We get into the bathroom and step over by the mirrors, acting like we’re fixing our hair while we wait for the woman at the sink to leave. Melinda pulls the band out of her ponytail and runs her fingers through it. She looks like a different person with her hair down since I’m used to seeing her with it up all the time.
She’s possessed.
The words are whispered in my ear, and I twist around, throwing out a hand. Magic sizzles around my fingers, and I quickly make a fist to hide it.
She’s possessed.
The voice is inside my head again. I think? I can’t tell. My heart speeds up again, and I watch the woman’s reflection of her washing her hands. She turns the sink off and gets a lipstick from her purse. Suddenly, her eyes in her reflection turn black.
She’s possessed. Kill her before she kills you.
“Stop!” I yell, startling the woman. She jumps and gets lipstick on her face.
Melinda puts a hand on my shoulder, turning me away. “What’s going on?”
Kill her. Kill her! She’s going to kill you!
I squeeze my eyes closed and ball my fingers into fists. Shut up, I mentally scream. The voice isn’t Paimon’s anymore. It’s my own. The smell of brimstone fills the air again, and I get a vision of the woman standing over my dead body, pulling my intestines out.
Kill. Her.
The bathroom door opens and closes from the woman leaving. “Callie, talk to me,” Melinda says. She takes her hand off my shoulder and locks the bathroom door from the inside, making it so no one else can come in.
“Get out of my head,” I say through gritted teeth. I reach deep inside and draw on my angelic powers that have been repressed from my body temporarily housing more humanity than it’s used to. It’s like a weight is immediately lifted off my shoulders, and a sense of freedom washes over me. My eyes glow blue when I open them again, and the whispers stop. The smell of brimstone is gone, and someone knocks on the door. I let out a sigh. “I think I’m okay.”
Melinda doesn’t look convinced. “We need to get out of here.”
I nod in agreement. “Yeah. We’re not far from Lucas’s place. It’s spelled against demons, and I have magical supplies there.”
“Good. I’m getting some bad vibes now, and—fuck!”
“What?”
“There was something in the mirror.” In a flash, she has a knife in her hand and is on the defense. “A dark shadow.”
“It’s a demon,” I say and feel like I’m going to throw up again, but it’s not from the demon trying to take control of me. It’s because I finally placed why this felt familiar. “And it’s working for War.”
Chapter 20
“War?” Melinda echoes. Whoever is on the other side of the door knocks again.
“One of the Horsemen. Remember when Easton was hunting a demon that infected everyone, including me? That demon was trying to find someone worthy or whatever to get Pestilence busted out of Hell. I don’t know exactly how it got powers from Pestilence, but that dude was bad fucking news. Not to mention the plague rats taking the form of hellhounds.”
“How do you know it’s War?” she asks, ignoring the knocking.
“It told me that lady was possessed and I needed to kill her before she killed me. When Lucifer explained how the Horsemen work, he said it would be like that. Subtle influences that can spark something bigger.”
“Like getting the most powerful person in the entire city to go all Carrie on us, exposing you as a witch to the people in Chicago and pitting humans against witches.”
“Exactly.”
She puts her knife back in her jacket and eyes me apprehensively. “Better question: how do I know you’re not under its influence anymore?”
“Once I used my angel powers, it went away.”
“And into the mirror?” She motions in front of us. “I fucking hate monsters that use mirrors for transportation. Creepy as shit.”
“I know, right? Kristy and I used to cover our mirrors with black lace for a couple years after I kind of accidentally summoned the real Bloody Mary. She’s dead,” I add with a shrug. “Demons can’t possess angels. When Bael wanted to use me as his vessel, he had some sort of ritual planned that would turn off that part of me so he’d be able to get inside.” I shudder. “And right now, I’m more human than ever.” I pat my stomach. “Having this much humanity inside me suppresses my angel side. I had to reactivate those powers.”
“I’m going to need another drink.”
“You and me both, but I can’t, so have one for me.”
Melinda unlocks the door. “Trust me, I will.”
Min was the one knocking and gives us a friendly smile. “You feeling okay?” she asks, thankfully mistaking the worry on my face for a sudden rebound of morning sickness.