting my computer hooked back up, and the map on which I’d marked the portal locations up in the hallway by the kitchen.
By that time Eilahn announced that waffles were coming off the iron, and so we trooped into the kitchen. Ryan gave me an odd look as I sat in the chair that faced the back door.
“I thought you hated that chair,” he said as he took a seat.
I blinked, frowning. “Yeah. I do.” So why did it feel right to be facing this way?
Then Eilahn plopped a waffle onto my plate, and I forgot all about where I was sitting. Ryan even got up to help Eilahn with the cooking, giving her a chance to sit and eat as well.
I caught Zack’s eye. “I hear congratulations are in order,”
His smile faded. I had no idea if he had any ability to read thoughts, but I had no doubt that mine were pretty clear on my face. I made a quick flick of my eyes toward where Ryan stood at the counter with the clear message, If he wasn’t right here I’d spill the beans because I’m not going to let you fuck with my friend, and holy fuck how can a demon get a human woman pregnant anyway?
Okay, maybe that was a lot to read in my face, but he seemed to manage it. He gave me the slightest of nods, acknowledging. But now I couldn’t help but wonder—why was I so shocked that Zack had knocked up Jill when only a little while ago I’d been worried that Rhyzkahl had done the same to me? But the demonic lords aren’t demons, I reminded myself. Yeah, great, so what are they?
Ryan turned. “Who are we congratulating for what?” he asked, gaze flicking from me to Zack and Jill.
Zack spoke up first. “Jill’s pregnant.”
Ryan inhaled sharply and gave a cautious smile. “Surfer boy’s going to settle down now?”
“Looks that way,” he said. Zack gave Jill’s hand a squeeze along with a look of such fondness that I almost felt guilty for being so angry at him. Almost. I was still plenty pissed. I wasn’t an expert on relationships by any stretch, but it didn’t seem like starting off with a big whopping lie—like the fact that he wasn’t human—was a good way to go about it.
“He’s stuck with me now,” Jill said after giving him a return squeeze and an equally fond look.
Ryan finished up at the counter and slid into his seat. He lifted his chin toward the map hanging in the hallway. “I get that the red marks are where bodies were found. But what are the blue marks?”
“Well…” How to explain this? Crap. Nothing to do but just say it. “Not long ago Rhyzkahl went onto my computer,” I told him. “Did some sort of internet search on a bunch of locations in this area.” I waved a hand at the map. “That’s the blue marks.”
Ryan’s brows drew together. “Well what are they?”
I shrugged. “No clue.”
His frown deepened. “You didn’t ask him what he was doing?”
I poked my fork into a waffle. “I wasn’t there when he was doing it.” I jammed a piece of waffle into my mouth. “I fas sweep.”
Jill’s eyes were dancing in amusement, but Ryan’s narrowed even farther. “You were what? Asleep?”
Jill piped up to save me. “Maybe they’re places where people are going to die. Have you checked out those sites?”
“Only a couple of them are nearby,” I said, giving her a grateful look. “There are a few more that aren’t even on this map. But no, I haven’t gone and checked them out yet.” I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. “I’ve been a bit preoccupied.”
Ryan’s scowl hadn’t abated. “Hang on, did he go up and use your computer without you knowing about it?”
I set my fork down. “Ryan, let it go. I’ve already dealt with it.”
“Dealt with it?” Ryan said, anger in his voice palpable. “He’s sneaking around, and you’re acting like it’s nothing!”
“Would you stop treating me like a goddamn child?” I exploded. “I don’t need you looking out for me! Yes, I confronted him. We’ve established boundaries. I fucking dealt with it. Like the grownup that I am! Could you please get off the ‘I hate Rhyzkahl’ horse for just a few minutes and try and work with me?”
Hurt and pain seared across his face, and I immediately regretted my outburst. “Shit. Ryan, I’m sorry. I just can’t take any more sniping right now. It doesn’t help anything.”
“I understand,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry.” A horrible silence fell, and after about a dozen heartbeats Ryan pushed back his chair. “Excuse me. I need some air.”
My chest constricted as I watched him exit out the back door. Zack began to stand to go after him, but Eilahn put a hand on his shoulder. “I will see to him,” she said. “You three need a moment anyway.” The two demons exchanged a long look, then Zack gave a soft sigh, nodded, and sat back down. To my surprise Zack looked at me expectantly as Eilahn left and quietly closed the back door behind her.
I frowned. “What?”
He took Jill’s hand in his, gave her a fond look, then returned his attention to me. “I am in need of your assistance.”
“Sure thing,” I said. “What do you need?”
He took a deep breath. “You are wroth with me for failing to disclose information that you feel your friend and my lovemate deserves to know.”
I narrowed my eyes a touch, gave a cautious nod. I didn’t miss the fact that he was talking like a demon and not like Zack Garner. Jill merely looked baffled.
“Information?” Her eyes went from him to me and back again. “What are you talking about?”
Zack gave her hand a light squeeze but kept his eyes on me. “I do not deny her right and need for full disclosure. I dishonor her by failing to provide it. Yet I am bound by oaths that counter my ability to be fully truthful.”
