“Youleft. I was already gone, remember? And trust me when I say there were plenty of demons in Los Angeles to keep me busy before I headed over to Rome.”
“Are there?” I’ve never particularly liked LA, but that didn’t mean I wanted the place to be teeming with demons.
His shoulders rose and fell. “Actually, considering the population, no, which is a good thing because I was hardly on my A-game. I’d check the papers and do some patrolling, but not as much as I should have.” He paused and looked at me more directly. “Mostly, I blew off work in favor of a few mental health days.”
I snorted. Neither one of us had ever worked in corporate America and as far as demon hunting is concerned, we really don’t get enough mental health days. “Considering you had a demon inside you fighting to get out,andyou lost an eye in the process, I figure you earned the downtime.”
“And now I’m not only back in action, but back in the hot zone.”
I paused outside the first cave. “It really is, isn’t it?”
His brow furrowed. “What is?”
“San Diablo. It really is a hot zone. We always believed that it was special because it repelled demons, what with the Cathedral being so chockfull of relics and whatnot. And maybe it did for a while. But something’s changed. Now this town is practically a demon magnet.”
“Can’t argue with that,” he said. “Though probably not something the chamber of commerce is going to set up as an advertising slogan.”
“Oh, that was really lame,” I said, trying not to laugh as I start walking again toward the cliff. “And, seriously,that’s what we need to get Eddie and Laura researching. Because if we can figure out what’s making San Diablo so rumbly all of a sudden, then maybe we can—hey!”
I stumbled as Eric grabbed my upper arm and tugged me back. I spun to look at him, then immediately saw what had caught his eye—an old man shuffling toward us through the sand.
More specifically, an old man who looked remarkably like the Henry we were looking for.
“He could just be a lost Coastal Mists resident.”
“You don’t believe that any more than I do,” Eric said.
“No. But we have to consider it before putting a stick through his eye.”
“Words to live by,” he said. “But we’re interrogating, remember? This is a capture mission first. If he’s human, he’ll be pissed, but he’ll be alive.”
We walked slowly toward him, and as we did, the possible demon approached us as well. I felt my body tense, going into that familiar, heightened state of awareness. Ready for a fight or flight. Ideally fight. Even more ideally, interrogation. The kind that gets answers. Solid answers. There are questions about my daughter lingering out there, and I don’t intend to rest until I know what’s going on with her.
Allie filled my mind as the elderly man trudged even closer. He was moving slowly—appearing to be more elderly man than spry demon. The body might be aging, but once a demon enters, even the most broken down body had remarkable strength and agility. Still, most demons are smart and will play old and feeble in order to blend in.
Eric and I stopped in the sand as he came closer, and Eric put a hand on my back. Just a casual couple out enjoying the night. Except I noticed the way he shifted his grip on his cane, ready to use it as a weapon.
Another step toward us, then another. Then one more.
That’s when the old man looked up, his eyes going first to me and then to Eric.
I saw a hint of recognition, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt, that this man was a demon.
I took a step forward prepared to grab him around the neck, hold him close, and let Eric bombard him. Not with his fists, but with questions.
But before I had a chance to do that, he went down on one knee. His head dipped, and right then I could have killed him without even breaking a sweat. Honestly, I was too shocked to even try.
Then he looked back up, his glassy eyes staring straight at Eric’s face. “Sire,” he said.
Sire?
I glanced at Eric, wondering if he had a clue what that was about, but I know his face well, and there was only confusion and misery written there.
“I am not your Sire.” His voice was as hard as stone and as sharp as a blade.
“You are the consort. She does not now wish you harm.”
Eric took a step back. “She? Who?”
