by Jenna Black
“He’s not a specimen!” I snapped. “He’s a human being. And don’t give me any bullshit about how he’s not human because you demons have been mucking with his DNA.”
Raphael held up his hands in a gesture of innocence. “I wasn’t going to. What we call him doesn’t matter. What does matter is that the Houston project was successful enough that they want to spread his genes in the human population.”
“Are you sure that’s what it means?” Brian asked, startling us all, I think.
“What do you mean?” I asked, turning to face him. “I’m just wondering. . They’re keeping their human subjects captive in or around the facility somewhere. Even if they’re keeping them in the most inhumane conditions, they’d need a lot of room to have a viable breeding population. Maybe now that they’ve had some success, they need to introduce a little more genetic diversity.”
Raphael was nodding. “You could be right. We definitely had trouble with that at The Healing Circle. We tried to manipulate the DNA as much as possible to counter the effects of inbreeding, but it got progressively harder with each new generation.”
My lip curled with distaste. “So what you mean is they’re sending out Tommy to act as a stud, and most likely if any of those women get pregnant, they’re going to suddenly disappear, never to be heard of again.” Bad enough that the demons were raising humans as lab rats. At least those humans wouldn’t know any better. But to snatch some unsuspecting pregnant chick and stick her in some kind of sick breeding facility. . I shuddered and gave Raphael another glare of disgust. His lips thinned, but he had no answer for my accusation.
“So what about the cancer?” I asked. “Why does Tommy want girls with cancer in their families?”
“I don’t know,” Raphael answered, “but I can take a guess. It may be that they’re trying to harness and accelerate the rapid cell division that comes with cancer. If they can make the cells divide at super speed, then maybe they can heal faster.” He shrugged. “It’s sort of what we do when we heal our hosts now, only we’re limited by what the human body is capable of.”
I shook my head. “Remember when you were trying to tell me how breeding these hardier hosts was actually to those hosts’ benefit?”
Raphael squirmed a bit and didn’t look at me. “I could be wrong. I’m just guessing what the significance of the cancer is.”
“Doesn’t matter! There’s no way it’s good for anyone to have their chances of getting cancer genetically increased. We are so exorcizing that damn demon.” I no longer cared if it was illegal. If it was the last thing I did, I was sending that creature back to the Demon Realm. It sure would be nice if I could just kill it, but much as I disapproved of Tommy’s life choices, I wasn’t ruthless enough to burn him to death to kill the demon.
Adam shook his head. “No, we are not.”
I shot to my feet, an indignant response on my lips. Brian, who was sitting next to me on the couch, grabbed my arm and hauled me back down. I was so surprised I just sat there and stared at him.
“I doubt jumping up and down and yelling is going to be very effective,” Brian said reasonably, though far be it from me to be reasonable when my dander was up.
I wasn’t sure who I was most pissed at right now, Brian or Adam. I chose Adam. I stayed in my seat as I prepared to ream him out, but he beat me to the punch.
“If Tommy suddenly shows up sans demon, who do you think is going to be the prime suspect?” he asked, sounding as reasonable as Brian.
I clenched my teeth. I already knew that, had already made the same argument to Claudia. But, damn it, I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing! I had to stop that demon from making any number of women into broodmares with cancer-riddled children. And I had to stop his buddies from hurting Claudia’s daughters.
My heart pounded with my fury, and my nails dug into my palms as I tried to think of an argument that would convince Adam and company that it was okay to perform an illegal exorcism. After we gently convinced Tommy’s demon to tell us where the children were, that is.
“So maybe he shouldn’t show up sans demon,” Raphael said, and we all turned to him. His expression was studiously neutral, but I thought I detected a hint of excitement in him.
“Explain,” Adam urged.
But I was pretty sure I knew what Raphael was about to say, and it was hard to hear him over the sudden pounding of my heart.
