Page 30 of You Give Me Fever

The splintering of wood, the shattering of glass, and a roar like the center of a twister, and Clara knew—they were in.

Chapter

Thirteen

WHAT SHE NEEDS, INSTEAD OF A DOCTOR, IS A GOOD SPANKING

Clara gripped Shiver's huge shoulders as glass broke all around them and those hail-like whacks sounded up on the roof, a continual roar. The bright glow of their circle made it almost impossible for Clara to see into the darkness of her home beyond it, but there were dark shapes writhing and squirming at the edges of the light.

"I'd like to scream now," Clara said in a whisper so small and weak, she wasn't even sure she could manage what she had requested.

“Yessss, human girl, sssscream for usss," slithery voices came from beyond the circle, on all sides."We will feast on your terror, most delisssssiussss…"

“Oh, dry up, you old snakes," Shiver said, and a chorus of hissing replied.

Faces began to appear all around the circle, bathed in the light, poking their fingers into the boundary to meet a light sizzle.

"You do not have long, sweet human," one voice called out. "Your ward will fall. There are multitudes of us."

"Multitudesss…" a sibilant chorus echoed.

Clara pressed closer to Shiver, who, even on his knees before her, was almost face-to-face with her. Fear clutched her by the throat, freezing her in place. She wanted to run, and she wanted to fight, and she wanted to cry, but without quite knowing which path was least likely to get her ripped to pieces, she could only tremble in the arms of the only demon she wanted in her home.

"Eyes on me, honey," said Shiver, turning her face toward him. "You pretend they're not even here. The only one I want you to think about is me."

"This is a fine time for your ego, mister! Your… coworkers are about to —"

"Look at me, Clara!"

Shiver's voice boomed out so low, dark, and loud that Clara had no choice but to snap her eyes to him and her lips shut.

"They don't exist, hear me?" Shiver held her face, not allowing her to turn her head, even though he had a perfect view of the demons crowding behind him, staring in and licking their lips. "Because this circle is all that's keeping them out. And all that's keeping the circle lit is us."

Clara gripped onto that word, forcing the storm of fear to quiet in her mind.

"Us?"

Shiver cracked a smile—tired and fearful, but always amused—and held up their wrists, still bound together with red cord.

"We're linked now," he said. "My magic is your magic. You just focus on me, your feelings for me, and the ward will hold them off till daybreak."

His words provoked another round of hisses and groans and mutters from the legion surrounding them, a hundred broken bagpipes from hell.

Clara frowned. "What happens at daybreak?"

"We fail," came a familiar voice from beyond the circle. Clara looked to the side and saw the creature she recognized, Frenzy, the one who had very nearly gotten her before Shiver banished him. He looked much worse than at his last appearance—bruised and burned, horns chipped, a sour expression as he flicked his eyes up and down Clara's body. "But that will not happen. We shall weaken your pathetic ward, and then Shiver will not be able to save you from what I'm going to do."

Shiver roared, leaping to his feet, and in that instant, the circle crackled all around them where its boundaries weakened. Demonic claws and tails briefly speared the protective barrier before being pushed back out.

Shiver grit his teeth, the cords of his neck straining as he fought himself back to Clara's side.

"Is that the way I ought to be ignoring them, Shiver, the way you just did?" She asked in a tight whisper. "Because I can see how well that works if you're trying to get us both ripped to pieces."

Shiver closed his eyes with a sigh. This was going to be difficult.

"You're right," he said. "I can't let that happen again."

"Look at me, human," called a voice, and then another.