Shadow Demon

by Judith Post

  “That was only because rogues kept trying to attack me,” Reece said.

  Bull shut her car door and grinned at her. “Wedge says the warlock knows you’re a Rutherford. He has a debt to settle with your great-grandmother. You always have someone gunning for you.”

  “But it’s never my fault.”

  Bull laughed. “Take care, girlie. You’re hanging around with the warlock’s love interest. You might not look for trouble, but it seems to find you.”

  Reece shook her head and pulled away. On the drive home, she said, “He picked an argument so that I wouldn’t pester him.”

  “Weres are tricky that way.” Damian would know. He worked with them more than anyone.

  But Reece worried about Bull. Hell, she worried about everyone. She and Hecate had to take action. They needed to find the demon and cage it. Then they could figure out how to send it home.

  Chapter 15

  Reece and Hecate puttered in the kitchen all afternoon making more potion.

  After that, they went through spell books in Hecate’s study, learning more chants. A warm breeze billowed the kitchen curtains. Damian and Andre scrounged through cupboards for something to cook. Suddenly, Reece’s necklace glowed. It hummed against her skin, then heated up, almost burning her. She put a hand to her moonstone and caught her breath.

  “The Weres! Trouble!” Reece rummaged for her shoes. “They need us.”

  Damian dashed for the stairs. His cell phone buzzed, and he looked at it, surprised. “Wedge is texting me.”

  “Texting you?” Andre ran a hand through his hair. “Now? Why not call?”

  Damian stopped abruptly. “He’s on his way here. Bull’s in the back seat. The demon’s inside him.”

  Reece put a hand to her throat. Visions of picked-over skeletons flashed before her. “Inside him? Is it eating him?”

  Damian punched in letters, sending the question. “Wedge is driving and texting at the same time. The demon doesn’t know he’s contacting us.”

  "Was Bull wearing the rosary?" Reece bounced from one foot to the other, she was so nervous. "Why didn't it protect him?"

  Damian put up a hand to quiet her. “The demon blasted Bull and knocked him out. It told Wedge he had thirty minutes to reach Hecate after it went inside him. Wedge should be here soon. He wanted us to be ready.”

  “Ready?” Reece’s voice squeaked.

  “It’s going to offer a trade,” Andre said. “Hecate for Bull. I won’t let her go down to meet it.”

  Hecate shook her head. “Bull deserves better than that. If we can get him past the curb, onto the sidewalk, I sprayed there.”

  Goosebumps covered Reece’s arms. She rubbed them to warm herself. She ran down the steps and looked out the shop’s window. People were yakking and laughing as they strode up and down the street. The water front was a popular area. It was a beautiful day. Shops were crowded. Surely Nen had enough control over the demon to keep it from feasting on anyone who couldn’t run fast enough.

  Damian and the others came to stand behind her.

  “This is going to be some show,” Andre said. “People won’t be able to miss it.”

  “Text Wedge to pull behind Hecate’s shop,” Reece told Damian. “That’s sprayed, too, isn’t it?”

  “The demon won’t allow that.” Hecate licked her lips, trying to concentrate. “Wedge will have to park in the alley.”

  “How will the demon stop him? It’s inside Bull.”

  “Think, Reece! You’ve seen the thing. It can just as easily slip inside Wedge, or take its human shape and blast Wedge before he reaches the lot.”

  Reece squirmed from the reprimand. Hecate was right. Panicking wouldn’t help. “The alley’s still better than parking on the street. There won’t be as many people around.”

  They spilled into the small lot behind the shop and waited. Reece’s mind raced, one idea chasing after another, nothing that would work. They had to save Bull without endangering anyone else. She looked at Hecate. “Let’s cage it.”

  “Inside Bull? Bull won’t stand a chance.”

  “He doesn’t anyway. And if we cage it, the demon can’t hurt anyone else.”

  Hecate’s expression turned grim. “That way, Bull won’t die in vain.”

  Wedge’s Suburban pulled into the mouth of the alley and stopped. Wedge got out and put a shoulder under Bull to support him. Bull walked, hunched over. Blood dripped from his nose. The demon’s acid must have burned the skin on its way inside. Bull was in pain, Reece could tell. She glanced at his neck. No rosary beads.

