The Entity Within (23 page)

“What birthmark?” Damon said.

“My mother came up with a cream to make it disappear but it took her a while. She was good with that sort of thing. She didn’t flaunt her magic in front of others.”

“Unlike your grandmother.”

“Gram doesn’t flaunt her skills. She likes using them and is accustomed to doing so. But she can be discreet,” Zoe said.

“Just not where Dr. Powers is concerned.”

“That’s true. But even there, she didn’t turn him into a monkey or a donkey or anything. Hopefully we’ve heard the end of the Powers people.”

“What about your ex-fiancé?” Damon said.

“What about him?”

“Are you glad you won’t be hearing from him again?”

“Absolutely.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she whispered.

His deep blue eyes darkened. She saw her own desire reflected in his gaze.

She leaned closer. So did he.

Then he abruptly stepped away. “Neville, turn camera back on.”

“Okay,” Neville said through the surveillance system.

“Get some rest,” Damon told Zoe. “We’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”

*   *   *

Damon faced the new day with resolve. The demons were toying with him and that aggravated the hell out of him. He was a man of action. He’d killed that cable guy demon yesterday morning and felt good that he’d taken care of business.

But this sitting-around-figuring-out-puzzles was not his idea of a good time.

Is having sex with Zoe your idea of a good time?

The answer was yes.

It shouldn’t be yes. He was a vampire. He should be able to control things. Vampires didn’t have emotions. Some took that to mean they didn’t have souls. Damon didn’t know about that. He only knew that he was in Vamptown for a reason.

Damon had spent much of the night trying to figure out what was real and what was legend when it came to the Book of Darkness. In between he’d played a few games of Words with Friends on his smartphone. A new player had challenged him and he’d welcomed the mental stimulation.

Because Damon sure didn’t need more physical stimulation. Holding a half-naked Zoe in his arms and kissing her welcoming mouth had given him a hard-on that had lasted for hours.

He’d seen the TV ads about calling a doctor for an erection lasting more than four hours. That might be true for humans but not for vampires.

He was sure Tanya would have been all over him in a flash had he contacted her. But he hadn’t.

Pat’s knock on the front door was a welcome diversion for Damon. Zoe was still upstairs, in her workroom. She hadn’t come down for breakfast yet. Not that he cared about such matters.

“I’m here about what happened last night,” Pat said.

“Which part?” Damon asked. “The Hounds of Hell?”

“The part that took place in Zoe’s bedroom.”

“She had a nightmare.”

Pat nodded. “That’s understandable given the recent events.”

“I agree,” Damon said.

“What’s not as understandable is what happened after that. Come on, don’t give me that blank look. You didn’t think Neville would tell me what happened between you and Zoe?”

“I’ll kill him,” Damon growled.

“Calm down. He erased the recording like you told him to. But you didn’t tell him not to report what happened to me.”

“I should have.”

“Not that it would have made any difference. Neville would still have been obligated to tell me,” Pat said.

“Why?”

“Because your actions affect us all. Sound familiar?”

“If Zoe and I let off a little sexual steam…”

“You could both get burned,” Pat said. “I know you like walking on the dangerous side, Damon. But I also know you haven’t forgotten what happened to you in New Orleans. Except it wasn’t just New Orleans, was it? That incident ended with you in hell.”

“Of course it did,” Damon said. “That kind of betrayal is always hell.”

“I wasn’t speaking metaphorically. I was speaking literally.”

Damon kept his expression blank but his insides were churning. Yes, he’d been to level one in hell but only his sire had that information.

“Don’t try to deny it,” Pat said with a strange sort of weariness.

“How do you know this?”

“I’ve been around a long time,” he said.

“What does that have to do with the current events?”

“That’s what we are all trying to figure out, isn’t it?”

“You’re the only one who met Silas before.”

“Am I? What do you remember about your time in hell?”

“The torture.”

“Do you remember Silas?” Pat asked.

“I never saw those who held me.”

“Your sire helped you.”

“Yes, Simon helped me get out. I was wrongfully held.”

“Like the two demons now claim has happened to them.”

