Chapter 135 - Witches Vs Vampire(s)

It was exactly fifteen minutes later that Desmond returned, cool and collected again, pointedly ignored Ghost entirely, and proceeded with the questionings. I only presented for a part of it, just making sure that Desmond won't start walking around cutting limbs. He didn't. With Katya and Captain organising him an escort out of four witches under a pretence of helping, Desmond acted like a scary ass, but a relatively safe scary ass.

And I had to, no matter how reluctantly, admit that he was a pro in what he was doing. He pulled details out of people, turned hazy panicked memory into clear information and acted like a real detective. I, on the other hand, wasn't one—my place wasn't in the 'questioning room', no matter how much I'd wish otherwise. Curiosity—it killed the cat.

Instead, I kept helping Ghost with healing, and there were many people to heal. One by one, more teams from other covens arrived, adding more hands and chaos to the scene, but there were competent (by Ghost's standards, which, as I understood, were seriously above average) healers who could do less serious operations.

It was past midnight by the time we restored most of the victims of the demon to their former states. There were still some who needed magical healing, but now that help was there, they calmed down immensely. I took my cooler break together with Ghost. We both were given candy bars by Captain, and I munched on mine as I checked my phone messages and updated everyone who worried that I was still fine.

Despite the good work of this evening, my mood was sour. My head was pounding with a migraine. I was cranky from tiredness and gloomy from a thought about how many people outside of this building were affected. How many of them were lying in hospitals now, with doctors having no idea what to do about them? There was no number in local news, and no image of the demon. "Terrorist attack" again, my ass.

I tsked in frustration and sighed in exhaustion. "I wonder how's that investigation doing."

"Want to check?" Ghost offered innocently.

This wasn't so hard of a choice. "Absolutely. Just let me finish that." I lifted the leftovers of my candy bar and wolfed the rest of it down. I smirked at him and threw the wrapper into a nearby bin full of empty plastic cups. "Let's go."

The witch leaders in the place had organised a command room of sorts out of, as the tablet on the door of it stated, was once Eternalroot's conference room. Since I knew there was a vampire inside, I didn't even try to creep in, but the people inside were too concerned with their own problems to mind me and Ghost.

"We appreciate your help, vampire, but this is private territory. As Eternalroot Coven's temporary Elder, I don't give you right to let yourself in and poke into our secrets!" The four-limbed again now Spider-Woman, whose name I caught and forgot because I already called her Spider-Woman, was up and running her political company.

"Your coven's secrets, 'Elder', had let the demon into this city. I don't think you are privileged to any now."

"This isn't just about Eternalroot's secrets, it's about secrets of all witches!" The voice, deep and male, belonged to someone I didn't know. The room must've been packed with people right now, most of which I didn't know more than in their face. "Don't try to hide it! You came under a guise of help, but you just want to poke your nose into our knowledge!"

"This is ridiculous," Desmond hissed. "I came here for one thing and one thing only, and I will get it, even if I will have to go over your cold, bloodless body."

"Don't. The community doesn't appreciate your threats."

The voices of all gathered were loud enough to be heard without me having to put my ear on the door—or it was that and combination of shitty soundproofing. Either way, I had a great desire to roll my eyes, and indulged it. Catching my look, Ghost helplessly shook his head, smiling all the time.

"We don't need your further involvement, Desmond. We will investigate the found direction and share the findings with you, of course. In this perilous time we all must stand together, but there's such a thing as privacy, and Eternalroot is entitled to theirs."

I had a feeling they could argue there for the entire night, or until people start falling down with exhaustion—the time when Desmond wins by default. Except, how far will the demon go by that time? It didn't stop moving with the sun.

With a deep breath, I leaned my back on the wall on a side of the door and spoke loudly enough to be heard not just by people with vampire hearing, but by all others (inclined to listen) as well. "I wonder what they are arguing about for so long, Ghost. It feels like it's been hours. Are we going to sleep here too? I thought they already questioned everyone there was to question."

Ghost threw a glance at the door, then at me, looking a little puzzled. "Are you talking loud enough for everyone in the hallway to hear intentionally? I thought we were sneaking around, mostly. Hard to sneak up on vampires…"

The door banged open, almost catching Ghost, who barely had time to jump out of the way. On the other side of it stood grim Captain, with about a dozen other witches sitting at a long conference table and Desmond standing in the head of it with eyes blazing in anger.

"Diana. We just planned to call you in… As soon as we finish showing our vampire ally a way out," he said, giving Desmond a dark look out of the corner of his eye. "Ghost, you should take a break until we decide on the overnight arrangements."

A dismissal if I've ever seen one.