As her vision blurred, she parked at the nearest curb and leaned her head against the steering wheel, breathing with slow deliberation. Im still dealing with the aftereffects of a concussion. Thats all. Surely.
Hopefully.
Either that, or Koldo had brought something nasty into her life.
But...no. He was a (famous) warrior to his very core. He was observant. He would have known if hed ushered in something malevolent. And if he had, he wouldnt have left her to fend for herself. He wasnt the type to run. He couldnt be.
Hed helped her when he could have remained invisible. Or whatever. Hed helped Laila when he could have washed his hands of her.
That left the concussionbut she wasnt satisfied with that explanation. She had no peace about it. So...what if Nicola wasnt hallucinating? What if the creature shed seen had been real? After all, Koldo could arrive and leave in the blink of an eye, and he wasnt a hallucination. Why couldnt something else do the same?
So, if the warrior hadnt led the creature to her door, then...what had? And what was it, exactly?
When she was younger, shed heard little girls whispering together at school, afraid of the monsters in their closets. Until that moment, Nicola hadnt known anything about such monsters. Her parents had never allowed her and Laila to watch TV, and they had carefully chosen every book they read. Shed been so wonderfully innocent in regard to the evils out there, afraid only of what her body was doing to her.
But of course, everything had changed after that overheard conversation.
Shed stopped sleeping. Shed looked for monsters around every cornerand shed begun to see them. A furry, fanged monkey on her mothers shoulder. Two on her fathers. One following Laila. One following Nicola.
The increase of fear and the constant stress had damaged her heart further. But after months of therapy and new medications, shed managed to find a small measure of peace. Fickle peace, that is, that had come and gone. But shed never seen another monster. Until recently.
The past few days, shed seen two. One with Laila, and one at her work.
Maybe she hadnt been lost to paranoia back then. Maybe the monsters had always been there, and she had simply shut her eyes. But now...now her eyes were open again.
Her stomach twisted into hundreds of little knots, the edges sharp enough to cut. And cut they did, making her cringe.
She couldnt think about this now, she realized. Worryingmore than she already hadwould violate Koldos rules. And besides that, she had too much to do. Laila was at home, waiting for her. Nicola had the chocolate her sister requested, as well as a few other necessities, like ice-cream sandwiches and chips, and the groceries were probably baking in the heat of her car, since Bucket had no working air-conditioning.
Deep breath in...deep breath out. She forced her mind to focus on calming thoughts. Laila, happy. Koldo, telling her those jokes hed mentioned. She could even imagine what hed say.
Why did the warrior cross the road?
Thats easy. To kill the guy on the other side.
A bud of amusement had her smiling.
Knock, knock.
Whos there?
Donut.
Donut who?
Donut run from me, puny girl.
The amusement bloomed the rest of the way.
Her vision cleared. Her stomach settled. After checking the road and finding it empty, she motored forward. Her gaze snagged on the depressingly run-down area anyone with half a brain would have avoided. Most of the lawns were tall and filled with weedsto hide the evidence of recent crimes, she was sureand most of the houses had a few boarded-up windows. All of the houses had graffiti spray painted on the brick, hers included.
Police sirens could be heard throughout the night, every night, and she was pretty sure the neighbor on her left had a meth lab in his basement. But this was all she could afford, her parents house having been sold to pay a few creditors from their atrocious stack of bills.
Enough. Nicola had one hour before she had to clock in at Y and R Organic Market. A place she couldnt afford to shop at, even with her employee discount. She planned to spend every minute with Laila.
Only, after she put away the groceries, she discovered her sister had moved from bed to the couch, empty food wrappers all around her as she slept, the TV playing an old episode of Castle. Nicola grinned. This was what shed wanted for so long. Laila, here. Laila, relaxed.
But her grin faded when she spotted two fanged monkeys perched on the top of the couch, both glaring at her, their fur raised aggressively. Like the creature in the hospitalin fact, the one on the left had to be the very one shed seenthey had tentacles rather than arms, the appendages slithering around them like hungry snakes ready for a meal.
As a child, Nicola would have run screaming.
Only a few hours ago, she had burned rubber in her car.
Now, she would learn the truth one way or another.
Trembling, she marched forward and reached out. One of the creatures unleashed a shriek of rage, either to scare her off or to warn her that she was about to lose her hand. The other swatted at her with one of those tentacles, and the contact burned, leaving a red welt behind.
That meant...that meant the monsters were real.
Before she could panic, both creatures jumped off the couch and disappeared beyond the wall.
Her knees gave out and she sank to the ground, trying to steady her throbbing heart. Sweet mercy. What did this mean? And what she was going to do about it?
* * *
SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT, Nicola closed her register at the Y and R Organic Market, and shed never been so happy to finish a day. Not just because she was eager to return to Laila, but also because every coworker to cross her path had insulted her. For no reason! Every customer to come through her line had yelled at her. And, okay, yes, theyd had good reason.
The monkeys with tentacles had followed her. Themand around twenty of their dearest friends. But at least they werent hovering around poor Laila.
Ten minutes after her arrival, the horde had congregated inside the market, crawling up the walls, along the ceiling tiles, dropping upon the shoulder of everyone she encountered, unbeknownst to them, and laughing and pointing at her.
She had screamed.
She had stared.
She had almost passed out.
But no one else had seen them. No one else had reacted. Well, not to the demons. They had reacted to her high-pitched terror fits.
About twenty minutes ago, the creatures had left the same way theyd come.
She wanted to talk to Koldo. And maybe climb him like a tree and hide up there in the upper stratosphere of Giantland where, hopefully, no one would be able to see her and she wouldnt have to deal with this kind of stuff.
Nicola, I need to speak with you in my office.
