Darrak caught his wrist only an inch from the target. While he was in Eden’s body at the moment, his presence brought with it a demon-sized strength. Still, Eden’s arm shook as he tried to hold Theo back.
“Drop it.” Darrak squeezed until Theo dropped the knife that clattered to the pavement. “Now release him.”
Theo glared at him. “Maybe I don’t want to.”
Darrak gritted his teeth. “Theodraagaris, I command you to release him.”
Theo’s eyes went wide as Darrak used his full name. It was a huge no-no for one demon to exert this type of power over another.
At the moment, Darrak didn’t really give a crap about proper etiquette.
“Fine.” Theo waved a hand. The next moment, Ben slumped forward. Darrak caught him before he hit the ground. He coughed and wheezed as if the crushing hand that had held him in place had finally let him go.
Theo stood prone at the moment, waiting for his next command.
“Get out of here,” Darrak said to the cop.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” Ben asked, his gaze more filled with anger than anything close to gratitude.
“Eden would never forgive me if I did.”
“This isn’t over, demon,” Ben said, darkly.
“You’re welcome.”
His eyes narrowed. “I’ll destroy you. I swear it.”
“No, really. I’m blushing now. You don’t have to get me a thank-you card. Just your endless and heartfelt appreciation is enough.”
Still with that look of bewilderment at the fact he’d just been spared by the demon he blamed for destroying everything good in the world, including puppies and goldfish, Ben staggered out of the alleyway without another word.
“Are you going to release me?” Theo asked through clenched teeth.
“Of course.” Darrak braced himself for the demon’s fury. “Consider yourself released.”
Theo crossed his arms and shook his head, glaring at him. No fury yet.
Darrak blinked. “So . . . thanks a bunch for the gift. I really appreciate the thought.”
“This is Eden’s fault.”
So he wasn’t going to blame Darrak for what just happened? “That is entirely possible.”
Theo looked toward the route Ben had taken out of the alley. “We should be stomping on that nobody’s entrails right now.”
“Which does sound like tons of fun.”
Theo shook his head, disbelievingly. “You even stopped me from finishing the job. You used my true name to make me let him go. That’s not cool, Darrak.”
“I remember. I was standing right here. Very happy I chose not to try the heels tonight. How do women walk in those things?” He looked at Eden’s bare wrist. “Gosh, look at the time. I really need to get going.”
“Asmodeus will help you,” Theo said. “When he’s regained his power, he’ll help you regain yours, too. Tomorrow it happens. At noon. Right here at Luxuria.”
“I’m still invited?” The cold wind whipped through the alley, and a crumpled up piece of newspaper blew between them.
It felt a little bit like a tumbleweed in an Old West town.
“Yes.” Theo narrowed his eyes. “Bring Eden.”
“At noon I won’t have much of a choice.”
“Asmo will be ready for a meal when he’s finished.”
Darrak tensed. “That’s not going to happen.”
Theo smiled thinly. “At least you’re honest. That’s another thing. Since when are you so honest?”
Darrak cringed at the reminder. “It’s a fairly recent problem I’m dealing with.”
“This Eden.” Theo walked around him, checking out the stolen body. “More trouble than any woman is worth. And you were telling me you can’t even sleep with her to make it all worthwhile?”
“If I sleep with her again, it could destroy her further.”
“But you want to.”
“Duh. Of course. I’m not a monk.”
“And she wants you?”
“I’d like to think so. But we have a hands-off agreement.”
“Isn’t that special?”
Theo’s eyes glittered. He might be acting very polite, but he wasn’t in a stellar mood at the moment. Darrak knew he had to tread softly. He had to protect Eden. Being that Theo hated her, her body was currently at risk.
Maybe he should have killed the cop after all.
Oh well. Hindsight was 20/20.
Theo shook his head. “My, my, Darrak. This is a side of you I never thought I’d see. You were even more brutal than I was back in the day. The things you’re responsible for. Even I was disgusted by a few of them.”
Darrak shrugged. “I appreciate the compliment, but times change.”
He tensed as Theo clamped his hand down on his shoulder. “I want you to admit it to me.”
“What?”
Theo smiled. “If she was full-on evil, this would all be easier wouldn’t it? You wouldn’t have to be so preoccupied with saving her soul.”
Darrak couldn’t help but snort. “You might be right about that.”
Theo swallowed and took a step back. He braced his hands on his knees. “Not feeling well seeing you so broken like this. So pathetic. Makes me want to cry. Just a single tear. It’ll be very dramatic.”
Darrak glared at him. “You’re hilarious.”
Theo straightened up and flashed him a grin. “You’re lucky I like you, Darrak, or I might have to destroy you.”
“The feeling’s mutual.”
That earned a laugh. “You go back and tuck your Girl Scout in for the night. Make sure she’s snug as a bug in a rug. Then drag her ass back here at noon so after Asmo does his thing, he can help you out of this vastly unfortunate situation you’ve gotten yourself into. Darrak the Good. Darrak the Self-Sacrificing. I only wish I had a camera to record this for posterity. Maybe upload it to YouTube. We’ll laugh about this one day when we’re eating the souls of virgins for breakfast.”
