Eddie had found the room where they kept the drugs relatively easy. Sneaking inside was even easier. But finding the right drug, the one that would put his friend to sleep was quite the challenge. If they had been in the US there wouldn't be any problem. He already knew many drugs due to his past, but here in Europe the drugs were different.

He checked the corridor outside just to make sure that no one was around and turned his attention to the cabinets. He didn't want to turn on the lights so picking the lock and reading the stickers on the bottles became such a hard task. He wanted to curse, but after dealing with evil itself cursing would never be the same for him.

Fifteen minutes had passed and he still hadn't found a sedative. He was thankful however that he was in England and not in Italy, Germany or some other country whose language was as foreign to him as Chinese. Finally he opened the last cabinet and after a careful search he found a small brown bottle that read "Amobarbital". From he could read this liquid was a strong narcotic capable of putting one man to sleep for hours. The problem was that it had to be injected intravenously. He grabbed one syringe and after checking the corridor once more he left, letting out a sigh of relief.

Now… on with the hard part.

He walked to Rey's room. He would have lingered more in the corridor thinking of whether he ought to enter or not, but the sound of footsteps around the corner urged him inside. He closed the door behind him and stood in the darkness of room, sweating and holding firmly the drug in his hand. He walked towards the bed to check on his friend. Rey was turned to his side, sleeping calmly. There was some blood on the bandages from the wounds but still he was not awake.

Eddie was thankful for that. But he still had to prepare. He took the syringe and drew out some of the sedative.

"Eddie? Is that you?"

Rey's voice startled him and he almost dropped the syringe. He had to remain calm. He couldn't let him see the fear. He smiled bitterly.

"Yeah… it's me mighty mouse. Sorry if I scared you. I just wanted to see if you are alright… go… go back to sleep…"

Rey sat up and looked at Eddie. And the Latino Heat looked back. It looked like the normal man he knew so many years ago.

"What happened? Why am I in here?"

Eddie took one step closer, hiding the needle behind his back, reluctant to use it. Doubt of the things that had taken place some hours ago appeared and he hoped for one moment that the evil one had left his dear friend. He dared hope. The look into Rey's big innocent eyes increased the doubt more. They were shining brightly in the dark, shining the way they have always been.

"You had an accident… but it's alright… you'll be fine…"

Rey just stared at his friend completely lost.

"I don't understand… last thing I remember was sleeping in Dave's room… then…"

A shiver ran down his spine. There was something wrong… he could feel it. Something had happened in that room, but he just couldn't remember. He had a feeling that he should remember, that he had done something bad, except it somehow escaped him. He felt ashamed and weak and he just couldn't focus.

"Where is Dave?"

"He… he is missing… that's part why you are here… they found you in his room wounded and stabbed, and he was last seen running with blood on him…"

His eyes shone like millions of stars hearing these words.

"What?" he only managed to whisper. He turned his gaze away from Eddie. He couldn't bare his sight. The feeling of shame and evil inside him amplified. When he dared look again, the shine was gone from his eyes, and a kind of darkness was beginning to spread. Eddie's heart broke into millions of pieces when he saw Rey in tears. He never could stand seeing Rey sad. A person so joyful, so happy and alive was destined always to laugh, never to cry.

"Eddie… what did I do?"

"No, no, no… homez… you did nothing wrong… nothing…" and he stepped closer to his bed. Without thinking he placed the needle on the nightstand and sat beside him. He touched his shoulder trying to provide some comfort. But the spark in his eyes was gone. He just knew he couldn't give him any soothing words. Rey had bent his head low avoiding eye contact with his best friend.

"What's happening to me?" he mumbled. "I feel like I am loosing it. There are black holes in my memory… I wake up in places and I can't remember how I got there… I have these feelings without knowing the reason… and… and I try… I really try to understand… but I can't…"

Rey looked up at him with real fear mirroring in his gaze.

