After a moment of silence I glanced over at him. I was startled to find his face an alarming shade of red. His mouth worked soundlessly, his eyes pleading for help. My foot couldn’t decide whether to brake or go faster.
“Mickey, are you alright?” I demanded, my mind racing for the location of the nearest hospital and coming up blank. I’d have to call 911 from my cell phone if there was something really wrong with him. Mickey made a choking noise and my panic escalated. Please, oh please, do not let anything happen to him—and especially not in my car!
“Mickey, what’s wrong?” No answer. He was still goggling at me with that silent, helpless expression. Should I stop and try to give him mouth to mouth? I was scrambling for my cell phone when he gasped and started coughing.
“Missed the turn,” he choked.
I gaped at him. “Are you okay? What happened? You scared the crap out of me!”
He shrugged, recovering his composure with abnormal speed, while my pulse was still doing cartwheels. “Spit went down the wrong way.”
I whipped the station wagon into the median to make a u-turn. “That must have been some spitball,” I muttered in an incredulous tone.
“Turn left and it’s about a quarter mile up on the right,” Mickey recited calmly.
I did not get paid enough for this. I spotted the high-school and turned into the fenced parking lot. A few kids made their way up the grass-lined sidewalk in small groups, all headed for the same double glass doors leading into a rambling, red brick building. I pulled against the curb near the entrance and stopped.
Mickey hesitated, his eyes following a couple of kids swathed in what appeared to be black rags.
Their clothing might have looked like second hand goods, but I knew better. This was an exclusive private school. All these kids’ parents had enough cash to keep them in the most expensive fashions and driving the flashiest cars money could buy. The parking lot looked more like a mini Fortune 500 than a summer school.
The raggedy pair consisted of a boy and a girl about Mickey’s age, and they were unmistakably part of the school’s Goth contingent. By the way Mickey was looking at them, they were also his former friends.
“Those the kids you decided not to hang out with anymore?” I asked.
Mickey looked as if he was struggling to rein in his expression. “Yeah,” he answered. “We used to be really good friends. But they got me into some stuff, and well…I probably wouldn’t be in trouble if I hadn’t listened to them, you know what I mean?”
My eyes softened. “At least you realized it in time to do something about it.”
I wondered how hard it had been for him to make all the drastic changes he’d made recently. I remembered the way he’d looked at the two sexy Latin guys outside the coffee shop, and realized how difficult it must be for him if he was trying to come to terms with being gay, as I now suspected.
He gaze turned sad and my heart went out to him. “Sometimes I just…” he began, his eyes going cloudy as they searched mine. “Sometimes don’t you just wish you could go back in time and do things differently?”
I thought about the crazy turn my life had taken over the past several weeks. If I’d just stayed home to nurse my broken heart that night, instead of going to the bar and meeting Balthus, I might have avoided the mess I was in now. But I’d probably never have met Sparrow. Or Lorien. I did wish I had done things differently, but sometimes avoiding the bad things meant missing out on good things as well. And maybe it would help Mickey to know that. “I wi…”
I clamped my lips together, realizing in horror that I had let my guard down and almost wished aloud. As that knowledge passed across my face, something akin to disappointment, laced with anger, passed across Mickey’s. A sudden chill of shock and suspicion settled into the pit of my stomach as I stared at him.
“Well, I guess I’d better go.” His grin was mocking as he reached to open the car door, an alien flash of emerald burning in the depths of his blue-grey eyes. I gasped softly in recognition.
Emerald like Balthus’ eyes. Emerald like King Moab’s eyes. The emerald eyes of a death djinn.
I stared after him, frozen in disbelief, as he disappeared through the double doors of the brick building.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“Lorien!” I called, trying to remain calm and obey the speed limit, despite the disturbing certainty that was growing within me.
She appeared beside me, and in the next instant was shooting backward through the air. I tried to watch what was happening in the rear view mirror, while still paying attention to the road. There was a high-pitched buzz as her wings worked furiously, streaking into a near invisible shimmer. She paused in a drunken tilt over the backseat, layers of purple faerie dust sifting down from her agitated wings. Then she finally gained control over her momentum and darted forward to join me in the front seat again.
“Do have any idea how hard it is to blink into a moving vehicle?” she grumbled in an acid tone.
I tried hard not to smile. “Sorry Lorien, I’m afraid I wasn’t familiar with that rule.”
“It’s not a rule,” she sighed irritably. “All the faerie guardians have to learn to do it in case of emergencies, since you humans spend so much time in transit these days. It’s just a bit disconcerting to blink somewhere and suddenly find yourself flying backward, about to become a faerie splat on a rear windshield.”
My lips twitched in mirth, but she was too busy straightening nonexistent wrinkles in her dress to notice. A bright melon-colored dust sprinkled from her wings and I realized that she was embarrassed.
“Can a death djinn possess a human?” I asked, jumping right into the reason I’d called her.
Her small hands abruptly stopped their fussing and her tilted eyes shot toward mine. “Well, they can shift into smoke, which could be considered a sort of spirit form, so I suppose so. Why do you ask?”
“I think my boss’ son is being possessed by a death djinn,” I said grimly.
