I stepped back into the house, wondering if I could squeeze in a cup of coffee before I headed out. I went about preparing it in the kitchen and could hear music blaring from Willow’s bedroom. She was upset at the moment, so I decided not to bother her. She’d get over it when Michael got back. Though, I had to admit that the thought of them being alone in the house without supervision made me a little nervous. But I trusted my sister not to do something stupid with a boy she’d just met.
I was about to grab my coffee when there was a knock on the front door. I placed the mug on the kitchen counter and headed for the door. As soon as I opened it, I thought,
So much for staying away from the cop.
Gareth stood on the porch wearing his blue uniform and hat. “Hi Sierra,” he said. The smile made his fat lip stand out. No wonder Papan’s knuckles had been red.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” My stomach flipped because my naughty dream suddenly flashed inside my mind.
“I just finished my shift and was in the neighborhood.” His friendly smile turned into a leer. “Besides, I thought you might want to know one of the guys who works at the Council was killed last night.”
The stomach flip turned into a drop. “Really, who?”
He studied me for a few silent seconds. “Henry Sallas. He was shot execution style and dumped in a back alley near the Spook Catcher Council Tower.” He paused for a moment. “You don’t know anything about that, do you?”
I shook my head. “I haven’t had anything to do with them for a while.” The lie stung my tongue, but I wasn’t going to get into this with him. He might be a friend and very helpful, but there were things he didn’t need to know.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
I didn’t want to, but why act suspicious? “Sure, come in.”
Gareth stepped inside and this time didn’t pause in the hallway, instead made his way to the kitchen while I closed the door.
I took a deep breath and exhaled. I could do this, without thinking about any of the awkwardness between us and his confrontation with Papan. We were friends, first and foremost.
Yeah, you were friends with Papan too, and look how that turned out.
Ignoring my traitorous thoughts, I strode into the kitchen.
Gareth was standing in front of the table, watching me closely. “It’s calmer than usual.”
“Yeah, if you ignore the loud music...” A wave of unease swept over me, which was strange since being around him usually made me feel calm. “It’s just Willow and me.”
“Your boyfriend’s not around?” The glint in his hazel eyes darkened.
“He’s at work.” I met his gaze and didn’t break it, not until I couldn’t help but glance at his lip. “What happened between you two, anyway?”
Gareth shrugged, removed his hat and placed it on the table. “He wanted to make sure I didn’t touch his property.”
Anger stirred inside me. His comment was an insult to me more than Papan. I bit my tongue, not wanting to add to the unease.
“You
do
belong to him, don’t you?”
“I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but that’s a really shitty thing to say.” I stepped past him and headed for the kitchen counter. Where I’d left my mug and the large bowie knife I’d been learning to use. “I think you should go.”
“Don’t get mad, I’m just teasing.”
My mobile phone rang, so I yanked it out of my back pocket and answered. “Hello?”
“Hey, Sierra, it’s Lavie.” She sounded as cheery as ever.
“Hey.”
“Listen, if you still want to speak with my aunt about Jacinta, she said she’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”
“That’s great! I’ll be over soon.”
“We’ll be here. Can’t wait to take you to the sewers,” she said. “Oh, and Sierra, please be careful when you cross the street this time.” She hung up, leaving me with her idea of a joke.
I dumped my phone on the counter and was about to turn around to face Gareth when he sidled up behind me. He placed an arm on each side of the counter, pinning me to the spot. We weren’t touching but I could feel his breath on the back of my neck.
“What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” he whispered in my ear, breathing heavier. “Yet…”
“Gareth, back off,” I whispered because I didn’t want my sister to hear. “Willow’s downstairs.”
“I don’t care. I just want to be near you.”
“Didn’t you get Papan’s message?”
He stepped closer, his body now pressed against mine. “I don’t react well to bullies. Besides, we don’t have to tell anyone. This will be our little secret.”
“I don’t think so.” Unlike Papan who was so much taller than me, Gareth only had a few inches on me so my butt was almost directly pressed against his crotch and I didn’t like what I felt back there.
“You weren’t angry in our dream, were you?”
My pulse raced.
“Remember how good I made you feel?” He tilted his hips, pressing his erection against my lower back. “We can do all of that and more, now.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I tried to swallow but the saliva got stuck in my throat.
“Let me remind you.” He removed his right hand from the counter, spinning me around to face him before locking me in place with his arms. “You tasted so nice.” The tip of his tongue grazed my neck, so hot it made my skin crawl.
“Gareth, don’t—”
“I know it’s what you want. What we both want.” The look on his face was one I hadn’t seen before. Even the night when he’d embraced me and I’d yelled at him, there’d been nothing but warmth in his touch. The desire and heat in his eyes made me squirm.
“Back off!” I forced a hand between us, trying to push him away.
He didn’t budge. “We both enjoyed being together. I know we did.”
“It wasn’t real.”
Dreams aren’t real.
“Do you remember how it felt to have me inside you?”
“There’s no way you could know that—”
“We fucked in your dream, and I know all about it because I was there.” His smile widened, splitting his fat lip until blood dripped down the side of his mouth. “I remember every detail of your naked flesh against mine.”
“Gareth, you don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He ran a hand up my thigh and I shivered, the details of the dream were getting more vivid. “I know
exactly
what I’m talking about, so let’s compare real life to our dream.”
“What you’re saying doesn’t even make any sense.”
“You live in a world filled with magic and insane things, and you didn’t think that maybe someone is capable of entering another person’s dream?”
“What the fuck are you saying?”
His lips were close to mine but the trance was gone. I’d sobered up at his words, at what he was admitting.
