Personal Demon

by Kelley Armstrong

  "I certainly believed it to be him, sir."

  "And you didn't see Hector or admit anyone into this room after Carlos left?"

  "No, sir."

  Hector could have admitted someone through the secret window after Carlos left--but one thing was clear. We needed to find Carlos.

  "What about William?" Paige said.

  I hesitated. As much as I wanted to stop Carlos, I had another brother to think about--one who might need protecting. "William first. But before we go, I should..."

  I cracked open the door and peeked out. The hall was empty, the staff having distracted the family or convinced them everything was fine. Should I find Emilio and tell him? He didn't know me. Should a stranger be the one to bear such news?

  The butler spoke before I could. "I'll handle it, sir. Once Mr. Cortez is removed, I'll tell the widow, then let her break it to the boys. Stroke, was it?"

  "Yes."

  He nodded.

  HOPE

  UNWELCOME

  "Have you spoken to your mother?" Karl asked as we walked to Cortez headquarters.

  The question was so unexpected I could only gawk. "What?"

  "Have you called your mother since you've been in Miami?"

  I had the day I arrived, but since then had told myself she'd expect me to be busy with my story. Truth was, I'd been uncomfortable calling her while playing Faith Edmonds.

  "Benicio can tempt you all he wants," Karl said. "You have a long way to go before he stands any chance of winning you over."

  That's what he'd meant by the question about my mother. Would I ever stop being surprised--and maybe a little discomfited--by how well Karl knew me?

  I took his point, but I only had to think back to those few minutes in the panic room to make me wonder how right he was. As long as my ties--to home and family, work and the council--stayed intact, I didn't have much in common with the young supernaturals in the gang. Yet, at times, like them, I felt alone and alienated by my powers.

  I still mourned the perfectly open relationship I'd once had with my mother. There'd been a level of honesty there I'd never have again.

  Even in the world of supernaturals, I'd never be truly understood or accepted. My powers were too different and disconcerting. Who wants to be around someone who can read their worst thoughts? Karl had worked around it, but I'm sure it hadn't been easy, which made me cherish his friendship all the more.

  Still, I had a good life, especially compared to Jaz or Sonny. I wouldn't easily be swayed to a Cabal. That was Karl's point. But was he right?

  In that panic room, my moral core had shut off. I'd looked at Troy and I hadn't even known who he was. I'd thought only of feeding off his death.

  What if it happened again and I stood by and let someone die? I'd never be able to face my family again. I'd never be able to face the council. Wouldn't be able to face myself...

  "Hope?" Karl was frowning.

  "Sorry, I'm just--" I shook my head. "I'll be fine."

  "You will. And I want you to call your mother in the morning."

  "Yes, sir."

  "I want you to invite her to...What's her favorite restaurant?"

  "Odessa's in Philly."

  "Invite her there to dine with us next Saturday night."

  "Us?"

  "Is that a problem?"

  "It just sounds very...couple-ish."

  "Is that a problem?"

  I looked up at him. If it all did fall apart, there'd be one person who'd still be there, who wouldn't care what I'd done. Would he ever know how much that meant to me?

  "Karl Marsten?"

  We looked up to see Troy's partner, Griffin, walking toward us. Did his blue eyes frost over as they met mine? Probably my imagination. I was in the mood to see disapproval everywhere.

  Karl extended a hand. When Griffin pretended not to see it, I didn't imagine the icy look in Karl's eyes. If he was going to make the effort, he didn't appreciate being repulsed by a glorified security guard.

  "Have you heard from--" I began.

  "This way," Griffin said, then headed back toward the building.

  I hurried to catch up, but Karl caught my arm, his look reminding me that we were here to assist the Cabal, and damned if we were chasing after our escort.

  "I'm sorry you were called away from home at this hour," I said, as Griffin looked back at us impatiently.

  "You think I care about that?" His tone was so sharp I jumped. "My partner's lying on a hospital bed, fighting for his life. My boss was almost killed, and now he's guarded by security team flunkies I barely know. And I'm stuck playing escort for--" He stopped himself.

  "A werewolf?" Karl said smoothly.

