The Reaping: Language of the Liar (15 page)

She nibbled on her thumbnail for a moment, contemplating her choices.  The truth was, it didn’t feel like she had any.  If they sat back and waited, she’d be lost anyway, and the boys seemed willing to take the risk of her exorcism.  They seemed confident at the very least.

“When I was possessed at the hospital,” she said, her voice low and even, “Nic was with me.  He was asking for my help.  He said that there’s a race of demons waging war on other demons, traveling to their worlds and destroying everything before they move on.  He insisted the conversation I overheard about opening up the humans was for everyone’s benefit.”

Lennox scoffed, his head shaking.  “He’s a damn liar.”

“I know,” Dorian said carefully, “but he said something else.”  She paused, trying to find the right words.  “He mentioned there’s a spell which could open up other humans to become doorways.  He implied there were spells that could open up everyone.”

Lennox and Dash looked startled, glancing at each other before Lennox asked, “Everyone?”

“I’m not sure if I believe him,” Dorian said, “but it made me realize if that spell exists, if there is a spell which could open up humans en masse, couldn’t there be a counter spell?  One massive exorcism which could close everyone?”

Lennox blinked slowly, staring at her for a long time.  “I…hadn’t thought.”

Spreading her hands, Dorian gave a shrug.  “I don’t know a lot about your world.  How it works, the science behind it.  Or magic.  Or whatever it is.  But I don’t think there could be something which could open up every human without a counter point.”

“She’s right,” Dash said, slapping his hand on the table.  “She’s bloody right.  If this exists, if there’s some Exorcist working with the demons to find a way to open up all humans, we need to counter that.  We need to be on this.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Lennox said.  “Demons lie.  It’s what they do.”

“But they also tell bits of the truth,” Dorian reminded him.  “To hook you, to get you to believe in them.  To make you question what’s real and what isn’t.  We don’t have to trust him, but isn’t it worth investigating?  I mean it wasn’t just him who said it.  Those other demons in the park mentioned it too.”

Dash’s eyebrows dipped.  “True, but they could have been planted there for your benefit.”

Dorian shrugged one shoulder up and down.  “But we won’t know until we look into it, right?”

“Yes, but we can’t do an investigation if your creature still has his claws in you,” Lennox pointed out.

Dorian held up her hands in surrender.  “I know.  Believe me, and I’m not telling you this so you’ll delay what you need to do.  I get the risk.  I know I might not walk away from this. But even if I die, the least you can do is use this information.”

Chapter Eighteen

In spite of knowing it could be her very last day on earth, Dorian spent most of it in and out of sleep.  Her nerves got the best of her, and to combat her very real, very pressing desire to bolt, she spent the day in bed curled up in the comforters with a long string of movies playing on the TV in the corner of the room.

Briar was still in the house, but refused to come out of the back bedroom.  Though Lennox and Dash checked on Dorian a few times, they spent most of their day either on the phone with other Exorcists, or prepping the basement with the necessary symbols, spells, and chains to bind her to the floor.  She could hear them working, even on the top floor, and the whole thing was overwhelming.

Nic was nearby, too.  She could feel him restless and nervous, and it was affecting her mood.  The sleep helped, and the amulets and warding spells kept him out of her dreams, but as the hours ticked closer to night, her fears became real and palpable.

She didn’t want to die.  She was prepared to take the risk, to make the sacrifice, but it didn’t change her desire to live through it.  It should have given her strength, but instead she found herself a scared little girl in the hands of people who could save her or kill her.

“Love?”  The soft voice roused her from a doze, and Dorian’s eyes blinked against the pressing shadows in the bedroom.  The TV was on the DVD menu, casting a blueish glow over everything, and she could just barely make out the silhouette of Dash standing in the doorway.

“Is it time?”

He stepped into the room, taking a seat at the edge of the bed near her feet.  He had a vial of clear liquid in his hands, and he was rubbing it back and forth like he was trying to warm the liquid.  “I need you to drink this.  It’s not going to knock you out, not like it did with the boy, but it might make you feel a bit woozy.”

Dorian reached for it, snatching her hand back when she realized her fingers were shaking.  She sat up more, rubbing them together, and tried to get a handle on her fear.  “I’m sorry.  I’m…”

“You’re allowed to be petrified.  The ones we prep for Reaping know more than the others.  And sometimes knowing is worse.”  He reached out, taking her hand in his and giving it a squeeze.  “But we’re here. We’ve got you.”