  Wedge followed her eyes. “He gave them to Choco.”

  Just like Bull, trying to protect one more person. He probably thought he was safe because …. A thought struck her. “Wedge, get over the line!”

  Wedge hesitated, looked at his friend, and Bull pointed. “Go.” His lips formed the word. No noise came. The demon must be lodged in his throat.

  Wedge hurtled onto the lot.

  “Drink the holy water!” Reece cried.

  Bull’s eyes went wide, but his hand slid into his pocket. He unstopped the small vial and swallowed its contents. His chest heaved. His knees gave, and the demon shot out of his mouth. It swirled, sparks of light shooting through it, in a small tornado of pain.

  Reece started saying the chant. Hecate joined in. They put out their hands, and Damian took hers, Andre took Hecate’s. Wedge looked confused, but gripped Damian’s other hand. The men listened to the words and then repeated them. The shadow demon writhed. Sparks flew in all directions. Legs started to form, then sank to the ground, kneeling.

  Small circles of fire started on the cement, forming a square. The circles slowly grew upward, forming bars. The demon wailed. Wedge ran to Bull and pulled him onto the lot.

  A group of people started down the other end of the alley. Reece snapped a spell, and a wind gusted up, blowing dust and dirt at them. They put up hands to protect their eyes and turned away.

  Bull leaned against Wedge and gripped his hand. They formed a small chain of energy and chanted more. A fiery ceiling formed, and then a fiery floor. Once the cage was complete, Hecate changed the words of the spell. Reece gave a quick nod and changed, too. The four men listened, then joined in.

  Energy pulsed in the air. To Reece, it sounded like a heartbeat. It smelled dense and alive, thrumming around them. It grew so heavy, it pressed upon them. A fiery door opened, and the demon was sucked inside. When Reece felt almost claustrophobic, Hecate raised her arms. The cage lifted upward. She swept her hands in the direction of her shop, and the cage moved toward it. Reece ran to open the door. The cage disappeared inside and Hecate moved it upstairs to the corner of her dining room.

  They all raced after her and stared at the demon trapped there.

  “What now?” Wedge asked, watching the glittering shadows swirl in frustration.

  “I don’t know.” Hecate put her hands on her hips, agitated. “That’s as far as I got.”

  The shadows slowed and congealed. The demon shifted into its human shape. "What do you want of me?"

  Reece could hardly speak, her throat was so tight. "We want you to leave here." The young man with the straight, blond hair frowned at her. “Then set me free.”

  “We won’t let you hurt anyone else,” Damian said.

  “Then send me home.” He sank to his knees and put his head in his hands. “I’m starving.”

  “You ate three people a week ago!” Damian turned away from him, too angry to talk.

  “Barely enough to sustain me. Nen torments me. I’m so weak, I can’t do what he commands. Then he punishes me more.”

  Hecate’s voice went soft. “You’re not meant to be here, I know. But we don’t have enough blood to perform the ritual to send you home.”

  “One drop from each of you. That’s all I need. I won’t fight you. I want to go home. ”

  Andre frowned. “Is it a trick? If we each give a drop, will it free him?”

  “Say the chant,�
� the demon wailed. “Release me. Send me home!”

  Hecate closed her eyes, trying to concentrate. “If we chant the spell, he has to do as we bid. He can’t disobey with so little blood, as weak as he is.”

  “Please.” The demon’s words were soft, pleading. “Help me.”

  Hecate gave a quick nod.

  “Nen,” the demon said. “He’ll come for you next. And he’ll be angry.”

  “One thing at a time.” Hecate went to her study and came back with a thin, jeweled letter opener and a small box covered in black satin. She held out her hand and stabbed her middle finger. A small puncture hole glistened with blood. Then she gave the blade to Reece.

  Reece did the same and passed it to the others. They each squeezed the finger that bled, so that a drop of blood formed at the wound. When Hecate began to say her chant, Reece joined in. After two times, the men did, too. Then they mimicked Hecate and turned their hands over, letting the drop of blood fall onto the small, satin altar.

