A Glow of Stars & Dusk by Eve L. Mitchell

I jumpedto my feet a moment after Sam did. He looked at me before he slowly reached forward and picked up the parchment. “You need to stay with me,” he told me carefully as my eyes followed the parchment as he folded it and then tucked it away in his tunic. “Do not stray from my side, witch, I need you to stick beside me.” He glanced at the walls as the cottage shook again. “I cannot carry you this time, you must stay close.”

“Okay.” I looked at him as he reached out his hand to motion me forward. “Or, you know, you could go out there, and I could just stay in here. Out of your way.”

Sam looked at me, and a small smile hovered around his lips. “You come outside with me, where I can keep an eye on you.” The others came through the door into the kitchen. They had their weapons out and ready, with everyone except Chaz having their hood drawn over their head. “Where we can keep an eye on you.”

“I’m hardly a flight risk,” I muttered as I watched them. Zel was already at the window, looking out as Ros stood beside him as he went about tightening his weapons on his body.

“They could be here for you,” Chaz told me as he stepped up beside me, his hand running lightly over my shoulder in a gesture of comfort.

“What is it?” I asked Chaz quietly. “What’s out there?”

“Stay close to me,” Sam barked with a hard look at Chaz.

“I have her,” he told Sam.

Sam looked at him for a long moment, and my head swivelled between the two of them as I tried to understand their unspoken communication. Chaz dropped his gaze first, and I noticed Pen let out a small sigh. I looked at him in question, and he also looked away from me. What was going on?

“Guys?” I asked as I looked at all of them. Only Zel would look at me, and his look was one of scorn.

“They’ve surrounded the house,” Der told them. “Who’s carrying the witch?”

“The witch can walk,” I snapped at him. Hound padded into the kitchen and looked at everyone gathered and then at me. With a look of contempt for us all, he walked out through the kitchen door into the garden.

“Did everyone else know that the hellhound can walk through the solid doors?” I asked curiously. I wasn’t going to lie, it was some totally freaky shit to witness it.

Zel grinned at me and then followed Hound.

Without opening the door.

“Are you freaking kidding me?” I asked in disbelief. I heard one of them chuckle, and before Der could follow Zel, Sam opened the door wide.

“Witch, with me,” he ordered.

I was so close to denying him, but Chaz placed a hand on the small of my back and gave me a gentle nudge. With a rueful look over my shoulder to Chaz, I walked forward to Sam. He was frowning at me, and I fought the urge to stick my tongue out at him.

“What does pytherissum mean?” I asked him as I drew up beside him.

Sam glanced at me once, his eyes already taking on a faint green glow, and he flashed his teeth at me before he turned away. “Witch.”

Of course it did, I thought to myself as I followed the demons out of my kitchen and into the back garden. My feet wouldn’t move me any further though. I stopped dead two steps from my kitchen door and stared into the fields beyond the cottage.

I felt a hand brush against mine, but my eyes would not be moved from the sight before me. The ringing in my ears was so loud I startled when Sam suddenly appeared in front of me.

“I don’t have time for your panic attack,” he told me crossly.

My eyes blinked rapidly as I looked at him, trying to focus on him whilst also trying to look over his shoulder and see what awaited us beyond my simple low-level stone dyke. “Sam?”

“Okay, you can hear me.” He looked almost relieved. “Did I tell you to stay with me?”

“Huh?” I tore my eyes off of the fields and looked at him in confusion. “Are you serious? We’re still in my garden! Can you see them?” I demanded as I pointed past him.

Sam glanced behind him. “You’re being hysterical.”

My mouth hung open. I was being hysterical? I was being hysterical? My mouth closed with a snap, and pulling my arm back, I punched him solidly on the upper arm. He didn’t even move. “Of course I’m hysterical, you stupid flipping ridiculous demon. There is an army of fucking Scavengers in the fields behind my home. An army, Sam.”

“I know.” He shook his head, looking at me with a frown. “I told you to stay with me, I didn’t say loiter behind me and gape into the field like a goldfish, did I?”

My eyes closed for a moment as I counted futilely to ten. When I opened them, he was looking at me with even more impatience, if that was possible. “I’m going with Chaz,” I declared as I marched past him.

I was scooped up off my feet and deposited behind Sam with a grunt. “You stay behind me, little witch, or I’ll give you to Zel.”

