Dancing With Demons

by Trudi Jaye

  But the more information I’m discovering, the worse it gets.

  Blade glances at his watch. “Come on. We need to hurry. I talked to the foreman and told him we’re representatives for the local council’s planning committee. He’s expecting us.”

  I take a steadying breath, trying to convince myself everything will be fine. I’ve dealt with worse. I’m ridiculously relieved we’re at least pretending to be at the quarry in some official capacity. No need to sneak around and risk being caught.

  It doesn’t take long to reach the site. It’s loud and intimidating with large machinery thundering in the background as the foreman leads us around. My crutches make it difficult to keep up with the other two.

  “So, Mark, where’s the ore being mined from?” asks Blade, sounding for all the world like an interested council inspector.

  Mark, the foreman, points over to the far side of the quarry. “That’s where it was discovered, like we said on the plans we put into the council.” He’s looking at Blade nervously, like maybe he has something to hide. Is it demons? Or is it something more benign?

  “Then let’s start there. I’m keen to see how that’s working out for you,” says Blade.

  I’m wearing a bright orange safety helmet and a bright yellow safety vest over my clothes and I’m struggling to maneuver over the rough ground with my crutches. Sweat has broken out over my face. Mark leads the way across the front of the quarry, taking a well-worn path to the far end, which turns out to have extra buildings and smaller machinery working near it.

  “This part of the mine needs smaller machinery to excavate the limestone and the ore. There’s a special process to remove the ore from the limestone before it can be sent to the smelter.”

  Blade nods, smiling at Mark like he knows exactly what the other man is talking about. Perhaps he does.

  “Where’s the smelter?” I ask, my voice squeaking slightly.

  “The next valley over. It was just a lucky coincidence we had one so close. It’s all part of the McKenzie Industries family.”

  I stop at the mention of Connor’s company. “This quarry is owned by McKenzie Industries?”

  “Has been for years. The son is in charge now, but his mother was at the helm for a number of years before him.”

  I give Blade a significant look. That’s too much of a coincidence to be accidental.

  5

  Mark shows us around the rest of the ore quarry, but I’ve lost interest. I’m certain the source of the demons is going to be at the smelter in the next valley over.

  “Is it possible to be shown around the smelter today?” asks Blade.

  Mark shakes his head. “Sorry, that’s a bit more complicated because of the health and safety issues of dealing with molten ore. I can arrange for a visit on another day. As long as they have proper notice, it’s fine.”

  “That would be great. When could we arrange it for?” asks Blade in his friendly council-worker voice.

  Mark glances back at Blade. “Just leave your mobile number with me, and I’ll arrange for a time and give you a call.” Mark gestures for us to follow him and leads us back to the front office.

  “Thanks for your time today,” I say, smiling at Mark with my best innocent-council-worker-definitely-not-a-SIG-agent expression.

  “No problem,” he says, returning my smile. “If you ever need any more information, just give me a call.” He hands me his business card, with a hand-written cell phone number on the back.

  “Absolutely.”

  It doesn’t take long for us to get back into the truck. “It must be the smelter,” says Blade as he reverses out the drive. “You didn’t notice any demons here at the quarry, did you?”

  I shake my head. “But the fact that Connor owns this place isn’t a coincidence.”

  “I’ll drive over to the next valley and park near the smelter. We’re not going through the front door on this one.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I’m pretty sure the reason those rules are in place is less because of health and safety and more to hide what they’re really doing.”

  Not long after, I’m shuffling down a rough gravel path at the side of the smelter. I had to leave my crutches in the truck, and my leg is protesting all the rough downhill walking. But I can’t complain to Blade, because I was the one who stupidly begged to be allowed to come with him in the first place.

  The smelter is a large, ordinary looking industrial building with a sloped roof and no windows. It’s set in the side of a hill with a small door near the roof on one side and the main doors two stories below on the other side, facing away from the hillside. Plumes of smoke are pumping out of the two large chimney stacks. We parked on a road cut into the hill above the building, which is how we can see so much. Closer to the smelter, there’s an eight-foot corrugated iron fence with three neat rows of barbed wire above it.

