Page 100 of A Monstrous World: The Complete Series

Chapter Three

Nadia

I always know shit is going to hit the fan when my nan gets weird.

Seers are unique because they don’t live on one plane of existence in one fixed time.

It makes me feel guilty to admit, but I’m grateful I didn’t inherit her gifts.

Being a witch with my type of magic is controversial enough.

Constantly reliving moments in time, especially ones that may or may not end up existing in our reality, doesn’t interest me in the least. She doesn’t talk about it often, but she has said enough that I know it must be overwhelming to remember so many possible futures and outcomes.

It makes my brain hurt when I think about it too much. She can actually recall events and memories of things that never came to fruition.

It’s freaking wild.

I edge my way down the alleyway toward the back parking lot of The Monster’s Den. She told me exactly what time to arrive tonight, but she was clear that I’m not to intervene.

So, why the hell am I here at all?

Watching the horror unfolding before my eyes serves no purpose. I clutch the coarse brick of the wall as I take it in.

Dead wolves litter the ground behind The Den, but I’m far enough from the action that no one notices me.

Nan stands looking completely at peace. She’s holding my friend Emerson’s daughter.

Ember is currently in animal form. Her furry face rolls from side to side as she whines, desperately trying to escape Nan’s hold.

I’m sure I could focus just a little magic without anyone picking up on it, right?

Yeah, I could totally do that, and no one would be the wiser.

Ember is the one factor that needs to be removed from this altercation so the rest can play out. It’s obviously why I’m here. At least I think so.

It can be extremely frustrating to deal with a clairvoyant. They know how you’ll react, even before you do, because they’ve seen it.

I raise a hand, blowing a sliver of shadow magic toward the pup.

Most of the town of Haven believes I have fertility magic.

I wish I did.

Blood magic—especially the kind that presents with shadows, like mine does—is rare. In the supernatural world, it’s dangerous to be an oddity.

I take another deep breath and close my eyes as I focus my intent. I’m only trying to encourage Ember to wiggle out of Nan’s hold, and then she can head for the back door of The Den.

A sizzle goes through my entire body. My eyes pop open, and I determine my coaxing worked.

Ember races toward the back door.

I exhale heavily, shaking the extra energy out of my hands. A slow smile crosses my face. I’m fairly sure I served my purpose here tonight.

Nan might be seventy-plus years old, but she’s got keen eyesight, or she’s already seen this play out. She winks before focusing back on the confrontation at hand.

I move to duck back around the brick wall, but end up squeaking when a cool hand wraps around my mouth from behind.

“Nadia,” the slimy voice says.

“Kash,” I hiss, yanking his hand off my mouth. “What the hell do you want? Do you know what—” I cut off when I realize I’m not supposed to interfere with whatever happens tonight with Emerson.

Kashius is a warlock with the paranormal council. He’s been a client of mine for a while, or he was before our last visit, when I not-so-politely told him to fuck off because I wouldn’t be seeing him again.

There are some things I don’t dabble in, and he was definitely buttering me up to see if I’d be interested in immortality or anti-aging magic. They’re both too dark for me to be interested.

“I knew you weren’t a fertility witch.” He chuckles haughtily. “Come along. You and I need to have a chat.”

I’m not sure why I let Kash drag me down the alley, past several abandoned buildings, and into the heart of the warehouse district. Not that The Monster’s Den is far from this area of town, but the farther I get from my workplace, the more anxious I become.

Having the paranormal council discover that I’m a blood witch is not high on my to-do list.

Fucked. I am so incredibly fucked. And not in the good way.

Why the hell don’t I have a protector who will murder for me? It would come in handy at the moment.

Aline has Atlas always ready and willing to look after her and guard her secrets. Emerson has Dread and the other owners of The Monster’s Den.

Where is my hot, psycho, will-do-anything-to-protect-me fuck buddy? Hell, mates kind of creep me out because of how both parties tend to lose their autonomy, but even that doesn’t sound so bad right now.

“I’m surprised you didn’t put up a fight. That must mean you understand that you’ll never be able to overpower me.” Kash’s straight white teeth flash in a predatory grin.

Yeah, he’s hot for a warlock, but the man obviously doesn’t have a lot of workable brain cells.

Blood witches are more powerful than nearly any other magic user.

The fact that I haven’t gone dark with my gifts is the only thing saving him right now.

I’ve worked hard over the years to keep my magic pure.

I’m not about to taint my soul for this asshole.

I settle for punching him in the face.

“Naughty little witch, you really shouldn’t have done that,” Kash snarls, wrapping his arms around me. He twists my wrist behind my back at an awkward angle. I definitely should have gone for magic. I struggle against his hold, but he’s six-foot-something, and he’s stronger than he looks.

He opens a heavy wooden door that squeaks and scratches as it moves before shoving me in first.

I stagger forward, desperately trying to twist out of his hold, but everything goes black.

My hair falls around my face as I wake with a hell of a headache.

Kash is going to regret ever approaching me when I’m done with him. If I was a viler type of witch, I’d suck out every drop of his blood through his pores and each orifice, like his eyes and nose.

However, I’m not sure I want that type of ugliness on my eternal soul.

I’ll reevaluate those feelings, depending on what happens next. The painful throb that rips through my temple as my eyes flutter open does make me vaguely consider it again.

The low, echoing tone of chanting draws my attention to a few feet away. Kash kneels in a red pentagram that I’m pretty sure he drew with my blood.

