The Demon's Song

CHAPTER Seventeen


“I’m fine. No, really. No, I haven’t been abducted. Especially not by aliens. Amy���”

Sofia looked at the ceiling, her cell phone pressed against her ear, and tried to figure out a good way to explain to her roommate where she was without actually, well, telling her where she was. So far, it wasn’t going well.

“Look,” Amy said, every bit of her concern coming through loud and clear. “I’m glad you met somebody interesting, Sofia. Nobody deserves that more than you. But basically moving in with a guy after only knowing him a few days? Don’t you think that’s kind of fast? It’s just not like you at all.”

Sofia cringed. She’d wanted to catch her friend before she got back to DC and discovered a closed-up, unused apartment that hopefully didn’t smell of barbecued vampires. Amy still had a few days left in her unexpected vacation, and she’d sounded really relaxed and happy at first, but unfortunately that didn’t mean she was any more apt to buy the story Sofia was peddling.

So much for making sure Amy didn’t worry.

“I didn’t say I moved in with him. I just said I probably won’t be around much. We’re…having fun.” She tried to make her tone carefree, like everything was great and this was no big deal. Which might have worked, if Amy hadn’t actually known her so well.

“Sofia, sweetie, I’m being serious. Are you on drugs?”

“What? No!” She pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at it in horror. Drugs? She was that bad a liar? She pressed her lips together and sighed. Of course she was. Resigned, she put the phone back against her ear.

“Amy, you’re always telling me I need to be more spontaneous. I finally decide to have a crazy love affair, and you decide I’m on something. Come on.”

There was a gusty sigh from somewhere in Virginia. “You have a point. You’re just always so responsible that this seems kind of…well, like you said, crazy, I guess. First Sara, now you. She called me, too, you know. And she really is living with some guy now. She’s out of the apartment at the end of the month.”

Sofia frowned. “Sara called you?”

“Mmm. Finally. Seems like I’m the last to know everything anymore.” Amy sounded so unhappy that Sofia started to regret calling at all. But what was she supposed to do? She couldn’t just vanish like Sara had…though the fact that only Amy had gotten a call when Sofia had been the one to save her from being sucked dry rankled.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Sofia said firmly. “You’re going to see me. This isn’t permanent.” All of a sudden, she knew exactly the right thing to say. “Amy, honestly…he’s a musician.”

Her friend’s burst of laughter told Sofia that she’d finally succeeded in easing Amy’s mind. Not all the way, probably, but enough that she wouldn’t be calling the cops and worrying she’d be found in a ditch somewhere.

“Oh my God. Is he famous? He is, isn’t he? He’d have to be to finally get you to walk on the wild side like this.”

“Yeah, kind of,” Sofia agreed. It wasn’t exactly a lie, either. Phenex might not be famous by name, but his kind had plenty of notoriety. In religious circles, at least. “I can’t say much right now, but believe me, I’ll have stories.”

Stories she’d have to come up with later, Sofia decided. But for now, hearing Amy’s relief more than made up for the guilt she felt from lying. She’d never believe the truth anyway, Sofia told herself as they lapsed into familiar, comfortable chatter about other things. She wouldn’t believe it, and it would be dangerous for her if she did. This was better.

Too bad it didn’t feel that way.

Ten minutes later, Sofia hung up after an affectionate good-bye, then simply sat on the velvet couch. Her smile faded as she stared into space, lost in thought. Outside the window, the world was as dark as it always was here, brightened only by the soft glow of the gaslights. This was only her fourth day in Terra Noctem, and the lack of light was already getting to her.

At least there was work. For all his grousing, Phenex had escorted her to and from work the last two nights, skulking around the hospital during her shift just to make sure nothing awful happened. Well, nothing awful to her. In the ER, there was generally at least a small amount of awful every day. If she was lucky, she managed to help fix it.

The last couple days, though, it seemed that for every triumph over death she’d helped facilitate at work, there had been two or three people who were beyond saving. Normally, she could detach herself, but some of the losses broke through the shell to really hurt. That, along with the fact that she’d only seen the sun in the brief trips between Amphora and Georgetown heading to work, seemed to be wearing her down. She needed to get out in the daylight for longer than a few minutes at a time, and soon. Otherwise she was going to end up just as pathetic as Phenex’s flowers.

