Skinned (16 page)

‘NO.'

Callum threw himself at one of the creatures, who now looked like a tangle of hair and flame and evil. It felt like he'd grabbed a bucket of hot coals. The force of Callum's attack knocked the creature into its partner, and Callum rolled away from them, swiping out stray flames, as the two demons scrambled once more to their clawed feet.

Shield
, Callum thought . . .

An image of Jacob flying backward in surprise flashed across Callum's brain. He grabbed at the
memory, held out his hands, felt the energy flowing from his body.

One of the demons sprang towards him but then faltered.

Back
.

Callum threw his entire being into the shield.

As if in slow motion, the demon jerked backwards, pushed relentlessly by the force of Callum's invisible barrier.

BACK
.

Callum was determined. For the first time ever, he was fully in control of his power, but he didn't have time to feel pleased; he was focused entirely on the task at hand. Concentrating so hard that he didn't notice the dozens of small burns on his hands and face, Callum forced the evil creature away. But just as he thought he had the upper hand, the second demon leapt at him. Taken by surprise, Callum was forced into a crouch, desperately trying to hold the two creatures off by extending both hands and trying to create a dome of protection with his shield.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a huge shadow loom over them.

‘Doom!' Callum cried. He'd never been more thankful to see the huge, nightmarish dog. With one ferocious snarl, Doom sank his teeth into one of the demons and pulled it off. Callum could see Jacob standing a short distance away with Melissa at his side. She seemed to be saying something, but Callum couldn't quite make it out.

Then he saw it: a tree branch, hovering above the other demon. And, somehow, Melissa was suspending it in the air . . .

It was like a super-charged version of her floating spell with the pencil. Melissa had her hands raised up and, with a sweep of her arms, she sent the branch hurtling down. It smacked into the creature's back, making it howl, then burst into flames as it bounced away.

‘Callum, get away!' Melissa shouted. But Callum saw that the demon was distracted, and he seized his opportunity. Flexing his fingers, he almost instantly felt the shift in the power in his palms. Callum raised
his hands towards the creature and released the energy that had gathered in them. It slammed into the fiery demon, pulsing around it in bursts. The central core of the bolt seemed to be pinning the demon down on to the ground, while the air around it crackled. The evil creature began to dissolve. It writhed and squealed, but Callum held it fast, the stream of energy from his hands growing broader and stronger as he concentrated. Callum felt a distant thrill of exhilaration, but he didn't let success distract him from finishing the job.

And a moment later, the thing was gone – blown into the ether.

Callum looked around, breathless and amazed at what he'd achieved. It worked – his power actually worked! He could see Doom still snapping at the other creature, now nothing more than a pile of smoking hair and flesh, before Jacob called him back.

‘Nice work with that branch,' Callum said to Melissa, stumbling over to them. ‘Are you OK?' He could see that the flames from the demon had singed her clothes a little.

‘Yeah, I'm fine – well, relatively speaking. And see, told you I'd come in handy with the old magic!' she said. Callum noticed that her voice was still a little
shaky though. Fine was more than Callum could say for his hair – he reached up and felt his head tentatively, but he could tell it wasn't good.

‘It'll grow back,' Melissa said sympathetically.

‘It's all right,' Callum replied with a smile, ‘I was thinking a buzz cut might be more heroic looking anyway.' But as he turned and saw Jacob's grim expression, his own face grew serious.

‘Jacob, what just happened? What
were
those things?'

‘They were obscura demons. Even I was fooled into thinking that they were ordinary mortals – that is why Doom and I disappeared. But I fear the coven deployed them as guardians in order to protect Black Annis' lair. It is possible to disguise such beasts inside unsuspecting victims using magic.'

‘Ugh . . .' Melissa groaned.

‘When they detected you were a chime child,' Jacob continued, ‘it would have triggered their release.'

‘Jeez,' Callum said, disgusted. ‘Well, if they've gone to these lengths to guard the area then it seems likely that Annis is here . . . and probably the coven too.'

