Demon Song

of all of the above and yet none of them. What the heck, I could embellish. “A friend. Have you seen him?”

He shook his dark hair with amusement. “Honey, everybody is Mr. Creede’s friend tonight. Everybody wants a piece of him. But I know all of his friends and I don’t know you.”

Oh. Talk about putting me in my place. “I’m Celia Graves.”

His eyes widened and his mouth actually dropped as he took in the dress and hair and, yes, he really did look for fangs. “Ohmigod! You’re Celia? Wow. He didn’t describe you quite like … um, well, let’s say I had a little more down-to-earth girl in my head, not a model.”

When I got back to the spa tonight, I was going to find my stylist and makeup person and hand each one a hundred-dollar tip. Because the look on this guy’s face was worth the price.

I felt special for the first time in weeks. “So, have you seen him?”

His eyebrows dropped and he thought. “You know, I haven’t seen him since the Darby sisters came back in. He should be around somewhere.” I started to walk down the stairs and he immediately jumped to my side and offered a hand. I took it because there wasn’t a banister and the risers weren’t very stable with three-inch heels. Once I had my feet back on the thick Oriental rug, he tapped the receiver in his ear. “John? Can you hear me?”

I waited while he listened, then shrugged and shook his head. “Sorry. He’s not answering.” He held out his hand. “I’m Andrew, by the way … John’s personal assistant. I’ve been with Miller and Creede since I was in college. He’s an amazing practitioner. I’m learning so much about the trade.”

I shook the hand. He had a good grip. Not too tight and there was a tingle of power there. But I could tell he’d never be at Creede’s or Bruno’s level. Maybe he was a level four. “Nice to meet you. I guess I’ll just wander around and hope I run into him.”

Andrew let out a frustrated noise. “I know he’s going to want to see you.” Then he snapped his fingers before giving his own forehead a little slap. “I bet I know where he is. He’s probably taken some people down to see the grotto.”

“The grotto? What’s that?”

He flipped open the cover of his clipboard, pulled a pen from behind the ear without the phone, and started drawing. “Oh, you’ve got to see it. That’s where all the magic happens. It’s amazingly beautiful. Here. Just follow this map and you can’t miss it.”

The paper he tore off showed an x in a circle that I presumed represented where we were now. It wasn’t much of a map—just a curvy line that ended shortly with another x. “Is it far?” I looked down at my slinky, strappy sandals. “These boots weren’t made for walking, Andrew.”

He put a hand on my shoulder. I raised my brows and lowered my chin. I don’t like it when people touch me. He pulled away instantly. “Sorry. Too much, huh? John tells me all the time I need to learn distance to work in this business. I’ve got to work on not touching. But no, in answer to your question, it’s not far. Probably not more than a hundred yards from where we are. Just follow the path to the right and it’s all downhill on a paved path. You’ll get to see some of the new vines, too. Very picturesque with all the paper lanterns.”

Well, it was gorgeous weather and my friends were otherwise occupied. What the heck. “Okay, thanks.” I took the paper and walked across the room to tap Dawna on the shoulder. “Be right back.” She nodded and returned to talking to her new favorite leading man.

*   *   *

Andrew had been right. It wasn’t a long walk and the path only went one place. The Japanese lanterns that had been strung along the pathways offset the twisted vines on waist-high poles and made them seem elegant. But when the string of lanterns ended, so did the paved path—as though people were supposed to stop when they reached the end of the lights. But there was a flickering light ahead in what looked like the mouth of a cave.

Oh. Duh. A grotto—as in cave.

There was enough light to see and the ground was hard-packed soil, so it was easy walking. As I approached, I could hear murmuring voices inside, so I stayed quiet, not wanting to interrupt. I expected the cave itself to be cooler than the outside, but it was actually warmer. The press of light magic flowed over me as I walked down the steep path into the earth. The barrier explained the dampening of sound. Now that I was inside, the voice was louder, but I couldn’t make out what was being said.

Flowering vines covered the walls and ceilings, turning what would normally have been dark stone and soil into a burst of color and texture. The smell was amazing … soft and sweet but not cloying. Even though I didn’t recognize any of the individual flowers, together they smelled like a butterfly garden in the warmest part of spring. “Hello?” I called out softly. There was no answer.

Finally I saw a brighter light ahead and heard a roaring sound that reminded me of a bath being run in a distant room. The air felt moister, cooler, and heavier with magic. The combination of sensation and scent was amazing. I stepped into the main grotto. The ceiling was high enough I couldn’t actually see it, and the waterfall I’d heard was the height of a three-story building. I was so engrossed in looking around that I didn’t notice the circle drawn in white in the very center of the room, where a hooded figure was kneeling.

Crap. I’d walked into a casting.

The candles on the points of the compass were the giveaway and I should have recognized the muttering after hearing Bruno speaking in odd tongues all those years. I froze in place, remembering Bruno’s stern lectures: Never interrupt the caster, don’t speak, don’t break the circle, and don’t freak out at anything you see. He hadn’t been kidding about the last part. I’d seen full-blown tornadoes spring up in a casting circle. Demons had appeared in chains, pulled out from inside the person they were possessing, spewing all the vile excrement and lava of hell itself until they were banished by the mage.

I looked around and spotted a bench carved out of the rock wall next to a massive taproot from one of the ancient white oaks I’d seen from the road when we arrived. I could be quiet and I was really curious to find out if I was going to see a sample of Creede’s skill. I’d seen his power in battle and a hint of the finesse behind it. But to see a real casting was to see into the soul of a mage.

This seriously rocked.

I became a church mouse with a hungry cat nearby—utterly silent and watchful. Creede’s hands began to move; it looked like he was holding an invisible volleyball in front of his chest. I could see his face peering out from the shadow of the hood. The spell got stronger and his voice louder. A ball of energy appeared between his cupped hands. It had no form or color, visible only as wavy air currents, like heat rising from hot asphalt.

He lifted his arms and the tiny candles became flares to reach his shoulders. Wow. “Removie il parse … et parse … en natur!” The ball of energy took on a life of its own. Power flowed out from Creede’s skin to spin over his head until the ball of energy was bigger than a school globe and then bigger than a car.

Every muscle in my body jumped when he threw his hands forward. “Dispersei!” The energy exploded outward at his command, filling the whole circle until it seemed like it would burst. The candles tipped sideways, flames licking up the sides of the energy bubble until it was a full fledged ball of fire. I was a little afraid it was going to explode and stood up in case I needed to get out in a hurry.

That’s when the ball blew.

Creede’s hood was blown back by the force of the energy wave and his eyes were twin stars that were too large for his face. Concentric waves of energy began to flow out of the circle, ripples of magic that swept toward me with the speed and intensity of a tsunami.

I wasn’t going to be able to get out of the way in time.

15

To hell with not interrupting the caster.

“Shit! Creeeede—” I backed toward the exit and then ran full out as the blast of power came my way.

He looked up then and saw me and raised his hands again. “Dispersei!” There was both panic and power in the word and I turned to see the white light in his eyes explode into the room. But it had gone too far, too fast.