"Hey, you've reached the number for Jo Harvelle. Leave a message, I'll call back when I can. Thanks."
"This is Kat Moore. If you still want to go on your little trip, now you know how to reach me."
Kat ended the call, and tossed the phone onto the table. Sam hadn't been kidding when he'd called the plan half-assed. The whole thing was stuck together with chewing gum, tape and a prayer. But it was better than running in circles, so Kat figured it was worth a shot.
It had taken the entire phone call for her adrenaline to fade. The moment it did, a stinging pain woke up in Kat's arm. She'd completely forgotten about slicing it open to ward off the angels. Somehow, the whole altercation felt like days ago. Her arm, however, begged to differ.
The farmhouse had been empty, with old locks that weren't hard to pick. There wasn't much in the way of medical supplies. The best she could do at the moment was tape some paper towels to her arm and try not to move it. She couldn't find any gauze or sewing supplies. What she did find was a new shirt—one not stained with blood—and the keys to an old pickup in the garage. She felt bad about taking them, but they didn't have a lot of options. So she'd left half of her poker winnings on the counter, the money still in her apron when she'd run out of the bar, and taken the truck.
That was how they'd ended up here—she and Masie sitting at a McDonalds with two shopping bags from Super Kmart and a container of untouched chicken nuggets. Kat only bought them to occupy the girl while she was stitching herself up in the bathroom. She wasn't surprised to find the food untouched when she got back.
They sat in silence for the most part. Masie had asked a few stunted questions on the way over, and Kat had done her best to answer them, but that conversation had died fast. The truth wasn't much of a comfort when it was more nightmarish than your suspicions. At the same time, Kat didn't want to leave her alone with her thoughts. She knew what a dangerous road that could be.
"How you doing over there?" she asked, nodding across the table.
Masie did not look up as she shrugged.
"Yeah," Kat sighed. "Yeah, I figured as much."
To fill the silence, she pulled the chicken nuggets closer to her. She toyed with the food, taking a bite out of half of one and giving up immediately. It was hard to stomach anything with her anxiety.
"You don't have to come, you know." This time Masie lifted her head, and Kat watched her in earnest. "I could wave down someone on staff, tell them you're lost, call the police. You'd be safe."
Masie frowned. "But…what if they were…?"
Kat's jaw clenched. She hated seeing that look of suspicion and fear on a face so young.
"They won't be. It's me they're looking for. Not you."
"Why are they looking for you?"
"Um…well, I'm not sure. They really don't like my friends, so…I guess they're trying to hurt me to hurt them."
"Are your friends coming for you?"
"They're gonna try," she said with a small smile. "But they're kind of far away. So I'm just gonna have to take care of it myself."
Masie nodded. She pulled the chicken nuggets back toward her, taking a small bite out of one of the pieces. The rest she abandoned on a napkin.
"Are they really demons?"
Kat froze, wide-eyed, something that Masie did not seem concerned by.
"I heard you talking on the phone."
"Oh, well…" Kat pursed her lips, and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I was gonna explain it better than that."
"We learned about demons in Sunday school," Masie explained quietly. "Father Little says that they're inside people. That's why they make bad decisions or have bad habits. Is that what the smoke is? Demons?"
Masie looked at her, eyes wide and fearful, but steady. She wanted her answers, and she was going to get them. That was a lot of determination for a kid. And in internal debate, Kat decided not to lie.
"Yeah. They are."
She bobbed her head again. It did a good job of disguising the way her lower lip trembled.
"Does that mean you're an angel?"
"No," Kat laughed. "No, I'm not an angel."
"But you're fighting the demons. Father Little says that angels and demons are enemies."
"Well, yeah. They are. But you don't have to be an angel to fight demons. You just have to…decide that you don't like what the demons are doing, and…try to stop them. It's hard. And it's dangerous. But it means that you can protect people. And stop them from being hurt."
Masie's eyes sank, as did Kat's stomach. She bit her lip, and leaned over the table.
"I'll tell you what though," she whispered. "I have a friend, and he is an angel."
"Really?" gasped Masie. Her eyes lit up, making Kat smile. "A real angel?"
"Mhm. His name is Cas."
"Like Casper?"
"Yeah, like Casper."
"Can I meet him? Is he gonna come here? Is he gonna help you?"
Kat hesitated, her smile withering.
"Uh…no. No, Cas is kind of far away too."
