eyes and smiled at them. “Ah … see? That’s why I wanted his šarras here. They hold a part of the Malachai’s powers. As such, I can feed from them and take back some of his strength. It’s why all of you were kept from me and banned from here while you served him. Now bring me the rest of his little friends. Once we have him fully weakened and me fed, we shall be able to destroy him. And I’ll be able to leave here, not as a ghost in a body I invaded through possession, but as myself. Then we will rain down our will upon this world again and show them what they’ve missed.”
* * *
“Hey, Ma,” Nick said as soon as he heard his mother’s thick Cajun drawl when she answered the phone. “I’m sorry to bug you at work, but I’m really sick. I need to go home. Is that okay?”
“Baby Boo! You sound so terrible and sad! Oh, honey. It’s right in the middle of the lunch crowd. I can’t leave. Let me call Michael and I’ll send him right over to pick you up, okay?”
“’Kay. I’m handing you to the school nurse to tell her. Love you, Ma.”
“You, too, baby. Please be okay. You rest and I’ll be home as soon as I can to check on you. Call if you need me and I will come running. I’ll quit if I have to.”
Nick snorted at his mom’s offer. She loved her job as a waitress at Sanctuary. Although, if she ever learned her boss was a shape-shifting were-bear, that might change. “Don’t do that. I’ll live.” Though to be honest, he didn’t feel like it at the moment.
His mom made kissing noises at him. Cringing, he made them back at her, but much more subtly before he handed the phone to the nurse and blushed, then beat a hasty retreat from her office in order that he wouldn’t have to face that ‘ah, how cute you are’ look that so many gave him whenever he was nice to his mom.
As he moved to sit down outside to wait, he met Madaug St. James, who came into the office with a delivery for the secretary. At just under six feet, he was the son of two Squire brain surgeons—literally. Which was what had allowed him to create a mind-altering video game that demons had enchanted and used to possess their classmates.
Yeah, good times …
Not even a little. Nick was still having violent flashbacks from his Zombie Hunter experience. It was so bad, he couldn’t even watch a zombie movie to this day. And poor Madaug couldn’t so much as play solitaire on his PC after it.
Still, he was one of Nick’s best friends. And it was nice to occasionally hang out with someone who was frightfully normal, Madaug’s extremely high IQ notwithstanding. After all, compared to Madaug, most people had the intelligence of a head of cabbage.
“Hey, Nick! What are you doing up here?”
“About to hurl.”
Madaug jumped back. “Dude, I’m sorry. You contagious? ’Cause if you are, I want it! I have a test next period and I’m not prepared.”
Yeah, right. Madaug was always prepared for tests. Even for the ones they wouldn’t have until the end of the year. Kid was sick that way.
“Trust me, you don’t want any part of this one.”
“Yeah, you do look kind of green and disoriented. I take it that means you’re going to miss band practice after school?”
Nick nodded. “Thanks for reminding me. Can you tell the others?”
“Sure, but Marlon’s going to kill you. He’s been looking forward to it. He has a massive crush on Duff.”
“Sorry. What’s his problem anyway?”
“What? Duff? I don’t know. Distemper. Maybe parvo.”
Nick scowled. “Isn’t that a dog disease?”
“Yes, but I think our resident teen were-panther has it, too. At least he acts like it most days.”
That he did. He took brooding teen male to a whole new level. The entire three years he’d been in school with them, Nick had never heard him say a single word to anyone. “Is he really mute or did he sell his voice to a wizard?”
Madaug laughed. “Neither. The correct term is selective mutism. His is an extreme case of it. Most likely caused by his … you are giving me that look.”
Nick held his hands up. “Dude, it’s a look of awe.”
“Sure it is. And before my social anxiety kicks in, I’m heading back. Hope you get to feeling better. You need me