“I agreed to move out of Andrew if I felt safe enough to do it and if we could find me another host. I believe Lugh and I have reached a formal peace, and that Morgan wouldn’t kill my host just to send me back to the Demon Realm. It therefore occurs to me that Tommy could fulfill the latter requirement for me. After all, considering his rather extreme prejudices, I expect he is not faring well with his current demon and is unlikely to be intact after an exorcism.”
No one said anything. I don’t know about the rest of them, but my mind was yammering at me nonstop. I could save my brother and save Tommy’s herd of broodmares all in one fell swoop. All I had to do was give up a God’s Wrath fanatic who would cheerfully burn me at the stake if he had a chance.
Brian put a comforting hand on my back, and, despite my audience, I leaned into the touch. There were so many problems I could solve just by letting Raphael take Tommy. And yet my conscience balked at it. I wanted to scream in frustration and confusion. Then Adam went and made things worse.
“There is another demon we’ve been hoping to find a host for,” he said, and I couldn’t suppress my groan.
My head felt too heavy to hold up, so I lowered it into my hands. This wasn’t fair! Sure I was a control freak, but it was only my life I wanted to control. I didn’t want to have to make life or death decisions for Andrew, or Tommy, or Dominic. And yet even with my head buried in my hands, I felt the weight of everyone’s expectations.
I don’t know whether it was merely because I was hosting Lugh, or whether it was because I was so naturally bossy, but somehow all three of these strong, decisive, confident men had handed the reins of leadership to me. How was I supposed to make a decision like this? Lugh? I pleaded. A little guidance, maybe? Of course, I didn’t hear a peep out of him. Either he, too, considered this my decision to make, or my subconscious had once again shored up my defenses.
“I seem to have missed a memo,” Raphael said, interrupting my pity party. “Who is the other demon in need of a host?”
I’d forgotten Raphael wouldn’t know about Lugh’s decision to summon Saul to the Mortal Plain. Luckily, Adam saved me the discomfort of having to explain.
“Ah,” Raphael said when he was finished. “So my brother would have both me and Saul serving on his council. Well, it certainly won’t be boring.” He answered my question before I even opened my mouth to ask it. “Let’s just say that Saul and I don’t get along and leave it at that, shall we?” Adam made a sound between a cough and a choke, and Raphael gave him a quelling look. “And because of your attachment to Dominic, you don’t wish Saul to return to him. Is that the situation?”
“Yes.”
I heard the edge in Adam’s voice, so I forced myself to sit up straight and get ready to intervene should things get ugly.
“I would have expected you of all people to put your duty above your own personal desires,” Raphael said to Adam.
I laughed. I couldn’t help it, though the laughter took on an edge of hysteria. Both Adam and Raphael glared at me. Brian, my rock, simply rubbed my back in silent support. I bit my tongue to stave off the hysteria.
“Sorry,” I said. “But you’ve gotta admit, Raphael pontificating about duty and self-sacrifice is pretty damn funny.”
Adam made a snorting sound that might have been agreement, laughter, or a burp. Raphael stuck with the death glare. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t funny to him.
“It’s not Adam’s decision anyway,” I said, meeting Raphael’s glare. “It’s Dominic’s.”
“So you would prefer to summon Saul into Tommy, when he already has a demonstrably co
mpatible host available to him, and leave me in your brother? And here I thought you cared.”
I was about to snarl at him, but Brian startled me into silence.
“Aren’t we getting ahead of ourselves?” he asked. “Perhaps we should worry about what to do with Tommy after his demon’s been exorcized—and after we’ve figured out what to do about the children.”
Ouch. I guess I shouldn’t lecture Raphael about being self-centered after all.
Adam visibly relaxed, stepping away from the edge of battle. After a moment, Raphael did the same, and some of the weight lifted off my chest. The issue wasn’t going away, and I felt sure I would have to face it again soon. But “soon” was better than “now.”
I looked at Adam. “May I assume you agree that we’re better off handling this off the books?”
He waved a hand dismissively. “Of course.”
“And may I also assume that you’re not going to argue we need to sacrifice those kids for the greater good?”
