by K. B. Draper
She searched my eyes. “I have to,” she answered just as softly.
I nodded once, released her hand, and started for the clearing.
I didn’t say anything when we crested the slight rise.
Ashlyn peered over the field of pieces and parts. “Oh my god,” she gasped as she took in the massacre.
Chapter 9
Ashlyn was still examining the scene as Danny and I stood off to the side, already seeing more than we needed to.
“So he was just standing there?” Danny asked again.
“Yep,” I replied. I’d already given them the lowlights version of tonight’s events. I had hesitated before giving Ashlyn the details, but since I had offered up ringside seats to the “Shit Show” part of our little circus act, I might as well close it out with a big WTF finale.
I’d watched her reactions to my “yep, there’s a Native American spirit playing bunkmates in my body” reality, expecting our relationship to be over before it even got to the sweaty naked parts. But her reaction meter was somewhere around the “umm, so you had cornbread for dinner” mark. Nothing. It was as if I’d just divulged they were making Sharknado 5. Yeah she was curious, had a few “how does that even happen” questions but otherwise she was relatively unfazed. It made me uncomfortable.
“And he said he was here for his baby?” Danny asked.
“Yep,” I replied as I watched Ashlyn.
“Damn,” Danny sighed. “So there are two demons.”
“That’s usually how it goes, yeah.”
Ashlyn was standing over a puddle of black tar. “And you think the other demon gave birth here?”
I lifted a finger, pointing at a pile of blahhh-uck next to her. “Well, that does look like …” I searched for words that didn’t make my vagina cringe. “Icky, baby-wrapping goo …” And I failed. I crossed my legs.
Danny laughed. “Afterbirth? Placenta?”
I punched Danny in the arm. “Thank you, Dr. Jerkoff.”
Ashlyn rolled her eyes. “Then, who do we think killed the animals? Mommy or daddy?”
Danny shrugged. “Or the baby did it.”
I opened my mouth to speak. Shut it. Opened it again. “You little … little … Ugh, I seriously hate you right now.”
Danny covered his shoulder, preparing for the slug he deserved, and then directed his comment to Ashlyn. “As if you need any more fun facts about our girl here, I’m going to let you in on another-”
“Don’t!” I ordered.
Danny smiled widely.
Ashlyn glanced back and forth.
Danny danced back out of my reach. “Our big, strong, tough girl has a thing about babies.”
Ashlyn raised a curious eyebrow. “Demon babies?”
“Well, probably. But I’m talking any ol’ baby,” Danny clarified.
“Are we good here?” I asked. “Because I’m ready to get back to camp and Danny has an ass whipping to get to.”
Ashlyn took one more look around and nodded. “Yeah, let’s head back.”
“So, babies?” Ashlyn asked on our return trek.
I gave her a sideways glance. “That’s seriously the question you want to lead with?”
“I thought we’d warm up to the other ones.” Ashlyn smiled. “Thank you for telling me, by the way.”
“I didn’t. Danny’s the one with the big mouth.”
Ashlyn pushed a limb out of our path. “You know what I’m talking about.”
“Wasn’t much denying it after I left the supernatural Lite-Brites on.”
“True, but still …” We walked a few more yards before Ashlyn spoke again. “I’ve got a lot of questions.”
“I’d be surprised if you didn’t,” I responded.
“Are you going to-”
“Push you away? Yes, good possibility,” I said, filling in the blank for her.
“And if I push back?”
I couldn’t help but smile at that, wishing the desire and curiosity in her eyes was for me, the woman, not me the demon hunter. But I knew Ashlyn’s interest was mostly for answers to twelve-year-old questions. “I’ll do what I can to help give you closure,” I replied, before jogging ahead to start up the rocky side of the riverbed.
