"There would have been if you'd really loved me like you said you did," he replied bitterly. "And I told you I'd leave the rest of them alone."
"It was too late when you told me that. By then, I'd already called for help." I didn't add that in a way, I really had loved him. It had been different from the way I loved Seth, but it had been love nonetheless.
"Well, whatever. It's not relevant now. Finding Jerome is what's important." Out of the side of my eye, I saw him study my profile. "Of course, I'm surprised you've been so eager…it's going to put an end to your little affair."
"It's going to come to an end anyway. I'd rather have Jerome in my life afterward than some other demon." In my mind, I could see Seth's kind eyes and gentle smile. I could almost feel the way his hands touched my body. "I'll have the memories, at least. They'll stay with me."
"Memories." Roman shook his head. "How the hell can someone who fucks random men for a living be such a romantic idiot?"
I didn't answer that, and the rest of our drive contained little conversation. The place we were going to in Edmonds was another park. Funny, I thought, that humans kept sectioning off these magical places and preserving them. I wondered if they sensed that power on some inherent level. I'd read up a little on this park and how it had some significance to Native Americans in the area. Surely that was promising. It was a small beach flanked by a woodsy area with picnic tables. Children ran around while their mothers watched.
"This place isn't very strong," said Roman, once we were out of the car. "There's a little magic in the earth but not much. I can't imagine they'd hide Jerome here-they'd want a lot more to mask it."
I refused to let that drag me down. "We have to look. We don't know anything for sure."
The park wasn't huge. I suspected it would take us less time to search it than it would to drive back. Just as we'd stepped out of the parking lot, my cell phone rang. I didn't recognize the number. "Go on without me," I told Roman. When I answered, the voice was no one I recognized.
"Is this Letha, also known as Georgina Kincaid?"
I grimaced. Only high-up hellish employees called me by my original name. "Yes."
"This is Ephraim, from Internal Affairs." The demon's voice was clipped and hurried, giving the impression that I was the one who'd called him and interrupted something. I found it amusing that he'd called me rather than speak in person. More efficient, I guessed.
I sat down at a picnic table. "What can I do for you?"
"Nothing, I'm sure. But I've been instructed to interview all lesser immortals in the area about The Jerome Situation." I could hear the capitalized letters in his voice, kind of like The Manhattan Project. "First, I'd like to know where you were when Jerome disappeared."
"On my way to Canada. Jerome had been lending me out to help Cedric."
There was a moment's pause. "My records say that Cedric was in Seattle when Jerome disappeared."
"Well, when I left, Cedric was still up there, yeah. But then when the Army of Darkness did their thing on the Space Needle, I called Cedric because I figured he'd want to know. I thought that was when he came down here."
"Did you say Army of Darkness?"
"Um, yeah. It's this cult in Vancouver that was doing embarrassing things."
"Ah. The ones with the spray paint."
"Yup. I'd been helping Cedric with them, and when he heard they were down here, I guess he came to talk to Jerome and do some damage control so Jerome wouldn't think he'd sent them."
"Your information's incorrect. Cedric never met with Jerome."
"What?" I frowned, thinking back to my conversation with Kristin. I'd asked if Cedric had come to talk to Jerome, and while she'd confirmed that he'd been down here, she hadn't mentioned them actually speaking.
"When Cedric came, Jerome was already missing. He and Mei attempted to find him, and when the lesser immortals began showing the effects of the summoning, we knew what had happened." Ephraim's words were still brisk. Clearly, he had no interest in discussing what he already knew.
I was close to something here-so, so close. Had Jerome been summoned before Cedric arrived? That would rule him out as the summoner. Of course, if Ephraim had received his information from Cedric, then it could have been a lie. Maybe Cedric was being framed. Maybe he'd actually been here the exact moment Jerome was summoned. Mentioning Mei meant that she had probably corroborated Cedric's story. Which meant what, exactly? Was she in on this too? I knew Grace was involved already. It was possible Mei and Cedric were working with her, but that meant three demons were in the conspiracy now. There was only one reward in Seattle, and I couldn't see how they'd all benefit. Getting a large group of demons to organize was hard. Getting them to do it when it offered no advantage for all of them? Impossible.
