by Gina Shafer
“She likes blueberry yogurt,” I explain, turning back to smile at this odd hound.
Ted laughs and we lock eyes.
“Soren,” we both say at the same time, knowing full well this was Soren’s doing. He would never do anything half-assed, including providing the best meals for his four-legged friend. I stop abruptly when I realize that for the first time since he died, I’ve been able to laugh in memory of my son.
“What are you guys doing back here?” Ted asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
“We’re going to need some help,” I begin. I was hoping to convince Ted to come along, and hoping he would be able to sway some of the others. I know it is a big deal to barge in and ask for help when the Sicarri only have enough men to protect their own, but if all goes well, we won’t have a demon problem to deal with anymore after this.
We end up making it out of the warehouse with only two extra men, Ted and Shae. Though Shae and I didn’t get the best start, I’ve found he is extremely loyal and feels equally angry over Soren’s death as the rest of us. The Sicarri didn’t have much, but they did have more weapons for our disposal. Everyone grabbed upgraded weapons and more close combat weapons. We were going for stealth. I stuck with my usual pistol, planning on using my dagger as often as possible. I want to trap every demon that gets in my way inside the dead bodies of the humans they wanted so badly.
We stayed the night at the warehouse, waking up when the light just barely hit the sky and taking off before the day was fully awake. According to the information Aiden gave us before, the building that Abe stays in is no more than about an hour away. No wonder it was so easy for Lincoln to double-cross us. He could slip out for an hour and no one would notice.
I take a moment to look at the seats around me, taking in the faces of every man. This could be my last memory of any one of them. I look down to my hands and run my finger over the mole on the topside between my thumb and forefinger. Why am I so uncomfortable? I thought I was ready for this, but now I’m beginning to second-guess myself. I miss Karina already.
I miss...My son.
I’m not even sure what else I miss; I just know I feel a longing in my heart that demands my attention. I think I miss something I haven’t ever really had, if that’s possible. I miss my normal life, or rather, I have missed out on a normal life. But, truly, what is regular? What is normal? This is my normal, and I have to suck it up and deal with it.
“Listen, you guys, I’ve gotta tell you something,” Micha begins, grabbing our attention. This has to be about Scarlett, and how she pulled him into a room right before we left the house. I remember the look on both their faces, stricken with tears. This can’t be good. I hold my breath and grit my teeth while I wait for him to continue.
“What is it, Micha?” Xo asks. We’re all worried.
“It’s Scarlett… She’s pregnant,” he admits, then buries his face into his palms. Any other way, this would be amazing news. Families would rejoice. Warm wishes would be shared.
Not us.
We know this world. It’s not one that you want to bring an innocent baby into. Not the way things are now. And definitely not with the Sicarri so heavily attacked recently. Babies are born all the time, but Sicarri brothers have always been reluctant to start families. We know that we’re often targeted, and most of us would never want to put our families in danger.
I’m the first to speak, breaking the silence that surrounds us.
“You’ll be a great father, Micha. You’ll raise a son or daughter to be strong and smart. Scarlett will teach them how to be kind and to love. You both have nothing to worry about.” Only the last part of what I said is a lie. We all have everything to worry about, but I would never admit that right now. Everyone is looking at me, agreeing with me silently. I’m not the only one in this car who knows what Micha needs to hear right now.
“You mean to tell me I’m going to be an uncle?” Ted says, and the others break out in laughter.
The car is quiet for a while, and I crack my eyes open to peek at the guys. Marcel is driving with his ear buds in place, so I know he’s listening to music. Xo and Ted have their eyes closed, soft snores coming from their open mouths. It’s funny how two people can look so different, but so much the same when they’re asleep.
I move my gaze to Micha, who’s sitting beside me staring out the window obviously deep in thought.
“It’s going to be okay, you know,” I say. My voice causes him to jump slightly and his wide eyes turn to face me. The fear I see in them mirrors my own during the many times I left my family behind to fight in demon battles.