  “How are we going to get in there?” I ask, dreading his reply.

  Blade pulls a long, narrow gadget out of his pocket and flicks a switch. A small but effective-looking blast of heat comes out from the nozzle at the end.

  “A blowtorch?”

  “I’m going to cut a hole in the fence, somewhere at the bottom and not too noticeable.”

  I trail after him down the remaining slope, trying not to slide over and hurt myself even more. Hopefully he knows what he’s doing with the tiny blowtorch.

  There’s very little cover around the outside of the fence, and I’m pretty sure it’s on purpose. “You really think they’re doing something dodgy in here?”

  Blade nods, but instead of replying further, crouches down beside the fence and holds the torch over the metal. A brown-black stain appears immediately, and within seconds, there’s the first side of a large square for us to climb through. It doesn’t take long for him to cut out the whole shape and push out the inside. “Come on,” he says, and steps to the other side.

  My heart pounding, I peer through the hole he’s made. It’s not completely different from going inside the scrap metal yard at the Redwood port, but somehow this feels so much worse. The stakes are higher. I’m not entirely sure what would happen if we got caught, but I don’t think it would involve the police. Not if they’re doing something illegal.

  “Do you think they’re somehow drawing the demons to this place for a reason?” I ask Blade.

  He puts a finger over his lips and motions for me to hurry up. We’re right next to the building now, and the ground is concreted over, so it’s easier for me to walk. I hobble along behind him as he strides toward the small side door.

  Checking left and right, he crouches down next to the door. I follow behind him, feeling like a sidekick to Blade’s superhero. He tries the handle, but it’s locked. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out another device. This one he inserts into the lock and jiggles it around. I hear the click seconds later.

  “If anything happens, you run. Okay? I’ll deal with it. You just run.”

  He’s not expecting me to stay and fight with him. It’s like he knows how scared of the demons I am. I don’t know whether to be pleased or offended, but I nod sharply to show I’ve understood.

  He opens the door slowly and carefully, peering inside for a long moment before waving me in behind him. The heat hits me like a wall, and I have to push my way in through the partially opened door.

  We’re on a metal walkway high in the air. The heat up here is almost visible. Large metal beams hold the roof in place, and below the large space is filled to the brim with smelting machinery and materials. There are all sorts of people moving around—most wearing silver protective gear and faceplates—checking dials and meters, writing on a big board to one side. Large piles of limestone and ore are sitting in corners of the building.

  In the middle of the room, set to one side into a large reinforced wall, is an enormous smelting cauldron about twice the height of the workmen scurrying around it. There are thick metal barriers in place all around it, and it’s f
illed with a fiery hot orange-red liquid.

  But none of these details catch my eye and keep it like the two objects dangling from the ceiling beams. Two enormous cages are hanging from a large chain hoist system, moving gently in the breeze created by rising heat. There are maybe eight or nine glowing blue demons in each cage, their bodies merging into each other until it’s impossible to tell where one ends and the next begins.

  None of the people scurrying about seem to be bothered by the cage filled with demons hanging directly above them. They’re not looking up at them, and they’re certainly not scared. It doesn’t even seem like they can see them.

  “How do they not see that? Does that mean they’re human?” I whisper. One of the cages swings slightly and several of the demons give low-pitched growls that makes the hairs on the back of my neck rise up.

  Blade nods, placing his finger over his lips to indicate silence.

  We tiptoe farther out along the metal walkway. For the first time, I notice guards with sidearms and a couple of men dressed in casual gear who have the short hair and stiff bearing of military men.

