Beelzebub Girl (16 page)

"I love shopping, just not with a hot guy on my arm. That's too distractive." A soft gust ruffled my hair. I didn't turn. Behind me, footsteps thudded closer. I still didn't turn.

Dallas attention snapped into place. He raised his gaze slowly.

Peering over my shoulder, he whispered, "Don't move."

"Why?" I mouthed.

"Hand over your purse," a male voice said.

Dallas swallowed hard. Beads of sweat gathered across his forehead. "Do as he says, babe."

Turning, I shook my head. My gaze fell on the little man about forty with teeth black as coal, dressed in dusty rags. His shirt showed tiny holes across the chest, dark hair peering out from beneath. I raised my chin defiantly. "If you think I'll just give you my belongings, you're mistaken."

The man inched closer, holding up a knife, his wrist shaking. "I'll hurt you if you don't."

"Babe, just give him the purse," Dallas hissed. "I'll get you a new one."

I took a step forward, staring into the man's bloodshot eyes.

"No. You'll have to find someone else because I'm not playing victim."

His irises enlarged. I nodded to reinforce my words.

"She doesn't mean it, sir." Dallas stepped behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder as he whispered, "What are you doing? Move away from him."

"Don’t worry. I've got it all under control." Smiling, I reached into my bag, my fingers closing around my phone.

"Put your hands where I can see them," the man yelled.

"Are you out of your mind?" Dallas whispered.

I shook my head. "Are you scared of what I might be hiding in here?"

The man raised his knife to my chest. "Hand over your purse.

Now!"

Dallas stepped between the knife and me, pushing me behind him. His neck was bathed in sweat, the thin material of his shirt's glued to his back. "If you're going to hold a knife up to somebody, do it to me and not to a defenseless woman."

The guy glared. "You're just begging me to slash your pretty little face. Not so sure Girlfriend here would ever want to step out in public with you again."

Dallas squared his shoulders. "You take one more step and I guarantee you'll be the one having social phobias when I'm done with you. Your friends will have to call you Scar Face." That was a good one. Soaking up every morsel of drama, I peered at the mugger, waiting for his reply.

"I'm going to beat you into a pulp. We'll see who protects her then."

"You'll have to kill me first before you ever get to touch her." I could see Dallas's muscles tense, ready to attack. He was so handsome and brave. Although I was perfectly capable of taking care of myself, pride rose in my chest at the knowledge my boyfriend would defend me with his life.

I rose on my toes to peer over his shoulder, then winked. Our aggressor lunged forward. At the same time, I pressed a few buttons on my phone. The earth trembled beneath our feet, a gust of wind knocked Dallas to the side. He collapsed against the garbage bins. Our aggressor shot me an anxious glance and took off the way he came.

Dallas stirred, groaning. Lying next to him, I closed my eyes and put on a pained expression.

"Cass?" His hand brushed over my cheek to my throat, feeling for a pulse.

My eyes fluttered open. "Dallas?" I whispered. "Don't leave me."

"Are you hurt?" His voice betrayed his concern; his fingers hurried across my skin, checking for wounds.

I raised my hand to my head, and dropped it again as though I was too faint to move. "What happened?"

"Attempted mugging. Can you walk?"

"I think so." Groaning, I pushed up on my elbows.

Dallas helped me to my feet whispering, "You'll be okay. Let's get back to the car and I'll drive you to a hospital."

Taking slow steps, it took us a while to reach the main road. A man dressed in an expensive designer business suit sporting a Rolex watch was talking on his phone. We walked past without paying him any attention.

The car was still parked on the side of the road. Dallas held out his hand. "Can I have the keys, please?"

I rummaged in my purse, then shook my head. "I must have dropped them."

He groaned. "This day can't get any worse. Wait here."

I watched him walk over to the chattering man and tap him on the shoulder to get his attention. The man continued talking without so much as a glance at Dallas.

"Sir!" I yelled. "Please, can you call an ambulance? We were just mugged."

The man still didn't react.

Dallas turned to me, frowning. I inched closer until my arm brushed the man's suit.