"Oh, yeah." Masie nodded in understanding and sat back in her seat. "He's probably in Heaven."
"Yeah," Kat chuckled weakly. "I really hope so…"
The cell phone trilled on the table, making both of them freeze. Kat's face returned to steel. Pushing her doubts aside, she answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Well, hi there! This is Jojo Harvelle calling you back? Is there something I can help you with?"
"Give the phone to Meg, Lana."
The simpering voice cut out immediately. There was a quiet huff, and muffled voices on the other end. With a rustle, the demon passed the phone.
"Well, well, well," Meg sang. "Looks like somebody did her homework."
"You got my message?"
"God, one little attack and you go running off to the Winchesters. I didn't think you'd be such a tattletale."
"Do you want my help or not?"
She could just picture the devilish smirk on the demon's face.
"Fine. And what do you expect me to give you in return?"
"Ellen and Jo. Are they still…?"
"They're both in one piece for now. No need to carve up the walls of the new apartment. But they don't go free. That's not on the table, sweetheart."
Kat frowned. She wasn't entirely surprised. There was no way Meg would give up her leverage over the angels. But it was still disappointing to hear.
"Fine," she said bitterly. "But you stay away from Masie."
"Who?"
"The girl. She goes free. No one looks for her, no one tracks her, no one touches her."
"Oh, yeah. Whatever. We'll forget about the twerp."
"Good. There's a shopping plaza a couple miles down the road from you. You can take one of the trucks and..."
"Woah, woah. Hold up there, kitty cat. You think you're giving the orders now?"
"What? You wanted to go west right? This is west."
"Aw, you never go to a second location, Kat," she chuckled. "Everyone knows that. Just how stupid do you think I am?"
Kat clenched her teeth. "Do you want an honest answer?"
"Alright, tough girl. How about I put it like this? I've got two hostages right now. I only need one to stop you from calling your buddy Clarence."
"Don't," Kat spat, so venomously that even Maddie jumped. "Don't you touch them."
"Then stop fucking around. You've got thirty minutes to get back here before I slice Mama Bear's throat."
"I need more time than that."
"Then I guess you better drive fast."
Meg ended the call without giving her a chance to argue.
It was tough to resist the urge to crush the stupid flip phone in her bare hands. Kat slid it across the table to Masie before she could do any damage.
"There. Take that. Dad's phone, just like I said."
Masie picked it up and held it close to her chest. Her eyes, however, never left Kat.
"Do you have to go back?"
"Uh, yeah. I have to go back."
Kat pinched the bridge of her nose. This was not going to be easy. If she was being honest with herself, she didn't think it was going to work. But there was nothing else to be done. It was die, or let Jo and Ellen die in her place. All she could do was hope that some of that Winchester luck had rubbed off on her.
She gave Masie a bracing smile, and busied herself with the shopping bags.
"Good news is that you don't have to. I'm gonna flag down a staff member, get you some help. You've got the necklace, so the smoke can't get you, and you've got the cell phone, so you can probably call some aunt or uncle or…"
"No!" Masie practically leapt over the table, grabbing Kat's hands tight. "Don't leave me! I promise I'll be good!"
"M-Masie, hey! This isn't about you, okay? This is the only way I can keep you safe. I'm not bringing you back there."
"No, no, please don't leave me! I don't wanna be alone!"
She was crying again. The other customers were beginning to look over at them, some reproachful, others concerned. Kat smiled apologetically, desperately trying to wrestly free from Masie's grip. But the girl was practically manic, latching on the Kat like her life depended on it.
"Noooo! NOOOOOO!"
"Is there a problem here?"
One of the McDonalds employees had come over, her eyes suspicious. Kat couldn't believe her bad luck. Of all the times for someone to actually worry about a child that was screaming in public, it had to be now. Why couldn't they just glare at her in passive aggressive silence like every other bystander when kids were throwing tantrums?
"She's fine," Kat assured the worker. "She's just being dramatic…"
"I DON'T WANNA STAY! I DON'T WANNA BE ALONE!"
Masie burst into a new fit of wailing, sparking the employee's suspicion. She looked hesitantly at Kat, who grimaced.
"No, I—I wasn't gonna leave her. I'm babysitting, and she…"
"I WANNA…"
"Fine! You can have the stupid McFlurry!"
The crying stopped for an instant as Masie looked at her in confusion, her big eyes welled up with tears. Kat gave her a sharp look.
"And if you're good, I'll let you eat it in the car. Deal?"