She gave me a doubtful look. “It’s next to impossible, not to mention illegal, to possess a human unless they have consciously invited the possession. What makes you think he’s been possessed by a death djinn?”
“Oh, only that he started showing a strange interest in me right around the time that this whole thing with Balthus began. And since then, his entire personality and appearance has changed so drastically that it borders on psychotic. And he’s tried on several different occasions now to trick me into making a wish out loud. And today when he almost succeeded, his eyes turned that fiery green color I’ve only seen in Balthus’ and King Moab’s eyes.” I curled my lip and sent her a sideways glance that asked what other proof she could possibly need.
“Still, it could just be a coincidence,” she faltered in disbelief. “How old is he?”
“Seventeen.”
She puffed out a relieved breath. “Teenagers are always doing crazy things, no matter what race they are. And lots of people have green eyes.”
I sighed. “Exactly, teenagers are always doing crazy things. And the ones who dress all in black and question every convention and authority, like Mickey did up until a few weeks ago, might even be inclined to experiment with spells and witchcraft. I went through a phase like that myself—the witchcraft, not the dressing all in black. Anyway, what if he decided it might be cool to try some dark spell he found and unwittingly invited in a death djinn?”
“That scenario has a lot of ‘ifs’.” She sounded more like she was trying to convince herself than me.
“Mickey’s eyes are bluish grey—not even a hint of green,” I added blandly.
Her mouth thinned into a grim line. “Call your succubus friend Angelica and find out about that spell to perform an exorcism.”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“You didn’t tell me my racetrack account check was trying to clear this morning!” Cindy accused, her voice rising and fraying around the edges.
“Cindy, you told me to drop ever
ything and get Mickey to school.”
“I told you last week that check had to clear!” she insisted in a clipped wail.
I could have told her that most people didn’t write checks unless they had the money in their account to cover them. But it would have been a waste of breath.
I heard voices in the background and the slamming of a door. “We’ll just have to wire the funds before Mr. Horowitz finds out,” she whispered. “Remind me.”
I made a note on my legal pad, growling deep in my throat as the line went dead.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you make that particular sound before,” Sunny commented from the couch, her eyes dancing with laughter above the rim of her laptop.
“You should try it,” I grumbled. “Next time someone really pisses you off, just start growling at them. It’s highly effective.”
“Is that so?” She smirked.
“As a matter of fact, it is,” I bantered, my mood improving. “Not only does it make you feel better, but it makes them think you’re crazy, which in turn makes them question whether they want to fuck with you. It’s a win-win situation.”
A knock sounded at the door. “That should be Angelica,” I said, jumping up to answer it. Sunny’s laughter floated in my wake.
“Hi Sydney,” Angelica greeted me in her usual cheery manner. She pulled a scrap of paper from the front pocket of her uniform and handed it to me. “I found that exorcism spell for you.”
“Thanks Angelica. Can you hang out for a while?”
“Certainly. I just finished my last cleaning job for the day.”
She followed me into the living room and Sunny swung her legs over the side of the couch to make room for us.
“Pretty crazy that Syd figures out she knows someone who might be possessed right after you tell us about an exorcism spell, huh?” Sunny grinned at Angelica as she leaned over to set her laptop on the coffee table.
“Synchronicity,” Angelica agreed as she lowered herself onto the couch, crossing her long legs in an unconsciously sensual movement. “It is the positive forces of the universe working in tandem to match seemingly unrelated circumstances with perfect timing.”
She nodded toward the paper in my hand. “These are the instructions for performing the spell. Read it over and let me know if you have any questions. It does not appear to be too complicated, compared to others I have seen.”
“That’s a relief,” I said as I perused the step-by-step directions. Apparently all I had to do was pluck seven of Jasper’s tail hairs and burn them in a small, enclosed room with Mickey. The hardest part was going to be getting Mickey into a small, enclosed room.
Well, that and getting Jasper to forgive me for plucking out his tail hairs.
“So, how are your adventures in monogamy going?” Sunny asked.
Angelica blushed. “I find that I like the human man I have been visiting very much. I would have thought to find myself becoming bored, having sex with the same person over and over. But strangely, my fondness for him grows. Our physical intimacy has begun to take on another dimension and seems to become increasingly…meaningful to me.” She sounded ashamed.
I smiled down into the piece of paper I held and Sunny snorted with laughter. “Try not to sound so horrified by the prospect, Angelica,” she said. “That’s exactly what’s supposed to happen when you’re in a monogamous relationship.”
“But I sense that he is hesitant,” Angelica continued worriedly. “Although it is obvious that he enjoys our sexual relations, he seems to become more and more resistant to me entering his dreams. It is as if he is torn by some need to deny his desire for me. When I went to him last night, he appeared almost frightened to see me—even though I wore my most appealing pink lace bra and matching crotchless panties. No man has ever attempted to resist me, much less in my best lingerie!”
She looked from me to Sunny, her blue eyes wide and troubled.
“Maybe it’s time to tell him it’s not a dream,” I suggested. “If I were having recurring dreams of mind-blowing sex with some fantasy guy, I might start to wonder what was going on after a while too. I might even start to think that I was going a little crazy.”
