Chapter 1:Nick – Cassie’s Birthday

My leg shook under the table as I scanned the room from the corner of the restaurant, where we were seated. The low music was drowned out by the clacking of plates, along with loud conversations and laughter. Everything appeared normal. Human.

Cassie giggled, ketchup smeared across her cheek. Lily leaned over to wipe her sticky hands and face before settling back down beside me. ‘See. This was just what she needed. A chance to experience a normal human birthday.’

‘I guess you’re right,’ I said, watching Cassie, ‘but it’s still risky.’

Lily let out a breath. ‘You’ve been like this since she was born. It’s been a year and nothing has happened. Relax. You’re being overprotective. How is she going to learn about the world if she’s not allowed to be part of it?’

I placed my arm around her shoulders and leaned towards her. ‘I’d rather you were safe.’

‘What’s the point of being safe if you’re not allowed to live? You know how much I hated being stuck in my realm. I couldn’t wait to finally grow up and get my powers so I could leave that place.’

I shrugged. ‘I know, but I still don’t feel like I deserve this life.’

Lily squeezed my hand and gazed into my eyes. ‘There’s so much light and goodness in your heart. You shouldn’t let your demon side dictate what you think you deserve.’

‘You’re the light that keeps it in check,’ I said as I pulled her closer and kissed her temple.

Ever since I’d found out I was part demon, I’d never believed I deserved happiness, yet I’d been blessed with our lovely family. It felt like a dream come true, and ever since Cassie was born, I was constantly looking over my shoulder. I knew I was being paranoid. I’d been with my beautiful wife for forty years and nothing had happened. But the darkness inside me had put people I cared about in danger before.

I scanned the crowded restaurant again for anything amiss, but nothing stood out. Despite that, I couldn’t shake the gnawing worry from my mind.

The server approached, wearing a silly balloon hat of multiple colours and carrying a small chocolate cake with a single candle. Cassie’s face lit up and her smile widened. Her excitement warmed my heart, and I was glad Lily had persuaded me to go out to celebrate.

The server placed the cake and the balloon hat on the table. Cassie’s eyes sparkled with curiosity as she reached for the balloon hat, but Lily moved it away from her. ‘We can play with the hat when we get home.’

The light in Cassie’s eyes faded, and my heart sank. I took the balloon hat from Lily’s hands and gave her a pleading look. ‘It’s her birthday. What my girl wants, my girl gets. And that goes for the both of you. Besides, what harm will it do if she plays with it now?’

Lily poked my ribs. ‘Always a big softy. She can have it on her head while she eats her cake, but if she tries putting it in her mouth, you have to take it off her.’

‘Deal,’ I said with a smile. I reached over to Cassie and held the hat over her head. ‘I will put the hat on your head, but it needs to stay there.’

Cassie clapped her hands, and when I placed the hat on her head, she started laughing. My heart swelled with joy as the beautiful sound reached my ears. It was the best sound I had ever heard in my entire life. She was such a cute baby, with long dark eyelashes and ice-blue eyes like mine. However, her petite nose and smile were a mirror of Lily’s. The love I had for them made my chest ache sometimes. There was nothing I would not do for them.

We finished the celebration and headed towards the exit.

‘I told you you’d enjoy it,’ Lily said with a playful smirk as she pushed Cassie’s buggy through the door I held open for them.

It had been a lovely sunny September day when we’d arrived at the restaurant, but now the grey clouds were looming closer. There was a change in the air that caused the hair on my arms to stand up. I turned to Lily as the door closed behind us. ‘How about we teleport home?’

She gave me a stern look. I held my hands up. ‘I know. No magical abilities unless we have to. But there’s something in the air that makes me uneasy.’

Lily scanned the area. ‘I can’t sense anything sinister. Maybe it’s just the pressure in the air that’s playing tricks on you.’

I let out a sigh and tried to relax. ‘Maybe you’re right.’

‘You know I’m right. It’s the middle of the day, and I was looking forward to taking Cassie to the park. I want to see if the nemesias have started blooming yet. Besides, humans are out and about, and we fit right in.’

What she really meant was that to the humans we looked like a couple in their mid-twenties out with their baby. No one would be able to tell I was sixty years old and my beautiful wife was four times as old as me.

She held her hand out for me as she continued walking. ‘Come on, I promise we’ll take the short way through the park home.’

I hesitated. I knew, logically, I was being paranoid. But a deep sense of unease had settled within the pit of my stomach and refused to budge. A being of light falling in love with a demon like me was unheard of, so who could blame me? Not that I was evil. My human mother had made sure of that, showering me with love at every opportunity she got, and that was something I had passed on to my wife and beautiful baby girl. This was as close to perfect as it could get.

‘Nick? Are you coming?’

I looked up. Lily was standing by the road, ready to cross. I caught up with her. ‘Sorry. I was thinking about my mother and how I wish she was still around to meet Cassie.’

