Page 45 of Demons In My Head: Exposing the Exiled
I snorted. "Welcome to my life."
"But yes, back to the point, she's pregnant with twins. That’s the thing, Palmer—” Hunter’s face grew very serious “—Asrael is in Besmet. I’ve gotten intel from several sources now that makes me believe it to be true. My brother and his family have been gone for a while now, and it’s making me uneasy. Cam should’ve contacted me by now, and he hasn’t.”
My mind was racing with possibilities. "Hunter, if your brother and his mates haven’t been in contact since they left for Besmet, and Asrael is there too? There’s something wrong, we need to help them."
"Palmer..." Jasper warned.
"No, listen." I stood up and began pacing the room as my thoughts formed. "We know Asrael is planning something big. There’s been too many things happening at once to ignore. We can't just sit here while others fight our battles. And where the fuck are The Exiled!? We’ve got two mind-controlling psychos out here, and they just vanish?"
“Wait a minute—” Jasper started, but I was on a rant.
“Unbelievable!” I threw my hands in the air as I paced. “Talking so much about how much this city means to them and how they’re not villains! They’re actually fucking cowards!”
“I knew that box looked familiar!” Jasper materialized in front of me, stopping me in my tracks as he pointed to an ornately carved wooden box on the coffee table. “I have to check something. I’ll be right back.” Then he was gone.
“Oh, okay!” I shouted, turning to Hunter. “Do you see what I’m dealing with here? People just vanishing without a trace or a single ounce of—”
The air shimmered, and Jasper reappeared, a huge grin on his face. “I know where they are. They’re in Besmet.”
“What? How?” Hunter asked.
“I thought they couldn’t return to Besmet?” I asked, suddenly questioning my own memory.
“They’d been working on a vapor, some kind of gas to neutralize the effects of mind control. Last I knew, they were very close to finishing it. Of course, before my memory returned, I had no idea why it was so important to them. I just went to the lab, and all of the vapor is gone. They created it to use against Asrael!”
“But they can’t open a portal, they were banished… so how could they have gone back? And what does this box have to do with anything?”
“This box,” Jasper emphasized, “held spelled stones that would allow my brothers to open the portal and travel safely home! They’ve just been waiting for the right moment!”
My jaw dropped.No freaking way.
Jasper continued as he paced. “With what Hunter just told us about Asrael being in Besmet and his brother’s family? There’s too many things that point to a perfect storm. Iknowmy brothers are in Besmet.”
I squared my shoulders. "It's settled. We need to get to Besmet."
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Hunter asked. "It's not like you can just hop on a bus to the demon realm."
A slow smile spreads across Jasper’s face. "No, butIcan still open a portal. I was executed, not exiled, remember?"
I nodded, feeling the weight of what we were about to do settle on my shoulders. But for the first time in a long time, I wasn’t afraid. I had Jasper by my side, and maybe, just maybe, we could finally put an end to Asrael's schemes.
"Well then," I said, straightening my shoulders. "Let's go crash a demon realm party."
I nodded to Jasper as he phased through the heavy steel door of the armory. A moment later, I heard the mechanical click ofthe lock disengaging. "Show off," I muttered, but couldn't help smiling as I pushed the door open.
As I stepped inside, the familiar scent of gun oil and leather hit my nose. My heart skipped as the smell overwhelmed me with memories of Misha. I’d be reunited with him and the others soon, all I could do was hope they’d be open to a conversation. I scanned the weapons that lined the walls—from traditional blades to modern firearms.
"Such an impressive collection," Jasper commented, floating near a wall of ceremonial daggers. "I used to spend hours in this room, imagining all the ways I'd utilize these bad boys. Though I prefer a more... spectral approach to combat these days."
I snorted, running my fingers along the grip of a beautiful obsidian blade. "Yeah, well, some of us still need actual weapons."
Hunter entered behind me and let out a low, impressed whistle. "Is this what heaven looks like?" He froze in place, his eyes wide with horror. "Am I dead, Palmer? Oh shit! Am I actually dead?" I shot him an are-you-serious-right-now look, to which he threw up his hands dramatically and shouted, "I could be for all I know! The only two people I've talked to since that fight are a spirit witch and an actual spirit."
I stepped over to Hunter and, without warning, slapped him across the face. Jasper's laughter echoed throughout the armory as Hunter's panicked expression immediately switched to his natural look—cocky confidence. I shrugged and turned my attention back to my favorite things in the world… blades.
"Thanks, Vale. Had a little moment there." I was no longer looking at him, but I knew him well enough to know he was smirking. "Hey, I had to be sure. The level of crazy I've witnessed over the past few weeks has me questioning damn near everything I've ever known."
"Tell me about it," I murmured as my hand stopped on a matching set of curved daggers with deep purple gems set in their hilts. "These are beautiful."
