Order Of The Black Sun: The Diviners, #2

By Alesha Escobar

Tracking down a demon in the spirit world should be easy--said no one ever.

But Kelsey Diviner is dedicated to her training, as she balances her days as a therapist with her evenings as a ghost whisperer and protector of the supernatural realm. However, when she and her uncle come across evidence of a dangerous spell cast by a dark shaman, she must hunt down the wayward magic-user before something even more sinister rises from The Pit.

If it were up to Kelsey, she'd be clubbing with her friends and getting hands-on with her crush. Instead, she has to buy black market magical gear at a vampire's house and make sure a clandestine supernatural police organization doesn't steal her weapons or lock her away.

And the ghost of a vengeful shadow witch stalking her is ruining her social life.

But there's no time for rest, because the Order of the Black Sun is making gains and threatens every soul on the planet. This task may prove the most difficult for Kelsey, since those she thought she could trust are the very people who may be her downfall.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Creative Alchemy, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 2, 2018
• ISBN: 9781386722946

Book preview

1

Uncle Bo gripped the silver chain, unbothered by the seven-foot, ashen Nightmare Man thrashing at the other end of it. The demon rolled back and forth, hurling obscenities at the shamans. The Nightmare Man clawed at the chain wrapped around his neck, but it wouldn’t yield or break.

The Prometheus chain needed no lock or key, and no cuffs or bands. All its owner had to do was sling it toward a target and make contact. Nothing could escape once ensnared. Earlier, Kelsey had seen Bo go after a spirit that had crawled out of purgatory. Whip! He dragged it back to the shore where a whirlpool in the ocean sat waiting to receive the wayward soul. Again, a demon of vengeance infested a nearby area, lying in wait for a human to possess, but Bo cracked the Prometheus chain like a whip and forced it back to Hell.

She decided that she needed to add a Prometheus chain to her Christmas list. Screw a Sephora gift card. But first, she needed to learn how to control it. The chain felt warm to the touch when Bo handed it to her and it buzzed with magical power. When the demon realized her uncle had relinquished control of the chain over to her, the monster froze in place. He sized her up and then rolled away in the opposite direction. Kelsey skidded forward. The Nightmare Man’s strength matched that of five men.

Give a good yank on that chain, Kelsey girl.

Uncle Bo! Her feet slid across the ground as she wrapped her end of the chain around her left hand.

What are you playing tug-of-war for? Bo’s voice boomed in his Southern drawl. This is the spirit world! Use the magic in the chain to yank that monster until he submits.

The Nightmare Man taunted Kelsey with a dark laugh. A black substance gurgled from his mouth.

Okay! Kelsey fused the power in her shamanic tattoos with the magic of the chain. When she felt the burning magic, she pulled. You’re going back to the Pit.

Nooooo! The demon clawed at the chain around his neck again. He looked like a tall, gray, nude man with a lion’s mane for hair, with yellow eyes and large teeth. The Nightmare Man’s skin crawled. It wobbled like gelatin, dipping low across his arms and torso, while rising in mounds on his face and legs.

Bo snapped his fingers, unveiling the surrounding area. Kelsey counted at least twelve human children in the physical world nearby. In the spirit world, they appeared as earth-colored statues with bright halos around their heads, indicating their full minds. Pulsating red globes–their emotions–lay snug in their chests. Thick green vines with colorful flowers wrapped around their hands, showing their strength of will. When they moved in the physical world, the statues vibrated in the spirit world. And if any of them were broken and needed healing, it was up to Kelsey, and other shamans like her, to fix them.

But working in the spirit realm with a few billion statues around could be overwhelming. Limiting one’s view to a single person, or a small area, was important if a shaman wanted to maintain focus. Her uncle probably showed her who was in the immediate area because Nightmare Men loved jumping on the backs of children to go home with them.

They were the monsters kids swore hid beneath their beds. They were the reason why little ones cried over the closet door remaining ajar at bedtime. Nightmare Men only became a problem for adults when car keys went inexplicably missing or when Dad caught a glimpse of a shadow in his peripheral while sitting on the couch in front of the television.

Watch out, Kelsey. This one’s about to pop!

Kelsey whispered a spell. The tattoos scrawled along the length of her fingers shimmered. A bolt of lightning struck the ground nearby, and it opened like a hungry mouth. Howls rose from the Pit, along with a dark gray fog. It was the quickest way to kick a demon back into the underworld.

But this demon proved quicker. The Nightmare Man had already morphed its body and divided into six smaller versions of itself—grunts. The chain clattered against the ground as five of the grunts were freed. The sixth was still in contact with the chain and was recaptured. She quickly passed the Prometheus chain back to her uncle and raised her right hand, invoking the element of Air to come to her aid.

