by Jamie King
“No.”
“Okay. Uh. Okay.” He yanks his t-shirt over his head. His muscles ripple as he tosses it to the floor and pulls on his military armor plated shirt. The sleeves have armor plating all the way to the wrist. “The white found us, we need to get out of here or into the panic room until back up arrives. Toby should have contacted Kamila by now. She will be sending troops through a portal.” His gaze lingers on me for a moment. “I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”
I nod and rush to my wardrobe and pull out my combat boots and similar military style gear to Luka’s. I slip into the clothes and ready myself for the fight. Luka places two daggers at his hips. His hair is pulled into a tight bun and his eyes are glowing in the darkness.
A gentle knock comes from the door. My heart skips and I hold my breath. Luka roughly opens the door and Dominic and Rae slip through. I let out my breath as relief floods me.
“Luka. Ri.” Dominic nods. “Ethan counts about fifty white coven members. There is also the scent of another group in the distance, but they don’t smell the same. It could be the black or an unaffiliated group here to collect the bounty.”
I take a deep breath as the world closes in on me. “Where are the others?” I ask. My pulse pounds through my body and my skin warms. This is all my fault. I did this to them.
Rae pulls me into his side. “Don’t worry. We’re warriors.” He kisses my forehead. “This is what we do.”
Dominic places a hand on Luka’s shoulder. “Brother. We will guard you both until you reach the panic room. If we take too long to join you close it and do not open it again until back up arrives.” He squeezes Luka’s shoulder. “Understood?”
Luka nods and pulls him into a hug. “I trained many of these soldiers, Dom. Be careful.”
Dominic pats his back. “I was going easy on you fairy. You still haven’t fought me shifted.” He winks.
Rae touches Dominic’s back. “We should shift here and then join the others.”
The two men step away from Luka and me. They remove their shirts and kick off their shoes. Both keep their basketball shorts slung low on their hips.
The sound of bones cracking and breaking fills the room. Dominic’s body grows long blond hairs and his fingernails lengthen into blonde claws. His face morphs and extends into a wolf-like snout. His ears shift and grow pointedly on his head like a wolf. His eyes grow larger and rounded. His shoulders crack and bow forward as his back hunches into a slight arch. His feet extend into large padded paws with massive claws. Fur grows and quickly covers his body. His hands crack and bend as they elongate and enlarge.
Rae morphs and grows beside him. His body covered in black fur. The two werewolves sniff the air before exchanging a glance.
“Whoa.” I breathe at the transformed Rae and Dominic.
“Luka.” Dominic says. His voice is deep and throaty. He walks toward Luka. His large padded feet thump on the carpet as he stands next to the door. “Stay safe.” He growls through his snout.
Rae nudges me with a furry fist. “Be careful.” This is nothing like the calm and loving Rae I know. His voice is deep and rough, but his eyes are still the same kind eyes.
I guess this is what people must see when I allow my demon out. Menacing and yet the same person behind the scary exterior. Luka closes the door behind them.
“How did the white find us?” I gaze up at Luka.
“Supernatural’s gossip. There are many ways to gather information if you’re dedicated enough.”
A deep hum rumbles through the house and then the sound of the electricity shutting off drives the room into silence. The light from the nightstand alarm clock switches off leaving Luka and I in pure darkness.
“We have to make it to the safe room. It’s warded with strong magic and will act like a fallout bunker.” His hand grabs mine. “Don’t let go of me and if I tell you to run, you run. Understand?”
“Yes.” I whisper.
“Good.” The door opens and Luka tugs me into the hallway. Snarls echo from below. After all the training I’ve done, I’m still not confident that I could defend myself.
A man’s voice penetrates through the sound of fighting. “Find the girl and kill these horrendous beasts!”
I sink into Luka. “It’s okay.” He whispers. We stand at the top of the stairs staring into the darkness below. A flash of blonde fur darts past the bottom stair. A man screams and then snarls follow. The screams stop and silence descends on the area once again.
A howl vibrates through the house. My feet hit the bottom step of the third floor and I feel a presence appear behind me.
“Quickly.” Rae says beside me. My heart leaps and I squeeze closer to Luka’s back. “More enemies have been seen coming through the back entrance and the roof.”
Luka tugs me around the staircase and to the next flight of stairs that leads to the second floor. Our feet pound heavily as Luka pulls behind him at a run. Rae pants heavily as he follows behind us.
