Page 4 of Unholy

“And stop calling me kid!”

Luke rushed to the nearest set of stairs and barreled up them and straight to Sloan’s office.

Luckily, Sloan was there, typing something into his computer. Luke knocked on the open door, taking several deep breaths to calm his racing heart.

He hadn’t spoken to Sloan much over the years, and he vividly remembered the last time he was in this office.

His head hung low, letting Sloan’s voice wash over him.

“This is unprecedented, Paladin Morgan.” His voice was uncharacteristically soft. “But Doctor Maxwell tells me you passed your psych eval, and Father Hawley feels confident in your state of mind, as well. If you’re certain you want to be removed from Elijah’s squad, I’ll allow it.”

Luke nodded. The scarring on his neck felt tight, and he resisted the urge to reach up and touch it. He’d barely be able to feel it, anyway. Would he ever get used to it?

“Are you still certain this is what you want? It’ll be more dangerous,” Sloan warned. “You won’t have any back-up if something were to go wrong.”

Luke avoided saying how he really felt—that he’d rather die alone than risk watching anyone else die. He’d avoided saying it to Maxwell and Hawley. He wasn’t about to screw things up now that he was finally getting what he wanted.

“I’m sure,” he promised. He’d never forget the screams of his dying squad at the hands of the demons that surrounded them that night. People swore Luke survived by the grace of God, but he wasn’t so sure. Sometimes he thought it might have been simpler if he could have died with them.

If he had to go on without them, he could at least make sure he didn’t have to watch anyone else die.

He shook himself, banishing the memory. He had more important things to focus on right now.

“Hey boss, I’ve got a thing. Can we talk?”

“Paladin Morgan, yes, please. Save me from the paperwork. What can I do for you?” Sloan pushed his keyboard away, focusing his pale blue eyes on Luke.

“I’ve been investigating this case…” He quickly told Sloan about the disappearing kids and the repeating pattern he’d uncovered with Judah’s help. “It looks like the demon will come back for another child tonight. It hunts in the same place each time, according to our documentation in the library. We couldn’t save the first one, but we can save the next.”

“Of course, of course. How did you come across this kindof demon? This pattern doesn’t sound like an easy one to track.”

Luke hesitated, and it was enough to catch Sloan’s attention.

“Paladin Morgan?” he asked. “How did you find out about this?”

Luke shifted in discomfort. “I was approached by a halfling.”

Sloan stiffened, his jaw pulsing. “When?”

“Just last night during my patrol. I’d never seen him before. He told me about a child-killing demon at the hospital. I went for myself to check it out and see if his intel was good. That’s when I spoke with the nurse about the missing girl.”

“And it never occurred to you that this could all be a ruse to lure our people into a trap?”

Guilt lashed through him. Could that be possible? “I… I don’t know, sir. I was worried about the children. Thereisa girl missing?—”

“The halflings could have done something to that girl,” Sloan said coolly.

“Halflings couldn’t have made that girl disappear from her bed, sir. They don’t have that kind of power.”

“The black-eyed ones are more powerful. You know that.”

“There’s nothing in our records to indicate they canteleport.”

“You can’t trust a demon, Paladin Morgan. Youknowthat.”

Luke cast about for something to say. “What if he was telling the truth? We can’t leave those children to die.”

“We aren’t leaving any children to die, because thehalfling isn’t telling the truth. Demons lie, and I won’t be sending any paladins into an ambush. Not today. It sounds like a terrible thing that happened to the girl, but we can’t change the past.”

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