Dark Calling

by McIntyre, Cheryl

  Nick looks over her head at Asmoday who is hovering closely watching them with deep interest. Finally, Nick shrugs and pulls her back against him. “Just a little altercation,” he says softly.

  Keely shifts out of Nick’s arms in order to look back at Asmoday, but he is already gone. She sighs and looks back at Nick. “A little altercation, huh? That sounds familiar.”

  Nick lifts his shoulders then places his hands light as feathers on each side of Keely’s face and kisses her gently. Keely presses her mouth to his, ready to ignore the pain, but Nick winces. She pulls back concerned. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?” Nick shakes his head and leans down to kiss her again, deeper this time.

  “I hate to break this up, but we still have missing people,” Lila says as if she isn’t sorry in the least.

  As happy as Keely is to see Nick, she needs to find her dad. She breaks the kiss, but takes Nick’s hand in hers. She looks around the room for her mom and finds her staring back at her, a strange look on her face. Keely realizes the last time she saw her mom, she was petrified of boys. Now here she is kissing one, unable to keep from touching him. A guy her mother hired no less. Things have changed so much in the past week. Nothing will ever be the same again.

  Twenty-one:

  “This is weird,” Lila whispers. “Like really, really weird.” Her face scrunches up like she smells something bad. “Every logical part of me is screaming not to trust them, but—and I know this sounds contradictory—but my heart is telling me to follow them.”

  “I’m done listening to your heart, Lila. Your damn heart made us sit in those cells,” Bryon huffs. He shoots her a slightly menacing look. “And then what did your heart tell you? Oh, that’s right. Your heart said it was all good to walk through that door and get jumped by a bunch of Demons.” He shakes his head when Lila tries to protest. “Uh-uh. I’m done. From now on, I’m sticking with my gut.”

  Lila snorts out an annoyed laugh. “When I say I follow my heart, I mean I go on an instinct, moron. It’s the same thing as going with your gut.” She says the last word like it disgusts her. “And you know it leads to the path I should follow. Which is how I made it to you in the first place. And I am not a clairvoyant. I don’t have visions. I have a guide. It pulls on my heart, sending me in the right direction.”

  “We wouldn’t have found my mom or Nick either,” Keely adds leaning around Nick to see Bryon better.

  “You’re not helping, Keely.”

  “She’s not helping you, you mean,” Lila says with a bite.

  Bryon stops walking and turns to his friends. “I knew there was danger for us in that room. I felt it. That’s all I’m saying.”

  “You could be developing another accolade. Let us know if it happens again,” Nick suggests.

  Bryon puts on an obvious fake smile. “Yay, we can test it out.”

  “I don’t know what your problem is, Bry. We got out of those cells. We got Keely’s mom. Nick showed up. It all worked out. Regardless of your feeling, we had to go into that room. I mean, even if you knew those Demons were in there, you still would have gone in because Keely’s mom was in there too. You see what I’m saying?” Lila crosses her arms smugly.

  “I wasn’t prepared. I thought the room was clear.”

  “Then that’s your own stupid mistake. You know it doesn’t work like that. You should always be prepared for danger,” Lila shoots back.

  “You guys, stop it. We are all exhausted and scared. We’re all worried about someone. That’s no excuse to turn on each other,” Keely scolds. Nick gives her a small smile and squeezes her hand.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry, Bryon. I’m just worried about Dustin,” Lila murmurs.

  Keely tenses at the mention of Dustin’s name. Nick looks down at her, but she keeps her head turned, looking straight ahead at the group of Demons leading them through the tunnels. She still hasn’t decided what she should do about Dustin yet.

  “I am too,” Bryon says gently. “We’ll find him. Your dad too, Keels.”

  She smiles gratefully at him before glancing over her shoulder at her mom. She’s walking quietly beside Michael Laszlo, who is Bryon’s work cover. He runs Laszlo’s Landscaping. Apparently he is a White Warrior. Keely doesn’t really know what that means, but understands it’s something special. He works on call, so most of the time he is leading a normal life, making people’s yards look nice. But if he’s needed, like he was today, they call him in. Oh, and he also used to date her mom. Awkward.