  Blade looks back at me and jerks his head toward them, making sure I know we have to be careful, and I nod swiftly. We continue to creep along the walkway, taking in everything we see. The heat is oppressive, and I have to swallow repeatedly just to get saliva in my mouth. I’m in a half crouch, peering through the barrier at the side of the walkway, and trying not to make any sudden movements that someone below might notice.

  Suddenly a ringing sound erupts from my pocket, the unexpected vibrations making me jump. My heart pounds inside my chest and I stare wide-eyed at the people below as I pat at my pocket trying to turn off my phone.

  The ringtone is muffled, and there’s loads of other noise in the smelter that competes for attention, but it’s loud and unexpected enough that one of the two military-looking men looks up. His eyes widen as he sees us, and he shouts to his partner before sprinting toward a set of ladders just below us.

  “Run,” says Blade, pushing me in front of him. I turn and half-hop as fast as I can toward the door, my leg protesting the movement. Blade swears and grabs my arm, almost dragging me out the door. As soon as we stumble outside, he slams it shut.

  “Keep going,” he says as he pulls out his blowtorch, and starts using it to melt the locking mechanism shut.

  I’m breathing fast, and my leg is throbbing, but I don’t dare tell him I can’t run. I stumble along the concrete path, my leg screaming in pain. Footsteps pound behind me, and I turn, thinking the security detail must’ve caught up with me, but it’s just Blade. He takes one look at my face and grabs me roughly, throwing me over his shoulder in a fireman’s lift. I have to hold my glasses on my face with one hand to stop them falling off. He runs along the concrete as if I’m as light as a feather, back to our exit on the fence and throws me through the hole. I land on my sore leg and let out a cry of pain. Blade ignores me and picks up the piece of the fence that he cut through, and pulls it back in place, trying to hide where we entered.

  “Hopefully they won’t notice the hole, and they’ll keep searching for us inside the facility,” he says grimly. “Come on.” He grabs my arm and lifts me easily back into the fireman’s lift, carrying me up the hill we only just went down. I wish I could demand to be put down, but my leg is throbbing so badly, I don’t think I can walk anymore, let alone run.

  When we get to the top, Blade puts me down next to the truck’s passenger side and runs to the driver’s seat. He has the pickup started before I’m even fully in the vehicle.

  Without a word, he speeds off down the road, checking in the rearview mirror, waiting to see if we’re being followed. He turns onto a busy street and gets us lost among the traffic as soon as he can.

  Then, and only then, does he look at me. “You left your mobile phone on?” he asks in a low growl.

  I lift my hands, about to protest my innocence, then drop them back to my lap. “I didn’t think about it. I—”

  “Rule number one. Leave your mobile phone somewhere else, or make sure it’s on fucking silent! You could have gotten us killed back there.” His flashing green eyes are flecked with golden amber, making him look more like his jaguar than I’ve seen in a long time.

  6

  “I…I’ll do better next time,” I say defensively, holding my leg tight to try and ease the pain that’s now pounding violently up and down it.

  “You can’t make mistakes like that. You could have gotten us killed.”

  Something inside me snaps. I glare at Blade. “I’m new to this, all right? I’ve never had to do that sort of thing before. I’ve been a freaking SIG agent all of five minutes. That was my first ever mission, and I made a stupid mistake. So sue me. Stop being an asshole and get us out of here.”

  Blade blinks and glances from me back to the road. He looks again and then narrows his gaze on my face. “Is your leg hurting?” he asks.

  It’s my turn to blink. That wasn’t the reaction I was expecting to my outburst. I let out my breath. “Yeah, it’s hurting pretty badly,” I mutter.

  “I shouldn’t have let you go on reconnaissance with me. I keep forgetting you heal more slowly than jaguars. I’ll get you home, so you can rest up.”

  I shake my head. “There’s too much to do. I need to get back to the lab. I need to make a device for Connor before our date on Thursday.”

  “You’re still going out with him?” asks Blade, his voice a low growl. His hands tighten on the wheel.