Ephraim was eager to get back on track. He asked me a few more questions about Jerome's disappearance and a bit about my day-to-day affairs. He never asked for my opinion about who should replace Jerome or what I thought of other demons. That wasn't particularly surprising, however. As my friends and I had discussed, our input probably wouldn't play a large role here.
I hung up and went to find Roman. I expected him to have practically finished the search, but instead, I found him playing ball with some kids over in a clearing near the trees. They were pretty little, and there wasn't much to the game. Mostly everyone stood in a circle and tossed the ball back and forth. Roman's throws were gentle and carefully aimed so as to make it easy for the kids to catch the ball. I stood off to the side, watching them in wonder. He actually seemed pretty into it, and the oddity of a sociopathic half-angelic bastard playing with small children wasn't lost on me.
Roman caught sight of me watching them and tossed the ball over to a little girl. He left the circle to approach me, much to the dismay of the kids left behind. They entreated him to stay, but he merely waved and told them he had to go.
"Maybe we can come back later," he said jovially.
"I can't decide if that was cute or creepy," I told him. "Maybe a little of both."
"Why creepy? I only kill immortal beings. Not kids."
"The fact that you just said all that with a straight face is proof enough." I gestured around. "Did you check this place out?"
"Nope. Didn't want to steal the fun from you. Who was on the phone?"
We started walking along the beach, and I recapped what Ephraim had told me. "I almost told him what I knew about Grace," I admitted.
"No, better that you didn't," said Roman. "We still need more information."
"We're running out of time," I grumbled. "There's not much more info we can get. And there's something there…something weird about the day Jerome was summoned. I just can't-" I froze, staring off down the beach. "Roman. Look."
He followed my gaze. There, near a trash can, was a patch of small, rough rocks mixed in with the sand. Gray and white. I ran off down the beach, ignoring the sand filling my shoes. Holy shit. After all these fruitless searches, after relying on all these sketchy half-assed clues, we'd actually found something. We'd found Jerome, and not a moment too soon.
Ignoring the looks of some startled kids, I knelt down near the rocks and began pushing them aside, digging through the sand. I realized then I should have brought a spade or something. A few moments later, Roman arrived and stood over me.
"Well, what are you doing?" I demanded. "Help me."
"He's not here, Georgina."
"He has to be! We're near salt water. There's sand. There's white stones. For the rest of the seal's camouflage to work, he's buried here somewhere."
"I can't sense anything. He's not here."
The rocks were cutting my hands as I dug, and I felt tears stinging my eyes. Until that moment, I didn't realize just how horribly and truly afraid I'd been of Jerome not returning. My time as a succubus had been filled with upheaval. I liked the small piece of tranquility I'd carved out here in Seattle. I didn't want that to change. I couldn't let it change, not after everything else I'd been
through recently.
"The whole point of the seal imprinting its magic was to mask Jerome's prison! Of course you wouldn't feel it."
"The seal hides it from anyone not actively seeking it. I am, and I'm telling you it's not here."
"Maybe it's because you're not strong enough."
With a sigh, Roman knelt down behind me. "Georgina, stop."
"Damn it! He has to be here!"
Roman reached from behind me and grabbed my arms. I struggled, but he was too strong. "Georgina, enough. Jerome isn't here. The only thing unusual about this spot is the smell from the garbage can. I'm sorry."
I struggled against him a little bit more and finally gave up. Apparently feeling certain I wouldn't fight anymore, Roman released me. I turned and looked at him, swallowing back my tears. "This was our last chance," I said softly. "We don't have any time left."
Roman studied me with his sea-green eyes. I saw no anger or threat on his face, only compassion. "I'm sorry. And you don't know for sure that it's too late."
