Hell Inc. (18 page)

“We're
done. No sex for Ginger today,” I mumbled and waited for it to
join me. The sphinx smiled one of its blank but pleasant smiles and
settled itself down next to the bed. I waited for a riddle but it
just sat there, amethyst eyes glinting in the afternoon sun.

I
sighed and threw the blankets back, slamming my feet onto the wood
floor and shaking myself free of the gloom that was attempting to
cling to my naked skin. “First steps first,” I told the
sphinx as I stood and stretched. “Time to see if that cell
phone offer is still available. I need some more wishes.”

“Don't
you get commission for this or something?” I asked Levie,
straightening and handing him back his quill pin. The ink on the
contract glittered back at me, and I felt a grin break across my
face. It felt good to gain a wish, rather than lose one. Levie
scowled and snatched the new phone contract from the table, jamming
it into his suitcase.

“Of
course not. How silly.” I raised my eyebrows at him.

“And
the Devil peddling cell phone contracts isn't?” Levie gave me a
look that made me feel less than intelligent and ignored my question.
He snapped his brown leather briefcase shut and turned back to face
me.

“I
have issues to take care of, Ginger.” He touched my shoulder as
he said this, his hands unbearably warm from his magic. “But I
can't leave you alone; this much is obvious.” His orange eyes
were focused intently on the carpet, and for just a split second I
thought I saw the slightest hint of a nervous twitch in his forehead.
“I have a place for you to stay, but you may not like it.”
I pushed his hand off and stepped back.

“What
do you mean, I may not like it?” Levie turned and ran his
fingers along the handle of his suitcase. “Levie?” His
wings pulled tightly against his body, and he sighed.

“You
are going to have to stay with my parents.” His voice was low
and rough with embarrassment. I felt my jaw drop.

“This
is a joke right?” I yelped as a brief rush of heat surrounded
me and all of the candles in the room lit themselves simultaneously.
Levie glared at me over his shoulder.

“Of
course not. Why on earth would I jest about such a thing? Besides,
you will be much safer under their roof than in your shack.”
His eyebrow was twitching now, and I could tell this was costing him.
I pursed my lips and, ignoring his insults, decided to focus on the
more disturbing part of it all.

“Is
this ... you know, standard procedure for your clients to meet
your parents?” I was sure that it wasn't, but I had to ask.
Levie growled and picked up his suitcase, carrying it to the door and
setting it lightly on the yellow and blue laminate entryway tiles
that I thought cheapened the entire look of the apartment. God,
maybe it really was a hovel.

“Get
your things together. I have very important duties that I must
attend to shortly.” He paused and turned to look at me, mouth
set in a stern line. Apparently this little arrangement didn't
include him telling me a damn thing about what was really going on.

“Why
do I smell so much like demon?” I asked him and felt a wave of
satisfaction as he briefly let surprise show in his eyes before
closing down his emotions again. It was sort of sad how good he was
at it. I parked my butt on the edge of my raggedy old couch and
crossed my arms under my breasts, appreciating in a very narcissistic
manner how much they bulged up when I did that. Not that I thought
they really needed any help.

“My
mere proximity to you causes our scents to mix, of course.” I
shook my head; he was lying.

“Liam
thought I
was
a demon when he first saw me. Why would he make
that kind of a mistake? Being next to a demon doesn't make you smell
like you are one. I mean, I don't think it does.” It wasn't
like I could smell the differences between supernatural creatures. I
was just guessing. Levie shook his head.

“I
don't have time for silly questions, Ginger. If I am late, my uncle
will have my wings.” Levie shivered, and the skin on his wings
rippled, more like silk than leather. It was mesmerizing. I shook
my head and refused to budge.

“And
why the hell did Liam think you were the CEO?” Levie's brows
knitted together tightly, and I could tell I was about to hit gold.
“He also said something about Infernix?” Levie took a few
steps towards me, his boots sinking into the old gray Berber as he
placed his hands on my upper arms. His orange eyes were full of
answers that I wanted desperately, but I felt myself forgetting about
them completely as he leaned forward and attempted to press his lips
against mine. I put a hand on his chest and pushed him back. “I
want answers, Levie.”

“I
cannot give you what you want,” he said in a low voice that
made my insides turn to ice. There was a double meaning behind his
words that made me sick. “Now, gather your things. We must be
on our way.”

“You
haven't even asked me my opinion on this?” I snapped, pissed
off and worried at the same time. Levie confused the hell out of me.

“I
do not need to ask,” he said with authority. “I am your
caseworker, and it is my duty to keep you safe. I have made the
final decision in regards to your personal safety. I have every
right to do so. If you do not believe me, check the contract.”
He held out his hand, and the scroll I had signed so long ago was
sitting on his palm. I snatched it from him and clutched it to my
chest, resolving to do just that. I would read every word, from top
to bottom, just to spite him, but I knew I would go with him anyway.
There was no way I was staying here alone after what had happened
yesterday. There wasn't a snowball's chance in hell.

