Dancing With Demons

by Trudi Jaye

  Frowning, I lean forward. “How can you tell?”

  Blade shrugs. “They just have that look about them.” He takes a sniff. “They also smell like shifters.”

  I turn again to look at the two men. I don’t see anything different. “There’s this whole different world out there that I never knew existed. I can’t believe I never found it before.” I spent all that time wandering around in the dark with my research. “Maybe they just assumed I was human and left me to it. Kept the secret as it were.”

  “You don’t have any of the usual markers of a super.” Blade takes a sniff. “You don’t smell like a super.”

  “I hope that’s because I smell like strawberries, and not stale socks.”

  “Let’s just say it’s neither and go with that, huh?” says Blade with his small half smile.

  “I can’t believe—” But my words die in my mouth as a tall, suavely dressed black man arrives at our table. He’s handsome with a smile that could outperform a thousand-watt lightbulb, dimples, and brown eyes so deep, I feel like I’m falling into a canyon filled with melted chocolate.

  I blink a few times, but it doesn’t stop the effect of his enormous charisma.

  Blade stands up and offers his hand. “Mr. Knight? I’m Nico Blade, and this is my associate, Hazel Rushton.”

  Freddy takes Blade’s hand and shakes it, clapping him on the back like they’re best buds. “Freddy, please. It’s great to finally meet you. Anna has told me so much about you.”

  “None of it too bad, I hope,” says Blade, without missing a beat.

  I’m still sitting in the booth, and it’s a struggle for me to get myself out. I tussle with the table for a moment, then just reach out one hand and let his large hands envelop mine in a two-handed shake. There’s a weird kind of electricity that infuses my hands, and then it’s gone, and so are his hands.

  “Nice to meet you,” I manage, my voice a squeak.

  “What can I get you to drink?” asks Freddy with a wide gesture of his arms, and an equally generous smile.

  I can’t help myself. I smile back at him. There’s something contagious about his effusiveness. It makes me feel warm on the inside.

  “I’ll just have a beer,” says Blade.

  “I’ll…” I look blankly down at the menu. One thing sticks out in my brain. “I’ll have a Strawberry Betty, please.” What the hell.

  Blade frowns at me, and for a moment I think he’s going to object. But his lips just tighten before he gives Freddy a stiff smile. “She’s never tried a super cocktail before,” he says. A look passes between the two men.

  “Hey. None of that. I’m an adult, and I can drink what I like.” I’m not used to having to explain myself to anyone.

  “Of course you can,” says Freddy with a suave smile. He disappears for a moment and then comes back, sitting down in the booth across from Blade and next to me. “Now, tell me what I can do for you?”

  Blade glances at me, and then back at Freddy. “We’re looking for information. My grandmother said you’re the best place to get it.”

  “I have been known to deal in information, yes.” Freddy inclines his head regally.

  “To start with, we need to know whatever you know about the increasing numbers of demons in the area.”

  Freddy frowns. “It’s not common knowledge, but it is something that has been noted.”

  “Where do you think they’re coming from?”

  “There are only a few reasons demons would gather. They do not do it willingly.”

  “What are those reasons?”

  “They are being forced to gather by someone. It used to be that the chalices would be blamed for such gatherings. But there are none left, so they are not such a convenient scapegoat.”

  “Who else might do it? Who else could do it?”

  “I don’t know. It’s a perplexing problem.”

  “Could it be a chalice?”

  Freddy takes a breath. “It seems far-fetched, but it could be. There may have been chalices elsewhere in the world who survived.”

  “We need to know more about… chalices,” says Blade carefully. I note that he’s not telling Freddy what I am. At least not yet.

  Freddy leans back in his seat and is about to say something when our drinks arrive. My drink is in a tall fluted glass and seems to shimmer, like they put glitter inside it by mistake. I peer suspiciously at the pink bubbly liquid. Am I making a bad decision by drinking it?

