Chapter 5 #2
Not that demons can just pop in willy-nilly.
Only High Demons can infiltrate the body of the faithful.
Souls fight, keeping the demon out of the host body until the gap closes and a demon can no longer take root.
I don’t understand the theology of how it actually happens, but I do know the results.
And the bottom line is there’s a limited window of opportunity for the demon to move in.
And as far as I’m concerned, that’s a very good thing since demons do a pretty exceptional job of blending into society.
Especially if they just want to hang out and, say, run a Fortune 500 company.
It’s the ones who walk the earth because they’re doing a High Demon’s bidding that are truly gnarly. And lately, that’s the kind that’s been infesting San Diablo.
For years this town was sleepy. A true demon-free zone.
Recently, there’s been an infestation, and the more I squash them, the more they seem to reappear. And unlike roaches, Raid doesn’t work. More, I can’t call an exterminator. Mostly because I am the exterminator.
The problem of course is detecting the demons that are moving around in the world with us, since they can blend almost seamlessly into a community.
I say almost because there are always signs. Breath for one thing. Sure, it might be rampant halitosis, but when I see someone popping breath mints like candy my first thought is demon.
(I’m careful not to act on that first thought, though, because the unfortunate truth is that dental hygiene among humans really isn’t what it should be, and taking out a living, breathing human is what we in the Demon-Hunting trade call a Very Bad Thing.)
That’s when you turn to other tests. For example, as you’d expect, demons react very unfavorably to holy ground and holy water.
Which is why I like to always keep a vial handy.
If I’d had any doubts about they guy who’d attacked me—and who I was now shoving into a storm drain—the holy water-induced welts would have confirmed my suspicions.
In other words, this guy was a demon, no doubt about that.
But there’s no way in the world I could convince the San Diablo police if a nosy neighbor decided to cry Civic Duty and call 9-1-1.
Thus, stealth.
Right then, though, I was ready to chuck stealth and race to Home Depot after all, because the padlock just wasn’t cooperating. Finally, I said a quick prayer to Saint Baldomerus, the patron saint of locksmiths, then exhaled in relief when—finally—the lock snicked open.
“Way to go, Mom!”
I took a moment to bask in the light of teenage approval, then stepped back as Eliza pulled open the grate.
The hinges screeched like a demon from hell (trust me on that), and all four of us froze, looking at each other like spooked deer as we waited for one of our adventurous neighbors to venture into the easement to see what was up.
Granted that wouldn’t be as easy for them—they don’t have the gates Laura and I do—but ten-year-old Brian who lives beside us gets into everything.
And I really didn’t look forward to explaining to his mother why her son found me looming over a dead body.
“Hurry,” I hissed, and after much pushing and shoving we finally got the body into the pipe.
We shoved it far enough back that no one would notice that there was a body in there unless they were specifically bending over to look.
Or, unless they were with the city and actually going into the pipe for a reason.
That, however, was a risk we’d have to take.
We closed the grate, and I locked it again. Then I straightened and glanced around, expecting to see Brian peering down at us, his forehead furrowed under his baseball cap. But there was no Brian, no neighbors, no cops.
So far, so good.
“Girls, grab some brush and cover the grating.”
They did as I asked without complaint, which reinforced that this was Serious Stuff. Most fifteen year olds are genetically unable to follow a parent’s direction without at least a huff and an eye roll.
“Why’d you lock it?” Allie asked after the grate was well hidden. “Daddy’s just going to have to get it open again.”
“Your father is more than capable of picking the lock, too,” I said. “And I’ll tell him to bring bolt cutters. As for getting the body somewhere else…” I trailed off with a shrug.
“Eliza and I can help,” Allie said. “He has to, um, take it away, right? He can’t just do it here.”
I wrinkled my nose. “He’ll have to take it away, yes. And we’ll offer up whatever help he needs.” I just hoped Stuart wasn’t home when Eric needed help. Stuart has come to terms with the fact that I kill demons. I don’t think he’s spent too much time thinking about what happens to the bodies.
It’s not something I like to think about either, and I sincerely resent the fact that Forza is so stingy about sending a disposal team up from LA when I need one.
“What’s Eric supposed to do with it anyway?” Eliza asked.
