A Girl's Guide to Demon Hunting (9 page)

Chapter 16

"I think I just broke my head...again."
             
             
             
             
-Ace

    The afternoon sun was shining as I took Pancake outside for a walk. I’d cleaned up the kitchen while my clothes dried and not knowing when Max was going to be back. Julie’s mentor had flown in sometime this morning and according to Father H, Max was busy arranging a safe place for them to stay. So with nothing better to do I decided to go for a walk.
    Evidently our little investigation wasn’t exactly condoned by either the King or The Council, which meant their movements needed to stay under the radar. I was fine with that; the fewer Guardians in Vegas the better. I had enough to deal with; I still didn’t know what to think about Max. Part of me wanted to hate him based solely on his being a Guardian. Except he didn’t quite fit the mold of the Big Bad Wolf that I had in my head of a Guardian. One of Father Henry’s recurring lessons to me is people are seldom simple. When he wasn’t being a total A-hole, Max seemed sort of okay.
    I wondered what Mom and Dad would have thought of me working with a Guardian. After all they sacrificed to keep my secret from the Guardians, I had a sinking suspicion they wouldn’t be too happy with my choices of late. Like most of the last two years, I again found myself involved in something Mom and Dad hadn’t prepared me for.
    Well, it wasn’t like they were innocent in all this.
    I wasn’t surprised to find that Mom and Dad hadn’t been totally truthful with me. I was more upset I never caught on. Now it seemed obvious, the clues had been there all along. We moved constantly, especially after we lost Dad. Mom was never the baking cookies type, always busy keeping me protected and deciphering Dad’s journals.
    Right before Dad was killed, he’d been researching a previously unclassified Demon. Even as young as I was, I’d known it was a big deal. It was hard not to, what with all the hushed conversations and secretive phone calls. When Dad died, Mom took up the research and we’d spent the next seven years traveling from place to place, trying to finish his project.
    Mom never shared her findings with me and any time I asked she always said it wasn’t the right time. Now it would never be the right time; the journals had burned up in the accident and the Demon that attacked us made sure the knowledge couldn’t be found in her mind. Those journals are what brought us to Las Vegas in the first place.
    It’s not that I don’t love Vegas; the lights, shows, general sense of crazy; but if I had my choice I wouldn’t have picked this place to live. The little cabin mom and I rented the summer before my thirteenth birthday would have been my choice. Which made me wonder why Julie came here. It couldn’t be for the obvious: gambling and clubs. She’s only seventeen, which limits the amount of “hard-core” partying she could do.
    What was I thinking? Of course she would have a fake ID. I had three thanks to Jenny but Max didn’t mention her traveling with friends, which lessened the party-girl idea even more. So what was a teenage Guardian doing in a city run by Demons? What would I do? Hunting? It was possible but Father H had just explained that my behavior wasn’t exactly normal, especially for a Guardian. So, not hunting. What then?
    I was trying to imagine myself as Julie, being here for the first time. Then it hit me. Okay, it should have hit me yesterday but it was kind of a long day so let’s not get all judgy. I came here two years ago and I remembered exactly where I went first.
  
    The sun was setting when I finally got off the bus in front of Philip’s indoor firing range. Smiling at the camera that hung above the metal security door, I waited to be buzzed in. Conner, Philip’s freckle faced, red headed cousin stood behind the counter.
    “Hey. Philip around?” I asked walking to the counter.
    “N-not right now. He’s working the evening shift at the gun show and after that he’s got to drop off a special order.”
    I’m pretty sure I made Conner uncomfortable, not in a Demon-y way but in the ‘I’ve got girlie parts that he’d like to see’ kinda way.
    Crossing my arms over my chest I waited for him to get his eyes off the aforementioned parts. Pancake’s low growl snapped him out of his creepy trance. He focused on a point just over my right shoulder and asked if he could help me with anything. I hadn’t thought about Philip not being here. I debated for a second going back to Jenny’s and telling them of my suspicions but what if I missed Philip? Not wanting to take that chance, I decided to wait and then I realized where I was. I could totally work on the Camilla problem while I was here. I am multitask girl, hear my mighty roar.
    “I’d like to test out a few things, if the range is free.”
    “Sure, no problem. Which lane would you like?”
    “All of them.”

