The Demon King and I (5 page)

Those abs can’t be real.

He looked like a hot biker guy. My traitorous body warmed at the sight of him, which only pissed me off more. He wasn’t more than a mile from the Caruthers estate on our private road.

“I am demon king. I can pass through without warning.”

“Yes, but we consider it a courtesy to message us before you jump, so we don’t accidentally kill you.”

He made a low growling sound. “It was not my choice. I did not have time for niceties. The magic is weakened around the portal and the more powerful of my kind are finding ways through.”

“Jesus.” That was the last thing I needed tonight. Idiot demons on killing sprees.

“I do not know this Jesus.” His voice stern, he glared at me. For some reason, it just made me laugh. I chuckled so hard I bent over.

“This Jesus is funny?” He stood beside me.

I didn’t think it possible but I laughed harder.

Arath watched me with a strange look on his face. “I do not understand your mirth.”

“Sorry. It’s been a long day, and I don’t have time to explain.” I flipped open my phone. “Jake, I’ve located jumper one, it’s Arath. Where are the others?”

“I have one in Burbank near City Walk and another in Portugal. We’re tracking both.”

“I need you to send someone to pick up Bailey’s car.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I’d tried to get Jake to stop saying ‘ma’am’ two years ago when he started working for us, but he was a hard-core southern gent from Georgia, and he wasn’t about to stop.

I faced Arath. “Do you have weapons?”

“I do not need weapons to kill.”

I looked at his hands. He was probably right.

I was bummed that all I had was the gun and the knife. I really loved my sword, but there just wasn’t time. I was also without any body armor. Oh, well, at least I had Arath on my side.

I ran around to the trunk to grab one more thing. I’d seen some security badges in the back of Bailey’s car. One never knew when something like that might come in handy.

I returned to Arath.

“Touch my shoulder.”

He did and the heat from his hand burned through my body. I touched my star tattoos together and we whirled through space.

 
 
We landed hard in the parking lot of Universal Stu
dios. Arath bumped into a Land Rover and the alarm went off. Startled, he started to put a fist through the hood.

I yanked on his arm. “It’s just an alarm. Come on.” I took off running, and he followed. Guardians had built-in trackers. Hard to explain but it was like a GPS in my brain. I sensed the direction in my mind and my feet followed.

Arath sniffed the air and pointed toward the
Mummy
attraction. I hoped the screams I heard were from the ride and not demon induced.

“Hey!”

We both turned to see a teenage girl pointing at Arath. “Do you work on the pirate ride? Man, I don’t remember seeing you there.”

Arath glanced down at me as if she were speaking gibberish.

I could see how she would mistake him for a pirate, even though he was in a T-shirt and jeans. He had that look, with the hair and the muscles. “He does, but he’s off tonight. You’ll have to look for him tomorrow.” I wrapped my arm around his. “Come on, honey, we’ll be late for dinner.”

Arath stared at me with a strange look, but nodded.

The disappointed teen turned to her friends. “That bites. We’ll have to pay to come back and see him tomorrow.”

The girl screwed up her face as if she were upset, but they soon left.

“You go around the back. I’ll start here,” I whispered as we moved away from the small group of twittering teens.

He nodded and took off at a pace that surprised me. For a big man, he moved at cheetah speed.

I jumped over the gate and pushed through the throng of sweaty park visitors. There were some dirty looks, and a few mumbled, “Where does she think she’s going?” I finally made it up to where the passengers lined up to get on the ride.

Careful to put my thumb over the photo, I pulled out a Homeland Security badge I’d found in Bailey’s trunk. I flipped it at the ride attendant who directed passengers to the correct lines. “We have a situation, but I don’t want to create a panic. I need you to bring the remaining passengers in, and close down the ride. Put up your maintenance sign. Stay calm and do not panic; we don’t want people freaking out.” I doubted an officer of the law would say “freaking out,” but I hoped he didn’t notice.

He stared at me dumbfounded. I had a feeling he wasn’t accosted by Homeland Security every day.

I gave the kid a stern look. “Do you understand?”

