What Is Your Center?

I took the bindings off, examining my flesh. The wound had closed, leaving a nasty pale scar in its wake. I shifted off the bed and stood in front of the full-length mirror, flinching at the sight, even though it would fade as the night progressed. I closed my eyes and ran a hand over the raised flesh.

A soft weight appeared behind me and a hand took mine, the fingers slipping between my own to touch the scar tissue. “It could have been much worse.”

It could have been, yes. That fact alone made me feel sick. I shivered as he traced the scar. Despite the times, I let out a soft chuckle and chanced a glance at him. “What would you say if I told you we should defile North’s bed?”

I made him laugh at least. “At any other time I’d pin you down and make you scream for me.” He made me turn to look at him, keeping his hands at my hips. “However, this is still his home, and we were called for duty. He’d have all the rights to walk in and interrupt. I’d really hate to have to kill him.”

“Mm, that would be a shame.” I ran my hands up his chest and put them around his neck. “What about after this?”

“After this?” He gave a growl of a laugh and leaned to my ear, his voice dripping lust. “After this I plan to make you mine on any surface of my choosing, hard and precise, until you beg me to stop.”

I could play his game. I bit his ear gently and ran my tongue over the soft flesh before pulling back slightly. “Who says I’ll beg for that, my master?” I could feel him tense up and I took the opportunity to step away. He handed me the new sweater that I tossed over my head. “Also, thank you for last night.”

I saw his gaze drop away. “Do know that if you repeat any of it—“

“Why would I?” I wasn’t allowed to say anything more as the door opened, showing Jack on the other side. “They’re ready?”

He nodded with a grin. “I hope you don’t mind sleigh rides.”

I thought I wouldn’t mind a little trip in Santa’s sleigh.

I was horribly, horribly wrong.

North was more than a madman with swords and a passion for cookies. He was a madman with a team of edgy reindeer and a deathtrap sled. I joined Bunny in a corner, fighting to keep the bile in my stomach where it belonged.

All the while North laughed at our misfortune and spurred the creatures on. I couldn’t understand how Jack and Sandy seemed to love the wild trip. The whole time, Tooth was telling us of what her fairies had gathered as they worked. During the course of the day, a body close to where we fought the satyr creatures was discovered. The total death count was now at seventeen, all young adults. Each of them ruled as either a suicide, or homicide/suicide combination.

“Most important is how he is doing it,” she continued as North steadied out the sleigh, making it a little easier on my stomach. “The girl from last night was found to have a large amount of drugs in her blood. My fairies did more digging and found she did have a problem with it.”

She went through the list. A young gambler died from asphyxiation caused by a pair of dice. A girl with a promiscuous life we found cut up, mutilated to spoil her apparent beauty, the knife still clutched in her hand. A man of twenty-three with a history of anger issues shot his wife and then himself. A girl who fussed over her appearance drowned in her tub face down. An overweight boy had his stomach full of burger remains and bleach.

“He’s making the sinners commit the ultimate sin,” Pitch muttered, putting it together. “It is said if you commit suicide, your soul is not judged. It is sent straight to Lucifer.”

“It’s a brilliant plan,” I said with a grimace, holding on to the edge of the sleigh as I held myself up, still a little dizzy. “What was their religion by the way?”

“Mainly Christian or Catholic,” Tooth answered.

“Fantastic. That explains the lights.”

Bunny frowned through his own motion sickness. “The Fear Globe?”

I nodded. “I’ve been watching it for almost two weeks now. The lights are showing brighter in the Bible Belt. With how these people are dying, it would of course send these people in a religious frenzy, especially the ones closest to the victims. If he can make it believable that sinners are being damned by Lucifer in a coming apocalypse, he can regain his power. Not as much as a hundred years ago, but he can start convincing them something is happening.”

“People watch a lot of apocalyptic themed things now. It seems to be a popular topic. To make it seem real in a time of paranoia—“

“It means he picked a very good time to strike,” North said from his reins, and Sandy nodded in agreement.

Something like this shouldn’t have been our job. We were around for the emotions of humans, not for their life choices. That was a totally different lore sector. However, if anyone else were to do anything about it, they would have by now.

I had died in 1552 due to heresy. I knew about Christianity, and I knew what fears were shoved down the throats of others. I knew the horror stories told to make us believe, to make us fear the Devil. Back then, if you questioned the good book, you were flogged.

Or hung as a witch, in my case.

My hand went to my collar, over the divots in my skin that would never go away. Only one person seemed to notice, and he discreetly nudged my side with his black-clothed leg.

Back then, we were taught only to read the Bible if you were a woman. That was all you needed to know how to read. Even though I disregarded that and read my father’s books, I knew that from the scriptures, Lucifer was a powerful being, cast out by God. And, as I had said in the past, good needs evil to survive. “How do we stop him?”

Bunny shook his head as he finally sat up straight. “We’re not sure. But we have to slow him down.”

I nodded. The balance could not handle a threat like this. Something needed to be done before more died. Before anything else happened during a time that was supposed to be left to miracles.

It was one thing we needed dearly.