The Fire in the Monster

Third Degree Burns

Mika looked dead on her feet, and though she tried to hide her absolute exhaustion, Sam was having none of it. He knelt down to pick her up and she didn't even squirm, snuggling into his chest. Sam smiled broadly and thought to himself how adorable she was like this, especially without the tension that comes from being nervous. It was like they had been together for the past two years, like they should have been, and this was simply second nature. 'And gods, he thought, please let me have her long enough that her in my arms is second nature.'

But looking down on her curled form, Sam's head flashed back to walking down the halls of the Demon Lord's castle with her broken and bloodied body and he almost hit his knees right there. He willed himself not to falter and steadily climbed the stairs, careful not to shake or give away the scene in his head. That certainly wouldn't help anyone right now.

Sam set her down on the bed and moved to kiss her before her nap, but she was already asleep. He kissed her anyway, and then returned downstairs to deal with the Andrew situation.

It only took him about 30 seconds staring down at Andrew's unconscious form to realize he was ill-equipped to "deal with the Andrew situation." He doubted Mika would approve of any of the ideas currently running through his head (still pretty stuck on the limb ripping) but before his sanity could slip, he decided on a simple hog tie and gag. Then he practically sprinted from the room so as not to risk using the ropes to strangle the man instead. He sent out a text, en masse, asking his brothers how soon they could come to the mansion and help him sort out what to do with Andrew and what the hell was up with this Raphael guy.

Damien, not being under any deadlines for a book at the moment, was able to come right away, as was Eric. Matthew would be over in a few hours, and James would stop by if reports didn't keep him too long. A quick call to his chief and Sam was able to take some of his banked up vacation time that he never touched, and now would be off for a week or two. He realized, belatedly, he should have done that to begin with so Mika wasn't here alone until things calmed down. After berating himself for a half an hour until his brother's arrived, he resolved that no one would ever touch Mika again. He would not fail her.

---

Damien and Eric arrived within minutes of each other. Sam handed them the card Raphael had left as they settled at the dining room table.

"This is it?" Eric asked, waving the card in front of him. "It just says RAPHAEL in all gold lettering and a phone number. What a terrible business card." He huffed, looking incredulous.

"Should we call?" asked Damien.

Sam shook his head. "I want to see what we can find out about him first. I put a call into the station, but it's pretty much nothing to go on." He leaned his chair back, crossing his arms on his chest. "The phone's a burner, so...nothing there."

Eric leaned forward, picking up one the cookies Damien had found hidden in the kitchen and nibbling on it. "Hmmm, I wonder..." Eric looked thoughtful. "I wonder if there would be any information on him in the demon underground."

Damien paled momentarily. "They did what to this Gustav?"

Eric waved him off dismissively. "Now now, just a few bad apples, not to worry. Most of them have very strong loyalties, to money that is. So long as the pay is good, they are more than happy to help."

Sam grit his teeth. "Well, I know a good place to start with all these questions." He gestured behind him with his head.

His brothers knew his anger was barely contained, bubbling just below the surface and threatening to spill over any moment. Damien knew they had been together intimately now, and when a demon had sex with someone they loved, that cemented a bond even deeper. Sam was likely even more furious with Andrew now that he considered Mika his and his alone.