Page 57 of Peacemaker

Chapter Eighteen

Rifters and Demons

When the insistent ringing of my phone began, I didn’t at first understand what it was. It didn’t belong there in that room of primal emotion, magical light, and ancient love.

But I pulled away from my men, dug it out of my pocket, and glanced at the screen. Crawford—which would mean trouble, as usual. He never called just to say hello.

“Captain,” I said, as the men, looking as dazed as I felt, went back to sit at the table. Rhys looked brighter, somehow. His breakdown had renewed him. “What now?”

Crawford sighed in my ear. “Trinity, I am not even sure.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “The waitress?”

“She said she was sexually assaulted years ago, and she thinks she’s being affected by PTSD. I don’t think that’s entirely true.”

“Tell me.” I certainly understood about PTSD.

“She said she fell asleep toward morning—as most of the city did—with her husband beside her, but an hour later she awakened to someone on top of her. She couldn’t speak or move. She can only conjure vague, fuzzy images of her attacker. She said he was like a ghost, but she could feel him, see him. She doesn’t think any of it really happened, but said it was so real that she somehow managed to hurt herself during the episode.”

“The bruises on her throat.”

“Yes. Apparently, she takes occasional medications to help her sleep, and they sometimes cause her to have what she calls sleep paralysis. Usually, she said, it only lasts for a little while. But she’d never dreamed she was being attacked while paralyzed, and the paralysis never came upon her after she’d already been asleep for an hour.”

“Did she say—”

“Hang on for a second, Trinity.”

He lowered the phone and I heard him murmur something to a person who must have just come into his office. He was back in seconds. “I have to go. A woman just came in and reported that she was raped after she fell asleep this morning.”

“Shit,” I whispered.

“You know something, don’t you?” he asked, almost gently.

“It’s the demon. I’m sure of it. The one who trashed my car. He’s back.”

“What does he want?” He didn’t sound surprised. “And how can these women keep him from coming into their homes?”

He wants Silverlight, and his sword wants Clayton. And he knows the city is vulnerable right now.

But I wasn’t going to tell the captain that, because Seamus Flynn wasn’t getting my sword, and Miriam-fucking-Blacklight wasn’t getting my man.

“I don’t know the answer to either of those questions,” I lied, “but I’ll call you back as soon as I get some information. There has to be a way to protect against the invasion of demons. I’ll find it.”

“Hurry, Sinclair.” He was gone.

“The demon?” Clayton asked, as soon as I hung up.

I nodded. “Seamus Flynn is raping human women. He’s invading their homes and assaulting them as they sleep. Two have reported so far, but I have a feeling there are going to be a hell of a lot more as the day goes on. Other women will find out they’re not alone and they’re not crazy, and they’ll come forward.”

“Rifters in the night, demons in the day,” Leo said, his voice soft. “Things are not going well for the humans.”

“Understatement of the century.” I rubbed my eyes. “It’s exhausting.”

Rhys leaned forward, still wrapped up in what had just happened to us. His eyes were ringed with red, but he was calm. “What happened with Silverlight? What did she just do, Trinity?”

I wet my lips. “I don’t know. It was like she…cleansed us, wasn’t it? And strengthened our bond.”

They nodded. “She touched us with power,” Angus said. “When she left, I felt less…”