by Dakota Brown
Victoria scrambled over to them and sat down on his other side, tears streaming down her face. He wasn't sure if she would welcome him touching her or not. He put his other arm around her, anyway. She could move away if she didn't want to be held.
After a moment, Victoria scooted closer and leaned against him. "What do we do?" She sniffed and rubbed at her face.
"Don't know," he muttered, trying to hold his anger in check. "Wait and see what happens when she wakes up. Go from there."
"Did they…get a demon?"
"Yes," Nikolai grunted, biting the word off angrily.
"They had a gun." Victoria trembled. Doc tightened his hold on her. "There wasn't anything either of us could do."
"We shouldn't have left her alone," he replied. That mistake would haunt him, even if they did rescue her from this. "We shouldn't have left you alone."
"You can't follow us everywhere. Eventually, they would have done something."
"There are a lot of things we could have, maybe should have done," Nikolai said. "There is no point in looking back."
Though he knew Nikolai was right, he doubted the mage followed his own advice.
Tires crunched on gravel, and he tensed. Victoria and Nikolai glanced at him.
"I hear a car, don't recognize it."
Nikolai stood, went over to the window, and glanced out. He felt the mage's absence keenly, even though he was only a few feet away.
"No idea what kind of car it is," Nikolai cautioned. "It's black. Not a truck."
Victoria tensed, fear coloring her scent.
"It's Ash," Doc declared, not sure how he knew, but certain he was right.
Nikolai glanced back at him, eyebrow raised. "You can sense demons now?"
"Ever since…" He snapped his mouth shut. Victoria still didn't know all their secrets, and it was better if she didn't. "I see Ash a lot."
Normally, Nikolai's knowing smile might have made him blush, but he didn't have the energy at the moment to react to the mage's gibe.
Victoria glanced between them, brow furrowed. "I would like to ask again, isn't he a bad guy? Like, powerful demon, could kill us all? You don't seem worried."
Nikolai shrugged. "He likes Doc. He won't do anything to us unless directly ordered to."
"What if he was ordered to? And how exactly does he like Doc?"
"Then we'll defend ourselves," he answered. "He probably wouldn't drive up in a car if he was going to try and kill us. He knows at least three of us can hear it a fair ways off. Not exactly stealthy." He ignored the other question, not sure how to answer it.
Nikolai opened the door before Ash could knock, and the demon came inside. He didn't say anything, his blue and white eyes fixed on Doc for a moment before shifting to Sofia. He moved to sit cross-legged on the other side of them and stared at Sofia.
Nikolai sat next to him, across from Victoria.
"Is this not weird to anyone else?" she finally pleaded.
Doc still had his arm around her, and he squeezed gently. "Why are you here, Ash?"
"I was ordered to bring her back once she had killed all of you. Until she does, or they get tired of waiting and call me, we can stay here."
"Why do they think she'll kill all of us?" he asked.
"Sometimes, when a demon is first bound, especially a powerful greater demon, they can still do a little magic. Usually, they try to kill anyone near them. As the demon doesn't have full possession of this body, she's unlikely to be able to do much. The Andersons do not know they failed to push Sofia out. I'll stay until they call me and order me to return, or you want me to leave."
"Turn your phone off," Doc ordered.
Ash shook his head. "I tried that. I can no longer neglect to keep my phone charged, turn it on silent, turn it off, or ignore it." He grimaced.
Doc held out his hand.
Ash tilted his head slightly, but after a moment, pulled his phone out and handed it to him.
Smirking a little, Doc tightened his grip around the phone, crushing it.
Victoria gasped, but to her credit, didn't pull away.
Ash's eyebrows rose, and then the demon smiled, before his expression fell. "That will work for a while."
"Do you have any other orders we need to know about?"
Ash shook his head.
He put the remains of the phone on the table and brushed his hand off on his jeans.
Allan groaned, and everyone turned their attention to him. He clutched his head, before slowly sitting upright. After a moment, he looked around, eyes going wide as he saw Ed still unconscious and everyone else gathered around Sofia.
