Convoke - Chapter 10: Chapter 10

Tom stormed up the verge and climbed through the bush. Cal's dad, Andy, gripped Tom by the shoulders. "Are you okay?" he asked with wide eyes.
"I am, thanks to him!" Tom yelled, motioned towards Ezra who was rubbing dirt from his hands. Andy looked at the barbed wire demon mark across his neck, and his brows bent together. "You could have seriously injured me. I could have totally been killed from the speed you were driving!"
"I know, I'm so sorry. Tom seriously, I'm so sorry!"
Tom wanted to yell, but Andy's eyes had started to water. The hands that gripped his shoulders were trembling. He was just as spooked too. Tom sighed and accepted the hug Andy kept trying to give him. "You need to stop speeding. You'll end up in prison or in a coffin. Think of Cal."
"This is my wake-up call." Andy blinked back his shock and turned to Ezra who had climbed out of the ditch and stood patiently by the side of the road. Andy extended a hand towards him. "Thank you, I am so grateful that you were nearby. Thank you so much for helping Tom."
Tom studied him now that his hood was down, and he could see his face. But Ezra kept his expressions hidden and shook his hand.
"It's not the first time you've nearly ran me over," Tom said, running a hand through his brown hair. "The risk is not work the minutes you're saving by driving at that speed. If you're wanting adrenaline, take up an extreme sport or something."
"No more speeding," Andy said. "I promise." He hugged Tom again before getting back in his car. Tom and Ezra watched him drive away slowly, until he was out of sight and the engine was a distant hum in the quiet countryside.
Tom turned around, looking up at Ezra who was standing with his hood down and hands buried into his denim jacket. The dull orange streetlight was the only light source around. "Thank you," Tom said, circling Ezra's handsome face with grateful eyes. "You really did just save my life."
Ezra awkwardly looked away. "It's ok," he mumbled before shrugging.
Tom smiled at the softness of his voice and pointed up the road. "I was just going to Berry Pond. Do you want to come?"
"You should go home. Demons went this way not long before you left the pub."
Tom raised a brow. "Were you following me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"A new moon is coming."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Violence."
"Demons are more violent on a new moon?"
"We're more easily angered, and humans are more provocative."
Tom looked at his demon mark. Black barbed wire tattoos wrapped around is neck four times. Each row had sharply pointed barbs all along the wires. "You handle your anger well, though," Tom complimented.
"Every day, I see demon's die who spill human blood. I don't want that for myself."
"Have you always been a soul stripper?" Tom pursed his lips. Curiosity had got the better of him.
"No." The intensity returned to Ezra's large dark eyes, expecting Tom to ask more.
Tom felt that the next question would be too personal. They didn't yet know each other well enough, and he didn't want to make Ezra uncomfortable, especially now that they were getting familiar with one another. But he desperately wanted to know why Ezra became a soul stripper. Maybe one day he would ask him if he stuck around for long enough. "So, you're here to investigate the rise in violence. What was the thing you said about something happening here twice that-"
"Doesn't matter," Ezra interrupted. "All you need to know is that your pub won't always be like that. There's something going on and I'll find out why. The less people who know the better."
Tom didn't understand what could be making people more violent. It wasn't just the moon. Humans hated demons every day of the month. Maybe the hate was a phase, and it would die out as quickly as an internet trend. Tom had a feeling that Ezra wasn't telling him much for a reason.
"I won't tell anyone," he promised. "Whatever it is, I hope you get to the bottom of it quickly. I'm sick of the fighting." Tom gently touched the bridge of his tender nose.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"I will be. I just need ice on it."
"And rest," Ezra added. "I'll walk you home."
"Oh, you don't have to do that. I'm sure I'll be fine."
"But if you're not, how will I get my books?"
Tom scoffed, and Ezra's intense expression was softening. "Would you still have pushed me out of the way of the car if I wasn't doing you a favour?"
"Maybe."
Tom chuckled. "I suppose that maybe is enough for me." He looked back down the dark road. "Come on then." They walked side by side. Tom had never felt safer walking in the night with a demon. Ezra had just saved his life and had saved him from other demons several times before.
As they approached the pub, Tom found himself saying thank you again. Ezra looked down at him. The distant glow from the pub lit up his face in a soft yellow glow. His expression was diluted, and gentle. His full lips slightly shaped in a silent 'it's fine'. Tom enjoyed being able to see his features, rather than guessing them. "You should have your hood down more often," Tom said, realising that might've sounded a little flirty. "I just think you shouldn't hide yourself," he added, hoping that sounded friendlier.
