too
concerned to be putting her on.
Alton nodded. “I know. And
it’s all my fault.”
“You already said that. It’s
okay. You’re forgiven.” She sat on the bed and realized it was a mistake the
moment she sat down. Their knees practically touched, so she slowly curled her
legs under her and scooted back on the bed, like it was the way she’d planned
to sit in the first place.
Except Alton’s big grin said
he knew exactly what she was up to. She decided to ignore him. Or at least
ignore what she thought he might be thinking.
“So what now?” she said.
“We’ve got demons taking over animals in Sedona, possible demon issues in
southern Oregon, and demons in Evergreen. Your entire army consists of one
ex-demon and my best friend, both armed with talking swords, Eddy’s dad, who
has a bad hip and has to be in his late sixties, and a dog with a fairy stuck
in her head. And you. I hate to be a killjoy, but that
doesn’t give me much confidence.”
Alton laughed. “You forgot to
mention my sword, or the fact that Eddy, Dax, Bumper, and I are immortal. We’re
not easy to kill. And Ed’s hip is all better. That was part of the deal Dax
made with the Edenites.” After dropping that little nugget without more
explanation, he sighed. “You’re right, though. The demons are gaining strength
and there are too few of us. I would like to study some of these possessed
animals up close. Can you take me to the vet’s clinic in the morning? With so
many avatars caged, I might be able to destroy the demons within their hosts
without harming the animals.”
“You’re kidding, right? You’re
just going to waltz into the clinic with your glowing sword and start killing
demons?” He obviously didn’t have a clue how the real world worked.
He shook his head. “Not quite.
I want to be there before the clinic opens for the day. Hopefully a few staff
members will have arrived early so they can let us in. I don’t want to break
your laws, but I’ll use a compulsion to hide our presence. Once I have an idea
how the demons are gaining control over their avatars, I’ll know better how to fight
them.”
Maybe he did have a clue,
after all. She’d forgotten about his ability to hypnotize people. Did that mean
he was going to kiss everyone at the vet’s? There’d been a couple of really
cute assistants working there when she and Markus dropped Tomoff, and…Ginny
touched her fingertips to her lips.
Alton’s soft chuckle had her
blinking and staring at him. “What?”
“Your face is too expressive
for your own good. No, I won’t have to kiss anyone to compel them to forget my
presence. Remember? You’re an exception, Ginny. I merely have to wave my hand
in front of most people. You I had to kiss.”
“You keep saying that like it’s punishment.” She tilted her head and cocked an eyebrow,
well aware she was flirting with him. She never flirted. It just led to expectations
she wasn’t about to fulfill, but there was something about Alton. No. Flirting
with him was an even bigger mistake, especially since they were sharing a motel
room.
Before he had a chance to
respond, she straightened up and said, “Tell me about your world. About Lemuria. According to Ed’s books, you’re supposed to
have a horn in the middle of your forehead, wear long, white robes and lots of
weird jewelry, and be close to twelve feet tall.”
He flipped his long legs up on
the bed, plumped the pillows, and leaned back against the headboard. He was so
tall, he’d have to sleep crosswise, even on the queen-size bed, but he wasn’t
anywhere close to twelve feet tall.
He’d already told her his
height. Six feet, eight inches tall. Wow. His green eyes twinkled with good humor and Ginny
realized she was grinning right back at him.
“I’ve read all about your
concept of Lemurians. Ed Marks had more than enough of our supposed ancient
history. Not much of it, beyond our name, is right. Our name,
and the fact that our world sank
concerned to be putting her on.
Alton nodded. “I know. And
it’s all my fault.”
“You already said that. It’s
okay. You’re forgiven.” She sat on the bed and realized it was a mistake the
moment she sat down. Their knees practically touched, so she slowly curled her
legs under her and scooted back on the bed, like it was the way she’d planned
to sit in the first place.
Except Alton’s big grin said
he knew exactly what she was up to. She decided to ignore him. Or at least
ignore what she thought he might be thinking.
“So what now?” she said.
“We’ve got demons taking over animals in Sedona, possible demon issues in
southern Oregon, and demons in Evergreen. Your entire army consists of one
ex-demon and my best friend, both armed with talking swords, Eddy’s dad, who
has a bad hip and has to be in his late sixties, and a dog with a fairy stuck
in her head. And you. I hate to be a killjoy, but that
doesn’t give me much confidence.”
Alton laughed. “You forgot to
mention my sword, or the fact that Eddy, Dax, Bumper, and I are immortal. We’re
not easy to kill. And Ed’s hip is all better. That was part of the deal Dax
made with the Edenites.” After dropping that little nugget without more
explanation, he sighed. “You’re right, though. The demons are gaining strength
and there are too few of us. I would like to study some of these possessed
animals up close. Can you take me to the vet’s clinic in the morning? With so
many avatars caged, I might be able to destroy the demons within their hosts
without harming the animals.”
“You’re kidding, right? You’re
just going to waltz into the clinic with your glowing sword and start killing
demons?” He obviously didn’t have a clue how the real world worked.
He shook his head. “Not quite.
I want to be there before the clinic opens for the day. Hopefully a few staff
members will have arrived early so they can let us in. I don’t want to break
your laws, but I’ll use a compulsion to hide our presence. Once I have an idea
how the demons are gaining control over their avatars, I’ll know better how to fight
them.”
Maybe he did have a clue,
after all. She’d forgotten about his ability to hypnotize people. Did that mean
he was going to kiss everyone at the vet’s? There’d been a couple of really
cute assistants working there when she and Markus dropped Tomoff, and…Ginny
touched her fingertips to her lips.
Alton’s soft chuckle had her
blinking and staring at him. “What?”
“Your face is too expressive
for your own good. No, I won’t have to kiss anyone to compel them to forget my
presence. Remember? You’re an exception, Ginny. I merely have to wave my hand
in front of most people. You I had to kiss.”
“You keep saying that like it’s punishment.” She tilted her head and cocked an eyebrow,
well aware she was flirting with him. She never flirted. It just led to expectations
she wasn’t about to fulfill, but there was something about Alton. No. Flirting
with him was an even bigger mistake, especially since they were sharing a motel
room.
Before he had a chance to
respond, she straightened up and said, “Tell me about your world. About Lemuria. According to Ed’s books, you’re supposed to
have a horn in the middle of your forehead, wear long, white robes and lots of
weird jewelry, and be close to twelve feet tall.”
He flipped his long legs up on
the bed, plumped the pillows, and leaned back against the headboard. He was so
tall, he’d have to sleep crosswise, even on the queen-size bed, but he wasn’t
anywhere close to twelve feet tall.
He’d already told her his
height. Six feet, eight inches tall. Wow. His green eyes twinkled with good humor and Ginny
realized she was grinning right back at him.
“I’ve read all about your
concept of Lemurians. Ed Marks had more than enough of our supposed ancient
history. Not much of it, beyond our name, is right. Our name,
and the fact that our world sank
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