“It’s freshwater, for the most part, but it’s fed by the St. Lawrence River which is an estuary attached to the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, they found a great white shark in the St. Lawrence somewhere in 2019.”
Looking at the water again, she nodded. “Let’s try something. If I can force waves, then it might be enough for me to raise a single tsunami-like wave to drench the BFF Body Snatcher. If there’s any sort of salinity in the water, it might be enough to stun it so you can do your wolfy thing.”
Luke slipped the backpack from his shoulder and opened a side zipper. He took out a small sandwich sized baggie filled with pink crystals.
“No, you didn’t!” Gabrielle grinned.
“I did. After what Raven did to that juvenile demon with a handful of Himalayan salt, I figured why not keep some just in case.” He shrugged. “Occupational hazard.”
She threw her arms around his neck, kissing him quickly. “Let’s do this.”
They crept toward a spot where she had a clear view of the water, the boat and the demon sunning itself on their bow.
“Do you believe the fucking nerve?” Gabby lifted a hand.
“Focus, bébé.”
Concentrating on the water, her nose wrinkled as she raised both hands. “Wind,” she whispered. No sooner did she say the word, than small white caps formed on the water.
“Gust.” She lifted her hands higher, swaying her arms like a church tent revivalist.
“Halleluiah,” Luke whispered, teasing.
“Don’t make me laugh. I’ll lose focus.”
“Yes, boss.”
Luke slipped behind Gabrielle to strip out of his clothes. “Just say when, love. The Goddess is on our side. Moonrise high in the blue sky.”
Gabrielle didn’t pull her gaze from the water. She’d seen the moon in broad daylight plenty of times. If Luke said it was there, then so be it.
She dragged in a deep breath, and held it for a moment. “TEMPEST!” She let the rest of her breath out in a rush.
The demon bolted from the boat to the shore, its back hunched as it undulated in Raven’s form. It sniffed the air, red eyes scanning the thick foliage.
The wave held at her command, raising to a high curtain of water. Her muscles shook with the elemental intensity, but she gritted her teeth, sending it with crashing force over the demon.
Luke raised his face to the pale orb in the daylight sky and in seconds he leapt straight over Gabrielle’s head. An enormous wolf, black as night, and just as enigmatic as an inky, starless sky.
The wolf raced toward the beach with Gabrielle on its heels. She opened the baggie full of salt, keeping it scrunched closed in one hand while the other was free to call whatever element she needed.
The demon was on its knees in the mud, its leathery scales drenched. The water must have had enough salinity to more than stun. It smacked Raven’s form right out of the entity’s shapeshifting head.
Teeth-bared, the wolf snarled, circling the demon. Luke wasn’t one to attack without assessing first.
The demon lifted its shaggy head. Its red, goat-slit eyes stared back at the wolf, but it didn’t move. Whether it could or not was the question.
Luke growled, and Gabby took that as her cue. She stepped in front of the demon, but kept enough distance that if she had to zap its ass with a bolt, she could.
“Who are you?”
Its goaty eyes narrowed. “I could ask the same of you.”
She expected its voice to be gravely, but instead it was soft and slightly accented. She couldn’t place the accent, but then again, she’d never been to hell.
Its body was hunched, with a spine that curved into dual humps where you’d expect shoulder blades. Its leather scales were covered is a soft fuzz, like baby hair that stood on end as it dried in the sun. Fine salt crystals clung to each of those hairs, and every time the creature moved, no matter how slight, it winced.
“What do you want?”
It didn’t reply.
“You’re an incarnate demon, that much is clear. I’ve got four blood witches on speed dial who would just love a moment alone with you.”
Gabrielle saw a flicker of fear shadow its red eyes.
“Ah, so you do understand English. Now, unless you want me to summon my witchy sisters, I suggest you answer my question. Unless you’d rather my wolf rip you limb from limb. He’s a sentinel, so you know he knows all you’re your sweet spots to make the hurt last.”
Its eyes traveled her full length, but stopped at her belly. Its red gaze narrowed, and a smug smile curled its black lips. The demon gritted its teeth, but managed to lift a hand almost in beckoning.
“Luke!”
It tried something underhanded, but Luke was quicker. The wolf went for the demon’s throat, and Gabrielle scrambled out of the crossfire. Was it trying for her baby? She didn’t know for sure, but neither of them was taking any chances.
The demon fell backwards, its throat in a vise between Luke’s teeth. There was no way they could dispatch the entity on their own, but they could incapacitate it.
“Luke! Squeeze tighter. Make it open its maw!”
The demon gurgled, opening its mouth. Like Raven did with the juvenile demon in New Orleans, Gabrielle fisted a handful of salt and threw it down the incarnate’s throat.
The incarnate froze, almost as if in rigor mortis. It wasn’t dead, but it wasn’t going anywhere fast. Luke shifted back to human form in a snap of bone and muscle. He stood naked and gorgeous in the sun, but there was no time to appreciate the scenery. Not with a demon to drag back to the chateau for incarceration and questioning.
“Shove the rest of that salt in its mouth. Hurry.
