Something Wicked (27 page)

“No. I think Eden’s going through a lot right now, but the Malleus . . . and you . . . are looking at things from the wrong angle. I honestly don’t think the demon means her any harm.”

“Why would you say that?”

“Because she’s convinced he isn’t.”

Ben sighed with frustration. “Deception only.”

“I think Eden needs help, but as far as your single-handed mission to save her . . . well, I think it’s extreme, and as you can see, it doesn’t go over that well with her.”

“You think she’ll continue to kick our collective asses if we get close to her?”

She managed to grin a little at that. “Yes. Without a doubt.”

It was nice that one of them could see the humor in this. “So what do we do?”

“Quite honestly, I think we should leave her be. The Malleus has enough things to worry about other than her.”

“I can’t just forget about this.” He clenched his fists and turned away.

“She doesn’t want your help, Ben.” Sandy frowned and looked closer at him. “Hey, did you hit your head last night when you fell?”

He touched his forehead at the hairline. “I got a bit of a bump, but it’s no big deal.”

“Let me see.”

“Sandy, it’s really not necessary.”

“Are you going to argue with me or be a good boy?”

He smiled despite himself. “If I’m a good boy do I get a lollipop?”

“We’ll see. Sit down.”

He sat on the edge of his leather sofa. It was the same spot where Eden had been magically restrained twelve hours earlier. Sandy pushed his hair back so she could see the small cut better.

“Am I going to live, doctor?” he asked.

“Luckily, you seem to have a mutantly hard head to take any blows.”

“Thanks. So what’s required? A Band-Aid?”

Sandy’s fingers slid farther into his hair. “No, but I think I can help a little.”

He was about to protest. He didn’t want her to use any magic on him, even if it was just to heal a cut. It felt wrong to him. But then he felt her lips brush against his forehead and a breath caught in his throat.

“Sandy . . .”

“See?” She smiled. “All better.”

“Strangely it does feel much better.”

“I’m very good at my job.”

“And how about this.” He touched her bruise.

“The same treatment might help,” she said.

He nodded, then took her face in his hands and brushed his mouth softly over her cheek.

“Much better,” she managed.

“First aid is a good thing.”

“It is.”

He’d noticed her mouth before—couldn’t help it, really. Full lips. Lush, in fact. And she never wore any bright lipstick, just a touch of gloss to bring out the naturally pink color. He couldn’t help himself. He pressed his lips against hers and kissed her. A small moan escaped her throat as her mouth opened to his.

A moment later she pushed him away, her cheeks reddening.

“Whoa, we can’t do that,” she said, scrambling back from him.

He touched his mouth, surprised by what had happened as much as she was.

“Why not?” He stood up from the sofa feeling a bit unsteady on his feet all of a sudden.

“Malleus members are not allowed to . . . well, not with other members. It’s unprofessional and distracting. That’s why it’s against the rules.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous or not they’re very strict about it.”

“You’re not even a member. You’re a consultant.”

“Still. If Oliver found out, he’d . . .” She swallowed hard.

“He’d what?” Anger returned to Ben right on schedule.

“He’d be mad. Besides, you’re in love with . . . with Eden. Right?” Sandy looked away. “I get that. It’s why you want to save her so badly. It’s okay, really. It’s easier that way for me.” She grabbed her purse, which had fallen to the floor. “Look, I need to go. Let’s just forget this ever happened.”

“Sandy . . .”

But she wasn’t sticking around to discuss their kiss, or the fact Ben suddenly wanted to kiss her again.

“I’ll see you later,” she said.

Sandy went out the door and shut it behind her. A second later he opened it, but he didn’t chase after her. She was in a hurry to go, and he wasn’t going to stop her from doing what she needed to do.

He wiped a hand over his forehead, which had suddenly started to ache again. And his forearm itched. He wished the brand would just heal up, already. He’d refused any and all magical remedies. Just because he’d chosen to become a member of the Malleus, didn’t mean he necessarily believed in some of their practices.

Especially when some of those practices including striking women like Sandy for not living up to expectations. As a cop, Ben had witnessed his share of abused women, and it never got easier. Abusers, to Ben, were as bad as demons. Unfortunately, the most you could do with a wife beater was to throw him in jail. Couldn’t exorcise him, even though that would solve a whole lot of problems.

Damn it. He couldn’t just stay here and do nothing, waiting for Oliver to get in touch and give him permission to leave his house. It was his life, after all. And he would do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. And he wanted to make sure Eden was okay.

He scratched his brand again. It allegedly gave him extra strength, the ability to sense the otherworldly, and the power to exterminate them easier than the average Joe.

Ben wasn’t sure what he’d do the next time he was face-to-face with Eden’s demon, but he was damn sure he’d do the right thing. Whatever the hell that was.

After staring down his share of murderers, rapists, and arsonists, Ben knew he could tell the difference between good and evil. Darrak was evil. Ben had no doubt about it.