“How do you know that?” he asks.
“Close your eyes,” I say, and he does.
“Do you feel that?” I ask, referring to the energy of his magic. His eyes pop open in question, and uncertainty shrouds his face. We’ve spent a lifetime suppressing most of the magic that exists inside of us and I’m asking him to feel it, recognize it… to use it. I’m not sure why I do this, but it’s the only thing that seems like the right thing to do right now.
“Trust me,” I say, and he closes his eyes once more. “Do you feel the good? The light? Ignore the shadow that your flame emits. Feel the lightest part and let it cover you.” I close my eyes and do the same, feeling my body radiate a light and a heat that I haven’t ever felt before.
“Choose that, Micha. Choose to feel the good. Let go of the darkness,” I say. We’re quiet for the rest of the drive, and I know it’s because of the peace I feel wrapping around me like a warm blanket. He must feel it too, because after a while he closes his eyes and his soft snores join with the others in the car.
As soon as we enter the red building with the blue door, I instantly think we’re fucked. All of the good I felt surrounding me dissipates like a cloud of smoke in an open room. It’s empty on the bottom floor, but it rises up at least ten more levels. It’s nice in here. The carpet looks brand new and the walls are painted with beige that looks like it just dried this morning. There are no guards, like last time, and my first thought is that Abe knows we’re coming. Lincoln knows. We’re fucked and we should turn back now. We don’t… we keep going.
But when we meet the first batch of demons on the second floor, we’re met with genuine surprise. They had no clue we were coming, and they’re unprepared for our arrival. I take the first one out with my dagger, first by stabbing him in the gut once, then swiftly slicing across his throat, effectively trapping him in that body until the end of time. The second one comes running for me as soon as he realizes what’s happening, but Micha gets to him first. He clamps his big hand down around the demon’s throat, tight enough until he can hear bones crunching beneath his grip. After Micha releases his fingers, the demon’s body crumples to the floor and I take the opportunity to glide my blade over his forehead until I see the crimson stain his skin. No escaping. I’m not sure what happened to the other four demons that charged after Marcel, Ted, Xo, and Shae, but when I look up they’re all fallen to the floor, lying in a pool of blood. I toss my dagger to Marcel and let him trap the rest of them. I stand over the first one we killed and smile, knowing he’ll be able to see me from inside the lifeless body he so desperately wanted to possess. I lift my fist slowly, extending my middle finger and walk away.
The third floor is next. We slowly make our way up the old staircase and I have to fight not to twist my face up at the smell of new paint. When we reach the third floor, Ted kicks open the door and it slams into three demons guarding the elevator. All three of them fall to the floor, scrambling for their weapons. Xo takes out the first one before we even catch sight of the black metal of the demon’s pistol. Xo slides across the floor, jabbing his knife deep into the demon’s abdomen. His body falls into the demon standing next to him, pushing him forward toward us. Shae works just as quickly, brandishing a machete from the sheath at his back. In one clean swipe, the demon’s blood shoots from his neck and coats the carpet in garnet. The last one grasps for the radio on his h
ip, but Willow lunges for his arm before he gets the call out to anyone else. She spits out what’s left of his hand and growls over the top of him. The demon catches one sight of his mangled fingers and screams before slumping over in pain.
Shit. I know someone must have heard that. We all pause for a moment, making eye contact, knowing full well we’ve probably been had. We’re going to be met with a hell of a lot more demons any moment. I take my dagger and quickly make three precise stabs into the side of each demon’s neck, and then we regroup, coming together when we hear the elevator begin to whoosh down the levels.
The elevator pings once before the doors slide open, revealing a lone demon inside. He’s looking toward the ground, but when his head pops up, his eyes open wide. For some reason, the look on his face causes me to pause for a second, watching to see what he’ll do. He has to know he’s no match for us, and if he tries to go back up the elevator, we’ll be on him before the doors close. We stand here on one side of the doors and the demon on the other side, contemplating.
