Demon Chained (Shadowfae Chronicles) (23 page)

As if Joey hasn't screwed me enough. Now he has to frighten my girl and kick the living shit out of my best fairy.

I'll fucking kill the prick for this. I don't care if I have to crack his skull and suck out his snaky brains through a straw. This time I won't ass it up.

But my spunky Jewel's still on her knees, shaking and trying not to show it, and after all her heroics, I can't move. Can't just give her away, not even for this. Goddamn it.

Delilah darts up from the couch, mottled ash snowing from her hair, and skids to a stop inches from Joey's face. "I'm busy. Don't interrupt me."

Black spines pop out on Joey's brow, but he doesn't shrink back. He taps his cane on the floor deliberately, click, click. "We've had such a nice chat, this little sweetie and I. She's here, Delilah. They're both here. It's a trick."

"The hell." Delilah snaps curved fangs, green spit dripping onto her chin.

Click, click. Joey doesn't blink, but black webs spring up between his fingers. Snaky fucker's got guts, I'll give him that. "Give it to him, if you don't believe me. See what happens."

Disbelief freshens my mouth like mint. Joey hasn't twigged that Jewel's not me. The fact that she hasn't tried to tear his throat out yet should have been a dead giveaway. But Jewel won't snarl and spit and curse him to hell like I do. She won't even recognize him.

This could be very bad.

My blood shivers, fevered. Keep thinking, shitball. Let's hope your brain's only big enough for one idea at a time.

I glance behind me, to where Joey's left the door open. I could sneak out, go back to the original plan, hope Jewel can do her thing. But in my head, common sense whispers savage truth, and I know Jewel's chance of getting her hands on the lamp is gone. Fuck.

Delilah screeches in frustration and whirls away. My fingers itch. Put the lamp down, Kool-aid queen. Maybe I can snatch it, smoke Jewel and piss off out of here while I'm still invisible. But she wraps her grotesque fingers around the lamp's brass handle again, brandishing it like the devil's pitchfork. "Then what do you suggest, serpent? She isn't just going to drop by and say hi."

Joey saunters forward and smacks his cane into Gavain's ribs, making a soggy
thwack!
that can't be good.

Gavain retches again, and when he whimpers with the pain, my heart freezes and burns at the same time. I want to leap into action, bang my head against the wall, scream. If I could ease his pain, I would. If I could smack his double-crossing face into the floor, I'd do that too. Christ, I don't understand anything anymore.

Joey bends over to peer into Gavain's eyes. "This wingless freak gave me an idea."

A sarcastic Delilah scowl. "Wonderful. I can't wait. Flabbergast me."

Joey pushes past her and points his cane at Jewel, flourishing it like a bad stage magician. "Kill him."

My guts drop so hard, I can hear the thud.

Jewel just stares up at him, hard and black, and snarls at him like she's chewing razors. "Shiny fucking Joey. Screw you."

On the floor, Gavain twists his head towards her, his bleeding eyes wide. Did she learn that from him? Bless both of them. But my you-fucked-up instincts are blazing a swathe across my senses, wildfire in dry bush. Hell, it doesn't take a genius to realize that this is very bad indeed.

Delilah stares. "What?"

"Kill his rotting ass. With him dead, she'll have nowhere to go. Open the lamp and she's yours."

My nerves crawl. Fuck. I was really hoping they wouldn't think of that. But I've an advantage when it comes to death, and Joey knows it.

Looks like Delilah knows it too, because she laughs like a honking goose and smacks Joey across the head, sending him stumbling and his hat spinning to the floor. "Have you gotten stupid in the last few hours? He's already fucking dead. What you gonna do, kill him again?"

Jewel gives it her best Tam-scowl. "Try it, you scrawny-ass weirdo. See how far you get."

Heh. She scraped the words from my tongue. I could really dig a girl like her.