He nodded. His freckled face was red with panic. “Do you think it’s a dirty bomb?”

The kid watched too much Discovery Channel.

“We won’t know until we get in there. Just keep the area clear.” I stuffed the badge into my back pocket, and made a note to ask Bailey how he’d come across that one. Knowing him, he’d probably won it in a poker game.

He pointed to me. “Anyone ever tell you that you look like—”

Ride Boy also read too much
People.
He’d recognized me. “I get that all the time. As if.” I rolled my eyes. “She’s way prettier.”

He nodded as if he agreed, and I turned before he could see my smile. Using my magic senses I climbed under the track and raced toward the demon. A strange noise caught my attention.
“Nok kad ma nos,”
I heard it chanting. I didn’t need my translator, because I didn’t care what he said. He had to die.

I hoped that was the final train that had just whizzed over my head. The last thing I needed was parkgoers watching the freak show that was about to happen. After it passed, I pulled myself up onto the track, then walked gingerly along the outside rails.

The Norst demon sat in the middle of the Pharaoh’s treasure. If I hadn’t been so pissed about missing my dinner, I might have laughed.

“It’s fake,” I yelled.

He ignored me and continued filling the small bags at his sides with fake rubies, diamonds, and sapphires.
Idiot.

I tossed a plastic goblet at his head. “I’m talking to you.”

He turned and growled.
“Blin.”

“Blin? I’ll show you blin, running around in a public place like this.” I pulled the Magnum from the back of my belt and aimed it at his head.

He jumped so fast I didn’t see him coming. His large scaly arm knocked me back against another chest of treasure. The gun flew out of my hand and tumbled beneath the tracks.

Jeez, that hurt.
I’d have to do this the old-fashioned way. Hand-to-claw combat. He’d turned his back as if he didn’t have to worry about me trying to kill him. Anger forced my muscles into action. I kicked the back of his right and then left knee. The big oaf fell forward.

“I don’t like being touched.” I jumped on his back and brought the bowie knife to his neck. He tried to reach around to pull me off. When that didn’t work he began slamming his fist into my left arm. My right arm was free to shove the knife up through his jaw and soft palate and into his brain. I used my strength to twist it inside his skull and he did a face plant into the treasure he’d tried to steal.

“That was a good kill.” Arath stood over me. “It is a Norst from the Bagled clan.”

“I know.” I let go of the knife and pushed myself up. Kicking the demon over, I pulled the weapon out and his face collapsed. Beyond the horrid smell, there was always a lot of green goo that stuck to everything. I can’t tell you how many clothes I have to throw away; there was no way I could explain the mess to the dry cleaner’s.

“Can you take him back to Maunra for me? I’ll go after the other one. This guy could have caused major damage if he hadn’t been so enamored with his treasure.”

“He was a fool. The jewels are not real.”
Chalk one up for Arath.
“I will hunt with you, once I have disposed of the Norst.”

“No. I’m better on my own. Just keep the rest from crossing over.”

He looked ready to argue, but stopped. “You are injured.”

I stared down at my arm, which had a large gash from the demon’s claws.
Crap.
I hadn’t felt it, but it bled profusely.

Arath reached out and put his hand over the wound. A golden light flowed around the spot and the skin began to regenerate and close. The bruises and the blood disappeared.
Wow.

“You’re a healer.”

He frowned. “Yes, but my people do not know. One cannot be a healer and a leader. To lead, one must be a warrior.”

I understood. Strength was more important than anything to demons.
Never show weakness.
It was also a part of our Caruthers creed.

I shook my head. “Your secret is safe with me. Thank you.”

He cocked his head and gave me a strange look, almost as if he were amused. “I closed and locked all of the portals once you left. Someone on this side is letting them through.”

Trying to ease the tension building in my brain, I rubbed my temples with the tips of my fingers. “Okay. Once I catch the demon in Portugal, I’ll see what’s causing the problem with the portals. The last thing I need right now is a damn demon infestation.”

Arath frowned. “I do not wish my people in your world any more than you do.”

God, when will I stop offending the guy?
“Arath, my apologies. I did not choose my words wisely, and there is no excuse for that.”

