Forest of the Forbidden

by W. J. May

  She watched him move across the carpet to stop right in front of her. Alarm bells rang in her head. Something was definitely not right.

  “I’ve missed you. I was wrong, and I know that.” Roman’s smile twisted.

  Sophie saw it then. The strange, eerie light in the back of his eyes. Crap, she thought, how did she always miss things about him?

  Lilli tensed beside her.

  Roman’s arm shout out. His fingers wrapped around Sophie’s neck.

  “Sophie!” Lilli screamed.

  Sophie gasped when he lifted her off the floor. Her feet dangled and she fought for purchase.

  “No!” Lilli pushed at Roman’s arms when he shook Sophie.

  He ignored Lilli’s words and actions. His eyes centered on Sophie. The demonic light shined brighter.

  She felt that focus down to her toes even as her world started to spin. She choked and sputtered while she clawed at his face, his hands, his arms. Nothing fazed him. He pressed the darkness onto her.

  His hands tightened around her throat. She tried to say something, anything, but couldn’t force the words out. Spots danced before her eyes.

  When Roman spoke again, it was with the voice of several angry entities. “You won’t escape us this time.”

  Lilli’s fists struck him awkwardly. Tears streamed down her face and she sobbed.

  Roman finally noticed her attempts to free Sophie and turned his face slowly toward her. Like a puppet on strings. “Interesting.” His eyes roved over her and Lilli stopped breathing. “You heal. This could be useful to us.”

  Sophie’s hands slipped and fell, hanging like dead weight, as she lost the last bit of her air. Her chest burned and her head swam. Her eyes rolled back in her head. Voices whirled through her mind, coaxing her into unconsciousness.

  Lilli sobbed harder as she watched Sophie sink into oblivion. She spun around and searched for something to use for a weapon. She had to get his attention off of Sophie.

  The lamp on the side table! Her hands wrapped around it. It shook when she hefted it above her head.

  Roman blocked the lamp without looking at her. Lilli’s heart stopped as he swiveled his head and pinned her with an ugly sneer. “I thought the Guardians were supposed to be strong. A worthy adversary.” He gripped Lilli’s arm, making her scream, and kicked Lilli’s legs out from under her.

  All the while he kept Sophie in the air.

  Roman stuck his booted foot on her chest to keep her from moving and Lilli cried out. He laughed, the sound echoing, and he leaned his weight down. She gurgled from the heaviness of his body and watched Sophie’s lips turn blue.

  * * *

  Chapter Fourteen

  Sophie floated in her mind. In the dark she thought she saw several shadows slink toward her. The pain was gone from Roman’s hands, leaving only a numbness behind.

  She sat and hugged her knees to her chest. Nothing about the darkness was satisfying. The hair on her body stood on end while she shook from the cold of death.

  The shadows moved closer. It struck her as odd that she could even see shadows in this pitch black darkness but she knew the answer to that. They were made of something darker.

  Something evil.

  It was as if Roman opened the door to some primordial malevolence that even he should fear. An entity way scarier than Akeldama.

  Faintly, Sophie could hear Lilli crying and it distracted her from the shadows for a moment. Her heart hurt for her best friend. Would she die, too?

  The shadows closed in and Sophie shuffled backward. They were coming to take her away. To a place of unimaginable horror.

  Deep inside, she felt angry that she was so helpless. Angry that she couldn’t help her best friend in her time of need. Never mind the fact that she was dying.

  Slowly, a bright light formed beside her. It grew brighter and brighter and warmed Sophie, lighting up her violet eyes and the planes of her face.

  The shadows retreated from it.

  The Light pulsed with life, shining with a profound purpose that called to her. It needed her to let it loose.

  The call was so strong that Sophie didn’t have the strength to resist. She reached out an arm and touched it. The Light seared her and then and only comfort as it spread up her fingertips to her neck. It seeped in her skin and traveled through her body.

  Intense heat changed her from the inside out. Sophie’s eyes opened wide as it swelled.