Ezra looked away and reached for his hood. Tom had made him shy, so he quickly rested a hand on his arm and said, "No, don't. People can still tell that you're a demon whether you hide yourself or not."
"It's not that I'm hiding being a demon," Ezra said quietly, looking at Tom's hand touching his arm. "I'm hiding from the disgusted expressions when people realise who I am."
"I'm so sorry you have to live like that." Tom's heart ached for him.
Ezra's dark eyes locked with his. "I come back to your pub because I feel welcome." He paused and lowered his arms. "I'll think about removing my hood next time."
Tom took back his hand with a warm smile. "Will that be tomorrow? I'm working from eleven till six. Maybe we can have a drink together after my shift." Tom realised that did sound flirty. Or maybe it only sounded flirty to him because Ezra was strong, tall, and handsome. "We can show the locals we really do mean it when we say that demons are welcome."
"Maybe," Ezra said, stepping away and looking up at the cloudy sky. Instead of disappearing immediately, he looked back at Tom and curtly nodded . . . then he left.
Tom assumed that was a silent goodbye. Progress, he thought before walking up the path. He braced himself before entering the pub. His parents and his older sister sat around a table, now with two empty glasses each, and full glasses in their hands.
"Has Gerry finally pissed off?" Tom asked, joining them at the table.
Moira looked him up and down. "What the hell happened to you?"
Tom tugged at his light brown hoodie that was muddy with bits of grass stuck to it. His mother pulled out grass from his hair. "Oh, Andy almost ran me over," he said, pinching a sip of his dad's beer. "The soul stripper pushed me out of the way. If he didn't, I would have been in the hospital from that speed. Or dead. I've never seen Andy look so freaked out. He hugged me, twice. It was uncomfortable." Tom stole a sip of his mum's wine and screwed up his face. "The demon walked me back to the pub." He eyed his sister's drink from across the table, and decided it looked too fruity to bother. Everyone was staring at him with mouths ajar. Tom shrugged from their surprise. "Anyway, I'm off to bed. I've had enough drama for one day."
On his way upstairs, he heard his mum say, "What the fuck is wrong with the people in this town?"
The next day, while Tom was stacking a mixture of glasses and plastic cups under the bar, a deep voice said, "Strongbow, please." Tom recognised that voice. He smiled while nobody could see him, then composed himself as he stood up.
"Hey," he greeted Ezra with a much more relaxed expression. He double glanced because his hood was down, and the cloth that usually covered his demon mark was gone. Ezra wore a black t-shirt. His hoodie was slung over his shoulder. As Tom poured his pint, he whispered a soft, "Well done."
Ezra's eyes, as rich as the earths soil, were looking at him with warm gratitude. Now that Tom could see his expression, he was surprised by how timidly Ezra looked around. For a demon so tall and muscular, and with an intimidating presence, his shyness was unexpected. Tom had thought his bluntness and quiet nature was a brooding personality. But really, Ezra was nervous.
Tom didn't blame him, especially when half of the village would quite happily smash a glass over his head for no reason. "Drinks are on the house for you today." When Ezra frowned and opened his mouth, Tom quickly added, "No arguing."
Ezra curtly nodded and Tom wondered if that was a silent 'thank you'. Ezra settled himself into the corner of the pub with the book Tom had gotten him yesterday from the library. He sat there for hours, unprovoked because each local who entered were warned that they would be immediately banned if they tried winding him up.
As Tom was watching him read, he wondered whether he should tell Ezra that he could get more than one book out at a time, and that he didn't have to devour the pages quite so quickly.
"You may as well be drooling," a voice said, and Tom turned to see Cal leaning against the bar. His blond hair was up in a bun and his green parker coat was zipped all the way up to his chin.
"Shut up."
"Hello to you too." Cal sat on a stool and asked for a pint of Birra Moretti.
"Are you going to pay for it this time?"
"This time yeah. I've just been paid, which means you're gonna have to put up with my beautiful face for the rest of your shift."
"Lucky me," Tom muttered, but smiled when he placed the beer in front of him.
Cal gulped half of it in fifteen seconds. Tom chuckled, shaking his head. He was looking forwards to a shift where his best friend was the local entertainment, until Cal leaned closer and said, "So then, how's it going between you and the muscly shadow over there?" He pointed to Ezra. "You're right, he is good looking."