Demons of Good and Evil by Kim Harrison

            “They are not flowers,” I said softly, and his attention flicked back to me. “They are elves, and they are girls, and they will someday be young women. If they never see anyone kicking ass to protect them, they will not have the guts to kick ass to protect themselves.”

            Hesitating, Trent took a breath and let it out. “You’re right. I was angry.”

            But there was no flash of vindication at his admission, and my shoulders slumped. “I am so sorry,” I said as we began to follow them, our pace slow. “This was not how I wanted my morning to go. I wanted . . .” My head drooped, and then I started as he touched my hand. Only then did I let him take the pumpkin.

            “They are fine,” he said, and I sighed. The weight of the pumpkin was gone, but that of my guilt lingered.

            “That doesn’t change that I had them for one morning and I exposed them to violence.”

            “Perhaps.” Trent managed a smile. “But as you say, they saw you keeping them safe, and they obviously feel comfortable around David. It’s possible that I might have overreacted.”

            “It’s also possible letting me ever watch them again is a bad idea,” I said.

            Trent’s gaze went sharp on mine. “I was never angry at you. I was scared for them, and it came out as anger.”

            And yet, I still felt as if he didn’t trust me with them. Maybe I didn’t trust myself.

            “Rachel.” Trent pulled me to a stop. “I’m not used to relying on anyone for their safety apart from Quen and Jonathan. They are just so damn vulnerable. You protected them in a very trying circumstance. That’s all anyone can ask.”

            Finally the tightness in my chest eased, and my hand hesitantly found his. “I was so scared,” I whispered, feeling my eyes well up, and Trent set the pumpkin down, pulling me into a hug right there in the middle of the field. “I’m glad I didn’t have to do anything worse than knock out a Were, because, Trent, I would have.”

            “Welcome to my world,” he whispered as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

            “I don’t want them to be afraid of Weres,” I said, never wanting to let him go.

            “They aren’t.” Turning, he picked up the pumpkin and handed me the stem. “Is that why you asked David to come?”

            “It was his idea.” I was starting to feel better. “Ray called him the Wolf Sa’han.”

            “She’s very perceptive.”

            “Hey, ah, just so you know, Parker was after the ring. I was a convenient bonus,” I said, touching my pocket to tell him it was in there. “Either the mage knows how to flip it, or he thinks I do. It’s probably the only thing that can slow David down.” I bit my lip. There was always the option to just kill David and possess his bones, but as David had said, who would want to cart them around? David had to be alive to draw the focus from him, and I shuddered, glad I had been unconscious when Ceri had peeled the curse out of me.

            “Um, I’m going to try to get into Hodin’s room again tonight. That’s probably where the spell book on the ring is.” I hesitated. “You want to stick around after Lee leaves?”

            He nodded, but his silence worried me. “Yes,” he finally said, almost to himself. “I’d like to help you get into Hodin’s room. I’d like that very much. Thank you.”

            Trent smiled as his hand found mine, and for a moment, the world felt right.

            Except for the lingering worry that he wouldn’t trust me with the girls ever again.





CHAPTER


            15

            My head rested up on the arm of the indoor/outdoor couch as I lay on my back with my knees bent and my toes tucked under Trent’s leg. Rain was threatening, and a damp chill had taken the back porch. The book I’d bought this afternoon on auratic locks was not holding my attention. I fidgeted until Trent shifted his weight and hunched deeper over his knees, engrossed in the demon-cookie cookbook I’d given him for his birthday. The mix of cookies and magic was hitting him on all sorts of levels, and it made me feel good that I knew him so well.

            “Lee is going to be late,” I said, flipping pages back until I got to something I remembered reading. “I’ve got stuff to do.” Stuff like find an Atlantean mirror to break Brad’s curse and get the coven off my case, and figure out who was dumb enough to hitch their wagon to Hodin’s world-domination train.