That Old Black Magic

FIVE

Eden tried to process what she’d just heard.

Her mother? That was impossible.

This dark-haired woman was barely in her midtwenties and was completely different from her mother. Caroline Riley had looked just like Eden, only with blonde hair rather than the bright red Eden always dyed to a less attention-grabbing auburn.

“I know this comes as a shock, sweetie,” the woman said. “But it’s true. Maybe you should sit down.”

Eden did just that, staggering behind her desk and dropping back into her swivel chair. “What the hell is going on?”

The woman spread her hands. “Okay, so I died.”

“I know that part.”

“Next thing I know I’m in a holding cell in Hell scared out of my mind. I had no idea why I was there and it truly felt like forever, before they told me I was free. Next thing I know I’m back here, but I had no body. I had to improvise.”

“You’re a drifter,” Darrak said, eyeing her carefully.

The woman eyed him right back. “Is that what I am? Sounds like a good term for it.”

Eden’s heart sank. A drifter was a bodiless spirit who was able to possess humans at will, pushing aside their consciousness to make way for their own. Unlike Darrak, who was stuck with one human host until their death or his exorcism — or, preferably, his curse removal — a drifter could change bodies as easily as changing their outfit.

Her mother had died three months ago after breaking her neck falling down a flight of stairs in Las Vegas. She already knew Caroline had been sent to Hell. Lucas used her mother as blackmail to get Eden to help him out recently. She’d agreed, albeit reluctantly, and the last she knew her mother’s soul had been released.

Eden assumed she’d gone to Heaven.

Instead she’d flitted around until she’d found a suitable body — a young, pretty brunette.

“You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” Caroline laughed at her own joke. “Listen to me. Still hilarious after everything I’ve been through. But seriously, thank God I was able to find a body. Otherwise I’d be totally screwed. No way to communicate with you or anyone else. That would be so horrible. You know how much I love to talk.”

“Where did you get this body?” Eden said tightly.

She turned in a circle as if modeling a new dress. “She’s an aspiring actress. Twenty-three. She’s done a little lingerie modeling to pay the rent in the past. Adorable, isn’t she? I barely remember having boobs this perky.”

“And you just stole her body like it means nothing?”

“Borrowed. There are agencies out there who help set up this sort of thing. Who knew, right? This girl has rented out her body to me for six months. It’s not cheap, believe me.”

“Are you serious? You rented it?” Eden had never heard of anything like that.

“You think I’d just steal a body? What kind of person do you think I am?” Caroline pouted. “And here I thought you’d be thrilled to see me. Guess I was wrong.”

The nausea Eden had felt earlier again rose in her throat. “I don’t feel so good.”

“Can I do anything to help?” Caroline asked, moving closer.

Eden held up her hand. “You should leave.”

“But I just got here.”

“Seriously… Caroline, right?” Darrak said. He’d gone back to finishing off his donut from before. “This is a lot for her to take all at once. It’s been a difficult day already.”

Caroline’s gaze turned sharply toward the demon. “I don’t know what your game is, demon, but trust me, now that I’m here you’re not going to be able to corrupt my daughter any longer with your evil ways.”

Darrak sighed. “Just what I need. A cranky mother-in-law from Hell.”

Eden couldn’t process this. Her mother hadn’t been horrible, but she wasn’t exactly a kindhearted woman who’d baked cookies for her only child and been there as a shoulder to cry on or offer up advice when it was needed. No, Caroline Riley was more of a hard-drinking, professional gambler who’d been away more than she’d been at home, who’d paraded a succession of equally unreliable men through their lives as Eden was growing up.

Eden had learned at a very early age how to avoid phone calls from collections agencies, make dinner for herself, and take public transit at the age of ten since Mom wasn’t always around to pick her up from a friend’s house.

No wonder she had issues with trust and always had a desire for a solitary, peaceful life.

Despite her flakiness, Caroline didn’t have a hard or cruel heart. She meant well, really she did. At least, Eden always hoped so.

She eyed the brunette. “Wait a minute. How do I know this isn’t some sort of trick?”

The woman frowned. “A trick?”

“I’m just supposed to take this all at face value? Just believe what you’re telling me with no proof? I don’t think so. I don’t know if you’re trying to con me by using the grief I feel for my mother—”

“You really felt grief for me, honey?” She looked pleased by this. “I knew you were angry that we didn’t spend much time together anymore. I wasn’t sure if you’d be glad I was gone, but you missed me!”