‘Now that their guardians have been disposed of, they
will likely be alerted to our presence,' Jacob replied.

‘Then we have to do something
now
,' Callum said. Flexing his fingers, he waited for the tingling to return to his hands so he could try to use it to locate the entrance to Annis' lair again. A short distance away from the castle mound, Callum soon found himself standing over a metal grille, which seemed to lead into unending darkness. He pressed his hands together to stem the aching numbness; he was obviously on to something.

‘This must be it,' he called. ‘This must lead to the tunnel that will take us to Black Annis. Let's get down there.'

Jacob and Melissa rushed over to his side, but Jacob's face was creased with worry.

‘Callum, think for a moment. We must be cautious,' he said, his voice low. For the first time, Callum thought he detected a hint of nerves in the ghost's tone.

‘Cautious?' Callum replied incredulously. ‘We can't be! We haven't got time for caution, Jacob –'

‘You must remember that the strengths of myself and Doom are diminished here. We cannot provide
you with the defence we would hope to . . .'

‘Doom seemed to do pretty well with that fire-demon thing!' Callum replied.

He reached down and began to pull at the grille, relieved as it came loose in his hands. ‘We've got to get down there before . . . before who knows what.'

Callum caught Melissa's anxious stare, but studiously ignored Jacob's gaze as he rattled the grille away. So he was taken completely by surprise when he suddenly felt the chill of Doom's jaws gripping on to the back of his coat.

‘What the –? Jacob, call him off . . .'

But Jacob's face was just as determined as Callum's own. Only when the ghost dog had pulled Callum further than arm's reach away from the tunnel entrance did the Born Dead gesture for Doom to release him.

‘What are you doing, Jacob?' Callum hissed angrily, trying to keep his voice down. The ghost strode over to him.

‘
We
will go in first,' Jacob said, looking over at Doom who was now sitting at his side, his red eyes
glowing brightly. ‘We must keep you safe until you are needed. Once we have determined that it is secure enough to pass through, you can follow. Melissa, you shall remain above ground and keep watch, alerting us to any movements – any at all.'

Adrenalin was coursing through Callum's veins after the fight with the demons, but he couldn't help thinking grudgingly that perhaps Jacob's suggestion made sense.

‘Callum, just let them go in first,' Melissa chimed in. ‘If there
is
something else down there guarding the tunnel, maybe Jacob and Doom can deal with it and you'll be free to get to the coven and Black Annis.'

Callum folded his arms, still feeling a stubborn sense of urgency to make something happen himself. Instead he took a deep breath and nodded, although the tingle remained in his hands.

‘Fine. Go.'

Jacob looked deep into Callum's eyes. ‘We will ensure the path is clear. Once we have determined that, I will whistle – that will be my signal for you to follow.'

‘Ghosts can
whistle
?' Melissa asked with a small smile, but Callum remained focused stonily on Jacob as he made his way back towards the opening. Doom jumped down silently and disappeared, blending immediately into the darkness, then Jacob dropped down after him.

‘They'd better be quick,' Callum said, looking around him at the eerily silent castle grounds and the shadowy heap of the demon Doom had ripped to shreds. ‘I've got a bad feeling about this . . .'

The dark cave is gripped with an anxious silence as the four human magicians await their leader's return. It has been almost a full day since they last saw sunlight, and the youngest man of the group sniffs the decaying skins of the children they have fed Black Annis, then turns away, his stomach churning. He is eager for their task to be over, and a little resentful that their leader, Varick, has seen fit to come and go at his pleasure while they must wait underground. While before it was enough that Black Annis remained within the enchanted pentagram, now at least two of the coven are required to actively watch over the crone's imprisonment.

‘Nolan.'

The younger man turns towards Aradia, who has been keeping watch for the past hour with Maeve, the eldest of their coven.

‘Yes, Aradia,' Nolan replies, struggling to keep the sarcasm from his voice. He, like Maeve, grows tired of the power wielded by their leader's second in command.

