Watch of the Wicked (Devil's Witch Book 3)

Yansmen

I can see Colin’s head of green hair move by the window of their apartment. I’ve been trapped in this freak show for over a couple days now. I didn’t register my arrival, but I did end up in the mayor’s office. He was out though and I even waited around for two hours. He never showed. This place isn’t cold or anything so I didn’t mind sleeping outside. It’s kind of growing on me actually. The food’s great too.

The boss kind of was right. This is sort of like my vacation, but perhaps I’m only considering it to be one since I just so happened to luckily avoid going somewhere else instead. It was pretty easy to find Valerie because they have a relocation center in town the dead are supposed to go to when they arrive here. I looked up the goddess by her last name and it simple enough to thumb through a couple of old books and find where was living with the rest of them.

I suppose all good things must come to an end though. I’ve only been here three days and today I decided to take a walk up over the fields to stretch my legs after residing in a coffee shop in the town for the day. I was made to change into these black tacky overalls and grey undershirt, but I didn’t mind since the clothes were free. Everyone wears black here and yeah I guess it makes things gloomy, but other than that the people seem happy.

The boss told me in my mind yesterday to just meet him over at the mayor’s office building this morning after I told him where Valerie was staying here. I guess I better get on it, the sun’s rising on the horizon now and I wouldn’t want to keep him waiting.

***

My body aches as I shift uncomfortably unfamiliar with the new heavy soft blankets resting on top of me. I feel like I’m sinking down into my bed and I don’t remember my bed in the apartment being this comfy. It’s a struggle just to sit up, but something moves off of me and I feel less trapped beneath the covers as I sit up opening my eyes to my new surroundings. The room is dark except for the fuzzy little lit-up clouds hanging from a white ribboned mobile. The mobile dangles, still, above the black bars of a baby crib in the corner of the room.

My vision adjusts a little more. This room is far too big to be the one I fell asleep in and so is the bed. My brain hurts and the edges of my vision are clouded still in sleep. I wipe at my eyes while literally crawling out of the sinking bed. When I stand up I gape down at the black funeral gown I’m dressed in. It drags on the ground behind me as I approach the baby crib. When I look inside the crib, I see the vamp baby peering up at me while swaying its arms up at me.

Dread sinks into me as I consider turning around to put a face to the eyes I feel watching my back. Without looking back at the bed, I snatch the baby up. The walls of the room are covered in taxidermy and a giant bear rug leads me on my way to the exit of the room. I don’t think I’ve seen a door so big. It reaches the ceiling and has been left open. I push against it with my hip while holding the baby. The door is heavy and made of some kind of wood with carvings on it, but it’s too dark for me to make out the lettering.

When I push the door open wide enough, I slip out into the dark hallway just has the evil little vamp baby clamps down on my finger. I bite my lip in agony while looking for a way out this place. The hallway is lit up by a hanging electric chandelier and the walls are covered in dark maroon wallpaper with gothic patterns. I don’t see any windows and on a whim, I just start walking down the right side of the hallway following the bend in the hall at the end.

The staircase is made of black marble and so is the floor down below. My attention is honed in on the front door as I do my best to travel down the grand staircase with tripping on my annoying dress.

I feel like I’m still sweating from laying in that bed and it makes my skin crawl because I know it wasn’t just the vamp baby and me in there. I’m not in Hegley Hallow anymore. To confirm my suspicions I walk straight up to the front door of the house.

I whisper, ”Patentibus."

The door takes a moment to unlock and then swings back. On the outside of the door above the door knocker is the family name “Silvet”. There are about a dozen police cars parked in the roundabout parking lot right out front. All the cars are turned off, and when I use my sight, I don’t see a single soul occupying any of them. What disturbs me the most though is what stands in the center of the grassy area inside the roundabout. A giant flag stands and reaches higher up than the house and over the tops of the trees of the woods surrounding it. The satanic flag waves in the wind showcasing its blood red color. The huge cloth is marked with a black upside-down pentagram marking the homeowner as a vampire supremacist.

I step further back into the house while beholding the ominous sight before me. When I turn around I find Nick standing right behind me. He reaches around me and shut the door without breaking eye contact. The only thing he’s wearing is red and black pajama pants and I scowl thinking the two colors are the only ones he desires to wear to go along with this sick version of his own utopia.

I’m forced to notice of his naked upper-half. I think he has gained weight, but it still is well proportioned to blend in with his muscle. I tear my gaze away from his chest not wishing to look into his striking blue eyes and the controlled anger lurking behind them. When he hisses down at the baby it stops feeding and unintentionally I look up to find his golden hair disheveled and falling down into his dark eyes that now are turning red as they see the blood run my finger.

“Where am I am? What have you done with Stella and Colin. I want to go home.” I panic. Although now, I’m unsure of where my homes is, but I know it’s not here. “Look at you.” I mumble weakly.

“I’m sorry you have to see me like this.” Nick begins to explain in his familiar monotone seemingly misinterpreting my point as he looks down at himself.

He covers my hand holding the baby. I’m tempted to swat it away and if I tried though I may drop the baby. He pulls his hand away after he uses our conjoined magic to heal it like he did in my dream that I’m fairly certain was real.

My lip trembles and I look down at my finger the vamp baby bit. “I know everything you did.” I say in a shaky voice.

His demonic eyes watch me with the calculation he used to only reserve for those he interrogated. He’s changed in our time apart and I flex my finger remembering the unspeakable things he’s done.