She took a breath, and her hands were a little more calm when she took the liquid and popped the top.  The tiny cork fell on her lap, and she sniffed the contents.  It was like the little boy had said.  Like sweet, flat soda.  She tipped the glass jar to her mouth, taking it all in with one gulp.  It was too sweet, giving it a bitter quality, and the moment the liquid was down, her head gave a spin.

“Jesus.  That didn’t take long.”  Her tongue felt thick and everything felt surreal, like she was floating.

“Nope.  Magic works a lot quicker than modern science.”  Though Dash sounded far off, she was able to focus on his voice with a clarity she didn’t have before.  He took the vial from her and slipped it into his pocket.  “It’s going to need a few minutes.  Len’s preparing everything downstairs.”

Shaking her head, enjoying the feeling a bit, she sat up all the way and stretched her arms.  “You two are funny, you know that?”

His face stretched into a smile.  “Oh yeah?”

“I mean, you have this weird life.  This fucked up life where you’re saving people and sometimes killing them, and you’re eyeballs deep in demon crap.  But you still fell in love.”

Dash snorted.  “Love is a strong word when it comes to that cranky fucker.  But yeah.  I suppose we did find each other.”

“Must be nice.  I never got that, never caught feelings.”  She swung her legs over the bed but didn’t get up, enjoying the fuzzy tingles running up and down her limbs.  “It was alright.  Saved me from a lot of crap.  Who needs the agony of love when you got mean foster parents smacking you around, right?”

Dash’s face fell.  “I’m sorry.”

Dorian waved her hand.  “Look, it was my lot in life.  I guess you can’t be some demon queen or whatever the hell Nic wants me to be, without being a little fucked up first.  And I’m still here, right?”

Dash put his arm around her and squeezed it.  “You got us now, kid.”

There was a thumping sound from downstairs and Dorian stiffened.  “That’s the signal?”  The tingly, far-off feeling was absent from her, and she felt her fear reignite.

“I promise, we’re going to take care of you,” Dash said, taking her hand as he got up from the bed.  “I’m using everything I’ve got.”

Dorian let out a small, nervous laugh as they headed for the stairs.  She wanted to ask why they were so invested.  Their reasoning didn’t make sense.  They didn’t know her, not really.  She was some strange girl with a rocky past and a connection to the demon world.  She knew it was probably strategic, and they must have a low supply of Reapers on their team.  But Dash made it seem so personal and while that should have comforted her, it just made her feel vulnerable.

They reached the basement and by the time they entered the dark, warm room, the floating feeling was back.  She was barely aware of her surroundings, the flickering, floating candles distracting her from the fact that Lennox was walking toward her with an armful of silver chains.

She barely noticed as Dash lifted her arms and metal cuffs were locked onto her wrists.  She didn’t miss the apprehensive stares the two men gave each other, and she could all-but feel Briar’s frustration with the entire situation as she stared at Dorian from the shadows.

“Go ahead and lie down,” Lennox said, pointing to the center of the massive pentagram.

As she stepped into the circle, a burning sensation raced up her arms, and Dorian realized that as the boys had chained her, they took off her amulets.  Nic was there, suddenly and violently, and she could hear him screaming in the back of her head.  She tried to reach up to cover her ears, but the chains were locked down tight.

“What’s happening?” she hissed as she fell to her knees.

Dash made a move to help her, but Lennox held him back, shaking his head.  “Don’t.  We’re not warded yet.”

With a pained look, Dash stopped just outside the circle.  “We had to take off your protections.  He has to come through.  Just breathe, okay?  It’ll be okay.  He doesn’t want to hurt you.”

“But I will,” came a voice from the back of her mind.  She could feel sharp claws digging into her hips, and blood trickled down from the puncture wounds.  “I will hurt you unless you tell them to stop.”

“I can’t,” she said, her jaw tense.  Everything around her was black except the flickering glow of the candles, and she could feel Nic nearby, but she couldn’t see him.  She felt like her brain was imploding, pressure so intense her eyes started to water, and the door in the back of her mind began to crack open.  “Stop, Nic.  Let them do this.”

“I can’t let you go.  Dorian I told you, I need you.”

Dorian wasn’t aware of how much time was passing.  In the distance she heard chanting, she could feel Briar’s powers nearby, pushing against Nic, but he had her tight.  Everything swam, and then she was on the floor, chained, blackness closing in on her, and Nic was there.  He was kneeling beside her, holding her face, his claws pulling blood from her cheeks.