Masie pouted, but nodded, finally releasing Kat's wrists. Kat snatched her arms back before the stupid kid could change her mind.
Five minutes later, they were talking back to the truck—Masie eating her ice cream under Kat's grudging watch. She was livid, but she couldn't think of any other options. She was on the clock, and the last thing she needed was someone calling the cops on her for reckless abandonment of a child that wasn't even hers. Explaining the situation again wouldn't help. Masie was too young to understand the danger of going back to the bar. All she knew was that there were bad people in the world, and only one that wasn't trying to hurt her. Kat wished she could stash her somewhere, but the Roadhouse was going to have to do for now.
Kat looked over at Masie, settling in the passenger seat, completely focused on her ice cream.
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
Masie did not look up from her ice cream. She stared down at the candy streaking through the vanilla, and finally nodded.
"Alright. Then let's go."
It took them more than twenty minutes. Meg had to know it would. That's what Kat kept telling herself as she drove closer to the Roadhouse. It wasn't a real deadline. It was just to make her anxious, bend her to the demon's will. Ellen and Jo weren't in any more danger than they'd been when she left.
…which was still a ridiculous amount of danger…
Kat didn't breathe until she pulled up into the yard. Most of the trucks were gone, leaving the lawn an open space of grace. Meg stood in the middle, completely at ease, flanked by Ellen and Jo—no. Flanked by Deg and Lana. There was only one other demon present, a burly man with small eyes and a patchy beard. No one had bothered to move the bodies.
"Close your eyes."
Like a suburban soccer mom, Kat's had shot out to cover Masie. She did not slow the truck down. And as much as she wanted to, she did not mow down the demons. Instead, she pulled over the grass and drove around to the other side of the bar, slow enough to make it clear she was not running for it. They parked just beyond the dumpster, leaving several yards between them and the back door.
Masie had frozen still. Just the sight of the demons seemed to have sent her into shock. Kat had to work to get her to look back at her, and cupped her face with both hands.
"Hey, you're gonna be okay. All you've gotta do is stare right at that back door and walk straight to it, okay? No one's gonna touch you. No one's gonna come after you."
"What…What if they…?"
"They can't," Kat assured her. "They won't be able to get in the house. It's protected, just like your necklace. You'll be safe, and I'll be right behind you."
That didn't seem to comfort her. Maybe Masie could tell that she was just bullshitting. Kat backpedaled like she had before, and changed the subject.
"But you know what?" she asked, her voice going up an octave. "I could actually use your help."
"With what?"
"I have a kitty inside, and he's been alone all day. I didn't even get a chance to feed him this morning. So maybe you could find him and play with him while you wait."
Masie blinked at her.
"I'm allergic to cats."
"God," Kat sighed, releasing her. "I saved your life, okay? You can feed the cat."
The demons rounded the corner of the Roadhouse, filling into the gap before the truck. Kat glanced over at Masie one last time. Her jaw tight, she slipped out of the driver's seat and walked around to help the girl out of the truck. She made her movements were big and exaggerated in an attempt to keep Masie's attention on her, instead of the four demons that were watching their every step.
"Remember," Kat whispered, "straight to the back door. Don't even look at them."
She patted her on the head before Masie started toward the house. The demons had ever so thoughtfully left a gap for her, a path to the back door lined with two demons on either side. Masie's steps were slow and deliberate, her head fixed forward as she stared at the house. And she almost made it without a problem.
When she was halfway across, Lana leapt forward.
"Boo!"
Masie screamed and sprinted the rest of the way to the house. The door slammed behind her, but none of the demons had bothered chasing her. All of them were too busy laughing.
"We had a deal," Kat fumed, and Meg waved her off.
"Oh come on, that was funny. And we didn't kill her, right?"
"Meg…"
"Fine, whatever. Starting now we forget about the kid. Are you coming or not?"
Kat straightened her shoulders and nodded. She joined the demons in the middle of the clearing, heading for the back door. But Meg stepped in front of her.
"And just where do you think you're going?"
"I'm just gonna pack a few things," Kat said, as casually as she could.
"Things," Meg snickered. "Right, like holy water and some rock salt."
"Like clothes," Kat bit back. "Or my toothbrush. All you said was 'west.' I don't know how far we're going."
"You're not gonna need any of that, Kat."
Before Kat could blink, there was a demon on each of her arms, and she was slammed into the ground again. Lana was laughing behind her, one hand holding her neck in a bruising grip. She yanked Kat's head back, forcing her to look into Meg's eyes as they flicked to black.
