Torn

  "Okay," he said, "but Walter and Phinneas will probably still want to talk to the demon tonight to compare what Maura said to what he says. Maybe we should wait until we're one hundred percent certain of everything before we go rounding everyone up. Otherwise you'll have to round them up twice."

  "You're right," she said. "I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's see what Walter and Phinneas have to say first." She turned away from him and, after taking in a deep breath, she called out to both elders. "Walter? Phinneas? It's Melina. We need to talk."

  She and Lee both stood silently as they waited. Then, about a minute later, a bright white light flashed in her kitchen as the two elders appeared.

  "Melina?" Walter asked. "Why is it so dark in here?" He turned his head from side to side as he eyed the curtain-covered windows.

  "Sunlight has been a bit bothersome to me today," she replied. "I think it's a side effect."

  "A side effect of what?" Walter asked.

  Melina took a few steps forward. "I think we should all have a seat," she said as she gestured to the kitchen table.

  Walter narrowed his eyes at her. "Okay…"

  Melina and Lee joined the two elders around the table, and they all took a seat.

  "Now what's going on?" asked Walter.

  She started to chew on her lower lip and then finally said, "I went to the cemetery earlier to visit my parents' gravesites, and when I was there Maura showed up to talk to me."

  "Goodness, she's persistent," said Phinneas. "It's obvious she didn't hurt you, but what did she want?"

  "Well, I guess the most important thing she told me is that I did indeed absorb Noxin demon powers, but they aren't going to kill me."

  "That's a relief," said Walter. "But how does she know for sure that you have them?"

  Melina took in a deep breath and then exhaled. "She's the most powerful Noxin demon in existence, and she was working with Adelia from the very beginning. She said something about them doing experiments on the first few humans to test out all of their theories."

  Both elders looked at each other, their brows furrowing. Phinneas then turned his gaze to her. "And what did they discover? Tell us everything else Maura said to you."

  Melina started off by explaining how she was able to absorb the demon powers and how Maura had found out about it. She then told them how Maura had told her that she couldn't get rid of the demon powers, and that they would probably start to become active and display themselves sometime soon since her angel powers were already being suppressed. The last thing she told them was how Maura could hear her thoughts and said that she'd find out soon enough why the Noxin demons want guiding angel powers.

  "She doesn't want to harm me, though. She said if I have both guiding angel and Noxin demon powers, then I'd be her most powerful weapon."

  "A weapon?" Phinneas asked. He stared off to the side for a moment, as if he were thinking, and then looked over at Walter. "If the Noxin demons are actually planning something with our powers then we need to try to be one step ahead of them. We need to go and tell the other elders about this."

  "Do you think maybe we should seek out the banned demon again first?" Walter asked. "He may have more to tell us that might be beneficial. If he does, it would be good to have that information before we talk to Cecil and Helene."

  Phinneas nodded at Walter and then stood from his chair. "You're right. Even though it's the middle of the day, we still might be able to get him to come out if we're careful. We'll go to him first." He shifted his gaze to Melina. "I'm sorry we have to run off like this, but if you are going to start developing the demon powers soon, then we need to get all of our information straight as quickly as possible so we can figure out the best way to help you."

  "No, I understand," she said. "I'm just… I'm scared." Her lower lip began to quiver as she wiped away a budding tear.

  Lee reached across the table and clutched her hand in his.

  "You have every right to be scared," Walter said to Melina, "but try not to lose hope. Maura made your fate seem absolute, but we all know demons can't be trusted."

  Melina gave him a weak smile as she slowly nodded her head. "I'm not really feeling the best, so you don't have to worry about putting me on lockdown again. I'll stay here until you return."

  Walter stood from his chair. "That's probably a good idea, but if you do decide to go anywhere, try to take someone with you."

  She nodded again. "I will."

  "Good," he said. "We'll be back as soon as we can." And just like that, he and Phinneas were gone.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Walter and Phinneas reappeared outside of the night club in New York where they had found the demon just the night before. They hadn't worried about anyone seeing them teleport in because they assumed the club wouldn't be open in the middle of the day.

  "His usual hang out is closed right now," Walter said as he eyed the front door. "Do you think he'd still be somewhere in the area during the day?" He turned his gaze from the building and looked over at Phinneas.

  "It would be great if he was," Phinneas replied. "Let's take a few trips around the surrounding blocks to see if we can sense anything."

  Walter nodded and then followed him down the nearby alleyway.

  After walking around for over an hour, they still hadn't seen any demon activity or sensed the presence of one.

  "I was hoping he would see us and come forward on his own, but it looks like he's hiding out in stealth mode somewhere," said Phinneas. "We're going to have to wait for nightfall again."

  Walter sighed. "I was afraid of that. So what do we do for the next few hours?"

  "We wait," answered Phinneas.

  "Of course." Walter sighed again. "Good thing it's wintertime then. Dusk will be here shortly."

  ****

  Just a few short hours later, the sun began to set and buildings all over the city started to light up and twinkle against the falling darkness. Walter and Phinneas made their way back to the night club, hoping to catch a glimpse of the demon as soon as they could. A small crowd of people had started to form by the front door, but neither one of them saw any sign of the demon.

