Page 35 of Virgil's Demons

The demon. It had found her.

"No," I whispered, my voice barely audible as I looked down at her, fear now coiling around my heart.

My heart raced, a wild, frantic beat that made my chest ache. I couldn't lose her. Not to this. Not to that fucking thing.

"She's still breathing," Saddle said, his voice hoarse. "But barely. We need to get her help, Virgil."

I couldn't take my eyes off her, My hands hovering over the slash wounds on her chest. The demon had marked her, it had been toying with her, and I had been too damn blind to see it until now.

I leaned down, brushing a thumb across her cheek as if that could somehow ground her, pull her back to me. She stirred slightly, a small moan escaping her lips, but it was weak, too weak.

She's weak, Virgil. Too weak to fight me off.

I froze, my hand halfway to her forehead. The voice was cold, slick, and filled with malice. The demon. It was inside her.

I'll tear her apart, limb by limb, while you watch. There's nothing you can do.

"No," I growled under my breath. "You won't touch her."

The demon laughed, a low, guttural sound that echoed in my skull.

You think you can stop me? You're just as weak as she is.

I clenched my jaw, trying to block out the harsh demonic sound, but it was grating inside the walls of my head, getting stronger. I felt something cold and heavy settle over my shoulders, like the shroud of death itself.

And then it was there. Death. The specter I thought I had shaken off after our last encounter. But it wasn't done with me—not yet. Its skeletal form loomed over me, silent but somehow more present than the chaos around us. I didn't even have to look up to know it was there.

"You," I hissed through gritted teeth, trying to keep my voice low so Saddle wouldn't notice the shift. "What do you want?"

Death's voice was a low whisper, only for me. "You know what I want, Virgil. I'm here to give you a choice. Save her… or let her go."

I cursed under my breath. "I already told you to stay the fuck away from us."

"You can't save her on your own," it continued, its voice cold and indifferent. "She's too far gone. You either accept my help, or she's lost. And if I leave… the demon will take her. It's already begun."

"Virgil!" Saddle's voice broke through the haze in my head, pulling me back to the present. "We gotta move her, man. We can't leave her out here."

I nodded, forcing myself to focus. "Seal the clubhouse, no one gets in."

"What?" he asked. "She needs a hospital."

"Just do what I ask!" I shouted to him as I lifted her into my arms.

Saddle gratefully didn't continue to fight me on. Maybe it was the desperate look on my face or the stifling sense of fear, but he didn't question it again. He just moved, helping me lift Barythaya's limp body. Her convulsions had stopped, but that wasn't a good sign. It was almost like she'd gone still, too still. Her skin was cold, and her pulse was faint. The demon was inside her,controllingher.

Together, we ran across the trail and into the back of the clubhouse. Saddle ordered the prospects outside to clear the area. No one got back in or out.

He then slammed the door shut and looked at me, his face pale. "You sure about this?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm sure. Now go with them. All of you are to stay away. No matter what happens in here, you stay away," I warned.

Without another word, he stepped back, shutting the door behind him and leaving me completely alone with her and with the demon who had taken hold of her.

The room was quiet, eerily so, the air heavy with an unnatural chill. I turned back to Barythaya, my heart hammering in my chest. But she wasn't convulsing anymore. She was sitting up, her head tilted to the side, her lips contorted into a strange smile.

"Virgil," she purred, her voice different, sultry, teasing. "You came for me."

Something was off. The way she moved, the way she smiled—it wasn't her.

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