How many dreams were real before? I don’t understand why this happening me. I wasn’t special or a particularly strong witch. Maybe I just have bad luck. Luck would be putting it lightly. This is worse than a burden or curse.

I’m staring the devil in the eyes. Nick’s been possessed and this is the result of him willing doing the devil’s deeds.

My hands feel clammy and my heart clenches tightly at the sight of not just him, but what has swallowed his soul. Then there’s me. He told me last night I basically did nothing to stop him and deep down I know he was right.

I wanted the coven dead because they refused to see the good in me, but they weren’t just right about him. They were right about me too. I did turn my back on them. What if all along I’ve been possessed too and only now I’m coming to terms with it?

I almost drop the baby in my panic attack. I would have, if Nick didn’t awkwardly move against me to break its fall. It barely moved passed my belly. I bring him back up to my chest wishing I had a free hand to remove Nick’s hand from rubbing my back.

“I told you before people fear what they don’t understand,” he tells me in a low tone. I don’t like looking into his strange eyes, and instead, look at the whites of his cheekbones. “You are not afraid of me, but you pretend to be, don’t you? It makes you feel better about us.” He finishes with a chuckle and I curl my lip in disgust.

“I don’t who you are anymore. You’re not the same man you were before you left the department.”

“Yes, I am,” Nick whispers, “It’s still me. This is who I am, who I was and always will be. I have never lied to you.”

“A-are you happy?” I ask him while trembling in fear of my life. He smells just like I remember and it brings unwanted memories. It makes me want to puke knowing he’s eaten people alive and the number of times I’ve left him touch me like now.

His voice is hoarse as he strokes the side of my face. “No...”

“Then why bother? You can’t control everyone. That’s what the coven did,” I shudder not wishing to say “us”. However, it’s the only way I think I can get him to settle down. “And look what happened us. Please, just leave me alone. Enough bad has come from the...good you tried to do.” I finish in a soothing voice hoping he buys it.

“There is no good or evil. I am only doing what I believe is right and that is different. Vastly different.”

“I’m a witch. If you hate them, then you hate me too. You and Will got to mark your own paths -- your own beliefs. You had choices I never got. I didn’t want to be a witch,” My voice begins to rise as I back away from him slowly. “I didn’t want to be alive. What’s the point when no matter what I think I’m in the wrong.”

“Goddess...”

I narrow my eyes at the soft tone he decides to use. I’m not falling for it. My voices hardens as I step away from him, “I’m hated no matter where I go. So leave alone.”

“You are not hated. I worship you. So does Heinrich, Yansmen and so many others. We love you and I know you love them...” Nick trails off.

“The only thing you worship is that flag out front. Look at what it’s made you!” I scream while crying and the vamp baby begins crying too. “You’ve been possessed.”

My throat closes up when I see his body begin to shake with his unspoken rage. He probably expected me to just go along with things or perhaps be willing to accept what the coven had coming for them.

He’s not the same person he was before leaving town. He’s been manifested by the will of the devil and now his soul’s been consumed. A small smile forms on his lips. “By what?”

“You know what.”

The light touches, the hesitation to comfort me and all the other gestures of his that I thought were all just for show were really, in fact, reflecting his true beliefs. At least, that’s what I used to think up until he visited me last night. Things were quite the opposite then. I go cold seeing his smile widen into a cruel grin.

“I had a vision where I couldn’t save either of us. The truth is, we were never in control. I think we’ve been blessed though. I think what we’re doing is right. I want to show you what I’ve created for us,” I can’t even look at him. “Why are you crying, goddess?” Nick voice turns sly and I shudder feeling him kiss my forehead and not pull away. “Do you hate me?”

I squirm feeling the warmth of his chest smashed against my face. I’m trembling awfully and if he wasn’t holding me against him I would have fallen to the ground. It’s revolting to be touched and caressed by someone as disgusting as him. Then there’s always the chance that any moment he could always snap and eat me too.

“No...” I whisper a half-truth. More than anything I hate what he has become, but a tiny part of me still sympathizes with him when I know I shouldn’t.

I feel him smile against my forehead as he rocks me back and forth in his arms. He speaks in a low tone, “We’re free now, no one will hurt you ever again.” He steps back.

I yelp seeing a fleshy skeleton looking down at me. I think it’s still Nick, but his skin is a dark red and it almost looks black against the whites of his bones.

“No! Stop it!” I scream feeling something cold as ice stretch across my face and down my neck at his touch. I whimper looking down at the neckline on my dress to see my skin turning black like his and the bones shining through. I’ve become some kind of walking ghoul like him!

He withdraws his hand giving me a once over. I tense up hearing him chuckle as he circles around me. His hand lands on my bottom and I narrow my eyes when the other lands on my waist. “Please don’t be angry at me goddess. I just want to understand you more and it’s more...pleasing to my taste to observe you this way.”

“What have you done?” I whisper in terror.

“Created a new order that I can’t wait to show you and I know you’re excited too. You just like to hide it, but now we won’t be hiding anything from eachother.” He replies while openly peering down the neckline of my dress and I lift the baby up covering the area. Then again, all of my skin looks to be a dark red-black like his and makes me wonder if he can really see anything or if he just does that out of habit. How oblivious have I been to his advances? What if he has always been ogling me and I never knew?

“Why don’t we go to church together tomorrow? If you do not approve of what I have created then I will gladly change things.” Nick offers coyly.

“Okay.” I squeak seeing a bunch of strangers staring down at us from the top of the stairwell.