  Lilli watched Sophie die. The tears wouldn’t fall anymore. Her horror went so deep she couldn’t feel. She pushed at Roman’s foot weakly.

  He laughed, the sound full of death and decay. He enjoyed her anguish. Fed off of it. His foot pressed in again and Lilli knew he was going to crush her heart in her chest.

  When she looked back up at her friend, her eyes widened. A violet light shone on Sophie’s skin. It throbbed and vibrated with such beauty that Lilli began to cry again.

  Roman’s hold on Lilli’s chest loosened and she pushed his foot off. She scrambled backward until she reached the couch. Only then did she notice the enraptured look on Roman’s face. His gaze was glued to Sophie.

  The light captivated him. It glimmered in a violet sheen that engaged his every sense. As it shone brighter, his hold on Sophie broke. She floated above the ground. Her eyes opened and shone that radiant violet.

  Lilli’s mouth hung open and she gazed at Sophie until the light was too brilliant for her to see. She covered her eyes with her hands.

  With each pulse, Sophie’s light became stronger and more luminous. It was like the birth of a star.

  There was a loud clap of thunder. Then, nothing but light.

  Lilli could see the brightness through her hands and closed eyelids. It was warm and soothing as it washed over her and through the room.

  Roman grunted when the light struck him. It melted away his flesh but he didn’t feel the pain.

  Then the beam disintegrated him and he felt no more.

  The light sucked back into Sophie as quickly as it’d swelled. She dropped to the floor listlessly.

  It took a second for Lilli’s eyes to adjust. When she could see, she crawled on hands and knees to where Sophie slumped on the floor.

  “Sophie?” She whispered. The ashen color of Sophie’s face sent shock through her. Lilli laid a hand on her shoulder and jerked it back when the heat from Sophie’s skin burned her.

  Within a few seconds, Sophie’s eyelids fluttered. Lilli breathed a sigh of relief as Sophie struggled to sit up.

  “What happened?” Sophie blinked. The tension melted from her body when she noticed Roman was gone.

  “You don’t remember?” Lilli collapsed next to her. “You became a human lighthouse.”

  Sophie nodded as she recalled the light in her mind, which reminded her of how she’d gotten there. “He almost killed me! Choked me to death.” Her hands went up to her throat. She could feel the tiny bruises forming.

  A small, red bird hopped wildly on the windowsill and tapped on the window.

  “I’ll get it.” Lilli rushed over and opened the window.

  Sophie tried to hide the fact that she shook when the red bird flew into the room. A moment later Tristan was next to her. She inhaled his scent, letting his essence calm her when he pulled her close.

  The heat and strength of his body comforted her like nothing else would have. Despite trying to remain aloof from him she laid her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck. There was no way to stop herself.

  “There was a demon here, too?” Tristan rubbed her back in circles.

  “Yes.”

  Tristan cursed under his breath. His arms tightened around her. “They attacked us on the way back from practice.”

  “Luckily, no one else was there.” Jackson said as he climbed through the window. Immediately he scooped Lilli into his arms. “Did it hurt you?”

  Lilli shook her head even as she rubbed her chest. “Not much.”

  Jackson scowled. “If I could’ve gotten
here sooner...”

  Sophie focused on the sound of Tristan’s heartbeat next to her ear. The rapid tattoo awakened yearnings in her she didn’t know she had. She placed a palm over his heart and concentrated on the feel of him. It slowly ate away the darkness that still weaseled its way around her.

  “How did you guys get away?” Lilli led Jackson to the couch. Her legs felt like Jell-O.

  “We tore it to pieces.” Tristan told them. His matter-of-fact tone made Sophie shiver. Were they that close to the darkness? That they could rip someone to pieces and then be so gentle with each other? “How did you get away?”

  Lilli ‘s face radiated awe when she looked at Sophie. “It was the most amazing thing! The demon,” Sophie let out a breath when she didn’t say Roman’s name, “was holding Soph up by the neck, choking her. For a minute I thought she was dead.”

  Jackson put an arm around her and rubbed her shoulders.

