by Emma Shade
With my thoughts on the little girl who had probably seen more than her share of horror, I cleaned up the spilled milk and then continued washing the barrage of dishes that started coming in from breakfast. The sunshine outside the window above the sink wouldn’t clear my head today, no matter how hard I tried. Maybe if I took out some filthy demons tonight, I’d feel a bit better about keeping most of the humans safe. I sure as hell couldn’t keep them away from the evil humans in the world, even if I wanted to.
*****
I worked until around two in the afternoon, and the sleepless night started wearing on me. A yawn escaped as Laura walked into the room while drying her hands with a towel.
She frowned at me. “Why don’t you head out for the day? I think we have the rest of the shift covered until dinner. You look absolutely exhausted.”
“I can’t leave. I have to help with—”
“No, you don’t,” she chided. “Go home. We’ll be fine. I’m worried about you. Sleep is important for your health.”
I wanted to laugh at what she had said. My health wouldn’t mean shit tonight as I fought the demons who didn’t want to leave Earth. They’d end my life to commit their mayhem and destruction. My only saving grace was that Raven wouldn’t let them kill me anytime soon. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t try, though. I still had a nasty scar on my thigh from last year’s Halloween festivities.
“Are you sure?” I asked, hesitant to leave Laura hanging with chores, but my body begging for a nap.
“Go.” She shooed me with her hand. “Get some rest. I’ll see you next time.”
Not wasting time as another yawn spilled out, I gave Laura a hug and headed out the door to get some rest before I had to start my real job.
As soon as I hit a red light, I stared longingly at the coffee shop across the street. The smell of cinnamon, mocha, and vanilla floated out of the shop and straight to my nose like one of those cartoons I watched as a child.
My nap would have to wait.
The bell above the door chimed as I entered. Voices from the wall of people waiting for their caffeine fix assaulted my ears. Ignoring them to the best of my ability, I waited patiently in line. My eyes scanning the area. I noticed a man and woman having coffee with their phones instead of each other. A young woman sat at one of the tables with a laptop, her fingers furiously clacking at the keyboard.
I let out a sigh of relief. No demons or any evil beings. I really didn’t want to have to decapitate one with so many witnesses.
After placing my order with the barista, I went to the bank of windows to watch the sidewalk as I waited on my cappuccino.
“Too bad it’s so dreary out,” an older lady said next to me.
I glanced at her, taking in the slight wrinkles on her face and her blonde hair. I placed her in her mid-forties. “I kind of like cloudy days. They’re good for naps when I can get them.”
“Well, let’s hope for sunshine and good weather for trick-or-treat tomorrow. I really don’t feel like dragging my kids out in the rain.”
My eyes widened. How had I forgotten tomorrow was Halloween? The one day a year I really, really hated my job. Well, more than the normal amount.
“Order for Mara,” the coffee goddess called out, announcing my order was ready.
I gave a polite wave to the woman and told her to have fun with her children tomorrow evening. I was sure my smile was more of a grimace when I had said it.
Halloween was when the veil was the weakest of all year. All Hallows Eve, Samhain, Halloween, or whatever you called it, was when things really went bump in the night. The veil between worlds was so thin, that all matters of demons and bad things could slip through. As humans dressed up in costumes and knocked on doors, evil waited within inches of their candy-filled bags.
I strolled out to my car and drove to my apartment, dread pooling in my stomach. If I wanted a nap, now was the time to get one, because tomorrow’s workday was going to be hell. Literally.
CHAPTER 5
Thin veil at night, demon’s delight.
Strolling down the neighborhood streets in the costume Raven had chosen for me, I couldn’t help but throw her some choice words as we walked.
“You have to fit in,” she said with a giggle.
I swiveled on my boots in the Grim Reaper costume and pointed the cheap, plastic scythe at her. “This is not what I had in mind.”
With her hair in pigtails and her makeup bright and cheery, Raven grinned. She had dressed as a damn fairy, but had picked out the fabled reaper costume for me. I knew it was a joke, but I didn’t find the humor in it.
