“Where are they?” Adonis interrupted him.
“Headed for the Great Hall, but they’ll be up here next. They’re searching for us.”
Adonis shot me a sharp look. “You’ll want to lock yourself in your room. Don’t let anyone in.”
“No thanks.”
First of all, demons could get through locks, and I’d be a sitting duck in my room. Second, I wanted to find out what the hell was going on in here.
I crossed to the wall of weapons, heading straight for a bow and a quiver of arrows. The bow looked heavier than fae craftsmanship, but I’d be able to use it all the same. And when I looked into the quiver, I found the arrowheads coated with the unmistakable pale gleam of Nyxobian silver.
“I’m not sitting there waiting for them to find me,” I declared. “And I’m not relying on you two to keep me safe. I may not be great with a bow and arrow—” Lie. “But it’s better than waiting to be clawed to death by misogynistic shadow demons.”
I slung the quiver over my back, then pulled the bow off the wall.
Johnny’s gaze bored into me, his bony fingers twitching. “You’re going to trust her with that?”
Adonis was pulling a broadsword off the wall. “Trust her? No. Fear her? Also no. I doubt she can even use it. Let’s go.”
Jerk.
I slid the knife back into its holster on my thigh, wishing it were just a tad more accessible.
Johnny snatched a sword for himself, and I followed the two of them into the hall. They moved so fluidly and swiftly, I struggled to keep up.
Blood roared in my ears as I walked behind them down a winding stairwell, clutching my bow. I knew what a horde of shadow demons would do to a woman they saw as a traitor. They’d sniff me out in my room and corner me. Even if I turned into my fae form or glamoured myself as an ogre, I’d be seen as a collaborator. A traitor. They’d torture me to death, and I’d never find Hazel.
Thing was, I couldn’t let these angels know what I was really capable of. I’d have to kill quietly and protect myself in the shadows—and if it got really bad, I could always run. Harder to kill a moving target, anyway, than one cornered in her bedroom.
Our footsteps echoed off the stone walls in the stairwell. Fear thrummed through my body. Yasmin had conveniently failed to warn me I might be under threat from both sides, from demons as well as angels.
Adonis stormed through a doorway into a narrow hall. Here, half a dozen demons seemed to slither from the shadows, horns and fangs gleaming. Among the demons, some humans brandished swords and knives, weapons they must have raided from an armory. Shadow magic coiled through the air around us, its slithery texture different from the dark, electric crackle of Adonis’s magic.
A demon with a leathery body roared, and I nocked my first arrow. He lifted his hand to shoot a stream of shadow magic at me, and I loosed my shot.
Then I ducked. I watched as the arrow slammed into his shoulder, and the stream of shadow magic spooled above me, missing me narrowly.
I couldn’t shoot to kill, because that would give away my skill. I could only shoot to injure, and I’d have to count on the angels to finish the job. Plus, I’d have to let a bunch of these arrows go wide.
I watched Adonis, his sword almost an extension of his body. He didn’t need it, but I understood why he used it. He moved with a thrilling grace, a brutal and elegant waltz of blows and parries. Blood streaked his blade.
Watching him, I knew he felt about fighting the way I’d once felt about dancing.
I nocked a few more arrows, unleashing them all over the place. “How do you use this thing?” A few of them struck the shadow demons in limbs and hands; others simply clattered to the floor.
Johnny and Adonis were already leaping into action, swords raised. By injuring the shadow demons, I was making their fight significantly easier.
Not that Johnny seemed to care. “She’s bloody useless!” he bellowed.
I let an arrow hit him in the leg. “Whoops! Sorry!”
Johnny hardly seemed to notice the arrow, which was… unnerving.
From the shadows, a silver-haired vampire ran for me, his fangs shining in the dim light. I pulled another arrow from my quiver, then unloaded it into his neck, taking care to let a few more arrows go wide.
Only hawthorn wood killed vampires, but the arrow would slow him down. He fell to the ground, clutching at his throat.
