by Jen Pretty
"Where did that come from?" Rory asked his eyes on the opal.
"I gave it to her," Julian said.
Rory's eyebrows lifted to his hairline. "You gave it to her? Why would you do that?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"It's a red opal. That stone blocks Julian's mental powers from affecting you." Rory scoffed and shook his head. "Maybe I was wrong about him." Rory glanced back at Julian for a long moment before sliding his eyes to the window and leaning back in his seat again.
I looked back at Julian. His face was blank. I tried to figure out why, but it was a mystery. I took his hand and squeezed it, which made his face soften as I had hoped. He leaned forward and kissed me.
"Thank you," I whispered as he leaned back into his seat.
He pushed some hair out of my face and gave me a half smile.
The limo pulled up to the mall. There was a heck of a lot of teenagers hanging around outside. It looked like Len's pizzeria at lunchtime.
Great.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Roderick was leaning against the counter his cell phone in his hands and eyes glued to the small device. His thumbs flew across the screen until I cleared my throat.
He glanced up and back down at his phone for a second before recognition hit him, and he stood up straight with a smile across his face.
"Hey, gorgeous, Harlow! Long time no see!" He pocketed his phone and flung his arm around me in a hug. He pushed me back and held my shoulders to inspect me. "What the hell have you been up to?"
I laughed. "I've been hunting gargoyles. How about you?"
"I've been here. I made you something, come with me." He glanced around finally and realized I wasn't alone.
"Who are these people? Not hunters." I was sure that Roderick knew all the hunters.
"This is the lord of the city, Julian," I said.
Roderick took a step back. "No shit."
"Zero shit," I confirmed.
"My name is Rory, I'm Harlow's first lieutenant." Rory stuck out this hand. Roderick took it and looked him up and down before looking past him at Steven who had been trailing us through the mall.
"That's Steven," I said. "He's with me."
Roderick licked his lips and took a deep breath before he spoke again. "Your first lieutenant?"
"Uh, yeah. So, turns out, I'm a wee bit demon."
Roderick's eyes almost popped out of his head. "Well, that would explain why you are so talented. Demon gifts and whatnot."
There was a long silent moment before Roderick pulled himself together. "Okay, well, come on back, and we will hook you up." He turned on his heel, and we followed him down the crowded corridor to his storeroom packed with hunter paraphernalia.
A rack of leather pants immediately drew my attention. Roderick had some that were dyed different colours. I was so tired of black and brown, so I grabbed a blue and red pair that were thin enough to move in but offered great protection against the little stone teeth on the gargoyles.
"You don't hunt anymore," Rory said. "Do you even need leather pants?"
I looked at him like he had two heads. He might as well have. Leather pants were suitable for all occasions.
I shimmied into the red ones and popped the tag off. They might work for the goth club.
I stepped out carrying my boots. The gunk in the treads hadn't come out when I wiped my feet in the small patch of weedy grass by the mall entrance, so I dropped them in Roderick's garbage can and crossed the room to scan the wall display of boots.
"I have some just for you, Harlow." Roderick's voice came from the opposite end of the storeroom, where there were piles of boxes towering towards the ceiling.
He wove back through carrying a box and plopped it down on a bench. I sat next to the box and slipped the lid up. Inside was a pair of tall, dark, and handsome boots. The eyelets were silver, and the laces were red, matching the pants I had picked out.
"I knew you would love those pants, that why I got them in your size," he said, taking he boots out of the box and dropping them into my hands. The leather was soft and supple, and the sole was thick enough, but light, too. Perfect.
I laced them up, tucking the ankle of my leather pants under the boot, so the shiny eyelets glittered in the fluorescent lighting. They immediately moulded to my feet, and my little piggies were in heaven.
"That smile means she likes them," Roderick said. Julian scowled at the kind of personal comment from the shopkeeper, but I jumped up and ran around the room at huntress speed, blowing some papers off a desk. Oops.
"These are perfect. Do they come in black, too?" I asked.
Rory's heavy sigh could have been heard in space. He never could handle shopping. He couldn't sit still for five minutes before the heavy sighs came out. Rough life.
"Of course," Roderick said. "I have them in blue, too."
Hmm. Did I need 3 pairs of boots?
"She will take them," Julian said, handing over his credit card.
"I have my own money," I complained.
"Let me buy them for you anyway," Julian said, cupping my cheek and giving me a quick peck on the forehead.
"Oh, that makes sense," Roderick said as he spun to ring up the purchases. I ignored the comment because I was happy despite the circumstances. I may be far from home, and my friend might have been wrongly convicted of murder and my potential father... nope, I was going back to calling him Shit-face. Shit-face might have been plotting the take over the world with his demon brethren, but... wait, where was I going with that?
"Okay, now we have to go get proper goth clothes," Rory said, standing and trying to herd us out of the storeroom.
"Wait, where are we going? You know about a store that sells goth stuff?" I asked.
Rory held up his phone and wiggled it in my face. "I can google, I don't need to know anything, Darlin'."