“Come on, live a little. Before you start taking souls to the underworld, that is.” She cackled. “You look hot. I bet dear, old Dad would get a kick out of it if he saw you.” When I stared at her and tried to avoid the burning in my cheeks, she grumbled, “It’s a joke. You know? Ha. Ha.”
I rolled my eyes and started walking with the trick-or-treaters as she rushed to catch up with me. Instead of honoring her with a reply, I began visually inspecting the children passing us. Among the superheroes and princesses, there would be monsters. Monsters who liked to prey on humans and their children.
“Don’t you think it’s awfully quiet for Halloween?” Raven asked after about an hour of scrutinizing the children, too. “I figured we’d see something by now.”
She was right. Tonight was a night of ruckus and death. However, we hadn’t spotted a demon. Not one. I continued to scan the passing children and their parents, hoping tonight might be an easy night.
I was wrong.
My sword quivered against my skin. Heading straight for us was a child in a blue princess dress, her little pumpkin candy basket swinging next to her as she walked. But she wasn’t a child. She was a demon watching the trick-or-treaters with unbridled anticipation. Tonight was easy pickings, or so she had believed. I nodded in her direction and Raven smiled.
I whispered, “We have to get the beasty away from the kids. And the parents.”
Biting her lip in thought, Raven said, “Give me two seconds. I’m going to try something.”
She disappeared behind a large shrub. The demon was getting closer. I didn’t want to scare the kids around us, but I would if I had to. I grabbed the hilt of my sword and...
“Okay, whatcha think?” a childlike voice asked from beside me.
I glanced down and tried to hide my surprise as my hand fell away from my sword. Raven was no longer an adult, but a cute child in a fairy costume. In addition to looking like an adorable five-year-old, she had masked what she was. “Where did you learn to do that?”
She shrugged. “Dad’s been showing me a few tricks.”
I watched in stunned surprise as she skipped down an alley between the large row houses. A few minutes later, she cried out, “Mommy! Where are you? I’m scared!”
The demon version of Cinderella perked up, her head whipping in the direction of the alleyway. The evil entity sniffed the air like a hound dog on a hunt. Glancing around to make sure she went unnoticed, the thing made her way into the dark, deserted alley.
“Are you lost, little girl?” she asked, her voice way too deep to be a child’s.
Raven’s tiny voice wobbled. “Yeah, I lost my mommy and can’t find her.”
The thing chuckled. “I can help you find her, you know. All you have to do is come closer to me, hold my hand.”
Slowly and quietly, I sat down the cheap scythe, pulled the sword out from under my costume, and strolled into the alley to see Raven reach her hand out. The little princess monster chose that moment to morph into something hideous. The dress shredded into scraps as the demon grew. The cute girl had transformed into black, shiny skin and glowing red eyes with gnarly teeth. To my astonishment, the thing still had breasts and a curvy figure. A female demon was odd on Earth, which meant I was in for a terrible night.
Raven’s wide eyes swerved to me, her surprise evident from the female demon, too. Remembering the task, she shook her
head to clear it and then shivered in pretend fear. The ugly thing had no clue I’d snuck up behind her—not while she had prey within her grasp. Raven mocked a child’s cry. The demon rubbed her hands together in glee.
“You smell delicious, child,” the demon rasped with a low, croaky tone.
When I was about two feet behind the foul bitch, I said, “She does look good, doesn’t she? Too bad you won’t get a meal tonight.”
The demon swirled to face me and her glowing eyes narrowed. “You think you can stop me, human? I’ll just take you instead.”
“Come and get me,” I taunted.
With an awful, throaty growl, the bitch snaked her long-ass tongue out and licked her sharp, pointed teeth. “I’ll eat you both, you stupid humans.”
She charged at me faster than any demon I’d seen yet. In a move that bordered on desperation, I swung my sword with all my might. Her eyes widened in surprise. The blade sank into her neck and then through it, slicing her head from her body. Her head rolled in the air a few times and then the only thing left in the alley was a shredded dress.
