Witch's Bell Book One

Ebony in a comforting glow. From the desperate darkness and shadows of the lane-way, the street seemed like a palace of refuge. 'We've got to go to Harry's!' she finally realized, chiding herself for not thinking of it sooner.
    'Harry's?' Nate kept hold over her hand, even though Ebony was having no trouble keeping up.
    'The store is very powerful. I don't have any magic, but Harry does. No matter who sent that thing, they'll think twice about trying to break into a possessed store.'
    Nate didn't question, even though the thought of taking refuge in a store that had already tried to kill him twice, obviously didn't sit well with him.
    It took them less than a minute to run across the street and finally make it to the outside of Harry's Second-Hand Bookstore. Nate finally took his hand off Ebony's and walked towards the boot of his car.
    'We have to go inside, quickly,' Ebony's voice was desperate as she went for her keys. But she realized with a completely broken, crestfallen feeling, that all her belongings were still strewn over the lane-way. She took a sharp breath, as if someone had just stabbed her from the side. 'My keys – I left them back there.'
    Nate didn't reply, just hauled open his boot, and pulled at the locked gun-case in the back. 'I'll go and get them,' he said gruffly, pulling the gun and holster from his case, and fixing them around himself with quick, practiced ease.
    Ebony shook her head. She didn't want Nate going back there on his own. Even though the titan of a man had obviously been after Ebony, she couldn't let Nate go back there.
    But just as Ebony took a heavy, pained sigh, the door behind her opened.
    Harry let them in.
    Nate's face narrowed, but Ebony just rushed inside immediately, beckoning him on with quick flicks of her hand.
    'Oh Harry,' she said, voice high and strained, 'thank you.'
    Nate didn't rush in though. 'You can't just leave your bag back there,' he brushed at his nose, one hand seeming to perpetually hover near his holster. 'I'll go back and get it.'
    'Nate! Get inside! It's not worth it! It's just a bag!' Ebony's voice was more desperate than she'd ever heard it. Every word seemed to be punctuated with throat-wrenching hiccups – as if she were trying to push her speech through a broken, closed-off throat.
    'That guy wanted your bag, Ebony, we can't leave it back there,' and with that, he turned and half-ran back down the street.
    'Nate!' she screamed after him, launching herself towards the door, trying to follow him and drag him back before he got himself killed.
    But Harry wouldn't let her. He closed the door with a bang, and no matter how hard she tugged on the handle, it wouldn't budge.
    'Let me out, Harry!' she screamed.
    But the door just locked itself.
    'Harry! Harry!'
    But no matter how much she screamed, banged, or sobbed, Harry wasn't going to do a damn thing. His will was as strong as iron, and his grip on his store doubly so.
    So Ebony just found herself sinking to the floor, the situation banking around her like sand piling down from the top of an hourglass.
    She could hear her rasping breath, feel the shaking in her chest, and see the flush in her hands and arms.
    Though her breath slowed, her mind didn't. She tried to pray as hard as she could that Nate would get back here okay, that whatever creature had attacked Ebony wouldn't come back.
    Finally, finally, she heard footsteps outside, and she ran back towards the door, just in time to hear the key grind into the lock and the door open.
    Though Harry hadn't automatically opened the door for Nate, it didn't matter, he had the key. And magical store or not, there was a universal law that if the right key was put into the right lock, said lock would open.
    'Nate!' for some reason she was bouncing up and down on her toes, as if trying to see over a hedge at what was coming down off the hill.
    He took a deep, tired sigh, and handed her the bag.
    She took it, quickly dumping it to the ground. She tried to fight the urge to just leap forward and hug him. Even though she almost hated the guy, she reminded herself, she couldn't think of anything else to do right now.
    She just wanted to hug him, feel his arms close in around her, and her arms fold in around him.
    Instead, she just kept bouncing from foot to foot.
    'Are you okay?' he said again, clearly and slowly.
    Ebony just shook her head.
    'What kind of magic was that?' He asked, voice still as clear and calm as a summer stream, and just as inviting to jump