Page 48 of Demons Dig Donuts

Lou snarled, but he slowly nodded.

“Now.” Q. tilted his head side to side, cracking his neck as he settled back down. “We do have an outside claim to Mr. Kalt’s assets. A Mr. Nyp. He says that he has several standing debts with Mr. Kalt and is now seeking reimbursement. Do we agree to hear him?”

The twins both flicked their hands in a very whatever way.

Lou grumbled something that sounded affirmative.

“Fine.” Mr. Heiss snapped his tail. “Let’s hurry this up.”

Francis scurried to the doors so he could open them. He stepped aside to allow a new monster through and then ushered him up to the table to stand between Mr. Heiss and the twins.

A demon.

Great. Fabulous. Fun.

The demon was broad but lean, and he was dressed in a very loud purple suit with a red bow tie. His skin was pale green, his eyes yellow, and his hair was an exciting shade of lime. His smile had an off-centered slant to it that was rather charming, and there was something about him that gave car salesman vibes in a strangely endearing way.

Like, yes, he worked for commission, but he wanted to earn it honestly.

Weird.

After all, he was a demon, and Indy knew better than most to never trust a cute smile.

“Mr. Nyp,” Q. said cordially. “Welcome.”

“Oh, please. Just Nyp.” Nyp bowed his head. “My sincerest gratitude to the family for agreeing to see me. I know your time is valuable, so I’ll make this brief.”

“Of course. Now, what is the nature of the debts you claim Mr. Kalt owed you?”

“Monetary,” Nyp replied. “I was the distributor for Mr. Kalt’s businesses for both mortal libations and other. I was willing to let him place orders on credit so he could continue to operate, but I’m afraid to say that he has not paid me in quite some time.” He held out his hand, and a thick, uneven stack of paperwork appeared on the table in front of Q.

Francis squeaked, possessed with the joy of someone who had been given a new puppy.

Q. gestured for Francis to take it. “We’ll need some time to sort through these—”

Francis grabbed the paperwork and ran off.

“Take all the time you need,” Nyp said with a polite nod of his head. “I look forward to the family’s reply.” He gave Mr. Heiss a kind smile. “And please, accept my condolences for your loss.”

“Get fucked, Nyp,” Mr. Heiss said flatly.

Nyp grinned. “You first, Raph.”

Mr. Heiss was on his feet, the flames between his horns blazing and his wings cracking through the air so fast Indy felt it where he was sitting. Indy knew there were many more important things to be focusing on in that moment—Raph? Like the Ninja Turtle?—but he was completely enamored by the sight of Mr. Heiss’s wings.

They were dark gray, almost black, and absolutely massive. One furious flap blocked all the light from the sconces behind him, and it was then Indy could see glowing embers burning between the feathers and exposed bone. Bone, yes, because Mr. Heiss’s wings were not whole in the slightest.

Each one was a mangled amalgamation of bone, feathers, and charred chunks of tissue. What feathers remained appeared to be intact, but a few dangled as if they could fall out at any moment. A thin golden syrup of some kind seemed to be the only thing keeping them all together, and it bubbled as if being exposed to great heat while Mr. Heiss seethed.

Thwack.

A dark red tentacle covered in thick suckers whipped across the table from Q.’s sleeve, and though he spoke calmly, his voice filled the room and echoed as he commanded, “Enough.”

Nyp hadn’t budged. He’d barely flinched and simply continued to smile at Mr. Heiss, his stare unblinking and frankly creepy. “My apologies. Please forgive my rudeness.”

Mr. Heiss snarled. “I’ll forgive you after I’ve removed your worthless heart from your chest with my bare hands and fed it to you, you worthless fucking—”

Q.’s tentacle shuddered until the table creaked.