Page 94 of Coven of Corpses

“None of us did,” Tracey said.

Cody looked back and saw her shining the light from her phone onto the binder so she and Clarabell could read.

“You two ready to go with all this once we get there?” he asked.

“Don’t worry about us,” Tracey said. “Let’s hope Demetrius can convince Margie to come with him.”

“Yeah, about that,” Jugs said, glancing up in the rearview mirror. “Now that the demon has possessed the witch, does that make him even more powerful?”

“Yes,” Tracey said. “And extremely deadly. Which is why we need to perform this ceremony as soon as possible.”

Cody directed Jugs to a spot on the shoulder just past the S-curve. The Cadillac wasn’t there yet, and he tamped down the worry that threatened to swamp his brain. Demmy had to make a stop at Margie’s house and convince her to go with him. It was going to take him longer.

“Now what?” Jugs said.

“Tracey and I will go ahead to the site,” Clarabell said. “Get things ready.”

“You don’t think we should stay together?” Cody said.

“I think we need to focus on speed over safety right now,” Tracey said.

“Okay. Just don’t get yourself killed or possessed,” Cody said. “We’re running low on descendants.”

After they’d climbed out of the back of the truck and set off into the woods, Enid Helen stepped across the center console and curled up in Jugs’s lap. Cody pulled his phone from his pocket, intending to give Demmy a call, when they saw headlights come around the bend. They were round and ancient, and he’d never been so glad to see the Widow Monroe’s beast of a car. Demmy brought the Caddy to a stop behind Jugs’s truck, and everybody climbed out, including Margie.

“Hi Margie,” Cody said. “Welcome to the party.”

“Some party,” Margie said, worrying the St. Christopher’s medal around her neck. She was dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, with a heavy hoodie over that.

“We need to hurry," Demmy said, coming around the front of the car. "The demon won't be far behind."

Cody looked at the group of seniors and his parents. “Everyone who's not a descendant, stay by the cars. If anything happens, be ready to leave quickly."

“If she’s going, I’m going,” Otis said, putting a hand on Amelia’s shoulder.

“Oh, you sweet man.” Amelia placed a palm on his chest and stood up on her toes to give him a kiss. “You stay here and keep safe. The boys will watch out for me.”

Otis took her hand and kissed it, looking into her eyes. “You come back to me.”

“Always.”

He kissed her softly on the lips, and then Amelia turned to Cody, dabbing at her eyes. “Let’s end this fucker.”

Cody laughed and hugged her, then led the way to the drainage ditch. After stepping across, he paused to watch Demmy help Amelia and Margie over. With a final wave to the others standing back by the car, they turned and walked into the woods. The night closed in around them. The only light came from their phones and the moon overhead. Insects chirred and every branch snapping sounded like a gunshot.

It felt like it took forever for them to get to the site. As they neared it, Cody could see Tracey’s phone flash bob and weave between the trees like some kind of will-o-the-wisp. Margie was close behind, and he held her hand to keep her from tripping. Jugs followed Margie, having left Enid Helen in the truck. Amelia followed him, and Demmy brought up the rear.

When they stepped out into the clearing, Clarabell and Tracey looked up. They’d been setting up candles at certain points in the clearing, and Clarabell had a long-barreled lighter in her hand.

“Good, you’re all here,” Tracey said. “Margie, you’re over here.”

Tracey directed them each to stand near a stone on the eastern edge of the clearing. Jugs was positioned at the northern point, Amelia at the southern point, and Cody and Demmy stood together at the western edge.

“You two stand together,” she said. “To keep body and soul together. Just in case.”

Tracey stood at another point, holding a weathered book against her chest. Jugs looked wide-eyed at the dark woods all around them.

“Why’s it always in the woods at night?” Jugs said. “Why can’t we ever be on a sunny beach at noon?”