by AE Jones
I trudged down the hall, punched the elevator button, and waited. Sunshine, puppy dogs, ice cream… Nope, happy thoughts were not working right now. It didn’t help that the building’s elevator was the slowest on the planet. Just as I thought about using the stairwell, the elevator dinged and the doors slid open.
I came face to face with Nicholas.
“I hope you weren’t going somewhere, Kyle? You summoned me here. You need to explain why.”
“You son of a bitch.” I hauled back and punched him, hard. My knuckles slammed into his mouth. I stopped myself from gasping as pain shot through my fist and up my arm.
Nicholas didn’t even flinch. “You’re going to want to ice that.”
I’d hit him with enough force to split his lip, but nothing. No blood, no death? Dang. I would table that thought for later.
I marched into the elevator and let the doors close. Then I hit the stop button and turned to face him. No one would be interrupting us before he told me the truth.
“You’ve known all along!”
Nicholas shook his head. “I am not all-knowing, Kyle.”
“Don’t give me that cryptic bullshit. You know what I am.”
“I know you’re part human and part demon, yes.”
“You told my mother to run and hide right after I was born.”
He looked away for a moment. “I simply suggested she find another place to live. Since she’d just been attacked by a demon, I didn’t have to say much to convince your mother to disappear.”
“How did you know about me? Misha and Jean Luc had no idea I’m part demon. That wouldn’t have been part of their reports to you.”
“I have my sources.”
I clenched my fist again, even though pain radiated through my fingers. “What fucking sources?”
He glared at me. “There are things I can’t tell you, Kyle. There would be serious repercussions.”
My phone rang, and I ignored it. “You sent Misha and Jean Luc to protect my mother. Misha told me they moved there a few weeks before I was born.”
“I would say it was a lucky coincidence.”
“And what about offering me a job? Was that a lucky coincidence?”
“That one is on you. You were trying to use your powers to cheat in Vegas. My team there identified you as an issue. I thought it appropriate to pair you with Jean Luc and Misha, since they had been instrumental in bringing you into the world. So I brought you into the fold, so to speak.”
“And I drank the cool-aid, right, Reverend Jones?”
Nicholas smirked. “Overly dramatic reference aside, you can’t tell me that working for the BSR hasn’t been the best thing for you then and now. You’ve used your powers to help people and protect supernaturals.”
“And last year, when you had Matthew watching out for me, was that because of your mysterious sources?”
Nicholas nodded. “Yes. I was told you were in danger, so I hired Matthew.”
Misha’s muffled voice permeated the elevator. “Open the door, Kyle!”
The fight drained out of me. “Why didn’t you just tell me what I was from the beginning?”
“Because it was something you had to learn on your own, Kyle. I know you don’t believe me, but there are things I can’t tell you.”
I turned away from him and hit the button. The doors opened to a frazzled Misha and frowning Jean Luc.
“Don’t worry, guys. I didn’t kill him.” I stormed past them into the reception area where Jason, Dalton, and Talia had congregated.
“Are you okay?” Dalton asked.
“Peachy. Still as confused as ever. But that’s my constant state of being. You would think I’d be used to it by now.”
I walked into the office, and the three of them followed closely behind me. No one said anything. I sat at the table and reached for the small wooden box to run my fingers over the markings. If only we had never found this damn thing and Dalton hadn’t touched it.
Low voices came from the reception area. Nicholas was still here talking to Misha and Jean Luc. He needed to go away quickly or I would be unable to resist testing my decapitation theory on him. Jean Luc probably had a sword tucked away in his office.
My bloodthirsty thoughts stopped when the office door opened. “What the…” The box in my hand vibrated and then started to glow.
Nicholas blanched at the sight of the glowing box.
I stood. “Holy Guacamole, Batman. We’ve got an angel in the house.”
Nicholas shook his head. “I’m not an angel.”
I held the receptacle toward him, and the symbols glowed even brighter. “Are you telling me this is lying?”
He closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them he sighed. “I was an angel.”
“Was an angel?” I squeaked. “Are you fallen? As in Lucifer?”
Nicholas’ jaw muscle rippled. “No, I’m not Lucifer.”
“Then what the hell are you?”
“It’s not so black and white, unfortunately. Yes, some angels fell because they were evil.”
“And you?” Jean Luc asked.
“I was the angel of prophecy. God bestowed upon me one of his greatest gifts.”
Misha stood in front of the door, as if to block Nicholas’s exit, and crossed his arms. “How did you end up on earth?”
Nicholas kept looking at me. “Sometimes the greatest gifts also come with the largest burden. I saw what was going to happen to the world…”
I finished his sentence. “And you weren’t allowed to warn anyone.”
“Yes. When I disobeyed the order, I was reprimanded.”
“Your wings were clipped. Seems like a crappy thing to do.”
“Kyle!” Talia scolded.
“What? He tries to stop something bad from happening, and he’s booted out of heaven?”
“There is a reason for rules, Kyle.”
“So now you are what?” Dalton asked.
“I am a being who spends his time on earth trying to help.”
