TWENTY-SEVEN (ISELEN POV)

I turn on the mattress, sighing but not opening my eyes, till my arm touches a warm body, soft skin and silky hair that smells of grapefruit shampoo. I smile and cuddle closer to the human, enjoying the sensation... It's rare for my girl to be still in bed when I wake up, Terra and Ruby usually get up before I open my eyes when the sun is still high in the sky and they make breakfast, take the dogs out for a walk or they go grocery shopping. I extend my arm further and my hand finds the werewolf's hip covered with the sheet, the steady pace of her breathing confirms me that she's still soundly asleep too.

"This is weird," I think yawning but keeping my eyes shut. I guess these past days excitement has taken a toll on us and we needed to rest after escaping from Marsh's house unnoticed, fortunately, and speaking to Elric; that damned wizard gets on my nerves, he's always a drama queen and sees the dark side of everything. My beautiful girls were very anxious because of his words and I thought that a little bit of sex in the shower would be the solution to the problem: an orgasm is better than a sleeping pill. It's pretty obvious that it worked well since they're here with me, it's worth suffering some jaw pain as long as they're satisfied and exhausted.

Or maybe I'm awake for another reason... The smell of the human's blood is tempting, as usual, sweet and delicious. I rub her neck with the tip of my nose and heave a sigh, maybe I'm hungry... Or maybe her dogs have disturbed me barking, pacing up and down the bedroom nervously, but I could swear that Ruby left them wandering around the garden last night while we were having a shower, which means they should be sleeping on the living room couch, not here with us. My inner clock tells me it's too early for me to be awake, this is strange... What the hell is going on? I feel I'm being watched, that's it... I open my eyes suddenly, fully alert, and scan the entire dark room.

"Georgina for fuck's sake!" I cry sitting down on the mattress abruptly while the dogs start barking on the other side of the door frantically.

"What the...?" Terra wakes up scared and almost falls from the bed to the floor while struggling with the sheet tangled in her legs to be able to sit down too. Ruby opens her eyes next to me, surprised and confused for a second.

"Sorry," the ghost smiles amused but remains silent, floating at the foot of the bed and illuminating the bedroom with a soft light, watching us creepily. The human sits down frowning and opens her mouth to say something but Georgina averts her eyes to her breasts and Ruby seems to remember she's naked, she puts her arms around my torso and tries to hide behind my body, getting stuck to my back, because Terra is still struggling to get rid of the sheets.

"What the hell do you want? Are you crazy? How much time have you been watching us sleeping? And what the hell are you doing here?" I growl angrily and she smiles again.

"Those are lot of questions, which one do you want me to answer first?"

"Screw you! I'm going to exorcise the attic and kick your ectoplasmic ass out of the Wind Rose..." I cry pointing at her with my index angrily buy she doesn't seem impressed, I guess I threatened her with the same words too many times without consequences before.

"Georgina, what's wrong?" Terra asks calmer, dropping the sheets without bothering to cover her body anymore.

"Maeve has sent me," the ghost answers smiling. "It's nice to leave that damned house for a change, Los Angeles is quite big and interesting, there're many lights and humans having fun all the time. It looks nothing like the cities I visited when I was alive, I was in London once with my mother when I was a child..."

"Can you leave the Wind Rose? I thought that ghosts were anchored in a specific place, usually where they had lived and died... Where are you from?" Ruby asks confused while trying to put on the T-shirt I've found on the floor next to me without Georgina seeing her naked breasts again.

"My husband's manor was in Lincolnshire, I stayed there for a while after the asshole killed me and married my cousin," the woman points at the knife sticking out of her chest. "But a hundred years ago, a wizard casted a spell in the Wind Rose to draw good vibes, only he got one word wrong and attracted some ghosts instead, I was one of them..."

"I've been trying to find a counter-spell for a century," I admit quietly, getting up to take a shirt for me and another for the wolf. After all, the damned ghost loves catching me off guard in the shower and she's seen everything there is to see.

"I can't leave the property, in theory," Georgina explains ignoring me. "I must stay where my spirit feels stronger, I mean, the Wind Rose. But Maeve thought she could anchor me to a person instead of a place and, that way, I'd be able to travel here to warn you... She's bound me to you."

"You're fucking kidding me," I cry angrily again. "Do you mean that you'll follow me everywhere from now on? This is the last thing I need right now..."

"Warn us about what?" Terra cuts me off getting closer to the ghost, worried.

"Oh, demons are surrounding the Wind Rose and they're getting serious this time. They're not those stinky assholes but real demon soldiers, well-trained, they're a lot and are hitting the protective barrier following a precise method since last night, trying every single spell they can think of and choosing those that manage to weaken it a little, casting them again and again..."

"Shit, why didn't she call us?" the wolf asks confused.

"She can't do it, she said they've done something to cut off communications..."

"Georgina, you're vanishing, the light is getting weaker," I point at the ghost and she nods.

"The spell that binds me to you is not permanent... The tunnel of the nymphaeum, that's the only clear route to get into the property..." Suddenly, the ghost vanishes and the room gets dark again till Ruby turns on the bedside lamp.

