Rabbit Blood

Chapter 9 - The Hotel Fucking Explodes

Pentagram City was a bustling metropolis by day; but by night, right around the witching hour, one could feel a certain stillness as nocturnal activities wound down. The hotel itself had a curfew, to prevent certain shenanigans. Ergo, most guests were asleep when, on the 14th of March, the calm was shattered by a colossal boom, the sound of breaking glass, and a sudden shake of the building.

Leslie fell out of bed with a scream, shielding her face from the rushing surface of the road; then she understood this was not the fatal car crash again. This was something else.

From the corridor, she heard confused yells. Cold, rusty water sprinkled from above, making her cry out in annoyance. Leslie grabbed her phone. No way was she letting a sudden downpour ruin her most irreplaceable possession. Then the alarm sounded, moving from the first floor to this one, then further up the premises.

"Everyone outside, please! This is not a drill! This way!"

Leslie pocketed the phone and charger and rushed into the hallway with her shoulders hunched. The plethora of disgruntled, pajamaed demons were called down the staircase. She recognized the ones who used to bang on the bathroom door when she showered.

"The hell is going on?" Leslie asked the world in general.

No answer.

She reached the first floor and fought her way along like a salmon going upstream, finally making it outside. The exterior view of the hotel showed a mess of bricks and plaster from one of the third-floor rooms. This, then, was the site of the explosion. Leslie hoped no-one was hurt.

Shit. Oh shit. Where was everybody?

First she saw Niffty, in a nightgown, flitting to and fro at the speed of sound to clear rubble. Then Charlie and Vaggie were there, in matching fleece onesies, as they loudly directed the crowd to make way for other guests. There were so many people, more than she'd even known were staying here.

"Angel?" she called out. "Husk?" Alastor?

"Who speaks my name in vain?" Angel Dust called back. She twirled round and saw him in a peachy-pink silk robe and leather boots. "Hey, Les," he said, "you OK?"

"I'm fine. You OK?"

"Yeah, jus' fuckin' soaked," Angel said. He wasn't lying - the hair that covered him was softer than hers, more of a gossamer, and the water had drenched it. His usually stunning coif drooped over his face. "Any idea what happened?"

"No. Maybe it was Sir Pentious! Maybe... he came back to destroy the hotel again."

"Pentious knows better," said Alastor from right beside her (making Leslie jump). She was sorry to see he was dressed the same as always, not in pajamas, and only slightly dampened.

"Someone else, then?" Angel said, raising his voice over several chattering demons.

"I imagine we shall know in a second."

Alastor was right; moments later, there was a loud whistle, then whooshing sounds. They looked up to see Husk in the air, his hackles up and his tail wagging; he flew down, holding Baxter by his frilly wet ears. Leslie was stunned. She hadn't known Husk could fly. As he landed and spread his wings, she clearly saw the interior markings that branded each feather.

"Here's yer fukken problem," Husk yelled, throwing Baxter to the ground, and kicking him for good measure.

"Hey, hey, stop it! No violence to the guests!" Charlie said, storming forward. "What on earth is going on?"

"Ask him," said Husk, "ask this fukken Frankenstein why he gave me a heart attack. I don't need this!"

As a group, Leslie, Alastor and Angel crept forward for a better view of this dramatic scene. Charlie was joined by Vaggie, her harpoon drawn, and the couple demanded to know what happened.