The Reaping: Language of the Liar (7 page)

Chapter Ten

Waking with a start, Dorian blinked against the harsh morning light.  She was somewhere unfamiliar, outside, her back pressed to a large tree.  The grass beneath her bare feet was dewy, and she was sitting in her pajama bottoms and thin tank top.  Looking around, she was relieved to find she was alone, but it was a small comfort.  Her entire body was sore, and she had scrapes all along her ankles and a couple on the side of her right hand.  Her nails were broken and filthy, like she’d been digging, and she felt a bubble of hysterical laughter forming in her gut.

“What the
hell
?”  She winced at how sore her throat was, and as she tried to stand, every muscle in her body protested.

Bracing herself against the tree, Dorian squinted into the early morning light to get a better view of her surroundings.  It was a park somewhere, and as she noticed a wide field leading to the street, she realized it was familiar.  The park where people walked their dogs only a few blocks away from the church.

But how the
hell
had she gotten there?  The last thing she remembered was talking to Father Stone in the church.  Then her wrists had begun to burn and… She remembered Lennox and Dash, and the ritual.  Then Nic haunting her dreams.

Flipping her hands over, she saw the marks had all-but faded.  Just a few smudges left, and the burning had stopped.  So what happened?  She’d had blackouts before, but she hadn’t woken in an unfamiliar place since she was a teenager.  They hadn’t been as bad after she started on medication.

A buzzing in her pocket startled her, and she let out a small cry before realizing it was her phone.  She didn’t remember taking it with her, but she dug for it and saw Father Stone’s name on her caller ID.  “Hello?”

“Thank heavens!”  His breath was coming in gasps and it sounded like he’d been running.  “Dorian, where are you?”

“Um…”  She looked around again to double check.  “I think I’m in the park near the church.  I’m not…”  Her voice started to shake and she cleared her throat.  “I don’t remember what happened.”

“You had an episode, I believe.  A particularly violent one.”

Dorian’s face went white-hot with panic.  “Oh God.  Oh no.  Did I hurt anyone?”

“Superficial injuries, not to worry.”  There was a long silence before he spoke again.  “I’ve been in touch with your therapist who urged me not to call the police.  I told her if I could reach you before twenty-four hours I wouldn’t involve authorities.  But Dorian, we need to talk.  Whatever happened last night, I can’t in good conscience have you around children in that condition.”

She felt her stomach sink and fought back the urge to burst into tears.  “Yeah.  I understand.  I um… I think my meds are on the fritz or something.”

“Maria did tell me you’d left a message for her regarding concerns over the drugs you’ve been taking, and I’m inclined to agree with her that a thirty-day in-patient treatment would be beneficial.  And if you can get it under control and stop these black-outs, you’ll be welcomed back here with open arms.”

The stress was too much, and Dorian started walking toward the street.  “Yeah.  I mean… I think, yeah.  Yeah I can do that.”  The idea of being back in the hospital, monitored, watched, talked to like she was some nutcase, made her stomach churn.  It was the last thing she wanted.  But if she hurt anyone, Father Stone or any of the nuns, she wouldn’t forgive herself.

“Maria said she’ll meet you here.  That way you can gather what you need to take with you.  I promise, I’m not shutting you out.  You just need to understand…”

“Yeah no.  I get it.  Been down this road a few times.”  She didn’t mean to sound so bitter, but she couldn’t help it.  She’d lost count of how many people had told her it wasn’t permanent.  As long as she could get it together, she’d be welcomed back.  “I’ll um…”

She didn’t finish her thought.  Her phone slipped down to her side and she started forward.  As she hit the street, she passed a couple standing next to a coffee cart.  At first glance they appeared normal, but something in the space around them shifted as she got closer.  A shimmer in the air, and their entire demeanor changed.  Their bodies elongated, eyes narrowed and cat-like, and their smiles showed rows and rows of shadowy fangs.  They didn’t appear to notice her, even as she stopped to gape at them.

“We have to make a move and soon.  We have such a small population, not nearly enough to combat Ra’Sias.”

