Frankie (Through Time 4)

What? Jazz felt a sudden over-riding fear.

Then something about the Prince’s body language made Jazz’s stomach turn.

* * *

Frankie glanced at Worley, standing firmly at her side. She hadn’t thought he would be so brave as to take a stand when the odds were against him.

She saw him wink at the Blue Demon in the fore, who was no doubt their leader and she knew something was wrong—all wrong.

What was that? She eyed the Daoine Prince and demanded, “Ye and that Blue Demon know each other, or do ye just have a thing for him?”

“What are you talking about?” he answered gruffly.

“Oh puh-lease, don’t ye be trying to deny that ye winked at him. I saw ye, I did,” Frankie answered. So saying she held firm to her Death Sword which she had pointed at the collection of advancing Blue Demons.

She had her sword leveled toward the leader and told him, “Careful now, I know I can’t get all of ye at once, but as the saying goes, I can get one, and that one, oh now, we know who that will be, don’t we?”

Sventer didn’t move. Frankie saw his eyes shift and knew he was concerned. He looked at Prince Worley and Frankie had an ugly notion enter her head.

No time to think it out because she could see her da, Jazz and Trevor making a straight path right toward her.

Jazz screamed at her, and she realized Jazz was right. She was too close to the portal. She started to step out of its direct path when the prince’s hands came down on her shoulders.

She shrugged his hands off, “What are ye doing? I didn’t give ye leave to touch me.”

“In a few moments, the portal’s mouth will close. We can’t have Blue Demons running amok in the Human Realm, now can we?” Prince Worley said softly.

“We won’t have them running amok. Those that won’t be taken will be killed. Between us, we can manage. Those demons who don’t wish to die will be taken to the Queens,” she answered frowning at him and saw something in his face that chilled her. Sudden sure dawning lit in her eyes.

“Why…why didn’t I see it before…?” she gasped.

The Blue Demons stood very still, aware that even the slightest scratch from a Death Weapon would mean a slow and horrible end. They needed to get into the portal, and Frankie was in their way.

Worley beside her said, “You may not believe me, but I am on your side, Frankie. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Ye be in the right of it,” she said on a sneer, “I don’t believe ye.”

All at once, she saw him nod and then Sventer and two of his soldiers were coming at her. She turned to point her sword at them, aware that she was still incredibly weak, when all at once, she felt herself pushed.

Stupid, dork of a girl, she told herself. Ye knew Worley was not to be trusted…ye knew, but there were those words again, too late. She was already being sucked into the portal, sucked into darkness.

The last thing she heard before she went tumbling into the black pulsing portal was hearing her father cry out her name…

Chapter Thirteen

FRANKIE CLUTCHED AT the dark membranes of the portal’s sticky walls.

Blue Demons went whizzing by her. They weren’t trying to stop their journey, but she knew if she could just hang onto something, she might be able to get up the strength to shift home.

She was in a weakened condition but she managed to grab onto what seemed like slimy tree roots. They turned out to be snakes.

Screaming, she let go, and found herself flip flopped by the force of the wind swirling through the tunnel banging her from side to side of its living walls. Finally she found something in the sticky wall, some kind of metal ring and held on.

Bam! Slam, she was hit with the weight of Blue Demons, bumping into her as they were pulled willingly through the portal’s black hole. She heard them grunting as they knocked into her and yelled at her for being in their way.

She got tossed about, but held onto the metal ring. Other objects flying about freely collided with her and suddenly she lost her hold on the ring.

She thought about her Death Sword, and was relieved that it had the power to retreat on its own to its secret air space, ever ready to be called upon when she needed it. When she landed, she was definitely going t