Eden felt something wet on her cheek, and she pushed away a tear. “H-he was a good friend. I hadn’t seen him in forever, but we were going to have coffee soon and catch up.”
“A male friend of yours ends up dead. Interesting.” Ben glanced at Darrak.
“Don’t look at me,” Darrak bit back. “I didn’t strangle him.”
“I never said you did. But the fact you’d jump to that conclusion is also interesting, isn’t it?”
Eden gritted her teeth. Ben would look for any reason to accuse Darrak. All he saw was a demon—something to fear. He didn’t know who Darrak really was. “Of course Darrak didn’t do anything. He was with me last night.”
“Yes, I’m sure he was.” The intensity of Ben’s searching gaze was uncomfortable. “You’ve very close, aren’t you? Unnaturally close. Half the time, anyhow.”
She’d been waiting for this confrontation since Ben stormed out of her apartment last week, after seeing the truth with his own eyes. He’d wanted to save her. Instead, he shot her. An accident, of course, but the pain was something she wouldn’t be forgetting any time soon. Pain was one thing she now associated with Ben.
The crush she’d once harbored for the handsome cop had all but disappeared. A bullet to the chest did wonders in dousing any romantic aspirations.
Eden touched her throat, her heart aching at imagining Graham’s sudden end. What had he found? Who had he pissed off enough last night to get himself killed?
Andy sat perched on the edge of his desk watching them. “Darrak’s staying with his sister while he’s in Toronto. Of course they’re close.”
“Right. His sister.” Ben glared at her. “Forgot you two are supposed to be related. After all, there’s not much of a family resemblance, is there?”
“They’re half siblings,” Andy replied defensively.
“Sure. That makes much more sense, doesn’t it?”
Sarcasm, table for one. It was obvious that Ben could barely keep his disgust for the demon under control.
The whole thing was making her feel ill. A twinge of pain flittered through her stomach.
“What did you talk to Graham about?” Ben asked.
She glanced at Darrak. He was so tense that veins stood out on his neck and along his arms as he crossed them tightly over his chest. He looked ready to forcibly drag Ben out of there.
She licked her dry lips. “He was doing an investigation of the club, that’s why he was there. He’s a—he was a journalist. Several women have gone missing in the area, and he thought something strange was going on.” She exhaled and it sounded shaky. “I guess he was right.”
“Missing women?” Ben repeated. “Like Selina Shaw?”
The two cases weren’t remotely connected, but letting Ben know that would only dig her in deeper. “I don’t know. He said there were six women missing, all regulars at Luxuria. So he was investigating the club, trying to find some leads.”
“Had he found anything?”
She shook her head. “Nothing when I talked to him. It was just a gut instinct on his part. But . . . there’s something else . . .”
“What?”
“When I touched him, I had a flash. This overwhelming feeling of dread and fear came over me.”
“Is that some sort of psychic thing?”
Even now that Ben was a believer in all things supernatural, there was still a hard edge of skepticism in his voice.
“Yeah,” she said dryly. “A psychic thing. But I didn’t know what it meant. I guess I do now.”
“You think you sensed that he was going to get murdered?”
“I’m not sure. It felt like there was a dark aura around him. I can’t explain it.” Grief constricted her throat for a moment. Damn it. Why couldn’t it have been more clear? Maybe she could have helped him.
“A dark aura,” Ben repeated, his expression turning sour. “Great. That’s helpful.” His eyes flicked to Darrak. “You were there, too?
“In spirit.”
Ben snorted at that. “Yeah, I’m sure you were. And did you happen to see anything. . . .well, I hesitate to use the word strange since murder and mayhem would likely be your regular worldview—”
“What is your problem?” Andy interjected. “Sorry if things didn’t work out between you and Eden, but that’s no reason to come into my office this morning and be a dick to her and her brother.”
“For Christ’s sake,” Ben said, disgusted. “You have no damn clue, do you?”
“About what?” Andy replied, and there was no more friendliness toward the cop in his voice.
