by Amy Miles
“Boon. Grace,” she whispered. “If you’re out there, you need to hurry before—”
The demons closed in around Alexander until she could no longer see him. Forras led the pack, a malicious grin etched on his face. Gremory swished his long tail, cracking it through the air like a whip. He forced Alexander back as he lassoed it in the air then snapped it down next to Alexander’s feet, the rattlesnake-like end hissing each time it hit the ground.
Forras howled. More of his pack shot from the brush, transforming from human to horrific demonic creatures. Bones cracked and skin stretched.
Carson’s varsity jock appearance disappeared, replaced by a monster with deadly, razor sharp spikes running down his spine and across his knuckles. Donn stalked around the other side, his two horns curved like a ram peeking from behind tree trunks.
“Berith! Nybis!” Forras yelled, motioning the two demons Gabby didn’t recognize around behind Alexander. Berith’s scarlet flesh and burgundy eyes flickered with orange light as if his skin was on fire. Nybis’ eyes were dark slits, yellow light shining through the gaps as he moved like a cat from tree to tree overhead, preventing Alexander from soaring to freedom. As Nybis jumped to the tree directly over Alexander, claws snapped from his hands, ready to strike.
Gabby searched for something, anything to help Alexander. But with her hands still bound, she didn’t have a lot of options. She licked her dry lips. “Why?” she asked, hoping to draw their attention away from Alexander. “Why do you want to torture and kill us? What did we ever do to you?”
Forras turned on her. “Did you enjoy the ride?” he smirked. “How does it feel to be half demon?”
Gabby choked as the terror of her illness tried to resurge. “There’s nothing demon about me.”
“You can lie to yourself, but I know you feel my blood in your veins, begging you to come to me. It lives off your fear and anger. There’s no point in fighting it. Fear and anger always win.” Forras moved toward her. “I’ve already marked you as mine. Give yourself to it.”
Her skin crawled in revulsion, but there was something more. Something different. Every sound and smell around her was amplified. The scent of oranges from an orchard over a mile away, pine, and even the musty smell of old dead tree limbs mixed with bitter body odors and foul demon breath came to her. A scratching noise startled her and she looked down to find a palmetto bug scurrying across a leaf. The distant squawks of birds and dog barks assaulted her ears.
Were these demon senses? Her demon senses?
No. It couldn’t be. Her mother was an angel, her father a hunter.
She glared up at him. “I’ll never join you. Never. And if you plan to use my father’s life to threaten me—”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Is that what you thought?” He tsked at her, shaking his head. “He’s already dead.”
What?
Intense heat blanketed her skin as the smell of burning rope filled the air. Looking down, she watched the ropes fall smoking to the ground. Standing up, she grasped a nearby tree and stumbled forward. Forras glared at her in disbelief as she shuffled a few more feet, toward Alexander.
Landing in front of her, Forras grabbed her by the jaw.
Hot blood pulsed through her body. She was done being afraid of this monster.
Eyes closed, she visualized a warm turquoise light flicker near her heart. It expanded, spreading through her body until it burst forth, filling her with peace and comfort. When she opened her eyes, the light shone brightly all around her. Scared, yet exhilarated, her body shook. The light faded for a moment then surged forth again.
Meeting Forras’ glare, she released the light. Bolts of turquoise fire sprang from the center of her body, escaping through her eyes and hands.
Forras flew back, crashing into a gravestone. “Ahhhh! No!” He cried, holding his arm tight against his chest. “What have you done?” Smoke lingered, carrying the scent of burned rubber and ash around the graveyard. He held up his transformed hand. Crusty dried up holes remained where three claws use to be. “You bitch! I’m going to tear you apart.”
Alexander ran to her side and pushed her behind him.
Spotting the gun a few feet away near a large oak tree, she dove for it, immediately taking aim at the nearest demon, Berith. He erupted into a fiery inferno then disintegrated into a puff of ash within seconds. Pulling the hammer back, she squeezed the trigger again. Nybis collapsed, screeching like a dying cat but still alive.
