Fractured Mirth
part 23
"What the hell are you doing?"
"What the hell does it look like I'm doing?"
"Yeah, and something tells me that breaking and entering into a place that isn't even a crime scene, will not exactly be buying us time enough to save Phoebe's sisters and the rest of humanity."
Rachel Burke merely threw him a scowl, her pretty face set in a tone of annoyance. "And I think we might have overlooked something, alright?"
"Hey, look, far be it for you to justify yourself to me. I appear to just be along for old times sake."
"Cole, if he left behind anything, it's going to be here. And if we want to-"
"And we can't just slap his wrist and tell him he doesn't get any candy, alright? We're dealing with someone who wants you to be the exorcist queen of America here. Now, maybe I'm wrong in my assumptions- I mean, I'm naturally not likely to admit it, but that invitation really isn't open to any other contestant as far as the eye can see."
"Just help me out with the damn lock, okay? Can you do that much?"
"Always here to serve you," he gently quipped, as he raised a sarcastic eyebrow in her direction.
"So you've picked a lock be-"
"No. I said I would serve, and serving doesn't exactly include doing things the old fashioned way. Allow me to demon-strate."
"Oh, you're just a regular comedian, aren't you?"
"I try."
"And you probably still think I'm upset because he cornered me like that, don't you?"
"It's just a theory," he managed. "A theory, if we're lucky, that doesn't have to go anywhere, if you don't want it to."
"Well, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Did I say it meant anything?"
"You think it meant something," she clearly pointed out. "Otherwise, you would have been a good boy, and kept your mouth shut. Tight."
"I think you just might be scared of what you couldn't see right away."
"Oh, really?"
He slowly nodded, as he knelt down before the lock, waving a hand quickly across the prohibited entryway with a small smile, a light click breaking the sudden bout of silence, as he calmly touched his palm to the knob, turning it ever so slightly. "It wasn't the first time, and it definitely won't be the last."
"So just how many tricks are you capable of? I mean, do you practice with a wand in your spare time, or are you just always this good?"
"Oh my God."
She tensed, taking a profoundly deep breath. "What? What is it?" It was more of a hiss, and she could have kicked herself for allowing him to know she was far from being fearless, her hands shaking rather briefly before she could stop them, as she laid one on his shoulder.
"You just gave me another one of those rare compliments. I figure I had to take just a split second to celebrate my triumph over you."
"Oh, please, like you would really-"
"You've seen a lot," he objected, shrugging.
"Yeah, and unlike John, I've done a lot with what I've seen. But I think the moment that will forever be embedded in my brain?" She chuckled for a moment, just long enough to make him wonder. "Is taking you away in handcuffs out of that hospital. A more beautiful day will never come to pass, even if I wanted it to."
"Oh, but your expression when I got out of them, was worth all the money I'd ever earned illegally in my demonic lifetime."
"You wish," she mumbled, as she followed him into the darkness of the deserted house, her hand immediately bracing itself upon her weapon for good measure, her eyes alert and well adjusted to the shadows that struggled to swallow them whole. "Seems like no one's been back since Paulina's death," she whispered. "I mean, by the looks of it. Plus, she didn't die here, so..."
"By the looks of it," he agreed quietly, his eyes already becoming entirely alert. "Though, if you want my honest opinion...."
"Always," she quipped.
"Then I'd say he's been here and gone on his merry way again."
"And how exactly did you come to that strong and drawn out conclusion?"
"I can sense him."
"Oh. Right. I forgot. Didn't major in demonic ethics 101, so it's safe to say I probably wouldn't know a damn thing about it."
"Yeah, and instead of doing more bickering, you could try and understand me," he reasoned softly. "I might be able to sense exactly where he's been in here, which in turn may just be able to save your career from a major meltdown- thereby getting us some more answers. The answers I told you we wouldn't find in any stupid museum."
"Is this record still on broken? Because it just never seems to want to shut up."
"Something's been here," he told her matter of factly. "But I don't necessarily think it was him."
"What do you mean, you don't think it was him?"
"You automatically assume the elusive Mr. Dobson was playing the almighty man with the horns, but I think he might just have another right hand man, after all. Hypothetically speaking, of course, since we don't even know if the husband is our man."
"Yes, and if you could translate that for me, I probably wouldn't feel the compulsive need to hit you right now."
"You want a translation?"
