Tirade

by Cambria Hebert

  “How did you do that?” The man outside the force field raged. “How did you break the hold?”

  I growled, an unintentional sound but no less real. I wasn’t sure who he was, but I knew he was just as depraved as Beelzebub himself.

  “Answer me!” he roared, sinister darkness flashing in his eyes. Then he hit the force field in his rage. I stood there in shock when his fist came right through it instead of bouncing off. Every single time I touched the barrier, it stopped me. How was this man able to get the amulet through and now his hand?

  It could only mean one thing.

  “Beelzebub,” I growled.

  He yanked his hand back out and I watched as the barrier rippled and closed. “You figured it out, did you? A pity. I thought my new body would keep you confused a while longer.”

  “I would recognize your nasty stench anywhere,” I spat, my body shaking with the need to attack him. But I couldn’t shift. My body was being blocked from doing what came natural. As long as that amulet was inside this cell, I would remain in my human form. And I would weaken with every passing hour. How long could my body last fighting itself this way?

  Then an idea began to form.

  “You’re lucky I want you alive right now.” Beelzebub took a threatening step toward the barrier.

  “You know, I don’t think blond is your best look. You look like that guy from Scooby Doo, the one who always drove the Mystery Machine around. What a tool.”

  He stared at me blankly for a moment before scowling.

  “Oh, that’s right, you don’t watch TV. Trust me, dude, that was not a compliment.”

  He took another step closer with clenched fists. “Shall I scar the other side of her face, then?”

  I paused. What if my idea didn’t work? Pissing him off wasn’t a good idea when Heven was so defenseless. I shrugged. “Okay, keep the body.”

  I turned to walk away when his hand shot through the force field once more and grabbed my arm. I spun, throwing my weight backward, pulling him with me. He came through the barrier, stumbling. I yanked myself away and lunged at him, throwing out a fist and connecting with his new nose. Blood spurted across his face. I hit him again, enjoying the sound of crunching bone.

  This is exactly why hate is so dangerous. It makes you forget all the reasons you shouldn’t act stupid. But damn, hitting him felt so good.

  He threw me off and jumped to his feet, wiping at the blood on his face. His chest was heaving with anger as I launched myself low, hooking him around the hips, and like a bulldozer, I pushed him back.

  He grunted and fell right through the force field, taking me with him.

  Heven

  I jolted upright, gasping for air, clawing at the sheets on my bed. “No, no, no.” It was me crying, but my voice sounded foreign to my ears.

  “Heven, shit, calm down.” Large warm hands grabbed my shoulders and I stilled. Through blurred eyes I made out Riley sitting on the edge of the bed. I hurled myself into his arms and sobbed.

  His body was rigid, but his arms closed around me, holding me tightly against his chest. He didn’t say anything and I was glad because the sound of his voice would remind me he wasn’t Sam. I wanted Sam. After a while of crying, Riley pulled me back, but didn’t let go and stared down at me.

  “What’s going on?”

  I wiped my face with the back of my hand. “I’m so sorry. You didn’t need to see that.”

  “No you don’t,” he growled when I tried to pull away. “Tell me.”

  “Remember how I told you about the Dream Walker?”

  He nodded. “You mean Beetlejuice?”

  I burst out laughing. Then I sucked in a breath, sorry for the moment of joy. Riley’s usually icy gaze softened for an instant, and I looked away. “Beelzebub, Prince of Demons, Lord of Flies.” I explained, then muttered, “He has like fifty titles.”

  “Yeah, I know who he is. Beetlejuice is just so much more fun to say.”

  “Stop.”

  “Stop?”

  “Trying to cheer me up.”

  “Who says I’m trying to cheer you up?” He dropped his hands from my shoulders and let them fall to the mattress between us.

  “You should’ve seen how bad he looked.” I felt my lower lip quiver and I buried my face in my hands.

  “Beelzebub?”

  “No. Sam.”

  “You saw Sam?”

  “I think the Dream Walker pulled me back into hell while I was sleeping.”

  “He’s back?” Riley asked, getting up from the bed to prowl around the room.

  “I didn’t see him.” I frowned. “But I wouldn’t have been down there if he wasn’t back.”

  “Tell me about Sam.”

  “He eats rats,” I murmured.

  “What?”

  “He didn’t want me to know…”

  Riley leaned down in my face. “Make some sense already,” he growled.

  “How’d you get in here?” I asked abruptly.

  “The window.” He motioned his head toward the open window.

  My stomach tightened. That’s how Sam usually got in. “What time is it?”

  “Six a.m.”

  “Crap.” I stood. “I have to do the barn chores. I’m late.”

  “In a minute. You were telling me about Sam.”

