Demon at My Door (26 page)

      ****

Rick’s sitting at his usual table located in the back of the library, with his nose stuffed in a book—one he finds comical about demon’s no doubt—when I walk in. With light footed-steps, I march over to him and slide into the seat next to him. 

He raises his eyebrows. “Well this is a surprise.”

“Yeah. This can’t wait,” I say while his eyes flick to my wet hair. 

“What happened?” 

I debate on telling him about the whole bathroom scene, but decide against it. No way do I need him to know that Taylor and I have been plotting to kill him. “Don’t ask.”

He laughs. “Well, I hope you didn’t run into anymore levitating guys who freak you out.”

I roll my eyes. “This isn’t a joke, Rick.” 

His smile leaves his face. “I didn’t plan on telling you that way, you know. It’s just that, I was really into what we were
doing
, and I let my powers get out of check.” 

My face heats, and for the first time in a long time, tingles fill my stomach. Thinking about Rick that night, the way I was ready to give into him, floods my mind. “It would’ve been nice for you to tell me, instead of freaking me out with it.”

The corners of his mouth turn upward, in a half smile. “Like you would’ve believed I was your demon.”

This time I smile, because I know he’s right. “I would’ve probably just accused Stew of telling you about it or something.”

He runs his hand through his hair and pushes it away from his face. “Stew pisses me off. Why would you even like an asshole like that? I would kill to be with you.”

I recall the story he told me in his car the other day. “You kind of did, didn’t you?”

He chuckles and shrugs. “You’re right. I guess that’s how we’re in this mess to begin with, huh?”

“So, you really did kill people? I mean, when you were human.”

“Yeah, I can’t say that was my best moment, but when I got to your family’s farm and found you dead, I kind of went berserk.”

“I really wish you’d stop saying
‘you’
. It creeps me out.”

“But it was you.”

I shake my head. “No, Rick. It wasn’t.”

We sit in silence as he picks at the corner of his book, and my curiosity stirs about the girl he killed for to become what he is.

“So how’d your girlfriend die? She was murdered, right? And then you went after the men who did it and killed them.” 

He nods and his charcoal eyes appear full of sadness. “Yes. It wasn’t my finest hour. I shot them both in the back, and in those days you had to give the man a fighting chance, not shoot him like a coward. The Sherriff saw the whole thing go down. The town’s folk strung up a noose, demanding justice. But before they had the chance to hang me, Lilim came and made a deal.”

“Why did you take the deal?” I whisper. 

He pulls his lips in tight causing his jaw muscle to flex. “To see you again. Lilim told me if I take the deal, there was a possibility I might find you again someday.”

“What’s the deal between you a Dr. Fletcher?”

“What do you mean?”

I chew the inside of my jaw. “Well, I know why you want me to become a demon. What I don’t get is why Lilim wanted to transition you into one? She wasn’t some old girlfriend too, was she?”

Rick shakes his head. “No Lilim’s interest in me was purely…physical.”

My head pushes back. “Ew.” Flashes of Dr. Lilim Fletcher and Rick tangled up in a kiss causes my stomach to lurch.

He laughs. “It never got that far. Trust me. You’re the only woman for me. Lilim can’t hold a candle next to you.”

A lump builds in my throat, and I swallow it down. “Rick…I’m not--”

Rick cuts me off. “I know you don’t believe me now, but it’s true. You’re just the same. It’s you. I knew it when I laid eyes on you sixteen years ago.”

A warm tear glides down my cheek as I think about how much he’s been through just to try and find his true love again. True love like that only exists in movies and fairy tales. I can’t imagine loving someone so much you’d be willing to do Satan’s work, but I see the love in his eyes. Love he thinks belongs to me.  

Rick rubs his eyes. “Look at me getting all mushy on you. New topic. One that doesn’t bring tears to that pretty face of yours.”

I dry my face with the sleeve of my sweater and clear my throat. “Oh yeah. I almost forgot what I came in here for.”

He leans into me, and puts his elbow on the table while he waits on me to spill it.

"Do you mind ditching your classes, because I want to get this deal done as soon as we can?”

He leans back in his seat and folds his arms. “How soon do you want to leave?”

