I felt my heart wrench in my chest. Ian had told her I’d attacked Lucas. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t true; if the Guard heard her accusation before I had a chance to get us out of here, I might lose this chance. Dad seemed to sense my panic.
“Enough, spotter,” he growled, taking a step forward. “You’ve been gunning for Braedyn ever since you arrived.”
“With good reason.” Rhea glared at Dad.
I stepped in between them. “Listen, Rhea! I don’t care what you think of me, but if we don’t get these people out of here now, they are going to die.”
“Trying to distract me, little demon?”
“You are so blind.” I strode toward Rhea, my frustrating adding strength to my voice. She gripped her daggers tighter, ready to spring. “I’m done trying to prove myself to you!” I turned my back on Rhea and faced the assembled Guard. “This is a trap! Lilitu are on there way here to—”
“Braedyn!” Dad lurched forward, his face ashen.
I spun around as Rhea’s dagger sliced down, angling straight for my heart. Electricity shot through my muscles and my hand whipped up, catching her wrist. We stood there, frozen, for a long moment, eye-to-eye. Behind us, the Guard watched, unmoving. Two soldiers had grabbed Dad’s arms, keeping him from intervening. Rhea’s muscles quivered as she fought to drive the knife home. I squeezed the pressure point on her wrist and she sucked in a sharp breath of pain. Her hand opened reflexively, and I caught the dagger as it fell. I released Rhea. She took two steps back quickly, as though I were poised to attack.
“I am not your enemy,” I said, breathing raggedly. “And we don’t have time to do this right now.”
Rhea eyed me with deep mistrust. I turned the dagger and offered it to her hilt first. She took it quickly, never letting her eyes leave my face. “Is this supposed to make me trust you?”
“I don’t care whether or not you trust me, Rhea. Just stay out of my way.” I turned back to the guard, seeking out Hale. “We don’t have much time.”
Hale nodded slowly. “Okay. Let’s pull back.”
There was a rustle among the Guard. More than one Guardsman shot a look of disbelief toward Hale. But those who knew me started heading toward the exit. I felt a swell of relief and let my shoulders relax.
“Dad,” I said, starting toward him. “It was Ian—”
Rhea grabbed my arm and spun me around to face her. I was so startled I could only stare at her. I sensed rather than saw the assembled Guard turn back toward us.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she hissed quietly. “Painting Ian as a traitor so they won’t believe you’d harm your beloved Lucas? It’s not going to work.”
“It’s the truth, Rhea,” I hissed. “I didn’t touch Lucas. Ian’s been working with the enemy this whole time!”
“Liar. I’m outing you. Right now.” She turned toward the crowd. “Hale! Listen up! You should know what your little pet’s done—” Rhea’s head snapped back, her mouth opening in a voiceless “O” of surprise. Her back arched, and her feet wrenched up a foot off the ground—lifted by some unseen force. She released me. I staggered backwards, stunned.
“Lilitu!” someone shouted. Guardsmen drew their weapons in a resounding scrape of metal, listening intently for an enemy they couldn’t see.
I stared—but I could see no cloaked demon attacking Rhea. The stocky spotter spasmed, coughing out a spray of blood. And then she fell forward—no, she was thrown forward—to sprawl face-first on the ground at my feet. I lurched back away from her body. Karayan rushed to my side. A gaping wound tore through the center of Rhea’s back, leaving little question; she was dead.
“Spotters!” Hale roared his command into the cavern. The Guard responded, each unit snapping into formation, waiting for their spotters to call out directions.
Only—
“I can’t see anything,” the spotter I only knew as Taryn said. She scanned the space around her, eyes wide with panic. “Where did she go?! Does anyone else see—?”
Taryn jerked back, staring down as three vicious wounds opened across her chest. Then her eyes rolled back into her head and she dropped to her knees before pitching forward onto the floor.
Chaos erupted throughout the cavern. Whatever had killed Taryn? She’d been facing it directly as it attacked, and she hadn’t seen a thing.
“Oh no,” I whispered, clutching Karayan’s hand. “It’s Seth. Seth is here.”
