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Eyes wide, I stared at the demon dressed in his usual, crisp suit. “How—?”
“You were mistreated and destroyed in your youth. It isn’t any wonder that you’d want vengeance against anything and anyone who exploits the vulnerable.” His eyes bled to a blood-red, beaming between bursts of light and trembles of thunder. “I can give you the power to punish those who do. It would be my honor to help bring the wrath of your vengeance on every deserving creature.”
“What’s the catch?”
Nova took a step closer, coming so close that I could feel and sense his surprising heat. His hands lifted and snaked around my neck, holding fast. The demon’s hot breath painted my mouth, and for a second, I didn’t breathe at all. “You may not trust me. Not that I blame you. I wouldn’t after everything you’ve been through. But I can promise our interests align. The same way you wish to punish evil, so do I.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Says the demon.”
When my eyes opened, his irises beamed bright red and his lips were tenderly swept up. “The same way you didn’t ask to be half demon, I didn’t want to be…this.But we all have our crosses to bear.”
Want? Meaning he did something to become it? Interesting.
“What a clever little Jesus reference you have there, demon dude.”
Nova snickered and slid his hands under my jaw, gently taking its shape. “Join me.”
“This again?” I grumbled, trying to break the spell of his touch.
Nova bent down and ghosted his lips over mine, stealing my fight with the touch. “They will come for you soon.”
His words were a shock to the system, and I flicked my eyes up to his. “Who is they?”
Before I could get an answer, I was suddenly back on the plane with Aidan staring at me, concern etched into his brow. “You can’t really believe we’re on the wrong side of things…”
It took me a second to figure out what we were talking about, but I got there. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I think I’ve been in my head a bit too much lately.”
As if understanding completely, Aidan nodded and directed his gaze out the window. “It’ll be nice to get back. Bet Ty’s been eager to have you home.”
“Now you’re just being a dick,” I retorted, cackling.
And then we fell into silence for the rest of the trip. But Nova’s words stayed with me the entire time. I couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable with how sinister they’d come across. Who would be coming for me soon, and why did I get the sense that the meeting would be nothing but bloody?
6
Bloody Massacre
I KNEW THE SENSATION BEFORE even stepping foot into the stairway leading to Aidan’s condo. My luggage dropped, and I threw a hand out to keep Aidan from climbing the steps. An eerie alarm rang in my head and sensations of deadly intentions soaked into me one after the other. The smell of blood hung in the air like a dense fog of death, and without moving, I sensed the overwhelmingly sinister presence above us.
Aidan didn’t need another word from me.
My alarm and the quick grab I made for a weapon I always carried with me—onto the plane, through any form of security, never far from my reach and never detectable to human machinery—was answer enough.
Our luggage was left at the foot of the stairs as we ascended.
Lights in the building flickered on and off as if the power was being sapped every few seconds. Which was just another reason to be uncomfortably alert. Power surges meant the presence of a very strong demon, or more demons than the two of us could handle as a pair. The grip on my weapon tightened, and I prepared myself for an attack the second we hit the end of our climb.
It only took a few minutes to get to the third floor.
Then a sudden surge of electricity took out all the nearby lights, drenching the corridor in darkness. But thanks to my demon night vision, the bloody sheen and destroyed surfaces of what lie in the wake of an attack were easy to see.
Deep, visible cuts from sharp weapons and cratered plaster where bodies had clearly made impact were scattered across the walls and doors. A couple doors were broken apart and littered the floor at our feet. But probably most damning was the blood saturating the tile and flowing out from each doorway like this was some kind of Stephen King horror story.
The amount of blood coating the walls, ceilings, and floors was enough to beguile and horrify any person. Even me. It was like the night I’d killed my foster father, times a hundred.
My boots were coated in seconds, and splashes of blood drenched the bottom of my legs. Yet, I walked on. Lifting my chin, I fixed the hold I had on my weapon. We still couldn’t be sure the demon was gone, so until we confirmed that it was, I wouldn’t drop my guard for a second.
Optimism wasn’t my strongest suit, but even a person with unrelenting optimism would lose every ounce of it when faced with so much violence and death. It was a blood bath, and one that hadn’t been reserved just for our Shadow Stalkers.