I look down at my watch. “Is now too soon?”

He shakes his head. “Let’s go. I know the perfect one to collect.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

I lean on my elbows on the table at Drake’s while we wait on our food. The aroma of greasy dinner food wafts around my face, making tiny cramps clench in my stomach as it growls. Rick insisted I grab lunch with him while we wait on our next soul collection. 

“I think you did an amazing job the past couple of days,” Rick says.

I shrug and pick at my black fingernails, not ready to hear about the great job I did murdering people. “I really didn’t do anything.”

“Are you kidding? You’ve shown no fear. And you’re more than happy to punish scum bags. You’d make an excellent demon.”

“Well, those guys all deserved it, but there’s no way I want to do this forever.”

My head begins to throb, and I remember I still have my hair pulled into a tight ponytail. I release the rubber band, shaking my hair free. I run my hands through it, instantly relieving some of the tension on my scalp. 

Rick’s eyes scan me while he wears an appreciative smile. “Your hair looks nice down.”

My cheeks grow warm from his compliment and I fight back an embarrassing smile. “Thanks.”

His gray eyes soften, and he licks his lips. An influx of heat of floods through me as his stare transfixes on my mouth. 

The attraction vibe between us overwhelms me. I bite my lip and look away. Is it wrong to find your demon attractive?

I shake my head. Yes. It is very bad to think he’s hot. He’s a cold blooded monster and I think I still have some sort of feelings for Stew even though he’s an ass. 

What’s wrong with me? Having a thing for two guys at the same time is a very, very bad thing. 

I rub my forehead viciously, trying to rid the thoughts of his killer smile from my brain.  

“You okay?” Ricks asks.

I need a subject change, quick. “So do you know where the next soul is?” 

He clears his throat. “It’s not a definite yet, but I think one will be popping up pretty soon.”

My body tenses. “You mean, you already know who it is?”

Rick shakes his head. “Not exactly. I just sort of get this ominous vibe.”   

I draw my lips into a tight line. “I see.” 

“What?” He raises an eyebrow. “You think I’m lying?”

I tilt my head and eye him with suspicion as I recall him saying in the library he knew the perfect one. “Not lying, exactly. But not telling me the total truth, either.” 

“Believe me, if I knew who it was for sure, we’d already be on our way. Nothing’s set in stone. We have to wait for the choices of the soul to put them in death’s path. And in this part of the city, that sometimes can be a while, but I’m getting a vibe.”

The skin between my eyebrows crinkle. “What you’re like a psychic or something?”

His deep throaty laughs bounces around the restaurant. “No. I develop a connection with the soul I’m tracking. It’s not an exact science or anything. I sort of have an internal compass, pointing me in the right direction of the soul.”

"Is that how you find me?” I ask my eyes focused on his. “Through a
connection
?”  

“Every time. We’ve been linked ever since I marked your soul.”

I raise my eyebrows. “How many times have you used it on me?”

He smiles sheepishly. “Too many to count.”

“So the time you saved me from Trevor—”

He nods. “Yes. I knew you were going to be there, and when I didn’t see you, I used it to track you.”

A flashback of Trevor’s breath on my face makes me shiver. “Thank you for that. If you’d been a couple minutes longer…” I shake my head, ridding myself of the thoughts that threaten to flood my mind. “Thank you.”

Rick reaches across the tables and touches my hand. “I meant what I said that night about Trevor. I would’ve killed him if you asked me to. Deal or not.”

I smile.  It would’ve been easy for him to kill Trevor. “No doubt. And I’m sure it would’ve looked like a suicide or an accident.”

He grins. “I am pretty good at covering up my crime scene evidence.”

I roll my eyes. “Whatever. I think you kind of enjoy it.” 

He shakes his head. “I didn’t at first. I hated it and thought I made a mistake. My first assignment was difficult, and I lost the soul. But eventually I got used to it and started going after the really bad souls. But you…”

“Me?”

"Yeah.” He squeezes my hand. “You’re a natural. It’s like you have a gene in place to show no fear to your prey.”   

My mind traces a path back to the two souls I’ve helped Rick to my place. Both times, it was like someone else talking through me, ready to punish both of those sadistic bastards. “Is that normal?”

