Page 48 of Demon Loved
A thrill of unease went through Belshegar, even as he told himself there was no reason to be so on edge. He didn’t know the other man well at all, so he couldn’t pretend to be an expert in his shifts in expression or how he reacted to certain comments.
But then he smiled…although the expression wasn’t much more than a lift of his lips. It certainly didn’t reach his eyes.
“I think,” he said slowly, “that you and I have much to discuss. Why don’t you come inside, and we can have a little talk?”
It was framed as a friendly request, but Belshegar knew it wasn’t. Once again, he sensed the power rippling out from the other man, an energy that was very different from what he could feel when he was around ordinary witches and warlocks.
Levi McAllister was anything but ordinary.
Perhaps he could try to make excuses, or try to pretend that he didn’t understand the need for a private conversation, but he had a feeling he wouldn’t get very far with that sort of maneuvering.
No, he’d been fairly caught.
“Very well,” he said.
Hayley McAllister didn’t appear to be at home, and Belshegar could only be grateful for that. And while Levi appeared to be cordial enough as he invited his guest to take a seat on the living room sofa and asked if he wanted any water or lemonade or iced tea, it was clear enough that he wasn’t going to allow his visitor to leave until he had the answers he wanted.
Water sounded like a good idea, considering how dry his human throat felt right then, so Belshegar requested a glass. Levi went into the kitchen to fetch it, and for one desperate moment, Belshegar considered leaping up from the couch and making a run for the door. If he’d been in his own body, he could have simply disappeared outright, but again, he feared that using his powers in such a way might do something to alter or even ruin the disguise the voice had given him, since doing so required much more magic than simply summoning a new shirt or a pair of hiking boots.
So he remained where he was, and a moment later, Levi reappeared with a glass of water in each hand. Something about his expression was almost satisfied, as if he’d set up his brief errand in the kitchen as a sort of test.
It seemed Belshegar had passed.
Levi set down one of the glasses in front of him and then took a seat in one of the chairs that faced the sofa. “So…what are you, exactly? You don’t feel quite like Loc.”
When had the two unearthly beings met? They lived with different clans in different states, so Belshegar didn’t see why there had been any reason for their paths to have crossed.
But although he didn’t know the whole story, he did know the past few years had been rather tumultuous for the New Mexico and Arizona witch clans, and perhaps they had worked together at some point.
“I am not like him,” Belshegar said calmly. “He is a demon lord, someone who held sway over many others. I am Belshegar. I am…myself.”
Levi smiled, and again, it seemed as if he was pleased that his guest hadn’t tried to lie about who he was or pretend he didn’t know what the other man was talking about. “And who is…yourself?”
“Some have referred to me as a demon, but that is not what I am. I suppose it is easy shorthand for humans who have no concept of how many planes of existence there truly are, and how many other beings inhabit them.”
“Well, that’s true enough,” Levi replied. “At the same time, it’s not exactly usual that someone like you would have any business on this plane. So I must ask…what precisely are you doing in Jerome?”
Although he stopped there, Belshegar got the distinct impression that Levi would have liked to follow up the one question with yet another.
And what are you doing with my daughter?
He swallowed. It had already been hard enough to conceal who he was and dance around the truth, simply because lying was not part of his nature, and he had to work at it.
And hate himself the whole time.
Rather than reply right away, he reached for the glass of water Levi had provided and took a swallow. It helped his dry throat somewhat, but Belshegar thought he would only be truly comfortable once he was away from this place…and the piercing stare of Levi McAllister’s cool blue eyes.
Levi’s next question was an unexpected one. “Are you being coerced?”
Belshegar sat up a little straighter. Could he answer honestly?
Perhaps. As long as he didn’t say who was doing the coercing, at any rate.
Because if he could somehow make Levi understand the truth of his situation, then perhaps the other man would be able to come up with a way to get him out from under the voice’s thumb.
“I — ”
“So you are,” Levi cut in. His tone was mild, but a flicker of anger still showed in his eyes. “That is…unfortunate. May I ask what you are being forced to do?”