I put the box down. “And the sources you mentioned earlier that have warned you about bad things. Those are actually your visions?”
Nicholas lowered his voice. “My prophetic powers were stripped from me, but sometimes I have residual flashes. I flashed on your mother before you were born.”
I grabbed the picture of the tablet and thrust it at him. “Are you telling me you could have helped us translate this tablet and the Key prophecy all along?”
“No. I can’t translate it.”
“Bull.” I dropped the photo onto the table.
“I’m not an angel anymore, Kyle. The holy languages are not available to me. And that tablet was written after I left heaven.”
Good grief. How long had he been exiled here? “What is the point of you being on earth? You get to live here forever and watch us destroy ourselves?”
His eyes tightened. “I think I’ve done some good in my time here. But there’s a limit to what I can get away with, Kyle. I’m not supposed to have these powers anymore. At some point I’ll step over the line and be reprimanded again.”
“They threw you out of heaven, what’s left?” I asked.
Nicholas grimaced. “That’s not something I want to test. I know I don’t have the right to ask this of you all, but if you would consider keeping this revelation to yourselves, I would be grateful.”
The room went silent, and then heads nodded in agreement. Except mine. “I have to tell Doc.”
“That’s fine, Kyle.” And then he left.
I walked after him, and Jean Luc grabbed my arm.
“It’s okay, Jean Luc. I won’t try to hurt him.”
He stared into my eyes for a moment and then let me go. I ran out of the office and reached Nicholas while he was still waiting for the slowest damn elevator on the planet to arrive.
“I have to know something, Nicholas.” I glanced over my shoulder to make sure no one had followed me. I lowered my voice just in case. “Could you have h
elped Dalton last year?”
“No. I didn’t see what was going to happen to him. The Key did not exist when I was in heaven. And I did not have the power to make him better. Only you could do that.”
“Why were you so damn adamant that he needed to forget?”
He paused for a moment. “Because I truly believed it was the only way to save him. I also hoped that the search for the Key would stop after Sebastian died. If Joe’s memories of the Key were gone, then the Key would be gone, too.”
I couldn’t fault his logic. I bobbed my head in agreement as he stepped onto the elevator.
Even though he’d revealed a lot today, I still didn’t trust him enough to tell him the truth about the Key.
Chapter 37
I walked back into the office to find everyone talking at once and huddled together as if they’d just finished high-fiving each other.
“What’s happened?” I asked.
Misha’s eyes sparkled. “Sylvia called. She wants to meet.”
“Thank God. Where?”
“She’s on her way here. Said she wanted to check out our digs to make sure we weren’t torturing people.”
I grinned. “She’s a kooky lady, but if she helps us get the realm demons, then she’s my new best friend.”
Misha laid his hands on my shoulders. “Are you okay, Kyle?”
“Yeah. Hearing Nicholas’s story makes me realize we all have crap to bear.”
“Then you believe him?” Jean Luc asked.
“For once, I do.”
* * *
Misha led Sylvia into the office, and she stopped in the middle of the room, her mouth falling open. “This is your super-secret lair?”
I laughed. “This is our office, yes.”
She puckered her lips like she’d been sucking on lemons. “Even in the seventies this furniture was hideous.”
“I knew I liked you.” I pulled out a chair, and Sylvia sat down. “You remember Misha and Talia. And this is Jean Luc, Jason, and Dalton.”
Sylvia looked at Jean Luc. “You’re a sexy one, vampire.”
Jean Luc’s eyes widened before he recovered. “Merci.”
Next her eyes swiveled to Jason. “You’re interesting. Mostly human, but with a little hint of something on the side.”
Jason smiled. “Nice to meet you, Sylvia.”
Finally, she turned to Dalton, and her eyes widened this time. “Now this is a cop if I’ve ever seen one.”
Dalton nodded. “Thank you for helping us, Sylvia.”
“Yep, talks like a cop, too.”
I decided to steer her back to the reason for her visit. “Sylvia, you have some news for us?”
“Yes. I’ve been digging around and found out that the demon twins you’re looking for have been staying in various abandoned houses. And they’ve been bringing in quite a few new demons lately.” She frowned. “None of them have been filtered through my motel, so I’m not sure how well they’re acclimating.”
“What about the demon from the museum?”
“This is where it gets interesting. He apparently has been seen with the twins.”
“So they’re working together?” Dalton asked.
Sylvia shook her head. “I think the twins are working for him.”
Talia leaned closer. “What makes you say that?”
“Talk from some of the other demons. The demon from the museum appears to be calling the shots. He’s the one who has the twins bringing over these new demons.” Sylvia paused for a moment. “Were you serious about not sending back the demons I’ve helped?”
I looked at Jean Luc and Misha, who both nodded. “If they aren’t causing trouble and want to live peacefully on earth, then I don’t think any of us will be searching them out.”
Sylvia’s gaze traveled over each of us, as if trying to read our sincerity. Hell, maybe our auras told her whether we were being honest or not.
“I brought someone from the realm with me who could help.” She pulled out her phone. “Let me call him up here.”
