Read Nameless: The Darkness Comes Online
Authors: Mercedes M. Yardley
“Luna.”
I moaned and threw my arm over my face.
It didn’t help any.
“Luna.
Good morning, pretty girl.”
“Mom?”
A snort. “Nice try, loser.”
I blinked and sat up.
I was still on the floor in Lydia’s room. Cripes, I hadn’t slept in a normal bed for two nights, and it was starting to get to me. My bones were screaming.
The
demon lounged in the doorway. “Time to rise, sunshine.”
I yawned and stretched.
“What are you doing here, Mouth? What time is it?”
He flowed over and sat beside me.
“It’s time for you to get cracking. I’m here to tell you to quit feeling sorry for yourself and get your butt in gear.”
I frowned.
“I’m not feeling sorry for myself.” I gingerly prodded at the emotional wounds from the last few days. Missing Lydia, nearly-dead Seth, betraying Reed Taylor. Ouch. Yeah, I
was
feeling sorry for myself.
Mouthy
demon kicked at me with his dark foot. It almost hurt.
“Hey!
You’re feeling calm and happy again! Look at you, almost fully formed.” I dragged myself to my feet and glared at him. “Why do you seem to celebrate my misery?”
He shrugged.
“Your misery always seems to be for my gain. Now come downstairs. I made you breakfast.”
“You did?”
I followed him down. A piece of poorly buttered toast sat on the counter. I poked at it. “Is this it?”
He pouted.
“Hey, be grateful! It’s harder than you think when you’re not fully formed. Taking the little wire off of the bread bag nearly took all of my concentration. And getting the butter out of the fridge? Almost impossible!” He waxed on about the inconveniences of everyday modern life while I chewed.
“Earth to Luna.
Come back to me.”
“What?
Sorry. Guess I have a lot on my mind.”
He sat beside me next to the bar. “I guess you do.
That’s why I’m here.”
I looked at him, sitting in the early morning sunshine, hanging out in my kitchen.
Making me toast. Offering his aid.
“What do you want from me, demon?”
He looked irritated. “We’re back to that again? You should know better by now.”
I looked away.
“Yeah, I thought I knew Reed Taylor better, too, and look where that got me.”
He shook his head in agitation.
“Look, I tried to tell you about him. You didn’t want to listen, which is totally your prerogative,” he said when I shot him a withering glare, “but you can’t say I didn’t try. I’m on your side.”
If only that were true. But…
“You’re a demon.”
“And you’re a
lunkhead. Let it go already. Sheesh.”
I looked around the house.
“So where did all of the other demons go?”
He looked around, too.
“I told you I cleared the place out. It wasn’t hard, not really. They all followed Sparkles back to Reed’s house.”
Another early morning ouch.
“Oh.”
“Yeah.
About that.”
I shook my head.
“It’s still too early to talk about that.”
“No.
It isn’t.” He reached out and put his hand on mine. I could almost feel it. “We need to discuss it now.”
I pulled my hand away.
“Why are you always so bossy?”
He grinned.
“I am a demon of authority. It carries over.”
I finished my last bite of toast and studied him.
Clearer features, happy demeanor. He was getting more and more solid by the day.
“You’re not like all of the other demons,” I admitted.
“It’s about time you realized that. You have the hardest head of anybody I ever met, you know? Like a brick wall.”
Normally I’d refute him, but what could I say?
He was right. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. It got me where I am today.
“So, Mouth
. Tell me why you’re different. Tell me how you became a demon.”
He quickly averted his eyes.
“You don’t want to hear all that.”
I leaned back.
“I do, actually. I’m interested. Whaddya have to say?” I hopped off the stool and got myself some juice.
He sighed.
“We really should be coming up with a battle plan. You know this.”
“This first.
I need the distraction.”
“
There’s not much to tell. I had a lot of anger I held onto. I couldn’t get rid of it.”
“But to become a
demon?”
He made a popping sound with his mouth.
