A Demon Made Me Do It by Penelope King Page B

mean it, Lucky.” His
tone is firm. “You know what they can do to you, and there’s definitely something
brewing out there. All of us have been put on alert. Don’t go
looking for trouble tonight.”
    With a sigh, I stand up and gently
push Bones out the door. “Go. I’ll be fine. You’re worse than a
Sapie mother, I swear.”
    He chuckles. “Like you’d really
know.”
    “ Go.”
    He silently slips away into the night,
and I turn my attention again to the whimpering in the
corner.
    ******
     
    I wrap my cloak tightly around me as I
approach Baymore Park’s west entrance, but the thin velvet does
little to protect me from the palpable chill in the night air.
Normally, my body doesn’t react to external temperatures, so I can
only assume it’s because I didn’t properly replenish. Tatiana’s
stuff is good, but it’s nowhere near as good as the Source’s. But
I’d figured since I was only tormenting tonight—not fighting—her
backup elixir would suffice. It’s also why I’m wearing a long,
gothic gown made from yards of vintage lace. I like wearing dresses
to torture; it puts me in the right mood. Just like wearing
skintight leather puts me in the mood to kick some ass.
    I just need to hurry with my rounds
and get back to Demon Bar as soon as possible. The fastest way to
Ludwing’s is straight through the park. Otherwise, I’ll have to
circle around for miles.
    Sigh . I don’t want to waste energy on running, and Diablo doesn’t
leave Dryndara except to come to the cabin. Bones’ warning sounds
in my head, but I’m sure he’s just being overly protective, as
usual. Still, I reach into my boot and withdraw my blade. It will kill an Altrumina if
I’m attacked, as long as they don’t touch me first. No problem. If
I see someone who seems at all suspicious then I’ll run. No point in wasting
precious energy I don’t have.
    After several minutes of strolling
through the park and seeing only a few strung-out junkies and some
prostitutes, I relax, chiding myself for worrying in the first
place. Altrumina are far more interested in infecting Sapies; they
wouldn’t come looking for a fight with someone they think will
fight back.
    Just as I’m reassuring
myself of this, I spot Altrumina everywhere . The place is swarming with them. They
look like Sapies, but I recognize their overly-erect posture and
out-dated wardrobes. Plus, they always work in pairs, a male and a
female, and have whiter than blond hair, straight to their
shoulders.
    My heart pounding, I pick up the pace
and take a wary look around. Directly ahead of me, two Altrumina
approach a young homeless boy. Further up, two more are standing by
a swing set. Another pair is over on a bench, talking to each
other. One female stands alone, silently stalking a young
prostitute who’s just entered the grove with her john.
    I cut off the main path
onto the grass, away from any trouble, and silently curse myself
for not bringing my crossbow with me tonight. Not because I’m
afraid, but because I hate them so
much . They aren’t from my family, so I
would kill them happily and with impunity.
    Tomorrow. I’m definitely
hunting me some Altrumina tomorrow .
Tonight, not only am I sadly unprepared and not at all dressed for
hunting, my alarming lack of strength would assure my certain
defeat in a scuffle.
    But I’m curious about the one
Altrumina by herself. They always work in pairs. Always. So where’s
the other one?
    A light crunching from behind me
causes me to jump and spin around, my dagger at the ready. I find
myself face to face with an impeccably handsome, smiling young man
with shiny lavender eyes.
    Shit.
    “ You lost, bitch?” he asks,
and before the question is out of his mouth he lightly touches my
hand.
    I fall into darkness.
     
     

Chapter 7.
Lucky
    I struggle to regain consciousness,
but I feel drugged. Everything is foggy…my mind’s a blur. I’m
shivering from the biting cold, and somewhere in the darkness I
hear mocking