Page 113 of The Demon's Fire
Ram strode closer, avoiding the blood on the floor, drew his dagger, and plunged it deep, dragging it from abdomen to chest. He reached in, grabbed the demon’s heart, yanked it out, and threw it onto the floor. “He got what he wanted. A quick death.”
Kole nodded. “Bring on the next victim. Maybe he knows about this Arisen Dawn or Cerberus or now the mysterious human Dante.”
ChapterTwenty-Seven
“Cometo Paddy’s Diner two days hence at noon. Sit in a booth, both of you on one side, hubby against the wall, all hands on the table.” Miller dodged a pedestrian crossing the street and coming toward him. The guy had sneaky eyes, his mouth torquing into a grim snarl. Miller twisted around, tracking the man, prepared to fight. Since the guy was short and his arms looked rail thin, the ex-military man knew taking him would be no challenge. But the guy walked on by.
Bollocks. I’ve got serious rats in my attic. I think they’re gnawing away at brain matter.
As Miller swore under his breath, he reminded himself he would stay alive only if he considered everyone an enemy. Sometimes paranoia could save a life. Though he was tired of running, he didn’t think he’d enjoy being some Aeternal’s bitch. So, he’d just hang onto his persecution delusions.
Back to the phone and Braelyn. “I know it’s been a while, but I have to be careful, luv.”
He’d been hopping from hotel to hotel, town to town, returning eventually to Boston. “What? … How will you recognize me? … I’ll be wearing a strawberry-blonde wig, flowered dress, and red hooker heels. … No, not really. You won’t need to recognize me. I’ll know you, luv. Remember. You. His nibs. Nobody else. Now, are you as great looking in person as you are in your picture? … Ha! I think hubby is the least of my worries. See you soon.”
****
Skylerwaited for Anna to return with proof of Alden Maxwell’s tour of Darque.
Last night, she had pounded her pillow thinking if she made a comfortable dent in it she’d fall asleep. It didn’t work. She flipped onto her stomach, pivoted to her side, curled into a ball. Nothing made any difference. Sleep was impossible. She closed her eyes, drawing a long breath, seeing Kole’s muscular arms, deep chest, broad shoulders, and heated gaze. When she imagined him using his devilish charm on other women, her eyes snapped open and life’s dilemmas plagued her sleep.
Somewhere around three o’clock in the morning, she had drifted off, still rolling the tour schedule around in her mind. What if Darque had been a set-up from the start? Skyler had told Anna to use her father’s journals to recreate his first official visit to Scath. Her assistant had not included Darque in the original itinerary, claiming to have missed it. Had Anna set Skyler up? Anna? No. Not possible. But someone. Someone led Kole and her into a trap.
“Here it is, boss. This is the page which fell out of your father’s journal. Read for yourself. That’s why I added Darque to your tour. I swear. I only found it after you were already on Scath.”
Skyler examined the page, studying the handwriting. “It looks right.” It could be her father’s. She rubbed the paper between her fingers. “Can you bring in the whole journal?”
Anna’s heels clacked across the tiles as she rushed from the office, returning with the diary in hand. It was a brown leather-bound book tied with a black strap. Just one in a series her father had written while he was CLO. It documented issues he had handled, travels, Aeternals and humans he had met, and thoughts about nearly every subject connected with his tenure in the position.
“Here it is. See? Same writing.”
“Hmm. It looks the same. Feel the journal paper and then the page you found. Tell me what you think.” Skyler handed the book along with the single page to Anna.
The young but efficient assistant closed her eyes, rubbing the stray page between her fingers. She did the same in the journal. “I think this paper is rougher, but I’m not sure.” She held up the single sheet documenting the tour of Darque.
“It is definitely coarser.” Skyler put both objects on the desk, leaning over them, carefully examining the handwriting. “Look at these closely. What do you see?”
Anna took Skyler’s place, bending forward, squinting at the samples. Her mouth open, she twisted her neck to stare at Skyler. “They are not the same. Remarkably similar, but different. Your father’ss’swere more angular. He crossed hist’sdifferently.” Anna let the single page and the journal rest on the desk. Her shoulders slumped forward. “Oh. My. God. Someone set me up, and I almost got you killed. I’m so sorry.”
“This is not your fault, Anna. Where did you think this page came from in the journal?”
“I assumed from somewhere in this section.” Anna thumbed through the book until she came to the part about Alden Maxwell’s tour.
They examined where the pages would have connected to the binding. “I don’t see a tear which would indicate something had been ripped out, do you, Anna?”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t. I did not go through the journal looking for the spot where the page might have been torn out. My fault. I am so sorry.”
“Again. I do not blame you, but how do you suppose this sheet got in among your notes?”
Anna bit her lower lip. “No idea. I often leave papers on my desk. Anyone who came in could have messed with them. You should fire me, boss.” She pulled a tissue from a box on Skyler’s desk to dab tears from her eyes.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not going to fire you.” Skyler looped an arm over Anna’s shoulder to comfort her. “I like you. We just need to get to the bottom of the problem. Someone put the false entry among your papers hoping you would find it and add Darque to my itinerary. After you arranged for me to go there, he or she must have hired the demons. Why would those bloggers go to all the trouble? And how does their reach extend into our offices and across the realms?”
With a coffee cup in hand and the unsolved problem on her mind, Skyler picked up the phone to call Winston.
****
Lizettejumped when she heard a fist pounding the door. She struggled against her bindings, but before she screamed, Spear moved swiftly in front of her, his glare menacing.
