Heaven's Key (Demon Hunter Book 1) (6 page)

The house was quiet and dark. Delilah answered the door wearing a cream-colored silk robe and leopard printed mules. Her hair was high atop her head in a ponytail. She had been relaxed today; she told her story without much emotion. Tonight, she looked vulnerable and scared.

“He isn’t here yet. Come in; Harold hasn’t missed a night yet. He’ll get here soon.”

Her room was on the second floor. I expected black lacquer walls and red silk, with sex toys strewn about. Instead, her room was cozy, filled with warm colors. The only touch of Delilah I could see was a zebra settee with three leopard print pillows. On the floor in front of the bed were two identical miniature settees for the dogs. Hamish and Russel were spoiled, lucky pups.

“We have everything we need. Cole is going to put hematite in all four corners of the room. It’s good for cleansing spirits and I have no reason to believe it won’t work. Do you know if Harold was religious?”

“Oh yes, as Catholic as the pope.”

I didn’t see that coming. I bet he didn’t wear his pony costume to church. “Okay, then we’ll tell him to go to the light. That works most times with people who believe in a higher power. I also have sage to burn so we can cleanse the home after. Harold hasn’t been gone very long and he seemed to be a good person, so he should move on without much fuss.”

Curling up on her settee, she called the dogs to her and settled them both on her lap, then stared at the end of the bed. “Okay, it won’t hurt him, will it? Harold was a sweet man.”

“No, he’s hurting himself staying here. Once he’s gone, you’ll both have more peace.” I used to feel guilty telling people that. I had no idea what happened once people were no longer haunting a home, and I couldn’t do anything about that, but I could comfort the person who was left behind. My theory was that most ghosts were just a kind of residual energy. Nothing more, and getting rid of them hurt no one. 

Birth and death is something we all go through, but death always throws us. We never know how to comfort those who are mourning. Even when we’re prepared to let the person go, it always feels like a sucker punch. Death is confusion and pain. If a little white lie takes away some of that, then I’m okay with it.

A slapping sound came from behind me and I turned to see a naked Harold pulling his junk for all he was worth. “Wow, Harold was blessed.”

Delilah giggled. The dogs gave a low growl in Harold’s direction. “Hush, Russel. Daddy Harold loved you to bits.”

“Harold, Delilah has asked us to come. She’s worried about you. You’ve passed on and it’s time for you to go towards the light. You deserve to be at peace.” He slowed his stroking.

“Harold, you’ve died. It’s time to go to God. Go towards the light.” He stopped stroking altogether and looked right at me. I walked closer and he smiled.

“Delilah, tell him it’s okay to go. Tell him you’ll be okay.”

The older woman didn’t look certain. She reached out to him, but he didn’t take his eyes off of me. He started stroking again. This time, he got faster and faster.

“You son of a bitch, you aren’t worried about me; you want to get off one more time.” She threw a pillow at him and it sailed right through. “You always did like them young. Show him your tits. A couple pumps later, he’ll come, and problem solved.”

I wasn’t modest. In fact, give me a few beers and people are telling me to keep my shirt on, but this was just so fucking weird. Harold was looking at me like he knew what was going on and Delilah looked hurt. Was I really going to do this? I took off my tank top and noticed Cole peeking at me out of the corner of his eye.

“No, absolutely not. You don’t get a free show.” He turned his back and I quickly took off my bra. Harold gave me a big grin and pumped his penis like a wild man. It was only seconds before he closed his eyes and erupted in a giant orgasm. Ghost spunk puddled on his lap and ran down his leg.

This was some line of work I was in. Standing in an old woman’s bedroom, topless with a masturbating ghost; it can’t get any weirder. It’s just not possible. I snatched my clothes from the floor and covered myself up. We were all looking towards Harold, who I swear looked a little sheepish after his display. He smiled at Delilah and held out his hand. She had a black river of tears rolling down her cheeks. He blew her a kiss before he slowly turned to mist and disappeared.

The room was silent as we all stared at the empty space that used to be Harold. Love comes in many forms and those two had been a strange couple, but they loved each other, that was clear.

“He always did like a nice pair of breasts. I guess being Catholic, he didn’t think he would get another chance to yank the sausage in Heaven.”

