by TJ Green
“She must be using some kind of locator spell,” Alex said. “Can you see the lines beneath the earth?”
For a second, Avery couldn’t understand what he meant, and then she saw the silvery lines growing stronger by the second, marking the foundation of the old house, some stretching further back up the hill. “Did El do that?”
“She must have. Can they see it, though? Look,” Alex gestured further up the hill. A slab of silvered earth glowed for a few seconds, and as they drifted over it, it disappeared.
Avery felt of rush of excitement. “Is that where the book is?”
But before he answered, she felt another wave of energy hit her, but different this time. It felt dark, angry. She tensed and looked up at the same time as Alex. A dark red glow was heading towards them, and Alex quickly pulled her to his side as a figure became clear ahead of them.
“What the hell is that?” Avery asked, panic racing through her.
“Another spirit walker,” Alex said, “and he doesn’t mean well.”
The figure raced towards them and a wall of power pulsed outwards. Almost simultaneously, Avery sensed Alex push something like a force field towards the approaching figure. The two met with a clash, and although Avery couldn’t hear anything, she felt an almost tidal surge of electricity rush around them.
Now was not the time to panic, and Avery stayed close to Alex, doing as he did and summoning her own powers. She was a witch—if she could do this in her physical body, she could do it now.
Alex was totally focussed on their attacker, but she felt him anchoring her, and she joined her force to his, strengthening the shield he had created. Their attacker’s form was blurry, non-human, and it was impossible to make out what he or she was. One thing was certain. It was trying to hurt them. The figure pushed closer, trying to crack the protective shield that glowed a pale blue ahead of them. Avery didn’t ask what would happen if it broke.
“We need to withdraw, Alex. I don’t know what I can do to help.”
“To withdraw we have to push it back, to give us time. We do not want it following us back.”
“Will it hurt Reuben and El?”
“No, it can only watch. I hope. Listen, we must push together. Let it think it’s overpowering us, and then push. Hopefully it will be enough to throw it off balance. And I have a trick up my sleeve.”
Avery was vaguely aware of the scene below. The two witches were continuing to work the spell, following the lines beneath the earth, but Alex pulled her attention back.
“We need to protect them, too, give them privacy.” He grinned at her, his teeth glowing with a silvery light, his eyes sparkling. “Follow my lead.”
The dark mass ahead was pushing against them. Its anger was palpable. Avery felt Alex’s energy pull back, and she matched him, allowing their attacker to come closer. She saw two red eyes glowering malevolently, and she felt its premature wave of pleasure at their perceived weakness. They allowed it to creep closer and closer, until Avery was worried it may be too close to repel. Red waves flared like fire around the shield, licking like flames trying to crack their defences.
Alex whispered, “Nearly time. Wait. Wait. Now!”
He pushed suddenly, striking out in one massive hit, and Avery joined it, amazed at the strength they created together. Into the middle of it Alex projected a strike like lightning—a silvery bolt that crackled with searing heat. It punctured out through their shield and into their attacker’s, sending it shooting backwards.
They barely had time to enjoy their victory when Alex pulled her away, and she did as he told her earlier. She thought of her physical body next to the fire and followed her cord back, racing along it in a blur, Alex next to her. Their attacker was a long way behind them.
Avery returned to her physical body with a thump. Her limbs felt heavy, but her mind was alert in an instant and she tried to sit up. A searing pain exploded in her head and she cried out, falling back.
She heard Alex. “It’s okay, take your time. You’ve used a lot of power.”
She turned to him, blinking, and the room focussed. The warm orange light was soothing, and the fire still crackled, bathing them in heat. Alex was lying on his side, head propped on one hand, watching her. She took a few deep breaths and felt the pain recede quickly.
“Better?” His voice was a balm to her senses. It almost replaced losing his warm presence that had wrapped around her earlier.
“I think so.” She shivered, despite the warmth. “Shouldn’t we be doing something? Like joining El and Reuben?”
His close proximity made her nervous, but her gaze wandered from his dark eyes, across his delicious stubble, down to his full lips.
“In a minute,” he said softly. And then he leaned forward and kissed her, gently at first.
A flare of desire raced through Avery and she leaned into his kiss. Within seconds his hand was on her back, pulling her close, until she felt his whole body pressed against hers. Her hand snaked around his waist, feeling his muscular build and his warmth. His kisses deepened, and she felt herself falling away, losing herself completely in him.
He eventually pulled away, gazing at her. “I suppose we should go and check on El and Reuben now.” But he didn’t move, waiting for her response, his gaze still travelling from her eyes to her lips and back again. His hair fell around his face, grazing her cheeks, and his scent enveloped her.
She felt breathless and giddy and wanted nothing more than to stay right there. “I suppose we should.”
He grinned, and she melted a little more. “In another minute.” And he kissed her again, all playfulness gone as she arched into him, drawing him closer. When they broke apart again, both were breathless.
Avery pushed him away, her hand against his chest. It took every ounce of her willpower. “You’re a very bad influence, Alex Bonneville. Our friends could be in trouble.”
He reluctantly pulled away. “Come on, then. I’ll drive.” He pulled her to her feet, and while he grabbed his keys, she extinguished the candles with a word.
