The Naughty List (33 page)

“I don’t have your number,” she sniffed.

Rosalie stood up. “I’m sorry, Natalie, I forgot the time.”

“That’s all right, dear, although,” she glanced around the table with a look of concern. “You should have notified me. Any social engagement involving you and the E.L.F. requires a chaperone.”

Sadhri stared icily. “Does it? Well then, I’m the chaperone.”

Natalie raised an eyebrow. “You? You’re joking.”

“Trust me,” cracked Billy. “Aunt Sadhri has no sense of humor.”

David half rose. “I’ll come with you.”

“Absolutely not,” the cupid admonished. “Curfew is long past. However,” she brightened, “you can kiss her goodnight.”

Billy leaned back in his chair and interlaced his fingers behind his head. “Go ahead, David. Don’t mind us. Lay a big fat juicy one on her.” The others looked on with amused interest, calling out additional suggestions.

He scowled at them. Rosalie decided the E.L.F. had suffered enough. With a sly look, she laid a big fat juicy one on him instead. The others applauded. Sadhri let out a rousing battle cry. Rosalie waved cheerfully goodbye and then disappeared with Natalie.

****

“He is such a dear, sweet, E.L.F. isn’t he?” Ramesh twittered with an exaggerated sigh. “Look at the way he let Rosalie completely overwhelm him. I thought for sure he’d faint, but he didn’t.”

“I always thought sweetness was one of his best qualities,” agreed Billy with a straight face. “He’s so…so… manly sweet.”

David banged his head on the table. “Have I mentioned how much I hate cupids?”

“Too many times to count.” Billy punched him in the shoulder. “Don’t worry, man. Rosalie’s handling it. Better than you, I might add.”

David’s phone rang. He glanced at the display and groaned. “Perfect. The Baal needs to see me ASAP at the repository.”

He heard Billy yell just before the dash-away took hold. “Give him my love, you dear, sweet wonderful E.L.F!”

David spied Dominic pacing outside the repository. “I want to thank you ONCE AGAIN,” the E.L.F. growled, “for sic-ing a cupid on me and Rosalie.”

The Baal’s eyes narrowed. He opened his mouth as if to snap back.

David clenched his fists. The demon was a head taller and thirty pounds heavier, but he so wanted an excuse right now to punch him in the nose.

Without warning, the demon backed down. “I didn’t intend… I thought…” The words came with obvious difficulty. “I didn’t expect Stephen to assign a cupid. I assumed your parents would be delegated as monitors. Cupids,” the Baal added stiffly, “are a pain in the ass.”

David raised an eyebrow. “No lie. Stephen doesn’t think so, though. His sister married one.”

“I forgot. However, your human—”

“Rosalie.”

“Rosalie appears to be handling the situation well. I know, monitoring is difficult for her, but the cupid’s reports are very positive. She’s earned quite a bit of respect.” David stared at him. His words almost sounded like an apology.

Dominic gritted his teeth and spit out. “Ms. Jankowski prints her updates on pink scented paper. All the ‘y’s are decorated with little curlicues on the ends and the a pa anic gri’s’ are dotted with hearts. They look ridiculous. Where did she even find that font?”

“I hear you man.” David felt an unexpected rush of sympathy. “They have no clue how annoying they are.”

“Their denseness is unbelievable. How do they not know?”

The conversation lulled in an awkward pause. “So…you called me…?”

“Yes.” Their shared moment dissolved. Dominic cleared his throat and straightened up. “I created a partial way through Pearce’s shields, but I need The Book.”

David led the way into his family vault. Dominic reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two small vials of a powdery substance. The material swirled inside each one emitting radiant sparks. The grains plinked against the sides of the containers as if frantically hunting for a way out. He handed them to David.

The E.L.F. held one of the vials up to the light, examining the contents. Even through the glass the charge of active magic prickled against his fingertips. “What is it?”

“A counterspell. Anthony used a demon-based shield to hide his activities, but then he created modifications to cloak a medusa, a hellhound, and a kulkucan; three separate Integrals, three different variations. Fortunately for us, inter-Integral alterations also make a spell unstable. Pearce is a damn good adept,” he admitted reluctantly, “but even a preeminent spellcaster needs several months to lock in the magic. He didn’t have the time, so he cut corners. When you do that, a weak point is always left leaving the spell vulnerable to attack. I deduced the process examining Salazar’s chain. The powder will be effective against either Kaplan or Darby.”

