“Thought it was time to make some new friends in high places,” I reply flippantly, flexing my grip on my sword.
Nolan is uncomfortably silent behind me, and I didn’t think to give him more direction than don’t die.Shit. Shit, Shit.
An ugly snarl curls the demon’s lips. “Hope you enjoyed it, because it signed your death sentence sooner. When you’re sent to hell, tell dear old grandpappy Idris sent you.”
Before I have a chance to blink, he’s across the field and in my face, shoving me against the truck, and there’s an audible crack from one of my wings. Dots of pain dance across my eyes, but I push back, the blade of mykatanaslicing against both our bellies. A slow spilling curtain of blood starts dripping from my stomach and down my legs.
Nolan leaps out of the way of his sister’s first attack, barely missing her talon like nails, and scrambles away… the fucking dagger still on the ground.I swear even if he lives, I might kill him for his stupidity.
He’s fast, able to dodge and deflect a few of her attacks, but with her demonic strength, she’s faster and quickly has him pinned against Mildred’s black Mercedes.
“You want to let me go,” he growls, his eyes locked with hers like a charmer trying to control a snake.
Letti releases an ugly laugh, her fangs sliding out. “How cute, trying to charm me, but I’m not some pathetic human. Now hold still.”
Realizing his error, Nolan grabs her by the neck and attempts to hold her face back, while she buries both sets of clawed fingers into his sides.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Not paying attention with what the fuck is happening in front of me, I nearly get my own set of demonic vampire teeth in the neck, which is no simple lust drug like living vampires. This bite will make the victim their slave. Thankfully, Idris screams in pain before he can connect, because Kaleb has buried his sword up the fucker’s ribcage.
“Move,” Kaleb shouts, planting his foot in the back of the demon to try and draw out his sword.
I dematerialize my wings, the pain still mind numbingly intense, but with the added space, I’m able to roll out from Idris’ grasp.
“Stupid mistake, little bird,” the demon growls, digging his now razor like nails deep into Kaleb’s shoulder, then uses his grip to throw Kaleb across the yard.
Kaleb spreads his wings, keeping himself upright when he hits the ground, but there’s now splattered blood over the snowy feathers and his sword is still in the demon’s back. He drops into a defensive stance, his labored breaths fighting through clenched teeth.
In a flash, Idris is across the yard and has one hand wrapped around Kaleb’s throat. Kaleb slams the base of his palm into the demon’s nose, snapping his head back with a loud crunch. While he’s distracted, I pick up the abandoned dagger from the ground and throw it as hard as I can, the blade sinking between the demon’s shoulder blades.
Idris shrieks, woodenly turning to see where the blade came from. Kaleb rips the dagger from his back and slices it against the hand squeezing his throat, dropping to the ground and gasping when he’s released.
Blood covers the bottom half of the demon’s face, his nose broken and twisted. He laughs and licks his own blood from his lips, flashing his needle-like fangs. “That all you got, Morningstar?”
“Not even close,” I growl, raising mykatanain readiness to decapitate this son of a bitch.
As Kaleb staggers back to his feet, Idris kicks him in the knee, knocking him back to the ground.
“Faex,” he cries out, barely missing a follow up kick to the face.
At the same time, I hear Nolan scream in pain from somewhere behind the house. He and his sister must have slipped away while I wasn’t paying attention.
“Uh oh,” Idris mocks, swiping his clawed fingers across one of the joints of Kaleb’s wings. “Who do you try to save? Your brother or your lover?”
“Futue te ipsi, es mundus excrementi,” Kaleb roars, using the dagger to slice across the vulnerable tendons at the back of Idris’ leg.
Idris drops to the ground, crying out as the fall shoves the sword deeper through his lungs. Climbing up on the fucker’s chest, Kaleb stabs the dagger into Idris’ neck, shouting, “I’ve got this. Go save Nolan!”
Not bothering to argue, I sprint to the other side of the house, feeling like I have a sword of my own stuck in my back thanks to my broken wing. Forgetting the amount of blood that’s been dripping from my stomach, I nearly slip on the grass, all the blood on my boots making them slick.
Nolan is face first into the charred circle, and Letti is shoving his head into the damp earth, pinning him with one of his arms twisted up behind his back.
“If you join me, all the pain goes away,” she croons like the caring sister she isn’t. “No more broken heart over pathetic humans. No more suffering to try and feed yourself. And you can get sweet revenge on that bitch that hurt you-- while I get sweet revenge on the parents that tried to replace me. We both win.”
“And turn into a psycho bitch like you?” he grinds out, spitting out the dirt in his mouth. “I’m starting to think it wasn’t the undead thing that made our parents want to forget you.”
“Well, they won’t forget you when I make a masterpiece of your internal organs all over their precious mansion,” she snarls, pushing up his arm until there’s an audible pop and he shrieks in pain.
