by Jasmine Walt
“Makes sense.” I put the root back down, walked Ethan to the door, and slipped out onto the porch.
“I’ll call you later,” he promised. “Love you.”
“I love you too.”
After one more kiss, he jogged through the rain to his car. Feeling more awake, I went back upstairs, mind whirling. I picked up a small piece of Devil’s Shoestring and set it on my incense burner. It took me a while to get it smoldering, but once it did, the smell was obvious. I hurried to turn on my fan and open my windows.
“Sorry, Ryan.” I wafted smoke around my room. “I promise I’ll find you as soon as this whole mess is over.”
I sat on my bed, turning a large piece of the root over in my hands. I didn’t understand why now of all times my ghost-seeing powers were acting up. I still felt a little guilty for putting it on the back burner, but the demons were more of a threat. That, and my new powers were so much cooler.
I sank down on my bed and thought about Leslie. I hated that one of my friends got hurt because of me, no matter how indirect the fault was. I should have been doing something. I was a powerful witch—supposedly—so why was I sitting around at home?
“I’m not staying home,” I said out loud. I jumped off the bed, pulled the Book of Shadows out from the closet, and flipped to the Agreeance Spell. I would need it. There was no way my parents would let me go to the barn this late at night.
29
No one was there. The empty parking lot held back nothing but shadows that jumped and shifted with the blowing wind. The cold, damp air sent a chill throughout my entire body. Every fiber of my being told me to get back in the car, drive home, tuck myself under my comfy blankets, and go to sleep.
With a deep breath, I took a step towards the barn. An odd feeling of empowerment washed over me. Another step and I was feeling brave. I slowly opened the barn door and looked around.
A few horses were laying down, ready for a restful night’s sleep. I closed the door behind me and felt a false sense of security from the familiar setting. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a handful of roots and string. I tied a piece of Devil’s Shoestring to the front of Mystery, Neptune, Henry, and Abra’s stalls and tucked pieces above every door. I went around the back of the barn and scanned the horizon. A loud crack of thunder made me jump. My hand flew up to my chest, and I nearly screamed. My bravado had escaped me already.
I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths as I moved to the door. I threw it open and didn’t want to go outside. I thought of Leslie getting attacked. I wondered how long she laid on the cold, concrete aisle before the ambulance arrived. I opened my eyes, hoping to see a Pricolici. Nothing but darkness and fog stood in front of me. Courage surged again, and I headed towards the woods.
Drops of rain fell from the sky with so much force that they stung my cheeks, making me wish I’d worn a hat. The pitter-patter of rain on the fallen leaves masked the sound of anything lurking about in the dark forest. My courage faded as I pushed through the trees. A cloud of breath swirled around in the cold air as I exhaled.
“Just get it together,” I told myself, unsheathing the dagger.
I picked up the pace to a jog. The end of the horse trails came and went; I didn’t even allow myself to entertain the thought of stopping yet. I continued forward until my lungs began to hurt. Deciding to stop before I became completely out of breath, I shouted, “Okay, you stupid demons! Come and get me!”
I regretted saying that the moment the words escaped from my lips.
A low growl came from a few feet to my left. Heart racing, I whirled unable to see anything through the dark trees. Another growl, this one low and taunting, drifted through a dark tangle of weeds right in front of me. Coming here alone was a stupid idea. I slowly turned to face my insidious enemy. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
Lightning flashed across the sky like a strobe light, and in each brief moment of light, I could see a huge, black, wolf-like shape looming closer. My heart pounded in my chest. My eyes widened, and my breath left me. Another boom of thunder rang out above us.
With a warning snarl, the Pricolici lunged at me. I threw out my left hand and sent it flying into a tree. It slumped to the ground. I let out a breath and swallowed. Moving with amazing speed, the Pricolici was on its feet again. It sank down on its haunches and lunged at me.
I wrapped both hands around the dagger, getting ready. Instinct took over, and I thrust my hands forward the same time the Pricolici came at me, the force of its own body working against it. The dagger slid into its chest with ease.
