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I lifted my weapon and swung at the nearest demon. He exploded in a shower of sparks. If the demon had been real, he’d have dissolved into smoke. I continued taking out my aggressions on the demon simulations until they were gone. The human simulations around me, added for the challenge of having to protect them, winked out.
Slow clapping came from the doorway.
“Do I even want to know what crawled up your ass?” Micah asked.
I turned to the man who’d been more of a parent to me than anyone else in my life. He looked exactly as he had the first day he’d shown up. He was power in angelic form. It wasn’t just that he was an archangel, it was Micah himself. He both earned and demanded respect.
“Bad night,” I muttered. I didn’t tell Micah about the dreams. Didn’t tell anyone. What was the point? I could handle it, and it wasn’t like there was anything anyone could do about it. I was a fuckup who would never completely be able to forget where I came from.
Micah’s indigo eyes studied me for a long moment before he jerked his chin at me. “We have some things to talk about.”
“My apartment or the office?” I asked, retracting my club and resecuring it at my hip.
* * *
Micah loungedon one of the crimson couches in my living room. He was wearing his typical leather jacket over a charcoal-gray dress shirt with black jeans. Micah had an aversion to color that could rival Nathaniel’s.
“What’s up?” I asked, leaning against the wall across from him and folding my arms.
“You might as well sit. This could take a while.”
I didn’t take well to being told what to do. I also didn’t take well to being dropped in on in the middle of the night when I wasn’t expecting visitors. But this was Micah. He was the only person on the planet I listened to, partially out of respect and partially because I didn’t have a choice.
I sat down on the other couch and propped my feet on the marble top of the coffee table. “What’s up?” I asked again.
“You’re working with Joriel.”
I tensed. “Jor’s helping me with some training.”
“Good.” Micah’s voice sounded on the verge of cracking. “He needs to be doing something.”
“You could have given him a job,” I pointed out. “He works for you, not me.”
“I can’t. He’d see through anything I had him doing. I can’t risk putting him in charge of something, and I can’t send him on a fool’s errand to keep him busy. That’s an insult to his talent and his dedication.”
I got it. I did. I wasn’t sure what I’d do if one of my men or women were compromised like Joriel was. He’d gone into Hell for Nathaniel and Sierra. It was a sacrifice he’d made for all the right reasons, but now we had to wonder if he was going to betray us. Now we couldn’t trust him. And that was messed up.
“It’s been good having Jor here. He’s a good teacher.”
Micah nodded. “Keep an eye on him.”
“You still want me to just monitor the demon situation?”
“No. I want you to fix it.” He pinned his indigo eyes on me. “Be subtle, Samuel. We need to know who’s behind this. It may not be one of Dantalion’s friends. So keep your eyes open to other options. Don’t underestimate anyone.”
“I know how to do my job,” I growled.
“Don’t get cocky.”
“Do you trust me or not?” I glared at Micah. Respectfully, because Micah was the one person I never ever wanted to disappoint. And I had a feeling that just by being in Boston, I was pushing my luck on that one.
“I trust you. If you need Danielle or Nathaniel—”
“No,” I said. “Nathaniel stays out of this one.”
“That may not be possible.”
“He has a kid who needs him. A wife he nearly lost last fall. He stays out of this fight.”