"The rich moron's ignoring me. Does he think he's too good for us?" Annoyance was palpable in Dallas's tone.

I shook my head. "No, I don't think so."

"What do you mean?"

"Look." I waved my hand in front of the man's face. His eyes didn't move, he didn't even blink.

"Is he blind?" Dallas asked.

I stepped closer and cocked my head. "He could still hear us."

"Yeah, my mouth's pretty big." A frown settled between Dallas's brows. "Maybe he's hard of hearing too."

That's called distorted reasoning. How did he even come up with his explanations? "He couldn't talk on the phone if he were."

Dallas nodded. "Right. What's his problem then?"

Turning to face him, I grabbed his hand. "He can't see or hear us."

"I can see that. There's got to be a rational explanation." Dallas leaned over and yelled in the man's ear, "Hello? Is anyone home?"

"That won't help much." I moistened my lips, soaking up every bit of tension wafting from him as the meaning of my words slowly started to sink in.

"Let's find someone else then, someone who can hear and see us." His unconscious might have gotten the message, but his consciousness was still in denial. He needed to say it first to believe it.

I squeezed his hand hard. "Dallas, listen to me. It doesn't make sense that another person wouldn't see or hear us. There's only one probable explanation, and you know it."

His eyes widened. Disbelief crossed his features, followed by dismay. "We're dead?"

I breathed out, relieved his brain made an appearance and finally opened shop for the day. For a moment, I thought he might quote an alien invasion as the more likely possibility.

"Maybe not dead—" I hesitated "—yet. For all we know, our bodies could be hooked up to a life support machine in a hospital while a group of renowned surgeons perform major surgery."

Kinky appeared on my shoulder.
Renowned surgeons in a
hospital? That doesn't make sense. Wouldn't you be hovering in mid-air next to your body then?

I slapped my shoulder mere inches from the annoying, little devil.

"You mean we're returning to the crime scene in the hope to find a psychic that will help us catch the murderer." Dallas nodded, alarm pouring out of him in huge, hot waves. His shirt was soaked with sweat. "That definitely sounds like something I'd do. I could never rest knowing the same fate could befall another poor guy taking his girlfriend shopping."

"You'd definitely be the poltergeist type. You'd be a cute one." I turned my back on him so he wouldn't notice the delighted expression on my face. The guy with the phone walked down the street, still not paying attention to us.

You're milking it for all it's worth, I've got to give you that
, Kinky said.

"So would you."

"No, you'd be cuter." I leaned against his chest.

"You'd be a stunner," Dallas whispered, his lips lowering onto mine again.

Hey, focus,
Kinky yelled in my ear, making me jump back.

Clearing my throat, I said, "So we're kinda dying then."

"I don't get it." Dallas rubbed a hand over his neck. "The last thing I remember is him jumping toward me, but not the pain or the knife in my gut."

"The dude had reflexes like Bruce Lee. We didn't even know what hit us." I shot him a weak grin. Time to change the subject. "I should've given him the purse, but the way you stood up for me was amazing. I'll never forget that."

He inched closer and pressed his lips against my forehead. "I'd do it again if I had to. I'm not going to let anything happen to the most precious thing in the world."

I bit my lip so I wouldn't gush out words of undying love. His words definitely struck a chord with me.

He pondered for a moment as if still contemplating the situation. I could almost see his brain putting two and two together.

That's when reality finally struck. "But why us? Why today? I'm too young to die," Dallas said. I knew the self-satisfaction of standing up against a criminal wouldn't last long.

"It must be fate. Maybe a higher calling." I reached for his hand and pulled. He stood his ground.

"What are you doing?" he asked. "We can't leave."

"Why not?"

"Because we have to wait for the white light to tell us what to do next." He looked so convinced, I almost laughed.

I motioned to the sky. "Don't you think if there was a white light, it'd have arrived already?"

"Maybe it got held up at the traffic lights." He grinned. "I get your point. Where do you want to go then?"

I shrugged. "Don't know. Let's head down the street."

"One would think once dead you shouldn't feel the smouldering heat. I'm going to suffocate soon." He paused for effect. "Wait, I can't because I'm already dead."