"Ephraim will finish his assessment anytime now. And where are we going to go next? The Olympic Peninsula? Wenatchee? Hitting places at random was one thing when they were in our backyard. These others are too far away. We choose the wrong one, and that's it. Game over. We won't have time for anything else."
"I'm sorry," he repeated. From his face, I could see that he spoke the truth. "I want to find him as much as you do."
I stared beyond him out at the blue-gray water and the circling gulls. "Why? Why do you want to find someone who tried to kill you?"
Roman smiled. "Why do you cling to a romantic ideal when everything in your life has pretty much shown you that it's impossible?"
I think he'd spoken rhetorically and seemed surprised when I dragged my eyes from the water to look at him and answer. "Because of a dream."
He arched an eyebrow. "What dream?"
I took a deep breath, and like that, the images flashed through my mind, just as vivid and real as they'd been the first time. "Awhile ago…Nyx was here."
He looked startled. "What, the mother of time and chaos?"
"Yeah. Long story."
"What is it about this city?"
"Beats me. Anyway, she was preying on my energy and distracting me by sending me these dreams. They were so real, Roman. You can't even imagine." My voice was small as I spoke. "I was washing dishes in a kitchen, and 'Sweet Home Alabama' was playing. In the other room, there was this little girl sitting on a blanket. She hurt herself, and I came in there to comfort her. She was maybe two or three, and she was mine . My daughter. Not someone else's. Not adopted. The daughter of my body. Aubrey was there too and this tortie and-"
"A what?"
"A tortie. A tortoiseshell cat." I waited, but his expression was still blank. "It's like a calico, but without any white. Just brown and orange patches. How can you be millennia old and not know that?"
"Because I don't subscribe to Cat Fancy magazine. And I can't believe you remember things like cat breed and background music."
"It was so real," I said quietly. "More real than my own life. I remember everything."
Whatever snarky retort was on his lips disappeared, and he turned serious again. "I'm sorry I interrupted. So, what happened then? With you, the girl, and the cattery?"
"We were just all there together, warm and happy. Then a car pulled up outside, and I carried the girl out to look. A man was getting out, and he was the one . My lover, my husband, her father. The one my life centered around."
"Who was he?" Roman asked, face intent.
I shook my head. "I don't know. I couldn't see his face. It was dark out, and it was snowing. I just know that I loved him, and that he and the girl completed my life."
Roman didn't answer right away as he turned my words over. "But it was a dream."
"I don't know. Nyx can show the future…she showed others theirs. She claimed this was mine, but it's impossible. I can't have any of that. And yet…"
"…and yet, you secretly hope it might be true."
"Yeah. And when this whole stasis thing happened, I thought maybe…"
Again, Roman completed my words. "…maybe it could be true. After all, you could suddenly touch Seth. Maybe you could have a kid too?"
He'd guessed my secret hope. "I didn't know. I still don't. Maybe I can get pregnant. I mean, my body is kinda sorta human, right?"
"Yes. But not enough. I don't know every detail of this whole demonic hierarchy and the way they channel their powers, but I know you can't have kids. Even if you seem human, you're still immortal. You still belong to Hell. I'm sorry."
I held his eyes for a moment and then looked down. "Well. I guess I can't really be surprised by that, huh? And I have no reason to trust Nyx anyway. Not after what she did."
There it was. No kids. Another piece of the dream had slipped away from me. All I had left was the faceless man, the man I wanted to be Seth, and even that seemed unlikely now.
Roman tugged me up. "Come on. Let's head back before the rain comes. We'll get some ice cream. Maybe that'll cheer you up."
"I'm not really sure ice cream can fix my failed hopes and dreams or an impending demonic takeover."
"Probably not. But it'll help."
CHAPTER 23
Dante wasn't around when I got home, nor was he reachable by phone. That relieved me of any guilt I had about going out with Seth, meaning my only other obstacle was the accusatory look Roman gave me when we parted. I had no idea how he would spend his evening, and honestly, I didn't really want to know.
