Almost Demon (The Sigil Cycle)

by AJ Salem

  “I bind you in fire,” she said, producing a long red taper from her shirtsleeve. “Guardian of the ancient towers, I call upon your powers.”

  The dozen or so spirits outside began to huddle closer together, their translucent edges converging until they formed one large bulbous entity that churned with speaks of electricity at its core.

  “Look, I know you’re trying some voodoo crap on me but I think we’ve got some bigger fish to fry.”

  She didn’t break from her concentration. The wick of the candle ignited on its own and she placed the paper in the flame while continuing her chant without pause.

  I tried the door once more for good measure but the effort was futile. The mass of blackness bled across the edges of the window until it obstructed the view of the outside completely.

  “Principal Kelly, please!” I felt like a hamster on a wheel, running circles around my chair with no end in sight. I rolled up my sleeves and caught the sigils on my arms giving off a deep amber glow.

  Should I try?

  Thom said not to.

  All I wanted to do was go back to that place where I was the one in control but I was too scared to try after Thom’s heated warnings.

  “Great Mother. By the powers of three by three. I bind thee.” The candle exploded in a spray of melted wax that sprayed the room and splattered across my shirt.

  “Okay great. You’re done. Can we get the hell out of here?” I yelled, pointing to the cloud of evil that had sprouted garish red eyes. Branches of current began to splice across the window in a web.

  “It didn’t work,” she said.

  “You’ll try again next time. Can you please get us out of here?”

  “It didn’t work,” she repeated, running a hand through her hair, messing up her updo, forming a messy halo around her face.

  I stomped to the other side of the desk and dragged the stunned principal to the door.

  “Let’s go,” I said, keeping my eye on the fireworks spectacular going on mere steps away.

  She did a little more chanting and the door swung open. It was no better out in the hallway. The metal doors of the lockers were all being rattled open by an unseen force while students trampled one another on their way out the exit doors in a mass exodus.

  Thom came barreling down the hallway towards us.

  “Gemma!” he shouted over the screams and ringing fire alarm. The sprinkler heads shot out with a pop that had me jumping out of my skin. In moments, we were caught under a deluge of ice water.

  “Thom, we need to do something.” I pointed to the dark window. The Dybbuk were seeping in through the cracks at a steady pace. We had only minutes before they were inside.

  “We need to get out.” He grabbed my bicep and with my hand still clutching Principal Kelly’s sleeve, the three of us made a run for it down the slick hallway.

  That’s when the feeling of shame struck me. Running away from this was killing me. I needed to do something to help the hundreds of students who were now under attack. I was the only one who could. I doubted Principal Kelly’s pansy-assed fake magic would do anything help.

  “Stop. Thom.” I dug my heels into the ground.

  “Don’t do this, Gem,” he said.

  “We can’t leave. This is just the beginning. They’re taking over,” I yelled over the noise.

  “Not now. We’ve got to keep moving. Away.”

  “Just let me take a look in the grimoire. I’m sure I can find something to stall them. We can’t run from this. It’ll just keep coming.” I knew I was grasping at straws but if I just got a peek, something would jump out at me. By no means was I expecting total success. Just hoping that I could buy some more time.

  “No. Absolutely not. They’re out for blood.” His answer sounded pretty final.

  “Please trust me. Just this once. I know I can find something useful.”

  We stood there. Thom and I. Principal Kelly was still caught in her daze, muttering nonsense to herself although I couldn’t give two farts about how she was handling everything. Finding out what she had planned on doing with me in her office was now tacked on my to-do list.

  “We have to leave.” He wasn’t budging, which got my blood really boiling now.

  “Why won’t you ever listen to me?”

  “It’s not that, Gemma. You just don’t see the bigger picture.”

  “Oh and you do, Mr. High and Mighty? I don’t remember you flashing your know-it-all badge.”

  “Gemma, now is not the time for this.”

  “You’re right.” I got up really close to his face. His smell was intoxicating, stronger than it had ever been.

