Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 73252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
“And set up a ritual almost identical to one that already happened just to fuck with us,” I say.
“I thought you said the demon wasn’t that smart.” Theo shifts his eyes toward me.
“I did.” I lean back against Xavier, who is now massaging my very sore shoulders. “And I still think the ritual was significant. Whatever was attempted at Camp Dogwood never got finished. I think this was the plan the whole time. But chaos demons don’t just cause chaos. They cause confusion too, because when you’re confused and don’t know what to believe, you’re easier to influence.”
Mabel loudly slurps her coffee only to spit it back into the cup, wrinkling her nose in disgust. “This is a lot to keep track of. I feel like we need one of those giant whiteboards from a movie so we can write everything down.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Antonio tells her, then looks toward Xavier and Theo. “Any chance you have one?”
“No,” Xavier tells him. “I’ll order one. I think we all know this isn’t going to be the last time we come up against something like this.”
“Hang on,” Mabel says. She sets down her coffee cup and zooms out of the room and returns seconds later with a notebook and pen.
“Here’s what we know,” she starts. “The Order wanted to release a powerful demon because they thought they could control him and use him to do their bidding, whatever that was. For some reason, they chose Vaelric, who had been locked away by the Blackwood witches.” She starts writing. “They figured out they needed fresh Blackwood blood straight from the source to release the demon, which explains the series of events we just lived through. We also know Vaelric is in charge of other demons, and we’re assuming this chaos demon is somehow under his command.” She underlines the word assuming. “Whatever demon that killed the Reapers is definitely loose, dangerous, and probably isn’t going to sit idly by waiting for the next command. Right?”
She looks around at us.
“I guess that’s another assumption,” I say, impressed by how well she’s separating facts from theories. “But I don’t think it’s going to sit idly by either.”
“Okay.” She makes a few more notes, her hand flying across the page at human speed. “Is there any way to figure out the names of the demons Vaelric commands?”
“Probably not,” Antonio tells her. “If they’re lesser demons, they might not even have names worth recording. Lesser demons are more like spirits anyway,” he explains simply.
“Right. I remember,” Mabel says. Even now, it’s jarring to remember she was once an Order member just like me. She wasn’t allowed to hunt, but she still has the same basic knowledge we all do. We keep trying to come up with some sort of game plan while Mabel excitedly orders food for us again.
I almost remind her there are plenty of leftovers in the fridge, but I don’t want to dull her excitement. If something as small as ordering food makes her happy, I’m going to let her have it. I go upstairs to shower and change while we wait for the food to arrive. Afterward, I wrap myself in a towel and just sit on the bed, unmoving, for several moments.
“How are you doing?” Xavier asks, slipping quietly into the room. He closes the door behind him and sits on the bed next to me.
“I don’t know,” I tell him honestly. “I’m tired physically and mentally, but I know there’s no way I could actually lie down and take a nap. Too bad I can’t cast a sleeping spell on myself.”
“I can rub your back if you want to lie down now,” Xavier says.
“That would be nice.” I unwrap the towel from my body and use it to dry my hair a little more before lying down beside him. He runs his fingers up and down my back, and somehow I end up dozing off for about twenty minutes. The power nap is exactly what I need.
When I wake up, I check my phone and see several texts from Delphi. Instead of replying, I just call her. She answers on the second ring.
“Thank God. You’re alive.”
“Sorry.” I rub my eyes.
Xavier is still in bed beside me, so I put the phone on speaker and roll over, letting him cradle me against his chest.
“Whenever I go a long time without hearing from you, I assume you’re either mad at me or dead,” she says.
I laugh. “If I’m mad at you, I’ll tell you. So I guess just assume I’m dead.”
“I heard about the Reapers,” she starts.
I look up at Xavier. “How has the pack taken the news?” he asks.
“Oh. He’s here. You’re on speakerphone,” I say, obviously.
“I’m at work, and I’ve been slammed up until just now,” Delphi goes on. “There’s some outbreak of hand, foot, and mouth at several schools, so I’ve had patients nonstop today. I just heard from Larkin, and she’s calling a pack meeting tonight.”