“Ben, enough,” Eden said. Her heart pounded hard. She didn’t want him to say anything he’d regret. Because, by the look on Darrak’s face, Ben was getting too close to the edge and had no idea how far the drop was. Darrak was good-humored and amiable up to a point—but he was nobody you wanted to mess with. He was a demon, after all.
“Darrak’s evil,” Ben stated.
Fabulous. This conversation wasn’t looking up.
“Says who?” Andy challenged. “You?”
Ben clenched his fists at his sides. “Eden, I’m giving you one more chance. There’s still time to fix this mess you’ve gotten yourself into before it gets totally out of control. You don’t know what’s happened to me . . .” He swallowed hard, his expression tense. “I’ve changed . . . and it’s all so I can help you. I want to help you.”
She really wanted to be completely and unforgivingly pissed off at him. But why did he have to have that pleading tone to his voice? Ben was truly worried for her safety.
All he’d seen of Darrak’s demon form was seven feet of hellfire and horns towering behind Eden at her apartment the day he’d nearly killed her by mistake. He had to be filled with guilt and rage and powerlessness about that.
Ben wore a small gold cross around his neck on a chain. He had strong beliefs about good versus evil. It wasn’t his fault he had a hard time believing anything different.
And it wasn’t Eden’s fault, either.
“You need to go now,” Darrak said darkly from behind him.
Ben’s shoulders stiffened. “He’s killing you, Eden. Little by little. You can’t deny it.”
It was true, she couldn’t deny it. So she said nothing.
Darrak remained silent as well. After all, he was killing her slowly but surely. The fact someone, especially a cop, might take issue with that wasn’t surprising.
Andy, who knew nothing of this, wasn’t so quiet. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Darrak’s a demon,” Ben said bluntly. “From Hell. Didn’t you know that?”
For a moment, the only sound in the office was the quiet whir of the ceiling fan. Eden stared at Ben bleakly before her attention turned to Andy.
“Your brother is a demon?” Andy said, stunned. “You said that before, but I thought you were kidding.”
“He’s not her brother,” Ben spat out. “He’s a disgusting, evil minion of Satan who’s seduced Eden into doing his bidding, and he’s sucking her dry of every last ounce of her energy. He’s killing her and she’s letting him.”
Well, put that way it didn’t sound so great, did it?
Darrak laughed, but it wasn’t a pleasant sound. “I haven’t been Satan’s minion for a long time, cop. And for what it’s worth, he prefers to be called Lucifer most of the time.”
“Darrak’s not evil,” Eden blurted out. She suddenly wasn’t feeling so good. This whole conversation had only helped the pain still swirling distractingly through her stomach to increase.
Ben shook his head. “You’re a fool if you believe that.”
Eden turned to Andy, who looked pale with shock at the direction of this conversation. “It’s not true. He’s not making me do anything I don’t want to.”
“So it’s all a lie? Darrak’s not a demon who seduced you?” Andy managed.
“Uh . . .” She cleared her throat. “Well . . . no comment.”
Ben groaned. “I was speaki
ng figuratively. I hoped I was, anyhow.”
“So let me get this straight.” Andy paced to the far side of the room and then back to his desk. He pointed at Darrak. “He’s a demon.”
“I am,” Darrak admitted. “And at this time I, uh, have no comment on the seduction issue, either.”
Eden held her breath, waiting to see what would happen next. This had to be enough to put Andy right over the edge, wasn’t it?
Andy went behind his desk, sat down heavily, and pulled a silver flask from his top drawer. He unscrewed the lid and drank deeply from the contents before wiping his mouth off with the back of his hand.
“Christ on a cracker!” he exclaimed. “This has been the craziest day ever!”
Okay. That was better than she’d expected, at least.
