Hold Me Closer, Necromancer - Lish McBride [93]
“I’m just saying these new codes are ridiculous.” Ashley’s arms flailed about as she spoke, her face vehement. “What do they care if—”
The creature cleared its throat loudly and tipped its head slightly toward us. She stopped, hands fluttering down to her hips. She looked around.
“Geez, Sam, talk about a learning curve.” She whistled and examined the open portal around her. I couldn’t make out anything behind her except a house plant in a very ornate golden pot.
“Seriously,” she said, “this is pretty good. You even brought Ed here. Not many people can summon Ed.” She jerked her thumb toward the jackal-headed man.
Nice to meet you. The voice boomed inside my head.
“Nice to meet you too…Ed.” I gave him a little nod before I turned a slightly panicked look toward Ashley. “What are you doing here?”
Her eyebrows shot up. “You must have summoned me. I was just talking to Ed about some new legislation that came down from on high. Or up from down low, depending on how you look at it.” She scanned the room, eyes in judgment mode. “This place looks different in the light. Not better, mind you, just different.”
Ashley’s face stilled. Since she was very expressive, I couldn’t imagine what had caused her to go all poker-faced on me. I followed her gaze. Oh, right. Douglas. He had that effect on people.
Ashley jabbed Ed in the stomach lightly with her finger, indicating that he needed to look.
Ed twisted his head and smiled. Douglas Montgomery, he said, tongue lolling out in a laugh. Is it finally time?
Douglas looked to be the picture of calm, but I could see his knuckles whitening as he held on to the crop. “It will never be time,” he answered.
You know what people say about the word never. Ed’s tongue curled up over his nose before slipping into his mouth. And Ammut is always hungry.
Douglas gave a tight-lipped smile, then his power flowed over mine. Not a pleasant sensation. It felt like I’d been plastered in gritty mud and stinging nettles. I tried to push back, but I was already drained to pretty much empty. He overpowered me, and the portal snapped shut.
The room got very quiet. I tried to stand up, but exhaustion coupled with the sudden flow and stop of power was too much for my body to take. I wasn’t done healing. Crap, I think I was still bleeding. I’d finally hit the point of enough. I needed sleep and food. I didn’t care which came first.
Douglas’s shoes made crisp sounds on the concrete as he walked over. He cuffed me with the back of his hand. Then he drew back and did it again. And again.
His eyes were fevered, and spittle flew from his lips. Douglas had hit the point of enough as well. He picked me up by my neck and threw me into the concrete wall. The roughness of the wall bit into my back and my scabs and made me scream. My teeth clicked shut as I bit off the sound.
He pushed his face close to mine. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” He shouted the words at me. “Do you?” He hit me again instead of waiting for the answer. Full fist this time. I heard Brid growling in the background, but it was smothered by Douglas’s semi-coherent accusations.
I couldn’t answer him. Even if I had the will and energy to open my mouth, I truly had no idea what I’d done.
He picked me back up by the throat. I realized that I’d been picked up by my throat a lot lately.
Douglas held me there, pinned against the wall. My world began to fade around the edges. His face came in close to mine, and I watched as the anger drained away from him. He’d come to a decision of some sort, but he wasn’t sharing. Instead, his breathing steady, his face calm, he held me against the wall as my vision folded in. Panic gripped me,