by L. J. Sealey
Well, that is, except for one person: Evo. His go-to man whenever he needed a little back up. A human whom he now considered a friend and a person he could trust with his life, or. . . death. Whatever.
The last he’d seen of him was about three months ago when he’d been in Colorado on the hunt. He’d needed a little help with a djin that had been sapping the life out of some of the clients of a small bar on the outskirts of the city. Michael had never encountered one before and hadn’t liked the look of it either. He’d needed as much information as possible about the son of a bitch before he’d dare attempt to take him on.
His friend knew a lot about the supernatural world and the things that shared the earth with them now. Evo was a living, breathing, demon encyclopaedia, but he hadn’t always been that way. His life had been on a downward spiral until one day, in Ohio nearly nine months ago, Michael saved his life.
His mind went back to that rainy night in January.
Michael had only been in his new body for a little over a month and was still adjusting to it. It was a whole new experience for him after being ethereal for the first part of his new existence and he was still finding it hard to accept the way things were for him now. The why, however, was still yet to be discovered and Michael had made it his sole purpose to find out who, or what, had killed him.
He’d hunted high and low, crossed many states and cities, searched through the dregs of the underworld for the kind of creatures he was hoping to get information from but all he’d encountered were a handful of wraiths which were, quite frankly, useless at giving information. And then there were the endless lost spirits that wandered the streets and buildings trapped in a world that was neither life nor death; some for all eternity, others, until they found peace with whatever was keeping them there.
After a few days in Cleveland, Michael had become restless. He’d spent his days scouring local papers and internet news sites for signs of unusual activity−all to no avail−until one night after he’d re-acquainted himself with Mr Daniels in a small, dingy bar on the corner of 9th Street and Sumner.
He’d propped up the bar feeling sorry for himself for the past hour, unsure what to do next, until his ears pricked at a conversation between two men who were sat at the opposite side. A thin, red-haired man was talking about something that had gone down last night at one of the clubs downtown. Michael wasn’t really paying much attention but from what he gathered, it was your usual, city nightlife stuff: police cornering a man in an alleyway after some sort of altercation. The guy was found crouched over a stiff−nothing unusual about that.
As Red-head went on, Michael ordered another JD without the coke this time. One thing he’d discovered about his new self was that he could drink and drink and it hardly affected him, much to his annoyance. Well, he was determined to keep going tonight until it did.
The female behind the bar placed a napkin in front of him followed by his order. As he looked up at her she winked and a flirtatious smile graced her lips. “There you go handsome.” Her hand lingered on his glass then she stroked her finger up the side seductively. Michael just about managed to raise the side of his mouth then went back to ignoring her, supping back the frosty contents in one.
“Apparently the guy was all kinds of crazy,” he heard Red-head saying to his overweight buddy sat beside him. They reminded him of a couple of characters from Cheers.
“Yep. They usually are,” his buddy said.
“This guy more so. Jock was there when they hauled him off. He said the guy was protesting his innocence, and then he shouted something about a big guy with red eyes dressed in black, who’d just disappeared in front of him.”
Michael looked over at the men.
Plump-guy laughed. “It takes all sorts.”
Well, now their conversation just got interesting. “Hey!” Michael shouted over to Norm and Cliff over the bar. “Did they take him down town?”
“What d‘ya say man?” Red-head grunted, clearly wondering why their private conversation had just been interrupted.
“The crazy guy? Did they take him down town?”
“Uh. Yeah,” he scoffed. His buddy looked equally annoyed.
Michael took no notice. He held up a twenty to Blondie behind the bar, slammed it down next to his empty glass and left without saying another word.
Standing in the doorway of an unused building, Michael watched the doors to the precinct across the street through a thick blanket of rain. A few hours outside the police department and there was still no sign of the man he’d heard about at the bar, so he could only assume they were holding him overnight which would make things way more complicated. Michael could hardly walk in and ask to have a private conversation with the guy. He was going to have to think about breaking him out of there.
Just as he was about to head over there, he hung back as a young male, around 6ft, with scruffy, brown hair came through the double doors and walked down the steps from the building. He hadn’t seen the guy enter the precinct and as he was dressed in a scruffy denim jacket with a hooded sweatshirt underneath and dark colored cargo pants, he assumed he wasn’t an employee. He had to be the guy he’d been waiting for.
Michael pulled his hood over his head, crossed the heavy traffic, and followed him making sure he kept his distance. The man took a left at the end of the street. He was clearly on edge; jumping with every noise. His head darted around in all directions, no doubt making sure he wasn’t being followed. Fortunately, he hadn’t spotted Michael. He turned right, heading down an alleyway up ahead between a couple of rundown apartment blocks. Michael picked up his pace a little so he didn’t lose him.
He followed the man into the alleyway still staying well back so as not to startle the guy. A foul smell of human garbage filled the air as Michael passed a row of dilapidated dumpsters on the left side. Just then, he felt a strange shiver run up his spine which stopped him in his tracks. He watched as the man he’d been tailing also halted.