  Her mom who is something other than human, but Keely hasn’t confronted her about that yet. Wrong place. Wrong time. Once they find her dad and Dustin, and everyone’s home safe and sound, then they’ll talk.

  The group of Demons in front of them stops outside of a door. Though they vary in size, shape, and levels of scariness, they are all dressed the same. Inconspicuously clad in dark jeans and hoodies. Some wear baseball caps under their raised hoods keeping their profiles hidden in shadow. Keely isn’t sure which one is Asmoday, but she knows he’s up there. Since his arrival, she has consistently felt his presence. It’s like there’s an invisible cord that runs from his body to hers. She assumes this is what he meant when he said he had followed her essence. It frightens her to be connected to him so strongly, and the sensation only seems to be growing. Almost as if hearing her thoughts, Asmoday pushes his hood back and turns around. Their eyes lock instantly and Keely feels the cord go taught as though someone had tugged on it. It almost hurts, but she knows if she keeps moving forward, it will loosen up as she gets closer to him.

  “Would you like us to go in first?” Asmoday asks Keely, refusing to acknowledge the others. She looks up at Nick for guidance. “I addressed the question to you, Keely,” Asmoday snaps. Keely jumps at his tone, never hearing him speak to her this way before.

  Nick’s eyes slit into a glare and Keely grips his hand as tight as she can, anchoring him in place. “Yes. Please go in first,” she says as nicely as she can.

  “It is your father,” Asmoday explains with an almost smile. He holds out his hand, and to everyone’s shock, she releases Nick and takes her brother’s hand allowing him to lead her to the door.

  “Keely!” Kimberly, Nick, Bryon, and Lila shout in unison. Keely ignores them because as Asmoday pushes the thick door open with a creek, she can see her dad. His head is down, his eyes closed. His white button up work shirt is nearly brown and there is dried blood on the side of his face and head.

  “Daddy,” Keely croaks as she runs and drops in front of him. He lifts his head groggily trying to focus his eyes on his daughter. “Oh, Daddy.” He is bound in rope; it’s probably the only thing holding him in the chair.

  “Keels,” he murmurs. He attempts a smile and Keely throws herself against him in a one sided hug.

  Nick pushes past Asmoday into the room. He pauses, assessing the area. Satisfied that everything appears safe, he relaxes and uses his dagger to cut the ropes. Keely’s dad falls forward into her, but somehow she manages to hold him up. Nick moves to his side and pulls him into a standing position. “Put your arm around my neck,” he instructs. Bryon moves to the other side taking the other arm and together they move Keely’s dad.

  Kimberly bursts through the door, tears running down her cheeks. “Kevin?” She stops cold, staring at her husband. He lifts his blurry gaze and all the air goes out of her as though she had been holding every breath in since they’d been separated. Wrapping her long arms around his waist, she cries, “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  Knowing her dad can’t hug her mom back at the moment, Keely pulls her mom’s arms away from him and offers herself for a hug. “It’s o.k. He’s o.k.”

  With everyone distracted at the moment, Asmoday takes advantage of the opportunity. He catches Keely’s eye and gestures for her to follow him. He moves a few feet away from the others easily unnoticed. “I need to take you and your parents back
now,” he says adjusting the hood back over his head.

  “What? Why?”

  “I was instructed to ensure you and your parents were safely returned home. I am only trying to do as I was told.”

  “I think they want to look for Dustin.”

  Asmoday tilts his head slightly to the side watching her closely. “You do not think they will find him alive?”

  Keely starts at his words. She shakes her head. “No, I just don’t think they’ll find him here. I’m sure he’s alive.”

  “How are you sure?”

  Keely tries not to laugh and winds up smiling. “It’s an expression.”

  Asmoday smiles back at her. “Yes, I understand now.” He bends slightly at the knees to look more evenly into Keely’s eyes. “So why do you think he is not here?”

  Not liking the way his gaze seems to look past her, inside her, Keely shifts away from him. “Apophis had him backed into a wall—that’s another expression. He was using Lila to make Dustin do what he wanted.”