Ashlyn was silent while she, Danny, and I climbed the slippery rocks up the bank. I could have taken two bounding leaps and been comfortably standing at the top but I figured that would add to the thousand questions Ashlyn already had. So I stepped and climbed the rocky terrain like any old human that wasn’t sharing bodies with a supernatural being. I reached down to assist Ashlyn the last few feet. “Take my hand,” I offered.
She did, and I easily pulled her up to stand directly in front of me. One of her feet landed on the edge of the muddy bank, causing her to lose her balance, and I caught her around the waist to steady her. My body reacted to having her pressed against me, and I heard the swift beating of her heart kick up a beat at my touch. It took every bit of my strength not to close the short distance between us but then I registered another cause for her reaction: fear.
“So strength is definitely one of the perks of the gig,” she said, looking over the edge.
“As is getting pulled through a hellgate on the back of a demon who wants to play “How many licks does it take to get to your soul,” I said, releasing her. My tone had been sharper than I intended but I was tired and frustrated. Although I had known it was an impossibility for Ashlyn and I to have something even for a short time, I knew now there was no chance at a future. Crap. When had that nesting thought slid into my brain? Freaking PMS, even though it had come and gone already.
“If it’s not too big of an imposition, I could use some help here,” Danny said, holding onto the edge of a rock with one hand and holding Nancy up with the other, while trying to find a foothold for one of his feet.
I reached down, grabbed his wrist, and pulled him up with one easy yank.
Danny straightened his shirt. “Thanks. That wasn’t at all detrimental to my manhood.”
We walked the rest of the way in silence.
“I’ll need to call that in,” Ashlyn advised.
“Why? You know it’s not a crime. At least not one that law enforcement can handle.”
“In case hikers or someone else runs across it.” She paused. “I’d like to get ahead of the call.”
“Most of it’ll be gone before daylight,” I argued. “Other animals will get the scent and take care of the crime scene cleanup.”
“Exactly. But what if …” She paused and started again. “What if it wasn’t all animal?”
“I …” I was going to say that I could tell. I normally would have, but had I thoroughly checked the area? I had been so focused on evil Hawkman telling me his baby-mama issues I hadn’t really searched the area. I’d seen animals. I’d smelled blood. I’d smelled demon and… “Even still,” I argued.
“I still have a job to do,” Ashlyn advised.
The firm set of Ashlyn’s jaw told me I wasn’t going to win this round. “Fine, do what you have to do,” I said with a dismissive wave.
As expected, it took a mere twenty minutes for my once peaceful campsite to be filled with no less than a dozen law enforcement officers. I was pacing the outer edge of the small badge convention trying to distance myself from the overwhelming sounds of too many voices, too many bad colognes, too many boots stomping the ground, and too many heartbeats. Though my heightened senses serve me well when I’m hunting, they are easily overwhelmed in crowds. And right now I needed distance. I needed space. I needed to talk to Danny about the information bomb we’re dealing with and a big-ass winged dude with some child custody issues.
I jerked when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
“AJ?” The concern Ashlyn had in her voice made me think it wasn’t the first, or maybe even the seventh time she’d called my name.
“Sorry, I didn’t hear you.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah.” I fought the urge to put my fingers i
n my ears to help muffle the noises. “I just don’t do well with large crowds.”
Ashlyn shot a confused glance over her shoulder to the 10,000-acre park with only a dozen men in the immediate area. “We’re going to head out. I need you and Danny to stay here.” She paused as if sorry to say the next words. “There’ll be more questions.”
“I was with you when that happened.” I hesitated. My words were too heated and I was losing control of this situation. I couldn’t think. There were too many distractions, and history tells me bad things happen when I’m distracted.
“I know.” She put a hand on my arm. “AJ, that’s not what this is about. I need a formal statement for the report, but I also want to talk to you about what did that and how we’re going to stop it.”
My anger receded slightly. I ran a frustrated hand through my hair. “I’m on edge.”
I was surprised when Ashlyn didn’t back away, especially since she had a good idea now what I was capable of. Instead, she straightened to make up the slight difference in our height. “Be here when I get back and we’ll work through it. Okay?”
