Chapter 2 #2
“Bus,” I said. “Consider the walk to the bus stop part of your surfing training regimen.”
Allie rolled her eyes. “Can Eliza drive us?”
I frowned, having forgotten that we had another licensed driver in our midst. At least, I assumed she was licensed. “Can you?”
“Sure,” Eliza said. “But my car’s still in San Diego.”
I nodded, suddenly remembering that Eliza hadn’t told us her plans. Was she going back home? Was she staying in San Diablo? Was she moving to Rome to train?
That, however, was a discussion for another time.
“You can borrow the van,” Stuart chimed in, when it became obvious that I wasn’t going to answer.
“Oh, right. Yeah. The keys to the Odyssey are hanging in the kitchen. Check the gas,” I called as they hurried off. “And the tires!”
A whisper of worry cut through me, and I tried to shove it down, telling myself that I was nervous because Allie was being driven around by another teenager. But Allie’d been driven around by her older high school friends for the last year.
No, the real reason for my worry was exactly the same as Allie’s. It stemmed from what she was. From what we now knew about her. I was afraid that like every teenager, she’d lose her cool. But unlike every teenager, her explosions of temper might cause real damage.
True, they never had before. Her toddler temper tantrums never opened a portal to hell, and her snits as a teen never summoned an army of vampires to our home. But that was before.
Things were different now. She’d stood at the portal to hell, and her blood had held back the demonic hordes. Her blood.
A golden light had filled the chamber then, bathing us all. For all I knew, that day had changed something fundamental inside her. Even if it hadn’t, she was growing up. Growing and changing.
As a mom, that made me excited and thrilled and a bit sentimental.
As a Demon Hunter, it terrified me.
Not only because I didn’t know how the scary demon bits inside her would ultimately manifest—if they did at all—but also because her grandparents had purposefully bred her in the hopes of creating the ultimate demon-fighting weapon.
And I had a feeling that the general demon population wasn’t too happy with that.
Mostly I was afraid of the unknown. Afraid for my baby. And frustrated that I didn’t have a clue how to help her.
As if he knew what I was thinking, Stuart squeezed my hand. “She’s a great kid. It’s going to be fine.”
I smiled, and for one blissful moment, I let myself believe him.
Then Eddie went and shot my fantasy all to hell by releasing a loud snort. “You got a damn funny view of ‘fine,’ boy,” he said. “Because I’m thinking that things are about to get messier than ever.”
“Thanks, Eddie,” I said dryly. “Thanks so much.”
“Just calling it as I see it, and the truth is, I don’t see much.”
Eric cocked his head as he listened intently to Eddie. “What do you mean?”
“Just that we don’t have the whole picture. And if Father Donnelly’s running the show at Forza, you never will.”
“Father Corletti is still in charge of Forza,” I said loyally. Father Corletti had been like a father to me when I’d grown up as an orphan inside Forza’s dorms.
“Maybe,” Eddie said. “But he didn’t know about Father D’s little Frankenstein plan. The way that traitorous bastard helped get the demon inside of that one,” he said pointing to Eric. “Father Corletti didn’t even know the truth after you gave birth to Father D’s monster.”
“Eddie!” There was both shock and anger in my voice.
He waved away my outburst. “Just following the analogy. I couldn’t love that girl more if she really were my great-granddaughter, and you know it. I’m just saying that we thought Eric was supposed to be his secret weapon, but really it was Allie.”
“But Father Donnelly told us that he didn’t realize she had demonic essence inside her,” Stuart said, looking between me and Eric. “When we had that meeting in the Vatican before we headed home. That’s what he said. He wouldn’t lie to us. He’s a priest.”
“You go right on being a good Catholic boy,” Eddie retorted. “But as for me? I never believe a word that man says. And in the end, what does it matter whether he knew or not? The end result is that he got what he wanted. He engineered a new breed of Demon Hunter.”
“Eddie’s right,” Eric said slowly. “Whether he knew that our daughter would have demonic essence or not, she’s what he was trying to accomplish with me. That’s why he wanted her to stay behind in Rome. That’s why he used words like weapon when he talked about needing her to fight the demons.”
My stomach twisted, but I tried to think rationally. To think like a Hunter and not like a mom. And Kate the Demon Hunter knew they were right.
“You said he wasn’t happy when you refused to leave her behind to train,” Eddie reminded me, his fingers sliding over the hilt of the stiletto we’d brought back as a gift from Rome. “I think that’s because he’s not telling you something.”
“What?” I demanded.
“Don’t know. But he’s holding something back. I’m betting there’s more power in that girl than he’s telling you, and we don’t know how it’s gonna come out.”
“Good lord,” Stuart said.
Eric said nothing, but his eyes were on me, and I saw the fear in them.
“She’s a good kid,” I insisted.
“She’s a teenager,” Eddie countered. “And that means she’s gonna go a little wild. Nothing wrong with that. Except that with this one, who the hell knows what wild means?”
I stood up, then started to pace between the living room and the kitchen.
I didn’t want to hear this. Didn’t want to think about it.
I wanted to think about all the other things that needed to get done.
All the regular mom stuff that had been waiting for me upon our return.
Getting ready for the upcoming school year.
Taking care of unpacking. Getting back into a workout groove.
Grocery shopping. Planning Timmy’s third birthday party. Cleaning out the damn garage.
Normal stuff. Life stuff.
And, honestly, I didn’t think that was too much to ask. After all, we just closed a gate that was going to release all of hell into the world. So surely the universe owed us a little break.
That was only fair, wasn’t it?