“Not very far,” Cleo said quietly. “If she used a darkness vanishing spell, then it would only let her move a few feet away.”

  “So she’s still here,” Kali said as her blue eyes darted from side to side.

  I held my breath as if that would allow me to see better as I slowly turned. Every creak of the trees in the wind made Kali flinch, but there was no sign of the final banshee.

  “She might have crept away during the fight,” I said. “Cleo, can you hear anything?”

  The cat-girl shook her head as her fluffy ears twitched, and I began to wonder if we would be safer to leave the scene of the crime. If the evil woman had run off to find help, then this could be our only chance at escape. The banshee could arrive back with a whole army of guards and High Society members, but we could run back to the portal now before they got back.

  But there was a prickling along the back of my neck that made me feel like I was being watched. I couldn’t explain it, but I got the feeling that our enemy was close.

  There was a sudden sound of footsteps behind us, and I spun around to see four figures coming down from the side of the road. They were eight feet tall, skinny, and made of swirling mist. Each of them was shaped like a huge man, and their only features were orange eyes.

  “What is that?” Kali gasped.

  “Something evil,” Cleo snarled as her tail flicked.

  The ghostly figures walked toward us slowly, and they reached their hands out as they began to moan.

  I ran forward with my knife held up, and I stabbed it right into the middle monster’s chest, but my weapon just went right through the misty body along with my arm, and the figure groaned softly.

  A jolt of freezing shock raced through me as I fell into the ghostly figure.

  “What the fuck?” I muttered as I jumped backward. “I can’t hurt them, but maybe they can’t hurt us, either?”

  “I know what they are,” Cleo breathed. “I have heard of these things that can be used to catch trophies. They will not hurt us, but they are going to try to capture us.”

  Before I could ask how to stop them, one of the monsters raised a hand and threw a string of mist toward the cat-girl. The glistening substance soared over my head as it hurtled toward her, and I spun around to see Cleo freeze in place. She howled as drops of mist fell around her and formed a rectangular cloud. It looked like she had been placed in a cage made of glowing fog.

  Her golden eyes looked at me desperately as her body fell still, and she had clearly been trapped in place by the ghostly substance.

  “Get out of the way!” I yelled as Kali’s wings suddenly broke out from her back.

  The nymph flew backward just as one of the other figures launched a stream of mist at her. I tried to cut the rope of cloud as it spewed from the monster’s hand, but my wrist just went straight through it. Then the figures all turned their attention to Kali as she flew up amongst the branches, and they didn’t even glance my way as they all shot ropes of mist at her.

  “I can’t hurt them,” I yelled. “Kali, you need to stay away!”

  My mind raced desperately as I tried to kick, punch, and stab the monsters. Every attack was like fighting a wispy cloud, and I knew I had to find a way to kill them at the source. I had to find the final banshee who was controlling them in order to stop them. There was no other way.

  Cleo was completely still apart from her eyes as she watched from her foggy prison, and Kali darted quickly between the trees. The nymph’s speedy movements were enough to keep the slow monsters at bay, but they showed no signs of tiring or stopping.

  “The banshee knows we’re trophies!” Kali yelled. “She must be trying to capture us without causing any damage. That way we’ll be worth the most!”

  My stomach lurched at the idea of my girls being sellable commodities, and furious rage rose up in my chest.

  “Nobody is catching you!” I snarled. “Show yourself, you ugly asshole! Fight me face to face! I’m not letting you take them!”

  The banshee didn’t appear, and the monsters continued to slowly plod after Kali. I looked at the open door of the carriage and spotted a couple of glowing potion bottles that had rolled to the floor during our fight.

  “Kali!” I called. “Is there any way to tell what those loose spells are?”

  “I can’t see them,” the nymph called. “What color are they?”

  “Both black!” I yelled.

  “Oh,” Kali groaned. “The banshees probably added dark drops to disguise what the spells are. That makes it harder for working folks to steal them.”

