Iris winced in pain as she quickly sat up. “A...a witch?”
Cassandra nodded again, her eyes gleaming like she’d just plucked a diamond from manure. “Oh yes. The seventh daughters of seventh daughters are the truest, most potent of all witches.” She looked up at Denny with eyes on fire. “Which explains why the demons followed her down here.”
Denny nodded once. “A cacodemon.”
“Yes. A caco can be the only explanation.”
“What are you two––”
Denny took Iris’s other hand. “This might be a bit hard to hear in light of what happened, but I think…we think you need to know. A cacodemon’s job in the demon world is to impregnate humans, but this one found something that, coupled with his power, would have the potential to be amazing.”
“Powerful, evil, and nigh unstoppable.” Cassandra added. “It’s well you did not allow him to finish the deed or we would be having a much different conversation.”
“He didn’t get what he wanted so he beat her up,” Denny said.
Cassandra shrugged. “In an attempt to knock her out is my guess. He could have merely been angry that she sought you out, that she came down here. Maybe he was punishing her, but I’m quite certain impregnating her was the goal of the attack.” Cassandra’s eyes softened. “You did well fighting them off.”
Iris blinked a few times.
“So what now, Cass?” Denny asked. “If cacos are after her, they won’t stop until they get what they want. And beating her up is not that.”
“No, it isn’t. She is not safe here, either. She’ll be better protected in the coven. We can bring her there.”
“C-coven? You want me to hide out with other witches? That’s your plan?”
“Other witches will not only protect you, but will also make it difficult for him to find you. It’s a little like hiding a piece of straw in a bale of hay.”
Denny stepped back, the base of her skull tingling slightly. “Oh. Shit.”
“Denny?”
“Keep her safe. I’ll be right back.” As Denny pulled open the door, she felt it. Or, more correctly, the Hanta felt it and was beginning to react.
A demon––a very powerful one––was nearby. Not a mid-level. Higher. Higher than any she’d faced, which explained why the Hanta awoke so quickly. It felt it, too.
She pulled out only Epée. The quarters were too tight to bring out the more commanding Fouet.
Starting down the white corridor, she watched a doctor disappear down the next hallway.
The Hanta was fully awake now, as Denny lowered her head and walked faster, feeling the blood course through her veins as her heart beat faster.
She let it.
If this was more than a mid-level, she would need the Hanta’s strength. She would need everything it had to give her the edge. Denny was very clear about Ames’s recommendations and warnings. She was being forced to let the Hanta take over, and even though that was very dangerous, in this case it was also necessary.
When the doctor disappeared through a set of double doors, Denny followed.
When she came to a lab door, she stopped. The door was locked. The demon was on the other side. She could practically smell him.
Standing back, Denny looked both ways before lifting her left leg and kicking the door in, tearing out part of the doorframe. As her left foot landed and she regained her balance, she caught sight of the flash of a scalpel as it cut through the air, slicing into her thigh. Blood instantly blossomed beneath her jeans. The stain spread alarmingly fast, but she paid no attention to it.
“Motherfucker,” came the Hanta’s voice as Epée popped out, unsheathed, crackling, hot and ready for action just as Denny fell to the floor. Raising Epée up, she easily deflected the scalpel, knocking it from the demon’s hand where it clattered to the floor.
“Stay outta this, hunter. It does not concern you.”
The Hanta laughed as Denny rose, blood now covering her lower pant leg. She had receded into herself the moment she was cut, allowing the Hanta to assume complete control over her.
Ames would not be happy.
To be able to stand…to be able to defend herself with a wound in her thigh, she would have been in miserable pain. The Hanta, however, did not even acknowledge that she was cut.
“Everything you do concerns me, you dickweed Magyar piece of shit. Tell your master to send better soldiers than the pissant likes of you.” Denny stepped toward the demon, who stepped back, grabbing a glass beaker and throwing it at her.
Epée once again deflected it. “That all you got?” The Hanta took a step on the cut leg and immediately regretted it. As the physical shell weakened, so did the Hanta. They were losing too much blood and the leg was weak. Denny barely managed to catch herself on the counter.
