The librarian girl smiled as a boy around sixteen walked in the building. He wore a charming smile and a pear of torn jeans.

"Good morning, Mr Teer" she smiled and opened her palm for him to hand her his library card.

"And good morning to you too," the boy said and handed the card over. She threw a quick look at it, typed something, and gave it back.

"Enjoy your reading," she said cheerfully.

"Oh, I will," the boy stated and walked towards the Local Myths and Traditions section. He skipped some shelves and reached the most distant hall with the air of someone who knew exactly where they were going, even though the building was vast and very easy to get lost in. He reached for a book in a nearby shelf and flipped through the pages searching for a particular one.

"My my what do we have here..." an evil smile spread across his face as he took it between his hands, "Oh how I love reading," an evil chuckle followed.

"I bet you do," Rudyard sharply turned around to find a tall silhouette leaning against the wall a few feet away from him. He sighed and raised a brow.

"About bloody time you came," he said and flipped through the pages.

"Thought I'd make you wait a little," Sechrazat walked out of the shadows and neared him, like a cat nearing a mouse. Rudyard looked up. "Daddy and I made a deal. And it didn't involve unexpected visits." The boy gave her a mocking smile.

"Well, daddy thinks it's about time to end this deal. And you, actually."

Sechrazat looked at him for a minute with the look of someone who wasn't exactly sure whether they were being ridiculed, or pissed off. She bent to the level of Rudyard, standing a few centimeters away from his face, so his eyes looked directly into hers.

"Then tell your daddy," she said, a voice low and dangerous, "It's On." there was a horrible pause of silence, one that follows after such a dangerous announcement. "And give him," she leaned her head to the side and softly pressed her lips on the boy's, "This."

Rudyard was soon left alone in the huge hall wondering whether she had just kissed him, or he had been daydreaming.

Back at the team's hotel, everyone had gathered in one of the lobbies, equipped with ping pong, TVs washing machines and some coffee tables. John and Aizit where indulging themselves into watching TV, while Mr Groanin was washing some of his underwear for the third time, in case some exotic bacteria had reached it. Phillipa was playing Djinnverso with Nimrod in a nearby table. The peace and quiet was interrupted when the tall dark woman that was Sechrazat walked in. She threw a suspicious look around but no one looked back at her so she shrugged and went to get a bottle of whine from the buffet. She then turned around and disappeared.

After a while, and having finished his game with Phillipa and lost -he used to let her win quite often to boost her self-confidence, but he had to admit she had become too good for him- Uncle Nimrod took the elevator to the third floor and rang Sechrazat's doorbell. He waited for a couple of minutes until the door was open, and the woman showed up holding an empty bottle of whine.

"Got alcohol?" she sounded a little weird.

"You're drunk."

"No, I'm not!" but the stupid look on her face betrayed her. He gazed at her expectantly. "Ok, maybe a little..." she pressed her forefinger together with her thumb. Nimrod rolled his eyes.

"What's going on?" She shrugged.

"I'm drunk. Come in," she pulled him inside before he could protest. The first thing Nimrod noticed were the red stains on her bed, probably from the dripping whine bottles laid on it. Between them there was also a beer and a half-empty bottle of whiskey. The man sighed.

"Are you trying to kill yourself? How much have you had!" he turned around to look at her trying not to fall down as she neared him.

"Not much...", she fell on the couch like a rag doll falling on the floor. He sat next to her and carefully took the bottle from her fingers. "Hey, wanna hear a secret?", she whispered moving closer to him on the couch. Nimrod moved closer to her as well, enjoying the flutter in his stomach he got from standing too close to the heat she was giving off. She giggled. "Promise you won't tell!"

"I won't tell." She giggled more and moved even closer, placing her hand softly around him.

"I've been lying!" she said, as if it was the most exciting thing in the world. He froze, his smile softly fading. She nodded excitedly. "I've been helping the Ifrit." she burst into a hysteric laughter, her arms still around the man in red. Nimrod abruptly pulled away and looked at her in shock.