One high-pitched whine was drowned out by a clap of thunder. The Pricolici burst into flames. The fire erupted from its stomach, and a second later, the whole thing exploded, covering me in ash and blood.
“Sick,” I said, standing up and flicking a glob of fur off my coat.
Twigs snapped a few feet in front of me. Adrenaline pumped throughout my body, and I was ready for another attack. My breath quickened, and I braced myself, holding the dagger in front of me. Something felt familiar. I stared into the woods, trying to get a better reading. I exhaled, and I lowered the dagger.
“Anora?” a deep voice called.
“Ethan?” I called back. I recognized his aura as soon as I recognized his voice.
“Thank God.” He rushed over and put his hands on my shoulders. “What the hell are you doing out here?” he barked, his voice quivering with fear. He pulled me close. “Sorry,” he added quickly. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, but, h-how did you find me?” I stammered.
“Julia had a vision of you fighting Pricolici in the woods,” he said, looking behind him.
“She knew I was here?”
“No,” he said with a shake of his head. “I tracked your location with the GPS on your phone.”
“How did you…?” I started then shook my head. It didn’t matter. Ethan was here with me. I didn’t have to face the demons alone.
Not too far away, a Pricolici howled. “We should go,” he said and extended a hand for me. I linked my fingers through his. “What was that bright light?” His eyes flitted around the forest.
“I killed a Pricolici, and it kind of exploded.”
“That’s…that’s awesome,” Ethan told me. The Pricolici howled again. “It’s coming closer. We need to hurry.”
My fingers tightened around the dagger, and my heart skipped a beat in fear. “I’m glad you’re here,” I told him, feeling selfish for wanting him around such danger.
The rain panged down harder and faster. Something jumped out of a tree and growled. “That is so not the one that just howled,” I nervously pointed out.
“No, it’s not,” Ethan said, gun already drawn. The Pricolici was silver and would have been beautiful save the fact that it was pure evil and wanted nothing other than to rip out my throat. It sniffed the air in front of Ethan and moved on, teeth barred, towards me. Slimy drool dripped from its yellowed fangs.
Ethan put his arm out to block me from harm and fired his gun three times. The thing collapsed. I let out a ragged breath and took Ethan’s extended hand. More eerie howls echoed throughout the silence.
“We’re being surrounded,” I exclaimed in a state of panic. Ethan turned away from me.
“Back to back,” he said, “it allows us to see the most.”
“Okay,” I said weakly. My knees shook. I took a deep breath and swallowed my fear.
A huge gray shape galloped toward me. I held up my hand right as it lunged. It hit the wall of telekinetic energy and crashed to the ground. Angry, it slowly circled us. Lightning flashed again. It was tall, maybe a few inches taller than Hunter. Its long legs ended in huge talon-like paws. Its dark eyes drilled into mine. It moved its gaze to Ethan, snarled, and then lunged.
Ethan fired his gun, the shot echoing throughout the stormy forest. It wasn’t enough to stop the Pricolici. The demon soared through the air, landing on top of Ethan. Ethan staggered back, right into me. I was shoved forward and fell har
d on my knees, sliding on the muddy ground.
I frantically scrambled to get up without cutting myself on the dagger’s sharp blade. Wet hair fell into my eyes, and I couldn’t see. Strangled growls came from deep within the Pricolici. I pushed my hair back to see Ethan struggling to hold it away from him.
His gun was on the ground, and he had both hands wrapped around the demon’s neck. Before I could hesitate, I rushed forward, raising my hand high in the air. Ethan closed his eyes and turned his head right as I brought the dagger down into the Pricolici’s back.
Another explosion left us covered in smoldering demon parts. Ethan sat up enough to wrap an arm around me and grabbed his gun.
“Duck!” he yelled and pulled me into his lap. I lowered my head. The shot rang in my ears. I twisted and saw another Pricolici limping away.
“Ethan,” I said as we stood. “If the Pricolici are bounty hunters and there are this many coming after me, does that mean…”
“The demon sending them must be close,” Ethan finished for me. “Yes.” He stood and took my hand. “We need to run, Anora.”
