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Chapter Twenty-Five
Skylar
This time, we called an Uber. I wasn’t taking any chances of going anywhere in Elias’s car.
It was clear we couldn’t trust anyone or anything, but there was one place we might be safe. At least for a little while.
If anyone had a warded room, it was Shelly. While I was pretty sure Elias’s connections might be able to help us find something more long term, I wanted someone neutral. Shelly fit the bill. If you could pay, she’d assist. No questions asked.
Granted, I knew she had a moral code she followed because once she’d tipped me off that a wanted criminal had visited her, but not until he’d left her home. Though, she made me swear to never tell that she’d tipped me off.
Since that once incident, I’d trusted her more than I probably should. And considering Elias hadn’t offered any other options, I wondered just how accurate my instincts were right now. While I trusted Elias, I didn’t trust his contacts.
The Uber driver didn’t ask any questions and we didn’t offer conversation. Getting picked up at a mortuary was weird enough. Add in the time and it was even stranger.
The watery early morning light tinted the sky a striking purple blue. The first few rays of sunlight painted streaks of pink and gold in the clouds. It was a gorgeous sunrise.
If I wasn’t so tired, I might have considered staying up to watch the rest of the rise. Instead, I could only think about a bed or a couch. Shit, even the floor worked right now.
I knocked on Shelly’s door, then waited. Like me, Shelly had to sleep nearly as much as a mortal. Mages weren’t gifted with the supernatural ability to skip sleep like some creatures had. Shifters could go for days, but I wasn’t a shifter.
I wasn’t human either.
But I was far too exhausted to open up that train of thought. I needed sleep. Then coffee. In that order. Then, the thinking and planning.
I knew this was a temporary reprieve. Assuming Shelly even let us stay. But it was needed. Before we could regroup and figure out the next steps, I had to recover.
Shelly opened the door. Her bright pink hair pulled into a messy bun. Her eyes were ringed with dark circles and she was in a fuzzy bathrobe. “I wondered when you’d get here.”
“It was a long night,” I said, a little surprised by her comment. She’d said Xander needed to rest overnight, she never asked me to come back for him so quickly.
“Hurry in,” she said, pushing past me as I entered. She looked around outside, as if checking to see if we were alone. Then she closed and locked the door.
To my surprise, she lifted her hands and I could see pink threads of magic flowing from her fingertips. She mumbled a few words and the door glowed bright fuchsia for a moment before returning to normal.
“Did you just ward the door?” I asked.
“You two are being hunted,” she said, her hands on her hips. “I can’t say I’m pleased with you bringing this to my home, but based on the visitor who came looking for you, I’m taking a side for once. Yours. You’ve never destroyed anything.”
That’s when I realized her entire front room, with all it’s crazy antiques and beautiful old items, was in shambles. Shattered glass and pieces of plaster littered the floor. Her beloved stuffed Ravens were sitting on a chair, the only item she’d bothered to pick up. Claw marks shredded the wallpaper. Her furniture was covered in a layer of white dust.
“Shelly, what happened?” I asked.
“You know I’m neutral; everyone knows I’m neutral.” She shook her head. “But these creatures weren’t from around here.”
“David,” I said. “He was here.”
“Is that what he’s called?” She clucked her tongue. “Beastly thing. Shifted in front of me and I swear to you he looked just like a hellhound. Don’t tell me this was the demon you mentioned.”
“One of them,” I said.
Her eyes widened. “How many are we talking about?”
“They usually travel as a group of three,” I said. “Two hellhounds and,” I glanced at Elias, “something else.”
“Well, he sure messed things up looking for you. I told him you weren’t here but he had to check for himself. Clumsy oaf.” Shelly clucked her tongue.
“I’m so sorry, Shelly. We shouldn’t have come here.” I turned to Elias. “We have to go somewhere else.”
