Page 1 of Devil Bound
1
Lionel
Almost four years ago.
Thedayhadbeenlong.There’d been a fire, and using my power to make the dead talk after they had been burned, their skin black, the fetid stench of charred flesh saturating the air…
Fires were never good scenes to be called to.
My ears were ringing from all the magic I’d used as I drove home from the station through spring’s twilight gleam.I kept under the speed limit, holding the wheel at ten and two and feeling like I hadn’t slept in days while simultaneously being high on espresso.
The stench plus a crime scene that had been both charred and waterlogged was most certainly a grand reason to make sure I’d had my tetanus booster.There had been many bodies to go through, their confusion about being dead clinging to me like yet another layer of that stench of burned life.
I wanted a good long shower, but I was hungry.Long days were usually ramen days for me, but as I hit the brakes for a red light, my stomach churned at the idea.
“I need some real food.”I tapped the wheel while I waited for the light to turn, wondering where to sate my cravings.
Cooking something simple was an option, but it would entail going shopping—my fridge had an echo and some hot sauce and nothing else—then preparing whatever I’d bought.
My tired mind wasn’t going to be able to handle such a complicated endeavor, and anyway, I had no illusions about my culinary skills.There was a pizzeria on my way home, and getting some takeout there wouldn’t take me all that long.I didn’t normally splurge on eating out, but fuck me if raising burned bodies didn’t entitle me to something nice.
I sped up when the light turned, determination almost making me go as fast as I could.My mouth was watering.Calories would be wonderful, and then I could enjoy the resulting food coma in the comfort of my own home.With any luck, Christine—Detective Rice—wouldn’t wake me from it with her usual spiel: murder.
The pizzeria’s neon sign was broken, flickering like a heart about to give out.That made me think of the sounds of limbs moving under skin that had grown flaky as pastry, and I shuddered as I put my Honda into park.
It was partly hunger that had me jogging toward the entrance, but also, the evening air was chilly, and my jacket had absorbed too much of the smoky air.I’d dumped it in the trunk and was wearing only my second nicest hoodie.
Walking into the pizzeria was almost like a portal fantasy, but the one where you’re dropped into something so mundane it’s actually really comforting.The place smelled good, like food, oil, and spices, and while it was small—just four tables with red and white checkered tablecloths and wooden chairs—there wasn’t a single burn mark, and no unstable flooring I needed to watch out for.
They had a menu up on the wall behind the counter.Next to the register in a big glass bowl, there were fortune cookies in shiny wrappers.Off brand for Italian food, but I wasn’t going to judge anyone if I got a free fortune cookie out of it.
I smiled at the man behind the register, who’d been scrolling on his phone.
“Hi.”
He nodded in a supremely bored way.“Hey.Know what you want?”
I skimmed the selection of pies.“Veggie lover.The big one.”I’d have leftovers, a.k.a.breakfast.Look at me planning ahead like a pro.
He punched that into his register.“Any extra toppings?”
He didn’t so much as look at me, and that was absolutely fine.The last thing I needed today was small talk.
Behind me, someone else came in through the door as I said, “Nah, just the basic pie.”
“Nelly, is that you?How unexpected.”
I froze.The server looked up from entering my order, his eyes widening and his cheeks taking on color.He smiled, but not at me.
I turned, needing to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating random immortals as an aftereffect of raising a whole family burned to death in their own home, but no, I wasn’t.
It was the Devil, in the flesh, wearing nice clean clothes, not a soot stain anywhere, and that deceptive smile that seemed to say, “Hey, I’m just a normal hot guy, come hither.”
The guy behind the register cleared his throat, getting ready to do some hithering all right.“Welcome.What can I do for you tonight?”
I rolled my eyes.Talk about good-looking people having it easier in life.
The Devil smiled like a cat being offered a really fat canary on a silver platter.“I haven’t decided yet.Let me get in line while I think about it.”
