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“Not exactly.” It seemed my new friend Dantalion was some sort of shapeshifting demon.
I let them duke it out in the clearing while I encouraged Alicia down from the tree.
“No way,” she objected. “Not while those monsters are this close.”
“They’re focused on fighting each other. You’ve seen Jurassic Park. The people make their escape while the T-Rex and velociraptors are fighting.” I wiggled my fingers. “Come on, let’s go. My truck isn’t far.”
“I have my bike. It was expensive.”
“We’ll come back for it.”
Alicia lowered herself to another branch, then jerked up her legs as the two monsters brought their fight closer to us. I wanted to help Dan, but I couldn’t tell one from the other.
Roaring, one creature broke off a large branch from a nearby tree and made contact with the other’s head. The body flew across the clearing and smashed into the trunk of a tree.
The creature’s lioness head jerked toward me and her brown eyes registered surprise. When she bowed her head, my heart sank. I knew which one was Dan.
“Mistress, my apologies,” she whispered. “It is I, Lamashtu, bringer of fever, nightmares, and death.”
“Congratulations,” I said.
“Go away and never come back,” Alicia yelled from the tree branch.
The creature raised her lioness head to gaze at her. “Would that I could, child. I have been summoned.”
I knew I could command her to leave, but that single sentence would reveal too much. I had to stay silent and hope we could work this out another way—one that didn’t expose me.
“And now you’ve been unsummoned,” Alicia said, her voice shaky. “I take it back. I don’t want you here.”
“Regrettably, that isn’t how this works,” Lamashtu said. “I’ve come to claim you.”
Across the clearing, Dan had reverted to his human form and was starting to stir. If I whispered the order quickly and quietly, maybe no one else would hear…
“Another monster’s coming!” Alicia’s voice rang out in the clearing.
I looked to see a familiar figure cut through the shadows as he emerged from the crossroads. He wore his signature custom suit. His angelic dark blond waves gleamed in the moonlight. Kane’s gaze landed first on a semi-conscious Dan before noticing me, seemingly in a confrontation with a hideous beast.
He changed.
Not his clothes. His form.
Instead of producing blackbird wings or a mystical sword, he became a creature unlike any I’d ever seen. A giant wolf with griffin wings and sharp claws tore from his human form. No wonder West didn’t care for the demon. The alpha probably felt threatened by Kane’s monster form. Even a partial wolf shifter could command a pack if he were powerful enough.
And Kane was clearly powerful enough.
I scrambled backward as Monster Kane lunged at the creature. Alicia joined me at the base of the tree. I pushed her behind me to block her view. I didn’t want her to see nightmares come to life. I didn’t want anyone to suffer that, which was one of the reasons I kept myself tucked away in the Castle.
“What’s happening? Is your friend winning?” Alicia tried to move my arm for a better view.
I spun to face her. “What movie gave you nightmares?”
“Wonder Woman 1984.”
“Okay, that’s fair. Multiply that times a million. I am not burning this scene into your retinas. Your grandfather would never forgive me.” I had to raise my voice to be heard over the sound of the scuffle.
“Then we should talk about something else,” Alicia said.
“What’s your favorite song?” I asked.
