The Innocent

by Michelle K. Pickett

  He ran his hand up and down the back of his head. “You mean before you walked her across the street—probably carrying her groceries.”

  “Well… yeah. What’s wrong with that?”

  “Nothing. That’s one of the things I love about you.” I could tell the second the words were out of his mouth that he hadn’t meant to say them. I glanced at him. His mouth was pressed into a firm line, and his hands were fisted in his lap.

  I didn’t know what to say, so I let the comment pass. “We’re here.”

  Chay looked around, cursing under his breath. “This is where she lives? Alone?” At my nod, he blew out a breath and climbed out of the car, “Do you know which apartment is hers?” he asked, scanning the area again.

  “Yes, but we are just going to scout around the building first. No sense in alarming her.”

  The neighborhood was almost fully cemented. The green plants that were visible grew between the cracks in the crumbling walkways. Litter lined the street, blowing against a fence that enclosed a small park with green, painted concrete to mimic grass. The rusted, damaged play equipment sat unused, waiting for children to breathe life into it. Bangers, judging by the red X on each of their shoulders, dominated the park’s basketball court.

  Mae’s apartment building looked like a large, brown brick box. Some of the bricks were missing and windowpanes were broken and replaced by cardboard or plywood, most tagged with crude and profane graffiti.

  A homeless man sat on the curb in front of the supermarket, holding a sign that read—Will work for food. Across the street was a bar covered in neon signs advertising every imaginable brand of beer; it looked like a trashy Christmas tree. There was always an abundance of women standing in front of it. I was pretty sure I knew what they were, but I kept my head down and minded my own business. A few called out to Chay. He tipped his chin in acknowledgement, but otherwise seemed unaffected by their attention. It made me wonder—for the millionth time—where he’d been and what he’d done the six months he’d been gone.

  Beer cans rattled in the gutter, and newspaper blew across the sidewalk in front of us as Chay and I walked around the apartment complex, past the dumpsters overflowing with rotting garbage, around to the back where cigarette butts, a variety of beer cans, and a pile of condoms littered the ground, to the other side of the building where a car repair shop was located. It was noisy and dirty, and I could hear the men yelling obscenities to each other over the sound of the machinery.

  “Hey, beautiful!” a garage worker called and walked toward me.

  Another cat-whistled and moved toward me, curling his fingers for me to come to him.

  Chay, who was a few steps behind me, caught up and stepped between them and me. He slipped his arm around my waist and shot a hard glare at the two guys. Chay was lean, but he was six feet of defined, well-sculpted muscle. He could definitely be intimidating when he wanted. And he was.

  The guys held up their hands in surrender. “Nah, man, no worries,” one said and went back to work.

  Chay kept his arm around me until we got back to the car. He walked me to the driver’s side and held the door while I got inside. His fingers trailed across my back when he moved his arm. I sucked in a breath at the waves of electricity that shocked my system. I looked up at him from under my lashes. He shut the car door and stared at me through the glass for a few beats before turning and jogging to the passenger’s side.

  Bring on the chocolate. He has heartbreak written all over him. There’s no way I can trust him with my heart again. Except… tell that to my damn heart.

  “Mind if we wait a little while?” I asked when Chay got into the car.

  “Nope.”

  “Thanks.” I pulled into the small shopping center and parked in a spot where we had a full view of the apartment building and Mae’s door. A church sat on the other side of the supermarket. It was freshly painted a bright white and fall mums lined the walkway. Stained glass windows with intricate depictions of Christ in various stages of life looked out at the people, glittering when the sun hit them. It looked out of place in the rough neighborhood, or maybe it was exactly what the people needed.

  “I hate knowing you were here by yourself. It’s a dangerous neighborhood.”

  “More dangerous than a demon trying to kill me?”

  “You’ve got a point there,” he said with a chuckle. “Why the hell were you here? There’s a grocery store five minutes from your house.”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “You know how visions work. I was meant to be here.”

  Mae. Crying for help. A man laughing. Water.

