Read Online devil 02 - tween a devil and his hard place by sam cheever - Free Book Online Page B

come to me as King Dialle’s representative.” His face may not have shown any emotion but his voice sure did. “I asked for a neutral party to carry my message. How did you get past the Guard of Dis?”
    Knowing I couldn’t really get away with lying, I decided to see how some Tweener attitude might work. I merely shrugged my shoulders and tried to look bored. “I really don’t know, Alcott. Perhaps you should take it up with him—it. For now, we have business to discuss. I assure you I will carry your message to King Dialle the First just as you present it to me.”
    I stopped talking and waited. My motto is, in this type of negotiation, he who talks first loses. I held my breath and watched. I had just stomped on the exposed baby toe of arguably the second most powerful being in the dark world. Not a smart thing to do if you are really only a lowly Tweener. Delusions of grandeur aside.
    I knew I was running the risk of seriously pissing off the boogeyman. But I’d had no choice. The only thing demons respect and understand is strength, which in their world is thoroughly mixed up with pure obnoxiousness. Any attempts at discussion or the application of fairness to an issue are construed as weakness.
    Alcott’s featureless countenance faced me for a long moment and I held my breath. I hoped my badass expression was still firmly in place. My mental drawers shifted and Emo was in but there was just heavy breathing. Apparently he was just in for support and had nothing to say. I couldn’t resist, Demon got your tongue, partner?
    Very funny Astra. We are a razor-sharp demon hair away from becoming gargoyle kibble. I’d appreciate it if you’d pay attention to your work.
    I thought a rigid salute at him and said, Yessir!
    Alcott chose that second, when I wasn’t exactly paying attention of course, to signal the attack. Emo’s heavy breathing in my mind turned into a mumbled narrative as the first wave of gargoyles and their demon handlers turned toward us. Even as he reached for the set of long knives he kept strapped to his thighs Emo’s mind was on chastising me rather than the work ahead.
    You just had to slap at the bad guy and piss him off didn’t you, boss? You can’t just do what you came in here to do and leave can you? Oh no, you want to fight the stinking nasty gargoyles because, in your feeble little mind you think it’s fun don’t you?
    I was too busy taking a battle stance and readying my weapons to respond but trust me, he would get a formerly pointed earful when we were back at the office. Assuming of course that we ever made it back to the office.
    “The one on the left is mine,” I told him in a low murmur, even as I turned to look at the demon on the right and his eight-foot-long, drooling charge on the straining end of a steel chain. The gargoyle on the right, seeing me looking at him, figured he was my target, leaving him open to an unexpected attack from Emo. It was one of our favorite tactics when dealing with creatures of lesser intelligence.
    Emo blew out a nervous breath and turned toward the one on the left. “Have I told you I hate gargoyles, Astra?”
    I smiled. I couldn’t help it. “I think you might have.”
    Then all hell broke loose and we found it difficult to talk for a while.
    Keeping my eyes firmly fixed on the gargoyle and its handler on the right, I reached for my power core, opening the metaphysical door I used to shut it off when I didn’t want it leaching out all over the place and embarrassing me.
    Using the skills I’d perfected over recent days, I quickly stoked the tiny flame into a raging blaze and then jerked it forward and threw up a protective shield just as the gargoyle on the right launched itself toward me. The ’goyle hit my shield with a splat, spraying spit in a wide arc and sliding slowly down into a saliva-drenched pile at my feet, claws outstretched.
    Emo reached out and hacked the ’goyle’s head off and then jumped back as blood spurted from