“Run? What about fighting?”
“We have no idea what we are fighting. The Pricolici are nothing compared to their master.”
Terror paralyzed me. If it was bad enough for someone as daring and brave as Ethan to tell me to run for it, then it was bad. Really freaking bad.
A single howl caused my skin to break out in goosebumps. The sound echoed off the tall trees. Rain loudly pattered on the leaves. Another clap of thunder rolled above us. Dozens of howls answered the call, floating through the storm soaked sky.
“Where should we go?” I looked around; I had no idea where we were. Were we too far from safety? No, we couldn’t be. I didn’t come out here to die. And I sure as hell didn’t cause Ethan to come out here and die.
“My house,” Ethan decided. “It’s not too far.”
“Which way?”
Ethan whirled around. “This way.”
We only made it a few steps when another demon dog leapt from the darkness. I threw out my hand to send it flying, but it only staggered back a bit. I was running out of energy. Ethan stepped in front of me and raised his gun.
Then another growl came from behind us. Ethan twitched but didn’t take his eyes off the Pricolici advancing at him.
I slowly turned, putting my back to Ethan’s. Come on…be brave. I needed to find energy somewhere. I had to do this. The Pricolici raised its head, sniffing deeply. It looked more human-like than the others, which meant it was younger, hadn’t killed as many people.
It would never kill again.
I rushed forward, flicking my wrist and sending the dagger into the Pricolici’s neck. I didn’t close my eyes or look away. I watched the blade turn red hot, the magical fire instantly spreading into the demon. It burst into flames. A smiled pulled up my lips.
This was what I was meant to do.
Ethan fired the gun again, but only one bullet shot out before I heard the gun make an empty chink. Crap. I knew from movies what that sound meant.
I turned my head to see a black mass barely moving on the ground. And another not far behind that. I might have been meant to kill demons, but I knew I couldn’t take on a pack of Pricolici by myself.
I looked up, my eyes meeting Ethan’s in the dark. He put his gun in its holster and nodded. He tilted his head in the direction we needed to go. I blinked away raindrops and took off, falling in step behind Ethan. Cold mud splattered under my feet. We pushed forward, struggling over the natural obstacles of the forest.
I slipped as I climbed a ravine. Ethan turned and helped me scramble to my feet. Too out of breath to say “thank you,” I nodded and pushed forward. My lungs burned. Please let us be close to Ethan’s house. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could last before I collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air and exhausted.
Suddenly, Ethan stopped and spun around. He put his hands on my shoulders. “Catch your breath,” he panted.
I nodded, too grateful to wonder how he knew I was dying. I looked into his eyes and gasped for air. Once this was over, I needed to start working out. Well…if I made it out of the woods alive.
A howl came from the woods along with a crackle of thunder. My body tensed, and I sucked in a breath only to quickly let it out, close to hyperventilating.
Ethan stepped over closer and kissed me. Everything disappeared for that small moment – the wind and the rain, the Pricolici, the fact that I was going to always be in danger – it all seemed to melt away with the warmth of Ethan’s kiss.
He pulled back, eyes looking right into mine. “Better?” he asked.
I let out a slow breath. “Yeah. Thanks.”
He nodded and looked behind me. “Close your eyes and breathe,” he whispered.
I nodded and closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing. A few seconds later, I opened my eyes. “Let’s go,” I panted. I hadn’t caught my breath yet, but I didn’t have time to wait. Ethan took my hand and started forward, going slower than before.
When more howls echoed behind us, we sprinted ahead at full speed. My side pinched, and my lungs felt like they were going to collapse on themselves. I found it in me to push forward. Finally, the woods began to thin. The yellow flicker of headlights on the road was one of the best things I’d seen all day.
We slowed as we burst through the woods. I doubled over when we reach the road. Ethan put his hand on my arm. He was out of breath as well, but barely.
“Straighten up,” he said. “You’ll get more air.”
“I…can’t,” I huffed out.
