Runaway Devil
31

The night was brisk and fresh. I appreciated the chill in the air, sweaty humans breathing hard all over everything was not my idea of a nice time.

Ben's car was parked a little way down the road, and the boys were standing awkwardly on the lawn. A girl was trying to get herself out of a bush while her friend stumbled behind a tree. We bypassed them quickly, Bethany looking pale. I grimaced inwardly, thinking of when I could get her some water.

"Hey, I didn't know you had Beth with you." Issac smiled in greeting at her, but she hugged him to her chest and breathed out a sigh of a "Hi". His face smooshed into her breasts, his glasses hanging on for dear life. The poor boy would suffocate. Jerry looked jealous while Ben stuffed his hands in his pockets, then turned his attention to me.

"We wanted to apologize for this morning," Ben said. Both Jerry and Issac nodded, their attention suddenly solely on me.

"I do too, I was being dramatic—"

"Not really, we practically accused you of arson," Issac said. Jerry looked embarrassed and rolled into his heels.

"We don't care what happened. We're just happy you're alright, even if you do have police sniffing around," Jerry concluded. I felt a rush of relief wash over me. I may hate a lot of things about humans, but their ability to ignore the obvious was beautiful. If they didn't like it or didn't want to belive something, they just didn't. They could see that they were my only friends, and their capacity for sympathy was atrocious.

"Now that that's settled, let's get shitfaced," Issac said, already on his way to the door with his arm around Bethany.

"You guys have a way home?" Meaning, did they have a designated driver. Jerry quickly touched his nose and looked at Ben to see if he had been beaten. Ben rolled his eyes, both his hands still in his pockets.

"Shit."

Alec finally decided to come around right when we were leaving. It was sometime in the early morning, Bethany was half asleep, and the boys stumbled down the front lawn. Beth's arm was loosely wrapped around me as I practically carried her to her car. I had swiped her keys hours ago, but she still proceeded to look for them. She mumbled something about someone driving her home.

"Where have you been, angel?" My hair was all over the place, sweat was dripping down my back, and I had a stain of unknown origin on my shirt. He did not have a single hair out of place, looking as handsomely rugged as ever. I had to ask him how he did that.

"My phone has been ringing all night. News has spread about our little visitor the other week." His voice was grim, directly juxtaposing the joyous yells of our drunk friends. My heart skipped in my chest.

"Well, shit."

"Yeah, shit."

"Let me think for a second." I put Beth in the passenger seat and closed the door, leaning against the car.

"Oh, like that's helped us in the past." I looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

"Listen here, fuck-face, I'm in a tough position. I have people here, people I don't want to just up and leave behind." Alec scowled.

"That doesn't look like you have a choice anymore, Kara." Ben directed Issac and Jerry towards his car and rolled his eyes when they found a bush instead.

"I'm going to take them to my place for the night. You're welcome to stay over," He let the offer hang in the air a few moments. He looked between Alec's face and mine, sensing the tension. He winced a little and backed off. "Or not, no worries. I'll see you around, okay?" His arms wrapped around me, enveloping me a hug that was closer and longer than expected. I hadn't realized how warm he was until that moment, in the cold air of a late night.

With Bethany safe and sound in her bed, Alec and I finally walked back to my apartment. Alec kept looking at me out of the corner of his eye like he was waiting for me to say something. I took a deep breath.

"We need to start by you telling me exactly what the situation is. You obviously are communicating with them. Tell me everything about all of them."

I was not prepared for the onslaught of information. He went on and on about different groups, demon, and angel alike. He knew how many were deployed by his employer specifically, but couldn't say anything to any others. His employer, who he knew next to nothing about, hired angel assassins, bounty hunters, and mercenaries. They contacted exiled demons, paying them whatever they asked, to bring me back alive, and mostly in one piece.

"That's what he said? 'Mostly in one piece'?" Alec nodded, his mouth set in a grim line. The sun was peaking over the horizon, the sky coming alive with early morning colors. I opened my apartment door and scratched Balan behind the ears. "And you know where they all are? How accurate is that information?"

"Some of them wanted to work together, traveling in big groups. It's not hard to find a group of supernatural creatures. Their energy is loud. I tracked them all down before I got here."

I nodded slowly. "How capable do you think these guys are?"

"Some are total asshats, like Buck. But there are some who should not be messed with. They've got some serious trackers on their side," he said, sitting at my small dining room table. Balan had gotten used to Alec quickly, watching how I acted around him and following my lead. He still watched him closely, but he understood that he wasn't going to harm us. At least at the moment.

"You hungry?" Balan wiggled his bottom and panted up at me. "You want to hunt? Breakfast?" Balan wiggled more aggressively and whined deep in his chest. I smiled at him, and let him out through the door. He would find rabbits, squirrels, fish, really anything he could get his jaws around. We only did big hunts together, but when we're on our own we usually just look for one meal, instead of gorging. My mouth watered at the memory of our last hunt together. But a strong, intrusive thought bled into my mind. If I wasn't safe to be alone, neither was Balan. If they were close and attentive, then they would see right through his glamour, and kill him without hesitation or a second thought.

"I have an idea." Alec raised his eyebrow, crossing his arms. I rolled my eyes at him, sitting heavily in the chair across from him. "If you know where they all are, why not beat them to the punch?" He unfolded his arms and leaned forward, waiting for more. "They are looking for me, hoping to trap, transport, and deliver me with a bow. What if they just... started disappearing?"

His eyes lit up and a small smile crept across his face. I continued, fleshing the idea out more fully. "If we were quick, no one would notice the sudden halt in their communications. I can't just wait for them, killing them here draws too much attention," I gestured to Alec, "Obviously."

He let the idea roll around in his head for a couple of minutes. He nodded a few times. "What weapons do you have here?" Before I could answer, Balan trotted happily back into the apartment. He was licking his jowls, cleaning his mouth of hair, twigs, little teeth, and whatever else got trapped in the crossfire.

"Not nearly enough."

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