The Demon Beside Me (3 page)

“Great. The second Horseman is War, right?” I asked. No one answered. “I can’t wait to see what sort of misery I can cause myself with that.”

Any comments made in response were lost as a squeal burst from the ceiling above us. We all cringed and I ducked just in time. An imp phased into sight just before he would have collided with my face. He flapped his wings, spun around, and grabbed my shirt as I straightened back up. “Zay, what the fuck?”

“Kibs?” I asked. “What?”

The imp shook me. “I said, Zay, what the fuck? The Chairman just got a message delivered by arrow. So did the Princes of each House. You know what that note said?”

“Congratulations to Lord Isaiah Bright, conqueror of Heaven, winner of the Second Celestial War That Hadn’t Yet Started?”

“You fucking dumbass!” Kibs slammed his forehead into mine. I staggered backwards into Hikari. “Do you have any idea whatsoever as to what the Choir’s going to do when they find out about this?”

I jerked a thumb over at Caleb. “Ask him.”

Caleb shrugged. “Assuming the Seraphim got a similar message, we should be hearing the response in about ten seconds.” He lifted his hands and his sword and shield suddenly shimmered into existence. “I don’t plan on letting them get too excited,” he said, “but you might want to look as non-threatening as possible.”

Our front door blew inwards.

I crossed my arms in front of my face and pumped ichor through my limbs. If I needed to move, having a bit of demonic speed and agility would help. Luckily, whoever was rude enough to crash my door simply blew it off the hinges, not into splinters. I lowered my arms and watched as someone strode into my apartment, standing firmly on top of the fallen door. His gaze was fiery gold and translucent wings arched high over his shoulders. “I am here for Isaiah Bright, halfbreed,” he stated.

Before I could say a word, Caleb stepped between the newcomer and me. “Victor,” he said. “Nice to see you again.”

“Caleb.”

“Why are you here?”

“I am here to bring the halfbreed to judgment.”

“That doesn’t answer my question. Why?”

Victor’s golden gaze dimmed. It took me a moment to realize that he had simply narrowed his eyes. “Caleb, please don’t play the fool. He is here. I must give him formal notice and escort him before the Cherubim for trial.”

“Please state your jurisdiction,” Caleb said.

“Excuse me?”

“Your jurisdiction over a demon. How is it that we can suddenly bring a member of the Host to judgment under Choir law? I am curious, Victor.”

“Caleb.” Victor held his hands out to his sides. A curved scimitar shimmered into each hand. “I already asked you to not play the fool.”

Caleb swung his heavy shield in front of him and leaned on it. “I only see one fool here, and he’s on the wrong side of my sword. Do you really think you can stand against me?”

“We will see who stands firm.”

“Not in my apartment!” Hikari broke the silence of the spectators. “What the hell are you doing, breaking a door down like that? Haven’t you ever heard of knocking? Is kicking a door down the normal way you angels enter rooms?”

Victor glanced at her. “Yes.”

“Seriously?”

“No. That was a joke. You are not Isaiah, are you?”

“Of course not.”

“Then shut up and step aside, human.”

I sighed and stepped forward, clapping a hand to Caleb’s shoulder. He stepped sideways, letting me stand beside him. Now that I had a good look at the other angel, I could tell he was nothing at all like Caleb. Where Caleb was stocky and dark, this one was slender and fair. His hair nearly matched the golden glow of his eyes and wings, and he seemed as meticulously groomed as any imp. “Your name is Victor, isn’t it?”

“You are the halfbreed Isaiah Bright,” he stated.

“I am,” I said. “Let’s get a few things straight here. You just broke down the door to my apartment. You called me a halfbreed, twice. You drew weapons on my friend. You just told my girlfriend to shut up. Tell me why I shouldn’t just end you where you stand?”

The angel’s scimitars crossed in front of him. “I am not afraid of a halfbreed.”

“I’m not just any halfblood.” I smiled and held a hand up, fingers forming claws, ichor already streaking my palm. He crouched, scimitars held ready.

Caleb put his shield in front of me. “Victor, again, what is your jurisdiction? You can’t simply assault a Baronet of House Asmodeus and expect to walk away from it. Do you really want to start an incident?”

“He has already started an incident,” Victor growled. “Caleb, stand aside. He must answer to the Cherubim.”

