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The others, taken off guard, followed a beat behind me. I could hear the fall of their shoes on the wet grass as I neared the gazebo. And then Luke stepped out from behind the ornamental pagoda. I skidded to a halt, and Smoky bumped into me. I felt his hand on my ass but didn't have time to shake him off.
Bad Ass Luke was a misnomer. Bad Ass Luke brought to mind a drunken football player, or a hotheaded biker. But Lucianopoloneelisunekonekari was no human thug. Standing a good eight feet high, Luke might be human in shape and form, but all resemblance ended there. No simple demon, either. Hollow eyes reflected the fires of the nether realms, and his arms and legs were vein-shrouded and engorged, muscle-bound beyond any steroid dream. He wore no clothes, and that he was male was rock-hard obvious. It was also apparent that he was strong enough to rip the head off an ox. Poor Jocko hadn't stood a chance, so where did that leave us?
I froze, paralyzed by a vast flow of fear. Smoky broke away, and I wondered if he was going to cut and run, but then I saw that he was trying to gain some distance so he could transform into his dragon self.
Morio pushed his way around me, moving to the side as he stared at the hulk who was slowly striding our way.
"What do we do? Oh, Great Mother, how can we take down that beast? He's huge!" Delilah sounded on the verge of panic. She squeaked again when Luke opened his mouth, and a billow of gas emerged.
"Poison!" Morio said. "He can use poison—I can smell it from here. Do your best to get behind him, because you don't want him breathing on you!"
Holy mother of mountains. Just what we needed. Poison gas, and arms strong enough to crush us. I shook myself out of my paralysis and summoned the Moon Mother.>As he poured water over the wound, I gritted my teeth, promising myself I wouldn't scream. When he dried it and sprinkled on the antibiotic powder, I decided to forget my dignity.
"Great Mother, are you trying to torture me?"
"Breathe, breathe," he said, stroking the palm of my hand with one finger. As his flesh met mine, I began to lose track of the pain, and when he ran his fingers up my wrist, I had totally lost track of it, instead following the silken movements of his skin grazing my own.
"That's right, just follow my voice, breathe out the pain, feel only pleasure." His gaze met mine, and I wanted to jump him then and there. It was only with difficulty that I pulled my attention away.
"Feel better?" he asked, a smile playing on the corners of his lips, and the warm glow of his body receded back out of my aura.
I looked around the room. Delilah and Chase were watching me, and I wondered if they knew just how close I'd come to having an orgasm right there in the kitchen. Morio had been using his powers of mekuramashi on me.
"You should bottle that and sell it," I said hoarsely. "I'd buy a whole case."
"Only too happy to help. I'll help more, later." His voice was low enough so that only I could hear.
I swallowed hard, thinking that when we were done with Luke, there was only one sure way to relieve the tension we were under. "When we have the time," I said, and he leaned over and placed a light kiss on my lips.
Just then, Menolly returned. "Wisteria's locked up and the key is safe with me." She held it up for us to see, then slid it into her pocket. "Now, what about Luke?"
What about Luke, indeed?
"I guess there's no putting it off." I motioned to the living room, and we gathered around the fireplace. "If this works like it did with the harpy, then we're in trouble."
Delilah pulled out her long knife. Guns wouldn't work on Luke, unless we happened to have an AK-47, and that wasn't even in Chase's arsenal. Menolly extended her nails. Morio closed his eyes, and I could feel the energy rise around him as he summoned his magic. And Chase pulled a weapon out of his jacket, one I'd never seen him wield. A steel pair of nunchakus. I gave him a questioning look.
He smiled. "I do have a background in defense other than just pulling a trigger, Camille. Trust me, I know how to use these. You said bullets won't be effective against a demon of Luke's caliber, and somehow, I don't think bitch-slapping him will do any good, will it?"
I laughed. "Chase, you're all right. Okay, we're ready. I just wish Trillian was here with us—we could use his talents. Let's see," I said, looking around. "I need my scrying bowl, along with a bottle of clear spring water."
"I'll get it," Delilah said, taking the stairs two at a time.
"Anything I can do?" Chase asked, looking around the room. "Need any furniture moved or anything?"
"Thanks. I'd normally light candles, but Luke is a creature of fire, and if he shows up in the living room, I don't want any flames going. He could use them in his attack and burn down the house just that much easier." I frowned, looking around as I tried to assess what we might need. "I know. You can get the fire extinguisher from the kitchen. We could probably blind him with it. At least temporarily." The truth was, I had no idea what effect the foam would have on a demon, but it couldn't hurt to try.
Chase trotted into the kitchen and brought back the extinguisher. As he set it down next to me, I caught his hand in mine.
"Chase, I hope you and Delilah enjoy what you've found together—for however long it lasts," I said, keeping my voice low. For all I knew, Menolly and Morio were both listening in. All of us had better hearing than an FBH, but Chase didn't have to know that.
"I've been pretty snide to you over the months," I continued. "But Delilah likes you, and you seem to have lost your fear of being around her."
His eyes glimmered. "I know I've been a pain in your side since we met. You're just so… I don't know. Vital? Alive? But the other night when Delilah and I were working together alone, something just happened. I've never looked at her before like that, but without you around, I could see her for who she is."
I wanted to tell him he had no idea who she really was, that he'd barely scratched the surface. And I'd be right. But I also knew that was for him to discover, and for Delilah to reveal.
"Just remember, she's half-Sidhe. And the Sidhe may look human, but we're not." His expression told me I was about to overstep my bounds, so I cleared my throat and changed the subject.
