Page 42 of The Tracker's Dawn: Sunderverse

We had been wondering about this since Alodar Rune’s book didn’t go into detail about this part of the spell. I tensed, though my heart beat a thousand miles per hour as I waited for the answer.

Damien shook his head. “No, it is not like a possession, and you don’t invite the demon in either.” He stopped, looking reluctant to continue.

“Then what?” I pressed.

“The demon has to enter Jake’s... bloodstream.”

“His bloodstream?!” Rosalina and I exclaimed at the same time.

“Yes, it will be necessary to make a deep cut, which will serve as a door into Jake’s circulatory system.”

Jake’s circulatory system!I shuddered. That was so clinical, so cold. If Damien was trying to dissuade us, he was certainly outdoing himself.

“All right,” Jake said, swallowing thickly. “It sounds... positively terrifying.”

“I’m glad you realize that,” Damien said, nearly glowering at Jake.

It was this pointed look that made me realize he really was trying to scare us.

“I want to impress upon you the enormous risk you’d be undertaking. You need to go into this with your eyes wide open.”

What Damien didn’t know was that Jake and I had rehashed this a thousand times. The mage didn’t know how determined Jake was or how resigned I was to his decision. Still, I appreciated Damien’s effort, his concern for Jake’s life.

“I’m no demon expert,” Eric said, standing under the portrait of his wife and daughter, “but how do you keepthe thingfrom devouring Jake’s life force?”

“Good question,” Damien said. “That’s the tricky part.”

“That’sthe tricky part,” Rosalina huffed. “It all sounds tricky to me.”

“As it would to most Stales,” Damien said in a tone that suggested he was glad Rosalina knew nothing about this sort of thing, at least until this point. “But really, summoning the demon won’t be difficult. I’ve summoned one or two in the past, and my LDH friend in New York can give me some pointers if I have questions.”

Rosalina frowned. “LDH?”

“Short for the League of Demon Hunters,” Damien clarified. “Anyway, as far as directing the creature into Jake... well... blood demons are called that for a reason. As soon as it senses the blood, it will go straight for it. Blood demons are always hungry. Vampires, even new ones, pale in comparison. Left unchecked, the demon wouldravageJake in a matter of minutes. First, it would devour his blood, but not only that. The cherry on top is the victim’s life force, the heart.”

Cold fingers raked up my spine, and I had to bite my tongue not gasp in despair and knock Jake unconscious right where he sat. I could keep him KO’d until Saturday. I might even be able to deliver him in his tux to the church steps. It wouldn’t be easy, but the alternative was way worse.

“How do you stop it from going that far?” Jake asked, looking too cool for someone who was planning to serve himself on a platter.

Damien paused and acquired a pensive expression. He rubbed his chin, lost in thought. Watching him made my stomach tumble. He hadn’t figured out how. Why were we even talking about this if he didn’t know how to prevent the heart-munching part of the cleansing?

“The key,” he finally said, “is to not let the demon reach your heart.”

Well, duh!

“And... do you know how to do that?” Jake asked.

“In theory, yes.”

“That’s not very reassuring,” Rosalina put in.

Damien inhaled and gave a slow nod. “I know, but I still have two days to figure it out and to practice.”

That made me feel better. A little.

“Good,” I said. “You should practice. A lot. I’ll be there, of course. For moral support and whatever else you need. Anything. All you have to do is ask. More tacos, a stiff cocktail, a back massage.” I was rambling.

“Hey!” Jake complained, not happy about that last one.