Shading her eyes, Wynn forced herself to look directly into the ball of light. She could vaguely make out the shape of the male who’d brought her to this place. He’d managed to break free of the tendrils and was spreading his arms wide as if trying to contain the brewing, toxic sludge that continued to strike out. But even as his magic pulsed outward, the greenish goo crept toward him, surrounding his feet in a circle of evil.
Wynn’s mouth was dry, her heart struggling to beat. She didn’t know what was happening, but the male had told her to run.
So she did.
Chapter 4
Wynn had no idea how long she fled through the silvery mist. It felt like an eternity, but she refused to stop, even when her knees threatened to collapse and her lungs screamed from sucking in the thick air. The green sludge had looked exactly like the glow in the eyes of the demons in her nightmares. That couldn’t be a coincidence.
Not unless this was a nightmare too...
Locked in the weird fog, Wynn frantically searched for a way to escape. It wasn’t until a hand reached out of the mist to grab her shoulder and give her a sharp shake that she abruptly snapped open her eyes to discover she was lying flat on her back in the middle of Hexx’s kitchen.
Had it been a nightmare? She wasn’t in the recliner, but maybe she had been sleepwalking to escape the creepy demons chasing her.
“Shit,” a familiar voice moaned. “Now what have you done?”
With an effort, Wynn focused on the demon crouching next to her. Hexx looked like he’d spent the night hiding in the sewers. His hair was tangled, his clothes wrinkled, and there were streaks of dirt on his rat face. Plus, he carried a distinct whiff of something vile.
“Me?” she croaked, carefully pushing herself into a seated position. A wave of dizziness washed over her, but she managed to stay upright. She was taking that as a win. “I didn’t do anything.”
“Then what’s that?” Hexx pointed toward the edge of the stacked boxes.
Wynn’s heart sank as she grudgingly forced herself to glance toward the lump of flannel. She hadn’t been sleepwalking. There really had been an intruder, and he’d really transported her to a misty dimension where the green sludge was lashing out of a cesspit.
And now he was passed out on the floor, probably trapped in the fog.
“He attacked me.” She shakily rose to her feet, squashing any sense of guilt for leaving the creature alone with the bubbling evil.
She hadn’t been the one to force him into the fog. And she certainly hadn’t asked to be taken with him. If he was stuck, then that was his own damned problem, right?
Hexx shoved himself upright and moved to study the unconscious male. “Well, get him out of here.”
“You get him out.”
“Who is he?”
“I thought he was a sad homeless man looking for shelter. Now I don’t know.” Wynn rubbed her hands over her coat, trying to get rid of the dust. Had Hexx ever heard of a mop? The entire place needed a good scrubbing. “He might be a god.”
“A god?” Hexx scowled, tentatively tapping the sleeping male with his toe. “He looks like Santa Claus.”
“If he’s Santa Claus, then he has enough power to walk between dimensions and to force me to go with him.” Wynn shuddered. “I can assure you that he’s not going around delivering presents to good boys and girls. He’s destroying civilizations and wreaking havoc on lesser beings. Like Hercules or Thor, only with fewer hammers.”
“Argh. Why? What have I done to deserve this?”
“I have no idea, but you might want to look into getting your chi cleansed.” She walked forward, slapping the demon on the back. “Time to get going. Good luck, old friend. I’ll be seeing you around.”
“No!” Hexx grabbed her arm. “Don’t you dare leave. Not without taking your creature with you.”
“He’s not mine.”
“What am I supposed to do with him?”
She yanked out of his desperate grasp, moving to grab a filthy tea towel off the counter and throwing it over the sleeping male’s face.
“There. Problem solved. See you around.”
“Not if I see you first,” Hexx said, watching her walk away with a jaundiced glare.