“Down!” Rae screams and leaps over us. He lands on a man at the bottom of the steps. They tumble away in a ball of snarls and screams.
“Rae.” I yell as the man tosses him into a wall. Luka tugs me, and I crane my neck to see if Rae got up. I vision is met with only darkness. “No.” I mutter as Luka pulls me down the next flight of stairs and toward the kitchen. A roar comes from the kitchen and I see a flash of blonde fur slide over the floor and tumble toward my feet. “Dom!” I shout as my heart explodes in my chest and my stomach sinks into an abyss of guilt. My fingers caress his fluffy cheek. “Oh, Dom.” I whisper.
His eyes fly open. “Luka, get her to safety.” His deep voice commands.
Luka pulls me away from Dominic and grips my hand tighter. I glance up at him. No emotion shows on his face, but I feel his concern. We were caught off guard. We became complacent and thought we were safe in our secret house after months of silence. We were wrong. Luka pulls me around the corner to the kitchen. The back door is open, and the panic room is dark. No one has reached it yet. Luka halts abruptly and I smash into him.
“Luka.” The smooth voice pierces the silence. Ice seeps into my soul. Jake.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
24
“Jacob.” Luka growls through his teeth.
Piercing blue eyes gazing lazily back at me. His black button-up is open displaying his chest. Jeans hug his legs and tuck into black boots that are caked in red dirt. “Nuri. So good to see you, my light.” He flashes a smile and twirls a dagger in his fingers. “I’ve been searching for you everywhere. Who would have thought that you didn’t even go that far?”
My pulse races and I squeeze Lukas hand. If Jake is here, that means we’re being attacked by both the black and the white covens. The pack doesn’t stand a chance against that many enemies.
“Please give me Nuri, Luka.”
“No.” Luka says flatly and steps in front of me releasing my hand. “She stays with me.”
“Oh, poor Luka. Aurora left you and now you keep my love from me? Out of what? Jealousy? Maybe spite?” Jake laughs. “Surely you can’t still blame me for what happened to Maya?”
“Don’t bring her into this!” Luka roars.
Bring who into this? Who’s Maya? Luka’s familiar energy spreads over me and tickles my skin.
“Oh dear, still touchy I see.” He pricks his finger with the dagger. “Don’t make me force you into compliance halfling.” He laughs menacingly. “You will regret it.”
Luka reaches his hand to his dagger and grips the handle. “The only thing I regret is allowing your family to live.” Luka rips the dagger from his belt and leaps for Jake.
In the blink of an eye Jake sprouts jet black wings and horns. Black scales trail over his chest like tattoos. His eyes glow ice blue in the darkness. His transformation is eerily similar to mine. His shirt tears away from his body and he leaps to meet Luka. Jake is faster and nimble. He kicks Luka in the chest flipping him over the kitchen island.
Luka crashes to the
floor with a mixture of pots and pans that had been on the countertop. Dominic’s hand grips my shoulder and he pulls me into the shadows. “The panic room is just past the pool in the shed. When I tell you to run, I want you to run and lock yourself in. Do not open the door again until reinforcements arrive.”
“I-I can’t leave you.” I tremble. Luka springs to life from the floor and leaps onto Jake. A trail of blood flows from his scalp.
“We can handle ourselves, Ri.”
“But, Luka. I can’t leave him.”
“He didn’t become a general of the White’s army by twenty for nothing, Ri. Luka is an amazing fighter.”
Luka may be an amazing fighter, but against Jake in his demon form? I don’t think even Luka has that kind of power. A clawed hand pushes me and I slide into the nearby wall. My head slams into the wood floor. A sharp stinging shoots through my head and my vision blurs. I wipe my eyes and search for signs of Dominic. He’s in a heated battle with two men dressed in white robes.
I glance back at Luka and Jake. Jake has Luka by the throat. His massive black wings are fully extended as he lifts Luka off the ground. Surprise is evident on Luka’s face. Jake laughs and tosses Luka across the room into a wall of cabinets.
I roll onto my feet. A loud ringing shoots through my ears. I wobble and attempt to run to Luka’s slumped form on the floor. His body is covered in shards of wood from the impact of the cabinet.
Jake appears over Luka. His dagger glints from a silvery stream of moonlight.
“No!” I scream and struggle to my feet.
Jake shoves the dagger deep into Luka’s chest and twists the handle.
Luka cries out. “No.” I whisper and collapse to the floor beside him.