He took the dagger from me and slid it back in the sheath. “Yes, you can.” He took both of my hands in his and gently pulled me up. “Push your shoulders back to open your lungs. And walk. Your heart is racing. It’s not good to just stop.”
If I didn’t just stop, I would probably die. I didn’t think Ethan would believe that. He taught martial arts and had more than one black belt. He knew what he was talking about, right?
“Are…they…?” I started.
“Following us?” Ethan finished. “No. I don’t think they’ll come this close to the road. Too many cars.”
We inched forward. Bright headlights blinded me. I tried to take a slow breath but felt like I was suffocating. Ethan helped me push my shoulders back. By the time we reached the road, I could breathe again. We had a few blocks to walk before we got to Ethan’s house. He put his arm around me, holding me close as we silently made our way down the street. The wind picked up, and the rain came down with fury, whipping my face and making me shiver. My breath clouded around me, and I wondered if it was cold enough for frostbite.
The old brick house never looked as welcoming as it did that night. A yellow glow shone through the front window. Water splashed under our feet as we hurried up the stone stairs. Ethan retrieved the key from his pocket and opened the door.
“Hello?” he called. No answer. I was relieved; I didn’t feel like dealing with Sam right now. I was shivering from head to toe, and really wanted to get out of my wet clothes.
“Can we change?” I asked through chattering teeth.
“That sounds like a brilliant idea,” Ethan said and led me to his room.
“Sorry, I got you into this mess,” I said through chattering teeth as I unzipped my coat. It was dripping with water. I held it in front of me, trying to catch the dropped that pattered onto the hardwood floor.
“Don’t be sorry,” Ethan said and opened his closet. He pulled out a laundry basket. He took his soaking jacket off and tossed it inside.
I put mine on top then struggled with the button on my jeans, my fingers too cold to work right. My cheeks were warm from running, and my body was a horrible mixture of hot and cold. Trembling, I peeled the wet denim from my legs and pulled my sweater over my head.
I was soaked down to my underwear. I unhooked my bra and turned, flicking my eyes to Ethan. He was standing in his boxers.
“Want to take
a shower?” he asked.
“That sounds wonderful,” I said. Ethan grabbed my hand and led me into the bathroom. He turned the shower on and pulled the curtain closed. He stuck his hand in, testing the water.
“Ethan,” I started and wrapped my arms around my torso. “I’m so sorry.”
“Anora,” he said, turning to me. “Stop apologizing.”
“But I feel—”
He didn’t let me finish. He rushed up to me, encasing me in his arms. His lips pressed against mine, soft and warm. I melted into him, my rigid body instantly relaxing. Keeping me wrapped in his arms, Ethan stepped into the shower and the warmth quickly came back into my body.
30
I was nearly asleep when someone softly knocked at the door. After stumbling in the dark for some pants and quickly pulling on a pair of light blue boxers, Ethan opened the door about a foot, just enough to see who it was. Julia, with her ever-patient smile, stood a ways back.
“I’m so sorry to interrupt, Ethan, but your dad wants you downstairs,” I heard her say very quietly.
“It’s okay, Jules. Um, let us get dressed, and we’ll be right out.”
He shut the door and turned on the light. I closed my eyes, not ready to get up yet. I felt the mattress sink down next to me as Ethan came back into bed. “We should go. If it wasn’t important, they wouldn’t have woken us.”
I nodded, seeing the worry in his eyes. I pulled him to me. I ran a finger up and down his chest. He shut his eyes and lay down on his side next to me, tracing the outline of my body from my chest, down to my hip, and then up again. Obviously, he didn’t want to get out of bed anymore than I wanted to.
“I need clothes,” I said quietly.
“Nah.” Ethan started to sit up. “You look much better without them.”
“Thanks, but I don’t think Julia would appreciate it.”
“You’re right. She’d take one look at you and be insanely jealous.”
“I don’t take her to be the jealous type.” I sat up, holding the blanket over my chest, though I guess it didn’t matter. It wasn’t anything Ethan hadn’t seen before. “Now Sam, on the other hand, she would be jealous. Maybe I should go downstairs like this,” I said wryly.