Midnight Playground

Chapter 21

 

Cassie rubbed the back of her hand across her eye, dust sprinkling over her head from the above ceiling. The lampshade rocked violently caused by the thundering rumbles of the happenings upstairs. Some of the clients squeaked in surprize and continued to huddle up against one another in a corner of the room. She rolled her eyes, turning to Emmery who was sat beside her, simply shaking her head. Clearly they were both just too exhausted to care anymore. Brushing the dirt out of her fringe, Emmery sighed, her gaze wandering up towards the ceiling. She frowned.

"I wonder what time it is..." She asked out-loud, a flicker of sadness momentarily appearing on her face. Cassie shrugged. She had learned to judge the time from the volume of noise in the house upstairs. The creatures were on the move again now, pawing, scratching and yapping to one another. They were restless again. She figured that it was probably around dusk by now since it was the time they appeared most active. It was also when the demons seemed more on edge. In order to keep them hidden, even the demons had to reveal a secret or two.

She watched Emmery shiver, slightly pulling herself closer into her. Before a few weeks ago, she probably would have refused Emmery's clingy attitude but after everything that had happened, well, she decided that it was best to simply give in for now. And anyway, as company went, she wasn't all that bad. A small smile slipped from her keeping as she helped adjust the jacket from around the tired girl's shoulders. She didn't mind the silent atmosphere of the room. The quiet chatter of the nervous clients was much more preferred over the once loud laughter. As hiding places went, it was perhaps her ideal. Dark, quiet, and occasionally surprizing, it made her heart feel light but even so, there was one thing that bothered her, besides the obvious. Cassie's eyes crossed to the other side of the room to where the other clients were gathered to keep warm. Immediately she felt a sting rise up her spine, quickly meeting Yuki's hardened stare. Cassie felt her cheek twitch.

"It appears I have a new guard dog." Cassie muttered touchily, causing Emmery to stir slightly. Quickly ceasing all movement, she found herself frowning awkwardly, feeling slightly amused with herself.

"How times have changed." She had often thought that to herself over the last three weeks, stuck beneath the cellar of the house. Or what looked to be a cellar anyway. After herding them all together, Jace and the rest of the demons had ushered them down into the old cellar below the house, a dark and dreary place filled with the musky smell of damp. Rain had collected in one corner of the room in puddles, presumably seeping through the rotting wooden door that lead up into the garden. It wasn't the most pleasant of places but she figured that they would make do - they had little choice in the matter. Still, fear had played on her mind a lot whilst they stood in confusion, watching the demons shift through the dirt on the ground with their feet. If the doors couldn't keep out the rain, then what hope did it have of protecting them from the monsters lurking inside of the house? The answer to that, came at the sound of thumping created by Jace who had begun stamping down his foot on a thick sheet of wood. All eyes turned to him as the other demons quickly followed his lead, removing the wood from beneath the mud to reveal a second staircase leading down further into the darkness.

She still recalled the conversation she had overheard between Luther and his clients only hours after that.

"Where are we?" Emmery had asked, following Luther around almost like a duckling. The fact that she couldn't see where she was going probably hadn't helped matters.

"It's so dark down here and it smells." Corra chimed in, latching her hand on Luther, wrapping it around hers. She shot Emmery a look of warning but who in turn hadn't even noticed the nasty looks of her fellow client, not even when the lights had been switched on. Truly, Emmery was admirable for many things indeed.