With All My Soul
Page 44

You need only bleed and use my name.
I understood the words but not their meaning. Id had no idea hellions could even be summoned until Ira had told me. In fact, I wasnt sure exactly what hed told me. But I knew how to bleed.
It took a minute of searching through commercial-grade stainless steel drawers in the kitchen, but I finally found a drawer full of knives. I selected the shortesta paring knifeand slid the drawer closed with the clang of metal. Then I sat on the floor, my legs crossed in front of me, and silently hoped I was doing the right thing. And that whatever summoning involved, it wouldnt put me in danger of being killed or captured in the next few minutes.
Then I sliced open my palm.
It was a small cut. In the movies, they always make a huge gash whenever they need blood to summon the forces of evil, but that had always felt like overkill to me. Surely evil doesnt care how dramatic your blood loss is, right?
In the movies, it never really looks like those gruesome self-inflicted cuts hurt, but in real lifeeven for the undeadit hurt. A lot.
I set the knife down and let blood well up into my palm until there was a pool the width of a dime. It was slow going, until I realized my heart wasnt beating, which meant my blood wasnt flowing. Not very quickly, anyway. So I concentrated on making my heart function, and blood collected faster.
Then I made a fist and let it drip onto the tile floor in front of me, because I wasnt sure what else to do with the blood. Or what exactly Ira meant when he told me to use his name.
Ira.
My voice didnt echo, because I was inaudible to human ears and thus most of the physical plane. So I wasnt really surprised when nothing happened.
Ira. I tried it again, audible to the whole world, had anyone been there to hear me. That time there was a slight echo of my voice in the empty room. But no hellion appeared.
Come on! You promised youd...be summonable! And hellions couldnt lie.
My frustration and anger built as I stared at the blood still dripping slowly from my hand onto the floor. There were a couple of little red squiggles, because my hand had jiggled. They almost looked like...
Letters.
And suddenly I understood. He hadnt told me to say his name. Hed told me to use his name.
I unclenched my fist and dipped my forefinger into the blood. Then I wrote his name in capital letters, several inches above the small pool of my own blood.
Ira. I wasnt sure if saying it again would really help, but I wasnt taking any chances.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, out of nowhere, the hellion appeared in front of me, his denim-clad knees level with my eyes.
I looked up. And up. And up. Ira was tall. He was also the youngest-looking hellion Id ever seen, and it bothered me more than I couldeven comprehend that I actually had a basis for that comparison.
I knew you would call. The hellion dropped effortlessly into a squat in front of me, and I lurched backward when he was suddenly staring into my eyes. Blue. Nice, but theyd look better in red. If youre ever mine, your eyes will be red. Its a painful procedure, of coursenot that it has to be, but it will beyet utterly worth the effort. You would look brilliant in red.
While I gaped at him in shock, the hellion sank onto the floor in front of me, leaving his name and the small pool of my blood between us. He crossed his legs, and I was almost certain he was mirroring my position on purpose.
Ira?
Of course. No one else can come when Im summoned by name. Thats how it works. He must have seen the confusion in my face. Or else he was reading my thoughtsa possibility that terrified me, but that I couldnt safely rule out. This is your first summoning?
I nodded, nearly mesmerized by the dark red veins in his solid-black eyes. By his shoulder-length hair, so deeply red it was almost black. He looked like an evil rock star. In jeans.
Id never seen a hellion in jeans.
Thats because none of the other hellions youve dealt with are strong enough to appear when called. They dont like admitting thatit makes them look weakso they simply refrain from mentioning the possibility.
Avari is too weak for...summoning? My fear was back, and it was rapidly bleeding into true terror. Avari could snap me in half with two fingers. He could breathe in my general direction and freeze me solid. If he was too weak for this, then just how powerful was Ira?
The hellion frowned, but no lines appeared on his broad, clear forehead. Oh, no, my little fury, dont be scared. I enjoy your fear, true, but Id much rather have your anger.
I dont give a shit what you want.
Ah, thats better. Somehow, his smile made him look even scarier. And...oddly satisfied, for a hellion of rage. And true, no doubt. Because this is about what you want, isnt it?
How does this work? I wasnt going to say another word until I understood just how much danger Id put myself in. Had I just unleashed a hellion into the human world, with no restrictions? What exactly does summoning mean?
Think of this like a phone call, only were talking face-to-face. Convenient, huh?
So, youre not really here?
Of course Im here. But because you summoned me, and I accepted your invitation, I cant touch you without your permission. And I cant interact with anyone else while Im here.