Sofia exhaled softly, stretching her legs in front of her, frowning over her unpainted toenails. She wore a simple pair of jeans and a soft emerald sweater, things that had come in the suitcase Meresin had brought for her. The big, dangerously quiet fallen angel with the violet eyes wouldn’t have been her pick to gather up essentials from her apartment, but not only had he followed her list exactly, he’d put in a few extra things, thoughtful things, that surprised her. Her perfume, for one. A framed photo of her and her parents, for another, smiling and laughing on a day last summer. That Meresin had picked it up off her dresser and thought to include it floored her.

Far from understanding these men Phenex had escaped Hell with, Sofia felt that they only got more complicated with time.

Especially the one she was sleeping with.

“You ready to go?”

Sofia turned her head to look at the front door, which was now half-open as Phenex leaned in to look at her. He’d taken a guitar out on the front steps to amuse himself while she talked to Amy, and she appreciated the privacy. She was less appreciative of the dinner plans he’d made, but Sofia knew her discomfort was her own problem. She was holed up in a vampire city. It stood to reason that eventually, she would have to mingle. With vampires. And probably a few more fallen angels. And maybe other things that, in any other situation, would want to eat her.

She tried to smile instead of grimace and knew she’d only barely succeeded.

“Sure,” Sofia said. She rose and walked to the door, slipping on the ballet flats that she’d left beside it. Phenex brushed past her in one of the preternaturally quick moves she still hadn’t gotten used to, and in a blink his guitar was back on its stand, his hand instead at her waist. The feel of his hand on her, even in the most innocent way, was enough to make Sofia want to arch into his touch. She fought off the urge, somehow managing to act like a normal, non-nymphomaniac human being as they headed out to the street.

She couldn’t seem to get enough of him. It was a problem…or it was going to be. Phenex was no wild rock star, but hooking up with an immortal ex-demon made this relationship just as impermanent. He’d said it himself—she’d never have to worry about taking him home to meet her parents.

What he didn’t know, what she wouldn’t say, was that far from being a relief, that statement just made her increasingly sad.

Amy was right. None of this was like her. Of the three of them—her, Sara, and Amy—Sofia had always been the straight arrow. Maybe it was watching her parents struggle to build a good life for her and her brothers. Maybe it was that she’d had to work so hard to put herself through college, knowing how much she would be wasting—and how many people she’d be disappointing—if she failed. But to her, everything was important. She took nothing lightly.

And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t take the way Phenex looked at her, the way he touched her, lightly, either.

It would probably be better for both of them if she could. But even Phenex seemed to want something more than what he’d offered her. She just wished she knew what it was…if he even did.

Phenex curled one wing around her back as they walked toward High Street, a habit he’d developed that she liked. Especially down here, where every time she walked out the door she felt as though there were hundreds of eyes on her. The two of them made their way down cobblestone streets, some narrow and winding, others wider, all of them dark and strangely charming. Sofia was just congratulating herself on gawking less when an enormous black wolf dashed by her, closely followed by a gray. Her mouth fell open, and it was several seconds before she realized her feet had stopped moving. Phenex’s warm chuckle finally turned her attention.

Phenex looked down at her, a smile curving his lips. “One of the northern packs is in town right now. They’re a little wilder than some.”

“Oh.” Sofia closed her eyes and shook her head, her laugh rueful. “How do you ever get used to this stuff?”

Phenex shrugged. “This place isn’t so weird.”

“Hmm,” was all Sofia said. They obviously had different definitions of “weird.” But it would figure that a guy who had once lived in Hell would have a much different baseline for that sort of thing. Strange, that out of all this, he was the thing that seemed most normal to her.

They got moving again, and soon reached the bustling street Sofia had first seen as she was standing at the mouth of the tunnel from Amphora. It was lined with interesting little shops and a variety of restaurants, some catering to tastes Sofia would rather not think too deeply about. The lamps and lit windows gave everything a warm glow, and everywhere, Sofia could feel the pulse of magic. Music drifted into the street. There was so much here that was lovely, she thought. But then she looked up into a darkness that contained no stars, or waited for a breath of fresh night air that never came, and was reminded all over again that this wasn’t her place. The darkness was deep here. And forever.