I scoffed. Did he even hear himself? I waved to Roderick, and we filed out of the store, following Rory to the escalator. On the top floor across from the Bed and Bath store was a dark little hole in the wall with black lights setting the mood inside. It was all dark and lace. An ashen, bored-looking young woman sat behind a desk clacking away at her phone with her black fingernails that matched her lipstick.
"Hi," I said, walking up to the desk. "I need some goth stuff." I gave her a cheery smile, and she literally rolled her eyes. At me!
She slid off her stool and came around the desk, and I took in her look. She wore black lace thigh highs and a tiny, black, micro skirt. The gap between the top of her hose and the skirt was pale white skin. I wondered if she ever got in the sun.
"The women's clothes are on this side and the men on the other. If you want to try something on, there is a change room in the back." She returned to her stool and pulled out her cell phone.
"Okay, you guys go, I'll find myself something black and slutty apparently," I said, giving the shop girl another once over. She had a lot of skin showing. I was a bit sad that maybe my cool new red leather pants wouldn't cut it.
A short frilly lace skirt and a pair of knee-high socks with skulls on them made me look hot and weird. I decided I could still wear my red boots, though. The skulls on the socks had red eyes. See? They matched.
The final piece was the corset top I found. It was black and had red laces up the back.
"Harlow?" Julian called from just outside my change room door.
"Come in, I can't do this up."
The curtain pushed aside and a hot as hell goth man walked in. It was Julian, but he was wearing a long black trench coat and skinny jeans that were tight as hell. His black t-shirt had some strategic holes and pulled perfectly over his wide chest. His black boots were scuffed to perfection, and he had greased his hair back and added some kohl to around his eyes.
"Oh, crap. I had no idea I liked goths," I said.
He smiled. "I hope not all, goths." He turned me around to face the mirror and began stringing the corset, cinching me in. The material pushed my boobs hi
gh. I would not be doing too much ass kicking in this top. The girls would pop right out and give everyone a free show.
"There you are," Julian's lips came down on my shoulder, and I turned to kiss him properly. He deepened the kiss and ran his hand down to my hip.
"You guys, we don't have time for making out in the dressing room," Rory called, way louder than necessary.
"Asshole," I said, shaking my hand. Julian snickered and pulled me out of the change room by the hand.
Rory was wearing black leather pants and a tank top with a thick black choker. He looked a bit like he belonged in a Mr. Leather competition. Not that I had ever been witness to such a thing in my hometown, but I had the internet for my education on such topics. Rory's tattoos looked amazing on display.
Steven had dressed in skinny jeans and a black hoodie. He was painfully thin in the skinny pants, but the Kohl on his face was stark against his pale skin and made his blue eyes pop out. He was cute as a goth.
"Okay, are we ready?" I asked.
"One more thing," Rory said, picking up a bottle of black nail polish and some clip-on earrings.
The girl at the cash sighed when I said we were wearing the stuff out. She rang us all through, and I paid for it since Julian paid before, and Rory was a cheap bastard. Steven had no money.
We sat in the back of the limo and painted each other's nails like a group of high school girls at a slumber party and ate some fast food the driver stopped to get at a drive-through. By the time we had finished eating and painting our nails, it was dark outside, and the limo pulled up in front of the club named Club Hell.
"Fitting."
CHAPTER NINE
The bouncer didn't even look twice at us. He moved the red velvet rope and let us in. I hoped it was the limo and not that he was expecting us in particular.
Eyes followed us as we crossed to the bar. We were a bit of a spectacle. I had Julian on one arm and Rory on the other. Steven followed behind like a loyal pet. At the bar, the guys lifted me by the arms and set me on a stool. The bartender abandoned the slutty looking girls he was talking to and took our drink order. I was sure I was doing an excellent job of acting natural, but Julian whispered, "relax," and I dropped a bunch of tension I had been holding. Damn. I felt naked, and even in the low lighting of the club, I was nearly popping out of my top. I leaned back against the bar and scanned the room.
People crowded the small dance floor, and half-demons hung around the edges of the room, looking moody. Everyone wore black. The girls wore little, but the men were covered head to toe. Unfair. The music was dark and screamy. If you could, call it music.
Rory leaned in and yelled. "I'm going to go dance."
I nodded.
Steven slid onto the bar stool beside me and leaned towards me like I would protect him from the evil lurking in the shadows. I probably would, too. Nobody would touch Steven. I glanced at him and could tell from his face he was trying to control his red eyes.
I crossed the short distance and said, "let your eyes go red," in his ear. He looked at me, shocked for a minute, then held my gaze and let go of his control. His red eyes were perfect here. They looked eerie and powerful, changing his appearance from a frightened boy to a frightening other-worldly force.
I smiled at him, and he sat back, looking more confident.
"You can follow me," a voice called from behind me. I spun back to the bar, and the man standing there had horns on his forehead. They were small and pointed, barely more than bumps, but still horns.
"Where am I following you?" I asked with a cocky laugh.
The man swallowed hard. "To see the boss." He looked around nervously.
I slid off the bar stool, but Julian stopped me and leaned in to speak into my ear. "You sure you want to do this? It could be a trap."
