DEMON DOOR (#2 GHOST PORTAL series)

TWENTY

Avery wasn't sure how long he stood there, stiff, fighting a migraine as Ada absorbed energy from Jamie. She didn't move; not breathing, not giving any sign of life except for the glow coming from underneath her, illuminating her. Which might not have been an abnormal thing, if Avery thought about it—a being like Ada didn't need to breathe, did she?

Jamie was breathing, albeit barely. But any time Avery tried to get closer, to check on his friend, a Guide got in his way and pushed him back.

"No interrupting," they said, their voices as firm as Ada's had been.

Avery glared at each of them in turn, unable to defy them or push back.

Yeah, they're definitely her underlings, aren't they?

When Ada returned to "normal"—her human shape reconfiguring itself, her facial features reappearing, the intense glow going away—the tension in the clearance died down. Guides scattered off to their former tasks, resuming the building process, or ushering ghosts farther into the forest.

Avery was allowed to approach Jamie, at last, to find him sweaty, pallid, panting. His skin had turned a faint green shade, as if those silvery tethers had actually drained him of blood, of life. His eyes were closed, and visible shivers shot down his arms and legs.

"Did you hurt him?" Avery gritted his teeth, holding in a growl.

They'd been aware of the danger, and yet to see his friend in such a frail state, he wondered if it'd been worth it. Jamie wasn't supposed to die, he wasn't supposed to be there, at all.

"No," said Ada, shaking herself off, combing her fingers through her hair. "He's weak, of course, because I took much more energy from him than planned. But he will be fine, and I doubt any of what I did hurt him."

"What?" Avery raised a fist and stormed up to Ada. "Is he going to die from this? Did you kill him?"

She shooed him off with a wave of her hand. "Are you listening to me at all? He'll be fine, Avery." Nonchalant, she brushed past him and wandered up to Jamie, to sprinkle a powdery substance over his body.

Avery raced over to block her—though how, he had no idea, as he couldn't push her the way she pushed him—a yelp growing in his throat. "Hey, stop it! What the fuck are you doing to him?"

Ada whirled around, scowling at him. "Will you calm down?" She clapped her hands together, ridding her palms of the dust she'd used to put over Jamie. "It's a sleeping spell, so he can find peace in his slumber. If he sleeps, he'll gather his energy faster, okay? He's fine, I promise you."

A promise from Ada meant about as much as one from a total stranger, but Avery knew he had no chance to change her mind, her actions. It was too late—this spell she claimed would help Jamie was already taking effect. Jamie stopped convulsing about and his harsh breaths became softer, smoother ones. His eyelids no longer fluttered, and his limbs grew limp as he fell into a hopefully restorative slumber.

"Whatever." Avery stuffed his hands under his armpits and spun from Jamie's slumbering form on the ground, near the portal. "So, what's up? What happened?"

Frowning, Ada shimmied towards the opposite side of the clearing, where no Guides concentrated, no ghosts lingered. She beckoned him to follow, and so he did, understanding she wanted to get away from curious ears.

They stopped next to a a stack of bricks, and Ada motioned at him to sit atop it.

"You're acting weird," he said, sitting down as he scanned her face. She was twitching, as if struggling to figure out if she wanted to smile or frown deeper than she already was. "Weirder than usual, I mean."