We all went outside. Sure enough, Finn and Sophie were climbing out of their truck. Across the yard, Sophie’s fluffy little dog ran toward us.
Remembering the chaos demon comment, I turned to James.
He leaned in and whispered, as if reading my mind, “Yep, that’s the dog. But the demon’s gone.”
I nodded.
Everyone said their hellos. Then, like they were pros at this demon hunting business, the O’Malley brothers, plus Daphne, headed around the B&B to the outer cellar doors—armed with salt, a machete, an axe, crystals, and a flamethrower.
Sophie and I were a few steps behind.
“I’m still new to this.” She waved a hand in their direction.
“Me, too.”
Out of nowhere, someone slid something over my head. The smell was overpowering. It was a necklace of garlic. I turned and found Mitchell standing there.
Where had he come from?
He held out a wooden stake. “I’m telling you, he’s a vampire.”
“Thanks,” I said. “You should go back inside.”
He smiled and slowly backed into the shadow of the burned down barn.
Sophie leaned in and furrowed her brow. “Do you think we should tell him we can still see him?”
I shook my head. “He’ll just step another ten feet away and keep watching.”
She nodded.
Everyone waited, weapons in hand by the doors.
Declan threw them open and started down the dark stairs. Finn and James followed quickly after.
Daphne and I headed down next, with Sophie a few steps behind. With any luck, we wouldn’t need the flamethrower. In close quarters, Daphne was likely to burn one of us along with the vampire, demon, or whatever.
The lights flicked on.
Everyone spread out, searching. But the basement didn’t smell like Buddy. Besides the musty smell of an abandoned basement, it didn’t smell like much of anything.
“No one’s down here,” James said.
Declan’s phone rang. He answered. “Yeah?”
I noticed a line of different stone, like part of the basement had been walled off at some point. Who would have done that? Weird. I couldn’t imagine what other strange things Daphne first found when she bought the place.
Declan slid his phone back in his pocket.
“Was it Pearl?” Finn asked.
“No, it was Matt,” Declan said. “He says he found Buddy, and that he’s making people crazy.”
“What?” Daphne asked. “Where?”
“Hellfire,” Declan said.
Hellfire Grill and Diner, just outside of town. I hadn’t been there since I was sixteen.
“The vampire is making people crazy?” A voice carried down the steps—Mitchell.
Declan walked to the steps and looked up. “Go back to your room.”
“I can help,” he said. “This is one hundred percent, completely under my umbrella of expertise.”
Declan growled. Using his full alpha authority, he said, “Don’t make me tell you twice.”
Chapter 18
James
We looked like throw-backs to a sci-fi B-movie. Anna and I sat in the back of Declan’s truck with Sophie and Finn, who were along to help us with the battle. The four of us wore hats made of tinfoil, just like Declan and Daphne, who sat in the cab, but we had to hold them on so the wind didn’t whip them away.
I knew we looked ridiculous as we drove through downtown Forbidden. A few people came out of their shops and pointed like we were in a freaking parade or something. I thought of tossing cloves of garlic like confetti.
Moira and Brody were missing the action, still out of town for that potential job. I felt kind of bad for them, because I had a feeling this was going to be good.
Declan parked in front of the sign for Hellfire Grill and Diner. Those of us in the back climbed out. I helped Anna, even though she didn’t need my help. She was far more graceful than me. But I wanted an excuse to put my hands on her sexy waist, and she didn’t seem to mind.
“Earplugs in, everyone,” Declan said.
I popped mine into my ears, then looked through the large windows to the diner. It had been decorated in a fifties style, which probably helped Buddy fit right in. Curved chrome trimmed nearly everything, a big-ass jukebox sat off to one side, and sparkly vinyl booths lined the walls. The owners had brought in the “hellfire” theme, too, accenting the decor with red, orange, and yellow.
