Kilian winced. That made his own powers sound demonic in nature, although he doubted someone on a subway muttering “God bless you,” would affect a demon the way it did Kilian.
“Do you know the demon’s line or culture?”
The woman leaned back and considered Kilian with cold, gray eyes. “No. And without that knowledge, we are helpless if Stephen loses control. We need you to reconnect with him. Build a friendship. Strengthen him until such time as our witches can narrow the rather wide field well enough to test sacred objects.”
She meant that Kilian should feign friendship. He hated the idea, but he understood her motivation. She needed to stop the demon before it could grow too dangerous. “If you don’t know what sacred object can banish the demon, how could I be a last line of defense?”
“Pain.”
“Excuse me?”
“A demon is drawn to pain. If a host is in pain, the demon will get—” she frowned as she considered her words—or made a show of considering them at least. “The demon gets distracted, trapped in the host’s feelings. Judas vampires are renowned for their ability to inflict exquisite pain. If you are unable to anchor him through your past friendship, then pain can trap the demon inside Stephen’s body.”
Perhaps she read the horror on Kilian’s face. “Of course that’s not ideal,” she continued. “If the demon is pain-locked, Stephen cannot direct it to perform tasks. He has saved countless lives through his ability to manage the demon, and it would take a dozen paranormal teams to replace him. And of course, helping others gives him another anchor to his humanity, so if he is unable to perform that service, he will be even closer to losing the battle with this demon.”
“So pain is to be used only under the most dire of circumstances,” she finished.
“And when you find which objects work against this demon?” Kilian asked. If the government was using Stephen in place of a dozen paranormal teams, they wouldn’t want to lose him. The teams required too much training and cost too much money in terms of volunteer bonuses. Worse, they died too damn often.
“As long as the demon can be contained, Stephen knows the importance of continuing his work. Your job would be to emotionally support him as long as possible and contain the demon when there is a danger of the demon breaking out of control.”
Kilian took a moment to rein in the anger that threatened to consume him. Some vampires were incapable of human emotion. Others were little more than walking corpses who knew only hunger. But Judas vamps had been born in betrayal and rebellion, and the undercurrent of anger was a flood that always pushed against the gate of his mind.
On one level, he understood the practical realities of running a paranormal unit. On the other, he couldn’t stop thinking of little Stevie crying while Susan Nguyen held a damp washcloth to his face. The two feelings did not mesh well, and that aggravated Kilian even more.
“Can I take some time to consider the position?”
She tapped her fingers against the desk blotter. “Your days in this unit are numbered, and unless you are transferred, someone may arrange a convenient accident for you.”
Kilian couldn’t deny that. Commander Rudolf might even be the one to arrange it. However, he was not going to jump at the first opportunity that crossed his path. “I've already put in for a transfer.”
“And I have already ensured that that transfer has been denied.”
Kilian's face grew warm, and he suspected the whites of his eyes were growing redder with each passing second. “Do you want to blackmail a Judas vamp and then take him into the center of your operation?” Kilian's gums itched as his fangs tried to drop.
Instead of quaking in fear like a reasonable creature, she spread her hands wide, palms up. “I work with whatever tools have been made available to me. And to be quite honest, I value Stephen and his life far more than yours. If I have to blackmail you in order to give Stephen a resource which might extend his life for a week or a day or even an hour, then I am very pleased to blackmail you. Are you so full of pride that you would allow a good man to die just to be able to say no woman could take advantage of you?” She raised an eyebrow at him.
Kilian tasted copper as his fangs elongated. “I don't care that you’re a woman. I don't trust you, and I don't work for commanders I don't trust.”
She laughed. “You already work for a commander you don't trust. But if it makes you feel better, you would be under Stephen’s authority. I have binding rings at the base so no one would be able to order you away from him, not even I. As an added layer of protection, Stephen would feel any pain you feel so you would be protected from the demon.”
That didn’t reassure Kilian as much as worry him. No team could abandon him in a dangerous situation, but he also wouldn’t be able to retreat if the demon escaped. “And if the demon breaks free?” Kilian asked. Witches spent years developing containment runes and strengthening their bodies in preparation for hosting a demon, and even then the summoning often failed. A ring would be entirely inadequate.
She pursed her lips. “Consider it an incentive to make sure the demon doesn't.”
Kilian leaned back and studied this diminutive woman with such an aura of power. “Binding rings are voluntary magics. You're coming to me because no one else is willing to take a risk with that kind of magic, not with a demon involved.”
She gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Considering that Stephen disemboweled his last guard, even with the binding spell in place, there is a certain lack of enthusiasm among the available volunteers. But Judas vamps are tough. Normally this would be where I would tell you to either take my offer or take your chances with a base full of people who hate you, but I have a peace offering. We can go to the base and you can meet Stephen. Talk to him.”
Kilian had no idea what to think. Stephen was part of a life he had abandoned—or that had abandoned him, to be more accurate. He desperately wanted to check on Stevie, to be the lifeguard who made sure he didn’t drown. But he had proven himself an entirely untrustworthy guard of anyone’s life. When Silas woke, he would not be pleased. He could join the host of people who thought Kilian had wasted his talents.
“Well?” she asked after an awkward silence.
“I’m not the right person,” Kilian said. He had volunteered for the paranormal unit to protect citizens from creatures like this demon, but he had too many feelings involved, and the mission parameters were too contradictory. He was supposed to establish a friendship until the day came that he would have to lock Stephen in his own mind, using pain. Even ignoring the part where Stephen had disemboweled his last guard, that wasn’t a recipe for mission success. Besides, if Kilian were going to fail to save someone, he would rather fail a stranger.
“That is not a ‘no’,” she said. She raised her hand and magic whirled through the air before white pain enveloped Kilian.
