by Leia Shaw
She looked down at their hands intertwined. “Uh, thanks.” She pulled away, leaving his palm empty.
He tucked his hand in his pocket and cursed himself for soothing her. This was no time to get sentimental. “Right. Well, a dead witch is a useless witch.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she mumbled.
They walked in silence for a long time. He expected her to start prattling about insignificant topics at any moment. One thing he remembered about women was that they rarely stayed silent. But Samantha seemed content in it. Each time he looked at her, she appeared lost in thought, her forehead crinkled as she peered around them. He found himself curious about what she was thinking.
He shook his head. Don’t get too close. She was a means to an end, nothing more. He’d be leaving her in the hands of the vicious Underworld Games guard in just a few short days. Stay detached. Focus on getting home.
At the border of his property, the trees began to thin. The grass disappeared, giving way to rocks and sand. They stepped out of the forest and gazed upon the desert.
Samantha stood beside him. “Oh, this is gonna suck.”
Chapter 4
Barren land covered in golden sand stretched as far as Samantha could see. The wind whipped through, blowing the loose sand into shifting dunes. Other than a few craggy cliffs in the distance, the desert was desolate. No trees, no cover, no shade. She was going to get the sunburn of a lifetime.
Geo pulled the cowboy hat off his pack and placed it on her head. “Keep this on and your eyes cast down.”
The hat she understood but…“Why can’t I look around?”
“You’ll grow hopeless and sit down to die.” His expression was grim. He wasn’t joking. After he tightened the strap on her hat, he grabbed both her shoulders and bent down to look her in the eye. “Now you need to trust me, Samantha. I know this world. I can keep you safe but you must do what I tell you. Can you do that?”
Could she? If it meant survival, yes. And she always had her sword and spells to fall back on. She took another glance at the desert. The spells wouldn’t do much good. Maybe if her earth powers weren’t so freakin’ unstable she could conjure some clouds for cover. Knowing her luck, they’d end up blinded by a sand storm.
Geo squeezed her shoulders. “Can you trust me?”
“Yes.” She bit down on her lip. I think.
“Good.”
She tipped her hat down over her eyes and stepped into the sand. She’d only ever been to the beach once. Her family wasn’t the vacationing type. Unless you considered a road trip to the casino, while stopping at every 7-Eleven you passed to stock up on beef jerky and slushies, a vacation. But there had been one year she’d escaped a long summer at the trailer park and went with a school friend to Cape Cod. Her flip flops had sunk in the sand with each step, making it difficult to walk to the water. But still, she’d grinned the entire time.
She looked down at her converse sneakers. They’d filled with sand after only a few steps. And there were no crashing waves to motivate her. This was definitely going to suck.
“Hey, Long Legs!” Sam called to Geo, whose powerful stride had left her behind. “Slow down.”
He stopped and waited for her to catch up. Sweat trickled down her forehead already. “I gotta take some clothes off.” She handed him her sword and satchel. “How long till we’re out of here?”
“A day and a half.”
She pulled her green peasant top off, leaving a white tank top as her only cover. The sun was going to scorch her bare shoulders but at least she’d have one shirt not soaked with sweat for later that night in case it cooled down.
“As soon as you start getting pink you’re going to put that back on,” Geo ordered, gesturing to the shirt she was stuffing in her bag.
Pushy demon. “Do you have a knife?”
“Of course. Why?”
“I want to cut my jeans into shorts.”
He shook his head. “The long pants will protect you from bugs and scorpions.”
“I’m going to lose half my body mass in sweat!”
“Then I’ll have to keep you hydrated.” He handed her the satchel and sword and opened his pack. Several canteens that she guessed were full of water sat at the top of the bag. “Leave the pants.”
With a sigh, she nodded. He had pants on too. She’d suffer in company.
She caught Geo’s gaze glued to her chest. “Eyes up, demon.”
He shot her a look so heated she would’ve shivered if she hadn’t been standing in the Desert of Death.
“What do the charms mean?”