Forras charged her, knocking Alexander out of the way.
She fired again, a clear shot to his heart.
Nothing happened.
She fired again.
Still, Forras remained upright, his clawless hand outstretched. He pulled a long branch from a nearby tree and slammed it against her side. The gun flew out of her hand as she slid sideways along the ground, blood filling her mouth.
“It doesn’t matter that you refused my offer. I have big plans for you anyway.” Forras bent down, his nose almost touching hers, his foul breath polluting the air as he flashed his festering incisors. “When I go to Hell, you and your lover,” he gestured to Alexander, “will be a special gift. An offering, if you will.”
Alexander struggled to his feet, only to be held back by Carson and Gremory.
“There’s no way they’ll deny my demands when I deliver, not only an earthbound hunter and a fallen angel, but also a girl with a favored destiny. That’s right. I know Heaven,” he spat the word, “is using you for some twisted purpose.”
“What are you talking about?” Gabby said, struggling to stand. “You’ve gone mad.”
“Don’t even try.” Forras’ maimed hand clutched the branch tighter. “When I deliver you, the prince will reward me with power.” Forras lifted the branch and swung with vengeance.
She closed her eyes and held up her arm in a futile attempt to defend herself.
The blow never came.
Opening her eyes, she discovered an enormous bat-winged creature standing in front of her. Boon. His body reflected the moonlight as his massive wings merged with the surrounding dark shadows. He turned his attention back to Forras.
“Time for a fair fight,” Boon said, his tone filled with contempt.
Forras jumped to his feet and lunged at him. Boon drove his fist into Forras’ gut, sending him flying backward fifty feet.
Forras spun around in surprise. “You? Didn’t I tell you I’d make you pay for defying me?” Forras’ face morphed into rage. “I will curse you for this. You will rot on this planet forever.”
“Try me.” Boon grabbed Forras.
Using the distraction to his advantage, Alexander sent Gremory and Carson flying back into the woods. He raced toward Gabby, only to have Forras break free of Boon’s hold and slam into his side, knocking him to the ground.
Carson and Gremory emerged from the woods, with Donn hovering in the shadows behind them. As Boon tackled Forras, the demon signaled his goons and they lunged forward, attacking Alexander all at once.
Gremory snapped his tail, whipping Alexander in the face. Donn rammed his horns into Alexander’s back as Carson struck Alexander’s face with his spiked knuckles, sending Alexander to the ground. Not giving him a chance to recover, they lifted him off the ground and hammered him against a tree, splintering it into pieces.
Boon tossed Forras into the air and the demon crashed onto a rock, smashing it to dust. Boon jumped on him, only to be thrown to the other side of the graveyard. It seemed the more they fought, the more strength Forras gained.
The sounds of trees ripped from their roots and brandished as weapons filled the night air. Rocks were pulverized against one another in thundering claps.
Gabby shut her eyes, trying to force a vision of the immediate future. Anything that would help her end this. Nothing came.
At a loud roar, her eyes snapped opened.
Boon was gone.
Forras staggered over to where the others were still pummeling Alexander and grasped him by the neck
with his left hand. In his right was the missing sword, the blade pressed to Alexander’s throat. “You know what this is, right?” He sneered. “An angel killer. And when I run you through, justice will finally be done.” Forras smiled with sick pleasure. “You’ll serve my master for eternity.”
Gabby tried to harvest the light within her again, to use the only weapon she had against Forras, but she had no idea how she’d accomplished it initially. With no time left and desperate to save Alexander, she ran and jumped onto Forras’ back.
He cried out as each touch of her hands burned his flesh. Carson and Donn grabbed her from behind and yanked her off him.
Turning in their grasps, she shoved her hands in their faces, but nothing happened. The scent of rotting corpses wafted in the air around her from Forras’ ashen skin still coating her fingers.
She struggled for freedom but they held her tight.
Forras slammed the butt of the sword into her gut, knocking her free of her captors. Doubled over, she coughed, trying to breathe against the burning pain in her ribs.
Forras pulled his arm back, ready to thrust the sword deep into Alexander.