“Do you think it would ease his mind if I changed my appearance so that he would not recognize that it was me?”
Sunny sputtered. “You mean if he started having vivid sex dreams about a different woman every night, instead of the same woman? That does sound like every guy’s fantasy, but somehow I don’t think it’ll help convince him that there’s nothing unusual going on.”
Angelica sighed unhappily. “I do not wish to cause him distress. I only hope he does not react badly to discovering that I am more than just a figment of his imagination.”
I gave her a sympathetic look.
“If he can’t handle it, it’s his loss, Angelica,” Sunny said firmly. “Your friends, the twins, are two of the smartest, nicest guys I’ve ever met. Sure, it took a little while to get used to the idea of having intimate relations with a pair of incubi…”
I let out a mirthful snort. As far as I’d seen, she hadn’t had any trouble embracing that concept at all.
Sunny shot me a dirty look. “It did! And for them too—they’d never been with a human who knew it wasn’t just a dream. My point,” she rolled her eyes at me and focused on Angelica, “is that if this guy rejects you just because you’re a succubus, then he isn’t good enough for you anyway.”
“That’s very sweet of you to say, Sunny. And I’m so glad that you and the twins are enjoying each other.” Angelica’s face brightened and she turned to study me. “What about your lover, Sydney?”
Heat suffused my cheeks beneath her probing gaze. “I sense that he has finally brought you to satisfaction, but that he has not yet fully surrendered his beautiful erect…”
“Yes, Angelica,” I said quickly. “We’re still working on that last part. He’s due over here around six, though, so hopefully we’ll get to it tonight.”
Sunny sniggered and glanced at the time display on the cable box. “By the way, it’s 5:30.”
I leapt up, flustered. “I still have to shower!”
“Do you mind if I stay to meet him?” asked Angelica.
“That’d be nice!” I answered as I sprinted for the hallway.
“What about the spell?” she called after me. “Do you have any questions?”
“Seems pretty straight-forward!” I yelled as I reached the door to my bedroom. Then I paused. “Just one thing. It says you need to capture the spirit form in a vessel to prevent repossession. What type of vessel?”
“Traditionally, a crystal vial, but I suppose you could use any object. Just make sure it’s not too fragile or too unwieldy to transport.”
“Thanks! Speaking of vials, Sunny, why don’t you tell her about the vial she found in the vent while I’m getting ready?” I didn’t wait for a response as I rushed toward my closet to find something flattering to wear.
Twenty minutes later I put down my brush and was spritzing myself lightly with my favorite perfume, when the phone rang. I briskly smoothed some moisturizing gloss onto my lips and rushed across the room to pick up the receiver.
“Hello?”
“Miss Corrigan? This is Peter at the front desk. You have a guest, a Mr…”
“Send him up. Thank you, Peter.” My heart quickened with nervous excitement.
I skipped back into the living room, where Sunny and Angelica still reclined on the couch, giggling conspiratorially about something—probably to do with sex. Jasper was curled up on Angelica’s lap and they had cracked open a bottle of champagne.
“He’s on his way up,” I announced breathlessly. “I love punctuality in a man. It’s a sign of consideration, don’t you think?” I added with a grin.
“I wonder why he didn’t just blink in, like usual,” Sunny commented.
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Maybe he thought announcing himself at the front desk would be more date-like?”
&nbs
p; He’s ten minutes early,” Sunny observed. “What do you think that means? Maybe it’s a sign of his eagerness to share his beautiful erection. What’s your take, Angelica?”
I glared at Sunny, but was saved from Angelica’s response by the knock at the door. Butterflies winged through my mid-section and I felt like a giddy teenager as I raced to answer it. The butterflies transformed into a leaden weight and dropped into the pit of my stomach.
“Jeremy,” I said in a strained voice, “what are you doing here?”
He stared down at me, disbelief coloring his eyes. He looked a little thinner than usual, but other than that he appeared well. He wore dress slacks and a silk shirt, as if he’d come straight from work.
“Syd,” he breathed. “It’s so good to see you. When Hannah told me you were staying here, I almost couldn’t believe it. Why did you tell me you were staying at her apartment? And how can you afford to stay in a place like this?” He gazed past me into the penthouse.
“It’s just something I happened into,” I answered haltingly. “Jeremy, this really isn’t a good time. You should have called first.”
His eyes shot back to my face and he ran his fingers through his short golden hair in agitation. “Damn it, Syd, that’s not fair. I’ve been trying to call you for weeks and you refuse to answer. All you ever do is leave messages. When will it be a good time? We need to talk.”
“I know, Jeremy, and I’m sorry.” Misery made my voice wobble. “I just haven’t been ready to deal with it. And I’m going through some other pretty heavy things right now, things that aren’t related to us, but as soon as I get past them I promise we’ll talk.”
He didn’t seem to hear me, his attention focusing instead on the voices spilling from the living room. “You have company,” he murmured. “Who is that?” He brushed past me to enter the penthouse.
I trailed helplessly behind him as he followed the sounds of Sunny’s and Angelica’s laughter—which faded abruptly as we came into view.
A Risky Proposition Page 24
