Stuart was filling his travel mug with coffee when Eric came by on Tuesday morning.
I let him in, and he followed me to the kitchen where the two men greeted each other without fisticuffs or sarcasm. As far as I was concerned, that was a portent of good for the entire rest of the day.
“I called you,” I said as Eric took a seat at the table. “I wanted to hear how yesterday’s patrol went.”
I’d tried to get the scoop from Allie, but all she told me was that it was “awesome,” that Jared was “badass,” and that hunting with her dad was “really cool.” As an aside, she said that they’d killed five demons between the three of them. Then she told me that she was too tired to go into the details, and crashed in her room.
Since I’d thought she might be avoiding talking about it, I peeked in on her when she didn’t answer my knock a few hours later. And, yeah, she’d been sound asleep. And not even eight o’clock yet.
Because she’s a teenager, despite that early bedtime, she was still sound asleep this morning.
“All she told us was that it went well,” Stuart said, “but what’s your assessment?”
“Same. She was great. And I like Jared. No signs that he’s evil, no sense that this is all a ploy. He seems like a good kid who genuinely wants to protect her.”
“Kid,” I repeated.
“You know what I mean.”
“Great. Allie’s finally on the verge of getting a boyfriend, and he’s a vampire.” With a sigh, I poured him some coffee, then topped mine off as Stuart added cream to his mug.
Eric’s face went tight. “I don’t think she’s ready for boyfriends yet. And I didn’t say that I thought he was interested in her like that. Besides, Jared seems like a genuine asset to us, but if he lays a hand on her, I’ll stake him myself.”
“Not if I get there first,” Stuart said, and the two men shared a knowing grin.
I rolled my eyes . “I’ll join in with you on the concern about his vampire status, but you two are going to have to get used to the idea that she’s fifteen. Boys will be in the big picture. Probably a string of them. Deal with it.”
Eric looked at Stuart. “You okay if I just cut to the chase and put a stiletto through their eyes?”
“I know the District Attorney. I’m sure we could pull strings so you avoid the murder charges.”
“Guys…” I tried to sound terse, but inside I was doing cartwheels. The two men in my life were actually, finally getting along. As far as I was concerned, this was Christmas.
“She really did okay?” Stuart asked.
“She did amazing,” Eric said, his voice full of paternal pride. “It’s not her fighting skills that worry me, it’s what’s going on in this town.”
“The demons are getting persnickety,” I said, taking a seat at the table as Stuart leaned against the countertop, his brows raised.
Do demons get persnickety?” he asked.
“Apparently they do,” Eric said. “Over the last few days, I’ve had demons calling me Sire and swearing to protect me. Then five minutes later I’m jumped by a demon with a sharp blade. Allie’s the same.”
“Right,” Stuart said. “That day she met Jared…” He trailed off as he shifted his attention to me. “Didn’t that demon say he wasn’t going to hurt her, and her mother would approve of him?”
“Something like that,” I said. “So what do we think is going on?”
“I have no idea,” Eric admitted. “To be honest, I don’t even trust the ones who say they’re not going to hurt us. But it does seem as if we’re dealing with two warring factions of demons.”
“But why are you and Allie in the middle of it?” Stuart asked.
“It has something to do with the Lilith,” I said. “I’m certain of that.”
“I can’t say you’re wrong,” Eric said, “mostly because I know you’re right. But I really wanted to be done with that bitch.”
“I don’t blame you,” Stuart said, then frowned, obviously considering something.
“What?” I asked.
