by Deanna Chase
I spun, finding Vaughn hovering over Chase. The other incubus was passed out, his dark complexion pasty. “What happened?” I asked Vaughn.
“The demon fled at the same time Janie disappeared.” He crouched next to Chase and glanced up at me with a worried expression. “Go after her. I have to get him back to the Brotherhood ASAP or he might not wake up.”
The contents in my stomach churned with anxiousness. “Not wake up?”
“It’s the effects of the possession. He needs the collective to regain his strength. There’s no time to wait for them to assemble here.” Vaughn grabbed Chase’s upper body and hauled him over his shoulder. “I’ll take him through the shadows and be right back. You need to hurry and find Janie. The demon isn’t going to give up that easily.”
I didn’t even wait to see Vaughn slip into the shadow world–the world between ours and Hell, a place that made it possible to leave one point and reappear in another. He’d be back at the Brotherhood’s mansion in seconds. And hopefully back to me soon after. But I had no time to wait for him.
Janie was vulnerable.
Chapter Five
I flew out of the room and down the hall toward the magical Christmas tree. The ornaments were animated again, and the desire to stop and admire the giant Douglas fir was almost overwhelming.
The only saving grace was the panic swirling in my chest for Janie. She didn’t have the skills yet to ward off a demon, and the thought of her soul being in danger made me physically ill. I had to get to her.
Once I was on my way down the stairs, the sexual energy in the massive room mixed with a small spark of my magic, fortifying my strength enough to keep me going.
When this was over, Vaughn and I were going to have one hell of a night in the bedroom.
At the bottom of the stairs I paused for just a moment, scanning the crowd for my red dress.
There she was. With Chad by the refreshments. I let out a small sigh of relief and took a step in her direction.
“Excuse me, young lady,” a woman wearing a green velvet dress, white gloves, and a snowflake diamond choker said. “Where’s your snowflake charm?”
The impressive amount of magic radiating from the older woman nearly knocked me on my ass. There was no doubt she was the witch behind all the magic gracing the house.
“I didn’t receive one.” No need to tell her I broke it and left it in the middle of the dance floor.
She narrowed her eyes and grabbed my wrist. Tsking, she shook her head. “Don’t try to play me, Ms. Ballintine.” She snapped her fingers and the bracelet appeared in her hand. “Put it back on.”
I shook my head. “I’m here on official angel council business, not to engage in your social club.”
“I know why you’re here.” She waved a hand over the bracelet. The diamonds sparkled, then the silver piece of jewelry flew from her hand and wrapped around my wrist, magically putting itself back together. “It’s imperative you appear to be following our guidelines for the safety of everyone. I can’t have you looking conspicuous among my girls.”
“But–”
She held up a hand. “I’ve neutralized the bracelet. Your sister and I met today, and we’ve come to an understanding about your future here at this university. See me after the party so we can discuss the details.”
She strode off without waiting for my reply.
“Great,” I muttered and took off toward Janie and Chad. Now what had Chessa signed me up for? Working for my angel–council–leader sister was turning into a grade–A pain in the ass.
“Janie?” I said, standing behind her.
“She’s fine,” Chad said, not looking at me. His voice was lower, scratchy as if he was coming down with a cold.
I frowned. “Chad?”
He glanced up, his eyes dark and irritated. “Janie’s had a rough night. I’m taking her home.”
What should’ve been protective came off as aggressive and overbearing. My alarm bells went off. Instead of challenging him right there in the middle of the party, I decided to go for a more subtle approach. “That’s sweet of you. But she’s staying at my place, so don’t worry. She’ll be fine.” I placed a hand on her shoulder. “Janie, ready to go?”
She glanced over her shoulder at me, her eyes wide with fear. “Yes.” The word was barely audible and with her rigid posture, I knew there was more to her reaction than what had happened upstairs.
“I said I’ll take you,” Chad said, his tone commanding as he grabbed her arm and yanked her toward the door. She stumbled and nearly fell on her face, but he kept her upright, practically dragging her toward the door.