  "Maybe he's already in there," said Walter.

  Phinneas nodded. "Let's go inside."

  They both walked over to the club and then made their way through the front entrance. As they stepped inside, they were once again greeted by loud, thumping music.

  Walter winced and then turned to Phinneas. "I can sense a demon in here. Where should we start?"

  Phinneas leaned over and said, "He was hanging out in one of the back rooms last night, so let's check there first."

  "Lead the way," said Walter.

  Phinneas took off toward the back part of the club, and as Walter followed behind, he scanned his eyes around the room, looking for any sign of the demon. The club wasn't as crowded as the night before, but the size and darkness of the room still made it hard to see everyone.

  He was slowly turning his head from side to side when suddenly someone from behind grabbed his neck and started shoving him forward. His assailant also had a hold of Phinneas and was pushing him forward, too. Walter tried to turn his head to see who it was, but the grip on his neck was so tight that he couldn't move it any more than an inch in either direction. As he looked back ahead of him, he saw that he and Phinneas were being taken to one of the rooms in the back.

  "Get inside and don't talk," a gravelly voice whispered from behind them. Their attacker shoved them both toward the door. "Now!"

  Walter quickly opened the door, and then he and Phinneas were rushed into a small, dimly lit room. As the door clicked shut behind them, Walter spun around and came eye to eye with the banned demon.

  "What in the world was all that about?" Walter asked.

  The demon's eyes darted nervously between the two elders as he ran a hand through his greasy, black hair. "I'm not the only demon here tonight, and I didn't want you to be seen."

  Phinneas furrowed his brows.
"The other demon can still sense us."

  "I know," the demon said. "Which is why you can't stay long. Now what do you want?"

  "Excuse me," said Phinneas. "But before you vanished on us last night, you said 'you know where to find me.' That usually implies that we can come and find you if we need to talk again."

  The demon glared at him. "I didn't think you'd want to talk again so soon."

  "Well we do," Walter interjected. "Tell us more about these rumors you heard long ago. What could they possibly mean for Melina?"

  "Do you know the answers to the questions I told you to ask her?" The demon looked back and forth between the elders.

  "Yes," said Phinneas. "And we've come to our own conclusions, but we want to hear what you have to say first."

  The demon eyed both of them carefully and then cleared his throat. "Long ago, before I was banned, there were rumors that these absorbers—"

  "Absorbers?" Walter interrupted. "Is that some sort of nickname?"

  "It's what we call the humans who are like this Melina you've been talking about," the demon said.

  Walter raised his eyebrows and then slowly nodded his head.

  The demon stared at him for a couple of seconds and then looked away and continued. "Anyway, it was said that they could also absorb demon powers, and it worked the same way as with the angel powers. The human had to have made physical contact with a Noxin demon in his human form sometime shortly after the human absorbed the angel powers."

  Phinneas nodded. "And what makes you think that's what's happening with Melina?"

  "Well," said the demon, "these rumors were flying around because it had apparently happened to a human. And the side effects that this human was said to have experienced are the same as Melina’s."

  Phinneas glanced over at Walter and then back to the demon. "It appears that these so-called rumors aren't actually rumors. All of it has proven to be true for Melina so far."

  The demon scratched his chin. "Interesting."

  "Do you remember hearing anything else?" asked Phinneas. "Anything that could possibly help Melina?"

  The demon's brow creased as he tilted his head to the side. "Actually I think I do remember hearing something…" He started to rub his chin, as if he was thinking, when all of a sudden his eyes grew big.

  "What?" asked Phinneas. "What's wrong?"

  "You both need to leave, now," the demon said in an urgent tone. "The other demon is getting closer. I think he's coming to investigate."

  "I don't feel his presence," said Walter.

  "You wouldn't. He's in stealth mode." The demon gave them both a frantic look. "We all need to leave before he finds us."

  Walter reached out and grabbed the demon by his arm. "You're not going to disappear on us again until you tell us everything. What else do you know?"

  The demon looked between both of them with wide eyes. "I remember someone saying that if an absorber did absorb both angel and demon powers, whichever one was absorbed first would always remain the dominant one. So since Melina absorbed angel powers first, the demon powers shouldn't be able to take over. Not unless she allows them to."

  "Everything else you've told us has turned out to be true so far, so that means there still might be some hope for her," said Phinneas.

  "Maybe," the demon said. "But that's all I remember. I'm leaving now, and I advise you to do the same."

  He vanished in a puff of black smoke, leaving Walter and Phinneas alone in the small, dark room.

  "Let's go talk to Cecil and Helene," said Walter.

  Phinneas nodded his head in agreement and they both disappeared. A few seconds later, they were back in The Realm. They immediately headed into their temple and found Cecil and Helene on the top floor sitting at a small table together.

  "Phinneas. Walter. Back so soon?" Cecil stood from his chair and started to walk toward them, but then suddenly he stopped. "You both looked somewhat troubled," he said, his brow creasing.

  "What's going on?" asked Helene as she stood to join Cecil.

