Chapter Text
“Where are we going?” Julie heard her best friend beside her say.
“Got a lead on some demons,” Julie replied.
“Jules, I know you’re still upset about your mom, but blindly chasing demons trying to find the one that killed your mom-“
“Can we not talk about that, Flynn?” Julie asked her best friend. Despite her mom dying almost a year ago and the fact that Julie was looking for the thing that killed her, she didn’t want to talk about it. The memory of the night her mom died still haunted her, and she didn’t feel like reliving it.
Flynn nodded. “Yeah. So what do you plan to do once we find these demons? I mean it’s not like we can just kill them, right?”
Julie nodded. “Yeah. That’s why I brought this,” Julie said, pulling a large bottle of holy water out of her backpack.
Flynn stared at the bottle. “Holy water?” She asked.
Julie nodded. “Yeah, um, it’s a trick my mom taught me. It burns them.”
“Oh,” Flynn said.
This was only Flynn’s second hunt, and the first one she went on voluntarily. The first happened after school when Julie and Flynn were attacked by werewolves. Luckily, Julie had a silver knife on her and was able to kill the werewolf. Unluckily, Flynn went near-insane until Julie told her the truth about what had happened. Unfortunately, even with proof, Flynn barely believed her. Even now, as Flynn and Julie stood mere feet away from demons, Julie suspected Flynn still had doubts. She really couldn’t blame her. Julie had had many doubts of her own before her first hunt. Of course that was years ago, when she was eleven. Now, at fifteen, Julie knew all about the monsters and demons that were crawling around the earth.
“Is this it?” Flynn asked, looking at the giant hotel they had stopped in front of.
Julie nodded. “This is the place.”
“Are you sure?” Flynn asked. “I mean we could always come back another time-“
“I’m sure,” Julie said.
Was she sure? No, she was not. She hadn’t been near the hotel since her mother’s death, much less inside of it, and, just being up-close brought bad memories back to the surface of her brain. She remembered the demon with black eyes that had taken her mother’s life. The demon that referred to himself as Caleb Covington. The demon that, for some reason, let her live.
“You don’t have to go back in there,” Flynn told her.
Julie nodded. She knew what Flynn said was right. She didn’t need to go in there, but the words of a rival hunter kept playing in her mind.
“It’s been almost a year, Julie. You and your mom used to be legends among hunters. Now, now you’re just nobody. Maybe it’s time you give it a rest and let the pros handle things.”
Those words were spoken by Carrie Wilson, the most popular girl in Julie’s high school. Of course next to no one knew that Carrie hunted monsters with her dad every night. In fact, Carrie’s dad, Trevor Wilson, was a legendary hunter, much like Julie and her mom used to be.
“If this is about what Carrie said-“
Julie looked at Flynn. She hated that her best friend knew her so well, but it wasn’t just Carrie that made Julie want to go inside. It was also Julie’s chance to prove to herself that she was brave and that she was strong.
“It’s not just about Carrie,” Julie admitted. “I need to do this for myself.
Flynn nodded. “Okay. Well then, what are we waiting for?”
Julie smiled nervously and walked inside the hotel. She was immediately hit with a wave of anxiety and almost started crying. All she could think about was when she stepped foot in the hotel almost a year ago with her mom. Her mom never came out.
“You okay?” Flynn asked her.
Julie nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
Flynn nodded. “Okay.”
Julie took a deep breath and walked past the front desk and into the elevator. She made sure Flynn was in the elevator then closed the doors.
“Where are we going?” Flynn asked her.
“Top floor,” Julie said. “It’s where,” Julie took a deep breath and tried to push all the bad memories out of her mind. “It’s where my mom and I encountered Caleb last year.”
“But how can you be so sure that Caleb’s here now?” Flynn asked.
“I can’t,” Julie admitted. “But I know for a fact there’s demons.”
“How?” Flynn asked.
“Because hotel guests have reported strange occurrences,” Julie told her.
“What kind of strange occurrences?” Flynn asked.
“Like things flying across the room, guests going missing, and, well, people with black eyes,” Julie said.
“Black eyes?” Flynn asked. “That’s a real thing?”
Julie nodded. “Yeah, yeah, it’s a real thing.”
“Oh,” Flynn said. “Nice to know.”
Julie smiled. “Yeah.”
Julie reached into her backpack and grabbed another bottle of holy water out of her backpack and handed it to Flynn.
“How many of these do you have?” Flynn asked.
“Just these two,” Julie admitted. “Remember, when in doubt, splash with holy water.”
“That’s terrible advice,” Flynn told her.
“Said the person who told me to drink seven sodas to cure a headache,” Julie joked.
“Hey! It works,” Flynn said.
“Sure it does,” Julie said. “You ready?”
Flynn nodded. “Yeah. Are you?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Julie said, pressing the button for the highest floor the elevator stopped on. She held her breath as the elevator went up.