“I can’t let them take you away from me.  I need you, Dorian.  I love you.”

“This isn’t love,” she said, her voice broken and raw.  She’d been screaming, but didn’t realize it until she tasted blood in her mouth.  “Please, Nic.  If you love me…”

“No.”  He gave her a shake, her head smacking against the hard floor, and she cried out.

“Fight him,” came a firm voice.  It was Briar, and she was nearby.  Dorian could feel her pushing her power toward the door, toward Nic, giving him a shove backward.  “Fight him!”

Struggling to rise, Dorian gathered her strength and pushed against him, but he laughed, his head falling back, hair floating around his face.  “You aren’t strong enough, little girl.  They have no power here.  Not over you.  Not over me.  You have no
idea
who I am.”

Dorian opened her mouth to fight, to curse at him, to rebuke him, but no sound came out.  He advanced on her, like a tiger, his claws out, digging into her shoulders.  His face was inches away from hers, and she could smell rot on his breath as he grinned.  “You belong to me, Dorian.  You are mine.  I created you and I can destroy you.  These children can’t take you from me.”

His head dipped, mouth closing on hers, and then she knew nothing but darkness.

Chapter Nineteen

She came to, her limbs burning like they were on fire.  Her head was spinning, and she could feel something brushing cold liquid across her naked skin.  With a groan, her head turned and she saw Lennox leaning over her with a brush covered in violent red.  The symbols cascaded across her neck, chest, arms, and the exposed skin on her legs where her leggings had torn.

Her hands were unbound, but silver chains covered in amulets wound around them so tight, they were almost cutting off her circulation.  As she peered down, she saw blood everywhere, the air thick and putrid with the smell.

“What…”  Her throat felt torn and raw, and she started coughing the more she tried to talk.

“Shh.”  Lennox held up a hand, and when she looked at him, she saw his face was pale, drawn, tear tracks smearing the dirt on his face.  He was muttering as he painted her arms, a low, furious incantation.

When he finished, Dorian felt her head spinning, then it cleared and she blinked both eyes wide.  Sitting up, she stared down around at the basement, or what was left of it.  Gaping holes littered the stone, the floor cracked from end to end.  The symbols on the walls had been torn to gravel bits, and most of the candles were nothing more than melted balls of wax smeared across the blood-stained concrete.  The two windows at the top of the wall were smashed, letting in a breeze from the outside.  Lennox was limping, his clothing filthy and ragged, and there were several gashes across his face.

“Did it… did I…”  She stopped and cleared her throat.  “Was I exorcised?”  Dorian’s voice was hoarse, tired, and scared.

“No.  Your exorcism was not successful.”  His voice was trembling as he grabbed a few pieces of busted furniture and piled them into a pyre.  He poured what was left of the oil from his bag and lit a flame from a match.  It wavered, then caught, flooding the room with an eerie, yellow glow.

Dorian’s eyes flared wide, her hands going around her middle.  “But… how?  How am I still alive?”

“We didn’t complete the ritual.  He got a hold of you and…”  He trailed off, looking over to a dark corner where Dorian noticed a limp body.

Staring harder, she recognized the thatch of hair and her hand flew to her mouth.  “Oh God.  Is he…?”

“No.  He’s not dead.  He’s still breathing for now.  Briar’s gone out for help.”

“Should you call an ambulance?  He needs a hospital!” Dorian shrieked.  She scrambled to her feet, but Lennox held out a hand to stop her.

“He needs someone from the Community.  We can’t take him to hospital in this condition.  I don’t know what’s wrong with him and how many of his injuries are related to your demon.  Medicine can’t help him, he needs magic.”

Dorian started shaking, sinking to the floor, and she hugged her knees to her chest.  She noticed then the blood caked under her fingernails, the smears of it up and down her arms dried brown and vicious.  “I did this.  Oh my God.  I did this.”

“You didn’t,” Lennox said, his voice hard.  He crossed the distance between them, stopping just short of her, and he crouched down.  “The
demon
did this.  Briar was right.  We were foolish for trying this without an entire team.  This was
our
fault.”

“But I…”  She held out her bloodied hands and shook her head.  “You can’t say it wasn’t me when it
was
.”

Lennox reached out, his grip harder than he meant it, and he grabbed her by the sides of her face.  “We are getting this thing out of you, Dorian.  I don’t care who he is, or how powerful.  We are taking you back.”

