“This is a betrayal!” Kali yelled, but Daryl shut the door in her face. If what Dana had told him was true, he was about to become the most powerful member of the society.
“You were right,” he said, thinking of Sarah. “You were right this whole time.” He pulled out his phone, checking the text one more time while walking up the front walk.
Mike has a book. Calls it a grimoire? Has an apple on the cover. I’m sneaking it out—meet me on the front step in ten minutes.
It took every fiber of his being not to skip. He and Sarah had had many conversations about what powerful artifacts the house could be hiding, but the grimoire of Morgan le Fey, the most powerful sorceress in history, was a veritable goldmine. Rumored to have been part fairy, Morgan had possessed spellcraft that was near the level of a divine being, and rumors had abounded for centuries that she had written her methods into a spell book so simple that even an ordinary human would be able to cast some of the most complex spells.
It all made sense now. How Mike had managed to stymie the efforts of the society, make Sarah disappear, and even soundly defeat a sand golem with no preparation. It was like having a gun in a knife fight.
But what was possible in the hands of the magically adept? Sarah had told him that the knowledge of even a single page could bring an army to its knees, could change how magic itself was understood. Out of all the possibilities, this was the one that held so much promise for him! Even an hour alone with the book would be all the time he needed to transcend to a higher plane of knowledge, to understand himself on a fundamental level, to achieve true immortality without forfeiting what was left of his soul!
He had broken into a cold sweat. Standing just in front of the steps of the house, he was surprised to suddenly notice the car that had been crashed there earlier. Kali had mentioned it, but it must have slipped his mind. Waiting patiently, he heard the front door open.
Dana stumbled out, her face a mask of pain, clutching a massive book against her chest. It was easily the size of a suitcase and clearly heavy.
“Come, let’s get away from here,” he said, waving her down the steps.
Dana stumbled, gasping in pain and crashing to the ground at his feet. “Please,” she begged. “Make the pain stop.” She was already beginning to turn, her hair having faded to gray.
“Oh, silly girl.” He knelt by her. “You have given me a wonderful gift. For this, I must thank you.”
“Bring me back to life. Please.” Dana’s blue eyes had faded to gray, her life force dimming. “I did what you asked.”
“I have no intention of any such thing.” Daryl grabbed the book and pulled. Dana wasn’t very strong, but she clung to the book like a drowning rat to a log.
“The hunger, then. Make it stop.”
“This is just the first step. If you want the hunger to stop, then give…me…the book!” He’d tugged between his words, but it still wouldn’t slide free. “Let go of it before they hear you!”
“You said you would let me die. I want to see Alex again.” Dana was sobbing now, holding the book even tighter. “Please, let me go!”
“I will let you go when I am done with you!” Daryl had rolled her over enough to see that the book was glowing in her arms, scattering blue light. He started punching her, knowing that she wouldn’t feel any pain but hoping she would take the hint and give him what he wanted.
She slapped back at him, striking him weakly on the head and neck.
“And this book is just the start, so let go, goddamn it!” With a powerful yank, he fell over backward, the heavy grimoire lying on top of him. After scrambling to his feet, he ran back toward the car. His heart was pounding, his limbs trembling in excitement. He had done it! He had stolen what the house had protected for so long.
Stumbling, Daryl was suddenly aware that the stone lions guarding the front walk were still very far away. Blinking rapidly, he took a few more steps. His legs were numb. Tilting forward, he crashed into the front walk, the breath leaving his body and the grimoire tumbling free of his grasp.
Gasping for air, he tried to reach the book. Soft footsteps moved toward him, Dana’s tennis shoes coming into view. She pushed the grimoire toward his face, then knelt in front of him.
“You’re not you when you’re sleepy,” she said, a sadistic smile stretching across her face.
“What?” He bit down on his tongue, struggling to stay awake. “What happened?”
“The hunger. How do I get rid of it?”
“I was…using my magic to…” The words fell from his mouth, shattering on the cold concrete below him. “You’ll have to…eat. Can’t stop…transformation.”
“What do I need to eat?”
“Flesh…living…” He could barely keep his eyes open. His magic was uncoiling inside him, forcing adrenaline into every muscle in his body, but he still couldn’t move.
“Can you reverse it? Can you make me human again?”
Daryl let out a laugh. “No. One-way process.” He laughed again. “You’re stuck.”
“And so are you.” A scorpion tail appeared behind Dana, looming over her shoulder like a sinister shadow. Daryl’s mind rewound time to when she had been trying to defend herself, slapping away his assault. He had been a fool.
Dana’s eyes flashed yellow and red, her features melting away to reveal Lily, the succubus. “Last chance. Can you turn her back?”
“No.” He smirked. “And even if I could, I wouldn’t, you dirty, used-up cunt.”
“Then you’re no use to me.” Her tail whipped around, striking him several times. He laughed, his magic strengthening him even farther, his fingers curling up beneath him.
“Even if I fall asleep, I can escape the Dreamscape,”
