Kyle stared at the steam rising from his cup of tea. The cream swirled with the herb-infused water. He dipped the teabag repeatedly to make cream swirl more. A small breeze blew. Kyle leaned back against the patio chair. He tapped his fingers against the wooden table while he watched the tea’s cream spin.
​

Three women walked by the café. Their hands were full of shopping bags. Each woman had a carefree smile as they talked of shows they watched earlier that week. Guys walking by them stopped to take a second look. Not a single one of them knew there was darkness lurking within the town.


Mina took a sip of her tea. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. A calming wave washed over her. She snuck a peek at Kyle. When he made no movement, she closed her peeping eye and took another sip of her tea.


Kyle collected himself. He glanced from Mina to Blaine then returned his gaze to his tea. “If I ask, everything changes. I know that I need to know, but a part of me is afraid to confirm what I think I already know.”


“Mm.” Mina took another sip. She glanced up at the sunny blue sky. “Once that door opens, it cannot ever be closed again.” Blaine nodded.


Kyle waited for her to say more. Mina merely closed her eyes again and took yet another sip of her tea. Kyle scrunched his eyebrows together. “Aren’t you going to tell me there is still time to walk away? Isn’t this supposed to be a red or blue pill moment?”


A chuckle made Mina paused midway her sip. She pointedly stared into his eyes. “The door is already open. There is no going back. That decision has already been made.”


“No. I didn’t make that choice.”


“Then someone else did. Either way, it;s. Now you have to decide what's next.”


Kyle scoffed. “How can you be so calm about this? Why haven’t you attempted to force me to be okay with this if I don’t have a choice in the matter?”


“I can't tell you how to feel. I'm not you.” Mina shrugged. “Take as long as you want. It’s a lot to process.”


Blaine shared a smile with Mina. Kyle noted a hint of sadness in his smile. The man took off his glasses and meticulously cleaned them. He exhaled on the glass and gave it one last wipe before putting them back on.


“Fine…” Kyle straightened his back. “Let me have it.”


Mina raised a single eyebrow. She placed her cup on the table. She crossed her legs. “Demons are real.” She waited for Kyle to react. When he didn’t, she continued on. “Blaine and I have been hunting demons for the last four years. You friend, Jacob, is our latest case.”


Kyle cupped his hands around his tea. “What happened to him?”


Blaine pulled out a manila folder. He flipped through the pages. “Jacob Dawson is presumed to be possessed. Supernatural activity has occurred since last week. Each day the supernatural energy grew stronger until it reached a pivotal spike four days ago.”


“I felt the change in the atmosphere from two states away.” Mina inhaled deeply. “Whatever took possession of Jacob is powerful.”


“How were you able to feel it especially from two states away? I had no idea this was going on and I was right here.”


A smile came to her lips. “Anyone can feel power if they pay enough attention. It could be a chill in the air or a crackling sensation. It varies.” Mina crossed her arms. “Jacob’s possession sent a sonic boom.”


Kyle thought about the earthquake which occurred four days prior. Was that because of Jacob?


“I immediately sent Blaine ahead to look into it.” Mina held her cup of tea to her lips. She licked her upper lip before taking a sip.


Blaine placed a hand on the folder. “The demon possessing Jacob controls imps,” he told Mina.


“Imps? That doesn’t narrow down our big bad at all.”


“What are imps,” Kyle asked.


“Those grey hobbits that were chasing you. They’re low ranked demons, mostly just mischievous trouble-makers, but they’re often used by stronger demons to do their dirty work,” Blaine answered.


Kyle leaned back in his chair. “So what are you trying to narrow down?”


“We’re trying to figure out what demon has possessed your friend. Once we know that, we can counter effectively.”


“Can Jacob be saved?”


Mina looked away. A sense of forlorn Kyle set in her eyes. “I certainly hope so.”


A phone rang. Mina pulled out her cell and answered. She stepped away from the table. Kyle faced Blaine. “What does she mean she hopes?”


Blaine took off his glasses. He slowly wiped the lens. “You’ve got to trust us. We’ve been doing this for a while.” He watched Mina roam to the corner. A few guys passed by her. They checked her out and whistled until they saw the scar over her eye. She rolled her eyes as the guys hastened their walk.


“Mina’s a really kind person. That tough exterior is just a defense.” Blaine smiled. “She’ll do everything she can to help Jacob. And you.”


Kyle nodded. “What got you two into demon-hunting?”


“We lost someone close to us. Mina has vowed never to let anyone go through what she did.” Blaine pushed his lips to the side. “Well, that’s only half of it. She also vowed to find the demon who took that someone.”


“And you’re following her just because?”


Blaine laughed. “I have my own reasons. The top of the list is Clay would find a way to come back just to kill me if I let her go into danger alone.”


