The Witch's Handbook to Trapping Demons

by Amy Boyles

  Dot fluffed her pink hair. “Then we need a plan.”

  Ron nodded. “I agree. We need to lure it out in the open. Get the demon to show itself and we may have a chance.”

  Stone crossed his arms. “But we don’t know where it is.”

  Kate clapped her hands. “I just learned the finding spell. Think it would work on demons?”

  Ron shook his head. “It’s much too dangerous. I say we watch and wait. We split up and scour the town. See if we can find it. Keep in touch with each other. It will most likely move at night, so that’s when we need to be on the prowl.”

  I clapped my hands together. “Great. Then we can come up with a plan while we wait.”

  Dot poked the air. “I’ll make some lunch while we think.”

  I glanced over at Stone. “As an angel, do you have a method for tracking demons or being aware of them at all?”

  Stone raked his fingers through his rock-star hair. “I can sense evil if it’s near, but I’m no tracker. That would be another person’s job, not mine.” His face darkened with worry.

  I rubbed his arm. “It’ll be okay.”

  He shook his head. “Of all the things I expected, I never thought we’d be dealing with a demon who wants children.”

  Ron crossed to another window and ran his fingers over the frame. “Kids are the easiest to take advantage of. Trusting. What’s interesting is that this creature seems to be interested specifically in children. I wonder if it’s a documented demon.”

  I perked up at that. “I know someone who’s done research for me in the past. I’ll reach out to her.”

  Ron nodded. “Sounds good.”

  I entered my room and pulled my phone from my pocket. I scrolled down to Selma's number and hit the button to call her.

  The phone rang three times before Selma answered.

  “Andie,” Selma purred. “Something serious must be going on. I haven't heard from you in a month.”

  I sighed. “Yes, we've got a situation.”

  “Tell me all about it.”

  Selma was the most informative person I knew. She had been a hunter back in the day, and had helped me plenty of times. For years we had been estranged, but in the last few months, since lots had been going on in my town of Normal, I’d been in contact with her. Though plenty of the other hunters had turned their backs on me when I left the fold, Selma had always remained true.

  “Tell me what's going on.”

  “Okay, it looks like I’ve got a demon issue.”

  Selma huffed into the phone. “Are you kidding? I haven't heard of anyone having a demon in ages. I mean, the Catholic Church, of course, would deal with any issues of exorcism, but in terms of hunters, I haven't heard anything.”

  “I know. I was afraid of that. But some weird stuff has been going on, and it looks like we’ve got a loose demon who wants children.”

  “Children? That's horrible, Andie. Tell me what you know.”

  So I explained everything up until this point. Selma listened quietly. After a few minutes she finally spoke.

  “Okay, so you want me to look up a demon who hunts children specifically?”

  “Yes. Think you can handle that?”

  “Darling, of course I can handle that. But,” she said, “tell me about Dex. He’s still there, right?”

  I paused, unsure exactly how to answer that. What was I supposed to tell her? That I was holding back from him? I had a feeling Selma was not going to like that answer.

  “I've seen him a few times and we've been working with Gabby on keeping her safe, but other than that I haven't really pursued it.”

  “Andie, I’m not trying to tell you how to live your life or anything, but Dex loves you more than anything.”

  I sighed heavily. “I know, Selma. I know. But you don’t know what it's like—he's here, I’m different, and he's a vampire, so it's weird.”

  “You're right. I don't know, so I'm just gonna keep my nose out of your business.”

  I tapped my foot on the floor, thinking. “Selma, you know the lord vampire that turned Dex?”

  “Yes.”

  “So, we had someone wind up dead wearing the lord’s ring. Actually, the demon used the ring to sew itself back together. Or something like that.”

  “So what are you saying?” I could hear Selma's interest.

  “I'm not really sure. But it may be worth checking out to see if we can find the lord. I'm curious as to his role. I don't know if he's aware the demon took his ring, or if he gave it to the creature.”

  Selma paused. “You think he gave it to the demon?”