Jake hovers over Luka. “Now brother, you may see your sister in the afterlife.”
Luka stares defiantly up at Jake.
Jake takes a few steps back and releases a menacing laugh. “I finally did it. I’ve bested the great Luka. The prized Halfling of the white has been taken out by a filthy Daesidh.” He erupts into laughter. “My light, please stand. This is no way for you to behave.”
Tears stream down my face as I crawl to Luka’s side. No. No. No. This can’t happen. He promised me. He promised it would be okay! I sob as I grab onto his shirt. “Luka.”
“Don’t cry for him, Nuri.” Jake hisses.
“Luka?” I grab his face in my trembling hands. His body is slumped against the broken cabinets. Blood trickles from the dagger still protruding from his chest. His eyes watch me and his breath grows ragged. “Don’t go. You can’t go.” I cry into his face and press my forehead to his. His breath stutters and his eyes roll back. I shake his face forcing him to look at me. “No. No. No. Don’t leave me.” His eyes gaze at me through heavy lids. “I love you.” I press my lips to his in desperation. “You can’t go. I need you.” I whisper against his lips.
An arm wraps around my waist lifting me way from Luka. “No!” I screech. I reach for Luka refusing to drop his gaze. “No! Luka!” I cry out. I kick at the person that removed me from his side.
Jakes lips touch my ear. “Why do you mourn him?” My stomach twists.
Luka’s breath staggers as Jake backs us away from him. “No!” My body shudders between each breath. “Luka!” I scream with every ounce of energy I have left. “You promised. Luka!” I scratch at Jake. “No.” I screech as Jake pulls me away and out of sight. He carries me through the back doors and the dark tendrils of despair grasp at my heart. I sink in Jakes arms as the sense of defeat hits me. The cool night air stings my skin and I gaze up at the moon.
“Don’t worry,” Jake whispers into my ear, “The poison will move quickly, and it will be over for him soon.” He hugs me tighter. “It will be fairly painless, but I’m sure the sight of you crying for him was worse than even the most painful death.”
Howls erupt from the house as Jake carries me through a hole in the backyard fence. Four men bow on the other side. One-man steps forward.
“Sir, the portal is ready.”
“Good. Tell the others to join us.” Jake commands. The man bows and disappears in the shadows. Jake follows the remaining three men to a dark alley a few houses down. A large portal hovers at the end of the alleyway. The shimmering image of a red barren landscape dances behind the mirror.
Everyone I know and love are dead. Why did I ever think I could fight this? If I continue to fight. If I continue to run. How many more people will die? Tiffany’s smiling face flashes in my mind. I can’t put them at risk anymore. I’ve lost everything and nearly everyone. I slump against Jake’s bare chest. Images of Luka hunched over and dying play like a movie in my mind. “What are you?” I whisper.
“Me?” He gazes up at the sky. “Well, I told you this before. I’m just like you.”
“Why did you come for me like this? Why did you have to kill people?”
“They took you from me and they had to be punished.”
“What happened to you, Jake?”
“I awoke.”
The familiar gelatinous barrier hits my skin as Jake presses us into the portal. Where could he be taking me? Maybe the black coven headquarters. A new prison? I wonder what Agnes will do when she visits me this time. She must be furious.
Bright sunlight hits me as the portal spits us out. I cry out as sharp heat shoots through my body. Jake sets me on the ground and backs away moments before my wings erupt from my body. My horns and tail follow shortly. The special velcro flaps that Tia had sewn into my battle gear tear open.
“My, my, Nuri. You truly are light.” Jake purrs.
Twenty or so military clad men and women encircle us. They gawk at me intently. A mixture of curiosity and fear I assume.
Jake kneels in front of me and touches the scales on my face. “You are magnificent, my light.” The scales on my hands seem different from usual. The golden flecks that sit inside my scales shimmer radiantly as if reflecting an internal sunlight. Jake pulls me to my feet and turns me to face the crowd. “Coven members of Oíche, welcome, your queen.”
I glance around at the barren wasteland around us. Red dirt and sand like the landscape of Mars surrounds us with high mountaintops. Eerie tree like plants litter the land. The bright blue sky is crystal clear. Bat-like birds the size of lions soar through the sky above.
Jake stands beside me as the men and women around us bow. “Welcome home, my light, to the kingdom of Demons.”
Thank you for reading!
Keep up with Jamie A. King for future publications and events at jamieaveryking.com
