Page 111 of Demon Found

With a flick of my wrist, I seal the doors, the windows. As an afterthought, I pour more firepower into the house itself. The whole thing is a blaze of white-and-purple flames licking up to the sky.

Chano glances up, taking his eyes from his tablet briefly. “Just letting my people know there’s been a gas explosion, chica. They’ll make it so.” He gives me a sly wink before turning to the kids huddling together.

Shit. I didn’t think it through. I wanted Frank gone. I wanted to burn a hole right through my horrible, degrading childhood. And I did. I stare into the flames. A warm satisfaction crawls through me, even as the sirens wail in the distance.

“Time to go, chica.” Chano tugs my arm. He flicks a business card at the kids.

“Remember, you call that number, any time. I’ll hook you up with a nice normal demon family. You don’t need to live like this.”

He takes charge and within seconds we’re on the bike, skidding away from the giant fireball. I grasp Chano’s back, my hands trembling. I killed someone. I killed Frank.

Surely I should feel remorse.

Chapter Fifty-six: Chano

Holyhellismylittle demon hot when she’s pissed. If she hadn’t killed that low life, I sure would have, a thousand times over. She hasn’t shared much of her past, but I know enough. Seeing the house where she spent her teenage years had my demon in a rage. How can someone so fucking beautiful inside and out have survived in that wreck of a place? She should have tortured the asshole more. If I could bring him back to make him suffer all over again, I would.

I tow Lori along by the hand toward mi mami’shome. This is what a home should look like. For all the moneymamihas, it’s understated, unassuming, much like her. Clenching my jaw, I give Lori’s hand a squeeze. I’ve never brought a girl home before. Mi mami is going to slaughter me. A girl, an allegiance, and an Aeternum, and she knows none of it yet.

“Nooooooo.”

A flaming ball of energy with a pair of stubby horns poking out the top skids around the corner. It pauses, then belts straight at us. Grinning, I square up to my sister. She gets in a few scrappy punches, before I overpower her magic and scoop her up under one arm.

“Getting sloppy Lottie. Call that a shield?”

“I amnotsloppy,No.” She kicks out at me, her arms pinned but legs swinging aggressively, catching me hard on the shin.Little shit.

I bark a laugh and scrub a hand through her hair. She's called me “No” since she started talking... But she'd cut her damn tongue out if I told her how cute it is.

Fuck, she’s shot up. She’s only fourteen, dammit, she’s growing up too quickly. I dump the wriggling teen on the ground and reach for Lorelei’s hand, tugging her toward me before slinging an arm over her shoulders.

“Lottie, this is Lorelei, my...” I pause. “My girlfriend. Lorelei, this ball of fire is Lottie, my little sister.”

We agreed mi mami would be the first we’d tell about being mated, but lying to Lottie like this makes my skin crawl.

“Don’t sound so happy about it,” Lottie says.

She turns toward Lori, her lip curling as she sniffs the air.

“Playing with fire, bringing a cross home.” She glances at me. “Watch the tios don’t sell her off.”

Growling, I smack her on the back of the head. “Be friendly, brat. This one is special. Anyway, mi familia would never make a deal with the Collectivo over any crossbreed.”

“You’re living in your dream world again, big brother,” Lottie snarls, smoothing her hair down again. “Our tios do anything for money.”

She gives one last glare in Lorelei’s direction before flouncing off.

“Be back for dinner,” I bellow after her, but the little shit just flips me off and keeps walking. That girl. I swear she had more attitude in her little finger by the time she was two than the rest of the world.

I roll my eyes at Lorelei. I guess she was never close enough to Seth to have our kind of love-hate-love relationship. Lottie is built for great things, but I’d never tell her that. Not until she’s a damn adult. She’d just get an even bigger head.

“Ready?”

Lorelei takes a deep breath and nods as I push the door open. “Horns and wings out, chica, we’re our real selves at mi mami’s. With that, I flick my tail and flex my shoulders as my wings unfurl with a loud clap.

Lorelei’s eyes widen, and she trails a finger down my wing. I shiver. The way this woman touches me will be the end of me. Slowly she lets her horns creep out of her hairline and flicks her own magnificent wings out. I willnevertire of looking at her like this.

“My boy, all grown up with a girl on his arm.” Mi mami’s strong voice echoes down the tiled hallway, bouncing off the alcoves.

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