Hands on my hips, I inspected the wall every few feet, looking for a hidden entrance. At last, I passed the gate where Astaroth abandoned me. It was shut once again and refused to budge. Speaking of….
“Astaroth,” I growled and stomped onward, one hand sliding along the wall, only pulling back when I reached a vine. If I couldn’t see it, I’d feel for it. The wall would disappear eventually.
“You really have become inept.”
I stopped and looked over my shoulder. Leaning against the wall, with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face, was the devil himself.
“Excuse me?”
“No, I won’t. You are wasting valuable time.”
I huffed. “You left me!”
“I did no such thing. I’ve been right here.”
Surprise flitted across my face. “Your watch bird chased me down and you just… just stood there and did nothing?”
“Watch bird?” His confusion mixed with amusement. I wanted to throw one of the millions of bricks around me at his head. “That is Skuttle. He can be a little protective of me. And temperamental when it gets closer to dinner.”
“You’re saying the bird is hangry?”
With a pinched brow, he said, “I don’t understand this word. And he is not a bird.”
Not a bird? What the hell was it then? “It means angry because you’re hungry.”
A wave of understanding flowed over his features, and he smiled. This one was more natural than some of the smiles I’d seen from him, and it partially eased my frustration. “Much like myself. Come, I grow hangry.”
Astaroth disappeared into the wall. The ease lasted about two point five seconds before my frustration flared again. Carefully this time, I reached out and felt along the wall. The dip was there. I cussed myself for missing it.
When I stepped through, the scenery remained grim. Once green with bright, tropical blooms, the plants in this area lookedlike the ivy. Black and dead. It smelled of lush, vibrant life, though. The closer I got, the more they came to life. Nervous, I checked for Astaroth, but once again, he was nowhere in sight.
“Son of a—”
“Calista.” Astaroth’s singsong voice came from somewhere off in the distance.
My head snapped that direction. “Is this how it’s going to be? Can’t you beam us up into the castle?”
“Beam us up?”
I whirled around mid-step, and he crashed into me, knocking me onto the ground.
“Geebus! Would you stop doing that?”
“Doing what?” He reached down to help me up, and I slapped his hand away. A frown touched the corners of his mouth. I stood without his assistance and brushed the dirt from my butt. Not that it would help; grit covered me from head to toe.
His gaze lingered on my ass. I snapped my fingers in his face to get his attention. “Appearing out of nowhere.”
He disappeared instantly.
And I thought the portals were creepy. This was worse. “Where’d you go?” Silence. “Astaroth!”
He reappeared, and I nearly fell on my ass again.
“Damn it, Astaroth.”
“I don’t know what you desire. You don’t like it when I’m here, and you don’t like it when I leave.”
He wasn’t wrong. “Take me to the castle.”