He scrambled forward on hands and knees, stopping next to her.
"We were too late, weren't we?"
"Yes," Ash answered for everyone else. "Mostly."
"What do you mean? Why are you here?" Allan growled at Ash.
"I'm here because maybe I can help them." Ash gestured at Sofia. "And because I'm supposed to bring her back, eventually."
Allan shook his head. "This is so fucked up," he muttered.
Ed woke after another few minutes and came over to join them, sad puppy dog eyes resting on everyone for a moment before he completed the circle they had formed around Sofia's body. He didn't say anything. He did glare at Ash, but the demon ignored him.
Nikolai stared intently at the demon. "Ash, do you know how to release the bindings?"
"We all know how." He winced, as if talking about it pained him. "But if I think about it too much, the magic punishes me. If I actually try, or were to try to tell someone else, well…" He gestured at Sofia.
Nikolai sighed. "If only I had access to my library."
Ed straightened and looked at Nikolai. "What about the Anderson's library?"
"Please do not discuss your plans around me," Ash grumbled.
Everyone fell silent.
Doc heard Sofia's breathing change, and he focused his attention back on her. He took his arm from Victoria's shoulders in case he needed to restrain Sofia as she straightened.
Her eyes fluttered open, and his heart clenched. Her normally gray eyes were golden, and no hint of her lavender magic shone in them.
She looked around at them before they settled on Ash. Screaming in anger, she launched herself at the demon.
Ash held up his hands, protecting himself like a boxer. Doc scrambled to his feet and grabbed Sofia, pulling her off of the demon.
She turned on him, swinging.
He caught her arm as gently as he could and held her until she stopped struggling.
As soon as she did, he released her and stepped back.
She staggered, looking around the room, wide-eyed. "I know this place, but I've never been here before."
Ash stood up and went over to her.
She snarled and took another swing at him. Doc snatched her arm and pulled her back against his chest. He guessed eventually he wouldn't be able to hold her back, once the demon really had control, but for now, it wasn't any more difficult than restraining any other human.
She kicked his shin. He ignored the brief pain.
"You're going to hurt yourself."
"When I have control of this body, then I will hurt all of you," she snarled.
"They didn't do this," Victoria cried out. "We're trying to help."
Sofia turned her now golden eyes on Victoria. "I know," she fumed and jerked away from him. He let her go this time, and she sank to the ground.
He settled back next to Victoria, keeping a wary eye on Sofia.
No one knew what to say.
Finally, Nikolai broke the silence. "How should we address you?" He spoke respectfully.
Her attention jerked to the mage, and she pursed her lips. "This body was called Sofia?"
Nikolai nodded.
"Perhaps you should stick with that." She clenched her fists and then stared at her wrists. The golden cuffs that imprisoned her glinted in the early morning light from the big window.
"I have some things to t
ell you, that will help should you choose to listen. Most I learned the hard way," Ash said.
She glared at him. "You helped them do this."
Ed growled.
"I had no choice. You will have no choice once your powers meld with Sofia's." Ash pulled his long sleeves up and showed his own cuffs. Unlike Sofia's arms, which weren't damaged, his arms were red and cracked where the cuffs dug into his skin.
"Talk," the demon inhabiting Sofia growled.
"You seem to know that these people aren't responsible." He gestured at the others.
"Yes, we've spoken already." She waved her hand dismissively. "Carry on."
Ash looked confused at that. "You have?"
"Tell me what I need to know," she ground out.
"My apologies. They weren't able to completely push Sofia out of her body. Which is unusual. Normally, as I understand it, your powers would integrate with that body right away. You would probably fight the restraints, and the magic would cause you a great deal of harm, but you would recover and eventually stop fighting."
She glared at him. "So, you've given up?"
