I only ripped an air vent off the building. Please don’t tell me the pony-sized demon dog didn’t somehow squeeze through. My phone rings again, and I freeze, moving up against the wall.
The floor creaks and a deep growl echoes through the hall. I hold my breath and put out the magic I’m holding at my fingertips. Shadows move across the hall, and the huge demonic dog growls as it walks. Ready for an attack, I peer around the corner and watch the thing sniff my phone.
It plants a giant paw on it, growling in frustration when the phone keeps ringing. If only there were a way to record this, I could get a lot of money from the phone case company for an advertisement. Keeps your phone safe against accidentally dropping it, a quick plunge into water, and colossal demon dogs.
What is that thing? And more importantly, how do I kill it?
I could conjure the biggest energy ball I can and throw it at the creature. Even if it doesn’t kill it, that thing will be seriously injured. There’s always the option of trying to telekinetically snap its neck, but it’s already proven difficult to move it with my mind.
The phone stops ringing, and the creature growls, thick drool hanging off its mouth. It crouches down, sniffing my phone and then turns, looking down the hall. I flatten myself against the wall at the last second, but it already picked up my scent.
Okay…I can do this…I have to do this.
I hold my hands out in front of me, bringing strings of magic together to form an energy ball. The second the magic sparks around me, the creature snarls and takes off down the hall toward me. I jump away from the wall, holding the energy ball out in front of me and continue to feed it more and more magic. It’s blindingly bright, swirling with bits of white and blue magic.
It’s barreling toward me, gaining speed, and I hold tight to the energy ball, not releasing it until the creature is only a few yards from me. It hits the thing in the shoulder, burning its flesh. The creature lets out a high-pitched screech of pain. Its front feet fold underneath itself and it tumbles down, rolling across the floor.
It springs up, shaking its head as if it’s trying to get the last bits of magic off its skin. The magic burns it like acid, and the putrid smell of burning skin and hair fills the air. The creature pushes back up to its feet and I’ve already got another energy ball ready for it.
It looks at me with more intelligence than a dog, eyes shifting from my face to the energy ball in my hand. Thick, black blood drips from the wound on its shoulder. It’s not turning into smoke like the ooze that came out of the body, but it looks similar.
I raise my hand, aiming the energy ball right at the creature’s head. With a snarl, it sprints forward, moving so fast I’m not able to get a clear shot. I throw the energy ball and miss. It hits the wall behind the creature, sizzling before going out. I dodge out of the way, and one foot lands on a piece of cardboard or something on the tile. I slip and go crashing down. Scrambling back, I throw another energy ball at the creature, knowing I’m a sitting duck down here on the floor.
The creature lifts its head and lets out a harrowing roar and then takes off. My breath leaves me in a huff and my heart is racing so fast it’s pulsing through my ears. I stare at the spot where the creature stood, blinking.
Right. It knows I can hurt it, and if I can hurt it, I can kill it.
It’s not here to hunt or find prey. It’s here to guard something, and that’s where it’s going now. To protect whatever the hell is in this building. I reach up and grab onto a doorknob, pulling myself up. I’m at the back of the building again and have a lot of space to cover before I can find that thing again.
I wipe dust and dirt off my hands and push my hair back behind my ears. Black drips of blood lead a trail down the hall, going in the opposite direction of my phone. I bite my lip, giving myself only a second to decide what to do.
I can double back and still track the creature. I need to warn my friends to get the hell out of here and then come back with a supercharged vanquishing potion. Wincing every time my stupid heels click on the floor, I move as fast as I can in this getup. I’m close to my phone when it rings again.
“Shit!” I rush forward, holding out my hand to telekinetically bring my phone to me. It’s Kristy again, and I silence the call as fast as I can. There’s demonic dog drool on the screen, making my phone unable to register my finger. I quickly wipe the phone off on my dress and then answer Kristy’s call.
“The fuck, Callie!” she spits. “Where the hell are you?”
“I told you, I’m in the building next to the bar. Are you still at the bar?” I take a few quiet steps down the hall.
“We’re out front, looking for you. Callie, there isn’t a building next to the bar. It’s all torn down and it’s just a foundation and mess of broken boards. There’s nothing there.”
I come to dead stop. “Yes, there is. I’m there right now.”
“Are you sure?”
“I swear to you. It’s next to the bar in the alley and—oh my God.”
“What? You’re freaking me out, Cal!”
“The vibrations.” I put my hand on the wall and close my eyes. “I knew something felt weird, but I didn’t think it could be this.”
“Be what?”
“It’s a glamour. Kristy, this place has been hidden from human sight.” I pull my phone away from my ear and drop a pin in my location and then send it to Kristy. “There’s an alley behind the bar and the building is right across from it, I promise.”
I can hear Nicole’s voice through the phone but can’t make out what she’s saying. A few seconds pass and it sounds like Kristy is running.
“I’m in the alley,” she tells me. “And you’re right. It feels…weird back here. Hang on.” Rustling comes through the phone and then I hear my friends chanting. “Light of the sun, dark of the night, reveal the truth before my sight.”
“Seven devils,” Kristy says and then it sounds like she drops the phone on the ground.
“Are you there?” I whisper, inching down the hall again. “Do you see it?”
“Yes.” Her voice is shaky. “How did you see it? That doesn’t matter now…you need to get out of there. Eliza is saying she can smell blood.”
“Is it human?”
“What other kind of blood would it be?”
“There’s something here, Kristy. Something demonic.”
“Then you really need to get out of there, Callie.”
My heart is still racing, and I know she’s right. I’m not prepared, and my feet are really starting to hurt. “Okay. I’ll meet you in the alley. I came in through the air vent. I’ll come back out the same way.”
“I see it. Hurry.”
“I will.” I end the call and put the phone back in my purse. It’s a “going out” purse and is little and pretty, not holding much more than my ID, credit card, phone, and lipst
ick. It matched my dress much better than my usual bag, which is three times the size and always has minimal magical supplies in it.
This is the last time I choose fashion over function, I swear.
The entire building is silent as I hurry down the hall and back into the laundromat section. I push open the double doors and look around the room before stepping in. I rub my thumb over my fingers, sparking strings of magic.
I can see light coming through the open air vent, and my friends’ voices floating in from the alley. I let out a breath of relief and rush across the laundromat, dropping my guard since I’m so close to getting the hell out of here.
I dropped several feet coming in through the air vent and am going to need something to climb on to get out. This room is full of crap. I’m sure I can find something. I stop several feet before I get to the air vent and grab an old laundry basket.
“Callie?” Kristy’s voice comes from the alley. “Is that you?”
“Yeah. I’m trying to find something to climb on so I can get out.”
“Fucking witches,” Eliza huffs and zooms through the vent. “I’m only giving you a boost up so we can get the fuck out of here. Galivanting through a dirty old building might be your idea of fun, but it isn’t mine.”
“Trust me, it’s not my idea of fun either.”
“Could have fooled me.” She holds out her hand to help me out the vent. “You seem to gravitate toward this sort of thing.”
“It’s more like it gravitates toward me.” I take my purse off my shoulder and toss it out the vent and into the alley. Kristy grabs it and I put my hand on the vent, waiting for Eliza to pick me up and help me out the window.
“Try not to enjoy this.” Eliza puts her hands on my waist. Right as she’s about to lift me up, she stops and spins around. “What the fuck is that?”