Page 33

Damon

K it’s pale face loomed in my mind as I launched myself at Azazel.

I heard Lemeraties shouting her name.

I saw Frankie shoving herself to her hands and knees, unsteadily swaying as she shook herself free of the rocks and debris.

And Azazel…I saw that big-ass mother-fucker as he doubled up his hands and swung them at me like a batter at home plate. Stupid, fucking moron. I dodged left and evaded the two-handed punch, catching both of his arms in one of mine.

Then, staring him in the eye, I brought up a clawed hand and sliced down, severing tendon and muscle in one arm. If he wasn’t built like a damn truck, I might have cut clear through the limb. Oh, well. I could always try again.

He bellowed and tried to swing at me again but the hand wouldn’t cooperate and this time, I was able to catch his open palm with mine—who said high-fives were out of style? Trapping his hand and keeping his arm extended, I brought my right up, claws extended. This time, I sliced through the remaining tissue like it was butter. The limb fell to the ground as blood geysered out.

“You pathetic creature!” He spun away, clamping his remaining hand over the stump. “I’m going to rip you apart limb from limb.”

“Going to be hard when you only have one hand.”

I heard the air whistling and dodged instinctively, recognizing the sound of an arrow in flight easily—Kit loved her bow and arrow… Kit …

Not now . Rage and agony threatened to tear me to shreds but first, I was going to shred this bastard. Pouncing on Azazel, I hauled him against me and spun just in time to use his body as a shield against the next arrow. He screamed, trying to throw me off.

“You’re dead,” I told him. “Both of you. Are. Fucking. Dead.”

I opened my mouth, sank long, wicked incisors into his neck. His blood spilled down my throat and all over my face and he struggled, trying to break free. I didn’t let go. The air was thick with his blood and I chewed and bit my way to his spine.

He heaved and wrenched, finally throwing me off.

But he was off-balance and one-armed, and a shit fighter and he toppled over next to me.

Springing back up, I spat blood out at his feet.

An arrow pierced my side—I felt the burn of silver and ripped it out, lunging for Arsay.

The world was spinning out of control.

Kit… Kit… Kit!

Hauling Arsay up with my hand around her throat, I said, “I’m going to gut you.”

Lemeraties slammed into me and the cold, unearthly touch of the grave shrouded me. “No! She wouldn’t want this. We can still save the boy!”

The boy…

Arsay bared bloody teeth at me. “You think he can beat me?”

Snarling, I body-slammed her to the ground, hard enough that I heard the skull crack. Her eyes— Doyle’s eyes—rolled back and the body went limp.

Wheeling back to face Azazel, I saw him limping back to the edge of the plateau, to the bloody smear where we’d first seen the girl called Meti. The rich, powerful scent of blood teased my nostrils and I felt the rise of electricity in the air.

“Oh, the fuck you’re running away,” I shouted at him, leaping after him.

He tried to avoid me but he couldn’t. He couldn’t outrun me. Not after this. I’d chase him clear into hell if I had to.

But I wouldn’t have to—he was moving too slow to evade me and I smashed into him, knocking both of us clear off the plateau. Tumbling ass over heels, we went over the steep face of the cliff. He screamed as I drove my claws into him every place I could reach—and I could reach a lot of places. Blood rained over us both, slicking my flesh and his, until it was getting harder to hold onto him.

We crashed onto the rocky path at the base of the cliff face and separated.

Azazel shot upright, stinking of fear and madness, and when he saw me, he backed up, one slow step at a time. “You’ve had your pound of flesh, boy. Enough is enough. Walk away and I’ll let you live.”

“ You are going to let me live?” Baring my teeth at him, I said, “That’s real funny, you evil piece of shit.”

“I haven’t shown you the depths of my power.” Black light bent the air around him. “You might be strong, boy , but you’re nothing like me.”

“You bleed. You die. That’s all that matters.”

He took another step back.

The chasm caused by the quake yawned open behind him. There was no way he wasn’t aware of it—

Clever fucker .

Old as he was, powerful as he was, falling down that hole, no matter deep it was, wouldn’t kill him. I knew that because something like that wouldn’t kill Chang.

I had no idea if it would kill me.

Not that it mattered.

I was fucking dead inside now.

Kit …

Stop him. Don’t let it all be for nothing .

Her voice, so weak and faint, haunted me.

“You think I don’t know what you’re doing?” I asked casually, seamlessly shifting my half-form to my human skin and staring him down.

He smirked. “It doesn’t matter. You can’t hope to stop me.”

He spun around.

I lunged.

Claws sliced out of the tips of my fingers.

In my half-form, they were long and curved, deadly.

But that wasn’t the only time I could summon them.

I was done holding back.

He was three feet from the edge when I took him down. I slammed the claws of my right hand straight through his back into his heart.

“That was for Kit.” I flipped him over and stared into his wide, stunned eyes, struck him again. “That was for my family.”

Again.

“That was for Chang’s family.”

Again.

“That was for the kid.”

Again.

“And another for Kit…for you taking her away from me.”

This time, I closed my hand around his heart—it beat frantically. Even after I ripped it out, it was still pulsing.

I straightened and stared into his fogged, dying eyes.

“You’re still alive,” I said. “Because of what you are. But you can’t stop me. And in a minute, when I cut your fucking head off and end you, know that you’re dead because you and that bitch took Kit from me.”

I sank my teeth into his heart and devoured it.

My kill.

Azazel tried to move as I bent and grabbed his long hair, gilt splattered liberally with gold. Yanking tight, I arched his neck. “You took her from me. I’m ending you.”

He managed one pitiful plea before I severed his head.