Claim the Night

by Rachel Lee

  And more aware of the seriousness of the threat she posed to him.

  Terri spoke. “Do all vampires hate themselves?”

  The question took him aback. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, I’ve heard how you talk about yourself. And then Creed said he didn’t want his granddaughter to live your kind of life. So I wondered.”

  “No, we don’t all hate ourselves. I’m not even sure hate is a good word. I think some of us despise what we could be. What we have been. But some of us, many of us, don’t have any more qualms about following our natures than your kind do about eating meat.”

  He expected her to express horror or revulsion in some way, but she didn’t. She sat there quietly thinking. He was beginning to understand that Terri thinking could be a problem in the making. For him, mostly.

  So he waited, battling primal urges to finish what he’d started when he drank from her, urges to pull her into a dark alley and just have sex with her, and while he was at it to savor another half-pint of that champagne she called her blood.

  Oh, he was definitely in danger of losing it. Of becoming what he most resisted and disliked.

  “Is the way you’ve chosen to live so terribly hard for you?”

  That was a question he’d have preferred not to answer, because he didn’t want her to feel disgust for him. And yet, pushing her away might prove to be his saving grace. Whatever he wanted from her, most especially because he wanted it from her, the best thing would be for her to walk away. Now.

  So he decided to answer as best he could, as truthfully as he could, even though his experience had no exact human parallel.

  “I told you I’m a predator,” he said.

  “Yes.”

  “I meant it. That’s what I am. Every instinct I have tells me to prey on you and other humans. And when I say you cannot possibly imagine how strong those urges are, I speak as one who was once human, once heir to all the weaknesses and desires of humankind. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, in your experience that even comes close to the urges I feel. I have a biological imperative, Terri, and it’s to kill your kind.”

  She took that in silence. He waited for her to demand that he take her home, drop her on a street corner, get away from her. But the demands never came.

  Finally she murmured, “But you fight it. That must be hard.”

  “Harder than you can imagine. Have you seen a tiger or a lion in the zoo?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, imagine that I’m that lion or tiger, locked in a cage of my own making, fighting my nature all the time.”

  “Oh, Jude.” He thought her voice cracked. Then, “Letting you drink from me made it harder, didn’t it?”

  “More than you can know. I should never have done it.”

  “But why? Am I different from other people?”

  “For me you are.”

  “In what way?”

  He didn’t want to answer this. He feared the truth. He didn’t like to think why, but since Terri appeared in his life, that truth had been gnawing at the corners of his brain like a hungry rat.

  “Not now,” he said finally. “Not now.”

  He sensed her resistance to the put-off, but at last she settled back in her seat. He was about to pull away from the curb and continue the few remaining blocks to the warehouse district when his phone rang. He pulled it out and looked at it.

  “Garner,” he told her.

  “Hey, man,” Garner’s voice said into his ear. “We’re leaving the hospital now.”

  “Did you identify the scent?”

  “Sort of. Jude?”

  “Yeah?”

  “This is a big one. Really big. Bigger than what we were hunting before.”

  “Great.” He closed his eyes, wondering what level of the pantheon had found its way into this world again. “Anything else?”

  “Yeah. You’re not gonna like this, man.”

  “Just get to the point, Garner. I would absolutely love it if you would just get to the point.”

  “Sheesh, take it easy. Just don’t blow up when I tell you.”

  “Tell me, for the love of heaven!”

  “I smelled it before.”

  “When?” Jude closed his eyes, wondering how it was that Garner managed to be difficult no matter what he did or how he did it. The kid had an absolute genius for making everything more troublesome.

  “Terri,” Garner said. Jude could almost hear him wincing as he spoke.

  “What about her, Garner? Will you just spit it out?”

  “I, um, smelled it around her that night you saved her. So faint I didn’t really pay attention.”

  “Well, that’s hardly surprising if she confronted the same thugs.”

  “Right. Except…well…”

  “Garner.” Jude’s voice held a note of threat.

  “I smelled a whiff of it again tonight in your office.”

  Jude froze. He didn’t speak a word, just sat staring into the night beyond the windshield. Finally, “On her? In her? Around her?”

  “You want my opinion?”

  “Damn it, I’m asking, aren’t I?”

  “It wasn’t very strong. She’s not infested. But if I smelled it again, then my guess would be something is following her.”

  Jude closed his eyes a moment. “Okay,” he said. “We’re almost to the warehouse district now. We’ll wait for you there.”

  He snapped his phone closed, shoved it into his pocket, then gripped the steering wheel with both hands. His mind raced at a thousand miles an hour, trying to assemble pieces into some sort of idea or plan of action.

  “Jude?” Terri’s voice reached him. “What’s going on.”

  His neck felt stiff as he turned to look at her. Not this woman, he thought. No matter what it took, they weren’t going to get this woman, even briefly.

  “Trouble,” he said finally.

  “What kind? Don’t we already have enough trouble?”

