by Cassandra
She was unable to understand why she suddenly couldn’t see. More than a little confused, she glanced sideways and miraculously, her vision cleared. When she glanced directly ahead again, however, everything went black once more.
Or so she thought.
She raised her head and peered upward. Her heart lurched when she realized that she hadn’t abruptly developed a blind spot. There was a huge demon in front of her.
It was so tall that it looked very much like a wall. She could barely see around it. If she focused on it, the only thing visible was its scaled, inky-black skin.
Blood rushed to her ears and she swallowed. She was half a second away from wanting to make a run for it. But even in that state of fear, she knew that there was no option to run away. Not with three defenseless kids sitting in the house, clueless as they played video games.
The demon gazed at her and for the first time, she noticed the two red dots that marked its eyes. Sharp teeth slowly revealed themselves as it grinned.
Jessica took several steps back but never once removed her gaze from the hideous thing.
“Help me.”
She blinked, stunned. She had never heard a demon talk before. All she knew was their condescending laugh.
“Please.”
Despite being scared out of her mind, she registered the fact that the demon’s mouth hadn’t moved. Plus, if she had to imagine what a demon’s voice would sound like, the voice she heard certainly wasn’t it.
She studied the creature carefully, now more confused than ever.
Then, she noticed its long fingers clutched around something.
Or someone, more accurately. The demon cackled and raised its fist, and she realized in horror that it clutched an imp in its talons. That was the strange shadow she had seen not long before—an imp. Tiny and terrified, the little creature was no more than three inches long, a bite-sized snack for the demon, for sure.
Jessica had learned the hard way that imps were devilish little creatures who loved to cause chaos at any opportunity they got.
She swore under her breath. How much more rotten can my luck get? A demon and an imp at the same time?
Sniffling sounds now caught her attention. The imp was obviously crying. On some level, she should have felt some sympathy toward the creature. She also realized the presence of an imp wasn’t exactly a good sign.
Debbie, Marie, and Patricia had already admitted to sending an imp after her. In light of the way she and Chad had retaliated, it wouldn’t surprise her if they had grown bitter and decided to send another after her.
In all likelihood, the bothersome little creature had tried to break through the living room window. Through sheer bad luck, it had gotten itself captured by a demon that had lurked nearby.
If it got eaten? Well, that served him right. In fact, she hoped he did get eaten. She most certainly didn’t look forward to having to fight both the imp and the demon. If the demon ate the imp, at least she would only have one creature to do battle with.
“Help me! Help me! Please!”
Jessica froze when she heard the imp’s pleas. In the dark, she could see its shiny eyes peering out at her from between the demon’s talons.
And at that moment, the large monster officially turned its attention away from the imp and to Jessica. She could almost see the thoughts flashing across its face. It clearly had decided that she would be the tastier, more fulfilling snack.
Aww, crap.
Without any further debate, she made a run for it.
She raced to the front of the house as fast as her legs would carry her. The demon roared behind her. Its hot, smelly breath was like fire on the back of her neck.
Jessica dashed out into the street and narrowly avoided a parked car. Seeing movement from the corner of her eye, she thought the demon had caught up to her. A second glance confirmed that it had. Instead, the imp flew alongside her. Its ugly little face was terrified. Instinctively, she swung the bat with all her might, but the tiny creature darted quickly out of harm’s way.
She realized too late that worrying about the imp was a big mistake. In the moment it took her to swing the bat, the demon caught up to her.
With a small shriek of alarm, she fell flat on the concrete, landed roughly on her stomach, and had the wind knocked out of her. As she struggled to breathe, she flipped onto her back in time to see the demon pounce on her.
There was no time to move or to even try to stand. With the bat in her hand, all she could do was brace herself.
When I’m found dead in the middle of the street, everyone will realize that I wasn’t such an impressive witch protégé, after all, she thought bitterly.
She even held the wrong end of the bat, but she did it bravely.
The demon fell upon her with a snarl of triumph, but the bat handle caught it in the eye. It wailed in pain and stumbled sideways with the bat protruding from its head. It groaned and collapsed beside her.
Jessica still lay in the middle of the street and turned toward the crying demon, dumbfounded. Thinking fast, she scrambled hastily to her feet. She grabbed the end of the bat and shoved it deeper into the demon’s big eye socket until it finally lay motionless.
Dead?
She couldn’t believe her sheer dumb luck had struck again. Then she realized that the imp still floated beside her.
Adrenaline still coursed through her. Jessica grabbed the bat and yanked it out of the demon’s eye socket. She ignored the demon goo that covered the makeshift weapon and began to swing at the imp again. Behind her, the demon fizzled into a pile of dust that drifted away in the wind.
The tiny creature darted out of reach and circled around her like a firefly from hell.
Jessica clenched her teeth and chased after it.
“I’ve had it with you damned demons and imps!” she screamed and swung the bat as she ran.
She lunged forward with her free hand and managed to catch it. It screamed and its tiny body wiggled in her grasp.
“Ouch!” she cried at a sharp sting in the palm of her hand. She released her captive and dropped it head-first onto the ground.