  Lilli composed herself, kept talking. “Within the next minute she was glowing with a beautiful violet light. It pulsed, like it was alive. Like it was a heartbeat. The demon noticed it, too. It was like she was water to a man who’d been in the desert for a thousand years. There was such a look of adoration on his face.”

  Sophie winced under Jackson’s suddenly curious gaze.

  “Have you ever been able to do that before?”

  “Never.” She didn’t even have to think back. This was something she would’ve remembered.

  “Well, then the light exploded out from her and disintegrated the demon. Did you see it at all?” Lilli asked. “It was amazing.”

  “Aidan and Morgan?” Sophie felt bad for just now thinking of them.

  “When we spotted Aidan, he was heading for Morgan.” Tristan shifted her closer.

  As if they knew they were being discussed, a pebble hit the window. Then another.

  Jackson reluctantly left Lilli’s side for the span of time it took to mentally lift Aidan and Morgan into the room.

  Morgan stumbled, grabbed onto Aidan for support.

  Sophie blushed at the instant desire that roiled through Aidan at Morgan’s touch. Trying to cool it off, she looked at Morgan’s face.

  Mascara ran down her too-pale cheeks. One of the heels of her boots was broken off and her yellow dress was covered in grass stains.

  It hit Sophie that she wasn’t happy that Morgan, for once, wasn’t dressed to impress. Unfortunately, it made her realize that this all affected Morgan the same way it did her. It made her seem less of a brat.

  Aidan made a move to step away from Morgan. Her fingers circled his wrist.

  Sophie knew the contact stopped him as effectively as if she’d screamed at him. Morgan was scared, like the rest of them, and needed the comfort of touch. Aidan pulled her to his side and settled an arm around her.

  “It’s clear we’ve been attacked.” Sophie mumbled. Her mind raced, even with her body so weak. “They want us scared.”

  “Do you think they found out about our attack on the vampire coven?” Aidan rubbed his hand up and down Morgan’s arm.

  “It’s possible.” Jackson answered. “Cairo did get out alive. She probably reported it to...you know.”

  Even Jackson was reluctant to say Akeldama’s name out loud.

  Lilli’s eyes sparkled with tears. “I can’t believe all of this is really happening. What did we do to deserve this? What kind of bad karma do we have?”

  “Shh.” Jackson rested his head on hers. “We didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Sophie watched her friends, felt Tristan beside her, and silently prayed that this wouldn’t escalate into something worse. They were all shaken up from the attack and she couldn’t stop thinking about what she‘d done. If that had been the real Roman, even if he was possessed by a demon, that would mean she’d killed him.

  She didn’t want to be a murderer.

  Tristan spoke, bringing her out of her thoughts. His hand settled on her hip, and it felt like he was burning a hole through her shorts. “I think it’s time we went back to Ruth and Demetri.”

  Morgan snorted a protest.

  Apparently, Sophie thought, she felt better. And definitely didn’t want to get back into the game with the faux professor and her consort. Sophie realized that she, herself, was starting to feel antsy. Shooting an apologetic look at Tristan, she stood and began to pace the floor.

  Instantly, she missed being next to Tristan, feeling his warmth. It made her feel obsessive so she turned to look out the window. The night was calm, as if nothing had ever happened in the dorm. No demons, no Cairo, no lighthouse-Sophie. Before felt like a dream.

  “Maybe we should go back to the cathedral.” Sophie looked back over her shoulder. “Like it or not, we’re in this. The demons don’t care if we don’t want to be.”

  “She’s right.” Aidan shoved a hand through his hair. Circles darkened under his eyes. “I was unprepared for what happened tonight. I hate being unprepared.”

  “I agree.” Jackson said. Two words that held a wealth of meaning when he tightened his arms around Lilli.

  Lilli nodded, cheeks streaked with tears. “Okay.”

  Last was Morgan. She’d moved away from Aidan. Her hands clasped together in her lap. Her narrowed eyes met Sophie’s. “I’m only agreeing to this because I don’t want to die. I like to be able to put up a fight. We can go and hear him out. That’s it.”

