Burn

CHAPTER 3

TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions domestic abuse
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Fifteen minutes later, Carter and Margo were sitting on the corner of a run-down street in front of a small convenience store, sharing a bag of hot chips.

This is strange, Carter thought for the eighth time since his confrontation with Margo, eyeing her warily from the corner of his peripheral.

Only, it wasn't strange in the way that was expected.

Granted, it was unusual that Margo could see Ryu when no one but Carter was supposed to.

But what was stranger was the surprising comradery Carter and Margo had already established. He thought it'd be awkward, especially since she knew about Ryu. And even before Ryu, Carter hadn't had any friends. But now this strange girl with dark eyes and a solemn face was sitting beside, worn trainers tucked beneath her as she chewed contentedly on a handful of chips.

"So," Margo said suddenly, breaking Carter from his thoughts. She reached for another chip and then wiped her hands across the front of her thighs. "I suppose we should talk about...this." She gestured to Ryu, who was sitting sullenly on Carter's other side and watching Margo with a distrustful glare.

Carter shrugged and stared at the sidewalk beneath his feet. "I guess." He wasn't particularly eager to discuss Ryu, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't have questions of his own.

How could Margo see Ryu?

As if sensing his thoughts, Margo straightened and began wrapping a strand of long black hair around one finger. "I've been able to see them since I was little," she murmured, her own eyes downcast as she spoke. "Demons, that is."

Carter sucked in a surprised breath. "You can see demons?"

"Yeah." Margo shrugged, but it was obvious how uncomfortable the topic made her. "I used to live with my Grandma when I was young, and she had this...old clock." Her nose wrinkled at the memory. "It would attract...unsavoury creatures."

Ryu stiffened, clearly offended. "Are you calling me unsavoury?" he demanded irritably.

Margo turned to stare at him, and Carter was again struck with the jarring knowledge that someone else could see Ryu.

"These demons were...unkind. They tried to tempt me into wicked deals," Margo explained, always in that soft, unassuming voice of hers. Everything about her suggested a desire to remain unattended and alone, and if her first day at Riverside was anything to go on, most people seemed to oblige. "Since those, I have not seen many demons throughout my life. I went on a ghost tour when I was on vacation a few years ago, and I met one in the empty corridor of an abandoned house. It'd been trapped there for years, and it was lonely. But I haven't seen any since."

Carter nodded thoughtfully as he traced the cracks in the sidewalk with his index finger. "Ryu tells me demons don't often hang around with humans."

He shot Ryu an inquisitive frown, and the demon merely scoffed. "Not if we can help it."

"Which makes this situation so strange for me," Margo interjected, meeting Carter's eyes for the first time since they'd sat down on the curb. Her eyes were just as unnerving as Ryu's, sharp and intense, forever alert, forever watching. "I've never...I've never seen a demon with a human before. Not like this."

Carter opened his mouth, a million thoughts circling though his mind, but Ryu cut him off before he could utter a sound.

"Carter's desperately in love with me."