Page 12

Chapter

Twelve

My eyes burned as I continued my demon research. I’d been in front of my computer since I got home from the date, and over fifteen hours later, I was still immersed in it.

There was a lot of information out there, though I knew a lot of it was false or completely fabricated.

I needed to get a look at the book the guys had, but knew Kayden was going to be wary of providing me with it to read now that I had tried to go through the portal.

“Why are you suddenly so interested in demons?” Mason asked from my window.

My scream was short and quickly followed by a sigh. “Why do you all insist on using the window?”

“Going through the front door feels weird,” he admitted with a shrug and walked over to stand behind me, leaning over my shoulder to look at the computer screen. “That’s all completely wrong.”

“Yeah, this site was full of fabricated information,” I said and closed it. Spinning in my chair and standing up, I forced him to step back. “Why are you here? I’ve got a date with Trey tonight.”

He nodded. “He sent me to pick you up.”

“Pick me up?” I asked with a frown.

“He wants you to come to his house and since you’ve encountered demons a few times now, he thought it was better if you had an escort.”

“Okay, well, give me about ten minutes to get ready,” I said and indicated my pajamas. “I’m not dressed yet.”

Shrugging, he said, “You look good to me.”

When he sat in my chair, my brows rose. “Uh, no. You can’t stay here. Go chat with my mom or something.”

He spun in the chair, folding his legs up beneath him on the seat. “Why? Are you embarrassed by your underwear or something? I don’t care if they’re full of holes or have cute little bears on them.”

I threw my pillow at his head with a snarl. “I was ten! Bears were cute!”

He caught the pillow while smiling wide. “And so were your undies.”

“Get out, Mas!”

He stood, grabbed my waist, and stared down into my eyes. My heart hammered against my chest and it became hard to breathe. “Did you kiss the elf prince yesterday?”

“No,” I answered, “not that it’s any of your business.”

He smiled, released me, and walked out of my room, shutting the door behind him.

What had that been about? Was he just trying to gauge his date against others?

Knowing him, he’d come right back in if I took too long, so I quickly changed into a cute summer dress that I knew Trey would like, freshened up, and hurried downstairs with a bag that contained my calendar and my demon notes. Hopefully, Kayden hadn’t informed Trey or Mason about the demon portal incident and they would let me see the book or, at the very least, answer my demon questions.

Just as I reached the bottom step, I remembered the key Trey had given me and had to run back up to grab it.

Mason sat on the couch, glaring at my mom while she smiled at him.

“Everything okay?” I asked as I slipped my shoes on.

“Peachy,” Mom said. “Have fun on your date.”

Mason stood and stomped to the door, pulling it open for me.

I glanced at Mom, but she was on her phone messaging someone. Assuming she was just picking on him or teasing him, I followed Mason out and didn’t bother asking more.

He drove us just outside the dragon’s Den, the dragon’s territory where they had their own city, and to the outskirts where Trey’s house sat. His parents had purchased it for him when he turned eighteen, though they’d been upset that he had adamantly refused to have his house inside of the Den. It was three stories, had eight bedrooms, and was actually a small, stone castle. He’d even put a catapult and trebuchet on the roof as anti-dragon countermeasures. His mother had not appreciated the humor, but his father had.

“You guys use the catapult since you arrived?” I asked.

Mason snorted. “Is Trey breathing?”

He said it was a requirement to use it every time he came home to ensure it stayed in working order.

We headed inside and I skipped through the foyer and into the main living room, which they used for lounging and gaming.

Trey looked up from his laptop and smiled. “Hello, Lily.”

Hopping over the back of the couch, I landed on the cushion next to him. “Hello, Trey.”

Frowning, he asked, “Are you having trouble sleeping?”

Sticking my lip out in a pout I asked, “Are you saying I look bad? This isn’t the best way to start off our date, you know?”

He prodded just below my eyes. “You’ve got eyebags.”

“I just stayed up too late,” I admitted. Pulling the key from my bag I asked, “So, do I get to find out what this is for?”

Mason’s eyes widened. “Trey,” he growled.

Trey held up his hand and Mason went silent. “I should have known the ever-curious Lily would ask about the key first thing when she arrived. And here I thought you might be interested in me and the date I have planned.”

“Why can’t it be both?” I said and shrugged.

He stood and walked around the couch and waved at me. “Well, come on.”