Ben’s face was red. “Damn it, I didn’t come here for this today. I’m not ready, I have more training to do before I can . . .” he trailed off and looked at Darrak. “Screw it. Eden’s soul is at risk. And if you think I’m going to allow you to be near her, to touch her, to destroy her life, you filthy, evil, selfish, demon piece of shit, then you’re—”
Darrak lashed out and grabbed Ben by his throat, digging his fingers in on either side of Ben’s windpipe, slamming him up against the wall behind him. Eden gasped out loud at the suddenness of it. Darrak had been calm and contained all this time. His quick turn to violence had taken her by surprise.
“If you don’t leave now, I’m going to lose my temper,” Darrak growled, and his eyes changed from ice blue to fill with amber flames. “You don’t want that to happen.”
“And what would you do then?” Ben rasped. “Tear me apart? Devour my soul?”
“Thanks for the suggestion. That donut wasn’t nearly as satisfying as it should have been.”
Ben fought against him, grabbing Darrak’s arms and managing to break the hold, before connecting his fist with Darrak’s jaw in a quick punch that snapped Darrak’s head to the side.
“Really?” Darrak glowered, recovering quickly. “You’re stronger than I thought, but is that the best you’ve got?”
Darrak grabbed Ben by the front of his shirt, and for a moment, Eden feared for the cop’s life.
“Are you going to kill me?” Ben snarled.
“Will you leave Eden alone?”
“And let you destroy her? Not a chance.”
“Darrak!” Eden let out a frustrated breath. “Let him go. Ben, you need to leave right—”
The next moment, a scream tore from her throat as the shallow pain that had been in her stomach shot through her entire body. It managed to stop all coherent thought, quickly submerging her in white-hot agony.
What the hell was this? What was going on?
Every cell of her body was filled with pain. It felt as if something, both inside and outside of her, was attempting to tear her apart.
Darrak was at her side in an instant.
“Eden,” his voice was panicked. “What’s wrong?”
“I . . . I don’t—” She screamed again as another wave of pain ripped through her. She clutched at Darrak’s arm, digging her fingernails in, trying to use him as an anchor so she didn’t get swept away by whatever this was.
“What the hell’s going on?” Ben demanded, his voice breaking with stress. “Andy, call an ambulance. Now!”
Being shot had been the worst pain she’d ever felt until now. This . . . this was a thousand times worse.
Andy stumbled toward the phone on his desk and grabbed the receiver to hold it to his ear. “There’s no dial tone.”
“This is because of you, you selfish asshole.” Ben jabbed a finger at Darrak. “You’re killing her.”
“This isn’t my doing,” Darrak snapped back. “Not this. Not now.”
But as strongly delivered as the reply was, Eden could hear the doubt in his voice. Whatever this was, it had to do with Darrak. There was no other explanation.
Another bolt of pain tore through her, and she clung tighter to Darrak—tight enough that it would probably break the ribs of a regular human—and then it was over. The tearing sensation ceased and her body relaxed. It had weakened her so much she couldn’t move, couldn’t think clearly. Her eyes closed, and her head fell slackly against Darrak’s chest.
She could hear Ben’s erratic breathing. “Is she dead?”
Darrak pressed his fingers against her throat, feeling for a pulse.
“She’s alive.” He sounded deeply relieved.
“Let me take her with me. I can help her.”
“Not going to happen.”
“Damn it, demon, you want to destroy her, don’t you? Is that your goal?”
Darrak’s muscles tensed, and he drew Eden closer to him, cradling her in his arms. “If you really think that, then you don’t know me.”
“I don’t want to know you.”
“You’re not wanted here, cop. Get that through your thick head. I’ll handle this.”
Ben laughed, but it didn’t hold an ounce of humor. “You’ll handle it. Yeah. Looks like you’re doing a stellar job so far. Eden’s too blind to see what you really are, but I can. She needs me.”
“Yeah. She needs you to leave.” Darrak gently stroked the hair off her forehead. “She’s not your dead fiancée, you know. You can’t fix your past mistakes by saving Eden from the big bad demon.”
Ben went silent for a moment. “You son of a bitch.”
