Horde of the Demon Priest (Demona Book 3) (14 page)

The figures that Demona had seen were drawing closer to the dog that still stood wagging its tail in the field. Demona squinted in that direction as if it would allow her to see what was coming. As the figures drew nearer Demona recognized one of the people as Kerrick. Fear took hold as she wondered if Kerrick had been possessed after he and the TGHC agents separated from them in Melville.

Most of the people were now waiting with weapons in hand. Many stood behind the fence watching the people walk forward. They were prepared to fight and protect their safe haven, if need be. Demona held up her hands to make sure that nobody initiated an attack without making certain that these were enemies approaching their gate.

Kerrick noticed the weapons that the GLC members held. “Demona, if you are there, tell them we mean no harm.”

“It’s okay, it’s just Kerrick,” Felix said. He held his hand out as if you emphasize that there was no need to attack.

“Who’s with you,” Demona yelled to Kerrick.

“Neutral beings seeking sanctuary,” Kerrick replied.

The GLC members stared in awe as dozens of neutral refugees approached the entrance to their headquarters. They stood in shock as more people emerged from the foggy surroundings. Some carried small children and some helped support elderly people. Some held bags or a small suitcase. They looked tired and full of sorrow.

The GLC members allowed the neutral beings into Roost Haven. Each person was patted down and the contents of their bags or suitcases were sifted through. The defenders were not taking any chances of their being a threat among the refugees. Once inside the entrance to the headquarters’ base, several of the GLC members dictated where the neutral refugees should go.

“Where did they all come from?” Demona asked.

“Terra Hollow was attacked during the night. The demons were attempting to posses the neutral and dark beings, while the possessed wreaked havoc throughout the city. The demons we faced in Melville were merely a distraction. Darius instructed me to lead those neutral beings, willing to seek refuge, here to your headquarters. We have nowhere else for them to go. The city is practically destroyed, we’ll have enough of a trial ahead just finding places for all of the dark beings,” Kerrick said.

Felix shook his head with sorrow as he looked at the homeless neutral beings. “How did you get them out of Terra Hollow and Melville without the CDC stopping you?”

“We didn’t. There’s a rarely used passage out of town from within Terra Hollow,” Kerrick replied.

Chapter 14:

Animal Guide

The shaggy black dog ran up to Demona and licked her hand as it hung by her side. The dog sat down on its haunches beside Demona and looked up at her with its floppy ears facing forward and the tip of its pink tongue sticking out of its mouth lazily. Kerrick scratched the dog behind its ear. The shaggy animal gave a low growl in response. Kerrick promptly withdrew his hand after the warning.

“Cute dog. Where did you get her?” Demona asked.

Kerrick shook his head. “The dog isn’t mine. I thought it lived here.”

Felix’s brows were creased with confusion. “No. Did one of the refugees bring it?”

Kerrick shrugged in response. “I don’t think so. There wasn’t a dog with us when we left Terra Hollow.”

“If it’s not yours and it’s not ours, then where did this dog come from?” Demona asked. She looked down at the dog beside her and wondered where he belonged. It seemed that nobody had an answer.

Hannah came up to them from the hospital wing; she looked as exhausted as everyone felt. Her wavy blonde hair was a mess and there were circles under her eyes. Despite her disheveled appearance her hair seemed to glow in the streaming light that broke through the dense clouds.

Kaleb leaned in and kissed her. “How are things going?”

Hannah sighed. “We’ve had a lot of people in and out since the attack on Melville. Molony told me to take a break because I haven’t slept since you guys left for town. Rowena, Gale, and some of the others are helping him with the flood of neutral beings that need healing,” Hannah said. “Looks like a lot of people had minor injuries from the attack on Terra Hollow too. We’re going to run out of supplies before long, if this keeps up.”

Hannah noticed the dog and bent down to eye level with the animal. She promptly began scratching the dog under the chin. “Aww, such a cute doggie!”

The dog licked her face. When Hannah stood again there were signs of slobber on her cheek, but Hannah did not seem to mind. “Hey, Mona, remember when we talked about Bouvier des Flandres a while ago?” Hannah asked. “You asked me to show you one if I ever saw one again?”

