Page 92 of Fighting My Demons

When I located him years ago, he worked with underground drug syndicates. Now I was beginning to believe the vessel I was trapped in was the very same vessel of the man Arabella was being sold to. Why else come back here? Why else remain in the body after his time was served?

Blaine looks up and down the quiet suburban street. Nothing seems out of place; everything is the same as when we came here with Bella.

Xavier walks over to the car, and I follow. Xavier generates a cast, and I watch it play out. Her handbag is sprawled across the footwells of the car. She has struggled and even tried to fight from what we can see as she rummages through her bag before hitting him with some books, only to be knocked out again and dragged through the gates. I look toward the house, yet no noise is coming from inside.

Blaine examines the gates, opening them and passing through the threshold. The gate appears to be locked. However, it isn't. Turning back to the car, Xavier punches the window, the glass shattering on impact, before he unlocks the door and rummages through her bag. His brows furrow and I watch as he recasts, rewinding slowly.

"What are you looking for?" I ask him.

"She put something in her mouth, but I can't see what?" he murmurs.

I watch, and she does indeed remove something from her bag. Whatever it is concealed in her fist as she moves the object toward her lips and pulls a face.

She then rolls into the seat like she is pretending to be asleep. My brows pinch together in confusion, and I help him dig through the stuff on the car floor, looking for the mystery object, but find nothing.

"We haven't got time. We need to figure out what the key is," I tell him, turning toward the house where Blaine has disappeared.

Xavier growls but follows after me, and we slip through the gate. As I pass through the gates, the energy ripple tells me he has imprisoned the house, yet nothing can be heard, and I know we can't be past the threshold between the dividing dimensions.

I cannot see Blaine anywhere, and I figure he is already trying to find a way. Walking up the steps, I feel the change in energy as we pass the threshold, and the moment I do, I notice Blaine smacking the windows. Her screams ring out loudly, and I cover my ears.

I try to run through the open door without thinking but am tossed backward as my brother's demonic power blasts me back.

Xavier steps through behind me and does the same thing, rushing for the door, but I have enough sense to rip him back before he, too, is jolted.

"We can't get in," I tell him, looking for the point my brother is harvesting the energy to hold the prison world in.

Yet this house ripples with power, both living and dead, making it hard to pinpoint where the source is coming from.

"Here, over here!" Blaine yells, his hands charred as he tries to break the windows.

Moving toward the end of the long porch, peering through the windows, I can see Bella in the kitchen doorway that comes off the living room. We try to get her attention, but she can't hear us. We are past the threshold. If she would just turn around, she would notice us. We can hear her, but she cannot hear us.

Her scream rings out loudly as she moves out of sight, my brother coming into view. A sadistic smile creeps on his lips, like he is playing a game of cat and mouse with her.

We meet face to face when he turns, feeling my energy intruding on his prison. Arabella darts behind him for the other door that leads into the hall. She still hasn't noticed us. My brother smirks, folding his arms across his chest, and his eyes flicker as he strolls into the living room.

"Hello, brother," he chuckles.

I growl as Blaine and Xavier try to find where the energy holding this prison in place is coming from, both of them disappearing from sight. I remain where I am, hoping to keep his attention on me, not Bella. Leviathan points toward the arched entryway, toward the front door. He then turns and walks through it, and I follow along the long veranda. He waves his hand, and the air ripples so he can hear me.

"Let her out, Leviathan. I know you don't want to hurt her. Just hand her over, and we can drop this rivalry," I tell him, glancing past him to see her. But the hall is empty.

"Now, where would be the fun in that, brother?" Leviathan taunts. The sly smile he gives me makes my blood run cold before turning on his heel and stalking down the hallway to find Bella.

"Leviathan!" I snarl, hitting the barrier only to be blasted backward and thrown off the veranda completely. I hit the footpath at the bottom of the steps. Getting up, her screams ring out loudly.

“Don't worry, brother. I will leave it open. I want her to hear your heartbreak when I take her from you," he taunts, and I sit up and run for the steps, only to see him walk through the door at the end of the hall.

Moments later, her screams turn my blood to ice in my veins.

Chapter Fifty-Six

Bella

Tank tries to grab me again, but I move, swapping our positions, only this time, I chance it and run for the hallway door. My feet are loud as they slap the floor, my heart echoing in my ears. I run for my old room. Slamming the door behind me, I push the bed against it before shaking my head at my idiocy.

Demon, Bella. No need for doors. Shoving that thought down, I race to my brother in the cupboard, ripping the door open. The gaping wound on his head is still bleeding as I shake his shoulders. He groans, drooling blood out his mouth. I start trying to undo the ropes. I nervously glance at the door, wondering why he isn't coming after me.