Chapter 48 Chapter 48
Valerie had to agree with that. His clothes were ripped, half of his shirt was missing, and all the dried blood was a nauseating sight. She felt that his wounds were almost healed, but was concerned about him. Had he been human, he would have been dead for sure.
“But they’re not safe here; what if another entity appears to hurt them?” Valerie said worriedly.
“There are no other spirits in this house. I don’t sense any danger, and I killed all the demons earlier, too. They might have a headache when they wake up, but other than that…”
“Okay, fine. Let’s go home.”
When they walked up the stairs, Maxwell gave her a hard stare. “And just so we’re clear on this, I am a hundred times better than that impostor.”
She smiled, not seeing anything wrong with that. “You are.”
\---
Only a day after Valerie and Maxwell had been in the creepy mansion, Naomi came over for a visit. “Valerie,” she said excitedly. “You’ll never guess what happened last night.”
“No, I’ll never guess,” Valerie replied, but her sarcastic tone went unnoticed by her bubbly friend. They sat down at the kitchen table, and she offered Naomi coffee since she looked pretty tired.
Valerie had to listen to her long-winded rambling about what had happened to her and her friends. It was a bit difficult to act like she didn’t already know everything her friend told her, but she kept her mouth shut and nodded from time to time as she listened. When Naomi had finally ended her explanation, she glanced at Valerie with wide eyes.
“What do you think? Sounds pretty crazy, right? I just remember following a stranger to the basement, next thing I know is that I woke up on the ground,” she shuddered, holding her coffee cup with both hands. “Maybe Hope was right all this time… maybe ghosts and demons do exist.”
“Yeah, sure,” Valerie said sarcastically. “If demons existed, they would be conceited, self-centered, rude, annoying, ill-tempered…”
She didn’t get to finish her sentence because Maxwell had heard her comments and came through the door, glowering at her with a sinister glint in his eyes. It was rare to see him without the face chain, leading her to assume he had lost it somewhere in the mansion.
“What did you just say, human?” he grumbled.
“Nothing,” Valerie replied innocently before her attention moved back to Naomi. “This is Maxwell, the new housemate I mentioned a while ago.”
“Oh, hello,” she said, clearing her throat. Her eyes went wide, and she gaped at him like he was out of this world. Which was kind of true. “Valerie, you didn’t tell me you have… uh… such a… hot housemate.”
“Thank you for feeding his ego,” Valerie retorted when she saw the smug smirk on Maxwell’s lips. The bastard was enjoying the attention; she could see it in his eyes.
“I was just surprised,” Naomi said. “Are you an angel?” she added jokingly.
Now he looked very offended, clicking his tongue. “No, I’m a demon, and you have no idea how many souls I have sent to purgatory before,” he said with a deadpan face.
Naomi obviously didn’t get it, laughing at him. “Oh, I see.”
“I’m serious.”
Valerie choked on air, her eyes so wide they almost fell out of her head. “Maxwell, shut the fuck up!” she hissed, ready to strangle him, but he ignored her deliberately, his lips twitching in amusement at her exasperation.
“Does that mean you have wings? And horns?” Naomi asked in an attempt to humor him.
“No, only angels have wings, and I don’t like those. Some demons do have horns, but I personally think they look overdramatic,” he explained in dead seriousness. Valerie couldn’t believe the ridiculousness of this conversation, how they completely talked past one another.
“Damn, he takes this roleplaying thing seriously,” Naomi commented, smirking at Valerie. “So that’s the kind of stuff you’re into. Kinky.”
Valerie’s mouth fell open. “That’s not… I’m not…” she stuttered, blushing bright red.
“How do you stay in character like that?” Naomi gushed, her eyes glued to Maxwell. “This is amazing.”
“Because what I said is true,” he answered, annoyed at the human who didn’t get it at all.
“Maxwell, don’t you have something else to do?” Valerie cut in and shot him a look that could have killed.
“No,” he drawled. “Entertain me.”
Naomi giggled. “Oh, I see how it is. You are so cute, I can’t,” she gushed, prompting Valerie to hide her face in her hands, groaning and grumbling at these two idiots.
—
The shopping streets of Fifth Avenue were especially crowded today since it was Saturday afternoon, and Valerie had to be careful not to get separated from Thorne in the chaos. They had agreed to meet today to spend some time together outside of work. A whole week had passed since she had entered that creepy house, and sometimes she had nightmares of the visit.
It had scared her more than she wanted to admit, but she was careful to hide this from Maxwell since she suspected that he would only taunt her if he found out. Thorne, on the other hand, had been quite understanding when she had told him about it. He was a little angry at her friend for being so stupid, but he was glad that none of them had been hurt.
“Are you getting along better with Maxwell?” Thorne asked when they passed several boutiques and shops.
“I don’t know, honestly. We’re bickering a lot but… It’s okay, I guess.”
“If he annoys you too much, tell me,” Thorne said, smiling slyly. “I know exactly how to get on his nerves.”
“I don’t doubt it,” she grinned. “I can always count on you.”
He snorted and nodded.
Valerie had a good reason to go shopping today, though she wasn’t sure if she would find what she was looking for since it was a little special. Nonetheless, she wanted to try her luck. She entered a jewelry store, seeing Thorne grin knowingly.