  “Let’s go.” I was out of the car and running across the street before Chay could stop me. When we got to the front of the apartment complex, he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to a stop.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Someone is in her apartment. He’s going to kill her. That’s what the vision is about.”

  “We should call the police,” Chay said.

  I shook my head and glanced at Mae’s door. “I don’t think the police are going to do any good unless they have demon hunters on the force.”

  “Shit. The Four Brothers?”

  “I think it’s Vann. And I have a personal score to settle with him. That trick with the river was no fun for me.”

  Chay chuckled.

  “I’m serious.”

  “I know. That’s what makes it funny.”

  I sighed and rolled my eyes. “In my vision, he’s on the ceiling dropping water on top of her. When he sees us, he’s either going to drop a ton of water on us or jump down himself. Either way, prepare yourself.”

  “Okay, move and let me open the door.” Chay got ready to slam into the door.

  “Wait.” I reached out and slowly turned the doorknob. The door opened with a slight creak. I smiled at Chay and shrugged.

  We moved quietly into the apartment, following Mae’s cries. A tall bureau had fallen and pinned her to the ground. Vann, the demon of water, was braced in the corner of the ceiling like a spider. He was dumping water on top of Mae, drowning her little by little.

  “You distract him. I’ll go around back and take him by surprise. It’s the only way for me to get close enough,” I told Chay.

  At his nod, I hid behind the furniture and made my way around the room. Thankfully, demons weren’t omnipresent. He couldn’t read my mind and he couldn’t be everywhere at once. So Chay and I could move about the apartment without him knowing, as long as he didn’t see or hear us.

  I ran out of cover about halfway around the room. That was when Chay stepped out and diverted Vann’s attention.

  “Chay. What a nice surprise. I didn’t know you knew the old lady.”

  “Yeah, we go way back. Don’t we, Mae?”

  “Y… y… yes.”

  “Don’t be scared, Mae,” Chay said quietly.

  “No, be scared, be very, very scared.” Vann reached his arm above Mae’s head and opened his hand. His fingers were rigid and slightly curved, creating a claw. Water poured hard and fast down on Mae’s head from his palm. She sputtered and gurgled, trying to breathe, but there was too much water coming at her too quickly.

  Using his sneakers to half scale, half jump up the wall, Chay grabbed Vann’s leg and jerked him down. Vann lost his balance and tumbled to the ground. That was when he saw me.

  “Milayna, how good of you to join us,” Vann said in a voice that dripped with honey.

  I smiled in answer and stepped over him with one foot. Crouching above him, I brought my face close to his. The smell of rot and disease clung to his clothes. Close up, I could see his skin wasn’t milky white like it looked under the street lamp. Instead, a greasy film covered his unnaturally reddish skin tone. His eyes glowed the same eerie yellow as Abaddon and Azazel’s.

  “Vann, it’s so nice to finally meet you,” I whispered near his ear. The smell of sulfur clung to his hair.

  When I pulled back and looked at him, his face registered sh
ock, just for an instant, at my use of his name. “Yes, I know your name and the names of your three brothers. See, it’s really important that I know them.”

  “And why is that?”

  I twirled the dagger between the index finger of one hand and the thumb of the other, locking gazes with him. “I like to know who I’m killing.”

  I fisted my right hand over the handle of the dagger. Chay held Vann’s hands above his head, and I plunged the blade deep in his chest where his heart would be. Vann’s face registered shock, and then hatred.

  “You bitch!” he screamed just before he disappeared into a pile of black ash, dissolving in the water swirling on the apartment’s floor—the very water he created.

  “I guess I hit the heart,” I said.

  “Yeah. Was there ever any doubt?”

  “Oh yeah, big-time doubt.” I wiped the dagger off on my jeans and slid it in its sheath at my ankle.

  Chay stopped and looked at me. “Really? You didn’t look like you doubted yourself. You looked like you were… having fun.”

