Chapter 128 - Watch Your Back

"Sorry, I got detained here." I kept eyeing Ghost as I spoke. He sat on a chair with his eyes closed, his hands folded on his knees, and a small smile on his lips. I assumed he was either meditating or living in his world of crazy hallucinations and relaxed a little. I felt like a spy escaping notice, even though until now neither I nor JJ said anything condemning.

"Here? Are you still at your new coven's headquarters?" JJ asked. The tension in his voice dropped a notch. "Good. Splendid. It would be the safest place for you right now. The things are… chaotic down here."

Uh-huh. I didn't have a heart to tell him that this was somewhere I was going at, not yet.

"We've got a briefing. Elder says some witches summoned a demon… more like eldritch horror. Have you ever seen anything like it before, JJ?"

"I never did, and at the moment am very happy about it. If you think it looks abhorring on images, you just hadn't seen it with your own eyes…"

I shuddered, the different sort of cold gripping at my chest now. "Are you fine? How close to it you went?"

"Not too close, not too close, ma chèrie. But some others, younger and thinking themselves invincible, were stupid enough to attack it. It retaliated in the most gruesome manner. I will spare you the details, but after that the rest of us decided to investigate the creature before trying that again."

And Elena called the demon not the worst possible one. With how little JJ cared for something like being half-exploded, I didn't even want to imagine what he called 'most gruesome'. Which meant that my brain, of course, immediately pictured me a couple of possibilities.

"Well, witches had just the same idea," I said, and had to swallow a lump in my throat to continue. "They rounded up on the leftovers of the coven that summoned it and are sending people to rescue the wounded and ask questions. And… I'm in the team. As the only arch-witch around."

There was a silence on the other side of the call. Then, a deep breath.

"The demon is away right now, so the ground zero should be safe… And I won't be alone, of course." I was rambling. Why I was rambling? "I will be much safer than you, I'm sure."

"Oh, Diana, the demon isn't the main danger for you out there." JJ clicked his tongue in frustration. "I've seen Christina at the Circle. She reported to the gathering, and after it ended, she disappeared without a trace. There was a ceasefire enforced on all of us, which was the only reason, I imagine, that she didn't go after my neck at the spot—but… The chaos that erupted—it's a perfect situation for someone like her. You have to reconsider. Don't go. Are you forced into it?.. No, they wouldn't, not you…"

I sucked in a breath. Right, Christina. But I will be surrounded by witches, all of them, and trained in magic combat. With even more witches from other covens at the place. More than that… there were people who relied on me to do something, to be of help. I told all of that to JJ, hoping that he would understand.

"Alright," he conceded. "I will keep looking for her, but Diana, stay careful."

"I will," I promised. "You watch your back, too. I… I really don't want to see you mutilated again. Or even worse, almost bald."

He laughed. "I will protect the hair you adore so much with my life, ma chèrie. Oh, and one more thing before you go. The Circle sent a volunteer to the place of the summoning to investigate. Desmond, he is called. Steer clear of him, if you can, for your own sake. He has a reputation as a sadist in all the meanings of the word. Sadly, he also has a keen eye and a lot of knowledge of witchcraft, which were more important for the Circle than his personal qualities."

"Thanks, I got it." And then, just to make sure, as if it would make anything sure, I repeated, "Watch your back, Jean-Jacques."

I could feel him smiling from the other side of the call. "I will. Good luck to you, Diana."

I found myself smiling a little, too, when he ended the call. That only lasted for a moment, though, because I had to call the rest of the people who called me now. Or message them, at least.

In the order of priority, I made a quick call to my grandpa and tried my best to calm him down. He hadn't seen the internet messages, but he heard the breaking news about the 'unrest' in the city. Thank God it was away from both his and mine homes. Finally, when we both were assured that the other was safe enough (I, of course, didn't tell my grandpa I was planning to out into the streets), I ended my call just in time for the first guardian witcher to march into the room.

He was geared up like a spec-op, missing only a gun (and for all I knew, had one hidden under that vest of his). Despite all that, he looked a little pale, but that didn't stop him from putting on a tough face. "The rest of the team is going to be in soon, and then we will move out immediately. I'm also the leader of this operation, and you report to me all your actions, understood?"

"Yeah," I nodded, blinking myself into gear. "Yes."

"Ghost, are you sleeping in there?"

Ghost opened his eyes wide with a startled expression. "No? Yes? Maybe? Oh, hello, Grisha."

"Captain Grigoriy, or just Captain Ghost. You two aren't my direct subordinates, but we are going into a possible danger zone, so you have to stay put."

Possible danger zone. How amazing. I tried to shut my fears somewhere far, far away and make an equally tough face.