Star Eater
Chapter Twenty-Nine

Before Kai took off for his meeting, he did take out the carpet of evidence from his book bag and stuffed it into the garbage bag he’d snagged. He threw that out at the storage place’s dumpster. Then took off at a jog. It took half an hour to reach the meeting spot.

The trail was hot and dusty, with dry, crackling grass underfoot. The last rainfall had made tiny rivulets along the sand, wiping out any prints. Judging that the rain had been over a week ago, and there were no fresh prints, Kai suspected they wouldn't have any interruptions.

It may have been hot and dusty, but he was happy to be alone. There were no other hikers on the trail. No electronics, no broken down vehicles, nobody to make him feel apart from everyone else. Above him the sky was sapphire from horizon to horizon, only the faint silver flash of a plane to disrupt it. Below him the valley stretched with its hazy heat lines obscuring the neat blocks of houses and businesses that stretched to the white ocean line. There was no smell up here, outside of his own. Kai wondered how far the daemons would be able to smell him before they saw him.

Kai watched his shadow flicker and inflate like a wraith before popping off of the trail and standing up. He felt a flush of additional heat as most of Akuma’s essence left the star unshielded. Kai didn't acknowledge the demon. He was far too angry for that. Instead, he unscrewed the cap from the water bottle and took a long drink.

When he lowered his head back down, his ebony doppelgänger stood just in front of him. Akuma’s form mimicked Kai’s. He looked like Kai would if Kai was covered in tar, three-dimensional but intangible. Kai knew that if he put his hand into that shadow, it would freeze. If he left it in there too long, it would freeze off. Akuma had taken shadow form a lot more when Kai was little, and they’d learned the boundaries quickly. Once they’d learned the boundaries, they’d had a hell of a time goofing off together.

Actually, Kai didn’t know why he’d stopped.

You started going to school, Akuma said.

It was true. Before Kai had convinced his parents to send him to school, he’d spent half the day with a tutor and the other half playing by himself around their house and yard. It was set back away from the street with its own entrance gate—the perfect private place for a boy and his demon. Those lazy afternoons never felt strange to him. He’d never been alone. But school, a taste for freedom, and his parents' attempts to fix him had put an end to their time. Kai was surprised to realize how big Akuma had gotten, or rather, himself.

“What is it?” Kai asked.

We must mend, Akuma said. I do not like being like this.

“Neither do I!” Kai said, opening his arms wide to encompass, well, everything. But you killed someone, Kai managed to keep that bit internal.

It was an accident, Akuma said. I was protecting you.

You were feeding the star, Kai snapped.

Which also protects you, Akuma said.

What does that even mean?

If the star dies, both of us will die too, Akuma said.

Kai paused. He didn’t know that. Akuma had never said that before. He opened his mouth and closed it. How do you know? he demanded.

I just know.

Kai bit his lip and crouched, going over this startling and scary revelation as he stared at the dirt. A line of ants was busy working near his feet, and he watched them as he pondered. So Joseph had been right, and Akuma’s worry justified.

Why wouldn’t you tell me this before? Kai asked.

The shadow shrugged. It had never been a threat before, Akuma said.

But the star has been hungry in the past, Kai argued. I’ve drunk hydrogen peroxide like eight times.

They were only snacks, Akuma said, struggling to convey what he meant. This time, it was fading. This time it needed a meal.

What did you take from the facility? Kai asked.

A gas, Akuma said.

Kai thought about it. Akuma had likely consumed pure hydrogen, which was ten times more powerful than drinking ammonia or hydrogen peroxide.

And the star is stable now? Kai asked. The demon nodded. For how long?

For as long as it holds, the demon said. The shadow crouched beside Kai so they were eye level.

Are you done being angry now? Akuma asked.

No, Kai said. He relented. I’m less angry, he said.

We should not be here. The daemons are dangerous.

Yeah, Kai agreed. Apparently, so are we.

A black car pulled into the parking lot at the top of the trail, right next to the one Mason and Cole had arrived in. The driver stepped out and opened the door for Joseph. He emerged with two folders in his hand. He handed them to Cole. 

“Our insider in Homeland paid off,” Joseph said.

Cole flipped through the folder and Mason overlooked his shoulder. “Right now, Kai is not on their radar but a boy named Lincoln Palmer is.” 

