A Girl's Guide to Demon Hunting (10 page)

Chapter 18

"There will be no Demon Hunting Blog!"
             
             
             
             
-Jenny

    Before I could even raise my hand to knock, the door was opened by a female Greed Demon. Dressed in all black leather, her long blonde hair hung loose down her back, red eyes glowed bright for a second before she stepped aside, allowing me to enter. Silently I walked into the dark house and followed her bright pink high heels as they clicked on the stone floor.
    We passed a very modern kitchen and turned down a hallway. I got a sense of déjà vu and paused for a minute looking down the long hallway; white doors ran the length on either side. Nine. There were only nine doors, not twelve; the feeling passed. Seeing the Demon was already halfway down the hallway, I ran to catch up. She stopped at the last door on the left and held it open for me.
    Walking through the open door, I found myself in some sort of waiting room; it was bare except for four chairs, pushed in a row against a wall opposite me. Two more Demons stood in front of a set of wooden double doors. Dressed in dark suits, their hands hung at their sides. I knew behind the sunglasses their eyes glowed a bright red. I had the sudden urge to sing about sunglasses at night but the slam of the door behind me cut it off.   
   Probably best; not the right time for ’80s pop standards. The reality of where I was came crashing back as I stared at the wide double doors in front of me.
    My heart pounded in my chest as I thought about what waited for me on the other side of the door. What I’d told Max was true: Mateo could give me my deepest desire if he knew what it was. All I had to do was utter the words and I would never be alone ever again. That is, if I was willing to pay the price. I wasn’t so sure I could say no and I didn’t want to die that way, not at the hands of his kind of monster.
    I fought the urge again to run away as my fear grew to epic proportions. Ace and Shooter were in there. I had to do this, I owed them that much. Pushing my fear down, I plastered a cocky smile on my face and walked to the double doors. One of the Demons opened the doors for me and stepped aside, allowing me to enter, closing the door softly behind me.
    I found myself in a huge room, a fire burning in the fireplace on the far wall. Oriental rugs were scattered over the stone floor and a large glass desk sat near the fireplace. There were no windows or doors except the one I came through. I was trapped. I saw this all in a matter of seconds as I scanned the room for additional threats other than the one I already identified. I couldn’t decide if it was good or bad that Ace and Shooter weren’t in here.
    Mateo stood in the middle of the room, dressed in a black suit with a blood red tie that matched his eyes. His dark hair and olive skin hinted at his choice of name.
    “I expected to see you sooner.” He said, not bothering with small talk.
    “I’m sorry, I only just learned of their intentions.”
    “Yes, well it’s no secret that those two humans run with you. To which we’ve allowed because you’ve kept them under control. However this goes too far; I will not have my sanctuary threatened.”
    I held back the urge to roll my eyes at his choice of words; sanctuary...really? 
    “I understand that and I give you my word, they will not do this again.”
    “Ensure that they do not.”
    With no signal that I could see, the double doors behind me opened and Ace and Shooter stumbled into the room. Ace had a split lip and Shooter was limping but otherwise they looked to be okay. Relief washed over me as I went to them.
    “We’re leaving.” I whispered to them, wanting to get out of there as quickly as we could before Mateo could blow my cover.
    When they didn’t move I reached for the handcuffs in my jacket pocket, ready to use them if I had to. Turning to Ace I gave him my best ‘get moving’ glare.
    “Max.” He whispered.
    Frozen, I stood with my two best friends inside the home of a Demon Lord and tired to comprehend what I just heard.
    “Please tell me you didn’t bring
him
to a Demon Lord. Please tell me you wouldn’t be that stupid.” I whispered, looking between Shooter’s pale face and Ace’s guilty one.  
    Angrier than I’ve ever been at them, I told them to go stand by the door as I turned back to Mateo.
    “I’m going to need the other one as well.”
    “Oh, I’m sure you would. Except your newest pet caused a rather public mess downtown, one that I had to brush rather quickly under the rug.”
    My mind spun at his words. He thought Max was a human, which meant Max couldn’t have caused too much damage. Mateo wouldn’t defy Peaches by killing my friends, even Max, so there was something more to this but what?  The money we’ve stolen from his Demons? It seemed likely. Great; I didn’t have any money, which meant I was going to have to barter with something else. I only had one thing that Mateo would want besides money; my power.
    “What do you want?” I asked, forcing him to get to the point.
