by Deanna Chase
He let out a loud roar, but kept coming for me.
“Now!” I yelled.
Pyper rose up from behind him, the potion from the satchel in her hand, and as I stepped aside, she doused the demon.
He froze, his hand just inches from closing around my neck.
I stood there, my eyes narrowed as I scowled at the Santa demon.
“Jade,” Pyper said, grabbing my hand. “Let’s get out of here.”
“I can’t.” My gaze cut to the elves, now scrambling back away from the stage. With the demon temporarily immobilized, they were freed from his hold. “When this spell wears off, all these people will be in danger.”
She let out a frustrated huff. “Well, where the hell are Kane and the rest of the Brotherhood? Aren’t they supposed to be fighting demons?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. Maybe we’re in a dead zone, and they can’t detect anything?” The only reasons Kane and the other hunters wouldn’t have shown up were if the demon didn’t register on their radar, or if all of them already had their hands full. Dammit. Why hadn’t I thought to try to get in touch with Kane while I was at the club?
Because Pyper had said he was already fighting a demon, and I hadn’t known we’d have one of our own. That’s why.
Crap.
“Oh, thank God,” Pyper said, pointing toward the entrance of Jackson Square.
I couldn’t help the surprised laugh that came bubbling out and quickly turned to hilarity as I shook from the ridiculousness of it all.
Bea, the former coven leader of New Orleans, was wearing a red sequined ball gown and standing up on a carriage, her legs spread apart for balance with the reigns in her hands. Auburn hair flew out behind her while half my coven followed, riding adult-sized tricycles. And that wasn’t even the most ridiculous part. Her two “horses” were really jackasses wearing antlers and red noses.
“Who knew Rudolph was in town?” Pyper said with a snicker.
“And what’s with the three-wheelers?” I added. Lucien and Rosalee were right behind Bea, both of them also wearing sequined formal ware.
“What the hell is Lucien wearing?” Pyper grimaced. “Good Lord. That should be illegal.”
His sports coat was bright emerald green, all sequins with a tie to match. I had half a mind to spell him into another outfit.
“Looks like we interrupted a…party?” I turned to her my eyebrows lifted.
She shook her head. “I dunno, but by the looks of it, I’m glad I wasn’t invited.”
I chuckled and started to move forward to meet Bea. But just as I took my second step, a loud roar of frustration came from behind me, drowning out all the noise from the crowd.
The demon. Shit. I’d been so busy eyeing Bea and the coven that I’d all but forgotten he was back there.
I spun, ready to spell him again, but he was too quick. Too pissed.
He pounced. Both hands went for my throat, and as I grabbed hold of my magic, the large demon squeezed, cutting off my air.
Jesus! My magic dissipated and instantly I was rendered useless. My air had been cut off and I was already going lightheaded.
“Hey, asshole!” I heard Pyper cry.
He ignored her.
“I have something you want.” Her voice was far away now, as if she’d left the stage.
The demon only pressed harder. My vision started to turn black.
Panic set in. Magic pulsed in my chest. Magic I couldn’t control. Not while I was on the verge of passing out. A burst of energy shot forth from me, and the demon released me, screaming as he flew across the stage.
Pyper stood off to the side, holding the empty potion bottle. I started to move toward her, but she put her hand up. “Wait!”
Then she pointed to the stage and the pool of liquid. The freezing potion was seeping toward me. She’d been trying to spell him again and missed when I tossed the demon. “Thanks. Between the two of us, he didn’t have a chance.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but the demon came up behind her and wrapped an ugly pock-marked arm around her throat.
Gross. My spell must’ve broken his human illusion. Now he was gray, with wrinkly, leather-like skin, electric-yellow eyes, and a skeletal body cloaked in an oversized Santa suit.
“Step off her, demon,” I said, magic crackling at my fingertips.
“I don’t think so.” He snarled and lowered his head toward her neck.
