Page 63 of Love At the Gates of Hell (The Seven Sinners Trilogy #1)

“Benny, please.” Her father’s voice was pleading.

“Dad, I can do this,” she said firmly. “I’ve been working hard and Mom— I’ve had her help, too.”

Angelo’s brow furrowed and his mouth opened but—

“You know what to do!” a voice called out from the other side of the nave and suddenly half a dozen vampires were coming towards them. “Master wants the witch in one piece.”

“Give me the gun, Benny.” Gideon’s voice was quiet against her ear.

Benny was surprised to see the vampire from the quarry leading the pack.

And he seemed eager to finish what they had started.

Although she knew her father wanted to argue more, they were all distracted by the men coming to attack them.

She passed Gideon the gun, more than happy to be done with it before stepping forward, her hands up in front of her, her magic tingling her skin.

“Be careful,” was all her father said before he took a shot at one of the men.

It pierced his shoulder, but it wasn’t enough to stop him, the vampire hissing as he lunged at her father. She had never seen him in action before, although she had imagined it too many times to count. But it was amazing now to see him, taking on the vampire with surprising agility.

Gideon had guns in both hands, firing off shots at the men approaching, some of them vampire, some of them human.

Mack’s gun wasn’t loaded with wooden bullets, and the vampire from the quarry slipped through the gunfire.

He was fully fanged out and looked incredibly pissed off. Like this was personal.

A strangled roar came from the altar, startling Benny.

Frank was pushing himself up onto his feet, his hand clutching at the gunshot wound Gideon left in his shoulder.

He was losing a lot of blood, but it wasn’t enough to keep him down, his voice ragged as he continued with his spell.

He was brandishing the ruby, ripping the stone from the chain and reaching for his knife.

It was all happening so quickly.

“What the hell is he doing?” Gideon muttered as he landed another punch.

“We can’t let him finish—” she started.

But one of the vampires grabbed at her arm, drawing her back. She knew what was coming next. And no one seemed capable of doing anything about it. The floor rumbled beneath their feet, and she feared they had run out of time.

“Come with me, witch,” the vampire said. “We’ll make sure you have a good seat to the transformation.”

But Benny couldn’t keep her eyes off the jewel, even as she struggled against the vampire’s hold.

The stone was glowing brighter and brighter and seemed to light Frank up from the inside out as he carefully tucked it into the open slice in his skin.

Knowing the step in the Codex wasn’t enough to prepare her for seeing it in person.

“ Benny! ”

Gideon’s voice was enough to snap her out of her trance, and she yanked against the vampire more roughly, using her body to try and give herself enough leverage to escape from his grasp.

The floor was shaking, bits of stone falling into itself.

She used the brief distraction to get the upper hand.

She sucked in a breath. If he wasn’t going to let her go, she was going to use that.

She twisted, both of her hands wrapping around his forearm, and she let the heat of her magic work its way into his skin.

He yelped and let her go, stumbling back as his skin started to bubble.

“You bitch,” he growled.

But she didn’t let him get closer, her hands flaring out with the energy simmering under the surface, a bright flash of light engulfing the vampire and turning him to ash.

In the time she had killed one, Gideon and her father had dispatched the rest.

But the ritual was calling to her. Like her blood was singing for some kind of release.

She needed to focus.

Suddenly a high-pitched noise filled the cathedral.

It was slow and eerie and made Benny’s brain feel like it was about to split open.

She swayed in her spot as she pressed her hands to her temples, her eyes squeezing shut.

This was it. She could feel the transformation happening like it was her own body, as if her blood was forever tied to Frank and his new demon form.

She could feel warm hands on her shoulders keeping her steady.

“What’s wrong?” Gideon’s voice was quiet, concerned.

“Benny?” her father asked.

“The ascension,” she gasped through the pain, her hand scrambling for Gideon, fingers curling in the lapel of his jacket. “I can feel it.”

The chanting was dull at first, Frank’s men reaching the destruction of the church grounds and crowding at its edges.

But it grew louder, their voices mingling with the pulsing from beneath them.

She could hardly tell which was which until a heavy lurch shook them where they stood and Benny’s head began to clear.

She blinked her eyes open with a strangled gasp.

Halmanthoran had come to greet them.

“He’s here,” she whispered.

Angelo quickly reloaded the chamber of his rifle.

“Whatever it is you gotta do,” he said, fixing her with a heavy stare, “I’m gonna buy you as much time as I can. We’ll run him down, okay?”

She nodded, her nerves starting to work through her system.

“Crawford,” Angelo continued. “Remember what I told you.”

She watched as something she couldn’t decipher flickered across Gideon’s features and then he reached out to shake her father’s hand. Her face screwed up in curiosity as she watched them, and then her father was off, rejoining the fray within the cathedral.

“What was—”

“I’ll tell you later,” Gideon said, reaching for her good hand. “Come on.”

She followed him, her hand clinging to his as they moved down the right side of the cathedral, crouching low and trying to keep out of sight as the demon pulled himself up from the rubble.

He was horrifying to witness in person, the Codex incapable of really capturing all of his features.

The sheer size of him, the texture of his scales, the sharpness of his teeth, the wings that spanned maybe thirty feet.

His eyes were gold and gleaming and vicious.

“Jesus,” Gideon muttered.

A bullet hit the wall above their heads, and Gideon grabbed for her, tucking her against him as bits of stone fell to the ground.

She brushed debris from out of her eyes and squinted as she caught sight of a body a few pews ahead of them, propped up against a large column, nearly hidden among the prayer candles tucked in the back corner, the altar rails untouched by the fighting so far.

Her skin grew cold when she recognized his face, the unmistakable wire frames, the way his hair fell into his eyes.

“Luke,” she gasped.

“What?” Gideon said, twisting to follow her gaze. “Fuck. Luke —”

They scrambled toward him, keeping low, trying to dodge any outside attention as Frank tested out his new abilities on a few pews in his way.

She flinched as she heard the crack of wood splintering and a bloodcurdling scream.

The blood on her hands would be enough to haunt her the rest of her life, she knew.

But not Luke. Not him, too.

He was pale, clammy, and a little dazed when they finally reached him. His hand was clutching at his stomach, his shirt and his fingers stained with blood. He offered them a small smile and a little finger wave with his other hand. A crossbow lay at his side.

“Sorry, brother,” he said with a dark chuckle. “I’m out of commission.”

“Hey, okay, you’re good,” Gideon said, reassuring him as he crouched down, his hand brushing back his brother’s hair. “What happened?”

“Shotgun wound,” Luke replied. “Fucking sneak attack bullshit.”

“Damnit,” Gideon sighed. “How long, do you think?”

“Without blood, I don’t know,” Luke said, trying to straighten his posture. He grunted and sank back down. “But I’m sure as shit no use to anyone right now.”

Gideon nodded as he started to shrug out of his jacket.

But Benny found she had a much different idea as she sank to her knees beside them both. It was a risk. A hell of a risk, really. But she didn’t think they had a better option.

“If you need blood, take mine.”