What Lies Beneath

Landon.

I nearly threw the damn demon out of Mila's motel room. He was squirming, as if, in his emaciated state, he could go up against me. I could end his life in less than two seconds. Mila would never have to know. Not that it was her business now. She'd left it up to me to get rid of him. If I decided he needed to die, then I would take care of that.

"Where are you taking me?" Lance growled as he thrashed.

I slammed his head into a support beam outside of the motel. Not enough to break either him or the beam, but enough to quiet him. "Please, unless you want to die, I suggest you quiet yourself." Blood dripped from his ear. "Where are you taking me?" he repeated.

"Away" was what I said, then I moved him away from the building.

Screaming wouldn't get much attention here. Not where half the people in these rooms were screaming. Someone would have to listen hard enough to hear the difference. Even then, they would assume he was some kind of addict, desperate for another hit of his poison. I cared little either way.

I brought him a good distance from where we could be seen. The streetlights were on, but the kind of people who would see us here weren't the kind that would fuss over what was about to happen.

"I'm not going to kill you," I said.

Lance's eyes widened. "What are you going to do?"

I smiled. He was weak, but I was hungry. His blood would be more than enough to keep me going for a while. I covered his mouth with my hand, and it nearly muffled all the screams he let out when I bit him.

His blood was weak, but it was still stronger than a human's would be. Mila's, the back of my mind whispered. Stronger than Mila's would have been, should I have fed from her again. But that wasn't happening.

The blood rushed from the wound that, I'd admit, was worse than I needed to make it. But he'd pissed me off. I could have died getting him out. Then Mila would be all alone. Thankfully, I hadn't. God knows she wouldn't have made it out on her own.

I didn't drink enough to kill him, but I didn't seal the wound. I almost never did. It was a rare occasion that I took blood from a person and felt obligated to take care of them in any sense.

When I was done, the demon stumbled backward, and his back hit the street lamp. His eyes were frightened, but he didn't know what real fear was. He didn't know the helpless panic people had felt when I'd drained them dry. I'm not ashamed to admit I've done it. Sometimes the reasons were better than others. But this demon, he got to live. I hadn't always been so kind.

"Go," I told him as I cleaned the blood from the side of my mouth. When the man stared at me, I said, "Our help to you ends here. You lied, and the only reason I'm not killing you is because my companion asked me not to. The girl you lied to. I realize you probably don't care, but I do. Cross your fingers that I don't meet you on a day where she's not with me. I might forget the promise."

I turned and started walking back to the motel. If I left her alone too long, she might come looking for me. Any one of these miscreants would see her and gladly take her away, do awful things to her. Then I would have to save her. She was so young. Couldn't possibly take care of herself.

I got back to her room after I grabbed her bag for her. She seemed too out of it to care much. Still, she went through the motions after I gave it to her.

She went through her bag, pulling out some very short shorts and a tank top that she really shouldn't wear in front of me. "What the hell are we supposed to do now?"

I smiled at her. "I have an idea, but I don't think you'll like it."

"Do I like any of this?"

She apparently had no idea.

She picked up her clothes, went to the bathroom, and left the door open just a little too much. She started changing, and I looked at the floor.

"Well, you have all of those dates and names from that book, right?"

"Obviously. Why else would we be doing this?"

Good point. I'd nearly killed her after she'd burnt the book in front of me. The only reason I was here, instead of where I was supposed to be, was because she had information for me. If I could get her to give up a little now, I could kill two birds with one stone.

Some reflex made me look up when I went to talk to her. Through the sliver of an open door, I could see her. She couldn't have known, otherwise she would have shut the door. I couldn't see much, but she was pulling her shirt off. The position I was standing in and the mirror of the bathroom were making her visible. She was picking something up off the ground, and I could see the slope of her bare shoulders, milky-white skin that I happened to know was soft in a dangerous way. I remembered I'd actually been trying to make a point. "If you can give me a couple names, then we might have a lead."

She turned, and I could see only half of her back. Curves leading down to hips she had no right owning at her age. She would yell so loudly if she knew what I was seeing.

After she dressed, she walked out of the bathroom, the picture of casual, not caring or not understanding what the sway of her hips were doing to this broken old man. This time, she caught me looking. "Really?" She sighed at me.

"Don't walk around looking like that and get upset with me for noticing. If I ignore your constantly moving mouth, you are actually somewhat attractive."

"Bite me." She started shoving her old clothes into her bag. Damn, including her bra. Even that first time we met, she'd been putting herself on display. Dangerous for a girl like her, in the line of work she'd chosen. The characters she was involved with wouldn't always be as restraining as I was.

"Ah, now that you mention it, I am a bit peckish." I wasn't. At all. In fact, her blood would really do little for me in this moment. It didn't make me want it any less. I could picture my teeth sinking into her neck again. I could make her enjoy it. I knew I could. But that didn't give me the right to take advantage of a girl so young. I find her brother, and then I'm alone again. Where I was comfortable. I could last a little while longer.

She laughed at me. "You think I'm gonna let you drink from me?" She set her bag on the floor. "The day that happens is the day I lose my mind."

I didn't sigh. "Back to the point, sweetheart. If you give me a lead, I can follow it. I know a few of the names in that book. I know what they do. It was Knox's planner. We can find out where he's going to be and when." She considered it. "One name."

"Why?"

"If I give you too many, then you'll just ditch me."

Ah, of course she doesn't trust me. She shouldn't.

"Fine," she huffed. "There was a meeting marked down for two days from now. A woman named Kelly Carrie is meeting someone about a banquet. It's in Seattle at noon. That was all that was written down."

I smiled. "Okay then. He won't be there, but that woman might know something. If she knows when the banquet is, she'll know if Knox is going."

Mila got into her bed, and I almost cringed. God knows what she might catch from this filthy place.

"We'll leave tomorrow morning then. Are you going to go eat someone?"

"Only if you offer, Mary Ann."

She rolled her eyes. "Again, not happening, bitey. How about you go to bed so that you don't get us into an accident tomorrow."

She wants me gone. All right then. Without a word, I left her alone in the room.

We shared a wall, so should any big bads come knocking, I'd hear it. I could probably hear it if she sneezed. My senses were already boosted, but these walls were little more than cardboard. If only that made me feel like she was safe. I hated to admit it, but I kind of liked the kid.