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Steele put his hand on Colton’s shoulder. “This is never easy.” He knelt beside the bed so he could look Riley in the eyes. “I’m sorry about the pain and what’s coming, but we will save humanity. That is my pledge to you. If you have someone in the human world you need taken care of, we will ensure their safety.”
“Take care of my father. He’s a patient at the Graydon County care facility,” she whispered.
“It will be done,” Steele said.
Riley licked her dry lips. “Why did he want me?”
Steele frowned. “These attacks aren’t personal Riley. Demons are insatiable. They gorge themselves on the blood of their victims. Consuming a world while looking for the next.”
“No. Deruthel wanted me,” she said through clenched teeth.
“What?” Both men said in unison.
“Halak said that Deruthel wanted me. What does this demon have to gain from my death?”
CHAPTER5
Riley struggled to roll onto her back. While she was eventually successful, it was like her body was beneath a blanket of rocks. She fought for each breath, and the simple act of repositioning herself on the mattress was exhausting. Her eyelids drooped before Colton shook her awake.
“Riley. How do you know about Deruthel? What did Halak say to you,” Colton asked.
She replayed the images in her head. Her surreal conversation with the demon of her nightmares. “He called me priestess. He said I had to go with him. If I went quietly, he wouldn’t hurt me, but I think he was lying about that part though.”
Steele leaned over her bed. “Did he say anything else?”
Riley licked lips that felt like sandpaper. “I was shocked by his appearance and mentioned my vision. Specifically, him in it. He was surprised and asked if I could foreshadow. I didn’t know what that was. Halak said it was a shadow gift. He told me he was a demon, and that Deruthel needed me. When I refused to go with him, he attacked me.”
Colton ran his fingers through his hair. “Halak could have gutted you. His prey normally ends up a bloody mess on the floor. You barely have a scratch. You’ve already recovered from the wound on your shoulder. He definitely didn’t want to leave any permanent damage.”
“Why did he call me Priestess?” Riley asked.
Steele’s eyebrows arched. “Halak believes you are a descendant of the Haitian priestess who entered the demon world. She retrieved an alloy called blessed steel, which was used to create our reaper blades. Recently, we’ve learned that she was forced to ingest the demon king’s blood in order to ensure our survival.”
“I don’t understand what that has to do with me. I have no Haitian dissent and was practically raised in the church,” she said.
Colton turned to Steele. “This doesn’t make any sense. While Riley bears a striking resemblance to Dannika, a lot of women have long, dark hair and mocha skin. If the demons are targeting women based on appearance, then thousands of innocent women will die.”
Steele looked Riley over closely. “I don’t think it’s her appearance. Demons can sense their own. Dannika is the only woman to survive transition, and she has both priestess and reaper blood. Demon blood remains in all the descendants of the priestess. Riley, are you sure you have no Haitian background?”
The room darkened, making her surroundings even more muted. It was difficult to tell gray from black as the walls, the men, and everything else in the room, began to blend together.
“No,” she croaked. “My mother was a nurse. She was working at a free clinic when she met my dad, but started working at the hospital before I was born. Dad was in the military and like a lot of the veterans, frequented the clinic.”
Colton placed his elbows on the edge of the mattress. “What about your father? Any chance he has some Haitian descent?”
“I don’t think so. My grandparents on my father’s side were Swedish. They immigrated here when my dad was a boy, but we took a family vacation to visit relatives in Stockholm when I was seven.”
The trip had been one of the highlights of her life. Visiting the local markets, the royal palace, and the award-winning Museum. She’d enjoyed the city park, but the boat tour had been her favorite. The bright buildings lining the river had been the inspiration for many coloring projects during the following years. Her father smiled as the wind whipped his short hair against his forehead and he pointed out inspirational architecture along the shoreline.
Her gut tightened. She was leaving that kind forgiving man to a lonely death. She wanted to tell Colton and Steele how amazing her father was. How they could help him in the years to come, but her body seized.
“Riley?” Colton’s concerned voice cut through the pain.
Her reply died on her lips as her muscles contorted. She took a quick gasp before her body convulsed. The room spun, wavering in the darkness.
She tried to resist, but found her mind drifting away as the pain pulsed through her again and again. A vortex of torture she couldn’t escape. She had prayed hundreds of times, but this was the first time she asked God to end it.
Colton called her name again. The soothing and masculine tone made her want to listen. He was worried and sad. It was strange to feel like she should reassure him when she was the one dying, but her hand fumbled against the sheet, trying to reach for him.
