Maleficarum: Hunger of the Witch by Jeremy Bennett Read Free Book Online Page B

Instantly she could feel that he would give up far more than his life for her. She still didn’t think he could fight, but at least she knew he would try. She raised her good hand and placed it on his cheek.
    “I always liked you , you know that?” she said timidly, still keeping her eyes locked on his.
    “Yes.”
    “I’ve been coming in here for three months now. How come you never tried to kiss me?”
    “You’re eighteen . I’m twenty-three.”
    “So ?”
    “I didn’ t want to take advantage of you,” Nick admitted, hiding his face like a puppy that had been caught chewing on his master’s slippers. Beverly gently pulled his face back to hers, and before he could react, she leaned in and planted a firm kiss on his soft lips. She pulled him in closer, increasing the pressure, as the pressure in her body seemed to release. In that moment, there was only the two of them, and as they parted, Beverly gave a full-lipped smile. When her eyes opened, she could see Nick doing the same.
    “That’s one of the things I like about you. You don’t take advantage of people,” she said, still grinning.
    As she finished her words , it came . The tiles on the wall fractured into spider-like patterns. Each crack ripped across grout and dingy tiles. Dozens of them splintered off, forming new cracks that raced to do the same. Chunks fell to the ground like disintegrated glaciers into the sea, and as they hit and shattered, all that was left of them was their hollow ring. Nick clung tightly to Beverly as the walls crumbled around them. In the center of the wall across from them, the breaking tiles formed one sentence: Sinners will be .
    “They found us, ” Beverly uttered, but the overflowing dread that seemed to drown her let her know she was mistaken. It was something far darker than a human being could ever be. It felt like hate that had been brewing from before time. It was the same sense that had come over her when she saw Nick holding that dreadful book.
    “No , I don’t think it’s the witches,” Nick said. “I don’t know what it is, but I don’t think it likes us.”
    “Let’s tell the other s.”
    “No , there is nothing they can do about it.”
    “I think they’re going to find out as soon as they come in here, anyway. At any rate, let’s get the hell out of here before something worse happens,” Beverly urged as she rose to her feet and went for the door.
    Nick followed her into the stock room, and as they tried to collect themselves, there was a massive crash that shot from the main room. Both Nick and Beverly rushed through the doors and burst into the front of the store, not knowing what horrendous sight they might find.
    However, everyone seemed relatively at ease , and they were still going about their work. The two of them scanned the room till their eyes fell on Ann. She held one of the great tomes from the store over her head, and just as an old-time whale hunter would do, she flung it like a harpoon at one of the display cases. The book smashed through, sending chunks of glass flying. As soon as she could, Ann rushed to the display case.
    “What are you doing?” Beverly asked.
    “They have swords in there,” Ann explained, peering into the wreckage.
    “I have a key for that, ” Nick yelled.
    “Too late, ” Ann retorted. Despite Ann’s gentle nature, the sound of breaking glass had always satisfied some primal need in her, and if given the opportunity, she never passed it up.
    Ann snatched the three biggest swords she could and rushed them to the others. She passed a long sword to Beverly and a claymore to Nick, and she kept a rapier for herself. She pulled the scabbard off the sword and flicked the tip of the blade into an oak display case. A devilish smile spread over her face. They were all armed now, but the weapons brought little security to anyone but Ann.
    “Why do y 'all have swords in a magic shop?” Beverly asked as she looked down at her new silver blade. She ran her