Chapter 12

                                        

                                              
"Where the hell is she?" Larry demanded of Belle, worry making his voice harsher than he intended. Belle flinched at it and he toned down the anger a notch.
                              
 "I don't know!" Belle sounded frantic, piling beers onto a platter. It was now 23:00 and Lone had been no where anyone had seen in hours. Belle had gone into her apartment and found it empty, she'd called her cellphone but Lone still had it turned off and Belle had even gone out to Lone's training area but they all said she'd left hours ago. For all intents and purposes, it's as if the woman had just vanished.
                              
Belle was wearing the copper dress Lone used for work and was doing her best to fill in for their missing friend, but everyone that knew Lone was worried for her. It wasn't like her to not show up when she said she would. Rimmon wandered over to the bar, casually drinking a beer. He was concerned that Lone was missing, but what concerned him more was the absence of that damn Angel. A glint of red reflected in the mirror reminded Rimmon to keep his anger buried where none of the humans could see it. The crimson tint faded from his eyes and he once again looked like the blue eyed human everyone expected. Rimmon watched the crowd reflected in the mirror, trying to pin down his unease. He assumed that it was boredom at the petty lives around him mixed with a bit of annoyance that he couldn't progress his plans on seducing Lone's soul from the Angel. But if he were to be honest with himself, and what demon was ever honest, then Rimmon would be forced to acknowledge that a small part of his unease was worry about Lone's well being. She was just another soul to temp, it shouldn't matter to him but it did. He wanted to make sure that nothing bad had happened to her, ignoring the fact that anything involving himself was likely to be bad.
                              
"Still no sign of her eh?" he asked Belle, helping stack bottles on her tray. As sweet and graceful as she was, she was not designed to ever be a waitress.
                              
"No, and I'm beginning to worry." Belle fretted. The demon smirked as he felt the lie, Belle wasn't just beginning to worry, she's been worried for hours now. He briefly toyed with the idea of trying to seduce this basically pure soul, it'd be a great distraction until Lone returned but it would also likely end any chance he had of converting Lone into his newest pet. Without fully understanding why he did it, Rimmon curled his arms around Belle and hugged her comfortingly.
                              
"From what I can tell about her, Lone is a survivor. There isn't a ting in this world that could break that girl. So just trust her to come back in one piece ok?" Rimmon offered, feeling the human relax into his hug with gratitude. She was so fragile that it startled him, and he worried suddenly that he might hurt her. With a disgruntled jerk he stuffed those useless concerns aside and released the human. "Maybe something came up that she needed to handle alone." he offered as an excuse, pulling the whispers of his Descended brethern around his mind like a protective shell. His spine stiffened as he felt something terrible enter the bar.
                              
He turned and looked at the enterance, spotting an old but formidable enemy. Dumb Coyote, as the Indian liked to be called, locked eyes with Rimmon even through the crowd of people. Then he smiled without humour and started the slow weave through bodies to reach the demon. Rimmon felt the voices of his kindred fall away, becoming a distant white noise, all but lost to his perception. His spirit was anchored into this meat bag that held it and he was aware of the mortality that stalked these humans like lions did zebra. Finally the ancient foe stood before him and Rimmon had to fight to keep his face clear of the hatred that welled in his black heart.
                              
"You and I need to have words." Coyote announced, voice bland but carrying a weight to it. This was not a request that the demon could ignore, like a Summons from a higher demon, the compulsion to obey wrapped around him and he couldn't resist.
                              
"What about?" he demanded anyways, even though his feet twitched to follow.
                              
"Lone." Coyote stated simply. Rimmon snarled a little but unfortunately Coyote hadn't spoke soft enough for his one word answer to go unnoticed.