He chuckles. “
Normal
? Who knows what that is in this situation? Demons are better than humans at allowing inner darkness to take over.”

I swallow hard. “Inner darkness? Like my evil side?”

Rick nods. “But In your case I’d say it doesn’t have anything to do with that. You’ve always been ready to put people in their place.”

He says that like he’s known me for ages and in his mind I know he thinks he has. He peers down at me with his stormy, gray eyes. Butterflies churn in my stomach, and even though I should hate him for what he’s done to me, I can’t help but be taken in by his handsome face. 

I stretch my arms above my head so the thoughts of Rick will stop. I need to get away from Rick before he has the chance to convince me being demon is a good thing. “When can we get the next soul? I’m ready to get this thing wrapped up.”

He frowns. “You want to be rid of me?”

Without thinking, I touch his arm in an attempt to comfort him. “It’s not that.” He wraps his fingers around my hand and I’m surprised by how nice the feel of his skin against mine is. “You’re actually a good friend.” 

The smile on his face nearly touches his ears and then he gives my hand a little squeeze. “Friend? It’s a start.”

Ruining our bonding moment, the waitress sets our hamburger platters on the table.  The food on my plate makes my mouth water as the smell teases my nose. 

My stomach rumbles at the site of the food. I can’t remember even feeling this hungry. Maybe there is something to this stealing souls business that drives a body into hunger overload. “Is it always like this?”

“What?” He asks as he squeezes ketchup onto his plate. 

“The cravings.”

Rick’s eyes jerk up to meet my face and my heart gallops in my chest. “I’ve had one I can’t shake since the first time I met you.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

I pull my hair back while in front of the mirror at Drake’s. The skin on my neck has been burning all day. I gasp when the newly branded patch of skin reflects back to me. The snake tattoo outline is darker—the shapes of the snakes now totally distinguishable shapes.

My eyes widen as one of the tales of the snakes wiggle. 

“Shit.” The word whooshes from my mouth while I steady myself against the sink. 

Lunch time is over and we need to stop screwing around. Time is ticking.  

Rick sits in the corner booth and stares out the window completely relaxed. When I approach the table he peers up at me. His face morphs into a concerned expression when our eyes meet. “What’s wrong?” 

The fingers on my left hand clutch my throat. “It’s starting to move. We need to hurry.”

Rick nods and then stands. I’m glad he knows exactly what I’m talking about and doesn’t make me say it out loud. 

“Let’s go.” I follow him out of the restaurant and to his car. 

The music already blasts throughout as I slide onto the cool leather seat across from Rick. The warm air blasting from the vents causes the spicy cologne he’s wearing to swirl around me and invites me into him, but I refuse to let those kinds of thoughts distract me. 

“Where are we going?”

“We…are going to a party,” he says as he squeals his tires on the pavement while he pulls away. 

I check the clock. “
A party? Now?
It’s only four o’clock in the afternoon. Whose is it?”

Rick shrugs. “Some guy from school is having a get together.”

Shoving my hair away from my face and tucking it behind my ear, I look at him. “Why are we wasting time at a party? Today is my last day.”

He steals a glance at me. “Relax. We’ll still get your soul. We’re just going to kill a little time until one’s ready to harvest.”

Leaning back in my seat, I do what he asks and try to loosen up even though he’s being ridiculous. The beat from the stereo pumps in the car’s interior and vibrates my muscles. This is the last thing I want to do right now. 

Rick on the other hand looks happy and completely ready to attend a party. He looks amazing in a black oxford and his long, brown hair neatly tucked behind his ears. I, on the other hand, look like a complete mess. My hair is still a little damp from the bathroom incident and most of my make-up gone.   

“You don’t look happy,” Rick says. I don’t answer him and continue to stare through the windshield. “You know being a demon isn’t all bad.”

“I’m not a demon yet,” I remind him. 

He pulls up in front of a house party in full swing. People pour from every possible opening and it’s not even five o’clock yet. There are tons of people from Capital here, but some of the others I don’t recognize. 

“How did you find out about this party?

He runs his hand through his hair. “I don’t know. Everyone was talking about it this week.”