"Why? Why did you do it!" he tried not to yell but couldn't. She placed a finger on his lips.

"Shh! I'll tell you. See, I made this deal with Iblis that if I helped him bottle you up, he'd help me to the Bottle and..." Nimrod jumped up and stormed out of the room. The woman followed him, bumping on some walls as she did, a bottle of wine back in her loose grip.

"Where you going?" The man didn't answer, but continued to walk nervously across the hall to his room.

"I can't believe this...How could I've been so naive? So irresponsible..."

"What the hell are you mumbling?" she leaned against the wall, head towards the ceiling, as he unlocked the door.

"You," he turned around pointing at her, his eyes narrow, "...stay away from me. From us. And the kids. For your own safety," he threatened and slammed the door behind him. Sechrazat softly touched the hard wood, he palm sliding softly on it, tenderly, as if it were the skin of a sleeping lover. Then she slowly leaned against it and felt her back sliding lower and lower until she sat on the floor, head between her hands, crying.

"What have you done you heartless bitch!" she raised her hand and slapped herself noisily. The scorpion crawled from her chest, where he had been hanging as a medallion, to her neck.

Next morning came with lots of hurting and numb body parts and a banging inside Sechrazat's head. She found herself in her room, lying on the bed with her clothes, surrounded by bottles of alcohol. Her stomach was protesting loudly so she washed her face and walked to the bar near the reception. Having had a fruit salad and some coffee, she climbed the stairs to the third floor and knocked on Phillipa's door. Nobody answered. She then next door to John and knocked again, but nobody opened it. Finally she tried Nimrod's but it remained closed as well. She lowered her head and walked to Aizit's room, where she knocked and waited patiently for him to open. The boy was still in his pyjamas and yawned lazily when he saw her.

"Bloody hell it's eight in the morning! What do you want?"

"Where are the others?", she asked, a bad feeling emerging from inside her.

"I don't have a bloody clue. Goodnight," he slammed the door on her face. She sighed and returned to her own room to pack her stuff. She couldn't remember exactly what she had done last night, but she knew it was something stupid that involved alcohol.

"Nice. Sechrazat verses the Ifrit," she turned towards the small black scorpion which was now crawling on the table next to her hand. "Guess you never thought that would happen. You pathetic little fool, your stupid greed got us in this in the first place," she pushed the insect away with her finger, and it landed on the other edge of the table. Right then her doorbell rang, followed by three desperate knocks. She hurried to the door and opened it to find Harry Groanin standing opposite her, his face pale and his only hand shaking.

"Groanin? What's going on?"

"The master...the kids...some men came..." his voice was shaking as well. The woman raised a brow. "You have to find them, I say you MUST find them!"

Sechrazat cursed something in Arabic and returned to the room to pick up the small insect from the table and tie its tail to her necklace. Then she took her coat from a nearby chair and hurried to close the door behind her.

"Where did you last see them?" she asked as both of them were quickly walking to the elevator.

"We were ready to leave, returning the room key to the reception, when a man sneaked up behind me and said we must follow him in silence. There came other men too, and they had guns. They took Nimrod and the twins out of the hotel and into a car, but they didn't take me. One of them said I'm dead if I tell anyone and..."

"How did they look like?" she interrupted him, pressing the elevator button.

"What do you mean?"

"You know, djinn or mundanes?"

"Oh I don't know...I didn't see their faces and..."

"Did any of them touch you?"

"One, yes."

"Did it burn?" they reached the reception floor and hurried to the door. The receptionist was busy on the phone and didn't notice them.

"Well, it did feel a bit warm..."

"Djinn," she turned around and put her hand on his shoulder. "Look, I have to go somewhere. But it's dangerous, and you can't come. It's..." he hushed her putting his palm on her mouth.

"Mrs Sechrett, Mr Nimrod is my master. I've been serving him for years. And those kids I love more than anything in the world. So, please, don't speak to me of danger. I've served him through the best and worst, and I won't stop now." He removed his hand and watched her stare at him, her mouth slightly open. She nodded.

"Just don't do anything stupid."