Instead of people sitting happily in their booths, drinking milkshakes from big glasses or scarfing french fries, half the customers were huddled into one another, and the other half were...dancing? Flailing? It was hard to tell. Whatever they were doing, they did it while standing on the long counter that separated the kitchen area from the dining space.
“We need to watch out for each other,” Declan said, his voice muted through my earplugs.
“Right,” I added, hauling a bag of salt mixed with iron shavings from the truck bed. “We don’t know how he’s making people crazy. So if you notice yourself feeling weird, or see someone else acting weird, speak up.”
We walked up the paved ramp that led into the diner. Anna held tightly to my hand, then looked over and gave me a smile. In her other hand, she held a stake. Each of us had a different weapon of sorts.
As we went inside, it was a testament to how weird the customers were acting that no one even seemed to notice our hats or our other strange accessories. Then again, this was Forbidden, where weird had somehow become the norm.
Elvis Presley’s “All Shook Up” blared from the jukebox. We all looked up at the people on the counter, and I felt my jaw drop in shock. Matt was up there, too, and he was tasing everyone who approached him. The flailing and dancing was actually people falling. As I watched, a woman hopped up on the counter, danced her way over to Matt, and then—bzzzzzz—she went down. Finn jumped forward to catch her before she could knock her head on a stool while on her way to the floor.
“Where the hell is Buddy?” I asked.
Anna pointed to the jukebox, where he was sliding another quarter into the slot. Buddy’s irises were darker than usual. I looked more closely at him. His eyes were completely black, even the parts that were supposed to be white.
The song ended, then immediately started again. Buddy shimmied his hips, just like Elvis. He hadn’t noticed us yet, because his eyes were on the countertop mayhem.
Slowly, I pulled off the corner of my salt-and-iron shavings bag and began letting the contents trickle out.
“I’m going to try to make a salt line,” I muttered to Anna.
Because everyone else was dancing, I started moving my hips to the beat. Anna nodded and did the same, then touched Sophie and looked pointedly at the people dancing around us near the counter. Our party began dancing to fit in as we made our way closer to Buddy. I wanted to make a barrier of the salt and iron, since apparently the chaos demon had been trapped within it.
Salt and iron fell to the floor, making the black and white-checkered tiles gritty beneath my feet. I hoped people didn’t scuff away too much of my barrier in their manic dancing.
“How many times can he keep tasing people?” Declan muttered as he danced past me, obviously trying to conceal what I was doing. “The thing’s gotta run out of juice eventually.”
I dumped some more salt and iron shavings on the floor and took a couple of steps to the side. Someone’s elbow jostled me, causing me to make a big pile, but nobody seemed to notice. “Pearl did some upgrades to his police equipment,” I said to Declan. “I thought you knew. Because he’s the cop who handles the paranormal issues, she gave him extra goodies.”
“So she’s the supernatural Q to his supernatural James Bond?” Declan said. “Damn. I’m jealous.”
“You’re the alpha, you can ask for some tools for yourself,” I said.
He shook his head. “Apparently I’m surrounded by plenty of tools already.”
I was momentarily distracted by the
sight of Anna shimmying near the counter. Her long, dark hair shook behind her and she raised her arms in the air.
A local, obviously under the influence of Buddy, gyrated toward her.
“You’re next!” he said, pointing her to the counter.
She flashed me a look of fear. I didn’t blame her—I wouldn’t want to get voluntarily tased, either. I shook my head at her and mouthed, Don’t do it.
I was about seven feet from Buddy. The bag in my hands was half full. Somehow, we had to get him to come away from the jukebox so I could move behind him and complete my circle. Or rather, my oval. It was a glob, really—there wasn’t much geometry involved in my barrier.
Another guy hopped up on the counter and danced toward Matt.
Swinging his arms around, Matt did a two-step and twerked, then straightened up and pointed his taser at the dude dancing toward him. Matt had to be under Buddy’s control.
Buddy took a step forward, interested in the destruction he was causing. The mole beneath his eye looked redder than ever, like it was some kind of fucking energy indicator.