Laughter gripped my whole entire body. I laughed until I was holding my sides and gasping for breath. It was laugh or have a nervous breakdown. The world was a crazy place and I was living in the capital. I could feel the eyes of Delilah and Cole on me, but I didn’t give two shits. I needed a release.

When I was under control again, I straightened up and continued with the job. “I’m going to light this sage so I can cleanse the room with the smoke. I want you to keep the hematite just to be on the safe side, but I think Harold is gone for good.”

She nodded and looked sad. Her perfectly manicured hand touched the spot where Harold had sat. “I’m gonna miss him. He was always such a gentleman.”

Delilah might have been odd, but she loved Harold and they had a life together. It involved saddles and sex parties, but it was real and now he was gone. I was not a hugger, but I broke my own rule and gave her a big one.

Cole packed up our stuff. It was time to hit the road. Delilah offered us her guesthouse for the night, but I didn’t want Harold to get any ideas that I was sticking around for a repeat performance.

Back on the road, we headed off the island. We would need a place to stay and our kind of motels didn’t exist in these neighborhoods. Cole still looked a little pale. I should have warned him that Delilah was going to be eccentric, but not warning him was just so much fun.

“I didn’t know you were such a prude.”

“I’m not a prude. I just… She was a little more liberal than I’m used to. I can’t get the image out of my head of Harold wearing a saddle and bridle, his bits flapping every time he rears up.” Cole shuddered and the car sped up as if he was trying to escape the horror.

I started to laugh. “I’m sorry. I should have told you she was a little off the beaten path.”

“You knew? You love torturing me, don’t you? If it isn’t this, it’s your love of messing everything up once I have it the way it should be. I organize our equipment so we can get it quickly when we need it, you know. I don’t know how you survived before. Did you ask the monsters to pause while you rummaged around for the right tool?”

I couldn’t figure out why he was being so nasty and out of sorts. I was just having a bit of fun. Cole had been all over the world. I honestly didn’t think Delilah would bother him too much. He had no right to be so pissy with me. “If you don’t like how I conduct myself, you are free to leave anytime, Cole. I get this Cain business isn’t what you signed up for.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Jael. Your Aunt Bevie would have my head. I just wish you’d take what’s going on more seriously. We should be doing research and trying to find a way to keep this bastard out of your head.”

“So you’re scared of Bevie but not Cain?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Fair enough.”

“I’m going to ask Bevie if she has a go-to person for talismans and I have a guy who’s into the occult and he has a lot of connections. He’s a bit of a nut, but he’s legit, and he might be able to get us what we need.”

“Later. Right now, we’re between jobs, and I think we deserve some fun. I saw a slew of Indian casinos on our way to Delilah’s. Let’s pick one and do a little gambling.”

“We need to keep Cain out of your head and Bevie said you have a gambling problem. So now you’re doubling down on your self-destructive behavior?”

“Bevie told you way too many things about me. I’m not supposed to gamble, but I’m going to anyway. That’s the joy of being an adult. You can be as self-destructive as you want to be.” He clutched the wheel a little tighter.

“Look, I’ll let you hold the money because the amount of cash we have right now is obscene. I’ll just take a tiny amount to have fun with. Oh, but I should warn you. I’ll be drinking, so I might try to forcefully take it back. So arm yourself. You also might want to frisk me before we hit the floor because I’ll try to pack to make it a fair fight.”

“Can’t wait; sounds like a boatful of fun.”

“Cole, lighten up. I was mostly joking.”

“I don’t find this funny. I’m worried about you.”

“I don’t want to think about him right now. I want to get drunk, gamble, and have some fun.”

“This is serious, Jael.”

“It’s my head, Cole. I know how serious it is.” He dropped it, but I could see he was angry. He wanted me to react in a certain way and I wasn’t going to. I was scared and I knew it was serious, but for my sanity, I needed to forget for a bit. He had no right to tell me what I needed to do. Partners were a pain in the ass.

It took two casinos before I was happy. I wasn’t too picky, but I liked the hotel to be nice enough that if I won big, my room could get a lot nicer. Cole was being quiet, but I had already heard the sweet siren song of the slot machines and everything else dropped away. I needed to have a little fun and that was exactly what I was going to have.

