Page 86 of Blood of Night (The Thorne Hill)

“The one we used to cut through the monsters Bael sent after us?” I ask.

“That one is decent, but the one I had brought over from my collection in Spain is better balanced.” Lucas turns his head, meeting my eyes. “And I believe you sharpened the blade during the nesting phase of your pregnancy.”

“Ah, I did. It was very comforting to organize and sharpen my weapons. I’ve never been very domestic, you know.”

“Okay,” Eamon says to himself. “I knew there was something…off about you two, but the fuck kind of kink are you into?”

Something else comes blundering through the trees on the side of the house, moving ungracefully. It passes right through my warding without setting it off, and is close enough I can hear its rattled breathing and smell the decay of its flesh.

“I’m going to need any old blade now,” Lucas says, going to the top of the steps. Scarlet is on her way back, proudly dragging something along with her. It’s putting up a fight, but whatever she has is more or less swinging its arm at her as if it has little control over its body.

“Oh god.” I bring my hand to my nose and immediately understand why Lucas wanted the sword. Because Scarlet just brought me a zombie, and it’s not just any old person.

It’s the very first body I ever resurrected.

ChapterThirty-Six

The body of the man whose name I never did find out is in an advanced state of decay. He’s hardly anything more than bones at this point, and if it wasn’t for the clothes, I wouldn’t have recognized him. Eyes wide, I look at him, pathetically clawing at Scarlet in a feeble attempt to break free of her hold.

“Rip his head off,” I tell her. Decapitation worked last time when we dealt with zombies. Scarlet chomps down, needing only two bites to devour the zombie’s head. Grimacing, I look away and then turn my eyes to Lucas, wondering if he remembers this man as well. He’ll forever be seared into my memory because it was the first time I tried something as drastic as a resurrection. It was also the first time I wasn’t able to save someone I set out to save.

Lucas’s brows push together ever so slightly, and he gives me a small nod, letting me know that he does remember.

“The sword,” he says when another zombie falls over an uneven patch of dirt in the front yard. It’s an older woman, and I recognize her as well. She’s the woman who I hid in the bathroom during Paimon’s attack. She was injured but it didn’t seem grave at the time. She’s wearing a pink dress suit and has a crooked hat pinned to her head. I don’t understand at first, and then it hits me: she must have succumbed to her injuries and died later.

Lucas and Evander did their best to recover bodies to their families if they could. Most would have raised too many questions and had to be buried. Dozens of demons burned through bodies that night. I didn’t ask for the final count because I didn’t want to know, but my body goes cold as I realize that the zombies coming for me are all people I couldn’t save.

“You might want to grab two,” Eamon says, pushing his shoulders back when a group of zombies lumber out of the woods. Once they hit the open front yard, they pick up speed, and they’re moving fast. I watch in horror and then blink, shaking myself into action. The warding isn’t going to stop them because zombies aren’t inherently evil. They’re dumb but dangerous, acting on their only impulse to consume the flesh of the living. I head inside for weapons and to check on our daughter.

“Everything okay out there?” Kristy asks. She’s perched on the edge of the couch, holding Juliet.

“Zombies,” I start.

“Again?” Kristy makes a face.

“Yeah, and then there’s this.” I hold out my hand, summoning red hellfire. “I’m going to take a guess that somehow bringing back the people I couldn’t save is another broken seal.”

“Should I take them to the Covenstead?” Eliza asks.

I shake my head. “The zombies are coming from the woods. I’m not sure where all the bodies were buried, but a note should be sent.”

“On it,” Kristy says and stands. I take Juliet from her, cradling my baby against my chest. “It's going to be okay, sweetheart.” I kiss her and give her to Eliza. “I’ll get the ring, just in case.”

“Good idea.” Eliza’s pretty face is strained, and she takes Juliet from me. She starts crying as soon as she’s out of my arms and it pains me to run up the stairs and leave her crying in the living room. It’s better than zombies crashing through the windows and going after her. Gritting my teeth, I run into my room, first stopping at my dresser to get the ring from my jewelry box. I slip it around my pinky finger and rush into my closet.

When I was in my crazy nesting, I polished, sharpened, and reorganized everything. My smaller weapons are in a chest in the back of my closet, and the bigger ones are hanging up on the wall, hidden behind my clothes. I push a bunch of black dresses away and grab two swords, forgetting for a second how heavy they are. I drop them to the ground and open the chest, pulling out the karambit knife my father gave me back around Christmas time.

“Callie!” Kristy screams from downstairs and I spring up when the sound of glass shattering echoes through the house. My spine tingles with nerves and I get a flash of when Paimon and the Horsemen attacked us. Now’s not the time to get hit with a PTSD flashback. Sucking in a breath, I grab the weapons and sprint back down the stairs, emerging into the kitchen. I turn and see Kristy in the family room, holding Juliet to her chest. A zombie launched himself through one of the windows and is stuck on a piece of broken class. Eliza grabs it by the hair, lifting it up and shoving it outside.

“The fuck.” She holds up her hands, disgusted to see dirt under her nails.

“Remember what you said,” I tell her, pulling one of the swords from its sheath. “She’s worth ruining your manicure over.”

I take the ring off my pinky finger and give it to Kristy. “Alona,” I repeat her name just to be sure. “If you need her, call her.”

“I will.” She slips the ring on her finger and cradles Juliet’s head. “I’ll keep her safe.”

“Attic,” Eliza barks. “Now!” I kiss Juliet and watch Kristy disappear up the stairs. Freya shadows behind them, promising to protect Juliet. Heart in my throat, I blink back my emotions and heft up the heavy swords, running to the porch.

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