  “Of course,” I sighed. “Well, we’re about to find out what they can do.”

  I raced toward the glistening vehicle as the thin horses grazed on a flowery bush. It was probably the most food they had had in a long time, and they didn’t even glance my way as I dove into the carriage. The two bottles glowed invitingly on the ground, and I grabbed them both before I jumped back outside.

  Then I shoved one spell into my pocket as I held the other up to study it. There was no way to tell what the fuck was inside it, but I knew how precious the potions were to the banshees. If I started to use the magic they had stolen, she would show herself. I was sure of it.

  My fingers flinched at the cold touch of the opener as I pulled it from my pocket. I raised the silver tool to the bottle, and I was shocked when the metal shot out to the cork without me doing anything. The opener grabbed the wood and pulled it with a satisfying pop. Then I choked slightly as a whiff of sulfur floated out of the glass, and I hurled it full force at the mist people.

  “Watch out!” I yelled at Kali as I crouched down, and there was an explosion of green light as the potion collided with the ground.

  A tidal wave of luminous slime crashed over the cloud monsters, and the ghostly figures vanished as the radioactive-looking goop consumed them. Sizzling smoke wafted into the air as the stench of burning got more violent, and it looked like the cloud-people had been destroyed.

  “Yes!” I yelled, but my celebration was short-lived as the slime started to crash toward me.

  I raced back to the carriage and jumped inside just as the green substance washed under the wheels. The horses grunted, but their hooves seemed to protect them from whatever harm the slime could cause. It only took a few moments for the green liquid to seep into the ground, and I cautiously stepped back out onto the forest floor.

  “Yay!” Kali cheered as she peeked out from behind a branch.

  I looked over at Cleo, and her limbs were slowly starting to twitch as the misty cage faded. Then I spotted something in the shadowy cover of trees, and I saw the final banshee inches away from the cat-girl.

  The skinny woman’s bony fingers reached for a potion on her belt, and her eyes were locked on Cleo.

  It was still possible that the banshee didn’t want to hurt the girls in order to sell them, but the fury in her gray eyes told me she was probably over that idea. I had killed her friends and ruined her spells, and I couldn’t risk her taking her rage out on my Hollowfell lover.

  Cleo still couldn’t move properly as I swung the rifle around to my front, and I aimed my red dot at the banshee’s gaunt face. There were only a couple of seconds before she reached the cat-girl, but that was all I needed. She was the final enemy to take down, and I was going to have to risk the noise of gunshots in order to save my lover.

  I felt the shockwaves run through me as I pulled the trigger again and again to unleash a thunderstorm of bullets into the banshee. My whole body vibrated as I fired, and the skinny woman erupted into a volcano of blood as my rounds obliterated her torso. Each bullet tore through her dress and skin as Cleo winced beside her.

  The banshee became a mess of gore in seconds, and her mangled corpse flopped to the ground with a thud. Then I raced over to Cleo just as she began to move her head, and the cat-girl gasped as her legs buckled.

  “Whoa!” I yelled as I grabbed her before she hit the ground, and I cradled her body against mine.

  Kali landed beside us and grabbed Cleo’s hand as we helped the cat-girl stand.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yes,” Cleo said as her ears twitched. “I just could not move my body, but I was not harmed.”

  “We need to leave,” I said. “Those gunshots won’t have gone unnoticed.”

  I spotted another opener on the splattered banshee’s belt, and I bent down to grab it before we moved.

  There were distant screams that seemed to be getting louder, and then an awful noise filled the air. It sounded like someone was trying to play a song on a foghorn as the ground vibrated with the echo.

  “What is that?” I yelled as the sound pierced my eardrums.

  “A siren!” Cleo hissed. “It is a warning noise for when a prisoner has escaped from the High Society.”

  “They must recognize the gunshot sounds,” Kali said. “They know we’re here. Every gargoyle in Stormgulf will be looking for us.”

  “Come on,” I growled. “Back up the hill. We have to get to the portal.”

