Page 86 of Wings of Destiny

He let out a low laugh as he took asmallstep backwards. “My apologies, Miss Snow. I didn’t have the intention of offending you,” he smirked and lifted a to-go cup from behind his back. “Would a hot cup of coffee ease my retribution?”

I eyed the cup in his grip, quickly glanced up, squinted, and snatched the cup from his hand. “There better be sugar in this,” I grumbled.

“Well of course, Miss Snow. I even added milk,” he winked. “Now, shall we begin the day?”

I’d rather not.

My lips pursed as I followed him out to the kitchen and sat at the island. “What exactly are we beginning?”

“Training.” My mind flashed to the dream visit I’d had from the mystery man.

“Oh? And we’re starting in the middle of the night because?” I asked as I sipped my coffee.

“Miss Snow, five in the morning is not middle of the night. I’m typically awake and already sweating.” His face was neutral but there was a brief glint in his eye. I fought the blush that attempted to grace my face. He hooked his thumbs in the pockets of dark-blue fitted joggers he wore.

Those look familiar…wait a minute.

Is he wearing Seth’s sweats?

Josh continued, his gaze hardened. “If we are to achieve the goal of finding these humans and rescuing them alive, we cannot have any loose ends. And that involves making sure thatyou,my dear, are equipped with the skills truly needed to defend oneself and others from Demons. You have barely begun your defense training,” I went to correct him; he stuck his hand up. “The defense courses you partook in as a child are not relevant in this situation. We are discussing Demons. Powerful creatures. Not mere mortals.”

“Look, Mister I-wake-up-when-normal-people-are-still-sleeping, I understand Demons are stronger, but there has to be some correlation between the two, right? I mean I kicked one of them in the nards, and that was a decent distraction. So…I’m just saying.” I shrugged.

He quirked his brow then grabbed a granola bar and apple from the pantry. As he tossed them to me, he responded, “That is merely the basics, Miss Snow. The opening to kick a Demon in their genitals is slim, rarely does it take them down like it would a human being. I applaud your luck in that situation but do not count on it. You must learn to fight with a weapon. Swords, daggers, knives, whatever you chose. Even a gun, if need be, although not recommended.”

That caught my attention. “Why not a gun? That would seem like the easier, obvious route?” I gulped down the remainder of my coffee and Josh pulled another from the counter behind him.

Someone planned ahead.

“A few reasons. First, beginning with the amount of time it would take for a bullet to unload and reach a Demon to inflict a fatal wound. They would already be on you. Secondly, they heal far too quickly for a bullet to do much damage.”

“But a blade wound wouldn’t heal too quickly?” I pursed my lips. “That sounds like a whole lot of bologna. And incredibly inconsistent.”

“I assure you, Miss Snow, it is not ‘bologna’. Demons are weak to few things. One being iron and weapons that are forged from it. That and pure silver.”

“What? Are they werewolves or something?” I rolled my eyes. Josh didn’t find that funny. “Wait. Are there werewolves?”

His face grim. “No, Miss Snow. However, there are Demons who have the ability to transform themselves into terrible creatures. Many of which have led to curating the nightmares and terrors that haunt humanities dreams.”

“Oh, well. Isn’t that comforting.” I snorted.

Josh shook his head. “This is serious, Miss Snow. And needs to be taken so.”

“My dude. I am taking this seriously. I just might not be too keen on learning that Demons can turn themselves into other creatures.”

Have you heard of a sense of humor?

He sighed. “Miss Snow, would you rather not know and be caught entirely off guard by an animal, such as a puppy, who shows itself to you, wanders into your home here, and then ambushes you when it transforms into its true Demonic form?”

“They can turn into puppies!? What? What am I supposed to do then? Just ignore every sweet, innocent furbaby that I see? Because I can tell you right now, I’m not doing that. I’ll take my chances.” I slammed my cup on the island and crossed my arms across my chest.

If a dog or a cat comes up to me…I’m risking it.

Josh just stared at me, like I was an idiot. “Well then. Lucky for you, that was an extreme example. They often turn into fearsome creatures. Only if a Demon were desperate enough, would they turn into such a feeble, harmless house pet. They deem actual creatures or ‘fur babies’ as you called them, weak, useless.”

“Well clearly, they had their dicks shoved up their asses. Because puppies are adorable. And far from useless.”

He pinched his brows together and ran his hand down his face. “Miss Snow. These are literal Demons we’re discussing. They have no need for simple creatures or to take into consideration their target’s concerns for wildlife. Will you focus, please.”

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