She let out a hollow laugh and shook her head.  “He won’t let me go.  He would rather I die than see me free of him.”  She rubbed her hand down her face and took a shaking breath.  “You need to kill me.  If you want to stop him, kill me.”

Lennox’s face went hard.  “I’m not doing anything of the sort.”

“But Dash—”

“Will bloody well agree with me the moment he regains consciousness.”  Standing up, Lennox turned on his heel and marched up the stairs, returning minutes later with arms full of comforters and pillows from the upstairs room.  He readjusted Dash, covering him up, then made a pile and beckoned Dorian over.  For the moment, she refused to move.

“Keeping me here like this is too dangerous.  What if he gets back in?”

“Markus gave me that spell,” Lennox said, nodding to her arms.  “He won’t be able to come near you for a while.  And I’ve got others on their way.  You’re not going down without a fight.”

Dorian’s throat tightened and her arms clenched around her knees even harder.  “Why?  Why are you being so stubborn?”

“Because you have power,” Lennox spat.  “Power most humans don’t, and we need you.  And I’m not going to let another demon destroy another person if I can help it.”

Dorian breathed, feeling a strange sense of relief to hear him say it was the power.  She had it, they needed it.  So her life was worth something to them.  “How can you not blame me for hurting you?  For hurting Dash?”

“Because we knew what we were getting into.”  The sound of Dash’s broken voice startled them both, and Lennox scrambled across the cold floor to where his broken boyfriend lay fallen.  Dorian crept over after a moment, scared to get too close to him lest Nic find a way to break this spell and finish the job.  “We’ve been hurt before.  We’ve lost friends and family to botched exorcisms.  We had no delusions walking into this ritual tonight.”

“He’s right,” Lennox said.  “It’s never easy, but this is our life.”

“That’s stupid,” Dorian spat, her head shaking.  “So stupid.  You had an easier way out.”

Dash let out a broken laugh, grimacing as he tried to shift his head to the side.  “What?  Murder?  You think murder is the easy way out?”

“Why not?  You exorcise people all the time knowing full well they won’t make it out alive.  Mercy killings.  Why not me?  So what if I have power?  There have to be others like me.”

Lennox looked at Dash, then back at Dorian.  “Maybe.  And I get your self-deprecation.  Growing up having been dealt shit cards, thinking your life is worthless.  But when we do our job, we do it to
save
people.  And that includes you.”

Letting out a breath, Dorian knew it was no use arguing with them.  If they called their little conclave of Exorcists, they’d go through the ritual again and maybe this time they’d end up killing her.  Or maybe Nic would have the power to destroy them all.  Either way, it would end with blood and violence.

She sat back as Lennox stoked up the fire, putting more broken wood on the top, then he moved back to Dash’s side.  She examined Dash’s face.  The gashes had stopped bleeding, and his arm looked dislocated.

“Markus is on his way.  He’ll get you sorted.”  Lennox reached out and stroked a hand down Dash’s cheek.

Dash let out a breath and gave Lennox a broken smile.  “All well and good, love, but I think I’m out of the game.”  He shifted his head and looked anywhere but at Dorian when he said, “Can’t feel my legs.  Nothing past the hips.”

There was a collective silence, thick and heavy, and then Lennox let out a frustrated growl, his fist making contact with the concrete.  “
Fuck
!”

“Don’t!”  Dash tried to sit up, but hissed in pain and fell back down.  “Please.  Please just… don’t.”

Dorian felt her heart clench at the realization that while it might have been Nic, it was her body which had done this to Dash.  The implications of his injury, the idea it could be permanent and forever, that she could have destroyed his ability to do his job, was overwhelming.  She started shaking, her breathing coming in heaving gasps, and she began to back up until she hit the far wall.

“Dorian,” Lennox said, his voice sharp, “you need to calm down.”

Her eyes flared wide.  “Are you kidding? Calm down!  You want me to calm down when I fucking… when I…”

“You didn’t do this,” Lennox said, hitting the floor again with his fist.  “This wasn’t you.  You have to understand that!”

She forced herself to take in slow, short breaths, and she covered her face with her hands.  “I can’t do this.  I’m not strong enough.  I can’t…”

After a moment, Dorian felt hands on the sides of her face, and she looked up.  Lennox was crouched in front of her, holding out a white pill and a bottle of water.  “Take this.  It’s an opiate.”