  I shrugged. “I don't know. But I think it's very strange that a ring from the lord who turned Dex has ended up here in Normal, Alabama.”

  “I agree. I'll look into it and get back to you.”

  “Thanks, Selma. I owe you about a thousand.”

  “Awwww. Don't worry about it. You're my buddy and I love you.”

  “Love you back.”

  How was it so easy to say it to her but not Dex? Crap. I didn’t want to think about that.

  We hung up, and I shot Dex a text to call me as soon as he woke up. I didn’t know the plan for the rest of the day, but I’d want him to search the town if he was able.

  I left my room and found everyone in the kitchen eating sandwiches. I built myself a plate of ham and cheese on wheat and grabbed a handful of chips. Ron was talking to Kate about something that made her laugh, and Dot was playing with Gabby. Pam sat entranced by her phone, and when I met Stone’s gaze, it was locked on me.

  I cocked my head at him. “How about we eat a bite and then visit Maggie Moonglow?”

  Ron perked up at that. “Maggie Moonglow?”

  I nodded. “She’s one of the supernaturals Weatherby visited. I have his list.”

  Ron dusted his hands on a napkin and wiped his mouth. “May I see it?”

  I found it and gave it to him. “This is a great place to start. I say we split up the names, go to the homes and ask if they’ve seen a demon.”

  I snapped my fingers. “Just like that. Ask if a demon has visited them?”

  Ron nodded while he chewed another bite. “Exactly right. You were going to Maggie’s anyway.”

  “Yeah, but I know her.” I thought about it a minute and said, “That’s fine. Let’s start there first. Stone? You with me?”

  He smiled in a way that made my heart flutter. “Always.”

  Ron broke apart the list for us. He, Kate and Pam took one part while Stone and I took the other. If we hit it hard, we could have our list of names completed by dinner, no doubt about that.

  We hopped into Stone’s SUV and rumbled toward town. “According to GPS, Maggie lives about ten minutes away. From there I’ll plot our next course.”

  “Sounds good,” Stone said.

  We reached Maggie’s. It was a nice little blue house with white shutters and a cherry-red door. I knocked. Maggie opened almost immediately.

  “Andie. Hi. Is everything okay?”

  Now, how exactly was I supposed to answer that? I snagged my teeth over my bottom lip, hesitating. “Maggie, I wanted to talk to you about yesterday, when that man from MPS came to visit you.”

  Dark circles scooped out the wells of her eyes. She rested her arm on the door and let her face sag onto it. “Come in.”

  Stone and I entered the house.

  “Can I get you something to eat? I’m sure I’ve got a chocolate cookie around here somewhere.”

  Though the idea of chocolate sounded delicious, I shook my head. “No thanks. Stone?”

  He patted his stomach. “Watching the old waistline.”

  I rolled my eyes. Right. I was pretty sure he had some sort of immunity when it came to gaining any weight.

  Jerk.

  Kidding.

  We sat on a floral couch as a teenage boy raced in, grabbed a game controller and started to head back out.

  “Jonas, come here.”

  Jonas, all unkempt hair and ga
ngly limbs, hung his head and nearly stumbled over his feet as he dragged himself back into the living room.

  Maggie threw him a stern look. “Say hello to our guests.”

  He raised a limp hand. “Hello.”

  “Hello,” I said.

  “Now you can go,” Maggie said.

  He scattered from the room like lightning.

  “That boy,” Maggie grumbled.

  “I’ve only got the little one. You mean it gets worse as they get older?”

  Maggie hooted with laughter. “If you only knew.”

  The room settled to an uneasy silence. Stone took the lead. “Maggie, I understand the man from MPS visited you yesterday.”

  Her eyes darkened. Maggie raked her fingers through her long, dark hair. “Yes.”

  “He wasn’t from MPS,” Stone said.

  “Thank goodness,” Maggie said, sinking into her seat. “I’ve told you before that when Jonas’s father died it left the two of us. It’s been a real struggle with Jonas. I’ve had so much trouble with him that when we finally found this town, I thought things would be better.”

  Stone and I exchanged glances. “What do you mean, better?” I said.