I
took my sweet ass time packing a suitcase. The jerk could wait for
me. If he wasn't willing to give me answers, I wasn't willing to
make his life any easier. I cursed to myself, slamming my bedroom
door and stomping over to my closet. I took some of my anger out on
the sliding mirrored doors and ending up breaking one when I thrust
it open. Fantastic, another thing for my landlady to bitch about
when I moved out. The woman was like a hawk, always on the prowl for
someone or something to nag and complain at. I was sure she'd heard
the mirror breaking, even though her apartment was four doors over
and downstairs. She was that attentive. Well, attentive and part
fae. What a fae, even a part breed fae, was doing managing a shitty
apartment complex was beyond me. To each their own, I guess.

I
decided to pick out my outfit for my date with Terrence first. I
smiled at the clothing in my closet. A long time in the making, my
wardrobe consisted almost entirely of eclectic pieces that most
people wouldn't even dream of wearing out. My father had always
hated my taste in clothing, and if it hadn't been for my stepmother,
I wouldn't have even been allowed to wear it at all. I searched
through the hangers until I found a Victorian inspired skirt and top.
That is, if Victorian women had worn tank tops and mini-skirts. It
was a bit risqué,
but I knew that this particular top did wonders in framing and
enhancing my chest.

“Let's
play a game,” I told the clothing. “It's called 'Tease
the Boys.'” I shut the closet doors and laid the outfit out
over my rumpled bedspread. “Especially the demon prick,”
I added, kicking my bed frame for good measure. Pain shot up my
toes, and I cursed, sitting down on the edge of my bed and clutching
my foot. “Why does this kind of stuff always happen to me?”
I asked, mostly addressing my clothing and maybe my bed, too, if it
happened to be listening. I liked talking to inanimate objects; it
made them seem friendlier. And after all I'd seen, you never knew
what might talk back.

As
far as shoes went, I considered there to be three categories:
hideous, boring, and uncomfortable. I mostly owned the boring type,
but from time to time, I would suffer through the uncomfortable ones.
For aesthetic purposes, of course.
Maybe that's what I should
wish for. A never ending supply of shoes that are comfortable
and
attractive.
Just the thought of it made me feel shallow as I
rummaged around through the pile of shoes that I kept in a basket
near my bed. Erin, confessed shoe-aholic, had almost had a heart
attack when she had seen the brown wicker basket stuffed to the brim.

“Why
don't you get a shoe rack?” she had asked me. I had ignored
her and received one for my following birthday. It was still in its
box in the hall closet. It had been awhile since she'd been over,
and I wondered what she would do if she saw that I still had the
basket.

The
sphinx trotted in and sat down, attempting to groom itself in a very
cat like manner. I stared at it for a moment and tried not to be
weirded out by the excruciatingly long cat tongue that protruded from
its human lips before going back to the shoes.

“Winter's
harshness is but a precursor to the warmth of spring,” the
sphinx told my back as I wondered what had caused it to go from
riddling questions to proverbs. I found a pair of plain, black
leather pumps and decided that those would do. It could never hurt
to go with a classic. I took off the bathrobe that I'd been wearing
and was picking out some deliciously naughty undergarments that I'd
bought in anticipation of one day wearing them for someone when Levie
came back into the room. He was fully dressed in some outfit he'd no
doubt pulled from the nether universe and looked heart achingly
beautiful. Embarrassed by the silken, lacy panties in my hand, I
stuffed them back into the drawer and slammed it shut, still naked
but trying to pretend that I wasn't bothered by him seeing. I glared
angrily.

“What
do you want?” I asked, hoping that he could hear the irritation
in my voice just in case he was missing the body language.

“Only
to give you a simple gift.” Suspicious but curious as to what
he had to offer, I took a step forward. Levie grasped me around the
waist and pulled me close. I struggled against his grip, but I might
as well have been pushing against a semitruck.

“I
don't want to be teased again,” I growled and stopped abruptly
when he pressed cold steel into my palm. A small black dagger
glittered back at me. Covered with various runes that I had never
seen before and encrusted with all sorts of jewels, it looked more
like a fancy bauble than a weapon.

“What
is this?” Levie released me, and I turned the dagger around in
my hands, examining the blade. It looked sharp enough, but I had no
idea how to use it. I wasn't trained in any sort of weaponry or
martial arts; I didn't even know how to shoot a gun.

“It
is called a dagger in your language.” Smart ass.

“I
know that, but what am I supposed to do with it?” Levie handed
me a small leather pouch with a belt attached. A sheath? I looked at
him puzzlingly.

“Wear
it around; it will help keep you safe.”

“I
don't know how to use it,” I told him, staring at my reflection
in the shining black metal. Levie sighed and brushed hair from his
face in an irritated gesture.

“You
stab the blade into another's flesh. It will wound them.” He
spoke haltingly, as if to a child.

“You're
an ass. You know what I meant.” I turned back around and began
rummaging in my underwear drawer again.
He isn't getting silk,
I
thought, grabbing a pair of plain, cotton underwear then realizing
that I had assumed he would be getting
something.
I stuffed
the panties angrily back into the drawer. Levie wasn't getting
anything. It was probably for the best anyway.
I should just
consider Levie a silly attraction and leave it at that.
I
started rummaging around for a bra and tried to pretend that I
believed that. I was also doing my best to pretend that I still
wasn't naked with him standing at my back. I shivered and almost
leapt out of my skin when he moved towards me and spoke.