  He could tell she was trying to sound humorous. He didn’t even bother to try to respond in kind. The question was how much to tell her and how to protect her.

  And then he realized the most dangerous thing he could do was pull the punches. She had to know, she had to be aware. In a matter such as this, ignorance could be the most dangerous state of all.

  “You remember I mentioned something about those thugs who accosted you smelling unnatural?”

  She nodded. Even with as little light as there was, he could see her eyes widen.

  “That same smell is on Creed’s granddaughter.”

  “Garner smelled it?”

  “Definitely. But there’s more. Terri, I’m…sorry.”

  Her eyes grew even bigger, and he watched her draw one of those deep breaths that called almost primally to him, but as strong as his urges were, right now he found them easy to tamp because Terri was in danger.

  Her voice sounded thin. “Just tell me, Jude. Please.”

  “Garner smelled it around you again tonight.”

  She sucked such a sharp breath it sounded deafening to him, although a human would find it quiet. “Is it… Am I…?”

  He shook his head swiftly. “No. But that may be what’s been following you.”

  “Oh. My. God.”

  She wrapped her arms around herself and squeezed her eyes shut. “It wants me?” The question was barely above a whisper.

  “I don’t know. Damn it, Terri, I don’t know. But right now I’m thinking about taking you back to my place, away from the danger down here. I can’t expose you.”

  “I’m already exposed!” Her eyes opened and they were filled with horror. “Jude, for the love of heaven, I tol
d you I felt I was being watched. Followed. What does it matter where I am? You said I might be some kind of doorway. Or that I might have been marked somehow. But hiding me away is hardly going to deal with it, is it now?”

  “The thing is,” he argued back, “we don’t know what we’re dealing with here. Garner thinks it’s more powerful than the demons I usually deal with. It’s something we’ve never fought before.”

  “Then I guess we’re going to have to learn how.”

  “No, you need to stay safely away.”

  “I think it’s pretty obvious right now that I can’t stay away!” Then her chin trembled and she whispered, “Oh, Jude…”

  He might be a vampire, but that didn’t mean he was impervious to a woman’s distress. It didn’t mean he was incapable of caring. Quite the contrary. He never bothered with seat belts, so he had only to release Terri’s before he wrapped his arms around her, trying to surround her in a strength no human could imagine, a strength he had ever to be on guard not to use carelessly.

  She curled into him in a way that tore at whatever heart a vampire had. Plenty of heart it seemed to him in those moments, as he felt the absolute rush of being turned to for protection, rather than away from.

  God, the feeling could go to his head.

  “Okay,” he murmured. “Okay. We’ll deal with this together. Garner can help at least some. And Creed. You’re not alone, Terri. You’re not alone.”

  Her fingers clutched at his leather coat. “Sorry,” she whispered. “Sorry. It’s just I’m remembering, and it’s scary.”

  “That’s all right. It is scary.” To him perhaps most of all, because he knew what these things were capable of, and it was a helluva lot more than voices and a few scratches.

  He felt a shudder ripple through her, and for once it didn’t raise the predatory instincts he so loathed. No, it raised protective ones, stronger than he’d ever felt before.

  He guessed he had something to thank a demon for. The thought was bitter, and made his mouth taste like bile, but he couldn’t regret that overpowering urge to protect this woman.

  He could have stayed there holding her indefinitely, but the night was waning in the way of nights, and he needed to meet Garner and Creed probably within a few minutes.

  Reluctantly he eased his hold on Terri. With what appeared to be equal reluctance, she pulled back and sat straight in her seat, staring into the darkness. “What should I do?” she asked, sounding surprisingly calm.

  “I’d suggest some holy water.” He stuffed his hand in his pocket and brought out the spray bottle. “May I?”

  “Go ahead.” She closed her eyes while he misted her everywhere he could. “Chloe’s right,” she said.

  “About what?”

  “You’re going to have to train us all.”

  He didn’t want to agree. He’d spent countless years keeping his assistants away from this kind of thing. Doing his level best to face the threat with other trained exorcists, like Father Dan. But now…

  “I guess I am,” he said harshly, then hit the accelerator harder than necessary, peeling them away from the curb with burning rubber, heading to the warehouse district.

  He went straight for the place where Creed’s granddaughter had been attacked. Not five minutes passed before Creed and Garner joined them. They climbed out of their vehicles and stood on the empty dark street while Garner walked around, his head lifted, sensing the night.

  “It was here,” he said finally. “But it’s gone now.”

  “Any idea what direction?” Jude asked.

  “We can drive around a bit, but I don’t get a sense that it headed one way or another.”

  Jude frowned. “I’ve heard of such things.”

  Creed turned to him. “What have you heard?”

  Jude shook his head. “This is hard to explain. Let’s go back to my office.”

  Creed protested. “We haven’t finished looking.”

  “For tonight we have. If Garner can’t say which direction it went, then we need to do some research. We’re dealing with the extraordinary here, Creed. Believe me. And I need to study and prepare.”