  “I know I am.” The gleam in his eye displayed a confidence that raked at me.

  “But this is it. Things are getting out of control,” I said.

  “That’s why we need to retreat and regroup.”

  “This isn’t a game. Or a puzzle. This is our lives.” I pointed to the kids down the hall who were crawling on their knees to get away from the deluge of spirits attempting to find hosts.

  “I’m trying to protect you,” he said but I wasn’t satisfied with that answer. “Especially after what you pulled earlier.”

  “That’s it.” I turned the other way and ran down the hall to homeroom. Every room I passed had windows seeping the black mist and the building groaned at the intrusion.

  When I reached the office, I watched as the remaining wisps of smoke snapped into place. Morgan was there. Her eyes were on me. She jumped on top of the desk and lunged, her arms outstretched, clawing my shoulder on her way down.

  I let out a scream and kicked her in the stomach, putting some distance between us. I tried to make a run for it but she grabbed me by the hair. Before I knew it, I was on the floor, thrashing in a defensive posture against the repeated onslaught of her claw-like hands. My shoulder was wet and sticky. I could smell the metallic taint of blood.

  God, how I hate blood.

  There was a loud crash and Morgan was pulled off my curled- up form. Thom stood above me, hurtled my friend back inside the office and slammed the door. He helped me scramble back up to my feet.

  “Are you alright, luv?” he asked.

  “Fine,” I said, not forgetting his reluctance to help me, and kept going until I reached his classroom.

  Thom was right behind me, dragging Principal Kelly in before slamming the door shut. He pulled the desk over to barricade the entrance. “Are you mad?” Thom yelled.

  “Maybe I am. Where’s the book?” I asked.

  “I don’t know.”

  “This is really exhausting. I don’t think we have time for this. Just tell me where the goddamn book is,” I screamed.

  “I’m telling ya the truth. I don’t know where it is.”

  “Is this about before?”

  “Whaddya mean?” He looked honestly perplexed.

  “Are you keeping it from me?” My mind started chasing after its own tail. I couldn’t get the idea out of my head that Thom might have been sabotaging everything from the beginning. That’s why no one wanted to help out. I looked at the shell of Miss Kelly, huddled in the corner, rocking herself back and forth. All she kept muttering about was how her stupid spell hadn’t worked.

  “You are out of your mind. Why on earth would I do that?”

  “Then open it.” I pointed to his closet.

  “Alrighty, but this behavior of yours is only proving my point that you shouldn’t be handling any of this on your own. Without adult supervision.” He pulled the ring of keys out of his pants pocket.

  “Spare me. Please. You’re, what, four years older than I am?”

  “What difference does it make?” He turned the lock and I sprang for the book. Only it wasn’t there. Most of the closet was emptied out. Stacks of old papers were on the top shelf and a pair of white running shoes were on the floor.

  “You got to get new shoes,” I growled.

  “What’s wrong with these?”

  Before I could explain to
him how a nice leather boot would suit him much better, the desk began to rattle, sending Principal Kelly into a fit of hysterics.

  The cloud of smoke had seeped beneath the crack below the door and was now enveloping her. A loud cackle came from behind.

  “Thom, now would be a good time to be straight with me.” I said, looking around for any means of escape. The windows were tall but could only be cracked open. Not large enough for a person to fit through.

  “I am. The grimoire is missing. I don’t know where it is.”

  I could feel the flood of emotion threatening to come out. I hadn’t felt this helpless since after the accident.

  “Please stop lying to me.”

  “Gemma, will you get it through your thick head already? I’m not lying.”

  That was when Principal Kelly began to thrash wildly on the floor. I was about to run over to her when Thom shouted, “Don’t get too close.”

  I ignored him and slid on my knees to her fragile body. A fraction of the cloud had broken off and entered her body. I tried touching her and was met by an invisible wall that knocked me back against the desks.

