That Old Black Magic - By Michelle Rowen Page 0,26
a long, tense moment. “One try. That’s all. And if there’s even a glimpse of anything bad, we stop. Maksim saying it could work doesn’t mean a damn thing. I don’t trust that wizard.”
If it wasn’t for Maksim, she wouldn’t even have attempted the spell removal. “He was trying to help us.”
“Right. Which is pretty much why I don’t trust him. Wizards aren’t usually the most helpful types.”
“But you’re not going to attempt to stop me. One try. You said so yourself.”
“Yeah, fine. But if anything weird happens, we’re pulling the plug.”
Anything weird.
That was the story of her life lately. Why should tomorrow be any different?
SEVEN
Someone followed Eden home, and that made her very nervous.
Maybe it was the Malleus—led by Ben Hanson, former crush. They were nasty, horrible people who had conned themselves into believing they were the good guys, but they weren’t. Not even close.
It could be Lucas keeping tabs on her, which would explain how he seemingly knew everything without the ability to see the future. However, that was unlikely. If he was the one following her, she doubted she’d even realize it.
It might even be Leena, her ex-roommate, a feline shapeshifter who’d disappeared two weeks ago after a disagreement with Darrak, leaving only a note behind and a key to a locker containing some of her belongings. Her departure only proved that three was a crowd when it came to paranormal beings cohabiting a one-bedroom apartment.
But it was none of these.
It turned out to be her mother—the twenty-three-year-old lingerie model version, anyway. She drove a sports car like some sort of life-size Barbie doll and pulled up right next to Eden in her apartment parking lot.
“So where’s the demon right now?” Caroline asked, following a silent Eden to the elevators.
“Around.”
“I guess she isn’t going to wait for your call,” Darrak said from inside of her. “What’s it been, six whole hours?”
“Guess not.”
“What, honey?” Caroline asked.
“Nothing. Look . . . uh, Mom”—it felt so strange calling this woman that—“we need to talk another day.”
“My God. He said at night he . . .” Caroline’s eyes widened. “That demon is possessing you right now, isn’t he?”
Eden grimaced. “It’s really not as bad as it sounds.”
Caroline hugged her tightly. “Oh, sweetie. I can’t believe this is happening to you. I’m so sorry for all of what you’ve been through.”
“It’s not exactly your fault. Besides, it’s almost over.”
“It is? You’re having him exorcised?”
“I have a strange feeling I’m not going to win her over with my charm and good looks,” Darrak observed.
Eden repressed a grimace. “I’m not having Darrak exorcised.”
“How can you be so calm about this? You’re possessed, honey. By a demon from the fiery depths of Hell!”
Luckily there was no one else in the lobby to overhear her—admittedly true—ravings.
“Calm isn’t what I am,” Eden said. “But Darrak and I have a mutual understanding. And we’re finding a solution. Sooner than you think, actually.”
“And how am I supposed to be convinced that he’s not manipulating your emotions? Did he seduce you? I know demons. I know how persuasive they can be when it comes to converting one to their sexual deviance. Bondage is meant to be done between two consenting adults, not between a victim and a vile minion of Lucifer.”
“Stop her,” Darrak said dryly. “I’m getting all turned on.”
Eden cringed. “I’m not talking about this, Mom. Not with you.”
Caroline’s bottom lip wobbled. “I’d do anything for you, Eden, you know that, don’t you?”
Anything. Funny, it hadn’t felt like that when Caroline had been alive. In her own body. Frankly, it felt as if Eden had been a big burden on her mother’s free-spirit lifestyle. Carting a kid around when you never called one place home for more than a few months wasn’t exactly ideal to establishing a stable childhood.
Eden exhaled. “Mom, I need you to hear me. Will you listen for just a moment?”
“Of course.”
Eden turned to face her directly. “I don’t need your help. And I don’t want your help. I can handle this like I’ve handled everything else for my entire life. You can’t march in here and expect that you can make everything right that went wrong when you were alive. I know you’re trying to redeem yourself, but you can start somewhere else. Not with me.”
She expected this speech to finally get through to her mother and make her understand. Instead, Caroline’s eyes flashed.
“Well, that’s too damn bad. Because I’m here. And I’m going to help you whether you like it or not. I might