Demona thought back to what felt like ages ago, when she and Hannah had eaten pizza and drank wine in her old apartment. “Yeah,” Demona replied.

“Well, here you go. This is a Bouvier des Flandres. And this doggy is such a handsome boy.” Hannah yawned. “I’m going to get some rest. Make sure nobody else gets hurt while I’m asleep.”

The group watched her retreating figure.

Demona pressed her lips tightly together. “So, that’s why the dog looks familiar. It reminds me of the dog, Acadia; I had a long time ago. The one that ran off on the night Darius turned me into a vampire.” Demona said. She recalled once more, the conversation she had had with Hannah months ago. They had been discussing the dog she had been walking that fateful night. The dog, Acadia, had run off in fear and Demona never saw her again.

Kearne and Ileana walked up to their group of friends with their arms around each other’s backs. They looked increasingly comfortable with one another. Demona suspected that the “we don’t know what this is yet” had escalated to a boyfriend and girlfriend thing.

Everyone was still in shock after having learned that Kearne had become human after he was in the Tomb of Beginning. Felix still had trouble getting used to the fact that Kearne was no longer a danger to Demona or any other women, especially since he had kept such a careful watch on him during their journey through Dissium. Despite the shocking news, it seemed that the hot topic around Roost Haven was the fact that Kearne and Ileana were together. Several of the GLC members had known Ileana for many years, and had never imagined that anyone would be able to put up with her sarcasm and strong will. Somehow the two of them seemed to work.

“Hey how’d the dog get here?” Ileana asked.

The dog seemed to be paying attention to everything that was going on. His head whipped back and forth in the direction of their voices. It was as if he was soaking up every word of their conversation.

“We have no idea where it came from,” Felix said.

“I’m surprised to see you again,” Kearne said to the dog and patted his head.

Demona’s brows furrowed. “You know the dog?” She asked.

Kearne nodded. “Yeah, don’t you recognize it? It’s the dog we saved from the iya demon the night you guys found me in Terra Hollow.”

“No way! How’d it end up here?” Demona questioned.

Everyone shrugged.

“We’ll worry about that later. For now, we need to focus on getting the refugees settled in and everyone calmed down. Between the attack on town and the attack on Terra Hollow, many people are shook up,” Kaleb said.

After Demona, Kaleb, Felix, Ileana, and Kearne chipped in to help the refugees, things began to normalize at headquarters. At least, they went back to as normal as possible given the situation. There were more people in Roost Haven than they knew what to do with. Many of the refugees were assigned to tents since they could fit four to eight people to a tent if the space was utilized properly. The pews inside the church were once again moved out of place and filled with sleeping people. Though, the sleeping arrangements could not possibly be permanent.

The group met with Ezekiel when he was available. It was the first chance they had been able to speak to him since they returned from fighting the demons. All of the important GLC members were called in to discuss the situation that the headquarters faced with the growing number of people to feed, shelter, and clothe. He also brought up the lack of medical supplies as Hannah had mentioned. The supplies that they had on hand were already dwindling, but now that the number of people in Roost Haven had almost doubled overnight, the need for aid was dire. Their numbers were nearing a hundred.

Demona discovered that the dog had followed her into the church and remained beside her throughout the meeting. It was a strange creature and seemed to have an instinctual loyalty to her. Demona continuously glanced down at the dog at her side and wondered why the dog seemed to follow her every move. He looked up at her with big, sparkling brown eyes, which seemed to give an expression of contentment.

Kerrick had been standing at the back of the crowd during the meeting. He might have been a dark being, but Demona could not help but notice that he seemed more at peace among the GLC members than he had at TGHC. Despite his newly relaxed demeanor, Kerrick remained separate from the group. Demona felt as if her feelings were beginning to change toward him. Instead of feeling the disgust and betrayal that she had once felt, she now felt pity for him after she had digested the information he told her about his past.

At the end of the meeting Ezekiel discussed his plans to contact the Council in Gleannbroch about their needs. He hoped that they would continue to send supplies, but knew that the Council had already been more than generous. He also hoped that more volunteers would lend a hand, since the situation in Melville seemed to be growing worse by the day.

As the group broke up and returned to their tasks, Kerrick approached Demona. “I’ve been watching that dog with you.”

