A/N: Wicked short chapter, but here it is. As always, read, review, enjoy!

Chapter 9

Lihn woke up and stretched. Her hand hit something warm and soft, cracking an eyelid, she saw Russel's sleeping form. So much for taking it slow. she told herself. They'd spent the evening talking over drinks in the ruckus room. Russel told her how he'd met Murdoc and 2-D. "My first encounter with Murdoc was probably when the bag went over my head." he chuckled, "I was working at Big Rick Black's record shack. He asked me for some obscure record I barely remembered hearin' about. As soon as I turned my back he slipped the sack over my head and bundled me out of the shop. I nearly killed him when he let me loose a Kong, but he played me some stuff and I could tell he knew what he was talking bout." the big man shrugged, "so I stayed." Then he told her about Noodle's arrival at the studio, matching the scene she'd seen playing in his head the day she'd met him. He smiled a lot when he spoke of Noodle, like a proud parent. He'd told her how talented the girl was, how they shared a love of video games and pizza. She took note when he mentioned that she'd started having nightmares when they were on they're last tour. He chalked it up to being over worked, but Lihn had her own suspicions, and planed to ask the girl about it herself.

But right now all she wanted to think about was the warm body next to her. She rolled onto her side to face him and noticed the ghostly figure standing by the bed glaring at her. She frowned in disappointment. "Have a good night?" he asked sarcastically.

"Sorry you missed it?" she asked grinning at him. She rolled the other way and got out of the bed, not bothering to cover her nakedness. "You did miss it, didn't you?" she cocked an eyebrow. He looked indignant, "Course I did. I ain't no pervert." he didn't prove his point by letting his eyes travel down her body, but suddenly he turned his ghostly head toward the corner of the room. "D'you see dat?" "Yes. I did." Lihn answered as she pulled her skirt up. A shadowy figure had darted out of the wall and through another. It was smaller than Noodle but humanoid shaped. "Let us look for it." She pulled her shirt on and started for the door but stopped when Del didn't move. "Kinasai!" she caught herself, "I mean, come with me."

The ghostly young man looked uncertain. "I can't go to far from Rus." Lihn looked more closely using her 'special' vision. "I see no tether…"

"S'not that, I jus… if I run inta the Collector and I'm too far away…"

Lihn looked at him sympathetically. "You know it will not matter." she walked around the bed and touched his arm, it felt cool under her warm skin. "If He finds you, Russel cannot stop him." she took his hand and looked him seriously, "But I can. Kinasai." she tugged his hand and led him from the room. They walked down the hallway, Lihn letting her intuition guide her. She turned the two corners that took her to the front of the house, where her and Noodle's rooms were. It was also were the library doors were and the small Asian-looking woman felt herself drawn toward the large double doors.

"I think it's in there." Del confirmed her feeling nodding toward the ornate doors. They were headed toward them when Lihn sensed someone approaching. She wasn't sure why but she felt the urge to hide. "Someone's coming!" she said quietly and pulled the ghost through her bedroom door. Once on the other side, she opened it a crack so that she could peek out. The library doors opened and Murdoc swanned out followed by his, now usual, entourage. He surreptitiously glanced down the hallway, presumably to check for on-lookers. None of his crowd noticed the glance as they fought for attention. One fellow in particular caught Lihn's eye, and not just because he was a midget. And not because of the Jesus-like beard either. He had a strange vibe to him. "Who is that?" Lihn whispered. She watched as the group of people headed out of her sight and down the stairs. "Did you see that guy?" she asked turning toward her companion.

He was staring at her, his expression unreadable. "How'd you do that?" he demanded of her.

She shook her head and brushed her dark hair from her face, "What are you talking about?"

"You went through the door." He said pointing at the solid piece of wood. "I'm a ghost, I can pass through stuff, but you…? What are you?" Shit! Lihn's heart beat faster. Sometimes when she panicked she forgot to hide her Talents. She hadn't even realized that she'd phased. "Delayne, please, you must be mistaken."

He drew back as she reached for his arm, "Why can I feel you touchin' me? And how d'you know my full name? I din't tell it to you. Rus don't even know dat!" The woman who was not human put her hands over her face. "Chikusho!" She couldn't believe that she'd messed up already. She'd managed to be Dr. Nori Lihn the scientist for almost thirty years without screwing up.

"Nuttin' to say?" he asked her sarcastically. "S'what I thought. I gotta go chat wit Rus." He moved to go past her but she reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Wait, Del!" He paused, staring at her hands on his arm. "Please! Don't say anything, please? I swear to you, I am no danger."

"Then what are you? And why are you here?" he tore his gaze from his arm to her face and looked at her sternly.