Eden let out an exasperated sigh. “I can’t deal with this.”

“It’s true. I’m here. It’s really me. I can prove it…” She chewed her bottom lip and looked thoughtful. “You had a teddy bear when you were a kid. You called him Mr. Snuggles.”

Eden crossed her arms skeptically. “That’s not exactly a huge secret.”

“You spilled grape juice on him and I tried to wash him, but he fell apart. You were devastated. We buried him in the backyard and then I bought you that… uh, a turtle. A little green turtle.”

“And what happened to the turtle?” Eden asked slowly.

She seemed to concentrate for a moment before her expression fell. “Oh, honey. I ran over him with my car.”

“And then you tried to pretend that he committed suicide.”

She grimaced. “Sorry.”

It was enough to prove to her that this woman was her mother possessing the body of a lingerie model. She’d never told anyone what happened to Speedy.

Her mother was back and Eden felt… well, Eden didn’t know how she felt about that other than feeling a dull ache in the pit of her stomach. She needed time to absorb everything.

Eden directed Caroline toward the door. “We’ll get together soon and talk about all of this, I promise. Right now, though… I–I just can’t deal with a surprise like this.”

Caroline looked over her shoulder at Darrak. “I don’t know what’s going on here, honey. Why are you with this scumbag? Can I do anything? Can I help you?”

“With Darrak?”

“Is that his name? He’s a demon, you know.”

Eden flinched. “Yeah, well, he’s not as bad as you might think.”

“Please. I just spent three months in Hell’s waiting room. I think I know a little something about demons. They’re evil, vile, disgusting creatures of darkness.”

“Stop,” Darrak said. “You’re making me blush.”

“Darrak’s different.”

Caroline rolled her eyes. “Sure, that’s what they all say. So, what? Are you in love with him?”

Eden flicked a glance at him. She had told him she loved him just after she’d nearly lost him forever, but today didn’t feel like the right time to say it again. Especially not in front of present company. “We’re… involved. Deeply.”

Caroline’s voice lowered to a whisper. “Is he forcing you to do anything you don’t want to do?”

She sighed. “No.”

“Then what is this? Eden, honey, when did you discover this sordid side of life? Did you summon him for sex?”

That actually earned an amused look from Darrak as he waited patiently for her reply.

“Look, it’s not like that. Darrak… he — he has a curse. He’s bound to me right now.”

“Bound to you?” She looked confused and her gaze moved to Darrak.

He crossed his arms. “Yes, your daughter and I met during an unfortunate demonic possession. You know eHar-mony? This is sort of the opposite of that.”

Caroline’s eyes widened. “Oh, my God.”

“Not exactly.”

“Eden”—Caroline grabbed her shoulders, concern etched into her rented, wrinkle-free face—“what can I do to help you?”

“Help me?” Eden said dryly. “Why would you want to do something like that after nearly thirty years of the exact opposite?”

“Sweetheart…”

“This isn’t a good time. I’m dealing with a laundry list of problems right now and to have you around, too… well, it’s not something I need right now. You have to move on. There has to be a way to get you to Heaven.”

“I haven’t been seeing any tunnels of light. This is it, I think. I’m stuck here in the human world forever.”

“Then if you’re here forever, we’ll have lots of time to catch up later.” She hated how dispassionate she felt about this, but she had enough to deal with without adding her estranged mother’s presence to the list.

Caroline’s mouth thinned to a straight line. “If you think for one moment I’m just going to pretend I don’t see what’s going on here, and that I don’t want to help you, then you’re wrong.”

“I don’t need help.”

“You do. You’re possessed by a demon.” She looked at Darrak. “Strange demonic possession with you standing right there. Didn’t know it worked like that.”

“It’s daylight right now,” he told her. “After sunset it’s a bit more traditional.”

“Disgusting,” she spat at him, then turned to Eden again. “How could you let this demon convince you not to exorcise him the moment you had the chance?”

“Oh, I don’t know, Mom,” Eden said wearily. “Why didn’t you tell me my father was an angel?”

Caroline blinked. “Excuse me?”

“An angel? My father — the red-haired guy who came by for a five-minute visit when I was a kid?”

Caroline just gaped at her. “Daniel was a — an angel?”

Oh boy. She hadn’t known. “Forget I said anything.”

