“Where did he go?” I asked nervously.
“Back to his world,” Rego said matter-of-factly. “He’s got work to do.”
“His world? I’ve never been to Europe, but now I’m in an alternate dimension?” I squeaked.
“You aren’t in the Dark World,” Logan reassured me, fighting back a smile. “Rego set this place up as a meeting point—but you can’t actually use it to cross over.” As Logan spoke, he tapped the tips of his fingers together to illustrate his point. “Here, the worlds touch, overlapping in a way. It’s useful when you’re trying to get allies in both worlds together for strategy sessions, pass supplies along...watch someone eat all your potato chips. But if we tried to follow Ajax through the doorway to the Dark World, we’d be stopped by an invisible barrier.”
“So it’s like standing on the border of New York and New Jersey, talking to each other?”
Logan grinned at my analogy.
“Something like that. Except the New Yorkers stay in New York and vice versa. Rego will unlink the worlds when we leave town.”
“Any other surprises?’ I asked, turning to Rego warily. “You’re not a zombie, or a vampire? You’re just a wizard?”
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. Rego frowned, looking insulted, and his nostrils flared so wide I could have driven a truck through them.
“I’m not just anything, little girl. And witches and wizards are inhabitants of your world who play with potions and perform parlor tricks,” Rego corrected me. “Warlocks are an otherworldly race, the true heirs to the Dark World throne. And we will be on that throne again, once this war is over.”
He pounded his fist on the table for emphasis, and the rickety old thing wobbled on its shaky legs.
“Sorry,” I muttered. “I didn’t know any of this existed until a few hours ago.”
“And if Logan had done his job correctly, you wouldn’t know it existed at all. But what’s done is done, and we’re here now.”
Logan tilted his head toward the door.
“Paige, if you’re ready to go, I’ll take you home now.”
I nodded and stood up, wincing slightly when I pulled my backpack on. And then I had to face Rego.
“Thank you—for everything. I really needed to know. It was...it was hard not knowing the truth,” I finished lamely, unsure of what to say to him. Rego was probably the most intimidating person I’d ever met, but then again, he was a warlock fighting to overthrow a demonic dictatorship. I couldn’t imagine that kind of life turned you into a warm little cuddle monkey.
“It was enlightening, Paige. Perhaps you can be a useful ally in our fight.” Rego shook my hand and bowed majestically, and I was surprised to hear that he sounded sincere.
I nodded and followed Logan, who did the same trick to open the front door, and we walked into a brilliant white glow. Once we stepped through the void, I looked behind me and was surprised to see the metal apartment door back in place. I touched the painted surface, half expecting my hand to go through an illusion. But the brown door was solid underneath my fingertips, the gritty imperfections in the cheap paint job scratching my skin.
“You doing okay?” Logan asked.
“I can burst into flames. Warlocks are real. There’s an alternate universe full of demons and monsters. And I’m really freaked out by the fact that I just sat across from another demon while he stuffed his face with potato chips.”
“Ajax is harmless,” Logan said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
“A demon tried to kill me today, and more want to kidnap me. I’m sorry if I’m not super trusting of them.”
“I’ve known Ajax for years.”
“How do you know for sure that you can trust him?” I asked, my hands balling into fists. “He’s a demon, and he knows what I can do. What if he’s just using you to get to me?”
“We didn’t even know you existed when I met him. You didn’t exist—not as a Traveler, at least, when I met him,” Logan explained, sighing heavily as he leaned against the hallway wall. When he saw I was waiting for him to continue, he took off his hat, staring at his hands as he rolled the brim between his palms.
“Out of all the demons I’ve ever battled, only three have gotten away. Ajax is one of them.” Logan finally met my eyes, and an embarrassed look spread across his face.
“Look, I don’t really talk about this kind of stuff, but I’m telling you because I want you to know you’re safe, okay?”
He waited until I nodded before he continued talking. “Before I met Ajax, I’d killed every demon I’d faced. And I wanted to make Rego proud, make him see what I could do, you know? So when he got word of a hive of demons in the next town over, I snuck out and attacked them. Solo mission. I thought I was a badass.” Logan rested his head against the wall, his eyes studying the ceiling as he remembered. “There were ten. I killed seven. I thought I had gotten away with it until someone grabbed me around the throat in a choke hold. I thought I was done for. Dead Logan, bye-bye.” He laughed, and I gaped at him, astonished at the casual way he discussed his near-demise. “It was Ajax. He just kind of stared at me for a minute, and then slaughtered the other two demons who were racing toward me. He killed them, just like that,” Logan said, snapping his fingers.
“Then he said he wanted to join up with us. I arranged a meeting for him with Rego, and he’s been feeding us information ever since he crossed back over years ago.” Logan grinned, his eyes lighting up at some memory. “It took him forever to find the portal back, too. It’s his own damn fault for partying too long in Puerto Rico and bringing along rum punch for the trip.” He paused, shutting his eyes and chuckling at some memory. “Ajax really likes this side.”
“What was he doing in Puerto Rico?”
“Oh, sorry—I didn’t explain. The portal’s in the western part of the ocean—in the Bermuda Triangle.”
“The Bermuda Triangle?” I repeated, my eyebrows practically shooting off my face in surprise. “The real Bermuda Triangle, where planes and boats and ships disappear?”
Logan just nodded. “Yeah. Ajax and two warlocks Rego was sending over to infiltrate the Dark World had a lot of fun before crossing over. Ajax calls it his Spring Break, but I think he was just stalling, because crossing over is supposed to be so painful,” Logan revealed.
“I can’t believe the Bermuda Triangle is real.” I ran my hands over my face and stared at Logan, who just gave me a self-conscious smile.
Who would have thought that the quiet, sweet pen-stealer would be a font of supernatural information with a demonic BFF? I mulled over what Logan had just told me and realized one bit of information wasn’t making sense.
“You said he crossed back over years ago?” I repeated, and Logan nodded.
“So, when did you meet him?”
“I was about thirteen.” His tone was nonchalant, as if he were sharing what he’d had for lunch. “Ajax was seventeen.”
“You were killing demons when you were thirteen?” I yelled in shock.
“Keep it down, I do have neighbors.” Logan huffed, adding with a hiss, “Normal, human neighbors.”
“I’m sorry,” I hastily apologized. “Just...thirteen. You were a little kid, fighting monsters.”
Logan pushed himself off the wall, holding his palm out as he began leading me down the hallway. “Give me your bag. Don’t think I didn’t see you wince in there,” he added, tactlessly changing the subject, his tone brisk. “You should have put on the healing balm. Trust me, it works.”