Page 12 of Vampire Visions

“I’ll get the bullets from Franklin.” Palmer gave me a half smile. “We’ll get it sussed.”

“We all need to train, but you,” Jack pointed at me, “need to train twice as hard after getting shot. You and Novak will need to be ready for the coven council. If they know you’ve been injured then they’ll jump. You remember the shady shit Nate used to say about Kadence when we were younger? You have to be ready to fight that battle with uneven sides,” he explained. “And, Lo? Kadence will know that you’ve been injured, in some way, as soon as she sees that you’re alive. She’s the one who sent Taylor to shoot you. I asked Novak to compel him, and then we had him call Kade and tell her you were dead.”

“I know, and that doesn’t surprise me.” I huffed at the bossy demon. “Let’s get to it then.” I stood, taking my plate with me as I made my way into the kitchen. I dropped it in the sink after snatching the seeds off and followed Jack out the backdoor.

When my bare feet hit the grass, I shifted immediately. Stretching my canine body out like a typical dog, I dug my claws into the fresh earth. The duel power sensations felt liberating. The spirit that was my wolf seemed happy with the energy flowing into her paws. Nature calmed her restlessness. The earth’s magic coursed through me, settling her unease over my wounds.

I shifted back to my human skin and grinned at Grim. “You were right. I do feel better.”

“Now shift to your demon form. That should push the rest of it out.”

“Don’t push me, Reaper,” I teased him. “I’m not trying to let the little devil out to play today.” I smirked at the group of guys gathered on the patio. “Who’s first?”

They all eyed each other, and I sighed. Levi stepped up and asked, “Do you know how to box, or have you ever trained in any martial arts?”

I gave him a saccharine smile. “Have you ever been hit with bricks?”

“Just... don’t hit me in the face, okay? I don’t heal as fast as you do.” He shook his head like he regretted the decision to step forward first.

“That’s what potions are for, Levi. Franklin left some on the table for us.” I walked over and dug through the basket. “Here. This one's for speed, and this one’s for strength. When you're done, the greenish-yellow looking one’s for healing.” I placed two tiny vials in his hand and pointed to the sludgy green one. “Fair warning, the healing one tastes like shit.”

Levi downed the potions and set the empty glass bottles on the table before removing his shoes. Grim followed him out into the yard.

Time for the fun to begin.

We faced each other and nodded. I pulled my hands up and took my fighting stance. My feet were a little further apart than my shoulders, left foot leading. My right fist was by my face, and my left was slightly in front of me. Levi circled me in one direction while Grim circled from the other.

They both struck in tandem. I ducked down, using my right leg to sweep Grim’s feet out from under him as Levi’s fist connected with the reaper’s shoulder. I followed through with my foot and landed a kick to Levi’s left thigh. He stumbled but didn’t back down.

Grim flipped himself up, narrowing his eyes at me. I blocked his punch with my forearm and swung my left hand wide. The haymaker landed against his mouth, making him grin to show his bloody teeth. “Fuck,” Levi whispered, causing me to turn my attention to him.

He shot in with a classic wrestling take-down. I threw my left leg back, and pushed my hips down on his shoulders as I grabbed the nape of his neck. Throwing my weight to the right, I pushed him to the left and he tumbled off balance.

Novak sped by, knocking me on my ass, and laughed as he moved out of my reach. I rolled to my back, flipping my feet over my head and landing in a crouch. “Turning this threesome into a foursome?” I asked him with a wink. He motioned me forward, lowering his stance and dropping his fangs.

Levi and Grim stepped back as I sprang into motion.

Black smoke wafted across the ground like fog when Jack shifted to join us. I opened my fist and used my thumbnail to flick the grape seeds out from under the nail on my middle finger. I charged Novak, and he met me halfway. We slammed together like two cement cinder blocks. With fangs bared, we grappled for dominance.

Let’s give these druid powers a test run.

I felt Jack moving in from behind me, his large form making no noise as he stalked his prey. I pulled back from Novak, putting some much needed distance between us. When Jack was close enough, I clapped my hands together in front of my chest and watched in fascination as grape vines sprouted from the ground at an awe-inspiring rate. They tangled around his legs, stopping his approach. I laughed when he nipped at the vines with his sharp teeth. Two vines replaced every one he bit through. They heeded my command, twisting tightly around Jack’s demon form and pulling him to the ground with all four legs tucked under his mass. “One down, nine to go,” I whispered to myself in excitement.

Grim stepped back up, his robe flowing in the slight breeze and his scythe in his hand. I looked him up and down as I decided what weapon to summon. Mmm-hmm. Snapping my fingers, I called a broad sword to my left hand and a short sword to my right. “You can’t just pull weapons out of your ass, Lo,” he complained as he tried to strike me.

“I didn’t,” I said as I blocked him. “They were in my closet. I haven’t used them in ages.” I shoved forward with my short sword and swung the broad sword low, connecting with his left leg, where his calf should have been. He dropped to his right knee. “Next,” I called out, pointing my short sword at his neck.

“You’re getting cocky,” he scolded me as he despatched his scythe, tendons and muscles appearing on his outstretched hand. I relinquished my weapons, watching as his skin crawled back to the tips of his fingers.

I gave him a smug smile. “I’m feeling pretty confident,” I remarked. Lightning struck my left thigh, and I tumbled to my knees from the force. Grim returned my smile with a smugness of his own.

Palmer moved into my line of vision and created a vortex of gale proportions around me. Debris flew through the air, the sticks and rocks battering me. The wind whipped my loose hair around my face. He walked through the tornado in my yard untouched. The display of power was a huge turn on, but I had to stay focused. Later, you horny bitch.

He shot bright orange bolts at me, making me jump to my feet and back away to avoid being hit. The gusts of wind pushed and pulled roughly at my body. Think, Sloane. Stop this shit. I threw my left hand up forming a shield to stop the assault. Palmer twisted his hand — his fingers positioned like he was holding a large ball — switching the direction of his vortex.

With my intent focused, I summoned my grape vines again. They attached to Palmer’s feet, planting him firmly to the ground. When he shifted his attention to my attack, I forced the vines to grow behind his back, up and over him. They snagged his wrists and stretched his arms tight above his head. Clapping my hands again, I changed my focus and dissipated his magic. I didn’t need to use my hands to do the magic, but it helped my concentration sometimes.

Briggs’ shifted form came barreling in as soon as the wind stopped. The force of his tackle had me flat on my back with the wolf standing over me. I smiled sweetly up at him before shifting and sinking my teeth into his front leg. He yelped and jumped back, snarling at me. I shifted back to my human skin and swirled the fingers of my left hand in the air. My grape vines hog tied Briggs on the ground. He growled low in his throat as they wrapped around his muzzle. I held my hands up, palms out, to Grim, bending my thumbs and one index finger down.