  Crimson light flooded the inside of the cage. The demon swirled into a dark, massive shape. The floor of the cage opened, and a pit gaped beneath it. “I’m in your debt, witches.” The demon disappeared from view.

  The pit closed and the cage disappeared. Burn marks marred Hecate’s wooden floor.

  Wedge ran a hand through his tawny-colored hair. “This demon business is creepy shit!”

  Bull’s hug almost crushed Reece’s ribs. “I thought I was doomed. I never thought of the holy water, not once.”

  Hecate’s gaze turned to the window overlooking the waterfront. A tugboat backed away from the pier and sped toward open water. “We’ve won one battle. We got lucky. The demon didn’t want to fight us. Nen will.”

  Reece’s shivers returned. Damian came to stand behind her to wrap his arms around her.

  “We stole Nen’s demon and sent it home. He’s going to be furious. He’s going to strike out. Nen enjoys punishing people.” Hecate’s eyes locked on Reece. “Luna expected me to tutor you. She’s going to be disappointed in me if I get you killed.”

  “Grandma fought Nen. She wouldn’t be able to protect me either.”

  If Nen could torment a demon, what would he do to them? Reece wasn’t about to wait and find out. “We found chants for shields,” she said. “You thought they were strong enough to protect us. Are they?”

  “For us, yes. If we’re with whoever Nen comes for, we can protect them too.” Hecate pushed at her hair, even though it didn’t need tidying. “For the entire city? No. Maybe we should all move to Wedge’s property, and we can stay together.”

  “And leave the city unprotected? I can’t do that.” Damian shook his head. It was his job to guard over mankind.

  “How long would we have to hide?” Andre looked at their small group. “We don’t age. Neither does Nen. He could wait us out for decades. I can’t leave my restaurants or my family that long.”

  “I’d have to close my company. This is our busy season. We have more jobs than we can juggle already.” Wedge stabbed a finger at Bull. “But you—you’re getting more holy water and another set of rosary beads. And you’re wearing them!”

  Hecate’s shoulders slumped. “Nen would do something to draw us out anyway. It was a bloodbath the last time.”

  “That was last time. This time, we’ll work together. If we keep people off the streets….?” Even as she said it, Reece knew it was impossible. People had jobs. They had to go to the grocery store. Even if they hid behind locked doors, Nen could come for them.

  Hecate looked at her, surprised. “This time is different. We’ll think of something, and Luna will help us. She’ll send us chants, ideas, maybe even charms.”

  If it was supposed to be a pep talk, it failed. All they had going for them was bravado, no ideas. Reece leaned into Damian, thankful for his steady strength. Wedge and Bull locked eyes, ready for the worst. Andre shook his head. “We need a miracle.”

  But miracles were rare. Reece doubted if even Father Daniel could pull one out of his sleeve. They were in trouble. And they knew it. They’d better find some way to stop Nen, or a lot of people, including them, were going to suffer.

  Chapter 16

  “We can’t let Nen go on a rampage.” Hecate watched from her kitchen window as Wedge helped Bull into his Suburban and then backed out of the alley to return home.

  Reece licked her lips, unsure of herself. She was too new to magic. She was never sure what would work and what wouldn’t. “Nen made a cage for the demon. Can we make a cage for him?”

  Hecate blinked. “You mean trap him inside his house?”

  “If it’s possible. We can chant for shields to protect us. Can we chant for shields that lock him inside them?”

  “Black magic is more powerful than white magic.” Hecate’s reply flowed almost automatically.

  “So what’s stronger than black magic?”

  “Blood.”

  “There must be something else.” Reece didn’t intend to let the discussion die. They had to do something. They couldn’t just sit and hope for the best.

  Hecate rubbed her temples, thinking.

  “Maybe everything combined?” Andre glanced at the shelves filled with bottles and brews. “When I add different ingredients to a stew, they blend into something better.”

  Reece shook her head. Always a food reference. The Were had recipes in his blood.