But if she thought of it as the strangest vacation ever, it was okay.

“You’re quiet tonight,” Phenex said, again jolting her out of her thoughts. She turned her head to look at him, surprised to see how intently he was watching her. Had he been doing that awhile? She hoped not. Which meant he probably had.

“Oh, I don’t know. Just tired, I guess. My hours are more messed up than usual down here,” Sofia said.

Phenex’s brow creased before he looked ahead again. “Yeah. You’re a little pale. You feel okay?”

His concern was sweet, if no longer quite a surprise. No matter what came out of his mouth, Phenex’s actions said it mattered what happened to her.

“I’m fine,” Sofia said. She paused, then added, “I really need some fresh air, Phenex, and some sun. I’d like to go aboveground tomorrow before work and just sit in a park or something. I don’t care how cold it is. I feel like I’m wilting.”

“You look way better than my bird of paradise,” he offered.

Sofia raised an eyebrow at him. “I’m pretty sure that’s dead, but thanks.”

He leaned in close, his mouth just a breath away from her ear. “When we get home, I’ll perk you up. Promise.”

She shivered, both at the heat in his words and at the words themselves. Home. So appealing to imagine having one with him. But not here.

A shout and a flash of light pulled Sofia abruptly from her thoughts.

“Great,” Phenex muttered. “Somebody’s in a mood.”

Just outside of the restaurant they were headed to, a glowing little gem of a place with “Flicker” etched into the stone above the arched door, a figure Sofia immediately recognized as Meresin stood. His wings were arched high above his back, half extended, and violet light, like electricity, coiled up his arms and crackled at his fingers. A man who Sofia could tell was a vampire was sprawled not far away in the street, that same electric charge flashing around his body, making him yelp in pain.

“Meresin,” Phenex said, his voice hard. “You’re not supposed to get us kicked out before we even go in the building.”

The other Fallen turned his head to look at them, and Sofia sucked in a breath at the fierce light that filled his eyes, as strange a violet as the power that still coiled around him. She tried to remember that picture he’d tucked into her things as they approached. He couldn’t be as frightening as he seemed. Couldn’t be.

“I was just teaching someone a lesson about keeping his opinions to himself,” Meresin said, his voice soft and silken. Sofia realized, all at once, that she hadn’t yet been this close to him—and that it might be a bad idea when he was in this state. He was, like each of the renegade Fallen, beautiful in his own singular way. There was no softness in his face, which was all angles and edges. A short and tousled crop of ebony hair was a striking contrast to his alabaster skin and wild eyes. His clothes were nondescript, black on black, drawing attention away from a form that was just as lithe and powerful as Phenex’s. From the look on his face, Sofia thought that Meresin would prefer that no one pay any attention to him at all.

Which was hard when he was frying people in the street.

The vampire he’d zapped staggered to his feet and fled, and Meresin watched him go with only the barest hint of satisfaction. Whatever was wrong with him, Sofia thought, that hadn’t fixed it.

Phenex exhaled loudly. “What did this one say to you? Hello?”

Meresin fixed him with a hostile glare. “No.” Then, to Sofia’s horror, he turned his attention to her. Immediately, something shifted ever so slightly in his expression, and he surprised her by giving a slight bow.

“Miss Rivera. I hope the things I brought you were adequate.”

His formality surprised her.

“I…yes. Thank you. For everything. It was very thoughtful.”

He flinched, so quickly she might have missed it if she’d blinked. But he didn’t look any closer to electrocuting her. So that was something. Phenex, ever helpful, snorted. But then, she hadn’t shown him the picture. Something had stopped her. And now, looking at how wary Meresin was, she was glad she’d kept that to herself.

Meresin slid a rather ugly look at Phenex before returning his attention to Sofia.

“You’re welcome.”

“You eating with us?” Phenex asked. “Or are you just standing out here looking for fights?”

“I—”

“Hey!” A warm, female voice cut him off neatly, and Sofia saw the look of absolute horror on Meresin’s face before she turned to see who else was joining them. She felt an instant of horror herself as she watched a tall, icy blonde approach. Being surrounded by impossibly gorgeous people was something she doubted she’d ever get used to, and this woman was a knockout of the first order. She was what Sofia would have pictured as the perfect vampiress—ruby lips, long waves of pale hair, cheekbones that could cut glass. And the body clad in nothing but a black tank and black leather pants could have stepped right out of a magazine.