  Creed swore and turned, driving his fist into a brick wall. Terri gasped as brick crumbled. Creed didn’t look as if the punch had even caused him a twinge.

  No one said anything. Jude didn’t even want to try. He could imagine Creed’s frustration and fury. Hell, he’d felt a form of it himself when Garner said he had smelled this thing around Terri.

  Finally he gripped Creed’s elbow. “Not tonight, Creed. I’ll explain later, but I need to get Terri out of here.”

  “I agree, man,” Garner commented. “This place has bad mojo for her.”

  Creed swore again then stomped back to his car. He paused just long enough to look back at Garner. “Come on,” he said. “And stick your head out the window while we drive.”

  “Why? Do you smell that bad?”

  “No, you do.” Creed shook his head. “Just sense the air, Garner. Keep looking. That’s what you do, isn’t it?”

  Garner muttered something but followed obediently.

  “I think he’s learning,” Jude grumbled. Then he took Terri’s elbow and guided her back to the car.

  She surprised him by wrapping her arm tightly around his and leaning into him.

  Too bad he couldn’t enjoy it. Because it had been centuries since a woman had last done that with him for any reason other than sex.

  Back at the office, Jude glanced at the clock, even though he didn’t really need to. The back of his neck had started prickling, however faintly. A glance at Creed suggested he wasn’t the only one feeling the sun’s approach.

  “Will you explain now?” Creed demanded.

  “As best I can.” Jude had occupied Chloe’s chair, Creed and Garner the couch, and Terri sat in the client chair at the end of Chloe’s desk.

  The thing was, he wasn’t sure just how much he wanted to explain, or even should explain. Ideas had begun to knock around inside his head, ideas he was extremely reluctant to even entertain.

  “Demons need a body to occupy in order to really act in this world. Without one, they’re limited in what they can do. Hence possession. Having a body gives them the means to act here in ways they can’t otherwise, and to do so with basic impunity because regardless of what happens to the body, it won’t harm them. So by taking over a body, they can play their games much more broadly. Ugly games, usually, since they’re nasty energies. Evil energies.”

  He looked around, making sure everyone had followed so far. Well, of course they had. There wasn’t a stupid person in this group. Naive, maybe, but not stupid.

  “Anyway,” he went on, “for most demons, possessing a body is extremely difficult. So difficult that once they latch on to one, they’re utterly reluctant to let go of it. That’s the only reason possession is relatively rare. It isn’t easy.”

  Terri spoke. “Why is it so hard?”

  “Because, in order to take full possession, a demon has to find a willing, capable host. There doesn’t necessarily have to be a conscious invitation, sometimes one is gained by trickery, or through a doorway of some kind that exists, but the demon must find access. And the host must offer something that the demon wants or needs, in terms of position, power, inclinations… Something that makes the host useful as more than a vehicle or there’s simply no point in battling to take possession.”

  He knew these were difficult things to wrap the mind around—gateways, invitations, capabilities—but he received a chorus of nods. He was sure once they’d thought about it, they’d have questions. Hell, he still had questions.

  “I don’t claim to know everything,” he continued. “The majority of demons I’ve encountered are fairly petty in their wants. They want th
e power of controlling a human body, they want to make mischief, they feed off pain. Their goals and desires seem to be immediate and short-term, which considering that they can burn out a human body pretty fast is probably the only reason most of them try to possess humans. Demonology 101, if you get me.”

  More nods. Okay. He hesitated, seeking words.

  “These are the demons I’m familiar with. Once they occupy a body they’re pretty much stuck there until they get cast out, the host dies, or the demon finds a way to take another body. Which, as I said, isn’t easy. But I’ve heard there is another kind.”

  At that he certainly claimed their full attention. Even Creed leaned forward to listen intently.

  “I’ve heard,” Jude said carefully, “that there are demons with longer-range goals. These demons are supposedly more powerful, capable of transitory possession rather than the more permanent kind we see with lesser demons. Able to flit more easily between hosts. Like those thugs we’re looking for. They’d be easy targets for a demon of that kind because they’re obviously already twisted in some way which makes them amenable to temporary possession.”

  Garner leaned forward. “So you’re saying this demon or demons could occupy those guys and then go as soon as the dirty work is done?”

  Jude nodded. “I’ve heard of it, but never quite believed it. It’s usually so hard for a demon to occupy a body that once they get one they don’t let go willingly.”

  “But this is different,” Terri said. She looked pale.

  “That’s how it looks to me. So I need to do some research. Get Chloe to work on it today. By tonight I should know at least something about how to attack this.” He leaned back, feeling irritated by a bunch of things, not the least his concerns for Terri and Creed. “The hard part will be finding it. Garner, I don’t care how tired you are, today I need you to go hunting.”

  “I will.” Garner seemed to stiffen with resolve. “If it’s anywhere out there, I’ll find it.”

  “Do you still smell it around Terri?”