Red Blooded

“Save the demonesses!” they cried.

“Run for cover!”

“The animals are loose!”

“The Scriptures are true.”

I slammed into the two demon guards who stood beside me and sent them flying, pivoting toward my brother at the same time. I grabbed the snake chains and shot pure demon essence into them. The things were blessedly not real and they withered from the force of my magic and slipped off him in an instant. That worked well, I congratulated my wolf. It was the first time we’d used only the pure demon magic. I guess our work paid off. Yay us.

“Damn, Jessica,” Tyler said, shaking the remnants. “Why couldn’t you have done something like that back in the hallway?”

“Because I didn’t know how to wield this crap until about an hour ago.” The dark mass inside me remained slippery and hard to hold on to, it was going to take me some time to learn how to master it.

I turned, glancing up the long stairway. Rourke and Ray were fighting demons at the top. They were battling the guards who had come in the doors behind them. Tyler and I turned to aid them.

“Not so fast.” The Prince’s voice was hard as stone. “You are not leaving this hall until your guilt is proven.”

I turned back around very slowly. The Prince stood alone behind the wooden bench, towering over the proceedings in disgust, his Demon Lords long gone. Watching his minions flee must have been maddening.

I calculated the odds of racing up the steps to Rourke before the Prince could blast me with his magic. He’d likely zap me halfway up and that wasn’t going to help matters. I knew I could fight him off this time, and likely not succumb, but it was still an unknown. If I did fall to his magic, Rourke would be in danger if he came after me, which of course he would.

“I shouldn’t need to remind you,” the Prince intoned, “that you are being tried for your crimes, and you will be sentenced today. I have waited too long for this.” He stood tall over his fleeing domain, his hands clasped in front of him like he didn’t have a care in the world. Power whipped between us. The Prince was ready for a fight, and suddenly I realized this was it. If I fled despite his direct order, he would have a solid excuse to kill me. He might have been waiting for this the entire time.

I glanced around me. The demonesses had left sometime during the melee, which was mildly surprising.

When I didn’t answer him, the Prince stepped down from behind the bench to face me on the floor. Instead of running, I watched with interest as Selene rose from her position on the floor, stumbling to her feet. I met my brother’s gaze and nodded once. He understood my meaning and I felt him ready himself.

Selene’s face contorted in rage as she stood to face us. She had clearly lost some of her faculties, if not all of them. The Underworld had not treated her kindly. The Prince sauntered toward me, coming from around the corner, either not noticing Selene or ignoring her altogether.

The Prince of Hell stopped in front of us and Selene lunged.

She took hold of him from behind, her hands going to his neck, screaming, “I will kill you once and for all! You can’t hold me against my will any longer!”

Oily blood gushed from the wounds, but the Prince didn’t flinch.

I wasn’t going to stick around and watch, because this diversion was exactly what we’d needed. I had no idea what Selene was going to do, attack me or the Prince, but either worked. Tyler and I turned at the same moment and raced up the steps toward the boys, who were still fighting in the back.

There was a loud noise behind us as the Prince shouted, “You have been a thorn in my side since the day you arrived. I will tolerate it no longer. I will happily rid the Underworld of you once and for all!”

Power swirled around the room and the few remaining demons fled, shouting their fear in Demonish. Their Prince had clearly lost it and everyone had received the memo.

“You can’t get rid of me that easily,” Selene raged. “I am a goddess!”

“Not any longer.”

There was a boom, followed by a thunderous amount of power that rippled through the arena. Tyler and I reached the top, ignoring what was happening below, focusing on the destruction in front of us instead.

Ray smiled at me from across the landing, his fingers forming a small salute off his forehead. It was so good to see him. And now that he was here, I felt my connection with him jump in my veins for the first time. “These guys can’t fight worth a shit,” he shouted, gesturing to the demons lying on the ground in a pile around him. “They were a piece of cake to take down, but I have no idea if they’re actually dead or not.” He touched one with the tip of his boot. It didn’t move. “I’m guessing they’re not dead. That would be too easy.”

“Jessica,” Rourke yelled, leaping over several downed demons and moving toward me quickly. He scooped me up in a tight embrace, his hands covering my back and neck, his lips falling by my ear. “I’m so glad you’re still in one piece.”

He smelled so good. My wolf howled in pleasure. It was hard not to attack him, but that had to wait. We were still very much in danger. “I’m fine,” I said, running my hands along his chest like they’d suddenly been magnetized to his skin. I hadn’t let myself realize how much I missed his touch, missed him. “You got here quickly—more quickly than I thought possible.”

Before he could answer, Ray’s voice piped up: “He dove into the circle the moment your energy zipped out. I had to fight to get in there with him. He threatened the witches within an inch of their lives to send him immediately.” Ray chuckled. “They had no choice but to send us or risk his wrath.”

Rourke growled, his lips still lingering near my ear. “He held on to my leg like a child and wouldn’t let go.” His grudging respect for Ray was apparent. “So he came by default.”

“What about Eudoxia?” I asked. The Vamp Queen was supposed to have joined our little party.

“I have no idea.” Rourke shrugged. He let me go reluctantly. “If she wants your blood, she’ll get here.” He glanced down at me, his irises radiating a delicious soft green. “Now we have to get out of here. This place reeks of nastiness.” He grabbed my hand, leading me toward the big double doors I’d first come through.

I turned before we exited, glancing down in to the arena. The Prince was grinning over Selene’s broken body. As I looked on, his gaze slowly landed on mine. It was piercing even from this distance.