I screamed, certain he was going to bite her, but he only took a big whiff. Holy crow. Was this some sort of demon fetish? But then I noticed Pyper wilting and the light dimming in her eyes while his illusion snapped back into place.
“No!” I cried and gritted my teeth. There was no way to blast him without hitting Pyper first. I dove, barely missing the potion still pooled on the stage, and grabbed the satchel. In one desperate movement, I came up with the small dagger in my hand. I felt its magic pulsing in my palm and knew if I could get it anywhere near his heart, this would all be over.
But he turned, keeping Pyper in front of him.
There was a commotion of heavy footsteps behind me, followed by shouts of panic and Bea ordering the coven members to hold their ground. I glanced out of the corner of my eye, and sucked in a hard breath. There were another dozen Santas facing off with the coven members.
Demons. Every last one of them.
“Back off, witch,” the demon in front of me ordered. “Or I’ll kill her right now.”
Pyper clawed at his arm and threw her head back, aiming for his nose. Bullseye. The demon stumbled, shaking his head. I didn’t waste any time. Jumping over the freezing potion, I skirted around them and slammed the dagger into Santa demon’s back.
He stiffened, and then snarled as he tried to spin. Pyper hooked her foot around his, turned and kneed him in the groin. His eyes widened with surprised as he fell to the side, more from being knocked off balance than from any obvious pain.
“Pyper!” I reached out, trying to grab her as they both went down in slow motion right into the freezing potion.
Dammit. If only she’d been able to loosen his hold on her, that move would’ve been perfect. It was still impressive, though. Who else had the cajones to knee a demon in the balls?
The two lay sprawled on the stage while the remaining Santa demons battled with my coven members. Spells and bolts of white and black magic whizzed through the air. The giant Christmas tree was on fire. The twelve days of Christmas participants had vanished, and the only people left were the elves. They were busy lobbing what looked to be little sugar-plum bombs at the demons.
Total mayhem.
I had to do something. But first, I needed to get Pyper from the asshat Santa. He was lying partially on top of her, his large frame, pinning her down. Another blast of anger shot through me, and as I reached down to grab her hand, I gave the demon a swift kick in the ribs. He flipped over and landed with a thud on the stage.
I quickly pulled Pyper over to the edge, and just as I was about to reverse the freezing spell, a shimmering light crawled over Santa until it encased his entire body.
Oh, goddess. What now? I zapped Pyper and muttered, “Revive.”
Her eyes flew open as she sucked in a gasp of air.
“Let’s go,” I said, my instincts telling me we had to get as far away from the demon as possible.
She wobbled, but clutched my hand and managed to keep up.
We were only a few feet from the stage when the light around the Santa demon turned ice blue and then burst into flames. He flailed his limbs, and his face contorted with silent screams as the fire consumed him, shot straight up in the air and winked out, leaving nothing but black ash on the stage.
“Holy shit,” Pyper said.
“I think maybe Santa’s naughty list just got a little shorter.” I stared at the pile of ash, trying to figure out what had happened.
“Cute,” Pyper said with a heavy dose of sarcasm. “But now might not—”
“Jade!” Kane’s voice perme
ated my haze of confusion.
I spun, finding him and a stream of demon hunters sprinting into the square. He was wearing his dress pants and the button down shirt I’d gotten him a few weeks ago. The one I’d told him I was looking forward to ripping off of him the next chance I got. He’d clearly been dressed up for our romantic ride through the Quarter before he’d been called to battle demons.
A pang of regret stabbed me, and I glanced down at my Mrs. Claus outfit. My skirt was ripped, and the fake white fur was smudged with dirt. So much for being a sexy little Christmas present.
Kane came to a stop right in front of me, his dagger out, as another one of the other Santa demons finally spotted us. The demon hissed, and Kane threw his dagger, hitting the demon right in the eye. The demon recoiled and then suddenly vanished. Kane’s dagger fell to the ground, the stone in the handle gleaming with magical light. He flicked his wrist and the dagger zoomed back into his hand.
