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That voice . . . Maddy recognized it. . . .
Tom.
Somehow he had found her.
She pulled herself up slightly and saw him standing there, wearing his olive-green flight suit and a bandage on his head. He had an M-16 in one hand and a pistol in the other. They locked eyes instantly, and for a flash they shared a look of understanding. They both knew what he was about to do, and Maddy’s heart crumpled just as soon as it had soared. She shook her head.
In response, Tom trained his M-16 on the demon and began firing again. Squealing, the demon began moving away from Maddy, toward its attacker down the dark street. Its unthinkable face twisted
into a snarl, black teeth glinting in the red light of a burning pile of wreckage on the concrete below.
“That’s it, you ugly SOB, follow me,” Tom shouted as he ran backward down the street, trying to draw the demon farther away from Maddy. He knew he couldn’t kill a demon. But he could distract it. Maybe long enough to save her. “Run, Maddy!” he yelled.
Maddy was frozen to the spot, watching him with terrified eyes. How could she just leave?
“Go, Maddy! Go!” Tom unleashed a round of ammunition into the demon again and continued running down the street.
It was as if Tom had somehow willed new energy into her body, and she was able to stand up on one leg, then the other. Tom was farther off now, too far for her to help in her injured state. She felt her crushed wing throbbing against her back, and it made her feel beyond helpless. She should be the one saving him. Her eyes welled up at the thought of the sacrifice he was making. She took a few hobbling steps away, then stopped and turned to look over her shoulder.
Tom was running as fast as he could, his guns held out and at the ready. He ran forward and fired backward, shooting wildly at the demon as he fled from it. But the Dark Angel was closing in, loping closer and closer with every thundering footstep.
“Tom!” she shouted.
“Don’t stop!” he screamed.
At the intersection of the street, underneath a shredded stoplight, another demon materialized, blocking Tom’s way. It was a regular Dark Angel and smaller than the other one, but at ten feet tall, this didn’t reassure Maddy one bit. Tom turned and fired at the second demon. The beast shuddered under the assault, but the bullets only slowed it momentarily. Already recovered, it continued advancing on Tom, who now dropped the empty machine gun and began emptying the clip of his Glock nine-millimeter.
Then, out of nowhere, like a left hook to her jaw, Maddy watched from a distance as a claw plunged straight into Tom’s back and emerged through his chest. The enormous Dark Angel from Maddy’s nightmares had caught up to him. She stopped in her tracks and cried out as Tom dropped to his knees slowly. Blood dripped from his mouth as he looked down, strangely peaceful, at the claw that had impaled his body. Flames started to rise up around him, but it didn’t look as if he could feel any pain. The second demon was circling the scene now, and Tom’s gun fell to the ground with a clatter. The demons hissed with pleasure.
Coughing up sprays of blood, Tom reached into his side pocket and produced his knife. With a decisive motion, he plunged the glinting blade into the demon claw protruding from his chest. He twisted the knife with the last of his strength.
The demon howled and ripped his claw out of Tom’s chest.
Tom smiled. He had saved Maddy. That was all that mattered to him.
The claw had been the only thing holding Tom up, and when it was gone, he took his final breath and tumbled over onto the pile of dusty rubble at his feet. He had done his duty.
Maddy witnessed it all from afar, rendered speechless with grief and shock.
“No!” she wailed, tears blurring her vision. The demons circled the pilot, the black flames off their bodies rippling in the distance. They still hadn’t turned their attention back to Maddy.
Suddenly she remembered Tom’s last words: Don’t stop.
With every shred of strength she had, she fled from the grisly scene, looking for anywhere to hide. Her Divine Sword still lay near the rubble, unclaimed; she didn’t have the strength to pick it up anyway. She just needed to go. Blood pumped frantically through her veins as she hobbled. Then she took a left down a service alley behind a row of stores. She looking back behind her, down the smoky passageway half-lit by the fires in Angel City reflecting off the clouds, and she saw no demons on her trail. She came upon an old metal door that looked like it might lead to some sort of storage room or basement. She tried the metal handle. Locked.
Hrnnnh. She lowered her shoulder and tried to smash against it, but the only effect it had was a little bounce. Pain shot through her body. Hrnnnh. Crying out in pain and grief, she tried again. Hrnnnh. Nothing.
One more time with everything she had. She squared herself and set her jaw, and went for it with all her might. The door burst open and she tumbled into the pitch-dark room, which looked to Maddy like a janitorial closet. Panting, she frantically pushed the door closed and somehow managed to get it to stay shut. It wouldn’t keep the demons out, but at least they wouldn’t be able to see her from outside.
It was pitch-black inside the small room, but she could sense she was alone. Maddy slumped down against the wall next to a mop and bucket. She tried to retract her injured wing, but she didn’t have the energy. She was beyond exhausted, spent. She decided to let her grief run out of her with big, gasping sobs. Tom was dead. He had saved her. And now he was dead.
The tears wouldn’t stop flowing.
Tom is dead. Tom is dead. Tom is dead.
And then the darkness came again.
CHAPTER THIRTY
