gets you.” Cassandra said and Kailani looked skeptical.
“Remember all you have to do is believe.” Leviathan gave her a
smug grin and she rolled her eyes.
“Alright fine. Give me the spell.”
“It’s a Chameleon spell, and from the wording I could swear it
was written for Levi.”
“I wish you’d stop calling me that. My name is Leviathan, I am a
demon not a pair of denim pants.” He growled but they both
ignored him.
“Just give me the spell Cass.”
“Alright, repeat after me:
Dragon fog and chameleon sight I
command thee. Shrouded sea I bend the mist, I mix the light
Refract around behind me…
” The moment she started chanting
Leviathan’s face seemed to change, darkening with something
Kai couldn’t identify, “
Wrap thee in shadows thick as night,
silence his footfalls, and hide thine flight.
” She finished.
“I feel stupid and I haven’t even said it yet.” Kailani gave the
phone a droll look and to her surprise it was Leviathan who
growled in frustration.
“You’re standing in front of a demon and you’re honestly
doubting the existence of magic? Open yourself up to the world
around you, you’re not in Kansas anymore little girl.” He said
and she stared at him for a full second before growling back.
“Okay fine you want me to say the stupid spell? I will!
Dragon
fog and chameleon sight I command thee. Shrouded sea I bend
the mist, I mix the light Refract around behind me. Wrap thee in
shadows thick as night, silence his footfalls, and hide thine
flight!
” She yelled, flicking her fingers towards him for added
effect. He just folded his arms over his chest and cocked a brow
at her. Was something special supposed to happen? How
anticlimactic, she’d been expecting fog and a light show. “See! It
didn’t work, I can still see him.”
“Of course you can, you cast the spell dummy.” Cassandra said
as if that were something she should have known already.
“Lets go.” Leviathan lifted her bag from the floor and passed it to
her. Kai slung it onto her back, following him to the door, which
he unblocked with little effort. Together they exited into the
crowded airport, hoping to look inconspicuous as security guards
ran in circles in an attempt to find out who parked a wrecked
Camaro on the sidewalk.
“This had better work or we’re screwed.” She whispered to them
both and Leviathan just cocked a brow down at her. He was the
picture of calmness, as if he were some sort of professional at
sneaking onto aircrafts.
“Go to the ticket counter and purchase an extra seat, your ticket
should already be waiting.” Cassandra instructed and they did as
told, counter which was surprisingly devoid of a line. The woman
there smiled at Kailani, her eyes not once drifting in Leviathan’s
direction.
“Hello Ma’am, welcome to Honolulu International, how can I be
of assistance today?”
“I need to purchase an extra seat.” Kailani said with bated breath
the woman’s smile just broadened.
“Alright, is the seat for someone in particular or do you just need
the extra leg room?” She asked and Kai looked up at Leviathan
for a second, he only smiled back.
“Just the leg room.” She answered hastily and the woman
chuckled, turning towards her computer screen to make sure there
were enough seats to allow an extra purchase and that they
weren’t already overbooked.
“Wonderful. May I have your passport and state issued ID please
so we can print out your tickets?”
“Sure.” She answered, passing the woman her information and
watching as her fingers moving fast across her keyboard.
“That will be nine hundred and eighty seven dollars. Will that be
cash or credit?” She asked and Kai balked. Nine hundred
dollars?! Was the damn plane made of diamonds and gold?!
“Just pay her.” Leviathan growled and she hesitated for a full five
seconds before pulling out her credit card and sliding it onto the
counter. The woman watched her with mild amusement, taking
the card, swiping it then handing it back with a cheery smile Kai
suddenly wanted to slap off her face.
“Thank you! Enjoy your flight!” She passed her the tickets along
with the rest of her information, which Kailani pocketed.
“Do you have it yet?” Cassandra asked and they moved towards
the waiting area before answering.
“Yes, and it cost me an arm and a leg.”
“You’re so cheap Kai. Just remember you’re doing this for a
good cause.” She said pleasantly as Kailani slid into one of the
ugly blue chairs that lined either side of a row of vending
machines. Leviathan stood next to her, his eyes lighting on
everything around him. His body was tense, his posture rigid as
he searched the airport for the demons or anything else that
would pose a threat.
“Right. I’ll call you back when we get to Fitzgerald River.”
“You’re not going to the park yet.” Cassandra said and they both
stared at the cellphone.
“What do you mean we’re not going to the park?” Kailani
deadpanned.
“I mean you’re flying to Perth, you’ll have to drive to the
Fitzgerald River National Park. There’s no way you could fly
straight there.”
“So now you tell us?” Kailani frowned, mentally going over her
savings and how much she had left on her credit limit. She was
vaguely aware of Leviathan dropping into a seat beside her.
“Money isn’t a problem, making sure you stay alive is. It should
be your top priority don’t you think?” He asked, leaning forward
and resting his elbows on his knees. He was right. Money
wouldn’t matter at all if she ended up some demons dinner. It
was painful to think about, how fast her life had gone from
simple and pretty uneventful to running from demons and even
traveling with one. “Is that last part really that bad?” He asked,
his eyes rolling up to meet hers. She didn’t answer at first;
instead she sat watching him watch her.
