Experiment in Terror 05 On Demon Wings (33 page)

“Did you notice her eyes are a different color?”

“What are you talking about? No, they aren’t, they’re just

dilated.”

Dex shook his head vigorously. “Dilated but the color

around them is brown now. Perry’s eyes have always been

blue. Like the ocean on an overcast day.”

Ada gasped. “Dex is right.”

I felt him starting to untie the ropes from my arms. This

was not the time to do that!

“Dex, don’t do that,” Maximus said for me. “She’s tied up

for a reason, not for sport.”

“She’s not a fucking animal,” he grunted, and kept

untying them.

I gave up. The thing was too strong. I wasn’t going to win

this time.

I raised my head sharply. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

He raised his head just as the last knot came undone

and our eyes met, burning into each other. “It’s me, Perry.

It’s Dex.”

I smiled an ugly smile, dripping venom.

“
Precisely
.”

The thing took over completely, more powerful than ever

before. It lunged forward, grabbed Dex by his shirt and then

flung him like a ragdol clear across the room so he hit the

ground beside Ada. She cried out and helped Dex to his

feet.

But the thing had me coming. My legs yanked at the

ropes and they snapped. I jumped over the back of the bed

and landed on Dex just as he was almost upright, my nails

going after his eyes and just catching the edges of them,

leaving bloody trails. He and Ada flew to the ground, but it

was just him that I was going to kil . There was no getting

around it. He was what the thing wanted. The thing wanted

him dead. And somewhere, deep down inside, I think I did

too.

I wrapped my fingers around his throat as I held him

down, feeling how easy it was to just squeeze and squeeze

until his windpipe broke. His scruffy face turned purple and

his eyes were shut hard as he tried to pry my hands off of

him. He couldn’t. He was fading fast, unable to breathe. I

was actual y going to do this. I was going to kil him and I’d

not only see it happen, it was my body that would inflict it.

His eyes flew open, the blood weeping from the

scratches, and looked up at me. I felt so much anger from

the thing and from myself. But the anger was only there

because of the pain. The pain he caused because I let

myself fal in love with him. I loved him once. It was a fact I

could no longer ignore.

I mustered up al strength I had and pushed against the

blackness in front of me. I wouldn’t let this happen. Not on

my watch. I pushed and strained and for a second I felt a

sense of relief and it was in that second that Maximus

grabbed me by the waist and pul ed me off of Dex.

The thing let out a shriek and my legs kicked out as he

held me a few feet above the ground.

“Ada, the rope,” he commanded.

She was on the floor kneeling over Dex.

“Leave him, get the rope. Get it now!”

Ada jumped up and snatched the ropes off the bed.

I flailed with my legs trying to get her in the face. I tried to

burst out against Maximus’s stronghold but he was

clutching my writhing body tight as a vice. For the time

being. What would happen if I broke free?

I made another push from inside my mind, another

attempt to get back in my rightful place. I imagined being

stronger. I imagined being pure of heart. Being good. I

imagined love. A big heart beating with love. The love I felt

for Ada. Her apparent love for me. I forced that image onto

the intruder with al my might.

And the kicking stopped. I fel limp in Maximus’s arms

and Ada quickly, but with great hesitation, like I was just

fooling and reading to smoke her, started to tie my legs.

“No, onto the bed,” he said, and brought me over to it

and lay me down. Ada worked on my legs while Maximus

tied up my arms.

Meanwhile, Dex slowly got to his feet, rubbing his throat

and staggering a little. He leaned against the bed post and

tried to catch his breath, wheezing loudly. His throat was

pink and you could see the indents from my fingers.

He was looking at me as if I had just betrayed him. I

never wanted to hurt him like this, but what did he expect,

just waltzing in here like that? Did he think I was going to

welcome him with open arms?

So, I didn’t apologize. Even in the throes of demonic

possession, I chose to be stubborn.

When they were done constraining me, Ada touched his

arm gently and asked if he wanted ice. He shook his head,

his eyes stil focused on mine.

Maximus folded his arms. “I told you so. You’re going to

have a heck of a mark on your face there.”

Dex’s eyes flitted to the scabby scratch that stil scarred

Maximus’s face.

He coughed. “That how you got yours?”

“She’s feisty.”

Dex grumbled. “I guess we’l match then.”

Maximus chuckled to himself. I didn’t like the sound of

that chuckle. It wasn’t humorous.

“Not quite,” he said and winked at Dex.

I didn’t like that either. Ada paused beside me, her hand

resting on my arm and we watched them, feeling tension

boiling in the room.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dex asked

suspiciously.

Oh, God. I had a feeling.
It’s a trap!
I wanted to yel .

Maximus shrugged and ran his hand through his hair.

“Oh, nothing,” he said, extra laziness in his drawl.

He sauntered to the end of the bed and leaned against

the opposite bed post, copying Dex’s pose exactly. He

smiled slowly at Dex.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but

Maximus was fast on the draw.

“I just had no idea she was such a wildcat in the sack.

Oh, it wasn’t like that with you?”

I heard Ada gasp dramatical y beside me. “What?

Maximus!”

Dex didn’t say anything. In fact, it looked like he hadn’t

real y heard him properly.

He cocked a black brow. “Excuse me?”

Maximus’s smile grew wider. His white teeth flashed

against his tanned face.

“You heard me. She’s a freaky little one. Good thing I

kind of like it rough.”

And that’s when it
hit
me. That sleeping with Maximus

was as vengeful on my behalf against Dex, as it was on his.