The man’s head crept around. Michael hurried to a dumpster and crouched down beside it, peering over the top where he could see the man scanning the darkness like he’d sensed that someone was watching him.
“Hello! Is someone there?” He heard the stranger say.
The sensation that Michael had felt just then began to get stronger, a coldness creeping up his spine and heightening his senses. It was familiar to him. He’d felt it before just before fighting one of the many creatures he’d battled over the last few months. But what was causing it this time?
Michael stayed in his position and continued to watch the man walk further down the alley, taking tentative steps this time. Michael stayed back sensing his trepidation.
There was something else in this alleyway with them and it wasn’t human, that, Michael was sure of.
Soft lights that hung above the two fire doors from the apartment block began to flicker, causing the man to stop walking again. He looked back but didn’t notice Michael. “Who’s there?” His voice was broken. He was scared.
It took a moment for Michael to register what he saw next. A dark figure jumped down from a metal fire escape that clung to the side of a building up ahead, landing in front of the man who yelled out in shock and stumbled backwards. Gaining his footing, the man walked backwards as the dark figure walked towards him, eyes as red as crimson, closing the gap between them.
Demon. Michael was certain. He’d seen eyes like those before.
The young man spoke, “Who are you?” he asked. His voice trembled.
The demon lunged forward and gripped the frightened male by his throat, lifting him into the air like he was nothing. The man he’d followed was tall but there was barely anything of him. He didn’t stand a chance
“Someone you shouldn’t have seen,” was the demons reply as it began to squeeze the poor guy’s throat, abruptly cutting off his cry for help.
Shit!
Michael stepped out from behind the dumpster. “Let him go,” he ordered as he walked towar
ds them. He heard the strained chokes coming from the frightened man as he struggled to breathe under the demon’s grip. As Michael got closer to them he noticed the demon’s eyes were more illuminated and the crimson glow was now fixed on him.
“Of course.” It mocked as he flung the man away like he was flicking a fly. There was a thud as the man hit the wall on the other side of the alley. “But you’re just delaying his fate.”
The demon’s voice was deep and angry, with all its focus now only on Michael. A black buzz-cut revealed deep scars upon its head. Its all-black attire dishevelled, floor length leather jacket worn and faded and there were black binds wrapped around its wrists. Its skin was pale and its fingernails dark and jagged.
Shit! He was a mean looking SOB. It looked like it had used the body it was in for a long time. Some demons preferred to use only one vessel.
“Leave him alone. What could you possibly want with him?” Michael asked as they circled each other in the dimly lit space.
“He’s seen too much.” The demon snarled back at him.
“And who’s he going to tell? Besides, who would believe him?” Michael had positioned himself in front of the man who was now slumped against the wall and coughing in pain.
“I’m not about to take that risk. Why should it concern you? He’s human. He’s nothing.”
The demon knew Michael wasn’t human. He tried a different approach. “Exactly, so why waste your strength on a weak human like him?”
“Enough of this!” The demon ordered as he made a charge for the man. Michael jumped and grabbed hold of the demon’s neck but his strength was no match for it and it threw him off with no effort at all. As Michael hit the floor the creature stuck a boot into Michael’s side sending him skidding across the wet concrete. He quickly managed to get to his feet and before the demon got to deliver another kick, Michael swung a right hook into the side of its skull which momentarily knocked it off balance.
In the short time it took for the SOB to shake the hit off, Michael had managed to grab his blade from out of the strap inside his coat and slashed at the demon that laughed as it jumped back out of the way. Michael knew from the demon’s strength that it was playing with him and that at any moment the bastard would strike to kill.
He felt a familiar feeling of rage building inside of him. It seemed to be happening more often lately when fighting and each time it got stronger. It was that rage that had helped him defeat the many demons and other creatures he had battled with in the few months he’d been a part of the underworld.
Just as the demon was gearing up for his next strike, Michael braced himself. Taking a deep breath, he crouched over ready to pounce. But the demon halted suddenly.
“Your eyes! It’s not possible.” Then the demon growled a word Michael didn’t recognise. “Gazriel!”
Michael had no clue what the demon was talking about but remained still. It whispered something in another language and then suddenly vanished into thin air, leaving Michael panting and looking at nothing but the depths of the alleyway in front of him and distant traffic speeding past at the end.
What the fuck just happened?
A groan came from his left. The man had pulled himself up and was sitting against the wall in between two dumpsters. “What the hell was that?” he asked as he wiped his forehead and examined the blood that was now covering his hand from a small gash above his left eyebrow.
Michael went to his aid, holding his hand out to him. “You ok buddy?”
He took Michael’s hand and pulled himself up to his feet. “Yeah man. You saved my life. I owe you one.” He dusted down his trousers. “What was that thing?”
“I have no idea but−”
“And what the hell are you?” the man interrupted; his eyes wide as he looked at Michael waiting for an answer.