He grabbed his keys and left through the front door, locking it behind him. His old black Chrysler LeBaron was parked in the driveway. He slid a key into the lock.

“Excuse me,” a voice said from behind him. “Are you Ben Hanson?”

“I am.” He turned to see a tall man who looked to be in his late twenties standing there. The man had tanned skin and sleek black hair tied back from his face. “Who’re you?”

“I’m a friend of Darrak’s,” the man said with a grin.

Ben frowned. “You’re a—”

Pain suddenly washed over him, and a moment later he felt nothing.

SIXTEEN

Eden was concerned they wouldn’t be able to get Andy released without a lot of questions. Darrak had a funny feeling she might try to use some of her magic again to “persuade” the doctor.

He wouldn’t let that happen. She’d used enough black magic for one day. More than enough.

He had his own way of persuading the doctor.

It did help that she was a woman—and one that was remarkably susceptible to his charms.

He still had it. Good to know.

Eden just shook her head as Darrak wheeled Andy out of the room after a five minute chat with the doctor.

“Ex-incubus,” he said simply.

“And that explains everything?”

He shrugged, and grinned a little wickedly at her. “It’s a miracle you can keep your clothes on around me. I’m usually impossible to resist. As was just proven with Dr. Anderson.
Monica
Anderson. She gave me her number.”

“Congrats. You know, I did introduce you as my husband. It’s so wonderful to see she didn’t have a problem with that.”

“I guess humans and werewolves are similar when it comes to their views of infidelity.”

“Not all humans.”

He couldn’t really read her expression at the moment. Sure, he had a way with women, but it wasn’t as if he’d proved it time and time again. Since he’d possessed Eden, he’d barely looked at anyone else.

Some ex-incubus he was.

Andy had nothing to add to the conversation, although Darrak couldn’t blame him. He’d just discovered he was the latest werewolf citizen of the greater Toronto Area.

Andy would deal. After all, he had Eden helping him.

Darrak had been mildly surprised by the depth of her concern over the guy. Sure, they worked together and seemed friendly enough, but her reaction to his phone call and then the pain in her eyes earlier as he learned of his condition—well, she cared about him a lot. It was obvious.

Eden’s compassion and distress had stirred something inside Darrak. It had made his feelings for her grow even deeper.

And that could not be more annoying to him. He was messed up enough as it was, without falling any harder for her.

So damn inconvenient.

Especially when he knew she probably hated him now after what happened with Theo. How was he supposed to know Theo planned on sucking the celestial goodness out of that angel right in front of her? Darrak had to say, he was torn. Theo now had the weapon he would use to destroy Lucifer.
Hooray.
But the whole thing felt kind of . . .
wrong
to Darrak, and he wasn’t really sure why.

Boo.

He attempted to summon some enthusiasm, but he felt drained. Using his power in the alley to scare off the werewolf had taken it out of him. There were two ways he could recover this energy. He could just give himself time, and he would eventually recover naturally. Or he could absorb some of Eden’s energy. This had two downsides to it—it would exhaust Eden for hours at a time, and the act also ran the risk of Darrak taking too much and accidentally killing her because she tasted so good he couldn’t stop himself.

Probably not such a good idea.

Demons were energy mosquitoes when they had to be. Vampires from hell, only his drink of choice wasn’t blood—it was life itself.

Something was bothering Eden, above and beyond what had happened with Andy. And it wasn’t only to do with Theo since she’d had this cloud over her since earlier. Darrak watched her carefully, trying to figure out what she wasn’t telling him. It would really help if he could read her mind. But, unfortunately, he couldn’t.

They dropped Andy off at his house. Eden volunteered to stay with him, but he waved her off.

“I’m fine,” he said and began to peel his bandages off to reveal the almost fully healed skin beneath. He touched it gingerly as if he couldn’t believe it was for real after how much that werewolf had torn him apart.

Darrak supported him as they walked to the brown corduroy couch. An old
TV Guide
and an empty bottle of Coors Light sat on the coffee table.

“You’re sure?” Eden asked, skeptically.

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

She still looked concerned. “What about that werewolf who attacked you? Do you think he’ll come after you again?”

Andy grimaced. “The last thing he said before he shifted was for me to leave him and his girlfriend the hell alone. If I don’t go near him again, he won’t have a reason to finish the job, will he?”

But Eden still looked worried. “Not if he knows what’s good for him.”

“I’m fine,” he assured her. “Really.”

She touched his face. “Really?”

He swallowed and then grinned a little. “Well, maybe I’m a bit traumatized. I’ll admit it. But I’ll survive.”

Eden hugged him, and Darrak watched her emotional outpouring with a tight feeling in his chest. Andy wasn’t really a father figure to her, or even an uncle. He supposed she thought of him as a good friend. He knew she didn’t have very many friends in the city since she kept to herself a lot. It would make her cherish the ones she did have.

“Hey.” Andy leaned back so he could see her. “What’s this?”

“What?”

“Tears? Don’t cry over me, Eden. It’ll make your eyes all puffy and unattractive.”