Lore vs. The Summoning (33 page)

"No way," I quickly replied to his dull question. "You stay away from him."

"You care for him?"

The awkwardness of the situation had me doing something truly stupid. I stomped forward while calling back, "Come on."

"These might help."

I gasped slightly when a set of keys magically appeared in front of my face. Not a second had passed before the demon stood just to my right holding them in his caramel colored hand. Apparently he could move as fast as a vampire.
 

Up close I saw that he was easily six and a half feet in this form. His eyes were still an empty void. To avoid looking at them for longer than necessary I snatched up the keys.
 

And then I turned aimlessly, "Any idea which way to..."

"North." He started in the opposite direction.

I had to run to keep up with his long strides. It took five minutes to travel through the wooded area that had surrounded Talise's sacred circle to the car that belonged to the keys in my hand. Somehow the demon had simply
known
where to walk even though I hadn't finished verbalizing where I'd wanted to go.
 

The vehicle the witches had brought was a black utility van with tinted windows, so kidnapper chic. The demon was in the passenger seat before I could get my door unlocked.

I slid into the driver's seat, nose crinkling at the disgusting scent of human sweat and stagnant water within the thing. I wondered if the demon was the reason behind that as I fit the key in the ignition and then started the vehicle. Once the headlights were flipped on I could see a path out of the woods. It wasn't long before I'd hit a dirt road and less time before I was on pavement.

This was insane. I'd truly lost my marbles. I was chauffeuring the demon I'd worked so hard to stop right into downtown.

"So how can you help me?" I asked to break the uneasy silence in the van. "A vampire isn't going to die if you break it in half."

"I am stronger, faster and deadlier than a vampire. I can kill anything."

I believed that. I'd seen how he killed the witches. "Yeah, well, don't. Unless I ask you to."

"Perhaps you would be better served by placing me on the defensive. What if your vocal chords are damaged?"

He had a point. I didn't like that he did. I wasn't jazzed about these ploys for violence disguised as little nuggets of wisdom.

"All right, be on the defensive," I paused to add more because I had visions of him killing someone for trying to cut me off at a stop light, "Only against people truly wishing to kill me."

The damn thing laughed. It was the eeriest sound I'd ever heard, a low, rumbling that shook the entire van. I glanced over while he was chuckling to find that a toothy grinned expression had formed on his caramel face. His profile turned slowly to look back. I couldn't hold the cold void of his black eyes for longer than a nano second.

My voice was unsteady for the first few words of the next phrase I spoke. "The vampires were pretty insistent that you not be brought into this world. Any idea why that is?"

"We are their natural enemy." He'd been so blasé about it that it was a wonder he hadn't added a yawn on the end.

I heard the words but they didn't register right away. "Wait. Demons are the natural enemies of vampires?" How fucking evil did vampires have to be do have a natural enemy this badass?

"Can you think of anything more powerful than they are?"

"Gods," I answered without thinking.

"The gods do not meddle in the affairs of men. We do."

The answer gave me the willies. "So how does this work? You have to follow all of my commands?"

"Any that include my name which do not involve harming myself or you. As much as I'd like my freedom, the nature of the ritual precludes violence against my summoner."

I could feel those empty eyes on me. "I didn't summon you. The witch you killed did, so technically you're wrong about that."

"I am not wrong. I had a choice of masters. I chose the one that did not want me."

My teeth set within my mouth. "Just because I didn't want you doesn't mean I'm going to set you free. I'm going to find a way to send you back."

"You are going to try," he replied blandly.

He was so certain I'd fail. He didn't know me very well. I could be resourceful when I needed to be.

My eyes crinkled upon putting a few pieces together. "So if violence against me gains you freedom why are you trying to help me? Why not just let this bitch kill me?"

"I am not freed if someone else kills you. My servitude merely shifts to them."

"Oh, lovely. No pressure to stay alive or anything," I muttered under my breath.
 