“Daniel was a drifter… a loser. Nobody I wanted around for long. Sure, he was hot as hell, but it was a mistake I regretted almost immediately.” At Eden’s sharp look, she added, “Well, I didn’t regret you. You were a blessing, honey. But that man…” She frowned. “An angel? Seriously?”

This wasn’t exactly something she’d lie about. “Trust me. He is.”

“You’ve met him recently?”

She shook her head. “Not yet, but the way my week’s going, he’s probably lurking around the next corner. Look, give me a phone number where I can reach you and we’ll get together soon. I promise. We’ll figure everything out then.”

Caroline grasped her hands. “My daughter, always trying to help other people, putting them before herself.”

Eden grimaced. “You make me sound like some sort of saint.”

“You are, honey. I never saw it before, but you’re truly wonderful. In every way. And you deserve a bright future.” She cast a dark look at Darrak. “And anything I have to do to ensure that is exactly what I’ll do. Call me, honey. Soon.”

Caroline scribbled a phone number down on a scrap piece of paper on Eden’s desk and handed it to her. She kissed Eden’s cheek and then, shooting an even darker glare in Darrak’s direction, left the office.

Eden suddenly felt like having a long nap. For a couple of years.

“So, your mom seems super nice,” Darrak said dryly.

She shot him a look. “She’s as scattered as she was when she was alive.”

“It’s adorable.”

“No it isn’t.”

“No, you’re right. It isn’t. She hates me.”

“Don’t worry about her. She’s harmless. It’s a whole ‘bark worse than bite’ thing.”

“Famous last words.”

“Let’s hope not.” Eden noticed he looked disturbed. “You okay?”

“Never better.”

“Forget what she said. She doesn’t know you.”

“She walked in right when I was about to ravish her daughter in the middle of a place of business. Not a great first impression.”

“Bad timing, that’s all.”

Darrak raked a hand through his unruly hair. “I’m going to go next door to see Nancy for another donut and I’ll give you some privacy to do your work. We’ll talk later.”

She was about to argue, but she closed her mouth. He was right. Now was not the right time to plunge back into a ravishment in the middle of the office. The moment had passed.

She nodded. “Later.”

Later they’d do many things. One of which, although Darrak didn’t know it yet, was for Eden to break his curse first thing tomorrow morning.

Forget “too good to be true.” She’d managed to remove the spell with a slightly darker shade to her amulet as the only glitch. She was feeling a renewed sense of confidence.

Maybe their luck was finally on an upswing.

It could happen.

Ben waited at his house for Sandy to arrive. And she finally did, knocking on his front door. He went to answer it and let the blonde witch inside. She immediately threw her arms around him and kissed him.

He’d had a lot of time to think about what he overheard in Oliver’s office today. It was possible Sandy was being coerced to act that way. It was also possible she was playing along in order to save her own neck. He was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.

“How are you?” he asked very seriously, watching for any telltale sign that she was in distress.

“I’m great.” She smiled brightly. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“I guess we’ve both been busy.” Sandy had slept over a couple of nights last week, but this week they’d only seen each other in passing at the Malleus headquarters.

“We need to spend more time with each other.”

“I couldn’t agree more. You sure you’re okay, Sandy?”

She cocked her head. “I honestly can’t say I’ve ever felt better. Things are finally coming together for me, Ben.”

“Glad to hear it.” So far, even with his trained eye, he couldn’t tell if she was being truthful. His gaze moved to her chest. “New necklace?”

She pressed her fingers against the gray pendant hanging on a silver chain. “It’s a witch thing.”

“Haven’t seen it before. It helps you do magic?”

“Something like that.” Her smile widened. “But enough about me. I brought you something.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“Some soup I made special for you. Chicken noodle.”

He took the Tupperware bowl from her. The soup was still warm, filled with chicken, noodles and — according to the conversation he’d heard earlier — a large helping of love potion.

His stomach sank. He’d hoped she wasn’t trying to deceive him, but his confidence was slipping with every moment she stood in front of him with that shiny smile on her face.

Her words from earlier replayed in his head:

“He’s a noble guy. Stupid, stubborn, and boring, but very noble.”

He might be noble, stubborn, and boring, but he was far from stupid.

Ben forced a smile and placed it down on the glass table next to his leather couch. “Smells delicious. Thank you. I’ll have it for dinner later.”

She nodded. “Good. Make sure to think of me when you take your first spoonful.”