“See, Luna, you see things in black and white, and it isn’t always that way. You act like it’s always a very deliberate choice. It wasn’t like, hey, I’ll wake up this morning and turn to a life of darkness. It was more like, hey, I’m really mad that things aren’t going how I wanted. Oh, still mad. Still fighting mad. Then one day I realize I’m still hanging around the place. I haven’t moved on. Being mad was pretty much all it took, for me.”
I raised my eyebrow.
He rolled his eyes.
“It’s true.
You’ve hung out with me. Do I seem like the kind of guy who likes to cause mischief? Torture babies?”
“You sure hate Reed Taylor.”
“Well, can you blame me?”
I took a deep breath.
“I still can’t believe that. About Reed Taylor. I can’t believe he’d sit there listening to me go on about Sparkles and this guy she ran off with, and never once say, ‘Hey, you know that guy? The one who completely wrecked everybody’s lives? It was me.’ I mean, how could he date me after that? Seriously?”
Mouth lifted one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug.
“I dunno. Maybe he’s totally screwed up inside. Maybe Sparkles got her claws into him and he became his own type of demon. Can’t tell you.”
“And you don’t necessarily want to tell me, do you?”
“Can’t say I do. Besides, maybe he didn’t realize you considered your weird relationship dating. Seems to me like you were happy to take him when you wanted him, but you brushed him off whenever you didn’t. Most guys don’t go for that type of action.”
I stood up.
“Thanks for breakfast. I’m gonna go take a shower now, finish waking up.”
“See?
That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Eat my toast, but the second I…”
I didn’t hear the rest of it.
I was too busy stomping up the stairs.
The shower was always a place where I could think. It was the one place where I was truly alone, except for once when I caught something peeping out at me from the bathroom mirror. Seth had come running when I had screamed and assured me it wasn’t a demonic presence, but only a particularly bad case of bed head. As if.
I let the water cleanse everything away.
The leftover malice, the hurt and despair. I tried to imagine the water had healing properties that could wash away all of the misery. But really, I simply had to push it all to the back of my mind. I couldn’t afford to waste my energy feeling crushed. It was time for action.
I dried off, got dressed, and combed my hair.
I stepped out of the room to see Mouth leaning against the wall, waiting for me.
“Hello, Mouth.
You’re being particularly stalkerish and creepy this morning.”
“Really?
I thought I was always this way. Maybe you’re just ultra-sensitive.”
“Shut up.”
He followed me down the stairs. “You look kind of different without your makeup on.”
“Dewy and ethereal?”
“Maybe that. Less likely to take a bite out of anybody who crosses you.”
I laughed.
It sounded a little harsh. “I’ll definitely swipe on the eyeliner before I tackle demonic Sparkles, then.”
“I think you’d better.”
I sunk onto the couch. He followed suit. I swear I even felt the couch shift under his weight, he was becoming so tangible.
“Okay.
So what are we going to do?” I asked, then thought for a minute. “Besides murdering Sparkles, maiming Reed Taylor, re-kidnapping Lydia, and busting Seth out of the hospital?”
Mouth’s
eyes were on mine. They looked like they were made out of silver, but every now and then I thought I caught a faint blue sheen.
“I think you’d better leave the planning to me, Luna.
All of those options sound…well, they sound pretty stupid, actually.”
He had me there.
I put my bare feet up on the coffee table and leaned back. “All right. Shoot.”
He
leaned back with me. It seemed like an endearing gesture. “Well. You ran into Sparkles, and that didn’t work out so well. She’s not going to tell you where Lydia is.”
“Think Reed Taylor knows?”
He caught my eye. “Wanna ask him?”
Ah c
rap. The guy was good. “So how else do we find her? Ask the cops? Find a lawyer?”
The demon
wiggled his toes. He actually had toes. He must be enjoying this. “I doubt they’ll give you any information, especially after you pulled a knife on her last night.”
“How did you know—
”
“I know a lot of things.”
I’ll admit it; I was slightly embarrassed. “I wasn’t going to hurt her. Not really. Not
super
bad, anyway. Maybe just go for her demon. Make him tangible and slice the crap out of him.”
“It’s not that easy,” he said.
