Page 106 of Wings of Destiny

I tore through the forest, increasing my speed as the trees and brush rushed past me. The wind whistled through the woods, bringing with it the chill of the night. Images of Erin continued to haunt me. Her smile. The tears she shed. The distant brokenness that drifted in and out of her as she plastered on a smile the day we reunited after all those years apart. It hadn’t reached her eyes. It took months—years—for the glimmer to return, the sunshine that had been buried deep within. Hours ofrunning. Lifting. Goofing around. Dancing; endless coffee runs, late nights, painting, reading, and everything in between.

Then he took her. Erebus took her from me. And that light began to dwindle. She became haunted once more. The beautiful grey-blue depths of her eyes shone a little less. The hollows under them deepened. She’d become leaner, stronger than ever, and not just because of her Nephilim strength. Her training had gotten better. She worked at it constantly. But…I didn’t know if it was enough.

I blinked and her dismembered body with dark, empty eyes flashed behind my lids. I barreled through thickets growling, an empty clearing before me. A dreary meadow, having seen better days. My dagger was at the ready.

An ear-piercing roar erupted across the meadow. A Demon came barreling out of the trees, deranged, and foaming at the mouth. I braced myself for impact as it ripped its way through the tall grass toward me, only for it to stop short, two figures slamming into it from the sides.

Silence.

Its roar bellowed through the clearing, the leaves on the surrounding trees shook as it fell to its knees. A third figure waltzed into the clearing. I blinked and the scorching red imploded through my vision once again.

“Erin? Libby? What the actualhellare you two doing out here? And withhim,” I growled deeply, the sound vibrated my chest. “Some fucking errands.” I kept my feet planted, even as the thought of slicing Josh’s throat for risking Erin’s life flicked through my head.

Erin stepped forward in Josh’s defense, arms outstretched, palms facing me. She jumped over the overgrown monster’s arm and nearly face-planted in the process. “Seth, chill out.”

My voice rose. “Chill out!? Erin, you aren’t fucking trained enough to be chasing after Demons, let alone one that’s the sizeof a freaking tank! You could’ve gotten yourself killed. What the fuck were you thinking? Did Josh fucking put you two up to this?!” I yelled, stomping a foot in his direction.

Erin planted herself directly in my path, throwing her hands on her hips as lightning crackled from the tips of her fingers, fire blazed in her eyes.

“You want to fucking try that again, Seth? Howdareyoufucking pull that shit when you’re out herealoneand by the looks of your ink-stained clothes, fighting the hellhounds without anyone else. So, don’t youfuckingdare sit there on your soapbox, you fucker,” she struck her finger against the center of my chest, the lightning extinguished. “And don’t you dare pin this on Josh. This whole thing was my idea. We weren’t getting anywhere and after seeing Josh’s methods”—Erin quickly flicked her eyes in his direction—“I thought it might be useful to have him in on this.”

That was it. I fumed. “He answers tome, Erin. Not you. You don’t have the experience necessary to go off on some Demon hunting escapade. And Libby”—I glared at her. She ignored me and eyed her nails—“should’ve said something to me about whatever this mess is.”

Erin scoffed. “Oh, really? So, what? I’m just meant to sit on the goddamned sidelines while your ass goes out and risksyourlife behindmyback? Or while you send Derik to do it for you? Really?” Libby’s head shot up; her eyes narrowed. “Clearly you have a case of hypocrisy, Draven.” My heart ached, a knife wedging itself in. She almost never called me by my last name.

“That’s not what I meant,” I grumbled.

“Sure as hell fucking sounded like it.” Erin growled.

Josh clapped his hands. “Ladies and Mister Draven. I understand the lot of you would easily stand around all day insulting each other with various profanity but we must get amove on. I can only hold this creature for so long,” he motioned to Erin and Libby. “Ladies.”

Libby crouched down next to the Demon, not yet touching it. Erin did the same as she planted herself directly in sight of the Demon, weight on the balls of her feet. Josh yanked a dagger from its side and threw it in Erin’s direction, she caught it without removing her attention from the Demon before her, its eyes slowly beginning to open.

At least she didn’t slice her hand trying to catch it.

Ice crept into my bones as she began to speak, her voice hollow, deadly, cold. Something I’d never before heard from her. “Wakey, wakey, creepy ass Demon. We need some answers.”

I froze.Where the fuck did this come from?

It blinked and a smile equivalent to that of a demonic toy, crept along her face. The grey-blue of her eyes darkened, her pupils narrowed. Her teeth were bared and her flames erupted from her palms. The Demon seemed to pale, before its own teeth flashed. “You vermin! You are trash, how dare you! You bow tome!” The Demon spat at Erin.

Her grin widened; a cold laugh escaped with it. “Might want to save your breath there, Demon. As it’s limited.” She leaned forward, elbows propped on her knees, and ran her dagger along its face, pushing it into the skin as she went, a thin, faint line of black ink trailing. My eyes widened. The Demon began howling, screaming; its body began to convulse. “Now you see, my friend over there,” Erin pointed her dagger towards Josh. “He will make you absolutely miserable, your worst fears brought forward. Unless, that is, you cooperate and tell us what we need to know.”

The Demon continued to convulse; a whimper fell from its mouth. Erin flickered her gaze to Josh, her head nodding. Her eyes then landed on me, fear lined the outer rims. I lookedcloser, her skin a shade green, as if she were on the verge of puking.

It’s an act.

A terrifying one.

What’s your plan here, Erin?

My attention snapped back to the Demon as its mouth foamed, body shaking, the ground around it moving from the vibrations. Erin’s attention returned as well, her mask falling back into place. “It’ll stop. All you need to do is answer a few questions for me and you’ll be free to go back to your handler, Demon.” The Demon screamed once again, piercing my eardrums as I fought the need to cover my ears, Erin and Libby’s hands twitched as if fighting the same urge. Josh remained unfazed.

It roared out in pain. “Okay! I’ll do it. Just please. Make it stop!” The Demon begged.

Erin snapped her fingers and the Demon’s screams stopped, replaced by ragged panting. It moved to sit up, Erin wagged her finger. “Ah, ah.” The Demon visibly shook.

What the hell did Josh show it?

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