"I fought every day for three hundred years. I still try it occasionally. It never goes well." He shrugged as if it didn't matter, but Doc could see the pain in his eyes. "If it weren't for Sofia, I would let you learn the hard way. However, she will experience everything you do, I believe."
The demon nodded. "It is likely. She seems like she's listening now. Ah, yes, she's now quite upset. Her yelling is giving me a headache." She touched her temples. "Strange sensation."
"So, if you don't fight them, you won't damage Sofia."
"You expect me to give up? I do not wish for an existence of servitude," she snarled.
"No. I'm suggesting you do your best to keep Sofia in her body as long as you can. It will limit your usefulness to the Andersons until your magic fully integrates. I don't believe it can while Sofia is present. We won't tell them it's because of Sofia. We'll tell them it's because the integration takes time. Maybe they," he gestured toward Doc and Nikolai, "can figure out how to unbind you before she's gone."
The demon frowned and looked at Nikolai. "You know how to bind demons?" She did not sound happy about that.
Nikolai shook his head. "It is very specialized magic. I know something of bindings and unbindings, but how to fix this?" He shrugged. "I am trying to find a solution. May I?" He gestured toward her wrists.
Glaring at him the entire time, she held out her arm.
Nikolai's hands glowed with his dark blue magic signature for a moment while he studied the restraints. He pushed magic into them. Magic flared, flinging Nikolai backward.
Doc didn't use his full speed that often, and he almost didn't react fast enough to save Nikolai from being flung through the large glass window, but he managed to get across the room to catch the mage before he got hurt.
"Thanks." Nikolai straightened, and he held on to him maybe a moment longer than necessary before letting go.
Victoria's eyes were huge when he happened to glance at her, but she didn't ask questions.
"I will not try that again," Nikolai laughed nervously. "I believe I have the information I need, however."
"Are you okay?" Doc asked.
"Yes, am fine."
The demon was clutching her head, but Ash didn't look terribly concerned, so Doc hoped that meant she and Sofia were okay.
Ed and Allan's gazes darted around, clearly not sure who they should be worried about or focusing on.
"So, there's a chance we can save Sofia?" Victoria finally whispered.
The demon laughed bitterly and shook her head. "If you do it fast."
"How fast?" Victoria replied.
"I don't know. I can barely sense her after that little explosion of pain," the demon replied.
Ed lunged forward, grabbed the demon's shoulders, and stared into her eyes, as if he could physically see Sofia. The demon tried to jerk away, but he held tight.
"We can't lose her," Ed cried out as he continued to search her face.
She finally jerked away, and Allan grabbed Ed around the waist and pulled him back.
"Ash, would you mind stepping out of hearing range for a time?" Nikolai asked.
Ash nodded and left the cabin.
"She tied herself to us." Nikolai held out his arm and showed the magical tattoo they all had. "It may be why the Andersons couldn't push her out. Ed, you and Allan should take turns staying with her through the pack bond as much as you can. Doc, too. Keep her anchored to us. I will see what I can learn from the Andersons' library."
"How will you do that?" Victoria asked.
"I can sneak a pastry out from under a werewolf's nose. The Andersons shouldn't be an issue." His smile was a touch sad.
The demon studied her wrist, but the golden cuff covered Sofia's tattoo.
"What about Sofia's parents?" Victoria's eyes widened.
He swore. "They will be a problem."
"Doc, you, Ed, and Allan keep our visitor from drawing too much attention to herself. We need to keep her parents from finding out, as well. If we succeed, then it won't be issue. If we fail…" The mage shrugged. "I'm all for unleashing holy hell on the Andersons. We will tell her parents then."
"Doc will have to manage her parents," Ed pointed out. "As far as they know, she's only dating him."
Nikolai wasn't completely in the loop on Sofia's parents, and he tilted his head. He understood it wasn't going to be an easy situation though. "Enjoy that," he said to Doc, sarcasm heavy in his voice.
Doc raised his eyebrows. Nikolai wasn't normally sarcastic.
"What if I don't wish to cooperate?" The demon crossed her arms and glared at the others.