  “It was so horrible,” I whispered and launched into the tale of what happened and how I failed to get him out.

  “Blaming yourself? What a martyr,” he said sarcastically.

  “I took away his only means of feeding himself. He can’t turn and he can’t eat rats as a human. He’s going to starve.”

  “He’s not and he could eat rats as a human if he really wanted to.” Riley smirked.

  I glared at him.

  He sighed dramatically. “He’s not going to starve.”

  “You’re right. Since you’re here, we can leave to get him.” I stood up and wiped my eyes one last time. Then I grabbed a change of clothes out of my dresser. “I’ll meet you in the orchard in an hour, no forty-five minutes. I have to feed the horses and do some stuff in the barn.” Since Sam had been gone, I took over all his chores.

  “I’ll help you.” Riley offered.

  “I can handle it.”

  “The faster you get done, the faster you can train.” He pointed out.

  I nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

  He stood and went to the window.

  “Riley?”

  He turned.

  “Thanks. And I’m sorry about earlier.”

  “Feel free to pay me back anytime.”

  I snorted. “I’ll see you outside in five minutes.”

  I thought he might say something more, but he must have decided against it. Without another word, he left.

  Sam

  The amulet was still too close and I couldn’t shift. My body shook so hard with need it hurt, but I ignored it. This was my one chance to be free. I lurched up off the floor and took off down the dungeon hallway.

  But then I stopped.

  And turned back.

  I stopped in front of Kimber’s cell and grabbed hold of the bars that confined her.

  From the darkness, she whispered, “Just go; don’t waste your time on me.”

  Behind me Beelzebub roared and jumped to his feet.

  “I’ll come back for you,” I vowed and took off running again.

  Beelzebub began raging and ripped down one of the torches that lined the black granite walls. He launched it at me and his aim was true. It hit me in the center of the back. I was fireproof so fire wasn’t a good weapon to use against me. However, the sheer force of the hit made me stumble and singed what little clothing I was wearing.

  I fell to one knee, my kneecap taking the brunt of my fall, and I twisted off it and got to my feet, favoring my uninjured leg. I would heal, but down here it wouldn’t be fast enough.

  “You run like a coward!” Beelzebub screamed.

  I ignored the barb meant to enrage me. I was no coward, bu
t I wasn’t stupid either. I knew I was dehydrated, half-starved and exhausted from being so close to that damn amulet. And because I couldn’t shift, running was my only option.

  I made it to the dungeon door, flinging it open and starting up the stairs. That’s when a heavy length of chain lashed out and wrapped around me, yanking me backward. I fell onto my back as he pulled me closer, dragging me across the uneven ground. I grabbed a fistful of the chain and yanked back, pulling Beelzebub off balance.

  But it wasn’t enough.

  When I was closer, he let go of the chain, picked up the torch he hit me with earlier and raised it above his head. I rolled and shot to my feet as he swung. He didn’t get me in the head like he planned—I was too fast, but he did hit me. Right in the ribs… The ones that were already broken.

  Black dots swam before my eyes and I swayed a little on my feet. I heard his vile laugh and I knew I’d lost.

  Seconds later, I was tossed right back into my cage.

  Heven

  I was grateful for Riley’s help with the morning chores because I was pretty much useless. I couldn’t concentrate. I was too worried about Sam and the man who was down in hell with Sam. I tried to tell myself that, for once, Sam being trapped behind that force field was a good thing. That man couldn’t hurt Sam because he couldn’t get to him. Still, my heart raced with anxiety and I kept feeling this sense of urgency. I was missing something. Something I shouldn’t be. I did my best to calm myself, not wanting Sam to pick up on my feelings.

  About halfway through the chores, Logan walked into the barn, stopping short when he saw Riley. Riley straightened rigidly and narrowed his eyes.

  “Riley,” I said, tossing down the bag of feed, “this is Logan, Sam’s brother.”

  Before he could say anything, I turned toward Logan. “This is Riley, Sam’s old roommate. I told you about him last night.”

  “Last night?” Riley asked while he and Logan stared at each other.

  “Logan is staying here with me and Gran until Sam comes home.”

  “Hey, kid,” Riley said with no real emotion in his voice.

  “Are you strong enough to get my brother out of hell?” Logan said, not even reacting to the “kid” remark and keeping his voice flat.

  “I think I can handle it.”

  Logan nodded. “Okay. Good. I might not look like much, but don’t let that fool you. You pull anything and you will answer to me.”

  Riley’s eyes flashed.

  Not gold.

  Silver.

  “Logan, Riley is here to help. We can trust him.”

  “Sam didn’t trust him. That’s why he ran him out of town.”

  I glanced back at Riley as he took a menacing step forward. I moved toward Logan, who drew himself up to his full height and then stilled.

