Page 32 of Unbound

His voice echoes through the room over the loudspeaker system. He just publicly held someone spellbound, though I don’t think that fact has quite registered with everyone yet. Governor Richards fights against the spellbinding, and Xavier has to repeat the command before he finally stops. The governor looks around, confused.

“What is going on?” he demands, ripping his hands free of Xavier’s grasp. “What did you do to me?”

“Can you still see the demon?” Antonio asks me.

“It disappeared into the crowd,” I tell him.

“What is going on?” Mabel asks, her voice tense.

“I don’t know. I saw the demon. It went up to Governor Richards, whispered something in his ear, and then ran away. But you guys can’t see him?” If it weren’t for Governor Richards’s reaction, I might think I was going crazy. But I’m not imagining this. And when I look back into the crowd, I see the demon pushing its way toward the door.

No one can see him. But they can definitely feel him. Someone shrieks and turns around, looking confused. Another reporter gets shoved into the person in front of him, who drops a very expensive camera. The two of them immediately start arguing. Security rushes in, ushering Governor Richards and the rest of the family members away, including us.

I’m pushed back behind the curtains of the stage and completely lose sight of the demon. Xavier rushes over, his hands landing protectively on my shoulders.

“The demon is here,” I rush out. “For some reason, I’m the only one who can see him. He went up to Governor Richards, said something to him, and then he started hitting himself with the microphone.”

Xavier processes all of that remarkably quickly and nods. “Is the demon still here?”

“No. Or, well, I don’t know. It disappeared into the crowd. It was heading toward the doors.” I let out a breath, adrenaline rushing through me. “We need to go after it.”

“I don’t think you should go anywhere,” Xavier says.

I give him a look. “Do I have to go through my whole speech about how this is what I do for a living all over again?” I say, desperate to get to the demon before it gets too far. “And Delphi’s out there.”

“Wren, this has trap written all over it,” Xavier tries to reason. “It came right up onto the stage.”

“I know. It was very brazen, I’ll give you that. And it’s definitely trying to get me to go after it, but I can’t pass this up. We can’t pass this up.” I lower my voice. “I have the weapons. And I have one advantage it probably doesn’t know I have—the exact potion needed to kill it. Plus, I have all of you.” I try to appeal to his softer side while still keeping things logical. “The thing could’ve come up and stabbed you, but it didn’t. It could’ve tried to command you, but it didn’t.” I pause. “Maybe it can’t command vampires.”

“What did it look like?” Xavier asks, shifting his eyes from me toward the sliver of the room he can still see from behind the curtains.

“Like an old man dressed in cheap Jedi clothes. Otherwise, pretty human.”

Governor Richards storms over, furious and accusing Xavier of doing something to him. “It’s against the law to hold someone spellbound against their will⁠—”

Xavier reluctantly tears himself away from me to deal with the situation.

“Review the cameras,” he says calmly. “I saved you from yourself. I wasn’t even looking at you when you lost your shit.”

“He’s right,” one of Governor Richards’s daughters says. She can’t be older than thirteen or fourteen, and she’s clinging to her mother’s hand with terrified, wide eyes.

My heart in my throat, I grab Xavier’s hand and give it a squeeze. “Now it’s my turn to say you can hate me later. I love you, but I’m going after it. Stay here and deal with this.” Then I take off running into the crowd. My brothers follow me, along with Mabel and Devon. It’s complete chaos in the reporters’ section of the room. People are fighting and blaming each other for pretty much anything they can think of. We shove our way through and emerge into the hallway, where regular people had gathered to watch the event live.

I find Delphi near the windows, looking stricken. “Who the fuck was that guy?” she asks. I grab her wrist, pulling her closer and instinctively stepping in front of her.

“You saw him?”

“Yeah. Like some old Jesus wannabe.” I stare at her without blinking for a moment. Then it hits me. I can see him because I’m a witch. She can see him because she’s a werewolf.

The demon is cloaking itself from humans. And vampires, at their very core, were human.

“It’s the demon,” I tell her. “And it seems humans can’t see it. Did you happen to see where he went?”

“Yeah. He just walked out the front door like he was the fucking king of the place.” She lets out a shaky breath.

“I’ll text Ryder,” Leo says, already pulling out his phone. “He’s downtown. I’ll have him meet us with the weapons.”

“Can this demon move at superhuman speed?” Antonio asks.