“What if I don’t want to be here?” I said just for shit-stirring sake.
“Then I’ll arrest you, cuff you, and make you talk to me.”
My eyes glinted as my anger slid over to a more playful sin. “You know you couldn’t actually make that happen, right?”
A cocky grin lifted the corner of her mouth. “I don’t doubt your little superpowers,” she walked two fingers up my arm, “so you really shouldn’t underestimate mine.” Then she tapped the end of my nose, like boop, end of convo.
Totally an inappropriate time, but have I mentioned that I have a thing for fiery, smart-talking, strong-willed women? If I wasn’t irritated and on sensory overload, I might have swooned a bit.
“I’ll be back as soon as possible, so keep your ass here until then,” Ashlyn ordered and then walked away.
I was still watching her when Danny came up behind me. “You’re not keeping your ass here, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Want me to join?”
“No. I want you here figuring out what the heck is going on.”
“With the description you gave of him, I don’t think there’s any doubt he was a Nolia Flaua. Fallen angels have to be really, really bad.”
“Yeah, but …” I gathered a few of the scrambled thoughts running around in my head. “For some reason, I believe him. I don’t think he’s who we should be worried about. At least the most worried about.”
“The other demon?”
“Yeah, something’s telling me the baby momma is the bigger threat.”
“Bigger threat than a Nolia Flaua. Swell,” Danny moaned.
“Nolias, do they do the whole spider web thing?”
“Not that I’ve found so far, but I also couldn’t find a record of any Nolias ever hanging out over here sooo …” Danny sighed. “You’re thinking momma is spidey-woman?”
“Yeah, I think so. I got a look at the Nolia’s hands and there were no claws or talons.” I wiggled my fingers for effect.
“They could do a Wolverine thing. Danny shot out a fist, complete with sound effects. “Like, pa-pow.”
“Seriously, I have no clue why you don’t get laid more.”
“I get my fair share,” Danny protested.
I lifted an eyebrow.
“Well, I would if you didn’t take them all!”
“Anyway.” I looked over my shoulder to check the progress of Ashlyn and her team. “One other quick thing, Ashlyn’s bear attack twelve years ago. For sure it was a demon. Chick demon, actually. It killed her father, and it would’ve killed her too but a certain demon hunter swooped in to save the day.”
“A demon hunter? Grandfather?”
“Know another guy with white eyes and demon-fighting powers?”
“Shit! So this hellgate has been used before.”
“Yep. And by a female demon.”
Danny chewed on that for a moment. “Well, the good news is, if we’re talking about the same female demon, then that means Norm’s been here, fought that.”
“True.”
“And that also explains why Ashlyn is taking the news of the whole ‘you got a demon in the woods’ and of your presto change-o, so well.” He put a hand on my shoulder. “This is a good thing.”
“A good thing? How is Ashlyn knowing about this fucked-up demon world a good thing?”
“It’s obvious you two have the hots for each other. Like melt your face off kind of hots. And if she’s the kind of woman I think she is, maybe this will help you over the whole …” he affected a girly tone, “I can’t let anyone close to me. I’m scary. I’m unlovable problem you’ve been carrying around since Seattle.”
“I don’t … That’s not …” I thrust my hands on my hips. “Don’t Dr. Phil me.”
“Fine, Denial Spice.” Then Danny did the unthinkable; he booped my nose.
I growled. “I know you didn’t just boop my nose.”
“Ashlyn got away with it.” Danny adjusted to a fighting stance.
“I don’t understand why your life means so little to you?”
“Why does yours?” Danny said, his playful tone gone.
I opened my mouth and then shut it.
“You deserve to have a life too, AJ. Or, ultimately, what are you fighting for?”
“I’m fighting to keep people safe from demons,” I countered.
“Yep and you do a dandy job of it, but it doesn’t mean you can’t have a life of your own.” He waved a dismissive hand. “The lone hero thing is so last year.”
