Born of Nether- Everwitch

by Kish Knight

  With a snort, she left the bathroom. ‘Thought these powers were supposed to be so great and make me sooo powerful.’ Instead, they were driving her crazy.

  She took two steps into her living room and stopped as she remembered. The book.

  That weird book that Enya had somehow blended into Brielle’s body…..

  Even though she had tried to convince herself otherwise, she still had the book. She was certain of it. She hadn’t told Isarin about it, either. Maybe it was a dumb move not to have told him, but he was on the short list of weird creatures that had suddenly entered her life after she’d gained the book. Whatever mysteries the book contained, it was important enough to have gotten Enya killed.

  She hadn’t forgotten that look of terror when the dying Angel had raced into the room.

  Brielle made up her mind. Before she would go out like that, she would give the damned book back. She just needed help to figure out how to get it off of her skin. Either the Angels or the demons would have to help her figure it out, since they were all so interested in it.

  A sigh slipped her lips. “A problem that has to wait for now,” she murmured.

  Right now, she needed to get dressed: she had a very important meet-and-greet. Grabbing the menu from the table beside the suite door, she quickly placed a room-service to be brought up in an hour: scrambled eggs and green tea.

  Then she headed into the bathroom again.

  Fortunately for her, the deluxe hotel room had a huge jacuzzi tub in the spacious bathroom. Treating oneself was always a plus, and so as Brielle took the time to pile for hair on top of her head, she dropped her robe and slid into the tub.

  Staying in the bath for over twenty minutes was a guilty pleasure. But, when she emerged from the tub, she felt decent again, body steamed and soaked in her favorite lavender scent. She took her time dressing, choosing a knee-length woolen knit dress which hugged her curves and a pair of knee-high boots. Her hair, which she decided to leave loose, fell artfully to her mid-back. She stared at herself in the mirror until she was satisfied.

  If nothing else, her new family would understand that she was somebody and not just some lost orphan who fell into money.

  ‘There,’ she thought, pleased with herself.

  No sooner than she had finished dressing, she heard the knock at the door and let the waitstaff in with her breakfast. The young man eyed her appreciatively, but wisely kept it professional. He rolled the cart over to the small breakfast nook and left it. “If you need anything else, please give us a call at the front desk.” He handed her the ledger.

  “Sounds good.” Brielle signed and let him out, sliding the deadbolt into place as she closed the door.

  Which is why her heart flew several inches into her throat as a male voice spoke from behind her. “May I join you?”

  She whirled to find the Angel from the night before standing in the middle of her room, very real and not a figment of her imagination at all.

  Back against the door, fingers twitching to throw the lock and run, Brielle stared him down. “How did you get in here?”

  A tiny secret smile. “Your balcony door was unlocked.”

  She shook her head. “And lemme guess, if you didn’t come in uninvited, then someone else would have in fifteen minutes, right?” Clearly, there was something about the way this Angel thought that wasn’t exactly legal. As evidenced by the careful shrug that he gave.

  “No, not in this neighborhood.”

  “Well that’s a relief,” she shot back sarcastically. But her eyes widened as she watched him walk over to the breakfast nook and glance over at her. Inclining his head at the room service cart, he waited.

  “Again, I’ll ask, since a formal invite would be best. May I join?”

  “Well, go ahead, since you’re already here.” But he still didn’t sit, and Brielle walked over to the table. As she approached, he shifted to her side and quickly pulled her chair. “Thanks.”

  Only then did he sit, and immediately his tone changed. “The Libri Arma Venefici. Where is it?”

  “The what?” She made a face and served herself some eggs.

  “The grimoire,” he added, as if the clarification meant anything to her.

  She took a small sip of her tea and just studied him silently. Clearly, he understood her blank expression, since he tried one more time to explain.

  “The book that Enya was carrying, the one that you said just….disappeared.”

  “It’s called a what?”

  Leaning over the table, the Angel poured a mug of tea for Brielle, then one for himself. “The book is called a grimoire. It’s a book of magical spells, but some go as far as to call it a textbook of magic. Basically, it contains instructions on performing spells, creating magical objects, as well as summoning entities such as angels and demons.”

  “Ok.” Brielle sampled the eggs before her. Since it was clear that Isarin intended to get his point across, she might as well start eating. Clearly, she wasn’t going to have a peaceful morning after all. “Why would an Angel need a magic book? Aren’t you guys made of magic already?”

  “The grimoire contains magic that we don’t have access to, demon magic. What I didn’t tell you yesterday, our magic is being pulled into the in-between world, a world that has one door in Heaven and the other door in Hell. Enya, myself and a few other Angels have been tasked with getting in there and stopping the pull. It is impossible for us to access from the Heaven side, since the door was been completed blown up to prevent this very thing. There is another access, the door on the Hell side. Its existence is secret from even the demons, so there was never a fear of their trying to access it. But to open that door, one needs a skeleton key. But the only way to summon one of the skeleton keys into existence, is to use a spell hidden in the dark grimoire.