“What about Pearce?”

“Unfortunately, the original spell is tougher. I’m still working on it.” He motioned toward the Book. “Sprinkle their pages.”

David called up Kaplan’s page first. As before, no updates appeared, just a giddying swirl of barely visible letters. He flicked off the stopper from one of the vials and dribbled the contents over the top. The glittery sand made contact, spread out, and effused the paper with a soft glow. The Book stirred under David’s fingertips as if shaking off a too-long sleep. He stifled a shout as new words immediately appeared.

Dominic peered over his shoulder. “Stole a car…abetted in the robbery of a pharmacy south of Decatur on the night Salazar was captured…”

David frowned. “Nothing since? I hoped—”

“The magic takes time for the counterspell to sink in,” the Baal assured him. “The Book will read the oldest offenses first. Eventually, all traces of Pearce’s shield will disappear and the record will be up to date.”

“How long?”

“Hard to say…a few days—maybe sooner.”

David sprinkled Darby’s page. “The same pharmacy robbery—at least we know they stuck together.” He looked up eagerly. “Can the hellhounds track them?”

“They may begin to get a trace scent, but they won’t key in completely until the pages are scrubbed completely clean.”

David’s eyes drifted over the open volume deep in thought. Why did the location of the robbery bother him so much?

“What is it?” asked Dominic.

“South,” he murmured. “They were headed south. The entrance to the interstate is nearby.”

“Not necessarily. Georgia was only the last update. They could be anywhere by now.” re th. The Unconsciously, Dominic clenched his fist.” Notify me as soon as you get something concrete on their location. I’ll activate all the hellhound packs. Pearce won’t escape this time.”

The look of fierce intensity surprised the E.L.F. “He really pissed you off, didn’t he?”

The Baal stared glumly at the wall. “He was under my command. He betrayed me. What do you think?”

David shrugged. “I think your ego is bruised. Face it, Dominic, you gave him the idea. Frankly, the thought crossed my mind and others, the only reason you’re so angry at Pearce is because you didn’t think of the plan first.”

The Baal said nothing.

His attitude ticked David off. How could The Book believe Dominic was making amends when he didn’t show a shred of remorse? “You know what else I think? Your uncle would approve of Anthony. Hell, he’d probably pin a medal on his chest. A few false accusations, a couple of human assaults, and the death of a lesser demon are a small price to pay in return for the greater good of the clan.” Dominic loomed over the E.L.F. For an instant it looked as if the bigger stronger Integral would throw the first punch. David braced himself.

The storm left the Baal’s eyes. “Whatever you may think of me, I never wanted this. Liang’s murder is on my shoulders now.” He strode off, but his steps faltered at the vault door. He glanced back. “I’m not my uncle.”

David waited until the demon exited the repository. “Dominic Schiller,” he commanded The Book. As if a mysterious breeze wafted through the vault, the pages rippled to a stop. The Nice List heading appeared although the green words were heavily tinted with red. The indecision amused him. “You can’t quite make up your
mind about Dominic, either,” he muttered.

The E.L.F. shut The Book. Even through the ornate cover, he sensed the prickle of the counterspell taking effect. Soon Kaplan and Darby’s location would be secret no longer. No way in hell they were perfect little angels all this time. Something they did since Decatur would trip them up. The Book would know, and then the hellhounds would lock onto the scent again.

With capture imminent, he should feel optimistic only the E.L.F. couldn’t shake an uneasy feeling. South….headed south…the words rang through his head. Why hammer at him? The direction meant nothing. Dominic was right, they could be anywhere. He drummed his fingers on top of The Book’s cover and then made a quick decision. David whipped out his phone. He dialed Billy and filled him in.

“The pack leaders won’t notify you, so I thought I’d give you the heads up. If Pearce is still in the Atlanta area, you’ll catch his scent quicker than the hellhounds from New York.” He paused. “There’s a possibility he’s headed south.”

Eagerness tinged Billy’s voice. “Please tell me he’s coming here.”

“I can’t think of any reason for him to return to Florida but, just in case…”

“Yeah. Just in case.”

