Except Prax wasn’t here.
And now Eva might have given Prax’s jailers the key to finding him.
Eva gave a quick mental curse. “Well, don’t let me stop you. I’ve no love for the demon here.”
With that said, she stepped forward–actually blinking just above the surface of the water.
It engulfed her before the woman could respond. Eva felt the familiar yank as she was pulled off to her domain.
Shalise needed to be hidden better or cured of her Prax affliction. Immediately.
Chapter 023
Eva came down into her domain hard.
It was supposed to catch her, and probably would have had she not considered her current situation so urgent. Her domain compensated for her urgency by not slowing her down.
That was fine. Her legs could take the abuse.
Eva rolled out of the way and glued her eyes up to where she had come from. She didn’t want to take any chances that the woman had followed her.
This nagging feeling in the corner of her mind told her that the moment she turned, she’d be stabbed in the back.
When nothing appeared for several moments, Eva stood up and started backing away. Her slow movements turned to a full-on backwards sprint across the beach. Eventually, she turned around despite the feeling and began running full-tilt towards the alternate women’s ward.
Eva opened the door and slammed it behind her, startling both of the occupants. Shalise let out a small screech.
Lynn Cross, on the other hand, jumped to her feet and sent a bolt of lightning at Eva before she had even turned around.
A blackish-red shield appeared between the two, catching the lightning. Eva didn’t bother questioning it. She hadn’t intended to form any kind of shield. Obviously, it was some oddity of her domain working to protect her.
“You sure took your sweet time–”
“Later,” Eva interrupted. “We have a problem. Or, to be more specific, Shalise has a problem.”
The girl blinked twice. “Wh-what do you mean?”
Eva stepped up to Shalise, or tried to. Lynn moved between the two. Ignoring the woman, Eva looked around her shoulder at the brunette. “If you’ve got any far-out ideas of how to get out of Shalise, you had best voice them now, Prax.”
“What,” Lynn said with at flat tone of voice as she crossed her arms, “is going on?”
“I found out why Prax’s mother was hanging around in his domain.”
“You hung around to speak with an enemy after deciding it was for the best if we left immediately?”
“No. I hung around to speak with the one hunting Prax’s mother.”
Gently pushing her mother aside, Shalise stepped around to face Eva. “Prax wants to know who would be hunting anyone in his domain.”
“Didn’t catch a name,” Eva said with a shrug. “Didn’t feel like a demon though. Couldn’t see her with my blood sense. She had silver hair, a well-fitting leather duster, and a sword of some sort at her hip.”
That got a gasp from Shalise.
“Someone you recognize.”
“The doll. But-but that doesn’t make sense. The dolls let us escape. They wouldn’t come after us… would they?” She tilted her head to the side. “Would they?”
“Her specific words were ‘cells that were once full must be filled again.’ She didn’t specifically mention Prax, and since she didn’t follow me immediately, I assume she’s not after him right this second. Probably dealing with his mother first and foremost.”
An earthquake punctuated her statement. While in Hell, there had been small tremors every now and again.
Nothing quite like the one that had struck now.
All three of them went rocking back and forth. Shalise and Lynn Cross tumbled forwards and backwards, collapsing in a heap of limbs on the floor. Eva managed to stay upright only through the virtue of her toes acting as claws and digging themselves into the ground, providing an anchor of sorts.
The tremors subsided as quick as they came. Eva ran up to the windows and started watching. She didn’t want any enigmas sneaking around while they were talking. If some showed up, they needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.
Purple lightning crackled across the otherwise empty sky. Where the lightning touched, it stayed purple.
For a time.
The empty void fought back, Eva could see the purple slowly recede as the dark sky overpowered the streaks of purple.
Eva stared and gaped. She hadn’t wanted lightning in any way, shape, or form. She was fairly certain that she hadn’t had any subconscious desires for lightning either.
“Well,” Eva said as she found her voice, “even if this ‘doll’ isn’t going to attack you–something that I would not count on–” Eva gestured at the black and purple sky outside. “That looks like a perfectly good reason to accelerate our efforts to get you out of here.”
Both of the other two had managed to untangle themselves from each other, but by the time they made it to the window, there were only faint traces of purple left over.
It was enough for Shalise to give a light gasp. “That never happened before,” she said.
“The color is the same as enigma blood. Could be a coincidence…”
Lynn gave a light snort. “If only the world were that simple.” Turning away from the window, she put one hand on either of Shalise’s shoulders. She bent her knees slightly to level out their heads, though it didn’t take much bending. Lynn Cross was a tall woman, but Shalise wasn’t far behind.
Staring into her daughter’s eyes, they stood stock still.
Well, Lynn Cross stood still. Shalise fidgeted under her mother’s unwavering gaze.
Eva wondered just how it was that Shalise hadn’t noticed that Lynn was her mother. The resemblance was uncanny. Their hair was about the only thing different between the two. Shalise had shoulder-blade length wavy hair while her mother had her hair cut short–to better fit in her habit, most likely.
Then again, perhaps Shalise had noticed. That almost made more sense. Shalise had noticed and hadn’t mentioned anything because Lynn Cross had not mentioned anything. If her mother kept silent on the matter, then there must be a reason.
And that reason certainly wasn’t that Lynn Cross did not care for her daughter. She had come to Hell itself to be with and protect Shalise.
Though Eva may have forced that in part.
Eva’s speculation came to an abrupt end as white flames erupted from Lynn’s eyes.
Shalise jumped a good foot in the air, letting out a startled squeak as she flew.
Eva jumped forward with far more purpose than simple shock. She was seriously considering the notion that she had been grossly inaccurate in her assessment of Lynn Cross’ care for her daughter.
Before she could lay a hand on the older woman, Lynn released Shalise.
“I think,” she said slowly, “that it could work. A chance, at least.” She turned, her face drawing a disgusted countenance as her eyes settled on Eva. “But I will need assistance.”
“You’re going to have to be more vague. I almost guessed at what you are planning.”
“There may be a way to exorcise the demon inhabiting Shalise’s body.”
Eva gave her a flat glare. “Why didn’t you say so sooner? I’m not keeping her here because I find it fun, you know. If Prax gets out of her, she can go back to the mortal realm through Ylva’s domain, or even me carrying her while traveling back using my beacon. Arachne did the same–”
Hold on, Eva thought, cutting herself off as she remembered something. While Shalise was looking hopeful, Lynn Cross was anything but. The white flames pouring out of her eyes obscured a good deal of her emotions, but she did not have anything resembling a smile on her face.