“Bzzz. Wrong. I never had a mother. You’ll have to find another insult.”
Eden heard them as if they were miles away. Ben’s words were harsh, but she could hear his concern.
“What happened with my fiancée is none of your damn business.”
“Eden is my business,” Darrak replied.
“Right.” Ben’s voice twisted unpleasantly. “Got to protect your host, don’t you? Without her you’d have to find another body to highjack. One that might not be so willing to put her existence on the line to save yours. You may have Eden fooled, demon, but I’m not so naïve. I can see right through you.”
“You can, can you?” Darrak’s words were cold as ice.
“I’ve done some research on demonology, enough to know that there are no selfless or caring demons. You all think humans are food or playthings. Nothing more than that. It’s impossible for you to feel otherwise. So whatever you’re pretending to be, whatever Eden believes you are—it’s all a lie. No demon in history, no matter what the circumstances have been, has changed their base nature. Ever. You protect her because you need her. The moment you find a way out of this hole you’ve dug yourself into, she’s useless to you. The only question is, will she still be breathing when that day comes?”
Argue with him, Eden thought. Tell him he’s wrong. Please.
“Leave” was all Darrak had to say in his defense. He was so tense his chest and arms felt like marble.
Ben snorted. “See? You don’t even deny it. You know the truth even if she’s too blind to see past your flashy exterior. I swear to God, demon, I’m keeping a close eye on you. If anything happens to her, you’ll have me to answer to.”
The bell above the door jingled as Ben left the office. After another moment Eden managed to pry her eyes open. She looked up at Darrak.
Why hadn’t he argued and told Ben he was wrong? Maybe no other demon had ever changed before. But . . . but Darrak was different.
Wasn’t he?
“I have a dial tone now,” Andy announced shakily. “I’m calling an ambulance.”
“No,” she rasped. “No ambulances. I’m okay now.”
Darrak slowly helped her stand, supporting her all the way. His brows were drawn together and he looked worried.
But was it only an act?
Shit. She hated that Ben had managed to plant a seed of doubt in her mind about him. She and Darrak were over this, weren’t they?
So you trust the demon? she asked herself. Completely and totally?
Yes, of course she did. She had to. She had no other choice.<
br />
“What happened?” Darrak asked.
Eden braced herself on the edge of her desk and tried to breathe normally. “No idea. One moment I was okay, and the next . . . I felt like something was trying to rip me apart.” She frowned. “Maybe Nancy poisoned my coffee so she could get to you without your bossy fake sister around.”
“Sounds reasonable. But you hadn’t drunk any coffee yet.”
“Then that cancels out that theory.” She placed a hand over her abdomen and pressed. The pain was completely gone.
“Were you conscious?” Darrak asked. “Did you hear everything Ben said before he left?”
“Not really,” she lied. “I was in and out. Didn’t hear much. Why? What did he say?”
“I don’t think him and me are going to be best friends.”
“What a shock.”
“He cares about you, Eden.” Darrak’s jaw clenched. “For real.”
“Hooray?”
“Does somebody want to explain to me what in the holy hell is going on here?” Andy demanded.
Eden moved away from Darrak and went to sit behind her desk. Sitting was good. She gathered her hair, now tangled, and pulled it over her right shoulder.
“Where do you want us to start?” she asked.
Andy pointed at Darrak warily. “He’s a demon.”
“Yes.”
“From Hell.”
“Originally,” she replied.
“But . . . is he evil?”
She looked at Darrak.
“Not at the moment,” he said.
“Okay.” Andy took another gulp from his flask. “But you have to possess Eden when it’s dark out, I gather?”
“Uh-huh.”
“And you lied about being her brother.”
“Just playing along with what sis says.”
Eden grimaced. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”
“And now?” Andy asked.
“Not so good.”
Andy took another drink, draining the flask, and then exhaled shakily. “Okay, I think that pretty much covers it.”
She was surprised. “Really?”
“Just so you know,” Darrak said, “you don’t have to be afraid of me.”