She set down her cases, pulled off the backpack, and opened it up. Jenny emerged, her cloth arms now draped over the opening. The doll had gone with Beth as backup, but it wasn’t uncommon to see Jenny in the attorney’s presence. The two of them seemed to have reached an understanding.
“Guess she doesn’t want to be stuffed away anymore.” Mike gave Jenny a pat on the head. “That’s it, then. Are you still going to take the blue room?”
“Oh yes.” Beth’s eyes sparkled. “I think that’s the room for me.” She put on her backpack and walked up the steps.
Tink grabbed the briefcase, and Mike picked up the suitcase.
“Never thought I would get to live here,” Beth said.
“You can still use my tub,” he told her, remembering his offer to her on the day he’d moved in. “Just gotta let me know first so I don’t walk in on you.”
“Don’t worry. We can draft up a roommate agreement.”
They stood in front of the door. Mike handed her one of his spare keys and pushed open the entrance. Tink went in ahead of them.
“Welcome home,” he said, and Beth crossed the threshold. The instant they were all inside, the ground rumbled violently, and a sound like distant chimes filled the air. They looked at each other, setting down the luggage.
“What was that?” Beth asked. “Are we under attack again?”
“Can’t be. I turned the dial.” He looked out the front door, but nobody was on the lawn. He ran down the steps, his eyes on the clouds above. He half expected a crack in the sky or Amir on his flying carpet with a handful of lightning bolts to throw. The ground shook again, then settled. Abella circled overhead, and Cecilia had appeared on the porch, worry on her face.
“See anything?” Beth stood beside him, her eyes on the road.
“Nothing.”
“Mike.” Beth tugged at his arm. “Turn around.”
He cast one last look at the street, then turned. His jaw dropped. “No fucking way. There’s just no fucking way.”
“I wonder what it means,” Beth said.
The roof of the house was now easily twenty feet higher. The front porch was slightly wider as well, and a whole new bay of windows was now visible. Tink stumbled through the door, then caught herself before falling off the steps. She ran out to stand next to Mike, her eyes wide through the goggles.
“House bigger on inside now!” she said, pulling at his hand. “Whole new floor with different rooms!”
“That’s…but that’s…” It wasn’t just that the house had grown, but his memory of it had too. He thought back to that first day with Beth, the day she had shown him the place. They had walked up the stairs, ignoring the second floor entirely, then had walked the rest of the way up to the third floor, where Naia was. Even this morning, he had walked past without paying it any mind. “How is this possible?”
“Well, then, Mr. Radley.” Beth flashed him a grin. “Should we go inside and see the rest of your house?”
“Our house now. And yes, we should. Hey, Tink?” Mike looked down at the goblin, a huge smile on his face. “Go get your tools. I think we’re going to need them.” He cracked his knuckles, then wiggled his fingers in anticipation. It was time to see what else the house had in store for him.
The Uber driver pulled away from the curb, leaving Dana on the sidewalk. She walked up the driveway for the first time since she had been killed here over a week ago. She had a Walmart bag in one hand and a suitcase in the other. The garage was still unlocked, and she walked inside.
Alex’s bike sat on the floor, the fender scratched up from Dana’s crash. Busted engine parts were scattered everywhere. Kneeling, she set down the bag and suitcase and picked up a nearby spark plug.
“This isn’t how it was supposed to be,” she told it, then tossed the plug on the floor. She lifted the bike up so that she could engage the kickstand. She opened the Walmart bag and pulled out some rags, scratch remover, and a bottle of polish. It was a cathartic process, pushing the dents out with her bare hands and then trying to buff out the worst of the scratches. Fresh off a morning infusion of Mike’s cum, she could feel the magical energy surging through her limbs. While the effect would decay over time, she had discovered that eating his cum not only made her look and feel alive, it made her stronger as well. Not superhero strong, by any means, but she could lift Naia in her arms with little effort.
A couple of hours passed, and Dana stood back to admire her work. The bike was roughed up in places but still in pretty good shape. Her nostrils flared involuntarily at the scent of sulfur.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Lily asked, the succubus now standing over her.
Dana chuckled. “I didn’t think you would let me get away that easily.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. “I spent the last few days in the Library with Ratu. She thinks she may have found a way to bring me back to life. There are some magical items out there that she can break down, apparently.”
“Don’t feel like guzzling cum for all eternity?” Lily walked around Dana’s garage, her eyes taking in the room. “It’s not all bad, but I’m a bit biased.”
“Maybe if I had been born a different way. Anyway, Ratu gave me a pretty solid lead, but I’ll need a fast ride to get there. I only have about three days before I lose my shit, but I