“Why is Link a suspect?” Mason asked. “And what did Kai do that would put him on Homeland’s radar?

“You know this Lincoln Palmer?” Joseph asked.

“That’s Kai’s best friend.” Mason stopped himself from blurting out that Link was also Kai’s crush. Sᴇaʀch Thᴇ FɪndNovᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Joseph smiled. “Even better.”

“He was caught on a traffic camera right before the crime,” Cole said. “He’s got a juvenile record for selling drugs in Philadelphia. Homeland thinks he might have gotten involved with the wrong crowd upon his arrival here in LA. They’re going to arrest him tonight. The guard’s death has been ruled natural causes.”

Mason almost asked ‘what guard’ but decided to hold his tongue. If he drew too much attention to himself, he might not be allowed to meet with Kai. Instead, he stored the information away for later.

Joseph and Cole headed down the trail and Mason followed at a slight distance, again trying to be inconspicuous. The trail winded under the trees and out of the sun, but it was hot. Mason’s mind whirled with all these revelations. Kai was possessed by a demon. He didn’t think they existed. They were mythological. Mason’s entire species was the basis for those myths and yet, now, it seemed, there was another monster. And Link was going to be arrested for something Kai stole and maybe the boy had even killed this guard.

Mason wasn't sure Kai was capable of murder, but then he’d only just found out two hours ago that Kai was possessed. He knew from firsthand experience that the demon was protective. The question was how protective? And, above all, how was Joseph planning on using Kai to help set Silas Wright free? 

Kai waited at a widening of the trail, under a copse of jacaranda trees. Around him lay hundreds of fallen purple flowers. Through a break in the treeline, the late afternoon sun threw Kai’s shadow long on the ground. It moved restlessly, that shadow, like a weaving snake about to strike.

Yet, to Mason, Kai suddenly seemed much younger in his t-shirt, running pants, and sneakers. He glanced at the two daemons one step ahead of him, in their stylish suits and with their dangerous information. This wasn’t a talk; this was an ambush. Mason hated it, but he wasn’t here to save Kai. He was here to get into his uncle’s good graces until he found the case. At least Kai knew it was an ambush.

“Hello,” Joseph greeted. Then he did something that caught even Mason off guard. He transformed into his archdaemon form. Where once there was an unassuming businessman, stood a towering red-skinned devil with two sets of tusks, a huge set of wings, and malevolence as his cologne.

Mason quivered even though Joseph’s will wasn’t directed at him. He could feel it oppressive in the air. When his knees threatened to give, he locked them. He saw Cole tremble, struggling with the weight of the archdaemon’s will pressing in on them. The air had gone from hot to syrupy, too thick to breathe. Little spots appeared across Mason’s vision. He realized Joseph was throwing everything at this kid.

If Kai was impressed, he didn't show it. Instead, he made a sound of irritation, and took on an expression of bored lassitude that drove adults insane. And Kai had perfected the expression years ago. Below him, his shadow whipped back and forth aggressively, like a bullfighter’s cape.

“Look,” Kai said. “I get it. You’re like some powerful daemon.” He voice was tinged with sarcasm, robbing all the respect out of those words. Then he rolled his eyes. Mason felt his uncle release his will. It took all of Mason’s control not to gulp in air.

“Can we get to the point so I can get on with my life?” Kai asked.

Mason gave the kid credit. He was ballsy.

Joseph chuckled around his tusks, sounding all too much like a man. “I’m not trying to intimidate you, Kaito,” Joseph lied. “Quite the opposite, I’m showing you my true nature as a token of my trust.” 

“My name is Kai,” Kai said with a grimace. “No one calls me Kaito.”

“Why not? It’s a beautiful, traditional name. It means ‘ocean,’ yes?” Joseph said.

“I know what it means,” Kai snapped. “Why did you ask me out?”

“First, you,” Joseph gestured at the shadow. “I want to make sure I know what I’m dealing with.”

Kai silently asked Akuma what he thought. The demon sighed as if very put upon. He did not like daemons. But slowly he took form in Kai’s shadow, a doppelgänger boy draped in black abyss.

In front of him, Mason saw Cole’s entire body stiffen. In some ways, it was worse than feeling the oppressive weight of Joseph’s aura. That, at least, was expected. One could prepare their body for the adrenaline, for the fear and physical difficulties. The demon, however, was deeply disturbing. Mason avoided looking at it, but he felt a pang of sympathy for the way Cole paled and the unconscious shudder that went through his body.