    “Only what I deserve.” As he spoke he slowly walked towards me. My power began to grow inside me with every step he took. By the time he stood just inches away, it was threatening to burst forth.
    “You know the rules: an eye for an eye.” He said, running his clawed finger down the side of my face.
    I forced myself to hold completely still as his hand came to rest on my shoulder, his claws piercing my skin.
    “That rule only applies to Demons, not humans.” I hissed as I felt my warm blood trail down my chest.
    “I know.” He whispered in my ear, causing a shudder to run through me.
    “The Guardians will find out if you involve a human.” I said, using the only leverage I had.
    “And who would tell them? You? The shining example? It’s this or we let Peaches settle it. Your choice.” He whispered.
    There was no way Peaches wouldn’t figure out Max was a Guardian and once she did all hell was going to break loose.
    “Fine. We do it your way.”
    Letting go of me, he walked back across the room, putting plenty of space between the two of us.
    I was able to take a shaky breath as my power settled down just a bit. It was easier to control when he wasn’t so damn close.
    Once again the door behind me opened. Two large Demons came in dragging a struggling Max between them. Seeing me, he calmed down and straightened until he was walking on his own two feet. The Demons led him past me and came to a stop in front of Mateo. At Mateo’s signal the guards released him and took a step back. Max gave me a searching look. I hoped he could stay calm while this played out.
    “It seems you have a Guardian Angel my boy.” Mateo said, “Allie has reminded me that for now I have more to gain from your life than your death. I would suggest if you want it to stay this way you will listen to her.” Max thankfully stayed quiet during all this. “Now about you injuring one of my Demons. We’ve managed to come to an acceptable arrangement, one that benefits all parties. Don’t you agree?” He asked with a nasty smile.
    I nodded grimly.
    I heard the door open and turned to see a Demon I’d never met come into the room. Tan with pale blonde hair, he looked like he should be dressed in board shorts instead of the red silk shirt and black pants. I didn’t see the injury until he passed me. Embedded in the center of his back was a knife.
   “I believe you know Toby.” He said to Max.
   “Oh shit.” I mumbled, too low for anyone to hear.
   I was more interested in where the wound was than whom he’d hurt. A wound like that is nothing to a Demon but for a being that was part human it would sever the spinal cord. At best Max would be paralyzed, at worst....well I didn’t want to think of worst. Either way the Guardians were going to know and when they did...
    I was going to have to stop this. Now. As I shifted my weight, I felt the knife I borrowed from Philip. Grasping the handle, I pulled it from its sheath and held it behind my back and, careful to not draw their attention, I directed all my power into the knife. Toby was in striking distance of Max, my window of opportunity was closing. Ready or not, I was out of time.
    My power coursing through me, I ran across the room and grabbed Toby by the back of the shirt, pulling him away from Max and pushing him toward Mateo. Never taking my eyes from my target, I took aim and buried my knife deep into Max’s chest, up near the right shoulder.
    His eyes went wide a second before they rolled back in his head and he sunk to the floor. Toby hissed and made a grab for me but was stopped by Mateo’s hand on his wrist. I faced Mateo.
    “Satisfied? Your conditions have been met, an eye for an eye.” I told him.
    Not waiting for an answer I motioned for Ace and Shooter. They ran across the room and straight to Max. They dragged him to his feet and carried him toward the exit. Facing Mateo, I began backing towards the door.
    “It will do.” He said, and with a smile he walked towards the desk across the room. Not wanting to give him the chance to change his mind, I spun around and ran for the exit.
Once the double doors were closed behind me, I turned to Ace and Shooter.
    “Run.”
    Thankfully the iron gate had been opened for us and the Hell Hounds were nowhere to be found. Max was stirring by the time we had him loaded in the back of the van. I was thankful we didn’t have to use a body bag.
    Pancake came running as soon as she saw me at the van. Giving her a quick scratch behind the ears, I put her in the back of the van and told her once again to guard. After closing the back door of the van I circled around until I stood at the passenger window. Looking at Ace and Shooter’s pale and tired faces, I toned down my anger.
    “Go straight to Jenny’s and don’t stop for anyone. I’ll make sure you’re not being tailed.”
    They both gave me a nod and I watched as they drove off. I ran to the Vespa, started it up and after putting my backpack and the helmet on, I took off after them, keeping my eyes peeled both on the ground and in the air for any sign that we were being followed.