All around me, the demons roared, shadow magic spilling into the air. I held back in the doorway, letting my arrows fly willy-nilly into demon limbs and clatter over the floor.
After a minute, we’d nearly cleared the hallway, apart from the vampire, who was struggling to his feet again. Adonis leaned down, punching his fist into the vampire’s chest in a small explosion of blood. He ripped out the vamp’s heart, tossing it to the side. As he did, the vampire’s body crumpled to ash.
I choked down the urge to puke right there.
Already, Adonis and Johnny were marching on, swords ready. I pulled another arrow from the quiver while the two angels in front of me turned into a tall, arched doorway. They stopped abruptly.
I peered between their wings. Here, in the Great Hall, shadow magic cloaked the air, so cold and powerful it had snuffed out the lights.
Things were about to get really bad.
Chapter 21
Slowly, my eyes adjusted to the darkness—a fae trait, one honed from thousands of years of living in forests. We stood at the threshold of a bare hall, with tall, empty alcoves lining the stone walls. Candles burned in chandeliers above, but the billowing shadow magic dampened their glow.
A glint of silver told me there were demons in here already.
Within moments, the angels moved into the hall, swords slicing through the air. Here, clouded in shadow magic, I could hardly see any targets.
I listened to the sound of metal clanging on wood, and then the sounds of gurgling and grunting echoing off the high ceiling. I had no doubt what had happened—Adonis had dropped his sword and was now vaporizing demons with his angel magic.
The more he killed, the easier it was for me to see.
Red eyes gleamed in the dark, telling me where the demons were. Once again, I aimed for their limbs, my task here to weaken them only. But there were so many of them…
“Succubus…” one of them hissed.
If I were a real succubus, I’d be able to see through the shadow magic. Instead, all I knew was that the shadow demons were closing in around me. I pulled the knife from its holster. Here, in close combat, I needed a close-range weapon, and I might need to actually kill now.
I channeled some of my inner feral fae—not so much that I’d lose control, but just enough that I could fight with ruthless abandon.
With a cold thrill, ancient battle fury began to race through my blood, my instincts taking over. I lost myself in a whirlwind of flashing movements, of blade into flesh and bone. In my fight for survival, the darkness seemed to slowly lift as my most primal instincts took over.
Stay in control, Ruby. If I let the full fury of a feral fae take hold, it was all over. The shadow demons and the angels would team up to kill me.
Swiftly, I plunged my knife into another heart, and an icy silence reigned around me.
The haze of battle fury cleared from my mind, and the shadow magic had thinned all around me. A pile of demonic bodies lay at my feet, blood oozing over the floor.
Across the Great Hall, Adonis flicked his wrist at a silver-scaled warrior, severing the creature’s body in two.
Johnny still gripped his sword, which he was using to decapitate a human male.
More demons were slipping through a doorway at the far end of the Great Hall, heading for Adonis. And while he was slaughtering them with his terrifying angelic magic, a human crept up behind him. This human was practically large enough to be an ogre, and he held a broadsword in his enormous hands.
I dropped my knife, snatching my bow from the bloodied floor. I nocked another arrow, lining i
t up to fire at the human.
If he struck Adonis, that Nyxobian silver would slice right through his skull. Yasmin didn’t think the angel could die that way—he’d have some way to recover, maybe return in another form. But at the very least, a severed brainstem had to be a bit of a setback. Which was exactly what I wanted.
Should I let it happen?
My heartbeat roared in my ears, my sights locked on the human as he raised his sword above Adonis’s head.
Then, in blur of dark magic, Adonis slashed his fingertips in an arc. The human’s throat exploded, and blood sprayed over the stone hall as the man’s body crumpled to the ground. I lowered my bow, a cold sweat tingling over my skin.
Chewing gum, Johnny pulled his sword from another human’s body.
And that was the last of the attackers.
I dropped my bow, snatching my knife from the ground. I slid it into my holster—I’d be keeping this Nyxobian silver as close to me as possible.