“No. Actually it isn’t.”
“Hey! Kailani no being nice to it! You’ll end up wanting to keep
it which is a big no no!” Cassandra barked and he growled.
“For the last time I am not an it!”
“Yeah yeah yeah we heard you the last time!” Cass shouted back
and Kai sighed.
“Look, our flight just arrived, I’ll call you back when we reach
Perth.” She said, pressing the end button and slipping the phone
back into her pocket before the impending argument could gain
any real steam. Her glare narrowed on Leviathan.
“What?” Kailani glared and he could only grin.
Chapter Five
After having her bag checked and narrowly avoiding a
random strip search Kailani and Leviathan made their way to the
terminal. Boarding the plane was simple, but getting through the
Jetway past all the other passengers, stewardesses and security
with an invisible demon by her side was nothing short of nerve
wracking. Leviathan didn’t seem concerned about it at all. The
sea of people just parted around him; as if they knew instinctively
he was there and cut him a wide birth.
“It’s because I’m a demon. Normal people detest my kind and
take precautions to stay far away from us, even if they don’t
necessarily know we’re there.” He cocked a brow down at her,
smirking. Kailani rolled her eyes up at him. She knew he was
implying that she wasn’t ‘normal’. She wanted to retort but dare
not speak to him while people were around. What if someone saw
him? What if the spell suddenly wore off and everyone on the
plane went into hysteria over a demon suddenly appearing next to
her? “You worry too much.” Leviathan said again, brushing past
her to find their seats. Once located, he claimed the window seat,
ignoring her when she stood in the isle and glared at him.
“What?” He asked and she motioned to the seats. With a
frustrated sigh he stood and relinquished his spot. “Are you
happy now?”
“Ecstatic.” She smiled, making herself comfortable in her chair
before reaching to buckle her seatbelt. Intrigued by her actions he
followed suit, pulling the belt across himself only to have her
stop him. “What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m putting my seat belt on.”
“But you’re invisible.”
“So?” He stared at her like she’d lost her mind. “If the plane goes
down wouldn’t it be wiser to have one on?”
“But you’re invisible. People will only see a floating seatbelt and
freak out.” He resisted the urge to uncharacteristically roll his
eyes at her, clicking the seatbelt into place anyway much to her
dismay.
“Have you always been like this?” He asked and she frowned.
“Like what?” she watched him make odd little gestures with his
hands that would have looked silly on anyone else but oddly at
home on him.
“This…uneasy? I’ve never met someone who worries as much as
you in my entire existence. Even now I can hear your disquieted
thoughts, the fear of being discovered, of looking like you’re
talking to yourself. Why do you even care what these worthless
mortals think about you?” he asked and at first she couldn’t
answer. She didn’t know how to.
“I guess...” She started, shrugging slightly, “As a kid I didn’t
worry about anything. I didn’t need to worry because I felt like
nothing could touch me.” She told him and he cocked a brow.
“And then what happened? What changed you?”
“Something finally did touch me...” The words died on her lips,
coming out as barely a whisper as memories of a past she’d
attempted to bury resurfaced. “Or rather Cassandra. I almost lost
her due to my own selfishness and inability to follow protocol.”
She turned her head to stare at the tarmac where engineers did a
last minute check of the plane before take off. “It was back in
high school…Look it doesn’t matter alright?” She huffed
suddenly, wanting to clear her mind and just forget anything bad
had ever happened. Her past wasn’t important.
“It matters to me.” She frowned over at him, honestly surprised
by his words.
“Why? You’re a demon, why would the past of some
insignificant little human like me matter to you?” His eyes
flashed with an emotion she didn’t understand, his jaw tightening
as he turned to look away from her. It was as if she’d struck him.
“You’re right, it doesn’t. I was attempting to make conversation.”
He said and she felt her stomach tighten as if she’d been kicked.
Kailani leaned back in her seat, her brows knitting as she
contemplated what just happened between them. Why was she
shoving him away?
He’s a demon.
Yeah but so what? He was
helping her, not hurting her. She had nothing to fear from
Leviathan.
“It was back in high school. Our parents just bought us our first
car, an old Ford Taurus that, to a couple of boneheaded teenagers,
handled like something out of a dream. A couple months after we
both aced our driving exams we were out driving around just
after dark. We pulled up at a stoplight and a couple idiots in a
Supra pulled up beside us. They wanted to race and like the
moron I was I felt I had something to prove.” Leviathan sat
watching her, listening intently as her eyes became cloudy. That
memory was very much still fresh in her mind. “Cassandra
begged me not to do it, told me over and over to just take us
home but I didn’t listen. I was driving so I was in charge right?
Something told me it was a stupid idea to challenge them but
instead of listening to that inner voice, I ignored it and we went
looking for trouble.” She forced her clenched hands to relax
against her thighs as she recalled that fateful night. “The light
turned green and we took off, neck and neck with the Supra. I
was confident we would win, even though it never occurred to
me that I didn’t know where we were going. We did our best to
keep up with them but in the end… ” She stopped, biting her
bottom lip hard enough to draw blood as she fought back the
tears that threatened to fall. She didn’t have to finish her