Five minutes later, a thin young male with blond hair and brown eyes stood fidgeting in the office doorway. Sylvia walked over to him. “It’s all right, Nate. They won’t hurt you.”
He took hesitant steps into the room and sat down next to Sylvia. Nate looked around the room at everyone while introductions were made, and when his gaze rested on me, he gasped. “You do exist!”
I sat back in my chair. “What do you mean?”
“I, ah…I…” He turned to Sylvia, his eyes bugging.
“It’s okay. Tell her.”
“You’re part realm demon.”
“Yes. How did you know that?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it, exactly. When I meet other supernaturals, there’s a feeling I get.” He pointed at Jean Luc. “Vampires feel different to me than demons. I haven’t gotten to meet an actual shifter yet, but I’m looking forward to it.”
Misha said, “That is similar to how our senses work for us here on earth as well, but we do not sense Kyle’s demon side.”
“Can you tell what type of demon I am?”
“No.”
Jean Luc spoke. “Why did you say ‘you do exist’?”
“Because the other demons have been talking about her. About the half-demon.”
“And what have they been saying?” Misha asked.
“They say she’s proof that coming here to earth is meant to be.”
I frowned. “Why?”
Dalton answered. “Because not only can they come to earth to live in a better place, but they can mate with humans and have children.”
Nate nodded. “In the realm there are very few females left. The generations born since our exile are mostly males. Unless we can find compatible females, eventually we’ll cease to exist. There are factions in the realm who declare we must fight and take back our freedom.”
“What do you think?” I asked Nate.
“I think that since I had nothing to do with our clans being exiled, I should be given the chance to prove myself here on earth.”
“Can you tell us about the demons from the realm who are involved in this?”
“There are two brothers who have been helping realm demons cross over.”
“Did they help you come here?” Jean Luc asked.
“Yes. And there is a new demon. He’s trying to organize those of us who have crossed over to join his group.”
“Do you know what his demon side looks like?” Misha asked.
“No. I met him on earth. I’ve only ever seen his human side.”
I laid a picture in front of him, and he traced his finger over the portrait. “That’s him. He goes by Saul. But I doubt that was his name in the realm.”
“We need to locate them. Can you help us?”
“I’ve seen them spending a lot of time in the neighborhood where Sylvia’s motel is, but I’m not sure exactly where they’re staying. But there’s been talk that Saul is trying to schedule a recruitment meeting. It’s supposed to take place some time in the next few days. As soon as I hear the time and place, I’ll let you know.”
God, this sounded like a demon cult. Hadn’t we just dealt with a shifter cult? Could we not catch a break? “And Saul is recruiting demons to prepare for what, exactly?”
“To help bring the demons here to earth.”
Misha frowned. “Isn’t that what he’s doing now?”
Nate sighed. “I’m not explaining this well. Saul is working on a way to open the portal forever. Demons will be able to leave the realm and come to earth all on their own.”
“How many demons are we talking about, Nate?”
“Around ten thousand.”
The room went silent. How the hell could we stop ten thousand demons from coming to earth?
Dalton broke the silence. “What would happen if all the demons came here at once?”
Nate cleared his throat. “There would be anarchy. When I first arrived, it was days before I could
bring my human side out. I didn’t know the language. I had never seen technology. If it hadn’t been for Sylvia, I would have been exposed to the world in no time.”
“Now imagine that times ten thousand,” Sylvia said.
“How did you get to earth, Nate?”
He paused until Sylvia nodded at him. “I promised them money.”
My stomach twisted. I wasn’t going to like this.
His hands clenched into fists on the table top. “I have to pay the brothers fifty thousand dollars.” He closed his eyes. “Sylvia has explained that it will take years for me to do so.”
“And if you don’t?” I asked.
He turned to me, his brown eyes darkening. “Then they will hurt my family in the realm. I had planned to work and bring them all here, but now…” He shrugged. “That is how they are recruiting some of the demons. They’re forgiving their debt if they join the group.”
Jesus. They were creating indentured demon servants.
“Sylvia said you would help me.”
“I want to be honest with you, Nate. If we stop these demons, it might mean your family won’t be able to come to earth.”
“I understand, but I won’t hurt others to help myself.”
I smiled. “Thank you. If I told you Saul’s blood is green, would that clue you into the type of demon he is?”
Sylvia explained for him. “When demons first arrive, they all bleed green. It takes a while for it to turn red.”
“What about glowing white eyes? Does it mean the demon has borrowed another’s powers?”
“Never seen that before,” Sylvia answered.
Nate frowned. “That can’t be.”
“Why not?”
“Because the only demons I know of whose eyes glow white are the portal guards.”
I stopped myself from groaning out loud at his statement.
Sylvia patted the young demon on the arm. “You were great, Nate. Why don’t you wait for me in the car?”
“Can I drive home?” he asked, just like any other teenager with his driver’s temps.
Sylvia smiled at him. “Sure. You need more practice.”
Nate closed the door behind him, and I grinned. “You’re a smart lady, Sylvia.”
She placed her hand on her heart. “Me?”
“You brought a demon realm poster child to represent your cause.”