She looked down at her four necklaces. Protection, luck, her birthstone, and her sister. All of them were attempts to strengthen her powers with varying degrees of success. “Um. It’s private.”
He arched a brow.
“A witch never tells her secrets.”
“Fair enough. I just hoped you had something to help us through the desert.”
She snorted. “No. Sorry. I didn’t earn my camel-making charm yet.”
His lips twitched. “Camel?”
“Yeah. Like in Egypt. They ride camels through the desert.”
He grinned.
“What?”
“If I was to choose hypothetical transportation, it would be an airplane or a dune buggy. Not a camel.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Maybe the sun is cooking my brain. Can we go?”
With a smirk, he bowed and answered, “As you wish.” He walked forward and she trailed behind. “Horses.”
“What?”
“Even horses would’ve been better than camels.”
“Oh, shut up.”
He chuckled quietly and she couldn’t hold back a small smile. Despite the teasing, Geo was easy to be with. Even when he’d scolded her earlier, he’d done it gently. The men in her life had left much to be desired – three rowdy older brothers and a deadbeat dad. She’d learned early on to keep her head down and make her own path. Once she saved Nikki, she’d return to that path. She was already on step two of her five-year plan. She wasn’t sure how Nikki fit into that plan but there was no way she’d let her go back home. Even if she had to take on the dirtiest, most foul jobs, she’d find a way to provide for them both.
Her family’s betrayal was unforgiveable. They didn’t want to help her get Nikki? Then they didn’t deserve to see her anymore. It’d be tough to support them both. She hadn’t even finished the mentoring witches were encouraged to receive. She’d quit after a short time in order to take jobs and earn money to pay her father’s debt, fearful of this exact scenario. But she hadn’t made it in time. If she found Nikki – no, when she found her – they’d make something work. If nothing else, Samantha was resourceful.
The sun beat down like a blanket of fire as they walked on, mile after mile. The forest disappeared and they were enveloped wholly by desert – layers of loose sand in some spots, compact dirt in others. How the hell did the demon know where he was going? Sweat pooled between her breasts and along her neck. Her lungs felt heavy with the thick, hot air. Her limbs started to ache.
“Water?” With her gaze on the ground, she almost barreled into him.
“Yes, please.” Her voice sounded dry. How long had they been walking? She took a few sips then gazed around the desert. Nothingness. Not a single living thing within miles. Why did they ever think they would survive this? Her heart sunk and determination gave way to hopelessness. Even for her sister she doubted she could get through this. With a sigh, she dropped to her knees, the canteen falling to the ground.
“Sam?” Geo’s voice sounded distant. “What are you doing? Stand up.”
She couldn’t stand up if she wanted to, which she didn’t. This was the end. There was no point to suffer further. A pair of hands reached for her.
She batted them away. “It’s no use! We’ll never make it out of here.”
“Samantha, that’s not you talking. It’s the desert. It makes people go mad. Get up.”
“No.
I’m staying right here.”
More forcefully he said, “Get up, now.”
She shook her head. Couldn’t he see how screwed they were? They might as well lie down and die.
The pushy demon wrapped his hand around her upper arm and hoisted her to stand. “Snap out of it!” He shook her hard. “Your sister might be dying. We must keep moving.”
Her sister? What sister? No. Samantha had nobody. She was always alone. In the desert. Dying. Someone shook her again.
“Samantha. Pay attention only to my voice.” The voice was hypnotic and she listened for more. “You will remember your purpose. You will defeat this desert. You will not listen to its lies.”
Nikki. She gave her head a shake. Yes, she had to find her sister. Pulling from Geo’s grip she stepped back and rubbed her head. “Shit. I can’t believe I –”
Geo slapped his hand over her mouth. “Shh!” His whole body tensed as he scanned the desert.
She narrowed her eyes and looked for any sign of danger. All she could see was sand. Then the ground rumbled beneath their feet, vibrating through her body.
“What the –”
Geo grabbed her hand. “Run!”