She looked back at him stubbornly. "I do not want to tell you. Bad things happen when people find out."

"Let me guess, people die?" he asked sarcastically.

"Sometimes!" she snapped. "Sometimes good people! People that don't deserve it, people that should have lived!" as she spoke her voice changed subtly. She lost the Japanese accent and sounded as though she were inside of his head rather than staring him in the face. "Sometimes, it seems like an accident. Other times, it is most certainly deliberate. At first, I thought what I had was a gift! But all to soon, I began to learn that it is a curse. I try to hide it, try to avoid the bad things." Her voice suddenly returned to normal, "That is why I need you to keep quiet about this." She looked at him pleadingly, "I only want a chance to be happy." she searched his glowing eyes, would he by it? Not that it wasn't true,… relatively. Every time she told the truth to people she became close to, things would turn sour. Something would happen and she would have to move on. She would start all over again. Like last time. Only she hadn't told Them the truth. They'd spied on her, stolen it from her, and then she was forced to take care of the mess they'd made. Memories of pained cries and pleading voices filled her mind,

Del's voice brought her back to the present. "All right. I won't say nothing'." He'd placed a hand over one of hers where it rested on his arm. He was gently stroking her skin, marveling at the feel of it. He realized she was watching him and stopped, pulling free of her grip. "I won't say anything' fer now. But anything shady goes down, I'm callin' you out!"

"Thank you!" Lihn was relieved, but he was looking at her oddly.

"Yea, well, I gotta go." He turned to go.

"Wait! What of the shadow? Will you not help me seek it?"

"Naw, I gotta get back, Rus'll be awake soon and he'll wonder what's up." he shrugged, "Later." He slipped through the wall beside the door and left the Japanese woman standing.

She sighed, exasperated, but turned to leave the room, remembering to open the door first this time. She was going to solve this mystery. It would be easier to focus on the Noodle issue if she wasn't worrying about this shadow slipping around the mansion. Her door was directly across form the doors to the game room, which was next to the library.

She walked the short distance to the large library doors and hesitated. She no longer sensed the 'thing', but had a distinct feeling that it had entered here. She pushed one of the doors open and stepped inside. It was just as it had been the first day she entered. No evidence of it's previous occupants remained. Lihn was surprised. She'd expected a few empty glasses or bottles at the least. Perhaps a few discarded cigarette butts, that Murdoc smoked like a stack!

But there was nothing. Not even the smell of alcohol or smoke. There was a faint musk like an old ladies perfume, but she put that down to someone's poor choice in aftershave. The small woman walked around the room, absently trailing her hand along the shelves and the book bindings. She was about to give up thinking she'd hit a dead end, when she felt a slight change. She paused and concentrated. The air moved slightly right in this spot.

The strange woman leaned closer to the book shelf built into the wall of the room. The musky cologne smell grew stronger. She was about to start exploring with her 'other' sense when the door handle moved slightly. Her head snapped in that direction and her heart beat faster. Quickly she popped over to the other side of the room and grabbed a book from the shelf. She opened it and flipped a few of the pages.

Murdoc entered the room grumbling under his breath. He stopped short when he noticed Lihn in the room. "What are you doin' here?"

She turned slightly in his direction and looked up at him. She figured she could easily avoid any serious questions simply by flirting with him. She flashed him a smile, "Oh! Hello, Mr. Niccals. I did not notice the door opening." She closed the cover on the thin book she was holding and glanced down at it, quickly reading the title. "I thought I left my phone in here." he claimed as he crossed the room to where she was standing, looking around the room casually, as if he knew his phone wouldn't be found. When he drew close enough, he reached out and took the book from her hands, "What are you reading', eh? Dr. Suess?" he asked with a grin.

"At the Mountains of Madness." she replied, grateful that she'd taken a moment to read the title. Lihn knew the story well. It was about a group of scholars that went to Antarctica and discovered the remains of ancient life forms, then some crazy stuff went down, the memory made her shiver slightly. She put her arms behind her, leaning on the bookshelf there trying to hide the involuntary movement. She made sure that Murdoc had a good view of her chest.

"Lovecraft, mm? Didn't figure you for a worshiper of the Elder Gods." he smirked as he looked her up and down.

"Ha!" she laughed humorlessly, "Worshiper? More like an avoider of!" She clamped her mouth shut quickly, perhaps she shouldn't have said that. After all these years, one would think she'd learn to control her mouth! Hopefully he would think she was joking.