The only thing that kept Sofia from being completely intimidated was the fact that the woman’s grin was about as friendly as it got. That, and the next words that came out of her mouth.

“You jerk, you’ve been back in town for days and I haven’t heard so much as a Springsteen riff from you. Nice.”

There was the softest rustle of wings behind Sofia, a breath of air, and somehow she knew that Meresin had just vanished. The woman’s eyes narrowed, her mouth tightening just for an instant as her eyes flicked to where Meresin ought to have been standing. She looked disappointed, but seemed to collect herself quickly.

“Been busy,” Phenex said, and Sofia felt his wing brush her back. “Dru, this is Sofia Rivera. Sofia, this is Dru, Justin’s sister. Make girly noises at each other for a sec. I need to go see what crawled up Meresin’s ass and died. Again.”

“Don’t bother,” Dru said flatly, tucking a lock of shimmering hair behind her ear. “Pretty sure he’s got a virtual cemetery up there, but right now, we both know it’s me. He’s still mad.”

Sofia accepted Dru’s outstretched hand and looked curiously between her and Phenex, who seemed to understand what the problem was. Meresin, as she suspected, had vanished from where he’d been standing.

The big, thickly lashed eyes that settled on Sofia’s face were incredibly friendly as Dru shook her hand. Sofia found herself unexpectedly at ease with this woman who looked like some supernatural goddess.

“Sorry,” Sofia said. She wasn’t quite sure what to say.

Dru only laughed, low and warm. “For what? You didn’t run him off.” She looked between the two of them. “Huh. Justin wasn’t yanking my chain. Go figure. It’s great to meet you, Sofia.”

Phenex’s hand stroked down her back, just once, and it was all Sofia could do not to purr. She needed to get a handle on this, she told herself. He wasn’t hers. She needed to be able to concentrate on other things when he was around.

Yeah, right.

“Stay with Dru. Be right back,” he murmured. Then he was gone, too, and Sofia could feel the emptiness where he had been. She sighed before she could stop herself, and when she focused again on Dru, the woman was watching her with a great deal of friendly interest. Sofia felt herself flushing.

“Huh,” was all Dru said again, and then shook her head. She surprised Sofia by slinging an arm around her shoulders and leading her toward the restaurant entrance.

“Come on, we can have drinks while we wait for Meresin to zap him and send him on his way. I need as many juicy details as possible before Phenex comes back.”

Sofia allowed herself to be led, laughing at Dru’s conspiratorial tone. There was something about her looks that did remind her of Justin, despite the difference in coloring, but she seemed as playful as he was serious. She was hard to resist.

“I don’t think there are really any juicy details,” Sofia protested.

“I beg to differ. We’re talking about a fallen angel who, up until recently, was just as likely to run you through with one of his precious guitars as look at you. Now he looks so…melty. At least with you. Obviously, there’s a story here.”

Sofia raised one brow and felt her lips curving as she looked wonderingly at Dru. “You’re going to be very persistent, aren’t you?”

Dru laughed as they swept inside and headed for a long, gleaming glass bar that seemed to be full of floating candles.

“Sofia, I’ve been working on my technique since Julius Caesar walked the earth. Persistent doesn’t even begin to cover it. On the upside, I plan to ply you with free drinks, and I’m a font of Terra Noctem gossip besides. You want info, I’m your girl.”

“Info on, say, why Meresin just pulled a disappearing act?” When Dru looked at her, startled, Sofia grinned. “You’re not the only one who’s curious. Juicy details come at a price.” Dru smirked, a conspiratorial gleam in her eye.

“Ooh, you drive a hard bargain. I figured I was going to like you.” She gestured at a pair of empty stools. “Have a seat and prepare to have your ear bent, then. You’re going to fit right in down here.”

And though Dru’s easy acceptance was a pleasure, Sofia felt that strange twist in her gut that she did every time Phenex referred to his house as “home.” It was as though a place was being made for her even though she hadn’t asked for one. Her own little niche between Phenex’s instruments, here in the dark. His newest acquisition.