Maximus stil never got over the whole band thing, the whole

girlfriend thing, never stopped having it in for him. We both

fucked each other to get back at Dex.

And that’s when Dex
hit
Maximus.

His dark eyes flared furiously as he came at him with a

dead-on, unforgiving punch to the jaw. It sent Maximus’s jaw

back and he went stumbling backward onto my desk and

computer, which crashed in the middle beneath his hulking

frame.

Ada and I yel ed in unison. Dex was relentless and went

after him stil , jumping on him and continuing to throw

punches everywhere he could. He was quick, precise and

tireless.

Then my parents were in the room, crying out in shock at

the scene of scrappy Dex beating on the giant ginger and

destroying my room in the process. Meanwhile, their

demonic daughter remained tethered to her bed lest she

join in on the fun too.

My father grabbed at Dex’s arms, pul ing him back to

stop.

“Go help him!” I whispered to Ada.

She ran over to Dex and got in between him and

Maximus, pushing him back with her hands.

“Enough!” she cried out. “This isn’t helping Perry! That’s

not why you’re here. Remember.”

She put her face close to Dex’s, forcing his raging eyes

to look at hers and not at Maximus. He bit his lip, hard, and

nodded. He closed his eyes and relaxed and my dad

hauled him over to the other side of the room while my mom

scurried over to Maximus and helped him up.

“What on earth is going on?” My dad’s voice boomed

above al the commotion. He brought out the angry teacher

persona plus his Italian bravado. He looked at Dex and

gave him a dismissive push back. “Why is he here?”

“Dad!” I yel ed at him. I couldn’t believe my father just

shoved him.

“I cal ed him,” Ada explained, and joined Dex by his

side. “I thought he could help.”

“You cal ed
him
of al people?” my dad jabbed his thumb

in his direction. Dex straightened up and raised his chin

defiantly but my father held his gaze. “After what you did to

my daughter, you should be glad I’m merely going to kick

you out of my house.”

Dex cocked his head to the side. “How about what you

did. Your little daughter there is tied to her own bed. She’s

sick and getting sicker by the minute.”

“She’s going to the hospital first thing in the morning.”

Dex was about an inch tal er than my father but seemed

so much more when he took a step closer, looking straight

at my father with steely eyes.

“If you take her there,” he said, brimming with conviction,

“you wil kil her. You have no idea what you are dealing with

here.”

My father didn’t move. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you

had a plan.”

Dex glanced at me quickly, then looked back at him,

Ada and my mother. “I do have a plan.”

“Wel it’s too bad you can’t stay to tel us about it,” my

dad said snidely. He placed his hands on Dex’s shoulders

and brusquely directed Dex toward the door.

My breath caught in my throat. Despite the anger, the

pain he caused me, he couldn’t leave me. He couldn’t just

leave me like this.

Dex stopped by the door, causing my dad to halt

abruptly. He eyed Maximus, who was holding his jaw in

pain and shooting daggers at him. Then he turned around

and smiled sweetly at dad and mom.

“It’s funny that you both don’t remember me,” he said

with false disbelief.

My parents shot each other quick, confused looks.

“We’ve met before,” he continued, nodding at them

appraisingly. “Back in New York. I was just a young fuck at

the time. I had a deadbeat, alcoholic crazy bitch of a mother

and a wonderful nanny. She was a bit loopy too...”

“We don’t know what you’re talking about,” my dad said.

I had no clue what Dex was talking about either. New York?

Since when did my parents live in New York?

But my mom, her face flinched with horrible recognition.

It didn’t last long but I picked up on it and Dex did too. He

squinted his eyes at her and smiled, leaning in closer.

“When I turned eighteen, I changed my last name to

mother’s name. To honor her death. Guess I was

sentimental back then. Before that, my name was Declan

O’Shea.”

My dad’s eyes widened. Then he gave Dex another light

push against the shoulders and said, “You need to get out

of here. Now.”

“Such a rush?” Dex asked, and was wil ingly turned

around.

“I have no problems cal ing the cops on you,” my father

responded. We al knew he was dying to do it. Maybe get

them to take me with them.

He ushered Dex out the door before he could look back

at me. My mother and Maximus, with his rapidly swel ing

jaw, went after them.

Ada stood in the middle of the room watching the blank

spot where they al had just been. Final y, she looked at me

with her big eyes. Damn. What the fuck just happened?

“I’m so sorry, Perry,” she said. “I didn’t want to tel you. I

didn’t tel anyone. I just couldn’t let this happen to you. I just

thought, of al people, even if you hated him, that Dex could

be the one to help.”

“He said he had a plan,” I said slowly. It hurt to talk now,

and I was growing more exhausted by the second now that

the commotion was over.

“I don’t know what it is. But when I cal ed him and

explained, he said he’d take care of everything. He drove

straight here. But -”

“He’s Declan O’Shea,” I said softly. My head rol ed to the

right as she came closer. “Why do mom and dad know

him?”

“They said they didn’t,” she said. She peered out the

window. “But I think they’re lying.”

“Is he out there?” I asked, unable to look.

“Yeah. Dad’s making crazy gestures. I think he’s yel ing

at him.”

She looked down at me. “Liars or not, you can’t expect

dad to, like, be happy to see him. After what he did to you.”

“Ada. I don’t want him to go,” I slurred the last part. I was

losing consciousness. I didn’t know if it was the after-effects

of the pil s or if there was a takeover at hand.

“I don’t either. But he’s going.”

I heard his Highlander start outside and then the sound

faded. Al my hope went with it. I had Dex for a few minutes