“It’s going to be almost impossible to damage the demon without damaging Sparkles at this point. They’re too intertwined.”
“I’m not afraid of
damaging Sparkles.” The bitterness in my voice surprised me.
Mouth turned to me.
“Hey, I know this is really tough for you, but you have to pull yourself together. Don’t lose yourself in all of this.”
“Maybe I don’t mind
losing myself.”
He
clicked his tongue. “Yeah, but what would the consequences be? When they haul you off to jail, what are you going to say? ‘I’m sorry I killed Sparkles, but she was bellied up to a demon, and I couldn’t get one without getting the other’? Don’t forget there are consequences in your world. Besides, there’s more than being locked up and having the key thrown away.”
He had my interest. “How much more?”
His eyes met mine. “I don’t think you realize you’re in danger of becoming a demon yourself.”
My mouth dropped open.
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.
Noticed how the Mark is getting easier to bear?”
I thought about it. “Yeah.
I guess. It isn’t really bad unless we’re in Demon Utopia, or something.” My gaze sharpened. “Why is that?”
Mouth was examining his fingers.
Five. Five fingers, almost completely solid.
“It’s a desensitization thing.
When the demon marked you at the fish and chips restaurant, he basically shoved what was left of himself on your skin. Into your soul as much as he could.”
“I think I remember it,” I said dryly.
“Hurt like—”
“The
Devil? Sin? Hell? It was supposed to. That’s exactly what it is.”
I was irritated.
“So he puts little bits of demon around my soul in order to…what? It seemed like some big beacon. Suddenly I’m a demonic blue plate special. What’s that all about?”
“Let me look at it.”
I jumped. “What, the Mark? Are you serious? No way! Back off, you sicko.”
He
rolled his eyes. “Luna. Chill. Let me see it.”
I slowly turned my back to him
and hiked my shirt up. I wasn’t sure what I was doing here, sitting in my abandoned house and showing my deliciously delicious demonic Mark to a pervo demon, for crying out loud. Had I lost my mind?
He ran his fingers over it, spread
ing them until they fit neatly into the still tender holes. The coolness of his misty hand felt good on the freezing heat of the wound. I sighed in relief.
Yep, I had lost my mind.
“You feel that?” he said. “Can you feel my fingers? They’re directly on the Tracing.”
I wrapped my arms around myself and leaned forward
. I was equal parts uncomfortable with the intimacy of the situation and grateful for the soothing relief his fingers gave.
“Yeah.”
“You don’t have to sound so resentful.”
“I’m not resentful,” I said resentfully.
“You’re already beginning to turn.
I bet that felt good.”
I pulled away from him, regretting the sensation of itching annoyance that came back when his fingers left
my skin. I tugged my shirt back down.
“That’s what I wanted to show you, L
una. You were right when you said it was like a beacon. It is. It’s a stamp on you, proclaiming you as some sought-after demonic entrée, if you will. Your soul emanates like blood in the water.”
“So I’m chum.”
“Yep. You’re chum.”
I frowned
. What a completely degrading concept. “So why has it been feeling better as of late? I mean, it still hurts. And it itches something fierce, but generally it isn’t the driving-me-to-my-knees, blinding agony it was before.” I looked at him, worried. “Is this a bad thing?”
“Yep.”
Oh, okay. He certainly didn’t spend any time softening the blow, now, did he?
He leaned forward. “Let me explain.
It’s bad because you’re used to it. You’ve become used to our presence. There was always a demon or two around, and that didn’t really bother you too much. Irritating, sure. Creepy? Yep. Still, what’s one demon, right? But four or five? Six? Suddenly they’re everywhere, right, and you don’t really care. They’ve become part of the background. Unless there is a whole slew and suddenly you’re on the ground trying not to puke on the carpet.”
“So it isn’t hurting because I’ve become used to demons
?”
