Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21

" W hat have you done?" the demon woman asks me. I can't remember her name, if Damon ever told it to me.

"I don't know," I say, "and I don't care." My poor little Dash whimpers as I scoop her up in my arms. "Beverly, stay with Bella."

"Of course," she says, putting her arms around my daughter.

"And you, get out of my house," I tell the demon woman. Where I got the nerves to speak to a demon like that, I'm not sure.

"You've made a big mistake here tonight. The Dark Lord will seek his revenge," the woman says, and she dissolves into a shadowy puddle.

I hear her threat, but that is a tomorrow problem. Right now, all I care about is my dog. I grab my keys and run out to the car barefoot. I put Dash in the front passenger seat and hop in the driver's seat. Thankfully, the animal hospital isn't far. I just hope it is still open. Dash whimpers the whole way.

As I zoom into the parking lot, I see that the lights are off, but the vet, Lark Voorhees, is locking the door. I take up two parking spots.

"Dr. Voorhees!" I yell as I hop out and run to Dash's door.

"Tamzin?" she says. We aren't close friends, but she takes care of all our pets, so we at least know each other.

"Please, help me. It's Dash." I open Dash's door, but Dr. Voorhees elbows me out of the way.

"Be careful," the vet says. "Was she hit by a car?"

"No," I say. "She was hit by… Well, a demon."

The vet hesitates, giving me a look. "Okay, well, I don't see any blood or broken bones. It looks like she's in shock." The vet takes her coat off and wraps it around Dash, picking her up gingerly. "The keys…" She glances around. "Oh, they are still in the door. Open it for me."

I run over and open the door, putting her keys in my pocket. Dr. Voorhees runs to the back of the building, putting Dash on a table and hooking up an IV. She draws blood and uses her stethoscope, checking Dash all over for injuries.

"I have to do an x-ray, see what's going on in there," she mutters.

My phone beeps, and I see a message from Beverly. Found Mr. Darcy under your bed. He's fine.

Okay , I text back. Dash with vet. Will update later.

Beverly replies with a string of hearts.

I pocket the phone and chew on my thumb as I watch the vet work.

"How…how is it looking?" I ask. I can see that Dash has calmed down, but I'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing.

"I have her on a painkiller and something to calm her down," the vet says, petting one of Dash's ears. "I don't see any external injuries, but she could have internal ones. Why don't you have a seat while I take her to be x-rayed."

I nod and find a stool to perch on. She cradles Dash in her arms and takes her out of the room. Dash doesn't make a sound. I can only hope it's because she's sleeping soundly.

As I wait there alone, I finally have time to think.

Oh my god. What have I done? And where is Damon? What did that woman demon mean? I didn't kill Damon, did I? No, certainly not. I couldn't kill him by breaking the jar. I just, like, set him free, right? Unless… I mean, he was bound to the cookie jar. So, I guess it's possible that I killed him when I destroyed the jar. But… Ugh. I feel nauseous at the thought. Did I just kill another man that I loved?

Wait…loved? No, I didn't love him. Not yet. I mean, I couldn't fall in love that quickly…could I?

No. No… But I was on my way there. This last week had been the best week of my life since Mark died. I was feeling comfortable. Relaxed. Happy. Normal.

Why did it take a demon to bring me back to life? I mean, I wasn't dead, but I was sure living like I was. I was miserable. And I was making myself miserable. Why did I do that to myself? Why did I torture myself? I mean, yeah, I felt responsible for Mark's death. I think a part of me will always hold a little bit of guilt over what happened that night. But that didn't mean I needed to let it rule my whole life.

And what about Bella? What kind of mom was I being to her all this time? If I didn't move on, how could she? I wasn't just punishing myself, I was punishing my child. And she was innocent in all this. If she couldn't have a father, she at least deserved the best mother possible. I needed to do better, both by her and myself.

But what was I going to do about Damon?

The door opened and Dr. Voorhees came back in, but she didn't have Dash with her.

"What's wrong?" I ask, my stomach sinking and me fearing the worst.

"She's fine, just resting," the vet says, holding up Dash's x-rays. She points to various blobs on the films. "There are no broken bones, as I thought. Her internal organs appear fine, no swelling or anything. I'm still going to do an ultrasound to check for any internal fluids, but I don't expect to find anything. She's not showing any symptoms of internal bleeding."

"Then, what's wrong with her?" I ask.

"Well, you said she was attacked by a demon?"

I nod.

"I mean, she's in shock, which is not surprising. It appears she is just suffering some extensive bruising, which is painful, but not life-threatening. I'm going to run more tests and keep her overnight for observation. But, for now, I'm giving her fluids, keeping her warm, and treating her for pain. That's all we can do."

"So, what should I do?"

"Probably go home," she says. "I'm sure your daughter is worried about her dog. You can reassure her that everything will be fine. Hopefully, I can send Dash home in a day or two. I don't want to send her home as long as she still needs pain meds."

"I feel bad leaving Dash here," I say, and Dr. Voorhees chuckles.

"All pet parents do. But, believe me, she won't know you are here. You can come back tomorrow and check on her."

"I'm sorry for making you work overnight," I say.

She just shrugs. "It's part of the job. And it will be reflected in your bill."

"Oh, goodie," I say. I go out to my car and get into my pocket to find my keys. I find Dr. Voorhees's keys first, thankfully, and return them to her. My hands are shaking as I clutch the steering wheel. I drive home slowly and carefully, thankful there are no other cars on the road.

When I get home, I find Bella, Beverly, and Mr. Darcy all in my bed. Beverly is awake, though, and gets up to talk to me.

"How is the pup?" she asks me.

"The vet thinks she will be okay," I say. I then burst into tears and lay my head on Beverly's shoulder. Beverly coos and pats my back. "What have I done?"

"You did what you thought you had to do," Beverly says.

"But where is Damon?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know."

"Oh my god." I run my hands through my hair. "This is a nightmare!"

"Look, you've all had a rough night. Just get some sleep and we will try to figure everything out tomorrow, okay?"

I sigh and nod. She's probably right that there isn't anything I can do right now. I show her out and then get into bed with Bella and Mr. Darcy. I thought that there would be no way I could fall sleep, but I end up passing out almost immediately.