  Asmoday’s face doesn’t change and Keely isn’t sure if he understands what she’s trying to say. “Dustin helped Apophis. He led me right to him and handed me over. I can’t blame him. He had no choice. I haven’t told anyone yet. I don’t know if I will.”

  Expression still neutral, Asmoday says, “He had a choice. He just did not choose you.” He brushes the hair off Keely’s shoulder, his hand lingering too long. “He chose incorrectly.” He drops his hand and inhales deeply. “I will give you one more hour and then I must get you back. It is not safe here. The longer you stay the more you are at risk.”

  Keely nods, giving in for now. “Thank you. For everything.”

  Asmoday tips his head in a bow. “My pleasure, Princess.”

  Nick, having passed Keely’s dad on to Michael and Kimberly, comes back into the room. “Keely, we need Asmoday to send your mom and dad back and I think you should go with them,” he says.

  Keely looks from Nick to Asmoday, then back to Nick. She steps outside the door and he follows her as she moves out of earshot of the others. “I’ll ask him to take them back, but I’m not going with them.”

  “It’s better if you go. This isn’t exactly a safe place. I waited until we found your dad, but you shouldn’t be here.”

  Keely shakes her head. “Asmoday is under orders to take me and my parents back. Not you guys. If I go back, he fulfills his duties. Are you willing to bet he will come back for the rest of you? Because I’m not. He’s willing to give me one more hour to look for Dustin. I’m staying.”

  Nick puts his finger and thumb to his eyes and sighs. “And if in an hour we haven’t found Dustin?”

  “We can figure that out then.” She takes his hand and tries to walk back over where everyone else is, but Nick doesn’t budge.

  “That’s not good enough. If we haven’t found Dustin in an hour, you have to go back. Please.” The look on his face is so desperate, Keely nearly gives in.

  “We’ll just have to find him within the hour.”

  Nick pulls Keely to him and puts his hands on her arms. “I know you don’t like anyone telling you what to do. I know you haven’t listened to me yet, but I need you to do this for me or I am going to take you in there to Asmoday and beg him to take you home right now.”

  Her first reaction is anger. The hell you will! But that anxiety is still evident on his face. She softens her reply. “If we don’t find him, we’ll all go back.” Nick scrutinizes her face for a long time as he struggles to make the right decision. She knows she nearly has him, so she adds, “I won’t go back without you. I won’t go without the protection of my Guardian.”

  Nick leans his head back and closes his eyes. He grits his teeth. Stupid, stubborn girl. “One hour,” he tells the ceiling. “One hour and we are all going home together.” He puts his hand back in hers and allows her to pull him back to the group. “I don’t know why I’m worrying anyway. We found your dad. We’ll find Dustin.”

  “Come on honey. We need to get your dad to the hospital.” Kimberly holds out her hand expectantly to her daughter. Keely notices the usually manicured nails are chipped and grimy.

  “I’m not going yet. I need to stay and look for Dustin. Just for another hour. I’ll be home soon.”

  Kimberly straightens her back and tries to compose herself. “You need to come home with me, Keely, now. I won’t lose you again.”

  Keely doesn’t want to argue. She turns to Michael. “Will you go with my parents and stay with them until we return?” He nods his head slowly, not sure if he is putting himself in the middle of a family argument.

  Deciding to put the fight off until later, Keely turns to Asmoday who stands back watching everyone. “Will you please take my parents and Mr. Laszlo home now?”

  He winks at her and before Kimberly has time to do more than look annoyed, he raises his hand. Darkness envelops them and they disappear. If she had blinked, she would have missed it. She didn’t know what she had expected exactly, but that wasn’t it. It was so quick. So easy. She swallows hard, wishing she had something to drink. Suddenly, an overwhelming feeling of sorrow overtakes Keely. It hits her so hard she stumbles backward as a wail ruptures from her throat.

  Tears fill her vision as she tries to look at Nick. Tries to explain. Tries to placate his horrified confusion. But words won’t come. Nothing can explain the feeling tearing at her body right now. Like a piece of herself has been brutally ripped out, leaving in its place only anguish.

  Nick shakes her, trying to make her hear him or answer him. He doesn’t know what’s wrong with her. He doesn’t know how to make it better.

