Alex squinted and covered his eyes for a moment.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. It's just…here we go again."
Alex had several episodes as they walked through the prison. Seeing into the prison's past, seeing the fighting and panic. He thought he'd get used to it, but that wasn't the case.
He took a deep breath as he watched the chaos around him. Guards fighting inmates, inmates fighting each other. A man lay motionless on the floor, bleeding to death from a slit throat. Three guards tried to push back a wall of inmates, but were overwhelmed as they ran for the door.
He thought he couldn't be more disturbed, until his eyes fell on an open cell across from him.
Three inmates sat on the floor. They were in a circle with makeshift candles surrounding them. In the middle was a guard with a blade sticking from his leg, moaning in pain. The inmates weren't bothered as the pool of blood spread enough to soak their clothes.
They sat with their eyes closed and chanted quietly. The strange scene and quiet whispering somehow pushed out the violence around them, and Alex couldn't look anywhere else.
The guard tried to drag himself across the floor, only for one of the inmates to stab him in the other leg. The inmate barely reacted, like he was swatting a fly, before resuming his chanting. The sight raised the hair on the back of Alex's neck more than it already was.
It would only get worse.
An inmate revealed another long knife, and thrust it into the guard's chest. Alex jumped in surprise at the suddenness, and the chanting grew louder. The inmate withdrew the knife as the guard died, and they passed the blade around. He retched as they each licked the edge.
"Alex?" Victoria said. "Snap out of it."
The gray rushed in once again, and the past disappeared around him. The cell block was quiet, except for the same water dripping in the shadows.
He shook his head, trying to force the images from his mind. "Some really crazy shit happened here."
"Uh, guys," Kevin said, pointing at the darkness. "What is that?"
Alex looked back to see three dark shapes sitting in the cell, in the same positions he just saw. The shapes slowly developed features. Arms, legs, orange uniforms.
He didn't get the chance to speak before the three former inmates were on their feet and charging. An inhuman sound escaped their throats as they flailed their arms. Alex's jaw dropped and he caught a glimpse of their red eyes before they were upon them.
They flung him out of the way and went straight for Victoria. He landed awkwardly on an old cell door, twisting his ankle. Collapsing on the floor, Alex barely had time to process that whatever the inmates were, they could physically attack.
They caught the vampire by surprise, pushing her against the wall. Kevin tried to help. He grabbed one of the inmates around the throat, but another pushed him back and raked a claw across his chest. He screamed and fell as blood splattered around them.
Victoria's fangs popped as she lashed out at her attackers. They were surprisingly strong, pinning her easily. They ripped away part of her blouse, exposing her pale flesh, and one inmate leaned forward to bite into her neck.
She screamed, more from anger than pain. Managing to free one arm, she backhanded an inmate and sent him sailing across the cell block. He sprung to his feet and stayed low to the ground, like an animal, snarling.
Kevin threw several mothballs into the air, for more light. The three inmates looked up, distracted for a moment, before settling their gaze on the witch.
He gasped as he looked at them.
Their faces were twisted, their skin nearly brown. Where fingers used to be were long claws, dripping blood. They reminded Kevin of Alex when he got very angry.
Demons.
Two demons were left holding Victoria. One pulled away and roared as it slashed Kevin across the face. She watched in horror as he fell to the ground next to Alex, holding his cheek. Her eyes narrowed as she glared at the demon in front of her, her blouse still dangling from its claw. She lunged forward and sank her fangs into its eye socket. The taste of demon flesh nearly made her vomit.
"Stop this," Alex said weakly.
The demons didn't listen as they converged once again on Victoria. Alex knelt next to Kevin to check on him, but was pushed over when the third demon moved past to get to Victoria. The vampire shoved the demons back, and exposed her own claws, ready to attack.
The demons instinctively wouldn't attack Alex, but no one else had that advantage. His own anger bubbled to the surface as he jumped to his feet. His wings grew from his back.
"I said stop!"