The light bulb went off over my head. My anger at him evaporated. “Ohhhhhh. Wow. Gotcha.” He wanted to tell her and couldn’t. Apparently there were hierarchies of honor, where some oaths outweighed others. Poor guy. No wonder he looked so frazzled. “You, uh, want me to help explain things?”
Jill frowned. “You guys are weirding me out. What the hell is going on?”
I looked at her. “Zack has something that he wants and needs to tell you because you totally deserve to know it, especially now that you’re all pregnant and shit—”
“Even were that not the case,” Zack interrupted, expression painfully earnest, “I still dishonor her by—”
I waved him silent. “Yes, we know. You’re a good guy.” I gave Jill a reassuring smile. “He really is. But he’s not allowed to come right out and tell you this thing.”
“Kara,” Jill said. “I swear to god I’m about to throttle both of you. Just tell me.” Her mouth twisted in annoyance, but I could see a touch of fear in her eyes. Fucking hells, I hoped this wasn’t a dealbreaker for her.
“You can’t tell anyone,” I said. “Even Ryan.”
“Especially Ryan,” Zack added, face a mask of worry.
“Fine!” she said, bafflement and worry warring on her face.
“Zack’s a demon,” I announced.
I half expected her to
yank her hand from his and storm out. But instead she pursed her lips, fell silent for a moment, then gave a short nod. She cocked her head and looked at Zack. “You’re like Eilahn?”
He shot me a pained look.
“He can’t confirm it directly,” I explained, more than a little surprised that she took it so well. Then again she’d also accepted pretty easily the presence of demons and my ability to summon them. And she and Votevha hit it off pretty damn easily, too. What’s up with that? But I didn’t have time to wonder about that right now. “Apparently he’s under some pretty serious oaths,” I said. “But as far as I’ve been able to determine, yes, he’s a syraza, and he’s protecting Ryan.”
She frowned and looked down at their intertwined hands. I watched as she absently ran her thumb over his. “Okay. So, hypothetically speaking, if a human woman and a demon were to have a kid together, what would the kid…be?”
Zack cleared his throat. “First off, I wish to state that if, hypothetically, I were a demon, I would never purposely get a child upon a human woman without her informed knowledge and consent.” The look he gave her was agonized and earnest. “And truly, if I were a demon, I would likely have had utter faith in contraceptive methods in place.” Then he winced. “Although, if I were a demon, I should have remembered that we are quite…virile.”
Jill’s lips twitched ever so slightly at that.
“But a child,” Zack hurried on, “would appear human in every way, though as the babe matured it might show an aptitude for handling arcane power.” He fell silent and looked at her miserably. “Jill, I care for you deeply, and I already love this babe beyond measure. But if you wish me to leave and cease to bother you, I will abide by your wishes. I do not wish to cause you to suffer.”
She let out a snort of laughter. “You ass,” she said and leaned in to kiss him. “Stop talking like that. You’re freaking me out. Don’t you fucking dare leave me.”
I excused myself as the two started shamelessly snogging, though I don’t think they noticed me leaving.
I headed out to the front porch, surprised to see Eilahn and Ryan sitting on the steps, the cat on the side of Eilahn away from Ryan, who glanced back and gave me an uncertain smile.
I gave him a reassuring one back, then crouched and tried to pet the cat. To my annoyance it hissed and swiped a claw at me, then ran off in a streak of calico fur.
I watched it go. “That cat is psychotic.”
“It hates me too,” Ryan offered, shrugging.
“Yeah, but…” I trailed off as a realization smacked into me. “She didn’t hate me when I was wearing the cuff.” I turned to Eilahn. “Can you go get her?” I asked.
Eilahn stood, nodded. “Interesting theory. You think she dislikes non-demons with arcane ability?”
“Exactly!” Maybe I didn’t need to worry about summoning another demon after all. Grinning, I dashed back inside and grabbed up the cuff. Jill and Zack gave me a curious look, but I simply winked at them and hurried back outside, just as Eilahn was returning to the porch with the cat snuggled in her arms. I snapped the cuff on and did my best to ignore the rush of queasiness that came with it.
Eilahn held the cat loosely as I reached out to pet her. Fuzzykins gave a mild mrowr and bumped against my hand. Grinning, I pulled the cuff off, nearly chortling in delight as the cat’s mood instantly shifted to hostile.
“Do all cats act this way around arcane practitioners?” Ryan asked, peering doubtfully at the cat. “Or is this one more than just a regular cat?”
Eilahn picked Fuzzykins up and nuzzled her. “She is simply a cat. Not a demon in disguise.” She shot Ryan an amused look. “Which is what you were thinking, yes?”
He chuckled, shrugged. “Do you blame me?”
“You know,” I said, thinking, “I had a cat when I was a little girl, but when I asked Tessa if we could have one she said she was allergic. And then after she introduced me to summoning she explained that cats didn’t like the smell of demons on us. I’d forgotten about that.”
Eilahn rubbed her nose against the cat’s. “She loves the smell of demons!”
I laughed. “Clearly so. I doubt Tessa ever conducted this sort of experiment. But either way, it’s nice to know we have a summoner-detector.”