As he stepped forward, I moved slightly closer, dumping out a little salt as I went.
Matt, still dancing, tased the guy on the counter. The guy shook for a second, then went down, falling into Anna, who yelped.
Her eyes went wide as she scrambled to catch the earplug that tumbled from her ear. We didn’t know how Buddy was controlling people and making them hallucinate. It was equally likely that her tinfoil hat kept her safe, or even more so, that none of our precautions made a difference. The salt would. It had to.
So far, none of the people under Buddy’s spell had made any sounds. I glanced quickly at him, and his forehead scrunched in suspicion. Shit. We were about to be discovered. He moved toward Anna. I was torn between wanting to get her, and needing to finish the circle.
She was strong, she could handle him. I’d help her most by stopping Buddy, so I sprinkled more salt.
But then her dancing changed. It was less like Anna, and more like the other people in the diner.
She’d fallen under his control.
Putting her hands on the counter, she kneeled on one of the stools and began hoisting herself up.
“Anna, no!” I shouted, unable to help myself.
Buddy turned and saw me. His eyes narrowed. I guessed I had three seconds before I fell under his power, too.
Not knowing what else to do, I took a handful of salt and iron and flung it at his face.
Buddy roared and wiped frantically at his cheeks and eyes. A smoky scent reached my nose. It had really bothered him. I flung another handful.
“Declan! Anna! Guys, a little help,” I called.
Several of the dancers had stopped moving. Had the spell been broken so easily? But then, they turned toward me in one slow, steady motion.
Buddy was still controlling them.
They picked up forks and knives from the diner tables and held them out.
I was screwed. If I died from being forked to death, I was going to be pissed.
A teenage girl leaped forward, fork held up like she was ready to do some damage. Sophie grabbed her around the waist and they both skidded backward.
I threw more salt at Buddy, then ran in a circle behind him while he flailed and rubbed his face again.
“Finn, catch!” I called, tossing the bag to him.
He knew what to do. The bag arced toward him, spreading salt as it went. As soon as he caught it, he spun around and finished my circle.
Buddy roared.
“Get everyone out of the circle,” Declan shouted.
I started shoving people, avoiding the pointy forks and knives as much as possible, grateful that nothing was too sharp. Buddy tried to step out of the circle, too, but he was caught. He roared, and as he roared, his face changed. His eyes went red. Long, brutal teeth grew out of his gums—rows and rows of them, like a shark’s mouth.
Daphne, who held the crystal in her hands, looked terrified, but she stepped forward anyway and stood at the edge of the circle. Finn held a piece of paper and began reading gibberish-sounding words from it. Latin, maybe.
Sophie was closest to me. She said, “This is what he said to get the demon out of Peyton a few months ago. We’re hoping it works.”
I hoped it worked, too. Anna and the other people in the diner seemed to come out from Buddy’s spell. Their eyes returned to normal, no longer super dilated, as they’d been. Anna blinked a few times as if snapping out of it. Then she joined Declan in working on crowd control, trying to keep everyone from abject panic.
Buddy roared again. Was it just me, or did his hands appear a little fainter than they had before? He looked tinted and faded, and the effect grew stronger as Finn continued reciting his words.
Anna was standing near a table and trying to console an older gentleman. “It’s okay, sir, my friends have it under control.”
“No, they don’t!” he shouted.
Startled, she stepped back and tripped on a cane.
It seemed to happen in slow motion. She lost her balance. Her arms waved in the air as she tried to catch herself. Her head tipped back.
It put her dark brown locks within Buddy’s reach. He reached out and yanked her by her hair into the circle.
I didn’t know what it would do. Would she go transparent like him?
No way was I going to lose my mate a second time.
The stake she’d brought into the diner was on the floor. She’d probably forgotten it when she’d fallen under Buddy’s spell and started dancing. I picked it up and leaped into the circle after her.