The demons froze in place, turning to face Alex. A look of panic crossed their faces at the sight of him.
"Master," they said together.
"You're damned right. What are you doing out?"
"We're…playing."
"Go home," he said, like he was scolding a dog. "Let the spirits go, and go home."
"But—"
"Don't question me!"
They let out a discontented grunt as they disappeared one at a time. Victoria's ripped blouse fell from the demon's grip as it disappeared, landing on the floor. The mothballs above threw light across the cell block, and Alex and Victoria would have thought they were beautiful under different circumstances.
Victoria assumed her normal look and knelt next to Kevin.
"What was that?" she asked.
"Demons. Demons possessing ghosts."
"Kevin?" she asked gently. "Are you okay? Talk to me." She looked up at Alex. "There's no way that's normal."
"No. That was a little intense. Me seeing them is one thing. Them throwing you both around the room is something else."
Kevin wasn't moving. She turned him on his back and gingerly moved his hand away from his face. They both gasped at the flesh hanging from Kevin's cheek and jaw, exposing the tissue underneath. Blood covered his face and hair, his eye bloodshot.
"No no," Victoria said, a slight trace of fear in her voice. "Come on, Kevin."
She rummaged through his coat and found a vial of water. She popped the cork and pressed the vial to his finger. The water turned blue.
"He's alive," she said.
Alex shrugged. "Of course he is. I'd see a ghost if he wasn't."
She ignored him and pressed the vial to Kevin's lips. She poured just enough into his mouth to dribble onto his chin. Victoria and Alex both watched as the skin grew back on his face, and his chest wound knitted together. He cough violently, reaching out to grab Victoria's shoulder.
She pulled him into a sitting position, and she had to fight to keep her emotions in check. He leaned on her as he finished coughing. Kevin was still a mess, blood all over him, but he was alive.
"I'm okay," he said. "Those things…are they gone?"
"Yeah."
"Sorry I'm not much help."
Alex laughed and gestured to the mothballs above. "Hey, at least we've got light."
Kevin's eyes went wide as he looked at Victoria, nearly topless, with blood running down her neck and shoulder.
"Shit. Are you alright?"
She smiled and squeezed his hand. "I'm fine."
Kevin looked behind Victoria, and his expression took on a look of fear. Alex and Victoria turned to see the three inmates on the floor, no longer possessed. They pulled themselves to their feet slowly, moaning and stretching, as if waking from a deep sleep.
"You freed us?" one of them asked.
"Yeah," Alex said.
One of them started crying. "Thank you…so much. How long has it been?"
"Quite a while. You'd better get out of here."
The ghosts nodded and smiled before disappearing. Victoria looked at Alex and Kevin. The witch's face was stone white.
"Where they ghosts?" he asked.
"This is crazy," Alex said. "Only I can see ghosts."
Victoria pulled Kevin to his feet. "It's Anatol. He's here, and he's doing something to this place."
"Well, we'd better go—
"
Alex was cut short by a flash behind him. He turned to see a ball of light, no larger than a tennis ball, floating near a doorway. The light simply hovered for a moment before flying back the way it came.
"What the hell was that?" Alex asked.
Kevin straightened his coat and ran a hand through his hair.
"It's magic. He knows we're here."
Victoria sighed. "Then we have to find him."
*****
Cindy and Leese sat in the kitchen as Jack worked over the stove. He was engaged in a three-way video call on Victoria's laptop. The mortal women watched as he talked with both a young girl and a beautiful woman with a nasty scar on her face. It was the first time they saw him smile, genuinely smile, in the brief time they'd known him.
"Hey guys," Jack said. He moved the hot skillet to a cold burner and held up the laptop. "These are the two people I'm babysitting. That one there is Cindy. The blonde is Leese. The gorgeous adult is Erica, and the little one there is my daughter, Tiffany."
"Pleased to meet you," Tiffany said.
Leese laughed. "She has your manners."
"Yeah, right," Erica said. "Jack doesn't have any manners."
The women laughed, and Jack set the laptop down.
