Page 64 of The Cries of Monsters
I clenched and unclenched my fists at my sides and tried to swallow against the razor-sharp pain in my throat, but my mouth was too dry. I scanned the floor desperately for anything that could be turned into a weapon, but there was nothing but smeared black blood, the smooth marble floor, and the circle of red fire that held us captive.
“Assholes!” I cursed, my voice cracking, and I shoved at their backs again. I knew I shouldn’t have cared. They were fucking monsters, and I’d grown up hating the beings who took my sister, but fear clawed at me, and my heart throbbed with pain.
Movement from my left drew my attention, and I shouted as an outlier sprang at us.
Asher was ready for the creature and didn’t hesitate to shoot forward into the outlier’s path. Panic seized me as his wrapped hand connected forcefully with the side of the outlier’s head. A disgusting crack sounded, and the beast flew backward, sprawling to the floor on its side a few yards away.
For a moment, hope sparked in my chest at Asher’s victory, but then my eyes widened in horror as he grunted in pain and began shaking his arm. His shirt caught fire where it connected with the outlier, and the fire moved faster than he could remove the burning clothing.
“Asher!” I cried, and my eyes began to water as the fire ate further up his arm.
Darian’s muscles tensed as he prepared to fight the outlier approaching from the other side, but Asher moved past him.
“No, brother,” Asher gritted out, though his face was contorted with agony. “I’ve got this one too. Protect Raine.”
Darian’s expression hardened at Asher’s words, and I could see the reluctance on his face as he stepped back, but he nodded at the demon.No. No. No. No.Asher was too kind. Too fucking good to be sacrificing himself for me.
The skin tightened around Darian’s eyes, and his lips thinned. “I’ll see you where the air burns red and the earth is black,” he said as some kind of strange goodbye.
Twisting his head, Asher replied with a weak grin, “See you in hell, brother.” He looked as though he wanted to say more, but as the flames traveled up over his shoulder, the outlier stopped scratching at the floor and charged.
Asher turned his back to us and dodged to the side. Spinning around, he grabbed the outlier in midair with his powerful arms, jolting it to a halt. His hands moved to grip the top and bottom of the outlier’s mouth, and then he pulled, his biceps flexing as he tore the creature’s lower jaw off with a sickening ripping sound. I winced but kept watching as he shifted his arms and then ripped off the creature’s entire head before dropping the outlier’s body to the ground.
Asher took a step toward us, but he stopped as the flames burning both his arms licked across his bare chest. The skin touched by the fire looked as though it was trying to heal, and I guessed that was what was slowing the spread, but his demon healing ability wasn’t fast enough.
Darian let out a pained noise beside me, and I fidgeted with my trembling hands. Not far from Asher, the outlier Asher had punched in the head slowly lifted to its feet. It blinked its beady red eyes at Asher, then launched toward Darian and me. Darian dropped into an offensive stance, but Asher clumsily moved toward the creature and jumped onto the creature’s back before it could pass him.
With a pained roar, he wrapped an arm around the creature’s head. The outlier screeched, trying to buck from side to side, but Asher held on. His arm around the outlier’s head tightened, and the creature’s bones cracked before the skin and muscle tore, the outlier’s head ripping clean from its grotesque body. Asher stood as the outlier’s body crashed downward, and I choked back a cry as flames engulfed Asher’s entire body, racing over his legs, torso, and head. He took two steps away from the outlier before falling to his knees. His violet eyes peered at Darian, then fixed on me.
I couldn’t do anything but stare back as the flames burned away his shaggy hair and ran up his beautiful, curved horns.Beautiful.Because even though Asher was a monster, hewasbeautiful. Goddess, I’d never felt so useless. The bond between us sent a wave of pain through me, but it wasn’t physical pain. It was a throbbing agony in my heart that told me if Asher was taken from me, I’d never be whole again. A stream of curses went through my mind.
A shadow fell from above, and I prepared myself to fight the outlier with my bare hands like Asher had, but as I peered up, it was Locke who’d flown through one of the high windows. His black wings folded behind his back as he landed silently before Darian and me, and his dark gaze quickly swept over my body before he turned his attention to Asher.
Locke’s body hardened as he watched the burning demon, and he clenched his jaw so forcefully it looked painful. Blue blood was splattered on his face and along his arms, and I frowned at the sight of it.
“Why isn’t he fucking healing, Dar? Fire can’t kill demons. Not with their healing ability,” Locke ground out. “And why the fuck didn’t you get Raine out of here?”
“It’s not a natural fire. Anything the outliers touch ignites into flame,” Darian replied, stepping up beside the vampire.
“And it’s not Darian’s fault I’m here,” I added. “Youshould have taken us with you to fight the fae. Then Asher wouldn’t be on the floor fucking dying.”
Locke’s cold gaze slid to my face. He didn’t respond, but something like regret briefly shone in his eyes before it was gone again. A part of me knew it was wrong to make it sound like the whole situation was Locke’s fault. Fighting the fae could have been just as dangerous, and he hadn’t known outliers were going to attack the party. But the part of me that was hurting and confused, that part wanted someone to blame.
Asher remained on his knees with his head hung low. His healing power was still trying to heal the damage the fire was creating, but it wasn’t fast enough, and his skin had begun peeling away.
“Kade’s on his way. I would have carried him, but I feared I wouldn’t make it here in time,” Locke said as his gaze roved over the other monsters around the room, then returned to Asher. “And it looks like I haven’t.” He stepped forward then as if he intended to try to walk to the demon, but Darian gripped his arm. “If you touch the fire, you’ll burn as well.”
Locke cursed, but when Darian released his arm, he remained where he was.
I was still staring at Asher when Darian shifted.
“What the fuck?” Locke said under his breath, and I lifted my head to follow his gaze.
A dark figure dressed all in black strode toward us from across the room, and I squinted to try and make them out through the flames and haze of smoke. The figure walked through the red fire as though the flames were as cool as the mountain wind, and when I made out Warrick’s cruel face, I wasn’t surprised. Around the ballroom, the remaining outliers stopped attacking and all stared at him as if he was their god.
Warrick’s clothes burned away as he walked, and by the time he stopped a short distance from us, he was completely naked. However, unlike Asher, the vampire was unharmed.
“Locke, my son. I was starting to think you might miss the demonstration. It has been most successful, as you can see,” Warrick said and opened his arms wide, gesturing to the chaos of the room as if he was proud of the destruction.