Chapter 20
Grace
We hold one another for what feels like hours.
Well, holding one another in the best way we can.
When her emotion settled, her body faded back into a spectral form.
Her skin continues to flicker in and out, but just having her on my lap and her head resting on my shoulder has alleviated the anxiety flowing through my body.
I’ve kept my hands resting on my thighs, eagerly waiting for the moments her skin comes alive so I can stroke her affectionately and remind myself that she truly exists and is in my arms.
At some point, I feel my legs fall asleep from holding the same position too long and shift slightly. Milly immediately rises up and sits across the room on my desk.
“Forgive me, I forgot that remaining so still can leave the limbs feeling quite lifeless.”
I chuckle at the irony and slowly stand up as the blood rushes to my feet.
I straighten both legs and awkwardly take small steps as the pins and needles scatter through my limbs.
“Oof,” I grunt, moving through the sharp pain.
I open my mini fridge and pull out a water bottle and glance over my shoulder, “Would you like something to eat?”
She grins brightly and leans over her legs as she seductively purrs, “I must admit, Shadow, I do possess quite the appetite. Regrettably, what I truly long to devour must wait…at least until I am fully corporeal once more.” A heat rushes between my thighs, and I squeeze them together, seeking friction. But the movement doesn’t pass Milly.
Her eyes flick quickly to my apex as they darken, a mischievous smirk tugging on the corners of her mouth.
She stands up and slowly prowls to me as I step backwards.
My legs bang into the side of the bed as she stands in front of me, staring down into my eyes with a hunger that has me letting out a soft whimper at her closeness.
Her rosy nipples beneath her nightgown perk to attention, begging to be worshipped with my tongue.
“Tell me, Shadow. How easily do my words leave you dripping in anticipation? And if it were not merely words, but my mouth upon you…just how drenched might you become?” Her fingers solidify as she traces my jaw line, caressing my skin with such delicacy that I begin to crave her intensity.
Suddenly, she leans forward and licks along my neck. My eyes roll into the back of my head as she makes it up to my ear to whisper, “A cup of warm tea would suit me just fine.” And just like that, she's gone. She reappears on my bed, flipping through my textbook of music theory.
I clear my throat, left in a pile of anticipation and lust. I shake my head and make my way to the kitchen, being sure I close the door behind me.
Within a matter of seconds, I was completely consumed by her.
All she had to do was speak to me, and I was putty in her hands. She will be my undoing in every life.
The same heartbeat in my clit thrums throughout my body as I heat up my old teapot on the stove.
I press my hands against the counter as I wait and close my eyes, remembering the way her fingers felt inside me too long ago.
What I would give to completely submit to her again, to let her manipulate my body in any way that pleases her.
I would let her utterly humiliate me if it meant she would smile.
She could spank me, choke me, and bite me…
and I would beg her for more. Whatever she’d give me, I’d greedily take.
I get lost in the thoughts of her touch when the whistle of the kettle startles me. I quickly rid my mind of the thoughts and grab two teabags, prepping tea for both of us. I carefully balance the two mugs in one hand as I approach my bedroom door.
I halt for a second, anxiety coursing through me at the realization that Milly has notoriously disappeared each time I’ve looked away from her in a lull of conversation or stress. I’ve been gone for minutes.
I rush the door open to the room and find it empty, my heart breaking instantly. I shut it behind me when she suddenly appears in the same position on my bed, kicking her feet behind her.
“While I hold an appreciation for music, I must confess—this particular topic leaves much to be desired.” Closing the book, she glances over at me when I don't respond right away.
She must see the relief on my face because she stands up, her hands solidifying as she grabs the mug and takes a sip, the warm liquid evaporating as she swallows.
“Forgive me if you believed I might have left you again. I’m afraid you’re quite stuck with me now.” She takes a free hand and pokes my nose. She giggles as she turns away and climbs back onto the bed, sipping the tea.
I place my mug on the bedside table and pick up my laptop from the desk.
I climb onto the bed next to Milly and pull open a new browser.
She sips and watches me with curiosity as I start typing in different topics.
How to exorcise a demon? How to kill a demon?
Even the topic that brings me anxiety: How to free a trapped spirit?
Milly clicks her tongue as she reads over my shoulder. “And what, may I ask, leads you to believe I have not already attempted this research myself?” I glance at her, raising an eyebrow. She scrunches her nose at me, sticking out her tongue.
Chuckling at her brattiness, I respond. “I don’t doubt that you’ve done the research that has been accessible to you. But, there’s a part of me that believes you’ve never accessed the internet before.”
She rolls her eyes. “The modern obsession with the internet leads only to a state of mental fog. Books possess a far greater, lasting worth.” I continue to scroll through different articles, smiling at her belief.
“I can understand where you’re coming from, but all the information within the books is accessible through the internet.
You can even read those books on this screen if you’d like.
I’m sure we’ll need a grimoire of sorts eventually, but at the moment I don’t need physical books.
I’m looking for firsthand experiences from individuals who’ve encountered demons and exorcisms specifically.
Maybe even an expert in the rituals we may need to perform.
” She hums along to my words and leans back against the wall.
“Do you assume I have not penned one myself?” She raises an eyebrow at me.
I turn my head away from my laptop to look at her. “And you’re just sharing this with me now?” I ask.
“Trust me, Shadow. I’ve exhausted every manner of banishment.