“Promise?” Darrak grumbled.
“Cross my heart. If I had one.” Then Theo took a step back and vanished behind a column of flame.
Show-off, Darrak thought. He really did miss the ability to phase.
He felt ill by what had happened. Or rather, what hadn’t happened. He should have killed Ben without a second thought. But he’d had a second. And a third. And then a fourth. Even after Darrak let him go, the cop still threatened to end him. He was no further ahead.
But he hadn’t done it to gain brownie points. That was the problem. He’d spared Ben’s life because it was the . . . the . . .
. . . the right thing to do.
Okay, he thought, so this is what nausea feels like, is it?
The other revelation of the evening swirled around his thoughts.
Eden was a nephilim. How long had she known this, and why hadn’t she ever told him? What other secrets was his beautiful host keeping from him?
Seriously. Where was the trust?
TWENTY-ONE
There was a moment in the middle of Eden’s other wise dreamless sleep that she’d seen a brief, fuzzy glimpse of a nightclub—possibly Luxuria. And then—poof!—it was gone.
Weird.
She snuggled back down into the warm comfort of unconsciousness. Still, no dreams.
Later, when she woke, she pried open her eyelids fully, expecting to be lying in bed wearing her warm flannel jammies.
But, no. She wasn’t.
Instead, she realized that she was staring at her brightly lit reflection in her . . . bathroom mirror? Why was she in her bathroom? Standing up?
And—she looked down at herself—fully dressed, too?
Her eyes widened. “What the hell?”
“Good morning,” Darrak said from inside her.
“Morning?”
“Almost morning. Still night. Still dark. We have a few minutes till sunrise.”
“What’s going on, Darrak? Why am I dressed?”
“Feel free to get naked any time
you like. Don’t mind me.”
She gritted her teeth, finally pulling herself out of her groggy just-woken-up state. “Don’t even tell me you borrowed my body again.”
“Then I won’t tell you that.”
Eden glared at her reflection, the anger rising up like a thermometer ready to pop. A strangled scream pushed past her vocal cords, and she actually hit the mirror. It didn’t break, but it hurt her hand.
“Do you want me to hate you?” she demanded.
“Sure. Feel free.”
“Fine. I hate you!”
How was she supposed to deal with this? How could she control someone who had so much control over her life? It was beyond unfair, and it made her feel completely powerless.
Eden turned from her reflection, but not before noting that her cheeks had grown redder, her eyes glossy, but she refused to shed even one tear about this. The digital clock on her nightstand told her it was 7:40 a.m. Almost sunrise.
She stormed out of the bathroom and went to the kitchen to pour herself a big glass of orange juice that she quickly drained. Her morning “Florida sunshine” ritual didn’t make her feel the least bit better. She poured another one.
Great. She was thirsty as hell. What had Darrak been doing all night?
“Let me guess. Out visiting your BFF again?” she snapped, slamming the glass down on the kitchen counter.
“I was.”
“Any reason you didn’t tell me last night what your plans were?”
“Because I knew you’d make a big deal out of it. And look, I was right.”
He sounded sullen and oddly annoyed with her. And why was that? She was the one who should be pissed at him right now, not the other way around.
She rubbed her temples. “What did Theo want that was so damn important that it couldn’t wait until morning?”
“He wanted to give me a gift.”
“Wonderful. Flowers? Chocolates? Are you two the latest Netherworld power couple?” Sarcasm dripped.
“No,” Darrak said. “Actually he gave me your friend Ben Hanson and allowed me the chance to carve him up and watch him bleed to death.”
Eden froze, a breath caught in her throat. “And did you?”
There was a short pause. “What do you think I did?”
She’d begun to tremble, imagining Ben coming to a very unpleasant end. Darrak hated him. “I don’t know, so you better tell me right now.”
Darrak laughed humorlessly. “I gutted him, of course. You should have heard him scream. Like a little girl.”
She clutched her throat. It felt difficult to breathe all of a sudden. “Darrak—oh, my God—”
“He deserved it. Now that he’s with the Malleus, he’s only going to cause harm to others. I did everyone a favor, don’t you think? Besides, one less set of dimples won’t make the world stop turning on its axis.”
Eden squeezed her eyes shut and tried not to freak out. Darrak killed Ben? Just like that? With no conscience or guilt? She’d never known the real Darrak at all. It had all been a lie. He was horrible and sadistic and cruel and . . .
Her eyes snapped open. “Wait a minute. You’re . . . you’re lying to me, aren’t you? Aren’t you?”
“You’re going to have to be a bit more specific,” he said.
“About everything you just said to me. It’s a lie.” She felt the edge of the counter behind her. Currently it was the only thing helping to keep her on her feet.
“Well . . . Theo did give Ben to me as a present. He gave me the knife and everything.”
A shiver went down her spine. “But you didn’t kill him. I know you. You wouldn’t do it.”
“You know me, do you?” he said tightly. “You really think so?”
“Yes. I do. Despite our differences, despite everything that has happened up until now, I know you wouldn’t kill him.”
There was silence then, and it was enough to tell her she was right. The relief was so overwhelming she nearly collapsed to the floor.