He grabbed the demon with one hand and slung it over his shoulder.
“Gorstat.”
He said the word and a portal opened.
Holy cow, Wonder Woman.
I was powerful, but I’d never seen anyone open a portal with just a word.

This guy was just full of surprises.

 
 
It wasn’t hard to spot the other Norst demon in
the middle of Marialva, Portugal. He stood out in front of a sixteenth-century parish church. I’d been there with Alex when she studied Gothic architecture. Most people thought of Portugal as a place with beautiful beaches, and it was, but up in the rocky hillside towns there were some incredibly wonderful buildings. Some more than a thousand years old.

So when I saw the seven-foot-tall scaly beast trying to beat down one of the beautiful wooden doors to get into St. James Church, I couldn’t let him.

After Burbank, I’d made a quick stop back at the control room to get my sword. In less than two minutes I’d traveled from the ride at Universal to Portugal. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.

“Get away from there. You’re going to break something!” I screamed at him. It was five o’clock in the morning so there wasn’t anyone on the street except the beast and me.

He continued to bang on the door and didn’t even bother acknowledging my presence. Stupid monster. I brought my sword up and to the left and made a fast arching swing as I leapt and sliced off his head.

Sometimes killing a demon was as easy as that.

 
 
An hour later I’d showered, changed, and eaten a
plateful of chicken enchiladas. Exhausted, I finally tumbled into bed.

It was difficult to believe that I had begun my day anxious to have a reunion with Emilio. That hadn’t gone quite the way I expected. I didn’t feel any more anger, which was weird.

It bothered me that I couldn’t even muster up a tear for my short affair with Emilio.
Am I ever going to care about a man enough to mourn when he’s gone?
My anger earlier had been more about having to share a plaything, and feeling betrayed, than the ending of a relationship.
You’re a cold-hearted bitch.
That had come from the mouth of the guy I’d had an affair with a few weeks before Emilio. Ted, the comic book artist.
What was I thinking?
He was so clingy that by the third date I mentioned he wasn’t my type, and maybe he needed some hobbies so he didn’t obsess about the women he dated. He didn’t appreciate my advice.

My mind shifted to Arath. I’d never seen such a gorgeous, chiseled face. That strong chin, and that mouth were beyond anything I’d seen on Earth. He was about as close to perfection as a guy could get. The way the right side of his mouth quirked up when I thanked him for healing me still made butterflies flutter in my stomach.

Thankfully, when I returned to the control room I discovered Arath had in fact closed the portals from his side with some strong magic. There hadn’t been a sign of any more intruders, which was why I decided to take a break.

Sighing, I punched my pillow. “Just because he’s good-looking doesn’t mean it’s okay to lust after him, Gils. He’s a demon. It’s your job to make sure he keeps the damn portals closed, and that’s it.”

I remembered how gentle he’d been when he healed my arm, and the look of genuine concern when he realized I’d been hurt.

There was definitely more to the demon king than met the eye. I just wished I wasn’t so damned eager to find out what other secrets he held.

CHAPTER 5

The dreams always began with a pool of blood. My
vision blurred for a moment and then I saw her. Well, the back of a head with long blonde hair. I assumed it was a woman from the lithe build and delicate hands with long broken fingernails. She’d put up a fight.

Something about her hair seemed familiar. My breath caught for a moment, and my body shook.
No. No.
At first I thought it might be Claire, but her blonde hair was much lighter.

Someone had killed this poor woman and all I could think about was how grateful I was that it hadn’t been my sister.

Think.

From the size of the black-red stain on the carpet, the other side of her had to be a disaster.

It’s a dream. Wake up. Stop looking at the body.

I turned my head and saw the moon casting shadows on the floor. Thankfully I couldn’t smell the blood. I took a deep breath and tried to take in all the details. The room was bare except for a bed with a garish green, orange, and red diamond-motif cover, an old television, and beat-up wooden tables.
A motel.
A lamp lay shattered on the floor. A notepad printed with the words “A-1 Motel” lay on the pieces of glass.