Pulling up the sweatpants, she tugged the ties and bunched up the excess. It still didnt fit smartly, so shed be forced to hold them up while she walked. But the invite to get outside could not be refused. She craved fresh air and would swallow it in gulps.
Out in the living room and sitting on the couch, Savin strummed an acoustic guitar. When Jett entered, he stopped and stood, setting the instrument aside. You found clothes. Thats good.
She clutched the front of the pants.
Or not. He winced. Theres a womens shop two buildings down from here. You want to stop in before we eat?
Id appreciate that, but I have no means to pay.
Jett, dont worry about it. You have nothing. Ive got your back.
She nodded, again finding it hard to speak when he had already been so generous. At the same time, a part of her, the part that had shone and assimilated while in Daemonia, smiled and straightened her spine. Of course he should serve her and make her comfortable. She deserved it.
Lets go out, then, she said. Im eager to breathe in Paris.
Chapter 5
In the womens clothing shop, Jett found some black jeans with sequins dashing down the sides of each leg seam, and a blousy red top. Black boots with high heels had given her a giddy thrill. Savin had suggested she grab a few more things, and while she had been initially reluctant, she quickly warmed to the shopping gene that Savin knew all women possessed. He didnt mind bulking up his credit card bill. Seeing Jetts satisfied smile had been well worth it.
Of course, the smile had been too brief. It was almost as if shed caught herself in a moment of joy, then quickly slammed the door shut on the freedom. It would require time for her to rise above her experience, surely.
Now she sat across a metal table from him on the sidewalk before his favorite sixth-arrondissement café. Four bags were corralled around her. She looked over the menu while he had ordered black coffee and three pains au chocolat. That was the first course for him. He would go in for the potatoes next.
Im not sure what I want, she said, setting down the menu. I feel hungry. Or do I?
You can have one of my pastries and then order something later if youre still hungry. He noticed her scowl. Its not a test, Jett. You can try as many things as you like.
She managed a roundabout shrug-nod. He assumed it was overwhelming for her to be someplace so simple as a sidewalk café after coming fromWell, he wasnt going to ask about it. Hed wait until she brought it up. It seemed the kindest thing to do.
Paris smells like I remember. Old, yet hopeful, she said after the waitress dropped off Savins order. She accepted a plate with one of his pastries on it and picked up a fork. And the fountain down the street sounds so happy.
Hed forgotten about that fountain. A guy could hear it if he really listened. Hed lived here so long it had faded into the background. Just another city sound. What his senses were most focused to? Demons. They brandished a distinctive hum to their aura. If one walked close enough to him, it registered as a twinge in his veins. Some, he even smelled the sulfur. And while they could cast a sheen over that hum, the scent and their innate red pupils, if Savin caught sight of them at the right angle, the red glinted.
Jett paused with her fork poised over the pastry. Can I ask you a few things?
Of course. Ask away.
You were sending demons back into Daemonia last night, yes?
You bet. Im a reckoner, Jett.
That is what I guessed. How did you ever come to do such a thing? And, uh...just how long have you been...back?
He set down the pastry and brushed the crumbs from his beard. She wouldnt like hearing this, but he wasnt going to lie to her. Savin had a thing about loyalty to friends. He didnt know any other way to exist.
Ive been back, he said, since I was ten.
Her jaw dropped open and the fork hit the plate with a clink. But you were ten then. When we... She pressed her fingers to her mouth, and her eyes averted to study the sidewalk.
I was in Daemonia for what felt like weeks, he offered. Maybe a month?
Time doesnt exist there, she said softly. The fragile pain in her tone cut Savin to the core. Should he have been so forthright?
Right. No way to measure time there, he said. But I did find a way out.
Thats so good for you. Her smile was again brief. Not easy. And...your parents were there for you?
As soon as my feet hit mortal ground outside the wicked forest, I ran back home through the lavender field and straight into my house. My parents were over the moon. I didnt think my mom would ever stop hugging me.
