“We have a little more experience in this area,” I said.
Her eyes widened at my words.
“You must have joined the police force fresh out of school because you don’t look any older than me.”
And that was our cue to wrap this up.
“We get that a lot.” I shot Chris a meaningful look.
He stood, prompting a flurry of murmurs in the kitchen. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, and followed him and Paige out of the living room.
“We’ll keep an eye on things here for the next few days,” Chris told Paige as she walked us to the door.
We didn’t tell her she’d have around-the-clock protection until the Lilin threat had passed. That would only raise more questions and stir up her fear. She’d been through enough, and aside from leaving Los Angeles, there was nothing she could do to stop the Lilin from coming after her again.
“Thank you,” she said. “I feel better knowing you guys are here.”
Chris opened the door, and one of the girls called, “Come back anytime.”
I must have made a face because his lips twitched as he held the door for me. His expression told me he was used to this reception from females, and he was enjoying my reaction to it.
We said our goodbyes to Paige and left. Chris followed me down the walkway to the SUV, waiting until we were inside before he chuckled softly.
I looked at him as I buckled my seat belt. “What?”
“I saw the looks you were shooting those girls,” he said with a smirk.
“What looks?”
“You glared at them every time they moved.”
“They were annoying. Don’t they have anything better to do than to stand around and gawk at people?”
Chris cocked his head smugly. “Jealous?”
I scoffed. “You are so full of yourself.”
“I have good reason to be. The most beautiful girl in the world doesn’t like other women looking at me.”
A laugh burst from me, and I looked out the passenger window so he couldn’t see the effect his words had on me.
“Admit it. You think I’m hot.”
I slanted a look at him. “Every woman thinks you’re hot. That’s nothing new.”
“I don’t care about every woman,” he said in a low voice that sent a delicious shiver through me. “I only care what you think.”
“I think you should drive.”
“Not until you admit you were a wee bit jealous in there.”
He was right, but no way was I telling him that. He was already too cocky for his own good.
“No.”
“Okay. I can wait,” he said, laying his head against the headrest.
Silence filled the SUV, and after several minutes passed, I knew he wasn’t going to move until I gave him what he wanted. Stubborn ass.
I crossed my arms and scowled at him. “Fine. I think you’re hot.”
“And you were jealous.”
“Don’t push it.”
Chris grinned and started the vehicle. “Was that so hard?”
“Yes,” I muttered.
He pulled away from the curb.
“Then we’ll have to work on that.”
Chapter 18
Beth
“What do you have for us, David?” Chris said to the phone sitting in the middle of the small conference table where he and I sat with Nikolas, Sara, Seamus, and Niall.
David’s voice spilled from the phone’s speaker. “Kelvan and I have been searching the demon archives since you sent us that picture of the Lilin’s mark. The archive is endless, and it’s like a needle in a haystack, but we think we might have gotten a hit on it.”
The air in the control room seemed to crackle with excitement as everyone leaned forward in their chairs.
“You found him?” Nikolas asked.
“Not exactly. We came up with a name, but no photo to go with it. Problem is, it’s from sixty years ago.”
I looked at Nikolas, who sat directly across from me. “Why is that a problem?”
“Demons who live a long time change their identity every generation or two to avoid suspicion,” he explained. “The Lilin might have changed his several times in the last sixty years.”
“Is there any way to know what he changed his name to?” I asked, looking from Nikolas to Chris, who sat next to me.
Chris answered. “Possibly, but he won’t leave an easy trail to follow. Lilin are extremely private.”
He looked at the phone again. “How reliable is this information, David?”
“Kelvan said it came from the Incubi lineage records. Think of it as the who’s who of Incubi. They like to keep track of their family tree, and the Lilin are their royalty. Every Incubus wants to be related to one.”
I was starting to think demons were great allies to have. I’d been dubious when I heard that Sara had demon friends, including Kelvan who worked with us now. But there was no way we’d have access to demon archives without inside help. I hadn’t even known there were demon archives until recently.
“What do the records say about the Lilin with that mark?” Nikolas asked.
“His name was Charles Prescott, and his last known whereabouts was London. We cross-referenced that with some old Scotland Yard records and discovered there were a bunch of unsolved missing person cases around the same time. Young women.”
Chris tapped his fingers thoughtfully on the glossy tabletop. “The timeline matches up with our Lilin. They breed every thirty years, so sixty years ago he would have been in his fertile cycle.”
My stomach roiled with revulsion like it did every time someone mentioned the Lilin’s breeding habits. How many girls and young women had this one demon killed in his long life to build his family? How many more innocent lives would he take if we didn’t stop him?
Chris’s warm hand covered mine on the arm of my chair. He gave my hand a light squeeze as if he sensed my discomfort.
Since we’d gone to the sorority house two days ago, our relationship had changed, in a good way. It felt like one of the barriers between us had fallen, and we were building new bridges. Chris didn’t try to talk about us, but he was always touching me in a nonsexual way. I think it was his way of giving us the physical contact we both craved from each other. I didn’t push him away because I needed it as much as he did.
“Does Kelvan think he can find out the next identity of Charles Prescott?” Chris asked, still holding my hand.
David chuckled. “He’s already working on it, and he said to tell you he’s a genius, not a miracle worker.”
“Tell him I have complete faith in him,” Sara said. “Never mind. I’ll call him and tell him myself.”
“I’d better get back to work,” David said, and I could hear him already tapping on his keyboard. “I’m still looking at real estate in the Los Angeles area while Kelvan does his thing.”
“Good work,” Chris told him. “We appreciate all you’ve done.”
“Are you kidding? I get to work with the Mohiri’s top nerds, and I get paid for it. I’m having so much fun I almost feel guilty. Almost.”
“Okay. We’ll check in with you tomorrow,” Nikolas said.
The call ended, and Niall was the first to speak. “Do you think they can track him down?”
Sara nodded confidently. “If anyone can, it’s Kelvan and David. They found Madeline when she was hiding behind Orias’s glamours.”
“Can they find him before we run out of time?” I asked her.
Her face grew serious. “I don’t know.”
Chris looked around the table. “He hasn’t come after Paige Collins again, which means he still doesn’t have all the girls he wants.”
“Unless he’s given up on her and decided to go with what he’s got,” Seamus said.
“A Lilin doesn’t give up,” Nikolas replied, with a conviction that sent a shiver through me.
Chris stood. “Then we’d better make sure he doesn’t get what he wants. Who’s watching Paige now?”
“Mason and Brock,” I told him. “Mason texted a little while ago. He said it looks like they’re throwing a party at the sorority house tonight.”