“You little jerk!” Jessica snarled through gritted teeth. She positioned the bat for a powerful swing.
“No, wait!” the creature squeaked fearfully. “Don’t kill me. I’m your familiar!”
The words froze her right in her tracks. She blinked and stared at the ugly little thing. “You’re my…what?”
But before she could say any more, the imp disappeared with a loud pop. She was left standing in the middle of the street, holding a baseball bat in the air. If anyone happened to look out the window at that moment, they would have thought she was a nut and probably called the police on her.
She lowered the bat.
An imp? Her familiar?
Jessica swallowed, completely confused. Although she didn’t know much about familiars, she didn’t think an imp could be one. She thought they were mostly talking cats like Grace.
She looked down the street to where the demon had been. It was gone now, disintegrated into dust. There was absolutely nothing left to show that it had been there in the first place with the exception of a slightly bad smell that anyone would simply believe was a clogged-up sewer pipe.
He had to be bluffing, she told herself as she made her way back to the neighbor’s house. Nevertheless, she made a mental note to learn more about familiars at the first opportunity she had.
She walked into the house in a daze, tossed the bloody bat out of sight, and found the children right where she had left them. The brats were completely absorbed in their game.
“What was that noise?” Stephen asked without taking his eyes off the screen.
“An eight-foot demon,” Jessica volunteered.
Somehow, she had expected such an answer to get more of a reaction, but the kids seemed to barely hear her. She threw her hands up in exasperation. Honestly, she was more than slightly annoyed that the kids were more interested in their game th
an in the fact that their babysitter had nearly died.
“Really, it was probably seven feet. But whatever. I sent its ass back to hell anyway,” she added.
“Oooh!” Gary turned to look at her with wide eyes. “You said ‘ass.’ I’m telling my mom when she gets back.”
“You just said ‘ass’ too, doofus,” Stephen retorted. “So I’m telling on you both.”
Jessica flopped down on the couch. “Out of everything I said, all you guys are concerned about is the word ‘ass?’ Seriously?” She rolled her eyes. “You know what? Next time there’s a demon, how about I invite him into the house? Then we’ll see who’s cursing.”
Tamika looked away from the game. “In addition to cursing, I’m going to tell my mom that you’re trying to scare us with silly stories. Demons?” The little girl rolled her eyes and turned back to the game.
Little brats.
Jessica looked down and realized she had traces of demon blood on her hands. She stood and headed discreetly to the bathroom to wash it off. All the while, she wondered why a demon and an imp were outside the neighbors’ house in the first place.
The magical world was clearly a more confusing place than she ever imagined.
Chapter Two
“Jessica? Jessica! Are you all right?” Mark Palmers stared at his daughter with more than a little concern.
Jessica jumped. She must have zoned out at some point during the middle of the Sunday morning church service. Pastor Norman had finished his sermon a while ago, yet she remained seated in the pew. The entire congregation was already up and mingling, chatting with one another about how their weeks had gone.
Her parents had picked her up for church that morning. That was something they all agreed would become their regular routine now that Jessica lived with Grandma Ethel.
“I’m fine, Dad.” She attempted to give him a reassuring smile. She wanted to tell him about the demon she had fought while babysitting, but the kids’ reaction had put her off telling anyone.
“All right.” He squeezed her shoulder. “Your mom is already waiting outside. Your grandma should be here to get you soon.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
Mark headed down the aisle and stopped to talk to a friend along the way.
Jessica sighed. The reason she hadn’t yet left the pew was because she wanted to talk to Pastor Norman. The more she thought about her conflicted feelings about being a witch, the more she realized that he was probably whom she needed to talk to. She had debated discussing her reservations with her grandma, but Jessica knew Ethel was as biased in favor of magic as her parents were biased against it.
Someone like Pastor Norman, whom she had known for nearly her whole life, seemed more capable of giving her an objective point of view. She knew that the priest would only have her best interest in mind. By that point, she was desperate to hear sound reasoning outside of her own confused head. She needed someone who could help her figure out once and for all whether she truly wanted to commit to a lifestyle of magic and demon hunting. A lifestyle that she had only learned existed a few short but action-packed weeks ago.
It was unnerving to be suddenly thrust into the position of having to choose between the world she had always known and the one she had recently stumbled upon. Additionally, she had so many questions—some of which she didn’t even know how to ask.
Throughout the entirety of the church service, she had glanced at her mother. She wondered why she had given up the magical world. Of course, Theresa had explained her reasoning extensively. She felt she had done what was best for her family. Her primary goal was to keep her daughter safe.
Still, Jessica wondered if there was more to it than that.
And as for her father, it was apparent that any discussion of magic made him uncomfortable. Why that was, she didn’t know. If he had such a problem with magic, how had he and her mom stayed together for so long? Had her mother been forced to choose between magic and the man she loved?
Or was her father hiding his own secrets about the magical world and his knowledge of it?
