“We’ll need to get to the Brim Stone first,” the demon agreed.
I stuffed my hands into my pockets and followed Azirak out onto the sidewalk. His pace was brisk, and I had to hurry to keep up. “And in order to do that, we need to…?”
The demon flashed me some major side-eye, but said nothing. It continued walking, if possible picking up the pace just a bit.
“You’re going to have to let me in on the plan. There’s no way in hell you’re waltzing out of my sight while in possession of that body.”
Azi came to an abrupt stop and turned to me very slowly. “You will need to come to terms with something, Samantha Merrick. This is no longer his body. It belongs to me.” A slow smile spread across Jax’s lips. One that would have normally turned me to pudding. The demon leaned in and brought his face inches from mine. “I am more than willing to allow you to use it, however. I see the way you look at it when you think I’m not watching. I know what you wish to do…”
I swallowed back a rush of heat—and more than that, of shame.
The demon brought Jax’s lips to my ear. Warm breath fanned my skin, making the hairs on my body jump to attention. “I would make it interesting, I promise you.”
My pulse kicked up, heart hammering into hyperdrive. If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn we were having a freak heat wave. “You’re right,” I said, swallowing hard. I couldn’t fake it, couldn’t pretend I didn’t feel a certain way when looking at the demon—at Jax—but I had no intention of acting on it. Not until the rightful owner of those skilled hands was securely back in place. “I do look at you. All the time. Wanna know why? Because I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
The demon snickered. “Whatever lies you must tell yourself.”
It turned and started walking again, and I had to gnaw on the inside of my cheek to keep from screaming as I followed. I could do this—get through this and get Jax back. I just needed to bide my time and find a way.
Find a way…
And like a strike of lightning, the solution was so damn obvious. This Brim Stone thing was powerful enough that Heckle was worried about the serious advantage it would give to Chase. That fact made me think that maybe I could somehow use it to evict Azirak—that I could gain an advantage. I just had to tread carefully until I could get my hands on it.
The demon slowed its pace, stopped, and turned to me. It was still grinning, and that made me uneasy. “Do not worry about the plan,” it said. “You have a part to play.”
“A part to play?” I repeated. I wasn’t sure I liked the sound of that. “Meaning?”
“Gather your things.” It began walking again and disappeared into the shadows ahead. From the darkness I heard it add, “We are going to the edge of the world.”
…
Azirak wouldn’t answer any of my questions. Obviously we weren’t going to the edge of the world, but a little info wouldn’t have hurt. Like what was my part in all this?
The demon had given me barely ten minutes to get my things together before demanding that we leave. I had to bite my tongue and remind myself that I was doing this for Jax, that seeing this thing through would get me closer to getting him back. Spending time in close quarters with Azi was necessary.
I slung my duffle bag over my shoulder and followed Azirak out the front door. “So, now what?” I said, locking up the house. “Because wherever your super special items are, something tells me we won’t get to them by walking.”
“Are you not related to the human female in the next house?”
I glanced across the way at my Aunt Kelly’s house. Stark white siding with perfectly trimmed holly hedges lining the entire driveway. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“She has a vehicle, does she not?”
“Um, yeah. But I don’t see how—” Then I understood what it was getting at. I threw up my hands and backed away a step. “No way in hell. Forget the fact that I refuse to ask that woman for a favor, she’d never let me take the car. She just traded up for a brand new Explorer. She thinks I’m a horrible driver.”
Jax’s head tilted sideways, and the demon studied me from beneath his hooded lids. “I do not understand the problem. She has a vehicle. You need one. Simply take it. You are more than capable. It is the way of nature. The strong take what they need from the weak.”
“Take it?” I squealed. The demon was obviously blocking out Jax’s memories of my aunt. “From Kelly? Um, no.”
Azirak let out an exasperated sigh. It was so like Jax that I almost forgot who—or what, rather—I was dealing with. But when the demon stalked forward, unceremoniously nudging me out of its way, it all came rushing back.