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She gave me a lazy grin. "I have yet to collect the finger bone of a demon."
Oh yeah, that sounded doable. I coughed. "I don't know any demons. And I sincerely doubt that they'd give up a finger bone for my sake."
"A free prediction, my dear. Over the coming years, you will know far more demons than you ever hope to. If you survive the coming onslaught, you'll have plenty to choose from. Bring me your favorite," she said. "And if you don't, then one of your fingers will do just fine."
Before I had time to sputter, I found myself standing back in the center clearing of the grove, alone. I whirled around, looking for Grandmother Coyote, but she'd disappeared, and I couldn't pick out which tree was hers.
For a moment, I wondered if I'd imagined the whole thing, but when I looked down at my feet, I saw four objects: the three bones gleaming in the moonlight and the book. I scooped them up and, feeling the need to be out of the woods as quickly as possible, ran through the trees, glancing at the moon over my shoulder. The Huntress was racing the night winds, the Hunt only a few nights away. I couldn't afford to get swept up in the primal chase with this mess looming over our heads, but when the Moon Mother called, I answered.
At my car, I took one quick look back at the forest. For a moment, a hundred red eyes peered out of the gloom, staring in my direction. Needing no further hint, I slid into the driver's seat and pulled back onto the road. As I headed for home, I wondered just where in the world I was supposed to find a demon willing to part with his index finger. Because I sure as hell wasn't ready to give up one of mine.
The night was waning by the time I slammed the front door behind me. I slipped into the living room, startling Delilah. Menolly sat by her side, apparently back from hunting. A glance at the TV made me flinch.
"Blind Date? Honey, you've got to develop some viewing taste. Maybe we should make you watch PBS?"
Delilah snorted as she fished another corn chip out of the bag of Fritos. "You and what army? Mr. Big Bad Demon?"
With a laugh, Menolly burped. She flipped off the TV, looking sated. Obviously, she'd fed well. Delilah beamed, waving a packet of papers.
"I found Louise Jenkins! You want to pay her a visit tomorrow?"
"Hold on a few. Let me get out of these clothes first," I said, dashing up the stairs. I changed into a long satin nightgown and slipped on a matching robe, again blessing Earthside clothing designers. Victoria's Secret was my secret playground. My thoughts flickered briefly to Trillian. He loved silk and satin.
Sighing, I brushed out my hair and slid on a pair of fuzzy slippers. By the time I returned to the living room, the knots of tension from my encounter with Grandmother Coyote were beginning to ease, but my shoulders still hurt like hell. I plopped myself down on the floor in front of Menolly.
"Neck rub?" I asked, leaning back. She wrinkled her nose and smiled. I noticed her fangs were retracted, but there was a smudge of blood on her lower lip that she'd missed. I silently handed her a tissue and tapped my chin. She wiped her mouth. "I take it you had a good night?"
"Very good," she said, rubbing the kinks out of my shoulders. Her fingers were so strong that it occurred to me she might look into becoming a masseuse. Cancel that. The image of her massaging a stranger's neck brought up other thoughts—not so good ones. I backtracked from the idea. Menolly had self-control, but even the best of us could experience a weak moment.
"I found out more than I expected to, and the world now possesses one less perv," she said. "He was about to slice up a hooker who works the back alley around Jocko's. I wiped her memory after I took care of her would-be suitor. In fact, I wiped her memory and told her to go find a good job as a waitress. When she comes to, maybe she'll get herself off the streets." Menolly had a penchant for tracking down the whack-jobs of the world. Since we'd been here, she'd saved the police a great deal of expense and trouble, even if they didn't know it.
I grasped Menolly's hand and gave it a quick kiss. "Good work," I said. "So what did you find out?"
Her eyes glistened, flaring crimson before fading back to the icy gray they'd turned when she'd died. "I talked to one of the men who sleeps in a box next to the restaurant—not Chase's informant, but a buddy who was drunk when Chase interviewed him. He told me what he forgot to tell Chase. Seems three figures came racing out of the back door in the wee hours of the morning, dragging Jocko by a rope. They left him in the alley before fleeing. My man was sleeping it off behind a pile of cardboard boxes. But it's bad. Big, bad news."
I held my breath. "As in?" .
"As in a trio of demons. From the descriptions, I figured out what we're looking at. Starting with a Psycho Babbler."
"Oh great," I moaned. Psycho Babblers were reptilian, able to shift into the most gorgeous of mortals. They were similar to incubi, but they never bothered to have sex with their victims. They just charmed them into a violent and bloody death. And they were stupid. Real stupid.
"It gets even better," she said with a grim smile. "The second one's a harpy, and that's just nasty. But the third… we're in worse trouble than we thought." Her nostrils flared, and her fangs extended just a smidgen. Something had my sister excited. Delilah put down her book, looking grave.
My spirits sank. Grandmother Coyote said Shadow Wing had sent scouts through the portals, and it seemed she'd been telling the truth. Maybe I had more chance to find that demon finger than I thought.
"Okay, I'll bite. Who's our third man?"
"Remember when Father told us about a demon he'd fought on one of his scouting missions? The one who killed Uncle Therasin? He showed us the demon's image in the Crystal Mirror."
"Oh hell," I said, leaning back. "Bad Ass Luke."
Menolly nodded vigorously, her beads clicking loudly. "That's right. Ladies, Bad Ass Luke is in town."
As I set the book and bones on the coffee table, Menolly's eyes widened. Delilah leaned in for a look.
"Okay, let me add fuel to the fire," I said. "Grandmother Coyote told me that Shadow Wing is sending scouts through the portals—hence our lovely trio of miscreants. Trillian was right—Shadow Wing's on the move. Not only that, but I found out what kind of demon he actually is. Ladies, we now have a Soul Eater at the helm of the Subterranean Realms."
It got very quiet for a moment, then all havoc broke loose as the front door burst open. In a blur of movement, Delilah was standing, holding a gun in one hand, a long knife in the other. Menolly hissed and soared up to the ceiling, her arms spread to dive in attack. Running on instinct, I called out to the Moon Mother, and energy raced into my hands, crackling as I armed myself with the silver lightning.