His eyes narrowed ever so slightly. He laid the book on the shelf and pulled a pack of fags from his shirt pocket and shook one out. He put it to his lips and patted his pockets. Absently, Lihn pulled a lighter out of her bra and handed it to him. He used it and handed it back before speaking again. "Who Do you worship, then? Me?, I'm a Satanist. Sold my soul for the best band in the world." He leaned against the bookshelf casually. "So what's it fer you? Saints and crosses? Bloody sacrifices, Dancing naked in the moonlight, tantric sex rituals?" he winked at her.

Lihn groaned inwardly, but kept a smile on her face. It was too bad he was such a jerk, he was really quite handsome. She looked him up and down before answering. "I'll let you know when I figure it out." she winked.

"Atheist?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, no." she said seriously, "I know the gods exist. I simply have not found one worthy yet."

He looked at her for a moment with out saying anything, then he stepped uncomfortably close. He was about a head taller than her, she looked up into his face with a fake expression of intimidation. "There's something' odd about you." he looked into her bright green eyes as if he would find what he was looking for in them. "I don' know what it is, but I'll find out." he stepped back and took a drag off his cigarette, "The only reason I invited you on this little trip is 'cos I'm curious. I still think you're after somethin'. You may have the others fooled, but not me." he turned toward the exit and flipped his ashes in the carpet, "I've got my eye on you, kid. Murdoc Niccals doesn't miss a thing."

You forgot to pretend you couldn't find your phone. she thought. She picked up the discarded volume and ran her hand lovingly over the cover remembering her old friend from a different a different lifetime. People were so foolish, convincing themselves that Howard had created the whole pantheon. She shook her head as she put the book back in it's place. Sighing she brought her attention back to the situation at hand.

Looking toward the door she assured herself that Murdoc was not returning. She rounded the couch and found herself back in front of the suspicious shelf. The wall she was in front of was on the opposite side of the house from the game room. It should have been a boring wall, shouldn't it? But no. Why were there no windows? There was definitely a slight draft coming from this direction. She stepped back and took in the whole wall. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

But the she noticed the carpet. The gold colored fibers had that swept look that is sometimes left by the vacuum cleaner, only this started at the wall and arced outward… as if a door had been opened.

She began to search the shelf again, this time looking for something that might be a lever or a switch. There were little statuettes and nick-knacks here and there on all of the shelves but one in particular caught her eye. It was made of bronze. While most of the others were made of gold or silver, or some other shiny metal, this one sat inconspicuously not sparkling on a shelf above her head. It was shaped like a teardrop and carved into the bottom half was a symbol. It was shaped almost like an 'S'. It was a rune. Lihn thought for a moment. The guide leads you to the doorway, then waits for your return. Sowilo: the rune of guidance and success.

Lihn smiled in satisfaction and reached up for the object and wrapped her fingers around it. It was attached to the shelf! Standing on her tip toes, she attempted to tilt it forward, like a lever, the way they do in all of the movies, but it wouldn't budge. She tried leaning it in every direction to no avail. She tried pushing it down, like a button, still nothing. She settled back on her heels to think, not loosening her grip quickly enough and the metal object turned. Lihn's heart leapt. Quickly she reached up and twisted the thing. She almost fell as a portion of the wall began to silently swing outward.

The musky smell over-powered her nostrils. She stepped through the dark opening and let her eyes adjust. The smell of hot wax mixed with the scent of incense. She felt the wall to her left and flipped the switch her fingers found. She caught her breath as she realized why Murdoc had been sneaking. The wood floor was marked with a large circle surrounding a pentagram. A large candlestick covered in runes stood at each of the stars points, the large black and red candles still smoking. A ring of salt sat at the center which was blackened as if it had been scorched. "Fucking Satanists!" she breathed. Always screwing around with things better left alone.

There was a set of shelves against one wall. She wandered over to it, careful to go around the summoning circle. It was cluttered with clay pots and strangely shaped glass bottles. More black and red candles lay on the shelf, waiting to be used. The incense burner sat with a box of extra incense. Lihn's gaze jerked back to the other side of the box. Murdoc's lighter. That must have been what he was returning for. It was certainly his, it was a Zippo brand lighter with 'Murdoc is God' printed on it. She picked it up and turned to look at the rest of the room. There were dusty tapestries on the walls depicting people in robes doing various 'cult-like' things together. She shook her head. She new that Murdoc claimed to be a Satanist, even going so far as to wear an inverted cross everyday, but she had thought it was his gimmick. The shadow she'd seen must be something he summoned.

And he probably did it just to impress those fast women! she thought. He's put us all in danger so that he can get laid. She was furious. She wasn't sure which was worse, him accidentally releasing a demon to impress girls or him doing it on purpose. She was definitely going to have a word with him.