Inner Demons

42. Aerden

"No!" Jackson shouted. He pulled against his chains so hard, I could see the veins in his arms begin to strain. "Leave her alone."

I scrambled backwards toward the wall, but Arnold made a quick move to intercept me.

Isaac stood there, staring at the dagger. He had this wild gleam in his eye.

"We've found the Prima."

"But how can we know if she's Peachville's Prima or not?" Mary asked. "Morgyn's blood turned blue for a moment when I stabbed her too, but she didn't belong here. She belonged to another demon gate."

"Killing any Prima is a victory," Isaac said. "Because of Morgyn, an entire line of witches might someday die out, taking all of their demons with them."

I listened to them talk, but my heart pounded so loud in my ears I could barely process what they were saying. They knew who I was. They were going to kill me.

I looked to Jackson. He was staring at me. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," I mouthed to him.

He shook his head, then looked away.

I'd really managed to make a mess of this whole evening.

"Pick her up," Isaac said. "Put her on the operating table."

Mary and Arnold each grabbed one of my arms and lifted me up into the air. I kicked and tried to pull away, but I was no match for the two of them. They placed me on top of the cold metal operating table in the middle of the room. Isaac held the silver dagger in front of my face.

"This dagger is made of a special silver that is only found in the shadow world," he said. "It's the only thing that can kill a demon, but it works just fine on witches too."

He lifted the dagger high into the air.

I moaned and tried to pull away, but Mary and Arnold held me down. No matter how hard I kicked, I couldn't get any leverage against them.

My eyes darted around the room, searching desperately for a weapon. The rolling cart I'd moved earlier was positioned just behind where Isaac stood. On top of it were several different kinds of sharp medical instruments.

I calmed myself and closed my eyes. I needed to create a connection to the earth. Despite the panic rising up inside of me, I had to find a way to connect to my inner power.

A sliver of energy began to hum through my body. It started deep in my belly, then spread across my arms and down toward my toes. I opened my eyes and concentrated on a pair of shiny scissors that lay on top of the cart. With my mind, I lifted them into the air, even with the back of Isaac's neck. Just as he made a motion to bring the dagger down toward my heart, I sent the scissors flying toward his flesh.

He screamed in pain, then dropped the knife. It fell and pierced my shoulder. I screamed. I could feel the warmth of my blood as it trickled down onto the operating table, soaking my t-shirt. Isaac stumbled backward, then yanked the scissors from his neck. From what I could see, he was bleeding even worse than I was. He sank to his knees, then collapsed on the floor.

Mary and Arnold both rushed to Isaac's side. As soon as they released me, I pulled the dagger from my shoulder and sat up. Dizziness threatened to overcome me, but I willed myself to stay awake.

Arnold stood and lunged forward, reaching for the dagger in my hand. I plunged it deep into his gut. He fell to the floor next to Isaac, clutching his stomach.

I stood and ran toward Jackson, but Mary sent a ball of fire streaking across the room toward me. It barely missed me and struck the wall of cabinets on the far side of the room.

I felt my sapphire pendant grow warm against my skin. I remembered the shadow demon who had come to my aid the night Agnes tried to kill me. I ducked behind a gurney and clutched the pendant in my hand.

Please, help me again.

The fire from Mary's blast spread slowly. The walls were cinder-block, but most of the cabinetry was made of wood.

I stood, ready to fight.

On the other side of the room, Mary pulled the silver dagger from Arnold's dead body. Her eyes were fixed on Jackson. Panic rose up within me like a tidal wave. She was closer to him.

"Harper, run," Jackson called.

I couldn't leave him there. Through the growing smoke, I searched for a weapon. The medical cart was blocked by the operating table, and nothing within arm's reach seemed to be sufficient.

Except the fire itself.

I didn't know how to create a fireball, but I did know how to move things with my mind. I focused on the wall of fire. I'd moved water before, so I thought of the fire in the same way. The flames danced and writhed as one, moving toward the center cabinet to create one giant wall of flame. I held out my hand to direct its movement. Just as I prepared to send it in Mary's direction, a blast of cool air pushed the doors of the operating room wide open.

A swirl of darkened shadow moved into the room. I recognized the demon from before and instantly felt my own power surge to new heights.

Mary screamed. She looked from Jackson to the new demon, fear and hatred in her eyes. She lifted the dagger as if trying to decide which demon to go for first.

The shadow demon moved forward. I could feel its energy pulsing through me, and I soaked it in, unsure whether to help or stand back and watch. Then, suddenly, the demon stopped. The smokey darkness of it took shape, and I could see its eyes. He was staring straight at Jackson with an expression I couldn't quite read.

Jackson shook his head, his eyes thick with tears. "Aerden."

The demon's name sent a shiver through my body. The earth seemed to turn in slow motion. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. Mary lunged toward Jackson, the silver dagger raised high.

With my hand, I pushed the flames across the room like a giant orange wave. The swelling fire arched high over my head, then crashed down on top of Mary, pushing her to her knees. I shielded my face from the heat as her body slowly turned to ash.

The ritual dagger fell to the ground with a loud clang.

Along with the flame, the shadow demon faded away and turned to nothing more than lingering smoke.

I rushed to Jackson's side and placed my hand on the shackle that held his left wrist. The lock inside obeyed me and flipped open. My arm throbbed. I had lost a lot of blood.

I used the last of my energy to free his other hand, then collapsed into Jackson's arms.