I followed him, my curiosity and excitement making me vibrate as I practically walked on his heels.

He led me down the hallway and to a metal door that I didn’t remember from the one time I had been here before. “This leads to our secret room. So far, only Mason, Kayden, and I have been allowed in. We are now allowing you access as well.”

The way he described it made it sound more like a man cave, a place they would go to escape life, than something truly cool. Was this a meaningless gesture, or was I about to see something cool that would truly portray their confidence in me? Also, he had said they were allowing me access, but Mason’s growl hadn’t seemed like he’d known about Trey giving me a key.

I looked at the key and looked at the door. The key had the same scrollwork design as the door. Walking up to it, I inserted the key and turned it, eyes widening as the lock clicked open.

Removing the key, I tried to open the door, but it was really heavy.

Trey chuckled. “Not as strong as you used to be, Princess?”

Giving him a quick glare, I grabbed the handle and pulled harder, now knowing it was a heavy door. It opened slowly and quietly. “Hinges are nicely oiled,” I grunted as I finished opening it.

Soft red lights turned on, providing enough lighting for us to see as we walked down a staircase. Without waiting for confirmation of my permission to enter, I walked down the stairs, heart beating faster in anticipation as I headed for their secret room.

What could they keep down here that they didn’t want others to know about? He’d said only they had a key, which meant not even his dad or the kings had a key?

As my foot hit the last steps, a bright light turned on, revealing a large circular room. In the center was a round stone table with a glass top and atop that were three laptops. In the very center was a large leather book that looked well worn.

Was that the demon journal Kayden had told me about?

On one wall was a map of the world with hundreds of red pins and a couple dozen purple pins.

There was also a small refrigerator, water cooler, sink, microwave, plastic side table with paper plates and snacks like chips and granola bars, and three couches with folded blankets and pillows.

“We call it our command center.” Trey walked by me and sat in one of the chairs at the stone table.

“Kayden mentioned you had a book you were recording your knowledge on demons and depictions of them. Is that it?” I asked and pointed at the large leather book.

He nodded.

Looking at that book was my top priority, but I couldn’t let him know that.

“That map, what do the different colored pins mean?” I turned away from the book to look at the map, so he wouldn’t realize that was my goal.

“Red are singular portals. Purple are locations where multiple portals have opened,” he answered.

I walked closer to inspect it, noticing the purple pins were almost always around main cities. “You think it has something to do with population density?” I asked and turned to face him.

“That’s one of our current theories,” he said with a nod.

Moving to the stone table, I sat in the chair beside his, then reached for the leather book, but looked at him for approval first.

He nodded. “I gave you that key so you could have access and, my hope was, that you would start helping us.”

“You want me to help you how?” I asked as I greedily grabbed the book and pulled it towards me. I thumbed through the first few pages, but moved to the later part of the book where the drawings were. My eyes widened at the strange creatures they had drawn there; types I had never seen before.

“We’ve been going over our research for years with very little to show for it. No clue as to how or why the demons are coming more and more often. Perhaps, with a different set of eyes on it, you could see something we’ve been missing.” He leaned forward. “The idea to go through the portal was brought up once, but we quickly nixed it, as we didn’t want to risk being killed. However, Kayden mentioned your questions and suggestions and it definitely made me want to reconsider. How could we do it safely? How could we do some recon into the portal without us being injured?”

So, Kayden had told them, but it seemed he and Trey weren’t exactly on the same page. “A camera?” I asked.

He shook his head. “We tried that, but a creature stepped out of the portal with the camera we had tossed through in his hand and snapped it in our faces so we couldn’t get anything from it.”

“I bet Kayden was livid when that happened,” I said and chuckled as I imagined his reaction.

“Just a bit,” Trey said with a soft laugh.

“Have you tried grabbing a smaller creature and tossing it back through with a rope around it, then pulling it back again to see if it gets injured?” I asked.

He frowned. “No.”

“That would tell you with certainty if they get hurt going back and forth at least before we test putting a person from our side through.”

“That’s a good idea. It is just dependent on us getting a portal with smaller creatures. It’s about one out of every five.”

“Have you tried talking to them? Are any of them capable of communication?”

“Not that we’ve encountered so far,” he answered. “Though, to be fair, most of the time we attack them as soon as they come out, especially those big bull ones.”

