Her hands shook as she navigated to Gwen’s number. Joshua called Rafael and agreed with whatever Rafael had to say. Gwen didn’t answer, so Kira left a voice message, briefly outlining what happened. Her skin prickled as she hung up, looking back up at Joshua.
“We’re in the protective barrier now,” she told him, seeing the unease lingering behind his eyes. “The demons can’t get in.”
“They got in before.”
Kira shuddered but pushed herself from the table. Her legs were still achy and weak, but she headed for the door. “We’ve reinforced the boundary line. I—”
She gasped as Joshua’s hands closed over her waist. The heat of his body radiated into her, and she shuddered again, for an entirely different reason now. Her breath caught in her lungs. Joshua steered her back to the table, sitting her down once more. Then, silently, he grabbed a protein bar from the cupboard and passed it to her.
“I’ll make you some food. You need to replenish your stores,” he grunted.
Kira thought about protesting. But some part inside of her, larger than she cared to admit, liked how he was lookingout for her. Her heart beat faster, and even though she knew she should insist, she stayed quiet. They were bound to each other, she reasoned. Rafael was his best friend, and Gwen was hers. Maybe they should try to get along.
Gwen called back just as she was finished eating. “I’m so sorry I didn’t answer! Lianne and I spent the day backpacking, and I forgot I put my phone on silent.”
Tension that Kira didn’t know she was carrying eased from her shoulders. “It’s alright. I’m just glad you two are okay.”
“Rafael was so worried. He came bursting in so suddenly that Lianne dropped the batter all over the floor,” Gwen said ruefully. “Are you okay?”
Kira sighed as Joshua took her empty plate. “I’m fine. It was just… sudden.”
Joshua started to run water in the sink. Kira watched him as Gwen grilled her about what she had been sensing or feeling. When Kira told her she’d gone to the beach to meditate because of a headache, Gwen suggested that it might have something to do with visions. Kira had had visions in the past, but they were always vague and associated with truly terrible migraines. This didn’t feel the same, but she supposed it could be connected.
“Call me if you need to talk about anything,” Gwen said.
“I will. Love you.” Kira hung up. Her fingers hesitated over the cracked screen of her phone, wondering if she ought to call Chelsey. If the demons were coming after them now, then she was in danger on the mainland.
On the other hand, what if Joshua was wrong? There was no reason for him to lie, and Joshua knew this was far too important to make up stories about anyway. He wouldn’t have chased her all the way back here if he didn’t think there was adanger out there. But after their fight last night… maybe it was a shark in the water. Maybe that ‘dark energy’ was just a sudden panic.
It wasn’t like Joshua, but she couldn’t stop the doubts. In the past, when there was demon activity, Kira had been able to sense it. She hadn’t sensed anything in the water earlier.
She didn’t want to bring Chelsey back to the island, away from her schooling, if it was nothing.Not to mention, if the demons are in the water, then she might be in more danger on the ferry than on dry land.
Finally, she sent a message to Chelsey telling her to call when she had the chance. Chelsey sent back a thumbs-up emoji in response.
Joshua’s phone started to ring. He dried his hands and stepped back from the sink to answer. Kira silently took his spot, starting to scrub up the dishes while he answered the call. It was just loud enough for Gwen to hear both sides of the conversation.
“We’re at the beach,” Rafael’s voice said. “We’ve done a thorough investigation, but there’s no sign of demon activity. None of our equipment is showing traces of demon energy.”
Kira bit her lip at that. More proof that Joshua had made a mistake. She rinsed off the clean dishes, placing them carefully in the rack to minimize noise.
“I know what I saw,” Joshua growled.
Rafael sighed. “I’m just saying that we don’t have any evidence that a demon was here.”
“So you think I’m crazy?”
“Josh, I’m not saying you’re making things up. What I’m saying is we didn’t find evidence. It was in the water,yeah? Maybe the ocean disperses the normal traces. We’ll keep looking,” Rafael answered. He sounded as though he was trying to placate his friend.
“We need increased security at the town borders tonight,” Joshua snapped, agitated. He paced around the kitchen and only stopped when he caught Kira watching him.
Rafael was quiet for a moment, then said, “Of course. Call Alpha Bael and warn him.”
When Joshua hung up, Kira took a deep breath. “I didn’t sense any dark energy.” She pulled the plug in the sink and watched the dirty water disappear down the drain. “If there was really a demon there, why would you be able to sense it and not me? I’m the witch.”
“It could have been cloaking itself from you so it could attack you.”
Kira rinsed out the sink, shaking her head slowly. She wasn’t sure how to gently say this. It was clear Joshua was agitated, and if she was honest, it was quite flattering that he cared this much. But why did he care this much? He’d been the one who got so grumpy last night when his parents dared to start speaking about his childhood, as though he didn’t want her to know anything real about him. He wanted to protect the town, so it must be that.
