Goetia

he’d seen in the minds of demons.”

“What demons? That was a hundred years ago. The demons weren’t here then.”

“We believe the demons have been here for hundreds of years. They’ve beengathering information and preparing for the invasion. The Order found proof of them and tried to bring it to the attention of the world. In return, the Templar were stripped of their lands, wealth, and titles. There’s somerumor, though it was never proven, that the demons had a hand in that as well.”Nathan fell silent for a moment. “That’s why we went underground and hid fromthe view of the world.”

“How can you expect to win against opponents like those you’re describing?”Leah asked in hoarse voice. It all sounded impossible to her. Her superiors had already accepted the inevitability of loss. Even the main Templar Order that Simon had separated from seemed to accept that.

Only Simon Cross and his group seemed determined to fly in the face of the odds.

“We don’t have a choice,” Nathan answered. “If we don’t think we can win, ifwe don’t believe we can save the world, why should we do anything?”

“Because we can’t let them win,” Leah said. Everyone in her group held ontothat one absolute. If they couldn’t win, then they also couldn’t allow anyoneelse to win. It wasn’t a victory, but it wasn’t defeat.

“What does it matter if there’s nothing left to save?” Nathan asked.

“We can’t save this world, but perhaps we can save the next.”

“You’ve already given up on saving this world?”

Leah squirmed under the mild rebuke she heard in his voice. She sensed Simon watching her and she imagined his disappointment. You’ve got to accept thetruth, she told herself. Don’t give in to their foolishness. If you reachbeyond what you’re able to do, you’ll fail at every thing you attempt. “Evenif we could, everything we’ve known has been destroyed.”

“If enough of us survive, we can rebuild the world,” Nathan said.

“It won’t be the same.”

“Nothing is ever the same. The world changes and evolves and moves on everyday even without being destroyed.”

“But London—”

“Has been semi-destroyed a number of times,” Nathan said. “The Black Plague.The Great Fire. The exhaustion of natural resources. The bombings in World War II. This is a great city. One of the eternal cities of our world. London will come back. We just have to clear out the infestation so that she can once more take root.”

Leah stood silently.

“Look,” Nathan said, “I don’t know what your training is. I don’t know whatgroup you’re affiliated with. But you—and they—don’t know as much about demonsas you think you do.”

“They think that the Templar are fools.”

Nathan chuckled. “Then they don’t know much about us either.”

“No,” Leah agreed. She’d never met any warriors like the Templar. Not eventhose she’d served with. “I don’t think that they do.”

“Are we all done here?” Danielle asked. “Or do we want to hang around longenough for some other demon to come around looking for the one we just killed?”

Laughter exploded from Warren when he thought about what the voice had just told him. “You’re here to save the world? That’s what the bloody Templar claimthey’re trying to do.”

“The Templar are trying to destroy the demons,” the voice said softly. “Thatisn’t the same thing.”

“If you ask them it is.”

“They don’t know everything.”

“I’ve heard the Cabalists talk about the Templar. The Templar have beenstudying the demons even longer than the Cabalists have been examining the powers of the demons. If there’s anything they don’t know—”

“They don’t know what I know.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“What you believe doesn’t matter.”

Warren hated the fact that the voice didn’t have a face to look at. He wouldhave stared it in the eyes and called it a liar.

“What would you do,” he asked, “if I chose not to believe in you?”

“I would wait.”

The quick answer unnerved Warren. He thought surely the threat would at least cause a momentary consternation.

“Wait for what?” he asked.

“For another who will believe.”

“What if I destroyed the book?” Even as he asked that, Warren knew that hecouldn’t do that. There were too many unanswered questions he had about it.

“You can’t.”

Warren looked at Naomi lying cold and still on the floor in the center of the protective barrier he’d drawn. He wished she would just wake up. He didn’t wantto be alone.

“The book can be destroyed, Warren,” the voice said. “But the idea behind itcan’t. When the book that you have is no more, another will appear just like it.The weaving was long and arduous, and it cost me a lot to do it, but it had to be done and I did it properly. I would do it again if I had to.”

“How did you manage that if you’re bound?”

“I’m bound. Not helpless. If I were helpless, I wouldn’t be able to aid you.”

■ “I can’t see that you’ve aided me.”

The voice was quiet for a moment. “I can help you now.”

Warren waited. He wanted—no, needed—the voice to prove itself.

“You want the female to wake. I can help you wake her. And I can take awayyour pain.”

Warren didn’t say anything.

“Hold your hand over her forehead.”

Gently, Warren placed the demon’s hand over Naomi’s brow.

“Not that hand,” the voice said. “The other hand. The hand that is truly partof you.”

Taking the demon hand back, Warren felt helpless. “I can’t use the energywith my hand.”

“You can.”

“I can’t,” Warren replied angrily. “I’ve tried.” That had frustratedhim as much as anything. It was like the power that he used all the time tied him directly to Merihim.

“You’ve allowed yourself to become dependent on Merihim’s hand because it waseasier.”

Warren shook his head. “No. That’s not true. I can’t get the energy to flowthrough my own hand.”

“You were able to change your sight at the first meeting with the Cabalistsfour years ago. You’ve sensed danger all your life. You convinced a demon thatit didn’t see you when you first encountered one. You bound Kelli to you whenyou needed someone to guard you while you recovered from the wounds you suffered when Merihim arrived in this world.”

All of those