Lily smiled. ‘She’s around. You just can’t see her. She’s very special. Even after forty years, she still remembers her human life. We have her blessing, and she would have loved to hold Cassie.’

A longing ached in my heart. My mother had been my light, my everything, before Lily came into my life. Without her, my life would have been very different.

‘Can you tell her I miss her?’

‘She knows.’

We strolled along the paved path, where large trees lined the side of the road. On the other side of the path was a massive field and several flowerbeds dotted with colourful flowers. I wouldn’t be able to name most of them, though I was sure Lily could. The path we were walking on split into several smaller ones snaking around the field. The odd jogger passed us, and the sound of kids playing could be heard in the distance, but overall it was a quiet afternoon.

The sun peeked out between the clouds and cast shadows through the trees. A cool breeze danced around us, carrying the scent of the jasmine bushes nearby. I was pushing the buggy while Lily carried Cassie.

‘Look at these beautiful hydrangeas. We should plant some in our garden,’ Lily said, standing next to a bush with Cassie on her hip to get a closer look at the cluster of white flowers she was admiring.

‘If we plant all the flowers you find beautiful, we won’t have any space in the garden.’

She smiled, grazing the flowers with her fingertips. ‘Maybe we should get a bigger garden? Hydrangeas come in several colours.’

I rolled my eyes in amusement.

‘I’m not saying we should move. You know I love the house just as much as you do. But we don’t need all that grass by the front porch.’

I chuckled. ‘Is that so?’

She flashed me a grin. ‘Yeah.’

‘I can get it sorted for you when we get back. What flowers would you like?’

‘I’ll have to think about it.’ She pushed Cassie higher on her hip and strolled back towards me. ‘But you are not conjuring them. I want real flowers, not some hybrid because you weren’t sure how they were supposed to look.’ She looked at me with a serious face, but the smile on her lips betrayed her.

‘The sunflowers looked fine to me,’ I said with a smirk.

Lily snorted. ‘You made them into a bush.’

She put Cassie back in the buggy and we continued our walk, which included a few more interruptions to admire some marigolds, roses and blooming nemesia.

The wind picked up, taking on a chilly edge as it blew through the trees. The sky had darkened further, like it was preparing for a massive downpour. There were no humans around anymore, but that wasn’t unusual at the edge of the park. A shadow crossed the path in front of me and sent a chill down my spine. I studied the area around us and peered through the trees, my senses on high alert.

‘What’s wrong?’ Lily asked, a crease appearing on her forehead.

‘I’m not sure. It feels like we’re being watched.’

She placed a hand on my shoulder. ‘I’m sure it’s just your mind playing tricks.’

Cassie fussed in the buggy, and Lily quickened her steps, continuing down the path again. ‘Come on, we should get her home before we all get soaked.’

I caught up with Lily, who had stopped by the road we needed to cross to reach our house.

Our brick terraced house with bay windows came into view, and I let out a breath of relief. The front garden had yet to experience Lily’s obsession with flowers, but the back garden looked more like a jungle, with patches of grass in between various flowerbeds. But whatever made Lily happy. She could spend hours out there.

‘Don’t you think the hydrangeas would look great in the front garden?’ Lily smiled at me as we crossed the road and stepped onto the green in front of the houses where our neighbour’s kids normally played football. ‘Maybe we can even get some petunias and hang some baskets …’

I stopped listening to Lily as dark, sharp-edged shadows slithered around the area, cutting us off from our path. My heart pounded in my chest. Why were they here? I hadn’t seen another demon since before I met Lily. I wrapped my arm around her, bringing my lips close to her ear. ‘Take Cassie and teleport to the house now.’

She looked at me, her worried expression mirroring mine. She followed my gaze, tracking the abnormal shadows around us that had yet to take corporeal form.

Lily nodded. Without saying a word, she picked Cassie up from the buggy. She looked at me with wide eyes. ‘I can’t teleport.’

Cassie started crying. The shadows were becoming more solid, circling us. Knowing that we were running out of time, I placed my hands on Lily and Cassie and tried teleporting us to the house, but to no avail. ‘It’s not working for me either. Something must be blocking it.’

A demon materialised from tendrils of shadows. At first it was just a dark humanoid shape, but it transformed into a muscular male in his twenties. To anyone nearby, he would have looked human, but I could feel the sinister being behind the glamour. He took a step forward and flashed an evil grin, displaying his jagged teeth. His eyes burned with wickedness. ‘Did you think we didn’t come prepared?’

The adrenaline pumped around my body. ‘Prepared for what?’ I asked as I scanned the area.

He sneered. ‘To fight you. The mighty descendent of Surtr. Your house can’t save you. We made sure you wouldn’t be able to teleport to it.’

What had they done to it? Would it still be safe inside? I sent out my senses and checked the protective layers surrounding the house, but they hadn’t been breached. I pushed Lily and Cassie to the opposite side of the path from where the demon was standing and sent a telepathic message to Lily. I’ll distract him and you run to the house. The protective layers are still working, so you should be safe once you’re inside.