Terrified, Gabby struggled to her feet and stumbled forward. “No!” she cried. Too weak to keep herself upright, she fell to the ground, whimpering in defeat. Salty tears rolled into her mouth as she sobbed.
She flinched, hearing the blade slice through skin. Alexander screamed, drowning out the sickening crunch of bone breaking. She vomited, the strong taste of bile lingering in her mouth.
She looked up through watery eyes to discover Boon on the ground, not Alexander. Violet blood trickled from a wound on his right shoulder. He lifted his left hand to pull the sword from his body. Alexander was on the ground.
Boon? He’d sacrificed himself to save Alexander.
Alexander scrambled to his feet. He growled and lunged at Forras, grabbing him by the neck and pressing him against a tree. Red fury radiated in Alexander’s eyes. For several seconds, he held Forras there, squeezing the demon’s neck with all his might as Forras gasped and flailed.
Then Alexander’s eyes changed to orange to pale yellow and finally, back to blue. He winced, released Forras, and reached down to take the sword from Boon. Holding a hand to the wound to stem the bleeding, Alexander looked back at Forras. “I won’t kill you. I have no right to choose whether you live or die. The sword will be destroyed and I advise you to never show your face around here again.”
“You fool,” Forras spat at him. “You think not having the sword will stop me? You just sealed your own fate.” Forras vanished into the night, Gremory, Carson, and Donn quickly following.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Boon changed back into human form and the wound healed before their eyes. “Guess being half demon is good for something,” Boon chuckled.
“Gabby, you okay?” Alexander helped Boon to his feet then reached out for her.
“I’m fine.” She sat there for a moment, her head swimming with memories of turquoise lights, burning skin, and bones cracking. “Why didn’t you end this, Alex? You could have saved us all by killing Forras.” She didn’t mean to sound ungrateful, but after everything the demons had done to her and her loved ones, she wanted the bastard to perish.
“I need to find my father. They’re going to kill him, if they haven’t already.” Forras had said her father was already dead, but she wouldn’t believe it until she saw it with her own eyes. “I have to go.” She tried to shove Alexander away but he pulled her close, tucking her between his body and Boon’s.
Gabby looked up just as Forras reappeared and grabbed Alexander’s wings, jerking him back out of her arms.
Stunned, she watched the two struggle. Then a vision flashed before her eyes. Her mother stood before her dressed in white, her wings extended in a brilliant arch.
Gabby, take Forras’ horns.
Take them?
She glanced down at the sword, lying at her feet where Alexander had dropped it.
Forras had Alexander pinned to the ground, his long claws puncturing Alexander’s shoulder.
Bending to pick up the sword, she squared her shoulders then charged forward. Without thinking, she swung it over her head, the muscles in her back and shoulders flexing as the long metal blade became an extension of her body. With a smooth swing, as though she was hitting a homerun, the blade sliced through two horns then she spun around and chopped off the remaining two.
Forras screamed in agony as a yellow tar-like substance bubbled from his head and mouth. He fell to his knees, his guttural cries bellowing into the night. His eyes turned from fiery orange to a soft brown, his ashen skin snapping and popping as it blackened. Then, all at once, his body withered away into the Earth.
Hearing a twig snap, Gabby spotted Sammy and Grace land a few feet away with Bruce in tow. Her father stumbled and fell to his knees.
Dropping the sword, she raced to his side.
“Eliana,” he muttered, looking over her head into the graveyard.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Alexander’s skin crawled. The battle with the demons was over, but the smell of demon skin decomposing still lingered. And based on Bruce’s demented expression and the deep hatred for fallen angels he could sense emanating from the man, Alexander feared another battle would be forthcoming.
“Eliana,” Bruce whispered as he picked the sword up and staggered a few steps.
Alexander pushed the rising fear away and let go of his control. He refused to fight Bruce, not only for Gabby’s sake, but he’d come to care for the man. And if he was slain, he’d return to Heaven, or reincarnate in another body. Either way all would be right on Earth. Swallowing hard, he struggled to steady his trembling body.