"Yeah, I would. I mean, if it's no trouble."
He quietly smirked. "No, no trouble at all."
"Then...."
"Oh, well, since you're so interested," he prompted, the grin growing wider on her behalf, "I think it's still here."
"Are you kidding me?"
"If I were, don't you think I'd be telling you to run?"
"You could say it right now," she hurriedly volunteered. "I wouldn't even find it offensive. In fact, you could probably say I'd thank you for it."
"Too late. Thing of it is, they've got enough blinds in this house to give the Underworld a run for its money."
"Oh, that's rich," she whispered.
"Hey, I speak from personal experience here."
"I'm sure you do," she added, just a tad bit sarcastically.
"I think it's upstairs."
"Hmm. You know, it's just too bad I don't have x-ray vision."
"Your attempts at humor are less than welcome at this point. I don't think we're just dealing with a grimlock, fury, or slimy green assortment up there." He paused a moment, hand running down his scruffy visage. "I think he's awakened more of the fallen than I thought."
"The fallen?" she echoed.
"It brings us back to Paradise," he muttered. "I mean, c'mon. You have to know this. What good of a queen will you be, if you haven't brushed up on your crazy demon logic?"
"I'm going to brush up the floor with you in a minute."
"Look. When Satan fell from heaven, he had this little pal named Beelzebub-"
"Yeah, and now you're quoting Milton," she countered, throwing him a frown. "Question is, how the hell is Milton going to help us, when what he wrote was his and his view alone? Hmm?"
"Then history becomes one....blah, blah, blah. Either way, I say he's real, and he's one of them. Come to think of it, maybe I should've asked the Source to introduce us, while I still had the chance."
"So what was Duane?"
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know? He used him, Cole. Like it or not, he did use him. Whether it was for-"
"Rachel, you saw what you saw back there, because nothing is what it seems. Haven't we already been over this? You know as well as I do, that no human could attack a man like that and make it look like a horrific monster had pulled him apart. Which is exactly what Robertson looked like in that room, and exactly what did it to him. A monster. You know you already believe, so why can't you-"
"I do, and it...I....God," she breathed. "Hey, I don't need this, Cole, alright? I'm not here to be your stupid little punching bag, and I'm certainly not going to be humiliated from a man who quotes another man who's probably been dead well over a hundred years."
"Yeah, and I think John senses that you're always telling yourself things, so you can easi-"
"John, or you?" she returned plainly.
"I'm sorry?"
"You're always saying John this and John that, but you never seem to want to tell me what Cole really thinks."
"About?"
"Me," she brought forth easily, staring up at him, her blue eyes silently touching his without a moment's hesitation.
"And you want to do this now? While there's a demon loose up there, which could just possibly come down here and kill us in the next five seconds?"
"There's nothing here," she mused carefully, her mouth drawn in a tight line. "You're probably just making it all up to avoid the issue."
"The issue," he repeated, laughing to himself. "Alright, Miss Burke, I'll bite. What issue is it we're talking about here, and why am I in some sudden denial about it? Oh, and make it fast, alright? I'm really not counting on having my throat ripped in those next five seconds, hmm?"
"Funny, I'm sure you don't even take all that long to heal."
"You hate me because I'm half demon," he sided.
"Excuse me?"
"It's probably what's been bugging you all this time, and you just didn't know how to say it."
"Um...no. Oddly enough, I respect you, because you're half demon."
"Then what?"
"Look, just nevermind. Okay? Nevermind. It's not-"
"That's real mature, Rachel."
"Quiet," she breathed.
"And now she's giving me orders. Perfect, isn't it? Just when-"
"Dammit, the floorboards just creaked!" she angrily hissed, already pulling her weapon loose, as she tightly clasped it in both hands.
"Don't bother using that," he advised. "Actually, it's probably better for the both of us if you don't."
"We've wasted enough time as it is," she offered. "I'm going up there. Cover me."
"Correction. You're the only one wasting time here, and if you go up there armed, you're just going to get yourself killed."
"So I'll take the chance," she called back.
"Dammit, Rachel."
"I don't see it!"
He raced up the stairs, his shoes pounding across the flimsy wooden floorboards, as he struggled to follow the sound of her voice, his heart thudding violently against his chest. He halted abruptly, watching her silhouette clash against the blindness of the bedroom before him, refusing to be bathed in a single ounce of light. Her stance was roughly drawn and unexecuted, a position he'd rarely seen her in since he'd met her. "Stay where you are, okay? I'm going to come toward you- slowly...I'm going to reach you, Rachel. Just. Don't. Move."