  Riley’s steps faltered and he looked around in disbelief. He held up his arms, straight out, and flattened his palms as if he were pressing against walls. Then his hands curled around something and he shook.

  Like he was rattling the bars of a cage.

  “Logan,” I hissed. “Stop it!”

  Logan didn’t respond, just stood there watching Riley.

  “We need him to help Sam. This is not the way to convince him.”

  Riley let out a growl and then Logan blinked and turned toward me. “Sorry.”

  “It’s sweet you want to look out for Sam… for me. But no more of your false worlds, okay?”

  Logan nodded. Sometimes I forgot about Logan’s leftover power. Mostly because the demon that had possessed him had taken away so much from him. But it had left something behind. Logan still had the ability to look at a person and make their world, the room they were standing in, disappear. He could replace it with a new world, a false one, but one that completely fooled the person into believing they were exactly where he wanted them to be.

  I knew exactly what it was like because I had been the victim of that ability more than once.

  Riley didn’t take it as well as I used to.

  With his actual reality restored, he lunged forward and caught Logan by the throat. “You want to play games with me?”

  Logan’s eyes widened as his sneakers dangled above the barn floor.

  “Riley!” I gasped and grabbed at his arms. “Stop it! Put him down.”

  It was like he couldn’t (or wouldn’t) hear me. “No one threatens me.”

  Darkness seemed to swirl right out of Riley while Logan clutched at the hand surrounding his neck, cutting off his air. Chills raced up my spine. Logan made a wheezing sound.

  I pushed myself between Riley and Logan as much as I could and stood up on my tiptoes. “He can’t breathe! Put him down right now! He’s sick!”

  Riley’s eyes flashed down to mine and I gasped and stumbled back. He released Logan and we both went falling to the ground, with me trying not to land on top of him. I rolled and stood, leaning over Logan, putting my hands on his chest. “Deep breaths, Logan.” He was gasping for air and struggling to get up. I pressed on his chest lightly. “Stay down, it’s okay.”

  I spun toward Riley, whose eyes were glittering with sparks of silver. “If you ever touch him again…”

  “You’ll what?” Riley said coldly.

  “I’m not as helpless as I look.”

  “I’m meaner than you think.”

  “That’s obvious. He’s just a boy.” I turned away as Logan began coughing. I leaned over him, trying to calm him down, to help him breathe. Before his coughing subsided, blood leaked from his nose. I ran to get him a rag and held it out to him.

  “I’m okay now,” Logan said, getting up from the floor. “I’m sorry.”

  “Maybe you should sit down.”

  “What’s wrong with him?” Riley said. There was more emotion in his voice than before.

  I glanced over my shoulder. “He was possessed by a demon. It left him weak and…” My words trailed away because I didn’t want to say what I was thinking.

  “You got that power from a demon?”

  Logan nodded. “I shouldn’t have done that to you.”

  Riley shrugged. “Why not? I would’ve done it to you.”

  Logan wasn’t sure what to say. Neither was I.

  “I guess since Sam’s gone, you’re the man around here.” Riley’s eyes slid to me, then back to Logan. “I don’t blame you for wanting to protect what’s yours.”

  “Is that supposed to be an apology?” I said, turning back to Logan.

  He seemed to be breathing normally and the nosebleed had stopped.

  “It sounded like one to me,” Riley said, back to his usual sarcastic self.

  My back stiffened, but Logan said, “It’s cool. I guess I deserved it.”

  I wasn’t sure I agreed with that, but I wasn’t going to rehash it all. “I have training.”

  “I’ll come with you,” Logan said, stuffing the rag in his pocket.

  “Maybe you should go rest.”

  He rolled his eyes. “I can rest while I watch you kick Cole’s butt.”

  I laughed. “Okay, come on.” I turned back to Riley. “You coming?” I partially held my breath, wondering if Logan’s stunt would chase him off.

  “How could I miss you kicking someone’s butt?” he said and motioned with his hand.

  I breathed a sigh of relief as we all left the barn.

  *

  We beat Cole and Gemma to the orchard and were sitting beneath an apple tree when Cole appeared. His steps faltered just slightly when his gaze locked on Riley, but then he continued over, walking a little faster than before.

  “Who’s this?” Cole asked, stopping directly in front of Riley. His aura radiated suspicion and mistrust.

  “Cole this is Riley. Riley, this is my brother Cole.”

  They assessed each other silently and it annoyed me. I stood up and put myself between them. “What do you have there?” I asked Cole.

  “Your breakfast.”

  “For me?” I rubbed at my ribs. They were achin
g.

  He rolled his eyes. “When’s the last time you ate, Hev?”