Chapter 17

Tip 523:  Demon calls do not work. Don't waste your money.

    There is nothing like the smell of gunpowder. Its sharp metallic scent may just be one of my favorites. What? It’s not like I want it in potpourri in my living room.
     Picking up another brass shell and dropping it in the recycle can, I looked back through the ballistic glass window into the observation room and checked on Pancake. She was asleep in the middle of the couch, a half chewed pizza crust hanging out of her mouth. My stomach rumbled at the sight of the pizza and I wondered if there was any left over. I’d barely paid attention to Conner when he’d asked if I wanted any, too caught up in what I was doing to think of anything else.
    I’d been working with a standard M-4 assault rifle for the last hour. Clearing the chamber and setting it to the side, I reached for Philip’s Pride and Joy. No, really; on the sales tag was typed, “Pride and Joy.” All black with a very expensive-looking laser sighted scope, I had no idea what kind of rifle it was but it was big, bigger than I liked. There was no way I could get up close to Camilla with this monster. Fortunately the rifle was clearly made for a long distance shot.
    Propping it up on the table, I loaded a single round in the chamber and sighted the scope on the center portion of the furthest target. I slowed my breathing and focused on the little red dot from the rifle’s laser sight, adjusting it until it was directly in the center of the target. 
   Exhaling, I gently squeezed the trigger. I wasn’t prepared for what happened next. The hard metal of the stock slammed into me with enough force to cause me to lose my balance. Falling back, I let go of the gun and crashed to the floor, landing flat on my back. Even with ear plugs, my ears rang and for the first time all day I found myself smiling.
    I felt a blast of cool air to my right and I turned my head to see Philip sweeping through the door that led to the shop. Philip doesn’t walk, he sweeps. He was shaking his head, fangs flashing as he smiled. His long wavy black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and his skin looked even paler than usual under the harsh lights of the range. Dressed in a black suit, he looked every bit the vampire he fully believed himself to be.
   He wasn’t of course, his fangs were due to a cosmetic dentist and the creepy red eyes were contacts. Plus, you know, vampires aren’t real. I didn’t quite get the whole vampire thing but to each his own. Besides, I didn’t think it was really a good idea to question a weapons dealer on his lifestyle choices.
    “You okay?” He shouted so I could hear and offered me a hand up.
    After helping me to my feet he went to check on the gun. While I pulled out my ear plugs, the ringing had thankfully gone away, I looked to make sure I didn’t damage the rifle. Luckily it had landed on the counter. Score one for reflex girl. Philip carried it to the table and set it among the other weapons I’d already fired.
    “Is there a zombie apocalypse I don’t know about?” He asked.
    “No, just working on something. I was exploring my options and I don’t trust Conner the Perv.”
    At my nickname for his cousin, his eyes narrowed until they were red slits. Freaky; maybe there was a reason for the contacts.
   “I’ll have another talk with him. I hate working with family.”
    Happy he wasn’t angry with me about his Pride and Joy, I helped him collect the empty brass casings that littered the floor around where I had been shooting.
    “So what are you looking for?” He asked, dropping a few more casings into the barrel.
    “Two things actually.”
    I told him the edited Julie story, omitting of course the whole Guardian thing. 
   Disappointment filled me at his answer. He hadn’t seen or heard anything about anyone looking for anything new, especially a teenage girl.
    “And the other thing?” He asked.
    Let down at not finding Julie I totally forgot about wanting a weapon for the Camilla job.
    “I need something for a long range target.” I said, glancing over at the weapons table.
    “I’ve got just the gun you need. It’s lighter and quieter than Pride & Joy but has the almost the same accuracy with just a bit less range. When do you need it?”
    “As soon as you can.” I said.
    “How about early next week?”
    “Perfect.”
    I’d have plenty of time to practice before the big night. “How much will it cost?” I asked, thinking of my diminishing funds.
    “Don’t worry about it. You’ve brought me more business than I can handle with Ace and Shooter alone.”
    “You sure?”
    “Trust me; they dropped two grand at my booth today at the gun show. Bought my only two rappelling kits and twenty boxes of ammo.”
    I got a bad feeling at the mention of Ace and Shooter with rappelling kits.
    “Wait; did they say why they needed the kits?”
    “Not really; just asked if the anchors would conduct electricity. Why? Is everything okay?” 
    “Those two idiots are going to get themselves killed.” I said.
    The only reason we had ever used rappelling kits was to get into a walled off area. Like, say, a Demon Lord’s home. And I happened to know one such Lord with an electrified fence.
    Mateo.
    Going back out through the shop, I opened the door to the observation room and called to Pancake.
    “Allie, what’s going on?” Philip asked, stopping me with a hand on my arm.
    “It’s nothing, I just have a bad feeling they’re walking into something more dangerous than usual, even for them. Look I’m sorry to impose but do you have a car or something I can borrow?”
    “I drove the company van and I can’t let you drive that, it’s still loaded with merchandise. But I may have something better. Meet me out back and take anything you need from the shop: special one-day free rentals.” He said.
    He then spun around and glided behind the counter. He grabbed Conner by the collar of his shirt and forcefully pushed him through the swinging door marked Private.
    I made a quick scan of the shop; I picked up two sets of handcuffs and stuffed them in my back pocket. Bypassing the display of guns, I went to the knife case and took out a dagger, three inches long and anodized black. Slipping it in the small of my back, I took Pancake’s collar off and put it in my backpack. I was out of the shop and around the back in time to see the garage door opening and Conner pushing a black Vespa out into the alleyway.
    “Here, the bike and helmet are yours.” Conner said and tossed me a black helmet.
Philip, standing next to him, shoved him in the middle of the back, causing him to stumble forward.
    “Its engine has been modified. It’ll do ninety but I wouldn’t take it past sixty. Also I’m really sorry for being a sexist pig.” He said, unable to meet my eyes. At least he wasn’t staring at my girls.
   “Thanks, both of you.” I said.
    I climbed onto the Vespa and started it up. Pulling my backpack off my shoulders, I opened up the padded pocket that was for Pancake. I put her in and once she was settled I opened the flap that would allow her to poke her head out. I slipped the helmet on and put on the goggles that were hanging on the handlebars and with a small wave to Philip I drove out of the parking lot.
   