“I don’t think the ‘greater good’ is at issue. You, of course, will stay far away from Tommy and his pals so Lugh isn’t at risk. I’ll see what I can do about finding the kids.”
I swallowed the protest that tried to crawl out of my mouth. If Adam thought I’d sit idly by and let him take care of everything, then he didn’t know me very well.
He smiled at me suddenly, his eyes glowing with a spark that had nothing to do with his demon. “I know I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. You really need to work on your poker face. You leave me with no choice but to make an executive decision. You’re going to stay here while I go have a talk with Tommy, see if I can find out where he and his friends are holding the children.”
Damn it, damn it, damn it! When was I going to learn how to control my facial expressions? I began sliding my hand to the side, though I figured the chances of me getting to my Taser, arming it, pointing it, and shooting before someone stopped me were approximately zero.
I was right. Brian grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze. He made it look like it was just a gesture of support, but I knew he’d read me as easily as Adam had. I glanced at Raphael, wondering if there was any chance I could convince him to take my side, but that was a stupid idea. Raphael would never agree to let Lugh take any “unnecessary” risks.
I jerked my hand from Brian’s and crossed my arms over my chest. “Fine!” I said, sounding sulky even to my own ears. “I’ll sit on my ass while you go out and play hero.” Adam gave me a knowing look, and I gritted my teeth. “Don’t look at me like that. I got the point. You’re going to lock me up.”
Beside me, I felt Brian start. There was a lot he didn’t know about the water under Adam’s and my bridge. I supposed I should fill him in on some of it someday. But not now.
Raphael rubbed his hands together. “So Adam is going to play policeman, Morgan’s going to twiddle her thumbs, and I presume Brian’s going to resume his usual daily activities. Do I have an assignment, or may I follow Brian’s lead?”
Instinct told me there was something off about Raphael’s voice, but I just didn’t have the energy to think about it right now. “I doubt you want to hear the instructions I have for you,” I muttered, loud enough for everyone to hear. Raphael didn’t seem to find it as funny as the others did.
Our impromptu council meeting broke up after that. Brian had been a bit startled when he discovered Adam planned to lock me up, but instead of arguing for clemency, he offered to keep me company. I imagined it would have been fun, but I was way too surly to be in the mood for fun.
“You’ll keep her safe?” Brian inquired of Adam, which, naturally, pissed me off.
“I’ll keep my own damn self safe!”
Adam shook his head at Brian. “I can’t imagine how you could actually want to be in her presence.” Lucky for him he’d been smart enough to confiscate my Taser already.
I could have hoped that Brian would take offense that Adam was insulting me, but he just shrugged. “I can see behind the prickly exterior,” he said, then ignored Adam and fixed me with a pointed look. “Call me if there’s any news, or if there’s anything I can do to help.”
I agreed, and Brian, visibly reluctant, left.
The room Adam locked me in was right next door to the Dreaded Black Room. The door was closed when Adam led me by, and I wondered if Dominic was in there. I was too pissed off that Adam saw through me so well to ask, however. And so by lunchtime, on a day when my instincts screamed at me to act, to fight, to move, I found myself a prisoner in a comfortable little guest room with convenient iron grillwork covering the windows. Yup, another peachy day in the life of Morgan Kingsley, exorcist.
CHAPTER 22
I paced the “guest room” for about an hour. Probably I should have been taking advantage of this period of forced inactivity to catch a few Zs, but I didn’t think I’d have much luck falling asleep. I was starting to get hungry, my stomach protesting my failure to eat either breakfast or lunch, when I heard footsteps in the hallway. I smelled food, and my stomach immediately let out a howl that would have been embarrassing if I thought anyone could hear it. I guessed that meant my visitor would be Dominic, not Adam, and I had a momentary urge to rush the door and see if I could escape in a moment of confusion. But for all I knew, Adam was sitting downstairs, and I’d get my ass handed to me if I tried anything.
