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Deruthel moved nimbly for a creature on spindly legs. He sidestepped her attack and slashed her back with his claws. Her stomach slid across the grass before she clutched the ground to stay her momentum. The wounds began to heal before she got to her feet.
Her next attack was far more calculated. She took a page from her boxing mentor. A sport she took up for years after her attack. While she had started because her father wanted her to increase her strength and speed, she liked the hand eye-coordination. Her father had told her that she lacked the killer instinct to compete and go far as a competitor. That may have been true. Life was different now.
She rushed at Deruthel, but appeared to be attacking his left shoulder, but as he moved to protect himself, she punctured his right with her claws. Embedding them deep in his flesh, until black blood stung her hands, and the screams soothed her demon soul.
The problem with her attack, was how to get out of it. Her claws had punctured Deruthel’s collarbone and his metabolism began to repair the damage immediately, trapping her claws within his flesh. He screamed as he tried to dislodge her. His hands wrapped around her throat, before she looked death in the eyes.
She understood that moment. All he had to do was extend his claws and her head would be decapitated. One heartbeat. Two. Nothing. He pushed her so hard her claws ripped his pectoral muscle from his chest. It hung in a strip, dripping with black blood until he secured it in place.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” she blurted.
Deruthel growled. “That is a fate you will be denied. You will beg for it. Plead for death, but I will tie you to me, in ways you can’t comprehend. You will see the end of this world, and the next.”
Riley wasn’t sure if it was fear or her hunger. Both bombarded her as a shadow warrior receded. Deruthel wasn’t lying. He wasn’t going to kill her, but she doubted that would be a blessing. She scrambled to get up, planning to go after her father, but Deruthel slashed her leg with his claws. She screamed as she fell to the ground.
“I said I wouldn’t kill you Riley, but I will hurt you.”
Her stomach rolled as she bit back the pain. “Leave my father alone.”
Deruthel pointed to a body in the distance. “I instructed Breck not to kill him. Go on Riley, see to your father.”
Riley crawled across the ground, leaving a trail of blood on the grass. Her calf burned, but she could feel the tissue melding together. The burden of healing a shadow warrior was hell on their metabolism. Her stomach rolled on itself, begging for its next meal. Her demon soul wept with joy when it smelled human blood. Her chest squeezed when she realized it was her father’s.
“Dad,” she whispered as she rolled him onto his back.
Daniel held a frail hand to the puncture marks on his neck. His eyes darted to his daughter, full of fear and regret. He tried to form words but managed only a low gurgling sound.
“No!” Riley screamed, before biting into her wrist and putting it to her father’s lips.
He shook his head when she tried to press the wound to his lips.
“Please dad, trust me.”
Riley wasn’t sure if it was acceptance or his body was just too weak to fight back, but his shoulders slumped to the ground as she pressed against his mouth. Blood poured down his throat until he was actively sucking at her wrist.
Colton snatched her arm away. “That’s enough.”
Tears streamed down her face. “I wasn’t sure if you were alive. In my heart, I believed you were strong enough to heal, but my father...”
Colton slipped his arm around her. “I know, honey. I’m sorry.”
She held her wrist up as it healed before her eyes. “What are his chances? I need him to be okay.”
Daniel struggled for breath as he watched them with sad eyes.
“I can’t lie to you or him. We don’t know why one male survives transition and the next doesn’t. Also, his age doesn’t work in his favor.” Colton said.
“He is only sixty-four. Dementia hit him relatively young.”
“The oldest male to survive transition was forty-one, and he was in exceptional physical shape. You’ve been through the transition Riley. You understand the toll it takes on your body. If his heart gives out before the transition is complete, his soul dies.”
She grabbed Colton’s shirt. “I don’t care what the odds are. I need him to live.”
They both turned to Daniel when he cried out. The veins in his neck had turned black as his body began to shake.
“It’s happening?” She asked.
Colton touched Daniel’s forehead. “He’s burning up. The combination of demon venom in your blood has accelerated the transformation.”