We parted ways when we checked in. Cole grabbed his key card and took off without even looking my way. I went straight to my room and had a shower and went right to bed. I got fourteen hours of sleep without one visit from tall, dark, and evil.

Even though he hadn’t made an appearance, he was still on my mind. Mr. Gin would have to help me out with that one. I checked my email and William hadn’t gotten back to me yet. That wasn’t unusual. He was thorough and he didn’t like to send me anything until he was certain he could send everything there was.

Cole remained silent. I knew I should call him, but I wasn’t in the mood for a lecture and he would be watching me like a hawk the whole night. He had the money, so it was safe. He could sulk in his room and think me irresponsible all by himself.

I decided to put on some makeup and get dressed up. Sipping a gin and tonic the whole time, I was feeling good. Blackjack was going to be my game tonight. I didn’t have a lot of money to work with, but if I bet carefully, I could make it last a long time.

The elevator doors opened onto the casino floor. The pinging of the slots and the clanging of the change was a soothing song. Gambling gives some a high, but for me, I feel totally relaxed, something I rarely get to feel. It was still early, but the regulars were milling about and, judging by the amount of staff on, they were expecting a busy night. Things would be hopping in no time.

The table by the entrance felt lucky. The dealer was cute, if a little young, and I liked how he smiled. There were two other people at the table; a man who looked like a salesman who hadn’t had a commission in a while and a woman. She was young and beautiful. Her dress was red and couture. She would have blended in better at the Bellagio than this place.

I won the first few hands and it made me get a little cocky. I started betting like I had a bottomless purse. A couple bad hands had me out of my first two hundred. Fortunately, I had a fall back amount of five hundred. Cole didn’t have to know about it. It was my treat for being so responsible with the rest of the money.

The salesman left and it was just the lady in red and me. She won the next two hands. It was time for me to leave. This table was not being lucky. I stood up and she laid her manicured hand on mine and smiled. “Please don’t go. You seem to be my lucky charm.”

“I need one of my own. If I stay, I’ll be broke.”

“I’m sure your luck will change in the next few hands; that’s how the cards work. Let me buy you a drink.”

The losses kept piling up, but the drinks kept arriving and by the fourth one, I was winning again, but I no longer cared. She became my good luck charm and I went from being broke to being up a thousand bucks. Between the drinks and the winnings, I was about as happy as I get.

I didn’t notice my good luck charm had left the table. I was having too much fun winning. I promised myself I’d go find Cole the next time I lost a hand. Leaving now seemed foolish. When the time came, I rose and sat back down. Drinking on an empty stomach was not a good idea. I needed to get something to eat.

Casinos don’t like you to know how long you’ve been giving them your money. Time could be strange when you were drinking; add concentrating on every hand, and I could have been there for two hours or ten. Whatever the time, I needed to sit for a bit more or I was going to get to make a fool of myself.

My mind drifted to a million things and when it finally came back to what was in front of me, I was up over five thousand. The gambler in me wanted to stay, but my bladder screamed for me to leave. I took my chips and wandered over to find the bathrooms. Pee first, then I would go find Cole.

The casino was almost deserted. It should have been packed by now. The people playing the slots all looked like the ones from earlier. My mind was fuzzy, but something was trying to break through. A tiny scratch at the back of my brain, but I couldn’t make sense of it. The happy relaxed feeling I felt when I entered was gone. Things felt wrong, but my brain wouldn’t work fast enough to figure it out.

The bathroom looked empty, but something felt wrong. I braced myself in front of the mirror. The woman looking back looked crazy and out of control. My eyeliner was down around my cheeks and my lipstick was just a stain outlining my lips. I was a mess.

Cursing myself for getting so drunk, I stumbled to a stall and locked myself in. That feeling of not being able to breathe was taking hold. I had fucked up. Fishing in my purse for my phone, I tried to call Cole, but I couldn’t focus to see the numbers. Maybe if I stayed in the stall until I sobered up, I’d be okay. Lifting my skirt, I took a quick pee. Some things could not be put off.

I opened the door to see the lady in red staring at me. “Hello, Jael. You’re looking a little ragged. Maybe you should fix yourself up.”

