Across the Veil: Open Eyes (Book 1)

Chapter 27: Raising a Little Hell

The elevator ride to the main floor was the longest trip possible in Willow's mind. She kept close to Savio, both of them watching as the floor numbers ticked down. As they reached the second floor, Moira told them to get ready.

The elevator pinged as it hit the first floor and the doors began to slide open. Moira's eyes flared with energy, glowing an eerie shade of violet. Her body tensed, bracing herself as she tapped into Memphis' power. The elevator door stopped halfway, the lights flickering in the hall.

There was a burst of light that emanated from Moira, the force of the energy released being enough to shove Willow and Savio against the wall of the elevator. When they opened their eyes it was pitch dark. The only light they could use was the inhuman glow coming from Moira's eyes.

Moira stood there, looking like a spectre. Her eyes glowed steadily, her skin almost translucent in appearance. Her hair, now much longer, floated behind her like smoke. She turned and looked at Willow, grinning a fanged grin, before vanishing into the hallway.

The pair waited in the elevator with bated breath. They heard the sounds of people shouting before being thrown into walls at either end of the hall. A door was slammed open, a male voice starting to shout only to be cut off.

A second passed. Then another. A light shone down the hall, followed by Moira's voice in their ears telling them to hurry and come to her.

The pair emerged from the elevator, quickly rushing over to where she way. Moira handed them the flashlight she took from the guard. She pointed into the open door of the security room, "Idiot proof system. Password is 'ServiceWithASmile', first letters are capitalized, same with 'A', all one word. Once you are in, go into 'security' and locate 'footage' and just delete today's stuff. They back up footage at midnight, so we don't have to worry about backups right now. Then find 'emergency shut down'. Hit that, and it'll shut down the system completely until someone signs back in."

They all froze as the lights flickered back to life. Moira pushed them into the office and pulled the door shut.

***

Willow and Savio looked around the office as the lights came back on and the screen hummed with energy again. Willow swung into the chair and signed in. As she searched through the files, she and Savio were able to watch as Moira made her way towards the dining area. She moved with graceful, quiet footsteps. If they hadn't known better, they would have thought she was a ghost haunting the lodge.

As she moved from from the hall and into the lobby, she simply looked at the woman at the front desk. The woman paused, hand on the telephone, before sitting back down and leafing through the sign in book. She tore out a page and shredded it before turning her attention to the computer on the desk. She wasn't doing anything on it. Just staring at the screen.

Moira then turned and began to walk towards the dining area.

Willow had managed to find the security footage section of the computer and purged it. Upon Savio's suggestion, they double checked for any backups that might have been saved earlier. Thankfully there was nothing.

Willow was just about to hit the emergency shutdown for the system when Savio let out a gasp. She looked up and froze. Moira had just walked into the dining area. Savio reached up for the volume on the screen that was showing Moira. It didn't help any though. There were no words. Just Moira gliding forward, followed by everyone grabbing their weapons.

A gust of wind surged around Moira before exploding outwards, knocking all the Hunters and tables back against the walls. A few were knocked out, but others were starting to get back on their feet. One tried to shoot Moira, the bullet just grazing her arm. She simply glanced at the Hunter, raising her hand up and then, with a flick of her wrist, sent the Hunter flying through a window.

A bright light began to emanate from Moira. Willow and Savio had to look away, the light was almost blinding on the screen. There was another surge of energy, this time the entire building shook and the lights went out. The pair could hear people running down the hall and doors being opened on the main floor.

After another minute, the cameras came back to life. Moira stood in the dining area, looking around at all the fallen Hunters. Willow and Savio watched in awe. She'd taken them all out. There was no way of knowing if any of them were still alive, though.

On the screen, Moira made her way towards the Hunter that had be sitting at the front of the room. She knelt down and placed a hand on his forehead.

On the other screens, Willow could see other Hunters running towards the dining area with weapons drawn.

"You got visitors!" Willow said, the earpiece picking up her voice.

Moira glanced up on the security screen. "Got it. When it is safe, go up to the room and use the shadows to escape. If you see anyone, tell them to stay upstairs. Say it's people fighting downstairs and to call the police. I'll meet you back at the bar." her voice was almost a whisper.

"Got it." Savio replied, reaching over the keyboard to do another file purge and then activate the emergency shutdown.

The pair watched as all the screens winked out and the office fell into silence. Savio motioned for Willow to wait as he slid into the shadows and under the door. After a moment he opened the door and waved for Willow to follow.

They raced down the hall towards the stairs and made their way up to the fourth floor. Sure enough, as they reached the third floor they ran into a group of young adults who were on their way downstairs, all looking concerned or irritated.

One of them started to ask what the hell was going on, but Willow cut them off. She moved to urge them back up the stairs, "Back up!" her voice was urgent, "People are fighting. I don't know what's going on but we need to get upstairs!"

One of the guys in the group swore, pulling out his phone. He was already calling the police as he and his friends rushed back upstairs, Willow and Savio following close behind.

Willow and Savio rushed past the group towards the room Willow had rented. They could faintly hear gunshots going off on the main floor. It was only a matter of time before the police showed up.

Willow jammed her keycard into the slot in the door, shoving it open so they could get out of the hallway. She left the card in the slot so Moira could get in easily. Willow and Savio stepped out onto the patio. In the distance they could see the red and blue lights of police speeding towards the lodge.

Savio grabbed Willow's hand and told her to hold on tight. She would be safe, she just had to trust him to guide her through the shadows. She nodded quickly and felt herself being pulled into the shadows.

***

Moving in the shadows was a weird feeling. Everything was slightly dim and it felt as if she was floating. She could see Savio fairly easily in the shadows, his green eyes glancing back at her every so often to make sure she was doing okay as he guided her along.

One thing about 'shadow walking', as Savio would later call it, was that it allowed you to move extremely fast. Upon leaving the lodge, it felt as if they had floated down the side of the building before being whisked off into the shadows of the trees behind the lodge.

The sun had already set, so the trip back into the city felt like being on a motorcycle that coasted easily through any terrain. It was only when they reached the city where lighting was more abundant that their trip slowed down.

Following the alleys, backyards, and parking lots behind the buildings, Savio managed to guide them into the alley beside The Blue Shoes. Savio pulled them both from the shadows, which felt as if they gently touched the ground and could just walk again. They hurriedly entered the bar and were greeted by the shocked and relieved expressions of their friends. Bruno, who had been waiting by the door, scooped the pair up in an embrace, relieved to see they had made it back safe.

Next came the questions. What happened? Where was Moira and Memphis? Were the Hunters still out there? They heard the police had been scrambled. The news was already broadcasting something going on at the lodge.

Celeste cut in, silencing the questions as she motioned for Willow and Savio to take a seat. First, they needed to rest. They had been through so much, they needed time to decompress and orient themselves again. Then, and only then if they were ready, could people resume bombarding them with questions.