words bella had once spoken to me echoed in my head. it's not always about brute force. it's about using your brains. use their strength against them.

flicking into my incubus sight, i drew in magic, drinking deep from the swirling energy all around me. i crouched, preparing myself to meet vallaena's hulking shape. the beauty in her features was gone, replaced by raw bestiality. she closed to thirty yards. twenty. ten. five. at the last minute, i dodged to the side, threw out my hands, and pretended i was my favorite neighborhood web-slinger, just like the day i'd saved me and shelton from sliding into the gloom.

strands of webbed energy shot from my hands, wrapping around vallaena's thick waist as she blurred past, her clawed feet tearing up clods of earth, spraying dirt in my face. even with her supernatural reflexes, there was no way she could stop her extra mass on a dime with all that momentum. i imagined the strands becoming flexible. they stretched and stretched, slowing her to a crawl. she reached the apex, and stopped. but only for an instant. with my feet entrenched in the ground and muscles bulging, i jerked on the magical web. it snapped back like a giant rubber band.

vallaena zipped over my head at what seemed like the speed of light, her body a blue blur. i was so shocked by her speed, i nearly forgot to release the magic holding the slingshot together, dissolving it just before her momentum would have pulled me after her like a chihuahua leashed to a charging car's bumper. she crashed into the forest, cracked through several saplings, and vanished into the gloom. a moment later, i saw the top of a particularly tall tree shudder with impact. the thud echoed like a thunderclap. spider bats shrieked, flapping away from the commotion.

i winced. that had to hurt.

something roared in the distance, its ravenous bellow echoing from deep within the woods. the tragon. even with our, um, disagreement, i couldn't let that monstrosity eat my aunt. i ran into the forest, following a trail of broken saplings, uprooted bushes, and finally found vallaena lying spread-eagled at the base of a huge tree with a demon-shaped divot in its thick trunk. blue blood streamed down her animalistic face, running down her cheeks and pooling in her huge demon ears.

as i watched, her body began to shrink back to normal. another roar reached my ears, this one much closer, so without further ado, i picked her up, and ran for the safety of the shield. once back in the meadow, i placed her on the ground, keeping an eye on the unconscious woman until she returned to normal size, and her blood had turned to a red hue.

exhaustion heaped atop my back, rolling over me like a wave. i'd pushed myself today, physically and mentally. i'd actually used magic while manifested. the thought thrilled me, but now my body was paying the price. at least i was safe for now.

pawed feet padded behind me. i turned and stared into the glowing yellow eyes of a hellhound.

chapter 29

mustering what energy i could, i directed a growl at the hound. it cowered, whimpered, and rolled onto its back. raising a demonic eyebrow, i reached over and scratched its belly.

"good boy," i said, my voice still deep with the demon form.

its tongue lolled.

i watched the other hellhounds struggle to their feet. i fought to remain in demon form, but my body wasn't having it. my sight blurred and wavered from the strain. soon i'd lose control to the raging beast trapped behind the thinning wall of my resistance. i would just have to face the hounds without my demonic advantage. gritting my teeth, i pushed and beat back the beast, stuffing it into its psychic cage. my body shrank back to normal size just as the hellhounds, still somewhat wobbly on their feet, came toward me. they stopped. sniffed vallaena, and rolled onto their backs in front of me. since my aunt hadn't taught me anything about hellhound summoning, i wasn't sure why they were suddenly my best buds, but assumed it had something to do with my kicking their rear ends rather soundly and proving i was the boss of them.

vallaena moaned. pressed a hand to her head, and sat up. her bloodshot blue eyes met mine. "you."

i nodded. "me."

she pinched the bridge of her nose, head bent as if in silent prayer, though i figured it had more to do with the worst headache of her life. after a full minute or so, she looked back at me. "you defeated me."

"yep." i tried not to gloat, but the look of disbelief on her face was just too precious to pass up. "kicked your butt."

vallaena nodded, face pensive. "i am sorry, justin. i should never have talked to nightliss."

i rocked back on my heels with shock. "did i get hit on the head, or did you really just apologize?"

"i am desperate for you to be healed. if you succumb to the vampling curse, we will all succumb to the seraphim." she looked up at me. "do you understand?"

i nodded. "but your behavior is no excuse." i sighed and offered her a hand. she took it, wincing, and i pulled her to her feet. "if you try to manipulate my friends again, i will leave you in a heartbeat."

her eyes grew large and hopeful. "does that mean you're not leaving my tutelage?"

i offered her a smile. "that apology just earned you another chance."