“I … You …”
Danny stepped closer. “I care about you, AJ. I’ve seen you with lots of women, but I’ve never seen you act or look at a woman the way you do Ashlyn. I think you should run with it.” Danny looked over his shoulder. “Speaking of which, she’s in the woods.” He grabbed me by both shoulders, giving me a little shake. “Now you go protect your woman like a good little damaged hero.”
I caught his finger as it came toward my nose again. “Boop and die.”
Danny’s smile widened.
And I couldn’t keep my own smile from my lips. “You’re just trying to get me off the market so you have a chance.”
He winked. “Added benefit. Now get out of here and I’ll go look for web-throwing chick demons.”
I gave Danny a quick hug and slugged him in the arm. “For the first boop.”
“Deserved,” he said, rubbing his bicep.
“We’ve never fought a chick demon before; it could be fun.”
“Jenga is fun. Chick demon who just went all Chainsaw Massacre on half the population of Noah’s Ark is not fun.”
I just stared at Danny.
“What?” Danny asked.
“Jenga? Seriously?” I asked in a tone that totally questioned his manhood.
“What? Jenga is fun.” With a poor attempt at cool, he quickly added, “There’d be tequila and strippers involved, duh.”
“Yeah, I’m the problem with you finding a girl.” I snorted. “I’ll make sure they get where they’re going. After that I’ll expand my search and see if there’s any trace of our new friend.”
“Want me to get Nancy for you?” Danny started for Woody.
“We better leave her here. I’ll have enough to explain if I run into anyone out there.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. I won’t get into any trouble,” I answered.
“You won’t get into trouble.” Danny snort laughed. “Okay, but you better put your pants out before you go. A woman running at super speed with her pants aflame might be a tad attention getting-ish.”
“Cute. Really super, super cute, man-boy. Shall I respond with the whole rubber and glue rhymey thing? Oh wait, hey, when I get back maybe we can play Red Rover, Red Rover. Or ohhh, ohh, Simon Says.” I clapped my hands like an excited eight-year-old girl.
“Simon says you suck,” Danny said flatly.
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“Tell Simon he wishes,” I countered.
Danny rolled his eyes.
I took off, still smiling at the thought of Danny and the ease of our banter and friendship. Danny knew me like no one else and not just because we’d spent the miles between demon hunts engaged in deep meaningful talks. It was more the comfortable silences that brought us the insight into each other’s psyche. He’d evolved from an inconvenience to my brother … from another mother.
I’d always wanted a brother growing up, but dear old mom and pop had drawn the double xx cards in the baby-making game, giving me a younger sister. My sister, who is great, produces cute offspring. I love her, but I had wanted more of the “change your clothes because you just rode your bike through a mud puddle,” not change your Barbie’s clothes because, well, for no damn good reason at all.
Who knew it would take a debauched ancient Indian ritual to give me the brother-like relationship that I had asked Santa for since the age of two. I’d also asked for a motorcycle; the crotchety old jerk hadn’t brought me that either. But I now had Danny and a 1971 Triumph 650 Twin, flat black cafe racer in storage. His name is Thunder, just in case you were wondering. So life was good, minus the fact I was currently running through a forest that was presently the playground of a demon with some serious anger management issues … oh, and might be breastfeeding.
I zigzagged as I searched the area, looking for any signs of the demon and making sure it didn’t circle back and attack humans this time. Especially one human in particular that I just so happen to like intact. I could hear her voice now. As before, I heard her calm and competent, giving directions and instructing the different team members. I used the shadows of the trees to move closer, curious as to whether they had found any evidence. I had to put my arm over my nose and mouth to breathe through the sleeve of the light hoodie that I had thankfully pulled on before leaving camp. The smell of the carnage, already starting to decay, was thick in the air. Ashlyn’s team would have to collect evidence quickly as I wasn’t the only nose that could smell the death.