Queen of Wands-eARC Read Online Free PDF

admitted. “Point. But it doesn’t really matter. It found a hook.”
    “Not much of one,” Sharice said, gazing at the demon. “It hasn’t leapt. What’s the hook?”
    “So I like Cheetos…And fried chicken. Is that a sin?”
    “Not if you don’t overindulge,” Sharice replied. “But ignore the Cheetos and cheesecake…”
    “I hate cheesecake…”
    “Never mind. Ignore it. But open up your Ear. Don’t focus. Just stay calm…”
    “Zen…” Barb said. “Ignore the dressing with gravy…”
    “It’s there,” Sharice said, hypnotically. “Can you hear it? It sings its name along with the food. Very faint, an undercurrent, almost unnoticeable…”
    “Zagnatag,” Barb said. “Is that what you mean?”
    At the sound of its name, the demon dove into the box.
    “How long have you…?” Sharice asked, hands on her hips.
    “Pretty much from the beginning,” Barb said, straightening out of her defensive crouch. “It was louder than the Cheetos. I just figured it was white noise or something.”
    “There are times I really dislike you, Barbara Everette,” Sharice said, half bitterly. “I’ve got years of training, and having someone as Gifted as you come along is just…I had to sit with this thing for a week to catch its True Name!”
    “Yeah?” Barb said. “Well, do you go around with whispers and shouts filling your head all the time? Huh?”
    “Good point,” Sharice admitted. “One which we’re going to have to work on. But since you know its True Name, control it.”
    “How?” Barb asked, crouching again.
    “Oh, quit that,” Sharice said. “Fix the name in your mind and call it out. Tell it to move around. If your will is stronger, it will have to obey. You don’t even have to open your mouth.”
    Barbara raised her hand to do just that, then paused.
    “I’m not sure I should,” Barb said.
    “It’s not hard,” Sharice pointed out.
    “No, I mean I should not, not I can not,” Barb corrected. “My religion does not control demons or consort with them. We destroy them.”
    “Jesus sent the Legion into a herd of pigs,” Sharice said. “Think of it that way.”
    “And it wasn’t a popular thing to do,” Barb said. “Can I do it? Probably. Should I do it? That might take some soul searching. It feels wrong.”
    “Well, you can find out a True Name faster than anyone I’ve ever seen,” Sharice said with a shrug. “And once you have that, and your level of power, he’s basically putty in your hands. If you really feel the need to dispel him, feel free. We’ll have to find another one eventually…”
    “No,” Barb said, shaking her head. “The Foundation does God’s work. But each…”
    “Must find their own God,” Sharice said, nodding. “Okay, you seem pretty solid on this stuff. Pulling out the rest of the boxes would be fairly pointless. Well, the ones I’d normally pull out for beginners; and I don’t have a couple more trained adepts to pull out the advanced. So…Time for field work.”
    “Fun, fun, fun,” Barbara said. “Where?”
    “Rubs.”
    * * *
    The bar and grill was part of a small chain in the Asheville area. Copying the success of a much more notable national chain, the waitresses were invariably chosen for their looks, and dressed appropriately.
    “Oh, my God,” Barb said as they walked into the bar. It was just the beginning of the evening shift, and while there were still few customers, the full crop of waitresses was on the floor.
    “Don’t stare, don’t Reveal,” Sharice said, walking over to a table with a view of most of the bar.
    “They’re…everywhere,” Barb hissed, setting Lazarus’s carrier on the table. The cat slid open the bi-directional zipper she’d installed and poked his head out, hissed and ducked back in. Probably because every second woman in the grill, not just the waitresses, had a small demon on her shoulder.
    “I’m sorry, ma’am,” a man said, hurrying over to their table. “There are no pets