"Thanks for giving the kid your necklace, babe. It makes it a lot easier to do this."
Meg grabbed Kat's face, forcing her jaw open wide. Kat only managed half a breath before the smoke invaded her throat.
It was suffocating. She wanted to fight back, to rip the sensation out of her mouth and scream. But Kat couldn't breathe, think—let alone cry out. It was torture, and it felt endless. She could feel it working through her mouth, down her throat, and then—nothing. It swelled up in one spot, as if it had hit a barrier and could go no further. It pushed, expanding and writhing inside of her, until finally it gave up.
Kat sagged in the arms of her captors as the smoke rushed out of her. Meg gasped back into her body, and instantly rounded on Kat. It was incredible how much fury the blank black of her eyes could express.
"Sorry," Kat panted. "Boys got me all tatted up. Forgot to men—…"
The words fell out of her mouth as Meg smacked her with as much force as a demon could muster. Lana's grip stayed tight on her neck, forcing her to feel the full strength of the hit. Kat reeled. She spat a trickle of blood onto the ground.
"Fine," Meg spat somewhere above her. "I'll cut it off of you."
"You—You don't think I thought of that?" Kat managed to lift her head, squinting up at her. "Tattoos are deep tissue, bitch. You try and flay this off of me I'll be dead from the blood loss before you can cough smoke."
"Then I'll just have to burn it off you."
She leaned forward, pinching Kat's cheeks together in her hand. Kat could feel the breath of her growl, could just imagine the pain of having the skin seared off her back. And all she could do was laugh. It made Meg grip her tighter, and it fucking hurt like hell, but all she could manage was a giggle.
"God, what did they do to you?" she asked, her words muffled and squished from the demon's grasp. "Give it up, Meg. I called the Winchesters. They know you're coming. The moment I show up, they're gonna test me to make sure I'm not possessed. You can't get to them through me."
Meg dropped her. Lana did too, and the sudden lack of support made Kat slump forward. But Meg pushed her hair out of her face, kneeling down to her level and lifting Kat's chin with a single finger. She was smiling.
"You poor thing," she cooed. "You still think this is about the Winchesters?"
Kat's stomach dropped.
"Sweetheart, I've got bigger things to worry about than those two maggots. I'm in this for the grand prize."
She looked from Meg's grin, to Lana's proud leer over her shoulder. This was not the opportune time to find out she was missing part of the puzzle. Especially when that puzzle painted a picture of the Apocalypse.
"I thought you said you didn't work for Lilith," Kat bit.
"I don't. But she's not the only one who wants to bring daddy home."
"What the hell does that have to do with me?"
"What can I say?" Meg asked with a shrug. "I'm a sucker for revenge. Using you gets to the Winchesters, I kill two birds with one stone."
She poked Kat on the nose, then stood up to her full height.
"Lana, why don't you see if there's a cigarette lighter in that shitty truck? I'll burn off every inch of Barbie's skin if I have to."
"Mm, I love when you talk dirty," Lana hummed. She pecked Meg on the cheek. "One Barbie Barbeque coming right up."
Kat wished she could have watched. Lana skipped out of sight, heading for the truck behind them. Kat listened to the sound of grass under her feet—until it stopped. It sounded like she'd stumbled back, taken another step forward, only to stumble again. Kat's head hung low, her hair hiding her face as it split into a smile of relief.
"What the fuck?" Lana spat. "I can't…?"
Meg was the first to piece it together. She grabbed a fistful of Kat's hair and hauled her to her feet, wrenching her right out of the other demon's hands.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," she hissed. "A devil's trap?"
"Hey, don't look at me," Kat winced. "I didn't build it. You were just stupid enough to walk into it."
Her foot landed in Kat's stomach, and she went flying. It wasn't as far as she might have gone if Meg had her full power, but that was just one of the benefits of being inside a devil's trap. Still, she was definitely airborne before she landed hard. Meg tried to rush her again, but had to stop short. Her kick had landed Kat right outside of the trap that she still couldn't see.
"I don't have time for this," she barked. "Lana! Deg! Slash their—…"
SPLASH.
Meg shrieked as a torrent of water poured on her from above. Everyone in the yard froze, slowly looking up at the second story window where two little hands could still be seen holding onto a plastic jug. The rosary was still tied around the handle.