“Guy and the other Guy? They lie.”

“Do you have proof of that?” Pat asked.

“There’s no proof either way.”

“So we keep looking,” Pat said.

“Time is running out,” Damon said. He felt it in his gut. Which was the most important reason why he couldn’t afford to focus on Zoe. The little witch could not get in his way or there would be hell to pay.

*   *   *

Zoe heard the sound of Pat’s voice even if she couldn’t hear the words. She was glad that Pat was talking to Damon downstairs. That kept Damon away from her, tempting her.

She really did need to concentrate on her business for an hour or two. Surely the world wouldn’t disintegrate if she just took a little time off.

Zoe practiced some deep-breathing routines that she hadn’t attempted since her arrival in Vamptown. They usually calmed her. Especially when she did them in her workroom. She wished she had the time to experiment with some new blends in the kitchen.

But the scents surrounding her worktable were soothing, especially because she’d deliberately pulled some essential oils that had that property. As she’d told Daniella yesterday, lavender was known for its calming abilities.

Zoe had also dressed the part, wearing her red
KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON
T-shirt.

She kept her focus on the loaf of cherry almond soap she was cutting with a crinkle cutter. The tool gave each bar a ripple effect that she liked. With her tools, oils, and botanicals around her, she felt more at home than she had since arrived in Vamptown. The digital scale along with funnels and tiny scoops guaranteed that she was adding just the right amount of ingredients. Many of her soaps were stamped with the Bella Luna logo of a crescent moon in a square on each bar. The crinkle cuts didn’t allow for that, so the logo was stamped on the muslin in which they would eventually be wrapped.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs jarred her out of her thoughts. “Gram, is that you?”

“It’s me.” Daniella burst into the room. “I had a premonition that if you and Damon have sex, Vamptown goes up in flames!”

Chapter Nineteen

So much for calm and tranquility. “What are you talking about?” Zoe said.

“I’m talking about sex. With you and Damon. Well, not my having sex with you and Damon obviously. I mean you and Damon having sex.”

“Is this about last night?” Zoe said.

“What happened last night?” Daniella demanded. “You two didn’t have sex, did you?”

“I thought Damon had the recording destroyed,” Zoe muttered.

Daniella frowned. “What recording?”

“From the surveillance camera in my bedroom.”

“You two made a sex tape?”

“No!”

“I don’t understand.”

“I don’t either. How can I have this incredibly powerful attraction to Damon yet he aggravates the hell out of me?” she whispered.

“I can understand that. I felt the same way about Nick.”

“But he seems nice for a vampire.”

“He can be charming when he wants to be. But he was a real pain in the ass when he was opposed to my opening my cupcake store. He said the same about me. This isn’t about me, though—except that I’m the one who had the premonition. It’s about you.”

“I thought you didn’t have premonitions.”

“I said I didn’t have them often but when I do they are usually true.”

“Usually?” Zoe said. “What percentage?”

“I’m not good at math. That’s why I have an accountant who is also my best friend. Her name is Suz.”

“I may need her if my business continues to expand. Is she good with business plans?”

“She’s the best. She doesn’t know about me being a hybrid druid or anything about Vamptown.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“Keep them that way. You can’t go kissing Damon or who knows where it could go. Okay, we both know where it could go, but it can’t.”

“Or Vamptown will go up in flames?”

“Right.”

“Maybe it isn’t meant to be taken literally. Flames in dreams can represent spiritual cleansing or transformation,” Zoe said.

“These were real flames,” Daniella insisted. “I could see them clearly.”

“Was a building on fire?”

“All of them were.”

“Including the funeral home?” Zoe said.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“I don’t know. You’d probably know better than I would. It was your premonition, not mine.”

“I’m telling you, this is all about you and Damon and sex.”

“What about Damon and sex?” Gram asked as she entered the room.

How could Zoe have missed the sound of her grandmother coming up the stairs? Probably because she was rattled by Daniella’s announcement.

“You don’t have to go all shy with me,” Gram said. “You can talk about sex in front of me.”

“I had a premonition that if Zoe and Damon have sex, Vamptown will go up in flames,” Daniella said.

