Page 83 of Death Wish

Too sweet. Why was she always so kind? Especially to me. The one who probably deserved it the least.

“Maybe another time,” I told her. “Let’s go.”

We turned down the next block toward Chestnut Street and Oh! Kay’s Pastries. Kay lived in a small one bedroom apartment above the shop. As we came up to the storefront, I noticed the broken windows had been boarded up with plywood. Sorrow filled my chest at the sight of the destroyed store. I glanced at Kay, who sighed heavily.

“That’s what insurance is for, right?” she said with a wavering smile. “It’ll get it fixed.”

As we walked around to the side of the building to her apartment’s entrance, we stopped short. Laurence sat there on the steps in front of her door, his head in his hands.

“Laur—”

My hand shot out to stop Kay from moving and talking. The last time I had seen Kay’s sorcerer boyfriend, he had been possessed by Xaver and had tried to kill us all. Now he was just sitting here on her stoop, waiting for her to get home?

I didn’t trust it.

Gesturing for her to stay put, I crept closer to Laurence. He looked up slowly, his gaze skipping me and going straight for Kay.

He leapt to his feet. “Kay! Oh my God! I’ve called you hundreds of times. I stopped in. I’ve circled town, but I couldn’t find you anywhere!”

When he went to her, I placed my gloved hand on his chest and pushed him back. Since he hadn’t been expecting it, or hadn’t really seen me, he plopped back onto the step he had been sitting on.

He looked up at me in confusion. “I’m sorry. Have we met before?”

“Sort of,” I answered.

It sounded like Laurence. His jittery mannerisms were like the Laurence I had observed Kay with for over a year. Right down to his hokey Hocus Pocus T-shirt. More importantly, the twisted, ugly demon face didn’t spring up when I looked him in the eyes. So maybe this was Laurence—real Laurence.

I had to make sure. I didn’t trust anyone. Not anymore.

Laurence glanced over my shoulder to Kay, who was hugging herself, seeming unsure and probably a bit cold from the nipping bite of the cool night.

“Kay, it’s me. Really me this time. I’m so sorry for what I did to you. And the shop. I’ll help you fix it. I’ll pay for it all.” He was rambling. A very Laurence thing to do, especially when he was nervous. “I couldn’t control myself. You have to believe me. I could see what I was doing, but I couldn’t stop it. That thing—”

“Demon,” I corrected.

He pushed a hand through his hair. “Demon? Well, shit.”

Kay still hovered behind me. “How do we know if it’s really him?” she whispered to me.

“It’s me,” he said, standing. “I swear.”

We both knew swearing meant nothing.

If only I had some of Cole’s Holy Water to test on him.

“Can you touch him with your light? See if it affects him?” Kay asked.

“Only if you want real Laurence possibly blasted into the next town,” I said. “I can’t control it like that yet.”

“Blast me? What? No.” Laurence’s expression turned desperate. “Kay, it’s me. Can’t you see?”

“I don’t see the demon,” I told her. “I could see it before, but I don’t see it now. It may be him. Xaver could have willingly left his body.”

Kay stepped around me. Before I could stop her, she said, “Fine, then tell me. What did I want to name the shop before I settled on Oh! Kay’s. Only Laurence would know the answer to that.”

Laurence smiled gently. “You wanted to name it Abigail’s Kitchen. After your grandmother who raised you and taught you how to bake.”

With that, Kay jumped into his arms. He embraced her, allowing her to cry softly into his shoulder, as he repeatedly told her he was sorry.

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