"You little bitch," Meg hissed through gritted teeth. Her skin was still smoking. "I'm going to—…"
Masie let go of the jug, which promptly fell on top of Meg's head.
Kat scrambled to her feet as Meg collapsed into screams again. She wrenched off her flannel, and called up to the window.
"Masie! The CD! Go!"
The girl disappeared from the window, and Kat reached up under her shirt to grab the two items she'd duct-taped to her back. One was a CD, which she slid toward the back door. The other was a brand new water gun.
She charged back into the devil's trap, side stepping Meg's writhing form and heading for the other three demons. Deg and Lana had already reached for their knives, ready to start hacking away at their host bodies, but Kat held her gun up steadily.
"Don't."
They paused, but only to laugh in disbelief.
"Are you kidding me?" the burly one chuckled.
"Hey, laugh all you want. It's gotten me out of a pinch before."
"Not the gun," said Deg. "You. You really think some holy water is gonna stop us? Meg already told you. This is about Lucifer. Any one of us would gladly die to get him back. Holy water is nothing."
"How is this about Lucifer?" Kat demanded. "What are you trying to do?"
"God, this is boring," Lana scoffed. "Let's get to the good part."
She raised her knife again, and Kat tackled her.
Everything else was a blur. She was trying to wrestle the knife away from Jo's body and aim the water gun at Ellen's at the same time. The third demon had joined in to begin kicking and punching her from all sides, but she didn't have a free hand to fight him off. As it was, she kept slipping because her hands were covered in blood. She was moving too fast to figure out whose.
It probably would have ended that way, her beaten unconscious between three demons as she fought to keep them from destroying each other. Until a new sound carried out over the lawn—Kat's own voice.
"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omis satanica potestas…"
Each one of the demons seized, convulsing at the sound of the words. They were still trying to grab her, but their movements were stunted enough that she was able to slip out of the tangle of their limbs.
"Louder, Masie!"
Inside of the Roadhouse, Masie must have heard her. The volume on the stereo system doubled, and through the back door the rest of the exorcism pulsed into the yard.
Deg leapt at her, but Kat dodged with ease. She landed a kick into Ellen's back, and wrestled the knife out of her hand.
Next was the burly demon. He didn't seem to have much control. Kat would have guessed that he was the lowest level demon there. But he was smart enough to realize that his sheer mass would impede her even if his demon strength wouldn't. He tackled her head on, his body nearly flattening her. If Kat had still had the water gun taped to her back, she might've broken her spine. At the moment, all she had was Deg's knife. And thankfully, this bozo didn't have a body she cared about.
She wrestled her arms free, pinning down one of the lackey's hands. Then she slammed the knife through it into the dirt. The demon howled, and Kat was pleased to see a trail of smoke puff out of his mouth.
But there was no time to celebrate. Meg was back on her feet, blade in hand, and she and Lana were rushing toward each other with clear purpose.
Kat wrenched the knife out of the ground and threw it at Meg. The handle clunked into her shoulder without any reaction, but it didn't matter. Kat was already sprinting into the space between them. She pounced on Lana, moving Jo's body out of the way of Meg's weapon. Lana fought back two-fold—her knife landing in Kat's arm instead of Jo's stomach, and her teeth sinking into Kat's shoulder.
It was like fighting a rabid dog. No matter how hard Kat thrashed, she couldn't shake the demon loose. And at the same time she had to scramble, forcing them away from Meg, who was trying to stab her girlfriend around Kat's full body shield. Her swings were wild, imprecise as her body jolted back and forth. And finally, she collapsed to her knees.
"…ut ecclesiam tuam secura tibi facias libertate sirvire, to rogamus, audi nos!"
Kat watched as the sky filled with smoke, torrents of black twisting up into the sky. The ground trembled as they all dove down and finally sank down into the grass.
"Oh, gross!" Jo pulled her mouth away from Kat's shoulder, and spat furiously on the ground. "Disgusting."
Kat sagged back against her, head dropping back on to Jo's shoulder as she laughed in relief.
"Yeah, right back at you. Can you get your knife out of my arm now?"
She groaned as Jo complied, sliding the knife out of her arm as carefully as she could for someone who was being pinned down. Jo threw the knife aside, and tapped Kat on the shoulder when she didn't move.
"Think you could move now? You're kinda suffocating me, babe."
"Relax, Joanna Beth. This girl just saved our lives."