“He’s ready to make a move.  Rumor has it he’s gotten one of the Exorcists on his side with a spell which can open more doorways in more humans.  We have to be ready to pounce.  We can’t allow him to outnumber us here.”

Suddenly the vision was gone, and the couple threw their coffee cups into the nearest bin before making their way down the street.  Dorian’s hands were shaking as she stared after them, and she realized she’d hung up on Father Stone.  Her hand hovered over the button when her phone began to buzz again, but she didn’t answer.

Something about the conversation felt too real.  Like she’d just stumbled onto a private phone call when a signal was crossed.  An Exorcist, someone like Lennox and Dash, had crossed over to the demons’ side.  Working against humans, against everything Lennox and Dash were trying to accomplish.  The thought terrified her down to her core, in spite of her skepticism.

She found herself marching down the street in the direction Lennox had dragged her the day before.  She had promised herself never to set eyes on them again, but she stood in front of their building now, unable to stop herself from pulling open the door to the lobby and stepping inside.

She was frozen to the bone, sore, and exhausted, but she climbed the stairs, flight after flight until she reached their floor.  It was early, probably too early for a house call, but it was necessary.  If she didn’t relay this information, she had a feeling people would die.  Innocent people.

Her fist hit the door several times, echoing through the hall, and she stepped back, her bare foot tapping on the wood.  So many minutes passed, she thought for a moment no one was home, but as she turned to go, she heard the chain slide back.

A second later, the door cracked open and Dash stuck his head out, his hair mussed and eyes half-lidded.  “Dorian?”

Hugging her arms around her middle, she stepped forward and kept her voice low.  “Something… something’s wrong.  Really wrong.  I’m freaking out.”

His eyes went wide, then he held the door back, beckoning her inside.  It was blazing hot from a floor heater and she stood in the stream of warm air, trying to chase the chill from her joints.  Dash stared at her for a moment before closing the door, and when he turned back, his brows were furrowed.

“Where’s your amulet?”

Dorian blinked, then her eyes went wide when she realized what he was talking about.  “It’s back at the church.  In my room.”  She let out a nervous laugh and rubbed at her wrists.  “I mean it’s… this is…”  She was paralyzed with a moment of self-doubt.  What was she really doing here?  Looking for validation that she wasn’t crazy?  That she was one of the special people who was misunderstood?  Chosen?  That the thing in her head wasn’t an elaborate hallucination due to a malfunction in her medication?

She felt foolish and took a step toward the door.  “You know what, I’m sorry I woke you.  I shouldn’t be here.”  She reached for the doorknob, but was stopped by a firm hand closing over her wrist.  When she turned, she met Dash’s concerned gaze head on.

“What happened?”

Pulling her hand away from him, she waved it in a dismissive gesture.  “Oh nothing.  It’s nothing.  Seriously.  Just a rough morning and I thought I heard…”  She stopped and laughed again.  “Really.  It’s nothing.  I’m just sleep deprived.”

She started toward the door again, but Dash grabbed her shoulder.  “The amulet was to protect you.  To keep the demon from taking over your mind.  Why didn’t you wear it?”

“Because it’s a bunch of crap!” she shouted, then covered her mouth for a second.  “Look, I can’t deal with another person trying to convince me that my problems aren’t my problems.  They’re making me go back in.  To the institution.  Something happened last night, and I think I hurt a few people when I blacked out.”

Rubbing his face, Dash let out a slow breath and looked over his shoulder when a door in the back of the apartment opened.  Lennox appeared a second later, his hair messy, face splotchy and red, but his eyes went wide when he saw Dorian standing there.

“What’s going on?”

Dash shook his head, then turned his attention back to Dorian.  “Just tell me what sent you running to our door, and then you can go.”

“Scout’s honor?” she said, her tone mocking.  In spite of her sarcasm, Dash nodded, and she let out a resigned sigh.  “Last night I saw it.  Him.  Whatever.  The demon you said is using my head.  He said his name was Nic and he’s been around since I was born.  He knew personal things about me, but then again if he’s a figment of my psychosis, of course he would know them.  Anyway,” she waved her hand, “I went to see Father Stone, to get his opinion on the whole demon thing and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in the park.”