  We began to run past the carriage and onto the road while the god-awful noise filled the air. My feet pounded onto the dirt as we sprinted up the slope to the rock face we had hidden on top of.

  Cleo’s lean legs soared over the ground, and Kali flew in front of us as we began to climb the steep hill while I focused all my energy on running and sent bits of soil and rock flying.

  Then the sound of the siren was joined by the screams of gargoyles, and I could hear the flaps of leathery wings nearby.

  “Be careful,” I hissed. “I can hear gargoyles.”

  “That way,” Cleo said as she pointed up ahead. “I think there is a whole group.”

  I saw the first tip of horns appear through the branches, and I grabbed both girls by the arm as I pulled them into a nearby bush. It was covered in thorns that scratched our skin, but we crouched silently as the flapping of wings got louder.

  “Trooophy,” a female voice called. “Where aaare you? Come out, little trophy.”

  I looked up through the leaves to see a gargoyle woman in a blonde wig flying low over the trees. Her beady eyes scanned the forest as four male gargoyles arrived just behind her. Their thick necks were crammed with golden chains, and they drooled and snorted as they moved through the stormy sky.

  “Must be close,” a male grunted. “The Sobblers will pay handsomely for those outlaws.”

  “I want the trophy!” the female spat. “Both trophies must be mine. Where aaare they?”

  She wailed horribly as she waved her arms in a temper tantrum, and the males coughed and belched as they studied the ground.

  We stayed as still as possible even though one of my legs began to cramp up with a stabbing pain as the gargoyles slowly moved over our hiding spot before they disappeared back over the twisted branches. We waited until their cries were drowned out by the siren, and then we carefully crawled out of the bush.

  My leg was stabbing with cramps as I stretched it out and winced.

  “I hate them.” Kali shuddered. “Oh, they are just so horrible!”

  “There will be more,” Cleo said. “I bet the whole city is on the hunt.”

  “Come on,” I said. “We’re halfway there.”

  The monster girls nodded as we began to race upward again, and I kept my knife gripped by my side as I ran. Sweat poured down my back as I sprinted over rocks and fallen branches while I kept an eye out for any signs of movement.

  I spotted one of the curled trees that I knew sat a few feet from the hilltop, and I felt relief wash over me as we neared the portal.

  “Keep going!” I grunted. “Almost there!”

  A new noise rang out over the siren, and as Kali stopped in her tracks, I almost banged into her. It sounded like a pack of wolves had been set loose as echoing howls pierced through the warning alarm. I could tell the creatures were big just from the timbre of their calls, and Kali seemed to be frozen with fear as I grabbed her hand.

  “Come on!” I said urgently. “We need to get back through before we’re spotted.”

  “Werewolves,” the nymph whispered. “There’s only one family who has those.”

  “The Sobblers,” Cleo hissed as she turned back to us. “They use their werewolves to hunt! Nobody can fight a werewolf and live.”

  The howls very quickly seemed to be getting a lot closer, and my blood ran cold as the sound of thunderous footsteps reached my ears.

  “Go!” I yelled as I pulled Kali by the hand, and Cleo started to run again.

  My heart pounded as we sprinted up the hill, and the rock face that hid the door finally came into view. The sound of heavy footsteps was getting closer as Cleo leapt at the doorway.

  She slammed the entrance open as I threw Kali through the door, and I glanced over my shoulder to make sure nobody could see us.

  The shadowy depths of the woods were still as the howls got louder, and I jumped into the otherworldly portal as I pulled it shut behind me.

  I fell onto the carpeted floor beside Kali as Cleo pressed her ear to the shut door. We were all perfectly still as the cat-girl listened, and she slowly pulled away from the portal.

  “They did not stop at the rocks,” she breathed. “They don’t know where we went.”

  I groaned with relief as I closed my eyes and tried to catch my breath. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as every muscle in my body ached, but I pushed myself up to my feet and helped Kali up beside me.

  “I can’t believe we did that,” the nymph said slowly. “Three banshees are dead.”