Joey dusts off his hat, tilts it carefully over his eye once more, and sends Delilah a shiny-eyed you'll-keep-bitch stare. "Oh, I'll get pretty far, I think. Slowly, with a lot of shattered bones." He grips his cane horizontally in both hands, the black lacquer glinting, and bends over to stare Jewel in the eyes. Green, unblinking like a snake. "You upset my girl. And now you've shot my cousin, you maggoty lump of meat. You had your chance to walk away from this. You wasted it."

Jewel laughs, even though she can't have a clue what he's on about. "Your cousin was a shitlicking scumbag, Joey. Takes right after you."

His forked tongue flickers. "I already killed you once. Pity for you that you didn't die. But not to worry. I'll make a more thorough job of it this time."

Delilah grins, gleeful. Jewel's face bleaches white. My guts kick, and suddenly my mouth's full of bloody bile.

I can't watch this.

Not her. Not him. Not again.

But I don't have my pistol, and my switchblade will be useless on Joey's scales. If I attack him, he'll beat us both to toxin-blistered pulp. I can't even smoke Jewel away, or they'll just take her and kill me.

Flashes of Katie, alone and terrified. Her mother's blood on the floor, on my hands, sticky under my fingernails. The bitter taste of her dead skin on my lips.

Cold pus sours my throat, and I choke.

Shit.

Joey cocks his head, black scales crusting over his ear.

Fuck it. I spit, and yellow muck streaked with green and scarlet plops onto the timber at my feet.

Delilah hisses. The air shimmers thick with demonic compulsion, and behind me, the door thuds shut and locks. "She's there! Don't let her escape!"

I close my eyes, and somehow muster a fragment of my voice. "Jewel, change us back."

***

Chapter Twenty-Three

Glittering relief coursed through me, and my particles scattered to the air.

I scrambled, dying to flee. But too soon, my smoke coalesced, and my sandaled feet—
my
feet—thudded into the hard floor, a swish of silken pants around my legs. My head felt light, my hands tiny and cold like a child's. My copy of Tam was gone, just little old me with nothing to hide behind but warm black silk and attitude.

Bereft of his extra weight, my balance wobbled, and I staggered, catching myself on Delilah's velvety sofa. My renewed blood coursed, stinging like pins in my veins. I felt tiny, weak, helpless again. I'd liked being Tam.

Gavain wriggled bleeding on the floor, his hands tied, and for a moment he smiled at me, sharp teeth glinting red. In the corner, Tam coughed, and wiped his mouth, his breath shallow and rough. He was in here after all. Now, we're screwed.

"Well, what do you know?" Shiny Joey's webbed fingers fastened around my wrist and dragged me off my feet. I stumbled into him, the smell of mint and leather making me choke. His body felt coiled and tense against my hip, unyielding but warm, like living rock. I struggled, but he was too strong. I couldn't break free.

"Get your scaly hands off her." Tam barreled into us, a smack of damp, hot flesh.

My breath knocked away. My feet tangled with Joey's, and my bare toes crushed under his step. I yelped, that agonizing delay before pain stabbed deep.

Joey flung me aside, hissing. "With pleasure."

I tumbled to the floor next to Gavain, and my cheek skidded raw on the shiny timber. I gulped, but my breath refused to come, and for a moment I lay there, my pulse thudding in my ears like a doomful drum.

Gavain edged closer, wriggling onto ultra-flexible knees. Blood dripped onto his thighs from the wire around his wrists, which was twisted tight so he couldn't work his way free. He frowned, and leaned over to whisper. "Brass."

"What the hell are you—ugh!" A rough demon hand encircled my arm and dragged me to my feet.

I struggled, but Delilah just grinned, dangling my lamp dangling lazily from one crooked finger. Her claws cut into my biceps. "Brass. What a good idea," she crowed, and snapped a gilded metal handcuff onto my wrist.

My skin stung. I stared, terror swelling my eyeballs until my vision distorted from the pressure.

Brass. She'd cuffed me in brass. The same magical brass that made soultraps and thrall bangles and the prison of my lamp.

Already my strength sapped, my will weakening. She tugged the few links of chain tight, and clapped the second cuff around her own wrist. "See if you can smoke now, bitch."