"well, i think you have proven yourself today, nephew." she took my hand in both of hers. "i am proud of you."

i looked at her dirt-smeared, blood-stained face, and wondered how she could feel pride in my beating the snot out of a woman, but decided it had been self-defense. "um, well that's good. why don't you go home, rest, and get cleaned up?"

she nodded. "i will. until tomorrow, then?"

"until tomorrow." i was glad i'd worn workout attire, and swung by the gym to shower and change so people wouldn't wonder how a filthy bum managed to slip onto campus.

i returned to the dorm to find bella sitting outside on a bench with my suitcase and hers sitting on the ground next to it. "the ra wouldn't allow me to stay any longer," she said. "even when i offered to bake him cookies."

a snort escaped me. "well, i have another place. it's probably haunted, but you're gonna love it."

she quirked an eyebrow. "you discover the most interesting places, justin."

i led her to our new "home". she stopped and stared. gave me a sideways look.

"hey," i said, "it has toilets."

bella grinned. "i suppose that's a start."

we went inside, and walked upstairs to the bedrooms. the preservation spells in the east wing had apparently worn off, or someone had thrown one too many parties, because not only were the bedrooms on that side dusty and moldy, but some of the beds looked like wild animals had clawed them to shreds. the west wing looked much better, and the rooms actually smelled clean, which was amazing if they hadn't been used since the frat boys had lived here. then again, thinking about the parties this place had seen probably meant the beds could have been used in all sorts of carnal ways.

"know any cleaning spells?" i asked bella as i cast dubious glances at the deep blue comforter atop the king-sized bed.

she replied with an apologetic smile. "i'm not much of a housekeeper but i did once live in a fancy mansion like this one." she walked to a rope dangling from the ceiling, pulled it. a moment later, a golem, its wooden body painted to resemble a butler uniform, a ratty old gray wig perched atop its round head, walked inside the room and stopped.

"you rang, sir?" it said in a perfect british accent even though it had no mouth i could see.

"clean the sheets?" i said.

"of course, sir," it said, and began stripping the bed with its finely articulated hands and fingers.

"goodness," bella said, looking closely at the golem. "this is quite a fine piece of work. i can't believe anyone would simply leave such a useful golem in an abandoned house."

"you think someone else lives here?" i said, alarm ringing in my head.

"butler, does anyone else live in this house?" bella asked.

without looking up from the bed, it said, "no one has lived in this place for over two years, madam."

"how long have you been here?"

"i am not able to divulge that information," it replied, balling the sheets atop the bed. it walked to a closet and pulled large wheeled basket from inside, and stuffed the sheets into it.

"what do you mean, not able?" i asked.

"the information is simply not available to me, sir." the golem gripped the basket and wheeled it toward the door. it stopped just outside, and turned. "does the master wish anything else before i take this to laundry?"

"clean the bed sheets in the next room too, please," bella said, casting a curious look as the faux butler nodded and vanished around the corner.

i looked at bella. "this place is weird, but heck, if i have a butler, i think i may just like it."

"i agree," she replied with a smile.

i called cinder and let him know about the new digs, and then thought hard about what i wanted to eat that night. as i weighed the pros and cons of pizza versus chinese food, the front door swung open, and lina stepped inside.

"hello?" she called and spotted me sitting on a freshly cleaned couch in front of the fireplace in the den.

"hey," i said. "thanks for helping me find this place."

she offered a tired grin. "it is very cool." she sat next to me. "are you doing okay? you look really exhausted."

i had to admit i was feeling not just physical hunger, but demonic hunger as well. i'd intended to fill both needs once i decided where i was going to eat normal food. the school dining hall served three meals a day, though i usually missed dinner thanks to my sessions with vallaena.

"do you want to feed?" lina asked.

she looked so pale, so tired, i couldn't believe she'd even offer. "are you kidding me? you look dead on your feet."

"i am a little tired." a yawn seemed to take her by surprise.

"maybe you just need a break." i stood. "you feel like chinese food?"

"yeah. that sounds great."

"hey lina!" bella called, leaning over the balustrade upstairs. "i wasn't expecting you. did you come over to play scrabble?"