  I look up to see Blade looking at me with an “I told you so” kind of expression. Narrowing my eyes, I take a large sip of my cocktail through the straw.

  Sugary sweetness mixed with fizzing expectation fills my mouth and glides down my throat. Everything suddenly seems a little brighter. My demon starts buzzing inside me, like the alcohol is affecting it as well.

  Freddy is waiting patiently for the waitress to place his drink in front of him, which looks like it could be rum and Coke, but with something extra in it that’s making the ice rumble in the bottom of the glass. He gives the girl a megawatt smile that leaves her flustered and blushing. She almost trips over her own feet as she turns to leave.

  As soon as she’s gone, Freddy takes a sip of his drink and leans back again, returning to business mode. “A chalice is a super who can deal with demons,” he says. “They have the power to control, manipulate, and kill them.”

  “We already know that much,” I say impatiently. “What else do you know?”

  He shakes his head and waits a moment before answering. “Before I answer any more of your questions, I need you to promise to give some information as well.”

  I nod. What on earth do I know that’s going to help this guy? Nothing, that’s what. I take another sip of my drink.

  Blade takes more time to answer. “I’ll tell you what I can. The SIG has issues with its operatives just giving out high-security-clearance information.”

  Freddy smiles, showing off a row of perfect teeth. “I can only ask you to tell me what you know.”

  “I’ll tell you everything I can.”

  “The last two chalices died a long time ago,” says Freddy, leaning forward like he’s about to tell a ghost story. “They were a powerful brother and sister, said to rule their domain with an iron fist.”

  It’s the same information Blade’s grandmother gave us. Again, I wonder if they could they be related to me. Maybe my grandparents? Or perhaps an aunt and uncle? Could one of them even be my real mother or father? The uncertainty is getting too much for me. I take another big gulp of my strawberry drink. I just want to know the truth about my family.

  “What happened to them?” asks Blade.

  “Died in a car crash. It was considered a tragedy for the whole super community.”

  “Did they have family?”

  “No other chalices, if that’s what you’re asking. The woman, she was pregnant. But they all died, even the baby.”

  “That’s tragic,” I say. Sadness wells up inside me, a wave of emotion battering at my senses. My demon bounces around, making me feel sick. I don’t know why I’m so upset about people I don’t know. It’s only when I look down at my drink that I realize my hand is glowing blue. I immediately pull it under the table and clench my hand in front of my stomach, holding my breath and trying to hold it all in as best I can.

  I look up to find Freddy watching me with his dark eyes. Does he know what a glowing blue hand means? I swallow hard and focus on getting myself under control.

  Blade clears his throat, and Freddy looks back to him. “What else can you tell us about them?”

  Freddy takes another sip of his drink and appears to consider his answer. “It was always rumored that it wasn’t an accident. Some said they were gaining too much power on the West Coast, and they were murdered.”

  It feels like someone has punched me in the gut. “Who would do that? What kind of threat does a chalice pose?” My voice is raw, and I’m holding in so much emotion, I feel like I’m going to burst. I don’t unde
rstand my reactions, it feels like I’ve got a waterfall of feelings inside me that just want to come out. It’s too big a reaction for the information I’m being given.

  Freddy’s expression becomes calculating as he looks at me. “You seem a little too invested in this to be a bystander. Who are you again?”

  I swallow hard. The demon whirrs inside me, making my stomach feel like it’s literally been twisted into a knot. “I’m a paranormal researcher,” I manage. “I’m just really interested.”

  “She’s drunk, more like,” says Blade, his voice grim. “She’s a newbie, only just signed on with the SIG. I thought she could handle coming out here, but it looks like I was wrong.”

  I open my mouth to object to his words, only to close it again. Freddy looks at me again, this time with an amused expression. “First assignment, huh?” he says.

  I don’t need Blade’s kick under the table to make me nod glumly. Is it really just the drink? Or something about Freddy? Or the fact that those people who died were probably related to me? I really can’t tell.

