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Air washed over me as I jumped out the opening in the building. My boots met the cobblestone street in a bone-rattling hit, jarring my teeth. A flare of pain shot up my ankles, and my palm scraped the ground as I steadied myself.
Superhero movies made jumping out of a window look so much easier.
I shot up and dashed away from the gothic mansion, ignoring the stares from demons. Thankfully, none of them chased after me as I hurried around a corner and headed east toward the exit of Vlehull where only forest stood between me and the gateway to Savannah. Victory hung so close I could taste it.
Thunder ripped through the atmosphere, shaking the ground enough that I stumbled into a light post. I twisted around as I clung to it, my blood chilling to icy temperatures.
That hadn’t been thunder at all.
A massive bull sub-demon barreled out of the shop he’d just demolished, onyx horns tearing at the bits of brick and wood to free himself. Demons screamed and scattered to get out of his way.
Blood-red irises zeroed in on me, smoke pouring from his nose as his hoofs raked the cobblestones.
What the ever-loving fuck?
My muscles shook as the bull bellowed, revving up to charge me. Was he Karn’s pet? His beastly familiar?
The thing had to be twice as big as any bull on Earth, and those horns gleamed like polished weapons ready for battle.
“Why are you just standing there!” A female demon screamed at me. “Run before he attacks.”
Too late. The sub-demon took off, his hoofs ripping gouges in the street.
I snatched one of the daggers from the holster on my leg and spun out of the beast’s path, dragging the blade across his side. His head whipped in my direction, and I dove to the ground, but his horn slashed my arm.
Fire tore at my flesh, and blood ran down my arm from the cut. Damn, that stung like a mother.
I scrambled up as the bull shimmied around, snarling and bucking while black blood oozed out of his side. The surrounding demons had either ran inside or taken cover, and a rainbow of multicolored eyes popped through the shadows to watch the show.
The bull clawed at the ground again, his nostrils flaring and muscles twitching. My attack hadn’t done much damage and only angered him.
Great. The sub-demon wasn’t already scary enough.
He charged, and this time, I sprinted down the street as fast as my trembling legs could carry me. Each of his steps vibrated the ground, and when the stench of his breath filled my nose, I turned sharply and changed directions.
The bull crashed into a tall building, sending violent tremors up to the soaring roof. Stunned from the hit, he staggered to the left and rammed into another exterior brick wall.
Screams erupted, and an iron balcony tore from the structure, a keening wail echoing as it swung back and forth on one side. Within seconds, the bolts holding it would fail. I could practically see them bending.
“Mara!”
My head snapped up at the voice, and a look of horror washed over a female demon’s face. I followed her attention to a tiny demon girl with rosy skin, emerald hair, and eyes like the ocean, standing directly beneath the rocking terrace.
A metallic crunch reverberated through the city, and the balcony fell. The demon kid didn’t see it. Even if she did, her small legs wouldn’t carry her to safety fast enough.
Images of Jayla’s tiny, still frame sprawled on dirty cement flashed through my mind. I’d failed her and my friends.
The kid a few feet away couldn’t have been more than six, and demon or not, the curious, untainted gleam in her gaze meant she still clung to that innocence we all started with. I was supposed to protect that.
My feet moved before I made a conscious decision, but it would be the same. All I saw when I looked at her was a child who couldn’t defend herself. The bull had charged this way to come after me. If she died, her blood would be on my hands.
I closed my arms around her and dove to the ground, using my body as a shield. The shrieks of the surrounding demons sheared off as a metal crunch vibrated the land, and the balcony fell around us. And then white-hot, blinding pain ripped my insides apart.
ChapterFifteen
An explosionof fire erupted on the left side of my torso, but the thunderous crash of the balcony slamming to the street swallowed my brutal shout. Dust and dirt kicked into my face, clouding the small space trapping the demon child and me.
As the debris settled, I coughed, shooting another acute flare of pain through my side. And then I finally realized why it felt like my abdomen wanted to rip in half. A long iron shaft had impaled me.