The more she thought about it, the more she realized how much she didn’t know. Yet, every time she attempted to ask a question, she felt tongue-tied. It was frustrating. She halfway wondered if, deep down inside, she couldn’t bring herself to ask the questions because she was afraid of the answers.
At this moment, though, she simply wanted to speak to Pastor Norman. She would simply have to take it all one step at a time. The first step was to figure out how much she wanted to be involved with the magical world.
Still seated in the pew, she looked at the pastor. The crowd around him had finally started to thin out.
Now was her chance. She stood hastily.
Jessica made it out of the pew as Pastor Norman headed down the aisle toward the church doors. He was most likely on his way to mingle with the churchgoers outside and bid them farewell until next week.
She caught his eye briefly and waved to him. He smiled and waved back but continued on his way before she could indicate that she needed to speak with him.
Picking up her pace, she headed down the aisle. She was anxious to reach him before someone else snagged his attention. He disappeared through the double-doors with her not far behind.
It was a bright and sunny day with a deceptively warm breeze in the air. Pastor Norman stood off to the side of the church’s doors. He smiled warmly and waved goodbye to church members and their children.
Jessica scanned the church grounds quickly and noticed that her parents were still on the premises. They had most likely decided to stick around until Grandma Ethel showed up. The invitation to attend church with them had been extended to the old lady, but she had declined.
“The Lord didn’t build me to be an early bird, so he understands,” she had told Jessica. “I’ll see you and that handsome pastor after church when I pick you up.”
She was more than a little revolted by her grandmother’s crush on her pastor. It made her uncomfortable, so she pushed the thought from her mind as she approached him.
As she was about to speak, the unnaturally loud flapping of wings distracted her. The sound was followed by a deep noise that she couldn’t place.
What the heck was that? Eventually, she realized the sound had been a hoot.
An owl hoot.
Her attention was momentarily diverted from her need to talk to Pastor Norman. She glanced around and wondered if anyone else had heard it.
“The worship of evil!”
Jessica jumped as the loud voice rang out. Everyone stopped in their tracks and the crowd in the church grounds seemed to suddenly part as a strange man came forward.
She had never seen him at church before. He was not elaborately dressed. Nor was he particularly handsome or ugly but for some reason, he stood out like a sore thumb. An unusual aura surrounded him and it seemed like everyone could intuitively sense it.
In her periphery, Jessica saw Pastor Norman shift his weight from one foot to the other. His jaw clenched as he gave the man a hard stare.
The intruder pointed directly at the pastor with a long slender finger. When he opened his mouth, he sounded like he had a megaphone built into his throat.
“The God you worship is evil. What you do here in this so-called holy place is blasphemy. For your actions, you will all burn! God is evil.”
Jessica’s jaw dropped. Is this really happening?
It felt like everything moved in slow motion. The man made a beeline for Pastor Norman and his eyes blazed with fury. He was red in the face, and his teeth were bared.
She shuddered and backed away, still trying to make sense of what was happening. Instinctively, she flashed a panicked look at Pastor Norman.
He was a kind and welcoming man, but Jessica knew there was another side to him. She had seen it for herself recently. That particular side was tough, strong, and even scary. It was that side of him that she now saw step forward, prepared to confront this strange man who disturbed
his Sunday gathering.
A loud honking blared across the churchyard and stole the madman’s thunder.
It was Grandma Ethel’s ratty old car. Jessica would recognize the sound of that horn anywhere. It pierced the air with a blast so loud that even the deranged man was taken off guard. He came to a halt mere feet away from Jessica and Pastor Norman. The intruder fastened his gaze on Ethel, who poked her head through the car window and continued to honk the horn furiously.
The crazy stranger’s eyes widened when he saw her grandmother. He swore abruptly and turned to cast one last hateful glare Pastor Norman’s way. Without further speech, the man suddenly began to walk toward the backyard of the church.
What the entire hell? Jessica thought. She was dumbfounded. The intruder hurried off, whistling a tune to himself along the way.
“That’s right, you ol’ buster! Get outta here!” Grandma Ethel yelled as she climbed out of her car.
Beside her, Pastor Norman released a low chuckle.
“Grandma?” Jessica crossed the church lawn to meet her grandmother. “Do you know that crazy man?”
She looked back at the madman, but he was no longer in sight. The scattered churchgoers resumed talking amongst themselves as they headed for their cars. No doubt, they discussed the bizarre incident that had just happened.
“I should go after him,” Ethel mumbled and her mouth tugged down into a scowl. She looked around. “On second thought, maybe not. There are too many people around. I may not be particularly religious, but killing on a Sunday in front of a church would be tacky, now wouldn’t it?” She waved her hand dismissively. “Besides, I’m wearing my Sunday’s best.”
Jessica blinked, still stunned. Now that Grandma Ethel mentioned it, she was exceptionally well-dressed. She wore a lime-green skirt, a white silk blouse with a cat pendant resting on it, and a lime-green beret perched on her head. Her hair was combed back sleekly under it.
Leave it to Grandma Ethel to put on her church outfit to pick me up after services. Then again, she wouldn’t put it past her grandmother to dress up merely to catch Pastor Norman’s eye.