“So, there are quite a few things we need to try,” I said with a nod as I resumed reading their notes. I pulled out my own notebook and compared theirs with what I’d found that I had thought was credible.

“What is that?” Trey asked, walking to stand behind me and looked over my shoulder.

“Notes I was making,” I said and flipped past a few pages I didn’t want him to read.

My phone rang in my bag. I pulled it out and scoffed at Luca’s name on the screen. “He just doesn’t know when to give up, does he?”

“Didn’t Branson take him back his gifts?” Trey asked as he took his seat again.

I nodded. “He must have just done it, which is most likely why Luca’s calling.” I hit ignore and hoped he didn’t leave a voicemail.

“So, any favorites on your dates so far?” Trey asked.

“A couple contenders so far,” I whispered in reply, trying to focus on the section written about hellhounds, which were by the far the most commonly encountered demons.

“Any princes?” he asked.

“A couple,” I replied again.

“A couple?” he asked, his tone confused.

Looking up, I asked, “Is this what your plan for the date was? Let me in here and let me read?”

Laughing, he shook his head and stood. “No, but I knew if I didn’t let you read a bit of it, your curiosity would distract you from the rest of my date.”

“Don’t act like you know me,” I teased and flipped my hair over my shoulder as I, reluctantly, turned away from the journal.

“You are welcome here any time that you wish to be. That’s why I gave you a key.” He followed me up the stairs. “There’s a room for you as well, not for tonight, unless you want to stay tonight, but a room that is explicitly yours.”

I stumbled on the step and started to fall, but he caught me and smirked as he looked at my face upside down.

“You have a what?”

Pushing me forward, he righted me so I could continue up the stairs to the main floor.

“Would you like to see it?”

Yes, but I felt like that should be a later event.

“What else did you have planned for today?” I asked instead. “Hopefully, food is involved.” My stomach growled on cue. “I haven’t been hunting since before my party.” Eating regular food five times a day could keep me full, but even then, I still required a medium-sized animal once a week in my snake form. It was a weird condition that we had figured out when I started school. Eating more in human form still didn’t satiate that hunger either.

“Would you like a quick hunt? Or regular food?”

“Regular food is fine. I’ll hunt tomorrow.”

“Can I join you tomorrow?” Mason asked from his spot on the couch in the living room, eyes focused on the screen as he played a video game.

“You want to hunt with me?” I asked.

He nodded.

“Sure,” I said with a shrug, “I don’t mind you coming.”

“It could count as our second date,” he said and glanced at us for a second before refocusing on his game.

“Well, now that my date has been interrupted by you setting up a date with another man, can we get back to ours?” Trey asked.

I rolled my eyes. “As if you care about me going on dates with Mas or Kay.”

Trey stepped up right into my personal space and said, “I care very much about you going on dates with other men. Every moment you aren’t near me is a moment I detest.”

“That was smooth,” I said and swallowed hard because … it hadn’t been a lie. Or, perhaps my sensor was broken?

“Come, let’s go get food,” Trey said and spun away from me.

We walked out to the garage and got into a shiny red sportscar. His dad had bought it for him not realizing Trey hated red cars.

“Still haven’t painted it?” I questioned as I snuggled into the soft seats.

Sighing, he said, “When I mentioned it, Dad got really sad, so I opted not to do it.”

“We aren’t taking Mason with us as a guard?” I asked.

“Obviously not.”

“You sure that’s okay?”

“If I didn’t think it was, I would have had him follow us.”

With no comeback to that, I sat silently.

We drove out of the garage and into the city.

“Where are we going?” Honestly, I would eat anything, so I wasn’t worried, but I was curious.

“I have a reservation for us at a new place. The chef and owner are former friends of Dad’s and I saved their son from a demon attack.”

“How many people have you saved?” I asked.

He parked and said, “I don’t keep track of how many people I save. That’s not the kind of person I am, you should know that.”

I shrugged. “We haven’t talked in several years. I’m not certain what kind of man you are anymore.”

“Hm,” he said as he climbed out and walked around to open my door. Stepping out, he whispered in my ear, “Then I’ll just have to prove what kind of man I am to you.”

“That’s what these dates are for, Trey. So, prove to me that you’re the best option.” With a wink, I walked by him and into the restaurant’s front door.

