Epilogue

It took the demon years, and years, and years to fully reform. Time ran differently in Hell. When it had, it returned to its side of the portal. It was a tracker, after all. Remembering paths and finding its way is what it did. The creature used what little power and energy it had to force its way through to the office of the human. Seeing that the circle on the side of hell was broken, the demon stepped out, strode to the door, took another step and found himself back in the circle.

Confused, it again walked to the door and tried to step out. Again, it returned to the circle.

Hesitating, it tilted its head and sniffed the air. Slowly turning in a circle, it saw the girl sitting in the human’s large chair, her hands clasped and a smile without mirth on her lips.

“I’d hoped this would work. I wasn’t really sure, you know? I took a guess that once you were here, the things that affect people would also affect you. Like, needing to sleep. Not much. I just needed a tiny little window.

“It must’ve taken a lot out of you to crawl from there to here. You were tired. Just for a moment, just for a second, you zoned out. You slipped away, and that’s when I had you. Mom never said anything to me about you. Of course, she didn’t. Why would you tell something like that to your children?

“But the rules are different when she’s sleeping. I can see what she dreams about, and I can help against her nightmares. You were going to kill my mom? You were going to split open William’s bones and suck out his marrow?”

The demon was wary, but also hungry. It would let this child ramble, learn what it could, and then consume her. Its patience was rewarded as the child began speaking again.

“I can open a window sometimes. It’s easier with people that I love. Or, I don’t know, are dogs people? Anyway, I opened a little door so he can come and go when he wants. You can’t. You’re stuck. But Dink? He loves William so, so much. You really shouldn’t have threatened my brother.”

The demon heard a low, terrifying growling, and turned to see an overly large and fearsome dog. It turned back to the girl.

She was gone. The girl had somehow left, but the dog remained. The demon slowly backed into a corner as the dog approached, step-by-step. Soon, the demon agreed with the girl. It should’ve never threatened the woman’s son.