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I sucked in ragged gulps of air and wiped at the speckles of black on my face, doing nothing more than smearing them into streaks. Hawk staggered up, his mouth opening and closing as he glanced from me to the dead beast at my feet.
“You bagged a dux demon.”
Per the accords, we could only kill nightworlders—except sub-demons—if they broke the rules. Trying to murder us without provocation was a damn fine example of rule breaking.
“He wasn’t that hard to put down. Not with a sword, anyway.” For a second, the demon resembled another corpse I’d stood over years ago, blood splashing the concrete. And me.
Hawk scoffed, bringing me out of my thoughts before they could breach that dark place. “Demons, and I don’t mean the brainless sub-beasts like those slugs, are the hardest nightworlders to kill.” He brushed his palm over his shirt to knock off the blades of grass stuck to it. “Vampires? A wooden stake to the heart. Shifters? Silver. Fae? A little bit of iron. Witches can die from any mortal wound as long as they aren’t allowed to heal. But demons? Chopping off a dux, high, or royal’s head is no easy task.”
Footsteps pounded through the cemetery, and two figures sprinted in our direction, their black attire blending in with the night.
“He attacked us first.” Hawk leaped over the tombstone and flanked my side as Gia and Axel halted in front of us. “We killed three sub-demons, and then he showed up, not even bothering with a glamour.”
Gia studied the dead demon and shook her head, her honey and caramel braids swaying behind her back. “That’s—unusual.” Hawk opened his mouth to argue when she lifted her hand. “But I believe you. Tatum wouldn’t have put him down without a good reason.”
Axel nudged the demon’s head with his boot as he dragged his hand through his short, plum hair. “We weren’t expecting a dux demon. We swept the area before leaving you two and didn’t see any evidence of other nightworlders, not even vamps who like to frequent this place.” His jade eyes lifted to mine, a grin melting over his face. “Tatum Teague, you had to go above and beyond for your test, didn’t you?”
I shrugged and ran my thumb over the rune on my sword’s hilt to disable the blade. “I just did what any of you would.”
Gia snorted. “Yeah, but both of us have already gone through initiation. We’re stronger and faster than any human.Youaren’t.”
“We make an excellent team, don’t we?” Hawk threw his arm over my shoulders and pulled me into his side.
Axel dug into his pocket where a raven emblem was stitched and pulled out a pouch of Whither dust used to disintegrate nightworlder bodies. “You distract them with all of your crying while Tate kills them.”
Hawk’s grin turned into a sneer, and he flipped Axel off. “Did we pass the field test or what?”
Gia reached her hand out to shake mine and then Hawk’s. “Congratulations, you two. Tomorrow, you’ll be initiated as full ravens.”
ChapterTwo
Hot water rainedover me and washed the black blood down the drain in murky swirls. I ran the gray loofa across my left arm, the soap suds skating over the faint scars still mottling my wrist. Matching marks crossed my right one.
A whole plethora of scars spotted my body, but most weren’t from demons or any other nightworlder.
I hung the loofa back on the hook suctioned to the wall and pressed my palm against the white tiles, leaning into the stream of hot water. My reddish-pink hair hung around my face in long strands, obscuring my vision.
The demon called the color blood and bubblegum. I grimaced at the imagery. That was definitely a new one in a long list of names used to describe my hair. I’d been born with the odd shade, and as a kid constantly passed around to different foster homes, I’d experienced my fair share of ridicule.
People always feared anything unusual or different, and a shy kid with bright hair stood out like a dandelion in a bouquet of roses. A weed among pretty flowers. Something to pluck out and destroy.
I shook the macabre thoughts away and cut off the water. I’d finally found my place as a raven—someone who policed the supernaturals in this world and protected the innocent—and this was my opportunity to right some of my wrongs.
Of course, I could never undo what happened, but saving others might clean some of the stains off my soul.
After leaving the shower and wrapping a soft towel around my body, I tiptoed into my bedroom, the original hardwoods of the historic mansion creaking beneath my bare feet until making it onto the plush, burgundy rug. Decorative crown molding original to the house bordered the cream walls, and a copper light fixture hung from the center of the ceiling. The place I’d called home for the last few years was a huge upgrade from where I’d lived before.
A second twin bed used to occupy the other side of the room, but after all my previous roommates complained to Captain Coltrane about being woken up in the middle of the night, she decided I’d be better off alone.
I couldn’t help that my constant nightmares kept my roommates from getting any sleep. They weren’t the only ones sleep deprived.
Nighttime shrouded my third-floor window that overlooked Jones Street, one of the prettiest roads in Savannah's historic district. Thanks to a few enchantments from witches, anyone taking an interest in Corvin Manor would feel the need to hurry by.
The house was also much bigger on the inside than it should be. The coven stretched the living quarters on the first three floors to fit the underaged and older novices, mentors, and teachers. Underground levels held gyms, training rooms, equipment, and weapons.
A hummingbird buzzed by the window and sipped from the feeder I’d strung off a branch on the large oak. Hawk had climbed out of my window many times and scaled the giant tree down to the red brick road below. I’d followed him plenty over the last two years to ensure he stayed out of trouble.
We’d both experienced tragedies, but he hadn’t seen the extent of evil in this world like I had. I wanted my best friend to hold on to that lingering speck of innocence for as long as possible.
