Into the Tiger's Hour

Chapter Five

Turning a page, he didn't look up when the door crashed open. Betre reached for his cognac, brought it to his nose and sniffed the liquor's bouquet before taking a precise sip. His eyes swung to the figure standing in the doorway, radiating heat and leaving flakes of ash to drift onto the carpet.

"You're going to scorch the rug if you insist on having a tantrum in this way," he commented mildly, rising to his feet, glass in hand.

Ax stomped forward and Betre grimaced slightly at how the building--old construction, highly stable and checked twice a year for structural integrity--seemed to sway with his fellow demon's steps. "And you're trailing ash all over the carpet, Ax. Do step outside until you're able to get control of yourself, mm?" He turned his back to Ax and moved for the liquor cabinet, a magnificent piece of 17th Century French workmanship, only to be jerked to a halt by the heavy, hot hand that clamped onto his shoulder.

A jolt rattled the windows in the living room, shaking the two floor-to-ceiling walls that overlooked the rooftop garden, and Ax was thrown several steps backwards as Betre turned. His eyes gleamed blood red and he was looking at his shoulder, at the print of Ax's hand burnt into the cloth. "Do you know how much I paid for this suit, you idiot?"

"What did you tell Iris?!" Even that intangible blow hadn't rattled Ax's determination, and he left charcoal footprints across the Turkish rug as he stalked forward. "What did you tell Iris to do?"

Stripping off the jacket, his glass set carefully on the liquor cabinet's shelf, Betre examined the burnt fabric and snarled. He balled it up and threw it at Ax, watched as the other demon's heat caused it to ignite and crumble into a heap of soft ash at his feet. "Oh, wonderful!" Betre threw his hands into the air, an unnatural luminance trailing in the air with the gesture. "Now you've made these slacks utterly useless, and I'll have to have an entirely new suit tailored tomorrow."

"Betre."

"Don't." He spun towards Ax and leveled a finger at him, his own eyes gaining a deeper glow. "We'll level this building and more so if you decide we need to fight over this, Iax, so do not."

The reality of it made Ax halt. The sound of his name, pronounced in a way that only another of their kind could manage, made his jaw clench. He didn't move further towards Betre and the crackle of burning wool tapered into silence as he brought himself back under a semblance of control.

Betre waited for a moment, loosening his tie--the entire ensemble was ruined now--and then picked up his glass, stepping towards the bottles to refill it. The strange luminescence trailed in his wake as the demon walked to the French doors leading out to the rooftop. "Let's speak of this outside. I heard her go to her room not ten minutes ago and we'll bring her out with questions if we continue."

He wasn't certain Ax would follow, but stepped outside regardless, taking a moment to enjoy the scent of jasmine in the air. The rooftop garden was spacious with high walls bordering the edges, planters lining the perimeter and several small tables with chairs set about to allow the penthouse's occupants a space to enjoy the outdoor air in comfort. He strode to one of those tables, cognac in hand, and didn't look back when the tile beneath his feet rippled.

Only when he was seated did Betre look towards the doors, the figure hulking just outside of them, and he took another sip before waving a hand at the other demon, urging him forward. Mentally calculating the cost of replacing every tile that cracked under Ax's increased weight, he swung his feet onto the seat of a neighboring chair and arranged his face into implacable calm. "Now what was it you were hot under the collar about?"

Ax planted his fists on the table, miraculously not cracking the glass. "Dia. She's asking questions about her. She knows Dia's name. You told her to get Jonas's box. She found Dia's letters. Why did you tell Iris to look there?"