  A grunt that could be a yes.

  "I don't know why Lucas assigned you to us, but we had no say in the matter, and as soon as we find William, we'll be out of your hair," I said as we approached the front doors.

  "Better yet," Karl said. "We could leave right now."

  "You're not going anywhere until Lucas says so." Griffin yanked open the door.

  Karl caught and held it. "I beg your pardon?"

  "Lucas told me to guard you, and I will until I'm relieved of that duty."

  "Is that Lucas's order?"

  "I know my job."

  In other words, Lucas had said no such thing. As we stepped inside, my cell phone rang. It was Paige.

  "We just got to the office," I explained as I answered.

  "Is Griffin there?"

  I looked at the bodyguard, who glowered back at me. "Yes."

  She gave a throaty laugh. "Is he giving you a hard time? Ignore him. He's a good guy. He just takes the whole bodyguard image very seriously. Not like..." A slight catch in her breathing.

  "How's Troy?" I asked.

  "He's in surgery now."

  That's all she said. I guess it was all there was to say--that he'd survived long enough to get onto the operating table and we just had to wait and see what would happen there.

  I could hear voices in the background. It sounded like an argument. Had they run into trouble?

  "Anyway, I wasn't calling to pester you about your progress. I just wanted to say...be careful."

  "Okay..."

  "We just got to Hector's house. He's here in the study apparently, and has been all evening. Carlos was here an hour ago. So that's two pretty much accounted for."

  I caught her meaning, one she probably didn't dare voice with others around. If Benicio's attacker had gone after one of the sons following his failure at the house, it would be William. If that attacker had managed to get into Cabal headquarters, he could be here now.

  "Just be careful," she said. "Let Griffin take the lead. He's the professional."

  GRIFFIN LED US past the young man at the front desk.

  "Shouldn't we speak to him?" I said as we headed for the elevator. "He might know if William left yet."

  Griffin grunted and kept walking, so I stopped. Karl did the same. Griffin reached the elevators, saw that we'd left him and strode back, passing us and walking to the desk.

  "Mr. Cortez would like you to answer these people's questions."

  The receptionist/guard gave him a discreet questioning look. Griffin's chin dipped a quarter-inch. In this business "tell these people what they want to know" could easily mean "tell them what they're allowed to know."

  "Is William Cortez still in his office?" I asked.

  "I believe so." He dropped his gaze to a display just below the desktop and tapped the screen. "His car is still in the garage, and I haven't seen him leave." Another tap. "Nor has he used his code on any of the other exit doors."

  "When's the last time anyone saw him?"

  I expected him to say, "How should I know?" but the guard tapped the screen a few more times. "He requested dinner at seven-thirty, and it was taken to his office at eight. He asked for coffee at nine."

  "Has he had any visitors?"

  "None that came through me, miss, and I've been on since seven."

&
nbsp; We headed to the same elevator we'd been taken up in yesterday. As we waited, Griffin glanced over at Karl, eyes narrowing.

  "Is that Mr. Cortez's shirt?"

  Karl stretched his arms, the sleeves riding up past his wrists. "A poor fit, but the fabric and tailoring are superb."

  "Where'd you get it?"

  "I stole it, of course. While everyone was beating the bushes for assassins and trying to save your partner's life, I decided to do some shopping in Benicio's closet. I have a nice pair of diamond cuff links in the car too."

  Griffin scowled, as if not quite certain Karl was joking. When we got onto the elevator, he covered the panel as he entered the code, just in case.

  HOPE

  OVERTIME

  When we reached William's office, the door was open and there was no sign of an occupant. Griffin went in first, circled the room, then came out and said, "He's not here."

  I stepped inside. Papers were scattered across an otherwise pristine desk, a briefcase sat on a chair and a suit jacket hung behind the door. Karl picked up the jacket. Griffin's eyes narrowed.

  "I'm thinking of taking this too," Karl said. "You don't mind, do you?"

  He gave the jacket a shake. At a jingle, he reached into a pocket and fished out a set of keys.

  "So he hasn't gone far," I said. "Where's the nearest bathroom?"

