“Your worst nightmare.”
He laughs at that. Truth is, I almost do, too. Didn’t mean for it to sound so corny. Sounded cooler in my head.
“Get out of here, lady, before you get hurt. This ain’t no business of yours.”
As he speaks those words, I feel a blast of energy come over me. He’s trying to get in my head. He’s trying to make me follow his command. His eyebrows quiver with the effort, then raise curiously.
“Why is your mind blocked?” he asks me.
“Gee, what a strange thing to say,” I say, and walk over to him. Just as he takes a step back, I sock him in the kisser, launching him up on his toes. His head snaps back as Marlene gasps behind and begins muttering the Lord’s Prayer.
“That’s for what you did to Kayla,” I say, and as he rocks forward, I drive a punch into his bread basket. Air explodes from his lungs as he doubles over. I let him fall forward onto the floor, where he curls up into the fetal position, gasping for air.
Finally, he rolls over on his back, gasping for air. His bovine eyes roll towards me and, amazingly, I hear his words again, this time spoken as if on an unfelt breeze:
Leave. Forget. Obey.
I step on his open hand and really grind my foot down. “You can stop with your little commands, asshole. They won’t work on me, and I think you know why.”
“You’re... you’re...”
I smile down at him. “Yes, I am. And you’re lucky I don’t drop you in the middle of the ocean... or in front of a semi-truck.”
Something ugly flashes across his face. And yes, it does look demonic. Hmm, maybe he’s straight-up possessed. Could be the source of his mental powers. Then again, he didn’t strike me as very strong physically. Possession generally gives enhanced strength. Then again, I had sucker punched him. I didn’t really give him a chance to fight back, nor did I intend to. It wouldn’t end well for him.
He laughs, short and sharp. “She belongs to me, vampire. I’ll kill you and her, and her fucking rat-bastard kid.”
“You know, you’re kind of a dick,” I say, and step down on his hand a little harder. He yelps and tries to pull it free. He’s unsuccessful in this endeavor.
When I hear sirens in the distance now, faint but coming closer, I take Marlene’s hand and summon the single flame. Shortly, we appear in a stall in the visitor’s bathroom. Marlene screams and screams, until I put my hand over her mouth and command her to calm down. I implant the memory of us drivinghere together. When she’s totally calm, we step out of the stall, out of the bathroom, and into the police station.
I lead her into Sherbet’s now-empty office. No doubt he’s part of the contingent there to pick up Trent. I show Marlene to one of Sherbet’s guest chairs and command her to wait there. She nods. Her poor noggin is jam-packed with endless commands. Well, I’ll clear them out tomorrow.
I teleport back to the house and tackle Trent just as he’s about to bolt out the back door.
“You again!” he screeches.
I pin him to the ground as a big, ugly grin spreads across his face. A sure sign that he’s totally possessed.
“What’s your name, demon?” I command. “And don’t give me that ‘Legion’ bullshit.”
A low chuckle rolls through Trent’s chest. “I’m Baltazar. And you are... Samantha Moon. We’ve been looking for you.”
“Well, I’ve been right here, asshole,” I say. “You’re lucky I don’t kill you.”
The demon smirks using Trent’s face. “Would you kill an innocent human just to get to me?”
“Innocent?” I arch a brow. “I doubt that.”
“He’s a pathetic little wannabe devil-worshiper,” Baltazar sneers.
“He sacrificed something to win your favor,” I press.
The grin widens disturbingly, stretching Trent’s lips like rubber. “But of course. Possession like this doesn’t just happen.”
“Possession likewhat?”
“I’m not your garden-variety demon, Samantha Moon,” he purrs. “I’m upper management.”
