Bitter Sweet Love

He chuckled. “You are. I think you’ve got it down. You’ve always been a fast learner.”

I smiled and then a jolt of nervousness hit me. Once I completed a condition, then I had to fulfill his. Kissing. Fire spread across my cheeks. Sweat dotted my palms. Would I have sweaty palms while I kissed him? Ew. I told myself I didn’t care if I did, but as Dez had reminded me, I was a terrible liar. I did care.

“Can I drive some more?” I asked.

“You can drive as long as—stop the car!” he shouted suddenly, rearing up in his seat. “Stop the car, Jasmine. Now!”

Tiny hairs rose over my body as a thick, smoky feeling invaded my blood. Something was wrong, something unnatural. I slammed my foot on the brakes. Tires squealed and the smell of burnt rubber filled the air, but another scent overshadowed it—the smell of rotten eggs.

Sulfur.

The back wheels spun out and the SUV fishtailed into the other lane. Desperately, I straightened the wheel and we slid to a bumpy stop along the side of the road.

Movement blurred from a thick cropping of trees crowding the road. The air shimmered and warped, as if a lens was out of focus and then was corrected. As if a veil had been ripped away, forms rapidly took hold. My eyes widened and I smacked my hand over my mouth.

Two of them stood side by side, their lean, muscular bodies covered in reddish matted fur. With clawed, four-fingered hands and hoofed feet, they didn’t resemble anything remotely cuddly or friendly. Their wings were black and fragile looking. Mouths gaped open, each exposing a ragged set of teeth that rivaled a great white’s. A large brown horn curved out from each camel-shaped head, sharp as a dagger.

My heart jumped into my throat as I processed what I was seeing. Humans believed these creatures to be nothing more than a legend, comically named the Jersey Devil. One part of that name was correct. I knew what these things were. I’d seen them in books I’d sneaked from my father’s library.