"I'm coming home tomorrow," Tiffany said with enthusiasm.
"Yes, you are. I'll see you tomorrow night."
"What do you mean, babysitting?" Erica asked. "Is everything okay?"
"Oh, yeah. These two just get in a lot of trouble. Victoria asked me to look out for them. The blonde's got a thing for me, so that's pissing me off."
"In your dreams," Leese said.
"She keeps bringing up something about strip Twister."
"I do not!"
"Twister is fun," Tiffany said.
"Jack," Erica said, a slight smile on her face. "Do I have to come down there?"
"Only if you bring our kit."
"Oh, man," Leese said, holding her head. "Will this talk ever end?"
"I have to go," Jack said. "We're grossing out the young ones."
"I'm not grossed out," Tiffany said. "But I don't know what you're talking about."
Erica laughed, and kissed her finger before touching the screen. "I'll see you both tomorrow night. Love you, guys."
Jack and Tiffany returned the sentiment, and he ended the call. He still wore the smile at least ten seconds after Erica and Tiffany were gone. He went back to preparing food on the counter.
"They don't know about…whatever your deal is?" Cindy asked.
"Nope. I'm hoping to be all better before I have to say anything. If I'm not, Tiffany will be fine. Erica, I can honestly say I don't know."
"You should tell them," Cindy said. "Alex and me, we have no secrets, and it makes us stronger."
"That is silly and stupid."
Cindy was ready to protest when Leese spoke first.
"Uh, Jack, listen, are we really in danger?"
"Yeah. You probably didn't notice the men watching you all night."
"Oh, God." Leese stood and paced. "Well, shouldn't we be doing something? Getting to a safe place? Calling the police?"
Jack laughed. "You're a funny mortal. The police. You really want the police involved in a supernatural matter? Besides, there are much more important things going on than your safety."
Even Cindy laughed at that, and traded looks with Leese. They stared at Jack.
"Like what?"
"Like a fair, objective end to this contest." He spun from the stove, holding a plate. Another juicy steak, with broccoli as a side. "Now, it's just the three of us. No witch cock to try to impress. I watched Glinda, and I cooked this the same way he did. Sit down and try this."
"Are you serious?"
"Always."
Leese let out a frustrated breath as she sat down at the table. She quickly cut a piece of steak and popped it in her mouth, Jack watching her the entire time. She tried the broccoli, and washed it down with a drink of soda.
"It's delicious, Jack. But…" A smile crossed her face. "Kevin's is better."
He studied the lines on her face, the look in her eye, her body language, and was so surprised he took a step back.
"Holy shit. You're not lying. Well, all the people in the world, there's bound to be quite a few with bad taste."
Cindy and Leese laughed, but grew serious when Victoria's laptop chimed. Jack hit a few keys, and the outside of Victoria's house was displayed. The mortals rose to their feet as they watched shadows moving in the distance, scaling the large fence.
Jack looked at the time. "Hmm. They're a little earlier than I would have thought."
"Oh, shit," Leese repeated, over and over. "They're here to kill us."
"No. They're here to try. And they'll fail. Miserably."
"What do we do?"
Jack leaned against the counter. "Do you know what the hardest part about killing a group of trained men is?"
"Uh, keeping us alive?"
"No. Not making a mess. Victoria won't be happy if she comes back and sees blood everywhere."
Cindy and Leese glanced at each other, fear in their eyes.
"Jack," Cindy said. "I don't think Victoria will care, as long as Leese and I aren't hurt."
"I wonder if she has a lot of trash bags."
"Hey! Are you even listening to me?"
"No."
"Oh my God," Leese said, pacing. "We're gonna die."
Jack cast her a sideways glance, amused and irritated. "You're a panicky little woman, aren't you? Both of you, follow me."
Cindy and Leese's first instincts were to run, but Jack calmly walked out of the kitchen, heading to the stairs. Leese fought against grabbing his hand and pulling him.