12
The narrow lanes were as black as pitch; only the car’s headlamps lit the way ahead, giving Alex and Avery brief flashes of hedges, gates, and fields.
“I didn’t think a spirit walker could physically attack someone,” Avery said. She peered through the windscreen, trying to see if she could see anything in the sky overhead.
“They can’t, normally.” Alex drove quickly, his eyes on the road. His car was a classic Alfa Romeo Spider, Boat Tail, and it whipped through the country lanes. “I expect El and Reuben will be fine, but I don’t know what attacked us. I’m not even sure it was human.”
Avery felt a heaviness settle into her body as she thought of demons, ghosts, and other creatures of the night. “What could it be?”
“Either someone wielding dark magic, or a demon.”
There. The word was out now.
“But they don’t exist.” Her voice sounded tinny and weak. She looked at Alex’s profile as he concentrated on the road, willing him to agree with her.
“We both know they do.” He flicked her a glance. “We just haven’t encountered one before.”
“Necromancy was very popular hundreds of years ago. Do you think our ancestors summoned demons?” It was a horrible thought.
“They must have done, or why have I got so many spells about them in my grimoire? From what I’ve seen so far, they certainly engaged in darker magic than we have. And you must have some demon related spells in yours.”
She had to grudgingly admit she did. “I thought it was more theoretical than practical.”
“Everything’s theoretical until you decide to act on it.”
A thought struck her. “How did you learn to do the whole lightning bolt-thing?”
“The grimoire, of course. And there’s a whole lot more in there, too. No wonder someone else wants them.”
They crested a rise and the hedges fell away, the headlights spilling onto the downs. Alex tur
ned down a rutted lane and the car bounced as they raced along. Avery braced herself against the sides, hoping she wouldn’t be brained on the car roof. The Alfa didn’t like the uneven surface.
They could see the bleached outline of the building ahead of them, but there was no sign of El or Reuben. Alex screeched to a halt next to El’s battered 4x4 Landover. They bounded out, the slamming of the car doors loud in the silence.
By unspoken agreement they looked around carefully, and the silence of the night fell around them. Nothing moved. Even the normal night sounds had fled. From here they could see White Haven, its lights twinkling, and out at sea the lights of the boats. Close by, however, there was only darkness, the downs invisible, with only a sense of the openness of the unseen landscape. Avery directed her energy so it formed a ball in her hands, ready to fling at any unwanted visitors, and then focussed her senses outwards, looking for something, anything, but there was nothing else there. Only Alex.
She looked up, but the sky above was clear, the stars unflinching, with no sign of whatever had happened earlier. Was she imagining it, or could she detect a strange smell? It was like an unnatural rot.
Satisfied there was nothing waiting to attack them, Avery walked to Alex’s side, and together they headed into the remnants of the house. They passed through the shell of rooms, with their broken walls and a trace of foundation showing like bones. There was still no sign of El and Reuben.
Alex whispered, “The lines ran up the hill, remember?”
He led the way, watchful and silent. They both muffled their presence with a spell, cloaking their bodies so they appeared like shadows. The locators of El’s spell were still visible, pale lines marking long vanished foundations of maybe an earlier dwelling. Within a few minutes they came to a black hole in the ground, its opening several feet below the surface. Piles of earth and stone stood either side, and a huge stone square like a flagstone lay upended to the side. The smell of rot was stronger now, coming from the hole.
“What now?” Avery asked. “If we go down there they could attack us by accident, or what if something’s down there with them?” She trailed off, her meaning apparent.
“I’ll look.” Alex dropped to his knees and put his head in. He summoned light, and projected a pale light from his hand downwards. Avery stood close by, hoping nothing would emerge from the surrounding blackness.
After a few seconds Alex said, “It’s an old cellar. Follow me.”
He gripped either side of the opening and dropped from sight. As soon as he was in she took a last look around and followed him. She felt him grip her waist and hold her, gently lowering her to the ground.
A passageway snaked away from them, a pale light ahead. They had only taken a few steps when a scream rang out, and then a shout of rage. Alex ran and Avery followed, her heart pounding. She again summoned energy into a white-hot ball in her hands, and as Alex rounded a corner, he came to a stop. A few passages opened up, but only one was lit, and he again raced down it, following its turns. Another scream echoed around them; Alex stopped and she thudded into the back of him. He stepped aside quickly and for a brief second, Avery took in the room.
It was long and low, lined with rough brick and rotten timbers. The smell of rot and damp was strong. A lamp hung from the ceiling and the faint yellow light showed a wooden box on the floor against the far wall. Reuben was standing in the centre of the room facing a shadowy beast in the corner that crackled with heat. His arms and legs were wrapped in coils of flames that seemed to be trying to pull him towards the beast—or pull him apart. Reuben was straining to pull back, roaring with pain. As they entered the room, the flames disappeared, and Reuben fell to the floor.
The beast swelled in size, and red eyes glowed within its centre. Avery could just make out misshapen limbs; it exuded malevolence. It was a demon, and El struggled and writhed in its grip, screaming as flames crackled around her.
Alex ran to Reuben and dragged him back towards the entrance.