The five grunts split into different directions, running across the terrain toward the statues of the children. Kelsey threw the force of her will into the spell, and the frenzied Air whipped toward her. She curved her arm, indicating the direction she wanted it to go in. The elemental power bypassed her, heading for the grunts and knocking them over.

Kelsey held up her hands, fingers meeting in a triangle. Sparks danced on her fingertips, and as she widened her arms, a burst of fire hit each of the five grunts. They screeched and ran for cover. Kelsey commanded Air to swing by again, forcing them to tumble closer toward the howling Pit.

She turned around and grabbed the Prometheus chain from Bo. She gave it a good fling toward the Pit, launching the ensnared grunt inside. She swung the chain again, and it hit the others. The chain snaked around a leg of each grunt and latched onto them. Before they could react, Kelsey pulled them toward her and dragged them to the open Pit.

When she reached the edge, she pulled the chain again, closing the gap between herself and the grunts. Instead of resisting, they ran toward her. Kelsey’s eyes widened as she realized what they were going to do--she had no desire to fall into the Pit with them. She pivoted on her foot and gripped the chain with both hands. Two of the grunts missed her, and she commanded the chain to let them fall into the howling darkness. The other three, still chained, threw themselves against her legs and leaned forward in order to force her into the dark, gaping hole with them.

She cried out to Bo as she threw herself onto the ground, away from the Pit’s edge. The grunts staggered toward her. They went right for her face. Evil spirits knew that one of the quickest ways to incapacitate her was to tear at her mind. She shielded her face just as they reached her, but a bolt of lightning struck them and they dropped to the ground.

Come on, Kelsey! Get up!

She gave her uncle a quick nod, jumped to her feet, and yanked at the Prometheus chain as she infused it with every bit of her will. The three grunts screeched as she maneuvered the chain to sling it forward. The force of her throw sent them flying through the air and toward the open Pit. This time, they went in. Their howls mingled with the ones rising from the hungry, open mouth in the ground. Kelsey pressed her right hand to her mouth, activating her shamanic tattoos to command the Pit to close. The gray fog flew into the large hole as the invisible force muffled the wailing voices. When the earth emerged and smoothed over the area where the Pit manifested, Kelsey ceased her spell and gathered the Prometheus chain in her arms.

With a smirk, she approached her uncle. That was pretty sick, huh?

He scratched his brown chin. The symbols and tattoos across his knuckles shimmered with magic. Not bad at all, except you would’ve fallen into the Pit with those grunts if I hadn’t whacked them.

She rolled her eyes. Oh, come on!

He opened his hand and gestured for her to hand him the Prometheus chain. Now, we go to step two.

She hesitated with the chain. Can I keep it?

He chuckled. I paid five grand for that thing. I’ll leave it for you in my will.

She grudgingly surrendered the chain to him. "You have got to take me shopping. Where do you find these weapons? My Dad only used his ritual dagger and mask."

Bo grinned. There’s a whole, big world out there. If it’s okay with your father, maybe you can go see it with me and your grandma.

Blech. Her grandmother, Anriette, was a shaman with an attitude, and she always seemed to have an issue with Kelsey. Whether it was pointing out how Kelsey enjoyed shamanic training and life in Los Angeles as opposed to Anriette’s old school upbringing in Louisiana, or the fact that Kelsey held down a day job as a therapist instead of being a full-time shaman, nothing she said or did was good enough for her grandmother. It left little wonder as to why her dad moved away, especially when Anriette tried to convince her father not to marry her mother.

Or, maybe just us, Uncle Bo. Now Robert, or Bo, was different. He had an infectious laugh, a charming smile, and he was the most unorthodox shaman she had ever seen. But he always got the job done.

Oh, yeah? He gestured for her to kneel with him. He opened his hand and cast a scrying spell.

Totally. I can help you get rid of that jheri curl—

I like my hair!

And we can be a badass team.

We’ll have to see about that. Besides, once we get your father back to normal, you can be a badass with him.

A pang of guilt hit her, and her expression fell. Uncle Bo, I didn’t mean …

It’s okay, I know.

Has Anriette found a cure for my dad?

He finished his scrying spell then stood, finding whatever he was searching for. Not yet, but I don’t doubt there’s a cure to be had.

Last week, Kelsey would’ve been training in the spirit world with her dad. But right now, that was impossible because he’d exchanged all his powers for a spell that allowed him to cast the Night Lord back into the underworld. The Night Lord was a dark god. He didn’t dare go down like a minor