  Maggie picked at her fingernails nervously. “Jonas is different from other kids.”

  I smiled, nodded encouragingly. “He’s a super. We understand.”

  Maggie smiled weakly. “It’s a bit more than that.”

  Stone leaned forward. “Tell us how. The reason I’m asking is because though that man wasn’t MPS, we’re afraid something more sinister is going on.”

  Maggie paled. “Sinister? How?”

  “A demonic presence is involved. We wanted to talk to you, see if you’d noticed anything strange.”

  She shook her head. “No, I haven’t seen anything strange.”

  “Great.”

  Stone tossed his thick shock of bang aside. “But you were going to tell us about Jonas.”

  Maggie bit down on a hangnail and spit it onto the floor. “Nerves. Sorry. Yes, maybe it’s just better if I show you. Jonas!”

  “Yeah, Ma? What is it?”

  “Can you show our guests the trick?”

  “Do I have to?” he complained.

  Maggie’s flashed me a steely smile. “Yes, honey. You have to.”

  Jonas slowly made his way into the room, scuffing his feet against the floor. Clearly the boy didn’t want to come, and I didn’t blame him. I mean, who wanted to be put on display for a bunch of adults?

  “You want me to do the trick?” Jonas said.

  Maggie nodded. “Please. Use that vase.” She jerked her head toward a silver vase resting on a side table.

  Jonas snatched it, flipped it in the air and caught it one-handed.

  “I’m glad I don’t keep flowers in it or anything,” Maggie grumbled.

  Jonas pushed up his sleeves. “And for my next trick,” he announced, “I will be turning myself into metal.”

  The teenager closed his eyes tightly and gripped the vase so hard his knuckles whitened. My mouth fell open as his skin changed from the color of flesh to match the silver. It washed over his body from head to foot until he was completely encased.

  “Holy cow,” I said.

  “Want to touch?” Jonas said.

  I nodded dumbly. He walked over. I brushed my fingers over his skin. It was cold and hard.

  Stone touched Jonas next. “Amazing,” he said.

  Whoa. And he’d been around forever—literally.

  “You feel exactly like metal,” I said.

  Jonas nodded. “Okay, Ma, can I go now?”

  Maggie nodded. In a heartbeat Jonas’s skin washed out, revealing his flesh again.

  I sat mesmerized for a moment.

  Maggie nodded toward us. “Ever seen anything like that?”

  I nodded. “Yes, in fact I have.”

  She perked up. “Where?”

  I brushed a trembling finger over my lips. “From my daughter, Gabby. She can do that, too.”

  SEVEN

  Stone and I sat in the car. We’d left Maggie’s house a few minutes earlier. The angel raked his fingers through his hair. “I’ve never seen anything like that. This is new to me.”

  “Why would you have? I hadn’t either until I saw Gabby do something similar.”

  A while back Gabby had shown the ability to take on certain features. The object in question had been a piece of werewolf fur. She’d touched it and ended up covered in the stuff. I was freaked out, but I never considered that it could be taken to the point of turning your body to metal. Now I was beginning to question that.

  I rubbed my eyes. “What do we do now?”

  Stone gazed down at the sheet of paper, his silvery eyes flashing a look I didn't recognize. “How about we talk to Lana? Since she was standing next to Weatherby when he died, she might have seen something.”

  “Okay, let's go.”

  We arrived at Lana’s house about five minutes later. It was a cheery yellow cottage with wooden shingles on the face and pretty gingerbread scrolling along the edges.

  “You think she wants visitors? I mean, Sheriff Terry just let her out.”

  Stone winked at me. “There's one way to find out.”

  We hopped out of the SUV and walked up the steps. Stone rang the bell, and Lana opened the door. Lines wired her face as if the entire last day had really taken a toll on her. I'm sure it had.

  “Hi, Lana,” I said. “Do you have a few minutes? We wanted to ask you a couple questions.”

  Her hand dropped from the door, and she disappeared inside.

  “I guess that’s a yes,” I murmured.

  A few minutes later we were seated in the house. It was empty except for us.

