Page 29 of Grave Mistakes
A booming laugh fills the massive house, and I pivot and head for the source. Just when I think I can’t get any more pissed about this situation, that laugh sounds off again, stoking my inky black rage. How dare they be here, having a good time, while I’m out there almost dying!
I try to ignore the squelching sound my water-logged shoes are making and the breeze I feel on my exposed ass cheek as I make my way deeper into the house. Grumpy Lurch is stammering incoherently like he doesn’t know what to do about me. I look back to find him staring murderously at the mess I’m tracking through the pristine hall, my muddy footprints leaving dark watery puddles in my wake.
Whoops.
If heisa demon, I could definitely see him murdering me for making a mess, so I pick up the pace to round the corner, but I slam face first into a warm, rock-hard road block.
An oomph rushes out of me as I bounce off the wall of muscle. Large hands reach out to keep me from falling, but I wince in pain from the touch on my already wrecked body. I reach up and grab my nose, trying to breathe through the stars. I’m pretty sure it’s now bleeding.Great, just fucking great.
“Sir, I...she just pushed her way in…” Grumpy Lurch stammers, finally catching up to me. His look of outrage morphs into disgust as he takes me in.
I open my mouth to ream him, but the brick wall I just crashed into, aka Jerif, cuts me off. His dark, strong hands continue to hold my arms, and he looks down at me with glittering orange and yellow eyes while his fiery hair gives him a hellish halo around his head. “It’s fine. I got her.”
Behind me, Grumpy Lurch huffs and storms off, mumbling about needing to clean the despicable mess I made. I can practically hear him saying,this is not the last you’ve heard about thisin his angry steps as he disappears back down the hallway.
Once we’re alone, Jerif takes a step back and runs an icked-out gaze over me as I glare up at him. He finally lets go of my arms and wipes his hands on his gray shirt in an effort to remove the muddy slime he acquired when he grabbed me. I cock a brow and look pointedly at the front of his shirt. He quickly discovers that I sludged his whole front when I slammed nose-first into him. I feel a weird sense of victory at his grimace.
“I didn’t expect you to come back. Or to be covered in mud,” he says.
“I fell in the stupid fucking marsh.”
The corner of his mouth twitches, and I immediately raise a hand. “Don’t you fucking dare, Jerif,” I tell him. “I am not in the mood.”
Eyes glittering with amusement, he backs up and sweeps his arm out, indicating I should follow him into the room down the hall. I do and then pause when I realize all of the hot demons are gathered around a large dining room table, looking confused and concerned at my presence. Jerif’s big body was blocking them from view before, but as soon as I get an eyeful, nerves immediately begin to battle with my rage.
“Jeter, what the hell happened to you?” Crux asks me as he stands up, and the hint of judgment in his voice brings my anger back to the forefront.
“What happened to me?” I growl, repeating his question as I stand there in all of my disastrous glory. “I’ll tell you what fucking happened to me. I had no food! I holed up in my house like a hermit because I was so damn paranoid all week that you guys would jump me!” I shout, glaring murderously at them as mud drips off my hair. “I left my lights on all the time, so White Hair over there couldn’t Shadow sneak attack me,” I add, pointing toward Echo. “But you guys didn’t even show up, which you know what? Is a little insulting.”
Iceman rises to his feet from the head of the table, and even though he’s wearing a shirt this time, I can still see the outlines of his muscles and his dark blue hair is combed back from his horns. “Are you hurt? I think I smell blood beneath all the muck,” he says, his blue face screwing up into a frown.
“Yeah, I’m fucking hurt!” I snap, swiping some of the sludge away from my cracked lips. “I went to get ramen and then got attacked by demons on the way home!”
The four of them exchange a look as fury and fear makes up a really intense sphere of emotion that snowballs through me.
“Yeah. That’s right. Little green circus freaks who belong in Cirque du Soleil and should lay off the steroids. They attacked me in an alleyway, and I had to fucking sweep the goddamn demon leg!” I say somewhat hysterically as my voice raises to an octave I didn’t even know my vocal cords were capable of. “Oh, and Mrs. Lee wasnotthe cute, adorable, elderly woman that I’ve come to know, and it’syourfault! Just like the fact that I fell into your stupid fucking marsh is your fault!” I shout, my chest rising and falling rapidly as I pant out part of my anger. My vision has curled with black spots and evil thoughts. “I am feelingverymurdery right now.”
“Oh shit,” Echo mumbles, leaning forward on the table, his tattoos standing out against his pale skin.
“Oh shitis right. You assholes are in big fucking trouble. What the hell did you do to me?” I demand, placing my hands on my hips.
“Do to you?” Iceman asks.
“Yes,” I snap. “I never saw demons before you guys, and I sure as hell never got attacked by any.”
Echo’s contemplative stare turns delighted. “Did you slaughter them?” he asks excitedly, his black eyes sparkling like a starless night sky, and I know for sure his tattoos move this time.
His enthusiasm catches me off guard. “How the hell would I be able to kill twelve pickled-prick demons by myself?” I ask incredulously. “I barely got away. I had to drive my moped into the assholes and then run for my life,” I explain, pointing to the road rash on my face, arms, and hands that’s mixed with the mud. I even pull up my shirt and show off the cuts and bruises that are prevalent on my side.
“How did you manage to fall into the marsh?” Iceman asks, and I turn to glare at him next.
“Because you have some hidden steep embankments on part of your land!” I snap at him. “Put up a fucking warning sign, why don’t you!”
Iceman immediately shoots a hand up to cover his mouth, and I can tell by his shaking shoulders that he’s trying, and failing, to hide the fact that he’s fucking laughing at me. I stare at him incredulously. A couple more snickers fill the air as the others start to not so silently crack up at me too.
That’s fucking it!
I grab the first throwable thing in front of me, which just so happens to be a plate full of food. I pull the sandwich off the plate—because you don’t just throw away a perfectly good BLT—and then chuck the white china at the blue dude first. He ducks, so the plate shatters against the wall instead, which appeases me somewhat because the sound of it breaking isverysatisfying. But that satisfaction loses its effect when Crux shouts, “Opa!” without missing a beat, and the demons break out into another giggle fest.
