Chapter 33 Chapter 33
“He seems to… target me, even going as far as to leave Manhattan for the sake of finding me. This is horrifying,” she said in a whisper and visibly shuddered. It was hard for her to admit her fear to him since she expected him to mock her again, but he did nothing of the sort.
His silence stretched on as he glared at the ground, his eyes dark with frustration and anger. “No matter what I do, it’s always wrong,” he muttered so quietly that she barely heard him.
His tone was resentful and enraged, his posture tense. Faint light radiated from his clenched fist. She was caught off guard when she felt a pain in her heart that wasn’t her own. It was a foreign feeling, one that she had no control over.
This had never happened before; until now, she had been convinced demons couldn’t even experience psychological pain. She had seen them as ruthless creatures incapable of feeling remorse and anguish.
She approached him with slow steps and stopped in front of him. Reluctantly, she reached out her arm and enclosed his glowing fist with her hands. Oddly, the light didn’t hurt her but felt warm. “That is not true,” she said. His fist opened, and the light faded. She interlocked her fingers with his and raised her head, finding him watching her.
“Maxwell, I think we should talk about what happened yesterday.”
“We don’t have to,” he said, tilting his head. “I shouldn’t have kissed you in the first place. It was uncalled for.”
“Well, I didn’t mind the kiss,” she admitted shyly, looking at their interlaced hands. “It’s just that I sometimes have a problem being close to someone when I’m trapped and can’t move. It triggers something in my mind and makes me remember certain… things. It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known.”
“You must have experienced something horrible,” he replied, recalling what he had heard from Nicholas Clarke, and his hold on her hand tightened. “Why don’t you tell me where your ex lives, hm? I’d love to pay him a little visit.” The cold tone of his voice sent shivers down her spine. It promised pain and bloodshed.
“I don’t think that’s necessary,” she stuttered. An ominous red hue had returned to his irises. He didn’t look at her, staring into space.
“Oh, but I do. Tickets to hell are always free when delivered by me,” he said, directing his gaze back to her. “I think he deserves one.”
“I don’t know where he lives now, and if he’s still in New York. I haven’t seen him in years,” Valerie answered quietly, the sole thought of Uriel causing dread to rise within her, but it wasn’t as strong as it had been yesterday.
“That’s a shame,” Maxwell answered, clicking his tongue. “Though if I ever meet him in the future, it’ll be the best day of his life.”
He smirked sinisterly, radiating malicious joy. She had seen this expression on him too often already and usually didn’t like it, but now she was glad to see it since she preferred it over the cold look he had worn this morning. He seemed to be back to his usual self, which relieved her immensely.
—
The following day, Valerie got another nasty surprise when Thorne called her to tell her that one more woman had vanished, and this time it had happened in Fifth Avenue. What a coincidence.
“That bastard doesn’t give up,” Maxwell growled, the lamp in the kitchen flickering in response to his rage. “This is a threat, and he deserves to pay for it… Enough is enough.”
“We need to think of a way to catch him. He has to be stopped before more people are pulled into this mess,” she sighed, putting her hand to her chin. “Don’t you have an amazing demonic superpower that could help?” She regarded him with hopeful eyes, prompting him to groan.
“I have many powers, but none of them would help us find him,” he said annoyedly, not liking that he couldn’t do anything.
“Shame. And here I thought you were a strong demon,” Valerie answered, intending to tease him. He fell for it.
Maxwell’s eyes darkened as he scowled. “I am strong. My power is unrivaled.” he shouted, getting all worked up over it, which amused Valerie to no end. “A puny human wouldn’t understand.” He crossed his arms, a sulky expression appearing on his face.
“I know, I was just messing with you,” she grinned. “You’re the strongest.”
The tips of his ears turned red. The sight was surprisingly endearing, and the smile on Valerie’s lips brightened. “Humans are so weird,” he groaned, “And I got stuck with the weirdest.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” she replied lightly.
“It was an insult.” Maxwell crossed his arms and avoided her stare expertly.
“Wait, are you blushing, demon?” she giggled.
“I am not blushing. How dare you.” he yelled, his silver chain slipping down because he snapped his head around too fast.
“Yes, you are,” she chirped.
“No, I am not. Shouldn’t you focus on the case instead of talking shit?” he growled. She guessed he would have ripped her head off if she had been anyone else.
He was right, though; she shouldn’t fool around with him. There were more important things to talk about right now.
“That’s true, I’m sorry,” she answered, and the smile faded, her brow furrowing in worry. “Do you think we could catch him somehow? Set a trap?”
“What kind of trap?”
“I don’t know, that’s the problem. We would have to lure him out, but…” Valerie trailed off as a thought struck her. She didn’t like it, but looking at his face told her he had the same idea.
—
“This is terrible,” she thought as she stood in the white pavilion inside the park where three women had previously disappeared.
The sky above her was darkening rapidly now that the sun had vanished behind the horizon. A streetlamp lit the area around her, but its dim light was hardly enough to calm Valerie.