When I looked up again, I saw that the angels were staring at me. Shadows curled around Adonis, and his pale eyes blazed. His predator’s gaze was now locked on me.
Covered in spatters of blood, Adonis stalked across the hall, heading straight for me. I took a step back, my stomach swooping with fear.
Had he known—had he seen me hesitate? I thought he’d been preoccupied with all of his own killing, but based on the murderous look he was giving me right now, he might have caught a glimpse of my whole thought process—the thoughts that had included maybe it would be better if someone put a sword in his head.
I took another step back, realizing I’d backed myself into an alcove, a knife in my hand.
Adonis’s eyes swirled with shadows, his dark wings spread behind him. For once, he didn’t look at ease, and the sight of him angry terrified me.
Adonis boxed me into the alcove, his midnight wings forming a sort of cage around me as they spread out, their feathers shot through with streaks of silver.
“You could have taken that shot,” he said, his voice low. “You hesitated.”
“I’m not very good with a bow and arrow. You must have noticed.”
“But you didn’t even try.”
I swallowed hard. “You’re immortal. Relax,” I parroted his words from earlier. “I just wanted to see how you’d react.”
For just an instant, I thought I saw a smile flicker across his lips. Then he scanned the demon bodies that littered on the floor, the ones I’d slaughtered with the knife. “Did you kill all these demons?”
“Maybe a few of them? I’m not really sure.” I widened my eyes. “Everything was scary and confusing.”
From behind Adonis, a voice boomed over the hall. “Adonis!”
Adonis lowered his wings, and the unmistakable gleam of Kratos’s gold magic warmed the room.
Kratos stood in the center of the Great Hall among the fallen bodies of our attackers. He looked every inch the warrior in his gold and crimson brocade.
“What happened here? Why are you standing so close to Ruby?” A steely threat of violence laced his voice.
Adonis swept his gaze to Kratos. “Back so soon from your little hunt?”
“The heart of the castle called me back.”
Johnny wiped the blood off his face on the back of his sleeve. “I’ll tell you what happened here, Kratos. We let a shadow demon live with us, and then a horde of other shadow demons attacked us. From within the castle. I can’t be the only one connecting the dots here, can I?” he bellowed. “You can’t deny the facts, Kratos.”
“The facts, Johnny,” I began, “are that these glamoured servants were in your midst before I got here. The shadow demons disguised themselves as humans, blending in with the real humans. You let them live among you before I even got here. Connect those dots.” Asshole.
“She has a point,” said Adonis smoothly. “In any case, she seemed to be killing the shadow demons this evening, or at least trying to in her own inept way.”
I looked down at the blood coating my bare arms, now desperate to get into a warm bath.
I was pretty sure I’d walked the line well enough—protecting myself while still convincing them I was a harmless little succubus, confused by weapons. Let them think I posed no threat at all.
I stretched my arms lazily over my head and yawned. “All that death made me tired. I’ll be turning in for the night.”
I wouldn’t be sleeping any time soon. Demons and humans had rebelled against the angels in Hotemet Castle, and that meant the angels would be planning a fast retribution. As soon as I got the chance, I’d be sneaking out of my room to listen in on what the angels were planning.
This was exactly why I’d been sent here in the first place.
Chapter 22
In my bedroom, I glanced at the window, waiting for the sentinel to pass. Standing here in the dark, cold fear slid through my bones. I really wanted the lights on.
Still, I’d needed the darkness to disguise my actions tonight.
With the sentinels watching, I’d dressed in my little nightgown. I’d snuffed out the fire, and I’d crawled into bed. When the sentinels weren’t in view, I’d bunched up the duvet and sheets. Good enough to approximate a sleeping form.
Unfortunately, as I stood huddled in the corner of the chilly bedroom, waiting for the coast to clear, fear was ripping my mind apart. I could hardly think through the rising panic.
At last, I saw the ghostly form of a sentinel move past. It was time to slip into the hallway.
My blood thundered through my veins as I listened at the door, trying to ignore the feeling that the shadows were closing in around me.