Chapter 17
Karayan shot me a terrified glance, then spun back to face the Guardsmen. “Incubus!” Her voice cut through the chaos. “Protect your spotters!”
Instantly the formations changed. Spotters were thrust into the center of their units. Hale, Matt, and Dad ringed Gretchen, but the three of them together were woefully inadequate protection. Looking around, I could tell—Gretchen was the next easiest target.
“Karayan!” I darted forward to help protect Gretchen. Karayan followed, half a heartbeat behind.
“Take this.” Dad pulled a spare set of daggers from a sheath on his belt and handed them to me. I separated the daggers and gave one to Karayan. It wasn’t a lot, but it was better than facing an incubus unarmed.
“Somebody tag him!” Dad’s voice cut across the growing panic. “It’s the only way to reveal him!”
I tightened my grip on the dagger, then swung out blindly. Dad was right; if Seth came close enough to a blade—and the wielder was lucky enough to swing at the right moment—even a small scratch from a Guard weapon would shred Seth’s cloak, leaving him visible for all to see.
I clutched the dagger, feeling naked and vulnerable. The graceful blade suddenly seemed much smaller than it ever had before. Seth could be standing right in front of me—right in front of Dad, or Gretchen, or Matt, or Hale—and none of us could see him.
Across the cavern massive, we heard another short scream. It cut off in a gurgle, followed by a frenzy as Guardsmen tried to slash at the invisible enemy who’d just murdered another of our spotters. I did the math in my head. Rhea, Taryn, now a third. That meant we had only three spotters left.
And then the number dropped to two. I saw Jane fall. The petite redheaded spotter was in the group closest to us, clutching her daggers, while her unit ringed her closely. But someone heard a sound and shouted, drawing the others’ attention. It was the opening Seth needed—he must have slipped between two distracted guardsmen. Jane’s head snapped back and she dropped. It was sudden and silent. I stared, feeling hot bile rising in the back of my throat. A few of the soldiers in Jane’s unit dropped to her side, but there was nothing to be done for her.
We were sitting ducks—blind, unable to predict where Seth would next strike.
“We have to do something,” I said, my voice hoarse with panic.
“Hold your position.” Hale, next to me, swung out with his sword, clearing the air before him with fast, competent slices. He, like me, believed Seth would come for Gretchen next.
But the incubus wasn’t following any logical pattern.
Minutes later, although I was sure Seth was practically breathing down my neck, we heard another scream from the far end of the cavern.
One spotter left. I turned and glanced behind me. Gretchen’s eyes were wide with terror. She clutched her daggers, but her muscles were rigid with tension.
“To me!” Hale’s voice cut through the chaos and grief. Some of the Guardsmen heard and started to move, but the scene was one of disorganized paranoia. The normally disciplined Guardsmen were falling apart. I cast my eyes around, desperate for anything that could help us locate Seth.
And then I saw the wheelbarrow of fake coal. I raced toward it.
“Braedyn?!” Hale called after me, alarm ringing in his voice.
I grabbed the handles of the wheelbarrow and pushed. It moved easily—the fake coal was little more than Styrofoam painted black. But it would do.
I raced the wheelbarrow back toward Hale and Gretchen, trying to anticipate the route Seth would take from the last murdered spotte
r to Gretchen, knowing I was running out of time.
I reached my target and upended the wheelbarrow in front of Hale.
Styrofoam poured out across the floor—
“What the hell are you—?” But then Hale’s voice caught.
Scattering Styrofoam parted in thin air, rolling away from some invisible obstacle. Hale slashed out with his sword, and even though Seth had already started to retreat, Hale managed to make contact.
The blade caught on something—and an instant later, Seth was revealed, a line of dark Lilitu blood spreading from a wound on his shoulder. It was a mild cut—if he’d taken the same wound with a regular blade it wouldn’t have slowed him one second. But the strange quality of Hale’s sword, forged by the Guard centuries ago, was more than enough to banish Seth’s Lilitu cloak.
“Here!” Hale’s roar of triumph reinvigorated the men.
But Seth’s trap had just begun to spring. He darted back from Hale’s next lunge, screaming, “Attack!”