“We made magic together and I’ll never forget a minute of it. I’ll be back tonight and the next night, if that’s what it takes. Until you’re finally ready to surrender to me in our waking life…”
When I pushed this time, it was hard enough to get him the hell away from me. I couldn’t believe this. All this time I’d thought we were friends and he’d been scheming a way to get into my pants. “You invaded my dreams?”
He nodded. “I can invade a lot more than that.”
“Get out of my house.”
“Sierra Fox, you’re not going to get rid of me this time.” When Gareth’s eyes flashed black, my heart sank.
No way!
This couldn’t be happening, shouldn’t be. But the dark shadow towering behind him confirmed my worst suspicions.
He’s possessed!
“Get the fuck away from me you dirty demon!” I kicked him in the midsection and although he doubled over, he was still smiling and dribbling blood.
“This new body fits a lot better than Jonathan’s but he’s a lot more resistant.”
“You made him do this!” Not only was he possessed, but by the same demon who’d corrupted my ex-boyfriend to the point of crazed obsession.
“Well, I made his desire burn a lot brighter. This one truly cares, but would never dream of forcing himself on you. Me, I’m not so shy. After fucking you that one time inside your office it’s the only thing I want to do. The Lamia was a nice distraction, but all she wanted was a taste of the power I took from you.” He licked his lips. “I want you so bad. Look.” He pointed at the bulge in his pants. “Let me in. I
need
to be inside you.”
I stepped back, and couldn’t help wondering if this demon had used Jonathan’s body to screw Maya before or after our relationship fell apart. I shook my head. The only thing I wanted right now was to get this demonic entity out of my house.
“Get the fuck away from me, and don’t ever use your sick dream power to seduce me again.”
“Oh, the dream thing is all him. He’s got quite a few handy talents.”
I’d have to catalogue this mention of Gareth’s magic the same way I did when Maya told me, but one of these days I’d have to deal with it. That wasn’t today, though.
While he seemed distracted, I wrapped my fingers around the bowie knife sitting on the counter. I spun and closed the distance between us before he could react. I stabbed the full length of the long blade into his gut.
Gareth—or the demon—stumbled back and the knife slid out of him with a sick slurping sound. He pressed both hands against his side, peering down at the blood spilling between his fingers. He looked up and his black eyes turned back to hazel—the massive shadow returned to average size. He looked confused.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, before running out of the kitchen.
I chased him into the hallway with the knife still in my hand and dripping black blood all over the floor, but he’d already slammed the door shut behind him.
My heart was pumping so hard and fast I thought I might have a heart attack. What the fuck kinda mess had found me now?
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Lavie’s round eyes were filled with concern, her pretty face darkened by a frown that didn’t match her innocent looks. She knew me well enough to notice when something was wrong. “Pardon the pun.”
“Or a demon,” I whispered, because I didn’t want her aunt to hear. I’d left the house shortly after the Gareth incident. I’d checked on Willow. Or rather, I’d stood outside her bedroom door talking to myself because she didn’t reply. The music was still blaring, and I hadn’t pushed.
“You saw a demon, really?” He eyes widened, doing the Disney Princess twinkling thing. How the hell did she do that? She always looked like a cute caricature with red, uneven hair barely grazing her shoulders, pale skin and freckles. Of course, she didn’t dress the part and instead of fancy gowns wore baggy, long outfits to conceal what writhed beneath her skin. The demonic seed trapped inside her multiplied, so if her arms and legs were bare you could see them stirring.
She smacked me in the arm. “Well, don’t keep me in suspense.”
“I’ll tell you later.” Sally was already heading our way with a tray, so I didn’t want to get into it. Besides, I still needed a second to digest the fact Gareth had somehow entered my dreams.
“You better,” she said, staring daggers at me.
“I’ve got a lot to tell you.”
“Here we go, girls.” Sally Grye was an older woman, though like Oren I couldn’t pinpoint her actual age. She’d looked so much like Lavie in Oren’s memory. Her hair had been the same shade as her niece’s but gray had consumed most of it now. Today she wore it up in a neat bun and her eyes were hidden behind a pair of narrow glasses. Her outfit was loose but chic. She might run a store reminiscent of a bohemian gypsy but she didn’t dress the part. Plus she was the real deal.
She’d predicted my death, and although it hadn’t come to pass yet I knew it was waiting for me around the next corner.
Sally placed the tray on the coffee table in front of the green couch where we sat and spread out the cups, sugar, milk and cookies. Every time I stopped by she did this, and today it seemed especially fitting.
“Thanks,” I said with a smile.
“You’re always welcome for morning or afternoon tea, my dear.”
“Not just for that. I want to thank you for being willing to answer my questions, even if it means betraying a friend.” Friendship could get complicated, and be easily fractured. I knew from firsthand experience.
Sally shrugged and sat on the adjacent mismatched armchair. “Jacinta and I haven’t seen eye to eye on a lot of things for years. We were good friends once, and while I still consider her one, I don’t agree with most of what she does nowadays.” She sat back, crossed her legs and sighed. “Your granny, Jacinta, and I were quite the tight bunch. Oren and Duff used to call us the Three Troublemakers.”
“Duff?” Where had I heard that name before?
She frowned. “Don’t worry about him. I’m sure Oren will tell you about him soon enough.”
“Why?”
“Well, if he’s ever going to tell your poor sister the truth about her linage, he’ll need to mention Duff. After all, it
is
her grandfather.”
My mind raced. I honestly couldn’t remember if it was a name I’d heard from Oren or someone else. No matter how hard I tried to remember, it just wouldn’t come to me.