From somewhere behind me, came the bang of a gun being fired.There was an anguished scream.And then silence.I gathered Amanda into my arms and used my body to shield her from the violence and gore.
“It’s done,” Alex said.
Amanda let out a sob and rushed into his waiting arms.
It was only then that I saw the black puddle of ooze behind Alex that used to be my mother.
Despite my sadness, I knew it had to end this way.I was thankful that Alex was the one to deal the final blow, instead of me.Alex and I shared a look over the top of Amanda’s head.As much as I could not forgive my mother’s betrayal, I didn’t know if I could have ended her life with my own hands.
“Are you okay?”Meghan asked through the bond.
I steeled my resolve.My control was slipping if she felt my pain through the bond.
“Everything’s fine.We have the orb and Amanda is safe.”I opened my mind and let her see what I was seeing.Alex kissed Amanda’s forehead before resting his hands on her pregnant belly.
“We should get going.”I gestured at Amanda’s head wound.“You’ll need to get that checked out by the medic.”
Alex nodded.“Leo’s right.All this stress cannot be good for you or the baby.”
The relief we felt was short-lived, lasting only until we stepped out of the warehouse.
The sky was no longer ink black.An ominous purple glow lit up the sky as bolts of lightning came shooting down at a rapid pace.In the distance, heavy dark clouds swirled as if trying to come together around something descending from the heavens.
“Fuck!”If I had a heartbeat, it would have stopped right now.
“What is it?”Amanda asked as she stared at the sky with quiet wonder.
“The crazy bastard actually did it.He opened the gates of hell,” Alex said.
We were right, in a sense.My mother was indeed a distraction.While we were busy fighting with her, Cederic had succeeded in opening the portal separating our world from the ancient demons.
The earth shook with the booming roar of a monstrous creature in the distance.Something resembling a snake-like dragon flew out of the clouds.These were the snakelike creatures that all vampires were descended from.
The giant demon was bigger than a hundred-floor skyscraper.It slithered through the sky like it was on the hunt, and we were its prey.Another followed it, and then another.
“There’s no time to waste.We have to get back to base camp and gather the forces.”Alex handed the bag with the orb over to me and swept Amanda off of her feet into his arms.
We broke every speed limit and barely managed to get back without wrapping our car around a tree.Inside, everybody in the clan, from the main team to the grunts rushed around as they armed themselves for battle.It was a fight for survival and the world as we knew it.
Alex assembled the troops.This time, even the rocket launchers and tanks we smuggled in through the black market were called into service.We were going to need every last weapon and man to take down one of these demons, given their size.I had the feeling that a gunshot wound was going to feel like a bug bite to them.That was, if the bullet managed to pierce their skin at all.
“We can take down one demon, and the next, but what then?”Grant asked.
I agreed with him.It was no use.The demons would just keep pouring out of the portal.“We have to find a way to close the portal.”
“How?That requires magic.”
Meghan looked at Lizzy, but Alex shook his head.“This is far too big of a job for just one witch.”
“I have an idea.”Lizzy offered tentatively.“You won’t like it, though.”
“We don’t have a choice.I’m willing to try anything,” Alex said.
“We can team up with the local coven.”
Alex let out a growl in disgust.“Those damned witches!”
Lizzy flinched, but did not say anything.She knew all too well how tricky the covens could be.Her own sister was the leader of the coven that tried to kill Alex and even Amanda and Rose.This could end up being a deal with the devil.