He glanced around, noted his fellow brothers and the coven expertly taking out the remaining demons and then turned to me, unconcerned. “What’s going on?”
I raised both eyebrows. “You don’t know?”
He shook his head. “No. One minute we were tracking these Santa demons in Uptown, and then the next they disappeared. We followed, but when we got here, it appeared the square was empty and it was as if there was an invisible wall keeping us out. Something just changed. A spell was neutralized or something and then we were able to charge in.”
“I think I know what happened.” Pulling him over to the front of the stage, I pointed at the black ash. “We destroyed that demon. Right after that you guys showed up.”
Kane cursed. “Was he wearing a black Santa hat?”
“Yes? Did you have a run-in with him?”
“Yeah. He was Kyros Kringle.”
My eyes went wide. “As in related to Kris Kringle?”
“Yes.” His brow furrowed. “Santa, the real one, is an ancient witch. His brother was an angel and fell centuries ago. I learned tonight that Kyros periodically surfaces on Christmas Eve to try to bait his brother.”
“Uh, Santa’s real?” I asked.
“Jade. Focus.” Kane peered at the stage. “How did you do this?”
“I can’t believe Santa’s real and I killed his demon brother,” I muttered to myself, watching as Bea single-handedly opened a portal to Hell and sent back two fake Santas.
“Jade.” Kane snapped his fingers.
“Yeah?”
“What did you do to Kyros?”
“Oh. We used the dagger and the freezing potion in the emergency kit you and Bea left with Charlie. I think it was the dagger that did it in the end.”
He jumped up on the stage, poked through the ash and found the dagger. Then he nodded. “Yeah. This is what did it. Only you didn’t end the demon; just shed his human form and sent him back to Hell.”
“Dammit,” Pyper said, straightening her smudged silver dress. I wasn’t the only one with dirt stains ruining my outfit.
I wasn’t sure if she was upset about her dress or the demon.
Kane grabbed the small dagger, leaped from the stage and helped his demon-hunter brothers finish off the last of the demons.
When the last one was finally gone, Bea closed the portal, climbed back into her jackass drawn carriage, and collapsed in the seat.
I touched Kane’s arm. “I’ll be right back.”
He gave me a kiss on the temple. “Sure, love. I need to talk to the Brotherhood anyway.”
Pyper fell into step beside me, and the pair of us jogged over to Bea. Unlike our clothes, her red sequined dress was in perfect order. How did she always manage to battle evil and still look like she’d just walked out of a salon?
Except this time, she had her eyes closed and the back of her hand draped over her forehead.
“Bea?”
She jerked and sat straight up. “Oh, hello, ladies. I was just resting my eyes while I try to come up with a plan to free those elves.”
I turned and eyed the group of Hell-bound souls. Most of them were gathered around the burnt Christmas tree holding hands. Their heads were bowed as if in prayer. There was a sad air about them that made my chest tighten. They weren’t giving up were they? Lailah had helped us free souls from Hell before, though not ones that were already trapped in stone. “Is there something we can do together? Or call Lailah maybe?”
“No, as much as Lailah would like to help, this isn’t something that she can do safely. It isn’t something any of us can do safely. There are only two ways to free them: go to Hell and magically break the binding on their tombs, or take the life energy of magical beings to give them the strength to do it themselves. Unfortunately, the amount of energy the elves need makes it entirely too dangerous, due to how long they’ve been trapped down there. If we tried it, someone could be seriously injured, or even killed.”
A shiver ran through me. Hadn’t they been siphoning my life force earlier? If given the chance would they have drained me to save themselves?
“I don’t think they are really elves,” Pyper said.
“Tell that to him,” the lead elf said, now standing beside Bea pointing to the sky.
And just above us was a twinkling sleigh, lit up in bright white lights with a team of… Was that reindeer? No. I blinked.
“Whoa,” Pyper said.
Bea grinned.
I stared opened-mouthed at the spectacle barreling right for us. “Santa?”
