Page 112 of Demon and the Raven

“Which I’ll know for next time.”

“I wonder if Pace will still turn it into a bed-and-breakfast now,” Lorne mused.

“I dunno,” Mal said. “Time will tell, I guess, but either way, I think blessing the place is a waste of time until there’s a plan for the space.”

“Sorry?”

“Earlier today when I came by and saw the state of the plants, I asked Father Dennis if he’d be around later to let me into the church before evening Mass, and he told me he had an appointment with Pace to go out to the manor this afternoon and give it a blessing. He got volunteers to help him move all the plants into the rectory for me before he left.”

“So Father Dennis went out to Haskell Manor?”

“Yeah.”

“Thanks, Mal,” Lorne told him. “You’ve been a lifesaver.”

He looked at Lorne oddly. “A lifesaver?”

“Oh yes, without question,” he stated, gripping Mal’s shoulder tight for a moment, squeezing, then letting go. “Love to have you over for dinner soon.”

Mal’s smile was wide. “You tell me when, and I’ll be there.”

“Good,” Lorne said, grabbing my hand. “Let’s go.”

Halfway to his Jeep, I said, “What are we going to do now that the man who was supposed to tell us what we’re up against could, in fact, already be in the clutches of a demon?”

Lorne shook his head, opening the door for me. “We were being stupid.”

Once I got in and he shut the door, he jogged around the front of the car and got in. He was fast pulling out of the parking lot and getting us on the road.

“Care to elaborate?”

“It was never about fighting the demon, not in a traditional sense. We need to listen to what Elen told us to do.”

“I don’t remember her saying anything.”

“Yes, you do,” he assured me. “First, she told us to blind the demon with all it seeks.”

“Meaning?”

“It came through the rift and was immediately attacked. What would it want more than anything here?”

I had to think.

“What do we all need first? Exactly what we gave those kids last night.”

“Yes,” I agreed, taking a breath, following his lead. “They needed safety, and so would the demon.”

“That’s right.”

“The demon’s been hunting everyone it thought could hurt it, and now it knows I’m the greatest obstacle to its continued well-being.”

“Correct. And because of that, we’re going to talk up your family land to it at the first opportunity.”

“Why?”

“Listen, we only have two things on our side at the moment: first, that the demon doesn’t know you’re a branded witch, and second, that it might not know there’s a huge rift on Corvus.”

“And you’re thinking what?”