“Time to pay a visit to the mayor?” Ryan asked.
“Damn straight,” I replied, then I glanced at my watch. “Well, first thing in the morning, that is. And with any luck he’ll also be violently allergic to cats.”
Chapter 18
After the others departed, I headed down to the basement and looked forlornly at the pristine floor. Even though I’d semi-promised myself earlier this year that I’d be better about concealing all signs of my summonings between rituals, my resolve to do so hadn’t lasted long. It was one thing when I’d only been summoning once a month, but when I started doing so more often it was tough to convince myself to scrub everything down when I’d only need to redraw it the next day or so. Plus, the power storage diagram kind of worked better when it wasn’t erased.
With a sigh I dug through my implements and found the tourniquet and syringe. The “traditional” way to get the blood necessary for the creation of a diagram involved a sharp knife and any of the veins in the forearm. Screw that. This summer I’d trained myself to use the same sort of equipment that phlebotomists used when taking blood. Helluva lot easier, hurt less, and I didn’t end up with scars all up and down my arms.
Luckily I only needed a couple of syringe-fulls to mix with the chalk. It took nearly an hour, but by the end of it I had both my summoning circle and my storage diagram rebuilt—and even had a bit of power channeled into the latter.
Then I went upstairs and slept like the dead.
The next morning I returned to the basement. I focused on gathering in as much available potency as I could, and carefully fed it right back into the storage diagram. Since it was only a few days after the full moon the power came to me fairly smoothly but still with enough hiccups and unsteadiness to remind me of why I used the storage diagram. I could feed potency in as unevenly as I wanted, but when it came time to use that stored power, I’d be able to draw it out in a smooth and steady flow. Glitches in the flow of power during a summoning tended to make for a dead summoner. I had enough threats to my person as it was. No need to take any unnecessary risks.
I was sweating with the effort after about thirty minutes, but it pleased me to see that I was already probably quite close to having enough for a summoning. After moving on to a quick shower and fresh clothing, I was ready to go meet the rest of our fine posse at Grounds For Arrest for a discussion of strategy.
Despite my thoroughly reasonable suggestion to test my theory by shoving the mayor into a small closet and then throwing the cat in there with him, the others overruled me and decided that it might be more prudent to simply approach him with cat in hand and watch Fuzzykins’s reaction. It was also decided that it’d be best if I wasn’t anywhere around, and that Eilahn should be the one to approach him, since, as far as we knew, he’d never encountered her.
Fine. But I still intended to watch from a distance. With binoculars. If there was any chance that I’d get to see the mayor’s face get clawed off, I didn’t want to miss it.
The plan was simple. Eilahn would have Fuzzykins in her arms and would wait for the mayor to come out of the City Administration building. She would “accidentally” walk into him, and we could then see how well my arcane-ability-detecting cat worked. Hopefully, with lots of blood. Then, once we confirmed that he was our bad guy summoner, Eilahn could somehow subdue him, we’d load him into the car, and then proceed to dig out every detail of this arcane-enhancing, multiple-stroke-inducing drug and his plan for tracking down the portals.
Really, it was a perfectly sensible plan.
Ryan and I were in his car, parked just down the street from the admin building. Zack had already done some recon and assured us that the mayor was, indeed, in his office.
I glanced
at my watch. Nine a.m. Eilahn was in position, leaning against a bench with the cat draped over her shoulders like a stole. The cat didn’t seem to mind the position one bit. The demon scratched her under the chin while the cat kneaded her upper chest in ecstasy. “When the hell is he going to come out?” I muttered, impatient.
“Jill should be calling him now,” he assured me. The mayor would be getting a call from an ‘informant’ with information about the murders and my supposed part in them, with instructions to meet in the parking lot of the coffee shop. I didn’t think he’d be able to resist that.
“There he is,” Ryan said, unnecessarily since I had my binoculars locked onto the front door. I watched as the mayor tugged his coat around him and looked up and down the street, a cautious smirk on his face.
Smirk all you want, asshole, I thought with a smirk of my own as I watched through the binoculars. He started walking down the street towards the coffee shop, and a few seconds later Eilahn stepped out from between two cars and bumped into him. I smiled as I watched. It was beautifully done, and the demon shifted the cat to her arms smoothly as she flashed a dazzling smile at the mayor. He gave her a winning smile in return and reached to give Fuzzykins a scratch behind the ears…
.…and Fuzzykins acted like a completely ordinary cat and calmly accepted the proffered affection.
“Fuck,” I muttered. No blood. No claws. No screaming.
“Either he’s not the summoner,” Ryan said, “or the cat has completely mellowed.”
I lowered the binoculars as Eilahn and the mayor parted ways and continued in their respective directions—Eilahn to the corner and the mayor to a nonexistent meeting. Ryan started the car as I slumped in the seat, annoyed and disappointed. He drove around the corner and stopped, and a few seconds later Eilahn climbed in and put Fuzzykins back into her carrier.
“I am sorry, Kara,” the demon said. “She did not react adversely at all.”
“I saw,” I said, sighing. “Maybe I was wrong about the cat.” I grimaced and rubbed at my eyes. “Though it’s more likely I was wrong about the mayor.”
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