Hemlock

Chapter III

"You're crazy." I heard him muffle through his fingers, his head resting in his hands. "You're genuinely insane."

"Told you you wouldn't understand." I sighed, as I began to examine the dark spot on the floorboard carefully. A swirling pattern, similar to the one on the gates in front of the houses, was carved into the floorboard. I traced the carvings with my index finger, memorizing each curve.

"I thought demons were supposed to be ugly." I looked up to see if he was being serious, simultaneously he lifted his head up and stared at me. Classic.

"That's seriously your only concern," I rolled my eyes and laughed, "Humans." They were the only kind to react in the most stupidest way possible. The man had claws and the boy was wondering why it looked so drop dead gorgeous. Complete idiot. He wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a demon and a bunny, if it came down it.

He was still staring at me, his ocean-like eyes attempting to read my mind. I sighed, "Demons have abilities. Some can shapeshift into anything or anyone, others can fly and a rare few can breathe fire or ice."

"Wait-" He processed everything for a second, his eyes flickered all across the room to make sense of it, "Why are you telling me all this? Wouldn't it be against protocol or something. If I shouldn't even see one of them, I definitely shouldn't know about them, right?" I opened my mouth then shut it again knowing he wasn't finished yet, "I'm not complaining of course, just curious."

"You all after." I returned to tracing the carvings, "When we go to the headquarters, you will be wiped of any memory of today."

"Ok so if I don't remember anything tomorrow then will you tell me who you are? No- what are you? You just appeared out of nowhere and fought monsters, it's as if you stepped straight out of a comic book." He flung his muscley arms around, swing and pointing in random directions to emphasise how hard it was to comprehend everything at once.

"My name is Rene Hemlock, former descendant of fallen angels - which makes me half demon half angel - and I was sent to kill all mortals who are in the wrong." I recited as though straight from a book. Before leaving to go to Earth, we had to say that one sentence fifty-thousand times, as though we would forget. "I'm just here to save your stupid planet, and I so happen to be able to fight demons too."

"Fallen angel- this is a prank right?" He began to laugh, just how Klaus used to when I would tell him my plan on how to overtake Earth - as though I was the only crazy person in the world. My chest ached when I began to think about it.

"I wish."

"Well I'm Alexander Chadwell, descendant of two human beings. Here because I heard screaming from next door." He grinned, revealing a small dimple on the left side of his face. The grin was more towards himself and his happiness for the cleverness he thought he possessed for copying my tone, than to me.

"Curiosity is a curse." I laughed.

"Nope, just human nature." He gave a warm smile this time and shrugged his shoulders, unapologetic for the fact he liked to poke his nose into everything.

"And that's why I dislike your kind." Curiosity was never something I was very fond of, the concept of putting yourself into a situation that would be fine without you, confuses me. It's as if you put an extra bow in a quiver when there's already enough - it'll rip the bag and make deem it useless.

"Well if your kind are anything like you, I'm not very fond of them either." He laughed, clearly trying to make a joke - I chose to act oblivious, it would be more entertaining for me.

"Like me?" I approached him in attempt to intimidate him. He was taller than me but it didn't stop me, although my face was leveled with his chest I still stared directly into his dusty grey eyes and tilted my head, to emphasise my lack of humour towards the joke.

"Rude, obnoxious and doesn't care about anyone but herself." He copied my titled head gesture and smirked, challenging me. I had an urge to jank his beautiful chestnut hair out, or pull out his pearly white teeth, maybe even just snap his beautifully built body in half. Up close the boy seemed different, peculiar for a human - much too pretty to be one.

A familiar blaring ring sounded behind a closed door, it was the device, I could recognise it's vile tone from a mile away.

I broke away from the stand-off, "actually I do care for one person other than myself. Klaus. Now, if you don't mind I'd like to find his ass before he gets eaten alive because of me." I said, shoving him to the side. 

The blaring had come from the room where the corpse lay drowning in its own blood. As I entered, with the boy at my heel again, I fiddled with a charm on my bracelet ready to detach it if needed to. The boy's breathing quickened, each breath bounced off my neck. It became irritating but I let him be, focusing on the one important thing - Klaus.

"What the hell happened?" The boy whispered, inching closer to me body with caution. "Is he dead?"

"Oh no, don't mind him, he's just taking a nap." I whispered back, his frightened eyes seemed to please me - he no longer looked so perfect. Mumbling prayers under his breath, he turned to face the door, away from the sight of the corpse, he didn't dare turn around once. Never had I seen a man so frightened, I couldn't help but giggle.

I turned to the the device which had been balanced on top of the corpse's pudgy belly, continuously blaring its vile tune. Just my lucky day. I held my breath and leant down to pick it up, mortal blood climbed up my fingers as I retreated it. The revolting smell drifted up into my nose, forcing me to gag. I pushed down the sickening feeling in my stomach, pressed the middle button and waited. Fury began to grow inside me without even needing to hear the privileged voice on the other end of the call.

"Hello, how may I-"

"Listen." I interrupted the automatic message, " Klaus Ryder has been abducted." The device gave two loud beeps, before a more humane voice begun to speak.

"Where was he last seen?" There was a lack of urgency in her voice, which began to irritate me further.

"At the location of our last mission, you fool. A demon took him and came to confront me in the form of Klaus." I kept the information about Lucifer to myself.

"Impossible" the voice whispered to herself, "Are you sure Miss Hemlock?"

"I can smell him on my jacket. You're welcome to inspect the blood yourself, it's still fresh." A squeal came from the other side. Angels were so easily off put, it was music to my ears hearing them squeal.

"You must return to the headquar-"

"I am not going anywhere until you find Klaus!" My voice grew in volume, they had always treated us with the least bit of care. We were seen as the hiccups of the angels, mistakes at best. All because of our parents.

"Rene Hemlock. You must return to-" I threw the device out of the nearby open window, before she could finish and smiled - it was one of the best ways to shut the angels up.

I grabbed the boy from the back of his white shirt, leaving red and black stains all along it, and dragged him out, "Come on mortal, we're going to meet the devil."