Unsettled, she pushed the thought away. It wasn’t like that. She wouldn’t let it be like that. This was only temporary, and tomorrow she would get to spend some time in the sun and clear her head. Things would make more sense then.

She hoped.



“Dinner” seemed like a strange word to use for a meal eaten in a magic city in the wee hours of the morning with a couple of vampires in attendance. But weird or not, Sofia found herself pleasantly surprised by Phenex’s group of friends. And that’s what they were, even if he wouldn’t admit to it.

They’d been given a private room in the back of Flicker, ushered behind a heavy velvet curtain and seated at a long table that was much like the bar—glass, and filled with candlelight. The seating consisted of cushioned stools, much easier for the Fallen and their wings. Phenex had immediately stationed himself on Sofia’s left, and Dru had happily taken the spot on her right, acting as though she’d known her much longer than fifteen minutes or so. An unhappy Meresin had been dragged in behind Phenex with an unpleasant look on his face. Sofia noted how he took pains to sit as far away from Dru as possible, though he did give Sofia a cordial nod before retreating into menacing silence. He toyed with a ball of crackling violet light, rolling it between his fingers with a focus so unnerving that Sofia had to make herself stop staring.

Luckily, there were plenty of other things to keep her attention.

The brush of Phenex’s dark wing against her shoulder turned her attention from watching Justin, who had wandered in about five minutes after everyone else, arguing over the optimal layout of dungeons with a white-blond Fallen named Murmur.

“That’s not a subject I thought you’d find interesting,” Phenex said into her ear. Sofia turned her head to find the corner of his mouth curved up in amusement. The concern in his eyes, though, surprised her.

“Murmur’s voice reminds me of yours, in a way.”

“Oh?”

The hint of jealousy made her smile. “Mmm. Either one of you could read a phone book and it would be compelling. I doubt he sings as well as you do, though.”

“He doesn’t,” Phenex replied. “He used it for other things. If you have a secret he wants to know, there’s no denying him. He was the Questioner of Souls.”

“Ah,” Sofia said slowly. “So he’s all about the dungeon…amenities…then.” She cast another glance at the icily handsome Fallen who burst into laughter at something Justin had said before lifting a bottle of beer to his lips. He didn’t look like an interrogator. And Justin was far more relaxed than Sofia had thought him capable of. A beautiful, petite woman with a sleek ebony bob and big blue eyes poked him in the shoulder, then proceeded to whisper something in his ear, grinning wickedly. Vivi, Sofia knew. Justin’s wife. She seemed like a lot of fun for someone who’d been a vampire hunter not too long ago. Dru had promised a better introduction later. It was obvious she loved her sister-in-law.

“Your friends seem awfully normal for a bunch of mythological creatures,” Sofia said.

“What’s normal?” Phenex asked. “Plenty of humans are weirder.” A pair of servers clad in severe black and white silently set their dishes in front of them. It was an enormous burger and fries for Phenex, a rustic Italian pasta dish for her. The burger made her smile. Even not having known him for very long, the fact that he’d ordered something like that at what looked like a reasonably fancy restaurant didn’t surprise her at all. He liked what he liked.

Me included, Sofia thought, and felt her face heating.

A warm biscuit hit her square in the chest. She caught it before it could bounce into her dish, then whipped around to see where it had come from. It didn’t take long.

“Naughty,” Gadreel scolded her. “I see those red cheeks, Sofia. I sense impure thoughts.”

Phenex gently took the biscuit from her, examined it for a moment, and then, in a blur of movement, pelted Gadreel with it. It hit him squarely in the forehead before landing in his bisque, making it splatter.

Gadreel bared his teeth. “I was playing.”

“So am I. It’s a game called Whack-a-Douche. I just set the all-time high score.”

“Children,” said Levi, who had been in quiet conversation with a tousled brunette Fallen named Caim. “If we get kicked out before I eat again, I will personally make sure all of your next assignments involve sewers.”

Sofia didn’t miss the fact that even Levi’s arctic eyes held a hint of amusement, though he was unquestionably the most stoic of the group. Scales, she thought, remembering what Phenex had hinted their leader’s other form was. She really couldn’t picture it. Levi looked like some ancient warrior, not a monster.