Ellen was brushing herself off, looking mostly unscathed. She hurried over and grabbed Kat's good arm so she could help haul her to her feet. The moment Kat was steady standing, Ellen yanked her forward into a crushing hug. She only pulled back when Kat winced; she was probably nursing several bruised ribs, after all. Kat was shocked to see Ellen actually teary-eyed when she pulled away. She mumbled an apology, and wiped her eyes before pouncing on her daughter, pulling her into an identical embrace.
Kat smiled, feeling pleased but also awkward as hell.
"Don't give me too much credit," she offered as Ellen and Jo broke apart. "It was your trap, and Sam had to tell me it was there. You really buried an iron devil's trap in your backyard?"
"I didn't want to take any chances the second time around," Ellen said dismissively. "Got the idea from Colt's trap out in Wyoming. And it was still up to you to get them in it."
"And get us out," Jo added. "Where the hell'd you get that exorcism idea?"
"Sam again," said Kat. "Said he and Dean had done a prerecording last time they got ambushed. I recorded it on my phone, got the CD at Kmart. It really is a super store."
"And the new holy water gun?"
Kat winced as Jo nodded to the brightly colored plastic, lying discarded a few yards away.
"Actually just a water gun. Couldn't find a church, so I was kind of hoping they'd just believe me and roll with it."
"Huh." Ellen nodded, clearly impressed. "Psychosomatic holy water."
"…Sure. Whatever you said."
"So what do we do with them?" Jo asked, turning her attention to the two bodies in the grass.
"Depends," said Ellen. "They still breathing?"
She crossed back to the burly man, while Kat helped Jo roll Meg's host onto her back. Jo traced her jaw and ghosted her fingers over her neck.
"She's got a pulse," she called. "Probably fainted from the stress. I think she's fine though."
"He's not," Ellen replied. Kat's stomach sank, but Ellen was already shaking her head. "Nothing you did, sweetheart. I had to guess he had a lot of internal bleeding before they showed up here. I'll make a few calls. The girl we can take to the hospital, set up a hunters' funeral for the rest of the folks. Most of them don't have anyone waiting at home."
"Shit," Kat cursed, already hurrying toward the house. "Masie."
The bar seemed empty at first glance. The speakers hummed loudly, the volume still pumped though the CD had ended. It was eerie to see that everything was exactly where they'd left it. Chairs were still scattered around the room, the window's broken glass sprinkled along the floor. Barry's cards were still stacked on one of the tables.
Kat approached the bar carefully, peering over the top. Behind it, she could just see a tiny head of frizzy hair.
"Hey, Masie. It's okay. It's over now."
The hair was replaced by a set of wide, tearful eyes. Then she was darting around the counter, sprinting around the corner and throwing herself at Kat. She rocked back from the impact of her second unexpected hug. All she could do was pat Masie's head and try and make it seem comforting.
The back door creaked as Ellen and Jo joined them inside, and Masie scrambled behind Kat's back.
"No, no, it's okay. Remember? Demons can't get in the house. These are my friends, Ellen and Jo. You can trust them."
Masie peered out from behind Kat's back, and Ellen and Jo waved cautiously.
"You were really brave out there," said Ellen. Her voice easily smoothed out to that maternal tone she'd used earlier. "Thank you for all your help."
"Yeah, Masie, you really saved my ass," Kat laughed. She reached behind her, brushing the girl's hair back. "How did you know what to do with that water?"
"I saw the necklace," Masie mumbled. "Mommy has one just like it. She always brings it to church."
Kat's jaw tightened, and she looked to Ellen for instruction. But Ellen and Jo were just as much at a loss. There was no good way to broach the subject of death at a time like this.
"What about the others?" Masie asked. "The rest of the demons. Are they gone?"
"Uh…no," Kat sighed. "Not yet."
"Damnit," said Jo, shaking her head. "I didn't even think of that. There's gotta be—what, half a dozen more?"
"Meg said they were out looking for me. Are demons like…I don't know, a hive mind? Do you think they'll know she's gone?"
"Doubt it," said Jo. "I'm more concerned about what they're gonna do when they find out. Scatter to the wind or try and finish the job."
"Well, I'm not too worried about that."
Ellen walked behind the bar and started grabbing things from the shelves. A container of salt, a case of shells, a press machine, and four empty glasses. She chose a bottle of whiskey from the counter, pouring a portion into one of the glasses and tossing it back without formality.
"This time we know they're coming. So this time, we'll be ready."