“Oh my,” Gram said. “I’ve heard rumors that vampires were great lovers but I had no idea they were that great. I’m impressed.”

“I’m not talking about vampires being great lovers,” Daniella said.

“So they’re not?” Gram said,

“I don’t know about the rest of them, but Nick is awesome,” Daniella admitted.

“We are being watched,” Zoe belatedly reminded them. How could she have forgotten? Her brain was mush today. “And don’t use magic to mess with the recording,” she warned Gram. “You know what kind of trouble that got us into last time.”

“I know.” Daniella grabbed the legal pad Zoe had been making notes on.
We will write instead of speak out loud.

Zoe took the pad from her to scribble
I don’t think we should write or talk about it anymore.

Daniella yanked the pad back.
But I have to warn you.

And you did.

“What are you all up to?” Damon demanded.

Damn, she’d missed hearing his footsteps on the stairs, too, although odds were that he’d used vamp speed so by the time she heard him, he was already in the room. So was Pat.

“Don’t all answer at once,” Damon said. “What’s going on?”

“You and Zoe can’t have sex or Vamptown will go up in flames,” Daniella burst out. Turning to look over her shoulder at Zoe, she mouthed,
Sorry.

“Does everybody and their grandmother know about what happened last night?” Damon demanded angrily.

Gram raised her hand. “I don’t know what happened. Why don’t you fill me in.”

“I had a premonition,” Daniella said. “I didn’t know anything about a recording until I got here and Zoe told me.”

“That’s true,” Neville said via the surveillance system.

“Shut up,” Damon growled at him.

“Tell me about your premonition,” Pat told Daniella.

“You know I don’t have them very often but I had to say something. I had a premonition about my mom’s car crash before she died and I never said anything about it. I shrugged it off as a bad dream. But it wasn’t. I didn’t take it seriously and she ended up dead.” Daniella’s voice cracked.

“I’m taking it seriously,” Pat reassured her. “You shouldn’t feel guilty about the one you had concerning your mom’s accident. You didn’t know you were a hybrid druid then. You didn’t realize the gift you have. Now you know. When did you have this latest premonition?”

“An hour ago.”

“You were sleeping?” Pat asked.

Daniella shook her head. “No, I was making cupcakes.”

“What happened?”

“I closed my eyes for a minute and I got this vivid picture of all Vamptown on fire,” Daniella said.

“Maybe it was the demons putting that image in your head. Did you hear any voices that sounded like Darth Vader? Or had an English accent?” Zoe asked.

“I thought you put a protection spell over me,” Daniella said.

“I did.”

“So now you’re saying it doesn’t work?”

“I don’t know.” Turning to Damon, Zoe said, “Can’t you tell if she’s been affected by demons? Don’t you have a demon detector like they have a metal detector at the airports?”

“No, I don’t have that,” Damon said.

“You’re freaking me out,” Daniella said.

“I’m sorry.” Zoe gave her a hug. “It will be fine. I didn’t mean to upset you.” The truth was that inside, Zoe was just as freaked out as Daniella, but she couldn’t reveal that right now. Keep Calm and Carry On. She couldn’t just wear the T-shirt saying that, she had to talk the talk and walk the walk. She could fall apart later. When there were no cameras around. When the demons were gone.

Damn. So much for getting any more work done today. Not that fighting demons wasn’t work, but it wouldn’t pay the bills. It might pay Damon’s bills because it was part of his job description but it sure as hell wasn’t part of hers.

Wait, maybe she shouldn’t be tossing around words like
damn
and
hell
even if they remained in her mind and she didn’t speak them aloud. Not when demons were around. Maybe she should do what Damon suggested she do last night.

Okay,
ordered
was probably closer to the truth than
suggested.
Damon was good at giving orders, and he’d told her to chill. So maybe she should just chill. The modern version of Keep Calm and Carry On.

“I’m sure this will all work out. I mean, what chance do three measly demons have against an entire community of vampires plus a Demon Hunter and two witches?” Zoe said.

“And a hybrid druid,” Daniella said.