He led them upstairs to the second floor. Victoria didn't have much use for the upstairs, but it was still neat and tidy, with half the rooms furnished. He calmly gestured to a bedroom and waited for the two of them to get inside.
He pointed to the corner. "The closet."
Cindy and Leese sat down in the empty closet. Leese was visibly shaking, and gripped Cindy's hand.
"I wish Alex and Kevin were here," Leese said.
"Now, I'm insulted," Jack said. "Alex is coming along, but Glinda, he still has a long way to go. Still a bit of a puss."
The lights went out through the entire house, bathing the room in darkness. Cindy and Leese let out tiny screams before covering their mouths.
"Stay in here until I come get you. It's that simple. You might hear, well…some very disturbing things. But do not leave this closet."
Jack heard movement and clothes rubbing, and knew the women were holding each other, shaking. He rolled his eyes as he quietly closed the door.
He couldn't stop the smirk as he rubbed his hands together. It was time to go to work.
CHAPTER 19
"Where the hell are we going?" Alex asked.
Victoria turned and motioned for him to quiet down. She regarded her friends as they made their way down the hallway. Victoria and Alex's eyes both glowed red. Kevin barely hid the fear on his face as he waved one of his mothballs around, peering inside the long-forgotten offices. A haunted prison was nothing to Alex, and his expression was steady.
"Are there any ghosts around?" she asked.
"There are ghosts everywhere," Alex said. "I sense them all over the place. They're hiding, mostly."
Kevin sighed. "Great."
He grabbed Victoria's arm as Alex kept walking forward slowly. He lowered his voice so only she could hear.
"Victoria, I don't know if I can do this."
She tried to be understanding. Haunted prisons weren't a place she'd visit in her spare time. But Anatol was already changing the place, and not in a good way.
"Alex can handle all the ghosts. I know this place is creepy, but we can't let that get to us."
He shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I mean Anatol. What are we supposed to do? I've never killed anything. I had a witch-hunter try to kill me last year
, and I couldn't kill him. You didn't want me to, either. Now I'm supposed to kill a vampire?"
She held his face in her hands. She wished she had another choice, but there was none. There was no way she could deal with a vampire who controlled magic.
But she would protect Kevin as much as she could. It was true that she was a key factor in the sparing of the people who hunted Kevin. She didn't want a creature as powerful as he getting the taste for death.
"No one said anything about you killing anything. You just watch our backs, okay? We'll get through this."
He nodded, and forced a smile as he tossed his mothball in the air, lighting up the hallway.
"You guys okay back there?" Alex asked.
"Yeah. We're coming."
Victoria held her hand up as they neared the end. She finally found what she was looking for, and turned to face Kevin and Alex, still keeping her voice low.
"This is the warden's office. Can you sense anything?" she asked Alex.
He shrugged, frustrated. "It's hard to say. I keep seeing how the place was, with people walking around, and then I see it like this. I know ghosts are all around, and it wouldn't surprise me if another demon or two were poking their heads through. But Victoria, what are you looking for? Right now, there's nothing in this hallway."
"You think Anatol came this way?" Kevin asked.
"Maybe," Victoria said. "This is where the power was. Can you see anything in there?"
Kevin shook his head as he peered through his glasses. "Only darkness."
"Okay," she said, putting her hand on the warden's office door. "Ladies first."
She pushed open the door to see an empty office. There were windows in the back that once overlooked the prison yard below. Now they only showed the Illinois sky with the moon watching over them.
"Did you think Anatol was in here?" Kevin asked. "Doing magic or something?"
"I thought he might have stopped by here. But it looks like no one's been here for a long time."
Victoria turned to leave, but Alex didn't budge.
"Well, you're half right."
Alex looked at the man sitting in the warden's chair behind the desk. Slightly older, wearing a shirt and tie. Alex knew he was the former warden of the prison. The office changed for Alex, only for a moment, and he saw the warden—the plaque on the wall identified him as Ronald Myers—watching the prison yard below. The white, plain office changed once again into the dark hole it had become.
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