Page 33 of The Angel's Kiss
Marcel nodded. “That’s a skill us Guards don’t have.”
“Skill, curse, gift... it’s all subjective. Sometimes, I wish I didn’t sense otherworldly shit all of the time. I’d like to walk into a bar, have a drink, target some hot guy to fuck, and have a go. Not see a demon, wonder what they’re up to, then have to fight their evil asses.”
Marcel smirked. “Don’t know what you’re complaining about. Sounds like fun to me.”
“Not when my dick is hard and I just want to get laid,” I said, then stuffed the photos and notes back into the envelope.
“Do the other Guardians know that you have a toilet for a mouth?” Marcel joked.
I nodded. “They know I’m a lost cause.” I nodded toward the door. “I’m going to head out.”
“Hey, what about your Champion? He’s a demon, he might know something,” Marcel wisely pointed out, but he didn’t know how much I hated that idea.
“He won’t give me anything unless I accept him,” I said.
Marcel snorted. “Are you still on that bullshit, Rai? You need him, why won’t you just accept that fact?”
“Because I don’t and you can never accept a deal with a demon,” I said.
“He’s no regular demon.”
“Why are you on his side?” I fussed.
“I’m not. I’m on yours, which is why I said for you to just accept him. Call him,” Marcel urged.
“No. Now, can I go take care of my business?”
“Sure,” Marcel said, then he followed me out. He got into his car and I put on my helmet and climbed onto my BMW S1000 XR, then hit the road.
I had to drive my agitation away. For the past six months, I had been hearing that I needed to accept Azazel, but I couldn’t. If I did, if I went as far as to accept him as my Champion... with the way I felt about him... what else would I accept? Would I accept the forbidden emotions I had toward him? People in the Guild already treated me like a freak, imagine what they’d think if I let all of my inhibitions go? No. I had to stick to my guns. I pushed those thoughts from my mind and focused on my mission.
The first house I checked out, I did sense demonic activity brewing, but it was from outside the house. Inside, were just normal people enjoying their dinner. Maybe they were out of the woods where the danger was concerned, maybe not. The aura of the demons was fading, so maybe these people weren’t who they were looking for.
I left and went to the second home, which was located on the far north side of Chicago in the Ravenswood area. Like with the first family, the demonic aura was fading, almost gone. That meant that this family was also eliminated. I wish I knew why demons had been looking into them in the first place.
I pulled out my cell and contacted Darius.
He answered. “Good to hear from you, Rai. How is everything?”
“Nice to hear from you, too. I’m good, but I have a question. Demons have been caught by the Guards spying on certain families but I don’t know why. There’s been some chatter about them looking for a key. Do you know anything about that?”
“A key?” Darius repeated.
“Yeah.”
There was some silence while he contemplated. “I’ll have to get back to you on that. I’m not sure. I haven’t seen any unusual demon activity on my end.”
“The Guards gave me some photos of kids and their home addresses that demons have targeted for whatever reason,” I said. “I’m looking into them now.”
“That’s good. Keep me posted. Perhaps your Champion might be able to shed some light,” Darius said, and I knew what he was suggesting.
“Didn’t he get outcast by his own kind? I doubt it,” I stated. I didn’t want to tell Darius that Azazel had already reached out to me.
“Never hurts to ask.”
“Yes, it will. I’ll let you know if I find out anything, Later,” I said, then ended the call before he could deal out any of his pearls of wisdom to me. I slipped my phone back into my pocket, then headed off to the third location, which was located in the South Shore area. I passed the golf course, then pulled into a parking lot of an apartment complex of Veronica’s home. Immediately, I sensed a demonic aura, a fresh one. I pulled off my helmet and climbed off my bike. I had to break the lock to the automatic door using my strength.
The closer I got to her family’s apartment, the stronger the demonic aura grew. This was a problem. That meant the demons were either here, or had just left. I quickened my pace down the hall and heard a loud crash and screams. A neighbor came out of their apartment to find out what that noise was, but I pulled out my fake badge.
