Wicked Release (16 page)

It boggled Ume’s mind. Julie truly believed in all of it. In shifters and vampires, ghosts and demons.

Oni
was the name her mother used for the demons she was constantly trying to protect Ume from. But in her stories the evil spirits never looked like the one from
Shifting Reality
. Saint.

When she’s seen him on camera, he’d always been looking down at some device, his dark hair swooping across his forehead, concealing his eyes. But from what she
could
see, he was gorgeous. Nothing like a troll or monster. Nothing that would kill you or steal your soul. The worst that beautiful creature could do was break a heart or twelve.

She had to admit, at least to herself, that seeing him in a link from one of Julie’s emails was what initially had her looking up the online role-playing game he’d created.
Demon Saint
.

Usually she preferred her entertainment to be active, out of doors, somewhere in nature. But being confined for the last few years had gotten her a little too involved in soap operas, reality shows and online games.

When she saw how big the world of
Demon Saint
was, how challenging…she simply couldn’t resist. Nothing had helped her pass the time between therapy sessions, or deal with her never-ending insomnia, better than the online quests.

Just thinking about it gave her a burst of energy. She opened her laptop and quickly typed in the password to enter the game. On the screen she could see her character statistics and the quests, or storylines, she was currently involved in.

She also saw Plum, the name she’d given the figure that she controlled within the confines of the game. Plum was the English translation for Ume, and she had to admit, she had fun bringing her character to life.

The creation of her avatar had taken days, and it was a masterpiece in her opinion. Just the right combination of warrior and mystic to be a sought-after player.

Maybe she’d gotten her mother’s imagination after all. Plum was nothing if not an homage to her mother’s beliefs. A female
kitsune
. A fox spirit with the ability to appear human and magic enough to fight the different demons the game created to challenge its players.

Ume had also created a talisman for her character. A necklace with a single, perfect pearl. A
hoshi no
tama,
a star ball, believed to be the energy of the
kitsune
spirit, as well as protection against evil.

Her character was everything her poor mother believed Ume was. Special. A defender against the
Oni
. Powerful.

It was, without a doubt, the height of escapism. But she was addicted to this game. And, she reached up to grasp the teardrop pearl around her own neck, it reminded her of her past. Of her mother’s stories.

If only her mother and Julie were both right. If only it were real.

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