“I have control of her body, but her consciousness is fully functional. Soon, though, my power will build, and her human form won’t be able to hold me. She will die if we don’t find my skull soon.” He offered her the sword.
She yanked it from his grasp and held it at her side. “How soon?”
“A few hours. Maybe less, which is why we need to move on. My skull isn’t here. I would sense it.”
“It could be concealed.” She gestured to the box. “Isabel was a strong witch. You said so yourself.”
“You’ll have to convince her if you’re sure it’s not here. She’ll want to hack it open and release whatever’s inside.”
“Ash says you want to force it open.” He kneeled by the box.
“She knows me well.”
“Do you see this mark?” He pointed to a design carved into the wood. A series of crisscrossing lines and circles formed an intricate pattern about two inches wide.
“What about it?” She set her jaw, stubbornness obvious in her features.
“That is an adaptation of ancient Sanskrit combined with demonic sigils. It’s a warning to her descendants that this one is a trap meant to kill any who attempt to free us.”
Ember’s eyes narrowed. “What would happen if I opened it?”
“Tell her that her face would melt off like the Nazis in Indiana Jones.”
“Ash says your face would melt like something called a Jones Nazi.” He rose and faced her.
Her eyes turned from narrowed in mild skepticism to slits of suspicion. “Is that what she says?” She crossed her arms. “Or are you just saying that? How do I know your skull isn’t in there and you’re saying it isn’t, so you’ll get to take over Ash completely?”
“I want your sister to survive as much as you do.” He raised a hand. “You have my word.”
She blew out a hard breath. “The word of a demon doesn’t mean much.”
A spark of anger burned in our belly, the feeling both his and my own. “She doesn’t know you like I do.”
“You don’t know me like you think you do.”
Ember scoffed. “Then enlighten me, Mr. Prince of Hell. What’s stopping you from trying to kill us both?”
He made my nostrils flare. “I was talking to Ash, but I will answer you. She and I share a bond. As long as it is intact, I will do whatever it takes to keep her safe…including taking out anyone who stands in my way.”
“Jeez Louise. Don’t threaten her, man. Ember loves to fight.”
She tightened her grip on her sword, and flames licked down the blade. “And I suppose I’m in your way.”
He closed our eyes, frustration, irritation, annoyance, and every other similar emotion flooding our system. “We are on the same side.”
“No, we’re not.” She extinguished her sword and swung it at the box. Chaos caught her arm, keeping her from smashing it open, but the edge of the blade nicked the wood.
The magic surrounding the box pulsed orange before releasing a blast that knocked us on our butts. Chaos’s demonic energy must’ve shielded us because he jumped to our feet and shook off the electrifying sensation crawling across our skin like it was nothing.
Ember didn’t fare so well. She lay on her side, her eyes closed, her sword sticking into the dirt wall like a toothpick in a meatball.
Chaos grunted, the sound extremely strange coming from my body. “My skull isn’t here. We need to get to the next point.” He pulled the sword from the wall and scooped up my sister, carrying her as if she weighed no more than a ragdoll.
“Whoa. I’m not this strong.”
“I am.” He marched back through the corridor, following our path out of the mall and to the van. He put her in the back seat, and she groaned.
“What happened?” She rubbed her temples.
“You foolishly disobeyed me and tried to open the box. It fought back.” He climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine.
“Whoa. You’ve been locked up since before electric lights. You can’t drive a car.”
“Your sister in is no condition to be behind the wheel. Your body has muscle memory. We’ll be fine.” He slammed on the gas pedal and peeled out of the parking lot. “Enter the coordinates for the next location.”
Ember sat up and handed him her phone. “My head feels like it’s going to split in two.”
“If I had allowed you to hit it with your full strength, it probably would have.”
Everyone was quiet on the half-hour drive to the next location, which gave me time to ponder why we even went to that mall in the first place. The reason was obvious. I didn’t inherit the power from my dad like we hoped.
“Tell her I’m sorry.”
“What are you sorry for?”
“Nothing.” Ember scoffed. “I don’t trust you.”
Chaos flicked his gaze to the rearview mirror. “My question wasn’t directed at you.”
