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“We also need a new plan,” I say. I reach down and scoop up her legs, then begin to walk while I carry her.
“Hey!” she protests, but her voice is weak, and her eyelids are fluttering. “I don’t need…” she trails off, perhaps realizing the futility of her argument.
“You just saved our lives,” I say, meeting her eyes. “You are an incredibly strong badass witch. Let me do my part now, okay?”
“Where are you taking us?” she murmurs.
“I have a friend who lives not far from here. You can rest there, and we need to think of a different tactic to sneak into this place. The hounds will report back to their masters, who will know we’re on their trail.”
“Which means they’ll be waiting for us,” Ven finishes with a deep sigh.
“Exactly.”
I pick up a jog and head in the opposite direction of the hounds, following the exact path we’d taken from the beach. Which is easy because I can follow the trail left by Ven’s magical aura. After a quarter hour or so, during which I’m constantly looking over my shoulder, I see the beach ahead. I let out a small sigh of relief when Ven and I reach the boat. I set her down in one of the seats and crank the thing up again, then head north.
If hell hounds weren’t on our tail, I’d go by land, the more direct route to my friend’s place. But I’m hoping by back-tracking, I’ll throw the beasts off for a bit. Since I followed the same path back to the boat, I haven’t left any new scent trails to follow. And over the water they can’t track us at all.
An hour later I pull the boat in at another beach. Ven is asleep; she’d passed out almost the instant we started moving. And snored, which I’ll have to tease her about later. I won’t mention the part about how adorable it was.
She wakes up when I lift her down from the boat, but she rests her head against my chest as I pick up a jog again, seemingly dozing. I head inland, looking for a means of transportation. Before too long, the perfect opportunity presents itself.
Ven wakes up real fast when I lift her up on the horse’s back.
“Am I dreaming?” she asks blearily.
“Nope.”
I grin and spring up onto the horse’s back behind her. It’s a black stallion, sleek and well-muscled. I reach around Ven’s waist and grab a handful of the creature’s mane, then squeeze my legs to its sides and make a clucking sound. The horse moves forward across a field lined with banana trees.
“But you don’t have a saddle or bridle or anything,” Ven says, sounding awestruck.
“Oh, did I not mention before? I can charm animals, too.” I smile and urge the horse into a smooth lope across the field, holding Ven tightly in my arms.
“You did not mention that!” she calls over the wind.
I steer the horse further inland, east and slightly south, using my legs and shifts of my weight right and left. Before long, the field turns to jungle, and we slow down to navigate through the trees. The afternoon begins to fade, and an hour passes, then two. We arrive at the home of my friend just as the sun begins to set.
It’s situated on the floor of a valley, a series of one-story wood and glass structures surrounded by lush tropical gardens and several hot springs. Far in the distance, a volcano spouts white smoke into the sky. Lively music emits from one of the buildings.
“Who exactly is this person?” Ven asks. “If he’s anything like Dante, I think I’ll pass.”
“He is decidedly not like Dante,” I assure her.
“Can you be more specific?” She wrinkles her nose.
I shoot her a smile. “Oh, just another delightful demon such as myself, and the best supernatural artifacts and antiquities dealer on this side of the Pacific.”