As soon as the elevator stopped, Julie readied her holy water and recited the exorcism she had memorized when she was twelve over and over in her head. She prayed that she wouldn’t forget it or mess it up. If she did, well, she didn’t want to think about that.
When the elevator doors opened, Julie stepped out and motioned for Flynn to follow her. Flynn did as Julie instructed and followed her over to an unmarked door.
“Where are we going?” Flynn asked.
“Trust me,” Julie said.
“I don’t know, Jules,” Flynn said. “Is this even legal?”
Julie shrugged. “Um, good question.”
“Good question?” Flynn asked. “Since when are you the one doing illegal things.”
“Since now I guess,” Julie answered. She tried to turn the doorknob of the door, but, unsurprisingly, it was locked.
“Maybe we should just go back,” Flynn said. “I mean the doors locked and-”
“Got it!” Julie announced. She had picked the lock with one of her hairpins. It was a trick she had picked up over the years. However, she was still surprised that it worked. Picking a lock was no easy task, and she had only successfully picked one a few times before.
“How- you know what I’m not gonna ask anymore questions,” Flynn said. “Carry on.”
Julie smiled nervously, and swung open the door to reveal a staircase that was encased in darkness.
“Ready to climb?” Julie asked her best friend.
Flynn nodded slowly. “Yeah. Um, why doesn’t the elevator go to the next floor?”
Julie shrugged. “Maybe because the top floor’s reserved for demons? I don’t really know.”
Flynn nodded. “After you.”
Julie nodded and began to climb up the stairs. When she reached the final door at the top of the stairs, she paused, her hand stopped just a few centimeters away from the knob. She thought about how she and her mom had stood on the very step she was standing on now a year before. She thought about how her mom had opened the door and charged head-on to dozens of demons. She and her mom had exercised them all. That’s when they had heard a voice and someone clapping their hand together.
“Great work,” the voice said. “On problem though. You forgot me.”
A figure came into view. They were tall and had black hair and blue eyes. In true evil fashion, they were wearing a top hat, and a suit complete with a long purple suit jacket bedazzled with jems.
“Who the hell are you?” Julie’s mom asked, getting in front of Julie, trying to protect her.
“Caleb Convington, nice to meet you,” the demon said.
“Yeah, nice to meet you too,” Julie’s mom said. “Hope we meet again in hell.”
“Oh I’m not going back there,” Caleb said.
“We’ll see about that,” Julie’s mom said. She started reciting an exorcism, but Caleb just laughed.
“You’re not going to get rid of me that easily, Rose,” Caleb told her.
Julie was taken aback and knew her mom was too. How could Caleb possibly know her mom’s name. It was almost impossible.
“How do you-”
“You think you can kill as many monsters and exorcise as many demons as you have without making a name for yourself?” Caleb laughed. “How naive. I’d expect that from Julie, but Rose,” Caleb smirked. “You’ve been doing this your whole life. I expected more from you.”
“Well, sorry to disappoint,” Rose said. She started the exorcism again, but Caleb quickly put an end to it by waving his hand and slamming her against the wall. She landed against it with a sickening crack.
“Mom!” Julie shouted, forgetting about Caleb and running over to her mother.
“She’s gone, Julie,” Caleb told her. “It’s not even worth the effort.”
Julie didn’t want to believe him, but she knew he was right. It was further confirmed after Julie checked her mother’s pulse to find nothing.
“What the hell did you do you son of a bitch?” Julie asked Caleb.
“Just returning the favor,” Caleb said. “Now you’ve got about sixty seconds before you meet the same fate.”
“No, I-” the tears had started falling from Julie’s eyes now and it took everything in her power for her to get up and turn to face Caleb. She had no doubt that he would follow through with his threat.
“Forty seconds,” Caleb said. “Better hurry up because the clock is ticking.”
Julie looked from Caleb to her mom and ran out the door and out of the hotel crying. She didn’t stop running and didn’t look back until she got home. She had to lie to everyone about her mom. She couldn’t just tell them a demon murdered her, she would’ve been called crazy. Instead, her mom was reported as a missing person. A few days later, her body was found near the hotel. She had no idea why Caleb had gotten rid of her body and put it in such an obvious area, but she didn’t care. All she could do was break down and try not to spill everything that had happened. It worked for a few months before she broke down and told Flynn everything.
“Are you gonna go inside?” Flynn asked Julie, snapping her back to reality.
Julie nodded. “Yeah. Let’s go.”
Julie opened the door and was greeted to three demons. She immediately splashed holy water on them, which caused their flesh to burn and sizzle. She then quickly recited an exorcism and sent the demons back to hell. Then, she turned to Flynn.
Flynn stared at Julie wide-eyed. “Wh- how?”
Julie shrugged. Honestly, she had no idea how she did what she did. It was hard to exorcise one demon, much less three, yet, somehow, she did it. She didn’t think too much of it though, and ended up just chalking it up to adrenaline.
“Luck?” Julie said, phrasing it like a question.
“Luck?” Flynn asked, shocked. “What would’ve happened if you weren’t lucky?”
