I slammed my car into gear and peeled out of the parking lot. Some cars and trucks tried to bar my path when they noticed it was me, but I burst through a low fence, off-roaded it over the village green, and hit the street. Erasmus suddenly appeared by my side. He didn’t have to say anything. I saw it all on his face.
“Get to my shop,” I told him. “Make sure no one is making trouble.”
He didn’t say a word, just disappeared again.
It wouldn’t take me long to get there, and I could already see a line of cars…and someone had something that looked like fire.
I punched it around the back way through the woods, shut off the engine at my back garden, and ran around to the front. Someone had some burning rags on a stick, ready to lob it at my place. I skidded to a stop and held up my hands. I was lit by all the headlights of the villagers parked in the street.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I said in challenge.
He didn’t look threatened. “I’m gonna burn down this witch house.”
“Not while I’m here to stop you.”
“Maybe you aren’t gonna stop me.” He cocked back his arm when suddenly the torch went out.
Erasmus appeared beside me with a big thunderclap…the drama queen. His voice was unnaturally amplified when he declared, “Stand aside!”
Some did draw back, but I noticed a lot of folks seemed to have gun racks in their trucks…and the racks were empty.
“Now look,” I said, lowering my hands and trying for a reasonable tone. “I know what you think you saw, but I was trying to fight that guy.”
“That was the Devil!” said one of the faces in the dark. “And he came when you called on him.”
“No, he isn’t and no, I didn’t. That was…that was Baphomet and he’s a…a sort of god. But not a very nice one. I’ve been trying to stop him.”
“Where’d he come from, then?” said Torch Guy.
I could easily implicate Doug, but looking across at the angry mob, I just didn’t have the heart to sic them on him.
“There’s something you should know,” I said instead. “There’s this Booke…” On cue, it appeared again before me to more gasps and even a few screams. “This Booke. I found it here in this house. It’s been around for centuries, thousands of years in one form or another. And when you open it, it opens a gateway where terrible creatures come out.” My throat was hot. I swallowed through a lump as hot tears spilled down my face. I couldn’t help it. I kept thinking of the litany of names Ed had read at the meeting. All those dead people. “And…and the creatures killed those people. Your people. I’m sorry. It was my fault for opening the Booke, but I didn’t know.” I wiped my face with my sleeve. “And Doc and his coven have been helping me. I don’t know what else to do. So I guess you have every right to torch me and my place—”
“Kylie!” said Erasmus. There was fear on his face, not that he couldn’t whisk me away, but perhaps that I might not let him. He’d probably seen his share of villagers rising up and killing the Chosen Host.
“But I hope you don’t,” I continued. “I hope you decide to help me. I’m really not working for evil.”
“So who’s this?” said Torch Guy, gesturing toward Erasmus.
“He’s a demon. But he’s okay!”
Megan, our waitress from Moody Bog Café spoke up. “I…I saw him with Kylie at the café the other night,” she said cautiously. “He seemed…really polite.”
“What about our children?” said a woman in the back. “How do we keep them safe?”
“I don’t know. I mean, Doc can help you with some protection charms. If you want them.”
“We’re good Christians here,” said another woman in a long parka. “We don’t want your devil charms in our house.”
“They aren’t devil charms. They’re keeping the baddies away.”
“Wicca is a pagan faith,” said Doc suddenly from the back of the crowd. He slowly moved forward, and the villagers stepped aside like they didn’t want him touching them. Doc made his way to my side and put a hand gently on my shoulder. “But being a pagan doesn’t mean we reject the faith of others. In fact, we embrace all faiths. I’m still a Christian, but I also understand there is more than even the Bible tells us. I only strive for truth, in all it’s facets. And being a doctor, my calling has always been to heal, not destroy. Now, some of you have known me a long time, I daresay, all your lives.”
As he spoke, Nick pushed through to stand beside him. And then Seraphina came from the other direction and stood beside Erasmus. Even Jolene, a parent on each hand, wended her way forward until the three of them stood with us.
“And you know I have never steered you wrong,” Doc went on. “We’re sorry for not telling you about the troubles we’ve encountered.” It was hard to see the faces of the crowd, backlit as they were. But everyone seemed to be listening. “But…” He shook his head. “How the heck were we going to explain it? Well, now you’ve seen some of it for yourselves. Look. If you destroy this young lady’s house and business, you will have accomplished nothing. And if you run us out of town, the wickedness won’t stop. In fact, it’s set to get a lot dicier by the end of the week. So you can either help us destroy evil, or you can stand in the way of our good work and do the exact opposite of what you want to accomplish. Yes, there’s evil in our town, but it isn’t anyone standing up here in front of you.”
