Page 36 of Demons in My Bed
Chapter twelve
Ashwalkedaway,chucklinglike he was the world’s funniest fucker. He wasn’t.
My spine began to tingle and I looked over my shoulder, unsurprised to see a ghost standing at the end of the dock. I’d already seen several since stepping foot out of Ash’s car. None of them had been strong enough to hold their forms for long or able to speak. This one though, he looked pissed. His form flickered like a lightbulb about to meet its doom, and he was right in front of me in a matter of seconds.
He seemed to be in his forties and he looked rough, like life really hadn’t been kind to him. His shaved head was covered in tattoos, and his shirt was ripped open, revealing a familiar tattoo: a black scorpion with bright red blood splatter along its body. Interesting. The rival gang across the bay, The Scorpions, were run by a criminal mastermind who went by the alias Scorpio. They were like the diet version of The Exiled, and as far as I knew, not demonic. Just shitheads.
Nobody knew Scorpio’s true identity, since he never went anywhere without a mask. Usually, he went with a black, leather mask that was studded all over with spikes. It covered his entire face, except for his eyes.
For the most part, it seemed The Exiled and Scorpions steered clear of each other, keeping to their own sides of the bay. So then why was I staring at a big, dead gang member from Scorpio’s crew on one of The Exiled’s docks?
“What happened to you?” I whispered, even though a quick look showed me Ash was busy chatting with some people near the building.
“Fuckin’ set up. Was supposed to be in and out. Grab the product and go, but they knew we were coming,” the ghost grumbled, looking at his hands in wonder. He was a fresh one. I could always tell by the level of confusion at their new form.
“What product?” I pushed, knowing this could be valuable information. He narrowed his eyes at me, and I rolled mine in response. “Oh come on. You’re fucking dead, dude. There’s no loyalty in death.”
“Guess you have a point. Wouldn’t be dead if the intel had been good. Scorp is getting greedy. Exiled are up to something—researching and experimenting. That’s all I know.” His form started fading, and he looked at me with wide eyes.
I inhaled and decided I’d help the poor soul. “Don’t fight it. Your time here is over. Just let go.” I whispered a few incantations under my breath that usually aided souls in crossing over to the next plane of existence. Even though my affinity was rare, there were a few texts out there that had some helpful information, and I was like a sponge, eager to soak up and learn everything I could to harness my magic and use it to its fullest potential.
“Everything okay, love?” Ash called just as the ghost vanished.
“I’m not your love, asshole!” I shouted back, and was met with a chorus of both laughter and gasps of surprise from his crew at my blatant name-calling.
So The Exiled were researching something. Could this be what Asrael was wanting to know more about? The whole mission was somewhat vague, which told me that while Asrael might’ve known they were up to something, it was clear he had no idea what.
“Fuck off, Hunt. I’ll see you later for dinner.” I laughed, punching my oldest friend in the arm.
“You’re getting stronger, Vale. That felt more like a punch and less like a mosquito bite,” he teased, and I flipped him off, opening the room to my dorm and slamming it in his smug face.
Damn right I was getting stronger. I’d been busting my ass at the gym every day and going on as many challenges—mock and real—as possible. I was eager to prove myself, and I loved the validation.
“You’re awful close to that boy.”
I shrieked and spun around, reaching for the dagger that was hidden in the waistband of my shorts. Asrael was sitting in my desk chair, spinning his own knife around his fingers.
“You surprised me,” I breathed, abandoning my weapon in favor of a bottle of water.
“Then that’s your first mistake. You should never let anyone surprise you, Palmer. If they can do that, they can beat you.”
I lifted the bottle to my mouth and chugged half of the cold liquid. “You’re right. Won’t happen again.”
“I have something for you.” He stood and picked up a manila folder that was on the corner of my desk. “These are the targets in your upcoming mission. This is the one you’ve been training for. It won’t be easy—they’re sneaky, smart, and powerful. You’ll need to learn as much about them as possible before going in. This is enough to get you started.”
My eyes fell to the folder, and it took everything in me not to snatch it from him. He must’ve sensed my eagerness because he held it out to me with a smile. “I knew when I met you that you were special. The only reason I’ve waited so long for this mission is because I knew you’d be the perfect person for the job. I just had to be patient and wait for you to be ready. I think you’re ready. Do you?”
“I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life, sir.”
“That’s my girl,” Asrael replied, pride shining through his words. He brushed past me and went to open the door.
“Oh, sir? There was something I wanted to bring to your attention…” He leaned against the door and nodded. “Well, um, I got another package yesterday. I’d hoped, since it had been a few months of silence, that it was finally over.”
Asrael’s face darkened. “Where is it?”
I walked over to the chest at the end of my bed and opened it, removing the small cardboard box. “Here,” I said, handing it over.
“What was it this time?”