Chapter Nineteen

Penrose’s was a beehive of activity. Christmas Eve was insane at the best of times, but knowing the rooftop would soon crawl with dryads setting up for a party of supernatural beings, didn’t do much to set Rosalie’s mind at ease. David kept annoyingly secretive about the festivities, other than insisting she’d have fun. Throughout the day, Rosalie shot anxious glances at the ceiling. What constituted an Integral’s idea of fun? Minotaur death races? Basilisk wrestling?

“Praying for all of us to go away?” allt filled David stood in the door jamb with a teasing smile on his face. “It won’t work, you know.”

Rosalie jumped up to greet him. “Hey, you brought The Book. Are the hidden pages visible, yet?” David had filled everyone in on the Baal’s progress.

“No. I still only read their activities in the Atlanta area. Dominic swears by the end of the day the spell will permeate the pages completely. I brought The Book for the party. I’m keeping it close until he installs the shields and the dryads set up the display area. The spell shouldn’t take long. I dropped Dominic off on the roof before I came down here. Can you take a break? We’ll go upstairs and watch.”

She glanced nervously at the ceiling. “Will it be, you know, noisy? The store is still full of customers.”

“Nope. He’s not a shiva. No one will notice a thing.”

“Then I’d love to. I was in the middle of Sadhri’s security report and it’ll wait.”

“Any more additions to the sculpture garden?”

“Not today, thank goodness, and their backyard is empty. Looks like everyone will be able to relax and enjoy the party tonight.”

They dropped by Marissa’s office and invited her along. Grace and Brian were already on the roof chatting with Natalie. “Doesn’t she ever go home?” muttered David under his breath. Rosalie shushed him.

Brian waved them over. “Dominic’s almost ready.”

Marissa eyed the Baal. “He’s cute,” she murmured to Rosalie and then flushed. “I mean, not what I expected from the King of Demons, no horns or pointed tail.”

“He’s not the King of Demons. He’s the Baal. Anthony is a demon too, remember? So is most of your new security department, now that I think about it.”

“Oh yeah. Life has gotten seriously whacked.”

“No lie.”

Dominic opened an expensive leather briefcase. “Must have set him back a pretty penny,” whispered Marissa. “He has great taste.”

The demon reached inside, pulled out a black ebony box, and opened the lid. Resting on a midnight blue silk lining were four huge pearls. They glowed with a faint internal luster, unnatural in even the rarest pieces.

Dominic’s lips moved in a silent incantation. Rosalie didn’t see anything, but the little hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. Magic gathered. One of the pearls quivered. Haltingly, it levitated from the depths of the silk cushion. Rosalie heard Marissa suck in a breath. She was impressed, too.

The pearl floated at eye level. The Baal uttered a sharp staccato of words. The jewel rocketed off to the northern footwall of the roof remaining suspended in midair. Three more times he repeated the charm. Three more pearls zipped to the east, west, and south sides. Rosalie squinted. They were so small she had a hard time seeing them. Only the faint glint of the sun on the opalescent surfaces marked their positions.

The Baal issued a sharp command in a strange sing-song language. The pearls vibrated with increased intensity. They stretched and flattened to become pale thin sheets spanning the circumference of the entire rooftop. The sides melded together to form a giant tent. The shield held no color, but faint trails of sparkly luminescence charged around the surface.

The Baal shoulders sagged. “The barrier is done.”

“It’s beautiful,” gasped Marissa. “May I touch it?”

His eyes held a flicker of amusement as hemus” motioned her to the side of the building. Her finger ran down the magical wall leaving a faint glittery trail. She chuckled and drew a smiley face. It shimmered for a moment before disappearing. “Once my son, Alex, sees this all he’ll want to do is make shiny stick figures all evening. I’ll have a heck of a time keeping him off the wall.”

“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “The dryads are good with children. They have experience keeping even the most rambunctious ones out of trouble.”

Marissa winked at him. “Speaking from personal experience, are you?” The Baal seemed taken aback.

Poof…Poof…Poof

Three cupids appeared weighed down by several large bundles apiece. “Set-up will begin,” David told Rosalie. “They’ll ferry in the dryads and the party supplies now.”

She peered anxiously at the crystalline shell. “The barrier is so delicate. Are you sure no one can see through from the outside?”

“Positive. Go downstairs and check. I need to stay here and supervise the pavilion for The Book.”

“I’ll go with you, Rosalie,” said Marissa. “I have to get back to work, anyway.” She turned to the demon. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Baal.”