“James, no!” Declan shouted.
But I was already in. I grabbed Anna and stabbed Buddy’s arm. He let go of Anna with a shriek. Thick black fluid came from his wound, viscous and slow—not at all like blood.
I grabbed Anna’s hand, and she squeezed my fingers. Her eyes were wide and frightened, but she trusted me. I pulled the stake from Buddy’s arm and held it back to stab him again. This time, in the chest.
He went down howling, and I stepped back out of the circle, bringing Anna with me.
Finn repeated his gibberish phrase twice more.
Buddy turned to smoke. Daphne set a white crystal right on top of the salted line. But suddenly, all of the black smoke that had been Buddy swooshed toward the crystal, turning it black.
“We did it!” Daphne said, holding a hand up for a high five.
Declan ignored her hand and pulled her into the kind of embrace that was probably best reserved for X-rated films, but nobody was paying much attention to them. Most of the locals who weren’t paranormals were yelling and laughing, although some of them stood quietly. Shocked, no doubt, by the supernatural turn their mundane meal at Hellfire had taken. There were a couple of shifters in the mix, and they came up to Declan, waiting for him to stop kissing his mate and give some orders.
I stopped looking around and turned toward Anna. “You scared me for a minute, there.”
“Yeah?” She stood on her tiptoes and gave me a sweet, swift kiss.
“Yeah. I thought Buddy was going to make you turn into smoke with him and take you away.”
“I’m not ever leaving you again,” she said. “I don’t make the same mistake twice.”
I bent my head to kiss her, but Declan must have pulled himself away from Daphne because I heard him clear his throat.
“Nobody move,” he said. “Matt, let’s keep people here for a little bit.”
“On it,” Matt said. In a loud, police-officer kind of voice, he said, “We’re going to stay put for a debriefing, everyone. Please remain here. We’ll make sure everyone has some water to drink and is comfortable. Gas leaks can cause serious hallucinations. It's important to remain calm, and know that everything is under control. Get comfortable. We'll bring around water and take your statements.”
Declan took his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen. In a quieter voice, he said, “Pearl, where are you? Five minutes
? Okay, good. Come to the diner instead, please. Memory stuff. Yeah. Great.”
Now that all of those things seemed to be handled, I pulled Anna into my arms and pressed my mouth to hers. Our lips met, and I knew without a doubt that my mate had come home for good.
Chapter 19
Anna
Apparently, it’s an O’Malley tradition to celebrate defeating a monster with beer and food. It used to be what the family would do to celebrate Friday. The new hangout was Daphne’s B&B, whereas it used to be the little island on the lake. Everything was almost the same in Forbidden as it was ten years ago, yet the little changes made it all better. Or maybe the only real difference was that time had offered me the clarity to see my life in a new light, one I hadn’t been ready for before.
Everyone else was still inside, grabbing beer and food. I slid in next to James on the porch step, plate in hand.
“Is that what it smells like?” James asked.
I grinned. “Daphne had a pie in the fridge. Turns out Gram heard you lost your other piece and wanted to make sure you got one.”
“How did she—” He shook his head. “Never mind.”
He took the plate and breathed in the spiced apple scent. “That’s hers, no question.”
Tiny toenails scratched across the porch behind us. I glanced over my shoulder to Sophie’s little dog. She barked at James for a piece of his pie.
I shook my head. “You better eat it before—”
Something swooped down from the sky, right in front of my face. I threw myself back, and scurried up the steps.
“Damn motherfucking—” James bent down over the grass.
“Is Brody here?” Pearl stepped out onto the porch. “With the cursing, I thought...And what about Moira?”
“It’s just me,” James said.
“You okay?” I went down the steps and bent beside him.
His plate was upturned in the grass, his fork nowhere to be seen.
“Yeah.” He rose to his feet. “I’m just pissed.”
He raised his hands in the air and waved them around. He started growling, like the wolf inside of him was ready for a fight.
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