  Thom was at my side and the two us stumbled across the room to the windows, putting as much distance as we could between ourselves and the bulging body of Principal Kelly. She was yanked upright like a marionette on strings, swaying back and forth as if the puppeteer was getting the hang of things.

  Thom starting cranking the window open which only confirmed our trapped situation.

  “I’m not fitting through that.”

  “Neither am I.” He looked me up and down as though he were calculating a way to squeeze me out.

  “Now would be a good time for some magic. I can do it,” I said.

  “No fucking way.” It was the first I had heard him curse and I had to stop myself from cracking up.

  I looked back to Principal Kelly. Her body had sprouted bulbous pustules filled with blackness that expanded until her skin was paper thin and threatened to burst.

  “Too bad. I’m doing this.” I closed my eyes despite my fear and concentrated on the space between myself and the Otherworld. I felt his hand tighten on my wrist. It was beginning to burn through my skin and threatened to go down to the muscle.

  Fat chance stopping me.

  I kept focusing on Ash’s sigil. I knew this would be the second time in a single day but I was hedging my bets that two favors for him would be less painful.

  Plus, he liked me.

  I think.

  He could tack everything on to my tab. I kept the tears of pain that were leaking out the corners of my eyes at bay and opened myself up to the shot of power that thrust through me like a bullet train. I sucked in a deep breath and tried to funnel it through my body in a conduit, letting it course through my cells in a natural flow.

  My eyes flew open when the venomous bubbles riddling her skin popped. The smoke whipped out of her, leaving her skin and flesh hanging off her limbs. It swirled around her body and reentered her through the mouth, unhinging her jaw in a grotesque scream.

  I let out the energy bit by bit, hesitating when the thought of damaging Principal Kelly started tickling at my conscience. I ignored Thom’s hand still heating through my skin and let the power rush through.

  “Get out,” I yelled, staring down the menacing eyes that were hiding in the shell of my principal.

  It cackled through her.

  I set my sights on the chairs to the left and then back at her. They all rose up into the air and collided with her frail body but the power within her kept her rooted to the spot.

  That’s when I had an idea. I began to push at the spirit mentally. It may appear on this plain but it didn’t belong here. If I tried to find it behind the veil, I might be able to punch its lights out. I sifted through the layers of this world until I found the Dybbuk’s root.

  A loud crash sent my mind reeling back. A shower of glass came down on our heads and a large object went whizzing past my ear and into Principal Kelly’s abdomen, knocking her and her evil eyes down to the ground.

  With my mind fully in the moment, I grabbed my arm out of Thom’s hold and looked out the empty space that was once a window. I carefully brushed off pieces of glass from my shoulder and peered over the ledge.

  That’s when I saw Ian standing with a baseball bat in hand, waving at me. “Come on,” he said.

  There was no one else in sight. I looked down at the drop. The way the building was situated and the ground sloped, it was more than a two story fall. I brought one hand up to grip the frame while I clutched the other to my chest. Layers of skin had burned away, leaving a grisly maroon mark in the shape of his hand.

  “Hold on,” Thom said. He took off his blazer, wrapped it around his fist and dragged the gray fabric along the perimeter, knocking away the ugly shards of glass sticking out.

  “Do me a favor, Thom. Stay away from me.”

  “I was trying to look out for you. Give me your arm, I can heal it.”

  “It’s not just that. You don’t trust me. You haven’t this whole time. And I’m not sure I can trust you anymore either.”

  “If this is about the grimoire…”

  “Goodbye, Thom,” I said, hoisting myself up to the ledge and letting myself drop.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  Ian’s body was right there to break my fall. He didn’t catch me like I kind of expected him to but I don’t think it works that way. Jumping out of a building into someone’s arms. You can blame Superman for those delusions.

  It was nicer, though, crashing into his chest than making out with the hard soil.

  “What happened to you?” he asked.

  When I pulled my hair out of my face, he turned from stunned to a dark shade of pissed.

  “I’ll explain later,” I said. “We need to get out of here.” I looked back up at the building one more time and met Thom’s eyes.