“Whoa!” I called, running after them.
Chad nodded to the student manning the door as they disappeared outside.
A giggling freshman and her date stumbled into my path.
“Shit!” I veered but still managed to knock into the girl’s arm, spilling the contents of her red Solo cup all over my silver dress. The strong stench of rum permeated my senses.
“Hey!” The girl spun, scowling with disgust. “Watch it.”
I glared at her but kept moving. I didn’t know what was going on with Chad, but there was no way I was letting Janie get into his car.
I burst through the front door and instantly shivered in the cold air. “Janie!” I called, ignoring the wind chilling me to the bone.
“Mati!” I heard her call from the shadows of the large oak off to the right. “Over here.”
I took off at a dead run. Within ten feet I spotted them.
And terror took over. A sliver of pale orange light shone from a partially opened portal right next to the tree. Chad was focused on the opening, chanting a spell I didn’t recognize, while he kept an iron grip on Janie’s wrist. She struggled, pulling and kicking, fruitlessly trying to escape his hold, but he was too strong.
Demon strong.
Dammit! The demon hadn’t left. He was just jumping into anyone Janie was talking to in order to get to her. The only way to get rid of him was to take him into the shadow world and force him back into Hell myself.
I wasn’t strong enough. I knew that. I hadn’t recharged in weeks. But if I didn’t try, Janie would be taken into Hell where she would be trapped, and as an angel she would fall, turn demon herself, and never even start living the life she was destined for. I couldn’t let that happen.
“Chad!” I yelled as I threw myself between them, using my body weight to break their connection.
Janie collapsed on the lush lawn but immediately started scrambling backward.
Chad somehow managed to stay on his feet, but he loomed over me, his face contorted in rage. “You irritating bitch. If you weren’t tainted, I’d take you instead.”
Tainted? What the hell did that mean? “Looks like it’s my lucky day then. Too bad I can’t say the same for you.”
He let out a sinister laugh and shot his hand out, grasping me by the throat.
Janie let out a cry of alarm behind me.
Magic curled and sparked in my palms, but as I clasped my hands around his arm, ready to unleash my worst, the magic fizzled out and left me empty.
Chad cocked his head to the side and then laughed. “This is who they sent to take me down? Pathetic.”
Now that pissed me off. My magic was there. I could feel it stirring inside me, but for some reason it wouldn’t surface. Were we in a dead zone? One cast by the witch council to keep witches in line? It was possible. We were on university property.
“Fuck off.” I forced the words out despite his hand trying to crush my throat and then kicked with everything I had. My foot landed in the middle of his chest, knocking him backward and straight toward the open portal.
And taking me with him.
Chapter Six
The searing heat radiating from the portal told me we were headed straight to Hell. Panic seized my brain, and for a moment I did nothing. Just held on as we fell in what seemed like slow motion through the opening.
Then my
fight reflex kicked in and I focused. In my mind, I pictured the demon hunters’ large antebellum headquarters. The one place the demon would never choose to go. But as long as he was hanging on to me, I was in control of his destination. My magic might not be one hundred percent, but there was nothing wrong with my shadow–walking abilities.
As soon as we hit the portal, the heat vanished, replaced by a cool mist. The pair of us crashed into the shadows in a barren spot with no distinguishing surroundings. Just a grayness of nothing. I had no idea where we were.
My heart started hammering in my chest. I’d once before ended up in a desolate place where I’d been trapped, waiting for someone, anyone, to rescue me because my magic had failed me.
“Where the fuck are we?” Chad growled and jumped to his feet, already reaching for me.
But I was too quick. I darted to the left and circled around him. “Not in Hell.”
He spun, his fists clenched in obvious frustration. Good. As long as he was focused on me, he wouldn’t go back to find Janie. My magic started to bubble inside me the way it usually did when I’m shadow walking, and I almost grinned in relief. This was nothing like when I’d previously been in the void world. I was just in a deserted part of the shadows.