   I suck at cars but thanks to Ace and his blatant disregard for personal safety, I learned how to ride a motorcycle. I don’t have one because they tend to stand out, especially if a girl is driving. Not that I would classify this as a motorcycle; more like a juiced-up scooter. Conner wasn’t joking about the speed though, the little sucker really flew.
   
   It was full dark by the time I turned down Mateo’s street. I’d made it a point to know where all the Demon Lords lived; sort of an insurance policy since they knew where I lived. I’d even been in a few of their homes, mainly Peaches’ and Peter’s and once in Heidi’s, which was by far the strangest of the bunch. I could have gone my whole life without stepping foot in Mateo’s though. Out of all the Demon Lords he scared me the most, even more than Peaches.
    I drove past Mateo’s mansion and hid the scooter in a neighbor's overgrown hedge. I took my bag off and let Pancake out. No way did I want her in the home of a Greed Demon, so after giving her strict instructions to stay put I ran to Mateo’s. As I approached the tall grey brick wall, I had to fight the urge to turn around and run away. Fear settled over me like a thick oil and I felt my power awaken.
    I found Ace and Shooter’s ropes on the East side of the property, hanging from the electrified wire that ran along the top of the wall. Well, at least they picked the side with no neighbors. Not bothering with the ropes, I jogged back to the front to the property where a large iron gate stood. Turning to the side I held my breath and squeezed through the gate.   
    Once through I waited for the hell hounds to sense me but when no sound of their growls reached me I walked down the long brick driveway. My fear grew with every step I took towards the big grey gothic structure.
    I didn’t bother to hide from the cameras that tracked my every move as I approached the front steps. I was counting on them seeing me coming; with any luck it would stop Mateo from killing Ace and Shooter right away, that is if they weren’t already dead. I found two hell hounds snoring by the front door. The red feathers of Shooter’s tranquilizer darts stood out against their smooth brown coats. Stepping over the larger of the two, I caught sight of a piece of tan cloth in its mouth; looked like Shooter needed to work on his running.