Demons are Forever: Confessions of a Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom

Table of Contents

 

 

RAVES FOR Demons Are Forever

“[A] wonderful author ... a fun premise... excellent characterization, intriguing stories, and snappy dialogue.”

“Fabulous ... a great entry.” —
The Best Reviews

“Fizzy ... Kenner’s trademark cliffhanger finale promises further demonic escapades to come.” —
Publishers
Weekly

“This is the third in Kenner’s splendidly creative series featuring Kate, whose wickedly amusing adventures in demon-hunting are a pure paranormal delight.” —
Booklist

“This chapter in Kenner’s first-person, kick-butt adventures takes a darker turn, and a more serious tone, as Demon Hunter Kate Connor faces long odds and emotional turmoil. The terrific Kenner grabs you and doesn’t let go!”

—
Romantic Times

California Demon

“Kenner continues to put her fun, fresh twist on mommy-lit with another devilishly clever book.” —
Booklist

“Sassy!” —
Richmond.com

“Plenty of action and humor. Kenner is at her irreverent best ... delightfully amusing.” —
The
Best Reviews

“Another winner!” —
NovelTalk

“A fun paranormal adventure that definitely appeals to moms!” —
Scribes
World

“More witty, funny, and poignant adventures from the marvelous Kenner.” —
Romantic
Times

Carpe Demon

“I LOVED CARPE DEMON! ... It was great fun, wonderfully clever. Ninety-nine percent of the wives and moms in the country will identify with this heroine. I mean, like who hasn’t had to battle demons between carpools and playdates?”

—Jayne Ann Krentz, New York Times
bestselling author of White Lies

“I welcome the novels that decide to be utterly over-the-top and imagine paranormal and superhero lives for their chick-lit heroines. Take Carpe
Demon ...”
—
Detroit
Free Press

“This book, as crammed with events as any suburban mom’s calendar, shows you what would happen if Buffy got married and kept her past a secret. It’s a hoot.”

—Charlaine Harris, New York Times
bestselling author of Definitely Dead

“What would happen if Buffy the Vampire Slayer got married, moved to the suburbs, and became a stay-at-home mom? She’d be a lot like Kate Connor, once a demon/vampire/ zombie killer and now ‛a glorified chauffeur for drill team practice and Gymboree playdates in San Diablo, California,’ that’s what. But in Kenner’s sprightly, fast-paced ode to kick-ass housewives, Kate finds herself battling evil once again. Readers will find spunky Kate hard not to root for in spheres both domestic and demonic.” —
Publishers
Weekly

“A+! This is a serious keeper—I am very ready for the next installment in Kate Connor’s life!”

—
The
Romance
Readers
Connection

“Smart, fast-paced, unique—a blend of sophistication and wit that has you laughing out loud.”

—Christine Feehan, New York Times
bestselling author of Safe Harbor

“Tongue-in-cheek ... fast pacing and in-your-face action. Give it a try. Kate’s a fun character and keeps you on the edge of your seat.” —
SFReader

“Ms. Kenner has a style and delivery all her own... fun and innovative... [Carpe
Demon]
shouldn’t be missed.”

—
Fallen
Angel Reviews

“You’re gonna love this book! A terrific summer read with lots of humor and crazy situations and action.”

—
Fresh
Fiction

“Kenner scores a direct hit with this offbeat and humorous adventure, which has an engaging cast of characters. Carpools and holy water make an unforgettable mix.”

—
Romantic
Times

Titles by Julie Kenner

CARPE DEMON
CALIFORNIA DEMON
DEMONS ARE FOREVER

DEJA DEMON

FIRST LOVE

Anthologies

HELL WITH THE LADIES
(with Kathleen O’Reilly and Dee Davis)

HELL ON HEELS
(with Kathleen O’Reilly and Dee Davis)

FENDI, FERRAGAMO, AND FANGS
(with Johanna Edwards and Serena Robar)

BERKLEY JAM titles

THE GOOD GHOULS’ GUIDE TO GETTING EVEN
GOOD GHOULS DO

THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
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Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada
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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

DEMONS ARE FOREVER

A Jove Book / published by arrangement with the author

PRINTING HISTORY
Berkley trade paperback edition / July 2007
Jove mass-market edition / July 2008

Copyright © 2007 by Julie Kenner.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.

eISBN : 978-0-515-14480-2

JOVE®
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One

I killed my first demon at the ripe old age of fourteen. Stabbed it through the eye with an ivory-handled stiletto that had been a birthday gift from my caretaker and mentor, Father Lorenzo Corletti.

