Page 47 of Liberating Water

Lailah

“What doyou mean Ubel can change his appearance?!” I blurted, pausing with my tea halfway to my mouth.

It was a fitful night’s sleep for me and the others, so we all ended up coming down for breakfast super early. Thankfully, Sarah and Garrett were already up and working on prepping breakfast, so we all got out of their hair with coffee and tea.

“We will explain that part better once Mr. Creed shows up and fills us in on that and the symbols that Jay found back at the lake and at the event hall,” Micah continued.

Setting my mug down, I glared at all the guys. “Why am I just finding out about this now? This information is kind of a big deal, don’t you think?”

“None of us wanted to stress you out or ruin New Year’s Eve for you when we didn’t have all the information yet. I agree that it wasn’t the best choice for us to make, but we are telling you now. Everything is out on the table, so to speak. No more secrets or held back information from this moment forward,” Hudson said, rubbing his hand soothingly up and down my back.

I knew he could feel how hurt I felt at them once again acting like I wasn’t truly part of this team. Just when I thought we had gotten past that, it seemed their need to be overprotective was stronger than their ability to tell me things that might upset me. Both Hudson and Brayden felt guilty for not telling me, and their regret rippled over my skin. I got the feeling this time they realized what withholding information did to me.

“In the effort of keeping you in the loop, your training starts today,” Jay added as he calmly drank from his cup, watching my reaction with his dark gray eyes.

As if Tony was listening in to our conversation, he texted me to ask if we could move the assessment up to today in light of everything going on.

“You flirting with someone there, Trouble?” Parker asked, trying to peer over my shoulder at my phone as he walked by to get more coffee.

Rolling my eyes, I looked up at him. “You really think I have time for another guy when I have the five of you to deal with? Not a chance. It was just Tony telling me we are meeting for my assessment later today.”

“That’s right, I forgot you knew Tony. He totally cock-blocked me that first day we met.” Parker frowned as he sat back down.

“So we have a meeting with Mr. Creed and I’m doing training with Tony—anything else you guys planned that I need to know about?” I inquired.

Brayden just smirked and shook his head with a little chuckle. “Nona wanted to check in on you and go over a few things before starting with her tomorrow. Other than that, I think that’s all. Beth was the one who was heading that up once we updated her on our findings last night.”

“Great. Now I have to have this same conversation with Beth about leaving me in the dark about things that you know involve me. Don’t you think it’s a little odd that you know all this before I do? I mean, Brayden, you were with me all night. How did you find out?” I grumbled.

“Easy there, Angel, put the claws away. Check your email, because that’s where I got my information from this morning,” Brayden said, holding up his hands in defense.

Sure enough, when I looked at my email, she had sent over an updated schedule for me and the guys. Everything was tailored to deal with the issues we were facing now. This is what I needed; I didn’t do well when I felt so uninformed. Having something to focus on when everything else around me was going crazy helped me deal with my stress when I didn’t have the ability to run.

Speaking of stress, I noticed that Micah was hardly able to sit at the table with us, his leg bouncing as he glowered down at his black coffee. He still hadn’t actually spoken yet, but I did notice that when Parker joined us, his frown was even deeper than before. Fingers crossed Tony could come up with a way to help us.

* * *

I’d been downto the lower level where the Elementi set up their headquarters under the Manor, but I hadn’t seen all that much of it. I knew that it was quite expansive, having tunnels and other facilities under the whole of Ryevick University. I followed after the boys since they knew where they were going, and I scoped out the place. All the hallways were white tile with soft gray walls and lots of bright lighting overhead. Each of the main sections, I was told, was named after an element so it was easier to learn the layout. We were in the Earth section, so all the pictures depicted that information along with green doors. Everything here had biometric scanners to open doors and access computers and the like. I felt like I was in some James Bond movie rather than an elite underground society.

Finally, we entered what looked like a small library with lots of haunting art hanging from the walls. A large black desk was off to one side, and it dawned on me that this must be Mr. Creed’s workspace. Taking a closer look at the books, I found they were all about the occult and anything else that might tie back to demons and their history.

“Ah, good. Right on time,” Mr. Creed said as he hurried into the room, plopping various books and scrolls on his desk.

The man was portly with greasy, slicked-back hair—or what was left of it—and a piggish face. He seemed to always wear suits that didn’t fit him around the middle, his button holding his jacket closed by sheer willpower alone.

“Don’t just stand there gawking at me, sit down. We have lots to cover, so don’t interrupt me until I’ve finished speaking. Then we can go over whatever questions you might have,” Mr. Creed said, looking right at Parker with a slight frown.

Heading over to the small seating area, we managed to squeeze onto the couch and two armchairs. To make extra room, Micah snaked his arm around my waist and pulled me onto his lap. I looked back at him, opening my mouth to yell, but he just put a finger up to my lips, shushing me.

“Let’s start with what we do know and then deal with the uncertain bits later,” Mr. Creed suggested as he walked over to one of the bookshelves and pulled down a projector screen. Using the clicker he had in his hand, he displayed a picture of a creepy looking man with a wheel of heads, both male and female. “This is Dantalion, the seventy-first of Solomon’s demons. Among the many name he’s been given over the centuries, the Great Duke of Hell, master of a legion of thirty-six demons. He is also referred to as The Man with Many Faces since he has been depicted with a different face or gender throughout history. He is the keeper of the Forbidden Library, where all demonic alliances and secrets are kept.”

Flipping to the next slide, it showed a symbol surrounded by other smaller ones etched into the dirt. “This is his summoning mark, and it was found at the pond where this Ubel surfaced. Scouring through all of my books, I came to find that Ubel is the name of one of the thirty-six demons that Dantalion has command over. Could it be pure coincidence that he picked that name? No, I think not. With the other findings, it seems as if the Duke of Hell has given this man access to his powers on the command of the Dark Lord.”

The next slide pulled up a clearer version of the smaller markings. “These are powerful symbols to invoke; they require skill and raw power. Only a higher-level demon or one of the seventy-two Greater Demons that make up the Dark Lord’s court could pull this off. Which leads me to believe that the Dark Lord has awoken them and is preparing to use those unlocked humans that are given the demonic serum to host their powers to unleash on the world.”

My jaw fell open at this dramatic turn of events and how utterly serious he was in his findings. It wasn’t that I didn’t believe him—I of all people know how the Dark Lord loves to play games—but this version didn’t sit right with me.

Parker raised his hand, causing Mr. Creed to sigh. “Yes, Mr. Jones?”