"Stupid ectoplasm, I bet she's been wasting time watching us sleeping like a creepy stalker for long minutes, forgetting about the important information she had to give us," I growl angrily, running my fingers through my hair.

"We need to go back as soon as possible," Terra turns around to look at me and I nod, rubbing my forehead with the palm of my hand, sighing. "Listen, we'll pack our stuff while you take a nap, it's too early for you..."

"I'm fine," I shake my head but Ruby gets up from the bed and hugs me, kissing my cheek slowly. My hand slips down her back like it has developed a mind of its own and I touch her bare buttock under the T-shirt while she smiles.

"No, you're not. Go to sleep, babe, while we take care of all: I have to go out and walk the dogs so they can do their business, make breakfast, gather our clothes, take the bags to the car..."

"I'll call Mirabelle," the wolf opens the door and takes Charlie in her arms when he tries to run into the room. "I'll tell her and her friends that they must watch all those evil magical creatures that were attending Marsh's party last night, they'll make sure the nasty Baba Yagá won't eat any kid."

"Do you think the attack to the Wind Rose is related to the breaking and trespassing of Marsh's house last night? But how could he know it was us?" I ask flopping down on the mattress again, hugging the pillow that smells exactly like Ruby.

"Maybe he recognized the human's perfume in his bathroom, but I don't think that happened, actually," Terra smiles putting her arm on our girl's shoulders when Ruby holds her breath, scared. "He doesn't know we're in LA, he can't feel our energy thanks to the witches' charms, so he's attacking the refuge because, well, all supernatural creatures must know that the key is hidden there by now. I was expecting him to visit us sooner than later... I'm going to call my father and ask him kindly if he's still in the forest and can get closer to take a look at the house, I can't force him to fight the demons putting the entire pack in danger, I'm not a member of his family anymore and can't ask the pack for help, but they can spy on them for us safely."

"If you think that's a good idea," I answer with a neutral tone of voice. She knows I don't like werewolves, they killed my human family and we fought hard for centuries, hurting each other badly, but we're over it now, supposedly, for the sake of the Wind Rose and Ruby too. I'll accept whatever help we can get as long as I can keep the human alive.

*****

"We're almost there, Iselen, don't worry."

"I'm not worried," I answer puzzled and the wolf stares at me exasperated through the rearview mirror despite it's dark, she's driving through a forest track under the lush tree branches, she hasn't turned the lights on and it's still night.

"You should be, the sun will rise in less than one hour and will burn that gorgeous bloodsucker butt you have if we don't reach the house in time... I was expecting to be at least inside the cave by now, I didn't think we'd find heavy traffic after leaving Los Angeles."

"There's always heavy traffic around the city," Ruby replies trying to see something through the windows but she doesn't have the sharp eye of a werewolf or a vampire. They both have driven all night long, taking turns behind the wheel and stopping at some gas stations to walk the dogs and go to the restroom, but Terra has driven these past kilometers in the dark because she doesn't want to alert those demons to our presence. We're still wearing Mirabelle's charms around our necks and they're protecting us, fortunately.

"Did you need to bring the dogs? Don't you have a friend that could take care of them?" I ask scratching Chance's ears gently, Charlie is lying next to me comfortably but Ru has stayed on her mistress' lap the entire trip.

"I don't think it's a good idea to keep Ruby away from her guardian angel given that we're going through a very complicated situation," Terra replies, driving slowly, looking for a landmark to know where we are exactly and stop the car safely.

"I hope the house is still standing," I whisper looking through the window. We don't get out of the property through the back door usually and it's been a while since the last time I was here, the entrance of the tunnel is supposed to be near some rocks... "I think we're close, you can park the car behind those tall ferns and no one will be able to see it from the track."

"Yes, you're right," Terra stops and takes a look around cautiously. "I called my father half an hour ago and he confirmed me that the demons are still trying to tear down the barrier in front of the main gate but there're some monitoring the perimeter so we must be careful. You can take Ruby and the dogs to the cave entrance and come back to help me with the bags."

I nod and obey, getting off the car, it's cold in the forest but I can smell in the air that dawn is close. Fortunately, excitement keeps me awake and I won't fall asleep in the middle of the tunnel. The human follows me meekly, trying to keep her pets silent while I help her to walk without tripping over through an area with lush vegetation till we bump into a rock wall, the cave entrance is hidden behind a vine. Ruby shudders in the dark and I put my scarf around her neck immediately.

"There's a flashlight in your jacket pocket, if you hear something weird out there, I want you to turn it on and run with your dogs as fast as you can inside this tunnel. The protective barrier is a few meters ahead of us and you'll be safe behind it, if you keep walking down the tunnel, you'll arrive to the nymphaeum: it's an artificial cave with a fountain, benches and a pond with fish... It's part of the décor of the back garden, Maeve and our friends are waiting for you at the Wind Rose, okay?"

"I prefer to wait here for you to come back," she admits tiredly and I nod.

"Smart girl, the path is slippery and it's better if you walk holding my hand, but if demons attack us out there, I want you to run as fast as you can."