I could try to walk myself right back to the university, but if the demon had any skills at all, he’d just follow me. No. I really couldn’t leave until I managed to expel the demon from Chad’s body, send the demon back to where he belonged, and then I’d have to manage to get Chad back to our world.
But how could I separate the demon from the man? Magic? Not without hurting Chad. But that was better than letting the demon keep his body. Curling my hands into fists, I searched deep within myself for the magic spark, then I thought of Vaughn. I imagined the last time we’d been together. Let myself experience the memory of his touch, the tingles of magic that always formed once we connected. And then the way I felt when he loved me.
Magic strummed hot and bright from the depths of my inner being and strained to be released. “Hey, demon,” I called.
His eyes glowed red with hatred. “Dirty witch.”
“I might be dirty, but at least I’m not a stinking, soulless asshole who has to steal angels to get a date.”
He snorted as if my insult was lame.
Maybe it was, but it amused me and that’s all that mattered. “Get the eff out of Chad’s body. Now.”
“Or what?” He raised an eyebrow nonchalantly.
“Or this.” I stretched out my hands and let a torrent of magic fly. Upon contact, Chad’s body convulsed in place, unable to move or even fall to the ground. He was being kept upright by the electrical current of my magic.
After a moment, I cut the power stream off, not wanting to damage Chad too badly. I fully expected him to collapse to the ground, but the demon was too strong.
He glanced around wildly, then stopped and stood there, brow furrowed in concentration. Then he let out a roar. “Where are we?”
I shrugged, watching him closely. “Not sure.”
He spun around and came right for me. His tall, six–foot frame towered over me as his red demon eyes bored into me.
This was it. Now or never. I’d either save Chad or… I didn’t even want to think about the alternative. I braced myself, knowing if I ran it’d be useless. This guy was a jock, and even though I’d just tried to fry him, the demon possessing him was too full of his own kind of magic.
I couldn’t compete with that. Not physically. I took a deep breath, tapped into my inner magic, and chanted, “Seperatur. Seperatur. Seperatur.”
My hands connected with the football star’s shoulders right as he grabbed my hair and yanked. Pain shot down my spine as I contorted, trying to release the pressure. But he only pulled harder as he kneed me in the gut. Hard.
The air burst from my lungs, leaving me gasping. Everything hurt. My head, my neck, my back, my torso. But it would take more than that to bring me down. Instead of focusing on the pain, I concentrated on the nice boy I’d met earlier in the night. The one who’d been so protective of Janie. Who’d smiled down at her and taken her hand in his. The sweet guy she deserved.
Chad.
My magic pulsed under my skin, heating with intent. That’s how witch magic worked. One feeds the magic with purpose. For most things, if a witch is strong enough, concentrates enough, she won’t even need a spell or a potion. Though those things certainly made achieving the goal easier. Not this time. I was going to take him down by sheer will.
“Seperatur,” I said again, forcing as much power into the word as I could.
Red light appeared, coating Chad’s skin as his eyes bulged. A howl ripped from his lungs and he swung, clocking me in the cheekbone, but I barely felt it through the magic coursing through me.
I was completely connected to Chad through the demon, and I knew without a doubt if I could hold on long enough, we could force the monster from him. All I had to do was keep a physical connection. But that was getting harder and harder by the second.
The demon within flailed wildly, limbs jerking and lashing out. Bam! Another punch. This one to my shoulder. I stumbled to the side, barely recovering before another one hit me in the kidney. I lurched forward, the blow nearly bringing me to my knees.
I wouldn’t survive this much longer. My strength and my magic were waning. I had two choices: give one last–ditch effort to save Chad or leave.
Janie’s lovesick eyes flashed in my mind, followed by the awful knowledge that if Chad’s body was taken to Hell, he’d never be saved. I’d already decided.