  “The Sobblers have werewolves after us,” Cleo said as she tugged on her tail. “They are hunting our scent.”

  “The whole city is trying to catch us,” Kali added. “I don’t even know if the werewolves are trained to hunt without killing. Oh, Liam, you got us out just in time!”

  She fluttered up to hug me, and I held her trembling body in my arms.

  “You’re safe,” I said gently. “I won’t let anything happen to you, remember?”

  “Yes!” Kali sniffed. “Gosh, that was all so intense! Life with you is such an adventure.”

  She pulled back to look into my eyes, and I saw her gaze flicker down to my lips. I slowly let go of her, but I felt her hands give my biceps a quick squeeze before she gently landed back on the floor.

  Cleo watched us with a sly smirk, and Kali cleared her throat as her sparkling wings fluttered.

  The thrill of being pressed against the nymph was just as high as the chase.

  “Well,” I said after a moment. “Now we know what those creepy bitches are like in a fight.”

  “Three banshees are dead.” Cleo grinned. “My outlaw human guy is as deadly as his poster says.”

  “And he used a spell,” Kali chirped. “Without any kind of training.”

  “It was pretty self-explanatory,” I chuckled. “But it’s good to know how user-friendly the potions are. No wonder the banshees hoard them.”

  “Liam has officially used magic,” Cleo said with a proud nod in my direction.

  “That’s true,” I said as I reached into my jacket. “Not to mention the fact that we finally have this thing.”

  I pulled out one of the silver openers, and the girls’ faces turned into beautiful smiles. Kali clapped excitedly as she leaned in to study the tool.

  “You got it,” Cleo breathed. “We can unlock the potions finally.”

  “This gives us so many opportunities,” Kali said as we turned to face the pile of bottles. “We have access to the magic the banshees have hoarded for so long.”

  “Successful mission.” I grinned. “Holy shit, it feels good to be back in the game. Next time, we’re going to loot the crap out of some rich fuckers, though.”

  Relief washed over my shoulders as I gripped the cold metal of the opener in my palm.

  We had just gained access to a whole new kind of armory.

  A glistening rainbow of colors swirled around inside the potion bottles, and my mind raced with the possibilities of what powers lay inside each one. I had only gotten a tiny taste of these spells, but I was already hooked. There was clearly a reason the banshees didn’t want anyone to have access to these bottles. Each glass container held power that could rival even the rifle I had slung over my shoulder.

  And I would be able to unlock the spells we had stolen from the island, which meant I could finally access the locking charm.

  There would be no more worrying about the thirteenth floor being discovered by anyone else. Even with the two new companies being set up, the portal to the magical world would stay hidden from wandering eyes.

  My secret world was going to remain a secret from everyone else. Hollowfell belonged to me.

  Chapter 7

  I stared at the pile of potions that had been carefully arranged in the door, and it was hypnotizing to watch the various swirling colors of the magic liquid.

  We suddenly had access to a whole new world of possibilities.

  “So,” I said. “Which one of these is a locking charm?”

  “This one,” Kali said as she carefully picked up a green bottle. “The potions change colors over time, and some of these labels are worn. But I do know a little about spells. I loved reading all about them back when I was a child and was still allowed to use the family library.”

  Her face fell for a moment as she remembered her old family, and I put an arm around her shoulder. I squeezed her arm as she stared down at the swirling liquid in her hands.

  “So we have an expert?” I asked. “That’s awesome… just what we needed.”

  “Oh, no!” Kali blushed. “Nowhere near an expert! We will need some kind of sorcerer to find out exactly what the unlabeled ones do.”

  “You know more than I do,” Cleo said. “Be proud of your knowledge.”

  I loved how the confident cat-girl hyped-up Kali, and I could already see the effects their friendship was having on the nymph.

  “Exactly,” I said. “Boat skills, potion knowledge. You’re essential to the team.”

  The nymph’s whole body perked up at my words as an adorable smile spread over her face.

 

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