Then Willow does something that almost knocks me off my feet. She walks up to the demon, or rather runs at full speed and knocks him back against the wall of the elevator, wagging her tail with more enthusiasm than I’ve seen from her in a long time. It reminds me of how she used to be with Soren. I ignore the pang I feel in my heart when I think about my son.
What the fuck? Has this animal gone insane?
None of us are moving, confused by Willow’s actions. I’ve only ever seen her kill demons, hate them with emotions I thought was only reserved for us humans. We’ve come to trust her in battle as if she were like any other Sicarri brother at our sides. I have no idea how to proceed.
“Willow, move,” I say, hoping my command will knock some sense into her, but when she turns back to growl at me, I know it failed.
“Willow!” I shout.
“Get away from him!” Marcel shouts. None of us want to put the dog in danger; she’s the last piece of Soren we all have. We are stuck in this long stretch of time, unsure of what to do. We’ve got to keep moving or we’ll all die, and all of this will be for nothing.
I pull out my pistol and point it at the demon, who’s still standing in the elevator threshold. I’m about to tell him to get the hell away from the dog and come out, but before I can get the words out, I notice something. Something that makes my entire body feel like someone just lit me on fire and dunked me in an ice bath at the same time. The demon bends down to scratch Willow behind the ears and when he does this, she lightly nips his chin. And I know… I just know.
“Soren?” I say, my voice barely higher than a whisper. My breath is caught deep, deep down in the depths of my throat. I think my heartbeat even takes an extra-long pause in the seemingly infinite moment between my words and his reaction.
The demon snaps his head up from Willow and looks directly into my eyes. I feel my entire body split in half and then come back together. The others are looking from me to the man standing in the elevator, their jaws hanging slack. Can it really be Soren? Is my son still alive?
I’m still pointing my gun directly at his face, knowing that if it goes off we’re basically screwed. Tears sting at my eyes, but my vision stays clear. The demon stands up from his crouch and strides directly toward me. I grip my pistol tighter in my fist and Marcel, next to me, steps closer with his blade in hand. The demon notices Marcel and nods his head before turning back to me and frowning.
“What are you doing here?” he asks in a frantic, hushed tone. “You should be back at the house, or the warehouse.” His eyes glide to the others and he nods his head, seemingly in approval of who is with me.
I disregard everything he just said, still in shock, and still not completely convinced that my son is standing in front of me.
“Soren? Is that really you?” I peer into his face, looking for any trace of my son’s old face. I don’t know what I expect to see, but when he speaks next, my doubts disappear.
“Hi, Dad.” He smiles, and though his face isn’t the same, the smile that reaches his eyes holds so much of Soren that I finally lower my weapon and reach across the distance and wrap my arms around the demon. My son. I am reminded of not too long ago when we were in the same position, when I met my grown son after twenty years.
“How the hell did this happen?” I ask him, my voice muffled by the fabric of his jacket. He pulls back and glances at everyone before looking back at me. I am shattered. There are so many pieces of me littered around this floor that I fear I will never be able to pick them all up.
My son is alive.
“We really don’t have time for an explanation right now, just know that I’m okay. Lincoln and I planned this. I’ve joined Abe’s security team, and I’m getting closer to him every day. I’m going to take him down from the inside,” Soren explains quickly. Though I do feel better that Lincoln didn’t betray my son by killing him, I would still like to wring his neck for betraying our trust, no matter how noble his actions were.
“I…” I stutter, unable to give voice to the words that are dancing on my lips. Soren makes his way around the group, slapping the hands of every Sicarri brother, all of whom are utterly shocked that he is still alive.
“I thought you were dead, Soren,” I whisper, my voice only sounding slightly more steady than I feel. When he looks back at me, I see the guilt slip over his face.
“I promise, Dad, I will tell you everything. But right now, you guys need to move.” His voice is rough, commanding.