Kyle glanced over at Mina again. She flipped her dark-red hair over her shoulder. She had no qualms displaying the nasty scar over her eye. In fact, she smiled every time someone fled after noticing it. “Must be hard.”


Mina returned with a huff. “Those creeps just won’t leave me be.”


“They called again?” Blaine said.


Kyle glanced from Blaine to Mina and back. “Who? Who called?”


Mina gave a dismissive wave of her hand. “Nothing that concerns this case. Just a personal annoyance.” She plopped back down in her chair and picked up her tea. She took a sip and frowned. “It’s cold.”


“Kyle,” Blaine tapped his fingers on the manila as he leaned back in his chair. He picked up his cup of coffee. “Tell us everything you can about the last week. Don't leave anything out. The smallest thing may be bigger than you think.”


Kyle entwined his fingers together. “Uh, where to start?”


“When did you first notice something strange was happening?”


“It’s been about a week now. At first, Jacob was just quiet. I mean, he’s always been a quiet guy but there was something that made him more stoic than usual. I just brushed it off as a bad day.” Kyle leaned back in his chair. He shook his head. Why didn’t I just ask? “Two days later… the incident happened…”


Mina raised an eyebrow. Blaine nodded. “I heard whispers about something happening to him,” Blaine took a gulp of his coffee, “but no one would give details to what happened.”


“That’s because it was freaky.” Kyle shivered. “Unless you were there to see it, you wouldn’t believe it. I saw it and I still don’t.”


Mina chuckled to herself. “I vaguely remember that feeling.”


Blaine smaked her knee. She backed away with a laugh. “So what did happen?” Blaine asked.


“We were all sitting in class, listening to the teach drag on and on about the civil war or something. Suddenly, Jacob’s arm just flew up in the air. The teach thought he had a question but Jacob didn’t answer… Instead, blood started to come out of his eyes. His neck twisted strangely and his back arched over the chair. Everyone was startled but the horror didn’t start until he was floating in the air.”


Mina put a finger on her lip in thought. “I haven’t heard of a possession so brutal. It’s almost as if the demon was making room for itself.”


“We know that it’s a powerful demon, so perhaps that isn’t such a radical idea,” Blaine said.


Kyle’s eyes went wide. “What does that mean for Jacob?”


“We don’t know yet,” Mina took a sip of her tea. Kyle blinked his surprise when he noticed steam rising from the cup. But none of the waitresses had come over... “I can only hope we can safely extract the demon from him.”


Blaine nodded. “What else happened?”


“The desks flew about the room on their own, people thrown against walls, and flickering lights,” Kyle said. “Oh, and there was this bloodcurdling roar that came from Jacob. But now I know it was a demon.”


“What happened after?”


“He was sent home. Two days later, the police started asking about his whereabouts.”


“The full possession must have happened that night,” Mina said, “and his family was caught in the crossfire.”


“Why were those imps chasing you?” Blaine glanced over his coffee cup.


Kyle shrugged. “Jacob said I was putting my nose in business which doesn’t concern me. He’s had crows watching me since I looked around his house.”


Mina’s ears perked up. “Crows? That's something to narrow down the list. What else can you tell us?”


“Uh, I went to his house. I found Jacob’s journal. He describes everything that happened that week.”


“That will be a great help. Where is it?”


“Here in my—“


Kyle leaned over the chair and paused. His jaw dropped. “Crap. I must have dropped it at the school when those imps were chasing me.”


“Hell baskets.” Mina balled a fist. “We need that journal. Blaine, Research into demons with control over crows and imps. Call Steph if you have to.”


“Also wolves,” Kyle said. “The journal mentioned a ritual that established wolves as his guardians. And when I was at the house, there were a group of wolves watching me.”


Mina pointed at Kyle. “That should narrow our potentials considerably.” She rose to her feet. “Kyle, you’re coming with me.”


“Where are we going?”


“We’re going to go get that journal.”


. . .


Mina and Kyle sat in the black car. They watched three police squad cars pull out of the driveway. The school had been taped off and all kids had been sent home.


“They found Mr. Hughes body,” Kyle said.


“Then they’re likely taking you bag into evidence.”


“What are we going to do? The cops are gonna think I killed Mr. Hughes.”


Mina nodded, “Probably.”


Kyle’s eyes bulged. “That’s not comforting!”


Mina smiled. “Don’t worry. I got your back.”


“You have some friends who are cops?”


“Hell no. Blaine is my only friend.”


“Really not inspiring confidence here.”


Mina crossed her legs. “Drive to the station.”


Kyle fiddled his thumbs and bit his bottom lip. He watched buildings blur by. His heart thumped erratically. Mina’s calm only made him more anxious.


