Distractions

Eight: Demon Summoning and Babysitting

"Zoe, when I say duck, I need you to crouch down at my feet and cover your ears. It's going to get loud in a second."

Everest felt the girl nod and she drew her gun from where it sat on her thigh. Everest scanned the room again and this time she saw that there were three men standing on ledges above them, crouched and ready to jump down and block their path.

"Duck!"

As Zoe crouched, Everest aimed her gun at the man right in front of them. A loud bang was heard and he dropped dead, his sword falling with his body. One man turned to face his fallen comrade, but the other dropped to the ground and started walking towards her.

"I don't know who you are girlie, but you're gonna regret that," he snarled.

Everest pulled the trigger again and the second dropped dead, a bullet hole in his chest. She turned to the third one but she didn't see him. Everest turned around slowly, making sure to keep one foot near Zoe to make sure she was still there. There was a tug at her shoulder, causing her to whirl around and come crashing into a stranger's chest. She was turned around again and a thick arm wrapped its way around her neck, the other knocking her gun from her hand. She struggled as Zoe scrambled away. 'At least Zoe's safe,' Everest thought.

Seeing the girl's terrified face filled Everest with a renewed anger for the man behind her and the Circle as a whole. It was because of people like him that this little girl didn't have a father anymore, why Everest and Clary hadn't grown up knowing their heritage. It was because of the Circle and men like him that so many had to live in fear, that entire groups of people lived in hiding because they were too scared to walk outside.

Everest elbowed the man in his stomach, successfully winding him. She backed away from him and saw her gun two steps to her left. She looked at the man who was quickly approaching her and stood her ground. She waited until he was within striking distance and feigned a left hook. When he went to dodge, she kicked her leg up and kicked him where no man ever wanted to be hit.

He crumpled and Everest took the two steps to her left and picked up her gun as quickly as she could. She aimed it at the man and glared at him.

"You're a bitch," he spat.

A shot rang out and the man was dead.

"Only sometimes," she muttered as she walked away.

She approached where Zoe was curled up, her head between her knees and ears covered. She set her gun down next to her and crouched next to the girl.

"Zoe, they're gone. You can stand up now," she said.

Zoe slowly uncurled herself and Everest made sure to block her view of the body. She picked up her gun and wrapped an arm around the girl. As she led her in the direction she hoped was Magnus's lair, she covered Zoe's eyes.

"Why're you covering my eyes?" Zoe asked, her body shaking.

"Because you don't need to see that." Everest cast a glance at the three bodies lying on the floor, blood pooling around them. "Nobody does."

Trigger Warning over!

...

Everest walked into the living room, stepping over a broken chair in the doorway. She had Zoe on her hip and her gun was tucked back inside its holster. The girl had her arms wrapped around her neck and her head was leaning on her shoulder. She was exhausted and after she had nearly fallen twice, Everest had picked her up and carried her the rest of the way.