The food was delicious, but we didn’t get much time to talk since the owner and chef spent most of our time talking to Trey. My necklace had warmed a moment and then stopped and with no portal opening, I wondered if the other times had truly been coincidental or not.

We exited the restaurant, but the sound of screams had us running away from our car and to the park across the street.

The necklace warmed more and my feet moved on their own, towards something drawing me.

A large portal with two hellhounds and two bull-headed demons standing in front of it was open in the center of the park.

People surrounded it from fifty feet away, staring at the creatures who looked frozen if you didn’t notice their chests moving as they breathed. They weren’t even looking around, just … standing.

“Ever seen this before?” I asked Trey as we joined the onlookers.

“No,” he replied and dialed someone. “Portal on my location. Two bulls and two hounds. Something’s off, hurry.” He put his phone away and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. “No rest for the wicked, eh?”

Walking forward slowly, I kept my hands at my sides, open so they could see I was unarmed. “Hello?” I called out.

The demon creatures all turned to look at me, eyes focused on me immediately.

People backed away quickly once the creatures moved.

“Lily!” Trey snapped. “Stay back.”

“Let’s do one of our tests,” I whispered back. Smiling at the demon creatures I asked, “Can you speak? My name is Lily. Do you have names?”

The creatures moved forward, headed towards me, but didn’t make any noise in any attempt to speak.

I backed up a step and held my hand up. “Stop.”

They stopped.

“Uh …” Trey whispered.

Well, they understood our speech at least.

“Go back through the portal,” I ordered.

The two hellhounds turned and went back through the portal, but the bulls stayed.

“How is she commanding them?” an onlooker asked.

“Is this something the hybrids started? Did they create the demons?” another asked.

Why were people so quick to blame hybrids? The demons had been attacking far longer than my clan was created.

“What do you want?” I demanded. “Do you have a leader? Someone who is ordering you to do these attacks? Why are you here? Why do you keep coming here? Why are you attacking our people?”

The pull became stronger and I reached up, clutching the necklace as it throbbed against my chest almost painfully.

What was through that portal? What would I find on the other side?

The urge to run through was so strong I had to close my eyes and bite the side of my mouth until I drew blood to stop.

The bulls moved forward and reached for me, but I ducked out of the way before they could touch me and Trey kicked the closest one in the chest, making him stumble back a few steps.

The two hellhounds walked out of the portal again, snarling this time.

“Well, two questions answered,” I muttered to Trey as he and I started ducking and dodging the bulls who were trying to grab me. “They aren’t interested in communicating, or can’t, but can understand our language. And they can come and go through the portals without getting injured.”

I ran around the portal, trying to put distance between me and the creatures, but the bulls followed me. It seemed like they were completely unconcerned with Trey and only cared about grabbing me. Their beefy hands reached out anytime they got close, trying to grasp my arm or my hair, but they weren’t attacking me so far.

The hellhounds leapt at Trey, forcing him to take a warrior shift and knock them away with his tail.

“Get farther back,” Trey ordered everyone, including me.

One of the hellhounds jumped towards me and I kicked it in the face, its bone crunching and jaw hanging off its face at a weird angle. Still, it came after me, but not growling like it did when it faced Trey.

Trey breathed fire onto the injured hellhound and it disintegrated.

Distracted by the hellhound and trying to get away from one of the bulls, the second one grabbed my arm and started dragging me towards the portal.

I gasped, stuck my heels in the ground, grabbed his arm, and snapped the bone in half.

He bellowed in pain, released me, and tried to backhand me.

Ducking under his backhand, I rolled away from him and towards Trey.

Mason flew down towards us in raven form, landing on the bull-man with the broken arm’s head, and pecked at his eyes, blinding him.

The bull-man bellowed and started to fall backwards through the portal, with Mason on his head.

“Mason!” I screamed in fear.

He flew off of the bull-man’s head and circled around before shifting and landing on human feet behind me. “Are you injured?”

“No,” I whispered.

Trey killed the last hellhound and all the bodies disintegrated into black smoke.

Mason grabbed my shoulder and jerked me back. “Lily!”

I blinked, shocked to find I was less than two feet from the portal, my hand wrapped around the necklace.

Dropping my hand, the pull lessened, but not fully.

After another thirty seconds, the portal closed and disappeared.

Relief coursed through me and I started to fall, but Trey caught me and picked me up with an arm beneath my legs and one behind my back. “I’ve got you, Princess.”