Light My Fire (29 page)

“You are also a demon lord, have control of a demon,
and are high in the powers of a dragon sept. Although
your own powers have not been tested by the guild, it is evident that they are beyond the scope of an apprentice.”

Nora’s hand grabbed my wrist. I bit back the smart-
assed reply I wanted to make.

“Is the guild now punishing Guardians who show ex
ceptional talent by deeming them dangerous?” she asked. “I can assure you that I weighed the pros and
cons of taking on Aisling as an apprentice. I am aware
of the limitations she has regarding her apprenticeship,
but I was convinced then—and remain so—that her ded
ication, her abilities, and her commitment to the guild
are sufficient to overcome any obstacles her other roles
may present.”

“Aisling is not bad,” Rene said suddenly. “She is different, yes, but that does not make her bad.”

“We have strayed from the purpose of this interview,”
Mark said, tapping a pen on his portfolio.

I had to speak or burst. “I think I should be allowed to
defend myself just as Nora is allowed. And to be perfectly frank, I’m insulted by the idea that you’d call into
question my dedication, not to mention Nora’s judgment and ability to pick an apprentice. I am not a bad person. Jim was an accident—I never sought to become a demon
lord and don’t have anything to do with the rest of them.
In fact, I don’t have anything to do with anyone who dab
bles in the dark powers. None whatsoever!”

There was a ripple in the air behind Mark’s chair. Out
side the room, a distant alarm sounded.

“In fact, I don’t even know anyone who . .. er... does...”

The air thickened, twisted, and formed into Obe
dama. The demon stepped forward, its hands on its hips
as it ignored everyone to glare at me. “The lord Ariton
has waited for you, but you have not responded. The
hour of your appointment with him has passed, and Vex
amen is near. You are summoned now to make your
fealty to him.”

“Other than Ariton and his minion Obedama, of
course,” I said, my stomach wadding up into a little ball
as three men burst into the room, each bearing a demon-banishing silver dagger. I slumped back in my chair. My
goose was really cooked now ... and I suspected Nora’s
was as well.

“Well, that went well,” Jim said a couple hours later,
as we emerged into the exhaust-laden parking garage.
“Not!”

“We’re free, aren’t we?” I pinched Jim’s ear.

“Ow. Demon abuse!”

“Stop complaining. It’s not like you were grilled,
anyway. Or had to put off a demon lord. I just hope Ari
ton isn’t going to be pissed that the Guardians sent his
minion to Abaddon when I told it I couldn’t talk to him
right then.”

“I’m sure she gets hazard pay.” Jim paused, an odd,
abstracted look on its face. “Oh, boy, I should have gone
with Nora when she took Paco to the park. Emergency
walkies! Like, right now!”

“What are you going to do with the demon lord?”
Rene asked just as Jim bolted toward the exit. “Aisling?”

I had stopped when I spied a familiar man standing at
the elevator. With one eye on Jim racing toward the street
and the other on the man behind us, I shoved the leash at
Rene. “Would you mind taking Jim to the square? Nora’s
probably still there walking Paco. Here are two plastic
bags.... They should take care of things. I see someone
I know and just want to find out what he’s doing here.”

“What person? Who?” Rene asked.

“A man who may just possibly be stalking me, and if
he is, I’m going to put an end to it here and now.”

Rene looked curious as I turned back the way we came
and hurried over to where Peter Burke stood patiently waiting for the elevator. “Hi. Er . . . this is going to sound
really rude, I know, but would you mind telling me what
you’re doing here?”

“I don’t think the question is particularly rude,” he answered, his eyes just as curiously flat as I remembered them. Either he had an incredible amount of self-control
or he was not what he seemed. I decided to try another
look at his true self using my super-Guardian vision. “As
a matter of fact, I was following you.”

His answer startled me right out of opening the mental door to my powers. “You . . . you admit you’re stalking
me?”

“Not so much stalking—just trying to find the oppor
tunity to speak with you once more before I return to
Paris,” he laughed, but the laughter did not reflect on his
face. It was as if he wore a mask, shielding his thoughts
and feelings from humanity.

“I’m glad to hear it’s not a stalking, because my boyfriend is rather possessive, and I don’t think you want to
tangle with him. What is it you wanted to talk to me
about?” I asked, knowing it was probably the same thing he’d wanted last time.

“You need not look so wary—this is merely a courtesy,
not a plea for your help again. My contacts in Paris in
form me that since no serious contenders for the position
of Venediger have come forward in the duly allotted time,
and as you are determined to refuse any nomination
should that eventuality materialize, I am assured of vic
tory. I wanted you to know that I appreciate you stepping aside in order to allow me to take the role for which I was
intended.”

I opened my mouth to tell him I was not stepping aside
in order to help him when it occurred to me that he was
just too pat, too slick. I had the distinct feeling that for
some bizarre reason, he was manipulating me into oppos
ing him. “Good luck with the job,” I said, biting back all
the responses I had wanted to make. I swung open the
door in my mind and took a good long look at him before
saying good-bye and walking out to the park across the
square.

