Page 110 of Deck of Scarlets

That’s not good. How is anyone going to know we arrived? Anxiety prickled my skin.

Whatever happens, do not leave my side. Josh finished polishing the tip of his arrow, walking over to Emilia. “What’s the plan?”

She gave up then, storing the pager back on her person. “We’re here now. Might as well scope the area. Silas and Jules, you take the rear. Cillian and I will take the second building over. Can you handle the first one on your own?” She looked over at me, then back to Josh.

“Is it wise to split up?” he questioned.

“Considering we’re not that far apart, we should be okay,” noted Cillian, eyeing him like a pesky bug.

I was surprised Josh didn’t fight harder on the matter, and he motioned for me to go first. “Lead the way, Rem.”

Removing my dagger, I gripped the sleek pommel and took a deep breath, walking with my chin held high but anxiety not too far behind.

I slid the wide doors open to a three-story abandoned factory building, revealing old machines and empty boxes filled with shriveled peanut packing material scattered in every direction. Our steps were strategic, keeping close as we traveled further in, finding the first set of stairs.

Josh positioned his arrow while he looked up from the bottom step, judging how far it went. I’ll go first.

He led the way up the winding staircase, bow and arrow aimed, ready to release at any moment. My heart raced with each step I took; the higher we got, the faster my heart pumped, the air becoming thinner, and the dust kicking up at our feet.

Josh signaled to everyone through his earpiece that we had made it to the top floor with no sign of demon activity.

Olemaks leave a burnt smell, like rotting flesh, explained Josh.

That’s concerning. How are we going to tell the difference between an Olemak and a victim burning alive?

We pray it’s the former.

I was about to ask another question when the iron stairs began to rattle underneath our feet. We stood frozen in time, waiting for the rumbling to stop. In the distance came a laugh, making the hair on my arms stand, my neck prickling with fear. It sounded so human-like that I wondered if I misheard, mistaking it for our other squad members.

Josh grabbed my arm. “It’s not an Olemak nest.”

I gave him a confused look. “What do you mean?”

“We just walked right into the hive of an Azroneg.” The fear in his eyes scared me.

Azroneg? “Dare I ask?” I kept my voice low, scanning the area, wondering when it’d make its presence known.

“A trickster demon.”

Pressing his finger to his earpiece, the following words out of his mouth made my skin crawl.

“I don’t know how long we have.” Josh was talking as if we would fall into our graves any minute.

“Where is it coming from?” I asked, scanning the area around us. We had limited space on the second floor to fight if the Azroneg decided to attack. I gripped the handle of my dagger and kept it close, watching any unexpected movements from my peripherals.

Josh added a bow to his arrow, aiming over my head. “Whatever you do, don’t look it in the eye.”

“Eye?”

Silence filled the tight space as we waited for it to appear, but only dust swirled, the creaks of the iron stairs protesting as Cillian came into view. “Have you seen it yet?”

“Josh, it’s Cillian,” I said, lowering my weapon.

He shook his head, arrow still aimed. “No, it’s not. He would never leave Emilia by herself.”

I stilled, every inch of my body paralyzed in fear at the realization that the Azroneg, the trickster, stood before us as Cillian. Suddenly, his face contorted, shifting into a skeleton-like demon with a mouth more extensive than a shark, hissing like a cat. One eye, red like the blood that ran through my veins, in the center of its forehead. I quickly averted my eyes to another spot on its hideous figure.

“Remi! Duck!”

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