His eyes shone. It was quite
disturbing, actually. “Right. The Mark doesn’t have to draw us like it used to. We’re already there. We’re skittering across the top of your soul and you don’t even bat an eye, for the most part. What I did there, with my hand? Don’t you ever,
ever
let another demon do that, do you understand? They’re not as strong as I am, and they won’t have your best interests at heart, not at all. They’ll slide right under the surface of your soul in a second, and there won’t be anything you can do about it. Got it?”
My teeth started to chatter.
I hadn’t even realized I was cold. No, I wasn’t cold. I was scared.
“But I don’t have to worry about you?”
Mouth’s
sigh was full of longing. “I’ll never take your soul, if that’s what you mean. Without your permission.”
I couldn’t help it.
I laughed. “Without my permission? That’s a good one. Like one day I’d be all, ‘Take my soul, please.’ Sure.”
“You don’t have to believe me, but that’s how it happens sometimes.”
I snorted. “Right. People just walk up and hand their souls over.”
“Sparkles did.”
Suddenly it didn’t seem the least bit funny. Sparkles was bad news. She’d always been bad news, but it still seemed extreme to just offer yourself to a
demon
. You’d think that anybody would know better. Even her.
“So why would she do it?” I asked Mouth.
I couldn’t look at him, at this creature from Hell sitting right there next to me. I should be running or screaming. Instead I was chatting it up like we were meeting for tea.
“People come to us for different reasons. Despair.
Revenge. Some do it unintentionally, like me. Sparkles was different. She wanted the power. She wanted the deviousness. She’s a different breed, that girl.” He looked around the house. Everything was neat and orderly. The furnishings were modest and sensible…for the most part. I stuck screwy things here and there to lighten the place up, but Seth’s warm and conservative style still shone through.
“What’s a nice guy like your brother doing with a woman like Sparkles, anyway?”
he asked.
“I
dunno. She seemed nice at first. And Seth wanted a family so badly. Maybe he wanted to rewrite the past or something with his new and improved home life. Still, I was surprised when they hooked up. Maybe she was Seth’s one chance at being wild and crazy for a minute, who really knows?” I stretched. My muscles felt better after the shower, but they were still eons away from being loose. “So enough of this. Nice little chit chat and everything, and I appreciate you explaining the Mark, but we have a lot of work to do. It’s time for action. What do you propose?”
He smiled.
“It’s killing you to sit still like this, isn’t it?”
“Don’t you know it,” I said.
My fingers were practically twitching in anticipation of the violence I expected to ensue.
He stood up.
His tangibility had diminished somewhat. “Okay. Let’s go, then. I suggest you wear something that makes you feel particularly tough. Like that black jacket and maybe your combat boots.”
“Why’s that?
You think I’ll manage to intimidate the enemy with my swell fashion sense?”
He was already rummaging through the closet for my jacket.
“It’s worth a try, isn’t it?”
I slipped the jacket on and opened my mouth to say something scathing, but he was already zipping up the stairs.
Presumably after my combat boots.
“I can dress myself
,” I shouted after him.
He didn’t answer, but I was pretty sure he was laughing at me.
Men. Demons. Whatever.
It occurred to me I’d better turn the phones back on in case the hospital tried to call about Seth.
No sooner had I done so when it rang. I grabbed it automatically.
“Hello?”
“Luna, thank goodness! I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all night.”
“I don’t have anythi
ng to say to you, Reed Taylor.” I slammed the phone down. It felt really good. I picked it up and slammed it down again, two more times.
“I’d hate to be on your bad side,” Mouth said.
He walked over to me with a pair of socks and my boots. “Throw these on and let’s go.”
“Don’t be so sure you aren’t on my bad side,” I said to him.
He shook his head. “You’re a prickly woman.”
“Get bent.”
The phone rang. I soundly ignored it. My cell phone started to buzz. I looked at the screen and turned it back off.
“Ready?”
Mouth asked.
I nodded.
“Ready.” We headed for the door. “So, where exactly are we headed?” I asked him. I felt like I was walking blindly into the situation. ‘Cuz I was. Luna Mama is no idiot.
“
A house. A dark house. It’s complicated,” he said slowly.
I shook my head as I yanked the door open. “
Ain’t it always.”