In response, the rest of us wrinkled our noses.
“Melt them,” Allie said. “Gross, but effective.” She spoke with the kind of casual, business-like efficiency that made a mother proud. Not to mention nostalgic for the days before she knew any of this.
As she called Eric to tell him the situation, I ran Eliza through Eric’s major contribution to demon hunting in San Diablo. Specifically, using the chemistry he’d studied in conjunction with his fascination with rare books to set up his own little demon disposal system.
I’d prefer that the families were able to get the bodies of their loved ones back, but unfortunately, when a demon takes over a human body, the only ways to expel the demon are impaling through the eye or beheading.
And both of those methods result in the kind of dead body that would make a cop take notice.
(Technically, beheading just removes the head; the demon can still animate the body.
But since headless bodies tend to attract unwanted attention, the demons always skeedaddle. Well, nine times out of ten, anyway.)
“Daddy’s on his way,” Allie said, then shoved her phone into the back pocket of her jeans “Can I stay the night at Mindy’s?”
I had to hide a smile. No matter what else had changed, at least I knew she was still a teenager at heart. A teenager in a world filled with demons.
I frowned. I’d already talked that over with Laura, and a sleepover was already the plan, but that was before the two demons had attacked us in the backyard.
Apparently, Allie picked up on my hesitation, because she sighed in her trademark Teenage Girl Sigh and said, “Come on, Mom. You know we’re probably done. I mean, three demons in one day? That’s a really high count for a town this small.”
Her brow furrowed, and she tilted her head to the side as she added, “Although, we were in Italy for a pretty long time. I know Eddy nailed a few, but I don’t think he went patrolling every night the way you and Daddy used to. So I guess there could be more. Maybe a lot more.”
Her eyes met mine as she nodded slowly. “I mean, think how many people probably died at Coastal Mists while we were gone. Not all of them could be inhabited, but still…”
I frowned. She wasn’t wrong. Death came regularly to the nursing home.
“And there’s also—oh!” The word was so sharp that for a moment I thought she’d seen another demon.
But no, she’d just seen the error of her own ways, because she suddenly stood up straight and started to shake her head.
“But I’m sure it’s totally safe now. It’s not like demons are going to flock to Mindy’s house, right? ”
She glanced at Mindy, who helpfully said, “Um.”
“Because why would there be more in the neighborhood?” Allie continued. “Especially since we just took two out, and that other one’s got to be laying low for the rest of the night at least.”
I crossed my arms and tilted my head. Then I gave her the Mom Stare.
“Please.” She combined prayer hands and puppy dog eyes. “We’ll be inside, and Mindy can take care of herself, too. And Aunt Laura has holy water and pepper spray.”
“That’s right,” Mindy chimed in. “Plus, I trained every day with Cutter while you guys were gone, and I—”
I held up a hand. “All right, all right. You can—wait. Three?” I looked between the girls. “What do you mean three demons? What other one?“
They looked at each other, and Allie bit her lower lip, always a sign that she was contriving a story.
“Allie...”
She shrugged. “It’s no big,” she said. “At least, it’s not anymore. I mean it all turned out just fine.”
“You’re not giving me a warm, fuzzy feeling. What happened?”
“Yeah, what did happen?”
I turned around to find Laura walking up behind me, her gaze fixed on Mindy, who swallowed rather dramatically.
“Allie nailed the demon that got away,” I explained. “But I’ve just learned that there was another demon in the mix somewhere.”
“What?” In an expression that must have mimicked mine, she looked at all three girls in turn as well. “What’s going on?”
“It really wasn’t that big a deal,” Eliza said. “We were walking on the boardwalk at the beach—it’s a really nice beach here, I have to say. I mean, I love San Diego, but it’s so pretty here, and so much less crowded. I really think that you could—”
“Eliza!”
“Sorry, sorry. Anyway, we were walking along and some guy who looked like he’d been living on the streets came up to me. And he asked if I was the one who was new.”
“New?” Laura asked, getting there before I did.
“No idea,” Eliza said. “But he seemed nice enough. But then—”
“But then we noticed his breath,” Allie said. “Because he turned to me and got in really close. Putrid, you know. Like he was rotting from inside. And then he said that he wasn’t a threat to me.”
“He what?”