For years, Jonathan had assumed that Warren had led them into being more themselves. That he’d brought out the potential in them. Instead Jonathan and Andrew had just been hiding behind Warren’s viciousness.

“Wow, we’re both pretty messed up, huh?” Jonathan said, his throat tight with shame. “Maybe it’s a good thing that the slayer is going to erase us from existence.”

“I hope she doesn’t,” Andrew said gently. “I hope you have a chance to find a new best friend. Someone better than Warren. It’s not like Anya is going to let us bring him back now.”

All day, Jonathan had fought the idea of Warren being gone for good. As he considered it now, it didn’t hurt as much as he expected. The world would be different without Warren, but maybe it wouldn’t be worse off.

“And I hope you find a guy who really likes you. Who’s nice. And doesn’t call you a moron,” he told Andrew. “Anya’s right. It’s not a nickname. It’s just plain mean.”

Andrew’s mouth quirked into a sheepish smile. “Warren was mean a lot, wasn’t he?”

“Yeah,” Jonathan said. “It’s weird that I didn’t really notice until we started hanging out with demons.”

Downtown was shockingly busy. Even with the permanent midnight the sunshade provided, the population of Demondale was still more active after nine p.m. Creatures of the night poured out of every building, filling the patios and thronging the streets. Jonathan hadn’t seen this big a crowd since the day the Mayor cursed the sky. Then again, at this time on a normal day, Jonathan would normally be locked safe inside the lair. In pajamas. Possibly with a mug of cocoa.

As he heard the hoots and grunts of demons having a good time, Jonathan’s first instinct was to turn and run. Clenching the flyers in his hand, he took a steadying breath. Running would only guarantee the slayer’s victory. He had to move forward, no matter how much he would prefer to go home and lock the door.

It wasn’t like home would be any safer. The slayer had already been there and could return whenever she wanted. As long as she had the vengeance demons’ gem and the dowsing rod, she was unpredictable. And possibly unstoppable.

The first group of demons they came across were seated at the picnic tables in front of the Doublemeat Palace, a formerly family-friendly restaurant. Jonathan had spent more than a few of his childhood birthdays here, climbing alone through the plastic tubes and getting sick on the spiral slide. Since no one would ever bring kids to Demondale, the owners had turned the indoor playground into a small blood-sport arena. The ball pit had been cleared out and turned into a space for demonic cage matches. Losers went up on the chalkboard menu as the next special burger.