‘You and Gale can take over for now. Leave we women to rest.' Aradia smiles wryly. She knows as much as the younger man does that she is hardly challenged by their current task. Sighing, he and Gale swap places with the women.

‘And feed her one more,' Aradia calls over her shoulder as she strides towards the lair's entrance for some fresher air. Nolan gestures, and one more of the children walks towards Black Annis blindly. He grimaces as she pounces upon the boy, stabbing a talon into his chest. There are only five children left. The coven's true task must surely be about to commence. If only they could get this over with, let the real work begin . . .

Suddenly, there is a stirring, a commotion close to the tunnel's entrance into Black Annis' lair. A low,
thunderous growl echoes down towards the cave.

‘What's going on? Nothing could have got past the obscura demons, surely?' Maeve calls to Aradia, but the flame-haired woman has her arms raised and her face is immoveable with the concentration of weaving a powerful spell. Her fingers flex and bend at an impossible speed, her lips moving fast, her words incomprehensible. The elder woman turns to her fellow coven members and shouts.

‘There's movement in the tunnel, be on your guard.'

Maeve rushes towards the entrance, but Aradia is already pulling something through the passageway and into the lair using her magic. She draws in two iron cages, woven with magic. And inside the cages are two ghosts: one, a Born Dead spirit, the other an enormous black dog – a Churchyard Grim – whose giant frame is hunched in the confines of the metal prison. At last, Aradia lowers her hands, her shoulders heaving with the effort of the spell she has executed.

‘Well, well, well,' she says between breaths. ‘What do we have here?'

Callum and Melissa waited silently and anxiously by the opening, straining their ears for Jacob's signal. It had been at least ten minutes since he had gone into the tunnel with Doom. Callum could feel his stomach turning into knots, and his hands were burning with the sensation that told him something was definitely wrong. He glanced fretfully behind him every few seconds, worried that there might be more demons sent by the coven to guard the lair's entrance.

‘What's that?' Melissa gasped, as a high, keening noise pierced the silent night. They both stopped
breathing for a moment, before Callum realised it was an ambulance siren. He exhaled and swallowed hard.

‘Something's up,' he said. ‘It's been way too long.'

He looked over at Melissa and she nodded, her face pale with concern.

‘What should we do?'

Callum paused for a moment, looking around into the darkness. He turned back to Melissa.

‘We're going to go down there.'

‘We?' Melissa looked unsure. ‘Jacob said that I should stay up here in case . . .'

‘Melissa, I don't think it's any more dangerous down there than it is up here. We don't know what's going on. I think it's better for us to stick together,' he said. ‘Besides, your skills could come in handy, remember?'

Melissa smiled shakily. ‘OK then – let's do it.'

Taking a deep breath, Callum hoisted himself over the grille, then let go and dropped down into the darkness. He had no idea how far he'd fall, but thankfully it was only a couple of metres.

‘Callum?' He heard Melissa's voice above him.

‘It's OK, it's not far – I'll help you,' he breathed, hoping she'd hear him.

The blackness was virtually absolute, and Callum could almost hear his heart thumping through his chest. He could just about make out Melissa's boots dangling above him, and a moment later she dropped down beside him. She jumped as Callum reached out to grab her arm.

‘Do you have your phone?' he whispered.

‘Who are you planning to call, the Paranormal Police?' she said through shaky breaths. Callum couldn't help a nervous chuckle.

‘Just hand it over,' he said, and he felt around in the darkness until his hand connected with Melissa's and she passed him her mobile phone. Callum pressed at the buttons until the screen illuminated, and finally they could just about see each other.

‘Ah, good thinking,' Melissa said, her tentative smile shadowed by the weak light of the phone.

‘Come on,' Callum urged, and they began to inch their way into the dank catacombs beneath the ruins of Leicester Castle. The musty smell of the tunnel was
overpowering. Other than the dull echo of their footsteps and their nervous breathing, it was almost
deathly
quiet. Callum shivered; it couldn't be a good sign.