"What?" she whispered back.
"He can't find you, if you-"
"What? Why?"
"The good news is, I don't think we've found our Beelzebub. The bad news...well...the bad news is a little less comforting."
She froze, swallowing hard, as she pivoted rather quickly, her eyes widening. Noticing the faintest of movement below her, she immediately shut her lids, cursing herself for being so impulsive against her better judgment. "He's above me, isn't he?"
"Ever wonder what happened to bats who never stopped growing?"
"I always thought they just gave up and became vampires," she whispered.
"Some just get these really big claws and attack," he offered fondly, throwing her a wink.
"Should have just gotten what I wanted, and then got out."
"Oh, but where's the fun in that?"
"Fun?"
"Don't move," he repeated.
"Yeah, a little hard, especially when I have absolutely no intention of doing so," she whispered again.
"And you might want to just shut up altogether, because it can easily follow the pattern of your voice, even if it doesn't have a prayer in seeing you."
"But I thought bats have an excellent sense of-"
"Rachel?"
"Yeah?"
"I meant what I just said. Shut up. Okay? Not that I also don't take great pleasure in saying it. And, you know, while we're on the subject, something tells me you knew what you were after all along."
"What are you talking about?"
He put a single finger to his lips, enforcing the silence, as he crept closer to her, a hand drawn out to form a small blue energy ball, its hue illuminating the darkness around them. His other hand lay roughly on the leg of his jeans, as he fought to keep it from clenching into a tight fist, preparing himself for the horror that lay in front of him. Had he still been fightong ont he wrong side, he probably wouldn't have cared in the least for the co-existence between demons, oblivious to a human life that failed at the hands of one of them. But it was different when you made friends with the very people you were trying so hard to kill in demonic form, without a sign of remorse of which to speak of. He'd been that man. He'd been a man without feelings, and a man without one single emotion stirring his being, unless he reminded himself of the desire to kill. That was dominant above all else, and he nearly thought it impossible to break through the impenetrable wall it faced him with. But it always came back to the same conclusion each and every time. Phoebe.
Closing his blues, he released the energy ball full force, feeling it break free of his hold, as it tumbled carelessly into the vacant air, already holding its agenda in mind, aiming itself for the intended target.
It wasn't until the sharp claws he'd mentioned only minutes earlier, were digging clean into the smooth flesh upon his back, that his lids fluttered helplessly open, only half realizing what was happening to him. A shock of mindnumbing pain coursed through him, headed right for the very core, his body caught entirely offguard when the demon leapt on top of him, never anticipating both of them crashing hard to the ground below, his head violently smacking the wood on his way down. A faintly heard gun shot travelled in his direction, and near to unconscious, he felt the tightly woven objects remove their grip from his skin rather slowly, each movement a terrifyingly excruciating bout of red that had accumulated in the depths of his brain, fighting for life.
A pair of hands were on him then, the fabric of his sweater being further torn, as she struggled to peel it off him with all the strength she had left and could muster, her hands shaking uncontrollably now, gently ripping the material aside. She breathed a great sigh of relief when she felt his body rise up, the breathing steady, as he offered a tired, almost lazy groan.
A sigh of her own escaped her lips. "Thought you said a gun was useless in this case. Which also goes to show you, you're probably much stronger in demon form, aren't you?"
He nearly laughed, before he recalled the vicious pain that travelled up his spine, his lips forming a soft smile instead. "So I lied."
She ran a hand over the marks once again, noticing they were already beginning to heal themselves, slow but sure, the blood having soaked clean through the thin white t-shirt that lay beneath the sweater to his flesh. "A book."
"I don't...understand," he managed. "Oh, ouch. Better....not to talk...for awhile...I think."
"We really got ourselves in a mess coming back here. But I had to see if I could find it. I had-"
"You came for a book?"
She shrugged. "Heard it had some great pictures."
"Oh. Well, then. I guess the battle was worth it, because it had some nice pictures." Throwing her one last smile, as she turned him onto his side, his blue eyes added one last wink, before they shut themselves from pure exhaustion.
"Too bad you're so good looking, or I'd take some great enjoyment in wiping that smirk right off your face." But she was laughing, as she continued to hold him close.