Bis landed between Al and me, his wings spread to look bigger since he was too cold to melt snow. "Al!" I shouted, moving forward until Bis hissed at me. "What are you doing?"

Al peered over his smoked glasses at us, his red, goat-slitted eyes delighted. "Getting a better apartment," he drawled, sniffing at Bis in warning.

Oh shit. "Al, you've got to stop doing this," I said, pulse hammering as I shot a glance at the church, but no one was at the windows. "Snatching people talking to me is not fair!"

Al smiled to show his thick, blocky teeth. "So?"

Pierce struggled, his hat falling from him, to vanish before it hit the snow. "Give this no mind, mistress witch," he gasped, face red and feet trying to find the ground. "This seven-by-nine demon is of no circumstance. I'll be—"

Al jerked his arm, cutting off Pierce's words, and I winced. "Busy," the demon said. "You're going to be busy." Eyes on mine, Al ran his hand suggestively under Pierce's coat, and the small man jerked.

"Hey!" I shouted, but Bis wouldn't let me get closer, pacing a line in the snow, his wings spread and placing his feet with an odd stiffness. "Let him go. This isn't fair. We need to set up some rules about you popping in and snagging people. I mean it!"

"You mean it?" Al laughed, shifting his grip until Pierce grunted and went still. "Looks like I don't need my name to find familiars after all," he crooned.

The thought of Pierce on the demon auction block was like ice down my back, but that Al might start popping in whenever he felt like it and snag whoever was with me was absolutely terrifying. "No way," I said, starting to get angry. "I am not going to be your bait. Let him go. If you want him, you catch him the old-fashioned way, but I won't be used like this. Got it, goat eyes?"

I was so pissed I could have screamd. Pierce looked pained at my words, but Al simply laughed again. "Use you as bait? Capital idea!" the demon cooed, then grimaced at Bis, still stalking back and forth between us. "The thought never occurred to me. I simply saw something I wanted and took it." His eyes narrowed. "It's what I do."

"He's worthless!" I exclaimed, almost stomping my foot and not believing him. "Pierce is a ghost. He can't tap a line. You're doing this to irritate me. Let him go!"

A slow smile grew on Al's face, and he fondled the hair about Pierce's ear, making him stiffen. "You don't know who this is, do you," Al said, sending a chill of doubt through me; he was far too satisfied. "There are curses that can cure that tiny little problem of all spirit and no body, and this piece of witchcrap…" Al gave Pierce a shake. "This one here? He is worth a little extra time in the kitchen. It's just a matter of finding the right curse. He's the golden boy, the one who got away, and he's going to pay my bills for the next thirty years."

I clenched my hands, cold in their gloves. Pierce had a history with demons? Damn it! "You know him?" I said, my words a white mist. It would explain why Pierce was so good with ley lines. But he was so nice. He was so…normal!

"I do not practice demonology!" Pierce exclaimed. "Let me go directly, you maggot-ridden piece of sheep liver, or you will suffer a powerful defeat. You're of no circumstance. A second-rate—"

Al flexed his arm, and Pierce choked. "I never managed to actually find this one before," Al said, regaining his usual supercilious air though Pierce dug at his fingers around his throat. "But I've heard of him, itchy witch. Everyone has heard of Gordian Nathaniel Pierce. He almost killed Newt, which is why I'm going to make enough money off him that you can keep my summoning name for the next decade. Someone will pay big for him." His voice lowered. "Even if they do nothing but poke at him."

Not a demon practitioner, but a demon killer, I thought with a weird sense of tense relief. Even Bis looked relieved. I looked at the church, but still, no movement. "Al, you can't take people talking to me," I said, and when Al laughed, I blurted, "Then I'll buy him!"

Bis turned to me with wide eyes, and even Pierce opened his mouth to protest, grunting when Al jerked him. "Not on your soul," the demon crooned, pulling Pierce close until the man's lips pressed together defiantly and his eyes gleamed in hate. "Well, maybe…," Al mused, then shook his head. "No, not even on your soul," he affirmed. "I won't sell him to you. Despite that witch-class ceiling he has, he's more dangerous than you right now. He's at his peak. Besides, how many nasty little men do you need for your familiars?" he said lightly, looking at Bis. "He's a bad man who likes to try to kill demons."

"I'm not a demon," I said, my voice trembling, and Al's eyes narrowed.

"I am," he intoned. "Consider your night off as a thank-you for luring him to me, itchy witch. Your lessons are canceled until further notice. I'm going to be busy for a while."

"Al!" I shouted as they started to go misty. "Don't you walk away from me!"

Smiling at me from over his glasses, Al shook his head. "You're not in control, Rachel. I am. Of everything."

Furious, I shouted, "You're abusing your right to check on me, and you know it! Give him back and stop abducting people I'm with, or so help me I'm going to…to…"

Al hesitated, and I started to shake. "Do what?" he asked, and Pierce closed his eyes in misery. "You can't draw on a line until your aura heals, and I'm not fixing it for you." Glancing at Bis, he edged forward until the gargoyle hissed. "You're helpless, Rachel Mariana Morgan."

I dropped back, stymied. Damn it, using all three of my names was a warning, probably the only one I'd ever get. If I summoned him I might get my way, but I'd lose what little respect he'd given me and be back to being treated like a demon summoner. And I liked the respect he'd been granting me, little as it was. I enjoyed not having to fear every time the air pressure shifted. Though the parties in the ever-after were a pain in the ass, Al's kitchen was peaceful. I didn't want that to end. But his abducting of people was going to stop.

"This is not over," I vowed, trembling from frustration. "We are going to settle this, and you're going to let him go!"

"How, itchy witch?" he scoffed.

My expression twisted as I searched for an answer that wasn't there.

Seeing me without words, Al jerked Pierce up, almost off his feet. "Don't call me. I'll call you," he said, and he and Pierce vanished.

Heart pounding, I stared where he had been. "Damn it back to the Turn!" I shouted. Frustrated, I spun to the church, but there was nothing to help me there. The lights were bright, spilling out over the silent snow. Snatching up my bag and scrying mirror, I stomped to the back door, grabbing the cookies at the last moment. Al was going to be busy with Pierce for a while, but until I settled this, everyone with me was a potential target.

This was so not what I needed.