"Yes, I definitely want to do this." I pushed away from the bar before looking back at Steven. "Stay here," I said then walked around the bar to follow the horned half-demon through a door that said, "employees only." The music quieted until we reached a door that said "office."
"Through there," the half-demon said, before turning on his heel and marching away.
I knocked on the door and then leaned back and kicked it open with my boot. It was something I had always wanted to do.
I had intended to run in and freeze daddy demon, but the scene before me made me stop dead.
"Hello, Daughter," the demon said, his voice like the fires of hell burning a million people. His wings spread wide behind him, and he had his claws wrapped tightly around my mother's neck.
"Shit," I said.
"That's what I thought you might say."
He licked the side of my mother's face.
"Gross."
"Now, now, you know all about the birds and the bees by now, I'm sure. Has your admirer not taught you some things?"
I sneered at him. My mother's face was passive, as if she wasn't even present in the room.
"She is under his power," Julian said from behind me.
"I see you have given her a defence against your power, Julian." The demon's eyes raked my neck where the red opal hung, and I immediately needed a shower.
"And against yours," Julian said.
"I wouldn't bother controlling her. She will come willingly by the time I'm done. Then we will take this world and rule it together. Father and daughter together." His smile revealed sharp, pointed teeth.
"Not in your dreams," I said.
He laughed. "Off you go now, children. Mommy and daddy need some alone time."
"No way in hell," I said. I didn't care how shit a mom she had been, I wouldn't leave her to the demon.
"Oh, you care about your birth-giver? Well then, you have a job, if you would like her returned to you. I need the dragon. You set the dragon free, and I will set your mother free."
"The dragon?" I asked.
"The one you froze when you were in New York the first time, I need him returned."
I didn't speak for a long moment, scrambling for something to say. "Nick has him. I don't know where."
The crooked grin on the demon's face was creepy as fuck.
"You are lying. I told you not to do that." He lifted my mother's arm and broke it with a quick twist. The sounds of the bones breaking made vomit rise in my mouth and I gagged trying to swallow it back down.
"Now, I would hate to break your mother's bones over and over without blocking her mind. She would scream and cry. I mean, I don't mind, but I feel you might not enjoy that the same way. Don't worry, I'll keep her quiet here for the next twenty-four hours. After that, I'll have to start making her scream if you haven't returned with my dragon friend. Off you go, now. Mommy and daddy have work to do." He squeezed her hand, and I ran from the room to the sound of bones crunching. I made it to the bar before losing my dinner all over the floor. That didn't slow me down, though. I grabbed Steven's arm and dragged him behind me while Julian went after Rory.
Back in the limo, I grabbed a bottle of water and chugged it while Julian and Rory climbed into the limo.
Once we were cruising down the road, I explained the situation.
"Shit," Rory said.
"That's what I said." I finished the water and switched to vodka from the handy little bar fridge in the back of the limo. My mouth needed disinfecting, and water wasn't cutting it.
"I thought you hated that woman," Rory said.
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I want to leave her in the clutches of a demon."
"Pretty sure she has been in his clutches willingly before," Rory muttered, looking away.
Ugh. Gross. "I don't need to hear things like that about my mother," I said. Taking another long swig of the vodka. "We need to get that damn dragon."
Julian gave the driver directions to Nick's warehouse. This was crazy. Was I going to set loose another demon to save my neglectful mother? Whatever the demon in the dragon did would be on my head.
"Wait. Are we taking his word that he will even release my mother?"
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Julian slid his arm around me. "He is a demon. He might not. We could try to get her back by force, but if he tears her apart, we won't be able to put her back together again."
Oh God. I covered my face with my hands. This was a shit situation. How did my life come to this choice? This was like a movie where the hero has to choose between two bad options, except I couldn't turn off the TV.
I lay my head back on the seat and stared at the roof of the limo. The guys were discussing how we would move the dragon statue. I hadn't thought of that.
"Can't I just set him free and let him fly home?" I asked, eyes still on the fuzzy ceiling.
The guys were silent for a moment. Then Julian took my hand. "Harlow, you can't set that demon free."
I looked up at him finally. "I thought I had to, or Shit-face would tear my birth giver limb from limb."
"That dragon contains the most powerful demon to walk the earth. He is so much worse than Shit-face, as you call him."
"Crap. Why didn't anyone tell me this?" I asked, giving everyone the stink eye.
"We were just talking about it," Rory said. "If you had been paying attention, you would have heard the whole story. About a hundred years ago, the hunters and sculptors from across the country gathered and fought together to capture him. He killed most, almost erasing the whole hunter and sculptor system in the country, but a few remained, and they rebuilt the system. If we let that demon out of his gargoyle, we may never get him back in -- even with your demon- touched help."
"Oh," I said, brilliantly. "So, what is the plan?"
Julian's hand squeezed mine again. "We were hoping you might have a plan."
"So, this whole thing is riding on me?" I shook my head. This would be the worst plan in the history of plans. "What happens if I break the dragon while he's trapped in hell?" Thanks to my super special powers the dragon hadn't moved since my last trip to New York.
Rory looked from me to Julian and back again. "We don't know. Why?"