“This is going to be a long night. That wasn’t a lower demon, Mara.” With a worried glance in my direction, Raven shook her head and then dematerialized as she collected the demon’s black soul to take it back to wherever they go.
My heart thudded from adrenaline, and I thanked whomever would listen for luck being on my side for that one. I shoved the sword back into the scabbard at my waist, took a deep breath for courage, and then headed back into the foray of unsuspecting family members.
One down, a lot more to go.
After killing at least a dozen of the vile creatures, I leaned against the brick wall behind a questionable bar in an even more questionable neighborhood. I wiped the sweat off my brow and closed my eyes in exhaustion. My arms ached from the heavy sword, my legs hurt from walking, and I had a nasty blister on my hand from a demon who’d burned fire when threatened. I just wanted to snuggle in my bed instead of hunting these asswipes. Plus, I was sure I was splattered with some smelly blood, but I was too tired to care.
Raven had disappeared again, dragging whatever was left of the demon trying to steal a drunk woman. I had a few minutes to rest before we were at it again.
A slow applause sounded from behind me. I snapped my eyes open and turned to face the intruder.
“Bravo, bravo,” a gorgeous man said, his hands clapping slowly.
He was tall and handsome. Dark hair, honey-colored eyes, and a chiseled jaw covered in stubble. Dressed in an elaborate prince charming costume, he made his way toward me, the muscles in his arms straining against the white fabric of his tunic.
“Leave me alone and go back to your partying,” I ordered, but he continued to walk in my direction. A hint of warning bells went off in my head.
“Get away from me, asshole,” I grunted, reaching for the handle of my sword and waiting for a tingle of awareness, but nothing happened. I wasn’t sure what he was; not really. After a night like tonight, you could never be too sure. Looks could be deceiving. After all, even salt looked like sugar. And this guy looked like a whole lot of sugar.
“Nah, I’d rather stay and watch the show,” he said with a smile.
“What show? Are you out of your damn mind?”
Hot guy waved his hand to gesture to the alley behind the bar. “Are you not a demon hunter? Because last I checked, that creepy dude wasn’t human.”
I blinked in surprise. This guy knew about demons? My blood went cold. If he knew about them, that only meant one thing. I hauled my sword out and pointed it at his throat. “Get away from me, demon,” I spit out.
His head tilted back from laughter. I didn’t know what he found so funny, but I wasn’t laughing with him. I held my sword steady, still aiming the point at his Adam’s apple.
“You can’t kill me,” he said, still chuckling. “You can sure try.”
Pushing the sword into his neck, I growled, “I will kill you, and you’ll beg for mercy.”
The demon smiled and kept his eyes on me the entire time. Not once had he looked at the sword currently aimed at his Adam’s apple. He winked. “I’d like to see that.”
Pivoting on my toes, I swirled around and took the sword with me. My momentum was strong, my aim, dead on. As I swung the blade around, he was gone. A hand gripped my hilt as my hand came back from the upswing and a strong arm bound around my waist.
“Nice try,” a deep voice whispered in my ear. “Want to try again?”
I lifted my free elbow to hit him in the stomach, but he disappeared. “What the fuck?”
“Nice costume, sexy. Easy to remove,” he announced, his voice floating on thin air. Then he materialized right in front of me with a smile. “But... you fight like a girl.”
“Last I checked, I am a girl,” I growled and lifted my knee before he vanished again. I caught him in the family jewels and he collapsed with a groan. I grinned in triumph. “Suck on that, jerk.”
I hefted my sword again to decapitate the dickhead, but I heard Raven’s scream. “Mara! Don’t!”
However, it was too late; my sword was swinging with full force. Only, instead of the hot demon looking terrified for his life, he smirked and then evaporated without a hint of smoke or air movement. My shoulder ached, the joint popping at the force of my swing and hitting nothing.
I rolled my shoulder and scowled at Raven. “What was that? He was a demon, and you know we’re supposed to kill them!”
