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And he did it like a guardian. I might be fighting a creature stronger than me.

“Conn!” I yelled out. A now too-familiar panic set in when my demon did not appear. Something was wrong again.

I looked over at Rasmus who had lowered his book to stare at the transformed demon. Was I supposed to be grateful that he was finally watching? Shaking my head at his unhelpfulness,I turned back and saw the demon with an energy sword clutched in his hand.

The Dagda stone chose that moment to speak. He mirrors you this time.

I looked at my empty hand. Goddess, did that make him able to draw on Conn’s power?

Yes, the Dagda stone answered.

My mind scrambled to absorb the information but not for long. A blast of power from his free hand hit the middle of my chest and sent me flying into the wall behind me. The last thing I saw before my eyes closed was Rasmus jumping up from his seat to join the fight that I hadn’t been able to convince him was coming.

I woke sometime later onone of the fancy couches in the foyer. I could tell where I was from the feel of the leather against my aching back.

Gale sat beside me on a footstool with a cold cloth pressed to some painful spot on my forehead. I blinked until my eyes opened all the way and immediately saw the demon frozen with an energy sword in his hand. Someone with a dark sense of humor had put him next to the sheet-covered statue of Ezra as if we were creating a museum display in the foyer.

“Where’s Rasmus?” I asked.

“Once the guardian saw you were okay, he left to take care of another matter.”

Of course he did. But there was no use complaining to Gale. She couldn’t influence my guardian’s priorities or move me to the top of the list.

“Where’s Mulan? Is she okay?”

Gale rolled her eyes. “Mulan is fine. But my son is not and neither are you. So lie still.”

My eyes grew wide. “Conn didn’t come when I called. That’s only happened twice in twenty years, Gale. I knew something was wrong again. What happened to him?”

“The demon had partially possessed him. It’s like a human getting the flu. Conn’s purging the other demon’s essence from his system. It’s painful and makes him very ill. He’s also extremely mad at himself for allowing it to happen. Henry is helping him get through it. He’ll be fine in a few hours.”

“If he wasn’t so concerned about Mulan, Conn wouldn’t have been fooled by that creature. She was trying so hard not to start any trouble with her wretched family and he was trying to go along because he loves her.”

Gale smiled. “Yes. Love hurts us in strange ways.”

I nodded. My love for Mulan had made my head hurt. My back wasn’t in much better shape. I tried to laugh and that hurt too. “It especially hurts when ya end up face down on a marble floor because ya were trying to force yer best friend to do something she didn’t want to do.”

I pointed to the frozen creature. Someone had artfully arranged his long white mustache so that it draped away from his feet. There would be no more decorating my house with statues of bad guys.

“Who stopped the demon?”

Gale smiled. “Mulan and her weapon stopped the demon with a well-spoken chant. Afterward, the guardian did something to help keep him that way but said the effects would wear off in a day. He works very hard to not get involved in things, doesn’t he?”

“Yes. No one works harder at anything than Rasmus does at not involving himself in my real life.” I patted her hand andreplaced it with mine on the washcloth. “The demon threw me into the wall.”

“Yes, he did, and everyone saw it. Mulan’s family was appalled at his transformation and more appalled by his actions. But they also begged Mulan not to end him completely. I don’t think they understand that demons can’t be killed or that he doesn’t truly care about them.”

“Because they’re a little possessed too. How can they not know about Mulan’s work? She’s been a Wu Shaman since she was a teenager. She went to school to be one. The hair thing was how she made a living but casting out demons was her calling.”

“I think seeing both of you hurt because she hesitated was too much guilt for Mulan. She fled the house without even checking on you. Henry said she burst into tears when she saw how sick Conn was. She blames herself for your injuries and rightly so. It’s her family causing all the trouble.”

I sighed. “I know, but I can’t be mad at her just for hesitating. Her family makes her as crazy as my ex-husband makes me. I’m feeling more awake now, Gale. Will ya help me sit up?”

Gale put one arm around me and lifted my back until I was upright. Under the washcloth on my head was a knot the size of my fist—or at least, that’s how big it felt. Marble was not a soft surface to land on.

I gingerly swung my legs to the floor and breathed out a sigh when I discovered I wasn’t dizzy. I looked at Gale. “Mulan did the right thing in the end. That’s what matters.”

Gale arched an eyebrow at my statement. “Not really, Aran. She should have destroyed him. That ancient one has never regenerated. You can tell by how he still sees humans as weak prey for his use. Regeneration teaches a demon that being strong is a fleeting state. Regeneration is a price to be paid. His human body’s age and physical condition reveal that he neverpaid it. Demons are not like humans who learn by watching each other die.”