Her fingers trembled as she plucked the pill from his hands and took it without question.  A small, secret part of her hoped it was something stronger.  Strong enough to end it.  Because having to live with the thought of what Nic had done, what her body had done, was just too much to bear.

***

Whatever the drug was, it worked with a vengeance.  Dorian was out within minutes, and didn’t wake until morning.  She found herself curled up on an air mattress under the window in the main living room.  The sun shining on her face was hot, making her sweat, and when she sat up, she felt dirty and ached from head to toe.

She also heard a cacophony of voices in the other room, which set her on edge.  The more people who were around, the more danger they would be in if Nic broke free.  She still had the symbols on her skin, and the amulets woven around her wrists, but she didn’t feel safe.  Not anymore.

Sitting up, she pushed her hair out of her face, feeling desperate for a shower, but she had to see what was going on.  She was a little self-conscious by her state of dress, but strolled into the kitchen to find Lennox sitting at the table with two men and a woman she didn’t recognize.

The men were taller than Lennox, older with salt and pepper hair, crow’s feet wrinkling the sides of their eyes, and both shared similar brown eyes and pointed noses.  The one who looked older rose as Dorian came in, and he extended his hand.  “You must be the new girl.”

Dorian backed up away from him, hugging her middle.  She no longer cared for propriety and manners when lives were at stake.  “What’s going on?”

“This is Markus,” Lennox said, pointing to the man who was still sitting.  “And his brother Matias.”

“Call me Mat, please,” he said, his voice tinged with an unfamiliar accent.  It sounded vaguely Germanic, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.  “I understand you all had a very long night last night.”

“Dorian, why don’t you have a seat?” Lennox offered.  He nodded to the empty seat next to the woman.  She was young, barely a teenager it seemed, with cropped brown hair and serious, amber colored eyes.  She was watching Dorian like a hawk, and Dorian got the impression she was definitely more than she seemed.

“Look, I don’t want…”

“We have some of our strongest spells here right now,” Markus said as he gestured to the empty seat.  “You don’t have to worry for the moment.”

Letting out a breath, she finally walked to the table, pulled the chair out, and tried to keep herself as far from them as she could.  “So is this about the botched exorcism or Dash?”

Lennox winced at the sound of his boyfriend’s name, and Dorian felt her heart clench.  “He’s being treated now.  We have our best people on the job.”

“He’ll recover,” the girl at the table said.

Lennox blinked in surprise, then said, “Oh.  Forgive me.  Dorian, this is Adelaide.  She’s our resident Seeker.”

Frowning, Dorian looked at her and was surprised to find half their staff was made up of people so young.  She looked like she should be in a middle school math class right now.  “Nice to meet you.  You handle the spell work and stuff?”

“Amongst other things,” Adelaide said.  She spoke with an air of knowledge which made Dorian feel uncomfortable.  It was like Adelaide could see into her head, and she didn’t like it.  “I’m here to assess you, and then organize a proper exorcism.”

Dorian’s eyes went wide.  “You seriously think doing that all over again is a good idea?”

“No one thinks we should replicate last night,” Markus said, holding up his hand.  “Lennox and Dash went against my explicit orders to hold off on your exorcism, and they suffered the consequences.”

Dorian flinched, her head shaking.  “Are you calling what happened to Dash a
consequence
?”

“That’s exactly what it was.  He knew the risks.”  Matias’ voice was hard, and his stare was leveled at Lennox who was staring down at his hands.

Dorian felt her anger rising, and as it did, the marks on her arms began to burn.  “You’re telling me Dash knew he could be paralyzed for life if things didn’t go the right way.”

“I’m telling you he’s seen first-hand what can go wrong if he doesn’t follow protocol,” Matias replied tersely.  “He’s seen Exorcists blinded, driven mad, catatonic, limbs ripped from bodies, faces burned.  He’s seen them killed on the spot by demons with more power than they were equipped to handle.  I’ve been warning him for days about your demon companion, and they both jumped the gun.  He’s lucky to come away from this alive.”

“And paralyzed,” Dorian pressed.  “Forever.”

“But alive,” Lennox cut in, his gaze snapping up to her.  “Dash is grateful for what he’s got.”

She felt bile rising in her throat, and she pushed away from the table, rising to her feet.  “I can’t believe you’re saying all this.  After what I did, you still want to go through with this psychotic plan…”