I had spent two days tracking the demon, living on the filthy backstreets of a poverty-riddled Italian village, eating nothing but the scraps I’d tucked away in a threadbare knapsack. I had one companion—a boy I adored and whom, in fact, I later married. But teenage lust was the furthest thing from my mind during those long days. Demon-hunting is serious business, and I was a serious girl.

Even now, over two decades later, I can still remember the intensity of emotions. The drive of the chase despite bone-numbing exhaustion. And the certain knowledge that this was Important Stuff. From an overall life perspective, after all, very little ranks above thwarting the minions of Hell.

As far as my duties as a Demon Hunter went, my youth was an issue only to the extent that my strength and training gave me a fighting chance to stay alive. By age fourteen, I was physically ready. As for mentally? Well, there was never any question. I knew what had to be done, and I was expected to do it. My age never factored into the equation.

With all that in my personal history, you might think that I would understand better than anyone that fourteen-year-old girls are both strong and resilient.

You might think that, but you would be wrong. Because when it came time to actually have the talk with my fourteen-year-old daughter, I was a tongue-tied mess.

And, just so we’re on the same page, when I say the talk, I’m not talking about the sex one. That one I managed to muddle through. I’m talking about the other conversation: the one where I sat her down and confessed my deep, dark, secret life.

My name is Kate Connor, and I’m a Level Four Demon Hunter with Forza Scura, a super-secret arm of the Vatican charged with keeping the forces of darkness at bay. That particular piece of familial history, however, had been withheld from my daughter her entire life despite the fact that her father and I had hunted demons all over the globe until just a few years before Allie was born.

I’d always planned to tell her the truth someday. But somehow “someday” kept getting pushed further and further back. Allie was my baby, after all. For fourteen years, my job had been to nurture and protect her. Skewing her entire worldview with insider information about how evil truly walks among us wasn’t something I’d been looking forward to. I knew I had to tell her, though; demon-hunting is part of her family history, even though I often wish it weren’t.

It was one thing knowing that I someday had to come clean with my daughter. Having the conversation forced on me was something entirely different. But after a High Demon kidnapped her, I knew without a doubt that the demon-related mother-daughter lines of communication needed to be opened.

And so there we were, sitting on the steps in front of San Diablo’s most well-funded museum. Despite the bright sun beating down, we were huddled together under an EMS-ISSUED blanket, waiting to make sure the police and medical folks clustered in the parking lot didn’t have any more questions for us, and also waiting for Stuart to come pick us up. My second husband doesn’t have a clue about my demon-hunting past. And although this might be the day that Allie learned most of my secrets, Stuart was going to remain blissfully clueless.

“Mom?” she prodded. “So, like, you said you were going to tell me what’s going on.”

“Right,” I said, still not ready, but figuring I never would be. I looked around, ostensibly making sure no one was paying attention to us, but half hoping that some police official was signaling for me to come over and answer questions.

No such luck. I was stuck in this conversation, whether I wanted to be or not. And since there’s not really an easy way to ease into the whole demon thing, I decided to just cut to the chase. “What you saw in there,” I began, a little hesitantly. “Those creatures, I mean. They’re demons, Allie. Honest-to-goodness, from the bowels of hell, evil-incarnate demons.”

I wasn’t sure what I expected her initial reaction to be, but I balled my hands into fists, readying myself for anything.

“Oh,” she said after a moment’s pause. “That makes sense. And?”

And? My hands relaxed and I stumbled a bit, because I really wasn’t expecting and. Not yet, anyway. I figured we had a good half hour of working through the whole demon thing before we got to and. Tossing and into the mix now threw off my whole equilibrium.

“ ’And?’ ” I repeated. “I’m talking demons, kiddo. Isn’t that enough?”