  “Holy water? Rosary beads? Shields?” Damian counted them off on his fingers. “How could they harm us? A little of our blood might go a long way if we added it to your potion. It was enough to send the demon back.”

  Hecate didn’t look convinced, but she at least considered it. “What have we got to lose? Nen’s still waiting for the demon to return. That buys us a little time. Let’s see what we can do.”

  Damian slit his palm and held it over the potion, still cooling on the stove. Andre did the same. Reece and Hecate followed suit. Then they filled spray bottles with it and loaded every potion that might help them into the SUV.

  They drove to Nen’s house and parked in the gravel lot behind Jimmerson’s rented room. Damian and Andre opened the trunk space to hand out boxes to Reece and Hecate. Once everything was ready, the women chanted obscuring spells and faded from view.

  “That’s sort of weird, just so you know,” Andre mumbled. “I can smell two witches, but can’t see them.”

  "Scent, I forgot." Hecate called for a slight breeze to carry the aroma of their magic away from Nen.

  Reece started picking up supplies to cart across the street. Damian stopped to stare as a cardboard box seemingly traveled on its own. “That looks heavy. Do you need help?”

  Reece cut between two houses on the far side of the lot, out of sight from Nen. “This has to be a sneak attack. We have to go alone.”

  Dark clouds clustered over Nen’s property, and she moved faster. The warlock was losing patience.

  “Nen’s trying to summon the demon,” Hecate said. “When it doesn’t show up, he’s going to worry that it escaped somehow to enjoy a feeding frenzy. He'll go after it.”

  Reece stopped for a moment, and her cardboard box hovered in midair. “Do demons ever turn on their warlocks?”

  “Every chance they get." An invisible hand tugged on her, and Reece jerked. “Geez! That’s going to take some getting used to.”

  “We don't have much time.” Hecate's footsteps hurried across the street.

  Reece squinted to look for ripples of movement and saw a box floating between two houses. Reece chased after it. When they reached the back corner of Nen's place, Hecate took a bottle of protective potion and sprayed its contents in a steady stream across the back threshold, sealing Nen’s back door shut. Reece mimicked her, sealing the front door, doing whatever Hecate did.

  Reece froze when she heard footsteps pacing in the kitchen. She ducked her head, even though she blended with her surroundings. Nen was a warlock. If he concentrated, he’d notice them, see blurs of motion where there shouldn’t
be any. When he moved toward the basement stairs, she sighed with relief.

  Hecate started spraying the east side of the foundation. Reece crouched lower than window height to do the west. That finished, Reece made her way across the front of the house while Hecate sealed the back. Nen’s voice rose in a chant from the basement. It grew in strength. If the demon didn’t come soon, he’d go looking for it. Their shields weren’t in place yet. They had to hurry.

  Reece felt a coil of cold fear knot in her stomach. They had to work faster. She grabbed the gallon of purifying potion and started sloshing it onto the foundation. Hecate took the cleansing potion and did the same. They worked as fast as they could. Nen’s voice rose to a roar. Heat blasted from the base of the house. He was finishing his summons.

  When they met at the front door, they tossed their empty containers to the ground. Hecate went to one side of the house, Reece went to the other. They began to chant. Quietly at first. Nen was preoccupied. They wanted him to stay that way. Then louder and louder.

  They watched the lines they’d poured spread upward. Their magic wrapped itself over the doors and windows of the first floor, covering every chink, every clapboard. An ant couldn’t sneak through their barrier. The magic spread upward to the roof. It was like sealing the entire house with shrink wrap. It even covered the chimney.

  To finish their job, both women slit a line across their palms and pressed them against the house. Magic flared in an instant. It rushed skyward and engulfed the entire structure.

  A bellow shook the clapboards. Nen hadn’t noticed their presence before. He did now. Both women grabbed their boxes and raced away. They fled into the alley behind Nen’s house, kept running until they were out of sight, and then doubled back to Jimmerson’s rental. Nen couldn’t know where they were hiding. Not if he managed to escape.

  They didn’t reverse their obscuring spell. Didn’t plan to until they were safe inside Jimmerson’s small apartment. So Reece yelled, “Open the door!”