Lily bundled Cassie safely in her arms.

The demon made a face of disgust. ‘You really are a disgrace. How that being doesn’t make you nauseated is beyond me.’

Hate burned through me. ‘Watch your mouth. That being is my wife, and you’d be long gone before you even think of laying a finger on either of them.’ I conjured my blue fire in my hands. Now! I yelled into Lily’s mind as I threw my fire at the demon, killing him before he even had a chance to scream in pain. His body turned to ash, but before the ash had hit the ground, three more demons materialised from the shadows.

I summoned my sword. Between that and my fire, I should have the upper hand.

Lily ran towards the house. Her path looked clear. As long as I could keep the demons’ attention on me, she should be able to get inside and be safe.

I threw my fire at one demon and lunged at the other with my sword before homing in on the last one. I thought it would be the last of it when a flapping sound caught my attention. A dozen big dark-winged creatures were making their way across the sky, not even bothering to use their glamour.

I didn’t have time to study them further, as a blade whistled through the air. I ducked, and it sliced the buggy Cassie had been lying in moments earlier.

I threw my fire at the demon, but he dodged the flame, hissing as he advanced. With one decisive sweep of my blade, his head was no longer attached to his body. I thought I’d finally caught a break, but as I tried to see if Lily had made it to the house, more demons appeared from the shadows nearby, blocking my view. I sighed and moved around them, picking them off one by one.

A piercing scream from Lily stopped my heart. I spun towards the house, my eyes instantly locking on a demon that had appeared on our front porch, blocking Lily from the door. His human form was taller than most but badly glamoured, with black shadows swirling on his skin and glowing red eyes. Shadowy tendrils gathered in his hand, creating a dagger. He lunged forward, stabbing the knife deep into Lily’s side as she twisted to protect Cassie.

‘No!’ A scream clawed its way up my throat as thunder roared above. Anger and hatred tore through me, waking an inferno in the depths of my mind that had been asleep all my life. My body shook from the pressure. When I couldn’t take it any longer, I cried out and fire exploded from me. All the remaining demons disintegrated in flames, including the winged creatures. I stared at the aftermath. Only burning embers and ash remained of the demons, while everything else appeared untouched.

Lily let out a gasp, and I dropped my sword and rushed to her side. Ash fell from the sky as I reached her and caught her and Cassie before she buckled. She cradled a screaming Cassie while blood gushed from her side.

‘Lily,’ I cried as I bent down and brushed some blond hair away from her face. She looked around, her golden eyes struggling to focus. ‘I’m right here, baby,’ I said. My eyes blurred as I took in the extent of her injury. I tried to put pressure on her wound, but she became distressed.

‘Cassie – where’s Cassie?’ The panic in her voice was unsettling.

‘You’re holding her,’ I responded in a calm voice, even though I was anything but. I carefully removed a screaming, crying Cassie from Lily’s iron grip. She was covered in blood and had a nasty cut on her arm.

‘She’s bleeding. Let me see.’ Lily tried to sit up and reached for Cassie. I placed her by Lily’s side. ‘Mummy’s going to make you feel better,’ she whispered to Cassie as she placed her hand over the wound. A brightness escaped her hand, and Cassie stopped crying. When Lily removed her hand, Cassie’s arm had healed.

How I wished she could heal herself the same way.

I conjured some gauze. My hand trembled as I pressed it against Lily’s wound. The blood kept seeping through. There was so much blood and I couldn’t stop it. It covered the ground, slowly dripping down the steps. Desperation clawed at my chest, and I placed Lily’s head in my lap, making sure Cassie was next to her. I tried to remain strong in front of them, but tears fell down my cheeks. Each ragged breath tore me apart from the inside. Despite my best efforts at putting pressure on the wound, it became abundantly clear that Lily would not survive this.

‘I’m sorry,’ Lily murmured. I looked down at her, wiping my tears away with the back of my hand.

‘It’s okay. It’s … it’s not your fault. Everything will be fine. You just need to rest.’ My voice broke as I tried to comfort her.

Lily slowly lifted her hand to stroke Cassie’s face. ‘My beautiful baby girl. Dad will take great care of you.’ She looked up at me with watery eyes. ‘Promise me Cassie will be safe.’

‘I promise. But you’ll be fine. We’ll make sure she’s safe together.’

‘Together,’ she said, squeezing my hand and offering me a weak smile. Her breathing hitched, and a shudder ran through her as she let out a gasp. Her grip loosened, and her body relaxed. Her eyes stared vacantly ahead.

My world crashed down and my heart broke into a thousand pieces. I gathered her in my arms, hugging her close. ‘No, no, no,’ I sobbed over and over again, swaying back and forth on the spot. This could not be happening. I couldn’t lose her. The world around me blurred and faded away. It felt like time had stopped, along with my heart.

What was I going to do now? Why had they killed my light?