Chapter Five
Skylar
I woke as soon as the car came to a stop. Blinking into the late afternoon sun, I looked around in surprise. “Why didn’t you wake me?”
“You must have needed the sleep,” Xander said. “You were quiet for a while then I realized you were snoring.”
“I don’t snore,” I said.
He grinned. “I beg to differ.”
“Wait, where are we?” I glanced out the window and noticed rolling green hills dotted with headstones. “Are we in a cemetery?”
“You changed the subject,” he said.
“I don’t snore.”
He shrugged and made a noncommittal kind of noise.
“Cemetery?” I gestured to the window.
“Yes. One of the few places anywhere near us where demons can’t visit.” He turned the engine off.
“So the whole sacred ground thing works with demons?” I asked, skeptical. I was new to being part demon, but I’d never been anywhere where I was magically locked out.
“No, not all sacred ground. But this cemetery in particular. During the last demon wars, the grounds were spelled by powerful mages. The magic still lingers.”
“Are you forgetting that you’re transporting a demon?” I asked.
He laughed. “You’re half demon. I don’t think we’ll need to worry.”
“Okay, so we sit in the middle of a cemetery and do what exactly? We need a demon to help us with this.” I lifted the book, which was still in my lap despite me falling asleep. “Wait, how long were we driving?”
“About three hours,” he said. “And to answer you, I called in some help.”
He opened his door. “You coming?”
“Out into the creepy cemetery during sunset? You betcha,” I said with false bravado.
I opened the door and stepped onto the gravel road. We weren’t in a parking lot but the road seemed endless. I couldn’t see a main road behind us or any sign of where the road stopped in front of us. We were surrounded by green grassy hills. Tall trees flush with leaves rustled in the breeze. It was peaceful here. Exactly the kind of place you’d want to reflect on those you’d lost.
If not for the hundreds of headstones and distant mausoleums, it might be a nice place for a picnic.
I walked around the car, hugging the book against my chest. When I reached Xander he started walking down the dirt road.
“If we weren’t there yet, why not keep driving?” I asked.
“Trust me,” he said.
A few steps later and the magic hit me. It felt like walking through a waterfall and I gasped for breath. I’d never been bombarded by this much magic at once. I stopped walking and struggled to catch my breath. Xander set his hand on the small of my back and guided me forward. A few cautious steps later, and I was able to breathe normally again.
All around me, magic hummed through the air like the crackle of static electricity. It was everywhere. Floating all around us.
“The car wouldn’t have made it through,” he said.
“You weren’t kidding when you said the magic was still lingering. If this is years later, I can’t imagine what it was like in its prime.”
“This iscenturieslater,” a voice clarified.