Peter Burke looked exactly the same as when I had
seen him in Paris—utterly the same, in fact. It finally dawned on me what was wrong with that.

“I don’t understand what the problem is,” Rene said
five minutes later as he returned from the garbage can
where he’d dumped Jim’s offerings. “Why is something
bad with this mage?”

“Everyone looks different somehow with Guardian
vision,” I said slowly as we headed back to the parking
garage. Nora walked alongside me, frowning slightly. “Everyone, with no exceptions. Usually it’s just an aura,
but sometimes you can see hidden features or entities tied
to a person.”

“I, for instance, look a hundred times more handsome,
especially now that I have this tooth fixed,” Jim said, charging forward at a lull in the traffic. We followed.

“How do I look different?” Rene asked as we turned in
the parking garage.

I smiled. “You’ve got a slightly golden aura around you. I never thought much about it before, but now ...
well, now I know.”

He winked to let me know he understood what I
wasn’t saying. I had no idea whether Nora had heard the guard at the Guardians’ Guild say that Rene was immor
tal, but I wasn’t about to spill his secret if she hadn’t.
“Nora has a rose-colored aura. Drake and the other
wyverns are surrounded by coronas of dragon’s fire.”

“So when this man, this mage who would be Venedi
ger, does not look different at all. ..” Rene cocked an
eyebrow at me.

“It means something is up with him. I just wish I knew
what.”

“Does it really matter, if you have no intention of interfering with matters in Paris?” Nora asked as we ap
proached the car.

“I suppose not. It’s just something odd, and I have
enough oddness in my life right now. I’d like a little nor
malcy for a change.”

“Speaking of the oddness—you did not tell me what
you intend to do with the demon lord who wishes you to
join him.” Rene unlocked the car doors for us.

“Ugh. Him. Keep stalling, I guess. I’m great at stalling.
I’ll just keep putting him off until he gives up on me and
goes on to something else.”

Nora looked worried. “If he has gone to the trouble of
locating you twice, he probably is serious in his desire for
you to join your power to his.”

“Well, that’s not going to happen. Trust me, I know
people. If you stall them enough, eventually they give up.
Since demon lords were once human, he’s bound to be
the same.”

“Hmm.” Nora didn’t look convinced. My attention,
however, was on other things.

“I’d say I’m sorry again about everything, but you’re
probably sick of hearing it.” I gave a decidedly wry smile.
“But as it is, I am really sorry about everything. What do
you think the chances are of an appeal?”

“I’m not sure. No one has ever had to appeal this sort
of thing before.”

“At least you were not pushed out from the guild, eh?”
Rene said, obviously trying to look on the bright side of
things. He held the door open for Nora and Paco. “And
Aisling, she was not forbidden from joining?”

“No, but only because they can’t refuse admittance because my application was accepted before they had any
anti-demon lord rules in place. Oy. What a nightmare.”

“It’s not as bad as it seems.” Nora patted my hand as I
climbed into the taxi and sat next to her. “Yes, I’ve had
my mentor status stripped from me, but as Rene said, I wasn’t kicked out of the guild, and there is always the appeal process. I have no doubt that once I have made my
case, the guild will have no choice but to reinstate my
title.”

“I hope so. I think it’s pretty evident to everyone that I
need as much training as I can get. How long do you
think the appeal process will take?”

“Up to two years,” she said calmly as Jim jumped into
the front seat next to Rene.

“Two years!”

Her smile was surprisingly calm and without a shred
of accusation or disapproval. “Don’t look so appalled. We
will continue as we are, Aisling.”

“But... you could get kicked out of the guild.”

“Perhaps. But that’s a chance I’m willing to take.”

“But. ..”

“No, no
buts.”
She laughed at the look on my face.
“Aisling, I’m paying you the highest compliment I know,
and you’re looking at me as if I’ve asked you to suck
lemons. Stop worrying about things beyond your control,
and focus on the job you must do.”

I wanted to argue with her that I wasn’t going to let her
take a fall for me but reminded myself in time that I was
there to learn from her. She was a big girl. If she didn’t
think there was a problem with continuing to teach me,
then I needed to trust that she was right. I took a couple
of deep breaths to calm my agitated brain. “OK. I’ll let
that go for now. And you’re right; I need to focus. I can
do this. I’m a professional.”

“You’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and dog
gone it, people like you!” Jim said in its best Stuart Smal
ley impression.

“Only the fact that I’m going to ritually sacrifice you in a half hour is saving your butt,” I told it.

“Can we reopen that topic of discussion?” Jim asked.
“Cause I’m really not comfortable with the whole idea. It’s like something Lucy on crack would think up. The
only thing missing is the demented chocolate-making as
sembly line.”

Nora and I ignored Jim to go over once again our plans
for the imps.

“You’re sure this ward is going to be enough to protect
me against a mass attack?” I asked a short while later as
we tromped over a partially wooded field on Hampstead
Heath and headed for a culvert that led to an underground
lair. I stood in front of the opening, which was about four
feet high, and fretted. A lot was riding on this—not just
an end to the imp attacks, but I needed to prove that I
could handle myself in a situation where Nora would not
be available to back me up.