My eyes snapped to Zel, who turned his head and met my worried stare. He grinned at me, and I was suddenly perfectly okay to press closer into Sam. “That was mean,” I mumbled as I slipped my hand into his leather strappings that kept his weapons in place.

“You have to be cruel to be kind,” Sam said quietly.

“What’s the plan?” I asked as I looked into the surrounding fields. “Can you protect yourself if you have to worry about me?” I let go of him as I pulled my blonde hair back into a ponytail. I looked down at myself in despair. “I’m in my jammies for Christ’s sake.”

“He doesn’t care what you’re wearing.” Sam nodded towards the field. “Neither do they.”

“Did you change me?” I asked, realising I should have asked him earlier.

Sam glanced at me before he started walking forward. “Is that a problem?”

“Yes?”

“You don’t sound too sure, little witch,” he said with a smirk.

“I am sure,” I told him with an irritated sigh. “But you’re right,” I added begrudgingly. “There is a time and a place for that particular conversation.”

Sam stopped and looked down at me. “I’m right? Did you just say that I am right?”

“Shut up.”

“Der?”

“Heard.” Der grinned at me.

“Ros?” Sam called to the blond demon while he watched me with what I would describe on anyone else’s face as glee; on Sam it was amusement...maybe. Even then, I could be pushing it.

“Heard,” Ros said with a laugh in his voice. I narrowed my eyes at the back of the Viking demon, who faced the field with two curved blades in his hands.

“Pen?”

“Okay fine!” I yelled. “Fine! I get it, they all heard me say you were right, fine.” I glared at all of them before looking back to the dangerously dark demon in front of me. “Happy now?”

He gave me his cocky smirk and turned back to the army in front of us. “Wouldn’t say I was happy, more…vindicated.”

“Vindicated?” I shook my head. “Only I would get a demon with a superiority complex.”

Sam snorted as he listened to my mumblings. “Quiet now and listen,” he instructed me as he became serious again. “You must stay within arm’s reach of me at all times.” He drew his own two swords, and I had no idea where they came from. He reached behind him to his empty back, and then they were in his hands. “You are safer when beside me, they cannot touch you. If they touch you, I may not get you back. Do you understand?”

“Back from where?” I asked fearfully.

“Don’t worry about things you cannot change or what may be, worry only about what is in front of you.”

“There are hundreds of Scavengers in front of me, Sam,” I said quietly. “I’m already worried.”

He turned to consider me again. “If you know where your powers were bound, now would be the best time to tell me.”

My look must have conveyed my thoughts to him, as he turned again with a huff of annoyance.

“What are they waiting for?” I asked curiously as I noticed the Scavengers weren’t advancing, they were just standing there.

“We need to leave this ground before they can move,” Chaz told me quietly.

“They can’t come into the garden?” I asked hopefully.

“No,” Sam confirmed.

“Then why are we going out?” I looked between the two of them. “If they cannot come in, why would we leave?”

“Your wards are fading,” Chaz explained. “The longer we stay in here, the more they drain.”

“Then leave.” It was out before I could stop myself. “Leave me here. I’m safe here.”

“How selfish of you,” Zel griped.

“I never asked the six of you to come to me,” I bit out viciously. “You invaded my home. Remember?” I took a step back from Sam. “I still don’t know why.” My gaze travelled over the Scavengers. “How do I know I’m not better off with them?”

“She’s an idiot,” Zel said loudly, seemingly aimed at no one.

“Go back to hell,” I snarled at him.

“Enough.” Sam scowled at me. “We’re here now, we’re going nowhere without you. As soon as I unbind you, you do the spell, we leave.”

“You leave me as soon as I do the spell?” I asked as I chewed my lip, my mind was racing.

“Yes.”

“Even though I can’t read the jumbled script?”

“You will,” he answered with a confidence that I wasn’t feeling.

I looked to the Scavengers again and then at the six demons on my lawn. I closed my eyes as my foot tapped in agitation as I considered the possibilities.

“Why are you twitching?” Der asked me.

“I’m thinking.”

“Looks painful for you,” Zel said snidely. “Can we go fight now? This is taking too long.”

“What are you thinking?” Chaz asked me softly.

I opened my eyes and looked into his bright blue eyes and smiled at his quiet but obvious concern. “I’m trying to remember.”