Erasmus stared at Doc, a rather astonished look on his face. I reached down and clutched his hand. He looked at me with the same expression.
I waited. No one said anything. They shuffled in the cold, but I could tell there was a lot of thinking going on. I saw a gleam as someone raised a rifle and I held my breath. But the man only positioned it on his shoulder. He stepped forward. “Nicole was my sweetheart,” he said with a shaky voice. “Do you know what happened to her?”
I slowly nodded. “Yes, I think I do. And I’m sorry. But she’s…she’s gone.”
“What kind of creature was it?” he asked, face a blank. “The one we saw?”
“Um…no. Something called a kelpie, a water spirit. It looked like a white pony.” There were a few gasps out there from the women. Could be that they had seen it too. “But I killed it…with this.” I raised my hand and the front door slammed open. The crossbow whooshed through and slapped into my hand. More gasps from the crowd, followed by louder murmuring. “Everyone, lots of creatures have been coming out of the Booke. I’ve killed a bunch but there are more. I have a plan to stop the Booke once and for all. Soon, you’ll all be safe again. It might be a good idea for everyone to get out of town for a while. Doc can let you know when it’s okay to come back.”
“So wait.” A young teen girl, maybe a little older than Jolene, shoved forward. “You’re doing this? Killing all the bad creatures?”
I wiped my face again. “Yeah. It’s my fault. And frankly, it’s kind of up to me. I’m only just beginning to understand all that’s happening.”
“Did you bring all this with you to our town?”
“No! It all happened here, in Moody Bog.” I choked up a bit. Seraphina touched my hand and continued for me.
“Kylie never knew any of this existed. It was when she found the Booke of the Hidden that it all began. But she has been tirelessly fighting for you all. She’s been in danger herself more times than we can count, fearlessly taking on this task. It isn’t her fault. Call it fate or whatever you’d like. But Kylie is a hero. One of the best, in fact. And she could use your help.”
“What could we do?” asked the girl.
I didn’t know. I looked to Doc.
“I’ll tell you what you can do, folks. You can believe her, for one. For another, you can make sure you keep safe. If you have to leave your house, travel with a buddy. And report any strange things you see directly to Sheriff Ed.”
The girl marched up to the front and stood beside Jolene. “I’m going to help them. I’m not leaving. This is my town. I want to protect it.”
“You get away from them, Jessica Marie!” cried an adult from the crowd.
“No, Mom! I want to help.”
There was more murmuring, more arguments. We waited.
Another teen walked forward, a boy this time. “I’m standing with the Wiccans,” he said, his voice breaking.
A group of teenage boys that I assumed were his friends came forward to stand beside him.
I could see more cars arrive. When the people got out, I could tell they were expecting an inferno or at the very least a fight. Instead they asked what was going on with confused looks on their faces.
Flashing lights came down the road. Ed’s interceptor pulled up and screeched to a stop as his siren wailed and then wound down. On the loudspeaker he called, “Disperse! Or I’ll arrest all of you.”
I cupped my hands on both sides of my mouth. “It’s okay, Ed!”
His interior light come on as he opened the car door and stepped out, head above the crowd. “What?”
“It’s okay. They’re coming around.”
He looked almost as shocked as Erasmus.
Some people did start to disperse, those who just couldn’t get out from under their own fears and prejudices. But many more stayed, and the coven started talking to each of them, explaining. It was the strangest thing to ever happen to me…and that was saying something.
Erasmus pulled me aside. “I don’t believe what I am seeing.”
“Me neither. It’s a miracle.”
“These humans are siding with you. I…I have never seen such a thing.”
“Believe me, neither have I.”
“I was certain they would burn you.”
“I was kind of getting the feeling they would too. Except I knew you would rescue me.”
“Of course I would have!” He puffed up.
“I never doubted it.” I looked at him tenderly and then leaned in and kissed him.
“Kylie,” he said, casting a suspicious glance around. “You confessed to these people that I’m a demon. You can’t be seen—”
“Kissing you? Too bad.” I clamped my hand around his neck and pulled him in again. He fought for only a moment before he gave in.
“You’re a foolish mortal,” he said, lips grazing my temple before he let me go.
“I know. But look at all these other foolish mortals. Erasmus, do you know what this means?” I was suddenly feeling a little giddy. I might have even giggled. “It means…now we have an army.”