Julie shrugged. “Let’s never find out.”
Flynn nodded, then looked at the people that the demons had possessed and used as vessels. “What now?”
“See if any of them are alive,” Julie said.
“Okay,” Flynn said. “And if they are?”
“We help them,” Julie said like the answer was obvious.
Flynn nodded. “Okay.”
Julie checked the person’s pulse that was right next to her, and found a beat. Julie smiled then called Flynn over.
Flynn came quickly. “Is he alive?”
Julie nodded and looked at the boy. He looked about her age and he had blonde hair and blue eyes, and, for some reason, looked familiar. However, she didn’t dwell on that. She felt bad for him. The demon probably did things that this boy couldn’t even imagine, and the boy probably had to witness it.
“Yeah, he’s alive, barely,” Julie told her. “What about the others?”
Flynn shook her head. “Sorry, Jules.”
Julie nodded. “It’s okay. It was worth a shot, right?”
Flynn nodded. “Of course, Jules, it’s always worth a shot.”
Julie smiled weakly. “Alright, well, let’s get this boy out of here
Flynn nodded. “Okay.”
“Hey,” Julie told the boy, trying to wake him up.
“Wh-” The boy said, opening his eyes a bit.
“Hey, I’m Julie,” Julie said. “Can you move?”
The boy nodded and sat up. “Wh- what happened?”
“We’ll explain everything to you later, but, right now, we have to get you out of here,” Julie said.
The boy nodded. “Okay.”
“Can you stand?” Flynn asked the boy.
The boy stood up and would’ve fallen over if Julie and Flynn hadn’t caught him.
“You okay?” Julie asked.
The boy nodded. “Yeah. Just, um, tired.”
“I’m Flynn,” Flynn introduced herself then asked “what’s your name?”
“Nick,” the boy replied. “My name’s Nick.”
“Okay, Nick,” Julie said. “What’s the last thing you remember doing?”
“Clearly?” Nick asked. “I remember Valentine’s day with my girlfriend.”
That’s when it clicked for Julie. Nick looked familiar because she knew his girlfriend. She knew what Nick was going to say before he said it.
“Her name’s Carrie,” Nick said
“Wilson?” Flynn questioned.
Nick nodded. “Yeah. Do you know her?”
Julie nodded. “Yeah we know her. She, um, she mentioned that you were missing.”
“Is she okay?” Nick asked.
Julie nodded. “Yeah, she’s okay.”
“Oh,” Nick said. “How, um, how long was I missing?”
Julie and Flynn looked at each other. Valentine’s day was in February and it was now June.
“Four months,” Julie said. “It’s now June.”
“Oh god,” Nick said. “My dads they- they they probably think I’m dead, don’t they?”
“I don’t know,” Julie admitted. “But I’m sure they’ll be happy to have you back.”
Nick nodded. “I hope so.”
“But first we have to get you out of here,” Flynn said. “Do you think you can walk?’
Nick nodded. “Yeah.”
Luckily, Nick wasn’t lying and Flynn and Julie helped him down the flight of stairs and into the elevator. Fortunately, no one was in the elevator. Unfortunately, Nick had questions.
“So, for four months, I was what, possessed?” Nick asked.
Julie nodded. “Yeah, yeah, you were.”
Nick nodded. “By a ghost?”
“A demon, actually,” Flynn said, jumping in. Julie gave her a look, but Flynn just shrugged.
“A demon?” Nick asked. “Demons are real?”
“Yeah,” Julie said. “They’re real.”
“And you guys what, find them?” Nick asked.
“We hunt them,” Julie said. “We save people.”
Nick nodded. “Well, thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” Julie said.
As soon as Julie, Flynn and Nick exited the hotel Flynn asked Nick where he lived. He gave his address and they began walking to his street. Julie realized that he lived near Carrie, but didn’t say anything.
“Where do you go to school?” Flynn asked Nick.
“Los Feliz,” Nick said. “What about you guys?”
“We, um, we go to Los Feliz too,” Julie said. She wondered why her and Nick had never seen or talked to each other. “How come I only know about you because of Carrie?”
“Well I only moved here in September,” Nick said. “That, um, that might be why.”
Julie nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
The group walked in silence all the way to Nick’s house. When they arrived, Nick finally spoke up.
“Well, um, this is my house. I should probably go in,” he said. “Thank you guys. Can I, um, have your numbers so I can call you sometime?”
“Um, yeah,” Julie said. “Hold out your arm.”
“Um, okay,” Nick said, holding out his arm.
Julie grabbed a pen from her pocket and wrote her number on his arm. She handed it to Flynn and she did the same.
“Okay, well, I’ll see you around,” Nick said and walked towards his house. Flynn and Julie watched Nick as his dads opened the door and he was reunited with his family.
“That was crazy,” Flynn said. “But you didn’t find Caleb.”
Julie shrugged. “No, but we saved Nick,” she said. “That’s something better, and, besides, we’ll find Caleb. No matter what it takes.”