If they attacked the demon, they attacked El, but the box was intact, and it looked similar to Alex’s. It must be the other grimoire. Avery directed her ball of glowing witch light at the box and shouted, “Release her, or I destroy the box.”
For a second the demon waited, its flames slowed and the crackle subsided.
Avery felt rather than saw Alex move next to her. She shouted again. “I’ll do it! El means more to me than the grimoire.” The ball of light swelled in her hands and she stepped closer to the box. The demon needed to know she meant business. She sent the blast towards the box, engulfing it, and the demon roared with an unearthly howl.
Avery waited, the ball of light cradled within her hand again. “Release her now!”
From deep within the depths of the demon a column of fire rushed towards her and she rolled, flattening herself against the far wall as Alex threw up a shield in front of both of them. “Blast it again, Avery!”
She threw another blast at the wooden box and the demon howled again, this time flinging El to the floor as it charged across the room towards them. Avery redirected her aim to the demon and Alex joined her, battering the demon with their combined powers. Avery saw El staggering to her feet and she joined them with another blast of energy. The demon was surrounded, but it grew in size, filling the centre of the room.
The room now sizzled with heat and magic, and the white-hot blast surrounding the demon was almost blinding. Was it feeding off them? Avery was dimly aware of the dampness in the walls and the earth surrounding them, and she changed her focus, drawing on water instead. A jet of water shot from her hands and this time steam billowed around them as the demon howled with an unearthly cry that covered her skin in goose bumps. With a final flash of power the demon streamed upwards and out of the cellar, and suddenly the room was empty.
El fell to her knees and Alex rushed over to her. “Are you all right?”
“I’ll be okay, I’ve just used a lot of energy, and that thing sucked some from me. Is Reuben all right?”
Avery felt dazed and exhausted, but she turned and checked Reuben and found him groggy and weak. “I don’t know, but he’s alive. We need to get out of here before that thing comes back.”
“We’re not going anywhere without that box,” El said, standing on slightly shaky legs.
“Oh, we’re definitely taking that box,” Alex agreed. He looked at Avery, “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “I’m fine. I think. Better than Reuben, anyway.” She turned and pulled Reuben’s arm, trying to avoid the blistering already coiling around his forearms. “Hey Reuben, you need to get up. We have to get out of here.”
He looked up at her, his skin ashen, his tattoos even more vivid against his pallor. Avery could see blistering around his calves, as well. He extended his hand and she pulled him to his feet.
“I feel like crap,” he said with a grimace.
“We need to get Briar. She’s better at healing than any of us,” El said, looking worried.
“Go,” Alex said. “I’ll bring the box. We need to get out of here, before that thing comes back with friends.”
***
They met at Elspeth’s flat. Unlike Alex and Avery, Elspeth didn’t live above her shop. She lived on the top floor of an old, converted warehouse overlooking the harbour. The walls were a mixture of warm brick and ornate dark wallpaper like her shop; the floor was made of solid oak, and the windows were long and metal framed. And it was small. “I love it, but it costs me a fortune,” El had once complained. Lamplight pooled in the corners and incense filled the air—a protection spell.
They had squashed into the rickety lift and mostly fell into her flat, all of them exhausted. The wooden box was on the floor, looking ominous. Avery gazed out of the window at the harbour below, illuminated by the streetlights, and watched the gentle rise and fall of the waves and the boats bobbing gently on the swell. She could feel the box behind her. Half of her wanted to see what was in it, half of her wanted to be at home, tucked up
in bed, asleep. Or maybe with Alex. She was aware of his presence everywhere, like a tickling of her senses, and she longed to touch him again.
A loud knock at the door disturbed her reverie and Briar came in, followed by Gil.
“I wasn’t sure you’d be able to come,” Alex told him.
Gil frowned. “Reuben’s hurt. Of course I’m here.” He rushed to Reuben’s side. “How you doing, Reu?”
“I’ve been better,” he said. He sat on the sofa, sipping a strong coffee. “The burns are the worst. That thing lashed me with these weird flame ropes.”
“It was a demon,” Alex said seriously. He stood leaning against the kitchen counter. “We have to call it what it is.”
Gil and Briar looked shocked; the others were used to the term now.
“When you said it over the phone, I thought it was a joke,” Briar said. She sat on the floor next to Reuben, unpacking her bottles and salves. She was pale without makeup, her hair bundled on top of her head.
“It’s no joke,” El murmured from where she sat in front of the fireplace, black candles burning there instead of a fire, to ward off the spirits. “That thing wrapped me up in its demon fire. I’m lucky I wasn’t burnt either. I presume it needed me - maybe to open the box.”
“I have some salves for burns, and a spell for spirit fire. Let’s hope that helps,” Briar said, choosing a pot.
“Tell us everything,” Gil urged.
Alex started, telling them about the spirit walking, and then El told them about their investigations which had led to the house. She turned to Alex and Avery. “So you saw something during your spirit walk? Was it the same thing?”
“I don’t know.” Alex shrugged. “But we were above you and it rushed at us. It was a dark mass. It looked like the demon in the room, but it could have been someone with dark energy disguising themselves.”