Chapter 7 Chapter 7
“Wake up. Get up already, you lazy idiot,” a rough voice said, coated in anger and impatience.
“Leave me alone, demon,” she answered before she came to her senses, realizing who she was speaking to. She felt as if she hadn’t slept at all, noticing the red hues of sunrise dyeing the sky outside. “What time is it?”
“It’s 6 am,” he grumbled. “You slept for four hours. How long do you plan on lying around? Get the fuck up.”
“Fuck you. It’s Sunday morning. And four hours are far from enough. Heck, twice as long isn’t enough,” she sighed, rolling on her back and staring at the ceiling. “How did you get in here?”
“Through the door.” His snarky answer prompted her to notice the half-broken door loosely hanging on its hinges. She groaned, hiding her face under her pillow.
“How do you expect me to pay the landlord for that? Doors are expensive.”
“Not where I come from,” he retorted and shrugged, clearly not caring about the issue he caused. “Get up, you lazy shit.”
“I will die soon if you don’t stop this,” she complained, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.
“Not on my watch. You’ll die when I kill you, not any sooner.”
Valerie didn’t grace him with an answer and entered her bathroom to take a shower, leaving the freaky demon behind.
He was eager to get rid of her, and hearing his hateful remarks struck a chord within her. It was challenging to deal with this to the point where she was ready to break down. Standing under the flowing water of the shower, she allowed herself to cry, giving in to her despair.
She hated this inconsiderate, selfish demon with all her heart, but she also hated herself because part of this predicament had been her fault. She should never have let Hope go through with her stupid plan, but Valerie hadn’t expected it to work. She hadn’t known that demons were real.
The young woman dried her hair and brushed it until it felt soft and silky. She glanced at the foggy mirror, her eyes drawn to the star on her wrist. It was glowing faintly, radiating soft light, no doubt reacting to his presence.
Valerie wondered how she could hide the strange phenomenon from other people. Maybe she could wear a wide bracelet, wrap fabric around it, or hide it underneath a band-aid. She couldn’t go outside when it was like this. If a demon hunter discovered the mark on her skin, she didn’t want to imagine what would happen.
After putting on a new set of clothes, she left the bathroom and headed to the kitchen to make coffee. This wasn’t how she had imagined her Sunday morning to go.
Usually, she would sleep in until noon and prepare lunch when she felt hungry, but now she was awake when it wasn’t even seven AM yet. Ridiculous.
She glared at Maxwell, who leaned against the counter as she used her coffee machine. “Where did you go yesterday?” she asked when the silence in the room became too heavy to bear.
He was silent for a moment, staring at the ceiling. “I went to hell and asked some acquaintances if anyone knew how to break bonds,” he said nonchalantly.
She dropped her teaspoon, and it clattered on the sink. “What? Are you out of your mind?”
“Don’t insult me, human,” he said in a dangerously low tone, his eyes darkening as he glowered at her. Light particles formed around his body, manifesting out of nowhere and radiating an eerie glow.
“Don’t you get it? If you go around telling everybody about this, it’s only a matter of time until someone comes by to kill me.”
“I didn’t tell everyone. I’m not as dumb as you,” he snapped.
“Do you want to end up the same as Seth?” she screeched, her eyes betraying her desperation. She clutched the sink, feeling her knees weaken.
His eyes narrowed at her, and pain flashed over his face. “Where did you hear that name? Who told you?” he whispered, cornering her against the counter.
Its edge dug into her hip as she leaned backward, attempting to distance herself from the enraged demon. Valerie knew she couldn’t tell him of Ashton. That would be a fatal mistake.
“What do you care?” she whispered, eyes widening in fear when he came closer, gripping her chin tightly.
“I care because he was my friend, despite his silly infatuation with a human. It was what ended up killing him. I warned him a thousand times, but he never listened, and look where it got him. When demons die, they turn to ash. We stop existing; there is no reincarnation, no afterlife. We’re gone forever, while the humans we bonded with rot in hell for eternity.”
Seeing her eyes fill with tears brought a sneer to his lips. “This will be your fate too. As soon as I’m rid of the bond, I will drag you down to hell myself, straight to purgatory.”
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Valerie stood at the river, listening to the sound of the water as it softly lapped against the riverbank. Her eyes were closed while she concentrated on the noises around her, the car engines, the people talking, and the birds chirping.
She had wished to be alone after her argument with Maxwell and left the apartment, relieved he hadn’t followed her. The demon was truly evil down to the core. There was no good in him.
Cursing her bad luck, she opened her eyes to the bright blue sky over New York. She wanted her old life back, where she hadn’t been stuck with a demon.
Hearing the obnoxious ringtone of her smartphone for what felt like the one-hundredth time, she finally found the strength to pick up. “Hello?” she mumbled.
“Hi, Valerie, how are you?” Naomi chirped, obviously in a good mood.
“Well, I could be better. What’s up?” Valerie answered with less enthusiasm.
“Listen, I know Hope was a bit over the top last Friday, and I was scared you were mad at us when you didn’t reply to our texts all Saturday,” she said. “I have a little surprise for you to make up for it; want to meet up with me later?”