“Okay?” Demona said. She was not certain as to what to make of the comment.

“I think it’s your animal guide,” Kerrick said.

“A what?” Felix asked.

“I’m not sure about the specifics. It’s like a familiar or spirit guide. Though, if I remember correctly, an animal guide is a guide that takes a physical form unlike a spirit guide. And it wouldn’t be a familiar, because you aren’t a witch. But I think the animal guide is similar to both in a way. The dog seems to be attached to you,” Kerrick said.

“Nah, you’re just imagining things,” Demona said.

Kerrick shook his head. “I don’t think so. That dog is devoted to you. See how it looks at you and watches your every move. Someone said you saw the dog before? Are you sure you haven’t seen it anywhere else?”

Felix chewed on his lip as he pondered the question. “Hey, there was that dog in town that came charging at our group before the demons attacked. This guy does look very similar. Though, it was dark when we were in town, and the dog was moving pretty quick.”

Demona thought for a few moments. She was still skeptical about the whole idea of an animal spirit. “I did see him after we helped the dogs escape from the kennel. He must have followed us and watched us as we drove away in Kaleb’s van.”

Kerrick nodded. “See. He’s probably been following you ever since. And it sounds like he’s been giving you warnings about the demons.”

“It couldn’t be possible, could it? I have to admit that it seems like he is following me, especially now that I consider all of the times I probably saw him,” Demona said. “Yeah, I guess it’s possible.”

“Are you going back to report to Darius?” Ezekiel asked as he approached.

“No, I’m going to stay here ‘till morning if that’s okay? I’ll help the refugees get their bearings around Roost Haven and make sure they’re settled in. Then, I’ll go back to TGHC tomorrow and see how I can be of use,” Kerrick said. “I’ll be back though, since you and Molony plan on working with the artifact again.”

Ezekiel patted Kerrick on the back, which was an awkward sight.

“Of course, you are always welcome here,” Ezekiel replied. “Unfortunately, you will have slim pickings of a place to sleep, but if you find a spot, it’s yours for the night.”

Kerrick crossed his arms and nodded his head at Ezekiel’s response. “Thank you.”

“You could always just hang from the rafters to sleep,” Felix said with a smirk across his face.

“That’s a myth. Vampires don’t sleep like bats do,” Kerrick replied.

Demona rolled her eyes at Felix and shook her head with disapproval. Then, they said goodnight to Kerrick and left him to the spot he claimed on an empty wooden pew. They exited the church with the dog in tow. He trotted on the other side of Demona with his tongue flapping as he trotted along.

Almost all members of GLC, the volunteers, and the refugees were either resting or working around the base. They labored to keep the place running. Chores were divided between everyone at the headquarters. Some people had permanent positions as guards, or cooks, or healers. Others alternated between other jobs such as making sure Roost Haven was clean of litter, that the children were looked after, or helped to lead daily prayer. Demona and Felix had volunteered to be ground patrol in order to have some time together; even if it only meant that they could be alone while multi-tasking. At least it was something.

They walked silently hand-in-hand around the inside perimeter of the chain link and barbed wire fence. Felix had a staff at his side and Demona had a sword sheathed at hers. Demona cherished every moment she could get with Felix, but she often wished that she could give him her undivided attention. Patrol, however, was much more important. They needed to be alert and watch for anything out of place.

She was becoming distracted by Felix’s thumb, which gently and slowly rubbed circles on her hand in a single spot. His touch made goose bumps rise on her skin. It was endearing, the little things that he did. It let her know that he cared, even if he might be doing it subconsciously. Demona could also hear the light patter of the Bouvier behind them as he continued to follow her loyally.

Demona went to brush back a strand of her black hair that fell into her face, when she noticed something did not look right as her flashlight shone over the bottom of the fencing. She stopped, reclaimed her hand from Felix, and walked toward the fence. She shone the flashlight on the spot, crouched, and looked around more closely. After a minute Demona stood and looked down at the dog beside her.

Demona pointed to the spot. “Is this how you got in?” She shone the light onto fence and illuminated the gaping hole below. There was a place where something, or an animal, had been digging. She shone her light on the other side of the fence, where she found a mound of dirt.