“All clear,” I said softly.
René immediately appeared, climbing over the fence with far more grace than me. I pointed to the shadows haunting the side fence. “If Atticus can cause chaos over near the pool, we can keep to the left and hopefully remain unnoticed.”
“We’ll still have to move fast,” René said. “It’s not like we can shield our presence without warning them.”
Atticus reappeared next to my feet.Remember to keep low in the process.
I have done this before, Atticus.
Yes, but this is the first time it truly matters.
Because it was the first time someone I cared about was in harm’s way. I sucked in a breath and tried not to think about what could be happening in there.
“Let’s get this done,” I said softly, and followed the fence line down to the left corner, stopping close enough to the barrier that its magic stung my skin. It might be a relatively simple spell, but there was a foulness embedded within it.
René stopped beside me. I glanced back at Atticus and said,Ready?
Indeed.
Then feel free to cause your chaos.
The moment he leapt into the swirling threads, René and I dropped to hands and knees and scrambled toward the house. The magic was a foul weight that hummed above us, lit by multiple flashes of green that was Atticus running and leaping in and out of the threads. Shouts came from inside the house and doors slammed; I increased my pace, my gaze on the house and the windows facing us. They were curtained and they didn’t move, but footsteps were echoing on the other side of the house now, drawing closer. We had seconds, if that, to get out of sight.
We made it past the veil of magic, thrust upright, and ran hard through the drizzle to the side of the house. Just as we reached the corner, a figure appeared on the opposite side.
It was the big man who’d attacked me at the apartment, though he looked frailer now than he had then and his hair was streaked with gray. Guilt briefly swirled, then died. While both were a result of my draining his life force, I had no doubt he and his fucking partner would likely have fed me to their demon.
“Hey,” he shouted, his tone harsh and annoyed, “get out of here, you annoying fucking creature.”
Atticus not only ignored him but increased his speed, ensuring the fluorescent flashes of green and no doubt the internal alarms were almost continuous. The absolute delight running through his thoughts had a smile tugging at my lips, though I couldn’t help but send a reminder to be careful.
His response was a catty,Always am.
I ducked past a window, even though its curtains were drawn, and continued on down the side of the house, heading toward a covered side entrance. More shouting rose from the other side of the house, then magic surged; a spell net, one designed to not only snare but throw.
Atticus didn’t counter it; instead, he simply disappeared—something I knew from the sudden absence of his thoughts in mine.
“You want to work your magic on that door?” I asked.
René stepped past me, produced a small leather pouch from inside his jacket pocket, and then plucked a metal lockpick free and bent to examine the lock. A few seconds later, he had the door open.
We’d barely stepped inside when, from the deeper recesses of the house, came a thick wave of magic. My breath caught in my throat, and fear surged. I knew that spell; I’d felt the remnants of it in the apartment when I’d found Francesca’s and Marnee’s bodies. Someone within the house was summoning the heart-consuming demon.
A heartbeat later, the screaming began.
Ginny. It was Ginny.
I darted forward, but René caught my arm, hauling me to a stop. “Wait, it could?—”
“Be a trap,” I finished for him. “And I don’t care. Those fucking demons are not going to consume my friend.”
“And if you want to save her, then we need to think and react rationally, not emotionally.”
I sucked in a breath, knowing he was right even if I didn’t want to admit it, and motioned him forward. The screaming had cut off, but the magic continued to build, becoming a thick layer of evil that made it difficult to breathe. My heart was racing so damn hard it felt ready to tear out of my chest. I eased past the washing machines and cast a repelling spell, letting it swirl lightly around my fingertips. It was dangerous, but against the greater wash of magic coming from within the house, it was little more than a whisper lost to the might of a storm.
But it was a whisper that would at least protect me.
The laundry door was open, but the hall beyond was filled with unnatural shadows. The spell was being raised from somewhere to the right, but its echoes and Ginny’s scream had come from the left. The caster and whatever spell he was casting were in two different locations. We’d have to split up.