  Enya was on a mission to retrieve it yesterday….we all were. Our team consisted of three, Enya, my sister Ava, and myself. We made the dangerous trip into Hell and made our way to the grimoire. While Ava and I guarded, Enya went into the underground cave for it. But she left that cave with the grimoire in hand, a pack of demon sentinels on her tail. Ava and I managed to pin them down with firepower, while Enya escaped. But our downfall, was that we didn’t notice the one demon who slipped past our assault. The very same demon who slayed Enya as she ran for help.”

  The eggs were good, perfect in fact, and didn’t fit with the supernatural story she was hearing. Brielle ate her eggs, wondering where her life had taken this bizarre turn. “Sounds like a good read. Guess you’ll have to go pick up another one of those grimoires.”

  Coldly, Isarin just looked at her. “Already, you’ve forgotten that Enya died retrieving the grimoire? The demon chasing her was doing so because she had the grimoire. She put her life on the line to bring the book out of Hell and into our possession, and somewhere along the way, it disappeared.” His eyes pinned her reproachfully. “Leaving only one witness….you.”

  Isarin took a sip of his tea, eyes steely. “Where is the grimoire? Without it, all magic will be taken from the world forever.”

  “I don’t know.” Honestly, she wished that she could help him, but her nephew’s life was more important. Telling him that it was inside her body would undoubtedly create a long process of her being analyzed by the rest of his team, and God-only-knew how long that would take.

  She did not have that luxury of time.

  Watching her closely, he asked, “And you’re sure about that? You don’t know anything about what happened to the grimoire?”

  “Well, like I said, the book disappeared. I can’t give it to you.” She took the last bite of her eggs, and chewed carefully before swallowing.

  The Angel’s expression was blank. “Fine. Then I won’t take any time of your time.” His tone however, clearly stated that he didn’t believe a word she had said. Daintily, she took a sip of tea before speaking again.

  “Great.”

  But she didn’t expect his abrupt departure from the table. Isari
n stood and walked briskly to the door. “I can let myself out.”

  Suddenly, she didn’t want him to leave. The memory of the weird head voice this morning resurfaced, chilling her all over. Hastily, she jumped to her feet and followed him to the door.

  “Wait! Uh-….a weird thing did happen this morning though.”

  “Oh?” He stopped and faced her.

  “I think- ….something is with me, stalking me, I don’t know-….you need to help me.”

  Isarin just studied her, and she had a feeling that he was weighing her words for the truth. He hadn’t believed her about the grimoire book or whatever, so now apparently he thought everything she said was doubtful. “What’s happening?”

  Brielle huffed in frustration. “The demon. The one that Enya killed. What was his name?”

  “Mortimchka, I believe.”

  “Well, him. I think he’s still living, inside my head. I heard a voice this morning, in a strange language.”

  A faint slash of a smile appeared on the handsome Angel’s face. “Both Enya and Mortimchka are dead. That could only happen if you still have the grimoire with you, but you said that you don’t, right?” Without warning, he reached out and gently stroked her jawline, dragging a line of warmth where his fingers brushed. “Perhaps the next time he speaks to you, you can ask him where the grimoire is.”

  With that, the mysterious Angel disappeared into thin air, and Brielle dropped the breath that had caught the instant his fingers touched her skin. Her eyes closed briefly, of their own accord. Then remembering everything that she needed to do, Brielle opened her eyes and pulled herself together.

  Grabbing the oversized purse that went with the boots, she left the room, got on the elevator and headed to the lobby to wait for her car.

  CHAPTER 4

  For some reason, hospitals always made her reflective. Not that she had a lot of time at actual hospitals, but since her mother was constantly in and out of the recuperative wards after her various cosmetic surgeries, Brielle had some experience.

  Gray clouds hung low over the hospital, darkening the sky, as she drove into the parking lot. Her sister had said to meet at the lobby entrance. So, Brielle took her time, making sure that her makeup was intact, before she got out of the car.

  ‘Best foot forward.’

  Shades firmly in place, she walked toward the building and did her best to shove down nervous butterflies that fluttered in the pit of her stomach. A long-awaited family reunion was about to happen, and she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Her best bet was to get through this day with as little emotion as possible, and then she would sort herself out later when she got back to the hotel.

  At the entrance, many people hustled back and forth through the automatic doors, some moving swiftly, some meandering, some even headed for a seat on the scattered benches, but only one caught her eye. A curvy young woman sat quietly on a bench nearest the doors, purse on her lap. Dressed simply in a snug black sweater and a fitted black skirt, with straightened hair pulled back plainly in a ponytail, the young woman gave off a poised, conservative air. Instinctively, Brielle knew that it was Charlize: her sister.

