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Zavid rolled his eyes “Where’s Malphas?”

“Cabal!” Nick shouted, hoping it would work He glanced to Zavid “Do I really have to call a demon in triplicate every time I want to summon it?”

Before the wolf could answer, Caleb appeared by his side

“Guess not,” Nick answered This was getting better His poere holding and doing what they were supposed to At least for the ti the question, Simi appeared instantly on his six “Akri-Nick! You made it Good for you” She slapped Caleb playfully on his arm “See, the Simi done told you that that mean ole darkness wouldn’t eat his head like you said it would You didn’t believe , you’ll listen M of, all this inner diots to eat in this place?”

Caleb pointed to Zavid “I hear barbecued wolf is a delicacy on lared at hi stupid crap And there’s just no excuse for that”

Nick ignored theroup

After a couple of uing while Si flashed outside before the sound of thunder rattled the s

“Hey, guys! Can I have your attention for a sec?” He counted his concerns off on his fingers “One, where’s the alternate et back to norhost And there’s ri whine of a child thatNick Two is still unconscious inside the closet I locked him in”

Caleb rolled his eyes “Are you serious?”

“You told ot back He’s not eaten and I didn’t kill hiratulate ratulations I’ to kill you”

And still, neither answered the most pertinent question “Where’s Kody? Do I have to summon her by name, too?”

“She’s not a demon,” Caleb reminded him “That only works on us”

“Then where is she?”

Zavid shrugged while Caleb scratched unco where Caleb was concerned

An awful feeling went through Nick “What?” he asked Caleb

He refused to answer

Oh yeah, this was going to suck…

With a box of Ding Dongs in hand, Simi drifted back into the foyer where they stood “Man up, deed

“What?” Nick repeated, this ti? Why isn’t Kody here?”

Sihed heavily then sed her ht?”

“Yeah, I’e from the box “Well, see, there’s a little problehost and they can’t travel like we does and Caleb couldn’t bring her back like he did ots one of them borrowed bodies that are … different Once they leaves a diet back to it”

The knot in his stoht he’d be sick “I don’t understand”

Caleb groaned under his breath before he picked up the explanation “You know the old joke about the dead, don’t go into the light?”

“Yeah”

“We went into the light Kody won’t be able to cross back … ever”

Rage erupted inside hirabbed Caleb and slammed him into the wall He wasn’t sure how he could do that while Caleb still couldn’t touch hiht now Not while he hadto me!”

Caleb shook his head “I wouldn’t do that And you know Si Caleb, Nick didn’t want to believe it Tears h hione? How could that be true?

“Why didn’t she say so?”

“She knew you wouldn’t come back without her and we didn’t have tie back into your body, kick down your arhly sixteen hours fro screech erupted from somewhere Nick couldn’t locate It sounded like the air itself made it The storm outside increased its intensity If he didn’t know better, he’d think they were in thehad struck him “Definitely less That’s the cry fro just broke its seal and released it into this world We have to move fast” He rushed for the stairs

“Nick?” Caleb said in an earnest tone when Nick didn’t rush after Zavid “What are you thinking?”

He was thinking that he wanted to go back and get Kody Right now He was thinking that he had no desire to be here without her To live in a world where she didn’t exist

She’d given up everything for therier Did she not love hi anything, knowing she’d never see hi to her