Panic assaulted me. My watery legs wanted to buckle. My guts felt like they were melting, running out of me like effluent. I needed to pee. Wildly, I pulled, but the cuff jammed tight into my hand, immovable. God, I wanted to smoke. I wanted Gavain's double-jointed thumbs. I wanted to saw my own arm off, rather than stay shackled to this evil tart for an instant longer.

"Tam," I spluttered, "for God's sake . . ."

***

She's begging me. My girl's screaming for help, and I can't talk. And it isn't just because fear's dried my throat up like a sun-drenched cowpat.

It's because Joey's got his greasy webbed fingers wrapped around my windpipe. My lungs are burning, full of useless air and she wants me to say her name and I can't make a fucking sound.

Kane can send me to hell for all I care. It can't be worse than this.

Joey's hellgreen eyes glint, and he jams his poison-clawed thumbs in tighter. Thick liquid squirts down my neck from the wound. The pain's a sweet relief, a distant screech of sensation that fires my blood. His curved reptile fangs drip green venom onto his chin, and his voice scratches like scaly sandpaper. "No Valenti halfwits to watch your back now, maggot."

Jewel still struggles, but her voice shrinks small. "Get off me, you bitch!"

I slam my foot into Joey's shin. He twists his leg back, snarling, and I follow it up with a knee to what I hope are still his balls now he's bugging out. He writhes away, serpentine, and I miss, but at least it gets his claws out of my airway.

I choke, my throat a mess of spasming muscle, and force the words out. Soft as I can, so no one can hear except her. There's still a chance they don't know the trick. "Jewel, come here."

Joey curses, venom sizzling. Over his shoulder, I see my girl sparkle and shimmer and turn transparent. Warm relief prickles my palms . . .

And then she solidifies. Right where she is, with the demon bitch's handcuff still tight around her wrist.

My blood ices over with shock. My thoughts pile rapidly atop each other like mental landfill. Did I say something wrong? No, of course not. It's not rocket surgery, this naming thing. Are they magic Jewel-trapping cuffs, or something? The brass has some kind of power over her? No one
tells
me these things. How is that fair?

Delilah cackles, angry scarlet sparks flying from her hair. She waves the lamp in one crusty fist. "You'll have to do better than that, sugar."

I launch myself at her, but Joey flips up his cane and rams me back into the wall. He holds me there, the slim black rod jammed across my throat. Christ, the fucker's strong.

"I was watching you, ssscumlicker," he hisses. "You said a word. It's her name, isn't it? You have to say her name. Tell me."

Pity he's not stupid as well. "Screw you." I kick at him again, but he twitches easily out of the way.

He stretches his snaky neck towards me, eyes burning cold. "You really should learn when you're beaten, Tam. Tell me."

Delilah yanks Jewel's manacle, and giggles when my girl stumbles. "So that's it, eh? Tell me your name, bitch, before I suck you to stinking dust."

Helplessness cramps my limbs, icy and too familiar. It's Katie all over again. I've failed her. There's nothing else I can do.

So I spit into Joey's face.

Stringy black phlegm stains his cheek. "Your cousin screeched like a six-pack whore," I say. "And you know what? I did fuck your girlfriend. Twice. I think she liked it."

Joey snarls, mint and rage alight on his breath. I force my watering eyes to stay open. Damned if I'll blink. Damned if I'll say her name again. He'll have to kill me to take her from me, and when I wake up in hell? At least I'll know I didn't betray her by choice.

Nice knowing you, darlin'. I'm sorry.

I let my gaze lose focus, and wait for the crunch of bone.

***

Gavain crouches on the floor, quivering, his bleeding wrists aching and his lovesick heart flipping crazy somersaults.

Not the bargain. Not what Delilah promised. Not precious Tam in bleeding agony.

Fury stings his writhing fingers, and he gnashes bloody teeth. "No. You promised me."

Delilah just laughs, and wild fae hatred chimes a horrid discord in Gavain's ears. Feral impulse pours through his veins, and he coils himself and springs, sinking eager teeth into the inside of Joey's knee.