The problem Seth and I had with going out was that we pretty much had to avoid the city. We knew people in the suburbs too, but the odds of running into anyone were a lot smaller. The rainy weather Roman and I had experienced in the afternoon had blown over, and we suddenly found ourselves in semi-warm conditions that made it almost possible to go without a coat. I would have read the fortuitous weather as a divine blessing, if not for the fact that I'd given up on such beliefs long ago.
To my astonishment, though, Seth said he wanted to go downtown and felt pretty confident we wouldn't be spotted. He drove us over to Belltown, parking underneath one of the many high-rise apartment buildings that seemed to be sprouting up there every day. A mysterious key let him inside, and the elevator took us all the way to the top floor.
"What is this?" I asked when we entered a sprawling penthouse suite. It kind of made me wonder if I should have been setting my real estate aspirations in a different direction. I gave him a startled look. "You don't own this, do you?" Seth having a secret vacation home wasn't entirely improbable.
"Belongs to someone I know who's out of town. I called in a favor."
"You have friends I don't know?"
He gave me A Look, and I let the matter go. Besides, the place was so beautiful that I had plenty of distraction. The colors were all done in shades of navy and gray, and the furniture was plush and expensive. I especially liked the fact that the walls were decorated with huge reproductions of pre-Raphaelite work. Nowadays, abstract art was the trendy way to go, and it was nice to see something a little different.
"Wait'll you see the rest," said Seth, beckoning me out to the balcony.
Or, well, "balcony" was the closest word I could come up with. It was practically half the size of my apartment and faced west, showing part of downtown's glittering array of lights and all of Puget Sound. I stared in wonder, watching a ferry move across the dark expanse of water.
"Wow." That about summed it up.
We stood there for a few moments, and Seth's arm slipped around me. This high up, the unseasonable warmth had turned to seasonable gusts and coldness. I shivered, and Seth draped me in a blanket that had been neatly folded on a wrought-iron chair.
"Have a seat," he said. "I'll be back with dinner."
I grinned at the gallantry and sat at an ornate, candlelit glass table that still allowed me to take in the view. Waiting for Seth, I felt all sorts of strange feelings sti
r to life within me. This was it, I realized. I didn't know how I knew, but this was the end of whatever it was that we had right now. Maybe something new would take its place. Maybe we'd never have anything again. Regardless, this moment was crystallized in time for me. Nothing like it would ever come again.
Dinner turned out to be an array of tapenade and bread, as well as-to my shock-a bottle of wine. "Is that whole thing for me?" I asked.
He shook his head. "I'll have a glass."
"What? Starbucks, now this?" I peered at the bottle to make sure it wasn't some kind of weird alcohol-free kind. Nope.
"It's a special occasion," he said with a smile, and I knew he'd gotten the same vibe that I had, that this was the end of something. "Besides, how can I live out the Rubaiyat if I don't have all the accoutrements?"
"Of course. Your uber-romantic date would be based on a poem." I could already see him getting into quotation mode. He cleared his throat to speak.
"Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse-and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness-
And Wilderness is paradise enow."
I tsked. "You've got the bread, wine, and me…but no bough. And hardly the wilderness."
"It's the urban jungle," he argued.
"And no book of verse," I continued, liking my contrary role. Then I reconsidered. "Although, I did finish All Fools Night ."
Seth's expression immediately grew serious. "And?"
"You already know. It was beautiful."
"No, I don't. It's a mystery every time-no pun intended. The words come out, but in the end…" He shrugged. "You never know how they'll be received, what people will think. I'm always kind of surprised."
"What did the opening quote mean? The Kate Bush lyrics about making a deal with God?"
"You should hear the cover of that song that Placebo did. It'll blow you away." Seth gave me a knowing look. "You think there's some hidden meaning?"
"There's always a hidden meaning. You added it in after you met me, didn't you?"
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