  “Did you do this?” Ian was buzzing with anger now.

  Thom never replied. He gave me one more disappointed glance before turning back in to the school.

  “Let’s leave,” I said, dragging my bag behind me while I headed towards the street.

  “Give that to me,” Ian said, taking my tote and throwing it across his shoulder. “What the hell did he do to you? I’m going to beat the crap out of him.”

  “Drop it, Ian. Let’s go to my house. Then we can plot our next move.”

  I turned to look back at Thom one more time. Needed to see the look on his face when he saw the one of betrayal on mine. But all that was left was the mass of Dybbuk that had enveloped the building and their army of human puppets racing towards us, Morgan and Emma in the forefront.

  We hightailed it towards my house. Only it wasn’t a romantic leisurely walk, it was more of a ‘run for your life keep checking your back’ kind of thing. Main street was overrun with looters, breaking through storefront displays and taking with them as much as they could carry. Grown women were vandalizing cars and street signs while stroller-napping toddlers were wheeled away by the crowds.

  “I think I can find something online. It’s worth trying. Am I wrong?”

  “Didn’t you say there was a book?” Ian asked.

  “’Was’ is the operative word,” I said, shoving my way through a horde of burly men fighting over six packs of cheap beer.

  Our breath came in and out in short rough wheezes as we picked up our pace. The brand on my arm, courtesy of Thom, was starting to ache. The skin was beginning to contract and pull tight, amplifying the burning sensation.

  By the time we reached the familiar tree-lined block of my house, all my energy had been depleted. My foot got caught on a tree root, sending me skidding on the concrete.

  “Ow. Shit,” I cried out.

  “You alright?” Ian said, catching my elbows and lifting me up. He looked down at my palms, raw and riddled with tiny pebbles and dirt. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

  I leaned on him for support until we got inside. Ghosty’s ab
sence on the front porch had me worrying.

  Et tu Ghoste? Did you go bananas, too?

  Before I could peek out the back to make sure, Ian dragged me to the bathroom and sat me on the countertop.

  “Peroxide?” he asked.

  “Under the sink.”

  He crouched down and rummaged through the contents.

  Eek, my pads are in there.

  He stood back up with a handful of cotton and a brown bottle, the sight of which always made me wince.

  “I hate that stuff.”

  “Don’t worry.” He turned my palms up and began to clean away the debris.

  My eyes drifted down the curve of his neck. The thought of his skin sent shivers of longing through me. Visions of his body flooded my mind and I tried my best to sit still as he gently swiped the cotton across my palms.

  “All done,” he said. “Now, let me look at this.”

  He pushed up my sleeve and let out a fierce rumble.

  “It’s not as bad as it looks,” I said.

  “Oh, yes it is. And I’m going to seriously kick his ass next time I see him. You can count on it.”

  After rubbing some antibiotic cream in, Ian wrapped my arms with gauze, tying it closed with the frayed ends.

  “Thanks,” I said when there was nothing left of me to fix.

  He didn’t respond. Only sent a sly smile my way, which didn’t progress any further as the sound of a slamming door interrupted the moment.

  “Gemma!” My father’s voice boomed through the thin walls.

  “In here,” I called.

  As soon as he filled the doorway, I knew something was wrong. The blackness in his eyes had seeped its way down his face. Tiny veins dragged down his cheeks and swelled, throbbing and pulsing while his tongue stuck out the side of his mouth.

  I jumped off the counter and slipped on the bathmat, the toilet breaking my fall.

  “Dr. Pope. Are you feeling alright?” Ian took a step, blocking my dad’s path towards me. I was at a loss for words at the sight of him.

  “Gemma,” he replied, stretching his arms past Ian’s shoulders to get to me. Ian pushed back, sending my father back into the hallway.

  Then he turned to me. “Get your things. Whatever you need for a few days. Meet me at the tree.” He closed the door behind him, which was followed by MME-worthy slams that vibrated through the walls.