A Stitch on Time 5 by Yolanda Sfetsos Read Free Book Online

else to do.”
    He forcibly dragged me by the arm until he was close enough to whisper in my ear. “Striking me is one way to do it, but kissing would’ve done the same.”
    I yanked my hand out of his grip and it felt like cutting off a lifeline, leaving my fingertips twitchy. Saul liked to tease and confuse the hell out of me. It seemed to be one of his favorite pastimes. I didn’t care—he was awake now. “Do whatever you have to do to make sure Papan recovers, you got it?”
    Saul stared at me blankly, the small cuts on his face glistened with blood. “Thanks for the recharge.”
    “I’m serious. I just saw Papan, and the light’s calling him.” Now I knew why he’d slipped away so quickly. With Saul temporarily out of commission, Papan had come too close to death. “He’s almost gone.”
    “I’ve got this.” The handsome demon’s features hardened and his chanting quickened.
    “Good, because I have to stop the phantasms from causing any more damage than they already have.” I headed for the doorway, but paused to look over my shoulder. “Lavie, aren’t you coming?”
    “What can I do against these spooks?” She frowned, regarding me with a hard expression I’d never seen before.
    She was probably angry about what I’d done to Saul, or maybe she’d heard what he said to me, which the moron should’ve said psychically. Either way, we didn’t have time to waste. “You’re in luck, because these particular assholes have been touched by the demonic so I’m pretty sure you can help.”
    “Sounds good to me,” she said as she grabbed her backpack and slung the straps over one shoulder. “You’ll be all right on your own?”
    Saul nodded. “Go and save the wolves, and keep an eye on the crazy woman.”
    I took one last look at Papan and waited for Lavie to reach me before running into the corridor with her on my heels. Seeing him this close to death shook me to the core, especially after Ebony.
    The overhead lights were even brighter here, which meant every building and house left in this area was now powered by the electric grid. So no one was safe. Mace and his army of phantasms were going to level the place if I didn’t stop them.
    When we reached the clinic’s front door, Lavie and I paused. The undeniable sound of sniffling was coming from the other side of the reception desk. I gave her a quizzical look and she shrugged, so I made my way around. The nurse was hunched underneath the desk with her head resting on her knees. I touched her shoulder and she screamed.
    “It’s just me,” I said.
    She raised her head and looked at me with wide-eyed terror.
    “Michelle, you have to get out of here, okay?”
    She shook her head.
    “You have no choice,” I said, holding my hand out. “Come on.”
    Michelle hesitated for a few moments but eventually slipped her hand into mine and I helped her to her feet. Lavie stood beside us, watching and waiting for my lead.
    “Are you ready?” I asked.
    “As ready as I’m ever going to be,” Lavie said with a small nod.
    I wasn’t sure how she was going to battle these bastards, but a simple touch from me was all it took to immobilize spooks. During my crazed spook-catching binge, I hadn’t needed a single canister. I’d collected them like balloons on a single string, then carried their energy around with me until I could banish them inside Grandma’s inscribed circle.
    The spook catcher circle with a triangle inside was used to summon and banish evil spirits. Thanks to Grandma’s journal, I now knew the circle was called The Ecliptic .
    “Let’s go!” I didn’t wait for Lavie, just ran out into the street with Michelle tagging along beside me. Well, calling it a street was an exaggeration because the way this compound was built consisted mostly of grassy slopes with houses situated at certain intervals, and bigger buildings interspersed in the middle.
    The majority of the houses were on fire, while the remaining ones were covered in