Page 46 of A Shadow of Betrayal

Meyer

“You're going to be in trouble for that,” I tease, tossing a wave and a cocky smirk over my shoulder to Creed. He’s glaring after us as the man who was talking to him earlier steps in front of him, cutting off his chance to pursue us.

“Meh…” Jordan says with his own devilish grin. “Credence isn't the Regalis Senior. The most he can do is add extra time to my conditioning in the morning, which would interfere with me training you, and Lennox won’t let that happen.”

“That's good to know,” I say breathlessly as we pull to a stop. “Where is Theo?” I ask, scanning the faces of the Rangers and Hunters fighting what's left of the Demons. It's darker out here, and I have to squint my eyes to try to make out faces, but from what I can see, only a handful of Demons are left.

One of the older men with weird green magic is also out here, walking through the fight like a reaper, waving his hand occasionally, making a few of the Demons in front of him collapse and not get back up.

There is something... unnatural about it all that rubs me the wrong way. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against killing the Demons, but the feel of that weird green magic in the air makes me shiver, and I grimace, turning away from the scene and look back at Jordan, who is now gnawing on his lip as he looks for our friend.

“Don’t know,” Jordan mutters, though I see the worry filtering on his face as he looks at the number of bodies that litter the ground. Jordan lets my hand go, bringing it up to run through his hair. “Fuck, Meyer, if he’s been hurt…” Jordan trails off, and I shake my head.

“He’s fine. This is Theo,” I say determinedly. “There aren't many Demons left. Let's split up and find him and meet back here in five minutes,” I rush out, already stepping to the right, my eyes moving over the mass of unfamiliar faces.

“Uh, no! You just had your ass handed to you by a Demon. You aren’t going anywhere,” Jordan mutters, grabbing my wrist and tugging me back to him. I sigh and roll my eyes, reaching down to grab two more blades since I lost the first two when that Demon hit me.

“Trust me. There are only the reflective-eyed ones out here, not the soulless kind,” I explain, making him look at me like I’m crazy.

“The… wait, what? How hard did you hit your head, Meyer?” he asks, crouching down to look into my eyes. “Do you have a concussion? Shit, maybe I should bring you back to the Castle,” he whispers.

“Jordan, stop. I promise I’ve got this. Let's find Theo,” I snap, pushing his hand off me and rolling my eyes.

“Fine, but we are sticking together, and if you get hurt, I’m never letting you forget it. Pretty sure Theo has mentally adopted you as his sister. He’ll roast my nuts if I let you get hurt, so let's maybe not tell him about the whole Demon charging you earlier,” he says nervously as he laces my fingers with his, and we take off in the direction where the most fighting is happening.

“No problem,” I agree, as we dart around some Hunters taking on a rather small Demon that has six arms and two heads.

“There!” Jordan shouts, relief filling his expression as he points a short distance down the wall where three people are fighting a Demon. “No, no, no,” Jordan yells just as a dark creature lunges at the group of Rangers, having kept hidden in the shadows of the nearby trees until it's too late.

I watch in horror as a huge Demon leaps on one of the Rangers, taking her down to the ground with little effort, causing the other two Rangers to startle back in shock. Theo shouts and immediately attacks the new Demon, leaving the other Ranger to take down the one they were first fighting alone.

“Jordan, go!” I shout as the big Demon turns its sights on Theo. I tear my hand from Jordan’s and shove him forward, knowing he's a faster runner and can help them. I'll only make him slower if I try to keep up with him.

Jordan takes off in a sprint, pulling his bow from over his shoulder and notching two arrows as he goes, pulling back and loosing them. I watch in awe as they sail through the air and hit two separate targets, making both Demons roar in pain as I keep running toward them, now several feet behind Jordan. A shift in the night makes me pull up short as a third Demon slowly creeps up on the group of unsuspecting Rangers, its eyes stalking them as they fight for their lives.

