Free Winter's Light by Mj Hearle

lights inside the burners.
    ‘Make the house safe,’ Sam answered, filling the dishes atop the burners with water from the tap. He then brought out a tiny vial of murky, purplish liquid from within his trenchcoat. ‘This oil is made from elderflower,’ Sam continued, adding a few drops to the water. ‘It should keep the Demori out.’ Almost immediately, the air became rich with the scent of the oil; the kitchen now smelt like a florist’s. Not at all unappealing, but certainly pungent.
    ‘ Should ?’ Winter said, eyeing the burners sceptically. The tea lights flickered lemon yellow behind the grates, flames heating the oil and water mixtures. Nefertem leapt up onto the table and padded cautiously over to the brown burner. Snout wrinkling, he lent in to sniff the dish before skittering away, clearly offended by the aroma.
    ‘Have faith,’ Sam said as he handed Winter the blue burner. ‘Carry this through the house and leave it somewhere towards the back. The idea is to fill the house with the scent of elderflower.’
    Confused but willing to do anything to feel safer, Winter took the burner and followed Sam’s instructions. After depositing the burner in the laundry at the back of the house, she returned to the kitchen to find Sam sitting at the table, tightening his crossbow mechanism.
    ‘What do we do now?’ Winter asked, expecting him to propose another protective ritual. Perhaps get her to sit down with him and chant some kind of spell or mantra.
    ‘Have you got anything to eat?’ Sam asked a little hesitantly.
    Winter arched an eyebrow. ‘You’re serious? You want me to feed you?’
    ‘Forget it —’
    She sighed in exasperation. ‘Fine. I’ll heat something up.’ She walked to the fridge to see what there was. Luckily, it had been her turn to cook the previous night, and she had made enough tuna pasta to last a few more meals.
    ‘Don’t go to any trouble for me,’ he said, as she carried the leftovers to the microwave. However, the way his eyes kept straying to the Tupperware container in her hands made her think he was just being polite.
    ‘I won’t.’ Looking at him in the clear light of the kitchen, Winter was able to see just how changed Sam was. The last time she’d seen him he could have passed for a freshly recruited marine with his shaved head, broadly muscular frame and eager, confident demeanour. It wasn’t just that his hair had grown out or that he hadn’t shaved in what looked like weeks. His body shape had changed too. He was still tall and broad, but he’d lost some of his previous bulk and appeared much more wiry. Not emaciated by any stretch of the imagination, but definitely thinner. His cheeks had a faint hollow look to them. Against her better judgement, she found herself feeling sorry for him.
    Placing the tuna in the microwave, she noticed the time. It was nearly eight. Lucy and Dominic would just be finishing up at the restaurant and getting ready to walk to the cinema. She and Sam had a few hours yet before he’d have to make himself scarce.
    ‘When you told me you weren’t going to throw the necklace away,’ Sam said, setting the crossbow on the table, ‘I started thinking we might be able use it. The Demori are arrogant. They think they’re untouchable. This Benedict won’t be expecting us to try to trap him.’ He paused as though having second thoughts about whatever it was he was about to propose.
    ‘Go on,’ Winter urged, curious to see where this was heading.
    ‘Tomorrow, once the sun sets you’ll use the stone. Use it to call Blake again. Benedict will hear the call and come for you. The difference is this time I’ll be waiting for him.’
    ‘That doesn’t sound like a very safe plan,’ Winter said, crossing her arms and frowning at him.
    Sam sighed and picked up the crossbow again. ‘It’s not, and honestly, I wouldn’t suggest it if I thought there was another way. Unfortunately, there isn’t. Or I’m not smart enough to come up with