“I thought it was funny,” a deep voice rumbled on the other side of Phenex, and she watched as Raum, with his ebony curls and white wings, gave Phenex a fist bump.

“You would,” Sofia heard Ember say from the other side of him. She leaned over to roll her eyes at Sofia, who couldn’t help laughing. This dinner really was bizarre in its sheer normalcy. Remove the wings and the really suspicious red liquid in several of the glasses and she could be anywhere.

When Phenex finally turned his attention back to her, she swiped one of his fries and brandished it at him.

“Somehow I missed this,” she said, “but you’re such a guy.”

His eyebrows lifted. “Ouch. Listen close, and you’ll hear the sound of my manly pride shattering into a thousand tiny pieces.”

She swatted him playfully and hurt the back of her hand in the process.

“Damn it,” Sofia said, allowing him to kiss the stinging knuckles when he reached for her hand. “You know what I mean. I thought ethereal beings would be less, you know, earthy.” She popped the pilfered fry in her mouth and began to munch.

That made him laugh. A glance around told Sofia that the sound wasn’t one any of his friends was accustomed to hearing. Their looks ranged from puzzled to bemused to, in the women’s case, actually pleased. The last made her feel good. He’d involved her in a small part of his life tonight, and it made him smile.

“It doesn’t get a lot earthier than Hell. You’re just going to have to trust me on that,” he said.

She stole another fry. “I bet.”

Phenex watched her and snorted. “We’re going to start talking indentured servitude if you keep eating my fries. These are some of the best in town.”

“I should have known you were a fry junkie.”

“I am,” he replied. “All strung out on potatoes and oil. I’m just a few steps away from living in a fast-food dumpster.” He plucked one up for himself and ate it. “There are worse things.”

Sofia chuckled and turned to her own dish, which, on first bite, was excellent. The conversation around them ebbed and flowed, both in the room and beyond it, the candles lending a warm glow to the space. The rest of the warmth came from the people themselves. Even Meresin leaned in to listen, connected with the rest, although he stayed silent.

She was glad that Phenex was a part of this. Somehow, she’d worried that he’d been all alone among the brothers he talked about. It was good to see she’d been wrong.

“You’re doing a lot of thinking,” Phenex said. When Sofia turned her head, she realized he’d been watching her. She smiled, a little embarrassed, while she enjoyed the fact that he kept his wing curved around her back. It was a wordless pronouncement—she’s mine.

“I was thinking that the food is amazing. And that I like your friends,” Sofia said. The surprised pleasure that lit his eyes made all her earlier worries worth it.

“I’m…glad,” he finally said. “They keep things interesting. I’ll say that.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything different, considering how interesting you are.”

Phenex leaned in close, and with his wing at her back, Sofia felt as though the two of them were wrapped in their own private cocoon. She loved seeing him this way, relaxed and in his element. His smile was just a little wicked, and Sofia was struck by the oddest sensation.

She hadn’t understood until right then just how much she’d come to enjoy his company. How much she didn’t just want him, but liked him. A lot.

“You’re looking at me funny again,” Phenex said softly, touching a finger to the tip of her nose. “If you’re wondering what my opinion is on dungeon design, you’ve got the wrong guy.”

Sofia laughed. “Trust me, if you never say a word about spikes and oubliettes, I’ve got the right guy,” she said. She could feel the others’ curious eyes on them, even as the conversations around them continued. It didn’t bother her. Better, it didn’t seem to bother Phenex.

“No spikes,” he said. “I think I can handle that. How about I tell you about the time I hung out with David Bowie and he gave me one of his saxophones?”

Sofia lifted an eyebrow. “Gave it to you?”

He shrugged, grinning. “I could tell he wanted me to have it. Even if he didn’t actually know I was hanging out with him.”

Sofia laughed and nodded. “All right. Tell me.”

He made it so easy to pretend they were a real couple, lovers and friends without any sort of danger involved. She was on a slippery slope, and she knew it. But for tonight, Sofia let herself indulge in the fantasy. Phenex was funny and cynical and completely impossible, she thought. And as he pushed his plate between them to share his fries with her as he started to spin the tale of what sounded a lot more like a break-in than a visit, she realized she wouldn’t have him any other way.