The next day, I met up with Thea and, unexpectedly, Seb. She’d been giving him some instruction, I suspected.

At least in staying alive and not getting caught up in other people’s stings. But the first words out of her mouth were, “Still having demon problems?”

I nodded. “Maybe I should start carrying holy water and spritz him like a misbehaving cat.”

Seb laughed. “I could get you some easily enough.”

The thought was genuinely tempting. The image of Martin as a grumpy cat even more so. Actually, I was now envisioning the Grumpy Cat meme with horns and a forked tail and wishing I had more drawing talent.

“What’s so funny?”

“I’m imagining the Grumpy Cat as a demon,” I admitted.

Seb grinned and pulled out a piece of paper, starting to sketch quickly. While he worked, I turned to Thea. “Any suggestions for cooling his ardor? The more I play hard to get, the harder he tries.”

“That’s males for you. And if he only wanted a roll in the hay…I have some ideas for getting him convinced he doesn’t really. But…”

“He’s determined to get me and he wants to keep me.” Much harder to deal with, I was starting to realize, than just wanting in my pants. “He may not go away.”

“Banishing him is going to take more work than those succubi,” Thea mused.

“I can put up with him for a while. I’m mostly worried he’ll hurt anyone he thinks I might be interested in.” Which didn’t even mean I had to actually be interested in them. I was no fool on that front. He’d hurt Kanesha, he’d try and fail to hurt Thea. He might even hurt Barry.

“Good point. Seb, can you talk to Father William about it? See if he has a good idea.” Then she turned to me. “Loki have any thoughts?”

“None, really, but he did walk me home after the shoot last night.” I laughed. “I feel as if my virtue’s safer with a trickster deity who’s been known to sleep with horses.”

Thea laughed back. “Difference is he isn’t hitting on you.”

“I almost find that insulting.” But I also sensed…there was a thought I was shying away from. “Kanesha thinks I have some close connection to him.”

Shying away from indeed. “But that’s besides the point. Martin, or whatever his name is, is the real…”

“His name.”

“The Black Book is at the cathedral.” We’d had the same thought at the same time. “Seb, do you think Father William can get me access to it?”

“We can try.”

If I could discover his name, if I could work out which demon he was, we could banish him. Or maybe do the supernatural equivalent of a restraining order.

I needed that book.