I shifted my weight, twisted, and got him in the gut with one swift kick. He flew backwards, his back slamming against the brick wall. I pulled the stiletto out of the little holster I’d sewn into the sleeve of my jacket. Then I aimed it for his eye.
“Kate, no!”
I stopped just a millisecond from releasing the knife. I took a step back, wary, but not willing to kill this creature until I knew how he knew me. By reputation? Or something else. “Who the hell are you?”
“You knew me as Thomas Duvall.”
“Duvall?” That from Allie. She raced forward to stand beside me, then looked the demon up and down. “You’re not Thomas Duvall.”
“I am Quiric,” he said, in that precise, steady cadence. “Duvall’s body has long since gone. I had to speak to you.”
“What’s going on?” Bruce asked.
“We kind of met him. In Rome,” Allie told him. “Before he got killed. He’s a white hat demon. One of the good guys. At least for purposes of not wanting hell on earth.” She turned back to Duvall-now-Quiric. “The gate’s locked now. So how do we know we can trust you?”
“I have no proof to offer.” His tone had turned reverential, and his eyes were on Allie. “But know this. I will never harm you. Not you or your mother. Or her mate, Eric.”
“He’s not my m—” I cut myself off. Really not the issue. “Why won’t you harm us?” I asked instead.
“Because I closed the gate,” Allie said, answering before Quiric could answer. “And Eliza? Would you harm her?”
Quiric’s eyes narrowed. Eliza had tried to open the gate in a futile and misguided attempt to save her mother’s life. “It is tempting,” he said, looking at her. “But no. We understand her intention. And we know that she is one of yours.”
“So are these,” I said, indicating the students. “They are under my protection. You harm them, you will have no pass from me. You understand that?”
“I do not wish to find a new form. And our debt to you is great. Your companions are safe as well. At least from those who honor my name.”
“Good. In that case, thank you for the detente.”
“It is more than that,” he said. “It is a bond. All you must do is say my name, Quiric, and those who stand with us will let you pass. This is not an offer we make lightly. You did what could not be done,” he said to Allie. “And because of you, we continue to enjoy this realm, with its physical pleasures.”
“We thank you,” I said, stepping in for Allie. I took a moment, considering asking him to attack the students and show them what he could do, but I didn’t want to risk one of the kids actually managing to take him out. Quiric and his compatriots would keep their word even if that happened, but it still seemed rude.
“We’re going to be on our way,” I told them. “Nothing against your kind, but I need to find a demon I can kill as a demonstration to these students.”
I thought I saw him smile, but it may have just been a shadow. “Katherine, there is more. Those who stand with me do not wish to see this world turned into a hell dimension, as my brother demon, whom you knew as Tagelli, explained to you in Rome.”
“I know,” I told him. “And it was both our good fortune that our interests aligned.”
“We also do not wish to be subjugated to the will of she who seeks to be corporeal. We are satisfied with our existence, but should Lilith manifest in this world, we will be required to be subservient to her.”
“So she really is trying to become corporeal again,” I said, a chill running through my body. I glanced over at the kids, all of whom were listening with rapt attention. I turned back to Quiric. “How? We destroyed the chalice stone. There’s no other. Is she still trying to get into Allie? Is there a ceremony? What’s her plan?”
“I cannot say if it is Allie she expects to be her vessel, but were I to guess, I would believe it so.”
“And without the chalice stone, how is she going to do that?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. All I know is that she is preparing for the ritual. Putting the pieces in place.”
“What pieces? I can’t stop her if I don’t have the information.”
“Again, I do not know for certain. But there are rumors that she is seeking Solomon’s Stone. That it would be sufficient to draw her essence from the ether for the merging.”
Relief crashed over me. “Then we’re safe. The stone shattered when Lilith first went after Eric as a body for her consort.”
Thomas shook his head. “You would be wise, I think, not to assume that everything is as you believe, even if you have seen it with your own two eyes.”
“Good advice. Thank you.”