The voice pulled her from her thoughts, and she turned to see her boss standing at the end of her stall. He was five-eight, with sandy-colored hair, hazel eyes and olive-toned skin. He would have been a decent-looking guy if not for his skeevy ways.
He was the type to massage the shoulders of every female he encountered, just to help with the strain. That wouldnt have been so bad, she supposed, but he also liked to whisper, Now, doesnt this feel nice? as he did it.
Sure, she said, and gulped.
The instinct to run suddenly rose from deep within her. To run from this place and never look back.
Oh, no, no, no. He was going to fire her, wasnt he?
Only six other cashiers had worked this shift, and all quickened their pace, gathering their belongings and leaving the store. The front lights had already been turned off, but the parking lot was illuminated by several streetlamps, and she watched as the men and women entered their cars and drove away, careful not to glance in her direction.
Yep. Mr. Ritter was planning to fire her, and they knew it, too.
There had to be a way to change his mind.
Palms sweating, Nicola made her way to the back of the grocery, bypassing the oranges and apples. She needed this job just as desperately as she needed the other one. One paid her house payment, utilities and car insurance, while the other paid for food and gas. In this economy, she would have a difficult time finding another job with late hours and wages above the minimum.
Mr. Ritters door was propped open, and she forced her feet to take her inside. Run!
He was already behind his desk, reading a file. She stayed.
Shut the door, he said.
She reached back and tugged on the knob, and the thick metal swooshed closed. As always, the lock engaged automatically. The room was small, filled with metal cabinets and an oversize desk. There were two chairs. His, which was cushioned by a pillow, and hers, which wasnt.
Sit.
As she obeyed, she said, Im sorry about my performance today. Ill do better, I promise. And I wont make any excuses. How could she? I saw monsters no one else could see, Mr. Ritter. What could he possibly say to that? Ill just
Hows your sister? he interjected, at last looking up at her.
A shudder nearly rocked her out of the seat. A monkey had just appeared on his shoulder. It was smaller than any of the others, and far hairier, and it glared at her with the same hate-filled eyes. And as she watched, it...it...couldnt be doing what she thought it was doing.
But it was. It was peeing.
It was obviously a he, and he was aiming at Nicola. Trying to...mark her? Like a dog with its territory?
She scooted as far back in her chair as she could, successfully avoiding any splatter. Mr. Ritter and his papers werent so lucky.
I asked you a question, Miss Lane.
How could he not know his shirt was now soaked? How could he not see the sogginess of the papers? How could he not smell that...her nose wrinkled...disgusting aroma? Shes, uh, doing better. Shes home.
Thats good. His tone lowered, and so did his gaze, landing on her breasts and staying. Thats very good.
Nicolas hands curled into fists. Was that all you wanted to see me about?
A moment passed before he remembered she had a face. He leaned back in his seat and folded his hands over his middle, his expression stern. Your performance today was subpar, but you know that. You angered several customers by ringing up their items two or three times
But I always fixed the mistakes.
Nevertheless, he continued smoothly, Im sure youll soon be asking me to take some time off to spend with your sister, and as you know, we dont have anyone who can take your place. Ill need to hire someone new. And if I hire someone new, why cant that person just take all of your hours?
A tide of dread washed over her, followed quickly by an intensified urge to run. But why run? she wondered now. The threat had already been issued, and this was her chance to offer a counter. So, once again she stayed put.
I can promise that Ill never have another day like today. From now on, she would ignore the existence of the monkeys. Thats what the therapists had told her to do as a child, and it had worked. Right? I wont be asking for any days off, you have my word.
The monkey began hopping up and down, screeching, and she had trouble distinguishing Mr. Ritters next words. What if your sister gets sick again? What then? What if you get sick again?
It wont matter. Ill work.
Lips pursed, he reached out and traced a fingertip over the photo of his wife and three children. How badly do you want to keep this job?
Badly, she said, leaning forward. Is there something I can do? Take extra hours? You name it!
His hand fell to his side. He grinned.
The monkey went quietand he, too, grinned.
I was hoping youd say that, Mr. Ritter said, a disgusting gleam flickering in his eyes. I want you to start by telling me how youll use your mouth on me, and end with how youll bend over my desk. Then I want you to do it.
A moment passed in silence as her mind processed what she had just heard. He hadnt... He couldnt have... Oh, but he could, and he had. You dont have to fire me. I quit. She stood and marched to the door. The knob held steady when she twisted. Anger mixed with frustration as she barked, Let me out. Now.
I rigged the lock. I hope you dont mind. Smiling, Mr. Ritter pushed to his feet, walked around the desk. The monkey jumped to the floor and followed him, the pitter-patter of clawed footfalls resounding. Ive wondered what youre like in bed, you know.
She tried the knob again, but again, it held. Fear squeezed the air from her lungs, expunging all other emotions. She was trapped in this small room, and no one was out there to hear her cry for help.
Let me out, Mr. Ritter. There was a tremor in her voice, one she couldnt hide. If you try anything, Ill fight you. Youll be punished.
I want you to fight. Not that itll do you any good. But no...no, I wont be punished. That I promise you.
Heart pounding, she rounded on him. The action left her dizzy, but she managed to remain on her feet.
He was so close he had only to reach out to pinch a lock of her hair between his too-thin fingers. I told everyone I planned to fire you tonight. Tomorrow, if the cops come knocking on my door, Ill let them know you offered me your body to stay on, and of course, in a moment of weakness, I succumbed. And oh, the sick things you let me do to you. Afterward, though, you were still fired. Horrible of me? Yes. But deserving of your malicious lies about rape? He tsked under his tongue. No.
Rape. The word echoed hollowly in her mind. This was why her instincts had wanted her to run, she realized, not because hed planned to fire her. Why, why, why hadnt she listened?
N-no one will believe you.