Page 12 of The Human Element (The Human Element Collection #1)
Daemon
During the flight, Lorelei and Daemon mostly spoke of different historical events or how Lorelei got a job with the magazine, which Daemon chuckled upon hearing she actually spilt her coffee on Mr. Fletcher the day of her interview.
The conversation was easy and enjoyable with her, but a constant nagging about the surprise meeting with Raphael tugged at the back of his mind, having rattled him more than he originally thought.
His mind couldn’t stop thinking over what Raph said.
“It’s not just Lucifer who wants you dead, Daemon. The other ArchAngels are thinking you have become too much of a problem to allow it to continue, too.”
These words were haunting him.
Not only do we have to fend off Lucifer’s assault...The other ArchAngels are thinking of getting involved. And if that’s the case, we are in deeper shit than I thought.
Daemon wasn’t sure he was strong enough to fend off both sides at once.
It’s difficult enough that Lucifer more than likely sends his best demons after them to keep Armageddon on track.
Although strong, in comparison to Raphael, Daemon wasn’t as capable as he used to be.
With the last thought fluttering across his mind, a feeling of guilt bubbled inside of him.
Turning to watch Lorelei, who was looking out of the window of the cab they got outside the airport, his heart twisted; and her question popped into his mind as well.
“He mentioned that there was a mission you were ordered to do that you didn’t, that’s why you became a Fallen angel. What was it you didn’t do?”
There was no way he could tell her that, but it made his insides churn at the thought of keeping something from her.
Suddenly Lorelei turned back to him, and gave a small, reassuring smile. Which only made it hurt more to be keeping such a secret. When she finally turned away, he felt a sense of relief.
She is so strong. Stronger than I could’ve imagined. How she’s handling this, even with so much at stake, is admirable.
He recalled her staring at him back on the plane, and his heart gave a lurch. Frustrated with himself because of this; he was grateful to see they'd finally gotten to their next destination. Camden Markets; where Magnus’ shop was set up.
When the car came to a stop, he saw Lorelei looked confused, but he simply got out of the car and purveyed the crowd that was scuttling about the market.
When he sensed Lorelei made her way to his side, he felt a little better.
The closer she was, the easier for him to protect her if something went down.
And the closer she is, the more it soothes you….
He let out a huff. Of course he knew this was also true.
Ever since the night he decided to get involved, her presence, her sense of calm about the situation, about the sheer absurd danger they were both in—made something inside of him relax when she was near.
She was only human, and yet she had the tenacity and courage of somebody he had never seen prior.
Daemon always felt humans had a knack for standing brave in situations of difficulty, but Lorelei was on another level.
Making an effort to shake these thoughts away, he nodded to Lorelei; a signal to stay close.
There was no point to cast the enchantment to keep eyes off of them, there were so many people; they blended right into the crowd.
When it seemed difficult for Lorelei to keep up, he turned silently to see her attempting to shove her way past a rowdy group of teens, and as she finally approached him, she smiled brightly.
“Busiest day in Camden Markets I have ever seen! I haven’t seen a sunny day like this in London for quite some time. How lovely! Oh, and look—sunflowers!”
She chuckled, pointing to a flower stand they passed. He rolled his eyes at her playfully.
"Let me guess, they're your favorite, hm?"
Lorelei nodded vigorously, and Daemon couldn't help but find her excitement incredibly refreshing.
How does this girl act so unaware of the danger she's in? It's impossibly enchanting.
"Ah, of course they are. Well, now I have new ammo to use against you. I will forever call you Sunflower, now. My own personal nickname to torment you relentlessly. You should tire of sunflowers soon enough if I have something to do with it."
Lorelei raised her eyebrow at him in the way that confirmed he knew was succeeding in he quest to tease her; they may be in the middle of a deadly mission; but the expressions he elicited from her made his chest tighten, it was worth it a million times over.
"Ha ha, you're very clever, Daemon."
Rolling his shoulders back, he flashed her his most devilish smile.
"Now, dear Sunflower, would you mind happily moving your arse a bit quicker? Or are all flowers slow as molasses?"
Lorelei returned the eye roll and continued to look about the colorful array of shops and food stalls.
The busied shoppers and their totes full of delectable treats and parcels.
Daemon thought if this were any other day, how nice it would be.
It was a perfect day for an outing, he too, couldn’t remember when the day shone so brightly over London.
It felt ominous, however—like it might be the last sunny day they have left.
With Raphael's warning ringing in his mind, her getting picked off by demons in a crowd like this would be far too easy, which was increasingly becoming more likely; every few minutes he was finding her stuck behind groups of people struggling to make her way through. He couldn’t risk her falling behind, or letting his thoughts wander to places that are meaningless unless they succeed.
Before, it was just a joke to keep up, now the playfulness was replaced with urgency and fear; he couldn't let her get further behind.
When she made her way past another group of shoppers, he hooked a finger in her beltloop—the quickest thing he could grab to pull her near him, which forced a severe blush along her cheeks.
“Sunflower, I swear you are a hazard ." He whispered roughly, his words more seductive than he anticipated and he immediately regretted his choice to grab her this way.
Something about this woman made him react uncharacteristically instinctive—she literally pulled it out of him without even trying, and how natural it was worried him.
Hurrying to release his finger from her pants, he cleared his throat.
"We need to make sure we don’t get separated again. Here, I’ll lead you.” As he finished his sentence, he sent out a hand towards her. She blinked a couple of times, obviously still surprised by the previous gesture. He slapped on his signature attitude as he saw her hesitate.
“It’s the easiest way to make it through the crowd without losing ya. I know how exciting it must be, don’t get used to it.”
She raised her eyebrow at him, making Daemon wonder if he offended her, afraid his remark came out too rude; after the moment of panic he felt from his instinct to grab her the way he did mere moments ago, he worried.
Then she finally clasped her hand with his, rolling her eyes.
He tried to hide the smile she incited in him; she was damn cute.
He gripped her hand tightly and began leading her through the market.
Holding her hand felt right; shockingly, it wasn’t awkward at all.
It felt like something he’d been missing in his life until this moment.
A calm washed over him, and for the first time since meeting Raph, he let a sigh release.
Her presence was increasingly becoming a comfort to him in a way he never experienced before.
Over the centuries, he had been with women, obviously.
But he'd never fallen in love. Never felt the instant connection like he did with Lorelei.
The only reason you feel that way is because of…Shut up! I know.
It was so hard to focus and stay on guard when he was having this constant duel in his head, but was happy with the distraction from himself when he finally saw the alley where he last heard Magnus was working from.
It wasn’t on the main strip of the market, but tucked away down what looked to be a deserted alleyway.
The noise of the crowd was beginning to dissipate as they made their way further and further until he saw a small, dingey-looking door.
Before entering, he looked at Lorelei.
“Let me do most of the talking, alright?”
“Sure. Okay.”
Her voice held back nerves but she remained firm. Was she going to keep surprising him like this? Releasing her hand, an instant cavity filled the space where their hands had been joined. Ignoring the feeling, he turned and made his way inside.
Daemon slowly opened the door which led into the dimly lit shop.
The walls were covered in shelves that held all sorts of strange looking bobbles and questionable food in various sized jars.
Glass cabinets displayed mixtures of tonics, salves, and medicinal herbs.
On small tables lay curious objects from miniature statues, tarot decks, sage and essential oils.
Business in divining must be slow these days for the man, as it looks like he’s turned his shop into a knock-off spiritual commodity store—carrying things for personal divination, at-home remedies, and items of that nature.
No doubt a way to keep up the front of his true intent and business.