  Griffin walked to a closed door that I'd presumed was a closet, and opened it to reveal a dark and empty bathroom.

  "Water cooler? Vending machine? Photocopier?"

  He pointed to the cooler and an all-in-one printer. "There are no vending machines on this floor. If he wants something, he calls."

  He crossed the room and picked up the phone, and I thought he was just being sarcastic--demonstrating--but he pushed a button and murmured something.

  "Maybe he stepped out to stretch his legs," I said to Karl. "Can you tell?"

  "Only that he's been in here recently. I could try tracking him, but he's been in and out of here so often that unless he went someplace he doesn't normally go, it would be difficult to find a fresh trail."

  "Do you smell anything else?"

  "Blood? No."

  I closed my eyes, but all I could pick up was a general sense of unease and distrust emanating from Griffin.

  "He left this floor at nine-thirty," Griffin said, startling me.

  "What?"

  "The elevator access records show he went down to the fourth floor at nine-thirty, but never came back up."

  "What's on the fourth floor?"

  "Lots of things."

  He was out the door before I could get another word in.

  "Karl?" I said. "Can you tell whether anyone else was in here with William?"

  "I can try."

  He walked to the doorway and dropped to his haunches. Griffin strode back as if just realizing we weren't behind him.

  "Are you com--?"

  Seeing Karl, he stopped and let out a snort of disgust. Karl ignored it, inhaled, then stood and brushed off his trousers.

  "There seems to be a recent second trail, but that was probably whoever dropped off dinner."

  "Are you coming now?" Griffin snapped.

  Karl glanced over at him and smiled. "What's the magic word?"

  Griffin stalked off, muttering a word under his breath.

  "That's not it," Karl called after him.

  Griffin's shoulders tightened as he realized he'd been heard, but he didn't stop.

  WHEN THE ELEVATOR doors opened onto the fourth floor, it looked as quiet and empty as the other levels. Odd. I'd worked for corporations, and even on floors staffed by nine-to-fivers you could expect to see cleaners at night. But I suppose having cleaners--even your own staff--in a Cabal office, unsupervised, wasn't wise. Better to lock down the floors and monitor all access.

  We followed Griffin until we reached the first junction. Then Karl stopped, his nostrils flaring, and veered down the adjoining hall.

  We got about ten steps before Griffin's "Hey!" rang out.

  "I thought I told you to stay with me," he said as he stalked up behind us.

  "No, I don't believe you did."

  "This is a Cabal head office. You can't just run off like that."

  "Run?" Karl turned slowly, eyebrows arched. "I believe I was walking. I also believe you are in as much a hurry to get this over with as we are, but if I'm mistaken, then you go your way, and let me follow the smell of blood."

  "Blood?" I said.

  A faint wince--he hadn't intended to say that in front of me.

  "Where?" Griffin demanded.

  "I need to follow the trail to find the source. Now, if you'll allow me to do that..."

  He continued down the hall. Griffin swung into his path. He moved so fast I stumbled out of his way, but it was nothing compared to how fast Karl moved. Before I could blink, Karl had the bodyguard pinned against the wall by his shirtfront.

  "You want to take a pop at me?" Griffin said. "Go right ahead."

  "I know you don't plan to hit him, Karl," I said. "But in case you're provoked, I'd strongly advise against it. He's a Ferratus."

  Karl glanced at me.

  "A half-demon who can make his skin as hard as iron. Hit him and you'll break your hand."

  Griffin smiled. "Don't take her word for it. Go ahead."

  "Once I have you pinned, you're no longer a threat. But before we continue this pleasant little venture, let's come to an understanding, Griffin. I don't trust you. You clearly don't trust me. Sudden moves of any kind can be easily misinterpreted as aggression."

  He released Griffin's shirtfront. "Now, let's find the source of the blood. I doubt your employer would be pleased if you let a fellow guard bleed to death because you got into a pissing contest with a werewolf."

  ANOTHER TWENTY FEET down the hall, Karl veered into a room and lifted a hand to ward me off. For once, I obeyed. I'd had enough.