I’ve sought counsel with fellow spirits and phantoms alike.
My grimoire is brimming with enchantments and charms. Yet, I cannot see a single spell among them likely to aid us.
Nearly all are memorized, worn with repetition in attempts.
” She flops backward on the bed, her head hanging upside down over the edge.
I lean over her with a smile. Milly reads my mind, instantly leaning up to meet me halfway for a quick kiss.
I hum against her lips as she leans back down.
“I know you’ve tried everything.”
She smiles and nods. “At the very least, I have been granted you once more, despite it all.”
“Despite it all,” I murmur. I stare at her for another moment before I look back at my screen, desperately hoping to find any semblance of a solution.
“Can you pass me that notebook over there?” Milly leans over to grab the notebook, her hands solidifying as she places it in my lap on top of my laptop.
She watches me make notes as I scroll, quietly humming a tune stuck in my head from Music History. I find Milly humming along with me, recognizing the tune. We smile bashfully at one another.
“We shall unravel this together, Shadow.” She places her hand on top of mine, goosebumps from her touch scattering over my skin.
After searching online for hours, I rub my eyes gently.
Blinking back into reality, I see Milly flipping through my records.
She’s been rotating the records every few songs, listening to the different genres that appeal to who I have become in this lifetime.
Turns out my taste in music has remained relatively similar.
“Any new developments?” she asks over her shoulder.
I stretch my arms up, hearing them pop slightly. “A few things. I’m not sure how substantial they are, but I’m willing to try anything.”
She places “Comfort Eagle” by CAKE onto the mat. The spindle drops onto a random part of the record as “Love You Madly” echoes into the room. She smiles as she saunters over, distracting me for a moment from the conversation at hand.
“Go on with what you were saying, Shadow. I am listening.” She smirks at me as she moves one leg in front of the other, her hips moving with elegance. I try to keep my eyes on hers, but her lacey, cotton night gown remains see-through against her delectable body.
She clears her throat, and I blush. “Sorry. I, uhm, I found a lot about different items to carry on your person to bring discomfort to different demons. The typical crucifixes often came up in my research, but,” I scratch the back of my head, “I’m not sure how helpful that would be for me.
I feel like it would be a bad omen. I saw a lot of information saying I should carry salt, sage, and even create protective iron runes. ”
She nods along to what I’m saying as she chews on her lips, my eyes tracking the movement.
“Runes can work,” she agrees.
I blink a few times and glance back down at my notes. “There was one peculiar mention of mirrors. I’m not sure how legit the source is, but there are stories that talk about demons avoiding their own reflection–”
“Hold a moment.” She vanishes completely.
I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. I pull my pillow behind my back and lean against the wall again, stretching out my stiff body. I take a deep breath and try not to let the worry take over my thoughts. The concern for her safety momentarily overwhelms my fear.
I decide to doodle along the edges of the notebook paper to stop the concerns, changing the direction of my thoughts to local stores I can stop by tomorrow to grab the items I read about. I’m not super convinced they will help, but I’m willing to try just about anything.
When Milly appears again, dust flings off her body as she wipes along her nightgown.
“Jesus, Milly! Where did you go?” I sit up quickly.
She eagerly responds, “I recall there was this mirror in one of the tunnels. Never gave it much thought, really, other than the fact it was facing the wall.” She dusts off the front of it, where she shows that there is no reflection of herself.
“What the—” I grab the somewhat large mirror out of her hands and look into it. All that I see is a pit of reflective colors, but none of the details of my own face. “What is this?” I flip it upside down and around, trying to find the trick. “Is this a real mirror?”
She paces the room, twirling her finger through her long curls.
“I simply cannot believe I never once gave it a second thought. It is as if the very thing were spelled to be glanced over. It must have.” I watch her thoughts race as I rub my finger along the glass of the mirror.
A slight film of dust and dirt comes off on my thumb, and I blow it off.
“Are you sure this is even a mirror?” I ask skeptically. She immediately halts her movements and looks at me with a serious gaze.
“Do not doubt me now, Shadow. You see, mirrors are often spoken of as veils between worlds. But a mirror with no reflection? That is something else entirely. That is a mirror that denies identity. And in such a place, the demon holds no sway. This is our way. How did this fail to occur to me until now?” She squeals at the end as she rushes to me in a burst of light, her full figure becoming solid.
She grabs my hands, pulling me off the bed as my notebook and pen slide onto the floor. “We can trap Warren Brown within the mirror, or at the very least, the demon that encompasses him. We can bind the entity to the mirror and shatter it. He will be trapped in that veil!”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on, Milly. Trapped in that veil? Wouldn’t that mean the demon would be trapped where you rest? Wouldn’t that make it unsafe?”
She shakes her head. “No, no. Do not fret, Shadow. The veil has layers. I am quite certain that the mirror opens to a realm I’ve never once encountered before. This is the way, this is our resolution.”
I squeeze her hands and swallow back the unease coursing through my stomach.
Something doesn’t feel right about this.
There has to be something we are missing.
It surely couldn’t be this easy, could it?
I mean, it was spelled to avoid further inspection.
But why was it now easy for Milly to remember it and encounter it?
I try to ignore the uneasy feeling, trusting in Milly’s judgment. But as much as the joy that radiates off her right now brings a smile to my face, I cannot shake the certainty that we are missing something crucial to our plan.