  “Look, we think there might be another chalice, back from the dead,” says Blade, taking over as lead SIG agent. “But we need to determine if they’re a threat. The SIG are very interested in this situation.” He manages to imply that we might have to take whoever it is in for questioning without actually saying it.

  I try not to let the sudden chill that his words give me be too obvious. It sounds too pat to be fake. Is that why Blade is with me twenty-four seven? Not for protection, but to assess how dangerous I am?

  Freddy looks intrigued. “Now that would change the way things are done around here,” he says almost gleefully. He takes a sip of his drink, and his eyes light up like he’s imagining something enjoyable.

  “Why do you say that?” asks Blade. His expression is guarded.

  “A chalice has much more power than just getting rid of demons. They can harness the power of the demons they consume, and they can wield it. They’re the most powerful supernatural in the world.”

  23

  I spit out the sip of my drink that I just took. It ends up over the table, little spots over Blade’s hand and arm. He stares at me pointedly and flicks it off.

  “What? How can that be?” I say in a rush, not thinking through my embarrassment.

  “You know, you really do seem a little more invested than is normal,” says Freddy, eyeing the drink droplets covering the table. He hands me the paper napkin from under his drink to clean it up.

  “Either that, or she’s a lunatic,” says Blade. “I haven’t decided which yet.”

  I glare at Blade as I wipe up the mess I’ve made on the wooden table. Little glistening pieces of my drink bubble together, almost like they’ve got a mind of their own. They soak into the paper, and make it glitter like expensive wrapping paper. I gesture for him to give me his arm to wipe, but he gestures at a passing waitress and gets his own napkin. He jerkily wipes himself dry.

  It smells rather strongly of strawberries and sugar all around us now. “I’m not a lunatic. I’m a concerned citizen. Doesn’t it seem freaky to anyone else that there could be this one person who’s so powerful? That doesn’t seem logical.”

  I’m not saying I don’t believe him. Not completely. It’s just that none of the evidence so far backs up what he’s saying. If I can harness the power of the demons, how did they almost kill me the other night? Why couldn’t I just control all those demons who came after me? How come my parents are dead? I clench my hand over my sore leg, which feels much better than it ought to, and try to reconcile what he’s saying with the reality of what I’ve experienced in my life.

  Freddy narrows his eyes at me. “There’s something strange about you. What kind of super are you?” he asks.

  “Uh….” My brain doesn’t seem to work right now.

  “That’s classified,” says Blade. “She’s not allowed to say.”

  “Fascinating…” Freddy taps one finger against his lips. “I feel like I might just have to uncover all your secrets, Hazel. You’re the most intriguing SIG agent I’ve ever encountered.”

  I let out a short laugh. “Surely not. Damien works much harder at being intriguing.”

  “There’s something about you… Why are you so concerned about all this? It seems personal to me.” His eyes are lit up with the joy of a hunt. I realize that it’s the worst possible thing Blade could have said. I should have just said I was a shifter. Problem solved.

  “I… uh… just wouldn’t like to see one person have so much power,” I improvise. I’m not sure if he believes me. I feel a little like a deer in the headlights whenever he looks in my direction. It’s like he can read all my secrets. I don’t know what powers he has. Can he read my thoughts? Maybe he knows exactly who I am.

  “What kind of super are you?” I ask him, trying to cover up how freaked out I am.

  “I’m a voodoo king,” he says, his expression amused.

  What the hell does that even mean? He seems to think that explains everything. I should have asked Blade exactly what a voodoo king can do before we came in here. It never occurred to me that he might be able to read my thoughts.

  Blade doesn’t seem worried. “The SIG is monitoring the situation. We don’t want a repeat of last time, clearly. But we also don’t want some renegade super deciding they want to do a power grab, either.”

  “Entirely understandable,” Freddy nods, but I catch a glint in his eye that tells me he’s not quite so concerned.

