She didn’t flinch. “Finished?”
He finally broke their staring match and stormed over to a darkened corner.
Bud was studying her. “You handle him well. I’m quite impressed.”
“Thank you.”
“You are lovers?”
She nearly choked at that. “No. He’s sort of under my control at the moment. I summoned him as my guide to the Underworld.”
“Ah, your first time, I take it?”
“First and last, hopefully.”
“Why? You don’t like it here?”
She shrugged. “It’s the Underworld.”
“And that makes it a bad thing?”
“Not a bad thing. Just not something I need to repeat.” She glanced nervously around the bar.
Okay, enough small talk. “We’re looking for another demon. His name’s Julian. Blond hair, high cheekbones, hot in a completely despicable and evil way? I’m told he comes in here a lot.”
Bud handed her another shot. “I know who you mean.”
She looked at the shot glass of moonshine, then drank it down and wheezed again. “Smooth.”
Bud smiled, showing chipped teeth—or maybe they were just naturally sharp and pointy like that. “So you’re looking for Julian, eh? Did he do you wrong?”
“You could say that.”
“He’s got his eyes on the prize, that one. Some demons are slackers”—he glanced over at
Nathaniel who was still having his pity party in the corner—“and self-pitying fools. Julian knows he needs to look out for himself.”
“Why do you say that?”
“He was in here earlier for a drink to celebrate something. Happier than I’d ever seen him before.”
“Did he happen to say why he was so happy?”
Bud shrugged. “Don’t know exactly. But he was bragging that he has a meeting with Vaille before the big party at the mansion tomorrow.”
“Vaille? Who’s that?”
He raised a thick, gray eyebrow. “Mayor Vaille, of course. Sugar, where are you from?”
“Niagara Falls.”
He frowned. “You’re not from around here?”
“Nope.”
“So . . . that wouldn’t happen to mean that you’re human, would it?”
She paused. “Technically, yes. At least for the moment.”
“Damn.” He glanced down at her two empty shot glasses.
Val looked at Bud—there were now two of him staring at her with concern. The two Buds would come together and then pull apart. Kind of like a kaleidoscope. It was sort of cool. She tilted her head. “There’s two of you, did you know that?”
“I didn’t know you were human,” Bud said.
Nathaniel approached them again.
She pointed at him. “Oooh, pretty colors.”
“What did you do to her?”
“I gave her a couple of shots of moonshine, is all.”
“Moonshine,” she repeated. “Homemade whiskey. Like on Dukes of Hazzard. Ride ’em, cowboy. Yee-haw!”
“No, it’s actual moonshine. Doesn’t react well with humans. In fact, I’m surprised you’re still standing.”
“Whaddyamean?”
Bud frowned. “What did you say?”
She grabbed his shoulder. “Whassgoingon?”
Nathaniel sighed. “What will to happen to her?”
Bud shrugged. “If she lives through the first five minutes it wears off fairly quickly after that, I think.” He frowned. “Last human who did two shots actually blew up. So, perhaps you should clear out. I just had the place professionally steam cleaned.”
Blew up? She didn’t like the sound of that. Although the picture in her mind made her laugh a little. Then she hiccupped and covered her mouth. “’Scuse me.”
Val didn’t drink much. Becky took her out last week for a few daiquiris. Becky had downed six—claiming stress from working for Seraphina as the reason behind her need for booze—
and Val had one. She felt kind of dizzy after it. She’d stopped at one since she didn’t like the way it made her feel.
Today was the revenge of the strawberry daiquiri.
Nathaniel rolled his eyes while he watched her sway back and forth. “Maybe this would be a good opportunity for us to break our little spell, Valerie.”