  “Well, I couldn’t let him know I doubted myself.” I bent down to pick up a piece of furniture. When I stood up, I blew a lock of hair out of my eyes and cocked my head to the side. “I guess I did have a little fun. I mean. I kept thinking about Ben and me on that bridge and when I fell over and nearly drowned.” I shook my head. “And I guess I let myself enjoy a little piece of sweet revenge. Do you think that makes me like him?”

  Chay cupped my face in his hand and looked in my eyes. “No. You’re nothing like them, Milayna. You’re everything good.” Before I could stop myself, before I remembered I was mad at him, I leaned my face against his hand. It fit, like it was made for him to hold. He opened his mouth to say something when we heard coughing.

  “Oh, geez, Mae! Hold on. We’ll get you up,” I said. Chay and I lifted the bureau off her legs and helped her off the cold, wet floor.

  “What in the crazy hell was that thing?” she asked, calmly adjusting her dress.

  “That was a water main—”

  “Boy, that was no more a water main break than my mama was a white woman. That was some kinda evil.”

  “You could see him?” Chay asked, pulling furniture out of the way.

  “He was dumping the Great Lakes down my throat; of course I could see him!” Mae looked at me. “I know you. You helped me with my groceries a while back,” she said.

  “Yes, ma’am. My name is Milayna.”

  “And you’re an angel? Or a demi-angel?”

  I coughed in surprise, glancing quickly at Chay. “A what?”

  “Oh please.” She waved her hand. “You don’t think I know about demons and not know about angels, do ya? That there was a demon. I don’t know what kind, but he was a demon for certain. Now, what are you two?”

  “Demi-angels,” I said slowly.

  “Thought as much. Well then. I guess you best be calling your folks and telling them you’re alright and that you’ll be helping me clean up.” She looked between Chay and me. “You were gonna help me clean up, right?”

  “Yes ma’am,” Chay answered, a ghost of a grin on his lips.

  “Alrighty, then. If you go over to the supermarket, they have one of those big carpet cleaners for rent. We can use that to suck up all the water. I’ll get my bag and give you some money.”

  “Oh, that’s okay. My dad gave me money before we came over. We knew which demon was here, so we knew there’d be a big mess to clean up afterward.” I smiled.

  Mae eyed me. “Mm-hmm, that so?”

  I nodded and tried not to fidget under her stare. Why can’t I get this lying stuff down? This is a good lie.

  “Okay, then,” she said.

  Chay and I called our parents, then went to the little supermarket across the street and rented two of the large carpet cleaners.

  “A lot of cleaning to do?” the clerk asked, cracking her gum. She gave Chay the once over—twice.

  She isn’t even trying to be discreet about checking him out. Like, hello! He’s standing in line with another girl.

  “Yeah.” An eye roll accompanied my answer. Chay looked at the toe of his shoe, pursing his lips to hide a grin.

  Once we were all signed up and paid, we lugged the machines back to Mae’s and got to work. It took over three hours to suck up the standing water in her living room and hallway. Another hour to dry out her furniture. Since we had the machines, when we were done pulling up the water left by Vann, we used some fresh-smelling cleaner we bought and cleaned the carpet, drapes, and furniture for her. By the time we were done, the place looked like a different apartment.

  “It sure does look pretty,” she said for the tenth time since we sat down to eat dinner. “And smells good, too. I need to pay you for—”

  “No, you don’t.” I shook my head.

  “You rented the machines, bought the cleaner, and bought dinner. Doesn’t seem fair. I need to pay for some of it,” Mae argued.

  “No. If it weren’t for me, Vann wouldn’t have chosen you to torture. He knew I’d come here tonight. So see, it’s all my fault. I should pay for everything.”

  Chay reached out and squeezed my shoulder. Now I knew some of what he felt when it came to Abaddon’s curse on him.

  “Child, there was nothing you could’ve done to prevent that demon from coming here tonight. If not here, then somewhere else. It’s just how they are. It ain’t no one’s fault. So, when’s the weddin’?”

  “Huh?” I said.

  Chay choked on his Coke.

