Between the Realms by Elle Casey Read Free Book Online Page A

if she even was.   The smell of sulfur sometimes faded and occasionally got stronger, but it never fully went away.
    I wondered if sulfur and brimstone were the same thing.   That would mean dragons had the whole fire and brimstone thing going on, and it probably also meant I didn't want to see one while I was here.   They had only been about as big as sheepdogs back in Ben's room, but with a stink this powerful, I was worried what that might mean when seeing one in person.   A hallucination was one thing; a live dragon was something else entirely.
    We entered the clearing that surrounded Maggie's house.   Tim was there in the center of it, hovering about ten feet up in the air.
    "Tim, what are you doing up there?"
    "Jayne, stop!   Don't come any closer!"
    I took one more step, but Spike's arm came out to keep me from going any farther.
    "What's up?" I asked him.
    "I believe your friend is being held in a suspension spell."
    "He's right!" yelled a very annoyed Tim.   "Some idget put a spell over this spot and clipped my wings."   He struggled against invisible bonds, growling out his words as he twisted and bent over to try and free himself.   "When I get out of this, someone's going to be very sorry, that's all I have to say.   Butts are gonna get pixied, eyes are gonna get poked, and noses are gonna feel the wrath of my son's polly balls!"
    I tried not to laugh at his predicament, but it was really hard.   He looked like he was having a midair seizure.
    "Ha, ha, laugh all you want, Lellamental.   I hope you'll bring some flowers to my funeral."
    "You're not going to die," I said, brushing off his fears as I searched the immediate area for a solution to our problem.
    "Oh yeah?   What do you think they have a suspension spell around here for?   Giggles?   To trap potential Scrabble players for their next game?   No!   They do this to capture their next meal or their next victim.   I'm going down, I tell you!   Down and very possibly in flames!"   He was working himself into a serious lather up there, making me worried one of us was going to get pixied.   It reminded me that Spike was supposed to already be pixied.   But he was suspiciously without dance moves or laughter.
    "Hey, what happened to your pixelation?   How come you're not laughing and dancing the night way?"
    "Pixie dust doesn't work down here like it works where you are from.   Pixies are not normal pixies here."
    I looked at Tim, squinting to see him better.   "He looks the same to me.   Little head.   Little butt.   Shiny wings.   Decent hair.   Huge ego.   Yeah.   That's definitely still Tim up there."
    "He may be now.   But eventually, if he stays, he will not be."
    Spike's words were super chilling.   "What will he be?" I whispered.
    "A nasty little creature you do not want to meet.   Let us get him down out of that trap and get you into the void.   Nothing good can come of you and him being where you should not be."
    "What about you?   I mean, Spike?   I want my friend back."
    "And so you shall have him.   I will come through with you long enough to put things to rights.   I have seen what I needed to see."
    "What's that supposed to mean?" I looked at him accusingly.
    I got no answer, but Tim had no problem weighing in.
    "He's a spy!   Don't trust him, Jayne.   Stay away from him.   He's a demon and there's no such thing as a good demon!"
    The imposter spoke to Tim now.   "That may be true, but it is not true to say that everyone here has the same goal in mind.   I have worked almost a thousand years to get back to the Here and Now for another chance at a good life, and I will do nothing to endanger this opportunity, even if some say my concern is no longer necessary."
    "Whoa.   Who's saying that?" I asked.   "Is it Torrie?"
    "Torrie.   Others.   I pay them no heed.   I do what I must for my own future.   They do what they must for theirs.   We do not work well as teams or partners in the Underworld,