  “My husband took my daughter away for the afternoon so I could get some rest. I’m mentally exhausted.”

  I squeezed her hand. “I completely understand. We want to ask you something about your daughter, though. What’s her name?”

  “Jen.”

  I smiled. “Agent Weatherby had asked you about her, right?”

  Lana nodded. “Yes.”

  I raked my teeth over my bottom lip. “Maggie Moonglow’s boy, Jonas, has an interesting ability.”

  “I know,” Lana said. She rested her elbows on her knees and dropped her head into her palms. “My kid can do the same thing. She's able to transform.”

  Stone grazed his knuckles down his jaw. “How did you know we were talking about that?”

  “I know Maggie and I know her son. Our children go to the same club.”

  “Club?” I said, surprised by this news. I had never heard of a supernatural club.

  “It's more like a group that meets every few weeks. After we moved here some of us moms got to talking and we quickly realized that our kids had the same power, the ability to shift. So we started meeting. The kids play while the parents drink coffee.”

  I shot Stone a look. “Can I show you this list I have?”

  “Sure,” she said.

  I pulled the list of names from my pocket and thrust it in front of Lana. As her gaze washed over it, she nodded.

  “Yes. I know all these kids. They're the same ones in the group.”

  “So you're saying they all have this transformative ability,” Stone said.

  Lana nodded. “Yes, they do.”

  “I was under the impression that this was not normal,” I said. “My great-aunt calls my daughter an intuitive witch. From what I understand, it’s a rare ability.”

  Lana nodded. “It is. There are varying degrees of it. As you can see, there aren't that many names here. It’s not like every super family in town.”

  I leaned back and exhaled a deep shot of air. “Thanks for your time. We’ll let you know if we need anything.”

  Stone and I climbed back into the SUV. I scrubbed my fingers over my scalp, trying to sort through all this information. “I think we need to tell Ron and the others what we know.”

  Stone nodded. “I agree. Let's
see what everybody else found out.”

  We reached the house, and no one was there except Dot, Vordrid and Gabby. Dot and Gabby were playing in the living room, and Vordrid was in the guest bathroom, working in his lab.

  I slugged my purse to the floor and toed off my boots. I wiggled my socked feet, getting some circulation back into them.

  Seriously. Being a girl had some drawbacks. But I digress.

  “Dot, you remember how you called Gabby an intuitive?”

  Dot bobbed her head. “Yes. She has the ability to touch an object and take on some of its characteristics.”

  “Yes, Andie,” Vordrid said, sailing in. “She’s quite the talent.”

  Stone shrugged off his heavy leather jacket and looped it on a peg by the front door. “Seems she isn’t the only kid in town with that ability.”

  “She isn’t?” Dot said. “How interesting.”

  Vordrid landed on the coffee table. “Rare that several people with the same talent would congregate.”

  “Not people,” I corrected. “Children. It’s children who have the ability. My guess is the entire list that Weatherby owned was filled with children who possessed the same gift. We have to confirm with Ron, though, as he has the other half of the names.”

  Dot and Vordrid pivoted toward each other. A long pause filled the room.

  “Out with it, you two,” Stone said. “I’m here to keep Gabby safe. I can’t do that unless I know absolutely everything that’s going on.”

  Stone sat, his muscled thighs nearly splitting through his jeans. Sweat sprinkled my forehead as his silvery gaze met mine. My heart fluttered into my throat, and I swallowed it back down to my chest, pushing aside the hormonal tides rising in my body.

  Dot wrung her hands in worry. “Andie, intuitive witches tend to show great aptitude at other things.”

  “What other things?” I said through gritted teeth.

  Stone reached out and squeezed my hand. I exhaled, letting the anxiety and worry flood from my tense shoulders. I had a very bad feeling about what they were going to say. It wasn’t helping that they weren’t spitting it out and admitting it immediately.

  Dot pressed her index fingers to her lips for a moment. “Andie, people with intuitive abilities have great power that throughout history has been channeled by others. These witches have been subjugated for their magic.”