His jaw was clenched so tightly that it looked painful. “Yes.” The word was a long hiss.
“Promise me that you’ll do nothing to harm me or Reggie if I let you out.”
It was a struggle, but she finally heard a “Fine.”
“You have to promise me. Say the words.”
A deep breath now. “I promise that I will not harm you . . . or the rodent.”
“His name is Reggie.”
He rolled his eyes. “Or Reggie.”
“Now you may have noticed that Reggie is a rat. I know that you demons aren’t particularly fond of them. Is that going to be a problem?”
“I’ll manage.”
Val nodded. “Okay. You may exit the circle now.”
She tried to look confident, but as soon as he stepped out of the circle she took an immediate step back. Claire chose that moment to roll over, her incessant snoring punctuated by a loud shout of what possibly could have been the words Fry vat!
The sound of her voice made Val jump. Her nerves hadn’t been very good lately. She wondered if they’d ever be good again.
Nathaniel smoothly moved toward her until he was only an arm’s length away. Val expected him to reach out and choke her to death, something violent. Anything. But he didn’t. He couldn’t. But by the look on his face he probably wanted to.
“Julian,” he said. “And you’re aware of the fact that we know each other how?”
“He told me. You two are buddies?”
“Definitely not.”
He sure was tall. Val suddenly wished she was wearing heels. But for demon-tracking, she supposed her secondhand Reeboks were the best choice.
The corner of his mouth twitched. “Are you sure you know what you’re getting yourself into, little angel? I am not so easily deterred from my goals, you know. And being that my goal is .
. . you . . . this situation is perhaps not as dire as I’d originally thought. Perhaps I should be thanking you.”
“Don’t make me tell you to shut up again.”
“We have so much in common that it’s truly hard to believe. Perhaps that’s why I was assigned to you.”
She frowned. “We have nothing in common, demon-boy. Except for finding Julian. And if that means we have to go to Hell to find him, then that’s what we’re going to have to do. So let’s cut with the chitter chatter, shall we?”
He began to laugh then, a rich hearty sound that moved through her body like warm water. It was a good laugh, nothing overtly evil about it. Other than the fact that she knew he was laughing at her for some reason. She didn’t like it when people laughed at her. Even when they had good reason.
“What’s so funny?”
He shook his head as he tried to get his laughter under control. “You think I’m going to take you to Hell?”
“Isn’t that exactly what you’ve been trying to do since we first met?”
“That’s different. That is on my terms, not yours.”
She frowned deeper. “But I command you to.”
“You can command me all you like. It’s simply not possible.”
“Why not? Are you lying to me right now?”
He raised an eyebrow. “I’m not lying. It’s not possible for a human to enter Hell.”
“There has to be a way.” She hated how weak her voice sounded.
“There is a way. You must first give yourself over to me, body and soul. And that requires you to agree to do so freely”—he stepped closer—“and completely. And utterly without question.” He grinned and cocked his head to the side. “My original offer is still up for grabs.”
Stop staring into his pretty eyes, she told herself. Demon. Capital D. Demon.
She finally tore her gaze away from him. “Not going to happen. Take two steps away from me this instant.”
He did what he was told and looked annoyed with himself. “That’s not fair.”
“Is there another way? How do we find Julian without going to Hell? Isn’t that where demons are? Tell me. Is there another way?”
“Yes,” he said, then looked disgusted. “I am hating this.”
“Too bad. What’s the other way to find Julian? Tell me right now.”
“Most demons rarely go to the head office. That’s what we call Hell.” His smile returned.
“Julian rarely goes there unless he’s summoned, or so I’ve heard. He’s not big on dealing with authority figures. Hurts his inflated ego to know he’s just a peon.”
“Then where would he go?”
“The Underworld.”
Val blinked. “The movie with Kate Beckinsale?”
“No. The Underworld. That which lies just below the surface of this dimension. The buffer zone between the earthly realm and Hell itself. Most demons call it home, including myself, for whatever that’s worth. I know for a fact that Julian spends a great deal of time there while he plots his little self-important schemes.”
“The Underworld,” she repeated.
“That’s right.”
“What do you think, Reggie?” Val pulled him off her shoulder again to look at him directly.
“Ouch! Would you stop squeezing me like that? What do you think I am, a Beanie Baby?”