Personal Demon (30 page)

“I wonder how he called up the demon that possessed him,” Lawrence said. “Do we have to find and close an opening between universes now?”

“What is that to you?” Christopher asked Lawrence, quietly and threateningly.

“By
we
I meant Caetlyn,” Lawrence replied.

C
hristopher shook his head, visibly relaxed. Ivy worried about him. The poor Nighthawk wasn’t sure whose side he was on yet. Reforming from a lifetime of bad behavior took time. Or at least enforcing bad behavior because he thought it was the right thing to do. Anybody would be confused if their moral compass went spinning out of control.

It worried her that the old-world Strigoi Council were bound to send someone looking for Christopher. Worried her, yes, but they’d work it out. Let the future take care of itself. After planting a few mines and spies, of course.

Ivy concentrated on the present. She turned to Paloma. “How’s Ian doing?”

“He’s with his parents right now. It’s going to take a lot of work to get him completely back, but his fighting the possession the way he did at the end gives me hope.”

“How did you know the poison was going to work?” Christopher asked suddenly. He was glaring at Aunt Cate.

“Grandma told me,” Ivy said. “Oh, not directly. She didn’t say—go kill your father, my only child, with this vial of sparkly poisonous crystals. Grandma never lies. But you have to listen very carefully to what she tells you. She told me that she’d do what was necessary to save Grandpa, and I knew she was talking about Dad.”

“Your father did try killing his father some years ago,” Aunt Cate said. “He was forgiven for that attempt.”

“But Grandma’s not the sort to give you a second chance to go against her,” Ivy said. She shrugged sheepishly and concentrated on Christopher. “When she gave me the poison—which I so very stupidly mistook for medicine at the time—she told me to use just a little for vampires. When
I saw what a couple of crystals did to you, it occurred to me that perhaps she meant the poison for a different purpose. If a little bit did that much damage to a vampire, what would it do to a demon? I made the choice to find out.”

“You let her,” Christopher said to Aunt Cate. “You encouraged her.”

Aunt Cate only smiled at his accusing anger. “So did you,” she told him.

Fortunately, the doorbell rang before anyone said more on the subject. Paloma hurried off to answer the door.

Selena came in a moment later. She tossed a set of keys across the room. Christopher caught them.

“What’s up?” Ivy asked.

“We’re going on a road trip,” Christopher told her. “I’m told there are some people I need to meet with.”

She got to her feet. “Somewhere warm, I hope?”

“Las Vegas is warmer than here any time of year,” Selena said. She smiled at Christopher. “Have a nice trip.”

Christopher took Ivy’s hand. “Shall we, my dear?”

He led her away from her family, toward whatever was waiting for them next. Ivy was happy to go with him.

Selena put a hand on Christopher’s arm before they reached the door. “Come to me when it’s time to change. There are ways around not being able to stay together forever. Some don’t even break the Laws of the Blood.” She kissed Ivy on the cheek. “Thanks for what you did.” She eyed Christopher up and down. The look was full of warning for him.

Ivy and Christopher looked at each other and laughed.

“Have a good unlife,” Selena said.

“We will,” Christopher said. He tugged Ivy out into the night, where a car was parked, waiting to take them away.