Demon's Vengeance The Complete - Jocelynn Drake Page 0,107
What I want to discuss with you is this association you’ve apparently struck up with one of Simon’s playthings.”
The demon. This was not something I wanted to talk about with her. Not when this demon planned for me to destroy Lilith.
“I want you to stay away from it,” she continued, slowly strolling back toward the kitchen. “I’ve got it under control so it won’t kill you, but demons are nasty things full of lies. I don’t want it whispering things in your ears, filling your head with tales that will only get you destroyed. It’s only looking out for itself.” She flashed me a soft smile, trying to appear as if she was actually concerned for my safety.
“It’s only looking out for what it wants.”
Her smile widened. “Exactly.”
“Like you,” I added.
Lilith’s smile melted away like heated wax. Her long bony fingers curled into fists, but she didn’t rush me like I expected. No, she did something worse.
“You forget who the true power within the Underworld is, Gage,” she hissed. The lights in the kitchen blinked out so that the shadows in the dimly lit living room lengthened. “My reach includes both this world and the next. Stay away from the demon or face the consequences.”
Lilith slithered backward into the kitchen so that she was instantly swallowed whole by the darkness. A second later, I heard a voice that shot straight to my gut.
“Gage?” My mom’s frightened voice warbled from the blackness and my knees nearly gave out. A low growl rumbled after my name, followed by a crash of broken furniture. A woman’s terrified screams cut through the silence, slicing my soul in half. I plunged into the darkness . . .
And sat straight up in bed on a strangled cry.
Blinking and fighting the twisted blankets around my legs, I struggled to get my bearings. I was in my room. In my apartment. Safe. The fucking bitch had invaded my dreams . . . again. Covered in a cold sweat, I tamped down a sob of equal parts fear and relief while I tried to find a peaceful center in which to think. My hand was shaking as I pushed it through my tangled hair.
Despite my attempts to reassure myself that it was only a dream, I snatched up my phone and called my parents’ home. My mother’s sweet voice danced across the distance after the second ring and she only laughed at my concern. Everyone was fine and safe. Nothing had happened. I got off the phone as quickly as I could, not wanting to worry my mother since I was struggling to get my emotions under control.
Dropping my cell phone back on the bedside table, I fell back into bed and ran my hands roughly over my face as I tried to organize my thoughts. Serah had dropped me off at my apartment at just before ten the night before, after taking Bronx to Asylum. I had stripped out of my filthy, bloody clothes and collapsed in the bed. I had no memory of falling asleep. But then, I think I was out before I’d finished pulling my blankets up around me.
The alarm on my phone had me jumping a couple minutes later. It was time to start my day whether I wanted to or not.
Sliding out of bed, I snatched up my phone and turned off the alarm. But I stood there, dumbly staring at it for several seconds. There were no missed call or text messages from Trixie. I had seen her briefly last night when she arrived at the shop for her shift just before Bronx and I left with Eddie. But she’d never called to check on the progress of the sting or if everything was okay. The distance between us was growing by the second and I no longer knew how to close it. She was pulling away so that it would be easier to return to her own people.
Was I going to let her go without a fight? Not a fucking chance.
I kicked the coffeemaker on before jumping in the shower to scrub away the dirt and blood I hadn’t bothered to get off myself the night before. Clad in some nearly clean jeans and a T-shirt that had only one small hole it in the side, I grabbed some white chalk, my wand, and a mug of black coffee as I walked into the living room.
Putting down the coffee, I inspected the twelve stitches I’d received the night before, closing the