Page 21 of Snowed in with the Demon Lord
Glass shattered, and wind howled through the cabin. Seeker had taken the quickest way out, damn him. Snow stung my eyes as I leaped through the broken window, but I refused to close them or look away. In this endless swirling whiteness, I needed every chance I had to see my prey.
There! Something bright, a light almost lost in the snowstorm. Heedless of the power it cost me, I wreathed myself in flame and charged after them.
16
HOLLY
“Is all of your world this cold?” My kidnapper hissed, barely audible over the storm. I forced a laugh.
“Th-this isn’t cold,” I said, wishing my teeth would stop chattering and ruining my lie. “If you want c-cold, come back in winter.”
It was a little thing, but I didn’t intend to give him any useful information.Seeker might know nothing about humans or their temperature tolerance. Mostly, I wanted to distract him while I shone my phone light back. If Abaddon saw it, maybe he could track me down.
He’d have to be quick, though. The cold was in my bones already, and I’d be an icicle soon if I didn’t get into shelter.
“Doesn’t matter. All I need is a bit of space from Abaddon, then I can stop, make fire.” Seeker wasn’t speaking to me, just thinking aloud, but it still gave me hope to hear his plans. If he planned to make a fire, I had a chance of survival.
But then Seeker would use me as leverage with Abaddon, and that would be awful no matter the outcome. I had to do something while we were still close enough for Abaddon to find me.
So I did the only think I could think of, slung over a demon’s shoulder as he flew away. I grabbed the base of his right wing, pulled my mouth to it, andbit.The screech of agony that followed was its own reward, so I bit down harder.
Seeker lost control, thrashing in midair and spinning. Tree limbs struck like whips as he flew into them, and I heard the awful tearing noise as one impaled his wing membrane. That was enough to make him let go, and I hit another couple of branches on the way down to the snow-covered ground.
I landed with athumpthat knocked the breath out of me, and my phone tumbled from my hand. From the sound of his cursing, Seeker came down more gently, but I still figured I was ahead. Woozily pulling myself to my feet, I leaned against a tree trunk to steady myself while I tried to work out which way to go.
Snow crunched under Seeker’s feet, which gave me enough warning to duck aside and put the tree between us. Burning claws carved into the trunk, missing me by inches, and I yelped and stumbled back.
“You mortal bitch,” the scout roared, stalking around the tree and advancing on me. His left wing trailed behind him, the membrane torn in three places.Yeah, you’re not flying anywhere.“I will kill you, skin you, and use your hide for boots.”
His delivery was so matter of fact that it didn’t seem like a threat. Just an angry description of what he was going to do now.
“Hey, hey, you need me for bargaining, remember?” I kept backing away. He kept advancing. And the distance between us shrank with each step.
“Bah. I will do without. Perhaps Abaddon will pay for my new footwear.” Seeker spread his lips into an expression that someone might, from a distance, confuse for a smile. Up close, his rows of pointed teeth didn’t look friendly at all.
I kept backing away, knowing I was only buying time. His stride was longer than mine, and he could see where he wasgoing. But turning my back on him seemed like an even worse idea.
“Now, you’re not thinking straight,” I said, working on the theory that as long as we were talking he wasn’t skinning me.All I have to do is stay alive until Abaddon finds me,I told myself, deliberately not thinking about how disorienting the storm was. “If you kill me, Abaddon will kill you too. Killing me isn’t worth dying for, right?”
“His time has passed. He is weak, too weak to rule, and too proud to serve.” Seeker sneered as he spoke, still advancing. “I don’t need him for anything, and he can’t catch me in this storm. So, no, you aren’t worth dying for, but that won’t save you.”
That was when I ran out of space to retreat into. My foot hit a rock, tripping me to sprawl against a tree trunk. No more running away. I’d delayed as long as I could.
Seeker’s grin widened into a horrific gulf of teeth. He raised his clawed hand, advancing slowly, savoring my last moments.
And then something hit him like a missile out of the darkness. A sleek black shape, soundless and too fast to see properly, slammed into Seeker with enough force to send him staggering.
Belial. Abaddon’s hellhound snapped silently at the scout’s face, and I took advantage of the distraction to get to my feet. My ankle hurt, but it would take my weight. That would have to do.
“Get off me, cur!” Seeker’s shriek followed me as I limped into the woods, heading where the trees grew thickest and hoping my trail wasn’t too obvious.
The demon scout was no slouch in a fight, though. His stone-like skin helped against Belial’s bites, letting him ignore the hellhound’s attacks and take control of the grapple. A canine yelp had me looking over my shoulder to see Seeker throw him into a tree. He dropped to the ground and didn’t rise. Puffsof smoke rising from his mouth were the only evidence the hellhound still lived
Crap.I hoped he’d be okay, but I couldn’t go back and help. All that would accomplish was getting myself caught again. Instead, I hurried on as Seeker set out in pursuit.If I can’t help Belial, perhaps I can lead that fucker away.
Which was a fine theory, but less practical than I’d like. My top limping speed wouldn’t get me far, so I headed into the thickest parts of the forest. At least there, the trees would slow Seeker down too.
It felt like a slasher movie, with me hobbling from tree to tree and a monster behind me, slowly but surely catching up. My plan, if it could be called that, was to head in the direction Belial had come from, hoping it was a straight line back to the cabin. Among the trees, though, I couldn’t exactly stop and look for signs.
