Chapter 19
The hair on the back of my neck stands up, and my stomach twists, bringing back a strong wave of nausea I haven’t felt since I started taking the morning sickness potion. The smell of brimstone fills the air, and heavy footsteps resound off the walls of the bar, drowning out the happy chatter and music.
I have answers, Callie.
“No,” I say out loud and slam my hands on the table. “You don’t. Stop lying.”
The smell goes away, and the sounds of the bar surround me again.
“Who are you talking to?” Melinda asks and looks around. “Is there a demon?” She reaches inside her jacket, no doubt ready to pull out a weapon.
“I…I don’t know,” I say, aware my pulse is racing. That voice belongs to Paimon, but he’s in Hell.
Isn’t he?
“I heard a voice,” I go on, forcing myself to take a few calming breaths and center myself. If Paimon is here, I need to pull myself together so I can kill the fucker. Pushing my shoulders back, magic sparks around my fingers, and I slowly scan my eyes over everyone around us. Any one of them could be possessed.
“Maybe we should get out of here,” Melinda suggests, looking around just as suspiciously as I am. “Come back to my place. It’s as demon-proofed as you can get. Well, maybe not as you can get, but we’ll be prepared there.”
“Is your hunky brother home?” Eliza asks, smirk on her face so I don’t see the fear in her pretty blue eyes. “I don’t like the idea of Callie’s sloppy seconds, but if I’m going to be holed up in a hunter’s bunker, I need to be entertained.”
“The house on North Orchard is closest,” I say and flip my hand over, needing to test something. Carefully, I summon the smallest flicker of hellfire in my palm. “Fuck.”
“What?” Melinda’s hand is still in her jacket, ready to fight if need be.
“I think the gates have been opened again.” I curl my fingers into my palm and put out the small flame.
“You closed them from the inside,” Eliza states. “Who’s powerful enough to open them?”
“I don’t know. I need to talk to Julian. If the gates are in fact open, we can shove the Horsemen—”
“Cal!” Abby’s voice rings out from across the bar. “Hey!”
I snap my head up and see my sister madly waving. Her friend Ricci is next to her, with one other woman I don’t recognize behind her.
“Fuck,” I repeat. If a demon is possessing someone in the bar, I can’t leave my sister here. Especially when I can tell she’s drunk from across the room.
“Is that Abby?” Melinda asks.
“It is,” I tell her and wave back.
“You’re not thinking of joining in on stuck-up-mom girls’ night still, are you?” Eliza rushes out. “Because the bunker is sounding almost like a good idea right now.”
“Back up.” Melinda lets go of whatever weapon she was holding and puts her hand in her lap. “Horsemen?”
“Yeah. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse escaped Hell when Paimon forced the gates wide open.” I spit it all out, going with the rip off the Band-Aid technique I’ve come to love. “And I’m pretty sure it was Paimon I heard, but if he’s—” I cut off as something occurs to me.
“What?” Melinda leans in, eyes wide. Abby and her friends are almost to our table.
“Bael. He was able to astral project here from the prison dimension. If Paimon could, then maybe the gates aren’t open and maybe—” I stop and plaster a fake smile on my face. “Hey, Abby!”
Eliza gives me a lingering look of concern and then gets up, not wanting to bullshit small talk with my sister and her friends, who are rather stuck up, if I’m being honest.
“Look at you!” Abby slides into the booth and puts her hands on my stomach. “You look so cute!”
“As cute as a pregnant lady in a bar can look,” I joke and give Abby a hug.
“You remember Ricci, right?” Abby asks and scoots in. Ricci sits across from us, next to Melinda, and the other friend squeezes in next to Abby. “And this is Min. She works in the ER with me.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say. “This is Melinda, and there’s a good chance one of us will end up seeing you in the ER someday.”
Min laughs. “It’s nice to meet you too. Abby’s told me about all about you and how excited she is to become an aunt.”
“Good, because I’m going to be calling with all my questions.” I force another smile and lean back, giving Melinda a look that says I’m sorry. Rene brings Melinda’s drink and two big pretzels with cheese to the table. Abby and her friends order another round of drinks and some food as well.
“It seems like you’ve had a fun night,” I tell Abby.