  Phinneas glanced over at Walter and then back to Cecil and Helene. "You both might want to sit back down. We have a few things to tell you."

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  After Walter and Phinneas had teleported out of her apartment, Melina stepped over to Lee and laid her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and gently started to stroke the back of her hair. She let out a light sigh.

  "All I want to do is lay down to take a nap, but I should tell the others what's going on."

  "I think they’ll understand," he said. "Go and lay down for a couple of hours."

  She lifted her head and looked up at him. "That's just it. I'm afraid that if I do go and lay down, it won't be for just a couple of hours."

  "And would that be so bad?" he asked.

  "No," she replied. "I guess not."

  "Look," he said as he took a step back and grabbed her hands. "I can stay here and make sure you don't sleep through the night, if that's what you want."

  She tilted her head to the side and pursed her lips. "Don't be silly. I don't want you to waste your Saturday afternoon by hanging out alone in my apartment while I sleep."

  He gave her hands a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry about me. I'll read one of your books or find something on TV. You should go lay down now."

  "Okay." She gave him a small smile and then headed into her room and crawled into bed.

  ****

  When Melina opened her eyes, it was almost pitch black in her room. She slowly sat up in her bed and looked over at the windows. It must be getting dark outside. She rubbed her eyes and then blinked a couple of times. Once they adjusted to the dark, she made her way over to the door and out into the hallway. As she approached the living room, she saw Lee sitting on the couch, reading a mystery novel.

  He turned his head in her direction and flashed her a smile. "Hey," he said as he set the book down on the coffee table. "Feel any better?"

  She walked over to the couch and sat down beside him. "I don't know. I guess I don't feel as tired as I was before, but I still feel pretty miserable." Her eyes caught sight of the clock on the wall, and she saw that it was already past five o'clock. "Lee," she said in an exasperated tone. "You weren't supposed to let me sleep that long. I'm sure Tessa and Gwen have already closed up and gone home. I'll have to call both of them now so I can tell them what's going on."

  She started to stand up from the couch, but he stopped her.

  "There's no need to call them," he said. "Tessa stopped by shortly after you fell asleep and didn't want me to wake you. I filled her in on everything, and she said she'd tell Gwen."

  "Oh. Well thanks." She gave him a small smile and then pointed her finger at him. "But you still shouldn't have let me sleep so late. I need to tell Dean."

  She stood up from the couch and went to fetch her phone. Once she'd dug it out of her purse, she quickly pulled up Dean's number and hit the call button. He answered after a couple of rings.

  "Hello?"

  "Dean. It's Melina."

  "Yeah," he said. "Have you figured anything out yet?"

  "That's why I'm calling," she said. "I saw Maura again, and she confirmed that I also absorbed Noxin demon powers."

  "Wow," Dean said.

  "But you'll be happy to know that it can't happen to you. Not now, anyway."

  "Whew!" he said as he let out a heavy sigh. "I was a little worried there, so that's a relief to hear. Thanks for letting me know."

  "Of course," she said.

  "So what else…" His voice cut off as she heard a loud knocking in the background. "Oh, I'm sorry," he said. "I ordered dinner from room service, and I think that's it at the door right now. Hang on a second."

  "Okay," said Melina.

  She could hear Dean talking to someone and then the slam of a door. A few seconds later she heard a clanking noise like he was setting the tray down, and then he was back.

  "Sorry about that."

  "No, that's all right
," she said. "But I have a lot more to tell you, so how about I come to your hotel room to fill you in on everything? That way you'll have time to eat, and you won't have to pay for a cab to get here."

  "Sure," said Dean. "I'm staying up on the sixth floor in room six twenty-two. I'll…"

  All of a sudden his voice trailed off, and Melina heard a loud crashing noise like the sound of breaking glass.

  "Dean?" she asked. "Are you okay?"

  He didn't respond at first, but then she heard him say in a low voice, "I think it's a Noxin demon."

  "What? In your hotel room?"

  Again there was no response, but then suddenly she heard him scream. A loud, staticy noise blared through the phone, followed by a resounding thud, and then the call ended. Melina lowered her phone down to her side and looked over at Lee with wide eyes.

  "Dean's in trouble. I have to go help him."

  "What do you mean he's in trouble?" Lee asked as he stood up from the couch and stepped over to her.

  "I think there's a Noxin demon in his hotel room," she said frantically. "There was a loud crash followed by him screaming, and then the call just ended. I have to teleport to him. It's the one power I can still use, and it's the quickest way." She laid her phone down on the kitchen counter and started to walk away.

  Lee reached out and grabbed her arm. "You're not being very rational. If there's a Noxin demon in Dean's hotel room, you're in no shape to go up against him. And for all we know, your protective light shield could be suppressed now, too, so you might not have that as a safety net."

  "I can't just do nothing!" she said as she jerked her arm away from his grasp.

  Lee held his hands up into the air. "Calm down, Melina."

  She took in a long, deep breath and then exhaled. "I need to help him."

  "I understand," he said as he lowered his hands back down to his sides. "But won't his guardian angel show up?"