Part 3 (2/2)

”Perhaps. In any case, I long for my own corpus. We shall step into the void together so you can have your friend back and I can have myself back. I must say, I do not envy him your company, as I know you will probably just toy with his emotions again; but it is his choice to continue on his fruitless and hopeless journey to your heart. I shall worry about it no longer.”

My mouth dropped open at his nerve. ”You know ... you are a seriously insulting vampire. I don't see where you get off judging me like that.”

”I am but an observer. You do as you wish. Spike's heart is there for you to cherish or destroy, at your leisure.”

I shook my head, speechless. This guy was a total t.u.r.d. He must have been sent to the Underworld as punishment for giving out torturous, h.e.l.lacious guilt trips. I wondered if maybe he hadn't been a math teacher or something in his last life.

He moved away from my tree, going in the direction Tim had flown. I stepped out from behind my shelter and followed him.

CHAPTER NINE.

THE MORE WE WALKED, THE closer we got to the Ancient - the tree that was Maggie's home. My mind was going a million miles an hour, trying to figure out how she might be involved in all of this or if she even was. The smell of sulfur sometimes faded and occasionally got stronger, but it never fully went away.

I wondered if sulfur and brimstone were the same thing. That would mean dragons had the whole fire and brimstone thing going on, and it probably also meant I didn't want to see one while I was here. They had only been about as big as sheepdogs back in Ben's room, but with a stink this powerful, I was worried what that might mean when seeing one in person. A hallucination was one thing; a live dragon was something else entirely.

We entered the clearing that surrounded Maggie's house. Tim was there in the center of it, hovering about ten feet up in the air.

”Tim, what are you doing up there?”

”Jayne, stop! Don't come any closer!”

I took one more step, but Spike's arm came out to keep me from going any farther.

”What's up?” I asked him.

”I believe your friend is being held in a suspension spell.”

”He's right!” yelled a very annoyed Tim. ”Some idget put a spell over this spot and clipped my wings.” He struggled against invisible bonds, growling out his words as he twisted and bent over to try and free himself. ”When I get out of this, someone's going to be very sorry, that's all I have to say. b.u.t.ts are gonna get pixied, eyes are gonna get poked, and noses are gonna feel the wrath of my son's polly b.a.l.l.s!”

I tried not to laugh at his predicament, but it was really hard. He looked like he was having a midair seizure.

”Ha, ha, laugh all you want, Lellamental. I hope you'll bring some flowers to my funeral.”

”You're not going to die,” I said, brus.h.i.+ng off his fears as I searched the immediate area for a solution to our problem.

”Oh yeah? What do you think they have a suspension spell around here for? Giggles? To trap potential Scrabble players for their next game? No! They do this to capture their next meal or their next victim. I'm going down, I tell you! Down and very possibly in flames!” He was working himself into a serious lather up there, making me worried one of us was going to get pixied. It reminded me that Spike was supposed to already be pixied. But he was suspiciously without dance moves or laughter.

”Hey, what happened to your pixelation? How come you're not laughing and dancing the night way?”

”Pixie dust doesn't work down here like it works where you are from. Pixies are not normal pixies here.”

I looked at Tim, squinting to see him better. ”He looks the same to me. Little head. Little b.u.t.t. s.h.i.+ny wings. Decent hair. Huge ego. Yeah. That's definitely still Tim up there.”

”He may be now. But eventually, if he stays, he will not be.”

Spike's words were super chilling. ”What will he be?” I whispered.

”A nasty little creature you do not want to meet. Let us get him down out of that trap and get you into the void. Nothing good can come of you and him being where you should not be.”

”What about you? I mean, Spike? I want my friend back.”

”And so you shall have him. I will come through with you long enough to put things to rights. I have seen what I needed to see.”

”What's that supposed to mean?” I looked at him accusingly.

I got no answer, but Tim had no problem weighing in.

”He's a spy! Don't trust him, Jayne. Stay away from him. He's a demon and there's no such thing as a good demon!”

The imposter spoke to Tim now. ”That may be true, but it is not true to say that everyone here has the same goal in mind. I have worked almost a thousand years to get back to the Here and Now for another chance at a good life, and I will do nothing to endanger this opportunity, even if some say my concern is no longer necessary.”

”Whoa. Who's saying that?” I asked. ”Is it Torrie?”

”Torrie. Others. I pay them no heed. I do what I must for my own future. They do what they must for theirs. We do not work well as teams or partners in the Underworld, generally speaking.”

”Well, that's good to know,” I said. ”Less chance of them succeeding if they can't group together.”

”I said, generally speaking. Do not misunderstand me. Torrie is a formidable force here, and he is quite determined. It is amazing, really, what a very determined demon is capable of accomplis.h.i.+ng with the right group of like-minded individuals at his side.”

”Pfft. You're telling me. The guy is a friggin psychopath.”

”He truly believes he belongs in the Here and Now, living as he believes he is ent.i.tled.”

A s.h.i.+ver ran up my spine at Spike's words. I had to repeat them, just to be completely sure he meant what I was afraid he did. ”Did you say, he belongs in the Here and Now?”

”That is his belief. I am not sure who agrees with him, but I gather it is not an insignificant number.”

”Who decides that? I mean, where Torrie belongs?”

”No one knows. Perhaps it is the Spirit. There is a judgment and the person is sent to one Otherworld or the other. But Torrie claims the judgment was not correct in his case. That there was ... tomfoolery involved.”

”So he's a conspiracy nut,” I said, summarizing as best I could while still being nearly in the dark about all the players and how things worked between the realms.

Spike shrugged. ”It is a matter of opinion. I have none where he is concerned.” He turned his head towards Tim. ”Pixie ... how did you become ensnared?”

”I was flying up to Maggie's door - the door in the tree - when I felt a noose slip around my waist. And here I am. Strung up like a goose ready to be plucked for a feast. And can I say for the record that being hung like this with dragons sneaking around ... it's not fun, okay? It's not fun at all. Someone needs to get me down from here and on-the-double. I can smell lizard b.a.l.l.s getting closer every minute.”

My throat closed up a little, making it hard for me to draw a breath. My gaze swept the forest floor around me and out in the distance, hoping if there was a dragon around that I'd see it first before it saw me.

”What are you looking for?” asked Spike, watching me with a quizzical expression.

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