"We're still bound to the physical plane, which means we feel what our bodies feel."

"Great." Dallas started walking down the street. I followed a step behind. "I still think someone should be here to greet us," he muttered. "Like my dead aunt Mildred. Bless her soul."

He was one tough guy to figure out. I thought going on a fast paced murder chase might be more his thing. If I knew meeting the clichéd blond angel clad in a white nightgown with a halo on his head meant so much to him, I would've arranged that instead. I was glad to find he wasn't freaked out though. He clearly had potential as my boyfriend, what with being Lucifer's daughter and all.

"We're supposed to do something before someone greets us," I said.

"Catching the culprit, I thought we figured that out already."

"Maybe." I pointed at the closest road sign, white with neon green letters. "That's a weird name for a street."

"Where?" Dallas stopped and followed my line of vision. "Lovers Bay."

"There's two of us. Maybe it's an indicator to head that way."

"If you think so," he said.

We turned right into a narrow alley with a patch of green grass and tall trees to both sides. Dark leaves swayed in the soft breeze.

The three-story apartment buildings looked well-maintained but deserted. A couple walked past, ignoring us.

"They didn't see us either." I peered at Dallas to catch his reaction.

He ignored my remark and pointed at another neon street sign a few feet to the right. "Otherworld this way—two together. That's strange."

"I think it's a message." We crossed the street and stopped in front of it.

"What's it supposed to say?" Dallas asked.

"No idea." I rolled my eyes behind his back.

It's called denial,
Kinky said, appearing on my shoulder.
He
doesn't want to see it, which reveals a lot about his attitude toward
you and your relationship.

"Hush," I mouthed silently, figuring not everyone's wired to know exactly when and how they want to get married. "Come on." I pulled Dallas through another side street until we reached a park and stopped under a tree, a few inches away from a bench. I scanned the place to make sure no one was around, but Ginny had done a great job here too.

Two tiny birds chirped from the branch above us. "Aren't they cute?" I whispered.

"What?" Dallas looked up, frowning. "Oh, you're talking about the birds. Don't make a hasty move so they don't fly over our heads and leave us a present in our hair."

The boy has no romantic bone in his body.

"The way they snuggle up to each other, they look so happy," I said, unfazed by Pinky's remark. The birds flew away, landing on top of another sign in the distance. "I think they want us to follow."

Dallas groaned. "You don't believe in a white angelic light, but you think a couple of birds are some sort of clue."

I playfully nudged him in the ribs to get his attention and pointed at a tree with low-hanging branches which looked in dire need of some water. "What does the sign over there say?"

"Otherworldly retreat. Enter here. Honourable couples only."

Squinting, Dallas spun around in a slow circle. "We are a couple. That should be our entrance, but I don't see anything."

I shook my head. "Technically, we aren't a couple since we haven't even kissed."

"Let's do it then." He pulled me to his chest, knocking the breath out of my lungs. There was barely time to blink before his lips lowered onto mine. The air around us crackled, a hot flush travelled up my body, making my head spin. His lips were smooth as they caressed mine, pressing gently, while his hands cupped my face, drawing me closer. My knees threatened to buckle under me. The earth seemed to quake beneath our feet, making my head spin.

Why do we need to see this?
Pinky squealed.

Yes, get a room
, Kinky yelled into my eardrum.

I broke free from Dallas's embrace and cleared my throat, beaming. Dallas's cheeks were on fire, the glint in his eyes told me he found our kiss just as special as I did.

"Do you think we'll get in now?" he asked.

"Don't know. We can try. What are we looking for anyway?"

"A door or portal, maybe a boat."

I raised my brows, but didn't comment.

A boat?
Kinky laughed.
Unless it runs on wheels, he'll have to
pull it into Heaven himself.

"Where is it?" Dallas felt the air for a door. "We're a couple, so why can't we get in?"

"Maybe there's another requirement," I prompted.

"What could it be?"

Sensing it might take a while, I dropped down on the grass, leaning my back against a tree, and peered at the empty houses in the distance from the direction we'd just come from. At this speed, I'd be stuck with Dad for the rest of my life.