"Eddie… I have these images in my head and I don't know if they are real… horrible images… that I can't forget… and… I feel so alone… scared… and hopeless."

Eddie just hugged him and Rey just surrendered to his embrace.

"You are not alone Oscar… you will never be alone… I am always here with you… always… I am never going to leave your side… whatever happens…"

Rey squeezed tighter and shut down his eyes.

"We'll get through this together Rey Rey… Help is coming…"

Without breaking their embrace, Rey flashed his eyes open wide, in surprise. Eddie did not see the crazed glare flaming wildly.

"Help?"

"Yes… Adam is coming… and Mark…"

"Mark? Undertaker?"

"Yes… he says he knows a way to help you."

Rey broke the embrace and just looked at his friend. Eddie sensed that something had changed those past few seconds but still kept his hope.

But evil knows many ways to deceive man. Rey's face softened once again chasing away Eddie's doubts.

"I'm cold…" he whispered.

"I'll go get you a blanket" Eddie offered but before he could stand up Rey stopped him.

"Just hold me. I think I am more scared than anything else. Just stay with me until they come."

Again Eddie could not resist his friend's pleading eyes. He sat back and put his arms around him, trying to warm him up a little. And he was surprised to feel him grow so cold so quickly. A few seconds ago, Rey's body heat wasn't so low.

Then all hell broke loose.

He never really understood when the change happened. Maybe all this time Rey wasn't himself but Asmodai just playing tricks.

Whatever the reason, Eddie was startled to feel Rey's hands wrap around his neck and squeezing firmly all the air out of him. When he looked again into his friend's eyes, he knew then that he had been careless. And Rey's grip was so strong… unnaturally strong… and he just kept squeezing more and more…

Eddie was haunted by that evil, sarcastic grin of malice in Rey's face. He was enjoying this… he loved how slowly he drained the life out of him. Eddie's head spun and he began to see black spots dance in front of him as he felt Rey's tongue tracing its way across his lips, trying to sneak a kiss… a kiss of death.

Then he gathered all the strength he had and with his right had gave a rough punch straight into Rey's left ear causing him to loose his balance and drop on the floor holding his head.

It took a few moments to get a grip but when he came to, Rey was laying on the floor, blood dripping from his punched ear. But he still had that grin on his face. Eddie just couldn't stand it at all. He lunged at him and started punching him violently, all the while Rey was laughing hysterically…

'Stop laughing… stop laughing… stop laughing…' he thought, but Asmodai was not going to give him that satisfaction. He had many tricks up his sleeve left…

Eddie unable to bear this laughter put his strong hands around Rey's neck and started choking him the way he had done so not long ago. The laughter vanished from his lips as air was swiftly running short. Tears sprung from the corners of his eyes and that same pleading look appeared again on his face.

"My bro…ther… what… are… you… doing?" Rey gasped with much effort.

Eddie could not help himself; he could not stop his immediate reaction to these words. He felt suddenly so ashamed that he momentarily withdrew his hands from his hold.

And that's only what Asmodai needed. He had played his wicked trick and it had worked like a charm. If this worked on Eddie then he could only guess the effect it would have on Adam… With lightning speed, he lifted his hands and pushed his thumbs into his eyes. As Eddie fell backwards hitting his head on the bed stand, Rey got on top of him.

He smiled again sardonically, and panting leaned over his ear and with an eerie low gargling satanic voice gave his reply.

"This is why you are not going to win... the angel is mine…" and licked his ear.

Eddie felt his stomach churn and he wanted to cry. He turned away his eyes not wanting to meet those of Rey. If this was going to be the end for him, he preferred not look into the eyes of evil.

Then he saw it. There it was, on floor, knocked down by Eddie from the nightstand… the needle filled with the drug. With one last attempt he reached out his hand. But he felt nothing but the cold floor.

No… Asmodai wouldn't end him so easily.