“If it was a matter of answering to them, that would be one thing,” Caleb said. “But I suspect he’ll meet with an accident along the way. He might fall on a pair of swords, for example. I suspect those are your orders. No, don’t bother to deny it, Victor, I know how the Cherubim work as well as you do. I won’t let you simply lead him off and kill him.”

“You are defending the enemy!”

Caleb’s sword swung into line with the other angel. “I am defending my friend. A friend who does amazingly foolish things from time to time, but a friend nonetheless.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said.

“Will you fight for him, then?” Victor’s tone held nothing but contempt.

“Only if you start it, Archangel. I invite you to try.”

The twin scimitars quivered, then vanished. “I have no orders to fight you.”

Caleb snorted, but his sword dipped to point at the floor. “Your slavish adherence to orders warms my heart, Victor. Run along now. I’m sure the Cherubim will be happy to issue new orders that authorize you to try to fight me. I’m sure if you lick their boots properly, they’ll forgive you for running away and not order you to fight to your death.”

Victor’s scimitars flickered back into his hands for just a moment before vanishing again. He snapped something I couldn’t understand. Caleb laughed as Victor spun and walked away. Once he was out of sight, Caleb’s sword and shield vanished, and I reversed my limited transformation. I sighed and turned around to find Tink directly behind me. “Hiding back there?” I asked.

She shook her head and showed me her hand. A rune I hadn’t seen before glowed just above the blood streaking her hand. “If that idiot had tried anything, I had a binding ready. It might not have held him, but I’m sure you and Caleb would have taken advantage of it. What the hell was that about?”

“Apparently the Choir doesn’t like my ownership of Heaven,” I said. “I should add that to my list of titles. Baronet of House Asmodeus, Favored of the Prince, Gatekeeper, and Lord of Heaven. I like it.”

Kibs phased back into sight. “I can add that to your list of heraldry, if you want. Shit, Zay, you know what he’s going to do? He’s going to go back to the Cherubim and get a new set of orders, and then he’s going to come after you. I hate to say it, but I think those assholes have justification to go after you.”

I shrugged. “So?”

“So I suggest you don’t let them, dumbass. Besides, Opheran wants to talk with you in person, as soon as possible.” Kibs fluttered around the room before landing on Caleb’s shoulder. “Look, I know you’re all cool and shit with starting wars, but you know the situation isn’t really all that great.”

“Are you sure you should be admitting that around me?” Caleb asked.

Kibs covered Caleb’s ears. The angel chuckled, but didn’t move to dislodge the imp. The years had mellowed both of them. “Zay, you know Lucifer hasn’t recovered from the fuckup at the Gates of Purgatory,” Kibs said. “Amon is back in fighting trim, but you really screwed Lucifer. They’re still having internal struggles after you nailed Azriphel and their High Prince was overthrown. If the Choir starts shit, we’re going to be pressed hard.”

“I get the point,” I said. “So you think I should make sure this Victor dude doesn’t drag me off before the Cherubim?”

“They take your head and Heaven back, and Asmodeus either fights to avenge you or lets it pass. If they fight, it drags the entire Host in. If not, they show massive weakness, which the Choir will take advantage of.” Kibs let go of Caleb’s head. “Just like this one almost took advantage of the other’s weakness. I saw you almost go for him. I would have laughed.”

“It would have been no contest. Victor and I have history. He is nowhere near as skilled at swordplay as I am.”

“How long do we have before he comes back?” I asked.

“Half an hour,” Caleb said. “Forty minutes at most. All he needs is to get to a secluded place and wait for the Cherubim to convene a quorum. That part won’t take long. What will take a while is for them to issue orders to him.”

“We’ll leave in ten minutes,” I said.

“Where to?” Tink asked.

“First Rev. I’ll ask Jase for sanctuary while the diplomatic parts get taken care of. Kibs, can you tell Prince Opheran where we’re going and ask him if he can bring some pressure to defuse the situation? If he wants to meet there it should be fine, or I can go somewhere else once things have calmed down.”

“Got it.” The imp saluted and phased out of sight.

Next, I looked to Tink and Caleb. “Who drove?”

“She did,” Caleb said.

“Good. You and I need to talk, so you’re coming with me.”

