Demons LLC (Damned and Cursed Book 7) (46 page)

The same couldn't be said for Lisa's would-be murderers.

He lashed out at the final two men.
 
One was the victim of his claws, the other from a lack of oxygen due to a wing covering his mouth.
 
Six men lay at his feet in various degrees of hurt.
 
Their blood joined Lisa's.

Nate stood not far away, his mouth open.
 
It seemed like he wanted to say something, but simply looked at the carnage around them.
 
Another rare moment of silence.

Lisa limped her way back inside.
 
Alex turned at the sound of her.
 
She leaned against the wall, holding a metal pipe she found outside.
 
Her eyes fell on the unconscious men.

"I…thought you might need help."

"No.
 
But thanks, anyway."

Alex sat with his feet up on the dashboard of his truck.
 
Both windows were rolled down, and he let the weather nearly nudge him into a nap.
 
Very soon, he'd be starting the long drive back to Baltimore.
 
It wasn't a drive he was looking forward to.
 
Kylie and Nate were talking about not accompanying him on the trip back, but instead go their own way.
 
Have fun, see the world, perhaps go on that date they talked about.

But it wouldn't be a lonely drive.
 
His beautiful wife would be joining him, and he was quite sure they'd find ways to liven up the journey home.

"Yo."
 
Alex jumped at the voice.
 
"Dude, you falling asleep?"

"Nope.
 
I'm wide awake."

Nate was standing next to the door, an amused smile on his face.
 
Alex sat up and took in the unfamiliar surroundings one more time.

They were twenty miles outside of Stewardtown, sitting in the parking lot of a prison.
 
Only Alex and Nate had made the trip.
 
Cindy was with Meagan Sinclair at her home, officially putting the finishing touches on her daughter's case.
 
Alex had fulfilled his duties to Kylie's satisfaction, including an entire day split between Meagan's home, the park, and the movie theater the day before.

There were moments of sadness.
 
In between the laughter on the beautiful back deck overlooking the Sinclair property, Meagan would reach out to hold Kylie's hand.
 
Her fingers passed through her daughter's.
 
Meagan would never be able to hug her daughter again, or watch her graduate, get married, have children.

But with some assistance from Alex, she could see Kylie smile, maybe even fall in love.

"I found him," Nate said.

Alex nodded, but leaned back again in his seat.
 
He collected his thoughts, preparing himself mentally for what he was about to do.
 
Also, more than anything, he simply wanted to enjoy the weather.
 
He wanted to get experience with the business side of Demons LLC.
 
Contracts, signatures, paperwork.
 
But part of him was thankful for Cindy giving him a break.

Even if it was for a trip for one last task.

"Well?" Nate said.
 
"We came all this way.
 
Do you want to get in there?"

"In five minutes."

Nate nodded and stepped into the truck.
 
He walked through Alex's legs to settle into the passenger's seat, drawing a scowl.
 
Alex didn't like when ghosts walked through him.

"Ah, this is nice," Nate said, propping his own feet up.
 
"Just us dudes, out on the roads, checking out prisons, nice and relaxed."

Alex chuckled.
 
"Yeah.
 
Good, normal fun.
 
So, what do you and Kylie have planned?"

"I have no idea."

"You've been talking with her more than me lately.
 
Is she really okay?
 
With not knowing who killed her?"

"I think so, believe it or not."

"You definitely helped with that.
 
I really appreciate you helping out on this whole thing."

"It was all of us," he said, suddenly sounding much older than his actual age.
 
"Me, you, Cindy, that gorgeous vampire, and everyone else back at your house.
 
We all helped.
 
Even Zoey.
 
Hey, speaking of Zoey…so what's up with her?
 
It looked like Zoey and Kylie were finally getting along again last night."

Alex laughed at the memory.
 
It was difficult constantly touching Cindy, Meagan, and Zoey, so everyone could be a part of the conversation, but he handled it as best he could.
 
During the movie, Zoey threw popcorn at Kylie, only to watch it fly through her and bounce off the seat.

He knew Zoey had a long way to go.

"It's a start, at least.
 
I know Victoria wants to get in touch with her."

"Is Victoria's hair naturally red like that?"

"Don't let Kylie hear you."

"I'm just kidding.
 
I like Victoria, but Kylie is the total package."

Alex shook his head.
 
Now he could add
spirit matchmaker
to the Demons LLC website.

"Dude, we should really get going.
 
He might not be there too much longer if we keep waiting."

He knew Nate was right.
 
He was stalling for time, not looking forward to the chore ahead of him.
 
But it had to be done, for Detective Lisa Nash's sake.

"Alright.
 
Let's get moving."

The pair left the truck and headed for the prison.
 
Nate led the way, knowing exactly where he was going.
 
They walked through walls, prison cells, a cafeteria, several offices.
 
Alex kept his eyes focused straight ahead, not wanting to look around him.
 
The last time he was in a prison was a terrible experience.
 
It was deserted, extremely haunted, and it all ended with him helping Victoria and Kevin kill a powerful vampire with magical powers.

Nate took him to the prison library.
 
It was fairly empty, except for a few inmates hunched over computers, and another taking a nap in a chair.

"There," Nate said, pointing.
 
"That's him, right?"

Alex nodded, recognizing the man from the pictures he'd seen.
 
Lisa still kept the one from the newspaper on her wall.
 
Charles Wallace, the man that was determined to kill her.