He gathered all he had left in him and reached again. His heart skipped one beat when his fingers grabbed the syringe. He took it in his palm and shouting his lungs out he stuck it fiercely on Rey's bare smooth neck.

The effect was instantaneous. Rey's eyes rolled back and he fell flat on the floor like a piece of wood, his eyes eerily open wide. Eddie shivered thinking how dead he looked. He tried to breathe normally again. Remembering all the noise they had made, he figured that a nurse would be coming soon, so he picked up Rey's body and placed it back on the bed. As soon as he finished, the door swung open and a nurse walked it a bit alarmed.

"Sir, is everything alright? I heard some noise."

In the dim light of the room, she didn't notice Eddie's breathlessness, the bruises or the cuts on his face. He hid in the shadows well.

"Yeah… it's fine… I just tripped on the nightstand a dropped a few things…sorry about the disturbance."

The nurse took a quick glance in the room. The patient had his back turned on her and seemed heavily asleep. Everything looked fine. She pouted.

"Alright. But if you are going to spend the night in here you better keep it quiet or I will have security escort you out. Got that?"

"Yes miss…" Eddie replied giving his best to sound like an obedient child.

When the door closed, Eddie leaned against the wall and sighed audibly. His knees gave out though and he felt his body slide down the wall. There in the half darkness, in absolute silence, all he did was lift up his head and watch Rey and he felt hopelessness and desolation cumulating. He was genuinely afraid, but this fear was far beyond anything he had felt this far. And it was because they had to deal with an entity, a situation surpassing the borders of the human realm and reaching deep into the bowels of the abyss itself. It was very difficult to see his best friend, almost a brother, change into something 'unnatural', watch him change from a loving happy man into evil itself. How could he change his feelings for him? If things got to the extreme, how would he deal with it? He couldn't stop loving him… couldn't stop caring for him…

He kept looking at Rey, lying on the bed, heavily sedated; with millions of thoughts and memories passing through his mind all at the same time; and so many of them had to do with the small luchador. He remembered once, a few years back, when Eddie was having problems with alcohol, one night he had gotten so drunk that he had lost all touch with reality. He could recall taking the first of many drinks at a bar downtown but that's it. After that he didn't remember getting up from his stool let alone leaving the bar. Everything became a shadow, a silent mist hovering in front of him blurring his senses. When he came to, he was laying in a bed the world spinning around him wildly making him want to puke. A hand was touching his shoulder. Eddie didn't have the strength to see who it was but this touch was so soothing, comforting and caring.

'It's alright bro… you'll be ok…' he had heard Rey's familiar voice whisper in his ear.

Rey had walked into that bar looking for him that night. After the house show, he had spent three hours searching all the bars around the arena area for his friend worried. When he had found him, Eddie was already seriously wasted. Rey had tried to get through to him but it was like talking to a brick wall. Eddie didn't respond to his pleas and he was carried by the small man back to the hotel room. There Eddie had passed out cold. He had no idea how long he had been out nor how much he had to drink but it had to be a lot because waking up hurt too much.

Eddie had tried to speak but again his pain had stopped him. Rey's voice had sounded again.

'Don't talk… just rest… sleep…' and his hand caressed Eddie's sweating forehead lulling back to sleep.

Tonight, years later after that incident Eddie realized he hadn't thanked Rey for that night. He had carried his sorry ass back to the hotel and he had taken care of him without snitching him out. And that would have meant serious trouble for the Latino Heat. And Rey was too discreet to remind Eddie. He had stayed with him until morning and he had left a few minutes before he had woken up.

This memory was just an example of Rey's strong character, loyalty and love towards the people he liked to call his family. So how could he even consider of killing him now when he had all this affection for him?

And at that moment, sitting in silence, in the dark, alone, he swore to God never to allow anybody harm Rey… anybody… not even his friends… not even when all other solutions failed save one… he wouldn't let them kill him, not if he had a say in the matter. Whatever this devil was, he wouldn't let him kill his family…