The Mythos Unveiled (Demona series) (21 page)

The
cavern had been destroyed. Decorations littered the floor others had partially
hung from the cavern walls. People were talking and searching for friends or
family who had been lost among the chaos.

“Oi!
May I have your attention?” Darius said, “I would like you all to meet the
Mythos
, Demona Brennan. And thank you so
much, Demona, for driving those pesky demons away.”

The
room went silent once more. A few whispered to one another. They understood now.
Some seemed relieved to know what Demona was, while others seemed even more
terrified than before.

“Kerrick,
would you mind taking Demona home. I think that she has had enough for
tonight,” Darius said.

Kerrick
pulled her arm in the direction of the entrance. Demona walked in a daze, she
was emotionally and physically exhausted. Her brain had been unable to function
after her explosion. It took a little while for her to even realize that
Kerrick was leading her towards the entrance of the chamber.

She
looked around at the destruction she had caused. Guilt began to consume her.
When they passed, some of the creatures around her stared with revulsion.
Others knelt and bowed as she walked past. When they reached the exit the noise
had resumed and people began to move around the chamber.

Demona
looked back as Kerrick led her away. “I’m sorry,” she said.

Chapter 22

Change

Kerrick
walked Demona through a portion of Terra Hollow that she had never been before.
This section of the cavern was darker and quieter. It was a long tunnel with
multiple intersecting tunnels branching off in different directions. The dim
lights that hung from the cavern ceiling flickered slightly as they made their
way. Now and then they passed a wooden door on the cave wall. Demona suspected
that this might be the residential portion of Terra Hollow.

Demona
was still in shock from what had happened and let Kerrick lead her blindly
through the tunnel. The only thing she was aware of was that they had
continuously walked down the same tunnel, which seemed to stretch onward
forever. They came to a stop at a location with two large wooden doors. A
lighted sign hung above the door reading, Chasm Resort. Kerrick opened the door
and they walked inside.

Demona
could hardly tell that they were below ground. The lobby of the resort was
brightly lit, unlike other portions of Terra Hollow. It was pristine and
beautifully decorated. Corinthian pillars held up the high ceilings that
towered above. Demona could have sworn she stood in a luxury hotel in the human
world, if it had not been for the supernatural creatures inside.

An
imp sat on a high chair behind the check-in counter. She looked up as they
approached. The imp was small and middle aged. Her gray hair was tied in a bun
on top of her head. Her little hands grasped a pencil as she jotted down
something in a book.

“Mr.
Balen, your room is ready. Here is your key, your room is up the left
staircase,” the imp said.

Kerrick
took the skeleton key that she had handed him and directed Demona up the
stairs. They made their way up a grand spiraling staircase with dark marble
stairs. When they made it to the top they turned down a hallway lined with
crystal globed lamps. Kerrick stopped at room number 423 and unlocked the door.

They
stepped inside a room with a very large bed. It held all of the luxuries of a
human hotel, down to the mini fridge. There were only a few slight differences,
such as the shelves along the wall where a few unfilled vials were placed. The
artwork was not your usual hotel paintings either. Instead of ships in water or
scenery, the paintings showed ships being eaten by krakens or dragons flying
over autumn colored forests.

Kerrick
threw his mask and dinner jacket on the bed. Then, he loosened his bow tie.
Demona stood there and watched him; she was unwilling to move now that they
were very much alone.

“What?”
Balen asked.

Demona
did not respond. She continued to stare at him.

“What?
I thought this would be romantic. The big fancy masquerade, us all dressed up,
and the hotel to finish the night off. It’s about time we made it this far
don’t you agree?” Kerrick asked. He lit a candle on the dresser.

Demona’s
mind was beginning to catch up to what had happened at the masquerade. She
found her voice again. “You have no right!”

“What
are you talking about?”

“I
know…”

“Know
what?”

Demona
clenched her fists. “How dare you, try to get me to sleep with you. I can’t
believe how naive I’ve been this whole time.”

“Now,
hold on. What are you getting at?”

“This
has all been one giant lie. You and Darius have played me. I know everything!”

Kerrick
noticed the candle’s flame double in size, he sat on the bed. “Oh… How did you
find out?” He sat down on the bed and waited for her response.

“The
demon priest, he connected with me. He showed me a conversation between you and
Darius. One you had in his office right before I became your partner. He asked
you to play me. He told you he was my master,” Demona said. “It all makes sense
now. How you were always so hot and cold with me. The distance and the lack of
emotional attachment, I should have seen it all!”

“Yeah,
you’re not really my type,” Kerrick said.

“I
don’t believe that. I know you felt something at some point. You did give in to
your feelings a time or two.” Demona clenched her fists. “It also explains why
you and Darius have been having arguments. I assume it has something to do with
me, but I don’t know about what.”

“Darius
was angry, he knew that Felix was back and that I was losing you to him,”
Kerrick said.

“How
can you be so cold? I am so done with you, with all of this!” Demona said. “I’m
leaving.”

“Alright,
but remember we go back to being strictly partners. That was the agreement.”