“How do you know my name?” I hadn’t told her my name. If this was trouble, I was so fucked. Standing was a struggle; fighting was not even in the realm of possibilities.

“I’ve been asked to talk to you.” She stood there looking sweet, but she wasn’t human. How I didn’t realize it before I don’t know. I must have been too focused on the cards.

“My partner is coming; whatever you want, you better go before he gets here.”

The woman in red laughed. “Your partner is watching porn and jerking off. He’s pissed at you and you didn’t even notice.”

“I noticed; I just didn’t do anything about it. What do you want with me?” I was willing myself to focus my mind and eyes and neither were responding.

“We need to have a talk. Woman to woman.”

She was blocking the exit. I slowly washed my hands, hoping something would happen so I could get away. The woman stared at me in the mirror. “What do you want from me?”

“There are two ways we can handle this. You can come of your own free will—that’s my preferred method—or you can fight me in your drunken state and I’ll take you by force.”

“Where are we going?”

“Not far; just someplace a little more private. Come now and I’ll make this as painless as possible.”

I didn’t have much of a choice. My limbs were slow to answer my commands and I didn’t know who or what this woman was. If I followed her, I might be able to buy myself some time. A chance to get away might present itself or Cole might come looking for me.

She held the door, turning me away from the casino and towards the back of the building. We traveled through a maze of corridors until we came upon an orange steel door with no windows. She opened the door with a key and pushed me inside. Every wall and even the ceiling was painted in symbols. The room was heavily warded, but against what I couldn’t tell. Whatever was going on, I was in deep shit.

“Let’s talk, Jael.” She motioned for me to take a seat at the only table in the room. She sat herself on the other side and we stared at each other. The adrenaline pumping through my veins had done wonders to sober me up, but I still didn’t know what she was, and that left me at a big disadvantage. She wasn’t human; that I could tell for sure.

“You’re my ticket to a very lucrative reward. Someone with considerable power has put out a hit on you. Normally, I don’t care what Hell wants. Christian beliefs are so basic, so vengeful, and so paternalistic that I stay very far from their wants and desires, but there are some rewards that are too good to pass up.”

“What are you?”

“Not your concern. Your concern is to wait here until my friend comes back with some supplies.”

“What kind of supplies?” I was stone cold sober now. That sounded like torture.

“Relax; just some things I need to contact the demon who’ll be picking you up. What he does with you is none of my concern.”

“Do you think I’m just going to walk out of here without a fight?”

“No, but fighting me in your state and without a weapon would not be wise. That tiny bottle of holy water around your neck won’t even give me a slight burn. You’re worth a lot more alive, but the reward for your dead body isn’t that bad either.”

Fuck, this wasn’t good. I had to get out of here before her friend came back and I had two demons to deal with. Jumping up, I grabbed the chair I had been sitting on. A plastic molded chair is a sad weapon. I hadn’t thought this through.

“Last chance, Jael. Put it down.”

My heart was racing and I knew the odds were against me, but I had to try. It wasn’t in my nature to go down without a fight. Raising the chair, I backed up so I could get around the table. She tilted her head, smiled, and shrugged her shoulders.

“The hard way it is, then.” In a blur, the table was airborne, and she threw back her head and screamed.

When she looked at me again, she was no longer the beauty in the red dress. Her eyes glowed red and her teeth had morphed into jagged fangs. Long spikes grew out of her elbows and her hands and feet sprouted claws. Native American demons were fucking scary. My turquoise chair was feeling very inadequate. 

“Come on; you don’t want to kill me. Where’s the sport in that? I don’t even have a weapon on me.”

She just hissed and turned her back to me, I was puzzled but thought it was my only chance. However, she wasn’t done with her own personal horror show. Her long dark hair parted and pulled back to reveal a second face. It was small and fit perfectly in the center of her head. The eyes were gold and sparkled. Frozen in place, I couldn’t look away. The chair crashed to the floor and I was a sitting duck.

Walking backwards but towards me, the spikes from her elbows were pointing right at me. A long forked tongue flicked from the tiny mouth. My mind screamed at my body to move, but it wouldn’t obey. She was getting closer and closer, while those eyes held me in place. My end was never destined to be glamorous, but I never thought it would happen in the back of some low-rent casino.