Getting my balance, I perched on the balls of my feet, dodged one more blow, and then lunged. My body hit Chad’s full force, and we both went down in a heap of limbs. I plastered myself to him and unleashed all my magic, imagining Chad demon free and lying underneath me.
The demon cried out in agony and rolled, but I hung on, my fingernails digging into Chad’s skin. The red light covering him grew until it surrounded both of us. And then with one last wretched cry, Chad went limp on top of me.
The shadow world went completely silent. My plan had worked. It must’ve. The light was gone and Chad’s skin was clammy with sweat. His body was in shock, as was to be expected after a demon invasion.
But where was the demon? I placed both hands on Chad’s chest and pushed him off.
And standing right above me in all his red–leather–skinned glory was the black–toothed demon, fire crawling up his arms.
Chapter Seven
Shit!
The flames grew and as the demon raised his arms, the fire shot straight at me.
I rolled to the left, barely avoiding getting singed. My heart hammered against my rib cage as I scrambled back on my feet, fully expecting another attack.
Except the demon turned to face Chad, his arms raised as he stared over his shoulder at me. “Take me out of here, or I’ll burn him alive.”
“What?” I asked, clutching my neck in fear. Chad, still unconscious, was helpless at the moment. “What do you mean ‘take you out of here?’”
“You trapped me here, you bitch. Open a portal or something. I’m not staying here. Something about this place makes it too hard to think.”
The flames died out and he grabbed his head, shaking it as if to clear the cobwebs.
I ran to Chad’s side, prepared to shadow walk us both out of there, but as soon as I dropped to his side a portal opened, and in came half a dozen demon hunters, Vaughn in the lead.
Fire engulfed the demon as he roared and ran head–on toward Vaughn.
I couldn’t keep the cry from escaping my lips. But it was unnecessary. Vaughn was too quick with his dagger. It flew and landed in the chest of the demon.
Unfortunately, it did nothing to slow the fire demon down. Vaughn dodged and the next demon hunter launched his dagger. One after another, the hunters let their daggers fly, each of them landing in the torso of the demon.
Then, just as the last one met its target, the d
emon hunters formed a circle, closed in, and called, “Finem!”
The fire burned brighter and then winked out, leaving just a pile of daggers and ash.
“Whoa,” I said softly.
“Mati!” Vaughn ran to my side and pulled me into his arms as the rest of the hunters disappeared back to wherever they had come from. “How did you get here?”
I leaned into him, resting my head on his solid chest, exhausted. “The demon jumped into Chad, and I was trying to bring him through the shadows to the Brotherhood, but we got stuck here. I don’t even know where we are.”
“You’re in the shadows near our headquarters. Only the Brotherhood can step in and out of the shadows here. That’s why you were blocked. But if a demon shows up, the area locks down and the alarm goes off.”
I pulled back and grimaced. “An alarm? Took you long enough.”
“What? The alarm went off right before we invaded. How long were you here?”
I shrugged. “Five, ten minutes?”
He frowned and his eyes clouded with concern. “You were here that entire time with a demon?”
I nodded. “He was possessing Chad, but yes. I had to force him out of Chad’s body before I could shadow walk us back, but it sounds like we wouldn’t have been able to go anyway.” A ripple of fear shuddered through me. What if they’d never showed up? I’d be ash now instead of the demon.
Vaughn glanced at Chad. “He’s awake now.” Tucking my hand into his, he tugged me to Chad’s side.
“Hey,” I said, placing a shaking hand on his chest. “Are you all right?”
He blinked up at us. “Where am I?”
“The shadows. Do you remember what happened?”
He shook his head and pushed himself up, wincing. “Why do I feel like I’ve been put through a meat grinder?”
A pang of guilt slammed into me. “Sorry. You were possessed by a demon, and I had to fight you before I could force him out of your body.”
“Holy shit.”
“Yeah,” I agreed.
Vaughn held a hand out to him and pulled him to his feet. But he didn’t let go right away. He peered into Chad’s eyes and then nodded once as if confirming something to himself.
