Demon Master (Demonsense series Book 2) Read Free Page A

flared briefly with light. That quickly, Gelsenim's energy burned through her personal wards. They were never enough to manage a demon as powerful as Gelsenim, but they should at least have slowed him down.  
    Holtis bolted all around the edges of the outer ward, smacking into it at intervals like a frantic housefly. He was nowhere near Gelsenim’s level in power, but there was no doubt he was helping to put strain on the outer ward. If the demons broke that, they'd be free to seek someone to possess.
    Daniel sprang to his feet, face a mask of fury. “Holtis, depart! Gelsenim, depart!” he shouted, and Bree felt the air throb with magic so strong that it caused her heart to literally stop before it resumed its beat with a painful lurch. With a high cry of dismay, Holtis was sucked into the doorway between the worlds and vanished. Gelsenim threw his head back and howled, “No!” His form wavered and was drawn towards the opening as well.  
    The demon changed back to his human guise, though this time he was partially transparent. An electric shock ran through Bree as the demon’s eyes met hers, in a sensation part pain, part pleasure. His form began to solidify, and he stopped moving towards the exit.  
    “Bree, please!” the Gelsenim pleaded, voice perfectly mimicking the strangled, desperate tones of a young man begging for his life very much against his pride. His hands were outstretched towards her, and the simulation was so real, so nuanced, that she was moved in spite of her growing panic. “Daniel, wait,” she found herself saying, and she avoided looking at what she was sure must be Daniel’s incredulous face. To her surprise, he listened to her. Gelsenim’s form solidified and he lost his desperate look.  
    Bree got her feet under her and stood up. Her knees were shaking and she had an almost irresistible impulse to sit back down in a heap. She took a deep breath and willed strength to her knees and her spine. “Gelsenim, you can’t fight us like this. I'll never be able to trust you as long as you behave this way. If I can’t be sure you’ll leave on command, I can never let you possess me again.”  
    “I am so hungry, my host,” the demon whispered raggedly. “And you are so near. You have no idea how difficult that is.”
    It was a fine performance, and there was probably truth to it, but they were only moments away from Gelsenim’s clear attempt to possess her by force, so she wasn’t feeling that vulnerable to her all too easily triggered Reader empathy. “I’m sure it is difficult. Keep in mind that it’s difficult for me to tolerate your presence at all. Every instinct tells me to keep away from you, that you’re the ultimate evil. Anyone with Demonsense feels that way in your presence. If we have any hope of meeting halfway so that we can understand each other, you have to show me you can leave if I ask.”
    “Daniel has kept you from me for so long. How do I know you will ever call me again? How do I know this is not my last chance at our union?” the demon asked, one hand running through his shining hair as his posture slowly straightened from the half crouch it had been in when he transformed.
    Bree looked over at Daniel then, feeling uncertain of the path that was opening up before her, but she didn't want to discuss her options out loud in front of Gelsenim. The strain of holding the demon in place was evident in Daniel's dipping will energy level. She had better come to some decision quickly. “I would like to discuss this further with Daniel, but I think I might be willing to call you in another week or so and discuss terms for a trial possession. In the meantime, I want you to stop trying to get to me by force. And I want you to prove you will leave on my request, and not because Daniel makes you.”
    “You ask me to go against my nature,” the demon complained.
    “And you ask me to go against mine,” Bree retorted with heat. “Look, do we have a deal, or don’t