  As she approached the bench, she tried to search the face for familiar features, but couldn’t pick out any. Their complexions were the same tender brown, but that was about it.

  Charlize stood just as Brielle drew to a stop in front of her. “Hi,” she said, a friendly smile appearing.

  “Hello.” Fully intending to give her trademark, nonchalant air-kiss, Brielle leaned forward, only to find herself clasped fully in a swaddling hug.

  “Thank you so much for coming, Brielle,” Charlize whispered as she held her newfound sister tightly.

  “It’s, um, no problem.” Not entirely sure how to respond to her sister’s grand show of genuine warmth and affection, Brielle remained in Charlize’s embrace. The other woman must have sensed her discomfort, because immediately Charlize dropped her arms and stepped back.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, embarrassment blooming on her face. “It’s just that I wasn’t sure if you would actually show up, and you did, so it’s just-,” she broke off, looking uncomfortable again. Suddenly, as if wanting to change subject, she added, “I follow you on social media. I’m a big fan of yours.”

  “Thanks.” Now it was Brielle’s turn to be embarrassed. She didn’t come here so that her own sister could be awed by her; she got enough of that on a daily basis. This was a special occasion, and she would treat it that way. So, linking her sister’s arm in her own, she drew Charlize forward. “Why don’t we head inside? It will be way easier to talk inside, and besides, I can’t wait to meet Jalen.”

  Charlize nodded quickly. As she did, Brielle caught the flicker of exhaustion in her eyes, and realized that her sister was hiding her stress well. Already, she wanted to help, even if it was just to erase the tiredness from her sister’s eyes.

  “It’s on the 3rd floor. The elevator is this way.” Charlize led her around the corner, to a row of elevators.

  Luckily, at that time of morning, the elevator was empty and Brielle settled herself against the back wall. Once they were inside the elevator on their way up to the 3rd floor, the other woman asked, “Do you want to know about our parents?” Her voice was slightly hesitant, as if she expected a resounding ‘no.’

  Brielle would be lying if she said that she hadn’t wondered about having this very conversation with her sister. Now was the chance to discover the reason that she had been given away as a baby and placed for adoption. For that matter, she didn’t even know whether Charlize even knew their parents, or whether she had been adopted as well.

  Composure was always her best lifelong strategy and she used it now. ‘Yes, dammit! Tell me something!’ her mind screamed. Aloud, she replied, “Love to. Maybe after we get Jalen squared away, you and I can sit and have a chat.”

  She didn’t imagine the disappointment that passed across her sister’s face, but left it. Who was she to fall at the feet of people who discarded her as a child? Yes, she would hear about them, but on her own time. She’d lived a good life, a great life, and a few old memories could wait. It didn’t matter what Charlize thought, she told herself; after all, they’d only just met. Brielle didn’t owe anyone anything.

  Her main goal was to save her nephew’s life.

  The elevator stopped, and they both got off on the 3rd floor. Following Charlize to the nurses’ station, Brielle did as she was instructed and signed herself in. A brisk middle-aged nurse left the desk and led them down another hall. “The Children’s ward is this way.”

  All the way down the hallway, as she followed the others, Brielle tried hard not to stare at the walls around them. They were the stark white of hospitals, but that was just the overlay, she realized. Once again, like in the restroom at the diner, she could see the real surface of the wall. Under the clean overlay, the wallpaper was peeling in sections. Here and there, sloppy words were scratched, large and black, graffiti on the surface. The words weren’t in a language that she recognized, but she did understand their meaning: pain, hurt, death.

  She grit her jaw and kept moving, but there were also ‘people’ along the way who clearly didn’t belong. This she knew because Charlize and the nurse walked right through some of the individuals without pause. They were people, freshly separated from their bodies, and not them, but also Angels littered the hall. The Angels looked like humans, but their red eyes were a dead giveaway. Some turned to stare at Brielle as she walked by.

  Brielle did her best to ignore them.

  They finally entered a gleaming hallway that had the sign ‘Children’s Ward’ above the entrance.

  ‘Finally,’ she thought, ‘this place is creepy.’

  As they continued walking along the corridor, she noticed a little boy sitting in the hallway. Back against the wall, he clutched a toy truck to his chest. Oddly, he was alone, and by the way, the nurse walked past him, it was clear that he didn’t belong.

  His body
flickered and Brielle gazed at him. When their gazes met, it was horrifying. Black pools had replaced his eyes, and his lips curled back over two rows of sharp baby teeth. A sudden hiss rose from his lips, and Brielle quickly averted her gaze.

  A demon.

  Why it was in the Children’s Ward, she didn’t know, and hated to speculate about what it was doing.

  So, she kept walking with the others, listening to the chatter, but it wasn’t the last time that she saw flickering beings at the edges of the gaze. Apparently, hospitals were a hotspot for angels and demons alike.

  And now she knew, thanks to her newfound vision. Brielle sighed. It would be a long day.