That asshole.

The tune of summoning, combined with the flickering of candles, points to the fact this day has taken a turn for the worse.

“Malice, I beseech you,” Kash says before continuing his lovely moaning and mumbling to call a motherfucking demon.

My mind races as I try to figure out how the hell I messed up so badly. This isn’t good. My head rolls around as I try to formulate an escape plan. It needs to be easily accomplished, and it needs to happen now, which isn’t looking so hot.

I’m seeing double and my vision is blurry.

The pounding in my skull doesn’t help with thinking rationally.

My chest rises and falls in rapid movements as ice seems to slide through my veins.

Trying to stay quiet, I suck in a shallow breath.

If he notices I’m awake, then he might try to knock me out again.

Being conscious might give me the opportunity to save myself.

Demons in the human realm are one thing. They have incentive to play by the rules and behave, so they won’t get sent back to Hell. Those who are summoned are a completely different story. They’re still essentially feral, or that’s what I’ve heard.

I’m in real trouble here. No one knows I’m with him. He’s part of the council that investigates supernatural crimes. If I go missing, then they could theoretically assign him to my case. Yeah, it’s no great wonder there why it would never be solved.

My only hope is that Nan is seeing this. Once the conflict with Emerson settles down, I’m sure she’ll send someone to save me. She might be having a vision of me right now.

Why the hell didn’t she foresee this happening?

Haven has too much shit going on. Then there’s the fact that seers don’t get to choose their visions or what’s shown to them. It really is a terrible magic to have.

No matter how dark the price I’ll have to pay, I won’t allow myself to be a prize exchanged to a demon for immortality.

Witches and warlocks aren’t meant to live for an eternity. It’s too long of a life, and our powers grow out of control, corrupting the mind. The more I think on it, the likelier it seems this isn’t Kash’s first summoning.

“How many lives have you traded to keep that youthful exterior?” I croak. Damn, my mouth is dry, and my throat aches with even that short question.

Crap, I was supposed to stay covert and plan my escape. Why does everything feel muted and fuzzy?

My shadows form around me, soaking up every drop of my spilled blood.

Confusion rattles around my throbbing brain as I try to determine how this is going to work.

My magic reabsorbs any blood I spill and converts it into energy.

So, if Kash is summoning a demon, as I suspect he is, then I have no idea how he managed to keep my blood solid without it dissipating into shadow.

I work with dyes to keep the nature of my magic a secret, but the mixture always has to be used immediately. Maybe that’s what he did—used my blood, mixed with dye, to draw the summoning circle.

I have no idea. There isn’t much accessible information about blood witches these days. Theoretically, he could know something I don’t.

The echoing pop of a portal being opened startles me out of my thoughts. My eyes fly to the glowing white disruption. The smoky red-and-black rings that line the inside indicate that it is, indeed, a portal to Hell.

Crap!

I blink a few times, hoping it’s my fuzzy vision and brain fogginess making me see things that aren’t really there.

Nope.

It’s definitely a portal to Hell.

My luck really isn’t great lately.

I’m not sure what I’ve done to offend the universe or the powers that be, but I’ll be so repentant if I survive this.

I’ll be a perfect fertility witch. I won’t grumble when I get calls to help some poor female wolf get pregnant.

I won’t complain when an ancient fae asks me to patch up his elderly sperm.

I’ll be gleeful in every job necessary to populate the supernatural world.

The first being to exit the portal is nothing more than a smoky mass of dark shadows, and a shiver runs down my spine.

I recognize immediately that it’s a nightmare.

I’ve never seen one in person, but I’ve read about them. Nightmares feed off the fear and guilt of those around them. Nan gave me a book when I was studying supernaturals in high school, and it said that nightmare demons are feared even among their own kind.

“Well, isn’t this quite the intriguing find,” the demon says in a dark, raspy tone that makes goose bumps break out all over my skin. He seems like the kind of monster to play with his food before making the kill.

My fingers dig into the uneven wooden arms of the chair that I’m tied to. Yeah, things went from questionable, to bad, to really terrible in the blink of an eye.

“High Lord Malice,” Kash says in a sniveling tone that makes me wish I could vomit on his shoes on command.

“Seriously? Ohmigod, I’m embarrassed for you at this point,” I mutter as my head rolls around. Did he drug me while I was out? That must be why it’s practically impossible to keep my head up straight.

“You look like shit, little witch.” The demon floats closer. A dark, clawed hand appears, and he turns my face from side to side. “Kash, my friend. I’ve got to say, I think you fucked up big time here, buddy.”

“We’re not friends,” Kash says in a much stronger tone. “I summoned you. You’re under my control.”

“I can assure you, no man rules over me,” Malice says with a hint of humor. Looking at me, he says, “No female, except one and, sorry, little witch, that’s not you either.” He boops my nose, glancing back to the portal. “They’ll be along shortly. I don’t know what detained them.”

“No problem,” I mutter as he releases my face. Kash drugged me. I’m almost certain of it. “You’re lucky I’m not sucking every drop of your blood out your eye sockets, you slimy piece of shit.” I glare at Kash, so he knows I’m talking to him.

“Of course, you’re feisty,” the demon says, laughing heartily.

The portal flickers as if it might close, but two huge demons come hurtling through at the last possible moment.

“Ahh, you made it,” Malice says, chuckling darkly. “Let the party begin.”