Page 39 of Demon Loved
“In the afternoon?” he returned. “I have something I need to do in the morning.”
She didn’t seem put off by that modification to her plan, because she nodded and said, “That’s fine. If you want to go sightseeing, we can drive up Oak Creek Canyon and maybe do a little hiking. It’s really beautiful, and on a Monday, the trails shouldn’t be too crowded.”
Belshegar had no idea what Oak Creek Canyon even was, but if it involved more breathtaking scenery, then he was definitely on board with the idea. He didn’t have any real hiking shoes, although he knew that wasn’t an impediment, not when he could conjure anything he might require for such an outing.
“What time?”
“Does two o’clock work?” she said. “Normally, I wouldn’t go for a hike that late in the day, but because the elevation is a little higher in the part of the canyon I want to visit and there are a lot of trees for shade, the heat shouldn’t be a problem.”
He hadn’t thought of that aspect of the situation — fluctuations in temperature didn’t affect him very much, even in his assumed human guise — but he certainly didn’t want Brianna to get overheated.
“Two o’clock sounds fine,” he replied. Surely that would give him enough time to do whatever he needed to do, and then he could go on this hike in the canyon without worrying whether he’d given his mission its due diligence that day.
“Then you can meet me at my apartment…unless you want me to pick you up?” she added, her voice now uncertain, as if she’d realized that making him walk down to her place right before they were going to head out on an extended hike might not have been the most considerate thing in the world.
Belshegar didn’t mind, though. Such a short walk certainly wouldn’t be taxing in the least, and it did seem rather foolish for her to drive up to the hotel, just to turn around so they could head back down the hill.
“No, there’s no reason for you to do that,” he said. “I don’t mind meeting you at your apartment. It’ll save us some time, if nothing else.”
“And gas,” she said, although she was smiling, and he guessed she wasn’t too worried about that.
Still, he hadn’t stopped to think about how much these excursions must be costing her. True, she would have gone to Alcantara for her performance even if he hadn’t tagged along, but she certainly wouldn’t have gone to the Mesa Grille for dinner…and he doubted she would have decided to head off to Oak Creek Canyon tomorrow if she hadn’t had someone she wanted to show it to for the first time.
And although he had very little knowledge of such things, he also had to assume that the gasoline was fairly expensive, just because it was a rarity these days and he doubted there were many places where she could even get it.
“I can chip in for gas,” he said, but she just smiled.
“It’s fine. I’m used to going all over, since my gigs can get pretty spread out. But thanks for the offer.”
Her tone was firm enough that he doubted there would be much point in attempting to press the issue. Instead, he told himself he could pay for dinner afterward, or perhaps only an afternoon snack if it turned out Bree didn’t want to extend their excursion into the evening.
“Then it sounds like we have a plan,” he said, and she nodded.
“I think we do.”
They hadn’t lingered too long at the Mesa Grille, and afterward, she drove him back to Jerome and dropped him off in the Grand Hotel’s parking lot.
“See you tomorrow at two,” she said, then drove off.
No real opportunity for a goodnight kiss — even if he’d been inclined to press the issue. Oh, he’d wanted to kiss her…this human body he wore had been telling him how very much he wanted such a thing…but if that moment ever came, he certainly didn’t intend to give in to those instincts while sitting in the front seat of an ancient Chevy Suburban.
So he’d gone to bed and done his best to sleep, and when he woke up the next morning, it was with a renewed resolve to achieve some progress on his search for the artifacts, if only to make him feel a little less guilty about sharing another afternoon with Brianna.
The problem was, he had no clear idea as to where he should look. It wasn’t that he couldn’t sense the artifacts anymore — the low-frequency hum of their presence had continued the entire time he’d been in Jerome — but because he seemed unable to pinpoint where it was coming from, he had no clear idea what exactly he was supposed to do about it.
Well, as blocked as he might currently feel, he knew he wasn’t going to learn anything new by sitting in his hotel room and brooding about the situation.
Once again, he ordered room service — toast and fruit and tea, just like the day before — and showered and got dressed so he could venture out into Jerome to see what he could find.
It was cooler today, with a few large white clouds floating above the landscape and somehow making the sky seem even bluer. Now it almost felt as if fall was on the way, even though only a few leaves on the trees around him had begun to turn, and he guessed it would still be some weeks before autumn was truly upon this part of the world.
Something in the cool, fresh breeze seemed to hearten him, however, and he wanted to believe that was a hopeful sign.
For some reason, he couldn’t stop thinking about the painting he and Brianna had hung in Helen Doyle’s house. There hadn’t seemed to be anything exceptional about it — certainly, it hadn’t contained any magical qualities except the inherent skill with which it had been painted — but Belshegar still felt there was something significant about the artist who’d created it, even if a cursory online search hadn’t revealed anything particularly special about the man.
Well, often the best research was what could be performed in person.
The gallery where Brianna sometimes worked wasn’t the only one in Jerome. Belshegar had noted that an artist’s co-op was located just up the street from West by Southwest, and he thought perhaps someone would be employed there who might be able to tell him a bit more about the mysterious Mr. Wilcox.
