Shadow WIngs (Skeleton Key) by Skeleton Key, JC Andrijeski

questions nagging at her, even now.
    She put off asking even those questions that aligned with his crazy story.
    Like what he intended to do if they found this key. Like how she would contact him if he disappeared once more, turning back into the angel he claimed to be.
    Like how they would stop Golunsky from doing whatever he had planned if she couldn’t speak to Raguel in his angelic form. Well, assuming Golunsky actually had something planned, being in custody of the Moscow city militia.
    There was no way Raguel’s crazy story could be true, of course, but she realized some part of her turned over the details of what he’d told her anyway.
    But... and it was a very big but... if Raguel was telling the truth, where did that leave her?
    If Golunsky really was a demon, as Raguel claimed, how did one arrest a demon?
    How did one stop a dark plot by a demon?
    From what Raguel told her, a demon could manipulate whole groups of people at one time, as well as individuals. It that were true, the demon could have ignited a conspiracy of some kind already. An apolitical conspiracy disguised as a political one.
    The demon could be fanning flames within the Party, or even within certain branches of the government by playing on tensions that already existed.
    Raguel was right––the conditions were there. Those fights were already happening.
    The “window,” as Raguel called it, was open.
    How could she possibly do anything about that?
    She, Ilana, was not an angel. She could help Raguel look for where the demon might unfold his plans, but what could she do about it, even if they found it? Would she approach her superiors and tell them they could not react aggressively to a perceived security threat because they were very possibly being manipulated by a demon?
    Angel or no, Raguel was not giving her much to work with.
    All of this turned slowly in her mind as she stood with a friend of hers, a woman who ran a state shoe outlet with her husband at the Kitai-gorod GUM store facing Red Square. Her friend, Tasha, kept looking at her periodically and raising her eyebrows as she watched Raguel get his feet measured by her husband.
    Ilana could tell Tasha was dying to ask about her mysterious friend, who she’d only briefly introduced to them both as a “work colleague.” In fact, calling that introduction brief might even be an understatement. She’d barely muttered his name before handing him over to Tasha’s husband to get him fitted for new shoes.
    From the purse-lipped but humor-laden smile Tasha aimed at Raguel’s body and face, she had clearly noticed Ilana’s angelic friend was more than a little easy on the eyes.
    When Ilana refused to answer her meaningful stares, Tasha stepped closer and nudged her sharply with an elbow.
    “Well? Who is he? Who is your friend?”
    “He’s helping me with a... a work issue.”
    “Uh-huh. A work issue.” She smirked. “Isn’t that Uri’s sweater he’s wearing?”
    Ilana felt her face warm. “It is.” She quirked an eyebrow at her friend. “Should I be disturbed that you noticed that, Tasha?”
    But Tasha wasn’t to be distracted. “So this beautiful specimen of Russian maleness.... he had reason to change his clothing at your place? How intriguing.”
    Ilana rolled her eyes, but felt her face heat more.
    Folding her arms, she didn’t answer.
    Tasha laughed. “What did you do to his shoes? Do I even want to know?”
    Ilana saw Raguel glance up, as if he’d heard that last part.
    “Shut up, Tasha.”
    “He definitely likes you, Ilana,” Tasha whispered back. When Ilana gave her a warning look, Tasha only winked. “He looks at you a lot. He tries to do it carefully, very stealthy in his small glances, but Miss Tasha sees all. Including him staring at your ass when you took off your coat, Ilana dearest...”
    Ilana flushed warmer still. “Can we discuss this thing later, Tasha?”
    “Oh certainly, my friend. Certainly. We can discuss this ‘thing’ whenever you