  “Nick, STOP!” Bryon shouts. “You’re hurting her!” Bryon pries Nick’s hands off of Keely’s arms and slams him into the wall.

  “Something’s wrong with her!” Nick yells, pointing at her helplessly.

  Keely slumps over losing the will to sit up. What’s the point? She settles her face against the cool ground. Nothing matters anymore. She might as well lay on this sullied and soiled floor forever. Her soul has left her. That must be it. She must be dying. She wants to. Just so this agony will stop. “Please make it stop. Please make it stop,” she mumbles.

  A shiver runs through her body. The air changes subtly and her hopelessness fades to sadness. She allows Bryon to sit her up. Her sadness fades to melancholy. She blinks a couple of times. Her melancholy fades to a mellow tiredness. She feels the cord pull at her and she twists, trying to find him. Their eyes meet and Asmoday looks as unhinged as she does.

  The longer her eyes rest on him, the more normal she feels. Nick says her name again and she tears her eyes away from Asmoday. Now that she is focusing on Nick, her breathing quickens as though she has been running. Because now the reality of what happened is sinking in, bringing with it raw fear. When Asmoday left the realm without her, it severed the invisible cord. This she is sure of. She is also positive this is why she was so incredibly sad. When he came back, the cord reconnected, making her whole again. Making her happy. She is positively certain of this. What she doesn’t get, is why? And, why now?

  “I’m o.k. now. I don’t know what happened,” she lies. She never lies. “I just got disoriented.” She moves to stand up and Nick pushes her gently back down.

  “Are you hurt at all?” His hands hover around her, afraid to touch her.

  She pushes his hands away feeling confused and embarrassed. “I said I was fine.” It comes out much snippier than she intends and she feels guilty. It’s not his fault. He can’t help he’s worried.

  Asmoday maneuvers his way through everyone and kneels in front of Keely. He extends his hand, offering her a bottle of water. She reaches for it, and in a move so subtle, no one notices but Keely, Asmoday flicks his pinky out and caresses her fingers as she takes the bottle. He isn’t full of his usual cockiness. In fact, everything about his demeanor has changed.
>
  “Thanks.” Her voice shakes. He dips his head and thankfully backs off. “Did you get my parents home safely?” she asks. He tilts his head in one tight nod.

  Nick helps Keely stand this time, but keeps his hands on her making sure she is steady on her feet. She keeps her eyes down while she drinks the water.

  “You scared the shit out of me, Kiem. You good now?” Bryon stands back, shifting his feet nervously.

  Keely smiles at him. “Really, I’m fine.” She looks around at all the concerned faces of the people Nick brought with him. All the people she doesn’t know. At least the Demons aren’t staring. They don’t seem to care at all about her outburst. “Can we just go?”

  Nick studies her features. Satisfied that she is all right at least for the moment, he takes her hand and they join the procession. Lila pushes off the wall and slides up next to Keely without a word. They all walk in silence. Turn corner after corner.

  Feeling Lila’s eyes on her, Keely turns to her. “What?”

  Lila shrugs her tiny shoulders. “Nothing.”

  “Then why do you keep staring at me?”

  Lila pouts out her lips. She looks ahead at Asmoday. He switches the large flash light he carries from one hand to the other. As he slides his now empty hand down his jeans, Keely brushes her palm across her shirt. Lila flips her gaze back to Keely just in time to verify her movement.

  “You’re doing it again. Quit watching me,” Keely hisses.

  “Up here,” someone calls and Lila’s heart nearly stops.

  Bryon’s the first one to the door. He comes to an abrupt halt placing his hand over his mouth.

  “Is it him?” Lila yells. She’s clear in the back so she breaks into a run. Bryon puts his hands out as she makes it to the door.

  “No, Lila,” he cries as she tries to push past him. Bryon locks his arms around her.

  Lila bucks like a wild horse. “Let go of me,” she screams. She kicks off the wall causing them both to fall back. Bryon hits first, landing hard on his back. Lila jabs an elbow into his ribs and he loses his hold on her. She jumps up and pushes her way through the doorway as Keely and Nick catch up.