They fled. She pushed to keep up with his pace but her body screamed in protest. The ground shook all around them. Geo pulled her faster.
The sand exploded, grinding them both to a halt. A hideous beast rose up from the ground, raining yellow sand all around them. A giant, red jelly-like worm soared over their heads and landed in the sand behind them, burrowing until it disappeared. She gaped at the building-sized crater it left behind.
Geo tugged on her hand. “It’ll be back.”
They ran again, steering around the hole in the ground. Sam followed blindly behind Geo, trying to keep up. The ground vibrated beneath them. It felt like they were standing on a subway tunnel. Geo veered to the right. When it rumbled under their feet again, they turned the other direction. Her heart raced and she could barely breathe. But Geo dragged her straight toward an outcropping of solid rock.
He leapt over a boulder, pulling Sam with him. But her shorter legs couldn’t clear it. She fell forward, losing her grip on Geo’s hand. Her knees collided with the rock and she cried out in pain landing, mouth open, on the ground. She raised her head and spit out a mouthful of sand. The small rocks at eye-level bounced up and down. The ground vibrated stronger and stronger under her body.
Oh shit.
The worm burst out of the dirt only a few feet from her, leaving another hole in its wake. She looked up and saw Geo on the other side.
“Get up!” he yelled.
Get up, get up, get up. She jumped to her feet, her knees trembling. Geo’s panicked gaze locked on hers from across the crater.
A high pitched screech echoed around them. Was that the worm? Geo looked down into the hole then back to Sam. “Jump!”
“What?” It was hard to hear between the thundering ground and the shrieking, but she’d surely misheard him.
“We’re going down.”
Oh, hell no. She shook her head.
“There’s far worse above us.”
She looked up and saw them – ugly black birds as big as horses with long featherless necks and red beaks that looked sharp enough to tear through a car. Three of them screeched and circled above her. The Underworld’s freaky as fuck version of vultures. Suddenly the worm tunnel didn’t seem so bad.
“Trust me,” Geo yelled, giving her a steady look. Then he jumped down into the hole and out of sight.
With a whimper and a prayer to whatever god could hear her, she steeled her courage and followed him.
It was a short fall but she landed hard on her feet and would’ve fallen on her ass but Geo was there steadying her.
“Isn’t it –” She coughed a few times and Geo handed her a canteen. If she never saw sand again, it would be too soon. She chugged the water and spit out a sandy mouthful. “Isn’t it coming back?”
He shook his head. “It caught one of the poulí to̱n nekró̱n.” She gave him a puzzled look. “A bird of the dead.”
The vultures. She grimaced.
Geo reached out and brushed the sand off her cheek – softly at first then, as if catching himself doing something wrong, he scowled and pulled away. “Are you all right?”
Oh, how her body hurt! Her knees felt swollen like two basketballs. Her hands were scraped up, her throat dry and aching. “Forget a beach vacation,” she said with a husky voice. “The Alaskan tundra is looking good right now. My whole body aches. And what the fuck was that thing?”
“Mongolian Death Worm.” He removed the hat from around her neck.
“It looked like a giant intestine.” She shuddered. “And we just jumped down into its…transportation system.” She peered around them for the first time. The tunnel was made up of compact dirt about as wide as a one-lane road – at least the parts she could see. The sun lit up the area around them through the hole, but past that was shrouded in darkness.
I wonder what the chances are the demon packed a flashlight.
“We had no choice,” Geo said, digging something out of his pack. “But as long as we’re quiet, we might go unnoticed. We’ll travel the rest of the desert down here. It’s cooler and safer.”
“Yeah, as long as the leaping worm of death doesn’t come back for a little snack.” She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a shiver creep up her spine.
He pulled out a swath of fabric and smirked. “The desert of death. The worm of death. You’re quite dramatic.” Wetting the cloth with some water from the canteen, he looked her over. “Come here.”
She took a few steps toward him. “Excuse me for being dramatic when things keep trying to kill me. How come you couldn’t stop them with your power?”