"Then we will do what we can without your help, and hope it's enough," Doc growled out.
"If you unbind me, and I decide to keep this vessel?" The smirk on her face was so unlike Sofia that Doc's anger flared. He would never have been able to react this way toward Sofia, but he wanted to punch the demon.
"Somehow, I think you'd rather go home." He glared at her.
"And what if you figure it out too late, will my cooperation still buy my freedom?"
Because he was watching, he could see the uncertainty under the arrogant tilt to her chin.
"Yes."
She considered for a moment before shrugging. "Then I suppose I will cooperate, for now."
His shoulders unknotted. If she was agreeing, she probably had hope that they could succeed.
"Act fast." She turned away from Doc's angry stare and headed for the kitchen, looking around curiously as she did so. "Someone make me something to eat. This vessel is starving."
Doc glanced at Ed and Allan. They stared after the demon, almost identical expressions of anguish on their faces.
"Now," she commanded.
Growling, Ed and Allan stalked into the kitchen.
Nikolai came over and put his arm around Doc, leaning against him.
"Fuck," he muttered, returning the pressure.
"Indeed," Nikolai answered.
Victoria raised her eyebrows at them before following the others into the kitchen.
Chapter 22
Nikolai
Ash stayed until it was clear the demon inhabiting Sofia wasn't about to kill all of them, and then he left. He promised to tell the Andersons the demon wasn't fully integrated yet, and that there was no real point in stealing her back until she was more useful to them. He offered to give Victoria a ride back to the college, but rather understandably, she declined. Doc ended up running her back to the dorms while Nikolai, along with Ed and Allan, tried to instruct Sofia's inhabitant on what she needed to do to pretend to be Sofia.
The demon constantly waved them off, saying she didn't care, or that she had the knowledge needed. Nikolai thought she was mostly uncomfortable with how little she knew about the world and how little power she currently had. If the demon had been able to fully integrate with Sofia's body, she wouldn't be so powerless until the
Andersons commanded her anyway, and he suspected she had thought of that. Hopefully, her promise to give them time to release her held.
While Ed and Allan tried to explain the modern world, Nikolai sat in the armchair he preferred and let his mind travel along the threads of the bond they had formed. He needed to contact Sofia, see if she was okay.
The demon sensed what he was doing and leveled a stare at him. He met her gaze and clenched his jaw, not wanting to fight with her, but knowing they needed to keep Sofia close and make sure she didn't give up.
Finally, the demon nodded and turned her attention back to Ed and Allan, or rather, turned back to pretending to ignore them.
Nikolai sank down into his mind.
"Sofia."
She had crafted the space in her mind she had carved out to hide in to look like her grove.
Sofia's eyes widened when she saw him. She sprang up and threw herself in his arms.
He held her tightly, breathing in her scent. "I'm so sorry, Sofia."
"Why?"
"We didn't protect you."
"You tried."
"Them knowing about me may have forced their hand."
"You'll save me." Her eyes glistened, and his heart broke a little more.
"I'll try."
"What do I do?" Her voice cracked, and she pressed against him.
"Stay strong. Stay here. Hide from the Andersons. Don't let the demon shove you out."
"Okay. Will you stay with me for a while?"
"A little while. Ed, Allan, and Doc will be here as much as they can. I need to figure out how to reverse the magic. It will be quite complicated."
"You'll figure it out."
Her faith in him twisted like a knife in his back. He was very good at battle. This side of magic was not something he had spent a lot of time with. Which might be why Roza succeeded in trapping him in an interdimensional prison in the first place. She certainly hadn't learned that magic from him.
"I will," he assured her, wishing he felt as confident as he tried to sound.
He held Sofia for a time, trying to lend her strength and anchor her more closely, but finally, he had to let go. "I will return as soon as I can. I'll send the others back sooner."
She gave him a sad smile, though it didn't reach her eyes. She kissed him gently on the lips and stepped back.