Page 5 of A Blade of Blood and Shadow (The Ravaged Kingdom #1)

The blade had been forged to be deadly to demons, and being this close to Julian and the hooded males seemed to have activated its magic.

But that was absurd. Demons couldn’t penetrate the veil that separated the mortal world from the Otherworld. And yet . . .

My mind raced. If they were demons, I couldn’t just stab them — not when I was so outnumbered. I couldn’t risk losing the one weapon I had that would be effective against them.

Drawing two ordinary daggers from the sheaths at my thighs, I pivoted so that I could keep all three in my sight.

The one possessing Julian had to be the weak link.

Julian’s body was still mortal, which meant that if I killed him, the demon would have to find another host — or remain vulnerable in his primordial form.

That might buy me some time.

But before I could formulate a plan for the other two, the demons started to encroach. A wicked grin twisted Julian’s normally dour face as the demon possessing his body took a few slow steps forward.

The demon on my left moved. One second, he was standing in the aisle, blocking my exit. The next, he was right in front of me.

I slashed at his throat, but he dodged my blade easily. His hand shot out to grasp my neck, and panic overrode my senses.

This demon wasn’t solid, so I couldn’t feel his fingers, but I felt the force they were exerting on my windpipe. I couldn’t breathe — couldn’t think.

I whipped my other dagger across his throat, but the blade went straight through him as if slicing through air. I staggered under my own momentum, but the demon didn’t release his grip. The demon’s form wavered momentarily, and then the pressure disappeared from my throat.

Suddenly, he was all around me — a dozen black-eyed monsters hemming me in from every direction. I whipped my head from side to side, searching for a way out. But then strong arms clamped around my body — squeezing so hard that my lungs couldn’t expand.

And then . . . I was burning alive.

The demon who held me seemed to be made of fire, though his body was as solid as any man’s. Scorching-hot flames lapped at my back, and something sinister slipped inside me.

It felt like a thousand tiny clawed things burrowing under my skin. I screamed, but my body was suddenly not my own, and my hand went limp. My dagger clattered to the ground.

Shit .

Not only was I burning alive, but a demon was inside me — bending my body to his will. Terror and pain clanged through me, but all I could do was scream as flames lapped at my skin.

Then I felt those flames along my leg — fingerlike tendrils of fire clawing at the witchwood blade — and something inside me snapped back into place.

Immediately, the crawling sensation disappeared. The pain from the flames was still blinding, but I used that pain to focus my attention on reaching for my dagger. The runes flared white-hot as my fingers closed around the hilt, but this heat didn’t burn me.

Summoning all my strength, I backhanded the blade and plunged it into the fire demon’s thigh — or where his thigh should have been.

An inhuman screech rent the air, and those flames seemed to sputter around me. I stabbed again, and acrid black smoke filled the air as the fire ebbed away.

I ripped myself out of the demon’s grip, but he reappeared in front of me. I hadn’t killed him — just aggravated him. A desperate growl tore from my throat.

I’d never slain a demon before, and I wasn’t sure what I’d done wrong. Maybe it had to be a fatal wound. Maybe I needed to drive the blade through his heart. But did demons even have hearts ?

Before I could act, the demon’s fire flared, and a wall of flame erupted all around me, forming a ring around the shop. A smoke detector blared from overhead, making my ultra-sensitive hunter ears ring.

My panic mounted. The heat of the fire was already unbearable. Flames licked up the walls, burning hotter and brighter than any mundane fire. Sweat stung the burns I’d sustained in the struggle, and the heat aggravated them even more.

My eyes watered as I looked left and right, searching in vain for an escape route. There was no way out but through.

Just then, a spit of water sprayed my cheek as the automatic sprinklers turned on, filling the room with smoke. The fire demon’s gaze flicked to the ceiling.

That was all I needed.

I lunged with all my preternatural speed, driving my witchwood blade into the fire demon’s heart. To my shock and horror, my blade met no resistance. It sank right through the burning core of hellfire, and a chute of black smoke engulfed us both.