The first thing I saw when the door opened was Dominic’s back, because his hands were full and he was using his butt to hold the door. When he turned toward me and let the door go, his head was bowed, and I thought at first he was keeping an eye on the bowl of soup that rested on the tray he carried. But then he turned to put the tray on a desk, and a beam of light illuminated the side of his face.
I gasped when I saw his ostentatiously black eye. His Adam’s apple bobbed, and he let out a sigh as he turned to face me. He crossed his arms over his chest, and his body language screamed that he wanted to be left alone. I doubt he was surprised I ignored it.
“How’d you get the shiner?” I asked, though I knew from his discomfort who must have given it to him.
He grimaced. “Adam. And no, he didn’t do it on purpose, so quit looking at me like I’m some battered woman.”
I tried to picture Adam hauling back and punching Dominic, and I just couldn’t do it. I realized with a little start that despite Adam’s aggressive and overbearing personality, I’d never once seen him and Dominic fight. Oh, they grumbled at each other occasionally, but even then it was with such affection it was obvious they didn’t mean it. And it wasn’t because Dominic was a doormat, either. He stood up to Adam in situations that would have had me running for the hills.
Come to think of it—and this was a really scary thought—theirs was probably the healthiest romantic relationship I’d ever seen.
Dominic’s shoulders were tight with tension, and his jaw worked like he was grinding his teeth. Everything about him screamed defensiveness, and I realized he was braced for an argument. I let go of my own tension and flashed him a rueful smile.
“Relax, Dom. I believe you.” He blinked in surprise, but with my stomach reminding me once again that I was hungry and that there was food nearby, I decided questioning Dominic could wait, so I took a seat at the desk and dug into the bowl of soup. I let out a moan of sensual pleasure when I tasted it. I’d never been a huge fan of minestrone, but I now saw the error of my ways.
Dominic got that pleased look he always gets when someone compliments his cooking, then took a seat on the recliner and waited in silence for me to finish eating. It didn’t take long.
“Would it be terribly uncouth of me to lick the bowl?” I asked, wanting to see his smile. I got my wish.
“You don’t need to go to such drastic measures. Seconds are available.”
I patted my full tummy. “I’d love to spend the rest of the afternoon stuffing my face, but I’ve got to watch my girlish figure.” That won me another smile.
Dominic reached for the tr
ay, but though I’d have liked to let him leave on a high note, I just didn’t have it in me.
“So, are you going to tell me what happened between you and Adam?” I prodded.
The smile faded and his shoulders drooped. If I read the look on his face correctly, he was seriously contemplating leaving without answering me. I’m not sure I would have blamed him if he did, but he’s not as likely as I am to run from conflict. He set the tray back down and returned to the recliner.
“He told me everything,” Dominic said. “About Saul, and about what he does at The Seven Deadlies.”
I winced. There was such a thing as too much honesty. I wished Adam had kept the last part to himself, at least until we’d gotten Saul another host—however we were going to manage that.
“Did you decide anything?” I asked, then practically held my breath as I awaited the answer.
He nodded. “A number of things, actually.” He started counting off on his fingers. “One, that Adam’s a prick.”
I couldn’t help a snort of laughter. I would have felt bad about that if the corner of Dom’s mouth hadn’t twitched upward ever so slightly.
“Two, that he’s an insecure prick. And three, that I’m a mean little bastard for not immediately reassuring him that I don’t want to host Saul again.”
For reasons I didn’t want to examine, I rose from my chair and gave Dominic a quick, awkward hug. “I’ll agree with your assessment of Adam, but if you’re a mean little bastard, then I’m Miss Sunshine-and-Roses.”
He laughed and visibly relaxed. “Thanks for the vote of confidence. But I really was pretty mean to Adam earlier. I wish he’d had enough faith in me to tell me about The Seven Deadlies from the start, but I understand why he didn’t.”
“And have you told him yet that you’re not going to take Saul back?”
He shook his head. “I was too busy brooding, and now he’s gone off to talk to a hostile demon who inhabits a superhost who may have abilities of which we are not aware. I feel like shit.”