Chapter 19

Tip 108: Sometimes information is better than any sharp and pointy weapon.

    I sat across the street from Studio House Café and waited for twenty minutes after I watched Ace and Shooter help Max inside. Thankfully it was well after dark and the café was closed. I finally started the Vespa up and drove to the rear of the café, parking between Jenny’s Porsche and Shooter’s van. Walking around to the front, I knocked on the glass door. I heard Pancake barking from inside and a minute later the click of the lock as Jenny opened the door.
    “Hey.” She said, her voice scratchy as if I’d woken her up.
   Which I may have, considering she was dressed in pale blue pajama pants that had sheep jumping over a fence on them and her St. Mary’s High sweatshirt.
    “You okay?” I asked as I walked into the darkened room.
   The café was silent; the only sound besides the click of Pancake’s nails on the polished floor was the hum of the appliances.
    “Yeah, I think I may have lost my voice yelling at those three idiots.”
“Speaking of them, where are they?”
“Upstairs; Shooter is stitching up Max as we speak. He said the hot blade was a good idea, there was very little bleeding.”
I didn’t say anything; I really didn’t think Jenny wanted to know my first-hand experience of being on the receiving end of a white hot blade.
“You hungry?” Jenny asked as I plopped down in my favorite chair next to a stack of papers. Recognizing Julie’s file, I put it on the coffee table and rested my head against the armrest.
“Not really. Just tired.” I said, rubbing my eyes.
“Come on, I know you haven’t eaten since breakfast. I’ll order some soup and salad; you need something green.” She said and sat down next to me, picking up her laptop.
    Pulling the delivery site up, she typed in our order. I didn’t have to bother giving her my request, she knew exactly what I wanted: spinach salad with grilled chicken, ranch dressing and a cup of cheddar broccoli soup. Not the healthiest but it was better than a package of instant noodles and a candy bar.
   Over dinner I looked through Julie’s file, searching for why she’d come to Las Vegas. Jenny was sure if we knew the why we would be able to at least get a clue as to the where. Jenny was meanwhile engrossed in her search of the Guardian database.
    I found nothing but old report cards, college essays and a very dry psych evaluation which Julie had to undergo when she began a summer internship at the Palace. I put the file back together, frustrated at finding nothing. I studied Jenny; she looked tired and judging by the collection coffee cups on the table, she’d been at this all day.
    “You find anything?” I asked.   
    “No, it’s like she never existed, at least according to the Guardians. I’m beginning to think there’s something more to this than we know.”
    “Why?” I asked sitting up, suddenly wide awake.
    “Because when I searched the database, I didn’t find her.” She said, sitting back from her computer, she leaned against the soft cushion and turned to look at me. “So I followed a hunch and ran Max’s name. When nothing came up I called Father Henry. He assured me it was normal and that not all Guardians are in the database. But I don’t get it, why have a paper file and not an electronic?”
   “I don’t know.” I said, “I asked Father Henry if he trusted Max. He didn’t come out and say yes but he didn’t say no either.”
    “Do you think Father Henry would keep something important from us?” She asked, worry evident in her voice.
    “If he thought it would protect us I’m sure of it.”