What he’s saying is true; we don’t have much time. At any second, demons could come waltzing through a door. I straighten and take a moment to study Soren’s new body.
The body he’s in is much like his own, tall and slender, but muscular and visibly strong. His hair is blonde now, with little flecks of chestnut brown and gold. His skin is olive toned, like he’s spent years basking in the sun. His jaw is hard, and perfect teeth line his mouth. When he turns back to me, green eyes meet mine. Though they’re not the eyes I’m used to looking at when I see my son, Soren’s kindness is clear as day behind them.
“You guys have to get out of here before anyone else comes to investigate,” he says in a hushed voice.
I’m thrown back into reality at his words. We’re here to fight, to kill Abe, and though Soren is alive, I still plan on following through.
“No, Soren,” I say, my voice coming out a little harsher than I intended.
He furrows his brow, and I know he’s clearly confused. I’m sure he figured that once we figured out that he survived, we would tuck tail—that this mission was just a vendetta for his death. I’ll be the first to admit that it started that way, but in the time we’ve had to prepare… my motives have changed. I’m doing this for Soren, yes, but I’m also here for Karina, Scarlett, the Sicarri… myself. I’m here for anyone who was ever wronged by these fucking demons. I’m here to right those wrongs.
“We’re finishing this today. Though we could really use your help. Where is he staying?” There is no way I am turning around, especially not now that I have my son back.
Soren contemplates for a few seconds, looking to everyone in the group. When he sees the hard faces looking back at him, he realizes that there’s no keeping us from this fight. We’re moving forward with or without his help, though with his help would be much easier. Soren nods his head and begins to speak.
“He stays on the fifth floor, but not every level is guarded. I can get you there,” Soren tells us, and then he turns around with Willow at his heel and enters the elevator.
“Well… you guys coming?” He turns back around and I realize we’re all just standing there, staring slack jawed at him, still bewildered by the revelation that Soren is alive, and that he’s inside another body. I don’t even want to think about what that means right now, but I know that there is no way I’m leaving here without my son when this is all over.
Xo is the first one to step forward, the action of it shaking us from our trance. We all c
lamber inside and the doors close us in with a soft swish.
“There’ll be two to the right, sitting in a couple of chairs. Micha, Marcel, you should take them out. They’re good fighters, but they’re slow, so it should be easy.” I move my gaze to Micha and Marcel, watching them access Soren’s words and then nod to each other in agreement.
“Xo, you’ll take the one to the far left. He’s quick with knives, so watch out for it. Try not to use your guns, the sound will give us away immediately.” Once Xo is clear, Soren turns to Ted.
“There’s a man that guards the stairwell exit. Ted, you’ll want to take him out first chance you get. He’s big, and fast, and pretty much your worst nightmare, but I think you’ll be a good match for him.” Lastly, he looks to Shae.
“Shae… you’re good with that shotgun… but for now, put those knives to good use,” Soren says, gesturing to the plethora of knives at his hip. Shae grins, ready for the next fight.
I’m left wondering what my plan is, but before Soren has a chance to tell me, the elevator doors swing open, and the others charge to their planned course of attacks.
“Use your dagger, Dad,” Soren says as he charges for the demon currently gaining the upper hand on Ted. Soren tackles the demon from behind as Willow bites his ankle, causing the demon to fall directly onto Ted’s blade.
I take this as my cue, and I quickly run to the demon Soren and Ted just took down. I plunge my dagger into his left eye, hearing a faint popping sound, and the squish vibrates through the room when I lift the blade from his face. Now he’ll be stuck inside a body that can only see from one eye.
Once the others are done, I walk up to Xo’s demon and forcefully glide my knife across his thigh, yanking the blade through the layer of clothing on his leg. Blood spurts across the room, and I know the demon inside must be screaming. I cross the room and quickly stab the other two demons across their cheeks, watching the blood drip and fall onto the green carpet.
