Page 31 of The Rowan's Stone
Stepping forward, I try to heal him, but the poison is resistant.
Fallon’s face whitens, and he opens a portal. Summoning one of his younger soldiers for help, they get Garrett on his feet. “Get him to ground and have my father call on Mother Nature for her assistance. Don’t let him die.”
When the portal closes, he turns to me and pulls me into his arms. His large hand cups the back of my head, and his muscular body wraps itself around me. “Thank you. The men, Garrett, they’re my brothers. We would have suffocated and died a thousand times before someone could get to us,” he says gruffly. He draws back and cups my face between his two hands, then leans down and drops the softest, most heartfelt kiss on my lips.
When he pulls back this time, his green eyes reflect an ocean of emotion, but he slowly removes his hands. Giving a large whistle, his warriors file into place. In sync, they all turn to me and bow, gratitude shining in their eyes. Fallon gives another signal with his hand, and they head back into the battle, leaving me standing there alone with my fingers on my lips.
My body is trembling from an overload of adrenaline and emotion, but slowly, the sounds of battle permeate my bubble, making me aware of how vulnerable I am. Shaking off the nerves, I glance around and notice I’m in a circle of Daire’s protection. Relieved, I wave my hand and motion to the hill. Daire nods. Having seen Valerian, Daire, and Fallon, I’m so tempted to go check on Astor and Theron, and Callyx and Vargas, but I don’t. Daire needs me to be there for his father, and that’s what I’m going to do.
18
ARDEN
Returning to Lucifer’s side, I notice quite a few more guards around us, but I don’t know if they’re friend or foe. I slide to the side to get a better vantage point to observe the new guards, placing myself a couple of feet closer to Lucifer.
He raises an eyebrow and flicks his eyes to the field.
I give him a discreet thumbs-up, and he returns it with a hard nod. I guess he’s still a wee bit angry with me. Nobody likes the messenger who brings bad news. And a traitor who’s been your best friend for thousands of years? Maybe he believes me and maybe he doesn’t, but as a ruler, he has to at least give it consideration. The repercussions for ignoring a traitor in Alain’s position would be devastating.
Watching the guard’s fist clench in front of me, I follow his eyesight directly down the middle of the battlefield, where Astor fights valiantly against another magic user. It’s hard to tell from this far away, but probably a sorcerer or sorceress, common to the Underworld. The skies above them are filled with the color of magic—spells and counter spells. Astor quickly defeats his opponent, but he doesn’t rest for a second, simply choosing the next one and engaging quickly. I so badly want to join him. Instead, I turn back to the guard and memorize his face.Foe, I mark him.
A large arc appears in the sky to the right side of the battlefield, exactly where Callyx and Vargas are fighting. The arc slowly evolves into a portal. The deafening roar of the battle ceases as all eyes turn to it. Peering through the opening to the other side, an army lies waiting to enter the battle, but not like any army I’ve ever seen. Row upon row of creatures stand ready to enter. Dark, expressionless, and fucking scary, they make the denizens of the Underworld seem like pansies. Tensing, I look to Lucifer for information, but he’s turned away from me, scanning the battlefield. He stills when he spots something to his left on the hill nearby.
Glancing back at the portal, I watch several creatures slip through the opening.Fuck, this isn’t good.Suddenly, the enemy stops fighting us and turns to help us fight the creatures entering from the portal. You know it’s bad when your enemy is suddenly your ally. We need to close this fucking portal!
Horrified, I’m unable to take my eyes off the scene. As I’m staring, I see the edges of the portal wavering and possibly shrinking. It’s got to be Vargas, but it’s so fucking slow, too many of those creatures are pouring into our side.
Where is Daire? I scan the back of the battlefield, but I don’t see him. When I turn to my left, I notice Lucifer is also gone.Fuck! Where did he go?
I shoot off a text to Daire, telling him to get up to the front and help Vargas get this portal closed or we’re all going to be fucked.
I turn in a circle until I see a guard I can trust. Or at least I think I can trust. Hopefully, my powers of observation are working. Sliding quietly up to him, I murmur, “Where’s Lucifer?”
Without taking his eyes off the portal, he leans down. “Why should I tell you?”
Pulling the Killian blade, I slide it between his thighs. “Because I’m here as his honored guest. And because I’ll cut off your dick if you don’t help me find him. You can go with me, but we need to hurry!” My gut’s churning, along with my intuition. “I think he’s in trouble.”
The guard gives me a measured look and must find me sincere, because he decides to help. I sigh with relief. I really didn’t want to hurt him. He taps the guy next to him on the shoulder and motions for him to follow, then heads off toward the left side of the camp—in the same direction Lucifer was looking earlier.
One of Alain’s personal guards gives us a suspicious glance when we pass him and decides to investigate. Pretending like I don’t see him, I cup my breasts and plump them up, then run my hands down the sides of my body before grabbing onto the bicep of the guard in front of me. Walking beside him, I add an extra wiggle into my hips. Alain’s guard slows but doesn’t stop. Damn it, I’d hoped my ruse would work. I guess we’ll have to do this the hard way.
“Stop, we’ve got company,” I whisper to the guard in front. I slide around the corner of the tent and motion for the two guards to keep walking. Drawing my sword, I wait.
Alain’s guard walks by a minute later. He doesn’t see me in the shadows, and I wait until he’s past, then hit him hard on the head with the pommel of my sword. He crumples to the ground, and the two guards eye me warily.
“He’s a traitor,” I explain quietly. “Let’s go.”
The guards communicate silently with each other, but they don’t turn back. When we come to a small ridge, the first guard points to the left. When I get to the edge, I follow his finger and see Lucifer fighting with Alain. I also see several men sneaking up on his back. The guards beside me pull their swords, but I hold up a hand. We need to get closer. I think I can put us directly between Lucifer and the attackers. I step back until the men on the ridge have disappeared from view, hoping if I can’t see them, they can’t see me. I open a portal and motion for the two guards to follow me.
When I open the portal, we’re standing in front of the enemy, exactly where I’d targeted. The rune at my throat flares in warning, but I’m already moving. We engage quickly, and it only takes a few minutes to kill them. Turning in a circle, I notice Alain’s men sneaking up from several sides, not just this one. Pulling my other sword, I motion for Lucifer’s guards to spread out.
The first group tops the hill and smile when they see me. The only thing standing between them and Lucifer is a woman. While they can’t see my face, thanks to the suit molded to my body, they can obviously tell I’m female. Apparently, they follow the same school of thought as most demons—a woman is not a threat. It’s my turn to smile, even if they can’t see it.
“Hello, boys. Decided to join the party? I have to tell you…it pretty much sucks. No booze, no yummy appetizers, no flirty men, and it’s missing my friend Meri. Believe me, you don’t know how to party until you party with that girl. Although,” I babble, distracting them with my chatter while I decide which one to take out first. He’s perfect, and I direct my gaze to him. “I don’t think you’re her type. She likes them to be sexy as fuck, and you obviously didn’t inherit the good looks gene. Ugly parents, huh? Sucks to be you.”
His sword slams into mine. Finally. I thought I’d have to beg him to fight me. I pivot and, with two strokes, cut off his head and step over to the next guard, who is standing there in shock. My sword swings through the air, and his head rolls to the ground.
Feeling a disturbance at my back, I duck and slide to the side, bringing my sword up to meet the next swing. It reverberates, and I step back to assess this new threat. “Well, you’re a big boy. Ugly too. Does Alain only like the ugly ones? Probably thinks you make him prettier.” He is one big, ugly motherfucker, and based on his grip and stance, he knows how to fight. Thank fuck.