“Hello, fhear dorcha,” Joseph said.

Akuma inclined his head but nothing more.

“Okay, you’ve seen him,” Kai said. “Anything else?” he asked because he was impudent and reckless.

“No,” Joseph snapped, finally showing his temper.

Cole shifted his weight. Mason could feel his readiness to ravage the impertinent boy. Pure daemon, that one. Mason hoped that Kai was as quick with his phasing out as he was with his mouth. Joseph inhaled through his nose to calm himself. “I have some interesting news. I think we can help each other out.”

Kai waited. They were finally getting to the meat of it. Behind them the sun had begun to set, throwing Kai’s shadow longer. It, Akuma, could reach out and touch them if it wanted to now. Mason wondered if that was part of Kai’s plan and was sort of impressed if it was.

“Homeland Security is investigating the break-in at the hydrogen refinery last night,” Joseph said.

Kai’s stomach sank. Homeland Security? It was worse than he feared.

“Their number one suspect right now is Lincoln Palmer,” Joseph added.

Kai’s eyes widened and he stepped forward.

“Why?” he demanded. “Link had nothing to do with it.”

“Because there’s camera footage of a hooded figure entering the facility,” Joseph said, gesturing imperiously for Cole to hand Kai the photo. Mason enjoyed the way his uncle’s second hesitated to step closer to the demon. “And Link was picked up a few blocks from there by an Uber soon after the break-in.”

Kai took the photo and studied it. He never showed up on security feeds. Ever. Yet, there he was. It was fuzzy and even though the light shone on his face, the camera saw a black hole with no features. Anybody else probably thought he was wearing a mask. He knew what he was looking at, though. That was Akuma. Somehow, the camera had captured Akuma’s image. It was not distinct, but it was there.

“Oh God,” Kai said, his stomach lurching. How long had this been going on? He thought about the storage facility. The fast food place he inadvertently bombed. Had they caught footage of him and Link then? No, he argued with himself. Link had said there was only static.

“You seem shocked,” Joseph said, watching him carefully.

“Is this the only photo?” Kai asked. He was careful not to say ‘of me.’ He didn't want to admit to anything, even to other criminals.

Cole looked at Joseph who nodded.

“We have one of you taken a week ago, at the yogurt shop,” Cole said. He handed it over, and Kai studied it as well. Again, his face was a black hole. His hands, the only other skin showing, seemed like black smudges. The picture was also from far away—probably one of the traffic cameras across the street, so there wouldn't be much detail—but it was still him. A person, not static, showing up on camera.

“So nothing close,” he said softly, doing the calculations.

“I don’t think you have to worry about being caught on camera now,” Joseph said. “After last night, I imagine you’re feeling quite full.”

He knows too much, Akuma said. We should kill him.

I am not killing anyone else, Kai thought.

“Which is one of the reasons you’re so valuable,” Joseph continued, unaware of the dual conversation. “That and your other ability.”

“What do you want?” Kai asked shortly.

“First, for you to prove your worth,” Joseph said.

“This doesn’t prove my worth?” he asked, flapping the photos in the wind.

“I need to know you can follow orders and do more than avoid cameras,” Joseph said evenly.

Kai squared off, not backing down. “What are you willing to do for me?”

Again, Mason had to give the kid credit. He was a force to be reckoned with. Even Joseph seemed surprised by this show of backbone. But then, Joseph had failed to make Kai bow. His powers didn't work on the fhear dorcha.

“We will protect you,” Joseph said.

“And get Link out of this,” Kai said.

Joseph frowned. He glanced at Cole. “We will monitor the situation,” he said.

“No, you will take care of it,” Kai said, throwing the photos down onto the ground. Mason enjoyed the flash of irritation that crossed Joseph’s face. It must kill him that he had to negotiate with a hormonal fourteen-year-old boy and meet the boy’s demands.

“Very well, on the condition you complete one small task first.”

“What’s the task?” Kai asked.

“I’ll give you those details tomorrow. Meet us at the Guided Way tourist shop on Ocean Park Boulevard, tomorrow at eight o’clock.”

Kai glanced at Mason then back to Joseph. There was more to this than Joseph was letting on. But if he wanted to know what, and if he wanted to save Link, he was going to have to play their game.

“Fine,” he said.

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