Darrak didn’t kill Ben. Even when he’d been given the opportunity.
“Say it,” she said. She had to hear it out loud just to prove it to herself.
“What?”
“Say that you didn’t kill him.”
There was a sound of displeasure, like a grunt. “Fine. I didn’t kill him.”
“And you let him go.”
“Yes. I let him go,” he grumbled.
Relief continued to course through her. “I knew it.”
“It’s time,” he said.
“Time for wh—?”
Then she felt like someone had just punched her in the stomach, and she huffed out a long breath of thick black smoke. It had taken her by shock so much that she stood there, holding her hand over her stomach, and watched as Darrak began to take form right in front of her.
First there was a glimpse of pale, muscled limbs before they were covered by dark clothing that appeared as if by magic. It was magic. In less than a minute he’d taken solid form and stood there a few feet away staring at her.
He raked a hand through his dark hair. “You’re not usually conscious for that.”
No, she wasn’t. She’d only been awake one other time he’d taken form like that, and it was the first time she realized she was possessed. She’d managed to summon enough energy to force him out of her body.
“Where’s Ben now?” she asked.
“I have no idea.”
“Is he okay?”
“He’ll live.” He said it bitterly.
Eden couldn’t help herself. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For not killing him.”
“There was a time I wouldn’t have hesitated.”
“But you did and that’s a good thing.”
“Debatable.” Darrak wasn’t hugging her back. In fact, he felt tense. “Isn’t Pussy Galore supposed to jump in right about now? Leena! Eden is actually touching me. You might want to stop her before things get out of control.”
Eden was touching him, wasn’t she? Her rage had quickly subsided and shifted into something else. Something strange and warm. Something that had her holding on to this hug of relief and gratitude for much longer than was polite.
She didn’t want to let go of him.
Her heart picked up its pace.
Darrak hadn’t killed Ben. This normally wouldn’t sound like a reason to get all soft and mushy toward someone—the fact that he’d decided against committing murder—but this morning it had affected her in a decidedly soft and mushy way.
She’d doubted him, but it had only been for a moment. Despite their problems, she did trust him down deep. And he’d come through for her.
Eden flattened her hands against the hard planes of his chest. Darrak smelled good this morning. He always smelled good to her—clean and warm and delicious. It wasn’t a cologne, it was just him. She leaned closer and inhaled, moving her nose greedily up toward his throat.
“Uh . . . everything okay?” he asked.
She cleared her throat. “Yeah. Of course. Everything’s fine.”
“You’re acting kind of strange. Especially considering that not five minutes ago you said you hated me.”
She fought against this strange pull toward him. He was right. She was mad at him. Furious, in fact.
Oddly, though, furious was the last thing she felt at the moment.
Nevertheless, she forced herself to step back from Darrak and crossed her arms over her chest.
“I do hate you,” she confirmed.
Darrak studied her carefully as if he didn’t know what to expect next from her. “Okay.”
She craned her neck, trying to bring her jumbled thoughts into some sort of order. “Where is Leena, anyhow?”
“She must be asleep.” Darrak went to the refrigerator and opened it up. “This must be my lucky day. Who bought these?”
Eden glanced around as he pulled out a bag labeled Hot Stuff. He pulled
a couple of chocolate donuts out from inside.
“No idea.”
“A gift from the donut fairies. They must have known it was a rough night.” He bit into one, and his eyes flicked to her. “Delicious. Want one? Or do you hate me too much to share in my bounty?”
“I don’t want one.” She couldn’t believe that all she could think about at the moment was how good he looked eating that donut. What a stupid thought.
But he did look good. His lips . . . his tongue . . . his hands. A crumb fell to the black T-shirt that stretched over his muscular chest and abs. She bit her bottom lip as her gaze leisurely traveled over him. Damn, he was so attractive.
She really wanted his body right now.
Eden blinked rapidly at the thought.
Uh, hello? What the hell was wrong with her? This was not the way her brain normally worked. Especially at this time of the morning.
No more lustful thoughts about Darrak.
She hated him. It didn’t matter if he’d spared Ben’s life, she shouldn’t be feeling this way. Not here. Not now. And not toward him.
Hang on to the anger, she told herself. It makes things much easier.
She felt flushed so she fanned herself with a piece of junk mail.
Something caught her attention on the counter. An envelope addressed to her. She sliced it open to find a handwritten note and a small key inside.
Eden,
I’m sorry I’ve been such a bother. You made it clear last night that I’m not wanted here. If there’s one thing I can do it’s take a hint. I’ve been taking the hint all my life, and this is no different. I’ve gone to fix my problems instead of hiding from them. Enclosed is a key to a locker at the bus station at Dundas and Bay. Inside is that little item I told you about last night. Hold on to the key for me. If I’m not back in two weeks to get it, you’re welcome to the contents.
—Leena
P.S. Just because Darrak’s in love with you doesn’t mean he’s not going to get you killed. Take it from me: men, demonic or otherwise, are scum.
There was a lot to digest in that note.
Eden looked at Darrak, who was quickly polishing off the second donut.
“What did you say to Leena last night?” she asked, trying to remain calm. “When she thought you were me?”