“Braedyn?!” Karayan’s voice trilled, straining with tension. I turned. The massive cavern was dotted with openings leading to other parts of the mines; there must have been a dozen entrances. Cloaked Lilitu sprang from the shafts—they’d been hiding, waiting for this opportunity since we’d arrived.
“Guardsmen, behind you!” Gretchen had also seen the fresh wave of Lilitu pouring in to join the fight.
Her warning came too late for several of the soldiers. The Lilitu moved fast, their attacks brutal and merciless. But where each Guardsman fell, others joined up in formations and turned to face their invisible attackers. I was overwhelmed by a sudden understanding of the bravery it took for these men to fight against an enemy they could not see. They wouldn’t make it easy for the Lilitu, but—blind as they were—they were achingly vulnerable.
Hale saw this, too. “Spotters!” He gestured to Gretchen, Karayan, and me. “Help them!”
Gretchen raced to the far end of the cavern, joining up with a group of Guardsmen facing three Lilitu. Matt followed her with a hoarse curse.
“Wait for me, Gretchen!”
Before they reached the far unit, the Lilitu had taken down four more soldiers—
I pulled my eyes off that fight, searching the crowd for Dad. He’d joined up with a group of a dozen others, all moving in unison through the form, driving back another four Lilitu. I raced to Dad’s side as one of the Lilitu timed her attack for a pause in the form—
“Ahead!” I screamed.
The Guardsmen acted without hesitation, each spearing forward with both daggers. The Lilitu, already darting toward one of the soldiers in line, was moving too fast to change direction. She took two blades to the torso, both from the Guardsman she’d been targeting. Her cloak fell away instantly, but it made little difference, she was dead by the time she hit the floor.
I pulled my eyes off the fallen demon. The three other Lilitu had pulled back, eyes fixed on me with burning hatred. They split, meaning to slip around the line and attack from behind.
“Cover the flank!” I moved into the center of the group, and they reformed seamlessly around me, blades flashing out. As one, the three Lilitu attacked, all from different directions. “Incoming!”
Two of the Lilitu took glancing blows from daggers, stepping back as their cloaks slipped away. The last dodged through the line and impacted with a young Guardsman, spearing her claws into his throat and ripping clean through. The Guardsmen nearest to him reacted, stabbing blindly into the air, but she dodged them and danced back, out of range.
“You!” Dad tapped two Guardsmen and pointed at the first revealed Lilitu. “And you!” He gestured to another pair of Guardsmen. The teams split, racing after the visible demons while the rest of the men reformed to battle the cloaked Lilitu.
Only, she had slipped away into the fray. I looked around, trying to spot the next attack. What I saw filled my stomach with a sinking dread.
Of the eight units of Guardsmen, only three had a spotter to aid them. Gretchen and Karayan were guiding their units well; under their direction, soldiers managed to fight off attack after attack with minimal casualties. The other five units were not faring so well. While the soldiers relied on their forms to drive Lilitu back, there were simply too many demons. Each time one Guardsman fell, the others would spring, desperate to reveal the demon who’d attacked him. That left them open to attack from behind, and more and more Guardsmen were lost as the minutes dragged on.
And yet, there was nothing I could do for them. Lilitu continued to attack my unit. Leaving one group of soldiers to help another simply meant these men would become the next targets. And that’s not going to happen, I acknowledged to myself grimly. I’m not leaving Dad.
Lilitu launched a fresh assault against us. I kept the soldiers focused, directing their efforts as each Lilitu struck. But as the minutes passed, I realized the demons were playing with us. They’d dart forward, always pulling back just as the soldiers struck. They danced out of our reach again and again. In each lull between attacks I’d look up and see more fallen soldiers.
As the units without spotters fell, one by one, more Lilitu turned their attention toward us. We might be outnumbered very soon. I glanced back at Hale; we had to join the remaining guard into one line.
But just as I’d opened my mouth to call to Hale, two Lilitu broke through the ranks surrounding him. They must have identified him as the leader; each of them bypassed easier targets and set their sights on Hale.
“Hale!” It was the only warning I had time for. Karayan heard my voice and spun.