The Magyar smirked. “It will be a pleasure telling him I defeated such an old bastard as you.” Magyar pulled his own weapon from inside his lab coat, a crossbow made of pure light. It glowed in his hands and sent light out like a prism in all directions. “I’ll go down in the books for this simple kill. I can’t believe the others were incapable of taking you out.” Raising the crossbow to his shoulder, he took aim and pulled the trigger. An empty click resounded in the room.
Nothing happened.
The Magyar stared at his weapon as if confused.
As Denny struggled for balance, a pair of hands reached under her armpits and yanked her to her feet.
Denny drew Epée back to strike the demon, but Cassandra cried out, “No! Magyar is a spirit demon. He’s only possessing the host. You can’t strike or you’ll kill the doctor.”
The Magyar attempted to fire again. Cassandra raised her hands and the crossbow flew from the demon’s hands.
As Magyar tried to get to his crossbow, Cassandra moved Denny to the next lab and with a wave of her hand, closed and locked the door.
“Iris––” Denny broke in.
“Is safe for now. Keep pressure on that leg. Don’t faint on me, Hunter. I’ll be right back.”
“No…you…can’t. It’s…” and as hard as Denny fought to maintain consciousness, she slowly faded away as Cassandra stormed out of the room, full of fire and brimstone.
When Denny woke up, she was in a comfortable yet unfamiliar bed. Quickly sitting up, she grimaced, remembering how her leg had been slashed by the demon.
She pulled the covers back and examined the wound. It looked days, not hours, old as a thin green poultice spread over it worked its magic.
“You’re in my home,” Cassandra’s voice wafted across the room. “Relax. I would say not to move around because you’d bust open my beautifully hand-crafted sutures, but you heal unnervingly fast. Remarkable. You barely needed them by the time I got you home.”
Denny smiled softly at her. “Thank you for getting me out of there. I didn’t realize I was bleeding so badly.”
“No worries. I felt something evil and came running.” She glanced at the wound. “Is quick healing because of the demon?”
Denny nodded. “Yeah. It’s one of the perks of being possessed.”
Cassandra rose from the chair she’d been reading in and examined the wound. “Perks. Yeah. Wow. It looks great. At least you get something good from it, eh?” She laid her hands on either end of the wound. They were very soft and warm against Denny’s skin.
Denny studied her. She was a handsome woman. Not beautiful or pretty, but handsome in a strong-jawed sort of way. “How did you get me out of the hospital?”
Cassandra bent over and smelled the wound. “What else? Magic. I managed to get both of you out of there without anyone being the wiser. Took a couple of us, but we managed.”
“And Iris?”
“She’s fine. Everything went smoothly on our end. It was no longer safe to keep her there.”
“And the demon?”
Cassandra removed her hands and sat gingerly on the bed “Took off, leaving the doctor no worse for wear. Slightly befuddled, yes, but no harm came to h
im.”
“Thank you for not letting me kill him. That…that would have been horrible.”
“You do need to understand the supernatural world better if you are going to coexist in it. You know so little about demons, so little about witches and the like. It is not enough for you to know just about yourself or your legacy. You need to educate yourself on all of it Hunter, or you aren’t long for this world.” Cassandra placed the back of her hand on Denny’s forehead. “How are you feeling?”
Denny inhaled deeply. “Better. I lost a lot of blood. He really sliced me up.”
“Oh, he would have killed you, to be sure.”
“The Hanta knew his name. Magyar. Do you––”
“Oh, yes. I’ve just been reading up on your demon. He is a caco for sure, but he has a special job in the Brotherhood. He is one tasked with seeking out seven of sevens to impregnate them. He doesn’t go after just any woman or any witch. Just the hard-to-find sevens. You got to Iris just in time. Had he been successful, terminating that pregnancy would have been nearly impossible. You did well, Hunter. For now.”
A quiet moment settled between them. Neither of them moved.
