The Devil's Apprentice by Patrick Stewart (polar express read aloud TXT) 📕

books stacked to her right was the librarian. There was a book open in front of her and she did not look up as they approached.

Karen pulled a chair and sat down. Alex did the same. Still, the librarian did not notice them, so absorbed was she in her book. Karen clicked her fingers. The woman looked up, annoyance in her blue eyes.

“What do you-,” she stopped. Her eyes lit up. “Karen!”

“Hi Jocelyn,” Karen smiled. Her white teeth glowed in the dim red lighting.

“I haven’t seen you in so long,” Jocelyn said. “I think the last time was-” she stopped again, this time her cheeks reddened.

“The last time was when we had sex,” Karen finished, her voice teasing.

Jocelyn swallowed nervously., “Yes… since we last had... sex.” Her eyes lit up again. “Are you here for that.”

Karen smiled. It was a flirty smile. Her lips were in between a curl and the ever-popular duck face. She reached out and placed a hand on Jocelyn. “We actually needed your help with something.”

“We?” Jocelyn repeated. It was then did she acknowledge Alex. He smiled at her. It was not returned. Jocelyn turned her attention back to Karen. “Of course. Anything for you…”

Karen smiled brightly. Without mentioning names, she told Jocelyn about the demon trying to free another demon imprisoned in hell. They needed human body parts to complete the spell. Surprisingly for Alex, Karen listed away every body part missing from the humans found in the crate.

“They also need the heart of a Demon Hunter,” Alex added.

“The heart of a Demon Hunter?” Jocelyn raised an eyebrow.

“Does that ring a bell?”

“Not for a spell… but,” Jocelyn leaned in, as if whispering a secret in a crowded room. “Earlier today, a Demon Hunter was found dead in his bed. His heart was ripped out. It seems they’re ready to cast the spell. I’ll-” Jocelyn stopped and stared at Alex, as if seeing him for the first time. “You’re Alex?”

“Have we met?”

Jocelyn shook her head. “You’re famous. You killed the Krumier. They’re supposed to be impossible to kill. And…” she stood up and stepped around the table to come and stand in front of him. She was tall, as were all Demon Hunters. Her lips curled as she looked down at him. “You look average. How’d you do it?”

Alex’s eyes narrowed. He pushed his chair back and climbed to his feet. He was six inches taller than her and he puffed his chest to look more impressive before he stepped into her personal space. He was close enough to smell her, to feel her warm breath on the skin exposed by his unbuttoned shirt.

“You still look average,” Jocelyn said.

“Wow. You actually managed to intimidate her with that lame ass move,” the voice said.

“Really? How can you tell?” Alex asked. 

“Avoiding eye contact, flared nostrils, flushed skin… She’s either afraid of you, or she wants your cock. I’m going with the former. Bitch is giving off lesbian vibes.” 

Karen, who had been watching what she thought was a silent stare down, jumped to her feet and came to stand beside the two. Placing a hand on their chests, she gently pushed them back. “Alex killed the Krumier by sticking his sword into it.”

Jocelyn glanced at the handle of the longsword sticking out from his back. “That the sword?” Jocelyn asked. “Can I get a look at it?”

“Fuck no,” the voice said. 

Alex couldn’t recall if this was the first time he’d agreed with the voice in his head. The sword wasn’t like the other weapons in the armoury of the Red House of Satan. He had a feeling it was an old one. It probably predated the birth of the damned Red House of Satan.

Alex blinked. “I’m right, aren’t I?” 

“Right about what?” 

“The sword, it’s old, isn’t it? Very old?” 

The voice didn’t reply. But Alex could feel it deliberating. A strange sensation. Like a mind within his mind suddenly appearing. Its presence noticed; his conscience probed at it. Like a human asking another human a question and waiting for an answer. But the mind version.

“...keep the sword safe, Alex.” 

“A simple no would suffice, Alex,” Karen said.

Alex snapped out of his internal conversation to find both Jocelyn and Karen staring at him suspiciously. The librarian even leaned in and whispered into Karen’s ear. He couldn’t make the full sentence out, but he did hear the word “sanity” mentioned.

“No,” Alex muttered.

Karen turned to Jocelyn. She placed her hand in the girl’s hair and pulled her in for a long and deep kiss. Then, releasing the girl, she said, “You’ll call me soon as you find anything?”

Jocelyn nodded quickly, looking very flustered.

“Great,” Karen smiled. “I’ll let you get to it.” She grabbed his hand and turned to leave, then paused as her eyes flitted across the darkened library. “It’s really empty here today,” she observed.

She was right. Not only was there not a single person in sight, they’d not come across anyone on their way here. Alex just figured most Demon Hunters were so full of themselves, they didn’t have any space for books.

But he was wrong.

That wasn’t why the library was empty.

“The Demon Hunters have gone to Ignis Estate. It’s going to be a bloodbath there tonight.”

Ignis Estate. That was the enormous housing estate where most of the demons resided. “Why?” Alex asked. “Why will there be a bloodbath?”

Jocelyn stared at him like he was an idiot. “A Demon Hunter was murdered. His body was desecrated. That won’t go unanswered. Many demons will die tonight.”

Chapter 30

They stepped into the elevator. The doors closed. Alex stood with his back against the mirrored wall. His fingers gripped the metal bar that crossed from one end to the other. “We have to stop them.”

“The Demon Hunters?” Karen asked