Page 42 of Blood of Night (The Thorne Hill)

“Then you need to help me snap us out of this so we can go on with our lives. You can have a life like this. Hell, you can stop hunting demons and get a boring job working for the Mayor of Thorne Hill if you wanted. I can put in a good word.”

Easton lets out a snort of laughter, and his lips pull into a half smile. He starts to say something and then doubles over, hand going to his forehead.

“Easton!” I jump to my feet and stand in front of him, pushing him back so he doesn’t pitch forward. The same pain radiates through my skull again, and something burns around my wrists.

I blink and I see what’s around me—really around me. I’m lying on my back in the woods. The sky is darkening and the smell of pond scum fills my nose. It’s familiar and if I can look around just a second longer I can place it—

“Callie?” Easton blinks open his eyes and looks up at me. “What are you doing?” His eyes have glossed over again and his face is losing color. “Don’t you have to get ready for work?”

“Did you forget?” I ask, taking a step back.

“Forget what?” He grunts as he gets up, moving as if it takes great effort. “It’s not our anniversary yet.” He takes a step and falters. I reach out, wrapping my fingers around his arm to help steady him. He’s cold and clammy to the touch.

Oh shit.

Easton—wherever he is—is dying.

ChapterNineteen

This is a nightmare.

A true, real nightmare that will keep playing over and over and over until there’s nothing left and our brains can’t dream anymore.

“I’ll see you after work,” I say, fighting to keep my voice calm. Struggling not to run and alarm Easton, who’s too weak to fight through the charade now, I pinch myself as I go down the stairs. It hurts, confusing me even more. There are demons who can attack in your sleep, and others who can put you to sleep and bring you into their world where they can torture and hurt you to the point of never waking up.

“Come on, Callie,” I whisper to myself. “Now would be a good time for one of those annoyingly heroic plans.” If something is watching us, orchestrating the whole thing, then I need to act the part. I plug in my coffee pot as my mind whirls. The smell of the wet earth beneath me was familiar, and there aren’t too many wetland areas like that in Thorne Hill. Not ones that don’t dry up in the summer or aren’t in someone’s backyard.

There were trees above me and everything was overgrown. But how did we get there? We were in my yard, going to the Covenstead and then…then I can’t remember anything else other than a weird looking tree and Easton touching the ring.

“I just wish you could see what your life would have been like, Callie.”

Oh shit. I think we’re dealing with a djinn. They’re rare, though not rare enough not to have heard about them at the Academy. They trick you into making wishes and bring you into a dream-like trance where everything plays out. And while you’re lying there unconscious, they’re slowly draining your blood and your aura.

They can sometimes get cocky and involve themselves in a vision, wanting to twist things as necessary to keep the “wish” true. And if I can find the djinn, I can kill it.

Letting out a shaky breath, I get a mug down from the cabinet and drum my fingers on the counter as I wait for the coffee to brew. Somehow, I got stuck in Easton’s wish, even though it wasn’t a real wish at all. I’m going to get us out of it. How? I have no fucking clue, but I have to get out.

Lucas needs me.

Juliet is waiting for me.

And I refuse to die a slow death at the hands of a fucking genie.

Once just enough coffee is brewed to fill a to-go mug, I pour some and head out. I still have my Jeep, and the keys are hanging up on the coatrack by the back door. I fire up the engine and start driving into town, telling myself I’ll figure it out as I go. As soon as I pass the one and only nail salon in Thorne Hill, it hits me.

The bad smell isn’t just from pond scum. It’s from the hog farm on the opposite side of town. It’s secluded and the smell of the hogs is enough to keep most young kids from wandering around the property. Which makes it the perfect place for demons to drag their victims—as I’ve discovered before.

Pressing the gas pedal down harder, I speed through town, blow through two stop lights and pick up speed once I get out of the downtown area. Thorne Hill isn’t a big town in the sense of population, but with all the farmland, it’s going to take a while to get to the hog farm. I don’t stop until I’m by the barn where the organ-harvesting demon took Danielle. Putting the Jeep in park, I get out and race forward, throwing open the door and stepping into the barn.

“Can I help you?” A woman quickly stands, picking up a bucket of milk from under a cow. She looks startled, not that I can blame her.

“I’m, sorry, I…” I trail off, tipping my head as I look at the woman. Her hair is different and she’s not wearing the thick rimmed glasses. But it’s her: Nelly. The secretary at the publishing house and then the librarian.

She’s the fucking djinn.

“Oh my God. It’s you.”

The djinn takes a step back, trying to act scared, but she drops the act pretty fast and eyes me curiously. “It’s been a while since I’ve come across one as strong willed as you.”

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