THIRTY FIVE

Elodie

When my alarm blares, I pull the covers over my head and grumble to myself for a few moments while I'm in denial. Eventually, I poke out a hand, slam it around on the nightstand and locate my phone, switching off the beeping and buying myself a reprieve. I can't linger. I have to get up, or I'll fall back asleep and be late for work.

Not that anyone would care. Everyone is so busy worrying about what to do in Azeroth's absence I could probably turn up two hours late and no one would comment.

Every day for the last four weeks, I've turned up, hoping against hope he would be there strolling around the office, takeout frappe in his hand, or leaning on someone's desk asking what they're working on. He'd be there in our Monday meeting grinning around at everyone at the table, celebrating someone's find, or giving us a talk about the next big innovation he wants us to chase.

I even managed to convince myself if that's all of him I got, if that was the only way I got to see him, I'd be happier.

It's a lie, of course. I want so much more than CEO Azeroth. I want the sweet, sexy guy who lavished attention on me and spoiled me in ways I wouldn't have even thought to ask for. I want the demon who never knew what it meant to love until me. The more I got to know him, the more I see all the negative things he said about himself were all self-doubt. He wasn't the bad guy he presented himself as. Quite the opposite.

That's why I refuse to believe he's just disappeared on us. On me.

Something has happened to him. The only lead I have is the snide-faced demon Mordicus, the one who burst in on us and demanded more payment. Surely, this has something to do with him. Azeroth was even trying to tell me something about Mordicus before he disappeared.

But what can I do? I'm just a human. I've got no magic, no powers. I don't know the first thing about demon politics and power.

I just keep holding on to what Azeroth said to me right before he disappeared. I'm yours. Heart and soul, for what that's worth.

I know he would be here with me if he could.

Something occurs to me on the metro on my way to work. There's one thing I haven't tried. The one thing that brought him to me in the first place. Only, I don't know enough about how it works. For one thing, last time I summoned a demon, I wasn't thinking about which demon. I mean, I didn't even think it would work.

Is there a way to summon a specific demon? Surely.

When I step off the train and onto the platform, I'm filled with a renewed sense of purpose. I'm not just going through the motions today. When I sit down at my desk, I know exactly what I need to do.

Immediately, I bring up a search and try every combination of keywords I can think of. But hours later, by the end of the day, I've waded through hundreds of unhinged blog posts from people claiming to be possessed by demons, to have married demons, to have exorcised demons. I find websites from people claiming to be able to tame demons, and one disturbing website about tormenting demons.

Nothing seems to be written by someone who has actually summoned a demon. Not a single one lines up at all with what I did and my experience. Not a single one has anything to say about summoning a specific demon other than Lucifer, and I'm pretty sure those are just as fake as the rest of them.

When I try to look for the website I first found when I summoned Azeroth, all I get is an error message. Even when I look through my browser history on my phone, there's nothing there. Like the website never existed.

With a sigh, I close my laptop and stretch. I look around the office. Most of the lights are off; everyone else went home a while ago. It's a little eerie walking through the corridors between shadows and the odd lit up screen or in and out of the little pockets of light from the staff kitchen or the cleaner's closet.

It's too late to bother cooking when I get home. All I can muster the energy for is toast. I slump on the sofa with my plate in my lap and type out a message to Quinn.

Elodie: I can't believe I hit another dead end. I was so sure I'd found something

Quinn: What did you try? I'm in Rushton with Arrol, but I can drive back tonight if you need company

Elodie: No. it's OK. I spent all day looking up ways to summon a specific demon, but I couldn't find anything. How is the internet full of information and all of it is useless?

Three dots appear on the screen, then disappear. There's a long pause. Then—

Quinn: Arrol says he knows a witch who specializes in monster lore. He'd be happy to give her a call for you if you like

I'm so excited, I sit bolt upright, flinging my half eaten cold toast to the floor, scattering crumbs everywhere.

Elodie: he would!!?? YES!!!

A second later, my phone rings and I pick it up without waiting. "Oh my god, your boyfriend is the best!"

Quinn's voice is smugly satisfied. "I know. But, Dee, he says don't get your hopes up. Winnie is pretty reluctant to talk to just anyone about it. He'll put in a good word, but no promises."

I nod, reluctantly reining in my excitement. "OK. I get it. He's still the best. Please tell him thank you."

I wait anxiously as they have a conversation I can't quite make out in the background. All I get are hushed voices. Then Quinn speaks again. "OK. He's calling now. Want me to call you back?"

"I'll wait," I say instantly. I don't want to hang up the phone. I don't want to stop trying for a second. Not until I know I've done everything in my power to find out what has happened to Azeroth. For a long time, I can't hear anything really beyond some muffled noises. I keep the phone pressed to my ear, fingers gripping the device tightly, not willing to let go.

This has to be it. It has to. There's no way this is how it ends.

Finally, a less familiar voice, gruff but not unpleasant, comes through the phone. "Elodie?"

"Hi? Arrol?"

"Yeah. I called my friend. She says she'll meet with you, if I agree to come with you."

I almost double over around the sudden clenching in my guts. "Thank you."

Arrol clears his throat. "Of course. Any friend of Quinn's..." There's a pause. "Listen, Elodie, I know you've got your hopes up, but no guarantees, alright? Winnie said she'll talk to you, but that's it. She made me swear I'd make that very clear. So are we clear?"

I nod, even though he can't see me. "Clear. Crystal clear. And thank you again. I mean it. I appreciate anything you can do."

When we hang up, I flop back on the sofa. This time it's not despair gripping me, but hope. Hope so painful it twists my belly and makes the ends of my fingers tingle. I could be wrong. I could be chasing another dead end. But from where I stand—or sit—this looks like the best chance I've had since Azeroth disappeared and that's good enough for me. For tonight, anyway.