When I heard silence in the hallway—no footsteps or chatter—I turned the doorknob, all the while keeping a running tally in my mind of how many minutes had passed since the sentinel’s appearance. Given the speed at which they moved, I calculated that I had about two minutes and thirty seconds to get to the next hiding spot.
I moved swiftly through the hall, relieved to be in the warm torchlight again. As I moved, I counted the seconds. When I thought it was time for a sentinel’s appearance, I backed up against the wall, waiting until the thing passed.
Tonight, I’d donned a specific type of glamour—one that didn’t disguise me as another being, but just made people less likely to notice me—a glamour of unobtrusiveness. But as well as it worked on humans, I wasn’t sure the sentinels would be fooled.
When the coast was clear, I darted over to the stairwell, yanking open the door. I breathed a sigh of relief. In the stairwell, there were no windows to give me away. Candlelight flickered over the rough stones.
The view of the castle that Kratos had shown me had given me an overall picture of the place, but I still didn’t know where to find a secret meeting between angels.
My plan was to head for the parapet, to use the high view to look for lit rooms around the castle. I’d have to move fast, keeping to the shadows in order to escape the notice of the sentinels.
As I climbed the stairs, I shivered in my stupid skimpy nightgown. After about ten twisting levels, my thigh muscles began to burn. At least I was getting a workout here.
At the top of the stairs, I pushed through the door into the frigid night air, the wind biting into my skin. Immediately, I ducked behind the edge of the parapet, sticking as close as I could to the shadows. My teeth chattered, the shadows closed in around me. The air left my lungs. Tonight, clouds covered the moon and stars, and the darkness would swallow me whole.
I closed my eyes, slowing my breathing until I had control again. I cast a quick glance overhead, relieved to find the sky clear of sentinels.
From my crouched position, I peered over the edge of the parapet, and I caught a glimpse of a light burning warmly in a room. No—two rooms were lit up in the castle, in the same hall—six stories down and one tower over. I counted the windows, trying to approximate the number of doors I’d need to move past in the Tower of Ash.
The rest of the castle looked
pretty dark. This seemed as good a guess as any.
Keeping low and in the shadows, I crept back to the door, desperate to be in the light again. As soon as I pried the door open, the torchlight of the stairwell washed over me like a soothing bath. Shivering, I rubbed my arms, trying to warm up.
I walked down the chilly castle stairs, running my fingers over the wall. I wasn’t sure how hard it would be to overhear the angels’ plan. Under normal circumstances, I’d glamour myself as a servant to linger in the background as they talked, but I doubted they’d be planning their revenge in front of any servants tonight, considering the problem in question was a servant rebellion.
As I walked down the stairs, my mind roamed to Susie and Elan. They hadn’t been involved, had they? Worry tightened my chest. I hoped not. I actually liked those two. Maybe I could find a way to check on them after this.
When I’d climbed down six stories, I listened carefully at the door for sounds of movement in the hall. Silence greeted me, and I pushed through into the corridor. From there, I moved swiftly from one obscure to point to another, dodging the prying eyes of the sentinels.
At last, I reached the skull and crossbones that marked the Tower of Ash. I crossed through the arched doorway. Mercifully, there weren’t as many windows in this hall—just a few arrow slits.
I glanced at a painting that hung on the wall. The gold-leaf paint mixed with vibrant reds made it look like a medieval image—they were the type of hues used for saints’ iconography. But I’d never seen a medieval image like this. Above the gold-leaf landscape, a black sun rose over a river of blood. A shiver danced up my spine as I realized it was the exact sort of bleak imagery Adonis had been talking about. If the Heavenly Host come to Earth…
Shuddering, I moved on, scanning some of the other paintings that adorned the stone walls under the vaulted ceiling. Some depicted midnight skies and burning stars, while others showed fig trees and mountains under a fiery night sky.
Covert Fae: A Demons of Fire and Night Novel (A Spy Among the Fallen) Page 14