Michael was confused. “I. . . what do you mean?”
“I saw your eyes just now, when you were fighting that thing.”
“What the hell are you talking about? I think that bump on your head has affected you.”
“There’s no human I know whose eyes glow white like that. What the hell are you man?” He wiped at his head again.
Ignoring his question, Michael gestured towards the guy’s forehead. “You need to get that gash checked out. You’re gonna need some stitches.”
The stranger looked frustrated. “Come on. Are you kiddin’ me man? A guy with bright red eyes just flew down from the sky and tried to kill me. I think we can safely assume that I’m all shocked out right now. You can tell me what the hell it is that you are ‘cause you’re certainly not normal.”
Michael shook his head. Granted, he was still discovering things about himself but. . . his eyes glowing white? “I didn’t know that happened.” He couldn’t understand it.
His confusion must have surprised the stranger as he was now looking at him with a bemused expression.
“Damn, I could use a drink!” Michael scoffed. “No doubt we both could. Come on. I’m buying.”
From that day on, and never seeing that demon again, Michael and Evo had been best friends.
It was good to hear his voice after so long. Evo was due to arrive in the next half hour or so and Michael had insisted that he stay with him on campus. He didn’t have much room in his apartment but he had a sofa which was quite comfortable and in truth, he would quite enjoy the company right now.
After work Michael had returned to his dorm. He’d powered up his laptop before heading out to meet Evo in front of the admin building and was just about to sit down with his freshly made mug of coffee when the phone rang. He walked to the counter top and grabbed the handset from its cradle. “Hello?”
A familiar British accent sounded on the other end of the line. “Michael? Hi. It’s Lacy. I’m calling from the hospital.”
CHAPTER NINE
The constant, familiar beep from the EKG machine was enough to keep Lacy on edge as she sat in the bucket chair that she’d pulled over to Nina’s bedside. She looked at the many tubes and wires connected to Nina whose gaunt face was hidden behind an oxygen mask that clouded over with each exhale that she made. The fact that she was breathing on her own was a small relief but Lacy still felt a knot in the pit of her stomach as she sat and stroked Nina’s hand. She’d only left her side once since she’d been brought into ICU a couple of hours ago, which had been to call Michael to inform him of Nina’s condition but there had been no answer on his cell.
A deep groan came from the pit of her stomach. The hunger was too intense to ignore now and she knew she’d have no choice but to eat something soon, if only to keep her own strength up.
The door swung open and a brown haired nurse came in giving Lacy a warm smile as she walked over to the bed. She picked up the clipboard from the end of the bed and walked over to the EKG machine, pressed a few buttons and wrote something down on the sheet of paper.
“How are you holding up?” she asked Lacy over her small black rimmed glasses.
“Good. Thanks. How’s she doing?”
The nurse finished up with the clipboard placing it back on its hook and walked over to an IV drip that hung on a metal stand next to the bed. She reached up and turned the small clamp on the tubing.
“No change as of yet,” she replied, her voice soft. “With trauma like this I’m afraid it’s a waiting game but she’s comfortable. She’s being kept sedated so there is less stress on her brain.” The nurse put her hand on Lacy’s shoulder. “I know she’s been through a lot, but she’s in good hands here. Listen, you’ve been here for quite some time. Have you eaten?”
“Not since lunch. But I’m fine, really.”
“You need to eat something. It won’t help anyone if you neglect yourself. Why don’t you pop to the canteen and get something? I’m sure Nina won’t mind.”
Lacy glanced over at the young girl who looked so peaceful in her induced slumber. The nurse was right; no sense in starving herself and her stomach had begun to shout for food a while ag
o. It would be good to stretch her legs, she supposed, and she could also try calling Michael again. “Ok.” She got to her feet and placed her jacket on the chair. “I won’t be too long.”
She swung her purse over her shoulder and gave the nurse a smile.
“I’m on duty all evening so take your time. I’ll keep checking in on her for you.” The nurse’s smile was kind and sympathetic, reassuring Lacy that it was fine to leave Nina which, for some reason, she found extremely hard to do. Still racked with guilt over her sister, she worried about something happening to Nina while she was alone. She couldn’t bear the thought.
After sitting in the canteen for half an hour, pushing some berries from a slice of cherry pie around her plate instead of eating them, Lacy had given up on food. She couldn’t conjure up any kind of appetite which was no surprise. She knew when she’d ordered at the counter that she wouldn’t eat it but had ordered anyway in the hope that she’d change her mind when it was in front of her. Not the case. All she’d managed was one measly fork full and a few sips of her coffee. Her stomach wasn’t cooperating and it was pointless trying to make it, so she decided to head downstairs.
She reached a bank of pay phones down at reception, put a few quarters in and dialled Michael’s number. At 7:30pm, he should be home from work by now. After a few rings, Lacy was relieved to hear his voice on the other end of the line.
“Hi. It’s Lacy. I’m calling from the hospital.”