  I open my mouth, trying to decide what to say. He can’t know about the agreement I made with Connor regarding the demon device. Even if Connor hadn’t stipulated that I keep it from Blade, it’s too dangerous to tell him more—for everyone, including me. “I’m just trying to sweeten him up. He’s close to cancelling the grant, and that would be a disaster.”

  “Isn’t that the Professor’s job? To keep the investors happy?” His tone is derisive, and he’s looking at me like I’m an idiot.

  I immediately forget that I’m trying to convince him of anything. “What does it matter to you whether I go out for dinner with him?” My little demon is buzzing inside me, giving me what feels like angry butterflies in my stomach.

  Blade gestures wildly with one hand. “He’s likely involved with storing all those demons at the smelter. He’s up to his ears in this mess; we just don’t know how yet. It’s too dangerous.” He’s glaring at the road ahead, and the truck speeds up a little.

  “We don’t know that for sure. He might have no idea what’s going on.” My brain clicks over for a beat or two, honesty compelling me to add: “Even if he is involved, me going out on a date with him would be a great opportunity to get more information.”

  “You don’t even know what you’re doing. You proved that when you left your mobile phone on just now. This is crazy.”

  “It’s not crazy. It’s my life. And you don’t get to boss me around.” I’ve been on my own long enough to know how to take care of myself. And I’ve seen far worse things than anything Connor could throw at me.

  “Damien left me in charge.”

  “What harm is there in letting an attractive man take me out for dinner?” I glare at Blade, daring him to contradict me.

  He glares back and says nothing.

  When we arrive back at my apartment, he parks and turns off the ignition. “I’ll carry you inside,” he says gruffly as he opens his car door.

  “No way in hell,” I say, shoving my glasses more firmly on my nose. I push open my door and climb stiffly down, trying to get out of the truck before he can get round to my side. But as soon as my feet touch the ground, agonizing pain shoots up my leg and I crumple. Too late, I remember my crutches. Blade leaps forward and catches me just in time, pulling me up into his arms as easily as if I was a child.

  For a second, I strain against him, planning to fight.

  But the pain in my leg is too much. I feel like I’m about to pass out. I let out a frustrated breath and go sl
ack, leaning my head on his shoulder. I can’t fight him right now; the pain is too overwhelming. I just want to sleep.

  He walks up the entrance to my building and in the doors, climbing the stairs as if they’re not even uphill.

  “You’re in pain. You need rest.” Blade’s voice is soft, his tone entreating. It’s such a contrast to his usual gruff tone, it makes me blink in surprise.

  He’s also right. Our mission at the smelter has done something to my wound. I can’t stand up, let alone get to the lab.

  “Fine,” I say ungraciously.

  Blade takes my key and manages to unlock the door, despite still having me in his arms. He takes me into my bedroom and lays me down on the bed. My eyes are heavy, and I struggle to keep them open.

  “Don’t leave,” I say when he stands up to go. “Don’t leave me.”

  He sits back down on the chair beside the bed. “I won’t leave you,” he whispers, so softly I think I misheard him.

  When I wake, it’s dark outside. Moonlight is coming into my room through the open curtains. I sit up, and the room spins. I take a moment, waiting for everything to settle down. I don’t know how long it’s been exactly, but given that it’s nighttime, I guess I slept the day away. I push myself to standing, putting most of the weight on my good leg. My crutches are leaning on the bedside table—Blade must have brought them up—and I hobble over and put them under my arms. I shuffle out into the hall.

  There’s noise coming from the main area, so I follow the sound. Blade and Nelson are watching my television, some action flick from the eighties, and eating popcorn I’m pretty sure I didn’t buy.

  Blade looks up, his eyes assessing me from top to bottom. I must pass the physical exam, because he waves his hand to one of my comfy chairs. “It’s a good movie. You should join us.”

  I raise my eyebrows at how comfortable he is in my home and then shuffle in the direction of the kitchen. “I’m thirsty. I’m getting a drink.”