Page 82 of Ghostly Touches

Willow’s hand drops away. When I look over at her profile, I note the hard press of her mouth. Clearly, we’re not the only ones in pain. I grimace at my stupidity. Why do I hurt everyone that I come in contact with? Before I can say anything else, Willow reaches forward and turns on the radio.

I guess our conversation is over.

* * *

Sleep eludes me still.

An hour later and I’m still staring up at the van’s ceiling. It doesn’t matter how hard I squeeze my eyes shut or how evenly I breathe, sleep remains out of reach. Just as I give up again, Willow gasps.

My feet hit the floor as I look out the windshield. Coming up to an overpass, I see it. Waiting for us is a demon larger than an elephant. Its massive claws dig into the bridge as its blazing red eyes are trained on us. When it opens its mouth, the bottom jaw seems to detach and stretch wider. The rough, grayish-black skin seems to crack and break off into ash whenever it moves. There’s nowhere to go except straight towards it. I think my heart stops as my own breath catches in my throat.

“Willow…”

“Get your hand away from the door. I got this,” she snaps. “Grab the wheel.”

I didn’t even realize one of my hands had crept in that direction. I yank it away.

“What?”

We are getting closer. Any moment it’s going to pounce.

“Grab the wheel!” she hisses.

I lean over and grab the wheel just as she lets go. She throws her hands up just as the creature leaps for us. I swear violently as the demon pushes off the overpass, twists, and reaches out towards us.

“Don’t let go!” Willow squeaks.

As if that is even an option.

The van begins to rattle. As it does, dark clouds rush past our windows. They gather a few feet in front of the van, creating a circular shield. As they darken, these clouds block our view of the road, the demon, and everything else. Cars honks and tires screech somewhere out there on the highway. My heart slams rapidly in my chest as my grip tightens on the wheel.

“Willow!”

“Trust me.”

Any second we’ll be flying through this cloud, meeting this demon straight on…

Just before we hit the darkness, it vanishes. Around us a few cars swerve as the visibility returns. I yank on the steering wheel as the car in front of us slams on their brakes. The guys in the back wake with a start.

“What the hell, Willow?Willow!” Jonah’s yelps.

Willow and I turn our heads at the same time to look out my window where another demon leaps over two lanes of traffic.

The van rattles again, and it grows dark as the clouds come back. Just before the thing gets to us it vanishes into clouds.

“What’s going on!” Theodon yells.

Willow shoos my hands away from the wheel. When I let go, she takes over. As I lean back in my seat, willing my heart to slow back down, she laughs.

“Why are you laughing? We nearly died!” I snap.

“Tell me what the hell is going on right now!” Theodon’s words are barely heard over Willow’s laughter.

“Clearly, we missed all the fun,” Kwil murmurs from the farthest seat in the back.

Willow’s hand lands on my shoulder as she continues to laugh. This time I don’t flinch or yell. The contact sends a cold shock to my system. It shoots through my body short circuiting every thought and instinct. What chases that cold jolt is a strange remolding of my very being. My heart expands, filling with a warmth that is then recycled throughout my body. The muscles in my back relax, and when I take a deep breath, my lungs expand further than they ever have. And the anger, bitterness, and everlasting sense of despair that I didn’t realize I’ve been clinging to slip away, leaving serenity in their wake.

“It’s okay to laugh now that the danger is over,” Willow assures me, unaware of the change that’s happening inside of me. “Theo, go back to sleep. Everything is fine now. Who knew Vitkor and I would be the A-Team out of all of us? I mean I did do the drivingandthe removing of the threat, but Viktor was here for the much-needed moral support.”

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