“Last night?” Lennox asked.

Dorian glanced down at her bare feet which were sore and aching.  “This morning.  I was out there doing God knows what for… for hours.  When I called the Father, he told me they want me in for a month.  Which is probably a good idea.”

“Dorian,” Dash said in a soft tone.

She shook her head, her hands clenching into fists.  “No.  Seriously, it’s the best thing I can do.  They can fix my meds and if it works, I can go back to my life.”

The two men exchanged looks before Lennox took a step closer to her.  “Something else happened, didn’t it?”

Dorian swallowed, looking anywhere but at the Exorcists.  “I overheard something.”  Though it went against her better judgment, she relayed the conversation.  “When I blinked, they were normal again.  Two people having coffee in the park.  So it was probably just…”  Dorian trailed off when she saw the blood drain from Lennox’s face, and he turned to look at Dash who seemed equally horrified.

“I’ll get Markus on the phone.  You deal with her.”  Dash waved his hand at Dorian before hurrying down the hall and slamming the back bedroom door.

Licking her lips, Dorian glanced at the front door, but knew escape was pointless.  Even if she could slip out, Lennox would be after her.  “I only told you because…”

“Listen kiddo, I understand why you’re apprehensive and reluctant to believe.  I get it.  I meet unfortunate souls like you every week, and they’ve spent their entire lives hoping that whatever’s wrong with them can be cured.  That it’s not them, it’s something else, something they can fight.”

Dorian put her hand to her forehead and took in a shaking breath.  “I don’t have it in me to believe in anything anymore.”

Lennox took another step toward her and placed a hand on her shoulder.  For whatever reason, in that moment, it was the most comforting thing anyone could have done, and she almost sobbed.  “I know you don’t.  And if what you said is true, I don’t have time to ease you into belief.  I also can’t let you walk away.  Whatever has its claws in you is strong, lass, and it can’t be allowed to walk free in your head.”

Every fiber of her being was torn in half.  Part of her wanting to believe what he was saying, and the other part wanting to run away to a land where drugs would make all the bad things go away.  “So what, you’re going to exorcise me?”

“Eventually.”  His tone was pointed, matter-of-fact, and it sent chills down her spine.  “But there’s something you need to see first.”

Before Lennox could go on, Dash came back in the room, more color in his face.  “Got the lads on it.  They’ll be doing a sweep this week, and Markus said he’ll report back his findings.  We still on for this afternoon?”

Dorian took a step back, Lennox’s hand still clamped down to her skin.  “This afternoon?”

“Not you, love,” Dash said.  “But we were gonna come by and swoop you up for a little outing.”

“An exorcism,” Lennox clarified.  “We’ve got a kid on our radar, showing strong signs that he’s at risk for a full-on possession.  We like to catch them early, manage the doorways before they become possessed.”  He shrugged, finally dropping his hand away from her.  “We’d like you to tag along.”

Dorian hesitated.  She knew Father Stone would be waiting for her, as well as Maria.  She was due for intake and they wouldn’t wait long.  But something was nagging at her to stay, to see if they really could prove once and for all everything they were saying was true.  Nic told her they could show her the truth, wanted her to read between the lines.  And maybe she should.  Maybe she should give them a shot, see if they really could prove it was real.

She looked down at what she was wearing and her face scrunched up.  “I’m not sure I should be wandering around like this.”

“Briar’s got something,” Lennox said with a shrug.  When Dorian gave him a confused frown, he said, “She’s the house Reaper.”

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Dorian felt like she was sitting in the middle of a foreign movie without subtitles.  “House Reaper?”

“I swear we’ll explain anything and everything this afternoon,” Dash said.  “For now, just know she’s one of the good guys, on our team, and she’s got some stuff you can borrow.  She’ll be around in a while to help us out.”