“Who bound you?” Sam asked as he gave me his full attention.

“Yes.”

“And?”

“I think,” I started reluctantly, “that it may have been my dad.”

“Why?” Chaz asked me as he glanced at Sam.

“When I was little, I used to see the dead and talk to the dead, but one day, dad asked me to close my eyes and think happy thoughts so that when I opened my eyes, they would be gone.”

“What does little mean?” Ros asked Der in a whisper which we all heard. “She’s little now?”

“Younger! I mean when I was younger,” I told him as I rubbed my eyes. “Maybe I did this to myself?” I looked up at Sam. “Is it possible?”

“Pen?” Sam asked as he considered me.

“Possible but unlikely,” Pen told us. “Closing your eyes and wishing what’s in front of you will go away is not the same as removing yourself from your powers.”

“You think your father bound you?” Sam asked me quietly.

“No.” I sighed loudly. “No, dad doesn’t like what I do on the side, but he wouldn’t do this.” I looked back to the fields. “If we go out the front door, will they know?”

“As soon as we take a step off this land, they will try to overwhelm us,” Zel told me.

“And we can’t stay?” I asked again. Four of them shook their heads. “And you can’t leave without me?”

“Is it just your own voice you like to listen to?” Zel grumped as he turned back from me. “You’re merely repeating what we have already told you.”

“I’m thinking.”

“You make too much noise thinking.” Zel’s head rolled on his shoulders as he spoke.

“I have a van,” I ploughed on before anyone could interrupt me. “If we were to go out front, would you go in the van and would we be able to leave them behind?”

“Go where?” Sam asked as he turned his full attention on me.

“I think my mum might know more than I do.”

“I thought it was your dad?” Pen questioned me.

“Dad wouldn’t know how, my mum would.” I licked my lips. “I need to talk to my mum.”

“Three can stay, three can go,” Der said, looking at Sam.

“You can’t fight them with only three of you,” I protested as I looked at them all.

“Chaz, Zel, with me,” Sam said sharply. He nodded to Der and headed back towards the kitchen, leaving me staring after him.

“Move, witch,” Zel growled as he passed me.

“Why can’t he stay?” I whispered furiously to Chaz as we followed the others into the cottage. I turned back to Pen, Der and Ros. “You’ll be okay?” I looked past them to the throng beyond the wall.

“Don’t get soft on us,” Ros said to me with a wink. “We’re keeping your pet hound though.”

Hound growled low in his throat as he turned his attention to the blond demon.

“Be careful, of yourselves and Hound.” I hastened into the cottage when I heard Sam demand where I was. “I’m here! I need to change.” I quickly walked past him, and he caught my arm.

“Why?”

“Because grown women don’t go traversing over the countryside with their pyjamas on.”

“More delays,” Zel complained as he looked forlornly out of the window.

“You can go play with the shark mouth demons, I’m perfectly fine with you staying behind.”

“Enough,” Sam cut off Zel’s angry retort. “Watch the others. Chaz, you too. I’ll take this one to change.”

“This one can manage to take her clothes off just fine,” I yelled over my shoulder as I hurried to my bedroom, closing the door firmly behind me.

Five minutes later, I was in jeans, a thick long-sleeved T-shirt and a simple black hoodie over it. I grabbed my black padded jacket and was putting it on even as I opened the door to find Sam standing in the hallway.

“Scared I climbed out the window?” I asked him as I sorted my hood.

“Scared you wouldn’t.” His smirk made me laugh as he called out to Chaz and Zel, and the four of us gathered around my front door.

“When we leave, you stay with me, get to the van, then drive like hell is chasing you,” Sam told me seriously.

“I know.” I nodded. Then I looked at the three demons with suspicion. “Wait, aren’t you hell?”

“Semantics.” Zel grabbed my arm and flung the door open. “Be ready to run!” he told me firmly as he pushed me out of the cottage and I braced myself for all hell to break loose.

I ran across the grass to the beat-up minivan, and it was only when I was in it that I realised that the front of the cottage was clear of Scavengers. The doors slamming told me the three demons were in the van with me, and my foot pressed down on the accelerator.

Just as quickly, my foot slammed on the brake, and even as we all lurched forward, I stared in open-mouthed shock at what stood in front of the minivan.

Ruairidh.