“Not happening,” I grind out, and run toward the third Demon, needing to be closer to hit a true target. I palm the hilt of the blade in my right hand and raise it over my head, running a few more feet, knowing I have only moments until the Demon sees me, and I lose the element of surprise. Just as I get in range, the Demon's furry head cocks to the side slowly turning towards me, its soulless black eyes locking with my own just as I let the blade fly from my hand.

I watch in satisfaction as the knife sails through the air, tumbling in a perfect arc before sinking into the Demon’s meaty side. It jerks back in shock as it snarls, its head whipping back and forth as it stumbles back a few steps. Wasting no time, I toss the blade in my left hand, hitting the Demon in the chest, and a burst of excitement fills me as the Demon roars, pushing back on its hind legs before falling to the side.

Grabbing two more blades, I eye the Demon, scowling at how easy that seemed when it doesn't get back up. Taking a hesitant step forward, I watch it closely, tension boiling in my stomach as I grow closer to the beast. It's not moving, not even its chest. No breathing no twitching…

“Stop playing with me,” I whisper under my breath, narrowing my eyes on it as I slowly bring another blade up and take aim, then release. It soars through the air, but this time before it can land in the Demon's neck, it freezes, only inches from it, a big black tail cording around the blade, halting its movements. Almost like the Demon laughs, a chuffing sound moves through the air as its tail slowly moves to the side, taking the throwing knife with it.

“Shit,” I grind out, taking a step back, unsure what the Demon might do with the blade. The sound of crunching snow makes me gasp and dart a look over my shoulder just in time to see another large Demon only feet away, crouching before it launches itself at me. I drop, rolling over the snow, reaching for the Kalis tucked in a small sheath at my hip, yanking it out just as the massive weight of the Demon lands on my stomach.

Sharp claws rake over the leather at my shoulders before they find purchase, and my breath stalls in my chest, knowing I’m in trouble. Twin blades of burning pain dig into my flesh as the Demon rumbles a low growl above me, sinking its claws into my shoulder and tearing a scream from my lips. I meet the soulless black eyes of the Demon as my vision blurs. Its hot, rancid breath rolls over my face, making me gag as I blindly lash out, plunging the Kalis into the Demon's chest, then yanking it back out.

The fucker roars in my face, thick saliva dripping from its sharp teeth, falling on my cheek, feeling like lava as it jerks back, its claws shredding skin and leather as it goes. I scream again, hot blood pouring over my shoulder as I kick at the Demon’s underside. Using its weight to shove myself out from under it, I roll, following the Demon to the ground, straddling it while grinning maniacally.

Adrenaline fills my veins, and I can see my hands tremble as I bring the Kalis down on the back of the Demon's neck. Gritting my teeth, I pull back and reach around the coarse, gray fur, placing the blade at its throat as it howls, cutting through flesh and muscle until the howl cuts off with a gurgling sound.

Panting, I slowly sit up and blink at my surroundings, my awareness slowly coming back to me as my panic fades. Looking down, I cringe at the amount of blood that covers my body, mine and the Demon’s, soaking me almost head to toe.

“Gross,” I whisper, rubbing at my arms, trying to control my jerky movements, but not having much luck. I stand, wincing at the pain in my inner thighs. Small, sharp flashes of pain radiate up my legs and into my hips, and I glance down at my pants, finding hundreds of small holes where the Demon’s sharp, almost razor-like fur stabbed through the fabric.

Now that I can see them, the tiny puncture wounds begin to hurt, reminding me of a bee sting, and I gasp when my knees try to buckle. Turning to look for Theo and Jordan, I open my mouth to call out for some help, moving my blood-soaked Kalis to my other hand, only to come face-to-face with the other Demon. It’s bleeding from its side and belly, my throwing knives still lodged in its body.

The Demon bares its teeth, its black eyes dark voids as it tilts its head and snarls low in its throat. I startle back a few steps, biting the inside of my cheek when my legs and shoulder cry out in pain at the sudden movement and bring the Kalis up in front of my face. Then I take a deep breath, trying to slow my rapidly beating heart as the Demon stalks forward, its eyes locked on the Kalis in my hand before moving to my face. I brace myself, hoping to slam it into its neck if it lunges, since I know I can't turn and run.

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