The Howling

Chapter Nine

        They came across five other demons. One was an air demon, chained to the ground in the form of a bird. It flapped its wings and squawked but was never able to fly more than a foot off the ground before the chains jerked him violently down. One was a fire demon, trapped in a clear box about the same siz of her room back home, filled completely with water. She was in the shape of a small girl, her black hair swirling about her face. Reinard had walked past the box without a glance in her direction. Villette had tried to do the same, but she couldn't resist a look. The girl had been pounding on the glass, eyes begging them to stop. Another water demon sat in an electric chair. An earth demon was drowning in a lake. 

        Villette ignored them the best that she could, repeating her made-up mantra in her head. They're demons. They've hurt people. They're demons. They've hurt people. 

        But a nagging in the back of her mind wouldn't let go. It takes two to make a contract. Were the others left free while the demons received all the punishment? 

        Reinard must have sensed her disquiet because he jerked to a stop and wheeled around. Villette slammed into him. "Sorry," she mumbled, taking a step back. 

        "Just don't think about them," he suggested. He gestured down the long, underground tunnel they had spent the last twenty minutes in with one hand. His other hand sported a blue flame, casting sharp shadows onto the curved tunnel walls. "Pretend you're exploring an abandoned mine shaft or something. Don't think about them." 

        She could still hear the water demon's anguished wail in her mind. "It's hard not to think about them." 

        He squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. "I know this is difficult. I could try for a spell? Something that might help?" 

        She shook her head. Reinard needed to be at his best when they finally did find Emil and Eisen. She didn't want him to be weakened because she couldn't stomach the demons. "I'll be fine." 

        He eyed her, still evidently concerned, before smiling slightly. "Very well. How about something to pass the time? Verity once told me about a game that you play involving twenty questions? Do you want to give it a go? I'm afraid you'll have to explain the rules to me-I don't know them." 

        "I know the game you're talking about." Her father had played it with her every morning during the drive to school. Or when they were waiting for her mother to finish shopping. "That sounds like a good idea." 

        He grinned and then began walking once again, this time staying close to Villette. "I'll pick first and you guess. Is there certain criteria I need to follow? Or can I pick anything?" 

        "Anything you want." 

        He was thoughtful for a moment. Then he nodded. "I'm ready. Go." 

        "Animal, plant, or mineral?" 

        "Animal." 

        Villette glanced over her shoulder at Al. "You help out too." 

        Al nodded. "Does it walk on four legs?" 

        "Nope." 

        Villette grinned. "Does it have wings?" 

        "No, it doesn't." 

        She racked her mind, thinking of different animals instead of where she was. She allowed herself to be completely engrossed in the game, asking questions and then answering them when her turn came. The three of them rotated turns. She felt a surge of gratitude towards Reinard for the distraction. Something told her that her own grandfather wouldn't have been as considerate as he had been.