I truly hoped he didn't realize most anyone else in the Underground would let him get crazy with the killing. If he knew that, he'd conveniently neglect his defensive duties. Maybe it didn't matter. If I couldn't handle what I was about to do without the help of a demon then I wasn't meant to do it.

"I'm going to an Underground club where I suspect the vampire has fled," I explained to break the silence. "I only want to kill the ones who are working directly for her. So if you see any other vampires there that aren't trying to kill me, you're not allowed to hurt them, Kruzulun. Do we understand each other?"

"I understand you," he said instead of a simple yes.
 

I was weirded out by it because I got the feeling he wasn't limited to comprehending my present wish. Those black eyes could probably see right through into my soul. Silently I willed Kastio to do some research for me. I needed to get rid of this demon stat!

There was a parking spot not far from the warehouse that served as the Dungeon's benign front end. I maneuvered the van into place, shut the thing off and then hopped out of the vehicle with a determined scowl affixed to my face.

"You are planning to go into an Underground club nude with no weapons?" The demon drawled from his new spot leaned against the hood of the van.

My cheeks flushed when I recalled what I was wearing. I glanced down to find that the white robe's edges nearly met in front of my body but they were spread enough to give anyone nearby quite a show. No, this would not do inside the Dungeon.

"At least allow me to clothe you," he said.

My eyebrows arched at the offer. How could a demon clothe me?

When I didn't immediately reject the offer, he lifted his hand toward me. I felt the heat of flame coat me. When it had cooled the white robe was covered in a lightweight chain mail knee-length tunic with a plate metal girdle. I imagined I looked rather like an armored ghost. I couldn't help but crack a small smile.

"The sword that goes with it is even better," the demon remarked mildly.

I shook my head and heard tinkling of the chainmail that had mysteriously formed on my head. "I'm no good with weapons unless they shoot something."

"You may have use of this." He held in his hands an ornately carved recurve bow and matching quiver packed with arrows. "Unless of course you do not know how to..."

My snatching it from his hands shut him up. A bow was the first weapon I'd learned to use nine years ago when I'd been transformed into a Diakonos. It hadn't been until I'd reached my majority that I'd begun playing around with guns.
 

The weight of it was familiar in my hands and somehow soothing. I had no doubt I'd be just as accurate with this weapon as I was with my Kahr. Accuracy might improve my odds against foes faster than I was.

But I'd wasted enough time dallying outside. It was time to finish this.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

The place was packed shoulder to shoulder with the nastiest creatures in the whole of the city. Few took note of the armored woman that had stepped within their midst and fewer saw the man-shaped demon behind her. It was a wonder to me that no one recognized the evilest of evils within their midst.

A thundering growl behind me snagged my attention. I glanced back to find the demon's obsidian gaze focused on something to my right. I followed it to see Aiden Bruce materializing from the crowd.

I held up a palm for the demon's benefit. Once Aiden was near enough I spoke in a voice I hoped held all of the menace within me. "If I live through this you and I are going to have a serious chat, you rat bastard."
 

The vampire's eyes tore themselves away from the demon long enough to fix on me. He opened his mouth to speak. I shoved myself into the crowd without another word because I didn't have time to deal with him. Unfortunately his cool hand curled around my wrist to slow me before I could move a single step.

"Go away," I hissed.

"I mean to help," Aiden replied with his lips against my ear.

I hated that the proximity sent a shiver down my spine even when I was furious with him. Because of it, I snarled out, "I've got all the help I can handle. Now go away before I tell him to kill you."

The tepid grip loosened and fell away. There was a bit of noise behind me, a snarl that might have been from Aiden and an answering rumbling noise that was most certainly from the demon. A few heads turned our way. The bastards were going to give our arrival away.

"Shut up," I ordered the one I could.

"A thousand apologies," the demon said at my back in an unapologetic tone.

I shook my head. There was no time to comment on his attitude. We were nearly to what I hoped was the entrance to the club's owner.