"That would be him.
 
You should go wait in the truck."

"Why?"

"This is a part of me I don't like people seeing."

"You mean worse than beating the crap out of a bunch of armed guys?"

"Much worse."

"Well," he said, flinching.
 
"Okay, then.
 
I'll see you."

"I won't be long."

Nate vanished, and Alex focused his attention on Charles.
 
The man sat at a computer, but read a physical book instead.
 
He was the master of his world, his empire, even from prison.

He hoped Charles enjoyed it while it lasted.
 
Today was the last day.

Alex sat next to him.

"Hi, Charles."

Charles jumped, nearly dropping his book in the process.
 
He didn't like to be startled, and glared at Alex.

"Who are you?
 
Where the fuck did you come from?"

Alex wanted to get right to the point.
 
He wasn't good at threats.
 
He'd seen Victoria and Jack in action, and would never compare to the two of them.
 
But he had to give it his best shot.

"Detective Lisa Nash."

A smile, almost a snarl, formed at Charles' lips.

"What about her?"

"You're going to leave her alone.
 
Forget about her."

He laughed.
 
"Or what?
 
What will you do?
 
Kill me?"
 
He looked Alex up and down.
 
"Kid, I don't think you could kill a cold."

"I've never killed anyone, with my own hands.
 
I have friends that do that for me."
 
He sighed, knowing it would come to this.
 
He snatched Charles by the wrist.
 
"Let's go meet them."

"Hey, what—?"

The library began to deteriorate.
 
The computers, desks, chairs, all vanished.
 
The walls chipped and fell away, leaving a decayed ruin, as if time had been pushed to fast-forward.
 
The ceiling crumbled around the two of them, leaving a wide-open view of the sky.
 
Instead of the warm afternoon blue, or even a star-filled, crisp evening, a red haze hung over them.

The temperature shifted, uncomfortably hot for humans, perfect for Alex.
 
He had to struggle to hold in a smile when the moans started.
 
The shadows moved and slithered.
 
Shapes began to form out of the darkness, a claw here, a horn there, until the shapes began to form creatures.

The creatures skulked forward.
 
Some were larger than others.
 
Some had two legs, others six.
 
One had blood dripping from its jaw, perhaps the result of a ghost somehow finding its way into a realm it wasn't meant to.

"Masterrrrr…."

The smile finally escaped.
 
With the smile came a stabbing sense of guilt.
 
There was a time not long ago that he hated the demon realm.
 
He hated that he was connected to it.
 
He hated that there were terrible creatures out there that thought of him as
Master
.
 
He hated that fear gave him strength.

That hate was long gone.
 
He didn't enjoy killing, certainly didn't enjoy ripping apart a human or ghost, like his demons did.
 
But there was a relaxing aura to the realm.
 
He was in his home away from home.

"I know it's been a while," he announced, backing away from Charles.
 
"But, maybe, I've brought you a snack.
 
It's up to him, really."

"What?" Charles said, eying up the horrors surrounding him.
 
"What is this shit?"

"You're going to leave Detective Nash alone.
 
You'll never get near her.
 
You won't even think about her."

"Fuck you."

Alex frowned, trying to think of what could possibly be going through Charles' head.
 
Did he think he was hallucinating?
 
That none of the terrors around him were real?

"You're going to keep your men away from her.
 
I was going to bring them here the other day, but really, that wouldn't have done much.
 
You're the one who calls the shots.
 
So, what do you say?
 
Deal?
 
You leave her alone, and I won't leave you here."

"I'm going to kill you," he said, through gritted teeth.

Alex joined his demons in forming a circle around Charles.
 
He patted one on the head as they made a path for him.

"Everyone always thinks death is the worst thing there is.
 
Charles, these things won't kill you.
 
You can't
die
here, and time works differently.
 
They'll feast on you forever, ripping you apart, and putting you back together.
 
Please, for your own sake, just say Detective Nash is safe."

A demon swiped at Charles, barely missing his face.
 
He took a step back.
 
The fear poured into Alex, but the defiance never left Charles' face.

"When I get out of here—"

Alex had enough.
 
There was only one way to get through to him.

"Go ahead, guys," he said.
 
"Just a
nibble
."

The first few demons pounced.
 
One ripped at his cheek while locking its crooked teeth into his shoulder.
 
Charles tried to fight, for about a second and a half, until another four-legged demon bit him behind the knee.
 
One went for his throat, but Alex jumped in the way, holding up his hand.
 
The demons reluctantly obeyed.

"There is no
getting out of here
.
 
Detective Nash—"

"She's safe!" Charles shouted.
 
Apparently all it took was some pain to change his mind.
 
Alex didn't blame him.
 
Being chewed on by a demon, he didn't imagine there was much that could compare.
 
"I won't touch her!"

Alex reached for Charles' wrist, but stopped short.
 
His eyes met with the demon latched onto Charles' knee, who happened to have three eyes.
 
He gave a small nod, and the demon ripped muscle and tendon away.
 
Charles' howled as the other demons closed in.

"Wait.
 
No more," Alex said.

"Masterrrrr.
 
Playyyy."

"Not today.
 
Sorry."

He took Charles' wrist, and the demon world faded around them.
 
They were again in the prison library.
 
The normally quiet atmosphere shook at the sound of Charles' cries.
 
His leg continued to gush bleed, soaking in the carpet.
 
He would never walk without a limp again.