“I’m going with you. I can leave my car here, right?” Tink crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t trust you two to think of everything needed. Right, Hikari?”

Hikari shook her head. “I’m not going.”

I frowned. “You’re going somewhere else?”

She shook her head. “No, I’ll stay here and play word games with the angel when he gets back. Besides, someone needs to fix the door before that landlord finds it. He won’t do anything, but I don’t want to hear him whine about it for the next three months.”

“Whatever you want to do, dear.” She glared at me. “All right. Get a drink, use the bathroom, we’re out of here in ten minutes or less.”

Tink walked straight for the bathroom, stiff-arming Caleb out of the way. He shrugged and leaned against the wall. Hikari grabbed my arm and pulled me into the kitchen. I winced, ready for her to begin shouting at me. Instead, she simply threw her arms around me. “I hate this,” she said against my chest. “I thought all of this was over once you opened the Gates of Purgatory.”

“I did too,” I said, putting my arms around her. “Sorry.”

She sighed and pushed away. “And here you go, off again with Anna and Caleb. I wonder if you’ll come back this time.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

She spun around and walked to the sink. “I’ll take care of Victor, buy you some more time. I bet I can get him to help fix the door.”

“Don’t take any risks,” I said. “Won’t you use magic, though?”

“Do you think he realizes that yet?” She chuckled and held her right hand up over her shoulder, palm toward me. She had scratched an unfamiliar rune on her skin. “I can be subtle, you know. Won’t give you a lot of time, but should be fine for you to get there before him.”

“Why won’t you come with us?” I asked.

She turned to face me. Not a trace of a smile crossed her face as she spoke. “I don’t want to watch you and Anna.”

“I’ve told you-”

“I don’t care what you’ve told me. I believe my eyes more than whatever you say.”

“Ever heard of optical illusions?”

Her expression softened with a small smile. “You’re too nice for your own good, Zay. Sometimes that hurts most of all.”

“What do you mean-”

“Shut up and get out of here.”

There was no arguing with her when she was in one of her moods. I walked out of the kitchen and saw Tink crouched in the living room, looking at the door lying flat on the ground. She looked up as she saw me and frowned, then beckoned me closer. I crouched down on the other side of the door and frowned back at her.

“She’s still jealous?” Tink asked, voice barely audible.

I nodded. “She’s convinced we’ve got something going on the side.”

“She’s an idiot.”

“She’s jealous of our connection.” I rose to my feet and grabbed my keys.

“Maybe she should contract with you too.”

“Is that possible? More to the point, would you let her?”

Tink smirked, but didn’t respond. The bathroom door opened with a creak and Caleb stepped out. “Ready.”

“Let’s go.” I led the way out to the parking lot behind the building. Tink split from us at the guest parking area to get something out of her car, and Caleb followed me to my car. “How does she afford cars like that?” I asked. “That’s the third sporty car I’ve seen this year.”

Caleb chuckled as he got into the back seat of my old Cavalier. “She isn’t one to worry about money.”

“What does she do?”

“If she hasn’t told you, I’m not about to.”

“I bet it’s something questionable.”

“Not telling.”

“What aren’t you telling?” Tink flopped into the passenger seat and scowled over her shoulder at Caleb.

“About your day job.”

“Oh, that. A girl’s got to have a few secrets.”

I pulled out of the parking lot, heading vaguely north and out of the city. “That aside, I’ve got a whole list of other questions I’d like answers to.”

“Victor’s ranked as an Archangel, and he’s the son of someone who died under my command during the War. He’s had a long time to build up resentment toward me. I haven’t seen him in around a hundred years, but I know he turned into a gopher for the Cherubim. Be careful of him, Zay. Anyone who’s spent enough time around the Cherubim or Seraphim is going to hate you as a matter of principle.”

I digested that for a moment. “You’re answering questions I haven’t even asked.”

“I guessed that.”

“How did he get to my apartment so quickly?”

“There’s a sigil in your building.”

“A what?”

He sighed. “I’m not supposed to tell you about it, but it’s not much of a secret anymore. The Choir wanted to keep an eye on you, make sure you didn’t turn into a threat. They made a sacrifice in order to create a limited portal between two locations, similar to your summoning circles, but not requiring someone on both sides.”