She shook her head. “Not all of them, you know that. And definitely not him.”
“Why?” When she remained tight-lipped about it, I closed in on her. “Why not him? What makes him so damn special?”
“You can’t, okay?” she questioned, placing her hand on my shoulder, looking sincere. “Just don’t ever hurt that guy.”
“Why not?”
Raven shook her head, and my voice rose an octave.
“Tell me!” I demanded, my nostrils flaring in anger.
“No,” she barked. “I don’t have to tell you anything. And I won’t tell you a thing about that guy. I can’t.”
“Why the hell not?”
Raven sighed and ran a hand over her face, smearing her glittery makeup. “It’s... complicated.”
We remained in awkward silence after the little incident with the hot demon dude.
Eventually, I went on to slaughter two demons after him, and when the sun peeked over the horizon, I yawned. The night from hell was finally over, and I could sleep the whole day away. I was utterly exhausted.
“I’m sorry,” Raven finally muttered. “I know I tell you everything, but there are some things that I can’t out of obligation to my work.”
I sighed as we headed back to her car. “You mean the fine-looking jerk who disappeared without an ounce of effort? Lesser demons can’t do that. Even the higher ones we saw tonight can’t do that. The only person I’ve ever seen disappear like that before was you and my boss.”
She giggled. “You think he was fine?”
“For a vile demon, yes. You’d have to be blind not to.”
“Girl, you’re hilarious. I love you.” She tossed her keys at me, and I caught them in my hand. “I’m going to let you borrow my car. I’m exhausted and don’t feel like driving your ass back home. Enjoy.” She gave a little finger wave and then vanished with black smoke blowing in the breeze.
I made my way to her car, unlocked it, and sank into the buttery, soft leather of her blood-red Lexus. She never let me drive her fancy car, so I knew something was up. Rather than question my best friend’s motive, I drove home and crashed as soon as I hit the bed.
CHAPTER 6
No rest for the wicked.
I started my morning reading about demons.
With the insistence of Raven, I checked out a book at the local library to see if I could find some truth hidden between the lines of text. Taking a sip of coffee, I scanned the pages without finding anything particularly useful.
As I
flipped halfheartedly through the pages, I ran across a passage about Lucifer’s fall from Heaven. Apparently, he was a powerful angel in Heaven, and because of pride, he’d tried to overthrow God. He’d failed big time, and for that reason, he’d been sent straight to Hell.
He was the first fallen angel, or so it read.
Still, there was conflicting information. Some say the fallen angels in Heaven had lusted after women on Earth and God had cast them out. If that was the case, where did Satan come from, and how was he now ruling Hell? And when did he begin tricking people for their souls?
I slammed the book shut and slid it across the table in frustration. No amount of written text by humans would have all the information I needed. I took my coffee and went out on the balcony for some fresh air.
The downtown area spread out before me. Platteville, Indiana had its perks. The city had a small-town feel, but still had a lot of the amenities I needed. I was within walking distance to restaurants and bars, and I had a parking garage to store my car. Not that I ever had to drive with Raven towing me around, but I had one if I needed it. The only downside to the town was there were demons everywhere. I don’t know if the arts brought them out in droves, or if it was because we were close to the river, but you’d think an average-sized city wouldn’t have so many demons escaping Hell per capita.
“Job security,” I said to myself.
As I finished my coffee, my phone chimed in my pocket. Taking it out, I read over the news of a massive pile-up on the highway. No deaths, thank the lucky stars, but there were some injuries. There was a link on the article about an unknown creature on the highway. A grainy video showed something blue loping away from the scene in broad daylight.
Demon.
Shit.
*****
Breakfast at noon was the best thing in the world.
I listened to the bacon crackle in the pan as I cracked eggs in another. My belly growled and I glanced at the box of donuts longingly. Maybe one or two wouldn’t hurt. Actually, four or five during the day made sense. Which reminded me I needed to pick up some more after breakfast. Scraping the partially scrambled eggs inside the pan, I loaded it with crispy bacon and cheese.