A cacophony of wails and screams joined the blare of the smoke alarm, and through my haze of tears, I saw their faces. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of them contorted in agony. Shrieking as they pressed through the smoke to escape.

I lunged for the door under the emergency exit sign — the door leading to the alley. Twelve copies of the other demon swarmed me at once, trying to herd me back toward the center of the shop.

I burst through the illusions as though they were nothing — ripping a table runner off a nearby display to cover my face and neck. I howled into the fabric as the hellfire licked at my exposed hands, but the noise was swallowed by the whoosh of flames.

The smell of scorched hair filled my airways, and I fumbled blindly for the door handle. I yelped as the metal blistered my palm but tightened my grip and forced my way through.

Cool air lapped at my skin as I stumbled into the dark alley. I sucked it in with great heaving gasps, even as my lungs burned from the smoke. It felt like breathing in shards of broken glass, but my whole body sang in relief as I drank in air that reeked of exhaust and rotten meat.

I collapsed on all fours, still clutching the witchwood blade. A low menacing chuckle reached my ears, turning my bowels to liquid.

More of the same voice joined in the laughter until twelve copies of the hooded demon surrounded me. Behind him, I could see Julian standing in the doorway to the shop.

My nostrils flared in irritation. These guys just didn’t give up.

Stifling a whimper of pain, I pushed myself up onto one knee. The palm of my free hand was covered in weeping blisters, which now had little bits of dirt and gravel stuck to them.

Gritting my teeth, I launched myself toward the wall of demons and plunged my dagger into the nearest one’s heart. My blade found its home, but the demon just laughed before vanishing and reappearing on my left.

I swore. I’d stabbed a copy, not the actual demon.

A chorus of evil laughter echoed off the brick walls around me, scraping against my mind. I glared from one copy to another, but they were all identical. And the way they shifted and circled me in the alley, it would be impossible to keep track of which ones were the copies.

A loud thud drew my attention, and I looked over my shoulder to see Julian’s body slumped on the ground. It didn’t move. I couldn’t tell if the real Julian was still alive or not, but half a second later, I ceased to care.

I felt a caress along my mind, and a chill shot down my spine. The touch was light but sinister in nature, and everything inside me recoiled.

Then a low, seductive whisper filled my ears, its tone gentle and persuasive.

Don’t worry, pet. I’m here now.

My gaze flickered to the twelve copies of the hooded demon, but none of their lips were moving. More beguiling whispers joined in with the first voice, and I realized they were coming from inside my mind.

My, what a pretty little huntress.

So determined, and yet so fragile.

I could shatter your mind in an instant, but what fun would that be?

Hand over the blade. That’s a good girl.

We won’t hurt you . . .

The voices rose to a crescendo, filling every corner of my consciousness. I shook my head and tried to focus on something other than those deafening whispers, but the harder I tried to drown them out, the more voices joined in.

Then I felt it again — that strange burrowing sensation. Only these claws were digging into my mind.

Then I understood.

Julian had served his purpose, and the third demon had left his body. The demon was looking for his next host — trying to invade my mind .

I tensed as those clawed things caressed my consciousness once again, and terror rippled through me when they found a crack in my mental armor and dug in.

In an instant, those whispers filled every nook and cranny in my mind, replacing every other thought. The witchwood blade clattered to the ground as I instinctively slammed my hands over my ears. I couldn’t block them out, and it was agony .

Every thought and feeling was crowded out, replaced by something evil and other . Something that did not belong to me. Something that would break me if I didn’t get it out.

It felt as though my head might split in two, and I was powerless to stop what was happening.

My stomach heaved as my knees hit hard asphalt, but the pain barely registered.

I retched, and it felt as though my stomach were twisting itself into knots — trying to expel the vile thing that had taken root inside of me.

I looked up, and the twelve demon copies parted. They turned in unison to face the mouth of the alley, where a tall figure stood shrouded in shadow. A pair of enormous wings fanned out behind the newcomer, gilded in the silver glow from the streetlights.

Then a silky male voice rang out — cutting through the roar of voices in my head and caressing my very senses. “Well, well . . . fancy seeing you two here.”