“I’m always thinking of you, Sandy.”

Her smile widened. “Oh, Ben, what did I do to deserve somebody like you?”

You were assigned the task of making me fall in love with you so the Malleus could use that weakness to keep me in line.

He’d grown very fond of Sandy since he’d first met her, but love was something he didn’t feel for the witch. Especially not at this very moment.

Disappointment and betrayal, yes. Love? No thanks.

“Fate,” he said instead. “It works in mysterious ways.”

She looked back at the door. “I can’t stay, I’ve got so many things to do today.”

“Listen, Sandy, before you go, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“The angel in the basement of the Malleus. He’s still there — it’s been over two weeks now. He has red hair, and his feathers are being plucked daily from his wings. It seems to weaken him. He looks very ill. Do you know what’s going on?”

She cocked her head to the side. “Why would the Malleus imprison an angel?”

“Maybe it’s an evil angel.”

“An evil angel?” she laughed. “I’ve never heard of anything like that before.”

“Well, Eden seems to think her demon is a nice one.” Even saying it aloud made Ben grimace. He had major issues when it came to Darrak and had committed himself to destroying the demon at his earliest convenience. So far it hadn’t been all that convenient. “If that’s true, then maybe it works the other way around.”

“Eden is living in a fantasy world. One that is going to inevitably lead to her death. You know that, I know that, and the Malleus knows that.”

“I still don’t understand why we’re not intervening in that matter more forcefully.”

“Black witches are dangerous.”

He already knew that about Eden from firsthand experience. He’d really prefer to keep his head attached to his body if possible. “But she needs help. Why can’t the Malleus help her?”

“Oliver still wants to know how the celestial energy is affecting the demon. He has a lead on more information. Nothing’s going to be done until he acquires that information. That’s all I can say right now, Ben.”

Everything revolved around that damn demon. “So you don’t know anything about the angel.”

Sandy sighed. “The only prisoner I know about is the shapeshifter we brought in yesterday. And let me tell you, she’s a real bitch to deal with.”

Was she referring to the woman with the almond-shaped eyes and mocha-colored skin who’d glared at him from the shadows of her cell? “A bitch?”

She nodded. “Evil to the core.”

“Yeah?” Bitch, he’d believe. Evil might be a stretch, despite his telling her she probably belonged in a locked room. That unpleasant exchange had stayed with him since he’d walked away from her earlier. “Why do you think she’s evil?”

“She has something to do with Eden Riley and that demon of hers. Oliver thinks the shifter has information that could help the Malleus, but she won’t talk. She refuses to help us.”

“What’s her name?”

Sandy crossed her arms. “She won’t tell us even that. We tried bribing her, but nothing. My magic doesn’t work on shifters to help coax the truth. Tomorrow we’re going to have to get more serious with her. Oliver is going to want you there. He wants to introduce you to the more high level intel extraction methods.”

He didn’t like the sound of that. “I’m supposed to be a part of this?”

“You’re involved in the Eden Riley case already. If she talks to you, it won’t be too bad for her.”

Ben watched her carefully. “And you’re okay with that? With these high level intel extraction methods?”

It was a nice, fancy way to describe torture.

She met his serious gaze and he saw nothing in her eyes to indicate any doubt or worry. “It’s all for the greater good, Ben.”

“Right. The greater good.” Ben couldn’t believe he’d felt something for this woman who stood before him. It was as if the curtain had been pulled back from in front of his eyes showing the messy stage behind it. He’d thought Sandy was one of the good guys — one of the best of them all, actually.

But maybe she was just another hammer.

What the hell had he gotten himself into?

He had no friends, no one to confide in. A brand on his arm that still itched, that bound him to an organization he’d quickly come to doubt — one that used medieval methods in modern times to prove their way was the right way. The only way.

The greater good.

Ben wanted to do the right thing. He did. He wanted to help others more than anything in the world.

But this — it felt wrong to him. So wrong.

“I’ll be there, too,” Sandy assured him. “For moral support.”

“Thanks. I–I appreciate that.”

“Eat your soup. Know that I made it with love in my heart.”

He nodded. “Can’t wait.”

“I’ll call you later.” She went up on tiptoe and brushed her lips against his. Then, with a last flash of a bright smile, she slipped through the front door.

It only took Ben a minute to pour the soup down his garbage disposal.

He’d definitely lost his appetite.