"Yes, madam," she whispers meekly and I smile, kissing her cold cheek before going back to the car. The sooner we cover the vehicle with fern leaves and carry the bags, the sooner I'll be back with her.

Luckily, Terra has done half of the job already and I only have to help her to cover the car roof, we both work quietly in the dark, carrying the bags to the cave where Ruby's waiting patiently. Her dogs are behaving well and don't make any noise when we leave them alone with their mistress and go back to the track for the last time to check that no one will be able to find the car. I nod, very pleased with the job we've done, but my grin gets frozen on my face when I hear some noise to our right, I take the werewolf in my arms without thinking twice and run at vampire speed to hide behind a big oak trunk.

"What's that smell?" a deep voice asks a few meters away.

"What are you talking about? It smells of rotting vegetation and pine trees... and musty. The entire damned forest smells the same, I can't wait to be back in the city."

"Don't you smell the engine oil?"

"No, idiot, I don't smell it. Move your useless ass. I'm freezing here, I hope the boss' sorcerer friends make a big hole in that barrier soon, I don't want to stay one more minute in this remote place sleeping in a tent, without internet, snacks and comfortable couches to sit down."

"Since when you're a city demon?" the first voice asks laughing while they both walk away slowly.

"Since we went to live in Los Angeles and I found out how much fun our people can have there when we manage to hide our wings with a spell: lust, alcohol, drugs, envy, jealousy, ambition... This city has everything we need to be happy and thanks to the boss we'll be able to stay there forever, we won't have to go back to a godforsaken town in the north of the country to live hiding, fearing that humans can spot our wings and horns through our coats and hats..." I wait for a minute to make sure they're far enough before walking to the cave with Terra nipping at my heels.

"Poor jerks," I whisper taking the bags. "No one has explained them that, if Leviathan's friend gets out of hell, there will be very little left of Los Angeles to go out and have fun."

"You can't trust demons' promises, there's always a dirty trick," the werewolf nods taking more bags and Chance so Ruby can handle Ru and Charlie's leashes.

"What are you talking about?" the human asks bewildered and I smile.

"It's nothing, babe. Take my hand and put your feet where I tell you, you'll be able to turn on the flashlight in a couple of minutes and everything will be easier, okay? And put your hood up, drops of water are falling from the rocky ceiling."

Ruby obeys and walks a bit unstable, holding onto my arm, but she can turn on the light soon and we move on faster. The tunnel is narrow and long, the ground is coated in mud and the human's boots slip sometimes, minutes tick by and I'm starting to feel tired: I guess the sun is rising out there finally. I clench my jaw and keep walking, I know the house is close and I'll be able to have a delicious dinner made by the druid and a glass of blood, maybe my girl will let me try a sip of the sweet nectar running through her veins...

"I see light ahead of us," Ruby whispers and I sigh relieved. Dogs bark and run towards Raven the moment they can smell her, Maeve and the necromancers are waiting for us in the nymphaeum to help us with our bags.

"We're so happy you're back at home," Lea and Zara give us a hug, smiling.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were traveling to your countries," I ask confused while we all walk around the pond towards the cave entrance.

"We couldn't leave you now facing such a difficult situation," Alfonso shakes his head. "We must help you to protect the key of hell, we're together in this, and this is why some friends have come to help you too."

"What do you mean?" I whisper with squinty eyes when the light blinds me outside, pulling my hood up to hide my face.

"The Wind Rose is full again," Maeve confirms, smiling. "Fairies, nymphs, centaurs, witches, more vampires and werewolves, pixies and wizards... Pretty much everybody you've helped these past 100 years is here to help you to protect the refuge and Ruby, they've arrived through several secret entrances and I'm afraid that the demons have found some of them because our guests were careless. They can't get into the property because of the protective barrier but the nymphaeum tunnel is the only safe route right now."

"Oh my God, this is crazy... Do they think this is a country fair or something?" I look around with my mouth wide open because I can't believe what I'm seeing. Werewolves have set tents in the middle of the garden and have lit a bonfire, nymphs are building platforms to sleep on the trees and are arguing with the pixies sitting down on the mushrooms around the trunks, ghost float around the roof and glass dome making a hell of a noise and centaurs are in front of the stables, chatting with the fairies that are carrying buckets of water from the pool for them to drink.

"Do you have earplugs in your bedside table drawer?" Terra asks following me towards the house that's full of magical creatures too: the living room, the entrance hall, the kitchen... "I think you'll need them to be able to sleep."

"Be careful don't step on a gnome," Maeve warns us while pointing at the stairs. "Your former room is occupied now, Ruby, but I guess that you don't care because you'll sleep with Terra or Iselen, luckily they have adjoining rooms connected by a door so you'll have privacy... Corridors are full of cats and birds, but I'm almost sure that they're not real animals, but shapeshifter wizards and sorceresses... Go upstairs, unpack your stuff and take a shower, I'll bring you something to eat and a bag of blood and you'll be able to rest for a few hours."

"Are you sure you don't need help?" the werewolf looks around, hesitating.

"Don't worry, I can control this chaos for now. We'll need you in top form tonight, you should organize and train this people to be a useful army in case those demons manage to tear down the barrier finally."