"Why are you creeping around your house?" he whispered.
"How'd you get out?"
He sensed rather than heard movement on the first floor. The woman strained to break his grip, but he held her in place. Her breathing was the only sound in the still hallway. Whatever was in the house, it wasn't human, or the hair on the back of his neck wouldn't be standing on end. Their breathing synced, and she stilled.
Jule eased away from her and took her arm. She tried to yank free, and he pulled her body against his, moving them both into the alcove.
"Stop," he ordered in a quiet voice. "Whatever is here isn't something you or I can fight."
She sucked in a breath. Her body fit perfectly against his, warming him in the drafty hall.
"We need to find a way out, and we can't walk out the front door. Do you understand me?" he asked.
She nodded, straining against him again. He released her, and she hurried away from him into the center of the hall.
Don't do it! he willed her as she paused.
"Papa!" she shouted and ran towards the stairwell.
Jule wasn't lucky enough for the creature on the main floor not to hear. He bolted after her and tackled her. The woman fought him, and he hauled her to her feet. Wrapping his arms around her in a bear hug, he all but dragged her down the hall.
He sensed the creature ascend the stairs and chose a room at random, shoving it open with his hip. Jule pushed the woman away from the door and slammed it closed. He locked it and looked around.
The woman was halfway out the window on the opposite end of the firelit room. Jule focused first on the nearby wardrobe and braced himself against it. He grunted as he shoved it in front of the door moments before the door bucked under the force of some otherworldly being.
The room smelled familiar, and he realized he'd chosen her room. Any hope he'd had of finding something-anything!-to use as a weapon was dashed as he looked around the sparsely decorated room.
He crossed to the window. The Magician had heart. She'd jumped the two stories to the ground and was running towards a large garage. Jule launched himself out the window as the creature made the second blow against the door. He landed on the hard ground with a curse and darted to his feet, chasing her down again. The woman flung open the door to the garage and ran into it. Jule reached it and turned.