They arrived at the police station. Mina winked at Kyle, “Stay here.”


Kyle watched Mina slide out of the car. She tossed her dark-red hair back and walked on. She grabbed a passing officer and pinned him to one of the police cars. Mina caressed the officer's cheek.


Kyle held his breath with wide eyes as he watched Mina manhandle the cop. What is she doing? She's gonna be thrown in jail if she continues like that!


Mina whispered in the cop's ear. She stepped back, gave him a wink, and sauntered back to the car. She slipped into the car nonchalantly.


“What was that?!” Kyle stared out the window. The cop walked into the station. “That cop is definitely going to come back with a group of cops and arrest us.”


“We'll be fine.” Mina pulled out a nail file. She looked at her black-polished nails and began filing the first fingernail.


The cop walked out of the station with another officer. Both approached the black car. “Here he comes,” Kyle pulled away from the window, “I told you, we're going to be thrown in jail because you manhandled a police officer!”


“Please.” Mina lowered the window. The two cops approached. The cop Mina manhandled handed her Kyle's bag. “Thank you, Rick. Is this the friend I can trust?”


Rick nodded. The other cop stepped closer to the window. “What did you need, ma'am?”


Mina grabbed the officer's chin and looked directly into his eyes. “I need your loyalty.”


The officer didn't even struggle. “Yes, mistress.”


“Perfect. Now, here's what I need you both to do. I need you to dredge up whatever you can on Jacob's father. I want to know everything about him and his past.” Mina gave them a wink. “Can you do that for me?”


“Of course, Mistress.” The cops bowed their heads before walking off.


Kyle stared at Mina in disbelief. “I don't get it. What just happened?”


Mina handed Kyle's bag to him with a smile. “I have great and terrible powers.”


Kyle eyed his bag. He looked up at Mina before digging into his bag. He pulled out the journal from his bag. He flipped the book around. “If we're to get any clues on what's happening to Jacob, it's in here.”


Mina held a hand up. She looked out the window.


“Wha-”


The ground shook. Kyle turned his attention to the police station. The cops held on to their cars or whatever was nearby. The pavement to the entrance cracked. One of the street lights swayed. Officers underneath the thirty-foot steel pole fled before it toppled over. Kyle flinched at the light's burst upon impact.


To his horror, Kyle watched the ground give way under a few of the police cars. They wobbled before slowly rotating and sinking. The officers escaped to the middle of the street. All watched as the cars sunk into the ground like a feeble animal in quicksand.


The crack in the ground widened. It extended to the station. Kyle eyed the crack up the police station to the roof. He gasped.


Jacob idly swung his legs atop the station's roof, watching the chaos with a smirk. He scooted over just slightly as the station split in two. He met Kyle's gaze and wiggled his fingers in greeting.


Mina snapped her fingers, “Drive! Now!”


The car started. The driver sped into the street. Pedestrians and officers jumped out of the way, cursing at them before getting distracted by the crumbling station. Kyle watched the station shrink into the distance... or perhaps it had sunk like the police cars.


“Jacob did that...” Kyle shook his head. “How?!”


Mina inhaled deeply through her nose. She clenched her black jeans while she stared out the window. It took a moment before she turned her gaze to Kyle. Even then, she hadn't unclenched the bundled jeans in her fist. “Bloody grasshoppers... the demon that possessed Jacob is far more powerful than I imagined. That was simply a warning.”


“A warning?”


Mina nodded. “That the cops can't help you.”


Kyle held his breath. His heart thumped against his chest harder with each second. He let out the breath, but his body started to tremble.


“Try not to worry,” Mina put a comforting hand on Kyle's knee. “I will keep you safe.”


It took a minute before Kyle nodded.


“Let's see this journal.”


Kyle handed the leather-bound book to Mina.


Mina's hand flinched before grabbing it. “There is a lot of power coming from this.”


Kyle raised an eyebrow. “You've lost me.”


She opened the journal.


Kyle watched her as she read through a few of the entries. His toes curled in his shoes. He wiped away a drop of sweat. He could hear his heart beating against his chest in the awkward silence. He started tapping his fingers against his knee.


Mina turned the page. Her blank expression turned sour. Her red lips frowned. “This is concerning.”


“What?”


“Tell me, Jacob's mother was the only survivor out of this whole ordeal. Where is she now?”


“She's in an asylum. No one believed her.”


Mina closed the journal. “We need to break her out.”


“Wait, what?” Kyle's mouth dropped.


“I need to call Blaine and get all information he's scrounged up, but I think her life is still in danger.”


“Do you think Jacob is going to attack her?”


Mina's emerald green eyes bore into Kyle. “Yes.”