The Temple of the Demons

Chapter 14: Satin

NOTE: Votes and comments on every chapter are much appreciated! They motivate me to keep or improve the story. Thank you. *salute*

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Raina unhitched herself from my partner after a few minutes, and crushed me in a tight hug. A skinny woman but seriously, she can crush my bones with her hugs. Quite a feat actually for a normal human being. A willowy woman. A couple of inches taller than me, slender and even graceful until she sees Caleb or whichever guy she claims she's in love with, then she becomes a squealing fangirl. Her hair was a stubborn mass of shoulder-length dark brown curls. Her dark brown eyes were hidden behind thick glasses but her face... despite the stress and midnight candle burning her line of work calls for, her face remained flawless and beautiful. A lab coat over a plain red shirt and jeans completed the mad scientist get-up she was aiming for.

Yeah, an extreme makeover from head to foot could make her irresistible. Beauty and brain. Not that it's any of my business what she does with her looks. I flipped my hair and dismissed the idea immediately.

She grabbed Caleb's hand and pulled him towards the house. I just followed with an amused smile on my lips. Caleb on the other hand was dragging himself and it wouldn't require mind-reading to know what he's thinking.

I remembered when I first met Raina some years ago when she was finishing her thesis in demonology. She attended a convention in Chicago and I happened to be there for a job. My first impression of her was of a brainiac and I was right. But we became instant friends which was a surprise for me since I am not the sociable type. She also wasn't afraid of me being a demon temple. Then she met Caleb too and fell in love at first sight; so in love that it didn't even matter to her that he's not normal either. She's gone gaga over him since then.

Inside the house, it was as quaint as I remembered it. Old-fashioned and simple with a homey feel to it. For ten years, Raina has been living here alone, secluded with her books and research projects. And the first time I came to this cabin, I fell in love with the charm of the place. Except for the mess, of course, that plagued every room since Raina became its occupant.

She led us to the living room where she had to clear two chairs. She put out the fire in the fireplace and opened some windows to let the cool breeze ventilate the area. When we finally settled, she left to get us some refreshments. I glanced at Caleb and almost laughed again. He looked fidgety and royally pissed at the same time. It's such a refreshing idea for me to know that something could actually mess up this uptight guy's cool façade.

I looked away from him and surveyed the room. It was in chaos as usual. That was a perfect description already. Pieces of papers were scattered and a precariously balanced pile of thick bound print-outs was towering in a corner of the room. A poke would send the pile tumbling down for sure. Opened books were everywhere. On the floor. On the couch. Under the couch. On the tables. Under the tables. On the other chairs in the room. Even on the mantel. I wondered how Raina can remember which book is which. Two computers were on a table in one corner, both monitors showing opened files and websites. A laptop was left open on the couch too, the ceaseless blinking of the cursor was kind of hypnotic. On another corner, there was a machine that looked like a huge oven with various levers, buttons, flip switches and tubes. It pretty much occupied that corner of the room and almost reached the ceiling.

I heard Caleb curse under his breath and that only made me chuckle.

"She really missed you. That was an epic hug." The look on his face was priceless so I will definitely commit it to my memory so that I have something to tease him with the next time he pries into my mind. Like a road block of some sort but better. I can already imagine it, his scowling face at the image he'll see. I smirked. Seems a good revenge for me already for all the times he ordered me around and called me an old lady.