  “Oh, please. It’s obvious you’re in love. I heard you out here joking and teasing when you were working on the carpets. When’s the weddin’?”

  “Um, Mae, we aren’t getting married,” I told her.

  “Ah. Fighting it, huh? Well, it’ll come when the time is right, I suppose.” She took a big bite of pizza.

  “Well, it’s getting late.” Chay rinsed off his plate in the sink. “I’m sure Mae’s had an exhausting day.”

  “It’s been one for the record books, that’s for sure.” She nodded her head. “Some kinda crazy.”

  Chay and I said our goodbyes, took the cleaners back to the store, and started the drive home. I could feel him looking at me as I drove. It made me uncomfortable. A tremor built in the pit of my stomach. It fluttered up to my throat and lodged there. If I’d tried to speak, I knew my voice would come out strained and squeaky, so I stayed quiet, even though I wanted to ask him why he was staring.

  “She’s nice. Mae.”

  I nodded, still not trusting my voice.

  “A little on the eccentric side, though. Reminded me of your grams in a way.” Chay smiled.

  “I guess,” I answered and was immediately sorry I did. My voice came out squeaky just like I knew it would. Damn it straight to Hades and back. I tried to cover it up by clearing my throat. I knew that wouldn’t help. I could feel it constricting. Being so close to Chay, smelling his aftershave combined with his natural scent, was heady and I wanted nothing more than to roll down my window and stick my head outside like a dog would.

  “Milayna?”

  “Hmm?”

  “I need to stop. Could you stop here?”

  “You can’t wait until we get home? We’re almost there?”

  Geez, he’s as bad as Ben. Always has to stop and go to the bathroom.

  “No, this can’t wait. It’s waited long enough. And I don’t want anyone around who could interrupt us.”

  It’s waited long enough. He doesn’t want anyone around. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was planning to try to kill me again. Am I sure he’s not? Yeah, no, I mean, he’s not. Right?

  I pulled into the parking lot of a little convenience store near the entrance to our subdivision and killed the engine. Chay angled his body toward me.

  “Why are you still wearing it?” he asked.

  I didn’t play dumb. I knew that he was talking about the ring he gave me, and he knew I knew. So there was no reason for me to a
ct differently.

  “I wasn’t ready to take it off yet.”

  “How long?”

  “Since you gave it back to me. You set it on my nightstand next to my bed and said ‘just in case’ before you walked out. I put it on this chain that night and I haven’t taken it off since.”

  “Even when you were dating Xavier?”

  “Ah, I was hoping to be the one to tell you that. I just couldn’t quite find the right way.” I blew out a breath. “Yes, even while I was dating Xavier. It’s the reason Xavier and I aren’t dating anymore.”

  “Who broke it off?” Chay asked.

  “Does it matter?” I bit my bottom lip, watching him.

  “To a guy? Yeah.”

  “I did.”

  He nodded, looking down at his feet. We sat in an uncomfortable silence after that. I’m not sure how much time passed. Chay broke the silence first.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I glanced at him. “For?”

  “For leaving you to deal with everything alone,” he said quietly. “I just… I couldn’t believe what I’d done. And I didn’t want it to happen again. So I had to get as far away from you as I could.”

  I nodded. “I’m sorry, too. I’m sorry that you didn’t feel like you could come to me and talk things out. To try to reach a solution together.”

  “There was nothing to talk out, Milayna. What solution? How I’d kill you? When I’d do it? I couldn’t risk hurting you.” He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. “Shit.”

  “And why’d you come back? You didn’t know Abaddon was dead. I told you. So what changed to make you so sure you wouldn’t try to hurt me again?” I yelled.

  “Nothing’s changed. I’m still afraid I’ll hurt you. Why do you think I don’t want to be around you? Because I don’t love you? My day doesn’t begin until I see your face. I came back because I’ve been having visions of the Four Brothers hurting you and Ben. I thought maybe I could keep my urge to hurt you under control if I was fighting off someone else’s attacks. Messed up, right? I need someone else to try to kill you to feel like I can be around you.”