Ever so slowly, Cassandra leaned over and kissed Denny’s lips. Running her fingers through Denny’s hair, Cassandra kissed her long and deep before Denny finally extricated herself.
“That was very nice, but getting involved with this hunter isn’t a very good idea.”
Cassandra lightly traced Denny’s eyebrow with her fingertips, pausing over the scar bisecting her eyebrow. “Maybe I like living on the edge.”
“That edge is razor sharp, Cass. You saw the kind of company I keep.”
Cassandra kissed her again, letting her lips linger briefly before pulling back. “I’m not afraid of your world, Golden Silver. I am, after all, in the same supernatural neighborhood.”
Denny took Cassandra’s face in her hands and held her in another kiss. Deliciously warm and pillowy soft, she melted into it until her leg accidentally bumped Cassandra.
“Oh shit…damn that hurt.”
“Sorry, sorry.” Cassandra pulled away and stood up. “I…uh…I better check on Iris before I do something you might regret. When I get back, maybe we can continue where we left off.”
Denny barely nodded, her throbbing leg ruining her moment. “Thank you.”
Cassandra was almost out the door when she turned back around. “I have to say I’m a little surprised Brianna didn’t claim you.”
“Claim me?”
“Yeah. You know, mark her territory. ‘Hands off. Keep out. Taken.’ Sort of thing.”
“Is that a thing with you witches?”
Cassandra chuckled. “See? This is precisely what I mean about educating yourself. Yes, it’s…something we witches do, but I can share that with you when the time comes. I’m just surprised, is all. She seemed intrigued by you and your powers. The two of you would have made a strong pairing.”
“Brianna isn’t interested in me. She’s moved on to safer prospects.”
Cassandra grinned. “Is that so? Well then, her loss. Perhaps there’s hope for us yet.”
Denny closed her eyes and took a mental assessment of her body. Her leg throbbed slightly now and her hips were a little sore, but she was okay. She would need to be more careful next time. Without Cassandra’s interference with that higher-level demon, she would be dead right now.
Dead.
And what was that crossbow thing?
Denny opened her eyes before lightly touching her lips. Cassandra’s lavender scent still lingered there.
“Here. This will help with the pain.” Cassandra handed Denny a cup of tea in grandmother-like China with pink roses.
Denny took the saucer and cup and sipped it. It smelled like mint. She looked up at Cassandra. Forget the lit up crossbow thingie. That kiss was delightful. And dangerous. Getting involved with a witch was a crazy thing to do. Getting involved with anyone was off the table, witch or no witch.
“You could fall in love with me if you’d let yourself.” Cassandra gently pushed the tea back toward Denny before exiting the room.
Denny sipped some more tea before setting it down and throwing the covers back. She sat on the edge of the bed, her leg still throbbing.
“What are you doing getting up?” Cassandra asked when she returned and saw Denny gingerly putting weight on her leg.
“I need to talk to Iris.”
“She’s asleep. Getting here tired her out. I gave her some Sleepy Time tea with a little kick to it. Better than a sedative. I mixed one of my own personal potions in it, of course. She’ll sleep through the night.”
Denny felt her head get light when she tried to straighten up. “Oh shit. Damn you, Cassandra.” Grabbing the bed, Denny held herself up as the room started spinning. “You did not just drug me.”
Cassandra helped her lie back down. “Of course I did. I knew you wouldn’t take it easy for even a moment, and you need to stay off that leg. You need to rest and recuperate. Given the speed with which you heal, that won’t take long if you just rest a moment longer.”
“Damn you.” Denny fell back to the pillows. “You should have warned me.”
“You can damn me later, Hunter. This evening, you are going to rest peacefully. You are going to let yourself heal. You are going to let someone else take care if you for a moment. In the morning, you can come down for breakfast where you can talk to Iris.”
“Bossy woman. Are all witches…so damn…bossy?”
A chuckle escaped from Cassandra’s lips. “I am the head of our coven for a reason. As the seventh of seven, I have remarkable healing powers. You are more than physically injured. Your spirit is weary, your aura faint. Sometimes, we rest best when we are not alone, and feel safe. You can feel safe tonight, Hunter. I swear. No one will hurt you here.”