6
“Ho, ho, ho!” Santa called out, just like one would expect him to. The sleigh, powered by nine reindeer, landed just in front of the charred Christmas tree. “Merry Christmas!”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Pyper muttered.
“What, you’re not wowed by Santa?” I asked her, wondering if we’d slipped into some sort of alternate reality.
Her blue eyes flashed with irritation. “Where was he when his brother was trying to kill us?”
“Good question.”
The dozen elves kneeled in front of Santa, their heads bowed and hands clasped in front of them.
The jolly man in the sleigh glanced around the square, frowned, and then jumped down, his black boots hitting the cement walk with a thud. “What’s going on?” Suspicion replaced his practiced cheer. “Where’s Kyros?”
“I sent his ass back to Hell.” I placed my hands on my hips and narrowed my eyes at him. Just because he was Santa didn’t mean he was trustworthy. “Why? Were you here to join him in his…ah, activities?”
Santa turned to me, intelligence and patience radiating off him. “Ms. Calhoun.” He smiled. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” His gaze traveled the length of my body. A faint trace of distaste brushed up against my skin. “Isn’t that an interesting take on Jessica’s uniform?”
Heat burned my cheeks. Mrs. Claus’s first name was Jessica. I pulled the teal jacket closed and ignored the remark. Awkward.
“Kris,” Bea said. “It’s nice to see you again.”
Kane reappeared by my side and it was then I noticed the Brotherhood had already vanished. The demons were gone. Their job was done.
“Bea. You’re a vision as always. And still kicking demon ass. Don’t think I didn’t see you flying in here, your magic blazing. Impressive.”
I let out the breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.
Kane wrapped his arm around me, let his gaze sweep over my body, and whispered, “Interesting indeed. I assume it was part of my present?”
I nodded, a whole new kind of heat making me flush.
“Then I can’t wait to unwrap you as soon as we get home.”
A smile tugged at my lips, and I no longer cared what Santa thought. Finally Christmas was shaping up to be something magical.
Bea slipped her arm through Santa’s and tugged him toward the elves. “Thanks. You flatter me, but right now we have more pressing matters.
My coven closed in around us, their collective apprehension making my sk
in itch. They didn’t trust the elves or Santa. Couldn’t say I blamed them. Santa was way too cavalier, and the elves were loose cannons. They’d already put me and Pyper in danger. What else would they do?
“These souls are still tied to Hell,” I said. “Be careful. They tried to steal my life energy in order to free themselves.”
His eyes narrowed as he took a step forward toward the leader. Then he turned chalk-white as he kneeled down right in front of him. “Nico?”
The elf lifted his head, tears standing in his dark eyes. “Mr. Kringle. We never wanted to hurt anyone. I swear. We just…”
“Oh, Nico.” Santa put his hand on the elf’s shoulder and glanced around at the other elves who were all now staring at him with a mixture of hope and…was that shame?
“I think you might know these souls,” Bea said to Santa, her tone gentle.
Santa nodded slowly. “They used to work for me.” He swallowed. “A long time ago.”
“They really are elves?” Pyper said, her voice carrying over the square.
“We were,” Nico said, still staring at Santa.
Santa stood and took a step back.
Bea placed her hand on his arm. “Don’t you think they’ve suffered enough, Kris?”
He turned to her, his eyes wide with surprise. “You know what happened?”
“I heard the rumors.” She gave him a gentle smile. “You could give them a second chance, you know. Because Kyros bound them, and the two of you share DNA, only your magic can free them, though you’ll likely need an extra boost. I’m sure Jade and the coven would lend you their power. If you asked them.”
“Second chance? Not if they’re going to suck the energy of my witches,” I said. Then I cringed. Santa, and apparently his elves, needed help. Was I the Scrooge here?
Santa jerked and then stood tall as he faced me. “Ms. Calhoun, no elf of mine will intentionally harm anyone ever again. It is with my deepest sincerity that I must apologize for the way my elves have behaved. I assure you it is not acceptable.”
One of the elves let out a tiny sob.
