by Rose Wulf
Creed sprang forward without warning, curving a veritable blade of dark energy around his hand and releasing it with a vicious swing of his arm. Darr rolled and let his shoulder slam into the bottom edge, grinding his teeth against the pain as the rest of the attack shattered.
The beautiful thing about dark energy was that any demon could use it. There was no ‘specific flavor’ attuned to one demon or one bloodline. So when Creed’s homemade weapon shattered, Darr was in the perfect position to gather the pieces and mold them into something new. It took only a tiny bit of his own energy to fashion the sphere and even less to hurl it straight at Creed’s rotten head.
He didn’t expect it to work, but he hoped it would be a good distraction. If he was really lucky, it’d even slow him down.
****
“Zahk.” Somehow, Izzy was less than surprised to see that she’d been followed. “You son of a bitch.” She wanted to gouge his eyes out for betraying Darr like he had.
Zahk’s lips twitched. “Right back at you, whore,” he returned. “I always knew that story about the bond was bullshit.”
“Would that really have held you back?” Because frankly, she doubted it. A lot.
Zahk shrugged and stepped closer. “Not my call. And Creed’s a little busy killing your toy.”
“He’ll fail,” Izzy snapped. “Darr’s strong. He’ll survive.”
“Hmm.” Zahk crowded her against a tall tree trunk. Leaning in close he whispered, “And do you think that’ll be enough for him? Once you’re dead, I mean?”
Izzy swallowed heavily.
“I for one would kind of like to see,” Zahk continued, reaching out and playing with her hair. “Any last requests?”
Izzy thought about spitting in his face, or seeing if she could land a knee in his undoubtedly tiny balls, but before she could more than begin to decide the decision was taken from her.
“Demon.” The voice was harsh and threatening. Full of power.
Kai.
Zahk turned his gaze reflexively, his eyes bulging when he realized who had called to him. He released her and landed a foot in the tree’s shadow, but it was too late. Kai was standing too close to miss when he drew his sword. Zahk screamed, the sound wet and sickening, before disappearing forever in a burst of black demonic flame. Leaving behind nothing but an unusually blue scorch.
Kai turned to Izzy, flickering sword at his side, and wasted no time getting to the punch line. “Where is Creed?”
****
Darr bit back an outcry of pain as Creed’s newly acquired spear of splintered wood impaled him. It had missed his heart, and probably his lungs, but not by much. Instead of lingering on the pain, Darr grabbed hold of the spear and jerked it straight back. He managed to tear a good chunk out of Creed’s arm.
Creed laughed loudly. “That may be the best hit you’ve ever landed on me!” He glanced toward his bleeding, gouged arm with a sick grin. “I might be impressed. It’s a shame you don’t see the value in torture.”
“One of the many things we’ll never agree on,” Darr returned tightly. His chest hurt like hell and though he’d survive, he was going to be weaker than he’d been in decades. For a while, at least—and that was assuming he lived through the fight.
“That has to hurt,” Creed said, mock-cringing as he studied the wound he’d inflicted. Then he lifted his stare to Darr and his lips twitched. “Let’s see how much more I can hurt you.”
Darr braced himself, debating the wisdom of drawing on more dark energy to fight with over reserving his power. He almost didn’t notice Creed freeze. But freeze he had, right in his tracks. Creed’s expression curved into an angry snarl and he straightened. What caught his attention?
An image of Izzy immediately filled his mind and Darr realized Creed was now staring in the direction she’d fled. He reacted on instinct.
With a roar Darr launched and tackled Creed to the ground. They tore into the topsoil with their impact, dragging back several feet, each struggling to get the upper hand. Until Creed threw his weight into nearly knocking Darr off balance and Darr’s shoulder slammed into a tree.
“Thanks,” Creed said a moment before disappearing into the shadows around them.
Darr barely had a moment to process what had happened before the reason why made itself known.
“You let him escape.” It wasn’t a question. And it wasn’t Izzy.
Darr looked over, landing on one knee, and realized that itch to run had been because there was a damned angel walking up. The same so-called warrior angel who’d bailed them out of the problem at the resort, supposedly in the name of chasing Creed. This time he wore battle leathers and wielded a sword at his side—a sword surrounded by flickering white-blue flame.
“Darr!” That was Izzy. She bolted from behind the angel, running to him and dropping to her knees at his side. “You’re hurt!”
Ignoring the angel for a moment, Darr dragged his gaze up and down Izzy’s figure. She had some scrapes, but aside from her head injury there was nothing too bad. Nothing an unplanned flight through brush couldn’t be to blame for. “Are you all right?”
Izzy frowned and tears pooled in her shining eyes. “I won’t be if you die, you idiot.” There was no venom in her voice. Just unsteady wavering and concern.
“Demon.”
Knowing it wasn’t smart, especially in his weakened condition, to continue ignoring the angel, Darr looked back to him. Kai hadn’t moved a step. He still held his sword, at his side in a semi-relaxed state that instinct insisted was an illusion. Just one glance into this being’s eyes was enough to assure anyone that he was not to be fucked with. “Why are you here?” Shouldn’t he have gone after Creed?
Kai’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. “Isolde prayed for assistance. She offered Creed in return. Why did you let him escape?”
“I said I knew where he was,” Izzy interrupted. But her voice betrayed her. She recognized the danger in this situation, too.