  Then the room went dark and I remembered that there was no sense blocking my eyes. The vision began.

  A man stood with his back to me as he bent over an open filing cabinet drawer.

  "Right where I said they were." He pulled out a folder. "I appreciate that you're putting in some overtime for a change, but if you're going to interrupt--"

  The pftt of a silenced shot. The man fell back against the cabinet. I saw his face then. William. The folder fluttered from his hand as he stared, incredulous, at his shooter.

  His mouth opened, but a second shot sent him reeling. He crumpled against the filing cabinet, then slid to the floor.

  When the vision ended, I didn't jolt out of it. It just...stopped. And I just stopped. Like coming to the shocking end of a movie, sitting there, staring at the blank screen, unable to think, feel, move. Even the chaos vibes didn't penetrate.

  "Hope?"

  Karl's voice sounded miles away. I felt him grip my arms, as if through a thick winter coat.

  "It's been too much for her," he said. "I need to get her out of here."

  His words floated past, disconnected, meaningless.

  "You're not going anywhere."

  "The hell I'm not. Get out of my way."

  I recognized the rising chaos, but it was like pouring wine in front of my face--I could see it, smell it, know what it was, but it had no effect.

  "Hope? Can you hear me? Can you walk, hon?"

  "Hon? I should have guessed. A werewolf thief. She must love you. Just dripping with chaos."

  "Get out of my way."

  "You do know that's all it is, don't you? That's all her kind care about. The chaos."

  "Get the fuck out of my--"

  My eyes snapped open and I gasped, as if breaking free of icy water. "William? Is he--?"

  "Yes, and we're leaving."

  "No, I had a vision. I can help. I want to."

  "Oh, I bet you do," Griffin said.

  "One last time," Karl said. "Get out--"

  "Do you think Benicio Cortez won't figure it out, Hope? You fooled him for a while, an
d nothing I could say would change his mind, but if my partner dies because--"

  Karl made a move, as if to brush past Griffin, but he stepped into our path again, and I plucked at Karl's sleeve, asking him to hold on.

  "You think I shot Troy?" I said. "I was with Lucas and Paige, and if there's a better alibi than that--"

  "You didn't need to pull the trigger. You had a whole gang of young men, just itching to do it, especially if there's a pretty girl goading them on, so she can sit back and enjoy."

  "I didn't--"

  "Mr. Cortez hates stereotypes. He thinks you should take the measure of the man, not measure him by his type. But in some cases, the type is all that matters, and I know all about yours."

  "You know an Expisco?"

  "Hope..." Karl began.

  I wriggled from his grip and stepped closer to Griffin, consumed by the need to know, circumstances be damned.

  "Are you still in touch with him? Could I talk to him?"

  Griffin gave a harsh laugh. "Not without a necromancer."

  "He--he's dead? How? No, just tell me. What was he like? Did he figure it all out? Did someone help him?"

  "You want to know about Expisco half-demons? About yourself?" He stepped toward me. "Let me tell you about--"

  Griffin staggered back, then collapsed to the floor. I wheeled to see Karl wiggling his fingers as if checking for damage. It took a moment to realize he must have clocked Griffin, the punch so fast I hadn't seen it.

  I turned to stare stupidly at Griffin, lying unconscious across the doorway.

  "Whoops," Karl said. "Benicio won't be happy about that. But I did warn him. No sudden moves. As long as he's out, though, no need to hang around."

  He grabbed me around the waist and swung me over Griffin into the hall. I took one last look at the fallen Ferratus.

  "Is your hand--?" I began.

  "Just fine. The trick, apparently, is to hit them before they see it coming."

  LUCAS

  12

  "THEY'RE ON THE FOURTH FLOOR," the guard said. "They went down about ten minutes ago."

  I thanked him and headed for the elevators. Any would do. The fourth was staff level, meaning a simple card swipe or key code would allow us access.

  As the car slowed, I stepped forward, waited for the doors to part and found myself nose to nose with Karl Marsten.

  He had his arm around Hope, supporting her. Her face was drawn, and as her bleary eyes lifted to mine, she seemed to take a moment to recognize me.