Page 14 of Obsession

“You two get a room,” Gabe groans.

“Careful, Cupid, green isn’t your color,” Damion fires back.

“Alright, both of you hush and let’s talk incantation bowls,” I say, realizing my nipples are hard and really wondering why I haven’t invested in padded bras. “The bowl was typically placed upside down somewhere in the ancient Mesopotamian home for protection,” I say, crossing my arms to hide my chest. “The purpose being that if a demon enters the home, he or she will become trapped inside the bowl.”

“Which is what could have happened to Phenex,” Damion agrees, and Gabe nods.

Flipping to a tabbed page in Sonia’s book, I continue, “The tale of the genie in the lamp is similar to the incantation bowl mythology. The imprisoned entity grants the human’s wish in exchange for something. But,”—I pause, flipping the page—“when the entity is out of the object, it then has the upper hand.”

“Ah, you’re talking about jinn. Masters of negotiation,” Gabe says.

“Please,” Damion balks, clearly offended. “Phenex isn’t a jinn,” he assures me.

“Well, to play it safe, no one make a wish around the bowl,” I suggest just in case.

“Like hey, I wish you would’ve checked the bag before you left the drive-thru to make sure you got the spicy barbecue sauce?” Damion helpfully adds.

“Don’t be so high maintenance—just use the sweet sauce,” I say defensively as I move the books out of the way and fix my plate.

“Hey everyone.” Charlotte joins us. “I’m volunteering at the hospital today,” she says, glancing down to her purple scrubs. “I can only stay for a little bit and then I need to get back.” She sets down a box from her mom’s bakery. “Cupcakes.”

“It was written in the stars we would be friends.” I’m being serious about that; we’re an astrological friend match. I’m an Aquarius and she’s a Libra, and those two signs go together like two peas in a pod. Walking over to check out the cupcake selection, I ask hopefully, “Any red velvet?”

“Mom said to tell you hello, and that she made the red velvet especially for you. There’s also carrot cake, strawberry, peanut butter chocolate, coconut, and birthday cake with sprinkles.” She points out each flavor.

“Tell Debbie I said thank you,” I say, picking up the red velvet cupcake and placing it on a plate. “We’ve got barbecue—”

“With no spicy sauce,” Damion interjects as he floats my plate over to where he’s sitting and grabs my cupcake.

“No way! That’s mine.” I march over and snatch my cupcake back from him, but the sneaky devil pulls me in his lap. Walked right into that demon trap.

Gabe hands Charlotte a plate. “Charlotte, nice to see you again,” he says with a warm smile.

She eyes him suspiciously. “Where’s your halo?”

“On my bedside table. I must have forgotten to put it on this morning,” he says with a wink.

Damion snorts, and I elbow him and whisper for him to hush as I finish the cupcake.

“Oh, and don’t make any wishes when we bring in the incantation bowl.” Charlotte gives me a questioning look, and I briefly recap. We finish lunch and move to the library.

Damion uses his power, and the incantation bowl appears on the table. It’s the size of a large fruit bowl, with writing starting on the outside that goes round and round until it reaches a drawing of a scaly, impish-looking creature in the center.

“The protection spell is inscribed by the sorcerer on the bowl in a circular pattern starting from the outside, working to the center of the bowl. The demon drawn in the center is either a picture of the demon they’re trying to trap, which would be Phenex, or it’s the picture of the third-party demon they’re calling on to help trap Phenex,” I explain what I’ve learned from Sonia’s books.

“The drawing looks nothing like Phenex. Zazel’s already confirmed,” Damion says.

“The creature looks like Max from Where the Wild Things Are, except with scales.” Charlotte points to the bowl. Huh, the primitive drawing actually does look like the little boy from the children’s book dressed in a wolf suit.

“Not Phenex or Max. It’s the demon Abracas,” Damion announces.

“How do you know that?” I demand.

“Sonia came through with the translation.”

“Did she hand deliver the translation, being that your ex-girlfriend now lives next door?” I ask sweetly.

Gabe whistles. “Not a smart move, my friend.”

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