Where Demons Dare. Kim Harrison

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СКАЧАТЬ style="font-size:15px;">      “Hey!” Jenks exclaimed, and I shivered in the draft from his wings. “You’re a Cincy boy! What year did you graduate?”

      “Class of 2001,” he said proudly.

      “Holy crap, you’re almost thirty?” the pixy said. “Damn, you look good!”

      “Almost? No, I’m past it,” he said, clearly unwilling to divulge just how much. But since he was a witch, it didn’t really matter. “It’s the swimming,” he said softly, then looked at Ivy as if he knew she was going to look up his records. “I majored in business management, and I used my degree to start Marshal’s Mackinaw Wrecks.” Disappointment flickered over him. “But that’s not going to work anymore, so here I am.”

      “Too cold?” Jenks said, either ignoring that we were likely the reason it wasn’t working anymore or trying to make light of it. “God, I froze my nuggie plums off in that water.”

      I winced, thinking Jenks’s mouth was getting steadily worse. Almost as if he had to prove he was a man in front of Marshal, and the way to do it was to be as raunchy as he could. But I had heard the hint of blame in Marshal’s words.

      “The Mackinaw Weres found out you had something to do with me getting onto the island, didn’t they,” I said, knowing I was right when he looked at his water-stained yellow leather boots. Shit. “I’m sorry, Marshal,” I said, wishing now I’d just knocked him on his head and stolen his stuff. At least he’d still have his business. I’d done the right thing, and it had hurt him in the long run. Where was the justice in that?

      His smile was tight when he pulled his head up, and even Ivy looked apologetic. “Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I didn’t lose anything that mattered in the fire.”

      “Fire?” I whispered, appalled, and he nodded.

      “It was time for me to come back,” he said, one shoulder rising in a shrug. “I only started the diving business so I could build the capital to get my master’s.”

      Ivy’s fingers, drumming on the couch, went still. “You’re finishing your degree?”

      Saying nothing, Marshal ran his gaze over her as if estimating how great a threat she was and nodded. “Hey, I have to go. I’ve got a couple of apartments I’m looking at tonight, and if I don’t show on time, the Realtor will probably figure it was a Halloween prank and leave.”

      He stood, and I found myself rising as well. Jenks darted into the air, grumbling about not having anything comfortable to put his ass on in the entire church before he landed on my shoulder. I wanted to go with Marshal so the Realtor wouldn’t convince him to take a rattrap that would be noisy with humans after sunup, but he probably knew Cincinnati as well as I did. Not much changed fast, despite the size of the city. Besides, I didn’t want to give him the wrong idea.

      Ivy stood as Marshal shrugged into his coat. “Nice to meet you, Marshal,” she said, then turned her back on him as she walked out. Five seconds later, I heard her taking the lid off the slow cooker, and a new wave of tomato, beans, and spices wafted out.

      “Can you stay for dinner?” I found myself asking, not knowing why, except that he had helped Jenks and me, and I owed him. “We actually cooked tonight. Chili.”

      Marshal’s eyes went to the top of the dark hallway. “No, but thank you. I’m having dinner with a couple of guys from school. I just wanted to bring Jenks his hat and say hi.”

      “Oh, okay.” Of course he’d have friends here. I was being stupid.

      I followed him to the door to see him out, my eyes landing on Jenks’s leather cap, back after months of being with Marshal. I was glad to see him, and I wished he could stay, but it was tinged with depression from the guilt that I even wanted him to.

      Glowing a hot gold, Jenks hovered at eye-height beside Marshal as I reached to open the door. “It’s good to see you, Marsh-man,” he said. “If it was warmer, I’d show you my stump.”

      The way he said it almost sounded like a threat, and I could see Marshal thinking about it as he slowly buttoned his coat, probably trying to decide if he was serious or not. I wanted to talk to Marshal alone for a moment, but Jenks wasn’t leaving.

      Jenks suddenly noticed that neither of us was talking, and when I made a face at him, he dropped in height. “If you want me to go, you just have to say so,” he said sullenly, then darted off to leave a fading sprinkling of pixy dust to glow on the floor for a moment. My blood pressure dropped, and I smiled at Marshal.

      “That was the most excellent charm I’ve ever seen,” Marshal said softly, his eyes dark to take in the limited light in the foyer, “making him human-size, then small again.”

      “It’s not half as excellent as the person who actually made it for me,” I said, thinking that Ceri should get her just dues. “I just invoked it.”

      Marshal took his hat out of his wide pocket and put it on. I felt a twinge of relief when he reached for the door, then guilt that I’d enjoyed seeing him again. God, how long will I have to live like this? Marshal hesitated. Turning back, he searched my face. I silently waited, not knowing what might come out of his mouth.

      “I, ah—I’m not interfering in something, am I?” he asked. “With your roommate?”

      I grimaced, cursing both Ivy for her jealousness and Jenks for his protective nature. God help them, were they that obvious?

      “No,” I said quickly, then dropped my gaze. “It’s not that. My boyfriend …” I took a breath and lowered my voice so it wouldn’t break. “I just lost my boyfriend, and they both think I’ll jump into bed with the first guy to come into the church simply to fill the ache he left behind.” A fear that is both understandable and at the same time unnecessary.

      Marshal shifted his weight back. “The guy that went over the bridge?” he asked quizzically. “I thought you didn’t like him.”

      “Not him,” I said, flicking my eyes to his and away. “My boyfriend after him. Kisten was … important to both Ivy and me. He died to prevent an undead vampire from binding me to him … I don’t remember it, but I know he did. And I still …” I closed my eyes, a lump in my throat. “I still miss him,” I said miserably.

      I looked at Marshal, needing to see what he thought. His face was carefully blank of expression. “He died?” he said, and I nodded, looking away.

      “I think I understand,” he said as he reached to touch my shoulder, and guilt tweaked through me as I soaked in the support radiating from him. “I’m really sorry about your boyfriend. Um … I didn’t know. I should have called before coming over. I’ll just, uh, go.”

      His hand slipped away, and my head came up. “Marshal,” I said, reaching to take his sleeve, and he stopped. I let go, then glanced behind me at the empty church, then back to him. I loved Kisten, but I had to try to start living again. The pain would ebb only if I pushed it out with something good. Marshal patiently waited, and I took a deep breath.

      “I’d like to see you again,” I said, miserable. “If you want. I mean, I really can’t handle having a boyfriend right now, but I’ve got to get out of this church. Do something.” His eyes widened, and I blurted, “Never mind.”

      “No, СКАЧАТЬ