She saw the breach and launched herself at the first Lilitu, knocking her off her collision course with Hale. Karayan nicked the Lilitu with her blade, revealing the demon for the Guardsmen—
But the second Lilitu connected with Hale, swinging for his throat with her claws. Hale, alerted by my scream, was already in motion. He dropped to one knee, spearing his sword up into the air before him. The movement saved his life; the demon’s claws raked through empty air, missing his throat by half a second. Unfortunately, Hale’s aim was off; he missed the demon. She knocked his sword aside, dropping on top of him. Hale fell back, his head impacting the ground with a sickening crack. Dazed, Hale wasn’t immediately able to defend himself. The Lilitu clasped her hands around his throat—
But Karayan dropped onto her back, driving two daggers straight through the demon’s ribs, both angled for the heart.
The Lilitu arched back in agony. Karayan twisted the daggers and plunged them further into the demon’s torso. The Lilitu went slack, her head tilted up, eyes strangely blank. Karayan retracted the blades and shoved the Lilitu to one side. Without the demon between them, Karayan and Hale’s eyes connected.
Karayan offered him a hand. Hale took it, sitting up. The move brought him face to face with Karayan.
I stared, breathless.
The look in Hale’s eyes was one of naked love—this was beyond gratitude, beyond friendship, beyond desire. He reached up to touch Karayan’s cheek. Karayan smiled, but the battle still raged around them. Together they stood, weapons in hand, and faced the next enemy.
“We need to combine our forces!” But my voice, shaken as I was, couldn’t reach Hale over the clamor of battle.
Dad heard me. “Guardsmen! Draw in!” The remaining Guardsmen pulled toward the center of the room. In a few minutes, we had linked our disparate units into one last, cohesive group. Soldiers formed a ring around Karayan, Gretchen, and me. Gretchen had grabbed a few prop crates on the way back. We each stood on one of them, and the crates gave us the added height we’d need to see over the soldiers to the enemy beyond. The extra height also gave me a clearer picture of the battlefield. The bodies of the fallen lay all around us; the dead greatly outnumbered the living. There were maybe 25 of us left, including Gretchen, Karayan, Matt, and me. Just 25, and only an hour ago we’d numbered over 80.
The remaining Lilitu surrounded us. I saw that we, too, had taken our toll on them. There were
a dozen Lilitu left, perhaps a little less than half the original number. Of those, only five had maintained their cloaks.
Behind me, Gretchen rifled through one of the black duffle bags. I spared a moment to watch her, curious. She pulled a thick leather pouch out of the bag. Out of this pouch, she drew a wicked looking knife.
Gretchen climbed back onto the crate wordlessly. She fixed her sights on one of the cloaked Lilitu, hefted a knife, and launched it. The knife flew end over end, flashing in the theatrical lighting of the cavern. The Lilitu spotted it at the last second—she had time to throw herself to one side, but the blade nicked her arm in passing. One less cloaked demon.
Fascinated as I was by Gretchen’s skill with the throwing knives, I ripped my eyes off of her and forced myself to concentrate on the soldiers before me. Three uncloaked Lilitu edged toward us, putting the soldiers on edge. Behind them, two cloaked Lilitu examined the line for weaknesses.
But then—I noticed movement at the main entrance to the cavern. Lucas staggered in, clutching his daggers. He stared at the carnage, face drawn. I saw him grip his daggers tighter. He clenched his jaw, summoning the strength to race forward and help his fellow soldiers.
Everything other thought was driven from my head. I zeroed in on Lucas, reflexively sending my consciousness out to his mind.
Stay, I ordered him. Hide. You can’t help us, you’ll only get yourself killed.
Lucas’s eyes lifted from the fighting and found me. So he’d heard. The pain, shame, and agony moving across his features tore at my heart—but he nodded. I saw him withdraw, edging behind an outcropping near the entrance to the cavern. Relief so strong rushed through me that I felt my shoulders sag forward.
Lucas was safe for the moment; the same couldn’t be said for the rest of us. And a question started gnawing at my mind with increasing urgency; where was Seth?
Nightmares are pale comparisons of what we went through in that cavern. Gretchen loosed knife after knife, but after that first hit, none of the other cloaked Lilitu stood still long enough for her to accurately target.
Sacrifice Page 25