“No,
I said I was done with all of this. I’m leaving TGHC for good!” Demona said. “I
never belonged here anyway.”

“You
cannot just leave. Darius will never allow it.” Kerrick stood and pointed his
finger at her as if to lecture her on her decision.

Demona
shook. “If Darius had ever cared he would have been there for me from the
beginning. He is my master and he neglected me!”

“You
can’t turn your back on him!”

“You
make me sick!” Demona faced the door and gripped the door knob.

“Wait!
We still need GLC to deal with the demon priest. You saw what happened
tonight,” Kerrick said.

“You’re
on your own!”

Demona
opened the door. “Right now I don’t want to even think about TGHC, or you. One
day Kerrick, one day I will have questions for you and I expect answers.”
Demona left the room.

****

Demona
made it out of the long residential tunnel, to her car, and back to her
apartment building. She drug herself up the stairs and down the hallway to her
apartment. She stuck her key in the door knob and then her hands began to
shake. She began to sob, softly at first. Tears blurred her vision as she
fumbled to open the door. Demona’s legs gave in and she collapsed onto the
floor.

A
roaring wind swept past her and down the hallway. Her hair flew in all
directions. Demona knew she should control herself, but in that moment she did
not care.

Hannah
must have heard her crying, or maybe it was the wind. When Hannah’s apartment
door opened she saw Demona curled on the floor. She ran to comfort Demona.
Hannah helped Demona up, walked her into her apartment, and she assisted Demona
to her sofa.

Demona
fell to the sofa unable to stand because she was completely consumed with grief
and exhaustion. She and Hannah sat there for hours. Demona buried her face in
Hannah’s shoulder as she let the pain fall away.

Hannah
was there for her and she asked no questions. Hannah was the friend Demona
always thought she would be.

Demona’s
sobs racked her body and they soon turned to hyperventilation. Hannah held her
tight, while rubbing her back.

“It’s
okay. It will be alright,” Hannah said.

Eventually,
Demona had cried all of the tears that her body would allow. Her sobs began to
soften and exhaustion settled in. Her mind was numb from the events that had
unfolded since the masquerade. She was not able to function.

Hannah
got up from the sofa where Demona sat and stared into nothingness. She grabbed
a blanket and wrapped it tightly around Demona. She grabbed a pillow and
assisted Demona in lying down. Hannah sat on the floor beside the sofa gently
stroking Demona’s back. The sobs dissipated and eventually Demona drifted off
to sleep.

Demona
woke the next morning to find Kaleb, Felix, and Hannah seated at the kitchen
island. Before she stirred she listened to their conversation.

“She’s
a what?” Felix said.

“They
call her the
Mythos.
They have a
prophecy that the
Mythos
will come
and will destroy either the light or dark beings. It’s Demona, she’s the
Mythos
,” Kaleb said. “GLC has a similar
prophecy.”

“Hey,
you’re awake!” Hannah said.

“Yeah,”
Demona replied. She stretched and got to her feet. Then she wrapped the blanket
around her. She groggily made her way to the island and sat on the empty stool.

Kaleb,
Felix, and Hannah all looked at her. The world seemed as if it had stopped
after the events of the night before.

Demona
kept reliving the memory of Darius and Kerrick over and over. “So, you know
what I am?”

They
nodded.

“GLC
never truly understood the prophecy, but they have a similar one,” Kaleb said.

“I’m
still trying to figure it all out. I only have pieces of the puzzle,” Demona
said. “Darius was keeping me in the dark, about a lot of things.”

“Maybe
we can work it out together,” Felix said.

“What
happened last night?” Hannah asked.

Demona
felt their eyes glued to her. “I discovered a secret about Darius and Kerrick…
I left TGHC, and I will never go back.”

“What
are you going to do now?” Kaleb asked.

“The
prophecy says I will choose a side. It’s time that I got to know GLC.” Demona
said. “I choose light.”

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS

This
book could not have been completed without the continuous support from my
husband, Josh Hepler. Thank you for the inspiration and constructive criticism.
Thank you for putting up with my obsession over Demona and the story plot.
Thank you for proofreading and for your patience throughout the process.

Thank
you to Joey Krick, for giving me an insight into how military personnel refer
to one another. Thank you to my family and friends for always supporting me in
my crazy ideas. Thank you to Amy Hosterman and Jeff McElhare for providing me
with information on the self-publishing process. Thank you, Mary Clayton for proofreading
and editing the manuscript.
 
Thank you to
my beta readers: Tricia VanVorce, Laura Jones, Amy Hosterman, Eli Frey, Sue
Delp, Stefani Wilmoth, and Lichelle Moyer.

I
want to thank the American Public University System and my professors for
helping me to expand my mind and give me inspiration. Thank you to Cam Rea and
Ben Sorensen, fellow members of the Saber & Scroll History Club, for
providing me with the word
kataphraktos.

I
must also thank my blog readers and social media friends/fans for showing your
support. Thank you to all of my readers for taking the time to read my first
novel. Thank you to all other friends and family for your continuous support
and encouragement through this process. I could not have done this without you
all.