Personal Demons

Chapter 28

He sat on the floor in the hall, his back against the wall and one leg stretched in front of him. The other was bent so he could rest a bottle on his knee. His eyes were closed when she entered the hall, but as she pulled the door shut behind her he opened one, then closed it again.

"Oh, it's you."

Megan stood for a minute, watching him. "You have a right to be angry," she said finally. "But so do I."

"Spare me the counseling speak."

"Oh, spare me the tortured, misunderstood bit," she snapped. "I came out here to apologize. If you don't want to hear it, that's fine with me."

He opened his eyes. "I suppose Tera and Brian have been filling your head with breathtaking tales of my heroic deeds."

"Something like that."

"Pure exaggeration. Like I said, I've never had any interest in being a hero."

She sat down next to him and took the bottle. "So that was all self-preservation. And a plan to take Templeton's place."

He shrugged. "It was a pretty good plan, you have to admit."

Megan almost stood back up and left, but something flickered in his eyes when he glanced at her and she knew she had to try. Yes, maybe he had made her part of his plan. That didn't mean he didn't care. And no, he wasn't the kind of man who committed himself. That was fine. She didn't expect a commitment, not after a week. Nor did she especially want the hassle at this point, either, not with a budding radio career on top of her practice, and especially not with the additional publicity bound to come when Brian's "Fearbusters occult" story broke.

Besides, she was used to having time to herself. She enjoyed being alone. Most of the time.

She raised the bottle to her own lips, drank, and set it deliberately back on the ground.

"Just tell me one thing. Why did you send me to the personal demons? And how did you know it all?"

"That's two things."

Megan raised her eyebrows and waited.

"Because I knew what they wanted," he said, after a pause. "They obviously weren't trying to kill you, or they would have done it before I got involved. They couldn't have created those zombies, either. Something had to be behind it, something with enough power to create multiple fast-moving zombies. Not many creatures have that kind of strength. I already knew you had demon in you; I discovered that back when I kissed you the first time. You knew the Accuser was after you. You just didn't know his connection to the Yezer Ha-Ra."

"And you didn't tell me."

"No."

"Why not?"

He shrugged and looked away, but Megan didn't let him get away with it. She grabbed his hand in her left, and used her right to tilt his face back towards her. "Greyson."

He didn't meet her eyes at first. Megan waited, barely daring to breathe. She hadn't said or done anything to be ashamed of ... yet. If she was wrong she could just get up and leave.

"Damn it," he whispered, just before his arms went around her and his lips met hers with bruising strength.

His hands caressed her face, then slid back to tangle in her hair, stroking her neck, pulling her closer to him. The angle was awkward but she didn't care. She didn't care about anything at that moment, not even the gang of tiny demons in the other room waiting for her orders.

Together they slid over, Greyson's hand supporting the back of her neck to rest her on the floor. The icy cold of the marble seeped through her clothes to her back, but Greyson's weight like a banked furnace above her countered it nicely. His tongue slid into her mouth and she welcomed it, raising her chin, returning his passion with equal intensity.

It was several breathless minutes before he pulled his mouth away from hers and pressed his cheek to hers, so his lips rested just next to her ear. "I couldn't tell you, bryaela. I was sure I knew what Temp had planned, and I knew the Accuser was going to read you when he ... invaded you. I couldn't take the risk of him knowing and maybe paying more attention to where he sent you. He had to be careless, so I could use your anger to give you to the Yezer Ha-Ra."

"I know," she whispered back. "I know now."

"And I had to make you angry. They were lies, Meg. You know they were. What I said."

She nodded. "It's okay."

For another minute or so he just held her, his slowing breath hot on her neck. Then he pulled away, kissed her hard on the mouth, and helped her sit back up.

"So." He took another swig from the bottle. Megan recognized the action. That speech, made into the hidden shadows at her throat, was all she would get from him. Whatever fear or panic for her safety he'd experienced, whatever his feelings were towards her, she'd have to take the clues she'd just been given.

But then, reading clues to people's emotions in their behavior was her business.

"What do you plan to do with them?"

"Who? Oh. The personal demons." She shook her head. "I have no idea, to be honest. I can't very well tell them not to do what they do. They'll die, and I promised to take care of them. But I can't just give them free rein, either."

"Business could boom. They reel them in, you cure them and send them on their way."

Megan took the bottle from his hand and tried not to laugh. "That's one way to look at it. But I'd rather see if we can't help society and not just line my pockets."

"The Gretneg of a Meegra has to do what's best for her family first."

She hadn't thought of that. "You mean ... I'm a Gretneg?"

He nodded. "Gretneg of Meegra Io Adflicta. They haven't officially been a Meegra for some time, but I'm sure you can build them back up."

Gretneg of a Meegra. A week ago, she was a lonely counselor with the ability to win every hand at cards if she wanted. Now she had friends. A lover. A ... family. Granted, her family consisted of small scaly creatures who lived on the unhappiness of humans, but it was better than being alone, wasn't it?

Yes. It was.

"What about you?" she asked. "What happens to your Meegra? Tera said—"

"Ignore Tera. You don't think I would have gone into all this without some contingency plans, do you? Half the Meegra was ready to kill Templeton themselves—he doesn't have any sons to take over anyway—and put me in his place already. I think Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud can help me with the other half. They certainly proved their loyalty to you, breaking out of the dungeons to save you. Maybe we'll take them with us."

"Hmm? Where?"

He stood up and grabbed her hand, lifting her to her feet. His eyes met hers, searching her depths, his lips quirked in a dangerous half-smile.

His arm stole around her waist to press her to him. "I was thinking of someplace sunny. Italy? What do you think, bryaela? You want to go to Florence for a week or two with me?"

"Maybe. What does that mean? You wouldn't tell me before."

"Come with me and find out."

"What happens after we get back? Aren't our families in competition or something?"

He kissed her forehead. "Let's take it one step at a time, shall we?"

Megan nodded and followed him up the stairs. One step at a time, all the way to his bedroom.

Megan leaned forward in the shadowy studio, smiling as Bill patched the first call of the night through. It was Regina, her caller from last week, the girl being tormented by demons.

Across the room, Rocturnus smiled at her from where he sat on the floor. He held up his hand. Regina was now off-limits. He'd called off her demons that morning, after Megan had finally woken up and gotten herself ready for work.

Bill pointed at her. Megan opened her mouth.

"Hi, Regina," she said. "How can I slay your demons tonight?"