  Tristan unfurled himself from the floor. Sophie watched the movement. It reminded her of a great panther uncurling from a nap. Lazy and lethal at the same time.

  She could hear Jackson, Aidan, and Lilli saying their goodbyes. She knew Morgan stood by the kitchen with her arms crossed, looking bored, but all Sophie could focus on were Tristan’s gray eyes.

  As he came closer, her breath hitched.

  This unnatural attraction scared her. How could she trust he wouldn’t hurt her?

  He stopped right in front of her, bringing his hands to her hips. Her heart skipped a beat when he dipped his head.

  Sophie’s eyes fluttered closed as his lips pressed against her forehead. Disappointment warred with pleasure.

  “Try and get some sleep.”

  Sophie managed a weak smile. “I’ll try.”

  His answering half smile warmed away some of her fear. Then he turned toward the window and morphed back into a red bird.

  She felt that shift inside of her that told her they were doing the right thing. Staying on the right path. She just wasn’t sure what that path would lead them to. Jackson lowered Aidan and Morgan out the window. Then, after giving Lilli a gentle kiss on the cheek and wiping her tears away, he was gone.

  Lilli slowly shut the window.

  Sophie waited in silence for her to turn around. Tonight had been especially hard on Lilli. She wasn’t prone to acts of aggression. She was gentle and kind, just like her gift. Lilli did anything to help a person, even if she knew they’d done something wrong. She was like the flower she was named for.

  After a few moments Lilli turned around.

  Sophie didn’t like how sallow her complexion was. She took a few steps forward.

  “No, just let me shower.” Lilli bit her lip and Sophie saw it tremble. “Will you sit in the bedroom? Just in case?”

  Sophie nodded. Her heart seemed to fold in on itself, painfully, as she followed Lilli into the bedroom. What was happening to them? They used to worry about boys, and tests, and what they were going to do after college. Sophie sat on the bed and had to wonder, would there even be an after? Would they ever worry about that stuff again?

  She waited for Lilli to turn the shower on before reaching for the phone. She had to make a call. She finished just as Lilli came into the room in her pajamas, towel drying her hair. “Who was that?”

  Sophie set the phone down. “I called Todd. Just wanted to hear his voice, you know?”

  Lilli nodded. “I’m exhausted.”

  Sophie could feel her own eyes fighting to stay open but still offered, “I’ll stay awake until
you fall asleep.”

  Lilli climbed under the covers and held out her hand. Sophie took it as she sat on the edge of the bed.

  While Lilli was scared, she was also running on empty, and fell asleep almost instantly.

  Sophie watched her, knowing that she would do anything to protect her. Lilli was fragile and needed someone to look out for her.

  * * *

  Chapter Fifteen

  Ruth’s surprised expression when she opened the door to the cathedral the next night would’ve made Sophie giggle if she hadn’t been so tired. Still, she couldn’t imagine what they looked like, all standing there. None of them had really slept in a few days and the demon attack had shocked them more than they wanted to admit.

  “Come in?” Ruth formed it as a question as she stepped aside.

  Sophie hesitated before taking her first step. The cathedral still had that unwelcome feel to it. The good thing was that Ruth may have been surprised but Sophie couldn’t detect any anger underneath it.

  That would make their crawling back much easier.

  Demetri waited in the Symbol Room. His eyes scanned their faces. “What happened?”

  “We were attacked by some demons last night.” Sophie relayed while they all took a seat around the table.

  “How did you get away?” Ruth asked, her voice more compassionate than Demetri’s.

  Sophie fidgeted in her chair. She already felt like a freak without having to explain that she turned into a shining purple star.

  “Sophie disintegrated the demon attacking us with bright, purple light.” Lilli smiled a little.

  The lighthouse moniker is seriously beginning to get on my nerves, Sophie thought.

  Demetri’s head snapped up and his eyes bored into her. Sophie squirmed some more.

  “What?”

  After a second he broke the stare and shared a look with Ruth. The back of her neck tingled.

  “What?” She repeated. Her legs bounced from the anxiety.