Jetts eyes still did not meet his, and he could imagine what she was thinking. How she had lost that opportunity for a cheery family reunion. Hell, he shouldnt have mentioned that part.
I tried to explain what happened, but they thought me... He twirled a forefinger near his temple. And when your parents asked me where you were, I didnt know what to say. Would they believe a kid who said some strange force sucked us into a different realm? Kids always get accused of having wild imaginations. And I remember your mom, in particular, was Catholic.
Jett nodded. Smirked at the memory. To the extreme. So much guilt.
Right. Religion is...not for me. Anyway, after giving it some thought, I decided that being lured into the woods by a stranger and the two of us being separated was the only story theyd believe. Thats when the police arrived. They questioned me for hours. I cried a lot.
I imagine so.
Savin lifted his chin and swallowed. Ignoring the stir of the Other within, he reached across the table and touched her fingers. Those tears were for you, Jett. I just wanted you back.
She nodded and yet pulled her fingers from under his touch. Wrapping her arms tightly across her chest, she leaned forward, protecting herself as best she could. Were my parents upset?
Inconsolable. He waited until she finally gave him her gaze. That soft brown stare that had once teased, cajoled and challenged him. They loved you, Jett. But I know it was difficult for them to accept that I returned and you did not. Nothing was the same after that.
What do you mean?
Well. How to say it kindly? Surely, she might seek her parents now. And while hed been but a kid, Savin had understood exactly what had occurred in the neighbors house down the street in those months following his return. The truth needed to be told. Your parents split up about a year after it happened. I was still young and only heard the whispers from my parents, but I understood that your father moved out of the country.
He did? Thats... Wow. She sat back on the metal chair and pulled up a knee to hug against her chest.
And your mother...
My mother?
What was her name again?
Josette. Josette and Charles Montfort.
Right. Savin raked his fingers through his hair. Im not sure what happened to Josette. After your dad left, my parents told me never to speak to Madame Montfort because Id upset her. So I walked the long way around the neighborhood to get to school. Not that I stayed in school much longer than a few years.
But you were ready to enter middle school?
I managed middle school. Barely. My mom called it ADD. I knew differently. I dropped out in the first year of high school. The whole world, and the way I saw it, was never the same afterWell, Im sure you understand. Anyway, I moved to the city when I was seventeen and lost touch completely with the Montforts.
I see. Jett toyed with the pastry flakes on the plate, then rubbed her hand along her thigh. I guess I can understand the divorce. My parents must have been shattered about my disappearance. They...fought a lot.
I remember you telling me about hearing their arguments. It happens. People change and seek new directions.
But another country? You dont know where my father went? she asked.
He shook his head. And one final terrible detail. He got remarried, Jett. Thats all I know.
She nodded, taking it in. Her fingers clasped tightly on her lap. Everything about her closed. I wonder if my mother is still in the same house.
Impossible. That area we were in last night is where the lavender field once was. The houses were torn down years ago, Jett. Theres only a thin line of trees left from the original forest. Theyre putting up new buildings and a golf course. Im not sure where your mother went.
Would your parents know? I mean... She exhaled heavily, and when she met his gaze, Savin expected to see tears, but instead a steely determination glinted in her dark irises. I have no one now. I need to start anew. But I cant do that without support. And survival aside, Id like to find my parents. Because...
Of course. I can ask my maman for you. My dad died ten years ago.
Oh. She dropped her gaze from his. Death isYou resemble him, from what I remember.
Savin winced at her tone. It had been so...dead. Like she had forced herself to say something kind. Like she didnt really feel for him. It was a weird thing to notice. But again, he reminded himself, she had been through a lot.
So you got out fast, she stated. And did you always want to be a reckoner after that?
He snorted. Hell no. I had no idea what a reckoner even was until seven or eight years ago when John Malcolmhes an exorcistfound me and told me I needed to be trained to do what I could do naturally. Its the weirdest thing Ive never asked for, but have accepted because it seems thats what Im meant to do. Its a strange and repulsive calling. I just want to keep humans safe from demons.