A pair of Rhino guards had the spot beside the darkened corridor. From what I'd seen no one had gone in or come out of it since I'd arrived. In all of the times I'd visited the club no one had ever done so. Still, this had to be the way to that bitch Linea.

"Here we go," I whispered for the demon's benefit just before pouncing between the guards. My fingernails dug into their bare arms long enough to wish them ill. The disease blackened the skin where I'd touched, already shooting upward when I continued forward in my purposeful gait.

The darkened corridor before me ended abruptly at a set of stairs that went further down into the ground. I took them two at a time, stopping only long enough to plague the set of guards at the bottom. Through a door I slammed into another hallway with yet another set of stairs and more guards. By the time I reached something that resembled a room I'd killed eight guards and traversed four sets of stairs.

However the room I'd ultimately happened upon was host to what I was going to assume were several vampires. I pulled the bow off my shoulder, set the nock of my first arrow onto the string and then aimed at the nearest creature before it could do little more than look up. My missile buried into the creature's eye for a split second before the entire head exploded in a ball of brilliant flame.
 

That was certainly...unexpected.

A wave of searing power slammed into the back of me as the demon let out a thunderous growl. In between setting another arrow on the string of my bow I saw leathery wings expand out beside me. Apparently he'd rid himself of his mortal disguise now that we were in battle.

The appearance of a demon gave each creature in the room pause. Wholesale panic took hold. Vampires shot into the doors all around.

"Grab one of them! I need to know where Linea is!" I called out a command.

"Where is Linea?" The demon demanded a half second later.

I turned to find him with a vampire's head inches from his mouth. Good gods, was he going to eat it? Should that really surprise me?

"Oh god! Don't kill me!" The leech squealed and flailed.

"God cannot help you," the demon replied in his bored voice. "Where is Linea?"

The vampire pointed a shaky finger at the door to my far right. Immediately I started for it with my bow aimed and ready. The screams of a half dozen vampires dying was the soundtrack to my movement. I attempted to ignore the eerie reverberation of laughter behind me and the horrible sucking noises.

Everything in the room slowed to a crawl courtesy of my early warning system. The laughter, the swinging door and even the clawed nails that slashed toward my face from the hidden body behind it were seemingly still. I lifted the arrow's tip to where the creature's heart should be beyond the door. And then I let go of the string.
 

When time had resumed its normal flow I heard the shrill shriek of the thing in front of me. I shoved the door in, pushing the screaming and strangely flaming vampire back. It fell onto the floor revealing it had had blonde hair, not red. With a mere grunt I stepped over it's wiggling mass to enter the room.

Linea stood at the center of what looked to be a sumptuously decorated office. Six undead minions fanned out around her large desk in protective poses. Her eyes were drawn wide, clearly surprised to see me.

"You don't want to kill me," she said. Her uneasy eye was focused on my bow. "We want the same thing."

"We both want to see you die a slow painful death?" I replied with characteristic snark.

Linea shook her long red hair. "We want what is best for this city."

"And what is best for this city?" As I spoke the question I set another arrow onto my bowstring. Briefly I glanced at the gently pulsating metal that made up the arrowhead. Apparently the demon hadn't given me normal ammunition. Just as she opened her mouth to answer I shot the missile into the vampire closest to me.

"A city built on cooperation working toward a common goal of assembling the species as they were meant to be," she said in a rising pitch.

As the vampire burst into flame I pulled another arrow from the quiver, set it against the string and then released without a drop of guilt for the life I'd just ended. These were evil creatures who subsisted on blood alone.

"Stop!" She shouted for the benefit of the vampires that had been about to jump me. Or maybe it had been an order for me. "If you join me I will give you the Prime of Massachusetts."

"You'll give him to me?" I let out a harsh laugh. "Honey, he's been trying to give himself to me for almost a decade."

Her red lips spread into a smug smile. "If that were the case then he would not have tried to kill you."