Burn

CHAPTER 7

"Christ, these books are heavy!"

Carter grunted and lurched forward beneath the weight of the tomes in his arms, grateful to dumb them on the table at his hip. As he slid into the seat beside her, Margo glanced up from her notebook and raised her brows at the dismal pile, disappointment clear on her face.

"Turns out there aren't a lot of books on 'Demon summoning'," Carter sighed, shrugging helplessly. He reached for the first tome and reluctantly opened it to the first page, squinting at the yellowed pages and smudged writing. "When I asked that librarian, she gave me the weirdest look and pointed me to the occult section. Think she's expecting us to try and summon Satan any moment now."

Ryu snorted from his perch atop the table, legs dangling just as they had that night in Carter's kitchen. It'd been two days since, and Margo had been staying on Carter's couch, too terrified to go home. Her parents were returning that night, however, so she couldn't stay away forever.

And despite Ryu's promises that her house was now perfectly safe, Margo had still bought sage from a nearby pharmacy, and had delved into research at the local library, devouring anything she could find on demonology.

Of course, Carter had readily agreed to help. He was just as curious about demons as her, maybe even more so, and was eager to ensure no more suddenly appeared in his neighbourhood at 2am.

Unfortunately, their search had yielded little results.

"You know, you could at least try to help us," Carter muttered, scowling across the table at Ryu. The demon merely poked out his tongue.

"Are you sure you don't know anything?" Margo added, raising a meaningful brow. "After all, you're a demon; surely you know something?"

"Oh, and since you're a mortal, you must know everything about them," Ryu sniped back, glaring. "I already told you, I don't know anything about the demon in your house. It should've been in a summoning circle, or...or...bound to a mortal, or something!"

He threw his hands back, exasperated, and Carter held up a hand before Margo could snap back. "Okay, guys, arguing amongst ourselves won't get us anywhere."

An older woman walking by paused to fix him with a strange look, eyes flitting between Carter and Margo before moving on.

"Look," Carter continued, once he was sure she was out of earshot, "here's what we know: 1) That demon in Margo's house was a strange anomaly, an occurrence Ryu's never heard of in recent history. However, 2) Demons were able to roam freely many years ago, which could mean 3) that demons are now regaining an ability they previously lost." He sighed and ran his hands through his hair, a headache already throbbing at the corners of his temple. "When I bought the book I used to summon Ryu from that old thrift store, maybe-"

"That's it!" Margo cried suddenly, jolting excitedly out of her seat and slamming her forearms against the table.

A nearby librarian swivelled from where she was restacking shelves and hissed a sharp, "Sssssh."

"That's it," Margo whispered in quieter tones, dark eyes wide with excitement. "Carter, that's what we have to do! Go to that thrift store."

Carter hesitated, eyes darting between Margo's flushed face and Ryu's wary gaze. "I, er...I dunno...it didn't seem very special when I went last time..."

"That doesn't matter," Margo insisted. She leaned across the table to grasp Carter's hands in hers, and Ryu stiffened. "Carter, we have to do this. This could be an actual lead!"

Carter's resolve lasted only a few more seconds. "Okay," he agreed, head nodding in concession. "There's just one thing, though. It's kind of far, so..."

"So what?" Margo prompted.

Carter shrugged, trying to discern his own nervousness at the prospect. "So we have to go to the beach."

A/N: Please feel free leave a comment and/or vote if you enjoyed!