  “It could disrupt your power base too,” I say, thinking through the possibility. “I mean, you seem to have a good setup here. What if this new chalice came along and wanted a piece of the action?”

  Freddy frowns at me, and for the first time, he seems a little less handsome. His face darkens, and electricity flickers in his eyes. “I’d not be such a pushover as you seem to imagine,” he says to me.

  Without thinking it through, I take another sip of my drink, letting the little bubbles dance around on my tongue. “I didn’t say you’d be a pushover, I was just speaking hypothetically. If this chalice is as powerful as you say, and could gather more and more power, surely that would pose a threat to you?” I don’t know why I’m saying this to him. It started out about throwing the scent off me (I have strong a feeling I really don’t want this guy to know I’m the chalice), but now I’m running off down another track, talking out loud about the possible future with the kind of chalice powers he’s describing.

  I’m clearly a lunatic.

  He nods slowly, taking my words at face value. I’m an interested observer, someone who’s bringing his attention to a possible new threat. Not someone who is the new threat.

  Who me? I’m nothing to worry about. Just a bystander.

  At least that’s what I hope he’s thinking.

  “What else can you tell us about the chalice?” asks Blade into the growing silence. “How do they access their powers? What could we do to stop them?” The words seem logical, also throwing the scent off me. But something inside me chills at Blade’s words.

  What could we do to stop them?

  But Freddy doesn’t feel the same fear at his words. “A chalice is the epicenter. They draw the demons in. The power then flows outward from them. But they are still a super, capable of being wounded. They can use the power of the demons, but they aren’t able to change form like a demon. It is possible to kill them, in the right circumstances. All you have to do is cut them off from their demons.”

  “Why would the demons allow someone to steal their power?” I ask.

  “I don’t know. There’s some kind of connection. Like metal to a magnet, perhaps. Demons can’t seem to stay away.”

  I want to ask more, like why the demons didn’t find me earlier and waited until I was fifteen to turn up and kill my best friend. If I’m so powerful, why do the demons keep fighting me, trying to overpower and kill me?

  But I shouldn’t have worried. Blade knows how to ask the questions for me.
>
  “Is there some kind of maturing process? Like there is for shifters?”

  Freddy nods. “As far as I know, yes, they’re the same as other supers. They come into their powers at a certain age.”

  “So a child chalice wouldn’t control the demons in the same way?” I ask.

  “I doubt it. I don’t know for sure. It’s been a long time since the last chalice moved in our circles.”

  “Not long enough that you didn’t know them, though, Freddy?” says Blade softly.

  I raise my eyebrows in surprise. Freddy doesn’t look more than maybe thirtyish years old.

  Freddy throws back his head and laughs. “No point in being jealous shifter. We all know that twenty years is nothing for our kind.”

  “More so for your kind,” says Blade softly.

  Freddy shrugs. “I can’t help who I am. It’s not my fault humans are weak creatures, intent on killing themselves.” He shrugs and lifts his hands. “I simply exist among them.”

  Blade nods. “As do we all.”

  I nod in agreement, although I’m uncertain that I’m like they are. How long am I likely to live? Is it longer than other humans? I honestly have no idea, and it reminds me of how little I know about the supernatural world.

  For the first time, I’m angry at my parents. They didn’t tell me anything. They didn’t prepare me at all, and now I’m flapping about, trying to stay afloat and not look like an idiot who knows nothing.

  It sounds like I’ve been living a half-life, if Freddy Knight is anything to go by.

  “Have you heard any rumors? Anywhere we could look for this new chalice?” asks Blade. He doesn’t even glance in my direction as he asks the question. He’s a pro.

  “This is the first hint I’ve had of a possible chalice. I’ve heard there are demons gathering, but I had no idea it was for this reason.”

  “Is that the only reason demons would gather?” I ask sharply. I don’t think they’re gathering because of me.

  “Demons don’t gather unless they’re forced,” says Freddy.

  “What else could it be?” asks Blade. “Could voodoo magic do it?”