“It isn’t like I was trying to,” Darr reminded. “He had the upper hand.” Again. And while that didn’t surprise him, it did infuriate him. Creed was older, from a stronger line, and had fought his way to a position of power in Hell. It was natural that Darr wouldn’t stack up to him, but damn if that didn’t do a thing to make him feel better. Instead of dwelling on that, though, Darr refocused on the current problem. It wasn’t nearly out of the question that this angel wouldn’t decide to kill him.
And what would happen to Izzy if he died?
Chapter Eight
Izzy held her breath as Kai studied Darr. In the moment praying for help had seemed like such a good idea, but now … now she was terrified that she would be responsible for the death of the person she loved most in all the world. Such a tragedy would kill her. She wanted to fall to her knees between them and plead for Darr’s life, but she didn’t dare. Darr would be insulted and this angel didn’t seem like the kind of man who had much tolerance for—well, anything.
Has it really come down to this?
When she was a child, believing herself newly bound to a dark and powerful demon, Izzy had envisioned herself untouchable. Finally free. Even when her father’s work and increasingly questionable methods endangered her life she had never really been scared. Never felt held back or infringed upon. Because Darr was with her. This man with more power than she knew how to describe and just enough control to pass for human when necessary. As her father pulled away, Darr became her everything. Her rock, her savior. She fell in love with him like it was inevitable, and when he’d finally touched her … the best way to describe how she felt was ‘pure bliss.’
How could something so right, so perfect, so destined, be cut down now? When it had barely gotten off the ground? How would she survive losing him?
She’d nearly forgotten herself when Kai finally spoke again.
“It is against my nature to let a demon survive in this realm.” Flicking his blue gaze between them, he added pointedly, “Twice.”
Darr grunted under his breath and pushed to his feet. He was moving slower than usual. Of course he is. He has a giant hole in his chest. He made no move to step forward. He held his ground at her side, fists unclenched. Facing his fate head on.
Izzy’s heart clenched and she could barely draw a breath around the lump in her throat. There was no stopping the tears, so she focused on holding back the sobs.
“But I feel inclined to make an exception in your case,” Kai declared, his tone detached. He narrowed his eyes on Darr and added, “Make no mistake. Your service in protecting this innocent heart is what has earned your freedom. Betray her, corrupt her beyond salvation, or become more of a danger than a savior, and I will make you cease to exist.”
“What…?” The breathless question was past Izzy’s lips before she could think better of it.
Kai looked back to her calmly. “You prayed for assistance.”
A smile threatened to tip her lips as more tears spilled over. If she’d been strong enough to stand, she might have run to hug him without a thought. “Thank you.”
Kai tucked his sword into the slim sheath on his waist with a faint nod. A moment later bright wings sprouted from his back and stretched wide. Each white feather was outlined by a thin, beautiful layer of nearly-white blue flame. Like some kind of holy fire. A single flap of those massive wings shot him skyward with all the force of a rocket. And then he was gone.
Izzy released an audible gasp of breath and slumped. He didn’t die. She hadn’t gotten her lover killed. In her peripheral vision she saw Darr reach up, toward his chest, and finally remembered his wound. It was bad.
Only, when she turned to look at it, he was prodding solid flesh.
“Darr…?”
He lifted a smile to her and knelt in front of her. “Healed by an angel. Who’d have guessed?”
Hours later they lay in Izzy’s large bed, Darr’s arm curled around her torso tightly. Her ear pressed over his heart, listening to the steady rhythm it had fallen into, she whispered, “I’m so glad you survived…”
Darr pressed his lips to her hair. “I won’t leave you that easily.”
Izzy smiled and pressed her fingertips into his chest. “I don’t want you to leave me ever.” Even though he surely would. What sort of self-respecting immortal kept an old, wrinkly, maybe wheelchair-bound lover? And someday that would be her. Hell, her grandmother had had Alzheimer’s, so there was always the chance she would, too. Or one of any number of other things. So she just had to make the best of this time while she had it.
“Izzy,” Darr began, his quiet voice almost urgent. “There’s something I want to ask you.”
Pushing back her depressing thoughts, Izzy lifted her head enough to find his eyes. He’d made no move to release her so she stayed as she was. “What is it?”
“There are … other types of life binding spells,” he finally said. It was obvious he was choosing his words carefully so she stayed silent. Waiting. “There are one or two which unite two souls for all time. They do mean dying together, yes, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”
Izzy frowned. “How couldn’t it be?”
His hand came up, thumb landing along her lower lip tenderly. “I don’t want to outlive you, Isolde Duchane. I would rather bind our souls so tightly that we can never be torn apart.”
Her heart rammed against her ribcage as she began to suspect his angle. His glorious angle. “Darr…”
“The choice is yours completely.” He paused, swallowed audibly, and added, “You could refuse outright, of course. Or you can choose one of two varieties. We can tie our lives to your lifespan … or to mine.”
Izzy blinked. “But … wouldn’t I still age?”
Darr shook his head. “Not a day.”
Then it was no contest. She knew exactly what she wanted.
With a smile splitting her face and a tear slipping free, Izzy pressed her lips to his and murmured, “Let’s live forever, lover.”
The End
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Other Books by Rose Wulf:
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Evernight Publishing
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