She nodded.
You need to know something, Jett. When I came back to this realm, a demon hitched a ride in me. I call her the Other.
The Other? she said with a gasp.
Yes, she remembered. Theyd played a board game when they were kids that had been a bit like Dungeons and Dragons, and the creature who had lived in a dark cave had been called the Other. That was the name for the villain they had always adopted when playacting any sort of fantasy quest, adventure, or even when taking a tromp through the basement without the lights on.
Savin shrugged. I was a kid. At the time, it was a name that fit. Shes the one who helped me get home. The bitch is still in me. Shes incorporeal. Cant get her out. Im not sure how to. Ive tried, believe me. But weve developed a mutual respect for each others boundaries and I put up with her occasional fits.
Fits?
When angered, she can toss me across the room. Freaks the hell out of me. Shes been a bit prickly today. Weird. Im chalking it up to our experience last night. But there are...measures I take to keep her calm.
Measures?
He reached into his back pocket and laid on the table a tin box that he never left home without. He had a few more tucked in all the other places he might need a quick fix, such as at home and in his truck. Morphine. It seems to keep the bitch chilled without affecting me too much.
Oh. Yes, morphine. It is a commodity in Daemonia. Smuggled in illegally from the mortal realm.
He shrugged. Yeah, I knew that. Thats how I figured it might be something I could use to control her. He tucked away the tin box. Since my return, Ive been able to see and feel a demons presence. In my very bones, you know?
She swallowed and nodded again, strangely telling in her silence.
And for some reason, Savin continued, I can invoke demonic rituals and languages to send them back to where they came from. Its been an innate skill after my return. So after Malcolm trained me, I figured I hadnt much choice but to become a reckoner. Wasnt as if I had a vibrant social life or dreams and goals of becoming a corporate raider or even a chef or fireman. Im just weird Savin Thorne who sees demons and feels them all around. Ive learned to work with it.
You dont seem so weird to me. Rather handsome, too. She lowered her gaze, but her voice took on a confident tone. Youve grown up since I last saw you.
So have you. He felt something close to a blush heat his neck. Savin quickly rubbed at his beard to hide his sudden nerves. Not that he didnt enjoy flirting with a beautiful woman. He just...was surprised by his sudden and easy interest in Jetts sensual appeal.
So you can see demons in the mortal realm? All of them?
Not all. Most. And its not so much that I can see themsome I canas that they give off a vibration that I can sense when they are close. But some are clever and wear a sheen expertly. You know about that stuff, yes?
Another silent nod.
Right. Probably hard not to get educated on the demonic realm when stuck in that place. Listen, Jett, I know you probably want to avoid questions about Daemonia, but can I ask one thing?
Of course you can.
Were you treated well?
She straightened her neck and slid her palms along each chair arm. It was almost as if she had realized she was safe now and could be the woman she was. A regal confidence bloomed in her eyes. Well enough. I survived. And I am in one piece. And now Im here. That is what matters, isnt it?
It is.
Yet her confident front did not hide the fact that she was frightened. Savin could feel the fear coming off her.
The waitress stopped by and set the roasted potatoes, sprinkled with rosemary, before him. Jett decided on tea and he didnt push her to order more.
His cell phone rang and, seeing it was Ed, he told Jett he needed to take the call. Yeah, Ed, whats up?
We managed to wrangle a dozen demons after leaving the site last night. Ive got them contained here at the office in the basement holding cell. Would you be able to swing by and reckon them?
He glanced across the table. Jett was poking about in one of her shopping bags, the tissue paper crinkling. Sure. Give me a couple hours and Ill head over.
Great. Ill give you more details then.
The cellular phone has advanced measurably in my absence, Jett commented as he tucked away his phone. I remember them being large andwhat were theyflip phones?
They get smaller and sleeker every year. And the cameras on them are amazing. Ive even got a demon tracking app.
Whats an app?
Its a... Savin chuckled. A program designed to do something specific and usually make life easier. Though Im not much for selfies.
Whats a selfie?