Denny’s eyelids got heavier and heavier. “My spirit...left me...a month ago…”
“I know, sweetheart. I know.”
And then she was out.
Gazing out the window, Denny realized welcomed the early morning. She’d managed to sleep through the night again.
And that felt amazing.
She pulled the covers back and examined her wound. Cassandra had done a great job of patching her up and it looked like it would be healed up completely in a day or so.
She doubted she would ever get used to the healing properties of her Hanta.
Slowly getting out of bed, Denny gingerly tested her leg out and heard loud voices downstairs. Denny hurriedly threw on the clean clothes folded at the end of the bed, then carefully made her way down the curved staircase and into the expansive kitchen, where she found Brianna and Cassandra in a heated discussion.
“Brianna?”
Brianna’s face fell when she saw Denny in the doorway. She cut her eyes over to Cassandra before shaking her head slowly. “Ah, I see. It all makes far more sense now.”
Cassandra grinned sardonically. “It does, doesn’t it?”
Grabbing papers from the table, Brianna headed for the door. “We’ll be in touch, Cassandra. This isn’t over.”
Denny swiveled around. “Brianna, wait!”
Stopping at the door, she cast a disgusted look at Denny, then Cassandra, then back to Denny. “Like you did? No thanks. The picture is quite clear. You two deserve each other.” With that, she bolted out the door and down the stairs.
Denny knew she could never catch her, so she turned to Cassandra for answers. “What the hell is wrong with her?”
Cassandra led Denny to the small table in the kitchen and sat her down. “My guess is she thinks you slept with me last night and is obviously jealous. No woman likes to be dumped for nothing. Cheat on her, sure, but just leave? That’s a cut that reaches to the bone.”
Denny blinked. “Leave her? We were never together!”
“Maybe not, but you did just bolt from her life without so much as a ‘No, thank you.’”
“And that upset her? She can’t hav
e it both ways, Cass. She moved on. So have I. End of story.”
Cassandra ran her hand through Denny’s bed hair. “We always want what we can’t have. It’s human nature.”
Denny looked up into Cassandra’s eyes. “I’m not misreading what you want, am I?”
Cassandra’s lips barely curled. “I certainly hope not. I am usually very clear about what I want from a woman. Now, coffee, tea, or no caffeine at all?”
“Coffee.” Denny was surprised at her own response. She’d been a tea drinker before the Hanta woke up, but seemed to enjoy coffee more and more. She wondered if that was because of her demon.
“Excellent. I make a very strong chicory coffee.”
“As long as you don’t put any more black magic into it.”
“You needed to rest without tossing and turning. That cut was deep, Hunter. It needed calm. Quiet. Two words I’d never apply to you. I gave both to you. Let me see that cut.”
Denny pulled her jeans down to show her. “Thank you for washing my jeans, but how the hell did you get all that blood out?”
Cassandra knelt to examine her handiwork. “Ancient Wiccan secret. If I told you––”
“You’d have to kill me?”
“I’d have to turn you into a newt.”
They both chuckled.
Cassandra examined the wound. “Your rate of healing is amazing.”
“I can’t take the credit.” Denny smiled softly at Cassandra.
“Maybe not, but it really is remarkable.” Cassandra pulled a large red bowl from the microwave and handed it and a spoon to Denny. “Witches’ brew.”
Denny looked down into the bowl. “Looks kinda like oatmeal.”
“On steroids. That will help clear up the residue from last night’s drug.”
“So now you’re feeding me uppers?”
Cassandra laughed. “That’s one way to look at it. Eat up.”
Denny studied the bowl dubiously.
“Oh, for crying out loud, I’ve not poisoned you. Eat up. I promise you’ll feel much better once you do.”
Denny tried the oatmeal, sweetened with brown sugar with melted butter on top. “This is really good.”
Cassandra beamed. “Good.” She poured three cups of coffee, setting one in front of the empty chair.
The Demon Within (The Silver Legacy Book 2) Page 12