Gabby threw herself into Alexander’s arms. He squeezed her once then stepped away from her. Whatever happened, Gabby wouldn’t be hurt. She’d been through enough because of him.
Dropping the sword, Bruce sank to his knees beside them. “Do you see her? Or is it another hallucination?”
Gabby and Alexander both turned to follow Bruce’s gaze.
A low, pulsating, daffodil yellow light approached from behind them. The dim glow intensified until the graveyard was lit as if by the mid-day sun. An outline of a small framed person emerged. A woman with a halo of golden curls floated a few feet from them.
“Bruce, my love. I’m sorry I never told you. I couldn’t. I volunteered to watch over and protect you on Earth. And as an angel, even earthbound, I couldn’t reveal myself.”
Alexander glanced at Gabby. She didn’t seem surprised to see her mother. He looked at Grace and the others, all of them with knowing smiles plastered on their faces.
As the aura of light faded, Eliana moved closer to Bruce. She cupped her hand to his cheek. “I never expected to fall in love with you.”
Bruce took a few shuddered breaths, but didn’t say anything.
“Someday, we’ll be together again, I promise you. But for now, there’s something you need to know.” She looked around the graveyard at each of them. “Something all of you need to know.” Eliana’s gaze rested lovingly on Gabby. “Gabby is special, a child of all worlds. Conceived by a Heavenly angel and earthbound hunter, but given powers by a demon of Hell.”
Her gaze once again skimmed over them. “A great war is coming. A war we lost a couple thousand years ago. Even now, Lucifer recruits lost souls and plans to ascend a great army to Earth.” She shot Gremory a harsh stare.
She glided to Gabby. “Heaven refuses to interfere with freewill, but will provide its own elite and special force to protect the innocent. Gabby is the key to stopping the war before it begins. She’s been granted divine powers which are only beginning to surface and should be left to develop without interference.”
Eliana brushed the matted light brown hair from Bruce’s forehead. “You have an important job to do, my love. In time, Gabby’s talents will increase. You must train her as a hunter. Grace, Sammy, and Alexander will help develop her angelic gifts, and
Boon will help her understand the special skills gained from demon blood. Each one of you will play a part. Each one of you will fight. Not everyone will survive.”
Gabby wrapped her arms around Alexander and clung to him. He knew she feared losing him as he feared losing her.
“Eliana, my love. Please stay. We could fight as a family. The three of us would be unstoppable. I can’t do it without you. Please stay with me.” Bruce clutched her hands and pulled her into him.
“I cannot. But someday, we will be reunited and blessed for all we have given.”
Golden sunlight blinded them all for a moment as her aura brightened and hid her human form. Then it dimmed. “Bruce, your parents wanted me to tell you they are proud of you, and when the time is right, they will see you again in Heaven.”
Bruce dropped his head to the ground, sobbing as Eliana disappeared, leaving them in the moonlit graveyard.
Gremory jerked free of Grace and fled into the woods.
Alexander’s heart twisted with indecision but ultimately, he let the demon go. With Forras dead, their clan would scatter.
Gabby released Alexander and rushed to Bruce’s side. Dropping to her knees beside him, she rested her hand on his shoulder. “Daddy, it’s okay. We’ll fight together. No more secrets.” She lifted her hand and examined it. “In a way, it all makes sense. And now I know how Mom cured all my aches and pains.”
She lifted her gaze to Grace. “What powers will I possess?”
“I don’t know, child. While I have been granted knowledge of many things, you are unique. We won’t know what or how your powers will develop until they do.”
After everything that had happened, Alexander longed to hold Gabby, to confirm with all his senses that she was alive and safe. But things were different now. With the power she now possessed, the divine gifts blessed upon her from Heaven, she’d never want a fallen angel like him.
He thrust his hands in his pockets and shifted his feet, trying to keep himself from whisking her away in his arms. He wanted a moment alone together to hold her and brush his lips against hers one last time. Remembering her sweet cherry taste, the corners of his mouth rose, but he quickly shook his head to clear the grin.