Gently, he dabbed the wet cloth over her face and shoulders. “It only works on intelligent beings, not animals. And I told you once and I’ll tell you again – I won’t let anything kill you.”
The coolness soothed her burnt shoulders and chest. Her eyes fluttered closed. “God, that feels so good.” When she heard how breathy she sounded, she flushed and snapped her eyes open.
Geo’s jaw clenched. “Here.” He shoved the fabric into her hands.
Did she do something wrong? To clear the sudden tension, she asked, “So a day and a half and we’re out of the tunnels?”
He nodded, his expression turned to stone.
A whole night in this place? She looked down at the compact dirt floor. At least the ground was solid. No more sand. But it was eerily quiet. And so dark.
Geo pressed a finger between her eyebrows. “Your forehead’s all crinkled up. What’s got you so worried?”
“I don’t like this place,” she admitted. No reason to pretend to be brave. “And I miss my sister.” Tears welled up but she blinked them back. She would not lose hope. She had to stay strong. For Nikki. Throughout her whole life, she’d protected her younger sister. When her dad had started drinking, she’d locked Nikki in her room. When her brothers had been in a teasing mood, she’d antagonize them, keeping their attention from Nikki. She’d been successful in sheltering her for the last fifteen years. Until now.
Geo studied her face, but his mask of indifference didn’t falter. “You’ll be there soon. Just have to stay alive until then. If we tread carefully, we shouldn’t be bothered.”
“Shouldn’t, maybe, might…your confidence is inspiring, demon.”
He arched a brow. “Not a demon.”
Chapter 5
Samantha pulled on her top, feeling a slight chill in the growing darkness. “I don’t suppose you have a flashlight?”
“A what?”
Guess not. “How will we see where we’re going?”
“I have near perfect vision in the dark.” His gaze raked over her and his look of disappointment made her self-conscious. “I keep forgetting you’re a mortal.”
She scowled. “Sorry for having the ability to die.”
“It’s all
right. Not your fault.”
She clenched her fists. “I was being sarcastic!”
“You’ll have to trust me to guide you through the dark.” He stuck out his hand.
She stared at it. No. Samantha was not some helpless female. She refused to play the role of damsel in distress waiting on a knight in shining armor – or in this case, a demon in ass-hugging leather. She was a powerful witch, a descendant of…well, nobody special really. But she’d spent all her free time studying hard to overcome the sins of her family. At sixteen, her powers had come sputtering to life, clunky and awkward because her family wasn’t exactly itching to train her. So she’d worked hard on her own, practicing in the woods behind their trailer park. She’d missed school dances, make-out sessions, shopping with girlfriends…feeling even more guilty when Nikki skipped those things to join her. And all for the ability to do the most basic of spells. But still, she could do better than having to hold hands like a small child.
“Come on. Hurry up,” he said, moving his hand closer.
“I have an idea.” She turned, searching the ground around them. “I need something to use as a torch.”
She expected Geo to snort or roll his eyes at her attempt to help, but he didn’t. He moved into the shadows, past where she could see, and when he came back, he was holding a long, somewhat curved stick. A little short but it would do.
She smiled when he walked closer. “Where did –”
A bone! He held it out toward her. A femur…or something. Oh Lord, was she really going to do this?
For Nikki, for Nikki, for Nikki.
She grimaced but took the bone from his hand. At least it was old and other than a little dirt, there didn’t appear to be any blood or guts stuck to it. She resisted the urge to upchuck and asked, in a tight voice, “Do you have a lighter?”
He nodded and pulled one out of his pack. She held it to the end of the bone.
Closing her eyes, she chanted, “This bone is strong, burn bright and, um, long. I give power to thee, through this tunnel let us see.”
Magic rose up from her toes. Tingly warmth spread through her veins. It settled in her chest – the familiar feeling of comfort made her smile. With a push, she forced it down her arm to the fingers holding the lighter. She opened her eyes, lit the lighter, and with a burst that made her yelp, it ignited the bone in a fiery blast.
